Fifth Year

Rose was seated at the breakfast table, a book on Astronomy propped crookedly against the juice jug. She had been revising during breakfast for several weeks now. As a fifth year, she was required to sit her OWLS this year, and she was determined to get straight Os just like her mother. Since Hugo seemed to be increasingly resembling Ron is his studying habits, it had fallen to Rose to carry on the Granger intelligence. Not that she minded; she liked being the bookworm of the family.

"Can't you stop studying for even one minute?" moaned Dominique, plopping herself next to Rose with a loud thunk. Her blonde hair was dishevelled and there were dark circles under her eyes. Rose happened to know that her cousin had spent most of the night before snogging Calvin Davies in the Room of Requirement.

"No, I can't," she replied, spooning cereal into her mouth without taking her eyes off the page in front of her and trying to memorise the significance of Jupiter's twelve moons. "OWLS soon." Dom snorted and buried her face in her coffee.

In truth, Rose was studying even more than normal lately. It still burned in her gut to think of that jerk – her eyes flitted to the Slytherin table but she yanked them back before they got to him – getting a better mark than her in Ancient Runes the previous year, when she hardly saw him studying, ever. She would come top of the class in OWLS this year, or die trying. There was no way a Malfoy was going to beat her at her own game.

Rose was spared further thought about the injustices of Hogwarts' grading system by the post arriving, in the form of hundreds of owls swooping into the Great Hall and dropping their deliveries in the laps of their owners or sometimes, in their breakfast. This was the case with Rose's owl, a rather rebellious and wild animal named Pig Jr. who dropped her Daily Prophet almost deliberately in her bowl of cereal. Rose spluttered as her face and book were sprayed with milk and cornflakes, caught somewhere between humour and irritation. But the smile died on her lips as soon as she caught sight of the front page of the Prophet.

Staring up at her was a man so haggard and filthy he looked only partially human. Indeed, had he not been blinking periodically Rose would have sworn he wasn't alive at all. His hair was matted and tangled, his beard twisting in ropes beyond the length of the photograph. The hollows of his cheeks seemed to sink deep into his skull, as if he teetered on the brink of starvation. But more shocking than the man's ghastly appearance were his eyes, which were filled with such an agonised, tormented look that Rose, although perfectly well dressed, felt suddenly chilled to the marrow.

Beneath the harrowing photo, large words in bold-faced type read:

NOTT CAPTURED

Late yesterday, Theodore Nott, long-time accused servant of the Dark Lord, was apprehended by Ministry of Magic officials in the south of Britain. Nott was captured trying to re-enter England after a suspected hiatus of fifteen years. It is not yet known why he chose to return. The arrest comes after a yearlong operation by the Auror Department, and a spokesperson for the Department said they were pleased with the outcome of their investigation.

Rose skimmed the rest of the article, barely able to process what she was reading. Lines and phrases seemed to jump out at her at random.

Alleged Death Eater…cleared of wrongdoing during the Second Wizarding War…

Disappeared six years after the downfall of Voldemort…

Suspected of the murder of Muggle-Born Bert Taylor…

Sentencing later this month…life in Azkaban…

The last line of the article seemed to glare at her. She was almost afraid to read it.

Nott has a son currently in his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The two have purportedly never met, as Nott disappeared three months before his son was born.

"Oh," was all Rose could say. She looked over to the Slytherin table, where Hector Nott was sitting. He was as white as a sheet, his eyes huge as he stared blankly at the newspaper before him.

"What's going on?" Dominique grabbed the paper from her. "Shit," she said after a moment.

It now seemed like every pair of eyes in the Great Hall was fixed on Nott, who sat like a rabbit in headlights, unable to move. Rose's heart went out to him. She neither liked nor disliked Nott, having barely spoken to him in her life. She knew him only as a tall, lanky Slytherin who said very little, but was always courteous enough when he did. She couldn't imagine what he must be feeling.

The Hall was deathly silent. Then, breaking through it like a sledgehammer, came a voice from the far end of the Hufflepuff table.

"Filthy Death Eater got what he deserved!"

Rose saw Scorpius stand up abruptly, eyes flashing. So too, she noted with a sinking heart, did Albus. Her cousin turned his fierce gaze in the direction the voice had come from.

"You want to stand up and say that again, McDonald?" he practically shouted. Nobody moved a muscle. Even the teachers seemed shocked into stillness and McDonald, whoever he was, had clearly exhausted his supply of bravado. It would have taken a very courageous soul indeed to stand up to both Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy at once. They did make quite an intimidating pair.

She couldn't take her eyes off him. Rose watched as Scorpius bent down and whispered something in Nott's ear. Nott nodded, still with the same dazed expression, and stood up. Together, the three of them – Albus, Scorpius, and Hector – walked from their table and out of the Great Hall. As soon as they had gone, a babble of talk broke out among the students, all frantically discussing what had just occurred. The only comparatively quiet corner was the Slytherin's. Many of them turned darkly back to their breakfast, thoughtful and brooding. Rose wasn't sure what to think.

Presently she became aware of a sharp pain in her finger. Looking down, she realised Pig had been pecking it repeatedly for several minutes in a vain attempt to get her attention.

"What?" she was about to shoo him away when she saw the note still tied to his leg. She had completely missed it in all the commotion. "Oh, sorry Pig!" she untied it and let the owl help himself to her now soggy cereal. The handwriting was her mother's:

Rose,

You've probably heard the news about Nott by now. Your father and Harry were both involved in his capture, so they've known since yesterday. I want you to keep an eye on Albus. I know he's good friends with Hector and I wouldn't want this news to upset him. Let me know if you think he's not coping. Hope you're well,

Love,

Mum.

Rose scrunched up the note and heaved a weary sigh. It was times like these she felt about one hundred years old.

Rose barely saw Albus in the ensuing weeks. What with studying for the upcoming exams, taking all her extra classes, and the tutoring she had taken on for a little pocket money, she didn't have much time for herself, and even less for her family. On top of this, the only times she did catch sight of Albus, he seemed to be acting as Nott's personal bodyguard. He and Scorpius had clearly taken McDonald's comments seriously, and appeared determined not to let anyone get at Nott without their permission. Rose thought it was a little excessive, and even dared to whisper this to Albus during one of their shared Transfiguration lessons, but he merely rolled his eyes and ignored her.

She was feeling just a little guilty for blowing off her mother's request. Albus seemed fine when she passed him in the corridors or sat with him in class, but Rose knew that wouldn't satisfy Hermione. So, on a lazy afternoon toward the end of the Easter holidays, she deliberately sought out what she believed was the Slytherin trio sitting under their favourite oak beside the lake.

There were only a few paces separating them before she realised there were just two figures beneath the tree: the blonde hair of Scorpius, and the messy brown tangle of Nott. Rose frowned in confusion; she could have sworn Albus had been there a moment ago. Perhaps it was the light playing tricks with her, or maybe she really was a lot more distracted than she thought.

It was too late to turn around without making herself look like a fool, so she had no choice but to square her shoulders and try to pretend like her belly hadn't just morphed into a soup of quivering frogspawn.

They looked up as she approached. Nott glowered sullenly, and Scorpius raised his eyebrows. A warm welcome indeed.

"Are you lost, Weasley?" Scorpius drawled at her, and she bit back the angry retort she longed to hurl at him. Merlin what wouldn't she give to wipe that smug look off his face. But she was here on business. There was no point rising to his bait.

"I'm looking for Albus," she said instead.

"Not here."

"I know that," she snapped. "Do you know where he is?"

Scorpius shrugged, still smirking in that infuriating manner of his. After a moment, Nott stood up, brushing a stray leaf from his robes. Now that Rose saw him up close, she realised just how ill he appeared. There were dark shadows under his eyes and his skin was a yellowish, unhealthy pallor. He looked paler than Scorpius, and that was no easy feat.

"Where are you going?" asked Scorpius, and she couldn't help but notice the difference in his tone when he addressed his friend. He sounded genuinely…concerned.

"Back to the castle," Nott replied gruffly. "See you later." With a curt nod to Rose – that she wasn't sure how to respond to – he swept past them and strode away back to up the grounds. She watched him go, a somehow sorrowful figure against the bright spring sunshine.

"Don't mind him," said Scorpius. He stretched himself luxuriously on the grass, folding his long legs over themselves with his back against the tree. "He's still uncomfortable around strangers."

Rose could sympathise. She was feeling distinctly awkward herself, standing above Scorpius like some sort of matron. He, however, seemed perfectly at ease.

"I'm…sorry about his father."

He shrugged.

"It must be hard to know that someone you love could do something so terrible."

His eyes flashed with anger, and she took an involuntary step back. "Wh-what?"

"So you think he's guilty then?"

"I…I…the Prophet – "

"Oh, well you must know what you're talking about then," said Scorpius snidely and with unexpected venom. "Getting all your facts from the Prophet, I don't know why I didn't ask you before."

"So you don't think he killed the Muggle-Born?" she asked, recovering herself a little.

"I think there's always more to the story than what's printed in a newspaper."

"But – but if he's innocent, then why did he run away. And – and the Ministry wouldn't charge him without strong evidence."

Scorpius just leant back and closed his eyes. "If you say so."

His dismissal of her arguments annoyed her, but she shook her head and bit her lip from replying. She hadn't come here to argue about the innocence or guilt of Theodore Nott. It really wasn't any of her business.

"So where did you say Albus was?"

"I didn't."

"Well…are you going to tell me or should I just leave?"

"Maybe," he patted the grass next to him without opening his eyes. "Sit down."

"Malfoy, as a Prefect I order you to tell me where Albus is." She puffed out her chest in what she hoped was an impressive manner, but he only snorted.

"Forgotten that I'm a Prefect as well, have you?"

"I…no." In truth, she had forgotten. Rose blinked at him a moment, embarrassed. She had taken to pointedly ignoring Scorpius during Prefects meetings, and she was never scheduled to do patrol with him. Rose had a sneaking suspicion this was at the bequest of James, who was close friends with the Head Boy. "I just…that doesn't alter the fact that you are under an obligation to provide me with the information I require.

Scorpius gave a bark of laughter. "Pfft, Weasley, sometimes you're such a square," He hauled himself to his feet. "Just relax would you? Come for a walk around the lake." He held out his arm; Rose stared at it as if it might attack her.

"Will you tell me where Albus is?"

"Maybe," Scorpius' smirk was positively wicked. Rose hesitated for a moment, her pride warring with her common sense.

"Fine," she said at last, ignoring his arm and striding quickly past him. Scorpius fell into step beside her, his long strides outstripping hers easily, until she was forced to slow down lest she run out of breath. Damn teenage boys and their growth spurts!

"So…how are your studies going?" he asked after a while. Rose forced herself not to look at him, utterly confused as she was by his apparent good-naturedness. She had barely spoken to Scorpius since that strange day the year before when he had asked her to the Yule Ball and she had told him no. As far as Rose knew, he was still dating that Arabella girl he had ended up taking instead of her. She felt herself flush at the memory.

"Wow, you're a conversational one," remarked Scorpius sarcastically.

"What? Oh – " she racked her brains for what they were talking about. "My studies? Um, they're – they're good."

"Clearly," he made a sarcastic noise. "I see you studying most mornings at breakfast, dripping cereal on your robes. You're really outdoing yourself this year."

"Yes, well, my studies are important to me," she said, huffing just a little at his veiled insult. She wanted to reply with something witty, but her brain had gone strangely blank. Somehow her sense of humour always failed her when she needed it most.

"Still finding time for that boyfriend of yours?"

"My – what?" Rose was so shocked she stopped walking. Scorpius paused as well. They were on the far side of the lake, alone except for the Giant Squid making playful waves in the water nearby. "What are you talking about?"

There was a decidedly sour look on Scorpius' face as he answered. "You know, that Ravenclaw you're attached at the hip to. Tall, gangly one, completely uncoordinated. Pretty boy." He glared at the Squid, which had started blowing bubbles the size of baby dolphins.

Rose was dumbstruck. There was only one guy she knew who could fit that description. "You mean Lorcan?" she asked him incredulously. "Lorcan Scamander?"

Scorpius shrugged. He had folded his arms and was quite changed from his earlier casualness. Now he looked as if he wanted to be anywhere but alone with her.

"You know it's none of your business?"

He looked at her with such an expression of annoyance she felt an involuntary shiver run up her spine. "Forget I mentioned it then," he glowered.

Torn between complying with his request and setting him straight about his miscomprehension, Rose rolled her eyes. Honestly, she really couldn't understand guys at all. Five whole years and Scorpius had never noticed that Lorcan was gay? "But, just so you know…Lorcan is nothing but a really good friend."

Malfoy snorted.

"He's gay, you imbecile," Rose snapped, cross that she felt compelled to spell it out for him. If he was too thick to pick it up then it wasn't her responsibility to fill in the blanks.

Scorpius raised his eyebrows at her, as if in disbelief. "You're joking! He told you that?" He shook his head and blew the hair out of his eyes as if it was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard. Rose felt her shackles rise.

"Of course I'm not joking, you jerk," feeling a little worried by the look on his face, she felt compelled to add, "But don't go spreading that around okay? It's none of your business and he'll tell people when he's ready.

He didn't look at her, but Rose could see his eye twitch in irritation at her words. "Oh, of course not," he replied, in a voice about as far from sincere as he could manage. "I wouldn't want to ruin his little game." Without waiting for her, he continued walking.

Wait, what? She hurried after him, utterly perplexed about his meaning but a little afraid of asking judging from the expression on his face. Scorpius bunched his hands in his pockets and chewed his lip, as if considering something. Rose kept her eyes on the shoreline, willing herself closer so she could get away from this insufferable Slytherin who made her so uncomfortable. Drat Albus and all the effort she went to for him.

"You know, you should relax more."

Caught off guard after such a long silence, Rose was at a momentary loss for words. Relax? Who was he telling her to relax? He was the one who looked as if he might hex the next person to walk past him. "I do – I mean, I'm always relaxed," she said, annoyed at the shrillness of her own voice. "You should – you should mind your own business." Again.

They had reached the edge of the lake. The Squid, which had been following them, blew one last bubble in their direction before disappearing beneath the surface.

Rose was surprised to see a genuine smile flit across Scorpius' face. "Such a feisty little redhead," he muttered, reaching out as if to touch her. She flinched away from him, and his smile vanished.

"Are you going to tell me where Albus is?" she asked, to fill the tense silence. "You did promise."

"I said maybe."

"Well?"

Scorpius looked at her for a long while. He seemed to be debating with himself. "There's a party in the Slytherin common room tomorrow night," he said at last. When she only stared at him blankly he continued. "Albus will be there. So will lots of people from the other houses. Password's 'Gillyweed.' You can come, if you want."

Then he turned and stalked away from her without a backwards glance.

"So are you going to go?" asked Dominique once Rose had finished recounting the tale to her. Her cousin's blue eyes were wide as she crunched an apple.

"Well, no…I don't know!" Rose had been agonising over this same question for several hours now. It was bugging her so much that she had made three consecutive mistakes on her Potions Essay and had eventually been forced to abandon it altogether. Part of her said she should go for Albus' sake; the other half warned her it would be a very bad idea that she would regret deeply later on. "I've got a lot of work to do..."

Dominique rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't be such a square. It'll be fun, and you'll have me for company."

"You're going? What, why?" Rose asked, ignoring for the moment being called a square for the second time in one day.

"Well…" Dominique smiled radiantly. "Calvin Davies invited me."

"But he's not even in Slytherin! He's a Ravenclaw."

"So?"

Rose groaned in frustration. "I can always catch up with Albus another time," she said slowly. But when though? Classes started again after the weekend, and she would have to study extra hard. OWLS were only a few weeks away.

"Come on Rosie, it'll be great!" Dom was looking at her with such sincerity Rose felt herself melting against her own common sense.

"I don't have anything to wear…"

"You can borrow one of my dresses!"

"Oh all right," she consented, heaving a resigned sigh. "But only to check on Albus. And if I don't like it, then I'm coming straight back."

Dominique nodded solemnly, but Rose thought she caught a twinkle in her cousin's eye.