Rose was something a celebrity over the next few weeks. Not only had the sudden arrival of her parents caused quite a stir (because, you know, they were 'famous'), but rumours had spread like wildfire through the school regarding what actually happened to her at Hogsmeade. The speculation seemed to get worse the younger the teller was, until she overheard a group of first year Gryffindors claiming she had singlehandedly fought off an entire tribe of Blood-Sucking Bugbears before nobly succumbing to her injuries. She corrected them sternly and ordered them not to spread gossip, but at the same time she couldn't help thinking that she was fighting a losing battle.
The worst part was that, true to form, many people seemed to have marked Scorpius down as the guilty party before they even heard the true story. Rose was ashamed to see how many of her peers scowled at him in the corridors, or made snide remarks about him in her presence, no matter how many times she stated loudly and publicly that he had saved her life.
"Well," said Daisy Hopkins one night at dinner, overhearing Rose discussing the issue with Dom, "You can't be sure that it wasn't Malfoy, can you?"
"What do you mean?"
"It's just," she twirled one of her pigtails around her finger. "You were unconscious, weren't you?"
Rose glanced at Dom, before giving a reluctant nod.
"Exactly." Daisy raised her eyebrows at Peoria, as though she had proved a point.
"And what's that supposed to mean?" she gave Daisy her best glare, but the other girl simply gave her a condescending smile.
"Just that you didn't actually see them, did you?"
"Well, no, but – "
"So you didn't actually seethat it wasn't Scorpius?"
"I suppose not, but that doesn't mean – "
"So, he could have attacked you, and then doubled back so it looked like he'd come to rescue you," Daisy flicked her hair triumphantly.
"Ten points from Gryffindor," snarled Rose, her cheeks pink with anger. "And if I hear you talking about it again it'll be another ten." Daisy gave her a horrified look – taking points from one's own house, from one's own roommate, was indeed a drastic measure. But Rose took no more notice of her and went back to eating.
"Just ignore it," Scorpius advised her the following Monday, when she complained to him about what people were saying. "You won't change anything by docking points, you'll only make them gossip about you as well."
"But doesn't it make you so angry?" she hissed, annoyed that she had to keep her voice down because Madam Beauvoir was hovering nearby as though waiting for an excuse to kick them out. "That they just spout these lies without even…even knowing."
He shrugged. "Who gives a knut about what they think?" he flicked the page on his book, then sighed. "Do you think Professor Cauldrish expects us to read all of chapter eight, or just the analysis at the beginning?"
Rose stared at him, her eyes boring into the top of his head. She could tell without asking that he meant what he said. He genuinely didn't care. She supposed that growing up as a Malfoy meant you had to develop a thick skin early in your life. But she didn't have the same sense of self-confidence.
"Well, I care, and I'm going to keep docking points until they get the message. I'm not just going to let people run around spouting rubbish about my…my…" she trailed off, blushing.
He looked up, one eyebrow raised sardonically. "Your what?"
"My…secret boyfriend, I suppose," she giggled and hid her face behind her hands, blushing furiously. Scorpius rolled his eyes, muttered something about 'girls' under his breath, and returned to his reading.
Charlie was avoiding her. She imagined he had been told in no uncertain terms to stay away from her by one of Albus or Scorpius, although when she asked them about it they were remarkably tight-lipped. A part of her was disappointed that he wasn't going to confront her about what happened, just so she had a chance to yell at him and tell him what a humungous prat he had been and how it was all his fault that she kept getting headaches whenever she read for too long. But mostly she was glad to be free of the burden of having to speak to him. In Charms she paired with Lorcan, who proved his worth as her friend by keeping up a steady stream of inane, harmless conversation whenever it got too quiet.
Professor McGonagall called her into her office the week following the Hogsmeade drama and told her that, considering her ordeal and the circumstances surrounding it, it would be unreasonable to expect her to continue her assigned 'Harmony lessons' with Scorpius, and that she was free to stop having them if she wished. It was ironic that, having finally got what she had been begging for six months ago, Rose immediately felt her hackles rise at the insinuation.
"You believe Scorpius, don't you?" she demanded, scrutinising the old Witch's face closely. "You know he's innocent?"
Professor McGonagall gave her a sharp look. "I have already made my views on the matter quite clear, Miss Weasley. As I told your father, I am satisfied with his explanation."
"And quite rightly, I should add," sneered Phineas Nigellus, from his position hanging on the wall above McGonagall's left shoulder. "As if a Malfoy would be involved in such a botched operation. Honestly, sometimes I wonder whether – "
"That's enough, Phineas," said McGonagall, and the portrait immediately fell silent. Rose tore her eyes from him and back to the Headmistress.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to – I'm just – there are so many people saying – "
"I'm well aware of what some of the students have been saying," stated Professor McGonagall wearily, and Rose thought she looked very old and tired. "Rest assured it will be dealt with."
"Right," she nodded, feeling a little foolish. "Well, anyway, I don't mind the Harmony Lessons. Anymore. I mean, I've kind of – they're not as bad as I thought they would be."
There was something altogether a little too knowing about the smile McGonagall gave her then. "That's very good to hear, Miss Weasley. It's certainly a better attitude than that which you displayed at the beginning of the year. I look forward to hearing yours and Mr Malfoy's full report at the end of term."
The weather grew progressively warmer, as spring swept over Hogwarts. The Gryffindor – Hufflepuff game was played in clear blue skies and sunshine, allowing the Gryffindors to convincingly flatten their opponent, beating them by over 200 points. This lifted her family's spirits considerably, and Rose spent a lot of time listening to her brother and cousins debating the possibilities of a come-from-behind victory in the final standings for the Cup. Unfortunately, any chance Gryffindor had of winning the Championship depended on Slytherin losing to Hufflepuff, which given the circumstances seemed highly unlikely.
"You never know," insisted James, when she voiced these doubts aloud. "Slytherin aren't actually that good. They only have two good players, Malfoy and Albus. If something were to happen to one of them…" he trailed off, his eyes taking on a far-away look.
"You wouldn't seriously do anything to your own brother over a stupid Quidditch match, would you?" she asked, eyeing her cousin warily. "Would you James?" she demanded when he didn't answer.
"Suppose not," he shrugged, before his expression changed. "Malfoy, on the other hand…" and he walked off, grinning wickedly to himself. Rose watched him go, wondering whether she ought to tell Scorpius to watch his back over the coming weeks.
But as it turned out, she needn't have bothered, because Scorpius found a way to miss the match all by himself.
As the weather warmed up, she and Scorpius had taken to having their Monday lessons outside on the grounds, since they could talk more freely there without the librarian breathing down their necks and other students trying to eavesdrop on them, whilst still remaining enough in the public eye so as not to arouse any suspicion.
That particular Monday, towards the end of April, Rose was sitting by herself beneath the big oak beside the lake, basking in the surprisingly warm sunshine and finishing off her Potions essay. It was still lesson time, but since she had a free period, she had decided to come down a little early and get some work done before meeting Scorpius. Strangely enough, the two of them never seemed to make much progress on their homework together, despite their best efforts.
"Furthermore, aconite must not be gathered at any time other than the peak of the full moon, and must be subsequently kept for six months in clean, dry storage, lest the poison embedded in its stem overwhelm its other magical properties…" she scratched her chin idly with the end of her quill feather and read the sentence aloud. "When being picked, one should be careful to give a clean break directly below the third leaf, as after this point the magical qualities diminish while the poison increases. At the same time – "
There was a small cough to her right. Rose dropped her quill and jumped to her feet, knocking her inkwell flying as she did and sending ink splatters across the grass. Before she had even drawn breath her wand was in her hand, and pointed in the direction of the sound. It took her a second to realise it was Charlie.
"Oh," she said, lowering her wand, her heart rate slowly returning to normal. So she was jumping at shadows now? "It's you." She didn't bother to keep the annoyance from her voice.
Charlie looked awful. There were dark circles under his eyes as though he hadn't slept for days, and a pale, unhealthy pallor to his skin. His shoulder-length brown hair was limp and straggly. He took several steps towards her, his expression beseaching.
"Rose." His voice cracked, and he swallowed visibly. "I – I have to say – "
"I'm not interested in anything you have to say Charlie," she said harshly, folding her arms across her chest. "Leave me alone."
"Look, I'm sorry," he began to speak quickly, as though afraid she was going to interrupt him. "But you've got to listen to me. I need you to understand, I never meant to – I just – I have feelings for you Rose. I can't sleep and I can't – I can't study. I feel so bad for what happened – when I heard you scream, I – but Malfoy – anyway the point is you're safe now, and I hope…I wish you'd forgive me."
She let him finish, gazing at him with a small frown.
"It's okay," she said at last, not really understanding what he was trying to say but appreciating his sincerity nonetheless. "But Charlie, I think it's best for everybody if you just – if we didn't spend time together anymore."
He shook his head vigorously. "I can't – I mean, I've tried, but I – I miss you."
"We were hardly even together!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up in exasperation. "Let's just forget about it and move on. Separately," she added, catching the look in his eyes.
"Rose I – " he took a deep breath and seemed to steel himself. "I love you."
She forced herself not to roll her eyes. Instead, she opened her mouth to tell him not to be ridiculous, to accept that there was never going to be anything between them, and to build a bridge and get over it. The words were still forming in her mind, however, when a sharp voice rang out behind them.
"Problem?"
Scorpius was standing ten paces away, having clearly just come from the castle. He was huffing slightly, as though he had sprinted there, and his schoolbag was hanging off one arm. His eyes narrowed on Charlie, who immediately spun around to face him.
"Malfoy," he spat viciously, his tone laced with anger. "What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same question." Scorpius' voice was low, and dangerous. He dropped his bag on the grass and closed the gap between them. "I simply had to know why you decided not to show up for class."
"You followed me?" Charlie's hands clenched into fists. "You've no right to do that, Malfoy."
"And what right do you have to come and talk to Rose after what you did?"
Charlie spared her a brief glance. "Rose knows – she knows how sorry I am."
Scorpius stopped a few paces away, his eyes never leaving Charlie's face. "I told you to stay away from her."
"I don't take orders from you, Slytherin."
"Oh yeah?" Scorpius' voice was laced with threat, but Charlie didn't back down.
"That's right," he said. "Rose can make her own decisions. She doesn't need you bossing her around."
"Look, guys – " she interjected, but neither of them paid her any attention.
"I think Rose has made her thoughts on the matter pretty clear."
"You've got no right butting in to a private conversation," there were bright pink spots on Charlie's cheeks now. "So why don't you slither back into whatever hole you crawled out of, you inbred piece of – "
"Listen," Rose cut in, a sense of unease growing in her at the direction the conversation had taken. "Just cut it out, both of you."
"Jealous, Corner?" asked Scorpius quietly, ignoring Rose's attempts to catch his eye. "I know it must be hard, to long for something you're never going to have."
"Jealous? Of you?" Charlie scoffed, a very ugly look on his face. "As if you've got anything I'd want. A Death Eater Dad, and a disgraced family name. You're nothing but scum. Rose would never even look twice at you."
Scorpius raised his eyes sardonically, and Rose felt herself blush from head to toe. Charlie swore loudly, and drew his wand, but before he could do more than raise it halfway, Scorpius had his own wand out, and had used it to flick Charlie upside down, so that he hung in mid-air as though he had one of his legs caught on an invisible hook. His wand slipped out of his hand and fell with a soft thud on the grass.
"Scorpius!" screeched Rose, rounding on him. "Put him down!"
"Why should I?" he retorted in a cold voice.
Charlie was struggling to speak, his face growing progressively redder as the blood rushed to his head. "Death Eater…scum," he wheezed, and Scorpius' scowl became more pronounced.
"I think you need to wash your mouth out," he said loudly, flicking his wand again so that Charlie's dangling body floated over the banks of the Lake until it hovered some way from the shore. Charlie's eyes widened when he saw his own reflection in the glistening water below him, and he began struggling anew, kicking frantically at the air with his free leg.
"Scorpius," said Rose in a warning voice. "Don't you dare! Put him down."
"Down?" asked Scorpius sarcastically. He smirked as he watched Charlie, who was making rude hand gestures at them and spluttering incoherently. "You want me to put him down?"
"This isn't funny!" she said angrily, feeling close to tears. "Let him go."
Scorpius shrugged. "Sure," he said, and flicked his wand once more. Charlie fell like a stone into the lake. There was a splash, before he disappeared beneath the surface.
"You jerk!" she shouted, running to the edge of the Lake before whipping round and glaring at him. He looked supremely unconcerned. "How could you – that's not what I – ugh! You are such a prat!"
"Calm down, would you?" he drawled. "It's nice and hot, I'm sure he'll enjoy the dip."
"You're going to get in so much trouble," she seethed, pulling at her hair in frustration. "You're a Prefect, you can't just throw people in the Lake when they annoy you!"
Scorpius shrugged. "He had it coming."
"We aren't little kids anymore, you know? This isn't the way to deal with our disagreements."
"No?" he raised his eyebrows. "How would you deal with it then?"
"With sensible, mature discussion, like adults. It's really not – " she broke off, turning to stare at the spot where Charlie had been dropped. He hadn't re-emerged. Sudden fear clutched at her insides. "Scorpius, I – I – " she stammered, her heart thudding painfully. "What if he can't swim?"
There was a silence, as they both stared intently at the Lake, which remained agonisingly still. Then Scorpius cursed and began pulling off his robes, his shirt, kicking off his shoes and trousers, before sprinting past Rose and diving into the water.
Rose stood and watched as he swam quickly out to the point where Charlie had gone under, wondering if she should yell for help. If something happened to Charlie – but he would be fine, she reassured herself, of course he would. He wasn't going to drown. Scorpius disappeared beneath the water.
"Oh no," she moaned under her breath, her eyes scanning the grounds. Nobody was around, it being still lesson time for the majority of students. Soon, though, it would be end of class – then, surely, some students would emerge on to the grounds to enjoy the late afternoon sunshine. And teachers. Rose's heart gave another forceful thump as she thought of what they would say. Drat Scorpius, the idiot. What sort of a stupid idea was it to drop someone in the Lake?
There was still no sign of either Scorpius or Charlie. Rose chewed her lip, trying to calm the staccato hammering of her heart. They would came back up. They had to, they just had to…
Bubbles appeared on the surface of the pristine Lake, and a second later Scorpius' blonde head broke the surface. He had Charlie's arm wrapped around him, and his face carefully lifted above the water. Even from a distance she could see he was unconscious.
As they got slowly, laboriously closer to the shore, Scorpius paddling with his free arm, Charlie trailing behind him like a dead weight, Rose tried to remember the spell used to clear airways. Her mother had used it once, when Hugo swallowed a marble. Pe…Per…
They reached the shore. Scorpius clambered out, dragging Charlie's limp body behind him. He pushed him onto his side, then knelt down and tapped his wand twice against Charlie's pale throat, muttering words Rose couldn't hear.
Immediately, Charlie spluttered and choked, coughing out water and struggling to sit up. He stared wildly from side to side.
"Take it easy," Scorpius' face was even paler than usual, his mouth set in a grim line.
Charlie scrambled away at the sound of the voice, his feet slipping on the muddy bank. "You!" he spat, pointing an accusatory finger at Scorpius, who regarded him levelly. "You tried to kill me!"
"Why didn't you tell us you couldn't swim?" snapped Rose, picking up Scorpius' clothes and taking them over to him, since he was shivering with cold. He took them from her without a word. "He wouldn't have dropped you if he'd known. Would you, Scorpius?" she gave him a fierce stare.
"Obviously not."
Charlie had managed to get to his feet, though he too was trembling from head to foot. "You – you – "
The bell rang, signalling the end of class. The three of them stood glaring at each other for a moment, before Charlie began backing away.
"I know a really good spell for drying off," Rose suggested, feeling guilt gnaw at her as she watched Charlie convulse with cold, his clothes still dripping wet and hanging off him. "Here, let me – "
"No!" Charlie stumbled backwards as though afraid she was going to curse him. "I – you're – " he turned and began hurrying away. Rose watched him go with a sinking feeling in her gut.
"You're going to get in so much trouble," she said wearily, watching Charlie disappear up the hill. Next to her, Scorpius began drying himself off with his wand, looking as calm and unruffled as though he had intended to go for a swim all along.
He gave her a cold look. "I saved him, didn't I?"
She shook her head. "You should never have dropped him there in the first place. It was idiotic."
"He should've stuck to minding his own business," he responded, still in the same aloof tone of voice. "I told him to stay away from you."
She rounded on him angrily. "I'm not a baby, Scorpius! I can take care of myself just fine!"
"Right, and that's why I found you trussed up in the forest with blood pouring out of your head just a few weeks ago. Real good job of looking after yourself Rose."
"This is completely different!"
"Not really. What if you and Corner had another argument, and you ran into the forest like you did last time. I didn't – "
"We weren't having an argument! And I'm not going to go running off again. Do you think I'm stupid?"
There were students coming out of the castle now. From the way that they were pointing excitedly in the direction of the lake, Rose could tell they had encountered Charlie in the Entrance Hall. She wondered if he would go straight to McGonagall.
Scorpius was sneering at her now. She didn't like the look on his face at all. "Sometimes you do a pretty good impression."
She couldn't believe they were fighting again. It was like none of the last few months had happened. Rose turned around and started gathering her books together. Clearly, they were not going to sit and enjoy a lesson together as planned.
"In Slytherin," Scorpius began, and he sounded as though he was keeping his voice neutral with an effort. "If someone breaks an agreement, then they have to suffer the consequences. Otherwise the agreement was meaningless from the beginning, wasn't it?"
She straightened and looked him in the eye. He was almost completely dry, only the tips of his hair betraying what had happened. His grey eyes were searching hers. Suddenly she was overcome with an intense desire to be alone.
"Well, I'm not in Slytherin, am I?"
"No."
"And in Gryffindor, we see these things a little differently."
Then she brushed past him, striding away up the hill and back to the castle without a second glance. There was something heavy settling in her stomach, and when she reached the top step before the great double-panelled doors that opened onto the Entrance Hall she couldn't resist taking one look back at the Lake. But Scorpius was nowhere to be seen.