DISCLAIMER: yes... harry potter's not mine.

Chapter 13

Scorpius

"R-Rosie?" Potter asks tentatively, "What am I supposed to do with this?"

No Answer.

Rose Weasley has been quiet for the past hour. Well, since she started working on her antidote she's been so engrossed in what she is doing. I guess that's what happens when you get an abysmal mark such as Troll. I can't believe it. Never in a million years. Of course I expected – hoped, more like it – that Rose Weasley would get a low mark but not a T. Getting a mark like that is the worst that could happen to anyone.

I wonder what happened to her, though. How could she copy homework from Albus Potter and then get a T? I know Potter's way beneath my level when it comes to Potions but he's quite decent so what went wrong? It doesn't make any sense. But then again, it's not really my business.

"Al," Louis cautions softly, "I think it's not safe to talk to her yet. Just leave her alone for now."

"I don't know what I should do next!" Potter whines like a baby.

I snort in disgust. "You're so pathetic, Potter."

To my surprise, he smirks at me.

"Watch it, Malfoy," he says snidely, "You don't really want to annoy Rosie anymore than you already did."

I glance at the ferociously working girl beside him and can't help but flinch when she shot daggers at me once again. She narrows her eyes dangerously at me before resuming her work. What is wrong with her? All of a sudden she treats me as though I'm the bane of her existence.

"What's wrong with her?" I ask Louis quietly.

"Well," Louis whispers back, "You know she got drunk, right?"

I nod hesitantly. It's about That Night again. Everywhere I go today people are always discussing that event, it's getting quite old already.

"You know what it was all about, right?"

"Right," I answer. "Your point?"

"Rosie got a T because of you."

I laugh loudly. Which is a big mistake because Schiffer suddenly decides that time was up.

"Time's up," he declares as he waves his wand. All of our ingredients disappear and a vial replaced them on our tables.

"That was real slick, Malfoy," Potter comments in contempt. "I was not halfway done yet!"

I ignore Potter's whining to finish up with my antidote. After sealing my potion, I sneak a glance at Rose Weasley. She is making her way towards Schiffer already. I turn to Louis.

"And how is that my fault?"

"You broke her heart," he shrugs, "Simple as that."

"I fail to grasp the logic in there. Care to elaborate?"

"Okay, listen," Potter interjects, "Because of that ploy you and Lily pulled, Rosie became an emotional wreck. She wasn't her normal self. I definitely think she's blaming you."

"Lovely," I say dryly, "Like I even asked her to like me that much."

Before Potter can retort something obnoxious no doubt, Louis ushers us in front to submit our vial to Schiffer.

"Ah blimey, it can't be helped," he exclaims cheerfully, "It's happened now. No use trying to argue about who's to blame or not. One advice though, Scorpius."

Louis suddenly becomes serious. "Stay away from Rosie and don't rile her up. She's quite intimidating when mad."

"He's being nice," Potter mutters darkly, "Rosie is scary when she's mad."

I can't help but think that Louis and Potter are exaggerating. That small girl, scary? Why, does she have some sort of a secret ability? A basilisk's stare, maybe? Anyhow, I'm not really worried. Right now I worry more about Boris.

The three of us place the vial on the professor's desk and when the rest of the class are out, I stand in front of Schiffer. Beside the stony Rose Weasley. She throws me another sideways glare.

"Er, Rosie?" Potter calls out from the doorway, "Aren't you coming?"

"You go ahead. I have something to discuss with Professor Schiffer first."

"Sure,"

"See you later," Louis says and the two of them take their leave.

Now, it's just the three of us left. Weasley is standing tensely, I'm all good, and Schiffer is gazing unblinkingly up at us.

"What can I do for you two?"

Me and Weasley open our mouth at the same time, "About my – ", "How is – ".

She glares at me and this time I return the favour. I glare back.

"I was here first," she argues, "And the matter I want to discuss with Professor Schiffer is of utmost importance."

"And so is mine," I argue back, "My best friend is in the hospital because of a cruel joke played on him by your cousins. That's definitely more relevant than your Troll."

She gasps angrily. "Please don't make any unfounded accusations. Like I said earlier, I'm sorry about Zabini. But until there's proof against my cousins, don't accuse them of performing illegal Transfiguration. Furthermore, there is absolutely no relevance to Zabini's predicament."

"Oh? And why is that?" I ask sardonically. "Please enlighten me."

Her lips thinned and her eyes tightened with disdain. "Zabini is a wizard. Accidents like that happen all the time in different magical communities. And yes, I do believe it was nothing more than just an accident. But that is not the point I want to make at this moment. What I would like point out is that Zabini's problem is not as important as mine. You see, Zabini might become a laughing-stock but after a few weeks, people would dismiss it as a mere prank pulled on him and everything would be okay. He'll be fine. And then there was me – straight O student, a Prefect, number one in the whole school – who somehow earned herself a T on a homework she copied from another student. That T will not be dismissed after a few weeks. People will not just brush it off as a mere prank. That T will follow me for the rest of my life! After Hogwarts, that T will still be there as my own personal Dementor! My future will be in jeopardy because of that T! Employers won't ask Zabini how he turned into a hippogriff! Because that's perfectly normal! Employers ask questions like 'How come you have a T on your Potions homework?', 'How come your grades dropped?', and 'Why did you copy your homework?'. That… is why my Troll is more important than your hippogriff!"

I would have given her a round of applause if I'm not so stunned right now. She's breathing heavily but still maintaining her scorned composure. I clear my throat. The silence is getting awkward. I glance at Schiffer. I swear he lifted an eyebrow. Normally it doesn't move. I've always thought those eyebrows are incapable of moving.

"Fine," I concede. Weasley girl might start another monologue if I pursue my argument. "I'll wait outside."

I've barely closed the door when Weasley starts pleading her case. Whoever said that Rose Weasley can't talk to save her life must be stupid. Oh, wait. That was me.

Leaning against the wall, I can't help but be amused with Rose Weasley. First she was this little shy, timid creature then the next moment she becomes a spitfire. Her cousins were definitely not exaggerating when they said she's scary. Not that I'm scared, of course. I'm… amused. Nothing more.

4-01-10

Hi! Before you throw those tomatoes at me… I have a reason for taking so long to update. I'm graduating in college! Yay! Plus, I had a lot in mind besides focusing on my studies these past months. So, yeah. That's basically it.

I know that this chapter's a little short. I kind of wanted to hurry this one up 'cause I feel like the story's getting slower. Or was it just me?

Anyway, I hope you liked it. Huge thanks to all of those who reviewed. I'm really glad to know there are people who took some time to express their opinions/reactions. Thank you so much! Happy Easter, you guys!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY FRED AND GEORGE WEASLEY!!!