Chapter 1

Rose

September came too slow once again. As I walked to the platform with my parents and brother, I felt like a first year, filled with awe and excitement. Although the first years wouldn't be filled with a sense of homecoming.

"Rosie did you remember your-"

"My new parchment?"

"Hmm, yes. Alright, how about your-"

"Dress robes? At the very top of the trunk so they don't wrinkle."

My mum was a planner. She couldn't accomplish anything without planning it a week in advance. My dad was the opposite way. He did not plan ahead. He would just throw himself together forty-five minutes before leaving. Yet somehow they fit perfectly. I looked at them and saw all of the cliches about falling for your best friend and opposites attract and such, but looking again, everything went away.

"Rose, did you hear me?"

"Hmm? Sorry, no."

"Darling you must pay closer attention. I asked..." I drifted off again as my mother rambled on about some unimportant thing. I had mastered the art of nodding when needed. I saw my dad and my younger brother, Hugo load our trunks on to the train. I cut my mum off then.

"Mum, I know you think that I can't load a trunk without forgetting something, but it's 10:55, and I was supposed to meet Michael at 10:50." She nodded knowing I was right.

"Of course, of course. I'll see you at Christmas, darling. I love you. Write me weekly!" I smiled, nodded, knowing I would have a hard time accomplishing that. I kissed my dad on the cheek and ran down the platform, running into various family members along the way, waving and smiling as I looked for Michael.

I barely saw him through the smoke-like steam of the engine. He hadn't seen me when I ran and jumped on his back, wrapping my arms and legs around him. He laughed and spun me around. He carefully moved me to his front and looked at me with sparkling eyes.

"Well hello." He drawled out in his darling American accent. He and his family moved to England when he was 10, and he has fought against conforming to the norm, which is an English accent.

"Hi. how are you?"

"Just wonderful. And you?"

"Better now." He smiled and set me down. He took my hand in his and pulled me onto the train. We found our favorite compartment empty and ran inside. As soon as we were sitting down, he smiled at me and said, "Soooooo details, details. Summer? Good? Bad? Mediocre? Gawd I just hate it when summers are mediocre! It's like pick one! Ohmigawd! Did I tell you what Andrew said when we were in the Alps? Oh, its just so adorable! And-"

He rambled on as the train pulled out of the station. I laughed at his happy attitude. Michael and I had been friends since first year, when we were the last to first years to be sorted. (My name being Weasley and his being Zyler) Standing there as pitiful little first years, we formed a bond. We were then sorted into Gryffindor, and our friendship began. We spent every minute together and did everything together. We spent every summer together and most people assumed that we had a thing between the two of us. What those rumor starters didn't know was that Michael was, ahem, inclined to, men. But it was generally known that if you were... homosexual then you were shunned at school. Not that anyone would vocalize it outloud but it didn't need to be said. So he didn't tell anyone, save for me and Lotte of course. He was my best friend, he had said, of course I'm telling you.

That was two years ago, now going into our sixth year, he had met someone stunning, absolutely stunning. His words. His master plan now was to set me up with someone.

"I don't need to be set up with anyone!" I said back to him. I was leaning back against him as he played with my hair. To anyone looking in on the compartment, we would have looked like a couple. He, normally, liked to keep it that way. In the past, the guys that I have dated have been less than perfect. Guys like Aaron Tomlinson, who single handedly cheated on me with every girl in his house. Then there was Sean Divis, who was so boring that it took six months for him to kiss me, closemouthed, for a second. We broke up a day later. Everyone else was just not right. My Aunt Ginny always says to date for love, and not to look for forever because when you find the right love, forever will follow. So whenever I stopped feeling the spark I thought was there, I dumped the boy. I can't recall a time when I had been dumped, except by Eric Mulligan in second year, but when you're twelve it doesn't matter as much as when you're fifteen.

"Oh really? You don't?" I nodded defiantly. "When was the last time you kissed someone?" I shut my mouth quickly.

"Last month."

"Drunken escapades with a muggle boy do not count."

"Why not? And I was not drunk, he was."

"Because they don't."

"That is not a real reason."

"Sure it is, anyways, since my point is proven, we are getting you a-"

"A boyfriend? Thank god, she needs to get laid." I looked up and saw my best girlfriend at Hogwarts standing in the doorway.

"Charlotte!" She smiled as I stood up and gave her a hug. "How are you darling?" I laughed at her and helped her pull her trunk in to the compartment.

"Well I'm good now that I'm on my way to school." We all laughed as she made a disgusted face at her statement.

"Summer that bad, Lotte?"

She shrugged and shook her head. "Right now is not about me. It is about you finding a boyfriend this year. A real one, that isn't a total ass."

I shook my head at her brashness. "Actually," I stretched and stood up, "it's time for me to head off to the prefects compartment for our meeting. I'll see you both later." I grabbed my wand and my badge from my small messenger bag and left the compartment. I walked along the train to the prefects compartment.

Rounding the corner I was bumped into and knocked over by a familiar figure.

"Ouch! God James!" My cousin James, was splayed next to me on the ground. "What the hell was that?"

"Sorry Rosie, didn't see you there." He grinned and stood, holding out his hand.

I took it and he pulled me off of the ground. "Obviously. Shouldn't you already be in the compartment? You are Head Boy." He shrugged.

"Yes, but I got caught up." He turned away, but I saw his ears turn red, a tell-tale sign he was up to something.

"Where were you Jamie?" He turned around and scowled at me.

"That is not my name."

"Rosie isn't mine." He groaned at me and turned to open the compartment door. I sauntered by and said, "This isn't over."

I walked into the familiar compartment and took a seat next to my fellow sixth year prefect, Eric Anderson. He smiled at me and I grinned back. We had meshed really well together last year on patrols.

"Okay, okay settle down everyone." James called to the mostly silent compartment. Everyone in the room turned to look at him and Alice Longbottom, who was Head Girl. When James walked into the room, her happy smile disappeared. She raised one eyebrow at James and he scurried over to her with his tail between his legs. Alice always knew how to make James behave, best friends seemed capable of that no matter what.

"Alright everyone here? Yes, yes? Okay good." Alice chirped out. Her voice sounded like an authoritative bird. "Now there are going to be some changes to the way things work this year." She nodded at James, he waved his wand lazily from his chair beside her and paper flew toward us. I grabbed it out of the air without looking at it. James barked out a laugh at me and Alice shot another menacing look. I looked down at my paper as she looked at me.

"Please note that you will be rotating between year and house for patrolling schedules. The first week the seventh and fifth years will be together so that the seventh years can teach you lot the ropes. Sixth years I hope you all can fend for yourself." A light chuckle rustled the room. Alice smiled and tucked a piece of auburn hair behind her ear. You'd think she was related to my family, seeing as how she has a nasty temper, is a Gryffindor and has red hair. Luckily she wasn't or else the wedding Lily and I were secretly planning for her and James would be totally disgusting.

See the Potter curse must live on. The rules to the curse state that any Potter male will find their true love in a red head, sometime during their school years. The sub-categories state that she must be friends with your best friend, ( Added for James Sr. and applied for Uncle Harry), and/or your best friends little sister (added for Uncle Harry), good at Quidditch (added for James Sr. and applied to Uncle Harry) and breathtakingly gorgeous (which applies to both previous Potter males). Now Alice fits all of these criteria, plus we all love her desperately. James has always had a soft spot for her, and vice versa.

Lily and I are hoping for a spring wedding, with wild flower bouquets.

Reading over my schedule, I saw that I had late night patrols every night, but no other duties. I grinned, James must have made up the schedule. He knew what a night owl I was. I quickly skimmed the names for Sunday through Tuesday. I was with Eric every night except Mondays, when I was with a friend for Ravenclaw. Wednesday through Fridays I was with... no. Not possible, James must not have made these, he would never do this to me.

Looking across the room at him, I saw his smile turn into his trademark smirk and he winked at me and then blew a kiss.

That bastard did make up these. And he had given me the worst partner he could.

Scorpius Malfoy.