The Eyes of the Wolf

'Watch it, Weirdo Weasley!' Bob Goyle slammed into Rose so hard that Rose's glasses dropped down. Someone laughed as she groped the floor for them, and she felt tears brimming in her eyes. She propped the glasses on her nose and hurried on, clutching her books and ignoring the hands pointing at her. From an open window, she could hear the noises of the players at the Quidditch pitch. Slytherin would soon play Gryffindor in one of the most anticipated matches since term began, and both teams were practicing almost daily. Every time Rose saw James and Albus, both were covered in dirt and discussing tactics so heatedly that they usually missed her altogether.

The Great Hall was filling with people ready for lunch. Rose looked around at the Ravenclaw table, but as usual, she was invisible. People were sitting with their heads together, poring over the newest theories and lessons.

It was not that she didn't like learning, and the Sorting Hat surely had screamed "Ravenclaw" almost instantaneously five years ago. Learning was easy for her, and she never had to struggle with her schoolwork. It was just so boring. No imagination, just pre-spelled dates, calculations, theories. Nothing romantic or exciting in them whatsoever.

'Excuse me?' someone said on her other side.

Rose spluttered out some soup and consequently fell into a coughing fit.

'You were saying something, and I was just wondering what it was?' A girl with a very long and frayed blonde braid sat beside her, looking at her quite calmly with her large, grey-blue eyes.

'I - I don't know. I didn't mean to say anything,' Rose said. 'I was just, um, going through the Charms lesson.'

'I thought you said something about romance,' the girl said and proceeded to taste her soup. 'Mmm...not quite as good as Mum's radish soup, but pretty nice. Don't you think?'

'Er, yes. I'm sorry, but who are you?'

'Titania Scamander. And I agree, there is precious little romance in schoolwork.'

'Right.' Rose siphoned the soup off the table with her wand, conscious that several pairs of eyes were watching her. 'So, are you new?'

'Quite, and not really.'

This was such an odd answer that Rose didn't dare ask more. She finished her soup, not knowing what to say or whether to say anything at all.

'You know, there's a boy staring at you over there,' Titania said and nodded towards the Slytherin table. Rose looked up and saw again the boy with the wolfish eyes. He seemed to be alone, or at least he wasn't speaking to any of the people around him, and his body language didn't convey particular familiarity with them either. His eyes were fixed on Rose, and they didn't waver even when Rose's eyes met them.

'Odd-looking boy,' Titania concluded. 'He used to be much smaller and have really flat hair.'

'You know him?' Rose asked, nonplussed.

'Of course I do, and I know you, too. And you know me.'

Rose was quite sure she had never seen this person in her whole life.

'Er, I don't think so,' she said, trying to smile. 'I think I'd remember it.'

'I was here for year one, but then I went abroad with Mum and Dad. You and I went to the same classes, at least Potions and Transfiguration. We even met once at your parents' house.'

'I really don't remember -'

'My Mum is friends with your parents. And the Potters. Luna Lovegood?'

'You're Aunt Luna's daughter?'

'Sure,' Titania said. 'We came back to England only a week ago. Mum's taking on The Quibbler again, and she can't wait to tell all the stories she has to share. See, we saw an awful lot on our round-the-world trip. And Mum finally found proof of that the Ministry wants to replace brooms with Hippocampuses as a means of transportation.'

For the first time since term started, Rose felt her lips stretch into a genuine smile.

'So, do you feel like taking a walk outside or something?' she asked.

'Of course. Mum told me to find you, the only Ravenclaw with Weasley-red hair. She said we'd certainly become best friends.'

For the first time ever, Rose had a real friend at Hogwarts. Titania wasn't like Johanna Peakes, who would ask her stupid questions about her family and then go away, giggling with the others, or like Susie Davis who only spoke to her when she needed help with her Ancient Runes. Titania was always there -well, almost. Their timetables didn't overlap fully, nor did they share a room in the Ravenclaw girls' dormitory, but these were trifles compared to that Rose now had someone to talk to, someone to sit by, and someone to study with. She wrote to her parents about Titania, and they responded by saying that Aunt Luna had already visited, and that she had promised everybody a free subscription to the renewed Quibbler.

About the boy with the wolfish eyes she however didn't write. She knew perfectly well that neither Dad nor Uncle Harry liked the Malfoys, even though she didn't actually know why. Mum had once said that Mr Malfoy had been "on the wrong side" in the war, and Rose suspected that had something to do with it. Still, she couldn't help returning the boy's gazes, which were frequent and rather unashamed. There was something unusual in his eyes, something that made Rose see visions of tortured souls in dark, sooty prisons.

'I don't understand why he keeps staring at me,' she muttered one Saturday morning at breakfast. The Great Hall was quite empty, and the boy had an open view on her.

'I suppose he likes you,' Titania said. 'Why don't you ask him?'

'I can't ask him!' Rose said indignantly. 'I've never even talked to him. Besides, he's probably ogling at me because he thinks I look funny.'

'You don't look funny.'

'Tosh,' Titania said serenely. 'If everybody liked only blondes with blue eyes, blondes would be the only people on this earth. Are you coming to the library? I must finish my Arithmancy essay.'

'Yeah, but I need to send a letter to Mum and Dad first; it's already late. I'll catch you there in half an hour.'

They parted near one of the staircases, and Rose dashed to the Owlery to send her small snowy owl, Apollo, off with the letter that was almost finished. Apollo was a gift from Uncle Harry, who bought an owl for every child in the family when they went to Hogwarts. Rose scribbled a hasty greeting at the end of the letter, rolled up the parchment, and tied it to Apollo's leg. Apollo hooted softly and took off from the window, spreading his wings with obvious happiness. Rose watched him disappear behind a snow-tipped mountain peak, and dashed off to her room to gather her books. Uncle George had sent her a stack of books the other day, delicious mysteries with several different endings and medieval romances with detailed pictures that told part of the story, and she was dying to delve into them. But alas, she had a long Potions essay to finish, not to mention some Astronomy charts to complete before Monday. She tore her eyes away from the volumes lying on her bed and skipped out of the door.

The library was quite empty, and Rose headed to the spot she and Titania usually occupied: a table in a far corner with windows opening to two directions. But Titania wasn't alone, and Rose stopped abruptly behind a bookshelf. James and Albus were sitting on the table, chatting animatedly.

'...after that, Uncle George said he thinks testing the products on himself's getting a little tiresome, especially at his age...'

For some reason, Rose couldn't move. She stood quietly, fixed on the spot like an ancient statue, unable to pluck up the courage and join the group.

'It's your best friend and your cousins, get moving,' she said to herself between gritted teeth, but with every passing laughter from the table, she shrunk a little further away. Tears of anger and frustration welled in her eyes. Didn't James and Albus already have enough friends and admirers? Did they have to steal her only friend, too?

'What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet...'

A soft, husky voice made Rose jump, and she nearly dropped her books. Scorpius was standing behind her, leaning against a shelf.

'Sorry, didn't mean to scare you.'

'No, it's f-fine,' Rose said and tucked the books under her arm. They pressed painfully against her side, and she shifted them against her tummy.

'Why don't you join your friends?'

'I was going to...I was just er, wondering if I had all my books...' Rose heard her voice fade away, and she wished she could sink through the floor.

Scorpius was quiet for a moment and merely examined Rose.

'It's hard, isn't it?'

'What?'

'Carrying such baggage.'

'Oh no, these are not that heavy,' Rose said quickly and hugged her books with both hands. 'Just Potions and Astronomy.'

'I didn’t mean quite that,' Scorpius said, a touch of amusement in his voice. 'I meant that.' He nodded towards the spot where the table stood behind the shelf.

Rose bit her lip nervously. She had no idea what he was talking about, but fortunately, he seemed to sense her confusion.

'Your parents fought in the war, both hailed heroes, and their best friend is Saint Potter himself. His kids are your cousins. Your Dad is a famous Auror. I'm talking that sort of baggage.'

'Yeah,' Rose said because she couldn't think of anything else to say. 'Yeah.'

'Must be hard if you don't feel like a hero yourself.'

'Yeah, I don't.' The words escaped Rose before she could check herself. 'I'm no hero material.'

A particularly loud burst of laughter cut into the moment, and frowning slightly, Scorpius craned his neck to glimpse at the Potters now doing mimics of Professor Trelawney.

'Is it true,' he said, still looking to the table, 'that your Mum is writing a book about the war?'

'Yes. The Ministry asked her to do it because she was there. They gave her a year's leave of absence from her job, too.'

Scorpius returned his attention to Rose. 'I heard it's going to chronicle every single detail. I bet my father's mentioned there. And my grandfather. Come to think of it, my whole family.'

'Right... I'm sure Mum's fair, though,' Rose said reassuringly. 'She won't paint anyone in the wrong light.'

'Nothing much to paint wrong.'

'Paint what?' James appeared between the shelves, Albus on his tail. 'Get away from my cousin, git. Is he bothering you, Rose?'

'No, it's fine,' Rose said quickly. 'We were just talking.'

But James wasn't listening.

'Get lost, Soppy. Run back to your Death Eater Daddy.'

'James!' Rose cried.

Scorpius's eyes lit up with a shine that made them look like grey diamonds. He smiled a bit, but it was a twisted, hurt smile. Compared to James, who was tanned and the epitome of health, he looked pale and frail, even though he was a little taller.

'See, Flower,' he said softly, his eyes drilling into Rose's very soul. 'Baggage.'

And he walked away.