Things just seemed to get worse as time went on. Half going too fast and too slow all at the same time. A student was taken from her dorm without actual concern from the staff– a baffling incident if you asked him. His friends, those that found themselves sticking to their parents’ beliefs, had looked far too happy about it. And it was uncomfortable. Unbearable. It was something he hadn’t been able to swallow and for the first time it seemed that he didn’t really know them as much as he thought he did. So he found himself prolonging his rounds or just staying out as late as possible, in hopes of keeping away from the Slytherin common room. And perhaps staying out was giving him too much time to overthink how things were going - or maybe just enough time.
Scorpius was pulled out of his thoughts, jumping at the sudden outburst. “for merlin’s sake.” He breathed out, stepping forward a bit to peak around the corner to find someone much less scary than expected. “Rose? What are you— are you okay?” Relieved that was her while simultaneously stressed about why she seemed to be alone in a dark corridor – must be a Weasley and co sort of thing – when it was dangerous out. He carefully rounded the corner, casting a cautious glance behind him and then behind Rose to make sure there were no professors around.
He let out a sigh once he’d turned back to Rose, gaze softening as he slowly gathered that she’d been crying and obviously craving chocolate frogs. “–Also how would I get you in trouble when you’re the one breaking the rules?” He asked with a scoff as he bent to scoop up the rest of the wrappers before taking the ones she had in her hands.
there was a part of her that couldn’t help but be relieved. rose hated to be caught in the wrong at all, but, at least, it was only scorpius who had found her. based on her luck, it could’ve very well been kimiko or manon some other awful person who seemed to have it out for her. it could’ve been any of her family members. it could’ve been- albus.
oh god, what if it had been albus?
even though it was only a distant possibility, the thought of her cousin and scorpius’ dorm mate seeing her now chilled her to the very bone. it was his sister that was missing. it was his girlfriend in the hospital wing. as head boy, albus had practically made it his duty to shoulder the brunt of the burdens against the MAs. and, as head girl, well, rose was just-
well, rose was making more of a mess than three nifflers in a gringotts vault. even as other people were suffering, she was making it all about herself.
“you didn’t have to catch me,” she answered petulantly to scorpius, knowing how illogical she sounded and refusing to compromise anyways, “i wouldn’t have gotten in trouble at all if no one knew.”
refusing to look him in the eye, she ducked down and tried to both pick up the mess she had left behind and take what scorpius had already picked up out of his hands. as a stray foil wrapper crumpled in her fist, she shook her head, “don’t- scorpius, please. i’m fine. you don’t have to help. i was just-” she floundered for a bit, before settling on a lie, “i dropped all my things, you see, and i had to pick things up. i was just making it back to gryffindor.”
‘you’re really easy to talk to, wren.’ it was all he could do not to laugh in her face. was that all it took to get in rose weasley’s good books—a pretty face and a a bit of false humility? no wonder these idiots were losing the war. but he gave rose a soft smile instead, “ah, i don’t mind, rosie. you’re not so bad yourself—-it’s nice to have someone other than o who i can have a real conversation with.” maybe he was laying it on too thick—then again, it’s not like rose would notice, so wrapped up in making poor, sad, lonely wren volant her latest pet project.
“runes, runes, okay—but you know, i think my marks have gotten loads better since you started tutoring me,” true, but inconsequential; it’s not as though he was continuing on with this charade for the sake of his marks, “so if you need a day off from helping me pass NEWTs, i think we can fit that in, considering.”
rose bit her lip. wren was doing his best, she was sure, but she could read in-between the lines, plain as day. his words were almost too kind, too sweet-- he didn’t really mean what he was saying. It was all just him trying to make her feel better (& she felt guilty that he had even felt like it was necessary to do it.)
“thanks, wren,” she said stiltedly, the corner of her lips turning upwards in what she had hoped was a reassuring smile, “but you don’t have to say all of that. i know what i’m like. the best i ever get is mostly insufferable.”
it was a joke, but it landed a bit flat. rose chased it off with a peal of light laughter, “i mean, as much as we could all use the day off from runes-” merlin knew she did. these days, it felt like she got less sleep than ever. ”schoolwork stops for no one. if we don’t do what we set out for today, then it’ll just be something we have to do tomorrow. you don’t want that, do you?”
MOLLY WEASLEY II: Do you think you’re strong enough for the war?
“i think-” rose bit her lower lip, “i think it would be foolish to pretend like i am. because that’s the thing-- war has a tendency to be shockingly worse than you could ever imagine. if you ever think you’re strong enough, that’s just asking to be tested. i’m strong enough to get through today and hope that i’m going to see tomorrow. that’s all.”
JADE TALKALOT: Which side of the war do you think is the most powerful?
“ours. no matter how it seems. we’ve beat back these forces before. we’ll do it again. on our terms.”
VIVIENNE ‘VIV’ CHANG: Do you have a competitive side, and if so, in what kind of situation does it come out most?
“i’ll be the first to admit it-- i hate being wrong and i hate being second best at anything. i’ve been told that i’m a little too competitive. but, honestly, how is that a bad thing? we’re always competing. if not, against each other than ourselves. why do anything if you’re not going to be ... perfect at it?”
i think rose came into the sorting prepared to make a case for gryffindor
she sat down and fully went “okay so i’ve done the math and i belong in gryffindor”
hat: “okay” rose: “you’re not going to argue’?” hat: “you’ll do well in gryffindor.” rose: “not ravenclaw? everyone’s been saying i’m going to go to ravenclaw” hat: do you want to be in ravenclaw? rose: ”not really” hat: “you’ll do better in gryffindor anyways”
headstrong and determined, rose was always going to be a gryffindor.
while her bravery might not have be the traditional foolhardiness that is oft associated with gryff, i think rose is– incredibly brave. in moments of incredible fear and duress (of which, for rose, there are plenty), rose can be relied upon to stand her ground. and, to me, that’s what bravery is.
also, she owns … too much gryff themed clothing… … way too much
tell me ron and hermione didn’t dress her up in red and gold as a baby, hoping... that it would subtly influence her
tell me ron and hermione didn’t shower her in gryffindor-themed items the first christmas she came back.... tell me... i haven’t checked this with their muns but... just tell me i’m wrong.
🖋weas7ths (english is fake anyway, i make my own words)
s/o to the crEw: albus, molly, lucy, louisdouble shoutout to adopted crew: albus + lucyalso double shoutout to louis for being a gryff, unlike the rest of those cowards... and s/o to molly just in case she’s reading this and decides she wants to hex rose or something
i don’t think rose has ever been more disappointed than when she got sorted into gryffindor as a Granger-weasley and waited for everyone to join her and then... only louis came. sure, louis is great and she loves him lots, but also- she was really looking forward to having all four of them be in the same house.
like lucy can’t help it, okay? lucy is... lucy. she’s a hufflepuff, clearly. but molly and albus?rose knows its irrational, but them all being sorted into different houses has always felt like a betrayal.
that being said-- even though their placement on rose’s official list of favorite cousins, ranked varies, i think rose does value them all more than she’s willing to let on. partly because they’re all the same age, partly bc 1/2 of them are also adopted and that’s really helped her not feel so alone/different, they’ve really helped to establish her as a person and they’re the cousins she’s always going to have a special bond with
im sure molly n lucy have pulled a prank on rose before and they might have even roped al n louis into it... she needs to loosen tf up................. dye her hair red... or blue... or green.... make her skin purple.... turn her into a canary.........
i get the feeling that... when they’re hanging out, if someone breaks like a vase ...
if molly did it,
molly vc: snitches get StitCHEs ;;;;
louis, al and rose, the biggest snitches this side of peter pettigrew: :|||||||||||
parents: who did this????
molly, digging her nails into their shoulders: no... one... right? al? rose? louis? lucy?
parents: * doubt rising *
molly: FINE it was rose
rose: !!!!!! :(
lucy: i dont remember it being rose... but if molly says so!!!!
if rose did it,
rose, crying: p- p- please don’t tell i d-didn’t MeAn To
molly, later: rose did it.
rose, already crying: n-n-no i didn’t
parents: um... louis, you were there... can u tell me what happened
louis: yessir!!! rose did it! i saw!!!!
al: yeah she did! i was there too.
rose: :((((((
if lucy did it,
rose vc: lucy!!!!! how could u!
molly vc: rose!! u made her do it!
louis vc: yikes i am staying out of this
lucy: it’s not even that bad!!! if we just put some flowers on it and some hot glue!!! no one will even notice anything!!! in fact, it would be kind of hot....
rose: NO. it’s either molly or my’s fault now. lucy step back.
if louis did it,
al + rose: get vic or dom get vic or dom pls tell them to help us out please ... fix the vase before anyone else sees
lucy: i have hot glue!!!
molly: let’s use hot glue.
louis: .... again, it’s just a vase.
if albus did it
albus to the parents: yeah i did it. it was an accident.
everyone, in unison: *breathes out a sigh of relief*
honestly a true blue crew... love these kids... so does rose. for some reason, im thinking abt weddings and let me tell u this: rose is gonna cry at each of their weddings and petition to be the wedding planner n godmother of their children. she’ll be so happy to see them happy.
if rose ever gets married (HAH!), these kids + hugo + lily + vi are going to get asked to be the groomsmen n bridesmaids, no doubt. they have their spats but rose loves them more than almost anything in the world.
in the future, if rose ever becomes valid, i do see all four of them going to the top of her favorite cousin’s list (srry... james and vic, who for some reason is her favorite cousin mostly due to idol worship)
the only family rose has ever known is the weasleys and, to be honest, if you ask her– that’s all she’s ever really needed.
rose is adopted, something she’s always known, and it’s never really bothered her.
as a child, ron and hermione often spoke of them choosing her, because they knew she’d be perfect for them.
however, while it did make her feel like she belonged, it also had some negative effects.
to this day, rose still struggles with the pressure to be the perfect daughter they imagined her to be.
also, because rose can carry on about “being chosen” a little bit too much— when hugo was younger, he actually felt bad that he wasn’t adopted and wasn’t chosen. which is just– awful.
yes, she’s curious about her biological family, but, from what her parents have told her— she doesn’t have any surviving relatives anyways. there’s nothing to see there. (right?)
i think, on occasion, rose does tend to ‘forget’ or even ignore the fact that she is adopted.
rose: i’m a weasley. its in my blood to * insert any random ass trait *.scorpius or any person with any sense: ur fucking adopted.
growing up with a… ton of cousins is something rose wouldn’t change for the world. she really does love every single one of them (even molly <3) and would do most anything for them.
but also— did it make it harder for her to make friends with people who were not family? yeah. does she still struggle with knowing her place within the family? absolutely. it’s hard to reconcile… being one of so many. what does she bring to the table that albus or louis can’t? that’s something she thinks about a lot.
in the end, rose’s favorite people in the world are ron, hermione and hugo and she’s so grateful and blessed to have been allowed to be in their family. she definitely idol worships her parents and thinks that they can do no wrong.
it’ll def be interesting... to see... how rose might react... if they do...
rose is always absolutely swimming in chocolate frogs and i have contextual evidence for this fact x + x + x (catch me… only knowing one candy and using it liberally)
it started out as a rainy day stockpile, because chocolate is always good to have and the cards that come with them are fun, but now, it’s a little bit of a compulsion. she buys some every time she stops by honeydukes out of habit.
she justifies it because they’re not just for her– she shares them with just about anyone who asks and some people who don’t.
passing them to crying first years? likely. giving a box to her cousins as a last-minute gift? absolutely.
i think she likes them bc there’s just a reliability there you can’t get with other magical candies. with a chocolate frog, you know what to expect. with every flavoured beans, you could get a earwax flavored one, expecting lime. or worse yet, just get strawberry.
in general, i think rose would absolutely have a sweet tooth to her and her dentist grandparent’s dismay. i see her liking milk chocolate the best, which is common but like… my favorite is white chocolate and u do have demons like cress who like dark chocolate, so there’s that.
in a college au, rose is that RA who has a sign on her door that says knock and ask me if i have candy <333 and she always does.
it’s not as though z particularly enjoys being unpleasant. there’s a part of him that aches to be kinder, that misses the lighthearted camaraderie of childhood. of the time before he joined the death eaters, and sold his soul for the price of matching his siblings. stupidity. he sighs, and rolls his eyes “i get it - you think i’m just as good as anyone else in that class. i’m not.” he pulls out his notebook, waves it once. opens it, and turns it towards her. “half of it’s not even for class. runes is just about one of the only one of these lessons that means anything - and defense, but not the watered-down crap they teach us. so it’s the only one i care for.”
and when they’re so closely linked to dark magic… well, z can’t pretend that’s not his real interest.
then he laughs. “just fine isn’t good, weasley.” he retorts, snapping his notes shut again, rolling his shoulders. he wonders if she’s at all afraid of him. if the rumours he’s convinced follow his shadow around the hall have reached her ears. either they have and she’s got more bravery and stupidity combined than he credited her for, or they haven’t, and he’s just paranoid. “you can’t ask anyone else. you wouldn’t be here if you could.” he smiles. “three galleons? i don’t need your money. i need an essay. history of magic. i fuckin’ hate that subject. deal?”
she slowed. at his taunt, rose felt a flush come across her cheeks. if she had been known to be a bookworm and a bit of a teacher’s pet, then so what! if she minded her grades, then so be it! she wasn’t about to be talked down to because of it.
she had half a mind to just walk away. he was wrong. there were plenty of other people she could ask about runes and have a perfectly sufficient understanding of what she had missed. and, if not, she could find a book in the library or something.
but merlin---- how she wanted those notes.
but not because, as z had advertised them, they were something extraordinary. not because she cared about what they contained (though admittedly she was curious to see if z was bluffing or not). but because, they, more than anything, would be a win. and, on a day like this, when nothing seemed to be going her way, she wanted a win- so badly.
“i didn’t ask for what the class didn’t teach, you toad,” she narrowed her eyes, “and more importantly, how do i know i’m getting a fair trade? how do i know your notes aren’t complete garbage? it’s not like you’ve got proof of your runes proficiency. you didn’t even give me a good look at your notes.”
“you’re going to stoop to blackmailing the head girl over runes homework? is that not utterly and disappointingly dishonest? do you not feel shame?” she was getting carried away now. she tossed her bookbag over one shoulder in a huff, “and, more importantly, that’s a terrible deal. we could both get in trouble for that. i’ll help you on your essay. and the next one, if you want.”
she crossed her arms, “but i want your notes for the rest of the year.“
WHERE: The Granger-Weasley Residence.
WHEN: A random day in August 2023 @ 09:34.
WHO: Rose Granger-Weasley. ( @bewareofthorns )
Ron had not been woken up by a commotion in the kitchen that morning, which was something he thoroughly appreciated. From time to time, some of his nephews, nieces and niblings dropped by, and Ron had learned to accept the fact that they were rarely quiet about it. It was nice to be able to wake up later, though, and so he turned to his side, hoping to see Hermione lying in bed beside him. When he noticed she wasn’t there, he wasn’t too surprised, but he hoped he’d get to see her soon. He had gotten an idea for the Order right before he fell asleep, and felt the need to discuss it with her before he brought it up in front of the others.
Sighing, he rolled out of bed and put on a pair of muggle sweatpants and a white t-shirt before making his way downstairs. There, he saw that there was still coffee left in the pot, and he felt quite relieved as he poured himself a cup and realized that Hermione had most likely been the one to make it. It wasn’t that he didn’t like the way his kids made coffee; it was just that Hermione made it the exact same way as he did, and he believed that was the perfect method.
Walking into the living room, he saw Rose sitting on the couch, and raised an eyebrow as he quietly entered the room and waited until she noticed him. Plopping himself down on the opposite end of the couch, he wrapped his hands around his mug. It was a warm summer day, but Ron’s hands were often cold in the morning, and he loved the heat of the coffee mug against them.
“Got your letter yet?” he asked with a smile, before frowning as he slightly wiggled, trying to find a more comfortable way to sit. “What am I sitting on?”
He got up, and looked at the couch. Nothing. He frowned even more, before thinking to look below the couch cushions, and he sighed as he found a piece of his oldest wizard’s chess set that raised its tiny fists at him. “I don’t know why the cat keeps on hiding the pieces everywhere, but I need to figure it out soon. I found one in the bath the other day. And I was already in the bath when I found it.”
“ewww- that’s gross, dad,” rose wrinkled her nose and waved him away, though she was giggling as she did it, “i don’t want to know what you found while you were in the bath-- just put it back and get over it.”
she rolled her eyes, “the hogwarts letter? i got it a bit ago. keep up. elise and i were actually just texting about meeting up and doing school shopping. i could use more quills and stationery.”
rose showed ron her phone screen where, just as she said, there was a cleanly printed “elise mclaggen” and a few text logs making plans to go to diagon alley. the messages were littered with hearts and otherwise likely incomprehensible symbols to anyone outside the demographic of 16 year old girls attending Hogwarts in Gryffindor House, but, even at a glance, the gist was there.
she gave him a grin, before it faltered and she looked back down at her phone. “i’ll admit- i mean, i was hoping for- i know it’s silly but--”
she cut herself off. after typing a few more words out on her phone with a stilted finality, she looked back up at her father with a brazen smile, “no worries here! whoever our head students are this year, they’re going to be lovely and deserving-- i’m sure of it. that being said, i do so hope its al or louis or scorpius or vi or leander, i think it’d be really really great for them.”
where: around the castle.
when:
who: @bewareofthorns
He was starting to feel like a father — Ryder had always been a caretaker, but he was the fist to Romeo’s lecture, the warrior to his mediator. His brother never really enjoyed his particular form of protectiveness. It was tiring, he found, to play both roles. And he missed him, he missed him dearly. He was gone. And they still had so many people they cared about that weren’t.
Rose, for once, was a prime example. Ryder knew she wasn’t defenceless, but her tendency to try to see the good in everyone could prove to be hazardous. It had been a topic of discussion several times and, even though the naivety frustrated him, what aggravated him the most was how headstrong she could be. Of course, he had a tendency to split the world between good people and death eaters, which, in turn, could definitely aggravate her. “We’ve talked about this a hundred times, Rosie. I know you think we can’t be sure, but I’m telling you,” he pleaded, “these people are off. I know you don’t need the reminder, but you have a target on your back since before you were born. Make it a study group instead of tutoring sessions. Merlin, I’ll even go to the library if you do!”
“you can certainly come with me to the library if you want, ry,“ rose responded flippantly. she didn’t look up from where she was busy packing her bookbag. one by one, she began placing more than a few large textbooks into her impossibly-spacious bookbag (thanks to an incredibly effective undetectable expansion charm). halfway into dropping a large tome into the bottom of the bag, her eyes widened almost comically. “godric!” she exclaimed, thumping her palm against her forehead, “i left my charms essay in there!”
she began rummaging through the bag. she reached inside with one arm to elbow, then two to the armpits, before she ended up sticking what seemed like half her body inside just to see what was going on.
look, it wasn’t that she wasn’t listening to him. it was just that she didn’t need to. she could take care of herself. she was tired of being babied. she didn’t need people telling her who she could or could not talk to.
“and--- just in case you forgot, ry,” she added petulantly, as she lifted her head to peep at him from over the mouth of her bag, “i was adopted. no one cared about me before i was born. names mean nothing. being a granger-weasley shouldn’t change the way i act.”
a constant twinkling of the bell atop the front doors. her fingers, sore from sticking pins and the intricate wand-twirling needed to add lace to cover a woman’s décolletage. the buzz of shrill voices asking her to trim that there and take it in just a little more, will you? eden’s temples ached. the shop was bursting with activity, the likes of which eden had only seen in yuletide seasons prior – when she’d been a part of the clientele, rather than the staff. the usual draw to the shop came from the ready-to-wear garments that hung on golden racks, charmed to fit the wearer. eden wore the likes of those clothes on her day-to-day, with the addition of leather or metal as she saw fit. but no, all tailors were on deck for the christmas holidays, when nothing would do but the best, most expensive, and hand-sewn gowns.
working at twilfitt’s was a true test of her patience, and she was grateful when that morning’s crop of stately pureblood women got their garments and left for lunch.
her co-workers gone for the moment as well, for twenty minutes she sat close to the front counter, enjoying the quiet and rubbing at a painful crick in her neck. when the bell atop the front doors rang out again and she threw herself onto her feet. a quick check of the appointment book – rose granger-weasley. early to her fitting. of fucking course–
“welcome to twilfitt and tattings, miss,” eden greeted, flicking her wand at her discarded apron with its various pins and measuring tapes in the pockets, letting the sturdy canvas tie itself around her waist. if she was going to service a weasley brat, she could at least attempt to charm the girl into giving up a trade secret from the other side. “please, follow me to a fitting room.”
for rose, it was the first of many things. the first fitting for her first set of professional robes. the first time she had ever set foot in twilfitt by herself. the first time she’d really been in diagon alley since- since the stores had been closed. since the night that uncle harry had died.
she had promised herself that she wouldn’t think of it, that she wouldn’t feel guilty about being here. it was only one semester before she would join the workforce, after all. she was graduating. she needed professional robes. it had been over a month. it didn’t matter that the loss of her uncle still felt so visceral sometimes, that everyone seemed to be frozen in time, still trying to grapple with the incomprehensible nature of the situation.
around the house, everyone was always saying that life moved on after loss, but, thus far, no one had managed to prove it. that morning, after watching a family member stare off into space with glassy eyes for the hundredth time at the mention of a christmas without uncle harry, rose had resolved to give everyone the best gift she could think of: she would show them all that it- that moving on- could be done.
when the employee came to get her, she pushed down the apprehension in her voice, ignored the welt of aching at the base of her spine.
suddenly, a voice in the back of her mind chimed out so clearly that she flinched. you shouldn’t be here--- it said-- rose, you’re not ready. you can’t just pretend like nothing has happened. she bit down on her lip hard. her mouth welling up with a copper tang, the voice quieted and she put on the biggest smile she could muster. oh really?, she retorted silently, watch me.
“you can just call me rose,” she offered brightly as she could, falling into step behind the woman, “thank you for helping me out today-- it seems like you’re really busy. it’s my first time getting professional robes, so i’m really excited to be here. isn’t it such a beautiful day?”
hugo, probably: oh um... rose... what are those posters of u up there for.
rose: to encourage interhouse unity!
hugo: ...................................... so that they would... all come together to make fun of u?
rose: ????
THE FOLLOWING SLIDES WERE PRESENTED AT AN URGENT MEETING WITH THE HEADMASTER IN ORDER TO CONVINCE HOGWARTS TO ADOPT STRICTER POSTERING POLICIES.
romaincrisis
snowghoul
2087
