Frail ❃ Albus Potter

Thirty Four

Girls your age never mean what they say.

R O S E

Rose dropped into the seat across from Piper in the Gryffindor common room, her mind racing.

Piper barely even glanced up. She was curled up on a plush purple armchair, her feet tucked under her, with her eyebrows furrowed in single-minded concentration. A book was propped up on her knees, and as Rose watched, she turned a page, eyes darting across it.

"Hi," Rose said quietly. Piper sighed and glanced up at her, the evening light casting shadows on her face.

"Hi, Rose," she said. "What's up?"

Rose resisted the urge to say the sky. She knew from previous experience that Piper wouldn't find it funny- especially now, when she had huge bags under her eyes and a grumpy expression on her face.

The bags were at least smaller, Rose noted. But that didn't mean they weren't there.

"Just checking up," Rose said breezily, trying to sound casual. "You know."

Piper looked suspicious. "No, I don't know, actually. Why do you look so... pleased with yourself?"

Rose snickered. "I talked to Scorpius."

Cringing, Piper set her book down. "Oh?"

"Oh." Rose grinned, all teeth, and reflected back on the terrified look on Scorpius' face when she'd cornered him in that empty classroom. "It was great."

"Did Scorpius think so?"

Piper was frowning. Rose sighed, and shook out her hair. "Well? What about you? Have you talked to Albus? Although," she added. "Hopefully not in the way that I talked to Scorpius."

Piper blinked. "Yeah. We talked. We're... well, it's complicated, you know."

Rose didn't know. "You like him," she said slowly. "He likes you. I would even go as far as to say love. You love each other, and you can be together. What's so complicated about that?"

Piper blinked again, and then opened her mouth. "Well-"

"Well, nothing. In twenty years, you'll either be married to Albus and naming your children after me or married to someone else and naming your children after me. Or not getting married at all and adopting children and naming them after me. This small decision," Rose held her hands apart to show how small the decision was, "won't affect that. Will it make you happy? Yes. Will it make Albus happy? Yes. I don't see the problem here."

Piper opened her mouth, and then closed it again, running a hand through her hair. "It's complicated."

"So uncomplicate it." Rose shook her head, overtaken by a sudden surge of irritation she couldn't explain. She got to her feet and started to head towards the common room door. "I'm going to see Lily. See you later."

She didn't look back as she stepped through the portrait hole.

Haha I'm such a crappy author. You should hire a new one.