Rose Weasley and The Beast of the Black Lake, year 2

Into Deep

Rose Weasley waltzed down the train corridor arm in arm with her cousin, Albus. She was beyond ecstatic. Rose and Al had gone through some rather challenging measures to achieve a shared goal and were now anticipant to share their success with Scorpius and Max.

Rose smiled and waved at her friends in passing compartments and seats. She clutched her satchel tighter. She and Al knocked on a compartment window to wave at Olivia who was talking rather sternly to her brothers who were covered in some type of slimy ink and looking rather defeated. She smiled and waved back. They continued.

"Olivia?" Rose just realized.

"What about her?" Al asked.

"Are we sharing with her? Is she coming?"

"Obviously," Al shrugged. "She's been loyal to this challenge as much as any of us; she has done most of the dirty work too. She deserves as much as anyone to come."

The two cousins swung into a separate train corridor to spot a mound of indigo curls atop a familiar boy. Max and Scorpius were conversing with James and Tyler whose vow of silence was at last over just before the Holidays.

"Max!" Rose screeched the same time Al shouted Scor's name.

She ran to her friend and threw her arms around his middle. He smelled of pine needles and Christmas and had the freshness of the outdoor snow pungent on the coat she had bought him.

"We have something huge to tell you!" she gasped. "I swear it's-" she stopped with a glance at James and Tyler who were watching them curiously. "We'll tell you later," she whispered.

"Why don't you tell him now, Red?" James asked, propping his hands under his chin. "I'm quite interested."

"I'll tell you if you tell us," she smirked.

James' hand slipped. "Tell you what?" he asked quickly.

"You know," she smiled before turning with a flip of her red curls that she had in a ponytail today and continuing down the hall with her arms linked with Al and Max.

"You don't reckon?" she heard James whisper frantically.

"Oh, calm down mate," Tyler waved airily. "She doesn't know anything. We've been as stealthy as a letherfold."

Rose swung into their compartment at the back of the train and forced Max into the seat opposite though he was already about to sit; she all too often commanded a room and everyone in it without realizing or the residents needing commanding.

"I know how to take a seat," Max said, half annoyed half amused.

"I know, I'm just so excited!" she said.

The train gave a lurch and started toward the countryside.

"Will you tell us now?" said Scorpius who looked extremely relaxed with his hands behind his head as he slouched in the seat opposite her and Al.

"Not yet," Al spoke as Rose was about to blurt out their findings. "We have to wait for Olivia."

It was the longest twenty-two minutes Rose had ever had to wait. She wanted to tell Max everything to its full extent! She wanted to share her glee with her best friend, and Scorpius, of course, Scorpius too.

The food trolley had come and gone by the time Olivia finally swung into the compartment looking very irritated.

"Sorry guys," she huffed. "I was stuck behind the trolley all the way up here. The thing takes up the whole of the corridor and stops at every compartment. Oh my God, and Poppy, she saw me trying to get past and purposely took six minutes to purchase all the licorice which she knows is my favorite!" Max smiled slightly. "But what is it? Al wrote me."