Tell Me Anything (Rose)

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Hermione had been a good sport and had hit the slopes with hers and Leslies' families for about an hour before she excused herself and hit the couch in their shared cabin. She had made a large batch of her famous hot chocolate for the others to partake in once they got back, and kept the flame on the stovetop low to keep it warm. She wrapped her hands around the mug and inhaled the smell of the cocoa, smiling. She was so glad to be away from England for a little while; away from work at the Ministry, where she felt the weight of the world upon her shoulders at all times. She was finally able to relax. She pointed her wand at the fireplace and a roaring fire sprang up, crackling merrily as if it had been going for hours. She opened her book to the place she had marked last night and had just begun reading when the door of the cabin opened and shut. She looked up, interested to see who would else had decided they had enough of skiing.

Rozalina Antonina Nightshade

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Rose had gone out and hung out in the snow with Hugo and the Meagle kids for what felt like all day, but had only been a few short hours or so. She had stayed away from the skiing, as she wasn't big on the winter sport, and had opted for watching at the bottom of the hills. It had been fun watching everyone wipe out every now and then but after a while, Rose couldn't really bear to just stand out in the cold anymore, not really doing much of anything so she headed back inside to warm up.

The Ravenclaw took off her wet snow clothes by the door and hung them on the rack then headed toward the kitchen where she was pleased to see hot cocoa being kept warm on the stove. She grabbed herself a mug and poured some into it, smiling as the sweet smell filled her nostrils. There was no mistaking who made this hot chocolate and the small smile grew slightly on her face as she exited the kitchen to find the maker, whom Rose knew to be on the couch in the living area. Rose smiled at her mother as she met her eyes when she entered and made herself comfy on the chair opposite her mother, pulling her legs up on the couch to keep herself huddled and warm. "Hey, mum," she greeted her happily. It was no question where Rose got her affinity for preferring books and studying over the outdoors.

@hermionejean

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Hermione smiled at her daughter; she wasn't entirely surprised that Rose had called in quits on the mountain early like she did. The last time Hermione had gone skiing she was when she was sixteen over the winter holidays; she had nearly broken her ankle multiple times before she had excused herself from the trip and made her way to the house at Grimmauld Place for the rest of the time. She had remembered pleading with Harry to not tell Ron how terrible she was at skiing, but it had come out anyway. “I see you had enough of the slopes as well,” she said with a teasing grin. Out of her two children, Rose had inherited plenty of her traits, including her love of books.

They sat there, the two of them, reading and sipping hot chocolate together in a pleasant silence. Hermione looked up a few times though to see if Rose was paying attention. She had noticed her daughter had seemed different, almost hiding something since she had surprised them at Hogwarts just before the attacks in April. She had been bursting to ask her daughter what was going on, but also didn't want her to think she didn't trust her. Not being able to hold back anymore, Hermione cleared her throat. “Rosie, sweetheart, you know you can talk to me about anything, right?” she asked her daughter.

Rozalina Antonina Nightshade

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Rose gingerly sipped upon her cocoa, content to be inside where she could relax. Or at least physically relax. Her mind was still always managing to find its way back to the Malfoy boy. It wasn't that she minded all too much, she supposed... But being around her family made her feel very guilty about it. She smiled up at her mother when she spoke. "You know me, never a fan of physical activity," she let out a little chuckle as she set her book in her lap to begin reading it.

The two sat quietly, sipping their cocoa and reading even though Rose seemed not able to concentrate fully on her book. That was when she heard her mother clear her throat. Instinctively, Rose's eyes widened only slightly as she looked up at her mother, hiding her pursed lips behind her mug. After a second to regain her composure, she set her mug down. "Of course," she said, trying her very best to seem like nothing was wrong but she knew it was far too late for that. Her mother had finally figured out she was hiding something.

@hermionejean

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"Yes, that you certainly get that gift from me, along with your brains" Hermione said with a chuckle.  "Why, if they don't give you the Head Girlship I'm half tempted to march up to the school and demand reasoning from Neville," she teased.  Just before Rose answered her, Hermione saw the hesitation and freeze up.  She knew she had been right; there was something Rose was hiding.  She hadn't necessarily wanted to be right though - the thought of Rose not feeling like she could come to her was a bit heartbreaking.  It must have been something her daughter was truly struggling with internally to not speak up about it.  She hoped at least that she had talked to Hugo about whatever was going on; she and Ron had raised two siblings that were incredibly close, which after being an only child was all Hermione could ask for.


"This wouldn't have anything to do with a boy you're interested in, is it?" she asked.  Hermione herself did not know if Rose was seeing anybody, but she recognized the signs.  Back in her fourth year, when Viktor Krum had asked her to the Yule Ball, she had gone out of her way to hide it from everyone, including Harry and Ron.  Especially Ron.  She remembered his reaction when he had found out, and there had been a very ugly row.  The past was in the past now, thankfully, but she did know that that prejudice against the Krums had trickled down into Rose and Viktors' daughter Irina.  She hoped the same thing wouldn't happen to Rose, which was the only reason she was trying to wheedle it out of her.



Rozalina Antonina Nightshade

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Rose made no effort to hide the small grin that appeared on her face in response to her mother's playful teasing. She really was her mother's daughter, and if she knew her mother: her last joke wasn't all a joke. The idea of her mother marching up to school to scold Neville was a funny one. Though the topic of Head Girl was another small stress in Rose's life, she appreciated the lighthearted teasing as it got a little grin out of Rose. The position of Head Girl was one that Rose had wanted since she was practically young enough to even say 'Head Girl.' So while she appreciated the attempt at the joke, it was still a source of stress internally.

The Ravenclaw froze up like a deer in the headlights at her mother's next question. Her eyes went wide and her eyebrows rose as she looked at her mother. She opened her mouth to talk, wanting to tell her it wasn't but as she stood there, unable to speak for a moment, she realized that there was absolute no use in lying to her mother. Her mother would, eventually, find out one way or another. Rose looked down at her lap and closed her book, biting her lip in the silence. This wasn't going to be easy, but she was lucky to have such an understanding mother who would try to make it easy. "Actually... yes," her voice was as quiet as a mouse as she finally looked back up at her mother. "A boy." "But not just any boy..." She wanted to scream out, but she knew she had to take this slow. Both for her mother and for herself.

@hermionejean

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So she had been right; Rosie's preoccupation had been about a boy.  Hermione wasn't exactly shocked - Rose was seventeen and had dated a few boys before, but she had never been so preoccupied as with this one.  She immediately wanted to know who it was, but since this conversation had felt as though pulling teeth, she felt perhaps the best way for Rose to get out what was on her mind was to not use any names at all.

Setting down her mug of hot cocoa, she reached over and gently took Rose's hand in hers.  "Why don't you start from the beginning?" she asked.  "You don't need to give me any names if you don't want to.  But if you want to tell me anything, I am all ears," she added.  One day, maybe Rose would reveal the name of the boy who had stolen her heart, but if it was not to be today, then so be it.

Rozalina Antonina Nightshade

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Rose had talked about boys with her mother plenty of times before. It wasn't like she had never dated! She could easily remember telling her mother about when she had started dating Kyle and her mother was very good at never making things feel awkward. Though, considering the circumstances... things already felt awkward for Rose. She wasn't sure how her mother would take the news of the 'boy' in question being Scorpius Malfoy.

Rose felt a warm reassurance when her mother took a hold of her hand, and she couldn't help but let a small smile appear on her face. She was so glad she the mother she did. Rose let out a small breath of relief when her mother said she didn't have to mention any names. That was going to make this a lot easier. "Okay," she said, sitting up a little more straight in her chair. "This boy... he and I, we used to not get along very well at all," she began, thinking back to when she and Scorpius would constantly fight one another for who was better at practically everything. "But this year... I kind of started to realize that... I liked him. And... we made a truce, of sorts, and then..." her face became slightly disgruntled. "We began to talk a lot... and eventually, he broke up with his girlfriend..." No need to mention that was her cousin, right?

"And then... he told me... that he liked me, too." Another small smile appeared as she thought of the day she and Scorpius sat hiding in the cupboard during the attacks. "But... we decided that perhaps it was best for us to just... spend time apart this summer." She finished a little lamely. She didn't mention why they had thought that was a good idea but... she decided it best to not load her mother with so much information at once.

@hermionejean

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Hermione couldn't help but let a smile spread across her face as Rose delved into her story, clearly relieved that she didn't have to reveal names. That made her curious though; who would Rose develop feelings for but be afraid to tell her parents about?  Draco's boy Scorpius immediately popped into her head - she could still clearly remember Ron issuing a not-so-joking warning to Rose on her first day at Hogwarts to keep away from him.  That would be quite ironic; but picturing how Ron would react to that news made Hermione not say anything, not yet at least.

Her brow furrowed though, at Rose's last statement.  "Spend time apart?" she repeated, sounding concerned.  She didn't sound to happy about it, but she knew Rose wouldn't  make a decision like this lightly.  "Have you spoken to him since you got here?  Maybe he'd like to hear from you," she suggested.  She was bursting to ask her daughter who he was but knew better than to say anything.  Rose clearly wasn't ready to tell her yet and she wasn't going to push her.

Rozalina Antonina Nightshade

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Rose was, yet again, beyond relieved that even after all she had laid out for her mother, she still didn't pry or ask questions as to who she could possibly be talking about. The more Rose thought about it, she figured that her mother would probably be the right person to tell about Scorpius. Rose had not yet told anyone about her feelings for Scorpius, specifically, and to be quite honest it was starting to boil up inside of her. Like she had to tell someone. She knew that it was unlikely that her mother would keep a secret from her father but, maybe if Rose asked really nicely, she would. At least for a little while, right?

When Hermione repeated Rose's words back to her, they stung a little. Only because they reminded her that she was spending the summer away from Scorpius and that was something that hurt, even if she didn't show it. Rose shook her head then. "No, we haven't spoke," she let out a small sigh. Her eyes slowly moved away from her mother to look down at her own hands in her lap. "And I don't think he would want to hear from me just yet. He... he's probably got some things to sort out." Rose let out another sigh. She couldn't leave it at that; what if her mother got the wrong idea? "We sort of decided that it would be best for us to stay apart until... some people had time to get over somethings. Like, a breakup maybe," Rose shrugged as nonchalantly as she could manage. Maybe she could will herself into telling her mother by dropping hints here and there. Otherwise Rose didn't know if she could manage.

@hermionejean

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Hermione raised an eyebrow. A breakup? The wheels in her head were whizzing fast; she remembered exactly how she felt. Thinking back to her sixth year, when Ron had finally broken up with Lavender Brown, then the way he had held her at Dumbledore’s funeral, she had wanted to confess everything, then and there. But it was not the right time; she knew Harry was not planning on returning to school the following year, and she knew that she and Ron would follow him until the end. While it was always on her mind, saving the world from Voldemort was quite a bit more important. She realized suddenly, that she didn’t know if her daughter knew about this. Maybe she’d feel better if she knew her own parents had been in a situation similar...maybe.

“You know, if it makes you feel better, your father and I had a similar situation holding us back,” she began, clearing her throat. “Your father used to date Casey & Saorises’ mum, you’ve met her before a few times I believe. Well, when they broke up, it was about a week before Albus Dumbledore died. Your father comforted me at the funeral, and I was ready. I was ready to tell him it’s always been him. But the timing was off. Not only had he just broken up with his girlfriend, but we both knew Uncle Harry was not going to be returning to school to hunt for Voldemorts’ horcruxes, and we knew that we’d be going with him. I couldn’t let my feelings complicate something so important,” she told her daughter. “I remember one time when we were camping, we’d fallen asleep holding hands. It was such a small thing, but it felt so natural,” she added, laughing with fondness of the memory. She leaned over and gave Rose’s shoulders a squeeze. “The moral of your mothers’ long-winded story is this; if you feel strongly for him, whoever he is, and he’s the right one, the moment will come where it all falls into place,” she promised with a smile.

Rozalina Antonina Nightshade

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Rose bit the inside of her lip as she nervously awaited her mother's response, but the response she was given surprised her. Rose's eyes widened slightly at the news that her parents had gone through something similar. Rose listened intently as her mother explained to her about their story. Rose had grown up hearing countless stories, so she knew all about Dumbledore's funeral and the Horcrux searching. But she never knew what went on behind the scenes. Hearing about her mother and the timing... it was similar to her situation with Scorpius.

Rose looked down at her lap. She did feel strongly for him. "Can you keep a secret, Mum?" After a story like that... Rose felt pretty compelled to share her own secret with her mother.

@hermionejean

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Hermione reached out and took her daughters' hands in her own.  "Well, in my time I've been known to be quite a good secret keeper," she said with a wry chuckle.  She looked over at her firstborn child, the girl who strives so hard to be like her.  She was keeping a secret from everyone, and clearly it was eating her up that nobody knew yet.  "I remember when you were born, over seventeen years ago.  You were so ready to come into the world, but I was so scared.  I knew I was a good witch, Prefect, Head Girl, and someone who always stood up for the little guy.  But was I ready to be a mother?  I wasn't so sure," she said.  Rose and Hugo did not know about the miscarriage she and Ron had before Rose, but there was a time and place for that story.  That place or time wasn't now.

"But when they placed you, red faced and squalling in my arms, I looked at your father, and at the same time we fell in love.  And I knew, that as long as I had your father by my side helping in this journey, we could do anything."  She squeezed her hands gently.  "That is what I want for you.  Perhaps not quite at that level just yet - I'm not ready to be a grandmother," she said with a chuckle.  "But if you've found someone who makes you feel like you can conquer the world?  I don't care what he looks like, where he comes from, who his parents are.  How you feel, that's what's important," she finished, trying not to cry.  She hadn't realized how emotional talking to her daughter about love and boys would get, but she didn't remember if they had ever had this sort of talk before.  She gave her daughter an encouraging smile, waiting for her to continue.

Rozalina Antonina Nightshade

ooc: oh my god, my feelings right now <3

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Rose smiled as her mother chuckled at her own little joke. Rose had always adored her mother. It was certainly no coincidence that the two were so alike; though Rose rather quite liked that they were. It was always weird to think that one's parents were, at one time, a young, lost teenager as well. Rose often times lost sight of that fact. She's confused just as she's sure her mother was probably confused when it came to her father when they were Rose's age. Rose's smile was a small, understanding one as she listened to her mother explain these things to her.

The Ravenclaw could feel the stinging of a couple tears threatening to spill over as she listened to her mother's heartfelt advice. Rose looked down at her lap and blinked a few times so as to fight back the tears. She didn't want to cry. Instead she, too, let out a little chuckle at her mother's joke about being a grandmother. Good thing they were on the same page, there. But... her mother said that whoever it was... that didn't matter. All that mattered was her happiness. Rose was still scared to even think about what her father would think but at least this was good practice for when he would eventually be told.

Rose let out a breath she had been holding in and then looked up at her mother. "Scorpius Malfoy. I..." She paused for a moment. "Mum, I really like Scorpius Malfoy." Her voice was both a confession and almost a realization that her feelings for Scorpius were so strong. She didn't know how her mother would feel if she told her just how strong, but this was the first step.

@hermionejean

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Hermione breathed the sigh of relief as Rose finally admitted what, or rather who, had been on her mind for the duration of the trip. Scorpius Malfoy. Well, she could certainly see why her daughter was hesitant about telling them. She remembered very clearly on Rose’s first day of Hogwarts that Ron had warned her to stay away from Scorpius, a threat Hermione had rolled her eyes at at the time but now found laughably ironic. Rose was definitely right to keep this from her father, but she was so glad that she had found it in her to tell her dear old mother. “You know, I had wondered if he was the one,” she admitted with a small smile. “His mothers a lovely woman, Astoria. His father….well, I know from my limited interactions with Draco since becoming a father that he truly loves his son. And while your father and his rivalry will probably never die completely, I like to believe that it’s become...less intense over the years,” she told her. “But he makes you happy? Because you know that matters most,” Hermione asked her, just wanting to confirm that Rose was really happy with Scorpius Malfoy. Ron would have to be kept in the dark of course until she could better prepare her husband, but she wanted to be sure for her daughter first.


Rozalina Antonina Nightshade