Flora And Fawna [HARRY POTTER]

6

"Shirt off and sit on the couch," Rosie ordered as she and Regulus walked into a smaller, homelier version of the hospital wing. Rosie went directly over to a shelf on the far wall and began mashing together some plants.

Regulus made no move to do as she said, so Rosie stopped, turned to face him, and leveled him with a look. Somehow the muggleborn was half his height, probably a quarter of his weight soaking wet, and she still made him feel three feet tall. Rosie had managed to perfectly recreate the look Regulus' mother, Walburga Black, used on he and his brother when they got into trouble when they were younger. Regulus almost shrank away.

"Sit. Shirt off," Rosie repeated, before turning back to her plants. This time Regulus did as he was asked and seated himself on a comfortable flowered couch that sat pushed up against one wall. His shirt was discarded carelessly to one side, ending up bunched up on the floor to wrinkle.

Rosie saw it and grimaced.

About ten minutes later Rosie wandered back over, picking up Regulus' shirt as she did, and motioned for the seventh year to show her his back.

It wasn't as bad as she imagined it would be. Regulus had somehow managed to keep all the stitches clean, so they weren't infected. He had, however, been moving around and had tore some of them out. Rosie imagined only the black of his school robes had hidden the blood that must have seeped out.

Regulus jumped nearly a foot in the air when Rosie's cold hands made contact with his skin, smearing a chunky paste on his back.  He went to turn around but her other hand, this one even colder, stopped him.

"I didn't have time to make a potion, but this paste should do just as well. The tea tree oil in it should take down the swelling and the lavender oil has antibacterial properties. You'll smell like you took a roll in an apothecary shop but you won't get a fever and have to tell Madame Pomfrey how you got those cuts on your back."

Rosie wasn't exactly gentle with Regulus, but whatever it was she was smearing on his back made him not care. Most of the pain he had been feeling melted away, like magic, and his head felt clear for the first time since he had been hexed. Regulus relaxed back into Rosie's touch, just for it to disappear.

Rosie strode back over to the other side of the room, and got a tin off the counter she had been working on.

"This is enough paste to last you until your stitches are ready to come out. You spread it over the lines only, then wrap it in bandages so it won't get all over your clothes. Wash your back well whenever you take a shower so no bits heal into the wound. Come back for me to remove the stitching when you run out of paste."

Rosie walked back over to Regulus and began to wrap his torso, and Regulus stared at Rosie like Penny had that first morning. She was blonde and pale, with the lightest dusting of freckles, and for a split second Regulus saw Rosie as something angelic.

*******

Two weeks later and Rosie was again, studying in the library. This time she had somehow managed to acquire a book on healing charms from the restricted section,  and had clearly been sitting there for a while because she was half way through. Rosie flipped the page.

"Hello, Mudblood," Regulus' voice was familiar by then, she had grown used to hearing it in the halls and during mealtimes. The slytherin prince was always with his friends. Laughing, joking, making snide comments towards muggleborns and halfbloods alike. The only ones that seemed to be safe from Regulus were the teachers.

Rosie didn't have to question why he was there. She had been approximating his return since that night in the Room of Requirement. Regulus was there for the stitches to come out, and then she would be free of him. It was a refreshing thought.

Without a word Rosie got up, put her things away, and headed towards the seventh floor. Regulus followed. If anyone had been watching their encounter they would have seen Regulus sit across the library and study Rosie for twenty minutes before he finally worked up the nerve to approach her. They would have then seen the confident Regulus Black follow a no name Ravenclaw muggleborn from the library like he was a timid little kitten.

The two of them walked side by side this time to the room of requirement, not Regulus trailing a few steps behind, being led like a dog on a leash by his arm. The change seemed to make them get there even quicker, which wasn't really a surprise. Regulus was no longer resisting and Rosie was no longer having to muscle him along like she had last time.

Remembering Rosie's not so gentle care of him Regulus pulled his shirt sleeve down to hide the fading bruise she had left. One of his mates had seen it that night and had suggested that a girl had left it there in the throws of passion. Regulus hadn't wanted to admit it had been left there by an overly strong eleven year old so he hadn't said anything to contradict.

Only now any time Regulus tried to get some time alone his friends teased him about going to have a romp with his new shag slut.

The room of requirement was different when they entered it this time. Regulus knew that meant Rosie must have had different intentions when she summoned it this time, having read through the copy of Hogwarts A History that Rosie had thrown at him.

Instead of the floral couch that had been setting against one wall, there was a backless chair in the middle of the room. The room had been homlier before but now it was bright and steril. There was a cauldron bubbling in the corner.

"You redecorated," Regulus tried to joke. He wasn't sure why he was nervous, it was hardly the first time the girl had helped him with this particular problem. And she was hardly intimidating on her own. She was practically angelic. But she had accomplished more in her first two weeks at the school that Regulus had probably gotten done in his seven years. She wasn't intimidating right then, but what she would grow into would be.

Rosie raised one of her eyebrows and motioned for him to sit in the backless chair. They had been through this same thing enough times that Rosie was pretty sure she wouldn't need to tell Regulus what to do. And she didn't. Regulus wordlessly moved to the chair she had pointed to and removed his shirt with only a slight hesitation. His back was facing Rosie so he could only listen to what she was doing.

A few seconds later Rosie appeared in front of him with a pair of snips in one hand and a mug of whatever had been bubbling in the cauldron in the other. It was still steaming.

"This will get rid of the worst of your scars. It will also dull the pain from the mark on your arm," Rosie had noticed that Regulus never rolled up his sleeves. It had been ungodly hot in the castle last week and there were ten slytherins, Regulus and his friends, who didn't even move to roll up their sleeves no matter how much they sweat. They had something to hide on their arms and it wasn't hard to guess what. Furthermore both time she had seen Regulus without his shirt now, the boy had had bandages wrapping his forearm. If it had been a wound he would have had it healed.

Rosie was walking behind his back before Regulus could even process her words. Once they registered though, Regulus was on his feet with his wand pointed at her. Rosie rolled her eyes and flicked her wrist. His wand flew out of his hand and hit the wall.

"Didn't your mother ever tell you it's rude to point? Drink the potion and sit down."

Regulus looked at her, then his wand where it sat twenty feet away, then her again. Perhaps he was right to be weary of her now. He had been a death eater for several months and the most impressive wandless magic he had seen was by an eleven year old. He spent significant time around the Dark Lord and an eleven year old had him more worried.

Regulus carefully sat back in the chair, his shoulders tense. He didn't move to drink the potion though.

And after Rosie let out a particularly long sigh of exasperation, she began to remove his stitches.