Rose Evans and The Scroll of Life [HIATUS]

I.VI

Three plates of delicious food—she had found some hunger in her after all—Rose set down her fork contentedly. They'd never gotten much to eat at the orphanage; the orphans had prepared every meal, and it was always cheap, easy food. She didn't know who cooked the meal, but she wanted to thank them.

Quite unexpectedly, the food vanished, leaving the golden plates sparkling, just as clean as they when the feast had started. Desserts appeared in their place, however: chocolate cake with chocolate frosting; great slabs of ice-creams glistening under the candle light, melting from the heat; all different sorts of puddings from all over the world, flavoured in all sorts of ways; pies with perfectly crimped edges, in apple, pumpkin, and rhubarb; a multitude of upside-down cakes, looking light and fluffy; fruit for those who did not like sweets: apples, oranges, strawberries, even mangoes; wobbly bricks of colourful jelly; and, best of all, gleaming flans, in all sorts of flavours and sizes. It was a sweet-tooth's paradise.

"My," Rose heard Catrina say beside her. "I didn't know so many sweet things could exist in harmony. This looks simply stupendous."

"What's your favourite pie, Rose?" said Jay, cutting himself a slice of chocolate cake. Zoee listened on interestedly.

"Er—I've never had any before," Rose said quietly.

Catrina, forgetting her former dislike of Jay and Zoee, was so overcome with this news that she turned and exclaimed: "Rose! Darling! How is that possible?! Oh! you poor thing, you must try some!"

"Er—okay," said Rose, still quietly.

Jay, smiling, said, "It is rather good."

Catrina looked at Jay with a newfound partiality. "Thank you," she said, quite seriously.

"Of course," Jay said, still smiling amusedly.

"So, what classes are you all looking forward to?" Zoee asked, leaning forward to engage in the conversation. The candlelight glinted off her ear-rings; Rose noticed one more, a smaller, black, one, in Zoee's upper lip. "I can't wait for Defense Against the Dark Arts—it sounds quite exciting, don't you think?"

"Yes, but Zoee, don't you think that Charms would be more useful?" Jay protested. Zoee rolled her eyes.

"That's just being rude to Professor McGonagall; she teaches Transfiguration; she'd tell you how each magical art is just as useful as the next." Her tone was serious, but her countenance was teasing. To Rose she said, "Jay and I grew up together, so I feel compelled to disagree with him on all costs."

Rose was at a loss of words. She wished to be polite, but she didn't know how to talk to these people, with their easy amiability and charm. "Er," she said only, and hated herself for it.

But Zoee seemed to understand. She turned from Rose, with one last pitying smile—which Rose detested herself for being the receiver of—and proceeded to engage in just as heated conversation with Jay as she had during dinner. He consented, although not understanding, and refrained from venturing from any more conversation with Rose for the rest of dinner, for which Rose was grateful.

Once the feast was over, the silver-haired man, who Rose had come to understand was Dumbledore, rose to his feet and spread his arms again. The hall became silent as the half-finished desserts vanished off the plates.

"Now that our delectable feast has been devoured, let me speak to you all in earnest," he began. "I have a few reminders for our first years—and perhaps for a couple of the returning students as well.

"The forest on the grounds is forbidden, and I would advise you from going near it without permission, and without being accompanied by, an adult." Rose immediately resolved never to even look at the forest, even with a professor. "Also, Mr. Filch has asked me to remind all students that Dungbombs, any carnivorous apparel, and all objects bought at Zonko's are strictly forbidden from entering the castle, and that are subject to full confiscation." He gestured to the back of the room; everybody looked to see a man cradling a cat standing there, attired in a perfectly horrible old suit. "The full list comprises of some four hundred items, I believe, and is in Mr. Filch's room, if any student would wish to view it.