🌹 Rose Giving What's One More Rose

[Brooke Townsend]

Red Rose for @Tilly Drage

Brooke had heard through the grapevine that Tilly Drage was one of the students getting the most roses in the whole school. And she just couldn't understand that. She had no problem with Tilly, really, but there was no getting around that she had a reputation for causing trouble and Brooke couldn't piece together how that worked out into getting a pile of roses, especially not a red one. Maybe the Quidditch thing made up for more than Brooke realized. Maybe it'd be worth trying to be better friends with Tilly if people liked her so much.

Spotting Tilly heading down the hallway, Brooke put on a little extra speed, catching up to Tilly's long stride. "Hi Tilly, I bet you're having a busy day," she said, trying to match step with the Hufflepuff. "I've got a rose for you though," she said, grabbing the red rose.

 

[Tilly Drage]

Tilly was lost in thought, focused on the ending to a book she’d recently finished. It left her feeling unsettled, and excited, and drained all at the same time. Her brain was slow to catch up to her ears. She didn’t notice Brooke at first and continued walking along. When she looked up, she saw the Slytherin was trying to catch her attention.

“Oh, hey, sorry Brooke,” Tilly said, shaking her head. “My mind was somewhere else.” Her eyes narrowed as she noticed the red rose. Her eyes narrowed when she saw the color of the flower. “Who sent that?” she asked, more to herself, even though she’d blurted it out loud.

 

[Brooke Townsend]

Brooke had to do a little hop to keep up with Tilly, unable to repress the frustrated noise that accompanied it, but at least Tilly finally noticed her. "It's fine, I'm sure it's hard to keep track of us when you're so tall," she said, pasting on a smile. "I don't know, you can find out," she said when Tilly asked about the rose, passing it and the note over to her. "Someone's clearly fond of you though," she added slyly.

Spoiler: Note

Tilly!!!!! Love you ~Jordie

 

[Tilly Drage]

“What do you mean by ‘us’? The vertically challenged?” Tilly joked. She hoped Brooke wouldn’t take too much offense, although she seemed the type who could take as much as she could dish out. She accepted the rose and opened the note. When she read its contents, she laughed. She wondered if Jordie knew what the different rose colors meant. And then she remembered she hadn’t sent him a rose, and knew he would be mad as hell as her. “It’s not what you think, but thanks for the delivery.” She looked up at Brooke. “Are you going to enter the Duelling Tournament this year?” She was genuinely curious. She didn’t envy Brooke the big shoes she was expected to fill, with her sister the most cantankerous leader of the SDA.

 

[Brooke Townsend]

"I like to think of myself as travel-sized" Brooke said loftily. She'd much rather be short than ridiculously tall like Tilly any day. She raised an eye when Tilly said the rose wasn't what she thought, tilting her head with a wry smile at the suggestion anyone really knew what she was thinking. "Well, nice to have regardless, I'm sure," she said instead, thinking of how many red roses she'd already delivered today and trying not to feel jealous. Tilly's next question made her pause, though Brooke wasn't sure why, there was no way she couldn't. "Of course. Hopefully I can give you a run for your title this year," she said confidently, though her stomach sunk at the idea that she might get knocked out so early in the tournament like last year.