Year One, Chapter One - The Journey Begins.
Albus Potter waved goodbye to his family throught the window of the Hogwarts Express. He kept his eyes on his father, who was walking alongside the train, until it rounded a turn and the platform was lost to sight. He stood still for a moment, feeling a twinge of fear at being on his own for the first time.
Then Rose Weasley was tugging on his elbow. "Come on, Al, let's find a compartment."
Al smiled at his cousin. "Yeah, we'd better hurry or they'll be full." Well, at least he wasn't all on his own.
They d made it most of the way down the train, passing James and his rowdy group of friends, before they saw a sandy-blonde head pop out of an open door. "Al, Rosie, in here! I've been saving places for you!"
"Hi, Lyssa!" Rose greeted their friend. Al just smiled and helped haul their trunks and owl cages onto the luggage racks. They'd known Alyssa all of their lives, as her father, Professor Neville Longbottom, was one of their parents' best friends.
Al tucked himself into the corner beside the window, while the girls sat across from him. "Why are you on the train, Lyssa?" he asked. "You live in Hogsmeade."
The blonde girl fiddled with her tie; like Rose, she was already in her uniform. "What, and miss the traditional Hogwarts Express ride? Never!"
Rose grinned. "But this is great! We get the whole day together!"
Alyssa nodded energetically. "Yeah, my thoughts exactly. So... what House do you guys want to be in?"
Al turned to gaze out the window as Rose prattled on about preferring Gryffindor, but not minding Ravenclaw. Everyone asked that question, and Al just didn't have an answer. Everybody expected him to want to join Gryffindor - but he really didn't think he was brave enough. He felt sick and nervous even now.
A soft tap at the door drew Al's attention, although the girls, busy with their conversation, didn't notice. Standing hesitantly in the doorway was the small blond boy from the platform.
The boy bit his lip. "Sorry, but I can t find a seat anywhere. Could I - ?"
Al nodded, gesturing to the empty seat beside him. He stood to help stow the boy's gear and owl, noticing that he seemed just as nervous as Al felt.
The girls were staring as the boys sat down again. Alyssa was merely curious, but Rose fixed first the boy and then Al with a piercing gaze, clearly recognizing the boy, and not liking his presence. The pale boy fidgeted for a moment, then offered a tentative smile. "I'm Scorpius Malfoy, and my owl is Archimedes."
Rose and Alyssa exchanged glances but Al just smiled in response, glad to meet someone new. "Albus Potter, and my barn owl up there is Shayna."
"I'm Alyssa Longbottom," the fair girl said quietly. Her eyes watched Scorpius closely.
Al's cousin hesitated, but Aunt Hermione had done a good job of instilling manners and courtesy won out. "Rose Weasley," she bit out. Okay, courtesy had only beaten rudeness by a nose. Rose turned back to Alyssa and continued their previous conversation as if there had been no interruption.
Al and Scorpius sat in awkward silence, the latter staring at his hands, looking miserable. Al tried to think of something to say to make up for his cousin's attitude, but he was still trying to come up with something when the food trolley came. The girls leaped in first, Rose's stare practically daring the boys to protest. Al noticed that Scorpius took as little as he did.
Al had finished his second Pumpkin Pastie when he noticed that Scorpius was staring avidly at a Chocolate Frog Card. "Who have you got there?" he asked quietly.
Scorpius glanced up at him, and then back at the card. "You look an awful lot like him." He turned the card so Al could see.
Al couldn t help the smile that started. Harry Potter - The Boy Who Lived. He chuckled. "Well, he is my father."
One corner of Scorpius' mouth lifted as he looked at Al. "You're really proud of him, aren't you?"
Al was startled. "Yes. I mean, yeah, I ve heard a lot of stories about what he did - and it is pretty amazing - but that's not really why." He shrugged. "Most of the time, he's just my dad." He smiled wistfully, wishing his father could be at Hogwarts. "He's a really good one." He peered at Scorpius quizzically, wondering what had prompted the question. He'd just opened his mouth to ask when Rose interrupted.
"What about you, Malfoy?" she asked harshly. "Are you proud of your father?"
Al gaped at his cousin. He'd never heard her be so rude to anyone (excluding some of their family when she d been pranked). Alyssa's eyes went wide as Scorpius stiffened. His pale cheeks went pink. "Yes," he answered tightly. "Yes, I'm proud of my father. I love my father."
"After everything he did?" Rose spat disbelievingly.
"Rose!" Al objected, but his cousin cut him off with a glare.
"Draco Malfoy tried to kill Albus Dumbledore! Albus Dumbledore, Hogwarts greatest Headmaster - the man you were named after, Al!" She spitted Scorpius with a look. "Did you know that?"
Scorpius flinched. "I know, but-"
"And you're proud of that?"
"No, I'm not-"
"You just said you were. You must be lying, one way or the other." Rose's lips were pursed.
"That's not what I said!" Scorpius looked wretched - and resigned.
"You said you were proud of him, you said -"
"Rose!" Al snapped, and everyone turned to stare at him. He'd never raised his voice like that before. "Leave him alone, would you?"
His cousin looked shocked. "But you heard him, he's proud that his father was a -"
"Rose Weasley, knock it off already!" Al could not believe how horrible she was being.
Rose glared at him. "Fine. Come on, Lyssa, let's go sit somewhere else, so Albus can hang out with his Death Eater buddy." She stormed out the door. Alysssa followed, glancing back to look at Al uncertainly.
Al took a deep breath. He'd never fought with Rose before, not like that. Part of him wanted to race after her, to apologise, to make amends... but no. He wasn't in the wrong here. He wasn't the one being nasty to a boy that they'd just met. Scorpius had been nothing but polite. He didn't deserve this.
Scorpius sank back in his seat, looking near tears and very tired. "And here we go again," he muttered unhappily. "I couldn t get a seat because everyone recognised me as the son of Draco Malfoy." He stared down at his hands. Al wasn't entirely sure that the words were meant for him; Scorpius seemed to be unaware of his continued presence. "I thought, when I actually got to sit down, that I might have found some people who genuinely didn't care. I guess not." He stood up and reached for his stuff.
"Hey, where are you going?" Al asked, feeling a stab of panic at the thought of being left alone here, surrounded by strangers.
"Somewhere else. Maybe I'll just sit in the baggage car." Scorpius looked defeated, like he didn't want to try anymore.
"What, and leave me alone in this compartment?" Al protested. "That's just what I need my brother to see! He'll tell me to change my name to Nigel, or to take a bath, or, or, or something else horrible that I'm just not capable of thinking up!"
Scorpius paused as he lifted Archimedes down. He turned to stare at Al. "But - don't you want your cousin to come back?"
Yes, part of him whispered. "Not when she's acting like that! She had no right to be so rude." Al shrugged, trying to ignore his churning gut. "Besides, she left her things here. She and Alyssa will have to come back sometime, even if it's only at Hogsmeade."
Scorpius sat down, still staring at Al in disbelief. "You want me to stay?"
"Didn't I just say that?" Al smirked, relaxing a little. "D'you want me to write it down for you?" Seeing the the blond boy still didn't look convinced, he sighed and said very seriously, "Look, Scorpius, I'm the last person who's going to judge you because of who your father happens to be. You did nothing wrong here. You were polite, even friendly, and Rose was rude and cruel." He shrugged. "I can't stop you from leaving... but I hope you won't."
Scorpius looked astounded for a moment... then he smiled - a genuine smile, with no trace of sadness. "Well, when you put it like that..." He replaced the cage on the luggage rack, the owl inside twittering at the movement. He sat beside Al again and, after fidgeting for a moment, offered him the Chocolate Frog Card that he was still holding. "Would you like it?"
Al looked at the smiling face of his father, and shook his head. "Why don't you hang onto it?" He saw a wide smile spread over Scorpius' face and grinned in return, knowing that his new friend understood the gesture.
Perhaps, he thought hopefully, perhaps this won t be as hard as I feared...