All rights to the Harry Potter world and characters obviously belong to J.K. Rowling.
Please be aware that I used (or, Yaxley uses) some strong language at points in the story. Enjoy.
Chapter 1: Another Beginning
"Can you believe this?" snapped Abacus Yaxley, gazing out the window at the platform below. "All these Half-bloods and Mudbloods. God! It makes me sick!"
A chorus of ascension rose up from the other's in the compartment. Gage Rowle and Flint Forsyth both let out hisses, and Axiom Bulstrode rolled her wand between her hands as if she were warming up to curse them all.
"I really wish I could teach these Mudbloods a lesson," Yaxley continued. Axiom and Flint leaned forward excitedly as Yaxley twirled his wand between his fingers. "Too bad my father forbade me from causing trouble this year." He snorted. "As if that'll keep me from cursing a First year or two!"
Once again, an echo of laughter resounded through the compartment of Slytherins. Yaxley's eyes shifted through the room, his lips pulled back in a smirk. The smile left his face as his eyes fell on Scorpius Malfoy, sitting in the corner.
"Don't you agree, Malfoy?" Yaxley asked sternly, causing the others to fall dead silent. "Don't you think the blood-traitors deserve it?"
Scorpius, lounging in his seat beside Cobalt Zabini, slowly looked up into the older boy's affronted face. He had been watching Cobalt and Calyx Zabini's chess match when he heard his name.
"I completely agree," he responded smoothly. He didn't have to know exactly what Yaxley had said to know that it was likely something derogatory, and probably aimed at Hogwarts' less well-accepted masses. "Forgive me," he continued, "you merely caught me in a moment of quiet contemplation." He tried to speak slowly around his fellow Slytherins; most of their noses were so high in the air that they couldn't hear unless you stood behind them.
Yaxley's eyebrows raised slightly, and a smirk slid across his face. "Of course," he whispered. "You were probably daydreaming about one of the Weasley whores."
A shock went through Scorpius' system at the W-word. Not Weasley, but the other one.
The other boy seemed to think he had struck a chord with his insult. "Oh, did I unleash a secret, Malfoy? Are you secretly in love with Lily or Sarsaparilla or whatever her name is?" A bout of laughter exploded from Axiom, who hung off of Yaxley's every word, and literally off of his arm.
"Lily is, technically, a Potter." Scorpius rolled his eyes. "And no, I'm not. I was just surprised at your use of such a Muggle term." Yaxley cocked his head slightly in confusion. "Whore is a very Muggle term," Scorpius explained.
"Well I was just trying to use language you're comfortable with," Yaxley retorted.
The entire compartment had fallen silent by this point. Calyx had paused mid-move in her chess game, Flint was leaning forward with his chin supported in his palm, and the newest members of the posse – people whose names Scorpius, and probably Yaxley, had yet to learn – were watching with wide eyes and open mouths.
Yaxley's eyes narrowed, and Scorpius noticed that he had stopped twirling his wand. The tip was pointed directly at Scorpius' chest, whether deliberately or not was another matter. "I mean, the Malfoy family is basically half-blood now, right? Maybe quarter-blood?" He laughed under his breath.
Scorpius felt his own eyes narrow, and his throat tightened like it did when he got angry. The issue of his family's participation in the Wizarding War had been brought up multiple times over the five years he'd attended Hogwarts. And even before that, around his father, Draco's, old friends, he'd had to learn to deal with snide remarks and back-handed comments. Now, at least, in his sixth year of dealing with Yaxley, Scorpius could control his anger enough not to engage in a full-blown dual.
He glanced down at his hands, disengaging from the argument. Some of the normal settling and chatting sounds returned to the compartment as people felt the tension diffuse.
"Oh, look, Malfoy," Yaxley suddenly called. "Speak of the devil. There's that little sister of yours." He smirked at Scorpius. "First years are just so adorable."
Scorpius glanced down, and the boy was twirling his wand again, menacingly. Yaxley tapped it twice against the window, pulling Scorpius' attention to the brown pigtails just visible above the sill. "Better head out there, Malfoy. We don't wanna be seen with too many Malfoys at once, now, do we? Especially the young, undisciplined ones. Might give the wrong impression."
Scorpius clenched his hands, but stood and moved toward the door. As he passed her, Calyx Zabini smiled apologetically and rolled her eyes. She could stand Yaxley even less than Scorpius could because of how often the boy insulted and hit on her, sometimes in tandem.
At least Yaxley doesn't fancy men, Scorpius thought as he moved through the corridor. There are so many other guys I'd rather hook up with than him. This cheered Scorpius up slightly, and he entertained himself by listing the guys he knew by level of "would-bang-ness." Then he listed the girls (this was a much longer list).
A cloud of steam and parental worry blasted Scorpius in the face as he jumped down to the station platform. He squinted, but couldn't make out his sister's figure anywhere near the Slytherin's window. He sighed, and strolled down the side of the train, ducking around groups of friends and families. Finally, he spotted her by one of the train-doors; she stood, anxiously glancing around, holding Draco Malfoy's hand.
"Scorpius!" she called as he came into sight. Draco raised his head, and squinted at his son.
"Took you long enough to come find us," he snapped.
"Sorry, dad, I was having a serious conversation with Yaxley." Scorpius and his father exchanged a look, and the latter smiled slightly despite himself. "So what's up, Vela?" Scorpius asked, turning his attention to his sister.
"Oh, nothing."
"You already scared?" he asked, grinning. "You already miss my handsome mug and strong, masculine protection?"
Vela grinned, but her cheeks blushed a soft red color. She took Scorpius' offered hand, and shifted with nervous energy at his side. "It wasn't me that needed you, it was dad."
"Yes, I forgot to give you something earlier, Scorpius," Draco added. "It's something very important to me, so be careful and don't lose it. No trading it in exchange for study help or essay cheats."
Scorpius rolled his eyes. "That was one time, dad. And I traded fourteen chocolate frogs, not…a weird family heirloom…" Scorpius frowned as his father pulled a gold ball out of his overcoat pocket, and held it out to him. It was an old Golden Snitch. He took it gingerly; the Snitch had sat on his father's desk since before he could remember, and Scorpius had been scolded severely anytime he tried to touch it or ask about it. "You're giving me your Snitch?" he asked.
Draco was staring intently at Scorpius, glancing between the Snitch in his hand and his son's face. "It's nothing much, just a bit of good luck for your sixth year," he said, shrugging.
"Dad," Scorpius snorted, "you've given this thing more protection and more polish than your wand. Why are you giving this to me, really?"
Scorpius could tell he'd hit some sort of chord with his father. The man, who usually stood so tall and sure, even amongst those who challenged his family's honor, now hunched his shoulders and glanced around distractedly. Draco bit his lip, then looked once more at the Golden Snitch.
"Just put it in your pocket. You'll understand later."
This was Draco Malfoy's catchphrase in the family. Receive a strange parcel in the mail: you'll understand later. Wake up and find your sister in your bed, and a stranger in her now vacant bed: you'll understand later. Told to cut your hair or sell your favorite broomstick: you'll understand later. Scorpius rolled his eyes (for the sixth time that morning alone), and tucked the gold ball into his coat pocket.
"Alright, well, if that's all, it'd probably be good to return to my non-mysterious counterparts."
As if on cue, the Hogwarts Express whistle sounded in its tell-tail departing pattern. Vela jumped excitedly, hugged Draco tight around the waist, and took off toward the nearest open door with Scorpius in tow.
Once on the train, however, the 11-year old's excitement began to sag into doubt and nerves.
"How do I know where to sit?" she asked Scorpius nervously as they made their way past full compartments of chattering students. "How do I know who to talk to, or when to change into my robes? What do I say when people ask me which house I want to be in? What do I think when the Sorting Hat is choosing?!"
"Vela. Vela!" Scorpius knelt down and took his little sister by the shoulders. Her blue eyes, the perfect match to his, were wide with fear. "First off, you sit where you can. And, you can talk to whomever you want…except…?" he prompted.
"Except Yaxley," Vela finished.
"Ten points to your future house!" he cheered. "Second, you have quite a while before you need to change into your robes; you'll know when it gets dark, and people start moving around. The people in your compartment will be changing, too, so just follow them if nothing else. And lastly, regarding houses," Scorpius paused for dramatic effect, "you know it has to be Slytherin, or…you know…any of those other houses…I suppose those will do..." He winked at his sister, and saw a small smile break across her face. "With the Sorting Hat, there's no explaining. You don't have to think because you just know. The Hat knows. You'll understand later." He winked again, and Vela broke out into a wide grin.
The two stood, and walked slowly down the corridor. When he saw a partially empty compartment of First-years, Scorpius slid open the door and gestured Vela inside. He watched as she timidly waved at a black-haired girl in the corner, and sat down across from her. She's already halfway there, he thought.
Sighing heavily, he began to make his way back to his own compartment. He knew he'd arrived when he heard loud carousing, and the unmistakable high-and-mighty tones of Yaxley. Scorpius drew in a deep breath, and pushed his way through the door.
"Malfoy!" Yaxley crowed. "We were beginning to think you'd left us for a bunch of First years."
"They'd probably be better company," Scorpius muttered under his breath.
Calyx, still playing chess with her brother, snorted under her breath.
Yaxley's head swung up. "What are you two cackling about?"
"Oh, about how your hair is shaped like a cauldron," Scorpius retorted.
"What. Did. You. Just. Say?" Yaxley jumped to his feet, and took a menacing step toward him. Slightly behind him, Flint and Rowle stood and took flank. Scorpius maintained eye-contact as the other boy approached, and stood daringly close. Their shoulders were touching, and Yaxley's lips came uncomfortably close to his ear. The boy chuckled as he took his stance. "My, my, Malfoy," he taunted, sniffing. "Your collar smells like Half-blood Weasley whore stench."
And before Scorpius could form a thought, or reach for his wand, or even turn away, Yaxley was reeling backwards. The boy's hands were clapped tight to his nose, and blood was dripping between his fingers and onto his shirt.
Note: If this chapter seems at all similar to you, don't worry. I started this story several years ago under a different account (wrote two chapters), but have since then lost track of my log-in information so I can't take the other one down. The other story is posted as BlueSky Thinking, by living-on-coffee - I swear that is me, and I'm not plagiarizing.
Let me know what you think! :)
