I stood in between Mother and Father at the platform. The great, red train let of enormous amounts of steam, signaling its looming departure from the station.

"Now Scorpius, remember: Don't mind what people at school say about the family." Rushed mother, she always worried over the littlest things. "You are you, no matter what anyone else says. And remember we are both very proud of you." She leaned down and kissed my forehead with genuine affection. I looked to my father and saw that he looked just as uncomfortable as he scanned the platform. I don't know what for, though.

Something seemed to catch his eye and I followed his gaze. A strange group of people were starring at my family. A woman with freakishly (to out it…kindly) bushy brown hair was clutching a tall, red-haired man by the arm. The man bent to and equally ginger woman (whom I can only imagine was somehow related to the repulsively red-haired man. There is no way two people with the same shade of hair can find themselves in the same room at the same time, accidentally, and not be relate in some fashion.) And whispered something that I assumed everyone could hear, judging by her, the mousy little woman at his side, and the black-haired man next to the ginger woman's reactions. The beaver woman with brown hair said something rather crossly to the tall man while the black-haired man reached over and punched him in the arm. The man with the black hair and round glasses looked over at Father and nodded. I watched Father closely to see what his response would be. He looked at Mum, then down to me, and finally back to the other man. He too nodded shortly and turned to steer us both towards the train.

The final whistle blew and I knew it was time.

"Well, here goes." I told my parents. My mother was near tears and my Father didn't look too far off, himself. He kneeled down so we were face to face and grabbed my shoulders.

"You let us know if you get ANY trouble there. You understand? Anything at all and you owl us straight away." His grip tightened a fraction as he said this. " But most of all…be strong, son. Remember how we raised you, and try not to cause trouble, please?" He implored, shaking me slightly. I just looked at him.

"Scorpius, please promise me."

"Ok, Ok, I promise." I shrugged off his arms and grabbed my luggage. Good-byes never were a strong point for me. I picked up Hercules, my cat, off the sullied ground and clutched him to my chest one-handed. Mother kissed me once more on the forehead and my father gave me a strong pat on the shoulder to send me off.

I boarded the train without another look back. As I moved along the trains corridor people that passed stopped and stared, just as those at the station did. But I didn't mind them, so what if they stared? I was something to look at, and that was ok with me.

Let me explain something. After the war ended, my father and his family were shunned. Tolerated, yes, but shunned all the same. People refused to acknowledge that the Malfoys were good, in the end.

My father entered into one of the most prestigious wizarding universities in the world, he wanted to be a potions specialist (someone who discovers new potions and catalogues what they do and how to create them) for the ministry.

But he was rejected, due to fact that he was involved in "suspicious behavior" during the war.

He became Madame Malkin's shop-assistant instead. He managed the inventory. He met my mum when he was closing up shop one day. She was passing by and (according to her) he instantly fell in love. Her family was apparently on the same side, during the war, so she wasn't prejudice to him at all.

My grandparents are a different story. Let's just say that they were more against their son marrying a half-blood.

They disowned him.

Since then, people haven't mentioned the Malfoy family, publically anyway. The fact that the spawn of Draco Malfoy is beginning his years at Hogwarts must be astounding to everyone. Whatever.

I tried to avoid hitting people as I passed them in the crowded hallways while looking for an open compartment. I looked in every window to see if any were vacant. None were. I wasn't able to find a single free compartment till the end of the train; even then it wasn't completely empty.

In the seat next to the window sat girl with bright red hair, much like the tall man I saw starring rudely earlier. However this girls hair was not as straight, her hair was curly and short, coming right under her chin. Honestly it was a disgusting haircut and I don't know how she lived with herself. Her head rested against the window and her eyes were closed. She didn't even flinch as I slid the door open.

I sat in the seat across from her, though as far away as I could. I tried to divert my eyes anywhere but her face, but I just couldn't seem to look away. Her entire face was covered in small brown freckles, most especially on her cheeks and across the bridge of her nose. Her nose was small and button shaped and her lips were oddly full for someone her age. My eyes trailed across her outfit. She wore a short, green, overall jumper with an off-white turtleneck beneath. Her legs sported strange knee-socks with red, orange, brown and yellow stripes and black mary-janes. All in all, she wasn't positively grotesque, I wouldn't have to move because the mere sight of her sickens me (don't laugh, it's happened before).

The train jerked as is began to pull out of the station, making Hercules jump from my lap with an annoyed growl. The girl stirred and opened her eyes. They were startlingly blue, as blue as the ocean that I saw last summer when my father took us all to the Caribbean. I wasn't sure what to say, normally I would have something snarky and clever at hand to throw at anyone. But when I saw her eyes everything came undone. She looked at me quietly and blinked her big, blue eyes.

"You're Malfoy." She state, matter-of-factly.

I nodded.

She left.

This was going to be one bloody year.