A/N: This is my first fanfiction and i have no beta so reviews and comments are greatly appreciated! [In the process of editing and updating the story]
Draco Malfoy thought that saying his daughter was excited to be going to Hogwarts was the understatement of the year. From the moment she got her letter, she had pestered him to go to Diagon alley. And as soon as she had gotten home from Diagon Alley, she packed everything but her wand and books, which she read cover to cover over the remaining weeks of summer. Now, at 6 am, she was bouncing about the house, singing loudly at the top of her voice about the fact that she was going to Hogwarts. By the time ten o'clock came, she was practically tugging her father out the door. When they arrived at platform nine and ¾, she let out a gasp of wonder.
"Pyx!" a voice called out. It was Ez. Ezra Zabini was the son of her father's best friend and they had grown up together.
"Hey! How exciting is this?"
"I know! We're actually going!" replied Ezra. Blaise Zabini looked down at his son and chuckled.
"Right then, let's get to it, don't want you to miss the train!" boomed Mr Zabini. Draco and Blaise helped them put their trunks on the train. Then they returned to the platform to say goodbye. Pxyis' little brother was two years younger than her, and was sad to see her go.
"Cheer up scor! I'll be back for Christmas, and it's only two years before you'll be coming with me". Scorpius sniffed. Scorpius and Pyxis hadn't always played nicely as children but they had deep affection for each other and hated to be apart so long for the first time. Pyxis gave him a tissue from her pocket and squeezed him tight. Next she turned to her mother.
"Now do try and write Pyxis, and remember to do your hair in the mornings and you remember how to do your tie the proper way don't you? Like I showed you?"
"Yes mother."
"Good, have a wonderful time darling, see you in September". She bumped her cheek against Pyxis' so as not to smudge her lipstick. She gave her father a big bear hug. Out of everyone, her father was the one she would miss the most. He had always been there to sneak her to a quidditch match when her mother would not allow it or made excuses for her when she was late to dinner.
"Have a good term my little star" Draco whispered in her ear. With that, Ez and Pyxis waved goodbye to their families and boarded the Hogwarts Express. They found an empty compartment not far down the train but had to squeeze past a dark skinned boy throwing a fanged Frisbee to a boy with dark messy hair just down the corridor.
They looked like first years, perhaps they would be in Slytherin like her.
Pyxis and Ez sat down and chattered away during the journey.
About half way through their conversation on the Quidditch world cup that had taken place that summer, the door to their compartment slid open to reveal Arianna Goyle, a cousin on her mother's side that she had grown up with. She didn't much like Arianna but she was forced year after year to sit through tea parties and fashion shows with her so she had learned to tolerate her personality.
"I have been looking everywhere for you! The whole train up and down! Got into a terrible mix up with some Hufflepuff girl down the train. A Hufflepuff! Thought to tell me off for not moving out of her way! Insane! Sorry, did I interrupt a conversation?"
"Actually we were just talking about-" started Ezra.
"Never mind! I bet it's way more boring than the gossip I've heard. Did you know that Harry Potter's son is in our year? He's on the train!"
"Really?"
"Yep, and apparently he's exactly like his father…"
"What's wrong with that? His father did save the world," pointed out Pyxis
"Hello?" Arianna interrupted. "Save? We would have been just fine, it's because of him that my grandfather, and yours were thrown into Askaban."
Arianna chattered on for the rest of the journey to Hogwarts, causing many pained glances between Ez and Pyxis. When they reached the station, the three of them got off and followed the other first years down to the boats. Arianna, Ezra and Pyxis got into a boat together. As the boats came around the corner, Hogwarts came into sight. A silence fell amongst the first years and a few gasps of astonishment were heard. Pyxis looked at the castle, it truly was beautiful and amazing, it already felt like home. The first years got led into the entrance hall and were greeted by a man in his 30's who introduced himself as Professor Longbottom. They were then lead into the great hall. The ceiling looked like the clear starry sky that they had just been under, candles were flickering over the room and four long tables lay either side of them. They stopped in front of a stool with a frayed old hat on it.
The hall went silent and every eye was looking at the hat. Pyxis and a few of the other first years were taken aback when it started to sing. Her father had informed her that the sorting ceremony was basically where you had to wear a hat but failed to mention that the hat would be singing. After it had finished, Professor Longbottom unrolled a scroll of parchment and began to read out names.
"Adams, Isabelle."A peaky looking girl with dark hair walked up and sat on the stool.
After a minute or so the hat shouted "Ravenclaw" and the table to the right clapped and cheered loudly.
Professor Longbottom continued to call names out until "Goyle, Arianna." Arianna smirked at Pyxis and held her head high, walking proudly up to the stool and sat.
The hat was on her head for all of a second before it shouted "Slytherin!"
The Table on the far right burst into applause. Arianna promptly got up and stalked her way over to the Slytherin table. First years continued to go up and be sorted until a particularly famous name was read out and the hall went silent. Everybody edged closer to watch the sorting.
"Potter, James!" announced the Professor, smiling at the boy with dark messy hair that Pyxis had past on the train earlier. Pyxis looked at him.
So that's the son of Harry Potter, no way he's going to be in the same house as me.
Like with Arianna, the hat hadn't taken long to sort James Potter. The moment it touched his head, the hat called out "GRYFFINDOR." The table on the far left of the hall erupted with cheers and chanted which lasted longer than any other applause had that evening. As the list of students continued to be read, Pyxis glanced over at the Gryffindor table and saw that many people, including a fair amount of redheads, were greeting the Potter boy enthusiastically. She wondered if they were cousins, as she knew that the Weasley family were related to the Potters and according to her father, they all had red hair.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a voice calling "Malfoy, Pyxis!"
She snapped her head and looked up, her cheeks grew red as she walked slowly up to the stool and sat. Despite the fact that she was blushing, she held her head high like she was always taught to do. The hat was placed on her head. She sat there for a full three minutes without so much as a sneeze from the hat atop her head.
What's taking so long? Just put me in Slytherin already!
"Slytherin eh?" a voice whispered in her head. "Hmm.. there is some cunning in you I suppose, but you are a difficult one to place. Good mind, very clever, but I don't think Ravenclaw is where you belong though. Loyal oh yes, very loyal to the ones you love but a desire to prove yourself, now where to put you…"
Slytherin, that's where I belong, my whole family have been in Slytherin.
"But are you the same as them? I think you're different... Slytherin would be too easy. I know, I'll put you somewhere you really belong, where you'll thrive…"
"Wait, what-" she began.
"GRYFFINDOR"
Silence. Silence then became whispers. Professor Longbottom removed the hat with a shocked look on his face. Pyxis calmly rose and walked over to the Gryffindor table. She sat down just as the Professor recovered and began reading out the list once again. Pyxis looked down at her lap and held back the tears. This wasn't supposed to happen.
She was a Malfoy, a Slytherin. So why then had she been placed in the house of the brave and foolhardy? She took a deep breath. She would not give anyone the satisfaction of knowing how much this had shaken her nerves. She held her head high and returned her gaze at the student currently being sorted, ignored all the looks that she was getting from her new housemates and tried to take her mind of the trouble that being a Malfoy in Gryffindor was sure to cause.