The lithe blonde boy hid at the back of the crowd, trying to melt into the background.

His father nudged him.

"Scorpius! What are you doing? You are a Malfoy; Malfoys don't hide! Come along now," he whisper-shouted.

His mother frowned at the man, pursing her lips.

"Draco, be nice. I'm quite certain you were this nervous on your first day, too," she admonished, before softening her voice and speaking to her son, "oh, don't worry Scorpius. It'll all be fine, you see. Look over there, is Albus and Rose! Why don't you go talk to them, while your father and I have a little chat with their parents?"

At the mention of his friends' names, Scorpius brightened considerably.

"Of course, Mum! Let's go!"

He ran toward the Weasley/Potters, dragging his school trunk behind him. His parents exchanged a look, then followed at a slower pace.

"Rose! Albus!" shouted Scorpius, trying to catch his friends' attention.

At the mention of their names, both Rose and Albus looked over.

"Scorpius!" cried two joyful voices in unison.

"We were looking for you," explained Rose.

"Well, Rose was looking for you. I was just helping her," Albus chuckled.

While the to-be-Hogwarts-students chattered excitedly, the parents also exchanged words.

"How're you today, Draco? Astoria?" asked Hermione, a warm smile gracing her features as she saw her daughter's best friend mother and her own girlfriend approach.

"We're wonderful today, Hermione," replied Astoria, "How are you? And Ronald? And you, Harry, and Ginny?"

"We're great, Astoria," grinned Ginny. She, too, had grown to love Astoria like a sister.

"Same old, same old, mate," Ronald rolled his eyes, directing his words to Draco.

Draco smirked, the same look from all those years ago.

"I agree, but between the three of us, Scorpius is scared out of wits! He's always asking me what would happen if he got sorted into Gryffindor!"

"You don't say," Harry snorted, "so is Al! He's terrified of getting into Slytherin. I've told him that Severus, you, Astoria, Narcissa, and Andromeda were all in Slytherin and didn't turn out all that bad, but he doesn't believe me."

"My Rose is sure as day, she'll be a Gryffindor - I can feel it!"

Meanwhile, the women chattered.

"Oh, Ronald is so sure that Rose'll be a Gryffindor, but she's a little more Ravenclaw-like. She's very studious, striving to do well. And I shan't ever tell anyone but you two this, but Rose isn't a genius at all. She tries very hard, and does very well, but unlike Hugo, she hasn't inherited what Ron calls my 'geniusness'."

Astoria laughed, a bright happy sound like wedding bells.

"Oh, 'Mione, I'm sure it'll be okay. Poor little Scorpius is terrified of getting into Gryffindor, but he won't admit it. He wants to be Slytherin like Draco and I, even though he's surrounded by all these lions!"

"'Mione, that's all right. Rose will be fine, wherever she goes. She'll have Scorpius and Albus no matter what. And Astoria, if Scorpius goes anywhere but Slytherin, I will pay you five hundred galleons! Harry is positive Al is going to Gryffindor - but I know better. Al is a Slytherin, through and through."

The men let out a raucous round of laughter, which effectively broke up their conversation.

Luna drifted over.

"Hello, girls, the train is about to leave in five minutes," she spoke in a dreamy voice.

"Oh! Thanks for the warning, Luna," cried Ginny hastily, before rushing over to give Al a kiss on the forehead and usher him onto the train.

Astoria watched as Draco strode over to Scorpius and whispered in his ear. The boy nodded, smiled brightly, gave his mother a hug and kiss, and bounded onto the train behind Albus.

Hermione cornered Rose, and Ron watched as she spoke. Rose nodded multiple times, kissed her mother on the cheek, hugged her father, and disappeared into the train.

A second later, three heads popped out of a window.

"See you at Christmas!"

And the train pulled away.

A/N: This was for 'the Sorting Hat Challenge' by Stiricide on the HPFC forum. I got the character Scorpius Malfoy. I'm putting the actual sorting either the next chapter or the third, but I don't think I'll make it much longer. I know this was kind of a disappointment, but... I thought it would fit.

And yes, this is AU. This is in my universe, where everything is skewed and there is a bunch of OCs. Also an illegit child of Draco & Hermione. winkwink.