HARRY POTTER

And the Heir to the Burden

Chapter 1

Rem Dresden frowned as September the first ushered him onto the bright red Hogwarts Express. His hair was soaking wet from the punishing deluge he'd just escaped. Its bright blue color, as well as the orange shade of his large, pale eyes were earning him many bizarre looks. His pointed ears didn't help much, either.

Even here, he thought, Where the bizarre becomes ordinary.

Rem didn't carry a trunk, like most of the other students. He carried a black duffel bag, not even packed particularly heavy. Currently, he wore a violet trenchcoat over a black shirt, slacks, and shoes. His brand new wand, thirteen inches of maple and dragon heartstring, was concealed inside the folds of the coat, and he wondered uneasily if he'd be forced to draw it soon. Everyone was fucking staring at him!

With a sigh, he slipped past the packed compartments, full of excited students, some in their Hogwarts robes, and some, like him, wearing street clothes… until he found an empty one, where he could be alone… like usual.

He stared out the window as rain lashed frantically at him… as though it was desperate for someone to cling to.

He could empathize.

With a small smile, Rem took his wand out from his coat and waved it, murmuring "nactem!"

The glass remained, but became permeable, allowing the rain to spurt in against his face and outstretched hand. He chuckled happily.

"Hey…" said a girl's voice. "Anyone else sitting here?"

"No," said Rem in his soft voice, not turning around. "But you won't want to, believe me."

"Why? If it's the cold, I don't mind. Some of the compartments are having trouble with the new Warming Charm, so… it's no big deal!"

"It's not the compartment. It's me. Listen, just leave."

The girl was silent for several long moments, and then… Rem heard her sniffling.

Shit, the sixteen year old groaned inwardly. Instinctively, he turned towards her, saying, "Look, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it like--"

"D—don't… why does everyone keep doing that to me? If you wanna be like all the others, then, fine! I—I'll be happy t—to leave you al--"

She gasped. Looking at his bizarre appearance, she understood now.

"Oh, god, I'm so sorry…"

Rem's face hardened. "Sorry? Yeah, I get that a lot."

"Wha---No! I mean, I'm sorry for being a bitch… what's your name?"

Rem stared, then, realizing it might make her uncomfortable, he dropped his eyes. "Rem. Rem Dresden"

There was a thump, and the girl was sitting beside him, bouncing cheerfully.

"Nice to meet you, Rem. My name's Silverstar Krusnik. Call me Silver."

Rem looked at her. She was a little younger than he was, wearing a pink blouse and blue-jeans. Her hair was strawberry blonde, her eyes the color of deep ocean water.

Rem couldn't help it, he was staring again.

"Th—thanks, Silver. Um… so, what year are you in?"

"I'm in fourth! What about you? You look older, but…"

He chuckled, finding it easier to talk with her than he'd anticipated.

"Well… I was home schooled. Learning magic from my dad's old books. My mother taught me a lot, too. So, I decided I wanted to integrate for my last two years. I'm going into Six."

"Wow! Cool. I knew something was up, 'cause you pulled that charm off like a pro!"

"…thanks. I don't know. I've been told I had a… great aptitude for magic… even at a young age."

"Wow," Silver repeated. "Y'know… that was a weird spell…"

Unnoticed by her, Rem stiffened.

"Yeah? How so?"

She smiled. "Well, I've just never seen a Charm like that. Or was it Partial Transfiguration?"

Rem opened his mouth, readying some bullshit lie, when the compartment door was opened rather rudely.

"Am I interrupting?" came a frigid sneer.

Rem scowled, but kept his face turned at a discreet angle. He could make out a tall, thin and pale boy with white-blonde hair, cut rather short. He was dressed in his student robes already, and his wand was gripped tightly in his right hand.

Rem hated the look in his eyes. Like a snake waiting to strike.

"S—Scorpius?" Silver faltered. "I—what a surprise! I… I didn't see you on the platform! I worried that you--"

"Interesting," Scorpius overrode. "You walked right past me. And now you're keeping company with another man?"

The pale boy strode forward, and Rem felt the invisible energy emanating from the wand three inches from his face.

"Who might you be?"

"Depends on who the fuck you are," Rem shot back.

He heard Silver draw a sharp breath.

The wand closed the gap, its hot tip pressing to Rem's face.

"One who advises you to watch your mouth and answer the question."

The scowl deepened.

"Rem Dreseden," he spat. "And I advise you to get that fucking twig out of my face before I break it in half."

And he whipped his head around. His hands were a blur. Suddenly, Scorpius was lying on the floor of the compartment, with his own wand pointed at his heart.

"Leave," Rem said quietly.

"Or what?" Scorpius retorted snidely. "You don't scare me."

The blue haired wizard chuckled. "Give it time."

And he kicked Scorpius hard under the chin.

"Oh… and I don't care what your relationship is with Silverstar Krusnik. Stay away from her."

He removed the wand, stepped back, and tossed it to its owner when he'd risen.

"By the time this year is over," Scorpius snarled, "You'll have wished for death."

He stalked out of the compartment.

Rem rushed to Silver, and suddenly, he was unsure of himself again… he didn't know what to say or do.

"R—Rem," Silver said, on the verge of tears again. "Do you know who that is?"

"Some pompous fuck who likes pushing you around and threatened to kill me?"

Now the tears came.

"That was… Scorpius Malfoy… he's my… he's my husband…"

And on a wave of wretched tears, Silverstar ran.

Rem Dresden was shocked… and once again… alone.

A/N: Yes, I'm back… after months upon months of dealing with the fact that I lost half my word-files, including the work I'd done on "Black Knight". Yes, my friends, it's true… at least five chapters were lost because of some fatal system error  I truly apologize for leaving you hanging. I've been working on new material, so this is my gift to all my fans. I took the intensity of Black Knight, and decided to turn my "Badass Harry" and turn him into a new character, to somewhat continue the story of HP after the totally rockin' Deathly Hallows. I hope you enjoy… and I hope you stick with Rem 'till the end: He's gonna need a whole lot of support.

To all my faithful readers and fans: Thanks for being so patient… and thanks for being there in the first place.

Regards,

Cosmic Raven