Disclaimer: Stiiiiill don't own it… But I do own Maxx and Alice, so there!

Chapter One

September first, as always, brought on a bustle of activity on Platform 9 and 3/4; students new and old packed their luggage onto the long stretch of a scarlet train, greeted their friends that they were separated from during the summer, the tearful goodbyes between parents and their children. Their was no sappy farewell between my own parents and me, however. I stared imperiously around at the platform, spotting some students that I already knew (fellow Pure-bloods, of course) as well as a few gazing about in awe, the adults behind them doing the same. Mudbloods. Disgusting.

"Don't associate yourself with Gryffindors or Mudbloods, Draco." My father, Lucius Malfoy, reminded me as he had done for the past year when he caught the direction of my eyes. The key points in his talks with me had always been the same. Be a Slytherin. Make good connections. No Gryffindors. No Mudbloods. No Half-Bloods. Do well in studies. All the same information that had been drilled into my brain practically since birth. I had been brought up in a high-status family; it was what was expected and what I would do. Blood is everything.

"Yes, father." I answered him as our house-elf Tilley snapped her fingers, putting my trunk in a compartment. Father dismissed her and put his hand on my shoulder. I was moderately surprised at this display of affection and I could see my mother hiding a smile in the corner of my eye. It was gone as quickly as it had come. Oh well. I glanced at my wrist watch, I still had half an hour until the train departed.

I heard Father Disapparate beside me and mother placed a kiss on my cheek. "See you at Christmas holidays, Draco." She disapparated as well, and I took a deep breath before stepping onto the train, stepping around all of the students in the corridor. Finding my compartment, I saw that it was still empty. Good. I settled into my seat and looked out the window. I caught my reflection in the window and grimaced slightly. I wasn't that fond of my appearance, although it did make me quite recognizable as a Malfoy. Platinum blonde hair with a fringe that fell just over my silvery-grey eyes. My features were slightly more rounded that any of my direct families, who all had sharp chins and limbs. But it was what was within the skin that mattered, more than the physical aspects. Such things like looks were simple frivolity. It was all within blood, heritage, power, influence. Those were what actually mattered in life.

I enjoyed studying how people looked, however, and I did so as I looked out of the window and at my soon-to-be fellow classmates. A Pure-blood I knew as Pansy Parkinson laughed at something that my acquaintance Blaise Zabini said, and I could almost hear the awful nasally sound that it produced, her pug-like face squished up and her small eyes wrinkled. It wasn't pleasant. A thin boy with unruly, raven-black hair stood with his back to me, overlarge clothes hung off his small frame. Muggle clothes. I quickly turned my eyes and I was overwhelmed. Nearly everything that I had been taught about blood and power was nearly thrown away at a single glance of this girl.

Her long, honey-blonde hair was thrown into a loose ponytail tied just below the nape of her neck; I could see that there were spirally curls with lighter highlights in them. She had small-structured limbs and I through her brown, orange-patterned robes that her physique was just as thin. Her arms were wrapped around a man with dark brown hair and premature gray streaks through the locks. He had on patched brown robes, and he kissed her forehead as they pulled away, scars littered his face, and from what I could see, there were some on hers as well. He placed a large hand on the top of her golden head and smiled at her warmly. She threw her arms around his neck again and buried her small face in his neck. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up, holding her close. It was a quite heart-warming scene, even for me. Soon, they separated and her father, I assumed that was who the man was, left.

She stood empty handed; I guessed that it had already been stored on the train. She bit her lip and looked around before squaring her shoulders and climbing on the train. I felt almost excited as I saw that she had gotten on the same compartment that I was in, but I discouraged that emotion immediately. She was just a passing pretty thing to the eye, she would soon be forgotten.

Or not.

I found myself thinking about her long after the train had left the station. Thankfully none of my acquaintances had found me, and I was left alone, so no one noticed my distraction. An hour or so into the train ride, someone knocked on my door. I couldn't see who it was through the shaded glass, but I was fully prepared to tell them off for disturbing the peace. My peace. "I do not want to be bothered, who the hell do you think you are? Do you believe that-"

"So I can't sit here?" A light voice interrupted. I noticed the Australian inflection outweighed the slight British accent, and she stood a few inches shorter than me, honey-blond hair tumbled in spirals down one shoulder where the ponytail hung. I was looking down into piercing blue eyes with amberish flecks. The eyes of the Mystery Girl I had been watching outside of my window.

Briefly, I considered my options. I didn't know what blood status she was, and it seems that if she was important enough, I would have met her before. She couldn't be a Mudblood; however, she wore wizard robes and wasn't gaping like a fish at the magical goings-on. There had been half-bloods around his family before, and they were on the right side. It was possible that her family was too. But she could be just another Gryffindor-wannabe and I would regret ever being within one mile of her. I exhaled visibly and stepped away from the door. "Not at all. Come in."

She smiled gratefully at me and followed my hand, taking a seat on the cushioned bench across from the one I had previously occupied. "Thank you, those idiots I was sitting with were starting to give me a migraine." She seemed to remember we didn't actually know each other and offered her hand to me, smiling brightly. "I'm Alice. Alice Lupin."

Lupin... I couldn't recall hearing that name, but it could have just slipped my mind. "Draco Malfoy." I took her hand wearily, unaccustomed to this tradition. She didn't react to my name the way that I thought she would. No flustering or straightening her clothes or raising up strong walls. Oh Merlin, she couldn't be a Mudblood.

"Hm, I've never met a Malfoy before." Lupin tilted her head to one side by an inch or so. "So... what are you doing sitting alone?"

It took me a moment to recover from her lack of shock, and I cleared my throat before answering. "Oh, I guess I'm one for solitude." Lupin nodded and I observed her for a moment. "What house are you hoping to be in, then?"

Lupin shrugged and thought, biting her lip. "I don't know, honestly. Both of my parents were in Gryffindor, but I'll go where I go." Not exactly a Gryffindor wannabe but it was pretty close. Well, now I knew that she was a half-blood at least. She smirked at me. "Slytherin, right?"

I smirked right back, making sure that mine outdid hers, and nodded. "Of course. Have anything against that?"

"Ambition, cleverness, cunning, determination, self-preservation. I don't believe I do." Lupin grinned at me. Huh. Maybe she wasn't so wannabe-ish after all. I took a look at her grin and- I couldn't believe it- I smiled at her. Genuinely smiled. Within ten minutes of mindless chatter, we ended up playing a spirited game of Wizards Chess, Lupin doing a little happy dance every time she got a check. I was pretty sure that my cheeks were going numb from smiling after and hour or so, I couldn't remember ever having this much fun. Another knock on the door sounded and I didn't even think about it before I pulled it open, still smiling brightly and my robes rumpled from sitting with my legs criss-crossed.

"Have either of you seen a toad running around here?" A tall boy with shaggy brown hair that curled at the ends and Muggle clothing on stood with a bored expression on his face, an equally bored tone in his voice. I had met him before; he came from one of the more... Muggle-accepting families. Maxx Alexander. He looked down at me without moving his head. "Well?"

"No." I sneered at him. "Unless you count." Not the best I could have done, but it was short notice!

"Whatever." Alexander huffed, then pushed past me and sank into my seat. That was just not cool. "I'm gonna chill here, we only have about an hour left till Hogwarts, anyways." He looked over at Lupin. "That chick is driving me insane. I totally see why you left."

I rolled my eyes and dropped into the seat next to Lupin, deciding that it wasn't worth the battle to fight Alexander for the seat. "You know each other, then?"

Alexander cast a nonchalant look at me with his brown eyes. "Yeah. What's it to you?" He didn't wait for my answer. "You'll be happy that she's a shoe-in for Slytherin. Whether she believes it or not."

"I'm not saying that there is. I'm saying that I'm not a Slytherin. I'm a Hufflepuff if anything. Shut up, Maxx." She added to the lanky brunette when he let out a single ha. "And there's nothing wrong with Hufflepuffs, either. Or any of the Houses for that matter. No more than the others at least."

I was slightly confused. "So there is nothing wrong yet something wrong with each House?"

"Don't question it, Malfoy." Alexander crossed his arms behind his head. "She's a loony one, I'll tell you."

"I'm not!" Lupin stuck her tongue out at him. "Slytherin has been known to go to Dark magic in the quest for power. Hufflepuff can be too caring, putting others needs before their own. Ravenclaws tend to over think and try to explain everything with knowledge and reason. Gryffindors... are ridiculously brash and don't think things through enough." I had to agree with her and shrugged acceptingly, nodding.

"You have me there." I said. Ignoring my dislike for Alexander, I tried to make conversation. My father wouldn't frown too much if I managed to befriend him; he is a Pure-blood after all. "What House are you aiming for, Alexander?"

He opened his eyes and smirked. "Hufflepuff. No one will expect too much out of me then. I'm free to do as I please." I rolled my eyes at what he considered good reasoning. "You're not going to be a Slytherin." Before I could argue, yet another knock came on the door.

"What?!" I half-screamed, sliding it open roughly. "Oh my Merlin, you're Harry Potter."

The messy-haired boy I had seen on the Platform was dressed in his Hogwarts robes now and standing with his fist still raised to knock. "Um... Yeah, I-I am." He blushed scarlet and I took hold of this opportunity to see the famous Potter.

"Come in and sit!" He did as he was told and sat near Alexander's feet, offering a shy wave to both of the other occupants. Alexander nodded at him acting like he didn't care as always, and Lupin observed him with a mild curiosity. "We're discussing Houses. Any guess as to where you'll be going?"

Potter stuttered over his own words, and I didn't know whether to be pleased that he was flustered over talking to the Great Draco Malfoy or annoyed. I settled for a mix between the two. "I-i-is it wrong to say," he glanced at Lupin and Alexander. "Wherever that s-strange g-g-girl that sat with u-us isn't?" Lupin giggled and Alexander put on a sideways grin.

I frowned. I wasn't sure what they were talking about and I didn't like that fact. "Who is this girl you all seem to be fleeing from?"

"A Muggleborn, Malfoy." Alexander said disapprovingly. Except the attitude was directed at me, not the blood status of this girl. "I'm sure you're not interested." A mere Mudblood was annoying these people? Well, that- My inner dialogue was cut off by the door opening and a bushy-haired girl stepping in uninvited. That's NOT COOL.

"Oh, there you all are." Merlin, this was that Mudblood. A MUDBLOOD. NEAR ME. "You left me alone with that rude Ronald boy. That's not nice." Alexander, Lupin, and Potter all let out the same little awkward laugh and avoided her eyes. "Anyways, some people are coming by saying that we're almost at Hogwarts, and it's time to get our robes on. I'm Hermione Granger." She added to me, but I continued staring at her with a disbelieving expression on my face. A MUD. BLOOD. "So, I'll go do that, then. Bye!" She closed the door and everyone was frozen where they were for nearly a full minute.

Potter broke the silence. "Wow." He got a laugh from everyone, me included. What the hell, if I was going to have a good time with Lupin, I might as well have a good time with the Famous Potter and a fellow Pureblood also. With a swish of our wands (it seems that we had all been taught some magic beforehand), Lupin, Alexander, and I had our robes on with the customary Hogwarts crest adorning the black fabric to stay until we had been sorted. Prefects came by shortly announcing that we had ten minutes till we got to Hogsmeade, I was surprised. I had let go more than I had since I was six and I had had a wonderful time, even including myself with a half-blood, as I knew Potter was.

"Let's do it." Alexander suddenly said. Everyone looked at him, confused. "Let's make a blood oath. What do we have to lose?"

Potter pushed his glasses up on his nose. "What's a blood oath?"

I couldn't resist. "It's an oath with blood involved." He shot me a 'gee, thanks' expression, so I elaborated. "An oath with blood ties which links you magically to that oath. It's not an Unbreakable Vow, but it's not completely passable either. And why would we make a blood oath? What for?"

Alexander leaned forward towards the center of the square that the four of us made up. "I can tell that we all have talent. We have the brains, the brawn, the beauty, and..." he looked at me and tilted his head, shriveling his nose. "The blond." I was not amused. "Let's make a blood oath to... to take over Hogwarts. By the end of our seventh year, let's be legends within these halls."

"Apparently I'm already a legend." Potter stated, and Lupin giggled.

"More a legend, then. Let's make an oath to make sure that generations to come will know our names. Infamy can be ours. Or fame, whichever we decide. Infamy seems more appealing to me, really, I mean-"

"I'm in." I cut him off. I sort of surprised myself, what was I even agreeing to?

Potter agreed hesitantly shortly after. "Me too."

Lupin smirked at us. "You don't even have to ask."

Alexander smiled broadly and produced a small dagger from his back pocket. A family heirloom, I guessed. "Then follow my lead. He made a shallow cut from the base of his thumb to his pinky, just enough for it to bleed, on each hand. He passed the knife to Potter, who did the same, then to Lupin and I. He held his hand up to Lupin, who placed her bleeding palm onto his, and to Potter. Potter did the same to me and I to Lupin. It felt strange. I could feel magic from each of us, it was powerful, and it almost had a unique taste, but I couldn't name it if I tried. "I, Maxxton Jacob Alexander, do swear to leave my mark upon Hogwarts by the time I come to leave. May no student forget my name."

"I, Alice Claire-Elisabeth Lupin, do swear to leave my mark upon Hogwarts by the time I come to leave. May no mischief be left untouched." Lupin was grinning broadly and a spark showed in her eyes. Potter didn't seem to find an impetus to talk third, so I went.

"I, Draco Regulus Malfoy, do swear to leave my mark upon Hogwarts by the time I come to leave. May my legend be left unbroken."

Potter drew a breath and decided on what to say. "I, Harry James Potter, do swear to leave my mark upon Hogwarts by the time I come to leave. May my father be made proud."

A surge of magic blew through my hands and into Lupin and Potter's, theirs the same to me, and I could feel Alexander's mixed in. I could see now why blood oaths could be dangerous, and I scolded myself briefly for forgetting that when we started to make one. I opened my eyes, I had never realized that they were even closed, and saw no one had been hurt. Lupin stared at her hand and wrist with a strange expression, and I looked at my own. A thin line made of pink scar tissue was directly on the cut, and a four sided star was on my wrist. A circle- the moon, possibly- was on the top point of the star. A dragon to its right, a lightning bolt on the bottom, and a clawed paw print on the left point. Strange. But I liked it.

"So. Are we all on a first name basis now that we're practically siblings?" Lupin asked. "Draco, Maxx, Harry, and Alice, in case anyone forgot." She pointed at each of us as she said our names and then to herself.

I had a brief almost-panic attack when I thought about my father's reaction to this. He was going to kill me! And then... he would never have to know. "I think so. Alice." She smiled at me, and I took a deep breath, smiling back. The train was slowing to a halt and I stood, stretching and flexing my newly scarred hand. "We're not all going to be in the same House, though! I mean, it's highly unlikely."

Alexander- Maxx- shrugged, but it was Pot- Harry. Harry that answered. "We can make do, can't we?"

Alice and I nodded together, and followed the shouted instructions of 'FIRST YEARS TO THE BOATS!', settling in on one and beginning to make way to the castle. To our new home. To our new lives.

I just might survive.