He smiled faintly as the train began to move, a knot still working around inside his stomach. His parents, waving, stayed on the platform until they could no longer see one another. The scenery went by at a relaxed clip. He tried to focus more on it than his own visible reflection in the window. Eventually, however, he got bored with the green countrysides and creepy forests that the train was passing through. Using the reflection in the window as best he could, he tried to flatten his hair down a bit. He knew it was of no real use, but it gave him something to do, anyway. At least he had inherited his mother's hair color, if not its style. The looks he had gotten all through his life were bad enough without looking like a perfect little clone of his father.
Sighing, he gave up and just leaned back in his seat. Where the hell were his friends, anyway? Hadn't they promised that they were going to meet up with him on the train? Green eyes closing, he leaned over against the compartment wall and tried to let the steady rumble lull him off to sleep. Instead, it merely had the effect of inducing a mild sense of nausea in him. Making a face, he pushed away from the wall and returned to watching the scenery. He tried not to think back to the scene that they had made at King's Cross once they moved through the barrier to the platform. He wasn't doing a very good job of it.
He just didn't get why people found him so interesting. His father had been the great wizard, after all. Maybe people were just expecting him to be exactly like his father had been, he didn't know. He wished they would stop it, though. He hated all those eyes looking his way. He absolutely hated being the center of attention. He didn't feel tremendously gifted as a wizard, anyway. His magical aptitude tests had come back with results that proved he was right in feeling that way, as well. His father had merely scoffed at the results, saying that things change; that he knew nothing of magic before entering Hogwarts, and look how he turned out.
Naturally, even in primary school, people would point and whisper when he'd pass by. The son of the great Harry Potter, they called him. The son of the Boy Who Lived. The son of the man who had taken down the dark wizard Voldemort and stopped his growing undead legion from marching on Britain. His mother had comforted him, saying that she was perfectly happy with how he had turned out. That it was a blessing in disguise if he was never capable of tapping into the immense power his father had been capable of. She had said that Harry had been forced to grow up far too fast and that she didn't want him to do the same.
He knew his father didn't much like the attention, either. But it wasn't HIS fault. From all of the stories, it seemed he just did what needed to be done. His father had long since told him to just ignore the stares of the people around him - it's what he had learned to do since around his second year at Hogwarts. But it was one thing to say and another to do. He had been getting more and more anxious as the day of departure had drawn closer. Eventually, his parents had sat him down to talk with him.
"Why are you nervous?" His mother had asked.
He had replied that he knew what it would be like. That it would probably be even worse than primary school, simply because it was a bigger group of kids. Plus most of the professors from his father's days were still teaching their classes. Some had retired to pursue other, less stressful hobbies. The former headmaster had been one of these people. Albus Dumbledore, from all his father had said, now lived in a nondescript little village in northern Ireland. The deputy headmistress had stepped up to assume command of the school. And, due to various other reasons, the positions had been shifted around. But the same core group of professors still remained.
He didn't want to be compared to his father. Or his mother, he had added, not wanting to hurt her feelings. But his mother had simply laughed, saying she knew she hadn't been all that great as far as schooling went. No one, she had claimed, would ever proclaim Nymphadora Tonks to be a mental giant. This, however, had ended up causing a twenty-minute long tangent in their conversation, as his father had tried to scold his mother for putting down her own abilities.
Once it had become clear that his mother would emerge victorious from the argument, his father had cleared his throat and had returned to the subject at hand.
"You've endured this long. It gets easier with time. Trust me, alright? I know it might be rough going at the start. And there might be times when people will naturally look to you to solve their problems. It's just part of inheriting the name. I wish it didn't have to be like this for you, kiddo, I really do. But you've proven you're made of tougher stuff than you think."
"But... I'm not like you two were. I can't do anything..." He had argued.
"You don't know that yet." His mother had said, coming to sit next to him. "Besides, you don't need magic to prove your worth. You showed everyone that when you put down that idiot who was picking on Viola, right?"
Blushing, he had ducked his head and muttered, "All I did was shove him away..."
"You shoved him away, glared at him like you were fully capable of gibbing him where he stood, and made sure Viola was alright." His father had corrected. "You may've gotten Nym's looks for the most part, but you've got my eyes. There's a lot of fire in them when it comes down to it, Vega. You'll do fine."
Naturally, Vega had tried to argue. But it was fruitless. He had been outnumbered and outclassed. And now here he was, sitting on the Hogwarts Express, a knot still in his stomach. He knew what the Sorting was like. He knew the eyes of the entire school would be on him that night. With a weak sigh, he mumbled, "What'd I do to deserve this?"
Receiving no response, he slumped back against the wall, his gaze returning to the passing scenery. Eventually, his eyes unfocused and he fell into a sort of daze, one that only ended when he heard his compartment door open. Turning his head, his eyes lit up. "Where've you two been?!"
A girl with short, black hair was the first to step into the compartment. Flopping down unceremoniously next to him, she then turned to glare daggers at him. "Searching every room in the place, that's where!"
Once she had moved in, a boy with long, equally black hair stepped in, closing the door behind him. As he sat, his pale eyes focused on Vega as well. "You never told us where you were going to be."
"I... panicked." Vega admitted, lowering his head. "People kept asking me questions after I got on. They kept stopping me and looking to my forehead. I guess they thought scars were passed down or something..."
"Idiots." Scoffed the girl. Light grey eyes narrowing, she turned her glare on the door. "If I had known they were picking on you, I would've slugged them until they gave me correct directions here..."
"Do you really want to get into trouble before the school year even begins?" Asked the boy, sounding bored out of his skull. "We've found him, so let's relax."
"What's this 'we' stuff? Yooooou just followed behind me!" Accused the girl, giving the boy the evil eye. After a moment, her expression lightened as she looked back to Vega. "So what've you been upto while we were on our great hunt?"
"Nothing much." Admitted Vega. "Wishing I had something to do or someone to talk to, mostly. Dreading having everyone at the school looking at me tonight. The usual. What if I don't get into the same House as you guys? I don't want to be off on my own..."
"So just ask the Sorting Hat to place you wherever we end up." Said the boy. "Judging from what our father said, it doesn't seem that difficult to end up wherever you want."
"I guess. I'm just nervous." Vega sighed.
"When aren't you?" Asked the girl, putting an arm around the smaller boy and smirking. "C'mon, Vega, relax! We won't let anyone pick on you. Right, Hyde?"
"Same routine, different place." Confirmed the boy. "Vivi and I won't let you give in to your anxiety, Potter."
"Thanks." Vega said, squeaking a moment later as the girl tried to muss his already messy hair up. Swatting her hand away, he scooted as close to the wall as he could. "Stoppit!"
"See? Already gotcha distracted!" Said the girl, smirking victoriously. "Your muscles'll have no chance of being tense by the time we reach Hogwarts at this rate!"
Rolling his eyes, Vega smiled nonetheless as he resumed watching the landscapes roll by out the window. He had been friends with Viola and Hydrus Malfoy since as far back as he could recall. His parents had been long friends with theirs, apparently, going back to some point when they were all still in Hogwarts. They had been in the same classes all throughout primary. And while his parents had certainly been right about the single time he had protected Viola, that wasn't how things usually went.
Vega hated confrontations. He was a thinker, not a fighter, and tried to use words to get out of arguments and fights before they got heated. Normally, it was the Malfoy twins who were keeping HIM from being tormented by bullies. And anyway, the incident in question had been very early on, when they were all still little. After Vega started developing a reputation from that one fight, others had tried to take him on. He refused to fight back. This resulted in many injuries and a lot of general bullying. When Viola and Hydrus took it upon themselves to start watching over him, however, that had changed. Viola was always upbeat and full of energy, and tended to wear down her opponents through sheer exhaustion. No matter how much fighting spirit her opponents had, she always had more. Hydrus, on the other hand, was more laid back. He found his sister's unending supply of energy bothersome at times, though he would never admit it.
If Viola couldn't end a fight for some reason, Hydrus would. After breaking one bully's nose, no one wanted to come up against him. His laid-back aura would vanish in an instance if Vega or his sister were in any danger. He had made this widespread knowledge. From that point forward, the three hadn't really run into too much trouble. And while Vega felt embarrassed about needing to be protected, he certainly wasn't going to complain. Finding friends that close was rare. He wasn't going to do anything to endanger it.
Closing his eyes, Vega no longer felt the nausea he had earlier. Maybe it had something to do with the sound of Viola and Hydrus talking quietly. He smiled slightly. That had to be it, he figured. With a yawn, he tried to force his muscles to relax. And, thankfully, they seemed to acquiesce to his wishes. Before he knew it, he had fallen asleep.
Some time later, Vega found himself being gently shaken awake by Viola. He started to move and ask her what she wanted, but his sore neck made him pause and suck in a sharp breath. "Oww!"
"You alright?" Viola asked, blinking.
"No, but I'll live. What's up?" Asked Vega, hands working at the sides of his neck gingerly.
"We're at Hogwarts!" Viola said, sounding excited.
"Hogsmeade." Corrected Hydrus, who was leaning against the compartment door.
"Close enough!" Viola said, glaring at her twin. "C'mon, Vega. Hagrid should be waiting for us out there."
"Fantastic." Muttered Vega, getting to his feet and following the Malfoy twins from their compartment. Vega had heard tales from his parents about the half-giant groundskeeper of Hogwarts. And though his father's view on the man had eased up over time, there was always a hint of bitterness in it somewhere. "How long was I out?"
"Pretty much the entire trip." Viola said. "We were thinking of waking you up when the witch with the snacks came by, but thought the better of it. We know you've been sleeping poorly..."
Scowling, Vega mumbled, "My mum's talking about my insomnia with yours?"
"You know how they are." Hydrus said. "We know your problems, you know ours."
"Yeah, well... thanks, I guess." Vega said, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "Hungry as all heck now, though..."
"We'll be eating soon enough." Viola said. "I'm more anxious about the Sorting. Where d'ya think we'll end up?"
"Someone has to keep Slytherin in line like father did." Hydrus said. "I'd be perfectly happy being Sorted there."
"Yeah, but Vega doesn't seem the type, does he?" Viola asked. "No offense, of course."
"None taken." Replied Vega, dryly. "I dunno. I'll probably end up in Hufflepuff. I'm not the type to go barreling into fights, so Gryffindor's probably out. I'm not smart like my parents, so I doubt I'll be in Ravenclaw. And I'm not sneaky like you two are."
"Oi." Hydrus said, glancing back over his shoulder.
"I'll take that as a compliment. And if you aren't sneaky, no one is. I remember you managing to score us all kinds of treats from your kitchen when it was all supposed to be forbidden. Remember that?" Viola asked.
"I remember them not being treats." Vega said, making a face. "Wish dad had gotten rid of those joke shop things sooner. I still refuse to eat treacle tarts. I fail to see how that counts."
"You got downstairs, snuck by all of our parents, nicked the food, and got back up to us without being seen!" Viola exclaimed. "C'mon, that's totally sneaky!"
"I have a feeling our parents knew we would make a reach for them." Hydrus stated. "Probably let him think he got away without being seen just so we could provide their evening's entertainment."
"Siding with Hyde." Vega said.
"Neither of you are fun at all. Well... wherever we end up, you've gotta try wrangling the Sorting Hat into putting you there, too." Viola said. "School wouldn't be as fun if we got split up, after all."
As they made their way out of the Hogwarts Express, they could both see and hear a rather large man calling for the new students to make their way over to him. That was, without a doubt, Rubeus Hagrid, and Vega felt his father had been lying about just how gigantic the man really was. Vega was already rather on the small size. He was quite sure that Hagrid would be capable of picking him up and lobbing him halfway to the school.
"At least the weather's nice." Viola said. "No crossing the lake in a storm for us. Think the giant squid's going to come up?"
"I think I'd prefer taking a carriage." Hydrus said, sounding slightly put-off. He had never liked boats or being out on lakes. This stemmed from a swimming accident when he and Viola had been around six, as he recalled. Viola had been a better swimmer than him and had gone out further than he had hoped she would. She had also tried helping him get better, to no avail. Unfortunately, she had managed to tread water right over the home of a grindylow who had tried to drown her. Hydrus had to struggle out to her and managed to successfully keep his sister's head above water until their parents could get to them, but it had affected him, nonetheless. It was around that time he had switched from taking baths to showering.
They managed to slip by Hagrid without much notice, which was fine with Vega. He didn't like talking to people he was unfamiliar with. Especially old acquaintances of his father. Too many stories of heroism, usually embellished. The half-giant led the first years from Hogsmeade and toward the lake, where a series of boats awaited.
"Hop in an' we'll be off before ya know it!" Said Hagrid, smiling and making sure that no one fell into the water.
Vega got into a boat alongside his friends, leaning forward on his knees and glancing around. From what he could see in the dark, the lake was pretty big. He certainly couldn't see where it ended. The school itself was impossible to miss, however. Light was spilling through the innumerous windows of Hogwarts, which seemed almost unrealistically large to Vega. Next to him, Viola was trying to comfort Hydrus, who looked entirely nonplussed to be stuck on a boat. Vega could count the number of times he had seen Hydrus ruffled on one hand. He always acted like the strong one, whereas his sister was the energetic one. Vega was stuck being the designated 'quiet one' of their group. It was a fact many people his parents knew had pointed out.
When the boats began to move of their own accord, Vega grabbed hold of the side around the same time that Hydrus did. All around him, in their boat and the others, kids were chattering excitedly about the school and what the Sorting might be like, who their professors would be, and what the headmistress was really like. Vega knew her by way of his parents, of course. She didn't stop by that often, but she seemed a friendly enough sort. He could easily see her commanding a large number of students, though. There was something authoritative about her. The former headmaster was, according to his father, 'around, here and there' in regards to Hogwarts. What that meant was anyone's guess. His father certainly wasn't telling him.
As they traversed the lake, Hagrid talked about the school, what they could expect, and hinted that if they were interested in seeing some truly amazing things, they should look into his class. The last thing Vega was sure he wanted was some horrible creature biting his hand off. He made a mental note to pass on Care of Magical Creatures if it was at all possible.
When they finally arrived, Hagrid shakily got off his boat and began to offload the students. Hydrus quickly regained his composure once he was back on dry land, and helped Viola and Vega out. Vega had to admit, it was good being off the water again. He just wanted the Sorting to be over with so he could start worrying about more important things. Like how he was going to get by with his poor grasp of magic. His wand was in his back pocket, a bad habit he had picked up from his father. His mother was constantly warning him over putting it there, proclaiming that she knew a few wizards who had lost their buttocks that way.
Hands stuffed back into his pockets, Vega followed Hagrid and the others up a long flight of stairs that ended in a door. Hagrid smiled at them as he opened it, motioning for them to enter, which they quickly did. The inside of the school was far warmer than it was outside, and seemed to have a soothing effect on Vega. It still felt like he had butterflies in his stomach, but the feeling was lessened. He felt a hand on his back and glanced aside to see Viola smiling at him. He offered a weak smile of his own in return and looked away to take in the Entrance Hall. The double doors leading in and out of the school properly had a quartet of gigantic hourglasses straddling them, two on either side. Presently, they were all empty.
Hagrid shut the door after the last student entered and told them all to wait while he went and got the headmistress, who still liked to meet the first years and lead them into the Great Hall. As soon as Hagrid had left, more chatter broke out among the first years. Blowing out a sigh, Vega turned to his friends.
"So... we goin' for Slytherin, or what?" He asked, keeping his voice low.
"I will be." Hydrus said. "So I suppose all of us will be, yes."
"I follow Hydrus, Vega follows me. Hopefully the Sorting Hat'll be nice to us." Viola said. Hydrus picked up on a very faint waver to her voice. Though she'd never say so, he knew she was feeling nervous and was trying to hide it. To her credit, she was doing a very good job of it.
"Not looking forward to this." Vega muttered. "Once they call my name, everyone's gonna stare at me."
"Everyone's going to get stared at during the Sorting." Hydrus said.
"You know what I mean." Said Vega, hunching down slightly. "Whatever House I get into's going to be intolerable for awhile. Ravenclaw'll probably be expecting me there, since mum and dad were both in it..."
"Forget about what everyone else wants!" Viola said, patting Vega's back. "This is all you, ya know. Just tell the Hat where you wanna go and things'll work out for themselves."
"How do you know?" Vega asked.
"Woman's intuition." Viola proclaimed, smiling sweetly.
After what seemed like an incredibly long time, the doors to the Great Hall opened for a moment and a tall, thin witch stepped through them. She was quite old and had a rather stern look on her face. Her hair was done up in a neat bun and she was wearing dark red robes with golden trim. Vega cocked his head as Headmistress McGonagall approached them. He was used to seeing her in more casual attire. It was odd seeing her looking so... business-like.
After surveying the first years, her eyes lingering on a few longer than others, McGonagall smiled slightly. "Welcome to Hogwarts, all of you. Everything is set up and waiting for you in the Great Hall. You'll follow me in and stay near the side wall until your name is called. You'll then walk up to the stool that's at the front of the room and place the Sorting Hat on your head. It will place you into one of the four Houses of the school, where you will spend most of your time when not in classes."
As McGonagall explained a bit more of the Houses and which table belonged to what House, Vega let his eyes dart around. Some of the other children seemed as bored as he was about all of this. He had long since heard all of this. He figured it was mostly for the Muggleborn students. It was pretty easy to pick those out. They had the widest eyes and were giving the headmistress the utmost amount of attention.
McGonagall turned after finishing up, and the first years followed behind her into the next room. Vega took a deep breath as he entered the Great Hall, glancing up only briefly at its enchanted ceiling before his attention was ripped away by the hundreds of eyes that were following the group. Somewhere deep inside him, the urge to turn and bolt out of the room fired up. He knew he couldn't, though, as Viola and Hydrus were directly behind him. Viola seemed to sense his panic rising, as she once more put her hand on his back. Though it only helped a little, Vega was still thankful for it. It let him focus just enough to pay attention to what was going on around him.
Once they were all inside, the doors to the room closed on their own, and the headmistress produced a list from somewhere within her robes. Glancing down at it through her glasses, she began to read off names. And, one by one, students from the line of first years nervously went in front of the whole school and got Sorted. The first went to Gryffindor, the next to Hufflepuff. Vega's hands clenched inside his pockets. What if Hydrus and Viola wound up in different Houses? What if he couldn't manage to get into either of them? Then what would happen? He wasn't sure he would be able to quell the panic if that were to occur.
A few of the students, Vega noted, sat on the stool for some time before the Hat called out one of the Houses. A 'Calimar, Bruno' was up for nearly two minutes. The Hat actually let out a sigh before shouting, "HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Must've been flip-flopping on where to go..." Viola whispered.
"Eskander, Lapis!"
A boy with tan skin, somewhat nervously biting his lower lip, walked up to the stool and put the Hat on. And, for awhile, the Hat sat idle. Then, a barking laugh breaking the silence, the Hat called out, "RAVENCLAW!"
The boy looked somewhat irritated as he took the Hat off and went to the applauding Ravenclaw table, sitting next to one of the other new students. His eyes closed for a moment and he slumped slightly, as though glad the experience hadn't gone on longer than it had. A few seconds later and the boy was scanning the students still lined up. Briefly, he and Vega locked eyes. A look of faint curiosity crossed Lapis Eskander's face, but it was quickly masked and he looked back up toward the Sorting Hat.
It didn't really surprise Vega that someone he didn't know seemed to know him. Came with the name, he figured. Bringing a hand up, he rubbed at the bridge of his nose. McGonagall kept shouting names and students kept walking up to be Sorted.
"Malfoy, Hydrus!" McGongall called out suddenly. Vega's attention snapped back to what was going on just as Hydrus passed by him. A quiet murmur had started at more than one table. Several of the staff also looked particularly interested in Hydrus. For his part, Hydrus ignored all of them and picked the Sorting Hat up, sitting down as he placed it over his head. Vega felt something grip his sleeve and knew it was Viola, who was letting her own nervousness finally get the better of her.
After a scant few seconds, a tear in the front of the Hat opened and it cried out, "SLYTHERIN!"
An immediate cheer rose from the Slytherin table as Hydrus took off the Hat and set it back on the stool, turning and heading for the green-clad Slytherins. He looked back toward his sister and Vega and nodded at them before taking an empty seat toward the back of the table.
"Malfoy, Viola!"
"Good luck." Vega whispered quickly as Viola brushed past him.
And just like her brother, Viola hadn't worn the Hat but for a few seconds before it placed her in the same House as Hydrus. The desire to be kept together was probably too strong to deny. Viola quickly rushed over to the Slytherin table to sit near her twin, looking relieved and worried at the same time. She looked up at Vega, biting at her lower lip.
Vega would have to wait a little while longer. Four more students were in front of him on the list. The first and third went to Hufflepuff, the second to Ravenclaw, and the fourth to Gryffindor. And then it was time. The moment he had been dreading for months. He sucked in a quick, quiet breath as McGonagall's mouth opened once more.
"Potter, Vega!"
Instead of the hushed murmuring that had followed the Malfoy twins' names being called, there was absolute silence in the Great Hall at his own name being spoken. The breath he had sucked in was slowly pushed back out as he focused on the Sorting Hat. He took it and quickly placed it over his head as he hopped onto the stool.
'There,' he thought, trying to control any shaking that was occuring. 'That... wasn't too bad...'
"You're a terrible liar." Came a voice from just near his left ear. "You're scared out of your mind, even now..."
It wasn't entirely a lie. But the fright still stemmed from the fact that the room was so deathly quiet you could have heard a pin drop. The Hat speaking to him was nothing to get scared by. His father had prepared him for that part. There was only one thing left and that was to see if he could force the Hat's hand, so to speak.
'So... where do you WANT to put me?' Vega thought.
"Where do you think I should put you?" Asked the Sorting Hat.
'Think or want?' Replied Vega.
"Your father was deathly afraid of being sorted into Slytherin, you know. It was all he kept repeating for the longest time - 'not Slytherin, not Slytherin.' Too scared of the old taboo, you know. Looks like you don't have that problem..."
'Hyde and Vivi went there. I want to be with them.' Vega thought.
"Knew their parents, too. Strong-willed as their parents, as well. You, on the other hand... seem to be worried about your own magical talent. You think you're nothing special. You think you'll never amount to the types of things your father did. Probably true, that. Unless another dark wizard rises up in your time here. Maybe Voldemort will break out of the Void again and you'll have to face him. What would you think about that, hmm? If you were the only one who could stop someone like him?"
'I... I don't...'
"You want to. Deep down, locked away, in a place you don't let yourself into, you want to be as great a wizard as your father was. You want to push and claw your way to the top. You want to show everyone that you aren't your father. It would appear you Potters are a troublesome lot to Sort. Your father would've done well in any of the four Houses. You believe yourself doomed to Hufflepuff just because your magical talent hasn't been properly developed yet. But you're also determined to make something of yourself no matter what. You're the type who'd sit and read for hours just to escape being around anyone else. Yet you're also the type to defend your friends to the very end, should it come to it. So where should I drop you?" Purred the Hat, quietly.
'Just... let me be with them...' Vega thought, eyes closing. 'I have to be with them. Or... or else I...'
"Hm...? At such a young age, you...?" Started the Hat, chuckling to itself. "Is that what's driving you, Potter? Or perhaps I'm misreading you. You'll cause an uproar, you know. It'll only saddle you with more rumors than your father had. Is that what you want?"
'I don't care what happens to me so long as I can be with Hyde and Vivi!' Vega yelled, mentally.
"So be it, then. Perhaps I did misread you. You're trying hard not to let me see. But that doesn't mean much to something as old as I. You can't hide anywhere. Even in the dungeons. And yet... that is where you'll be staying. All the way down in SLYTHERIN!"
The Sorting Hat roared the last word and the Great Hall erupted into noise. The Slytherins were practically having a fit over the luck of it all, while the Ravenclaws were looking shocked more than anything. The other two tables were stuck in-between those two states, watching Vega as he took the Hat off, glared at it, and set it unceremoniously back on the stool before going to sit next to Viola, who hugged him as fiercely as she could.
"We did it! All together!" Viola cried, happily. "You were up there a long time. What'd the Hat say to you?"
"Too much." Vega scowled, leaning against the table and rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Bloody thing's too nosy."
"Don't think about it too much. That's what it does. Wants to bring out your true colors. Can't imagine what you thought to it to get you here with us, though. You had us worried." Hydrus said, offering Vega the ghost of a smile.
After the last handful of students had been Sorted, McGonagall took her spot at the staff table and began to fill the new arrivals on the school's rules and where not to go, but Vega couldn't focus on it. He had an irritating headache that he knew wouldn't go away until he got somewhere quieter. And he had the distinct impression that the other boys in his dorm weren't going to let him just slip off to bed peacefully. At least Hydrus would be there. He might help keep the others in line.
When the food and drink popped up onto the table, Vega picked out a few things he liked and munched away slowly. His hunger had almost completely dissipated due to the stress that had and was going to be happening. He knew he had to eat something, or he'd be up all night. But he just couldn't muster an appetite. Viola and Hydrus weren't exactly piling their plates up high, either. At one point, Vega met Hydrus' eyes and both shot a look toward Viola. They could rely on each other to ward off any irritating questions. Viola, on the other hand, would be on her own.
"So... kids of the famous heroes, huh? Must've had a pretty good life up 'til now." Said someone just across the table from Vega. Glancing up from his plate, Vega stared into the eyes of a lanky blond who looked to be at least two or three years older than he was. The older boy was smirking at the three of them, awaiting a response.
"You'd be surprised." Hydrus replied, keeping his tone polite. "Our parents have tried keeping us... what's the term you'd use?"
"In line." Viola offered.
"Yes, in line." Hydrus said, nodding. "Father believes the type of insipid beliefs that hounded this House in his time should also be kept in line. Who better to follow his lead than his own family?"
"Insipid beliefs?" Echoed the older boy.
"That purebloods are superior. That some dark wizard with promises of glory would lead them to the dawn of a new age." Hydrus explained, raising his gaze to meet the other boy's. "That everyone in this House was destined to some kind of evil purpose."
"Load o' rubbish, that. He and your mother went on to be war heroes." The boy said. "Proved that was a lie, didn't he?"
"He also proved that he was right about most of Slytherin. There weren't many left in school on his final year here." Viola said. "Buncha cowards and parasites ran off with their mummies and daddies so Voldemort's followers wouldn't hunt them down. Traitors to both sides. The worst kind of people."
"What about you, Potter?" The boy said, his attention switching from the Malfoy twins to Vega.
"What about me?" Vega asked, his voice gruffer than he meant it to be.
"What's your story? Your dad's the one who did it, yeah? So?"
"So what?" Vega asked again. He was tired, he felt like hell, and his headache wasn't being helped out by the curious idiot across from him. "Dad ripped Voldemort's skin off, trapped him in it, and sealed him back in the Void. He and mum settled down and had me. Eleven years later and here I am. What's to talk about?"
"Snarky little brat, aren't ya?" Said the boy, sneering at Vega.
"Only to people who don't know when to be quiet." Vega muttered darkly.
"What was that?" Growled the boy.
"What about you?" Hydrus asked, drawing the boy's attention and casting an odd look Vega's way. "Who are you, anyway? You know who we are, but the same can't be said for you."
"Ah, yes. Manners and whatnot. Name's Finlay Kimble. Call me Fin." Said the boy.
"And?" Viola chimed in.
"And what?" Asked Finlay.
"What about you?" Hydrus asked.
Finlay cast a withering glance at the two, catching on to what they were doing. "Very funny. What's your friend's problem, anyway? All the talk I heard was that he wasn't so... mouthy."
"Imagine yourself in his position." Hydrus said. "Knowing that everyone would ask the kinds of things you're asking. Constantly. Combine it with typical first year nervousness. The two of us aren't doing much better, I'd imagine."
"Think we could all do with a good night's rest." Viola said.
And, almost as if on cue, McGongall once more rose just as the food vanished from the tables. She had the prefects stand to make themselves known to the first years, and told everyone to follow them back to their House's common room, which would be password protected to keep those from other Houses out. Vega glanced down the table and saw a pair of older girls standing near the far end. McGonagall spoke awhile longer before dismissing the students. The prefects began rounding everyone up and leading them off.
"You alright?" Asked Viola, her voice low.
"Headache aside, I guess." Vega said, eyes on the floor.
"You sure?"
"Not really. Ask me again tomorrow."
Viola smiled. "Things'll get easier."
"Yeah. Question is 'how fast?' - that's what I wanna know." Vega muttered.
"Fast enough." Hydrus stated. "With any luck we can help deflect any stupid questions. I don't feel up to dealing with curious fans any more than you."
"You deal with them better than me, though." Vega said.
"Mum and dad told us what to expect." Viola said. "And how to deal with it."
"Dad tried that with me. Fat lot o' good it did to help." Vega grumbled. "Imagine what they'll say when they see me failing subjects."
"Your dad wasn't good when he first arrived, either." Viola argued.
"Dad didn't know about magic until he was my age." Countered Vega, scowling. "He had an excuse. I've grown up around the stuff and still suck at it."
"Which is why we're here. To get the hang of it." Hydrus said. "Tell me you two have been watching the path we've followed to get here. I don't want to have to guide you to and from the dungeons every day, you know."
"We were watching!" Viola said, sticking her tongue out.
"Potter?"
"Got the basic route memorized. Looking up isn't gonna make a difference at this point." Vega said, waving a dismissive hand. "...Is it supposed to be this cold down here?"
"We're under the lake." Said an older student. "Or we will be soon enough."
"How far under?" Asked Hydrus, glancing quickly to the older student.
"Oh, not too terribly, I'd imagine. You'd have to get a proper map to see how everything sort of connects to everything else. It's better in the common room, though. It's a lot better than it used to be, too. Professor Sinistra's gotten soft in her old age."
"Related to you, Vega?" Viola asked, nudging her friend in the arm.
Vega rolled his eyes. "Didn't think she was still helming Slytherin. Mighty long walk from the Astronomy Tower down to here, isn't it?"
"Don't underestimate her." The older student said, chuckling. "Dunno how the old bat does it, but she can get around this school faster than most of us can. And we know all kinds of shortcuts to save time."
Hydrus cocked an eyebrow at the expression dawning on his sister's face. "No."
Viola glared at Hydrus. "You don't know what I was thinking!"
"You were going to challenge her to a race." Hydrus said, a bland expression on his face.
"Oh, you're no fun at all." Scowled Viola, lower lip jutting out.
The group came to a stop in front of an ordinary-looking wall. The prefects stepped up in front of it and turned to face the other students.
"This is it, folks. End of the line. Like the headmistress said, you'll need a password to get in. Right now, it's 'Arx Serpens.' Don't forget it and DON'T write it down. And do us all a favor and don't give it out to the people in other Houses. If you want to hang out with your friends, do it somewhere else." One of the girls said.
The other nodded. "There are two sets of stairs in the back of the room. The left goes to the boys' dorms, the right to the girls'. Girls can enter the boys' dorms, but not the other way around. And Professor Sinistra nearly made it so the girls can't see the boys, either, after an incident that happened last year."
There was a snickering from somewhere near the middle of the assembled group of Slytherins. One of the prefects drew her wand and fired a blue light up into the air. It formed into a sphere and flew at the person who had been laughing. The minute it connected with his head, he found himself doused by water. To her credit, the girl had excellent control with her spell, as none of the students around the soaked boy had been hit by the water. Clearing her throat, the girl who had just fired on her Housemate turned and tapped the wall. "Arx Serpens."
Piece by piece, the wall broke open and shifted out of the way, leaving an archway that led into the Slytherin common room. The prefects motioned for the students to enter first, which they did. Vega glanced around the room as he entered. The ceiling was a bit low for his liking, but he figured he'd get used to it. There were a good number of comfortable looking chairs and couches around the room, and a large fireplace along one wall was helping keep the place warm. The student that had spoke up had been right - it was a lot nicer here than it had been in the corridors leading to it.
"Everyone's had a big day, especially our new arrivals. First years, you'll be stopping off at the first landing you reach. Your trunks have already been delivered, so just look for them and claim your bed for the year." Said one of the prefects. "Everyone else, you know the drill - get up to bed. Just because there's only two proper days of school this week is no reason to think that your teachers won't dump work on you."
Hearing a noise, Vega glanced over his shoulder. The wall was sliding back into place and closing up. With a sigh, he turned and gave the room another once-over. The large pack had broken up, and students were talking among themselves. Some were doing as the prefects said and were heading for the stairs. Some had flopped down in the seats nearest the fire. And still others were pointing to Vega and the Malfoys, whispering to one another.
"Vivi, you gonna be alright?" Asked Vega. "No backup for you."
"Meh, I can handle myself." Viola said, smirking. "Good luck to you two, too. Twice the amount of questions I'm probably gonna get hit by."
"They can ask all they want. I ain't answering. At least not until this headache goes away." Vega said, a yawn overtaking the last half of his sentence. "Ugh..."
"Come on. Let's get some rest." Hydrus said. "We'll meet back down here tomorrow morning and head up to eat together."
"Good night, you two!" Viola said, bounding off for the stairs on the right.
"You know the three others in our dorm will be talkative twits, most likely?" Hydrus said as he and Vega headed for the other set of stairs.
"No point in delaying the inevitable, huh?"
"Indeed."
Sighing, Vega glared at the steps leading up. "Let's get it over with, then. The sooner I get to sleep, the better."
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
Author's Notes: Welcome to the first chapter of the first book of R-2. Which is, chronologically at least, the direct sequel to the R-Series. If you haven't read it and have no idea what the hell is going on... well, why have you read to the end? Go to my profile, head down to The Philosopher's Stone Retransmuted, and start there. You've got about 830,000 words to read before you should be back here. And be sure to check out the F-Series, as well, which is probably going to be running alongside this, providing I don't change my mind and just alternate books. It's also a sequel to the original R-Series, and from a technical standpoint comes before this. R-1 left off on a strange sort of ending, and the F-Series is going to reveal what really took place. It's a bit confusing - just start from the start and go from there. I promise it'll make more sense by the time you finish Gauntlet of the Magi. The order is Philosopher's Stone, Chamber, Prisoner, Goblet, Order, Citadel, Gauntlet. Got it? Good, now go and read!
To those who've already read those, welcome back to the madness! As you can see, we're off to a quick start. Everyone's already at Hogwarts and the trio has been placed in Slytherin, of all places! Why Slytherin? Well, that would be spoiling a few things. Suffice to say, it's a fitting enough place for all three of them. As I said in the final chapter of Gauntlet, this isn't going to be about big, epic fights. At least, I don't THINK it will be. I typically plan one book at a time. I have, as I write this, only a few chapters of book 1 outlined. I'll be jotting more up as I go along. I'll probably go through about five or six revisions before book 1 ends. I really should put all of my unused and changed chapter ideas in a pdf sometime and link to it.
Anyway... I'll keep this relatively short. More character driven while still having that distinctly 'You're never safe at Hogwarts' flavor to it. It won't entirely be a romance-driven story, but the emphasis WILL be more on the characters than the action. At least, it presently is set to be that way. As I said, it might change. But as of now, that's the concept. If you want more action, the F-Series (Book 1 will be titled The Legend Reborn) will have more than enough of that to tide you over.
So... a future that isn't quite in line with the one from the end of Gauntlet. And yet it is, in fact, that same timeline. This isn't an alternate continuity from R-1. So how and why are things different? Why did Vega describe his father defeating Voldemort in a way that wasn't quite right? I suppose you'll just have to keep up with both new series to find out.
I'll see you next time!