Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or anything from the books.

The Express Ride

Autumn had seemed to arrive suddenly that year. It was really quite cold for the first of September, anyone could tell you that. The air was crisp and the sun shown brilliantly golden in the sky, effectively betraying the coldness of the day. It seemed only moments ago that the Potters, an exceptionally unusual family of five, were receiving stares and funny looks at King's Cross because of the two owls among their luggage.

Albus Potter had never in his life felt such a strange mixture of eagerness and the nervousness that was starting to return. There was no turning back now. He was already on a very special train to a very special school for the first time in his life. Sitting with him in his compartment were his older brother James Potter and their cousin Rose Weasley.

Al was a bit short for his age, with a thin face, knobbly knees, messy black hair, bright green eyes and glasses, all of which he'd inherited from his father. His mother and Aunt Hermione (who was Rose's mother) sometimes teased that because he looked just like his father, given a few years, he'd be able to get any girl he wanted. James looked like a thirteen-year-old version of Al, but his eyes were brown and he didn't ware glasses. Rose had long, bushy red hair, large front teeth, freckles, big blue eyes and was already wearing her brand new school robs.

Al and Rose were both worried about their houses. They were going off to a school called Hogwarts, the students of which were divided into four houses. Gryffindor was for the truly brave and daring. All Potters and Weasleys before them had been in Gryffindor, and, true to form, James was also a Gryffindor. Both Al and Rose were desperate to be in the House. Ravenclaw was for brainy, smart kids who liked books, and Hufflepuff was for the more lax and friendly students, like their close family friend Teddy Lupin and his late mother. Slytherin house had changed a lot over the years.

In his parents' school days, Slytherin had been a, shall we say dislikeable, house of pure-bloods and prejudice, and the students were quite mean to those of other houses. Gryffindor because of a rivalry that had died down since then, Ravenclaw because they wouldn't fight back (something about being to mature to stoop to their level), and Hufflepuff simply for being Hufflepuff. It wasn't nearly that bad any more, but they still had a less-than-favourable reputation.

Al hadn't been so worried about it before that morning, him ending up in Slytherin, but James had wound him up at breakfast, which had became an argument in the car. Their mother had chided James and their father had reassured Al about it and told him that it would be okay if he ended up in Slytherin, but if it meant so much to him, he'd be able to chose.

"Al!" Rose shouted, startling him. It appeared that she'd been trying to get his attention for a while.

"Sorry!" Al winced, knowing how his cousin could get sometimes. He prayed that she'd leave whatever it was be today, the last thing he needed was a lecture from his know-it-all cousin who was barely three months older then him. Don't be mislead, Al loved Rose as he loved his own sister, but sometimes she did go over the edge.

Rose sighed smartly. "I was asking if you were still scared about being sorted into Slytherin."

"Not as much as I was. Dad talked to me about it at the station." Al said, recalling his father's comforting words. "He said that one of my namesakes was a Slytherin, and that he was the bravest man Dad ever knew." He decided not to tell them about what else his father had said, about the Sorting Hat taking one's own choice into account. As much as he wanted Rose to be in Gryffindor like she wanted, Al wanted to see her get in on her own, and not through a request.

"Wicked." James seemed somewhere between genuine surprise and lax approval.

"Uncle Harry always knows just what to say." Rose grinned as she said this. Suddenly, all eyes went to the door as the three realized they had an audience. James looked very proud and flashed a toothy grin at the group of third, second and first years. Rose turned a bit pink in the face at this attention, and Al suddenly became very nervous when he noticed they were all gawking at him.

"Oi, that's him!"

"James Potter's brother?"

"Dead ringer for his father, isn't he?"

"Well, without the scar, obviously."

Things had been this way at the train station, too. As the Hogwarts Express was taking off, people both on and off the train had been muttering about and staring at his father. And what did they mean about his scar? Aside from how it was shaped like a lightning bolt, as far as All knew there was nothing remarkable about his father's scar. Al and his brother and sister had grown up hearing only that they'd find out soon enough and to be patient. Perhaps this was it?

"What are you talking about?" the words came before Al could stop them.

"What?" a tall third-year with copper-colored hair and wearing a yellow and red striped tie asked. He then looked at James. "James, is he serious?"

"Sorry, Eric." James shrugged. "Mum and Dad never told us. Remember I didn't know myself until our first year."

"Oh, that's right." Eric muttered. "Oi, kid," Eric gave Al a lopsided grin that reminded him strangely of his Uncle Ron. "you're dad's famous!" Without another word, Eric scurried away. Another third year, a girl with red hair and blue-grey eyes and wearing a green and silver tie, scowled for a moment. For a horrible instant, Al thought he'd somehow offended her, but after that moment she surprised him by looking in the direction Eric had gone.

"Eric!" she called and chased after him. "Eric!" they could hear her yelling down the hall. "You just ruined his life!" With the leave of the pair, the small crowed started to disburse, whispering and muttering excitedly together. Al and Rose were both silent for a moment.

"Was that Eric?" Rose asked.

"Yep. Lyra, too." James said. He'd mentioned both of them to his family over the years, but they'd never actually met. Eric Toris and Lyra Zebini had been James's best friends (and partners in crime) since their first year.

"That was a Slytherin tie she was wearing, wasn't it?" Rose asked.

"Yeah, Ly's a Slytherin, but if she wasn't wearing the tie, you couldn't even tell." Jame's eyes took on a fond glint. "The three of us met on the train our first year, before we were sorted. It's actually been easier than most people said it would, being friends with a Slytherin."

"So, Slytherin isn't that bad after all?" Rose asked hopefully.

"That would depend on you, I suppose. She's really the only Slytherin I know who's not a git." James said. "Eric thinks it's the Ravenclaws that need to be watched, all because he had a nasty row with one before first year. Thinks their all stuck-up know-it-alls. Just like you." James laughed as his cousin reached over to hit him.

Noticing Al's look and knowing what it was about, he explained. "I wrote Dad asking him about it first year. He kept it a secrete to 'protect us' or something, and told me not to tell you or Lily. He wanted us to be James, Al and Lily Potter, not Harry Potter's kids. Didn't want us to know until we got to Hogwarts so we'd be 'ready to take it'. Reckons he doesn't want us ether getting big heads about it or kill ourselves trying to live up to him."

"Well, I'm afraid the big head ship has sailed." Rose rolled her eyes at James, who only grinned proudly and nodded. Al sniggered fondly.

"Excuse me." said a soft voice. Al half-expected more gawkers, but it was a single boy. The boy had a pale, pointed face and had blond hair that was almost as messy as Al's. He would have looked quite maniacal if not for his gentle grey eyes and his apparent physical condition. His cloths were scruffy and a bit torn, there was also a huge, nasty bruise on his cheekbone and a hint of dried blood under his nose. He also had his trunk and a cage with a sleeping ferret with him. It might have been Al's imagination, but the boy's eyes appeared a bit red.

"Hey."

"Hi."

"Hello."

The faintest smile Al had ever seen appeared and disappeared on the boy's face in the same second. "Hey." His voice was shaky as he pointed at the empty seat beside Al. "Anyone sitting there? Everywhere else is -" the boy paused for a moment as if considering something. He seemed to become even sadder as he muttered. "full."

"No, you can sit here." James said, getting up from his seat. "Here, lemme help with that trunk." The boy couldn't seem to stop stammering his thanks as his trunk was set up with the others and his pet was put beside three other cages that housed Al's and James's owls and Rose's cat.

"Thanks." the boy said to James one last time.

"No problem." James smirked as he reclaimed his seat and the boy sat down next to Al. "I'm James Potter, by the way." The boy shook his hand vigorously.

"I heard the sons of Harry Potter would be here. I'm so honored!" the boy said, sounding breathless.

"Al Potter." The boy shook his hand as well.

"And I'm Rose Weasley." Unlike her cousins, who had just let the boy shake, she returned it.

"Aren't you the Malfoy kid?" James had said this as casually as he could, but the boy still looked away from them. "There were rumours about you around the end of last year. Some kids said you'd be turned away because your dad was ether to much of a coward or a Death Eater. Others said you'd become a dark wizard your first week."

The boy whimpered in response. Rose looked remarkably like her mother as she shot James a reproachful glare and his grin faltered. "Hey now," James said. "I'm just telling ya what I heard. Nothing saying those rumours are anywhere near true."

The boy seemed to gain a bit of confidence at this. "I'm Scorpius Malfoy. My dad didn't get along with Mr. Potter when they were in school."

"So I've heard." James's tone became very serious suddenly. "Ya know, among those rumours was one about me beating you up every other week so you'd spend more time in the hospital wing then in classes." Scorpius's face paled even further so that it was now ghostly white. At this, James laughed. "Oh, don't worry I wouldn't lay a hand on you." Scorpius sighed in relief before James added slyly "Or will I?" Not knowing what to think, Scorpius sunk into his seat.

"You'll get used to that." Rose said before looking at James who was still chuckling. "Eventually."

"First year, right? What house are you hoping for?" James asked. Scorpius looked very serious at this and he locked gazes with him.

"Anywhere but Slytherin." he said. "My whole family's been in Slytherin before me and I love them, (my family I mean), but I have to prove I'm not like them, and I can't do that if I end up there! My father's not who he was before, I'm not prejudice, I hate pure-blood supremacy! Those creeps give pure-bloods a bad name!" he said all of this very fast and with feeling, as though he was desperate for them to believe him.

"Calm down," Rose said, taken aback by his outburst.

"I know the feeling." Al spoke at last. "I don't want to be in Slytherin ether. My dad says it's all right if I am, but I still don't wanna be. Me and Rose are both hoping for Gryffindor."

"I'm a third-year Gryffindor." James said.

"Yeah, Gryffindor sounds great." Scorpius said. "My dad told me it doesn't matter to him ether, but it does to me."

"Yeah." Al said. "My family have all been in Gryffindor for the last few generations."

"My mom's muggle-born and she was in Gryffindor, but my father's family have been in Gryffindor for I don't even know how long back." Rose said.

"And that's really saying something." James had earned himself a playful swap from Rose for that. "Alright, alright, alright!" he said, leaping from his seat. " I know when I'm not wanted." and he jogged out of the compartment pretending to be hurt.

After a number of questions, Scorpius started on the story of Al's father and both of Rose's parents; Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger. How they were utterly inseparable all through Hogwarts, how his own father and other Slytherins had shamelessly bullied them, all about Voldemort and his Death Eaters (he made it very clear that he was ashamed of his father's part in it and repeated for the fifth time that his father had changed), Harry's famous history, how Harry had nearly killed Draco in their sixth year, but saved his life in their seventh, about the Deathly Hallows, and about the heroic sacrifices of Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Lily Potter and about fifty others, several of which Al and Rose had heard about, such as their uncle Fred and Teddy's parents.

Al and Rose hung on every word in wrapped attention. During several pauses in the story (which allowed them to absorb the story and Scorpius to catch his breath), the silence was comfortable. James had heard this story before from kids at school, but his father had again told him to not tell his siblings or cousins. The compartment suddenly door opened roughly. A boy with dark sandy hair and and a lithe figure stalked into the room. His mean brown eyes set themselves on Scorpius who fidgeted in his seat.

"There you are, ya little imp." he snarled darkly with a taunting smirk on his face. "Thought running away could save your hide, eh? Not so different from daddy after all, are we?"

"What's it to you, Nott?" Scorpius spat weakly. Al could practically feel the fear waving off of him, not helped by how he began visibly trembling. Al swallowed, wishing he were invisible. Unfortunately, James had the Invisibility Cloak, an old family heirloom.

"I'm just saying." Nott shrugged meanly. He then looked at Al and Rose, noticing them for the first time. "Wait, don't tell me. Potter's and Weasley's brats, I take it? Going and making friends with the wrong sort, are you? I suppose it makes since, though. Who else would want anything to do with a Malfoy." Nott spat the name and Scorpius appeared close to tears at this point. Enraged, Al and Rose stood up at once in his defense.

"Oi, you." James had returned, hauling sacks of sweets. His face, however, did not hold it's common grin, but a very serious, intimidating scowl. "What's wrong with us Potters, then?" James was much taller then Nott, who shamelessly ran out of the compartment, clearly not liking his four-to-one odds. They watched in disgust at this cowardice.

"Who was that?" Al asked.

"Tomas Nott." Scorpius spat bitterly, putting one hand up to cover his bruise self-consciously and wiping his tears with the other.

"Did he do that to you?" Rose asked, eying the bruise. Scorpius only nodded and allowed his hand to drop to his side. "Here, let me. I've been wanting to try this one." Rose said, taking out a wand from her pocket. Rose Weasley was a witch, and Al, James and Scorpius were wizards. Hogwarts was a school for witches and wizards, to teach them how to strengthen, use and control their magic.

"Episkey." Rose said as she flicked her wand. Scorpius cringed in pain, but the bruise healed quickly.

"Thanks." he smiled, flushing bashfully.

"Oi, if he gives ya any more trouble, just tell me and my friends. We'll protect ya." James smirked proudly. "Anyone for a snack?"

"Sure!" Al, Scorpius and Rose jumped at once. Al had suddenly realized how hungry he was, his stomach was roaring at him. The four of them had a great time eating their way through all the Cauldron Cakes, Pumpkin Pasties, Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, and many other treats. Through the stories and jokes, Rose and the Potter brothers noticed how Scorpius seemed to relax and perk up, so that you'd never guess that he'd entered the compartment a bullied, scared little boy.

They had a particularly fun time eating Transformation Chews, a product from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes (a joke shop founded and ran by a pair of Rose's, Al's and James's uncles), which had been so popular that Uncle George had began selling them to stores and sweet shops about ten years ago. There were seven candies to a packet that looked and tasted like Muggle fruit chews, but they gave whoever ate them animal parts that wore off after about five minutes. Al got rabbit ears, stag antlers, a leopard tail, cat whiskers, a falcon beak, wolf eyes and lion paws. Scorpius got tiger fur, bird talons, snake fangs, a rat nose, a pig tail, owl eyes, and meerkat ears. Rose got a weasel tail, a cobra hood, lizard eyes, eagle feathers, a dolphin fin, bear claws, and what appeared to be hamster fur. James got one of the rare packs with different parts of the same animal. He ate them all at once, as was a habit of his, and appeared to be some kind of mix between a boy and a fox.

Soon enough, it was dark and they quickly divided the remaining treats among the four of them, stuffing them into four large bags, and stowing these bags away in each of their trunks. The sweets would be saved for later, because James had told them about the all huge feasts at Hogwarts. Rose, who was already wearing her robs, looked out the window, staring at the starry sky and wondering to herself, while the boys changed. Most of the remaining time was spent exchanging stories. The most entertaining by far was Scorpius's story of how his father had been reluctant to get him a ferret as a pet, but he was quickly worn down by his wife and son. The way Scorpius described his father made Al think of his own father at a book shop the other day when Al had found a book called Severus Snape: Saint Or Scoundrel by Rita Skeeter.

The last hour was spent in a very comfortable silence. The four of them were nearly asleep when the train stopped.

I know, not the best ending. Review.