Parts (4-8)

I

Chapter 2

Sabotage in the Shadows

Part 1: Light Tracks

"Ticcy, get up. We have a serious problem," Calderon said, grabbing the sleeping man's arm and hauling the professor up, "Walk and talk. Scor, stay here."

The train driver nodded and hurriedly exited the compartment, Calderon half dragging the still half-asleep Professor Ashain with him. Scorpius sat there for a moment, he had been told to stay but his body protested. Quickly, he jumped up and slipped unnoticed into the wake of the adults.

"The viaduct up ahead is gone, totally destroyed," the driver hastily explained as he led them through the train.

"And this thing doesn't have brakes?" Professor Ashain grumbled, freeing himself from Calderon's grip and walking by himself.

"They're not working! I've tried everything I can think of! Something is preventing me from using them and I dunno how to get past it."

"Well, I can see how that would suck… hmm… I don't think we've actually met. I'm Marius Calderon, you would be?"

"Calderon!" the professor snapped, "Names aren't important right now!"

"What? If I'm going to die I'd like to know the names of the people I'm dying with."

"Peter Snyder."

Professor Ashain threw up his hands in exasperation as they made it to the head end of the train, it was smaller than Scorpius had expected, dark and cramped. He knew next to nothing about trains but he assumed the section immediately in front of them with various knobs and lever-looking things controlled it. The professor went over to it and the driver – Peter Snyder – went into an explanation about the brake not working, demonstrating one of the lever's refusal to budge both manually and magically. Calderon however immediately went for the window and stuck his head out, it was only as he turned back that he noticed Scorpius.

"Didn't I tell you to stay?"

"I can't just sit there by myself and wait to die, I want to help. Or at least not do nothing," Scorpius answered feeling pleased he didn't sound as nervous as he felt but he then didn't regret following them, he'd had enough of sitting and waiting in the past year to last him a lifetime. Calderon rolled his eyes but he and the other two men seemed content with this, then again there were more pressing concerns than him.

"What do you think, Ticcy?"

"Someone definitely tampered with it, some powerful magic."

"Can you fix it?"

"Maybe with some time," Professor Ashain answered tearing his eyes from the controls and swallowing nervously with a defeated look on his face, "But not before the viaduct."

"Fine," Calderon snorted and waved his hand, a hatch in the ceiling flew open and a ladder tumbled down, "I have an idea, I think I can give you some time but you damn well better use it Ticcy because I can't do everything all at once by myself. Follow me, Scor, but stay on the ladder."

At this, Calderon began climbing the ladder while the other two men just looked as puzzled as Scorpius felt. He reluctantly followed, feeling his head battered and his neatly combed hair blowing in disarray as he poked his head out of the train. Calderon had climbed on top of the train and was unsteadily trying to stand against the ferocious freezing wind. Scorpius didn't envy him and feared for a moment that Calderon would fall but something else caught his attention.

He gasped as his eyes were drawn to what was ahead of the train, the viaduct was indeed gone and instead there was just a gaping void that they were hurtling towards. They really were going to die. He expected to feel scared, panicked, upset like he had before but all he could muster was regret. At least he had gotten to say goodbye this time, it was just more final than he'd thought.

Scorpius took the opportunity to drink in the scenery, the peaceful countryside basking in the glow of the setting sun. The last thing he'd ever see. At least it was beautiful. He sighed feeling a sliver of sadness, doubting any of the other students realized their lives were about to end. He hoped it would be quick so none of them would have to suffer. He closed his eyes and took a last long breath as they reached the edge of the cliff.

Instead of a plunge however, the whole train jerked and Scorpius yelped in surprise. He tightened his grip on the ladder to stop himself from slipping, looking back to Calderon in confusion. The assistant was holding out his hands, light was flooding from them and into the empty air ahead of them. The light was forming into tracks for the train to carry on over, Scorpius realized, that was why they weren't falling to their deaths. It was incredible.

He realized his mouth was just hanging open in amazement as Calderon's shrill laugh cut through the angered howl of the wind, his laugh had never sounded more demented but Scorpius had never been more impressed by anything in his entire life. He watched the tracks of light Calderon was creating with a smile on his face, he'd been around magic since birth but had never seen anything like it.

The gap seemed incredibly long but after a few minutes the head end came back onto the real track with another jerk. Calderon faltered, struggling to keep himself on his feet at the lurching movement but succeeded and the magic didn't waver at all. Scorpius looked back as the further back carriages too came back onto the solid track, when the final luggage carriage's wheels touched the ground he let out a relieved breath and the light track vanished. Calderon threw him a grin back over his shoulder and Scorpius' smile only widened.

His smile quickly became a scowl when he realized what was beyond Calderon. The track was damaged, a giant chunk seemed to have been blasted out of the side. Calderon seemed to follow his gaze and instantly held up his hand again, more light shot out to take the place of the missing side.

"I'm going to stay up here," Calderon called back, he seemed to be yelling but it was barely audible over the wind, "Keep this up for any other damaged sections. Tell Ticcy that!"

Scorpius clambered down enough until he was back in the warmth and safety of the train, he'd forgotten the cold in his amazement but poor Calderon must be freezing, he realized guilty. He tried not to think about it as he passed on the message. Train Driver Snyder was just standing there stunned while the professor had turned his attention to trying to fix the train before he'd finished speaking.

"Bloody madman saved us all."

"It's not good," Professor Ashain said worriedly, not hearing or caring of the driver's comment, "I was kind of hoping this was a prank and the viaduct was an accident, maybe a dragon destroyed it or an angry giant. But this is advanced magic, beyond any student and the odds of the tracks being damaged accidentally decreases the more damage there is."

"Can you fix it, Professor?" Scorpius asked worriedly, he hadn't given much thought to what had caused it but now he thought of it… wasn't anything Hogwarts supposed to be protected?

"I think so, just give me some time. Tell Calderon that I'm doing my best."

Scorpius climbed back up to relay the message, finding there was indeed more damage to the tracks ahead. He worried about this for the rest of the journey as he worked as a messenger between the two, Professor Ashain giving him updates on his progress with undoing the magic done to the brakes and Calderon focused on keeping the train on the light tracks as they passed over the damaged sections.

"This is a lot harder than it looks," Calderon said after he'd given him the professor's latest progress, "Trains are really heavy, I'm not sure how long I can keep doing this. Tell Ticcy to hurry up."

He looked back for the first time since the sun had set and Scorpius saw the strain on his face, his worries shifting to Calderon. He nodded and clambered back down, passing on the message but the professor didn't seem concerned.

"Well I'm not surprised, that is some powerful magic he's using. I couldn't do that if I tried, not many could," Professor Ashain told him without looking up from what he was doing and a sudden burst of light came from his wand, the light enveloped the controls before fading, "I think I've got it! We need to stop the train to test it, tell Calderon to climb down or he'll be thrown off."

Scorpius climbed up excitedly but before he could get the words out of his mouth he noticed lights up ahead, it had to be the station, they were really going to be okay. He called the message to Calderon but the assistant just shook his head.

"Tell Ticcy to just do it, I need to stay up here in case it doesn't work."

"But if it does work then you'll be thrown off, I think it'll work!"

"Hope for the best but prepare for the worst! It's my job, Scor. This is the last stop, if it doesn't work how much further do you think before we reach the end of the line? I'm going to stop this train if it destroys me!" Calderon called back firmly and Scorpius felt a knot clench in his stomach wondering what he'd meant by that, "Tell Ticcy to stop the train if he can, he has to make sure all the students get to Hogwarts safely. That's the most important thing."

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine, when everyone's safe they'll send people to look for me."

"What if…" Scorpius began and his nerves protested him finishing the sentence but he forced himself to say it, "What if you die?"

"If I die tell Minerva I love her! Oh and I want to be cremated not buried!" Calderon yelled and Scorpius had no idea if he was being serious or not, "Now tell him, Scor."

Scorpius hesitated for a moment before climbing back down and delivering the message, he had expected or rather hoped Professor Ashain would insist on Calderon climbing down but instead he just nodded.

"You're okay with it? He could die!"

"Mr Malfoy, he's right. We're running out of time and I have no control over him. If he's okay with it, so am I. If our positions were reversed than I'd do the same."

Without flinching, he pulled down one of the levers. There was no doubt it hadn't worked as the train screeched to a halt, Scorpius had to cling to the ladder to stop himself from falling off at the force of it. Professor Ashain looked relieved but Scorpius climbed up for a final time, peeking his head out for any sign of Calderon. Not surprisingly, he was gone.

Scorpius climbed back down and got off the ladder, stretching for a moment as climbing up and down a ladder wasn't the most comfortable do to. The professor was talking about getting the train going again and making sure everyone got to the station safely. Everyone except Calderon, Scorpius thought bitterly and guiltily, almost wishing he hadn't passed on the message. His eyes found the door before his mind could catch up, he did want to stay out of trouble but… he didn't want to just leave Calderon out there even more. He strode over to the door and opened it, the adult's protests fell on deaf ears as he jumped out into the cold night.

"Calderon!" he yelled into the silence, scanning the darkness as he started walking, "Calderon! Calderon!"

"What in Merlin's name are you doing?!" Professor Ashain demanded rushing over to him, "Mr Malfoy, get back on the train!"

"Not without Calderon."

"It's pitch black!"

"I have good eyesight," Scorpius shrugged shivering but the cold just made him more determined, fighting back memories he just yelled louder, "Calderon!"

"He would want you to get back on the train! He's the one who said not to look for him until everyone else is safe."

"Then go and get everyone safe, I'll keep looking."

"Mr Malfoy, if you don't get back on the train then I will-"

"I don't care!" Scorpius snapped glaring at the professor, "Take away a million points from the house I don't have, give me a detention for the rest of my life, suspend me, expel me, I don't care! I'm not leaving him here hurt and alone in the freezing cold, you'll have to curse me and drag me back to the train kicking and screaming before I abandon him! And you shouldn't abandon him either! He saved all our lives, including yours and you won't spare five minutes to see if he still has his?!"

"If I help you look for five minutes will you get back on the train?" the professor offered as a compromise and Scorpius reluctantly nodded while the wizard muttered a spell. Light appeared at the end of his wand, it wasn't a lot of light but it did illuminate the nearby area and was better than total blackness, "We could be out here for hours otherwise and -believe it or not - a proper search party has a better chance of finding and helping him than one wizard and a boy."

"Can you make my wand do that?" Scorpius asked as he offered his own wand and the professor sighed but took it, muttering the spell again and handing it back to him, "Thank you."

"I want Calderon to be okay too, I just would rather everyone else is too and he's right about students being the priority. Although I am surprised you're so keen to find him, I thought you didn't like him. I heard you arguing before I was dragged awake."

"Arguing?" Scorpius prompted worriedly.

"Some raised voices or maybe it was someone else arguing nearby, I didn't notice what they were saying or who was speaking. I don't know, I just assumed it was you two arguing because you were closest."

"We were just having a discussion about which house I would be in, I said Slytherin because that's the house Malfoy's go in and he said I shouldn't let myself be defined by my family," Scorpius told him, it was true enough, "Doesn't mean I hate him and want him to die, he had a point. Even if he didn't, we're doing the right thing. It's wrong to leave him out here."

"Fair enough."

Scorpius nodded vaguely and concentrated on searching, the countryside didn't look so beautiful anymore. It looked dark and cruel, even with the light from their wands it seemed scary. They were practically in the middle of nowhere; it was the perfect place to dump a body. The thought sent fear shooting through his spine, he froze. Maybe it had been a stupid idea to go looking for Calderon in the dark out here, it was much safer to just stay on the train and let a search party come looking for him later. They'd have more chance, Professor Ashain was right.

He took a deep breath, trying to stop his legs from shaking as the professor had continued on walking calling for the assistant obliviously. Scorpius was about to call out to leave it and head back to the train but something stopped him, he really didn't want to leave Calderon out there. Calderon could bleed to death waiting for rescue or freeze, or whoever had damaged the tracks and sabotaged the train could come back.

He thought of Calderon, the assistant had been perfectly willing to risk his life to save everyone else's and he hadn't even hesitated. His parents had thought him weak, stupid and unstable but Scorpius thought Calderon had to be the strongest person he'd ever met. Calderon wouldn't leave anyone out here, no matter how afraid he was. Pushing through his fear, Scorpius started walking again.

"Calderon!" Scorpius screamed again with renewed determination, this time he thought he saw a brief glimpse of a pale hand in the dark.

He ran towards it, slowing only when he nearly lost his balance clambering on the slippery rocks but as he got closer he could clearly make out Calderon's form lying amongst them. He fell to his knees beside the assistant, worriedly wondering for a second if he was alive but noticed to his relief that Calderon was breathing.

He was hurt though. Calderon's clothes were torn in places, he had a gash beside his left eye and his other cheek was badly grazed. His right arm was clutched protectively to his chest, the wrist looked swollen and misshapen and Scorpius guessed it was broken. He also noticed the assistant's left foot was at the wrong angle but wasn't sure if that was just the way he was lying or not.

"Professor Ashain!"

Part 2: Newcomer

Scorpius watched as the hazy blur of light - that had to the professor - started coming towards them, he could do nothing more than wait. He hated waiting. And he hated that he couldn't do anything for Calderon, he didn't know anything about first-aid, magical or otherwise. In that moment, he painfully wished he did. The seconds seemed to drag by before the professor was finally beside them, an anxious expression on his face.

"Calderon, are you alright?" he questioned immediately shaking Calderon's shoulder gently, the assistant winced and flicked open his dark eyes.

"Yes, Ticcy, I'm just lying here for fun," Calderon answered scowling, "Didn't I tell you to get the kids to safety first?!"

"Mr Malfoy was most insistent on not leaving you, now come on."

Professor Ashain hastily handed Scorpius his wand and helped Calderon into a sitting position, the assistant wincing at every slight movement. The professor crouched and hooked Calderon's good arm around his shoulder, then he stood taking the taller assistant up with him. Calderon yelped as his injured looking foot touched the ground, his face screwed up in pain but he took a deep breath and seemed determined to push through it.

"That windswept look suits you, you know Scor?" Calderon commented weakly as they started awkwardly trying to head back to the train, moving slowly and carefully to try not aggravate his ankle.

"Calderon, just shut up. We have to get out of here."

"I'm in agony, Ticcy, trying to distract myself by talking and not pass out. What's the sudden rush?"

Professor Ashain said nothing but Scorpius noticed his eyes darting fearfully to the right, the movement didn't go unnoticed by Calderon either. The assistant made a point of stopping to look in that direction, Scorpius found himself doing the same. To his horror, he saw someone out there in the distance.

Someone was watching them. Despite the distance, he could clearly make out a figure standing in the darkness. From the angle of its body, its hooded head had to be staring right at them. He couldn't make out much else from where he was - even with the two wands casting a light around him - but it was unnerving being all too aware of eyes boring into you. He shivered, this time not from the cold.

The figure raised its arm, it was holding a wand and for a horrific second Scorpius thought it would cast something at them even from that distance. Instead, the figure pointed it straight up into the sky and a burst of red light shot out into the starless night. It started to form into a shape, the crimson became a skeletal snake that wrapped its body into a seemingly random shape. The head stopped in the center and opened its fanged mouth, the forked tongue sticking out from it. It looked incredibly creepy and strangely familiar, Scorpius was sure he'd seen it before.

"Is that the Dark Mark, Professor?"

"No," Professor Ashain answered worriedly, "It's not… I don't know what that is but I don't think it's anything good which is why I think we should just get back to the train."

No sooner had the professor spoken, did the mark began to fade and in its place letters started forming. Oozing eerily like blood, as if the sky itself had been cut open. He couldn't tear his eyes away as it became into a sentence: Beware the coming of the son.

"What does that mean?"

"I… I have no idea."

"Stop gawking and get the hell back to the train," Calderon said, his tone commanding and calm. Scorpius looked at him once more surprised to see pain still written onto his face, his wounded wrist was clutched ever closer to chest but his shadowy eyes held determination, "Now!"

This seemed to snap Professor Ashain from his staring and they resumed the journey, Scorpius followed but glanced back at the hill once more. The figure was gone and while the letters faded, they remained livid in Scorpius' mind.

They continued heading back to the train, the progress seemed painfully slow but then any length of time they remained out there seemed too long for Scorpius. As they got close enough he noticed the train driver standing in the exit. He was staring transfixed at the fading message, too transfixed to even notice Professor Ashain's calling for assistance with Calderon. It did make Scorpius wonder how many students had seen it too, he had no doubt at least some at been looking out of the window. They may not realize they'd nearly died but they would at least realize that something had happened.

Finally, they were back inside the warmth and relative safety of the train. The Driver didn't hesitate to get them moving again while the professor headed back into the main train to bring Calderon back to their compartment. Scorpius just followed in their wake, flooded with relief when they made it back and he slid open the door for the adults.

It was only after Professor Ashain had taken Calderon inside that he noticed a student standing in the corridor, watching them. He had untidy black hair and emerald eyes, Scorpius thought he'd seen him at the station but now the boy wore his robes and was watching them worriedly.

"What happened? Why did we stop? Why is that man hurt?" the boy asked him as walked over.

"Don't worry about it, kid," Scorpius said with a forced smile, he didn't want to start a panic, "Just get back to your compartment, we'll be arriving momentarily."

"You're the same age as I am, Malfoy," the boy pointed out with a scowl and Scorpius shivered, partly from the residual cold from outside and partly because the boy said his name like an insult, "So don't talk to me like I'm stupid."

"I'm sorry."

"You should be."

"Why are you being mean to me?" Scorpius asked, feeling slightly hurt. He had no idea what he'd done to deserve such a harsh tone and he really wasn't in the mood after the night's events. It must have showed on his face because the boy's anger drained away.

Professor Ashain stepped back out as the boy opened his mouth to reply, Scorpius took the opportunity to slip back into the safety of the compartment. He sighed heavily and slumped onto his seat, tiredness swamped him. He realized he wanted nothing more than to curl into his nice warm, safe bed at home and sleep for a long time.

He pushed it aside, the night was far from over and he was determined to make sure Calderon was alright. He looked across at the assistant, Professor Ashain had laid him down on the other seat although had bent his legs slightly. While skinny, Calderon was fairly tall and longer than the seat. In the better light once more, Scorpius got a better look at him and winced at the number of cuts visible through the rips in his clothing or the fresh bruising showing through. He just hadn't noticed them in the dark, once more Scorpius kicked himself for not knowing anything about healing to ease the assistant's injuries.

Calderon's eyes were closed and Scorpius noticed him shivering. There was something he could do about that, he picked up Professor Ashain's travel pillow and gently placed it under Calderon's head. Next he grabbed the blanket and pulled it over the assistant, attempting to tuck him in slightly the way his mother had used to when he was younger. He saw a flicker of a smile on Calderon's face as he did this.

"You may want to be less loyal, Scor," Calderon commented sleepily without opening his eyes, "Loyalty is not very Slytherin, – if you still want that house - loyalty… loyalty is very Hufflepuffy."

"What do you know about the Houses?"

"I'm the one who calls out the names of the… the First Years, got pretty good at guessing who gets into what house. That and I've talked to the hat lots of… lots of times before, we've had quite animated discussions… Oh no, I haven't given the hat a nickname. Why… Why haven't I ever done that? Actually you wouldn't make… make a bad Hufflepuff."

"Me? A Hufflepuff," Scorpius smiled at the odd thought and shook his head.

"Already mentioned your loyalty. You have a… a good sense of right and wrong, they're all for… for fair-play. You jumped right into helping out tonight as… as a messenger, that's hard… hard-work for you. Guess you suck at patience though."

"I don't think it matters, after everything that's happened tonight… It seems kinda stupid," Scorpius said worriedly and Calderon's eyes flickered slightly, "Do you think the guy on the hill is the one who tried to kill us?"

"I don't know," Calderon whispered, "Try not to worry about it, it's for… for the grown-ups to… to deal with it."

"How can I not? Everyone on this train could've died, would've died. We'd all be dead if not for you, Professor Ashain said he couldn't have done what you did. The guy is still out there, assuming he did it and even if he didn't, that symbol was kind of ominous and that message and-"

"You're eleven years old, Scor, you haven't… haven't even stepped foot in Hogwarts yet. Worrying will do you no good, you can't do anything about… about it so just leave it to the professionals. It'll be…" Calderon interrupted before trailing off weakly and flinching.

"Are you okay?"

"Still in agony," Calderon answered reaching out his good arm and clenching his fist, the lights at the wands Scorpius was still holding immediately went out, "Being flung off a train is really… really painful and I… I wouldn't recommend..."

"Calderon?"

Scorpius swallowed anxiously as he noticed the assistant's hand going limp and the lines of pain on his face smoothed out. Calderon's chest continued to rise and fall gently indicating he was still alive at least, it didn't stop Scorpius from worrying though. He reached out to touch Calderon's hand, meaning to put it back under the blanket but flinched at the coldness of the assistant's skin. No wonder he's shivering, Scorpius thought, frowning as he gripped Calderon's hand in both of his for a moment to try warm him up before putting it back under the blanket.

"Okay, seems we have finally arrived," Professor Ashain announced as he came back into the compartment and sat down beside Scorpius, "Safe and sound and alive. At least keeping everyone that way is no longer my problem."

"What about Calderon? He's still hurt."

"He'll be fine, they have a Hospital Wing here. They'll know what to do for him."

"Is there anything you can do for him now? He passed out and he's so cold."

"He just needs rest, Scorpius," the professor sighed taking up his wand and waving it at Calderon, a small pulse of light shot out, "And that should warm him up a bit."

"Okay," Scorpius nodded, letting out a relieved breath.

"And... well done tonight, by the way. You did good."

"I didn't really do anything, it was you and Calderon."

"You made a good messenger," Professor Ashain offered with a slight smile, "Seriously if on my first time to Hogwarts, I'd heard the train was going to crash then probably the last thing I would've done was follow Calderon up that ladder. You didn't panic or run screaming as many would have - especially First Years – and then going to search for Calderon... It was the right thing to do, considering what we saw… I'm glad we didn't leave him, despite the risk."

"Sometimes you have to take a risk."

"Unfortunately yes, although my luck has never been good with such things. Now come on, you best be getting changed into your robes. Fast. We really shouldn't be sitting here talking!"

"Can't I stay with Calderon? I want to make sure he's alright," Scorpius asked worriedly but the professor just shook his head as he stood

"No, you have to go and sorted into a house and... normal Hogwarts stuff."

"But Calderon-"

"He's not going to get better any faster with you watching him, you can't miss your own sorting!"

Guilty, Scorpius conceded the professor was right. They didn't put the sorting on hold and certainly not for something like that. It seemed stupid though, to just be going to get sorted like nothing had happened. He wanted answers, he wanted to be doing something useful. He sighed and left, keeping his head down and hurrying to the luggage compartment where his trunk was.

He was unusually focused on the ground but he still noticed the occasional odd looks from all the other students. Probably wondering why he wasn't in robes yet as they clambered to out of the train and onto the platform. He found his trunk quickly and hurriedly changed, rushing back out into the night air and realizing he didn't really know where he was supposed to go.

He looked around anxiously, the dwindling older students seemed to be heading off to one direction but no one his own age. Scorpius was getting worried before he noticed Professor Ashain talking to a huge man, he towered over the average-sized professor. He had a dark shaggy mane of hair and a large shaggy mane of beard to match, only with a streak of gray. Beyond them, he saw a variety of assorted children who looked his own age and were dressed in the unsorted uniform.

Scorpius approached them, spotting the emerald eyed boy with a red headed girl and both were seemingly trying to stand close enough to the adults to listen in without being caught. He also noticed Kyle's younger brother amongst them, looking bored and fidgeting.

"What's happening?" Scorpius asked of the professor as he got close enough and their eyes shot to him, the giant was even more intimidating when he glared at him but he ignored his sense over concern, "Is Calderon okay?"

"Calderon will be fine, stop worrying."

"Everyone kept saying my sister would be fine and she died," Scorpius said before he could stop himself, he kicked himself for mentioning her in public but it was the reason he despised the statement, "Sorry. I'm just worried."

"It's okay Scorpius," Professor Ashain offered gently and the use of his first name for a second time did not go unnoticed by him, "I promise you, he's being taken care of you. I was just filling in Professor Hagrid here, I should get going though."

"Aren't you coming with us?"

"No, but I'll see you back at the Great Hall. Professor Hagrid will take good care of you, good luck with the sorting."

Professor Ashain gave him another smile at this and patted the giant on the shoulder before he walked away. From the ominous way Professor Hagrid looked at him though, Scorpius wasn't convinced he was in good hands. What the man had in for his family, Scorpius wasn't sure. Although from the way his father spoke of the giant, he had had it in for Draco and from the way his grandfather spoke of the giant, he wasn't fit to be teaching.

Then again, Professor Ashain had mentioned an incident in his second year when he'd been picked on by Slytherins who hexed his legs to stick together. It had caused him to fall down two flights of stairs, still hexed he'd been unable to get up. The then Gamekeeper Hagrid had been the one who found him, got him to the Hospital Wing and even stayed with him while he was seen to because he was scared of being alone in there. The giant couldn't be all bad, despite the way he was glowering at Scorpius.

Professor Hagrid was walking before Scorpius had too much time to dwell on it though, he followed closely. The giant cheerily addressed the students once more, apologizing for the delay and leading them to a series of boats. Scorpius recalled hearing it mentioned that first years got to the castle by going over the Black Lake. He hadn't been on a boat before and he was slightly nervous due to the fact he'd only been swimming once, he hadn't enjoyed it much or been particularity good at it either.

He was the first one into the boat, Kyle's brother and a few others he didn't recognize joined him. He sighed inwardly, from the angry spark in the brother's blue eyes… Scorpius had a feeling it would be a long journey. It wasn't too bad though, Kyle's brother said nothing as they crossed the lake. He laid his eyes on Hogwarts castle for the first time, it was a beautiful sight.

"No teachers here to protect you now," a voice sneered.

Scorpius looked back, just fast enough to see Kyle's brother was the speaker. The brunette and a snickering boy beside him slammed themselves into their side of the boat, the movement caused the boat to rock violently. Unprepared, Scorpius felt himself thrown backwards into the icy water.

Part 3: Dying

Scorpius gasped as he was plunged into the cold water, nothing could've prepared him for the shock of it. The acrid water was so cold that it seemed to physically bite into him, it felt like every part of him had been stabbed with thousands of icicles that pierced him straight through his bones and remained in. He felt, quite literally, frozen to the core.

He tried to think and forced his freezing body into action, recalling what he remembered about swimming. Determinedly he began kicking his legs and clawing at the water with his arms, he did seem to be moving but didn't breech the surface. He didn't think he'd fallen in that deep.

He kicked his legs furiously harder and opened his eyes, the water stung at them but after a second he adapted. The Black Lake was an apt name. Even with his eyes open, Scorpius could see nothing but blackness surrounding him, engulfing him in every direction. He couldn't possibly have fallen that deep. He had fallen headfirst though, he realized, he'd probably just been swimming deeper the entire time. He stopped kicking and tried not to panic, which way to the surface?! Everything looked the same and his lungs picked that moment to scream for air.

Abruptly, something was grabbing him, strong solid but bony hands seemed to latch onto his wrist and pull. Scorpius felt himself being dragged further down into the darkness, he tried to yank his wrist away but the hand held on firmly. It dug sharp nails into his wrist painfully while another hand grabbed his leg.

He struggled against them, thrashing wildly but they refused let go and continued pulling him down. More hands seemed to grab at him, he felt them clawing at his body and trying to get a grip. Scorpius wanted to scream but couldn't, fighting ever harder against the hoard of hands but it was a losing battle. He did start to panic then. He needed to be free. He needed to breathe.

'Focus.'

Scorpius recalled Calderon's words in his mind and focused, panicking would do him no good. He stopped struggling and instead tried to scramble for his wand, it was hard. The stabbing cold was being replaced by numbness, which made it awkward for his fumbling fingers to retrieve the thin stick. He longed to take a deep breath, his lungs felt like they were burning but he couldn't. Instead he just focused on the assistant's words, trying not to think that if he failed then he would die. He would die, drowning in darkness.

'Focus. Wands only channel the power that is already inside you. Summon that power, let it flow through you and the wand. Then, just unleash it.'

It was hard to focus with everything happening. His lungs burned, the hands dug in their nails and tugged him downwards. Scorpius let it all wash over him, focusing on the power inside himself and letting it flow into his wand. Then, he unleashed it. Light exploded from his wand, like lightening shooting out. The creatures the hands belonged to screamed, letting go of him and fled.

He didn't have time to be relieved though, his lungs hurt too much. Instead he started trying to claw his way up to the surface, forcing his numb legs to kick. It was no use. He either seemed to be moving impossibly slowly or not at all, his strength seemed to be slipping away and it was getting harder to move. Finally he couldn't hold his breath anymore and water flooded into him, the darkness consumed him. Vaguely he felt something wrapping around his body, carrying him up but he couldn't stay awake enough to care.

Peter Snyder, Train Driver for the Hogwarts Express, was relieved to make it back to his bedroom. He closed the door and let out a relieved breath, leaning against it and shutting his eyes. Taking a moment to drink in the blissful peace, the night's events had shaken him deeply. He felt too old to be dealing with all that.

"Good evening, Peter," a voice greeted him.

Panicked, the driver spun around to see a man was sitting in the corner watching him with a grin. Peter didn't know the man's name but he had short sandy hair and a handsome face, he only looked around thirty. But there was something about the way his dark eyes watched Peter, something that unnerved him. Like a predator watching his prey. He was dressed in a black cloak and it didn't go unnoticed by Peter that his wand was out, the man lazily twirling it in his fingers. Peter shivered but relaxed slightly, more determined than ever that he was doing the right thing.

"I'm out," Peter said firmly, "I'm not helping you again."

"Oh Peter, that is disappointing," the man commented but didn't lose his smile, "I thought you loved your daughter more than this."

"I do love her! But maybe some Azkaban would be good for her. I mean she hexed a muggle for cheating on her, it's not like she killed the guy. She shouldn't be in prison for too long and with the Dementors no longer used, it's not even as bad there now."

"With my master's aid, she needn't go to Azkaban at all."

"You said all you wanted to do was test something!" Peter bust out furiously, "Not try to kill us all! You said no one would get hurt, I only agreed to this if no one was to get hurt and you lied to me!"

"No one died, just as I promised."

"You destroyed a freakin' viaduct! If Calderon-"

"Ifs are for idiots," the man interrupted calmly, "Calderon was there and the problem was dealt with."

"You can't possibly have known he was going to do that! What if he hadn't?! I would be dead, all those poor kids would be dead!"

"My master never doubted that… Calderon, as you call him, would think of something to save them. I never considered the possibility of his failure either, killing the next generation of magic was not the purpose of the exercise. Like I say, it was a test."

"What test?! And what was with that creepy symbol and message in the sky?!"

"That's for my master to know and you to not," the man stated as his smile faded, he looked almost regretful, "Are you sure you aren't going to further aid my master?"

"I'm sure," Peter said steadfast, "I want nothing more to do with you or your master. Whatever you're doing, I don't think it's good and I don't want to be a part of it."

"A shame, Peter. My master thought you might say that, I've been told to inform you that my master regrets this. You could've had everything," the man told him as his expression turned dark, "I, on the other hand, believe you to be despicable. Rejecting my master's kindness and aid like that... I do not regret this. Imperio!"

Peter wanted to scream as the burst of magic hit him, he couldn't though and he felt a surprising sense of warmth wash over him. It was the strangest sensation, he was aware of his feet walking to his desk and his body sitting down but he wasn't the one moving it. His hands reached out, one pulling a clean sheet of paper before him and the other dipping his quill in the ink pot. His hand started to write.

"Oh, by the way I almost forgot," the man said, laughing at his forgetfulness as Peter's hand continued writing, "Who was that boy? You know, the one with the new professor and Calderon? Helped him inside? That was one thing my master hadn't planned on, it would've been preferable for Calderon to remain."

"Malfoy," Peter answered, finding his mouth was still his, "Scorpius Malfoy, he was in the staff compartment with them and kinda got sucked up into events. What are you-"

"Going to do to you?" the man finished his sentence for him and his grin returned, only this time with a sadistic twist, "Oh, I'm not going to do anything. You are. Why don't you read what you've written?"

With an increasing feeling of horror, Peter was allowed to look at the paper as his hand signed it with his own signature. He tried to scream 'no' but his mouth no longer worked, he was only capable of moving his eyes. Tears leaked from them as his body stood, retrieving a length of rope he kept in his room spare for the boats and began tying it.

He met the man's eyes pleadingly, wishing his mouth could speak so he could beg for his life. He didn't want to die. The man had to see his crying, had to see his desperation. If Peter could speak then he would scream his allegiance over and over, anything to not die.

"Oh and unlike you, my master does not break promises. Your daughter won't go to Azkaban prison," the man stated as Peter's body stepped up onto the desk chair and hung the noose from the rafters, "However, something tells me she won't be able to live knowing her father killed himself."

Peter tried to fight against the magic controlling him, he tried to throw it off. He had to protect his daughter, he felt like his mind was thrashing about against it but his body didn't even flinch. Instead his own body hung itself against its owner's will, Peter tried to scream in frustration before his body kicked the chair out from under him. The man laughed. It was the last sound Peter Snyder ever heard as he died.

All at once, Scorpius felt himself being slammed onto solid ground, he felt his chest being squeezed painfully. Water spurted out of his mouth, he fell to his knees spluttering out water and gasping for air. Air. Beautiful, breathable air. Scorpius gulped it down in relief, for a moment just breathing and letting the oxygen flood back to his brain and body.

The wind whipped his back and he shuddered at the cold once more, glancing around he realized he seemed to be on solid ground. The shore of the lake. He turned his aching body around and sat on the pebbles, blinking in surprise at what he saw. It was a squid - a giant squid - just bobbing near the shore. Its long tentacles waved around him but it didn't seem to be attacking him. In fact, considering what he remembered before passing out, he wondered if it had saved his life.

Cautiously, Scorpius got to his feet. His legs wobbled treacherously but he succeeded in standing and slowly moved closer to the creature, halting abruptly when it swung one of its massive tentacles before him. The end was curled up and as it uncurled, a stick was dropped. Scorpius caught it easily without hesitation and realized it was his wand. The squid had saved him, it had to have and had saved his wand too.

"Thank you."

Scorpius voice sounded quiet to his ears but he meant it nonetheless, even though he doubted the creature could understand him. It had saved his life when a bunch of people in boats around him hadn't, they probably hadn't even tried to help him. No one ever did. The giant squid stretched out its tentacle and brushed his cheek gently. He smiled weakly and stroked the tentacle, not quite sure how you showed gratitude or affection for a squid. It made a noise that Scorpius couldn't quite describe but it didn't sound malevolent before it slowly retreated back into the water, vanishing from sight. He waved as it went, until even the ripples of water it left behind had faded away.

He was alone.

Scorpius gazed across the water. The castle continued to stand tall and proud, magnificently illuminated against the empty sky. He saw the boats, the lanterns on each almost like stars in the darkness. Stars that continued on towards their destination, leaving him forgotten in the darkness.

The stars blurred and he realized there were tears in his eyes, angrily he wiped them away. He didn't care he was being abandoned, he didn't! He could just find his own way back, he was neither stupid nor a coward. However, it would have been nice for Hagrid to come back for him. He was soaked through his skin and freezing. He just wanted the night to be over already.

Turning away from the lake, he sighed and started walking along the shore. He was trying to get the lay of the land so it'd be easier to find his bearings in the dark. It wasn't an ideal situation, even without the added threat of who - or what - could be lurking in the woods. He decided it would be wiser to keep his wand out and at the ready, he may not know any spells yet but whatever he had done seemed to be working for now. It was better than nothing.

As he was looking however, he caught sight of a shape in the trees and curiously moved towards it. It looked white, maybe some kind of stone? He didn't know much about rocks either but as he got closer, it did become obvious it was not naturally occurring. It was a solid block that looked about the length of a man... it was a tomb, Scorpius realized in horror, it was the tomb of Albus Dumbledore.

Scorpius swallowed nervously, no one in his family liked talking about the former headmaster but he had heard it said his father had once almost killed the man. He just stared at the tomb for a while. It seemed so alone, so desolate. Dumbledore had supposedly been a great wizard, he'd defeated one of the greatest dark wizards of the age and been feared by the other, made several important discoveries and been a beloved headmaster by many of his students. Yet here he lay, in a deserted tomb in the darkness.

"I know you don't know me although I know you knew my parents, my grandparents... maybe even my great-grandparents… I'm not quite sure how old you were but I know it was a fair old age," Scorpius said awkwardly, feeling compelled to say something to the lonely tomb, "My name is Scorpius, Scorpius Malfoy. Yeah shudder, a Malfoy, guess that makes me evil or something? It would have been interesting to meet you all the same, instead of just talking to your tomb. I'm not quite sure why I am, I guess I just feel bad for you being here all alone. I know how hard it is to be all alone and I don't think you really deserve that, even though I guess you're not alive and it doesn't matter but... yeah. And I'd like to apologize, on behalf of my family. I feel like I should sometimes."

Scorpius nodded and sighed once more, retrieving some kind of flower growing beside a tree. He hoped it wasn't poisonous as he moved over and placed it on Dumbledore's tomb. That was what people did, put flowers on people's graves. It was odd but no more odd than talking to one, maybe it was to show that you still cared even though they were gone. They may be gone but they were not forgotten. Whatever the reason it felt like the right thing to do.

"Oh and if you... if you ever see my sister on the other side, tell her that her big brother says hi. People seem to think just because she wasn't alive very long, that she didn't matter but she did. Tell her we love her and I hope she's having a better time of things than I am," Scorpius added sadly, "Maybe our family is cursed, Lyra, that's why the innocent must suffer for the crimes of our relatives. It cost you your life already and fate seems determined to take mine, maybe I'll see you both sooner than I thought. Goodbye for now though, take care."

He felt stupid saying it but it made him feel slightly less alone, considering he'd just been left there to die. He started to walk away but stopped abruptly, he felt a chill down his spine and instinctively he turned back. There was a shadowy figure hovering over to Dumbledore's tomb from the opposite side to Scorpius. Quite literally, it was a shadow but shaped like a person and standing.

He staggered back against a tree and held up his wand protectively. The shadow didn't seem interested in him though, it ran its shadowy hand-shaped limps over the tomb. Scorpius had no idea what it was or what he should do, what was it even doing? He had no idea. And then it looked at him, it turned its head and he met the only part of it that resembled a face. Eyes. Pitch black holes where people had eyes. He didn't know what it was or what it wanted but staring into the eyes... it felt wrong, bad. It wasn't a good thing.

At first he thought it would do something but instead it just turned back to the tomb and stepped into it, seeping through the stone like it was a ghost and vanishing from sight. Scorpius turned and started to run. He'd go a different way into the forest or the shore, a different way to the shadow.

He wasn't paying attention to where he was going however and ran straight into something, he fell backwards onto the pebbled shore and winced at the aggravated bruises. He was focusing his magic even before he raised his wand, ready to fight the shadow in a heartbeat. As he looked up however, he saw it wasn't a shadow at all. It was Hagrid.

Part 4: Sorted

"Are yer alrigh' there, Malfoy?" Hagrid asked, sounding surprisingly worried.

Scorpius nodded and tried not to wince as he got to his feet, falling had reminded him that the first hand had cut his wrist quite painfully with its nails. He was used to that wrist being in pain though, made it easier to ignore.

He got to his feet quickly and glanced back at the tree line, wand raised in preparation. He tried to place himself protectively between himself and the giant, since Hagrid didn't seem to have a wand. Hagrid may be an imposing figure but if the shadow could go through solid stone, he had a feeling a physical person wouldn't be a problem. With any luck, magic might help though. He could at least try to protect Hagrid and himself.

"Wha' are yer doing? There's nothin' there."

"There was a shadow," Scorpius answered before he could realize how stupid it sounded.

"Lots o' shadows out 'ere in the dark."

"Look, I know it sounds weird but there was this… this thing, it stepped into Dumbledore's tomb-"

"Wha' right 'ave you to go to Albus Dumbledore's tomb?!" the giant interrupted furiously and Scorpius glanced at him once more.

"I'm sorry," Scorpius apologized awkwardly, not quite sure what he'd done wrong, "I felt like I should pay my respects, I just noticed it when I was trying to figure out a way back to the castle."

"Tryin' to get… did yer really think I'd jus' leave yer out 'ere all by yerself?"

"Well yeah…"

Scorpius trailed off, nervous of offending the giant again. He would be attending Hogwarts for seven years – assuming he ever actually got to set foot in the place – and he would have to have contact and lessons with Hagrid at some point. The giant may have it in for his family but Scorpius hoped they could at least be civil to one another. He lowered his wand tentatively and shivered as a gust of wind brushed his face with its icy hand, it reanimated Hagrid.

"Blimey, yer must be freezin' out 'ere!"

At these words, the giant removed his huge leather coat and draped it over Scorpius' shoulders. Scorpius literally felt his body sag at the weight of the thing, he also thought he felt something squirm but it was warm at least. Hagrid put an arm around him tentatively and started leading them over to the boat he'd returned on, he must have dropped the other students in his boat off first because it was empty now.

"Any chance we could… not go by boat?"

"Nah, bu' don' worry. I'll make sure yer don' fall in again."

Scorpius wondered if Hagrid realized he hadn't fallen in by accident but by Kyle's brother's design, however he didn't think Hagrid would believe him so he pushed it out of his mind. He sighed as he clambered into the tiny boat, gripping the sides as the giant too climbed in and the whole thing rocked. He let out a relieved breath when Hagrid was seated and the rocking ceased, he kept one hand on the side. He held his wand up in the other, keeping it pointed at the shore as the boat magically started moving out.

"Them shadows really ain' gonna ge' yer, y'know? All the years I've been at Hogwarts an' not once 'ave shadows attacked… What 'appened to yer wrist?!"

"I err…" Scorpius stuttered in panic before realizing Hagrid just meant the fresh marks from the hands in the lake, "Somethings attacked me in the lake, I fought them off before I… drowned and then the giant squid brought me here. It's just a few scratches and bruises, it's nothing."

"Still it ain' good," Hagrid muttered looking worried, "Will 'ave to get yer checked out before we get yer back to the Great Hall."

"Please, I'll be fine. I don't want to make a fuss."

"Don' wan' t' make a fuss? Are yer sure yer Draco Malfoy's son?" the giant said with a slight chuckle as he shook his head, the joke was lost on Scorpius however, "Wait, how'd yer fight off them creatures?"

"Something Calderon taught me on the train… that's twice he saved my life tonight. I hope he'll be okay."

"He will be, yer can see fer yerself when I take yer to Madam Pomfrey. He is actually tougher than he looks, yer should've seen 'im when he firs' got 'ere."

"Why?"

"He was all banged up when he got 'ere, looked like he'd been in a fight. Or two. Or three. An' he was so thin, skeletal he was. You'd 'ave though' he'd never eaten before! He came with the clothes on his back, if yer can call 'em that, was little more than filthy rags. Dunno where he was before but he looked like he'd been through hell. Yer wouldn' recognize him, yer wouldn'."

"Really?" Scorpius wondered scowling, Calderon hadn't mentioned any of that. Then again, he'd only known him for all of one day.

"Aye," Hagrid nodded, "He's come a long way, he has. When he firs' got here he was terrified and amazed by near everything he saw, jumped at his own shadow an' barely spoke two words t' anyone. Had no control o' his magic neither, or not much anyway. Magic jus' happened 'round him, specially when he was emotional. Well it still does bu' by his choice. Mostly. He's an odd one, he is, bu' I like him well enough. He's a good man. An' the only one o' the staff who shares me love fer dragons an' the like."

He wrapped Hagrid's coat closer round himself against the cold and fell silent, once more worrying for the assistant's life. His eyes never strayed from the shore though, still watchful for the shadow. He was beginning to wonder whether he had just imagined the whole thing though.

Scorpius was infinitely pleased that the return journey was much more pleasant - not almost drowning helped a great deal - although he didn't really feel safe until his feet touched solid ground. Hagrid tied up the boat and led him into the castle, as his shoes took their first step onto the stone he smiled and paused. He had actually made it to Hogwarts, for everyone else it may be run of the mill and fairly boring but after everything that had happened that day... It felt like an achievement to him.

"Yip Yip hooray," Scorpius mused and couldn't stop himself from laughing. It had been so long since he'd laughed, the sound was alien and just made him laugh harder.

"Are yer alright, Malfoy?"

"Just surprised I actually made it here after everything," Scorpius answered as his mirth died in an instant, he was too tired to be humiliated that Hagrid had seen his display but he still got better control of himself.

To his annoyance though, Hagrid insisted on taking him to the nurse. No matter how much he protested against it, the giant was determined so to the Hospital Wing he was taken. He did feel humiliated by that, no one else had had to go there first and no other First Years and almost drowned. As he followed Hagrid into the Hospital Wing though, his spirits soared as there was Calderon lying in the far bed.

"Calderon!"

Hagrid's coat made it difficult to run but he gave it his best shot as he bolted for Calderon, the assistant didn't react though. As he reached the bed it did become apparent Calderon was still unconscious, his eyes didn't even flicker and Scorpius' heart sank. At least he noticed that the cut on Calderon's forehead was stitched and his wrist was bandaged, it was good that he was being treated.

"What do we have here?" a stern-sounding woman demanded, coming over to him. Scorpius didn't turn his head away from Calderon while Hagrid explained what had happened.

Scorpius found himself directed to the bed opposite Calderon, he handed Hagrid back his coat and thanked him for its use. The giant blinked as if surprised by this but Scorpius didn't care, lying on the bed reminded him that if he closed his eyes he could easily sleep. If only he didn't have to get a house first. He decided to focus on that while the nurse flitted around his injuries, she used some spell to warm him and his clothes up first though. She bandaged his wrist, he was afraid she'd say something about the scar around it but thankfully she didn't. She then used magic on the less severe cuts and bruises to heal them, or at least to dull the pain comfortably.

"Will Calderon be alright?" he asked while she was tending to him.

"Yes, he just needs rest. If you want I'll pass on to him that you were concerned. When he wakes up of course."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure!" the nurse - Madam Pomfrey - snapped, "I've been doing this a long time. In fact I'm way overdue for retirement, curse Calderon and his 'just one more year' speech. If one more year ever ended he'd be looking for a whole new staff!"

Scorpius nodded and just fell silent while she finished, Hagrid just stood by his side watching silently with a curious expression. She was done fairly quickly but he had a feeling she'd been rushing it on purpose, after all he was still missing his own Sorting. He did hope they hadn't gotten to his name yet, he wasn't sure how long it took though so it was hard to guess how many were done.

When she was finished he also thanked her, she looked as surprised as Hagrid had. Hasn't anyone at Hogwarts heard manners before? He wondered before bitterly wondering if it was because he was a Malfoy, for a school who prized itself on tolerance it was hypocritical they judge him for being a Malfoy. He said nothing on the subject though and just followed Hagrid once more, this time he let his attention drift to his surroundings. They passed ghosts and more portraits than he'd expected, they whispered to themselves and he had a feeling it was about him.

And finally – finally - they were at the great hall. Hagrid pushed open the double doors and Scorpius was inside the famous room, the sky did indeed look the sky outside except in this case it was more beautiful than the current vacuum of blackness. He gazed up at it, drinking it in along with the thousands of floating candles before lowering his gaze at the four tables aligned vertical to him. Lined both sides with students of the four houses, he vaguely recognized the different colors for each house.

Hagrid had stepped to one side and he could see straight ahead, the smaller horizontal table that had to have the teachers seated at it. In front of him, directly in front of him across the hall was a hat sitting on a stool. There were no other First Year students standing in the gap, he also saw the feast had already begun. They'd already finished the Sorting and started the feast without him. For a second he wasn't sure what would happen, did that mean he couldn't go to Hogwarts after all?

"SCORPIUS HYPERION MALFOY!"

A voice yelled his full name and suddenly all eyes were on him, every head in the great hall swiveled in his direction. He froze momentarily. His legs begged him to turn around run away from their stares but he took a deep breath, clenching his fists determinedly. Bravely he stepped forward, keeping his eyes on the hat and strode up the great length of the room. He could still feel the weight of a thousand different pairs of eyes resting on his shoulders as he walked. He didn't dare flinch or back down.

Scorpius reached the dais and looked up at the assorted teachers, recognizing no one but Professor Ashain who looked relieved to see him and waved. He smiled but didn't dare wave back, his eyes found the man directly in front of him instead. The Headmaster, Philip Jareth Kenyon Varanian. He was a tall man, his wavy gray hair was short as was his closely cropped beard and mustache. His silvery eyes bored piercingly into Scorpius, they looked dangerous and radiated power. He dared not blink or shy away from him either.

"You're late," the headmaster said simply, his tone disapproving but his face was an unreadable mask, "Give me a reason why you should even be allowed to be Sorted?"

"Sorry 'bout tha', sir," Hagrid apologized and Scorpius realized the giant was at his shoulder, "Got a bi' lost in the lake, I take full responsibility. It's no' his fault."

Scorpius was so shocked by Hagrid defending him that he glanced at the giant, Hagrid put a hand on his shoulder but didn't look away from the headmaster. Varanian leaned back, his eyes flickered between them.

"So, you're saying that I should fire you for your failure to protect a student, instead of expelling the boy?"

"Y-Yes," Hagrid wavered looking afraid, Scorpius couldn't believe it.

"And you still claim responsibility?"

"Don't you think you're being completely unfair?!" Professor Ashain burst out looking horrified as did several of the other teachers but Varanian didn't flinch.

"Silence, Ashain," Varanian commanded without looking at him, the professor opened and closed his mouth a few times but seemed afraid to speak up, "I was speaking to Professor Hagrid here. So do you still claim responsibility for this gross breach of protection, or not?"

"Yeah, I wasn' payin' 'nough attention."

"So be it. Hagrid, you're-"

"Hey!" Scorpius snapped venomously, stepping forward and Varanian's eyes shifted back to him, "It was my fault, not his. Hagrid did everything he could! And don't you think there are worse breaches of protection to worry about than a stupid accident in the lake? Like what happened on the train?"

"Silence. I've heard enough," Varanian commanded once more, standing and walking around the table to come to stand behind the stool. He picked up the hat, "Well take a seat, why don't you?"

Scorpius swallowed but gave no other hint of his anxiety as he slowly climbed the three steps to the stool, he sat down and Varanian dropped the hat onto his head. He felt the headmaster's bony hands on his shoulders. He gazed at all the faces still watching him, wondering how much they'd heard.

He recognized Kyle and his friends at the Slytherin table glaring at him, he also saw Kyle's brother had been placed into the same house. That morning he'd wanted to be in Slytherin, expected to be as all Malfoys were. In that moment though, he found himself hoping against it and not just because of the bullies. He didn't want to be like all other Malfoys. He didn't want to be defined by his family.

"That's a brave attitude," a voice spoke and it took a second for Scorpius to realize that it was the hat itself, "But don't fret, you're not a Slytherin. I'm not sure what you are actually, you're smart yes but I feel you're not a Ravenclaw."

"Hufflepuff then," Scorpius whispered, actually feeling relieved. Calderon had said it earlier and he had come to realize the assistant was probably right, it was a good fit for him. He just hoped there wasn't too many mudbloods in it.

"You do have quite a few Hufflepuff traits," the hat conceded, "Lacking in some others though, are we not?"

"I'm working on being tolerant, now please hurry up and say Hufflepuff," Scorpius pleaded feeling the headmaster's grip on his shoulder's tightening, were teacher's usually that close? Could Varanian hear this?

"Not very patient either, are you?"

"It's the only house left," Scorpius pointed out and heard the hat chuckle, he scowled in confusion, "Calderon said I wouldn't make a bad Hufflepuff."

"Oh, Calderon said that, did he?" the hat commented in a change of tone and Scorpius started to nod before realizing how stupid it was with the hat on his head. It seemed to get the message nonetheless, "Well in that case, it better be: GRYFFINDOR!"

"What?!" Scorpius said in a strangled panicked yelp, "You said the wrong house! I can't be a Gryffindor! I'm not a Gryffindor! I'm not even brave! Pick again!"

"GRYFFINDOR! GRYFFINDOR! GRYFFINDOR! GRYFF-IN-DOR!"

The hat yelled again, screaming repeatedly and so loud it made Scorpius' ears hurt. He felt the hat tugged off his head and he was shoved in the direction of the Gryffindor table by Varanian's hands. Awkwardly he traipsed toward the table, he hadn't even considered Gryffindor because it was so impossible. As he got nearer, he realized only one person was clapping. Molly Weasley. He picked her out easily and for some reason his stomach did a somersault. What is wrong with me?! he wondered. A few more people clapped as he got closer, some halfheartedly, some more genuine. He took his seat nervously, some were glaring at him.

"Are you still standing there, Hagrid? Sit down," Varanian barked dismissively to Hagrid as he threw the Sorting Hat into the air, it vanished in an almost explosion of lights that shot in all directions. Varanian raised his arms and voice simultaneously, "Let the feast resume!"

Part 5: Nightmare

As the hall once more was flooded with conversation and the sounds of people eating, Scorpius cringed. He wrinkled his nose at the repulsive delightful aroma of the food on the Gryffindor table, the last thing he felt like doing was eating.

He wanted to wake up. This was a nightmare. It had to be. It made sense when he thought about it. The train. The lake. The shadow. It was all as unbelievable as being sorted into Gryffindor. He was so nervous about going to Hogwarts that his cruel mind had trapped him in this intensely realistic nightmare. It was the only explanation that made sense.

Scorpius pinched himself. He didn't wake up. It couldn't be real, he told himself firmly and suddenly feeling like screaming in frustration. Gryffindors were show-offs, arrogant jerks who were full of themselves. How could the hat possibly think he was like that? It was wrong. He didn't want to be there, he'd had enough for one night. He had well and truly had enough. He wanted to wake up now.

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" a voice asked and he flicked his eyes to the boy opposite him, the emerald-eyed boy.

"I'm not hungry."

Scorpius shrugged it off and glanced back to the towards the teacher's table. Professor Hagrid had taken his seat, he seemed to be in conversation with Professor Ashain and an elderly woman that Scorpius didn't know the name of. When he looked back to Varanian however, Scorpius was shocked to see the man was now beardless and his hair was now longer. And auburn.

"What happened to Varanian? He was gray a minute ago," Scorpius questioned of no one in particular.

"He's a metamorphmagi, clearly," a girl answered testily.

"I don't like him," Scorpius pointed out darkly as the headmaster met his gaze once more. Varanian's eyes remained cold, hard and unforgiving.

"Why didn't you tell him that it wasn't your fault that you fell in?" a new voice spoke up and he looked back to the table seeing it was the boy beside him, he had a tangled mane of hair and dazzling hazel eyes, "I saw the others in the boat with you deliberately rock it so that you'd fall in."

"It would have sounded like a lie if I said it."

"But it was the truth," the boy offered but Scorpius just said nothing and took to staring at the empty plate before him, "Why don't you eat something? You look thin enough as it is, no need to starve."

"I'd rather starve than eat food from Gryffindor," Scorpius muttered bitterly looking at his battered white-blond self in the reflection.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"You should eat. Here, have mine."

Before Scorpius could stop him, the boy had switched plates with him with a smile. A half-eaten plate stacked with food was shoved in front of him, Scorpius opened his mouth to reply and kindly reject the food but the girl spoke again.

"Oh just let him to starve if that's what he wants," she said and Scorpius saw it was the red-headed girl that he'd seen around the emerald-eyed boy before. She looked like a Weasley.

"It's not what I want," the boy pointed out determinedly, his smile gone as he started piling more food onto the empty plate, "It's not right to stuff your face when folk around you are going without. Come on, Malfoy, it'd be good for you to get some nice warm grub. That water had to have been freezing."

Scorpius looked disgustedly at the food in front of him then back to the boy, who was watching him anxiously and waiting for him to eat. He seemed determined to stick by his principles of not eating while Scorpius didn't, the boy himself looked unnaturally small, thin and hungry. He sighed in defeat, he didn't really want the boy to starve on his account. He picked at a chunk of meat with his fork and forced it into his mouth, it was delicious but it could have been rubber for all he cared. The boy seemed content with this and dived back into his newly filled plate.

"I'm Michael by the way," the boy added almost as an afterthought as he paused in his consumption, "Michael Sanford, nice to meet you."

"I'm Scorpius."

"Everyone knows," the Weasley pointed out, glaring at him still, "We all heard your name being called."

"Don't need to hear your name to guess that you're a Weasley?"

"Rose Weasley. You have a problem that, Malfoy?"

"No. Do you?" Scorpius retorted trying not to let her attitude get to him but he really wasn't in the mood. This seemed to shut her up however, she didn't seem to know how to react to that.

"And I'm Albus Potter," the emerald-eyed spoke up. That did explain a lot, Scorpius realized before Potter leaned forwards and dropped his voice, "So what happened on the train? We saw that symbol and that message in the sky."

"Why do you think that I'd know?" Scorpius whispered back scowling, both Rose and Michael leaned in to listen.

"Because you were with the teachers."

"Why do you want to know then?"

"They just told us there were some technical difficulties," Michael explained, "And that the staff dealt with it, some prankster made the symbol. Not very informative like, curiosity may have killed the cat but its torturing the rest of us."

"Well that's what happened. There were problems but Calderon saved us, Professor Ashain helped."

"Saved us?" Rose repeated raising an eyebrow. Scorpius could've kicked himself.

"That doesn't sound like a prank, the message-"

"Look, I really don't know anything. I just happened to be there with the staff and they don't know what happened either. They don't know what the message or symbol meant or who cast it, neither do I. It's over, just let it go," Scorpius interrupted and busied himself with eating so they couldn't ask anymore.

It worked, they didn't ask any more questions even though they didn't seem satisfied but Scorpius really didn't know that much more than them. Except for how they'd almost died and it seemed pointless to divulge it and worry them, especially to two of the people he'd been warned against meeting. He really wanted to wake up.

He was hungrier than he'd realized and finished his whole plate easily, Michael grinned at this and once more switched their plates. He was careful after that to eat slower in case he got a third course, he rested his head on one hand and picked at the food miserably.

The conversation turned to the other First Years talking a bit about themselves and for the older years, what they did over the summer. His attention dwindled at that point, he only half listened to those around him talking enthusiastically about what subjects they'd be learning. He felt apart from it all. The feeling of detachment had followed him from home. Dream or not, he felt more alone than ever surrounded by all those students. He supposed it didn't help that he didn't want to be there but then again, he still felt it at home. No matter how badly he wanted to feel connected to his family again. What has my life become?

Scorpius' eyes wandered back to the teacher's table, he was too far away to make out what they were saying but the expression on almost every face was anxious. He had a feeling they were talking about what happened on the train, he had told his new classmates to dismiss it but the teachers were fools if they ignored it. He didn't know much but he knew it wasn't a prank, Professor Ashain had said as much.

He also kept an eye on Varanian, the headmaster didn't look worried and Scorpius wondered if his face was even capable of showing emotion. He did notice Varanian picked at his food the same way that he was doing, possibly a sign of anxiety? Abruptly, Varanian looked at him once more. Startled, Scorpius immediately turned back to his own table but he still felt the headmaster's eyes boring into the back of his head for a long time.

He skipped dessert. Instead opting to continue picking at his food, which negated him from having his plate switched with Michael. He was content with what he had, he didn't want dessert. Really he just wanted the feast to be over. And to wake up.

It seemed to take an eternity before it did finally end, the prefects were told to lead the students to their common rooms. Scorpius just followed silently, trying to memorize the route as he walked to Gryffindor Tower. It wasn't something he thought he'd ever have to do. They finally came to a painting of... a slightly overweight woman, Scorpius amended politely. The prefect explained they needed a password to get in and should do well to remember 'Dumbledore' as that was the current password.

Scorpius tried not to look at the common room much, it was the Gryffindor Common Room after all. He felt like he was enemy territory, he didn't belong there. He followed quickly to the dormitory that he would have to share with other first year boys, their things had already been brought up and he was pleased to see his bed was right beside the window. He was not so pleased to see that Albus Potter would have one of the beds either side of him, Albus on the right and Michael on the left. At least there's quite a fair gap between beds, Scorpius thought and was also relaxed seeing each bed had drapes to give them some privacy.

He went straight over to his bed and greeted his recently acquired white horned owl, Scorpius had been allowed to pick the owl himself although he hadn't thought of a name yet. It was comforting to see something familiar, Scorpius smiled when he saw him and wished the owl wasn't caged.

Almost as if on command, nameless-owl's cage door flew open, Scorpius jumped in shock as the owl flew out and straight towards him. It squawked almost in greeting and landed on his outstretched arm, the other boys gasped in amazement. Even Albus Potter. They gathered round him as Scorpius just gently caressed the owl's beautifully soft feathers.

"That's so cool!" Michael exclaimed excitedly, "How did you get him to do that?!"

"I don't know," Scorpius admitted but he was glad of the bird all the same as the others dispersed, "Looks like it's just you and me, eh birdie?"

The owl squawked gently at this and Scorpius smiled, he liked animals. Carefully he brought nameless-owl back to the cage but left the door open, in case the owl wanted to stretch his wings for a bit. He fed the bird a quick treat before going to bed, he drew the drapes shut and climbed under the covers before getting undressed. He was asleep almost before his head hit the pillow.

"Get out there!" Marvin yelled.

Scorpius whimpered as he was half-dragged from the van and violently thrown onto the dirt, he started to get to his knees but was kicked back down. He didn't need telling twice. He lay on the damp ground and dared not move, not even to shiver at the cold. Marvin walked around him, dragging a shovel across the soil as he did so.

After a moment, Marvin seemed to be finished. He grabbed Scorpius and hauled him back to his feet. Scorpius didn't fight it, he was too focused on trying to figure out what was happening. Marvin put the shovel in Scorpius' hands and fixed the open handcuff to the handle, Scorpius' eyes went to the lines in the ground. Marvin had drawn a rectangle around him.

"Dig, boy," Marvin commanded, "Where I've marked. Dig the whole space up."

"Why?" Scorpius asked before he could stop himself and without hesitation Marvin smacked his head painfully.

"Just do it."

Scorpius nodded and obediently started digging but his eyes scanned around for any way to escape. They were in the middle of nowhere, he saw nothing but open fields and hills all around as much as he could tell. It wasn't easy to see in the darkness, the only light came from the headlights of the van.

He didn't like it. Still, he dug though. It'd probably be worse if he didn't. It was harder than he thought to dig, the soil was heavy and being handcuffed to the shovel didn't help. Every load just seemed to chafe at his wrist even more, it was so tight it hurt regardless of anything else. After a while, he felt blood trickling from his wrist. He didn't stop digging.

"Okay that's enough," Marvin said eventually and dragged him out of the hole.

Scorpius shivered despite himself as he looked at the rectangular shaped hole, it looked like a grave. Maybe it was. A fresh wave of horror cascaded through him as Marvin removed the handcuffs, from both the shovel and the wrist. He rubbed his pained wrist, it was the first time it had been free in months. Any other time, he would have been overjoyed but on that night… it just added to the ominous feeling he had.

"Why are we here?" Scorpius whispered quietly, deciding to risk a question.

"It's the perfect place to dump a body," Marvin answered with a cruel smile, pointedly waving the gun in Scorpius' line of vision.

"I don't want to die."

"None of us do."

"Please," Scorpius said desperately, his voice caught in his throat and he couldn't stop the tears from welling in his eyes, "Please don't kill me, Marvin, please! I don't want to die! I just want to go home, please just let me go home. I won't tell anyone, I promise. Or my family... they have money, they can give you money if you just don't kill me!"

"Your money is useless to me, boy," Marvin growled as he clicked the gun.

"Please!" Scorpius cried, "I'll do anything you want, just let me go!"

"C'mon kid, don't look at me like I'm a monster," Marvin said caressing his cheek gently, "You're the liability, trying to escape with your... talents. We can't have that now, can we? You can't go back to your family, I've told you that a million times. But maybe you don't have to die tonight, if you promise to never try to escape again and then you can stay with us forever."

Scorpius stopped and forced himself to think. He looked into Marvin's cruel green eyes, unsure whether Marvin was telling the truth or not. But he was sure that he didn't want to live if he had to stay with them forever, never able to see his family again.

He still didn't want to die though. Especially not there in the middle of the nowhere with the all-consuming darkness, not alone by the hand of the man he despised. He was terrified, probably more terrified than he'd ever been in his life but in that instant he found an inner strength inside himself. He let it anchor him, he needed to be strong. He hawked and spat in Marvin's face.

"Worthless brat!" Marvin yelled furiously, smashing the handle of the gun into Scorpius' face.

Scorpius yelped in pain and was knocked to the ground by the force of the blow, his eye throbbed painfully and he felt blood trickling down and mixing with his tears. Marvin wiped the spit from his face and yanked Scorpius' shoulder, forcing him to his knees with his head facing down into his grave.

"Have fun in hell, freak."

Scorpius felt the pressure leave his shoulder a second before he heard a bang. His body jerked in shock as it was so loud. An explosion and a thunderclap all in one, it ripped through the silent night with such volume it hurt. Scorpius wasn't hurt though. Marvin's body thudded to the ground beside him, his lifeless eyes open and staring.

Scorpius woke with a start, panicked and afraid. He sat up and looked around to see he was still in his bed in Gryffindor, he never thought he'd be glad to be there but he was. Breathing heavily, he wrapped his arms around his shaking body protectively. He kept telling himself it was over, it was just a dream of a memory. But the bang continued to echo in his mind while Marvin's eyes would gaze accusingly into his soul forever. He slept no more that night.