He contemplated the Sorting with growing anguish. Suddenly, he thought of Mrs. Weasley's offer.
It had been almost a year since his grandfather was released from Azkaban, but he still made no progress pertaining to realizing he was no longer there. He remembered vaguely of his grandfather staring blankly, his father throwing a chair, and his mother pulling him away….
The morning was filled with a very good kind of chaos. Scorpius's father had little time to corner Scorpius. They drove in a car which was magically enlarged to fit his entire trunk and tawny owl, Lessy, into the back seat.
Father drummed his fingers against the wheel often, much to his mother's annoyance.
They finally arrived at King's Cross at ten forty five. It was a crowded place with many nosy Muggles. They all seemed especially transfixed by Lessy, and why she was being wheeled around in a cart. She caught his mother glaring at the onlookers.
By the time they had vanished into the station of Nine and Three Quarters, it was filled to bursting. Children, parents, owls, and such were everywhere. They passed a pretty Hogwarts aged girl kissing passionately with a magenta haired boy a few years beyond Hogwarts. His mother glared at them, while a messy haired boy shouted at them with glee.
"Now, Scorpius," Astoria said calmly, flattening his hair. "Be good and don't get mixed with the - ah - wrong crowd, and make the us very proud. Alright, dear?"
She kissed him on the cheek, as Draco knelt to him.
"Scorpius," he said, just as calmly. "You are a Malfoy. Don't forget what I said, alright? Whatever happens, remember who you are, what you are. Make us proud. Make your…" he coughed slightly, and he was surprised to see his eyes were getting slightly wet, "Make your grandfather proud, will you?"
He hugged his son tight, but let go too soon. He was staring at something else. Scorpius turned to find Harry and Ginny Potter and Ron and Hermione Weasley staring at them with laughter in their eyes. His father nodded at them curtly and turned towards his family, ignoring them.
The whistle blew on the scarlet Hogwarts Express. Scorpius felt apprehension rise in his throat as he was pushed onboard by his mother.
"Have a good term, Scorpius!" she called, tears streaming down her face. He waved at them hastily and hurried down the corridor, his trunk and Lessy in tow.
He opened one compartment full of rowdy boys, trying for something. They turned at the sound of the compartment door.
"Who do we have here?"
He looked toward the center of the conspiring boys. There sat a bespectacled, untidy-haired, brown eyed Potter, his face in a smirk.
"Looks like the Malfoy's boarded the train at last," murmured a black boy to Potter's left.
"And who are you?" Scorpius sneered at them, his eyes narrowed.
"James Potter-" he said, smirking. "-Lance Jordan-" he pointed to the black boy; "-and Corey Bardwell." At the last, he pointed a thumb at a dirty-blond, curly haired someone, most likely Muggleborn by the sound of him.
"Now, if you didn't realize, Malfoy, we aren't much fans of the Dark and slimy," James said, his brown eyes challenging. "And you happen to be both. Now scram."
The boys roared with laughter as Scorpius slammed the door. This was going much worse than he had ever imagined.
All of the compartments were filled with up to five kids. At last he found a compartment with a boy and girl roughly his own age talking animatedly. He slithered in, as stealthily as he could, and sat in the compartment. He spent three peaceful minutes, not even bothering to listen to their conversation as the train rumbled on. Then, suddenly, it was broken with a screech.
"You!"
He turned to find Rose Weasley, her bright blue eyes open in surprise as her mother's were only yesterday, her large red hair everywhere. Beside her was a boy with black hair and piercing green eyes. He had no glasses, but he was easily none other than a Potter.
Anger rose in Scorpius's throat. "Me. What do you have to say about it? I did nothing to you, I don't understand what you Weasleys and Potters have against me!"
The Potter boy studied him. His eyes pierced him like little knives, but he had time only for Rose.
"What I have to say about it?" she whispered, her chest heaving. Her eyes were narrowed now. "Your dad called my mother a Mudblood, you Malfoy scum!"
"That doesn't-"
"It isn't the purity of your blood that decides you, you close-minded little prat," she whispered fiercely. "It's who you are."
This deemed Scorpius without words. She was too right.
"Hear him out, Rosie," the Potter boy said, pushing on her knee to sit her down.
"No," Scorpius, said shaking his head. "No, Rose, you are absolutely right. I'm not like my father, I don't think your mother's a Mudblood. I don't - I'm not -"
"Not like your dad?" Potter nodded, his face in an understanding grimace. "It's sort of the other way around for me, you see…everyone accepts me to be as great as my father was, not lousy. At least you can easily prove yourself. I can't really."
Scorpius nodded. It felt good to know there was someone with whom he could mutually know and feel with.
"Well," Scorpius said, smiling slightly. "I guess that means we really can't go wrong then. Everyone thinks I'll be awful and you'll be terrific, we'll just have to make sure we're as far from it as possible."
He laughed, but Rose looked solemn, but a smile was tugging at her lips. He felt his spirits soar.
"Scorpius, right? I'm Albus Potter. You can call me Al."
Rose opened her mouth, closed it, and opened it again. She seemed to want for words, but couldn't exactly find the right ones. Al extended his hand to Scorpius, and he took it. Rolling her eyes, Rose put out her own. He took it as well, though he swore he could see her smiling.
The rest of the train ride passed quickly. By the time the trolley had come, they were drowning in sweets, and talking of their own families.
"Well, you already know the Weasley family's absolutely huge," she said matter-of-factly. "It's a bit of a circus round Christmas time."
"Yeah," Al said, frowning. "There's me, James, who's in second year, and Lily, who's nine."
"And then there's Uncle George's kids, Fred and Roxanne. Fred's in fourth and Roxanne in second. He's only got one ear, but he's a right laugh at parties."
"Then there's Uncle Percy, Molly and Lucy. Molly's in seventh, Head Girl, bit of a snob. Lucy's alright, though, but she's a prefect, too."
"Then there's Uncle Bill. Victoire's in seventh, she was snogging Teddy Lupin apparently outside the train today-"
"-oh, yes, I saw them at it!" Scorpius
"-she's quite beautiful. Dominique, too, she's in fifth. And then there's little Louis who's Hugo and Lily's age, all nine."
Scorpius marveled at their family. How could one person be so well connected, while Scorpius himself was just an only child?
"What about you?" Al asked him, his eyes wide.
"Just my - uh, just my mum and dad, I guess," he said, trying to hide the itching envy.
"Oh, that would be so weird!" Rose breathed, apparently in wonder at a small family.
"Well, my Aunt Daphne comes around every now and then, but she's a bit strange. My grandfather's been a bit mad ever since he left…well, you-know-where."
"Azkaban," Rose nodded, and Scorpius felt a pang of foreboding at the name. "My mother was going to help him, get a Healer to go down to the Manor. She feels very sorry for Mr. Malfoy. I wish she could help."
"I wish my father didn't have such a big head, then maybe she could've," he muttered, slightly miserably.
"Hey," Al said steadily, reading his expression. "Scorpius, you'll get past it. Don't worry."
Scorpius smiled, and hastily changed the subject. "I don't think your brother likes me much."
Rose laughed out loud, and Scorpius felt a twinge of annoyance.
"That makes two of us, then," he replied, and Scorpius laughed.
The Hogwarts Express chugged on, until finally reaching it's final stop at Hogsmeade station. Scorpius, Al, and Rose hopped off the train in their new robes. An old, giant man stood with a lantern to his bearded and slightly grimy face. Rose's face broke into a grin.
"Hagrid!" she called, waving at him. He found her, and returned her grin. He hobbled over to her, his lantern still held aloft.
"Firs' years this way, be careful you lot - How ya bin, Rosie? Albus? Innit this nice! Now, who's here?"
"This is Scorpius," Rose said, before Scorpius himself could speak. "Scorpius Malfoy."
The on Hagrid's face slackened. "Malfoy?"
"No, he's a friend of ours, Hagrid. He's alright," Al said, his smile evident in the dim lantern's light.
"Well, alrigh' then, you three," he said, but he didn't look remotely convinced. They all settled into a boat with a dark haired girl with almond shaped eyes and a pretty face.
"Don' forget Friday, now!" shouted Hagrid, and with that, they were off. The girl didn't say much, just looked from both Al and Scorpius with interest. Rose scowled.
"You're Albus Potter," she said, pointing at him.
"How'd you-" Al began, his eyebrows raised.
"Your eyes," she said, smiling serenely. She turned to Scorpius. "I don't know who you are, though, but you look like a-"
"-Malfoy?" Rose interjected, looking annoyed. "Well spotted. Ravenclaw, are you?"
"Scorpius Malfoy, actually," he said, glaring at Rose.
"Well, I'm Lee Chang. I'm Cho Chang's daughter, I don't know if your dad ever mentioned her…?" Lee looked towards Al expectantly.
"Maybe once or twice?" he said, though it was obvious he was only humoring her.
Scorpius looked to Rose again, who was looking at Lee with growing annoyance.
"I'm sure you'll be just like your dad," Lee said, positively swooning at Al. Lee suddenly caught wind of Rose's growing scowl. She smirked, and went on. "And I'm guessing you're a Weasley-" she pointed at Rose, "-since you've got red hair and lack of difference. You Weasleys are all the same."
"Be careful, now, Al," Rose said loudly, glaring at Lee with growing intensity. "She might slip you a flask of Amortentia if you aren't careful."
"Amortentia?" coughed Scorpius, completely dumbfounded.
"Most powerful love potion in the world," she said, still glaring. "In other words, a potion for the absolutely desperate."
Scorpius found himself gripping Rose's wand arm. They hadn't even gotten to the castle yet, how could so much rivalry already have arisen?
Thankfully, they heard the clunk of the boat against the castle's main court saved them the trouble. Lee stalked off, muttering under her breath of bushy red hair and a hatred for know-it-alls.
