Draco Lupin Malfoy had grown up knowing his mother was hated and loved. Those who'd followed the dark lord hated her for leaving his birth father. They thought that by marrying a werewolf, she'd married a half breed.
If his mother knew that he knew how they spoke of her, Draco did not doubt that she'd be furious. She didn't particularly like Grandfather Abraxas but as Draco was the Head of House Malfoy, couldn't refuse him from visiting and teaching him.
Draco didn't particularly like Grandfather Abraxas either. He was very strict and never let Draco do anything fun and said bad things about muggleborns too, something Mother had tried and failed to stop before his Aunt Andi had told her that it was pointless and that he'd never change. That was a conversation Draco hadn't been meant to hear but little boys could be very curious and they'd been talking about him! It was only right he knew.
Draco would have known that his grandfather was wrong even if his parents hadn't reminded him after his lessons. Uncle Ted was the best! And Draco knew he was muggleborn.
So, Draco had grown up with an understanding that people like his birth father in Azkaban hated people like his Dad and Uncle Ted. He'd also known that all of those people had strong opinions about what house he should be in.
His grandfather was insistent that he should be in Slytherin - Grandfather often liked to remind him that his birth father had been in Slytherin.
"A great wizard your father," Grandfather Abraxas had declared once. "Not like that half breed Narcissa betrayed him and the dark lord for. Blood traitor!" He would spit. "Should never have agreed to the marriage but she was colourblessed and Bellatrix swore she'd be the perfect wife."
His mother had coughed pointedly, Draco hadn't noticed her enter.
"And now that you have violated one of my conditions, this shall be the last of Draco's tutoring sessions with you." His mother had said calmly, gesturing for Draco to come to her.
"He's a Malfoy. I have every right to tutor him unlike you."
"I am the Regent of House Malfoy. Not you. If you remember, you only just escaped ending up in a cell next to Lucius."
"You stupid, ungrateful, mudblood loving-"
His mother had hexed his grandfather, leaving him silent then pulled Draco into the floo with her.
He'd been eight and that had been the last time Draco had met Grandfather Abraxas.
Draco continued to get letters though and as he grew older, Grandfather Abraxas wrote of his expected sorting into Slytherin more and more often, much to Draco's displeasure.
It wasn't that Draco had anything against Slytherin - how could when his mother and Aunt Andi had both been Slytherins? It was just that he wanted nothing to do with his birth father, knowing that he and Aunt Bellatrix (as Mum insisted he still call her!) were to blame for so many deaths and had committed so many horrible crimes during the war.
Draco didn't know the details, nobody really spoke of the war apart from whispered conversations around Halloween but he knew enough to know that his birth father wasn't a good guy. He hated the fact that he couldn't change his surname.
"Draco,"
Draco looked up to find his dad in the doorway, smiling at him.
"You okay?" Remus asked, walking to sit next to him.
"It's just...the sorting. What if..." Draco trailed off, not knowing exactly what he was scared of.
"What if what?"
"What if I'm in Slytherin like him?" Draco asked.
Remus ruffled Draco's hair. "Well, I happen to be very fond of Slytherins. Your mum was one and so was Aunt Andi."
"Yes but so was he. And so many people expect me to be just like him."
"You can't hate an entire house because of one person. By that logic, I should hate Gryffindor just because one wizard betrayed his friends and followed You-Know-Who."
"Well, yes but -"
"Nobody expects you to be like Lucius Malfoy. Just like nobody expects you to be just like me or your mum."
"But I look so much like him!" Draco protested. "I hate it. I hate looking like him."
"Oh, Draco!" Draco and Remus turned to find Narcissa standing just outside his bedroom door. "Who told you that?"
"Grandfather Abraxas mostly. He just sent me old photos of him when he was my age. And Mr Nott when we ran into him the other day."
Narcissa wrinkled her nose at the reminder.
"I just wish I looked more like you instead," Draco grumbled.
"I don't see Lucius Malfoy when I look at you," Remus said.
"You don't?"
"Of course he doesn't!" Narcissa exclaimed, having finally found her tongue. "Neither do I, Draco. You're our son and that's who we see - Draco Lupin Malfoy."
"But I have his surname."
"And that's your family legacy despite your birth father," Narcissa said gently. "Not every Malfoy has been evil nor will they be. Just as there are good and bad witches and wizards in every family. The Malfoys have been a political powerhouse for years. You should be proud of that. They have an interesting history and that's why I wanted you to learn from your Grandfather Abraxas. You're a Malfoy just as much as you're a Lupin and just as much as you're a Black, my dragon."
Narcissa pulled her son into a hug. "You don't have to worry about your appearance - I wouldn't change anything about you for the world."
Draco nodded.
"That goes for your Hogwarts house too," Remus added. "We'll be proud of you no matter where you go."
Narcissa nodded. "Yes, after all, Andi and I were Slytherin, your dad a Gryffindor and your Uncle Ted and Aunt Andi Hufflepuffs."
"Grandpa Lowell was a Gryffindor too," Draco added. "Of course Grandfather Abraxas was in Slytherin." He frowned.
"Draco, I know that Abraxas...places many expectations upon you. Part of that is because you're the future of the Malfoys but that doesn't mean you need to do as he expects. Maybe when he sees you, he does see Lucius. But do you know what I see?" Remus asked.
"What?"
Remus conjured a mirror. "Smile."
Draco pulled a face. "This face reminds me of when you didn't want to go to bed," Remus said.
Draco rolled his eyes, but couldn't hide a smile. "And this reminds me of your Mum when I'm acting 'too Gryffindor'."
"Dad, are you saying I look like Mum?" Draco asked, horrified.
Remus laughed. "No, Draco. I'm saying that even if you look like Lucius Malfoy, you also resemble Narcissa."
"I just wish I resembled you too," Draco muttered.
"Sometimes," Narcissa said. "When the two of are sitting together drinking that horrible hot chocolate you both love,"
"Because Dad makes the BEST hot chocolate!" Draco immediately protested.
Narcissa wrinkled her nose. "Then I swear to Merlin, you look just like Remus, Draco."
"I do?"
"Of course you do - you've grown up with Remus - do you think you haven't picked up anything from your Dad?" Draco shrugged."Some of your expressions are just like his. You've been copying him since you were tiny."
"Remember when he tried my tea," Remus laughed.
"What happened?" Draco asked curiously.
"You were four and Remus had put his cup down and you drank from it before spitting it out all over his newspaper," Narcissa told him. "It was far too strong for you. Draco, your house, your name - none of it matters, my dragon, because at the end of the day you'll always be our son," Narcissa said. "And we love you for you."
"Draco Malfoy," Professor McGonagall called out.
Draco wished that she'd called out his full name. He might have been a Malfoy but he was just as much of a Lupin.
"Draco Lupin Malfoy, eh. Now I can tell you I never expected to be sorting a Lupin Malfoy."
Draco frowned. 'That was rude and why in Merlin's name not?' He thought.
"Mostly because the last two Malfoys were huge parts." The hat said. "And I didn't expect your parents to fall in love. Not that I ever expect anybody to fall in love, I only get to meet most of you lot once when you're eleven. Most of my gossip is gleaned through - well never mind that. Let's get to sorting you."
'Uh okay.' Draco thought. 'Though that was kind of interesting. It must get kind of lonely for the rest of the year when you're not sorting us.'
"And that's why you could be a great Hufflepuff, Mr Lupin Malfoy." The hat said. "Just as you could go into Gryffindor. It takes great bravery to oppose those who have strong expectations of you like your grandfather does."
'Is that you're going to put me then?" Draco asked.
"I could," the Hat said. "Or you could go into Ravenclaw."
'Ravenclaw?' Draco repeated, confused. 'Why?'
The Hat chuckled. "Because nobody in your family is in Ravenclaw, Mr Lupin Malfoy, and I think Ravenclaw will help you gain confidence in not being what people expect of you."
'I don't care what people expect of me,' Draco sulked.
"Everybody does, Mr Lupin Malfoy. Now, have you decided where'd you like to go."
'Is...Slytherin not an option at all then?' Draco asked.
"It could be if you wanted. Sometimes, people will forget this, but anybody could go in any of the four houses. It all depends on the child - sometimes I'll place them where they should, sometimes where they gain the traits they need, sometimes according to what they value. And very rarely, like in your case, Mr Lupin Malfoy, there'll be child to whom I'll give all the options and let them decide."
'Oh," Draco thought.
"Now where would you like to go."
Draco thought about this. Being the only person in Ravenclaw did sound appealing.
"Very well then, better be RAVENCLAW!" This last word was shouted to the rest of the Hall too, and Draco got up to make his way to the blue and bronze table.
(Bonus Scene:)
"Ravenclaw," Remus read from the letter he'd received from Draco.
"I told him he was more like you than he realised," Narcissa said.
"I was in Gryffindor, remember."
"To the puzzlement of all the Ravenclaws, I'm sure. You've never stopped reading to Draco, remember."
"And he'll be well prepared for Defence because of that."
"What about Harry? Did Draco mention where he was sorted?"
"Gryffindor. Hopefully, he won't get in half of the trouble we did."
"Should I be warning Petunia then?" Narcissa teased. "To prepare for McGonagall's letters about the pranks he's pulling."
Remus grinned. "That depends on how much James's he got in him and how much Lily."
"What do you mean?" Narcissa asked.
"James - he loved mischief but he'd get caught. Lily though...Lily could be a Slytherin with the amount of cunning she possessed. She could cause twice the amount of mischief we did and never get caught!"
Narcissa laughed. "Please tell she framed you for her pranks too."
Remus shivered. "Never have I been more glad that the two of you weren't friends back then."
The smile fell off their faces.
"I wanted to," Narcissa confessed.
"What?"
"Be friends with her maybe...I definitely wanted to talk to her after I learnt she was colourblessed like me. It's...growing up colourblessed was very lonely. You have no idea how glad I was when I knew Draco wasn't colourblessed."
Remus pulled her into a hug. "She would've liked you."
Narcissa cleared her throat. "How did you know then, that she used to pull pranks?"
Remus laughed. "She didn't prank like we did. No, whenever James annoyed her enough, she'd just make our lives difficult somehow. We'd have terrible luck. Minnie would catch us in the middle of pulling a prank, Filch would be stalking us, all my chocolate would disappear. James's glasses would remain smudged no matter what we did. Peter'd keep tripping over his untied shoelaces which just wouldn't remain tied and so on. Sirius's - " He cut off, amusement draining out. He cleared his throat.
"Just made our lives difficult." He repeated. "We'd only know because she'd lose her temper."
Narcissa gave a small smile.
"It was her temper that led to that first kiss." Remus reminisced, "Merlin we were all scared and thankful for that famous Evans temper. We'd have never known she was behind all of our bad luck otherwise."
"Maybe he'll be friends with him," Narcissa said, causing Remus to blink at this random statement.
"Who?"
"Maybe Draco will be friends with Harry."
Remus smiled at the thought. "I think James would love the thought of the sons of two Marauders being friends."
"As long as they don't get in half the trouble you lot did," Narcissa said.
If only she knew. The Marauders may have caused trouble - Harry and his friends...well that was another story altogether. Narcissa would have preferred her son to be a prankster rather than end up in the sort of situations he did.
A/N: I can't write enough of Remus & Narcissa apparently. *shrugs* I hope you enjoyed this and I'd love to hear your thoughts!