A/N I forgot to mention that there will be strong bullying in this story. Draco was horrible to a lot of people in the first few books especially, and Reece will only emphasise this. He was bad enough on his own but adding Reece in only makes it worse. I don't know if Reece will always be this way, but I just wanted to give a clear warning….

Chapter 2

Reece rolled to face the opposite wall as Arrow attempted to wake him from the side of his bed. Every other child that would be attending Hogwarts would have shot out of bed as it was the morning of the start of term. But not Reece. He was really not a morning person and preferred to wake at nine or later – not half past six.

"Master says you need to get ready so you can meet the Malfoys on time." Arrow squealed in desperation as Reece shoved his head under the warm, cocoon of covers. Yaxley had received an urgent call from the Ministry the day before and had to arrange for Reece to be seen off by Lucius and Narcissa. The young Lestrange didn't mind this as he would get to head onto the train with his best friend.

"Two more hours." Reece groaned as Arrow began tugging at the duvet from the side.

"Not on my watch." Arrow replied with a sharp yet respectful tone. "I will not let you miss the train." The only response she got was the sound of the duvet shifting further down the bed. Reece sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes drowsily.

"I'm up." He uttered in pure morning irritation.

"Good. Now get ready." Arrow commanded bossily as she apparated out of the room. She knew of her place as a house elf, but that didn't stop her being a sassy motherly figure to Reece.

Reece stood beside Draco and watched quietly as Narcissa said her goodbyes to her only son. Lucius turned to Reece and patted his right shoulder with a slight sense of pride. He had not hesitated to tell Reece that although it was only a train journey, it was still the duty of a pureblood to dress well. Reece had earlier chosen a black, long sleeved shirt that had one button left undone at the top, along with black jeans and Italian leather dress shoes.

"Your father would have been proud to witness you growing up with such eloquence and charm." Lucius spoke with his nose facing the sky, but Reece accepted the statement nonetheless. According to Yaxley, Lucius and Narcissa had been close to his father due to family connections such as Bellatrix.

Draco and Reece boarded the train after the quick goodbyes and managed to find an empty compartment. They shut the door and took a seat on the left bench, knowing that they would soon be joined by (as Reece would say) two large idiots. The two sat in comfortable silence as Reece rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. He couldn't help but continuously glance and Draco's hair. Too slicked back in Reece's opinion. But who was he to rain on Draco's parade?

Moments after they had gotten comfortable, the door was opened again. Vincent Crabbe sauntered in, followed by a bullish Gregory Goyle. The two were on good terms with Draco, but Reece had only met them a couple of times through the Malfoys. From the looks of them, the two didn't seem to be the sharpest knives in the drawer but he decided to socialise with them nonetheless.

"Crabbe, Goyle." Draco greeted snootily as the two took a seat in the quiet, sophisticated compartment. "Did you pass by that Harry Potter on your way up here? I've been wondering whether he's made it or not."

"Didn't see him." Crabbe grunted with lack of interest.

"I hope to befriend him." Draco dismissed Crabbe's bored tone and continued to talk to Reece, allowing the other two to hear what he say. "Hopefully he'll be sorted into Slytherin like the rest of us." The group knew that they were going to be sorted into the green house. It was in their blood after all.

The group sat and discussed Hogwarts and Harry Potter for a while. That was until they were interrupted. The door was opened rudely by a fellow first year. The small girl stood in the doorway, observing the group judgementally. It took all the willpower Reece had to refrain from commenting on the large bush of hair that she seemed to be drowning in. It was literally an out of control bushy mane, a Gryffindor for sure.

"Have any of you seen a toad? Neville Longbottom has lost his." Longbottom? Reece considered going to say hello to the son of the couple that his father had tortured. He had no idea that he and Neville were in the same year, and without knowing, the loudmouthed girl had painted a target onto Longbottom's back.

"The only toad I've seen is Millicent Bulstrode in the compartment next door." Draco quickly retorted when he noticed the cold fire gleaming in the eyes of his best friend. The four boys snickered harshly at the insinuation, but the girl simply stuck up her nose and pursed her lips before moving onto the next carriage – shutting the door firmly behind her.

The journey came to an end soon after the slight confrontation, and the students pushed and clambered off of the train. The four boys passed the towering, ragged man that was yelling for first years and reluctantly boarded one of the tiny boats. When Hogwarts came into view, Reece and Draco rolled their eyes at the gasps that were coming from the mudbloods and halfbloods as it was only magic. Growing up pureblood meant that Hogwarts was not a farfetched surprise.

The large man – known as Hagrid – handed them off to Minerva McGonagall. Yaxley had mentioned her transfiguration skills, but failed to inform him of how imposing and strict the woman appeared to be. She loomed over the first year students with strict authority, and when she told them to stay put and get ready for the sorting, Draco quickly gestured for Reece to follow him.

"So it's true what they were saying on the train." Draco drawled cockily, gaining the attention of every first year in the room. "Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts." Harry and the Weasley beside him both seemed to be incredibly confused by the sudden statement. "This is Crabbe and Goyle." Draco nodded his head towards the two large oafs that stood behind himself and Reece. "And I'm Malfoy," He said while moving up the steps to look down on Harry and the rest of the students. Reece moved beside his friend to make sure he was able to back him up if need be. "Draco Malfoy."

The Weasley seemed to snort at the name for some reason and Draco gave him an offended glare. "Think my names funny do you?" Draco asked in a snide manner, allowing Reece to cut in.

"Well he doesn't need to ask for your name." Reece drawled arrogantly as he glared across at the boy who had snorted at Draco. "Red hair," He looked down at what Ronald was wearing. "And a hand-me-down robe. You must be a Weasley."

"You'll soon find out that some wizarding families are better than others Potter," Draco said harshly as he turned his attention back to Harry. "You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort." Reece watched on with a smirk as Draco offered Harry a hand to shake.

"I think I can tell the wrong sort for myself thanks." Harry replied with a hint of courage. Draco looked visibly insulted by the dismissal, whereas Reece just glared at the Weasel.

"You just made a few enemies, Potter." Reece spat as Professor McGonagall re-entered the room they were all waiting in. She tapped Draco on the shoulder with a roll of parchment and he and Reece hastily moved aside. Potter didn't know anything, and Weasley had probably been in his ear from the get go. Although Draco seemed to be more irritated by Harry, Reece definitely had his sights set on Ronald.

The students followed McGonagall like lost sheep into the hall. The room was filled with teachers and students, all eyeing the group of first years – probably trying to get a glimpse of the golden boy. Reece rolled his eyes once again when he heard the irritating girl from the train whispering to another girl. She was bloody annoying. They were halted by the stern Professor at the front of the hall and awaited further instruction.

Without warning, the sorting hat began to sing about how it was smart. Reece watched on bored out of his mind as the song dragged on and on. When the song finally came to an end, Professor McGonagall unrolled the long piece of parchment and waited for silence. All of a sudden something hit Reece. It was a hat. One that would have to go on his head. It could flatten, possibly ruin his hair!

"Abbott, Hannah!" Was called first, assuring Reece that it would be in alphabetical order. He would be before Draco, and before Potter. It was a perfect set up for attention.

"Hufflepuff!" The hat shouted, causing a loud applause to erupt from the table that donned yellow. After the first sorting: Susan Bones went to Hufflepuff, Terry Boot became the first Ravenclaw, Lavender Brown was the first Gryffindor and Millicent Bulstrode went to Slytherin (Much to Draco's dismay). Reece waited calmly for McGonagall to reach the letter L. After quite a while, she did.

"Le-Lestrange, Reece." She accidentally stuttered while reading, causing the hall to become even more tense. Everyone was completely silent as they watched Reece step ever so suavely up to the stool. He looked out at all the students with a rebellious smirk plastered across his lips. They were all presuming that he was the son of Bellatrix; everyone always did. In the sea of first years he also noticed a small dark haired boy with red ears, supressing a glare that was clearly directed at him. McGonagall planted the hat on his head, and Reece grimaced slightly. He took no pleasure in having the grimy hat speaking in his head.

"Well I never." The hat said with a hint of disbelief. "Hmm, you could do well in Ravenclaw, with your knowledge of your smarts. But I know deep down you have the heart of a Gryffindor that you can't reveal. Interesting… Perhaps Slytherin is the best place to put you after all. You certainly have the manipulative arrogance of a green snake. You could be in any house, but it is your blood that defines you. Lestrange's are always Slytherins, it's in your blood after all."

"Slytherin!" The hat called as the students in green gave a respectful applause. Reece couldn't help but feel bewildered by the words of the hat. When he reached the table, he shook the hands of a few of his older peers and nodded to Crabbe and Goyle who had earlier been sorted. Reece sat across from the two, and beside him was a small blonde girl. Draco soon joined them and sat to Reece's left.

Dumbledore finally summoned the food and the Slytherins dug in with quick sophistication. The only people who ate like pigs were Crabbe, Goyle and Bulstrode. Throughout the feast, Reece introduced himself to the likes of Theodore Nott, Daphne Greengrass, Pansy Parkinson and Tracy Davis. He was also able to greet his good friend Blaise Zabini, and quickly rejected a conversation between himself and Millicent Bulstrode.

When Daphne Greengrass started a conversation between herself and him, Reece was caught off guard. The Greengrass' were known to be a neutral family, so it was surprising that she attempted to talk to him, a Lestrange.

The feast was soon coming to an end, and Reece couldn't help but follow Draco's line of sight. It seemed that he was glaring intently at the Gryffindor table. At Harry Potter to be exact. The Gryffindors were oblivious of Draco's fury, but his best friend was not.

"It isn't wise to hold a grudge." Reece muttered casually as he took a sip from his goblet.

"And I suppose you don't have a vendetta against Weasley?" Draco shot back quietly, keeping the conversation between the two of them.

"Maybe you're right," There was just something about that Ronald that rubbed him up the wrong way. "At least they seem to be friends." Draco nodded in agreement as Reece let the harsh tone in his voice viciously arise through a whisper. "It'll make making their lives a living hell a whole lot easier."