Harry Potter - Title: The Inconveniences of Being a Malfoy (12)

ðHgeocities.com/crystalangel0105//tiobam12.htmgeocities.com/crystalangel0105_/tiobam12.htm.delayedxµWÕJÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÈð1*COKtext/htmlïºLÜ*Cÿÿÿÿb‰.HThu, 30 Aug 2007 00:30:23 GMT½Mozilla/4.5 (compatible; HTTrack 3.0x; Windows 98)en, *´WÕJ*C Harry Potter - Title: The Inconveniences of Being a Malfoy (12) Title: The Inconveniences of Being a Malfoy
Summary: Scorpius' life has never gone well, but lately it's really done a turn for the worse. He blames Albus.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Harry Potter.

Of course, I thank therealjuliet for beta-ing this for me. :D

(12)

It was nice, but wholly unnecessary, in Scorpius’ opinion, that Albus’ father insisted on taking them all back to Hogwarts personally after the holidays. Professor McGonagall had greeted Harry at the door, her face pale, and the two of them swept off, talking in whispers leaving the kids in the Great Hall. They all sat at their respective tables, looking and feeling uncomfortable and they all stared across the room at each other until the hall began to fill with people and chatter.

Scorpius propped his head up with one of his hands, his elbow on the table, as he waited for the first years to come. It was incredibly boring without anyone talking to him as he had grown accustomed to in the Potter home and his housemates were still avoiding him like the plague. Well, he reasoned, at least now he would actually be able to get through a meal without any food ending up in his lap or elbows getting shoved in his face (Albus had apologized profusely every time it happened, promising it wouldn’t happen again, but somehow it always did).

With the other hand, he began to absentmindedly draw nonsensical designs on the table in boredom. He felt irrationally lonely as he watched Albus scowl in annoyance at James, who kept trying to flash the light into Albus’ eyes with his new prefect badge. Rose had already pulled out a textbook and was discussing it seriously with a boy with blonde hair that Scorpius couldn’t recall the name of, but knew was a year above them. Victoire Weasley leaned over the space between the Hufflepuff and Gryffindor table to talk to someone – to his surprise, it was Isolde, the waitress from The Three Broomsticks, who managed to detach herself from her Hufflepuff housemates to lean over as well with a small, shy smile, her cheeks flushing pink as a few people turned to stare at her.

“Shh!” someone to Scorpius’ left hissed, and suddenly the Great Hall began to quiet down. Once it had settled, Professor McGonagall stood up (he wondered when she’d reentered – he hadn’t seen her come back, and he supposed that Albus’ father had left already) and everyone turned to look at the towering doors that the first years would enter through. Scorpius had a strange feeling of disembodiment – it felt almost wrong to be on this side of the ritual. He shook the feeling quickly, and straightened up to get a better view of the Hall.

The door burst open, and suddenly the silence was filled with the furtive whispers of the nervous looking first years, led by Professor Longbottom, their eyes widening in near perfect synchronization as they stared up at the ceiling that had been enchanted to mirror the sky outside.

Professor Longbottom had them pause before the teachers table and Scorpius tried not to snicker at their young faces – it was strange to think that it had been him up there just last year. Gazing at the stern looking teachers and trying to avoid the many gazes of the older Hogwarts students, feeling terrified and wondering what might happen next.

Scorpius raised an eyebrow when out of the corner of his eye, he saw Albus wave to someone in the small crowd of first years – and he spotted Hugo and Jeannine Weasley in the crowd as they waved timidly back. The girl’s twin sister, Reine, stood a good distance from the both of them, simply watching Professor Longbottom with a frown as he stumbled a bit on the way to the stool and placed the Sorting Hat on the seat. Scorpius looked back to look at Victoire, who sat on the edge of her seat, watching the proceedings intently.

As the hat started its song, Scorpius turned his head to watch, but Albus caught his eye. Scorpius gazed back evenly, wondering what he wanted, and was amused when Albus grinned and wiggled his fingers at him, looking ridiculous. Scorpius had to fight back a snort of amusement, and shook his head at the other boy before turning back to the hat, which was finishing up its song.

“…just place me on your head, and I can guarantee, I will place you where you need to be!” it sang triumphantly, and the hall was filled with a roar of approval.

Professor McGonagall allowed this for a few moments, before clearing her throat and announcing, “Quiet down, now, please.” The noise settled down respectfully, and Professor Longbottom stood solemnly next to the hat.

“Ackerley, Robert,” he called, and a small boy walked shakily to the hat (“HUFFLEPUFF!”) and Scorpius tried to tune out the rest of the Sorting until it reached “Weasley, Hugo!”

Scorpius had to shake his head to recover from the haze of drowsiness and he turned his attention back to the front of the Hall, where Hugo had just put the hat on his head. The younger boy wiggled nervously as the hat was silent for a moment. Finally, it shouted, “GRYFFINDOR!” and, looking immensely relieved, Hugo pulled off the hat, put it back on the stool and joined the Gryffindor amidst cheers from his new housemates.

Professor Longbottom waited for the ruckus to die down before he called, “Weasley, Jeannine!” The girl walked forward, glancing around nervously before her eyes shot back down to the floor. She tripped over the stool, and promptly turned bright red in embarrassment at the chortles. Professor Longbottom patted her shoulder reassuringly and she managed a weak smile before she sat down and the hat was placed on her head.

“HUFFLEPUFF!” the hat shouted. The applause from the Hufflepuff table was tremendous. Victoire Weasley looked torn between proud and dismayed, and Isolde smiled at the new arrival, greeting the younger girl with familiarity before making room for Jeannine to sit next to her.

“Weasley, Reine!” was announced next.

The hall hushed again, and the hat was placed on Reine’s strawberry blonde hair, and Scorpius watched perplexedly as she stared almost defiantly at the Hufflepuff table.

“SLYTHERIN!” the hat shouted. Scorpius felt his jaw drop.

There was a moment of shocked silence, before Victoire simply fainted, falling backwards out of her seat at the Gryffindor table. Isolde cried out in surprise, and nearly fell out of her seat as well in her haste to get to the other girl’s side and the entire Great Hall erupted in chaos and shouting. Scorpius met Rose’s bewildered gaze, and then Albus’ equally shocked eyes.

‘Holy-’ Albus mouthed at him, before he was nearly knocked over by the school nurse, who was attempting to make her way down the aisle between the Hufflepuff and Gryffindor table.

“Out of my way, please,” Madam Davis shouted over the students, “I need to get to that girl-” she reached Victoire and knelt down next to her, and carefully patted the girl’s cheeks trying to wake her up. Finally, she sighed in defeat and pulled out some smelling salts.

Scorpius’ eyes flickered over to Reine, who had already removed the hat from her head and was walking to the Slytherin table, her chin held high. He watched as people bunched together in an attempt to keep her from sitting at the table. Scorpius remembered how they had done the same last year to him and how a knot of hurt and loneliness had formed in the pit of his stomach – Professor McGonagall had forced a pair of students apart to make a space for him, and he had been mortified. He hadn’t looked anyone in the face for more than a week afterwards.

Reine’s face was paling and she looked about ready to cry, but her lips tightened stubbornly, and she raised her head again and tried to force two people apart herself. It didn’t work and she was pushed to the floor. Scorpius bit his lip as she trembled, and then made a decision.

He stood up, and the two students around him automatically leaned away from him. Scorpius moved to her side, holding a hand out to her. Reine looked at him, her eyes wide and a bit watery, before taking his hand cautiously and pulling herself up. Scorpius quickly let go of her hand and turned away.

“Come with me,” Scorpius muttered, and went back to his seat at the table and sat down. She hesitated, but followed him quietly and sat down next to him. Scorpius noted, with dark humor, that he had suddenly gained quite a bit more elbow room. The students on either end of the table seemed about ready to fall off the bench.

Reine sat next to without a word until the last first year was sorted until she finally said, “I don’t want you take pity on me because I’m Albus’ cousin,” her voice haughty but hushed, and he almost didn’t hear it.

“My world does not revolve around Albus,” Scorpius said flatly, “And I am not doing this for him.” In fact, the thought hadn’t even crossed his mind. Why in the world would he do this for Albus? Scorpius’ brow furrowed in thought.

Albus was his… friend. He frowned. It was strange to think so – but it was somehow even stranger that he didn’t feel uncomfortable or odd about the thought. Yet, he wondered why Reine would think he would help her because of Albus; just because he considered Albus a friend did not mean that he owed anything to his family as well. He didn’t understand the assumption.

“Let the feast begin!” Professor McGonagall announced, and delicious, steaming platters of food appeared on the tables, eliciting gasps and excited squeals from the first years. Even Reine, who had been eyeing him with skepticism, gaped a little bit at the table. Everyone began to pile food onto their plates, reaching for whatever food within their reach, except, Scorpius saw, any food that he or the girl sitting next to him happened to touch.

Reine had noticed too and had made it her goal to try as many different plates as possible. Scorpius had to withhold a smirk at the dark looks they were getting.

“You, boy, my cou-zin’s friend,” Victoire Weasley’s voice snapped.

Scorpius turned around to look at her and gave her his best disinterested look. “My name,” he said calmly, “is Scorpius. And, if you didn’t know, your cousin’s name is Albus.” Isolde hovered behind Victoire, watching the proceedings nervously as she and Jeannine clutched each other’s hands. Isolde gave Scorpius a fleeting, sheepish smile over Victoire’s shoulder that quickly collapsed when she bit her lip.

An angry line appeared on Victoire’s forehead, and she hissed at him, “You better take care of my sister – and still, if you hurt my cousin, you shall regret it!” Victoire stomped off, and Jeannine gave Reine one last heartbroken look before she and Isolde followed her.

Scorpius blinked after her. Had her accent just mostly disappeared? He glanced to the side, where Reine was making a face at her oldest sister’s back.

“She grew up in France,” Reine muttered, annoyed, “But we moved back when I was only two years old – she was eight.” She snorted. “Victoire can speak perfect English, but she likes to sound exotic,” she said, nearly spitting the last word out.

Scorpius heard the dark tone in her voice, feeling uncomfortable. He didn’t know much about Victoire, beyond the fact that all the boys in the school (excluding her own cousins, of course) went stupid whenever she was around, but from what he’d seen of the Potter and Weasley family, there was nothing to be ashamed or bitter about. He continued to eat his food instead of attempting to answer, and Scorpius wondered why the girl was so spiteful.

They both fell silent and neither spoke again for the rest of the meal. Professor McGonagall introduced the teachers and made her annual welcome speech, and Reine didn’t even ask about the rather strained smile she gave as she invited everyone to sing the school song – she didn’t join in on the singing either.

Afterwards, she walked with the rest of the Slytherin first years with this year’s Slytherin prefects. The other students glanced at her and grouped together to exclude her and Scorpius saw her shoulders slump slightly.

“Scorpy!”

He turned to see Albus and Rose struggling through the crowds of students heading to bed to get to him. Both cousins wore the same look of concern on their faces.

“I can’t believe this,” Rose whispered, glancing around nervously for anyone who might hear, “What will Uncle Bill do? I know my father would go mad if I were sorted into Slytherin! I’m not sure about Aunt Fleur, she went to the other school in France, she probably doesn’t know about the reputation, maybe that’s why Reine ended up in Slytherin-”

“Rose,” Albus hissed, harsher than Scorpius would have imagined he were capable. He gave the other boy a surprised look and received a quick grin in response, before Albus turned fully and seriously to Rose and said solemnly, “There is nothing wrong with being in Slytherin.”

Scorpius was rather taken aback – he hadn’t even thought to be offended, and Albus had defended him. He wasn’t really sure how he felt about that.

“Oh,” Rose said sheepishly, flushing a deep red, “Scorpius, I’m so sorry, of course there’s nothing wrong with being Slytherin…”

Scorpius shook his head, waving her apology away. “It’s fine,” he said, unperturbed, “but your cousin-”

“Reine,” Albus put in quickly, and beamed at Scorpius’ irritated look.

“Fine, Reine,” Scorpius muttered, “She might have a tough time in Slytherin, they’re not very,” he struggled for a moment to think of a word to describe it, and finally said, “…accepting.”

Rose’s expression turned worried again, but Albus simply smiled and patted Scorpius on the back. “But it’s alright, you’ll watch out for her, I’m sure,” Albus said confidently, “I saw what you did for her before, I told you, you are a good person!”

“Shut up,” Scorpius muttered, feeling his cheeks warm up.

“Aw,” Albus teased, “Is Scorpius blushing? Are you embarrassed that I’ve put a spotlight on the fact that mean, ol’ Scorpius is actually a softie at heart?”

“I’m leaving now,” Scorpius informed him, and marched after the first years to the Slytherin dorm rooms.

“You can run, but you can’t hide!” Albus called after him gleefully, and Scorpius heard Rose laugh as she scolded Albus for making a scene. Scorpius rolled his eyes at them as he turned the corner, and he snickered to himself quietly under his breath.

He stepped into the cool Slytherin common room and was surprised at the feeling of emptiness – he’d grown too used to the warmth of the Potter home, he realized, with people always around who jumped over each other and shouted and talked at him incessantly.

Reine sat stood with her fellow first year Slytherins in the middle of the room, gaping in awe. Apparently, the fact that she was a Weasley was set aside as they all shared in the mutual feeling of excitement at finally, finally coming to Hogwarts and discovering their new home.

Scorpius nearly smiled; he could understand how they felt. He tried to recall the feeling he had last year, when he stood beside his fellow students with the wonder of Hogwarts more prominent in his mind – but try as he might, Scorpius could only remember the warm, succulent smell of dinner at the Potter home and elbows being shoved in his face and the burn of well-cooked food in his lap.

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