A/N: This is my first story on this site, so I hope you like it! Please tell me your thoughts and helpful hints! Constructive criticism is welcome. I want to get better, so I would really appreciate it if you helped me!

Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters – only the ones I create. And I also do not own what the Sorting Hat says in Chapter 3.

MALFOY'S SON

CHAPTER 1: HOGWARTS

I sighed; my head leaned back against the cold glass of the window. Albus and another first year were sitting across from me in our compartment of the Hogwarts Express. All of us were already dressed in our robes, ready for whatever adventures lay ahead. I sat up.

"What house do you think the Sorting Hat will put you in, Al?" I asked.

He looked at me as if I had pulled him from deep thoughts.

"Huh?"

"What house do you think you'll be in?"

"Uhh… Gryffindor, hopefully. I don't think I'd really fit in anywhere else… What about you, Rose?"

I thought about that for a second. What house did I want to be in?

"Gryffindor, I suppose. Ravenclaw would be fine, too. What about you?" I asked, looking at the pale girl across from me. A small smirk lit up her face.

"Slytherin, of course! My whole entire family was in Slytherin, so I shouldn't be any different." She smiled as if she had just told us the best news of her life.

"I'm sorry; I didn't catch your name."

"Mallorie Lindon's the name, don't wear it out."

Note to self, stay away from Mallorie Lindon. I leaned my head back against the window and stared at the ceiling. The train just couldn't go fast enough for me; I'd been waiting to go to Hogwarts for eleven years and I couldn't stand to wait one second more!

To pass the time, I tried to content myself by fiddling with my new wand. It was ten inches of yew with a strand of unicorn hair at the core. I desperately wanted to try out the new spell mum taught me.

Just then, someone stumbled into our compartment.

"Oops," I heard someone say.

I looked up just in time to see a mousy-looking boy drop a hand-full of glass vials onto the floor. They all shattered in a million pieces and I smiled; this was the perfect way to practice mum's spell!

"Reparo!" I said, pointing my wand at the pile of broken glass.

Instantly, the shattered glass began to repair itself, molding together as if it had never been dropped in the first place. I smiled at my handiwork. My very first spell and it worked perfectly!

I glanced at Al and he was staring at me in awe. "How did you do that?"

I shrugged, blowing off my fabulous feat as if I did magic every day.

"Thanks," the mousy boy said, looking right at me with his gray eyes.

"No problem."

The boy was probably a foot taller than me, with light brown hair. He looked to be a little bit older, maybe in his second or third year.

"Mind if I sit here?"

I glanced at Al and Mallorie Lindon. Al shrugged and Lindon just rolled her eyes, continuing to read whatever book was in her lap.

"Sure!" I said, "What's your name?"

"I'm Nathaniel Cory. What are your names?" He looked at the three of us.

"I'm Albus Potter, but you can call me Al."

"Nice to meet you, Al," Nathaniel extended his hand to Al, who shook it. Then Nathaniel looked to Mallorie.

She sighed, her eyes never leaving her book, and said, "Mallorie Lindon… and I don't shake."

Nathaniel looked at me as if to say, "Well, she's friendly."

"And I'm Rose Weasley," I shook Nathaniel's hand and smiled. "It's so nice to meet you."

"And you," Nathaniel said, smiling back.

The rest of the train ride went rather fast. Nathaniel, Al, and I talked and laughed the rest of the way, pointedly ignoring Lindon, who acted like a prat every time we tried to bring her into the conversation.

As it turned out, Nathaniel was in his third year and was a Gryffindor. After listening to him describe the Gryffindor dormitories – the boys' dorms at least, - the common room, and the Quidditch team, I found myself desperately wanting to be a Gryffindor. Nathaniel described everything with such a passion that even snobby Lindon would glance up from her book occasionally.

I imagined myself in crimson and gold robes, proudly posing for a picture to send to mum and dad. How happy they would be to learn that I was following in their footsteps! Dad especially; he would never shut up about how great the Gryffindors were and how absolutely horrid the Slytherins were. It really got boring after eleven years.

Al looked at me and I smiled. Nathaniel was talking about Gryffindor Tower and how it overlooked the grounds. I closed my eyes to picture what he was saying. A great stone tower looming over the castle grounds, perhaps looking over the lake Aunt Ginny had mentioned. I'd have to ask Nathaniel about that. Or, better yet, I could just find out for myself!

I sighed in contentment, listening to Nathaniel's stories. As Nathaniel began to describe – in detail – the skills of Gryffindor's amazing Quidditch team, I looked out the window and saw it… Hogwarts had come at last.