#badgered

Cygnus had always enjoyed the great hall. The buzz, the chatter, the food, the energy… everything. The first day of Hogwarts was over with… and she wasn’t even paying attention to the food before her.

 Her first day as Potions Professor had gone quite smoothly. Now, her head was filled with lesson plans, students’ names, and different ways to engage her classes. There weren’t very many problems, but she was trying to foresee how circumstances could change, how students might give her trouble (and which), and what she may have to do in order to maintain her authority in her own classroom.

 “You realize that you’ve taken about five minutes just cutting one piece of meat?”

 Albus Bloody Potter.

 Oh yes… there was that too. She hadn’t expected to be sitting anywhere special on the Professors’ table. But she was on the very end of the table, and Potter was seated right next to her. He made it a habit to be as insufferable as possible.

 “Yes. I’m thinking.” She said, before placing the morsel she’d worked so hard to cut into her mouth.

 “Your first day go well?” He asked conversationally.

 “Quite. Almost a little too well, actually. Yourself?” she responded amiably.

 “Very enjoyable, to tell the truth.” He said with a nod. “I half expected to flounder through it or perhaps find it dull and dread doing it, but… The students are engaging and eager to learn.” He paused and looked to her. “Do you find the first years a little googly-eyed?”

 She snorted softly. “Googly-eyed?” she repeated, though without over-embellishing the term. She simply wanted clarification.

 “Yes. They seem so… well, fascinated to be here.” he paused, as if to survey the ends of the tables where the first years sat. “Which is normal, but they also seem a bit slow.” he amended.

 “It is their first year.” Cygnus defended soothingly.

 “We weren’t like that in our first year.”

 “Don’t speak for me.”

 He chuckled, his bright smile and that damn sparkle in his eyes…it was ridiculously disarming and infuriating at the same time. Why was this infuriating man so easy to talk to?

 “Very well then, I wasn’t like that. I had to be held back in most everything. I never sat back and stared like a moon-struck loon, I wanted to sink my teeth into everything.” He was looking at her again. “What about you? Everyone remembers first year; what was yours like?”

 Her expression sobered considerably. The beginning of her first year had been horrid. She felt so shamed at being sorted into Hufflepuff that she wouldn’t look at her brothers. She even went so far as to actively avoid them.

 She had gotten good at casting privacy and silencing charms out of necessity, because she didn’t want to wake up her roommates with her crying. She’d lost 5 pounds.. which didn’t seem like much, but she had been 11 at the time, and the pattern was to gain not lose weight.

 Finally, the headmistress had flooed her parents… She had been terrified when she was summoned to the Headmistress’s office, wondering what horrible atrocity she could’ve committed. And then she saw her mother’s face, and she felt doubly worse. Her mother had hugged her, remarked that she’d lost weight and that they’d been worried over not hearing from her.

 Then her father had requested that both the Headmistress and Mother leave the two of them alone to talk. She wished she had never been born. She wished the floor would swallow her up. She counted the long seconds while she waited for her father’s reproach… and it never came. When the door closed, he wrapped her up in his arms and scolded her over forgetting his words. He reminded her that he didn’t care what house she was in, because she was his daughter first and he loved her.

 “Did I step on a proverbial land mind?” Cygnus blinked to find Potter almost fully facing her now, his expression worried. Honestly. What was he so concerned about?

 “I…” she swallowed hard, still not sure what to tell him. “First year was not my easiest.” She said at last, shifting her focus onto her meal.

 She decided that if she’d be better off cutting her meat up entirely and then eating the small pieces as opposed to cutting them up to eat them one at a time. Especially at the rate she was going.

 “You had a hard time of it then? Being in Hufflepuff?” He asked and she sighed at the surprise in his tone. Was it really so hard to believe that life wasn’t all Honeydukes and Butterbeers for a Hufflepuff? “I mean… I’m not trying to say it as if I’m making fun, like, ‘oooh was it hard for you in Hufflepuff ?’ or anything like that, I’m actually... Curious.” He looked down at his plate awkwardly. “OK, you talk know, please.” He said giving his meal more attention.

 She almost wanted to laugh at his self-consciousness. Almost. She did remind herself that he was a Slytherin…  

 “It was… trying.” Cygnus said at last. That was a word to use, and it wasn’t so volatile that it would betray her confidence. “We all had no idea what to expect for me, but no one expected Hufflepuff… including the other Hufflepuffs. They treated me like a pariah… Lilly, Cleo, and Lucy did their best to cheer me up when they could, and I did my best to put on a brave face and act like…” she stopped herself short, taking a deep breath to settle the swarm of wasps inside her ribcage.

 “Act like?” He was looking askance at her again.

 She sighed out that deep breath. “Act like I hadn’t lost my footing.” She admitted at last. In truth it had felt more like her world was slowly dissolving, but she couldn’t just say that. “My brothers were in Slytherin, my best friends were in Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin, and I was the oddball Hufflepuff.” She shrugged as if to make little of it.

 “But…things did even out?”

 “Eventually, yes. Though loyal, most Hufflepuffs can’t hold an unfounded grudge. Eventually, they all began to feel sorry for me and stopped acting like I had the dark mark. Things truly turned during Christmas break, when I realized I hadn’t disappointed my family.” Cygnus continued to focus on her food in order to avoid glaring at Potter.

 She hadn’t meant to tell him so much. Really. It wasn’t even his fault. What was it about him that was so disarming and charming?

 “You know, it was sort of the same for me…” He admitted. “I did a lot better at not showing it, but I thought about it constantly… the oddball Slytherin in a Gryffindor home.” He shrugged, smirking at his own expense.

 “I imagine Sirius Black must have felt the same at times.”

 “Only when he was home.”

 “Most likely.”

 “But, it was the same for me with Christmas Break… I went home and life was as it always had been. My parents were still the same, James was still insufferable, Lilly was still eager to go to Hogwarts herself.”

 “That’s right, I keep forgetting your two years older than I am.” Cygnus murmured absently.

 He nodded. “Maybe you’re right after all…. Some of them may have a different way of managing, but first years are all just coping with everything.” She took a moment to stare at Potter’s profile. He had a strange pensive stare as he gazed out over the young children. She wondered what he was thinking… or she would’ve, if she hadn’t caught herself thinking about it and then cut that thought process short.

 Some time passed as they ate in silence. But of course, Potter couldn’t just let things be. Near the end of the meal he spoke quietly to her again.

 “Listen…” He said slowly, as though he were measuring the weight of his words. “I have this …idea …for a project with my seventh years that I’d appreciate your help on.” He said carefully.

 “You have a captive audience until I finish this pudding, Potter.” Cygnus replied in lieu of a snappish ‘make it quick’ retort.

 “I was wanting to teach them a bit more about Polyjuice.”

 Cygnus blinked. “Polyjuice?”

 “Yes.” He said nodding vigorously.

 “You know that it takes a month to brew…” she responded.

 “Of course. That’s why I’m conferring with you now .”

 She nodded pensively, her eyebrows lifting slightly. “It would be an interesting way to incorporate it into my own lesson plan.” She reasoned carefully. “I can have it ready for you by next month.”

 “That’s superb, but there’s more.”

 “Of course.”

 “You see, it doesn’t help much to have Polyjuice unless I have someone willing to help me by being a double.”

 Cygnus blinked. “Who are you thinking of asking?” she asked.

 “You.”

 Cygnus’s fork clattered into her plate in a chaotic reflection of her own mental response.

 “But… I… what?”

 “Just hear me out, alright?” she nodded for him to continue. “You polyjuice yourself as me and walk into my class and start doing whatever you want.”

 “Oh… really?”

 “Yes.” He sounded so determined. As though he were trying to maintain his hold on his own train of thought. “Then I walk into the classroom….” He paused, as if for dramatic effect. “See?”

 “See what?”

 He sighed. “The fact that the students will realize the possibility that someone could be deceiving them by way of potions.” Potter stopped, and peered at her closely. “Are you alright? You’ve gone pale…”

 “Um. I’m fine.” Cygnus said with a wooden nod. She wondered briefly how he could tell when she ‘went pale’ since she was already so fair skinned. She did not feel fine, but she was good at faking it. Relatively. “What twists and turns your mind makes.”

 “There are gives-and-takes on all potions, and I’m hoping that some of them will be able to tell that something is up and be able to discern which of us is which.”

 “I do see …the advantages of the lesson, but where does it go from there? Do we squabble or duel to make it more interesting, or just go back and forth asking the students who they think is the real Professor Potter?”

 Potter seemed to be deep in thought as he considered her words. “I don’t like the idea of us dueling… it gives you a chance to actually inflict harm.”

 Cygnus smirked. “Scared, Potter?”

 “Terrified.” He replied with a dramatic wince. Cygnus chuckled softly, shaking her head at his antics. “I think that’s the first time I’ve gotten you to smile.” He had the gall to say, which brought her back down to reality.

 “No fair changing the subject.”

 “That appears to be what you are doing, my dear.”

 “I am not your dear, Potter.” Cygnus growled.

 He smiled rakishly. “The night is young…” his face changed entirely when she glared at him balefully. “Now that… that look should be on the list of Unforgivables.” He joked uneasily. “Really, Cygnus, I didn’t mean—”

 “Never mind.”

 Potter wilted visibly at her snappish tone.

 Oh, this just had to be acting. Potter may have been an oddball Slytherin, but he was a Slytherin. And if there was one thing Slytherins never did, it was trust complete strangers with their moods.

 “Being as the potion will not be ready until a month hence, I imagine we can hammer out the details of our performances in the following month.” Cygnus said, righting their conversation properly.

 “And you’ll go along with the routine?” Potter asked carefully.

 “Yes. Yes. I’ll be you… a decidedly more literate, though poncey version of you—”

 “Hey…”

 “But, I’ll go along with it.”

 Potter nodded. “Good.. I think.” his tone was confident, but his face was skewed in confusion.

 “Now if you’ll excuse me,” She said, rising as she spoke. “I mean to retire for the evening.”

 “Thanks… for everything.” Potter said.

It was three in the afternoon before Cygnus bothered to look up from her work. It wasn't that her office and storage rooms needed the extra attention. She simply had her own methods of organization, and she just had to sort through everything.

 The only reason she bothered stopping was due to the dizziness. The porridge and sausage links she’d had for breakfast were gone, and the orange she’d snacked on for brunch was not lasting.

 She carefully shut and locked the doors to her office before she slipped the keys back into the pocket of her robes and exited her classroom. Once the door shut softly behind her, she turned down the tunnel that would lead to her quarters.

 Time for lunch had long since passed, so she would have to fix herself something... Her vision blurred slightly and she massaged her brow. Perhaps it would be better to summon Dinky to her quarters and request lunch.

 Her arms rose high above her head, stretching to work the kinks out of her back. Another wave of dizziness hit and she faltered sideways. She let out a tiny squeak when a pair of strong arms caught her.

 “What have I caught here?” The deep voice resonated through her spine, sending goosebumps all over. Lips were pressed very close to the nape of her neck, making the hair at the base of her scalp rise and tingle. Something about that voice made the hair on her arms stand on end.

 She wanted nothing more than to thrash about until she was released, but she maintained her composure… just barely. But just enough to bring that steely ‘Malfoy’ edge to her words.

 “Set me up right...and release me.” She commanded.

 A soft chuckle answered her before she felt herself tip back onto her own feet. She schooled the fear from her face before turning to face her 'rescuer'. Her eyes widened as they met a set of mischievous green eyes.

 “Fancy meeting you here, Malfoy.” he murmured, still too close for her liking.

 Cygnus took a step back, crossing her arms over her chest as she glared at him.

 “Potter.” She practically growled.

 The last she'd heard of Albus Potter, he had left his position as a beater in professional Quidditch and was now more known for his 'romantic exploits'. Her father had remarked on many occasions on the astounding obsession the Prophet had with anything and everything ‘Potter’, whether it was news-worthy or not.

 He chuckled at her in the most maddening fashion. Something about his tone, it was deep and almost scratchy, and it seemed to make her skin vibrate unnaturally.

 “If I didn't know any better, I'd say Professor Snape had come back to possess you, what with the way you say 'Potter' and all.” She could see how that might be a worry for him, as he looked so like his father…though he did not wear spectacles, of course.

 “The ghost of one of my predecessor is hardly a worry.” Cygnus admitted. “Now if you'll excuse me... I was just on my way to lunch.”

 “A little late for lunch, isn't it?” He asked, looking slightly puzzled.

 “Indeed.” She muttered, continuing along her way.

 “Why the late lunch?”

 “I wanted to get my office and storeroom in order... it took longer than I thought.”

 “Ahh, so you're the new Potions Professor.” He said, falling into step beside her. Hadn’t she already revealed that by naming Snape as a predecessor? Honestly.

 “I take it you will be the Defense Instructor.”

 He eyed her curiously. “McGonagall told you?” He seemed mildly surprised.

 “Only that there would be a new Defense professor.” She sighed heavily. “Besides myself, you are the only new person here.” She let her eyes drift to him momentarily. “I'm surprised you managed to keep it a secret for so long.”

 “I can keep secrets.”

 “Perhaps, but your exploits are often in the Prophet ... though not as well publicized since you quit Puddlemere.”

 “You shouldn’t believe everything you read.” She heard the smirk in his voice without having to look at him. “You keep up with Quidditch?”

 “Corvus does.” She bit out.

 It was a half-truth… Corvus did keep up with Quidditch, like most wizards.

 Cygnus paid attention to better follow Lilly’s career. Lilly was the most fantastic seeker that had played the game since her father hung up his broom, if Cygnus had anything to say about it, and she did… but Cygnus and Lilly’s friendship was somewhat limited these days… Lilly wasn’t the best at writing letters, as her life was such a whirlwind. So, Cygnus kept up with her career and sent letters weekly.

 “I never would've pegged you as a Puddlemere fan.” Potter remarked, snapping her back to the present along with her churning belly.

 “I prefer the Ballycastle Bats, actually.”

 “What! The bats…” He stared in shock before seeing an impish smirk tugging at the corners of her mouth. He let out a soft chuckle. “Score one for the Potions Professor.”

 “I manage.”

 “Indeed, it seems you know enough to be dangerous.”

 She eyed him. “Are you following me?”

 “I prefer the term ‘escorting’.” He said with a smile. “If I were to leave you alone, I would be afraid you would faint before you could get to your room.”

 Cygnus scoffed. “I shall make a mental note to eat proper meals, lest I gain the dubious honor of being ‘escorted’ by Albus Potter.”  Something around his eyes tightened, making his boyish smirk skew slightly. Cygnus stopped momentarily, releasing a breath. “That sounded much more snide than I had intended…” she observed with only a touch of contrition.

 Potter actually chuckled. “Please tell me you aren’t concerned that you hurt my feelings.”

 “I only fear misinterpretation.” Cygnus quipped. “What was said was intended in jest, not scorn.”

 “I have heard you and Lilly together, you know.” Albus said dryly. “I’m one of the few people who knows that you can speak like an actual person.” Cygnus stared at him resolutely for a beat.

 “And now yours is the tone dripping in scorn.” She remarked.

 “I’m only saying, you sound like a dictionary.” He said, his arms fanning out slightly as if in surrender.

 “Sometimes it is necessary to be better understood.” She admitted before continuing on her way.

 “As you say then.” Albus quipped back, jogging for a pace before catching up with her.

 “You are following me.” Cygnus muttered grudgingly.

 “I’m only checking to see if you’ll actually invite me in.” He replied with a smirk. It make her upper lip curl in a sneer. What cheek. What outright audacity.

 “Mystery solved.” She reported, stopping and leaning back against her door. “Good afternoon, Potter.” She said simply, as she swiftly opened the door, stepped into her room and closed the door before Potter could do more than blink in surprise. With a sigh, she summoned her house elf. “Dinky?”

 “That’s not very polite, Malfoy.” She heard him, though his voice was muddled through the door. Her only response was a bland glare at the offending portal. Of course, that was irrational. It wasn’t the door’s fault that Albus Potter was insufferable.

 “Is Misses needing Dinky?” Dinky asked brightly. Cygnus hadn’t even heard the little dear pop into the room. She was chubby-cheeked, almost cherubic truthfully. And her wardrobe…

 The little house elf was wearing a pale purple dress that Cygnus had given her long ago. Grandfather had been entirely aghast when he learned that Cygnus had begun playing dress-up with her house elf, thereby freeing her. Of course, since Cygnus tended to treat Dinky lovingly, the house elf had no intentions of leaving her servitude. In fact, Dinky had inherited all of the clothes Cygnus had grown out of. Today’s outfit was pale purple dress with a drop waist marked by a border of daisies, set off with a matching purple headband adorned with a single audaciously large daisy.

 “Yes, Dinky.” Cygnus said with a soft smile. “I’m very hungry, Darling, and I was wondering if you could bring me any left-overs from lunch?”

 Dinky’s face twisted slightly in reproach. “Misess is forgetting to eat again?”

 “I’m afraid I did get carried away.” She replied with a nod. “It won’t happen again.”

 Dinky nodded before disappearing.

 Before Cygnus could relax at being alone, a knock sounded from the door. She stared at it first in shock before carefully sliding over and opening it. Her face fell into that bland glare again.

 “May I come in, Cygnus?” Potter asked with a smile.

 “No.” Cygnus replied simply. It grated on her that he was using her first name. Like he knew her. Like he had any right.

 “Why not?” He asked, looking genuinely curious.

 She crossed her arms, leaning her shoulder against the doorframe. “Potter, in case it has escaped your notice, I’ve failed to invite you in twice. This means that I don’t want you to come in. Ergo, you are now imposing.”

 “I only want to know why.” He said with a small smile.

 “I owe you nothing, Potter. Though, I suppose between the two of us, I am more capable of being gracious.” she said, baring her teeth more than she’d like. “Because. It’s my room.” Cygnus snapped. “ Mine . And I am extraordinarily territorial. I have no intentions of sharing it, let alone with you.”

 “Ouch.” He half grumbled, giving a bleak look to the doorjamb.

 “You asked. Nay, you demanded.” Cygnus reminded, bouncing up from the doorway, the door firm in her grasp. “And at the moment, I’d like to eat in peace. Close my eyes for a moment and be alone. I can’t do that if you’re barging in.”

 “Very well, but I wonder if you’ll enjoy the consequences.” He said, looking away with feigned disinterest.

 Cygnus let out a frustrated sigh. “There are consequences to a woman wanting to eat alone?”

 “Oh yes.” Potter had the cheek to smile at her. “See you around, Cygnus.” He said before turning and leaving.

***********

11 year-old Cygnus bobbed her left knee as she peered through the window in their compartment, watching the other families mill about. She could not contain her excitement! And her twin brother Corvus was simply sitting there next to her with his eyes closed! Usually, she could rely on Corvus to understand her moods and be her sounding board (or the other way around), but he seemed overly bored with the entire process.

 "Really, Corvus. I don't know how you can sleep at a time like this." she muttered.

 "Who could possibly sleep when you're shaking the whole compartment?" Corvus asked, his eyes still closed.

 Twin siblings they may be, but you would never find two children so dissimilar in appearance or personality. Cygnus was the baby girl of the family, and like their old brother Scorpius, could have been a clone of her father. She thought she was even a bit pale in comparison to him as her hair was nearly white. Father had always smiled and told her she looked as divinely elegant as grandmother in her youth.

 Corvus on the other hand, though pale in complexion, had ebon black hair and rich brown eyes. Grandmother often said he acquired his features more from the her side of the family. Not that the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black had disapproving features; far from it! Like all Malfoys, the twins did have sharp features, but Corvus's chin was perhaps a little more broad and rounded. Today, they were both dressed in elegant but neutral black robes.

 "It's just too exciting!" Cygnus whispered. "And why aren't we moving yet?"

 "Sister-dear, really. This is what comes from your over-eagerness. You were the one who encouraged Father and Mother to depart early, you hurried us all onto the train as soon as it arrived. Now we're settled and ready and for what? To watch everyone else blather about." He sighed and shook his head. "You asked how I could sleep, but the true question is how can you stay awake?"

 "I hardly slept all night!" Cygnus beamed.

 “Damn your chipper attitude, woman.” Cygnus had no idea why he kept calling her ‘woman’…it was like he was deliberately trying to mimic Father, but only when he wasn’t present.

 "The train hasn't even moved, and already you're damning your sister." Scorpius's voice came from the door as he smiled at his siblings.

 "Have you settled into your compartment, big brother?" Cygnus asked. She noted that Corvus had opened an eye to survey Scorpius, but almost immediately shut it and returned to his fake rest.

 "Of course. Sorry I can't sit with you two, but—”

 "Oh, bah. You wouldn't want to sit with us anyway." Corvus grumbled.

 "We understand, of course." Cygnus gushed making her brother gain a bit of color.

 "Well, if you need anything, you know where to find me, right? The train should be fully loaded soon, and then we'll be on the move."

 "We'll be fine, but thanks, Scoro." Cygnus said, whispering the nickname. Scorpius only nodded with a smile before closing the door and leaving.

 Cygnus sighed at her still inanimate twin before looking about the cabin to see if anything could be tended to in order to kill time. Father had said that the food on the train was abysmal, and thus sent them with their own lunch and snack packs. Corvus had situated them on the seat across from them so that they would be easy to reach. Their luggage was, of course, already well secured. There really was nothing to do but wait.

 If she was being entirely honest, she would admit that her nervous energy wasn't just from the excitement of going to Hogwarts.... she almost feared her place there, and finding out what it would be. It was easy to see the house her brothers would fall into. Scorpius had already been in Slythern for ages now, and Corvus would no doubt be joining him.... but after hearing their parents talk about it, she truly couldn't profess any enthusiasm for falling into that house. She had confessed that to her mother a few nights ago. She was afraid that thinking to refuse Slytherin would place her into the dreaded Gryffindor! Her mother had taken her hand and brought her to Father's office. Mother had explained their little talk to him.

 Father only smiled at her lovingly and said, "Swan-love, it isn't as though we haven't known you may not fit in to the house of Slytherin for a long time."

 "You have?" She asked drearily.

 "You're nothing like your brothers, and there's little doubt that you would be torn to shreds from your housemates vying for position." he announced. She hung her head a bit. "But you'll still be our baby girl, no matter what house you're sorted into. You most certainly have the brain power to land you in Ravenclaw quite easily." He had said with a smile. "And if it's Gryffindor..." He sighed and smiled. "Well, Sirius Black was sorted into that house, and he's one of us, isn't he?"

 "From the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black, to boot." Mother had reminded.

 Cygnus stared between her parents in awe. "Wow..." She murmured. After that, she had been fairly encouraged... especially after she had gotten big hugs all around.

 Corvus sighed, pulling her out of the memory. "I hate these black robes." He grumbled.

 "Only because it blends in with your fabulous hair so well." Cygnus sniffed.

 "Whatever. Tonight we'll be in Slytherin green."

 "Well.. you will."

 Corvus blinked at her. "Huh... I never thought about it, but you probably won't be in Slytherin with us..."

 "It's probably for the best." Cygnus pointed out. "Father said I might not survive the in-house scheming."

 Corvus nodded thoughtfully. "True." Then he smiled at her. "You would look spectacular in Ravenclaw blue."

 Cygnus smiled back, glad for his understanding. A few seconds passed and Corvus was pretending to doze off again. Cygnus stared out the window. Ravenclaw blue? Yes, that would be a good compliment to her coloring. Not as good as Slytherin green, but her chances of earning her way into said color was improbable at best. Still, blue won hands down over the hideous Gryffindor red. She hoped she would never humiliate her family in such a way. She laughed inwardly, wondering what the founders would think if they knew their legacy was being weighed in the balance as a fashion statement.

 The sound of the door sliding open brought her attention away from the window. A girl her age with long red hair and warm brown eyes eyed the two occupants. When no greeting came from the intruder, Corvus opened an eye before narrowing it at her in a glare. It looked ridiculous.

 "Uh... sorry for interrupting, but... there are very few seats left open, and I was wondering if you had any spare room?" the girl asked, glaring back at Corvus.

 "Oh! Yes, of course!" Cygnus gushed, reaching over and taking their lunch and snack packs from the opposite seats. "Please sit with us! My brother keeps nodding off, and I'm much too excited to sleep. I would love the company." She said, as she put the lunch packs on her lap. The girl smiled and sat down across from Cygnus.

 "My name's Lilly, by the way." She said with a smile. Well, she was smiling at Cygnus. Corvus had opened both eyes to alternately glare between Lilly and Cygnus, which meant he was being ignored by both girls.

 "Oh, what a pretty name." Cygnus whined softly. "Much better than mine. I'm Cygnus." she said drooping.

 "...Cygnus?" Lilly asked in obvious sympathy and clearly confused.

 Cygnus nodded. "It's a family name... My twin here is Corvus. Don't mind him, he just doesn't make friends with people easily or quickly." Cygnus said with a smile as she waved off her brother. Corvus glared at her momentarily before settling back with a sigh and staring off at the empty space in front of him.

 "Yeah, he doesn't strike me as a people person."

 "He can be, when he wants to. He just likes to make sure he doesn't waste the effort on people he doesn't know." Cygnus said with a shrug. "Silly if you ask me." She gave her undivided attention to this new person now. "Oh, I love your hairpins!" She said, gushing softly so as not to disturb her twin.

 Lilly tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear self-consciously, but smiled at the compliment. "My Dad got them for me." She said.

 "Oh, my Dad got me some things too. He calls them 'vanity pieces' because it's all jewelry and hair things and such." Cygnus said with a smile. "But, I can't wear any of them till we get to our houses tonight. He charmed them so that they can switch colors to whatever house I get sorted into... since, well... we're not really sure where I'll be. He didn't want to buy me a bunch of things that I may never want to wear."

 Lilly smiled. "That's clever." She said. "Dad just assumed that I would be in Gryffindor." She said with a shrug. "But I guess none of us really know where we'll be."

 "Oh, I knew where my brothers would be long before they got sorted. It's Slytherin green for them."

 Lilly blinked. "Albus is in Slytherin too."

 “Albus Potter?” Corvus asked, his voice hard. For an 11 year-old at least.

 The two girls paused, Lilly thrown slightly at the intrusion in the conversation, and Cygnus because if that were true, it meant that Lilly was THE Lilly Potter....

 "Yes..." Lilly answered slowly.

 "Hm. I thought I recognized you." He said, before settling back and closing his eyes again.

 The two girls blinked at one another, wondering where that left them. Cygnus finally decided that it really didn't matter who Lilly was related to. She had been very nice after all.

 "He's so odd." She said, shaking her head with a sigh.

 "Sorry..." Lilly murmured looking away.

 "What for?"

 "Well... for not properly introducing myself?"

 Cygnus smiled brightly. "Oh, but you look just like your mother, so it's easy to recognize. If anyone should apologize, it should be me. But I look so much like Father, I assume everyone knows who I am."

 Lilly looked at her for a moment before cocking her head to the side. Her eyes darted up to their luggage in the rack before rounding and returning to Cygnus. "Malfoy?" she breathed in awe.

 Cygnus beamed. "Explains the strange name, doesn't it?"

 Lilly chuckled. "I suppose."

 "Is that alright?" Cygnus asked, momentarily worried that the Potter/Malfoy feud may have carried over to this generation without her knowing it. "That I'm a Malfoy, that is?"

 Lilly smiled softly, her eyes seeming to warm up again. "Does it matter that I'm a Potter?"

 Cygnus smiled back. "Not at all. I think I'm going to like you."

 The two girls ended up talking the entire trip. They barely even noticed the scenery outside as the train sped on its way to Hogwarts. Lilly found out that Cygnus loved to swim and ride horses, but that she felt a little lost in her family. Cygnus told her how her grandparents always scolded her over her posture, saying she was too timid.

 "Now, Cygnus, you are the swan of the family." Cygnus said, trying to mimic Grandmother. "You must hold your head aloft and your shoulders must be squared back. We are Malfoys and we do not lack in confidence." Lilly had laughed at Cygnus who tried to hold her chin sky high and press her shoulders back dramatically. It almost looked like she was about to leap and flap her arms or some other silly interpretive dance.

 Cygnus discovered that Harry Potter wasn't just the hero of the wizarding world, but he was his daughter's hero as well. Not because he was dynamic and heroic, but because no matter how high up in the wizarding world he may be, he was never too busy to climb trees or read aloud before bed. Lilly also liked to fly, but that was supposed to be a secret. Evidently, she and her dad would sneak out to fly together, but they had to keep it a secret because Lilly was ‘too young’ by…well… by someone’s standards. She never had said who exactly objected to the notion.

 By the time the girls stepped off the train, they were friends. The castle loomed ahead, and they both knew that it wouldn't be long before they would officially be Hogwarts students.

 “Lilly?" Cygnus whispered leaning in to her friend as they waited just beyond the great hall.

 "Hm?"

 "... Will you still be my friend... even if I end up in Slytherin?"

 Lilly smiled at her. "Don't worry, Cygnus. I'm from Gryffindor stock. We're a brave type. I'll be your friend no matter what house we're both in.”

 Cygnus smiled. "I feel the same way. Houses shouldn't be the way we label everyone."

 Lilly nodded in reply, and may have elaborated, but then the grand doors were opening... and it was so much to take in. Cygnus could barely breath from the grandeur of it all. Two wizarding wars could not diminish the magnificence that was Hogwarts.

 "I shall call out your names and you shall sit beneath the sorting hat." The speaker may as well have spoken in another language for all Cygnus heard. She was too busy searching out Scorpius at the Slytherin table. There he was! Oh, her brother looked fairly dashing in his Prefect robes... well, they weren't very different from normal robes. But she was biased, and Scorpius always looked dashing.

 "GRYFFINDOR!!"

 Cygnus jumped as the first person was sorted. A golden-haired girl she hadn't met from the train leapt off the chair and scampered happily over to the Gryffindor table. Perhaps it would be better to pay more attention. She forced herself to watch as each student's name was called, then the hat sorted them into their houses. If the wait for the train to leave the station had been long, the wait to get to the M's seemed an eternity.

 "Malfoy, Corvus."

 Corvus smirked, tossed a wink over his shoulder at his sister and sauntered over to the chair. Cygnus sighed inwardly envious, but smiled at him approvingly. If only she could be so confident. There were whispers among the tables, but none so much as the Slytherin table. The hat hadn't been on his head for five seconds before it declared its verdict.

 "SLYTHERIN!!!"

 Cygnus gave a little jump and actually clapped along with the other cheering students.

 "Malfoy, Cygnus."

 Cygnus made sure her chin was as level, high as it needed to be and her shoulders were straight, just like Grandmother had taught her. She wafted over to the chair and perched daintily, placing her feet together and to the side. The hat was placed upon her head, and immediately, the evaluation began.

 "Oh my... my my my my my. Such a bright child."

 "Thank you." Cygnus whispered with a bashful smile.

 "Yes, but the mentality I see here is nothing like the mark left on you by your family name."

 "Yes..." She responded, lowering her eyes a bit. "We assumed that would happen."

 "hmmmm." The hat pondered. "You are quite intelligent... but, you do not peruse knowledge for the sake of knowledge."

 Cygnus's brow drew up as she pondered that assessment. ‘Well.. I suppose that is true.’ She had never considered herself madly intelligent anyway. Still being told she was bright right away was quite the compliment. The hat seemed so good at seeing through to the heart of the matter.

 "Such a lovely child. You are very brave in matters of the heart.... you give your love quite freely, but without a thought of what you may get in return."

 Cygnus pouted slightly, as was her habit when she thought of things. She kept her gaze downward, feeling there was no need to respond to that. Love and the act of loving was hardly something to reward. It wasn't as if the people around her were difficult to love. Even Grandfather was easy to love, and everyone always complained about him for some reason. Then again, of her entire family, Cygnus was the least noteworthy. She was average or passing in most of her pursuits and private studies, and that was a high praise.

 "HUFFLEPUFF!!"

 Cygnus's eyes popped open wide, staring blankly ahead. Had she heard right? Hufflepuff? She was a Hufflepuff? She slid off the chair, fingers numb and arms so cold… barely noticing Lilly's cheerful, encouraging smile. The heated whispering that surrounded her grew to exuberant proportions, making her feel as though she were surrounded by vipers.

 "Enough!" Headmistress McGonagall shrilled firmly, regaining order. "You may sit with your  housemates, Child." She said.

 Cygnus nodded politely and wandered over to the Hufflepuff table. She tried to ignore the girl she sat next to, since she had made a show of trying to edge away from Cygnus.... She kept her eyes lowered, her gaze on the empty plate in front of her. There was no way she could meet either of her brothers' eyes.... Outwardly, Cygnus seemed demure and resigned, but inwardly she was in torment.

 Hufflepuff. The one house that had not even made it onto Father's list of possibilities. It was bad enough that she wasn't in Slytherin... but Hufflepuff?

 "GRYFFINDOR!!"

 No doubt that was Lilly, joining her family at the Gryffindor table.

 Why? Why had she been put into Hufflepuff? No Malfoy ever... It wasn't even possible to consider it... And yet here she sat. She, Cygnus Violetta Malfoy... the Hufflepuff.

 She vaguely heard the hat call out a few Ravenclaws and wondered why she hadn't argued that she was intelligent! But it had said she was brave too... brave of heart. And she had started thinking about how much she loved her family. Had that been it? What had been the deciding factor?

***********

“There she is!” The cheerful cry brought Cygnus out of her reverie.

 It was bright and early the morning after she had settled in, and the storm had long since blown past. Cygnus was very eager to get down to her classroom and survey it. She had rushed through breakfast almost tripping herself. The halls were empty and terribly quiet, which only seemed to increase Cygnus's giddiness.

 But now, she had been discovered. She looked up to find the Headmistress coming her way with a kind smile on her face.

 Minerva McGonagall had been an elder in the community when Cygnus had been a student. It shouldn’t be too surprising to see the touches of white had bled through, silvering her hair entirely. If grey hair was the sign of wisdom and knowledge was power, then McGonagall was certainly a goddess.

 “Oh, Child, how good it is to see you again.”

 Cygnus smiled, taking the offered hand. “It is my delight, Headmistress.”

 “Oh, Gracious. Minerva, my dear. You must call me Minerva. And I am the one who is delighted.”

 “I shall pretend that it isn't solely because I am saving you from teaching Potions yourself, Minerva.” Cygnus replied with a grin.

 McGonigal chuckled as she fell into step beside Cygnus. “Well, I do suppose you are saving us that chore for the year.” she said. “Now that you've spent your first night back, I must ask if your rooms are to your liking?”

 “Oh, yes of course. I felt terribly spoiled as they are quite grand.”

 “Nonsense. Considering all of the work you will be doing, I believe you shall earn them. Now you shall not hesitate to come to me if there is anything you need, yes?”

 “I’ve little doubt that everything will go smoothly. I've been watching my grandfather and learning to mimic him. He's also given me pointers on how best to intimidate others. If the little whelps get out of line, I can pull some Malfoy charm on them.”

 Minerva chuckled. “Malfoy Charm. Is that what you call it?”

 “Charm? Pride? Disdain?” Cygnus shrugged. “Why does there have to be a difference?” She asked with a sigh.

 Minerva laughed out loud at that. “Now, I'm here to tell you that there will be a staff meeting the day after tomorrow, and you are to attend. It will be at 9 AM sharp, but as I recall, you always were an early riser.”

 “Guilty as charged.” Cygnus said, stopping and turning to face the Headmistress. “Will you be requiring anything specific from this? You did already receive the copy of my syllabus, didn't you?”

 “Oh, no it isn't anything like that, my dear. And, I received your syllabus, as you well know. I distinctly remember flooing back with a five-star approval.”

 “As do I, but there are some moments that we all enjoy reliving.”

 Minerva shook her head. “No, the meeting is more to aquatint the teachers with one another, and introduce new teachers. It helps for us to let you know what to expect.”

 "There are very many things one will never learn in a book." Cygnus said with a heart-felt nod. How many things had she been better prepared for simply for listening to one of her elders?

 “Indeed. And you are not the only new face we have on staff.”

 “Oh?”

 “Yes. He has asked to keep this all confidential, at least until term starts, but we will have a new DADA Instructor as well.”

 “I see. I suppose I'll be meeting him tomorrow morning then.”

 “Indeed you will. I assume you are off to survey your new classroom?” Minerva said with a little grin.

 “Guilty again.” Cygnus said with a self-conscious chuckle.

 “Well, make sure to review all of the stores. I'm sure I ordered everything you'll be needing, but a second pair of eyes never hurts. Now, if you'll excuse me, I really must be off. Horrid this time of year before the children all arrive.”

 “Oh, our poor Headmistress.” Cygnus cooed. “If you should need anyone to share tea and apple pastries with…”

 “I shall not hesitate to summon you, dear.” Minerva said with a parting smile.

Cool air stirred around the lone figure. She stood on the road which lead to Hogsmead, simply standing still and enjoying the scenery. Her dark indigo cloak was pulled tightly around her, a hood raised to keep the wind from bothering her hair. Inhaling the damp air deeply, she let out a gusting sigh.

"S'at you there, little Missus Malfoy?"

Darkened gray eyes turned as she smiled at the half giant approaching. "It is indeed, Professor Hagrid."

"Ah, goodness sakes." Hagrid murmured stopping in front of her. He was still as formidable as she remembered, though distinctly more grizzled and gray. "No need t'call me 'Professor' and wot'not. We're peers after all!"

She beamed up at him gleefully. "So we are. And as such you must desist from calling me Little Missus Malfoy. I have not been little for ever so long." She said with a light giggle.

"Ah, but everyone's a bit on the little side s'far as I'm concerned."

A quiet trilling laugh was his answer. "I'm sure. But could you not call me Cygnus?"

Hagrid grinned a bit. "I suppose... but only if yer willin' t'call me Rubeus."

"It seems a fair trade, Rubeus." She said with a smile. Her eyes soon wondered to the rolling hills and the town beyond. "I had forgotten how dear this place was to me." She murmured, her soft smile just reaching her eyes.

"Aye. No place like it."

"Indeed there isn't." She looked back to Hagrid. "You've no idea how grateful I am to be allowed to teach here. I felt so much was unfinished during my time here as a child..."

"We're all glad t'have you back. You were one of the most delightful of your class! Even fer a-- er..." Hagrid halted not sure how to cover the blunder he was about to make.

She chuckled. "A Malfoy?"

He let out a huff. "S'nothing personal, hon, but..."

"We do have reputations for being rigid high-noses, don't we?" she asked with a conspiratory wag of her nearly invisible eyebrows.

Hagrid barked out a chuckle of relief. "Not to mention crafty trouble makers."

She smiled. "I'm glad my time here proved me to be the exception to the rule." She looked back over her shoulder towards the castle, glad she had tied her platinum blond hair back tightly. The wind was now whipping about them fiercely. "As unfulfilled as my time here was, this is where my life truly began." She said, smiling wistfully back at the castle..

"Aye, but if yer wantin' that life to continue, I suggest we move in doors. A powerful storms brewin'. And yer such a tiny thing... I'd hate to see you get blown away afore you got 'round to teachin'."

She smiled and followed his lead as means of agreement. Passing back into the castle grounds brought on new waves of nostalgia. Had it really been so long ago? She could remember her first time entering this castle like it was only yesterday.