from Time to Time | Lucius Malfoy

First years...

1964, September 1st

"Merlin's beard, that brat wastes half of my life, I'm not going to wait for very much longer!" Mister Malfoy's voice thundered through the entrance hall of the house. He paced up and down the room, his leather gloves in his left hand, his walking stick in his right, tapping the eye of the snake whose head formed the knob with his forefinger.

Today was the first day of school, Lucius would finally attend Hogwarts. All school supplies had been taken care of weeks ago. Of course, his son only got the best of the best, both fellow students and faculty should see at first glance that it was that time again, that a heir of the  Malfoy family would finally set foot on the halls of Hogwarts again. The house? Definitely Slytherin. It better would be, otherwise they boy'd get kicked out of the house.

"I'm ready, I just had to-" the boy started, but there was already a clapping. The leather gloves hurt most. The boy looked up at his father with glazed eyes and fought back tears. "Excuse me, father, sir." Abraxas nodded. What was this brat thinking, talking to him so disrespectfully? "Come on, off you go." Mister Malfoy pushed the boy out of the door, grabbed his shoulder and apparated with him straight to the train station. He didn't care that apparating with minors, especially children under the age of 15, was dangerous. He wanted to move fast as can be since he had to take the boy to the train and then go to an important meeting at the ministry.

Ever since that harlot of a nanny ran away three years ago, he mostly let the house elves take care of his son. He simply didn't have any time for the child and he had absolutely no interest in dealing with it either. Unfortunately he couldn't send Dobby, that useless creature of an elf, to King's Cross with his offspring. He had to go there himself. After all, the most important purebloods of England would accompany their offspring to the train, it was sort of a social event.

Lucius swayed. Apparating wasn't exactly his preferred mode of travel but he'd managed to not throw up this time. The boy shouldered his backpack, loaded his suitcase and the owl in its cage onto a luggage trolley and looked up at his father. "Are- Are you going with me? Through the wall? Father, sir?" His voice trembled. Lucius wasn't a baby anymore but that wall scared him.

"Don't act like a girl... Come on!" His father hissed and caused the boy to swallow hard. He pushed his trolley through the barrier between platform 9 and 10 at a brisk pace, his father's watchful eye on him. Mister Malfoy looked around briefly and then followed his son.

Lucius was amazed, he had never seen a train before and the Hogwarts Express was breathtaking. Black and red, beautiful colours... Everything was green at home... "Are you asleep? Keep walking!", his father hissed again and pushed him forward, his cane pressed into the boy's back.

After the luggage was loaded and most of the parents said goodbye affectionately to their youngest, Lucius stood motionless next to his father, who was talking to mister Black. Lucius knew mister Black, he had three daughters. Over the last year the Blacks have been come to visit repeatedly. The eldest sister, Bellatrix, has been somehow odd. A skinny girl, curly hair, brown eyes, slightly older than Lucius, maybe 4 years. The middle sister, Andromeda, was his favorite Black girl. She had long brown hair, mostly braided into pig tails and started school a year before Lucius. It's a shame, he would have loved to be in class with her. And then there was Narcissa... petite, blond, blue eyes and just plain boring. An annoying appendage. Thank Merlin she hasn't started school yet, she was almost two years younger than Lucius. During the summer holidays, his father had told him that one day he would marry one of the Black sisters. Lucius hoped for Andromeda, since Bellatrix was already promised to one of the Lestrange boys. But Lucius didn't want to think about marriage today. Firstly he was only 11 years old and secondly today was his first day of school at Hogwarts. He was excited. SMACK. His father had done it again.

"Are you deaf? Can't you hear the train is about to leave? Now get on it, I don't want to stay here forever!" His father looked down at him hatefully. Lucius nodded and said goodbye to him and mister Black, walked towards the train and took a deep breath. Why couldn't his father be a little nicer? The other children got hugged- "Lucius!" His father's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, he stopped and turned around. What? Did his father really want to hug him? Say goodbye? Show emotions?

"Here. Don't be thrifty, the others need to see that you come from the best family in England.", his father shoved a few golden coins into his pocket and nodded benevolently. Money. Of course. What else. "Thank you, father.", he turned around and walked on. He didn't have to turn around again to know that his father was already gone. He knew it. His father wouldn't wait for the train to leave like all the other parents did. His father didn't have time for such things.

Lucius took a deep breath and was just about to get on board when someone called his name again, this time it was a woman's voice: "Lucius?" He turned around. The woman waved at him. He knew her, was about to start running towards her but the signal from the train let him know he had to get on now. He waved back excitedly. "Mummy!"

With a grin on his face Lucius got on the train, sat down in the first free compartment and pushed his nose against the window. The train pulled away and he waved excitedly, the woman was still standing there, smiling and waving back. When the train had left the station, he sat back in his seat and giggled: "My mummy waved me goodby, I saw her!" - "First years...", the boy across from him just shook his head and delved back into his book.

Lucius didn't care.

He was quite sure his mummy came to see him leaving for Hogwarts and waited for the train to leave.