𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘹 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘬

Scorpius: II

I glanced at Albus as the train pulled into the station. He was deep in a book, brow furrowed, thick dark lashes just covering his bright green eyes as he slanted his gaze down at the page. He was chewing on his lip, and as I watched, he flicked a strand of his unruly hair out of his eyes. I hastily averted my eyes as he shut the book and looked up, pink creeping up my ears.

I stood, stumbling as the train stopped. Albus, who had stood as well, caught me, and for a brief moment I was up against his chest, a hair's breadth from his face. Blushing furiously now, I shoved a strand of white-blond hair behind my ear and heaved my trunk off of the rack. Through the window, I could just make out my father's tall, lanky figure through the crowd. As Albus and I headed off the train, I narrowed my eyes. "Who's that?" Albus asked, pointing towards my father. A girl who looked about our age stood next to him. She looked like me in that she looked like him, with angular features, blonde hair, and a slender build. She had her arms crossed and her stance squared as if she was ready for a fight, but there was wonder in her dark eyes. I noticed a wand strapped to her thigh as she shifted uncomfortably, clearly feeling out of place.

"I'm not sure," I replied. "Never seen her before."

"She looks like she could be your sister," Albus noted. "Maybe she's related?"

"I don't think I have any relatives our age," I said curiously. We stepped off the train and began to forge our way through the crowd. "I suppose I'm about to find out, though."

"Yeah, s'pose."

I resisted the urge to grab his hand and instead grabbed his shoulder to keep from getting separated. When we arrived in front of our parents, who were near each other despite their unresolved dislike of each other, I got a better chance to examine the girl.

She was perhaps an inch or two shorter than Albus and I, light-boned and fair-complexioned. She looked slightly ill, her face just a little too hollow to be excused by being skinny. Despite that, I could tell she was strong, lithe muscle lining her frame. She wore an oversized T-shirt and elbow-length fingerless gloves, a black hoodie around her waist. She had dark eyeliner and black distressed jeans. Overall, the dark attire served mostly to make her already pale skin and hair look even more corpselike, but she somehow pulled it off. She had multiple piercings in her ears, one of which was a serpent that curled around her earlobe.

"Hey," she said. I was surprised by her voice, which was low and rough. Nearby, Albus was talking with his family, so I was left alone with my father and the girl. "I'm Artemis Malfoy." She offered me her hand, and I shook it. Her fingers were cold, but the palm of her hand, covered by the glove, was warm. "I'm your cousin, and I'll be living with you for the foreseeable future."

"I didn't know I had a cousin."

"Yeah, well..." She shrugged. "Surprise?"

I laughed, shooting a look at Father out of the corner of my eye. He looked, as usual, nonplussed, but he had a faint smile on his face. "Are you going to be attending Hogwarts?"

"Yeah." She, too, glanced at my father. "I'm sorry, am I holding us up? Should we leave, or..."

"It's fine," Father said. I nodded.

"Oh," I said suddenly. "You should meet Albus before we leave."

"Albus Potter?" she said, too quickly.

"You know him?"

"The Augurey's obsession with him was well-known among the followers of the Dark Lord."

"Huh?"

"My parents were Death Eaters."

"Oh."

"Don't worry," she said hurriedly, "I don't take after them. I'd love to meet your friend." I looked at Father, who nodded.