To Be a Wealsey [A Hugo Weasley Centric Fanfiction]

Prologue

To say Hugo was nervous would be the understatement of the century. The poor boy was trembling as he stood on the platform, staring up at the Hogwarts Express with his jaw hanging open. He couldn't believe it. He was actually going to Hogwarts, after years of waiting, of hearing about it from his sister, cousins, and parents, he was actually going. He was so terrified. Rose had told him all about how she was recognized from the moment she stepped onto the train, everyone clammering to meet her. What if they did that to Hugo? What if a bunch of people who he didn't know started surrounding him until he couldn't breathe? Hugo had never done well in crowds, usually panicking and melting down. He couldn't do that on the Hogwarts Express, this was his chance to make a good first impression on his schoolmates. Of course, they had probably heard about him before, from Rita Skeeter and her childrens' nasty articles. Hugo swallowed thickly, he didn't want everyone's first impression of him to be a whiny crybaby like the Skeeters made him out to be.

"Hugo, come on." Rose urged her younger brother, tugging on his hand. "We should really get on, the train is going to leave soon." she smiled up at her parents, giving them tight hugs goodbye. "Don't worry, Hugo will be fine. It's Hogwarts, safest place on Earth." she grinned wildly, all freckles and smiles. "Bye, Mom! Bye, Dad!" she gave one last wave before walking towards the train, pulling Hugo behind her.

Hugo stumbled after his sister, his eyes wide as he looked back at his parents, waving numbly. Everything was happening so fast, he could barely keep up. He took a deep breath as he took his first step onto the train, looking at the long hallway with compartments everywhere. He didn't know what to do. How could he? It was all so overwhelming. He allowed Rose to gently pull him along until they reached a mostly empty compartment, save two figures.

Albus looked up. "Rose!" the boy grinned at his cousin, messy black hair hiding his eyes. He pushed his bangs out of the way and waved them inside. "And Hugo!" he said happily, noticing the younger boy. "Come in, come in!"

As soon as Hugo took a single step in, he was swooped into a tight hug. "Oh Merlin, Hugo, can you believe it?" Lily barely broke away from the hug before she launched into a rant. "We're really going to Hogwarts! It's Hogwarts, Hugo! We've been waiting for this for like our whole lives!" the girl was practically buzzing with excitement, the grin on her face so wide that Hugo thought it might split her into two. "Aren't you excited?"

"Slow down, Lil." Rose laughed, sensing that her brother was becoming quite overwhelmed. "Of course Hugo's excited, but if you keep bouncing around like that, you won't have any energy for once we actually arrive at the school." she chuckled, sitting down. Hugo immediately took a seat next to her.

Lily rolled her eyes, but reluctantly sat beside her older brother before turning back to Hugo. "Well?" she asked excitedly, the grin never leaving her face. "Aren't you excited? You're gonna be a Gryffindor, right? Well, of course you are! Everyone's a Gryffindor!"

"Hey!" Albus exclaimed, crossing his arms.

"Oh, right." Lily turned scarlet. "I forgot that you were in Slytherin." she admitted sheepishly. "But apart from him-"

"Lily, a lot of people aren't in Gryffindor." Rose said with a roll of her eyes. "If you and Hugo get into Gryffindor, that's great! If not, that's okay too. We'll love you all the same." she said with a smile.

Albus ruffled Lily's hair. "Well, I don't know about love, but we'll put up with you." he teased, his sister pouting at him and trying to fix her hair.

"Yeah, yeah. Hilarius." Lily rolled her eyes. "But seriously, Hugo. What house are you hoping for?" she asked her cousin.

Hugo just shrugged, not wanting to talk at all. This was honestly just too overwhelming. He just wanted to sit with some peace and quiet, staring out of the window until they got to the school. He looked back at his family to see them all staring at him, making it obvious that he wouldn't get away with being silent. He sighed deeply. "I-I'm hoping for Gryffindor, I guess?" he said in a quiet voice, not because he actually hoped to be in Gryffindor, but because that seemed to be the correct answer.

"Me too!" Lily chirped. "After all, Gryffindor is the best house!"

"I disagree." Said Albus stubbornly. "Slytherin is definitely the best, after all, we're ambitious. We get stuff done."

"Says who?" Lily challenged. "I don't think you've ever done anything a day in your life!"

"That's not true! Just yesterday, I-" Albus was cut off by a hesitant knock on the door. Hugo looked up to see a rather tall boy with messy blond hair and green eyes standing at the entrance of the compartment. Hugo recognized him immediately.

"U-Uh...hey, guys..." Scorpius murmured quietly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry if I'm interrupting, it's just that...well, most other places are full." he explained nervously.

"Scorp!" Albus broke into a grin. "No, it's okay! Come in!" he waved his best friend inside. "We're happy to have you! Hey, isn't Slytherin the best house?"

"Unfair! Now I'm outnumbered!" Lily complained.

"Not true. You have Rose." Albus pointed out with a smirk.

Scorpius blushed, sitting down on the other side of Rose. "I don't know about the best..." he murmured, still rubbing his neck nervously. "I mean, I don't think that any house is better than any other." he shrugged a small bit. "There's good things about all of them."

Albus pouted. "Not helpful, Scorp." he stuck his tongue out at his friend, making the other boy laugh.

"Sorry. I'm just telling the truth." Scorpius insisted. He looked around the compartment. "Oh! There are new people here. I don't think we've met." he looked between Lily and Hugo.

"I'm Lily Luna Potter!" Lily introduced happily. "It's my first year! I'm going to be in Gryffindor, of course! I'm also going to be a seeker." she said as if it was guaranteed.

"Oh, I see." Scorpius nodded. "Well, I'm Scorpius Malfoy." he introduced almost shyly. "I'm a second year Slytherin." he smiled and looked at Hugo, who had just been watching quietly.

Hugo looked at him. "Oh. I'm Hugo." he said in a very quiet voice, anxious as always about meeting new people.

"Hugo Weasley." Rose said, as if Hugo had just forgotten to mention his last name, as if his last name was all that mattered. "My brother." she explained.

Hugo sighed and sunk into his seat. Right. Weasley. That's always what he was, wasn't it? He wasn't Hugo, he was Hugo Weasley. Being a Weasley was all that mattered in the world. It was all that mattered to other people.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Hugo Weasley." Scorpius said with a smile. "The Potters, the Weasleys, and the Malfoys, all in one spot. I think we'll make a great group." he laughed.

Hugo sighed. "Yeah. The Potters, the Malfoys..." he trailed off, looking out of the window. "And the Weasleys."

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