MORALITY ( HARRY POTTER )

FOUR.

Eridanus Lestrange rocked back and forth on his silver and green adorned bed, trembling hands gripping tightly to his hair as he bit his lip harsh enough to draw blood which was his attempt to quiet down his sobs. All that was going through his mind where the images of lives that he hadn't been able to save. They went from the very first one when he was just a child, all the way to the most recent: the Triwizard Tournament maze maker. He wondered what would have happened if those people had been given the chance to live. Would they make their lives better for themselves and those around them? Would they deserve it?

Eri's mind then wandered to a certain woman named Bertha Jorkins. She had been a witch in her late thirties, and worked at the Ministry of Magic. Peter Pettigrew had kidnapped her for Lord Voldemort to get information out of before killing her. Eridanus had witnessed it all and hadn't attempted to save her, which wasn't expected of him but still he wished he could have. Bertha was nosy and not very bright, but that didn't mean she deserved to die.

“Eri, are you ready for breakfast?” A voice was calling out to him, Eridanus immediately recognizing it as that of Draco's.

Eridanus sniffed quietly before hurriedly drying his cheeks and wiping his nose on the back of his sleeve. He couldn't afford to look weak in front of others, even his cousin. “I'll just be a few moments.”

Draco nodded, not that Eridanus could see that, and allowed the boy to change into his school clothes, before he was pulling aside the green curtains that were draped around his bed offering some privacy.

The blonde haired boy paused when he saw Eridanus, immediately knowing that something was wrong. He had lived with his cousin long enough to know when something was bothering him. “Are you…” Draco hesitated, not wanting to seem too nosy. “Are you alright?”

Eridanus, seeing the care that his cousin held for him, smiled softly with a nod. “I'm just fine, Draco. Now let's go eat some breakfast.” Draco didn't fully believe his cousin yet he had no reason to question the matter further, so he simply nodded his head back in reply before the two boys were leaving their dorm and then the Slytherin common room.

The two boys were silent as they made their way to the Great Hall, Draco not wanting to disturb his cousin while Eridanus was deep in thought. They noticed a few lingering Gryffindor’s looking their way. Eridanus noticed how they looked at him calculatingly; they were wondering why he had just enrolled into Hogwarts now. As the pair passed by them, Eridanus could hear a few hushed words of, “Bellatrix...mother...insane...runs in the family…”

Eridanus’ hands clenched from where they resided in his trouser pockets, nails digging harshly into his palm as he held himself back from lashing out at the students. Draco had heard as well and snarled his lip in disgust.

“Oy, who do you filthy Gryffindors think you are?” The blonde haired male snapped at the students, their eyes growing wide in fear. Eridanus simply rolled his eyes at the antics of his cousin, however, a smile threatened to make it's way on to his face at the fact that Draco was protecting him.

“Come on, Draco.” Eridanus spoke up, resulting in all eyes then being turned on to him. “They aren't worth it.”

Draco glared one more time at the Gryffindors before making his way over to Eridanus with a smirk. “You are completely right my dear cousin.” He said as the pair walked away from the other students. Draco was glad that Eridanus was starting to get the hang of how things worked at Hogwarts, and wasn't allowing people below them to rile them up.

As the boys continued making their way down to the Great Hall, all that Eridanus could think about was that people still were going to judge him due to his family. It didn't matter that he was completely different from them, they heard Lestrange and put everyone into the same box as Bellatrix. They didn't know why Eridanus’ mother had done what she did. She wasn't a bad person, simply a woman wanting to protect her child. Was that so wrong? To outsiders, it seemed like it was. The boy mentally cursed himself while clenching his fists harder, nails sinking into flesh harsh enough to draw blood. He couldn't believe that he had been so naive to think that other students would be alright with his lineage and not make assumptions about him until they knew him. Oh how wrong he was.