Pariah: The Other Malfoy

Chapter 8: Quidditch

"How was your summer?" Ron asked as we convened after class.

"About as good as you can expect," I rolled my eyes, "My father was in a foul mood because of those raids. How about yours?"

"Oh yeah, my dad told me he'd seen you," Ron looked sheepish, "Sorry if it made your summer worse."

"It's not you or your dad's fault," I gave a small laugh, "Don't worry, I'm still alive, aren't I?"

"I guess," he laughed awkwardly, "How about that Lockhart? A right git, isn't he?"

Harry and I laughed, but Hermione huffed in annoyance behind us.

"He is an amazing wizard! Have you read his achievements?" She asked, "He will be great at teaching us!"

"Sure," I laughed slightly, "Well, I'm gonna go practice for Quidditch tryouts seeing as I've had no chance this summer. Wanna join, Harry?"

"I would, but Wood wants us for a team meeting before tryouts happen," he gave me an apologetic glance, "They're on Saturday, right?"

"Yep," I nodded.

"Good luck, I'm rooting for you! I'll practice with you before then, I promise!" He smiled, before running off.

I said goodbye to the other two before going to grab an old Cleansweep from the broom cupboard. I flew around for a while, getting the hang of being on a broom again for the first time in several months. By the time I was happy, it was getting dark.

I landed on the pitch and started heading back to the cupboard when I heard a voice call me.

"Hey! Nice flying!" a Hufflepuff boy I recognised as being in my year walked up to me, "I take it you're trying out for Gryffindor?"

"Yeah, planning on it," I smiled at him, "Nice to meet you! Lyra Malfoy."

"Tobias Roberts," he shook my hand, "Nice to be back, isn't it?"

"You have no idea," I laughed slightly, "Do you often watch folk practice Quidditch?"

"I'm a fan myself, though I'm awful at flying," he grinned, "Seeing the teams practice is super interesting, so I always hope to catch them! But this time, I caught you."

"Did I pass in your eyes?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I would say you almost certainly are gonna make the team on Saturday," he nodded seriously.

"Well, it was nice to meet you, Tobias," I said, "I need to go shower. I'll see you around!"

"Yes, definitely," he smiled, waving me goodbye.

I found myself grinning despite myself as he walked away. Tobias Roberts. Perfect way to annoy my father even more, becoming friends with a Hufflepuff.

I found myself hanging out with him quite a lot after that, though we didn't share too many classes. He was definitely funny, and one of the most genuine guys I had met. He didn't even give me being a Malfoy a second thought, seeing me as... well, just me.

I learned more about him during that time too. He was muggleborn, making me even more shocked that he was willing to talk to me, and his parents had thought it was some sort of elaborate prank when he got his letter. One of the first things he had found an interest in when he came to the Wizarding World was Quidditch, seeing it as much more interesting than muggle sports, and by the way he spoke you'd think he had followed it his whole life, not just a year.

He was interested in me too, and I reluctantly confided in him about my home life. He was appalled, and promised me I was welcome at his if I ever needed somewhere to escape to.