Title: Restoring the balance.
Author: ladyumbra
Fandom: Harry Potter
Genre: adventure
Rating: G for now
Summary: 19 years ago the wizarding world was saved , but not fixed. Not learning from their mistakes will come back to haunt those who should have known better, along with those closest to them
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

Chapter 1: I don't trust the hat.

Scorpius Malfoy was free for the first time in his life. Free from his father's constant reprimands and disapproving looks. Free from his mother's smothering hugs and kisses. Free from being forced to socialize and play nice with people he barely knew or could become attached to. Free from all the rules and expectations placed on him as a Malfoy. Well, for a little while, at least.

In the hours it would take for the scarlet Hogwarts Express to get between Kings Cross Station and the station in Hogsmeade, Scorpius was free to do whatever he wanted. He could shed his starchy, stiff everyday robes and slip into his much more comfortable school ones. Oh, sure, they'd been the same when he'd first bought them, but nights of sleeping in them had made them tolerable. It'd been a bit of a fight with the house elf Gly to get him to clean them without returning them to their original state. In the end, however, Scorpius had won.

As the blond stared out the window, watching the world go by in a blur of green, blue, and gray, Scorpius thought about all the other things he could do now. Or he would have if his peace hadn't been interrupted by someone else entering his private sanctuary. The intruder was a boy his age, small, with unkempt dark hair and bright green eyes. His face was tinted red and he had a flustered look about him, and yet...a smile was forming? Why was this stranger smiling at him?

“ I'm sorry, but this was the only place I could go to get away from James. He won't stop bugging me, and Rose is no help, but James won't go near you.” The words came out in a rush and Scorpius watched the boy shift from foot to foot nervously. He had dragged a trunk and cage with a rather unhappy looking barn owl in with him.

It figured, the kid from before, the one he'd been told to watch out for, was here, using him as a shield. It was annoying, but Scorpius wasn't going to waste precious moments of freedom going on about it. He shrugged and returned to staring out the window, thinking about what he was going to do next.

Well, as soon as the witch with the trolley came, he was going to gorge on sweets--that was for sure. No one was here to tell him to watch what he ate or how he ate it. In fact, Scorpius thought, he might just eat a chocolate frog and lick his fingers afterwards in rebellion. Oh yes, that would be perfect, and his father would never, ever know.

“ Are you glad that there aren't any Thestrals to deal with this year?” Scorpius looked over at the unwelcome intruder who had interrupted his thoughts and shrugged again.

The other boy settled into a seat, slid his trunk underneath, and tried to mollify his owl, which was hopping about in its cage and hooting in an annoyed fashion. “ Hush, Ceci, I'll give you some treats later, I promise, just hush.”

Scorpius watched this and listened for some sort of reaction from Hunt. When none came, he bent over and peered into the cat carrier under the opposite seat. From what he could see, the Mau was fast asleep and had no intention of waking up anytime soon. It was probably for the better, since the last thing he needed was an upset Hunt demanding attention.

“Are you...are you afraid to talk to me because I'm His son?” Scorpius looked up at the dark haired boy whose voice was soft and trembled with uncertainty. He was staring at Scorpius in a way that unnerved him. Like he expected him to kick him out at any second, or maybe just plain kick him.

Scorpius sighed and shook his head. “I don't care who you are, I don't care if you sit here as long as you're quiet and I don't care about thestrals. Besides, we have to deal with the giant squid an-"

“ Squid! What squid? No one told me anything about a giant squid, just merpeople and a pervy ghost.” There was panic in the other boy's voice, and Scorpius couldn't help but be amused. Honestly, how would a wizard-born child attending Hogwarts not know these things? More importantly, why would someone mention merpeople and a ghost but not the squid? He was also curious about who this supposed ghost was.

“Relax, the squid has never hurt anyone before; in fact, if you fall out of the boats, it puts you back in.” The least Scorpius could do was keep the other boy from losing it completely. Even if it did take away from his free time. Beside, if he calmed the other down, then perhaps he'd be quiet.

“Oh, okay then. I guess that's better.” There was a small smile from the dark haired boy and then--“ Oh I'm Albus, Albus Severus Potter." Albus identified himself and Scorpius laughed.

“Asp, seriously, no jokes?” Why would the hero of the wizarding world give his child a name that was an acronym for a snake? Especially since a snake had killed Albus' middle-namesake.

Albus blinked in confusion before putting together what Scorpius had been talking about. “Oh, OH. Great, now I bet I'm destined for Slytherin, no matter what I tell the hat.” Leaning back against his seat, Albus put his head in his hands and groaned.

Scorpius rolled his granite grey eyes and gave a small put-upon sigh “It's not like it's the end of the world you know. Besides, the hat is supposed to be intelligent, and they say it puts you where you're supposed to be based on stuff inside you.. If you argue with it, then really you're arguing with yourself, which is stupid.” Scorpius had various thoughts on the hat and its choices, but now was not the time to discuss it.

Albus looked up and stared at the boy before him. That was something he'd never thought about: did he want to lie to himself, fight part of who he was? He was forced out of his thoughts as the door to the the carriage opened. Looking up, he saw a portly old witch pushing a trolley of sweets. Instantly, a smile spread across his face--perhaps now he could collect a few more chocolate frog cards without worrying about James nicking his best ones.

With identical looks of pleasure, Albus and Scorpius descended upon the trolley ,and when the witch and her goods left, it was with a significantly lighter load. Both boys, as if worried about never seeing or being able to purchase sweets safely again, had stocked up. They looked over at each other, examined the other's choices, and shared a smile.

An awkward silence followed, however, and inevitably Albus was the one to break it. “So, um, Scorpius.” He was glad he'd remembered the pale boy's name from when his father and Uncle had been talking. “What sort of pet did you bring?” He had missed Scorpius checking the carrier earlier and was wondering what, if anything, the other boy had brought.

Scorpius nodded to where Hunt's carrier was. “I have a purebred female Egyptian Mau named Hunt. She's the more common silver coloring with black spots, but she's still pretty brill.” His maternal grandparents had insisted he have one of their cat's kittens earlier that year, and he'd become attached to Hunt. So, despite his father's insistence that an owl was a more useful, he had convinced him to let him take Hunt instead.

Albus nodded, then pointed towards his owl's cage with a foot. “Ceci is just a regular barn owl, but she's never let me down yet.”

“Reliable owls are important," Scorpius admitted. He wasn't sure why he was letting this kid rope him into conversation, but it didn't seem to be too bad. Besides, he could sort his sweets while he talked and it would muffle the aggravating sound of wrappers crinkling and being rubbed against each other.

“I'm going to call you Asp, okay? Because Albus Severus is too much, Albus alone probably won't go over well, and Al is sort of crude.” Not to mention that Scorpius though Asp was a rather amusing name.

Asp shrugged. “Sure, it doesn't bother me any.”

With that said, a strange bond resembling a friendship was started, and for the rest of the trip to the castle of Hogwarts, the two talked. Scorpius learned that Asp's brother, while prone to teasing and pranks, was still a decent older brother. Apparently James was patronizing and protective, annoying but also admirable.

Being an only child, Scorpius didn't really understand this, but he did think it sounded pretty interesting and it made him wonder what life would be like with siblings.

When asked about his own family, Scorpius had answered as best he could without boasting too much or giving away anything he thought might be used against them. Mostly, he'd talked about traveling to visit relatives and some of his more comical childhood adventures. A few things were a bit embarrassing, and he was glad to see Asp fighting back laughter and unwelcome comments at those moments.

Their families might share a history riddled with hostility separated by momentary acts of kindness, but Scorpius saw no reason why he and Asp couldn't get along. At least for now, anyway. By the time the Hogwarts express came to a stop, there was little doubt in either boy's mind that they would miss the other should they end up in rival houses.

Cloaked now in their school robes, the pair disembarked leaving their trunks and animals to be picked up by house elves.

As they were lead down to the bank of the lake by a hulk of a man named Hagrid ( Scorpius vaguely remembered his father saying something about him being a half-giant ), the two boys shared a look that said 'same boat'. They wanted to share each other's company at least a little longer. They clambered into one of the many small dingies and were swiftly joined by a small, cross-looking girl. Once they were out on the water and Asp had nowhere to run, she began to berate him.

“ Honestly, Al, you didn't have to hide for the whole time you know. James is upset now, he thinks you're going to want to be in a different house just to get away from him. “ The girl's hair was red but its exact true shade was hard to tell in the failing light. She had a small smattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose and dark blue eyes that were filled with annoyance.

“Did you know,” she continued before Asp had a chance to reply, "that you can tell the hat where you want to go? My mum did, it thought she would make a good Ravenclaw but she wanted Gryffindor. I think it's swell that the hat lets you pick sometimes because, I mean, imagine if mum had been sorted into Ravenclaw--then where would I be?”

Staring up at the sky, Scorpius asked the old gods why his new friend had a cousin who didn't shut up either. Perhaps it was genetic or something, a trait from the Weasley in him.

“ Rose, Scorpius says that asking the hat to put you somewhere is wrong because it's fighting the part of yourself, pretending it doesn't exist.” Asp countered .

Immediately Scorpius snapped his head down and let his eyes flick between the cousins. Why did he have to get dragged into this? Couldn't Asp have just said the fighting thing without involving him? Now there was going to be some sort of argument and he'd have to mediate while explaining himself.

Whatever Rose was going to say was halted by the appearance of a large grayish black tentacle rising from the lake, latching onto the back of the boat in front of them then pushing it away and propelling it forward through the water. Before they could react their own boat surged forward and they all grabbed the sides for support though the boat did not rock.

“ Relax, firs' years, the squid jus' wants to help us get there faster,” Hagrid called out to reassure them.

Scorpius thought he heard a hint of worry in the half-giant's voice. Still, a few more helpful pushes later and the students, along with their things, arrived safe and sound on the correct side of the lake. More than a few people were staring back at the now smooth and glassy lake, wondering what exactly had just happened.

Getting out of the boat, Scorpius left the now arguing cousins and walked quickly to stand at the front of the group of other first years. He had decided not to get involved in the family argument if at all possible. Not that it mattered much, as they were soon in the entrance hall where their footsteps echoed on the flagstone and then lead to smaller antechamber where they were placed in a line alphabetically and marched into the Great Hall.

Scorpius was forced to admit that the hall was indeed great . The enchanted ceiling high above him had perfectly copied the sky that he had seen outside, giving a sort of open feel to the room, as if it extended forever. Not to mention that the hall itself was huge, brightly lit, and inviting.

He let his gaze stray from the ceiling to the tables housing the older students. Closest to the doors from the Entrance Hall was Slytherin, where the students seemed to be bored. Next to them, under a blue and Bronze banner, was Ravenclaw, where there were several discussions going on. Beside them Hufflepuff, where all were quiet as they waited almost eagerly for the sorting; and on the far wall, Gryffindor, where it looked to Scorpius like some sort of betting was going on.

The teachers sat at a table on a raised platform at the front of the room. Much like with the students, there seemed to be happy, bored and distracted teachers.

In the center of the hall was a tired-looking young wizard with tar-black skin that seemed to melt into his robes. In his hands was a roll of parchment containing a list of names. He stood next to a three legged stool upon which sat an old weather-worn hat that looked like it had seen a patch job or two.

Scorpius thought the infamous sorting hat looked rather boring, considering how important it was supposed to be. Then as he'd been told the brim of the hat ripped open and the hat began to sing. The tune was catchy enough and the words held truth to them, but it wasn't anything spectacular. Well, at least not to Scorpius. Looking behind him, he could see Asp was in awe of the singing headpiece.

When the song was over and the sorting began, Scorpius noticed that Asp's awed state had been replaced by one of nervousness. He was visibly shaking, even if it was just a small bit. Following his friends line of sight, he saw the true source of Asp's worry. His brother was watching him intently while talking with his friends.

Scorpius might have his father and grandfather to impress, but they were far away and only capable of retaliating with written words and a possible howler. If in some way Asp embarrassed his brother during the sorting, he'd have to deal with daily taunts and reproachful looks the majority of his stay at the castle. They'd be mostly lighthearted and limited to James himself, but it wouldn't help Asp's self-esteem any.

“ Relax, as long as the hat sorts you, I'm certain you can make the best of any house you end up in,” Scorpius tried to reassure Asp. The boy was adaptable if a bit slow on the uptake--well maybe not slow so much as cautious, evaluating everything before making any moves or choices. Oh hell, Scorpius had no clue what went on in Asp's head and he was better off not trying to figure it out.

“ As long as? Has anyone ever not been? ” Asp asked in a panicked whisper.

“ No.”

“ What if--”

“ It will be fine,” Scorpius assured Asp with a confident smile. The other boy nodded and seemed to calm a bit.

“ Malfoy, Scorpius.”

Scorpius walked forward and ignored the few looks and whispers he got. He was well aware of the rumors and truths about his family that were spread about. He wasn't alone in this; he knew that children of others who had served Voldemort received the same skeptical treatment. Scorpius' grey eyes remained focused and calm as he sat and the sorting hat was placed upon his head.

You're a clever one, sneaky too, a bit judgemental and determined, but still, I think you're best suited to--“Ravenclaw!"

Scorpius strode calmly over to his house table, amidst more glances and looks. Still, it wasn't overly bad, and his new house mates seemed unfazed by his inclusion into their fold. Once he was seated at the table, he let his gaze wander back to the center of the hall and the sorting.

Scorpius wasn't particularly interested in the rest of sorting, but Asp was to be sorted soon and he wondered where the boy would end up.

“Potter, Albus.”

As Asp walked forward, Scorpius resisted the urge to sigh. Somehow, in the few minutes since he'd left him, the boy a had gone and worked himself up again. He was clearly hopeless.

“Ravenclaw.”

What? How in the name of Merlin's beard had Asp managed to get sorted into a house renowned for their wits when half the time he seemed incapable of putting a proper sentence together? Scorpius supposed that the hat must have seen something hidden in him or else he wouldn't have been put there...unless Asp had asked to be in Ravenclaw because he was there.

The thought disturbed Scorpius, and as Asp approached to applause, he watched him carefully. The other boy seemed somewhat in shock and that mollified Scorpius. The last thing he wanted was to be responsible for another's choice of house, since it was so important to a person's time at Hogwarts--though he was glad that his friend had been sorted with him.

Asp sat down beside him and cracked a small smile. “James looks so jealous, he's always going on about how much better than me he is.”

“If you believe that were sorted by our strongest traits, then he's got more courage than you could ever have and it's him that others should depend on to act boldly and righteously in times of need.” The tone of Scorpius' voice showed he believed no such thing.

Asp, picking up on the disbelief, raised an eyebrow, green eyes filled with curiosity.

Scorpius smiled a bit at the chance to share his theory. “I think the hat is a liar and that it puts us where we'll best serve it, not what best serves us. It's got a good memory, probably remembers every student it ever sorted. It's putting us where, yes, we are suited by talents or personalty, but it's also deciding who we're apt to make friends with and what sort of older people influence us as house mates. I don't know what the hat wants or why but I do know that I don't fully trust its choices. There have been too many reports of people who seem to be mis-sorted for me to believe in it.”

An upperclassmen who'd been listening to them while watching the sorting looked over and smiled. “Not bad, Malfoy, you figured it out awful quick. There's a few who'll expand on what you said later, if you choose to talk to them.”

Asp, who was drummed his fingers on the table, said “Mmm, well, my father says that the hat used to warn people when Hogwarts was in trouble and stuff. Maybe it's trying to protect the school or something.”

The older Ravenclaw, who, Scorpius now noted, had mouse-brown hair and dull blue eyes, nodded. “That's one theory we have, but we'll discuss that later, okay?”

The sorting finished just then and neither Scorpius nor Asp had time to say anything else. Not that they would have been heard over the outraged cries of many as Rose Weasley was sorted into Slytherin. Asp, he noted, was silent but shocked as he watched the fuming girl stalk over to the Slytherin table.

The next few hours were long and boring by Scorpius's point of view. The headmistress was a middle-aged, somewhat stuffy-looking witch called Minerva McGonagall. She had black hair and squarish glasses, and his father had mentioned her in passing as one not to cross . She gave a boring speech and list of rules and some forbidden objects. Nothing that really interested him, but Asp seemed amused by the banning of a good deal of products made by his uncle's joke store.

Then had come the feast, and while it had been grand, it was nothing Scorpius hadn't seen before at some of the elaborate parties his mother's family sometimes hosted. Still, he had enjoyed the food and the chance to talk to his housemates a bit. Looking around, he'd noted that Ravenclaw alone was full of truly proper networking. At all the other tables students seemed to talk by age, but here, at his table, everyone talked about everything. There was no distinction between the experienced and the non-experienced, just like minds meeting.

For all his earlier nervousness Asp had managed to hold his own and Scorpius had to admit that, masked by his many questions and reluctance to be the center of attention, Asp had a mind that was worthy of his sorted house.

Still, as they walked towards Ravenclaw tower following the older students and Prefects, Scorpius paid little attention to his friend as he was lost in his thoughts again. He needed to think about what he would write home, and whether to write duplicate letters to all family members or give everyone bits and pieces of what had been happening.

He paused when he noticed Asp was no longer following but had stopped to stared at a wall. Torches on the far wall illuminated the object of interest and Scorpius could make out a name carved into part of the wall: Fred Weasley .

Ah, well, it made sense then. Asp was paying tribute to his uncle--one he'd never met--but still, it wasn't uncommon. There were parts all over the castle where names and plaques hung, proclaiming the deaths and sacrifices of those who'd died in the epic battle all those years ago. Student and teachers alike were known to pause for a moment or two to pay respect, or so he'd heard.

Of course, the memorials were, for some, just a reason to be late to class. No teacher ever deducted points from students who were late and used that excuse, because who were they to know if the truth was being told? It was insulting, to be sure, when the memorials were abused, but what could you do?

As they neared the base of Ravenclaw tower, Scorpius realized he'd not paid nearly enough attention to where he'd been going. Not to mention that a door to his left had suddenly turned to stone, either returning to its natural state or disguising itself. He supposed he should have taken his father's warning seriously when he said that the castle could and would make life difficult. It didn't help that Ravenclaw tower was so far from the great hall. It had been a long day and Scorpius was tired; remembering how he'd gotten here was not going to be an easy task.

When the group stopped, he turned to Asp to ask if he'd fared any better, but kept his ears tuned to listen to the prefect's voice so he could hear the password . He was confused when. instead of a simple password. the older boy gave a strange password that sounded like he was answering a riddle.

Before he could ask a question everyone was shuffled into into the common room and the prefect spoke again. "That's right, for those of you who didn't know, the way into our common room is by answering a riddle. If you cannot answer it, you will be locked out until someone comes along and does answer it correctly. This promotes greater learning and tests you daily to keep your skills sharp. I hope never to have to see any of you waiting for assistance.”

Scorpius resisted the urge to groan. He really should have been paying attention earlier. He wasn't certain if he needed to ask for a riddle or wait while the guardian created one. After all the stair climbing and corridors they'd gone thorough, his memory was fuzzy on whatever everything even looked like.

Dismissed, the girls headed to the right for their dorms and the boys to the left . Scorpius would have liked a chance to get a better look at the common room first, but, then again, he was also exhausted and probably wouldn't have appreciated it.

Scorpius pinched the bridge of his nose feeling a headache coming on--a headache by the name of one Albus Severus Potter . While walking to the dorm, he'd caught sight of his friend in his peripheral vision and seen that he had that look in his eyes, that look that meant there were questions coming. Come they did as they and two others entered their room. Long ones and short ones. Complicated and easy, meaningful and pointless. He wondered what he had done to be saddled with the boy who never shut up.

Scorpius answered as many as he could while he settled into the room, unpacking his things (he had never been more thankful than now for house elves, as he'd never have managed to lug his things this far) and releasing Hunt. In a flash of silver and black, the cat hopped up onto Scorpius' bed and sprawled across his pillow, looking as though she belonged there and had no intention of moving.

The hint of a smirk graced his lips when the other boys in the room stared at Hunt. She was quite eye catching with her bright silver coat and black-spotted pattern. Hunt knew it too, which was why she chose that exact moment to stretch and release a soft musical mew. It figured his cat was a show-off. “Cute, Hunt, but that's my pillow and I'm going to want it back,” he informed her with a no-nonsense tone to his voice. It surprised him not at all that she paid him no mind, and Scorpius ignored the snickers of the other boys in favour of searching for his nightwear.

In the Slytherin dorms, Rose Weasley sat in her bed, unable to sleep. Again and again, the words of the Sorting Hat echoed in her head. You pursue knowledge but in a ruthless manner; you are open-minded yet have prejudices deeply ingrained into you, and you are dedicated but that can easily lead to obsession. I could place you anywhere and you would flourish, but I think you'll benefit most from--“Slytherin.” How could she have ended up here, and how could the hat possibly think she could benefit by being surrounded by people who'd likely back-stab her as soon as possible? Not to mention that her father would probably never speak to her again, well, not after the howler she was bound to get tomorrow. Rose would sleep fitfully tonight if she slept at all.

AN: Mau's are actually well knows for their strange sounding mews there is nothing special about Hunt. Next chappie will probably be from Asp's POV and will include some insight into how James is faring as well.
Chapters from Scorpius's POV will usually be more thought driven and to the point. Asp's POV will be more action , description and open.

Much love to my beta evr-afire.

C&C welcome.

Title: Restoring the balance.
Author: ladyumbra
Fandom: Harry Potter
Genre: adventure
Rating: G for now
Summary: 19 years ago the wizarding world was saved , but not fixed. Not learning from their mistakes will come back to haunt those who should have known better, along with those closest to them
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

AN: This fic will probably contain about 30 chapters leading up to the end of the first year. I do intend to write all seven years and each year will be it's own story. Summertime adventures will be their own mini sets.
Chapter length will vary greatly depending on what's happening and who's Pov I'm using.
Updates will happen when inspiration hits , hopefully once a month at least , maybe more often.
Also I will be disregarding the information JK gave in interviews recently on people's jobs. They aren't official canon to me as it didn't appear in DH's epilogue.
There will be an introduction of new classes in this series. Astronomy has been replaced with magical geography until third year.

Multiple Pov's in this chapter.

Chapter two: Starting off.

Asp thought breakfast at Hogwarts was sort of like family reunions. Everyone was sort of groggy except for a few who seemed far too happy to be awake this early. People were talking, yawning and gesturing as they struggled to wake. Some at tables asked politely for food while others reached around and in front of others to grab things. There was laughter and grumblings, smiles and frowns plus a general sort of excited feeling to it all. The day was new and who knew what surprises it might bring. All in all Asp liked what he saw and heard.

“ Stop gawking and eat something or you won't be able to pay attention on classes. I'm not taking notes for you.” Asp noted that though Scorpius was bossing him around it was fairly friendly and good advice. Still his Grey eyed friend could have had a nicer tone. It wasn't like Asp was going to forget to eat or anything.

Turning his attention to the food at the table he began to fill his plate. Scorpius seemed to be resigned to eating just bacon, and buttered rolls having given the rest of his choices a rejection. Asp went a bit healthier, Yogurt, Orange juice and a slice of toast with jam were what he settled on.

As he ate Asp noticed that the schedules were being handed out. He sighed a bit as he managed to smear butter on his the moment he got it leaving a dark but shiny grease stain on the parchment. Green eyes scanned the paper and he read that apparently this year his classes were shared with Hufflepuffs or Gryffindor. He wished he'd have a chance to share classes with Rose but he supposed it was for the best. From what he'd seen when he walked into the great hall this morning she was still not in the best of moods.

Looking over at his friend Asp could see that Scorpius seemed uninterested in his schedule and was picking apart a roll looking bored.
Asp opened his mouth to ask a question when the deafeningly loud sound of dozens of owl wings beating decidedly not in rhythm over came him. Looking up he spotted the infamous morning barrage of owl post carried dutifully by the birds. The massive flock was a myriad of brown, tan black and white as they descended on the table bringing with them letters and packages.

Siren the family screech owl swooped down leaving him with a letter from his parents before soaring away in James' direction. Eagerly Asp tore into the letter nervous about what his parents would have to say but glad that they had written to him and that his letter wasn't a howler condemning him for not being in the family's traditional house.

Dear son.

I hope you are doing well. Congratulations on being sorted into Ravenclaw I expect it's your mother's doing, she was always an impressive witch and many people commented on it. If James teases you don't let it bother you too much, you know how he is. Try not to antagonize him though and be on your best behavior.

I heard you've been sorted into he same house as Scorpius Malfoy, please don't start any fights. The childhood fights between Draco and myself were personal and need not affect you. I knew a person once who let his personal hatred of another fester and seep into hatred of those who were innocent of any crime towards them. It cuased only pain to all involved and I don't wan to see this happen to you. I'm not suggesting you buddy up with him or anything just don't provoke him on my sake, or your uncle Ron's.

Speaking of your Uncle Ron, he's having fits right now over Rose and I'd appreciate it if you could find time to talk to her as I believe he sent her a very nasty letter before your Aunt could stop him.

At that Asp looked up and in the direction of Slytherin table. Sure enough his cousin was turning a shade of red that nearly matched her hair. And she was visibly shaking. Turning and sitting straighter so he could seem James he noted that his brother was also looking at rose in concern. They'd have to talk to her later and see what they could do to hep, for now Asp returned to his letter.

Do your best in all your classes and try not to let trouble find you. Your mother is having horrible worries about you following in my footsteps and I'm trying to assure her that all will be well.

Take care son.

Love Dad.

Asp was just starting to think about what he might right in a reply letter when Scorpius amused voice interrupted his thoughts.

“ You are not to be allowed to drag me into harebrained schemes,” The Malfoy boy informed him.” You're also not to be trusted fully and I should probably have Hunt keep watch over my things when I'm out of a room you are in with them..”

Asp frowned, his father may have put his grudge behind him but Scorpius' hadn't or at least not fully. “ I don't want to get in trouble, I haven't given you any reason not to trust me and Hunt is more likely to ask for a tummy rub then bite me if I went near your stuff while she was with it.” The Mau whom Asp had only known a short while was fairly friendly to him and had woken up up that morning with an attempt to smother him as Scorpius had kicked her out of his bed when he'd gotten up.

Scorpius nearly sighed which seemed to be his signature response to everything. “ I was merely informing you of the expectations placed upon us. There wasn't any need to get defensive. Besides I believe we're getting off rather lightly compared to your cousin.

Scorpius nodded and gave his own sigh before returning to his food. Sometime between classes he'd have to grab a hold of Rose and say something nice.
(b)

Not that he would admit it but James Potter was jealous. He was his father's first child and first son and yet he felt not nearly as special as his younger brother. It had been inside him ever since his brother was born, that jealousy and fear. Albus looked like their father, Albus was most like their father, Albus was special and James was..just the oldest.

He supposed in a way that was why he fought with him so often, teased and taunted him. It was his way of ensuring that he got equal attention, that his father remembered him. He'd never received anything but love and support from his father but it always seemed that Albus got just a bit more.

Now with Albus is the house famous for is intelligence James knew that just having made it into his father's house was no longer enough to keep his place as a favored child. Not that he wanted his father play favorite, just that if he thought it was happening he figured it should be he who was favored.

For the time being however James needed to put his jealousy and worries and think about class. It wasn't easy though to concentrate on magical geography though when you're even minorly worried about being replaced, or that your cousin is going to go mad and do something violent. Not that it was in Rose's personality to do so, still she had looked pretty angry at breakfast and that didn't bode well for anyone.

“ James Potter, would you care to tell the class the difference between a magical water source and a source located on plot of land high in magic.” Professor Torbay asked. The middle aged wizard was looking at the distant James with expectancy but no malice.

Fortunately for James today was just refreshing from last year and he remembered the answer .” A magical water source can only be lived in and drank from by magical beings and plants. A non magic water source on magical land can be used by anything.”

Professor Torbay nodded and turned to ask another student something about magical tectonic plates.

James began to zone out again though he tried to pay a little attention to what was being said just in case it was important.

(b)

To say that Rose Weasley was upset was an understatement. However rather than righteous anger of the night before she was now more worried than anything. Her father's letter to her while not a howler had been harsh. She hoped he didn't mean all of what he'd said, hoped that some of the words had been prompted by the alcohol she'd smelt on the parchment of her letter.

Trying to put the letter out of her mind and force the knot in her stomach to uncoil a bit Rose stared at Professor Binns, The ghost teacher was one of the few staff members still remaining from her parent's time at the school. From the stories they had told her he hadn't changed any in nineteen years. He still droned and it seemed hard to pay attention to what he was saying never mind take interest in it. Though perhaps this was because of the stories she'd been told, she was sure her mother had mentioned parts of lessons before.

Either way Rose found herself unable to fully engage her mind while listening and taking notes which left it wandering back to the letter.

Rose

I cannot believe you. Slytherin? Honestly when I first heard I thought Neville was having me on but no it's true. You've actually been sorted into that den of slimy gits who are as likely stab your back as they will save you. I swear the hat made a mistake , maybe it's running out of magic or something, after all Malfoy's spawn didn't end up there and bound to be where he belongs.

Still I cannot believe this. My own child and my first to attend Hogwarts is a Slytherin. I don't like it Rose. I don't like it one bit. You can be sure I'm having Neville and your cousins keep an eye on you. I don't know what sort of accident has lead you to being sorted there but I won't have you being lead astray by your wayward house mates .

If I hear of too much tricky business I swear I'll pull you from school and teach you myself. You're supposed to be a good girl Rose and I won't have you going bad . I won't.

From there the letter had dissolved into mostly illegible scribbles with the odd fragment or set of words sticking out like .' better not' ' worse than' 'pure bloods and how to explain to mum and dad.' There had been a “ Love dad” at the end of it all but Rose didn't feel much love right now. Just rejection and fear that because the hat really had chosen to put her there that something bad would happen. Or more that she might become something bad.

So far her house mates had been skeptical of her but no one had been outwardly hostile as of yet. Still with her family and her house mates both treating her like am unsavory person Rose was left with no one to turn to for support.

(b)

Elsewhere in the castle Asp was busy taking notes in potions class. He found the cold damp potions room in the dungeons to be unnerving. The gargoyle in the corner of the room that poured water into a basin was also a distraction. Still the dark haired boy pressed on and printed as neatly as possible on his parchment.

So far class was boring, just an outline of what they'd be covering this year from some basic potions history to why certain instruments and temperatures were used and the part Asp was looking forward to, actually making potions.. Part of him was nervous of course because he didn't want ot make any mistakes and get hurt but Scorpius had assured him that nothing that dangerous would be given to them to work with as first years.

At least not in class, the blond had said he had a feeling that Ravenclaw was quite open about letting it's members experiment as they willed. He figured it was likely that they had more unacceptable magical practices going on than Slytherin because they were so dogged in their pursuit of knowledge that age wouldn't stop them. Asp wasn't sure about that but he'd never know until he'd spent more than a day at the castle.

One way or the other Asp wanted to make potions, well he wanted to make anything really. The young Ravenclaw was positive that there would be something satisfying about actually making a potion right, the same as getting a spell to work or learning how to fly. Asp liked feeling satisfied, that he'd accomplished something, learned something new.

In the end Asp was forced to wait for his next class before they'd be making anything and even then it'd be in pairs so that eh wouldn't be able to fully say he'd made something on his own. Of course he intended to work with Scorpius so it wouldn't be all bad.

(b)

That evening after dinner found many students writing letters home. Some good, some bad and most of them from first years.

Dear Mum

I got your letter just fine and I'm glad, I was worried you were really mad at me since dad didn't mention you at all. Yes I smelled the fire whiskey on his letter and of course I'm not mad at him.

Ok that was lie. Rose was mad, mad that her father had turned on her and threatened to take her from school and lumped her in with all sort of bad company.

I hope he calms down soon and that you don't fight about it because I know you will and I hate when you fight.

Everyone has treated me sort of suspicious but no one's been really mean and Al and James even found me in the halls to make sure I was ok.

At first Rose has been terrified that the pair had converged on her to threatened her with constants watching and mis trust. Instead they'd been nice and James hadn't even teased her about being sorted into Slytherin.

Classes are ok even if we haven't done much yet. Is it wrong that I think they should sack professor Binns? He just so boring and it's hard to learn anything from him.

Give dad my love and tell him that the Slytherin common room hasn't changed since he was in it.

Love Rose.

Dear Mum and dad

Dad I talked to Rose like you said and she seems better now, I wish I knew what Uncle Ron had said to her. It wasn't easy finding her in the halls and stuff so I hope I don't have to do it again.

In case he tried not to tell you Al is hanging out with Scorpius Malfoy, they've been seen talking in class and they share a room and everything. I hope he doesn't get poisoned in his sleep or something. I hear him say something about suffocating or something when they were headed for their common room tonight and I'm worried. I can't say anything to the teachers because I'm no snitch but you should ask him about it.

You son

James.

P.S Tell Teddy that some ufflepuff boy is bugging Victoire now that he's not there.

Dad

I talked to Rose, she looked really upset at breakfast. I'm not bugging Scorpius in fact we're sort of friends. Well he says I bug him but not in that way. So I know you said I should';t try to be friend but it just happened. Started on the train yesterday , we were talking and then we got sorted together and he's nice if sort of stuffy like Uncle Percy. He even has cat named Hunt who's stuffy but she likes me too.

I stopped at Uncle Fred's plaque, it was weird and I wish I had known him. I just sort of pictured Uncle George with both ears. I wish I could see him, it's not fair that he's so close in hogsmeade but I can't go there until third year..

I like being in Ravenclaw , everyone treats me nicely and we talk about all kinda of stuff.

Classes are really boring but we're supposed to start doing fun things tomorrow. The dungeons really are cold but at least in the water the cauldrons will keep us warm. Do you have any other advice for staying warm down there?

Girls are silly.

Tell Lily I miss her and that I'll write her a letter on Saturday.
Asp

Al.

A few feet away from Asp Scorpius was writing his own letter in a much slower and less haphazard manner. Looking over he noted that his writing was also much neater.

Dear Father

As you have no doubt heard for your sources are many and swift I am as of now most often in the company of Potter's double. He , aside from rarely shutting up ( was your Potter this talkative?) is tolerable and has yet to suggest anything that would cause trouble. Still I'll keep your words in mind.

I find the riddle answering to get into our common room both amusing and tedious. I am however going to record all the questions asked and make a list to compare with others. I hope that Ravenclaw charmed or not the door only has so many riddles to give. It's not quite cheating to have a list of answers beforehand just practical for times when I don't have time to figure it out.

Honestly Scorpius had no problem testing himself and he thought the riddling knocker was amazing but there were going to be times he was too stressed or tired to deal with it and he'd like to be prepared for those times. Of course with his luck the knocker has never asked the same riddle twice in dozens of years.

There really isn't anything else to say yet, classes have just started, I don't know my house mates that well yet and aside from potter's cousin being sorted into Slytherin not much of interest has happened.

Your son

Scorpius Malfoy

Da

I haven't done anything interesting yet. It's really annoying that none of my stuff works here. I miss my games. I was halfway through Pokemon the ultimate collectors addition before I got here and now my stupid console won't turn on . Apparently electronics don't work here, we'll see about that. Some of the boys here are daft, and who names their children for snakes and stars?

I'll write you again when something happens.

Janet Fraser

End notes:

More James next chapter, less mopey more sassy -

I'm having a hard time nailing down Rose's personality so she may be a bit erratic over the next few chapters.

C&C always welcome

I really love your style of writing.
It's so engrossing. I'm so going to keep reading your story.
Great work!

Thanks so much, i really love writing this story. i have writers block at the moment but i have about 1/3 of the next chapter done already.

Title: Restoring the balance.
Author: ladyumbra
Fandom: Harry Potter
Genre: adventure
Rating: G for now
Summary: 19 years ago the wizarding world was saved , but not fixed. Not learning from their mistakes will come back to haunt those who should have known better, along with those closest to them
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.


Chapter 3 Opinionated

Janet Fraser wondered how many witches and wizards suffered wrist injuries in their first year of school. It was only twenty minutes into charms class on the second day of school and already her wrist was sore. Wand work was not nearly as easy as teachers made it look. Not to mention that the wrong twist ,flick, swish or swipe could strain the muscles of the wrist if the performer was overzealous. Carpal tunnel waiting to happen, she thought.

Lazily repeating the required motions Janet muttered the levitation spell while trying to float a barrette. Just in front of her a rather daft boy called Asp was trying furiously to get his quill to so much as hover. He looked like a good candidate for injury. The blond boy next to him, one Scorpius Malfoy if she recalled right, was sighing. Having early on managed to get an ink bottle to float he seemed bored and irritated with his neighbors lack of progress. Possibly because Asp seemed incapable of being quiet while working despite numerous warnings from the other boy and Professor Jacobs.

Returning her attention to the task at hand Janet glared at the barrette. It was small and black with silver pin striping, boring really but useful for the current session. She tried again murmuring the unfamiliar Latin words slower but firmer than before. There was predictably, no result. Janet was neither surprised nor concerned , she didn't really care about this lesson. Truth be told didn't care much about magic in general.

To her it just seemed like something that was special but not the be all and end all. Of course she supposed that could be because her mother was what people her called a 'muggle' and lived a completely different lifestyle.

When living with her father Janet saw magic all the time, house elves made her bed and a flick of her father's wand produced the most amazing food and drinks she could imagine. It was like living in a fairytale, more so because she only spent summers with him since her parents had split up shortly after she was born and she normally lived with her mother.

The 'muggle' world was what she lived in most of the time. She went to a typical public school, wore normal girl's clothing and while the kitchen appliances were highly advanced and capable of making a lot of stuff by themselves they weren't magic or perfect. Her trading cards were laminated paper that didn't move and no chess set she owned had ever had pieces savagely attack the other side.

It wasn't that Janet preferred one world over the other just that she couldn't see learning magic as being crucial. She could survive easily enough in her mother's world and it was the one she was most familiar with, the one she would likely settle in. Janet would try to get decent grades but she wasn't really motivated to strive for much else especially when things were silly. She could lift plenty of things by herself and at any point in which she needed to move something heavy enough to need a charm she wasn't sure she'd want to rely on magic fueled only by her own intangible abilities.

It was out out love and respect for her father and magical heritage that Janet had accepted school at Hogwarts. Much to her mother's frustration.

“ Asp your knuckles are white, you're going to break your wand if you keep squeezing it like that.� The agitated voice of the Malfoy boy piqued Janet's interest and she paused in her practice to listen.

“ Shh I'm trying to get this before class ends�

“ Do or do not there is no try� Janet said loud enough for the boys to hear. She doubted they'd get the reference but it was good advice either way.

No response was issues from the boys though her seatmate snickered and Janet made a note that at least one other person had seen the classic movie she was referencing.

Professor Jacobs looked read to come over to their section again and Janet busied herself again with trying to get her barrette to levitate.


In the end She'd succeeded only in making her wrist ache like hell before before deciding that it wasn't worth it, especially since she had other classes that would no doubt require wandwork and she wanted to at least be able to try in them.

Some boy had succeed in floating things with his wand in either hand , which the professor had been please by, stating that ambidextrous wizards and witches were rare. Janet considered him a potential threat if things were graded on a bell curve. Asp had managed to break his quill and his friend had done nothing much of note. All in all Janet considered the class a failure and she hoped that once they were done reviewing this lesson they'd move on to a charm that she could consider essential for learning and worth the risk of injury.



The kitchens were not a place one expected to find a student, particularly not during the day when one was supposed to be in class. Still the House elves were always glad to have company so when James Potter found his way to them not a one seem inclined to report him of shoe him away to where he should have been.

Instead the young boy found himself reclined comfortably in a chair being served anything he asked for. Lectures from his Aunt made him unwilling to be extravagant in his requests but didn't stop him from asking for simple treats. After all house elves loved to work and these ones seemed to enjoy cooking.

This had James curious about weather different house elves in the castle didn't different things, if some only cooked or cleaned or.. well James wasn't sure what else one would do. His best example of one was Kreacher and the cantankerous old elf was less than forthcoming about what his kind were like.

James nibbled a biscuit and debated taking a few and going to see his owl Medi before getting to his appointed class. It wasn't that James didn't want to go to class and or that he couldn't find it (that had been last years trouble) but that he had a reputation to maintain. He was famous , whether he liked it or not, Harry potter's son, named for his father's father also famous in a way. How could he be anything but a bit of a showoff. Especially since the class he needed to be in was Herbology and Professor Longbottom would scold him less than any other teacher who's class he was tardy to it wouldn't be a big deal. Well, provided professor Longbottom didn't write his parents about it. He hadn't as of yet, for an adult the professor was a pretty ok guy.

Stuffing a few biscuits into his bag James stood and smiled at the closes houselves “ Thank you, I'll be going now.� Several good byes echoed in his ears as he made his way back through the portrait hole. A quick look around showed no other one and the halls and the auburn haired boy made a swift and semi silent dash down the corridors. He'd decided to go up to the Owlery before lunch and give Medi her treats then he was less likely to get caught that way. A bit of a joker and troublemaker as he might want to be James did not want detention on his second day back at school.



Asp lay sprawled out on his bed history textbook open beside him. It wasn't late at night but the young raven claw had always been most comfortable reading while laying down. Plus the dorms were quieter than the common room. He wished he could explain the truth to all those who thought the Ravenclaw common room was a quiet place filled with only the turning of pages and the scritching of quill to parchment.

There was no quiet, it was noisy and chaotic as people hotly debated everything under the sun, books were constantly opened and closed pages hastily flipped and most writing that could be heard was hasty scribbles. Not to mention that people were constantly moving about, rearranging things and trying to start new conversations. To get anything done asp was forced to flee to his dorm room.

Scorpius also seemed overwhelmed by their housemates and studied in the room as well. Of course he did it sitting up with has back near pressed flat against the wall. It was something Asp didn't get, sitting like that could not possibly have been comfortable and yet he did it and never once complained. However, Scorpius had commented on his own study position calling it “ lazy and unlikely to be productive�

It was perhaps Asp's only real annoyance with his newfound friend. Scorpius has an opinion on everything and where Asp was concerned the opinion was more often than not negative. It wasn't that the other boy hated him, which would have made no sense since they were friends, he just seemed to disapprove of everything Asp did.

Of course Asp was noting that the Scorpius of the train ride and times when they were actually alone together was different than the Scorpius he was around other people. Why it was this way Asp didn't know but he didn't like it.

Shaking his head the dark haired boy returned to reading his history text. He'd learned nothing from their history teacher earlier that day, being unable to focus on his voice, and if he was going to pass Professor Binns' class he'd need to actually know what the ghost had been talking about.

Part of him considered asking James for his notes from the year before but then he remembered that his brother had not done so well on his history final himself. All that could be done was to read the massive history textbook and hope that the answers to all classwork and tests were based off of it and not the Professor's lectures.

**

Miles away from Hogwarts a middle aged redheaded man paced back and forth in his living room dictating to quill charmed to write without him actually holding it. Ron Weasley was attempting to compose an apology letter to his daughter. He regretted having sent his last letter to her though he did not regret all of what he had said. Still between his wife and his parents badgering and berating him about his 'overreaction' Ron had come to see that he had been a bit too hard on Rose.

He still wasn't happy with the situation one bit, still didn't trust her housemates or that she'd been given a fair chance to learn much at the school but there wasn't anything he could do about that. All he could do was support Rose and hope she didn't get corrupted by her fellow Slytherins.

Finally have decided what to say Ron opened his mouth and began to speak “ Rose, I must apologize...

End notes: Yes I went with the traditional summoning charm. I think it's a very simple basic charm that really is ideal for a first years first experimentation.

This chapter was short and hard to write, I needed to get some things out of the way before I felt free to write the more fun stuff that lies ahead. Classes will be gone into with much more depth in upcoming chapters.

Next chapter will be more action oriented ( more show less tell) and will have more Rose.