FicWad

Valentine stood in her newly tailored Hogwarts robes, surrounded by other students and parents at platform 9 3 / 4. She glared at a small boy as he bumped into to her and sent the child huddling into his mother side, who stood oblivious to the entire exchange. Valentine looked out into the crowd around her. She watched silently as mothers and fathers bid good by the there children and as other first year students looked around themselves with the wonder that Valentine fort to contain. Suddenly a familiar voice rung out beside her and Valentine turned to her blonde cousin.

"They'll just let anyone here won't they, Val?" Draco Malfoy sneered coldly at the bustling crowd around him, the parents and children both.

"I completely agree." Valentine nodded sincerely. I completely disagree.

"Now, you two remember our discussion? " Lucius Malfoy, Valentines uncle and Dracos father asked, towering above them with like the imposing force they both knew he was .

"Yes, sir." Draco and Valentine answered in perfect unison.

Valentines mind raced back to a night time discussion just over one week ago, when her uncle had called both her and her cousin into his office. Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. This is what he had told them both.

"And remember we love you both." Valentines aunt, Narcissa Malfoy beemed happily, reaching out and brushing Valentines raven curls our of her eyes. "Now where's my hug?"

When neither Valentine or Draco stepped forward into the woman's waiting embrace, she herself wrapped her arms around Valentine in a familiar warm embrace. I can't... Breathe. She's going to kill me before I even get to Hogwarts!


"And most importantly do not in anyway disgrace the the family name." Lucius added, his cold blue icy eyes burning through them both. “Or the repercussions will be serve. Is that understood?”

"Yes, sir." Draco and Valentine answered in perfect practiced unison once more.

"Good. Go on then." Valentine's uncle nodded at the large scarlet red locomotive behind them.

"Have fun! " Her aunt called to them as they turned to board the train, her eyes glassy with tears. "I love you!"

Once aboard the Hogwarts Express the two seeked out a empty compartment, but as the two began to realize the lack of one a familiar and friendly voice shouted out behind them.

"Val! Draco! Over here!" Calls out a tall girl with long caramel colored hair, who was waving her arms about wildly.

"Draco its Leah!" Valentine beemed happily. Too happy! Too happy! There are students all over this train! Stay in character, don't slip up before we even get to Hogwarts. Remember, you hate muggles, muggle borns and anyone how dares to smite you, the Malfoy, the Lestranges or Slytherin.

"Yeah, I know, I could hear her from a mile away." Draco rolled his eyes.

"Come on." Valentine grabbed Dracos hand and began to pull him over to Leah.

Leah Lovat was Valentines best friend. They'd known each other since birth due to a long standing friendship between the Malfoys and Lovats. Leah was Valentines only other friend beside her own cousin, she always visited at the Malfoy Manor at least once a week.

"Oh my god! I've missed you so much!" Leah exclaimed wrapping her arms around Valentine in a familiar warm embrace.

"We saw you only last week ,Leah."

"I know. I mean, a weeks practically forever!" Valentine ignored her friends antics, while Draco rolls his eyes once more. "There's some people I want you guys to met."

Leah pulls the two into a compartment where two boys and a girl turned to look at them.

"Val, Draco. This is Crabbe and Goyle. And of course you know Pansy from my birthday party last year." Leah says, first pointing at two chubby boys , then pointing to the familiar face across from them. "And guys...this is Draco Malfoy and his cousin Valentine Lestrange."

Valentine then, like flicking a switch , changes from the girl looking forward to her first year at school, to a first class snob. She completely ignores both boys as if they were not even there and sits beside Pansy casually. That’s better. Remember your supposed to be a snob. You've been working on this for two years! There's no way you can screw this up!

"Hello , Pansy." Valentine nods to the girl beside her, who nods back. Draco also ignores the boys.

"Hey, I heard that Harry Potter is on this train." Said Crabbe, leaning in towards the middle of the compartment as if he was telling a very important secret.

"I heard the same thing." Goyle agreed.

"Oh my god!" Leah exclaimed excitedly. "Do you think he really has the scar?" She whispered, her big brown eyes glowing.

"Perhaps, I guess we will just have to wait until we see him." Valentine said with a shrug of her shoulders.

Then suddenly the compartment door slides open to reveal a pretty girl with a head of unfortunate bushy brown hair.

"Has anyone seen a toad around? A boy named Neville, a few compartments down, lost one." She asked politely. [/Neville? Not as in Alice and Frank Longbottoms son? Right? The two people my parents tortured and murdered? Hes going to Hogwarts to? This may be a bit hard than I had originally thought.

"Nope." Said Leah, not even bothering to look up at her and instead inspected her nails like they were the most interesting thing in whole world.

"We haven't haven't seen one." Said Goyle ,to which Pansy and Crabbe nodded

"Exactly. So move along. " Draco smirked coldly at the girl.

"Your quiet rude." The girl sneered.

I'm sorry, but one day this could be the very thing that saves your life.

"Wait. I have seen a toad." Valentine said with a smile full of fake sweetness.



“Where?” The girl asked, her eyes filled with hope that maybe one person in the whole compartment was of decent character.



“Standing right in front of me.”

Around Valentine the compartment burst into rumpus laughter and Leah leans over Draco to high five Valentine. The girl then turns and leaves grumbling something about beings of low intelligence.

"That was awesome!" Cries Leah and Pansy in perfect synchronization. That was cruel.

"Nice one , Val." Says Draco. No it wasn't.

"Thanks." Valentine smiles. Lie.


-----Pretending to Hate-----


Valentine sits in the small boat beside Leah, Pansy and Draco. Although the others seemed so mystified by the boats that moved by themselves through the night or by a half giant man named Hadgrid who had collected all the first years at the station, Valentine finds herself with her eyes glued to the surface of the water watching the ripples go by softly and she couldn't help but wonder what was beneath that glistening layer of liquid. She'd heard all the tales about mermaids and other mystical underwater creatures, this caused her to internally battle with her curiosity.

"Oh my god! Val! Look, look!" Valentine turns from the water at the shouts of her friend, who was currently shaking Valentines arm.

"What is it?" Valentine asked, looking into her friends shocked face.

Then suddenly Pansys arm stretched out between the the two. Valentine then found her eyes migrating up the other girls arm to the very tip of her finger. Then her eyes grew wide as they landed on the biggest building she'd ever seen.

"Its a dump." Dracos ever so condescending voice rung out from behind her. How could I hate a place that looks so amazing? How could anyone? Well I guess its a good thing that I am great at telling lies then, because my next one will be anything but the truth.

"I agree. I've seen things of better caliber in our stables at the Manor. " Valentine adds.

"Well, it has no accounting for style that's for sure, but come on its huge!" Leah exclaimed.

"A huge failure. " Says Pansy with a sneer in the direction of there new school.


-----Pretending to Hate-----


Valentine, Leah, Draco, Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle all walked together as they all made there way up a large stone. Valentines head snapped up at the sound of fingers upon stone that seemed so much louder then there combined foot steps that echo against the stone surroundings.

A top the stairs stood a large dark wood door and in front of that door stood a tall woman in a long dark green cloak with her grey hair pulled back tightly beneath a black pointed hat. Her face was hard like the stone they stood upon that night, but soft blue eyes told another story of misunderstood kindness.

"Welcome to Hogwarts." The woman began. "Now, in a few moments, you will pass through these doors and join your classmates. But before you can take your seats you must be sorted into your houses. They are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin." As the woman mentioned the last house Draco and Valentine turned to smirk and wink at one another and still the woman continued.



"Now, while you are here, your house will be like your family. Your triumphs will earn you house points. Any rule breaking, and you will lose points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup."

"Trevor!" All of a sudden a boy with dark hair jumps forward from the crowd and wraps his hands around a toad lying at the womans feet, and the other students giggle to there selves as the apologizes and quickly moves back into the crowd. Ah! So, this is Neville Longbottom? While I was being nursed by my aunt, not even a full twenty four hours after by birth, my mother and father murdered the parents of this boy? What a family I have.

"The sorting ceremony will begin momentarily." She says then turns from the first years and enters the door behind her.

Valentine was scanning the crowd of her new class mates, trying to guess where each of them will go, then her eyes landed on a boy with glasses and messy black hair standing at the front. It was Harry Potter. Valentine gently elbows her cousin and gestures to the boy. 'Its him' she mouthed. Draco nodded , stepped forward Valentine in tow.

"It's true then, what they're saying on the train. Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts." Draco voices, eyes trained on the other boy.

All the students turn to each other whispering about the famous 'Boy Who Lived'.

"Do you think its true?" It is.

"Do you think that he really has the scar?" You bet.

"Its probably just a fib." Then you'd be wrong.

"This is Crabbe, and Goyle. And Valentine." Draco continued. "And I'm Malfoy...Draco Malfoy." The a red haired boy beside Harry Potter snickered at his name.

"Think my name's funny, do you? No need to ask yours. Red hair, and a hand me down robe? You must be a Weasley." The blonde sneered coldly at the other boy.

Honestly Draco, your all bark no bite.

"You'll soon find that some wizarding families are better than others, Potter." Valentine added , stepping up beside her cousin and glaring down at the red haired boy. "You wouldn’t want to go around making friends with the wrong sort."

"We can help you there." Draco says extending hand to the other boy.

"I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks." Harry retorts easily. Clever boy. Hopefully not too clever.

Draco and Valentine glared harshly down upon the boy, and everyone in the room could have sworn that the temperature dropped several degrees. Then the woman returns and with a light smack on there shoulders and one last heated glare Draco and Valentine step back into the group.

"We're ready for you now."

The woman lead Valentine and the rest of the first year students thought the grand door way in the great hall. The first thing that Valentine noticed wasn't the roof of the hall that had been enchanted to appear to look like the night sky or the vast amounts of students all around her sitting at four long tables stretching across the room. No, the first thing she notice was the table at the front of the room where two familiar faces watched the firsts year walk though the great hall for the first time ever.

Her eyes lightly looked over the teachers faces, not stopping even a fraction when they passed effortlessly across one of the two familiar faces of professor Albus Dumbledore and professor Severus Snape.

Only once Valentine had finished scanning the teachers and the rest of of the great hall did she notice her friend clinging to her arm beside her. Valentine looked down at her friends face to see her biting her bottom lip, her eyes squinted with harsh concentration.

"Um...Leah what the world are you doing?" Valentine asked.

"I'm trying to hold in all my excitement. " She answered through clenched teeth. Valentine just rolled her eyes and shoved her friend off her arm. Leah, I swear your from another planet...


"All right, will you wait along here, please? " The woman directed. "Now, before we begin, Professor Dumbledore would like to say a few words."

Then all eyes in the room were glued to one man to stood from his chair and flashed everyone a smile.

"I have a few start of term notices I wish to announce." Professor Dumbledore began, his voice easily booming out throughout the hall. "The first years please note that the dark forest is strictly forbidden to all students. Also, our caretaker, Mr. Filch has asked me to remind you that the 3rd floor corridor on the right hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a most painful death. Thank you."

I feel like I should be more surprised at what he said... But its just like him to say something like that.

The students all turned to each other eyebrows arched with an unasked question that not even Leah dared to ask.


"When I call your name, you will come forth, I shall place the sorting hat on your head, and you will be sorted into your houses." The woman spoke up once again to begin the sorting ceremony. "Hermione Granger."

Valentine watched as the girl who she had called a toad on the train stepped forward from the crowd and sit upon a stool up a small set of stairs. The girl sports a slightly worried expression as a old weathered hat is placed upon her head and then begun to talk. Once the hat had finished mumbling and chuckling it placed the girl in Gryffindor. Big surprise there...

"Draco Malfoy." The woman eventually announced.

Valentine turned to smile at her cousin who just winked at her and made his way confidently to the stool. Valentine didn't even blink when the hat had shouted out 'Slytherin!' before it had even touched his head. Draco walks over to the Slytherin table and sat beside Leah and Pansy who had already been sorted into, big surprise, Slytherin.

Suddenly Valentines ears pick out a sound of distress. What was that? Is someone hurt?


"Ow." Suddenly Valentines ears pick out a sound of distress a few students in front of her.

"Harry, what's wrong?" She hears the Weasley ask Harry.

"Its nothing. I'm fine." Harry insisted.

Its Harry Potter! Whats going on?

Moving as covertly as she could Valentine moved closer to the boy who lived. Once Valentine had a good view of Harry Potters face she found him staring directly into the eyes of Severus Snape, who was staring straight back at him. This was not a ideal event in a Valentines book. What is he doing? If I've managing then he has no reason to break his cover! I have I do something!Thinking quickly she crushed her foot down upon the students next to her who cried out in pain and turned to glare at Valentine.

"Oh, so sorry." Valentine said , flashing the girl a fake smile full of sweetness.

Valentine looked up to see the staring contest between Harry Potter and professor Snape had stopped, but instead found the professor looking now, directly at her. She simply rolled her eyes and then heard her named being called.

"Valentine Lestrange." Finally.

Suddenly the room was silent.