[Revisions: Monday, July 15, 2024]

Draco stayed quiet as he looked at Basil with a conflicted gaze. He had heard the red-haired boy's surname from his father, Lucius Abraxas Malfoy.

"Your name is not Harry Potter, right?" Draco softly asked Basil, wanting to be sure it wasn't a coincidence that Basil had the same surname as the Boy-Who-Lived.

Basil blinked, looking at Draco with a confused gaze.

"No. Harry is my brother," Basil informed Draco.

Draco looked at Basil with a surprised expression because his father had not mentioned the Boy-Who-Lived having a sibling.

"I know. I know. People are always shocked when they learn that my brother, Harry, has a sibling," Basil mumbled, his annoyance tinged with a hint of sadness that tugged at Draco's heartstrings.

Draco blinked, noticing Basil's emerald green eyes looked sad. It made him uncomfortable since he was already accustomed to Basil's cheerful demeanor.

"I'm sorry," Draco apologized for once in his life.

Basil softly smiled at Draco.

"It's okay. I am not mad at you. I am just annoyed that people are now going to see me as Harry's brother and not me, Basil," Basil mumbled, his emerald green eyes sadly staring at the ground.

"Somehow, I feel as though I am now going to be in my brother's shadow once I attend Hogwarts," Basil sadly told Draco.

"I doubt it," Draco confessed to Basil.

Basil lifted his head to stare at Draco.

"Just be yourself, and I have a feeling many people would not mind being friends with you," Draco softly smiled at Basil.

"Are you talking about yourself?" Basil asked, staring at Draco with a hopeful gaze.

Draco blinked, looking at Basil with a confused gaze.

"I mean, do you want to be my friend?" Basil asked Draco.

Draco stared at Basil with a surprised expression. For once, it wasn't him asking someone to be friends because of his wealthy background. Basil didn't know who he was or his family, which made Draco happy. It meant that Basil wanted to be friends with him, not the Malfoy Family's Heir. At least Basil didn't know about his parents' history with the wizard who killed his parents. However, why did he feel scared about someone telling Basil about his parents' affiliation with You-Know-Who?

"I think being friends with me is a terrible idea," Draco whispered.

"Why would you say that?" Basil asked with a raised eyebrow.

Draco leaned towards the door, sliding it to the right to give them privacy. He then leaned back and stared at Basil intently.

"My dad was a loyal follower of the man who killed your parents," Draco confessed.

The train cabin fell silent as Basil and Draco intently stared at each other.

"I understand if you want to leave the room," Draco looked away, staring at the window sadly.

"I mean, once we are at Hogwarts, people are going to be telling you that being next to me is bad news, especially with my dad's personal history with You-Know-Who, and since you are the brother of the Boy-Who-Lived," Draco mumbled.

Basil intently stared at Draco, who looked out the window sadly. Basil stayed quiet as he grabbed Draco's hand and squeezed it lightly.

Draco looked back at Basil with a confused expression.

"Your father may have a history with the man who killed my parents. But you are not him. So, I don't mind being friends with you," Basil kindly smiled at Draco.

"You sure are an interesting guy, Green Eyes," Draco mumbled, a slight blush appearing on his cheek, feeling a bit happy that Basil still wanted to befriend him.

Basil chuckled amusingly, blinking when he heard the door open. He turned to see a girl around their age with brown hair, brown eyes, and a pug-like face happily smiling in Draco's direction.

"Drakeypoo!" the girl screeched, feeling happy to see Draco as she attacked him with a hug, causing him to let go of Basil's hand.

"Pansy," Draco mumbled, his happiness quickly changing to annoyance at the sight of her.

"I missed you so much during the summer, Drakeypoo," Pansy cuddled next to Draco, giggling.

"Pansy, you interrupted my conversation with someone important," Draco firmly told her.

Pansy blinked, gazing at Basil, awkwardly staring at her and Draco. She eyed Basil from head to toe.

"He looks like a Mudblood," Pansy firmly said.

"A what?" Basil asked, looking confused.

"Pansy!" Draco snapped, angry that Pansy called his new friend a 'Mudblood.'

Pansy blinked, surprised that Draco would snap at her. She shivered when she saw him staring furiously at her.

"Amico!" a male voice happily called out to Draco.

Basil blinked and turned to see a boy around their age with black hair, brown eyes, and a friendly face, happily smiling at Draco.

Draco sighed in relief when he saw his childhood friend, Blaise Zabini.

"Blaise," Draco politely greeted him as he removed Pansy's arms and hugged his childhood friend.

"How's your summer, Amico?" Blaise happily asked as they hugged.

"Boring. Mostly reading my textbooks," Draco responded, letting go of Blaise and sitting next to Basil.

Blaise nodded and blinked when he saw Basil for the first time.

"Who's the new guy?" Blaise asked, sitting across from Basil and Draco, with Pansy pouting as Draco sat beside Basil.

"His name is Basil Potter," Draco introduced him to Blaise and Pansy.

"Drakeypoo, may I have a word with you?" Pansy stood up, causing Basil, Blaise, and Draco to look at her.

Draco annoyingly rolled his eyes as he stood up and glanced at Blaise.

"Blaise, make Basil feel welcomed," Draco firmly told him as he walked out of the train cabin with Pansy, and she closed the door behind them.

Basil and Blaise watched Draco and Pansy leave before turning to stare at each other.

"A Potter, right?" Blaise curiously asked.

"Yeah. I told Draco that Harry is my brother," Basil responded.

"Interesting," Blaise stared at Basil curiously.

"So, how do you know Draco?" Basil curiously asked.

"His mum is a friend of my mum," Blaise explained.

"When you first met Draco, what did you think of him?" Basil softly asked.

Blaise raised an eyebrow at the question.

"I, um, thought that Draco was a girl when I first met him," Basil awkwardly responded, looking slightly embarrassed.

Blaise began to laugh, finding Basil's first meeting with Draco hilarious.

"Amico, you are one funny guy. I'm surprised Draco didn't hex you when you told him," Blaise stared at Basil amusingly.

"Yeah. Glad he didn't," Basil nervously chuckled, remembering reading about hexes in his Charms textbook.

Outside the train cabin, Draco and Pansy intently stared at each other.

"You have to tell your father about Potter having a sibling," Pansy softly told Draco.

"Why?" Draco asked, staring at her sternly.

"So your father can inform You-Know-Who, and he can torture and hopefully kill that Potter before he can do the same to the Boy-Who-Lived," Pansy explained.

"No one is going to torture that Potter, Pansy. And you better not say a word about this to my father or yours. If I find out my father somehow knows about this Potter's existence, I will not hesitate to hex you," Draco threatened as he opened the door and re-entered the train cabin.

Pansy stood there, feeling surprised at Draco's behavior. She glanced at Basil with a scowl, thinking he was already brainwashing her Draco to act strangely.

The whistle of the Hogwarts Express grabbed everyone's attention, and students began to wave goodbye to their loved ones. Soon, the train left the station, heading towards its destination: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.