Chapter 17: Malfoy

Luke and Hermione entered the final train compartment. Before they could start searching for Trevor, they noticed three boys blocking the door of a compartment mid-carriage.

They looked intimidating, led by a boy with corn-silk blonde hair, wearing a smug, arrogant smile. His two lackeys were a tall, fat one and a shorter, fat one, both appearing to have some fighting power in them.

Upon seeing the blonde boy's expression, Hermione instinctively felt a dislike for him. Although he was somewhat handsome, he was far from Luke's level, especially in terms of charm and demeanor.

"I'm Malfoy! Draco Malfoy!"

They heard the boy declare in a haughty tone, as if waiting for applause.

Hermione frowned upon hearing his name, looking unimpressed. "Draco? Didn't his parents find it a bit embarrassing to name him that? And his last name is Malfoy."

(T/N: The surname Malfoy is derived from the French phrase "mal foi" meaning "bad faith")

"I'm not sure"

Luke replied with a calm smile. "But the Malfoy family's reputation in noble circles is quite ordinary."

This wasn't an exaggeration; one of the three things Luke had done before school started was gather all the scandalous stories left by his family regarding other noble houses.

The Malfoys had plenty of infamous stories, often due to their love of flaunting their status. Among them, Lucius Malfoy I's pursuit of Queen Elizabeth I was a popular tale of ridicule.

Other stories, like trying to control the Ministry of Magic or killing their Muggle tenants under the pretense of the Black Plague, weren't unique to them but were common among most pure-blood families.

Another reason for the disdain toward the Malfoys was their relatively recent rise to power.

Around the 11th century, one of the earliest Malfoys gained status by serving William the First.

In contrast, families like the Gaunts were much older, with Salazar Slytherin himself as a direct ancestor, dating back to the founding of Hogwarts in the 10th century.

"If I were you, Potter, I'd be very careful. You should be more polite, or you might end up like your parents. They were foolish too. If you associate with people like the Weasleys or Hagrid, they'll rub off on you," Draco's taunting voice echoed down the corridor.

Luke sighed. 'It's fight time.' This didn't quite match his memory of the movies but was likely how it unfolded in the books. Given how quickly they got through seven years without getting expelled, he had to credit wizard society's rule of law.

Just as he finished speaking, a voice full of anger rang out: "Say that again!"

Malfoy's face twisted into a sneer.

"Oh, you want a fight, do you?"

"Unless you leave right now."

A voice from inside the compartment, less confident, reached Luke's ears.

The corner of Luke's mouth twitched, recognizing that where there was Ron, Harry wouldn't be far behind.

One of Malfoy's lackeys was already preparing to attack, but Luke casually drew his elegantly designed wand from his sleeve.

"Incendio!" 

He incanted, aiming a burst of fire at the heavyset boy.

Hermione was stunned. She'd read about this spell but had refrained from practicing it at home for fear of causing an accident. After all, it wasn't a first-year spell.

This was just supposed to be a fight; this spell could actually kill them!

She stared at Luke, shocked by his audacity.

But Luke himself was calm, not intending to harm anyone. None of the two dumb guys, not even Malfoy, were irredeemable.

Transforming them would be a gradual process, starting with teaching them who held the power.

The fire spell wasn't particularly fast, accompanied by a shrill hiss, and Luke hadn't tried to mask his voice or use the silent casting he'd spent a month mastering.

Both Malfoy and his lackeys saw the approaching fire in time to dodge.

The shorter lackey crouched down, Malfoy pressed against the wall, and the taller one collapsed to the floor in fear.

The fire spell exploded above them like a small firework, scattering harmless sparks in the air.

It wasn't a quiet display, and several students in compartments with open doors witnessed the entire scene, including Harry and Ron.

As all eyes turned to them, Hermione tried to stand tall, projecting as much authority as possible. Luke, however, calmly slid his wand back into his hidden, enchanted wand holster.

He walked toward Malfoy and his group with a composed smile, even offering polite nods to those watching him.

Many older students who saw this found themselves wincing.

Controlling a fire spell so precisely wasn't something many of them could manage, even at their level. The students at Hogwarts weren't that numerous, so any completely unfamiliar face was most likely a new student.

A new student, who could potentially take on older ones in a duel.

For some reason, they had a vague feeling that things might get very interesting this year.

"Luke!"

Harry called out warmly as soon as he spotted him.

Ron, noticing Harry's smile, realized this was the first wizard friend Harry had mentioned.

He studied Luke and noticed his emerald-green eyes and the snake crest on his chest, recognizing his background.

Meanwhile, Hermione couldn't help frowning slightly at the two boys peering out from the compartment. One had cracked glasses, and the other, though tidy, had a slightly worn look, with a smudge of dirt on his face.

As she looked around, she found that Luke alone matched her ideal image of a wizard. Everyone else seemed just a bit lacking.

Luke had no idea that, at this moment, the trio he remembered from the movies was having some mixed reactions to each other. One of them was eyeing the other two with a hint of disdain, while the other two had their full attention focused on him.