Lysander Scamander had always been “different�, and he knew it. His mother knew how it felt to be made fun of, but she never seemed to let it bother her. His twin brother, Lorcan, was also quite strange, but at least people seemed to generally like him. People didn’t like talking to Lysander. They called him ‘loony’ and ‘off his rocker.’ Lysander didn’t seem to mind it too much, he usually just responded to his attackers with: “my reality is just different than yours.� But recently he’d been thinking a lot. He would be starting his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in just a week, and he was a strange mixture of excited and nervous. His father kept telling him he’d do great, but Lysander wasn’t so sure.

* * * * *

Lysander awoke to a silent house. His father had probably already gone to work, his brother was most likely still asleep, and who knew what his mother was doing? He swung his legs out of bed and stood, stretching. He looked over at his alarm clock, which told him it was 8:45. He yawned and headed down the stairs and into the den. Lysander looked over at his mother, Luna, who was doing that strange muggle thing she liked to do. He thought it was called ‘mediritating’ or something.

“Mum? Are we going to Diagon Alley today?� Lysander walked past her and into the kitchen. Luna sighed and stood.

“Yes, darling. Your father wanted to come, but he has a lot of...things...going on at work.�

She pulled out her wand from her back pocket and tapped it against the rim of her teacup, magically refilling it. Lysander nodded, his father worked a lot, but he cared. He got two slices of bread from the bread box and pushed the lever of the toaster down. He got the jam out just as the toast popped up. He spread the jam on and took a bite, sitting down at the bar. Lorcan groggily walked into the room a few minutes later.

“Hello...� Lorcan croaked, yawning. Lysander nodded in greeting. Luna smiled at her son.

“Good morning, sweetie. Sleep well?�

She took a sip of her tea. Lorcan shrugged and poured himself some orange juice. Lysander chewed his toast and jam.

“We should be getting going in a half an hour. Considering we already got your cauldrons and weights, and you have Rowena," she gestured to the family's owl. "We just need your books, wands, and robes today. That should be easy enough.� Luna sighed wistfully.

Lysander smiled. He was very excited to find out what kind of wand would choose him. Ollivander’s had always fascinated him.

* * * * *

As they exited Flourish and Blott’s with their schoolbooks, Lysander groaned. He shifted his large pile of books and looked over at Lorcan, who was doing the same. Luna looked at them both, then with a flick of her wand, she sent the books home, flapping their pages like wings. Lysander watched them fade from sight before running to catch up with his mother and brother, who were heading to Ollivander’s. Lysander stepped through the doorway, looking around at all the wands and boxes strewn across the floor and shelves. He had just been eyeing an oak wand when a small man came scuttling from what looked like a back room.

“Hello, welcome, welcome, you there, the tall one, what’s your name?� Lorcan blinked and looked around, as if to confirm the man was talking to him.

“Lorcan Scamander.� The man grinned and looked at Luna.

“Ah, Luna Lovegood! Or is it Scamander now? Quite the inquisitive one in your day!�

Luna smiled and gently pushed Lorcan towards Mr. Ollivander.

“Now let’s see...�

Mr. Ollivander pulled out a quite worn tape measure and started measuring Lorcan all over. Lorcan’s eyes widened as the man scuttled over the shelf, and the tape measure continued to measure him on its own. Mr. Ollivander came back a few seconds later with a box.

“Elderberry, 12 ½ inches, unicorn core, slightly springy. Here.�

He handed it to Lorcan, but when he waved it around, nothing happened. The man snatched it away and searched around for a moment before grabbing another box.

“Cherry, 11 inches, phoenix core, unyielding.�

Lysander looked at Lorcan, his eyes wide when he raised the wand and green sparks sizzled as they flew out. The man took the wand and packed it in the box and handed it back to him.

“Now, your turn. What’s your name?� Lysander looked up.

“Lysander Scamander.� The man smiled.

“Quite a mouthful, eh?�

Mr. Ollivander started to measure him. Lysander sighed.

“You have no idea.�

Lysander’s full name was Lysander Xenophilius Scamander. His name was so long, sometimes even he forgot how to spell it. His middle name was after his grandfather, his mother’s father, so he knew it was special. Lysander’s brother’s name was a bit easier, it being Lorcan Xavier Scamander. Xavier was his uncle on his father’s side.

“Oak, 13 ½ inches, phoenix core, strong. Try it.�

Mr. Ollivander handed him the wand he had been admiring earlier. Lysander waved it around, but nothing happened. Lysander frowned, but was soon given another wand.

“Birch, 12 inches, unicorn core, springy.�

Lysander waved it, but yet again, nothing happened. He sighed, what if he wasn’t meant to be a wizard? But then the man handed him another wand.

“Redwood, 11 ½ inches, dragon heartstring core, flexible.�

As soon as the wand touched him, and before he knew it, he had raised the wand and purple sparks flew out. He looked at his brother, who was grinning widely, and smiled. Mr. Ollivander packed up the wand and mumbled to himself.

“Curious...very curious indeed...�

“Excuse me...what?� Lysander’s smile faded and he raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, oh, nothing, it’s just, well, I think you should know...that the heartstring in your wand is from the dragon your father defeated when he was your age.�

Lysander’s eyes widened and he looked down at the box in his hands.

“It’s nothing to worry about, my boy!�

As his mother paid for their wands with 14 Galleons, Lysander couldn’t stop wondering about what power this wand held. His mother had told him about his father as a boy, and how he had been awarded a medal for protecting his school from an evil demon, and Lysander assumed that was the dragon. His father had gone to Durmstrang. They left Ollivander’s quickly, and headed to their last stop, Madam Malkin’s, to buy their robes. Lorcan went first, but then he wasn’t feeling too well, so Luna took him away to get him something to settle his stomach. As Lysander was being measured, a pale boy with almost white, sort of spiky, hair swaggered in. The boy smirked at Lysander,

“You must be that loony Ravenclaw’s son.� He sneered.

“Scorpius. It’s been long. And my mother isn’t loony.� Lysander sighed. Scorpius snorted.

“Right. And I’m not a pure blood.�

He snickered and proceeded to be measured. Lysander couldn’t stand him. Lorcan enjoyed calling him a little git. Lysander ignored him the entire time until his mother came back, and when her back was turned, Scorpius twirled his finger to the side of his head and mouthed the word “loony.� Lysander couldn’t take it anymore. He dropped his robes and wand and jumped on Scorpius, knocking him to the ground. He could hear Scorpius grunt and Luna gasp. Lysander clenched his jaw and punched Scorpius in the stomach before he felt cold hands pull him off. Lysander looked up and was face to face with Draco Malfoy. Mr. Malfoy’s breath was hot and his expression displeased.

“What is going on here?!� Draco demanded. Lysander’s eyes widened and he stuttered,

“I-I..n-nothing, s-sir.�

But Draco didn’t stay to hear his response. He was already pulling Scorpius up from the floor and berating him. They left in a hurry, but not before Scorpius could shoot a murderous glare at Lysander. Lysander turned around, quite pleased with himself, but all that changed once he saw the look on Luna’s face.

Lysander was sitting on the loveseat in the den, waiting for his father to get home. As soon as they had arrived home, Luna had sent a flustered letter to her husband about Lysander’s ‘incident.’ She kept going on about how embarrassed she had been, and how she never would have thought her sweet little darling would do such a thing. Just then, Lysander’s father, Rolf Scamander, stepped through the door. He hung his coat and sighed.

“Lysander?� Lysander took in a deep breath and stood. He slowly walked down the corridor.

“Yes, father?� he asked cautiously. His father had never been one to get angry, even when him and Lorcan had experimented on the cat and given her a tail ten times as long as normal. Rolf motioned for Lysander to follow him into the kitchen. They both sat at the table.

“You’ve made a dangerous enemy, son.� Rolf gave Lysander a gentle look. Lysander clasped his hands in his lap and nodded. “What in Merlin’s name got you so worked up?� Lysander didn’t look up.

“He was making fun of my family. He called us ‘loony’.� Rolf gazed at his son, his expression soft.

“Ly...I’m happy you’re willing to stand up for your family, but I can’t have you throwing punches whenever you hear a rude comment! When you start doing that, you become just as low as your enemy, or even lower.�

“But Father, he called you an ‘animal-loving loon’!� Lysander looked up. His father’s grandfather was Newt Scamander, and was quite famous for his work with magical creatures. Rolf sighed and leaned back in the chair. Then he smiled.

“I’ve been called worse, Ly.� He winked at his son. “Now, I better get down to business before your mother takes over, and Merlin knows she’ll just start going on about Nargles.� He cleared his throat and looked at his son. “I better not hear of any more fighting, young man. Am I understood?� Lysander nodded briskly. “Good. Go on, now.� Rolf waved his hand in dismissal. Lysander scampered up the stairs and to his room, where Lorcan was waiting for him.

“So, how much trouble did you get into?� Lorcan looked at his brother.

“None. Now let’s keep working on that Veritaserum.� Lorcan nodded, digressing the situation. The twins headed over to their experiment table in the corner of Lysander’s room. They added a few things to the serum, then suddenly it started to bubble unusually. Lorcan’s eyes widened and he looked at his brother.

“Uhh...Ly...that doesn’t look right.� Lysander shook his head and checked the recipe again.

“Oh, no. Duck!�It was too late. The Veritaserum exploded and splattered everywhere, covering the twins from head to toe in the clear liquid.

“Oh, yuck!� Lorcan flicked his hands to fling the serum off. Just then, Luna opened the door.

“Boys! Din-what’s happened in here?� Luna sighed. The twins slowly turned and simultaneously laughed nervously.

“Uh...Hi, Mum,� they both said. Rolf came up the stairs, took one look at his sons and the room and started laughing.

6 days later, King’s Cross Station, Platform 9 ¾, about half past 10

Lysander was staring in awe of the Hogwarts Express. His brother nudged him and Lysander looked where he was pointing. He was pointing at Harry Potter and his children. Luna gently pushed his hand down.

“Pointing is rude, Lorcan. They’re people, not zoo animals.� Lorcan sighed. The train sounded for everyone to board, and the twins hugged their parents quickly and jumped onto the train.

“Have a good term!� Luna called after them. Rolf waved at them. The twins waved quickly and disappeared onto the train. Lysander looked over at his brother and they sat down in an empty compartment. A few moments later, a few more first years asked if they could sit there. Lysander recognized two of them right away. He looked at Lorcan, who seemed to be thinking the same. Lysander looked at one of the familiar ones, a boy with black hair.

“You’re Albus Potter.� He looked over at a girl with ginger hair. “And you’re Rose Weasley.� Then he looked from his brother to the last one, a short girl with brown pigtails. “We don’t know who you are.� He watched as Rose slowly nodded and the other girl blushed and looked away. Albus blinked.

“I know I am...And who might you two be?�

Lysander grinned and the twins stood.

“Lysander Scamander.�

“Lorcan Scamander. As you can see, we’re twins.� Albus looked from Lorcan to Lysander.

“I’ve noticed. How do you know us? Other than our parents being famous and all. Your last name sounds familiar...� Albus trailed off. Lysander smirked.

“Our parents were friends. Well, m y mother and your parents, anyway.� Lysander sighed and Lorcan nodded.

“Our mother is Luna Lovegood. Perhaps you’ve heard of her?� Lysander cocked his head, Lorcan immediately following suit, waiting for Albus’ answer.

“Oh, yes. Now I remember. You were at the Weasley Christmas party last year, weren’t you?� Albus sat down across from them, next to Rose. The other girl was still standing.

“Sometimes it’s better not to know so much,� Lysander sighed mysteriously. Lorcan narrowed his eyes at his brother.

“Lysander, is that really necessary?� Lorcan berated his brother. Lysander ignored him and turned to the unknown girl.

“And who might you be?� The girl’s eyes widened.

“A-Amaryah...Longbottom.� She held up a toad. “A-And this is Cleo.� Lysander nodded.

“Right.� He sighed and sat.

“Perhaps you’ve met my brother?� Amaryah piped. “He’s with his friend Scorpius.� Lysander’s expression darkened.

“No. I’d rather not.�

Amaryah smiled, not seeming to be fazed at all. “Okay!� she squeaked and sat down. Lysander sat down and looked out the window, just hoping they’d be there soon.