familiar ; draco malfoy

CHAPTER THREE

Loneliness seems like such an easy thing to fix: find a friend, talk to someone- and perspective friends roamed the halls of Hogwarts each time Ramona passed through them. And yet that loneliness poisoned her so much, for even though her surroundings changed, Ramona stayed the same person she was when she walked into the castle for the first time.

Loneliness was etched into her bones for so long she was afraid of living without it, feeling as if her body would give out without it there. It was the one feeling she knew- lonely solitude and a twisted kind of peace that came with.

Ramona's first week included a lot of getting used to. Everyone who tried to talk to her soon caught onto the fact that she wasn't very talkative.

But she was fascinated by the castle. The great hallways and moving portraits seemed larger each time she passed through them. There was no book on Hogwarts that she could read that could have prepared for the grandiosity of the castle.

She felt the need to move almost without end; if her limbs were moving the anxiety was gone, or at least she could ignore it. Roaming the halls she could lose herself, much like in a dream. But once she'd settle down and have nothing to do but think, it would come coursing through her veins as if it hitched a ride on her blood cells.

Ramona tried her best to enjoy the time she was having. After all, she'd always preferred to go to Hogwarts over Durmstrang. She found herself missing her old school very little with each passing day. But along with it came the feeling that not much had changed from school to school, for she still felt isolated from her peers on matter the place she was.

This school came with the one person she'd thought of every day for the entirety of her life. One person who's memory she was completely wiped from and the only one who she wanted to trust with her life at this point.

Ramona saw Draco only a handful of times- but looking at him was hard. She knew him and yet he did not spare her a glance; a stranger who had once been the only friend she had. He couldn't know her, and it angered her. She wanted him to know what had happened to her. She wanted to restore his memories and thank him for what he had done for her when they were mere children.

Even then, he was cold. But now, he seemed almost completely emotionless. The same, statue-like expression of detachment was etched into his face and an almost habitual air of disinterest surrounded him at all times. 

The more she thought about him the more she realized that he was not who she remembered him as. She was afraid he was broken beyond repair as she watched him walk out of the common room, no longer the little boy she remembered.

She believed she shouldn't have been surprised. If life had turned out differently, she would have been just like him. But the air of prejudice that lived deep within him was poisoning him from the beginning and she thought it irreparable. It broke her heart and awoke a deep, deep feeling of guilt for leaving him behind- even though she had no choice.

His family was connected to darkness just as she had once been and Ramona hoped he wasn't consumed by it yet- that there was still room for salvation.

But her thoughts were interrupted by a figure appearing next to her. She continued staring at the green flames of the fireplace, not really in the mood for speaking to him. What do you say after eleven years?

Blaise Zabini sat slowly beside her. At first, he said nothing. She knew Blaise was rather reserved, it was a trait they shared. But just being around someone who'd once known her made her feel nervous. They didn't know each other anymore.

He was taller. He looked different than she thought, but Blaise still resembled the little boy who was once like her brother. His hair was cut short and facial features sharp and defined- he looked very little like his mother and nothing like she imagined him.