Before The Past

Ch. 18

The train ride back was completely silent. There was nothing to talk about, and it seemed as though I was the only one who wasn't aware of who Matteo is. Everyone seemed slightly irritated and nervous that I now knew, and Draco was taking all the hits. When we had sat down, I was given dirty looks from everyone and took it as a sign to sit by myself. I didn't mind, it seemed as though their frustration and disagreement was all childish anyways. 

Going to the ball with Potter seemed to be the last straw for them. I had been on a tight rope that slowly got thinner and loser the more I strayed away from their perfect ideas. My parents had also found out, and their reaction was nothing but disappointment and blindness. They saw my act of 'rebellion' as a strategy to get more out of Potter. For now that was all they had to know and the longer I was able to play into the lie, the easier it would be for me to do as I wish. 

The ground outside was pure white, and all the only conversations I could hear around me were about the tournament. The silence was almost too much, but by the time I took it for granted I was already wishing I could have it back. A presence snuck up behind me and crouched down to whisper in my ear.

"Mind if we have a chat?" Asked the voice. 

I looked up to see Matteo standing above me with a smug look on his face. I stayed silent and watched while he slid into the booth opposite of me. I didn't look at him, but just continued to watch the Earth fly by in a blur outside. 

"There's rumor that you've discovered who I am." He stated. 

"Yes, and what about it?" I said plainly. 

"I can only imagine it came as a surprise to you, I mean it does for most-" 

"You know what, how about you just fuck off. Or better yet you stay here, worry about yourself, and I'll go on my merry way." I snapped. 

I gave a forced smile, got up, and walked off. I got out of the cart and thought about why I had reacted that way. Had I discovered he was anyone else, I would have taken the situation differently. Knowing that he was related to the Dark Lord, was a little different. Maybe it was knowing him, but not know who he was that changed my reaction. As I walked I slowly drifted off into space and thought, suddenly snapping back to reality when I had ran into somebody. 

"Oh, uh, sorry, are you alri- Aroura, what are you doing in this cart?" I looked up and realized it was Potter. 

"I was just walking around, I could ask you the same thing." I responded. 

"This is the erm Gryffindor cart, I'm supposed to be in here." He said, puzzled. 

"Yes, but I thought you stayed in the castle." I remarked.

"Oh- well, I was going to, but we; Hermione, Ron, and I, ended up going to the burrow- I mean Ron's home." He answered awkwardly. 

"Oh, I see, well that sounds lovely, I'm going to go back to my cart now." I nodded. 

"Right, yeah. Actually, can I ask, how was your break?" Potter smiled. 

I looked at him, wondering if he was actually genuinely asking. His face seemed good natured, and as though he truly wanted to know. I battled myself in my mind, wondering how I should respond. I sighed and we agreed on finding an empty cabin that only took a few tries to find. We talked for the rest of the ride, discussing what we did while on holiday. I didn't mention anything about figuring out who Matteo was, knowing that he was probably the last person who would want to talk about it. 

When the castle came into sight, I excused myself and walked back to the Slytherin cart. When I got back into the cart, I realized that Draco wasn't sitting with the others. I figured he was probably off doing something else or talking to someone else. I slid back into the booth I was originally in, not thinking to look in front of me at the other seat.