Leaving Draco

Soft Expressions: 1993 October 8th

The days passed by quicker than the autumn leaves would hit the ground. There weren't very many days like this one:

A light Saturday afternoon, alone in the girl's dormitories.

It never occurred to me how lucky I was with the girls that lived in my dorm. There were three of us, except they never introduced their names to me. One of them was very small—half my size and she didn't even look like she was old enough to be here. The second girl had curls that looked permed. By the color of her hair, she looked like Daphne, yet the millions of freckles on her skin said otherwise.

The four-poster beds that were on each side of the wall had greens curtains on each of the beds and a wooden nightstand. Of course, there were four beds, and three of us. One of the beds was completely sheetless and piled with all our stuff. Neither one of us bothered to move the junk.

My favorite part of our dorm was the single window next to my bed. The window was covered in grime and dust, yet it was still easy to glimpse into.

Like right now.

I had a perfect view of the Hogwarts grounds, and even though my legs were right up against the window as I sat on the window sill, I still wasn't close enough. Of course, I could always go outdoors, but this is the only time my dormmates left me unattended in the dorms. I was occupied though.

While gaping out of the window I noticed little details of the brightly colored leaves prickling off the whomping willow. I could almost feel the breeze as it led the leaves to wherever the mother of nature will take them. Eventually, I know the leaves will soon decay and rot. But it was still a beautiful thing.

From the window I was looking down, I saw a bright orange leaf dancing through the drafting wind. That's when I noticed: Theodore.

I saw him sitting down, his knees up to his chest, as he was observing the same thing I was. I was too far away to see his expressions but I was sure it was him by his loose clothes and his lengthy bronzed hair kept ruffling from the wind.

Theodore was alone like a deserted world except he seemed at ease with the other planets. I could almost see his crisp and focused expression. The same look he would make when doing homework with me in the common rooms. Soft expressions.

                                                                                    ***

"Do you ever put down the book?" I asked.

Me and Theodore were the very few Slytherins sitting at the great hall this evening. No surprise there. All the older students took a trip to Hogsmeade while the first and second years got to be in their common rooms without feeling intimidated.

Theodore decided to stay with me, but I think he only agreed because he forgot to ask his guardian to sign his permission slip.

"Yeah," The brunette answered. "I just never want to."

I rolled my eyes. There's no way a book could be so intriguing. The title was "To The Light House" and the author was Virginia Woolf. The book looked the least bit intriguing.

My head tilted in curiosity, "Where do you get all these books anyways?"

Theodore glanced over the book and at me. I wanted to smile when we made eye contact but I bit it back.

"My mother sends me muggle books. She has an interest in reading them too." He answered.

Now, this I was curious about. The muggle world had always seemed very interesting and hit a nerve in my brain that made me want to learn more.

"So you guys share a lame interest then?" I answered with a cocky smile.

Theodore wasn't phased at all. He merrily just muttered, "Thus. I die."

"What?" I asked, tilting my head like before.

He shut his book entirely slamming it against the table. "Have you ever even heard of Shakespeare?!" He said annoyed.

I shook my head, "No. Is he a muggle painter?"

Theodore winced, "You have a lot to learn."