The Girl in Blue

Two weeks had gone by and for Aurora, they were the hardest two weeks of her life. Not only were classes getting harder the closer their O.W.L's approached, but she was having trouble trying to resist her temptations to speak to Tom.

During Defense Against the Dark Arts, she managed to keep it together. Tom, surprisingly, didn't say a single word to her. Not even a glance. It confused her because she had thought that he would at least try but he didn't do anything.

It kind of hurt her.

During lunch, Aurora sat with Isadora, Silas and Silver who was talking about the upcoming Quidditch match with Slytherin against Ravenclaw. She had her mind on Tom.

"Do you like Quidditch, Aurora?" Silas turned and asked her. Aurora snapped up, suddenly aware she had been brought into the conversation and stared around.

"Oh, yes." She nodded, remembering. "I love Quidditch. I wished I could have tried out this year, but I started too late."

"You play?" Silver asked, astonished. Aurora nodded her head, her eyebrows furrowed.

"Why is it surprising?" She asked, chuckling nervously.

Silas shook his head and said, "What my sister meant was that we've never seen you at any of the recent matches or anything. It's just surprising to know what else you like."

"Ahh." Aurora said, losing interest in the conversation already. Tom walked in through the oak front doors with his followers closely behind. He sat down at the edge of the Slytherin table while the three other boys sat away from him, as usual.

He kept his eyes low and didn't even bother to get food. He took his Potions book out and was studying. He didn't even notice her stare.

Aurora's gaze was broken when they all heard a hoot coming from above. A large brown owl was soaring down towards the Slytherin table.

"Isn't he a little late?" Silas snickered, referring to the usual owl posts in the morning. Even if Aurora agreed with him, the large brown owl landed in front of her, causing all of Slytherin table to look directly at her.

Aurora stared at it. The letter attached had her name written in beautiful cursive. She knew who it was from.

"Go on." Isadora urged. "Take it."

Aurora glanced around, almost everyone averted their attention. She untied the letter, freeing the owl as it flew away once it realized that it's job was done, and she opened it.

Isadora, Silas and Silver went back to their conversation, leaving Aurora be, but she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her. She looked up and her eyes met with Tom's, down the table.

She looked away immediately and opened the letter from her cousin and read,

"Aurora,

Things have been different since you went back to Hogwarts. I only stayed for a week, and it felt like everyone was walking on knives. My mother and father have tried their hardest to break the tension, but Uncle Jarlath and Aunt Esmerelda wouldn't speak to each other.

I know that you are probably a lot happier now that you're back at Hogwarts. You're away from all the drama - but keep in mind, Ror, that your problems won't ever leave you. You're still going to have to deal with your parents.

I don't know if you ever got a letter from your parents or anything, but their not very happy with themselves. You're their only daughter - I think it's killing them.

I hate to see our family so broken, Aurora. I know you're stubborn, and over something like this, it's understandable, but please hear them out at least. I'm sure Uncle J has a reason for doing what he did. He's an Auror - it's his job.

I'm sorry, Aurora. This happened during the most inconvenient time. Christmas is my favorite holiday, but I must say that last Christmas was definitely the worst.

I hope things are making you much happier now. Like a certain boy, for instance? You must tell me more, Aurora. I shall live vicariously through your love life!

Please write back to me.



Aurora sighed, crumpling up the letter and dropping it into her pumpkin juice. Isadora shot her a confused look but didn't say anything.

She picked her bag up and mumbled a goodbye and something about going to the library, and walked past everyone, including Tom, who looked up just once when she past by, and went straight towards the library.

Aurora sat down at an unoccupied table and set her bag down on the ground. She sighed.

It was true that she hadn't spoken to her family ever since she had gotten back to Hogwarts. Her mind had been jumbled with that and with Tom that she couldn't get her priorities straight.

"Aurora?"

She jumped, immediately assuming that it was Tom, but the voice was much lower. It certainly was not him, and she was slightly disappointed.

Aurora turned to her speaker and she furrowed her eyebrows as she looked up at Lestrange.

"Uh, Lestrange?" She asked, confused.

"Mind if I sit?" He asked, pointing to the seat next to her. Aurora nodded her head and watched as Lestrange sat down and took his Standard Book of Spells out from his bag.

"How are you?"

Aurora glanced at him and shrugged. "Could be better."

He nodded. "Same here."

"What's wrong with you?" She asked, not believing that any of his problems could be worse than hers. However, she felt she needed to be polite and ask.

He shrugged his burly shoulders and said, "Some people will never learn."

Aurora let out a bitter laugh, "Amen to that."

Lestrange chuckled.

"Are you hung up over Riddle?"

Aurora looked at him, shocked. He rolled his eyes and said, "I know about your little deal."

"He told you?"

Lestrange shrugged. "A little. He never gave much away, he's quite secretive."

"I'd rather not talk about it." She said, playing with the cover of her Potions book. She felt Lestrange keep his dark, dull eyes on her but she didn't give in to him. Why should she? She never had a reason to trust Lestrange, of all people.

"Listen," He muttered. "I know you have family troubles."

Could he read minds?!

Lestrange saw the distraught look on her face and shook his head, "I can tell by your face. It happens to me too, Aurora. I have family problems too."

"Well," Aurora said, standing up, about to put her books away, frantically. Lestrange put a large hand on hers and continued, "If you need someone to talk to, you have me."

She stared at him. Was he joking? Was it a prank or something?

"Uh," She stammered. "T - thank you, Lestrange. I'm going to, um, go now."

Aurora picked up her stuff without even putting it away properly and just as she was about to go through the large bookcases, she ran straight into someone.

She let out an 'oh!' before dropping to the ground to pick up the stuff she dropped. She felt the sudden, overemotional tears well in her eyes as everything started piling down on her, on the inside. The boy she ran into didn't even bother to help her.

Aurora looked up and froze.

"What did he say to you?" Tom asked, his eyes not even on her, but on Lestrange.

Aurora gathered her stuff into her hands and started to walk away. She didn't want to speak to Tom if all he wanted to talk about was Lestrange.

"Wait - Aurora!" He called.

She felt her arm being yanked and was pulled into him as both of their bodies slammed into a bookcase.

"What?!" She exclaimed, exasperated.

His eyes narrowed but he didn't say anything. His dark brown eyes were staring into hers and all she had wanted to do was leave, because any second longer, and she wouldn't have been able to handle it.

Tom reached into the pocket of his robes and pulled out a crumpled piece of parchment. Aurora looked down at it, confused and he smirked,

"Don't leave anything personal behind at the Slytherin table." He whispered. "You'll never know who will find it."

The paper un-crumpled and Aurora closed her eyes - it was Renee's letter.

"Did you read it?" She asked.

Tom shrugged, not giving her a direct answer. She pulled the piece of parchment out from his hands as his smirk grew. She hated that smirk. She wanted to slap it off of his face and stomp on it until there were no remnants of it.

Anger boiled up in her and she glared at him.

"Lestrange is proving to be a more trustworthy person than you are, Tom." She spat.

"You don't know whats up his sleeve." Tom said, glancing at Lestrange's hunched body at the table Aurora had left.

Aurora rolled her eyes and started to leave the library. The bell would ring any minute and she would have to get to Care of Magical Creatures.

"You know," She turned back around to Tom, who had been watching her leave. "I thought I meant something to you, Tom."

His expression was blank.

"Two weeks have gone by and nothing. I thought I was more than just a nobody to you, but all you care about is Lestrange and blackmailing people." She held up her cousin's letter. "I really don't know what to do anymore."

Tom strode over to her, a light smirk playing on his face (making her anger boil up again) and he leaned down, whispering in her ear and the bell had rung, signaling for everyone to get to their next period.

"Patience, Rose."