An Owl to Open an Heart PV Destrian Closed

Dear Father, 

Just in case I will send you another letter, for I am not certain that the last has arrived safely. I wish to let you know that I have settled and have been sorted into Slytherin, like you had hoped. I am doing well and I hope you are doing too. -- 

He sighed as he stared at the letters and shook his head. He doubted that he would get a reply. His father was a stern man with a cool heart, unlike his mother and uncle. After the death of his mother, father had never quite been the same. He had seen him rarely and they had become strangers. Yet he felt like he was disrespectful towards him if he would not send him something. Anything.. He crumpled up the paper and threw it aside with the others and he started anew. 

Father, 

I am proud to inform you that I have been sorted into Slytherin. Like you had hoped, there are many pureblood wizards and witches among me, and I try hard not to come into contact with muggleborn, like you told me. I am surrounding myself with talented students and am learning a lot this way. 

Uncle wrote me that you have just returned from Sweden to release a dragon into the wild and that you would return around the time that my letter should arrive. I am eager to hear more about the dragon and its release. 

Also, I know that mother's birthday is approaching and I hoped that you could bring her a white rose for me and lay it at her grave. I wish that I could do it myself, but I am stuck here. Hopefully, I did not offend you with my request and understand if you will not do it. 

I will send another letter at the end of the month. 



Kind regards, 

Your son, Destrian

This would suffice, he told himself. So with two letters in his hand - one for his uncle, written with much more delight and information about his first days and the people he met, and the other for his father, which was much more formal - he headed for the Owlery in the West Tower. He had been there before to send his uncle the news that he had been sorted. It had just been a few days ago, actually. His uncle had yet to reply, but he didn't blame him for not being able to send something yet. His father, however, would not send anything in return. Destrian was aware that they were no more than strangers and that he would toss the letter in the fire when he was done reading it, or perhaps even before he had opened it. - - But he had his reasons . . .

He often thought about his mother and his sister. Every year he would visit them at their graves and ponder about the past. Had it all been his fault? What if he had done things differently? Would they still have been alive? And he'd sit there until sundown and put a flower on his mother's grave, and a new toy on that of his sister. 

Looking down at the letters, he started to make the ascend to the Owlery. Something about sending letters to his father made him more comfortable about their interactions - even though it was one sided. He had always felt judged when they talked, which happened rarely since he started living with his uncle. The man despised him, Destrian knew. But he just didn't want to accept it. 

Pushing open the door he was startled by seeing another person inside. For a moment he stood frozen in the doorway, eying the dark-haired girl. "Hi..- - " he muttered, uncomfortable all of the sudden. "I'll return later. I'm sure you want some privacy, right?" Quickly he turned to walk away again, but then he halted and looked over his shoulder. "Are you alright? - You look quite sad." It had been an idiotic thing to say. He could see the tears glistering in her eyes. Of course she wasn't alright.. 

Arya was still shedding some tears when an unknown individual entered the Owlery. She did not realize right away that she was no longer alone. The young girl was not expecting to be found during this moment of weakness. She always tried to show her good side to everyone she meets. Always smiling and laughing at each jest her friends would make. But today, she did not have any strength to do so. Tireness was upon her since she had awakened this morning, in her dormitory. The girl had tried to avoid as many individual as she could. She knew that her mood was fleeting. She felt as if she would start crying each time she cross the path of other friends. It was another reason that made her walk around in the castle. The felt stuck in her dormitory so the fresh air of the corridors had helped her to clear her mind. Arya wanted to free herself from this huge burden. However, it was harder to do it when she did not knew who to talk to.

The young lady became aware that she was not alone anymore and quickly turned around to face the young man that surprised her. She paled a little when she realizes that he was one of the first person to see her this vulnerable. She did not know how to act when he greeted her. In all honestly, she felt too proud to be comfortable when she was feeling this hurts. However, she could not bring herself to be mean to this boy. Arya stared into the mismatching eyes of the mysterious boy. He seems upset. She could not tell how but he looked sad. Remembering that she had not said anything yet and that the boy talked to her, Arya wiped more of her tears and snorted. 

- H-Hi. . . N-No it is alright. The Owlery is not mine only. You can do as you want. 

Her throat was dry and her eyes were red and burning. She was probably not looking that good during this moment, but Arya had no escape. She was stuck with her problems and they were hurting her. The boy seems nice and kind, but she could not really be sure of this since they had just met. Suddenly, he asked a question that destabilized her. What could she answer to that? She was clearly not alright presently. But if she said that, she might need to reveal some personal secret... She took a shaking breath and started to talk again.

- To be h-honest, not really. It has been a really long day. . . 

Some tears were still falling on her cheek. It seems that they would not stop any soon. The young girl brought her arms around her as if she wanted to create a shield. A shield that would protect her from those bad feelings, those bad events and this messed up family. Unfortunately, it was not the effective way to do it. But it was the best that she could do at this moment. Arya took a moment and ponder about her situation. Her mother hated her and loved her twin sister Lianna. Her dad was not present as much as he should because of his work at the ministry and at last, her sister has not answered her letter for almost one month now. The young girl had sent many letters before entering Hogwarts, but they never receives an answer. How could she be alright when she could not tell how her sister was doing. Was she alright? Did something happen? Many questions were stuck in the witch head. But none that she could really get a proper answer to. She had asked her dad once why Lianna was not answering and he had told her that he was not sure. So, nobody knew where she was except her mother. Returning her attention to the boy, she decided to speak to him about some part of her problem. Maybe he could help her see more clearly through this.

- It's just, I am not from here. I come from Canada, a far away country and my twin sister did not follow when my dad and I moved away. She did not answer my letter for at least one month... I-I don't know what to do. What if something happened to her?

Not knowing if her sister was alright was a huge part of her problem, but it was only the top of the iceberg. Her story was sad, but it makes her who she was, even though it was hard to accept it. She stares her sad eyes into the ones of this boy, waiting to see if he would be able to help her find a solution. . .

“To be h-honest,” he girl started, “not really. It has been a really long day . . .”

Destrian was unsure whether he should help her or leave her be. Would she want to talk about it? Dit he want to talk about it? It wasn’t his business, that was for sure, but something made him approach her. And as he did, she continued to explain what was bothering her and he decided to stay and listen to her. And when she was done he felt sorry for her. Her being a twin sister to someone else, with whom she could not get any contact, seemed hard. He wondered how close he would be with his sister, had she grown older. But he tried to imagine the pain the Gryffindor girl felt.

It took him a moment to realise that she was looking up at him, expecting him to say something and to help her. But in all honesty, Destrian wasn’t sure what to tell her. But it broke his heart to see her this sad, and so he spoke. 

“We’re both having a bad day then, I suppose,” he sighed and stared down at the letters in his hand. What should he tell her? “Canada is a far from here. Maybe the previous owl got lost or wasn’t able to fly such a lengthy flight?” he offered, looking up at her with a sceptic look in his eyes. He didn’t believe his own words but he tried to cheer her up a bit. “Or perhaps she has sent something but it’s still on her way. Sometimes it takes a while to write a proper letter, I think.”

“Are you close with your sister? - Because if you are, I’m sure she won’t ignore letters from you. I can imagine that it’s hard to be away from a sibling, especially a twin. Not only for you, but for her as well. So don’t worry about it too much. I’m sure she won’t purposely ignore letters coming from you. All you can do now is just send this letter and hope for the best, I suppose.” Destrian wasn’t great at cheering people up, but he was trying. Emotions were hard for him, having grown up with a stern father who wouldn’t allow any sign of weakness from his son. So what was he to say to cheer her up?

“Does she know how to send a letter to Hogwarts? I can imagine that it’s hard to find the address of a secret school for wizards and witches,” he offered her a careful smile, hoping to dry her tears.

The young girl was still unsure on how she was supposed to act. This kind of situation was new to her so she just stood there, while looking at the boy. He seem kind. At least, enough to stay and listen to her problems when he clearly had his own. Her thought got confirmed when he told her that he was also having a bad day. Maybe it was some sort of destiny that had makes them met today in the Owlery. However, the brown haired girl could not be sure about this fact. She was more concerned about the conversation she was having with the young boy. He was trying to find an acceptable reason to the fact that her sister had not answered any of her owl. A kind move, but she could clearly see that he was not believing himself and honestly, she was not too.

- Before that month, we used to always send letters to each others. We are both witches so it was easy and never has been a problem b-before.

The girl was trying to not stutter, but it was an impossible action. Crying has weakened her body and she had trouble to deal with it now. She felt useless. But she could not stay like this. She had to remain strong face of this situation. She knew that one of the reason her sister had not send any letters yet was because her mother probably saw them. Maybe Lianna never got any of them for all of that month. Thee girls had always sent somes behind the back of their mother because the woman did not want them to communicate. She once said that she did not want Lianna to be influenced by Arya. It was cruel and evil in the sense of the young girl that never really done anything except being similar to her father. She had the rights to see her other half, but so many obstacles came between them that she had never returned to Canada for three years now.

The young girl turned her eyes and her attention back to the boy. he had asked others questions about her sister. At that moment, Arya decided to regain control of herself, dry her tears and settle her breath before answering.

- Yes, we are really close. I don't think she would ignore my letters it just... I am not even sure she got them. And by that I mean, I can assure you that they got home. But my mother and I don't really have an... exceptional relations. So, I don't know if my sister got my letter or not...

Arya could see that the boy was trying his best to cheer her up and she was feeling some happiness about it. It felt like she was truly caring about her situation. The girl listened to him and nodded. She would send this letter and wait to see if something new happened. If not, maybe she could try to ask her father to do it for her. Even if her mother, despite him more than her. She would not have the choice to let the twin talks. But again, her father was so busy that he never really had time for her. It was too soon to be thinking about all of this so she walked around to the window and gave her letter to an owl that has been waiting there for a while now. He then left, in a far away country that she sweetly called home. After that, she turned to face the boy.

- Yes, of course she knows how to send a letter here. In fact, she was supposed to be a student at Hogwarts too. But I guess destiny decided otherwise.

She then sadly smiled to the boy that was still  unknown to her. She had forgot to ask him his name. How rude of her. 

- By the way, thank you for everything, it helped me. My name is Arya, and yours is?

The Gryffindor seems more comfortable in this situation and decided to ask a question about the boy. He had also said that he was having a bad day so maybe she could return his help too..

- You mention that you were having a bad day... Do you want to talk about it? 

She gave him a kind smile. She could not let him leave with this sad expression on his face. She was not the type of person to let down a kind soul. 

A part of him was feeling uncomfortable by the girl's emotional display, but most of him felt sorry for what was happening to her. Of course, he couldn't quite understand what she was feeling, but he tried hard to imagine how hard it would be. So he thought of his sister, the girl that never had grown old enough to truly call sister, and wondered whether he would have cried had he gone to Hogwarts and not get any letters from her. Perhaps he wouldn't have cried, but he imagined that he would've certainly felt sad about it. He wondered whether she would have cried, though, and he didn't know the answer. 

She was looking at him now, and Destrian was looking back at her without knowing what to tell her. She was regaining herself, drying her tears and taking in deep breaths to steady her stuttering and stammering. He could see that her eyes were red from crying. Again, it broke his heart to see her like that, even if he didn't know who the girl actually was. 

"You are afraid that your mother has thrown away the letters, you mean?" he asked, looking back at her. If so, that would have been a cruel thing to do, Destrian thought as his lips tightened into a grimace. "Maybe there's another way of getting a message across?" he offered, though he didn't know what that other way could possibly be. He heard something about letters that could talk. If she could send one of those, perhaps her sister could hear it. But then the letter would have to be opened first, right? - Honestly, he had no idea. 

When she introduced herself, he remembered that he didn't know her name. A smile teased his lips  but didn't quite reach his eyes, and he shrugged, "I can't say it's nice to meet you this way. I wished it had been under different circumstances. Something more cheerful, perhaps. Anyway, my name is Destrian."

"Oh.. no.. It's nothing, really. It's just my father . . ." he trailed off and was silent for a moment, staring at the letters in his hand. "He is too busy to send letters to me here at Hogwarts, I guess?" he knew he lied then, but he didn't want to tell or accept that his father simply didn't like him. That he blamed him for the death of his mother and sister. "He's a dragonologist, you see. So he's just very busy.. But I just send him letters to inform him about my house, Slytherin, and friends I'm making. And then there's the letter for my uncle. I stayed with him for a long time." 

"It's a long story and I don't want to bore you with it," he said with the slightest of shrugs. But perhaps it was he who wasn't comfortable talking about it. Because he couldn't quite accept any of it yet. So he continued to look troubled, falling into a deep silence as his fingers tightened around the letters. 

The brown-haired girl was not sure if she should explain those dark sides of her history. Arya was from a well-known family in Canada. They were mostly Animagus and user of transfigurations spells. It was then in her nature to desire the same. But her father has broken the normal course of their ancestor by marrying and having children with a Muggle. It has made the family council really upset. She had acquired that information from her grandmother. She was part of the council and had shared some of their secrets with the small girl because she believed in her. It has made Arya happy to be trusted with important information. The young girl would never say it to her father, but she knew that coming to English was partly because the family council wanted him gone. 

The girl was unhappy because of those family rules. Why did they absolutely had to keep their family a Pure-Blood one? It was unfair and she found it hard to associate herself with those kinds of people.  Returning her attention to the boy, she decided to answer his question about her mother.

- Indeed, I am afraid she burned or thrown them away. Like I said before, my mother and I do not have a healthy relationship. She... is not like us. I think that maybe she is only afraid of our difference and it might be why she hates us, but I am not sure. 

Arya felt ashamed of what she had just said. She wanted to believe her mother could change at some point. She did not want to share mean information on her mother figure because she still loved her even after all of this. Arya saw the face the boy made when he said his comments.  But made no use of it and looked into the room. It was a beautiful and calmy place full of owls. It's smelled like animals too. Normally, it would have been a weird and unpleasant sensation but today, it was welcomed. She smiled a little and tried to find a way to send her messages to Canada. She did not know of any that could work.

-  Unfortunately, I do not know another way to send messages across the country. I might try to ask an adult.

She smiled a little after he presented himself. She finally has a name to put on his face. The guy was called Destrian. 

- It is true our meeting is not the best but I am glad I got the chance to met you today. Thank you Destrian. 

The young girl was listening to him when he said that he was feeling down because of his dad.  The boy was constantly looking at the letter in his hand. Arya was curious about it but did not want to bring it up into the conversation. He looked sad because of it so it must have been the reason he was not feeling alright. She was trying to figure out what could have been wrong when Destrian started to explain that his father was often busy and so she guessed that they were not talking frequently. She also saw the little lights in the boy's eyes when he was talking about his uncles. It must be someone really important to him. Arya smiled a little to encourage him to speak but the boy was not saying anything more. He was focusing on the letter again. He looked really troubled. 

- I don't think you will bore me with your story. I would be glad to lend an ear and listen to you. 

She smiled at him. Arya was feeling as if she could resent his pain. She felt as if they had many points in common. She would listen to this lonely soul. If she could make someone have a better day, she would gladly do anything in her power to do so. 

"She is not like us?"  Destrian repeated after her with the slightest tilt of his head. It was clear that he couldn't quite place what she meant by that. But after some thinking, his eyes widened a bit and he felt himself tense. "Is she a muggle, then? You shouldn't fear her.. You're a witch. What can a muggle possibly do to you?" It was obvious that he came from a pure line and that he thought that witches and wizards were superior. He was raised that way. So hearing that a young witch was afraid that a muggle , her mother, had thrown away her letters to her sister was odd to him. Why not do something about it. Then again, she was here at school and her mother and sister were in Canada. 

He looked at Arya a little longer. Muggle-born.. But it didn't matter to him, surprisingly enough. He had expected to feel something. - anything. But he wasn't really feeling any negative feelings towards the young witch before him. But he did feel a disliking for her mother, and he realised that her being a muggle was just an excuse for disliking her. Actually, he felt sorry for Arya and he found it low and selfish for her mother not to let her sister read her letters. It angered him, actually. He could only imagine how hard it was for the twins to be apart. But to be apart and have your letters taken away from you was cruel. 

"Perhaps an adult would be best.." he agreed, knowing no other way himself. "Or.. What if you try to have someone send it like muggles do? Not with an owl, I mean." 

When he said what had to be said, Arya told him; " I don't think you will bore me with your story. I would be glad to lend an ear and listen to you." And though it would be hard for him to tell more, because emotional conversations or anything remotely personal made him struggle, he was thankful for the offer. And for the first time, he considered it. "Thank you, that's actually really kind of you." Why would she want to help him, though? They didn't know each other and it would be much easier for her to just turn around and walk away. That way, she wouldn't be dragged into his troublesome mind. 

For a moment he hesitated and offered her the letter which he'd send to his father. He wasn't sure why, but something within him wanted her to read it. Perhaps because it would be easier that way..