"The Tiger and the Dragon"
by: DementedDreameater


"The name of a man is a numbing blow from which he never recovers." - Marshall McLuhan


CHAPTER 1
"The Dream"

It was warm. Very warm.

Eva found herself sitting under the shade of a familiar tree. From where she sat, she overlooked a vast and green field. The sun shone softly down on the land. A gentle breeze blew and the tall grass and wildflowers swayed every now and then, revealing two children laughing and playing in their midst, with seemingly no cares in the world, completely unaware of their spectator. She looked around her. Everything looked so familiar.

Eva had been there before.

She looked over at the children still chasing each other. Both the little girl and boy had very pale blonde hair, almost white in fact. They must not have been more than 6 years in age. They were smiling but their faces were hazy. It could, however, be seen that both their eyes, slightly squinted in innocent happiness, were a grayish color. If one didn't know any better, one would say they were twins.

Quite suddenly, a low and foreign voice shouted to them. Eva looked around. The source was no where to be found. She couldn't make out the words, but the voice must have been calling to the little boy. He suddenly stopped chasing after his friend and turned to where the voice was coming from. Seeing that their game had come to an end, the boy bid farewell to the girl.

"Let's play again tomorrow, okay? Promise me!" she said, cheer still present in her little voice, her cheeks still rosy from their game of tag.

The sky slowly turned dark as the sun was hidden behind thick gray clouds. The foreign voice called again, a little louder now. The boy quickly stuffed his little hands in his pocket and placed something in the girl's equally small hands. It was a grayish stone, the same shade as their eyes. It was almost circular, except for an uneven cut on one side.

Before the girl could even ask, he quickly said, "The other half is with me, okay? Promise me you'll take good care of it."

She nodded happily and he ran off.

In the distance, a low rumbling could be heard.

Looking back one last time, he added, "Don't lose it, okay?"

She nodded again although she knew he would not see it.

A stronger gust of wind blew through the fields.

A storm was approaching.


Eva Tigris Bellator woke up in their lavish family car. Tall buildings, vendors and pedestrians all passed by in a haze.

"That dream again…" she thought to herself as she yawned and sat up straight.

It had been quite a while since she last had that dream. Now fully awake, she was able to make more sense out of it. The little girl was more than just familiar. She knew for a fact that she was that little girl in the dream. It was a childhood memory of hers, and the little boy was a friend she had come to know one summer years ago.

Why her brain decided to suddenly dream it up again, she could not understand.

She quickly felt for her necklace through the fabric of her blouse. She sighed with relief when she felt the object she was checking for. Chained there was the irregularly shaped grayish blue stone in her dream. She smiled.

At least one of them had kept their promise.

A storm had indeed come that day. The little Eva was soaked to the bone when she reached the steps of their mansion. The house elves were quick to help her with her clothes, but not quick enough before her mother caught her, the far too familiar scowl plastered on her face.

As punishment for soiling her expensive dress, she did not get to have any dinner and was forced to wear her damp sundress all night. She had caught a fever, but she still snuck out early the next day to see her friend, tightly clutching the stone in her pocket.

Luckily, the storm had only lasted until the previous night. The field was wet when she got there and her dress immediately caught mud, but weather never stopped them from having a good time with each other. Eva sat down under their tree, their special meeting place, and waited. The sun rose and then set.

Her friend did not come.

It was only during dinner that night did she overhear her parents mention in passing that he and his family, who had only come to visit the area, had moved back to their original home that day. She never did see him again after that, nor did she ever hear about them. She wasn't able to ask her parents about him either. Her parents weren't the type to answer some silly little girl's questions about a "friend". They just weren't the open type.

No, they definitely weren't.

With all the faces she had met in the years that passed, all the names she was forced to memorize for social gatherings (for being a Bellator had its social obligations), all the information crammed into her head by her tutor, and all her studying at home, Eva's memories of that one summer of friendship eventually faded. She eventually forgot his name. She no longer remembered what he looked like, save for his platinum blonde hair and grayish blue eyes that were difficult to forget considering they were very much like hers.

Every once in a while, though, she would have that dream, and every single time, she wished she never woke up from it. They did look quite similar when they were children, even when her hair had reached down to her waist that summer. But she had cut her hair very short now and had grown up, and surely he had, too.

Nevertheless, she had always hoped that one day…one fateful day, they would meet again.

Indeed it was one short summer, probably an insignificant and uneventful one for most of the world, but for her it had become a treasured memory, keeping alive her most treasured friend within the recesses of her mind.

"We're almost there."

Her mother's voice broke her train of thought. And speaking of trains…looking out the window, sure enough she saw the King's Cross Station just a few minutes away. Nervousness quickly settled in as she was reminded that today wasn't just any ordinary day.

Today, she was going off to her first school.

She had always been homeschooled before and upon receiving the letter to study at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, along with the long-awaited permission from her parents, Eva was positively ecstatic!

She was ecstatic, thrilled, overjoyed to be living away from the only scenery she had ever had: the cold marble walls of their mansion, the dusty old tomes and books forced on her 24/7 and the scowl on everyone's face, including (but not limited to) her tutor, Mr. Burke.

It wasn't as if she were a poor student. She was a fast and eager learner. In fact, when her tutor was privately conversing with Eva's father in his study, and she "just happened to pass by the door", Mr. Burke had called her "a genius in hiding". He just had that scowl on permanently perhaps, Eva mused, due to some freak accident with a wand and a face-contorting prank. So Mr. Burke's scowls didn't exactly bother her so much.

Still though, when a person had nothing but scowls, glares and indifferent glances (at best) directed her way all her life, she couldn't be blamed if she yearned for a change of scenery.

And the letter of acceptance to Hogwarts was precisely Eva's ticket to getting that change.

At the station, she and her mother looked for Platform 9 and 3/4. Eva looked around confused. How could there possibly be a Platform 9 and 3/4? She was just about to voice out her concern when her mother pointed to the brick wall in front of them.

"Go through that wall," the woman instructed, impatience growing steadily in her voice.

She obviously saw it as a bother to accompany her daughter to Hogwarts Express. If she had her way, she'd have the house elves do it. Unfortunately, the Ministry might not appreciate the chaos that would ensue from Muggles catching sight of these magical creatures.

Not wanting to anger her mother any further, Eva did as she was told (although she did initially think her mother was losing her mind, what with asking her to walk through solid walls) and found her way to their destination. All around her were students already wearing their uniforms, tugging along a pet and hugging parents goodbye. One of the students (distraught and rather clumsy-looking) appeared to be looking for his pet toad.

Eva had a pet herself. It was an ebony black owl with a line of white from the beak to the back of its head. It had served as a trusty companion whenever she was left alone in her humungous home, and which was actually quite frequent. She had taken to calling it "Noxx" because of its color. It was loaded into the train along with her luggage.

Her heart raced when the students started boarding. This was going to be her first time living away from home, the only world she had ever known. It was both exciting and frightening. Would she be able to fit in with the crowd? Would she be able to meet her parents' expectations? Being a Bellator, one of the wealthiest and most prestigious names in the wizarding world, nothing less than perfection was expected of her.

And this new world was daunting.

But wasn't this what she had always wanted? The Hogwarts invitation had come to her like a holy grail. It was her one chance to get away from the gloom, from the tiring routine of her mundane life. Sure, there were fancy parties and functions almost all the time in their home, opening her up to the world and widening her list of acquaintances to some degree. This list, however, consisted primarily of "their kind of people" (as her parents had put it).

Purebloods.

But that was all they were: acquaintances. She had "made friends" with some of them, in obedience to her parents' wishes and it wasn't too hard to do really. All she had to do was nod at every single condescending comment they made, compliment each other on their fame and fortune, and look the part of a snobby aristocrat. But beyond the pretty faces, the extravagant gowns and the proud demeanor, they were all, in Eva's mind, empty – just a bunch of arrogant, conceited and condescending purebloods.

She had another motive for going off to school, too. To be sure, it was her chance to be exposed to a greater, wider world. It was her chance to meet new people but, more importantly, it was her chance to find the friend in her dreams. He was the only real friend she had ever come to know outside her home. She had befriended their house elves and her nurse from her toddler years (who left when she had turned three), but she yearned for more human contact. There was a slight hope in her that maybe her friend would also be studying at Hogwarts.

Then again, there was probably a greater chance that he would be going to Durmstrang. And even if he did study at Hogwarts and she did manage to find him, what were the chances that he would still remember a girl he had only met during one summer many years ago? All these doubts lingered in her head, but still...a girl could hope.

The train whistled and only a few students remained on the platform. Finally, it was time to say their goodbyes. Eva turned to her mother and searched the face that she would not be seeing for months.

There were small wrinkles appearing on her fine features, but still Ursula Bellator was as beautiful as ever with her platinum blonde hair, icy blue eyes, proud chin, and shapely and even prouder countenance. She must have had such a beautiful smile, but Eva couldn't be sure. Her mother had always looked at her in displeasure, to say the least, just as she was looking at her now. Eva had always tried to please her. She couldn't understand why her mother never showed even just an inch of compassion. She resolved to think that maybe she just wasn't doing enough; maybe she just wasn't meeting the expectations. Perhaps in Hogwarts, she would do better, and when she would come home on breaks, she would be looked at and treated differently.

"Goodbye, Mother."

The stoic woman allowed Eva to give her the traditional kiss. Her cheek was cold.

"Bear in mind that you are a Bellator. Behave yourself as such."

"Of course, Mother."

She boarded the train and found her way to her compartment.

There was no need to look back. She knew there would be no one to look back to.


A/N: So...this is my first ever fanfiction. I hope you liked the first chapter! :) I'd love to get your reviews! I'm always up for improvement and comments. ;)

This first chapter is just a taste of the secretive and twisted goodness the whole story has to offer. I bet you already have an idea as to who Eva's childhood friend could be. But we can never be too sure... *wink wink*

I had some some difficulty coming up with the name for my OC's. As the quote above implies, the characters' names play a big part in the story. As you know, names hold a lot of meaning. (For example, 'Draco' also means 'Dragon'.) To figure out what Eva's whole name really means, you'll just have to keep reading...or, if you wanna go ahead and spoil everything (HAHAHAHA just kidding) you can research it, too.

Sure enough, there are plenty of secrets and skeletons in the closet. If you like secretive stories with twists and turns, plus romance and drama, then you'll definitely like this one. You'll just have to keep reading to figure out what the hell is up with Eva's family, who her childhood friend really is, and what is in store for Eva and Draco.

YES, THIS IS A DRACOxOC fanfiction. HAHAHA. Draco's coming up on the next chapter and their meeting is...pretty interesting, to say the least, so stay tuned. ;)