The Houses Competition, Ravenclaw Head of House, Additional drabble, Prompt: Neighbour, WC: 500
Draco decides to integrate himself into muggle society, settling in next door to the slightly cautious woman, Samantha Hopkins. At first she only suspects something is wrong, but soon finds that Draco is exactly what he seems - which is definitely a far cry from normal.
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I pull aside the blinds, watching the new neighbour move in next door. He's tall, blonde, and I don't recognise him at all. Unusual, in such a small community, where everyone knows everyone and their dog. He's carrying just a few boxes from the trunk of an old, beaten up Ford Anglia, unassisted. It looks as though he has absolutely no connections, not here anyway.
Suddenly, three sharp raps on the door. It better be Mrs. Cowan with my meatloaf dish.
Crap. It's him.
He waves a hand in greeting, looking completely awkward, but smiling anyway. Maybe it's my slightly misleading childhood, but I instantly feel that I don't trust him. It's possible that he just has an untrustworthy face. One raised eyebrow, wearing a crisp shirt and trousers, even though it's midday on a Saturday. Odd.
"Hi. I was told to introduce myself to the neighbours - my mother," he stumbles over his words, pausing. "Anyway. I'm Draco Malfoy."
"Interesting name, Draco?" I ask, wondering whether I'm pronouncing it the same. "Samantha Hopkins."
"Lovely," he comments. I squint back at him, trying to suss out whatever plan he think he's going to pull on me. Perhaps he's one of those suave robbers. One minute they're all quiff hair and fit bodies, the next you know they're stealing your stuff after they've pushed you into a van somewhere, kidnapping your mother, and laughing… "Are you okay?"
"Fine."
I close the door in his face. Can't be dealing with any drama.
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Samantha Hopkins. My new neighbour. She's already suspicious. This is going to be more difficult than I imagined, integrating into muggle society in the hopes of salvaging my sanity.
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On the second week of the mysterious man moving in, an owl flies right through an open window of his house, in broad daylight no less. To say I'm shocked is a vast understatement. The owl doesn't leave again for hours, and only then is it during the night.
Draco Malfoy doesn't seem to understand currency either, or the mailman. I think he's foreign. Are there places in the world where letters come by owl and mailmen are unheard of? Not as far as I know, but I haven't been everywhere. Or anywhere.
I think there's a strong possibility that he's a terrorist - part of some rogue organisation that uses owls instead of letters to communicate - and he's definitely hiding something in his house. Not once have I seen anyone go there. Of course, he might be a loner, but he might also be some crazy man on a kamikaze mission, and I can't lose my house. It's the only thing I own.
Halfway through the fifth week of him having moved here, I find the perfect opportunity. I slip over the fence, through his small and untended garden, into the house. What I find is completely unbelievable.
Purple steam rises from the black cauldron in the centre of the living room.
"What the hell is going on?" I mutter.
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Thanks for reading! Much love
