Silence Is Blue

[Dante Vittori]

In a strange sort of way, Dante was relieved to be back at Hogwarts. Although it was nothing like home, Dante found it within himself to like it. He vaguely understood why some of his older siblings appreciated the school. It was nice. It was quiet and there were plenty of things to do to keep the young boy busy. Classes were beginning and Dante was already finding that he still liked Defence Against the Dark Arts, though Charms was still a little touchy for him. The school had many things that he could do. He could take a walk, or he could find a place to curl up and read, several places, actually. Rarely was he bothered by other people. This made him happy. People were something that the boy could live without. People had a tendency to talk. Merlin was talking an irritation! The world would be better if everyone decided to not speak. Silence was the best thing that a person could offer, in his opinion. Dante sighed to himself. He was not lucky enough to live in a world of silent people. All the people he had met so far spoke far too much for his appreciation.

The Ravenclaw brushed his robes free of any foreign fibres and walked towards the Library. Since he tried to read in the Student Lounge a while agao, he found that it was infested with people. He did not know why, but it was swamped with first years and other second years and every other Tom, **** and Harry in the castle. Hopefully the library would be as silent as it's supposed to be. Dante sat at one of the desks and crossed his legs. He was grateful that no first years were here. The Ravenclaw understood that he was only a second year. His disdain for them was not because of their age. It was because of their common personalities. Their annoying, little, childish, giggly personalities. Children overreacted to everything. Dante rarely reacted to anything. First years were loud, obnoxious, irksome, talkative balls of irritation. Dante would never use any of those adjectives to describe himself, because he was not like that. Dante rested the book he had been carrying on the table and opened it. He had been reading the rather large book since he was on the train. He had been reading a couple of chapters every day and he was towards the end. It was a nice book, on Charms. It was not a good subject for him, so he made sure to work at it.
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[Raziel Kim]

The pale sun bathe Raziel Kim as he sat in the center of the common room, surrounded by a mess of dominos, cards, and dice. He was currently flipping through a deck of tarot cards, trying to discern the meaning of the pictures without referring to the book that lay on his side. It was difficult. Perhaps he should have taken Divination as one of his electives. It appeared to be quite an interesting subject. Raziel looked at the tarot cards spread out around him. He then picked up the Fool card with his left hand and twirled a lock of hair around his index finger. His eyes fell on the stack of books beside him. Would it be better if he'd just give up on his childish antics and get the book's help? That didn't sound so great. He turned on the cards once again, narrowing his eyes as if doing so would help him focus. He was, however, interrupted when someone tried to speak to him. Lately, it was always like this. Some people would try to engage him in a conversation, or to go play with them. He didn't understand why. He could not see what was so interesting or special about him. Sure, he was quite different from the others, but he wasn't trying to be. Was it because they pity him because he seemed to be alone most of the time? It was his choice though; he did not enjoy talking a lot. Or maybe it was the hair? Whatever it was, he hoped that it will stop soon. He did not really mind them, but sometimes, he would hurt people's feelings. That was what bothered him. The expressions that they would make when he rejected their offers sadden him. However, he could not force himself to do something that he was not comfortable doing in the first place.

Raziel shook his head at the intruder. He did not want to engage in any conversation right now. He would rather read his books than waste his energy talking. His sisters had told him time and time again to be social; to try and make friends. He had always been told not to be shy. They were wrong though. He was far from being shy. Yes, he was quite socially awkward but he did not fear being around other people. Not liking it and fearing it are entirely two different things. People do not understand though. To others, he would always be the odd and impassive little boy. Not that he minded it. With his condition right now, he would prefer to keep others at an arm's length away from him. He built a mental boundary around himself to keep unwanted and troublesome people away.

He slipped out the door, unnoticed, into the hallway filled with milling, chattering students all huddled together in excited groups. He could not stay on the common room now. Perhaps, he should just find a quiet place to read and study. He shuffled down the length of the hall, down the series of stairs, with the books balanced awkwardly under his left arm. His things were left lying on the floor by the common room; he would just pick them up later. As he walked and tried to avoid bumping to someone, he couldn't help but feel like he didn't have complete control of his body, all because his arm was at an awkward angle. Perhaps this comes with being a teenager. However, it seemed that his growth spurt thought that it had all the time in the world before finally kicking in as he was still small for his age.

The Ravenclaw paused in front of the tall double doors that lead to the library. Slowly, he stepped into the room and peeked around. It was starting to be packed at this time. Hopefully, however, it would live up to its name and not be as noisy as the outside. Awkwardly, he loped through the tall double doors, hearing them click shut behind him.

Here, no one seemed to notice him as the students just continued with what they were doing, others in small groups talking in whispers. After walking around, he finally found an empty seat opposite someone who had his head on a rather large book. He seemed to be quite busy so the Ravenclaw decided not to interrupt. If he was in the position of the boy, he would not want to be interrupted from his reading too. He slowly placed his books down at the table, careful not to make any noise that would disturb anyone. He then climbed into the chair, bringing up his feet. His kneecaps were up by his chin, thighs pressed against his stomach and chest. He was curled up, sharing part of his weight with the back of the chair while concentrating the bulk of in on his rear. He picked a book from the top of a teetering tower of other hardbacks beside him. It was about Divination. He did not take the subject. However, he would not rest until he finally figured the meaning of the tarot cards that lay undisturbed, hopefully, in the middle of their common room.
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[Dante Vittori]

Dante liked silence, he was quite accustomed to it. So whenever sounds were made, the Ravenclaw could hear them quite well and it would drag his attention away from what he was doing. The person that was disturbing him was trying to be silent, and Dante was grateful for that. His last experience with someone was dreadful. They girl had the audacity to tell him to remove himself from an area. He turned the page and continued reading. He had made sure not to keep in contact with such a girl. She had been vexing, though not enough to actually cause him to hate her. He would just rather her not exist around him. The boy glanced to the creator of the noise that was stopping him from enveloping himself into his book. They were male, with quite blonde hair. He was not trying to stair at the... person, but he wished to know their gender. Unfortunately, that appeared to be a difficult task. Dante looked at the person and nodded to himself. They were male.

The books the boy was carrying were many. They were not stacked very well, but who was Dante to teach the boy on stacking books properly? The Ravenclaw returned to his book. He was quite glad that his fellow reader was quiet. Sometimes others would read out-loud. That was just such an irritation for him. Dante looked up when he heard a noise. He slowly turned his head, finding a large pile of books coming his way. Dante fell to the ground, rather ungracefully, and was covered with books. To make things better, he hit a shelf and more books met him on the floor. He wasn't even sure which book was his any more. He held his head. Books were very pointy.
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[Raziel Kim]

Raziel did not particularly pay any attention to the world around him. Instead, he had himself lost in the book that he was reading. He loved being around these books, these books which hold an indescribable amount of information. While others are outside, ignorant to the world that sits in these pages, he lived in it. His eyes darted to each new sentence, determined to read from front to back, wanting to digest every piece of information that these pages offered. He would never put a book down, good or bad. He had resolved it as his duty to finish what he started. He would pause every now and then, as if to re read a sentence or two so as to not misunderstand its meaning. He was fully absorbed with these hard backs that even if someone would collapse before him, he would not notice.

Four spindly fingers came together and two halves of a book met as the boy finished the chapter about the tarot cards. He was determined to test it out later. Perhaps, he would finally be able to discern the card's meaning without having to consult the book again. Turning to face his side, he was to place the book on top of the teetering tower of hardbacks when he noticed that his stack of books were gone. It came as a surprise to him. Where could his books be? He heard could vaguely remember hearing a noise seconds before he finished reading but he did not really bother to check what the source was. That was when he noticed that his own companion was missing too. Could he have stolen his books? That cannot be. How could someone who loves books be such an irresponsible and awful person? Everyone who loves reading must be good. At least, most of them should. He turned his head around at the same time that a pile of books from the shelf opposite him came falling.

Curious, he placed his hands on the table, palm down, and leaned forward, trying to take a peak on the floor where the books now lie. He tilted his head at what he had seen. It was the boy from before. What was he doing there though? A huge number of books were around him and Raziel could recognize that some of those books were his. He jumped of the chair and rounded the table. Should he help him stand up? What if he was enjoying lying with the books? He surely would. However, a memory of a previous event flashed in his mind. With the way that the boy was holding his head, he probably did not mean to be sitting there. Hesitantly, Raziel held out his hand. He held a blank gaze as he stared at the boy Now that he does not have his head buried on a book, he was quite familiar. He, however, cannot put a name on this boy's face.​

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[Dante Vittori]

Dante looked at the multitude of books. If they were stacked a little bit neater, he would not mind so much. However, it was a bit messy and the pure blood's OCD was trying to kill him. Dante removed the open book that sat on his head and placed it on the ground beside him. People were beginning to look at him, and he could see the librarian starting to take notice. He looked at some of the books. They seemed to be about tarot cards and such. Dante had not taken much thought into his future subject choices. It was far too ahead for him to think of. Dante lived in the present, not the future. Dante looked eyes with his sort of companion. The boy that sat opposite to him. Dante's blue eyes examined the boy, trying to figure out what he was doing, before they settled on his hand, which was stretched out. Dante unburied his right hand and accepted the gesture. The small Ravenclaw brushed himself off and nodded to the boy. Hopefully, he could avoid conversation with the boy. He was quite comfortable in the silence they were currently sharing, any verbal communication would just ruin it.

Dante then began searching for his book. It was a book on Charms, since that was a subject he struggled in. He quickly placed his book on the table and returned to the mess of books. He couldn't just leave them there. Dante looked at the other boy, who was older, and a little taller than him. Dante still looked like a first year, something he didn't appreciate since first years would often try to communicate with him. Giving a nod to his companion of sorts, Dante knelt down and began placing the books into piles. The books on his left were from the shelf, while the others were the books that the boy brought in. Dante often sat here, so he knew what books sat in the shelves. But another thing plagued the Ravenclaw. The boy was familiar, but common sense told him that it was probably because he was a Ravenclaw or something, so he did not bother to think too much on it.
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[Raziel Kim]

It felt awkward for Raziel to offer his hand to help this young boy up. He never did appreciate having to engage in an unnecessary physical contact with someone. It was not because of health reasons nor was it because he was afraid that he would be contaminated by whatever condition or sickness a person had. He just did not like it. He did not see any reason to touch someone just for the sake of touching said person. He valued his personal space, thank you. However, this situation calls for him to do what he was doing now, did it not? He vaguely remembered how the boy from the yellow house had needed his help to stand up when he had fallen on some chairs. Perhaps this boy would need it too. He awkwardly pulled the boy up and now that he they were both standing; he had noticed how he was just a little taller than the boy was. Seriously, was it the boy who was tall, or was it him who had been stuck in the body of a twelve year old? The Ravenclaw just nodded his head to the boy. He did not see any reason for him to say anything. It would just ruin the silence that this sanctuary offered. Such silence was priceless. In the quick paced world that they live in, it's extremely rare to be able to enjoy even just a minute of stillness.

Raziel watched as the boy started to arrange the books. From the looks of it, he was perfectly aware which books were his, and which were Raziel's and the library's. The Ravenclaw just stood there, completely oblivious to anything else as he observed the boy. He really was familiar. Perhaps it was because he might be from the blue house too. However, he was not entirely sure. He had never been the friendly guy after all. He would have just left it at that but his own curiosity got the best of him.

The Ravenclaw's deep brown eyes were locked at the boy's figure. However, he could not clearly see his face when he was kneeling down and he was standing in full height. Thus, without thinking so much about the consequences of his actions, he sat down, his thighs pressed against his chest, his chin resting on his kneecaps. His eyes were narrowed, a habit that he acquired whenever he was trying to focus on something. There was still something wrong. He placed his hands on the floor for support and leaned forward until he was just a few inches away from the younger's face. His eyes were still narrowed as he stared at the boy, unblinking, observing him the same way that he would observe an artwork. If his sisters had been here, he would have been pulled by his collar and be told that he was being rude and that what he was doing was not an acceptable social practice. They were not there though, so there was no one around to tell the Ravenclaw that what he was doing was extremely inappropriate.​

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[Dante Vittori]

Sometimes, Dante found that he quite liked the library, but this was usually just before it was bedtime. Rarely anyone was here that late. Some would think that constant silence was disturbing, but not to Dante. Dante soaked up silence like a sponge. Silence was what made him feel comfortable. Breakfast was a nightmare. Not only was the Great Hall filled with gigging, smiling people, but it was also early in the morning. What antisocial person liked spending time with gigglers in the morning? None. That's what. However, the Ravenclaw was attempting to be quieter today than he usually was, mostly because of his experience with some Gryffindor female a few days before. She had forced him to have to speak to her, in order to get her to leave him alone and be silent. It was horrible. Dante only ever really spoke to people he did not like, they forced his hand. The young Ravenclaw liked this older boy. He was very silent indeed.

Dante rarely took notice of others around him. He was not interested in what others were doing, unless it was interesting. But interesting things were rare. Only books could really hold his attention for long periods of time, and he actually had to work to do that. People just weren't interesting enough. Until right now. Although Dante rarely spent a moment in the company of anyone, and so often missed important social customs, such as introducing oneself, the young Ravenclaw could not refrain from thinking that something was odd. He had a small feeling in the pit of his stomach, and it was this that made his blue eyes stop spending all their resources on figuring out which pile the books belonged to. He looked a little to the side, and was met by the older boys face, which was incredibly close to his own. A little too close. 'What in Merlin's name is he doing?' Their noses were touching and it was just a bit uncomfortable, if either pursed their lips, something unfortunately may have occurred. However, Dante's face remained blank. One of his hands let go of the book it was holding, and his index finger touched the forehead of the older boy, and Dante pushed him back just a little bit. He then returned to work, comfortable with the fact that he had as little bit more space to breathe with now.
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[Raziel Kim]

Raziel continued to stare at the smaller boy. No. It was more like he was examining him, his nose, his lips, and his eyes; as if doing so would help him really get an answer to that nagging feeling in his stomach. Still nothing. He still could not match a name in the boy's face. It actually annoyed him a little though it wasn't shown in the way that he was looking at the younger blankly. His facial muscles just don't work that way. It was hard for him to express his feelings that well. This was rare. He was not that type to get worked up over something that did not concern him. He however, did not like it when he could not get the answer to the question that was plaguing his mind. It was, extremely irking.

If people were already starting to take notice of them, Raziel did not know. His attention span was actually really small. When his attention was focused on something, or in this case, someone, he would not notice anything else, all that would matter to him was what interested him. He could care less about what was happening around him. The Ravenclaw drummed his fingers on the floor, his eyes stilled narrowed as he watched the boy in the same way that a predator would watch his prey. When the boy turned his head, the gap between them became even closer. Their noses were almost touching. If he would lean even further, something unfortunate would happen. What do those adults call it when a person's lips touch another's? Kissing was it? He once saw his oldest sister do that with one of the guys from their neighborhood. It was weird. Why would people want to do that? It must be extremely uncomfortable.

The Ravenclaw blinked his now wide opened eyes as he felt the younger boy's finger on his forehead. He did not like the contact. The boy did not say anything else though, instead, he returned to what he was previously doing. It was quite disappointing. He still had not figured out what was so interesting in this boy. Without any single sound, Raziel, on all fours, approached the stack of books he assumed were his. Yes. It was his indeed. He moved to pick them one by one, removing them from the pile that the boy had just made to make sure that they were not damaged or anything. He loved these books. When he was sure that they were still in a good condition, he started to pile them up again. He then picked them up and awkwardly balanced it with both hands. As soon as he took one step, the books began falling again. Great. The Ravenclaw slowly went on his knees determined to arrange them into a neater pile this time. He did not notice whether he had caused the younger boy any further disturbance. What he was worried about right now was the condition that his books were in.
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[Dante Vittori]

The other boy did not seem to like being touched. Well, Dante didn't like his personal space being interrupted by some boy's nose. He needed to be told that Dante enjoyed his space just as much as silence. However, the boy did seem to realise that it was disturbing him and was no longer leaning so close. It was releaving. Dante didn't like having to be in close quaters with someone, especially if they just met. No matter the qualities that made Dante favour this boy over other people, the young Ravenclaw did not want him being so close. He didn't want anyone being that close. The pure blood returned to his self appointed task. Luckily, the books had fallen on him. Though his pale skin was surely sprinked with a few brusies, the books were not damaged. This made him happy. Damaged books were hard to look at. People didn't like books like Dante did, not usually. They were a why for him to ignore others without appearing completley rude. He just didn't like people, it wasn't his fault. People were just irksome, whether they be magical, or non-magical. Though, mudbloods were a little more annoying. They were too naive about magic for him to handle. If they'd wisen up a little before asking pointless questions, Dante would like them more.

The boy seemed to be examing the books that Dante deemed his. There were quite a few. With so many books, Dante would expect that he would know how to stack them. That did not appear to be the case. Dante tilted his head in curiousity as the boy carried his books away, but soon dropped them. Dante quickly finished packing the library books and stood up, walking over to the boy. He knelt down beside him and waited until he had time to intervene. He hoped the boy wouldn't mind, but this was for the good of the books. They wouldn't survive very long if he kept dropping them. Dante stacked them safety and picked them up. He then held them out to the boy. Hopefully, he wouldn't mind. Dante wasn't sure why, but some got offended when he did things for them. He wasn't trying to baby them or demean them in any way, he just couldn't stand by watching someone failing at something when he knew he could do it better. He was just trying to be helpful. After this, Dante returned to the library books and stacked them back into the bookshelf. This probably wouldn't take too long.
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[Raziel Kim]

Raziel did not like being helped. He did not dislike it either, nor did he hate it. It was more like he had a neutral feeling over it. He was used to being pampered at home what with him being the youngest child. Every time he would go home after long months of stay in Hogwarts, his parents would almost always shower him with attention. He did not have to do anything else. They would prepare his food for him and even help him with the simplest things. Not that he minded that. However, he did not love it either. It would not hurt if they would stop treating him so much like a child even just for a day. Thus, when the younger boy helped him with his books, the Ravenclaw made no motion to say anything. Instead, he just let the boy do what he wanted. His books were more important anyway. As long as they were fine and undamaged, nothing else would matter. If other people treat their books as things only needed when they have to get rid of boredom or they needed to consult about something, he did not. Books were his companions, his friends if that was what other people would call it. He had never had a friend before, except for the boy from the yellow house of course. Conan was, to say, his friend. At least, that he had been told. He did not know a lot about friendship, he did not know what he was supposed to do or what was expected of him. All he knew was that a friend was something that was supposed to be special. Books to him were special. Thus, they were his friends, were they not?

The Ravenclaw slowly took the books that the younger had so carefully organized. He held them awkwardly with both hands, trying to maintain his balance so the poor books would not be meeting with the solid ground again. These books would not last long should it keep on doing that. The floor, though perfectly comfortable sitting on, was not that kind with the books. Raziel looked at the boy; his eyes were flat but not empty, still but not dead. He looked at him with an almost-but-not-quite-grateful look. The fact that he was actually quite appreciative of what the boy had done was hidden by his motionless expression. He nodded his head at the boy, not averting his gaze even for a second. He awkwardly stood there as the boy returned to what he was previously doing. Afterwards, he turned his attention back to the books in his hands.

Slowly, he turned on his heel and rounded the desk again. He tried not to make any unnecessary sound as he placed the books gracelessly on the table. This time around, they were stacked quite neatly than before. He jumped on his chair once again. His attention was now fully absorbed by his books. He tucked his legs back in an unnatural position. His narrow world revolved around the books once more. This literary inventions, or miracles more likely, were the ones he could see now. He picked a book from the top of the pile and effortlessly opened them right to the page that he had left before. Divination. He just had to read about it again.​

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[Dante Vittori]

Dante was relieved to find that the silence had not been broken. There was not even a groan of annoyance. Dante couldn't help but respect the ohter boy for that. He doubted anyone else his own age would be behaving like this. They were all loud and annoying. He couldn't handle them. The Ravenclaw returned the books to their rightful place. He even made them alphabetical. People didn't respect them enough. With one final check, Dante nodded to himself and looked back at the table, finding his companion sitting there in that strange way. Did he always sit like that? Personally, Dante found it more comfortable to sit with things in his lap. That closed his eyes from having to look around. It was always annoying to be reading and then accidently locking eyes with someone. The young pure blood sat back down in his seat silently and placed his book in his lap. He began to read once more. Time passed silently in the library. The two Ravenclaw's remained, slowly forging a friendship from the silence they shared.​

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-FINISHED-​