+- Knockturn Bound (https://staging.knockturnbound.net)
+-- Forum: Portkeys (https://staging.knockturnbound.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=14)
+--- Forum: The Wizarding World (https://staging.knockturnbound.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=71)
+---- Forum: Archive (https://staging.knockturnbound.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=246)
+----- Forum: Hogwarts Archives (https://staging.knockturnbound.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=247)
+------ Forum: 1922 - 1923 (https://staging.knockturnbound.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=285)
+------- Forum: In Character (https://staging.knockturnbound.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=287)
+------- Thread: A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa (/showthread.php?tid=1126)
A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa - Matilda Nordstrom - 06-26-2026
31 March 1923
Saturday
8:30pm
Saturday
8:30pm
Eight months into their arrangement, Matilda had come to four rather inconvenient conclusions.
First, she liked him.
Not tolerated. Not "he'll do." She genuinely liked Dragomire Zdravkova, which felt like the universe playing a practical joke after how much she wanted to hate him in the beginning.
Second, her grades had never been better.
Third, while the greenhouse would always be her sanctuary, she'd quietly realized that wherever Drago happened to be had become one too.
And fourth... She couldn't stop wondering what it would be like to kiss him.
Matilda really didn’t know what to do with these realizations, and the last one was particularly annoying.
The library had become a common spot where they could study, talk and just… be. He had a calming effect on the usually spirited ginger. Typically one to talk and laugh loudly, Matilda felt relaxed and settled when he was next to her. For once in her life, the awkward silence wasn’t awkward.
Finally done with her Homework for the week, Matilda shut her Astronomy book, tucking her constellation diagram away, and stretched like a tired cat. Never, in all her years at Hogwarts, had she done assignments ahead of time. She was typically a cram the night before kind of girl.
Tucked away in the back of the stacks, Matilda and Drago had taken over a small reading nook that few knew about. A small coffee table sat in front of the cushy couch they sat on. Two side tables sandwiched the sofa with lamps that could be dimmed with the tap of your wand. A large window sat behind them, with the sound of rain and wind lulling Matilda into a comfortable trance.
Matilda leaned back, head resting against the back of the sofa, with a deep sigh she shut her eyes.
She'd traded her school robes for a simple ankle-length tan skirt and an emerald cardigan, the sleeves pushed up to her forearms. Her hair, finally behaving itself for once, rested in a loose braid over one shoulder.
"You've been a terrible influence on me," she said with a lazy smile. "All my homework is finished... and my grades are better than they've ever been. I think my grandfather thinks I'm cheating." she said with a laugh.
Opening one eye, she watched him instead of the rain.
Even studying, Drago looked composed. Every movement deliberate, like he had planned them months ago. His brow furrowed slightly as he read, completely absorbed. She found herself smiling. His dimples were absent, reserved only for those rare smiles that somehow still managed to catch her completely off guard.
"It's probably for the best. Tomorrow morning I'm in the greenhouse, then I've got five hours in the Hospital Wing, and library duty tomorrow night." She sighed dramatically.
"Future Matilda is going to be incredibly grateful that Present Matilda actually behaved herself for once."
She settled deeper into the sofa, turning just enough that she was now facing him. "I don't know how you do it. You're always so... disciplined. I think I'd go crazy. Her smile, getting a little bit smaller.
RE: A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa - Dragomir Zdravkova - 06-29-2026
Exams were approaching fast, merely six weeks away, dragging the end of term steadily along. The one year at Hogwarts would soon be over and then true life awaited him on the other side. He didn’t think of it often, not in an uncertain anticipatory way like others might, unsure of what path to take, of what career to pursue. He knew what was to come. It had been laid our for him a long time ago, merely the next step in fulfilling his duties to the family and he’d do it gladly.
He wasn’t worried for his NEWTs either. Studying had always come easy and his grades were steady, despite the school transfer and change of language. It wasn’t necessarily because he enjoyed studying. Rather it was an unavoidable thing, an expected thing and therefore simply something he had to do. Like breathing. Or brushing teeth. A job.
Still, he had found it came just that little bit easier with Matilda around. A quiet steadiness that felt soothing somehow. Her presence that seemed to make the tension in his shoulders melt by a fraction more, easing the grip around his brain.
Just having her sit next to him while his mind sunk away into magical theories of all kinds was nice.
"You've been a terrible influence on me. All my homework is finished... and my grades are better than they've ever been. I think my grandfather thinks I'm cheating."
A light chuckle smoothed the crease of his brow, eyes darting around for a second before landing back on the book in his lap. “You are cheating,” he said with mock earnest, voice deliberately even. “You are using my generosity to help to your advantage.”
He glanced over another time, grinning faintly. Of course he didn’t mind helping with her school work. The better her grades, the better for both of them. Besides, it was a great excuse to be around her. Most of his time was spent in the library or the common room preparing for the upcoming exams, leaving little time for much else. Despite his confidence in how he’d perform, he wasn’t naïve enough to leave it up to fate and ego alone. He needed top grades, anything less would be insufficient.
But he might as well combine that duty with another. That of furthering Matilda’s affections.
When she settled back into the couch, seemingly done with homework, Drago closed the book over his thumb, content with being distracted for a moment.
"I don't know how you do it. You're always so... disciplined. I think I'd go crazy.”
Head turned to look at her, Drago’s lips tugged into a smile. “It is just something I have to do,” he said. “It is my duty to have good grades, so I study. The more I study, the better I will be. Is like training.” It was an easy concept to him. One that had been drilled into his brain since birth. A second nature.
After a beat he put aside his book, facing her more fully. “You are disciplined too,” he said, unsure what to make of her dimming smile. “You do the library duty and Hospital Wing shifts. That is a lot of responsibility next to school work and prefect. Needs discipline too. And also —”
One corner of his mouth twitched higher. “You are already crazy. Is hard to get worse, no?”
RE: A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa - Matilda Nordstrom - 06-30-2026
A yawn escaped while looking at Drago, still deep in his studies. Although, his comment about her cheating woke her up pretty quickly. “You are cheating. You are using my generosity to help to your advantage.”
In a move that would make the mothers happy, Matilda clutched at her imaginary pearls in mock outrage. ”Dragomire Zdravkova, how dare you.” She said, her ability to say it in Russian, without having to think gave her a small zing of happiness. Mentally patting herself on the back. To be fair, she did study the phrases that would irritate him the most, more than anything else.
”That’s not cheating. That’s finding the smartest person in the room and strategically attaching yourself to them.” She said, pointing a finger at him. ”It’s resourcefulness. Besides, if I’m cheating then you’re enabling it. That makes you an accomplice.” Grin widening on her face.
Listening to him talk about school as if it were a job made her pause to think. It made sense, and knowing his family she could see how it would be an expectation. She worried when he was gone next term that she wouldn’t be as successful.
When he put his book down and faced her on the small couch, she kept her eyes on him, feeling a bit somber with the direction of their conversation. “You are disciplined too. You do the library duty and Hospital Wing shifts. That is a lot of responsibility next to school work and prefect. Needs discipline too. And also —”
It wasn't something she'd ever considered about herself. Stubborn? Certainly. Loud? Absolutely. Opinionated? Some might say too much. But disciplined? Her fingers traced the worn leather cover of her Astronomy text. ”I guess I never really thought about it that way. I just kept saying yes when something else came up. I like staying busy, helping people. Feeling needed… Wanted.” Her voice trailed off with the last few words.
And then his mouth twitched in to a smile. That should have been the first sign that something was coming. “You are already crazy. Is hard to get worse, no?” Matilda’s mouth dropped open, eyes going wide. Did he… was that a JOKE? It better be a joke or he would see just how crazy she could be.
“How rude sir.” She said, poking him in the arm. ”That’s two insults in as many minutes. Most people wait to insult their fiancée until after they are married. And I’m not crazy, I’m adorably eccentric. There's a difference.” a small laugh escaped.
”Next term will be strange without you.” she admitted with a sigh. Not sure why on that night she felt the need to be honest, but there was something about the small intimate corner with the weather raging outside. Matilda’s eyes went to her hands, tracing the letters on the front of her textbook. ”I don’t think I’m going to like it much.” The words were quiet, but clear, meant only for him.
RE: A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa - Dragomir Zdravkova - 07-02-2026
Her Russian drew another chuckle from him, combined with a raised brow. It hadn’t gone unnoticed, the phrases and words she’d chosen to focus on while learning the language. They all followed a certain pattern.
Smart-mouth.
He didn’t mind. One way or another, she was studying his language and that alone meant he had won. He could live with a little bit of teasing, or the brief stop of his heart when she proudly presented him with another swear word she had learned. In the end, it all boiled down to the same thing. She had accepted him.
The thought felt oddly warm still. Kind of cold too though, at the same time.
He preferred to ignore the whole of it.
His eyes followed her fingers as they traced a pattern on her book, the sombreness of her voice heavy on his chest, but the tease he had followed with quickly seemed to distract her from that.
Drago grinned when Matilda gaped at him, laughing when she poked him in the arm. “That is rich,” he said, lifting a brow. “Isn’t it you who insults me all the time? Annoying? Tedious? Like a weed?” His expression brightened further as he leaned a fraction closer, voice lowering. “If you dish it out, Matilda, you have to be able to take it.”
He lingered there for a second but when a hint of her floral aroma hit him, he quickly leaned back again, dismissing the drop of his stomach. That kept on happening lately and he didn't know what to make of it. Always accompanied by a strange tautness in his guts. Sometimes it happened when he only looked at her, smiling at him from a distance, or even glaring for that matter. An odd sensation and one he hadn't felt before. He did his best to ignore it. When her tone shifted again however, almost sad, he was reaching out before he knew it.
Brushing one of her loose strands of hair behind her ear, he smiled mildly. “You will be okay. Is just one year. You did five before me already, you made it through those too.” A cheap attempt to comfort her, but the best he could do. Without noticing, his hand trailed to the braid draping over her shoulder, fingers running along its soft ridges, gaze following behind.
“You have all your friends,” he said, a bit absentminded, as though distracted by the fascination that was her red hair. “We can write. And I can come visit during Hogsmeade weekends.”
His eyes lifted to hers, the reassuring smile he had forgotten to maintain emerging again, just slightly. “It will go by faster than you think.”
RE: A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa - Matilda Nordstrom - 07-03-2026
Since August, Matilda had discovered there wasn't just one version of Dragomire Zdravkova.
There was the stoic young man the rest of the school saw. Quiet. Composed. A man who measured every word before speaking and rarely used more than was necessary.
Then there was the Drago sitting in front of her.
The one that only came out when they were alone.
He smiled more around her. His sharp edges were beginning to soften, into something almost playful, and every time it happened she found herself liking him a little more than was probably wise.
“That is rich. Isn't it you who insults me all the time? Annoying? Tedious? Like a weed?”
Her blue eyes tried to glare at him, but it wasn’t very convincing. It lasted three whole seconds. The corners of her mouth twitched before the rest of her face gave up and smiled.
"I’m pretty sure you asked me what I had learned and I said something like I’m picking weeds. Maybe that one got lost in translation," she said, trying very hard not to laugh. She most certainly called him a weed. "Persistent? Absolutely. Tedious? Occasionally." She tipped her head, pretending to think. "Annoying? Frequently." She said, losing the battle and laughing with the last words.
He had leaned in, the space between them getting smaller. She followed suit, talking low, as if sharing a secret. “If you dish it out, Matilda, you have to be able to take it.” With a slow exhale, she shook her head, shocked by his playfulness. ”I think I liked you better when you were all quiet and intimidating…” She paused, looking at Drago with warmth. Tipping her head to the side and squinting her eyes, a smile she only gave to him appeared on her face. ”Actually no, that's a lie. I think I’ll keep this version.”
And then she realized what she said. Keep this version. Both shocked and embarrassed, pink rose in her cheeks.
The conversation continued, quieter, more serious. Drago pulled back, she did the same, missing his scent. The mood turned somber. Her fault entirely. His hand reached out with no hesitation, like he had done it a million times. Her entire body froze as he tucked some loose strands of hair behind her ear, goosebumps rising on her skin. That simple, innocent touch, lighting her on fire.
“You will be okay. Is just one year. You did five before me already, you made it through those too.” Matilda smiled softly, his hand now caressing her braid. She didn’t dare move, not wanting to break the bubble.
Every instinct told her to make a joke. Tell him he was fidgeting. Swat his hand away. Say something clever or snappy. Instead she simply watched him. His eyes took in every strand as his hand ran down her red hair. Every cell in her body was alive, wondering what he might do next. Her brain was not sure which of those ideas she wanted to come true.
It was useless to say she didn’t have feelings for him. The chemistry was there, ready to explode.
“We can write. And I can come visit during Hogsmeade weekends.” A shy smile appeared. Drago was not one to show his cards, the ultimate poker face. She wanted to believe he liked her, but he gave away very little in their interactions. “I would like that. I’ve gotten used to you finding me."
“It will go by faster than you think.”
Matilda realized she had no idea what he would be doing while she was locked away in the castle. She assumed some continuing education, or working in some capacity with the family business. ”So while I’m toiling away in the greenhouse and studying without you, what will you be doing?”
While she wanted to know where he would be and what he would be doing, just thinking about him gone made her stomach drop. Her feelings were growing and that scared her to death. Looking at Drago, she had no idea what his feelings were, and that scared her more.
RE: A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa - Dragomir Zdravkova - 07-07-2026
“I would like that. I’ve gotten used to you finding me."
Drago smiled a fraction wider. “Good,” he said, feeling warmth spread inside his ribcage, “I will keep finding you.”
It was almost a little frightening, the way he continuously eased into this softer, less restrained version of himself, only ever with her. No one else around. Alone. It was safe in a sense, as long as he drifted away unwittingly, growing comfortable without notice, lowering his guard on accident, unawares. It happened slowly, but invariably.
And when it finally did catch up with him, the realization trickling through the membrane of his conscience like mist, it never failed to flip his stomach over in a bout of nausea. Sobering and confusing. Like a rope tugging on him in two directions, Drago never knew where to move. Closer? Or back inside himself? He wanted both and neither, unnerved by one, strangely unwilling to consider the other.
She’d said she wanted to keep this version of him, the one that joked and smiled, and those words and the blush that had followed felt like more than mere satisfaction at the thought of having won her over. Somewhere deep down it stirred something that had never been moved before. It felt alien, vulnerable and paralysing. He didn’t know what it was, or how she lured it forth with such ease each time they spent time by themselves, all he knew was that it seemed to grow stronger.
Harder to control.
His fingers on Matilda’s braid had stilled, just like most everything inside himself, frozen with the recognition that it had happened again. This total loss of guard and composure. And looking into her eyes he almost leaned in further again, suddenly lost. As though someone had shut off his brain, feeling like he wanted to be closer still, her the magnet that kept tugging him in.
“So while I’m toiling away in the greenhouse and studying without you, what will you be doing?”
Her question cut through the haze like the blade of a guillotine, bringing him back to himself in a flash and breaking the spell on his mind. Drago finally let go off her braid, withdrawing his hand with more reluctance than he knew what to make of.
He crossed his arms over his chest — still relaxed, still at ease, but hovering on an edge of something he couldn’t name, needing to pin his hands in place. He kept the turmoil stumbling through his chest carefully hidden beneath the slow spread of a cocky smile.
“I will begin Auror training,” he said, shoulders broadening imperceptibly against the back of the couch. “So I can help bring you people’s country back in order. Needs more authority and discipline.” He grinned at her, a tease on his lips. “Needs help from the Russian. We will help. You will have high ranking Auror husband one day.” A wink and he nudged his knee against hers.
RE: A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa - Matilda Nordstrom - 07-07-2026
“Good, I will keep finding you.” A shy smile spread over her face, but she remained quiet as he continued to touch her braid. It was like every hair touched caused a goosebump to appear over her body.
This entire situation was unlike they had ever shared. It was a quiet conversation, charged with chemistry, small smiles and looks that said more than words. Months before Matilda would have fought tooth and nail to deny any feelings towards the man sitting next to her. All that was flying out the window.
She liked him… a lot. Her eyes drifted towards his lips on more than one occasion, wondering what it would be like to kiss him. It had been literal YEARS since she had shared a kiss with anyone, but just thinking about kissing Drago made every nerve ending in her body wake up and pay attention.
Matilda watched as his hand fell away from her braid, immediately she missed it. Which was… embarrassing. Minutes ago she was studying Astronomy, and now she was wishing his hand was absentmindedly playing with her hair some more. Merlin, she was falling more with every small smile.
With the simple question of his future plans, the playful side of Drago that she enjoyed so much was back.
“I will begin Auror training. So I can help bring you people’s country back in order. Needs more authority and discipline.” At his knowing smile her eyes rolled and a laugh escaped. He was being ridiculous. ”There he is,” she said in amusement. ”I was starting to worry that the smug Russian had disappeared.”
“You will have high ranking Auror husband one day.” And then he nudged her knee and winked… Matilda stared at him in shock.
.
"...Did..." She blinked. "...did you just wink at me?" Utter disbelief. She pointed an accusing finger at him. Despite every effort to sound scandalized, amusement danced in her eyes. "You're becoming entirely too confident, Dragomire Zdravkova."
She shook her head dramatically. "First you start teasing me, now you're winking? What's next? Breaking out into song? I don’t think I can take anymore.” A giggle erupted as she nudged his knee dramatically back. When it came to a stop, they were resting against each other.
Crossing her arms and leaning back in her seat, she looked at him with a discerning glance. His broad shoulders, stoic personality, need for rules and order. ”Yeah, I can see it. I think you’d make a brilliant Auror. I mean, you find me every time I try to hide, so the criminals have no chance.” Chuckling, she grinned with a happy smile on her face. Having far too much fun with her future high ranking Auror husband.
RE: A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa - Dragomir Zdravkova - 07-11-2026
His smile spread into a full grin, eyes alive at the shock spreading over Matilda’s face. He was more than aware that he opened up around her more than anyone else, showing sides he usually didn’t, carefully hidden away from public and family alike. Most of them anyway. While it felt frightening in ways he didn’t want to explore, part of him enjoyed it, enjoyed seeing her reactions. It felt free, unconstrained. Like for a few hours he was allowed to simply exist. She didn’t care for the unshakable image of Zdravkova pride and power he was expected to uphold at all times, the portrayal of an untouchable legacy.
He enjoyed that too. But with her he enjoyed being carefree more.
"First you start teasing me, now you're winking? What's next? Breaking out into song? I don’t think I can take anymore.”
It hit him again then, the magnitude of her influence, pulling him back in. The lingering touch of her knee against his, the giggle, her way of looking him over. All of it made him want to reach out once more. Without thinking — as though he didn't have a choice, as though his earlier attempt at restraint didn't mean a thing — he released one of his arms. His fingers found back to her braid as though they belonged there.
”Yeah, I can see it. I think you’d make a brilliant Auror. I mean, you find me every time I try to hide, so the criminals have no chance.”
A chuckle feel from his lips. “I think the criminals will try and hide a little harder than you though,” he said, voice low and laced with amusement, eyes dancing over her face. His upper body subconsciously leaned a little closer and the smugness returned to his tone. “But you are right. They will have no chance.”
Her scent engulfed him again and suddenly his heartbeat turned deep and apprehensive, gaze locked to hers as the smile on his lips began to fade.
It was the closest he had ever been to her — they’d never shared this little space, even when she’d shown him her scar. A mere two feet separating them, the blue of her eyes more intricate from this close, the freckles scattered over the bridge of her nose softer. He hadn’t ever wondered what kissing her would feel like; it wasn’t something he had the time to concern himself with. Now though, it seemed the only thought ghosting his mind.
Matilda seemed to have frozen. He couldn’t tell whether that was a good or a bad thing but his hand travelled from her braid to her jaw and neck nonetheless, gentle but decided, drawing his body ever closer. The distance shrunk slowly, the tip of his nose brushing hers as he paused. Searching her eyes, trying to discern what she thought, giving her time to pull away. But when she didn’t, when the drum of his heart grew almost unbearable, Drago dropped his gaze, moving to close the gap.
“What are you doing?”
He drew back in an instant, jaw tightening before he’d even looked around, but he didn’t need to. The voice was a familiar one, drenched in mock and disgust and belonging to his younger brother Serik, standing by the corner of a shelf close by.
Withdrawing his hand from Matilda’s face, Drago stood, glaring at Serik and the smug expression spreading over his face. “Were you about to kiss? That’s disgusting.” He grinned, eyes glinting with more than just a tease. Beneath it, anger simmered, cruel and with the intent to push and disrespect in ways he knew weren’t accepted. Drago had seen it submerge further and further over the past weeks, growing stronger and more worrisome. He had the space between them crossed in a few strides.
Grabbing Serik by the throat, Drago pushed the boy against the bookshelf, toe to toe, voice low. “Watch it,” he growled, eyes boring down into those of his brother, glaring back with equal ferocity. “You are playing with fire, brother.”
Serik remained quiet, jaw clenching, snarling. After a moment he pushed at Drago’s chest and Drago let him, releasing the boy as he stormed off. With tension returned to his body, Drago looked after him, face stony. Every ounce of ease and carefree mirth was evaporated and gone, leaving only the stoic version behind, the concern for his brother returned and worse. At last he turned.
“I apologize,” he said, unable to look at Matilda. The desire he’d almost given in to still sat below the surface, squirming but he shoved it down and locked it away. Waving his wand, every book and parchment he’d brought to study soared into his bag, zooming into his free hand a moment later. “I need to go, I am sorry. I will see you in the common room.”
He briefly glanced at her, holding her eyes for just a moment before turning, long strides making after Serik.
RE: A Comfortable Silence :: DraMa - Matilda Nordstrom - 07-12-2026
He moved closer. The shift was subtle, but she noticed. It was impossible not to. His hand had returned to her braid, causing goosebumps to erupt over her skin. She wished her hair was loose, so that his fingers would get lost in the locks.
The world had narrowed until it was just him. Somewhere outside their little corner of the library rain still tapped against the windows. Books still lined the shelves. Other students probably still existed. She didn’t care about any of that.
Every bit of her attention was on the man sitting impossibly close to her. His hand found her jaw. She forgot how to breathe. His thumb resting just below her ear. Her heartbeat was impossibly fast. The warmth of his breath caused her to shudder under his touch. The brush of his nose against hers caused her eyes to flutter shut. She couldn't remember the last time she'd breathed. Maybe she’d forgotten how.
Drago stopped. Waiting to see if she would pull back. Giving her a chance to say no. Run for the hills. Push him away. She did none of those things. Instead her hand had found its way to the front of his shirt, tightening on the fabric, bringing him in closer. Her heart seemed intent on escaping through her ribs.
Merlin.
She wanted him to kiss her. There was no big revelation, this had been building for weeks. Months even. And it was finally going to happen. Opening her eyes, her blue found his brown, searching them for hesitation, but she found none. Remembering how to breath, she exhaled a shuddered breath, expecting their lips to touch any second when…
“What are you doing?”
Her eyes went wide, recognizing the voice as Drago’s brother Serik. In a blink Drago was up and plowing towards him. “Were you about to kiss? That’s disgusting.”
Tilly blanched at the words, color draining from her face. Going pale with dread and embarrassment. Since August, Matilda had never seen Drago so angry. His hand, that had just gently cradled her face, was now around Serik’s throat, squeezing to make his point clear. “Watch it, You are playing with fire, brother.”
Matilda wasn’t sure what was said, but the venom dripping from the words caused her hand to raise to her own throat, worried that any minute a full on brawl would break out. As Serik left, she was sure that Drago would follow, but he stopped to apologize. “I need to go, I am sorry. I will see you in the common room.”
Before any words were able to leave her mouth, both boys were gone. Sitting back, her breathing was labored, heart beating fast. Matilda let her head fall to the back of the couch, her hands covering her eyes, a loud grumbled groan escaped her throat. ”What the fu….dge just happened?!”
Angry, embarrassed, annoyed and very flustered, she stood and collected all their books and belongings. Stuffing Drago’s things in his bag, she grabbed both and made her way out of the library. Standing in the doorway, she thought long and hard about going for a long walk in the wind and rain, but instead took the stairs up to the Gryffindor Common room very very slowly.