Ghosts, ghosts, everyone had ghosts – all the best families, the oldest families, the purestfamilies; they all had ghosts. Unhappiness in life, terror in death and all the wealth and status they could ever have almost inevitably went hand in hand. And so there were hallways, always, with ghosts drifting down them. Corridors and passages and wings that no one visited because that was where the ghosts of Christmas past lived, waiting to remind families of their sins and their unhappy pasts.
Those raised in these grand old houses learnt one simple lesson: the ghosts were part of the woodwork, the ghosts were invisible, the ghosts were nothing more than whispers and inconveniences to be endured.
But sometimes those large houses grew empty and cold and lonely. Sometimes in the lone hours of the morning, it was easy to go wandering and hope for something – anykind of contact, as long as it exceeded the politely traded words and delicate manners of their society’s parlours and soirees. Sometimes children’s eyes went prying. Sometimes they asked questions and sometimes, they talked with closeted skeletons and family ghosts. Sometimes when children find they have no one they can confess their fears, hopes and desires to they turn to ghosts.
Ghosts, after all, were just like the heavy wood-paneling on their doors.
Rodolphus Lestrange’s ghost was an old familiar face from his childhood. When he was thirteen, there had been a fire and she had died. No one mentioned the locked doors, or the screaming or the threats. No one mentioned the night Antinous Lestrange dragged her up the stairs to the attic by her hair, in a foul and drunken rage – how when the cool light of morning should have calmed him to reason, he had found himself unable to swallow his pride and had left her there. Rodolphus remembered it all very vaguely, happier memories from school supplanted it and then later, the endless dreariness of Azkaban was all that he could remember.
He found Dido Lestrange one day, nevertheless, and thirty-one years a ghost had not dimmed her fury or her memory though she could not match the proud young boy she knew as her nephew to the wild unkempt man on the stairway in front of her. Despite it, she alone understood the hatred he bore his father – how could she not? She had felt the weight of his pride and his wrath and if she, his sister, had died so that Antinous’ pride could be fulfilled, how much more his son?
“I am alive,” her nephew would repeat, but he was just as much a ghost as she was; broken and humbled for Antinous’ ambitions and pride.
“How I should like to kill him,” he would tell her and those were the times when Dido Lestrange could see something of the young boy she remembered from thirty-one years ago then.
What they were not told, by their mothers and fathers, was that sometimes, the ghosts talk back.
“Kill him,” Dido would rasp one day, “For your sake. Save yourself before all you are is nothing more than yet another drop in the vast ocean of Antinous Lestrange’s ambitions.”
“Live,” she would say, “Live for both of us, my child.”
That last he could not do and he could not even kill his father though he was tempted, many times.
They did not tell you that you could fail ghosts either.
Theodore Nott’s ghost was not his mother as one might have supposed. His mother had died with the satisfaction that her son would be well-protected – had died contented and gentle, even on her deathbed.
He had been old enough to understand it. Death. Not old enough to understand her last words.
“They will come for you,” she said, “Your father will say no. Youmust say no.”
But then he begins to understand when he meets his ghost – a young man, no more than eighteen or nineteen, who tells him his name is Edward Tarquin Nott. Theodore is struck by the ghost’s likeness to the portrait of his father that hangs over the fireplace in their private dining room. He finds that mentioning this man’s name makes his father’s glass of wine slip from his hand to the floor – and his father turns white, as though he is in unspeakable pain.
His father flees the dinner table and Theodore Nott, age nine, wonders what on earth could have moved his father so.
Edward Tarquin Nott, he finds, was once the heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Nott. In 1943 the first summons had come from continental Europe – send help, any help you can find, we need every wand to fight the tyrant who styles himself Grindelwald – and Edward Tarquin Nott, like many others of his cohort, had answered. Very few of them had returned alive. Edward’s body was never found, but his spirit found its way back home to his birthplace somehow.
Theodore understands his mother’s words, a little, when he tells Edward of the mark on his father’s arm and he sees the pain in the ghost’s eyes.
“We died saving Europe from a madman,” his dead uncle tells him when he is fifteen and he tells him that the Dark Lord has returned, “I did not think that his madness would return and infect my country.”
Theodore wants to ask him how he could think it was madness when great-uncle Cantankerus was the one who wrote the Pureblood Directory, but before he can ask, the words start tumbling from Edward’s mouth and he tells Theodore of all the horrors he saw on his marches through Europe - the horror of his own death, drowned in the English channel as they helped muggles flee from Grindelwald’s approaching army.
“Whatever we may believe about the purity of our blood and all it engenders,” he tells Theodore, “War and death and a people ruined and broken is not worth it.”
And Theodore understands his mother’s words then. He could be a soldier, like his father and uncle, and lose his life to The Cause. Or he could choose peace and gain his life, instead.
Theodore Nott always did have a strong sense of self-preservation.
There is no ghost left behind when his father dies and that, at least, comforts Theodore through the silent burial he and the ghost of Edward Tarquin Nott hold for Charles Hadrian Nott in the autumn of 1997.
Draco Malfoy found his ghost when he was sixteen. Not at home, because Malfoy Manor had no ghosts, because Malfoy Manor was always warm and welcoming, to him at least, because no Malfoy had ever lived a truly unhappy life or died in fear. Not even in Slytherin, because Slytherin was not a place for sharing secrets or for weaknesses to be acknowledged. Someone was always watching in Slytherin; always watching and reporting. There was no room to slip, to be anything other than perfect and to execute every step of the intricate little dances they did perfectly.
No, Draco Malfoy found his ghost in a bathroom and for the first time, he found he could admit that he, the silver prince, was lost, terrified and hurting.
For the first time, Draco thought he might have a friend. A realfriend, that is, and not a Slytherin friend. One could not relax with a Slytherin friend. One could not tell them if one was afraid, or how close one was to disgrace. Oh he trusted them well enough – loved them in his own peculiar way, even – but trust and love were fickle things where his fellow Slytherins were concerned; not enough for him to confess the burden he bore and stay safe in the knowledge that his confessor would keep it for him and not use it against him later.
Myrtle was a mudblood and a Ravenclaw. Maybe, he thought, that was why she was simple. Simple and uncomplicated, honest and gentle. For the first time, Draco found he had someone he could almost call a real friend. His secrets spilled out, one after the other, after so many months pretending they were a badge of pride and not a brand of near dishonor. It was strange, then, to see that there was no judgement in her eyes as there almost certainly would have been in Nott’s or Zabini’s if he had told them all of this, when she promised to keep his secrets for him - only sadness and understanding. They were friends, she told him, and this was what friends did: they shared their burdens and tried to soften the edges of this world for each other.
Slytherin was all hard edges and under the softening influence of Myrtle’s friendship, Draco began to wonder if he was the mask he had worn all these years.
(Not quite, no.)
(Maybe, maybe Myrtle, who understood him best despite the circumstances of her death and his own allegiance to the very man who murdered her, had the right of it.)
“We will find a way,” she would promise him one day and if the feeling blossoming in his chest was not hope, but a deepening sense of fragility and longing, then none but Draco needed to know that.
They did not find a way, but Draco could not banish her memory from his mind and when he raised Scorpius, he raised him to understand that it was who people were and not the circumstances of their birth or their lineage which mattered most – though that was what they had once been taught.
“Kindness,” he would tell Scorpius, “Love and compassion – they were what saved me all those years ago and made me a better man than I was.”
“I could have been sent to Azkaban,” he would tell Scorpius, “If a muggleborn ghost hadn’t been kind to me all those years ago and if I hadn’t realized, then, that I was right in suspecting that everything we had built our lives on back then was wrong in some way. Don’t underestimate anyone.”
Myrtle would conclude, when she met Scorpius years later, that Draco’s efforts were not in vain.
every time i read fanfiction in which not only Draco but also Theo has special feelings for Hermione i begin to doubt and mentally argue with myself whom to choosefor her but at the same time i do CLEARLY UNDERSTAND that i will eventually choose Draco anyways.
is it considered OKAY for a true dramione shipper to doubt like that? or is it happening only inside my head… (well tbh there definitely are several stunning Theo’s head canons in it but that’s not the point)
every time i feel so sorry for this little pumpkin… and so freaking happy for ‘eventual-dramione’
here goes the quote everyone-knows-where-Manacled-from:
“I don’t want to choose. I always have to choose, and I never get to choose you.”
this is what i would have told Theo if i could.
***
and i also could not resist… so here you are:
Aesthetic ofTheomione which did-not-have-eventual-happy-ending but they wereandthat should be appreciated.
thank you so much@paulineflorenzi for creating this absolutely beautiful artwork for us!
i literally lost my breath when i saw them together sitting next to each other – so real. light, forms, colors, expressions… you’ve translated the atmosphere of the story just perfectly.
i commissioned this cover for @scullymurphy and her fanfic Bending Light, which gives me warm and shiny summer vibes each time i translate a new chapter from it.
i am not able to express my feelings, which are taking over me when i immerse myself into this italian atmosphere. bright smile crosses my features with each and every Draco’s stubborn thought, Theo’s devious phrase, Blaise’s joke and Lavender’s sinful smile. and Hermione… she is our light, which bends and makes us feel. thank you for this opportunity, for these emotions, and for the fact that despite being almost in the end of this stunning story – which (i won’t hesitate to mention) made me cry we-know-where-we-all-are-falling-dark – you are still close and this is what a story is about: it stays real through the times leaving footprints of its creator. i love you and those, whom you’ve created. and i really hope you will love these threetoo
Experimentally, she stroked lightly at the back of his neck. His eyes instantly darkened and dropped to her mouth. She bit her lip, feeling a little surge thread through her. Theo bent his head to her ear and whispered, “you shouldn’t have done that.” The smile in his words combined with the lightest touch of his lips on Hermione’s ear, caused a throb in a distinctive part of her anatomy. She blew out a surprised breath. Draco who? He could hug as many tarts in bars as he wanted.
the one thing mattheo couldn’t have in his life, he never thought it’d be a girl.
girls came easy, but they were never anything that came to mind too much; he had other things to worry about, things to do.
but he’d never thought that that girl, the girl he wanted, would be one of his best friends girl.
none of his friends were ever loyal, none of them except theo. he was a sucker for those long term relationships because the type of girls who were only looking for one night stands and hook ups made him annoyed and had more issues than he could deal with, it was too bad he got stuck with one exactly like that.
you loved theo, more than anyone, but old habits died hard. especially with all of theo’s friends breathing down your neck, begging for a taste.
but you never gave in, not until mattheo.
when you first met him, he didn’t say a word to you. you weren’t even aware of him half the time, his presence was forgettable till your eyes always seemed to find his and his body always seemed to be pressed up against yours in your dreams.
it soon became very obvious who you wanted and he knew it when he was no longer the one initiating the starring—giving him the go ahead to push your buttons.
“i’ll fuck you straight.”
“yeah, you wish riddle,” you starred back at him with a challenging look, “good luck on getting the chance.”
he scoffed, “you act like you’re so loyal.”
you immediately frowned in annoyance, “and you act like you’re all that.”
he smiled, leaning over to your level, “because i am.”
you rolled your eyes, looking him up and down with what looked like disgust, “hop off your throne, riddle. i love my boyfriend.”
“it sure doesn’t seem like it when you’re looking at me,” he tipped his head slightly, a fake expression of thought coming over his face, “you better work on that, y/n, otherwise i’m not going to be the only one who notices.”
he walked away, but some part of you wished he hadn’t and that the looks you two shared, would be caught on to, so you could just get it over with and finally get to fuck him.
that came sooner rather than later—but not how you thought. the opportunity was practically handed to the two of you when half the boys were out for gallivanting down in the forbidden forest and theo had told you to wait for him in the common room.
it was too bad he was running late.
“why don’t you sit down?” mattheo’s stare was narrowing and studying as he motioned you to sit in the big black leather chair across from him. “you’ve got a while longer to wait.”
you scoffed, “alright, but i’m sure theo-“
“who cares about theodore, he’s probably fucking around with a blonde from ravenclaw, anyway.”
the sentence caught you off guard and made you slightly pause as you sat down. you sure he was just messing with you, but with the right motivation and pressure, theo could get convinced into anything—maybe even fucking around with a blonde ravenclaw.
“he wouldn’t do that.”
“right, because you’re the cheater in the relationship.”
you scowled at him, but your cheeks turned red at the truth of his words. he knew you well for some reason. he knew you weren’t honest—never in any relationship had you ever been in—and he knew you were also easily pressured into things.
“why don’t you show me something,” he nodded toward you, “don’t try to hide your true colors now that we’re alone.”
“piss off.”
“now don’t he so harsh.”
you rolled your eyes, thinking, thinking how wrong this was but still stood up from your seat across from him, and you still slowly glided toward him while your fingers grasped the top buttons of your pure white blouse, “don’t tell.”
“no promises,” he grinned, sipping from the bottle as you were now in front of him, slowly leaning before him still teasing the unbuttoning of your shirt.
“mattheo,” you whined, but still continuing with your actions, giving him a peak of your black laced bra. “you’re not being nice.”
he pulled you to his lap roughly, causing you to gasp as you were now straddling him, “why would i?” his fingers reached where yours were, helping you unbutton the material of your shirt, “you’re so damn teasing all the time.”
you rocked your hips forward, pouting at his words, “shame.” mattheo breath became uneven for the slightest second, his eyes dragging up to yours at the feeling of your heat pressing onto his cock.
“you’re fucking, cunt,” he scoffed, shaking his head with a slight smirk on his face. “don’t act like you don’t want this as much as i do.”
“sure, mattheo,” you tauntingly smiled, rocking back and forth again before pressing your lips against his. he immediately kissed back, his hands slowly pulling the blouse from your arms.
he smelled good and he felt good—you felt you could barely get enough despite how close he was with his arms wrapped around you now, pulling you closer and closer till his chest was pressed against yours.
he was making you desperate, real desperate with his taunting that you could barely keep up the returning taunting facade.
“let me cum in your mouth, yeah?” he pulled away and was already unbuckling his belt from beneath you, cuing you to get off the chair and to your hands and knees as he stood, “be a good girl, suck me off, y/n.”
you nodded slowly, deciding whether if this was really okay… but you suddenly didn’t care, especially when your mouth started watering the moment his cock sprung from his boxers, thick and waiting for you.
“ready, love,” he didn’t wait for your words and he barely waited for you; his hips meeting your mouth, eager, “fuck,” you eased your mouth down his length, eyes already watering even before the tip of his cock touched the back of your throat.
“such a fucking good girl,” he grunted, his hand twirling a make shift pony tail of your hair while his head tipped back, his mind filling of bliss with each suck you took. “you love my cock, don’t you?”
he thrusted into your mouth, face fucking you, helping you induce pleasure as you tried to keep up by running and swirling your tongue along his length.
you couldn’t even think to answer, or hum, or anything. you were enjoying too much and couldn’t help let your mind travel already to fast to the thought of him fucking you.
you could tell he wanted to just by how much enjoyment he was getting from this.
and he pulled out abruptly, leaving spit and precum running down your chin with teary eyes, “let me cum inside you, show theo who really owns your body.”
you let him lay you down against the cold floor, his body hovering over yours as he undone his dress shirt before pulling it off fast with eager fingers, that watched you with dark eyes.
you watched anxiously, your eyes eating every inch of his body and the scars that decorated his tan skin. your chest heaved up and down, your heart pounding, underestimating what he might do with the stare he had.
he gripped his cock, stroking it roughly before laying on your body fully, hiking up your skirt and pushing your parties to the side. he kissed you softly before pushing into you, prompting a sharp whine to resonate from your lips, “take it.”
your hands gripped his shoulders as he slowly inch into you before harshly shoving his full length into your cunt, immediately catching into your sweet spot. a high moan released into the air as your stomach rumbled with pleasure and pain to your walls from just barely getting used to the thickness of his cock.
“fucking whore,” he continued to fuck into you as his mouth began to speak nasty words that made your stomach twist in pleasure, whimpering as he spoke. “you love your boyfriend’s best mate using you like a doll?”
you gasped as his hand caught your face, gripping it harshly, “of course you do,” he smiled devilishly before, slapping the side of your hip, “get on your knees.”
you whimpered as you did so, his hands immediately gripping your hips and continuing to fuck you stupid the moment he pushed into you again. his finger tips pained you as he pressed hard enough to leave bruises.
“i want him to know who fucked you this good,” his hand grasped your throat, pulling you closer to his body as his mouth hovered over your ear before sucking and biting on your neck. “i want him to see what a dirty little whore you are, taking me without denial.”
“mattheo, please,” you whined, grabbing his hand that lied on your hip, “please don’t.”
“don’t what, huh?”
“please don’t leave marks.”
you could feel his cock twitch to the whine of your voice, a grunt resonating from his mouth. he didn’t say a word to reply but began to savor the few minutes left of his high, roughly pumping in and out of you as you moaned—soon coming upon your own.
“who fucks you better, huh?” he leaned back near your face, “me or him, tell me?“
“you mattheo,” you stuttered, feeling your vision go blurry and your limbs grow numb the moment his high came undone and pushed cum deep into your cunt, leaving you marked.
warnings.smut, he’s a little mean bruh, foul language, corny?
ricky rocks. theosmut whoop whoop. you guys voted—mattheo next.
“hurry up.”
“i’m trying my best,” you grumbled, struggling to wring your tights down to your ankles as theo unbuckled his belt fast and without a problem due to this being nothing new to him.
it had to of been fourth hour and theo was struck in his sour mood that only you could cure. but you could tell he was a lot more aggravated than usual by the way he had gripped your arm so tightly when pulling you toward one of the washrooms. you were guessing it was from draco. that’s always what it ever was and probably always would be and you didn’t blame him.
draco could be an absolute asshole when it came to you. always saying nasty things that insinuated his attraction towards you, things that he knew got into theo’s head no matter any amount of reassurance.
just your body against his.
“you want me to fuck you or not?”
“shut up. you try and take these tights off,” you snide, still struggling to pull down the material with the small area of containment of the stall you both stood in.
“i’ll rip ‘em if i have to.”
you scowled finally pulling them from your legs but still allowed his hot hands to sneak underneath your skirt where he pulled your lacy panties down to your ankles with a kneel, then pulling it from your foot before balling the pink fabric into his pocket.
you couldn’t help but whimper from the position you were in. he was kneeled at your feet with hooded eyes, holding your hips now as you tipped your head back now against the wall already deep in a haze of lust.
“and i’m the one who wanted you,” he shook his head but with a smirk thinking to how persistent you were about not skipping class. “i always forget about how needy you can get.” he was now back to his feet, looking down at you like you are a little helpless puppy.
“justplease fuck me, theodore,” you tilted your head to the side with a frown, gripping both sides of his dress coat, pulling him closer but he shrugged it off quickly not being able to wait after the sweet whiny sound of your voice.
“only ‘cause you asked nice,” he smirked, licking his index and middle finger before swiftly curling his fingers back under your skirt and into your cunt where you groaned at the warm and raptured feeling. “what a good girl.” his voice is warm and there’s a hint of taunt in his voice, but it’s still praiseful and doesn’t fail to make your stomach clench in euphoria as he pumps his fingers in and out of you, making sure you were wet.
theo pulled back, finally undoing his belt swiftly. he’s then quick to thrust into you prompting a moan from your mouth as your head tipped backed against the wall. theo had inhaled sharply, allowing his cock to adjust to the tightness of your cunt—something he never quite got used to. he swore under his breath as he pressed further into you, allowing warmth and easy pleasure to consume him whole.
“pretty girl,” he tsked, pulling out slowly before rushing back in even harder than before. “only like this for me and my cock, aren’t you?”
“yes, theo,” your voice was barely above a whisper as your vision was going spotty from his cock stretching out your walls with the rough thrusts he was pumping into you.
“good,” he mumbled breathlessly, “i love seeing you soweak.”
he grabbed both your thighs, prompting you to jump and once you did, he had your back against the wall, now having a consistent pace that made you a complete mess than before.
“i love being the only one who can see you like this,” his forehead presses against your own, teasing his lips on yours, “tears in your eyes—fucking malfoy could never, could he? you’re mine.”
“yes, theo,” you whined as his hand suddenly clasped around your throat squeezing lightly while his eyes looked down to watch his thick cock pump in and out of your cunt with wet noises, “i’m all for you.”
“you have such a pretty mouth,” his thumb dipped to pull on your bottom lip before pressing it on your tongue. “think of what good you could do with it instead of feeding into draco’s nonsense.”
“i never,” you whined, rolling your head.
“liar,” he seems to drop you fast to your feet, almost making you fall to your knees from how weak of a feeling that was oozing through them, making you feel like jello as you wobbled before he flipped you around fast so you were pressed the wall tightly. “i see you tease him for something he can’t have. always provoking him.”
“but you like that, don’t you theo?” you inhaled sharply as he shoved into you once more, “you love it that draco finally can’t have something.”
he grunted in response, nothing to say but to melt back into your body with rough strokes, his hand wrapping around your waist. he was getting more aggressive now, his pumps becoming slams, “fucking cunt, i own you, you’re mine. i want you to stay away from draco.”
“y-yes theo,” you groaned, the feeling of his cock twitching inside of you causing your own high to draw near and move down. “i’m only yours.”
pairings.theodore nott x fem!slytherin!reader, mattheo riddle x fem!slytherin!reader
part one of n/a.
about. in which a group of boys are in search for the one thing that keeps them from their death.
warnings.swearing, dark themes
ricky rocks. idk if you guys are going to dig this i hate it already
it happens at night.
minds are run through, memories are stolen, a version of brutality is placed upon a large amount of boys that come in the forms of bruises, cuts, gashes—that heal but never disappear from the back of their minds. they can never touch the thought—fully grasp what it is or why this has happened to them or even who, but it’s there and it hovers in high heights that they can’t reach.
all survival, that’s what they all think, the persecutors, the boys. and it is; for their survival.
especially theodore.
days got short and he barely felt the effect of professor snapes lessons now. he dreaded the night, but it seemed to come faster than anything else, but couldn’t move fast enough when it finally arrived.
the gift—the thing they were looking for, the thing that was key to all their survival—was the only thing he thought about now and he didn’t even know what it was.
the beginning of year six started not how expected, he was sure none of his friends expected to be initiated into a group that carried out the orders of the dark lord.
it made sense though. the moment mattheo riddle walked into his life, he knew it wasn’t just another friend, he’d be a fool to think that.
they were bound for life.
°•
potions with slughorn was always something theodore never looked forward to, ever. he felt like an asshole every time he sat in his seat and connected eyes with the man. it was like he knew; everything and it always threw theodore off, making him anxious.
and it didn’t help that he was late.
“awh, mr. nott,” he had his body tilted back as he seemed to be sizing up theodore from where he stood—almost deciding if he were friend or foe. “have a seat where you can.”
theodore looked to where all the students sat, looking back at him. it seemed they had all pulled their chairs to the center of the room instead behind desks where things usually were. it made him curse as their were no free seats in the back but rather in the near front.
“go on, no time to waste here.”
he shuffled through the rows before slowly sitting into the only empty seat next to you. neither of you thought much about it, he didn’t even see you.
“some of you have no sense of time,” slughorn scoffs, back to shifting across the floor in front of you all. “swear if the ministry knew what was best, they’d have nation wide curses put on our children to make them at least on time.”
“long live the rebellion, right?” you rolled your eyes in a frivolous way, shrugging, not watching your words carefully. “i swear we fight for something of rights and then someone goes and says something dumb like that.”
he doesn’t realize you’re even speaking to him. not until you finally really looked to him where he immediately looked slightly confused—not processing your words or not exactly understanding the meaning you were trying to put out. lost in translation, very lost in translation.
he thought you must have thought he was someone else but by the way you stared so surely at him and then reached your hand out, offering a soft smile but with an arched brow that also threw him off, introducing—
“y/n.”
he took it, after a long moment, “theodore.”
“i’ve seen you before,” you look him up, your eyes curving around the family ring he wore around his pinky and the scars the littered his fingers, “you’re a nott.”
“you get that from slughorn?” his brow arched and his eyes turned harsh of what looked like annoyance.
“no, you just look an awful lot like your father.”
his chest tightened. not only did he hate that supposed compliment more than anything, but he also found it strange. how would you know his father?
“and you?” his features twisted in suspicion, not knowing you, not even really recognizing you in the slightest like you did of him.
“y/l/n,” you speak, and the both of you finally release hands from the firm grasp, removing him from a trance and back to reality—a smack in the face. the name, he knew, he knew the fucking name and suddenly it made a lot of sense.
“i’m not sure i’m as familiar of you,” he lied, pulling his best face now that he was finally back into the game, but the skeptical look you gave him made him think his facade wasn’t working. “but i’m curious.”
“of what?”
“you.”
“why?”
“why wouldn’t i be?”
you didn’t say anything but your face screwed up instead playfully, adjusting yourself so you were facing slughorn once again, “maybe you should be more curious on slughorn’s lesson.”
°•
exhilarated.
theodore hadn’t felt like that ever and he never thought he would, but walking down the corridor to the slytherin common room, theodore felt exhilarated.
the common room was dim and filled with low chatter but was interrupted the minute he walked in with the aggressive buzz radiating off his body.
they all noticed it before he spoke, before they could even get a real good look at him.
“it’s not a man, and it’s not a younger year like we suspected,” he looked urgent, it caught all of them off guard—never having seen theodore so anxious and full of energy. “it was right under our fuckingnoses.”
mattheo raises his eyes now, looking at theodore like he was a prick, but it only urged him to keep speaking as he sat down before throwing a scrappy looking book on the coffee table where dust spilled into the air making all the boys wince with a cough.
“it’s a girl and she’s in our very own house.”
now they’re all looking at him like he’s prick, shaking their heads and frowning while theodore stared back, not fazed but itching to move. it was so hard to hold it in, he just had to say it all because he felt like a genius for the first time in months and that they’d finally came to a break through.
“the prophecy said-“
“the prophecy was wrong,” theodore looks between all the boys with his arm extended across the table, making sure his assertiveness reached each and every one of their eyes. “i don’t give a fuck what the prophecy said because it was wrong.”
he looks up to mattheo who stares back, his expression blank but holding a questioning look that’d make anyone back down, “it’s a y/l/n,” he knew mattheo would know the name just like he knew it. “she comes down from a death eater traitor of a grandfather and she’s nothing short of the old man because she spoke of a rebellion.”
it’s silent as they look between theodore and mattheo; who thinks and hates how he feels as if he’s being challenged right then.
“and what makes you think it’s her.”
“because we have no one else on the list,” his tone is nasty, “if it’s not her, fine, cross her off but she has to know something.”
he feels it in his bones that he is right.
“talk to your father, if anything it’ll give us time.”
talk to you father. mattheo rolls his eyes and he leans forward, now challenging the hard tone theodore held with a simple stare, “tell me about her.”
°•
“i didn’t think i’d see you,” theodore froze from right behind where you sat, studying a book from the looks of it, but he guessed you weren’t but rather him since he had entered the library over twenty minutes ago before finally coming up to you. “not for awhile, anyways.”
he took a seat next to you, leaning on his elbows while watching you straighten your posture and close the potions book you had been reading for the past hour, “you watching me, nott?”
“you know my father?” he brushes off your question, giving you a calm stare that made your chest tighten.
you didn’t know how to answer. i mean, it’s a simple answer, ‘yes’, and it’s a simple explanation, you just didn’t want to speak under his stare.
luckily, he didn’t care much for your answer in the first place.
“how come i’ve never seen you before,” he leans his head against his propping hand. he looks and seems bored but you can tell that he’s far from it. “you think i would have seen you at least once in the common room.”
“maybe you’re just not very observant, theo.”
god, the way you said his name.
no one called him theo. not for in a long time.
“i highly doubt that,” he narrows his brows but his lips twitch, taking your words lightly.
“you think highly of yourself, don’t you?”
not lately.
but he doesn’t say that, he doesn’t say anything.
“maybe you didn’t see me because i didn’t want to be seen.”
his lips curve, “i doubt that.”
you watch him. you watch his face carefully, surveying his face and in the way it seemed so completely run down even with that smile, “you should sleep more,” your thumb lightly dabs against his cheek, as if touching him reassuringly—no matter how quick the touch was and no matter the fact that you got up from your seat and left him—it was reassuring.
°•
“she’s pretty.”
“yeah, because that’s going to be valuable information mattheo will want to hear,” blaze rolled his eyes, continuing to read through the paper as lorenzo examined you from two tables away in the three broomsticks.
“you never know,” he shrugs, turning from his altered position that was made just to stare. “you can never tell with him.”
“which is exactly why we have to stay focus.”
ever since theo had made the proposition that the gift was held within you, mattheo had made it clear that everyone had to do everything they could to figure you out—which was kind of hard when theo was the only one who could talk to you without it being weird.
so at that moment, everyone else was staking it out.
“you think it’s her?”
blaise doesn’t answer for awhile and enzo thinks he doesn’t hear him at first until blaise lifts his head, sighing, and putting the paper down, “i hope so—for us and theodore’s sake.”
because if theodore was wrong, it’d be the end for him.
°•
“curiosity kills, you know that, right?”
“and i should be afraid?”
“maybe,” you shrugged, now leaning against one of the large rooted trees that bordered the forbidden forest, staring to theo who kept a good distance with his hands shoved in his dress pants pockets. “especially if you find out things you don’t exactly intend to find out.”
you simply shrug again, but he can tell there’s more meaning behind your words than you act. a ghost of a smirk curves on his lips as he tips back on his feet, watching you.
you look so innocent and small planted against the tree and it makes his stomach bubble up, “really?”
you hum, “but i have a feeling you don’t care.”
“why would i?” he strolls toward you now, his curiosity placed in the core of his eye, it makes you bite back a smile.
he now stood close enough with the points of his shoes almost stepping over yours, teasing a step closer, teasing his body to be put against yours.
“answer the question.”
“i don’t think i need to.”
he laughs sarcastically, his head thrown to look at his feet as he lightly kicks at the dirt before looking back up at you. he was nervous, you couldn’t tell, but theo felt it in his heart that this whole thing could go wrong if you were speaking on what he thought you were speaking on.
he prayed you just loved a good chase and were just fucking with his head.
“you’re a strange girl.”
“you’re the one who followed me out here,” you tipped back and forth on your feet, “i’d say you’re the strange one, theo.”
“maybe, i just wanted to see your pretty face.”
you scoffed, “liar.”
he raised a brow, “you’re so pretty, i wish i never said anything,” he examines your face closely, as if really looking at it this time; for a last time. his hand reaches out and is gentle and seems to be barely there as he runs it down the side of your face. “it’s a fucking shame.”
you couldn’t tell if he was sincere about whatever it was he was talking about—but it seemed so by how distraught his demeanor seemed to suddenly turn.
“what’d you say, theo,” you were calm, confused on what he was on about.
his eyes flick to yours, and he leans, meeting his lips with yours for a just a second, wanting to savor you for just a second before you’d be tainted, “you have a gift.”
promised to someone, part one. theodore nott x reader
summary : in which reader and theodore nott are promised to a marriage at birth that neither were aware of
warning/s ⛓: swearing
slater’s note : forgot to write here.
promised at birth.
you had never thought of marriage like the normal teenage girl. you didn’t look forward to it, you practically dreaded the thought of spending the rest of your life with one person.
but you were still promised at birth to a boy you had never met till now.
“they tell me you’re a disciple of the dark lord.”
“aren’t we all?”
“not like you,” you said it so fast to the point that it sounded intentionally harmful and poisonous, but you didn’t know any better and were only projecting hate for your parents to the boy before you. “they say that the dark lord had made a pursuit just for you.”
he glanced down to his lap, his tongue poking the inside of his cheek as your words sunk in and reminded him of the past month of his life—the worst month of his life where he had been doing exactly that—a pursuit.
“he sees something in you,” you say after he says nothing, not looking at you but now sulking.
“it’s not as glorious as it seems.”
“i wouldn’t disagree…” you look at him a little better now, realizing a little better that he’s in the same boat just as you are. he has had no control in your life just as you. his parents have picked and chose for him just like yours. “you’re scared, then?”
“you’re not?”
your eyes crinkle in the corner as you weren’t expecting that question, “no.”
he doesn’t believe you.
“you realize what’s happening tonight, don’t you?” you don’t answer, staring at him with a frown the clues him that you didn’t understand his question, “they’re bounding us. they’re making you take the unbreakable spell to ensure you’ll stay by my side—we’re being bound for life.”
“i don’t believe you.”
he scoffed, shaking his head, “out of all things they told you, they didn’t care to mention that?” theo thinks of his father how he was sitting in the other probably getting his rocks off that his very own son was finally fulfilling his potential.
god, he thought, this will kill him.
he could barely stand his own thoughts recently, how could you? everything he thought about was in correlation to the dark lord and from what he learned about you—you had no relation to the dark lord or anything aside from your parents.
you were untouched, innocent, and therefore desirable and your parents were giving it up to theo as well as the dark lords hands—and you could do nothing.
“why would i lie to you?”
“you don’t know me. why would they..?”
the door opens, and one of your families servants pops his head through the crack of the door, “your parents would like to see you now.”
you look to theo who has tired eyes and a dead expression while he stares up to the man before looking to the window. he dreams of leaving, of going back to hogwarts but for his own will and wishes, not for some scheme. nothing was fun anymore. he hated being around his friends and he misses when times were better and the only thing he had to worry about was his grades and draco’s snarky attitude.
you looked back to the servant, nodding your head and dismissing him. his absence made you move forward on your knees, closer to him, whispering in fear that anyone but him would hear you, “what makes them so sure i won’t say a word?”
“because you’ll die if you don’t,” he got to his feet, “the concept of the unbreakable vow binds our souls together—everything i know, you know. everything that is in my head will now soon be in yours. you won’t think, feel, or breathe the same again.”
**
“join hands.”
you looked up to theo, almost questioning if this was right, but he didn’t show any emotion nor did he look at you. his hand arm raised for yours and you hesitantly took it, gripping his forearm like you did his.
“good,” theo’s father nodded, now raising his wand and touching your joined arms, a look of electricity wounding its way slowly up both your arms.
you stared at it, slightly out of breath from the reality of it all being true.
“now,” theo’s father nodded to you, “do you promise to keep theodore’s secrets as your own, to not shed light to them, even to the closest of friends or trusted family?”
you looked up and between your parents before to theo who still stared at the wire of light swooning around both your left arms, “i do.”
“do you promise to be honest with theodore when a threat is passed your way involving him and or the order?”
“i do.”
“do you promise to accept theodore and all he has done. to offer him faith, and trust, and patience?”
his eyes connect with yours fast, almost wanting yo let go of your hand as if this promise was finally crossing lines above the others. your eyes lingered with his for a bit, narrowing but you still mumbled, “yes.”
“do you promise to take responsibility-“
“no,” his voice interrupted his own fathers fast, an immediate regret filing in on his face, “she is not responsible for the things i have done-“
“theodore, mind yourself,” you close your eyes at the sharp tone of the man, your chest tightening and squeezing your heart in despair. “do you promise, miss y/l/n, to take responsibility for his actions as he does—like your own?”
“i do.”
he looks up at you fast, almost looking betrayed.
“that concludes it,” the man nodded, no emotion on his face, “we’ll talk about the marriage later.”
“you have to be mindless.”
the moment your living room was cleared he didn’t hesitate to raise his voice. it made you frown, confused to his reaction.
“this is what you wanted?”
“never.”
“what could i have done? you said it yourself, i’d be dead-“
“there still would have been time to get you out of this, you weren’t trapped yet,” you were confused to his frustration and why he suddenly cared so much as he was confused to the way you had so easily accepted this. he couldn’t even begin to process how you even accepted this to be your fate with a stranger. there was time for you, you could have wiggled your way out of it.
Draco was excited for his friends to come over. Despite seeing them throughout the whole semester at Hogwarts, Draco was still looking forward to spending countless summer days with them. Hearing the door open, Draco zoomed down the stairs as he heard three distinct voices. “Guys!” he cheered as he saw his friends’ faces light up with a smile. Because both Narcissa and Lucius were gone, the four children were free to roam the manor and its gardens as they pleased. With the heat making it impossible to run around, the children decided to have a water fight. After persuading the elves to provide them with an unending supply of snacks and treats, the four children began chasing each other about the gardens, spraying water in each other’s faces. “Come and get me, Blaise!” Pansy yelled before shrieking as Blaise sprayed water all over her causing the young girl to laugh loudly. Draco was currently hiding behind one of the bushes, preparing to ambush Theo who was standing around, looking to find his next target. Just as Draco was about to shoot, he heard the car door close and realised his parents must have been home now. Standing up in excitement, Draco failed to notice Theo’s smirk as the young boy soaked him.
Because he didn’t want to be soaking like his son, Lucius instantly held both palms up in surrender when he approached the gardens. “Woah, Woah! I’m the good guy!” Lucius warned playfully, wiggling his eyebrows at the young children. “Hi, Mr Malfoy” Pansy smiled before directing her attention to Mrs Malfoy who was still standing by the car. It was then that Draco remembered where his parents had just come from. “Wait!” your brother cried. “Is she really here?” he smiled, looking up at his father. Lucius simply nodded as he looked in his wife’s direction and saw you come out of the car. It had been a while since Draco’s friends had seen you, especially with you being in Beauxbatons, France during the school semesters. “Is who here?” Blaise asked, looking back and forth between Draco and Lucius finding himself growing more curious. “My sister, duh! Who else?” Draco smiled as he dropped the water toys and ran straight towards the car in your direction.
When Pansy saw you step out of the car, she didn’t need much persuasion to follow Draco and run over towards you. Growing up as an only child, Pansy found herself looking up to you as a big sister. The young girl adored spending time with you, which was tough given how infrequently she saw you. Even though she was Draco’s friend, she would constantly come to the manor to see you. Just you. “Wait for us!” Theo called out as he and Blaise headed over to follow their friends. Seeing your brother run towards you, with his friends closely behind, you couldn’t help but smirk in delight at all the attention. Even though Draco was an irritating little brother that drove you crazy from time to time, you still loved him. “Wow, would you look at what we have here!” you teased, earning a subtle glare from your mother. You had only just arrived home and planned to annoy your brother relentlessly. “Hi, baby dragon,” you smiled as you hugged your brother before turning your attention to his friends. Noticing Pansy’s huge smile, you quickly offered the girl a hug, which she happily reciprocated with glee. You loved spending time with Pansy. She was nothing but adorable. A little bit of a tomboy, but sweet nonetheless.
Theo couldn’t help but grin in enjoyment as Draco’s childhood nickname was mentioned. “Baby dragon?” he asked, folding his arms and looking at Draco, mocking him. “Shut up, Theo” Draco grumbled before being interrupted by his mother. “Now, now Draco. That’s not kind,” she scolded him before joining her husband in the gardens. As Narcissa made her way toward Lucius, she was shocked when he started to drench her in water, causing Narcissa to shriek at how cold the water was. “Ah! Lucius- you little!”, she started before chasing her husband around the gardens attempting to soak him back. Laughing loudly at the sight of your parents’ actions, you very quickly chased after them assisting your mother in seeking her revenge. It wasn’t long before the remaining children followed suit and started to drench Lucius in water causing the grown man to pout. “Alright! Alright! I surrender! Ah- Y/N! How dare you turn your back on me? What happened to you being Daddy’s girl, huh?” Lucius mocked, causing you to roll your eyes at him. “You should have thought about that before you soaked Mum!” you retorted, sticking your tongue out at your father causing Lucius to fake his hurt expression.
“See, Lu. I told you,” Narcissa smirked. “I’m Y/N’s favourite!” she smiled before wrapping her arm around you and hugging you. Hugging your mother, you couldn’t help but smile. You truly had missed your family, especially this semester. So it was wonderful knowing how easy it was for you to slip back into the groove of things. Noticing your father’s pout, you pulled away from your mother to hug him before kissing him softly on the cheek causing his frown to turn upside down and showcase a smile once more. “You’re both my favourites,” you emphasised.
“But she loves me more!” Draco interrupted. “Nuh-uh! Y/N loves me more!” Pansy repeated, mocking the younger blonde boy. “What? You’re not even her real sister! Besides, we all know Y/N loves us more! We are her favourite boys!”, Theo argued before nodding towards Blaise who smiled in agreement. “Yeah! We’re much less annoying-”, Blaise started before shrieking when the cold water made contact with his back. Turning around and catching you standing there, one hand on your hip as you giggled at his reaction, you very quickly ran away when you realised you were in for it. As the younger children chased you around the garden, your parents couldn’t help but laugh at how quickly you surrendered once they caught up to you.
“Alright, alright! Hey! Okay! I love you all very much! Quit it, Draco!”, you begged before pulling your brother down onto the grass by his ankles. Once Draco was down for the count, you very quickly ran away from the rest of the children before making a spontaneous decision. Clearly, they weren’t looking to stop the water fight anytime soon, not unless they were deemed victorious. Noticing that mischievous look in your eyes, Narcissa very quickly warned you against whatever you were thinking. “Y/N Narcissa Malfoy. Don’t you dare-” she started, but it was too late.
Jumping into the pool, the four children looked at you in shock. They knew you were a risk-taker but this was crazy! “Your sister is so cool!” Pansy mumbled to Draco who simply nodded his head as he was still stunned by your actions. That was the thing Draco loved about you. You were the brave one. The one person in his life he could always rely on. No matter what. “Ha! Ha! I won!” you cheered knowing there was no way they would copy you. You thought wrong! Quickly swimming out of the way, all four children floated up laughing at how cool the water in the pool felt. “Ha! Ha! Now we won too!” Pansy smiled as she swam towards you and hugged you once more. You hurriedly got out of the pool after noticing your father chuckling in the background as he went into the manor and dried yourself off with one of the towels nearby. “Y/N!” Narcissa scolded, even though you could tell she was being playful. As you spent the rest of the evening with your little brother and his friends, smiling as they told you stories of their time at Hogwarts before they insisted on hearing about your time at Beauxbatons instead.
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“Pick you?” Theodore asked, slightly surprised. “Didn’t you say you worked so hard to be noticed?” Albus nodded. “So, I would think it was youwho picked me, sweet boy.”
If you want to download illustrations, see my new art before the rest of the world, see exclusive nsfw art and just support me, join me on Patreon, link in bio
My heart feeling happy and fulfilled - all my babies are here, ALL of them (look better on the background) ♥️ [but can I also say, look at Draco’s strong jaw line and his broody look! I’m dead]
Happy Birthday to the marvelous @persephonestone. Please accept this smol, jewel-like NottPott set in the pure, solid gold of @annavek94’s incredible art. xoxo ~SM
“So what really happened back there?” Theo’s voice cut through the weed-laced rabbit hole Harry seemed to have slipped down.
Harry scrubbed a hand over his face. “I guess…Sometimes I just get really tired of it?”
Theo nodded.
“It’s like. I get all this attention for something I did when I was a kid, but it’s not really me. It’s not anything I want.” Harry closed his eyes. “I’d give anything to blend in sometimes. And tonight just the thought of getting up there on that stage. Smiling for everyone. I couldn’t do it.” He sighed hugely. Part of him felt like he’d let the entire senior class down.
“It’s not the end of the world.” Theo nudged his shoulder to Harry’s, seemingly reading his mind.
“No, you’re right.” Harry rolled his head over to look at Theo. “You’re right. I just feel an obligation sometimes.”
“To your public?”
Harry snorted. “No.”
“Look. Just, tell everyone you shot too much Jäeger beforehand and felt sick or something. That way your rep stays intact.” Theo waved a lazy hand in the air and Harry started laughing—laughing in a way that let him know he was really high and may not stop laughing anytime soon.
It felt good.
“Like I care about my rep,” he finally gasped.
“No? Captain Wholesome lacrosse champion? Most popular boy in school? Would-be Prom King?”
“No,” Harry nudged Theo back. “No. I’m telling you I don’t care about that. And why do you keep bringing up lacrosse?”
“I enjoy the game.”
“You do not.”
“All right, I enjoy the players.” Theo raised a brow and Harry started laughing again.
“Truth comes out. Is that why you’re always waiting for Draco after practice?”
“Maybe.” Theo smirked. “You don’t seem bothered.”
“I’m not.” Harry stilled and kept Theo’s gaze. Theo pulled the joint and lighter out of his pocket, lit the joint again and took a light drag.
“What is it about you, Potter?” He squinted at Harry as he exhaled. “Other than my weakness for varsity athletes?”
Yaaaaassss!!!
Please people, go and read this fic, because your heart needs a little bit of NottPott, we know that much! I take the chance to wish a happy birthday to @persephonestone who I don’t even know (but it doesn’t really matter, the best of wishes all the same), but thanks to I got to collaborate with @scullymurphy on this piece. I have loved every minute of our interactions and how the artwork was specifically shaped around your fic “Prom Kings”, which I adored. Well done and happy days
One cannot simply describe how one feels about Theodore Nott.
The interesting phenomena that is Theo Nott, is that the roundness of his character is predominately created from the collective minds of fandom. Canonically, Theo was a background wallflower - I think I saw somewhere that there were a cumulative of 2 canon lines on him. And yet, this colourful character profile has been created.
There are lots of different archetypes of him that can be found throughout FF: there’s the evil psychopath, the master manipulator, the hopeless romantic, the spiritual seer, the lost soul.
I could go on.
Regardless of the role Theo plays in the story, there is one fact that remains true, no matter the hat he wears:
The Mercutio Effect.
In particular with the Dramione fandom, Theo is generally the kinsmen of Draco: he’s the confidante, the constant, the trusted. He’s the comedic companion to Draco’s snark, the quick wit and the intelligence. He’s the dashing rogue who stands next to the prince, making him a mysterious fan favourite - no matter the archetype he is playing. But because he is generally so enigmatic, the idea of seeing him in his own storyline and character arc is rather seductive.
One does not simply ship Theo with another
As is generally the way with FF, we see the characters develop through romance - because that’s what we love to read. Be it if he is the antagonist, protagonist, or the anti-hero, Theo and his wardrobe of many-coloured hats and Mercutio-persona, means that he is perfect for being the cause of either the creation or destruction of love.
Theo is a tragedy - both Greek and Shakespearean.
So to ship Theo is to wonder how this cryptic character profile would react to a more substantially constructed character profile.
LoveNott - Take two mysteriously defined characters - one canonically, the other fanon, and see what happens. Generally, this ship is so wholesome, making Theo’s character arc curve so nicely around Luna’s purity, that regardless of whether the fic is a fluff-fest or straight-up porn, it hits in the feels.
NottPott - Unstoppable force meets an immovable object - and depending on the day, circumstance, scene, weather, star alignment will show which character takes what role. While there is so much room for wholesome content, the scope for meaty character dev with these two opposing forces - Tybalt meets Mercutio - is supreme amongst all Nott ships.
The Three-tied Nott - That’s the thing with Theo being Mercutio - if you place him in a triad with Dramione, he’s the perfect counterpart to Draco and Hermione’s pride and prejudice, star crossed lovers routine. He can both burn with pride and freeze with prejudice, and can either make or break the balance of the three.
There are so many more but for time’s sake I’ll move on.
One does not simply have a buddy-cop movie with Theodore Nott
For the same reason as all the above, Theodore can work as the perfect counterpart to almost anyone. I would go so far as to argue that even a fic with a friendship between Albus Dumbledore and Theo would be as fascinating as it would be hilarious. No matter who he is paired with, his base character profile is malleable enough to compliment anyone.
That being said, my own personal preference is Theo and Pansy.
One does not simply have an unpopular opinion about Theo
And this is because his character is so laden in fanon, that for every person that disagrees with you, you’ll find someone who not only enthusiastically supports your premise but can also point you to three fics that develop it into a full blown plot.
However, I did have a few side-eyes when I cast Theo as a blonde, even so far as people feeling the need to correct me in saying that Theo is dark-haired.
Which as we can see across fandom, the colour of his hair and eyes is as up for debate as the rest of his archetypes.
One does not simply look to the future - not where Theo is concerned
And this is due to the fact that the fanon construct of Theo is now so richly embedded with his familial relationships and how that could have affected him. He is the silent Death Eater. Where Harry had Neville, Draco had Theo.
So like every other one of the Snakes, I would have hoped to have seen more of him - for there to have been more than two lines; for there to have been a character arc (and redemption, but that might be too much to ask).
However, what we do have is this incredibly rich tapestry of fanon Theo. And for him, I want him to thrive. I want to see the character development, how he deals with his past and how that shapes his actions. I want to see his character define those around him and not him be defined by those he shares the stage with.
I want to see him move away from Mercutio and become Ariel.
Any more characters you’d like me to do?
And through minds like yours, HE LIVES AND BREATHES, much to my heart’s happiness
