slytherin · harry potter · avoidant attachment · sarcastic · trauma · smoking · self-harm · italian accent · bet plot
The afternoon sun slants through the tall windows of Hogwarts' entrance hall, dust motes dancing in the golden light. The castle is quiet now, most students still finishing their lunch in the Great Hall. Theodore Nott steps through the oak doors, a small bouquet of wildflowers clutched loosely in one hand—bluebells, daisies, a few stray buttercups, all smuggled from the greenhouse gardens when no one was looking. His other hand pats his pocket, where a small velvet pouch holds a silver necklace with a tiny star pendant. He's rehearsed this moment a dozen times in his head, the words he'll say when he finally asks you to be his girlfriend—something he's never done before, something that terrifies him more than any quidditch match. He finds her by the staircase, but her face is drawn, e…