Regency in Diagon Alley [Theodore Nott | Harry Potter AU]

Chapter Two

The castle's hall was already packed with families of witches and wizards: members of the Sacred 28, those who have fallen from the title of blood purity, families that grew due to wealth and were high enough to meet the standards to be part of the magical hierarchy, and the sponsored few which consists of Muggleborns. The magical world's division cannot be anymore clearer than what was seen at the hall, at one corner stood the blood purist families, avoiding mixing with the families below their ranks and those who associate with magical blood. But that was not all, in terms of fashion, Muggles and the Magical folk could easily be distinguished from one another.

With most of the Muggles attending because of their magical children coming from the working-class, their robes were more modest, earth-toned, and practical. Others were able to manage a passable looking coat while others wore the best that they could offer – one even came in wearing their valet's uniform but for the wig. The women were far more creative with their dresses, having sewn the dresses they wore and fixing their hair to be more presentable. But there were those who came from prestigious Muggle families, a couple of Barons and Baronesses, a Viscount, Lairds, and others were owners of their enterprise. Those families wore the latest fashion in London, Edinburgh, Dublin, or Cardiff and would often make the mistake to approach the lot of pureblooded wizards conversing due to the image of fancy clothes, and possible powerful connections.

The witches and wizards were different on them. Wizards wearing long robes made from the hinds of a kneazle, the fleece of a golden goat, fabric woven a magical sheepskin, then there were few who wore salamander skins or dragon skins. Dragon Tamers. Only they get to wear those kinds of coats. Others wore breeches, and jerkins (those would confuse some of the Muggles). Witches on the other hand were more creative than their counterparts, long and sometimes bazar dresses, some would be close to Muggle fashion but there would always be something that would scream "magic" when looking at them, such as the design, the oddness of the shape, the color, or the design looked a bit too old... more mid-eighteenth century. But one thing's for sure, for pureblood families, their fashion would never be complete without their family symbol. Coats of arms that they wore as shields and ways to announce themselves.

From simple letters, such as the Malfoys only having a monogram of the first letter of the family name; to symbols, such as a flower for the Greengrasses or a Rose for the Roseirs; others took the personifications of magical or non-magical beasts, like the Lestranges who had a crow for a family symbol; then there were those who took a more symbolic approach like the Blacks, a coat of arms with the skull biting a wand over three crows mid-flight, and family motto placed on the banner over the coat of arms: Tourjours Pur. Always Pure... and the Nott family.

An image imprinted into Carina's very subconscious having seen the image of a falcon mid-flight swiping a snake that was about to bite as a brooch that Theodore Nott always wore above his Hogwarts and Slytherin House pins for the past seven years they have known each other in school. Though it was expected that the image should have faded after almost two years of no longer seeing it, it still sits at the back of her mind, reminding her of the boy with perfectly cut, black hair, tan skin for someone living up north, lips always smirking but would show a genuine smile for a fair few, deep brown eyes that would remind her of a deep abyss, and the scent of old books and sweets...

Oddly, the scent of sweets was strong in the hall they all gathered in.

"—Carina?"

Carina jumped from her reverie of the boy and saw her uncle looking at her with an expectant gaze that was slowly turning to worry.

"I'm sorry," Carina shook her head to rid the image of Theodore Nott, but she could only do so much like how the scent of smoke lingers even when the fire was gone. "I was distracted by the..." she looked around to find something that could be a good excuse. And there was, a good excuse. "The statue," she pointed to the piece at the middle of the hall, serving as a rotunda or a conversation piece. "It's quite beautiful, I have seen it for three times now, but I can't help but admire it."