𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋; t.nott

xi. soggy biscuit

011, soggy biscuit
real life

first year

theo's father hadn't bothered to see him off at the station — not that he expected anything different. so, there he was, stuck with the malfoys. draco was fretting over whether his hair gel had made it into his trunk, while lucius droned on about the importance of befriending the boy who lived.

and that's when he saw her.

her parents crouched in front of her, murmuring things like, "it'll go by so fast" and "you're going to have so much fun!" but she just stood there, clutching onto a writhing puppy, tears streaming down her cheeks as she sobbed. her brother was in the background, rolling his eyes, clearly used to her theatrics, laughing a bit as he mimicked her crying. theo figured she was a first year, just like him.

she kept glancing up at her parents like she didn't want to let go. she'd miss home, he realized, even before the train had left. he'd never felt like that himself — he was almost relieved to leave his house behind — but something about how much she cared made him want to give her his chocolate frog or something, not that he would've actually done it, even at eleven, he wasn't that brave. but hey! it's the thought that counts!

the next time he saw her, it was just before sorting, outside the great hall. she still had her puppy and those tear-filled blue eyes, standing next to a girl with pumpkin earrings who was rambling about magical creatures with the kind of enthusiasm usually reserved for birthday parties. she was half-listening, nodding along with a look of wide-eyed concern, like nargles were the worst thing she'd heard of all day.

theo had watched the sorting with mild interest, straining to catch her name. but right as her turn came up, draco piped up about how harry potter had the personality of a soggy biscuit, and theo completely missed it. he figured he'd have to settle for 'girl with the puppy' for the foreseeable future.

by their first potions class, theo had started to figure out that potions was going to be... not his strongest suit. it didn't help that she was in his class, right up in the front, always squirming in her seat with her hand in the air, practically begging snape to call on her. she'd answer everything with this excited spark in her eye, like she thought it was actually fun.

sometimes she'd get it right, and other times she'd completely miss the point, and then snape would make one of those snarky comments he was so good at, and she'd just sit there, all red-faced and embarrassed. theo had managed to learn her name, mostly by overhearing it in the halls. ivelle diggory sounded so... proper.

third year

for their first ever trip to hogsmeade, she'd shown up bundled in scarves that seemed to swallow her whole, her cheeks pink from the cold, traipsing around with some muggle-born slytherin. kairi liu — theo had learned later as blaise droned on about how the boy had bested him at divination.

theo couldn't stand the bloke (something about him just bugged him, alright?). but there she'd be, laughing at whatever stupid thing kairi said, and theo would catch himself staring like an eejit, feeling a warmth that had nothing to do with the butterbeer in his hands.

fifth year

then came the triwizard tournament, and it was impossible not to notice her. her face had scrunched up like she was trying not to cry when her brother had been picked by the goblet, but it was written all over her — the nervous tapping of her fingers on the edge of the table, the way she kept glancing at cedric like she was expecting him to... combust, or something.

she'd shown up to every task, wrapped up in mufflers like she was facing arctic winds, looking more miserable each time. it was too much, honestly, but endearing all the same. she cared in this loud, dramatic way he couldn't quite wrap his head around, like the world would collapse if cedric so much as scraped his knee.

and then came the yule ball. she'd shown up with kairi — of course — but this time she looked... well, less like a lost puppy and more like someone who had finally figured out how to strut. and every time she laughed at something kairi said, it felt like a punch to theo's gut. it wasn't fair, liu wasn't even that funny; yet here theo was, feeling inexplicably annoyed by the sight of them together.

kairi never made it onto the slytherin quidditch team, and only merlin knew who was to blame for it, because it sure wasn't the lack of skill.

sixth year

another year rolled past and they were still in the same potions class, which was a double-edged sword. theo was scraping, with his dad up his arse about becoming worthy enough of being deemed a nott. so when snape had suggested ivelle tutor him, he'd rolled his eyes, pretending to be sour about it. deep down, though, he figured it could be worse — if he had to struggle through potions, he might as well do it with her.

but love? please. that was far too dramatic for him. he just thought she was interesting. or at least, that's what he told himself. because if he acknowledged that he might actually like her, he'd have to confront all sorts of messy feelings he wasn't equipped to deal with. so he kept it simple: curiosity, admiration — but definitely not love, never love. at least, that's what he thought until he found himself counting down the days until their next potions class.

author's note
drop your favourite harry potter movie ‼️