PART OF HER WOULD ALWAYS hold a slight grudge to the way Theodore Nott had hurt Ophelia throughout her first few years at Hogwarts, but after that night, after Slughorn's party, Ophelia decided that she would let it go.

Seeing a little part of her childhood had made her realize how much she had been holding onto it, and how much she needed to let go of the past and grow up.

People change, and it was time for Ophelia to change too.

The Malfoy heiress had come to the conclusion that Theodore and her had both changed and weren't the same people anymore. She had let down her guard around him, and decided that if he hurt her any more, she would deal with it maturely.

All this time, whenever Theodore had hurt her, she had made excuses for him, and ended up wasting half of her nights crying because she couldn't help but feel the betrayal of her former childhood friend.

But she had come to understand that her Theo was gone. He had been gone ever since he came to Hogwarts, and he had grown up and left Ophelia in their little happy childhood fantasy.

But now she had let it all go, the little pretend castles and picnics in the treehouse, the locked up princess in the tower... the dragon, the knight... 

All gone. 

It was all locked up in a little corner of Ophelia's mind.

Never to be lived again, but just to be remembered. And when Ophelia would grow up, she would open the little treasure chest of memories and bestow them upon her children, so they could go on all the adventures she had as a little girl.

And Ophelia desperately hoped and wished with all her heart that they would never grow up.

The train ride back home was spent in almost complete silence. Draco and Ophelia sat beside each other, and opposite them sat Blaise and Theo.

Theodore would be staying over at Malfoy Manor, as Narcissa had agreed with enthusiasm in her letter to Draco and Ophelia, and Blaise was welcome to visit any time.

As soon as Ophelia set foot into her home, she could feel the presence of the dark lord all around her. The shadow of death and misery hung above the manor like a dark cloud bringing not rain, but storms of icy winds and hail, determined to let everyone drown in their floods of demise.

Her fingertips twitched, able to sense the dark magic that reeked through the air.

But all the darkness that loomed over the manor suddenly vanished when Narcissa came into view. She was smiling, her blue eyes watering at the sight of Draco, Ophelia and Theodore, the boy whom she considered a son to her.

"Oh, how much you've grown," she hugged Theo first, tightly, and Ophelia could see his arms wound around her, shaking slightly. His eyes were closed, nose buried into Narcissa's shoulder, and Ophelia had a quick flashback of how much he clung to Narcissa when Selene died.

Draco was next. From her mother's face, Ophelia could instantly tell that Narcissa was holding back her tears. She was trying to be strong. But Ophelia knew that if Lucius was here, Narcissa would be sobbing on Draco's shoulder and let Lucius be the strong one.

She took a step back, deciding she would greet her mother later.

"Let's give them a moment," she told Theo, her hand reaching for her suitcase that Draco had been carrying for her.

"Let me," Theodore offered, his fingers brushing against hers accidentally, the slight touch of his frigid rings against her warm knuckles sending a shiver down her back, causing her to quickly retract her arm and flush slightly, tilting her head to the side so he wouldn't see her pink cheeks.

"Thank you," she smiled slightly, pointing her thumb in the direction of the stairs. "It's this way..."

A laugh rumbled out from Theodore's throat and he followed her. "Lia, I know. It's not my first time here, remember?"

The blonde's blush got darker, and she silently cursed the genes from her mother that made her blush so easily.

At last, Ophelia led Theo to the door of the room he would be staying in, just down the corridor from her own room, and right next to Draco's.

"You'll be staying here," she told him. "I hope the room is to your liking... Unless you'd like to change it, I can show you one of the other guest rooms—"

"It's perfect," Theo smiled at her. Ophelia nearly had a heart attack. She could see the slight dimples in his cheek, that little beauty spot above his lip that she had never noticed before... His perfectly shaped teeth...

Oh God! He's never smiled at me like that before.

The blonde's blush only darkened, and in another attempt to hide it, she muttered a quick excuse and took brisk steps to her own room, her heart beating and fluttering like never before.

Theo had never had that effect on her before.

Maybe Ophelia had been so focused on hating him that she had forgotten how handsome he was. 

Perhaps now she was no longer immune to his charms.

The thought filled her with dread, yet caused a sudden jolt of excitement when she remembered how her heart had fluttered when their hands touched after they had both reached for the suitcase.

Taking a long bath, and changing into a fresh pair of more comfortable clothes, Ophelia found Narcissa all alone in the kitchen, drinking lavender tea.

"Hi Mummy," she greeted, slowly pulling up a chair and coming to sit next to her mother. "How are you doing?"

"I miss your father," the older blonde sighed, hugging the cup of tea between her two small hands like it were her only salvation from her demise.

"Me too," Ophelia sympathized, her arm coming to wrap around her mother's shoulders. "It doesn't feel like home without him."

And she was right. It did not feel like home anymore. 

But Ophelia vowed that she would try to help Draco and Narcissa have a Christmas they would remember, even though it wouldn't be a happy one. 

Because with Draco having his own troubles to deal with, the responsibility fell on her to make sure her family was happy. She was to take care of her family. She was strong enough.

She was the glue that held everyone together.

That night, she taught Draco, Narcissa and Theo how to play Uno. Although it took time for them to understand the game, Ophelia could easily tell that they enjoyed it. Their smiles were rare, but still there, and they never actually got to finish a full game without someone questioning what to do, or making the wrong move, and it was extremely late when they decided to try playing again another night.

Two nights later, there were loud laughs coming from Draco's room, where they all sat on the black carpeted floor and played Uno, everyone trying to make Ophelia lose by ganging up against her.

"Just because I've played longer, it doesn't mean I'm better," she defended herself, yet again, picking up two more cards from the draw pile.

"Hah! Says the girl who has won all four games in a row," Draco scoffed. "Make her pick, Nott. More, two isn't enough!"

"Mummy, it's not fair," Ophelia whined, scowling at Draco and kicking him with her foot, accidentally knocking out all his cards from his hands and causing them to spill all over the carpet. "You guys are all ganging up on me!"

When Blaise came over, he got the hang of the game pretty quickly, and soon, everyone turned to gang up against him and Ophelia, until the pair decided to gang up and form an unbeatable team.

"Where'd you learn this game?" Theodore had asked her, after the first few days of being introduced to Uno.

"It's a muggle game," Ophelia replied quietly, waiting for everyone to throw their judgmental glares and remarks her way.

But no one did.

"From Creevey?" Theodore inquired quietly, just loud enough for her to hear.

"Yeah."

Narcissa had managed to get Blaise to stay for the rest of the holidays, and the four teenagers were a force of chaos in the house, adding liveliness and festivity to the otherwise silent, dying manor.

But they only stayed in the top two floors of the manor. Thankfully, none of the death eaters had enough patience to climb up five flights of stairs, so Ophelia, Draco, Blaise and Theodore stayed in the top two floors of the manor, which were large enough for them not to miss the rest of the house. 

There was a small kitchen in the topmost floor, designed so one would not have to go all the way downstairs to have a midnight snack, and the floor right underneath, the fifth floor contained a library, a living room, and the rest were guest bedrooms. The master bedroom and two nurseries took up the rest of the top floor, the sixth floor.

There was more than enough space for them to roam the halls without feeling constricted. They would order their house elves to bring them whatever they needed and it was completely unnecessary for any of them to ever leave the top two floors.

Ophelia left sometimes, to help Narcissa in the kitchen and give her company.

Draco also had to leave sometimes, if there was a death eater meeting in the dungeons and his presence was required.

The other death eaters resided in the Lestrange Chateau and the Dark Lord stayed at the Malfoy Manor dungeons, where the meetings were held.

Bellatrix had thankfully stopped interfering in Narcissa's life, much to everyone's relief. Narcissa looked much healthier than she did in the summer, and Ophelia knew, that Narcissa would make it through all of this.

Narcissa would spend her evenings with the children. They provided her with a distraction. They would play Uno and she would sit in the rocking chair with a cup of tea and knit.

"Ophelia, let me teach you how to knit," Narcissa suggested one evening, when Ophelia was sitting on the only pink couch amongst the rest of the white ones in the upstairs living room. She had begged Lucius for it when she was younger, refusing to sit in anything that wasn't pink. Over the years, it had become her couch. She lay across it, her head leant up against the armchair, reading Anthony and Cleopatra for the millionth time.

Draco sniggered. "Yeah, why don't you go learn how to knit?" he teased.

"Shut up," she snarled, scowling at him, before turning to face Narcissa. "Mummy, I'm reading."

"You've read that book enough times for me to tire of it. Come here," she patted the space next to her.

Ophelia couldn't say no to Narcissa. Not during times like these. Sitting up from her very comfortable position, she forced one foot before the other to sit next to her mother.

Draco was trying so hard to hide his laugh. "Go on, Grandma," he snorted, causing the other two boys to snicker loudly.

"But Mummy, knitting is for old people!" Ophelia finally whined at Draco's comment, folding her arms crossly.

Theodore burst out laughing, only stopping when Ophelia sent him a murderous glare.

"Oh, hush! Look here," Narcissa showed Ophelia how to handle the wool, but Ophelia did not look very interested. "Here, now it's pink," Narcissa had transfigured the color of the wool to Ophelia's favorite shade of pink, and the blonde suddenly took great interest in watching how the pretty patterns formed when her mother moved her fingers around the needles.

"Now you try," Narcissa game Ophelia the needles. "Knit one, purl one. Knit one, purl one."

It took a great deal of time and patience, but she had gotten the hang of it, and though she would never admit it, she enjoyed it.

When she found a ball of wool in a pretty shade of crimson, Ophelia decided that she would begin to knit a scarf for Colin, since she hadn't bought him a present yet.

Draco had decided to stop worrying about his mission for the holidays and just have fun, after much convincing from Ophelia, and when they weren't all playing Uno together, he and his best friends would just hang out in the living room and talk about random things while Ophelia knitted.

Most of the time, they would talk about her. Scratch that. They would make fun of her for knitting.

"Hey, Ophelia," Draco would repeatedly call her name, whilst pulling her hair and tapping on her shoulder until she shouted a, "yes, what?"

"You missed a stitch," Theo would chime in, pointing to an empty gap in her knitted stitches.

"That's the fucking pattern!" Ophelia would scowl, while Blaise would just laugh.

Until it got too much.

When this happened for the fifteenth time, Ophelia lost her temper. She instantly jabbed one needle in Theo's direction, and the other in Draco's, causing both boys to simultaneously let out an "ow!" and rub the spot where she had poked them.

She resumed her knitting.

"You're such a brat," Draco muttered. 

"Only for you, sweet brother," Ophelia replied boredly, very focused on making sure she did not miss a stitch.

"Do you want to play Uno?" Theo asked her, sitting beside her.

"No."

"You've become boring ever since you learnt how to knit," Theo commented, before leaning in to whisper into her ear. "Like an old lady..."

The blonde's breath hitched. She accidentally missed a stitch, so completely distracted with the way his cologne had snatched the attention of all her senses, reminding her of that time when he had kissed her in the Astronomy tower for the first time. 

His breath, a velvet caress against her earlobe, ignited a wildfire in her veins. Her heart, a frantic hummingbird trapped in her chest, hammered against her ribs, yearning to burst free.

At that moment, Ophelia knew what it felt like to be like another ordinary Slytherin girl. He wasn't even trying and she was already flustered so much. Since when did he have her completely wrapped under his finger? Did he even realize the power he held?

But the Gryffindor would never act on these feelings. Trying to mask her flustered expression for anger, she instantly pushed him into the carpeted floor using all her strength, smacking him violently and repeatedly with the copy of Anthony and Cleopatra she had beside her, without thinking about the fact that this was her favorite book, the one she was always extra careful with.

"Don't. Call. Me. Old. Lady!" she screeched, stabbing him with the needles in her hand.

Theodore was crying out in pain, his cries mangled with breathless laughter as he clutched his stomach from laughing so hard.

Draco had to pull her away, and when she was too strong for him, Blaise had to help him completely pull her away from Theo, whom she was trying to kick.

Sure, this was an overreaction, a little overdramatic. It wasn't her. 

But she had intentionally reacted a little extra, trying to reject the effect that Theodore had on her by masking it with something else.

Two days later, Blaise was bored whilst Draco and Theo played exploding snap.

He too joined the dark side.

Ophelia had taught him how to knit.

When Christmas finally arrived, Narcissa had set up a small Christmas tree in the center of the living room, and the four teenagers decorated the place, the boys finding it funny to also attach a set of fairy lights behind Ophelia's hair so it glowed whenever she moved.

Pretending to hang said fairy lights around the tree, Ophelia secretly moved the long string around their feet, and when she pulled on it, all three boys lost balance and tumbled into a heap on the floor.

And when Christmas day finally arrived, Narcissa had prepared for them a comforting breakfast of all their favorite pastries and cakes. Ginger snaps, pumpkin pasties, cauldron cakes, sugar cookies and even cinnamon rolls, Ophelia's favorite.

And at that moment, it felt like a Christmas stolen from the past, before the rise of the Dark Lord, and all the teenagers were little children once more.

The presents were opened that night. 

"Mummy should open hers first," Draco decided, after they were all seated around the Christmas tree.

Narcissa opened hers first. From Draco, she had gotten a candle shaped like a white peacock, which made her instantly start tearing up because she remembered Lucius and how fond he was of their peacocks.

Ophelia had gifted Narcissa a magic teapot that always kept the tea hot, and Narcissa decided that she would keep it on her bedside.

When it was Draco's turn to open his presents, his eyes narrowed at Ophelia.

"You didn't get me a present?" he asked, when he did not see his name written on any of the ones wrapped in Ophelia's signature pink wrapping.

She shook her head, shrugging, trying to hide her smile. "Payback for not getting me presents for years."

Draco's jaw dropped. "Oh, come on! I'm sorry. I was young and stupid—"

"Well, you're not young anymore, but you're still stupid," Ophelia corrected him, causing Theo and Blaise both to high five her. "I'm kidding. I did get you a gift."

"Where is it?"

Ophelia then took out her wand, and said, "I summon thee, House Elf." 

At once, there was a sound that resembled a whiplash and a tiny creature appeared into view, wearing nothing but a pillowcase with holes for arms and legs.

"I got you a House Elf," Ophelia grinned proudly, pleased that she had managed to think of such a perfect gift. "Since you lost yours."

The smile on Draco's face was unmistakable. "Really? Oh, this is the best present ever!"

He tackled her into a hug that even Narcissa was surprised at, recalling that Draco was never one to show affection to his sister.

Draco named the elf Mipsy for reasons none of the others understood.

"Let's hope you don't set this one free out of anger," Ophelia teased. And before Draco could stop her, Ophelia told Blaise and Theo the story of how Draco had lost his temper and set his house elf free.

"Merlin, I was five," Draco. "I was young and stu—"

"You're still stupid," Blaise, Theo and Ophelia said at the same time, cutting him off.

"Mother, tell them to stop!"

Ophelia had gifted Blaise a fang earring, along with a gel that would change his hair color to match his outfit. 

He had instantly applied some on Draco's hair, completely slicking it back like the way he used to wear it when he was eleven and twelve.

Draco's hair was blue, and he didn't even realize because he was too busy giving his new house elf orders.

"Did you get me a present?" Theo asked Ophelia, holding up a box wrapped in her signature baby pink wrapping paper and white ribbon.

"Yeah, it's not much," Ophelia murmured shyly, trying not to let Theodore's sparkly blue eyes affect her.

Theodore tore the wrapping instantly, peering inside the box. "Oh God, she's perfect," he breathed, slowly picking up the black leather jacket that lay folded neatly in the box and instantly putting it on.

Ophelia hadn't expected him to like it so much. 

Neither did she expect him to look so irresistible in it.

Oh God, what have I done?

The leather stretched against his broad shoulders, the collar tickling the back of his messy hair, which had grown long enough to tickle the nape of his neck.  She could almost picture him leaning against the dungeon walls wearing the jacket, reeking of that awfully strong cologne, smoking.

How was she to resist his charms when he wore that? She had only made it harder for herself.

"I'm never taking it off," Theodore admired himself in the mirror. 

Sorry, not sorry?

That night, Ophelia was in her room, brushing her hair, while Little sorted out her clothes. Dressed in a pair of light pink satin pajama shorts and a matching camisole, she was wearing a white nightgown over her pajamas, the ribbon tied neatly around her slim waist, just managing to cover her shorts while she sat at the vanity doing her skin care.

Right before midnight, there was a knock at her door.

"Little, check who it is, please," the Gryffindor murmured, finishing her nightly routine with a spray of her perfume on her neck.

Little opened the door. "It's the Nott boy."

"Oh," Ophelia's cheeks turned pink, wondering why Theo wanted to see her. Perhaps there was an issue with his room... "You can leave," she told her elf, before standing up and walking over to the door.

"Is something wrong?" Ophelia asked softly. "With your room or anyth—"

"No," he interrupted her. "Everything's fine."

"Oh, then why—"

"I wanted to thank you," he cut her off again. "For the jacket."

"Oh, it's no problem," she murmured, her eyes leaving his for a fleeting instant, trailing downwards. She couldn't help but admire how the leather clung to his shoulders, accentuating every muscle and sinew. "Glad you liked it," she added, her voice a velvet invitation to secrets yet unspoken. 

"How did you know I'd like it?" Theodore inquired, his eyes unwavering, locked onto hers. 

Ophelia felt a tantalizing shiver trace her spine, the rough timbre of his voice sending electric ripples through her. She couldn't help but observe the subtle dance of his Adam's apple, a silent confession that echoed louder than words.

"I didn't," she confessed, averting her gaze down to the fluffy white carpet on the floor. "I just though it would suit you."

"Yeah?" Theodore asked, taking a step closer to her, causing her to backtrack slightly. It was like he knew the effect he had on her. He knew she could no longer resist his charms. Her ribs had squeezed themselves together to trap the air left in her lungs because Ophelia could no longer breathe. "You did, didn't you?" He had now entered the room and closed the door behind him, causing Ophelia's heart to thrum loudly in her chest, to the point where she was sure he could hear it.

She gulped. Theodore had her cornered against the door at this point. Her back was touching the cold oak of her pink door, her silverish blue eyes wide and staring up at him with her head craned to look up at him. "And? What do you think?" Theo leant down to whisper in her ear. Ophelia nearly fell to the ground with the way her knees threatened to give out with the way his cold lips brushed against her ear.

He smelled of smoke and ice, of citrus and pine. He was fire and frost, danger and temptation. "Does it suit me?"

Ophelia could not breathe. The air around her teased her lungs, tantalizing her with the way it moved freely, taunting her blood that yearned for it. "I... I d-don't..." she began, gulping to try and take a mouthful of the mockful air she craved. 

"Answer the damn question, Lia," Theo growled softly, his voice a low rumble as his large hands gripped her delicate waist, eliciting a small gasp from her. She could feel the cold touch of his ringed fingers through both layers of the thin satin material that clothed her. Pink lips parted in surprise and her lack of air, whilst her stormy grey eyes were deadlocked on his, unable to look away.

"Yes," she breathed softly, closing her eyes for just a brief second, a fleeting point in time, escaping his company for a dying moment. "It does," she murmured, her eyes fluttering open to see him looking at her with an overpowering intensity she couldn't decipher. 

And now, she could finally see what that deep, dark emotion was. The one she could never figure out during the time he had kissed her in the Astronomy tower, many moons ago.

 His eyes glittered with it. 

His piercing blue irises darkened by being overburdened with that darkness in his eyes that Ophelia could never understand before.

 But now she knew.

Because she felt it too.

Desire.

And then, just as she couldn't take any more, Theodore withdrew himself from where he stood close to her, a satisfied smirk etched on his handsome, chiseled features. 

And Ophelia finally took in a large breath of the oxygen her lungs sought; salvation from the blissful torture he put her through.

"I actually came here to give you your present," Theodore continued, watching Ophelia sit back on the stool in front of the vanity, continuing to brush her hair, his gaze predatory.

She dropped her hairbrush into her lap in surprise, turning her head to look at him, the astonishment visible on her features. "You did?" Her heart raced faster than that of a mouse being chased by a cat. "Why... Why didn't you give it to me in front of everyone else?" she asked her question tentatively, her voice soft and explorative, yearning to hear the answer, yet not wanting to hear the answer at all.

But Theodore wasn't listening. His gaze was fixated on her long tresses of blonde wavy hair, cascading down her back and shoulders with beauty comparative to Aphrodite.

"Look into the mirror," he leant down to whisper those words in her ear, causing her to gulp once more. 

"Why?" she whispered, yet her eyes moved to meet her own in the looking glass nonetheless.

He did not answer her question.

And a few seconds, Ophelia knew why.

This gift was too expensive, too personal for him to give it to her in front of everyone. 

She gasped at her reflection, which bore a heavy diamond tiara, gorgeously shimmering in the iridescent glow of the candlelight that shined through her room, complementing the reflective golden color of her hair.

"Oh my Goodness," she whispered, before her hands moved up to her head, confirming that there actually was a tiara up there, and it wasn't just a figment of her imagination.

As soon as her fingers made contact with the cold metal of the diamond tiara, her heart shriveled up into a ball and fell through her lungs and into her stomach, weighing her down like a stone. "I can't accept this," she finally choked out those words, admiring the tiara in the mirror.

"Weaselette would be jealous," Theodore ignored her, placing her hands on her shoulders, his eyes meeting hers in the looking glass. "You look absolutely divine..."

Ophelia felt that stone sink deeper into her stomach, her breath hitching at the way his words sounded accompanied with the icy touch of his rings on his shoulders passing through the thin material of her satin nightgown.

"Theo, I c-can't accept this—"

"Please," Theodore murmured, his voice dropping octaves lower as he leant down until his lips were just below her ear. "Think of it as an apology for treating you like an asshole." And then, his cool lips brushed against her jaw ever so softly, and Ophelia's eyes fluttered shut and her lips parted slightly as she nodded, swallowing thickly. 

"Thank you," she whispered, placing the tiara on her dresser. "And... Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Principessa," Theodore replied with a smirk.


And then, he walked out of the room, leaving her alone with the remnants of his overpowering scent of cigarette smoke and cologne.

New Years was spent at Blaise's summer house. He had a terrace, which he had decorated with loads of warm blankets, pillows and fairy lights, along with two tents with sleeping bags. He had also bought fireworks from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes in Diagon Alley.

They had lit up their fireworks, and after the official countdown to the New Years, the four of them sat in a circle to play Uno.

"Whose turn is it?" Blaise asked, placing a yellow skip a turn card onto the discard pile.

"Theo's" Ophelia answered, pointing the the brunet boy beside her.

Draco and Blaise looked at her curiously for a brief second before resuming their game. 

"Nah, Theo's skipped," Draco cut in, putting down another skip a turn, causing Blaise to scowl and curse loudly.

"Lia, it's your turn," Theodore nudged her slightly, trying to get her attention away from the ink mark on her finger.

"Hmm? Oh."

Blaise and Draco both stared at Theo, their eyes narrowed.

"What?" Theodore asked, raising his shoulders slightly, looking quickly between Draco and Blaise, the former's lips thinned. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Lia?" Blaise echoed. "Since when did you start giving each other pet names?"

"Did something happen between you two?" Draco asked brusquely, his gaze switching between the two.

Theodore shrugged.

Ophelia shrugged.

Nothing happened.

Or if anything did happen, nobody was sure what did.

Indeed, there was only one good thing that came out of that fateful night after Slughorn's party; Ophelia and Theodore were back to calling each other Theo and Lia and nobody knew how on earth that had happened.

Not even themselves. All they knew was that something changed that night.

And it was for the better.

{ hey guys ,, i hope you enjoyed this chapter <3
i really enjoyed writing it. i know, most people were expecting theo and lia to kiss, but i told you, this is a slow burn. as in REALLY slow burn. but i swear you'll really enjoy it, pinky promise. thank you for sticking with me this far, i love you guys all so much.
so sorry for the late update, this chapter is really much longer than i had anticipated.
anyway, i would LOVE it if you could spam me with comments, vote, share and follow me... on here, and on spotify. make sure you heart the blg playlist too.
please feel free to send tiktok edits, fanart or even book covers for blg, i'd love to see !!
and yes, if you want to rant about anything, or need anyone to talk to, i'm right here : )
lots of love,
jas. }

{FEB 23. 2024}