TITLE: Pandora's Box
CHARACTERS: Theo x Luna
CHALLENGE/FORUM: The Golden Snitch—Just Like a Circus Challenge / Mahoutokoro, House Mizu
PROMPT: (Trapeze) Write about your character taking a leap of faith/trusting someone new. / Must heavily feature a minor character.
OPT-PROMPTS: (setting) Diagon Alley, (restriction) no using any female Gryffindor characters, (word) apathetic, (quote) "Because when you are imagining, you might as well imagine something worthwhile."
WORD COUNT: 1,772
When he walked out of his monthly meeting at Gringotts, Theo Nott sighed. Another meeting with goblins telling him he was making money hand-over-fist with his personal investments. Another reminder that he didn't actually need his job as Lead Arithmancer at Malfoy Industries. Another reminder that his father's will explicitly stated he would take up the Nott Head of House and spend his life managing the family investments.
Another reminder that he was still relegated to his trust vault and would not have access to the family vaults until he provided the expected heir.
Later that evening, he would meet Draco, Blaise, and Greg at the Leaky Cauldron for a few pints, as he did every Thursday. They would swap work stories, Draco would lord the recent birth of his heir over them—Scorpius? Really?—and would politely inquire as to whether Theo was seeing anyone and did he know that his sister-in-law was still single?
As if Theo would ever willingly be near Daphne Greengrass after spending seven years at Hogwarts with her. After a sincere attempt to get to know her through study dates fourth year, he'd quickly learned she was not the witch for him. He didn't know if it was the utter lack of subtlety in her flirting, or her failure to comprehend even a basic understanding of any of their classes that turned him off. He'd once heard a Yank refer to some women at Ilvermorny as attending to gain their MRS degree. Theo thought that suited Daphne to a tee.
Friday evening he would spend with a good book and glass of Blishen's; Saturday was for club Quidditch with the boys; Marcus Flint and Terrence Higgs usually joined them for lunch afterward. He'd spend his Saturday evening—and his Sunday evening for that matter—in the same manner as Friday.
Then the week would begin again. The same thing day in, day out.
It wasn't that Theo hated his life. He was, admittedly, an introvert, and the limited social calendar he had suited him just fine. Rather, it was as though a cloud of disillusionment had descended over him. He couldn't bring himself to care about his vaults, to care about his work beyond what was expected, or to even care about the lives of his increasingly-adult friends.
The rare exception to his apathy was his ridiculously-named godson, whose first birthday celebration Saturday night would be the most noteworthy even on his calendar since Greg married Millicent Bulstrode last April.
It was with this ennui that he walked through Diagon Alley, heading to the apparition point where he would return home for lunch (Thursday—the elves would have made roast beef and vegetables).
He was stopped, however, by the appearance of a small, bright shop next to Obscurus Books that had not been there the week before. "Pandora's Box" was the color of a summer afternoon sun, a stark contrast to the dark bookseller next door. What really pulled Theo's attention, however, were the animated animals in the shop's window: dragons circled over a herd of hippogriffs and a handful of unicorns, while an odd-looking animal meandered near the far side of the window, looking out to passersby.
Before he knew it, Theo was entering the store, a soft jingle announcing his entry.
He looked over the small figures that had initially caught his eye. He was drawn in further by children's potions sets, stuffed thestrals—which Theo found surprisingly accurate, given how few people could actually see the animals—and a variety of children's books.
Though he had yet to see a clerk, Theo found himself gathering a small collection of toys for Scorpius.
After adding another book to his pile—Magical Numbers!—Theo heard a light voice behind him.
"Oh, he won't like that. I think a book on dragons might be better suited." Another book—Andi Opaleye Flies Again!—was shoved in front of him. "This is one of our more popular series."
Theo looked up and into the pale eyes of Luna Lovegood.
She hadn't changed much since the war, at least not from his estimation.
He barely remembered the peculiar girl from his final years at Hogwarts. He'd never really thought about her; she wasn't in any of his classes, being a year younger than him, and though she was a Ravenclaw, which was significantly better than Hufflepuff or Gryffindor, she didn't socialize with any Slytherins. He did remember the Carrows were especially vicious to her, along with Neville Longbottom and the Weasley girl, and that she up and disappeared halfway through his final year.
The woman in front of him had the same blonde hair, same tiny stature, but her grey eyes were more focused than he seemed to recall.
She smiled at him gently. "His father won't be pleased, of course, but it is his fault. Names have such a profound impact on who we are and who we become."
Theo narrowed his eyes. "I'm not sure I follow."
Luna took the book from his hands and replaced it with the one she had offered. "No, not yet. But you will. Trust me, this is the book you want." She took the pile from his arms. "I'll gift wrap this all for you."
When Theo checked the time, he realized he spent his entire lunch break in the little toy shop.
Theo found himself in front of Pandora's Box the following Thursday. He had decided to get to Diagon a few hours before drinks at the Leaky in order to run some errands, though he couldn't say what errands exactly. He had wandered toward Obscurus Books, and politely inquired as to a rare arithmancy text he knew they wouldn't have.
After leaving the bookstore, he lingered in front of the toy shop, watching the dragons circle in the window.
"You're right on time," he heard from behind him.
He turned, and there was Luna, locking up her shop.
"Pardon? I wasn't aware I was expected."
She turned and smiled softly at him. She was wearing a purple dress with a blue cardigan, and he was sure her necklace was an honest-to-goodness radish.
"You've been expected for some time, Theo Nott. Shall we?"
He couldn't explain it—maybe it was because he was so goddamn bored with his life and here was something new, something different—but he followed her to a small café around the corner. It wasn't quite Knockturn Alley, but it certainly wasn't Diagon anymore.
Luna gestured to a table in the corner—which didn't really matter, as they were the only two customers there—and Theo sat. He watched the odd blonde converse with the clerk briefly, then join him at the table.
"What did you mean, I've been expected for some time?" Theo asked.
Luna cocked her head at him. She had a look of the fey, otherworldly almost, but her eyes were solely focused on him.
"You are a very methodical person, Theo Nott. A person could set a watch by you. It's why you're so good at your job: your numbers act as expected, they quantify the world and they never stray from their job. I simply set my watch for you."
The waitress brought them their tea and scones. At this point, he was unsurprised to apple scones—his favorite—on the tray.
"Why? I don't think I've ever spoken to you before last week."
She stirred a small sugar cube into her tea, never clinking her cup with her spoon. She had surprisingly delicate hands, Theo thought. Her nails were cut short but neat, a far cry from the long talons that Slytherin girls favored.
"During the war, I liked to imagine what my life would be like if I survived. When I was younger, before the war, I thought I would follow in my father's footsteps and be a journalist, or go off hunting Crumple-Horned Snorkacks.
"But then I realized how hurt our world would be, and how dark our future would seem, even without Voldemort. Once evil takes root, it's hard to imagine a world without it—even after its gone. I know years later I still get scared if the Alley is too empty, or when someone with very dark robes come into the shop."
Theo glanced down at his own black cloak.
"I thought about how Fred and George Weasley made people laugh, even in the darkest of times. They brought joy to the wizarding world; George still does, though he's perhaps the saddest person I know. I wanted to do something similar. So I opened a magical toy shop."
She paused, and took a bite of her scone. He waited for her to continue.
"People called me Looney for years, because I could imagine a world beyond what they saw around them or read in books. What they didn't know—what people still don't realize—is that our imagination creates the world around us. We wouldn't have fought Voldemort if we couldn't imagine a world without him. My store helps children imagine and keeps their imagination alive. And where there's imagination, there's hope—hope for something new, for something different, for something better."
She sipped her tea and looked at him expectantly.
"That doesn't really explain me," said Theo, after a moment.
"Oh, well, I imagined after a time you'd come find me. I've been quite enamored with you for years, even after your father tried to kill me fourth year. In my dreams, I was running the toy shop, and you were working on your Arithmancy; you balanced my imagination and I brought life to your numbers. We're quite compatible you know."
Theo's jaw had dropped at her admission. After her pause, he realized he probably looked like a gaping fish and closed his mouth.
"So because I imagined that future, I hoped you'd show up. And then you did."
"But why me?" He wasn't put off that this was one of perfect Harry Potter's friends, or even that it was Looney Lovegood. This woman was an enigma—completely unexpected and unpredictable—and he felt lighter being in her presence.
"Because when you are imagining, you might as well imagine something worthwhile. And you, Theo Nott, are worthwhile. And worth the wait." She smiled at him, a smile that melted away the disdain and boredom and sheer apathy Theo had felt for so long.
Luna Lovegood was so unexpected. But here she was, this bright light shining its light on the dullness of his own life. And thought it went against everything in his Slytherin nature, he opened up to this strange girl, with her odd toys and radish jewelry and wild imagination.
And when the time for drinks at the Leaky arrived, he felt no regret about order another pot of tea and some sandwiches instead.