A/N: YES! MY EXAMS ARE OVER! WHOO HOO! (But seriously, do you really expect me to update within two days? Nah son, I got work and I'm lazy as shit)
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
Title: The Past Does Not Define Us
Rating: T
Pairing: Theodore Nott/Hermione Granger
Summary: "I'm sorry." Those two words shot like an arrow through his soul and Theodore found that there was nothing he could do to stop himself from falling.
Warning(s): Mentions of child abuse and suicidal thoughts
Chapter 2: Home
Theodore felt at peace in the Hogwarts library.
It was well-stocked with books of all sorts, as expected from a school of Hogwarts' caliber – but there weren't any books on the dark, forbidden arts; even the restricted section never delved any further than neutral magics. It was large – but not as large as the Nott family library, which could become a maze and constantly rearranged itself to his father's whims; no matter how hard Theodore tried to hide, his father would always be able to find him (he learned pretty quickly to never hide in the library).
There were comfy chairs and tables to do work, unlike the Nott library where the tables and chairs moved to trip and hinder him if he tried to run; the books would always return themselves to the shelves when you were done with them, and he didn't have to worry about his father punishing him for not putting them away himself; and even Madam Pince, the Hogwarts librarian, was tolerable as long as you handled the books with care, unlike his father who would be more likely to seek him out if the dust on them were so much as disturbed.
At Hogwarts, Theodore didn't have to constantly look over his shoulder for his father, though meddling and pranking Gryffindors were not much of an improvement; at least with them, he needn't worry about being put into the Hospital Wing for longer than a week (usually).
In the Hogwarts library, Theodore felt at home.
Even when his father was carted off to Azkaban in his fifth year, Death Eater robes and all, and the students all sneered and spit on the ground he walked on. Even when Draco became pale and withdrawn with dark bags under his eyes from lack of sleep in their sixth year, and Theodore helped him keep up with his classwork and ignored the disdainful whispers. Even when the fighting came to Hogwarts in his seventh year, and then was swiftly ended, leaving the survivors silently mourning the dead.
Even with everything that Theodore has been through, Hogwarts and her library would forever be his home.