Author's Note: Here comes chapter three! The story is starting to move along… But there's so much longer to go! Dx The world of Harry Potter is © JK Rowling and I thank her so much for it.

It was odd how quickly time passed when one had something to look forward to, and Theodore Nott had already seemed to have an enormous change in personality. He had gone from being the serious, down to earth loner to someone who was cheerful, a little bit more lax with grades (though to the students' dismay, not that much laxer). He had never felt happier than he did when he was with Mariana Kimboll, and their friendship had meant the world to him. Though he had never been extremely prejudice against Muggle borns, he had been raised on the notion that Muggle borns were not worthy of his time or attention and that he was much better than him. For the first two decades of his life, he had listened to his father, but after being out on his own, his prejudice lessened, and after learning that Mariana was a Muggle born, he lost all discriminatory thoughts on the matter of blood purity. She was no less a wonderful woman than the purest witch from the most ancient and noble pureblood line—in fact, judging by the pureblooded company he had experienced in his youth, she was much better that any of them. She was kind and sweet, understanding, and modest. He watched slowly as he began to chip away the barrier of her coyness in his presence, and slowly she began to teach him what he really needed to know about the wizarding world that he hadn't learned from his sheltered youth.

In the other perspective, Mariana couldn't help but admit that Theodore brightened her day just as much as she did his. He had proven to be funny, attractive, and intelligent, and she learned to trust him and put aside the bad rumors that accompanied his reputation. He was no more a Death Eater than she was, and as she learned that even pureblood elitists can turn out to be fine citizens, she was able to take another view on the wizarding world. It wasn't that she had ever been particularly pessimistic, since she was in fact a normally very cheerful person that preferred to look on the bright side of things. However, after growing up as a Muggle born and actually experiencing the prejudice and bigotry associated with the pureblood elitist families, she had a hard time coming to trust anyone that she had known or knew to be like that. In all honesty, the Theodore that had gone to Hogwarts as a Slytherin student had been a very different person. If Theodore didn't look nearly the same as he had in those days, she would have been convinced that they were two different people of the same name, for she remembered when he had bullied and taunted students from the other houses with his sometimes-mates Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle.

Now that the two were able to put differences aside, it seemed to be a match made in heaven. Theodore was often climbing the stairs to the Divination tower, and when he wasn't doing that Mariana was descending the Grand Staircase to the third floor where Defense Against the Dark Arts was held, and Theodore's office was located. The messy retreat of Mariana's office and the spotless and well organized Nott's office were all that was needed for a little conversation, a glass of wine or a mug of butterbeer, and one another's company. As the days and weeks went on and Theodore began to become much surer of himself, he came to realize and he allowed himself to realize that he felt much more than friendship for Mariana. He was in love, and no one was going to tell him any different. He had stopped trying to convince himself that it was foolish and insincere feelings, because he knew them to be different. He cared about Mariana more than anything in the world, and even if she didn't feel the same way, nothing could stop those feelings. This he knew with all his heart!

Of course, knowing something and expressing it were two very different matters. He couldn't easily forgo the fact that he was afraid to find out that she felt only friendship for him, though he eventually reached the point that he had to know either way. The only way to find out was to express his emotions and hope she agreed. He hadn't decided on a set time when he would say it, but he was instead waiting on the opportune moment.

It was a fine mid-November evening that Theodore climbed the stairs to the Divination tower and entered Mariana's office, where she seemed to have been waiting on him. It took no time at all for her to retrieve two wine glasses and a fine bottle of imported French wine.

"I had hoped you were coming, since it is a Friday night, Teddy."

"I wouldn't have missed one of our evenings for the world, Mariana," Teddy grinned, taking a seat on the couch. "No, I just went down to the Quidditch pitch to watch the practice and give a few tips that I'm sure they didn't appreciate. No matter how old they think I am, I can still remember some of the better plays we had used when I was on the team. Ah, but what do adults know?"

"Oh, absolutely nothing!" she joked, handing him a glass of wine and taking her seat next to him on the couch. "I had a teacher once in primary school that used to tell us over and over that he may have been born at night, but he wasn't born last night. As much as I hated hearing that then, I can't tell you how many times as a teacher I've wanted to say it. I'll still refrain from using that, though." She laughed, glancing at him and taking a sip of wine. "But how did practice go? Strout is back at it again, isn't she?"

"Well, firstly I'm sure that your students appreciate your not using that phrase, and secondly practice went very well. I'm impressed with how far they've come since the first practice of the season, no matter how much I wish they'd listen to me. And yes, Strout is back at practice, so that makes me feel a lot better about Slytherin's first match. How's the Ravenclaw Quidditch team coming along? From what I've been told, they're going to be a formidable team this year. We'll see whether brawn or brains wins out in the end, no? I can't wait until Ravenclaw plays Slytherin and Gryffindor."

"Oh, Ravenclaw is doing very well! I don't really know that much about coaching Quidditch players, but I've watched them and I think they are going to play really well this year. That Alex Chang is really a talented player."

"Yeah, she's beater again this year, right?"

"Yes. I think she is going to be able to play professionally when she gets out of school if she wants to."

"She was really good last year as a third year. I can't wait to see her performance this year. Fourth years always show a lot more development from the past, but it will be fifth and sixth years where she'll see the most improvement and refinement. Her strength with Ravenclaw's strategy is going to make the team hard to beat in her later years if not this year already. Oh, and is she really dating Anthony Towler? I love that kid, Mariana, I really do—but you've got to admit he's a bit of a nerd. Of course, I just wish all my students were like that in the classroom."

"Yes, I think Alex and Anthony are dating. The more you get to know them, the more alike they are, I suppose. Anthony's changed a lot, though. He used to spend a lot of time alone, and it really seems like Alex has gotten him to come out of his shell. He's good for her, too, though."

Nott smiled warmly, knowing just how Towler felt. Mariana had done the same thing for him, really, and he hoped that just as with Chang and Towler, he was good for Mariana too. He hadn't meant to say it then, but the words had blurted from his lips before he even had the chance to think about it and consider his choice of words. "I love you, Mariana." It was so simple, yet after he said it he almost clapped his hand to his mouth out of shock. Had he said it aloud? Judging by the sound of the shattering wine glass on the floor, his words had been as much of a shock to her to hear as they had been to him to say. "Mariana, are you okay?!" he began, worried. Was she angry? Was she happy? Was she upset? Was it something entirely different from that?

"W-what?" she stuttered, looking back and forth from him to the shattered glass.

"I love you, Mariana. I'm sorry—I didn't mean to say it so soon, but now that I've said it you should know. If you don't feel the same way—"

"Teddy, I-I…" She couldn't find the words. If only they would come to her lips, and she could finally end the awkwardness of the moment. "I love you, too. I've been too afraid to say it…"

She hardly could finish the sentence before he had pressed his lips to hers, pulling away moment later. "Mariana, I apologize. I'm just so happy to hear that you feel the same way about me." He glanced down at the glass before flicking his wand and fixing the mess, handing it back to her.

She set it down on the coffee table in front of the couch and turned to look back at him. "Yes, I do feel the same way. I just haven't known how to say it or if you even could think about me as more than a friend. And it is just so soon, I wasn't sure what to think. I've never fallen this quickly in my life."

"I haven't either, but maybe that's telling us something. I love you, Mariana Kimboll, and I've known it for a while now." All the while they had been inching closer together, and finally he pressed his lips again to hers, this time in a much longer kiss that lasted until they both pulled apart, their faces remaining inches from each other as warm smiles tugged at the corners of both their mouths. As he wrapped an arm around her and she slowly leaned her weight on him, as if shyly trying to figure out what to do with herself, Theodore spoke again. "You're okay, right? That glass didn't cut you or anything, did it?"

"No, I'm fine, Teddy. Thank you for fixing it—I was just shocked and that was the last thing I expected to come out of your mouth."

"I didn't really expect it, either. I just sort of blurted out my thoughts without thinking…" Teddy. The name he had once despised and constantly corrected had become something he loved to hear—only from Mariana's lips, of course. "Teddy" was still off limits to everyone else, but it made the nickname something very special to him when she said it. He adored it coming from Mariana Kimboll. But then again, was there anything that he didn't adore about her? On the spot, he couldn't think of anything, not even her messy office. She was much more laid back about it than he was, and he realized that he was uptight when it came to doing his job. It didn't make him any better or worse than any other teacher, as it only added stress that came with being anal about the issue.

"Well, I'm glad you did."

"Me too, Mariana. Me too."

"So, what now?"

"Well, why don't I start off properly by asking you the question that I think is on both our minds, though I was never any good at Divination. Will you date me?" He chuckled slightly, but he was completely serious in his inquiry.

"Yes," she laughed, hugging him slightly as a smile spread wide across her lips. Though they sat for a few moments in silence, there was no denying that the room felt different. It was the same room as the one where they had first sat down, the furniture was still arranged exactly the same, and the light still poured in from the windows just as it had done all afternoon. However, there was a sense of relief and a sense of comfort that engulfed the pair, and words did not need to be spoken for they could both feel it. Perhaps it was that they found comfort in the presence of the other, and in the other's absence the room would return to its normal properties, but Theodore felt sure that the entire world had suddenly shifted and that every room, every corridor, every town and every city had changed. It was such an enormous difference that it was almost surprising how just through the window, students could be seen lazing around the grounds by the lake, completely oblivious to the fact that the world had been turned upside down. How can they not feel the change? he wondered, but continued in his thoughts to question whether or not all couples had felt their worlds shift in a completely different direction as his had just done. The silence was finally broken, but by the one voice he had found himself wanting to hear over and over through the weeks. "Is it wrong, Teddy?"

"Huh—Is what wrong?" What was she feeling? Was she unsure of her feelings, or had her world not just felt a jolt as well?

Truth be told, Mariana was feeling the same way. Overwhelmed by emotion, she was unsure of what to think, but she noticed a change. Everything was warmer, though a comforting warmth. Or was she just blushing? A soft hand moved to rest for a moment on her cheek, finding it no higher in temperature than the rest of her. It had to be emotion. There was no other explanation for the security she suddenly felt, or the incredible joy that was too big for words. In fact, there was only word that even came close to describing her feelings, and it was love. Had there been any stronger word in the English language, that would be the word, but the right word did not exist. The connection between them seemed so strong, however, that it was almost frightening. She was falling too hard too fast, and she couldn't help but wonder if true love at first sight did exist for her.

"Is it wrong for us to be together, as colleagues?"

"I don't think there's anything wrong with two people being in love. We just have to make an agreement. If anything should go wrong—and I mean absolutely anything, no matter who is at fault—we have to maintain a professional relationship. That way, there can be no problems with it." He paused before continuing, glancing up at her beautiful features. "You having second thoughts already?"

"No, no! No, I'm not having second thoughts. I just wondered if we shouldn't be… I don't know. Never mind, Teddy. You're right about the agreement. I promise that I won't let anything— should something come between us—stand in the way of our professional relationship. Plus, we should also keep our private relationship, well… Private. That way, the students won't know. At least not right away."

"I agree with you there. So, private means our offices, right?"

"Right," she said, giggling slightly at his question.

"So this isn't off limits in our offices, right?" he asked, but before she had the chance to answer, his lips were pressed to hers again. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he held her by the waist until they pulled apart.

"Right," she laughed, hugging him closer with a wide smile.