25th of June 1994

Ministry of Magic, London

Theo flinched at the sound of the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot pounding his gavel against the wide oak bench in front of him, commanding order in his courtroom. The audience immediately quieted, and Theo fidgeted in his seat, pulling at his perfectly pressed sleeves.

"If there are no other witnesses," Tiberius Ogden drawled, obviously irritated with how long the trial had been dragging on. Theo's eyes flickered to the man seated comfortably towards the front of the courtroom at the defence table, looking as if he didn't have a care in the world. As if he already knew the outcome of his trial.

Thoros Nott leaned back in his chair, his hands steepled on his chest as he smirked in the direction of the prosecutor. The case against him was flimsy and he knew it. Despite the evidence pointing at the monster that masqueraded as a man, most of it had been rendered useless. Most likely from well placed bribes in the right hands.

"No, your honour." The young flustered wizard, who was fresh out of his law mastery program, gritted out between his teeth. It wasn't at all a surprise that someone so inexperienced was given the case of the century, the first time that a sitting Lord of one of the Sacred 28 had been tried for the murder of his wife in over five hundred years. The House of Nott had deep pockets and even deeper connections in the Ministry.

"Well, if that's all the evidence and testimony, we'll break while the members of the Wizengamot come to a verdict." The panel of ten members, all older wizards in their formal Wizengamot robes and elaborate hats, stood from their seats and swept from the room, disappearing into the chambers beyond what the general public was allowed to see.

The hairs on the back of Theo's neck pricked as he felt eyes lay on him, but he didn't have to look to know who it was. The runes that had been carved into his skin to keep him from speaking against his father burned under his robes, as if they too could sense their owner's attention.

Theo sobbed as his father pinned him to the ground with his knees, his mouth gagged after he'd vomited when he'd re-entered the room at the wrong time. He'd tried to hurry back to help his mother, but he'd been too late and too weak to save her.

'I don't trust a whimpering little queer,' Thoros hissed as he pulled his blade from his robes. 'Be happy this is all I'm doing to you,' his words were lost on Theo as the pain sliced through him.

A scream ripped from his throat as he felt every cut of the knife carving into his skin. The runes that would force him to forever keep the family secrets, even long after his father was dead.

His eyes watered with the pain as Theo turned his head to the side so he didn't have to look at his flesh being carved into with crystal blade radiating with Dark Magic. He tried to turn his head further so he couldn't see what was left of his mother. Her long brown hair was splayed out on the floor, wet from the pool of blood surrounding it.

"Care to join me for tea while we wait?" The appearance of Gawain Robards above Theo pulled him from the memory and back to the present.

Theo glanced in the direction of the defence, fear filling him with what the monster would do if he saw who was speaking to him. With the entire table preoccupied, Theo relaxed for a moment and he turned to the Auror and stood without any other gesture of agreement. He followed the older wizard from the courtroom. Hopefully his father wouldn't notice his absence, and if he did, well, maybe his punishment wouldn't be too bad. But he couldn't stay in the room, it was suffocating him to be so near that man.

They moved swiftly and quietly from the room, no one sparing a glance at the fourteen year old boy and the Auror leading him away. Stranger things had happened, Theo supposed as he kept his head down and eyes glued to his shoes. This wasn't the first time Robards had spent time around Theo, but the officer was always careful with his wording and questioning in all the years he'd been investigating the claims of abuse at Nott Castle that came from concerned members of their circles. Thoros couldn't be as brutal as he was without some whispers of it escaping the dark heart of the House of Nott.

They moved to the little tea cart that was set outside the courtrooms, the older wizard stepping forwards to order two cups of tea and paying for them both. As if Theo didn't have access to more money than the bloke could even fathom, but still, the gesture was nice enough.

"How are you holding up?" Robards always asked him that, even though Theo never gave him an answer. Today wouldn't be any different.

'Thoros Nott, you're under arrest,' Robards stood in the doorway of their home, putting the spelled cuffs on his father. 'There's no getting out of it this time, you son of a bitch. We've got a witness and the memories will be extracted and used against you.'

Thoros turned his gaze onto his twelve year old son and a shiver spread through Theo's entire body when he looked into the evil pale blue eyes. Without a word spoken to his heir, Thoros Nott was taken from the dining hall and through the floo to be held at Azkaban.

'I've contacted Snape,' a couple Aurors spoke to each other, walking over to where Theo stood silently. 'He said we can deliver the boy back to Hogwarts early since there's no next of kin.'

'Isn't there someone attacking the students there? Do you really think that's wise?'

'Better than leaving a twelve year old to wander these halls alone, even if he has elves to care for him. I can only imagine what cursed objects the kid might stumble upon around here.'

"Kid, you alright?" A hand on his arm pulled Theo out of the memory and he looked up to the Auror who'd fought for him, even if it was a losing battle. No one could protect him from Thoros.

Theo said nothing, holding the warm cup in his hand and stared blankly at the wall in front of him. What did he need to speak for anyway? The things that he could say were unimportant. The things the runes kept him from saying were all he wanted to scream. So instead he said nothing, looking into the cooling tea in his hands.

Robards drank his tea without another word, allowing Theo to use the quiet chattering in the corridor to keep his mind from drifting to darker places. As they waited for the Wizengamot, Theo began to count the stones on the wall. The pattern they made was so simple and it calmed him, his heart rate evening out as he just counted, time having no meaning anymore.

2643, 2644, 2645, 2646…

"It's time," Robards whispered, putting a hand on Theo's shoulder. Theo's first instinct was to push the other man away, but his legs began to tremble at the thought of seeing his father again, so he allowed the Auror to lead him back into the courtroom.

The crowd was much louder in here than it had been outside the doors, but Theo couldn't concentrate on anything as he locked eyes with his father. The look he gave Theo was ominous, and it was without a doubt that if he came home tonight that Theo would feel all the pent up aggression that the trial had caused the evil man. Theo wanted to lean into the protection that Robards could give him, but he knew his father well enough that it wouldn't be wise to further anger the man. Stepping away and breaking out of the man's hold, Theo's eyes were glued to his shoes as he quickened his steps until he was back in the front row as was expected of him.

Chief Warlock Ogden stepped back up onto his high platform, settling himself behind the bench. His eyes scanned the crowd as everyone settled into an eerie silence before turning his attention onto Thoros.

"Before we give the verdict, I thought I might say a few words." The crowd began murmuring since it wasn't typically how things were done. This wasn't the first trial Theo had sat through, but it wasn't the usual. This time, his father had gone a step too far, and Theo knew this was a warning from the man in charge that they couldn't cover up such a crime again. They couldn't cover up the murder of a Sacred 28 heir…

"Eighteen months ago, our Auror department was alerted to a disturbance at Nott Castle. An unknown origin, but still our fine men answered the call swiftly."

Thoros had pulled his wand from his sleeve, his face had an impassive look, but that made him even more frightening. Theo longed to reach out to grab his mother and run from the dinner table, but he knew that there wasn't anywhere they could hide where his father wouldn't find them. He always found them.

'Cassandra, I think I've had just about enough of you softening up my heir. How do you expect the boy to represent our house if you dare allow him to care for filthy mudbloods.' He spat the words and Theo's eyes widened at his tone. He hadn't known his father had intercepted his letters to his mother…

His mother stiffened in her seat, her hands stilling above the quail they were eating before clearing her throat. 'There is someone attacking students at that school! Just because he's concerned for his classmates–'

'That's enough!' Thoros moved his wand so swiftly that Theo couldn't even process what was happening until his mother's body fell to the ground in a crumpled heap as she screamed in pain. 'I'm going to show you exactly what happens when someone tries to taint our name!'

Theo scrambled from his chair, trying to get between Thoros and his mother, but when he locked eyes with her he was frozen. Though she couldn't speak, Theo knew what he needed to do. Running from the room to one of the elves' secret passages. Theo had to crouch, but he kept moving until he was in the foyer. Grabbing the floo powder, Theo threw a handful into it, opening the connection to the emergency Auror department before rushing back to the dining hall. Even with it being Christmas, someone would be there to get the call.

Theo sprinted back through the passage, the fastest way to get back to his mother. If he was quick enough, maybe he could get between his parents and buy his mother the time they needed for the Aurors to come through. Theo pushed the door open and slid back into the room, his absence not noted by his father. His mother's screams were still echoing through the room, Theo scrambled towards her. But he was too late.

With one more flick of his wand, Thoros Nott slit Theo's beloved mother's throat. Her blood sprayed from the wound, coating his face as he stumbled before falling to his knees. His eyes were wide as he watched the life drain from her face.

'Now, to deal with you.' Theo didn't even register his father's words before he was pinned to the ground.

"When they arrived at Nott Castle, they rushed onto the scene, but were unfortunately too late."

Theo's arm burned where the runes had been carved into him, but he didn't even notice the pain because he couldn't take his eyes off his mother's crumbled body. When Robards burst into the room, he first spotted Theo sitting with his knees hugged to his chest. Following his line of sight, Robards finally noticed the crumbled witch on the floor. He rushed to her body trying to save her, but it was too late. Her throat had been cut and her eyes were lifeless.

"The wizarding community has mourned the loss of Cassandra Nott, the light her life brought unlike any we'd ever seen. Leaving behind a husband and son, we know the Auror department worked tirelessly to bring her killer to justice."

'Son, I need you to give me something.' Robards was pleading, but no words could pass Theo's lips. 'He says it was an intruder. Now, we both know that it wasn't an intruder, we both know that no one uninvited could get through those wards he has up.'

Theo only turned his head to look at the wall where he knew there were other Aurors standing on the other side watching the interview. How he longed to tell them about the beatings his father gave him. The cursed objects he'd watched as the monster used on his mother as he experimented. Even though he was only twelve, Theo was already so tired with life.

"After a long deliberation, the Wizengamot has come to a verdict. In the case of The People vs Thoros Tiberius Nott, we find the defendant not guilty on all charges."

'With your mother gone, I can finally raise you to be the son I ought to have had.'

Theo's entire body tensed and he refused to look towards his father. There was no one to save him now.