Happy- T.H. (Hogwarts A.U.)
Pairing: Slytherin!Tom x Reader
Prompt: In which Tom Holland is basically Draco Malfoy- a tortured soul that takes it out on others.
Warnings: Language, Angst, Make-out Scene
I adjusted my green and silver tie and pulled my robe back onto my shoulders. I waved goodbye to my parents as I stepped onto the train to Hogwarts for the final time. The sounds and sights of the train were all so familiar and I felt a little sad that it would be my last time heading to Hogwarts. I passed through multiple carriages, until I reached the other Slytherins. I peered into the windows until I found my best friend, Harrison.
Harrison and I grew up together, so when we were both sorted into Slytherin, we practically became inseparable. Unfortunately, he had become acquainted with some rather unsavory characters, specifically Thomas Holland. The Holland’s were filthy rich. There were even rumours that his parents were death eaters. Harrison assured me that Tom wasn’t that bad once you get to know him, but I had a hard time getting past the whole death eater situation.
Despite having Harrison as a mutual friend, Tom and I constantly butt heads. I wasn’t afraid to call him out for being a dick, and he wasn’t afraid to talk back to me. Not to mention, Tom was a huge flirt. But not in the cute way. In the way where he would do it for the express purpose of being annoying.
When I found Harrison, he was sitting with Tom, of course. I greeted Harrison with a bright smile and a hug, while I greeted Tom with a curt nod of the head.
“Thomas,” I said shortly, with my eyebrows raised. His lips curled into a smirk.
“Nice to see you too, y/l/n. You’re looking radiant as always,” he sneered. I contorted my face in disgust at him, and turned my attention back to Harrison.
The train ride was rather uneventful. I tried to ignore Tom as much as possible, keeping my attention on my conversations with Harrison. Tom seemed to enjoy spending the train ride attempting to join our conversations, but not actually contributing anything useful to the dialogue. I managed to keep my cool until we arrived at Hogwarts, when I could finally get some space from Tom.
The Great Hall was majestic as always, with beautiful lights and decorations welcoming both new and old students. I always found the sorting to be a bit boring, and spent my time joking around with Harrison. We walked back to the Slytherin common room, where we hung out, trying to ignore the sounds of the first-years trying to find their ways around us. Time passed quickly, and everyone started shuffling up to their dorms for the night, preparing themselves for classes the next day. Shortly, I joined them, tucking myself in and shortly falling asleep.
By seventh year, professors don’t really give us much of an introduction, but rather begin lectures on the first day of class. Snape was never and exception to this pattern. This year, he had prepared us a seating chart at the brewing tables, and the person paired up with us was to be our potions partner for the rest of the semester.
I hated this idea already, but it only got worse when I heard my name paired up with none other than Tom Holland’s.
“Guess you can’t stay away from me,” Tom greeted me as we met at our table.
“I wish you would stay away from me,” I muttered, harshly pulling the chair back into the table.
“You know I can’t do that,” Tom leaned closer to me and softly whispered towards my ear. His left arm brushed against my right arm and his words sent a slight shiver up my spine, which I disguised as a look of disgust.
Snape began the lecture, droning on monotonously. I struggled to keep from dozing off, and hardly noticed my hand doodling on the parchment in front of me. After a gruelling amount of time spent listening to Snape, he finally dismissed the class. I was eager to get away from Tom as quickly as possible, but both Tom and I were pulled aside by Snape.
“Miss y/l/n, your marks in this class are… remarkable,” Snape began. I nodded humbly, and Snape turned to Tom. “And Mr. Holland, yours are… not.” I was shocked when Tom hung his head down in shame. I always thought he was one of the top students- or at least that’s what he let on.
“Well, Mr. Holland, what are we going to do to fix that,” Snape questioned. Tom shrugged his shoulders. “Thomas, your parents expect much more from you. I would like Miss y/l/n to tutor you until your grades have improved.”
“Professor, I can’t-” I began to argue but Snape held a crooked finger in the air, silencing me.
“This is not a request, y/l/n. And if Mr. Holland’s grades do not improve, your grades will suffer as well,” Snape scolded me. I took a deep breath and nodded my head reluctantly in acceptance.
“You may be dismissed. I expect improvement,” Snape said with a wave of his hand. I moved quickly out of the room, trying to avoid any excess interaction with Tom.
“Y/l/n. Y/l/n. Y/n!” Tom called down the hall to me. I spun around aggressively to face him.
“What now, Thomas?” I hissed. He moved closer to me with a smirk on his face.
“Looks like we’re gonna be spending a little more time together,” Tom threw his arm around my shoulder, dragging me along with him. I rolled my eyes with a scoff.
“Just so we’re clear, I am only doing this because I have to. I hate this idea just as much as you do,” I snapped, causing Tom to laugh.
“Oh, then you must not hate it that much,” his voice was sly and the smirk was still plastered on his face.
“Can you please just leave me alone? I don’t know why you have to make my life so miserable!” I began to raise my voice in frustration, slipping out from underneath his arm, and quickly hurrying off. I didn’t look over my shoulder, but if I had, I probably would have noticed Tom softly saying my name and running his hands through his hair, exasperated.
“I don’t know why Snape chose me! Plenty of other people could tutor him!” I vented to Harrison. I was pacing back and forth in the common room and Harrison laid on the leather couch, skimming the book he was holding.
“Mhmm,” Harrison hummed in response. I groaned at his response and checked the clock. 7:03. I was supposed to meet Tom in the potions classroom at 7:15 to tutor him. I threw my backpack over my shoulder and walked towards the room. Naturally, Tom showed up right at 7:15, dragging his feet and huffing about being there.
“I don’t want to be here anyways, Holland, but we have to, so you better pay attention,” I complained, opening the potions textbook, beginning to help Tom with a potion.
“No, Thomas, it says to add two-” I began to lecture, when I noticed him looking at me. “What are you looking at? You need to pay attention to this.”
“I- I’m sorry,” he muttered, turning his eyes back to the textbook. That was the first time in seven years I had ever heard him apologize for anything. He began to add the ingredients according to the instructions and stirring the potion as needed. I corrected him a few times, but by the end, we ended up with a bubbling mint green potion.
“Um… I don’t think this is right…” I questioned as I reread the instructions.
“What? Let me see that. I did it right,” Tom grabbed the book out of my hands. “Oh.”
The textbook claimed that the correct potion would become an emerald green, which our potion fell short of.
“Well, maybe if we just add some more-” Tom trailed off, and before I could stop him, he dropped a substance into the pot. The pot began to bubble more aggressively, before the bubbles started over flowing around the pot. I pushed Tom out of the way so I could stir the potion and calm the boiling, but suddenly the pot exploded with a large crack, sending ceramic shards and the boiling potion flying across the room.
Unfortunately, I was caught right in the path of a large piece of the cauldron. I felt the burn of the potion hit my body first, but as soon as the broken piece of ceramic hit my head, I no longer felt nor saw anything else.
I woke up to hushed whispers. My head throbbed and my entire body ached, yet I strained to hear the voices.
“You did this on purpose!” the first voice hissed. “You hated her so much that you tried to kill her?”
“I did not! It was a complete accident! I would never try to hurt her!” the second voice defended. “Seriously, Haz. You know how I feel about her. I could never do that.” His voice dropped lower and became less defensive. I slowly opened my eyes, allowing myself to adjust to the light. I began to recognize the room I was in as the hospital wing, and the two figures around me were Harrison and Tom. As much as I wanted to call out to them to ask what happened, I shut my eyes again to continue listening to their conversation.
“I know, I know,” Harrison sighed. If I could see him, I imagine that he would have ran his hand through his hair in exasperation. “It just scares me, ya know? She’s like my little sister, and I need to protect her, but you can be such a dick to her!”
“Mate, she hates me. It’s the only way for me to get over her,” Tom said sadly.
“But it’s hurting her, Tom.”
“You think I don’t see that? I know it’s hurting her! Haz, I would do anything to be the one that got hurt in the explosion! I would do anything to have kept her safe,” Tom’s voice grew louder and more aggressive. I decided this would be a good time to “wake up”, in hopes that their argument wouldn’t continue.
I shifted in the bed, slowly dragging my hand up to rub my eyes, making a soft groaning noise as I “woke up”. Harrison and Tom all but ran next to my bed. Harrison’s hand instantly reached for my hand.
“Y/n, how are you feeling? Do you remember anything?” he said worriedly. I rolled my eyes and I assured him that I was fine. My eyes fell onto Tom’s face. He looked almost sympathetic and… sad. I gave him a small smile, which made his face appear softer.
I was released from the hospital wing later that day, but my body still was sore. Harrison and Tom followed me around all day like lost puppies, despite my insistence that I was fine. Obviously, I still had to sit by Tom in potions class. I leaned over the table, trying to work on an extra credit assignment before Snape begins his lecture.
“Y/n, I’m really sorry,” I heard Tom say quietly from next to me.
“It’s fine,” I muttered, not paying him much mind. I could hear his chair scooting closer to me.
“No, I mean. I’m really sorry. I should have listened to you and this wouldn’t have happened,” he continued. I sighed and set my quill down, leaning back in my chair and looking at Tom.
“Tom. It’s fine. Seriously, it really isn’t a big deal,” I insisted.
“No, it’s not! You got hurt! I shouldn’t do anything to hurt you in the first place but that’s all I do!” Tom was growing aggravated and ran his fingers through his hair a few times. “I’m sorry, y/n. Really.” I knew I was never going to win this argument. Both of us being Slytherins, we were way too stubborn and ambitious to ever give up in an argument.
“Okay. Thank you, Tom. I accept it,” I said. Tom’s face looked a little more relaxed and he leaned back in his chair.
“I like it when you call me Tom instead of Holland or Thomas,” he gave me a soft smile, which I returned. I didn’t know what to say, so I turned my attention back to the parchment in front of me.
I flipped through the potions book impatiently, waiting for y/n to show up for our session. I showed up early in hopes that I could get ahead on the potion and impress her, but I was not off to a good start. When y/n walked into the room, she had her head tilted down and was reading a book. She lifted her head and looked genuinely shocked to see me there early.
“Oh, hello. I didn’t expect to see you yet,” she said with a small smile.
“Yeah, I’m just trying to get a head start on the potion today, but I haven’t gotten very far,” I sighed, already doubting the steps I had completed.
“Okay, well let’s look at it,” she said. She was always so patient and I was shocked at how she could even tolerate being around me, even after I blew up an entire potion. She walked me through the steps, explaining the different reactions between ingredients. She was beautiful and intelligent. Gentle and caring. Funny and perfect. And she deserved the world. But I couldn’t give it to her.
We had finished the first half of the potion, when y/n stepped away from the cauldron to let me try stirring it.
“Tom, you’re supposed to stir it counter-clockwise,” she said. Despite her gentle tone, something inside me snapped.
“How was I supposed to know that?” I snapped. “It’s not my fault I don’t know what the hell I’m doing! Just give up on me, goddammit!” I slammed the wooden spoon down on the counter and began to storm out of the room.
“Thomas Holland—” y/n began, but I spun around to face her.
“Don’t even bother. Leave me alone,” I hissed, walking out and slamming the door behind me.
I felt horrible, to say the least. I was so irritated with myself that I took it out on her and ruined any chance of friendship, or more, that I had with her.
“Fuck, Haz. What do I do?” I paced back and forth in our dorm room, running my hands through my hair.
“Mate, I don’t know what to tell you. You’re gonna have to talk to her. Make it up to her somehow,” he leaned back in his bed, his eyes still focused on the book in front of her. And just then, an idea popped into my head.
I laid back in my bed, staring up at the ceiling. I wondered where I had gone wrong with Holland. Was I not patient enough? Was I not clear enough? Was I really that unbearable?
My thoughts were interrupted by a light tapping on the window. Letting out a soft groan, I rolled out of my bed to open the window. I was greeted by a small brown owl, holding a rolled up piece of parchment in its beak. It gently set the parchment on the window sill and let out a small hoot before flying off.
I unrolled the parchment, and was shocked to see a neatly written note scrawled out.
Meet me at the astronomy tower at 10:00. Please give me a chance.
I sighed and rolled the parchment back up. The clock read 9:40. I was hesitant to meet Tom, at risk of him snapping at me, or this being a prank. However, I gave him the benefit of the doubt. I pulled on my shoes and slipped my Slytherin robe over my casual clothing, and quietly snuck out of the dorm.
The halls were dead silent, and I imagine I would hear Tom also heading towards the astronomy tower, unless he was already there. Or if he’s not showing up. Shaking those thoughts, I continued towards the tower, preparing myself to climb the steep stairs. When I reached the top of the steps, I was shocked to see Tom sitting on a blanket near the edge of the tower, surrounded by candles.
“Tom?” I said softly. He jumped slightly, but quickly got up and rushed towards me. I took a step back, surprised by his reaction. Hurt flooded into his chocolate brown eyes, and I almost felt bad for him.
“I- I’m sorry,” he whispered, slowly reaching his hand out for me. “Would you come with me? Please?” He was just short of begging, so I sympathetically took his hand and followed him towards the blanket.
“This looks lovely,” I broke the silence once we sat down on the blanket that overlooked the campus. Tom shrugged his shoulders and looked off into the distance. “Well? Did you ask me to come up here just to sit in silence?” I was only teasing, but Tom let out an exasperated sigh.
“I wanted to say I’m sorry. For everything. For making your life a living hell, for blowing up the potion, for snapping at you, hell, even for dragging you out here like this,” he ranted, with his face buried in his hands. “I can’t explain it. There’s no excuse for any of it, but I find myself begging for you to come back to me time after time.”
“Tom… What are you trying to say?” my voice was cautious, as if I were walking on eggshells with him.
“I’m trying to say that I love you! Okay? I fucking love you and I have ruined every single chance I’ve ever had to show you that so you’re never going to feel the same! I’ve loved you since the beginning- you’re gorgeous, funny, smart, kind, caring… You deserve everything in the world and all I have done is hurt you and… I hate myself for it,” Tom’s voice started off strong but faded away. I opened my mouth to respond to him but was quickly interrupted. “You don’t have to spare my feelings. I know what you’re going to say. I’m sorry to have wasted your time.”
Tom started to get up from the blanket, when I grabbed his arm and pulled him back down. My hands quickly moved to his cheeks and I pulled his lips into mine. His body felt tense, but he soon relaxed and wrapped his arms around my waist as I moved mine around his neck. The kiss became passionate when Tom slipped his tongue into my mouth and began running his hands up and down my sides. I put my right hand on Tom’s firm chest, pushing him down gently so that he laid on his back. I swung one leg over his hips, all while continuing the kiss. Tom let out a soft moan as I bit his lip and he felt me grind against him ever so slightly. I slowly began to pull back from the kiss, resting my forehead on his for a few moments before rolling off of his body and onto the floor.
Both Tom and I laid on our backs next to each other, staring at the sky above us. Tom reached his hand towards mine, letting our entwined hands fall to our sides. Our breathing was synchronized and he slowly turned his head to look towards me.
“I meant what I said,” he whispered.
“Good, because I feel the same way,” my tone mimicked his. For the first time in the years that I knew Tom, his lips turned into a genuinely happy smile- the kind where you can see it in their eyes and they practically glow with joy. For the first time, Thomas Stanley Holland was happy.
(A/N: This kinda sucks lol. I rewrote it like 13 times and also I wrote part of it while I was high and drunk so.... thx -SKD)