Dorian tried not to interrupt her, though fuck, it took more effort than he thought he had left in him. His jaw ached from the way he held it clenched, the muscle jumping every time another sentence landed, while his hands stayed planted on his knees with such force that his knuckles had long since ...

Selah didn't raise her voice. She didn't tell him to get out, or throw her ring at him. She didn't even cry. To anyone else, she might have looked composed, remarkably so, given what he had just confessed, but Dorian had known her for too long and loved her for too many years not to see what lay ben...

Dorian waited. The silence stretched between them, painful, but deserved. How many times had Selah been left waiting for him to answer, waiting for him to say what he was actually thinking instead of shutting down? If she needed this moment before hearing the truth, he owed her that much. Slowly, al...

Dorian spent only a few minutes outside, keeping to the immediate area around the Entrance Hall as he swept the courtyard and nearby paths before pausing to listen. Nothing moved. No fresh tracks cut across the snow, no sign of passage leading away from the castle, and no indication that anyone had ...

Relief came first, quiet enough that Dorian almost didn’t recognize it. Selah didn’t want a divorce; she hadn’t spent the last few months waiting for the marriage to end any more than he had. The knot that had lived in his chest for months eased, only to tighten again almost immediately when she sai...

It seemed like Selah was going to remain standing, and then — Dorian let out a breath as she crossed the room and sat down beside him. Not too close, but close enough. For a moment, all he could think about was reaching for her, letting her settle against him with her head on his chest while he ran ...

Dorian blinked slowly at Nigel’s reply, taking a moment longer than he should have to properly register it. He didn’t answer straight away. Instead, he gave a quiet sound of acknowledgement, non-committal, and kept his gaze on the table in front of him as if that was where the rest of the conversati...

As touched as he was by her assertion that he didn't need to ask to come in, the instinct to argue rose immediately. Whatever claim Dorian had once had to this house, he had surrendered it the day he walked out and stayed gone. But the words died before they reached his tongue. He had come here hopi...

The door opened, and Dorian’s breath caught before he could stop it. Selah looked nothing like she had at the dance, and somehow that made it worse. There was no careful composure now, just her, in her comfortable clothes and a robe, like he’d seen her a hundred times before. The sight of it pulled ...

It was late, nearing two in the morning, and Dorian knew it was reckless, brazen, perhaps even stupid to appear uninvited and unannounced, yet he couldn’t wait any longer. Once he had finished with the dance and ensured the students were safely back in their dorms, he left Hogwarts immediately. Seei...

Dorian didn’t need to finish the question, didn’t even need to ask it out loud; Selah understood him without hearing the words. She always had. Sometimes he wondered if she knew him better than he knew himself, and the thought brought a lump to his throat that he tried to swallow away, unable to spe...

Dorian listened to her words, his gaze fixed on their intertwined hands, struggling to process what Selah was saying. Part of him was still bracing for a fight, while the other part was distracted by how right it felt to be holding her hands again. For a moment, he let himself savour the warmth of h...

Dorian exhaled a slow stream of smoke, letting Harmony’s question hang between them. His first instinct was to turn her down; lately, he preferred to drink alone, and even with someone he trusted, company could feel like an obligation he wasn’t sure he had the energy for. But as he tapped ash into t...

Dorian had expected—if not outright hostility—at least a cool indifference from Selah. He deserved that much; after all, he avoided, ignored, and pushed her away at every turn. If she had met him with nothing more than a nod or brushed past him as if he were just another face in the crowd, he wouldn...

The Great Hall resembled a scene from a fairy tale, and the Winter Solstice Ball was in full swing as students, staff, and guests glided gracefully around the room in their finest attire. While everyone around him seemed caught up in the revelry, Dorian couldn’t bring himself to join in. He leaned a...

Dorian left the Great Hall, frustration gnawing at him as he tried to focus on his work. For years, he had craved something more than the monotony of school security—something real. And now that he had it, it couldn't have come at a worse time. After months of avoidance, Dorian finally gathered the ...

[[This scene directly follows Boggarts & Bogeys , which Jae and I still need to finish but we more or less know how it ends.]] Saturday, 12 November 2005 Mid-morning Dorian stirred, his mind foggy and his body heavy with the familiar weight of another hangover. He slowly opened his eyes, only to...

Saturday, 29 October 2005 5:30 pm Dorian had anticipated a more cheerful mood this evening. The extended weekend, a rare luxury with three consecutive days off work seemed to be perfectly timed. Today marked Dorian's thirtieth birthday, and his favourite holiday, Halloween, awaited in just two days...

Suppressing a bitter laugh, Dorian's pessimism seeped into his response. "Might want to consider an early retirement then. Hogwarts doesn't exactly grow on you, and the Ministry won't be pulling us out anytime soon." When he had eagerly accepted the assignment back in 1999, it was with gen...

Generally speaking, being assigned to Hogwarts wasn't a coveted position and Aurors stationed at the castle usually fell into one of two categories: veterans who had their own motivations for being at the school, and newcomers who had no say in the matter. Discovering that the Ministry of Magic had ...

After engaging in the obligatory small talk, Dorian was set on making a subtle exit from the staffroom, eager to avoid any situation that would expose his memory lapse regarding the Auror's name. He had a strong feeling that she had been introduced as his superior, and he hoped once he learned her n...

The question that had sparked his curiosity moments ago had slipped away in a drunken haze, leaving Dorian puzzled by Nigel's answer. "Oh, right," he replied quickly, a poor attempt to disguise the fact that he was struggling to keep pace with the conversation. Taking a sip of whisky as a ...

Dorian was still looking out the window, grateful for the excuse to hide the scowl that crossed his face at Aubrey's comment about having a roof over his head. "Right," he mumbled, more to himself than anything. His friend wasn't wrong; Dorian was indeed lucky to have a place to stay free ...

"Thank you," Dorian replied quietly, relieved that Aubrey not only accepted his apology but did not ask many follow up questions. It wasn't easy for Dorian to open up – to anyone – and though the tension in his body was beginning to disipate, he still felt uncomfortable and guarded with t...

Dorian had only been expecting small talk - that was about as much interaction he had with his colleagues lately - and Nigel's honest answer about how his day had been caught him off guard. Ever since his troubles at home came to a head six months ago, Dorian (already private to begin with) had with...