The Letter
Mattheo Riddle
Mattheo was really great at ignoring his father. Really excellent at it.
Of course, his father rarely tried to see Mattheo in person. Instead, he sent his little minions.
Ever since Mattheo's mother Bellatrix had been trapped and sent to Azkaban, Lorenzo and Mattheo had been under a closer eye by the Death Eaters. Specifically by Lucius and Nott.
That was over the summer, though, and while staying at Riddle Manor with all of the Death Eaters was annoying as fuck, it kept his father occupied enough to personally ignore Mattheo and the others in his year- Lorenzo, Theo, Draco, Blaise, Pansy, and Astoria.
That has changed now.
Today is October 1st, and school has been in session for exactly one month. In that month, Mattheo and his friends have ignored every letter to them from his aunt Narcissa and uncle Lucius, any letters from Theo's father Tiberius, and any letters from the Lestranges. Blaise even had neglected to respond to his mother, Contessa Zabini, which was a very stupid thing to do- but brave nonetheless.
Mattheo had done all of this confidently, until this very moment.
He was staring down at a letter while laying on a common room sofa. A very dangerous letter.
A letter brought by Vasily, the owl belonging to Tom Riddle, You-Know-Who, the Dark Lord, Voldemort, daddy dearest, and someone Mattheo really does not want to talk to.
See, Mattheo isn't stupid. Mattheo isn't on the Order's Side, or his mother and father's side.
Mattheo is just on Mattheo's side. Okay, so maybe he is stupid, but he chooses to live in blissful ignorance and has so far evaded the Dark Mark. All that Mattheo wants to do is party and pass potions class and turn 17 and NOT talk to his father.
He has 729 days and 9 hours to go, but the second Mattheo turns 17 he can blow this joint.
Mattheo ripped open the letter, and opened the scroll inside.
-
Mattheo,
Your father and I are so happy that it is your fifteenth birthday. We hope you have a wonderful celebration, and honor the young heir and future lord that you have become. There is a Wizengamot trial on the 27th of this month for Barty Crouch Jr, and we must call you home as Lord Black Apparent to vote in his favor. I will see you and Lorenzo soon, my son.
Lucius will be in touch,
Your Mother and Father
-
Mattheo blankly stared at the letter as he allowed it to burn in the fireplace next to the sofa. Four sentences total, two for Mattheo's 15th birthday. It was clear his mother only wrote to abuse Mattheo's role as the heir to the House of Black, and it was only from his father's owl because his mother was locked up.
Mattheo just took another swig of the firewhiskey in his hand.
"You alright mate?"
Mattheo forgot Theo and Draco were still there, on the sofa adjacent to him.
"Yeah, just birthday wishes from mommy and daddy."
"Did they mention Crouch?" Draco asked.
Mattheo only tilted his head in response, still staring at the fire.
"Father has not stopped writing me begging me to discuss it with you" Draco said
"And you didn't think to give me a heads up?" Mattheo asked.
"4 days ago you explicitly said not to say a single thing any resident of Riddle Manor wants us to tell you" Blaise added.
Mattheo can't argue against that.
Lorenzo walked down the stairs then, holding a blunt and looking absolutely stoned, so Mattheo figured this was as good of a time as ever to tell him.
"Mommy dearest is going to be out of Azkaban soon, Enz." Mattheo said cautiously.
"Oh fuck me," Enzo said, plopping down on Mattheo's sofa.
"Hey I'm sitting here dick" Mattheo said, kicking Enzo to get off.
"When is she getting out?" Enzo asked, ignoring Mattheo.
"I dont know." Mattheo replied, sinking back into the cushions.
"My father hasn't said anything about it" Draco said.
"That's because he's busy gambling in Rome casinos and killing muggles. Contessa Zabini has eyes everywhere" Blaise said.
Enzo just groaned and shoved his face in a pillow.
Mattheo offered him the firewhiskey, and Draco started talking about something his mother wrote to him while Mattheo barely paid attention.
The 7th and 6th years with the Dark Mark had begun harassing Mattheo and the others about not responding to their parents, and he was getting the brunt of it.
They're all afraid of Mattheo, but they're afraid of his father more.
The Dark Lord's too much of a pussy to send a letter to Mattheo himself about his newest 'duties within the school,' and Mattheo is fine with ignoring every attempt to reach him otherwise.
If his dad wants to come out of hiding and pull up to Dumbledore's Hogwarts to talk to Mattheo then he can do just that.
Just an hour ago Adrian Pucey approached Mattheo, telling him to respond to Lucius and Nott's letters. Mattheo had asked him if he valued his right index finger, or if he could still use a quill without it.
That shut him up.
News of the disobedience had gotten to their parents, of course, but the 7 of them, Mattheo, Lorenzo, Theo, Draco, Blaise, Pansy, and Astoria, had made a pact to ignore them.
They would be choosing to stay at Hogwarts during Yule, and ignoring every letter sent to them. The Crouch trial in a few weeks complicated things, but Mattheo would not be leaving Hogwarts, so his parents could figure that out on their own.
Tom Marvolo Riddle and Bellatrix Lestrange might be far more powerful than Mattheo, but they had very little power that they could openly show beyond their control of the Death Eaters.
I mean, imagine Bellatrix and Tom waiting in Dumbledore's office to pick him up? Mattheo laughed at the thought of it.
"Are you even listening to me Mattheo," Blaise asked, interrupting his thoughts.
"What?" Mattheo said.
"Don't do anything stupid to get yourselves suspended. No fights." Blaise said
"Not even during quidditch?" Lorenzo said in awe.
"Not even during quidditch, because then you'll be sent to Malfoy Manor and Riddle Manor from there so just keep your heads down and act like you know what you're doing." Blaise said, sternly looking between Draco and them.
What they were doing was avoiding the Dark Mark and any further power their parents could hold over them.
They didn't know what to do about the summers yet, but as long as they avoided the Death Eaters and the Order they would be fine. They had each other, and that's all they needed.
They couldn't stay in Europe because of Contessa Zabini, but their parents' reach hadn't touched any of the other continents, other than Lord Greengrass' business deals in New York, Singapore, Moscow, and Beijing.
Mattheo had heard Peru was beautiful during June. If they stayed hidden during the summers and all turned 17 before and during 7th year at Hogwarts, they would be fine.
They would be fine, Mattheo reassured himself again, eyes drifting to where the remnants of the letter laid as ashes in the fire.
They would be fine.