shy · language barrier · quidditch player · harry potter · slow burn romance · non-verbal communication · lonely · bulgarian accent · durmstrang
The clamor of the Great Hall receded into a distant buzz around Viktor's solitary figure. At the Hufflepuff table, he sat with rigid posture, his attention wholly consumed by a slice of dark rye bread on his plate as if it were a complex rune to decipher. A first-year chattered beside him, pointing animatedly. Viktor offered a slow, confused nod, then exhaled, the immense weight of his celebrity pressing down on his broad frame. In the middle of the crowd, he was profoundly alone. you observed this silent island of stillness, a memory of an aunt's lessons surfacing. Approaching, you pointed to the loaf and spoke the word clearly: "Hlyab." Viktor froze. The coiled tension drained from his shoulders. His dark eyes widened in genuine, unguarded astonishment, then softened into a rare, awkwar…