"How old are you?" Professor McGonagall asked suspiciously.
"16," Theodore Nott admitted.
"Then I'm afraid you'll have to leave. Nobody underage is allowed in the battle."
"I'm afraid you don't have complete jurisdiction professor."
"I'm sure I don't know what you mean Nott, but I won't allow…"
He cut her off, "What you will and won't allow are no longer of consequence. I will be a part of this fight because, whether you like it or not, this is my war too."
"I understand that Nott, but I cannot let you endanger yourself like that."
"Again professor, what you can and can't do isn't important. Right now all that matters is doing whatever possible to stop the Dark Lord."
"And the of-age wizards will take care of the problem."
"Yes, because that will work so well," he said sarcastically. "If the 'of-age wizards' had done something right for once earlier then you wouldn't have an army of kids being forced to deal with someone else's shit."
"You just admitted it. You're just a kid. This isn't your problem."
"It's my problem because it affects me. I know I might die out there, but after attending Hogwarts this year with the Carrows I have earned the right to die."
"Dying is not some right to be earned. Do you even understand what death is?"
He laughed shortly, "I understand better than most, professor." He rolled up his left sleeve to reveal the Dark Mark, "I understand very well indeed."
"What the hell is that?" Professor McGonagall snapped.
"It's the Dark Mark. I was initiated over the summer, and I've seen death many times since. I watched my mother die over Christmas Break because she told the Dark Lord that he'd gone too far. I know that death is final, that it's irreversible, and that it means you never come back. But I have to fight."
"Why?"
"Because if I don't, I'll die."
"That's a bit overdramatic Nott," she said disapprovingly.
"Don't you understand what this means?" he pointed to the tattoo on his arm. "It means that I have three choices: not fight and be killed, go against him and fight with my school, or fight with the Death Eaters. Oh shit…"
"Watch your language," she reprimanded him.
"I need an answer now Professor. I have to decided whether or not to lie to my father or tell him the truth."
Minerva turned around and sure enough, her old pupil, Thomas Nott, was striding angrily towards them. "Fine, you may fight."
"What are you still doing here Theodore?" he growled.
"I'm staying father. Last year, when I was nervous about becoming a Death Eater you told me I had to choose a side. I've chosen one. The Dark Lord is crazy and he needs to be stopped."
His father's face turned bright red and he slapped his son, "How dare you? You will not go against everything I've taught you, I will not allow it."
"Oh, you won't allow it, will you? What you will and won't allow is not longer of consequence. I am perfectly capable of making my own decisions thank you very much. Now, I think you ought to leave," Theo said quite calmly.
"You can't make me leave," Thomas snarled, "And I won't leave unless you come with me," he grabbed Theo's wand are tightly (to drag him out and as a precaution).
Professor McGonagall pulled out her wand and, in a dangerous tone, said, "He might not be able to make you leave, but I can. And furthermore, you will be leaving alone."
"Listen lady, I don't know who you think you are, but this is a private family matter."
"I am Headmistress McGonagall, I was your teacher for 7 years and 1 summer because you failed my class in your fourth year. And when you touch one of my students it becomes my business. I suggest you listen to your son and leave right now or I'll have to show you why the Sorting Hat put me in Gryffindor rather than Ravenclaw…"
"Ooh, burn."
"Stop that Finnigan, it is not necessary."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
With a dirty look Thomas Nott stalked off, muttering angrily under his breath.
"Thomas," Minerva called out.
He turned around, "What?"
"Stop using such language or I shall have to wash your mouth out with soap."
He glared but stopped cursing all the same, he knew all too well that she wasn't kidding.
Against his will, Theo smiled.
Seamus and Neville came over, "Haha, nice one Nott. You know, I thought you were gonna chicken out when your dad came in."
"Gee thanks for the faith Finnigan."
Seamus laughed, "You're welcome."
"Let's go, they have food in the Great Hall," Neville said.
"If I didn't know any better I'd say you were turning into Ron," Seamus teased.
"They have cake," Neville added.
"Ooh, see you losers later," Seamus sped off. He liked cake.
"Do you think he even knows that this is a war?" Theo asked.
"Yeah, he knows. But knowing him, it won't really hit him until he's in the middle of a duel."
"Isn't that dangerous? He could lose his concentration."
Neville shrugged. "In this case it'll only be dangerous for his opponents, because when this hits him he'll be really pissed off. But how are you doing?"
Theo smiled (again, he's on a role), "Really, really good… I think I needed to do that."
And they all lived happily ever after... yeah... for some reason i decided to write a story about Theodore Nott... will wonders never cease?
It might have been longer but I really need to finish Chapter 12 of Ridiculous because it's been like a month since I last updated....