Disclaimer: Don't own and never will
AN: Written for HedwigBlack's weekly challenge and is based on a pairing supplied for willowscribe's Slash/Femslash Random Pairing Challenge.
Theodore Nott was first and foremost, a Slytherin through and through. He believed in blood-purity and the superiority of his own house. He hated the Dark Lord in a way he didn't think possible though and for one simple reason. The Dark Lord would not accept no as an answer and Theo's father would not accept a no answer either. His destiny was to become a Death Eater, regardless of whether he wanted to or not.
He was however, first and foremost, a player. He was smart enough to realise that the Dark Lord had largely won and that the Order of the Phoenix and Dumbledore's Army were fighting against incredible odds. But he knew full well that the Dark Lord was not completely victorious until the last holdouts of organised resistance were broken and only a fool, such as his father, would believe that the Dark Lord was secure in his power.
Worst of all was the simple fact that despite all the power of the Dark Lord, all his victories, he still hadn't managed to find, or defeat, Harry Potter, better known as The-Boy-Who-Lived and if the Dark Lord's rise to power had shown one thing, it was that a small group of followers and a charismatic leader and figurehead could defeat a larger, more powerful and better armed foe. All it took was courage and planning and more than a little deviousness.
And that is where Theo came in. Unlike the other houses of Hogwarts, Slytherin had the dubious honour of having no members in Dumbledore's Army. But that didn't mean that they weren't there. Instead of joining the main body of the DA, where they would have been regarded with suspicion and coldness, instead they formed a secretive 'hidden' section of the DA, gathering intelligence and placing false trails and rumours for the Carrows and their followers to follow. And their chosen liaison to talk to the DA was none other than Theodore Nott himself and that was both amusing and frustrating.
"Why the hell are you asking me Greengrass?" he asked angrily after she asked him. The bottle-blond girl looked at him with an expression of incredulousness.
"Theo, in case you hadn't noticed, your dad is a DEATH EATER," she pointed out. "You get more leeway from the Carrows than the rest of us. And I KNOW you don't want to be a Death Eater."
"How-"
"You have a tendency to curl your lip whenever someone mentions it," she said, cutting him off before he could go any further. "Most people wouldn't notice. You have a talent for being unnoticed."
"Then ho-"
"Nott, I have spent the past YEAR trying to flirt with you! I. LIKE. YOU. For some absurd reason," she said exasperatedly. "But it doesn't matter how much I signal my interest to you, because you want Longbottom."
"I don't want Lo-" he started, but Daphne cut him off.
"You stare at his a%$$ during Muggle Studies," she said, giving him a firm look. "And you lick your lips. Trust me, I know. Think about it, you'll get plenty of chances to be alone with him too."
Theo blushed and Daphne laughed, a slightly sparkling thing that annoyed him.
"What's going to stop me simply giving you away to the Carrows and the Dark Lord?" he asked sullenly and Daphne smirked.
"Theodore Nott, I didn't come unprepared," she said as her eyes sparkled with mischief. "See Longbottom's the carrot. The stick is a number of incriminating documents that you really wouldn't like to see in certain hands."
"WHAT!?" he yelled. Daphne rolled her eyes.
"Relax Theo, it's not that I don't trust you,"
"You don't," Theo pointed out and Daphne chuckled with amusement.
"No I don't, do I?" she replied before continuing. "Let's just say I trust you as much as I trust anyone outside my sister then. I just like to make sure you won't betray me."
"It's nice to be so trusted," Theo said sardonically. "Well it looks like I'm in then."
"Knew we could rely on you Theo-kins," she replied with a chuckle and she gave him a hug. "Even if I can't have you."
For the next month he stayed as a shadowy figure, a messenger who, to all external appearances, taunted and attacked Gryffindors and others at random, while transferring vital information to the resistance. Until that rather fateful day at the end of January, in what was supposed to be a normal Dark Arts class.
"Good morning class," Amycus Carrow wheezed as he walked into the classroom. "Today we will be practising the use of the Cruciatus curse."
Theo winced. It wasn't that he couldn't cast the spell (his father had used it on him often enough), but he never really saw the point of it. Curses were supposed to be useful in a fight, but the Cruciatus curse had no real value that other spells could not deliver with more efficiency and more effectively.
"Young Longbottom here 'as been volunteered for you to practise on," he continued as he waved his wand at a sheet that sat in the corner to reveal Neville Longbottom tied up in front of them. Amycus pulled out his wand and smirked. "I will demonstrate the curse and then you will form an orderly line and take it in turns to hit him with the curse."
"Professor, isn't that likely to kill him?" Susan Bones asked timidly and Professor Carrow chuckled.
"It won't do anythin' o' the sort girl," he sneered. "He'll live. Just don' wan' him ter be able to anything fer a while."
"Bu-"
"Nobody cares if he loses 'is mind, he's still physically alive when we're finished with him," Professor Carrow snapped, cutting Susan off sharply. "It's what you get if yew fancy being a hero! Now pay attention!"
There was a sudden silence as the whole class watched Professor Carrow point his wand at Neville and Nott gritted his teeth, determined not to let them get to him. But as Professor Carrow raised his wand, Theo snapped.
"Avada Kedavra!" he yelled angrily and a look of shock suddenly crossed Professor Carrow's face as the spell hit him firmly in the chest. There was a moment of deadly silence. The air became tense as what Theo had done slowly sunk in. And suddenly all hell broke lose as an impromptu rebellion broke out in the classroom as supporters of the Dark Lord and the Dumbledore's Army suddenly started fighting one another.
The battle was very short and to the point. The majority of supporters of the Dark Lord were outnumbered by two to one in the class and it was soon over. Susan Bones and Hannah Abbot both stunned Pansy Parkinson, while the Patil twins neatly defeated Goyle with all the grace of a pair of dancers, their spells so wonderfully entwined that it was hard to believe they were separate people and Michael Corner broke Crabbe's nose with a well aimed punch, quickly followed up with a stunning spell from Antony Goldstein. A cheer quickly rang out from the victorious DA members.
"Wow Nott, didn't think you had it in you!" Parvati exclaimed excitedly and Theodore swore.
"It was a damn stupid thing to do," he said angrily as he untied Neville, who gave him a smile.
"Thanks for saving my skin out there Theo," he said and Theo raised an eyebrow.
"I saved you right here," he pointed out dryly. "I hardly think that counts as out there."
"You know what I mean," he said with a smile, before his face turned serious. "We need to get out of here, everyone!"
"Bu-"
"We've just defeated You-Know-Who's people in this one classroom, but it won't be long before they come after us, with far bigger numbers," Neville pointed out, cutting Susan off. Within minutes, the resistance movement had moved quickly and quietly from the classroom and were standing in front of what appeared to be a wall.
"So what are we waiting for?" Theo asked and Neville smiled, nodding towards the wall. Suddenly a pair of doors appeared in front of their group.
"Welcome Theo, to the Room of Requirement," Neville said with a smirk and Theo looked at the room critically.
"I've heard of this room," he said with a frown. "I always thought it was a myth."
"Nope. Harry discovered it back in fifth year," Neville said happily as they filed into the room, which was quickly setting up beds and sinks and all the amenities that could be found in the Castle. Theo frowned as he felt a twinge of jealousy at the mention of Harry. However, before he could say anything, Neville turned to face him with a curious look on his face.
"Why did you save me anyway Nott? It's not like you to commit yourself to one side or the other." Neville asked curiously and Theo frowned.
"Don't you know?" he asked and Neville shook his head in a way that made Theo's heart beat double time. With a smirk, he leaned forward and kissed Neville firmly on the lips, a kiss Neville was soon returning with equal fervour.
"Finally!" the Patil twins said in exasperation, but they ignored them as they focused on one another.