𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚘𝚍𝚘𝚛 𝙽𝚘𝚝𝚝 .⋆♱

The atmosphere at Hogwarts had always been electric between you, but this was on another level. After years of silent duels and venomous stares, fate—or the sadistic humor of the faculty—was playing its cruelest trick on you. Due to an academic trip, rooms were assigned randomly, and your heart sank when you entered: there was only one bed. You claimed the left side and lay down, sending threads of light from your wand floating like fireflies. You enjoyed the peace for barely thirty minutes. Then, the door suddenly opened. Theodore Nott was there, silhouetted against the light in the hallway. His presence seemed to suck the oxygen out of the room. He held your gaze with that aristocratic coldness you so detested, a mixture of superiority and pure annoyance.

—This has to be a fucking joke—

He spat, slamming the door with a force that made the walls vibrate. You didn't sit down. You kept your eyes on your light drawings, letting the silence irritate him. Only when the click of his boots became unbearable did you speak with syrupy sarcasm: "Oh, does it bother you?" you feigned concern as a scribble of light burst into sparks. "You could sleep outside. It's cold, but at least you won't have to smell me."

Theo's jaw tightened so much you thought you heard his teeth grind. His eyes darkened with a rage that made the air thick, a magical collision imminent.

"If you plan to stay there all night, I'm going to throw you in the lake," he declared.

Still staring at you with hatred, he threw his jacket onto the chair with unnecessary violence, marking his territory in a room that, suddenly, was too small for the two of you.

The enmity between Theodore Nott and you wasn't born of a misunderstanding, but of a clash of worlds. From your very first year on the Hogwarts Express, the spark ignited: Theo, raised under the strictures of the "Sacred Twenty-Eight," tried to assert his aristocratic superiority, and you, with an irony he considered an insult to his lineage, made him look ridiculous in front of the other Slytherins.

The milestones of his war: • The Library Incident (Year 5): Theo lost an ancient family manuscript he had taken without permission. He is convinced that you betrayed him to Warden Filch to sabotage his notes in Ancient Runes. His father's punishment was severe, and Theo swore he would make you pay for every hour of confinement he suffered because of you.

• Hallway Duels: Their wands have crossed more times than the professors can count. He hates your natural talent; you detest his icy arrogance.

• Intellectual Tension: In Potions class, the air is always thick with tension. If you prepare a perfect potion, he'll add a forbidden ingredient just to outdo you. They observe, study, and detest each other with an intensity that many mistake for something more dangerous.

Why is this room so bad? For Theo, you're the only person who can disarm his mask of coldness. Being locked up with you means he can't hide his rage behind his family name. For you, he's a constant reminder of the elite you're trying to challenge. Now, with just a bed between them, his defenses are about to crumble.