Betrayal of the Black

forty-four

"So adorable," he cooed.

She repeated his words mockingly, and he only grinned. She didn't even give him the chance to blink before she raised her sword. He countered it at the last second, and their swords collided with a loud clang.

Their moves were a bit sloppy at first, testing each other out and getting reacquainted with the weight of their swords again. Though, within moments, her senses opened up. She saw his attacks coming, and she countered them.

He thrusted, and she parried. She thrusted, and he parried. It became as simple as dancing with him, albeit more dangerous. The more he forced her back, the harder she hit back.

Adrenaline and excitement surged through her, even as sweat began to bead on her brow. Again and again, they'd fall into a predictable rhythm, until one of them broke it and they'd descend into chaos.

Somehow, they came to a silent agreement, and stepped away from each other briefly to catch their breath. She wiped her hand over her forehead, breathing heavily.

"Is that really the best you can do?" said Theo. "I'm disappointed, darling, I really am."

"Oh, you're such a prick," she muttered.

She attacked him again. This time, she went for a overhead strike, raising the sword above her head. Her sword collided with the forte of his, the strongest part of the sword.

Without missing a beat, she raised her sword again, looking like she was going for the same attack. Theo, thinking the same, lifted his sword for the same defence.

She kept her gaze linked with his, she sidestepped his counterattack. She dropped her own attack to his leg, purposefully letting her blade graze his calf, but not enough to actually wound him.

A hiss left him, more of a sign of anger than pain, but the way his eyes glinted said he was proud of her. He didn't let it deter him, though, and he hit her back just as hard.

He attacked her repeatedly, forcing her to be on the defensive. She staggered backwards, struggling to keep her attention on parring his thrusts, and also on her surroundings.

She needed to turn the tide in her favour again, and she mentally ran through all of her options. She landed on one: deception. She hated resorting to foul play, but she knew that historically, it was not only expected, it was the norm.

It was a trick that would only work with Theo, but she did it anyway. She stumbled again, this time on purpose, and fell backwards onto the grass. She cried out, her hand going to her thigh.

"Ow! My leg, my leg," she whined.

Theo stopped his pursuit instantaneously, and his grip softened on his sword. His brows pulled down in concern.

"Are you alright?" he demanded.

"Yeah," she said. "You care too much."

She swiped at his legs with her own, and though it wasn't enough to get him to fall over, it was enough to disorient him. In a flash, she was back on her feet, and thrusting her sword at him.

She went for a disarming manoeuvre, the very first he taught her, and hit the hilt of his sword. His sword clattered to the floor, and she grinned in victory. Having said that, the duel wasn't over yet.

Raising her sword, she intended to strike him again with a final blow. What she hadn't expected, however, was for how quick Theo was able to produce a Shield Charm.

She saw the ripple of the charm moments before it became invisible. She braced herself for the impending collision of her sword and the shield.

Theo took a couple steps backwards, properly getting a hold of his wand in one hand, and a dagger in the other. He winced, expecting the impact as well.