Lenore
"How's your project with you know who going?" Padma asks as we finish dinner and walk out of the Great Hall.
"Don't even get me started," I sigh.
"He doesn't let me do shit, even though my work is just as good as his."
"I'm so sorry, I hate group projects too."
"You should've taken alchemy with me," I joke, knowing that she hated the subject, even if she was amazing at it.
"I'd rather deal with Hagrid's blast-ended-skrewts," she chuckles.
"Um no, remember when one of them almost took my head off?" I laugh with her.
"Should we play some exploding snap when we get back?" She asks.
"Yes! I finally have time now that Dueling Club is cancelled."
The Professors said they needed the room for something, so this meeting was called off.
I was a little disappointed, but it did give me time to finish all of my homework today.
"Great, I have some snacks too-" She replies until another interrupts.
"Dalton!" A deep voice calls.
I give Padma a look before I turn to Nott.
What does this prat want now?
"Just because dueling is cancelled doesn't mean you get to back out of our bet," he smirks.
Shit. I thought he would've forgotten about that.
"Yes it does, Nott," I roll my eyes. "There's no more seventh-year session, so there's no duel."
"Unless you cancelled it? So we wouldn't have to duel?" He raises an eyebrow.
"Yeah, because every decision I make revolves around you," I say sarcastically.
He only chuckles, "One day it will, cara mia."
"Highly doubt that," I mumble.
"Then come on, just one duel. We planned it for today, remember?" He adds with a sparkle in his eye, somehow knowing that I hate cancelling plans no matter what it is.
"Later today. I'm busy right now."
"Fine, then I guess I'll have to tell Snape that you really did steal the potion-"
"Blackmailing me over a duel, Nott?" I say in disbelief.
He shrugs, a smile creeping over his face.
"Keeps things interesting, doesn't it?"
I glance over at Padma, who gives me a look asking if I need her help or not.
"Fine," I finally say.
I turn to Padma, whispering so Nott can't hear, "We can debrief after."
"You sure?" She asks.
"Yeah, it's fine, maybe I can finally put him in his place."
"Good luck," she smiles before heading off to the Ravenclaw common room, leaving me with my least favorite person in the entire world.
I turn back to Nott, desperately wanting to beat him in this duel.
I've been practicing, I just hope it's enough to beat him.
"Wait, where are we even going to duel? The room is taken."
"Luckily for you, I thought about that already," he says smugly.
"Okay, then where is it?" I say, starting to get even more annoyed with him by the second.
"You'll just have to follow me," he grins, taking a turn down a corridor.
I walk beside him, wondering how I ever ended up here.
"Did you finish the one part of the project yet?" He asks.
"Of course I did, Nott. Did you?"
I expect him to rub it in and say he got it done a week ago already, but instead he sighs, clearly wishing I never asked.
"No," he says flatly.
"Malfoy and his stupid ideas—he's having us practice every day for three hours since losing to Gryffindor."
"Every day?" I say in shock. That was excessive, considering Ravenclaw only practiced three times a week.
"Yeah, it's absolute bullshit. The only way we're going to get better is if we change our plays, not fly back and forth all day.
"And what does Malfoy say?" I ask.
He scoffs, "You know Malfoy. He always thinks he's right—he'd rather die before admitting I actually have a good idea for once."
"Make him think it was his idea, then," I suggest.
He seems to consider this, but I quickly add, "Well, as long as you don't get too good, otherwise you might beat us."
He looks over at me and smiles softly. Why, I'm not sure, but he does nonetheless.
"Don't worry, Dalton, I don't think Slytherin could ever beat you."
His comment caught me off guard, but before I had time to process it we came across a giant wooden door in the middle of the hall—one i've never seen before.
"What room is this? I could've sworn it's never been here before."
"That's because it hasn't," he says with a grin.
"I don't know what it's called, but it randomly appears sometimes with whatever you need inside," he explains.
Well, that would explain the mats on the floor then.
"That's amazing," I say in awe, looking around the room.
"You ready for me to beat you then?" He asks, readying his wand.
"If you end up in the Hospital Wing, then I already warned you that might happen," I say, immediately casting a stunning spell right at him.
He flies across the room onto his back, landing hard on the mat but getting up quickly.
"Oh I'm not going easy on you, Dalton."
He quickly casts a leg-locking spell, causing my knees to stiffen and not being able to move anywhere.
Hardly a second later, an enormous amount of water comes bursting out of his wand, so much that I think it might drown the place.
I don't hesitate another moment to free myself from the first curse, jumping out of the way just in time before the water hit me.
"Trying to drown me, Nott?!"
"Of course not, that would be a pathetic way to kill you," he laughs lightheartedly.
That only makes me more mad, so I cast bombarda directly next to him, the small explosion just a foot away.
"I didn't say to kill me!" He yells and throws another spell—incarcerous—in my direction.
The ropes bind tightly around me, but not hard enough to leave me gasping for air.
I'm honestly surprised he's even being that generous.
"Finite incantatum," I mutter, making the ropes fall at my feet.
He only looks more determined to beat me now, a look I'm sure I currently share.
"Impedimenta!" He shouts, but before it reaches me I block it with protego.
Instead, the spell rebounds, slowing him down instead.
I smile at him running after me in slow motion, but unfortunately the charm doesn't last for long.
He hits me with stupify before I can react, making me go flying across the room.
I'm able to cushion my fall with another spell, but he's already coming at me again before I'm back on my feet.
I put up another shield charm, giving me enough time get another idea.
"Oppugno," I point at the knights in the corner of the room with my wand, directing them to attack Nott.
Three of them charge after him, but he is more prepared than I thought.
With just a few spells he's able to turn all of them to pieces.
"Are you going to fight me yourself, Dalton? Or have the knights do it for you?"
"It was still my spell, Nott," I roll my eyes.
We fight back and forth, spells flying everywhere but neither backing down.
It seems we're more of an even match than I would've thought.
Until finally the volley comes to an end, and I'm suddenly surrounded by the thickest fog I have ever seen.
I can't even see my wand in front of me, the colorless haze disorienting.
"That's not fair, Nott," I yell into the blankness, slowly walking forward.
He doesn't reply, making me even more anxious for his next move.
I continue pacing around, occasionally seeing a shadow of a figure until it disappears a second later.
I'm almost ready to yell again at him, to say to knock it off and get back to actually dueling, but then I feel someone behind me.
I have no time to turn around before Nott's wand is pressed against my neck.
I jump slightly, but he only rests his chin on my shoulder, his body just barely brushing against my back to keep me from going anywhere.
"I win," he whispers in my ear.
I want to stop the shiver his voice sends down my back. I want to step away from him, put the distance that's always there between us.
But I'm frozen in place.
"I don't think the fog counts," I say, but it's softer than I would've liked.
"Of course it does," he mutters, but I can still hear his smirk.
He's never going to let me forget this, is he?
"So I get to be Vice-President of the club then?" He asks and steps away, clearly already knowing the answer.
"Fine. But I still get to boss you around," I joke.
"Yeah, well you already do that, don't you?" He laughs.
"That was fun, Dalton. We should do it again sometime," he says with a smirk.
"Yeah, so I can beat you next time," I reply.
"Keep dreaming, cara mia. I'll see you later," he leaves with a wink.