but we got one more night [zita]

[Deleted]

Theodosia was normally not one to break Hogwarts's rules, save for the ones about bullying and harassment. She didn't want to draw any more negative attention to herself than she had to, because if there were constantly professors breathing down her neck, then she wasn't going to be able to be her best self (and best serve the Dark Lady). However, that night, Theodosia decided to do something naughty and sneak out after curfew. She needed to scope out the castle without anyone else watching. She was sure that Elaine already knew of most of its strengths and weaknesses, having been a student at Hogwarts for seven years, but Theodosia thought that a second pair of eyes, and a second assessment, could never be amiss. She felt rather strange, walking through the darkened hallways on her own, without so much as Lumos to light her way, but Theodosia rather liked it. She felt even more like a snake than usual, relying on her hearing and sense of smell more than her eyesight to navigate through the hallways. She had reached the second floor without event, but almost the moment she set foot in the second floor corridor, Theodosia heard a second pair of footsteps echoing through the area along with her own. Theodosia froze. If it was a professor, then she was going to be in quite a bit of trouble. But if it was another student... then maybe things could get fun.

@zita

[Deleted]

Zita had no idea what she was doing, if she was being honest. It was late, well past curfew and she was out and about in the corridors. At first, she had had a reason to be out. She'd realized she'd left her Charms textbook in the library and had wanted to try and get it. She'd snuck out and headed towards the moving staircases. Once she'd gotten on them she realized that she'd caught them at the wrong time. Just as she was attempting to head to the fourth floor the stairs changed direction and she ended up on the second floor of the school. It was probably for the best; she was certain there would be a professor by the library anyway considering students liked to sneak in there. The last thing she wanted to do was get caught and have to sit out the next quidditch game for detention. Because she was already out, she decided to stroll down the corridor instead before heading back to the common room where she would be bored. Her senses were on high alert as she walked just incase the sound of footsteps echoed and she didn't have her wand lit up either so it would be easier to hide if she ran into someone. She was getting closer to the moving staircases again when she actually did hear footsteps approaching where she was. Whoever it was didn't have a wand light either but she did see a silhouette. She paused a minute, waiting for them to call out because there was no way they hadn't heard her, right? When they said nothing, she grabbed her wand, cast a quick Lumos and then furrowed her brow when she came face to face with Theodosia.

Tag; @theodosia
SOTD; HERE

[Deleted]

Within moments of her reaching the top of the staircase, there was a wand light in Theodosia’s face, and she had to cover her mouth to keep her laugher in check when she saw who the owner of the wand was. Of all of the people in the castle to have been exploring the same area of the school as Theodosia did, it had to be Zita. The Slytherin couldn’t have asked for a more perfect scenario, especially with the face that Zita was giving her – confused rather than repulsed or scared. After she managed to stifle her laugher at the peculiarity of the situation, Theodosia removed her hand from her mouth and then pursed her lips at Zita. “You’d better put that out, darling. We wouldn’t want any professors finding us.” It was easy enough to come up with an excuse for being out of bed on your own, but it was infinitely more suspicious for a pair of students to be out of bed together – even if they hadn’t originally left together, as was the case with Theodosia and Zita at the moment. “Unless you’re going to tell me to leave again.” Theodosia said, quirking one eyebrow upwards and crossing her arms over her chest. That would make this officially the shortest conversation that she and Zita had ever had, but Theodosia was oddly okay with that. She didn’t like being scorned, even by pretty girls. And if a professor just so happened to receive a tip that there was a student on the second floor corridor the moment Theodosia disappeared… Well, wouldn’t that be a shame?

@zita

[Deleted]

Theodosia was standing in front of her and Zita wondered what had she ever done to the fates to deserve this much.... she didn't actually know what to call whatever this was that the fates kept throwing into her path. She didn't like it. Shaking her head, she barely listened as the girl spoke, telling her to put her wand light out so they wouldn't get caught. What was she doing out? She couldn't do anything but put out the light because, really, she was right. And the only reason she'd had it out in the first place was to see who had been in front of her. She pocketed her wand just as Theodosia crossed her arms and asked her if she was going to tell her to leave. Zita snorted at her tone. She hadn't liked that so much had she? "Leave if you want. I just know I'm not staying here in case a professor does actually show up," she whispered with amusement in her tone. Zita shrugged and tried to walk past her to catch the moving staircase only to realize that it had moved on. Apparently they wanted to move faster tonight than they usually did. Awesome. She turned around once again and it felt like the darkness got heavier. She could see Theodosia's silhouette and the whites of her eyes but nothing behind her was really visible. "Great. Stuck instead. Nevermind." She was just trying to get back to the common room and now she was stuck with someone who liked to push her buttons. Leaving was definitely her best option.

Tag; @theodosia
SOTD; HERE

[Deleted]

Theodosia smiled to herself when the Hufflepuff put out the light on the tip of her wand. She was a good girl, following instructions. Now if only Theo could get her to follow more than the most basic of commands… Well, maybe that was asking too much, too soon. The Hufflepuff said that Theodosia could leave if she wanted to, and the Slytherin just laughed. “Darling, you know I never want to leave you.” Theodosia purred. The only reason she had departed the locker rooms was because it had been a command, and Theo was hoping that if she showed the relationship was a two-way street – kind of – then the Hufflepuff would be a bit more malleable. Whether or not that theory was working remained yet to be seen, since the one command that Theodosia had given thus far was mutual beneficial, unlike the command for her to leave the locker room had been. The Hufflepuff attempted to push past Theo and on to the staircase, but the stairs in question had already drifted away to some other locale. Theo smiled again at that; she did so love it when her prey was cornered. “You know, I can think of a great number of ways to pass the time.” Theo said with an innocent shrug. She knew that even if the Hufflepuff wasn’t fond of her personality, the other girl definitely had a physical attraction to Theodosia. Maybe capitalizing on that was the way to go? Theodosia could see infinitely many paths stretched before her, but she decided that waiting to see the Hufflepuff’s reaction to the innocuous suggestion would show her the best road to take.

@zita

[Deleted]

Zita had to hold in her own chuckle when Theodosia laughed and purred out words that she expected to hear. She said she never wanted to leave her but she couldn't really judge how true those words were. Or how she meant the words. She didn't think she could take them at face value. "Is that why you went all stiff and stoic on me last time?" her words were still whispers in the dark at this point because she wanted to remain as quiet as possible. But she wanted to let Theodosia know that she'd noticed the way she'd been when she left out of the locker room. her facial expression hadn't changed much but she was noticeably stiffer when she left. Zita had opened her eyes and had caught a glimpse of her as she left. She hadn't been sad to see her go honestly because she'd settled it in her head before that Theodosia wasn't who she needed. Or so she'd repeated to herself anyway. It hadn't been too long since then but she'd still managed to keep the snake off of her mind. Yet here she was again, cornered again staring at pretty brown eyes and curly hair. It wasn't bad or off for her to think of her that way; Theodosia was obviously cute and anyone who said she wasn't was lying. Zita wasn't even surprised in the slightest at her comment. She felt like her words were a trap but then again everything about Theodosia seemed like a trap. She rose an eyebrow at her instead. "I thought we'd decided before that that was a bad idea?" She'd even admitted herself. She was so eager to make bad decisions.

Tag; @theodosia
SOTD; HERE

[Deleted]

Theodosia wished that there was more light in the corridor, even though she had specifically asked the Hufflepuff to put the light out. It was so much easier to read someone when she could see the entirety of their body language. Theodosia supposed she could also feel someone’s body language, but somehow doubted that the other girl would take kindly to having foreign fingers running up and down her arms and her face and the rest of her body to try to determine how she was feeling. “Nothing about me is ever stiff when I’m around you.” Theo said suggestively. Maybe if she was a boy, something would be, though. In any case, the Slytherin didn’t want the Hufflepuff of thinking of her as stiff. Rather, sinewy, sensuous, supple… all sorts of words beginning with s came to mind when Theodosia thought of how she wanted the other girl to regard her, but stiff and stoic were not either of them.

The Hufflepuff made some comment about them spending time together in less conversational ways was a bad idea, and the Slytherin smirked a little. “You decided that this was a bad idea.” Theodosia corrected. “I merely agreed with you because that was what you wanted to hear.” Merlin knew that she was getting very used to telling the Hufflepuff what she wanted to hear, albeit in a slightly more roundabout manner so that she didn’t know she was being manipulated. “You can always rethink that decision, though, if something compels you to do so.” Theo wasn’t sure that now was the right time for the other girl to rethink that decision, but little nudges here and there would tip the Hufflepuff over the edge eventually… and Theodosia would be there to catch her when she fell.

@zita

[Deleted]

She didn't quite know if she wanted to laugh or groan at the next words to come out of the Slytherin's mouth. She didn't even have to see her to figure out what she looked like. The look upon her face, and possibly even her body language, were all suggestive, set to pull her in. Really, Zita should have expected those words, she quite possibly even said it that way just to set her up for it, to see if she would do it. Games were meant to be fun but Zita knew of the two of them, Theodosia had to be having more fun than she. "You know what I mean, Theodosia. You really didn't like that. Did it make you feel rejected?" she asked. She had known she wasn't going to get a real answer, didn't really expect to. She did, however, need to watch her words around her if she wanted to try to get one. She also wondered how long she could go on changing the tone of the topic before she got sick of the entire conversation. Maybe Zita could somehow make her be the one to walk away. "So you lied? You think it's a good idea?" Zita took a deep breath before she questioned the pretty Slytherin. "People who lie to me are right up there with people who kick me. Don't particularly care for them.," Zita tried to keep the amusement out of her voice as she spoke. She wasn't even sure why she found the thought of that first encounter amusing. She had been incredibly angry at her, almost to the point of punching her. Maybe even then she was just trying for some attention. Theodosia mentioned her rethinking the decision and... she wanted to. They were in the dark. No one would see. She could pretend it never happened because she could barely see her. "Como dije, eres una mala idea. Puedo sentirlo" her words in Spanish were whispered, even more so than before and she was speaking to herself, eyeing the Slytherin girl curiously. She still hadn't figured her out, but the girl was pulling her in. "I'm sure you'll be around to know if that happens. If I change my mind and just so happen to decide to kiss you senseless. You'll be there for it."

Tag; @theodosia
SOTD; HERE

[Deleted]

Theodosia chuckled when Zita tried to puzzle out how she had felt. It was true that Theodosia had felt rejected, but she was more disappointed in herself, for giving up and not pushing, than she was in Zita for saying those things to push her away. Theodosia had always considered herself a persistent person – hence why she was still speaking to Zita even when the other girl had made it abundantly clear that she didn’t want anything to do with Theo – but she had kept backing off from Zita because she thought it would endear her to the other girl. Since that obviously wasn’t working, she was going to need to approach at another angle. “I don’t lie.” Theodosia said smoothly. “I just tell the truths that people want to hear.” Truth and lie, right and wrong, light and dark – weren’t they all just relative? Theodosia’s truth could just as easily be someone else’s lie, and if Theo was willing to admit that to get herself another step ahead, then all that made her was Slytherin, not a liar. And for all the Gryffindors who tried to argue that the two were the same – well, they were just looking at the wrong set of truths. “If you don’t care for me, why do you insist on taking part in these conversations?” Theo asked. It wasn’t like she was trapping Zita… at least not physically. The girl could be aware of the possible repercussions for her actions or inactions, but that didn’t mean that she couldn’t go, and damn the consequences. The next words that Zita spoke were in Spanish, which Theo obviously didn’t understand. She kept her face politely neutral – not that Zita could see her in the first place. “I will be, won’t I?” Theo mused when Zita switched back to English and she could understand her again. “I’m sure you’ll also be able to figure it out if I do decide this is as bad of an idea as you seem to think it is.” Then she wouldn’t be hanging around Zita all the time… and hopefully the Hufflepuff would notice that.

@zita

[Deleted]

Theodosia didn't answer her, as she expected, and Zita huffed out a breath of air in mild annoyance. Would she ever get an answer to any question she ever asked her? Questions that she truly wanted answers to, anyway? Zita doubted it. The girl liked to play games, all while not really revealing much of her own hand. The only time she'd gotten a straight answer from her was when the girl had revealed that she'd truly been attracted to women, and she'd only done that after Zita had been about to walk away from her entirely. Zita didn't think that approach would work again; she had the feeling that the girl would think she was bluffing. She still couldn't answer for certain if it would be one or not. The Slytherin girl then proceeded to spout off some nonsense about telling 'truths that people wanted to hear' and Zita still found herself amused with the way she dodged and jumped over any straightforward explanations, as frustrating as it was. "And your truth would be...?" she asked suddenly, betting her life that she would get another reflection or another nonanswer; anything but words that meant something to her. She then proceeded to as Zita what made her stay and participate in the conversations they had and Zita had to bold back a snort, remembering that they were both in a darkened hallway in the of the night out past curfew. "Forgetfulness, among other things," she answered honestly but she would leave it that. At least today it was forgetfulness. She forgot that if she wasn't quick enough that she would miss the stairs and that would leave her stranded up on the current floor they found themselves. She didn't want to venture back into the corridor where she'd come because it defeated her overall goal of getting back to the common room. She also wasn't going to back down from this girl. "Is that you trying to convince me that this, whatever it is, isn't a bad idea?" she was asking a lot of questions, but if she asked questions maybe she'd get something without having to give anything. Maybe she'd walk away, sick of the interrogation. Maybe she'd surprise her.

Tag; @theodosia
SOTD; HERE

[Deleted]

Theodosia bit back a chuckle when Zita asked her what the Slytherin’s own personal truth was. She probably thought that she could manipulate Theodosia or back her into a corner. The Hufflepuff would soon find out that snakes were more slippery than that – it wouldn’t be so easy to get Theodosia to do something as stupid as admit that she didn’t know what her truth was – or worse, espouse a truth that would send the Hufflepuff packing permanently. (Then again, the other girl showed a remarkably small amount of self-preservation; after everything Theodosia had said and done, Zita still seemed to be just as interested in the game as Theodosia was.) “I think you know what my truth is.” Theo replied, once again lamenting the fact that Zita couldn’t see her face and therefore had no idea what sort of Cheshire grin was spreading across it. Hopefully that would give the Hufflepuff something to ruminate on.

“Other things?” Theodosia pressed. Personally, she couldn’t see any other thing that might be motivating Zita except for attraction, and that was exactly what Theodosia wanted to foster. Maybe there was some sense of adventure that came with the constant run-ins, but Theo wouldn’t know. She didn’t do adventure. At the question about whether or not she was trying to convince Zita this wasn’t a bad idea, Theodosia didn’t bother suppressing her laugh. “Darling, if I wanted to convince you that this wasn’t a bad idea, you’d already be convinced.” Maybe it was overconfident, but Theo was absolutely certain that if she had devoted her full resources to this, and didn’t treat it as the game it was, Zita would already be eating out of the palm of her hand. “I should really be going, darling. Darkness calls.” Theo said, not waiting for a response before ducking into a darkened corridor to begin her trek back down to the Slytherin common room.

@zita

[Deleted]

Of course. Theodosia didn't really give her an answer to her question, stating that Zita already knew what hr truth was. She didn't know much about the Slytherin girl; she could make a bunch of careful inferences about her based on stereotypes but she didn't actually know a lot about her. She was attracted to women, per her words. She was persistent. She was a pain. She was infuriating. And this was a waste of time? Asking the same questions over again and again, getting no where. Then again maybe that was just her saying that everything Zita thought about her was right. Which made it all even more pointless. The game was getting old. "I wouldn't ask if I knew." there was a clear, resigned sigh in her voice as she spoke. She then did exactly as Zita had expected, once again, and had questioned what other things had been keeping her. Zita didn't answer, just chuckled humorlessly in the darkness. She wanted to light her wand to see the look upon her face but if there was someone down the corridor she'd just left, they would see the light and come their way and she really just wanted to get back to her common room in peace. She could hear the sound of the stairs coming back around again, she hoped, when the girl mentioned something about the assumption that she would have already convinced Zita if she wanted to that sticking around her wasn't a bad idea. And that was enough for her really. She wouldn't stick around. She wouldn't entertain her any longer. She was just about to turn around once again to check the status of the stairs, seeing if they'd arrived yet, when Theodosia chose then to walk off. Maybe it was all of the questioning, Zita couldn't believe that the girl was really done with the conversation. She'd stayed around for much longer last time and hadn't left until Zita had told her to. Good. She was just about to leave anyway. She turned back around, only to see that the stairs hadn't arrived just yet. Great. She hoped she didn't get caught waiting on them.

Tag; @theodosia
SOTD; HERE
(Zita El Fin~~)