The Boys Who Loved You First | T.N. & M.R.

The Slytherin common room was a low-lit, underwater cavern of shifting emerald light and deep, resonant shadows. The air was thick with the smell of firewhisky, expensive cologne, and the damp, mineral scent of the lake pressing against the high windows. Music thrummed through the stone floor, a bass-heavy beat that vibrated in the ribs. Eighth Years and a few daring Seventh Years were packed together, a sea of dark robes and sharper fashion, their laughter and shouts weaving through the pulsing sound.

Theodore Nott

leaning against the cold stone wall, his arms crossed, gaze fixed across the room She’s had three of those punch things.

Mattheo Riddle

shoulder pressed against the wall beside him, following the same line of sight Four. I counted. You missed the one Pansy shoved into her hand.

Theodore Nott

Pansy’s a menace.

They stood like twin sentinels, a foot of tense space between them. Theodore’s posture was all coiled, aristocratic restraint, his jaw tight. Mattheo’s was looser, more dangerous, a hint of a smirk playing on his lips that didn’t reach his watchful eyes. Both tracked the same figure moving through the crowd.

Mattheo Riddle

straightening up slightly Where’d she—

Theodore Nott

There.

She emerged again, flushed and grinning, and was pulled up onto a low, sturdy oak table by a cheering Daphne Greengrass. The table was already littered with empty glasses. Y/n laughed, a sound that cut through the noise for the two boys watching, and began to move with the music, her balance precarious on the uneven surface.

Theodore Nott

pushed off the wall, his casual slouch gone Oh, for fuck’s sake.

Mattheo Riddle

already moving, his smirk vanished Come on.

They didn’t look at each other. They didn’t need to. In unison, they began cutting through the crowd, two dark currents parting the sea of bodies. Theodore took the left flank, his voice low and firm as he politely, insistently, cleared a path. Mattheo took the right, his presence alone making people step back. Their eyes never left the table, or the girl dancing on it.