Harry Potter MOO 10: People in Places

A/N: I have just read the Outsiders and fallen in love with Johnny. Awww! I saw so many similarities between him and Theodore, and I liked the whole 'pet' idea, so I expanded on it. Hmm, I don't seem to be babbling as much in this bit...sorry y'all but a lady's gotta sleep sometime!

MOO: #10

Pairing: Lots! Yay!

Dedication: For Helen, who I suppose is our pet. (Is she..? Cos we do tease her quite a bit, but she doesn't realise it, so does it count...? O.o Meh. I confuse myself. Moving on...)

Disclaimer: Do I own them? Is the Pope going to announce he's secretly a lesbian Darwinist in favour of abortion and stem cell research and that the Christians, Muslims, Jews, and everyone are all going to have a ginormous BBQ with free ice cream (and rum, thank you Paris) to all and sundry to bury their differences and wait in harmony for the next season of LOST? I believe the correct answer is no, although both would be pretty damn cool.

Warning: Slash, a bit of het, but nothin' really graphic. Mentioned itis more what I did.

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Draco is the leader of the group, there is no doubt about that. He has the cold arrogance, the cool calculation that keeps the group together, and functioning. He is the solid, unwavering figurehead, the hull and sails of their ship.

Draco is the pretty face and pretty mind their group displays to the world.

Blaise is the second-in-command. He is the link between the planners and the doers, even though they do almost everything together. He is the perfect compliment to Draco's cold beauty. Blaise is dark, fiery, handsome, like molten lead while Draco is pale, aloof, like marble or quicksilver.

Draco makes the rules, and Blaise tailors them to fit the rest of the group. Blaise reads emotions and feelings and undercurrents like you read this story. Blaise reads people for fun, but Blaise also reads people to keep them safe.

Blaise is the twister, the liar, the smooth-talker, sweet words eternally flowing from behind his rakish, devil-may-care grin. For Blaise is a devil and Blaise does care. Blaise is the rudder and the keel of their ship.

Draco may unite them, but Blaise guides them.

Vince and Greg are the muscle. They contribute numbers and normals and members to be ruled and included and while they might be playing extras they know that the play wouldn't be as good without them, that they are needed in a small, twisted way to make sure someone's there for the spotlight. They are the cannons of their ship.

They don't mind, though. Vince doesn't like being the centre of attention; he gets nervous and forgets what he was going to say.

Greg wouldn't mind being the leader or the link, but he knows that being the leader makes Draco happy and being the link is the only thing that would work for Blaise, sliding and gliding and fluid like honey as he is, although Blaise is sweeter than honey but you still risk the stings if the bees don't trust you enough. Greg wouldn't mind being the centre of attention, but it makes the others happy that things are the way they are, and Greg is content to just know that they are.

In every gang, group, pack, clique, or posse ever formed on this green earth, there is someone who is the pet. They don't have to be the smallest or the youngest or the prettiest or the ugliest. They just are what they are.

It doesn't matter if the group is harsher than rain beating down on the sea in a storm or gentler than sunshine through the gaps in the leaves, because the pet is always treated a little softer. They aren't teased or hit or riled or generally batted about like the rest of the group are.

Theodore Nott is the pet of the sixth-year Slytherins. Theodore is quieter than the others, in multiple senses of the word. That, more than anything else, is why he's the pet. The Gryffindors target Slytherins so Slytherins target Gryffindors and the vicious cycle erupts like a marry-go-round on steroids, only the tight groups of Hogwarts are a long way away from 'merry,' several hundred years away from the slang word and several hundred emotions away from the meaning. Gryffindors are loud, so they target the quiet ones.

Sometimes Blaise wonders if the group would be just like the Gryffindors without Theodore, if they would be just another loud, obstinate gang. If the other boys make up the ship, perhaps Theodore Nott is the crew.

Draco gets teased on a regular basis for all the hearts he's broken in five years, four houses and two sexes, and he smirks and agrees or scowls and argues.

Blaise is constantly mocked for his on-and-off spur-of-the-moment flings he has with Finnegan or Weasley or any other of the dozen-odd lovers he twirls between, to-and-fro, like an old fashioned dance where you're dancing with twenty people at once.

Blaise shrugs and grins or coolly retorts but more often than not twists the mocking into a lewd comment or underhands the meaning with a sly smirk and a seductive wink.

Vince is attacked by insinuations and raised eyebrows and not-so-innocent questions or suggestions whenever he comes back late from being with his girlfriend. She's quiet and cheerful and calm and pretty and generally low-key, which is just fine with Vince because in his heart of hearts that's how he'd like to be, too.

Vince attacks back with coarse comments about not being able to keep someone as long as Vince has and occasionally adds graphic suggestions of what they can do if they're bored while waiting up for him to get back.

Greg endures pointed comments about when he's going to get any, anyone, anything to gossip about because he's just _such_ a good _gentleman_ that he must be out of his mind--or certain anatomical attributes--to go so long without dating at all. Of course, there is such a thing as a quick snog, which is just fine and dandy with Greg because he likes being friends and snogging more than he likes being lovers; he just can't stand all that gooey sap.

Greg endures with a quick punch and a cheerful smile and a lewd comment of his own, though his aren't _quite_ as well-crafted or smooth or elegant-sounding as Blaise's always are. But Greg doesn't mind.

Theodore dates and has one-timers with general frequency but the others are very protective because Theodore got his heart shattered like a faerie mirror a year and a half ago and they've never forgiven the bastard who did it, even though Theodore has.

But they compliment or ask or comfort or listen as and when Theodore needs. Theodore is a watcher and a dreamer but he can separate faerie tales from facts, most of the time, and they want him to have a happy ending. So they watch and select and manoeuvre and on several occasions threaten or glare or defend. Theodore thanks them by sharing stories without prompting because when he does talk he speaks so eloquently it's like he was writing the whole thing out in his head.

They know Theodore's a bit of a dreamer and they never tease because that would be like waking Theodore up way too soon. But if a nightmare roars its domineering way into Theodore's spun-silver world they don't hesitate to bring out the metaphorical bucket of water to wake him by any means possible. They only woke Theodore up five times since they've known him, but one really was from a literal slumber.

Theodore Nott is the pet of the sixth-year Slytherins.

No, that's not quite right. 'Pet' may bring to mind the wrong connotations. 'Pet' implies someone smaller or younger or _less_ than you who is innocent and loved, someone who is not quite part of the group because they're not quite _real, _they're not quite on the same page, and you're not even sure if you two are reading the same book.

'Pet' implies something simpler, something to be coddled, something obtained for entertainment or amusement or companionship or a cute face to spout your problems to because even if they can't or won't give you useful advice you can tell them everything you ever thought and it will be okay..

'Pet' implies someone who is kept because the group needs someone to look out for and they need someone to look out for them.

Then again, perhaps 'pet' is the right word for Theodore Nott after all.

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Review and make me happy. Go on. Say "noodles" or "i want to ravish you sensless and throw laurel wreaths at your elbows as this was the best story I have ever read in my short teenage life" or even "mehhhh this sukked whut tha hell wer u thinkn u crazee squidflesh?" Just as long as my review count goes up... 


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Harry Potter, Romance