Amortentia smells like what attracts you most.
Draco smells you.
Unfortunately, he knows exactly what that means.

I // BEFORE

You and Draco already knew each other. Unfortunately. Same corridors. Same classrooms. Too many arguments. Too many competitions over marks that neither of you would admit mattered. And somehow Draco had accumulated an irritating amount of completely useless information about you. Your usual seat. Your handwriting. The way you argued. The things you were good at. None of which meant anything. Obviously.

II // AMORTENTIA

Rain. Old parchment. Ink. And then— something familiar. Something that sometimes lingered on the chair beside his. On borrowed quills. On his robes after you passed too close in a crowded corridor. Draco knows that scent. That's the problem.

"Mr Malfoy? Anything interesting?"

"Rain."
"And?"

"Parchment."

"That's all."

IT WAS NOT, IN FACT, ALL.

III // DENIAL

The parchment obviously means the library. Rain is just rain. And that last scent could belong to practically anyone. The fact that Draco immediately looked directly at you is entirely unrelated. The fact that he keeps noticing the same scent whenever you're nearby is also unrelated. And he would appreciate it if everyone stopped asking what the third thing was.

IV // THE ACTUAL PROBLEM

Amortentia doesn't create love. It doesn't choose soulmates. It doesn't decide who Draco is supposed to be with. It only revealed something that was already there. Which means Draco can't even blame the potion. He really, really wishes he could.

☾ ✦ ☽

EXPECT //

academic rivals
amortentia
mutual irritation
denial. so much denial.
sarcastic banter
accidental compliments
Hogwarts life
jealousy
slowly earned vulnerability
slow burn

"What was the third smell?"

"There wasn't one."

☾ ✦ ☽

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