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It was honestly a nightmare being the mediator between the two boys.  She had absolutely no idea what could have exacerbated the rift that was in between them, but she prayed that it had been resolved by now. 

"There's my favorite girl."  A smooth, purring voice whispered into her ear from behind her.  She squeaked in alarm, nearly jumping out of her skin to bump into the larger man behind her. 

She spun around, hands on her hips, right about to give the rude interloper a piece of her mind.  Any reprimanding words died in her throat.  Her mouth became suddenly dry.

Sebastian greeted her with the confidence of a man who knew how attractive he was.  His already smooth voice had dropped an octave.  Only one summer has passed since she last seen him.  They used to be the same height, but now she had to look up in order to make eye contact with him.  Sebastian had filled in, shoulders a lot more broad then they used to be.  His thick school robes failed to hide the muscular definition he had built up.  The baby fat on his cheeks that she liked so much had disappeared, instead replaced with a handsome jaw line.  His new tan failed to hide the freckles that dusted the bridge of his nose. 

He was…well…Sebastian had always been devastatingly handsome-objectively speaking, of course- but this…this was far too much. 

"You…look….you look-"  her face turned bright scarlet, unable to find an adjective that was appropriate.  It was normal for good friends to comment each other's appearances.  Right?...Right?  Sebastian's lips curled upwards teasingly, no doubt taking joy in her discomfort.

"-you look…well, Sebastian." 

"The summer air in Feldcroft has been kind to me."  Sebastian stared at her with the sort of intensity that made her look away from his gaze.  "I could say the same to you.  It seems that the sun has blessed your skin rather nicely over the long break."

Her brows twisted in confusion.  Had her skin been that bad in their sixth year?  She hadn't been the most immune to typical teenage acne woes, but surely, they hadn't been so awful?  

She brushed her fingertips to her cheeks.  "Sebastian, what do you mean-" 

Before she could finish the thought, a new voice from behind her interrupted their conversation.  "Hello, dove." 

Again, she jumped a good inch in the air, nearly tripping over her feet into Sebastian's chest.  Ominis's smooth aristocratic voice was recognizably familiar.  However, the new nickname for her, "Dove", was certainly not.  Since when was Ominis, the boy who was bred upon fine etiquette, ever so forward with his female friends?  She turned around, blinking in confusion.    

Whatever strange phenomenon happened to Sebastian over the summer seemed to have inflicted itself upon Ominis was well.  In only a couple of months, Ominis had sprouted as tall as a giant.  His legs seemed to travel forever.  It didn't hurt that he was always dressed so well, the well-fitted expensive fabric clung to the sharp lines of his body.  She couldn't help but rudely ogle at his pale neck.  With his high cheek bones and beauty marks, Ominis had always been unfairly pretty.  Unfortunately (fortunately?), it had only gotten worse over time.

Her brain finally caught up with her.  She had been staring rather rudely for a while.  Finally, she blinked, registering the new, odd, nickname Ominis called her.  "D-dove?"  She repeated dumbly.

Ominis smirked, getting closer to her.  Wow, even if she got on her tiptoes, she wouldn't be able to meet him at eyelevel.  "Is that not what you are: an innocent, beautiful bird amongst the sea of hawks?"

Her throat was dry.  Who taught Ominis to talk like this?  In their sixth year, Ominis was nothing but curt, overly formal, and incredibly testy whenever Sebastian was around.

Was this even Ominis at all?  Perhaps this was Polyjuice.  Or maybe it was a prank.  Ominis hadn't taken too kindly to her prank as Headmaster Black all the way back in their 5th year.  Yes, this was certainly some sort of jest to make her feel incredibly nervous. 

It was working.

Her tongue darted out to lick her dry lips.  "A-am I to understand, in your analogy, that I am your prey and Sebastian and you are the hawks hunting me?" 

Ominis was so close to her.  She couldn't help but take a step back, only to nearly step on Sebastian's shoes.  It seemed as though the path blocked by Ominis in front of her and Sebastian behind her.  Her head swiveled around.  Neither of the boys seemed particularly upset at the violation of her personal space. 

Sebastian threw his arm around her neck in a friendly manner that was anything but causal from her perspective.  "Ominis, give our poor girl a rest!  She's had a rather long journey after all."  Sebastian winked.

Her muscles stiffened in surprise.  Sebastian was always a more tactile person, always clapping his friends on the back, always pulling her close to his side in a duel.  None of that was new…but the thickness of his biceps certainly was.  As his biceps flexed around her neck, she shivered.  She could feel the toned fibers of the muscle straining against his Hogwarts robes.  Was Sebastian always so muscular?

What…in Merlin's name was going on?  Her brain felt so foggy, maybe it truly was some type of hex they secretly cast on her.  Shaking her head, she tried to get rid of her dazed state of mind.  She needed to gain some type of normalcy to this frankly bizarre exchange. 

Coming up with nothing to fix this rapidly escalating situation, she stuck out her hand for a handshake, as if she was greeting an old acquaintance instead of one of her closest friends.  Even as she did so, she cringed, already feeling so awkward.

"Um….how was your summer, Ominis?" 

Ominis's thin hand reached up to hold her hand, but instead of shaking it, he held it in his.  Her body stilled, frozen in place, not wanting to ever let go of him.  Before she could even react, he bent at the waist bringing her hands up to his lips.  His cold lips brushed against the top of her hand, in a very polite kiss.  It was a featherlight touch, barely there, but it still left a searing burn on her skin that travelled up her arm.  Her heart was pounding in her ears.   

This…wasn't…she wasn't trying to offer her hand for him to kiss it!  Sure, it was normal, even respectful for any gentleman in this day and age to greet a lady in this manner but…common courtesy dictated that it last no more than a few brief seconds.

…and…well, time seemed to be moving differently, but she was certain that his kiss lasted far longer than normal.

As Ominis (quite sadly) pulled away, the bustling noises of the other students around them came back to life.  She was suddenly reminded that they were not alone.  Sebastian, jealous, envious, possessive Sebastian, had bore witness to it all.  Even if it was a polite gesture between friends, there was no way in hell that he would allow it to happen.

She looked back fearfully, terrified that Sebastian's infamous temper would boil over and lash out at Ominis.

To her shock, the same flirty look was on his face.  "Why Ominis, leave some for me next time?"

She felt lightheaded.  She never labelled herself as one of those highbrow fancy ladies who needed a fainting chair everywhere they went but…at this rate, it might be a good idea to conjure one up anyway.

This all had to be attributed to the vapors of the Hogwarts train, a collective moment of craziness or delusion that they all shared.  They were all having an active psychotic break.  Or…some type of magical curse.

"I…I need to go um…" Her brain came up blank.  "-say hello to Poppy and Natty!"

And, the hero of Hogwarts and the most powerful witch of their generation, fled the scene with as much grace as she could muster. 

As she turned to look back, Sebastian sauntered close to Ominis, learning his shoulder against his.  Their bodies pressed closely against each other, uncaring of the lack of personal space.  They both looked completely unperturbed at how she rudely brushed them off.

She shivered.  What in Merlin's name was going on with them?

Nibbling on her quill, the hero of Hogwarts pretended to be listening along to Professor Binns's dull droning.  Back ramrod straight, her glazed eyes stared ahead at the blackboard.  Her thoughts whirled a mile a minute.  Something nefarious was happening to her two best friends.  Maybe it was Polyjuice potion, or some type of imperio, cursed objects…or a magic so ancient and evil it had not yet even been named.  Yes, something strange indeed was happening to her boys.  And she was going to get down to the bottom of the mystery if it was the very last thi-

"You've been quiet all morning." A silky smooth voice practically whispered in her ear.

It was foolish to even attempt to think rationally around someone as effortlessly attractive as Ominis.  The hero of Hogwarts stared straight ahead at the indecipherable blackboard, ignoring her urge to look at Ominis.  She hadn't been prepared for the intensity of the boy's appearance at King's Cross.  She wasn't going to make that mistake twice.  

Her mouth felt so dry. It was still a struggle to come to terms with how unfairly gorgeous he became.  "Ominis, I'm trying to pay attention to the lecture.  Don't distract me."

The corner of his lips tugged upwards.  Bitingly sarcastic, he replied, "Ah, yes, the lecture…and tell me…what are we learning about today?"

"Um…"  Her tongue darted out licking her dry lips.  “We’re learning…um…history?”

"’Learning history?”  His voice dripped with amusement.  "In our History of Magic Class?"

The back of her neck tingled with embarrassment.  Her heart ached, begging to sneak a peek at Ominis's amused expression. 

Perhaps sensing her unease, Ominis lightened up on the teasing.  He leaned closer, concerned.  Their clothed elbows briefly brushed against each other.  Blood traveled to her cheeks.  Was that a careless mistake or an intentional act to rile her up?

Ominis's voice was so gentle.  "Is everything all right?"

 'Was everything all right?'  What type of question was that?  Her two best friends have all of a sudden gotten possessed by…some type of magical…well by something!  And Ominis was just sitting here nonchalantly, completely not bothered.  She folded her arms, "Why wouldn't everything be all right?  You think something is wrong with me?" 

She couldn’t stop herself from glancing at his expression.  Immediately, she regretted it.  His face was so soft.  A brow furrowed in gentle concern.  "Sebastian and I are just worried, is all.  You haven't been acting yourself lately.  Sebastian told me that you weren't at breakfast today-"

Her heart lept into her throat. So the two of them noticed that she was avoiding them.

"-You must be famished.  Lucky for you, I saved you your favorite: apple tarts."

With a minuscule flick of his wrist, Ominis summoned the pastries out of his bag.  They floated smoothly in front of her, gracefully avoiding Professor Binns’s notice.

She blinked.  She…had never told anyone that her favorite pastries were apple tarts.  How did Ominis find out?  "O-Ominis you shouldn't have.  Really, this is too much."

Ominis snorted, "It was hardly anything.  It's not like I made it myself."

Before she could politely refuse the thoughtful gesture, her stomach grumbled loudly.  It was so loud and embarrassing, cutting through the dull droning of Professor Binns lecture.  Several heads turned towards her.  Her classmates hid their snickers behind their hands. 

Blushing furiously, the hero of Hogwarts tried to shovel the food into her mouth as fast as possible, forgoing any need to breathe.

Ominis chuckled.  It was a well-known fact that the hero of Hogwarts was one of the messiest eaters in the whole school.  Even without vision, he knew that she had made a mess. 

His voice was light and teasing.  "I believe you got something on your face."  With his thumb, Ominis wiped away the apple syrup that he knew was hanging on the corner of her mouth.  His tongue licked the pad of his thumb, chasing the remnants of tarty sweetness.  Unable to look away from him, she unapologetically stared at him quite openly.  Her eyes traced his movements, watching how his mouth would suck on his elegant fingers.  She shivered.  What else could Ominis do with his mouth?

"It tastes just as good as I thought it would."  Ominis commented. 

Oh bloody hell.  Did Ominis happen to spend his summer in France with callgirls or was he always so indecent?  The only thing that he could do that would be more scandalous would be if they fucked on the table right now.

No…N-no…don’t think about that sort of thing.

Stiffly, she turned her attention back to the humdrum crooning of Professor Binns.  The pair of them sat together, both of them aching for something beyond the confines of the dull classroom. 

Minutes, hours, and days have gone back since "the apple tart incident.  Time made it all too easy for her guard to be slowly crumble around her.  Whatever, it was that happened in the "History of Magic" had clearly been some collective visual hallucination that they all shared in that they shall never, ever speak about.  Sure, Sebastian and Ominis were still acting quite strange.  The accidental touches, the gazes full of knowing and intent…

…But beyond those, nothing so scandalous as the incident.  So, she could hardly be blamed for being ill-prepared for things to come. It was supposed to be a normal potions class, how bad could it possibly be?

"Class, today we'll be studying the effects of Amortentia."

Oh, bollocks. 

She could practically feel the overwhelming weight of Sebastian's gaze on the back of her head.  She refused to look back at the potions station where the Slytherins were at.

Fuck.  This…this could be bad.

Not for the first time, the hero of Hogwarts was glad that Garreth was her potions partner.  It was easier to have a very private melt down when the Gryffindor boy was exploding a potion next to her.

As Professor Sharp explained the nuances of potion-making, she whispered to the boy standing next to her.  "Garreth, you and me, pal, for old time's sake?”

He grimaced before whispering back.  “Sorry, Natty just asked before class, and I already said yes.  Apparently she’s super behind and needs some help.  Some other time, yeah?”

Her head whipped around the room looking for Natty.  Sure enough, her backstabbing friend had a shit eating grin.  Standing in the Professor's blind side, Natty gave her a secretive thumbs up.  Her jaw dropped.  Unbelievable.  Even her closest friends were conspiring against her.  The savior of Hogwarts responded in a very mature, very adult way by flipping Natty the bird.

As Sharp's instructions ended, the rest of her classmates started splitting up into their usual pairs.  Her head whipped back and forth as she started to truly panic.  Her poor little heart could not handle the emotional turmoil of brewing Amortentia under the piercing gaze of her "friends".  Under absolutely no circumstances, could she be paired up with either Sebastian or Ominis.

….Well, lucky for her, she was not paired up with either Sebastian or Ominis.

Unfortunately, she was put into a three person group with BOTH Sebastian and Ominis. 

It was very strange that there was an odd number of students today.  It wasn't typical for Poppy to get sick out of the blue.

Listlessly stirring the nearly completed potion, she continued to ignore the two Slytherin boys.  She had done a fantastic job of ignoring them for the past two hours, and she planned on continuing her silence until the class was over. She wasn’t sure what Amortentia was supposed to smell like.  No doubt it was impossible to even ask someone else.  But she wondered if its aroma was supposed to be so…confusingly complex. 

As its characteristic spirals evaporated into steam, she recognized the comforting pillows of the Undercroft, a familiar heady cologne, and the earthy fragrance of something very masculine. 

But, as she stirred the potion with her wand, its aroma changed into the scent of rich parchment from library books, explosive gunpowder, and a deep musk that definitely reminded of someone very familiar to her.

"What do you smell?"  Sebastian asked, his tone sickeningly innocent.

Her whole body went red.  She hadn’t even noticed the other boy sneaking up on her.  "Never you mind, Sebastian Sallow."  Sebastian's eyes were wide and bright, almost twinkling with mirth.  "It's not like I could even pick it out anyway." She haughtily mumbled under her breath.

Ominis was on the other side of her.  Again, did he suddenly lose all concept of personal space?  "Sebastian can't help be curious, that's all."

She jumped.  Her feet stumbled back clumsily, only to bump her back against Sebastian's hard torso.  Blushing, she quickly pivoted away from him.  When did his body become so firm?  What on earth was that boy eating?

She was being flanked on both sides.  Sebastian to her left, Ominis to her right, with no escape from the conversation. She couldn't help but gape.  Were they…teaming up on her?

No…they couldn't be…

Their sixth year had been a horrendous nightmare for their collective friendship.  It started all from Solomon's death, and the animosity continued to spiral out of control. Ominis and Sebastian constantly at each other's throats, fighting over the silliest things and stupidest of arguments.  As the meditator, she would always find herself squished in the middle, like a doll they were forced to share with each other.  Why, she could recall a few moments where Sebastian literally tugged on her arm to pull her away from Ominis's side.

"I don't understand. Last year you two were constantly fighting, always at each other's throats-"

"Oh we certainly were at each other's throats." Sebastian parroted, a wide grin plastered on his face.

Ominis flushed deeply, hand subconsciously rubbing the side of his neck.

She blinked stupidly.  It seems like over the summer they had come to an agreement though she wasn't sure what exactly it entailed. 

"Now, let's stop avoiding questions, shall we?  What do you smell?"  Sebastian asked again.

"T-That is very private, Sallow!"  She felt lightheaded.  "I-it's not like people go around telling each other Amortentia smells like!"

"Hmmm….she's hiding secrets, Ominis."

"She is indeed."  Ominis  towered over her, and the savior of Hogwarts was reminded, yet again, of how tall he had gotten.  Why, she would have to stand on her tippy toes in order to kiss him.

Her face bloomed into an even brighter shade of red.  Stop.  Don't think about kissing best friends, no matter how hot they have gotten.

"I happen to think that our dear friend might recognize Amorentia's scent."  Ominis drawled.

"Oh?"  Sebastian arched a pretty eyebrow.

"Yes, perhaps it smells like someone we know…someone she must keep secret from us." 

Sebastian hummed.  His pink tongue dipping out to lick his bottom lip.  "Or…maybe someones?"

Her stomach dropped.  Natty had once described to her how some lions in Africa would play with their gazelles before eating them.

This is what they must feel like.

She puffed out her chest and put on a brave face.  Two could play at this game.  "Well, why don't you two tell me what you guys smell, if you both care so much.  It's not fair for me to share without you saying anything."

She expected them to falter, and stammer over their false bravado.  No doubt, they would lighten up on their teasing and the three of them could go on their merry way and pretend this incident had never happened. 

But it seemed as if she only walked into a trap.

An irrepressible smile was on Sebastian's face.  “I can smell the Undercroft, our Slytherin dorm room, and expensive cologne."

The description….matched very closely to the aroma that she smelled, with some minor differences.  It was impossible to hide her blush.  Sebastian's eyes dipped down, unabashedly staring at her lips.  "And I can smell something else that's soft and sweet."  She couldn’t help but duck the lower half of her face between her scarf, trying to shield herself from Sebastian’s predatory gaze.

Sebastian’s eyes flitted to Ominis, “‘Nis, what does the potion smell like to you?”

“Leather bound books, something smokey that reminds me of Bombarda-"

She tried not to look in Sebastian’s direction.  That was Sebastian's favorite spell.

“…and honeysuckle perfume and apple tarts.”

Her stomach flipped over, and an uncontrollable flush of heat melted into her entire body.  She was trapped under the intense attention of the two boys in front of her.  Oh dear Merlin.  

She did what any rational and logical person would do in her shoes.

"Um…Professor Sharp, I…I think I"m getting sick.  I'm going to the Hospital Wing."  Before the Professor could even respond, she fled from the scene.  Her poor heart was about to explode.