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The smell of the musky dungeons filled the halls, seeping into the Potions classroom that was being used for the Advanced students. Lily glanced to the board before moving towards her seat, having to do a double-take. Amortentia. That was hardly what she had expected, but with Slughorn as their professor, she figured she should have learned to accept nearly anything.
Sitting her things to the side, she took a seat near the edge of the classroom, her mind starting to race over the things that the day would have to hold. She had to admit, she was curious to know what she would find herself attracted to, as each person would have their own revelation that day.
The door opened as more students poured in, and she had to avoid glancing at the one person she knew would look her way as soon as they saw the board. Which he did, his smile a bit uneven as the bespeckled boy looked over to her. She dared a glance when he sat down, his back to her for once.
As the students settled in, Professor Slughorn got to his feet, starting his introduction. Most of the students were leaning forward, simply intrigued by the topic at hand. It wasn't until they were starting to be paired up that tensions rose in the room. Lily hadn't realized she had been holding a breath until she heard the name, "Mr. Potter." She let out that same breath as she heard what came next, "You will be working with Ms. Evans."
Of course.
She could feel heat prickle at her cheeks as she watched her normal partner move off to find her match, her eyes drifting to the boy that was stepping over with his bag, "Evans." He offered her another messy smile, placing his things under the table, speaking as he straightened up, "You ready for this?"
She wasn't.
Shaking her head, she moved to open her book to the right page, finding that anything that kept her eyes off of him would calm her slightly, "Hardly." Taking in a slow breath, she ran her fingers along the ingredients, "Do you think you can get some of this from the cupboard?"
It didn't take him long to nod, using the moment as an excuse to lean close and look over her shoulder at the book. She felt the rush of heat to her cheeks again as she felt the warmth radiate off of his body and against her back. She was nearly disappointed when she felt it disappear, the boy off to gather what he could.
When he returned, she worked with him to get things set up, keeping quiet for the most part other than muttered requests and soft apologies as they accidentally bumped into each other. Soon enough, the potion was complete, a Mother-of-Pearl sheen cast over the top as tendrils and swirls of smoke floated above the cauldron.
Lily was the first to take a deep breath, anticipating several waves of scents, each better than the last. She furrowed her brows when she pulled back, however, confusion sweeping over her. They... surely, they had done everything right? She looked to James, then back to the cauldron, "I don't understand."
James leaned in to do the same, pausing before looking to the girl beside him, "It looks like it's supposed to." He couldn't smell anything. Nothing new, at least. He moved to sit in his seat as the girl continued to stare, shaking her head. Something wasn't right.
Professor Slughorn was making his rounds, looking to the cauldron with a grin, "Congratulations! This is probably the best batch I've seen today." He took in a deep whiff, near grinning at the familiar smells that slid up towards him, "Near perfectly brewed, I think."
Even more confusion set in on Lily's face, her head shaking slowly, deep red curls bouncing as she did so, "Sir... how is it correct? There is no smell to it." To which the man simply chuckled, glancing between the two before moving off. She just didn't understand...
Sighing, she moved to bottle a sample to take to the front when class was over, looking to James with a slight frown, "You can't smell anything, either, right? It's not just me?"
He shrugged a little bit and looked to the bottle in her hands, "I mean... nothing from the potion, no." He glanced up at her once more, "How about you take that to the front, and set it in the tray?"
Thinking about it for a moment, she nodded her head and moved around him, starting for the front. Anything to get a bit of a break from him and his cologne. While she was turned away, James moved to take another sample into a small vial, sealing it off before pocketing it.
When Lily returned, she sat in her seat, slightly defeated. She knew they needed to clean up now, but... She had been hoping to discover more about herself after seeing the potion on the chalk board, but she supposed it wasn't meant to be. As James noticed her hesitancy, he moved his hands to start cleaning up instead, disposing of the rest of the potion as the guidelines called for.
Lily listened on to the excited chatter around them, feeling more and more disappointed with herself as she listened to the girls gush about their scents. The descriptions of the smells of flowers, of the earth after a fresh rain, old books, and new robes... It made her pine for her own set of scents, as silly as it seemed.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft voice, though it was a bit deeper than it usually was, "We did our best... I don't think there is anything to be ashamed of." James smiled carefully as he took a seat beside her, getting comfortable and waiting for class to be dismissed, "Maybe it's our noses that are broken."
She let out a bit of a chuckle at that, though her smile didn't reach her eyes, "Yeah... I suppose you might be right. Maybe we're both coming down with a cold." She moved to start packing her own things away, trying to get her mind off of it.
As soon as the professor announced that class was over, relief swept along her body as she moved to get up, starting for the door, "Have a good day, Potter." She forced another smile and moved to leave, James pausing before reaching out to catch the sleeve of her robes, "Hey... wait."
Stopping in her tracks, she turned to face him, curious to see what he had to say. Maybe he had been lying. Maybe he had smelt something and was just too shy to admit what it was. She rose a brow, about to ask him what he wanted when he spoke up, "Hang back. I have something I want to show you." He smiled as he grabbed his own things, moving to lead her along slowly out into the hall, trailing far behind the other students.
Following behind him cautiously, she waited until they were fairly alone in the hall before speaking, "What is it?" She watched his face, waiting for an answer as he looked around.
Finally looking back to her, he gave her a smirk, moving to pull the vial slightly out of his pocket, "Thought it might help if we took this somewhere to smell alone." He pocketed it again, "I'm thinking maybe it's something about the dungeons."
Staring in slight awe, she murmured, "Do you know how much trouble we'll get if someone catches you with that?" Shaking her head, she moved to start leading him towards the stairs, wanting to head up and find an empty classroom, "Keep that away until we're somewhere alone."
James was about to rebut, when he heard her last words, his smile growing as he took a few quick steps to catch up with her. He chuckled, but didn't say anything until they had found an abandoned classroom upstairs, the door shut tight behind them, "Go on..." He took the vial out and handed it to her carefully, "Go off to the corner and take a deep breath. Let me know how it is." He wanted to respect her space, as it seemed it would be a fairly emotional experience for her.
Looking at the vial carefully, she nodded and moved to the corner, taking a breath of fresh air. She wanted a fresh palatte. When she felt that all she was smelling was the old wood and stone of the castle, she corked open the vial and took a deep breath.
Heat ran straight to her cheeks as she realized what she was smelling, slowly piecing it together. The smell of a broomstick handle, a hint of cologne, a tiny tinge of hair product... Her heart started to race, hand nearly shaking as she capped the vial back up, holding it to her chest. Of course it was him.
James watched as she moved back, his brow raised and voice rather gentle, "So..." He let his eyes wander along her face as she passed the vial back, "I'm guessing there was something there?" Her silent nod was enough to send him to the corner she had just been in, fingers skillfully sliding off the cork as he took in a breath.
It hit him hard, much harder than it had in the dungeon. He wasn't sure if it was because they had been standing so close that he just couldn't tell... but it was crystal clear now. Strawberry shampoo, cherry chap stick, fresh ink and parchment. He couldn't hold back a soft smile as he capped the vial again and looked back to her. Her.
She caught his glance with a light blush, her voice careful, "What did you smell?" Him first. She had to know what his were.
It took him a moment to ground himself, moving back over and handing her the vial, "Keep this." He searched her eyes as he let his hand slide along hers as he pulled it away, "I... I'm not sure you want to hear mine." He didn't know how she would react.
Pressing, she shook her head, not daring to reject that potion, moving to tuck it in her bag, "Come on... it can't be that bad." She would keep that potion close, not to use, but to smell him whenever she liked.
James paused for a moment before taking in a long breath, eyes searching hers as he started, "It was the smell of fresh ink, and parchment." He looked to his feet, then back up as his neck started to warm up, a flush spreading to his cheeks, "Shampoo, and... chap stick." He wouldn't go into specifics, hoping she would connect the dots herself.
It only took her a moment to realize, her own blush growing as she nodded, nearly breathless, "I... I smelt old wood. Cologne... Product." She could feel her heart start to beat wildly, bounding against her chest as she felt she would likely faint if she stood too close to him.
His eyes didn't dare leave hers as he took a step closer, nearly fumbling with his words as he murmured, "Sounds... familiar." He let out a breath, "Can you smell it? Still?" He wanted her to say it. That was all he needed.
Speechless, she nodded once, her breaths coming in like waves against a shore. She blinked a few times before finally speaking, "And... can you?" She wanted to reach out and pull him closer, bury her face against his chest... but she couldn't.
He simply nodded, voice a bit lower as he spoke, "It's stronger than ever." He dared to slide a hand to her hair, pushing it carefully from her face as he watched her. His fingers kept in her curls, minding them lightly as he took another step closer, admitting softly, "I don't think I want to go..."
That made her let out a bit of a shaky breath, her head instinctively tilting into his hand as she whispered, "Me either." At least they could agree on one thing.
There was nothing he wanted more than to lean in and kiss her, feel their lips touch in sudden bliss... but he knew he had to hold back. He didn't want to push her away, this feeling too good as it was. Instead, he leaned to kiss her light on the forehead, his lips lingering for just a moment before pulling an inch away. His breathing was shallow, fingertips brushing down her curls as he thought about what he just did.
Lily didn't respond. Not right away, at least. She closed her eyes at the feel of his lips, imagining how they might feel pressed against her own. That was when, nearly of it's own accord, her hand slid up to his chest, body shifting just a smidgen closer to him.
Taking that movement as a sign to continue, James moved his lips to her temple, lingering there as well before pulling back to move to her cheekbone, then her cheek. Each kiss was slightly longer than the last, and Lily's head rolled to allow him more room with each one.
The room was deathly silent as James pulled back a tiny bit more, searching the girl's emerald eyes as he thought about his next move. He knew what he wanted to do. Oh, and he wanted to. He rested his forehead against hers, pausing for a moment before dipping his lips down to press against hers, slow and gentle.
Sighing against her lips, he gathered some of her hair in his hand, pushing it up carefully as he pulled her face a bit closer. That... that was incredible. Everything he had expected it would be and more, her lips so soft against his own. The moment he had been longing for for ages, and it was finally here.
Lily could feel her body relax, almost instantaneously, as she felt his lips against hers. It was as if she had been waiting forever for that moment, without even realizing it. Her hand slid carefully from his chest to his cheek, then just under his ear, fingertips grazing past his hairline as she edged just a bit closer to deepen the kiss.
Their lips danced together carefully, hands tugging each other as close as they could without their bodies pressing together completely. Her free hand moved to his chest, his moving to her waist, as he guided her back against a desk. A soft sound slipped past her lips as she felt her bum hit the wood, and that's when he knew to pause, pulling his face back just a hairsbreadth from hers.
He didn't say anything at first, and neither did she, their eyes locked upon one another's in an intense gaze. He didn't want to stop, and he didn't want to part, but he knew they would have to. He slid his hand in her hair along her curls once more, voice quiet as he murmured, "Keep that potion." He kissed her once more, lingering before pulling back, "I... I'll see you around."
Now wasn't the time to ask. Not after all of that. It had ended on such a good note, and he wasn't about to risk getting rejected after what had just happened. He wanted to ride the high as long as he could. She, however, was nearly disappointed that he didn't.
Flushing as she watched him pull back, his hands falling to his side and his bag, she pulled back as well, leaning against that desk. She nodded, trying to collect herself, "I'll see you." Maybe next time he would ask, and maybe next time she would say yes... but for now, she watched him go, the heat of the kiss pressing on and the smell of his cologne trailing behind.