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Blue light streams through tall, patterned windows, casting long shadows of three students over stained, checkered tiles. Cackling fire warms the frigid atmosphere, and pearlecent wisps of red hypnotically spiral out of the cauldron, reaching the carved ceiling of the Room of Requirement.
“So, are you coming to the party Gryffindor is throwing tonight?” Chigiri asks, playfully nudging Reo.
The Ravenclaw winces, “As if there’s anything for me to celebrate—Rin was concussed 5 minutes in!” After a pause, he belatedly adds, “...I’ll be going with Nagi.”
Grinning, Chigiri teases Reo about his long-lasting crush on the lazy genius. They’re interrupted when Reo feels a heavy weight rest on his back, long arms loosely looping around his waist. Chigiri stops speaking as he shoots Nagi a disgusted glare, taking a couple of steps back as if the PDA would kill him by proximity.
Feeling Nagi burying his face deeper into the plush, navy scarf coiled tightly around Reo’s neck, Reo immediately melts at the action.
“How was your nap, Treasure?”
Nagi shakes the drowsiness out of his foggy brain before languidly responding, “Alright, what are you guys making?” Lazily pointing to the cauldron.
Chigiri scoffs—voice echoing off the expansive stone walls. “We’re making Amortentia, remember? You literally asked Reo to make it so you could make fun of Isagi and his dumb crush on Rin.”
Giggling at Chigiri’s dramatics, Reo almost misses the bubbling of the concoction signalling its completion.
“Deflammo.”
He effortlessly casts a charm, snuffing out the fire below the simmering pot and watches in awe as the glittering swirls continue to stir, faintly resembling hearts. Reo nods in approval, proud that he’s perfectly brewed a new potion.
“Reoo, can we go now? I’m hungry,” Nagi softly asks, breath brushing the shell of Reo’s ear.
Out of the corner of his eye, he can vaguely make out Chigiri exaggeratedly gagging as he scurries further away to a dusty bookshelf.
Seeing that the liquid has now stilled, Reo happily complies. “Sure! We only need to make sure that it’s done. Chigiri, can you come over here?”
Chigiri rolls his eyes, pretending he didn’t hear him and picks at his manicured nails, but gets up from the tall stack of books he was sitting on a few moments later anyway. Leaning over the cauldron, he quickly smells the mixture before confirming, “Yeah, the potion definitely smells right.”
“What’s it supposed to smell like?” A curious voice mumbles from behind him.
Crossing his arms, Chigiri begins angrily lecturing Nagi, who seems to remain unfazed as he slumps further onto Reo. When Chigiri finally realises he might as well be talking to a wall, he relents, sassily flicking his Gryffindor scarf over his shoulder as he turns around, disinterested in further interaction with the human sloth.
That’s when Reo fondly informs, “It has the scent of the person you find the most attractive.”
Nagi nods thoughtfully, short white hairs tickling Reo’s cheek. “Well, why did we need Chigiri here to smell it? Couldn’t we just have confirmed it?”
Offended, Chigiri draws his wand to jinx him, but Reo gently shakes Nagi off his back and strides towards the Gryffindor. After playfully restraining Chigiri, Reo explains, “Because he’s secretly dating that one orange-haired Gryffindor chaser!”
“Reo, I’m seriously going to kill you—DONT TELL NAGI THAT?!”
“Ohh, Kunigami?”
“NO—”
“Yeah!” Reo giggles, releasing Chigiri, who casts a spell that is quickly deflected.
A silence falls over the trio, with the air being filled with the sounds of Reo’s footsteps and the clinking of glass as he searches through various flasks. Suddenly, Chigiri speaks up again, smirking.
“Hey Nagi, you should tell us what the Amortentia smells like for you. Aren’t you curious?” He says mischievously.
“I guess…”
Reo watches as Nagi leans over the cauldron, holding his own Ravenclaw scarf from falling into the mixture. After a deep inhale, he straightens, shrugging.
“It smells like my bed and designer perfume,” he states monotonously.
Chigiri immediately starts cackling and pointing at Reo, who can feel the blush crawl under his robe and bloom across his chest as he watches Nagi tilt his head in confusion. Instantly, Reo starts making his way to the pot with a bottle, eager to end the embarrassing interaction.
“That's… Good to know, Treasure!” Reo squeaks, patting Nagi’s head reassuringly once he stands next to him.
Nagi presses into the touch and raises an eyebrow, “What about you, Reo?”
Reo stills, furthering Chigiri's amusement, who soon joins the pair at the cauldron, egging Reo to reveal his findings. He shakes his head, not daring to respond. Chigiri frowns, but doesn’t push—seemingly satisfied with Nagi’s previous answer.
“Whatever, I’m going to go see Kunigami. Have fun, you two!” Chigiri sings as he exits with a wave and knowing wink—the door creaking loudly as he leaves.
Carefully, Reo pours the liquid into the glass bottle, then seals it with a cork. When he passes it to Nagi, Reo stiffens as cold fingers brush over his own.
“What do you think, Treasure?”
The Amortentia is obviously perfect—Reo has one of the highest scores in Potions. However, his worry grows as Nagi rolls the tube in his palm, seemingly scrutinising the results. He’s about to ask what's wrong when he gets cut off.
“How do we give this to Isagi?”
⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ ⊹₊
Reo loves parties.
Tonight, he finds himself sitting in a large circle, surrounded by a bunch of students who are just as drunk as he is, halfheartedly playing Truth or Dare. Loud bass reverberates through the floorboards, and Reo is certain that it’s another one of Aiku’s playlists. He doesn’t really mind, though—the keeper did an aggravatingly good job blocking Nagi’s goals on the pitch today.
Velvet armrests and varnished tables were pushed to the edges of the round room, creating space for everyone to gather and celebrate. Some others snuck in like Nagi and Reo, whose boiling disappointment was cooling in the welcoming space filled with red and gold victory banners. There were party streamers lining the cluttered walls, and even the moving portraits were inviting despite knowing that they didn’t belong in Gryffindor.
Currently, Reo is gossiping with Chigiri about what Shidou did in their shared Defence Against the Dark Arts class the other day. He apparently cursed Rin with a full-body bind, forcing Sae to come to his younger brother's rescue, since no one else would help. Chigiri snickers.
Opposite the circle is none other than Isagi, engaged in a heated debate with an overly energetic Bachira about something meaningless. Reo’s surprised there's not that much attention on Isagi; he did catch the snitch that ended the game, after all.
That reminded Reo of the potion they were yet to use. He turns to his right and sees Nagi, who is slumped into Reo’s side as if he were a rag doll. Gingerly, Reo shakes him awake.
“Nagi, we still haven't given Isagi the Amortentia!”
Lazily, Nagi blinks awake. “Oh, right,” he says, having long forgotten about the potion they made a couple of hours ago. “Do I just give it to him, then?”
“No, Treasure! No one's going to notice if we do it that way.” A mischievous glint shines in Reo’s eyes as he formulates a plan.
“Quietus.”
With a twirl of his wand, the music automatically decreases in volume thanks to the charm that Reo casts, turning the incessant rumble of the room into a mellow, gentle buzz.
Off to the side, someone pipes up, noticing the drastic change in the environment. “What’s up?”
Clapping his hands, Reo gleefully announces, “Let’s play a game, guys! I have an Amortentia potion!” On cue, Nagi reveals it to the crowd as if they were at an auction. Taking the tube from Nagi, Reo makes a display of uncorking the bottle, almost spilling the contents in his drunken state.
“We’re going to pass it around, and everyone has to say what they smell!”
A wave of excited cheers and some disgruntled sighs ripples through the air. It’s late in the night, and everyone is messed up either from the drinks or sleep deprivation, which means that they are all delirious enough to participate in the activity.
They pass the potion clockwise, starting with Chigiri, who says it smells like the deodorant Kunigami uses and the leather bag that carries his books, only to realise he unintentionally exposed their relationship after a chorus of gasps sounds through the group. The game gets more chaotic from there on out—mainly due to Bachira’s shouting plus Karasu and Otoya’s observant guesses at who they might be smelling.
When the bottle finally reaches Isagi, who is already flushed from having drunk too much firewhiskey, Reo calls Nagi awake again, ensuring that he doesn’t miss the fruits of his efforts.
Isagi brings the concoction to his nose and somehow manages to blush further.
“Uhm, I smell… Old books and green tea.”
Curious, everyone looks around the circle, eyeing book-smart people from Yukimiya to Reo, when finally all eyes land on Rin. Scandalaized, Rin scowls, “Why are all you half-baked freaks staring at me?!”
“Don’t you always hang out in that dusty library?”
“Yeah! And you’re always on about how good ochazuke is!”
Faltering and wide-eyed, Rin glares at Isagi, who laughs awkwardly instead of elaborating.
The circle is positively screaming, with Bachira thrashing Isagi so hard that Reo worries he might get whiplash, and others teasingly congratulating Rin as they pat him on the back like a proud father. Looking down to gauge Nagi’s reaction, he finds unblinking brown eyes already staring at him—a faint trace of a smile gracing the pale, round face of his partner. Reo chokes on his breath, the deafening banter surrounding them abruptly silenced by the rush of blood in his ears as neither Ravenclaw breaks eye contact.
Luckily, Chigiri slaps Reo’s shoulder in an attempt to calm himself, snapping Reo out of his trance and returning to the boisterous crowd. He pretends that the interaction didn’t fluster him that much, but he can feel Nagi’s gaze piercing holes through his chest (maybe that’s just his racing heart).
The volume of the party increases as they near the end of the circle, with everyone buzzing in anticipation of what Rin will say the Amortentia smells like. Sniffing the potion, Rin grimaces as he pulls back, huffing in detestation.
“Well? What is it, Rin?” Bachira impishly asks from the other side of the circle, breaking the tense atmosphere.
“It smells like red bean and—”
“GUYS, IT HAS TO BE ISAGI!!”
The room erupts in another round of laughter. Rin's hands are buried in his palms, and Reo catches Isagi quietly chuckling to himself as he not-so-subtly admires his supposed ‘arch nemesis’. The teasing quickly turns into easy conversation, and at some point, Isagi was forcibly dragged away by Rin, disappearing up the winding cobblestone staircase that led to the Gryffindor dorms, leaving the rest to their own devices. Reo lets out a sigh of relief—glad that he and Nagi didn’t have their turn. But unfortunately, Chigiri decides to intervene.
“Nagi, what did you say the Amortentia smelled like again?”
Everyone's now looking at them, and a smug Chigiri is shoving the potion into Nagi’s hands. However, Nagi makes no move to take it, instead boredly reiterating, “My bed and designer perfume.”
Stunned, the circle remains still for a second before a flood of teasing comments weaves and overlaps, drowning Reo in a wave of remarks.
“How are they not dating already?”
“Whoa, no one saw that one coming!”
“Wait, did he just say his bed? What the hell are they doing in his bed?!”
All eyes are focused on Reo—he’s about to cast a disillusionment charm and disappear, but he decides that there’s no hope of recovering from the embarrassment. It doesn’t help that Nagi is clueless (indifferent?) to the commotion around him, deciding to take another nap in Reo’s lap.
He’s going to need to talk to Nagi about this tomorrow.
Before the others could ask any more prying questions, Reo quickly made up an excuse to leave, picking Nagi up on his back and swiftly exiting the commons.
The walk from the Ravenclaw tower to the Gryffindor tower is pretty short—Reo is fairly certain that he won’t get caught out of bed after hours, especially while wearing an invisibility cloak.
…
They are, in fact, not wearing their invisibility cloak; the usual weight and warmth from being draped in the dense woollen fabric soon became noticeably absent. Regardless, Reo continues to wander through the dimly lit halls, hoping that he won’t bump into anyone.
Reaching the bottom of the spiral staircase of the Ravenclaw tower, he breathes out a sigh of relief (and exasperation. Does he really need to carry Nagi all the way up there?) Taking the first step, he feels a shiver run down his spine. Hesitantly, Reo calmly turns around, plastering on a friendly smile, internally praying that no one’s there, or that he will be able to sweet-talk his way out of any point deductions.
In front of him, cockily leaning against a marble column, is one of the Slytherin house prefects—Shidou Ryusei. Reo’s talked to the guy a couple of times during prefect meetings, and they share a Potions class; however, he knows the guy could be a little bit eccentric. The 7th year slyly greets them with a nod, smirk growing wider as he steadily approaches the pair.
If Reo were by himself, then he wouldn’t be worried in the slightest. However, there is currently a large Nagi-shaped liability snoozing soundly on his back, and he is face-to-face with the most violent guy on campus.
Still, Reo greets him, voice unwavering. “What’s up, Shidou?”
“Not much! Merely wondering why you’re taking your pet on a late-night stroll,” he smiles, theatrically leaning on one side to peer over Reo’s shoulder.
“We’re actually heading to our dorm now.”
“Really? Well, you know the rules, Mikage—can’t be out after curfew! I’m gonna need to deduct some points from that friend of yours~ Unless, you do me a favour, of course!”
“Fine. What do you want?” Reo questions sceptically.
Shidou raises his hands in a mock surrender, “Whoa, chill out, man! I promise it’s nothing bad…”
Reo quirks his brow, encouraging Shidou to get to the point already.
“Just congratulate Sae-chan for his hard work during the Quidditch match today~ And, leave this Liquid Luck on his nightstand for me!”
How the hell did this guy get that?!
“Alright…” Reo mutters before Shidou tosses the potion to him, even though Reo’s hands are occupied.
“Fluito.”
Barely catching the small vial, Reo sighs before finally making his way up the flight of stairs. He wonders what that guy's relationship with the older Itoshi was—there's no way Sae can deal with that guy…
Reo was so lost in thought that he nearly bumped into the door. Quickly striking the bronze eagle-shaped knocker, he effortlessly answers the riddle, making it to the Ravenclaw Commons at last.
Blue and bronze silks elegantly fall over arched windows, muffling the soothing whistle of the whipping winds. Thick, star-patterned carpet muffled his weighted footsteps, dampening the echoes in the airy common room. Passing by the statue of Rowena Ravenclaw, Reo made his way to one of the many turrets, locating his and Nagi’s shared room.
Dropping Nagi on his cramped bed, Reo noticed that Yuki and Karasu were still missing. He figures that they were still at the Gryffindor party—probably sneaking around with Otoya again. Satisfied, Reo flops onto his bed, sinking into the mattress. Only when he feels himself flickering into unconsciousness does he remember the levitating Liquid Luck.
Reo’s never one to back out of an agreement, so to his dismay, he finds himself making his way to the 7th-year branch.
⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ ⊹₊
Comforting honey rays gently rouse Reo awake. Stretching, he lets out a small yawn and checks the time. Thankfully, it’s a Saturday, so he and Nagi can spend the entire day relaxing. Yuki and Karasu are still gone—they must have spent the night at Otoya’s dorm.
Speaking of last night, Reo wonders if Nagi was truly smelling his expensive perfume. It’s also true that sometimes they might share a bed, but that’s simply because it’s convenient. Nagi probably doesn’t think of him that way.
Reo blushes thinking about the scent that the Amortentia was for him—there’s no doubt it’s from Nagi. Chigiri was right about Reo having an embarrassing crush on the boy the second they met on the field in their fifth year, but how could he not? The sloth was basically built for Quidditch, from his insane broom control to his high-skilled plays, and not to mention how good he looks while…
So what if Reo has a slight obsession?
He hears rustling beside him. Surprised, Reo turns to see that Nagi is awake unusually early for a weekend. His hair is fluffed up and knotted from sleep, so Reo walks to the other bed, takes a seat on the edge, and begins detangling it with his hands. Nagi’s eyes close, bathing in the sensation of blunt nails softly tugging at his roots.
“Good morning, Treasure! Why are you up so early?”
Instead of a response, Reo feels arms wrap around his torso, squeezing. The mop of white is pressed into the side of his thigh, making his arm stretch at an uncomfortable angle. All points of contact burn, spreading like wildfire under his skin—Nagi’s never this clingy in the mornings.
Sputtering, Reo gasps, “Wh-what are you doing, Nagi?!”
After a deep inhale, Nagi responds. Unfortunately, it comes out muffled since his mouth is pressed into the fabric of Reo’s pants.
“...What?”
Nagi rolls onto his back, releasing Reo, who promptly removes his hand from the other's hair.
“It kinda smells like you.”
Oh.
Reo really doesn’t want to get his hopes up; Nagi would’ve said something yesterday if he knew Reo was the object of his attraction. But his heart seems to be skipping every other beat, and there’s more adrenaline pumping through his veins than during yesterday’s Quidditch match. Looking down at Nagi’s unchanging expression, Reo imagines tracing his delicate features, waking up to them in the mornings, peppering kisses on them in the dark.
But that's just a dream.
Reo thinks Nagi’s like a Patronus. Fleeting, but so full of happiness that he can’t help but wish that he’d be able to cast the charm someday, too. And that eventually, he might create something special that’s only for him to have forever.
Pop!
Reo blinks, noticing a few heart-shaped bubbles floating around him.
“Aurnamento.”
More iridescent hearts float towards him, mesmerisingly spinning around his head before evaporating. He turns to Nagi.
“Oh. Hi Reo,” he greets casually, as if Nagi enjoys casting spells or something.
Reo weakly smiles, “What are you doing, Nagi?”
“You zoned out.”
Reo chews on his bottom lip, wondering why Nagi is acting so strangely. “Right.”
Suddenly, Nagi sits up, matching Reo’s height and tosses away his wand in favour of taking Reo’s fidgeting hands. Briefly, Reo wonders if he’s been possessed.
“Reo.” Nagi stares into his eyes, exposing his soul.
“Nagi..?” Blazing purple subsides, glassed over by vulnerability.
“What did you smell, Reo?”
There's a long pause. Reo feels like he’s been petrified—his throat constricts, and he can’t make out any words. Big, patient eyes persist; Nagi always said he could wait an eternity for Reo, but Reo never thought he was being serious. He holds Nagi’s hands tighter, afraid to let him slip away, lost in the storm of desire.
Reo wants to think that Nagi feels the same. For once, he dreams bigger, driven by selfish want. He knows Nagi feels it too—they’ve always been connected, wordlessly understanding each other through the chaos on the pitch, or the tranquillity in the dead of the night. Inhaling, Reo speaks, just above a whisper.
“Coffee milk and sleep.”
His voice is carried away by the light draught, as if the admission had never even been spoken in the first place. The bed dips as Nagi shifts closer, and Reo can feel his erratic heart leaping like a Chocolate Frog.
“Do you think it smells like me?”
Of course it does. It’s always been you, Sei.
“It kinda smells like you.”
Nagi smiles at the parroted phrase. “That settles it, then.”
Apparently, Reo should’ve taken that as a warning because Nagi is tackling him into the bed, wrapping him up in a mess of Nagi’s comforter and limbs. He finds himself laughing too, and reciprocates the affection by nuzzling the other's cheek.
They lie there tangled together, enveloped in the bliss of confirmation and security, unmoving despite the overwhelming rush of euphoria. With each synchronised breath and lovestruck glance, Reo rediscovers pure joy.
So this is how it feels to cast a Patronus.