Hey,

I published a bit early. This took a while to write and I think it's because this was way different than the original A M O R T E N T I A chapter. I'm all about tension now.

Without further adieu,

I present to you...

A M O R T E N T I A

lucille granger

Okay, maybe stepping out of my comfort zone on the first night back was a mistake.

I had a pounding headache that spread across my forehead. Onyx and her venting only made it worse.

"So I told Blaise that we couldn't keep sleeping with each other unless he admits he wants to be in a relationship!"

"Mhm," I said flatly, rubbing my temples. We hurriedly walked to class with a hangover and the dreading fear of vomiting. There were hardly any vacant seats, so we were subjected to a table near the front of the class. "Next time, no more drinking on school nights."

"Already in that mindset," Onyx groaned.

"It wouldn't hurt if you confessed how you truly felt about him," I added.

She scoffed. "I don't feel anything special."

"Okay, Onyx," I spoke with condescension. I knew when this girl was lying. This was one of those moments. "Do you remember anything last night? I swear the only thing that's not so much as a blur to me is the part where I took a second hit."

Onyx smirked. "You seriously don't remember anything else?"

Her smirk threw me off the charts. "What... happened?"

Her eyes rolled off of me and diverted their attention behind me.

"Why don't you ask the men approaching?" she teased. I took a quick glance behind me to see Lorenzo and Blaise walking towards our table.

"What happened last night?" I queried. Lorenzo let out an awkward chuckle as he took a seat across me, while Blaise sat next to me. "Does everyone remember but me?"

"Evidently," Blaise started, "You wouldn't be asking if you remember."

"Oh, thank you, Blaise! I had no idea I was asking because I didn't remember!" I dismissed his attempt at being smart with me, as he grunted in defeat. "Anyone care to explain why everyone is awkward? I've got Onyx smirking and I've got Lorenzo coughing with a smile."

"So," Lorenzo elongated, "You and I touched lips. A tongue or two as well."

I raised my eyebrows. "Oh?"

"Yeah."

Onyx watched this play out in awe. "Was it good, Lucille?"

"You're asking me as if I remember," I replied. "How did—. How did that even occur?"

"I dunno. All I know is that we both consented. You don't hate me, right?" Lorenzo leaned in towards the table with worried eyes.

I softly chuckled and shook my head. "No, I couldn't hate you. Besides, as you said, we both consented. Not a big deal."

As the classroom settles down, Draco makes an entrance. He scans the room and notices our table. At the quick movement, he heads towards us.

Is there anywhere else he can sit?

"Good morning," he says flatly, taking a seat next to Onyx. The rest of them greet him back. I choose not to.

I just know in my heart that he was nowhere near nice to me last night. I decided to keep my mouth shut.

Before Onyx could say anything, our Professor spoke.

"Good morning, class! It is an honor to be teaching Charms yet again. In case this is the wrong class for some, you are in Charms for the sixth-year students. If you do not meet those terms, the door is wide open," Professor Flitwick beamed with a smile.

Taking out my hazelwood wand and the required textbook, I mentally prepare for the classroom content. This is just a piece of cake. How could it be difficult?

***

I have to admit, it was pretty difficult. But, nothing like a few question-asking can't be solved. I strongly encourage Onyx to ask questions whenever she doesn't understand, but she finds herself asking me instead.

After Charms ended, Onyx, Blaise, Lorenzo, Draco and I left the classroom together like we always do. I find myself walking at Lorenzo's speed because of unanswered questions.

"Have you talked to Malfoy, yet?" I questioned. He turned his head, looking down at me.

He shook his head. "I haven't had the time."

I scoffed. "How did you not have the time? What could you possibly be doing that takes up all your time?"

"You seem upset," Lorenzo guffawed.

"Of course I'm upset. I can't keep letting that stupid blonde disrespect me. I can't keep letting you guys not tell him anything, either! Be a good friend, will you?"

Lorenzo sighed. We eventually stopped our tracks as the rest of the group continued walking. "I'm sorry. I really should talk to him. You're right." He tucks my hair behind my ear and gently smiles. "Is there anything, in particular, you'd like me to ask him?"

"We already know why he dislikes me," I said. "I just want him to know that it's not cool being such—. Such a dick."

His eyes widened. "Language, Granger. Besides, why can't you ask him?"

"You're kidding, right?" I arched my brow. "Me? Talk to Draco? What, I should just ask him to stop bullying me?"

Lorenzo nodded. "I mean...yes? Is that not why you want me to talk to him?"

"I'd rather not find myself alone with him. Only Merlin knows what he might do. I could be killed. I could be hurt!"

"You're thinking too much into it. It means more when it comes from you."

"Over my dead body," I spat. "I'm not talking to him."

He had his hands on my shoulders. "Lucille, darling. Look at me," he spoke hoarsely. "Eyes up here. Nowhere else."

I obeyed.

"You talk to Draco. I'll be near. Nothing is going to happen. He wouldn't hurt a fly if he had to," assured Lorenzo. "Sounds good?"

"But I–."

"Ah. Yes or no."

"I don't wa–."

"Lucille," he elongated. "Yes. Or. No."

"I just hate his guts—."

"Luce. Yes or no."

"Fine!" I flailed my arms up in defeat. "I'll talk to him myself. But you're going to be the one to tell my parents why I died."

"You're so bloody dramatic."

"You still love me, though."

Lorenzo swung his arm around me and smiled. "That, I do, my love."

Evidently, I couldn't quite build the courage to speak to Malfoy, but I knew it had to be done. I can't keep letting him disrespect me.

We reach the Slytherin Commons where Draco sat with a book in his hand and his leg propped on top of his knee. One wouldn't assume how downright atrocious his attitude is just by how peaceful and quiet he looks.

"Now is your chance," Lorenzo spoke into my ear. "Have at it. He won't bite."

Rolling my eyes to dismiss his comment, I make my way towards Draco Malfoy in the flesh. I take a quick and deep breath to prepare for whatever ruckus may suffice.

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I fully approach by standing over him as he's seated on the leather sofa. Awaiting his acknowledgment, I cross my arms. If I present attitude with attitude, no one gets hurt.

"Do you mind, Granger?" His icy-toned voice spoke. "You're blocking the only light in this Common. I'm trying to read."

"Well, put the book down because I have to talk to you," I said with a stance. "I need your undivided attention, Malfoy."

He furrowed his eyebrows and huffed. Shutting his book closed, he placed it on his lap and looked up. From there, he waited for me to speak.

"What is it," he hissed.

"I deserve a little respect, don't you think so?"

He looked at me with dull eyes. "Me? Respect you, Granger?"

"I don't recall stuttering," I spat.

Draco scoffed. "Give me one good reason why I should suddenly adore you, Granger."

I balled my hand into a fist and hid it behind my back to release tension. "Malfoy—. It's not that I want you to adore me. I want you to back off. I'm done with the name-calling and the snide comments. We're not little children anymore."

He sat in my words and pondered for a few seconds. Clearing his throat, he straightened his position. "You can leave me alone now, Granger."

"Are you going to take what I said into account? At all?" I spewed with slight annoyance.

A small smirk played on his face. With his piercing eyes, he looked away. "I'll consider it."

I grunted. "Are you joking, Draco? Considering it? You're considering whether or not I should be respected?"

"Now, Granger. You should watch that tone of yours—."

"Oh, shut up! You think I need to earn your respect, don't you? You think I need to kiss your bloody feet or speak to you as if you sit on a high pedestal! You and your small pea-brain self!"

Draco shook his head and softly chuckled. "You're yelling at me, but here you are asking me to respect you—."

"You know, Malfoy, I really thought you'd have the decency and right mind for us to potentially end the bad blood between us, but I guess not. You're stuck in your 3rd year with you and your prejudiced self. Sure, I'm a filthy mudblood, but at least I'm not related to half the fucking school—."

Out of sight, I'm grabbed by the waist from familiar hands. Appalled, I turn my head to see Onyx with a serious look.

"Let's walk away, Luce. Yeah? Let's leave—." Onyx asserted.

"I have way more to say, Onny. He doesn't even know the half of it—."

"Well, Luce, half of Slytherin are watching," Onyx whispers harshly whilst pulling me away. "We need to go to class. Now."

Breaking free from my anger conundrum, I look around to see half of Slytherin, in fact, watching. Awkwardly chuckling, I follow Onyx out of the Commons.

"Nothing to see here, folks! Just two buddies—. Two buddies hashing out their disagreements. Nothing serious," I attempt to smooth talk my way out of the weird atmosphere, but I couldn't care less for the conversations to follow after.

Taking a deep huff of air, I run my fingers through my hair and walk down the corridors with Onyx.

"What the bloody hell was that, Lucille?" Onyx sneered. "I could hear you from the Boys' Dormitory. Lorenzo told me that you were going to talk to him, but he left out the part where you were going to berate him."

"I didn't mean to berate him like that," I groaned. "It just came out! Luckily I didn't slap his stupid pale face."

"Valid, given the years of torment, I suppose," Onyx agreed. "Well, how'd it go? Did he agree to stop?"

"He said he would consider it," I badgered. "Why would you even consider something like that? Sorry for being born with muggle-parents! Now, why does that place a bounty on my head?"

"He's prejudiced. If he grew up in a prejudiced home, then that's where it comes from. I do have to admit that it's not an excuse because of how Lorenzo turned out even after being raised in a prejudiced home, too. He's the complete opposite. In a way, Blaise, too. I guess Draco's just too immature to comprehend what the bare minimum is."

"I'm done trying to ration out his behavior in my head," I complained. "If he wants to be that way, then so be it. But don't be surprised every time he's with us and we argue."

"He's going to be hearing from me," reprimanded Onyx. "It's about time I say something, too. I'm sorry for not doing anything sooner."

"It's fine," I said flatly. "That stupid blonde knows how to sweet-talk into getting things his way."

***

Shortly after the Potions class started, here I stood beside Onyx and Blaise, while Lorenzo and Draco stood across us. As I listed out the ingredients for the Amortentia Potion, Onyx quickly gathered the materials.

Lorenzo and Draco were too busy toying with the cauldron and the stirrer, while Blaise kept picking at his nails.

Women were, once again, carrying the group.

"Can you boys focus? The faster we finish this assignment, the sooner I can leave this classroom," Onyx grunted as she slammed the ingredients in front of us.

"Do you have somewhere to be, De Loughrey?" Draco queried as he started pouring each ingredient into the cauldron.

"Why? Do you want to come with me and buy my monthly products? That includes tampons, pads—." Onyx went on until Draco scrunched his face.

"Forget I asked," Draco preened. "Bloody hell."

Lorenzo snorted. "That's what happens when you don't mind your business, mate."

"Enough talking," I reprimanded. "Enzo, stir the cauldron clockwise twice, then counter-clockwise for another two times. Until the potion starts to bubble, continue the stirring increments."

"Yes, ma'am," Enzo boasted as he obeyed.

I held the smaller glass tube in preparation for transferring the potion. I've done this particular potion multiple times only to smell Cedric. Hopefully this year I smell nothing. I've been given enough time to mourn his death, so I should already have forgotten the smell of his sheets.

Soon enough, the Amortentia potion turned into a rosy pink color. I grabbed a ladle and poured a small amount into the small glass tube.

"Does that look right to you guys?" I asked. I ended up passing the tube around in our group as they each examined the consistency and color. They all nodded dully as the tube was returned back to me.

"Are we smelling it this year, ladies and gents?" Lorenzo arched his brow as he took the ladle that sat in the cauldron. "You know what, allow me to go first."

Lorenzo filled the ladle halfway and took a strong whiff with his eyes closed shut. He pulled away from the ladle, opened his eyes to think, then smelled it once more.

"Well?" Onyx emitted. "What do you smell? Luna Lovegood's incense? Susan Bones' used knickers?"

"Gross," Draco grumbled. "You did Susan?"

Lorenzo smirked. "She did me, Malfoy. She did me," he set the ladle down and gestured that Malfoy goes next. "I'm not sharing my scent."

"Boo," Onyx criticized. "Malfoy, smell the potion and share the details."

"I don't owe any of you anything," he mumbled under his breath. Taking the ladle, we watched him take a quick whiff. He scrunched his eyes and set the ladle down immediately. "Blaise, your turn."

"Are we really keeping the scents to ourselves this year? You all are so secretive and lame," badgered Onyx.

Blaise took a whiff of the potion, smirked, then took a deeper inhale. "Fucking hell, this smells amazing."

"That good, eh?" Lorenzo crossed his arms. "Care to share the details? Or are you secretive and lame?"

"Smells like something I'd bury myself in again," Blaise gloated with a grin. "I'll let you boys decide on who."

"Men are disgusting," Onyx rolled her eyes before snatching the ladle from Blaise. "Alright, since Blaise was courageous enough to share, I will share what I smell."

She inhaled the smell as her eyes widened. "Never mind what I said earlier. This is demoralizing."

"What? Oh, come on. Tell us, Onny!" Lorenzo had both his hands on the table as he leaned forward. "We won't tell a soul."

"No," she spat. "Luce, smell this ladle and see if it's still Cedric Diggory"

I took the ladle from her hand and shook my head in disappointment. "We need to let that man rest in peace. I mean, seriously. How many times are we going to mention the poor boy?"

"Until you smell something different this year," Lorenzo jeered. "Whether it be a new lad or nothing at all, we won't let the man rest until your Amortentia smells new."

"Childish," I mumbled. Lorenzo and Onyx softly chuckled. I took a deep whiff of the ladle.

It was indeed different. Definitely new. I couldn't quite put my finger on it. The scent had notes of wild bluebell and new parchment paper. A hint of aftershave as well.

Putting the ladle back into the cauldron, I smirked. "Well, let that man rest. It's a new scent."

"Oh?" Blaise derided. "What did you smell, Granger?"

"A boring smell, if we're being honest," I blurted. "Smells like any other man."

As they continued to make small talk amongst themselves, I raised my hand to let our professor know that we finished the assignment. Professor Slughorn examined our potion and eventually approved our assignment.

"You know, Hermione's and her group also finished first in their class," he smiled gleefully. "Must be in the Granger blood, I presume?"

I softly chuckled as I nodded. "I suppose. She's got the better end of the stick, though. Hermione's way smarter than me."

"I don't like that you're doubting your capabilities, Lucille. From what I've heard, you and Hermione both received Outstandings last year. Not a lot of people can achieve that grade on their first try."

I decided it'd be best to let Professor Slughorn boast my knowledge by agreeing with him rather than proving the many ways that Hermione is indeed more knowledgable than me.

After our group was excused, we walked out of the classroom and down the corridors with no exact location.

"Are you going to Hogsmeade for your monthly supply of products?" I asked Onyx as I paced myself next to her.

"No," she smirked. "I lied. I'm going to talk to Blaise in his dorm. Though if we're being honest I don't think we'll do enough talking—."

"I'm going to exit this conversation," I complained. Onyx laughed as I strode away from her and found myself pacing by Lorenzo. "Enzo? Are you doing anything right now?"

"Taking a nap before my next class," he blurted flatly. "You?"

"Not sure. I might just have to meet up with Hermione and her friends," I replied. "You do know that Onyx and Blaise will be... hanging out, correct?"

"And why does that concern me?"

"You're going to take a nap while they're... hanging out?"

Behind those brown eyes, not a single thought pieced together. Until it did. When it did, his face grew disgusted and was riddled with disappointment.

"Fuck," he muttered under his breath. "Well. I guess I'll be getting beauty sleep in the commons."

"Suit yourself," I said. "I guess I'll be with my sister and her friends."

"Did you want to spend time together, Lucille?" Lorenzo queried.

"No," I replied. Lorenzo's smile fell when I realized I sounded a bit rude. "No wait, I mean—. I'm not opposed to the idea, but as you said, you're going to take a nap. I was just going to hang out with Hermione for a little—."

"Do you want to hang out tomorrow evening?" Lorenzo spoke softly. "If you're free, of course."

"Sure, where are we all meeting?"

He softly chuckled. "It'd be just you and I if that's okay."

"Oh," I said. "I don't mind. That's a first."

"I know," he replied. "I'll catch you later. I need to get some Z's."

He gave me a quick kiss on the side of my head before speeding up the moving stairs to our commons.

Growing up, I knew Lorenzo Berkshire was always the affectionate type. To Onyx, to Blaise, and even to Draco. But, taking a step back to see the bigger picture, I've always noticed how the affection towards me was larger in scale in comparison to the others in our friend group.

After discovering that I kissed Lorenzo on the lips with tongue, everything else just feels different. I refuse to water these seeds, though.

But this is the year I try something new. Someone new, if need be. So maybe a little water won't hurt?

Disregarding my intrusive thoughts, I walk down the corridor towards the Gryffindor Commons only to see Draco sitting on a stone bench flipping through a textbook. We meet eyes at lightning speed before I break our contact immediately.

But then I realize.

If I want respect, the least I can do is reciprocate just a little. I continue walking enough to pass him, then I pause and take a short breath. Collecting my train of thought, I clench my fists and prepare for whatever happens next.

I turn around and step towards Draco. Reaching in front of him, I look down as he takes his eyes off the book. Before he can even say anything, I interrupt.

"Look," I sigh. "I'm sorry for... exploding like that. But you have to understand that the tormenting has been years. People get tired of getting treated that way, and I had to stand up for myself. Moving forward, can we please be neutral and respect each other's spaces? No more name-calling. You can talk shit all you want. I just don't want to hear it."

Draco's mouth becomes ajar. As if he were about to speak, he closes his mouth. Shutting his book closed, he stands up. I back up after realizing how close we got.

I didn't exactly realize how taller he is than I am.

Draco inches closer as I continue to back up. Why is he getting so close? Nearly tripping on my own bloody shoes, his cold hand finds a tight grip around my wrist.

"Bloody hell, Granger," Draco mutters under his breath. "You need to watch where you're going. You nearly fell on your back."

"You need to watch where you're going! You kept coming clo—." I huff and close my eyes to keep my composure. Fluttering my eyes back open, I smile. "Okay, you got it. But do we have a deal, Malfoy? Are you going to tone it down?"

After a few seconds of pondering, he finally builds the courage, or finds the words, to speak. "Alright," he says flatly. "We have a deal. On one condition, though, Granger."

I want to punch this blonde in the face badly.

"Which is?"

A smirk plays on his face. "You need to," he inches towards the side of my head, whispering, "...watch where you're going, Lucille."

***

D I S C U S S I ON

How we feeling about this new chappa??