Whispers in the Shadows || Slytherin Boys

a recipe for deception

The familiar damp smell of the dungeons greeted me as I entered the Potions classroom. The cold, stone walls always sent a chill through me, even after years of sitting in this same room.

I settled into my usual seat near the middle of the classroom, trying to push away the memory of my encounter with Theodore in the library and he astronomy tower. I couldn’t shake the feeling of his gaze, the quiet menace that seemed to follow him wherever he went. The bare thought of working with any of the slytherins today made my stomach churn.

Avery took her seat beside me, her cheerful demeanor a stark contrast to the tension that knotted my insides. "Are you okay?" she asked, her brow furrowed with concern as she looked at me. "You look like you didn’t sleep at all last night."

I offered a weak smile and shrugged. "Just a bit tired, that’s all." I wasn’t ready to confess the real reason for my restlessness - the dreams, the paranoia, the way I couldn’t stop thinking about Draco, Mattheo, and now Theo.

"Again?" Before Avery could press further, Professor Snape swept into the room, his dark robes billowing out behind him as he moved with purpose toward the front of the class. His presence alone was enough to silence the room. He barely acknowledged the students as he began writing the day’s potion on the board in his usual precise script.

"The potion we will be brewing today is the Amortentia Elixir," Snape drawled, his voice cutting through the silence like a blade. "As some of you may know, this is the most powerful love potion in existence. Its effects are… rather intense. You will need to be particularly careful with your brewing. One misstep, and you could create something dangerous instead."

The mention of Amortentia sent a ripple of excitement through the class, but my stomach dropped. A love potion? Today of all days? I glanced nervously over at Avery, but she was already busy reading through the instructions.

Snape’s voice broke through my thoughts. "You will be working in pairs today. The person sitting next to you will be your partner."

I felt a brief moment of relief wash over me - at least I had Avery by my side. But that relief was short-lived.

"Except," Snape continued, his lips curling into a smirk, "for you, Miss Blackwood. I’ve noticed your brewing skills could use some improvement. You will be partnered with Mr. Malfoy for today’s lesson."

I froze, my heart skipping a beat. Why did he have to single me out? Why Draco, of all people?

I could feel Draco’s eyes on me from across the room. He was seated with the other Slytherins, his expression unreadable. Slowly, he rose from his seat and made his way over to me, moving with the kind of effortless grace that seemed to belong to all the Slytherins.

Avery shot me a sympathetic but pitiful look as she gathered her things and moved to sit with another Ravenclaw. "Shit, good luck," she whispered with a little concern before turning her attention to her new partner. Great. This is a nightmare.

Draco slid into the seat beside me, and immediately, I felt the tension in the room shift. His presence was somehow magnetic, pulling my attention even though I desperately wanted to ignore him. His proximity made the air feel heavier, charged with something I couldn’t quite name.

"Well, well," Draco said in a low voice, his lips curling into that familiar smirk. "Looks like fate has decided to bring us together again, Catalina."

I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. My throat felt tight, my mind scrambling for some semblance of calm. I focused on the cauldron in front of us, pretending to read through the potion instructions even though I could barely concentrate.