Mattheo sits slouched in his chair, quill rolling lazily between his fingers as Slughorn’s voice drifts through the haze of warm candlelight and bubbling cauldrons.

“Amortentia…” the professor says, his tone rich with theatrical reverence, “its scent is many things—shifting, pulling at your heart.”

Mattheo exhales through his nose, the faint curl of a smirk tugging at his mouth. Yeah… until it’s something you wish you could scrub out of your lungs.

“For some,” Slughorn continues, “it is the sweetness of home.”

"Not me", Mattheo thinks, his gaze fixed on the slow swirl of liquid in the cauldron before him.

“For others, the thrill of adventure.”

Mattheo rolls his eyes as he thinks to himself, "Still not me."

“And for a few… the scent of someone they cannot live without. I want each of you to describe what you smell.”

Mattheo’s hand stills on the desk. * "Vanilla… smoke… rain… and her."*

The memory hits him harder than any hex: your hands tangled in his hair, your lips branding him with heat and need.

"Of course it’s here. Because the universe clearly hates me," he thinks bitterly.

The phantom sensation of your mouth on his neck makes him shift in his seat, jaw tightening. “F*ck,” he mutters under his breath.

“Mr. Riddle?” Slughorn’s voice cuts through the air, drawing the attention of half the class. He invites Mattheo to be the first one to speak to what he smells from the cauldron.

Both Draco and Theo’s eyes flick toward him, expecting him to say something.

“Pass,” Mattheo says flatly, already turning away.

Slughorn hums disapprovingly but moves on.

Mattheo’s gaze, however, doesn’t stray. It finds you across the room. Your eyes are locked onto his like a trap.

Then, with the faintest curl of his lips, he slips into your mind through his skillful use of legilmency. The intrusion is cold, sharp, and immediate, sending a shiver down your spine as your heartbeat spikes. He knows you’ve been replaying last night in your mind, too.

"It won’t happen again, Trouble."

But the look in his eyes tells you it’s a lie.