I'm No Expert | Bleville

6. Potions Tutor

"So," Pansy smirked at him. "Non-existent crush, huh?"

They were currently drinking tea in the Slytherin common room with Pansy's special tea set that she used for gossip sessions and relationship advice. If you thought that Pansy didn't take her "job" as an official matchmaker and Gossip Queen of Hogwarts seriously, you were severely wrong.

"Sorry, what?" Blaise choked on his tea. He should have known better than to think that Pansy had prepared her tea set for just a casual gossip session.

"Your crush, Blaise," She sighed. "Honestly, do you need a hearing spell? Or maybe I need to use Sonorus so that you can hear me better?"

"I don't need a hearing spell," Blaise bit out. "I just don't know what you're talking about."

"Blaise Zabini!" Pansy exclaimed. "Are you thick in the head?! You are obviously in love with Longbottom!"

"I'm sorry," Blaise said. "But what drugs are you on?"

"None, unless you consider pixie dust a drug."

"Pansy! What the hell?!" Blaise yelled. Pixie was one of the hardcore wizard drugs that made the consumer absolutely mental. Their eyes would become slightly glittery and they would speak in complete gibberish, while experiencing an unbelievable amount of ecstacy. If Pansy was on it, he would know.

"Anyway, what are you planning on doing?" Pansy inquired, taking a sip from her pitch black tea cup. When Blaise had asked why she always chose that tea cup to drink out of, she would answer that it was "for aesthetics," whatever that meant.

"What am I planning on doing?" Blaise repeated, raising an eyebrow in question. "About what?"

"Your crush, you stupid boy!" Pansy groaned. Her cool composure was wearing down from Blaise's reluctance to cooperate, and he couldn't help but feel a little victorious.

"I don't know what you are talking about," Blaise sneered, glad to see that Pansy was growing impatient and tired of his apparent denial. Maybe she would finally get tired of his lack of cooperation and shut up.

"Well," she sighed, adjusting her bangs, "I guess you are just going to have to realize or accept your crush in order for this to get anywhere."

Blaise traced his finger over the intricate swirls on the cup's handle. He didn't have a crush on Neville. He was sure of it, except maybe sometimes he stared too long at the blush covering his face, but that was just because he had never met anyone as easy to fluster as Neville.

"Besides," Pansy grinned, taking another sip of her tea. "You two have a potion session this evening, so maybe we will get somewhere."

With that, she knocked back the rest of her tea and waved her wand, making Blaise's tea cup empty itself and go back into its box.

"Have fun!" She giggled, and walked off to the girls dorms, leaving Blaise to himself.

Blaise rolled his eyes and sat back in his arm chair. Nothing would happen at the potions session, which was in-

"Merlin's balls!" Blaise exclaimed, nearly falling out of his chair. He stumbled his way out of the Slytherin common room after barely remembering to snatch a copy of the potions textbook.

He rushed down the corridor and nodded to The Bloody Baron as he passed. If he was late, Neville was going to think that he stood him up or something.

He continued to run and saw Neville leaning on the wall outside of the great hall, fidgeting with the sleeves of his robes. His brows were drawn close together and he was biting his lip.

"Hey," Blase called as he approached. "Sorry I'm a little late, I was talking with Pans and- are you alright?"

Neville nodded and gave a small smile. "W-where are we g-going for this?"

Blaise made a motion for the shorter boy to follow him and led him to an empty classroom. It was near the dungeons and had a few cauldrons in the corner.

"So," Blaise started, opening the textbook. "I feel like it would be good to just start out with the Drought of Peace which is what we are going to be working on next week." It was better for Neville to be prepared for the next class.

"I'm going to help you make it, but then you have to learn how to make it on your own."

"O-okay," Neville stuttered. He wiped his hands on his robes and rolled sleeves up. Blaise almost smiled at how serious he was being.

As time went by, Blaise walked Neville through each step and corrected him each time he almost made a mistake.

"No, don't add the Hellbore until it has been simmering for exactly seven minutes," Blaise instructed, holding Neville's arm back from tossing the ingredient in.

So far, so good. They had followed all of the instructions right down to the very words. All they had to do now was add the final ingredient.

"Now," Blaise said when the timer reached seven minutes.

Neville tossed it in, and the potion released a silver vapor. Blaise shouted with joy as Neville stood in shock.

"I d-didn't mess it up?" He murmered in disbelief, staring at the potion. "I didn't m-mess it up!"

He looked so triumphant, making Blaise's heart swell with pride. He had never seen Neville like this, all happy and proud of himself. It was rather a rare look on him, but not a bad one.

Blaise patted him on the back. "Now all you have to do is make it by yourself."

Neville's smile disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. "I don't t-think I can..."

"Stop saying that," Blaise scolded. "Everyone always puts you down because you make more mistakes than others, but so what? I just watched you not destroy a potion. Take pride in the little things, Neville, and have a little confidence in yourself."

The shorter boy was staring at him with wide eyes and Blaise winced. Why was he acting like such a Hufflepuff? Did he have no dignity?

"What i-if I can't?"

"I believe you can," Blaise stated firmly. "And if you fail, we go through it again until you succeed."

Neville continued to stare at him in a way that made Blaise's stomach flip.

And it wasn't such a bad feeling.

⚫⚫⚫

When he entered the Slytherin common room, he was greeted with Pansy's smug smirk.

"What are you looking at me like a pug for?" Blaise laughed. He was in quite a good mood for some reason.

"A pug?!" Pansy shrieked. "I never look like a pug!" She crossed her arms unhappily and pouted. Like a pug.

Blaise nodded absently and went to leave to the boy's dorm, but was yanked back into a chair.

"Tell me why you look like you just got awarded as a member of  the Order of Merlin first class!"

"Do I have to have a reason for being happy?" He challenged. "Nothing happened if that's what you are asking."

"Hm, you're right," Pansy said, making Blaise look up in shock. "Maybe nothing happened."

"Does this mean that you are finally letting go of your delusions?"

"In fact," Pansy continued, ignoring Blaise, "maybe Neville just makes you happy. It's not that hard to see."

He groaned in frustration. What did he ever do to deserve such a friend so stubborn?