"I'm telling you, he's perfectly normal. You guys just.. have a history. That's fine and all, but we don't, and I'm not going to judge him based on how you gits feel." Ella proclaims, flipping the page in her potions book.
Ron leans across the table, his hands on top of his untouched book, "I'm telling you, Malfoy is dangerous. It's just a feeling."
Ella looks up at him, biting her lip for a second, then putting her hands on the table, standing up, pushing herself away from the table, "Maybe, I have some redeemable qualities, and he wants to be my friend. You lot aren't the only people who like me in this castle mind you, and I am so TIRED of hearing about it!" She snaps. Slamming the lid shut on her book, "I will tutor the Malfoy boy, and I will not hear one more damn thing about it!"
Hermione looks concerned, "I'm sorry, Ella. We never meant to upset you. We are just worried. If you think you are doing the right thing.. you surely must know what is best for you, ok? Now please sit down.. you're causing a stir."
Ella looks around, sighing as she sits back down, "He doesn't seem evil to me." She says really quietly, "He seems sweet." Ella notices Harry's complete silence, and perhaps it's a good thing. He probably has nothing nice to say.
Ella meets Draco in the coldest, darkest corner of the library, his choice of a spot of course. "Hello Draco, got your books with you, I hope?"
Draco looks up at her with a smile, before she had walked up on him, he had been deep in thought. Seemingly sad, almost. "Yeah, be a bit ridiculous if I brought you out just to waste your time."
Ella shakes her head, pulling out her chair and plopping down into it, a little clumsily, "Which potion are you struggling with right now, Draco? I think I'm in a higher level potions class so I might not have the same book." She reaches across the table, grabbing his book swiftly from his hands and spinning it around to get a good look at it. "A love potion?" She immediately starts blushing.
"I know, kind of an odd start for us." Draco says, suddenly his pale face turning red. "Don't think anything of it though."
Ella tries to prevent a small smile from escaping, "Well, as long as you don't tell me what yours smells like, I ought to think we won't have any problems."
"But you'll tell me yours?"
Ella blushes furiously, "Absolutely not. I don't imagine we would be mixing this potion in the library either. Ought to head to Snape's, yeah?"
"Yeah of course, thought meeting in the library made sense. Especially since I am seemingly banned from the Gryffindor wing of the castle."
"Don't be so daft. Maybe just smile at people more, hm?" Ella says, getting up from the table, "Nothing like a big smile to tell people you like them."
"I'm not really going for likeable." Draco says, a smirk on his face.
Ella shakes her head, "Potions, now."
Ella mixes her potion to perfection and with ease. The smell is intoxicating. Like expensive mens cologne, mint, and green apple. She looks over at Draco, who had taken a break from his potion making to look at his book. Her eyes wander to what fruit he is eating. A green apple. Ella's body immediately stiffens. The scent must be drifting to her, or she mixed the potion wrong. She clears her throat, "Your book isn't going to mix the potion."
Draco sneers at her, taking a big bite out of his apple, "Show me yours, I'll show you mine?" He gestures to her potion.
Ella's face turns bright red, "Absolutely not."
"Why? It smell like me?"
Ella takes in a quick breath, "No, quite the opposite actually. Smells like someone who's taken a shower before going to their tutoring date."
Draco's jaw drops slightly, "A date? Did you just call this a date, Ella?"
Ella tosses the lid on top of her potion, "A slip of the tongue, just, mix your potion." She gestures.
Draco drops the final piece into his potion finally, the gesture causing a small gust of pink air to emerge. "Let's see.." He wafts it in his face gently, "Vanilla, coffee, and.. coconut?"
Ella's heart starts beating fast, "You ever smell someone like that before?" She asks, her throat getting dry.
Draco tosses the lid on his without a second thought, "Nope. But I'm ready for when I do, I reckon." He turns back to the table, scribbling down some notes with his quill, "Not that hard of a potion, I would say. Bit gibberish, maybe."
Ella feels like she can't breathe, her answer is breathless, "Yeah, maybe."
Draco had just named every single scent she used in her shower, and the smell of her perfume. And her potion smelled exactly like Draco Malfoy. She knows what this means, but.. how can she trust a potion so.. powerful, over her own wit?
Ella is high in the air on her broom, floating across from Neville Longbottom.
"Love potion? With Draco Malfoy? Could he have picked a more romantic potion?" Neville quips.
Ella furrows her brows at him, "Oi, hush. It was the one he was working on in potions. He's in a lower level than me."
Neville chuckles, "And you fell for that? I'm in the same potions class as him, we are not working on that one, can tell ya that right now." Neville laughs, "Ella, you've really got no idea when a mate is flirting with you."
Ella shakes her head, "He wasn't flirting, it was tutoring. Nothing more, nothing less. Regardless of the fact, would you mind.. not telling Ron, Hermione, or Harry? They've been so.. odd about this whole thing. I wouldn't want for them to make assumptions like you."
"Listen, we've been mates for how long. I can tell you now, you've got plenty of guys who fancy you, and you've got no idea. The amount of mates I've had to turn down on your behalf.." Neville laughs, "I'm just joking of course. But Malfoy was putting the moves on you."
"OI! If you gits are just going to gossip like schoolgirls, come down to the ground!" Madam Hooch yells from the ground.
Neville and Ella laugh together, but Ella stops, "You really think something's going on with Malfoy?"
Neville starts floating down, Ella following him, "I don't think there's something not going on with Malfoy, that's for sure. You're a good judge of character, you'll do the right thing, I'm sure."
Ella walks to the Slytherin wing of the castle, looking for Malfoy. She finds him quickly, waiting outside the dormitory, as if he knew she was going to come to him.
"You aren't making a love potion in your potions class." She says immediately.
Draco shrugs, a lollipop hanging from his mouth, "I just wanted to know how to make one."
"So you could slip it into her drink, I'm sure?" Harry bellows from behind.
Ella turns around quickly, "Harry? Why are you here - did you follow me?" Suddenly Harry is pushing up against her to get to Draco, as if he wants to fight him, "Harry, stop!" She pushes him back, "Are you out of your mind?"
"Something is going on here, Ella. He is a death eater, and now he's trying to make love potions? That doesn't concern you?" Harry says pointedly.
"You can't just say everyone is a death eater because they don't like you, Harry!" Ella snaps at him, pushing him back once more, "Now leave us alone! I know how to handle myself!"
Harry shakes his head, "No, you don't. You've got no idea what you're getting yourself into."
Draco steps forward all of a sudden, "You heard the lady mate, she's got a handle on herself."
Harry points at him over Ella's shoulder, "Do not try me, Malfoy."
"Oh yeah?" Draco says, stepping closer, his wand now at his side. "Or you'll what? Protect your little girlfriend from the big bad wolf?"
Ella looks at Draco over her shoulder, a little offended, "He is not my boyfriend, and nor are you." She stops pushing Harry back to push Draco against the wall. A quick shove. Her eyes filling with tears. "You lot are ridiculous. I am just trying to do something nice and you guys have turned it into a.. feud of some sorts." She shakes her head before the tears can fall, "I'm going. You do what you want." Ella says, storming off. Her robes flowing after her.
"Ella wait!" She hears Draco and Harry both say, and then turn to glare at each other.
She didn't know what was going on with Draco Malfoy, or Harry either for that matter. But she knew one thing for sure right now. She wasn't going to deal with this.
