Chapter 3
When Harry and Hermione entered Slughorn's class room that Valentine's day, it already exhibited an assortment of potions, just as it had on their first day. Hermione identified Amortentia, Dreamshade, Forget-Me-Not and Cupid's Arrow. They were all love potions. She graced the cauldrons with a dark look. She was decidedly not in a romantic mood today. Yet she knew that her mood could be improved if she smelled at least one of them, and it could hardly be avoided in the 90 minutes she would spend in the underground chamber with little to no ventilation. How that had ever been approved as a safe place for potions was beyond her.
They had just started working on their own potions as the familiar aromas of amortentia already drafted over to her. She could smell freshly mown grass, a new sheet of parchment and something just out of the oven, something she still wasn't quite able to identify.
Ron slipped into class a few minutes late and put his cauldron up at their table. He looked troubled, but Hermione had bigger worries. Harry had kept outshining her in every lesson, but she would be damned if that kept her from working. She barely paid attention to the boys who were whispering to each other, assuming that Harry was passing on stupid tips from his stupid book. She never caught the shocked expression on Harry's face as he looked at her. She finished her potion, again not up to Harry's or Slughorn's standards, and left the class room in an angry rush. Yet before she made it to the door, she had to pass by the presented cauldrons and potions. She smiled a little at the scent of ginger biscuits that was suddenly everywhere...