Title: Love's healing potion

Pairing: Oliver Wood x Shy!Reader

Word count: 4.8k

Published: 24 July 2021

Author: Heloise Daphne Brightmore

Notes: If you enjoy my stories, please consider donating and supporting me on Ko-fi. Of course, it's completely your choice, I will continue updating for free anyway :) Thank you <3 [ ko-fi.com/heloisedaphnebrightmore ]

Oliver has always been popular, both girls and boys falling for him regardless of his disinterest in anyone, even in love itself. But his passion for quidditch, the determination his pure presence radiated attracted people's attention. It was inevitable for you to realise the charm he possessed, the charm so many of your other school mates fell for. But just like them, Oliver only had eyes for quidditch.

For you, however, it meant more time to be able to admire him from afar. He was so invested in his pursuit of becoming a professional quidditch player and making a career out of it, that he couldn't possibly realise your tender eyes that followed him everywhere.

You would have felt bad about it, if you had done it on purpose, but it was sheer coincidence that somehow you always crossed paths. But then again, Hogwarts wasn't as big as some might have thought and since you often attended the same classes and you caught a glimpse of him at the quidditch pitch or at dinner in the Great Hall, it was inevitable for your eyes to follow him. It didn't matter how hard you could have tried avoiding him; you couldn't escape crossing paths with him. He was everywhere after all. And to your better luck, he didn't even know of your existence.

Taking your seat in the least liked classroom of the dungeon, you prepared your quill and parchment for your Potions lesson with Professor Snape. Within minutes the room filled with loud students, chattering about trivial subjects. Oliver stepped through the entrance with a vibrant smile across his face as he discussed something with Percy Weasley. But the cheerful laughter and loud chatters quickly died down as the teacher arrived and an uncomfortable, heavy silence fell over the students, each trying to hide away from the professor's hard gaze.

"Afternoon," he snarled and nodded towards the group of young people sitting in the classroom. "We will be working on a Wound healing potion today," he spoke as he leaned against his large wooden desk, his arms crossed under the dark robe that fell over his frame. "I expect your complete attention as the finished products will be sent to Madam Pomfrey. I'm assuming none of you would like to see your classmates lose a limb or two instead of healing them," he smirked, or so he looked like he wanted to, but instead he bared his teeth like an animal ready to pounce on its prey.

Like every lesson that you took with Oliver, you wished to be paired up with him, but once again, you have been left without his presence, instead having to work with Percy. You didn't mind working with the boy, but just once you wished to be closer to the quidditch captain, even if the thought of talking to him terrified you.

Percy moved over to where you sat and greeted you with a nod which you diligently returned. Opening your book on the page of the Wound healing potion, you quickly skimmed through the ingredients and started off towards the store cupboard. However, your steps quickly halted as Oliver headed to the table in front of you, pairing up with a Ravenclaw girl you didn't know much about, except that she was in the same year. As hard as you tried to shake the feeling, a slight, but instant jealousy rushed through you. She was certainly pretty with her long, silky brown hair and large, curious brown eyes. And according to the wide smile she wore, she was more than happy to work with the Gryffindor quidditch captain. A heavy sigh left your lungs as you looked at Percy, who was already studying your face with a curious gaze. You tried to get rid of the thought and continued toward the cupboard to collect the relevant ingredients for your potion. When you felt a presence behind you, you tried to pick up your pace and collect the components faster, feeling guilty about wasting their time. But your movements froze as you saw a hand reach over your shoulder whilst brushing against your uniform and lifting a small vial from the shelf beside your head.

Looking over your shoulder, Oliver lowered his eyes to meet yours, a small smile dancing across his face. But it quickly disappeared, and a frown took over his handsome features. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," he tilted his head innocently, before offering you another sweet smile and left for his table. You didn't mean to look frightened, but you couldn't shake the tiny little butterflies from the pit of your stomach, dancing around as though they were having the time of their life, whilst making you even more anxious.

It wasn't your first encounter with him, nor the first time you have talked to him, but somehow each time you managed to hear his voice directed to you, words escaped you and there was nothing that you could have said, thus making you look like a gaping fish. All of those times you could have connected with him, not even on a deeper level just like a normal person, you found yourself wordless and it made you want to hide in a corner and scold yourself for being rather useless when the opportunity offered itself to you on a silver platter.

Heaving a frustrated sigh, you collected the last piece of ingredient and turned back to your table to start working on the potion diligently. As the class started drawing closer to the end, your potion looked and smelled just like the Wound healing potion described in your book. It was ruled by a beautiful purple colour and its scent reminded you of the hospital wing filled with all kinds of concoctions ready to help the injured. Professors Snape walked around the classroom, offering condescending remarks to his students, some harsher than the others, no compliments uttered even at the sight of the best potions.

"I'm glad to have been your partner. We've done well," Percy said with a small, but proud smile across his face.

"Yes, we have," you nodded, mirroring his expression, before he turned to look in front of him. Following his direction, you found yourself meeting Oliver's eyes, whose gaze fell from you to Percy before it returned to you once again. You couldn't read him, nor could you understand the look on his face, but the way he studied you and Percy seemed very intent. You looked up at Percy as he arched a brow at his friend, wordlessly questioning him, but by the time you turned back to Oliver, he was concentrating on his potion with the girl beside him who seemed to be standing closer to the boy each time your eyes landed on the pair.

As the class finished, you offered to stay behind and clean up. In normal circumstances you wouldn't have helped, but on occasions, you had to stay close to the potions, needing to steal a vial or two. Never have you thought about stealing nor have you planned to borrow things without asking first, but the potions you occasionally lifted were made by you and your actions served a greater purpose in your eyes. You filled up all the flasks that Professor Snape prepared for the potions before you took out two vials from your bag, poured the liquid into them and hid them both in your bag. As quickly as you could, you finished cleaning up the classroom and headed towards the Gryffindor common room, your steps rushed, knowing Oliver's quidditch practice was soon to finish.

After you murmured the password to the Fat Lady's portrait, you stepped inside the common room and pulled the vials out of your bag, along with a piece of paper and your quill. You looked around the common room, making sure no one was there, but it was emptier than you have ever seen before, the usual loud atmosphere ruled by deadly silence. Placing the bottles on the staircase, you flicked your wand and your quill started writing a message on the parchment, meanwhile you placed a small ribbon around the vials. Using a magically written message was necessary for your identity to be concealed, for your handwriting to stay a secret. As soon as your message had been written, you tied the papers around the bottles with the ribbon securing them and levitated them up the stairs of the male dormitory, placing them down right at the top of the stairs, in front of a door. To be exact, in front of the entrance to Oliver's dormitory.

A relieved sigh left your lungs as you placed your quill and wand back in your bag. But your movements halted when you heard the significant, creaking sound of a door opening. Lifting your gaze, you met Percy Weasley's curious eyes on top of the stairs as he crouched down beside the vials. A small smile spread across his face, a knowing look in his eyes studying your reaction. You felt your blood freeze, cheeks flushed at the situation you found yourself in.

"Don't worry, it's our little secret," he waved you off as though it was nothing important. But you couldn't get your anxious heart to slow down, nor could you stop your nervous fidgeting. "Can I ask you something?" He stood up from beside the little package and headed down the stairs, halting right in front of you with a curious gaze. You nodded in response, finding it hard to utter a word. "Why didn't you give it to him personally?" His straightforward question caught you off-guard, starting you off in a series of mumbling monologues that none of you could really understand.

Knowing nothing you have said made sense, you let out an exasperated sigh and tried to form a coherent sentence. "I don't think it's a good idea. It's better if he doesn't know it's me," you replied in a hushed tone, trying to stay as quiet as possible.

"He knows it's you," he smiled with an arched brow. "He's known since you'd sent the Calming draught to him after his quidditch injury in fifth year. Each time there was a potion class with a specific healing potion, a portion of it seemed to appear right at our doorstep. At first, he wasn't sure, but out of all our classmates, it was you who'd done them all perfectly. It didn't take much to realise," although Percy wore a warm smile, you felt your heart sink. You didn't want him to know, you didn't even know how to talk to him. There were many things you wanted to tell him, but no words could leave your lips when he was right in front of you. The storm of thoughts swirling around in your mind completely drowned out your sense, seemingly taking a short break as you thought about the possible outcomes of revealing yourself, each ending horribly on your part.

"What's going on?" Oliver's voice came from behind you, his Scottish accent thicker than usual, making you jump as your head snapped towards him.

"Do you always appear from out of nowhere?" You asked incredulously before you realised the slightly ruder tone you've used. However, beside a simple surprised expression, Oliver wore a cheeky grin, your reaction positively stunning him. You weren't always shy; your friends knew that. But Oliver wasn't your friend, and he couldn't have known that there was more to your personality, that your other side didn't always want to hide away from every little obstacle. "I'm sorry. I have to go," you whispered as you scurried away, hoping to forget about your little outburst. Your steps were loud against the ground of the empty corridors, your breathing ragged and shaky as you tried to make your escape as natural as possible.

You didn't mean to snap at him, nor did you mean to be rude, but the words escaped you without a warning as Percy's words rang loudly in your ears. By the time you realised what you'd said, it was too late for you to take them back, so an apology had to do. To clear your mind, you headed towards the Black Lake, needing silence to try and think things through rationally.

By the time you headed to the Great Hall for dinner, you felt better. Of course, your own words still nagged at you, but you couldn't do anything about it. You just had to keep a lock on your lips and hide under a table the next time you were to meet Oliver. As you stepped inside the Great Hall and took a seat beside your friends, Angelina Johnson, and Roger Davis, you packed your plate full of delicious food and stuffed your mouth, not wanting to talk about where you have disappeared to. But they were persistent.

"What?" You asked as they eyed you, staring at you as though there was something on your face. Angelina propped her elbow on the table and placed her chin in her palm, staring at you shamelessly, meanwhile Roger arched a brow, clearly questioning your earlier whereabouts.

"I don't know. Maybe an answer to why Oliver has been looking around for you for the past three hours could be the start of your story," Roger said with an expectant expression, earning a loud groan from you.

"It's nothing. I simply embarrassed myself just like I expected to if I ever opened my mouth in front of him," you shrugged as you dug deeper into your food and shoved a larger potion in your mouth, hoping he would leave you alone. But he couldn't, he was too curious at times and so was Angelina.

"Spill it!" She instructed you with a wide grin, earning an approving nod from Roger, ready for the tea to be spilled. Knowing she wouldn't let you ignore the subject for long, you gave in and told them everything from what happened in your Potions class to the vials Percy found and your little retort you didn't mean to utter to Oliver.

"So, are you embarrassed about barking at him for no reason," she offered you a cheeky grin before she continued, "or is it the fact that he knows that it's been you who have been sending the potions to him?"

"Both," you huffed as you rubbed the bridge of your nose, ignoring the shadow casted over your closed eyelids. "I was born to be useless," you scoffed as you opened your eyes to find Oliver Wood seated across you with a tiny smile in the corner of his lips.

"Hello," he greeted you in a soft tone, your eyes growing wide as your brain finally processed his presence.

"Hi," you breathed, finding it hard to respond to a simple greeting.

"I have been looking for you," he said, scratching the back of his neck as though he felt just as awkward as you did. "I was wondering if I could talk to you— in private."

"I—," a heavy sigh left your lungs as your mind started to wonder about the possible outcomes of your conversation. Maybe he was mad at you for meddling and didn't want you to send him any more healing potions. Maybe he was unhappy with the way you barked at him for no apparent reason, other than him having the ability to appear anywhere without a trace. Maybe he figured you had helped him because you had a crush on him and he was ready to reject you, which didn't surprise you, he had done so to many of your school mates after all. Each option felt like a stab in the chest, knowing you would have to mask your slowly blossoming feelings for the boy. "Erm—" words didn't seem to want to come, and it frustrated you even further that you couldn't create a coherent sentence.

"If you are not comfortable, that's fine," he offered with a warm-hearted smile, reassuring you he didn't mean to pressure you into anything you didn't want to do.

"Erm—," once again you were left wordless, feeling irritated by your own behaviour, even though the boy in front of you seemed incredibly sweet regardless of your incapability to talk to him. A sharp exhale left your lungs as you readied yourself to reply. "Sure," you replied, watching as Oliver's smile curved higher.

"Brilliant. Is it good for you now or—," before he could have finished his sentence, you cut him off.

"It's fine now," you said, collecting all the courage that you harboured deep down. Oliver nodded and stood up from across you, waiting for you to follow him. So, you did. You walked out of the Great Hall, wandering across the corridors before Oliver opened the door of an empty classroom and waited for you to enter first to then follow you in closely, shutting the door behind him.

You leaned against a table at the front row, right in front of the podium, crossing your arms defensively. It was clear from your body language that you closed yourself off, but you couldn't stop yourself from bringing up your walls. Oliver stood right in front of you, placing his weight against the professors' wider and larger table than the students'.

Oliver's gaze wandered across the room as if he hadn't been there before, but from the nervous fidgeting of his fingers, you realised you weren't the only one who wasn't entirely confident. "Erm—, I didn't mean to scare you away by asking you to talk to me in private, I just thought it would be more comfortable, but now I realise it's more nerve-racking," he laughed awkwardly, his blushing cheeks and tinted ears making you feel slightly better about your own anxiousness.

"Well, we are here," you stated obviously, wanting to scold yourself for having nothing better to say, until you decided that you were at a stalemate. "Why don't you just say whatever you wanted to say," you offered with a curious tone, hoping to get yourself out of there as fast as you could.

"That's exactly what makes me nervous," he laughed softly as his eyes met yours, for the first time since you'd arrived in the classroom.

"I'm assuming it's about the potions," you tried to help him, knowing how difficult it was for you to start a conversation with someone who you were not used to. But somehow as you stood in front of him, the usually confident boy seemed more anxious whilst you radiated more confidence than his awkward stance.

"That too," he nodded. "When I realised that it was you, I wanted to thank you to begin with, but I never really knew how. A simple 'thank you' didn't seem enough. You worked on those potions for hours and two little words meant nothing compared to the effort you put into those vials. However, since I haven't got much to offer, I just wanted to say that I really am grateful for them," the warm smile across his face made your heart speed up, his genuine words making your cheeks warm up.

"It's nothing—," you tried to wave it off.

"It's not 'nothing'," he shook his head as he pushed himself away from the table and stood tall in front of you. "They helped me repeatedly. Your healing potions, calming potions and sleeping potions all helped me when I needed them and I appreciate it beyond words," the warmth that spread across your chest at the sight of those chestnut eyes and the adoring smile made your heartbeat quicken. He wore a genuinely grateful expression which reassured you that even if he tried, he couldn't hide how happy he was for your help.

A small smile spread across your face as you replied. "I'm glad they helped. I hoped they would."

"They did. Tremendously," he said as his smile grew wider. "You see, there was another thing I wanted to talk to you about," he started, but his words died down as his gaze fell to the floor, his cheeks tainted by an even darker shade of pink once again. His usually confident attitude that attracted you in the first place was gone, but his awkward uncertainty made him even more adorable. "I know we haven't talked much, and we don't really know each other, but—," a heavy sigh left his lungs as he interrupted his own sentence, "for Godric's sake, this will sound creepy," he scratched the back of his neck anxiously, "I haven't been watching you in a creepy way, I promise, but I have been noticing little things about you and I wanted to get to know you better for a very long time," a loud scoff left his lungs as your cheeks started warming up, realising the words Oliver muttered. "What I'm trying to say, in a very non-creepy way, is that I have been interested in you for a while and I would be honoured if I could take you on a date," he finally blurted out the words, your eyes growing wider, both your body and brain freezing on the spot.

Oliver finally lifted his gaze, studying your every move from the tiniest blinking to the nervous fidgeting of your hands, impatiently waiting for a reply from you. But once again you found yourself speechless. Just minutes before, when you finally felt you had collected your courage, when you finally initiated a conversation, all the bravery you had been harbouring escaped you with the words Oliver had spoken to you.

"Khm—," Oliver cleared his throat awkwardly, biting on his bottom lip, your silence making the wait even worse. "If you need time to think, that's perfectly fine, but if you don't want to go out with me, that's understandable too, I wouldn't want you to feel like I'm pressuring you into anything," he chuckled nervously as he rushed through his words. "But if you could just say something, that would help," the faux smile across his face, his nervously wandering eyes felt like a wake-up call as you realised you have been standing there in silence, leaving the poor boy to his own nerve-racking thoughts.

"I'm sorry," you blurted it out, watching Oliver's face fall, disappointment painted across his handsome face.

"No, no, it's fine, I get it," he nodded, still trying to smile as tenderly as he could manage. As though your brain finally started to function, you realised the words you uttered could have been easily misunderstood by Oliver.

"No, wait, no, that's not what I meant," you tried to save the situation. "I was apologising because I kept you waiting. I didn't mean to leave you without an answer. I just— I think— I didn't expect you to ask me out," you smiled nervously. A heavy sigh left your lungs, one that you didn't even realise you were holding in, before you continued. "I didn't even think you knew who I—, I'm not really one to be the centre of attention, if anything I rather lay low, so I just always assumed that you didn't know—," you wanted to continue, but the words sounded so wrong, you weren't sure how to phrase them. Instead, you turned your gaze away, studying the ground intently, trying to distract yourself from your own thoughts.

"I didn't know— what?" He asked with a frown across his brows.

"Well— that you didn't know who I was," you whispered the words more to yourself, hoping he didn't hear them in the end, the shape of your shoes seemingly more interesting than Oliver's reaction.

"What?" He asked, furrowing more intensely. "No," he shook his head as he stepped closer to you and placed his index finger under your chin, lifting your face to meet his gaze. "We might not interact a lot, but that doesn't mean you didn't catch my eyes. As I said, in a non-creepy way," he started with a nervous chuckle, "I've been noticing little things about you. Your laughter is addictive, I couldn't stop myself from looking at you when I heard your cheerful voice. The way you stand up for your friends even though most of the time you try to hide away just shows how brave you are. Your quietness of all has been possibly the most intriguing personality trait of yours. It's only reserved for people you don't know, but as soon as you let someone in, your personality shines through which makes me want to know more about you. I couldn't fail to notice these little things. I asked you out because I am interested in you which would hardly be possible if I didn't know who you were," he chuckled playfully.

His words left you stunned. His tender tone reassured you that his interest in you was pure and genuine, still you found it hard to believe that after all this time of longing, the person you had feelings for found you intriguing in any way. "I— I didn't know you paid attention," you breathed, your voice slightly shaking.

"It was hard not to," he replied with a nervous scoff, "but since I haven't seen any interest from you, I wasn't sure what to do. But then you brought another potion today and I thought— I hoped that maybe if I collected my courage and asked you out, you would maybe think about it," he spoke with a hopeful smile hiding in the corner of his lips. "So, what do you think? Do you maybe need a little more time?" He tried once again, his eyes glistening with hope, studying you for reassurance.

"I'd be very happy to— to go on a date with you," you stumbled over the words, but the vivid excitement and cheerful smile that spread across Oliver's face blurred your nervousness, his happiness rubbing off on you. "I— I sent you those potions because I wanted to help. I wanted your injuries to heal faster. I didn't like to see you in pain. And— and when you were struggling to sleep, I saw you napping in class and I thought— I thought even if it's only a vial or two, a sleeping potion would help you relieve the stress you were under," you explained.

"Why have you not told me it was you?" He asked curiously.

"I guess I didn't want you to know. I did it because— because I liked you, but you always rejected everyone, every single person and I— and I didn't want to be rejected so, I didn't want you to know who I was," you replied with a nervous chuckle as you gazed around the room, feeling his heavy eyes on you, drinking in every single word that left your lips.

"Of course, I rejected them," he huffed a laugh as he gently grabbed your chin and turned your face back to him. "I wanted to get to know you all along. I couldn't date someone when there was someone else on my mind. When I realised it was you who was sending the potions, I wanted to jump out of my skin," his happy expression faltered as he let go of your chin. "But you never showed any interest. I thought maybe it was only a friendly gesture. Maybe you were helping others too and—," Oliver didn't have time to finish his sentence.

"I wasn't. I only sent them to you," you interrupted him, earning a sweet smile from him.

"So, all this time, we both watched each other from afar, wanting to get to know each other better but none of us made the first move, huh?" He asked as his lips curved up, a foolish grin taking over his face.

"So, it seems," you replied as you mirrored his expression. "But technically, I did make the first move by leaving potions for you," you chuckled nervously, though it sounded more playful.

"Well, technically, I've asked to talk to you today so I'd have to argue with your logic," he retorted with the same playful grin.

"Fine, I will let you win," you shrugged nonchalantly.

"Thank you, very generous of you," he scoffed, but his smirk never faltered as he lifted your hand and placed a soft kiss on the back of it, his lips slightly tickling your skin. You felt as though you'd been dreaming all along, but the kiss he left on the back of your hand reassured you that Oliver was right there, holding on to you. "Though I really do feel like a winner today. I won a date with you after all and hopefully even more," he said as he brushed a loose lock of hair behind your ear, his gentle gesture sending a shiver through your body.

"We will see about that," you replied with a mischievous twinkle in your eyes, his confession growing your confidence. Oliver let out a heartfelt laughter as the words left your lips, making you want to jump out of your own skin. You were both excited and inhumanly content as you watched Oliver's happy expression, both of you basking in that sweet moment you shared. 

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