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thebestofoneshots · 1 year ago

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Gilded Constellations | (wolfstar x reader)

Series Masterlist | Previous episode

Pairing: Wolfstar x Reader Word Count: 7.5 K Warnings: Graphic descriptions of violence. (Reader discretion is advised). Prompt: We need to talk. This IS a wolfstar x reader fic, but it's incredibly slow burn. They won't start all dating each other until we're very deep into the story, but I promise the long wait will be worth it.

Chapter 24: Peace of Mind

10:00 November 24th, 1976

You waited for the girls to fall asleep and used a combination of spells to sneak out without being noticed. Lily had changed your bandages before bed and you had gladly let her, Sirius’ words reverberating in your head as she did “ Don’t be so stubborn and let us help!”

Perhaps you’d have to use those same words with Remus later on. Little after telling him you were sorry for hurting him so bad and asking him to please not hate you for the rest of his life. As you walked towards the infirmary with the disillusionment charm, the same charm you had used so often since you arrived at Hogwarts that you had pretty much mastered it. Your charm was almost as deceiving as James’ invisibility cloak, logically you knew it’d never match its greatness, but you could definitely get close.

At least enough to sneak past Peeves who was busy rearranging all the portraits on one of the halls so they were all upside down, you heard the paintings complain as he shook them about for good measure. You winced, I wouldn’t want to be any of those portraits, you thought, but continued on your way to the infirmary. As you walked you pulled the sleeves of your quidditch sweater over your hands, the temperature had dropped a little that night and you felt a stark contrast between the cold you felt then and how hot you had felt earlier in the passages with Sirius, you flushed a little when the images came back you your mind, the hunger you had felt had been so overwhelming it felt like a dream.

You took another breath, still feeling cold. Was being sensible to temperature changes also because of the bit of lycanthropy running through your system at that point? Did poor Remus have to deal with them so often? Maybe that was why he always carried around some kind of sweater, in case it got chilly and he felt it a little more strongly than the rest.

Once you arrived at the big infirmary doors you looked at them for a minute and waited, taking a deep breath as you stared. You had gotten word that Pomfrey usually retired to her chambers at 11:30 PM, after curfew and once she made sure all the children in the infirmary –if there were any– had fallen asleep. Her chambers were close enough so she could rush back in, in case of an emergency with the children, and she had some house elves check on the children often.

You were thankful you had made friends with Myrtle since she had been the one to provide you with so much detailed information. Information that she had eavesdropped out a couple of years ago when Sirius, James and Peter were planning how to get into the infirmary since no one allowed them to visit Remus.

You had also gone to talk to Numbletwist earlier that day, to try and figure out if there would be any elves in the infirmary that night. She shook her head, telling you that they were often called off when students got sick around the full moon. She said it was probably because Poppy liked to stay extra attentive of things. You had nodded and thanked her profusely for the information. Scurrying away with the excuse of needing to rest before she asked why you wanted to know.

You heard a bit of rattling and then one of the doors opened up, she walked outside, using her wand to illuminate her path, and you sneaked in and hid behind one of the beds, even if you still had the disillusionment charm, you knew it was better safe than sorry. And Poppy definitely had better eyesight than most witches her age. She turned off the rest of the lights in the infirmary and closed the door behind her, but you stayed crouching behind the bed.

You stood there, breathing steady as you slowly pushed yourself up to peer over the bed and check whether Remus was asleep or awake. He seemed to be waiting for Poppy to leave too, since a couple of minutes later he lifted himself up, accommodating a pillow and pulling his wand out. He used Lumus to see better as he looked through the drawer of his night table, grabbing onto a book and settling it over his lap.

Great, Remus really had no plan to sleep soon then, you shrank into Vixen and walked over to Remus, sneaking in below his bed and onto the other side, where you could keep an eye on the door just in case. Once you manage to collect your thoughts you sprung back into human form. Remus jumped from his spot in the bed when you appeared out of nowhere.

“Sorry to startle you,” you whispered with a bit of a frown, regret evident in your tone.

“Little Witch?” he asked as he blinked a couple of times, trying to decipher if the way the low blue light from the stars and the waning moon shone behind your figure was all part of a dream or whether you really were there again. In truth, he had smelled you minutes earlier, but he assumed perhaps he was just picking up your scent from the chocolates you kept bringing over, or he was so drudged with potions that he was now smelling you like you really were there. And it wouldn’t be uncommon, he had dreamed of you so often lately that you standing there might really just be yet another one. But the way the light cast a halo behind you was too realistic to be part of his imagination “What are you doing here?”

“You’ve been avoiding me,” you said simply.

Remus stiffened and froze as if he had seen a basilisk, but then shook his head “I wasn’t… I didn’t–”

“–It’s ok,” you cut him off “I get it, I understand why you wouldn’t want to see me, and I’m sorry, I’m sorry I was stubborn and I’m sorry I jinxed you and I’m sorry I had the Whomping Willow throw you to the side and I’m sorry Prongs had to gore you, several times because I couldn’t run fast enough and I’m sorry I–“

Remus reached for your hand, and your breath caught in your throat as you felt a small shock of electricity, “hey!” he said softly “I wasn’t avoiding you because I’m angry at you.”

Remus’ hand was warm and soft, not as soft as Sirius’ but not as tough as you imagined it would be. “Then why?”

“I– I thought you wouldn’t want to be my friend anymore,” he admitted, his hand on yours tightening “After the moon I was terrified the reason you’d come to see me was… to say goodbye. Because the friend that you thought you had was a monster, and because I couldn’t control myself as a wolf and because I’m bIoody dangerous to be around.”

That was the second time Remus called himself a monster in front of you, you’d have none of it, “Remus,” you said, leaning in a little closer “You’re not a monster.”

“I’m pretty sure werewolves fit in the category damn nicely,” he responded bitterly.

“I give three fucks if they fit in the monster category, in the extra dangerous being category or in the beasts section of the library. You, Remus. My Remus, are not a monster.”

Perhaps Remus would have realised the way you had used his name had it not been with how wrapped up in his own head he was “I could’ve killed you.”

“You didn’t.”

He averted your gaze “Could’ve bitten you. That’s what the wolf wanted, you know? To bite you. To turn you.”

“But you didn’t,” you insisted. “And even if you had, we would’ve found a way to deal with it.”

“Like how? After a bite there’s no way back, trust me, I would know.”

“I didn’t say we’d find a way to revert it, I said we’d deal with it. Remus, I’d rather be a werewolf than lose you.”

“You don’t know what you’re saying. I’m awful.” I’m crushing on your boyfriend, and on you for fucks sake, he thought “You’d be better off–“

You wouldn’t let him finish that phrase “–don’t bullshit me like that,” you said sternly “There isn’t a bIoody universe in which I’d be better off without you, on which any of us would. Not one!”

“But I hurt you. Even as you ran, I chased behind you and then I dug my claws on–“

“–It was a scratch.”

“Stop cutting me off, damn it!” he spat, a little annoyed. “And it wasn’t a scratch, Peter told me how you shivered all night.”

“Well then stop saying stupid shit and I will stop cutting you off!” you responded exasperated. Then you sighed, placing one of your hands on your temple. The hand that wasn’t glued to Remus’ “freaking little Wormtail ratted me out.” you mumbled.

“I literally kept pushing until my claws broke your soft skin, Moony could have broken your arm.”

“I would have survived.”

“You don’t know that!”

“Remus. You can’t make decisions for me,” you said slowly “I knew you were a werewolf for a couple of weeks before this happened, and I never even once considered to stop being your friend.”

“That was before…”

“And it’s the exact same thing now,” you responded with a thin smile. “I don’t care if you’re a werewolf, I don’t care if Moony scratched me and made me hungry, and sensitive to temperatures and thirsty. I don’t care if my arm hurts or if I have to change my bandages every couple of hours and add more of Lily’s magic mixture or take painkillers. And that’s because, no matter what, you’re still Remus, and I wouldn’t want you to be any different,” you gave his hand a squeeze “I’m not gonna let you push me away because you’re terrified I might be scared of Moony.”

“But you were terrified of me! The nightmares, the boggart, the…”

“That was before I met Moony.”

“What?”

“He’s beautiful Remus, you’re beautiful.”

“What?!” he repeated, a little louder now.

You took a deep breath “Yes, the nightmares, the beast. I was scared because a huge thing chased after me, squashing me and throwing me around countless times. But Remus, I had never gotten to see it, not really, I was too busy running away from it to pay attention. Did you know he has your eyes?” Your kind eyes, you thought. “The golden specks that are more present near the moon? I could see them, and I wasn’t scared anymore.”

“And that was dumb, leaving my wand on the ground–“

“–I said I would stop interrupting if you stopped with the stupid comments.”

“It’s the truth.”

You wanted to argue, but it really had been a stupid thing to do, you had been so mesmerised by the wolf, that perhaps you really weren’t thinking straight. Not that it would be expected, especially after everything you had gone through previous to that. “Fine then, one part brave, three parts fool, I’m a Gryffindor after all. Regardless, I’m not scared of Moony, not anymore, not now I know It’s you.”

“That’s stupid too,” he added, you could feel a slight change in his tone, he was a lot more relaxed now, he’s joking, you realised.

“Well you have a very stupid friend, get over it,” you joked with a smile, “Are you going to stop avoiding me now?”

Remus sighed “How could I abandon my potions partner?” he asked, a small smirk drawing itself on his lips.

You chuckled, your hands, the ones that were still intertwined with each other, dangled as your shoulders shook, “That’s the spirit,” you said, your sight flickering towards his hand, and the way it held yours. You brushed your thumb gently over a particularly thick scar on the back of his hand. Remus shivered, but you were so cold you assumed it was for the same reason that you would, werewolves were clearly more sensible to temperature.

“Your hand is very cold,” he said as he tightened his grip.

“It’s freezing here,” you responded, “you feel it too, don’t you? You shivered.”

He cleared his throat “Yeah,” he lied “kinda cold.”

“Your hand’s nice and warm tho,” you acknowledged.

“I had it under the covers,” he lied again. He wondered why you hadn’t separated your hands, not because he wanted you to do it, but rather because he was dreading the moment you did, “how’s the arm?” He asked, nodding towards it.

You shrugged, “It’s healing… your ribs? I broke them didn’t I?”

“It was the Whomping Willow.”

“Yeah, the tree, and my carefully executed plan.”

That had him shaking his head in amusement “How did you know it would work?”

You swallowed, you could lie and say you used maths or highly advanced magic to calculate things to the tea, but enough secrets had been held between you and Remus already “I didn’t,” you admitted “The idea just came to me and I used my instinct to know when to jump.”

“You’re insane,” he said with a shake of his head, he was half pissed, half amused you had managed to pull it off “and brilliant.”

You frowned, a small smile playing on your lips “I’ll take that as a compliment,” there was a silence and you leaned in to sit on the edge of the bed, careful not to hurt the boy as you sat, your head still turned to him “Tom said you’d be out tomorrow.”

“Is that how you found out I was avoiding you?” he asked with an arched eyebrow.

You nodded “Yeah, that and Poppy looking at me so pitifully, even Sirius seemed like he was suspicious after a while.”

He winced “Sorry ‘bout that… But yeah, she said I could leave tomorrow, she kept me here tonight just in case.”

“Well, thank Godric she did, this would’ve been an awkward conversation to have in front of the boys,” you teased “especially when I didn’t even let you speak.”

“I was being twat.”

“Yeah, you were,” you agreed, a small teasing smile on your face. He scooted slightly to the side to give you more space to sit, then pulled your hand so you moved in a little bit more.

There was silence, a rather comfortable one, but Remus broke it, he was now rubbing circles on your hand “You were here when Pomfrey gave me the Skellegro,” he said, and then turned his gaze to you “Weren’t you?”

You nodded “Sirius and Lily brought me over for dittany and silver dust, the scratch wasn’t healing until Lily made some a paste.”

“So you were bleeding all night…” he said, guilt filling his expression.

You sighed “It’s fine, I heal fast.”

Remus looked to the side, barely spotting the bruise on your neck “Is that from when they…?” he asked, pointing towards it.

You opened your eyes wider and pulled the collar of the sweater you were wearing up, blushing at the memory of Sirius kissing your neck as he had you flushed against the stone wall of one of the passageways “Um… I… no it’s…”

Remus understood a sour expression playing on his face that he masked with disgust “Ugh you and Pads are gross.”

You hit him on the arm playfully “As if you’d never done it,” you chastised “Oh.. by the way, what’s with you and Alice?” you asked with an arched eyebrow and a suggestive smile.

Remus felt a pang in his chest, the cause was in the way you’d asked, so casually and playfully. You were clearly teasing him, and also clearly not into him. And then he cursed himself for feeling jealous, of course, she’s not into me, she’s into Sirius, her boyfriend. “We… I mean…” how the fuck do I tell her we’re only having fun without sounding like an ass? It's not like I can tell her I’m using Alice as a distraction, that’d be way worse.

“You’re not in love with her, are you?” you asked, with a rather apprehensive tone.

“Does that make me an asshole?”

You shook your head “I’m sure she’s not in love either,” you said with a sigh “Todd told me she likes to have fun and then… Well, I don’t think that makes her a bad person per se, as long as she’s honest about it.”

“She is,” he reassured, “she’s fun too.” Remus wasn’t sure fun was a very accurate description, not even close to distracting, but it seemed like the right thing to say.

“That’s good. You deserve to have fun,” you said with a smile “Though I’m sure you’d easily find someone for a deeper connection if you were looking for it.”

Remus scoffed, shaking his head “Yeah sure, until they find out I’m a monst–“

“–We’re not going to keep calling you that, Remus,” you interrupted. “And I think they would. Just think about it, all of the people who know are still there for you, no matter what. We’re here, and if someone really loved you, they would be there for you too. And if they weren’t then they don’t deserve you.” He gave you a look of disbelief “Honest, if I were dating you, and then I found out. Even if I had gone through the same thing I went through that night, I’d still date you.”

Remus wasn’t sure whether to be happy or cry at your statement “But you’re dating Sirius.” It was almost bitter the way he said it, but it slipped past you.

“Well duh, but hypothetically, I’d love you either way. And I mean, how many people can say they’re dating a sexy werewolf, that’s gotta give you some points…”

Remus grabbed one of the pillows from his side and threw it at your face, he didn’t wanna talk about depressing shit anymore.

“Oi! What was that for?!”

“You were getting too sappy with me,” he said with a diverted smile.

You narrowed your eyes at him, a mirroring smile on your lips “Oh you’re a twat,” you said as you hit him on the side lightly, he groaned and you winced, brows instantly furrowing in concern “Sorry…” He nodded, but a small smile showed on his soft lips, like he was holding back a laugh. You quickly realised he had faked it and hit him again in return “That’s a nasty trick, you shouldn’t take advantage of your hurt state.”

“The one that you induced?” he said as his grin widened, teasing you again. You gasped in shock, and laughed afterwards, hitting him again a couple more times.

“Oi, oi, that’s enough…” he said as he grabbed onto your hand, laughing along with you.

He had been soft when he grabbed you, but he was so strong even if you had wanted to, you wouldn’t have been able to move your arm, but instead of dwelling on the boy’s strength, you just laughed merrily, leaning in so far down that your hair brushed over his chest. He could smell it, and it was as delightful as ever, perhaps a bit more now that he knew you wouldn’t avoid him just because of his condition. He took a deep breath as you laughed, almost feeling guilty for enjoying the moment so much.

You cannot love her, it is sin, said a voice in his head as he listened to your giggles, but why does it feel like heaven then?

“Can you turn back into the fox?” he asked, despite himself. Perhaps he was already so drunk on you, and your laughs that he wasn’t thinking straight. You turned your gaze to him, as you let your laughs die out. An arched eyebrow looking at him questioning “You got to see Moony, but I only got to see the fox through his eyes. I wanna see her with my eyes,” he reasoned, although he wasn’t sure if he was actually reasoning.

“Seems fair enough,” you said with a shrug “It’s Vixen, by the way.”

“Who’s Vixen?”

“Me,” you said as if it was obvious “I mean… the fox, she is. Wormmy and Prongs chose it, Sirius said it fit.”

Remus hummed in response “It certainly does,” he said as he looked at you, the blue moonlight was still illuminating your features, and you certainly looked as charming as ever, tantalising, beguiling even. And the small cut on your lip? The one that he had noticed since the day at the Shrieking Shack and hadn’t disappeared from your face yet, along with the hickey Sirius had left on your neck, made you look as fierce as ever.

Remus wondered for a second what it would feel like to leave a matching one on the other side of your neck, what would it feel like for Sirius to leave one on his? He knew he was yearning for something he couldn’t have, alas, he had yearned for a normal life so often, he was already used to the feeling. But his fantasies about being normal were never as sweet as his fantasies of you, of Sirius. Of either of your lips attached to his neck or his lips attached to yours, to Sirius’s silky pale skin or to your soft velvety neck. To your collarbone, to the indents that made it almost impossible for him to look back at your face. He remembered you in your Halloween costume again, he remembered Sirius’s devilish smile and matching outfit, and he had to adjust the bedsheets underneath, clearing his throat as he tried to get back on earth.

It’s Moony’s fault, It’s Moony’s fault! Did she notice? Will she buy it if I tell her that?

“Is it really a good idea for me to turn into Vixen here? Isn’t it like… dangerous for your wounds and stuff?”

Remus frowned, buffing diverted “You’ve got rabies or something?”

You gasped again “Of course I don’t! How would you feel if I asked you the same thing?!” He shrugged in response and you considered hitting him again. “Fine then,” you said “but I will bite if you try anything weird.”

“Define anything weird…” he teased.

“I’d rather bite instead,” you retorted “It’ll be my payback for the scratch,” you said with a diverted smile before shrinking into Vixen. You were still on the bed as Remus looked at you. You were small, smaller than normal, and certainly smaller than Padfoot, a good deal less than half as tall as him.

“So you are a little witch in the end,” he teased as he looked at you, you bared your teeth at him for a second, and turned your head, “Aww… don’t be like that!” You shook your head and walked a little closer to him, feeling the soft bed give way under your paws.

You stared at him curiously, and you understood why he wanted to see you as a fox so much, it was completely different, the way in which you perceived someone being animal or human. Remus, for example, seemed a lot bigger when you looked at him from the eyes of Vixen. You could also feel the heat radiating from him, which is why you had almost instinctively walked closer. And just like you had been lured by Moony when you left the wand on the floor, Vixen seemed to somehow be lured by Remus.

You wondered if you were to lose your mind, and be more fox than human, would you still feel just as beguiled by the boy?

Remus was still looking at you when he extended his hand as if he wanted to pet you, but he pulled it back seconds later when he remembered Peter had once straight up bit him when he tried to do it for the first time, and you had threatened to bite. But what you did instead was surprising, since you walked closer and placed your head underneath his extended palm, nuzzling into it like a cat would.

When Remus started brushing his fingers over your head you leaned in closer, allowing him to scratch just behind your ears, which had you relax so much you almost allowed yourself to lay on the bed. When he pulled away his hand you nuzzled his arm with your nose, so he would come back “Needy, aren’t we?” he teased. You didn’t even care to respond. His hands were so big they almost covered your entire head, and so warm too, it was like having a heated blanket that also gave massages.

Maybe it was the canine side of you, but he started scratching a particular spot that had you wagging your tail like a small puppy. Remus laughed when he noticed “You still cold?” he asked when he felt your cold paw brush against his forearm. You nuzzled closer to his hand in response. “Wanna come here?” he asked, patting his chest. You tilted your head, looking at his chest rise and fall, still feeling the heat coming from it.

Maybe it’s weird, shouldn’t have aske– Remus didn’t get to finish his thoughts, you had already climbed all the way up to his chest, fast and careful, trying to avoid the side where you knew the Whomping Willow had hit him. He smiled as you nuzzled your entire body against him, allowing your tail to almost wrap itself around you, bringing a little more warmth into the equation. You then bumped your head against his chest softly.

“What’s that little witch? You want me to pet you some more?” he asked, but he wasn’t teasing this time, the cocky undertone you’d heard earlier completely gone this time around. You allowed your head to rest and closed your eyes as you moved up and down along his every breath.

Eventually, he brought his hand over you again, this time resting it over your back, and moving it softly along your fur, with soft strokes from your head to your mid back, your only reaction was to close your eyes and enjoy the way his fingers intertwined with your fur. You wondered if cuddling with Sirius as a fox would feel just as nice and decided you’d have to ask him to try, even if you had no idea how you’d put that into words.

Either way, Remus was awfully good at cuddling: big, warm, heavy hands, and a total people pleaser. You realised when he figured out the spot that made your tail waggle and focus his scratches there from then on. You had been so comfortable with the boy, that you didn’t even notice the moment you fell asleep. He did see you; and was extra quiet for a while, the only sound being the one of his breaths and your light snoring, or what sounded like snoring at least, Remus wasn’t sure if foxes actually had the ability to snore.

He had been admiring the way you slept, so peaceful, and so beautiful too, he was sure all the foxes would fall for you in the forest if they met you, not that he would allow any of them to lay a paw on you. Which he then realised might have been one of the stupidest things to ever cross his mind. But at least he wasn’t thinking of you and Sirius. Except when he was and he forced himself to look back at Vixen, letting his anxiety melt away as he continued to brush his hands over your soft red fur.

And as his anxiety left, so did most of his negative thoughts, and he was engulfed in this ever so peaceful stance that he was sure to cuddle Vixen for the rest of his life had he the chance. After some time, he too started feeling sleepy, his eyelids heavy and his stroking slower, lazier, he too fell asleep. And you must have stayed like that, sleeping on top of him, your slight weight comforting him the same way a weighted blanket would, for at least a couple of hours. Since next thing you knew, there was a high-pitched scream and you felt yourself being pushed off Remus with the force of a spell.

You fell on your leg and let out a cry of pain, you were rather confused when you noticed the woman that had used a spell against you had been no other than Madam Pomfrey.

“Wait no! Poppy, stop!” you heard Remus say, panicked and sitting up on the bed to get the woman’s attention. You shook your head and attempted to stand, only for your leg to give in again. You huffed, and while wincing, forced yourself up. You saw Pomfrey approaching you, her wand still in her hands as she pointed it at you.

You took a couple of steps back, feeling a sharp pain whenever you moved your front leg. “She’s my pet!” Remus said, “Don’t hurt her.”

Pomfrey seemed distracted by the boy’s words and you took that as a chance to scurry under one of the beds and then all the way to the door.

Every step was agonising, but the adrenaline kept you going all the way to the door that seemed to have shown up out of nowhere. You looked to the sides of the hall to make sure there was no one around before springing back into your human form and pushing the door open, getting in and closing it behind you. You could feel the stickiness of your arm.

Evans is going to kill me, you thought as you leaned in on the door, allowing yourself to rest for a second before turning to look at the place you had ended up in. And when you did you were surprised, since it looked just like the infirmary, you frowned, and opened the door to see if you had run to the same place that you’d left, but it was positively a different hallway. Different paintings, different statues, different doors, it’s definitely not the same place, you thought.

You went back in after a second and looked around again, now clutching your wounded arm, and tilted your head as you stared. Upon closer inspection, it was most definitely not the same infirmary either. In fact, near the back, there was a rather large mirror and a supply closet near it, the infirmary had large windows instead. You walked near the middle of the room and looked around you, there weren’t many beds either, and the place seemed to be filled with things that could be useful. From warm blankets to a sink and clean rags close to it.

You blinked a couple of times, taking it all in, the usefulness, the door that seemed to have shown up out of nowhere, you let out a short breath, realisation hitting you “The Room of Requirements,” you whispered.

Then started nodding, hyping yourself up for what you’d have to do next. You turned around to see if there was a clock somewhere, which there indeed was, a huge grandfather clock near the door, it was 4 am, and you had just enough time to clean things up and go back to your room, change and get back to class.

You took your shirt off and winced when you realised the bIoody bandage, if you kept acting so recklessly, you weren’t sure it was ever actually going to heal. You walked towards the sink, and wet one of the rags before passing it over the broken flesh. You winced as the warm piece of cloth passed over the open part of the wound. You stared at it for a second once it was clean, even after all the misadventures, it certainly looked better than it had done the previous night. But it hurt just as much as it had, the painkillers might have been wearing thin by then.

You walked towards the supply closet, your vision a little blurry due to the sharp pain. Luckily the first thing you spotted was some painkillers, you instantly drank a bit of it and placed the rest in your pocket. You kept rummaging through it and found dried dittany leaves and some silver dust. So you grabbed a mortar, and some beeswax and mugwort, which were the few things you remembered Lily had used to make her green paste, and recreated it to the best of your abilities. With your dominant arm incapacitated -and drowning in pain since the painkillers hadn’t done their thing- you clenched the mortar handle in your other hand and started to mix.

Once the paste was ready, you washed your hand and with trembling fingers, you gingerly spread the paste across the open wound. A couple of tears started streaming down your cheeks as you did. You must have missed something when you made the paste since instead of making you feel instant relief, it stung like hell for what felt like an eternity before gradually numbing the pain.

Once you had gone through most of the scratch you used the back of your hand to wipe your tears and sniffed as you took some more in your finger, hesitating for a second before biting your lip and finally placing the paste on the parts that you hadn’t covered yet.

When you finished with it, you felt utterly drained. The pain was still there, your arm had even started to throb. You let your head fall back and considered just throwing yourself on the floor, the temptation to just rest almost agonising, but you knew you still had to wrap a bandage around your wounded arm. You were fumbling with the ends of the bandage roll when you remembered Sirius’ words “Don’t be stubborn and let us help!”

You swallowed, he probably would have run off to help you had you asked, but Sirius must have been just as tired as you were, and even if he hadn’t been hurt physically, you were sure the events of the night had taken a toll on his mind, heck they clearly had done it on yours, so, despite his command, you decided to deal with it in your own. You continued trying for a couple of minutes, and after what felt like an eternity –and in a fit of desperation– you hurled it against the mirror. It bumped down and rolled off, one of the ends staying behind as the rest of the roll continued unravelling.

You sighed and went to grab another one from the supply closet and started trying once again. This time around you actually managed to open it after a couple of minutes and brought your arm up. You held the end against your arm with your chin and you started wrapping. Eventually, you switched your manual labour for your wand and used a simple spell to levitate the roll of bandages around your arm, making sure that it was just tight enough to seal the wound but not so tight as to cause additional pain, mirroring the way both Sirius and Lily had done it earlier.

When you were done, you turned to the watch again, you’d hoped you had enough time to lay in one of the beds of the infirmary but when you realised you had spent over an hour there you cast a quick disillusionment charm and sneaked back to the common room. You did consider staying in the Room of Requirements and not going back, but your friends would probably worry if they didn’t see you at all in the morning, Lily would be panicked and the boys, especially Sirius, would cause a mini-scandal. You could almost hear Sirius ask something like “How the hell did you lose my girlfriend Evans?” Which is why, in the end, you decided against it.

You picked up the mess with a wave of your wand and put your shirt and sweater back on, giving a once over to the room before leaving and walking through the halls and passageways trying to make as little sound as possible. Once you arrive at your common room you let yourself fall into one of the single couches by the fire. Not bothering to counter your disillusionment charm, as you used your wand to kindle the fire. You sank deeper on the couch and sighed, closing your eyes for a snooze when you heard footsteps.

You turned to the side and spotted Sirius and James walking down, you waved at them, and when they didn’t respond, you remembered you were still kind of invisible. You were about to cancel the spell off when you saw Sirius was already leaning to sit down, on the exact same spot you were. You moved your wounded arm to the side and allowed the boy to sit “Hey babe,” you whispered as you wrapped your arm around his waist, Sirius pretty much jumped off and turned around looking mortified.

You just laughed at his reaction, “Vixen?!” you heard James ask as he squinted his eyes in your direction, you just kept laughing as you finally waved your wand over yourself again, allowing the spell to vanish, the painkiller potion was finally doing its thing and you already felt a lot better.

“Hey Prongs!” you said with a smile.

“What the hell was that Stashine, are you trying to give me a heart attack?”

“Don’t you get one of those whenever you look into my eyes?” you asked with a playful pout, James laughed again, and your boyfriend just looked at you surprised.

“How did you know it would be Sirius the one to sit there?” James asked.

“I was already here, I just took the chance,” you said, scooting to the side to allow Sirius to sit by your side, even in the small space. He didn’t think about it twice and sat beside you, pulling you by the waist half over one of his legs so you’d be more comfortable.

“Absolutely brilliant!” James complimented, Sirius threw him a look “And you disillusionment charm too, I’d never seen one so good.”

“Thanks!” you said with a smile “I’ve been using it a lot recently.”

“You do know you can just take the Invisibility Cloak, right?”

You nodded, not if I have to tell you what I need it for, you thought. “That’s very nice of you Jammie,” you said with a smile.

“How’s the arm?” Sirius asked.

You looked at him for a second, a tight smile on your lips before you nodded “Great.”

Sirius frowned, not quite buying it, but didn’t press further. “Why were you out here, luv?” James asked “I’d assume Lily would rather be checking on you instead of having you here by yourself.”

“Couldn’t sleep,” you said pointing to your eyebags “And the fire seemed tempting… and also I went to check on Remus who was avoiding me.”

“You noticed?” Sirius asked about at the same time James said something like “You went to see Remus by yourself?!”

“Of course I noticed! I went to check on him like 5 times and he was asleep all of them. Tom comes up and says he had a chat with him seconds after we went to visit. It was suspicious enough. And then there was Pomfrey’s pitiful look whenever I showed up…”

“He sometimes does that… I assumed he was doing it when we went before lunch. Did you get him to talk to you?” Sirius asked.

You nodded “Yeah, we’ve sorted things out, had to call him out on how dumb he was being though.”

Sirius laughed at the casual way you said it, and pulled you a bit closer to him “That’s my girl!”

You were distracted for a good second, remembering the way Remus had pulled Vixen closer and how similar it had been to the way Sirius had done it, you wondered if it was a Brit thing, to be so touchy –which you already knew Sirius was- or if instead it was something very particular of the boys.

“It’s kinda late for flying, isn’t it?” James asked as he looked at the clock, clearly the messy sleepless nights had also taken a toll on him.

“Who are you and what have you done to James Potter?” You teased.

“Don’t mess with him, Kit, he might change his mind.”

“Kit?” You asked, turning to him with a raised eyebrow.

He shrugged “If you can call me Puppy I can call you Kit,” he said simply, to which you laughed, it wasn’t that you didn’t like it, rather you were a little surprised. And really, the more you thought about it, it was rather endearing.

“Does that mean we’re not flying then?” you asked, turning back to James, “even if the next game is on Sunday?”

James groaned, placing a pillow over his head to muffle the sounds. “Now that’s straight-up torture,” Sirius said with a teasing smile as he pointed at James.

“Either way, I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to play, we might have to move the–“

“–Don’t even joke about it Potter!” you said in a serious tone.

James winced, you didn’t call him James, not even Prongs, you were not happy about his suggestion, but he was the captain, and he had to look out for his team, he had to look out for you, “You’re hurt.”

“It was barely a scratch!”

“You keep saying that, but I see the way you clutch onto your arm when the painkillers wear off–“

“I’ll be like new by Sunday!” you argued again “I heal fast.”

“Sunday is in three days!”

“Back me up on this?” you asked, turning to Sirius, who had a small frown on his face.

He couldn’t find a way to say what he wanted to say without upsetting you “Darling, maybe Prongs is right…”

You turned to him exasperated “Don’t block me like this James! We’re playing Slytherin, I want to show those assholed that they didn’t–” You cut yourself off, not being able to finish the sentence either.

James’ face seemed to soften at your words, Sirius and Remus had somewhat told them what happened that night, or at least what they knew, and what they assumed. You hadn’t talked to them much about it, let alone go into detail, but either way, he understood. He got why you were so desperate to prove that you could still fight -or fly in this case–, you needed to show them that no matter what they did, they wouldn’t bring you down, “We’ll think about it,” he conceded. You were still looking at him with a frown, “Listen if your arm really is better off by then, then you’ll play.”

“You promise you’ll let me?”

Sirius was looking at James reproachfully, as if he wasn’t happy with his answer, but didn’t say a thing. He could try to convince you of dropping it later, although he was pretty sure you wouldn’t change your mind about it, not unless you were bedridden or something.

“I promise we’ll think about it.” You nodded, that was probably as good as it would get. Now all you had to do was play the part of someone who was not affected at all by the hit and you’d be able to play on Sunday.

“Aren’t you hungry luv?” Sirius asked.

And strangely enough, you weren’t that hungry, in fact, you hadn’t been hungry since you went to visit Remus, which made you assume it was a Lycanthropy thing. Regardless, a warm cup of tea, along with some toast did sound incredibly good, so you nodded, motioning to stand up when you saw Remus walk in, he looked visibly relieved when he spotted you, even as you were almost sitting on Sirius’ lap.

“Good to see you’re all right, after the fall I thought you might have–“

“–What fall?” Sirius asked, turning to you.

“That?! It was nothing…” you said, “I had turned into Vixen and Pomfrey saw me, and was probably horrified since I was close to Rem, and then she pushed me off with a spell. I mean it hurt a little but it was nothing…”

“You were thrown in the air and fell to the ground, and it was nothing?” Sirius asked as he toyed with the hem of your sweater’s sleeve, to see if he could lift it enough to check on your wound.

“Yes, Pomfrey wasn’t trying to hurt me, and Remus stopped her from following.”

Remus was sure he’d seen you break the fall with the same arm that was hurt but decided not to press any further, since you clearly didn’t want to go too much into detail. He plopped down next to James on the sofa and turned to Sirius “How’s the plan going?” He asked the long-haired boy.

“What plan?” you asked with furrowing your eyebrows just a little bit.

“The revenge plan.”

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sallowedbethyname · 13 days ago

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to be home, to be loved ch.2

Chapter 2: a home that was built upon grief

excerpt:

“I understand,” he said. “Thank you. Really, I couldn't thank you enough. I think I owe you my life.”

A soft laugh fell from your lips. You shook your head.

“No, don't do that,” you gently reprimanded him. “What's important is that you live a better, safer life, Sebastian. If not for me, then for Ominis. For Anne.”

He was stunned at your choice of words. You watched as a million emotions flashed in his dark eyes.

“I will. I'm doing that now. You can see that, can't you?”

word count: 8.5k

tags: found family, friends to lovers, eventual smut, child abuse

note: i've made a sebastian sallow x mc playlist filled with songs that sets the tone for this fic! check it out here if you want!

read chapter 1

read on ao3

Professor Fig’s house was the same as you left it a year ago. Neat and tidy, despite the absurd amount of tomes and magical artefacts that seemed to cover every surface. Warm and welcoming, as almost every room seemed to smell like cinnamon and tea. Comforting, as you could almost feel traces of your mentor even though he was long gone.

You stood in the foyer, taking in the sight. Suddenly, you could remember everything so vividly. The day Fig brought you to this house after taking you out of the orphanage, how you still had a hard time believing that magic truly existed. The fear and surprise you felt when you first saw Hobbs. The feel of Fig’s wand in your hand — foreign, like it didn't belong, yet you managed to cast your first magic.

“It's… bizarre, isn't it? Death,” you softly spoke. “One minute they're there, the next, they're not. Yet the world still retains traces of their lives. The clothes they wore, the books they loved to read. Makes it hard to accept their passing, don't you think? It's so easy to believe they never really left. That they'd return.”

Sebastian stared at you — had been since the first time you walked through the door. He was silent for a moment before letting out a small sigh. “It is.”

Somehow, his voice snapped you from your stupor. Quickly, you turned to face him, panic etched all over your face.

“Sebastian, I'm sorry, I—”

“Hey, it's okay, you don't have to apologize,” he said, eyes widening in surprise. “You are grieving, so you needn't worry too much about me.”

You forced yourself to smile. Took a deep breath. Nervously straightening your coat.

“Thank you,” you said in a thick voice. “I'm alright now.”

If Sebastian could see through your lie, he had the decency not to point it out. For that, you were grateful. Taking a few deep breaths, you walked deeper into the house, him following quietly behind you.

Fig’s living room came into view, dominated by dark blue and wooden accents. You briefly wondered if he used to be a Ravenclaw and it dawned on you that you had never once thought to ask him. Once again, your heart got swallowed up by grief, bitter from your own helplessness.

“Seems empty, this house,” Sebastian thankfully spoke, giving you something to focus your attention on. “You said there’s going to be a house-elf?”

“Yes, he’s a bit older than the other house-elves I met though,” you explained. “Perhaps only Deek was older than him.”

“Deek?”

You blinked, realizing you had never once taken Sebastian, or any of your friends, into the Room of Requirement. “A house-elf friend of mine. When we get back to Hogwarts, perhaps I’ll take you to meet him.”

“Should’ve introduced us when you took us into the kitchen,” he replied, chuckling to himself.

“Oh, he’s not usually in the kitchen. He’s… somewhere else.”

“Somewhere else,” he repeated, curiosity shining in his eyes. “Is this another secret of yours I'm aware of?”

You couldn’t help but smile. “Perhaps.”

A snort. “Alright, then. I’ll hold on to your word for it,” he grinned. “So Fig’s elf. Where do you think they might be?”

“I’m not sure..” you murmured as you looked around the room, even taking a peek at the empty, spotless kitchen the house-elf usually frequented. “Hobbs? Hobbs, are you in here?” you decided to call out.

Almost immediately, you could feel a strong gust of wind and a loud crack echoing throughout the house. A house-elf wearing a pleated robe had materialized out of thin air in the middle of the living room. Its eyes, almost the size of a teacup plate, were staring at you in surprise.

“Missus!” Hobbs croaked with a loud, hoarse voice. “Missus is here.”

You smiled. “Hello, Hobbs. How have you been?”

The house-elf blinked rapidly before tears welled up in his eyes. The next moment, he wailed.

“Oh, Missus! Please forgive Hobbs for not welcoming Missus and her friend! Hobbs was cleaning Master Fig’s room… Hobbs knows Master is no longer… no longer here, but Hobbs simply cannot leave it be. Poor Master Fig, Hobbs misses—”

Neither you nor Sebastian could understand the rest of Hobb’s sentence because the house-elf had cried so hard he had lost the ability to speak. You couldn't take it anymore. Without thinking, you rushed forward and hugged the elf’s frail body.

“I know, I know,” you said. Stammering. Still trying hard to contain your tears. “I'm sorry, Hobbs, I missed him, too.”

The house-elf continued to cry, smearing his snot and tears all over your shoulder but you couldn't care less. You knew he had served Fig for a long, long time, and your mentor had been nothing but kind to him.

“Poor Master Fig… first it was Missus Miriam and now Master…”

Behind you, Sebastian was standing awkwardly, unsure of what to do. Your shirt had gotten so wet but pointing it out would no doubt be a dick move given the moment. So he decided to slip away to the kitchen.

You didn't notice that Sebastian was no longer in the room with you. Not when you were so focused on not allowing yourself to cry. You could do it later, you thought, when you were alone and nobody could see you.

For now, you must comfort Hobbs.

“Hey, Hobbs, it's okay,” you softly said, rubbing his back. “I'm here now… you won't be alone anymore.”

“Hobbs knows,” the house-elf said as he rubbed his eyes with the hem of his plaid robe. “A good witch lady came here a few weeks ago. The deputy headmistress of Hogwarts. She told… she told Hobbs what happened to M- Master Fig and that Missus is now Hobb's… Hobb's master…”

“Professor Weasley,” you said, nodding. “Yes, she's a good witch, Hobbs. A very good witch.”

The house-elf continued to cry. “Hobbs has been grieving. T- The last time the Master was here, he t- told Hobbs that he would b- bring Missus here to visit, b- but… but Master—”

“I know,” a treacherous tear finally rolled down your cheek, rebelling against your desperate attempt. You immediately looked up and took a deep breath, exerting any strength and willpower in you to stop yourself from crying. “I know… I miss him, too, Hobbs.”

For a while, the two of you sat on the living room floor, huddled together. The house-elf was still sobbing, though not as hysterical as before. You felt numb. You could feel guilt sinking its teeth into your limbs as you recalled your mentor's death, scrutinizing every small detail, pinpointing moments where you should have been able to save him.

Sebastian walked in a few moments later and you hurriedly wiped away any traces of tears from your face. He brought two cups of tea with him and carefully placed them on the coffee table.

“Warm tea,” he said. “My… mother used to brew one for me and Anne whenever we were feeling sad.”

You nodded, giving him a weak smile. “Thank you.”

Awkwardly, Sebastian returned your smile and took a step back, giving you space. You gently pat Hobbs’ back.

“You've been crying a lot, Hobbs. Here, have some tea. My friend Sebastian made it for you.”

“Oh,” he gasped. Sebastian's kind gesture snapped him out of his misery. The elf looked at Sebastian timidly. “Thank you, Missus, kind sir, Hobbs is sorry he failed to give you a proper welcome.”

“It's alright, Hobbs, you don't need to apologize,” Sebastian replied, sounding almost bashful.

For a moment, a soothing silence fell over the room as you and Hobbs drank Sebastian's tea. It was just the right amount of sweetness, and the heat did wonders for warming your chest and delicately calming your frayed nerves. You could taste a hint of mint, too, and you wondered if he added it using magic.

Sebastian took his time marvelling at your mentor's living room. Brown eyes tracing over every object and tome in wonder. You wondered if he could decipher their usage if he stared hard enough. Suddenly, he let out a gasp. Freckled hands grabbed a thick, leather-bound book from the top of the fireplace.

“I can't believe this! I can't believe Fig had this in his house!” he exclaimed with an excitement akin to a kid discovering a hidden treasure.

“What is it?”

He held out the book to you, grinning from ear to ear. The wording on the book cover was fading, but you could still read it:

Uncovering the Secrets of Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades

“This is one of the rarest books about the history of magic. The only time I saw it was in the Restricted Section!”

“Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades?” you frowned. These names weren't foreign to your ears. “The Greek Gods?”

“Or extremely powerful wizards of the past,” he clarified, a conspiratorial smile blooming on his lips. “There were rumours that the gods the people of Ancient Greece worshipped weren't exactly gods. Rather, they were wizards and witches. It had some merits, don't you think? Zeus could conjure lightning through magic—perhaps a bit like your power… and Aphrodite may be extremely irresistible because she developed a potent love spell, some food for thought.”

“Huh, and why would Hogwarts put the book in the Restricted Section?”

The smile on Sebastian's face disappeared. “Is that a real question? Zeus and his promiscuity? The creation of the Minotaur?”

You paused, remembering all the concerning things you had read about the gods of Ancient Greece. “Ah… not the best book to be read by first-graders, isn't it?”

“Definitely not,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “Still, I'm surprised Fig could get his hands on this. Like I said, this book is extremely rare.”

Seeing the wonder in his eyes comforted you, somehow—so much so that you didn't realize you had been smiling.

“Professor Fig told me he used to travel a lot with his wife before he joined Hogwarts. Most of the objects you see here are memorabilia from their adventures.”

“Huh,” Sebastian hummed as he picked up a glass box which contained a large scale. It had such a pretty colour. Dark purple, but it reflected the light just like how a galaxy should. Holographic and mesmerizing.

“That was a mermaid scale, gifted to his wife when she saved the mermaid from some dark wizards.”

“A mermaid scale, a rare book,” he cast his glance around the room one more time, before meeting your eyes. “I may not know much about your mentor, but it seemed like he had lived a wonderful life, didn't he? Seeing the world, exploring every secret it had to offer…”

You let out a chuckle. “Yes, I suppose you're right,” you smiled, remembering the serene look on Professor Fig's face when he drew his last breath, Miriam's wand secured in his hand. “I suppose it is only right that we celebrate his life.”

Once you had finished your tea and Hobbs began to feel better, he immediately fussed over you and Sebastian. He didn't seem to mind or look surprised when you told him of the boy's long-term stay in this house, though you wondered if it was because Hobbs was simply too nice to comment on it.

“Today has been an awfully long day, isn’t it,” Sebastian muttered as the two of you sat in the dining room, stomachs full and content from roasted chicken expertly made by Hobbs.

You glanced outside the window, at the view of the night sky and cheddar tree covering the horizon.

“Goodness, it’s so late, isn’t it? We should get some rest,” you said, pushing yourself off your seat. “Oh, which room would you like to stay in? There are two on the second floor, one’s more spacious but it’s facing the east so… if you’re not an early riser, the sunlight will be a bit of a bother in the morning. The other one’s smaller but it’s got a nice sunset view.”

“The smaller one,” he said without missing a beat. Let’s leave the bigger room for Ominis; he deserved it. When he stayed over in Feldcroft, we either slept in the same bed or I slept on the couch. The first time we had a sleepover, he told us he had a good sleep, but I could sense him twisting and turning the entire night.”

“I can imagine,” you laughed. “Come on, then, let me show you your room.”

You took Sebastian up the stairs to the second floor, to the room on one corner of the hallway, next to the library. The door opened with a faint creak and the smell of wood and tea greeted you. The room itself was rather cosy, with striped, dark blue wallpaper. There was a single bed in one corner of the room, followed by a bedside table and a desk. On the other corner of the room stood a wooden wardrobe and a standing mirror.

“Ah, isn't this a nice room?”

Sebastian seemed satisfied with his choice and you immediately felt a sense of relief. Hobbs seemed to know where the new guest chose to sleep, because the next moment, Sebastian's belongings started to materialize next to the wardrobe.

The boy walked inside, taking a closer look at the interior, before turning to look at you.

“Where will you be sleeping?”

“Downstairs, it's in the hallway next to the living room.”

“Ah,” he muttered, appearing to be strangely flustered. Awkwardly, he rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, see you tomorrow?”

“Right. See you tomorrow. If you need anything, just call Hobbs. Or me. I'm a light sleeper so… yeah,” you lamely explained. Faltering, as you realized you had been rambling. You shook your head. “Well… I better get going.”

“Wait!”

Sebastian's voice caused you to halt. You looked back at him, unsure. The boy himself seemed to mirror your reflection, mouth opening without any words coming out. In the end, he sighed and gave you a small smile.

“Thank you,” he said. “For giving me a place to stay. Good night, ace.”

Your heart leapt in your chest.

“Good night, Sebastian.”

Much to your dismay, sleep seemed to be adamant to evade you that night. You had been lying on your bed for over an hour now, sprawled in an ungraceful position, staring at the ceiling.

Every time you close your eyes, you see your mentor's face. Nightmares didn't come often, but returning to Fig's house evoked a deeper sense of grief inside you. Even more than you expected. Hobbs had cried so much, the poor elf. When you remembered him, guilt flared inside your chest like a dry bush caught fire. Incendio swallowing a forest.

He could've survived, you thought to yourself. I could've saved him.

Because you really could, couldn't you? If you had been faster or stronger. Perhaps a single Bombarda would have destroyed that boulder to pieces. Or your Ancient Magic! You could've done something.

You could feel your throat constricting. Air trying to claw its way into your lungs. A tightness in your chest that felt so real you could've sworn there was a real wound there. With a sharp inhale, you sat up. Kicked the blanket off of you before getting out of the room. Desperate to take your mind off of your grief and guilt.

The house was deathly quiet. Not even a faint snoring could be heard. In that silence, your own rapid breath sounded so loud. You wiped your face with your hands and tucked your hair behind your ears. Still wide awake. Aimlessly, you padded towards the kitchen. Perhaps tea would help, so you decided to make yourself a cup.

You moved like you were a mindless Inferi under a spell, every action made was more from muscle memory rather than a conscious effort from your brain. Yet after a while, the mundane actions seemed to help. You found consciousness seeping back to you as you lit the fire to boil water. Placing trembling hands on the kitchen counter, you closed your eyes and took a deep, grounding breath. Once, twice, thrice.

“Seems like someone's unable to sleep.”

Sebastian's voice caused you to flinch. With a soft gasp, you turned around and found him leaning against the kitchen archway, still in his pyjamas, looking at you in amusement.

“Merlin's pants, you surprised me,” you sighed. “And no, I couldn't, but it seemed like you couldn't either.”

“Merlin’s pants? That's new,” he chuckled. “And you're right. I can't sleep either. What are you making?”

“Tea. Want some?”

“If it's not too much trouble,” he said in a soft voice as he approached you. “So, what's bothering you?”

You paused, linking your fingers together. “...Grief,” you answered. “What about you?”

Sebastian let out a soft sigh. “Grief.”

Warm brown eyes met yours in the dark of night. You should look away, you knew, but they were beautiful, his eyes, shining like a dark lake under the moonlight. Realizing your treacherous thought, you took a deep breath. Your body moved on its own accord, shifting awkwardly to the right, widening the distance between you and him.

“Anne?”

You didn’t dare ask about Solomon. Wouldn’t even dare to wonder if he grieved his rage-filled uncle.

“Mhm,” he replied, head hanging low. “Do you think she’s okay, wherever she is?”

You furrowed your eyebrows. Truthfully, you didn’t know how to answer his question, but you’d be damned before you allow him to slip again.

“You know, when Professor Fig first taught me about the curses in the magical world, I asked him if these curses would be broken should the caster die.”

His eyes snapped back to yours. Hopeful.

“And?”

“He said it depends on the curse. Some could be broken. Some stayed the same. But some could become weaker. I’d like to believe that… if Anne’s curse continues to persist, it would at least be weakened after Rookwood’s death.”

“I’ll hold on to that hope,” Sebastian whispered. “Whether it’s broken or not, she should be… marginally okay right now, isn’t she? I mean… even if she couldn’t forgive me, she… she would’ve let me know if she’s not okay, wouldn’t she?”

“Of course,” you answered. You couldn’t resist it, you placed your hand on his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Of course, Sebastian, she would’ve let you know.”

The brown-haired boy nodded. Took a deep breath before shaking his head. Clarity made its way back into his gaze.

“You’re right. She wouldn’t have kept such important information a secret from me, right? If she still doesn’t want to contact me, then… at least Ominis.”

“Yeah…”

Right at that moment, your kettle began to whistle. You moved to pick it up, but Sebastian was quicker, turning off the stove and picking the kettle up. He told you he got this so you grabbed two cups from one of the shelves.

“I could do it myself, you know.”

“But it’s hot.”

You stilled. Treacherous heart waiting with bated breath. “Has that ever stopped me?”

“No,” he looked up, pushing one of the filled cups towards you. “But come on, we’re on a break and you’ve had a busy year.”

You wanted to tell him that has nothing to do with the tea, but you relented. “Come on, let’s go to the living room, it’s too cold here,” you said.

“Speaking of which, you wouldn’t mind if I read some of Fig’s books, would you?” Sebastian said, looking much better than he did a few minutes ago.

“Eager to get your hands on the Uncovering the Secrets of Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, are you?” you said with a teasing smile. “I don’t mind. Although I’d rather none of us go into Fig and Miriam’s room and their study… I’d like to preserve everything there as best as I could.”

“Duly noted.”

Quietly, the two of you walked into the living room and turned on the lights. With a soft ‘Incendio’, Sebastian lit up the fireplace, spreading much-needed warmth into the space. You sat on the nearest sofa, taking a sip of the tea and letting the heat cauterize the hurt that had been flaring in your chest.

“Oh, Merlin's beard, I can't believe this,” Sebastian muttered in awe.

The boy was standing in front of one of the shelves with a book spread open in his hands. He looked at you with an excited grin.

“The author of this book was talking about his time exploring Athens and stated that there were traces of magic in the spot where the Statue of Zeus used to stand,” he explained in excitement.

“Mm, so it was destroyed by magic.”

“Destroyed or hidden away?” he answered in excitement. With large steps, he crossed the room and sat next to you, placing the book on his thigh so you could read it. His finger was pointing at a text saying Possible Locations For the Entrance to Tartarus.

“Take a look at this part. This guy theorized that the entrance to Tartarus was hidden in a lake somewhere in a region called Lerna in Greece. The hydra was said to guard the lake and some believed that this was where Hades abducted Persephone!”

He got your full attention.

“Oh, I love the tale of Hades and Persephone,” you said with a sigh.

Sebastian’s eyes were on you. “You know, some people believed that Hades didn’t actually kidnap Persephone.”

Blinking rapidly, you looked up at him in curiosity. “What do you mean?”

“Well, some said that Hades and Persephone started out as friends after Hades sought her from the Underworld. As time passed, they fell in love and decided to elope, with Penelope following Hades and eating the pomegranate seed which bound her to the Underworld, so that they would never be separated.”

You listened to his explanation with rapt attention. You never even entertained such a crazy idea before, not when the books you read told you the same thing: that the god of death tricked and kidnapped the Greek goddess.

Somehow though… you found yourself not minding this version at all.

“I like it. I think I like this version better.”

Sebastian looked perplexed. “Because it’s less macabre?”

“Hmm, no, not that,” you paused, pondering the story and formulating words inside your head. “This one felt… purer. Hades was always depicted as this cold deity and people fear him because he’s the God of Death, yet Persephone didn’t seem to mind. In your version, it sounded to me as if she loved him for who he is, undeterred by the darkness and even embraced it, as she became the Queen of the Underworld in the end.”

“Oh…” Sebastian murmured, lips parting open as he looked at you with what seemed to be amazement and surprise, mixed with something else you couldn’t quite put your finger on.

You smiled and tucked a wild strand of hair behind your ear.

“What about you? Are there any Greek mythology that you liked?”

The boy blinked. Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. “Uh…” he averted his gaze and straightened his back. “I think… Odysseus?”

“Ahh, the cunning and intelligent Odysseus. The one who defeated Cyclops, angered Poseidon, and the reason why the Greeks managed to win the Trojan War,” you laughed to yourself. “Very fitting, actually.”

“You make it seem like I’m a warmongering wretch.”

“I’m not! But those are the things Odysseus is known for, no? Well, aside from leaving his wife Penelope for 20 years and still testing her even though she had shown unwavering loyalty to him.”

“Heh, yeah. Well, guessing he’s not too smart when it comes to love, isn’t he?”

“Definitely not,” you nodded. “I’d be so angry if I were Penelope.”

Sebastian’s expression softened. The corner of his lips curled into a crooked smile. “Yeah, I can see why. But anyway, to stop you from teasing me, there’s another Greek mythology that I really like.”

“Oh? Do tell, Sebastian.”

This time, Sebastian averted his gaze, as if finding his toes to be much more interesting than anything else in the room.

“Orpheus and Eurydice,” he answered. “The man whose determination and love could soften the hearts of the King and Queen of the Underworld that they granted him one thing that had never occurred in mankind’s history before: to bring someone back from the dead.”

You hummed. “All he had to do was not turn back.”

“And he almost made it!” Sebastian said with wide eyes, wonder dripping in his tone. “No, he made it! Just one more step before Eurydice could leave the Underworld. But in his eagerness to be reunited with her, he looked back, forgetting that Eurydice had not yet crossed into the overworld and… because of that, she vanished for the second time. Forever.”

There was something in the way he spoke that moved you and enabled you to mourn for the doomed lovers in ways you never had felt before.

“I didn’t expect you would pick such a sad tragedy,” you said with a voice no louder than a whisper.

Sebastian rubbed the tip of his nose. “I don’t know. Something about it resonated with me, I suppose. Failing at the very last moment. Losing someone you cared about because of your own foolishness.”

“Do you think Orpheus failed because he was foolish?”

“...Yes.”

You hummed. “Perhaps he was. But I remember reading this book. It was a retelling of the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice, so it wasn’t meant to be true to the source at all. Yet the author did a spectacular job of exploring their love for each other. Basically, the author said… perhaps Orpheus wasn’t to be blamed for looking back. He did that because he loved her. He loved her so dearly, so how could he not look back?”

Once again, Sebastian looked as if he was at a loss of words. He shifted in his seat, one hand rubbing the back of his head. You wondered if it was because of the dim lighting of the room or because of the glow from the fireplace, but his cheeks seemed to be a bit pinker.

“Mistakes that were made because you love someone, huh?”

“Yes, I guess you can say that.”

“Hm,” he smiled, nodding to himself. “I suppose that's one way to look at it. A gentler way. I must say, though, I didn't expect you to be such a romantic, ace.”

You rolled your eyes and let out an undignified snort. “If you tease me about this, Sebastian, I swear—”

“I won't tease you! Who do you think I am?” he retorted, pretending to be offended by your words. “Your secret is safe with me, so relax.”

“You better keep your word or you'll wake up with vines growing out of your nose!”

Sebastian winced. “It's that another one of your ancient magic tricks? I thought being transformed into a chicken was the worst.”

“No, it's a stupid spell I learned from Garreth.”

“Why is he teaching you spells? I thought he was busy concocting another death potion.”

“It was an exchange,” you explained. “I help him gather ingredients, he teaches me new spells or shows me another one of Hogwarts' secret passages.”

“Pretty sure you can find half, if not all, of those passages on your own, considering how much time you spent exploring.”

“True, but sometimes I like having someone show me the way.”

Sebastian snorted. “You, my friend, are missing the point of secret passages. The most exciting thing about a secret is unravelling them.”

“Not everything needs to be trials and tribulations,” you laughed, before pushing yourself up and walking towards the bookshelf. “Now, let's see if I can find something as interesting as your book.”

“I surely hope you can, more for me to read!”

You run your fingers through the rows of book spines before you before stopping on a title that caught your eye.

“Ah, History of the Pure Blood Families of Great Britain,” you read aloud.

“That is the most boring title I've ever heard. You can just ask Ominis about the pure-blood families if you're so curious about them.”

“Well, I grew up in the muggle world so I knew nothing about you wizards strange blood types,” you said as you picked the book up. “I’ll read this one.”

Sebastian gave you an exasperated look that turned into a chuckle when you plopped down beside him with a bright grin, as if utterly proud of your choice. Soon, a comfortable silence fell over the room, broken only by the crackling of the fire and the sound of pages being turned.

Ten minutes into the book and, with a heavy heart, you had to admit that Sebastian was right. The book was indescribably boring. So boring that it should've been a crime. It talked about the pure-blood families in flowery words while putting down half-bloods and muggles. However, curiosity pushed you to continue reading, even if you had to repeat the same paragraph over and over again to understand what it meant.

Still, the room was warm and you could smell the faint scent of pine needles and caramel in the air. When you tilted your head towards Sebastian, the scent grew stronger. You breathed it in. It was familiar and reassuring. Slowly, the words on the pages began to blur and, before you could stop yourself, you dozed off.

“Oh, look, there's a chapter about the Minotaur,” Sebastian said, blissfully unaware that you've drifted off to sleep. When you failed to give him an answer, he turned and found you fast asleep, head hanging low in an awkward position that would surely give you a pesky headache in the morning.

Soft smile bloomed on rosy lips. Sebastian let out a soft chuckle.

“Alright, then, let's get you to bed.”

The distant, yet jubilant chirping of birds was what woke you up the next morning. The delightful sound seeped into your mind and slowly roused your consciousness. When you opened your eyes, you were surprised to find yourself on the living room sofa with a warm, wool blanket covering your body. Blinking drowsily, you found Sebastian on the sofa right across you, still fast asleep, body curling into a fetal position, with half of his blanket having already slipped to the floor.

‘Can’t imagine what Ominis would say if he knew what happened,’ you thought to yourself, half from amusement, half from embarrassment.

Still, sleeping Sebastian was quite the sight. He looked so peaceful. You usually saw him sporting a smug, teasing smirk or with his eyebrows furrowed in indignation when things did not go his way or with a downcast expression on his face. Presently, though, he looked as if whatever burden that had been chasing him during the day failed to capture him while he slept.

“Missus, Hobbs is sorry for bothering you, but… is there anything you want for breakfast?” Hobbs peeked his head from the kitchen, speaking in a high-pitched whisper as if he could wake an entire village if he was louder.

“Hmm, pancakes sound nice. But wait there, Hobbs, I'll have a look at what we have,” you said.

“Oh, very well.”

You stretched away the remaining drowsiness on your body like a cat before standing up and adjusting Sebastian's blanket so it properly covered his body. Stifling a yawn, you headed to the kitchen, where Hobbs was already waiting.

“We have bread and butter, some bacon and egg… Hobbs can also make Missus and her friend pancakes if you like.”

You frowned. It would be nice if Sebastian could have what he liked for breakfast, but then you realized you didn't know his favourite food. Or drink.

“Um… I suppose we can settle with the pancakes?”

The house-elf nodded vigorously, ears flapping around his head. “Hobbs will do that right away.”

“I'll help.”

“But Missus—”

“I wanted to, Hobbs. Back at my old place, we would take turns cooking meals for the children in the orphanage, so I know a thing or two about cooking,” you grinned at him. “It may not be the best but it's at least decent.”

“Very well,” Hobbs said, though he still looked slightly unsure.

You two worked quickly though you ended up contributing little because Hobbs was just too good at what he did. You had never seen a pancake so round before, so unlike the crooked ones you used to make.

“You have to teach me how to make such a round pancake one day, Hobbs.”

Hobbs looked at you, bewildered. “Hobbs doesn't mind but Hobbs actually did it with magic.”

“Oh, it's too bad house-elf and humans have different magic. I'd love to learn a spell that can make me cook the roundest pancakes.”

“Maybe there is a spell for that! Who knows, wizardkinds are resourceful with their magic.”

Soon enough, the sweet smell of pancakes, maple syrup, and berries filled the house, making your mouth water. Sebastian peeked into the living room not long after.

“Seems like someone has been busy! You should've woken me up, I would love to help.”

He looked absolutely adorable with his hair all tousled up and messy. You let out a chuckle.

“Was worried I was going to be a bad host if I disturbed my guest’s sleep. But thanks for letting me know. Tomorrow, Hobbs and I are definitely going to enlist your help,” you said as you sprinkled berries on top of your pancakes.

“Good. I'm actually quite good at cooking, you know,” Sebastian replied, swiftly grabbing the plates of pancakes and setting them on the table.

A teasing reply had been sitting on the tip of your tongue, but part of you worried you might say the wrong thing. You always did, whenever it came to his family and what happened just a few weeks ago, before your fifth year at Hogwarts ended.

You decided to go for the safest answer. “Had a lot of practice?”

“Ominis is a disaster in the kitchen—don’t tell him I said that, Anne was slightly better than me but after she got cursed… well, I try doing most of the house chores whenever I can.”

He mentioned nothing of Solomon. You knew better than to ask.

“Alright, breakfast is done. There are three plates so I assume Hobbs will be eating with us?” Sebastian asked once he was done setting the table.

“Yes! We used to have meals together with Professor Fig, don't we, Hobbs?” you kindly asked the house-elf.

“Hobbs had a hard time accepting it at first. Most wizardkinds thought sharing a meal with house-elves is scandalous and dirty,” Hobbs explained. “But Master was very kind towards Hobbs, and now Missus, too.”

Sebastian caught your eyes and grinned. “Alright, let's have breakfast!”

Days in your mentor’s home seemed to stretch longer than usual. After breakfast, you took your time getting ready before inspecting the house. Hobbs had been cleaning every room thoroughly, but nobody knew what to do with Fig's personal belongings.

“I should probably give them a look or tidy them up, I know,” you said, while you and Sebastian sat on the backyard porch, watching bees and butterflies swirling around Miriam’s knotgrass bush.

“But you can't do it,” Sebastian finished.

“I can't. Not yet, at least,” you sighed.

Each item held a memory. Or, at the very least, the expectation that the owner will return and use it. It was an uncomfortable feeling and you weren't exactly keen on facing it.

“Well, then, we should probably put a pin on that plan for now,” Sebastian said with a knowing look. “You know, I don't often go to this part of London. Where should one go for sightseeing?”

You found yourself smiling. “Is this your attempt to get me out of the house even though we've only been here for a day?”

“Perhaps. What do you say?”

“Well, first of all, don’t get your hopes up because there isn't much to see here. There's a forest to the south and if we head north, we'll find some markets and shops and… that's it, honestly. They do sell great toffees and pastries, though.”

“That doesn’t sound too bad. Certainly, it’s much better than Feldcroft.”

“Well… it is livelier.”

The two of you broke into a peal of laughter and the gentle wind carried your voices to the edges of the garden. Smiling, you pushed yourself up, dusted your trousers, and grinned at him.

“Alright, let's go.”

Professor Fig’s house was located in a wizarding neighbourhood, so you didn't have too much difficulty in finding other wizards and magical items. The market you and Sebastian were heading to was just fifteen minutes walk away and it was pretty much a winding, cobbled street, lined by shops, taverns, and housing. Still, it was lively. The air smelled like toffees and freshly baked bread, while the townsfolk often stopped to chat with one another.

“This is no Hogsmeade, but…”

“What do you mean?” Sebastian snickered. “This place looks lively. A lot livelier than Feldcroft, that's for sure. Come on, show me where you usually go.”

First, you took him to the local candy shop, Cat’s Tail, where the two of you bought boxes of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans, Sugar Quills, and Caramel Cobwebs.

“You know, I've always known you as a very courageous and daring person. Coming from a Gryffindor, this should be high praise, don't you think?” you told Sebastian as you led him through a stall full of candies.

The boy laughed, brown eyes fixed solely on you as if no amount of sweets could steal his attention.

“I'd argue that bravery isn't a trait solely reserved for Gryffindors, but go on.”

You showed him a basket full of Cockroach Clusters. “Go on, buy this and have a bite!”

“Hah, I knew you were up to no good!”

You were horrified to see him buy five of the disgusting-looking sweets and eat them all in front of you.

“While I appreciate your efforts in making our excursion more… entertaining, I need to remind you that I grew up with a twin sister who’s even more mischievous than I am. Cockroach Clusters were nothing to me, ace,” Sebastian explained with a triumphant smile as the two of you walked out of Cat’s Tail.

“That is unfair. I only knew wizards regularly eat cockroach-shaped sweets last year.”

“Aw, chin up, you still have much to learn, my charge.”

Rolling your eyes at his teasing smirk, you grabbed his elbow and pulled him towards a smaller one that strayed from the main street.

“You know how I spent most of my life in a Muggle orphanage?” you asked, turning at him.

“Yes, what about it?”

“Well, not every kid was sweet and friendly. Some of them were heinous, to say the least. I thought I had seen how mischievous or obnoxious children can be in that place, but then I went to Hogwarts, I met Garreth and you—”

“You think Garreth belonged in the same league as me? I should be a few levels above him, ace,” he snorted.

You winced. “Well, you’re not wrong, but that’s beside the point. My point is, I thought the kids at my orphanage were the pinnacle of mischief. That is until I met you and now I thought you’re the pinnacle of mischief—”

“High praise.”

“—But you just said that Anne is even more mischievous than you? I can’t believe it. I think I’m having a culture shock.”

“Surprised by the wizardkinds’ mischief, aren’t you?” he grinned. “Perhaps one day I shall tell you about our misadventures.”

“Uh oh, why does that intimidate me somehow.”

“A Gryffindor feeling intimidated? How uncommon.”

“Don’t.”

You stopped in front of a shop with purple panels and golden signage saying ‘Herta’s Vault of Curiosities’. It looked fairly humble at a glance until you saw the assortments of magical trinkets and items displayed on the window — a dragon scale armour, a skull embedded with emeralds and rubies, a set of daggers made of obsidian, and more.

Sebastian was looking at all of these items in awe. “What is this place?”

“A magical antique shop,” you grinned at him. “Herta’s the owner. Fig told me she used to be an esteemed professor in France and, after retiring, she travelled the world to collect magical artefacts. It was the first place I visited after I got here and it stunned me.”

“Well, right now, it’s stunned me, too.”

“When I first found this shop I was so amazed… I mean, all I knew was the walls of my orphanage. The children, the caretakers… I sort of had an imagination of what the outside world would be but… never this. Never magic.”

Sebastian was listening to you with rapt attention as if imagining the vastly different childhood you had.

“And now, you’ve become the hero of the wizarding world.”

You let out a laugh, shaking your head. “I know, what a twist, isn’t it? Anyway, let’s get inside.”

The shop was the same as you left it. It smelled of herbs and old books, and every item seemed to call out to you. Sebastian, on the other hand, looked like he was Alice and he had stepped into Wonderland. He wouldn’t stop ‘ooh’-ing and ‘aah’-ing, calling out your name every few minutes to show you the cool items he spotted. First, it was a set of jewellery that was said to belong to Helga Hufflepuff, next was a potion book that was believed to be written by Rasputin himself (“Garreth would’ve shit his pants if he finds this,” you told Sebastian), and a unique looking curved dagger that was said to belong to a fierce general from Southeast Asia.

“Don’t even think about buying Rasputin’s book. It costs a fortune,” you reminded Sebastian when he cast one, longing glance at the book as you were on your way out of the shop.

“Wait for me, book. I shall come back to you in two years.”

You didn’t have the heart to tell him that the book would probably have a new owner by the time he graduated from Hogwarts.

“Right, where to next?” Sebastian asked.

You glanced at the clock inside the shop.

“It’s almost lunchtime. Shall we find something to eat? I know a good place not far from here. It’s cheap, too!”

The boy grinned. His brown hair caught the sunlight in the prettiest way possible.

“Lead the way.”

The place you had in mind was a restaurant called Angel’s Share, which had an outdoor dining area facing the forest. The sun was nice and warm today, so the two of you picked an outdoor table. When the waiter gave you and Sebastian a curious look, you gave her a polite smile and told her that your parents were still caught up at some shop.

“What are we now, siblings?” Sebastian asked once you two were out of the waiter’s earshot.

“Siblings, cousins, whatever as long as nobody paid too much attention to us.”

“Fair enough.”

Lunch was served in no time and by this time, you realized you had been starving. You figured Sebastian must’ve been hungry as well because the conversation soon ended and both of you were far too engrossed with each other's meals. Within minutes, the plates were emptied. You found yourself slouching on your seat, still savouring the taste of roasted bacon in your mouth, while Sebastian patted his stomach in satisfaction.

“That was a good meal.”

“Very.”

You cast your gaze towards the forest, spotting a group of birds flying overhead.

“Reminds you of the Forbidden Forest, doesn't it?” you softly said.

Sebastian followed your gaze. “A thinner, lighter version of it. Hopefully with fewer spiders, too. Or… at all.”

That brought a smile to your face. “Yeah, I've had enough of them.”

The boy let out a lighthearted chuckle, his eyes snapping back to yours. “You know, I didn't know you liked caramel that much. And chocolate,” he said, gesturing at the full shopping bag from Cat's Tail.

“Hah, what do you think I like?”

“...I don't know, actually. It's kind of strange, isn't it? We've slain dark wizards and goblins and other monsters but I don't even know what your favourite snack is.”

You tilted your head to one side, a grin spreading on your lips. Elated at the idea that Sebastian was interested in what you liked and you didn't like.

“Don't look too glum. I don't know what you like either. Hobbs asked me earlier if we should make something you like but I was at a loss,” you explained.

“Apple pies,” he answered. He had a smile on his lips, though it looked rather dim. “I suppose we were too preoccupied with the dark wizards and goblins and your magic and finding the cure for Anne, I…”

You waited, briefly wondering if it was better to stop him and tell him it was alright.

“I'm sorry. I was such an ass towards you… sometimes I wished I could go back in time and kick myself in the butt.”

You stilled. It wasn't the first time he apologized for everything that had transpired during the fifth year and each time, you told him it was alright. Water under the bridge. All's forgiven and forgotten.

Nevertheless, a part of you also felt a sense of relief each time he apologized. Quite like changing a bandage on a healing wound.

“It's alright, Sebastian. I've forgiven you.”

“...Even for what happened in the Scriptorium?”

Once again, you felt a faint prickling sensation all over your skin. A flash of green, a thousand invisible needles digging their way into your flesh. Sebastian's worry had been quickly replaced with awe when the wretched scriptorium opened up for them.

“Even what happened in the Scriptorium,” you nodded.

“Why did you make that choice? Why not…” he lowered his voice. “Why not cast it on me?”

This caused you to pause. Pondering what led you to make that dreadful choice of him casting Crucio on you.

“Well, first of all, I just started my year in Hogwarts, I have no idea what consequences I would face if I chose the other option,” you slowly explained. “A part of me did consider casting it on you, though, I admit… but then I looked at Ominis and… I don't know, I thought he probably wouldn't want to see his best friend going through the same experience.”

Sebastian hummed. Calloused fingers idly fiddling with the napkin on their table.

“Thank you.”

“You're welcome, Sebastian.”

He trained his gaze on you for a moment before he shook his head and laughed.

“I didn't expect you'd want to learn it though.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. You could already do much more terrifying things with your… special skills. I thought you'd think you're above learning… you-know-what.”

Why indeed, when you could blow up your enemies into smithereens like confetti, lift them up into the air and slam them over and over again to the ground like toddlers roughly playing with their toys, turn them into mindless chicken or sheep? Why should you mess with the Unforgivables?

“Curiosity,” you softly answered, averting your gaze from him. “That's one part. The other…”

Water. Suddenly, you could see water around you. Cold and salty. A pair of wild, desperate eyes had been searching yours.

You took a deep breath, grounding yourself back to the present, where Sebastian was sitting across you and looking at you with curiosity.

“Let's just say, I'm not above using less respectable methods for the greater good. I've learned it the hard way.”

The boy stared at you in surprise. He opened his mouth, searching for words.

“I mean, I suppose this wasn't too surprising, you never hesitated when you… you know,” he said, making gestures with his hand.

“...Turn them into confetti?”

“...Yes, that,” he cleared his throat. “Look, while I appreciate you telling me this — honest to Merlin, I didn't expect this turn of events at all — but I just want you to know that I am immensely curious.”

“I knew you'd be,” you said with a laugh. “Want to know what happened?”

“Yes— ahem, but… only if you feel comfortable.”

The smile on your face faded ever so slightly. You ducked your head, fingers toying with the hem of your shirt.

“One day,” you said, giving him a smile that didn't quite reach your eyes. “It's not that I don't trust you. I trust you. But it is not something I'm keen on recalling.”

“Right. Of course,” he quickly replied. Casting you an apologetic look. “Forgive me.”

“There's nothing to forgive, Sebastian. You didn't do anything wrong,” you said in a gentle voice.

When your eyes met, he cracked a smile, which you returned.

“There's something else I'm curious about if you don't mind me asking.”

“Mm? Ask away.”

He took his time, slanting his gaze towards the forest before looking at you. “What you just said earlier… was that the reason why you… persuaded Ominis, and by extension, Anne, not to do what they wanted to do?”

“Ah…” you blinked, biting your lip. This question was even harder to answer than the previous one.

Indeed, why save him? Why save a boy who had murdered his own kin? You could say that it was all a mistake. A mishap made in the heat of the moment.

You could say that his fate was not yours to decide, not when you had cast spells more terrifying. Not when you had killed more.

You could say that Azkaban was too cruel of a fate for him. For a boy who had repeatedly been sidelined, scrutinized, and belittled by the only caretaker he had in his life.

But there was something more. Something bigger. Something deeper.

Ultimately, you settled with, “Yes. I suppose you can say that.”

The answer was undoubtedly too vague for someone as curious as Sebastian. Yet he didn't pry. He only nodded, humming in acknowledgement. Brown eyes seeking yours and you met him in the middle.

“I understand,” he said. “Thank you. Really, I couldn't thank you enough. I think I owe you my life.”

A soft laugh fell from your lips. You shook your head.

“No, don't do that,” you gently reprimanded him. “What's important is that you live a better, safer life, Sebastian. If not for me, then for Ominis. For Anne.”

He was stunned at your choice of words. You watched as a million emotions flashed in his dark eyes.

“I will. I am doing that now. You can see that, can't you?”

“Yes,” you nodded, reaching over the table to hold his hand, you couldn't resist the urge. “Yes, I can see that, and you don't know how relieved I am because of it.”

Sebastian’s eyes flickered towards your hand. You could feel his fingers trembling, but he made no other move.

“Good. That is all I want now,” he smiled.

tagging: @whoslestrange

#sebastian sallow #hogwarts legacy #sebastian sallow fanart #sebastian sallow x reader #sebastian sallow x mc #sebastian sallow x you #karinawrites

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pilkypills · 4 months ago

Note

Do you have any favorite headcanons for the RI brothers?

Oooh good question! As a matter of fact, I do!

Dori-

-I think he’s the kind of guy whose word is his bond. If he says he’ll do something, he’ll do it.

-He redoes his braids as often as he can, even out on the road. He hates having them be messy. Nori’s hair gets on his nerves because it’s never in its proper place and Nori won’t sit still long enough for him to fix it. Also, he can put up and take down his braids extremely fast due to years of having the same hairstyle.

-Also also, about his hair: I think he and Nori tie for having the longest hair in the company, and before his hair turned silver (which I think it did very quickly due to the stress of raising his brothers and providing for them) it was titian, as red and dark as a garnet.

-He keeps a spotless house and holds a grudge forever, even by dwarf standards.

-And of course I love the popular headcanon (half-canon?? I’m not sure) that he has a passion for tailoring and brewing tea, and if he didn’t have to worry about making a living in the Blue Mountains he would’ve made a career out of either of them.

-(I read somewhere that Dori and Gloin don’t get along) Part of his dislike for Gloin is a leftover rivalry from Ori and Gimli’s school days over who’s kid was smarter/cuter/etc. PTA night was like a war zone. Another part of his dislike is from what he sees as Gloin trying to be a big brother to Nori, maybe taking his place a little bit. (According to Chronicles, Gloin is trying to get Nori to care about dwarf history and culture)

Nori

-He's actually kind of rubbish at pickpocketing. BUT he’s an excellent survivalist and a great tracker. He also has a great head for subterfuge.

-He's just as much of a dandy as his brother. He likes expensive things, especially nice clothes. And he would never admit it to Dori’s face, but thinks his brother’s skill at sewing and tailoring are unmatched.

-Out of all of the members of the company, he’s changed his hairstyle the most over the years. He knows perfectly well his current style is impossible to upkeep but he’s too stubborn to admit it.

-Since he’s canonically had dealings with elves, I think he knows a little Sindarin. When Ori learns it himself later, it’s something they get to bond over. (I don’t think Ori knew Sindarin at the time of the quest bc nobody asked him to read the names of Thorin and Gandalf’s swords)

-Has a very, very hard time being sincere. He’s incredibly used to interacting with people who are only out for themselves.

-Nori didn’t really trust or respect Thorin as a leader until pretty late in the quest. After Bofur, he's perhaps the one who gets along with him the least. Nori isn’t the kind of guy to yield to authority and I don't think he'd have a lot in common with him to begin with.

-He often avoided Ori out of guilt when he came back home. He has a hard time connecting with him at first on the quest.

-He started smoking as an adolescent just because he knew Dori wouldn’t approve. Dori still forbids smoking in the house and he still does it anyway. He let Ori try some at one point during the quest and Dori was furious.

Ori

-Taking a little inspiration from some of the very cute bts clips I’ve seen, I think Ori is very snarky and deadpan when he isn’t being polite and mannerly. Fíli, Kíli, and Gimli (and later, Bilbo) have seen just how dry his sense of humor is. He’s a witty guy, just kind of nervous around his elders.

-He was an absolute schemer as a little kid. Rarely got in trouble because he was just so darn cute and angelic looking that no one would believe Fili and Kili when they’d say he helped them with something.

-Has exceptional eyesight for a dwarf, similar to Kili. This one might just be canon, seeing as he was able to hit a warg square in the head with his slingshot. Not his fault the rock was too small to do any damage lol.

-I know opinions on this vary quite a lot, but I’d really like to think he’s got a lot of natural body strength, similar to Dori. He just doesn’t have the self-assuredness to utilize it properly. I don’t know if I’d say he’s as strong as his brother, but I do think if he punched you you’d be in for a nasty surprise.

-Once Dori stops meddling with his hair, Ori lets it grow long. He never really takes to elaborate hairstyles, keeping just enough braids for it to stay out of his eyes while he works.

In general

-If Bilbo had stayed in Erebor, they really would have tried to adopt him officially. And if Bilbo had stayed, he would’ve probably let them.

-Ori’s death shakes Nori and Dori very badly. Dori cuts his beard, becomes withdrawn, and dies a few short years later. Nori takes a turn for the worse and becomes prone to reckless behavior. Ori was the glue that held them together. They blamed themselves for letting him go to Moria.

-They may be dysfunctional, but the love they have for each other is real and unshakeable. Deep down, Nori and Ori are just as protective of the big brother that raised them. Definitely not as mother hen-ish, but protective all the same.

-And of course, I GOTTA go with the popular one: The Ri brothers are absolutely gorgeous by dwarf standards. It’s an oldie but a goodie and you can pry it out of my cold, dead hands.

Thanks for the question!

#this was fun! I have a lot of thoughts about the Ri brothers. maybe some stuff I'd like to draw eventually.#the hobbit #dori the dwarf #nori the dwarf #ori the dwarf #asks

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vinylfoxbooks · 1 month ago

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25 Days of Jegumas | Day 1 | Day 21 December 22 - Santa Claus | @noblehouseofgay | wc: 626

There was one part of Christmas that Regulus was never quite able to get a hang of understanding. He still doesn’t, not even with his son sitting on the lap of the jolly-looking man with a fake beard and branded in all garish red and white that probably is going to chainsmoke out the back end of the mall as soon as he gets on his break and listing off all of the random things that he wants for Christmas -- Regulus thinks that it’s rather late for them to be here, getting present ideas just before the actual day happens but whatever his partner and son wants -- while James takes a couple pictures of them.

Santa Claus, what a weird thing. Who likes the idea of a fat man wearing garishly bright clothing sneaking into your house in the middle of the night with a giant red sack. That sounds like all of the markers of a crime. And the idea that he goes up and down the chimney -- which, what house has chimneys that are used or even open up to the sky anymore? -- without getting any soot on him or getting stuck because chimneys aren’t all that large, especially with a giant bag full of hard presents? It just doesn’t sound enjoyable.

He was almost freaked out by the story when he first heard of who Santa Claus was, staring at Sirius in abject horror as his brother told the stories with stars in his eyes at the idea. He understands, now, that Santa Claus isn’t real or anything and is instead played by very tired parents in the middle of the night but… what kid would find joy in the idea of that. Shouldn’t it freak them out?

Regulus wonders if any of these children crying when they get to the man in the costume are scared of a strange man that they’re being told to sit with or if they’re scared of the stories. He doubts the latter is the case for most of them, if not all. James tried to describe it to him, using buzzwords that Regulus can’t relate to like ‘favourite uncle that always brings cool things’ or ‘the nice grandpa that tells you cool stories and bounces you on his knees’ but it didn’t make anything click for him like they thought it would.

But again, whatever Harry and James wants. And Harry is currently staring up at the costumed man that he’s sitting on with joy and awe and it warms Regulus’ heart. He doesn’t get it, but his son loves the idea of Santa Claus, and perhaps that’s enough for now. Maybe, far in the future when Harry is a teenager, they can talk about it and Regulus can ask why he loved the idea of Santa so much.

James is helping Harry off of the man’s lap -- which also freaks out Regulus, he’d rather not watch his son sit on the lap of a complete stranger who probably doesn’t even have to go through any in depth background checks -- and thanking the man and the workers dressed as elves with shoes too big. Then they’re making their way over to where Regulus is standing with a couple bags in his hands, “Ready to go?”

Regulus nods, moving all of the bags to one hand and grabbing at James’ free one, “Whenever you are.”

As they’re walking, Harry works himself around James so he’s holding both of their hands between the two of them, “Did you see me and Santa papa?”

Regulus smiles down at his son, “I did, was he as nice as you thought?”

“Even nicer!” Harry cheers.

“That’s good, little doe.” Regulus hums, “I’m glad that you got to see him this year.”

Day 23

#marauders #james potter #dead gay wizards #regulus black #james x regulus #jegulus #starchaser #sunseeker #baby harry potter #harry potter #nonbinary james potter #microfics #25daysofjegumas

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librivore42 · 2 months ago

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Patchwork Hearts

It was about dang time I wrote a Lord of the Rings fic. It's a shortie but it's a start. Inspired by this post by @idontknowhowtoplayguitar

Ao3 link below, and the entire thing is ever more below!

Patchwork hearts (556 words) by Librivore42

Chapters: 1/1

Fandom: The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types, The Hobbit - All Media Types

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Characters: Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf (Tolkien)

Additional Tags: i love them your honour, they're the kind of friends who snipe at each other one day, and sit and smoke on the porch the next

Summary:

Bilbo, ever the adventurer, has had a life full of living and of love. A short rumination on adventure, life, and the memories we keep of our friends.

~~~~~~~

The patches were a distinctly hobbitish thing, homely and warm with that communal sense of hail-fellow-well-met that was prevalent in the nicer parts of the Shire. Which was to say, parts that did not contain the Sackville-Bagginses. Bilbo had collected many on his long adventures, politely requested from amused elves, dwarves and every stripe of man in his most official and businesslike manner, as one would request a personal and most valued favour.

The old clothes were left behind as the patches migrated from suit to suit, and he wondered if someday he might have a suit that was all patches. Wouldn’t that be such a fine thing! A tribute to a life long and broad and most well-lived. A map of all his adventures.

And Frodo’s. He’d been most honoured to request a further patch from him before he left Rivendell, and one after. The suit had, by now, been set aside most carefully so that it would not wear, taken out only for the most special of occasions. By now he had as many patches, nearly, as he had stories, yet not nearly as many as he had room for fondness in his heart.

He had never yet asked one of Gandalf. A strange embarrassment came over him at the very thought of it. Perhaps the wizard would give him one when he wished.

At Bag End Gandalf and Bilbo had parted… not coldly, never that, but the shadow of the Ring had passed a chill over them that had sent both shivering even as Bilbo had stepped out the door. Gandalf had known, then, that he would see him again. But as they went to part again at the Last Homely House in Rivendell, he was no longer entirely sure.

And so as Gandalf set off at the head of the Fellowship, determined to lead them for as far as he was able, it being his turn to leave the other standing on the doorstep, as it were, he left Bilbo with a small scrap from one of his more worn travel cloaks.

On their final journey together, as the old Hobbit was helped into the boat with much the same grumbling as he’d done when he’d been forced out of his comfortable hole at the beginning of all his adventures, Gandalf’s impressive eyebrows rose at the much-beloved, much-patched suit.

He was not surprised. The careful storage had kept the clothing in very good order, and patches, especially sentimental ones that were not holding together the already well-trodden paths of an old suit, would of course last. So he was not, indeed, surprised. Gratified was the word, to see the fabric of his cloak on Bilbo’s shoulder, a shoulder he had often grasped to give solace, to guide, and perhaps give many an unwelcome push.

A special occasion this was indeed. He did not smile as he sat across from Bilbo, but his eyes had a deep warmth behind their usual sharp fire, and the old Hobbit gave him a beam that creased his entire face into a map of a life most well-lived.

“Well Gandalf?”

“The road goes ever on and on, doesn’t it?”

The solemn casting off of the boat was shot through with warm, hobbitish laughter that rang out over the water.

“It does indeed, old friend. It does indeed.”

#lord of the rings #lotr #the hobbit #patches #gandalf #bilbo baggins #frodo baggins #jrr tolkien #rivendell #the shire

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subastian-swallows · 2 years ago

Note

Hello! Would you happen to have any HC on when it’s the time of the month for MC?

Hello lovely Anon! I’m happy to give it a go! My first ask, I feel a little giddy! (∩˃o˂∩)♡

Sebastian: Sebastian would be a mess, perhaps, even more than you. He hadn't had the 'privilege' yet to support his sister with this yet, or even acknowledge how much it can actually affect you, your energy. He would find you leaning against the wall in the transfiguration courtyard, desperately trying to get fresh air, perhaps alone time and will complain you're being boring today. When you stare him down, he eventually clicks on that somethings wrong and he questions you. You're pretty embarrassed, rather that you just don't want to talk about something personal like that, but he gets it out of you, he always got things out of you. Sebastian isn't grossed out, no, he just feels a little powerless to help and that stresses him out and so he has an idea. Dragging you to the ROR, he asks you to think of something cosy, a warm fire, blankets etc and when you do, Sebastian sets you up a little cave, tucking you away next to the fire. He then nestles in beside you, his warm hand resting against your belly when you request it or simply just caressing your hair. He would constantly ask you if you are comfortable, what else he could do, if there is something more he can be doing etc. You're just happy to have him there and although it doesn't help the pain, it feels nice being near him.

Ominis: Ominis would wonder why you've been avoiding him. You had missed your daily study date in the library and now he was a little worried, because you never missed your study dates. When he eventually finds you, in the kitchens, he questions you a little confused, wondering why you couldn't wait for dinner. You don't mean to snap, perhaps, mainly due to feeling embarrassed, but when he simply moves towards you, all you can do is attempt to play it off. That's until one of the house-elves brings you chocolate, perhaps as a gift for being kind to them, that Ominis grew extremely curious and so you told him. Ominis had no clue. He had no idea what he could do to support you, though he wanted to try, Ominis always liked to try but you simply wave him away, saying nothing can be done and its fine. But he never did listen to you, or perhaps, he was just smarter than you gave him credit for and he just knew when to stay, even when you said leave. Eventually, Ominis just lets you eat as he tries to distract you. He can't take the pain away, that much is clear but he can hope to make you forget about it and so he asked if you would like to move somewhere more comfortable. Ominis takes you back to the common room, thankful for the emptiness and gently holds you close as you both rest on the sofa. He places a warmed cloth over your stomach, this much he learnt, quickly asking a few girls in secret and feigning ignorance, they told him that much. You end up falling asleep to Ominis continually warming the cloth, while he softly pats your hair and talks about nothing.

Garreth: Garreth is a lot more inventive in this situation. You find him in the Potions classroom and despite feeling a little upset that he disappeared after you told him you felt unwell, you can't help but feel curious to see what he was doing. Nothing could have prepared you for what it was though and as you slowly made your way to his side, you see books spread across the table, labelled: PERIOD DRAUGHTS You look at him a little embarrassed and when you see him concentrating, his tongue sticking out slightly from his focus, you can't help but sit down and watch him work. You see, Garreth was never good at using his words to help him out of situations, if he thought he had upset you, no, he preferred to use actions and so he worked tirelessly, until the potion was ready. To say you were a little nervous was an understatement, but so much love went into it and well, if it sent you to the infirmary, it would have been worth it. It tasted sweet and went down smoothly and soon the pain in your stomach eased. You kissed him a lot after that and he asked if he had made it up to you for leaving, but you just kept kissing him, making it a point that he was to make more of these in the future as he laughed against your lips.

Amit: Amit is more logical about this. He would politely excuse himself for a moment and desperately disappear to find something or anything to read about how to help you. He would want to do it right, no funny business and when he returns with everything the books told him to bring, you can't help but just look at him as you laughed. Amit then asks you to choose a spot, telling you its best to not move too much when you're in pain and that resting will help and so you end up choosing the vivarium. He then sets down everything, secretly checking his book, to make sure it's perfect, before he helps you to sit down. You can't help but feel like he's treating you as if you incredibly sick, but it is sweet and so you allow him to do his best. Amit then nestles you in blankets, heats warm clothes for your comfort, brings you treats (after shooing away your beasts) and sits down beside you. He doesn't know if him being there will help as the book states it is best to rest while you can, but you pull him closer and lean into his shoulder, telling him you want him to and so he does. You end up falling asleep against his shoulder as he reads to you, reads anything really, he just wants to keep talking, a distraction.

There you go! I hope it's alright! ( ˘͈ ᵕ ˘͈♡)

#ominis gaunt #ominis x you #ominis x reader #sebastian sallow #hogwarts legacy #hogwarts #sebastian x reader #sebastian sallow x you #ominis gaunt x y/n #garreth weasley #garreth x you #garreth x reader #hogwarts legacy garreth #ominis #hogwarts legacy imagine #amit thakkar x reader #amit thakkar #amit thakkar imagine #amit thakkar x mc

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runaankisser · 10 months ago

Note

Sorry in advance if I’m awkward or anything I’m terrified of requesting stuff:’)

If you’re still open to TDP requests, Mayhaps Runaan and Ethari (bonus points if also Rayla but I don’t wanna ask too much-) somehow managed to take the reader in? I had a human reader in mind, but I won’t die if it’s not!

(I wish I could be more specific, I just have moonfam brainrot and no idea which direction to point it in. But if you do this anyway, thank you so much!! I really appreciate your writing.)

- 💙

The human in the woods

Word count: 802 Including spaces: 3957

(i just wanted to apologize for how long this took)

As the bright moon peaked through soft clouds, a young moon shadow elf giggled as she played with a couple of adoraburrs. The moonlight beamed on her while she walked through a grassy field. Although, something caught her eye. A young girl, in the distance, was standing near a tree, looking lost.

As Rayla got closer, she realized two things, this wasn’t an elf, this was a human! A short, malnourished human girl, with bruises all over her body. Rayla continued to walk closer to the girl.

“Hey! You’re a human!” Rayla says loudly, reaching out her hand to touch the human’s ear. Y/n flinches roughly at the sudden movement. Rayla’s eyes widen in surprise and she jerks her hand back.

“Uhm… where's your parents?” The young elf says with curiosity. Y/n looks up gingerly and shrugs, looking saddened. “You don’t talk, do you?” Rayla says, tilting her head slightly.

The elfling looks at the human with remorse. “You aren’t the only one without parents, mine had to leave me so they could guard the dragon prince,” she says with a smile, trying to relate to the famished child.

“Well I guess I do have parents. Runaan and Ethari take care of me! You should meet them!” Rayla rants, her eyes shining at the idea. Y/n looks at the elf, fear and curiosity filling her eyes. The young girl flinches and gasps at the feeling of a cold, 4 fingered hand grabbing hers.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Y/n slowly followed Rayla, practically being dragged behind her. As they walked, the elfling continued talking about her home and perhaps they could take her in.

Soon, the pair came across a large tree. Y/n’s eyes lit up with surprise as runes glowed a soft purple.

“This is the silvergrove,” Rayla said with a proud smile, pointing down as the illusion melted away, revealing a village decorated with soft lights and silver architecture.

The moonshadow elf grabbed y/n’s hand once again and led her to Runaan and Etharis' home, being careful to avoid the other elves.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Rayla and y/n arrived at the house, Ethari was waiting outside. His eyes widened in surprise at seeing a human, a child!

“Oh moon! Why is there a human here?” Ethari stuttered, looking at the elfling desperately for answers.

“This is… uh I don’t know her name. She's hurt though!” Rayla says nervously, referring to the malnourished, scratched up girl. She tightens her grip on y/n’s hand.

Ethari stared at the young human, feeling sympathetic. He lets out a sigh and tells the pair to come in. “You know Runaan won’t be happy with this when he gets home,” The moonshadow elf says.

“You can sit over there,” Ethari says after leading them to the kitchen, then goes to get a first aid kit. Y/n nervously sits down on the edge of the chair, clearly on her guard. Soon, he returns with a small box, filled with herbs, ointments and bandaids. He bends down and reaches over to her knee with a scratch, frowning as she flinches. “It’s okay, I'm not going to hurt you,” he says softly and gently rubs an ointment on her wound.

“It’s okay! This will help heal it,” Rayla says, trying to reassure the human. Y/n whimpers quietly and flinches again as the stinging ointment is placed on her open wound.

After a while, Ethari finally finishes patching up all of the humans wounds. “Little one, do you have a place to go?” He asks softly, trying to keep the child calm. Y/n does not reply, she simply looks down and slowly shakes her head.

“Can she stay with us? Please! She can sleep in my room!” Rayla pleads, doing her best to look cute, wanting her new friend to live with her. Ethari lets out a sigh and looks down, deep in thought.

Finally, he says, “okay, but just for a bit. Runaan won’t be happy with a human in our house.”

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time skip, 5 months.

Ethari was wrong when he said y/n would only stay for a bit. The young human would stay forever, now family. At first, Runaan wasn’t happy with her in the house. But he soon gave in.

The smell of mushcup filled the air as the morning sun slowly rose. 4 pairs of feet thumped down the stairs, small giggles followed them.

“Good morning you two,” Ethari says, mixing the ingredients for mushcup. Runaan was at the table, drinking his morningberry juice, looking tired.

They both sit down at the table, the human mumbles a small thank you, still quite shy. Y/n was grateful to know that she belongs to a family, a family that won’t hurt her anymore. She was finally happy.

#the dragon prince #the dragon prince x reader #ethari x reader #runaan x reader #moonfam #platonic #child reader #tdp rayla

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shockinglyangel · 1 year ago

Text

HOW THE SLYTHERIN BOYS WOULD REACT IF YOU ASK THEM IF THEY LIKE YOU

NOT PROOFREAD

DRACO

You are spending the summer with the Malfoy's since Draco had invited you, he spoke to his parents first and and introduced you to them, his parents seem to like you; his father not so much as he truly didn't care for his son dead, but Narcissa showed nothing but care for you. "Is this the beautiful Y/N I've been hearing about?" His mother pulled you into a hug.

"I can see why my Draco likes you, you're lovely." She pulled away from the hug and made her way back over to her husband who was complaining about something one of the many house elves had done.

"You like me?" You tease Draco, his cheeks read from what he had been exposed for.

"You think too highly of yourself Y/L/N." He placed an arm around your shoulder and showed you around the rest of the manor, hoping that you knew how much you truly did feel for you.

THEO

You stood on the astronomy tower with Theo, a cigarette between his fingers, you tried to take it off of him but he refused, pulling away from you with a laugh.

"I think not." He placed it back to his lips before leaning over the railing his arm supporting his body.

"You care about me too much, I'm sure I'll be fine if I had one cig." You tried to argue, your eyes watching him as he put the cigarette on the ground.

"I do care about you too much." He replied, placing his hand on either side of your elbows before pulling you into a hug.

"Does that mean THE Theodore Nott likes me?" You looked up to his face, his eyes were filled with pure love for you, although you were blind to it.

"Perhaps it does, you're alright to be around I guess" he placed a small kiss on your forehead and pulled you back into his chest.

(I promise not to make his only personality smoking!! I just needed it for this one)

BLAISE

You hadn't seen any of the boys since the Christmas holidays and you couldn't wait to see them again.

You sat on the train awaiting everyone else to come and join you in the compartment you had saved.

P it was one of the first ones onto the train, you gave her a massive hug before sitting yourself next to her and in between the window, next to the boys kno you hadn't seen any of the boys since the Christmas holidays and you couldn't wait to see them again.

You sat on the train awaiting everyone else to come and join you in the compartment you had saved.

Pansy was one of the first ones onto the train, you gave her a massive hug before sitting yourself next to her and in between the window, next were the boys, They were greeted you with a hug, though it lasted A while longer with Blaise.

Lorenzo sat opposite you, kicking your shins lately as you did with his, please throwing him a nasty look as he assumed he was flirting with you.

"I'm going to the bathroom." Blaise got up swiftly and left the compartment, and awkward atmosphere was left behind

"what's up with him?" You asked everyone else, earning a shrug from a few while Lorenzo moved his legs back, noticing the tension he had accidentally created.

"He's just being like that because he likes you." Lorenzo explained.

Your eyes went wide and you opened your mouth to say something but got interrupted by Blaise coming back into the compartment.

The rest of the trip to Hogwarts wasn't bad, Lorenzo had moved away and sat opposite Theo instead, and you were too busy enjoying your conversation with Pansy to even notice the glares Lorenzo was receiving from his friend.

When the train came to a halt everyone rush to get off, you and Blaise being pushed to be one of the last people to get off the train.

He helped you with your bags and took your hand to make sure you didn't somehow slip down the gap and die.

"Such a gentleman." You teased and and slinked your arm to his.

"It's just the way I am" Blaise replied with a smile, happy to have you to himself.

"Or maybe it's because you like me?" You stated, though it came out more a question.

Blaise looked at you "is it that obvious?"

you threw your head back and let out a laugh. "Lorenzo said something."

"That bitch!" He unlinked your arms and held your hand, pulling you with him to chase after the young Berkshire.

MATTHEO

you lay in the same bed as Matteo, your best skin touching his – the moments before were a whirlwind, and now you were in his arms, a quiet moment of serene tranquility.

You had been Mattheo's secret for awhile, he never showed you off to his friends, he never spoke to you outside of the nights you spent wrapped up in each other's bodies, it was driving you crazy.

"What are we doing?" You asked quietly, watching as he traced light figures on your arm causing goosebumps to arise.

"What?" He mumbled into your hair, he was half asleep and perhaps this wasn't the best time to start such a deep conversation, but you needed to know.

"You know, do you – like me?" His body tensing at your question, his finger stopped dancing on your skin.

"Y/N," he paused for a moment, deciding what he wanted to say next. "I do, I really do, everything is just so complicated at the moment."

You sighed and he propped himself up on his elbow, causing you to instinctively turn over to face hand.

"I'm sorry, I know this isn't what you want." His face was one of sadness and maybe even guilt, it was clear he felt bad but would he do anything to fix this? That was the real question.

"I don't want to be a secret Mattheo." Your eyes trained into his, hoping you'd find even a glimmer of hope for the two of you.

"Do you know what everyone will say if they find out." He tried to emphasise, both of your reputations seemed to be more important though.

"I don't care Mattheo, if I did I wouldn't be here right now." You're exhausted by his constant excuses.

"Fine, will tell everyone tomorrow, but there's no going back after this." He laid back down next to you, holding your body to his, you were his now.

And you could sleep well knowing that he was yours.

LORENZO

yourself and Lorenzo were sat by The black lake, the two of you were just done with studying under a tree and now enjoying the Sun while chilling on a picnic blanket together. You weren't completely sure as to what you and Lorenzo were, but more than a few people had taken the time to tell you that he likes you more than a friend, so today you decided to test out that logic.

"Lorenzo?" You turned your head to face him he was looking out of the river his hand supporting his head, his body propped on its side.

"mhm?" He hummed back quickly, not looking away from the body of water, you too looked away, possibly losing the confidence you thought you had gained.

"Do you like me?" You finally blurted. "Like – more than a friend?"

Lorenzo quickly turned to face you, his eyes widen his cheek slightly red. "No," he quickly denied the question."Where did you get that idea?"

You threw your head back in response, your hair falling over your shoulder, he couldn't help yet be entranced.

"Just heard from a few people, I guess that I have just been rumours." You answered, your eyes focused on the lake, you weren't offended by his reply, but it definitely didn't help with how you were feeling.

The boy just not it, the two of you sitting in silence for a short moment before he finally spoke up. "Did those rumours bother you?" He was choosing his words with delicacy.

You turned to face him again, his face was a shade of pink but you assumed it to have been caused by that the sun exposure he'd had today.

"I don't care." Your lips spoke words what she didn't know how to feel about, does that mean you wanted him to like you are not? He couldn't get it out of his head.

A few hours later the two of you headed back into the parcel, he walked you to your dorm to say goodbye as you mentioned you had a couple more things to study for.

"I lied," his hand reached to the back of his neck as you looked at him in bewilderment. "I do like you. "

You smiled. I know, good night Enzo. "And entered your door, leaving the poor boy confused about that entire interaction.

TOM

Tom was buried in books he had to study for the upcoming test, he'd invited you to study with him but you had other things on your mind. Things between you and Tom were more unspoken than anything, you didn't know how he felt about anything half of the time, and today just made things worse.

There was a rumour going around Hogwarts that he was sleeping with some Ravenclaw girl, her herself being very proud to share the news with anyone she passed.

how many you had your moments, those times which you never reminded him of where gentle touches were place and soft words were spoken, but now you didn't know where you stood.

"Tom?" You looked up at the boy has her falling in his face as he stared down at the parchment in front of him. Do you like me?"

Tom didn't look up, perhaps he was bothered about the conversation. "I tolerate you," he went to say something but he stopped you, finally looking into your eyes and Y/N, don't believe everything you hear on this castle."

#slytherin boys react #slytherin #harry potter #draco malfoy #theodore nott #mattheo riddle #blaise zabini #lorenzo berkshire #tom riddle

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mcflymemes · 2 years ago

Text

PROMPTS FROM ELLA ENCHANTED * assorted dialogue from the 2004 film, adjust as necessary

i gotta work on that.

quiet, please. i can't concentrate here.

isn't it wonderful?

i have a no return policy.

why don't you go back to where you came from?

what a stupid name.

nobody wants you here.

i always knew something was wrong with me.

can't you take the spell back?

you must never tell anyone else.

i don't want anyone using it against you.

what's inside you is stronger than any spell.

take this. then i'll always be with you.

your father would like to speak to you.

it was either get married or sell the house.

is this the right address?

the house looks delightful.

my clothes need more room than this.

please don't touch it. it was my mother's.

admit you're stupid and don't know what you're talking about.

hold your tongue.

your coronation is next week.

i've kept my promise, haven't i?

i don't need your chivalry, thanks.

you're the first maiden i've met who hasn't swooned at the sight of me.

i want peace in the kingdom as much as anyone.

so you have a new plan once you take the crown?

that's what i thought. you're all just the same.

perhaps that's why i find your obvious disdain for me so refreshing.

i'll try and be more considerate next time i'm saving you.

next time? what makes you think we'll see each other again?

stop flirting with him.

i need you to do me a little favor.

a felon in my own family. i could die from embarrassment.

you are forbidden ever to see her again.

thank goodness you're all right.

i should have told you about this years ago.

i think it's only fair to warn you that i'm practiced in the ancient art of... origami.

don't let him scare you, sweetheart! kick his butt!

i am going to need so much therapy after this.

that's very sweet, but i'm on a tight schedule.

i'm on a tight schedule. were i not... i would love to have dinner with you.

great. i knew it. a talking book.

i think i may have found you another chance at your future husband.

elves aren't that short, you know.

the rustling always comes before the screaming and the running.

it never hurts to be on your guard.

i led a rally on your behalf the other day. maybe you heard about it.

we just did this. didn't we just do this?

who's to say it wouldn't have worked if you hadn't come barging in?

you're bleeding.

you'd better let me help you with that.

it makes it so much easier rescuing you if i don't have to commute.

your girlfriend doesn't mind being left alone?

that's not really my area of expertise.

you have the power to make a difference in the world and you don't even care.

they're not so bad. i thought they'd be all so big and scary.

i thought that maybe this would be a good time to possibly have a heart to heart.

do you know where the bathroom is?

i had no idea things were so bad.

you have to stay for the night.

i wish you would stay.

i hope you don't mind me saying this, but you're much prettier than i would have expected.

your father would have been proud.

i think he would have really liked you.

kiss me.

that wasn't an order, you know.

i trust your journey was pleasant?

might i trouble you for a moment?

you will tell no one of this plan.

i will do anything you ask.

please tell me you never wanna see me again.

we're together now. and when we're together, it's like magic.

will you marry me?

you tried to kill me.

i can't believe i'm saving you after you tried to kill me.

i should have disposed of you when i had the chance.

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shirefantasies · 10 months ago

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Hello, may I please request fem reader x Elrond? With reader that is quite avoidant when it comes to touch, but accepts hugs and kisses from Elrond? I hope it is okay 👉👈 thank you so much in advance, have a wonderful day 💕💕💕💕

Yes, sorry this took so long but here we are! Hope you enjoy how this came to me, a one-shot featuring a third party POV as well as ‘yours’ 😊

The Steel Lady of Imladris- Elrond x F!Elf!Reader

It was known to the surrounding lands that in the Last Homely House one might be surprised by whom they meet; the lord of the land, after all, had a lady by his side, one whose presence was said to carry the chill of a harsh wind with her presence. Resolute as her home's walls, she cut quite the contrast to the hearths always said to be awaiting visitors of the fair valley. Perhaps she was even a witch like the one dwelling in the woods of Lórien.

Such were the rumors swirling in the mind of Rivendell's dwarven visitor, called there as he was to offer his people's wise council. Ha! What was it that had those pointy-ears finally asking for their help Gimli did not know, but happy was he to attend with his father at his side.

Riding in with his kin, he took in sailing white arches and a very well-constructed bridge, hearing his father mutter all the while about how nothing had changed. He had stopped there once before some sixty years ago, after all, during the dragon incident.

A whole gaggle of elves awaited there, some armored but most just decked out in their pretty finery, one clad in white emerging from the center with a deep blue-clad figure upon his arm. Long, elaborately twisted strands of dark hair hung onto his raiment and a circlet of silver crossed his forehead. Likewise, the woman at his side had what hair she could done with equal finesse, a matching headpiece, and a dress more closely tailored than the lord's robes. Elrond and his consort, the so-called Steel Lady of Imladris.

Sure enough, fair as you were your face was resolute as you stepped forward, practical even as you curtsied, surrendering the smallest of smiles. Ready for a fight as he was, Gimli wasn’t sure he’d want to take you on. At least, not without the proper head start and all.

You flinched as Gloin clapped a hand to your back, stepping forward in utter avoidance of his touch. Disrespectful though it may have seemed, you equally avoided one of your elven fellows’ advances. Gimli shook his head. Cold as they came.

Alright, fine, maybe this wing of the place was a little confusing. He still could figure it out for himself. One more corridor and it would be golden-

“Trouble yourself not, My Lady.”

Tilting his head, Gimli took a few steps forward, was availed the sight of Lord Elrond…holding you at the elbows, pulling you closer? The sound of… you giggling?

He’d turned away, but that sound along had Gimli swiveling around the corner again. Your head tilted and leaned onto the dark-haired elf’s shoulder. A smile cut further across your face as his lips fell to the crown of your head.

“You needn’t spend any more time in the crowds than you must. It was simply right to have you at my side for greetings.”

“I like being at your side, though,” you whispered, peeling your head from Elrond’s chest to kiss him once, twice, and far more lingering.

All right, that was enough. Off to bed. Gimli turned, trying the other fork in the hall with a faint smile playing upon his lips. Steel Lady indeed.

“Greetings, Madam.”

Frowning slightly, you turned to see if your eyes had deceived you; they had not- one of the visiting dwarves removed his helmet in your presence, giving you a jolly little bow.

Generally you were…unsuccessful, shall you say… with guests. Aversion to touch had bloomed from the harsh experiences of your past life, making trust a challenge. No bearing upon their race or character, but outsiders posed a threat. Disrupting routines, bringing louder, brasher customs. Viewing you as either held in thrall to their impositions or else some myth beyond their metaphorical touch.

Elrond was the anchor in your vast sea of anxiety, the only one who saw through story, perceived emotion seemingly unexpressed. Displayed hope and kindness abundant as the cleanest of springs.

But now stood a dwarf of all people fixing you with earnest hazel eyes. Understanding. What should you do?

A smile shook its way to your lips. “Good morning,” you chose a customary greeting. Standard, safe.

“Aye,” the dwarf nodded, “it is, isn’t it? Well, I know you elves like to keep time, so I'll be off to breakfast before there is none. Tell me your favorite and I will save you some if I can."

Stranger or not, you were sure anyone could have read the shock upon your face. Shaking it quickly aside, you kept your face neutral as you named it and gave a thanks. As the dwarf went on his way, he bid you his final farewell by your title, yes, but also your name. They didn't usually use your name.

Light footsteps rang out behind you, barely perceptible even by your sensitive ears. "And what was that about, hm?" Elrond.

Tension melted from your shoulders as the curious little quirk of your lips burst into a wide smile. Turning on your heels, you slid your arms about your husband's waist, relaxing when his hand caressed the top of your head.

"The dwarf," you answered, "he was so kind. Not in that rough way so often seen, but...genuine. Caring. Like he wanted to see me smile. Could someone have challenged him?"

You feel your husband's head shake. "How many times must I remind you," he teased, "of the light that lies in your eyes? That which reaches deepest into the heart. Surely he felt no challenge than that. Indeed, I would say he simply sees you as I do."

Heart thumping, you loosened your grip on Elrond to meet his lips in a loving kiss, safe in the warmth of his words and his hold upon you. Bit by bit he encouraged you to be brave, never leaving you adrift for long, you reflected as he took your hand, bidding you lead the way to the greater halls at your ready.

Taglist: @lokilover476 @fuckyoumakeart @mossthebogwitch @ibabblealot @kilibaggins @joonies-word @stormchaser819 @pirate-lord-of-narnia | Reply/Ask/Message to join 🥰

#lord of the rings #lotr #lotr imagines #lotr x reader #elrond #elrond x reader #elrond x female reader #female reader #elf reader #one shot #ask #anon #requested

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sebastianswallows · 2 years ago

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A new family — Chapter 3

— PAIRING: dark!Ominis Gaunt x F!MC

— SYNOPSIS: Ominis gets tired of his family and how miserable life is with them after he graduates. So he follows Sebastian's example for once, and kills them in cold blood. Now that he has the mansion to himself, he discovers he would still like to have a family, but one of his own making.

— WARNINGS: a bit of fluff, a bit of angst

— WORDCOUNT: 2.2k

— TAGLIST: @littletealight @skarathewitch @myrachondria @mrimperio @ssnapsaurus @tarotwitchy-main

After only a few days, it was easy to make her forget all about wanting to leave. The sun woke her up with its warm rays, and they had breakfast together in the rose garden, and food apparated before them — all of it cooked to perfection by the house elves — and then they spent hours and hours all day, in rebellious freedom, like it was the best weekend at Hogwarts… Even Ominis could tell she hadn’t been happier in years.

She delighted in the library as well, the second largest room in the mansion after the dungeon, and spent every evening there for the first five days.

“You never told me your family had a first edition copy of Magick Moste Evile!”

“We also have a copy of a manuscript on poisons by Hereward, the author’s son. I’m sure it’s somewhere around here...”

“How did your family acquire all of this, Ominis?”

“You don’t want to know,” he grinned.

“Well, now that you mention it…”

“To be fair, most of it is inherited from past generations of Gaunts. Our family went through a period of obsessive academic interests.”

“Now that you’re in charge, those days might come again,” she said with a cheeky smile.

“Who’s to say I’m in charge?”

“You can be subtle about it all you want,” she said as she turned a page, causing the book to moan and shiver. “But it’s clear something nefarious happened to your parents. Your sister and brother too…”

“My brother, in fact, is still in London.”

“Plan to take care of that, do you?”

Ominis bit his lip and said nothing, but kept walking along the shelves while his guest sat reading at the large oak wood desk in the far back of the room. He couldn’t guess whether she approved of his actions, and perhaps it helped her conscience not to even know what they were. He comforted himself with the thought that she seemed to have approved of what Sebastian did well enough — so she could very well show him the same courtesy.

“I’m curious,” he said, trying his luck, “what do you think happened to my family?”

He heard her turn another page, browsing through the curses.

“With such a library at your disposal, anything could have happened to them,” she said with a smile.

Ominis stopped, his back to her, and brushed some dust off the thick spine of a herbology almanac from 1664. She sounded… indifferent, even tacitly approving.

“I should have expected you to be tranquil about such topics,” he grinned. “They never bothered you before…”

“If you mean Sebastian —”

“Now why would you bring that up?”

“That is what happened, isn’t it?” she said, sounding a bit triumphant. She slammed the book shut, and it screamed. “Ominis!”

“What?” he said, turning around, his face serene. She definitely sounded excited, although whether it was in anger or joy, he couldn’t tell. He faced her impassively, although in his chest his heart was pounding.

“Are you responsible?”

His jaw tightened and his eyes narrowed. With his hands clasped together behind his back, wand held loosely in his right one, he felt his back straighten.

“What if I were?” he asked. “Would you mind?”

“N-no,” she said at length, her voice softening after the initial outburst. “I… I would understand.”

“Would you?”

He heard her leave the desk, stepping around the heavy old chair and cautiously approach him. Her little heels rang loudly in the library. He was surprised to feel her gentle grip on his elbow, but he stayed still.

“You never knew how much I wished I could help you whenever you were away for the summer… Steal you away, protect you.”

A muscle twitched in his eye at that. “I didn’t need protecting.”

“I know,” she said, smiling. “Your problem required more drastic solutions, correct?”

Ominis tried not to smile. Whatever his fears were, her reaction did not substantiate them, and gradually he felt his heart settle, his blood cool, and his arm loosened in hers. She pulled it closer to hold his hand.

“Still,” said Ominis, “I appreciate the sentiment…”

“I won’t ask you what happened,” she said. “You will tell me if you wish to, and if that happens to be never, then —”

“It won’t be never. It might just take… some time.”

“Whatever happened, though — whatever happened — know that I will never judge you.”

“Oh,” he chuckled, “so you won’t hold me to a higher standard than Sebastian, then? That’s a relief.”

“It doesn’t suit you to be jealous.”

“Who says I’m jealous?”

He didn’t hear a thing, but he could feel the incredulous squinting of her eyes.

“Alright,” she said. “Come on, let’s have dinner.”

She squeezed his fingers once before letting go and stepping back toward the desk.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“I mean to take it upstairs with me — that is, if you don’t mind. I promise I won’t misplace it.”

“You’re using Magick Moste Evile as a bedtime read?”

“Yes, I am. And you should, too,” she smiled. “Never know when you need it.”

The air between them changed following that conversation. After nearly a week spent wondering how she felt about him, how she’d really feel if she knew what he had done, for Ominis, it was like letting out a breath that he had held all that time.

He smiled more, laughed more, spent more time alone leaving her to wander freely through the grounds, but also spent more time with her. They began a habit of reading together in the greenhouse, more of a conservatory where all manner of plants were arranged with no particular thought or care. They retreated there after lunch with a cup of tea — green for her, white for him — and that’s where they did most of their reading. She recommended him books on dark magic as she finished them, or named favourites she knew from Hogwarts when she spotted them in his library, and pointed out what she knew he might like.

They frequently stopped to discuss things, arguing between good and evil, between fairness and pragmatism, between glory and destiny, reaching no particular conclusions — but then, that wasn’t the point. Slowly, Ominis could feel himself catching up to how he might have been were it not for his family, and the distaste for the dark arts that grew in him because of them. He went through this rediscovery of himself slowly, anxiously, but guided by her hand.

One evening, in the mid of August roughly one month after he had killed his parents, a late summer storm washed over them. She could see the dark clouds nearing after lunch, and in less than one hour they were upon them. It was quite an experience to sit in the conservatory when the rain began to splash on the glass, to hear the whipping of the wind, and feel in the frail encasing the pressure of the air outside. Within their little enclosure, still warm and fragrant with tea, they felt like they were in another world.

“Oh I wish you could see how the water pours down the roof,” she told him as she held his hand. “It looks like a little waterfall.”

“I’m sure it’s lovely,” he chuckled. “I think I can hear it. It’s like a leaky faucet.”

“And the sky outside is dark, almost like it’s nighttime.”

“Yes, I can feel how much colder it is.”

“Do you want to go back inside?”

“We are inside,” he smiled. “But yes, we can sit in the drawing room instead. I’ll light a fire.”

They picked up their books and went to sit out the storm in the parlour. Ominis lit a fire, as he promised, with a carefully aimed spell, while she unpacked a box of biscuits the elves had bought the week before.

“I want more tea,” she said. “Do you?”

“Certainly,” said Ominis, still tending to the fire.

He heard her going out toward the kitchen, then coming back with the little clinking of porcelain on a tray and set it on the table in front of the fireplace.

“You have lovely tea sets,” she said pensively, “albeit some are a bit macabre.”

“How so?” he chuckled. “Do you mean the designs?”

“Yes,” she said from further back in the room. “Black pansies and bone piles, and oh my, this one has skulls,” she laughed. “And this is an interesting kettle. The cups fit along its side like mushrooms growing from a tree… Wonderful craftsmanship.”

Ominis frowned — he didn’t recall them having a tea set with skulls on it… The blood froze in his veins when he realised what it was.

“Well, you don’t want to use any of those,” he said as he quickly got up and walked toward her. “Let’s use the cups from earlier.”

“But I had green tea in mine, and now I want some oolong. The flavours wouldn’t mix.”

“Yes, but —”

“Oh, please, Ominis,” she said, and he could hear her pouting so sweetly, “I want to try them. I’ve never seen such fancy cups before.”

He frowned and clenched his jaw, but smiled. “Alright. Anything for you.”

“I won’t break them, I promise,” she grinned.

“Just don’t pick the —” He stopped when he heard that distinctive bony clank.

“The what?”

“Nothing.”

The storm still raged outside and thunder trembled through the walls. Ominis checked the kettle, then felt around the tray until he found one of the cups. With trembling hands, held the teapot and poured. The liquid hissed in its distinctive way until it nearly reached the rim, and then he filled the other.

“Milk? Honey?” she offered.

“None for me, thank you.”

“Well, I’ll have both.”

“Not sure there’s enough honey to sweeten up that cup,” he mumbled under his breath.

“What?” she laughed. “What was that?”

The fireplace hissed and flapped when a draft from down the chimney hit its fire. Another bout of thunder rolled its way across the distance and sounded through the room. Between the silence, the rain beat against the window in incessant little drops.

“I just… I really don’t like this set,” he finally said.

He made no effort to disguise how he was feeling this time. There was a frown between his brows that he couldn’t wipe away, and his lips were set in a firm line that refused to let him speak. His hands were braced on the edge of the table as if he might fall if he let go.

“Ominis,” she said after a few moments, “do you want me to drink from this?”

“I might,” he said with a sardonic smile. “I partially do.”

“Why?”

“Curiosity. Indifference. A touch of sadism.”

“And what about the other part?”

“The other part,” he sighed, “is sick.”

She got up — he hadn’t even noticed when she sat — and was right by his side, her warm hands uncoiling his from around the wood.

“It sounds to me as if both are sick,” she quietly said.

Ominis allowed his flesh to melt in her grasp, his bones losing their firmness and his blood its vigour. When she moved him to sit down, he followed without resistance.

“I just don’t know how to feel,” he said weakly, “about anything anymore.”

“Well, let’s start from somewhere… For instance, how do you feel about yourself?” she asked as she kneeled beside his chair, her hands still on his.

“Shame,” said Ominis. “I don’t even know why I just said that… But, shame, and humiliation.”

“Why?”

“Because I still don’t know how I should be. What I should like, what I should think, how I should react to things, and how I should behave. All parts of me were formed by evasion and as… as a reaction to something else, rather than coming from me. And…”

“Yes?”

“And I fear I’ve pushed myself down so low that I can not dig myself up again. An early grave,” he chuckled.

“Don’t be like that, Ominis,” she said, holding him more firmly. “You’re still here, and they’re the ones who are gone.”

“That hardly gives me much satisfaction.”

“And what would?”

“I don’t know. Burying them, I suppose, one way or another. Or… getting rid of them some other way.”

“How?”

“I haven’t decided,” he said, unthinkingly turning his head toward the teacups steaming with tea.

“And… how do you feel about me?” she asked.

“You?” he said, turning toward her again. “I feel like… like I’ve lost you before I had a chance. And other times, I feel like I never had a chance to start with. So, I suppose I feel hopeless.”

“Well, luckily for you, all of those are wrong,” she said with a smile.

It was Ominis’ turn to hang on to her. His fingers curled around her hands and gripped onto her wrists like shackles.

“Do you mean that?” he asked.

“I do.”

“So you don’t want to see Sebastian again?”

“I — well…”

“You know what I mean.”

“Ominis, I don’t need Sebastian to be happy,” she said archly. “Not any more than he needs me.”

The hint of resentment in her voice did not go unnoticed, but he chose not to address it, at least for now.

“What do you need to be happy?”

“Nothing.”

“Oh,” he said. “Well, that’s a shame.”

“And why?”

“Because I happen to need you.”

#Ominis Gaunt #hl #Ominis Gaunt fanfiction #ominis gaunt imagine #Hogwarts Legacy imagine #Ominis Gaunt x Reader #Ominis Gaunt x MC #Hogwarts Legacy MC #sswallow;made a thing #sswallow;fanfics #sswallow;a new family

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