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sweetiebean00 · 8 months ago

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Of Curses and Stone

The Sixth Installment to Of Nifflers and Magic, I might be needing to make a list or something for easy access... Oh! Please feel free to ask questions if anything is confusing! @helendeath

Celia didn't know how long she was out, her eyes stinging as she squeezed them shut. Whispers from the past fluttered about her skull like flies, she couldn't move. Her entire body felt wrong, felt too heavy as if weights were chained around her limbs. This isn't London, she reminded herself, trying to think through the fog invading her mind and clouding her senses. She's at Hogwarts, somewhere in the Scottish Highlands. She's safe, she's with her friends. At least... she hoped they were friends, and that she wasn't just overlooking their kindness to the awkward new student.

Taking a deep breath, the smell of mint and lemon danced about her nose with something spicy. The fire that had been burning since she got out of bed that morning was spreading, the flames so hot it left trails of ice stretching like the roots of a tree through her chest. Clearing her throat made regret twist in her stomach at the pain that ghosted right back down, down deep into her lungs as she fought to keep the ball of magic inside in place. She didn't have the time for coughing, for her body to keep fighting against her everytime she lifted a fucking wand.

She needed to get up. To open her fucking eyes and get her brain working so she could focus on the situation at hand until she could crawl to the Room of Requirments, or even the Undercroft if it was empty, and hack up her lungs in peace. Something squeezed her hand, pulling her from the haze of her thoughts as something cold and clammy pressed against her knuckles and air tickled her fingers. Celia frowned, trying to make her hand flex, to squeeze back whatever was squeezing her. Yet her body still wouldn't obey, not when all she can hear is the dull roar of blood rushing through her ears and the memories that haunted her every time she closed her eyes.

Warmth surrounded her on all sides, and she had to fight to keep awake. The blanket of sleep attempting to pull her back under, but Celia had enough of reliving her once muggle life. She needed to be awake. There's something she’s doing, was doing? Is? She had been up to something, something important maybe? She couldn't remember, the sludge of her mind far too thick for her to even try and think through. With a deep breath, she forced her eyes to open. Squinting against the light of torches that made spots line her vision, but she refused to close her eyes.

The first thing she saw was pale skin bared from a white shirt, a green and silver tie hanging loosely and fisted in her grip. The black fabric of a cloak lined with emerald green was next, and when she managed to get the strength to crane her neck. She found her eyes traveling up, up, up. Watched the adam's apple bob as sweat slowly trickled a path along flawless skin that looked to be cut from stone, until she found a sharp jawline and high cheekbones. A narrowed nose, and pale eyes staring at nothing as blonde locks fell messily across his forehead, fallen from the slicked back style Ominis usually wore. She swallowed, heat dancing along her cheeks as she realized just who was holding her all this time.

Celia mildly thought it was Sebastian, the warmth of a furnace ever burning had made her think of him. Also given he had been closer when she had more than likely fainted, it had just made sense. She hadn't thought Ominis would be this warm, this firm mass that surrounded her that brought to mind a snake coiling around something precious. Her lips twitched, and she vowed to never share that thought with anyone. Not even if Adelaide offers her the best bottle of firewhiskey and the finest cup of coffee her uncle had ever thought to send her.

Tilting her head turned more into a dropping and she gritted her teeth at the weightless feeling that tingled in her own bones. Hopefully, this was just a side effect of being cursed by an unforgivable, and not something else. She needed time, time to hide and lose the battle alone where she didn't need to pretend everything was fine and dandy. With a measured breath, she forced herself to focus once more. The first thing she saw was thick, dark brown curls. Sebastian. His head lifted, her heart wrenching in her chest painfully at the tears trailing down rosy cheeks from his red, puffy eyes. He was mouthing words she couldn't hear, it was his breath on her fingers mingled with teardrops and she wished to squeeze it. To tell him everything was okay, that she's fine.

"-orry, never casting that ever again."

She struggled, don't say never. Why she can understand not casting crucio again, but some of them could be useful. Magic was magic, all that mattered was the one that wields it. Professor Fig had taught as much, and she's learned from his lessons. All of them, she's absorbed them like a sponge during the summer. Like hell would she let the most important lesson of all be tossed out a window.

"Celia?"

A hand gently caressed her cheek, tilting her head back so she was staring back at Ominis again. She hummed, her heart skipping a beat at the smile that stretched his lips. Relief colored his features, his forehead pressing into hers as he held her face tenderly. As if she would break if he held too tight, or would slip away if he let go. Heat blossomed under his touch, her eyes widening at the contact before he was pulling back. A proper grin stretching across his face.

"Thank Merlin you're awake." He breathed, shoulders losing the tension that had clung to them moments ago as she squeaked being nestled further into his embrace at the motion. "Sebastian and I were quite worried about you."

"I'm fine?" She cleared her throat, turning her head to Sebastian's own wide and relieved gaze, the guilt like a knife that pierced her heart with every flutter of tear lined lashes. She squeezed his hand, cursing herself for how much energy and strength it took. "Sebastian - it's okay, I'm okay."

"You weren't-" He sniffled, holding her hand tight to his chest. "I'm sorry- so sorry Celia, I-I didn't want to hurt you, bu-but you said to do it and for-for Anne; and-and I'd do anything for-for my sister, and you're my sis-sister too, and I-I hurt you-"

Her heart warmed, threatening to burst as her eyes stung at his words. She tried to throw herself at the other Slytherin, tried to lunge and tackle him in a hug like one she's seen Poppy do to Adelaide that knocked the taller puff flat on her back. Except her body wasn't quite cooperating and she frowned at the fabric that locked her wrist to Ominis' forearm, the emerald and silver tie that matched the one hanging loosely around the blonde's neck now circled his arm and knotted around her other hand clutched tightly in Sebastian's grip. She shook her head, questions later. She needed to hug her brand new brother right now!

"Sebastian-!" Celia cut off his cries, squeezing his hand and wiggling enough to get Ominis to loosen his hold. "Group hug me, please!"

He hadn't needed to be told twice, against Ominis' words of protest Sebastian too crawled into his lap. Hugging her close and sandwiching Celia in between them with a loud oomph! Celia didn't care, doing her best to try and hug him back as brown curls tickled her cheeks and she let Sebastian cry into her shoulder, and Ominis' chest. At least they were in this together.

"I'm okay, Sebastian, we are all okay. You did nothing wrong, magic is magic, what matters is the one who wields it." She soothed, bonking his head with her own with a hiss of pain. She had been attempting to hug him with her chin, apparently that translated into a headbutt instead. "That- sorry, I'm not quite sure why my arms are restrained, and I can't quite hug you when my arms are tied with... wait a minute, is that your tie?!"

Sebastian laughed, pulling away to settle back on his haunches. He wiped his face, his bashful smile making her raise a brow as she waited for an answer. Ominis sighed heavily, his hands moving to undo the knots that bound her to him. Muttering under his breath something about another delinquent. Celia made a mental note to correct him later, she wasn't a delinquent, she's a deviant. There's a complete difference! The moment Ominis had freed her wrists, Celia went to jump Sebastian. Only to be stopped by his arm tightening around her waist, his voice low in her ears.

"Easy now Celia." She gulps, heat rushing to her cheeks as fingers trail featherlight up the inside of her arm bared by her rolled up sleeves. "'Less you want me to tie you up and hold you down, again."

Immediately, her arm falls back to her side. The fire blazed over her face dripping down her throat to her chest as she realized that she had been tied up in two ways. Once with Sebastian's tie around Ominis' arm, and again by his own tie around her hand holding it to his chest. Why they felt the need to restrain her she didn't know, couldn't bring herself to try and dwell on it as she nearly launched herself at Sebastian. A living, breathing furnace with arms curling around her that apologized into her shoulder as she rubbed his back. Humming a soft tune as she listened, as she assured him he hadn’t hurt her. She is fine, he isn’t a monster and he didn’t do anything that she hadn’t asked him to do. That wasn't necessary. That she forgave him even if there's nothing to forgive.

It took a moment for Sebastian to stop shaking. To stop the tears in his eyes from falling, for his sniffles to ease. Pulling away, she ruffled his curls. Ignoring his half-hearted protests as she beamed with the force of the warmth filling her heart, she felt like she was going to burst from how light she felt. How free and unchained from the shackles of life.

"For Anne." Celia reminded, ignoring Ominis as he shifted behind her to get off the floor, muttering under his breath: "Anne would not want this."

If Sebastian heard his comment, he didn't respond. Merely getting off the floor and offering her a hand and tugging her to her feet the moment she grabbed it. Celia breathed a sigh of relief, letting her weight settle as pins and needles tingled up from her toes up to her hips. She didn't have the time to curse, her arms stretching out to find something for purchase. Sebastian lunged forward, a grunt escaping his lips as her face slammed into Sebastian's chest. Fuck.

"Oh, you're completely fine." Ominis said in a mockingly high voice.

Celia rolled her eyes. A squeak yanking from her throat as her legs were swiped out from under her. Instead of careening to the ground, she was lifted. Higher and higher until she was burning red, as strong arms locked under her knees and around her back. Ominis' features were unamused, a slight pink tinting his cheeks as he huffed. Shifting her up and earning another squeak as he adjusted his grip. His lips lifted in the corner, she scowled at the smirk curled on his dastardly soft looking mouth.

Dangerous, she decided. That's another word to describe the tall, blonde Slytherin. Dangerous, with his stupid kissable lips that she really wanted to bite. She needed to stop thinking about his lips, about how they'd look swollen and red from kissing. If he'd kiss her soft, and tender, as if she'd break, or if he'd kiss her like he was dying of thirst and her lips were the first drink of water. All teeth, and tongue that he would drag- STOP THINKING ABOUT HIS LIPS!

"-thinking you can walk off an Unforgivable."

She blinked, the sound of his voice crashing into her ears and she felt the fire of her blush spread to the back of her neck at the timbre of his voice, low and smooth like the finest butterbeer sliding down her throat. At the vibrations of the deep notes coming from his chest beneath her ears. He needed to stop talking. He shook his head, following Sebastian into Salazar's Scriptorium.

"Foolish."

"Hey, I didn't know."

"Because you didn't listen!" Ominis hissed through his teeth, slowing his pace until he came to a stop. The sound of Sebastian's footsteps growing faint as he continued to pursue the study. "If either of you had stopped to think, to listen to what I have been saying from the beginning - you'd know it wasn't just the pain that was excruciating. It was that it lingers… Lingers in every breath you take, in your bones, your muscles. It stays until your senses are so muddled you can't remember a time without the pain, and when it's gone you would do anything to go back and never feel it because..."

Ominis took a deep breath, his brows furrowed and eyes squeezed shut. Her eyes fell to his throat, watching as it bobbed when he swallowed. A shudder dancing down her spine that she did her best to resist, but when his grip tightened she knew she had failed before she had a chance to begin. She sucked her bottom lip in-between her teeth, feeling his chest raise and fall with the force of his breath.

"Because?"

"Because there will be days you will feel the effects of the cruciatus curse as if it's being casted on you again."

Her heart twinged, her head gently resting against his chest as she nuzzled into him. His breath hitched, and she hummed as her hands curled into his shirt. She watched his jaw clenched, his lips pursing and the frown formed between his brows slowly smoothed out with the rest of his features. Back into the calm, cool, collected mask that is Ominis Gaunt. "I... I'm sorry, Ominis." She cleared her throat, the beat of his heart a soothing lullaby beneath her ear. "I'm sorry your family has boners for snakes and dark magic, and can't see your brilliance."

He snorted, his response lost as her breathing evened out. Her eyelids were growing heavier and heavier by the second, the firm warmth of Ominis surrounded her. Wrapping and curling around her like a blanket of safety, a wall against the harshness of reality. She hoped one day she'd be able to be selfish and give him that sort of warmth and peace in her embrace. She wished to be allowed one day, because the heavens know she doesn't deserve more even if she wanted to gift him that for all of eternity.

#hogwarts legacy #hogwarts oc #sebastian sallow #hogwarts legacy fanfic #ominis gaunt #ominis x mc #swearing #ominis gaunt x reader #hufflepuff #hufflepuff x slytherin #slytherin #salazar slytherin #spoilers #canon divergence #unforgivable curses #found family #of nifflers and magic

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