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wizardingdiaries · 3 months

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"You, Of Course"- Fred Weasley x Reader

word count:10,705

warnings: very slight angst, some fluff, maybe a little ooc Fred.

summary: Fred asks Angelina to the ball, and so you decide to say yes to the one person you know you shouldn't have said yes to.

(gif not mine!)

You never knew that morning when you woke up that you would be asked to the Yule ball. You had no idea it would be a Ravenclaw to ask you either. Waking up that day you just expected another 24 hours of waiting helplessly to be asked by the one person you so desperately wanted to be asked by. His name was Fred Weasley, and he was one of your best friends, if not your best friend. You had met him and his brother George on the train at the beginning of your first year. Now here you were after having ever-so-clumsily fallen in love with Fred, hoping that maybe he’d fallen in love with you too. Perhaps he’d ask you to be his date to the Yule ball, and things would fall into place just as perfectly as you had imagined time and time again.

Now back to the Ravenclaw boy, his name was Alexander Gray. He was in the same year as you and just so happened to be a pretentious asshole.

You walked into the Great Hall that morning with no other intention than to eat breakfast and head on to your Herbology lesson. Not having slept well the night before you were not looking forward to the day. Though, you knew that the boys would likely try to keep you for as long as they could without making you too late for class.

You took your spot next to Fred and sighed heavily while gathering all of the things you needed for your usual breakfast. Fred and George had noticed you sit down and waited for your usual good morning, but it never came.

“Well, good morning to you too darling. Why so chipper?” Fred questioned teasingly. You turned to look at him and gave your best smile. “You, of course,” you teased back and he grinned broadly. “I thought so, I mean I am your only reason to smile,” he said and you nodded meekly. If only he knew how right he was. He was the reason you smiled so much, if it wasn’t for him you’d probably be the most miserable person ever. He noticed just how feeble you were being and a look of worry replaced his bright grin.

Before he could speak up, his brother did. “(y/n), are you alright? You don’t seem like your usual self, did something happen?” George asked. You quickly shook your head, “No, no everything is just fine, just didn’t sleep very well last night,” you tried to reassure them. They both looked at you with uncertainty. “Are you sure?” Fred asked and placed a hand on your shoulder. “Of course,” you nodded as firmly as you could with the best smile you could muster. Fred being the reason you didn’t sleep was something you decided to keep to yourself. You could tell that Fred didn’t believe you and neither did George but they left it for the time being.

You went through breakfast quickly and said your goodbyes.

“I’ll see you guys later ok, don’t miss me too much,” you smiled before giving George a kiss on the head as per usual, not doing the same with Fred. (you see he had stopped his usual affections a few weeks ago and you just thought he had gotten sick of you so you stopped) Turning to leave you felt someone grab your wrist softly, and you turned back around. “Hey, (y/n), have you got a date to the ball yet?” Fred asked, and your heart skipped a beat. Was this it? Was he finally going to ask you?

“No, actually I don’t, why?” you asked softly. At that moment your hopes were so high.

“Just thought I’d ask, and let you know that I’m going with Angelina, so when you get a date maybe we can all go together,” he said and immediately your heart fell. You could feel your smile falter for a few seconds before coming back up. You had to hide your feelings, you felt the need to bury them as far as you could. You took your hand from his grip and nodded your head. “Ok,” you spoke before walking away from the table.

If you had looked back you would’ve seen the concern and confusion cloud his eyes as you walked away from him. “What did you do?” George asked as all of your friends watched you walk away. “I’m not sure,” he said with confusion written across his face. “I’ve never seen her walk away like that,” Ginny spoke up. “Should I go after her?” Fred questioned and Hermione stepped in this time. “No, I think we should give her some space, she doesn’t seem like she wants anyone around right now,”

“Yeah I guess you’re right, we’ll see her in Potions, I’m sure she’ll be ok Freddie,” George spoke to him and clapped a hand on his shoulder. Fred ignored that his brother called him Freddie despite you being the only one to call him that. He just glanced back over his shoulder and you were gone.

Tears blurred your vision as you tried to quicken your pace. Your heart broke, of course, he would ask Angelina, she was perfect, her skin, her hair, her personality, everything. She was everything that you weren’t and so much more. Well, at least that’s what you thought.

Despite the state you were in you could feel someone watching you. So immediately you wiped your eyes and looked up from where you were watching your feet. You caught the gaze of Alexander as he watched you walk by with a grin. Before you could get past him he stepped up next to you, “Good morning (y/n), would it be alright if I walked you to class?” he asked. Nodding you gave him a wary smile. “Sure,” you said warily and pushed a piece of hair behind your ear.

“You know, I know the ball is coming up soon, do you have anyone you’re going with?” He asked you. Your heart sunk even lower. “No, I don’t have anyone, no one’s asked me,” you sounded the slightest bit hurt and he could tell but obviously didn’t care. “Well, I wanted to know if you’d like to go with me?” he asked and your eyes widened. “What?” you asked softly as you looked at him. “Would you like to be my date to the Yule ball?” he asked once again. Your eyes fluttered as you looked at him in a fluster. “I um- Yeah, I’ll go with you, Alexander,” you smiled at him and he gently lifted your hand to place a kiss on the back of it just as you stopped next to your class.

“I hope to see you again soon pretty girl,” he smiled at you before opening the door for you to enter the classroom. You blushed softly and thanked him before walking to your seat and watching the door close.

Having a class with Angelina and being her partner after what happened was a bit awkward but you knew you couldn’t let it show. You had always loved her, and she was one of your good friends, but at the moment you just couldn’t bring yourself to smile so genuinely at her. Did you blame her? No, absolutely not. You would’ve said yes too. It didn’t stop your heart from hurting though.

“Hey, (y/n/n), are you ok?” she asked as you walked out of class that day. Sending her a smile you nodded your head. “Yeah, I’m alright, just a bit tired that’s all,” you told her the same excuse you had used that morning. “You sure?” she questioned and placed a hand on your arm to get you to look at her. “I’m sure, I just had a long night. I’ll see you later ok?” you said and gave her arm a squeeze before waving at her as you walked away.

On the walk to your Potions class, you tried to calm yourself as best you could. You knew you were going to be sitting next to Fred, and so you needed to collect yourself. Taking slow steps in order to drag out your journey, you tried to take deep breaths. Before you could get there you noticed someone fall into step with you. Knowing those shoes anywhere you felt your heart stop for a moment. Of course, he had to find you before class started.

“Hello love, it’s been a while hasn’t it?” he asked and nudged your shoulder. Trying to get a positive reaction from you. “ Not too long,” you said and kept your eyes straight ahead, not wanting to face Fred right now. “But you missed me right?” he questioned again and you huffed out a laugh. “Sure did,” you said. “I missed you too, you know,” he told you and you couldn’t help but want to roll your eyes. “Did you really?” you asked and took a quick glance at him. “Of course, I did. The fact that you thought I wouldn’t, wounds me (y/n),” he said and placed a hand over his heart in mock offense.

When you didn’t respond his shoulders fell. “What’s wrong (y/n)? Have I done something?” he stopped you from walking and made you face him. You looked away from him again, “No, you haven’t done anything, Fred,” you told him. “Has someone else done something?” he questioned a little louder this time. “No one has done anything, I’m just tired that’s all ok. Let’s get to class before we get detention please,” you said, and for the second time that day, you walked away from him. He sighed and watched you get further from him.

You didn’t want to feel the way you did, but you couldn’t help it. “C’mon Fred, we’ll be late,” you called back to him and heard his steps get closer. You could tell he was upset, “Sorry Freddie just not a very good day,” you said softly before squeezing his arm reassuringly. “S’ok just want to make sure you’re ok, I mean you’re my best friend,” he said and you sighed before nodding your head. “Right, you too Freddie,” you said as you opened the classroom door. He held it for you as you stepped inside and made your way to your shared desk.

You hardly noticed that George was already there, and almost everyone else was too. Luckily you had gotten there before the bell rang, so no points were taken off.

The class ended and you sighed heavily lucky enough to have gotten out with no new essays. You walked out of the class flanked by your favorite twins. “I didn’t fall asleep this time,” George says almost astounded with himself. You chuckled, “I’m proud of you Georgie,” you said and looped your arm through his. You had your next class with him, but Fred’s fortunately for you was Herbology which you had already had that day.

“We’ll meet you in the Great Hall for lunch Fred, have fun in Herbology,” George spoke to his brother as he reluctantly walked in the opposite direction. Looking back and wondering why you could act so casual and affectionate with his brother but not him. He didn’t know what was happening but he had to figure it out soon or he would go crazy.

You leaned your head against George’s shoulder as you walked, and he looked down at you. “What happened this morning?” he asked and you sighed. “What did he say?” he asked again. “He told me that he was going to the ball with Angelina and that when I find a date we should all go together,” you let out a breath. He let go of your arm and wrapped his around your shoulders. “I’m sorry (y/n),” He said and tugged you closer to him. You knew that he knew you had feelings for Fred. “I would ask you but I’m going with Alicia…” he trailed off, he really did feel bad. “You don’t have to be sorry, someone’s already asked me. I said I’d go…” you told him and felt your shoulders sag just a bit. His eyes widened as he looked down at you. “Who asked you then?” he questioned in excited curiosity.

“Alexander Gray,” you answered him softly. He huffed out a laugh, “You have to be joking, you know how he is (y/n). I can’t believe you said yes to him,” he said in disbelief. It was common knowledge that Alexander was quite fond of leading girls on for a few months and then breaking their hearts. You just said yes because he was the first person to ask, and it was only true that you wanted to go to the ball. You wanted that experience, you wanted that experience with Fred, but that wasn’t an option anymore so you set your expectations a little lower. Meaning you said yes to a jerk in the middle of being in a vulnerable state.

“We all know no one else would ask me George, and I want to go to the ball and not alone. I want someone to dance with, and even just for a while enjoy the night despite it not being with who I wanted,” you told him. It was his turn to sigh.

“I know for a fact that there are so many people here who would’ve loved to go with you. You just don’t value yourself enough. You’re worth a lot more than you think,” he told you and squeezed you tightly in a side hug.

“Thanks, Georgie,” you said and leaned into him.

The class had flown by and soon enough you were seated in the Great Hall for lunch.

Sitting next to Fred and George as usual, you stayed pretty quiet throughout the meal. You worked on some homework so you wouldn’t have to that night.

“Well, (y/n) here has got herself a date for the ball haven’t you?” George asked as he looked over at you. Your eyes were wide and you swore you blacked out for a second. Fred looked at you with furrowed brows. “I thought you said you weren’t going with anyone this morning?” he asked. You shook your head lightly. “I-um- yeah actually someone asked me on the way to class this morning,” you replied. “Who was it?” Fred asked, he almost seemed a bit upset. “Um- it was- it was Alexander Gray. He walked me to class and asked me if I’d go with him so I said yes,” you told him and the whole table just stopped to look at you for a second. “This has to be a joke. You said yes, to Alexander Gray. why? Do you hate yourself or something, or are you just an idiot?” Fred questioned incredulously. You looked at him with hurt eyes.

He knew he had messed up when he saw the look you gave him. You got up from your spot and walked out of the Great Hall, your back turned to him for the third time that day.

“You idiot! What was that all about?” George hit his brother. “I didn’t mean to say that. It just came out,” he said hopelessly.“You complete moron,” Hermione slammed her book shut. “Did you see how hurt she was?” Ginny asked. “Why would she say yes to him?” Fred asked everyone. “Did it not occur to you that maybe she just wanted someone to go with? I mean after what you said this morning I would say yes to someone who asked me right after as well. She didn’t want us to think that she’d have to go alone, it’s rather obvious,” Hermione stepped in again. “That doesn’t mean she has to say yes to him,” Fred spat out.

“You are absolutely insufferable,” she said and got up from her spot as well to go after you. Ginny joined her.

“You know, you should be the one going after her,” George told him and shook his head. “I don’t think she wants me around much today,” Fred said. “You really don’t realize that you’ve hurt her feelings at least twice now?” George spoke up. “What do you mean twice? What did I do in the first place?” Fred questioned in frustration. “I can’t tell you that, but you sure as hell know what you did the second time around,” George said not willing to out your secret. “What do you mean you can’t tell me?” he sounded even more frustrated. “You’ll figure it out eventually,” George said and went back to his food.

You walked away from him once more, and you never thought he would say something like that to you. He knew you better than anyone else and he had to have known that it was gonna hurt you. You had no clue why he would be this upset about it. Sure Alexander is a crappy person but you never thought he would insult you for it.

Tears leaked from your eyes as you continued your walk to the black lake. You hadn’t expected anyone to follow you and so you were surprised when Hermione and Ginny showed up beside you. You quickly tried to dry your tears, but it was too late they had already seen them.

“(y/n), are you ok?” Ginny asked. “Of course, she’s not ok your brother was a complete git,” Hermione spoke up. “No, no he wasn’t. I guess he was right, I am kind of an idiot aren’t I? I mean I said yes to the first boy who asked me because I couldn’t stand the fact that Fred was going with Angelina,” you let the words tumble from your mouth. They both looked at you with sympathy as you sat down in front of the lake. “I mean maybe I do hate myself, I never would have said yes if I didn’t think so lowly of myself that he was all I’d ever be asked by,” you spoke up again as you let your eyes wander to the water. “Don’t say that about yourself, we all know how much you’re worth. So does Fred despite what he said he knows how many people would kill to ask you to the ball,” Ginny said.

“It sure as hell doesn’t seem like I’m worth that much to him at all. I shouldn’t even care, but I do, I do care so much and it drives me crazy. He drives me crazy, in the best and worst ways and I don’t know what to do anymore. It’s clear he doesn’t want me, so it’s best if I just get over it, and just try not to think of him anymore,” you finished your rant and took a deep breath in and out. “You’ll be ok, you know? He’ll come to his senses and see just what he’s lost. Why don’t we return to the castle and get you cleaned up before afternoon classes?” Hermione said and brushed your hair behind your shoulder. You looked over at her and gave a weak smile. “Ok,” you said and you all three got up to head back to the castle.

It was almost funny to you that everyone seemed to know about your love for the ginger, everyone except for him.

The end of the day came quicker than you thought it would and soon enough you were situated by the fire in the common room. Hermione and Ginny were sitting around you and then came the rest of your friends. You noticed Fred coming your way and instantly began to internally panic. Hermione could feel you tense up and placed a comforting hand on your knee. “You’re ok,” she whispered for only you to hear. You slowly nodded your head and let out a sigh.

“(y/n), can I talk with you?” he asked and you looked at him for a second before feeling Hermione nudge you. “Um, yeah ok,” you said and got up from your spot to follow him to the corner tucked away from everyone else.

You sat down and so did he. “I’m not good with this kind of thing, but I know for a fact that I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say any of that, I know you’re not an idiot, and I was wrong for what I said to you,” He told you and you wrung your hands. “It’s ok, I mean maybe I am an idiot for saying yes to him… I guess going alone would’ve been better, I just wanted that experience with someone,” you told him truthfully. He looked at you with furrowed brows. “You're not an idiot, I’m sorry I even said that. I just think you deserve better than him. He’s not good enough for you that I know for sure,” he said and reached out to grab your hands in his. “Thanks, Freddie,” you said and tried not to let your eyes tear up again. Knowing he did care made things so much worse. “Of course, it’s the truth. Now, I have one question for you if I may,” he said and you looked at him in confusion. “What is it?” you asked. “Save a dance for me?” he asked and your heart skipped a beat. “Yeah, of course,” you breathed out softly before giving him a weak smile.

He let go of your hands but before he walked away he looked down at you again. “Is there anything else bothering you love?” he questioned and you looked at him softly before shaking your head. “No, nothing at all Freddie. I am a bit tired though so I think I’ll just head on to bed now,” you said and got up from your spot. “You can tell me anything,” he reminded you as you stepped away from him. “I know. Goodnight Fred,” you told him and gave him a wave before bidding everyone else goodnight.

He sighed heavily as your footsteps receded up the stairs. Hopeful things would be better the next day, he went to sit with his friends. “Is everything ok?” George asked. “Yeah, I think everything is ok now. I apologized and we talked, I just hope she’s ok, she still seems a bit off. I’m worried,” Fred explained. “She’ll be ok, I mean sometimes you have to figure things out on your own,” Ginny said. “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Fred sighed.

The next week seemed to fly by, and before you knew it it was the day before the ball. You had picked out the perfect dress and you were honestly excited.

Walking down to breakfast you had an actual smile on your face. You looked happier than you had been in a while. You stepped into the Great Hall and instantly found your friends with an open spot just by Fred and George as usual. Before you could get to your seat someone came up and took it. Your brows furrowed and your lips fell into a thin line, just as you were about to tell this person off you realized who it was. It was Angelina and your heart sank. You walked up to the table and greeted everyone before Hermione moved to give you a spot next to her. You smiled gratefully and took the seat. George smiled over at you sympathetically and you gave a small smile back.

You could tell he felt bad for you, and it hurt even worse because it seemed that Fred didn’t really care that she took your spot next to him. Though it wasn’t your assigned seat, and it wasn’t specially reserved for you, it was. It was your seat, it was where you always sat every meal of the day. You could see Hermione glaring daggers at Fred, and you placed a hand on her arm to get her to look at you. “It’s ok,” you spoke softly. “No it’s not,” she spoke through gritted teeth. “It has to be,” you said and she sighed. “He’s so oblivious it’s painful,” she told you and you almost chuckled. She looked over at you with an amused smile at the thought of almost making you laugh.

“So, (y/n), I heard you have a date. If you want we can all go together,” Angelina spoke up and you gave her a tight-lipped smile. “Sure,” you said and nodded your head despite wanting to say no. You wanted to tell her that you wouldn’t like to go together, that you’d rather be stuck with Alexander all by yourself than watch her and Fred be so close all night. Instead, you said “yes”, you said yes just for him, to put a smile on his face. You saw him do just that, he smiled at you and placed his arm around Angelina.

“I’m gonna go, I actually wanted to get to class a little early today I have to talk to the professor about something,” you spoke and got up to leave. “I’ll see you in class then?” Angelina asked and you nodded. “Yeah, I’ll see you in class,” you said and waved to everyone. “Wait up (y/n), I’ll walk you to class,” George said, and you smiled at him gratefully. “I’d like that, c’mon then Georgie,” You said and motioned for him to join you.

“George our lesson is in the opposite direction you won’t make it back in time,” Fred looked at him in confusion. “That’s ok,” George shrugged his shoulders and wrapped an arm around you. “Let’s get going then,” you said and began your walk to your herbology class.

“Do you reckon he fancies her?” Angelina asked and everyone kind of laughed. “No way, we’ve been best friends since first year,” Fred huffed out a laugh. “I don’t know, he seems really sweet on her sometimes,” Angelina tried again. “Does he?” Fred asked. “But I guess that’s because you’ve been friends for so long,” she shrugged and went back to her food.

Fred’s mind thought back to all the times that you and his brother were together. He was reminded of how affectionate you were with him and he was with you. Maybe he did like you, maybe he’s just been trying to hide it all these years. Then he thought about all the times you and him were like that. Every time you’d play with his hair and loop your arm through his as you walked together. All of the times you’d kiss his head before getting up to go to bed, and when you’d hug him for no other reason than you missed him.

The times when he would be the one to pull you closer, where he would let you sit between his legs with your back against his chest while you read. He would compare your hands to his because of how small they were against his. The thought of his brother doing anything remotely close to that with you was unnerving. He didn’t like it one bit, was he jealous? No, he couldn’t be, he didn’t like you like that. Or did he?

You sighed heavily and leaned into your friend. “Did she have to sit there? I mean, that’s my spot you know. Everyone knows that’s my spot,” you whined a bit and he chuckled. “She just sat down, we didn’t want to be rude,” George said. You rolled your eyes. “I know, I’m just getting sick of losing things to her. I mean she kind of stole the love of my life, and now she steals my seat next to him,” you threw your hands up in frustration. He chuckled “It’s only temporary. They’re only together for one night, and then you can have your seat back too,” he said and you sighed again. “You think?” you asked and looked up at him with a slight pout. “Definitely,” he said and squeezed your shoulders. You leaned your head against his shoulder. “You know I love you right?” you asked him. “Of course, I do, who doesn’t love me?” he quipped and you nudged him in the side. “Alright, alright, I love you too,” he said and you smiled up at him and he kissed your forehead.

Little did you know that Angelina was making her way to the classroom and overheard, and saw you and George. Keep this in mind, Angelina knew you had a date to the ball, but she didn’t know who it was. She, of course, took it that you and George were together or at least liked each other. She smiled to herself and kept on walking, already too excited to prove herself right to Fred.

George opened the door for you and you walked in but not before giving him a hug. “Bye Georgie see you in Potions,” you said and waved. He was about to let go of the door before he saw Angelina coming his way so being ever the gentleman he held the door for her too. “Thanks, George,” she said and came over to sit next to you.

“Are you excited for the ball tomorrow?” she asked and you just nodded your head. “Yeah actually I am,” you said. “I’m glad we can go together,” she said and you gave her a weak smile. “I am too,” you lied.

The rest of the class went by smoothly and on to the next you went. Straight to the dungeons for Potions. Getting there you noticed that Fred and George were already there which was a weird sight but they did have a shorter walk than you so you shrugged it off.

You shot George a smile and went to sit with Fred. “Hello love,” he said and you gave a small smile back. “Hey, Freddie,” you said and got your book out to turn to the correct page.

“I’d bet you anything that we get an essay today,” Fred said and you chuckled, “We already know you’d win, so there’s no need for a silly bet,” you said. “That’s true, but we can always debate what it’s going to be about,” he said and you rolled your eyes. “Sure,” you agreed.

Before he could say anything Snape spoke up, and the lesson began.

Fred of course, did things throughout the class to try and make you laugh, and despite yourself, you did.

You walked out of class that day with surprisingly no essay and you chuckled. “Well I guess you would’ve lost that bet Fred, there was no essay today,” you shrugged as you continued down the corridors with the brothers. “Something is off about that,” George said and was about to toss an arm around your shoulder, but Fred noticed and did it before he could. George looked at him a little strangely but continued on.

“Bye Fred, see you after this lesson,” you said and before he walked away he placed a kiss on your head. You looked at him with surprise and tried to suppress the light blush on your cheeks. It was nothing new to you, but he hadn’t done something like that in weeks.

“You’re blushing,” George teased and you swatted his arm. “I am not!” you tried to deny it. He laughed. “You absolutely are,” he said and just wrapped his arm around your shoulders.

“Did he seem a bit strange to you?” you asked George as you looked up at him with confusion. “A bit, yeah,” he agreed. “He hasn’t bothered to be that affectionate in weeks. That was weird,” you said as your brows furrowed. “Don’t think on it too much. I know you always overthink,” he said and tapped your head. You sighed and nodded, “I know, I guess I just missed it,” you said. “Well, apparently he did too,” George said. You hoped he was right, you really did but you had your doubts.

Fred kept thinking back on the way you just seemed to melt into him when his arm was around you. He thought of the blush on your cheeks when he kissed you and couldn’t help but miss that feeling immediately. He didn’t truly understand what was happening but he could tell it was freaking him out. He had never realized just how much he thought about you and the little things that you do, or even the way you make him feel. He all of a sudden couldn’t wait to see you again.

His lesson seemed to stretch on and on until finally, it came to an end. He quickly gathered his things and practically raced out the door and to the Great Hall. When he arrived he saw you sitting in the spot next to Hermione again and noticed that once again Angelina had taken up your spot next to him. He sighed but made his way over to the table.

“Hey Fred, how was herbology?” you asked. He smiled brightly at you, “Take a guess,” he said and you scrunched your nose and tilted your head to the side in thought. “Hmm, I’m gonna guess that it was just as boring as it always is to you,” you said with a smile. He felt his heart melt at your actions. He was so happy to see you acting as your normal self. Little did he know that he was the cause of it. His bringing back that affection you adored so much about him brought back some of your happiness. Despite Angelina being in your seat you just decided to keep George’s words in mind. This was only temporary, a one-night thing.

“You’re perfectly right love,” he said and you chuckled. “I knew it,” you spoke happily. Before anyone else could say anything Angelina spoke up.

“Fred, can I talk to you for a minute?” she asked and got up. “Um, yeah sure,” he said and followed her out of the Great Hall.

They exited through the doors and she pulled him aside.

“What’s this about?” he asked her. “I have proof,” she spoke confidently. “Proof of what exactly?” he asked her in confusion. “Proof, that George and (y/n) are together,” She stated simply. “What?” he questioned loudly. “Shh, lower your voice,” she said and grabbed his shoulders. “Where did you get that idea?” he asked this time quieter.

“I saw them on the way to class this morning and they both said I love you. He kissed her forehead and held the door for her. Her smile was as big as I’ve ever seen it, I swear,” she said and Fred’s brows raised. “There’s no way, they would’ve told me,” he said, sounding upset. “Maybe they haven’t told anyone yet,” she shrugged. “But they would’ve told me,” he said.

He had the thought in the back of his mind that it was all platonic of course, but then again he could be wrong. He felt his heart sink at the thought of you and George together, it didn’t seem right. You were a perfect pair, but not as a couple at least that’s what he thought. You both had dates for the ball but not with each other, maybe it was just because you were hiding it. No, he couldn’t shake the feeling that you and George weren’t right together. You were just friends, I mean you always told them that you loved them and they reciprocated of course. They were always affectionate, although he realized for weeks he hadn’t been as affectionate with you. He had been so busy caught up on pranks and going to the ball with Angelina that he didn’t make as much time for you. He didn’t realize it affected him until he pulled you close and kissed you goodbye. He didn’t realize how much he did miss you, the smell of your hair, and perfume. He missed how you would just lean into him, and fit so perfectly at his side.

He and Angelina walked back into the Great Hall and noticed that George was behind you with his arms around your shoulders and his chin resting atop your head. Angelina gave him a knowing look before walking back to the table to collect her things and sit with her other friends for a while.

“So what did you want to show me, Darling?” George asked and you chuckled at the name. “I just wanted to give you the notes that you didn’t take during History of Magic,” you said and he huffed. “Well, that’s boring,” he said and you chuckled again. “But you’ll appreciate it after hearing about the test we have next Friday,” you said and he let out a whine. “A test, really?” he questioned and you smiled. “Yes, George, a test, now copy these down and give them back before Friday please,” you said and handed them to him. He let you go and went to sit back down next to his brother. “Freddie, since you're learning the same thing you should copy those notes too,” you said and he just nodded.

He just hoped he was reading too much into it. “You ok Freddie?” you asked. “Just fine,” he answered and you looked at him skeptically. “We can talk later if you want to,” you said and tried to give him a reassuring smile. He thought about it for a moment, “Yeah ok,” he said and tried to give his best smile back.

The day seemed to fly by after that. You just had this worry in the back of your mind. This fear that maybe you had done something wrong, or maybe Angelina had upset him. Overall you just wanted him to be ok, and that’s what you were gonna make sure happened.

The evening feast had come to an end and so you all headed back to the common room, whether that was to read, hang out, or in your case have a talk with your friend.

As you made your way through the halls you fell into step with Fred. “May I?” you pointed at his arm. He just looked at you and gave a smile before nodding. You looped your arm through his and leaned against him a bit. “Angelina won’t mind will she?” you asked in honest wondering. “Of course not, she knows how close we are and it’s not like we’re dating,” he told you and you just nodded, “Alright, I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t crossing any lines,” you said. “In fact, come here,” he said and pulled you to a halt so he could wrap his arms around you in a hug. You smiled brightly and let out a happy sigh at the feeling of him so close again. You leaned against his chest and held on as tightly as you could.

“I’ve missed you, Freddie,” you admitted softly. He heard your words and his heart melted. “I’ve missed you too love,” he said and held you tighter. “I’m sorry for being the way I was these past few weeks. I’ve been separate from you and your feelings,” He told you and you looked up at him in surprise. “You don’t have to be sorry, I’ve been in a really bad mood for a while and haven’t been the easiest to be around, so I’m sorry,” you told him and pulled away a bit.

“I guess we both haven’t been the best friends have we?” he asked and you chuckled softly. “I guess you’re right, now before it gets even colder, let’s go talk in the common room ok?” you asked and he nodded. “C’mon then,” he said and held his arm out to you once again. You took it as you walked through the portrait hole.

You did as you used to do, and snuck him up to your dormitory. You sat down on your bed and luckily no one else was there. “Alright, now what did you want to talk about?” you asked him as you patted the spot next to you. “It’s about something that Angelina said to me today,” he spoke up and you nodded telling him it was ok to continue. “She told me that you and George were together,” he got out. Your face scrunched into one of utter confusion. “Where in the world did she get that absurd idea?” you questioned in astonishment.

“She said she saw you and George on the way to class this morning, he kissed your head and you both said I love you. She assumed you were together,” he told you and you scoffed and shook your head. “You don’t honestly believe her do you?” you asked him.

“I don’t know, you guys can be pretty affectionate sometimes,” he kind of trailed off. “What? I’m affectionate with you too, and I’d say even more so than with George,” you spoke in a huff. He looked at you and tried to hide a grin, “That’s true isn’t it?” he asked and you immediately nodded. “I’ve been asked by both of our mums if we were together, and have had to assure them every time that we were just friends.” You told him with a laugh. “Mum’s asked me as well,” He said and you chuckled. “So, just to clarify, your brother and I are not together,” you told him and he nodded. “Right, good, that eased my conscious,” he said and you smiled. He felt a weight lift off of him and he could breathe again. He had no idea why it weighed on him so harshly, but he knew that you were doing something to him. Something he never noticed before.

You walked down the stairs with Fred behind you. You tried not to laugh as he nudged you forward. When you got to the bottom step you both split up. You went straight to George and he went to Angelina.

“I guess you’ll have to break the news to poor George that you aren’t together,” he said and you laughed. “Sure, and you’ll have to break the news to Angelina that she was sorely mistaken,” you joked back. “Together?” he asked and you chuckled but nodded. “Together,”

He walked up to her and smiled, “You might want to watch this,” he said with a smile and pointed over to where you stood in front of George.

“What do you mean?” she asked. “Just watch,” he said and they went silent.

“George, I know this may hurt, but I need to tell you something,” you spoke loud enough for most people to hear. He looked at you with worry in his eyes. “What’s wrong (y/n)?” he asked and stood up. “I hope you know that I love you, I really do,” you said and made tears come to your eyes as your bottom lip wobbled. He reached out to grab your hands and pull you away from everyone. “What’s going on?” he asked and moved a piece of hair from your face. “I’m sorry but we aren’t together, we never have been, and I’m sorry to break it to you this way, but I just needed you to know the truth,” You told him with a shaky sigh.

He looked at you with utter confusion, “What do you mean (y/n)? I know we’ve never been together, where is any of this coming from?” he asked and shook his head. “I just wanted you to know that I’ll always love you but just as a friend alright?” you asked and took his face in your hands. He held your wrists, “Ok, well I love you too just as a friend,” he said and you quickly pulled him into a hug. He hugged you back just as tightly. “What’s going on?” he whispered. “Angelina thought we were together, so I thought I'd give a bit of a show,” you whispered back and he chuckled. “Of course, you did,” he said and smiled down at you. “So, friends?” you asked. “Friends,” he said and kissed your head just like he had done earlier.

Angelina looked at Fred with wide eyes, “Are you kidding me?” she asked and Fred let out a laugh. “This is how you tell me I’m wrong?” she questioned in slight annoyance. “We had to tell you somehow,” you walked over to them. “You could have just told me,” she said. “What’s the fun in that?” you asked and she rolled her eyes. “You guys are the worst I swear,” she said and you chuckled. “Right, but you’re still my date though?” he asked her. And your heart hurt a bit. “I am still your date,” she assured him and he smiled. “By the way (y/n), who’s your date if you’re not going with George?” she asked you curiously. You sighed heavily. “Alexander Gray,” you spoke softly but she caught it. Her eyes widened, “What? Why?” she questioned. “He asked me so I said yes,” you told her. ‘You could’ve said no,” she told you. “I know, but I didn’t, and I just have to live with that now,” you said and sighed before walking away. “Is she ok?” Angelina asked Fred. “I think she’s just upset about it,” he told her and said goodbye before following in your footsteps.

“(y/n), are you ok?” he asked when he reached you. “Yeah, I’m ok, just a bit embarrassed is all,” you said and shrugged. “Don’t be, we’ve all made mistakes before, just maybe none as bad as this,” he joked and you sighed before swatting his arm. ‘Ok, Ok, I’m sorry,” he said, and you ended up chuckling. “I just hope he doesn’t try anything,” you said. “Don’t worry he won’t and if he does I’ll be there ok,” he told you and you smiled at him. “Thanks, Freddie,” you expressed your gratitude for your friend.

“I think I’m going to head to bed, love you, Fred,” you said and kissed his head as you stood up to leave. “Love you too (y/n),” he replied. You told everyone goodnight and ascended the stairs.

“So you seem to be on good terms with her again,” George said as he walked over to sit with his brother. “Yeah, everything is good,” he said with a content smile. “You look a little too happy right now. Did something happen?” George questioned him. “She said she loves me,” Fred told his brother. “Doesn’t she always say that?” his brother asked him. “Yeah, but it felt a little different this time,” he said with a smile. George smiled knowingly at his brother. Maybe he was starting to realize just how much you meant to him, and how much he meant to you.

The next day came quickly and with it came nerves you never thought you’d have. You didn’t ever imagine yourself being nervous about going to a ball with Alexander Gray because you never imagined going to a ball with him. You saw him and his most recent girl and would cringe. Now you are that most recent girl and still you cringed.

You had started to get ready with your friends, and things were going ok. That is until you saw Angelina. She looked even more beautiful than she normally did. Her hair was up and her dress fit perfectly. She was a vision. You knew that there was no way that Fred wouldn’t fall for her now if he hadn’t already. You looked at her and sighed before looking at yourself and sighing again. Hermione noticed that and walked over to you.

“You look beautiful too, did you know that?” she asked and you smiled softly at her. “Thanks, Hermione, you do too,” you said. “Why don’t we finish your makeup and get down there?” she asked and you nodded your head. “Alright, I can do that,” you said and turned back to the mirror. Hermione stayed seated next to you making small talk as you finished the last details of your makeup.

You got done and turned to look at your friend. “Any fixes?” you asked her and she turned your face to the light. “No, it’s perfect,” she told you and smiled. “I’m ready if you are,” you told her and she smiled. You took one last glance in the mirror and tried to put on the best smile you could muster.

You walked down the stairs in your beautiful baby blue dress. Closely resembling a ball gown, layers of tulle, and perfectly fitted at the waist. The sleeves hung perfectly off of your shoulders, and your hair lay just right over them. Fred turned to the stairs just as you stepped off the last one. His eyes went wide, and he swore the world stopped spinning.

The second Fred stopped talking everyone looked at him and followed his stare.

There you were, to him the most beautiful girl in the castle. It seemed like for a moment they might all say the same.

You felt everyone’s eyes on you and you looked up. Noticing Fred looking at you like you were the only one in the room felt like a dream, you didn’t expect that, honestly, you didn’t expect anyone to look at you like they were. Angelina spoke first.

“(y/n), you look beautiful,” she said and walked over to give you a hug. You blushed softly and smiled. “So do you, and you Alicia you look lovely as well,” you said and smiled over at her.

You walked over to join them all and George quickly wrapped an arm around you and smiled down at you. “Lovely as ever (y/n),” he said and you smiled at him. “Dashing Georgie,” you said and reached up to pinch his cheek teasingly. He swatted your hand away and chuckled. You looked over at Fred and he had a bright smile on his face. “You look beautiful, love,” he said and walked over to you to give you a spin. You chuckled as you twirled around once. Angelina looked at the scene in front of her, and suddenly a knowingness came over her. She could see the look on your faces, you weren’t just friends and you could never be just friends. She knew that now. She smiled at the scene in front of her and let it play out. George smiled too, he knew that if something didn’t happen that night, in due time it would.

Fred smiled at the blush on your cheeks and couldn’t help but feel his heart skip a beat at the sight of you smiling so fondly back at him.

“Should we all get going then?” Alicia asked and you finally broke your gaze from his. “Um, yeah of course, Alexander should be waiting for me by now,” you said and your smile faltered a bit at the thought.

“You’ll be fine, trust me,” Fred spoke to you and gave you a soft nudge forward. You nodded and made your way out of the common room with everyone.

You stood at the top of the stairs and looked at everyone just waiting to see Alexander waiting for you. But he was nowhere to be seen. Everyone stood there and waited for a while with you but eventually, you just told them to go in and that you would wait for a little while longer. Fred gave you an unsure glance but you just nodded at him telling him that it was ok. He squeezed your hand before he left, and George tossed you an encouraging smile.

You stood there waiting for you don’t know how long. You had heard the songs change and by the third song, you knew he wasn’t coming. You could feel tears form in your eyes as you sat on the step. Too embarrassed to enter alone, you didn’t even want to know where he may be. He’s probably in there with another girl, or he just decided that he didn’t want to go with you anymore.

Fred was anxiously waiting to see you walk in but he never did. It had been about 30 minutes and there was no sign of you, it’s like you were just gone. “Is she still not here?” George asked him. “No, she’s not, why is she not here?” he questioned his brother. “I don’t know mate-” Before he could finish Angelina spoke up. “Why don’t you check on her?” she told Fred. Fred looked down at her in uncertainty. “Are you sure?” he asked the girl. “I’m very sure, I think she may need you more than I do right now,” Angelina said and gave him a little shove toward the door.

“I’ll see you guys later,” he said and made his way out to find you.

As he exited the Great Hall he noticed Alexander with another girl. As much as he wanted to punch him, he could do that later. He needed to find you and find you fast.

He came to the stairs expecting to see you but you were gone. You had disappeared from the area and so he ran up the steps in search of you. He didn’t even know when you left, and he was upset that you didn’t come to him.

“(y/n)!” he called for you but got no answer. He ran down the hallways and up the stairs as fast as he could. He didn’t think you would’ve made it to the common room yet but he again didn’t know when you left. He finally got to the portrait and quickly spoke the password. He immediately stopped inside and heard muffled crying. His heart dropped at the sound knowing that it had to be you.

He scanned the room and noticed you sitting by the fire with your head in your hands. His heart just kept breaking at the thought of you being hurt. He slowly made his way over to you.

“(y/n),” he quietly called and your cries suddenly stopped. He noticed you trying to wipe your tears away as best as possible. “Oh, hi Freddie. What are you doing back so early?” you asked as you turned to smile at him. He could feel his chest get tight, seeing the mascara smudged around your eyes he gave you a sad smile before sitting next to you.

“You never came in,” he said softly and reached over to take your hand in his.

“Oh, yeah he uh- he didn’t show up, so I just thought it best that I came back,” you told him and he could tell you were trying not to cry again. Your bottom lip was wobbling and your eyes were glassy. “You could’ve come to me,” he said and placed his hand on your cheek. At his touch, your tears finally fell and you let out a shaky breath. “I didn’t want- I didn’t want to ruin your night,” you told him as your voice broke. “Oh, love, you wouldn’t have ruined my night,” He said and proceeded to wipe your tears as best as he could. “I was embarrassed, I didn’t want to humiliate myself so I just left,” you admitted to him and he sighed. “Me and Georgie wouldn’t have let you feel that way for long you know that,” he told you and you sadly nodded. “I know it’s silly to cry over someone like him, I just thought that maybe I’d get to have a nice night with someone,” you spoke softly and looked down at your hands. Tears clung to your lashes and spattered onto your cheeks and hands.

“I guess I just wanted that experience,” you said quietly. “You can still have it,” he told you and you looked back up at him in confusion. “What do you mean?” you asked him. “Come to the ball with me,” he said and you looked at him in surprise. “I can’t, I’m a mess, and what about Angelina?” you fretted. “You’re beautiful, and Angelina was the one who told me to leave,” he explained to you. The look of surprise never left your face. “Even so, I can’t go back down there Freddie, not like this,” you told him. He got to his feet “Then stay here and dance with me,” he said and offered you his hand. “Are you sure you’d rather stay here with me?” you questioned him. “I’d rather be anywhere with you,” he told you and you blushed before taking his hand. He smiled at you, and helped you carefully off of the floor, making sure not to step on your dress.

You stood fully and he placed his hands on your waist. You smiled softly up at him and shyly wound your arms around his neck. He smiled down at you and slowly began moving along to a song that only you could hear. “Did you know that I think you’re the most beautiful girl in this castle?” he asked you and you blushed even deeper. You shook your head and chuckled, “That’s not true, did you see Angelina and Alicia tonight, Hermione too? Now they’re beautiful,” you said. “Sure, they’re pretty but you, you’re beautiful,” he told you and lifted his hand to move a strand of hair from your face.

“You’re just saying that 'cause you’re my best friend,” you tried to shrug it off. “I’m saying that because it’s true,” he affirmed. You shook your head with a shy smile. “Really?” you questioned. “Really,” he told you with a smile. He let you go to take hold of your hand. You let out an airy giggle as he twirled you a few times before pulling you back in.

“You know, there’s something that just hit me all of a sudden yesterday. I had never realized how much I thought of you, how much I missed you when you weren’t around, and how much I really do love you,” he admitted. You felt your heart stop, and your breath got caught in your throat. “I love you (y/n),” he admitted to you and a feeling of disbelief washed over you. “You love me? You actually love me?” you questioned. He chuckled a bit at your reaction. “I do,” he said.

“I’ve loved you for as long as I can remember,” you confessed. He smiled broadly at you, “I guess I’m a little late to the party then,” he said and you chuckled. “Just a little, I mean your twin knew before you did,” you teased him and he rolled his eyes. “Alright, alright, no need to rub it in,” he said and you smiled at him.

You just stopped and looked at him, really looked at him. His freckles and bright brown eyes, the curve of his lips, and the way he looked so lovingly at you. “I think this is the part where we kiss isn’t it?” he asked softly and you smiled even brighter. “I would think so,” you whispered as he got closer to you.

He stopped for a moment just letting his lips brush yours before fully placing them on yours. You melted at the feeling of his lips pressed against yours, it was even better than you imagined it would be. It wasn’t rushed, it was slow and soft, and it was all the things a first kiss should be.

He gently pulled away from you and smiled at the contentedness on your face. You looked peaceful, and he felt warm at the fact that he could bring that to you. He swore he had never felt that loved in his entire life. “Do you wanna know something?” you asked with a soft smile. “Of course,” he said and wrapped his arms around your waist. “You make me really happy,” you whispered and he smiled broadly. “I would hope so,” he said and you chuckled.

He saw your smile falter a bit, “What’s wrong?” he questioned and placed a hand on your cheek. “What about Angelina? I feel so horrible,” you worried yourself. “Hey, hey, you don’t have to worry about that. It’s not like we’re dating you know. It was just a one-night thing, and I think she’d perfectly understand our situation love,” He told you and stroked your cheek gently. “You think so?” you asked and reached up to grasp his wrist. “I know for sure,” he said.

He got a sudden realization, “wait is that what I did wrong?” he asked and you looked at him in confusion. “What?” you asked. “George said I had hurt your feelings twice, did me asking Angelina hurt your feelings?” he asked with a sly smile. A blush covered your cheeks and you quickly covered your face with your hands. He chuckled, “Aw, love, I’m sorry. If I had realized sooner I would’ve asked you,” he said and gently pried your hands from your face. “Do you forgive me?” he asked and pressed his forehead against yours. “There’s really nothing to forgive, but yes if that makes you feel better,” you smiled shyly at him. “Much better,” he said before leaning forward to kiss you one more time.

“Ugh, took you long enough,” you heard a voice sound from behind you and you pulled away from him. George, Alicia, and Angelina stood there with knowing smiles. “Took you forever to figure it out didn’t it?” Angelina asked while she and Alicia chuckled. “You didn’t figure it out until a few hours ago Ange,” Alicia said and everyone chuckled. “Took you longer than me,” Fred said as he wrapped his arm around your shoulder. “Ok, when did this become an attack on me?” Angelina asked and you chuckled. “It’s ok Angelina, I’m sorry if I ruined your night,” you said regretfully. “You didn't ruin anything, I’m just glad that you’re ok,” she said and smiled at you, and you smiled back. “I think we’re all going to turn in for the night, goodnight everyone,” Alicia said and gave a smile and a wave before walking up the stairs followed closely by Angelina. You walked over to George and wrapped him in a hug, “Thanks for caring so much Georgie,” you said and he held you tighter. “I’ll always care,” he said and kissed your head before saying goodnight to you and his brother.

He came up behind you and wrapped his arms around you. “Do we have to say goodnight?” he asked and nuzzled his nose against your neck. His cheek was warm against your bare shoulder and it made you grin, you almost felt dizzy from disbelief that this was actually happening. “We don’t have to, but I’d rather not stay in this dress all night,” you told him and felt him smile against your shoulder. “You can take it off if you want to, do you need any help?” he asked and you chuckled before swatting his arm. “No, I don’t need any help, but a kiss before I go should speed up the process,” you told him and he turned you around to face him. You smiled toothily and it made him grin. “I’ll meet you back here in ten,” he said and leaned down to kiss you again before letting you go.

You spent the rest of the night with Fred, sharing kisses and laughing. He danced with you and you got dizzy from how much he’d spin you.

The morning came and you made your way down to the Great Hall with Hermione and Ginny. “I’m so happy for you (y/n), it took him ages but he finally sorted it out,” Hermione said and you chuckled. “You’re practically my sister now,” Ginny said, looping her arm through yours. You smiled down at her and squeezed her arm happily.

You entered the Great Hall to see your spot open just as it should be, right next to Fred. You all walked over and took your spots. “Good morning everyone,” you smiled happily.

“Well, good morning to you too darling. Why so chipper?” He asked and turned to you, tucking a stray strand of hair behind your ear. “You, of course,” you told him and he smiled even brighter. He wrapped his arm around your shoulder and kissed your head. “I love you (y/n),” he told you and you smiled up at him. “I love you too, Freddie,”

#fred weasley

4K notes · View notes

wizardingdiaries · 8 months

Text

Only If You Catch Me

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pairing: fred weasley x fem!reader

summary: fred had always been frustrated by your endeavors with other men, especially other men that always looked quite a bit like him. after a disastrous mistake during quidditch practice you find yourself wondering how you had never seen fred Weasley in the light you saw him in now

word count: 4.4k

warnings: jealousy, language (maybe?), only proof read once so sorry for any mistakes!

a/n: this is my first big piece in ages, I hope you guys enjoy and im so sorry for my prolonged absence i fell off on writing for a while and im just now getting back to it

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Some things were just facts, plain and simple; the sky is blue, two and two is four and you had a type.

“Another ginger I see.” Alicia murmured as you sat down across from her, pints of butter beer clinking together. Your eyes were locked with a pretty freckled boy by the bar.

You huffed even though she was quite right, this must have been the third redhead that you set sights on this year. “Well William got boring and,” You paused wrinkling your nose, “-pushy”

The Three Broomsticks was packed, the sounds of chatter and warmth guarding you from the icy cold of the blizzard that had swept through Hogsmeade.You and Alicia had joined the dozens of students seeking cover in the popular pub and quickly snagged a small table near a large fireplace where you now looked out on the sea of flushed faces and smiles.

“With your type it's a wonder your last name isn’t Weasley.” Your friend chuckled and you laughed.

“If I could have gotten my hands on Charlie, it would be.” You replied, your silly crush on the older Weasley brother lasting from your first year to what you were sure would be your last.

Alicia giggled, taking a large swig from her pint, licking the foam off her top lip. “Why not one of the twins then?”

“What twins?” A voice asked from behind you.

“She couldn’t be talking about us now could she, Gorgie?” Fred jested.

“No no,” The other replied, “I mean what could Spinnet possibly want from us?”

Alicia rolled her eyes with great effort, “Trust me when I say I want nothing to do with you. As for my friend here, I don't know if I can say the same.” she said with a smug grin and you sent her a furious look.

Fred smirked, leaning over the back of your chair, his large palms ghosting your shoulders, “Is that true? Do you need something from us?” He leaned in even further, his nose brushing your hair, “from me?”

You began to look a bit red as he pulled away, “Please Weasley,” you managed to scoff “since when do I need things from you? In fact, I believe you still have my Charms notes.”

Fred had come to stand in front of you now, George joining his side, “It's just that your notes are so much better for writing Flitwick’s essay. ” He grinned.

“You don’t even take notes.” You said, exasperated.

“Exactly” The twins replied in unison.

Alicia snickered beside you.

Chairs appeared and Fred and George sat. The table seemed half the size it was before as Fred's elbow knocked against yours.

“Made yourselves at home have you?” You said wincing.

Fred just grinned and leaned purposefully closer, thighs now brushing.

You moved towards Alicia who was turning a laugh into a cough.

You rolled your eyes before setting them back on the boy with freckles.

“You headed to the Slytherin match next weekend?” Alicia asked absently.

“Of course.” George replied, “I’ve bet Lee a galleon that Malfoy catches a bludger with his nose.” he chuckled, “He reckons it’ll be his gut.”

You all smiled at the idea, no one hated Malfoy more than those on the Gryffindor quidditch team.

“We also have business to do.” Fred said, wiggling his eyebrows mischievously.

“You don't have any more of those nosebleed nougats do you?” You asked, eyes still across the room, “I’ve got to get out of Binns’ class tomorrow.”

Alicia's eyebrows shot up, you hardly missed History of Magic, or as you liked to call it, nap hour. “Why's that?”.

“No reason.” You mumbled, intently staring into your butterbeer.

Fred’s eyes darted between the two of you.

“Of course we’ve got some.” grinned George, oblivious, “2 sickles a pei-.”

“Or for free if you tell us what you're up to.” Fred interrupted, catching a strange look from his brother.

“I'm not up to anything!” You gasped with a bit too much enthusiasm.

Alicias eyes had narrowed to slits and Fred had never looked more unconvinced.

Your face began to grow hot and you found yourself wishing you had more grace in the act of lying.

“Oh come off it,” George said, “If she wants to snog Murphy instead of hearing about the seventh generation of goblin rebellions, who are we to judge?”

You were glowing pink now, sending a vicious look at George who had taken to sipping his drink innocently.

Fred looked appalled, his face contorted like he had just caught a whiff of something horrible, “Murphy!”

“Keep your voice down.” You hissed angrily, glazing across the room again to be sure he hadn’t heard, “I'm trying to keep it quiet.”

Fred was fuming, “Who wouldn’t, swapping spit with a git like that.”

You scoffed, pulling out your coin purse, “Can I just have some nougat?”

“Nope.” Fred said, voice suddenly ferocious, “We’re out.”

You were beginning to grow frustrated, “George just said you had some.”

Fred glared at you, “We’re out.” he repeated his nose high in the air.

You turned to George looking for help but he threw you an I’m-not-getting-into-this look and you were forced to round back on Fred.

“Fine we’ve got some,” He huffed, “Three Galleons.”

Your mouth dropped, “George said 2 sickles!”

Fred crossed his arms, nose in the air, “They’re in high demand.”

You stood, chair flying back into the wall with a loud crack, “You’re a complete prick.” you said sharply snatching your bag and sweeping past Fred and over to meet Finn Murphy who was now standing to leave the pub.

“Well I think you handled that well.” Alicia said, grinning at Fred who looked as though he had been slapped.

George, who looked all too happy with himself for instigating such an interesting conversation, helped himself to the remains of your butterbeer as you and Murphy bowed out into the flurry of white followed closely by Fred’s glare.

“Looks as though she's gonna snog every redhead at school before you.” Alicia snicked.

“Yeah,” George snorted, “You might want to keep an eye on Ginny.”

Alicia giggled even harder, pressing a hand to her lips in an attempt to keep her drink in her mouth.

Fred could hardly hear them, too busy envisioning your latest with large boils all over his face or perhaps vomiting indefinitely.

Alicia managed to contain herself and shot Fred a sympathetic glance, “I've been trying you know, I keep bringing you up but she seems far more interested in Charlie.”

“Charlie!” He guffawed, “he's been gone for ages!”

“Well he seemed to have made quite the impression.” Alicia chuckled.

“He was captain when she was appointed to the team.” George pointed out.

“Yeah when she was TWELVE” Fred gasped.

Alicia couldn’t help it, she had started laughing again, “Relax,” She chortled between breaths, “It’s just a silly school girl crush.”

Fred looked unconvinced and began to tap his heel incessantly against the floor.

“Take it as a complement!” She continued, “Charlie looks quite a bit like you, I mean you are related after all.”

Fred was not taking it as pleasantly as she suggested and began to rap his foot on the ground even faster, “We’ve got to do something.”

“We?” George snorted, “This is all you mate. I’m not the one in love with her.”

Freds ears grew pink, “I’m not in love with her!” he sputtered.

“Whatever you say.” Alicia spoke with a knowing grin.

The truth was Fred practically was in love with you. At the very least he had been pining after you for years and he had never been particularly quiet about it. In fact he was the opposite of quiet about it. His flirtatious remarks and dazzling complements were quite consistent. Unfortunately so was his cursing jealousy as you paraded around with boy after boy who was not him. Every year he swore would be the year. The year where you finally went out and all would be right in his world. But time and time again he failed as you walked out the door with a different redhead. He was growing nervous, their seventh year was upon them and this may be his last chance before you all carted off in different directions never to see each other again. Frustration was turning him bitter.

That night Fred lay awake on his four-poster, staring at the ceiling venomously. What was it? He wondered, What was it that he didn't have that every other ginger you knew seemed to possess? Why was it never him pulling you into broom closets and meeting you after classes? What was he doing wrong? His thoughts spun until he drifted into an uneasy slumber.

By the time he arrived at the quidditch pitch for practice the next morning, the rest of the team was already changing into their robes as Angilina scribbled vigorously on the chalkboard in front of them, already changed and ready.

“Fred!” She shouted watching him try to sneak his way into the bustle of the team unnoticed, “What took so long? I was beginning to think I would have to send George back up to get you.”

He shrugged, “Sorry Cap, I didn’t get much sleep last night if you know what I mean.” he winked at her and she looked sorely unamused.

You on the other hand perked up at the insinuation, finally looking at the twin who, in protest of his behavior the day before, you had been ignoring.

“She gets what I mean,” He smirked nodding towards you, “Up late with Murphy boy last night?” He asked viciously.

You flushed as the changing room filled with chuckles.

“Murphy?” Angelina asked, turning to you, “Isn’t he a bit,” She paused, “dim?”

You scowled at Fred not responding. You snatched your broom from the rack, marching so quickly out onto the pitch that you hadn’t even noticed you had hit Harry in the temple with its handle.

As Potter groaned in pain and fixed his askew glasses Fred looked over at Alicia who looked utterly disappointed and was shaking her head slightly. As the rest of the team slowly followed you out onto the field she and George made their way towards him.

“You’re an idiot.” Alicia groaned, “No wonder she won’t go out with you.”

George chuckled.

Fred glared at the pair, “It’s not my fault she insists on only taking out boys who are a bit dim.” he spoke, imitating Angelina.

“I know that this may be hard to wrap your head around,” Alicia commented, “But maybe she went out with Murphy because he was, ya know, nice to her.” She then shouldered past the twins leaving Fred gapping at his brother desperately.

The day was crisp, the heavy licks of winter drawn in by a bitter wind. But the sky was clear and the sun was out, much to everyone’s appreciation.

Fred mounted his broom still angry, feeling foolish for upsetting you yet again as you stood with your back to him defiantly.

The whistle blew and the balls were released as the team kicked off, snow flying in all directions as you did so.

Fred's head was not in practice as it should have been but instead on you, watching you speed towards the goal posts with the quaffle already under your arm. You scored easily on Ron with a feign left. Fred was so absorbed in you that he had completely forgotten about the bludgers, one of which was hurtling at him with frightening speed. With little time to react he swung his bat wildly and pitched the bludger in the opposite direction, which with a sickening feeling he realized was right at you.

He tried to shout but you must not have heard him over the howling of the wind in your ears. The bludger struck you heavily between the shoulder blades and your vision danced as the air was knocked from your lungs.

You were flung from your broom with a shriek and began to plummet. Fred streamed after you, urging his broom towards the ground with a frightening speed. His Cleansweep shuttered under the immense pressure and never before had Fred wished so badly for Potters Firebolt.

He managed to get beneath you mere feet from the ground. The force at which you hit him knocked you both into the snow with a heavy thud, and there was a sickening snap as his broom snapped in two.

Neither of you moved for a moment, the snow settling around you and beginning to melt through your robes.

“Are you alright?” Fred asked and was struck with panic when you did not respond. He sat up quickly pulling you up as well, your legs tangled together in the snow. He called your name desperately, hands holding your face as you lay limp in his arms.

Angelina landed beside the pair followed closely by George and Alicia both of whom were wearing nervous expressions.

“Y/n!” Fred shouted again, tears stinging his eyes, fear gripping his throat like a vice. He was moments away from shaking you when your eyes slowly peeled open.

“Fred?” You mumbled, confused.

The boy let out a barking laugh of relief and then dove into a hug, almost knocking you back to the ground.

Bewildered, you returned his embrace and realized quite suddenly how much larger than you Fred really was. You practically disappeared into his chest, his broad shoulders shielding you from the wind that whipped across the pitch getting caught in his robes which now wrapped themselves around you. You felt frighteningly warm, cheeks hot as he pulled away from you and began to search for any look of pain or damage on your face.

“Are you okay?” He asked again and was washed with relief when you nodded.

As you began to fully realize what was going on around you, you gasped, pulling the handle of Fred broom out from under you.

“Your broom!” You looked horrified, “Fred, your broom broke!”

Fred on the other hand brushed it off helping you to your feet and beginning to pat the snow off your robes, “It’s alright, I’m sure it's fixable.” he shrugged, “Listen, I am so s-”

But before Fred could finish his apology George burst between the two of you, “I am so sorry!” He spoke hurriedly, “The bludger caught me off guard. I swear I wasn’t aiming for you.”

You chuckled, giving George a pat on the shoulder, “I sure hope not. It's not me you should be apologizing to anyway.” You said, “It's Fred’s broom that broke.”

George did not issue his brother an apology and instead sent him a wink, whipping his wand out of robes and shouting “Repairo!”

The broom snapped back together and Angelina, who was desperate to get back in the air, looked to you, “You alright then?”

You nodded with a grin and turned back to Fred who was testing the strength of his brother's repair.

“Thank you so much Fred,” You gushed, looking up at him through your lashes.

The boy's heart skipped a beat, stomach lurching, “It was no problem really.” He breathed and miraculously found you in his arms for the second time as you lunged towards him.

“Thank you.” You murmured into his robes before disconnecting and swiftly boarding your broom again.

Fred watched you leave struck for a moment. Alicia shot him a thumbs up and a grin before he was able to clumsily climb onto his own broom and follow you back up into the air.

By dinner the story of your fall had been retold so many times that you were now said to have plummeted upwards of a hundred meters before Fred had heroically scooped you onto his own broom, saving what was sure to be your life.

In the great hall you kept getting asked if you were alright as down the table Fred got clapped on the shoulder and congratulated for his great save. He seemed to be enjoying the new story a fair bit more than you were.

Finn had come over to ask about you halfway through dinner but you found suddenly that he was no less than boring and he returned to the Hufflepuff table after mere minutes with a look of disappointment on his face.

Fred watched this with such delight he was sure he was glowing. George (who he had been applauding as the best wingman one could ask for all day) poked him hard in the side and pointed down the table to where you sat. Fred turned to catch your eyes which were already on him. He winked exuberantly and you turned away rolling your eyes but your cheeks had taken a rather deep shade of red.

He grinned so wide at George he thought his lips might split, “I mean this is some real progress!” He cheered, “Did you see that? She was staring at me!”

Down the hall you turned to Alicia, cheeks still pink, “Have you ever noticed how tall Fred really is?” You asked so suddenly she choked on her pumpkin juice.

You stared at her curiously as she wiped her mouth with her sleeve smiling, “Oh yeah very tall.”

You hummed looking back down the table at the elder twin who was now laughing wildly at something Lee had said, “I guess I never really thought about it before.”

Angilina shot Alicia a glance as you were distracted and the two of them broke out into giggles.

“What?” You demanded though you were still smiling.

“Oh nothing.” Angilina grinned and you huffed turning back to your dinner.

You found yourself wishing Fred had chosen to sit a bit closer to you as you watched a group of girls across from him break out into giggles at something he said, “No way hes that funny.” You muttered knowing he in fact was.

Yet you couldn’t find yourself being all that jealous as he kept glancing up at you, as if checking to make sure you were still watching him and much to his delight you always were. His shoulders, you noticed from where you sat picking at plum pudding, were quite wide, his arms toned. It was no wonder that you had engulfed you completely out on the pitch.

How had I never noticed before? You found yourself wondering. How had he managed to escape your list of potential suitors when he was so obviously perfect for you?

The thought struck you rather abruptly and while you would have liked to have sat with it for a minute, Alicia was standing and you knew it was time to head back to the common room.

As students began to flood from the hall you fiddled with the sleeves of your robes, thoughts full of brown eyes and freckles .

As if summoned, Fred appeared at your side grinning widely, “Hello.”

“Hey Fred,” replied Alicia.

“Have you guys heard the news?” He asked, throwing an arm around your shoulder. You tried hard not to blush and instead shook your head, staring at the floor. “Apparently, you owe me your life.” He was beaming down at you now and you found it hard to look away.

“Oh yeah?” You smirked, “And I heard it was actually you who hit me with that bludger.”

His smile disappeared only momentarily and you were happy to see it recover so quickly.

“Ah well, I figured Angelina wouldn’t keep her mouth shut.” He shrugged, “Though I swear if I had a choice I would have knocked her off her broom instead.”

And for the first time that evening jealousy took you strongly, “Oh yeah? I suppose she would have been a bit more fun to catch then?”

Fred looked startled by your bristly reaction, “Nah,” He responded, “That would have been Georgie’s job.”

You were satisfied with the answer and felt yourself leaning against him as you began up towards the tower.

George was delighted to see you still tucked beneath his brother's arm when you reached the common room. He called you over to where he sat and you placed yourself in a large squishy armchair as Fred perched himself beside you on an ottoman.

You spent your evening rather uneventfully, finishing an essay for Snape as the Gryffindors slowly filtered off to bed in pairs. When George rose to take himself to the dormitory you expected Fred to follow but instead he stayed rooted by your feet where he now sat cross legged on the carpet looking over what looked like an extensive order form.

Hours later you yawned, stretching when you finally finished your work. It was now well past midnight and only a few fifth years remained, cramming for a quiz in transfiguration the next day. You turned to look at Fred who had long since sprawled himself across the couch before the fire and found him snoring softly.

A jolt of infatuation made your stomach flip. His messy hair glowed shockingly bright in the fire light, his pink lips slightly agape. You gathered your things slowly, sure not to wake him before you stood beside him.

You knew you should wake him, after all you were the reason he had not retreated to bed. But he looked so peaceful like this, so soft. Instead you found yourself slowly counting the freckles that sprawled across his cheeks, leaning close to brush a strand of his bright red hair out of his face. He woke immediately at your touch, large brown eyes locking with your own.

You felt your cheeks go hot, “You should go up to bed.” You mumbled beginning to pull away.

He snatched your wrist with such haste it took you by surprise, “Do that again.” he spoke.

You furrowed your brow, “What?”

“With my hair,” It was his turn to blush now, “Touch my hair again.”

It felt as though the air was sucked from your lungs yet you found yourself obeying, fingers coming to comb through the soft waves that spread across his forehead.

He hummed, leaning into your touch slowly, gaze still locked with yours. The two of you stayed there for a moment, you kneeling beside him fingers in his hair, his hand still loosely wrapped around your wrist.

“I’m sorry.” He murmured and you looked at him confused.

“For what?”

“Hitting you with a bludger.” he responded remorsefully.

You laughed softly, your head thrown back, “It's okay Fred.” you grinned. You were close now, so close Fred could feel the tickle of your breath on his cheek, “I forgive you. You made up for it after all.”

He smirked in spite of himself, “I suppose I did, saving your life and all.”

You were giggling again and Fred was sure he was in some beautiful dream where all he could ever hear or see was your joy.

“I wouldn’t push your luck if I were you.” You grinned, “I may just chuck the quaffle at your head when you're not looking.”

“Only if you catch me when I fall.” Fred whispered, leaning closer still.

You let him, your lips connecting slowly. You were pleased to find he was a fantastic kisser, his lips soft and plush, eager to please. His free hand cupped your cheek as he pulled you even closer until you were practically on top of him.

One of the alarm clocks the fifth years had been attempting to turn to roosters burst to life and you pulled away abruptly remembering bitterly that you and him were not the only ones in the room. Fred chased after your lips with his own desperate for even a moment more in your mouth.

“You should get to bed.” You repeated standing now, knees a bit shaky.

Fred was disappointed by your departure but grinned wildly nonetheless as you gathered your books into your arms and turned back to him.

“I’ll see you tomorrow Fred.” You yawned and began up the stairs to your dormitory determined not to let him see the childish glee that had spread across your face.

“Wait!” He called after you, lurching from the couch and stopping at the bottom of the steps.

You turned back to him taking in the wonderful sight of him staring lovingly up at you. He looked delightfully disheveled, his hair a mess and his lips were swollen from your touch. You took two steps down now only one above where he stood on the hardwood floor.

You looked down at him expectantly as his eyes bore into your own.

He lifted himself onto his toes and grabbed your shoulders forcinging you forward where you connected for a second time.

This time his breath was hot and heavy on your lips, his earnest intensifying to a level that you could only describe as hunger. Your feet dangled momentarily in the air as he lifted you fervently into his embrace. You were suddenly engulfed in Fred again, he was all you could smell sweet and cinnamon, all you could hear were his pants in your ear, all you could feel was him, his arms around your middle, his thigh pressed between your legs and his lips and tongue working so well together that it was you who chased after him this time, whining in protest when he pulled back.

You stared at him, out of breath and stunned to silence.

Fred looked as though he had just won something very expensive the way he was grinning with triumph, his eyes dark with lust.

“Sweet dreams love.” He murmured leaning down to give you one final kiss, his lips moving sickeningly slow against your own, wet and warm. He hovered inches form your lips for a moment, as if debating diving back in, before he backed away tucking his hands casually into his robes.

“You should go to bed, love.” He smirked, “We’ve got an early practice tomorrow and I do believe you made me a promise about knocking me off my broom.”

You bit your lip to keep from breaking into girlish giggles. Your heart was still pounding as though you had just run a long race.

“Only if you swear to catch me though.” He added

“I’ll always catch you Freddie.” you assured him before turning and hurrying back up the stairs, grinning so wide your cheeks had begun to ache.

♡~♡~♡~♡~♡~♡~♡~♡~♡~♡~

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

Text

Absence - Safety Ch 9

Ominis Gaunt x f!Ravenclaw!Reader (Reader is not MC)

Word Count: 4.2k

Warnings: Death threats, emotional abuse

Summary: Y/N L/N had always despised Ominis Gaunt. He was everything she hated about her life. As the only daughter to a wealthy pure-blood family, she knew it was inevitable that she would someday find herself in an arranged marriage.

But why did it have to be him?

Or, a classic arranged marriage, enemies to lovers, slow burn.

Also available on AO3

Chapter One | Chapter Eight

Dearest,

Yes, my parents told me the news at dinner, just the same as yours. Seems the thing we’ve both been dreading isn’t so bad after all. In fact, I’m rather looking forward to spending the evening with you—even with such dismal circumstances.

I am glad my siblings won’t be attending. Subjecting you to my parents’ presence is bad enough. I can only hope they will behave themselves, and that your parents will do the same.

Christmas can’t come soon enough.

Your friend,

Ominis Gaunt

She smiled down the letter, having read it initially the night before, but coming to visit it once again the next morning. Never in her life had she looked forward to Christmas—she knew most people did, but usually, it was just another day for her. She never received any gifts until she got to Hogwarts, nor did her family decorate their home. In fact, the only bit of celebration they ever had was the occasional visit of distant family or other pureblood families, and that wasn’t exactly pleasant.

But this year was different.

She knew for certain that she would have at least a moment of joy when her she got to see her friend, a distraction from the awful place she was in. Now, she just had to endure until he arrived.

There was a gentle knock on her door, and her mood improved even more. Diane opened it a crack, peeking in.

“May I come in, dear?”

She leapt to her feet, opening the door and pulling Diane inside. The older woman let out a chuckle upon seeing her wide grin. “It looks like someone got the news?”

“Yes!” she responded as Diane threw open her wardrobe, ruffling through the dresses. “Merlin, what a relief. We were worried when his parents forced him home. Thought something awful was heading his way.”

There was a bit of a twinkle in Diane’s eye when she turned back to her, dress in her arms. “Worried about him now, are we? I never would have thought you capable of it. Not for a Gaunt boy.”

Just as she had done a hundred times growing up, she let Diane help to dress her. She never liked it; it was something she didn’t miss while at Hogwarts, but whenever she tried it herself her parents always seemed to find some imperfection to criticize. So she could at least be grateful it was Diane there with her.

“I’ve already told you, Diane, he’s different. Nothing like his family. I admit I thought very lowly of him until he proved otherwise.”

Diane hummed. There seemed to be a bit of a knowing tone to it that she didn’t like very much. But the woman was speaking again before she could comment on it. “And what of your friend Constance? Gotten her owl yet?”

She was quiet for a moment. “We had a falling out, actually. We… well, I wouldn’t consider us friends anymore.”

As she stood in front of her, straightening some fabric, Diane frowned. “I’m sorry to hear it.”

“It’s alright. It’s for the better, I think.” She went on to tell her the whole story—most of the story, at least, sans the threats from her father. Like she had been for many years, Diane was a wonderful listener, and it was nice to talk about such things to someone.

Soon, her story was finished, and she was dressed. Diane sat next to her on the bed, smiling softly. “I am glad to hear you’ve found new friends, at least. Ominis, and that…”

“Sebastian,” she finished.

“Sebastian, yes. Sound like they treat you well. I wouldn’t want anything different for you, my dear.”

Diane patted her on the shoulder before standing. “I best be off, love. Your parents will be expecting you.”

She sighed, nodding.

The rest of the day passed as any spent in her home did. She had a silent breakfast with her parents, after which her father left for work. Her mother slipped away into the library, curled up reading. She thought it was the only similarity her and her mother shared. She herself went to her room, busying herself with whatever she could.

Time always dragged on in that house. Most of the servants and house elves stayed away and out of sight, just as her father had instructed them to. Diane was the only one who ever tried to do otherwise, but was usually kept busy by other things. There was no one to talk to. Nothing much to do but find idle ways to entertain herself. She felt like an animal in a cage, expected to do nothing but behave and stay quiet.

She was always restless there, wanting to rip off the nice dresses and find somewhere to run. There was nowhere to breathe in that place.

Her solace was the thought of seeing Ominis, and the letters they sent one another. Just as promised, he wrote every day, and she wrote back.

They shared inside jokes and old stories, trying to keep one another out of the bad memories pressing in around them. The memories still came, of course, but at least she could wake up in the dead of night and pull his letters out from under her mattress to help her breathe.

On Christmas Eve, her father denied her request to be excused from the table. She stayed sat without argument.

He stood, the sound of his chair scraping harshly against the ground grating on her ears. “Before you retire, I feel the need to impress upon you the importance of tomorrow’s dinner.”

She stared up at him, keeping her expression neutral. He took it as a sign to continue, starting to pace as he did.

“Our arrangement with them is sound—for the most part. They have agreed to have you should you behave properly upon meeting them. They’ve heard rumors of the company you keep, the way you act when at school. But they’ve decided to forgive it, should you act well tomorrow night.”

They wanted to know if she was a beast that could be tamed. If her rebelliousness could be stomped out of her, if she would submit like an obedient child.

Her father stopped his pacing, standing directly behind her and placing his hands on her shoulders.

“You will act well,” He commanded, voice low. “You will prove to all of us your life has worth, if you would like to keep it.”

Her mother across from her refused to meet her eyes, staring blankly down at her plate. She never hated her more.

Her father leaned down, speaking into her ear. “Do you understand me?” His fingers dug into her, grip unrelenting. She swallowed a sound of pain before it could escape.

“Yes,” she breathed.

He tightened his grip, just for a moment, then let go. “Good. You are dismissed.”

She stood stiffly, and after the door of the dining room closed behind her, she caught herself on the wall. An ill feeling overtook every part of her, making her stomach twist and head ache.

It was difficult, dragging herself up to bed that night and shedding the dress she’d been done up in. Finally, after shaking all the way, she curled up into her bed and sobbed.

An animal in a cage. One they would do anything to tame.

When Diane came in to dress her, she arrived carrying a gown she was sure was made just for tonight. She hated everything but the color. Intricate details of silver framed over the bodice and down the sleeves, gaudish and expensive. It was made in such a way that would make her the picture of desire, framing her every curve and giving her an air of untouchable elegance. It was awful. But the deep, emerald green reminded her of Slytherin robes, something she never thought she would find comforting.

After a long while, she’d written Ominis in the night, telling him briefly what her father said. She would be safe, she promised, as long as they both went along with their parents. It would be ok. The letter she got from Ominis that morning was short, but she held it in her hand, reading over it whenever she felt her heart beat a little too fast.

I do not think it will come to it, but if your father tries anything, I will not hesitate to fight. You won’t be staying there for the rest of break. I will find a way out of it.

Please be safe. I will be there soon.

Ominis

His handwriting was messier in that letter, the paper just a bit crumpled. He’d written it in haste, and that thought alone comforted her.

I will be there soon.

The house was a flurry of servants rushing about tripping over house elves, all of them desperate to clean and straighten every last inch of the place. It was excessive—she saw the entrance hall swept at least four times. She doubted they would have gotten so pressed if the visitors were swapped with the Minister of Magic himself.

The hope she’d once felt about seeing Ominis now mingled with unease. What if she did do something wrong? What if Ominis tried to fight her father? The thought made her heart race. No, she’d do anything to prevent that. She’d play her part perfectly and not take any risks.

Her father’s threats to her wouldn’t have mattered so much if she didn’t care for Ominis so, and that he cared for her in return. Because if she messed up, it was no longer just her who had something to lose. It was a cruel trick of fate. Those soft feelings were being used to twist their arms behind their backs—and her father didn’t even know it.

Her mother came up to her room at some point, speaking in that soft tone to remind her of the proper etiquette and manners she was meant to display. She struggled to remain attentive, her mother’s soft tone nearly lulling her to sleep. It wasn’t as if she was saying anything new, anyways—but it did set the precedent for what was expected of her.

Then her mother saw the time and paled.

“They will be here soon,” she said. “Straighten your hair and then come to the foyer. Quickly.”

Her mother left, and she did as she was told. It suddenly seemed that everything was amiss. Her hair would sit right, no matter how many pins she put in it. And her dress would lie smooth against her. The face she saw in the mirror held an anxious expression, one she knew wouldn’t be welcome. It finally came to a point where she realized there was nothing else she could do. She took a deep breath, heading down the stairs and into the foyer where her father paced.

She stood stiffly beside her mother, waiting in silence. Her heart pounded in her chest. She jumped with a servant threw open the door, announcing the arrival of the Gaunts.

Holding her breath, she followed her parents into the entrance hall, and there he stood. His hands were clasped behind his back, and he stood straighter than she’d ever seen him. She spent a good moment looking at him before turning her eyes to his parents standing on either side of him. She didn’t like what she saw.

His father, with pale skin and dark hair, had the most naturally cruel face she had ever seen. Perhaps it was the slight sneer on his lips, or the way his brows drew together, but just the sight of him made her want to cower. The only similarity he shared with his son was the color of his eyes, a pale blue. But his were not inviting in the slightest. Where Ominis’s eyes were like a frozen lake sparkling in the moonlight, a subtle shine within, Mr. Gaunt’s were pure ice, full of nothing but the coldest indifference.

When she turned to Mrs. Gaunt, she understood where Ominis got his good looks. With high cheekbones and long blonde hair, just the same as son, she looked regal standing there. However, the difference in her expression made the similarities fade into the background. Her full lips were set in what she could only describe as a pout, making her seem immature for the grown woman she was.

The sight of them set her on edge, so she turned her gaze once again on Ominis, just so she could feel like she could breathe. His face was held in a practiced way she knew herself to be doing. His unseeing eyes stared past her, and she was filled with a sudden longing to approach him and hold his arm, just so he knew she was there. Seeing him with so much of his self erased to appease their parents broke her heart, just a little. But at the same time, it was him, and that was enough to put her at ease.

Her silent observations were interrupted by the servant, extending his arm to gesture at their guests. “Mr. Cassius Gaunt, his wife Aurora, and their youngest son Ominis,” he announced. Mr. and Mrs. Gaunt stood stiff, but Ominis gave a practiced bow. Her parents returned the movement, she herself giving a curtsy.

It was quiet while they were all led to the dining hall. She trailed back, just a little, just so she could be a step or two closer to Ominis. Would I recognize her footsteps here, like he did at Hogwarts? Would he still sense her through the unfamiliar floors and the taps of unusual shoes?

They were led to their seats. Her father gave up his chair at the head of the table, and instead, the families sat across from each other, a show of being equals in this house. She was sat opposite of Ominis, and struggled not to stare at him as they were served.

It was Mr. Gaunt who started conversation, a sign of the pecking order at the table. It was dull. Talk of the Ministry, and who was in line to be the next minister, whether or not they were supportive of acts to be passed protecting muggles, subtle flexes indicating who they had influence on. A ridiculous show, she thought, especially as she heard Mr. Gaunt’s claims when she knew he had no money to back him. Her father didn’t know that, though, and apparently neither did anyone in the Ministry.

She kept her focus on her meal in front of her, trying to pay just enough attention to comment if she was called upon.

“It’s a shame they have Mudbloods teaching at the school, don’t you think?” her father said, continuing off of a comment Mr. Gaunt had made about the types they let do more than scrub the floors at the Ministry. “It’s only that Phineas is there that I let her go at all.”

Mrs. Gaunt hummed in agreement. When she spoke, the stark contrast of her own mother’s voice shocked her. Every syllable wavered with emotion, as if she were on the verge of tears at all times. “It is such a worry each time we send our dear Ominis away! What things they might try to teach him—awful sorts. The absurdity of having an entire class dedicated to that filth…”

She thought of her Muggle books and poems hidden away upstairs. Maybe she would stay up all night reading them, just to spite this awful woman.

Mr. Gaunt set down his fork. The sound of it made silence fall across the table. “That is why we keep up with our own studies at home,” he said. A chill went through her. “We see to it that Ominis studies thoroughly. Don’t we, boy?”

It was subtle—the way his jaw clenched and nostrils flared ever so slightly—but she saw it. “Yes, Father,” he answered.

“You see, we are careful about what we let into our home. Into our line.” Mr. Gaunt’s cold eyes landed on her, and she felt like an item in a shop being assessed for its worth. “We wish to keep the integrity of our legacy. We will not have any who we fear might disgrace it.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ominis’s fist clench where it rested on the table. How she wished she could reach out and take it. Instead, she slid her foot forward under the table, letting it bump into his. He tensed for a moment, brows furrowing slightly, but upon realizing who it was, he relaxed. He brought his own foot alongside hers, and even that simple contact let her breathe a little easier.

She heard her father take a deep breath from beside her. “Cassius, old friend, I don’t take the weight of your lineage lightly. You will find her to be a suitable match, I promise you. It would be an honor to let… to let my line end so that yours may flourish.”

Mr. Gaunt gave a slow nod. “I’ve never doubted your resolution to this arrangement.” His eyes turned back to her. “But does she share that resolve, I wonder?”

She swallowed hard, feeling the weight of his gaze. Her father spoke. “Of course she does. She understands.”

“I think I’d like to hear it from her.”

Her throat felt dry. Under the table, Ominis’s foot nudged against hers, giving her the strength to open her mouth. “I will keep the integrity of your line. It… it will be an honor to join your family.”

The words made her stomach twist. She had to break her eye contact with him, afraid that his piercing gaze would tear her apart.

He seemed satisfied at her statement, and turned to her father once more, bringing up the Averys’ oldest son and the shame he had brought upon them by marrying a muggle. She let out the breath she was holding as the attention shifted away from her.

The rest of the dinner passed much the same, and as the company rose to move to the parlor, she saw her chance.

Gathering her courage, she turned to her father. “Father, with the permission of Mr. Gaunt, I would love to give Ominis a tour of the grounds,” she said. Her eyes flicked between the two men, their frowns making her heart race. “With a chaperone, of course.”

She saw Diane standing by the door of the kitchen, who gave her a small reassuring nod. Her father looked to Mr. Gaunt, who made no move to disagree. “Have Diane accompany you. Do not be too long.”

She kept herself from smiling as Ominis offered his arm to her, allowing her to lead them to the door, Diane trailing behind them. He walked stiffly, but his warmth sept into her with each step they took away from the dining room. Finally, they pushed open the door outside, the cold winter air hitting them. She let go of his arm, jumping onto him to pull him into an embrace.

He stuttered out her name, still stiff. “Your… your chaperone, we shouldn’t—”

“It’s alright, Ominis, it’s just Diane,” she said, not separating from him.

It took him a moment, but then he understood. “Yes, that’s right. Diane. Your friend. Gods, I’ve been worried sick about you.” He finally relaxed, wrapping his arms around her. He held her close to him, and she closed her eyes as she took it all in.

“I’m ok, I promise.” She pulled away, staring up at him. “Merry Christmas.”

He chuckled. “Merry Christmas.”

She took him by the hand, leading him to where Diane was standing. She had a grin on her face, looking between the two of them. “Diane, this is my friend Ominis.”

Ominis held out his hand, which she took to shake. “It’s wonderful to meet you. I’ve heard good things about you, and I’d like to thank you for watching over her when I cannot.”

Diane’s grin widened. “Of course. I’ve done it for seventeen years, I’ll look after her as long as I’m able. She has told me good things about you as well, my dear.” He smiled softly at that as Diane continued. “In the spirit of the holiday, I’ll give the two of you a gift—I’ll stay here. You go and wander the grounds. Just be back before I freeze to death.”

She smiled, giving her a quick hug. “We won’t be long. Thank you.”

Diane gave her a dismissive wave of the hand. “Get going, lovebirds.”

She opened her mouth to argue, but Ominis took her arm before she could get a word out. He had his wand out so that he could direct them through the grounds.

“I’d be wearing your scarf if my mother wouldn’t have burned it the moment she saw it,” he commented.

She chuckled. “In that case, I’m glad you saved it from its untimely demise.”

He smiled. God, she’d missed that smile, even over the few days they’d been parted. “I would have insisted you make a new one, you know.”

“And I would have done it.”

He stopped walking, head tilting to face her more directly. “My siblings are coming to visit tomorrow. After that, I’m heading to Sebastian’s for the remainder of the holidays. I’m going to do everything I can to make sure you come with me.”

Her grip on his arm tightened. “That… I hope that works. It would be better if the request came from you or your family rather than me. I might have a fighting chance that way.”

He pulled his arm away from her, coming to stand directly in front of her. His hands reached up, gently resting on her upper arms. “I meant what I said in my letter. I will fight for you. I’m sorry you said what you had to at dinner.”

Her own hands reached in front of her, coming to play with his tie, running over the smooth fabric of it. “It was needed.”

“I wish it wasn’t. I wish all of this…” he trailed off, and she couldn’t stand the defeated expression on his face.

“I know. Me too. But for now, we play along. It keeps us safe.”

“But does it really?” He sighed, shaking his head. “Every time we do something they want, we lose a bit of ourselves. How long until there’s nothing left?”

“Ominis, listen to me.” She held his shoulders tightly. “Someday, we will get out of this. I promise. We’ll find somewhere safe to land, and we’ll do it together. We won’t lose ourselves along the way. I won’t let it happen.”

One of his hands came to hold her wrist in a gentle grasp, his thumb tracing over the cold skin there. “I won’t either.”

A chill went through her as she felt the soft motion of his thumb. She realized suddenly how intimately they stood together. And how she didn’t dare move a muscle.

He seemed hesitant to move, too. But finally he let go of her wrist. “I have something for you.”

Her hands fell from his shoulders. “You have something?”

“I told you I’d get you a gift, didn’t I?” He dug around in his pockets before pulling out a small package. “I brought it in case I got the chance to give it to you. I’m glad I did. Merry Christmas.”

She took the package—a small box—and looked from it to him.

He shifted on his feet. He was… anxious. “Come on, go ahead and open it. It’s not very kind to leave me standing here like a fool.”

She chuckled, opening it. Her eyes widened. Inside, draped delicately on a bit of padding, sat a silver necklace. It was simple—a chain with a charm at the end. Picking it up, she took a closer look to see that it was in the shape of a piano.

“Ominis…”

“I do hope it’s alright,” he said, holding his hands behind him. “I couldn’t see it, obviously, but the shop owner told me it was well made. If it’s not something you’ll like, I could find—”

“It’s perfect, Ominis,” she interrupted, placing a hand on his arm. “It’ll remind me of you.”

He relaxed a bit, and it made her smile. “Good. I’m glad you like it.”

She lifted it out of the box, taking his hand in hers and placing it in it. His brows furrowed at her action.

“I thought you just said—”

“I want some help putting it on, is all.”

His mouth opened, as if to argue, but then he snapped it shut. “Turn around, then.”

She lifted her hair, facing her back to him. One of his hands skimmed over her shoulder, feeling to make sure he knew where she was. Then he brought the necklace up, crossing it in front of her and bringing the ends to the back of her neck. His fingers brushed against the skin there as he did the clasp, and she blamed the chill that ran through her on the cold. He let go of the chain, his hands lingering there for just a moment before pulling away.

Turning around once more, she saw how soft Ominis’s expression had grown. There was a fondness there that she had never seen before. It made something catch in her throat.

“Merry Christmas, Ominis,” she said, voice hardly more than a whisper.

He smiled softly, reaching out to take her hands in his. “Merry Christmas, dearest.”

A/N: Sorry this chapter took me a lot longer, the Big Sads (depression) decided to hit me so I had no motiviation to do anything. But I got over it and wrote this so that's neat! It's not my best, but it's something. I'll have something better for you next time, sorry this was a bit of a filler chapter.

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@skarathewitch @cherryflavoredcoke @phoenix666stuff @wt-fxck @shameless0shenanigans @fitzs-trained-monkey @mxmia @myrachondria @vee-mage @sarahskywalker-amadala @jijistarfish @margottheviking @agent-tempest @iristhehufflepuff

Tags aren't working for a few of you, so sorry ahhhh

#ominis gaunt

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

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Day 18: Cockwarming - Professor!Remus Lupin

Kinktober Day 18. Cockwarming - Professor Remus Lupin x f!reader

Tags: 18+ readers only, smut, secret relationship, student/teacher relationship, cockwarming (mouth and pussy), nearly caught, comfort, praise kink, desk sex, nicknames, no use of y/n

my main masterlist 📚 // kinktober masterlist😈 // AO3 Link

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#remus lupin

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

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Day 31: Voyeurism/Exhibition - Remus + James/Sirius

Kinktober Day 31: Voyeurism/Exhibition - Remus xf!reader + James/Sirius

Tags: 18+ readers only, smut, dom/sub, dubious content, making out, james/sirius being meanies, flirting, anxiety, teasing, voyeurism, exhibition, masturbation (male), listening to sex, thigh riding, oral (f receiving), praise kink, intense orgasm, multiple orgasms, spooning sex, sucking fingers, size kink, squirting, cockwarming, nicknames, no use of y/n

A/N: Here it is, the final kinktober day! Thank you to everyone who has read, left a comment or liked any of the chapters, I really appreciate every single one of you. Bring on next year!

my main masterlist 📚 // kinktober masterlist😈 // AO3 Link

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

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I just thought of one. Fred and reader playing in the snow and having fun making snow angels and you share your first kiss with Fred. :)

YAAAAAY you are so great, idk what i did to deserve you as a follower and also girl you love some freddieeeee ;) can i do this in first person for a change? i think i just might

fred weasley x reader_______________________________________________________________________

We were down somewhere along the pathway of the castle grounds. It was closer to Hogsmeade, further from the castle–in fact, I couldn’t even see Hogwarts from where we were. I suppose we were somewhere off the beaten track. The air was cold, but thankfully, there was no wind. I could feel my nose turning redder by the second, and then the snow began to fall soundlessly around us. I looked over at Fred, who was adjusting his gloves and placing his hat over his red hair, when he glanced over and smirked at me. “Okay, so I think this is the perfect spot.” “Perfect spot…for what?” my heart was pounding. Fred just laughed. “To make snow angels, of course.” He tickled me and pulled me onto the blanket of white, and I was giggling uncontrollably. The snow was cold against the back of my head, but I lay flat and continued to move my arms and legs, in an attempt to make some sort of angel-like pose. “Well,” I began to Freddie, who was lying on my right. “How does it look, then?” When he stood up, he towered over me. It didn’t help that I was quite smaller than he was, his 6′3 frame swallowing me whole whenever I stood anywhere near him. But now, lying down on the ground and looking up at him–he only seemed that much taller. “It’s good–” Fred began, scrunching his nose. “But it needs something else.” I closed my eyes, continuing to make a wing-flapping motion with my arms. “Like what?” “Like this,” Fred said, and I felt a snowball hit my leg. My eyes shot open and I jumped up from the snow. Fred was standing near a tree, throwing a snowball up into the air and catching it. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.” “Oh come on, Y/N, you know me well enough by now to know that I’m obviously going to initiate a snowball fight.” I nodded. He was right, in fact–that is what I expected from him, and nothing less. I’d spent twenty minutes hiding behind nearby trees, gathering as much snow as I could in my tiny arms to make as many snowballs as I could gather to throw at Fred. There were distant shouts and laughs that echoed, but by the end of it the two of us were intertwined together, backs pressed up against a tree, out of breath from running around, our eyelashes covered in snowflakes. “I think you won. I’m alright with admitting defeat,” I told him. He just smiled at me. “You weren’t as bad as you think.” And just then, the wind began to pick up speed. The snow was being blown into our faces–Fred and I ran through the velvety white to find any sort of shelter before we could stand it no longer. He took his hand in mine and ran back up the path we’d taken to get to where we were, and we both spotted a little building that we’d passed on the way down. We entered what looked like a small little coffee shop, with floating candles and millions of teacups lined up on the walls. “Welcome,” a soft voice came from a woman standing off to the side. “How many?” “Two, please,” Fred told her, smiling. He didn’t let go of my hand. She led the us to a table near a window, and sat us down. “Fancy a bit of tea?” “Please,” I replied, holding up two fingers to the waitress. “Thank you.” She grinned at us and made her way to the kitchen. I turned back towards Fred, who placed his gloves in his pockets. “Thanks,” I said to him, grinning from ear to ear. “That was really quite enjoyable.” “It was,” he agreed, “maybe we could do it again sometime?” I nodded, biting my lip to try and stop myself from smiling too big. “Yes…I’d like that.” And he leaned in slowly–right then and there–right in the middle of this coffee shop–and pressed his lips to mine. It was soft and blissful and beautiful, and a sort of calmness washed over me. When we pulled away, we were both beaming at one another. Just then, the waitress had brought back our cups of tea when she asked, “Anything else to warm you up, dears?” “I’m actually already warmed up, thanks,” I told her breathlessly, not even looking her way. I continued to look into Fred’s eyes, and by the way he was smiling nervously, I was almost positive the waitress had winked at him before walking away. And ignoring my cup of tea, I giggled lightly and pulled him back towards me, kissing him once more at our little table. It was our first and our second of many that we’d shared at that coffee shop, our favorite little spot that we’d eventually come back to years later on an evening of reminiscing.

AGH i hope you love this @micgonagalls!! omg i actually geeked out writing fred in this, i can just imagine him being like super forward with the first kiss eeeeeeppp

#fred weasley

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

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I would love to see a one shot with Fred after the war between the twins best friend who has Fred has had feelings for a long time. YES HE SURVIVES. He finally gets the nerve to tell her after he nearly dies. He's so thrilled to see her after the war. He forgets about everything else and runs over and hugs her. It'd be so cute. I wish Jo hadn't killed him off.

AHHH yes! yes i am always game to write where fred lives :’) oh, girl. i know. i’m still upset about it and cry when i read it in dh. how could she ever do that to poor george? so beyond upsetting!

fred weasley x reader_______________________________________________________________________

Light flashed throughout the dark sky as though it were lightning. But it wasn’t, and you knew it. People were fighting to the death, and getting killed every single second. To know that your loved ones were on the line, placing their lives at risk just as you were–it terrified you to your very core. You shut your eyes tightly, pushing the thoughts away, only to be met with a death eater in front of you. You yelled the first spell that came to mind, and light shot out of your wand, knocking the death eater right off of his feet and throwing him into the air. And you ran out of site, trying to catch your breath, for it could’ve been the end– You walked across the grounds at the end of the war. Lifeless bodies lay everywhere and blood stained the cold floors of the castle. But the sun was beginning to rise, and there was a calmness in the air. Everything seemed to be okay. And suddenly you were greeted by George, who clung to you as thought it had been a million years. “Y/N,” he wept, sobbing into your shoulder. “I thought we’d lost you…God, and after almost losing Freddie–” “What?” you asked, exasperated. “George, what happened? Are all of you alright?” “It was close,” he said, wiping tears from his eyes. “There was a death eater in front of us, and Fred almost didn’t make it–it was the most terrifying–I’m just so glad the both of you are alright–” George choked. He let out a cry. You breathed in and embraced George. How would it have felt to have lost your best friend? You shut your eyes and hugged him a little tighter, a little longer. “I’m so glad you’re okay.” you whispered through your tears and the two of you cried into one another’s shoulders. And then he was with Dean and Seamus, and they were all embracing one another and tending to each other’s wounds post-battle. You looked around the great hall slowly and caught glimpses and smiles of everyone who was safe and sound. You began to walk, slowly at first, and then you stopped. You stopped when you saw him, like you may have never seen him again. “Freddie,” you whispered, your eyes growing wide. Your heart began to beat faster as his eyes met yours, and he swallowed before saying your name. And then he broke into a sprint. You stood there, frozen, and it seemed as though time was slowing down. Fred embraced you tightly, and before he could say anything to you, you began to ramble through your choked sobs. “George–he said that you–that you were almost killed. Freddie–I, I don’t know what I’d d-do without you–thank goodness you’re–o-okay–I couldn’t live without you both–” “It’s alright, Y/N,” Fred whispered as he stroked your hair. “It’s okay, we’re all okay now.” You cried and cried until you could cry no more, you and Fred standing at the entrance of the great hall, as people passed by and placed hands on your shoulders. Fred brushed away the tears from your beneath your eyes and you sniffled quietly. “I love you.” You swore your heart stopped in that moment. “You…love…you…what?” Fred actually laughed. Given everything that had just happened, he actually giggled and ran his fingers through your hair, continuing to brush away the tears. “I love you…I just…I should have said it a long time ago. Truthfully, I was nervous, because I didn’t know how you felt, and I was afraid you didn’t share my feelings. But now–after almost just dying–I just needed to tell you, Y/N–that I’ve loved you since the moment we met on the train in our second year, and I’ve loved you every single day since then. I still do and I always will.” Your heart was racing and thumping in your chest. Could he hear it? He had to, because you swear your heart was about to jump right out of your chest, when suddenly, you pulled him close to you, brushing your lips gently across his, and then kissing him as though it were your last few moments together. You broke apart, and he was holding you tightly around your waist, and your forehead was pressed against his, and you were crying again, and Fred was kissing your cheek, holding you behind your neck. “I love you too, Freddie,” you said, smiling and crying and shaking, all at the same time. “I love you, too.“

I HOPE THIS WAS CUTE. i actually got so upset thinking of how fred lives in this. i just wish he had lived. i can’t stand the thought that george was never the same after fred died. ugh. BUT I HOPE THIS LIVED UP TO WHAT YOU EXPECTED! thank you lovely! xx

#fred weasley

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

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liar liar, fred x reader

request: from anon: I’m requesting cute floofy fred please sweeping a girl right off of her feet and taking her by surprise just all the fluff

A/N: your wish is my command darling ugh freddie boy being all sarcastic and flirty with raised eyebrows man that shit just GETS ME

Gryffindor was, for lack of better phrasing, kicking Slytherin’s ass in this Quidditch match. Something was in the air, or in the food at the breakfast table in the Great Hall. The team was on fire, and they had Slytherin tight in their grasp.

You pulled your maroon and gold scarf tighter around your neck as the wind picked up and the cheers became louder. A few rows down, you could see Draco Malfoy sulking with his head in his hands. You giggled quietly to yourself.

“He’s not going to shut up about this later,” came a soft voice next to you. You turned to see Ginny rolling her eyes. You raised an eyebrow at her, as if to say, Who, Draco? when she just scoffed at you and replied, “No, silly. Your boyfriend.”

Another goal, and the Gryffindors went wild. Harry zoomed past in the blink of an eye, and you noticed Ginny’s cheeks go rosy and her eyes grow admiringly. Clearing your throat, you told her straightforwardly, “Fred is not my boyfriend.”

“Interesting,” she fired back, “that I didn’t even say Fred, you just assumed that’s who I meant.”

Another eye roll and another goal, this time from Slytherin. You slouched your shoulders. “Oh knock it off, would you? I’m just excited to see Gryffindor absolutely crush Slytherin today...hopefully.” You didn’t want to get your hopes up. You brushed your bangs out of your eyes and saw the twins do backflips on their brooms in the air, which caused an uproar from the spectators.

The cold, autumn wind swept itself through your hair, causing it to knot. You hurriedly ran your fingers through it, trying your best to tame it in some way. Beside you, Ginny lowered her voice. “He’s mad for you, you know,”

You snorted. “Yeah, right,”

“I swear!” She crossed her heart. And then you nearly jumped out of your skin.

Fred popped up from below and hovered in front of you. Had he been listening the entire bloody time? The smirk on his face gave you your answer. His bright red hair was a mess, but in a way you almost admired. His nose, cheeks, and the tips of his ears were pink from the cold, but his uniform sleeves were rolled to his elbows to give himself some air. In the middle of the pitch, George was beating bludgers left and right.

“Swear on what, Gin?”

Blood was pounding in your ears. Don’t you dare, Ginevra, you thought.

She giggled. “That you’re mad for Y/N,” she replied sweetly, winking at you.

It was as if the bludger wanted Fred Weasley to show off in front of you, because it dodged itself right past George and as Gryffindors began to scream for fear of being hit, Fred pelted it across the pitch with all of his might. You could see the outline of his muscles through his uniform and the girls went wild. You felt your insides go warm.

But it couldn’t be.

Fred wasn’t mad for you.

He was...Fred. And you were you.

You couldn’t be more opposite.

Fred laughed, bringing you back to reality. “Thought I was making that rather obvious...should I try a bit harder?” He smirked at you and pelted another bludger towards his twin.

“You’re an awful liar,” you fired back—because it couldn’t be true. There was no way Fred Weasley had feelings for you—the quiet, shy, always-has-her-nose-in-her-knitting girl—the moon eyed girl who’d been secretly watching him since his first ever Quidditch match, who loved to admire his pranks from afar but would never, ever say anything...that friend who wanted to be so much more but would never admit it.

There was just no way.

He dramatically pretended to fall backwards off of his broom.

“Don’t believe me?” He hovered closer.

“As a matter of fact,” you crossed your arms, “I don’t.”

“Well that’s a damn shame,” he replied, running a hand through his wind blown hair, “because you’re mad for me, too.”

Shit. Your confidence went with the wind. When you opened your mouth and no words came out, Ginny began to laugh uncontrollably. You elbowered her in the ribs, and she sort of stopped. Sort of. You finally found your voice.

“Am not.”

Fred let out a mocking sort of laugh and your face went red. “Love, you’re really quite rubbish at this—” he flew over the side of the railing and stepped down in front of you. Immediately, both teams began to yell at him, as did the spectators, the professors, and Madam Hooch. Fred cupped your chin in his hands and said breathlessly, “You really are an awful liar, you know.” He wound his other arm tightly around your waist.

And then he kissed you.

His lips were soft and warm, the calloused skin of his fingertips tickling your neck as his hand slid down to tangle itself in your hair. You couldn’t help but pull on his uniform to bring him closer to you, even though his body was completely pressed against yours. You swear you felt your feet leave the ground, if only for a moment. Shouts of anger turned into shouts of excitement and laughter, and when you two finally broke apart, he just bit his lip and grinned cheekily at you.

“Settle down!” You heard Madam Hooch call from the middle of the pitch, where she was hovering above both teams—but the shouts of everyone surrounding you seemed to drown out her miserable tone. Dealing with teenage hormones for so many years must’ve really taken a toll on her. “Mr. Weasley, get back here! Penalty, Gryffindor!”

If Gryffindor wasn’t winning by so much, you’d be concerned.

But with his lips on yours, you couldn’t seem to think of much else.

He kissed you once more, hesitating briefly before he pulled away entirely. Was his goal to leave you wanting more? Because it was working like a charm. “Worth it,” he told you as he hopped onto his broom again and flew back onto the pitch. His cheeks were rosy still, but not from the cold, you hoped. “Absolutely bloody worth it.”

You brought your fingertips to your lips, feeling a surge of electricity make it’s way through your bones. Your whole body felt as light as a feather. He had always had that damn effect on you. One smile, one laugh, one look from that boy, and you were weightless. It was inevitable.

As was the immeasurable amount of snogging you’d both be doing after the match Gryffindor would no doubt win.

But for now?

You just had to wait.

“Told you,” Ginny raised her eyebrows and smirked at you as everyone in Gryffindor house seemed to stare at you in awe.

And from across the pitch, that snarky, sarcastic red headed boy winked at you, sending chills down your spine, something he loved to reserve for you and only you in the future.

tag list: @mintlibri @seppys-return-to-madness @how-do-life-does @fopdoodledane @fredd-weasley @iprobablyshipit91 @pobawfcheck @cottageoflove

reblogs + feedback are always appreciated :)

#fred weasley

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

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sparks, fred x reader

request: from anon: I will literally take all the Fred you can write!!! I love George but Fred is definitely my fav. How about some protective Fred? If that’s okay? I don’t mind why. Maybe blood status or whatever you fancy? Thank you so much! | protective fred weasley is such a f u c k i n g weakness

prompt(s): none

warning(s): umbridge being a bitch maybe?

A/N: i rewrote this like eight fucking times what the hell is wrong with me i have major writer’s block u g h

Fred Weasley was normally not an overly protective person.

He was carefree and wild and truthfully, he didn’t take too much too seriously. But sometimes, he just couldn’t help it—especially when it came to you.

But you didn’t mind, really. In fact, it was kind of a turn on.

“Fine, I’ll give you this one,” Fred said to you you as you snuggled closer to him in the middle of the abandoned corridor one evening, “but only because it was bloody brilliant using the tickling charm on Georgie in Transfiguration.”

You brushed your bangs out of your eyes. “Poor bloke had not a clue what was going on,” you giggled, pulling on Fred’s tie and bringing him closer to you. “So that puts me at...eight? Sorry, darling, you’ve got some catching up to do if you want to win this prank war.”

Placing a hand at the nape of your neck and brushing his thumb against your cheek, Fred replied, “If you weren’t so damn beautiful I’d fight you on it.”

His lips found yours and moved slowly and in sync. You were almost certain he was going to pull you into an empty classroom at any moment. You felt him smile against you and your insides went warm, when suddenly you heard a sickeningly sweet and annoying giggle from the other end of the corridor.

Sparks broke the two of you apart, slamming you into the wall behind you. You were rubbing the back of your head before you’d even recognized what had happened, and suddenly, Fred was yelling and running at the woman in front of him.

You watched him in horror and grabbed his robe sleeve. “Freddie, don’t!”

“How dare you—”

“How dare I, Mr. Weasley?” Umbridge’s voice bounced off of the walls as Fred wrapped his arms around you. “There will be none of that at my school, you should be ashamed—”

Fred scoffed. “You just threw my girlfriend into a bloody wall! She could’ve been hurt!”

With a smile so fake, Umbridge just replied, “She deserved more for what she did.”

As Umbridge walked towards you both, prepared to drag the two of you by your ears to her office, no doubt, Fred tugged you in the other directly when McGonagall rounded the corner and fell upon the scene. From the anger in her eyes, she’d clearly seen something. Relief flooded your body when she began scolding Umbridge and motioned for the two of you to get away, and quickly.

You climbed through the portrait hole and set your bags down next to an armchair. When you sunk into one, you rubbed the back of your head again, and Fred placed his hand on your knee. You thought you could hear his heart pounding as you watched the very quick rise and fall of his chest. “Are you alright? Do you need to go to the hospital wing? That woman, she’s vile, she is—I can’t believe she did that—I reckon McGonagall’s going to give her an earful...I swear, if she’d hadn’t’ve shown up, I would’ve done some damage to old toad face—”

At this, you just laughed, bringing a hand to Fred’s neck.

“You’re mad,” you told him, admiration in your voice.

He softened, color flooding his cheeks. “For you, I am.”

A silence fell over the two of you as he ran his hand through your hair. Finally, you told him softly, “I’m okay, Freddie.”

He let his head fall into his hands and took a deep breath before rubbing his eyes and looking at you again. “I know,” he told you, “I’m sorry, love, I just can’t stand to see anyone hurt you. I mean, I’m supposed to keep you from getting hurt.”

You placed a kiss to his cheek, wrapping your arms around his neck. “Thank you for always looking out for me.” He wrapped his arms tightly around your waist and buried his head into your shoulder. “Besides,” you continued, playing absentmindedly with his hair, “it’s kind of hot when you get all protective.”

A smirk tugged at the edges of his lips. His eyes sparkled when he looked at you now.

“Yeah?” he asked, pulling you closer to him. There were sparks between the two of you again, but nothing like the ones from before. His lips gently brushed yours before he asked you, teasing you slightly, “Well let’s finish what we started then.”

tag list: drop me a message if you’d like to be added: @mintlibri @seppys-return-to-madness @how-do-life-does @fopdoodledane @fredd-weasley

reblogs + feedback are always appreciated! :)

#fred weasley

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

Text

in every lifetime, fred x reader

request: from @fredweasleyismyking91: I just read your George soulmate au and I’m obsessed. I love soulmates so much and that one was amazing. I’d love to read a Fred soulmate if you were ever up for it!

prompt: soulmate au in which characters have specific phrases their soulmates will say to them written on their wrists like tattoos—they will now know they are soulmates until the first one speaks the phrase

A/N: literally losing my shit. thank you for this request and for your kind words. reader is american and i made this after the war bc i do not live in a universe where my poor freddie doesn’t survive—I JUST LOVE HIM, ALRIGHT? also, sorry this is insanely long but it’s worth the read, i hope?

You stared blankly at your wrist in the middle of a very crowded, very bustling Diagon Alley. London was not at all what you’d expected. You peered quickly at the words. Won’t cost you a dime.

You thought it was silly, at first, the words your soulmate will speak to you, tattooed on your body. It looked absolutely ridiculous. It looked like the absolute dumbest quote in the history of the world. You found it to be quite annoying, really. When your parents told you what it was, you nearly snorted. You were just a young child. It sounded like the silliest thing in the entire world to you.

But as you grew older and more curious, you searched Ilvermorny for a glimpse—maybe your soulmate was here? It’d make the most sense, of course, for him to be prancing around the American wizarding school somewhere, close by—you weren’t planning on leaving America after graduating, anyway. But there was no one—not a soul—who gave you that feeling of hope, that feeling of… that must be him.

Oh but your friends absolutely loved to play that game. Picking and choosing, glancing anxiously at the phrases on their wrists, peering admiringly at your schoolmates and deciding which ones they’d like to spend the rest of their lives with, how they’d finally find them, when it would happen—at least before the age of twenty four—well, that’s what your parents had said, anyway. Your friends’ phrases were, to your dismay, much more sophisticated and seemingly more exciting and well—a bit more special than yours. Won’t cost you a dime. Absolutely bogus.

This game they were playing was, of course, based mostly on looks and not at all on personalities, but rather just their dreams and what they so desperately wished their lifetime of love would look like. Plus, you were all still so young, all they wanted to do was have a little fun, didn’t they?

So they dated, even though these people hadn’t said the words they yearned for. No reality had seemed to set in yet. Not one of them had found their soulmate. You supposed, watching them, you could do the same thing. But what was the point in dating someone you knew wasn’t the person you’d spend your life with? You opted out. You just wanted to wait for him. He’d say the words when the time was right. It would all be worth it, wouldn’t it?

As the years went on, you did seem to mostly forget about the words on your body, fading lightly. In the bustle of your busy life, it wasn’t something you necessarily tried to focus on, like all of the others around you, searching faces in the crowd, desperately trying to find the ones. When it’s time, it’s time, you kept telling yourself. But the fear that you’d never actually find him did nestle itself in the back of your mind—you never, ever, ever let yourself touch that thought. Not even a little.

You were rapidly approaching the age of twenty two. You’d finished Ilvermorny, began your studying to eventually be able to teach there, and tried to not focus on what everyone else seemed to be so obsessed with.

And on your twenty second birthday, you were offered the position of a teacher—not at Ilvermorny, no, but at the wizarding school across the pond. Yes, you were moving to London.

It was terrifying and exciting and exhilarating at the same time.

And so you packed your things, said farewell to your parents, and ended up in a very tiny, one bedroom apartment in the middle of London, just a few streets down from Diagon Alley—the bustling street where all witches and wizards went for their school supplies—and you supposed, professors, too.

Well, you knew what you needed to do.

Which brings you to now.

Somebody bumped into you while running through the street. “Sorry, love,” they said, and were off in a flash, barely noticing the shift of your body on the middle of the cobblestone. And then, a flash of light, and a ton of rain.

Was London notorious for its rainy days? You didn’t know, this was your first time here, of course. And where on earth was your umbrella?

As you’d dreaded—back at your half unpacked apartment, probably collecting dust at the bottom of one of your many, many boxes that still needed to be unloaded. Brilliant.

You ran into the store nearest you, quickly running through the flash flood, soaked to the core—your long hair dripping along the carpet. You didn’t know what to expect when entering the shop, but it sure as hell wasn’t this.

It was probably the most colorful room you’d ever seen in all your life. Bright hues of orange and green and purple and red made the shop seem even much bigger than it was—loads of toys and supplies were making many sounds that seemed to reverberate off of the walls. Students and children and parents alike were chattering animatedly and peering admiringly at all of the inventions that were stocked very highly on the shelves. It was rather bustling, indeed.

“Looking for anything in particular?” a cool voice asked. When you turned around, a red haired man in a brown suit looked at you with wide eyes. “Bloody hell—get caught in that rain, did you?”

“Unfortunately, yes,” you told him. Was he the owner, perhaps? “Do you have a restroom or something I can wash up in?”

Another man who looked exactly like him sauntered over and asked his twin, “Georgie, I’ve just—lord, you alright, love?”

Love? Does every man in this country call women that? Not quite like America. Still, you couldn’t help but grin a little. “I’m fine—just wondering if you have a place I could dry off, maybe—”

George, the first one, said to you, “We’ve got dry towels—let me go and fetch them for you—”

“Believe there’s a sweatshirt in the pile of clean laundry too, mate, if you want to grab that,” the second one said.

You shook your head and said, “No, no, I’m fine, really—I live just up the way—just a towel will do.”

“Nonsense,” he told you, motioning for you to follow him. “C’mon, we’ll make you a bit of tea to warm you up,”

Okay, so, definitely the owners. They seemed so young to own such a successful shop in the middle of the busiest street in London. They couldn’t be older than twenty two, twenty three? How on earth were they handling all this chaos?

You’d learned a lot in your short time at Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. It was a prank shop, basically, run by two boys who, although adults, did seem to love acting like children. Born and raised as two kids who wanted more than anything to continue making people laugh, even in the darkest of times, they’d hatched this plan at the mere age of five, and they’d not once teetered off track. Not very pleasing to their mother, you learned, who’d spent her lifetime watching over seven mischievous children, but she’d softened when she’d realized how well off they were, especially after the war you’d heard all about when you were back home.

As you pulled your still damp hair back into a high ponytail, you said to them both, “Well, thank you both very much—not exactly how I’d imagined my first day in London to be, but—I appreciate you taking me under your wing.”

With a swift goodbye as George was pulled away by customers, he told you, “Visit soon!” The other man stood in front of you with a concerned look in his eyes.

“You’re sure you’re alright?”

You laughed softly. “I promise, yes. Thank you…”

“Fred,” he said, taking your hand in his.

You bit your bottom lip. “Y/N...well, thanks, again—I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

“I hope so,” he said and winked. Was he seriously flirting right now? You glanced quickly at your wrist, taking a deep breath in. Was it him? Probably not. There were millions of others in Europe. You were strangely sad at the thought. You barely knew this guy. And who knew? Your soulmate could still be back home. Fred brought you back to reality when he asked, “Visit soon, yeah?”

You scratched the top of your head and grinned at him. “Yeah, soon...have a good night.”

And so your first night in London hadn’t gone exactly as planned. But what did you expect, really? Chaos. Always.

You were met the next morning with sunshine flooding through your apartment and boxes that needed unpacking. You groaned at the thought. Instead, you made your way into Diagon Alley again, this time determined to be able to shop more of the little stores in the sunlight, not having to escape the street due to flash flooding.

It was hot. You were surprised how hot it was. Your pale green sundress swung at your sides, and you pulled your long hair into a side braid to get it off of our neck. And as you’d assumed, the street was incredibly busy. But you didn’t seem to mind. You loved the bustle of the city.

You clumsily tripped over the cobblestone in your sandals, bumping hard into someone next to you. Looking down at their feet and regaining your composure, you said, “I’m so terribly sorry—”

“Back again, are we?”

It was Fred, the man from yesterday. He was smirking at you with his hands in his pockets.

“Well hey, Fred.”

His raised his eyebrows at you, seemingly impressed with the fact that after one brief meeting, you could tell him and his twin brother apart. “Impressive, honestly, nobody can really tell us apart except our mum,”

You smiled and glanced down at your shoes, biting your bottom lip.

“Listen, I’m about to grab a bite—and you certainly look like you could use a bit of a break,” he glanced down at the many bags you had in your hands, “care you join me?”

You went against your better judgement. Two days in a row you’d run into this man you barely know, and you’d already managed to have his sweatshirt, towel, and a pair of sweatpants in your apartment, and now he was inviting you for a bite to eat. An adventurous few days you were having, indeed. The field day your friends would be having with this information—

“Okay,” you told him, pushing the thought away and following him across the crowded street where he grabbed your hand and cut through very busy traffic.

“So,” he asked when he finally stopped walking. “Favorite flavor of ice cream?”

“Chocolate chip cookie dough,” you said immediately, not even thinking on it.. “And you?”

“I dunno,” he said truthfully, cocking his head to the side and looking up at the sky. “It changes daily. Ready?”

He pulled you closer towards the shop you were in front of, and when you looked up, you noticed a sign that read: Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlour.

Confused, you asked, “This is the bite you meant?”

“Yeah,” he told you matter-of-factly, reading your face for any sign of amusement. “C’mon, America, don’t tell me you’ve never had ice cream for lunch before.”

You smiled at him. America. What the hell—it was adorable, and you were nearly melting into a puddle in front of him. What were you doing? It was the accent, it had to be—and that red hair. God, the things your friends would be saying—

You pushed his arm softly and told him, “I shall have you know that I have definitely had ice cream for lunch.”

“Good,” he smirked, taking your hand in his and pulling you inside. “Let’s go, then.”

And after this second day in Diagon Alley, your afternoon meet up with Fred for ice cream from Florean Fortescue’s became a daily thing. It was addicting, this ice cream—absolutely nothing like you’d had back home, and thank goodness Diagon Alley was so large, because you were able to walk off those calories in a heartbeat.

As the summer dragged on and the impending school year drew nearer, you’d kept returning to the street—of course, for your school supplies, yes, but also to see him. You’d find yourself, every so often, glancing down at your wrist, looking at the silly phrase, wanting to forget about your soulmate altogether. You found yourself covering it with bracelets and watches, hoping that Fred would never see it and never have to ask about it.

You’d spent many afternoons in Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, as well.

It proved to be very difficult to leave every evening, actually.

What were you doing?

You needed to draw yourself back. You needed too. You didn’t want to end up heartbroken, in a foreign city, before starting a new job in a new place with new people. It was a disaster in the making. You needed, more than anything, to protect your heart.

And so just a couple of days before the start of term, you slowly made your way into the shop, ready to tell Fred that you wouldn’t be seeing him for a long time, as term was about to begin, when he met you at the front of the store.

“Y/N! Glad to see you this morning,” he said brightly, coming round the bend of the back end of the store. “Now, when you get to Hogwarts in four days time, remember to tell Minerva McGonagall how fond you are of me and George—I reckon she’ll be so pleased you know us,”

You cocked your head to the side and placed your hand on your hip, smiling sweetly at him. “Why do I have the feeling that she’d actually be less than impressed at that?”

Pretending to fall backwards, Fred told you, “I’m heartbroken you think that, Y/N,”

I’m just heartbroken, you thought dramatically, shaking the thoughts from your head at how absolutely overly emotional you were being. Ridiculous. “Freddie listen, I—”

“Ooh, we’ve got just the thing for your classroom—it’s bloody brilliant, c’mon, you have to take it—it’ll be a good luck present, on us, yeah? C’mon then, won’t cost you a sickle,”

Begrudgingly, you followed him to the back of the store, when your heart stopped.

He laughed then, shaking his head and laughing to himself. “You’re from the other end. Reckon I probably should’ve said, ‘won’t cost you a dime’, is that way they say in America?”

And just like that, your head shot up and muscles tensed. That moment of reality. It was like you‘d gotten the wind knocked out of you, just as your parents told you. “Oh my god, what did you say?”

You watched Fred stop in his tracks, glance down at his wrist, and turn slowly back towards you, in the middle of a crowded store. Your heart and mind were racing, and it took every single ounce of you to restrict yourself from nearly jumping on top of him—

“It’s you,” he said, as if the entire world around the two of you had stopped abruptly.

“Get the wind knocked right out of you?” you asked him, pointing to his wrist and to yours.

He looked down at your hand and then back at you. Did he have tears in his eyes? “Yeah,” he said breathlessly—and then, that silly sarcasm. “I knew it.”

You actually laughed in the surprise of the moment. “You did not!”

“Well, I hoped,” he admitted. “I reckon you did, too?” He smiled sweetly at you. Yes, you’d hoped, too. He knew that. He could see it in your eyes from the moment you met one another, when you were rain soaked and shivering from the cold in his very busy store. He was in love with you right then.

Teasingly, you said aloud, “A British prankster. All my life I never pictured my soulmate as a British prankster.”

“Can’t say I ever pictured my soulmate as an American girl who’d end up working at the school I grew up in,”

You asked him jokingly, “Are you disappointed?”

Beaming at you, he replied, “Definitely not disappointed, America.”

It was really difficult to not turn to complete putty in his hands when he was so goddamn charming. It was inevitable.

You stood there, both peering at one another, wondering—what happens next?

And what kind of soulmate would you be if you didn’t ask him, “So can I kiss you now? I’m dying, here,”

And what kind of soulmate would he be if he didn’t tease you, “Well, yeah, darling, what the bloody hell are you waiting for?”

His lips were soft and warm, and it felt like you’d kissed them a million times before. He was your soulmate—in this life, and in any and every other lifetime there was—it would always be him—this confident, flirtatious, silly red headed boy who loved, more than anything, to bring a smile to people’s faces.

“Well thank bloody Merlin the two of you finally figured it out.”

George came down the steps from upstairs and wrapped his arms around the two of you. Up on the top floor, you saw another red headed boy and girl, who you knew must’ve been Ron and Ginny. Or was it Bill? Or Percy? Or Charlie? Guess you’d have time to figure it out. They both smiled at you.

“You knew?” you and Fred both asked George at the same time.

George chucked, “Yeah—it was really obvious, actually.” To you, he kissed you on the cheek and said, “Well—welcome to the family, officially! So, when’s the wedding? Kids on the way yet? Mate, you know mum is absolutely going to flip her lid when she hears the news—”

You choked back a laugh. Intertwining your fingers in Fred’s, you said to them both, “That’s a lot of steps we’ve skipped, there,”

And as he jokingly pushed his twin away, Fred turned back towards you, wound his arms around your waist and pressed a kiss to your temple as you draped your arms across his shoulders. His lips were pressed to your ear and it sent a shiver down your spine when he said, “I can’t wait to share all of them with you, my love.”

tag list: drop me a message if you’d like to be added: @mintlibri @seppys-return-to-madness @how-do-life-does @fopdoodledane @fredd-weasley @fredweasleyismyking91

reblogs + feedback are always appreciated lovelies :)

#fred weasley

472 notes · View notes

wizardingdiaries · 9 months

Note

So, your healer!sebastian post really got me thinking. If you want to, would you maybe write something about seb as a healer working somewhere, he had lost touch with MC, but she comes in gravely injured one day. He saves her and they reconnect?

@skittish1807 Thank you for your patience, I know it has been way too long since you requested this. I love you and your endless patience, pal. Special shoutout to cold brew, sweet tea and ambient world on youtube for helping me finally finish this fic. Rating: 18+ (Mildly NSFW for insinuations) TW: Blood, Injury, Death Mention. Word Count: 8,635 (I know, i'm sorry.) A/N: This is my first Sebastian Fic, please be kind lol

Reconciliation

Sebastian didn’t know exactly how things ended up the way that they did with MC, he just knows that sometimes in the quiet moments of his now hectic life, when he’s left alone with his thoughts, she creeps in from the recesses of his mind.

He can hear her voice when he’s working in the Alchemy room at St. Mungos, criticizing the technique he uses to prepare his ingredients. The hint of a smile tugging at his lips as he stands alone in the dark room, dropping his sliced dittany into the bubbling cauldron. Wouldn’t you prefer chopped? It brews so much more quickly.

When he’s blowing off steam in the cellar of his home, taking out his anger of losing a patient on the training dummy he paid off an Auror for. He can feel her fingers wrapping around his wrist, adjusting his aim or her hand on his hip, correcting his stance.

The soft morning light brings him the smell of her shampoo, from the nights she’d slept in his bed. After long, late nights of studying and searching for anything, tucked behind his closed bed curtains. She’d claim the walk back to her dorm was much too far and crawl between the covers, enveloping him with the scent of her. He would wake up and she would be gone, but the smell of her shampoo would reside on his pillow, proof of her presence.

None of these soft memories made him feel like he did now, lying on a cot in the room designated for Healers to catch up on their sleep during their long shifts at St. Mungos. Sebastian rarely slept, but he tried. He had found an old daily prophet, shoved beneath the pillow, undoubtedly left by one of his fellow healers and decided to try and bore himself to sleep with whatever mess the Wizarding World had found themselves in today.

He found the classifieds, black ink advertising Cruppies - Free to a good home! and Stay Warm with BOGO Self Warming Scarves and Gloves at Twilfitt and Tattings!, as his eyes moved from advertisements to job listings. The memory of how he and MC had spent many of their meal times at Hogwarts hunched over the same paper, talking animatedly about what they could possibly do with their lives after graduation, made his heart constrict.

If he lets himself think about it, her, too much he finds himself spiraling. Desperate to find her, desperate to make things right. Despite being an orphan, and no longer having any family to speak of, he thinks the pain of losing the girl he was in love with for three years of his life might hurt worse.

The knowledge that she was alive and well, and just not here with him, a fate worse than death.

There was nothing he could do about his parents or Anne or even Solomon, they were gone. Never to return. Sebastian wonders if the pain hurts worse, because it was exacerbated by hope that they could be together again. That she’d come back to him.

Which is why he pitches the newspaper against the wall opposite, before punching the tattered pillow he’s shoving his face into, silently pleading for sleep to take him. His attempts only last about ten minutes, before the loudspeaker above the door alerts him to an incoming patient, being transported to the Potions and Poisoning ward.

He heaves himself from the bed with a groan, stretching out his tired limbs and makes his way to the third floor, taking the stairs two at a time. He pauses for just a moment, when he arrives at the patient's room. His eyes watching the brass plaque alongside the door frame materializing with his name, a sentimental pride filling him at the sight.

Healer in Charge: Sebastian Sallow

It had been five years since he’d graduated from Hogwarts, three since he completed the Healer training program. His career choice had been heavily influenced by the desire to feel like he was doing some good in the world, healing instead of hurting. The hefty knowledge he already possessed in his fruitless search for a cure for his ailing sister had just been a benefit, aiding him along in the program, impressing his instructors.

He didn’t pause long enough to think about how it had been five years since he had seen her.

Sebastian pushes open the door, the clipboard instantly pulling itself from the wall and into his hands, greeting his patient with a small smile, his eyes on the clipboard.

“Hello, I’m Healer Sallow, I’ll be getting you sorted out today. What seems to be the problem?”

He studies the intake form quickly as he speaks.

Casper Doolan. Age 9. Potions Accident.

Sebastian’s demeanor shifts slightly when he sees the age of the boy and he relaxes his shoulders, plasters on a smile as he finally takes a look at the patient; A freckled blonde boy, who seemed to be sprouting leaves across his body, sat cross legged on the bed looking as though he had not a care in the world. His parents standing behind him, looking much more distraught, and a teen girl red faced and teary eyed.

Sebastian lets his hand drop the clipboard, which slots itself right back into place on the wall, and he steps closer to the family.

“Hey pal, Casper right? I’m Sebastian. I’m going to get you all fixed up. Alright? Mind if I take a closer look?”

When the boy shrugs his shoulders, he gently lifts the boy's chin to get a better look at the foliage protruding from his face, keeping a small smile on his face. “Mind telling me what happened?” He directs the question to the adults standing above him, as he’s leant down examining Casper.

The clipboard comes back from the wall, levitating in the air and the quill begins recording the words of the Doolans’ recollection of the events of the day. Their daughter had been practicing her potion brewing when Casper had been overcome with curiosity, and had taken a swig from her concoction. An hour later they had been sitting in the St. Mungo’s waiting area when no antidote or healing charm rectified the effects.

Sebastian let out a puff of air, nodding along to the story.

“Can’t say it’s the first time, and I know it will not be the last. Are you in any pain, Casper? Does it hurt? Be honest, no being brave. It’s important that I know.”

Little Casper shakes his head, relaying that it just feels funny. Sebastian gives him another wide grin, before turning towards the older sister.

“Can I ask what you were trying to brew?”

She tenses under Sebastian’s gaze, and he realizes he sounds a bit more accusatory then he had meant too and he clears his throat, holding his hands up. “I just need to know to help your brother… I’m not upset. This really does happen all of the time. Our little patients are notorious potion drinkers.” He smiles back down at Casper who blushes a bit at the comment. “He’s going to be just fine.”

She relaxes, her blush unfading.

“I…uh, I was working on a fertilizer… for herbology, it’s my worst subject in school… It was never meant to be drunk.” She shoots her own accusatory glare in her little brother's direction, and Sebastian has to bite back a laugh.

“Did you follow a recipe or were you just experimenting?”

The quill was poised to take down the information beside his head, his mind already moving in a million different directions on how to move forward with Casper’s treatment based on the information he was being given.

“O-of course I followed a recipe. It was the standard recipe for dragon dung fertilizer…”

At the words dragon dung, Casper’s face blanched at the realization of what he had consumed. He whipped around to face his sister, cheeks red with fury, the leaves in his skin shaking violently. Before he could start screaming at his sister, Sebastian spoke calmly, questioning if she had substituted any ingredients from the standard recipe. The scratch of the quill near his ear, oddly calming.

“No, I stayed true to the recipe but I hadn't added the mandrake yet, it was still stewing when pea brain here decided to take a swig.”

The quill continued recording and Sebastian nodded along appropriately, unable to keep back the playful grin at the name calling between siblings, his heart twinging in grief for just a moment.

“Good news is I think he’ll be just fine. Just have to allow the brew to run its course, I’d say. Let it pass through his system. Could give him a tonic to help it along but since he’s not experiencing any discomfort and he seems to be in good spirits, I’d hardly say that’s necessary.”

At the cheery diagnosis, the tension in the room seemed to immediately dissipate and the Doolan patriarch smacked Casper upside the head. As if he had been lying in wait to be told his son was indeed not dying, before he chastised him.

Sebastian bid the family goodbye, with a comment on lessons learned and to please come back if Caspers condition seemed to worsen in any way. Though before he left, he shook Casper’s hand like a man and slipped a candy into his palm. Before taking his leave with a small playful wink in the boy's direction.

The remaining hours of his shift included a disgruntled Auror who had been stuck feeling the effects of a tickling charm for a week, an elderly woman who had mistaken a Jarvey for a stray cat in her garden and suffered a particularly nasty attack and finally, another Hogwarts student who had botched a polyjuice potion and had found himself stuck between looking like himself and his next door neighbor.

Sebastian finally stood outside of St. Mungos in the summer rain, exhausted and desperate for a drink. He made his way to Undercroft, in hopes of finding some pretty little witch to help him forget the one everything in his life reminded him of.

If only for a night.

~*~

He had, and she did.

Though the only evidence of her presence in his home was the tiny bit of parchment she left on the pillow beside his head.

The pub had been lively, as usual. A popular spot for the younger wizarding demographic. Those that were out of school but not quite ready to hang up their hats and reminisce on their youth.

Sebastian had slid into his stool at the end of the bar, tucked into the corner. A whiskey sliding into his hand before he could even greet the barkeep, his best friend.

Ominis had purchased the building and opened his pub shortly after graduation, with the money left to him from his Aunt Noctua. He had been the sole heir to her estate, something he had only discovered on his seventeenth birthday in their seventh year. A ministry official knocking on the boys’ door in Feldcroft, bearing keys and paperwork.

He and Sebastian had spent an entire night drinking and laughing on the floor of the empty building, brainstorming names until they finally decided on Undercroft. An ode to their schooldays, to their little shelter in the storm of their youth. Hoping the name would inspire Ominis’ pub to be a similar sort of sanctuary for others. A place to unwind, to celebrate, to come together.

The Undercroft at Hogwarts had, of course, been where Ominis and Sebastian had spent a similar night of bonding. When Ominis had found him, crying in a corner, clutching Solomon’s last will and testament.

It had been the catalyst to the mending of their once thought ruined friendship. The guilt had overcome Sebastian, at the realization that Solomon had planned on giving him everything upon his death. The words had poured out of him with shaking sobs, dumping all of the trauma inside of him onto the boy who had just come to retrieve a forgotten textbook.

They had been inseparable ever since, Ominis had even officially moved into the home in Feldcroft, finally able to escape his family. He had sat with Sebastian when he received the news of Anne’s demise, tears of his own mixing with his on the quivering parchment in his hand. When he discovered how she had passed away alone and far from home at some London inn. The Aurors who found her only knowing to alert Sebastian by a folded up bit of parchment in her robes, A letter Sebastian had written to her just after he returned to Hogwarts after she had been cursed.

And Ominis had stayed when MC did not, her presence in his life fading more and more as the weeks passed after the night in the catacomb. Even more so, after Anne’s death when Sebastian had spiralled into the darkness of his mind. Swathed in guilt and grief with no foreseeable way of escaping it all.

He had been too caught up in his own pain to mind any attention to hers, and he had lost her completely. By the time he had relearned how to be alive again, she was gone. The situation too tedious to try and mend. He had let her go, knowing she’d be far better off without him, and by the time graduation came around, she was hardly more than a memory and had become yet another ache in his heart.

It was Ominis who had put him onto the pretty little blonde, a rag tossed over his shoulder as he leant across the bar to tell him all about how she was french and looking for a good time that Sebastian was all too happy to give.

Sebastian finally pulled himself out of his reminiscing, and out of his bed, to ready himself for his shift. The girl from last night already fading into just another memory of a good time.

~*~ The chill of the late morning air and the smoke in his lungs steadied Sebastian’s racing heart as he stood upon the roof of St. Mungos.

His morning had been taken up entirely by a handful of Aurors who had walked straight into a trap laid by a cell of dark wizards, led by a tip from an informant who had been playing both sides. He and his fellow Healers had managed to save most, but the one he had not is what had sent him up to the roof to clear his head, and settle his stomach. Every one of his failures twisted in his gut like a blade, making him want to crawl out of his skin.

Sebastian closed his eyes as he took another long drag of his cigarette, willing the vision of the aurors final moments from his brain, though he knew he’d be stuck with it until he drew his own final breath, just like all of the others.

He was pulled from his morbid reverie by a trainee healer, summoning him back inside from her place at the door, her arms crossed over her chest, an instinctual attempt to shield herself from the cold. Sebastian flicked the half finished smoke from his fingers as he turned to follow her back inside, the cigarette disappearing before it hit the ground.

The trainee quickly filled him in on his call as they descended the stairs, two at a time.

“Another Auror.. Got splinched when they attempted to apparate her here, away from the scene. Suspect her body was too weak to handle apparition. Had to arrange for an emergency portkey, she’s in a bad state.”

Sebastian nodded along, his heart racing once again, with a mix of adrenaline and dread.

Their feet landed simultaneously on the landing of the fourth floor, and the elder healer slammed through the door, to a small crowd and a blood bath. Right there in the corridor. He pushed his way through the onlooking Aurors in varying states of distress, to the figure lying on the floor, writhing and gasping in a pool of her own blood.

He had been so lost in taking in the damage, the hurt, his mind whirring a million miles a minute at the prospect of what he was walking into, he hadn’t taken a moment to register her face.

A face he knew, a face that had him stop dead in his tracks. It was as if ice water had replaced the blood in his veins as he stood over MC, convinced his racing heart had now stopped completely.

“MC?”

He allowed himself no more than a half second hesitation before he kneeled beside her twitching form. His eyes roamed her injured body, avoiding her face, unable to force himself to witness the pain there. As his hands found a wound in her abdomen, he knew this was more than a splinch, the mutilation was more than simply severed flesh.

Sebastian turned to look at the Auror standing closer than the others, trying to ignore the sounds of his old friends choked gasping. He had to bite back an exasperated laugh as he stared into the face of Leander Prewett.

“Prewett.” He closed his eyes, fixing his tone, the greeting had come out much more venomous than intended. The shock and terror he felt about this situation clouding his mind. “Can you tell me what happened?” He tried keeping his voice steady, as he always did when he took on the role of calm and collected healer as he questioned the man standing above him, who looked as panicked as he felt. Leander gave Sebastian a polite nod before recollecting the moment of MC’s injury.

“She’s..she's a scout. She went in first, surveyed the area… she knew it was a trap before any of us realized… one of the bastards ran her through with a blade… he came out of nowhere. Then.. it was just chaos… we were surrounded… After things were under control, we tried everything to stop the bleeding… to fix her. Wiggenweld, essence of dittany, every healing spell they teach us in the program. Nothing worked.”

Sebastians seemed to brain click back into place, and he shook off another laugh of realization as he lifted MC into his arms and off the stone floor, the sight of his lime green robes spreading beneath him a striking contrast against the pool of blood he had been kneeling in.

“Cursed. I’m positive the blade was cursed.” He nodded his head at the trainee healer who had been standing behind him, observing his work and she sprinted off for the alchemy lab, the knowledge she had absorbed from Sebastian at this point in her training made a verbal request redundant. Sebastian turned to push through into a hospital room to lay MC on the clean cot. He tried once again, to ignore the sight and sounds of the girl fighting for her life, the girl he once thought was the love of his life. Leander followed them inside, planting himself on the opposite side of the bed, his eyes never once leaving MC’s bloodied form. Sebastian couldn’t help the passing thought that the two Aurors were together, or the jealousy that suddenly roared inside of him at the thought.

He moved to the cabinet above the bed, his touch letting the lock release and the door fall open. He grabbed a small glass vial and turned back to Leander and MC, setting it down on the small wooden table beside him.

To ease Leander’s mind as much as his own, Sebastian welcomed the habitual way he slipped into a calm recitation of what he knew to be the issue, and how they could resolve it. Even now, amidst the chaos and fear, Sebastian felt a swell of pride and peace fill his chest, knowing he had found exactly what he was meant to do with his life.

“Suspect the blade was cursed to make the wound untreatable, to prevent any common healing rectification to take hold, unfortunately I also suspect it’s why we can’t heal the splinch either. The curse affects the entirety of her body, including new injuries. So this..” Sebastian holds up the small glass vial. “...Will hopefully slow the bleeding, while I do my work, the counter charms tend to take a bit of time, time that we do not have.”

Sebastian expected Leander to pelt him with panicked questions, or threaten his life if he did not manage to save MC. Reactions he was accustomed to receiving by loved ones of his patients, instead, the redhead simply nodded, his face stoic and determined. The Healer couldn’t help but wonder if the Auror was simply still in shock, numb from the battle. A part of him wished Prewett would yell or curse or panic, then, at the very least the only sound in the room would not be the sounds of their dying friend.

The Healer had no time to psychoanalyze the Auror, instead he put him to work.

“Alright, Prewett. Would you mind giving me a hand holding her head back?”

Leander didn’t hesitate as he gently took MC’s head in his hands, and tilted it back so Sebastian could pour the potion down her throat, with shaky hands, trembling with anxiety at seeing his former friend in such a state. Prewett’s hands on her head ensured she didn’t choke them back up or spit them out in her fight for breath.

Despite Sebastian being finished feeding her the potion, Prewett didn’t move his hand away from where it rested on the top of her head, his fingers trailing through her hair in what could only be interpreted as comfort.

Sebastian stamped down the bubbling angry jealousy at the gesture, and set the empty vial into a hole in the wall, where they promptly disappeared, knowing it would reappear back in the alchemy lab instantly, ready to be sterilized and reused.

He returned to the side of the bed, pulling out his wand, and began softly muttering the necessary charms and counter curses. So lost in his work, he didn’t notice his trainee return, setting the necessary potions for the course of the treatment onto the table, at his side.

He wasn’t so lost in his work, however, that he didn’t hear when Prewett finally spoke up, his voice quiet and soft, words directed at the trainee. His gaze was on MC who was still in a state of agony, her gasping still the only sounds in the room until he had begun to speak.

“I told them we shouldn’t have tried apparating with her, that we should wait for a portkey or summon for a healer to come to her.”

The trainee shook her head in sympathy, her mouth opening and closing, completely unaware of what to say, how to help the man who had brought MC to them to be saved. Sebastian understood this was one of the hardest parts of the job, of their careers. Dealing with the patients' friends and family. When MC’s body seemed to be wrapped up in a golden light, he exhaled softly, and lifted his wand from where it rested centimeters above her body, its tip lit with the same golden light. Then, he sent his trainee out to assist the other healers with their work.

He attempted to crack a joke, to lighten the mood now that he knew he could fix her, heal her.

“Turns out some Aurors do have brain function. Wouldn’t have expected it to be you though, Prewett.”

Sebastian felt a bit of satisfaction when his playful jab pulled Leanders gaze away from the girl in the bed, and on him with a roll of his eyes and a small smirk. It wasn’t Leander who returned the banter, however. The choked words and sound of MC’s voice made both men startle.

“Fuck off, Sallow.”

Sebastian couldn’t help the grin that split his face, and Leander wore a matching one as he looked back at her, quickly pulling his hand away from where he still had it laid on her head. She was still twitching slightly and her face was still contorted in pain, but the curse leaving her body and the slowing of the blood flow must have had her pain dissipating just enough to be coherent.

“Well, seems she’s at least in good spirits.”

Leander spoke first, and Sebastian knew he had to pull himself together. His mind already running with hope that this could be what brings MC back to him, this could be his chance to redeem himself to the last person alive he still felt indebted to do so.

When MC met Leanders gaze, and her pained look twisted into an almost smile, Sebastian swallowed thickly, his arm moving to pull out another potion from the cabinet.

“You two together, then?”

Before either Auror could respond to his query, a knock on the door pulled all three of their attentions towards it. It opened slowly, revealing an older, official looking wizard, who barely glanced at the girl in the bed before turning his stoic gaze on Leander. “Prewett. Boss wants your statement. Now.”

Leander stiffened, his eyes flicking between the man in the door, MC and Sebastian. Who was torn between wanting information and wanting to be rid of the one thing standing between him and being alone with MC. He continued his work, pretending not to pay any attention to the exchange as he gently applied the potion to the two gaping wounds in MC’s abdomen.

MC hissed at the sensation of the liquid dripping into her body through her lesions and she spoke to Leander through gritted teeth, her voice tight with pain, assuring him she would be fine. Prewett rolled his eyes, but patted her arm gingerly, and made his departure with a small scowl.

Sebastian kept his gaze on his work on the injuries, smiling when he watched the essence of dittany do its job, stitching her flesh back together. His grin grew wider when it stayed that way, his mind now reverting back to what he could possibly say now, with his work nearly done, the girl beneath him nearly healed.

“Merlin, that feels so weird every time.” MC’s voice sounded lighter, less tight and laced with pain as she commented on Sebastian’s healing work on her damaged body. Sebastian tilted his head to smirk down at her, another playful glint in his eye.

“Finding yourself injured quite a bit then, MC?”

Clearly uncomfortable with the seemingly imbalanced power dynamic with Sebastian standing above her, MC tried to raise herself up into a sitting position with shaky arms, ignoring his teasing comment. Despite the pain dissipating with the disappearance of her wounds, she was still quite pale and Sebastian could see the dizziness in her eyes. He instinctively grasped her shoulders to lie her back down on the bed, earning himself a scowl that brought him right back to age 15 when he’d try and steal from her Honeydukes haul.

“Oh wipe that scowl off your face, I’m trying to help you, you know. I’ve already saved your life.” Sebastians tone was firm, but laced with a familiar playfulness he always felt with her. “You’ve lost a lot of blood, MC. It’s why you feel so weak.” MC, in fact, did not wipe the scowl from her face, but she did lie back down. Sebastian was grateful for the small victory as he popped the cork of the last vial, the one the trainee had fetched for him from the alchemy lab.

He offered the vial to MC with a small smile, and an expectant look.

“Drink up, Buttercup.”

Her scowl deepened, but she obediently took the vial with shaking hands, but before she tipped it back she looked back at Sebastian.

“Am I at least allowed to ask what this is or am I just supposed to trust you?”

Sebastian knew she meant nothing more from her choice of words, but they stung just the same. His mind ran off with memories of everything he had put her through with her trust in him. How he had lost her trust, her friendship, her love for him with his reckless pursuit in their adolescence.

He recovers quickly, with a roll of his eyes as he tilts the vial up to her lips with two fingers.

“It’s just a blood replenishing potion, I promise. Now, drink before you pass out.” He crosses his arms, watching her expectantly, before cracking another joke and making a move to stop her from downing the vial. “On second thought, if you do pass out I won’t have to put up with your sass.”

MC shoots him an unconvincing glare as she swallows the dark red liquid, wincing at the taste. It was hard to believe that it had been nearly six years since the two had seen one another, and had been even longer since they’d had a proper conversation. Yet, here they were, falling into easy banter as if no time at all had come to pass.

As Sebastian brings the vial back to the depository to send it back to the Alchemy room, MC clears her throat, and with the effects of the potion already settling into her system, she sits up in the bed using arms that are now much more stable.

“We aren’t… together, just so you know. Leander and I. We’re just friends, partners at work, but not… together.”

When Sebastian doesn’t respond right away, because he’s lost in a sea of thoughts of everything more this could mean for him, for the hope he had slowly building inside his heart. She speaks again, her voice sounding much more irritable.

“You asked, before… which is why I’m telling you. You asked.”

Sebastian gives her another teasing grin, quirking an eyebrow at her ready defense as he returns to her bedside.

“Ah, and here I thought you were simply coming onto me. Wouldn’t be surprising if I'm honest. Happens all the time, when I save pretty little witches from their untimely demise. Quite common for Healers actually.”

MC scoffs, crossing her legs beneath her on the bed. Her strength and personality slowly coming back to her again, with an adequate amount of blood now pumping through her veins.

“Clearly your ego hasn’t dissolved with age, Sebastian.”

Sebastian manages an easy laugh at her retort, the clipboard coming from the wall and into his hands. His mind running off with thoughts on just how long he could keep her here, at St. Mungos, under healer advisement. Keep her here with him, take away any chance for her to bolt back out of his life, give him a chance to make things right.

“Quite the opposite, really. I’m surprised I don’t fall over with how big my head is.”

MC rolls her eyes, muttering something about it’s so full of air I’m surprised you don’t float away. Her gaze falling to the clipboard in Sebastians’ hands.

“You’re not keeping me here, are you?”

Sebastian glances away from the form in his hand, and at MC’s scowling face ready for a fight. He lets out a heavy sigh as he drops the clipboard, and crosses his arms over his chest, giving her his best stern look of authority.

“You were cursed, MC, and you lost a decent amount of blood.”

The Healer should have known better than to expect MC to see logic and sense. She bristled at his words, swinging her legs from the bed with a look of determination. Sebastian half-hoped she’d wobble as she stood, then he could at least feel justified in his desire to keep her here.

No such luck. MC stood in a firm stance, and then pranced around the small room. As if to prove she was well and able to get the hell out of this place. Sebastian couldn’t stop the chuckle that escaped him at her antics that were bordering on playful. She continued moving around, glaring at Sebastian all the while. Though luck was back on his side, when she attempted a spin. The motion giving way to a bout of dizziness that had Sebastian catching her with a small, exasperated, laugh.

Sebastian guided her back to the bed, a look of triumph on his face as she blinked slowly, trying to steady the whirling inside of her head. He raises his arms in innocent submission when he tries to help her onto the bed, which had earned him a deadly glare.

“Habit, MC. This is my job after all.” He defends himself with a signature smirk, the corner of his mouth tilting slightly upward. MC made a sound in her throat, as she settled back on the bed, her glare unsubsiding.

“Yes, well. I still feel as though I’m alright to leave, Healer Sallow. I promise not to spin in circles like a buffoon for the foreseeable future.”

Sebastian hummed thoughtfully, doing everything he could to avoid looking at her face, each time he had since her return to the world of the living, it felt like the vice around his heart tightened further, stealing the air from his lungs. He busied himself with his clipboard, flipping the pages of parchment as if searching for something.

“Oh? No apparating? No traveling by Portkey? Going to travel like a proper muggle are you?” When his words got no snarky defense from the girl lying on the bed, he forced himself to look at her and fixed his tone back to Healer, rather than something akin to a friend. “I can’t force you to stay, MC, but I’d feel much more comfortable if you, at the very least, stuck around for just a few more hours. Until I am absolutely certain you are alright.”

MC heaved a dramatic sigh, huffing and puffing as she made a show of getting comfortable on the bed. Her eyes narrowed in his direction all the while, looking much more like a petulant child than a fearless Auror. Sebastian took her silent movements as an agreement, under the assumption this is the best he would get from the prideful girl.

“Oh come now, MC, no need to pout. Come on, sweetheart, give me a smile.” That did the trick, Sebastian thought, as he watched the fire light in her eyes once again at his words, her head whipping around to face him. Though, before she had a chance to speak or curse, Sebastian continued on. “Would you like to hear a joke? Always seems to cheer up my pouting patients, though they’re usually children… but I suppose with your current behavior you’re one and the same.”

He gave her a cheeky grin to counter her deadly glare.

This is nice, he thought to himself, Just like we’re fifteen again.

“If looks could kill…” The Healer muttered, his smile unfading. “Now, What’s a vampire's favorite ship?” He let the start of his joke hang in the air, completely aware that MC would not offer up the punchline. He delivered it with a theatrical grin and open hands. “...A blood vessel.”

MC met his joke with a loud groan, her eyes closed but the hint of an exasperated smile on her face.

“Please, Sebastian. Six years later and your jokes still suck?”

Sebastian’s heart pounded in his chest, six years, since they had seen one another. It had been even longer since the two of them had been anything that could be considered remotely close. He knew this, of course. The thought plaguing his brain whenever he was still, whenever he couldn’t fill it with his work, or distract himself with pretty witches he found in pubs.

It was hearing it from her mouth, in her words, that had his hands pausing from where they had been scrawling a note to send to the Alchemy lab. They trembled now, with a mix of anticipation and dread. Sebastian took a deep breath, his exhale slow, the sudden reality settling on his chest and clearing his head of anything but his need to fix this, to bring her back. He tapped the parchment with his wand, watching it fold itself up into the shape of a bird before flitting towards the door. He walked over to release it into the corridor, allowing it to continue to its destination.

Sebastian slowly shut the door, turning back around to face the girl he had been desperately and painfully missing for the better part of a decade, who was now two feet away from him with a small smile on her face, from his dreadful joke. The click of the door closing again seemed to suck all of the air out of the small room, and that smile was fading now, MC picking up on the sudden, awkward tension.

He ran his hand over the back of his neck, awkwardly. Wondering how the hell one even starts a conversation such as this. He decides that’s exactly where to start. All these years later, after all of the mistakes and avoidance and emotional immaturity, the only thing that needed to be said was the truth, and Sebastian decided that would start now.

No matter how awkward and tense the conversation may be, Sebastian was not going to give up this chance, perhaps his only chance at saying what he had been wanting to say for years. He had to do it for himself, and for the hope that still flickered in his heart for them, together.

“MC… I… I don’t even know where to start with this… with me… and you… and us.”

He clears his throat again, forcing down the growing lump of emotion that was threatening to overcome him. His gaze flicked from where he had taken a sudden interest in the stone floor, to MC, who was now white as a sheet and her chest heaving, in quick and short bursts.

Sebastian continued on, certain that her demeanor was from him, his words, and not remnants of the curse she had befallen. He pulled the chair meant for visitors of patients, and slid it close to her bedside, seating himself on it. Moving his eyesight to his sweating hands clasped in front of him, away from the girl staring at him with wide eyes.

“Suppose the best place to start is with an apology… though I don’t think there’s anything I can say or do that would even come close to proving to you how sorry I am. For how I treated you, how I let myself pull away from you… and never even tried to come back.”

He paused to swallow, to try and work something into coherency in his head. He startled when MC swung her legs off the side of the bed to face him head on, her voice seeming much louder than it was in the silent room.

“What are you talking about, Sebastian?”

Her words left him reeling with confusion, and he managed to make himself look at her, slightly above him with her position on the bed. MC’s face was concerned, laced with confusion that only served to deepen his own.

“I.. um.” Perhaps she had forgotten? Or this had only been a heartbreaking journey for him? Perhaps his last two years in school, drowning in grief had addled his brain? His recollection?

He didn’t know the answers, and his racing pulse seemed to quicken even further. Still, he had to keep trying. He couldn’t, wouldn’t let her leave again. Not without hearing everything he had always meant to say, before it had been too late. Sebastian ran his hands down his face, as if to wipe away the confusion, the anxiety and he heard her take a deep, shaking breath just as he had minutes ago.

When he removed his hands, MC was meeting his gaze. Her eyes now swimming with tears of her own. They were mirrors of one another. Hands clasped in laps, pulses racing, cheeks twinged pink, eyes filled with tears threatening to fall. The Healer was certain, if he concentrated just hard enough, he would be able to hear the sounds of their hearts pounding in the silent room.

They kept a locked gaze for a beat, before she closed her eyes, a look of anxious determination crossing her face as she did so. As if willing herself to trudge on.

Then, she touched him.

She leant forward, to curl her fingers around his shoulders, over the stains of her blood still present on his robes, as if to steady him, steady both of them. Despite the air leaving his lungs at the feeling of her hands on his body, no matter how innocent the touch, He felt his pulse evening out. The look in her eyes was full of hurt and concern, not anger or resentment.

“Have you… thought this… us… was your fault all this time? That you were solely responsible for… this?”

Her words settled in his mind, exacerbating his confusion, because of course he was. This was all his fault, just as everything that had transpired in their schooldays was his fault. The look on his face must have betrayed his thoughts because as his mouth opened, ready to spill everything. She cut him off with a laugh, an incredulous look on her face as she looked past him. Sebastian could nearly see the gears turning in her mind, he waited for her to return from whatever recesses of her mind she had retreated too before he tried speaking once again.

Once again, being cut off by the girl he knew he was still desperately in love with.

“I’m sorry. I’m not laughing at you, not really anyway. I just… am baffled that you have spent the better part of ten years believing that the death of our friendship rested entirely on your shoulders.”

Sebastian was the one feeling dumbfounded. He had been the one to seal himself away from anyone who tried to show him the tiniest bit of kindness after Solomon’s death. He had been the one to disappear nearly entirely when he got word of Anne joining their Uncle in an eternal rest. It had only been Ominis that he allowed to stand by his side as he buried her beside Solomon, if only as yet another offering of remorse for his actions that brought them all to that moment.

Of course the distance between Sebastian and MC was entirely his fault. He was the one who put it there, drove a wedge between them with his grief and his guilt. When he opened his mouth to say so, to explain, to accept the responsibility his voice was soft, and sincere.

“Because it was, MC. I was the one who disappeared. Who created this distance between us, built a wall and didn’t let anyone behind it. It was all entirely my fault. You were the one always chiding me about accepting the consequences of my actions, of my choices. That’s what I’m doing. Hoping that by doing so, we can… start over.”

MC took his admission with another breathy laugh, and a roll of her eyes. It had Sebastian contemplating what he possibly could have been missing from this equation. Why was she acting as though he was innocent? As though he had done nothing to cause this rift between them? Was it Pity? The thought of the girl he had pushed away, pitying him was enough to create a pit the size of a graphorn in his stomach. When he spoke again, his voice was soft and shaking.

He steeled himself, and said the one thing he had always, viscerally, wanted to say.

“I loved you, MC. I still love you. Even when I was acting as though I couldn’t care less about you. I was in love with you. There’s a part of me that thinks that I always will be, which is why I need you to listen to me. Let me try and fix this! Because there’s also a part of me that still believes you love me too.”

His voice raised an octave, as passion flowed through him and his speech. Sebastian took another risk, taking her cold hands into his, his thumbs gently caressing the unbelievably soft skin on the backs of her hands.

“Please.”

The tears that had been building in her eyes finally fell as Sebastian stared into her face with impassioned determination. He watched as they raced down her cheeks, falling onto their clasped hands. He watched as she took another shaky breath, squeezing her eyes shut tight.

“No, Sebastian. It was me. I left. I could have tried harder to be there for you when… after… Well, everything. But I didn’t want to. I was sick over how much you had lost because of me. I should have listened to Ominis when he told me not to encourage you with the relic. I should have stopped you from… I should have stopped you that night in the catacombs with Solomon. I could have and I didn’t.”

She takes a beat, to breathe deeply again.

“Then, Anne. Merlin. I… I just couldn’t… I couldn’t bear to… to be around you after she. After I couldn’t save her. The guilt of everything that was my fault, and seeing how hurt you were because of it all. I just… I distanced myself from you. It was me, Sebastian. I wanted this, because I was selfish and couldn’t accept what I had done, that I had played a part in all of your pain. Because I loved you too.”

The room was silent once again. Save for the sounds of their shared labored breathing, both of them trying to catch their breath after their passionate confessions and exclamations. Both of them trying to absorb the other's words. They had lived entirely separate lives, distanced themselves from one another because they both believed themselves to be at fault. If they could have just talked to one another, all those years ago, perhaps it wouldn’t have had to be this way. Perhaps MC wouldn’t have had to face death to see Sebastian again.

Sebastian was about to shoulder more blame, tell her how he could have chased her, could have tried harder once he had crawled out of his hole of grief stricken depression. Though before he could say anything, he was smiling softly, his eyebrow quirked with mild amusement and curiosity. He gave her hands a gentle squeeze.

“Loved? As in past tense?”

Despite it all, that incessant hope in his heart flickered still, and he held his breath while he watched her expression soften. Her hands dropped his, and she caressed his face with gentle fingers. “Don’t think I let myself think about it too much, or for too long… because it’s painful too. But I think you know that I do, still, love you, Sebastian.”

He did know, deep, deep down, but still, he wanted to hear her say it. It had been worth it, hearing those words from her mouth had his heart feeling like it was going to burst forth from his chest. The tears of guilt and anxiety now replaced with tears of joy he had not felt in a long, long time. It felt as though the weight of the entire world was lifted from his chest, like he was breathing fresh air for the first time after months underground.

Sebastian stood up, to hold MC’s face in his hands and stare into her eyes, hoping that she could sense his sincerity.

“We were both stupid kids. Didn’t know what the hell we were doing, I’m still sorry, and I will forever blame myself for us being in this position now… but we’re not kids anymore. Do you think… Do you think we could do this? Fix this? Be together?”

He was nervous to ask, but the look in her eyes wasn’t dowsing his hope, it was igniting it. Her lips slowly curled into a smile, and her voice was soft, and as sincere as he felt.

“I’d like to try.”

No sooner had the words left her mouth when his lips were pressing against hers, his fingers moving to tangle into her hair, still caked with her own blood. Some part of Sebastian expected to feel sparks, or some dramatic swell of emotion that made him weak in the knees, but the kiss settled into his heart like he’d been dosed with a calming draught, like this is where he had always meant to be, with her lips on his.

Sebastian had been so lost in the moment, in this reconciliation with MC, he had forgotten he was at work, on shift, as a Healer. The thought had managed to weasel its way into his mind, ruining the passionate moment with MC, and it felt like he had been doused with ice water.

He pulled away with an apologetic smile, and his fingers still on her chin.

It had been just in time, as at that moment the door swung open, revealing his Trainee Healer, having returned with more vials of blood-replenishing potion he had ordered for MC. He hoped that the position they were discovered in could be seen as an innocent exam.

Sebastian managed to ignore the teasing grin MC was giving him, with her back to the Trainee. He met his fellow Healer halfway into the room and accepted the vials with a smile and a thank you before she left once again, shutting the door quietly.

When Sebastian turned back around, to set the vials onto the side table beside the bed, MC had laid herself back against the pillows, playing the role of innocent patient well.

He stood beside the bed, unable to fight his smile or the urge to caress her hair as he stood at her bedside. Sebastian tried putting himself back into the role of Healer, and not lovesick former school friend.

“My shift is up in a few hours. Will you behave and be a good patient until then? Please? We can… talk.”

MC gave him a mischievous grin, and made a show of settling herself into the bed.

“I suppose I can stick around for a few more hours. I’ll be sure to be the most needy patient you have ever had the misfortune of dealing with.”

Her teasing comment seemed to bring the oxygen back into the room, the tension dissipating instantly as he rolled his eyes and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. The tender moment making his heart swell, one he had had many a daydream about.

“I’d expect nothing less.” He slid the bottles of potion across the wooden side table, and closer to MC. “I’ll be back to make sure you take these. One every half an hour until I’m certain you have an adequate amount of blood back in your body.”

MC rolled her eyes, and Sebastian returned it with a grin before moving towards the door of the exam room and slipping outside. Before he fully left the room, he peeked back inside.

“Hey MC?” Once he had her attention, he said what he wanted to say. “I’m glad you got cursed today.”

Sebastian managed to close the door with a loud laugh, and made his way down the corridor towards his next patient, before he had to endure whatever scathing retort or hex MC undoubtedly had for him.

#sebastian sallow

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

Text

It's long, it's a little bit saucy, and it's here at last.

The conclusion of the Cursed!Sebastian ask.

Thanks to everyone who stuck with it, and I really hope you enjoy how I wrapped up this unexpected mini-fic. I had such an enjoyable time with this story, and I'm grateful to Anon for allowing me to write it!

Also, special shout out to @underthenightskydreamsneverdie for generously beta reading the ENDLESS ANGST that encompasses the first half of this.

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

VERY SLIGHT NSFW under the cut.

The Time We Have (Part Four/Finale)

"Yell at me all you like later. You're bleeding." Sebastian scolded MC as she teetered in front of him, focusing in on her still-dripping shoulder.

Blood was quickly pooling at their feet from the wound. Using her ancient magic to such an extent exacerbated it, but a Diffindo slice was far from the worst she'd endured from one of these matches. More bothersome than her stinging injury was the fact that Sebastian had been caught up in her troubles.

He could have died because of her carelessness.

"I have plenty of Wiggenweld back at the castle. We need to get you home. All manner of things stalk the forest this time of night." She groused, but he seemed content to ignore her warning entirely and pulled her shirt collar out of the way.

She hissed when the sticky fabric clung to her tender skin, and he muttered an apology before setting to work. The quiet mantra of healing spells that fell from his lips while his wand shed soothing, warm light along the laceration was calming. No one had touched her without ill-intent in months, and the way his hands worked so tenderly to hold her steady made her heart clench.

Desperately, she wished she could change the course of events. What she wouldn't give to have run to Sebastian the moment he recovered and shared every precious moment since then by his side. Life was cruel, however, and she was already far too greedy by allowing him to get so close.

She studied his face while he healed her, forehead creased in concentration. Handsome as always, but she hadn't allowed herself a close look at him since he'd returned to school.

Rather than lanky and fatigued, the Sebastian tending to her now had filled out to what a proper boy should look like. Sun-kissed skin to contrast his freckles and broad shoulders from helping in the fields, he was already tall before, but he positively towered over her now.

Lost admiring his features, she flinched when he slipped her shirt back over her shoulder and spoke, pleased.

"That's my girl." He praised, and she couldn't help the heat springing to her cheeks. His girl. "Try moving your shoulder and see if that did the trick."

Obediently, she rolled her shoulder a few times and nodded. "Thanks, that's much better. Where'd you learn such a spell? I don't recall us ever going over it in our studies."

Sebastian chuckled and winked at her, and if she hadn't been flustered before, she certainly was now. "I know plenty that you don't. One of the perks of only having healers as company for so long is that I had a lot of time to ask them questions."

"I'm glad for it then. Makes the task of getting you out of this forest much safer - the mongrels can track blood, you know." She said before unconsciously taking hold of his hand and pulling him alongside her out of the now-quiet clearing. "I'm sure you have a lot of questions, nosy thing that you are. I'll answer them if you can promise to remain silent as the grave until we are back at Hogwarts."

She knew it was an easy compromise for Sebastian despite his likely burning curiosity. Never one to leave a single stone unturned, the promise of information given freely in return for his compliance would be an easy sell. While it was certainly regretful that she would need to divulge everything to him, it would be worth it if it meant getting him safely back onto grounds.

The forest at night was no place for innocent students.

Recalling how he'd jumped in front of her in the arena, the pure fear she felt watching him face down those Ashwinders - instinctively, she laced her fingers tightly through his and pulled him closer to her as they walked.

The lingering effects of the Cruciatus were always such a bear to overcome, but she could deal with it later. For now, she needed to keep her wits about her and protect Sebastian.

The Room of Requirement left Sebastian in awe the moment she dragged him through the doorway. She couldn't help but let a small smile grace her face.

She'd always imagined how he might light up were she to ever show him her little sanctuary within the school - a lovely daydream that comforted her in her worst moments and grounded her when the burden of her choices became too much to shoulder. It helped to remind herself who she'd done it all for - why it was worth it.

All manner of bubbling cauldrons and rare plants were scattered throughout the cavernous room, and her smile grew when she noticed Sebastian had caught sight of her especially precocious Niffler rifling through one of the bookshelves. Sebastian reminded her distinctly of the first time she'd visited Honeydukes, the way he stared at everything in wonder.

While she wanted nothing more than to watch him explore, there were far more pressing matters to attend to. She was barely keeping herself upright by the time they'd reached the castle.

Leaving him to traipse up the stairs toward the loft that housed her bed, she flitted around snipping leaves and flowers from an assortment of plants before tossing them into a cauldron which was already brewing. The ink black smoke made her scrunch her nose every time she made it, a strong tang of licorice and iron burned at her eyes and nose.

Sebastian approached from behind while she stirred the potion, apparently finished with his exploration for the time being. That was fine with her, considering she did not feel up to explaining what she was doing with a Phoenix should he stumble upon her vivarium.

"Assuming that bedroom upstairs is where you've been spending your nights recently, considering how disheveled it is. Anne always complained that you never made your bed." He teased, peeking over her shoulder into the roiling cauldron. "You know, Ominis reckoned you'd been sleeping in a tent, so I'm relieved to - what in the fuck is that?"

When a particularly large plume of smoke wafted up into his face, Sebastian recoiled and covered his nose. He glared at the pungent brew like it had personally offended him, eyes watering.

She scoffed. "If you think it smells foul, you should taste it."

As if to prove her point, she spooned some into a mug and plugged her nose before downing it in a few large gulps. Her brows furrowed, and she shivered, slamming the empty cup back down on the table and looking up at him wryly. For as vile as it was, the effects were blessedly immediate.

Despite the bitter burn on her tongue, warmth coursed through and eased every inch of her. She couldn't help the relieved sigh as each of her muscles finally relaxed.

"Helps with the tremors from the Cruciatus. I always keep the base potion brewing fresh." She explained before motioning for him to follow her to a large couch - she snorted when he gaped at it curiously. They both knew it hadn't been there a moment ago.

They took a seat together, but she tried to ball herself up against the arm of the couch. She wouldn't dare to touch him again, afraid even their current proximity might be enough to taint him.

She tensed when she saw him frown deeply at the invisible wall she built between them, but relaxed when he made no move to close the distance. It was physically painful to be so near him, craving his touch and closeness in a way she could never let herself ask for. She wondered if perhaps he also wished to reach out to her - an insatiable, selfish part of her hoped he did.

Ever since that snowy afternoon in Feldcroft, bundled together above the river, she wanted nothing more than to be near him again. For his sake, she couldn't give in to that temptation. She'd cured him, and now he needed to live his life at last. Forget her and make up for all the wonderful memories he'd already missed out on. She could stand the loneliness as long as Sebastian could finally thrive as he deserved.

"Go on and ask your questions then. I won't lie to you. Clearly, avoiding you hasn't done much good to keep you from danger, so perhaps explaining things clearly will serve to scare you off." She said bitterly, upset with herself for allowing him to get too close again, like she had at the end of summer when she'd written to him in a moment of vulnerability. She must have been stupid.

"Scare me off? Yeah, alright. Let's start there. One day, you're professing your love to me - asking to just be happy while we can - and the next, you're fighting goblins and ignoring all my letters. You didn't even care that my curse was gone." His temper flared while he spiraled into a tirade, unable to mask the hurt her neglect had caused him. "Or was it that you only liked me while I was cursed? Is that it? Have a little fling with the dying boy, and then once you're rid of me, you can move on. Some great, tragic love story for your reputation as the Hero of Hogwarts."

The damage she'd done was apprently devasting, and it was jarring to hear Sebastian, confident and clever to a fault, voice his insecurities. Just another sin to add to her ever-growing list of crimes against him and everyone else who'd been foolish enough to allow her into their lives.

Never in their time together had he spoken to her with such animosity. It stung, but she would take all of his outrage gladly. She'd done her best to earn it, after all. Guilt needled her for causing him more grief in a life already rife with misery.

"I'm sorry." She said pathetically, and he remained quiet so long that she wasn't sure he'd even heard it. She kept her head bowed, far too ashamed to look at him. She didn't deserve to.

"You're sorry? Why? Because I'm right?" He asked sullenly.

Clearly, no longer concerned with treating her delicately, Sebastian suddenly grabbed both her shoulders in his hands and roughly turned her to finally face him. She gasped, surprised.

"Say something already. Please. I can't take it any longer." He begged, and the way his wide-eyed, shattered look mirrored her own broke her entirely.

She was so unbearably selfish in how she missed him even more desperately while he was right in front of her. It hurt.

"I'm sorry because you're so incredibly wrong, Sebastian." She choked out finally and wiped her sleeve across her face, sniffling softly. "Gods, I wish you were right."

"Then what? You promised to answer me." He asked, exasperated. "I've been worried sick over you - we all have. Just talk to me. I can help. I love you."

Any semblance of composure she was trying to maintain crumbled, and she melted into him in a puddle of sobs. Momentarily caught off guard, Sebastian regained sense quickly enough to take her into his arms and just hold her while she soaked his shirt through with her endless cries.

He sat with her, soothing his hand through her tangled hair and across her still blood-stained back while she worked to calm herself. Even in her current state, he held her like she was something far too precious. She hated it - hated herself for letting him comfort her. Unable to pull away, she simply cried against him.

When her distraught wails finally subsided to little more than the occasional sniffle, she felt him urge her to sit up properly and look at him.

Staring at him with red-rimmed eyes and a face flushed from her outburst, he couldn't resist planting a kiss to the top of her head, and then both of her cheeks, and finally risking it all he dared to peck her lips last. She didn't pull back but rather leaned into him before realizing what she was doing. Then she tensed, and he broke away.

"If you don't talk, I'll do that again." He teased, but his voice came out cracked, and his smile faltered when he caught the flicker of panic in her eyes. His hands fell from her face to his lap.

But then she tried to smile back - a crooked, broken thing, but the awkward upturn of her lips was unmistakable. She thought she must look absurd - smiling felt so foreign, and she couldn't recall the last time she'd done it. Probably back in Feldcroft.

So he still felt some affection for her. It made her heart bloom fuller than she'd felt in months. She knew she shouldn't delight in it the way she did, but a small, hopeful voice encouraged her to relish in it.

"Much as I'd actually enjoy that, I did promise you answers. You've given me the courage to tell you, I suppose, so I'm going to run with this momentum if that's alright?" She asked, and he nodded.

"Fig's dead... because of me."

Once she started, it was like the floodgates to months of trauma and tragedy opened, and there was no stopping the rambling explanation as it tumbled from her mouth. Sebastian listened patiently while she recounted everything, from the moment she'd left Feldcroft that winter.

Rookwood, after kidnapping her, had confessed to cursing Sebastian. Took pride in it. He'd been in league with Ranrok, and unfortunately, Sebastian found himself simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. She hadn't known it at the time, but when she killed him, Sebastian's curse was lifted.

"I only realized weeks later when I stumbled across that book I sent you. Apparently, some curses can only be lifted by taking the life of the caster. It explains why you woke up healed after I - " She faltered.

"After you killed him." Sebastian finished for her, and she winced.

"Like I said, I didn't know that at the time. The whole thing was a whirlwind, and by the time I returned to Hogwarts with the key to the repository, Ranrok's forces were bursting through. I didn't think I had a choice." She closed her eyes, straining under the weight of recalling.

Sebastian shifted forward, eager. She hesitated, not wanting to relive her greatest regret, but he reached over to take her hands in his and gave them a reassuring squeeze.

"I had the choice - take the magic from the repository and use it against Ranrok, or leave it and face him with my own strength. Professor Fig - he stood by my decision, but I knew he didn't agree with it." She said wistfully. "Just before I opened it, he told me... how he loved me as his own. How I reminded him of Miriam and the child they'd always dreamed of having. That when it was all through, he'd take me in. I'm sorry to say that my new moniker at Hogwarts is a misnomer - my actions were far from heroic."

She braced herself for the inevitable conclusion. Once it was all out in the open, he would finally withdraw from her when he realized what she was.

Fig had died shielding her when the repository came crashing down, and she'd been unable to control her new magic. Her own mentor was killed by her recklessness.

"I can't recall much of what happened after. I was simply down there, alone with Fig's corpse. Ranrok was dead by my hand - or rather, whatever the magic I stole did to him."

"Fig knew what he was doing. I'd have done the same." Sebastian assured her, confident. "You can't blame yourself. You couldn't have known what would happen. Guilt over his sacrifice - after you saved everyone, lest you forget that part - it's no reason to run away how you did."

"You say that, but there's more to it than simply ignorance over what it might do to Fig." She continued. "I've told you my theories before, but now I know. That magic truly was crafted from all the miserable suffering Isidora spent years bottling into that wretched container. Even now, I feel it living and writhing within me. Like a parasite - it feeds on suffering, Sebastian."

She withdrew her hands from his to wrap them around herself, but he chased her, unwilling to allow her to retreat into herself again. He pinned her back against the cushions and leaned down to tap his forehead against hers. Blinking back tears, she looked up at him, defeated.

"Stop pulling away from me. I'll stay with you for as long as you need, but you're going to have to tell me clearly what's happened. That's the only way I can help you fix whatever is going on."

Nearly an hour later, and she'd finally done it. Bared her scarred soul and every disgusting sin she'd committed.

Sebastian, expression unreadable throughout her explanation, waited patiently and occasionally probed with questions while she spoke. He remained draped on top of her, head resting on her chest, and arms circled protectively around her waist, giving her the courage to continue rambling on.

It was the first time she'd really spoken to anyone about her life since her fight against Ranrok, and as reluctant as she was to start, she was now more reluctant to stop.

That she'd opened the repository and willingly become a vessel for dark and ancient magic for Sebastian's sake. To remove his curse as she'd watched Isidora do in a memory. The despair she fell into when she realized how futile it was - he was already cured. Fig was dead because of her ignorance, and she had nothing to show for it.

The way the magic she hosted gnawed away at her, demanding to be used. If she didn't unleash it, she grew dangerous - mind clouded by its living desire to hurt. How it craved to steal into her classmates and wreck them as it had done to her. Drag every bit of feeling they had into itself to grow its power.

The only way she'd found to control it - control herself - was to find more suitable targets. At first, wiping out poacher camps worked well enough. At least her guilt could be staved off when she managed to save a few beasts. So efficient was her hunt, however, that even those grew scarce over the summer. Firewhiskey did little to numb the constant thrum of magic in her veins.

That was when she stumbled upon the fighting arena. It was a treasure trove of opponents she could brutalize without guilt. In turn, the injuries and curses she suffered at their hands were a delicious punishment - one she happily embraced in some sick attempt to repent for what she'd done.

The first time she was hit by a Cruciatus Curse was blissful torture. Fresh, raw pain that drowned out her own constant ache and that damn ancient magic always nagging her. It gave her something to focus her entire being on - undistracted.

"If you're always in need to be at these illicit fighting rings, why were you without any wiggenweld tonight? No proper healing magic in your arsenal as far as I can tell, either. " He asked, brows furrowed in frustration. "On top of that - you've been hit by that damned curse more than once? Why not keep that disgusting potion of yours on hand if you're expecting it?"

"Soft-hearted as you are, it may come as a surprise to you that each time I find myself unfortunate enough not to die in those fights, the least I can do is have the decency to suffer a little on my walk back here." She said bitterly. "That's that, though. Nothing more to the past few months, I'm afraid."

His previously calm expression slipped and contorted into a grimace before he swiftly pulled off her and stood up. He paced away, back turned to her, and disappointment competed with relief that he may finally be through with her now that he knew what she was. What her blind devotion to him had driven her to become. Of course the blood on her hands repulsed someone so pure.

"Fuck!" He shouted suddenly, and she flinched and sat up when he slammed his fist so hard against the cauldron table it nearly splintered.

Watching him glare at the dregs of char-black potion, she wondered briefly if he might throw the cauldron next. Of course, she'd allow him to wreck the room in its entirety if it brought him some comfort. He deserved that much, at least for everything she'd put him through.

His curse, after all, was related to the magic she now willingly hosted.

White-knuckle gripping the side of the table, he looked up at her, distraught. Her heart plummeted - she'd put him in this state. Hurt him yet again. Caused his tears to spill.

More than anything, she wanted to wipe them away and comfort him the way he had done for her, but when she looked down at her hands - blood and dirt still caked under the nails - she couldn't fathom marring his pristine soul with her own touch.

Then his hands overlapped with hers again, warm and soft touch contrasting with her own cold and calloused fingers. She took a deep, shuddering breath, not realizing she was crying again when she looked up to find him kneeling next to her, looking at her with an expression she was wholly unfamiliar with. It wasn't fear or disgust or anger.

Pity. Regret.

She choked back a sob, and he lifted his hands to pull her into a crushing embrace. She tried to push away, but he only pinned her tighter against his chest until she gave up, weak from the strain of everything coming to a head that night.

She was so tired of fighting - she didn't want to. If she could just finally die there, wrapped in his warmth and listening to his heartbeat, she would never wish for anything else.

"I've wasted so much time uselessly waiting for you to come back, and you've been trapped in this hell by yourself." He fingers dug painfully into her back, but she relished the way it grounded her to him. "What the fuck have I even been doing? You've endured all this time for my sake and I've simply allowed it."

Always compassionate, even when he was the victim. It was one of Sebastian's most endearing and frustrating qualities.

"Please, Sebastian. I've answered your questions, you need to - "

"If you're honestly about to suggest I leave you in this state... " He sighed heavily against the top of her head. "Can't you just put it back?"

She tilted up to balk at him. "Put it back? Do you even hear yourself?"

"Right, you're right. Of course you've tried. It was a silly suggestion." He said apologetically.

"Professor Fig died for it. Why in Merlin's name would I ever do a ridiculous thing like throw it away? I deserve this." She asked again, offended.

At once, Sebastian stiffened and roughly placed both hands on her cheeks. He might have laughed at how absurd she looked with her face squished like that, but he was in utter disbelief, and she felt a jolt of panic at the vexed look he shot her.

That was an expression she hadn't seen since he'd scolded her for nearly an hour last fall when she saw fit to fly to Feldcroft in a lightning storm.

She was in for it.

"I'm trying to decide whether you're more idiotic or self-sacrificing at the moment." He muttered, obviously annoyed. "Fuck's sake, I'll never understand how you weren't sorted into Gryffindor considering the way you behave so irresponsibly."

"P-pardon?" She asked, stunned that he had just called her idiotic of all things.

In an instant, he was on his feet and hauling her up with him by the wrist. Dragging her toward the exit of the room, he tugged harshly on her arm each time she tried to stop him.

He turned his head to stare at her wearing that same look of bewilderment. "Repository. Now."

Sebastian nudged her forward toward the silver sphere, and she stumbled a bit in her daze.

"You've been staring at the damn thing for ages now. Go on and give it a try already." He said impatiently.

It felt odd being back there. She hadn't ventured into the repository or anywhere near the Keepers since her abysmal failure that night. Now, the room where her entire life upended seemed eerily calm.

She looked back toward Sebastian, and he nodded encouragingly.

"It's okay. You don't need to punish yourself. Old Fig's probably rolling over in his grave, watching you suffer the way you have."

Hesitantly, she reached her hand up and nearly touched the goblin metal but pulled it back quickly.

She took a step back, away from it, shaking her head fantically. "Sebastian, I can't. I can't do this. It's not - "

His hand latched onto her wrist again and yanked it upward, his other planted firmly around her waist as he pushed up against her, walking them both toward it.

"You can, and you will. Gods, you're shaking like a leaf." He whispered, sliding his fingers gently up from her wrist to hold her palm. He pressed a kiss against the back of her head. "You saved me. Let me do the same for you now."

And she did let him.

His hand guided her to brush against the repository, and the flood of ancient magic ripped free of her and back into its prison instantaneously.

For the tremendous pain it caused her when she initially took it in, and for the momentous burden she endured carrying it with her all that time, returning it felt almost lackluster. She expected to feel like something was being torn from her, the way it had burrowed into her soul. But there was nothing but a sense of weightlessness as it left.

When she felt herself depleted of all but the small amount of ancient magic she innately possessed, she let their arms drop to the side and stumbled a bit, no longer enjoying the raw strength provided to her by Isidora's magic. She felt drained.

No sooner had she finished than Sebastian spun her around to face him. He descended on her at once, peppering every bit of her he could reach in a flurry of kisses while he showered her in praise. Eventually, she laughed and told him to stop already before he sent them both tumbling into the depth below with his depravity.

He laughed with her, and she'd missed the sound so much. Everything seemed so much more vibrant now - the chocolate brown of his eyes and the bright green of his robes.

"I can't help myself. I'm just so proud of you, love." He beamed at her, and it truly seemed he couldn't help himself when he descended on her yet again to kiss her fully one more time before pulling back.

"Proud of me? For being incredibly idiotic, as you so aptly phrased it?" She grimaced, wondering precisely why she had been so eager to isolate herself for so long.

"While I suspect your ancient magic had a role to play in your rather uncharacteristic behavior, don't think we're through discussing it." He told her, disapproving. "I'm proud of you, my beautiful, brave girl, for everything you've accomplished here tonight. That, and countless other things that I'll be happy to remind you of when we're back in that curious little room of yours."

Whatever guilt she felt earlier that made her fear tarnishing Sebastian with her touch had vanished somewhere into the repository with the rest of the negative energy consuming her, and she returned his affection with full force the moment the door to the Room of Requirement closed behind them.

Looping her arms around his neck, she pulled him down to meet his lips easier - he really was much taller than her now - and she felt him smile against her mouth.

He teased his hand along her hip and brushed a finger across the skin just under her blouse hem. When she gasped, he took advantage of her parted lips and slipped his tongue inside her mouth, hungrily claiming her soft whimpers while he took his time tasting her.

She worried, briefly, that the lingering flavor of that bitter potion from earlier might put him off, but any insecurities flew promptly out the window when his other hand hook around her midsection and pulled her firmly up to him on her tiptoes.

She stole a groan from him when her fingers wound through his hair, scratching gently along his scalp and neck, and she suddenly felt far too warm for the chilly room.

And then she was entirely weightless when he scooped her up, not breaking the kiss, and carried her over to the couch, mindful not to stumble with her in his arms.

Playfully tossing her onto it, he grinned down at her disheveled state before climbing on top to straddle her. He leaned down to kiss her again but stopped just short of meeting her lips.

"I swear this thing was on the other side of the room last time we were here." He muttered, patting the cushion under her.

She realized a breathy laugh. "Leave it to you to take a break from kissing me absolutely senseless to comment on the furniture, Sebastian."

"Have to keep myself distracted. Otherwise, you might find me charming you out of these absolutely filthy clothes rather than talking about your mysterious seating arrangement." He teased, reaching a hand up to toy with the top button of her blouse.

She lifted her fingers up to meet his and deftly slid the button free, then the two underneath it, eagerly taking in the look of shock on his face at her boldness. Then it was gone, replaced by something akin to hunger, and he descended on her newly exposed skin without warning.

Licking and grazing his teeth along the top her chest, she moaned when he bit down roughly on the tender hollow of her throat, soothing the mark with his tongue before moving on to do much the same to the rest of her that was readily available to him.

Once her entire neck and collarbone were tingling with a lovely array of red, claiming brands, Sebastian shifted himself to rest his forehead against hers, both gasping heavily for air. The way he looked at her would have had her melting if he wasn't still holding her, she was sure.

"There's so much we have to talk about, I know. But right now... you have no idea how long I've wanted to have you to myself. Just like this." He said, and she shivered delightedly when his fingers danced along the skin of her exposed stomach, blouse having been hitched up at some point during his assault on her throat.

"Covered in blood and smelling like rotten pine trees?" She couldn't help but poke fun a bit, wanting desperately to hear him laugh again. She would never get tired of the sound.

He did grace her with his laugh, and the sound warmed her heart.

"I'll have you any way I can, but I have to have you. I can't wait any longer." He pleaded, and now she decided that the sound of him begging for her was perhaps even more lovely than his laugh.

She raised her hips to grind against him, drawing a particularly loud growl from his throat as she pressed into his hardness. Heat pooled between her legs, and she whined, needy.

"Then take what's yours, Sebastian."

It had been a long night, and she really did want to get out of that stifling uniform.

Those arduous months while she housed Isidora's cursed magic felt like a fever dream, and the memory of it all faded more each and every day - replaced by new and far better experiences shared with Sebastian, and her friends, all of whom did their utmost to make the most of their remaining time together in school.

"Can't believe seventh year is almost halfway finished." Sebastian lamented, staring up at the clouds over the Black Lake with his hands behind his head. "Feels like I've hardly gotten to enjoy Hogwarts.

MC hummed in agreement from her spot next to him on the grass. "Doesn't seem fair, does it? Everyone else had a full seven years here. You and I are no more experienced than a couple of younger years."

He turned to look at her. "You know, sometimes I forget you only started out as a fifth year, the way you took to it all like a fish to water. Feels like I've known you a lifetime as well."

"I know what you mean. I don't particularly care to recall the days before we met. It terrifies me to think of what might have happened had Anne not taken a shine to me and brought us together."

"Ah, another anxious nightmare my subconscious had yet to realize - thanks for that." He shot back sarcastically.

She laughed, nudging him with her shoulder. "Well, how else am I meant to best your scores during N.E.W.T.s besides distracting you with dreadful what-ifs?"

He raised an eyebrow at that. "You, my dear, have little to worry about in regards to N.E.W.T.s - I know, because I'm the only one willing to tolerate your rigid study schedule. Keep up with your little threats against my grades, however, and I'll pitch you into the lake right now."

She rolled over onto her side, resting her cheek on her hand while she gazed at him with a wicked look.

"You would toss your beloved into the lake while she's wearing her white blouse?"

Sebastian grinned at her, letting his eyes intentionally wander over her form far longer than was appropriate before snaking his hands around her waist.

"I was already tempted, but now you've sold me on the idea."

With a shriek, she felt him lift her effortlessly over his shoulder and begin walking toward the water, both of them laughing.

It was still her favorite sound, and she would make the most of their many years ahead to hear it as often as she could.

#sebastian sallow

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

Text

PART THREE OF THREE FOUR OF THE CURSED!SEBASTIAN ASK

Sorry, this is somehow now a four part story.

I will have the LAST AND FINAL CHAPTER up soon. I swear. The next installment is ACTUALLY AND HONESTLY the resolution.

These kids had a mind of their own.

Can't stop won't stop.

Part One

Part Two

The Time We Have (Part Three)

Summer bore little in the way of communication from MC, but Anne and Ominis provided a much needed distraction for Sebastian. They'd made it their personal mission to ensure he wouldn't flounder as a sixth year - having effectively missed two entire years of schooling.

With just a few days left until term, he was quite confident that he wasn't lacking for education or skill, in no small part due to the fact he read constantly while confined to his bed.

There was another reason for how quickly he picked everything back up, however.

"I can't help but feel we've done little more than serve as your training dummies this summer, Sebastian." Ominis whined as they walked back from the field.

"What can I say? I have a natural talent for spellcasting." Sebastian gloated.

Anne kicked a stray rock at him and said, "Or perhaps it's to do with the fact you enjoyed the company of a private tutor all last year?"

"Anne!" Ominis hissed, but the damage had already been done.

Sebastian's steps slowed to a stop, and he spun to look at them. "Things will be fine once we're back at Hogwarts - she may have given you two flobberworms the slip, but she can't avoid me."

"Oh? And what makes you so special?" Anne challenged skeptically.

"I'm irresistible. One look at me, and she'll be back by my side in no time." He winked, causing the other two to groan loudly.

It was true - he could still hear the way she'd called him devastatingly handsome. The way she blushed and whimpered so prettily when he kissed her.

The memory had evolved from something tender and innocent - a lingering romance before he shed his mortal coil - into a hormone-driven monstrosity that he was now eager to feed the next time he saw her.

Left with nothing but that one little memory of finally touching her, and a deep pool of wanting for months on end, Sebastian was more than ready to use his newfound health and vigor to chase her down into some solitary corner of the castle and -

"So irresistible she hasn't sought you out once all summer?" Ominis asked.

Sebastian sputtered for a moment before bitterly defending himself. "She's at least written to me. What's she sent to either of you?"

Ominis and Anne both glared at him but said nothing. They couldn't, because he was right. With a victorious smirk, Sebastian spun back around and led the way back home.

MC had written to him over the summer - twice, in fact. Once, just two weeks after school ended, she'd sent an owl in the middle of the night. Solomon bellowed about it until they realized who it was from. That note had been brief as well, unfortunately, and contained little more than a cyptic declaration that Feldcroft should finally be safe to venture through at night again. She'd been right, of course, and they hadn't encountered any unsavory witches or wizards since.

The second letter found Sebastian just a week prior while he was out for a walk by himself. Her owl swooped down to him like it had been waiting to catch him alone to deliver a far longer message.

This one he kept to himself.

He suspected she may have been drunk while writing it, oddly enough. The way her normally tidy scrawl turned sloppy and her sentences rambled was a dead giveaway. The stain that reeked explicitly like firewhiskey in the bottom margin only served to fuel his suspicion.

Still, by the time he was through reading her confessions of loneliness, the regret she felt over everything that had transpired - and the way she still desperately loved him, his heart thumped so wildly in his chest he thought it might stattle her poor bird.

Sebastian wasted no time replying immediately, telling her she needed to come home - to him. She never responded after that, though, and she definitely didn't come back.

Still, it was certainly something. Enough to keep him confident that he hadn't somehow lost her devotion over the months they were apart. He clung tight to that letter, ragged and wrinkled from the hundreds of times he'd read it already. He could recite its contents from memory by now, but the pure elation he felt when he saw her affection poured out onto paper was indescribable.

It rested back home, in a box kept safely under his bed and stacked neatly on top of all the other letters she had sent throughout the past year.

It seemed to Sebastian that Anne and Ominis sorely under-exaggerated just how slippery of a target MC could really be. For as single-mindedly determined as he was to pin her down that first week back at Hogwarts, she seemed doubly hell-bent on vanishing. The flood of attention and well-wishers crawling out of the woodwork to greet him had only served to complicate matters, and he found it increasingly difficult to even catch her eye in class.

"Stubborn thing, isn't she?" He grumbled, having lost her yet again the second Potions was over.

"We tried to warn you, brother. She's infuriatingly skilled at dodging us." Anne said sympathetically.

"I tried staking out the Common Room last night, but you're right - she never came in. I don't think I've seen her there once since returning." He said, growing more frustrating.

Anne sighed and shook her head. "You won't ever find her in the Great Hall, either. We aren't sure where she's taking her meals, but Ominis and I even hung around the kitchens last year to see if we might catch her. No luck."

"Have you tried the Undercroft?"

"Have you tried the Undercroft?" Ominis mocked from behind them, catching up to the twins in the busy corridor. "Sebastian, we showed her the Undercroft."

"I showed her the Undercroft. You apparently had a tantrum where you - "

"There she is!" Sebastian exclaimed, and before either of them could react, he was already barreling down the hallway toward her.

He distinctly saw her eyes when she turned to look for the source of the commotion from his thudding footsteps and the indignant cries of classmates when he practically bowled through them. But then she spun back around and quickly darted around a corner.

"Wait!" He shouted and rounded the corner, not even a moment later.

But she was gone.

"Fuck."

"I told you we shouldn't have taught her the Disillusionment Charm!" Ominis panted out, catching up to Sebastian with Anne hot on his heels.

"Would you have her rob Gringott's in order to buy an invisibility cloak to skulk around the castle with us after hours, then?" She hissed, equally out of breath.

"Shut up already. Do either of you have another class with her today? My schedule is free for the afternoon." He asked expectantly, but neither of them spoke up.

He kicked Anne's shin, and she inhaled sharply. "What? You just told us to shut up!"

"Kick me, and I'll not tell breathe a word of her schedule." Ominis threatened, shuffling backward a bit.

"Would one of you just tell me something useful?" He groaned out, frustrated.

"Double History of Magic with me." Ominis answered, and he could practically feel Sebastian's disbelief. "We catch up on our sleep."

Sebastian woke with a start and panicked for a moment - waking up to the empty corridor outside of Binn's room was disorienting, to say the least. He heard the ghostly voice still droning on behind the door and thanked his lucky stars he hadn't slept through his plan when he heard class wrapping up.

Swiftly standing, he moved away from the door and cast the Disillusionment Charm on himself, and waited for the door to open. It almost felt like an invasion of her privacy, the way he was planning to quite literally stalk her. Still, he was fed up. They'd all given her plenty of space and time to herself, and he was going to get to the bottom of her odd behavior at long last.

The large, wooden door swung open and drowsy students poured out into the hallway, rubbing their eyes and stretching. Ominis was among them, hair disheveled from his nap while he hung toward the back of the group to avoid being jostled. Sebastian scoured the faces, intent on finding his prey.

There she was.

Very last to file out, she already seemed suspicious. The way her eyes cautiously took in her surroundings and how she squared her shoulders, it was like she was preparing for an ambush. She reminded him of a feral cat, lost in a sea of commotion and uncomfortably searching for escape.

This was not the same girl who used to sit on the edge of his bed, patiently reading aloud from textbooks to him and coaxing him into eating strange medicines like shrivelfigs. No - this witch was guarded and predatory in her movement as she skated between the throngs of students and down the corridor.

Careful not to be seen, Sebastian followed after her through the school and into the mostly empty courtyard. She darted behind a statue and rifled through her satchel for something before withdrawing a bundle of shimmering fabric.

An invisibility cloak? Now, where had she obtained a treasure like that?

She tossed it over herself and vanished from sight.

Fortunately, Sebastian was no stranger to tracking, having played hide and seek with Anne and Ominis in the woods for so many years. He was able to follow her footprints with ease, thankful that she didn't think to erase them in her haste to get off grounds.

He could glean where she was headed before they'd even gotten there and kept pace at a safe distance behind her as they entered the Forbidden Forest. The normally eerie atmosphere was even more foreboding as evening approached, and Sebastian felt a chill creep up his spine the further they ventured into the pines.

He had to contain a gasp when she suddenly appeared in front of him, ripping off the cloak and searching the area for something. He kept still, not even daring to breathe when her eyes passed over him a few times. As immediately as she'd stopped, she was quickly on the move again like she'd caught scent of what she wanted.

Mindful of any cracking twigs and dry leaves that might alert her, Sebastian persisted. He wanted desperately to reveal himself and drag her back, but he needed to get to the bottom of things once and for all.

The way she navigated the forest like she felt at home there, he could surmise this was where she ran off to every day. He wondered if she also slept here, amongst the death and decay rather than her dorm bed. That was a rather punishing thought.

Soon enough, Sebastian no longer needed to mind how much noise he made, as they entered through an especially shrouded valley surrounded by ancient, rotting trees. Screams and grunts echoed off the cliffsides as they descended down a narrow dirt path and grew louder the further they journeyed. A bright orange glow welcomed them when they rounded the final bend.

Sebastian gripped his wand tight in his hand, heart thumping wildly against his ribcage.

While he had no idea what to expect, he knew it wouldn't be good. This, however, was beyond his wildest nightmares.

Large bonfires lit the perimeter of what looked to be a makeshift arena. Spectators, some of which Sebastian recognized to be Ashwinders from the wanted posters around Hogsmeade, jeered at the duelists in the center of the pit.

Criminals, all of them. Both the fighters and the crowd were comprised of snarling faces he knew well from the front page of the Prophet - poachers, traffickers, and all manner of the filthiest dark witches and wizards inhabiting the underbelly of the wizarding world.

Briefly, Sebastian wondered if she might intend to wipe them out. She'd never been shy about telling him how she cleared Rookwood's camps, so it would only make sense for her to dispatch villains like these on sight. He readied himself to fight by her side.

But then a particularly nasty-looking wizard, features sharp and gnarled, strode over with a grin and clapped MC on the back like an old friend. He watched, unnerved, as she recoiled from the touch and shoved her wand tip into the man's throat. The older man held up his hands defensively.

"My apologies - forgot how touchy you can be." He said, cackling hoarsley against the pressure to his neck. "You here to make some more money, eh?"

MC pressed the wand harder. "Keep your fucking money. You know damn well why I'm here. Find me a better match than last time or I'll torch this entire operation."

The man tutted and stepped back, rubbing his neck. "Girls your age are supposed to be cute, you know."

"And men like you are supposed to be dead. Seems we're both rife with disappointment." She spat viciously. "My match."

Sebastian hardly recognized his friend. He could practically feel her murderous intent - rage toward the people surrounding her. He stood, transfixed and morbidly curious as to what she would do next.

The duelists currently in the arena cleared out quickly when she refused to wait any longer, stalking toward the center impatiently. They were bloodied and ragged but moved out of her way with haste.

Standing petulantly in the middle with her wand already drawn, she glared up at the spectators and waited for a challenger. No one made a move.

"Seems no one fancies taking their last breath tonight." The man from earlier, who Sebastian surmised was the event organizer, laughed.

"Ten thousand galleons to anyone who can survive the match." She called dryly.

Sebastian's legs nearly gave out when a wizard stood instantly at the offer and entered the ring. He recognized the man as another Ashwinder who had once been loyal to Rookwood, on the run from aurors for the atrocities he'd committed over the years. Ones against pretty, young witches just like the one he now towered over in the arena.

"What are your terms?" The grizzled man asked, a wicked gleam in his eye.

She looked bored almost, but Sebastian could see the way she subtly shifted back, away from the filthy man. She was uncomfortable, and her body language screamed that she would rather be anywhere but there. So why wasn't she running?

Stepping backward into position, she kept her gaze locked on the man and said, "Same as always - no rules, just live."

Without wasting another second, the two instantly found themselves locked into the most vicious duel Sebastian had ever witnessed. The goblins who'd assaulted Feldcroft months prior were nothing compared to the bloodshed in front of him.

Brutal curses flashed and exploded with little care for their surroundings, and Sebastian felt the air leave his lungs when MC was struck by a particularly nasty Diffindo across her shoulder. Still, she seemed unfazed and simply switched her wand to her unbloodied hand while she continued casting.

He'd always felt like he could duel with the best of them - had aspirations of being an auror like his uncle, even. Watching the duel in front of him then - a real fight between a felon and his monstrous friend - he now felt wholly different. This wasn't some match with his sister in the Crossed Wands. These two were out to kill each other.

With one arm now out of commission, MC looked to be a tick slower than before, and Sebastian could see her shielding more than attacking. Her opponent was gaining ground - forcing her backward with every sharp flick of his wand. He wondered if there might be an opening for him to jump in and pull her out - they hadn't noticed his presence yet, and he had the element of surprise. All he had to do was not be stupid.

But then he saw it.

A wand movement familiar to him only from the pages of the book on curses MC had gifted him. Cruel and jagged, like the hellish curse it unleashed. She couldn't defend against this one - he knew that too. The look of resignation in her eyes just before it landed told Sebastian that she also knew well what to expect.

Her raw screams ripped clear through the hushed valley when the Cruciatus Curse struck true. A hush fell over the crowd while they watched, with unsympathetic interest, as she writhed and wailed in the dirt.

Rendered speechless, Sebastian could only watch in abject horror as the man continued his cast - smiling.

This was an unforgivable - a crime punishable by life in Azkaban. The fact his victim was a young girl and a student no less would surely earn him the dementor's kiss. But no one made a move to stop him. Instead, they laughed at her suffering, watched with glee while he tortured her with a clearly practiced hand.

It couldn't have been more than a moment, but for Sebastian, it stretched on for an eternity too long, and before he knew it, he found himself charging into the arena.

"Bombarda!" He shouted, knocking the Ashwinder painfully back and effectively ending his concentration on the curse.

"Sebastian - " He heard her gasp out from behind him, but he kept his eyes and wand trained on her attacker.

"Stay down for now. I'll get you out of here." He told her with far more confidence than he realistically felt, but she didn't need to know that they were likely about to be killed.

The Ashwinder he'd hit wasn't stirring from his spot on the ground yet, but the spectators were approaching, displeased by his interruption. He'd disturbed their entertainment, and for as much as he hadn't intended on doing anything stupid, he now wondered if he could have made a worse choice if he tried.

Sebastian heard her whimper from behind him, and any hint of fear or regret his brain wanted him to feel for jumping in without a plan flew out the proverbial window. He'd rather die right there next to her than have let her suffer alone another moment. That said, he wasn't about to go down without a fight.

It was a long, tense moment before the arena organizer spoke up. His voice was strained and unsure.

"Thought you fought alone, Hero." The way he said the word - hero - was clearly meant to be a jab, and Sebastian prickled at the insult on her behalf.

"Alone? What pleasure do you sick lot derive from dragging a girl into the forest and torturing her?" He asked, furious.

No one argued, though - they laughed.

"Dragged her here? Is that what you think?" One of the witches cackled. "She comes strolling in every night to make a bloodbath, and you think she's the victim?"

"Shut the fuck up." MC grunted, the effort from trying to stand proving difficult.

Sebastian reluctantly ripped his eyes from the menacing group hovering around the perimeter to finally turn and steady her against him. Fortunately, she didn't resist his touch and leaned against him, still weak from the curse.

"I'm going to be honest. This is further than I planned for. We're winging it from here." Sebastian whispered to her. "Although, I must say if I survive this little encounter, I'll be taking you up on that ten thousand galleon offer - didn't specify whose side I needed to be on to win it."

He wanted to laugh at the exasperrated glare she shot him before turning her attention to the others.

"Don't give me that look, love. We'll let your little friend be on his merry way. Wouldn't dream of pissing off my favorite money-maker." The first man said warily, holding his hands up in mock surrender.

"Sorry, but I can't trust you now that you've seen his face." She said simply.

A hush fell over the arena, the words hanging tense and threatening around them like a shroud. Sebastian saw a witch's hand just barely flinch toward her wand.

At once, the air crackled the way it does when lightning is about to strike. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end, and his chest constricted from some unseen pressure. A blinding, purple-red flash exploded.

And then it was over.

Dead - all of them. Reduced to nothing more than ash.

He turned, stunned to see her irises the same color as the flash, but they quickly returned to their normal hue. He'd seen something similar once before while defending Feldcroft. Back then, she wielded a similar power to strike down a goblin soldier who'd been aiming at him with an axe. It had been dreadfully strong back then, but this display of potent death was overwhelming.

She looked both magnificent and terrifying as the air stilled around them, barely a hint of the massacre that had just unfolded besides the smell of burning that stung at his nose.

Interrupted before he could finish opening his mouth to speak, she said sharply. "You're a bit far from home, Sebastian."

#sebastian sallow

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

Text

The second part of the Cursed!Sebastian ask!

Part One can be found here.

I know I said this was going to be a two-part story... I lied. It's now three parts.

The Time We Have (Part Two)

That blustery afternoon after she departed, full of warmth despite their frozen surroundings, was a day that kicked off an unforeseen chain of events that took place that were simultaneously miraculous and tragic.

Sebastian, for all his grandstanding about being able to withstand a bit of cold, had, in fact, fallen quite ill the moment she'd left to return to the castle. He'd fainted, early in the evening, and hadn't woken up until nearly a full day later.

Unlike the other times he'd recovered from an episode, this time, he woke up feeling refreshed - healthy. It was the first time since before he was cursed that he could move and breathe freely. It seemed to have dissipated overnight.

Solomon, tentatively optimistic, summoned a healer to look him over where he was declared curse-free. In their celebration, he started to write a letter to Anne, asking her to bring MC and Ominis as quickly as possible - perhaps if they used the Floo they could visit for a while before returning in time to make curfew.

That was when he'd heard the news.

Anne's own owl arrived before he could even send his out the window, and Sebastian untethered the roll of parchment from its leg. He wondered briefly if the contents would be something along the lines of a lecture, in typical Anne fashion, scolding him for putting his hands on her dear friend the way he had.

Unfortunately, it was far worse than sisterly aggravation. The letter was brief, scribbled hastily, and with a shaky hand.

'Hogwarts went under siege last night. Professor Fig is dead - MC is in the hospital wing. The rest of us are safe.'

His heart sank - any elation he felt over the curse's mysterious disappearance was replaced by cold, sickening dread. Hogwarts, the safest place on earth and home to the people he loved most, had faced an attack. Their professor had died.

She was injured. How badly?

He scanned the few short sentences several more times for so much as a hint toward her condition, but no matter how desperately he searched, there was nothing.

The scant line about her, sandwiched ominously between news of Fig's death and the rest of us are safe. Did that imply MC was not out of the woods? Was her condition so dire?

"Sebastian, what's the matter? Is your pain returning?" Solomon asked, concerned.

"Uncle - " He said, panic rising. "We need to get to the school now."

Sebastian held out the now-crumpled letter, allowing Solomon to take it. He watched his uncle's expression furrow as the words sunk in, and they shared a look when he was finished.

"Fetch your cloak."

Sebastian always imagined how it might feel returning to Hogwarts. In his daydreams, he would be surrounded by scores of smiling friends, and they'd stay up late celebrating in the Common Room and causing all manner of mischief. Perhaps he'd even see if his skill at sneaking around the castle had gone rusty during the long period of bed rest, and he and Anne could head into the kitchens for some midnight snacks for everyone.

More recent fantasies now included sitting in that same common room with a certain witch who'd stolen his heart. She'd curl up next to him on one of the plush, emerald couches and they'd stay up far later than their peers, speaking in hushed whispers and sharing a kiss or two when no one was looking. Perhaps he'd even dare to steal her away somewhere quieter.

None of those precious dreams included the sight in front of him when he did finally manage to enter the school again, however.

Anne was perched, sniffling and miserable, in the chair next to her best friend's cot when Sebastian and Solomon were granted entry to the hospital wing by Professor Weasley, who'd only approved the unorthodox visit because the girl had no family to speak of. There was nothing joyful about the sterile room, and the only sound that echoed throughout its white tile walls were his sister's occasional cries.

MC was lying there, unmoving besides the light rise-and-fall of her chest while she slept. Bandages and dark, angry bruises covered most of what was visible on her body. Solomon took a single look at her before stepping away to find Nurse Blainey.

"What... " Sebastian started, words failing him.

"It was Ranrok." Anne spat bitterly, and Sebastian felt his heart plummet. "They found her in some chamber underneath the school. Fig was already dead by the time they got to them. The Professors know more than they're letting on, but for now, we have to wait until she wakes. Everyone who witnessed it has been infuriatingly tight-lipped. Even Ominis hasn't been able to find out much."

"What of Ranrok?" Sebastian asked, unsure what else to ask. His thoughts were swimming so quickly he felt dizzy and took a seat next to Anne.

"Dead. Same with the rest of his loyalists who invaded our school." She told him flatly.

He nodded, knowing Anne had no further answers to his growing list of questions. They watched their friend, battered and silent, rest under the cotton blankets for a while.

"Since Ranrok is the one responsible for my curse, I imagine his death is why it's been lifted." Sebastian mused grimly.

Anne tensed and suddenly turned to face him, looking at him with wide eyes. Telling her about the alleviation of his curse wasn't supposed to go like this, either.

"It's gone?" She whispered, searching his eyes for any hint of a lie or a joke.

He gave a small smile and nodded, and Anne clasped a hand over her mouth to stifle the relieved sob that escaped before she pounced on him, throwing her arms around his neck and crushing him in a hug.

Solomon returned a long while later to find his niece had since returned to the dungeons, ushered out by an angry prefect. It was after midnight, after all. Sebastian was currently draped over the bed, sound asleep, and holding MC's hand loosely in his own.

He heard his uncle take a seat and stirred, sitting up to look at him blearily.

"It's late, nephew. You've had a long couple of days, and so has she. We should leave her to the healer for now so she can recover in peace." Solomon said, resting a hand on his shoulder.

Sebastian shook his head. "I'm not quite ready to leave yet. Just a bit longer - please."

Solomon looked at him for a long moment before sighing and sinking back into the chair to get comfortable. Sebastian smiled, relieved that his uncle had always been weak to his requests ever since he was struck down by that damn curse. It wouldn't be long before that sympathy wore out, however, and he'd be treated as strictly as Anne. He'd need to milk it as much as possible while he still could.

"Did you learn anything? All Anne could tell me was that this had something to do with Ranrok." Sebastian asked.

Solomon was clearly expecting this question, but he still seemed reluctant to speak. Clearing his throat uncomfortably, he said, "I ran into Professor Sharp while he was bringing up some potions for the girl. While they aren't keen to share too many details at the moment, there's a certain respect between ex-aurors, and he was able to fill in some of the gaps."

Sebastian waited, impatient and anxious to learn more. It was all so sudden - one moment they were huddled together in cozy Feldcroft, and the next, she'd been brutalized by goblins. While he knew it was irrational, Sebastian couldn't help but feel like he'd traded his own health for hers, and part of him needed to hear that it wasn't his fault.

"The situation is still being looked into, and they won't know much more until she's awake, unfortunately. What we do know, however, is that while your professors were busy keeping the goblin invasion from the castle, this one charged in and single-handedly took out Ranrok himself." Solomon said gruffly, but Sebastian saw how fondly he looked at her.

He knew his uncle was soft to her ever since she'd started coming around their home. Solomon mentioned many times over what a good student she was, always diligently ensuring Sebastian studied with her. When her visits coincided with one of Sebastian's bad days, she would busy herself with helping tidy the cottage or tending the fields with Solomon.

Her desire to throw herself into helping quickly endeared her to the normally stoic old man. What really sealed the deal was the day loyalists launched an assault on their little hamlet, and she instinctively charged to the front of the battle and helped defend Feldcroft. Solomon had praised her graciously afterward, telling her she had the makings of an auror. Since then, Sebastian knew his uncle regarded their friend quite highly.

They watched her, so small and fragile lying there, and Sebastian could scarcely believe what he'd heard. Despite knowing about the rare gift she possessed, and even though he had witnessed her battle prowess first-hand that day in Feldcroft, he still couldn't imagine how she'd managed such a feat.

"Gods, she's incredible, isn't she?" Sebastian marveled.

"They're calling her a hero." Solomon said quietly before he nodded, seemingly deciding on something. "We'll look after her from now on. I'll put in a request to take her in over the summer. The girl needs some stability after the year she's had. A guardian."

Sebastian's heart leaped at the thought of living under the same roof. She'd spent the night over Christmas with Anne, but every day? If Solomon became her guardian...

"I'm sure she'll be ecstatic." Sebastian said, hopeful he wasn't projecting his own eager anticipation onto the recovering witch before them.

Unfortunately, MC was decidedly not ecstatic when she woke to the news that Solomon Sallow requested guardianship over her. In fact, she'd well and truly pitched a fit over it until the matter was dropped entirely.

Of course, that was what Sebastian heard. He hadn't actually been there to witness any of it. Unfortunately, once word came that she'd finally woken up Solomon left while Sebastian was still fast asleep, and he only learned of her rejection when his uncle came home looking frustrated and haggard

"Entirely too much fire in her for having been unconscious the past week." Solomon muttered, tired, after he shared the disappointing news with Sebastian.

"Did she say why?" He asked, equally disheartened.

"From what out could make out in all her shrieking over the matter - Eleazar Fig had offered her much the same just before his demise. She's grieving. I'm sure with time she'll come around to the idea." He said gruffly, but Sebastian could tell he was affected by whatever she'd said.

It was difficult to imagine her raising her voice, let alone shrieking as his uncle phrased it. Normally a jovial and spirited girl, she never spoke with animosity. Yet, her words had clearly packed enough of a punch to beat down even formidable Solomon Sallow.

I'll write to her and see if she might be up for a visit." Sebastian said, rising from his seat and heading to rouse their napping owl.

He tried to make the letter brief and light-hearted - telling her he was relieved she was alright before slipping in a jab about how he'd heard her snore when they visited a week prior. After telling her his curse had vanished overnight, he asked if she could spare him a moment - the sooner, the better.

Just before the owl took flight, Sebastian snatched it out of the air and ripped the letter back. While his rude handling of the poor bird earned him a few nasty pecks to the hand, it was well worth the pain. He hastily scribbled onto the bottom of the parchment -

'Love, Sebastian'

- before fastening it yet again to the indignant bird.

Every other letter he'd sent to her before then yielded near-immediate results. He could typically expect a reply within the day. Now, it seemed, she was preoccupied.

Sebastian waited a full three days before writing another letter. Then he wrote one to Anne. Then Ominis. Finally, he found himself writing to her daily when she still hadn't replied after weeks, and his sister and best friend had apparently not been able to wrangle her either.

He felt helpless. Unable to visit the school on a whim while he wasn't enrolled, Sebastian was at the mercy of her desires. She'd never been so cruel as to ignore him - hell, he'd barely even needed to miss her before she found herself back on the Sallows' doorstep. He was even more frustrated that he actually had the energy to properly visit with her now, and yet her company was suddenly scarce.

According to those fortunate enough to be near her, however, she had avoided everyone quite efficiently since her release from the hospital wing.

The Hero of Hogwarts, Ominis told him she was now called when he finally decided to visit.

"The Hero of Hogwarts?" Sebastian snorted. "I'll bet she loves that."

"I wouldn't have the faintest idea what she thinks of it, considering you've spoken to her more recently than I have." Ominis said, annoyed. "She's far worse than before - always disappearing. I swear, she doesn't even sleep in the dorms anymore."

That was news.

"What? You think she's out camping in the highlands at night?" Sebastian asked, concerned.

"I haven't the foggiest, Sebastian. For all I know, she could fly to London and back every night. No one sees her outside of class anymore, and even then, she hardly speaks. The professors aren't pressing her - trying to be respectful, I presume. You'd think she would at least tell her friends what she's up to." Ominis said bitterly.

While they hadn't been immediately close, exposure due to their shared friendship with the twins helped the two bond, and Ominis had grown rather fond of the new student over the course of the term. It stung him greatly when she cut him off. Anne had been equally, if not more so, hurt by the impenetrable wall her dear friend hid behind.

"Perhaps it would be respectful to give her some space. Merlin knows she's probably overwhelmed after everything. The moment she wakes up and she's hounded by everyone calling her a hero? I expect she's barely had time to mourn old Fig yet." Sebastian reasoned, trying to climb into her headspace to understand what she could possibly be thinking.

Ominis opened his mouth for rebuttal, but a tapping against the window interrupted them. Sebastian was out of his seat like a shot, instantly recognizing MC's owl demanding to be let in from the spring rain shower.

"Hello, gorgeous." He cooed softly at the bird, stroking its beak fondly while he detached the letter.

His own owl made a sort of disgruntled chirp from its perch, keenly aware of its owner's favoritism toward the visitor. It was certainly true - Sebastian was shamelessly more doting on his beloved's bird than his own.

Wavering a moment, Sebastian decided to open the letter at the table and share its contents with Ominis. He knew his oldest friend was also worried for her, and it wouldn't be right to keep the letter secret in front of him.

Unfurling the paper, Sebastian felt immediate disappointment when he saw the single sentence. All his waiting and she had written a mere few words. Still, it was her handwriting, and that alone was enough to make his heart race. This bare minimum of contact was still something, and his hands shook.

'Victor Rookwood was responsible for your curse - he's been handled.'

His eyes skimmed it a few more times before he read it aloud to Ominis, and he watched his friend's brows furrow.

"Rookwood... " Ominis repeated slowly before realization dawned on him. "Sebastian, there's something you must know. I've only just recently learned of it myself."

That was how Sebastian became aware of the terrifying events preceding Ranrok's invasion. Rookwood had kidnapped her directly from the streets of Hogsmeade in broad daylight. It was little wonder she sought solitude after so much trauma.

But then the meaning of her short correspondence began to sink in at last.

"Rookwood cursed me? Not the goblins?" He felt lightheaded, not understanding. He was so certain there had only been goblins when he ventured into those ruins. Now, his memory felt fuzzy, and he couldn't help but question everything.

Hopefully, she would be ready to speak soon because his questions only grew by the day.

The remainder of the term carried on in a similar state of stagnation, but at least Sebastian could now busy himself with actually studying for his impending return to Hogwarts. Professor Weasley had stopped by the cottage at one point to deliver texts and assignments to help get him caught up, and Sebastian greedily plunged himself into his homework - eager to get back to normal.

He still wrote letters to MC nearly every day. Sometimes, just mindless chatter about Feldcroft and how his studies were coming along, and other times, he would try coercing her to send a reply. No matter the subject of his letters, however, he always signed the same way as before. She could hide away from the world for as long as she needed, but he'd be damned if he ever let her forget how much she meant to him - and how terribly he missed her.

That was another reason he pursued his studies with such a voracious appetite. Anything to distract him from the aching loneliness he felt so viscerally now that her presence was noticeably gone. Those few shorts months they'd spent together weren't nearly enough, and yet they proved more than sufficient for her to firmly burrow herself into his very being.

He had finally allowed himself to love her, and she'd accepted him. It was like a dream come true - it very well could have been a dream considering how quickly it was all ripped away from him.

The first day of their summer months brought with it both Anne and Ominis, ready to spend their break in Feldcroft as they had done since they were children.

Although she hadn't come with them, nor had she written to indicate any future plans of visiting, Sebastian insisted that they have a bed and spot at the table prepared for MC just in case she found the time to come by. He didn't want her to feel unwelcome if they weren't prepared - and he needed her to know she was both wanted and missed.

Neither Anne nor Ominis could say for sure where she'd elected to spend her time away from school, but Anne did slip a parcel into Sebastian's hands as soon as they arrived.

He eyed it warily, then looked back at his sister.

"It's from her." She said simply, and his breath caught. "Just be grateful I didn't tear it open on my way here. I miss her too, you know. But I'd hate to find some vile love poem addressed to my brother."

Anne gagged playfully before patting Sebastian's arm and leaving him to it. He brought the package to his bed and drew the curtain back, feeling a distinct urge to open it in privacy.

Carefully, he slipped his finger underneath the paper and loosened it so it wouldn't tear the wrapping - it was put there by her hands after all.

A note rested on top of a large, expensive-looking tome. He lifted the folded bit of paper for a better look.

"Advanced Curse-Breaking and Wards Against Dark Magic..." He read the title aloud before opening the small note.

'Welcome back.'

#sebastian sallow

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

Note

Could we get some jealous Ominis please?

Mc since being labeled as “the hero of hogwarts” is receiving a lot of attention from other boys, he endured as much as he could, pretending to be impassible, until one day he snapped and confesses to her. Surprising everyone

HEY!

Loving the sudden influx of Omi requests. I'm a Sebastian girl at heart (shocker, I know), but Ominis runs a very close second for the HL boys.

I absolutely see him as having been a very long fuse for whatever jealousy is stewing and also being far too insecure to speak up about his feelings.

Just the type of guy to let his feelings simmer until they boil over unexpectedly, startling everyone.

Thank you very much for this prompt, Anon! I hope you enjoy what I've done with it.

💗

Let Me Be Clear

She's just a friend who deserves more than shallow praise.

That was the mantra Ominis tirelessly repeated to himself over and over every day since MC had emerged victorious from her battle with Ranrok.

Now, a year after the incident, he found himself muttering those same words softly like a prayer as he swallowed the bitter tinge of jealousy as it threatened to boil over and consume him entirely.

She's just a friend.

The boys fawning over her don't even know her.

Not like I do.

He shook his head, trying to scrap that last part. What he felt didn't matter - to the point he couldn't even acknowledge it. The only thing that mattered was that she was treated with proper respect. Flattery and attention from the masses were fine, considering she truly was a hero, but the flirtations were where Ominis drew the line.

The boys chattering mindlessly behind him in the corridor were the latter half of MC's endless stream of admirers, and the reason he tried to continuously assure himself that his feelings of unbridled rage toward the way they talked about her were purely from a place of friendly worry.

He wasn't jealous. Not at all. He simply could never abide hearing his thoughtful, magnificent, heroic friend be called insulting things like cute and darling.

And unattached.

That last one sent a jolt of panic coursing through him, and the boys simply laughed amongst themselves as they spoke about her. Ominis quickened his pace to get to her. History of Magic was next, and they'd been next-door-nappers for two years during Binns' droning lessons.

While the crowd of boys behind him seemed intent on speaking as loudly as they could about hopeful Yule Balls and Hogsmeade dates with their esteemed savior, Ominis tried and failed miserably at tuning it all out.

He went to Hogsmeade with her. He had already asked her to the Yule Ball - as friends, of course. That nagging voice in the back of his head only grew louder in an attempt to drown out the offensive voices of her admirers as he navigated the crowded corridors until, at last, he could do nothing but accept the reality of his situation.

He was jealous, and he was hopelessly in love.

Warmth spread through his chest and across his pale cheeks at the realization that he could no longer deny to himself. She wasn't merely his friend - she was so much more. After everything they'd been through, all their shared secrets and conspiratorial plans, and the many weeks of carefree bliss they'd spent together over the summer, the truth was both glaring and sickening.

While the thought of her going on a date with anyone was utterly incomprehensible to him, so was the image of her returning his feelings in any sense. He could practically hear her rejection - complete with apologetic tone and sniffles.

And thus came the utter agony of weighing his options while he sank down into his seat, waiting for the classroom to fill.

Should he risk missing his chance with her while the others plotted to woo the incredible witch, or should he chance spoiling their friendship - a bond he now knew he needed quite as desperately as the very air he breathed.

That particularly daunting decision would need to wait, however, as a familiar and warm presence settled herself beside Ominis with a delicate sigh.

"You're the only reason I ever come to this damn class, Ominis." She murmured quietly, and from the tired inflection in her tone, he could already tell she'd be using his shoulder as a pillow within the first ten minutes of their lecture.

"And here I thought it was because you relished in a bit of extra shut-eye while using me as your personal headrest." He quipped back, playful smirk softening as he felt the weight of her head sink down onto his shoulder without hesitation. "Although, if it means you get some much-needed rest, I suppose I don't particularly care whether you nap or pay attention."

She hummed appreciatively as he allowed her to get properly adjusted and settled in for the lecture. The small smile on his face remained when she began to doze before class had even begun.

Her unquestioning comfort in his presence was clear if her ability to let her guard down so easily with him was any indication. It was a privilege he held that none of her outspoken suitors could ever claim to have experienced for themselves, and Ominis took immense pride in her trust for him.

Almost glad for the time before class that morning that he could simply sit with her in silence, Ominis slipped an arm around her waist - to keep her upright while she carelessly slumbered, he'd explain if she asked.

Always a source of comfort herself, Ominis found himself quickly slipping into his own slumber once Binns began speaking in a monotone, the steady scratching of his self-writing quill and the soft, floral scent of her shampoo lulling him to join her.

He put up little resistance as sleep beckoned him.

Chairs scraping and classmates yawning was what finally roused Ominis and MC, and he realized with a sense of mortification that his arm was still draped loosely around her midsection. He was keenly aware of the fact that they had essentially cuddled through class, and it couldn't have happened on a more inopportune day than the one in which he finally accepted his feelings for the girl.

Her delicate voice, still thick with sleep, only served to further warm his cheeks when she said, "That was the best class yet, Ominis."

The final nail in the coffin came when she kissed his cheek.

She'd done it dozens of times before, but this day, it meant something wholly different to him. His body reacted before his brain when he reached out and snagged her hand before she could collect her books and walk out into the school - where her potential suitors lie in wait.

Panic at the thought some lad might sweep her off her feet if he allowed her to leave his vicinity was what caused him to cling tightly her, but his heart hammering in his chest was not the enemy as it prevented him from saying a word. He could practically feel her confusion.

"Is everything alright? Are you feeling unwell?" She asked, slight concern lacing her tone.

On one hand, something was screaming at him to just tell her already. Another part of his senses chided him for even considering acting on his feelings when she was still practically half-asleep - she wasn't in her right mind and it would be cruel to lay everything on the table when she was in such a state.

Or was that just an excuse to continue burying his feelings?

When he still didn't say anything, he heard her hum thoughtfully as she pulled him by their still-joined hands up and out of the room, breezing through the hallways toward their next class.

She chattered away, waking up and mindlessly droning on about something to do with Poppy Sweeting and a Snidget - he couldn't be damned to fully process a word the way his mind was racing. Something did catch his ear, however, and it stopped in dead in his tracks, pulling her to heel with him.

Just ahead of them, he'd heard it. Another mention of the pretty Hero of Hogwarts. The wholly innocent chatter of their peers, no doubt, but it brought a fresh and hellish wave of dread over him nonetheless.

Without another moment's thought, he couldn't stop himself.

In the middle of the packed corridor, ignoring the way they were jostled and barked at for interrupting the flow of students, Ominis brought her hand to his lips and kissed the back gently before speaking, loud enough for everyone in the vicinity to hear him - he wanted the rumors to spread.

"I intend to change our friendly plans for Hogsmeade this weekend. I want to leave Sebastian at the castle and take you out as my date Friday evening." He furrowed his brows, keeping her hand grasped tightly in his own as he braced for her response.

"Oh." She said simply, and he nearly keeled over then and there from the shock of her simple and unsatisfying response until she continued. "Well, I suppose poor Sebastian will have to adjust to being left behind every now and then unless he wants to third-wheel us, hm?"

The way she spoke was so matter-of-fact that Ominis thought he needed clarification - there was no way it was so simple.

"I need to be sure you understand... I plan to court you." He said firmly, leaving no room for misinterpretation.

She laughed, a beautiful sound that tugged the corners of his lips into a small smile despite his anxiety.

"I'm aware of what a date is, Ominis. I was hoping you'd ask someday soon." She admitted pleasantly.

Always unfazed, this one.

"Hard to believe that a girl who downs trolls and chugs wiggenweld in her spare time knows a thing about romance." He snorted out a laugh, feeling light and relieved now that she had made it clear she returned at least a bit of his affections.

The way she playfully nudged him had his heart ready to burst. The stress of the morning eased from his shoulders, and he allowed himself to slip back into their usual banter.

"Just for that remark, you can be the one to break the news to our dear friend that we're dating now." She spoke curtly, but he could hear the slight teasing smile she said it with, and let out a dramatic groan.

Perhaps, if he wasn't too enamored with her while they were in Hogsmeade, he would get his old friend a chocolate frog as recompense for ditching him in favor of bonding with his girlfriend.

#ominis gaunt

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wizardingdiaries · 9 months

Note

this is long & sorry for info dumping but i just went thru my bf’s phone & saw some things that made me super upset so i was hoping u could do a request where it’s their 7th year & MC & sebastian (despite their feelings for each other) & even ominis kinda don’t talk to each other anymore after what happened in 5th year because of all the healing they have to do from their trauma & MC now has a boyfriend that she’s been dating for maybe about a year now & she finds him & some other girl together & they get in a pretty explosive fight & she dumps him. news travels fast so it makes his way to sebastian & he hears someone say she’s been crying ever since & he goes to talk to the guy (maybe like eric northcott or isaac cooper or garreth weasley. anyone but leander tbh) & they both get really mad & sebastian basically just lunges at him & they start fighting. mc shows up right when the fight ends & she immediately knows the fight was about her so after his detention she goes & finds him & they talk & it’s kind of angsty but it all ends happy & fluffy & they share their true feelings for each other finally get to talk shit out. sorry if this doesn’t make sense or if u can’t do it, but thank u! <3

Lovely Anon -

First of all, good afternoon. 💖

Second of all, I am so genuinely sorry you discovered something unsavory in your relationship. I won't pry, but please know I've been there, and my inbox is open if you need to talk or just want to vent.

I'll get off my soapbox in a minute, but whatever the outcome of this winds up being, know that his actions and thoughts do not define your worth and are not a reflection of anything you've done. You didn't deserve this, and you certainly didn't deserve to find out that way.

Don't let anyone treat you disrespectfully - you have so much more value than tethering yourself to someone who would be disloyal. It can be hard to remember when you're in the thick of things, I know. I'm here for you, even if we don't know each other. ❤️

Moving on to your request, however, I hope this provides some therapeutic reading while you sort through your thoughts.

Triggers: Cheating, slight mentions of sexual conduct, brief violent depictions

Pig

The startled scream was what first alerted Sebastian to something awry that Friday evening. He'd been walking alone toward the Undercroft when he heard it - and took off in a sprint. He knew that voice well, even if he hadn't enjoyed the privilege of speaking with its owner in well over a year.

When he rounded the corner toward the little alcove, he'd expected to find MC of course. What he hadn't expected was the rest of the scene greeting him.

She stood, wide-eyed and still as a statue with her hand clasped over her mouth, gaping at Isaac Cooper with his pants around his ankles and Violet McDowell on her knees before him. Cooper was her boyfriend - had been since he first swept the highly sought after Hero of Hogwarts off her feet at the start of their sixth year.

The sight made Sebastian's blood boil.

Still, he spun back around as quickly as he came and simply leaned against the wall, thankful he'd not been spotted amidst the chaos. This was most certainly not his business. As much as he still cared for her, Sebastian didn't have a dog in the fight when it came to MC's life, and would only muddy the situation further were he to intervene.

They hadn't spoken since he'd killed his uncle, and he couldn't blame her one bit. Couldn't blame Ominis for shunning him, either. After everything he'd put his two best friends through, Sebastian was amazed they'd even agreed to shield him from Azkaban.

The last conversation the trio had together was in the Undercroft in their fifth year, when they assured him they wouldn't be turning him in and that they'd convinced Anne as well. They concocted some bullshit tale about Solomon tracking down dark wizards in the catacombs trying to create Inferi, and he died protecting Feldcroft - one final act of service for the benefit of wizardkind before the ex-auror passed on.

It wasn't a complete lie, at least.

They each needed time to heal after that, though, and Sebastian was all too content to rid them of his sinful presence. They deserved to keep far better company than the likes of him so hopefully their new and better memories could overshadow the pain he'd forced them to endure throughout his mania.

Still, he cared for the two of them immensely even now. Which was why he couldn't pry himself entirely from the argument now playing out on the other side of the wall. He may not be able to step in and act as the heroic knight for MC without prompting, but he could at least listen quietly and step in to protect her if things got out of hand.

"How could you do this to me?" Her voice echoed through the corridor, and Sebastian winced at the hurt laced into it.

From the way her voice cracked, an octave higher than he knew it to be, she must have already been crying. His chest constricted, and his nails dug into his palms while he fought the urge to just go to her already. She didn't need to face this alone when he was right there.

"Y-you're supposed to be out with Natsai! In Hogsmeade!" Isaac replied weakly, and he could hear the hasty shuffle of fabric and the distinct clink of a belt buckle while he gracelessly shoved himself back into his pants.

Sebastian wondered idly if MC might hex off the unfaithful bastard's prick when she spat out, "And you're not supposed to have your cock shoved down some slut's gullet - full offense, Violet."

"Deserved." Violet choked out quietly.

"Well perhaps it'd be shoved down your throat if you'd ever let me, you useless prude." Isaac defended himself, and Sebastian nearly caved into his desire to fight the crass bastard himself when a loud slap resounded throughout the stone halls, and he took that as his cue to leave.

She was resilient, and with the impressive right-hook he knew her to possess, Cooper wouldn't be able to eat solid food for a week after that slap to his filthy face. Rather than barge in on what he was certain she felt to be a shameful disaster, he'd let her lick her wounds in peace - likely in the Undercroft. He veered back toward the dungeons to avoid running into her, but couldn't help a chuckle when he imagined the way she must have knocked the smug look off her ex-boyfriend's face.

Hogwarts was a glorious place at times, but this morning Sebastian found it to be especially so. Isaac Cooper had in fact shown up to breakfast with a swollen cheek, playing sullenly with his porridge. He sat alone, the rest of his housemates seemingly intentionally avoiding going near him. They treated him like he had the plague.

Might as well have, considering he'd committed a grave offense against everyone's favorite witch.

Cooper was a handsome lad, even Sebastian could admit it. He'd been able to use those looks and his immense charm to pull MC, and had since been the envy of every student in the school. The way he remained firmly attached to her face in plain view in the corridors every day did not go missed by Sebastian, but she'd always been happy by the boy's side. And Sebastian was happy for her.

Now he regretted not running with his initial desire to give the little cretin a fall from the Astronomy Tower the first time he'd dared to lay his greasy paws on her. Good looks and charm didn't make someone worthy to be near her - Sebastian himself was a prime example.

Hoping she hadn't taken things too hard after a good cry, he scoured her house's table for sight of her face. While they weren't speaking, he could still ensure she was alright.

She was nowhere to be seen, despite breakfast being halfway over. None of the other girls from her house were around, either, and that told him all he needed to know. They were consoling her. Even without Sebastian, she had an endless supply of loyal friends to help pick up the pieces. Never again would she have to suffer in isolation the way she'd been when Sebastian dragged her around. He was glad for it, and silently thanked her friends for remaining by her side when he couldn’t.

Unfortunately, as the weekend continued, he began to see more and more of her friends trickle into the Great Hall and throughout the corridors without her still. They looked subdued and frustrated, and he wondered if perhaps she had taken the whole incident harder than he’d originally thought. It was absurd to think she might still be wallowing over someone as useless as Isaac Cooper, but again, it wasn’t his place to pry.

By Sunday evening, when she was still missing from her table, he convinced a younger year in her house to deliver a box of her favorite candies from Honeydukes with the assurance that they would not tell her who sent them. He’d done something similar the previous year for her birthday, and then again for Christmas. A small gesture, but he simply couldn’t ignore her after everything. The anonymity of his gifts was meant to keep her from feeling uncomfortable, and he hoped this might at least cheer her up before class on Monday morning.

When she was missing from her table again the following morning, he made it a point to arrive to Charms early in order to catch her. It was their first class together that day, and he grappled with the plan to sit next to her and try his own hand at lifting her mood. At the very least, he knew he could effectively make a fool out of himself to bring a smile to her face. Or perhaps he’d offer to spar with her and let her blow off some steam – working up a sweat was the best way to cope with heartache, he’d learned.

He sat, impatiently watching the door to Ronen’s classroom, while students filed in one after the other and filled every seat save for one.

Hers.

Casting a wary glance toward Natsai and Poppy, they looked to be deep in conversation, both looking over at the only empty seat in class and sighing throughout the entirety of the lesson. He’d had enough by the end of class, and before either of her best friends could rise from their seats, Sebastian approached their shared desk.

“Sallow?” Poppy greeted him curiously.

They also hadn’t spoken much since his falling out.

“Are you here to ask after MC? I’m sure even you’ve noticed her absence by now.” Natsai guessed, and Sebastian winced at the way she said even you – like it was common knowledge he couldn’t care less about his old friend.

“I am and I have.” He hesitated a moment before confessing, “Admittedly, I may have overheard her disagreement with Cooper and McDowell the other night. Didn’t want to stick my nose where it wasn’t welcome, but I think she’s been holed up far too long over the whole debacle.”

“While we are keen to agree with you on that, we’ve all attempted everything short of dragging her by her hair out of bed for days. It appears she’d rather cry herself to death than risk facing Isaac again. She’s a wreck.” Poppy said, spitting out Isaac’s name like it was something foul.

“So, she’s really crying over that sorry bastard? I thought for sure she’d curse him the moment he came groveling to get her back.” Sebastian said, surprised she’d been so affected.

Poppy looked at him like he’d sprouted two heads. “Well, yes, of course she’s taking the break-up hard. They’ve been together for over a year – she thought he was going to propose to her after graduation. Instead, she found him… you know.”

“And for the record, he never came groveling. He hasn’t even apologized to her.” Natsai said, scowling.

That was it for Sebastian.

Without another word, a dark look flickered across his features, and he strode out of the classroom, ignoring the two witches calling after him. He needed to find the little weasel and beat an apology out of him if he wouldn’t voluntarily give one.

Like a predator on the prowl, Sebastian found his target easily, and nearly hexed him on the spot when he saw that Cooper was leaned against the wall flirting with Violet in plain sight of everyone in the courtyard. MC was miserable in her dorm, bawling her eyes out over him while he had the audacity to unabashedly flaunt his romance with another girl and smile while doing so. It was offensive.

In a moment, Sebastian was on him with his fist clenched tightly in the boy’s collar and hauling him off the wall to force his back painfully against one of the pillars. Glaring down at him, Sebastian enjoyed momentary satisfaction when Isaac’s eyes flashed fearful. Sebastian knew the rumors about his relationship with the Dark Arts, and knew he intimidated the boy squirming under him.

“I hear you’ve been taking your good fortune for granted lately, Cooper.” Sebastian said quietly, keeping a firm hold.

Isaac tried wriggling free, frantically pulling at Sebastian’s hand with sweaty fingers. “What I do is none of your concern, Sallow. Now take your hands off me before you get detention.”

Roughly thrusting him against the pillar again, Sebastian replied, “Whatever I get to do to you will be worth the detention.”

“What do you even want from me? This can’t possibly be about MC.”

Sebastian arched an eyebrow. “You really think you have any right to say her name after what you did? I want you to apologize to her – properly. Get on your hands and knees and beg her to come back to class. Swear to her you’ll never show your miserable face around her again.”

Isaac sputtered for a moment, torn between indignation and a strong desire to piss his trousers the way Sebastian spoke with deadly seriousness. Pride, it seemed, won out however. Not that Sebastian was complaining. He wanted the little worm to give him a reason.

“You haven’t spoken to her in over a year, Sallow. Just where do you get off playing at this chivalrous act. Awfully hypocritical of you to say I should apologize for hurting her when you’re the cause of all this mess in the first place.” Isaac shot back, and Sebastian’s grip weakened just a bit.

“Just what the hell do you mean by that? I wasn’t the one getting my cock sucked in plain sight, you unfaithful little -”

“You’re the reason she came to me in the first place. Depressed little thing having lost her best friend. She never told me as much, but we all know you’re the reason your uncle’s dead – dark wizard that you are. Thanks to you, I actually scored a chance with her.” Sebastian grimaced at the accusation before Isaac smirked and continued. “It’s also thanks to you, though, that I never got to enjoy her properly, if you catch my drift. Had to look elsewhere for satisfaction since she was still so hung up on you, she wouldn’t let me touch her. Bloody disgraceful to have a girl like that when you can’t even bed her.”

Oh? That was an interesting discovery – one to consider much later, though. For now, Isaac would need to shut the fuck up.

In one swift motion, Sebastian reared back before headbutting the little rat hard. A muggle trick he’d learned, but a satisfying one nonetheless. Sometimes problems were best handled without the aid of a wand – and like he always said, breaking a sweat was the best way to blow off a bit of steam.

The pummeling commenced as Sebastian’s knee connected with Isaac’s stomach, drawing a pained grunt from the boy when he doubled over to spit out the bile rising in his mouth as a result of the hit. Sebastian released his collar to avoid the mess and barked out a laugh, but Isaac recovered much quicker than he’d anticipated and placed a lucky punch to his face, splitting his lip.

That would be the only hit he’d allow, and Sebastian finally withdrew his wand, tiring of the muggle brawl and spitting out blood from his cut.

Before Isaac could react, Sebastian had already cast and where the boy had once stood was now a pig – plump and squealing in confusion. He shot a basic cast and it sparked painfully against the swine’s rear before it went sprinting off through the courtyard and out of sight.

Turning to Violet, who still stood petrified by the wall, Sebastian raised his wand to her next. “Want a tail to match your little boyfriend?”

She shrank back, whimpering, before Sebastian felt a firm hand jerk his hand down. He spun around to find Professor Sharp looking absolutely livid.

“My office. Now.”

The walk to Sharp’s office was brief, the old man moving surprisingly swiftly in his fury despite his limp. Sebastian had to practically jog to keep pace. When they were finally inside, Sharp slammed the door shut with enough force the frame nearly splintered, and he rounded on Sebastian with a snarl.

"You’re to write lines on what you did wrong. You can stop when I’m satisfied, though I doubt it will be anytime soon. You’ve been so behaved lately – I thought we were past all this childish nonsense, Sallow." He growled out, disappointed.

Sebastian scoffed petulantly and smirked. "Only thing I did wrong was not turn Cooper into bacon."

Lines would have been lenient, but Sebastian had never been one to bite his tongue. Thus, after three long hours of scrubbing out each of the classroom cauldrons by hand, he slumped out of the classroom, arms feeling limp and scraped from the rough cast iron.

“I can only hope that exhausting you has quelled that nasty temper.” Sharp called after him, clearly still frustrated.

Sebastian certainly was tired now, lacking the energy to even form a retort beyond a low grunt at his head of house before exiting and closing the door softly behind him.

He was so consumed by thoughts of dragging himself for a quick dinner before crashing in his bed that he almost didn’t register the shuffling of someone jumping to their feet beside him. He glanced lazily toward the noise, and saw MC adjusting her skirt before approaching him shyly.

Stunned silent, he looked around him to see if perhaps she was meeting someone else there, but they were alone in the little corridor, and she was looking right at him. It’d been so long since he’d had the privilege of looking into those vibrant, lovely eyes, and he waited, slack-jawed like an imbecile until she spoke softly.

“Long time no see, Sebastian.”

He choked on his words for a moment, caught off guard by the way she said his name. It felt surreal.

“I – uh… same to you?” He shifted uncomfortably.

He’d imagined what it might be like to speak with her again, but every scenario he’d ever daydreamed left his mind a blank slate now, and his brain went to static.

She snorted, letting a crooked smile grace her features. Even with her red-rimmed eyes, tear-stained face, and her hair a tangled mess from wallowing in bed for days, she was gorgeous. Truly a feat only she could manage, or perhaps it was because Sebastian’s utter infatuation with her had only grown in their distance from each other. Hell, she could be caked in Graphorn dung and he’d still think she was the prettiest witch this side of the valley – or anywhere, really.

“I heard what happened. How you handled Isaac on my behalf. I… wanted to thank you. He really is scum, isn’t he? I’m only sorry you found yourself dragged into my mess.” She laughed ruefully, but then approached him further and pressed her cool fingertips against the split on his lower lip. “You got hurt, too.”

She fussed over him, carefully tilting his face down so she could ease the small wound shut with a tap of her wand. He smiled gently down at her.

“You’ve gotten rather good at that one since you last patched me up.”

“I’ve gotten good at a lot of things over the past year. The biggest thing is learning how much I regret letting our friendship fall by the wayside. I shouldn’t have let my grief overshadow our bond, Sebastian. I’m so sorry.” She said mournfully, bowing her head down.

Resting a hand on her shoulder, he assured her, “I don’t fault you for it. Nor do I blame Ominis. I put the two of you through hell. You had every right to hate me.”

Her eyes widened and she protested immediately, “I’ve never hated you – not once. I just didn’t want to complicate your life anymore. Figured you wanted to heal on your own time and we’d talk after summer. Then, I suppose the right time to approach you just never seemed to come up and… well, here we are. I should have tried harder, I just assumed you would come back with time.”

She had been waiting on him? That news certainly felt like a slap to the face, and Sebastian shook his head in disbelief. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to laugh or cry, so he simply scooped her into his tired arms as tightly as he could, sighing contentedly when he felt her immediately wrap her arms around him as well.

“I’ve missed you so much. You have no idea.” He muttered against her hair, reveling in how wonderful it felt to touch her. It was like a dream.

“I absolutely have an idea. It’s been torture seeing you every day and wanting to go to you and not being able to. I’ve been a coward.” She said miserably and nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck. “I don’t know how you’ll ever forgive me for it, and I certainly didn’t deserve what you did for me today, but I’ll try my best to make it up to you from now on.”

He chuckled a little, pulling back to just look at her for a long moment, taking her in before speaking. “You are the one person who never needs to ask for my forgiveness. Ever. I’m only sorry I couldn’t stop the whole mess sooner – before you got hurt. Although, if I’m to believe pigshit, I’m the reason for the whole debacle in the first place. Or is that entirely out of bounds?”

She stiffened and look up at him like a rabbit caught in a snare before whispering, horrified, “He told you that?”

Desperately trying to think of a way to backpedal, Sebastian inwardly cursed himself for even mentioning it. He was foolish to have believed anything that snake said, and the brimming confidence he felt at the beginning of his conversation with MC was rapidly waning.

“I’ll kill him. He swore he would never breathe a word of it.” She mumbled furiously.

Sebastian blinked a few times, processing. “So… it’s true? What he told me wasn’t a lie?”

Looking back at him wryly she said, “Depends on what precisely he told you.”

They were just speaking again after so long apart. If he repeated what Isaac had said, there really would be no return. Either he could damage that newly repaired friendship within the first few minutes, or…

“He may have mentioned that… you wouldn’t let him…” He cleared his throat uncomfortably, feeling heat rise to his cheeks. “Gods, I can’t believe I’m saying this. He said you were still hung up on me.”

Her own flushed face must have mirrored his own, and she sputtered for a moment, looking delightfully flustered while she searched for any coherent words to string together.

“Fucking hell.” She cursed after a moment, and Sebastian chuckled. “Yeah, he was right. Truthfully, we started dating with the clear expectation that he would help me get over you. When it still hadn’t worked after a year, I suppose he grew tired of waiting for me to be able to forget my affection for you, and instead of calling it quits properly he chose a different route. I did actually like him quite a bit, though. Just didn’t love him.”

He slid a hand up from her shoulder to rest against her cheek, and she leaned into his touch. Perhaps it wasn’t a mistake to bring it up, then.

“Well, I can’t know what you want if you don’t tell me. You have me here now, and I don’t intend on going anywhere in a hurry. Take your time and say what you mean for me to hear." He said softly before smirking. “Now, whether that’s because my legs are numb from kneeling in front of all those cauldrons or not, I’ll leave for you to figure out.”

She swatted him playfully.

“You’re really being intentionally obtuse, aren’t you?” She asked, pretending to be exasperated.

“Can you blame me? It’s not every day the girl I love confesses to me. Let me savor the moment a little.”

His pride swelled seeing that even after all their time apart he could still work her over so nicely without even trying. She’d always been easy for him to fluster, but at least now he knew why – and he would take full advantage of that knowledge.

“I suppose you’ve earned the right to tease me a bit after everything. You’re right, I’ve been in love with you for ages now. Can’t get you out of my head no matter how desperately I try. It was a hopeless endeavor from the start, and I should never have let you leave my side. Simple as that.” She said haughtily, trying to maintain composure but the heat rose to her face with a vengeance, and Sebastian could hardly contain himself. He was ecstatic. But then she paused and blinked a few times. “Pardon, did you say the girl you’re in love with?”

“Observant as always.” He teased, and kissed her impossibly red cheek. “I did indeed. Are you that surprised? I thought I had been fairly obvious.”

“Obvious?” She asked in disbelief. “I had no idea. I thought we were… I don’t know what but it certainly wasn’t that. Why did you never say anything?”

“Well, why didn’t you?” He asked simply and she shrugged lamely. “Besides, what was I supposed to do? After spending all year spectacularly fucking up in your presence, I couldn’t very well say, ‘Hey, thanks for covering up my little murder – can I court you now that I won’t be imprisoned for life?’”

She snorted, shaking her head. “That would lack a certain romance, I guess.”

“While I’ve just been released from detention and the atmosphere isn’t exactly better, I’d say we’ve waited long enough.” Sebastian bent down close to her ear and whispered. “Just be mine already.”

He pulled back slightly, expecting to see her prettily blushing again, but instead he was met with her lips instantly on his own and he took only a moment to react, sliding his hands into her hair and drawing her body closer into him. He earned a little whimper from her when he nipped at her lip playfully.

She pulled him roughly by the tie, hungry to deepen the kiss when the door behind them creaked open and the disgruntled voice of Sharp groused, “It appears you’re not too tired for illicit activities in front of my room, Mister Sallow. Shall I give you both detentions, or would you prefer to eat your dinner instead of each other’s faces?”

They pulled apart instantly, panting and looking sheepishly at their professor, muttering bashful apologies before he stalked off down the hallway, shaking his head.

“Now that the mood is sufficiently ruined, may I have the honor of escorting my gorgeous girlfriend to dinner this evening?” Sebastian asked, offering her his hand in a dramatic display of chivalry.

She laughed lightly, placing her hand delicately in his own and said, “Certainly. I find myself with a sudden craving for ham.”

#sebastian sallow

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