A Way With Darkness

Chapter 2 -Lightning Rod

There was no possible way in which I could have foreseen this.

I had no idea how the hell I could get out of this.

I could feel my heartbeat pulsing fast and unevenly in my chest, my feet glued to the spot below me as I gazed up at the boy I once knew, no longer a boy at all.

Guilt began to bubble in my gut for the first time since I had spoke to Ominis that day we had sent Sebastian away and I knew no matter what I did now, I had to stand and face the music.

He wasn't supposed to be here. He was supposed to be locked away. Trapped within Azkaban. He was supposed to be out of sight and out of mind, only a whisper of a memory from my past.

But there he was clear as day, his dark eyes piercing through me as if he could read and feel every emotion, every thought that passed through my soul.

I felt his body shift towards me, the whole room melting away to reveal my own personal hell.

The walls felt as if they were closing in and there was no escape. I couldn't look away from this dark yet captivating man.

My wand seemed weightless in my robe, its heavy dark magical influence having no impact on me now, its usual call now completely silent in the wake of this shadow of my past. 

There was no escaping this man. He stood tall, taking a few more steps towards me, yet no sense of shock or surprise seemed to roll off him as if he had expected to find me here in this shop.

The very nerve sent me spiraling once more, anger now fueling me as the guilt dissipated just in time.

Did I miss something? Had he been released? Had I been catapulted back in time? No, no of course not. 

I had received several owls from Ominis the last few days of our sixth year but I had not read them. I had simply burned the parchments marked 'urgent' and forgot they existed. It is quite possible that he had tried to warn me of Sebastian's return, yet nothing, not even an urgent howler could have prepared me for this moment.

With each step he took towards me, I could feel myself falling back down that dark path I had once set myself on years ago, his presence captivating and sinister all in one.

This man had manipulated me, tortured me even, used me and still I had burned for him. I would have done anything, endured anything for him, though at the time I had no idea just how deep I had gotten myself.

I could feel my arms dropping to my sides on their own accord, my fingers grasping at the hem of my short plaid skirt, my body searching desperately for some way to ground my beating heart but there was nothing that could save me now.

I felt his strong hand reach out and grasp my wrist, the gesture seeming to surprise even him, my lips widening into a small O of shock as he took hold of me.

His grip was firm and forceful, pulling me towards him with a slight growl of frustration rumbling from his chest. My heart sank as his eyes bore deep into me, searching for the answers I had never been able to give him, that were never spoken.

"Adelaide...You've grown." He remarked coldly, his voice deeper and huskier than it once had been with no hint of his old boyish charm I had once let sway me, his eyes scanning my frame as if ready to devour me.

Everything about this man was foreign to me now. His time in prison seemed to have hardened him, his demeanor cold and ruthless where it had once been curious and charming.

He had changed  just as I had, cold and dark and walled to protect his soul from what could have been. What should have been. His own heart concealed by twisted vines.

"I know... and so have you." I managed finally, my own voice much stronger than I had expected it to come out, feeling my anger begin to settle, forcing that impenetrable wall up once again.

"Still beautiful as ever, Adelaide. Its a shame you've seemed to let it go to waste. I've heard nothing about you since our year together." He remarked,  a dig if I had ever heard one.

I could feel myself straighten up at this. How dare he? Who the hell did he think he was? He had no right to judge my social standing or anything else about me for that matter!

I pulled my wrist, wiggling it under his grasp yet there was no way out. He had quite the firm grip and he seemed unwilling to let me go, holding me in place as if I might just run as soon as he did.

I sighed out dramatically, a cold expression gracing my face as I settled back into my body, forcing myself to rise above this power move he seemed to be inflicting. I had to keep calm, I had to show no fear. He could not win. 

I could feel the shock finally slipping away giving me a moment to collect myself. His damn grip on my wrist almost grounding me like some lightning rod, connecting us together to force the energy between us to focus at last.

"And you... still charming as ever I see..." I responded with a sarcastic edge. "Unfortunately for you, I am no longer affected." I said more simply this time, my voice feeling more my own once again.

A dark chuckle I had never heard from him before escaped him, his eyes almost flashing a hint of that old charming Sebastian I once knew as a smirk tugged at his bottom lip.

"Always witty and strong. Don't you ever tire of chasing perfection?"

I ignored his remark, my eyes piercing his as I searched for some sort of weakness, something to get the upper hand once again but his grasp on my wrist only tightened as a silent moment passed between us.

"From the look of your robes, you are headed back for your last year at Hogwarts..." I remarked finally, keeping my tone cool and detached.

"Quite perceptive aren't you? I am...I've been released on account of good behavior." His smirk only grew and I could not roll my eyes hard enough. "Though maybe I warmed their hearts with my tale as an abused orphan, driven to drastic force just to protect myself."

He paused, cocking his head to the side to regard me with an almost sinister gaze, willing his words to affect me and slice deep. And that they did. There had always been more to the story than his last and final act before being sent away to Azkaban. 

He and I both knew that all too well.

"That was what you had claimed originally, correct? Before of course, you thought up another traitorous story to tell the ministry." He urged. 

As if it was a gift from the ancient gods themselves, the little bell above the door to the shop chimed as a woman and her two children walked in, cutting the tension like a knife leaving me shattered and shaken where I stood infront of him.

Sebastian pulled his hand away from my wrist sharply, pushing his fingers up through his hair as he locked eyes with me once more before turning towards the parchment to pick up a large roll.

He turned back, his eyes piercing mine again in that soul gripping way as he reached out and pressed the roll against my chest. His knuckles grazing my breasts for just a moment before I reached up and took the roll in my own hand, my gaze never leaving his.

With that and without another word, he pressed forward, his body pushing me aside before heading straight out the door.