Return of Sebastian Sallow | 10 Yr After Hogwarts

Chapter 117: The Solution

Not only did it not do anything at all to prevent Thiago from slipping under the curse's effects, but something about the proximity to such a strange isolation of dark magic whilst maintaining my composure in a polar opposite energetic sphere without being able to dismantle the magic, directly, seemed to draw me into the curse, too, and I collapsed alongside Thiago. After some minutes of unawareness, I came-to on the floor of the Undercroft to realize Thiago was still paralyzed. I utilized a hybrid of my healing reiki magic with Western magic, casting 'reparifors' and immediately regretting it given the reflexive, aching moan it elicited from Thiago upon his waking.

And then it was time to teach more classes.

The Cruciatus curse is a surprisingly fickle one and I'll be damned if we attempt to remove the magic that binds Ominis without knowing – beyond the shadow of an atom of a doubt – that he will not suffer when we do. And I'm exceedingly glad Thiago and I are on the same page about this.

"You've had enough," Sharp's voice echoes like a cannon, booming off the too many solid surfaces of the Undercroft. "Be reasonable, Sallow."

"Not until we find a solution," I say without even considering the wisdom of his suggestion. I can't allow myself to admit how exhausting this is.

Thiago agrees. "We must find a way, Professor Sharp," he insists while offering me a hand to help me to my feet, given that my knees buckled on that last attempt. "We must."

"What, exactly, is your plan here?" Sharp persists. "Cast Cruciatus until...? Mister Gaunt has no way of practicing your methods at this stage, and neither Mister Braga or myself can wield the kind of magic you know if we were to attempt to bring you out of this, as you might do with Ominis. Yet you refuse to cast the curse upon myself or Thiago to attempt that very healing magic, yourself. This is fruitless."

I give a little hop once I'm up to rally my senses and focus once more. "He didn't deserve what happened," I say, swiping a portion of rascally hair out of my face and shifting my hopping weight back and forth in the balls of my feet as if readying for hand-to-hand combat.

Focus, Bash. Not done yet, boy-o.

"The whole colony didn't deserve what happened," Sharp retorts. "At what point is this effort in vain? There are some things whose consequences simply cannot be avoided. Spells, charms, potions...Ominis is lucky he will only feel a burst of that curse before it's gone. It will be over in a moment."

"Not. Ominis." I say with an edge of belated protectiveness, holding Thiago's gaze and nodding my head, each of us inherently understanding that Ominis is and has always been too good for this world. "Even a moment of suffering is too long. You're welcome to leave if it makes you uncomfortable, Sharp. But we have to keep trying."

No suffering for Ominis.

"Braga, won't you listen to reason? Stop this madness," Sharp pleads with an authoritative tone.

Finally, Thiago's resolve softens as Sharp continues. "There has to be another way. What good will it do to endure more of this curse?" His voice is something between the commanding Professor who leads his classrooms with little-to-no patience and a man deeply uncomfortable with having any kind of weakness. April is his soft spot and so, by extension, I think her feelings for me make it difficult for Sharp to witness my response to the torturous curse when I allow it to take hold in an attempt to wield my healing magic against it.

I can't imagine it's at all comfortable for him to stand aside and watch the curse wear me down bit by bit. I haven't endured so much of it so consecutively in a long, long while. Months at best - over a year at worst. I'm finding myself surprised by how boyish the whole process is making me feel. Training with Cruciatus in a monastery deep in the mountains provides a kind of nucleus to the whole process I didn't understand until now. Focus. Single-mindedness.