Alone Together by Fall Out Boy
If you guessed Save Rock And Roll as the Fall Out Boy album for Ominis, you were correct! I just think this album is so good at the gloomy optimism that I see him as.
-✧-✧-✧-
Ominis' Perceptive
The Grand Hall was full of sound. Amelia sat across from me, her fork tapping against her plate as it sounded like she was playing with her food more than actually eating. I could tell she was getting more anxious as we got closer to our planned trip to the Forbidden Forest, truthfully I was getting anxious too.
We were only a little under two weeks away from our decision date. Every time I questioned her about if she was ready, she either lied or didn't answer directly. I still wasn't sure what her plan was for how she would be finding a cure for Anne, but I wanted to trust her.
A gentle tap on my shoulder took me off guard, "Am I late?" Sebastian asked taking a seat next to me.
"Of course, not," I greeted, "How was Hogsmeade?"
"It was interesting, Adelaide and I-" Sebastian began but was interpreted by a loud sigh from Amelia from across the table, "I'll tell you about it later." Sebastian shut down.
I was completely impatience with the relationship between these two at this point. They have gone from not speaking, to lovebirds overnight, back to speaking and but still not exactly communicating.
Each time I tried to question either of them about it, they simply blew it off.
"What did you end up going to Hogsmeade for?" I asked ignoring Amelia's poor mood for the sake of conversation.
"Oh, Adelaide had to get her dress for the ball!" Sebastian chewed through his food.
"Oh, so you officially asked her to be your date?" I asked.
No answer.
"You haven't asked her? Really?" Amelia hissed at Sebastian's silence.
Stealing the words out of my mouth. I pitched the bridge of my nose at the realization, attempting to suppress the ongoing headache that Sebastian seemed to always carry with him.
"Do I have to?" Sebastian asked stupidly as if he thought it was a trick question.
"Yes!" Amelia and I said in unison.
"You can't just assume, Sebastian!" I lectured, "That's not very gentlemen-like. She deserves to properly be asked! The ball is very soon!"
"At this rate, you'll end up dateless!" Amelia laughed from across the table.
Sebastian's hand lightly pounded the table, his words still thick through the food in his mouth, "You're dateless! I have a date! I just need to ask is all!"
Amelia's laughter filled the table, "Oh please. I bet that I could get a date before you even ask Adelaide!"
"A bet?" I asked curiously, "What are we betting?"
Admittedly I enjoyed a friendly bet between friends. There was something about a friend competition that made things exciting.
"Loser has to drink a potion made by Ominis." Sebastian roared.
"Wait, that's exactly rather rude." I chimed in, "What if I win the bet?"
"Sorry Ominis, you can't join the bet. You have a date." Amelia causally mentioned it as if it were fact.
"Excuse me? I do not!" I hissed, mad to be removed from the debate.
"Well, you are going to!" Amelia admitted, "And you're going to say yes, so don't worry about it."
I barely had time to process the causal gossip as Amelia and Sebastian began arguing back and forth.
"It doesn't matter," Sebastian dismissed, "There is no way that Amelia can get a date before I walk over to the Hufflepuff table and ask Adelaide!"
"So it's a bet?" I asked attempting to finalize the conditions once more.
There was a lull between the three of us, but I could feel the tension in the air.
Suddenly the bench I had been sharing with Sebastian squeaked against the floor as he made his first move. A silent acceptance of the bet. I took my wand out holding it under the table to make a map of their movements. It almost wasn't needed as I could hear Sebastian's heavy steps moving across the hall in search of Adelaide.
Amelia however remained peacefully still in front of me. Making zero enough to move from the table. The words of a promised date sparked in my mind once more.
Was Sebastian so stupid that he hadn't considered me? I felt insulted in so many ways.
"I refuse to be a pity date for the sake of your bet with Sebastian." I hissed.
"Pity date?" Amelia mocked, "I would have been honored to be accompanied by you, Ominis. But sadly no, you have a date already, remember?" Her tone was obnoxiously over-affective as if she was expecting my refusal.
I sighed, "I don't appreciate being lied to."
"Shh, my date is coming this way, one moment," Amelia said more playfully tapping my foot under the table.
Using my wand I looked for familiar footsteps near the table. There was someone walking towards us, but I didn't recognize who they belonged to. Whoever it was, they were alone. The steps were clear and focused, coming between the Slytherin table and the Ravenclaw table. They did not seem to have an intention of stopping.
"Hi Amit," Amelia announced, likely for my benefit, "Did you ever end up getting approval from Black?" The steps stopped suddenly, abandoning their original plan, and bringing their focus to the table.
Amit Thakkar, a fellow Ravenclaw and Amelia's partner for Muggle Studies. They had been spending more time with each other as of late, but I haven't considered a relationship between them. I turned my head down towards my plate, to pretend that I wasn't paying attention to their conversation. But I was undoubtedly curious if Amelia could succeed in this plan.
"Oh hello. No, Black denied my proposal and claimed some vague rule." Amit said. There was a slight sadness in his voice.
"I'm sorry to hear that," Amelia sounded sincere. Clearly, the two had been talking much more than I realized. "Well, I was hoping that perhaps you may want to accompany me to the ball in that case. As friends, of course, I mean no harm!"
Despite not being able to see it, I knew that Amelia would be playfully tugging on Amit's arm. Whenever she made a request of anyone for something that she desired, she always made an effort to touch them as if it made it more difficult to deny her.
"As friends? That would be great exactly, I'd love to!" Amit rang back cheerfully, his voice almost cracking with relief. The sadness was still in his voice however, clearly their date was one of need and not desire.
"That's great, we can talk more about it later!" Amelia quickly said goodbye to Amit as he proceeded to make his exit.
I sat there in silence waiting for Amelia's explanation that I knew she would present one. Sebastian's footsteps were nowhere to be found yet, but he had already lost the bet just as it began. Only a minute or two had passed.
A little cough came from Amelia, as she cleared her throat before speaking, tapping her fingers elegantly on the table as she spoke, "Amit's girlfriend is a Squib. He wanted to bring her but we knew Black was unlikely to accept that," She said quietly, "Besides Amit is a good friend, he wouldn't have gone if I didn't offer and he deserves to enjoy himself too."
I nodded. I hadn't known any of that.
The facts explained the behavior. I felt sad for Amit knowing how difficult it must be to love someone that he struggled to find approval for.
Black had strong opinions of pureblood status. It was a similar fear that I worried about facing my own family. For Amit's sake, I hope his family is kinder than Headmaster Black.
"I was going to offer if Black rejected it anyway. But I saw Amit clearing his plate and collecting his things when Sebastian accepted the bet. There was a chance that Black was still ignoring Amit's request and I would have lost." Amelia continued, acknowledging her gamble.
"But instead you won effortlessly without moving an inch." I pointed out.
She giggled lightly under her breath, "Correct, but let's not tell Sebastian who my date is right away. I want to see how frustrated we can get him." Amelia's playfully teased. I couldn't help but laugh at the idea. "There he is now..."
Sebastian was running back to our section of the table, I didn't need my wand to hear the loud steps on the stone.
"You lost already," I announced as he took my shoulder for support, sitting back in his seat.
"You're joking?" Sebastian was out of breath from running to find his date, "Did she even move?" The words were as sharp as a dragger.
"Not an inch," I told him, "Now what potion would you like me to brew?"
Amelia giggled lightly to herself, clearly feeling pleased with the outcome of her gamble.
We chatted until the end of dinner. Sebastian guessed just about every student in Hogwarts until finally correctly selecting Amit as Amelia's date. Sebastian attempted to argue that he would have won if Adelaide hadn't just left the Grand Hall.
-✧-
The three of us had just exited the cold air of the courtyard together. Then a familiar voice called over.
"Hey Ominis, do you have a moment?" It was Natti. Amelia mumbled something to Sebastian and suddenly I heard their footsteps fade away. Leaving me alone in the courtyard with Natti.
"Of course," I turned my body towards Natti's voice remembering what Amelia had said over dinner. My pulse slowly rose with my nerves.
"I was wondering if you had a date yet for the ball?" Natti's voice was sweet.
Natti had always been one of the few people who didn't seem afraid of me, she spoke with kindness toward everyone which is something I appreciated. I enjoyed her company, but I didn't expect this moment.
"Exactly, nothing would make me happy then if you'd let me accompany you to the ball, Natti?" I flipped the question, not wanting to be the one being asked.
The words felt almost stupid coming from my mouth. I was instantly mad at myself. It sounded like something Sebastian would have said.
"I'd be honored exactly!" Natti sounded relieved yet still had some concern, "But I do need to be honest, I enjoy your company a lot, Ominis. But my mother doesn't allow me to date, so this would only be as friends."
I nodded and smiled, feeling a sense of relief myself, "Of course. I'd still be honored."
Amit's sad tone hung in my voice a bit. I wonder if this was how he felt as well, relieved yet longing for more of a purpose.
Another date out of need and not desire.
-✧-
"You recused a cat?"
"Well in a way it recused me!" Sebastian said attempting to defend himself. As soon as I entered our shared room, I almost tripped on the poor creature.
He knew how nervous I was around animals. Not being able to see them or sense them as clearly as a human, I felt horrible every time I tripped over an animal that I didn't know was there. Now there was one living in our room.
"It's adorable, Ominis, you would understand if you could see her," Sebastian said as he suddenly pressed the fur of the cat against my cheek. I recoiled not expecting the touch.
"I knew it was only a matter of time," I sighed tossing myself onto the bed. Between him and Anne, I was shocked that animals appearing in the dorms hadn't occurred already.
Sebastian unexcepted sat next to me on my bed. The cat loudly purred between us and pressed itself against my leg. Sebastian sounded as excited as a child, "It's a black cat too so she will blend right into the room, no one will notice! But she has huge blue eyes."
"You're joking?" I scoffed.
Sebastian was clueless. Every time he went silent and didn't issue a joke in response, I knew he had no idea what was going on. Like his ability to process information had turned off completely.
The same clueless silence hung in the air as it did in the Grand Hall. Twice in one day was uncommon for him.
"Sebastian, I'm supposed to be the blind one between the two of us. It is a miracle you can see." I said, finding the cat with my hand. Its fur was soft as it tried to bury its head into my palm. Its tongue felt like sandpaper as it gently licked the tips of my fingers.
"I have no idea what you are talking about. What did I say?" Sebastian asked clueless as ever.
"You brought a cat back because of how loving and sweet it was," I mocked, "And now you are telling me that this same cat has black fur and bright blue eyes. Is there someone else's affection that you desire, who shares similar bright blue eyes and dark hair?"
Suddenly the cat disappeared from my hands and the weight of the bed shifted. Sebastian took the cat away in a childish manner.
"Nope, can't think of anyone." Sebastian dismissed at the realization. Recoiling in defense.
"You know, you could just tell Amelia that you still have feelings for her," I said bluntly.
"Had," Sebastian corrected, "I had feelings for her, last year. She didn't feel the same."
It felt like reliving fifth-year all over again. Sebastian had been so embarrassed at being rejected that it took months for him to exactly confess that he had a crush on her.
Although I never talked to Amelia about it, I wanted to not betray Sebastian's trust.
"Well, what if her feelings had changed?" I questioned out loud.
"They didn't," He scoffed back angrily.
I stretched out over the rest of my bed, shutting my eyes in annoyance. It was a lost cause in fighting about it.
The gentle sounds of the cat's paw jumping away before the weight of the cat reappeared on my bed. Sebastian sat in silence, likely watching the cat gently crawl onto my chest. It reminded me of the nights I might fall asleep with a book in my hand, a soft weight. I reached for the warm ball of fur, patting it gently.
"I like the cat," I confessed. Offering a change in topic.
This cat did seem very sweet. I wanted to like animals, people who like animals tend to be viewed as caring and kind. Poppy was someone who loved animals, her kindness always being a charming part of her personality that people admired. It was something I had admired about her as well.
"Thank god," Sebastian said with a sigh of relief.
"What did you name it? Shall I call her, Amelia?" I wanted to drop the topic, but it was too easy to mock Sebastian in the manner he would do to me. A groan of annoyance filled the air. I couldn't help, but laugh at my joke if Sebastian wouldn't.
After hesitating he informed me, "I was thinking about naming her Ophelia."
-✧-✧-✧-
Which couple are you most excited for the Ball?
Do we think it will be a perfect and peaceful night?