"We need to focus on defeating the Dark Lord first. Ominis and I overheard Snape and Karkaroff arguing earlier tonight about a sign they couldn't ignore anymore. Neither of us could see much from the corner of the corridor."
Hermione's eyebrows both raised. "I don't want to know what you both were doing in a dark corridor outside the dance." Blair smirked naughtily. "That reminds me of a dream Harry's been having recently. Not the dark corridor thing of course, but what you said about You-Know-Who. He said his scar has been burning a lot lately. The other night he dreamed about You-Know-Who making preparations with someone named Wormtail. And someone named Nagini needing milking. Some journey not being easy—-It was all very vague."
Blair squinted, "He has a cow? And wormtail? What like a rat?" She faintly recalled thinking about how the school seemed to be infested. There were times where she could hear one scurrying down the corridor late at night or when she was alone walking.
"Not necessarily. Lots of animals can be milked. Don't get me started on Almond milk." Hermione pointed out.
The Victorian witch shook her head, befuddled. "Tomorrow I think I'll try to swim in the Black Lake. Are you interested in joining?"
"To watch? Sure. To swim?" Hermione shook her head quickly, "Absolutely not. There's all kinds of—" She stopped short. A grimace flashed on her face. "Sorry."
"Don't mention it." Blair regarded her wryly. She knew she was screwed. And not in the way she'd like to be.
The Black Lake
Her hair was piled on top of her head in a messy updo that would keep the hair out of her face. A black wet suit covered her body which Ominis had laced a couple enchantments into the clothing. A charm to keep her warm and one to make the material more durable. She felt a shred of safety in comparison to the daunting task ahead of her. Ron was off with Harry still licking his wounds from the night before. Hermione was in some aspects, grateful to be distracted with helping Blair. Ominis was already waist deep in his own dark wetsuit, waiting for her patiently.
She looked at the lake in its entirety. Eerily still, the sun was high in the sky though it was supposed to snow again tonight. There wasn't anyone around, yet she couldn't help the feeling of being watched. Blair casted the human revealing presence, Homenum Revelio, but nothing happened. Ominis' face was relatively blank, but she could tell by the way his jaw was clenched that he was pissed off.
That convinced her. Someone was watching them. Ominis knew it. They weren't a threat otherwise he'd have already dealt with the student or...or maybe it was related to the Dark Lord. Without any warning, he turned his head towards the lacewing bushes that were buzzing noisily to their left.
He opened his mouth, a series of low hisses left his mouth. A dark, gloomy look passed over his face, one she recognized as self hatred. He hated speaking Parseltongue which made her worry about what was in the bushes.
A loud squeak was heard before scurrying away. Ominis went silent, satisfied. Hermione frowned, but thought better of asking. She probably tucked away the question for later.
"Alright. So..." Blair was physically almost shaking, stepping into the water.
"The kitten afraid of water?" Blair turned around just as the magic hit her across the back, "Depulso."
A surprise gasp escaped her as she was thrown fifteen feet farther than where Ominis had been. She was over her waist—-the water was just barely over her head. She panicked, thrashing around.
She couldn't think.
It was as if her mind had gone blank—scratch that—it was as if fear had swallowed her whole and she didn't know which way was up or down. Strong arms wrapped around her waist and she clung to the body that lifted her up. She was shaking in fear, trying to focus on the fact that Ominis was walking them towards the shoreline.
"What was that for, Pansy?" Hermione shouted angrily.
The brunette scoffed, "She casted a charm on me last time we met. I was returning the favor."
Through the blood rushing in her ears, she heard Ominis' deadly calm response. "How kind of you. Allow me to do the same." His tone turned into a raging snarl. "Bombarda."
An explosion echoed on the shore followed by a feminine scream. It was a mixture of pain and terror. Blair had the sense to look as Ominis stopped where the water was came up to his hips. He didn't want to remove her completely knowing she wouldn't get back in, but still wanted her to be less anxious than before.
Draco was standing there with a bored expression on his face. He lazily looked over to see Pansy lying on the ground, knocked out next to a tree.
He cleared his throat, "For the record, I didn't know she was going to do that."
Ominis' lip curled in anger. "Keep your dog on a leash next time."
"Fair enough." Draco shrugged nonchalantly, "I came to tell you about another meeting. Though we could chat without the Mudblood listening to us." He eyed Granger before turning to Blair, "And this pathetic excuse for a champion."
Hermione turned red. "This mudblood knows how to punch if you've forgotten."
"I wish I could forget the both of you." Draco mused before turning to Ominis, "This Saturday. Will you be in attendance?"
Blair wrapped her arms around him tighter, silently asking him please no. She would never tell him what to do, but she could at least make her opinion on the matter known.
Ominis shook his head once. "Not interested."
"He won't be pleased to hear that. Not after you chased away his eyes and ears." Draco pointed out with a scowl, eyes flickering towards the empty bushes.
"I don't give a fuck about what he wants. After what happened to those Muggles and almost having my arm cut off—-Him and his followers can rot in hell for all I care." Ominis spoke with absolute clarity. His voice was so sharp, it cut through the thick tension in the air. "Which begs the question of whose side are you on, Draco?"
The pale blond's eyes flashed in warning. "I don't have the luxury of a choice. You know that."
"Everyone always has a choice." Ominis replied instantly, pressing his lips together for a moment. "It only depends if you're too scared to make a decision."
Draco laughed, but there was no humor in it. "You're right. I'm a bloody coward. But if I'm able to protect my family, then so be it."
He left then without a single word more. Hermione looked confused and Ominis explained to her briefly with what happened at the Malfoy Manor last week. Her hands flew up to her mouth, shocked and appalled something like that still happened in this day and age.
It was Blair's turn to laugh humorlessly. "There will always be evil in the world. It doesn't matter what time you find yourself in."
"Evil can't exist without Good." Ominis rubbed her back, placing a kiss against her shoulder. "Let's try again, shall we? Do you want to hang onto me?"
"No."
"Blair—"
She cut him off, "I want to go alone."
He stilled, but then raised his eyebrow. "Are you sure?"
"I'm tired of people taking advantage of my fear and using it against me." She sighed, glancing towards the shoreline where Hermione sent her an encouraging look, "This whole time I've been looking at it like having to overcome my fear. What if I accepted it?"
Ominis tilted his head curiously, gently allowing her to slide down his body until her feet hit the ground, "What do you mean, Sunshine?"
"I mean what if I accepted that I'm terrified. Even right now, my hearts beating faster." She took baby steps, getting a few feet away from Ominis. "I don't have to 'get over' anything. As long as I can learn to swim and manage my panic instead of allowing it to overwhelm me....I can do this." She explained, frowning.
Blair was in a terrible mood. She had to hold his hand as she submerged in the water, sitting down by the shallow end. When she opened her eyes underwater, the instant turmoil made her start to cry. After all, she only kept seeing the flashbacks of her dead parents with red eyes staring up at the sky. It was traumatic and it hurt her heart that she'd been immediately sent to an orphanage after. There was no other family to take her in and she spent the next decade trying to survive. Trying to find some meaning for existing. When she discovered her magic and that she was a Witch who'd be sent to a School far away—Blair had been absolutely thrilled to think she'd found her place in the world. Coming from a place where she questioned her worth and existence to finding friends and eventually lovers who cherished her....She wanted to make them all proud. She wanted to prove to them that she was strong and could do this.
A couple hours later, they were done. Blair wasn't the best swimmer, but a lot of progress had been made. Ominis kept reminding her how he was proud of her and that he loved her. He could tell by the sound of her voice that she was tired and upset about everything that had happened earlier. Pansy woke up at some point, shouting Muggle slurs at all of them before stomping away. Everyone ignored her because it was likely she was more upset at Draco for leaving her on the ground alone.
The days began to flow by as well. With each passing day, Blair worked tirelessly to be able to swim and control her breathing. Draco and Ominis were still relatively close, always with each other when Ominis wasn't with Blair. It worried her, but she also knew that Ominis did it with the intention of collecting information. Draco wasn't loyal to the Dark Lord, he was loyal to his family. He was terrified too, but he wasn't trying to overcome anything; only protect his parents. Blair still didn't care for him, but she understood him.
Days turned into weeks and the second task was slowly approaching. In other interesting events, the bet had escalated into there always being a tension between Ominis and Blair. Of course they always wanted their hands on each other, but as of late—-it was becoming unbearable. His hands on her as he taught her how to swim, the way she'd choose his lap to sit on instead of the bench to tease him. Blair was careful not to be found in the music room alone. At this point she was ready to beg.
Ominis' control was slowly slipping with each passing week. Sometimes she would look up at him from across the room during supper and find a promising expression on his face. One with longing and desire mixed in and it would make her squirm in her seat.
Blair sighed as she stared at the textbook in front of her. The library had been bustling only moments ago until Viktor finally left. Hermione followed and she figured the boys were off messing about. Harry still hadn't done much research about the task, thinking it would be easy. She on the other hand was fixated upon different spells or anything really that could help her. Blair'd read about calming draughts and figured she could take one prior to the task. It wouldn't last for an hour, but whatever quill or possession of hers to take back; she could retrieve it quickly. The idea came to her also of trying, but not very hard. After all, she didn't care to win. Blair only had to try for the binding magic not to kill her.
A couple books dropped on the table beside her, causing her to flinch.
"This seat taken?"
She looked up, seeing Ominis looking down at her with a smirk. The sudden image of a Serpent looking down at a mouse flashed behind her eyes. She looked around for a moment. A warm sensation crawled up her neck, causing a blush to rise.
Her.
Ominis.
They were alone in the back corner of the library.
And by his expression, the Serpent was famished.
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(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ Spice incoming as a reward!
I woke up to ATB hitting 3K AND #1 Hogwarts Legacy + #1 Ominis Gaunt tags
and I'm so grateful! ₊·*◟(˶╹̆ꇴ╹̆˵)◜‧*･
COF hit 10K, TFK will hit 25K by the time I'm off work (Check out my other stories while you wait for me to post another chapter tonight!)
I'm so thankful you all seem to be enjoying the story! We are officially 160 pages into the story and I'd love to know what you all think so far! I make sure to read every comment! Thank you for reading and I hope you all have a splendid day! See you tonight with some SPICE
(▰˘v˘▰) -A