And most of all, Séraphine wished that walking down the corridor, she didn't see Catherine Lewis coming out of the Undercroft. A mischievous smile on her face as Sebastian was no doubt still inside. Ominis' relatively easy going demeanor turned deadly. He stiffened, sensing her presence with his wand.
Frown lines appeared, his eyebrows scrunching forward. "Did you just come from the Undercroft? How did you get in there?"
Catherine chose to play dumb. "That room's called 'the Undercroft?' Ah. Well, I was exploring and suddenly found myself in a strange passageway-"
"Don't lie to me. No one 'stumbles' upon that room. Sebastian told you, didn't he?" Ominis snarled, his fists clenching by his side. He pointed at her, "You breathe a word about this place to anyone and not even your precious Professor Fig will be able to help you. My father is friends with the Headmaster. I'm not afraid to exploit that connection if I need to."
Séraphine had heard enough. Shoving Catherine to the side with a wave of her hand, she opened door leading to the Undercroft. "I've got a-how you say-bloody wanker in need of a good arse kicking. He'll see you back in the dormitory tonight. Leave it to me."
She let her rage and frustration consume her. He was in for a rude awakening.
Selfish Desperation
The black iron gate was thrown open with another wave of her hand, but this time her undeniable anger made the casting forceful enough for the gate to break of its hinges. The clanging noise echoed throughout the room, catching his attention.
"Bloody-" Sebastian was standing in the middle of the Undercroft, the words caught in his throat when he saw her fuming expression, "Ah...Oh no."
Séraphine strolled up to him, brandishing her wand. "What were you thinking, you imbécile?! The Undercroft? Her?"
"I was trying to get her to trust us more-She's got some sort of magic that I've never even read about." Sebastian countered, eyeing her wand. "It could help, Anne."
She rolled her eyes, "This is neither here nor that. Ominis trusted you with the secret of the Undercroft and you didn't even consult either of us about this."
"Curing Anne is everything." Sebastian's anger flared, closing the distance as he gazed down at her, "If I can figure out what type of magic she can wield, then...then it's something. None of us have come close to finding a way to help my sister."
That stung.
"Sebastian, we can't trust her." Séraphine snapped, gesturing towards the door. "She used that magic to break my arm and pretended it was an accident. Did you forget about that?!"
He clenched his jaw, "No, but Anne-"
"Will you shut up?" She pointed at him, her finger hitting his chest as she articulated each word carefully, "The. Undercroft. Wasn't. Your. Secret. To. Share."
The flames overhead grew as both of their tempers soared.
"Ominis would understand." He said with finality.
Séraphine choked out a laugh, repeating his words in her native tongue mockingly, "Ominis comprendrait. You're absolutely correct. He would. He'd let it slide because unlike you, Ominis takes other people into consideration. He'd understand that you are so blinded by your desperation to cure your twin sister, that you'd give up all your morals and that code of honor you used to stand by. He'd understand as I do that you're so afraid of losing more people close to you, that you'd step on anyone to cure her. Because you're selfish and a complete imbécile for allowing someone like Catherine to know about the Undercroft." Séraphine let out a string of French curse words, backing away from him, "I don't even recognize you anymore."
With each word, Sebastian's eyes darkened until they were like obsidian. His anger made his irises appear as two burning pieces of coal and for the first time Séraphine was afraid of getting burned.
He began to stalk towards her in the same manner she imaged the Beast of Gévaudan did in the late 18th century when it terrorized every inhabitant in South-central France. The Muggle king himself, King Louis XV, had sent out a royal letter asking the Minister for assistance tracking down the foul beast only for it to be a Loup-Garou, or werewolf.
Sebastian grabbed her face in his large hand, making her look up at him. "Careful, Séraphine."
"Or what?" She snarled, thinking about the fact that Sebastian had betrayed the both of them, "Was I wrong?"
His lip curled, a similar rage making his shoulders rigid. "No, as always, you're annoyingly right. I cannot bear to lose anyone else. Not my sister, not Ominis, and certainly not you. So while you judge me because of how 'desperate' and 'selfish' I am to save my sister, understand that if it had been you that night, I..."
"You what?" She glared at him, "Would have given up already? Would have sent me a box of chocolate frogs and said 'Hope you don't croak before you turn 50'?"
Irritation flashed in his eyes and she suddenly felt his the tip of his wand under her neck, "Silencio. Now can I get a few words in without you being a complete smart arse?"
Séraphine mouthed, "Va te faire encluer!"
Now a half smirk toyed on his lips, "You told me to fuck off, didn't you?" She nodded and felt his thumb slide across her bottom lip, "Séraphine if it had been you that night, I would have burned the highlands looking for the Dark Wizard who did this to you months ago. Don't mistake me saying that I'm not ready to burn the highlands now for my sister, but it's because I believe in you--that you can find a cure that I haven't. Yes, I may have made a mistake showing the Undercroft to Catherine, but in doing so she asked me for help getting into the Restricted Section tomorrow night because she needs a certain book. She's trying to become stronger and control her magic. If it turns out she's powerful, then perhaps she could cure Anne."
The French Ravenclaw squinted at him, pointing to her throat. The bloody imbécile needed to undo the spell he'd cast or else she was going to cast the explosive charm on him. His eyes flickered down to her throat, muttering the incantation to undo the silencing charm.
Immediately she went off on him, "If you trusted me as much as you say you do, it still doesn't explain why it had to be the Undercroft."
"She saw how angry you both were which validated I'd shown her something important." Sebastian reflected, his eyes still stuck on her throat. His voice was deeper now, at least it sounded that way in the deafening silence that followed. The torches were no longer affected by their rage, but weren't back to normal. They'd dimmed along with the pervading tone which surrounded them. "I thought you didn't recognize me."
Séraphine was caught off guard. "Quoi?"
He raised an eyebrow, placing the pad of his thumb this time on her bottom lip, dragging it down slightly. "You said you didn't recognize me earlier... Yet your pulse is racing. Your cheeks are flushed. And you haven't smacked my hand away from your face this entire time. You say you don't recognize me, but darling your body does."
A mixture of embarrassment and shame washed through her. She smacked his hand away, but he merely smirked at her. "Don't change the subject."
"What else is there to discuss?"
"She's not allowed in here. Never." Séraphine's voice was absolute. "I won't allow it."
Sebastian frowned. "I understand you don't like her. I wouldn't either if someone broke my arm...But you seem to genuinely hate her."
"How perceptive of you." She said blithely, feeling a sense of satisfaction when his lips pressed together in a silent warning, "I don't trust her."
"Then trust me." He took a final step forward, closing the distance between them. Séraphine gasped silently, moving to take a step back when his hand pressed down on the small of her back, and kept her pressed against him. "All I want is to know if her magic is capable of healing Anne, if she's able to control it. Nothing more."
She raised her chin stubbornly. "You can't expect me to just trust you."
"Then I'll do an Unbreakable Vow. Ominis can be the-"
The torches roared again to life. "Absolument not! If you break that vow, you die."
He shrugged nonchalantly as if he were saying no to more pudding after Supper. "If it's the only way you'll trust me...I don't see any other option."
They were both silent for a moment, staring into each other's eyes; searching for any remnant of understanding.
Séraphine knew that Sebastian was like the Serpent from the Garden of Eden. Charming and manipulative enough to get what he wanted. He'd been that way for months now. When Séraphine needed ingredients not easily found and the merchant at the stall was a woman, he'd woo her with his tongue dripping with honey and all the sweet words to lower the price. When she needed to sneak into the Greenhouse to forage, he'd sweet talk Professor Garlick with questions about the best way to repot a mandrake. If Séraphine hadn't been close friends with him before, she'd wonder if he was using her now. Perhaps he was. And perhaps she'd let him.
A deep sigh escaped her. She was tired. Her hands ached. "For a moment, please put Anne aside and think of Ominis. You have to understand you hurt him tonight."
His eyes lowered with shame. Bien. "I know."
"Ominis cares for you. Deeply." Séraphine continued, not missing the opportunity while he was being receptive, "I don't want the hunt for the cure straining our relationships with each other. I don't want Catherine getting in-between any of us. You, Anne, and Ominis are irrefutably important to me. I don't want to lose anyone either, 'Bastien."
The nickname flew out of her mouth before she could stop it. By the pleased expression he now wore, he'd noticed her slip up.
"Say it again." Sebastian ordered lowly.
Her pulse was racing. He could probably feel her heart trying to thump out of her chest with their bodies pressed against each other. With his body this close to her, she was starting to become intoxicated by his cologne. Citrusy, yet also woodsy. Bergamot. The heat from his body warming hers. His strong hand on the small of her back, dominating her.
Stop.
Séraphine raised an eyebrow at the command in his voice, "I've said a lot. You'll have to be more specific."
"You called me by my old nickname." He informed her dryly, "Does that mean we're... friends again?"
She snorted inwardly, glancing away. "Do you typically hold your friends against you like this? If so, Ominis has a lot of explaining to do."
"He turns a blind eye to it." Sebastian jested, smirking as the laugh escaped her. "That's the first genuine laugh I've heard from you-" He hastily added, seeing her about to argue, "-that I've been able to make you laugh."
"Let's get one thing clear here, Sebastian." Séraphine looked up at him again, stating in a clear voice, "You can't make me do anything."
She saw the challenging gleam in his eyes as he leaned down slightly, making her arch herself back to add some distance, but it was futile as he only leaned in more. Not to mention that it pressed her lower half against him more.
"You're right." He admitted, using his right hand to settle on her hip while his left one kept her pressed against him. The hand on the small of her back twitched, like he wanted to lower it more, but was trying to be respectful of her boundaries. He squeezed her hip slightly, causing her body to feel all too warm. "I can't make you do anything. You're my..." He pretended to think about it, "Stubborn. Little. Witch."
With each word that left his lips, Sebastian inched closer to hers. It only took one of them to close the few inches between them and then they'd have their pretentiously overdue first kiss with each other. Séraphine was trapped at the angle she was in. Her back was arched enough so that any more, she'd fall. If she tried to regain her footing, she'd close the distance first, pressing her lips against his.
However, she wasn't a Ravenclaw for nothing. Séraphine threw her weight back, knowing that Sebastian wouldn't let her hit her head against the floor. He cared for her at least that much. So when he turned his body for his back to take the full brunt of the fall, Séraphine rolled on top of him, and pressed her knee against his chest.
"I'm not your witch." She reflected firmly. "I'll trust you this time, Sebastian. But mark my words, if you betray my trust or Ominis' trust like this again, I'll find an irreversible silencing hex, and keep that tongue from ever spilling another secret again."
Sebastian's rested his hands behind his head, gazing up at her with blatant lust. If she wasn't so serious, she'd probably have blushed. Instead, a yawn escaped her because as much as she was angry, she was also tired. "Get some rest, Séraphine. And while you're in bed tonight, do keep thinking about my tongue. I'm quite talented with it."
Rolling her eyes, she got off him, "I'm serious, Sebastian."
"I know." He winked, "And so am I. No complaints so-OOF."
He flinched as she stepped on his leg. "Oops. We're all a bit clumsy sometimes..." She mimicked Catherine's words from earlier with a warning also present in her voice. "That goes for her too. If she does anything to put any of us in mortal peril, Sebastian... I won't hold back."
Sebastian didn't look the least bit concerned. "You won't have to worry about that. If she hurts you again..." He stood up, dusting off his trousers. Then he leant down to place a surprisingly light kiss against the side of her head. "...I'll kill her. Now go get some rest, Séra."
The French witch was too shocked by his action and his words, mindlessly heading towards the exit. The iron gate rested haphazardly on the floor, but she'd leave it for Sebastian to fix. Her words weren't working right now.
She could still feel his lips against the side of her head.
She could still feel the disappointment, wishing they were pressed against her lips instead.
And she could still feel the weight of his words heavy in the air.
If Catherine hurt her, he'd kill her.
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(｡♥‿♥｡) A lot of conversation happened this chapter. What do you think about Sebastian's motive's for allowing Catherine into the Undercroft? How do you think the Restricted Section search will go?
Thank you for reading and please leave a comment!