Silver and Green with Envy: A Sebastian Sallow Story

Chapter Fifteen

 I took Ominis to the underground harbor, but as I suspected, we didn't talk about what I really wanted to. Whatever Sebastian had told him, he must have asked Ominis to keep it from me, and as much as I wanted to argue against it I didn't really have a leg to stand on. Even though Ominis had initially set out to find out what was going on with my help, at the end of it all, they were still best friends, and I knew where the loyalties lay. A hint, it wasn't with me. Not as strong as with the two of them, at the very least.

Instead, we got drunk on the absolute strongest alcohol I'd ever had up to that point and talked about what we'd planned on doing after we graduated.

Ominis slurred a bit and leaned against a pillar. "Whatever I wind up doing, it'll be done as far away from my family as possible. Pureblood nonsense. Reminds me, you don't know your own lineage well, do you?"

"I don't know it at all. Never thought about it much. I didn't even know my parents were of magic blood until I came here. Then they vanished, so I assume I'll never know."

"Ah. Doesn't matter, really. Not about your parents, I'm sorry they disappeared. But your blood. You're a very powerful witch, it doesn't matter either way."

"You're kind for saying so." I took another drink, feeling my head start to swim.

"What about you? Any grand plans for after you leave?"

"I want to own a bookstore, like Mister Brown."

Ominis laughed. Such a rare sound, really. "That's very fitting, I think. Speaking of which, how is that new Grimm book?"

Excited to talk about it, I immediately launched into some of the stories and kept at it, with Ominis eating up all the tales as rapidly as I could get them out.

I don't know how we got back to the common room, but we did, shortly before sun up. 

We both looked and felt awful, truly. But despite that, we trekked up to the hospital wing to check on Sebastian, who gave us both what for, for drinking the entire bottle without him. Ominis promised to find another bottle of something similar for the three of us to share once he was feeling better. That seemed to placate him well enough.

"How are you feeling?" Ominis sat down next to Sebastian while I went to the other side of his bed to look at the fading bruises on his face. 

"Better. Madam Blainey thinks I'll be here for a few more days. A week at most, but I'll be alright, luckily."

We chatted a little longer and as we made to leave, Sebastian asked me to stay back a bit.

"Did you need something?"

"I just wanted to look at you a little longer."

"After everything you said to me last night I'd figure you'd want to keep me far away from you again."

"What I want and what I'm capable of doing are two different things."

~~~

Another week went by, and though outwardly everything seemed as normal as normal could be for a wizarding school, behind the scenes was a different story.

Poppy had taken up figuring out poacher routes.

Natty was trying to quietly inquire about Harlow's release.

I...was beating the absolute hell out of any training dummy the Room of Requirement could give me. I was also visiting Sebastian when I could. He'd hoped to be out by mid week but Madam Blainey actually wanted him to stay longer just in case. Couldn't be too careful, she'd said.

Saturday morning finally came, and as there was another Quidditch match, most of the school was out at the pitch. But I had other plans. It was also nice, having my dorm room to myself for once.