Silver and Green with Envy: A Sebastian Sallow Story

Chapter Twenty-Nine

We got back to the Room of Requirement well after midnight, sopping wet, covered in mud, and though the nosebleed had thankfully stopped to the point where it was just a drop every now and then, my lips and chin were covered, sticky and red, the taste of iron in my mouth.

I didn't care. The three of us were laughing and carrying on like nothing in the world was wrong. We were still stumped as to why we didn't run into any of the poachers, but for all we knew, they'd made a last minute decision to avoid that bog. With good reason, obviously.

As we exited the room, we were rushed upon. Sebastian...and Xander?

He made a beeline for Poppy and kissed her, ignoring how swamp covered she was. Everyone else's jaws dropped.

"Poppy you can't scare me like that, I had no idea where you were, and-"

"Hold. On. Poppy...?"

Her face was scarlet. "...I tried telling you earlier. But then..."

Xander reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. The same way Sebastian did when he was nerved up or shy. "Is it odd, or something? Because, I know she's a Hufflepuff but-"

"No. No no. Not odd. A little shocking, but not odd. Poppy just hadn't said anything, I didn't know you two were that close." 

"It happened a little while before the Yule Ball." He turned back to Poppy. "I didn't know you were going with her, I went to the library and you weren't there. I caught Sebastian coming from our common room on my way back."

"I'm so sorry, it was sort of last minute and I forgot to tell you."

Sebastian laughed. "Well, Xander. Now you know how I feel. Better get used to it. I'd wager Poppy is just as stubborn as Elena is."

Natty said her goodbyes and left to go clean up, while Sebastian came up to me. He pulled out a handkerchief and wiped at my face, his own scrunching up. "You smell like a swamp."

"I should think so, that's where-"

He cut me off. "Nope. No more, please."

I quieted and just looked at him as he cleaned up what he could of my face. Eventually he looked at the handkerchief and sighed, shoving it into a pocket.  "This isn't going to work. Come on."

"Where are we going? And wait! Poppy-"

"I'm sure Xander has that handled. This way."

He took my hand and started leading me down halls and stairs until we stood in front of a  portrait on the fifth floor. I knew where we were and looked at him, confused.

"Sebastian. This is the Prefects bathroom."

"Your point?"

"We don't know the passw-"

"Too many Butterbeers"

The door swung open and Sebastian made an exaggerated bow with an arm extended. "After you, darling."

"B-But how-"

He stood straight and pushed me inside, following and bolting the door locked behind him. "Someone forgot I'm friends with Lucan."

"He's a Prefect?"

"Indeed."

I didn't know how that got past me, but I wasn't going to argue. I'd heard how beautiful this room was and it seemed any description of it failed to do it justice. As I was busy gawking, Sebastian was already turning on taps.

The scent of perfumed water filled my nose, and I looked to see the massive pool of a bathtub start to fill with water and bubbles.

Turning back toward Sebastian, already without his shirt, I gawked at that too for a minute while he came up to me and started pulling on ties and buttons to shrug me out of my own clothes.