In the Shadows - Sebastian Sallow x reader (English)

Chapter 5

Sebastian's POV

The lesson of Defense Against the Dark Arts was one of the funniest Professor Hecat ever pulled out of her metaphorical hat. The boggart had been taking on the strangest forms, but then it was Y/N's turn. At the sight of her, the boggart on took the form of a pile of bodies. It was her friends, including me, lying lifeless in front of her. We were all dead. So that's her biggest fear: losing those close to her, and with herself to blame for it. Suddenly, Y/N collapsed to the ground. I could hear her sobbing. Natsai and Poppy were at her side immediately. I stepped in angrily. "Riddikulus!" Corpses were hard to make fun of. The only option was to have them snore. And now they were. They snored like fucking lumberjacks. I turned to Y/N, worried. She couldn't seem to calm down. Meanwhile Professor Hecat finished the lesson, but I only noticed that in passing. My thoughts were with my traumatized friend. I squatted down next to her and took her tear-stained face in my hands. "Hey, look at me!" Her swollen eyes looked at me sadly. "Y/N, that wasn't real. We're here, we're all alive." Hoping to reassure her and to calm myself down a bit, I stroked her soft cheeks. Suddenly, she was in my arms. I was a bit surprised by her action, but immediately hugged her tightly. We both needed that hug. I buried my nose in her hair. She smelled of lilacs. "It's all right", I assured. I enjoyed her being so close to me for a moment and then carefully detached myself from her without pushing her away completely. "Are you okay?", I asked while wiping her tears from her swollen face. It broke my heart to see her like that. Y/N nodded slightly. "Can you get up?" She nodded yes once again. I carefully helped her stand up. As if someone had flipped a switch in her head her face turned bright red in a second and she looked down. "Sorry." I was confused. "Sorry? For what" "Well, that I, well, just hugged you." My heart skipped a beat. Is that what she was apologizing for? I was honestly grateful for the physical contact. I wanted more o fit. "No need to apologize, Y/N. You seem to have needed it and I'm glad I could help you." She thanked me. "I need some air", she pressed out, and disappeared. My heart was still beating wildly and her scent was still in my nostrils, which didn't exactly calm my racing heart.

I went in search of Ominis to tell him about what had just happened. He was probably with the string quartet. That would the perfect place to not be overheard. On the way, I gathered my things and grabbed an apple from one of the bowls scattered around the school. As expected, Ominis was sitting on one of the benches listening to the music. I resisted the temptation to throw the apple at my best friend. It would have been funny, but I didn't want to upset him today. After all, he had to listen to my raving about Y/N an the hug we shared and that was punishment enough for him. My feelings for Y/N have often led to arguments between Ominis and myself over the last year. The lecture I got after he found out I had shown Y/N the undercroft said it all.

Flashback

Y/N had just exited the undercroft when I heard the gate rattle again. Did she forget something? "Sebastian, you're fucking kidding me! You invited the new girl to the undercroft, just like that? Are you out of your bloody mind? This place was supposed to remain a secret!" Ominis stormed towards me, fuming. "Calm down." I barked, his tone infuriated me. "She needed a place where she could catch up on what she's been missing out in class without anyone disturbing her. I just wanted to help her. Besides, she promised not to tell anyone about the undercroft." "Oh, Sebastian, the savior of the damsel in distress. A girl flutters her eyes at you and you tell her about all your secrets right away?" "You don't even know whether she fluttered her eyes at me. Or can you suddenly see?" We kept goading each other. "Fair enough, I can't see shit. However, I've noticed that this year you are quieter when she is somewhere around. You also behave differently around her. Admit it: you fell head over heels for her." Bull's eye. She piqued my interest as soon as she had arrived. Being able to beat me left-handed on her first day in a duel in Defense Against the Dark Arts only increased my interest and by the time she defeated the troll in Hogsmeade, it been game over for me. "So what? She is, well, different. I trust her. I want to be with her at every possible second. Damn it, Ominis, I've never felt like this before." My best friend sighed. "Okay. We can't undo what happened. Though, if she shows this place to even one person, I'll rip you a new one and hang your naked ass from the astronomy tower, Sebastian. Is that clear?" A grin crossed my lips. "Very clear." "Merlin, you're driving me crazy." Ominis laughed and I joined in on the laughter.

End of Flashback

I sat down next to my best friend. "You smell like lilacs. What happened?" Merlin, these heightened senses scared me sometimes. "Hello Ominis, I hope you also had a good first lesson", I greeted him with a sarcastic undertone. "I hugged Y/N. Or rather, she hugged me." I scratched the back of my head nervously and found myself grinning like crazy. "You're kidding me." Ominis turned to me. "How so?" "Well..." My heart started pounding wildly again. "We faced a boggart. Y/N's boggart was us. Dead. She collapsed and I tried to calm her down. Then, she hugged me all of a sudden. Oh, Ominis, had the circumstances been different, I could have sat there and held her forever." Ominis shook his head. "Merlin's beard! It was about time. You've been nagging with this for a year, and then it takes a boggart to get you two get a step closer? If you keep up the pace, you'll have your first kiss by the time you're thirty. Sebastian, confess your feelings to her already."

Confess my feelings to her? Has he gone insane? "You're saying this as if it were easy. What if she doesn't feel the same way about me? Then I'll ruin our friendship." Ominis started laughing. "Please, Sebastian. I thought I'm the blind one here. She's obviously in love with you, too. Finally pull yourself together and show her that a Slytherin can be brave, as well." "How do I do that, though? I'm not going up to her saying, 'Hey, Y/N, I absolutely fancy you, do you want to go out with me'!?" "You could if you wanted to come across as a complete prat. I don't know much about girls or how to impress them. Maybe you'll write her a letter?" I shook my head. "Way too cheesy." Ominis thought for a moment. "Or you invite her to a nice place." "The undercroft!" "I said a nice place, Sebastian! You could lure her into a broom closet, why don't you?" The thought made me smile. "At least it would be cuddly in there." My friend rolled his eyes. "You really are hopeless. Ask a girl for advice if my suggestions aren't good enough for you, then. There are enough walking around here."

Asking another girl to help me confess my feelings to the witch of my dreams? That meant I had to tell another girl about my crush first. Who would qualify? Who could I trust enough to do that? I would ask Y/N for advice, but it was her that this was all about. Her girl friends weren't an option either; Although, they probably knew best what Y/N liked. I couldn't ask Anne either, because I would have to know where she was first. I could only think of one. I just hoped I wasn't making a fool out of myself.

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"Young love! How...stirring." - Rita Skeeter