In the Shadows - Sebastian Sallow x reader (English)

Chapter 6

A few weeks had passed since the boggart incident and we were back to our every day school life. My thoughts were always with Sebastian. How his closeness had felt, his warmth, the scent of cedar wood. Thinking of something diffrent was difficult because we had almost every lesson together and then again, we also sat next to each other. It was pure torture. And yet, to me, it wasn't enough time spent with him. I had to come up with a good excuse to be alone with him and, at best, to get closer to him. Then, in Charms class, it finally clicked! Sebastian had already taught me spells that weren't taught in school in the undercroft last year. He had a penchant for forbidden things and a knack for teaching. We've been learning the Shrinking Charm on old books and I deliberately pretended bein clumsy. My test objects grew tiny wings or they started hopping around the classroom. "You seem to have problems. May I help you?" Amit asked. No offense, Amit, but you're not my target. "Thanks for the offer, but I can manage on my own." I smiled my thanks at the Ravenclaw. And so I kept playing the game until Sebastian finally grabbed my wand hand. "I can't watch any longer. Let me help you." With my hand in his, he performed the required wand movement. "Reducio." The book in front of me shrank to a convenient travel size. "You've been making one movement too much." "I didn't even notice that," I boldly lied in his face. "Could you explain that to me, again?" Sebastian grinned at me. "Sure! Meet me in the undercroft tonight and we'll practice together." I couldn't wait.

The rest of the day dragged on like chewing gum. When evening finally came, I eagerly crammed my dinner and scurried to the common room to freshen up. I swapped the school uniform for my outfit, which I had won as a prize in the finale of the crossed wands. It was practical and at the same time highlighted exactly the parts of my body that I wanted to emphasize. I wore my hair half open. "Honey, you look adorable. Nobody can hold a candle to you." The talking mirror in my dormitory once again exaggerated with ist ego stroking and yet that was exactly what I needed to hear in that moment. I nervously made my way to the undercroft.

In front of the clock, which hid the entrance to the undercroft, I took another deep breath and entered. Sebastian was already waiting at the triptych, examining the painted landscapes in the empty portrait. He had discarded his cloak and jacket and only wore the green checked waistcoat over the white dress shirt of his school uniform. His tie hung loosely around his neck. As the iron gate rattled and announced my arrival, the Slytherin turned to me, a slight smile on his face. "There you are." He came towards me and examined my outfit. "Do you have anything planned for tonight or why are you dressed so adventurously?" I shrugged. "You never know whether you're going to be attacked by an enchantment gone awry. I just like to be prepared for everything." "Then let's waste no more time. It's best to practice on these boxes over there. Remember, the incantaion is 'Reducio' and the hand gesture is a simple V. Don't add flourishes to it like you did earlier. I've got my eyes on you." I hope so. I stalked to the wooden crates at the end of the room. I couldn't show that I had actually mastered the magic, so that Sebastian wouldn't become suspicious. A little twitch here, a little wrong intonation there and my little mess of bouncing and singing boxes was perfect. "What are you doing?" Sebastian shook his pretty head in disbelief and came toward me. "Reverte!" The boxes stopped their nonsense and began piling up against the wall again. "Try again." I couldn't play dumb any longer. This time I did everything right and the boxes in front of me shrank to toy size. "Alright! Now, you've got it." I smiled and turned to Sebastian. "Do you want to learn something exciting now? We still have a little time." I nodded excitedly "I'm in."

As soon as I had finished my sentence, I was pushed against Sebastian from behind. Apparently, one of the bouncing boxes managed to escape. He tried to catch me, but we lost our balance and landed on the hard stone floor. I was lying on top of him, ear to ear with him. When I lifted my head, Sebastian turned his face to me. Only a few centimeters separated us. My heart was pounding, my breath was shaking. Inevitably, my gaze wandered from his hazel eyes to his lips, which were slightly parted. The desire to kiss him grew with every second. Pull yourself together, Y/N! I quickly looked into his eyes again, only to find that they were also just wandering up again. Sebastian brushed a strand of hair out of my face. "Are you okay?" Merlin, have mercy! My heart almost jumped out of my chest again. I just nodded. "And you?" "Yes", whispered Sebastian, his hand still on my ear, behind which he had tucked the loose strand. He gently pulled me closer until the tips of our noses touched. Our lips hovered over each other. Just a few more millimeters and they would touch.

BANG! We flinched. I backed away from Sebastian and landed on my butt next to him. We had completely forgotten about the escaped box and it was now rampaging in the undercroft. Damned bastard! "Reverte!" Sebastian disenchanted the last box with a touch of annoyance. He had now sat up and supported himself with his left hand on the ground. As if trying to get rid of a thought, Sebastian shook his head. "Where were we?" I blinked to regain my senses. "Y-you wanted to teach me something exciting." "Right." He stood up and gave me a hand to help me up. "Shall we?" I gratefully took his hand. Not because I needed his help, but to have a valid reason to hold his hand. "This spell can be very useful in duels. Unless you're up against a parselmouth. Believe me, I'm speaking from experience. I'll never use that spell on Ominis again. That bastard actually used my own spell against me. I still have scars on my forearm." "Now you've made me even more curious." The anecdotes about Sebastian's and Ominis' practice of new spells were always very entertaining. "I assume it has something to do with snakes?" "Dead right! You summon a snake that attacks your opponent. Do you want to learn it?" "Hell, yes! But first, I want to know what exactly happened when Ominis turned the tables." I suppressed a grin. "He set my snake on me and then it bit me." Sebastian rolled up the right sleeve of his shirt and presented me four shiny silver dots on the outside of his forearm, just below the elbow. Fascinated, I ran my fingers over each individual scar. "There's something ironic about it, don't you think? A Slytherin bitten by a snake." I grinned at him. "Just make sure you don't get bitten by a lion", Sebastian teased back. "So, the spell. You need a secure stand. Keep your knees bent a bit." I placed my feet shoulder-width apart and slightly bent my knees. "Like that?" Sebastian placed a hand on my hip and corrected my posture a bit. "More like that." His left hand stayed around my waist, with his right he took my hand in which I held my wand ready. Sebastian was now so close behind me, I could have leaned against him. His head was now peeping over my right shoulder. "The wand motion is a slightly curved downward motion", he whispered in my ear while performing the motion with my hand in his. "And the incantation is Serpensortia. Try it!" He let go of my hand, leaving an empty feeling on my skin. I didn't want to play stupid this time, otherwise Sebastian might never teach me anything again. "Serpensortia!" The tip of my wand seemed to explode and a long black snake sprang out. The force of the explosion was comparable to the recoil of a fired gun. If Sebastian hadn't supported me, I would have ended up landing on butt. So I just hit hin in his chest with my back, which made us both gasp. "Hence the safe footing. I understand." The snake hissed, revealing its thin, pointed teeth. "Vipera Evanesca!" After Sebastian's spell, the snake dissipated into black smoke. "It has no one to attack here", he explained, noticing my disappointed expression. "At least nobody it should attack. You did well." Pride swelled in my chest as I let the praise sink in. Sebastian's gaze flew to a clock on the wall. Well, this one is new. Or have I just not noticed it yet? "I guess we have to call it a day. Let me know if you need 'tutoring' again or want to learn a new spell." With a wink, he started gathering his previously discarded clothes and got dressed again. Together we left the undercroft. When we had to part ways, I turned to the Slytherin. "Thank you again, Sebastian. You really are a good teacher. I can't know for sure, but I'm sure you got that from your parents." A spark of wistfulness flared up in the hazel eyes. "Thanks. It means a lot to me." He scratched the back of his head. "So then. Good night", I reluctantly said goodbye to him. "Good night, Y/N." With one last look over my shoulder, I climbed the stairs to the Gryffindor common room. I'm sure I won't be sleeping a wink tonight.