Moments In Between

It has always been you.

The morning sun was pouring through the windows, making the room bright with sunlight. The fireplace died down overnight only leaving traces of some burning wood. Much to Andromeda's annoyance, a clock chimed several times which caused her to keep her eyes squeezed shut in protest. She snuggled closer to Ominis by hiding her face in the crook of his neck. It was difficult for her to tell if she had the best sleep of her life because she depleted all of her energy yesterday or...

Was it due to being this close to Ominis? He held her against him through the night and never let go. After yesterday's events, she felt safe knowing that he was right there with her.

"Andromeda, you need to wake up."

Ominis was playing with her hair, combing his fingers through it. If he truly wanted to wake her up, he was doing a terrible job at it. Without moving her head, Andromeda muttered against his skin.

"How would you know if it's morning or not? You told me yourself it is all the same to you."

She must have made him chuckle since he started to shake underneath her. With her eyes still closed, she turned her head to the side and let out a long exhale. All she wanted to do was to savor this moment. She had no desire to deal with the reality of yesterday.

Ominis moved his arm down towards her back and pulled her closer to him. "Can we talk about last night? You were almost inconsolable but I knew you were past the point of exhaustion. It pains me knowing you were so upset."

Andromeda gradually opened her eyes and found his hand that was resting on his chest. She grabbed onto it and laced their fingers together.

"Everything just came crashing down on me at once last night. Fighting the Inferi while looking for Sebastian only to watch him cast the Killing curse on his uncle. He tried to convince me that he had to do it and that it was the only way to save his sister."

She paused to collect herself after reliving her memories. "I remember being so tired and sick to my stomach. I think if I overuse ancient magic in battle, it seems to drain the life out of me. I just became so overwhelmed last night because I began to think what would have happened if you didn't come back for me..."

Ominis squeezed her hand and laid a gentle kiss on the top of her head. "Honestly, I was so scared out of my mind when I found you lying on the ground. You were so cold and I believed for a moment that..." He swallowed hard, refusing to finish his sentence. "I was leaving Hogwarts when I ran into Sebastian, who was hysterical. I thought I was angry when he told me what he did but when I asked where you were...I could have killed him right then and there. He was absolutely clueless and swore that you followed him back. I had a feeling that something must have happened to you."

Andromeda pushed herself up to look at Ominis. "Sebastian wasn't in the right state of mind. He was frantic when I tried to talk to him and before I knew it, he just ran off."

Ominis quickly sat up and reached out to hold her cheek in the palm of his hand. "I should never have left you."

She leaned into his touch. "But you kept your promise. You came back."

"Oh, my dear. I will always come back to you. Not even hell on earth will stop me."

Andromeda felt her heart burst with so much love and affection towards Ominis that her hands flew to his face and pulled him into a deep kiss. When she parted her lips, he immediately responded by slipping his tongue into her mouth. She groaned with pleasure while her hands grasped through his hair. Each kiss grew more desperate as they explored each other. She could feel him smiling against her mouth and how his arms slid down her back. The warmth from his hands pressed through her blouse and caused a shiver down her spine.