Kindred | Hogwarts Legacy

Chapter Twenty-one : Salazar Slytherin's Scriptorium

Ominis insisted on going that very night. Perhaps it was fear of him changing his mind, or the anxiety of just getting it done and over with, Sabrina wasn't sure which emotion was overtaking the Gaunt boy more. Even Sebastian seemed on edge as the sun sunk lower and the sky grew darker, tapping his feet and zoning out more than he usually did.

Sabrina wasn't entirely sure what it was she was feeling. Her curiosity grew the more she thought about it, so she was excited in thinking they would have a new secret of the castle to explore. On the other hand, she had a deep dark feeling that something was wrong, or that something bad was going to happen. The knot in her stomach grew with each minute, and it felt like a hard lump by the time the boys announced they were ready to go.

The three hadn't really spoken since they left Feldcroft. At first the shock of Ominis' decision had prevented Sebatian from thinking or speaking properly, then seeing the weight of his decision was enough to make even him feel bad.

Ominis led Sabrina and Sebastian down a corridor that was actually close to the Slytherin Common Room before he stopped at the end of the hall. "The secret entrance is here," Ominis announced. "These three braziers grant access, however they have to be lit at roughly the same time. All I know is that almost everything in the scriptorium has something to do with threes."

"Well, three heads are better than one."

If Ominis could have rolled his eyes, he would have. "It's 'two heads are better than one,'" he corrected Sebastian.

"And by that logic, three is better than two," Sebastian replied, trying finally to ease the tension. "Simple mathematics, Ominis."

Three braziers, two down one hallway and one down the other."Let's each light one brazier," Sabrina told them. The boys nodded before taking a stance. Ominis' wand flickered red, showing him where his target was. Sabrina stood next to Sebastian, her dark wand aimed along with him. "Ready?"

The boys nodded.

"One... two... three."

"Confringo!" They each cast the spell at the same time, lighting up the lanterns.

"Something's happening," Sebastian said immediately, turning back to the empty space in the wall. Several bricks had moved and it had now opened up to a door, revealing a very dark and uneasy passageway.

Ominis sighed deeply. "I hope that I... that we don't regret this."

Sabrina placed a gentle hand on Ominis' shoulder. He was so tense, he didn't even flinch. "Ominis... you don't have to do this."

He moved his head in her direction, allowing her to see the fear in his clouded eyes. He was also trembling. Sabrina was about to say something else when he shook her hand off his shoulder, a sense of determination now seeming to flood him. "I hope we're ready for this." And with that, he stepped forward, his wand lighting up as he led the way down the stone steps.

This was a bad idea.

Sabrina followed closely behind him, and Sebastian stayed close to her. "Dark, ominous corridors," he said, his voice echoing off the walls. "My favorite."

"No comment," Ominis responded dryly.

"C'mon, Ominis, that was a good one." As soon as he said that, they all heard the stone door behind them close, and they were locked in. Sebastian immediately cast lumos,illuminating the dark room they were in. "Looks like a locked door," he said, looking at the door ahead with engraved snakes around it. "We'll have to look around and see if there's a key."

Sabrina looked closer around her. This corridor was extremely dark, and without Sebastian's wand to light the way she wouldn't have been able to see past her nose. She looked down, noticing a huge stone engraved portrait that had fallen into pieces on the ground. She went to take a closer look when she noticed a bit of parchment under one of the stones. Sabrina picked it up, trying to read under the light of Sebastian's wand.