Potions & Charms

Dreaming

When Scott woke up the next morning he stretched, carefully, and reached out to pull Avi back against his chest. But much to his surprise the bearded man wasn't there anymore. Scott sat up and stretched. He didn't have a reason to hurry, Avi was probably on the couch with a book in his hands and wanted some peace and quiet anyway.

The baritone made his way to the living room ten minutes later, after another stretch. He had put on his robe and although it was open it kept him warm since the house had cooled off during the night. When he entered the large room looked over to the couch, only to find Avi in front of the fireplace on the floor. The man was shivering in his sleep and Scott frowned before he fetched his still warm blanket from the bedroom and quickly made his way over to him.

"Here you go" he mumbled and covered Avi's body with it. He didn't worry too much since the bass had gotten somewhat comfortable on the furs on the floor, but he didn't understand why he had left the bed at all.

While Avi was still sleeping Scott prepared breakfast for them. He toasted bagels, scrambled eggs and fried bacon and smiled when Avi began to stir.

"Morning" Scott said and set the table. He added cream cheese, cubes of fruit and a mug filled with tea for Avi while he made himself a cup of coffee. "C'mon, breakfast."

But Avi didn't move. He kept staring at Scott while he pulled the blanket tighter around his cold body.

"Avi, are you coming?" The baritone was already sitting at the table before he got back up and approached the bearded man. "Do you need help to get up? C'mere." Scott reached out, but the Potion Master flinched and quickly scrambled to his feet.

Once at the table he kept himself busy with the mug of tea instead of eating anything solid.

"Alright, what's wrong? Why did you sleep on the floor?"

"I-" Avi paused and looked down. "Are you real, Scott? Or is this a dream?"

Scott furrowed his brows. "This is real. Reality. I'm right here" he said and lowered his bagel. "Did you have a nightmare?"

"It felt real" Avriel mumbled and looked up again. "There wasn't really a pause or some sort of skip to when weird things started to happen." He brought the mug up to his lips.

That was when Scott noticed his shaky hands. Something must've really affected him, he thought and then scooted closer to slip one of his arms around Avi's torso. "Can you tell me what happened?"

The potion master thought for a moment and then, with his voice barely audible, asked "can I show you?"

Scott didn't trust his ears. Bringing the man to talk about his past had been a struggle already and he wasn't sure if Avi realized what it would mean for him to let Scott into his head, the amount of trust he had into the Charms teacher. "I would be honored, Avi. And it means a lot to me. But if you're not sure then...just tell me?"

But the bearded man shook his head and leaned his head against Scott's shoulder. A sob came over his lips and he placed the mug on the table again before he pulled his knees up to his chest, rested his heels on the edge of the chair and hid his head in his hands. 

The tall blonde took a deep breath before he snuck his arms around his friend and pulled him closer. "It's okay" he just whispered and allowed him to cry for as long as he needed to. He wanted to know about the dream, wanted to know how bad it had been to have such an effect on the man, wanted to be there and make it better. Scott just wanted to make it better. 

They ended up on the couch again, just a few minutes later, and the baritone kept his Potion Master as close as possible. He felt Avi flinching whenever his hand ran over his back and after a soft "don't touch" it didn't take long for Scott to connect the clues Avi was providing him with. With his hands on Avi's upper arms and the blanket around him he remembered the covered mirror in the man's bathroom in the castle, followed by his own reflection in the large mirror from the evening before while he had brushed his teeth, and he almost gasped when everything came together. 

His scars. 

Maybe Avi hadn't been able to cope with how close Scott had been during the night, maybe his nightmare had been about him punishing him for unwanted and prohibited behavior, maybe- Scott looked down when Avi adjusted his position and pressed his cheek against Scott's chest while he kept tugging on dry skin of his chapped lips. 

"No" the baritone said softly and lowered Avi's hand. "Don't hurt yourself." He pressed his lips against his forehead and sighed. "And I need you to eat something before I even attempt to slip into your mind. A little bit of eggs, a few bites of the bagel. Plain or not, I don't care. But you have to eat, otherwise it'll be dangerous for both of us." 

Avriel was sitting on the couch again, this time by himself and with both feet on the floor, with his hands resting on his knees, while he focused on the man standing in front of him. 

"Are you ready?" Scott asked again and reached for his wand. They had taken some time to calm down and while Avi had been at the table to eat, Scott had showered to give him some space and time to himself to collect and sort his thoughts. 

After a short nod and eye contact the Potion Master felt immense pressure against the front of his skull and gasped for air. It subsided quickly after he had forced himself to take deep breaths and allow whatever was happening right now to happen. His hands relaxed again and he stopped gripping his thighs while Scott slipped into his mind and gulped. 

He found himself in thick, dark fog that disappeared slowly, only to reveal a heavy door made out of metal welded shut. Left and right was nothing, just muddy darkness that reminded Scott of some kind of swamp and when he looked up at the massive door again, reaching miles and miles into the dark green sky he gulped. It hadn't been the first mind he had peeked into, but it was by far the darkest and scariest. He suddenly missed Kirstie's small golden stars surrounding him, or Mitch's bright diamonds and other gemstones he was usually confronted with. 

But manifestation of Avi's mind was dark and hostile and Scott knew that it wouldn't be an easy task for him to find what he was looking for. He silently prayed for Avi's help and just a few moments later the metal door squeaked.