Black Phoenix and Feathered Serpent

by L_they

Summary:

Genevieve has power. More power than any being in the entire Wizarding World. And she hates it. People only see her worth when she flaunts her status, they don’t want to see weakness.
So when she has to flee her home and hide her identity, she couldn’t be happier. No one knows her true name, no one knows her family. Here, she can be herself.
But even at this foreign place, dark forces want what was given to her, and they won’t stop at anything to get it.
Thank whoever one believes in - be it Merlin or Salazar - there is someone who has come to cherish and love her. Someone who would put his believes aside if it assures her safety.
Someone who warms her untrusting and cautious heart.

Notes:

It is here, the prequel to You have your mother’s eyes!
The first chapter is basically just the backstory of the Nord/North family up to Genevieve, whose backstory up to the events of the game will be chapter 2 (so the first one is a bit short and the second might get ultra long).

Enjoy:)

 

Warnings: mention of cursing, blood, death

Chapter 1: A family as ancient as Magic

The very first time anyone ever heard of the Nord family was in Germany in December 922, when Lord Gunthhardt Nord announced the pregnancy of his wife Eloisa. Two months later, the Lord was dead. Eloisa herself had poisoned him, so that he would never find out the child wasn’t his. The biological father, a Greek nobleman, married the Lady Nord in the spring of 923, four hours before Lady Eloïdessa Amalia Aphrodite Nord was born. The child was of otherworldly beauty and unnatural intelligence. In addition to such valued muggle qualities, she was also exceptionally skilled with magic. Eloïdessa´s birth revealed the Germen aristocratic family to be more ancient and pureblooded than even the high born Sir Godric Gryffindor and Lord Salazar Slytherin. The immense magical strength came from the new born´s great-great-great-grandmother, who had drunk the blood of a black phoenix every single day from the age of 3 to 44, thus integrating the magical blood into the family’s inheritance. Strangely enough, only the girls had the blessed blood, and so the first born girls were made the Heads of the family. From then on, the boys and younger female siblings were forbidden from producing consanguineous offspring.

Eloïdessa´s beauty and popularity caused much envy, especially from a Britsh witch who was extremely skilled in the Dark Arts. When the German Lady then ridiculed her publicly, she cursed the family´s blood. From now on, one child of each matriarch would suffer attacks of such excruciating pain that they would literally be unable to breathe. Unfortunately - for the British witch - the phoenix blood prevented at least the girls from death, though none of the affected reached the age of 30. The Nord Family Council of Elders concluded that the curse could be broken in two ways: either through the sacrifice of an expectant mother that carried the curse or by a cursed one reached the age of 30.

In 1534, Lady Diane Nord recorded another discovery in her journal: the curse never manifested itself in the eldest daughter. The Community of German Wizards and Witches rejoiced as the most influential and richest family amongst the mundane and the magical world was safe from extinction.

In 1630 the Lady Katherine Diane Penelope Nord was born. The matriarch, who lost her mother at the tender age of nine, was the first eldest daughter to show mild signs of the Blood Curse. However, when her younger brother Hans succumbed to the pain of the curse, Katharina´s pain was written off as purely psychological.

The phenomenon did not reappear until 1875…

Chapter 2: The cursed Twin

Notes:

Chapter 2
As promised, the backstory of Genevieve up to the game’s events

This is a long one and I think the others are gonna be most likely the same because boi there is just so much material to work with

Warnings for this one: Child neglect, child abuse, implied side character death, fluff, crazy long German names (god honestly some of those German people get crazy when they name their kids ;) )

Enjoy :)

In the earliest hours of the fifth of June 1875, Lady Elfriede Maria Therese Nord went into labour. As it was the advice from her doctors and due to her already advanced age, these twins would be her last children. Her three sons, Gunther Hubold Nord - aged 6 - Benedikt Augustus Nord - aged , almost 5 - and Hou Qian - aged 3, named by his father, Lord Hou Jian - and herself were praying for at least one girl.

The labour was hard, and Lady Elfriede´s screams could be heard all around Munich. Four nurses had their hands crushed during the ordeal, and the poor doctor received at least thirty kicks to his head.

Late in the evening, Lady Genevieve Ophelia Estelle Nord was the first to cry out, followed fifty minutes later by her brother Heinrich Norbert Nord. The matriarch was born, and Lady Elfriede cheered. That was until the doctor informed her that Genevieve, sweet innocent Genevieve, was the cursed one.

Instead of lamenting her daughter´s fate, Lady Elfriede devised a plan. The medical staff´s memory was altered, and the powerful witch conjured a perfect - albeit without life - copy of her daughter and gave the real baby to one of her most trusted house elves. The copy and the boy were given to the hexed nurses to present to the others.

And so, two minutes to ten o´clock at night, Lady Genevieve Nord was declared dead, and the family buried the copy on the Munich cemetery.

 

Hidden in a secluded part of the manor - a part only the female members of the family were allowed to enter - little Genevieve grew up under the care of the house elves, which occasional visits from her mother. She dreaded those visits, as her mother always made her feel like something ugly and unloveable. For her mother, only progress and perfection mattered. Whenever Genevieve made a mistake - like playing the wrong tune on her piano forte - or stepped out of line - like when she asked for a short break after  six and a half hours of studying - her mother would punish her with the Cruciatus Curse or by having an eagle scratch her hands until they bled. And after every punishment, Genevieve was sent to reflect on herself and on why she had made her mother so mad and disappointed.

With her fifth birthday came her magic - and so the pain as well. The first time she had collapsed in front of her mother, the woman had initially comforted her. Afterwards, however, she had been pushed away and told that this pain was what she deserved. And Genevieve believed her.

Genevieve knew that she also had a father and four brothers. Her mother had often told her how much they had loathed her since the day of her birth, and how much happier they were without her. Sometimes, she could even see them in the garden near the place she was never allowed to leave. They would play the funniest looking games, and she wished she had brothers who loved her enough to let her join.

One of the boys - the one that looked the most similar to her - had sometimes noticed her as well. He then always looked confused and surprised - and Genevieve had fled from the window. More often than not she would stand in front of a mirror after such an encounter and study her features: Long, dark brown locks, pale skin, slender figure. All her siblings had those as well. The thing that set her and that one brother of hers apart from the others were the forest green eyes. Her maternal family´s eyes, that all matriarchs inherited. They were what she liked most about herself.

They reminded her of the green grounds beyond the manor´s walls. Grounds she would never walk upon. The house elves and her mother had constantly reminded her never to go outside. They said that the outside air was deathly to her health. With how often Genevieve fell ill, it made sense.

As the years went by, Genevieve grew into a bright and kind girl with a light heart - despite her mother´s negative influence. She was polite and never shied away from hard work. Her mother and private tutor taught her manners and magic - both the German way of using a magic staff and the Chinese wandless elemental magic, as well as the magic of the phoenix inside her - and the house elves taught her games and one specific German dessert: the ´Baumkuchen´, a cake with layers reminiscent of a tree´s life rings.

But as Genevieve grew stronger, so did the curse, and Elfriede began to panic. Her daughter had to be the one to finally survive and break the curse.

She would be. Elfriede would make sure of it.

 

It was the morning of the fifth June 1883 when Genevieve entered her study room, dressed in a pale yellow dress made specifically for this day - her eighth birthday. The friendly house elves greeted and congratulated her, but went completely silent when Lady Elfriede entered the room.

Without a word, Elfriede led her daughter through the halls to a large library. In the middle of the room stood a medical cot, onto which Elfriede lifted her daughter. Genevieve watched fearfully as her mother summoned her magical staff and then tapped the embedded crystal at its top to her forehead. The moment Genevieve felt the cold stone press against her skin, the world around her faded to darkness.

 

Time was lost to her. Occasionally, Genevieve thought she could hear people crying out or her mother’s scary laughter, her skin prickled with something unpleasant form time to time. The pain of her curse also came and went away like usual, but Genevieve noticed that at some point, the cramps had changed to all encompassing numbness. This scared her more than the pain, as the numbness often spread up to her lungs, which made it incredibly difficult to breathe.

One day, the cries and laughter were replaced by loud shouting and crashing sounds. She could hear her mother shriek, and a flurry of spells filled the air. The chaos ended with an extremely loud explosion. Suddenly, Genevieve´s eyes flew open and she found herself lying on the cot. She was still in the same room, though it looked significantly different: the shelves were loaded with potions instead of books - which were scattered about the room - and some still held liquid, the ceiling was charred, and someone had apparently drawn runes onto the tiled floor with chalk. But what surprised her most were the people surrounding her. She could see her father and brothers, the other men and women wore the uniform of their personal guards. One of them - a bulky man with bushy eyebrows brows - approached her father and said: "Sir, your daughter is awake." They all turned towards her, and Genevieve wished for the ground to swallow her. She retreated into herself and prepared for hateful words.

"Genevieve?" One of her brothers slowly walked towards her - the one with eyes like hers. He cautiously held out his hand to her. She noticed that he looked a little older than when she had seen him last. And he was still getting closer.

"Genevieve, I know you know me. I’m your twin brother, Heinrich." Her silence and teary eyes seemed to confuse him. "I have seen you on several occasions. You would stand by the large window when we were in the gardens. Only I thought you were either a ghost or my imaginary friend." When he finally stopped right before her, Genevieve shut her eyes and mentally steeled herself for a reprimand or a slap. She deserved it, after all, she had pushed her presence upon them during their time of recreation.

The warmth of a hug enveloped her, and Genevieve felt tears of confusion run down her cheeks. "You do not despise me? I don’t anger you with my existence?", she whispered, just loud enough for him to hear. He tightened his arms around her and let out a shuddering breath before answering: "Despise you? Dearest sister mine, until this day I wasn’t even aware of you still being alive!" He pulled away and cupped her face with his hands. His green eyes shone with tears of adoration and care so strong, that all feelings of mistrust fell from Genevieve, and she threw her arms around his neck. Her heart swelled when he returned the embrace, and her stomach fluttered when her other siblings and her father joined the hug.

 

Genevieve had come to like England quite a lot. She still found London to be overly dirty and stiff, but the countryside was charming and romantic. The fifteen-year-old girl sat on one of the wider windowsills of the small British cottage and reminisced while twisting the ends of her braid: her mother had kept her hidden all those years, just so that she could search for a cure for her Blood Curse - especially those involving the Dark Arts - without interference and - if the search would have led to nothing - ensure Genevieve´s survival past the age of thirty in other ways. The cold-hearted woman had then put her own daughter into a magical coma for an entire year - the others had found her on the twins´ ninth birthday - to experiment on her using only dark spells. And all it had done was change excruciating pain to life-threatening numbness and breathlessness. Thankfully, her brothers Gunther and Heinrich - the oldest and the youngest - had noticed their mother’s suspicious behaviour and the had alerted their father. Along with all their personal guards, they had followed her the next time she was about to disappear once again and - after a rather heated confrontation - had defeated her.

The young witch smiled at the memories of the years after that: her father and older brothers had loved to spoil and teach her all sorts of games and tricks, and Heinrich had almost never left his twin´s side again.

But every good and pleasant thing eventually comes to an end. Her maternal uncle Ottfried - one of her mother’s older brothers - had vowed to avenge his sister and wipe out their entire family. Obviously, he shared her tendency to madness. To prevent him from succeeding, her paternal uncle Hou Ling had fled with Genevieve to England under false names, just two days before her fifteenth birthday.

When they had arrived in the gloomy streets of London, they had been more than surprised to receive an acceptance letter from Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry for Genevieve - under her false name.

Tired footsteps behind her pulled Genevieve back to the present. Professor Eleazar Fig, teacher at Hogwarts and her assigned mentor, smiled fatherly at her. "I believe we are all set to leave for Hogwarts. And, as I´ve said before, though it is unusual for a new student to join as a fifth-year, I imagine you´ll be just fine making friends and catching up to the current curriculum." The elderly man glanced at the giant clock and then back to her.

"Are you ready, Miss North?"

She nodded and stood. "I am."

Notes:

I always kinda imagined German witches and wizards to be like Gandalf, and for the Chinese part… well I guess I do watch too many Chinese fantasy dramas `:) You were right, Mum, hehe

Chapter 3: A talking hat, trolls and other oddities

Notes:

Hello folks
So here we have chapter 3, which is a bit longer than the second one

I really tried to stick to the in-game dialogue, but then I noticed that it wouldn’t fit with how this story is supposed to go, so…
I will include direct lines from the game, but a lot of it will be original speech.

Warnings: implied/referenced minor character death, effects of a Blood Curse, funky looking trolls getting defeated (I somehow love how the trolls look in the game so I was kinda sad whenever I defeated one), a little bit of fluff and crushing at first "sight"

Enjoy:)

Her head was buzzing, and she could hardly concentrate on anything Fig said. Too much had happened too quickly, rendering her speechless and breathless. The dragon, Mr Osric, Gringotts, the goblins… and yet another form of magic that resided within her. Had her twin been there, Genevieve would have let all of her frustration out in a mock duel against him. Without him, she was left feeling overwhelmed.

They had entered the ginormous castle and were approaching a set of giant brown doors. Professor Fig carefully opened them to risk a look inside. He turned to her with a relieved smile. "Oh, good, we haven’t missed the Sorting Ceremony. I’m no expert, but… that seems more… appropriate…", he mumbled while waving his wand. Her ripped and dirty skirt, blouse and coat transformed into a dark, clean outfit - presumably the school’s uniform.

Genevieve was slightly confused by his constant change of mood. Talking about clothing when something so bizarre as several people losing their lives had happened seemed - at least to her - strangely inappropriate. One of those who had died had, after all, been her mentor´s good friend - or so she had thought.

The professor did not notice her puzzled gaze and slightly leaned against the doors. "Now, I need to study this locket as soon as I can, but first, I must contact the Ministry. They need to know what happened to George and be warned of Ranrock." His eyes grew serious. "For the moment, I ask that you keep all that’s happened this evening… between you and me." Genevieve nodded solemnly. "Of course, Sir." "Thank you", Professor Fig said, before changing his mood once more from serious to almost cheerful as he rubbed his hands together. "Ready for the Sorting Ceremony?" The man once more pushed the doors open - a little further this time - and pulled back again after a few moments. His wrinkles were even more prominent when he grimaced, noted Genevieve. But she held her tongue as fast and loud footsteps neared.

 

Ominis was just about to fall asleep when the person to his left nudged his shoulder unnecessarily hard. "Oi, Omi. Black´s moving." The boy groaned and buried his head further between his arms. "A true miracle, Sebastian, that Professor Black knows of the function of his legs like a normal person would", he ground out sarcastically. "And here I had already feared our headmaster had forgotten how to walk." "Very funny, Ominis. What I meant to say, was that Black just headed towards the doors through which I´ve just seen Professor Fig. There must be something going on", his best friend replied, now shaking both of his shoulders.

Suddenly, a tingling sensation reached the blind boy. A shiver ran through him, and his drowsiness was blown away.

"Do you feel that, Sebastian?"

"What?"

"The air. It’s tingling!"

He felt Sebastian´s Handtuch his forehead. "Are you feeling alright, Ominis?" Ominis swatted the hand away. "You truly do not feel this?"

"No, I don’t! Are you sure you’re alright-"

"Yes, I am!"

At that moment, the doors opened fully, and Black´s steps moved through the room, followed by quieter, more hesitant ones. The person following Black to the teachers´ table was - apparently - the cause of the tingling, as the sensation moved with them.

"Professor Weasley, we´ve one more to be sorted", the pompous headmaster said loudly. All other conversations died down, but Ominis thought he had gone deaf. His thoughts - incoherent snippets of information, facts and questions - raced, leaving no room for perceiving sound. His head was turned to the front, where the object of his interest was. There was nothing but the tingles, until the raspy voice of the Sorting Hat cut through the silence in his head.

"Better be: Hufflepuff!"

 

The next morning came, and Genevieve woke up to golden light dancing about the room. For a moment, she didn’t know where she was, until the memory of the previous day returned as quickly as a lightning bolt. She quickly got up and dressed, the black and yellow of her new uniform reminding her of bumblebees. She braided her hair and tied it with her favourite pale yellow ribbon.

In the large and brightly lit Common Room, she met and talked to several of her new housemates, before she was called to meet outside with the vice headmistress, Professor Weasley. The woman had something about her that reminded Genevieve of a mother bear: fierce and protective, but also warm and caring. The teacher had easily earned Genevieve´s respect the evening before. She clearly was no one who meant her students harm, but also held a very high opinion on rules and abiding by those.

The Head of the House Gryffindor gifted her a large, brown book - Field Guide, she called it - which would record her progress in her classes and help her with orientation. The teacher also talked to her about the school´s Floo network, though Genevieve was already well aware of it´s functions. As the Head of her family, she had made numerous trips to appointments at the German Ministry of Magic using the rather uncomfortable method.

After she had successfully dodged the witch´s questions about her delayed arrival and a short talk with Professor Fig, Genevieve used the Field Guide to make her way to her first lesson of the day: Defense against the Dark Arts. As she entered the classroom, her eyes immediately landed on the giant skeleton of a dragon. It looked shockingly similar tothe one who had attacked her carriage.

She was so entranced by the bones that she entirely missed to notice the person approaching her from the side. "You must be the new fifth-year." Before her stood a boy with blonde hair and hypnotic blue eyes. By their glazed over state and the pulsing red light at the tip of his drawn wand she deducted that he was visually impaired - blind, as Heinrich would have put it bluntly - and the silver and green accentuations on his robes told her that he must have been sorted into House Slytherin. His soft and kind voice made her smile, his politeness evident in the way he had approached her. "It seems I am." The boy´s eyes twinkled as he smiled back at her and extended his hand. "I´m Ominis. Ominis Gaunt." Genevieve shook his hand and answered: "Genevieve North. It´s nice to make your acquaintance, Ominis." Her heart fluttered and a warm feeling spread in her chest.

Ominis turned slightly to the side and gestured towards two students duelling beneath the skeleton. "And over there you might see my friend and housemate, Sebastian Sallow. Just as a small warning, if you are the type of person who is keen to follow rules and avoid detention, it would be best not to engage in any form of contact with him. The one duelling him must be Leander Prewett from Gryffindor, but", he motioned to his eyes, "I cannot verify this visually." Taken aback by the duellists´ passionate casting, Genevieve asked: "Is it really allowed to duel here without the supervision of a professor?" Before Ominis could answer her, a spell hit the dragon’s skull and sent it towards the red haired student. Genevieve was ready to jump in to help, when a loud "Levioso!" caused the bone to hover just above the boy´s - Leander´s - head.

An elderly witch wearing a blue dress made her way down the steps, her glowing wand pointed at the object. "Mr, Prewett, Mr Sallow, I implore you to be more careful. New students arrive every year, but I only have one Hebredian Black skull. It was a token of the Great Poacher Raid in 1875, no doubt you´ve heard of it." With minimal movement of her wand, the head was returned to its place.

Genevieve had to blink several times to recognise the woman moving in front of the gathered students. She couldn’t believe her eyes as Dinah Hecat, her very first magical instructor under her father’s care, explained the day´s task. As she moved to the Center of the room to duel the Sallow boy, she could clearly see the glint of recognition in her teacher´s eyes.

 

Beating Sebastian - even with only being allowed to use three different spells and a borrowed wand - was an easy task. The Slytherin barely had timers cast anything before Genevieve sent him flying off the duelling platform. The students around them cheered, amongst them Ominis, whose eyes sparkled with respect and admiration. Before she could jump down from the long table, he already stood before her, offering his hand for support. "Thank you very much, Ominis." She beamed at him. Behind him, Sebastian chuckled as he walked towards the two. "I must say, that was rather impressive. You give as good as you get." She bowed her head in acknowledgement and said: "It was an interesting duel. And", she paused, her smile and tone deliberately teasing, "thank you so much for holding back in my favour." As Ominis hid his laugh behind his hand - because he as well must have been very much aware that Sebastian had in fact not held back - and Sebastian pretended to be offended while barely concealing a playful grin, Professor Hecat´s voice pulled her attention from the boys." Class dismissed. Miss North, may I ask you to stay behind for a few minutes?" Sebastian pulled the still giggling Ominis to the door and winked.

Genevieve waited until the last student had closed the door and then walked over to the teacher, who smiled at her widely. "Miss Genevieve Nord. I must say, I was thoroughly surprised to see you here. I thought you had already completed your magical studies two and a half years ago?" Genevieve huffed a laugh. "So did I, Professor, so did I. But the day my uncle and I arrived in London, I received the acceptance letter." Hecat grabbed her hands and said: "It truly feels good to see you in such a healthy state. Last time I saw you, you were pale and barely able to walk that day. I was hoping so dearly the rumours of your death weren’t true, and thank Rowena, they’re not." The teacher’s face got serious. "I am aware that your presence here is something not known by many people, so please be assured I will do my utmost to ensure your safety by keeping your identity a secret." Genevieve blinked away grateful tears. "Thank you, Professor. I know you know how much that means to me and my family."

 

By the end of their second lesson of the day, Ominis´ spirits were higher than the school´s highest tower. The new student - Genevieve, he reminded himself - was absolutely outstanding. Not only had she beaten Sebastian, current champion of the Crossed Wands, in under a minute on her first day, but she had also won Summoner’s Court against Natsai Onai. And the way she had talked to him had been so unbelievably warm and gentle. His stomach fluttered at the thought of sharing his next classes with her. When they rounded a corner - Sebastian was going on and on about his detention with Madame Scribner - Professor Weasley called them over.

"Mr Gaunt, Mr Sallow, may I have a word with you?" Next to him, Sebastian groaned, clearly expecting yet another scolding. "Concerning your new classmate, I would like to ask you two to accompany her to Hogsmeade. Due to the unfortunate events during her travel here, there are some things she will need to repurchase a variety of items. I chose you to walk with her, since you, Mr Sallow, know Hogsmeade better than anyone of your year and you, Mr Gaunt, for you have always been one of the most reliable students your age." Sebastian coughed and replied: "I would very much like to assist her, but unfortunately I am to serve detention in the library with Madame Scribner."

"I have already discussed this with her, and she is willing to forget your offences - as am I - if it means you could help out a new student." Ominis took a step forward. "Then we’ll gladly accompany her, Professor." "Very well then. Miss North is with Professor Ronen at the moment, but I will send her to the Clocktower Entrance once she’s completed her task."

"Thank you, Professor Weasley", Ominis said, grabbing Sebastian´s arm. "Well then, let’s wait for her there." He was excited to talk to Genevieve some more.

 

Half an hour later, on the walk to the village, Ominis was surprised by his behaviour. Normally, he would simply enjoy the sun´s warmth and tune out any form of conversation. This time, however, he found himself unable to stop talking - mostly to Genevieve. He realised that he was very curious about her, a sensation not really familiar to him. She fortunately did not seem to mind.

When they had almost reached Hogsmeade, Sebastian chimed in: "So, just that I don’t get anything wrong: You have a lot of knowledge about the Wizarding World, yet today was only the fifth day you ever used a wand - a borrowed one, I might add - and had no problems at all casting powerful basic casts. You currently live with your uncle - like me - and have a twin - also like me - with you being the girl and older one - both unlike me. Have I missed anything?" Ominis heard Genevieve giggle, and he thought it was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. "I believe that indeed is all about me. Though I must correct you, it was only my fourth day of using a wand, the first day I only learned about wands and spells in theory." The blind boy smiled to himself. It felt natural, talking to her and listening to her, as if he had known her for years and not hours. In that moment he decided that Genevieve was a person worthy of knowing of his most beloved sanctuary. He would have to consult with his best friend about showing it to her soon.

 

Genevieve was amazed by the small, magical village. The little stores were charming and the shopkeepers were really friendly. Especially Mr Ollivander had warmed her heart. His fascination for wands had been really contagious. She twirled her new wand while she and Ominis waited for Sebastian to rejoin them. He had rushed off earlier to pick up something for his twin sister Anne. The wand in Genevieve´s hand was made from red oak wood and had a jackalope´s antler as core. The wandmaker had told her that such a wand had only ever been made twice in the history of wan craftsmanship. The counterpart to hers - adorned with carvings of owls - was stored away in the Ollivander family´s shop in London. The phoenix design on hers was surely accidental, but it made the wand feel even more personal and fitting to Genevieve.

They didn’t need to wait long until Sebastian arrived at the marketplace, and he suggested a visit to the local pub called ´The three broomsticks´. Just as they started to move, the ground started to shake, and two fully grown trolls wearing armour burst onto the square. Their eyes were wild, their clubs decorated with spikes. One of them threw himself towards a group of adults, while the other charged right at them. Without hesitation, Genevieve lifted her hand to cast her father´s flawless Restraining Spell, when she felt the all too familiar numbness creeping up her legs. Had she been there on her own, the toll surely would have smashed her to mush. The boys dragged her out of the way just in time, and they held her upright as the troll connected his head with a stone wall.

"Are you alright?!", Sebastian huffed and Genevieve nodded, the numbness thankfully having left her just in that moment. She and the boys began casting spell after spell at the creature, dodging flying debris and barrels all the while. They stood their ground proudly, until the first troll suddenly appeared behind them.

The trolls both lifted their clubs at the same time, very intent on ending the students, when Genevieve felt the Ancient Magic awake. Combining it with her Phoenix Fire, she let loose a shockwave of magic, disintegrating the creatures and their weapons on the spot.

An uncomfortable, hollow feeling of emptiness filled her chest as the world tipped to the side before fading into darkness.

Notes:

Okay so I kept writing and telling myself: let’s make this as long as the second one which on my writing pad was six pages in total
When I got to the part where Genevieve faints I counted again —> nine pages, and I wasn’t even finished with what I wanted the chapter to include…
So anyways I´ll probably manage to upload chapter 4 this weekend, if not then definitely on Monday.

See y´all next time

Chapter 4: Of valor, new friendships and a nasty headmaster

Notes:

Warnings: slight angst (only at the very beginning), Professor Black being his usual annoying self, fluff

Enjoy :)

When the presence of the trolls faded, Ominis felt relieved. That feeling was instantly replaced by new dread when he felt Genevieve sway dangerously next to him. When she fell, he was quick to catch her, softening her collision with the ground.

"Genevieve? Genevieve!" He shook her shoulder, but received no reaction. Sebastian was by his side in an instant. "Oi, what’s wrong with her?" "I don’t know, she just fell over!" He hadn’t felt so helpless since the night Sebastian´s twin sister Anne had been cursed. Fear clawed at his heart and twisted in his stomach. Had the trolls cursed her upon their defeat? Was that even possible? Or had she received immense injury during the fight and he hadn’t noticed? He gently cupped her face with one hand while searching for her pulse with the other.

His heart was released from the tension when he heard her start to mumble. "Oh, I´m sorry… Ominis…? What happened?" Her voice was so terribly weak, and before he could answer, Sebastian said loudly: "Thank Merlin, you’re aware! You gave us quiet the fright, dear Genny!" Ominis raised his eyebrow at the nickname, but Genevieve just chuckled, clearly regaining her strength as she sat up. "Normally, my friends would call me ´Eve´." "Well then, Eve", said his best friend. But Ominis was still occupied with her well-being. "Are you sure, you´re alright?", he asked, not willing to let go of her until he was absolutely sure she could stay upright on her own. He felt Genevieve lightly squeeze his arm. "I am. I will be just fine - under the condition that there won’t be anything else overly exciting happening today." "Oh, I´m sure we´re safe from other events for today", Sebastian said cheerfully.

Oh, how wrong his friend was.

 

Ominis was still shaking with barely contained rage when they arrived back at the castle - just twenty minutes before curfew. Professor Weasley had already been informed about the events in Hogsmeade, and although she had been worried and probably furious, the vice-headmistress had not given them detention or even scolded them. She simply had led Genevieve to the Hospital Wing after dismissing the two Slytherins, as someone else had witnessed her fainting earlier and reported it to the teacher.

But what made Ominis shake was neither the fight against the trolls - he had known that as a friend of Sebastian, it was bound to happen one day - nor really Genevieve´s fainting. It was the encounter with Ranrock, Rookwood and Harlow and what Genevieve had revealed to them about her Ancient Magic. For a moment - just about three to four seconds at most - Ominis had considered breaking off any form of contact to the girl, as she clearly was a magnet for serious trouble. And trouble he had enough with the Sallow boy alone. But he just couldn’t find it in himself to do so, he knew he would never again be able to live with himself. She was all alone in this, apparently, and only had confided in the two because she trusted them.

The blind boy repeated her voice in his head, from her cheerful, light tone at the start of the day to the desperate tinges of her pleas on their walk to the castle. The way she had talked to him all day had made him feel… strange. Not unpleasant, but strange. She had shown such genuine interest in him and had simultaneously been so thoughtfully cautious of boundaries, immediately accepting his reluctance to talk about his family. In turn, she had answered his questions as well, though she had been less detailed about where she herself and her family came from, and who they were. Due to her lack of reaction to his full name, Ominis had deduced that she very likely wasn’t a pureblood - even though it really and honestly didn’t matter to him at all - since the Gaunt family was infamous amongst pureblooded families across the world.

As he buried his face in the pillows and let her voice linger in his memories, he vowed to never, ever leave Genevieve alone or forsake her as she journeyed through this world. This decision relieved him of some of the tension and he fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

 

Sebastian couldn’t sleep that night. He honestly didn’t want to sleep, he was far too excited. Genevieve´s revelation about her Ancient Magic had opened entirely new chances for Anne´s recovery, and his new classmate seemed the type eager to make friends and to help those friends without reward. He did feel bad to be using the girl´s kindness in such a way, but Anne needed him. Anne couldn’t wait any longer. He supposed he should find this Scriptorium that Ominis had talked about first. And if there really was nothing that could help his twin, he would consult Genevieve on the matter. He wondered if he should introduce Genevieve to Anne soon, so that the Hufflepuff herself would choose to help his sister willingly. It certainly would make things less complicated for him.

Sebastian had thought he had gotten knocked out cold during the duel and the rest of the day had been some form of dream when he had witnessed Ominis´ behaviour towards the girl. His normally closed off and only occasionally trusting best friend had been open and had treated her like he had known Genevieve for years. The freckled boy smirked at the thought that his best friend might have fallen for the girl at first ´sight´. The match-maker side of him awakened, and as the morning hours approached, he had already developed a plan to get the two together.

 

The rest of the week went by without another overly stressful event. Genevieve shared most of her classes with Ominis and spent a lot of her free time with him. She enjoyed his company and swiftly found herself seeing his presence as a part of or rather condition for a perfect day. Her housemates and several other students - mainly from Gryffindor - had told her repeatedly that an acquaintance with Ominis only brought despair, but they always failed to explain exactly why they thought so. She didn’t believe them very much. In her opinion, it was simply impossible for someone as kind and warm as Ominis to bring her pain. In his company, even the Blood Curse lessened.

But she didn’t only ever spend time with the Slytherin. She often wandered the halls and corridors to simply marvel at the portraits, tapestries and the elaborately decorated windows. Very often, she came across a student in distress - like the Ravenclaws Zenobia and Duncan - whom she offered her help. In moments when she knew she was unobserved, she let her magic run wild. She loved to float over the surface of the Black Lake without a broom. From time to time she would even fly in her phoenix form and dive with the Giant Squid. That was also how she had recovered Grace´s family heirloom.

Friday afternoon she was called into Professor Fig´s office. The room was unbelievably cozy, the utter mess of books, parchment and dusty trinkets was very much like the old man. While he sorted through his documents, Genevieve let her gaze roam over his sortiment of enchanted tea spoons. There were tiny pink ones with butterfly motives engraved on the handles, green snake-like ones, bluish ones made of crystal and giant tea spoons made from bone.

The professor´s delighted hum drew her attention back to the old wizard, who had laid a piece of paper onto the desk. "This is the map from the locket. Quite curiously, it shows a very particular part of Hogwarts." "Which part?" "The library." The moment Genevieve touched the map, the already familiar swirls of Ancient Magic appeared over a portion of the depicted library. This time, however, it was more of a subtle glimmer than the enormous waves of magic. "Professor, I can see some of the Ancient Magic on the map!" The teacher smiled at her. "I suspected you would. Where exactly do you see it?" Genevieve pointed at the place, and instantly, her mentor´s smile dimmed, his brows drawing together in a frown. "The Restricted Section. Hmmm, how odd, how very odd indeed that there would be something useful to us down there. I had thought I knew this part like the back of my hand…" He clapped his hands suddenly, startling the young witch. "Well, honestly, I had expected something a little more complicated or challenging, but, if it is as simple as this, it works in our favour, doesn’t it?" His voice apparently tended to become even more hoarse when he was excited.

Just when Genevieve attempted to verbalise her confusion over his ever-changing mood, the door to the office was brutally opened. In the frame stood Headmaster Black, looking as pompous and arrogant as all the times he had passed by Genevieve. His ridiculous green suit was wrinkled and his hair slightly disheveled, the muscle under his right eye twitched in irritation. "Fig", he boomed, "you are needed in my office!" "Erm, Professor Black, I am currently with a student-" "Professor Fig! I should think if the headmaster - a superior - had an assignment for me that determined my future nature of career, I´d make hast to see it completed!" Genevieve clenched her fist behind her back and resisted rolling her eyes. She would have just loved to put the pretentious idiot in his place. Instead, she took a confident step towards the idiotic wizard and gave him her brightest politician smile. "It must be my lucky day to be able to meet you here, Professor Black. I was just asking Professor Fig about the process of gaining permission to the Restricted Section of the school´s library, and he advised me to ask you." She could feel her mentor´s disbelieving stare at her from the side. "And what, pray tell, would a student like you have to do there?", Black sneered. Genevieve took another step closer to him. "I have received a message from the Minister that I am to be tested on defences against the strongest of Dark Arts next week - probably because I started school so late - and would like to read about the subject some more. I was also told it would be a testament to your competence as headmaster - though I should have kept this a secret."

From her robes, she pulled the decoy letter Minister Spavin had granted her for universal usage. She held the piece of paper out to the slightly-older-than-middle-aged man. He took it without a word, read it and returned the letter with a scowl and a huff. "Very well then, permission granted. I´ll inform Madame Scribner myself, so that she may open the section for you tomorrow. I do hope you´ll put effort into proving you´re worthy of being taught here." He turned to leave, before remembering the reason he had gotten here, and addressed Fig. "My office, in ten minutes. Do not be late." And with that, he left.

 

A few minutes later, Genevieve danced down the steps in the Defense Against the Dark Arts Tower making her way towards the door to the Transfiguration Courtyard. Professor Fig had only allowed her to leave after having promised him to be careful in the library, and to explain her conversation with Black and the letter. She was in such a good mood ,she had to consciously remind herself not to sprout wings. As she twirled at the foot of the lowest staircase she noticed her fellow Hufflepuff Poppy Sweeting. They had gotten acquainted the other day during their Beasts class and had gotten along from the very beginning. The sweet girl´s love for magical creatures was even greater than Genevieve´s. At the end of the lesson, Poppy had promised Genevieve to soon introduce her to a very special friend.

As their eyes met, Genevieve smiled and winked. She received the gesture back from her new friend, and a warm, bubbly feeling rose in her chest.

Due to her distracted state, she failed to notice the person standing directly in front of her. And so, she practically flew into that persons´ arms - a person quick enough to prevent her from falling backwards. "My goodness! Someone´s in a hurry." The so sweetly familiar voice sent butterflies through her stomach. She lifted her head to gaze into Ominis´ unfailingly blue eyes. She grinned at him as she stood steadily again. "Ominis! Good to see you. Pleasant weather we are having." He chuckled at her excitement. "Good afternoon, Genevieve. It´s good to ´hear´ you." She suppressed a snicker at his continued jest. "I must say this weather is not really to my liking." "It isn’t?", she asked, surprised. "No. I prefer the brutal heat of summer, it is far better suited for naps on the cold stone floor."

His smile tipped slightly, his face looking more nervous than usually. "There is something that I- I mean, Sebastian and I would like to show you." He leaned closer to her, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Meet us just after dinner time at the foot of the stairs to Hecat´s classroom." He pulled back and put his finger to his lips, signaling her to keep it a secret. Then he smiled once more, turned around and let his wand guide him towards the West Hall.

Genevieve grinned widely and opened the doors to the courtyard. As she moved through the castle, she let her thoughts return to the blind boy over and over again. His entire demeanour was utterly mysterious, but in no way unpleasant, and she found herself more and more drawn to the Slytherin than she had ever dared to imagine or hope herself be drawn to anyone.

After removing herself from the third pillar she had walked into, she shook her head freely the daydreams and pulled out her Field Guide. There was nothing more to do until dinner, and so she could use the time to meet up with Natsai. The Gryffindor had asked to speak to her about the encounter with Rookwook and Harlow in Hogsmeade.

With one final glance on the map, Genevieve dashed off towards Lower Hogsfield.

 

Dinner had just ended when she arrived back at the castle. Talking to Natsai had taken longer than she had thought, and it had taken some time to defeat the small group of Ashwinders and goblins attacking Mrs Treadwell and Arn.

She had never killed anyone - except the trolls, though that had been unintentional - and she didn’t plan on doing so ever in her life. All of her enemies had been carefully caught and sent to the Ministry tied together, each group provided with a small note.

All the excitement had made her completely lose track of time, and Genevieve almost flew through the hallways to the agreed meeting point. She was moving at such a high speed that she tripped over her own feet as she tried to slow down and - for the second time that day - crashed into Ominis.

"Merlin´s beard, Genevieve! One would almost think you are being chased by something hideous the way you´re racing around here", Sebastian, who stood behind his friend, chuckled as she straightened up. She huffed at him and replied: "Only the hideous monster that is time, Sebastian. There were things that needed my attention." Then she smiled at his friend. "Good evening, Ominis. Apologies for running yet again into you." The blonde Slytherin gently shook his head, his expression nervous and serious. "I don’t mind, really. Are you alright, though? I think I perceive the subtle smell of burned wood and dittany." Genevieve squeezed his arm. "I helped two very friendly people to get rid of some rude intruders. Those intruders had set a wooden barrel alight, and after the situation was handled, I helped apply some dittany paste to an injury." She didn’t even need to lie to them - something she hoped not having to do overly often. The Ashwinders had indeed set a barrel directly next to her on fire, and Arn had had a nasty gash on his arm.

Seemingly satisfied with her explanation, Ominis started to smile a bit. "Well then, now that you are here, I would suggest not letting any more time pass us by." "Agreed", Sebastian added and gestured towards a corner behind him, "let’s move, shall we?"

Notes:

On Monday…
Me: Okay, today I can finally upload the next chapter!
Real life: Nope.

 

So anyways… I hope you liked this chapter, you’re free to leave a comment if you did :D

Until next time, bye-bye

Chapter 5: Secrets hidden amongst shelves

Notes:

Warnings: description of a panic attack, hints at child abuse and torture, Ominis being sad, fluff, effects of a Blood Curse

 

Enjoy :D

Ominis was nervous, to say the least. He didn’t really know why. Well, at least that was what he told himself. He was, in fact, very well aware of the reason his hands were shaking and his throat felt impossibly dry. The Undercroft was an almost sacred place for his family. Bringing Genevieve there meant - in the eyes of his relatives at least - defiling and desecrating the place. If his family ever found out that a muggleborn - or halfblood - had been there… Or worse, if they ever knew of his growing feelings of friendship for the girl…

Ominis didn’t even want to imagine the cruelties his father and brother would surely inflict on Genevieve. There was no doubt that Genevieve was powerful - the encounter with the trolls had proven that. However, he was still entirely sure it would not be enough against someone from the Gaunt family.

Nevertheless, the two boys led the witch to the star-decorated clock cabinet and waved their wands. The click of gears echoed in his heart, bringing forth painful memories of times long lost as he felt Genevieve step slightly closer to him. The girl that had been with them before would never again join them, that much Ominis knew. Even with Sebastian´s undying optimism, Anne would never be relieved of her curse and would most likely wither away before the end of the school year. The witch now beside him could never replace her, of course, but Genevieve´s presence had so quickly and effortlessly calmed his heart in so many ways - and in other ways, she put a strain on it more severe than any jinx ever could.

As they made their way down to the Undercroft, he became painfully aware that he was in danger of irretrievably losing his heart to Genevieve. This realisation caused his heart to clench and his breath to take away as he imagined both putting her in absolute peril and subjecting her to his father´s torture, and her disappearing into nothingness, leaving him alone to crave her but to never have her. With great effort he sucked air into his lungs through his nose only to regret it instantly. The scent of vanilla, roses and lavender clouded his already muddled senses. Had they not been inside the lift, he would have turned around and fled to the farthest corner of Scotland, just so that he could both breathe again and to not fear his family´s wrath. But alas, he was in that lift, he was surrounded by that deadly scent, and if the bars on the lift hadn’t lifted at that exact moment as they arrived at the bottom, he would have definitely buried his face in her hair and let sin and shame consume him.

The sudden influx of air washed away his delusional and panicked state of mind, and the tides brought embarrassment and self-loathing with it. Struggling for an even breath, he passed by the two others accompanying him into the room and sank to the floor against the wall. Ominis tightly gripped his own robes above his heart as if he could tear that treacherous thing right out.

 

Sebastian had been watching his oldest friend with growing concern as they were being lowered deep into the castle’s grounds. His housemate had become increasingly pale and shaky over time, as if he were extremely unwell. Apparently Genevieve had noticed as well, as she was keeping her eyes on the blonde as well. As the lift came to a stop, Sebastian hurried to unlock all the gates in their way - and sure enough, his best friend practically charged past him into the room to let himself rest leaning against a wall. Genevieve followed the Sallow boy to stand by Ominis and lowered herself onto her knees.

"Ominis? Are you feeling unwell?", the girl asked softly.

Sebastian knelt directly in front of the other Slytherin and gently squeezed his shoulders. He knew the typical signs of his friend´s panic attacks, and this could only be the beginning of a dangerous chain of reactions. "Oi, Ominis. Take a deep breath, hold it, hold it, and breathe out… yes, just like that, and again, breathe in, hold, hold, and breathe out… you´re doing great, and again… exactly like that, Ominis. You’re going to be just fine." Ominis´ breathing eventually calmed and he sheepishly nodded. With a shaking, croaking voice, he replied after a few moments: "Don’t worry, I am fine. I simply need a few moments, just a few moments to myself. I think you should show Genevieve around the Undercroft, she surely is very curious about this place." He lifted his head into Sebastian´s general direction and attempted a crooked smile. It was done rather poorly. "The sooner we finish and leave here, the sooner I can recover."

Suddenly, the Scot got an idea as to why his British friend might be feeling so miserable: Genevieve´s unclear blood status and the room´s connection to his ghastly family, as well as probably the boy´s realisation - finally, Sebastian thought, at least one of them is aware of all the romantic tension - of his own affectionate feelings for the new student. If these were indeed the reasons for his worrying behaviour, then Sebastian could do nothing but feel for him. His best friend´s family wasn’t really open and kind to those who weren’t considered purebloods and had always found joy in torturing Ominis with the screams and cries of their victims. Romantic feelings for a witch with unclear blood status were dangerous, as they could persuade primarily Mr Gaunt Sr and Marvolo to do something to Genevieve. And for a family like them, something usually meant unbearable pain and possible death.

Sebastian gently squeezed both of his friend´s shoulders again and whispered: "Don’t you worry, Ominis. We´ll solve this problem as well." The blind boy just nodded silently as tears gathered in his eyes.

And like so often, Sebastian wished he could help his friend out of this predicament that caused him so much pain - had caused him pain all his life. And like so often, he knew that probably no being on this earth could do this.

 

That night, none of the three could really sleep. Ominis was sat on a sofa in the Slytherin Common Room, trying to calm his racing thoughts and memories of inexplicable suffering, vanilla-rose-lavender scent and people vanishing from his life. Sebastian, in his bed, thought about how quickly his new friend had learned to cast a perfect Blasting Curse, and how they had been told of her plans to go to the library - where, supposedly, there was something amazing on her Ancient Magic. He had so much wanted to go with her, but he was to serve yet another detention. And so, they had decided that Ominis would accompany her.

In the Hufflepuff Common Room, Genevieve paced about the room. Ominis´  behaviour had, in all honesty, frightened her quite a bit. She had never thought a living person could turn so pale. The boy hadn’t said that much more either, he had only agreed to be the one accompanying her to the Restricted Section. She wondered if she had upset Ominis by running into him so often after all. He had said that he hadn’t minded, but he could have just said it out of politeness. No matter the reason, she hoped his change of mood wasn’t due to him realising he wanted nothing to do with her from now on.

 

When morning came, Ominis and Sebastian dragged themselves to the Great Hall for breakfast. They had gone as early as possible, not keen on anyone commenting on their clearly sleep deprived state. There were indeed few students this early on a Saturday. The two Slytherins ate in silence - at least until Sebastian couldn’t take it anymore. "So what in Merlin´s name was all that about yesterday, huh? You behaved like… well I don’t know, you tell me!" Ominis pretended not to know what his friend was talking about and simply reached for his cup of blackberry tea. "Whatever do you mean?"

"Oh no, we are not doing the thing where you pretend your panic attacks are nothing! You’re not getting out of this one, Ominis! Your behaviour in the - you know - place was far too suspicious and severe for it to have been nothing!" Sebastian turned towards the blind boy. "If this is about what I think it is about and actually know that it is about that and I know you know that it is about that, then let me tell you: you cannot, I repeat, cannot let your family get in the way of every aspect of your future! Who cares if we don’t know Genevieve´s blood status - and I know we both do not even care that much - it doesn’t matter! At all! If you fancy her - which I know you do - then fight for her! You are strong, you have become so much stronger these past years! You know you have!" Sebastian´s passionate speech made Ominis smile despite his situation - really, nothing ever got past the Scot´s attention.

"Thank you, Sebastian." He paused, turning his head in the general direction of the brunette. "How did you figure it out?" Sebastian scoffed. "Ominis, you weren’t really being subtle about it. Even if I wasn’t your oldest and best friend I would have been able to tell. Ever since she got here, you have gone from Mr ´I-prefer-to-keep-to-myself-and-the-cats-and-live-a-life-in-grumpy-solitude´ to Mr ´I-break-my-cheeks-smiling-each-time-Genevieve-North-even-so-much-as-breathes-the-same-air-as-my-love-drunk-heart´. No, my friend, it was not subtle at all." Ominis groaned and buried his face in his hands. "Dear Merlin and all forces above, am I really so pathetically obvious?", he asked, feeling his face start to burn from embarrassement. "Yes, it is. No need to consult the great Merlin himself for that one. But don’t worry, I am absolutely, positively certain she feels the same way about you. Her smile on her face when she sees you is just as bright."

The doors to the Great Hall opened, and Ominis felt the familiar buzz emanating from Genevieve. Immediately, his mood improved and he heard Sebastian snort. "Speak of the devil." They both turned around towards the sound of her approaching footsteps. "Good morning, Eve." "Good morning Sebastian, and good morning to you as well, Ominis. I hope you two had a good rest?" "Good morning, Genevieve. I didn´t really, but I´m used to it. What about you, Sebastian?" "Oh, I think I did. Did you yourself sleep well enough, Eve?" "I tried to, but I think I had too much of a blast yesterday." Sebastian laughed out loud while Ominis just shook his head, smiling. He was glad the two got along so well.

The sound of more and more students showing up for breakfast filled the hall, and Ominis addressed the young witch. "Have you eaten anything yet? We don´t know how long we are going to need in the library, and I don´t think it would do good to go there with an empty stomach." He felt a gentle squeeze on his shoulder. "Thank you for your concern, Ominis. I have indeed already eaten. There is a lot of food stored in our Common Room actually and the kitchen is not that far away either. I have also prepared a bag with various potions - though I doubt we´ll need them in a library." "You can never be too careful", Ominis replied, "that I´ve learned."

 

After bidding Sebastian goodbye and agreeing to tell him everything at the Undercroft, Genevieve and Ominis quickly made their way to the library. Madame Scribner was already waiting for them, keys in her hand. Though she didn´t seem pleased about another student having joined Genevieve, the woman unlocked the section without another word and returned to her desk.

The Restricted Section was only sparsely lit and covered in a thick layer of dust. One brief swipe over a book´s cover sent the two into a coughing fit. "What are we even looking for?", croaked Ominis and wiped his teary eyes. "I think it might be a book, a book on Ancient Magic. Probably one without a specific title or an unreadable one. It should be one that´s surrounded by some sort of aura", replied Genevieve, equally affected by the poor air conditioning. When the dust had settled again, the two wandered along the shelves, searching for any odd looking or odd feeling books. After several moments of silence, Genevieve asked cautiously: "How are you feeling, Ominis? You frightened me quite a lot yesterday. I... I didn´t want to ask in the presence of so many others." When Ominis didn´t answer, she turned her head to search him.

He was standing directly on the other side of the shelf she had just looked through. And he was looking directly at her. His eyes were filled with so much emotion, it nearly took her breath away. Sadness, fear, anxiety - but also hope, and something she couldn´t quite name. He stepped closer to the shelf, nearly resting his head against it. "Genevieve, there is something you must know..." His voice was trembling ever so slightly. "I am well aware that you have been warned about me and my family. These rumours are true... those about my family. at least. They are-", he paused to swallow hard, his shoulders tensing visibly before he continued, "against those not considered pureblood. They strongly believe in blood supermacy - I don´t, I should add, I find it all terribly unimportant and positively medieval - they only allowed Sebastian and Anne to be my friends because they´re purebloods as well." His grip on the shelf had gotten so strong, his hands were turning red by the force, his fingers nearly breaking under the pressure. "I do not wish to subject you to the cruelty of my mad family by being acquainted with me. So, if you wish to never speak to me again, just so that you are safe from their wrath, I will understand that. It will be hard, that I must admit, because our time together - however short - was unbelievably great... oh Merlin, what am I rambling about? I, personally, do not wish for us to never speak with eachother again..." Genevieve could only stare at him.

She was flabbergasted. Not by what he had said, but by how it visibly pained him to say it. His entire demeanor made it clear how much his relatives despised non-purebloods - and how much this weighed on him, and she couldn´t help but feel extremely guilty. Without another moment of hesitation she rounded the furniture and pulled the boy into a fierce hug. He quickly caught her with his own arms and buried his face in her hair. She could feel his tears on her locks, and she tightened her arms in response. "Oh Ominis, I am so sorry to have caused you such worry. In keeping so many things about myself from you-", she cut herself off and shook her head. With a tiny laugh, she pulled away a few inches to look into the boy´s crystal blue eyes. "You don´t have to worry about your family disliking me for my blood status, for I am a pureblood myself. If they ever got to know me, I´d bet they´d be elated that I am an acquaintance of yours." When the boy before her frowned in confusion, she pulled away some more and grabbed his hands to squeeze them. "Let´s make a deal, shall we? Once this task is completed and we´ve found whatever there is to find, I will tell you everything about me, without leaving out anything." Ominis lifted their joined hands to his heart. The high rate of his heartbeat could have alarmed Genevieve, but she was entirely enchanted by the glimmer of relieve and hope that had appeared in his unseeing eyes. "Promise?" "Promise."

 

They continued to wander along the shelves in silence. Ominis felt lighter than ever, as if he was about to take flight. Genevieve´s promise to tell him everything had him excited and only a little bit nervous. As the minutes passed by, however, the joyous and bubbly feeling was replaced with mild annoyance at the lack of results from their search. He turned to where he sensed Genevieve. "Have you found anything?" "No, I haven´t, unfortunately. Perhaps I have to call it with my Ancient Magic...?"

The buzz intensified and filled the air around him. His body tingled, and a shiver ran up his spine. At first, he thought nothing would happen, but then a mighty ripple of magic ran through the entire room. It was followed by the soft sound of a tiny chime. The sound came from a far deeper part of the Restricted Section, and they both rushed along the shelves towards it. They passed an old and dusty armour and made their way down the steps behind it. The further downwards they went, the more anxious Ominis got.

 

Pacing in front of the library´s fireplace, Ominis vowed to himself to give those responsible for these Ancient Magic puzzles a piece of his mind should he ever meet them. He had had to let Genevieve go alone - the passageway hadn´t opened for him. He had simply ended up on the other side of the arch when he had tried to follow his friend. Even with holding onto her hand - a moment he would keep in his memory until the day he died - hadn´t worked. He had then suggested meeting up at the fireplace, and she had left - after promising him she would be careful.

That had been over an hour ago, and Ominis was starting to consider forcing his way through the arch by any means, when he suddenly felt her familiar aura appear in the library. Quickly, he made his way over to her. When he reached her, he gently took her arm and pulled her towards the librarian at her desk - the library full of students was no place to talk about what had happened. "My, finished, are we?", the old witch said, clearly displeased with them for having taken so long. "We are, Madame Scribner. Thank you very much", Genevieve replied. The boy couldn´t detect any exhaustion or surpressed pain in her voice. When they exited the library, Ominis steered them into a nearby alcove. There, he tenderly cupped her face. "Are you alright? What happened down there?" Genevieve´s fairy-like giggle made his stomach bubbly all over again. "I´m fine, Ominis. It was a lot like Gringotts with its Sentient Guards. I fought so smartly that they couldn´t hurt me, nor did I faint from excessive use of magic." The Slytherin let out a breath he hadn´t realised he had held. However, just before he could say anything, Genevieve´s breathing went shallow. "Oh, no", she pressed out, doubling over.

 

The numbness this time was more severe than ever before, and she could feel herself running out of breath. She could tell Ominis was saying something, but she couldn´t hear any of his words. Seconds before the world turned into a messy blurry of colour, she was able to grind out one more word: "Undercroft."

Notes:

I really struggled with this chapter
I just can’t find the balance between things happening and dialogue, but there are just so many things that have to happen before we get to the parts with the meaningful talking

So anyways I hope you liked it
Leave a comment if you did:D they really help with writing : )
Until next time bye-bye

Chapter 6: The first dance

Notes:

Happy new year, folks! It has been a crazy time, so I didn’t upload anything. Initially, I had planned to finish this story by the end of January😅 Oh well
For this upload I actually wanted to upload two chapters but I’m far from finished with chapter 7, so here is a slightly longer chapter 6 (I didn’t realise it was THIS long, but cutting out the last part would’ve messed up the following chapters😅)

Warnings for this one: effects of a curse (and resulting death), feeling overwhelmed, crushing on classmates and fluff fluff fluff

Enjoy 😊

Genevieve couldn’t tell how long they moved through the blotches of colour. She could tell, however, that she couldn’t breathe. Her lungs wheezed and her chest heaved, her limbs had long lost all sensation. Her brain screamed at her to move her hands, to claw at her throat, just so that any amount, however small, could reach her organ of ventilation. Her head felt mushy, like the mushrooms her brother Gunther loved to collect. Or like the potatoes from her brother Benedikt´s garden… With far too big an effort to be worth of repetition she shook her head to get the vegetables out of her thoughts. She needed to breathe, desperately so.

Soon, the heavy variety of colours were replaced by partial darkness and mossy greens. There were splashes of oranges and yellows that danced around one another. Their giddy movements helped dispel her anxiety, and Genevieve inhaled as deeply as she could. Slowly, the numbness retreated, and in its place came warmth and the smell of petrichor and pine. It widened her lungs further with each breath, and her head cleared. As her ability to feel returned more and more, she could feel someone gently stroke her hair, and it took her only a few more moments until her hearing fully returned. Instantly, the soft voice of the blonde Slytherin very - very - close to her ear sent bubbles and butterflies through her stomach. "Just like that… deep breaths, Genevieve, deep breaths…" He was holding her, she realised then, in his arms as he sat against the wall in the Undercroft. His beautiful angelic face was contorted in worry, his breath as shaky as her own.

Grateful for the warmth and comfort he was offering her, she buried her face into his shoulder and mumbled: "I´m alright." The boy turned his head further down to her. "Are you sure? You truly frightened me - it sounded as though you couldn’t quite breathe…" "I couldn’t", she replied, "but it´s not anything new to me." Ominis´ hand paused, and Genevieve lowered her gaze to her hands folded neatly in her lap. "I promised to tell you everything, and I will. However, I feel obliged to warn you beforehand, as it is a lot to unveil - and even I get overwhelmed by the fact that I am, who I am. I am not even entirely sure where to begin." The Slytherin´s arm around her tightened slightly, almost as if Ominis was afraid she would disappear once finished. "Perhaps you could start with a detail that is a natural part of you, meaning something that doesn’t overwhelm you. For example, if there was anything different about your name that you kept hidden…"

Genevieve let out a surprised and relieved giggle. "Oh, right. I did change my name just a tiny bit, though it was simply translating my family name into English." She shook her head. "I am glad to start with one of the least complicated facts about me." Genevieve sat up straighter in the boy´s lap, took a deep breath and repeated the words she had been taught to present herself: "My full name and title is Lady Genevieve Ophelia Estelle Nord, Head of the family Nord, Elector of Bavaria and Head of the Department of Judges and Law Enforcement of the German Ministry of Magic, carrier of my family´s Blood Curse and the Black Phoenix´s Blood. I am the daughter of Dowager Lady Elfriede Nord and Regent Lord Hou Jian, sister to three older and one younger brother."

Had the one she just presented herself to been anybody else than Ominis, Genevieve might have laughed at the boy´s expression. His eyes were wide and his jaw slack. He simply stared into her general direction and didn’t even blink. The witch awkwardly twisted her sleeve between her fingers. "I suppose I have nullified the simplicity of my name by adding all of the titles and additional information, haven´t I?", she mumbled. When he hadn’t moved after several minutes, she carefully put a hand on his other shoulder and asked: "Ominis? Could you please say something?" Her small voice broke him out of his trance, and he slumped further against the wall. He swallowed several times before answering: "I am not sure I have any words to say at the moment - I know you warned me, but it really is a lot… Perhaps, if you could give me another few moments, then I might be able to comprehend some parts of it…" "Of course", she replied and removed her hand from his shoulder. By now the position they were in was as far away from proper as in any way possible, but Genevieve couldn’t find it in her to care all that much. She had realised her feelings for Ominis as what they were - a blossoming love - while she had fought the Sentient Guards this morning. Certainly, her title and duties would prevent her from ever having a normal courtship with him, but for now - without the walls and people to constantly remind her - she would indulge her dreams.

Ominis cleared his throat and her attention returned to him. "I must honestly say that I am not quite as shocked as I thought I would be. I don’t understand everything just yet, but perhaps I can… someday." His brows drew together as he frowned. "Could you explain this Blood Curse to me? I mean, I know a lot about curses already", at that point he winced quietly and tensed up, "but my knowledge on Blood Curses is rather sparse." Genevieve inhaled deeply. She had already known that he would ask about this more specifically. "Of course I can, but unfortunately it means even more overwhelming information about me and my past…" The Slytherin nodded slowly and said: "I think I can handle it."

 

Half an eternity later, Genevieve finished her explanation with her journey to Hogwarts. Ominis had listened quietly the entire time, not interrupting her even once. He was still cradling her in his lap - seemingly equally as unaffected by their proximity as her or simply oblivious to it - and had at one point resumed to caress her brown locks gently. The motion and thoughtful silence in the Undercroft calmed her so much she found herself struggling to keep her eyes open. Just before she could slip away to her dreamland, the boy holding began to speak: "To summarise, your family´s blood has been cursed since several centuries, and this curse caused your ancestors to be plagued by unbearable pain - a pain so strong, it instantly killed the children not protected by the Phoenix Blood, meaning the male members, and your own mother tried to break this curse with Dark Magic and hiding you from the rest of your family and twin for nine years, though ended up condemning you to numbness, paralysis and difficulty to breathe… In addition, your entire family are natural Animagi, with each generation being a different type of bird, you and your brother´s being Phoenixes - with you being the literal incarnation of the very Black Phoenix whose blood your ancestor had drunk… Not to mention, you are a magical genius in both theory and practice and you now have access to four types of magic…"

He swallowed hard and pulled at his tie. "You were right, it is a lot and overall very overwhelming." Just as Genevieve began to withdraw from him in fear of it being far too overwhelming for him to be her friend any longer, a small smile stretched across his face. "But, as it isn’t really something that affects or has affected your personality and behaviour towards me, or Sebastian, I am fairly certain it won´t jeopardise our friendship in any way." "Are you sure?", the girl asked cautiously. "I must swear you to secrecy, even before Sebastian. Are you absolutely sure you are willing to keep so much information from your best friend?" His smile grew brighter, as did the light in his eyes. "I am absolutely sure. I would also be willing to swear an Unbreakable Vow." At that, Genevieve had to express her relief in the form of a laugh as she swung her hands around his neck in a hug. "Who knew that I had to come to England to meet the first person who doesn’t think of my titles as definition of my personality - a person not blood-related to me!" The boy tightened his grip on her and chuckled: "I know from personal experience how people love to make hasty judgments based on family names and titles."

Though Genevieve had never heard the name Gaunt prior to coming to Hogwarts, the behaviour of her housemates and classmates towards Ominis and his obvious worry for her standing to them because of her Blood Status suggested a very unlikeable bunch of people, whose personality must have thankfully passed by her blonde friend. After a few moments, Genevieve pulled back from the hug and said: "I suggest we do something useful like practising our spellwork, lest Sebastian thinks we spent the day idly while he had to serve gruelling detention." Ominis grinned mischievously. "I don’t think he finds this particular detention so very gruelling, but I guess you’re right about doing something other than talk about overwhelming backstories. Are you quite strong enough again to move around so much?", he asked, referring to her attack just about an hour ago. "I am, quite certainly, very much strong enough again to Flipendo you across the room", she replied as she got up and got into her duelling stance. Ominis Stood as well and lifted his wand in retaliation. "I accept your challenge."

 

Sebastian loathed scrubbing cauldrons. It was the most tedious work teachers could think to assign. Completing the task with magic was difficult enough, without magic, it was nearly impossible. His hands and arms were sore, and he felt like an old man as his back hurt tremendously. If Sebastian had had no other reason to be in the Potions Classroom, he wouldn’t have gotten himself detention on purpose.

But he did have a reason to want to serve detention under Professor Sharp´s supervision. Garreth Weasley. The ginger head had gotten himself a year´s worth of detention for exploding his cauldron during the very first class after he had tried to convince Eve to steal from Sharp´s office. Of course she had refused, and of course Sharp had caught him. Had he perhaps not commented on Sharp´s 'apparent lack of visionary thinking', the Weasley boy might have gotten away with two months of detention. And, had he not ranted about the event to another person while Sharp had been standing directly behind him, he might have spared himself the very long and very loud scolding from Black and Professor Weasley.

The reason Sebastian wanted to endure detention alongside Garreth was simple: he had fancied the Gryffindor for several years now. The two had gotten into a snowball fight during third year witha few students from Ravenclaw - one of them having been Puffskein Dunkien - after they had purposely buried Ominis´ Wand in the snow. The vice-headmistress’ nephew had helped them retrieve it and avenge the blind boy. During the fight, Sebastian and Garreth had each watched the other’s back. Afterwards, they had brought Ominis to the kitchen for a consolation tea party with tiny cakes. While eating the baked goods, Sebastian had not been able to look away from the Gryffindor´s fiery red locks and hypnotising blue eyes. His heart had beat at an abnormal rate and his cheeks had burned when Garreth had caught him staring, though the Weasley boy had only smiled at him and had resumed to devour his cake. Ever since that day, the Sallow boy had kept a close eye on the ginger head, until the innocent admiration had turned to romantic attraction by the end of their third year.

The Scot had been so lost in his daydreams about the Gryffindor, that he only snapped back to attention when his face connected with the clock cabinet to the Undercroft. His feet had apparently carried him there unconsciously, while he had been fantasising about Garreth. Blushing hard, he stepped back, rubbing his nose.

As he waved his wand to open the entrance, the faint sound of spells being fired reached his ears. He made haste to get down there, hoping - praying, almost - that his two friends had made significant progress in their relationship. When he arrived in the room, he found himself surrounded by scraps of blasted barrels, shredded books and shattered vases. In the middle of the Undercroft stood Ominis and Genevieve, turning towards him. Genevieve threw her hand up in greeting. "Sebastian! There you are!" Ominis chuckled beside her. "You’re missing out on all the fun!", Genevieve continued, moving over the debris to Sebastian to pull him further into the room. He noticed that the two were somewhat giddy, and he inwardly cheered. Something definitely had happened between them.

 

Half an hour and three dozen barrels later, the three students fell onto transfigured pillows - utterly and completely exhausted. Genevieve felt ready to head to bed and sleep for the rest of the month. Sebastian, however, wouldn’t let her. "So, what have you discovered in the Restricted Section?" The girl groaned and let her head fall onto her chest. She had entirely forgotten about the looming dread of Ranrock and Rookwood. With great effort, she reached into the enchanted bag still hanging by her waist and pulled out the damned book she had found. An item that didn’t provide her with any answers, just with more questions, as some pages were missing. She handed it over to the freckled boy, who inspected the book thoroughly. When he threw her a questioning look, she shrugged. "The book was the most exciting part - there was also another memory of these wizards and the witch from the Tudor era. Not much new information, only that that girl from the first memory was called Isidora, and that she and that Professor - Percival Rackham, a famous seer - both enrolled in Hogwarts at the age of fifteen."

Sebastian hummed rather disinterested, while Ominis looked shocked and furious. "All that for a book?! Whoever designed these trials must have been bloody mental!", he shouted jumping to his feet. "It wasn’t that bad, Ominis. I came out unscathed", Genevieve tried to calm him, though it clearly had the opposite effect. "Unscathed?! Unscathed, she says! You nearly fainted!" Genevieve wanted to remind him that that had been entirely due to her curse, but somehow she didn’t trust Sebastian enough just yet to disclose the entire story to him as well. In addition, telling someone that she was terminally ill often resulted in people coddling her - something her brothers had done enough for a lifetime.

One look at the boy in question, however, eased her worries instantly. The brown-haired Slytherin had fallen asleep, the book had slipped from his grasp. Ominis seemed to have noticed as well, as he quietly moved to her side to whisper in her ear: "We should let him sleep, he is usually like this when Sharp has made him clean cauldrons without magic." He held out his hand for her to grasp and pulled her up with him after she had tucked the book back into her bag. As silent as possible - and with additional Silencing Charms on the lift - they made their way out of the Undercroft, and Genevieve relished in the fact that Ominis was still holding her hand.

When they stepped out of the clock cabinet, they were greeted by the sound of rain against the windows. Next to her, Ominis closed his eyes, his features entirely relaxed, and tilted his head back. Genevieve smiled at him and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "Do you enjoy the sound of rain?", she asked softly. The boy nodded, the corners of his mouth turning upwards. "I do. It calms me and helps me ease the headaches our dear friend gives me daily. I often find myself going outside to even feel the rain on my skin - or, rather, I did, I haven’t done it in quite some time. What about you?" He turned his head in her direction.

She closed her eyes as well before answering: "I love the sound of rain, especially when I sit inside a greenhouse. It makes the experience even more… magical, somehow. I must admit, however, that I have never been outside while it rained." She didn’t open her eyes, even when she felt the blind boy stare in her general direction in surprise. "How could I have", she chuckled sadly, "my health simply didn’t allow it. I was rather sickly, even without the curse." A strong tuck on her hand had her open her eyes to look quizzically at Ominis, whose eyes glittered with barely contained excitement. "But, you’re feeling fine now?", he asked, starting to grin when she replied: "Oh, yes, of course." "Well, then…" And with that, the blonde pulled her down the remaining flights of stairs - towards the doors to the Transfiguration Courtyard.

Once they stepped outside, Ominis immediately pulled her to the side into one of the roofed areas. He placed himself directly behind her to guide her open palm with his arm. The drops of rain were cold, but felt smooth. The cool sensation instantly cleared the dreamy fog inside her head and chased out the remaining steam from their spell practise. Growing bolder, she took half a step forward, reaching for the rain with both hands. The water sent a pleasant shiver down her spine as it ran along her wrists and into her sleeves. Ominis moved to stand beside her, a satisfied smirk on his lips and unseeing eyes alight with joy. He took her left hand and lifted it close to his lips as he slightly leaned forward. "May I have this dance?"

Genevieve felt her heart stutter and her stomach flutter. She squeezed his hand before muttering breathlessly: "Yes, you may." Tenderly, the blind boy pulled her out into the downpour. The rain was pleasantly cool on her burning cheeks, and the wind made her braid move slightly against her back. Her dislike for the family´s etiquette on hair styles was reawaken at the back of her mind, but instantly silenced when Ominis pulled her closer to him. His glazed over eyes were shockingly blue, and even though her brain knew he couldn’t see her, her heart felt laid bare beneath his stare.

As they began to waltz to the mute orchestra, Genevieve found her lips frozen in a dreamy smile - a smile that was also flashed back at her by the blonde. Their steps were precise and floaty, their movements were in perfect harmony. The young witch closed her eyes and let herself be consumed by the weightless feeling that had spread in her skull and chest. She felt safe in the arms of the Slytherin - a stranger she had only known for about a week.

After they had rounded the beautiful fountain for the thirtieth time, they slowly came to a halt. Out of habit, Genevieve curtsied before the boy, and was delighted when Ominis also bowed to her. They were positively drenched by now, but Genevieve couldn’t have cared less. She was happy and quite in awe with her dance parnter´s talent, but he seemed to mind about her health when a tiny sneeze escaped her. "Oh no, we cannot have you catch a cold because of me", he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and gently pushed her towards the doors. "Back to your dorms, this instant."

 

The next morning, Ominis´ mind was still twirling around the fountain with Genevieve as his fingers drummed against his knees. His best friend was - as usual - engaged in the endless battle with his locks. "You should finally invest in a comb, Sebastian", the blonde advised for the millionth time since the beginning of their acquaintance. "Though I doubt even a comb made of the densest material could withstand the mess you call hair." Sebastian only scoffed. Not wanting to return to silence and wishing to coax his friend out of his comfort zone, Ominis cleared his throat and asked: "Have there been any changes in your flirtationship with one Garreth Weasley?" He heard Sebastian choke on air before spluttering: "N-no, there haven’t - yet. How could anything have changed when anytime I so much as see him I turn into the most idiotic lunatic that has ever walked these halls?! Merlin forbid, the day I am able to form a coherent sentence in his presence shall be the day I´ve been laid on my deathbed!"

At that, Ominis laughed. He, of course, knew of Sebastian´s feelings for the ginger head, and he loved to tease - but also support - the brunette on the matter. But - as he had to admit and come to know over the duration of their friendship - the Scot was very talented in turning the conversation around. "What about you and your lovely Genevieve, then? Have you made any progress - do not try to deny that there was something going on between the two of you yesterday, I wouldn’t believe you." Normally, Ominis would have ended their conversation at that point, but the mere memory of the girl had him in far a too good mood for him not to indulge his friend. "We danced."

"Oh, you danced, huh? I need details! Exactly when, where, and most importantly, what, in Salazar´s name, is it going to take for the both of you to court already?!" Ominis grinned dreamily and twirled his wand in his hands. "Yesterday, after you fell asleep, we went outside so that I could introduce her to our famous Scottish rain. It was all so very surreal, and then we waltzed around the fountain in the Transfiguration Courtyard. She is an excellent dancer, by the way. Then, I brought her back to her Common Room before she could catch a cold." His smile faltered, as he remembered that even though he would love nothing more than to court Genevieve, with her status as an aristocrat there most certainly were rules that excluded him from the possible suitors. "And it would take the impossible for us to ever be in the position to court."

Sebastian groaned from his side of their shared dorm. "I hope you’re not talking about your family! I thought we already discussed this-" "I know! I know. But, you must admit", replied Ominis, "even without my family, someone as brilliant and kind and interesting, warm, charming and so absolutely good as her deserves a partner with equally stunning prospects!" "I do admit that she is undeniably brilliant, but the way you talk makes her sound like nobility that is far beyond your reach, as you’re a sad, little peasant of the lowest kind. Or like a queen, above all and anyone, omnipresent and as far out of reach as the very stars in the sky!" The blind Slytherin stood from his bed and strode to the door. Grabbing the handle, he halted and murmured: "To me, she is."

 

The castle was entirely empty on his way to the Great Hall. Though it didn’t surprise Ominis - it was still very early and a Sunday - nor did he really mind. He took his time moving through the dungeons, his feet moving in the waltz´s rhythm, humming his favourite tune quietly. When he got closer to the steps leading to the kitchen and the Hufflepuff Common Room, his ears picked up the sound of light, hurried footsteps as his heart fluttered with the presence of his favourite buzz. As the person got closer, he stopped to smile in her direction.

"Good morning, Genevieve." He could feel her smiling brightly back at him when she replied: "Good morning, Ominis! You’re up early." "I must say, I didn’t actually look at the time before leaving for breakfast." Ominis truly loved Genevieve´s giggles whenever he intentionally joked about his blindness. "You’re up early yourself." In an instant, the cheerful atmosphere was gone, replaced by a nervous and heavy silence. Ominis could feel that she wanted to go somewhere - somewhere that most definitely wasn’t the Great Hall. The hairs on his neck stood in alarm at the crawling sensation off-road. He took a cautious step towards the young witch. "Genevieve, is everything alright?" She took a deep, audible breath. "I´ve been informed by the portrait of a former Minister of Magic that someone in Upper Hogsfield might know about the missing pages. I was just on my way there."

Notes:

I am now (kind of) active on TikTok under my AO3 Username. Of course bad timing with TikTok possibly getting banned in the USA, but as I won't be affected by that ban, I thought: let´s just do it
Please don’t expect super creative videos there, though, I´m not the creative video editing type, but I will probably announce chapters there every now and then… I don’t know honestly
I hoped you liked this chapter
Leave a comment if you did 😊

Chapter 7: White lilies braided around bars

Notes:

Here it is, chapter 7
- Azkaban Quest -

Warnings: fluff, angst, spiralling thoughts, prejudices, dubious adults, Dementors, mentions of torture/abuse, insane people, blood

Enjoy :)

"I don’t understand- Upper Hogsfield?!", Ominis all but shrieked, the crack in his voice echoing through the grand halls of the school. Genevieve whipped her head around to see if there was anyone who could’ve heard him. When she couldn’t spot anyone, she grabbed the Slytherin´s arm and dragged him away. "Do you intend to inform the entire student body?!", she pressed out between her teeth. "Yes, Upper Hogsfield." With the help of her shoulder she pushed open the larger doors to the Entrance Hall. The slightly cooler air sent unpleasant shivers down her spine, remnants of an earlier bout from her curse flaring up again in her legs. She inhaled sharply and pressed her free fist against her forehead. "And I will leave immediately. If things go as I suspect they will, I should be back long before dinner." The blonde boy swiftly placed himself in front of her, halting her in her steps. His angelic face was set in a deep frown.

"Surely you do not intend to go there on your own - it is far too dangerous with two powerful foes intending to gain hold of you at every moment a chance presents itself?! Who, in Merlin´s name, gave you such information in the first place?" Genevieve gently took his free hand and squeezed it lightly, fighting the urge to caress his pale cheek. "It was the portrait of a former Minister of Magic, Minister Diggory, whose relative is a retired Auror with knowledge of the whereabouts of the missing pages from the book. Apparently, they are tied to a case where an innocent person got convicted because of the pages´ disappearance", she said, just loud enough for him to hear. "As the Head of the Jurisdiction Department of the German Ministry - and as a Hufflepuff, whose traits include a strong sense for justice - I simply couldn’t sit by idly."

The glimmer in those blue, unseeing eyes told her Ominis was not yet reassured entirely. If she were honest with herself, she wasn’t either. It did seem more than a little suspicious that the portrait linked to her new powers would just overhear her and the others talking about the pages, only to have the solution right at hand. It felt planned, sort of like another trial. The boy before her sighed, shaking her out of her thoughts. She pulled him down the stairs through the doors leading out of the castle. Outside, she breathed in deeply and turned to the boy once more. "You are right about the dangers that Ranrock and Rookwood pose, but I was going to use the Floo Network. There really is no use in attempting to find a place I´ve never been to before in such a vast country as Scotland. But", she paused and glanced at her shoes, her cheeks heating up subtly, "I wouldn’t mind you coming along, if you´d like. If I´m being honest, I would, in fact, very much like you to accompany me."

Had silence been made to be loud, Ominis would have been the loudest at that moment. He didn’t even blink, and Genevieve had just begun to wonder if he had been turned into a statue, when he finally replied: "Well then, let´s be off, before Sebastian sees us and wishes to join us as well. The sooner we depart, the sooner we’ll be back here." He brushed past her towards the Floo flame, and Genevieve made haste to follow him.

 

While they walked through the little village, asking for directions to Madame Helen Thistlewood´s house, Genevieve threw several admiring glances at the blonde beside her. He had apparently chosen to wear something more comfortable but still elegant: black loafers and black pants, a white button-up shirt with an emerald bow tie, and a dark green vest with black accentuations. The outfit was completed by a thin, black coat that hovered just above the ground. His wand was pulsing red as always, giving him some sense of his surroundings. His hair was neat and shiny, nearly glowing in the sunlight. He was absolutely angelic - the black shifting the feeling more to the image of a fallen angel rather than a purely good one, but an angel nonetheless.

Discouraged by more than a bit, Genevieve considered her own choice of clothing: a plain, beige blouse, paired with a deep brown skirt, brown leather boots and her light brown jacket she had worn the day they had traveled to Hogwarts. Her hair was styled in its usual braid - she had begun to miss her twin brother´s talent for handling her unruly locks quite dearly. He had been able to make even the most basic and simple hairstyle look elegant and breathtaking. Even if she usually didn’t care all that much about her appearance, Ominis made her feel uncertain of herself as no one had before. Her brothers had praised her beauty daily back home, but it was an entirely different ordeal to be in the presence of someone male and not related to her than her overprotective, spoiling and entirely smitten siblings. And Ominis couldn’t even see her, and yet she still cared for her looks more whenever he was near.

With some more thought on the matter, she realised she didn’t really care only for flattery from him, but more for his company, his behaviour towards her - which had been more than cordial - and his remarkable talent for unconsciously making her feel completely at ease. His abilities on the dance floor were an additional delight. She had, of course, often danced with her brothers, her father and the dance instructor, but never before had she enjoyed herself so much. She wished they could dance again soon. She wished they could dance together years, maybe even decades from now.

Her heart sunk into her stomach as the reality of her unique situation crashed over her daydreams. Even if she loved him, even if he reciprocated her feelings, a life with her did not necessarily mean happy or even enjoyable moments. Her daily duties would always keep her busy until the late hours, her appointments would leave no room for even small moments of intimacy. Were they to start courting, they would immediately be engaged - a custom meant to protect their lineage due to the shortened lifespan caused by the Blood Curse. It would cage him, lock him into an arrangement in which he would have no power for himself. Were she to die young - a fact as inevitable as a person´s death in general - and her daughter became the new Head of the family, he might be forced to leave. It was a bundle of customs that had been established to ensure the safety of the family´s women, back when the men had still dared to harm their wives out of spite or boredom.

A gentle hand on her shoulder brought her back to the moment. "Genevieve? Did you hear me just now?", Ominis asked close to her ear. Genevieve blushed furiously and cleared her throat. "No, I didn’t, I´m sorry." He smiled softly at her and chuckled. "No need to apologise. I was just saying that I now know where Madame Thistlewood lives." "You do? I must say I am glad I asked you to join me. At least one of us is staying focused", she said, laughing awkwardly. "I am afraid my family´s customs haunt me even when they should be the least of my problems." The boy hummed and offered his arm. "Shall we?"

 

About five minutes later the two arrived at Madame Thistlewood´s house. It was as grey as the rest of the hamlet, even the vines climbing the stones up to the chimney were lacking of colour. Compared to the other houses and sheds, however, there seemed to be something alive about this one, as if the bricks inhale at any moment. The air around it shimmered with magic, most likely Protection Charms. Ominis moved past Genevieve to knock, when the door was opened from the inside. The woman standing before them could have also been part of the house with her grey, wooden garments and her grey hair, pulled into a neat bun. There was a friendly and welcoming glimmer in the woman´s eyes as she smiled at them gently.

"Ah, you must be the student Eldritch spoke of. The one searching for the pages. And I see you´ve brought someone along." Genevieve offered a polite nod. "Genevieve North. A pleasure to meet you, Madame Thistlewood. And this", she gestured to the blonde next to her, "is a very dear friend of mine." "Ominis Gaunt. Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Madame Thistlewood." The older witch´s smile deepened. "The pleasure is all mine."

The woman invited the two students inside, and just as they had settled into chairs with a steaming cup of blackberry tea each, a figure stepped into the picture frame hanging on one of the walls. "I see we are one more person than I had anticipated", the man said friendly. Genevieve quickly stood and bowed her head towards the wizard. "Minister Diggory. I hope you don’t mind, I brought along a dear friend of mine, Ominis Gaunt. He assisted me in retrieving the book - though I suspect you were aware of that already." The painting´s eyebrows flew up to his hairline as the Slytherin stood as well and inclined his head in greeting. "Good day, sir. I am honestly not quite sure how exactly missing pages from an old book are connected to the Ministry´s failure at providing proper justice, but I couldn’t let my friend travel unaccompanied through the Scottish Highlands. With so many dangers on the way, I thought it best to offer my assistance." Minister Diggory smiled brightly at him - though not without glimmers of surprise and doubt in his painted eyes. "Well, I must say I have never met a member of the Gaunt family quite like you, young man. A member of the Gaunt family with an understanding of both manners  and companionship?" He laughed heartily. "I suppose there is a first time for everything!"

 

Ominis´ stomach twisted painfully as the former Minister´s words sank into his bones. Surely, he didn’t think Mr Diggory had said them to make him feel bad on purpose, but the fact his family´s bad reputation had existed for such a long time and with such prominence filled the young wizard with shame. The conversation that followed caused his digestive system to contort even more. The former Minister and the Auror started to rant about the Black family´s negative influence on the Ministry, the pure blooded Wizarding families fanatics about blood status and their incompetence to see the danger of Azkaban´s guards, the Dementors, and Ominis wished himself anyplace else. The feeling was amplified as he could feel Genevieve´s discomfort radiating from beside him.

Finally, the two adults moved on to the reason they had all gathered together: the missing pages. They were told of the late, mischievous Richard Jackdaw, who had taken them from Peeves, and of Anne Thisbe, a poor muggle-born witch, who had been framed for his murder by one Apollonia Black. At that moment, when Madame Thistlewood mentioned that Anne had tried to use the pages as evidence for her innocence, and that she had probably figured out their location by now, Ominis was hit by a wave of realisation about where this conversation was going. A wave so strong, it catapulted him out of his seat.

"I really do hope you are not suggesting what I think to know you are suggesting!" He gripped his wand as tight as he could - if only to shove down the impulse to grab Genevieve and run. "And what, young man, are we suggesting?", the voice of late Minister Diggory asked him in a surprised tone. Ominis swallowed hard before pressing out: "You´re suggesting a visit to Anne Thisbe´s cell in Azkaban. A place filled with Dementors and criminals! That is no place for a student, no matter how resilient or powerful they are!"

He only realised that he was shouting when he felt Genevieve jump in shock on her stool. The boy immediately felt guilty for getting so loud - it had probably reminded her of her horrible mother - but he had to stand his ground in this matter. He couldn’t let that Auror drag her to such a terrible place. Memories of his father telling stories of the prisoners cries and mad mumbles flooded his mind, and several cold shivers chased down his back. The Slytherin felt Genevieve´s small hand rest on his arm in an attempt to calm him. He turned in her direction and hoped his unseeing eyes could convey his desperation for her to hear his plea. "No pages of one damned bookies worth your sanity or happiness, which will be the price to pay for stepping in that horrid place!"

Ominis could feel all eyes on him. After a few moments of silence, Madame Thistlewood set down her cup rather audibly on the small table next to her. "You seem to know quite a lot about Azkaban and the Dementors", she said calmly, and not at all accusingly. The blonde didn’t move his head when he answered: "My father loved to tell me and my siblings about them and their effects on people, and I´ve read a lot about Azkaban myself. A friend of mine wants to be an Auror after school." Back in their second year, he had almost laughed when Sebastian had told him about his dream, but he had listened intently to his friend´s retelling of the book the Scot had read. At the end of their third year, he himself had gotten curious and had started devouring such books, especially those about the unusual and unsettling guards.

The blonde was startled back to attention when the stool in front of him was audibly moved across the wooden floor. He felt Genevieve place both her hands on his arms - like one does to tame a raging child or to comfort someone when bearing bad news. He knew what she would was going to do. Even in the short time that he had come to know her, such actions from her were rather predictable for him. Her sense of justice and desire to help everyone in this world were so strong, it was both exasperating and admirable. He sighed deeply - bone deep - and let his head hang. With his own hands, he held her arms from underneath, took a deep breathe and declared: "Then I have no other choice but to accompany you there."

 

The place they landed in was dark, damp and cold. Eerie whailing filled the air, and Genevieve felt Ominis´ hand tighten its grip on her arm. Her wand at the ready, she lifted her head upwards - and gasped. Countless hooded figures flew towards them, claw-like hands reaching for the three. The phoenix inside her stirred and started thrashing at the presence of enemies.

´Let go, and I will burn them into oblivion´, it sneers, stretching its wings to swallow her soul.

Genevieve bit down hard on her bottom lip to keep the beast from breaking free. It shrieked and threw itself against the wall of control she had built with all its force, but she held on.

´Let me out´, it shouts one more time, even though it knows she won’t let it.

Next to her, Madame Thistlewood drew her own wand and stepped in front of the two students. A silvery-blue light began to collect at the tip of the woman´s catalyst, the magic of Genevieve´s second favourite Latin spell filling the air around them. The young witch thrusted her wand forward at the same time as the retired Auror, their joined voices echoing through the hall. "Expecto Patronum!"

While Madame Thistlewood´s rabbit would have sufficed in pushing the Dementors back far enough, the giant Phoenix Patronus bursting from the Hufflepuff´s wand catapulted the creatures out of their sight entirely. The young witch only remembered the boy´s vice-like grip on her arm when her hand grew numb from the pressure on her veins. He was trembling horrendously, his face devoid of any sort of colour, which made his eyes almost glow. His breaths were shallow, his shoulders moving up and down with each inhale and exhale. Genevieve gently laid her hand on his shaking ones and squeezed lightly. When his only reaction was the tightening of his grip she turned to him fully and asked softly: "Ominis? Are you alright?"

Her voice seemed to pull him back into the moment, his unseeing eyes searching for her in his eternal darkness. "I… what was that?", he whispered. "Dementors, the guards of Azkaban. I presumed you knew", said Helen, sounding genuinely concerned. "Their presence causes the air to freeze, all feelings of joy and optimism leaving with the room´s warmth. These creatures have the ability to make us relive the most terrible moments of our lives - but usually they have to get even closer than they were to have such an effect on someone as they did on you." The woman slid her hand into her pocket and pulled out some wrapped squares. "I´ve found that chocolate helps enormously." She handed the students one piece each, and as soon as the treat melted on her tongue, the young witch felt her insides warm up. While they ate the sweets, Madame Thistlewood addressed Genevieve. "I´ve never seen a witch so young perform such a powerful, corporal Patronus. Well done, that was quite impressive."

Genevieve blushed and twirled the empty wrapper in her hand. "I liked to read about defensive spells a lot when I was younger, and I found the Patronus Charm to be my favourite in theory. After that, I just needed to practise it." The former Auror didn’t reply, turned around and gestured to a cell at the other side of the hallway. "That one over there is Anne´s cell."

As they moved forward, Ominis leaned closer to her ear and whispered teasingly: "Is there anything you cannot do?" She smiled and answered: "I seem incapable of keeping myself out of trouble."

 

Had he not known it physically impossible, Ominis would have thought that his heart had completely stopped beating. Even with the chocolate returning some semblance of warmth to him, he could still feel the echo of the ice and wounds no longer there. THis encounter with the Dementors was something he hoped never to have to repeat ever again. He could still hear his siblings´ laughter, his father´s loud scolding and his mother´s silence. He could still feel the hexes, curses and jinxes, the bites of countless serpents, the wooden door crushing the bones in his arm, the blade cutting into his flesh. His steps were unsteady and small. Next to him, Genevieve´s magic was an external source of heat. Not a simple one, like such of a comforting fire place. In comparison to their surrounding and himself, Genevieve´s energy was scalding. He was torn between moving away and stepping as close to her as possible. The romantic attraction he felt towards the girl had become undeniable to him, and - if he were truly honest with himself - he wished for nothing more than to be with her for the rest of his life.

 

The cell they stopped in front of was - compared to the other ones - eerily quiet. The other prisoners had been rather vocal towards them, some even commenting suspicious things about Helen. Inside sat a small figure on the grounding scratched the wall with bloodied fingers. The figure was bald save for single, short tuffs of grey hair, the skin was of a pale, greyish-blue colour. Madame Thistlewood moved between the bars and the students and said in an almost cold tone: "Anne Thisbe? Here are two students who require your help in locating something of great importance." Anne didn’t react and continued to steer her blood over the stone wall. Genevieve carefully took a step forwards, though Ominis´ grip on her upper arm kept her from approaching the convicted further.

"Miss Thisbe, my name is Genevieve North." The scratching paused, then resumed. "I am a student at Hogwarts. I found the book that you said would exonerate you." Anne took a shuddering breath. "Aaaaaaaaah! The book, the book. No one would look. None of the mages found the pages." Her croaking and slightly distorted voice had Ominis tighten his hold on her arm even further. "Methinks the feckless knave meandered to cave. Mate fate was surely sealed in Upper Hoggy-field." Though she had never been particularly fond of riddles and puzzles, Genevieve found herself intrigued by Anne´s words. A shudder of foreboding ran through her as she remembered Poppy´s tale about a cave near Upper Hogsfield. "The cave near Upper Hogsfield…", she whispered loudly. The prisoner immediately ceased her scratching and turned her head subtly towards the bars. "Hogs, hogs. Field, field. Ruins house a vault concealed", she said.

Ominis leaned closer to Genevieve and said: "I suppose it can’t hurt to look." His words seemed to have riled Anne up, as she practically spat at him: "Can’t hurt to look. Can’t hurt to look. Go find the pages from your book!" While the Slytherin tried to back away from the hostile woman, Genevieve moved closer to the bars and kneeled before the cell. With a quick flick of her hand across the metal, several white lilies appeared, forming pairs as their stems braided themselves around the bars. Genevieve smiled gently - and a little bit proudly at herself - at the surprised Anne. The broken witch slowly returned to her initial position on the floor and clawed at the ground.

"Death, death", she whispered, "he has heard my plea. Soon he will come, sonn I´ll be free." She then called out to the retired Auror. "Helen? Helen! Know you’re here. Come in closer. Be a dear." She stood and moved to the door, where Helen had once more stepped in front of the two students. "What is it, Anne?"

Genevieve had no idea what exactly happened next. She could only hear Anne´s maniacal laughter, the swish of something moving through the air at a high speed, and Helen´s cry of pain. Before she knew it, the former Auror had collapsed against her and Ominis - and they apparated away. The last image burned itself into her memory - an image that would surely haunt her for two months at least: the white lilies, covered in dark red blood.

Notes:

Oh god this took long to write… 😅 3 months to be exact
I am really sorry for not giving any news about this earlier or posting anything, but real life was so stressful I completely forgot about my AO3 account😅😅

Well anyways it´s posted and chapter 8 is already in the work so it shouldn’t take THAT long
It shouldn’t

I hope you liked it anyways
Leave a comment if you did :D (I know it might sound vain but it really does boost an authour´s confidence and motivation if one gets feedback from the readers 😅)
Stay healthy and see you next chapter

Chapter 8: Don’t lose your head

Notes:

Oh boy here it is (soooooooo it’s been finished for like two weeks now and I had a hell lot of time to upload this but you know how this all works with motivation and mental health and stuff😅)

Warnings: mentions of blood, a hell lot of pining, swear words (I guess)

Enjoy :)

The cats of Hogwarts scrambled to safety as Sebastian moved through the corridors, his face set into an annoyed scowl. He couldn’t find either of his friends. Anywhere. Neither of them had been at breakfast, and no one else had seen them. They had vanished entirely without telling him, and the Scot felt incredibly left out. He had already searched in all the hidden places known to him - without results.

As he rounded the corner, he collided with another person. The force of the impact sent the Slytherin to the ground, and the following thud told him that the other person had also lost their footing. Looking up, the complaints died on his tongue at the sight of wild, red curls. "Dragon dung, Sallow, I thought I got run over by a Graphorn", groaned Garreth, rubbing his shoulder. Sebastian´s face went bright red as he hurried to his feet to help the Gryffindor up. "I am so sorry, Weasley. I was searching for someone and-", he cut himself off, shaking his head. "Never mind." As he helped the other boy to his feet, Sebastian noticed a subtle, surprising pink glow on Garrth´s cheeks. His own went even redder at that. Quickly, he pulled his hand away, which caused the redhead to sway dangerously. To prevent himself from falling once more, he grabbed onto Sebastian´s arm.

What ensued was a fight for balance, eventually accompanied by awkward chuckles from both teenage boys. When they had found steady ground, Garreth twisted his sleeve in his hand while Sebastian nervously rubbed his neck. They both seemed to have started doing this very telling gesture whenever they met. "Well then, I wish you luck for your search", the Gryffindor said before turning around and leaving through the door leading to Gryffindor Tower. Once he was gone, Sebastian sighed and rested his forehead against the cool wall. He pressed his right fist to his rapidly beating heart, closed his eyes and mumbled: "Be still, you traitorous thing!"

 

Ominis was doing his best not to burst from laughing as he and Genevieve made their way up the hill to the small village. The girl in front of him was putting her foot down rather strongly, letting out a long string of angry sounding noises and words he couldn’t understand. He could only guess they were German. When she finally switched back to English, the boy had to double his efforts to keep himself upright. "Blimey, bastard, bloody buffoon! Arrogant, arse-licking ant! Such a brainless, egotistical, narcissistic, slimes, foolish", she took a deep breath to have enough air for the final word to echo all the way to Hogsmeade, "idiot!" Shaking uncontrollably from laughter, the Slytherin leaned against the stone wall beside him. He couldn’t blame the girl for getting so upset after their conversation with Richard Jackdaw´s ghost, but her furious ramble was just so adorable and endearing to him. It was a freeing sort of feeling, to hear the usually rather posh Hufflepuff use such a colourful variety of words. No matter how much power she held to her name, Ominis couldn’t find himself being intimidated by her at all. He probably should, but it was something he found more difficult than Potions - at least so far. All in all, he was infinitely glad that she seemed to be feeling much better than just moments before.

He wasn’t really sure what had happened at Azkaban. His head had spun with adrenaline as the hostile woman had cackled - the sound solely insane instead of genuinely delighted - and his brain hadn’t been able to process any of the information his wand had given him. He had only snapped back to attention when something - or rather someone - heavy had slumped against him and he had been apparated away. They had landed rather unceremoniously, with Ominis having been thrown a few paces back. The smell of blood and Helen Thistlewood´s shallow and pained breaths had instantly reached his senses, but what had worried him the most had been that he hadn’t been able to hear Genevieve. Her presence beside him - rushing towards the retired Auror - had thus startled him severely.

When the older woman had then disapparated without many other words, the girl had collapsed into him, a bout of her curse stealing the air from her lungs. While she had fought through the attack, he had gently lowered her to the ground and had carefully caressed the top of her head. As they had waited for the numbness to subside, he had felt something in her familiar buzzing aura. Something powerful radiating from her, something alive within her. Her phoenix, he had realised. When he had felt her start to tremble quite fiercely - most likely from stress and exhaustion after such a haunting event - he had pulled her into his arms, resting his head atop hers and mumbling quiet words of comfort. Not only to calm the whirlwind of emotions in her heart, but also in his own.

 

The walk to the cave north from the village had been silent, every step uncertain. The witch beside him had swayed often, and he had had half a mind to turn around with her and forget the entire ordeal. He had wanted to turn his plans into actions when she had softly announced: "This must be the cave." It had indeed been the cave, and they had actually met the Richard Jackdaw when they had exited the chaos of books, notes and candles. The late student had been able to give them further information on the location of the pages, but for the most part of the conversation, the boy had been a disrespectful, flirtatious git - at the very least directly towards Genevieve. If he were honest - which he found himself to be more often these days - he had minded Jackdaw´s behaviour as well, especially since some of his remarks towards his friend had been downright insulting and disgusting. Towards the end, Genevieve´s calm and polite demeanour had first cracked, and then shattered. She had put the ghost in his place by revealing Anne Thisbe´s fate and directly calling him out on his behaviour. In the end, the two had agreed to meet Jackdaw in the late evening at the entrance to the Forbidden Forest - and the ghost had left with yet another sickly flirtatious phrase.

 

Ominis snapped back to attention when he felt a small hand on his arm. "Are you alright, Ominis?", Genevieve´s wonderful voice asked. He smiled in her general direction and replied: "I am. What about you?" He felt her take one more step closer. "I… think I am. Are you sure about you feeling fine?" "Why?", he asked, tension beginning to form in his gut. Were she to ask about his reaction to the Dementors, he would surely lose all composure and chase her away with the stories of his horrible family. "The speed with which your facial expressions shifted just now was more than just mildly alarming."

"Oh." The boy immediately relaxed. His smile returned, much wider and brighter than before. "I was simply replaying today´s events. Truly, nothing to worry about, but… thank you for your concern", he said softly. He could have stayed there, with her, forever, but a far away bell announcing noon shattered the pleasant moment. Ominis cleared his throat and asked shyly: "We should probably find someplace to have some lunch. Especially since we both skipped the proper breakfast and only had some chocolate." He heard Genevieve chuckle, and his heart did several somersaults. It was so much more effective than any bit of chocolate could be at dispelling any remaining cold from his heart.

"The Three Broomsticks?"

"I´ll let you lead."

And while they walked to the Floo flame, all the way, Ominis was sure the grin on his face as he followed Genevieve´s skipping steps made him look quite ridiculous. Just before the very chatty head on the stone could - for the millionth time - remind them of her invention, Ominis turned to the girl. "There is just one thing I would like to know." "Sure." "I did feel you use some kind of Botanic Magic at Azkaban. What was it?" He heard her take a deep breath. "I wanted to gift her some flowers that symbolise hope, to let her know I would do what is in my power to alleviate her agony. Like an iris, cornflowers or yellow tulips. Unfortunately, the negative energy in that place caused me to conjure white lilies, which symbolise death. So her outburst might just have been my fault." Ominis gave her what he hoped was an encouraging smile. "I am sure she would have done what she did with or without your flowers. Now, do not dwell on this so much, it will do neither of us any good on empty stomachs."

 

The Three Broomsticks was surprisingly quiet on this wonderfully sunny Sunday. There were no other students besides Genevieve and Ominis, only two elderly wizards in one of the corners in the back. It was a startling and stark contrast to the rest of the wizarding village, where witches and wizards of all ages clogged the paths. The two students welcomed the quiet comfort of the establishment, opting for one of the tables on the first floor. They had engaged in a lively conversation about their not-so-lively Professor Binns - whose subject History of Magic was, at least to Ominis, as exciting and inspiring as taking care of Flobberworms - when Sirona came to take their order. "What can I get for you two?" Genevieve smiled at the witch. "One pumpkin juice and the lamb stew, please." "The same for me, please", Ominis said. Sirona nodded while she wrote their ordersdown and then left. The boy across Genevieve stretched his neck before taking a deep breath. "You truly mean to tell me you enjoy Professor Binns´ lessons?", he asked her, pressing his pointer finger to his chin. "In fact, I did. I have always been interested in magical history." Ominis´ exasperated expression made her giggle into her hand. "Sure, but with Binns!? I mean, even star gazing is more exciting to me than his monotone monologues. Star gazing!"

With this, the Hufflepuff couldn’t hold her laughter inside anymore. The boy´s numerous and genuinely hilarious jests about his visual impairment managed to make her stomach flutter, as if she had digested Basilisk’s venom, sparkling water and Fizzing Whizzbees all at once. Genevieve could feel her cheeks heat up instantly and her heart started beating faster and harder. She grinned at the Slytherin and leaned across the table towards him. "Yes, surely freezing to death in the middle of the night truly is something to call exciting." Now it was Ominis´ turn to burst out laughing. "It really is terribly cold and unpleasant, isn’t it?", he wheezed, wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes. They continued their friendly banter all throughout lunch.

 

Once they had finished, the Three Broomsticks had gotten even more quiet. The other two wizards had left some time ago, in the middle of a rather heated argument about radishes. They had been so very passionate about it that Genevieve had had to bite down hard on her bottom lip - hard enough to draw blood - to prevent herself from laughing out loud. Across from her, Ominis had seemed to attempt the very same thing. The two students had only been able to calm down after several minutes of suppressed cackling and held-back giggles. When Sirona came to take their plates away, Genevieve leaned towards the witch. "So, Sirona, what is the latest gossip here in Hogsmeade?" The witch´s eyes lit up. "Let me just take these away, and then we´ll have a chat." She hurriedly carried the cutlery away and went to work something on the doors. As soon as she was finished, Sirona joined the two students at their table.

"Well then. Both Rookwood and Harlow seem to have vanished from Hogsmeade, and it has put a lot of people in a constant state of wariness - myself included. Even if we can’t see them here anymore, their influence is still as strong as ever." Genevieve felt her stomach twist in unease. "I suspect that it´ll be long before we are truly rid of them for good." Sirona laid a hand on the girl´s arm. "Do be careful, please. Watch out for yourself and your friends. You do not want to stumble into their path, they are extremely violent people." The Hufflepuff smiled at the older witch. "I will."

After a few moments, Ominis chimed in: "Don’t worry, Sirona. The chances of either of them catching her alone and without protection are close to non-existent as long as I am alive… and, of course, all of her other friends", he added, his face the most bright shade of red Genevieve had seen on human skin. Her heart ached at the sight of it. She was no fool, nor was she oblivious to her own feelings towards the boy. If only she wasn’t who she was.

"There is something else I would like to discuss with you", Sirona said, pulling Genevieve from her thoughts. "A very dear friend of mine was curious about you. He said you reminded him of someone he befriended not long ago." The girl blinked in confusion. "Your friend?" "Yes, you might have seen him on the first day you came here. His name is Lodgok. He was the goblin who left just when you entered." "Ah, yes, I think I remember him. The one wearing the garb of a metal trader?" "Exactly."

"Is his curiosity truly of an innocent nature?", asked Ominis. "I don’t want to appear prejudiced against goblinkind, but up until now I haven’t had any pleasant interaction with goblins." Sirona crossed her arms. "I understand your caution, but I can personally vouch for Lodgok. Just yesterday, we talked about his opinion on Ranrock and his Loyalists, and it was abundantly clear that he stands against them." Ominis still didn’t look entirely convinced, so Genevieve replied: "Thank you, Sirona. Perhaps I can talk to Lodgok this following week, but I´m afraid we´ll have to leave now." The fading light outside the windows told her that the time for meeting with Richard Jackdaw was fast approaching. The three stood, and Sirona walked with them to unlock the side door for them. "Be careful out there. And, if you do meet Lodgok, tell him I sent you. He will know to trust you." Genevieve smiled at Sirona and thanked her, before leaving with Ominis by her side.

 

They walked in silence for a while, the only sounds around them being the birds in the trees, the rustle of the leaves and the occasional boing from the Leaping Toadstools. The closer they got to the Forbidden Forest, the more restless Ominis became. He began to pull on the sleeve and collar of his shirt. When the entrance to the forest came into view, he stopped and turned towards Genevieve, his eyes gleaming with uncertainty.

"I sincerely hope you weren’t planning on meeting Jackdaw alone." Feeling guilty, Genevieve shrugged her shoulders. "That was, in fact, exactly my plan", she said softly. Before Ominis could protest, she continued: "We don’t know anything about the place he ended up in. It is entirely possible that the exit is a portal similar to the one in the Library. If so, you wouldn’t be able to go through it." The Slytherin continued to scowl, and so she moved closer to him to lay her hand on his shoulder. "I promise I will return safely. You have my word, Ominis. As soon as I return to Hogwarts, I´ll send you a message."

When he still didn’t answer her, she gently squeezed his shoulder. "I swear." Slowly, the tension in his body and face eased, and he placed his hand on hers. Emotions raged in his eyes with such intensity it stole her breath. "As soon as you are back on the grounds, and not a second later", he implored her, "and I will personally come looking for you, no matter what, if you’re not back by tomorrow morning." His voice was shaky, as was his hand. He moved his head closer to hers, a crooked smile playing on his lips. "Don’t lose your head."

Genevieve had to mentally kick herself to keep from kissing him right then and there. She smiled at him, gave his shoulder one last squeeze, and then ran past him into the woods.

 

Sebastian sat bored on the sofa in front of the fireplace in the Slytherin Common Room. He hadn’t seen his two friends all day, and he felt left out. He wasn’t good at finding entertaining occupations on his own - he was a twin for a reason.

Most of the students had already returned to the Common Room for the day, only his visually impaired best friend was missing. Just as the Scot was about to go looking for him, the door to the dungeons opened. Ominis entered the room in a state that shocked Sebastian to his core. His friend was covered in scratches, his face was bright red, and his steps dragged. As soon as he reached the bottom of the stairs, Sebastian grabbed his classmate by his vest and pulled him toward their shared dorm.

"You owe me an explanation", the Scotsman grumbled as soon as the door was closed. Meanwhile, his friend sunk onto his bedspread and buried his face in his hands. He mumbled something completely unintelligible and then threw himself backwards onto the bed, one arm over his blind eyes. "Could you repeat that?", Sebastian asked, confused. "I couldn’t understand a word." "I almost kissed her, Sebastian!", Ominis cried, exasperated. Sebastian´s eyes swelled to three times their size.

"Who? Genevieve?!" "Who else?!"

Sebastian sat down on his bed next to Ominis. His confusion and disappointment instantly vanished any other feeling of exclusion. "Why almost, Ominis? Are you telling me that today you had a perfect opportunity to release me from my suffering, and you didn’t take it?!" Ominis clicked his tongue. "Why your suffering? You have absolutely nothing to do with this whole thing!" "I have been trying to get you two together all week! It’s truly painful to watch you stare at each other lovesickly and yet do nothing about it!"

Sebastian plopped down next to his friend and sighed deeply. "Merlin´s beard! That’s enough excitement for three lifetimes!"

Notes:

So in the last end notes I wrote that chapter 7 took me three months and my anxiety forces me to explain: yes, the span between chapter 6 and 7 wasn’t three months, but number 7 was indeed in the works for three months because I had to change and edit and delete and rewrite so fluffing much it took me three months to be satisfied with it (just to clarify 😅)

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this chapter (it was kinda fun to write), leave a comment if you did or didn’t - it helps. I am also uploading the intended cover for this chapter on TikTok later today (cause over here it´s alredy half past one by the time I finish this)

Until next time ;)

Chapter 9: Living portraits, dead men

Notes:

Hey :) It´s been some time, I know
But I´m back and my writer´s block is over (hopefully for a bit)
Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter, it might be a bit on the longer side. It´s also a bit of a filler chapter, to flesh out Genevieve´s relationship with Fig

Warnings: talk of spiders, description of spider sounds, talk of death and grief

Enjoy :D

That night, Ominis was more restless than he had been in a long time. His worry for Genevieve was enough already to keep him awake, but it was amplified by his conversation with Sebastian. Before the summer holidays, Ominis had told the Scot about Salazar Slytherin´s Scriptorium, the place his favourite aunt Noctua Gaunt had searched just before her disappearance. He had left his aunt out of the retelling, as the mood had already been severely depressive with Anne´s condition worsening drastically. He had wanted to get the Sallow boy´s thought off his dying sister. Unfortunately, Sebastian was now convinced that the Scriptorium had to hold the answers to a cure for his twin. A developement that Ominis could have seen coming, but hadn´t wanted to acknowledge. No matter how annoying his friend could be, the blind boy was still believing in his good side. Though, it might have been the last straw to tell him about anything related to the ancient, decidedly evil and short-sighted founder. His best friend had begun obsessing about that place - which, in Ominis opinion, must be overflowing with nothing but Dark Magic - and had begged, implored and even indirectly threatened Ominis to reveal the entrance, as, like with all bad things that came with the name, only a Gaunt knew about. He had only stopped after Ominis had hauled a pillow at his head, and had continued to mumble for another hour. Now, in the usual darkness and quiet of the night, Ominis´ thoughts raced. He hoped he could divert Sebastian´s interest in the founder´s study room, but he knew it wouldn´t be an easy task.

He still hadn´t received word from Genevieve. His heart thumped painfully in the contains of his chest, and with every beat, Ominis thought that his fear would tear him apart. After another while of restlessness, the boy declared the quest for sleep a lost cause and got up. He hadn´t even changed into his night clothes, wanting to be ready to storm after her if needed at any time. To prevent himself from catching a cold, he put on his house cloak, grabbed his wand and left the dorms and the Common Room. He wandered aimlessly through the giant castle, trying to calm the storm of emotions in his heart. When he finally pulled himself from his thoughts, he realised he had wandered to a more desolate part of the dungeons. Not many people - students and teachers alike - frequented this area. Even the ghosts kept their distance. Large barrels were stacked along the walls, and several statues of toads stood behind bars - a puzzle he had solved in second year with the Sallow twins. There was another door, but it was always locked. Nothing they had tried to unlock it had worked. No spell, no key, no other object. Today, though, the door seemed somewhat loosened, and the feeling intensified when he heard footsteps approach. In an instant, his soul picked up his favourite presence drawing closer, and when the mysterious door flew open, his wand made him aware of the girl before him.

"Ominis? What are- Is this Hogwarts?!" Her voice, steady and sweet, immediately dispersed his worry, and he found himself charge forward and pull her into a fierce hug. He felt her slim body fall further into his embrace, and he tightened his arms around her. "Are you alright?", he asked softly into the side of her head. The Slytherin felt the witch nod against his shoulder. "I am just so terribly tired", she replied, and he started to gently caress her hair. He leaned just a little bit closer and whispered: "I´ll bring you to your Common Room and we can talk about it all tomorrow." They didn´t talk at all on their way, but Ominis didn´t mind, for Genevieve had allowed him to hold her hand the entier time.

 

The next day, classes were canceled due to unexpected explosions in both Professor Hecat´s and Professor Sharp´s classrooms, the greenhouses and the Library. Fortunately, it hadn´t been the firery kind of combustions, but rather large bubbles filled with glitter and paint. Until the damage had been removed and the ones responsible found, the students had been tasked to study by themselves. Ominis and Sebastian spent the morning in the Undercroft, waiting for Genevieve to show up and tell them what she had discovered - wherever she had been. Only, she didn´t come. When it was time for lunch, the boys left the Undercroft with a queasy feeling. Since they couldn´t find her in the Great Hall either, the two decided to turn to her housemates. They informed the two Slytherins that Genevieve had been taken to the Hospital Wing that morning - unconcious and terribly pale. The two friends hurried through their food and then rushed to the Faculty Tower. They found Genevieve on one of the hospital beds - her face as white as the wall, her green eyes nearly gleaming in contrast. "Hello Eve. You look awful", said Sebastian, sitting down on one of the chairs. "Why, thank you, Sebastian. You look extremely dopey today", the girl replied with a faint smile. Ominis sat on her other side. "How are you?", he asked softly. "A lot better now. I just think I have seen enough spiders for a lifetime. The Scottish Arachnids, at least." She groaned in pain and rubbed her forehead. "I used too much magic. My head hurts terribly." Sebastian gave her shoulder a quick squeeze and whispered: "That sounds like one hell of an adventure. You and Ominis still owe me an explanation." A little louder he added: "That you just went off on an outing together and didn´t take me along - I´m deeply hurt." While Sebastian laughed softly, Ominis sighed deeply and slapped Sebastian on the back of the head. "Let´s wait until she has fully recovered, Sebastian." The boy raised his hands in a gesture of resignation. "Yes, sir." This earned him another blow to the head.

 

Genevieve didn´t recover before dinner, so Sebastian and Ominis retreated to their Common Room. They barely spoke, and when either of them did start a conversation, it was mostly small talk about their classwork. Sebastian soon went to bed, leaving Ominis alone in front of the fireplace. He let his head fall against the cushions, closed his eyes, and let his mind wander about. His heart was troubled, his thoughts confused. He wished he could have done something - anything - for Genevieve, maybe some remedy for the aftereffects of using up all of her magic. Alas, his potion skills would probably have done more harm than good. Sighing deeply, the boy left the fire´s warmth, his dreams filled with her voice that night.

 

The next morning, the two boys hurried to change and head to breakfast, eager to see Genevieve. To both their delight, the girl was already sitting at her house table, in a deep conversation with Poppy Sweeting. Not wanting to disturb them, Ominis pulled his friend to the other side of the Great Hall. After finishing their food, the two Slytherins waited for the Hufflepuff in front of the House Points Hour Glasses. Just a few moments later, the girl strode through the grand doors, smiling brightly at them. "Well, good morning to you, Eve. You most certainly look better", Sebastian greeted her. "Good morning. I hope, you´re feeling well", added Ominis, much softer. "Good morning, Ominis, Sebastian. I am feeling just fine, thank you", she replied, her voice strong and steady. It instantly lifted a great load of worry off Ominis´ heart and shoulders. "What is your first lesson for the day?", the blind boy asked, immediately offering his arm. He suspected that she had Defence against the Dark Arts like him and Sebastian, but he wanted to make sure and then offer to walk with her either way. "Well, initially I had Defense against the Dark Arts followed by Charms and then Divination, but I am to meet with Profesor Fig. I´m not sure how long that will take, so I have been excused from all classes today." "Oh", Ominis said, his heart sinking before fluttering fiercely as she took his offered arm. "But I´ll gladly walk with you to the classroom." He was sure his grin would split his cheeks.

 

After bidding goodbye to the two boys, Genevieve made her way up the stairs to her mentor´s office. She had wanted to tell them first about her discoveries on Sunday, but fate had had other plans. Depleating her magic so severely fighting the spiders and Pensive Guards had come at a greater cost than she had anticipated. Her body had been nearly paralised, her thoughts slow and in disarray. Her phoenix had thrashed inside her, upset at the lack of leftover magic. It had tried to convince her to let it take over, let its power speed up her recovery. She had resisted it. It was too reckless to let it take control when she wasn´t coherent enough to reel it back in. Even now, it begged to be released.

´Let me out. The pain will fade instantly´, it whispers. ´You could stretch your limbs farther, not feel so confined any longer. Perhaps a quick round over the tree tops´, it tries to lure her. It is stronger today, louder even. It can feel her need for air, her wish for movement, her desire for nature. Its claws rip at her sanity, its beak picking into her self-control.

The tower was pleasantly quiet, the absence of noises a welcomed one. The memory of the spiders´ scurrying and screatching had haunted her in her dreams. Genevieve had never had a problem with spiders, but those oversized creatures had ignited an insatiable fear in her. The fight against the Pensive Guards had cost her less strengh and nerves. A cold shiver ran down her spine as she thought back to her conversation with Professor Rackham in the Map Chamber. The older wizard had seemed… well, not hostile, rather cautious and extremely suspicious of her. Especially when she had replied honestly. A sentiment Genevieve could very well understand, but also found somewhat offensive. She had already completed so many trials that had gotten her in foolishly dangerous situations, and she had proven her ability to wield the Ancient Magic on numerous occasions through those completions. The fact that she had made it this far without so much as a larger scratch should have, in her opinion, been enough for Rackham to understand her talent with the magic. The seers words had, however, suggested that this wasn’t the end of her trials.

As she approached her mentor´s office, Genevieve mentally prepared the lengthy explanations she would undoubtedly have to provide. Not just for her activities, but also her inability to understand his grief-driven changes in mood and her ever-adapting letter. The last was still tucked away in her enchanted pocket, and, at the moment, showed a permit to leave class at her leisure. It had been a gift from Heinrich, initially meant as a tool for pranks, and it had become an item of utmost importance for her current situation. No matter what she needed - be it a message to Professor Black about a Ministry ambassador or a permit to access the Restricted Section - the letter provided it without fail.

The door to Professor Fig´s office was ajar, and she could hear her mentor talking to Professor Sharp. "You cannot be serious. Goblins working with Rookwood? Makes no sense", said the Potions Master. "It is - rather unorthodox to say the least", came her mentor´s reply. Genevieve slowly opened the door, just as Sharp said: "Unorthodox? It´s inconceivable. It´s-", the door creaked, "-ah, Fig. You have a visitor. I´ll see what I can find out." With that, the teacher turned to her. Giving her a curt nod and a hmmph of acknowledgment, he passed her and left.

Folding her hands behind her back, the girl turned to her mentor. "Professor Fig. I see you´re back", she said in a neutral tone. The professor, seemingly oblivious to her air of seriousness and forced politeness, smiled warmly at her. "I am. I suppose we have lots to discuss." "We do", Genevieve replied, moving towards the chair the man was gesturing to. Instead of sitting down, however, she stood behind it. She had learned that she appeared more imposing and serious that way. Professor Fig sat down on his own seat, visibly confused and slightly alarmed.

The Hufflepuff took a deep breath before recounting everything that had happened over the weekend, purposefully leaving out Ominis and Sebastian´s involvement. At the end of her tale, Professor Fig and to hold his head with his hands to prevent it from crashing onto the table - eyes wide and face ghostly pale. He took a shuddering breath before looking back at her. "That is quite a lot of information to process. I am honoured that you decided to wait for me before placing that book on the pedestal." He straightened in his seat. "Shall we go to this Map Chamber right away? Although, I still need to know about that Ministry ambassador of yours..." Genevieve stepped closer to the desk. "Before we do that, Professor, there is something I need to discuss with you. It is very important to me." Her mentor looked surprised, but motioned for her to continue with a stiff nod. "Whatever happens from hereforth on, the course of action will be my choice, and mine alone. As far as I have learned these past days, the Ancient Magic of a most and mostly destructive nature, a devastating one at that. I must admit that I am not unfamiliar with such magic, I therefore know how to handle the concealement and revelation process of such a secret. I will hold complete authority about the usage of the Ancient Magic. Anyone who knows of this power and tries to persuade me to use it for their own benefits will be dealt with accordingly."

She took another deep breath. "That includes you. I won´t pretend to know what the grief of losing a loved one does to one´s mind, but yours, Sir, is definetely in disarray. Having to witness your suddend changes of mood and your rather obvious excitement over such dangerous events has made me wary of you. I will tell you this as openly as I am able: I am not a means to finish your late wife´s research, nor will I ever be. If your sole intention behind helping and guiding me was indeed to conclude Mrs Fig´s findings or merely to satisfy your own curiosity, I shall never again disclose any information I find to you. I will handle Ranrock and Rookwood on my own. If needed, I am also willing to alter your memory on the matter."

The man before her was absolutely quiet, slumped back into his chair, jaw slack with surprise. There was a subtle shimmer of tears in his eyes, and Genevieve felt her heart clench. Partially still in anger and apprehension, partially in confusion, partially in guilt. Perhaps she had gone too far, had worded her stand on the matter too firmly. She knew that she was in no position to lecture a grieving person, let alone her own mentor, as she herself had never felt the need to go mad with the negative emotion. Sure, her mother had died those six and nearly a half years ago, but all she and her brothers and father had felt was contempt towards such a horrible person. Noone had truly mourned her.

Expecting Fig to leap over the table to strangle her, the girl took three steps back and readied her defensive magic. At the same time, she felt her father´s Silencing Enchantement on the tip of her tongue. But instead of throwing himself at her, the professor took a shaky breath, leaned forward and buried his face in his hands. When he reemerged, the subtle shimmer had become an explicit one, the smile on his lips sad, regretful and pained. "I must apologise to you, it seems. Ever since Miriam´s death, I- I haven´t been able to think coherently. You´re right, and I´m deeply and truly sorry. I never intended to make you feel so about my behaviour." The sincerity in his tone made the Hufflepuff´s stomach churn painfully. The girl swallowed hard and said quietly: "As I said, I have not felt the grief of losing someone dear myself. I have never lost someone close to me." The old wizard looked at her in astonishment. "You have never lost anyone?" Genevieve nervously tugged at the fabric of the chair in front of her, the perfect posture dissolved. "Of course I have. However, it was never someone I would consider a loved one." Before the man could ask further, she steered the conversation back to her discoveries.

"I simply wanted to address my concerns and conditions regarding the Ancient Magic before we head to the Map Chamber." Her mentor breathed a sigh of relief and rose from his seat when she added:"I´m afraid, however, that I cannot disclose information about the Ministry ambassador or the letter. I have been given direct insructions. Apologies, Professor Fig." He smiled at her. "Very well, and thank you for your honesty. I will do my very best to improve my behaviour on the matter. However, I also hope you will keep your determination to expel even me for obsessive acts, Miss North." She smiled back and nodded. "You can count on it, Professor." With a sweeping motion of her arm, she gestured towards the door. "Shall we?"

 

"Astonishing. To think this was beneath Hogwarts all this time!" Genevieve smiled at her mentor´s words. It was indeed astonishing. In the way the architecture of the room seemed both ancient and futuristic. In the way the portraits loomed over the space. In the way that it had nearly taken her life to get there.

´Your life´, it sneers inside her. ´As if anything could take it from you as long as I am here. Let those spiders try their venom, those Basiliks try their eyes. Let those fools cast the Killing Curse at you, if only for them to tremble with horror at seeing you survive.´

She scoffed at the Phoenix and pushed it further into the back of her mind. Even if she was practically unbeatable, she still didn´t enjoy the sensation of dying and coming back to life. It always left a lingering pain in her heart for days at least. In addition, the endavour had worried Ominis - something she wished to avoid in the future. Her cheeks blushed fiercly at the memory of the walk to her Common Room and the one to the classroom earlier that day - at the memory of the feeling of his hand and arm holding her, of the warmth he had unintentionally given her. Her heart fluttered at the thought of asking him to a walk and to hold her arm again.

While Professor Fig was inspecting the enourmous frames, she pulled the book from her enchanted pocket. The pages had already been reattached, the dark blue ink of the sketches shimmering subtly in the blue light. The artful handwriting was nearly impossible to decipher, several words in an English so old Genevieve doubted anyone still knew and spoke. Carefully, she laid the book on the pedestal. The moment she retreated her hands, the pages were illuminated in a pale blue light. The light quickly flowed from the book, moving like waves toward the circular ground. The Hufflepuff hurried down the steps, watching in awe as the floor turned into a map. Beside her, Professor Fig smiled sadly. "If only you were here to see this", he mumbled, his gaze resting on the depiction of Hogwarts.

"I see you have returned, Miss North. And you have brought someone with you", the voice of Percival Rackham boomed. The man was standing in his frame, looking as snobby and pompous as the first time she had talked to him. "Professor Rackham, this is my mentor, the honourable Professor Eleazar Fig", she replied. "How do you do", said her mentor, bowing to the painted figure. The tension in the air was very much palpable as Rackham narrowed his eyes at Genevieve. "I would very much like to continue our discussion from last time, Miss North." The girl straightened and exhaled sharply. "As I have already told you, Professor, I will not interfere with the way you wish to reveal the information about Ancient Magic to me. I will, however, preserve my right to doubt and research whatever you decide to disclose to me. In addition, I will look for help should I dtermine a task to be too dangerous for me alone to complete. And as I have said last time: You, Sir, are not the one who needs to complete these trials, so I do not see you in a position to evaluate my performance."

The following silence was both awkward and tense. Rackham´s face - hadn´t it been made of magical paint, it would have surely also changed color - was drawn into a tight and unsightly scowl. Professor Fig was inspecting the tips of his shoes like there was something truly fascinating about them, while Genevieve was challenging the painted man with an equally poisonous glare. After a long staring contest, Percival Rackham cleared his throat and said: "Very well then, let´s discuss the details of the first of four trials you will have to complete."

 

A few hours later, Genevieve threw herself onto one of the barrels in the Undercroft. The last classes of the day would be ending in a few minutes, and she couldn´t wait to tell the boys about her day. The Room of Requirement, that Professor Weasley and Deek the house-elf had shown her right after her - well - talk with Rackham, was something she would rather keep to herself for a little while longer - or share it with Ominis only. When she heard footsteps approaching the entrance, she jumped off the barrel, patting dust from her robe and pulling at her yellow hair ribbon. The sound of whispered arguing wiped the giddy grin off her face, an uneasy feeling spreading in her body. Whatever her friends were in disagreement about, it seemed to be more than something trivial.

Just as the gate opened, her lungs consricted and the world blurred.

Notes:

I will be completely honest with you: I don´t know how to feel about Fig. I mean, I do like him as a character, but there were moments in the game where I thought:" wow, you´re just letting your student, someone who was sort of entrusted to you, do all that crazy and dngerous stuff on their own? and you´re like ´yes´ and ´amen´ to all the decisions the keepers make? okay, mate, you do you." I really didn´t like the Keepers (especially Rackham and Bakar), as will become apparent in future chapters

I hope you enjoyed it, leave a comment if you did, have any theories for the future events or questions or if you find any spelling mistakes

See you next time, bye :D

P.S.: on a side note and totally random: if you´re ever in Munich (Germany), I advise you not to rely on the trains there if you don´t want to develope anger issues. Like for real, it´s unbelievable how brash the train conducters are sometimes (oh and also daily delays up to 25 minutes like wtf)

Chapter 10: The twin´s desperation

Notes:

I
Am
Back!!

So sorry, was on a holiday getaway with my family (the last I´ll be able to go to before starting my new job), so I really didn’t have time to type this here chapter. It´s been done for a while😅
Sadly, chapter 11 is still in its diapers, and I want to really take the time to make it satisfactory, as it will be part 1 of the Scriptorium

Okay anyway enough of my blabbering, please enjoy

Warnings: None? I don’t really think anything in this chapter is worth warning about since it´s simply the storylines

When Genevieve slowly opened her eyes, she was met with the concerned frowns of both Ominis and Sebastian. She huffed a laugh and rubbed her forehead. "What excitement", she giggled, slowly sitting up. Sebastian´s eyebrows drew up in amusement, while Ominis´ scowl deepened. "Are you alright?", the freckled boy asked. "Quite alright, really. I just fear I used up all my energy in an argument earlier", she replied, still giggling."Are you, truly?", Ominis asked. Genevieve gently laid her hand on his arm. "Really, I am." As the two boys helped her stand, the Scot asked: "What sort of argument causes someone to faint?" "The ancient kind." Ominis´ eyes widened. "Have you been able to talk to one of the constructors of these ridiculous trials?" "Sort of, though not really. He was not very keen to talk without the book. Perhaps we should sit down - it is quite the tale."

 

Sebastian was absolutely fascinated by both Ominis´ and Genevieve´s retelling of the events. Even though he was still very angry and hurt that his friends had experienced so much fun - in contrary to Ominis, he considered visiting Azkaban as a truly fun trip - without him, the stories more than made it up to him. Azkaban itself was already an amazing place, and it was even more grand with its Dementors. Again, contrary to Ominis, Sebastian found the creatures astounding and wonderful. Richard Jackdaw´s ghost, the sheer endless fights against arachnids and finally the Pensive Guards were the whipped cream of his excitement. The cherry on top was the fact Genevieve had literally walked underwater, protected by the ancient power. The Scot was impressed the Huffelpuff hadn’t gotten herself killed, using so much of her magic.

When she began talking about Percival Rackham and the possibility of further trials to strengthen her Ancient Magic, Sebastian could barely hold himself together. It was becoming clearer and clearer that Genevieve was the key to curing his twin´s curse. Sure, he did consider the girl a true friend - in some way even a sister perhaps - by now, but his plans to use her Ancient Magic to cure Anne had not changed. He could never fully be the Hufflepuff´s friend, for he would stop at nothing to save Anne. He supposed he should introduce the two girls to one another, to make the stakes personal, to make her want to help his twin on her own will.

After her tale had ended with reaching the Undercroft and the collapsing, the brunette jumped to his feet and said cheerfully: "Well, dear Eve, I must applaud you for your sense of adventure and your incredible fighting skills. They are greater than even my own!" Perhaps he was over doing it - and judging by Ominis´ disapproving glare he was overly obvious about his true intentions - but her shy smile told him she was flattered. He couldn’t hold his charm back now. Not now, for Anne´s sake. "I have a proposal for you, should you want to have an excursion without the constant threat of ambushes and death in you neck." Her eyes gleamed at him with interest. "I was planning on visiting Anne this Sunday, and I was wondering if you would like to accompany me. So that I can finally introduce you to each other. I´m sure it would lift her spirits." Genevieve smiled brightly at him. "I would be delighted!"

 

Never before had Ominis wished for sight - even if only for being able to punch Sebastian in the face and not miss - as he did now. He had instantly understood the Scot´s intentions to try to use Genevieve to heal Anne. The boy´s ignorance to his sister´s own wishes was unbelievable. He wanted to tell the Hufflepuff, maybe even caution her against involving herself further in the Sallow boy´s mess, but she had sounded so utterly excited to be able to meet the other girl. And so, Ominis could only hope that Sebastian wouldn’t hurt or even break her in his pursuit for a cure.

For the rest of the week, he hadn’t heard much from Genevieve herself. She had only attended a few classes, and had otherwise been impossible to find. Meanwhile, Sebastian had stuck to his side like an annoying leach. His best friend was relentless in pestering him about the Scriptorium. Their arguments got tiring quickly, both holding on to the very same arguments - while Sebastian insisted the Unforgivables should be something teachers actively taught to students at least in theory, Ominis was steadfast in his refusal to have anything to do with Dark Magic.

The blind boy reached the peak of his irritation on Friday evening when the Scotsman intercepted him on the stairs to the Great Hall balcony. After they had spent a while throwing around the same old opinions, Ominis ended the conversation with the words: "I can’t agree, and I´ll not say a word more. I´m sorry." He gripped his wand and stormed away. When he passed the hour glasses, his heart picked up Genevieve´s presence following him. He slowed his pace to a halt and tilted his head in anticipation in her direction. If she had any feelings about him waiting for her, she didn’t say it. She didn’t say anything at all, just grabbed him by his elbow and pulled him along. They walked for quite a while in silence, and the Slytherin relished in it. Only when a strange rumbling reached his ears did he snap back to attention. Still silent and unresponsive to his questioning hmmm?, Genevieve walked straight ahead and took his arm - and thus, him, as well - with her.

His wand showed him a room. A large room he didn’t recognise. Well, the word large didn’t really fit the place, rather enormous. The air was clean and filled with the sound of flying books that were probably rearranging themselves. Several stairs and a hallway led to Merlin knows where. A giant and ornate construction with three sets of double-doors stood right across from them along with what seemed to be a puzzling number of eight bookshelves. Another building of sorts stood tall to his right. Faint noises, almost like little snorts and snoring could be heard inside.

Before his wand could let him examine the ceiling, Genevieve asked gently: "Are you alright?" His thoughts instantly returned to his argument with Sebastian, and he felt his face wrinkle into a frown. He didn’t want to let his anger and frustration directed solely at Sebastian sour her excitement about the prospect of meeting Anne. On the other hand, she, more than anyone, deserved an honest warning. "Quite honestly, not really. I had a major disagreement with Sebastian, and I have been at odds with him all week. Before that, I was already as well, but since our last talk in the Undercroft… I am very displeased with him, to say it nicely." Genevieve hummed, clearly unsatisfied with his answer, but blissfully hesitant to prod further. After another moment of quiet, she asked: "Would you like some tea and cake?" "I´d like that very much, thank you for offering", he replied. His wand notified him of her sweeping motion with her hand. "Well, if you´d please follow me then."

 

The room she guided him to was inside the construction in the middle, on the right side, just behind the double-doors. It smelled pleasantly of lavender and vanilla and was comfortably warm. As Ominis sat down at the circular table, Genevieve asked: "What type of tea blend might you be interested today? We have the Classics as well as a few more exotic ones." He smiled brightly at her mock formal tone - her royal upbringing shining through. "Oh, I would very much like to hear a few options, both classic and exotic." She audibly cleared her throat. "We have Earl Grey, Lemony Earl Grey, Green Tea, Mango Pinapple Green Tea, Jasmine Tea, Black Pepper and Cinnamon Vanilla." He contemplated the options. "What exactly is Black Pepper?" "It is a Black Tea with black pepper, licorice root and ginger. A bit spicier, but very good for one´s health." "Sounds exciting. But I think I will go with Cinnamon Vanilla." He heard her rummage through a cupboard. "A very good… erm… choice. Choice. It goes absolutely well with the cake I have prepared." She set the table as the water started to boil.

"Might I ask what place we are in?" "Sure, you may. This is the Room of Requirement. Professor Weasley showed it to me at the beginning of the week", Genevieve chuckled as she poured the tea. "As the name suggests, it morphs into anything its user requires. And I required a place similar to my home back in Munich. Including the additional levels." "Astounding", Ominis remarked with genuine awe, taking a sip from his tea. "Mmmh, the tea is delicious!" "I am happy you like it. Would you like a slice of cake with that?" The boy couldn’t help but smile at the distinct domestic feeling of the situation. The cake had an unfamiliar, but still undeniably delicious taste. It reminded Ominis of the Yule Season due to the bitter chocolate. The slice was soft and slightly spongey. He swallowed and sung: "This is truly delicious. Perhaps, you could tell me of your week while this cake has me in such high spirits?" "Well, that might not be such a bad idea", Genevieve chuckled. "But don’t expect me to describe it all in much detail - my reason for bringing you here in the first place was to inquire about your current dispute with Sebastian." Before the boy could reply, she continued.

"You already know what happened on Tuesday. Well, almost. It was on Tuesday after meeting Professor Rackham that Professor Weasley showed me this place. Aside from Monday, it was probably the calmest day of the week. On Wednesday, Poppy Sweeting and I destroyed an illegal Dragon Battle Ring and freed the dragons, then we returned a previously stolen dragon egg to its mother. Thankfully, I managed to do that without revealing my Phoenix form to Poppy or getting both of us burned alive. Yesterday, Poppy, Natsai Onai and I infiltrated Falbarton Castle to free a large number of Magical Beasts - including two Hippogriff friends of Poppy - and collect solid proof to have Mr Harlow imprisoned for life. I then had a rather severe disagreement with Natsai about - in her words - ´my choice of acquaintances´. It got rather heated and I must admit that I am not willing to apologise any time soon."

The blind boy felt his stomach sink dramatically. He had a bad feeling he was the main reason for their argument. But Genevieve spoke again, voice still and strangely calm as she said: "And, this morning, I met with the Ministry ambassador I had announced to Professor Black." Ominis paused his motion of bringing the tea cup to his lips. "He really exists? I thought you made him up." The Hufflepuff giggled. "Well, my uncle is a Ministry ambassador. Of the German Ministry, but that is a detail Professor Black doesn’t need to know or care about." Suddenly, her demeanour lost most of its mirth and liveliness. She cleared her throat quite audibly and tapped her fingers on the desk. "He came to inform me that my twin brother has gone missing. My uncle has returned to Germany to aid the others with the search." "I´m… sorry to hear that." "Uncle suspects that Heinrich might be trying to find me. I hope they find him first."

Ominis shifted in his seat, the air now thick around him with tension. His heart ached for the girl, and even though he didn’t want to drag her into his mess with the Scot, in the spirit of distracting her, he said: "It seems as though Sebastian wishes to break my head with the headaches he so willingly provides me with." When she said nothing, he added: "My disagreement with Sebastian. His sole focus these days is getting me to disclose the location of Salazar Slytherin´s Scriptorium, a hidden place inside of Hogwarts. He believes this room full of darkness and Dark Magic might hold a cure for Anne." "Meaning he won’t stop insisting until either you break or give up arguing with him and tell him. Or worse, he finds the place himself." "Exactly. In addition, he plans to use your good-hearted nature to try to utilise your Ancient Magic. Either to help find a cure or to act as one. I do not want to paint him in such a bad way, but at one point, he might even start to disregard your life, and I… I don’t want that to happen."

After a moment, Genevieve sighed deeply. "I already suspected that." He could practically hear the sad smile in her voice. "I had hoped to be mistaken, but…" "I am I said anything, I didn’t mean to upset you", he hurried to say, "I truly only wanted to warn you before your visit to Feldcroft. I thought, you deserved to know." "Thank you, Ominis, truly", replied her voice, and he felt her gently squeeze his forearm. "In truth, you haven’t soured my mood. Not really. My brothers said it is nearly impossible to accomplish. I am still looking forward to meeting Anne." His heart fluttered with relief and so, so much more as he smiled at her. "You are going to love her."

 

The walk to Feldcroft was very unpleasant. The nature around Genevieve looked dead and bare, the air was unpleasantly dry. It was unusually warm for a rapidly advancing autumn. Genevieve´s pale orange visiting dress with matching hat and gloves blended in perfectly with her surroundings. Several small strands of hair that had escaped her usual braid stuck to the back of her neck. When she reached the edge of the hamlet, she could see Sebastian standing on a wooden lookout post. His gaze was drifting over the dead land towards th mountain and the castle in the distance. He didn’t turn around, keeping his eyes on the dried out grass as she stood beside him. "You made it", he said, his voice raspy. Tilting her head, Genevieve asked: "Enjoying the view?" Sebastian shook his head, finally facing her. "Keeping an eye on things. Feldcroft isn’t what it used to be. No one has felt safe here since Ranrock´s Loyalists took a peculiar interest in that castle over there - Rookwood Castle." The giant building the brunette had motioned to and had watched earlier was looming intimidatingly over the valley. Sebastian continued talking, balling his hands to fists in anger. "My uncle Solomon is a former Auror and refuses to look into it, even after Anne was cursed by one of them."

Unbeknownst to Sebastian, Genevieve´s eyes tripled in size at the Scot mentioning his uncle´s name. Solomon Sallow.

It had been almost two years since she had last heard that name. Her mind was immediately flooded with memories of the bulky and headstrong man: him informing her father of her being conscious the firs time they met, his rigid demeanour when talking to her and Heinrich about safety measures. His rare, gentle smile when he taught her to ride. The curious bauble he had gifted her for her first Christmas with her family. His tales of his nephew and niece back in Scotland, his voice always soft and fond at every mention of the two. His pride at his nephew for becoming so much like Solomon´s brother. His excitement when the two both were sorted into his old house. His lesson on Braille when he had told them of a visually impaired guest at his home. Solomon Sallow, her father´s most trusted personal guard, relieved of his duties because of his niece’s mysterious illness.

"Possibly with a wand, no less", sneered Sebastian, shaking Genevieve from her spiralling thoughts quite violently. She could only stare at him in shock. Before her stood that nephew, that person her earliest mentor after her mother´s death had been so unbelievably proud of. Seemingly not catching on to her distress, the boy in front of her added: "That´s why I´m on the hunt for answers. If I´m to cure her, I need to understand what happened to her." He smiled weakly at her, his sad eyes mirroring Heinrich´s when he had witnessed her first bout from the Blood Curse. It was too much, it was all too much for her heart to bear. "Anne was always the most mischievous of the three of us. Which is saying something knowing me and Ominis. I´m hoping a surprise visit from me and a new friend from Hogwarts will help lift her spirits. Bring back the Anne I used to know." The Hufflepuff shivered, suddenly terribly cold under the blazing sun. Her blind friend´s words rang in her head. His warning. "Come on, I´ll take you to my uncle´s", said Sebastian, gesturing to the steps downwards. The girl only nodded.

 

The Sallow´s house was very pretty. It was small and had a homey feel. Nature was slowly reclaiming the place and stone it occupied back for itself. In comparison to the rest of the building, the entrance door looked surprisingly well maintained and new. It led into a room with a kitchenette and a crooked, round wooden table. A young woman was sat at it, her back bent over the furniture. Her brown hair was pinned up into an elegant bun. Sebastian crept up behind the woman and pressed his two index fingers into her sides.

The woman turned around with a start and called out: "Sebastian! Where did you-" Genevieve stayed at the door as the boy pulled a purple plant from his pocket and showed it to his the young woman. "Is that what I think it is?", she asked. Just as Sebastian started to nod and reply, a large hand grabbed the plant from his palm. Genevieve pulled her hat further into her face as Solomon Sallow growled: "We´ve been over this, boy. Shrivelfigs cannot reverse a curse. Nothing can." The young woman, who Genevieve had by now indentified as Anne Sallow, lowered her head in defeat and disappointment as her uncle disintegrated the Shrivelfig. "The sooner you accept that reality the better."

Sebastian went to argue with his uncle, who immediately shifted into a defensive stance. The both still glared at one another when Anne suddenly collapsed with a scream. While Solomon rushed to help Anne back to the table, Sebastian moved backwards to the door. His eyes were wide with fear and worry, his face pale as he rushed past Genevieve and slammed the door shut behind himself. "Sebastian!", called Solomon, ignoring the Hufflepuff and his niece to storm after his nephew. Genevieve, meanwhile, cautiously approached the girl at the table. Anne looked up at her, startled, before a shy smile lit up the Scottish girl´s face. She straightened as best as she could and gestured for the student to sit down. "You must be Miss North. My brother has written about you often these past days." "Please, Anne, call me Eve. All my friends do." Anne´s smile widened and her eyes shone with joy. "I am very happy to meet you You really are as beautiful as my brother described. The dress is wonderful, as well." Genevieve stroked the orange fabric. "Thank you very much. I wanted to make a respectable first impression."

The other girl giggled. "Then you have succeeded. My apologies for my uncle not being appreciative of your appearance, but he really is clueless with these things. Oh honestly, I feel even more sorry for Ominis now. Such a beautiful treasure right under his nose, yet he cannot see it for himself." The Hufflepuff student blushed and bowed her head. "So this opinion of our apparently shared affection has reached you from the halls of Hogwarts. Seems even Sebastian is suggesting a mutual attraction." Anne tilted her head. "Is this an uncomfortable or delicate topic for you?" Genevieve shook her head and tucked at her hat. "Just a topic of interest for people who think Ominis a demon or Dark Wizard." Anne looked at her with sympathy. Then, she reached for Genevieve´s hands, an action that had the Hufflepuff smile brightly at the Slytherin girl.

After a while, Genevieve cleared her throat and asked: "I take it from your earlier reaction that you share your uncle´s opinion on the finality of your curse?" Anne nodded and threw a sad glance out the window. "Sebastian doesn’t want it to be true, but I can feel that this curse will be my end." A single tear ran down her cheek as she begged: "Please, keep an eye on him. I´m afraid I´ll lose him in his search for a cure." Genevieve squeezed Anne´s hands gently, reaching up to catch the tear at the girl´s jaw line. "I will try my very best."

Notes:

Sooooooo that was something
Before anyone has questions, yes, I AM putting a lot of the characters in my OC´s backstory, but it´s those characters that I really wanted to flesh out more as the story continues and then it just made sense to have them in the past with Genevieve
Also, yes, Genevieve faints a lot (a trope I learned can be annoying), but she has an actual medical condition, so I think it fits quite good.
Like I said in the upper comment section, chapter 11 is going to take some more time, and it is definitely going to be one of the longest chapters

Until next time, leave a comment with your thoughts, tipps, recommendations or critique if you´d like, I would very much like to read some comments of yours.👋😊

Chapter 11: Down the Serpent´s Hatch

Notes:

We are finally here! This quest was what started it all, and I would have loved for it to play a much bigger role in the game

I hope you enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it

Warnings: Inferi, blood and injury, people losing control, death of a NPC, old views on female and male appearances and differentiation, possibly some English words and expressions that I wrote completely wrong, slight changes to the here presented quest with the snaky boys because it was late at night and my brain didn´t want to have to imagine the quest as it was in the game

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that any adult with a working mind and sense of righteuosness, must one day no longer be able to tolerate the disrespect one Sebastian Sallow pays his surrounding. At least, this was Solomon Sallow´s opinion. Who could blame him, he thought as he ripped some weed from his garden. The boy had gone positively mad over his sister´s curse. The new friend he had brought for a visitought to have been Solomon´s chance to organise a sort of supervisor for his nephew. The visitor, however, whoever it was, had escaped the conversation with him. Anne had called her ´Eve North´. It had taken him an entire minute to calm his heart and convince himself that the similarity of the name to another was purely coincidential.

The person he had thought similar in name, Lady Genevieve Nord, could in no way be in Scotland - or a student at Hogwarts for that matter. She had long sice completed her magical education, and with her impending debut into society in spring the next year, she would be a fully accepted member of the Wizarding World. Until then, she would be too busy with preparations to eve think of leaving Munich. He didn´t believe the rumors of her death, hadn´t done so for even a second. Dinah hadn´t been so sure of the Lady´s survival, and had appeared in Feldcroft that very night. She had had to swallow five portions of pudding before Solomon could convince her not to believe such unrelieable sources and instad put her trust in Lady Genevieve and her family. Though, if they ever met the Lady again, Dinah would most certainly deny ever having such doubts in front of Genevieve.

The man´s heart clenched unpleasantly. He wondered, what Genevieve, Heinrich and their father would think of him if they saw what had become of him: a former personal guard of the richest most influential family in existence, private instructor to the twins for riding, duelling with magic and fencing. Now, he was a gardener, cook and nurse, keeping his niece alive as well as he could and trying - and failing - to raise his nephew into a sensible man. He was more than unsure if he could be considered a good guardian. He had managed never to physically harm either of them, but he had his bad and his horrible days. Shouting at Sebastian was nothing unusual anymore - something he wasn´t at all proud at. Poor Ominis probably had ringing ears already hours before he came to stay for the summer.

The Gaunt boy was a truly peculiar case in Solomon´s opinion. How a person with such a good-hearted nature and such talent for good deeds could loathe themselves so severely was beyond the adult´s understanding. Before his inner eye, Solomon lined them up next to each other: Ominis - brooding, quiet, stronger than anyone could imagine - Gaunt, Sebastian - mischevious, unruly, strong, thick-headed and admttedly extremely intelligent - and Anne - resilient, realistic in mind, kind and open in heart - Sallow, Lady Genevieve - regal, powerful, just and, on occasion, gluttonous - and Heinrich - loyal to a fault, free-spirited, animal-obsessed and sharp-witted. Five children, all as different to each other as each snowflake in winter. Five children, who demanded even Solomon´s last nerve.

 

Hogsmeade looked horribly grey under the late September sky. The men and women rushed past Genevieve, their hats pulled deep into their faces and the collars of their coats were drawn up. Her dark green robe and hat blended in perfectly with the crowd of people pushing through the narrow alleyways, her braid tucked under the fabric. It had been two and a half weeks since her and Sebastian´s visit to Feldcroft. Since fighting and - on Sebastian´s part - slaying those goblins, since looking through Isidora Morganach´s cellar. Since travelling to the Undercroft through the portal and finding the tryptich.

She had been clear on how things would move forward from then on. After a thourough discussion with Sebastian and Ominis, they had agreed to go to the Scriptorium together on the evening of the 31st October. It had taken some convincing - both on Sebastian´s and Ominis´ side. The Scot had not been pleased that their venture to the place would be so late in October, and Ominis had hated the mere thought of going near it at all. But if they didn´t go there together, Sebastian would eventually venture on this path by himself. He would possibly die or disappear forever.

Stepping into The Three Broomsticks, Genevieve nodded to the witch behind the counter in greeting and moved upthe stairs. Sirona had arranged a meeting for her with the goblin Lodgok in her private room, where no one would disturb them. Genevieve hoped that the conversation would not only revolve around the goblin having met someone similar-looking to her, but perhaps also about finding a way for working together to stop Ranrock. Entering the room, her eyes were drawn to the figure sitting in front of the fireplace. Genevieve cleared her throat and closed the door as the figure´s head turned.

"I presume you´re Lodgok, Miss Ryan´s good and trusted friend?" The goblin gave her a sharp-toothed smile, his eyes sparkling with more than just the fire´s reflection. "I am. And you are Miss Genevieve." His grin got even wider. "You truly look familiar. I hope I do not offend you with this observation." The girl shook her head. "I am not offended in the slightest." Lodgok got up from his seat and bowed in greeting. While Genevieve fell into her own curtsy, she observed his appearance. He was wearing a white shirt and a grey garb typically worn by metal crafters. His flock of hair was silver and slicked back. Straightening her posture, the Hufflepuff brushed some nonexisting dust off her shoulder.

"I suppose you´re not simply here to let me confirm my suspicion, but also to ask me to aide you go against Ranrock", the goblin said. She nodded, her heart thumping in her chest. She hoped he would help indded, for only he - as a goblin - could get her a grand advantage over the fiend. Lodgok pulled at his sleeve. "There might in fact be a way for me to help you. Ranrock has been looking for an artifact stolen by a witch eons ago. It´s called the Helmet of Urtkot." "Let me guess, this witch stored  it in a tomb charmed to ward off anyone that isn´t a ´wand-carrier´." Lodgok nodded appraisingly. "That is indeed the case." Genevieve huffed out a breath and squared her shoulders. "If you could show me the way, I would be willing to depart right this moment."

 

She had been foolish. Oh, so foolish. It should have been clear to her that a witch without honor would choose Inferi to guard her tomb. The hole in the ground had been an additional challenge. Torn skin and ripped cloak were nothing to fret about, but her phoenix was gaining strengh with each undead she incinerated. There seemed to be an endless number of the cursed beings. Their screams alone could end a life, their claws and teeth not one bit less fatal. Just as she had destroyed a wave of them, another tear in her cheek alerted her to a new attack. She was losing blood at an alarming speed, and had anyone else been there with her, they would have figured out that she wasn´t normal. No normal person could lose so much blood in such short time and still be alive and well on their feet. The creatures slammed their teeth into her shoulders, their claws burying into her chest and stomach. Her phoenix constantly sent out waves of healing magic to shield her from certain death. As she let her flames devour the creatures, Genevieve noticed a wizard lying in front of an altar made of stone. His wand was in his hand, and there were no visible wounds. The Inferi seemed to steer clear of him, meaning that there was no life left they could carve out in him. There was no helmet down there to retrieve anymore. Someone had already and very recently taken it.

With one final wave of fire, the witch´s feet left the ground as she shot out of the tomb. There was only time to quickly explain the situation to Lodgok before she threw herself into a battle with Ashwinder ruffians and Ranrock´s Loyalists for the helmet. It was difficult for her to stay focused, her concentration nearly failing her. But instead of blood loss, it was her phoenix trying to take over that distracted and numbed her. Her mind only cleared when a blow to her back sent her face into the damp ground. The wizard - the last one standng and nearly at his end as well - chuckled darkly as blood ran from her nose over her lips. With one twist of her arm, Genevieve freed the wooden stick hidden in her frazzled braid. It turned into a staff with an owl at its top, and with another fluid motion, the girl entrapped the man in vines. The plants restricted his movements and airway, his wand caught in his hand but unable to cast anything.

Leaving naivety and childish ideals behind, the vines snapped the man´s neck at her command. He fell to the ground, and Genevieve fell to her knees, her heart drowning in the guilt. She stayed there for what felt like hours, until a hand on her shoulder shook her out of her stupor. Tilting her head, she met Lodgok´s worried gaze. He didn´t say anything, just squeezed her shoulder gently. In his other hand, he was holding a helmet. Although this was really not the right moment, Genevieve couldn´t stop herself from taking in the artifact and its details: it was decorated with golden lines and two circular red gem stones that attached the visor to the skull. The helmet was covered with a Celtic-looking pattern that showed braids and crosses. Her eyes went back to the goblin. He had at one point stopped looking at her and was instead assessing the camp they were in.

The remaining goblins and wizards were heavily hurt but alive - at least unless they would receive no medical help within the next hour. The man in the mud was the first she had killed while being fully concious. Her staff lay next to her, still faintly humming with magic. She picked it up, shrunk it and put it back into her braid. She let out an exhausted breath and mumbled: "We have to get them help." Lodgok turned to her, visibly surprised. She balled her hands into fists and added: "They won´t survive without medical treatment."

 

After treating the wounded, tying them up and sending them to the Ministry with a note, Genevieve and Lodgok sat down on the remains of the camp. Her own scratches and scrapes had already been healed by the Phoenix Magic and her clothes had been magically cleaned, her frazzled mind, however, would need some more time to fully mend. Several minutes of silence passed, in which the goblin beside her polished the artifact, before he seized the motion to talk to her. "I never did tell you why I thought to have met you before, did I?" Genevieve slowly shook her head. He indeed hadn´t. "I was traveling through the southern regions of Germany and France, when I met a young gentleman. In appearance, he was almost exactly your reflection - taking into consideration the obvious differences in gender. In spirit, he was far less composed and controlled than you. Not in an unpleasant way, really. He just seemed to show his emotions more openly." A smile started to slowly spread on the girl´s face. "Did he give you his name?" "Indeed. It is difficult for me to pronounce it since the name is German..." "If I may guess, was the name´Heinrich Nord´?"

She was sure the goblin´s jaw would hit the floor. "How do you know that?" Tears gathered in her eyes as her smile widened. "He is my twin brother." Genevieve tilted her head upwards and pressed her hand to her stomach. "Would you believe how small the world is?", she said to herself. Next to her, Lodgok joined her in gazing into the grey sky. "It is, isn´t it?" After some time of both of them just staring into the air, Genevieve cleared her throat. "I should probably return to the school." The goblin hummed and scratched his chin. "Perhaps you should. I will do my best to get into Ranrock´s ranks and send you a message as soon as I have news." They said their goodbyes and parted ways.

 

It had taken no more than five minutes of being back at Hogwarts for Genevieve to be cornered by someone asking for something. Unlike so many other times, however, it was not a student asking her to retrieve or deliver something, but rather Natsai and Poppy wishing to speak with her. "We won´t tale up much of your time, I promise", Poppy pleaded as Genevieve made to storm away. "We miss you, Genevieve. Exploring outside and saving magical creatures is not the same without you." Behind her, Natsai crossed her arms and scoffed. Poppy threw her a disapproving glare before continuing: "We also wanted to apologise to have dragged you into the venture to Falbarton Castle without previous warning... and, Natsai wanted to apologise about saying such nasty things about your friend. She didn´t mean them."

Natsai scoffed again, accompanied by an eyeroll. Genevieve´s patience was at its end. "Do you, perhaps, have a problem, Natsai?", Genevieve asked sharply. "In fact, I do. I meant every word I said about Gaunt, and I won´t ever take them back. He is just like the rest of the purebloods: snotty, arrogant and full of darkness!" "Does this include Garreth?! Because, for all I know, he is a pureblood as well!", the dark-haired Hufflepuff snapped. "Of course not! He is different!" "Oh, because he is in Gryffindor?!" The phoenix slammed against her barriers, screaming obscene words in German at the Gryffindor witch. It was exaggerating without end, but, at least, it was on her side. "Quite honestly, Natsai, I truly thought you were better than those who try to slander Ominis based purely on things you have heard that concern his family! But, I guess I was wrong! Not only that, but you also seem to have no remorse for almost getting us all, including Highwing and her partner, killed! I was more than alright with helping the both of you go against Ashwinders and poachers because the Ministry doesn´t do enough, but not at the cost of anyone´s life!" She gripped the railing of the staircase. "I will not be part of a suicide crusade, led by someone who is not even half a year older than me! The moment either of you dies on one of your expeditions will be the moment it is too late for you to realise your mistake!" She threw a sad and disappointed look at Poppy. "I´m sorry, Poppy, but I´m afraid I cannot be friends with either of you."

With that, she turned and stomped away. She could hear Poppy calling after her, but she didn´t stop. She wasn´t sure what she would let her phoenix do if she did stop. The corridors blurred as she moved through the castle. Very soon, she stood in the Room of Requirement. The girl just wanted to disappear in her kitchen and use her fury to bake some Baumkuchen. She was so focused on the rage in her veins that she almost missed the slightly opened door to the Niffler den. Almost. The excited squeaks from within stopped her in her tracks and drew her closer. It was clear who was inside, but she needed to make sure that none of the little creatures had gotten out.

The sight presented to her doused the flames of anger in her heart and made her stomach flutter: Ominis, sitting on the floor, surrounded and used as a perch by the entire family of nine Nifflers. The three smallest were on his head, pulling at his blond hair. Two were sitting by his side, eyeing him curiously. The two eldest children were inspecting his blinking wand, and the two parents were curled up in his lap, sleeping peacefully. The boy himself seemed both flustered and unbelievably happy at the same time. His cheeks were an adorable shade of pink and his eyes were sparkling.

He surely had heard her step into the enchanted space, and so, Genevieve didn´t bother to announce herself before declaring: "I don´t think I have ever seen something more beautiful than you ten right here." Ominis smiled brightly in her direction as she carefully sat down beside him. The Niffler mother, who still hadn´t received a name - like the rest of them - immediately abandoned her spot in his lap to climb into the girl´s arms. She chuckled and tickled the creature´s nose. "They seem to like you very much, Ominis", Genevieve remarked, noticing that the baby Nifflers had fallen asleep in his hair. "It seems that way, doesn´t it?", he replied.

The Hufflepuff let out a tired sigh and cradled the Niffler closer to her heart. "Are you alright?" She closed her eyes. "I will be. It has just been a little much today. To be honest, not just today." The boy didn´t say anything else for a while before asking: "Would you tell me a fact about you that you have rarely told anyone before? Just to get your mind off of all the exhausting things?" She hummed, but she didn´t have to think long to find something. "When my father first met me, he had difficulties saying my name. And so, he called me ´Gem´." She smiled fondly at the memory. "He still does, well, did sometimes. I guess it has become a habit of his." "´Gem´, huh?" "Oh, please, don´t start to call me that. I´m not especially fond of the endearment. I don´t hate it, but it is not something I like either." Ominis seemed to hold back a giggle. "But ´Gem´ sounds adorable. And fitting, too."

The Niffler in her arms protested as she shook her head. "You never shortened my name before when I said you could call me ´Eve´. Please, don´t do it now that there is another version to call me." His toothy smile made his eyes shine brightly. "That is because I once read a book called ´The Bible´ by accident and didn´t like the story of Adam and Eve... - and, well, because I find ´Genevieve´to be an absolutely beautiful name." There was a pause in their conversation. "Thank you, Ominis. That was really wonderful of you to say." He closed his eyes, his blush visibly intensifying. "I am simply telling the truth."

 

All Hallows´ Eve arrived, and with it the time to venture into the Scriptorium. The entire day before that evening, Genevieve and Ominis spent the time in the Room of Requirement, preparing potions and emergency food. They didn´t speak all that much with eachother the entire time, and there was a strong tension in the air that kept getting more and more tangible as the hours passed. They both knew that whatever was in this mysterious study, it couldn´t be good or helpful for Anne in any way. Still, they had no real choice but to accompany Sebastian there, or else the Sallow boy would go alone and probably end up dead.

For both lunch and dinner, Genevieve prepared energizing but light meals, so that they had enough power while not getting in danger of losing their stomachs´ contents at the encounter of something nasty. While Ominis left to put on more layers - it was unbearably cold in Hogwatrs´ lower parts and the dungeons - Genevieve fed the magical creatures in her vivariums and the Niffler den and prepared an emergency notification letter, in case the three of them got stuck in the Scriptorium for longer than thirteen hours. Should that happen, the letter would notify her brothers Gunther and Benedikt - who were well known and experienced with breaking out of cursed and closed-off tombs - of her location. It would destroy her family´s plan to keep her safe, but it was a necessary precaution. She left the room thirty minutes before the agreed upon meeting time and made her way to the dungeons. There were no more students out in the halls at this hour, even though curfew was still about two hours away. The Hufflepuff guessed that the others were celebrating the holiday and the following school-free day.

Sebastian and Ominis were already waiting for her as she arrived at the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room. The Scot looked excited, while his best friend seemed paler and stiffer than usual. "There you are, Eve!", Sebastian exclaimed, causing Ominis to flinch. "Here I am indeed. Shall we move, before someone sees us?", she replied. Ominis took the lead, followed closely by the other two. They came to a stop after a short while, in a corridor with three unlit braziers. "These braziers grant access to the Scriptorium", Ominis mumbled. "At last, you´ll share", Sebastian complained. "I´m not thrilled about it, either. Opening the entrance has something to do with threes", was the reply. Genevieve mentally prepared herself for a teasing comment from the Scotsman, and when it did come, she couldn´t  stop her eyes from rolling. "Well - three heads are better than one." Before she could say anything, Ominis quipped: "It´s twoheads are better than one." The witch tuned out their bickering, as to not hurt her brain with their nonsense. With a flick of her wrist, three flames of phoenix fire shot out of her palms and ignited the braziers. A low rumble filled the corridor as the wall behind Ominis moved to the side. It revealed a staircase leading into the dark.

Sebastian was the first to make the descent. Ominis and Genevieve hurried after him, befoer the door slammed closed again. The Hufflepuff and Sallow boy ignited their wands so they wouldn´t trip on their way down. "Dark, ominous corridors. My favourite", Sebastian seemingly couldn´t help but say. "No comment", the blind boy mumbled. "Come on, that was a good one", his best friend insisted. "Perhaps you should keep the jokes to yourself while we´re down here, Sebastian, or I´ll have to ask Ominis to assist in your murder", Genevieve pressed out, reaching the end of the stairs first - and immediately stumbled over some rubble on the ground. Her head would have connected with the wall if not for a conveniently placed crate. As she braced her hands on the stone, a piece of parchment fluttered out of the crate to the ground. The witch crouched down to pick it up. The writing on it was quite elegant. As she hurried through its content, her eyes were drawn to the name of the author: Noctua Gaunt.

"A journal entry. Signed by Noctua Gaunt", she addressed the two boys. Sebastian whipped his head around to her from his spot next to an obviously closed door. "Gaunt? Ominis - your family was here." "I know. She was my aunt." "You knew? And didn´t tell me?" "This is not the ideal moment for this, Sebastian. The entry speaks of challenges ahead, but I suggest we first clear up this rubble and find a way through this door that so rudely prevents us from proceeding", Genevieve snapped. She cast a quick Reparo, and the rubble formed a relief. "A person facing a snake", Sebastian correctly observed, just as a faint hissing reached Genevieve´s ears. Though she was not able to understand or speak Parseltongue, she was in fact able to perceive even the slightest hissing sounds.

"That must be the voice I hear", Ominis said right at that moment. The witch tilted her head. "You hear a voice?", she asked. "It started when you repaired that relief. I hear a whisper saying ´speak to me´." Her eyebrows lifted in surprise and silent admiration. "I take it you are a Parselmouth, then", she said. The blind boy took a deep breath. "I am. Though I despise it. Nearly all direct descendants of Salazar Slytherin are Parselmouths. That is exactly why I hate it, as it ties me to my family by more than just my blood", Ominis lamented. "I find it exciting, to be honest", the Sallow boy quipped. Ignoring him entirely, Genevieve walked over to Ominis and gently placed her hand on his shoulder. "It is true that it is often associated with Dark wizards, but it is, first and foremost, a testiment to your magical nature. Even if you do not find it desireable, I suspect it is our only key to unlock our way forward." "I haven´t spoken it in ages. I hope it will be satisfactory for the door´s mechanism." He took another deep breath and straightened his back It was clear that his doubtshad doubled, and Genevieve felt her own increase dramatically. Even so, there was no way back. Ominis shook out his hands. "It´s ironic. When I left home, I vowed to leave the Dark Arts behind And, yet, here I am. Stand back."

The hissing that left his mouth was unlike anything she had ever heard before. It was a combination of human whispering, the hissing of at least five different snakes and a weird, low hum in the air. Despite its oddity, it did the trick. The door´s embellishments glowed eerily, moving along the material, seconds before it swung open. The air changed immediately, dropping in temperature and improving in quality. At the same time, the unpleasant feeling of darkness intensified, and Genevieve could feel her lungs constrict slightly. She was due for another, more severe bout of numbness. She only hoped she could hold on until they had left this maze - preferably until she was back in the Room of Requirement. As the three of them walked further, the witch noticed a small statue of a snake sitting atop a construction. There were symbols carved into it, which revealed it to be part of a puzzle or riddle. The girl let out a sigh and moved closer to the statue. "Ominis, I´m afraid your ancestor has fallen even further from grace in my opinion, as it seems he was fond of puzzles and riddles", she said. "And, you are not?", Sebastian asked from somewhere around a corner on the other side of the corridor she was standing in.

She turned in his voice´s direction with her most annoyed frown she could muster without calling forth the beast within her. "I despise everything additionally complicatd. That does not apply to people, as I strongly believe humans weren´t meant to be simple." Ominis, who was standing quite close to her, tilted his head in her direction, a faint smile gracing his lips. "That would be terribly boring. A simple Sebastian, oh, the horror." "As your best friend, I will graciously ignore your obvious jest at my expense."

Genevieve chuckled and turned back to the snake, shaking her head. "Let us quickliy solve this puzzle, then. I have a feeling there are more journal entries written by Noctua all over this maze." She moved closer to the snake and gently blew away the dust covering it. "Are there perhaps symbols carved onto a gate close to you, Sebastian?" "Yes, there are. Do you think they mean something?" "We´re going to find out. Could you tell me which symbols you see?" "Sure. The top symbol looks like two mountains, and the bottom one like a bull." The moment Genevieve rotated the tiles, the snake reared its head and started to turn, accompanied by a strange and unnerving ticking sound. It didn´t stop, not even once she aligned the symbols. She stepped back in anticipation - and not a moment too late. The snake, now facin forward again, charged at her, fangs bared, going for her arm. She twirled out of reach and the serpent struck the wall.

"Are you alright?", Ominis asked from right behind her. Sebastian came running from around the corner. "That didn´t sound good." "Because it wasn´t", she breathed, "but I´m fine. I got out of the way just in time." "Seems like it." Turning her gaze back to the snake, Genevieve noticed a strange shimmer moving over the adjacent wall. She pulled out her wand and cast Revelio. The shimmer and stone disappeared to reveal another gate. The witch couldn´t help but groan. "Oh, I hate this."

Notes:

Exactly two years ago, on the 25th July 2023, my characters and stories were born. Exactly two years ago, the wizarding family Nord was created. I can´t believe that time has moved so fast.
Thank you to all of you who has been a part of this journey with me, whether it be since my first fic or since this one. It is you, the readers, who make all of this worth. I can´t thank you enough for the hits and kudos. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Of course, this journey isn´t over just yet. The next chapter is already in work, and I hope I will be faster with this one since my final exams will be over (until September that is) and I will have more time to write. Initially, I wanted to post two chapters today, but work and exams just take priority.
For those who thought the first sentence seemed weird or familiar, I copied the style of the first sentence from Jane Austen´s Pride and Prejudice :)
Anyways, as always, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, you´re free to leave a comment if you did, and I´ll see you all next time!
Bye bye ;)

Chapter 12: An Aunt´s Sacrifice, A Nephew´s Sorrow

Notes:

Hey there! I´m back!
I truly, honestly wanted to post sooner, but we had a visitor from a relative, and after that week I had no energy left to do much anything.
I hope you enjoy this chapter nevertheless :)

Warnings: talk about being sick, feeling sick, unpleasant noises/sounds/sensations, deep talk, hurt with little comfort

Ominis´ heart was thumping with such strengh, the other two were most certainly able to hear ir. It was not simply the fact that Genevieve was standing so close, nor was it solely due to the fact that she could have been hurt by his ancestor´s construction. The reason for his elated heart rate was a different one - far more complicated to explain to Sebastian, far more fatal then a stone snake. Ever since they had stepped into the corridor with the serpent riddle, Genevieve´s magical signature, his favourite buzz, had started to fade. It had begun at the edges of her form and was moving slowly, but steadily, to the spot he suspected her heart at. Her curse. She must be feeling it as well, and yet, remained impossibly calm. Ominis had resolved himself to not leave her side even before they had taken their first steps onto the stair, but now, he was determinded to carve her form out of his body, replace it with her and thus shield her from everything around them. He knew he couldn´t end her curse, but perhaps, he could share this burden with her. He could still feel her phoenix inside her, but, it, as well, was quiet. Also, unusually so.

He moved with her as she approached the newly revealed gate. "A circle and a serpent. Intriguing", she said, and he chuckled at the audible disdain for the riddle. As she made to retry the puzzle, he reached for her arm to pull her back if needed. The ticking sounds set his instincts into a defensive mode, which was only relieved when the gate slid open. "Astonishing", he heard his best friend say. "It wouldn´t have been necessary had we stayed away from here", he grumbled in response. "Oh, come now, Ominis. This is all amazingly exciting, is it not?" "If you fancy getting bit in your private area by a stone snake, you may complete the next and all the other riddles yourself", Genevieve quipped. While Ominis tried and failed to keep in a surprised laugh, Sebastian could only gasp in horror. Whether it was mock or real horror, the blind boy could not tell. "Miss North", the Scot exclaimed, "I never expected a delicate flower such as yourself to be capable of such vulgar speech!" "You may blame my brothers, Mister Sallow, for teaching me how to converse with the foul-minded, such as yourself." "Does this also include Ominis, dear Eve?" "When have you known me to be vulgar, Sebastian?", Ominis growled. "Do you really wish to further discuss this now, or may we move forward?", the Hufflepuff asked before Sebastian could answer him. Instead, the Scot replied with an annoyed huff, but didn´t say anything else. They did, indeed, continue onward, taking turns in solving the puzzles. Through all of them, Ominis didn´t dare to stand more than two paces away from Genevieve. Two more times, she was in danger of getting struck by a stone serpent, but Ominis pulled her to safety both times.

There were some more journal entries scattered about the maze, in which Noctua described both pleasant discoveries and her fears. The boy´s heart ached as he heard about how his aunt had felt unwelcomed - just like he had on so many occasions - and had also gotten hurt by Salazar´s constructions. Just as they approached the final snake, Genevieve´s breathing went audibly shallow. "Perhaps... we could... take a small break? I fear the air in here... is getting to me...", she forced out. As soon as she had said that, Ominis heard someone fall to the ground. He was kneeling beside her immediately, while Sebastian exclaimed: "Oi, are you feeling alright?!" "I will be... in a moment... The air is... just filled with... this pressure... I can´t really describe it...", she replied. The blind boy heard her take several deep breaths. "I think we should continue. The faster we get out of here, the faster I will get better." "Are you sure?", Ominis asked. The phoenix inside of her was trembling furiously with each breath she took, meaning the curse was spreading fastly. "I need to get out of here", she insisted. Even though he wasnot alright with her having to move any more and possibly exhaust herself further, Ominis knew that she most likely wouldn´t get better in the Scriptorium´s cold and damp corridors. The two Slytherins helped the Hufflepuff stand, and Ominis held her upright while Sebastian solved the dial. "If I must, I will carry you out of here", Ominis whispered to the girl. "wouldn´t that be something, though I do not want to burden you, Ominis", she chuckled weakly. "You could never be a burden, Genevieve." "I do not wish to insult you, Ominis, but I do believe it would be a rather tremendous ordeal for you to carry me and navigate with the help of your wand." He frowned deeply. "I am determinded to make it work!" Apparently, they had gotten a lot louder, as Sebastian said: "Oh, I would pay to see that! Ominis carrying Eve like a princess or a bride, with both of you looking like two love-drunken Puffskeins!" While Ominis wanted to throttle his best friend and sew his mouth shut, Genevieve simply retorted: "Please, Sebastian, use such poetic phrases on Garreth, not either of us. I suspect he would appreciate it more than me." He knew his best friend must have been shocked to hear Genevieve say that - the Scot had told him he was sure she hadn´t noticed his obvious attraction - but since Ominis couldn´t hear a complaint or other sort of audible reaction from him, Sebastian must have sent her either a surprised or shocked look.

The dial clicked and the final gate slid open. "Thank Merlin", Ominis murmured and helped Genevieve follow Sebastian into the next corridor. The change in the air was instant - it was far colder, less oppressive, but much more damp. There was an undenieable stench of decay, but it wasn´t strong enough to come from something recently deceased. A rat, or maybe even a snake. The girl in his arms drew a startled breath. The gate slammed shut behind them, startling the blind boy immensely. "The gate! I think we´re locked in. Again", Sebastian grumbled. "Then Salazar Slytherin is not yet finished with us", Ominis replied. Genevieve gently tapped his arm, prompting him to loosen his hold. He heard her move slowly to the other side of the corridor and crouch down. There was a rustle of paper. A few seconds passed in silence, in which Ominis´ wand recorded Sebastian inspecting whatever was blocking their way forward and Genevieve reading. After these seconds, Genevieve stood and declared with a shaking and weak voice: "It´s Noctua´s final entry. Along with her remains." These few words knocked the air from his lung, and he let himself collaps against the stone wall. "This - is where she died. This is where we´ll die." His head was filling with a strange rattling sound.

Through the building fog and numbness in his brain, he could hear Sebastian say: "Ominis, I´m truly sorry about your aunt. But, I know what to do." "Sebastian", the Hufflepuff whispered, barely audible, "no." "Tortured faces on the door and Crucio is etched into the stone. My guess is if we cast the Cruciatus Curse, the door will open." The blind Slytherin felt his blood run cold. Dread clawed at his heart, as a terrible thought took root in his brain - and his friend confirmed it the next moment. "That´s why Noctua died. She had no one to cast the curse on." He bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. He knew what the Scot would say next, could already feel the words laced with betrayal stab his heart. "Ominis has the most experience with this. He should cast it." There they were. His hands balled into fists, the anger making his thoughts blend into an incomprehensible mess. "Over my dead body!", he snapped at his oldest friend. "Which it very well might be if we do not get through this door!", he received back. "It is an Unforgivable Curse and pure torture, Sebastian! I would know! And you know very well that I would choose death any time over casting it ever again!" "If you want to lay yourself to your eternal rest here where your dear aunt died, you may very well do that! But, remember that you are not the only person stuck down here!" Ominis wanted to scream, wanted to grab the Scot by his collar and shake him until he saw reason. He knew that he was not alone down there, he could still hear her laboured breaths as Genevieve leaned onto the wall for support. "There has to be another way!", he tried, though, deep down, he knew better.

"There isn´t", Genevieve whimpered. Ominis heard her take a trembling breath. "I suppose you know how to cast it as well, Sebastian?", she said, moving along the stone. "In theory, yes", the sallow boy pressed out between his teeth. The witch took four audible, deep breaths before saying: "Then cast it on me." Sebastian gasped while Ominis protested: "No! Not in a million years will you take that curse while you´re already feeling poorly!" "It needs to be done, Ominis, and we are running out of time - or rather I am", she said. "Cast it, Sebastian!" "Very well", his friend replied. Ominis tried to reach them and stop this nonsense, but something - likely Genevieve´s magic - held him back. "Sebastian, you will stop this nonsense this instant!", he shouted, struggling against the restraints. The last thing he heard before the screams of his past deafened him, was his former best friend shouting: "Crucio!"

 

The sounds surrounding him were abhorrent. There was screaming of all kind.

That of strangers - men, women, children. Those he didn´t know, and never would - his family had made sure of that. People, who had looked a them wrong or hadn´t shared their opinion. Innocent people, who had been at the wrong place at the wrong time. That one child, screaming, pleading for him to stop. That one child, who had shrieked in the most horrifying way, seconds before his brother Marvolo had ended his suffering for all eternity.

That of people he knew, even if he didn´t care for them as much as for others. Solomon, shouting at his nephew after another round of eight glasses of Firewhiskey. Professor Black, shouting at the halfbloods and muggleborns, because he considered them less than dirt under his shoes.

That of people who were supposed to be family, but had never treated him as such. His mother. That one night, when he had heard his father break her bones with his bare hands when she opposed his opinion. That one and only time.

That of people he truly considered family. Anne, screaming in pain whenever her curse broke loose. Sebastian, screaming in pain when he had broken his arm falling from a tree near Feldcroft.

There was also silence that sometimes cut deeper than the screaming and shouting. His mother, on all the other days, staying silent and listening to him being tortured and humilliated. Noctua, not fighting back for him when his father told her that Ominis wasn´t her son to worry over.

Even more painful was the absence of Genevieve´s screams. There was no scream, no sound from her in his head. As though she, as well, had left him all alone.

But it wasn´t just screams. There were sounds of wood breaking, glass shattering, nails scratching on a chalkboard. There was the cracking of bones, the thumps of kicks to a stomach.

The sounds kept merging, pausing, and starting again. All the while, the tempeature around him and inside his body kept dropping and rising without rhythm or pattern, never in synchronicity, never one part of him the same as another. The parts freezingly cold, he wanted to smash against the stones to get feeling back into them. The parts boiling hot, he wanted to rip off to let the air cool him down.

There was something - or someone - pulling at his arm, perhaps trying to get him to move, but he didn´t budge. He couldn´t. Genevieve was somewhere close to him - she had to be. He wouldn´t move anywhere without her. He could tell there was a voice saying - or shouting - his name, but he couldn´t tell who it was. Then, out of nowhere, came a hand. The slap was so strong, it slammed his head to the side. Still, he couldn´t escape the state he was in. The second slap was harder, silencing the sounds for mere seconds only. The third was finally enough to bring him back from the fog. The present was silent, only slightly cold and humid. Ominis realised he was sitting on the floor, his back against the wall.

"Bloody Baron´s pants, Ominis, there you are!", Sebastian´s voice breathed from right in front of him. "Sebastian?" "Yes, it´s me. Bloody hell, I thought you´d gone full bonkers, you-!" "Where are we?", the blind boy groaned, carefully touching the cheek that stung the most. "Inside the Scriptorium. You have been unresponsive for about an hour!" "An hour?! Felt like a minute and an eternity at the same time..." Then, a thought struck him. "Where is Genevieve? Is she alright?" The Scotsman breathed deeply. "She´s just over there, on a seat. She´s alive, if barely." Ominis flung out his hands, pulling at the fabric they managed to catch. "What happened!? And, second question, where is my wand!?" His friend took a moment before answering: "The curse hit her straight in the chest. She didn´t scream, didn´t make a single sound. She simply collapsed, like a puppet who got its strings cut. You didn´t respond to me shouting at you for help, an so, when the door opened I brought the two of you in here. At firs, I tried toget you to stand up and walk on your own. When you wouldn´t move, I used Levicorpus on both of you. Genevieve had previously transfigured your aunt´s remains into a bracelet she had around her wrist. When I put her on the seat, it fell off. Ominis heard the rustle of clothing, and, then, his wand tapping against his knuckles. "Here is your wand. I put the bracelet around it."

Ominis quickly grabbed the magical stick, which immediately notified him of both Sebastian and Genevieve´s positions.He hadn´t been able to feel her aura until then, he realised. He was on his feet within seconds, rushing to her still form resting on the seat. He quickly put the bracelet into his pocket, and his free hand reached out, feeling for her pulse. It was there, very faint and unsteady. But, nevertheless, there. Ominis released a breath he hadn´t known he had held. Genevieve was alive. That was all that mattered to him at that moment. He knew, of course, that she couldn´t truly die - just yet, anyways - but it wasn´t entirely impoosible for her to be dead temporarily.

"Have you already searched the Scriptorium for what you came here for?", he asked the Scot without turning around. "Not really", the other boy replied. "Then do that now. I will take her out of here", Ominis declared, gathering the witch in his arms like he had promised her. "Very well. I´ll see you... soon, I guess", Sebastian said - dejected, tired or relieved, Ominis couldn´t tell. Even with the girl in his arms, Ominis quickly found the exiting mechanism, and found himself back in front of the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room. The castle was very quiet, meaning that it had to be some time deep in the night. There was only one place in his mind he knew to be safe and perfectly comfortable for Genevieve, and so, he moved to bring the long walk behind himself.

 

When Ominis roused from his sleep hours - or perhaps days, he had lost all sense of time - later, the first thing he noticed was the absence of Genevieve´s hand in his. He clearly remembered holding it before falling asleep. The second thing he noticed was that he was lying down - the soft texture of the base was the third thing. As he felt for his wand and simultaniouslytried to get up, his feet got tangled in the blanket - something he had failed to notice - causing him to fall to the floor face first. A door flew open, and his favourite voice said: "Ominis? Are you alright?" With a groan, Ominis started to push himself up, but only succeeded when Genevieve helped him. Immediately, when he was sitting upright, his arms reached out to pull her into a tight and desperate hug. Though initially surprised, the girl soon returned the embrace. "I seem to have frightened you quite a bit. For that, I´m sorry", she whispered after a while. He slowly shook his head and tightened his hold on her. One of her hands left his back to gently stroke his head, and Ominis had to bite his tongue to keep himself from crying. "Are you feeling alright?", he managed to ask. "Yes, I am feeling quite well. My curse reached its peak the exact moment the Cruciatus Curse struck me. I´m honestly very surprised that I didn´t feel anything at all." Ominis couldn´t help but wince. "That is not very reassuring, Genevieve." "Probably not." They stayed like that for what felt like not long enough for Ominis, while Genevieve kept gently caressing his hair. "There is a lot we need to talk about", the witch stated after a while, "but I suggest that we eat first." That was the last thing Ominis wanted to do - talk, not eat, he could never reject Geneviev´s cooking or baking - but he knew she was right. And so, he nodded, his nose bumping into her shoulder. 

 

They had a light meal in the room´s kitchen. They spent it in silence - the tense, anticipating kind. Ominis feared whatever Genevieve wanted to talk about. He tried to start a conversation himself several times, though he never came further than the first word, after which he cleared his throat and simply let it be. Once they both finished eating, they decided to go into the Vivariums to talk. Ominis had only been there once before. It was a grand mixture of landscapes divided by force fields, which could be accessed through the portals behind the two doors on both sides to the one to her private rooms.

The two of them settled onto a large area of grass that was still unoccupied by magical beasts. Thanks to the magic surrounding them, there was no chance of a beast or third person to interrupt either of them through sound or presence. "I would like to say something first, if that is alright with you", Genevieve said after a while. "Of course", Ominis replied tensely. A thousand or more possibilities of what she could say to him appeared unbidden in his mind, each more unpleasant than the previous. He heard the Hufflepuff take a deep breath. "To lighten the mood, I would like to congratulate you for proving me incorrect. I must admit that I didn´t think you able to get me out of the Scriptorium yourself. For that, I´m sorry." The boy wanted to say something in return, but Genevieve didn´t give him any chance to do so.

"I know that saying this out loud will change a lot - if not everything - but I think that waiting any longer is something I simply cannot do." She drew several, shaky breaths before she continued. "I am not ignorant to your obvious care for me, though I am still not complete sure how deep this caring goes. Saying that I do not feel anything for you in the deeper sense couldn´t be farther from the truth." Ominis thought his heart had stopped beating, and he had to take a large amount of deep breaths to calm himself down enough to finally speak. "So, my hopes hopes and dreams have come true, then?", he asked carefully. He wished he could see her, wished he could wipe away the tears he heard in her voice when she said: "It brings me as much agony as it does joy." Ominis balled his hands into fists to keep his own tears at bay. "The conditions of engagement and marriage", he remembered. "I do not know the extent of the agony and torture your family has subjected you to, though Sebastian´s words were enough to make me fear and imagine the worst." He felt her hand cover his, and the tears broke free. "Living with me is nothing to enjoy, Ominis. It is a cage, a constant battle between life and death. A normal day for me consists of not much more than work, meeting with politicians, balls with the royal part of the family, or delegating and negotiating with my father´s family. As the one beside me you would have so little for yourself, and even less after I die. Which will happen soon. The bout this time has made it clear that I might not even make it to the age of twenty!" The grief in her voice tore his heart to shreds, and when she moved her hand away, he grabbed her and pulled her into a tight embrace. Her arms were slung around his neck, while his had taken hold of her torso. Her tears drenched his shirt as she pleaded: "I need you to understand that, for me, being with you would be the greatest joy on earth, Ominis. But I want you to take some time - truly, take time - to handle the affairs with your aunt´s burial and think abouth whether you would be willing to live under such unfair conditions. If your feelings are stronger than anything that could come your way." She pulled away slightly to add: "I would not believe you if you were to give me an answer after less than two weeks´ time." He could only nod, pulling her back into his arms.

Notes:

I´m sorry if this one was a bit on the emotionally harder side (my English is´nt really Englishing right now), and I hope you enjoyed this

I really want to post the next one on the 1st of September, cause, you know, back to Hogwarts and all, but I´ll have to see if I can realistically make it happen

Anyways, as always , thank you so much for coming this far, you are free to leave a comment

And with that, unti next time! Bye:D

Chapter 13: A letter, a telescope and a kiss

Notes:

It is here! I have actually done it! :D
I am so happy that I managed to post this today:D

This one is a bit shorter, but no less sweet

Warning: fluff, the three words - I repeat: THE THREE WORDS

Enjoy :D

Ominis was annoyed. Beyond measure. For once, it wasn’t only because of Duncan Hobhouse - even though the Ravenclaw was enough on his own to annoy him for a lifetime. For once, it wasn’t only because of Sebastian. His friend had kept to himself ever since the Scriptorium. Ominis knew that the Scot had talked to Genevieve, possibly even apologised to her about casting an Unforgivable at her, and that the two of them had gone searching for something related to the Ancient Magic twice. After the second time, Sebastian had come back late at night, very upset about something and grumbling the word ´ignorant´ a concerning amount of times.

For once, the main reason for his ire and fury was the entirety of the male students without a spark of common decency. These past two-and-three-quarters weeks, he had had to listen to their disgusting comments about Genevieve. About how she was blossoming in certain areas, how her green eyes shone so demure and submissively - whatever that meant - or how her braid could be used as a tool during reproduction. When Ominis had first heard that last sentence coming out of Leander Prewett´s mouth, he had been seconds away from rethinking his stance on the Dark Arts.

Though he didn’t think himself a violent person, Ominis found himself very close to slamming them into the nearest wall - or throwing them off a nearby cliff. Not that it would help in any way. He knew that. And still, any time such one sentence or a similar one was uttered in his hearing range, he could feel a strange tickle in his knuckles.

No matter how he thought about their comments, the one who’s opinion on this truly mattered wasn’t even at the castle most of the time. He didn’t know where Genevieve went these days. The only time they had been in the same room ever since that day had been once during Potions Class. Besides that? Nothing.

He had made his decision. There was nothing in this world or any other one that could keep him from loving her or from completely devoting himself to her. He had spent the time she had given him sending his aunt home so she could have a proper funeral and researching customs from pureblooded and muggle royalty from all over the world - most importantly, though, from Germany and China. He had read about the process of debuting into society, marriage contracts and differences between patriarchy and matriarchy. One festivity had especially caught his notice, which had prompted him to complete two tasks that day. He rushed through the school´s halls, the letter secured in his pocket, bound for Hogsmeade despite the clear signs for rain.

 

Genevieve pulled at her collar as she marched past Lucan Brattleby, who was demonstrating a spell combination on the training dummy for a group of young girls. She smiled slightly at Lucan´s smug expression. The boy clearly enjoyed the attention he received. So many boys at Hogwarts were the same with attention, no matter how small, and were therefore entirely opposites to her brothers. They almost hated receiving attention, and had always been glad that she was drawing all eyes to herself.

She didn’t slow her steps until she was on one of the bridges to the Clock Tower part of the castle. Suddenly, she heard the flapping of wings approaching. Turning her head, she spotted an owl flying towards her, a turquoise letter in its talons. The witch quickly held out her arm for the bird. As it landed, it gave an adorable little hoot. She smiled, scratched its head and then took the letter. The owl shook its feathers out and flew away. Genevieve, who knew that the owls were doing a lot of work delivering the students letters all day every day, waved goodbye and called some words of gratitude after the owl.

The wind tugged and pulled at her hat and the paper as she opened and unfolded the letter. Had she not been on an open bridge, she would surely have leaned onto a wall for support. Her knees went weak as she let her eyes go over the words over and over again. They only left the parchment for a short while to help her cross the bridge and enter through the doors. There, she let herself fall onto one of the benches and read the letter once more.

 

Dearest Genevieve,

I feel like a fool, having to resort to this to secure your affection. But a fool I must be this once, for I am lacking of alternatives to reach out to you. You efforts to stop the looming dangers from breaching Hogwarts are noble, but they constantly keep you so far away from me.

My dearest, these past days I have had time to consider your fears. And I have come to the clear conclusion that no matter what our courtship entails, no matter what we´ll have to face in the future, my love for you will get us through it. There is no one I will spend my life with but you, my gem, and I will make sure it is the best life I am able to give you.

I am aware that you greatly dislike the endearment "gem", but to me, it describes the preciousness of your character the closest. Even if I don’t have the ability to see you with my eyes, I am still sure that the most beautiful thing in this world pales next to you. My love, jealousy is my daily companion as we pass through these ancient halls - the insistent chatter of our peers about your beauty makes me loathe my condition like never before.

Please, my dear, accept my heart, for it has been yours entirely ever since our dreadful visit to the Scriptorium of my delusional ancestor.

I hope my owl finds you in good health, for I am certain the trials are more dangerous than you´re willing to tell us.

Please be safe

Forever yours

Ominis Gaunt

 

Genevieve´s heart was thumping with all its power, and she was glad she was already sitting. Her legs felt wobbly, and her whole body was shaking. With trembling hands, she folded the letter back up and slid it into her pocket. She took several deep breaths before she stood.

She had to find him.

 

Ominis wasn'tat Hogwarts. She had searched the entire castle and had asked every student she had come across. She was about to give up, when she ran into Amit, who told her that Ominis had gone to Hogsmeade earlier. She thanked the Ravenclaw boy and ran out of the castle. Her feet flew over the ground, carrying her swiftly through the garden by the Clock Tower, through the gate, past the bushes attracting Lacewing Flies. She was out of breath and on the verge of collapsing by the time she had passed the small ruins and the entrance to the Forbidden Forest, but she kept on running.

She had to. She had to see him, had to talk to him. Her heart couldn’t take another minute of waiting.

At the spot she had met Mr Moon for the first time all those weeks ago, however, the lack of oxygen in her lungs forced her to pause and double over for air. There were tears streaming freely over her cheeks. She had no strength left in her, was fighting for every bit to keep her on her feet. Genevieve brought a hand to her chest and clutched the fabric over her sternum, as if she could grab the pain there and rip it out. Her heart screamed at her to keep running, the phoenix suggested flying the last bit, and her head insisted there was no energy left for either advice. She was glad that her curse hadn’t used its chance to torment her as well.

There was someone approaching her quickly, but she couldn’t tell who it was, as at one point, she had closed her eyes. Whoever they were came to a stop just a few steps in front of her, and something in her chest stirred. "Genevieve?", a voice said. The witch´s eyes flew open as she recognised it. Slowly, she lifted her head to see Ominis stand before her, looking very worried. The relief flooding her nearly sent her to the ground. "Are you alright?", Ominis asked. Genevieve let out something between a huff of laugh and a sob. She forced her feet forward, toward him. She didn’t stop until she crashed into his chest, his arms immediately coming around her for support.

"I am quite alright, now that I’ve found you", she breathed into his shoulder, holding tightly on to his coat. They stood like that for a while, until Genevieve said: "I received your letter." Ominis tensed instantly. "Have you read it?" "I have." She turned her head to see his face. His own tears were already gathering in his eyes. She let go of his coat to sling her arms around him. "And I have never before read a letter that moved me like this. Your words pierced my heart, Ominis, and they reflected my own exact feelings for you." Ominis´ face crumbled, and he hid it in the crook of her neck. "I read it, and I came to find you to tell you that I love you", Genevieve continued, her tears flowing freely once more. She could hear his tears when he replied: "I love you too, Genevieve. I actually have for a long time and can hardly remember a moment where I haven’t." As the slowly pulled away from each other, Ominis caught her hands, holding them to his heart as he carefully rested his forehead against hers. He smiled through the tears. "You have no idea how badly I want to kiss you right now, and how scared I am at the same time that it goes against a rule or isn’t proper." A grin spread on Genevieve´s face as she turned her hands around to pull Ominis - her fiancé - into the trees. Close enough to the road to be safe from enemie attacks, but far enough from the road so that they couldn’t be spotted right away. There, she took off her hat, shrunk it and shoved it into her pocket. "Propriety be damned", she mumbled, before grabbing his collar and crashing her lips into his.

Initially caught by surprise, Ominis seemed to recover quickly, pulling her even closer. One of his arms held her waist, the other her upper back. The kiss was everything. And yet, it was no sudden firework, but a steady current that had been there for some time whenever she had looked at him - a current that didn’t sweep her away, but engulfed them both in warmth, and dizzy, turbulent love. It caused her phoenix to sing, her magic to fizzle and her heart to swell six times its size.

The kiss was short, as Genevieve was still in desperate need for air, but sweeter than sugar-glazed strawberries. They rested their foreheads against each other, giggling and grinning without care - until the rain poured down on them. Squeaking in surprise, Genevieve put her hat back on before reaching around Ominis´ Head to attempt to pull up his hood. He snorted at her failing efforts, before pulling the hood up himself. Returning to the path, they started sprinting back to Hogwarts, taking turns in pulling the other forward.

When they arrived in the Clock Tower, they were completely drenched and positively giddy. Their respective head covers had done nothing to keep the water away, but neither of them cared one bit. While Ominis shook his head to get even a little bit of the rain out of his hair, Genevieve noticed a certain Ravenclaw boy walking toward them. "Amit! Thank you for giving me directions earlier." "It was no problem at all. As I can see, you have found him." As Ominis turned his head to their conversation, Amit addressed him. "It seems, the two of you were caught in the rain rather thoroughly, though, you don’t seem annoyed by that, Ominis." Visibly surprised to be talked to so friendly, Ominis replied stunned: "I am indeed not." With a radiant smile that warmed Genevieve´s heart, he added: "I rather enjoyed it But it must bother you, doesn’t it, Amit? It might be difficult to see the stars later."

The Ravenclaw just shrugged. "It is the way it is. I was instead going to review my modified star maps, anyway." "Modified?", Genevieve asked. "Yes. With these, you can quite literally feel the stars, as I have used the techniques behind Braille on the maps." From the corner of her eye, the witch saw her fiancé´s eyes go wide. "Really?", he asked, sounding intrigued and slightly as if in awe. Amit´s face instantly lit up. "Really! Would you like to try it yourself?" "I would be honoured."Genevieve couldn’t help the fond smile at Ominis´ excited expression. "Will you be joining us,Genevieve?", Amit asked. She shook her head and said: "Unfortunately, recent events have made it imperative that I attend to certain matters. Perhaps another time. But, thank you kindly for your offer." To Ominis, she said: "I shall meet you later at the usual place." He smiled and nodded. Then, the two boys left, probably for the Library or Ravenclaw Tower. Genevieve waited until they were, before taking a detour to the Room of Requirement. There were some documents to sign and arrangements to make.

Notes:

Oh wow this was felt good
Thanks to all of you who have made it this far with me:D
That in no way means that I´m done here and the rest will only be short descriptions of things. On, no, there is still a lot, lot, LOT more coming for these two (hehe)
Writing the letter a second time actually brought me to tears 😅😅

I hope you enjoyed this, and I´ll see you next time
Leave a comment if you have any question or just want to say hi😁

And on a last note: Welcome back for the new year at Hogwarts🧙‍♀️🧙🧙‍♂️

 

- Rain makes everything more dramatic - Alex Meyers (YouTube)

Notes:

All the names were chosen using a book for baby names.
Any similarities with other stories are unintentional, any game and outside game characters belong to their respective creators.
I don’t support any of J. K. Rowling´s views
I hope this goes without saying but: please do not copy or upload on any other platform

Thank you:)

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 2 of What if…? Tales of the North