SHADOWS OF SORROW [S.S]

15 - In the Shadow of the Past

[Mentions of Violence, death, self-harm and blood]

Please, if you do not feel comfortable with any of these topics, skip everything from the moment Sebastian and Amaya get closer to the girl in the empty room. Amaya's past is an added piece of character but isn't something incredibly necessary for you, to understand the evolution of Sebastian's and her relationship. Don't trigger yourself by feeling the need to read the whole chapter in fear of missing out on something. Maybe there are some nice people in the comments who can explain the gist of it all without any triggers, because I had a rather hard time doing it.
Stay safe loves.

Sebastian only realized Amaya's groans when she shifted in his embrace, feeling some kind of stinging pain run over his arms as his eyes had to be forced open. He hasn't slept so deeply and soundly in a long while but the witch whining in her dreams made him raise an eyebrow. Her back was pressed against his chest, one of his arms around her waist to hold her close as a glimpse of blue ran over his skin in the corner of his eye, that stinging pain feeling like an electricity shock as he had to pull away. "What in Merlin's name...?" He scooted away a little to get a full view of her, noticing the small fragments of blue magic wander over her body, making her muscles shudder everywhere they went. Was she struck by a curse? "Amaya..." His hand reached out to get a hold of her shoulder, but the stinging pain of that magic directly shot at his hand, forcing him to keep his distance. Sebastian's eyebrows furrowed at that, contemplating if he should just leave now that he was already awake. The sun hadn't risen yet but it might just have been a matter of an hour or two until classes started. If he wanted to avoid supervisors, prefects or just any female to catch him here, he was to leave before they woke up.

Something about that magic covering her didn't want him to disturb her so he wouldn't. It wasn't his place and most definitely nothing he wanted to get involved with. There was no need to be interested in her as a person, was there? Everyone had nightmares, it didn't make her special. As Sebastian got up, collecting his clothes, and putting them on, the painful grunts made him look at her once or twice. He couldn't help but feel bad to leave her in pain the way he did in the scriptorium but he really wasn't interested in any more drama than he already had going on in his own life... Ominis should just see her and hold her close again if he was interested in getting struck by lightning. "Please stop screaming... I can't bear it anymore." From this side of the room he was able to see her face in the dim light of a candle on her nightstand, drenched in silent tears, something inside him comparing this very situation to whenever he saw Anne cry. It broke his heart that he couldn't do anything about his sister's pain but he could at least wake Amaya up from her nightmare and leave then... His hand reached out for her again, the familiar stinging pain of that blue magic trying to push him back as he felt her immensely hot skin under his touch. She was burning... "Amaya, wake up." The small sparks of lightning travelled over his hand, up his arm as he held onto her, trying to shake her awake. "It's just a dream."

She shifted under the sheets, her nails sinking into her own skin as if it would help her come back to reality, the blood pooling beneath her nails and slowly and in single streams making their way down her arms, his eyes big at that. "Wake the fuck up Amaya." His hands got a hold of her wrists, forcing the witch to stop digging into her skin, locking them over her head as he leaned over her, meeting her eyes, filled with tears and a dangerous glimmer passing them, gone as fast as it showed itself to him. Her body shook under him, not able to suppress the impact of her sobs as she still heard those mind shattering screams echo in her ears, the words Sebastian seemingly whispered, not reaching her. She still felt the cold stone bricks of the halls under her calloused fingertips, trying to not lose track of where she went in the darkness, figuring out where those screams came from. Was there really a right way or did they just surround her, Sanktia screaming from every possible direction of the compass. Amaya felt the air in her lungs burn, unable to cool herself down to take a consistent breath, hot tears almost eliminating her vision of the dark bedroom, and a burning pain in her arms, feeling the blood seep out of her. Breathe May... Breathe.