Moments In Between

Meeting with Anne

Andromeda stood outside of Feldcroft with a piece of parchment in her hand. She had just received an owl from Anne, asking to meet with her as soon as possible.

There were also strict instructions to come alone.

With the help of Natty, she managed to sneak away from the castle undetected. Her friend told her that she would try to cover for her if anyone was looking for her but Andromeda knew that would be useless with a certain Slytherin.

She did not like to keep secrets from Ominis. It was not difficult for him to catch someone in a lie. He could simply tell by a change in the tone of voice or if you stumble over your words.

She would have to deal with that later but for now, she needed to find Anne.

Andromeda looked around at her current surroundings. She was unsure where to go since Solomon made it perfectly clear that he did not want anyone to disturb Anne. The last thing she wanted to do was to make matters worse.

"Andromeda!"

She turned her head to the sound of her name and found Anne slowly walking up the path.

"Anne! I got your owl. Is everything alright? It sounded urgent!"

Anne nodded and motioned Andromeda to follow. "I'm fine. Just follow me, there is a place up ahead where we can have some privacy."

Andromeda stayed close by and asked, "Does your uncle know that you're here?"

"He's sleeping at the moment. It's not uncommon for him to take a late afternoon nap. Sometimes I wake him in the middle of the night due to my bouts of pain."

They came to a clearing where Anne led her to a fallen log and took a seat. "Oh, that feels a bit better."

Andromeda carefully took the spot next to Anne. "Are you certain that you are okay?"

"Yes, for now." Anne sighed and closed her eyes. "The bouts of pain are becoming more frequent and intense but I can still manage it. Besides, I wanted to talk to you in person."

"If this is about Sebastian and trying to find a cure, I want to let-"

Anne held up a hand to stop Andromeda from rambling.

"It's not about my brother. Although I do appreciate that you are keeping a close eye on him." She paused and held her stomach. "Just give me a minute."

Andromeda waited and began to wonder why Anne asked to meet in person. If she did not want to talk about Sebastian, what else is there to discuss? She just assumed that Anne had concerns about her brother trying to find a cure.

Anne took some deep breaths and looked at Andromeda.

"This is about you and Ominis."

Andromeda's eyes immediately shot wide and almost fell off the log. This caused Anne to burst into a fit of laughter.

"No! No! No! It's not what you think, truly! Oh Merlin's beard, did you think I was jealous?" Anne shook her head and slowed down her breaths as she tried to compose herself. "Ominis is like a brother to me. Please...just let me explain."

Andromeda regained her balance and settled on the log. This was completely unexpected. "Alright, go on."

"I know it's been difficult for him with me being sick and Sebastian becoming obsessive about finding a cure. I worried about how he was going to be at Hogwarts and feared that he would isolate himself like he did with his family. I believe you would understand what I am talking about." Anne stopped and gave Andromeda a soft smile.