Love is blind - a Hogwarts Legacy fanfiction

The return

I did not sleep in the Gryffindor Common Room nor the seventh year dormitory. When we left the Three Broomsticks, I already felt guilty about how I let our appearance open for interpretation. And I also forgot I hated most of Garreth Weasley's friends since the Ball. Instead, after we said our goodbyes in the courtyard, I went back to the Undercroft. The change was no one was going to be there, Sebastian nor Ominis.

As I recently had slept there with Sebastian I quickly found the old blankets from a chest near the entrance. It seemed like ages ago Sebastian and I were here together - but it had only been a few weeks. Thinking about him made my skin crawl. I could not tell if I really missed him, since I haven't heard from him since he almost murdered me. It was a miracle I could cope with this without breaking apart. I was amazed by my self-control; all this trauma had done was leaving me empty and alone. Maybe I just missed the way Sebastian and my friendship had ment, but thinking about the fact that the last Undercroft night we had he'd already known what he was about to do to me, I believed I was a fool for hanging along with him this long. I should've known that after his uncle died, by his hand for Merlin's sake, he would never be the same. Back then I should have reported him to any auror, send him off to Azkaban. But no, I was a fool and chose friendship over his mistakes. It could've saved me a lot of trouble and now trauma. And what a friend he had been...

I also agreed back then with Ominis to not turn Sebastian in because he was the one who had nobody else. In our fifth year, Ominous had already left his family multiple times. Little did we know then that he would turn back to his family afterwards. Another reason why I could've easily made a different choice who'd had better consequences. If I had been stronger back then, not so weak over love and not caring enough for just myself, my life could have been different now. Better. Not so messy.

But as hard as I tried to imagine a life without them - I couldn't visualize it.

It was as if something from my broken heart had healed a little after I made things better with Garreth. He was right after all; I had to stop pretending that my life was worthless without Ominis. I had many things to live for, but first I had to finish my examinations. My head was a little clearer now I slept every night in the Undercroft. It felt good to not return to the Common Room and sleep in the same room as Imelda - it gave me the rest I needed to finalize my N.E.W.T.s. I could not expect every teacher to be as kind as Professor Sharp. It made me think - maybe a career as a teacher would not be so bad. Helping others, teaching a new generation. Though I wasn't sure what subject I could teach. But it felt good to at least have some direction different from going back to my parents.

I was surprised at how well my examinations went. During that week I spent my night in the Undercroft and avoided the Common Room at most times, unless I needed new clothing. I did not spend my meals at the Great Hall, but I ate alone while studying or quickly had lunch together with Garreth who also seemed to do pretty well on his exams. The week went by pretty fast and it was on a Friday afternoon when I had my last subject - Alchemy. The entire week I had taken the exam together with more fellow Slytherins, but since Alchemy was the only subject Ominis and I had chosen, it was not strange that I bumped into him a few minutes before the test started. As I had felt much better - almost great - the entire week, now my stomach dropped and my heart raced. I wasn't sure if he'd notice me already. His gaze was upon the ground, wand hidden away. I sighed as I thought that maybe I could pretend to not be there, but then his head flicked up, staring into my presence. As I had not felt the bon we had for a few days - it was then very clear. As if I could touch his emotions. I had to shake my head to get rid of the thoughts; there was no such thing as a magical bond that would invite each other's spirits in.

'Ava.' His voice sounded gruff as he said my first name. I had hoped he would go back to spitting my last name. It would've been easier if he did. The way his low voice sounded gave me shivers and all I could do was just stare at him. I got a glimpse of his feelings by looking into his eyes - desire, love, sadness. It awoke an anger within me. So I decided to say nothing and leaned against the same wall he was standing, ignoring him. I would not let him ruin my final exam. After a few minutes, just when I thought he'd accepted the fact that we should no longer speak, he spoke again.