In The Shadow of Our Choices

Chapter 77 - Patchwork

Sebastian

When Sebastian and Anne finally broke apart, he glanced around, finding the chairs had been emptied and the others were gone. Sebastian looked back at Anne inquiringly.

"Lizzie dragged everyone off to the tearoom the second you started tearing up." Anne said with a soft smile.

Sebastian took a deep breath, feeling his lungs fill to the brim with air before exhaling slowly. He took in Anne's face, how different it looked from the one that always came to mind - how she had looked when she was healthy. Everything in him yearned to tell her how much he wouldn't be okay without her, how she just needed to hold on long enough for him to find a cure. But no, she wouldn't want to talk about those things. Instead, they spoke of small things, debating names for the little dragon that chased after each movement of the blankets and leaned into the warmth of Anne's hand, discussing N.E.W.T. preparations, and speculating on the upcoming quidditch matches.

By the time the others returned, it was nearing noon. As they all began to say their goodbyes, needing to return for Charms after lunch, Sebastian saw the shadow of familiar pain creep onto Anne's face. Her hand dug into her side as she grimaced, and he beat her to her drawer of potions, passing one to her. She gave him a fleeting smile, fumbling the potion slightly as she brought it to her lips and downed it. Though seeing the pain on her face always twisted knots into his stomach, Sebastian was glad now that she had potions that kept the pain under control. It usually took a minute or two to take effect, but he saw her relaxing already. Relaxing significantly... going limp. Anne's eyes rolled back, fluttering shut as she slumped onto the bed. Sebastian's entire being froze, as he stared at her - she was unmoving.

Distantly, he heard Lizzie tell Andrew to help her find a healer before they darted from the room. Grace's hands were on Anne, searching for signs of life, and Ominis had Sebastian's arm in a vice-like grip. But Sebastian's mind was numb, confusion and terror swirling with no rhyme or reason. She wasn't... was she? He didn't hear what Ominis was saying, couldn't think. His hands were trembling. As healers rushed into the room, Ominis finally made him unstick his feet, dragging him away from the bed, from Anne, so that they could see her. Ominis grabbed his face, forcing Sebastian to tear his eyes away from Anne and look at him.

"Sebastian," Ominis said levelly. "Anne is alive. She's not dead."

Sebastian's mind struggled to process the words, his heart pounding in his chest. Not dead? Relief blazed to life in his chest, and all his earlier thoughts and emotions about losing her flared once more alongside it, dizzying in their intensity. Tears burned but he shook his head. His legs felt weak beneath him, so he leaned against Ominis. He closed his eyes to the sight of the healers around Anne and took a deep, shuddering breath as he tried to fight the relief. Alive did not mean she would be okay.

It took the healers a terrifying half an hour to figure out what had happened. Sebastian had sent the others back to school, and all except Ominis, who staunchly refused to leave - citing Anne as being his sister, too. It was a simple Wiggenweld potion that eventually brought Anne around. When the head healer finally approached them, his face was serious.

"What..." Sebastian began, but his voice was hoarse from suppressed emotions, so he cleared his throat and tried again. "What happened?"

The healer wrung his hands. "Mr. Sallow, it seems there was a mix up with the potions. Rather than her Comitatum Solution, she mistakenly consumed the Draught of Living Death. Miss Sallow will experience no negative effects - however, we understand how distressing this has been for you..."

Sebastian frowned as he stopped listening, running back through the events in his mind. "No, the potion was the usual purple color. The Draught of Living Death is pink."