A Ballad of Snakes and Shadows // A Dark Sebastian Sallow Romance

Chapter Six: O'Sister

O'Sister - City and Colour

It had only been a little over a month yet I already knew this year would become a never ending assortment of contradictions.

And that list of contradictions just kept fucking growing.

Very clearly, if not almost perfectly, I had believed I successfully created a handful of ground rules for myself over the past month. But somehow I'd fallen off the tracks of progress and was instead sliding down a rather slippery hill, which only led to a dangerous cliff.

Each and every stipulation of those ground rules held onto that cliff for dear fucking life.

Hattie wouldn't let her demons control her - failed, failed quite miserably in fact.

Hattie wouldn't push anyone away and would do her best to be more personable - failed, consequences ensued.

Hattie would refrain from volunteering herself to take part in any sort of perilous drama, actions, war, or conflicts. Not even with a small child - failed, but did I really fail that one? It wasn't my fault Poppy was kidnapped - was it? (Spoiler, it was.)

Hattie would be strong -TBD, put this on hold indefinitely and take no further questions.

I stared up at the ceiling of the hospital wing at Hogwarts, wondering what kind of strength I had left. There was too much weakness in my exhausted bones, the kind that reminded me I did not hold as much power as I once had.

Not as Nurse Blainey fussed incessantly over me all through the night, using many variations of spells and ointments to rid me of all that ailed me. Thankfully I'd only been dramatic enough to believe I'd broken my entire set of ribs. In reality, only two had been shattered, courtesy of that golden masked asshole.

He'd also given me a pristine concussion and a shiny black eye. I wore the latter like a badge of shame.

It was a sparkling little accessory made of only the thickest shame. There might as well have been a sign stamped onto my face for all to see.

Look at me, I'm the fucking loser "hero" who couldn't keep her friend safe and got her ass kicked in the process.

Hero of Hogwarts? Who even is that?

Death would have been kinder than having to face that shame, I reflected, as I heard a pair of footsteps rushing into the hospital wing. I already knew it was Ominis and Natty. I had to force my eyes away from the ceiling in an effort to watch them nearly run to me.

There wouldn't be any hiding my failure from them. They'd see me for what I was - a pathetic excuse for a friend and "hero", one that was laying in a hospital bed with a mangled face to match a wounded ego.

"Hyacinth." Ominis made it to me first. If it wasn't for the use of my full name, it was how he grabbed my face that revealed how frightened he was. His fingers stroked at still sensitive skin, and while his touch was warm and pleasing, it stung just a little too much for comfort.

As Natty looked at me with an arched brow and twitching lip, I could not help but want to shy away from the little connection that was forming out of the bond of Ominis and I's friendship. It was still so new, freshly blooming - like the pain in my eye he was only agitating with his touch.

"Ominis, please, that hurts." I groaned, having to force some annoyance into my voice to drown out my flustering. It hurt like hell to have him touching me, but there was something comforting about the concern he communicated as his fingers brushed against my skin.