Ancient: The Legacy of Slytherin

Trial/Error Part II

We fought our way through a few spiders in silence until we came to a large opening in the cave. Seb spoke first.

"Those symbols...I recognize them from a book on Ancient Runes. If I remember correctly, we should try hitting them all at the same time."

"Ok, on three."

"One."

"Two."

"Three!" We exclaimed together, let out our final cast, and the door in front of us opened. Sebastian began to move forward but I grabbed his arm.

"Seb, listen to me. We don't know what we're going to encounter in there. Jackdaw was a wizard too and he lost his head in that room. Given Miriam's involvement, there is almost absolutely something to do with ancient magic on the other side of this bridge. I need you to promise me that you'll listen to me in there. Really listen. Even if I tell you to leave me behind."

"I can't promise you that. I promised that I would protect you, no matter what. Remember, when we were on the covered bridge going into Hogsmeade for the first time? I made a promise to you then, Ara. I don't intend to break it now."

"You are so bloody hard headed, Sebastian! Why can't you just agree to this one thing for me?!"

"Because!" He was shouting now, and his voice's echo carried through the cave.

"'Because' is not a reason, Sebastian!"

It looked like his body was fighting to both move and stay in place at the same time. One part won over as he ran to me, grabbed my face between his hands, and pulled it against his own. Our lips met in a welcome embrace as he kissed me and I kissed him back.

For so long I fought this internal battle about how I felt towards Sebastian, unsure what this gravitational pull between us meant. It drew me to him. He loved to tease me, and I thought that's all it was, until today when we were in Azkaban. When those Dementors came towards us and Sebastian held me, I clung to the words that Anne had said. That he loved me. It may have been the only reason I made it out of there with my soul in tact.

Now we were here, and he was kissing me.

And I was kissing him back.

My hands were in his hair, pulling it back ever so slightly when I needed a moment to breathe. I took him in, panting there against me, his honey eyes filled with desire. When I broke away, he came at me harder, with a force that would have knocked me over if his hands weren't secure around my lower back. He dipped me down, arching my back as far as it would go, his lips never leaving mine. He brought me back up and we stood there, heaving, with our foreheads against each other. It felt like we were in a romance novel.

Sebastian tightened his grip on my back as he spoke. "Now do you understand?"

I brought my hand up to his face and ran my thumb against his bottom lip.

"Yes."

"I'm not leaving you. Ever. So don't ask me to again."

"I won't."

He brought his lips down to mine for one more lingering kiss before we walked across the bridge hand in hand.

Sebastian Sallow had just kissed me. And I kissed him back. I just made my life one thousand times more complicated than it already was.

And then there was Ominis. And Garreth. Merlin why were there so many attractive young men at Hogwarts? And why on earth were they interested in me? Although, Ominis currently wanted nothing to do with me- it was me who was incapable of letting him go.