No Choice But You // Ominis Gaunt x Reader

Chapter 7

Slytherin beat Hufflepuff by a landslide, and the crowd went wild. Even I couldn't help the smile on my face as we grounded ourselves and dismounted. 

I'd heard that an afterparty was to be held in the Slytherin common room, and lots of people were invited. I did not plan on attending. Rather, I'd be spending my evening in bed with a book for a distraction until the noise faded and I could sleep. 

Anne, of course, threw a wrench in that plan. 

"You have to go!" she said. "I've hardly got to hang out with you, and I've been so looking forward to it this year. I've only ever heard great things about you,  you know."

"You haven't talked to Ominis much, then," I retorted, heading for the commons. She trailed after me down the hall, the heels of her shoes clicking swiftly as she tried to keep up with my pace. 

"Ominis has a lot to say about everyone," Anne argued. "If he's been mean to you, I'll make sure to knock some sense into him--literally, if I have to. I'm not against beating up blind kids. Did it plenty growing up."

"Parties aren't my scene." I frowned and took a left turn, then started heading down the stairs toward the Slytherin commons. 

"Sounds like you've never been to a good party, then," she stated. "You're going to go. Just this once. If you really hate it, I won't make you attend another."

I considered her words for a moment.  

"Fine." It was probably the closest to getting her to agree with me that I could get. It seemed there was no telling Anne 'no'. 

Anne decided that I had to dress 'cute', and picked a dress from my closet for me to wear. It was a shorter emerald green dress with a rounded neckline. I paired it with a pair of my black tights and comfortable black boots. Anne even helped me style my hair, and I let her take full reign on that one. I ended up with a classy little updo that I didn't mind, though I wouldn't tell her that. I didn't want her to think I was excited about this or something. 

Now that I was all dolled up, I sat on the edge of my bed trying not to think about tonight. I didn't know how to handle myself around others anymore, and I wasn't sure what to expect. 

"You ready?" Anne asked. "Nerida and Imelda are already out there mingling."

"Ready as I can be," I admitted. Anne took my hand and led me into the common area, where the lights had been dimmed even past their normal moody setting, and tables of drinks and potions had been put out. Garreth was at the potion table most likely concocting something he'd talk some poor third-year into ingesting. 

Poppy and Natty were there too, already out on the dance floor. 

Anne started by handing me a strong drink. "To take the edge off," she'd told me. Though it would probably do a little more than just take the edge off, given my empty stomach. But maybe the alcohol would be a welcome distraction from everything else. I downed half of the drink in one go and winced at the bitter taste in my throat and nose. It only took a few minutes before I was feeling it in my system. I took another swig. 

She led me over to the sofa, where Sebastian was seated. 

"Didn't think you'd actually come," he joked as I took the seat beside him. The fireplace crackled in front of the small circle of chairs and the sofa. Sebastian leaned back and threw his arm over the back of the couch behind me. My drink remained a fixture in my hand, and Anne kept the booze coming. 

Even the Hufflepuffs were there that night, despite their glaring loss against us. They seemed to be in okay spirits as they enjoyed the party. 

Anne got up to go greet some others, leaving Sebastian and me by ourselves. I took another swig of my drink and leaned back on the sofa, crossing one of my legs over the other. 

"You've been avoiding me," Sebastian said, leaning toward me. "How come?"

"I'm not avoiding you," I lied. "I've just been busy."

"No busier than the rest of us." He raised an eyebrow. "I thought about you a lot, you know. Never thought I'd actually get to see you again. Yet, here we are." 

"Here we are," I reiterated with a thin smile. I wanted Anne to come back. She served as a pretty good buffer between him and me, and I knew Ominis wouldn't be happy if he caught me conversing with Sebastian right now. 

Speak of the Devil, Ominis suddenly appeared at the other end of the room. He held his wand out and tried to make his way through the crowd, bumping shoulders as he waded through. Anne luckily found him and wrapped her arm around his, unfortunately leading him to where Sebastian and I were already seated. I noticed she also had Poppy and Natty in tow, and they sat themselves down on the chairs across from Sebastian and me. Anne, the little demon she is, sat Ominis down on the sofa right next to me and boxed him in, pushing him closer to me than either of us wanted. 

Ominis sighed and leaned back succumbing to his fate. He said nothing about Sebastian to me after we greeted them. 

"Look at this, the gang's back together," Garreth said from behind Poppy and Natty. He vaulted himself over the back of the sofa and came down right between the two girls, slinging his arms over their shoulders. 

Everyone chatted idly, and I gladly faded into the background. Ominis didn't say much either and sat tensely at my side. Anne had handed him a drink, and to my surprise, he was already almost finished with it. He didn't strike me as a drinker, but I'd been wrong. 

"I have a proposal," Anne said. "I say we play a game."

"I'm intrigued," replied Garreth. "Do go on." 

"How about a little game of truth or dare, with a little extra twist?"

"And what would that twist be?" Sebastian asked. 

Anne pulled a small vial from her pocket. "Veritaserum."