He Couldn't Be That Bad? // Sebastian Sallow and You (spicy)

45. A Starlight Soak (Absolute Smut)

He gently kicks off the ground and we dip over the cliff's edge. He's careful to keep the broom as level as possible as we descend easily a hundred feet. When we're about halfway down the steep rocky wall, he points the broom at the wall. In the ridged layers of the cliff face there is a gap. Then I see there are carvings around it. Faint, washed practically smooth from the elements. Symbols I recognise, but... wait, this can't be... Merlin's handwriting? I'd completed every Merlin trial in all of Hogwarts Valley, but this, it wasn't a trial, it was something different. If I was on Highwing and saw this gap in the rocks there's no way I would have considered going through. But since we're flying, Sebastian leans forward, bringing me with him so we're both lying flat against the broom.

"How did you find this place?" My voice echos off the stones of the long stone corridor. My voice carries quite far as the stones look like they've been polished smooth. If I was on my own, I would have likely headed back

"I read about it of course." Sebastian scoffs. Then he holds out his wand, casting lumos, and guides us down the long passage.

It's straight into the darkness, the tunnel is exactly big enough for us to glide in on our broom. The sound of light scraping as our cloaks and the tips of our shoes occasionally drag across the surface. But as we keep floating into the hillside, a familiar intense tingling starts in my fingertips. Ancient Magic is here, or at least close. Little essences of it jump out from the polished stone as we go, leaping like tadpoles and guiding us deeper.

A twinking light appears at the end of the tunnel and Sebastian extinguishes his wand. The silvery ripples become brighter and brighter as we approach until the tunnel opens up into a cave. Two thirds of the opening are a pool of pure shimmering silvery starlight, glowing like moonlight over snow. The tadpoles of light bounce from us into the pool making not a single splash. Dancing light reflects on every surface, I look up and the cave is completely closed in, the lightsource is the water itself.

The other part of the cave is a small embankment of mosaiced floor in a beautiful circular leaf pattern. I recognise it instantly as Merlin's. There is a small writing desk, potions station, stacks of tomes and scrolls. Vials and beakers of the same water sit, vibrant and sparkling in their glass. Surprisingly there isn't a speck of dust in sight; as if Merlin had simply stepped out for tea and would be back at any moment.

Sebastian lands the broom and leans it up against the wall. "Happy Christmas." He leans forward and places a kiss on my temple. "Merlin's secret workshop. I only came here once to make sure it was worth bringing you to, but this water, it's different. I can feel it."

I wrap my arms around his neck and hold him tight. "Thank you so much, this is absolutely the most magnificent Christmas present anyone's ever gotten me." I hold out my wand, absolutely desperate for the rejuvenation of Ancient Magic. I try to pull it into myself but it doesn't budge. "Hmm."

I'm now a little skeptical of this pool. Walking over to the desk, I see stacks of journals. "Maybe he wrote down if the pool is safe."

Sebastian and I flip through the books. I run my finger through the pages until I find what we're looking for. "Here. It seems like Merlin had quite a fun time here. Bought a Viviane here quite often."

"Ooh." Sebastian bobs his eyebrows at me. "Didn't realize we'd stumble upon his lab and his love nest."

I snicker and keep reading. "He spent quite some time studying the magical properties of this water. Drinking improves vitality. Bathing in it heals injuries. It seems it's fed from an underlying spring, but any attempt to remove the liquid too far from the source renders the water inert."

"Well no wonder he built a lab right next to it, if he was studying it he very well couldn't bring it back to the castle." Sebastian shrugged, and reached out for a vial of the liquid. He walked it over to the entrance and as soon as he got to the mouth of the cave the water became clear and ordinary. He walked it back to the source and it didn't return to its glimmering state. "Huh. Well, who wants to drink it first?"