🥀 Roses and Novels | Hogwarts Legacy Fanfic | Sebastian, Ominis and Evander

🥀 - Chapter 28 -🌹

(Sebastian's Perspective)

The day I walked free from Azkaban felt like something out of a storybook a barefoot man, stepping into the warmth of the sun after a year in the cold shadow of stone walls. My eyes, unused to daylight, blinked against the brightness as I took my first steps outside. The wind caught in my long, brown curls, and I looked down at my wand, finally back in my grasp. On my wrist, the prisoner's mark remained: "2034" etched into my skin, surrounded by the scars that trailed from my forearm up to my shoulder and back.

The day before my release, I wrote a letter to my sister, Anne. It was important that someone knew I was returning.

Letter:

Dear Anne,
Are you ready to see me again? Because I am.
I'm living in a small cottage near Hogwarts, so I'm close to you.

Love, your dear brother,
Sebastian

I apparated to my temporary home a humble brown cottage nestled among towering pines and sturdy oaks. A stream trickled nearby, bordered by stones and moss. My owl, Rya, was waiting for me, and I handed her the letter. I stroked her feathers and whispered, "Be careful," before sending her on her way.

Inside, the house was simple: an empty space with a tiny kitchen and bathroom, oak floors, white walls, and brown ceiling beams. The square windows let in just enough light. I conjured a bed, a sofa, and a bookcase, and sank into the couch.

*I'm finally free...*

But as I settled in, one thought pushed through the peace. One memory. One person.

Helena.

The last time we were together still haunted me her tearful eyes, her lips against mine. I touched my mouth, remembering. Despite everything, she had feared losing me.

*Damn it.*

A tear slipped down my cheek.

*What would she do if I showed up again?
Did she miss me?
Has she moved on?
Is she with someone else now?
Is she... still waiting?*

These questions circled endlessly in my mind, chasing one another like a storm. I loved her deeply, truly but I could never let her see how vulnerable she made me. My love for Helena was raw, consuming, and dangerous. For now, I had to keep my distance.

Night came. I'd just finished dinner and was lying in bed when moonlight crept in through the window. That's when it started.

*No, not again! DAMN IT!*

I scrambled to grab the chains I'd kept at the foot of the bed, quickly binding my wrists and ankles. Each transformation into my Animagus form gave me a bit more control just enough time to chain myself down. My fangs began to grow, and I bit my wrist to distract myself from the agony. My nails turned to claws, my eyes burned yellow, and I gripped the wooden floor to keep myself grounded. The pain was unbearable, my claws gouging deep into the planks beneath me.

It was useless.

The white wolf emerged. My Animagus, my other self.

After a few days in the cabin, I couldn't take being cooped up anymore. I needed fresh air and some way to process the mess inside my head.

I apparated to the cemetery where my parents were buried. I'd only been there once as a child, so it took some time to locate their grave. After circling the grounds three times, I finally found it an old, worn marker surrounded by wilted flowers and shattered vases. I recognized the damage. I'd done it. On a past visit, I had shattered those vases in a fit of rage.

Rage that still lived in me.

Why did they have to die and leave Anne and me with him, Sollomon. The man who raised his hand more than his voice. The scars on my back still bore witness to his cruelty.

I conjured fresh flowers and cleaned up the mess, then stood in silence, eyes turned to the sky, thinking of them. Tears welled up and fell.

Then, unexpectedly, I noticed the grave beside theirs. My breath caught.

Sollomon.

Anne had placed his grave next to theirs.

I collapsed to my knees.

He was dead... because of me.

Tears turned to sobs, and I screamed into the wind. I stayed there, at their graves, long after darkness fell.