Different Times: Sebastian Sallow x Reader

1 - Summer Preparations (intro)

I was always closest with my great-great-grandparents. It sounded strange, considering they were well over a hundred years old and I was only seventeen. But they had aged incredibly well, and honestly could still pass for in their forties.

After graduating from Hogwarts, they had both become Aurors, and over time it slowly turned into the family buisness. I never had any ambitions to follow that path myself. I didn't want to work for the Ministry or any form of the government, especially after being an Auror took so much from our family. In the end, all I had left was my mother and great-great-grandparents.

The Aurors in our family had fought against the Death Eaters, led by our distant cousin, Tom. Things had become far more complicated for us after their rise. Everyone assumed we supported them because of our name, but we were the ones fighting them with what little family we had left. We might bear the Gaunt name, but none of us shared their beliefs.

It had been the four of us against the world for as long as I could remember. Grandpa Ominis rarely spoke of the rest of the family, though he sometimes mentioned his aunt Noctua. She had left him everything to him, it wasn't a lot since she was still a student when she passed, but whenever he spoke of her, he always spoke of her kindness.

Every summer I spent two weeks with my grandparents before leaving for the coast to help protect the Graphorns from poachers. My grandmother has always shared a strong connection with magical beasts and worked tirelessly to keep them from extinction. It was a passion we both shared.

One day, before I left for the coast, my grandparents pulled me aside.

"Do you remember the bedtime stories we used to tell you?" my grandmother asked gently. "About me saving Hogwarts... and the life of my dear friend?"

"Of course," I said with a small laugh. "Those were always my favorites. My grandmother the hero."

She smiled softly, but there was worry in her eyes.

"You've been at Hogwarts for six years now," she said. "Have you ever seen any of the same magic I used in those stories?"

I frowned slightly, thinking back.

"Sometimes I see strange glows around certain objects," I admitted. "But they're never there for long."

For years I had assumed I imagined them. Everyone always said I had an overactive imagination.

My grandmother let out a quiet sigh of relief. Beside her. my grandfather reached over and gently squeezed her hand.

"That's good to know, sweetheart," she said softly. "Hogwarts needs someone with ancient magic again."

The words made me pause.

Ancient magic?

I must have looked confused, because my grandmother hesitated before continuing. She glanced toward my grandfather, and for a moment neither of them spoke.

"We've always told you of our close friends Anne and Sebastian," she finally said.

My grandfather shifted slightly beside her.

"Are you sure this is the right time?" he asked quietly.

She took a slow breath before answering. "It has to be. She deserves to know."

I stayed silent, sensing that whatever they were about to tell me was important.

"We never told you why they never came around," my grandmother continued.

I nodded slowly, urging her to go on.

"Sebastian became very ill during the summer between our sixth and seventh year," she said. "No healer or hospital could help him."

She paused again, her grip tightening slightly around his hand.

"So I used blood magic... and ancient magic... to send him to one of my descendants."

My mind spun.

"Then why haven't we heard about him yet?" I asked, completely bewildered. "Shouldn't it have already happened?"

My grandfather tilted his head slightly, as if listening to something only he could hear. Even without his sight, he always seemed to sense when something was coming.

"That, my dear," he said thoughtfully, "is where you come in."

"I can feel something changing," he continued. "I believe you'll be the one to help him, with new knowledge, and with the ancient magic you carry."

He sighed softly.

"And I hope you can help him and Anne finish their final year at Hogwarts. So much has changed... and I worry he might do something reckless if left on his own."

"But why me?" I asked, still overwhelmed. "You still have your abilities."

My grandmother gently took my hand.

"Because you are the reason the spell is bringing him here now," she said softly. "You're capable of more than you realize. You're a smart girl, you'll figure it out."

I squeezed her hand and gave her a reassuring smile.

"I will do my best to save your dear friend."

My grandparents had already sent my bags ahead while I was saying goodbye to my mother. After hugging her, I turned back and wrapped my arms tightly around them both.

"I promise I'll do everything I can."

They each kissed my cheeks before I stepped into the fireplace. A flash of green from the Floo powder swallowed me whole.

"Off on another adventure are we?"

I rolled my eyes.

You'd think after two hundred years she'd be a little less annoying.