The Hope beneath the Dark - Sebastian Sallow

30. Christmas presents (🌶)

Maude's POV

The two following days without Poppy and Ominis flew by quickly. I must admit, I haven't sleep in my room since they left, so even if I'm happy that my best friends are getting back in time for Christmas Eve, I could easily get used to waking up to Sebastian every morning. This got me thinking about his proposal back at the Yule ball, but even if I would be to accept, we'd need a new plan. My guess is that Anne probably wouldn't let him live in the same home as him anymore.

"How was your trip?" I asked Poppy while the two of us are out in Hogsmeade for some last-minute shopping.

"It was great, my grandmother loved Ominis!" She replied cheerfully. "They are getting along, which I was anxious about at first since my grandmother doesn't particularly like families like the Gaunts."

"I'm sure she quickly noticed what you saw in him. He is so different from the rest of his family." I reassured her as I opened the door to the Broomsticks and Spintwitches sporting needs shop.

"Yes, he is so sweet, and I'm glad she got to know that about him." Poppy smiled. "What were we getting in here?"

Poppy scanned around the shop, which she must've visited only a few times, as she's not playing quidditch and flying didn't seem to be her thing. Well, not on a broom anyway!

"I wanted to buy a Christmas gift for Sebastian, and I thought about a brand new broom for when the season start again would be perfect!" I admitted as I waved to Mr. Weekes.

"Oh, I see!" She cheered.

"Welcome back miss Ainsley! Hello to you too miss...?" Mr. Weekes asked.

"Sweeting. Poppy Sweeting." She answered softly.

"Well, glad to see a new face here! What can I do for you today?" Mr. Weekes asked before noticing me get close to one particular broom displayed on a stand. "Ahh... The Silver Arrow, of course! One of the best brooms of our time, if not the one!"

"Maude! Are you serious? This is so expensive!" Poppy exclaimed.

"You think it's too much?" I turned to her worried.

"No, it's not that... You know, sometimes I forgot the little fortune you made saving the Wizarding World! Never mind me." She laughed. "You were right, it's the best gift you could think of!"

I nodded and turned to Mr. Weekes, who was patiently waiting for me to speak up.

"This is the one, I'll take it." I informed him.

"Should I wrap it up in a gift paper for Mr. Sallow?" The man asked, with a knowing and cheerful smile.

"News travel fast with popular quidditch players!" Poppy mocked me.

I let out a subtle laugh and resumed to Mr. Weekes.

"Yes, please." I responded.

Poppy bought a braille book that she ordered weeks ago for Ominis, that Mr. Brown had also wrapped carefully when we went in Tomes and Scrolls to pick it up. We agreed on not offering a gift to each other, so instead we bought matching Christmas sweater with an enchanted reindeer running around a Christmas tree, a special item that we found at Gladrags Wizardwear.

The weather was particularly cold today, so we walked back at a quick pace. The scenery of the snow softly falling over the castle was wonderful, almost making us forget that our toes were turning purple.

The boys were waiting for us next to the hourglasses. Sebastian gave a little nudge to Ominis when he spotted us from afar. We shared a big smile before I arrived next to him, and we all headed inside the Great Hall.