Legacy Disowned - Book 2

Chapter 15 - I Give Myself Very Good Advice

Dedicated to the Detective - Have fun with this :)

Sebastian was sitting comfortably on some old blankets, his back resting against a twisted old tree on the bank of the Black Lake. This was one of his favourite spots to come and read. It wasn't far off the road to Hogsmeade, just past the old ruins, but very few students ever came this far so he could usually stay here all day without being disturbed. It wasn't like the place was hidden or secret but he'd never even brought Anne or Ominis here, choosing to keep it to himself when he needed a little solitude.

Over the years he'd whiled away countless hours reading, napping or absently stacking and balancing stones as he took in the unmatched view of the castle from across the water. He was feeling particularly peaceful, soaking in the fine weather as he engrossed himself in a new reference novel he'd picked up.

"Darling," he said, not looking up from his reading. "I found something really interesting—"

"Is it under that book?" she shot back teasingly.

He felt the corners of his mouth lift into a smirk, his tongue already crafting the smoothest way possible to infer that what was under the book –currently resting in his lap– was indeed very interesting.

But when he looked up, he found an empty space where he'd been certain she'd been sitting. Sebastian furrowed his brow. He had heard her speak just now, hadn't he?

He looked around to see where she might have run off to, perhaps she'd wandered to find a patch of flowers nearby to weave a daisy chain— but there was no sign of her. The only company he seemed to have was a rabbit, making its way across the bank. It looked incredibly soft and fluffy, its overlarge hazel eyes fixated on its silver pocket watch.

"Oh fuck! Oh fuck! I'm going to be late!" it exclaimed in a sweet and melodic voice as it stamped its tiny foot on the sandy ground in frustration.

Sebastian blinked. It was strange to hear such coarse language coming from such an adorable little thing. But now that he came to think of it, he ought to be surprised that the rabbit was speaking at all, and what's more, he supposed he should also find it strange that the rabbit was carrying a pocket watch. Shouldn't he?

As the rabbit began to scurry away curiosity took hold, a strange lightness in his heart that made him need to know where she was rushing off to. Unable to resist, Sebastian discarded his book and hurried after the white rabbit.

He chased it across the bank and up the twisting path back up to the main road. In what felt like an unnaturally short amount of time, he'd sprinted by the old ruins, past the entrance to the Forbidden Forest and over the old stone bridge. The rabbit abruptly made a sharp right and disappeared into a hedge full of lacewing flies. When Sebastian finally caught up, he found himself staring down a very large rabbit hole. Had this always been here? He knew he probably should have, but he didn't think twice before jumping in after it.

It was hard to tell if he was falling very very slowly or if he was just falling very very far, if he was falling at all. He'd never heard of anyone having this much time to decide if they were falling or not. Surely, he would be able to tell, right?

The thought suddenly came to mind that he really didn't have time for this. Why at this rate he might be falling the rest of his life, and Anne needed him. Anne. That was right. He was supposed to be finding a cure for her, what had gotten into him? Jumping down holes after rabbits when his sister was in such dire need.

But just as he was berating himself he felt a sudden thwump. He had landed rather softly in a pile of yellowed parchment. It looked like old journal entries but he didn't have time to examine them too closely. He needed to find a way back up, to where Anne was surely waiting for him. But just then a pitter patter caught his attention and he turned to see a fluffy pair of ears and a tail disappear around the corner.