In the Brilliance of Longing | Ominis Gaunt

In the Brilliance of Burden

6:18pm - December 9th, 1891: The Room of Requirement

"It's so confusing, what with the Keepers named the same thing we are. We should come up with something else," Poppy explained as I removed the Sigils from their small silver chest. The four of us were standing around the table in the training hall as I cross referenced Rackham's journal while turning over the small emblems in my hands.

"She's got a point," Ominis agreed, "it does make things a bit complicated."

I saw from my peripheral Natty smiled and nodded, also in agreement. I shook my head, amused with my friends' ramblings about something so unimportant. Nurse Blainey had finally allowed me to return to my daily activities yesterday evening, and I was already back in the vices that took me out for so long. Their lack of focus was refreshing, but I suppose I had a whole year's experience with the Keepers and their games. Or perhaps I was the problem, only able to dedicate my attention to one or two things at a time.

There were four Sigils total, as expected. They were all very similar and made of goblin metal. They were small figure eights, about three centimeters tall and two wide, and the lower curve was not a complete circle. The upper bit had a small clear crystal laid within the tarnished silver. Three had the tail of the S-shape facing to the left, and one to the right. I'd heard the gentle whispers of ancient magic coming from them the moment I opened their case, and after reading through the activation section once more, I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.

I placed my hands over all four Sigils and did exactly as Rackham's journal said. I felt my powers seeping from myself and into the charms, as if breathing life into them. I had barely finished when Natty grabbed one from the table.

"It's glowing!" When I opened my eyes, sure enough, it was. They all were, just very faintly.

Poppy picked one next. "I can see this one!"

I grabbed the oddly shaped one for myself before handing the last Sigil to Ominis. I could tell by his stance he was out of his element. He couldn't see anything. I wondered if the Sigil's magic would even affect him, but once each charm had found its owner, the training hall dimmed. Suddenly, the hall shifted around us, creating a seemingly endless maze of columns. It was just like vault twelve at Gringotts. I tried to explain myself, but as I looked around, my friends were gone. Ominis, Poppy, and Natty were nowhere to be found.

I called for them, nothing. I cast Lumos but that didn't seem to help either. Defeated, I just decided to follow my instincts and look for wells of ancient magic. This had to be the Room testing us for Sight.

I walked around the endless corridors, hoping to see or hear wisps of the magic. Nothing. I even tried using Revelio , but that was no help. I had to have been pacing around for twenty minutes or so when I finally saw the faintest glow on the floor in the distance. I ran to it, staring into the small puddle of magic at my feet. It wasn't swirling or bubbling nearly as much as usual, but I stood above it and waved my wand above my head, allowing the magic to completely cover me.

I was back in the training hall. Ominis was pacing before me, and the moment he noticed my presence he ran to me. "Katherine, where have you been?" He brought me to his chest, wrapping his arms around me, "I was so worried about you." I could hear his heart beating rapidly in his chest as I laid against it, and although it was a very sweet gesture, I was certainly caught off guard.

"Ominis, I'm fine," I reassured him. I knew deep down that he had been traumatized from my injury, and I felt terrible. I just wish I could recall those final moments. "It just took me a while to find my way back." I assumed my friends had been put in a similar situation, and it seemed I had made the correct assumption. Speaking with the three of them, it only took them a few moments each to find their magic wells. My Sight was heavily burdened while theirs developed, just like Rackham wrote.