In the Brilliance of Longing | Ominis Gaunt

In the Brilliance of the Trial

(a/n: i really don't like the way this chapter came out, and the longer it sits the more i want to rewrite it. sorry it's not my best work! just wanted to continue the story without it taking another 8 months lmao)

9:56am - December 19th, 1891: The Keeper's Trial

It was well below freezing in the cavern despite the air being deathly still. The braziers that lit the path downward offered little solace from the temperature as they were few and far between. Natty and Poppy were a few meters away, but I could see in the dim light how their breath fogged and left behind a trail as they continued further. Ominis was next to me, his hand still locked in mine. I was still so angry - at him or the situation, I hadn't decided - but his presence still calmed my body. Although I found comfort in his touch, the thought of him and Anne made me ill. Luckily, Poppy pulled me from my thoughts as she called out ahead.

"Kitty! It's another door!" I dropped Ominis' hand and jogged forward, catching up to the two girls. We were face to face with a locked door, similar to those in previous trials. I lifted my hand to feel the cold metal gate covering the door.

"Find the plates, just like last time. They have to be around here somewhere." I was slightly concerned that I hadn't seen even one on the journey down here, but I was preoccupied with thoughts of Ominis and Anne. Perhaps I had just missed them.

"It is so dark down here. I am unsure how we intend to find them like this," Natty said as she cast Lumos . However, it was as if the darkness around us snuffed out the light at the tip of her wand. At the same time, the little bit of glow from the braziers closer to the entrance smothered themselves out, leaving us in complete darkness. Instinctively, I reached for the nearest person and grabbed Natty by the arm.

Natty, Poppy, and I kept trying to cast the wand-lighting charm to no avail. All of the lights we created were quickly eaten up by the darkness. Ominis was the one to break the cacophony of Lumos . "I do not think we are getting closer to solving our problem." We girls were silent. The lack of light obviously didn't affect him the way it affected us. I sat in the quiet stillness for a moment, pondering potential solutions while my friends shuffled around me.

I was pulled from my thoughts by a loud crash, the sound of metal hitting the stone floor echoing all around us, and a few muttered curses followed by a soft " Sorry " from Poppy. She sounded so close to me, though. Much closer than any of the braziers had been while we could still see. Ominis must have realized this simultaneously as he cast Incidio , briefly lighting a nearby brazier that certainly had not been there mere moments ago. However, the charm was once again smothered by encapsulating darkness. I sighed, "That didn't work." I saw the boy's furrowed brow and uncertain expression cast in the last light of embers.

'These braziers aren't like normal ones, though,' I thought as I felt around for the one closest to me. My hands met the cold, damp stone wall, and I walked forward, trying to find one of the metal basins. I misstepped, tripped over myself, and my searching hands made sudden contact with someone, the warmth of their body a welcome comfort after gliding my hands across the stone wall. I could feel their heartbeat against their tight chest - it was Ominis. "Apologies," I muttered, pulling my hands back and reaching my left hand where I believed the brazier was. Before I could get my hands too terribly far, he grabbed my right hand and placed it back on his chest where it was previously, laying his hand gently over mine. I could feel his pulse quickening.

"It's quite alright, love." My face flushed as I felt the vibrations of his tenor through his chest. I swallowed the feelings away just as I felt the edge of the silver basin. I took my hand from Ominis' chest, grabbed my wand, and cast Frigus Flamma , the bluebell flame charm. The brazier came to life instantly.