Under Your Scars || Sebastian Sallow x MC

Chapter 12 - For A Slytherin

Juliette POV

"You got this. Again!" I shouted to my new protege. Rosalie had been trying to produce an Ancient Magic Throw for almost an hour, with poor results. 

I wanted her to have some tools at her disposal before going into her first trial, which we intended to escort her to in the morning. She would start with Rackham's trail first, as I did. She, Sebastian and I spent every evening in the Room, training and developing her Ancient magic. 

"What am I doing wrong?" Rosalie groaned. 

"Stick to basic spells while your ancient magic builds, nothing too fancy. Then, release it at the right moment. You're exhausting yourself because you're trying to tap into your magic too early and there's not enough there to be effective. Don't try to suppress it or let it built too long either, it'll be too strong to control."

"That doesn't sound complicated at all!" her voice dripped with sarcasm. She sighed as she resumed her position on the platform.

 "Someday it will be as easy as breathing, Miss Corben. Trust me." I held out my wand. "Ready?"

Sebastian coached her from the side of the platform as we sent spells at one another, my eyes drifting to him occasionally and distracting me from the duel. Watching him teach filled me with such warmth and admiration, seeing the care he poured into his students. 

He was especially great with Rosalie. He acted more paternal with her than he did with any of his other students, protective even. She seemed so comfortable coming to him not just regarding her academics, but also just life in general.

My thoughts drifted to a time that I was also so eager to learn from him. From Crossed Wands to spell practice in the Undercroft, I owed much of my magical education to him. 

It was quite serendipitous that he had the chance to tutor not just one, but two Keepers of Ancient Magic.

My train of thought was violently derailed by the sight of a cauldron flying straight toward my head. With no time to react with a spell, I ducked as it flew over me and crashed into my mooncalf statue, smashing it to pieces. 

Rosalie dropped her wand and put her hands over her mouth. "Oh Merlin! I'm so sorry Miss Fontaine!"

"That... was... bloody BRILLIANT!" Sebastian wasted no time celebrating as he pumped his fists in the air. "Well done, Miss Corben!" 

She forced a half smile.

"Better the statue than my head," I cast a quick Reparo charm to clean up the mess. "We'll practice this until its mastered then we can revisit your lightning strikes."

"Alright, Miss Corben, try me." Sebastian taunted as he took my place on the platform, rolling up his sleeves. Rosalie eyed me apprehensively. It was the first time she would duel her Dark Arts professor. 

They dueled for considerably longer than she ever had with me, and she was putting up a good fight. Sebastian worked up a sweat trying to keep up with her spell casting, his black button down began to cling to his skin and his hair was a tousled mess. 

The aggression with which he dueled was doing something to me and for some reason I wanted so badly just to run my hands through his messy hair. I felt a new kind of warmth as my eyes traveled down his body. 

His veins were bulging on his now-visible forearms, his shirt was clinging to him in all the right places, revealing just how... sturdy he had become since I saw him last. 

I quickly averted my gaze, ashamed of the thoughts I was having about a man I called my friend. 

Once I snapped out of my trance, I realized just how much time had passed.