Acceptance: Hogwarts Legacy Continued

Chapter 72: Ominis- an actual apology

Ominis tried to tune out the annoying muttering that Sebastian kept doing as he paced across the Undercroft. They had come down after they finished dinner, which wasn't that long ago, but he was acting like it had been hours. He thought maybe though that his friend's impatience had less to do with waiting and more to do with Weasley's "obsessive closeness" with Diana- Sebastian's words. Apparently he had sat with her through dinner, and that seemed to really rub him the wrong way. It was quite hypocritical on Sebastian's part, but in his defense he did seem to be trying to keep his thoughts to himself this time. He hoped for his own sanity though that Diana finished dinner soon.

After a few more minutes the agony could end because the gears started to turn, and like a puppy Sebastian stopped his pacing and Ominis heard him run to the door. He also couldn't stop himself from jumping up at the sound, but he stayed near his chair instead of following suit. He was excited to get to see her again, but he also wanted to hear what Sebastian was going to do.

While Diana was still in hospital he and the other boy had some late night together in the undercroft. Something about what happened that night in Feldcroft had allowed a change in his friend. He wouldn't say that the event changed him, rather it seemed to propel him towards change.

He had listened as Sebastian had apologized to him, feeling the sincerity in his voice as he recollected all the things he had done wrong the previous year. For the first time he felt his friend actually saw the error of his ways, and that while they both valued his motivation for doing so- it didn't excuse the things he had done.

They also talked about all he had done to Anne and Diana, and he asked for Ominis' help on making a plan to help regain their trust- and his. He gave him suggestions, but a lot of their time was spent in silence as Sebastian thought through a lot of things. In the end, for Diana specifically, he had made a list of sorts of things he could do to be a better friend to her. On that list was giving her space, especially personal space when they were together. He had insisted to his friend that to be her friend he needed to help her feel safe, and that meant no unsolicited touching.

He had kind of already failed that though... but Ominis couldn't really hold that against him. He was also so relieved to see her that he held onto her without really checking to see if it was okay. Now though, he was listening to hear if he could put his desires on hold to make sure that she was also comfortable. He knew he missed her, even more than everyone else because of how distant they had been, but this would be a sort of test for him.

As far as he could tell he gave her space because they both walked over to where he was standing near the center of the room. If he had tried to hug her again they likely would have stayed in one place for longer. He let out a sigh, glad that he was making progress already. Now he had to suppress his own feelings to hold her again- he still had a lot of feelings about everything that happened, especially after finding her passed out. He wanted to keep her safe, and having her close seemed like the best way to do that.

"Diana can we-" he started but he was cut off

"Wait before we talk about anything I need to say something." Sebastian cleared his throat, Ominis thought he sounded kind of nervous.

"Listen, I haven't been a good friend to either of you for a while- probably not at all for you-" he assumed he gestured towards the girl "But I want to change that. I don't know what happened when you found me, but what I do know is that since then I feel like I can see everything more clearly. I've done so much to wrong you both and I am so unbelievably sorry. I don't feel like I deserve your forgiveness, even though you have already given it before, but I promise I will do all I can to be worthy of it. I want to be someone who deserves your friendship, even though I know you both would give that anyway as well. I want to be someone you both can rely on and not worry that I will make life harder for you. I'm not perfect, I know I will make mistakes, but I swear to you both right now that I will try with everything that I've got. You two, and Anne, mean everything to me- and I want to have you be a part of my life again."

"Sebastian-" he heard Diana choke out.

"Diana there is so much I want to apologize for, and I will, just um maybe not when Ominis has to be subjected to it. But please know that starting right now I will do all that I can to make sure I am a friend who you want to be around. I promise I-"

It was his turn to get cut off apparently, as he heard Diana dive into him. Was she giving him a hug? For her that gesture seemed a lot larger than anything she could say. But now he felt a little awkward, he was glad that Sebastian didn't go into everything with him there, but he still felt like he was intruding on their moment. Then he felt her hand reach over to his shirt, grabbing at a bunch of it and yanking him towards them. Suddenly he was enveloped in both of them, Sebastian's arm around his back and Diana wrapping her own around his other side.

It was a tender moment, and as uncharacteristic as this all felt for them- Ominis still wished time could freeze for a while. He was so caught up in the emotions of it all that he almost didn't notice the sniffling sound from below him (Diana's head) and tear drops that were falling on his shoulder. He felt an ache in his heart like he never had before which prompted him to move around so he could wrap his arms around them as well. And the three of them stayed like that for a long while- none of them willing to be the one to break the spell.

Eventually though it did need to end, and it was Diana who pushed herself out first. The boys in turn moved out and each took time to get their bearings. After the sniffles had stopped and throats were cleared the room stood silent. Feeling that it was time to move on, Ominis spoke.

"Well, now can we talk about what happened two days ago?"

"Ah yes" Sebastian agreed "I for one have been wanting to ask- Diana what the fuck happened?!" The last part of his question came out in a bit of a yell and the girl did a terrible job covering up her snort of a laugh.