Velvet Whispers | Sebastian Sallow

Ch 1. Next Stop: Hogsmeade Station

The whistle of the Hogwarts Express usually stirs one of two emotions in me: either a sense of longing or a rush of excitement. Longing when I'm watching it depart, wishing for just a little more time with friends as it pulls away toward King's Cross, carried by the warm breezes of summer. Excitement, though, for days like today, when I'm just moments away from reuniting with everyone after three long months apart.

But where was the excitement now?

All I felt on the ride over was a gnawing sense of nervousness. Each blurred tree passing by the cabin window seemed like another looming, unwelcome possibility for this final year. I sat angled toward the glass as I chewed absently on my thumbnail. My knee bounced so erratically that I nearly didn't notice Poppy Sweeting as she settled into the seat across from me, carefully balancing a saucer of tea cakes in her lap — just in time to avoid me kneeing it out of her hands.

"Merlin, MC! You're jumpier than a giant purple toad today!"

"Shit, I'm sorry, Poppy," I said, attempting to catch any of the cakes that may fall off the plate. "I think I'm just excited to get back to the castle." I feigned a smile.

She narrowed her eyes at me, exaggeratedly squinting as she held my gaze and took a slow, deliberate bite of a tea cake. She didn't look away — or drop the squint, for that matter. I couldn't blame her; I wouldn't believe my fake ass smile.

I'd been lucky to spend the past two summers with her and her gran at their cozy cottage when I wasn't off working with the Ministry to sharpen my magic. After all that time together, she could read me like a book.

"What's that look for?"

"You think I don't know you at all, MC."

I arched one brow at her silently.

"I've seen an excited you on the way to Hogsmeade Station before, and this is not her. Usually, it's 'Another year, another adventure!' or something equally chipper when you're reuniting with everyone on the train. But you've been quiet the whole ride over." Another bite. "You feem nervouf," she said through full cheeks.

Surely she was mistaken. I couldn't be making my nervousness that obvious, could I? Then again, if anyone would catch it, it'd be Poppy — my best friend and the one person who'd tell me straight if I looked off-kilter. Not that I even knew *why* I was nervous to begin with! Everything had been fine: I'd had a relatively normal sixth year after my rather... eventful debut at Hogwarts. And yes, I'd absolutely call defeating the leader of the goblin uprising and his dark magic allies — while also losing my mentor — a considerable achievement for a first year in the wizarding world. No lingering trauma to unpack there. Nope, none at all.

Following the events of fifth year, the faculty had agreed to assist me in honing my magic by sending me on international expeditions with the Ministry of Magic. After a thorough, and rather degrading, assessment of my abilities as they interact with my body, I was deemed "safe" by the Ministry while under faculty supervision. Pfft. They should go ask my surviving witnesses from when I was 16 if they think I can't control my magic. I'm sure Mr. Rabe would give me a glowing review of my abilities after having saved him. Or the handful of Hogwarts students whom I accompanied on life-threatening missions. Perhaps even Biscuit. She saw a thing or two.

But no one could vouch for my control over my abilities like Sebastian Sallow. Thankfully, he'd come to understand the importance of magical restraint — something we'd practically taught each other through countless spells and close calls. We almost taught each other that aspect of spellcasting. Hell, he practically taught me half of my spell deck. I can still picture the way his eyes would gleam every time I mirrored his interest in the less... conventional branches of magic back then. He kept me safe by drilling me on incantations, wand movements, stances, everything. He guided my every motion.

The memory of his veined hands, steady and firm over mine as he corrected my grip on my wand, or the way his hand rested on my shoulder, grounding me from behind...

My thoughts were interrupted by an audible crunch coming across from me.

"I don't know what you're on about," I said, turning back to the window, feeling the heat emanating from my cheeks.

Poppy sighed. "I can't wait to see what everyone's been up to this summer," she said, changing the subject. "I heard Amit found a long-lost constellation and Garreth discovered a curing draught."

I looked back at her. "A draught to cure what?"

"His other concoctions."

We giggled and carried on talking about the others in the gang until Poppy hit me with it.

"How's Sebastian been this summer?"

I pricked my ears up at the sound of his name. He seemed to always be a figment of my imagination until someone spoke him back into existence.

"I haven't the foggiest," I said bleakly, twirling my fingers in my lap.

"Surely you two owled over the summer?" She tilted her head at me.

"Well, I reached out a couple of times during my travels with the Ministry keeping him updated but I never received a response. "

"Hmm. Curious." She looked out the window.

"What is it?"

"It's just... didn't he also send you only a couple of letters last summer too? When you began your travels with the Ministry to hone your magic?"

"I mean, yeah... but-"

"And I also didn't see you two interact last year nearly as much as you did in fifth year."

It was true. While we were still friends, a strange distance had started to grow between Sebastian and me last year. In fifth year, we'd been inseparable, owling each other almost daily and meeting up at every chance. But by the end of sixth year, that closeness had faded — we'd drifted to little more than friendly glances across the classroom.

"I think losing Anne might have taken a toll on him," I thought out loud. If I rationalized it to Poppy, maybe I can rationalize it to myself? "Maybe he's just found it difficult to be around everyone enjoying school while Anne is gone and suffering."

"Tell that to his brother from another mother. He wrote Ominis nearly every day for a month while he went searching for Anne one last time."

I immediately sat up towards her, brows furrowed. "What?!"

Poppy looked back at me after taking yet another bite. A muffled 'What?' came from her lips before she swallowed.

"Yeah, Ominis kept me up to date on our Venomous Tentacula project from Herbology last year and told me Sebastian nearly took it with him when he left to go look for Anne. Sebastian even owled me asking where to find the best quality Tentaculas when Ominis wouldn't let him take ours. It's strange he hasn't reached out, MC. You two were practically inseparable."

It seemed everyone had the privilege of gracing Sebastian's mind at some point recently.

Everyone but me. So much for inseparable.

I sat back against the cushion and looked to the side crossing my arms, letting out a sigh of disbelief. "Motherfucker..."

Suddenly, the loud whistle sounded from above, making me jump and Poppy lose her last cake to the floor, a look of defeat on her face.

"Now arriving: Hogsmeade Station!"

I leaned my head back on the cushion and sighed.

Another year, another adventure, indeed.