Legacy Disowned - Book 2

Chapter 24 - A Bad Omen

Of course.

Of course there would be a blizzard today. Why not? Of course whatever force of nature or deity that existed would not be satisfied with Darling simply going missing. No, of course they would have to make finding her more dangerous and difficult. Because, at this point, it was very clear to Sebastian that whoever they were, they were determined to make him and those he loved suffer as much as humanly possible.

The entire school was positively buzzing with gossip about Darling's dubious past. And, in proper Hogwarts fashion, everyone had already drummed up their own opinion without taking so much as a moment to question her side of things. How quick they all were to forget the person they knew, that they saw walk the halls everyday, who had single handedly saved the school last year, and condemn the person printed in black and white on a stupid piece of parchment. And now, Darling was gone.

Missing! Sebastian corrected himself as he wiped away the ice crystals that had gathered on his brow and eyelashes. Darling couldn't be gone. She wouldn't just leave him –them– just like that, no matter how bad things got. She was out here somewhere, panicked and alone. Sebastian just needed to find her.

Since there was no way for Ominis to be of help on a broom, he'd stayed behind to search the castle, but Sebastian was quite certain that search would be fruitless. Not only had Ominis witnessed her take off, but knowing Darling, there was no way she'd be seeking refuge anywhere she could be easily found. But that wasn't going to stop Sebastian.

He'd been hopeful for a moment when he'd found Jackdaw in the Hogsmeade Cemetery engaged in some macabre travesty of a "snowball" fight with the Headless Hunt. But after vanishing for almost a quarter hour to "check somewhere," the ghost had returned looking disconcertingly worried and reported that he had no idea where she could be.

So Sebastian had taken off into the snowy sky, determined to check every single hamlet, cave, and ruins in the damned highlands until he found her. But he'd been at it all day, and the light flurries of the morning had now escalated into full white out conditions.

Frozen to his broom, his cheeks burning from the cold, Sebastian's own situation was becoming increasingly dire. He could hardly see an arms length in front of him and with the way the wind was tossing him about, he could barely orient himself to up versus down much less point himself in an actual direction. At this point he dared not even attempt to land, it was likely only thanks to his altitude that he hadn't crashed into anything yet.

But despite all that, Sebastian's fears right now were for Darling. According to Ominis, her vitals had been incredibly erratic when she left. She'd gotten on her broom in a state of complete panic and now was out there in this. What if she'd crashed? What if she was injured and trapped somewhere? Or what if... a small, cruel voice in the back of his mind spoke up, What if she is perfectly fine? She is the most resourceful witch you've ever known. Always prepared. She has everything she needs in her "disappear bag."

Sebastian shook his head, trying to dispel the thought when, suddenly, through the downpour, he caught a flash of black. And then another. A swipe of batlike wings.

He swerved, speeding in the direction that he'd thought he spotted the creature. Yes! There, up ahead, set against the overwhelming white, was a pair of black wings, gliding across the turbulent winds with an otherworldly grace. A thestral.

Sebastian urged his broom after it. No matter how much they unsettled him, he knew the creatures to be highly intelligent with an uncanny sense of direction. He could follow it to the ground. There he could get his bearings back and reassess.