#sallows

Sebastian waited with his arms crossed as his eyes wandered all over the place looking for a sign of any goblin lurking about in the area. His eyes fell on the Rockwood castle whose tower was visible from where he stood. He has seen the Loyalists scurrying to and from the castle. Everyone avoided them but Sebastian knew better. There was nothing to be afraid of these goblins, they didn’t even have a wand. It will take the courage of a few only to put them back in their rightful place. His eyes darkened as he continued to stare at the Rockwood castle.

“Hey there.” MC emerged at his side.

“Oh...you....you made it.” He said with a smile.

“I had to. You asked me to come, didn't you? Although I really don’t want to make things awkward. I mean given the fact Anne is not well and your uncle's mood....”

“Don’t worry. I have told Anne about you. She is looking forward to meet you as well. And don’t worry about my uncle, just ignore him like I do.”

MC noticed Sebastian was clutching something in his hand.

“What is that?” she asked pointing at his hand.

“Oh, this......it’s Shrivelfig....you might have not read....”

“Aren’t they known to have medicinal properties and used in preparing Shrinking solution?” MC said, before he could finish his sentence.

“Right it is. Someone’s been catching up with their work very well. Yes, I read in the book I procured from the Restricted section that the juice of Shrivelfig fruit can is used in preparing the Elixir to Induce Euphoria. But the potion is too much to be honest, so one of the noted Potioneer suggested drinking the juice of the Shrivelfig directly and it did have some positive effects to the drinker who was then contracted by the Flu and at that time it had no cure.

I assumed it can work on Anne, reduce her pain, make her more.....herself." He said with a defeated sigh. "I really miss her. She is not what she used to be anymore. She was the life amongst the three of us and the most mischievous of all. I just want my sister back. That's all.” Sebastian slouched glancing at the tower again.

MC sighed as well. She didn't know what to say at this. She couldn't even understand how he felt exactly. She never had siblings or parents. However watching Sebastian sad made her unhappy and she longed for him to smile, and even more to be the person who could make him smile.

She changed the topic. "Why do you keep looking at the tower?"

"Goblins...they keep coming here. I told this to my uncle but he won't do anything about it. He is an ex-auror." Sebastian grumbled at his uncle's unresponsiveness to this situation.

“Speaking of goblins.....they refer to wizardkind as 'wand carriers', isn’t it?” Sebastian nodded, turning towards MC and narrowing his eyes on her. “Well, I wondered, when you said the goblins cursed Anne. Curses can only be produced by some sort of dark magic or spell which the Goblins aren’t supposed to cast, because they are not allowed a wand.” She paused, tried to reframe her next words wisely.

“Go on.” Sebastian encouraged her.

“Well, when we faced Ranrok in Gringotts, he was using a different type of magic to attack us and none of what we used could disarm him, although he wasn’t using a wand. There was something about the armour he had on and I have seen the Loyalists using the same armours as well. Even the dragon that attacked us had a similar collar on it's neck. And Ranrok is searching for some form of ancient magic as well. I have a feeling all this connects with what happened to Anne but I can’t put my finger on it. I suppose I need to look deeper into it to explain it.” MC bit her lip, wondering if anything she said made any sense.

“I can take you to the place where it happened, after we visit Anne. If that helps.” Sebastian suggested.

“I suppose it can.” MC said, shrugging her shoulders.

“Fine then Anne first, let’s not waste any more time. Follow me.”

***

Sebastian climbed down the stairs and began walking towards the lines of small houses. He turned towards one of them and looked back at MC.

“This it is. We are here. She is just inside.” He said, staring the door longingly.

MC followed Sebastian into their house. Their house reminded her of the story of the siblings Hansel and Gretel, where the witch had a house made of cookies and chocolates and cakes to lure children into her den. Their house almost resembled the one she saw in the picture. She chuckled to herself. Sebastian took notice of that and stopped on his tracks.

“What?” He asked, a frown appearing on his forehead.

“Nothing.” She said, continuing to smile.

“I know its not much....” Sebastian answered, rather a bit offended.

“Oh, Merlin no, I didn’t mean to offend. This house looks like the one straight out of a Fairy tale I read a few years back.”

“What’s a Fairy tale?” Sebastian asked looking confused now.

MC remembered he was brought up in the magical world and had a very little idea about whatever was going on with the Muggles. “Muggle fiction for children. I will tell you about it later.”

Sebastian placed his hand on the doorknob, turned to look at MC and placed his finger on his lips. He slowly turned the knob and opened the door.

There was Anne, sitting at the table, nose deep into a thick book just like her brother. Sebastian slowly tip-toed his way across the hall to reach behind Anne, who still hadn’t the slightest hint as to what was coming and tickled her from behind, shouting near her ears. Anne jumped up from her chair, half shrieking half laughing and hugging Sebastian. A man came out from behind the curtains watching the siblings’ interaction and his eyes then flickered towards MC who was still standing near the door and was smiling at Sebastian and Anne. At the same time Anne noticed her as well.

“Oh, you must be MC, the new fifth-year. Pleasure to meet you. Sebastian told me about you. Actually you are all he talks about in the letters nowadays. MC this, MC that....”

“ANNE!” Sebastian lunged at Anne and tried to cover her mouth with his hand.

"Don't listen to her, she is lying. I don't. I spoke of you in a fair few. That's it." Sebastian said, in between Anne's recitation of his 'boring' letters about MC.

MC couldn’t help but flush at her words.

“Heard you beat him in a duel in the Defence Against the Dark Arts class. Glad someone did. The continuous streaks of winnings were going to his head.” MC extended her hand towards Anne, but instead of a handshake, Anne hugged her.

“Oh.......that’s....thanks Anne. Nice to meet you too. I have heard so much about you from Sebastian and Ominis.” She said, rather sheepishly, looking from Anne to Sebastian to their uncle, who still had a grim look on his face. “Mr. Sallow. I am MC.”

He just nodded to her and turned his back to them. For a moment the three of them looked at each other, not sure what to say. Sebastian suddenly leapt up and dragged Anne back to where he was standing. But this time he was holding that Shrivelfig he has been carrying around for Anne.

“What is it? Is this.....what I think it is?” Anne looked from the Shrivelfig lying innocently on Sebastian’s hand to his happy little face. But before each could say another word or two, their uncle snatched the Shrivelfig out of his hand.

“Hey.” Sebastian called out instinctively.

“We have been through this boy, Shrivelfig can’t reverse a curse, nothing can.” He said looking between the siblings. Then he took his wand out and directed at the Shrivelfig, but before he could think of a spell, the Shrivelfig flew out of his hand and fell onto MC’s outstretched one. Everyone watched the Shrivelfig glide from Solomon’s to MC’s hand and then they all stared up at her, who herself wasn’t sure why she did that.

“How dare you? How did you do that without a wand? Doesn’t matter, give it back.” Solomon yelled at MC.

“Why.” MC asked, her eyes widened with fright looking up at Solomon's angry face as well as anger at what he did. “Sebastian brought this for his sister, why would you take it away from him?”

Solomon walked towards her with his wand out when Sebastian came up and stood in between them and glared up at him.

“You will not talk to her like that.” He said, tears pricking his eyes.

“Perhaps your ‘friend’ needs to learn some manners when she is in someone else’s house. Don’t you know your manners girl?” Solomon shouted at Sebastian and then at MC, who was now looking down, terribly embarrassed of what she did. But she couldn't let Solomon do that..... Her blood boiled with rage when he snatched the Shrivelfig out of Sebastian's hand. She was just reminded of the days when her favorite toy got snatched out of her hand in the orphanage by the elder girls. She had allowed them to get her once, she won’t let it happen again, not to her, or her friends.....when she harbored something so rare and eloquent to defeat them in one go.

Anne suddenly cried out loud holding her stomach and everyone turned to look at her. Solomon made Anne sit down and she tried to take deep breathes, trying to calm herself down and he glared back at them.

“Look what the two of you have done.”

“Anne, I am sorry.” Sebastian winced as his sister cried in pain.

“Get out, both of you.” Solomon shouted with a final glance at both of them. Sebastian turned back, grabbed MC’s hand and walked out of the door.

***

“Sebastian wait,” MC cried out and then he stopped and let go of her hand.

“You got a first hand at what I am dealing with. I apologise on behalf of my uncle. Please, if you will excuse me, I need a moment alone.” He said without looking at her. MC nodded and stepped back, letting him wander by himself for a bit.

“Poor Sebastian, it wasn’t the visit he had hoped for.”

She thought to herself as she turned back hoping to get a glimpse of Anne or perhaps ask her how she is doing but came face to face with Sebastian’s uncle.

“No need to get back in there. She is doing fine without you two interfering. You are as bad as Sebastian. Both of you don’t know when to stop.” MC straightened up at this uninvited array of complements. “Do us a favour, take Sebastian and get out of here, will you?”

“I am extremely sorry Mr. Sallow. It was so wrong on my part to interfere in your family matters. I just have had the bad experiences growing up in an orphanage, some of which included getting something snatched out of my hand by adults or girls older than me.” She held up the Shrivelfig in her hand for him to take it away, silently praying that he wouldn't.

Solomon looked from MC to the Shrivelfig and then left grumbling.

By then Anne was waiting at the door. MC went towards her.

"Are you all right, Anne?”

“I am fine MC. It’s not your fault, neither Sebastian’s. These pains from the curse come in bouts and often suddenly. No one can do anything about it. I know Sebastian wants to help but he can’t. Uncle Solomon is right, there’s no undoing a curse. I hope you can explain him that.” She placed her hand on MC's.

“You and I both know he isn’t going to give up.” MC replied with a sheepish smile.

“I know." Anne sighed, smiling back. "He might still listen to you.”

“For your sake Anne, I will try. But don’t get your hopes up, expect him to appear on the doorstep again with something else up his sleeves.”

“And I guess, you will show up with him too.” MC laughed at her little joke.

“You know we can’t risk leaving him unsupervised.”

The two girls giggled.

Sebastian watched them from afar and couldn’t help a blush creeping back to his cheeks. This is exactly what he wanted, his sister and his new best friend getting along. He smiled to himself watching it happen.

“How is Ominis? I have barely seen him; he writes to me sometimes.” Anne asked, her smile disappearing again.

“He misses you dearly. Always talks about you, especially when we are in the Undercroft.” Anne nodded, getting lost in her thoughts.

“I am getting tired, I should probably rest, thanks for stopping by.” Then she said, letting go of MC's hand.

“Take care Anne.” MC whispered, as Anne went inside, closing the door behind her.

MC walked towards Sebastian who was now petting a creature, that looked like a hybrid of sheep and goat.

“Hey.” She said, looking down at the two of them.

“Hey.” He said back to her, as he let go off the goat-sheep hybrid.

“How are you faring?”

“I am fine. What about you? I saw my uncle talking to you, if he said anything bad, I apologise on his behalf. He has always been like that, even before Anne was cursed. And ever since that happened, he literally hates me for trying to help my own sister. Calls me my 'father's son' as if that's an insult. Don't take his words to your heart."

“It's okay, don't worry about that. I gave the Shrivelfig to Anne. You brought it for her Sebastian, she must have it.” MC answered him with a newly acquired boldness.

“Thank you, MC. I appreciate what you did back there for me.” He smiled at her, both of them watching the sun that was now beginning to set behind the Rockwood Castle.

“I think I may have gone a bit overboard with that. I didn’t mean to offend anyone.” MC answered, now rethinking on what just happened inside Sebastian's home.

“You didn’t.” Sebastian smiled at her. “C’mon I promised to show you the place where it happened.” He said and extended his hand, which MC took without hesitation.

When they walked, MC stared at their join hands and blushed. She truly loved holding his hand like this, it felt so good. She squeezed his hand slightly and he squeezed back in response. They both smiled as both of them felt the heat of the blush creeping up to their cheeks again and their hearts fluttering wildly against their ribs.

Perhaps someday they could walk like for a Butterbeer or two in Hogsmeade...