FULL NAME: Ambrose Varyn
HOUSE: Slytherim
NICKNAMES: Rose
GENDER: Transmale
PRONOUNS: He/him
SEXUALITY: Gay
AGE: 15
HEIGHT: 6'1
HAIR: Brown, wavy, long
EYES: Big brown eyes
APPEARANCE: Freckles across nose
WAND: Aspen wood, phoenix feather core, 12 1/2 inches, surprisingly swishy
PATRONUS: Dragon
ALIGNMENT: Neutral good
CANON LI: Ominis and Sebastian
PERSONALITY: Protective, ambitious, resourceful, clever, just. Flexible morals, stubborn, self-isolating
BACKGROUND: The child of two squibs, bitter against the Wizarding World and that resentment building against Ambrose and his little brother Everett when they show signs of magic. Ambrose gets his Hogwarts letter when he's eleven, but his parents forbid him from going and Ambrose starts hiding the letters. Until, at fifteen, his Everett found them and demanded he go. Ambrose relented and wrote back, prompting Fig to arrive and begin tutoring him.
NOTES:
Percival Valley
FULL NAME: Percival Valley
HOUSE: Ravenclaw
NICKNAMES: Percy, Perce
GENDER: Trans male
PRONOUNS: He/him
SEXUALITY: Queer
AGE: 15
HEIGHT: 5'7.5
HAIR: Originally black, magically stuck as purple
EYES: Originally brown, magically stuck as the blue-white of Ancient Magic
APPEARANCE: Covered in freckles from head to toe
WAND: Elder wood, phoenix feather core, unyielding, 14 in.
PATRONUS: Phoenix
ALIGNMENT: Neutral good
CANON LI: Garreth Weasley
PERSONALITY: Protective, loyal, curious, clever, resourceful, adaptable, sarcastic. Stubborn, cynical, untrusting, overprotective, withdrawn, blunt
BACKGROUND:
Son of a wizard (who happens to be a Morganach who ran from Ancient Magic and the Keepers) and a muggle woman, Percival and his twin, Idris, began showing signs of magic early. Idris even accidentally premanently turns Percival's hair purple. They also hae a sister, Annabelle.
Due to bouncing between England (their father's home) and Egypt (their mother's home), they didn't get any letters to magic schools. Until at a family event in Egypt their entire famile is slaughtered, leaving them with nowhere to go except to an orphanage in England. There Fig arrives and begins tutoring them.
NOTES:
- Twins with Idris
- Dies in HL and is resurrected
Idris Valley
FULL NAME: Idris Valley
HOUSE: Gryffindor
NICKNAMES: Dris
GENDER: Genderfluid
PRONOUNS: They/she/he
SEXUALITY: Pansexual
AGE: 15
HEIGHT: 5'9
HAIR: Black, coiled
EYES: Dark brown
APPEARANCE: Covered in freckles from head to toe
WAND: Yew wood, thestral hair core, 13 1/2 in, somewhat flexible
PATRONUS: Panther
ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Neutral
CANON LI: Amit Thakkar
PERSONALITY: Good, brave, heroic, just, moral, kind, genuine, fun. Impulsive, brash, reckless, stubborn, self-sacrificing, naive, immature
BACKGROUND:
Same as Percival
NOTES:
- Twins with Percival
- Necromancer
Odysseus Carrow
FULL NAME: Odysseus Carrow
HOUSE: Hufflepuff
ALIASES: The Owl
NICKNAMES: Ody
GENDER: Trans male
PRONOUNS: He/him
SEXUALITY: Bisexual
AGE: 15
HEIGHT: 5'4
HAIR: Dark brown, wavy
EYES: Black
APPEARANCE: Scar over right eye and eyebrow
WAND: Cedar, unicorn hair core
PATRONUS: Black mamba
ALIGNMENT: Lawful Nautral
CANON LI:
PERSONALITY: Loyal, hardworking, ambitious, protective, intelligent. Deceptive, guarded, rude, judgemental, pessimistic.
BACKGROUND:
Other than his legilimency, Odysseus showed no signs of magic and was believed to be a squib. His traditional pureblood family with ties to poachers already were ashamed of him, which only got worse when he came out as male. They actively ignore this.
After making a deal with Aurors to stop the poachers they turn on Odysseus's father. They burn down their summer room with Odysseus's father inside, and Odysseus feels his father's death because of his ligilimency.
Finally, while exploring with his siblings at fifteen, they stumble upon an Ancient Magic hotspot. This activates Odysseus's latent magic and he finally gets a visit from Fig.
NOTES:
- Born legilimens
Ambrose Varyn (MC) x Ominis Gaunt (Also x Sebastian but focused on the other two)
Summary: How the Crucio scene in the Scriptorium went for Ambrose, Sebastian, and Ominis
The silence of the stone corridor was suffocating. Ambrose had spent most of his life yearning for quiet. Now that he was left with pacing steps, frantic breathing, and ominous whispers, he wished instead to take all those wishes back.
"It's up to us," Sebastian sighed. "I can teach you crucio, or I can cast it on you."
Ambrose grimaced and reached for his wand. He knew he could cast it. He did not doubt his ability to cause harm, especially for those he loved. He'd done brutal things just since arriving at Hogwarts. He could take on this responsibility too. He knew he'd be willing to cast this spell, especially for Sebastian and Ominis. He was sure it would come in handy later too.
It was only once he'd pulled out his wand that it occurred to him. He'd have to use this spell on Sebastian or Ominis. Ominis described this spell as pure torture. Images flashed across his mind's eye of heads slammed into walls and striking hands. The silence was filled with the sound of his brother crying, even Ambrose's own screams. He could cause that harm. He already had. But when he looked at Sebastian and Ominis he knew he couldn't. Not to them.
"I want to learn the spell later," Ambrose admitted slowly, glancing sideways at Ominis. "But you'll have to cast it on me."
"No!" Ominis protested but Ambrose didn't look away from Sebastian.
Sebastian paled, despite being the one to suggest it. Ominis stormed down the short hall until he could grab Ambrose's arm in a vicelike grip.
"You can't do this, I won't let you," Ominis insisted. Ambrose smiled fondly and laid his hand over Ominis'.
"Sebastian is right," Ambrose said. "Someone has to cast it, or we're going to die down here. And for someone to cast it, someone has to cast it. I won't be able to hurt either of you, and I can't ask you to cast this again, Ominis. This is how it has to be, and I'm okay with it."
"You're completely sure?" Sebastian checked and Ambrose nodded and tugged at Ominis' hand until the blonde reluctantly released his arm. Ambrose squeezed Ominis' hand one more time before he dropped it and stepped away, Sebastian watching every movement.
"I am," Ambrose confirmed. "Do you think you can do it?"
"I hope so," Sebastian muttered and raised his wand. "Ready?"
Ambrose took a deep breath and braced himself. It was just pain. He could handle pain. "Do it."
Sebastian took a deep breath himself.
"Crucio," Sebastian said and pointed his wand right at Ambrose's face, but nothing happened. "Oh come on."
"You have to mean it," Ambrose chuckled bitterly. Of course, the only way out was for someone he loved to hurt him and mean it. It went right along with the rest of his life. "That's what Ominis said. You have to really intend to cause harm."
"But I don't want to hurt you!" Sebastian protested. "You're my friend, I, I care about you. I can't hurt you."
"You have to," Ambrose insisted. "Or we're all going to die, slowly. I'll die, Ominis will die, you'll die. With no one else trying to cure her, Anne will die too, painfully. So do it. Torture me, or doom everyone you love."
Sebastian's eyes were wide and shined with tears as they met Ambrose's. Ambrose's words bit right through him, he could tell. That was his goal. Stir up enough emotion Sebastian could channel it over his worry for Ambrose. Anger mainly. Sebastian was always easy to anger, and it was even easier for him to act on it.
Sebastian lifted his wand again and this time Ambrose could see it. There was always this wild twinge in the way Sebastian narrowed his eyes and tightened his lips. It was dangerous and fine like the edge of a knife. He was determined this time. Every emotion Ambrose has stirred up was vibrating through his system and came out in one word.
"Crucio."
Rather than a quick blast or swirl of light, what came out of Sebastian's wand was more like lightning. Bolts of blood-red lightning struck Ambrose's body and ripped completely through him. His bones turned to sand, his veins turned to fire, and his skin shattered like glass. He couldn't even hear his own scream as he crumpled to the ground.
There was the distant sound of running footsteps but it may as well have been across the castle. Voices tried to reach his ears but they'd already melted into his skull. Something cradled his face and at first, Ambrose flinched away from whatever was going to worsen this pain. Then he realized they were hands, hands he recognized, and he leaned into them.
Even still he could barely feel Ominis' hands over the agony. But he could feel how terrified the other boy was. He pressed his forehead to Ambrose's and murmured reassurances Ambrose couldn't make out over his own sobs. He felt tears on his cheeks but he couldn't tell whose eyes they'd fallen from, his or Ominis'.
The pain came in bursts, over and over, one after the other, like waves battering a cliffside. Only Ambrose wasn't made of slowly weathering stone, he was a dissolving pillar of sand being washed away by the curse. He could have been worn down over hundreds of years or torn apart in seconds, he couldn't tell.
Then one day it stopped. Ambrose blinked, trying to clear his vision, and he saw the black door melting away, now shot through with veins of red like marble. His head was spinning and every muscle he had was sore, but the spell had ended. It was over.
Still another sob left him and he grabbed for Ominis' hands on his face. Ominis, beautiful amazing Ominis, immediately understood and gripped Ambrose's hands tightly. He let Ambrose use him as his lighthouse to pull himself out of the waves and safely to shore.
He saw Ominis crouching in front of him and the Scriptorium through the door. He could feel Ominis's hands in his and the tears on his face, things other than pain. He heard Sebastian's wand hit the ground and Sebastian rambling apologies as he fell to his knees next to Ambrose and pulled him into his arms. He could smell the musty corridor and the lingering scent of parchment that seemed to follow Sebastian around everywhere. He could taste blood in his mouth from biting his own tongue.
But it was over.
It was over.
"I'm okay," Ambrose croaked, offering Sebastian a shaky smile when he pulled away. "I'm okay. That, that pain was excruciating. But I'll survive. I'll be okay. We should keep moving before this place decides we're taking too long."
The other two weren't happy about it, Ominis especially, but at Ambrose's insistence, they pushed forward into the Scriptorium. Ambrose didn't process most of it if he was being honest with himself, still trying to shake off the aftershocks of the curse. They found Slytherin's spell book and then finally left, emerging right in front of the entrance to their common room.
"Ominis-" Sebastian said hesitantly.
"Sebastian," Ominis cut him off. "I meant what I said before. We need to swear right now never to engage in anything to do with Dark Magic again."
"I don't-" Ambrose started but Ominis interrupted him too.
"Please, Ambrose," Ominis pleaded. Ambrose sighed. Those spells were certainly useful but he could manage without them if it was what Ominis needed from him. And he had to admit he wasn't inclined to use the Cruciatus Curse ever again now that he knew how it felt.
"Alright," Ambrose agreed. "I swear it."
"We both do," Sebastian added. Ambrose turned to Sebastian in surprise only to see the other boy already looking right at him. "No more dark magic. And I'm truly sorry about what happened to your aunt Ominis."
"I suppose after all this I am grateful to know what happened to her," Ominis admitted. "Thank you."
Sebastian put his hand on Ominis' for a moment and did the same to Ambrose before he walked away and disappeared behind the corner. Ambrose tried to follow but he only made it a few steps. The tension in Ominis' face and the way his hands were clenched kept Ambrose right where he was.
"I know you're still there," Ominis told him. "And I know it's you, Ambrose, I can hear your breathing."
"You've memorized my breathing?" Ambrose couldn't help smiling a little, especially as he watched Ominis realize what he said.
"I, well, yes," Ominis said. "We've spent plenty of time together so your breathing pattern has just become familiar, that's all."
"Of course," Ambrose chuckled as he went back over to Ominis. His eyes fell on Ominis' hands again which were still shaking ever so slightly. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Ominis said.
"Omi your hands are still shaking," Ambrose pointed out. Ominis sighed and after a moment held his hands out and Ambrose took them. He rubbed his thumbs gently on the back of Ominis' hands in what he hoped was a soothing movement.
"I was fine," Ominis corrected himself. "Worried, yes, but despite us being in a secret underground chamber rigged with traps that may have and apparently did take my aunt's life, I was alright. All because you were there. Sebastian too, but there's something about you that makes me feel safe."
"That's all I could ever hope for-" Ambrose replied, but Ominis shook his head.
"Don't speak, please, just let me say this," Ominis asked.
"Okay," Ambrose said and squeezed Ominis' hands.
"You make me feel safe," Ominis repeated. "When I'm with you I feel as though I can truly let my guard down and I don't have to constantly worry. But when you volunteered for that spell, I was afraid again. Knowing you were in pain like that, hearing you scream...it felt like the curse had been cast on me all over again. My very heart felt like it was being tortured right along with you. Then I realized why. It was because my heart was with you."
Ominis let go of one of Ambrose's hands so he could rest his hand on Ambrose's chest. Ambrose could have sworn he could feel the warmth of Ominis' palm even through his vest and shirt. It felt like a wildfire yet it sent shivers across his skin. Ominis' fingers trailed across Ambrose's vest until he could feel Ambrose's heartbeat. Ambrose knew his heart was beating much faster than it should but he didn't pull away. He fought his instincts and let Ominis feel it.
"I'm not sure when, but my heart found its way out of my chest and into yours. And I don't think I want it back."
Ominis' voice was barely a whisper now, but the words still hit Ambrose like they'd been screamed in his face. The whole world had melted away to that corridor, to the boy in front of him, and for the first time, he believed that boy may feel the same way. The words were blunt but fear clogged his throat right alongside his hope.
"Ominis," Ambrose breathed. "Can I kiss you?"
"Please."
The hand not clutching Ominis' instead cupped the other boy's cheek and carefully tilted his face up. Ominis seemed to have stopped breathing altogether and Ambrose was close to it. He couldn't even count the number of times he'd imagined this, how many awful and terrifying things this fantasy had gotten him through. But this was no fantasy. And when Ambrose leaned in and their lips fit together, he knew those fantasies were foolish.
This was better than any fantasy he could conjure up. The feeling of Ominis' lips against his was nothing short of Elysium. His hand moved around to cup the back of Ominis' head, his fingers getting lost in blonde strands of hair. Ominis leaned into him more than Ambrose thought possible. Their lips moved in perfect sync like they'd been born knowing how to kiss the other. At that moment it felt like they had.
When they finally pulled apart they couldn't bring themselves to go too far, lingering in the same breath with their foreheads pressed together. Maybe if they'd gone farther they would have noticed the freckled boy peaking around the corner with his shattered heart at his feet.
Word Count: 1482
Characters/Relationship(s): Ambrose Varyn, Sebastian Sallow, Ominis Gaunt
Setting: 5th year, canon, Undercroft and Room of Requirement
Genre/Tags: Angst, the start of what I like to call the "Sebrose Divorce Arc"
“Now for the moment of truth,” Sebastian said. He was obviously nervous and Ambrose didn’t blame him. If this canvas didn’t fit into the Triptych…
“It has to fit,” Ambrose said.
He approached the triptych and lined up the canvas with the panel on the right side. As soon as he laid it out the canvas piece grew and mended itself until it fit the space so well it was like it had never left it. Ambrose heard Sebastian sigh in relief behind him.
The new view was a coastline, specifically a cliff face with trees lining the top. Ambrose had no idea where it was. He was incredibly lucky Sebastian grew up in the Hogwarts area or they would be completely lost.
“I don’t suppose you recognize the location in this bit of canvas?” Ambrose asked.
“The good news is, I do, in fact,” Sebastian answered.
“And the bad news?”
“We’re in for more trouble.”
Now it was Ambrose’s turn to sigh, though not in relief. Of course. Why could nothing be simple? Why did he have to blast his way through goblins and poachers to complete even simple tasks like retrieving a piece of a portrait?
“I know that coast,” Sebastian told him. There was an edge to his voice Ambrose didn’t like. “Ranrok has taken over a huge mine and the surrounding area. Marunweem has suffered for it. It’s as bad as Feldcroft’s become. Should we head there now?”
Ambrose’s impulse was to say yes and just go to get it over with. What was one more of Ranrok’s messes to clean up? After that he was sure there’d be another. Better to get on top of it and get the job done than whine about it.
Unless there was a better way. Maybe instead of cleaning up all of Ranrok’s messes Ambrose could stop him from making them at all. He already had another pair of eyes that would suit that exact purpose.
“We should wait,” Ambrose suggested.
“Why?” Sebastian demanded. Ambrose narrowed his eyes at the tone but he let it slide like he always did. Sebastian always got touchy around the subject of Ranrok and goblins, but Ambrose knew Sebastian well enough to know touchy was all it would be.
“We’ve been a step behind Ranrok this whole time,” Ambrose pointed out. “I may know someone who could help us get ahead.”
“Who is that?” Sebastian asked. See, he was already more on edge than angry, which was progress.
“A friendly goblin,” Ambrose said, completely thoughtlessly. Maybe the rest of the situation could have been avoided had he put a little more thought into his words and the boy in front of him. “He won’t-”
“A friendly goblin?” Sebastian exclaimed. “You know goblins cursed my sister to shut her up. Said she should be ‘seen and not heard’.”
Ambrose did know that. He bit back another sigh. Sighing seemed to be all he did nowadays.
“I do,” Ambrose replied patiently. “But not all goblins-”
“Not all goblins what?!” Sebastian cried. “Have you forgotten Feldcroft? Have you forgotten the mine we just went through?”
Ambrose felt his fingers clenching into a fist as he tried to control his frustration. Sometimes Sebastian reacted in anger in a way he didn’t mean. All Ambrose had to do was stay calm and the anger would pass. But with Sebastian continuing to interrupt him he wasn’t sure how long his patience would hold.
Ambrose hated being angry. It made him feel dirty and wrong. He especially hated acting on his anger. That made him feel like his mother. His patience was his virtue. It kept him calm, collected, and had saved multiple tense situations from escalating.
But over the last few months he hadn’t been able to wish away his anger. He pushed it away but it just stored itself in the back of his mind. His frustration, exhaustion, irritation, even the pure rage he felt when the Poachers attacked his brother. He was on the edge of snapping already and Sebastian was making it hard.
“No, Sebastian, I haven’t,” Ambrose assured him. “But you aren’t listening to me.”
“Why would I listen to someone so ignorant?!”
Ambrose swung.
His fist collided with Sebastian’s jaw, sending him stumbling into the wall behind him. Before he even realized what he was doing Ambrose swung again, hitting him in the temple and leaving him sprawled on the ground.
“How fucking dare you,” Ambrose growled. “Ignorant? Me?! After everything I’ve done for you? I was right there next yo uou through your tempter tantrums and outbursts and stupid decisions, having your back you ungrateful child. I ask you for this one thing, to have an open mind and be reasonable, and you called me ignorant?!”
“You are so full of spite and bitterness you don’t even see it. How your darkness infects everyone around you. How ignorant you are. I clung to you anyway, so sure I could help you. For once not because I thought it was my responsibility, but because I wanted to because for some reason I care about you. I wanted to be your light but now I’m not even sure you deserve it. You don’t deserve my patience. You don’t deserve my trust. And after that you don’t deserve my friendship.”
“Then keep it!” Sebastian shouted back. “I don’t want it anymore if you’re going to think like this! I don’t want to be saved! I don’t need saved! Anne does! And if you aren’t going to help me get justice for her or save her then stay out of my life.”
Ambrose wanted to stay. He wasn’t sure why. Maybe to apologize. Maybe to yell more. Maybe to try and reason with him. But none of those things happened. None of those things would matter. Sebastian would hear none of them. So he left Sebastian there on a floor with an already forming bruise on his jaw and Ambrose’s broken heart right next to him.
He didn’t really expect anyone to look for him. No one else knew what happened to him. He assumed he could spend the rest of the night right where he was and just gather himself in the morning. As always, he underestimated his boyfriend.
When Ominis found him the Room of Requirement had been completely torn apart. As soon as Ambrose had stormed in he’d sent Deek away so the house elf wouldn’t have to see it, then he started throwing things to the ground and casting every destructive curse he knew. By the time he’d sank to the ground on the staircase, broken and defeated, there was nothing left intact.
His desk was in charred pieces. The potions stations had been demolished, spilling ingredients, glass phials, and deformed cauldrons onto the floor. Dirt covered half the room after he cast bombarda at his plants. Most of them were on fire now. The banners and statues he used to decorate the room had been torn apart.
When the door opened Ambrose didn’t bother to move other than to turn his head. Ominis stood there, wand lit with red light. He seemed frozen, trying to take in however much of the damage his wand could pick up. Ambrose wanted to warn him to be careful since he wouldn’t be able to see things like embers and glass, but his voice didn’t seem to work.
“Reparo,” Ominis casted. The spell worked perfectly. He’d need new ingredients and seeds but everything else fixed itself right before his eyes, down to the Slytherin banners on the wall. He felt sick looking at them now. His brain kept going back to the Scriptorium, where he’d let Sebastian torture him only for everything to end like this.
“Ambrose?” Ominis called into the room, grip on his wand so tight Ambrose could see his white knuckles from across the room. Right, Ambrose probably blended into the chaos Ominis had fixed for him.
“Over here,” Ambrose muttered.
Ominis approached him, putting a hand out to feel the staircase. He slid down to sit next to Ambrose. For a few minutes nothing happened. Neither of them moved or spoke or even touched. Just being around Ominis helped him relax some. It was hard to be angry around him. Not that he had much anger left. Now he just felt lost. At least with Ominis he didn’t feel alone.
“What happened?” Ominis asked quietly.
“Sebastian Sallow,” Ambrose answered, but calling his mumbles speech may be a stretch.
“I see,” Ominis sighed.
He scooted closer and Ambrose turned to rest his head on Ominis’s shoulder. Ominis set down his wand to wrap his arms around Ambrose’s shoulders and just held him. Maybe Ambrose should have cried. He probably needed to. There was no better time to do it. But he didn’t have tears or rage left. All of it was gone along with Sebastian.
