Of Cunning Minds: Sebastian Sallow

Thea had never felt so powerful. Ancient magic buzzed within every inch of her body as she raised her wand. Her eyes connected with a nearby rock and she hurled it at Clyde; he stumbled back, clutching his bleeding head.

She repeated the process, slamming rocks into his staggering form until he was pushed all the way back against the cliff. Her magic crackled at her fingertips and she summoned a bolt of lightning down onto where he stood in the sand. The dagger was still granting him strong protection, but she could tell he was growing weaker.

"Depulso!" she shouted. His body was hurled back into the cliff, causing rocks to spray in every direction. Thea gathered them with her wand and enchanted them to fly directly at his torso. They tore through his suit, nicking his skin with careful precision. He sunk to his knees and ran a hand across his now bloody chest. When he glanced up at Thea, his eyes were twitching.

"You've been holding out on me," he snarled. "Who knew all it took was torturing your stupid, little friend to expose all your hidden powers?"

Thea glared at him but remained silent. She raised her wand and pointed it directly at his head.

"Are you going to kill me, Thea?" he taunted.

She gulped. She knew she needed to, but somehow her anger and strength had dwindled in that moment. The killing curse required intention and precision; she wasn't sure if she could do it. After all, up until a few weeks ago, she could barely cast a summoning charm.

Her moment of hesitation was all Clyde needed. His hand closed tightly around the silver dagger and he lifted it into the air. His other hand drew an intricate pattern with his wand. Latin words poured out of his mouth. He was using the Caedis Curse.

Two yells came from behind Thea. Sebastian was sprinting towards her and Ominis was limping next to him.

Clyde was about to kill her and they would see it. That meant they would die do.

Without thinking, Thea threw her body on top of Clyde's knocking him to the ground.

"You little—" Clyde tried to hurl Thea off him, but she maintained a firm grip around his wrists. Amidst his thrashing, the dagger slipped from his fingertips and landed in the sand to his left.

As if time slowed down, Clyde and Thea both eyed the dark artifact, and then looked at one another. In a frantic scramble, they reached for the dagger. Thea's hand closed around the metal handle first and she plunged it into his ribcage. He screamed in agony and shoved her off his body. Her head smacked against rock and she felt blood trickle down her forehead.

Strong hands closed around her midriff and she was lifted off the sand into a pair of warm arms. Sebastian's panicked voice sounded in her ear; he was swearing and shouting something to Ominis.

Thea blinked and pressed a hand to her head. It was wet and sticky.

"You're okay," Sebastian whispered. "We're getting out of here."

"Wait," Thea said weakly. Her eyes darted around frantically, trying to find Clyde. He was leaning against the cliff, holding his side and spitting blood onto the sand below. Ominis was in front of him, wand outstretched.

"It's over Clyde," Ominis called out.

The injured wizard let out a ragged chuckle. "It worked," he mumbled. "I'm the most powerful wizard in the world."

Thea pushed herself out of Sebastian's arms and moved closer to Clyde.

"What are you talking about," she questioned. "You lost."

He grinned at her with blood-coated lips. "You fools used dark magic and ancient magic, and you still couldn't kill me," he said wildly, looking between her and Sebastian. "I did it, I became unbeatable."

Thea exchanged a nervous glance with Sebastian while Ominis conjured metal binds to secure around Clyde's wrists. His wand and the dagger lay forgotten in the sand.

Clyde swept past the three of them so that he stood in the middle of the rocky alcove. Hands bound, he turned to face them. "It drives me mad that you Slytherins get credit for being the clever ones," he said manically.

Thea, Sebastian, and Ominis all had their wands pointed at him as he spoke.

"Three cunning minds, and you still couldn't kill me!" he shouted. "You're pathetic, just like Salazar Slytherin himself—"

A rock nearby exploded as the Basilisk plowed through it. With a snap of its jaws, it sunk its teeth around Clyde's middle. The man wailed as the serpent thrashed him through the air, finally putting him out of his misery with a sickening crunch.

Both of Thea's hands were covering her mouth. Sebastian's eyes were wide as he watched in horror. The Basilisk slithered towards Ominis and coiled itself neatly beside him, darting its tongue out occasionally to lick up the rest of Clyde's blood from its mouth.

Ominis reached a hesitant hand out to stroke the beast while Sebastian and Thea approached it slowly. It still had the covering over its eyes, but Thea thought the creature looked almost peaceful, resting in the sand.

"Lesson learned: don't insult Salazar Slytherin in front of his Basilisk," Sebastian said with a weak chuckle.

Ominis snorted and suddenly the three of them found themselves laughing uncontrollably. They collapsed onto the sand next to the serpent and smiled at one another. For the first time in a long time, they all felt at ease.