Chapter Text
The evening had finally come. Trying to swallow your tension, you tug at the bateau neckline of your wedding dress, mindlessly adjusting it for no particular reason at all. Poppy laughed to see the usually confident and brazen you in such a state.
“Relax, MC, you look really beautiful.”
“Merlin, I just can’t believe that I am marrying Sebastian Sallow.”
“But both of you have been dating for 11 years! And hasn’t Sebastian been asking you every year to marry him?”
You sigh, “I suppose his persistence was getting so annoying, that I had no choice but to marry him to shut him up”
Poppy knew better and slapped her shy friend teasingly on her left shoulder. Almost as if on cue, the wedding march started to play.
“See you soon, Mrs Sallow!” Poppy laughed gleefully, pushing you towards the silver-knobbed wooden door, where Ominis stood in a swallow-tailed suit.
“You have my deepest congratulations, MC,” he murmured. Your heart tightened for a moment, knowing how much it must have taken for Ominis to be here today. He had made known his affection for you in the seventh year of Hogwarts, never demanding anything more than for you to know how he felt. Throughout your relationship with Sebastian, he had never intervened, and simply supported the two of you through the petty squabbles and the heights of ardour of the relationship. When he learned that you had accepted Sebastian’s proposal, knowing that you had lost your father at a young age, he offered to be the one to walk you down the aisle.
“Over the years, I have come to learn that being contented is the best state to be in. And that if I want to have you, I must let you go,” he whispered softly so that Poppy would not hear his words. Brushing your wispy bangs away, he bent down and placed a gentle kiss on your forehead.
“This is my blessing to you and Sebastian. Go, and be happy always. If he ever hurts you, promise me that I will be the first to know.”
Tears welled up in your eyes. Ominis was a precious friend to you and in some ways, your soulmate even more than Sebastian was. He was clearly pursued by many a fair lady but he always gave the excuse that he did not want the Gaunt line to continue through him. You felt forever in his debt and painfully undeserving of his love.
“Thank you Ominis, thank you so much,” you enveloped the handsome blond man in your arms and hugged him tightly. For a moment, the orchestral melodies dimmed in your ears and the world was silent.
“Sebastian awaits you, let’s go,” he places your hand on his arm and pushes the wooden door open. You look ahead at the red carpeted walkway, the pews full of guests and Sebastian standing in a black tuxedo at the altar, not noticing that behind Ominis’s reassuring smile was a veiled and indescribably pained expression.
“About time for a proper Mrs Sallow welcome!” Sebastian shouted cheekily across the entire chapel, his fingers locked in a cradle, just like how he was at your first herbology class. Your cheeks burned with embarrassment, and you couldn’t help but retort, “Sallow, stop acting like the muggles. I am not chattel.”
“Haha, look at how shy she is. Let me remind you that you still have to kiss me in front of all the people here today!” he smirked, stretching his arms wide open.
“Brother, can you please not embarrass the Sallow family on your big day?” Anne shook her head and reminded the man-child who was supposed to be her big brother. Their Uncle Solomon also did not seem impressed.
Uncle Solomon…?
“Mr Sallow, may I remind you of the sacred nature of this ceremony?” the minister coughed, his eyebrow twitching. Sebastian couldn’t care less. Instead of waiting for you to be brought to him, he ran down the aisle in big strides till he was in front of you and Ominis.
“MC, from this day onward, you are mine. I swear to make you the most fortunate witch, nay, woman in the world.”
He said it so sincerely and earnestly, without any hesitation or embarrassment, that you were completely entranced by his words and grin. This was the Sebastian that you first met in the Slytherin common room, the Sebastian that you duelled at DADA, the Sebastian that escorted you to Hogsmeade.
You hadn’t realised it then but now, it dawned upon you that perhaps you had liked him for far longer than you had even realised.
His arms wound around your waist and his lips came crashing down upon yours. You could hear Garreth making catcalls in the background, the deeply vexed curses of Solomon, and the shuffling of leather shoes on the ground as Ominis moved away.
Bloody Sallow, he always knew he could get away with everything.
Unwillingly, you found yourself lost in his unbridled affection, and you returned the kiss to the cheers and applause of your friends.
Suddenly, you felt his lips leave yours and he tugged at your hand.
“Let’s go, MC!”
“Where?”
“Far away from this place, to a world where there is only the both of us!”
He didn’t even bother to wait for your answer and was running out of the door, tugging your hand. You quickly threw the bouquet in your hand to shed the unnecessary baggage and followed him to a single broomstick lying in wait. He beckoned you to hop onboard and he forcefully wrapped your hands around his waist. Whoosh! The broom went spiraling into the air that was filled with the smell of spring, promise and dew. From up above, you could even see Edinburgh and Glasgow, as he whisked you away into the clouds.
“A beautiful night with the stars for my beautiful wife,” Sebastian beamed, “You know, I am 100% sure that you wanted to kiss me at the Astronomy Tower during Year 6.”
“That’s not true.”
It was in fact completely true but Sebastian’s smug expression was highly unpersuasive in encouraging a confession. Why did you even agree to marry him? He is never going to let you forget that you are now Mrs Sallow.
Sebastian laughed, “Ok, you can deny it all you want. But I can openly and honestly tell you - actually I had a secret thought that night that maybe you might be my wife one day, and guess what? I was completely right!”
“Sebastian, you made that up.”
“Merlin, no. And let me tell you too, I also thought that night that maybe….we could have a family together. You know, I always wanted a complete family of my own. Even though Anne being around made things infinitely better, I never liked staying with Uncle Solomon. That’s why Anne and I moved out after my graduation. And now that we are married, I think we should get our very own place! Big enough to house all the cute Sallow babies.”
“Sebastian…we literally just got married.”
“Time waits for no one.”
“Do you promise to do the late night shifts, take care of the dirty diapers and pacify the incessant cries?”
“.....Never thought about that.”
“Sebastian Sallow, you are eminently not suitable to being a father. Not now at least.”
“Ok, maybe I didn’t think this thoroughly enough but I…still want you tonight in more ways than one.”
You blushed furiously. It was not as if you and Sebastian hadn’t done this before, but it was the way he was so unabashed about it, the way he was looking at you with equal amounts of lust and love, the way in which the moonlight was streaming onto his admittedly good-looking face.
“....fine. But we need to get back to the hotel.”
“Boring, I thought maybe we could try it outdoors.”
“SEBASTIAN!” you tried to hit him on his head and he narrowly dodged your chop.
“Hahahaha, you are so cute when you get flustered. Anything for you tonight, my love,” he pecked you on the cheek and the broomstick danced into the air.