#7 - Uncut Gems

Seebastian's efforts to get the attention of the nifflers worked, as several peered out from bushes or the sand itself. With more than one student present, they were quite intrigued yet some a bit too shy to approach. Two nifflers hurried over, peering at one student each.

A round, fluffy boy eagerly stared at the gems Sebastian had, though had just enough restraint not to grab them all and flee. He waited, eyes wide and desperate, for Sebastian to decide to bestow one as a gift.

A sleek niffler stared up at Victoria, wondering if she had gifts as well but wasn't able to see any clearly. She sniffed around the girl's shoes, as if that would somehow help her in the quest for answers and shiny gifts.

'What are you going on about?' Victoria pulled a face, staring at him in confusement. She never heard of these skill rooms he apparently spent his afternoon in and Victoria prided herself on knowing everything. 'Oh, those.' She laughed in amusement, shaking her head. She didn't know people were dubbing them skill rooms, but she supposed it made sense.

Victoria was looking at Sebastian when the sleek creature startled her. She took a small step back, but remained close enough for the Niffler to sniff around her shoes. Had she stepped in something? She remembered being careful on the grounds, but there was always the possibility she did. Victoria already had a gem in her hand and reached down to offer it to the feminine critter. She assumed it was at least feminine based on its smoothness and the way it moved.

'I remember you telling me that your father wanted you to enter that line of work.' Victoria twirled the shiny gem in between her fingers, dangling it like a prize to be taken by the creature in front of her. 'You're precious, you know that? I think it's sweet that you find joy in magical creatures.' She shot him a warm smile, her toffee hair falling in her face.

Vicky always found Seb to be handsome and wanted to date him at one point. They were friends and a great pair at that — but every time she made an advance, Sebastian didn't seem interested. She eventually stopped pursuing him and settled into them being buddies.. but it bothered her to a point. In her mind, there was no way he found her unattractive, so why?

'You know how my father was a pro Quidditch player? I was considering the big leagues after graduation, but I didn't even tryout for the Slytherin team this season.' She shrugged. 'I want to focus on my writing this year, but I think if Amara gets an opportunity to change my mind, she will.' The opportunity was sure to come eventually.

'I guess I agree with you about afternoon tea. It does sound stuffy.' She nodded in slight agreement, then hesitated. 'If we're being honest, I'm just bitter. I'm annoyed that Anjay Xcalyn didn't ask me.' Victoria grinned, swiping her hair behind her ear. 'He's so cute, isn't he? And those lips? Kissable.' She giggled like a little girl, one of her crushes obvious. Vicky tried to scale her giggles back, not wanting to frighten the curious creatures.

"I suppose sweet is one word for it," Sebastian began, a little laugh escaping his mouth. "However, my father would beg to disagree. I think he would refer to it as nothing but a big disappointment," he admitted, his tone souring. If it wasn't clear to Victoria yet, Sebastian and his father didn't have the closest relationship. His father had expectations for Sebastian's future—a Ministry life mainly—but that wasn't the life Seb wanted for himself.

He watched as his Niffler clutched the gem from his fingers and crawled off into the sandpit. Sebastian wasn't necessarily picky in what kind of key he received, if at all, but preferred another Bronze key. He was dissatisfied with his first attempt in the skill rooms and wanted an additional opportunity to prove himself capable. Sebastian also hoped that if he were to get another room, it would be a different one. He didn't want one that heavily relied on luck.

Sebastian nodded as his friend spoke of her former plans regarding Quidditch, but her desire to focus on her writing. It appeared as though they were similar in that respect. Both of their fathers had entered a line of work that applied certain pressures on them, but like Sebastian, Victoria wanted to divert onto her own path. Sebastian wanted to encourage that mindset.

However, before he could, Victoria brought up a dreaded subject. Boys. Sebastian's face went red as a peony, the color crawling across his face like a stain. He didn't know how he could hide his obvious reaction, desperately trying to find a way to suppress his internal panic. Why was she asking him? Did she know his secret? Then, she mentioned Anjay Xcalyn and his lips. He looked down at the sand and opened his mouth with a shaky laugh, attempting to play it off.

"Anjay Xcalyn?" he repeated, his jittery tone betraying his attempt. "I'd keep that one to yourself if I were you," he started to say in warning, but didn't know if it was for Victoria's sake or his own. "If we're talking about Amara, I doubt she'd be enthusiastic about that observation," Sebastian quipped, doing his best to appear normal. It wasn't easy.

Thankfully, his round, fluffy friend returned at the right time, but was unfortunately empty-handed. Sebastian exhaled, not out of disappointment, but out of relief that something took his attention away from the conversation he was enduring. He immediately offered the adorable creature another one of his shiny gems, and in addition, a sincere smile of encouragement.

Sebastian's niffler was excited to receive another gem, with the noises it made highlighting that enthusiasm. He secured it, having a bit of trouble since he already had one of the gems to account for, then hurried to another spot of the sand.

Once again, he was gone a little while. Then he emerged with a bronze key clutched in hand. He offered it for Sebastian to take, looking very proud of himself. Once the key was accepted, he wandered off into some bushes.