Sebastian eased open the door of the fortune-telling shop, his eyes falling on a young woman who rose to greet him.
Her worn but neatly pressed clothes, tarnished bracelet, and uneven makeup suggested a life of struggle.
As he studied her, Sebastian sensed no trace of magic. She was no witch, merely an ordinary person relying on practiced fortune-telling to earn a living.
The mysterious pull that had drawn him here didn't come from her—it stemmed from something within the shop's cluttered walls.
"Lost, traveler?" she said, her voice warm. "Come, sit. I'll guide you to your path."
"I'm here on business," Sebastian replied, settling at her round table. "But I'll humor you—tell me what the future holds."
She deftly shuffled a deck of Tarot cards, laying three before him with a flourish.
As she spoke of fates and omens, Sebastian's gaze roamed the shop, searching for the source of the pull.
When she warned of future troubles, urging him to buy protective amulets, his eyes locked onto it: a pendant crafted from a finger bone, strung on a simple black cord.
No carvings adorned its yellowed surface, yet it radiated a faint, undeniable magic that called to him.
Seizing an opportunity, Sebastian leaned forward. "Are all your amulets suited for me? Those ones seem too plain, not striking enough. I want something with real presence."
Her face lit up with a salesman's grin. "These amulets will shield you, but others are far stronger. The more powerful the charm, the more magic it takes to craft, so they cost more. Trust me, the extra coin is worth it!"
Sebastian stood, approaching a wall lined with trinkets and charms.
He examined each, his gaze lingering on the bone pendant as he inquired about their prices. Pointing to it, he asked, "This bone—is it human?"
"It is," she said, enthusiasm rising. "I poured a great deal of magic into that one. The price is—"
"How much?" Sebastian interrupted.
"One hundred dollars," she said, then faltered. "But for you… seventy."
"Fifty," he countered. "You'll still profit."
"Fifty? Done!" she agreed, too quickly.
Sebastian, realizing he could've haggled lower, paid and pocketed the pendant. He drew out another hundred-dollar bill, holding it just out of reach.
"I know you didn't make this. Where did you get it? Tell me, and this is yours."
The money, a fraction of Tony Stark's investment, was no burden for Sebastian. A hundred dollars was trivial now.
She hesitated, but Sebastian's gaze, sharpened by a subtle Legilimens, pierced her defenses. Her eyes glazed briefly, and she spoke.
"I bought it from an antique shop in a rough city district before coming here. I often pick up oddities to turn into amulets for customers."
A city district? Back to familiar ground, then.
Satisfied, Sebastian set the bill on the table, slipped out the door, and melted into the night streets.
Two or three minutes later, the woman shook off her daze, a tremor running through her. Her gaze darted around the shop, landing on the hundred dollars.
Clutching a handful of amulets from her pocket, she shoved the money inside, shuttered the shop with trembling hands, and fled to the backroom bedroom, curling up in fear.
Sebastian, now seated in a nearby restaurant, ordered a hearty meal and ate, his ears catching snippets of local chatter—wild tales of Thor's hammer, aliens, and gods.
They weren't entirely wrong.
Meal finished, he returned to his rented house, drawing the curtains tight.
At a small table, he unwrapped the bone pendant, slicing off its black cord. He tapped it gently with his dragon heartstring wand, casting Revelio.
A soft blue halo erupted, the bone lifting into the air. Through his wand, Sebastian probed its secrets.
This wasn't human. It belonged to a humanoid creature, outwardly similar to humans yet profoundly different. Its magic, faint but pure, pulsed like the ocean's depths. Could it be from an aquatic, intelligent race?
Something else lingered within.
Waving his wand, Sebastian teased out a shimmering blue thread, coaxing it into a glowing liquid drop that hovered at the wand's tip, radiating faint light.
Time to uncover its truth. A white glow spilled from his wand, enveloping the drop. Blue-white light flared in Sebastian's eyes, and a vision unfolded before him.
A vision unfolded before Sebastian: humanoid creatures gliding like fish through the ocean's depths, ancient structures of breathtaking grandeur rising from the seabed, fierce underwater warriors wielding primal power, and the vibrant, untamed magic of aquatic races.
A name resounded in his mind: Atlantis.
Jolted from the vision, Sebastian stared at the wand's tip, where the blue droplet had vanished. Two spells lingered in his thoughts, their presence a staggering gift. He exhaled, awed by the discovery.
The finger bone had belonged to an Atlantean wizard, struck down by misfortune before he could return home. In his final moments, he'd sealed his memories and magic within the bone. Time, however, had been unkind. The fortune-teller's careless tampering—piercing the bone to craft a crude amulet—had shattered most of its legacy, leaving only fragmented memories and two intact spells.
A loss, to be sure, but Sebastian's spirits soared. Two potent spells for a mere hundred fifty dollars? Any wizard would revel in such a bargain for years.
These spells stood apart from Kamar-Taj's disciplined sorcery and the structured charms of Sebastian's Hogwarts training. They pulsed with a raw, savage edge, like bloodied blades forged in ancient battles between hunter and prey, born from the primal chaos of survival.
Water Snake Strangulation.
Blood Shark Bite.
Both were ferocious, unrelenting attack spells, steeped in brutality.
Sebastian resisted the urge to test them, choosing instead to wait for a secluded time and place to master their power. As he prepared to wash up and rest, a sudden tug at his senses halted him. The Trace Charm he'd placed on Thor stirred, its target moving swiftly toward the town's northwest.
Tonight, then? Mjolnir, the hammer of Thor. He'd yearned to see it.
Sebastian rose, his wand steady as he fixed on the direction. With a sharp twist, he vanished in a spiraling vortex of Apparition.