Class passed by unlike any Liam had ever experienced. Usually, he would have spent the rest of his time following his own performance observing his fellow students do their Patronus Charm with a keen eye. Today, however, he hardly saw any of it. He could only stand there and stare off into the distance, his green eyes broody and his mind in turmoil. It felt like he'd been hijacked, like his self-control had been wrested from him.
There had to be something Liam could do to stop all of this in it's tracks. He couldn't believe that everything he had been working so hard for could be so easily unraveled. He could conjure no thought that didn't involve rich brown hair and magnificent hazel eyes. No matter how hard he tried he could of nothing but Addie Riversong, but he had to ask himself one very important question...how hard was he really trying? Did he really want to stop thinking about her? Could he?
Suddenly, as though being awoken by a pitcher full of cold water being splashed on his face, Liam's attention zeroed in on the present in an almost involuntary fashion. Any relief he might have felt in at first thinking that his torment had been put on hold, his mind gripped by something else, was dispelled the moment he saw Addie standing there. The dementor was approaching her with an almost eager attitude, and she looked more terrified than he had ever seen her look.
C'mon, Addie Liam found himself thinking as he watched her, his indecision over his infatuation forgotten in this moment, Cast it...you have to cast it now! Green eyes widened in sudden horror as he realized...she wasn't going to cast the charm, perhaps she couldn't.
In the just a handful of seconds several things happened nearly simultaneously. The sight of the dementor so close to Addie that the cloaked figure could reach out and touch her spurred Liam into action with a fierce sense of protection. All rational thought, not the least of which being the fact that Professor Cranthorn had firm control of the creature, vanished as he whipped his wand out from his robes in a single, fluid movement.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" he roared, brandishing his wand before him like a sword, his mind only thinking of protecting Addie.
Once more the silver falcon sped out and towards the dementor, the room flashing brightly as it dove at the hooded beast, driving it back so forcefully that it tumbled back into the side room, fleeing from the wrath of Liam's patronus. The door slammed shut firmly behind it and...that was that. A hushed silence descended the classroom, his fellow students and Professor Cranthorn staring at him in shock, but he only had eyes for the lock of brown hair disappearing out of the door.
He ran.
"Mr. Fitzpatrick!" Cranthorn called after him, "Come back here this instant!" She sounded more stunned than actually angry.
However, Liam heard none of it, felt no hesitation motivated by his own self-interest, and could only sprint down the corridor, following after Addie as though his life depended on it. For all he knew, at this point when nothing was making sense anymore, it very well might. She had enough of a head start that he was only keeping up by sheer luck. As he pursued her through an amazing assortment of hallways, up and down staircases, he made incremental progress until finally he rounded a corner and found himself nearly caught up to her.
"Addie!" he called out, his chest beginning to burn from the exercise, "Please...please stop." He could have surged forward, could have halted her escape physically by grabbing her arm, but he knew that would only upset her further.
-----
The Slytherin reputation had never bothered Sylvie, though because of how her life had been so far she'd learned not to let much do that anyway. When the sorting hat had been placed on her head at the tender age of eleven, she'd offered no bias thoughts to the magical object, only waited to be sorted. She'd been sent off to Slytherin and she'd done so with satisfaction. Of course, she knew what people thought of the "house of serpents", but she didn't care about the opinion of others.
Here at Hogwarts, Sylvie's goals had never been to make friends or form bonds. It wasn't that she thought these things were a weakness, but more simply that she had survived her entire life on her own. Why would she stir the pot by trying to add another variable into her life? Balance had always been the most important thing to her. She had to keep things weighted in her favor if she was to get by...if she was to be free.
People like Tempest, and even the sycophants who surrounded her, lived the privileged life. They had their freedom, they had no significant worries of their own, they could do what they wanted with their lives with ease. The way the other Gryffindor girl, Venus, sneered at the thought of Sylvie sitting with them caused a spark of fire in her belly, though her eyes remained on Tempest. As the Minister's daughter there had to be an angle here, but she couldn't think of what.
And then there was the guy in who's lap Tempest was parked, clearly not caring about what was happening around him as he pressed himself all over the redhead. The sight made Sylvie's skin crawl, and she watched as Tempest tried rebuffing him...to little effect. She wrinkled her nose, a habit she had for when she was thinking deeply, her brows still firmly furrowed as she tried fathoming the choice she was about to make.
Without ceremony, without even actually responding to Tempest's request, Sylvie slid into a vacant spot on the Gryffindor bench. Understandably so, most of the table, and even part of the other tables, fell silent as she sat down, but in moments to low buzz of conversation returned. No doubt fueled by the new gossip material, she added in her head.
"Pass the sausages, please," she said to the sneering girl from before, putting on her best sarcastic smile as she did so, "And the scones to while you're at it." Her silver shone with amusement like newly minted sickles, basking in this moment for the time being.
Edited By Britters on 8/23/2019 at 4:34 AM.
Creativity
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Posted: 8/22/2019 at 10:23 PM
Post #72
It was just in Addie's nature to run away. She was aware of that. Like she had mentioned before, like she had told Liam just over a week ago, her fight or flight response was rather heavily weighted towards flight. It was just a result of how she had grown up, how she had learned to survive. She could function as a person, but once it came time for something scary, all she knew how to do was run.
Her father wasn't always enraged, either. A lot of times he ignored his daughters, or even, once in a blue moon, acknowledged them as daughters rather than reminders of his biggest regret. It was in these gray areas that Addie learned how to be a person and not just a cowering child. Maybe she wasn't the most social person, but she didn't grow up in the most social environment. Nurture always won out over nature. And her nurture had taught her to be cautious, to be careful, to avoid people because they could easily hurt you, to stick to yourself because that's the only way to keep control. It was all about control. Her father had never had any control over anything, and she was determined to not be as reckless as he was, even if his blood did run through her veins.
She had barely registered Liam casting his Patronus charm as she fled, and then heard the pounding of feet behind her, immediately knowing that it was him, chasing her. She was light on her feet, her steps much quieter than his, and she was nimble, used to the concept of escape, especially when being chased. There were rules and ways to survival, and in this moment, with the fear suffocating her, that's all she was trying to do.
Why was he following her in the first place? The thought briefly flashed in her mind. Why was he so intent on plaguing her constantly? Sure, she had been assigned to tutor him, but was that any reason for him to reach out to her outside of class? To invite her to the game? Why had she gone? Was it because she simply couldn't shake the sight of soft green eyes, clearly upset at having scared her on more than one occasion? Why couldn't she stop picturing strong, structured fingers running through ash blond hair at random hours of the day? Why had she ignored all of this until now? Why was he so present, all the time? Why did he seem so much to care?
In truth, she had every intention to keep running - she had plenty of endurance and stamina built up over the years, but it became quickly apparent that she simply couldn't breathe. Her chest had tightened considerably, and her breath was far too rapid to be normal, even for running. Accepting the fact that she needed to stop lest she pass out, she dipped suddenly into an empty classroom and practically slammed her back against a wall, coughing uncontrollably and sobbing. She didn't even notice when she had first started crying, but it was a full-blown breakdown now.
She couldn't breathe. She just... she couldn't breathe. She needed her inhaler. She knew she needed her inhaler, but she had stupidly left it, and her satchel, in the classroom. Every bit of strength she had in her went into trying to force air into her lungs through her tightened and swollen airways. She was wheezing terribly and loudly, and trembling from head-to-toe, and in that split second after detouring into the room, she wished, for all the world, that Liam would come in after her, because Merlin, she needed someone.
-
One thing that Tempest still didn't understand after living sixteen full years was that you couldn't always please everyone. It just wasn't a concept that she knew. Of course she could please everyone, she would think to herself. If she aligned the stars just right, bent her back at just the right angle, she could fulfill everyone's wishes, and then some. Even if she was only a small part of a bigger picture, she was confident that she was capable of finding a solution to fit everyone's wants.
She had known that the Gryffindors wouldn't perhaps react the best to a Slytherin sitting at their table. The house rivalry was still alive and well between the two more dominant (for lack of a better word) at Hogwarts - not that the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws weren't important, they just didn't care so much about rivalries - though the rivalry itself was something that Tempest had never been able to understand.
After all, they were all here to learn. There was no ulterior motives past personal aspirations and goals. People were good. Why was it so important to place stigmas and biases simply because someone valued ambition higher than courage, or vice versa? In Tempest's opinion, there shouldn't even be houses at Hogwarts at all. They were all here to learn. Why couldn't they just do that without all of the added drama that the Founders had burdened them with?
"Tempy..." Venus whined, giving her friend a look as she mindlessly took another piece of sausage from the redhead's plate.
Tempest tilted her head a little, trying to emphasize her earlier statement. In truth, she felt quite triumphant when Sylvie sat down next to her. It was obvious that Venus wasn't going to fulfill the request that the dark-haired girl had given, so Tempest took it upon herself to reach over Venus' side and grab the sausages and scones, passing them towards Sylvie.
"Don't mind them, really," she murmured to her, smiling widely and ignoring Harris as he got even a little pushier. He was fine. He didn't need her attention to be happy. "They're good people. They're just a bit confused."
Edited By Creativity on 8/23/2019 at 4:11 PM.
Britters
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Posted: 8/24/2019 at 4:14 AM
Post #73
Life had been a rollercoaster for Liam so far. Before his grandfather's arrest, things had been picture perfect. Loving parents, outgoing grandfather who was his best friend, and easy life at home. It had been amazing...until that day in his first year when he'd been pulled from class and given the news that his grandfather was on his way to Azkaban for experimenting with his potions on muggles. Things after that had changed dramatically, his entire life was turned on its head.
Ever since that moment, Liam's path had been clear to him. Nothing else mattered other than sticking to his plan, the one that turns things around, that brings back those happy times in his life. He'd stayed fiercely committed to this goal, steadfast determination seeing him through these last five years successfully...until now. Everything had seemingly changed all over again, and he felt like he was drowning trying to understand what was happening. More than anything else, he wondered if he could survive this again.
In this moment, as Liam gave chase through the corridors of Hogwarts, he could think of nothing but Addie. Plans and goals were forgotten until nothing existed but his Ravenclaw tutor. He only cared about making sure she was okay, but to do that he had to actually catch up to her. She was turning out to be a lot faster than she looked. He just barely kept up with her, fueled by his insane power of will. It was as he rounded one final corner thar he thought he'd lost her unexpectedly, but his ears just managed to catch the sound of a closing door.
Gotcha, he thought, intense relief flooding through his body as he entered the empty classroom that Addie had finally taken refuge in...
Words were forming in Liam's mind, but died on his tongue as his green eyes took in the sight that greeted him within the classroom. He stared in shock at Addie, who was collapsed against a wall, shaking and sobbing, though the sobs sounded very labored. He could hear how badly her breaths were wheezing in and out of her lungs, and he knew that couldn't be good. He knelt down in front of her, his eyes wide with concern and...perhaps a touch of fear. He wasn't sure what to do...what was he supposed to do?
"Addie," he said, keeping his voice hushed, though he could hear something mildly panicked in his tone, "Addie what do I do? What do you need?" She didn't look to be in any condition to be speaking, but he just hoped she could give him some kind of clue...
-----
The tension around the Gryffindor table was so thick you could cut it with a knife. There was no doubt in Sylvie's mind that she was the being whispered about throughout the Great Hall, but she did her best to maintain her air of serene boredom. Her silver eyes drifted along the benches, causing others to suddenly avert their gaze to try and hide the fact that they were staring. It felt like she was in enemy territory, but having never been one to get much into the actual rivalry between Houses, she wasn't going to let it show.
There was plenty to observe here in the midst of Tempest and her posse, much to Sylvie's delight. She did enjoy watching people and their mannerisms. It was fascinating to her to see how other people behaved and acted amongst themselves. She watched the girl named Venus glower and whine at Tempest...while grabbing a sausage from the redhead's plate. Now that was baffling enough on its own but the platter of sausages was literally right next to the other girl. It made no sense...
Of course, nothing regarding Tempest made much sense to Sylvie at this point. She could understand things like compassion, empathy, and the desire to help others, but she just didn't believe that was the best survival strategy. In fact, it was literally counter-intuitive to surviving. That being said...letting people eat off of your plate? Just the fact that people were doing that in the first place made her feel disgusted. These sycophants were just the opposite...they were just taking advantage of Tempest's nature. Nothing was more heinous.
"Confused is certainly one word for it," she responded in an disinterested tone, accepting the food she'd requested from Tempest, "Not the one I would choose, perhaps, but..." She trailed off, grabbing a scone and beginning to smear cream and jam over it.
Despite everything being in such turmoil around her, Sylvie felt remarkably well as she bit into her breakfast treat. She didn't feel ingratiated towards Tempest or anything like that, and her decision to sit at this table had had nothing to do with Tempest being the daughter of the Minister of Magic. Even now she wasn't entirely sure what had made her do it, but she was content to not dwell on it for the moment. Maybe later, if nothing became clear to her by then, she would consult her tarot cards again.
"Would you like some sausages, *insert Venus' surname*?" she suddenly asked the other Gryffindor, her tone inquisitive but pointed, "There's quite a large platter right here. I'm sure you must not have seen it." She put a small, mockingly sweet smile on her face, shaking her head to toss a lock of dark hair from her face.
Edited By Britters on 8/24/2019 at 5:10 AM.
Creativity
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Posted: 8/24/2019 at 6:48 AM
Post #74
This certainly wasn't Addie's first asthma attack. She had had asthma her entire life, and extensive running, or exercise in general, often triggered one. The only difference was, she always had her inhaler on her. When her father would chase her to the point where it warranted an attack and her airways stopped working, she would always have her inhaler on her. She never knew when he would suddenly rage out and go after her, so she always needed to be prepared.
But this was Hogwarts. Her father wasn't here. Besides, the pockets on the robes they wore were so oddly designed that she feared the small device could easily fall out of it, and what would she do then? She had noticed that not many witches and wizards had asthma - it wasn't like she could just go to Hogsmeade to pick up another. So, she kept it in her satchel, and kept her satchel on her at all times. She hadn't expected to flee so recklessly, not at Hogwarts.
'Oranges and Lemons,' say the bells of St. Clemens...
She had a hand pressed to her chest, trying to quell the pain. Relief flooded her as Liam entered, assessed the situation, and immediately knew that something wasn't right. He didn't ask what was wrong. He didn't try to pressure her. He just tried to help her, and that stirred something within her that she wasn't quite sure how to describe, and certainly wasn't oxygenated enough at the moment to describe anyway.
"Satchel..." she tried to say, but it was more of an inaudible rasp through her wheezing. "Satchel..." she tried again, but to the same effect. Desperately, she looked around, trying to communicate what she needed. Her eyes locked on Liam's own satchel, which he had taken with him, and her hand shot out, roughly grabbing the strap and tugging on it. "Satchel..."
Hopefully he understood her mouthing and indicating. She met his gaze, though her eyes were far less panicked than before now that she had someone. She was still shaking, but she had done this before. She had had attacks before. Truthfully, she was still freaked out by the dementor, could still almost feel the chill of that room, but she needed to focus on one thing at a time, and right now, the most pressing matter was trying to breathe.
-
Judging by how people were reacting to Sylvie's presence, Tempest had begun to wonder, ever so slightly, if it was a mistake to invite the girl to sit with them. She had seen Sylvie sit alone on several occasions, though, and she just couldn't bear to let her sit alone again. Briefly, she wondered if the other girl even had any friends at all. She certainly seemed like the type of person which would draw them in, but Tempest knew that everyone deserved friends, no matter how odd or sarcastic they were.
And gosh darn it, she was gonna befriend Sylvie so hard, the girl won't know what hit her.
She knew, also, that Sylvie's later comment to Venus was definitely not going to go over well, and Venus gave her another pointed look, her face red. Tempest knew that she ought to interject. "Vee, why don't you go and rest up a bit? Your first class isn't for another three hours, and you look terribly tired, darling. Those long hours studying at night are important for your classes, but your body needs to come first." Swallowing hard, Venus nodded and stood up, unable to conjure words. She took another sausage from Tempest's plate before gathering her stuff and leaving.
Tempest dipped her head a little and glanced at Sylvie out of the corner of her eye. "Don't do that..." she muttered, knowing what had prompted the dark-haired girl to say what she did to Venus. "I need you to just... not stir the pot in front of them, okay?"
"Look, Tempy," piped up one of her other friends at the table, Elaine, who had been quiet thus far. She pushed a newspaper in front of the blonde. "It's about your mum."
Taking a deep breath, Tempest was able to maintain her composure at that, though she bristled on the inside. She hated it when her mum was mentioned in conversation. She frowned down at the paper in disinterest, the letters blending together in incomprehensible garble. She pretended to skim it and then pushed it away from her. She had managed to read the headline, since it was big enough - Leona Eaglet Promises to Campaign For a Third Term - which was enough.
"I already know she's campaigning again in a couple years. And I know she'll win, too. Everyone loves her," she shrugged, finally turning to her food and picking over what was left of it. She found that she wasn't particularly hungry, though, and instead absently played with her nose piercing - a small stud on her right nostril. It wasn't much, but it did mean a lot to her.
Edited By Creativity on 8/24/2019 at 8:09 AM.
Britters
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Posted: 11/12/2019 at 4:07 AM
Post #75
The room felt to Liam as though it were spinning. Truthfully, everything felt as though it were spinning right now. His head reeled with all of the information it was trying to process, and still managed to keep enough wits about him as to keep a watchful eye on Addie. There were many things he didn't understand right now, but the one thing that was crystal clear was that she needed him and that meant that he couldn't dwell on the unanswered questions.
Observing the scene before him, Liam could start to ascertain that Addie was suffering from some kind of illness, or at least something in that category. She seemed extremely distressed and the hanf on her chest made it evident that h3r breathing had somehow become restricted. Again, he didn't understand why such a thing was happen, but now was not the time to concern himself with things like "why" and "how". Right now the thing that mattered the most was figuring out how to help her.
Not surprisingly, Liam couldn't decipher the rasping sounds Addie began to make, though he was certain she was trying to communicate with him. His green eyes looked at her desperately, hoping that she could find a way to tell him what he needed to know...and then there it was. Her hand darted out like a striking serpent and snatched at the satchel strap strong across his body. Before she could even begin rasping again he had whipped his wand out from his pocket and ran over to the door.
"Accio satchel!" he spoke urgently once he had cracked open the door slightly, picturing the bag that Addie always carried around in his mind as vividly as he possibly could.
A moment passed...then another, and Liam felt the seconds as though they were hours. It was of course not long in reality before he saw Addie's satchel zoom around the corner of the corridor. With the dexterity and reflexes of the Seeker he was, he reached out and grabbed the bag neatly out of the air, drawing it inside the room and closing the door shut in one fluid movement. He rushed back to crouch in front of his tutor, thrusting the satchel at her and hoping she'd be able to sort out the rest...
Creativity
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Posted: 11/12/2019 at 7:51 AM
Post #76
If anything, Addie was just becoming more and more annoyed with her stupid asthma as time wore on. It was nothing more than a dumb genetic defect. Her attacks usually never lasted this long, because she normally had her inhaler ready, and she mentally cursed herself again for being so stupid as to have left it. Now, asthma attacks would go away on their own eventually, but it could take up to hours sometimes, and they certainly weren't pleasant.
Luckily for her, Liam seemed to understand when she indicated his own satchel. He summoned it, and for a moment, she imagined it whizzing through the halls, down the corridors she had fled through, down moving staircases and the like, and in spite of it all, in spite of the pain in her chest and the fear over the dementor and the irritation, she almost laughed. Almost.
She took the satchel from him with slightly shaking hands and shifted through it. When she found the small device inside, she flicked the cap off and held it to her lips, taking as deep a breath as she could, and then another. The second was clearer and deeper than the first, and the third even more so than the second. She sighed and let her head fall back against the wall, glaring at the ceiling, her breathing already becoming easier and she was no longer sobbing.
"Sorry," she muttered as she capped the inhaler again and shoved it back into her satchel, and then wiped at her cheeks and eyes. "My asthma. It's a common problem among muggles and muggleborns. Not so much with half-bloods and purebloods. It's usually pretty manageable with an inhaler handy, and there's a low chance of having an attack bad enough to be life-threatening."
Now that the initial panic was over, she couldn't help but feel a tad bit resentful towards Liam for following her in the first place. He had helped her, and for that, she was grateful, but that didn't mean that she wanted to talk to him about the dementor, nor about the asthma attack any longer. It was all gone and over, and she truly just felt tired. She wanted to go to her wonderful room and curl up and sleep and forget all about Defense Against the Dark Arts and the inability to breathe and stupid, handsome Quidditch players that made her so confused.
Britters
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Posted: 11/13/2019 at 1:45 AM
Post #77
Certainly not for the first time in recent history, Liam found himself staring at Addie with an expression he was sure was hard to read since he barely understood what he was feeling himself. He conceded that most of what he felt right now was concern for Addie's health and safety, but there was no denying the underlying layer of that...other emotion. Even if he could deny the feeling if he wanted to, he found himself not wanting to.
The moment that Addie began to breathe a little easier was possibly one of the happiest moments of Liam's life. That was a strange thing to feel, he knew, but it was no less truthful. His feelings of relief hit such a high level he thought he might fall over, and even though he didn't his whole body sagged slightly as so much tension left him in a rush. He was no healing expert, but Addie seemed like she was going to be alright, and that knowledge alone seemed to drive all other thoughts out of his head.
Outside on the Quidditch pitch, Liam's team was waiting for their captain to show up, not knowing that he wouldn't be showing up because quite frankly it had never occurred to any of them that he was capable of being late for a practice. He, of course, remained blissfully unaware of the chaos he was causing his teammates, what anxieties his absence was sparking. His mind only knew one thing...and that thing was a person.
"Don't be sorry," he said to Addie automatically, his eyes shining with the relief that still flooded through his system, "I'm only glad you're better now, though I'm so sorry I was chasing you while you couldn't breathe. Stupid of me really..." His eyes cast downwards as he reached up and ran his hand over his ash blonde hair I'm a surprisingly self-conscious gesture.
While Liam was overjoyed to have been able to help Addie, perhaps had even come close to saving her life, he knew perfectly well that she wasn't likely to appreciate his pursuit, let alone if she ever found out about his interference with the dementor just before that...
Creativity
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Posted: 11/13/2019 at 10:54 AM
Post #78
Parts of Addie had really come to despise Liam's presence. She hated how he made her so vulnerable, whether it's by scaring her, seeing her scars, or making her feel things that she hadn't felt in years. Making her smile and laugh when she was perfectly fine not doing so until she was able to get away from her father, for once and for all. She couldn't handle how exposed she felt when he was with her, and yet, he always seemed to know just when to be present and just what to do or say to force her to open up.
And then... And then parts of her kind of liked having someone to talk to, about her father or about anything, really. She had been so isolated this year that the loneliness was truly beginning to weigh down on her. She almost sort of enjoyed talking to him. And... And if he hadn't followed her today, then she would still be in pain, unable to breathe. If she hadn't let loose a little and gone to the game, she would never have seen the unicorns...
"To be fair, I could breathe up until that second to last staircase, when my lungs and airways decided to call it quits. I probably wouldn't have gone so far if I wasn't panicked. I don't do well with being chased," she shrugged nonchalantly. Her left hand had begun to tremble again and she quickly stuffed it into the pocket of her robes, even though she remembered mentioning it to Liam as her only lasting byproduct of the lightning strike. Lucky, she had called herself, and she sort of supposed she was.
She remembered what had caused her panic in the first place, and couldn't suppress a small shudder. She was purposefully avoiding actually bringing the dementor up, in hopes that Liam wouldn't. If the time he had learned of her lightning scars taught her anything, it was that he seemed to know that she didn't appreciate questions.
It was a last-ditch hope she was clinging to. Maybe, just maybe, he would be too polite to ask about the dementor. About why she, who was the top of most of her classes, balked the moment she was actually faced with one of the most terrifying creatures in the Wizarding World. She couldn't tell him. She wouldn't. He'd think her a freak of some sort - a new brand of squib, born to muggles and possessing some magic, but not a true witch or wizard. Some strange, perverse half-breed. If he didn't ask, then she wouldn't have to tell him, and maybe then, she'd be safe...
Britters
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Posted: 11/15/2019 at 1:52 AM
Post #79
Once the Addie crisis had been dealt with, Liam realized he had failed to consider what to do if he made it to this point. It was clear they whatever had been afflicting her, his tutor, was cleared up and no longer a danger...so now what? He sat back on his heels as he modified his posture from the crouched position he'd been in before, his eyes lingering on Addie as she spoke, attention resting temporarily on her shaking hanf before she removed it from sight.
I can't just leave her..., Liam thought to himself, suddenly very certain that he could never leave Addie while she was still clearly so vulnerable. Unless, of course, she ordered him away, but possibly not even then...
"I feel like such an idiot," he said, shaking his head softly as he gazed down at the floor, "I just...I mean, when you...no, and then I...I..." He trailed off awkwardly, his mouth slightly ajar as he sat there, frozen because he suddenly realized he didn't even know how to navigate this conversation properly.
The subject which had yet to be broached, the erumpent in the room you might say, was the incident with the dementor in the classroom, which had then led to where they are now. There was a part of Liam that knew how hard it must have been for Addie to go through all that just now, but mostly he found himself suddenly very curious. He knew that the answer to the question of what had really happened in that classroom today was somewhere in the deep recesses of his mind, unfortunately it was not as easy as just looking...
In his mind Liam could see a series of images and memories relating to Addie, but they were all like a group of dots he couldn't figure out how to connect. It all just hung there in his head, enticing him with the revelation that was so close he could just about touch upon it. Meanwhile...
"Do you need some water or something?" he finally asked her very suddenly, unsure of how long he'd say there with his mouth hanging open like a fish while he struggled to say anything, "I could, I mean if...I could walk you back to your common room if you wanted to just go get some rest." He knew he'd stumbled over that quite badly, but determined to recover he had simply cleared his throat and carried on.
Creativity
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Posted: 11/15/2019 at 7:00 AM
Post #80
When Liam - confident, friendly, cocky Liam - began to uncharacteristically stumble over his words so badly, all Addie could do was lift one eyebrow, unimpressed. The panic had mostly subsided at this point, and she felt that foreboding sense of calm fall over her. Some would think it was the panic that would be the worst part, but Addie disagreed. It was the aftermath.
Step one, get up. Step two, dust yourself off. Step three, bandage your wounds. Step four, hide.
It was the aftermath. It was trying to put her befuddled mind back into place, piece by piece, and not give into the ever-pressing, ever-prominent suggestions that Rosalie had succumbed to this past summer. That thought sent a shot of adrenaline down her spine, and she wrapped her right arm around her chest to steady herself. She didn't need to think about that. No. Rosalie wasn't gone. She couldn't be gone. She wouldn't leave her. Rosalie, who had been the only person that had ever cared for Addie...
Well. As Liam stood there, trying to reach out to her, she felt an odd sense of nostalgia, and it terrified her. Why did he seem to care for her? What was she to him except his tutor?
At his offer of help, she felt her frustrations flare up. "I don't need your help!" she snapped suddenly, withdrawing more into herself and glaring at him for almost a full minute before softening. She sighed and looked away. "Sorry, I... Sorry..."
Swallowing hard, she tried to formulate an actual response to him, but she found it rather unnecessarily difficult. "I... I don't really spend time in my common room," she told him, though her voice lifted in a question at the end due to her unfortunate habit. She truly hoped he didn't notice - and she was at least grateful that he hadn't mentioned it yet. She knew what he wanted her to say. She knew that he wanted answers to what had just happened in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, and in spite of herself, in spite of her better judgment, she felt her walls beginning to slowly crumble in at his gentle gaze. The words were out before she could stop them.
"I don't have a patronus."
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