"All three of you OUT! OUT! Now if you please, she needs her rest!" the nurse shouted.
She waved her hands in the air and threatened them in every way possible in hopes of getting rid of them. With no luck, they didn't move a muscle. Bristling with contempt for their bloody selective hearing, she stormed of to the Headmaster's office to convince him that the three trouble makers needed to leave Addalynn alone for a while.
"Poppy, please; you know just as well as I do that the girl needs her friends. Let them stay as long as they like. It is most important that they be there when she wakes up," said the Headmaster, his eyes twinkling behind his half-moon spectacles.
Madam Pomfrey bristled some more and set off with a tantrum back to her patients. She was hoping that maybe by now the boys had become bored and left. To her dismay, they were in the exact same position she had left them in. If she didn't know any better she would think they hadn't even blinked.
"Alright, alright, now move aside you three. Dumbledore says you can stay but I have to take care of her still," she said while arranging them in an order that better suited her treatment style.
She grabbed two fluffy, white pillows of the neighboring bed and, ever so gently, placed Addalynn in a sitting position and comfortably arranged the pillows behind her. The boys stood close by.
"Madam Pomfrey? When will she wake up?" asked Remus. He timidly stepped forward, staring intently at Madam Pomfrey's face.
"She's in a coma Mr. Lupin; no one knows if she'll even wake up at all," she solemnly replied.
"If she wakes up at all?"
"Mr. Lupin, if she doesn't wake up tomorrow, she will be moved to St. Mungo's for more extensive care."
Remus lowered his head with dismay, as did his friends. Madam Pomfrey, of course, observed this and couldn't help but feel the sorrow fall with a thick haze in the air. Against her better judgment she decided that she should give them something to lighten their spirits.
"I'm sure she'll be alright, my dears. There's nothing to really worry about. I'm sure she'll come around by tonight," said the matron.
The three boys, who were not very well educated in the ways of medicines and magical healing, did not understand why being in a coma was such a big deal. But what they gathered from Madam Pomfrey's face, it was a very serious matter that shouldn’t be taken lightly.
They stayed with Addalynn the rest of the day, each waiting anxiously in their own quiet reverie.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Always pacing and stopping then looking at her face as if she had stirred then sighing and resuming the pacing at the foot of her bed. Such was the precious spare time wasted away by James Potter.
There wasn't a moment that his mind didn't stop to think about what had caused her strange behavior that day she ran off. It didn't matter to him that she was so emotionally unstable. He only cared that she came back to them.
He tried again and again to will her back to consciousness, but failed every time. She just lay there simply existing. It did not even appear that she was dreaming.
James was worried about her- more than he'd been worried in his life. Of course, that wasn't saying much. He'd always had a comfortable life. But he had a feeling, deep in the pit of his stomach that because Addalynn had stepped into his life, the luxury and frivolity was soon to be at an end.
Though she seemed a difficult creature, there was something in her eyes that he knew could never be erased. A gentleness and love that lit up tiny stars in the depths of her pupils shone most brightly when she was silent, simply listening to her friends laugh and talk. He knew it was there and he was willing to do anything to keep those stars from going out.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Remus sat beside her bed in his spare time, staring into nowhere. His head would hang low with hopelessness. He wasn't sure about anything anymore. Addalynn was a being of emotion, possibly empathy. Much like a phoenix, she was purely rage or passion. But the phoenix-like nature only appeared every now and again. In between she was indifferent and shy; living in a shell that he doubted many would ever be able to break. But a phoenix was a creature of fire and the more Remus thought about the analogy, the more it dawned upon him that she was more like water; either the rain in a frightful midnight storm or like gentle waves washing upon the shore. Maybe sometimes she was much like a lake- silent, motionless, and reflective upon its surface, but still very much alive beneath the surface of glass.
He hoped she would come back soon. He had so many questions boiling in his cauldron. He tried to rationalize everything that had been happening since he met her. Voldemort was rising in power and the daily slaughters continued at a steady rise. The days all seemed to get darker with smoke and ash with a sense of death that choked the free air that everyone needed so desperately. People were slowly becoming more solemn, each losing the fullness in their laugh or the slight spring in their step. But Addalynn? She would hear people around her talking about the war and her eyes would darken maliciously for just a fraction of the moment then return to a gloomy state in which he knew she was feeling compassionate for those of who the war affected so grievously.
Remus wasn't sure about her anymore. He was the only one who noticed when her lips would shadow a malevolent smile. It was only he who saw her eyes glaze over with indifference at the announcement of death, even if for a moment.
Who are you, Addalynn White?, he wondered. What is your secret?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Sirius wandered aimlessly about the room waiting for her to awaken. He didn't ask questions or wonder why this was all happening so fast, he simply waited impatiently. The impatience wasn't at all a new friend to Sirius Black. It was always there trying to find a way into his ever-active mind.
It is the reason why his pranks are always so well planned and his boredom appeared so arrogant. Now that his mind wasn't formulating pranks or Quidditch strategies or even looking for a way to cast out all unhappiness in his life, he had become closer to adulthood and farther away from childhood than ever before.
Addalynn had such a way of making people grow up some days and revert to a child-like stage others. She knew when to laugh, when to snap, when to be serious, and when to just let things go. But there was always one thing that occupied his mind that concerned Addalynn White: what would happen to her in the end? She was too young to die anytime soon, but always it seemed that in her mind and soul, she was so much older. Would her body ever live out to be as old as her soul? Would the claws of death claim her before the days of Voldemort were over, and all she ever got to see in her life was death and despair?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Throwing the sheets off the bed and swinging his legs over the side of the feather-down mattress, Sirius panted wildly and wiped away the sweat pasted to his forehead. He looked around, confused at first, but gathered his surroundings and remembered that he was in his dorm room in Gryffindor Tower.
The slumbering figures of his fellow roommates showed no signs of alertness. Without bothering to pull his legs up with him he laid back down, a hand over his heart. Sirius stared at the ceiling, mesmerized. Images from his nightmare flashed before him.
He saw a young girl screaming in agony…a man with a knife, ready to kill….blood was everywhere…and a teenage boy with greasy black hair that hung in a curtain across his face. Sirius recalled as much as he could, but he couldn't quite piece it together. In attempt to forget his gory illusions he pulled his legs onto the bed and rolled onto his side, clutching his pillow tightly to his chest.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The next morning glassy drops of rain fell from the ominous sky. Each drop made a metallic 'ping-ping-ping' on the windows. It was to this sound that Addalynn woke with a start.
Her eyes flew open and she turned her head to the ceiling, perhaps a bit too quickly. Her vision blurred for a few seconds and then everything came back into focus. Taking a moment to breathe she placed her hands on her stomach and closed her eyes.
After a few minutes the door of the Hospital Wing opened timidly and the head of Sirius Black poked through the opening. His eyes flew immediately to her bed. Eagerly, he walked forward, James and Remus only a few paces behind him.
Feeling another presence in the room, Addalynn opened her eyes to see another three pair staring back at her. Then the mouths beneath the other three pairs of eyes smiled broadly in greeting. She returned them with a faint twitch of her lips.
"How are you feeling?" asked Remus, leaning forward a bit.
"I'm alright…" she said in a hoarse voice.
The doors opened again, this time not so quietly, and a flustered Madame Pomfrey bustled her way in. She brushed the three boys aside and began to fill the spoon she was holding in her right hand with a nasty looking liquid from a crystal bottle she was holding in her left. Addalynn eyed it warily; it was more of a form of tar than anything else.
Addalynn sighed at great length knowing what was to come. She took the spoonful of tar without complaint and swallowed it without a sound. The nurse took the spoon when Addalynn was finished and eyed her warily anticipating a protest of disgust. But when none came she quirked one eyebrow and explained her patient's current condition.
"You seem to have almost recovered completely from the external effects of yesterday…although you have a few, more serious, internal injuries that I'll need to oversee for a few more days. But other than that you are healing quite well in spite of the rough night you had." Addalynn contorted her face into confusion. "You don't remember anything?" The patient nodded her head. "Well I'm surprised. You were tossing and thrashing and screaming. Quite frankly I'm amazed you didn't wake the whole castle- you were yelling the most horrifying things…"
Madame Pomfrey placed a hand on her forehead to regain her composure then looked back at her oblivious patient. The girl had a mask of indifference plastered onto her beautiful face, her eyes, though not glazed or unfocused, seemed ignorant of everything.
After a moment of reflection the nurse continued. "Usually people who undergo such a traumatic event suffer various types after-effects. I'm sure you're fine, Miss White, but anymore nightmares like that and I'm afraid I'll have no choice but put you into quarantine in St. Mungo's as violent as they were."
Everyone stood in silence for about a minute or so when the nurse jerked her head around wildly at the three boys. "You three had better get to your classes- you've already missed breakfast," and left.
Sirius opened is mouth in objection but Addie turned her eyes to him and, without speaking, let him know that they should go. James told her over his shoulder that they would be back at lunch.
By her lonesome self in the hollow room, Addalynn kept herself from absolute boredom by watching the storm wage war on the trees outside the windows. She stood up from her bed in her hospital gown, feeling the iciness of stone beneath her feet. She walked steadily to the far window and stood between two of the hospital beds. Placing out a shaky hand to the window, she let the vibrations from the pounding rain on the glass soothe her. Taking in a deep breath she begged her mind for indifference; she wouldn't be able to remember anything of the night before if emotions closed the door to her conscious nightmares.
She breathed in the moisture that seeped through the cracks of the window. It engulfed her lungs and rested her mind, giving her the clarity she needed. She closed her eyes and remembered.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Nightmares? Violent nightmares?" asked Remus to no one in particular.
"It sounds awful strange- especially to not remember anything…" mumbled James.
The threesome walked in a quiet way to their classes. This new role of seriousness earned them a few troubled glances and muffled whispers from the passersby. The Infamous Marauders seemed to have a serious side- absolutely baffling.
Sirius' "Fan Club" followed close by, as always. But today when they smiled at the handsome rogue as flirtatiously as they could, he paid them no mind. Disappointed, they turned to go to their classes feeling dejected.
They had a hard time talking to each other during classes all day. But their moods slowly evolved from concern to suspicion about the events that had occurred since they met Addalynn.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
It was during lunch that most of the school had noted that the normally jovial and rash nature of the three renowned troublemakers had dimmed to frowns and creased brows. Dumbledore watched as Sirius prodded his meat dully with a fork, a look of disinterest on his face. Sirius never stared at his food; he didn't even know what he ate half the time from his barbaric displays of hunger.
James ate with a sullen expression. The raindrops reflected on his glasses from the enchanted ceiling explained his overall visage. Across from him sat Remus who ate thoughtfully, as he did most meals, but this time with a trace of apprehension upon his brow.
Dumbledore deepened his frown ever so slightly behind his silvery beard. Something was wrong and he knew had to figure out what. He had been informed in the deep of the previous night when Addalynn had first begun to scream in her unseen nightmares.
Madame Pomfrey had awoken him via the paintings in his office with an urgent message from one of the nursemaids that hung in the hospital wing. It unnerved him to hear what the nursemaid had to say. The things Addalynn had shouted in her sleep had confirmed his worst suspicions.
But his bigger problem now, was how could he stop it?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Unexpectedly, Peter Pettigrew danced his way down the table towards his best friends, ready to liven things up a bit. But when he finally arrived at the middle of the unusually calm Gryffindor table, he found Remus, James, and Sirius lazily pushing food around their plates. What was really odd was that Sirius had put down his fork; now he was simply letting his index finger make circles on the rim of his goblet.
Peter stopped just short of the Marauders. Something must have gone terribly wrong with the plans. He was supposed to get his friends back. They were supposed to be his again. This should have scared them away not bound them more tightly. Peter was going to have a word with his superiors about this.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Hugging her knees to her chest, Addalynn sat on her bed with a thoughtful expression on her face. Her eyes were closed to block out everything that surrounded her. She needed to escape- just for a moment, to go somewhere else.
She breathed in and out as deeply as she could and let the coolness of the outside rain surround her and soothe her hot skin. Her ears tuned in quite finely to the pitter-patter of the rain that had calmed significantly since she first woke up at seven that morning. It was no longer trying to break through the ancient stone fortress of Hogwarts, but was rather trying to help hold it up. Droplets fell against the stone in communion in place of pelting it like metal bullets.
For a long time she listened until she at last fell asleep.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Hours later, James ran down to detention and Remus was bound to prefect duties. So Sirius (who was amazingly not also confined to detention), wandered his way down to the hospital wing to visit Addalynn.
He found her sound asleep on her bed on top of the covers. She must've been freezing as she was clutching her legs tightly across her chest as she lay on her side; her head buried in her knees.
A strange new softness adorned his rugged face as he looked at her. His lips curved upward in a gentle smile as he placed one strong hand on her shoulder to wake her from her silent slumber.
"Addalynn," he whispered. "You're freezing; let's get you under the covers, now."
She looked up at him, suddenly wide awake. "Sirius? What are you doing here?"
"Checking on you. C'mon, you're cold."
He helped her to her feet and folded back the covers. After he made sure she was satisfactorily sheltered from the biting air, he began to talk to her. She watched him with her fathomless blue-green eyes that sparkled like the rain under the moonlight. They spoke timidly in the presence of darkness even though they were hopelessly alone.
"What have you been doing all day? You must've been bloody bored in here," said Sirius.
"I just listened to the rain. I think I fell asleep after a while."
"That sounds bloody boring to me." Addalynn smiled at him with an underlying laugh, and he smiled in return.
"No, it was really nice just to let my mind rest for a time. It doesn't get to do that very often."
"I don't think anyone's does."
Sirius had changed and didn't even know it. His stomach would drop, his heart would lodge itself tightly in his throat, and his voice grew quiet every time he saw her. Something about her presence had changed him; made him better, maybe even healed him. He wasn't sure, but he thought she could be the one that could make life seem worth it.
Unequal Balance by On Angels Wings
Chapter Notes: For anyone wishing to impair my reading ability, please visit my bio-page for a somewhat valid explanation of my begrudgingly slow pace in updating my stories before you place obscenities describing my lack of speed-story-telling in the reviews. Thanks for reading!
The only character I own is Addalynn Rose White.