The Girl From Durmstrang

Chapter 22: Playing God

  From what I could tell, I was still alive. It was either that, or I was stuck in some sort of ghost plain... I'll stay with the idea of living.

It was dark, so deep and dark I thought it would consume me. And then there was pain, so much pain it came from all around me. I forgot about the darkness as the pain consumed me, and all I could do was scream and scream, never knowing if they could hear my pain.

After what felt like hours, the pain began to dull until it was only a sharp prick every so often. I was exhausted, and I drifted off into what I could only assume was a deep sleep.

Each time I 'woke' I could hear more and more of what was going around me, crying, begging? Sometimes just silence and softer noises I couldn't place. But it was cold, always so cold.

I was slowly going mad, the constant darkness, I was trapped in my own mind without any way of breaking free. Each time I woke to the darkness I pushed myself, strained to move or speak, just something to let them know that I was there, that I could hear their pleas, their cries for a sign of life other than the rhythmic beep of the machines.

And then it came, the warmth, slowly but surely it spread from the tip of my fingers. And when it did I took that fleeting moment to put in all the strength that I had to move. They saw it, just ever so slightly, the small twitch of my index finger. They yelled for the doctors and nurses who all came rushing in at once, was it a trick of the eye they wondered? I had to do it again, watch they said. Come on body! Move! There, another twitch, screams and laughter of happiness, I was coming back, and there was going to be no stopping me when I did.

The movement happened a few days ago, and the warmth hasn't returned since then, my room felt empty. For hours it went on like this, until one morning. I could tell it was morning by the routines of the nurses, check the patients, hand out the potions, give them food, change the bedding etc.

But today was different, I woke to something warm touching my hand, stroking my face gently.

"Rae, if you can hear me..." it was Viktor! Why had he come? He shouldn't be here at a time like this, he needs to train. My thoughts went whirling through my head, until he spoke again.

"Please, please wake up..." he softly pleaded, "I need you, I only just got you back; I cannot lose you again... please, please my sweet Rae" his voice cracked and faded into the silent sobs that I had grown all too accustomed to. But not this, this was different; my heart ached to reach out and hold him, to tell him I was okay and that I could hear him. The pain intensified each time sobs racked his body, I just can't take it anymore.

In a burst of energy I shot through the blackness that had enveloped me for so long, I shot up in my bed, gasping for breath! My vision shot into reality and I frantically looked around grabbing at anything to steady myself.

"RAE!? RAE!!" Viktor exclaimed and my shocked and panicked self that was gasping for breath and searching wildly around the room for something, anything. He grabbed me and hugged me to himself as though I could disappear at any moment.

"Doctor! Doctor quick!!" he yelled at the open door, immediately 2 nurses and a man, I assume the doctor, came running in all at once.

After a half an hour of them poking and prodding me, they let me rest a while. The others hadn't been notified yet, but they should be along soon. Viktor was quietly sitting next to me, he never let go of my hand as though I would disappear if he let go.

"How are you? He asked in his thick, gruff voice. It was still a bit hoarse from his previous excitement and crying.

"As the doctor's said, I'm fine" I said with a small smile, I gave his hand a small squeeze in reassurance.

"I thought I had lost you, when the news came.." he trailed off, looking down as my small but rough hand, stroking each finger lightly.

"I know I could hear you when I was asleep" I said with a smile. He looked up at me, slightly pink and a bit shocked. "Well only what you said right before I woke up, really", he sighed in relief at that. Without warning screams and laughter and crying burst through the open doors and I was instantly enveloped in hugs and kisses and tears, the moment interrupted.