Double Vision ~Marauders Era~

Chapter 1 - The Beginning

     It took me a long time to accept what I was: an anomaly. Or, as certain people like to say, a freak. When it first began, I was scared to speak up. For months, no one knew anything was wrong. It wasn't hard to see the signs, but no one was looking for them.

     It started with me stumbling, unable to tell exactly what direction I was going. Then, I would grab the air, taking hold of an unexistant object. The words on the board became so overwhelmingly confusing that I just gave up. My magic became so sporatic that the professors gave up trying to teach me with a wand.

     Of course, it took months before it came to this point. I don't like attention, and I especially don't like people looking at me. So when I would repeatedly trip and fall, and people stopped to stare my way, I became anxious. Throughout those months, an overwhelming anxiety and paranoia swam powerfully through my head. It all became too much.

     I finally visited the hospital wing, and then a specialist wizard. Several of those. Very discreetly of course. The first wizard wasn't specialized in my type of issues, so he sent me else where. Then, the second wizard told me I was lying. He couldn't help me because I was a liar. Finally, a third witch told me what this experience was and why I had it. It was a brain issue, she said. Something unfixable, she said.

     I left, a year later, with only my sadness and anxiety to accompany me. I was only 13 at the time, 14 by the time I was diagnosed. All I knew was that I had diplopia, otherwise known as double vision.

     "Wow," people would say, nodding along, not understanding. I could only smile and laugh, pretending it was no big deal. Just a simple thing. It wasn't killing me, right? I should be thankful for that, right?

     No one asked questions. It wasn't important enough. I learned quickly to stop telling everyone. They didn't care, anyways. It was "misfortunate". I was misfortunate.

     Besides, there were much bigger issues to worry about. There is a new, dark wizard on the rise. Voldemort, he called himself. It is scary. It feels like every day someone shows up dead. Of course, we are all preparing to fight back. I have to work harder than anyone else to do that.

     I can read a book just fine. Anything farther than that short distance away is the issue. Looking straight ahead, I will see two pathways. One to the left, one to the right. My mind tricks me, changing which the one is the correct path every once in a while. I will veer left only to find myself hitting a wall and stumbling to the right. I then turn the corner and have the opposite happen. Recently, I have been given a walking cane to help me through this. A simple, brown, wooden thing. Almost like a large stick.

     When people ask me about my cane I say I have a bad leg. I don't want people to know about my eyes anymore.

      When I look into someone eyes, I may look in the wrong direction. They may have two heads or two bodies, depending on proximity. Is it the left head or the right? Is he walking at me or am I walking at him? The cane keeps them out of my way. I swing it around sometimes, making sure they keep a good distance.

     I have to sit in the very front row, and even then the words get jumbled up. Some people make fun of me, saying I am a teachers pet. Professors dote on me. Thats not the case. I just need extra help. It is too hard for me to point a wand in the right direction or collect the right potion ingredients without knowing where it truly lays. Which means I need extra classes. It also means the professors check in on me more.

     This is what lead me to Dumbledore's office today. I was sent an owl early this morning, asking to meet in his office. It didn't contain details, only an offer that I could not refuse.

     I was seated in one of four chairs in front of his desk, tapping my foot and twirling my thumbs. I kept glancing around, trying to look at all the magnificent items. The paintings on the wall stared hard back, causing me to glance back down at my lap.

     Dumbledore smiled, about to open his mouth and speak before a loud knock interrupted him. And a boy walked in. He had long black hair, reaching just past his shoulders. A pointy nose and what seemed to be black eyes. He was wearing slytherin robes.

     "Severus, welcome. Have a seat next to Azalea. Azalea Ross, this is Severus Snape. Severus, this is Azalea."

     I nodded in his direction, casting a quick smile. He did not return the favor. He merely glanced at me before taking a seat on the opposite end of the row. Dumbledore cleared his throat, trying to clear the awkward air.

     "Ah Remus Lupin. Welcome. And Nova Singh. Let me introduce Severus Snape and Azalea Ross," he smiled as two more kids walked in.

     Once again I smiled. The boy wearing gryfinddor robes smiled back, flashing his pointy teeth. He had light brown hair with light green eyes. His face had a small scar running diagonally across his cheek. The girl shrugged, auburn red hair jostling, and brown eyes sparkling in the light. She wore Ravenclaw robes. It seems I was the only Hufflepuff in the room. Not only this, but I felt ugly compared to the three people around me. I had wild black hair, thicker than all three of theirs combined. And my eyes didn't sparkle the way Nova's did. No, they just sat there, blue and empty.

     Remus sat directly next to me, and Nova between him and Severus. We all looked up at Dumbledore, waiting on his words impatiently. I knew why I was here, but why were they?

     "I have chosen one candidate from each house to participate in a new class. This is not a substitution for another class. It is an addition," he looked us each in the eyes, "I chose you all because or your unique circumstances and your abilities. You are all very capable. As you are all beginning your sixth year here at Hogwarts, I thought it was an appropriate time to try this out. You will be participating in a class that teaches you beyond what other sixth years are learning, and in some instances, seventh years. One of the things we will work on is wandless magic. Another will be occlumency. You will begin in a week. We will meet here at 8 pm on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. I will expect you to practice on your days off. And yes, you will have homework. Does anyone refuse this offer?"

     No, I cannot. I need this. I can't point a wand properly. I need help. But the others? What would they get out of this?

     To my surprise, no one rejected this offer. I was beyond shocked. This was crazy. This was absurd. This was a lot of work. I desperately wanted to be the only one doing this because I couldn't say no.

     With a sudden shock, my head jumped up to gaze at Dumbledore. I knew my eyes must look crazed. They were all going to know. They would all find out.