THE CHOSEN ONES | hp universe {one}

chapter sixteen

— CHAPTER SIXTEEN —

ITS A CONTINUOUS PAIN

The flashbacks didn't stop. They continued for a whole three weeks after they started and nothing could calm me down apart from Hermione, Ron or Harry spending the night with me. Usually it was Hermione but for the really bad nights, Harry would bring some blankets and pillows down to the common room and the four of us would have a sleepover on the couches in front of the fire.

I was slacking in school, too. I couldn't get to sleep until late, and then the flashback would happen and I wouldn't get much sleep after that. I sometimes dozed off in class or I didn't concentrate properly so I had missed out on a lot of information. It also took a toll on Harry, Hermione and Ron as they often had disturbed sleep but they never complained and not once did they refuse to help me. I was incredibly grateful but I also felt awful for waking them up like I do.

My teachers had noticed my lack of effort in class and had grown really concerned. Many times they had kept me behind to ask if me if I was alright and I always answered with a simple 'yes, I'm just tired'. The only teacher I couldn't fool was Snape and that was because we had spent a lot of time after school hours together. The first tutoring session back he had asked if I was okay, the next week he had asked if I needed some support and wanted to know why I was so tired all the time and the week after that, he had made a batch of sleeping draught which he wanted me to take every night ten minutes before I went to sleep. Apparently, he had asked the other teachers what was wrong with me and Harry had told McGonagall that I hadn't had any decent sleep in three weeks due to nightmares.

I took the draught ten minutes before bedtime every night, just as Snape had instructed, and it worked a treat. I didn't have anymore flashbacks and I slept from nine to six-thirty. However, as much as I had been getting rest and getting a better mental state, one of the side effects was slight memory loss so I sometimes forgot homework or which classes I had that day.

I continued to take the draught in smaller servings but I still struggled to remember things, such as the occasional information in class. My teachers had been informed of my slight memory issue and they all went a little easier on me but it didn't make me feel any better. I was being babied and I didn't like it. I was always so independent and now I couldn't even go to the bathroom alone; Hermione always  had to escort me. I felt pathetic. Plainly and utterly pathetic.

-

"I think I'm going to stop taking the draught, see if I've improved," I sighed, rubbing my head forcefully after having forgotten which transfiguration spell McGonagall had wanted us to research.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked in a concerned tone. That's another thing that's annoyed me; the constant pity and carefulness from everyone around me, "what if the flashbacks come back?"