AN: Prompts will be displayed at the bottom to avoid them potentially giving away things.
Lost in Time
AlwaysPadfoot
Seamus was running late.
Of course, he was late on the morning of the department meeting. Somehow, even after eight years of working on the same floor at St Mungo's, he never seemed to quite make it on time for one reason or another. He was very late. The memo they'd all received even said at the bottom: do not be late — that means you, Seamus Finnegan.
Though it had made him laugh at the time, he didn't particularly care for facing the wrath of Healer Farley.
Skidding across polished floors and narrowly avoiding collisions as he rounded corners, Seamus finally made it to the staffroom. Only the meeting was over, and most people were already gone.
"Fuck," Seamus muttered as he hunched forward, his hands on his knees to catch his breath.
"Ah, and here he is, one of our top Healers — though always comically late — Seamus Finnegan." Healer Farley's voice cut over the slight ringing in his ears.
He could tell she definitely didn't think that him being late was comical and when he straightened up to look at her, her eyes screamed fury despite the smile on her face. Seamus winced; he wasn't definitely going to get an earful later.
"Healer Finnegan, this is Healer Gabrielle Delacour," Farley said. "She trained in Paris and has taken the position of Junior Healer here on this floor."
Seamus' gaze fell to the girl standing beside Farley. Her blonde hair was tied up in an elegant up-do and her smile made her eyes bright as she held out her hand to him.
"Hi," Seamus said, reaching out to take her hand. "Nice to—"
The staff room faded away.
oOo
Seamus found himself standing in what looked to be a Professor's office. It wasn't one he recognised though and he was quickly realising he wasn't actually there at all.
This was soulmate magic.
This was because he and Gabrielle had touched — because they were soulmates.
This was her worst memory. It was supposed to be some sort of way for soulmates to understand what one another had been through.
Seamus swore under his breath and studied his surroundings. It was perfectly neat, something the spaces he inhabited never were. The oak desk had two neat stacks of essays on it. When Seamus leaned over to look, everything was written in French. It dawned on him that when Gabrielle and her Professor came into the room, he wasn't going to understand what was going on.
The opening of the door made him jump, and a pudgy woman with greying hair passed right through him to move behind her desk.
Gabrielle, who appeared to be about sixteen, came into the room too. She was biting her lip and the sleeves of her blue jumper were pulled down over her hands. Looking quite pale, she sat on the edge of the seat beside Seamus when the Professor said something in soft French.
"Est-il arrivé quelque chose, Professeur?" Gabrielle's voice was shaky when she spoke and Seamus found himself fixated on her.
He didn't have a clue what she'd said, nor did he want to risk guessing. The wall of French that came from the Professor hurt his head, but his focus stayed on Gabrielle as her eyes grew watery. Her lips were pressed together as though she feared she might sob if she opened her mouth.
Seamus had never felt more like an intruder.
"Gabrielle?" The Professor asked gently. "Gabrielle?"
The blonde girl shrank into her seat finally releasing a broken sob. Seamus just wanted to be able to comfort her as her shoulders shook and the Professor came round to comfort her, speaking softly in French.
Suddenly the scene started to fade away in his vision, Gabrielle's sobs still loud in his ears.
Then it was gone.
oOo
The next thing Seamus was aware of was that someone was gripping his hand.
He was back in the staffroom, his hand clasped in Gabrielle's, Healer Farley stood at their side. He blinked at the blonde girl who was staring at him with wide eyes and then let go of her hand.
"You just stopped mid-sentence there, Finnegan," Farley commented. "You are going to be able to control yourself, aren't you?"
"What—yes, yes, of course. Sorry," Seamus stammered. "It's nice to meet you, Gabrielle."
"You too, Seamus," Gabrielle responded her accent light.
Healer Farley clapped her hands together, making Seamus twitch at the sound.
"Excellent, Healer Delacour, I'll leave you in Finnegan's capable hands. He'll show you around as he does his morning rounds." Farley's smile faded as she turned away from Gabrielle and to Seamus. "And we need to have a quick chat in my office, say around midday, Finnegan?"
Her voice seemed completely amicable, but her eyes said she was probably going to kill him later.
"Yes, ma'am," he responded.
Healer Farley left them alone and as soon as the staffroom door shut, Gabrielle and Seamus met one another's gazes again. For a long moment, neither of them seemed to know what to say and only now did it dawn on Seamus that she must have re-lived his worst memory too.
"Well," Gabrielle said finally. "We're going to 'ave a lot to talk about on our break later."
"Too right," Seamus agreed nervously.
"Shall we get to your rounds, Healer Finnegan?" She asked.
"Yes," he said quickly, holding an arm out toward the door. "Yes, we'll start with Mr Morris at the end of the corridor."
It was going to be a long morning.
Comps and Prompts
Romance Awareness: Day 17 - The first time you touch your soulmate (shake hands, brush skin, whatever) you're forced to relive the best and/or worst day of their lives. (This can be past or future, your choice).
LiM: Het — Seamus/Gabrielle
IHC: 732. Title — Lost in Time
365: 299. Style — Flashback
Word Count: 925