Chapter One

October 1996

"Are you alright Lyssa?"

"Are the stars alright? We only see them when they're dying. We make LOVE under them. What does that say? I say it's sick. Humans are snuff voyeurs."

Daniel Morrigan sighed and rested his head against the window. The cool glass helped slow his heart. They were almost there, only about another half hour until they reached the station. From there, all they had to do was Apparate to the compound and he could just put her in her room. Keeping her in there wouldn't be an issue, since Lyssa had taken to hiding whenever something upset her, which didn't take much. If someone screamed loudly or if one of the dragons got out of hand, she could curl into a ball and stay that way for hours.

While he loved his sister, Daniel wished he didn't have to take care of her. Mostly because of the circumstances that led to him having to take her in, but a small part of him simply didn't want the responsibilities that came with caring for Lyssa.

In July, their parents, Benjamin and Pauline Morrigan had been killed in a random Death Eater attack. Benjamin had been hit with a Killing Curse presumably after answering the door. Pauline and Lyssa had been taken into separate rooms and tortured. It had to have been for the amusement of their tormentors, since Pauline had been a housewife and Lyssa had jus started her Healer training. Pauline's heart had given out after several hours, and Lyssa had barely survived. Of course, this was all conjecture, since Lyssa had barely been able to form a coherent sentence, much less tell anyone what happened. The only evidence of a Death Eater attack had been the Dark Mark over the house, though the incident had been more disorganized than previous attacks.

But hours of being beaten and hit with various spells had left her with scars all over her body. Being under the Cruciatus Curse for Merlin knows how long had driven her halfway to madness. Daniel was lucky if she was lucid for a couple hours a day. He still wasn't even sure if she knew that their parents were dead. He had told her, and he was sure a Healer had as well, but he didn't know if she had it yet. The night before, she had been in a bad state and had torn apart the room he had rented looking for a cat that the family had once owned. Said cat, Ringo, had died when Lyssa was ten.

The Healer in charge of her case, Seelia Ault, had told him that Lyssa was in a good state compared to where she had been in the summer. If she took her potions daily, over time she would go back to her normal self.

The phrase 'over time' made him sick. His life had already been on hold for three months. His bloody wedding had been postponed indefinitely. Emily, his fiancée, was understanding, but for how long?

But he had to. Lyssa had been declared unfit and his parents had named him as her guardian in case of his parents death, and the law stated that unless the person was married or had named someone else, when one was declared mentally unfit and not a criminal, they went to whoever their parents had decided.

"Three, four, better lock your door."

She was singing now, staring out the window with a blank look on her face, one of her fingers tracing her thigh. To someone else, the motion would look obscene, but she was really tracing one of the scars on her thigh. The one in question was a severe bite mark. Lyssa had been bitten in several places, but that had been the only place where it had been vicious enough to leave a scar. She could spend hours tracing it, with that same blank look on her face, suggesting that she was reliving that day in her mind over and over.

The train stopped a minute later. The slight jolt made Lyssa stiffen, her slumped shoulders straightening in response to a threat that was only in her mind.

"You're going to be fine," Daniel muttered as he led her off the train, holding her hand. Their luggage was already at his cottage, so that was one complication taken care of. Like a child, she led him lead her around the station. He knew better than to let go. She would get lost, and maybe hurt herself or someone else. She usually fought with her hands, as she hadn't used her wand since the attack. It was in her room at Daniel's, ready to be used when she was ready. Healer Ault had told him though that if she didn't use magic on purpose, her stored up energy would cause incidents of accidental magic in times of extreme emotion.

Waiting for them at the entrance was Emily. She wore a Muggle dress and coat, as per Daniel's instructions. She was one of the many Purebloods who didn't 'get' the way Muggles dressed, and Daniel didn't want any attention to be drawn to them. She was the onsite Healer. Before, due to their shared interests, Lyssa and Emily had gotten along. They had been able to have long talks, and Lyssa had been eager for her to join the family. Now, Lyssa wouldn't even look her in the eye, choosing to stare at a point behind them.

"Hello Lyssa," Emily said to the younger woman, who just stared at her. "How is she?" she asked Daniel in a soft voice.

"I took a deep breath and listened to the old bray of my heart. I am. I am. I am.*" Lyssa blurted out, her eyes wide. Well, one eye was very wide, while the one that pulled down slightly just looked a bit strange.

"This is good," Daniel muttered and pointed at his sister, who was still staring into space. She was still clutching his hand and Emily was forced to follow behind them.

"We gonna be okay?" Lyssa asked, her voice nearly childlike. It reminded Daniel of the child she had been.

"Yeah," Daniel nodded. "Fine."

Xxx

*Quoted. Originally said by Sylvia Plath

Next up, Charlie's POV. Sorry this was so short. I'll try to get to 2000 words next time.

I hope you review!