On the first day of term, as usual, Sadie awoke well before any of her friends would be up. With a glance at the time, she grumbled silently to herself about her complete inability to sleep in past 5:30 in the morning, no matter how late she'd been up the night before. In this case, it was quite late, as she and her dorm mates had spent much of the night catching up and sharing stories about their summer breaks. Try as she might, however, Sadie could not get herself to fall back asleep. With a resigned sigh and a prayer that she'd be able to stay awake during classes despite her lack of sleep, she rolled out of bed and changed into her favorite jogging outfit, figuring she may as well make the most of the early morning hours.
The moment she stepped outside the castle, Sadie's annoyance at being awake already was forgotten. She absolutely adored mornings. There was just something about the crisp air and the quiet stillness as the first rays of sunlight grew brighter over the horizon that made her world feel serene and simple. With a light smile and a sigh of contentment, she pulled her hair back into a ponytail, taking several minutes to stretch out her muscles before starting off on her run.
Sadie found that she could never quite get enough of the Hogwarts grounds. Her feet landing lightly on the ground beneath her, she drank in the sights around her as she made her way around the Quidditch Pitch and along the edge of the Forbidden Forest. She cast several longing glances into the trees as she ran past, but she knew better than to risk getting caught out of bounds and getting detention before classes had even started. Besides, especially with her new Animagus form, there would be plenty of opportunities to explore the forest in new ways throughout the year.
The sun had risen fully, and Sadie knew that she would need to get back soon if she wanted a shower before the other girls in her dorm were also rushing to get ready for the day. Cutting the final corner on her usual route, she sped up her pace to finish her last stretch along the edge of the Black Lake. As she drew nearer to the castle, she spotted a familiar redhead strolling toward her, hands in his pockets and a grin on his face.
"This is the kind of commitment I like to see, Sadie!" he called out to her. "Getting up early and training already! The rest of the team should be taking notes!"
Sadie flushed with pleasure at his words. Her mind scrambled to come up with clever things to say to him when she reached him, determined not to embarrass herself like she usually did.
Unfortunately, as the old Chinese proverb goes, one often meets his (or her) destiny on the road he (or she) takes to avoid it. So focused was she on impressing her long-time crush that she forgot to pay attention to where her feet were landing. Just as she was nearing Gideon and getting ready to slow down, her left foot came down hard on a large rock. She heard and felt a loud snap as her ankle rolled, and she barely had time to let out a cry of surprise and pain before she had tumbled right over a small ledge into the lake.
By one small stroke of luck, she had fallen into a fairly shallow area. She came up coughing and spluttering to see Gideon rushing toward her, a look of deep concern on his face. Sadie's cheeks burned with humiliation as he waded hurriedly to the spot where she sat, the water coming up just over his knees.
"Are you alright?!" he asked worriedly as he helped her to her feet. Sadie tried standing with as much dignity as she could muster, but the effect was spoiled as her ankle gave out when she tried to put any weight on it. Gideon caught her against his chest, frowning as her body quivered from both the cold and the pain. He let her lean against him and helped her out of the water, setting her down gently on dry ground.
Gideon quickly pulled off his school robe and wrapped it around Sadie's shivering body as she pulled off her shoe, grimacing with pain as she did so. She examined her ankle with a groan of irritation. It was severely swollen and had turned a nasty shade of purple, giving Sadie a fair bit of confidence that it was broken. Gideon winced in sympathy when he saw it.
"Shall I help you to the Hospital Wing then?"
Sadie shook her head tiredly. "Naw, she'll want to keep me for examination, and I can't afford to miss classes on the first day. I can mend it myself, but I don't have my wand with me." She bit her lip and looked at him shyly. "Any chance you could help me hobble up to the common room?"
Gideon stared at her disbelievingly for a moment, and Sadie thought he might refuse. Then he shook his head as if to clear it. "You're sure you can fix it yourself? I'm two years ahead of you, and we're not even scheduled to learn to mend broken toes until this year." Sadie tried to give him a reassuring smile, but it turned into more of a grimace.
"I can do it," she told him confidently. "I've mended bones before. I want to be a healer, and having James as a brother and Sirius as a friend has given me ample opportunity to practice."
Gideon quirked an eyebrow, looking impressed, and nodded. "Alright, but I'm certainly not making you 'hobble' all the way there, as you put it." Before Sadie could register what was happening, he had gently scooped her up, bridal style, and was carrying her toward the castle. She stammered incoherently for a moment before clamping her mouth shut, her embarrassment about the whole situation returning in a rush.
Gideon glanced down at her bright red face, smirking in amusement. "You can put your arms around my neck, you know. I promise I don't mind." Sadie gave him a sheepish look before hesitantly wrapping her arms around him, heart hammering as she did so.
"So, a healer, huh?" Gideon asked conversationally after a few moments of silence. Sadie was relieved to note that he didn't seem winded at all despite having carried her up two staircases already. "What makes you want to do that?"
Sadie's eyes lit up at the opportunity to talk about her dream. "Oh, I don't even know where to begin! It's such important work, first and foremost. I can only imagine how fulfilling it must be, can't you? Working every day to save and improve people's lives? I just want to help people. And I love plants and herbology more than anything, and that plays a heavy role in the profession, obviously."
Gideon nodded. "That's right, you're a bit of a herbology whiz, aren't you?"
Sadie blushed. "Well, I mean, it's definitely one of my best subjects, but it helps that I just love it so much! There's not much that's more soothing to the soul than taking care of plants. And if I can use that to make a difference in the world and even to help with the war...I mean, that would be about the most wonderful thing I can imagine." She gave a deep sigh. "I just hope that I can do it. I imagine I'll do great on my Herbology exams, and well enough at least in Charms and Potions, but I also need Outstandings in Transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts, and those are my hardest subjects by far. The boys are always having to help me. I've been working really hard though, and I do think I'm improving."
They had reached the Fat Lady, who was watching them rather impatiently as Gideon just gazed down at the girl in his arms with an expression that Sadie couldn't quite place. She bit her lip, embarrassed.
"Sorry," she mumbled. Gideon looked confused at her apology. "I didn't mean to talk your ear off. I just get so excited about it all."
He blinked at her for a moment before shaking his head with a soft chuckle. "I don't mind at all, Sadie. I love to hear it."
The Fat Lady cleared her throat loudly. "Do you have the password or not? I haven't got all day!"
"Right." Gideon cleared his throat, and Sadie could have sworn the tips of his ears had turned a bit pink. "Audentes fortuna iuvat."
The portrait swung open, and Gideon carefully maneuvered himself and Sadie into the common room. James, Sirius, and Peter were lounging in armchairs, apparently waiting for Remus to come down before they headed to breakfast. The three of them stood abruptly at the sight of Gideon and Sadie, and James and Sirius rushed forward.
"What happened?!" James demanded, taking in the sight of his sopping wet sister. Sadie flushed as she extracted herself gingerly from Gideon's arms, leaning against the back of the sofa for support.
"I don't want to talk about it," she grumbled. "I just need my wand, and I'll be good as new in a jiffy." Sirius gave Gideon a suspicious look before wrapping an arm around Sadie's waist so she could lean on him as he helped her to the entrance to the girl's dormitories. "Thanks, Sir. I can get it from here." She glanced back at Gideon, who was looking rather awkward standing there with his hands in his pockets, and gave him a grateful smile. He flashed her a small grin in return and turned to make his way up the staircase to his own dormitory.
Sadie gripped the handrail tightly as she hopped slowly up to her dorm. As she approached, she could hear her friends chatting and laughing cheerfully. Looking sheepish, she opened the door and hobbled over to her nightstand. The chatter stopped.
"Merlin, Sadie!" Mary exclaimed. "Classes haven't even started yet! What in the world did you do?"
Sadie lowered herself onto her bed and grabbed her wand from the top of her nightstand, pointing it at her swollen ankle. "Refectio," she muttered, giving a sigh of relief as the pain instantly stopped and the swelling and bruising faded. With that taken care of, she rolled her eyes at herself and flopped onto her back with a groan. "I rolled my ankle and fell in the lake." She paused here for effect. "In front of Gideon."
Her dormmates exchanged glances, clearly fighting back amused smiles. Marlene was the first one to give in, letting out a burst of laughter that was quickly followed by giggles from the other girls. Sadie smiled in spite of herself.
"Wait," Lily began once she had regained her composure. "How did you get back up here then?" Her eyes had a knowing look in them, and a smirk was slowly spreading across her face.
Sadie coughed lightly as her cheeks warmed. "Gideon, er, helped me a bit." The other girls were grinning widely now.
"Helped you how?" Alice prodded.
"Oh, you know, he just, sort of, you know, carried me..." Sadie trailed off as Mary squealed and the other three gave each other triumphant looks.
"That's so romantic!" Mary sighed dreamily.
Sadie scoffed. "Romantic? Are you kidding me? I'm completely humiliated! He's never going to take me seriously now! He and Fabian are probably up there right now having a good laugh about it!"
Lily raised an eyebrow. "Did he tease you?"
"Well...no..." Sadie admitted. "He was actually really sweet about the whole thing. That was just to my face though."
Her friends shrugged. "Maybe..." said Alice, but she didn't look convinced. "Anyway, I was just about to shower, but it looks like you could probably use it more than I could at the moment. Just don't take forever!"
Sadie gave her a grateful smile and a playful salute before hurrying into the bathroom.
Next to Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures was by far Sadie's favorite subject, and so she was thrilled to discover that it was her first class of the day. She stood happily next to Sirius while Peter, James, and Remus chatted behind them.
"So, what happened with Prewett this morning, Sadie Mae?" Sirius asked her quietly. "Did he do something to you?"
Sadie stared at him. "What? No, of course not! I just rolled my ankle and fell in the lake, and so he helped me back up to the common room." She shook her head at him in amusement. "Honestly, I know you don't like him, but he's definitely nowhere near as terrible as you seem to think he is."
Sirius was saved the trouble of responding as Professor Kettleburn rounded the corner and beamed at his students. "Good morning, class!" He called cheerfully. "I've got a very special project for my OWL and NEWT students this term." Sadie bounced on the balls of her feet excitedly. "Before we get started though, I need you to break into pairs, one boy and one girl each. Quickly now!"
In a flash, Sirius had thrown his arms around Sadie's shoulders and was glaring back at the other three boys playfully. "Dibs!" He stuck his tongue out at them triumphantly then paused. "Erm, as long as you don't mind, Sade."
Sadie laughed at him and turned to look behind her. "Sorry, boys," she shrugged. "Guess I'm taken."
Before long, the fifth years had all found themselves partners, some of them looking more pleased about it than others. Sadie was happy to see Mary and Remus working together; Mary's cheeks were a delighted shade of pink. Alice had kindly partnered up with Peter, who was looking relieved that any girl had been willing to work with him. Marlene was looking pleased with herself as she stood close to Archer Timothy, an extremely good-looking Ravenclaw. Lily was paired with Archer's best friend, Bertram Aubrey, who James was glaring daggers at from his spot next to a shy Hufflepuff named Eliza Dowd. James had tried his darnedest to persuade Lily to be his partner, but she had flat out ignored him in favor of flirting lightly with Bertram. Sadie wasn't sure if Lily was actually interested in the Ravenclaw or if she was only doing it to bother James, but she thought they made a cute pair regardless.
"Right then!" Kettleburn clapped his hands together. "This way, if you please!"
The students trailed behind him curiously, Sadie craning her neck to try and catch a glimpse of whatever this 'very special project' was going to be. Their professor led them just a bit into the forest, and the girls in the class gasped in delight as they rounded a corner. In front of them were a couple dozen mid-sized paddocks. Each one held a single unicorn of various ages and sizes.
Sirius grinned and looked next to him to see Sadie's reaction. To his surprise, she did not look excited at all. In fact, she was scanning the creatures in front of her with a furrowed brow, worrying her lower lip with her top teeth. Sirius knew her well enough to recognize this as a sign that she was taking in every detail about something, trying to put puzzle pieces together in her head. She walked cautiously closer to the paddocks, and Sirius followed, about to ask her what the matter was when Professor Kettleburn spoke up again.
"Now, who can tell me what is wrong with this picture?" Most of the students looked confused by his question, but Sadie raised her hand hesitantly. "Yes, Miss Potter?"
"Well," she began slowly. "I know it sounds strange, and I'm not sure exactly what's wrong, but I think these unicorns are sick." Most of the class stared at her incredulously. Unicorns didn't get sick. Everyone knew that. Sirius heard snickers behind them and turned to see several Slytherins smirking at Sadie and whispering to each other. He gave them a threatening look, which they returned with mocking stares, Snape sneering rudely. Knowing he couldn't do much in the middle of class, Sirius side-stepped so that he was behind Sadie, doing his best to block the sounds of their laughter from her ears.
Professor Kettleburn, on the other hand, was nodding encouragingly. "What makes you say that, Miss Potter?"
Sadie looked to her professor for permission before walking up to the first row of paddocks, examining one of the unicorns closely. It snorted at her nervously for a moment until Sadie shushed it softly and carefully reached out her hand. The unicorn hesitated before moving closer to her and allowing her to get a better look at it. "Well, by his size, this one looks like he's around 5 years old, which means that he should be a nice silvery color. From a distance, he doesn't look too bad, but as you get closer, you can see that he's a bit of a duller grey than he should be." She gently placed her hands on either side of the unicorn's face, looking closely. "His eyes are glazed over a bit. They should be clear and bright, and his horn isn't as long as it should be at his age." She dipped her finger into a shimmery fluid that had pooled in one of the creature's nostrils, rubbing it between her fingers and thumb. "This looks and feels like blood to me. That's not normal." She was sounding more and confident in her conclusion as she continued her examination. She bent down slowly and lifted up one of the front hooves, frowning deeply. "His hooves look and feel cracked and rough. They should be smooth and shiny." She straightened and brushed her hands off. The class was watching her uncertainly. They had thought she was being stupid when she said the unicorns were sick, but now they weren't so sure. She looked at her teacher shyly. "I'm sure I've missed things, but...that's enough to tell me that something isn't right."
Professor Kettleburn was giving her an approving smile. "Twenty points to Gryffindor. That was much more than I was expecting any of my students to be able to glean without coaching." Sadie flushed, a relieved smile working its way onto her face. She gave the unicorn in front of her one more worried look before retreating back to her spot next to Sirius, who beamed at her proudly.
"So, what's wrong with them?" Brielle Andrews, a Ravenclaw, questioned nervously.
Kettleburn smiled sadly. "Well, that's the question that I'm hoping, with your help, to figure out the answer to. I've never seen anything quite like it. Each pair of you will be assigned one unicorn. That's why I wanted you in pairs with at least one girl. I'll be teaching you how to perform certain tests, and I'll want you to take careful notes on everything from your unicorn's physical appearance to it's emotional state to how much food and water it takes each day. You'll be expected to check in multiple times a day outside of class, and I want you to alert me at once if you notice any sudden deterioration in your unicorn's condition." He paused and noted the wide eyes of his students, giving them a gentle smile. "I wouldn't be giving you this assignment if I didn't think you could handle it. If at any time you are feeling out of your depth, come chat with me, and we'll see what we can do for you." With that, he began calling pairs forward, considering each one for a moment before assigning them a to a unicorn.
Eventually, Sadie and Sirius were the only unassigned partnership. Kettleburn looked over the rest of the class for moment before beckoning to them. "Miss Potter, Mr. Black, if you'll come with me please."
They glanced at each other curiously as they followed him a bit further into the forest. He paused and turned back to them, speaking in such a low voice that they had to strain to hear him. "I was going to save this one for my seventh years, but, Miss Potter, you show more aptitude toward this subject than any other student I have currently." He shook his head with a sigh. "I'll warn you, this is by far the most difficult case we have at the moment, and I really am not sure she's going to make it. I keep her separated from the others because, well...you'll understand in a moment. Tread softly and keep your voices down."
Sadie and Sirius exchanged confused looks but followed their teacher into a small clearing. Sadie brought her hands to her mouth, tears springing into her eyes, and Sirius let out a quiet groan.
"Oh Godric..." Sadie murmured. Another paddock had been built in the clearing, and in one corner of it lay the smallest unicorn they had ever seen. Its size and lack of horn were the only things that gave away the fact that they were looking at an infant; the normal tell-tale golden coat had faded into a dull yellow. The baby's breaths were shallow and labored, and, every so often, her legs would give a violent spasm. The trio was cautiously approaching the paddock when Sirius accidently stepped on a twig, breaking it in half with a snap.
At once, the unicorn gave a great lurch and scrambled to its feet, snorting heavily and tossing its head around wildly in the direction of the sound. Sadie gave a quiet gasp as she saw the creature's milky white eyes.
She was blind.
The unicorn was on its feet for only a moment before its legs gave out and it collapsed back onto its side, trembling severely. Professor Kettleburn pulled out his wand, pointed it at her, and muttered, "Resido." The unicorn stilled, and the professor opened the gate to the paddock, beckoning Sadie and Sirius inside.
"She's sedated now," he told them. "You'll have to learn that charm if you want to work with her. It's the only way we can get any food or water into her. She won't let anyone near her otherwise, and she won't take anything on her own."
Sadie's voice trembled as she spoke. "How old is she?"
Professor Kettleburn gazed at the creature sadly. "Less than a week. She was born with it, whatever 'it' is. Her mother was sick and went into labor early. The delivery killed her."
Sirius wasn't quite as tenderhearted as Sadie was, but he still felt his chest tighten painfully as he looked at the poor thing. Sadie grabbed his hand and tugged him forward with her, both of them dropping slowly to their knees next to the small creature. Sadie hesitantly reached her hand forward and ran it along the unicorn's neck.
"She's icy cold." She looked at Sirius, deep in thought. Then, her eyes lit up and she started pulling off her school robe. "Take off your robe," she ordered Sirius. He blinked at her for a moment but did as she asked. Sadie draped her robe over the unicorn's body, then grabbed Sirius' and bunched it up, gently sliding it under the creature's head. Then she cast a warming charm on the two pieces of fabric. "Hopefully this will help to keep her warm and also teach her to recognize our scents and associate them with warmth and comfort." She turned and looked up at Professor Kettleburn. "What do we need to feed her? And how often?"
The teacher smiled at her approvingly. "Professor Sprout, Professor Slughorn, and myself have put together an adequate replacement for her mother's milk. It's not as good, but it is better than nothing." He pulled what appeared to be a baby bottle filled with a gold substance out of his satchel. "It's being kept in Greenhouse 3, along with several bottles like this. She needs to be fed every couple of hours, including through the night. I obviously don't expect you to do all of that, so I will do the nighttime feedings as well as any throughout the day that you are unable to make it for." He winked at them. "I do understand that you have other classes, after all." He handed the bottle to Sadie, who immediately gave it to Sirius. He took it from her and watched uncertainly as she carefully lifted the unicorn's head, placing it gently in his lap. Kettleburn nodded.
"Great, now, Mr. Black, you are going to use one hand to hold her jaws open and, with the other, you will slowly poor the liquid into her mouth. Miss Potter, you will use your hands to gently massage the throat, triggering her swallow reflex. Does that make sense?"
The two students nodded and did as he had instructed. Their teacher inspected what they were doing for a moment before, with a satisfied look on his face, he left them to check on the rest of the class. Sadie and Sirius worked silently for a few minutes before Sadie looked at him sheepishly.
"Still glad to have me as a partner? Now you've got the most difficult, time-consuming project."
Sirius chuckled softly. "I was going to call it the most interesting project. Besides, I like working with you, and you're wicked good at this class. I'm not really seeing a downside."
Sadie grinned at him playfully. "Does that mean you'll be my partner in Transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts too? Godric knows I need all the help I can get with those. I might bring your grades down a bit though."
Sirius laughed and nudged her with his shoulder as he adjusted his hold on the unicorn. "Sure, Sadie Mae. If it'll make you happy."
A/N: Haha this is getting really long, so I've got to end it here. Thanks to everyone who has read, followed, favorited, or reviewed! As always, let me know what you think!
12esheffield : I'm so glad that you like Sadie! And there will be plenty of jealousy on Sirius' part for a while. :D