Mad World
Chapter the third
By: mistress-steerpike
Authors note: My apologies for the delay, for those of you who read and enjoyed chapters one and two. I was fully aware of what I was doing, but I was being lazy. But here it is, chapter three...yay! In this chapter we get to meet the residence of Cliff's Edge, such as Nurse Pratt's sister, a youthful orderly, and a bizarre female patient.
"I ate your bacon."
Hermione ceased her crying, and lifted head to face the intruder. A young woman stood at the foot of her bed, holding a tray of food in front of her. The contents of the tray were not at all appealing to Hermione, nor was the smell permeating from them. The woman appeared to be somewhere in her late twenties, very short, and very skinny, probably due in large part to the condition of the food at Cliff's Edge. She had longish dark brown hair, and large, imploring dark eyes that frightened Hermione a little bit.
"That's okay," Hermione managed to reply after taking everything in.
The woman invited herself to take a seat on Hermione's bed, setting the tray down with a bit of a dull "thud".
"I'm Lavinia Clare."
"I thought Lottie was supposed to bring my food to me," Hermione stated, confused. Surprisingly, Lavinia let out a high-pitched giggle.
"Oh she was...but a little while ago she threw herself off of the namesake!" Lavinia continued giggling at her comment. Hermione began to feel a bit ill at ease
"I see."
"Yes, so here I am...it really is horrible food, just so you know. Well, except for the bacon sandwiches, and I ate yours. But you don't look hungry...you look sick."
"The surgery. I'm still a bit sore from it."
"Oh, that dreadful thing! I came here when I was sixteen, and that's the exact age that they do that to patients, any younger and they can't. At least not for a while."
"How long does it take to heal?"
"I don't remember, ask me again tomorrow."
"I'll do that."
Lavinia's eyes brightened all of a sudden.
"You need a tour, that'll cheer you up!"
Hermione shook her head incredulously.
"I can't walk, Lavinia, it hurts too much."
Lavinia then gave Hermione a look that said that she thought Hermione was the silliest goose in the gaggle.
"Don't be a dunce! I have a wheelchair waiting outside just for you, and Larry is going to push you around in it while I rattle on about this and that, and then maybe later, when you feel better, I can introduce you to Betty! She's been here longer than anyone else, you know. Even longer than Dr. Blakeney, and that's saying a lot."
"Who's Betty?"
"I'll tell you THAT, when you feel better. She lives way up in the attic rooms, and that's such a long climb, so you'll have to be in top condition, you know. She likes visitors so much...but so far, I'm the only one," Lavinia finished her speech in a bit of a mournful tone, but brightened up when a man barely past his teen years entered the room with a sturdy looking wooden wheelchair. He was tall, and wiry, with ordinary features, and a slight acne problem.
"Hello Larry," Lavinia purred. He reddened at her greeting, and turned to Hermione.
"Miss Bateman, if you'll allow me..."
"Silly, her name isn't Miss Bateman! She doesn't look like a Miss Bateman, are you a Miss Bateman?"
"Musette Bateman," Hermione corrected.
"No, I don't think so. I don't like your hair either, do you like her hair, Larry?"
Larry smiled as he gently carried Hermione from the bed and into the chair.
"I think her hair is just lovely," he replied, shyly. It was Hermione's turn to blush.
"I don't like blondes, but I like you, Musette, because I don't think that you are a natural blonde."
"You'd be right. This is just a bit of an experiment gone wrong," Hermione answered, as the three of them started to leave her room, Larry behind her, pushing the chair, and Lavinia at her right side.
Lavinia smiled and clapped.
"I knew it! Now we can be the best of friends."
"I'm glad."
Lavinia then went on to explain the various rooms on their floor of the institute. Hermione was shocked at how many recreational rooms were off limits. There was a swimming pool, a billiards room, a dance hall, and a small gymnasium, but all were reserved solely for Nurse Pratt's sister.
"It wasn't always like that...not until the Red Queen's sister the pink Duchess came along and ruined everyone's fun. I used to play in all of those rooms, but we can't anymore."
"Is there a library?" Hermione asked, hopefully.
"No...not one that we can use. Pratty doesn't encourage the loonies to read." Hermione noticed that Lavinia's already drawling singsong conversation was becoming a bit more...flighty. Larry kept glancing at her, nervously.
"Now, Lavinia, you shouldn't call your fellow floor mates by that term, it's demeaning," Larry scolded softly. She only grinned at him.
"Remembering games of daisy chains and laughs, got to keep the loonies on the path," Lavinia sang softly in her eerie little voice.
"You know Pink Floyd?" Hermione asked a bit surprised. Lavinia blinked, and tilted her head pensively to one side.
"No," she replied.
"Lavinia, why don't you tell Musette about that room?" Larry inquired, stopping near a very smartly painted door. It was white with little pink daises, and a shining brass knob.
"She lives in there," was all Lavinia said.
"Pratt?"
"No, the Duchess. Go ahead; peer inside, she won't notice. All that great fat thing does in slumber nowadays."
Curiosity aroused, Hermione allowed Larry to pick her up once again so she was level with the round window on the door. What she viewed through that window shocked her so, that she clutched Larry's shoulder quite tightly.
"S-set me down, Larry...please?"
Larry obliged, but looked very concerned, Lavinia was busy with making faces at the slumbering patient.
"Tell me that isn't Pratt's sister," Hermione requested, finding it hard to breath.
"That's her."
"It can't be though! Tell me that Pratt's sister's name isn't Delores Umbridge!"
"Calm down Musette! I can't very well lie to you...Nurse Pratt's sister's name is Delores Umbridge."
"No, no, no, NO!" Memories of the tyrant were flooding back to Hermione...Apart from Lord Voldemort; the name Umbridge struck the most fear in her heart. Cruel, wicked, evil, EVIL woman! She was actually going to cast the Cruciatus curse on Hermione at one time. Hermione calmed herself when she realized that this was a much more sedate, slightly more insane Umbridge, although the last part wasn't much of a comfort.
"Do you know her?" Lavinia asked, turning away from the window.
"No," Hermione lied. Lavinia seemed satisfied with her reply.
"She's boring anyway. She never plays in the rooms set aside for her...what would a fat lump like her want with a swimming pool anyhow?"
"I have no idea."
"Well then it's settled, Larry, Musette needs her rest, you know. She's recuperating, so let's take her back to her room and tell her how lovely it is, and how she'll be staying with us for a very, VERY long time. No one can escape, you know," said Lavinia cheerily.
"That is a very depressing thought," Hermione commented.
"Well, why would you want to leave anyway? Have you a lover, Musette?" Lavinia asked, very intrigued.
"Perhaps I did once."
"Lavinia, don't pry," Larry warned. Lavinia gave him one of her strange giggles.
"Of course I won't pry, Musette will tell me all about him one day, won't you?"
Hermione nodded in affirmation.
"I'll tell you about both of them."
This made Lavinia squeal with delight.
"I DO love a good romance story!"
When Hermione was back in her bed and quite alone, she decided to play a little game. She called it, "Severus and Ron: A Comparison".
End of Chapter
The next chapter will be a comparison of her relationship with Severus Snape, and her relationship with Ronald Weasley, be prepared to take notes. Sorry for the shortness of this chapter, I can only assure you that next chapter will be longer, and there will be flashbacks, and it will come out sooner than this one did. Ta ta!!
P.S. The line Lavinia was quoting is by Pink Floyd and it's called "Brain Damage". It happens to be on the Dark Side of the Moon album. Here are the complete lyrics; I feel they fit the location well.
The lunatic is on the grass
The lunatic is on the grass
Remembering games and daisy chains and laughs
Got to keep the loonies on the path
The lunatic is in the hall
The lunatic is in my hall
The paper holds their folded faces to the floor
And every day the paperboy brings more
And if the dam breaks open many years too soon
And if there is no room upon the hill
And if your head explodes with dark forebodings too
I'll see you on the dark side of the moon
The lunatic is in my head
The lunatic is in my head
You raise the blade you make the change
You re-arrange me 'till I'm sane
You lock the door
And throw away the key
There's someone in my head but it's not me
And if the cloud bursts, thunder in your ear
You shout and no one seems to hear
And if the band you're in starts playing different tunes
I'll see you on the dark side of the moon.
Chapter the third
By: mistress-steerpike
Authors note: My apologies for the delay, for those of you who read and enjoyed chapters one and two. I was fully aware of what I was doing, but I was being lazy. But here it is, chapter three...yay! In this chapter we get to meet the residence of Cliff's Edge, such as Nurse Pratt's sister, a youthful orderly, and a bizarre female patient.
"I ate your bacon."
Hermione ceased her crying, and lifted head to face the intruder. A young woman stood at the foot of her bed, holding a tray of food in front of her. The contents of the tray were not at all appealing to Hermione, nor was the smell permeating from them. The woman appeared to be somewhere in her late twenties, very short, and very skinny, probably due in large part to the condition of the food at Cliff's Edge. She had longish dark brown hair, and large, imploring dark eyes that frightened Hermione a little bit.
"That's okay," Hermione managed to reply after taking everything in.
The woman invited herself to take a seat on Hermione's bed, setting the tray down with a bit of a dull "thud".
"I'm Lavinia Clare."
"I thought Lottie was supposed to bring my food to me," Hermione stated, confused. Surprisingly, Lavinia let out a high-pitched giggle.
"Oh she was...but a little while ago she threw herself off of the namesake!" Lavinia continued giggling at her comment. Hermione began to feel a bit ill at ease
"I see."
"Yes, so here I am...it really is horrible food, just so you know. Well, except for the bacon sandwiches, and I ate yours. But you don't look hungry...you look sick."
"The surgery. I'm still a bit sore from it."
"Oh, that dreadful thing! I came here when I was sixteen, and that's the exact age that they do that to patients, any younger and they can't. At least not for a while."
"How long does it take to heal?"
"I don't remember, ask me again tomorrow."
"I'll do that."
Lavinia's eyes brightened all of a sudden.
"You need a tour, that'll cheer you up!"
Hermione shook her head incredulously.
"I can't walk, Lavinia, it hurts too much."
Lavinia then gave Hermione a look that said that she thought Hermione was the silliest goose in the gaggle.
"Don't be a dunce! I have a wheelchair waiting outside just for you, and Larry is going to push you around in it while I rattle on about this and that, and then maybe later, when you feel better, I can introduce you to Betty! She's been here longer than anyone else, you know. Even longer than Dr. Blakeney, and that's saying a lot."
"Who's Betty?"
"I'll tell you THAT, when you feel better. She lives way up in the attic rooms, and that's such a long climb, so you'll have to be in top condition, you know. She likes visitors so much...but so far, I'm the only one," Lavinia finished her speech in a bit of a mournful tone, but brightened up when a man barely past his teen years entered the room with a sturdy looking wooden wheelchair. He was tall, and wiry, with ordinary features, and a slight acne problem.
"Hello Larry," Lavinia purred. He reddened at her greeting, and turned to Hermione.
"Miss Bateman, if you'll allow me..."
"Silly, her name isn't Miss Bateman! She doesn't look like a Miss Bateman, are you a Miss Bateman?"
"Musette Bateman," Hermione corrected.
"No, I don't think so. I don't like your hair either, do you like her hair, Larry?"
Larry smiled as he gently carried Hermione from the bed and into the chair.
"I think her hair is just lovely," he replied, shyly. It was Hermione's turn to blush.
"I don't like blondes, but I like you, Musette, because I don't think that you are a natural blonde."
"You'd be right. This is just a bit of an experiment gone wrong," Hermione answered, as the three of them started to leave her room, Larry behind her, pushing the chair, and Lavinia at her right side.
Lavinia smiled and clapped.
"I knew it! Now we can be the best of friends."
"I'm glad."
Lavinia then went on to explain the various rooms on their floor of the institute. Hermione was shocked at how many recreational rooms were off limits. There was a swimming pool, a billiards room, a dance hall, and a small gymnasium, but all were reserved solely for Nurse Pratt's sister.
"It wasn't always like that...not until the Red Queen's sister the pink Duchess came along and ruined everyone's fun. I used to play in all of those rooms, but we can't anymore."
"Is there a library?" Hermione asked, hopefully.
"No...not one that we can use. Pratty doesn't encourage the loonies to read." Hermione noticed that Lavinia's already drawling singsong conversation was becoming a bit more...flighty. Larry kept glancing at her, nervously.
"Now, Lavinia, you shouldn't call your fellow floor mates by that term, it's demeaning," Larry scolded softly. She only grinned at him.
"Remembering games of daisy chains and laughs, got to keep the loonies on the path," Lavinia sang softly in her eerie little voice.
"You know Pink Floyd?" Hermione asked a bit surprised. Lavinia blinked, and tilted her head pensively to one side.
"No," she replied.
"Lavinia, why don't you tell Musette about that room?" Larry inquired, stopping near a very smartly painted door. It was white with little pink daises, and a shining brass knob.
"She lives in there," was all Lavinia said.
"Pratt?"
"No, the Duchess. Go ahead; peer inside, she won't notice. All that great fat thing does in slumber nowadays."
Curiosity aroused, Hermione allowed Larry to pick her up once again so she was level with the round window on the door. What she viewed through that window shocked her so, that she clutched Larry's shoulder quite tightly.
"S-set me down, Larry...please?"
Larry obliged, but looked very concerned, Lavinia was busy with making faces at the slumbering patient.
"Tell me that isn't Pratt's sister," Hermione requested, finding it hard to breath.
"That's her."
"It can't be though! Tell me that Pratt's sister's name isn't Delores Umbridge!"
"Calm down Musette! I can't very well lie to you...Nurse Pratt's sister's name is Delores Umbridge."
"No, no, no, NO!" Memories of the tyrant were flooding back to Hermione...Apart from Lord Voldemort; the name Umbridge struck the most fear in her heart. Cruel, wicked, evil, EVIL woman! She was actually going to cast the Cruciatus curse on Hermione at one time. Hermione calmed herself when she realized that this was a much more sedate, slightly more insane Umbridge, although the last part wasn't much of a comfort.
"Do you know her?" Lavinia asked, turning away from the window.
"No," Hermione lied. Lavinia seemed satisfied with her reply.
"She's boring anyway. She never plays in the rooms set aside for her...what would a fat lump like her want with a swimming pool anyhow?"
"I have no idea."
"Well then it's settled, Larry, Musette needs her rest, you know. She's recuperating, so let's take her back to her room and tell her how lovely it is, and how she'll be staying with us for a very, VERY long time. No one can escape, you know," said Lavinia cheerily.
"That is a very depressing thought," Hermione commented.
"Well, why would you want to leave anyway? Have you a lover, Musette?" Lavinia asked, very intrigued.
"Perhaps I did once."
"Lavinia, don't pry," Larry warned. Lavinia gave him one of her strange giggles.
"Of course I won't pry, Musette will tell me all about him one day, won't you?"
Hermione nodded in affirmation.
"I'll tell you about both of them."
This made Lavinia squeal with delight.
"I DO love a good romance story!"
When Hermione was back in her bed and quite alone, she decided to play a little game. She called it, "Severus and Ron: A Comparison".
End of Chapter
The next chapter will be a comparison of her relationship with Severus Snape, and her relationship with Ronald Weasley, be prepared to take notes. Sorry for the shortness of this chapter, I can only assure you that next chapter will be longer, and there will be flashbacks, and it will come out sooner than this one did. Ta ta!!
P.S. The line Lavinia was quoting is by Pink Floyd and it's called "Brain Damage". It happens to be on the Dark Side of the Moon album. Here are the complete lyrics; I feel they fit the location well.
The lunatic is on the grass
The lunatic is on the grass
Remembering games and daisy chains and laughs
Got to keep the loonies on the path
The lunatic is in the hall
The lunatic is in my hall
The paper holds their folded faces to the floor
And every day the paperboy brings more
And if the dam breaks open many years too soon
And if there is no room upon the hill
And if your head explodes with dark forebodings too
I'll see you on the dark side of the moon
The lunatic is in my head
The lunatic is in my head
You raise the blade you make the change
You re-arrange me 'till I'm sane
You lock the door
And throw away the key
There's someone in my head but it's not me
And if the cloud bursts, thunder in your ear
You shout and no one seems to hear
And if the band you're in starts playing different tunes
I'll see you on the dark side of the moon.