Crashing Down
Kim finished her letter to Lucius and got up from her bed. As she did, she got a glimpse of herself in the mirror opposite her.
Oh, Merlin. I look like a complete scrag. Even Laura doesn't look like this much of a bloody derro.
She pulled her hair back and put on some new clothes, hoping that no one would notice her pale, tired face. She folded the heavy parchment and stuck it into her pocket.
Ris-Ris had left the dungeon and found a worried Sirius. This gave Sirius the patience to wait a few more hours.
I can't give up. I can't just leave.
It wasn't until early afternoon that anyone else left the dungeon, about an hour after most students had gone to classes after break. When Kim's face appeared from the passage leading out of the Slytherin common room, Sirius's heart skipped several beats and then worked overtime trying to make them up.
"Kim, there you are. Why haven't you gone to class? Why do you look so sick?" Sirius asked anxiously as he held her in his arms.
"Umm…I am sick. Really bad. I was just going to the Hospital wing to see if I could get a potion or something." Kim said nervously.
"I'll walk you and make sure you get there okay." Sirius said quickly and let her up the stairs and towards the hospital wing.
"No, you go to class. I'll be fine." Kim said as they walked. Sirius said nothing, but slid his hand into hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. She smiled to herself and they walked the rest of the way in a calming silence.
After being kicked out of the hospital wing by Madame Murphy and dropping Ris-Ris off at the Slytherin Dungeon, Sirius decided he might as well not go to class. There was only half of the last period left and he would only disrupt the lesson, so he started towards the Gryffindor Tower to change his clothes before heading back down to the kitchens to steal some food. He was distracted, however, by the door opposite the portrait of Barnaby the Barmy. The door that shouldn't be there. The door that only appears when someone requires it to. He was not the type to snoop, but no one knew how to use the room except himself and his friends. He pulled out his wand and mumbled "Trisnoptisia." And the door became pervious to sound. As he leant his ear to the door, he was horrified to hear what was going on inside.
(A/N Who here has a dirty mind???)
"So that's what's been going on. That's all I know." Lily's voice said softly.
"What do you guys know?" That was James's.
"Nowhere near as much as you guys. I was kind of suspecting that something was going on, but nothing serious. This is freaky. Maybe she's on drugs, but I swear I didn't give them to her." Ebony replied, as she lit up a Wiccapot joint.
"Maybe we should talk to Kim about it." Remus suggested. "She's the only one who knows what's going on."
Sirius silently thanked Remus for his trust, and then continued listening.
"Have you seen her lately? She's avoiding Sirius and no one knows where she is." James retorted.
"And if she's evil, she's not going to tell us. She's keeping secrets and I think it's because they're about whom she really is. I think she's not the person we all think she is. I don't think she's ever changed." Lily said calmly, but with a hint of disgust.
"I think she's still fucking Malfoy. He's been sending her letters and she's been keeping his secrets…" James started.
Lily interrupted. "And he's obviously evil."
"But Sirius trusts her and doesn't want to believe anything's wrong with her." Remus's comment was supported with various confirmations. "Then maybe he's simply too in love to see. Or maybe she's the one making him blind, but not through love. What if he's under the Imperial curse? What if she is controlling him…for some reason."
"Because she's evil." Lily repeated.
"We have to find out for sure. She could be evil or with Lucius or Sirius could be under a curse, or maybe she is on drugs. We need proof." Ebony said. "We need to…spy."
"Espionage." Remus muttered. "I guess it's the best way."
Sirius stepped back from the door as he heard a bell sound in the distance. Class was over. He kicked the wall and stormed downstairs.
How can they think about Kim like that? Why can't they trust her? Why can't they trust me?
He reached the Entrance Hall and trudged outside, just because he had no idea where he was going.
But I think I might know what's going on. What if they have the right idea? Kim has been odd lately and she does have an evil ex-boyfriend. What if Lucius Malfoy has put her under a curse? Maybe she's sick because she's trying to fight it? I might be the only one that can help her.
His feet had led him to the Quidditch Pitch. He was about to turn around and go back to the castle when he heard a voice behind him, a heavily accented voice.
"You don't look like a happy chappie." It was Casey, obviously about to start a personal practice.
"My girlfriends sick." Sirius said, not knowing what else to say.
"Kimberley, right?" Sirius nodded at her. "She's a nice lass, she used to be friends with my brother, Ben. Or we called him Buster. Do you remember him? He was in Kimberley's year."
"Buster Schofield? Didn't he go missing?" Sirius asked.
"Missing, yes, that's what everyone was told. He's dead." She said bluntly.
"How do you know for sure?" Sirius asked, though not really caring.
"Ah, that's a question that you should ask your ill lass. She's the one that told me, in a way. She didn't tell me directly, but it was because of her that I know." Casey didn't notice the perplexed look that had possessed Sirius's face. "Do you fancy a fly? The weather's quite fine for a spot of Quidditch, don't you think?"
She never got a reply. Sirius had turned and ran back to the castle.
When he got to the hospital wing, he burst into the room he had left Kim at and saw her sitting in a nearby bed.
"Do you love me?" He said angrily as he stared at Kim.
"What?" Kim asked, shocked.
"Do you love me?" He repeated.
"I think you know the answer." Kim said quietly.
"Do you love me?" He said again.
"Yes."
"So you would never keep a secret from me unless you had to, unless its because I shouldn't know or you could get hurt if you told me." He demanded.
"Secrets? I only keep secrets when it's the only option. I tell you more than anyone."
"And that's the truth?"
"That's the truth."
"Then I believe you." Sirius turned and left the room, leaving Kim with nothing but her thoughts and a roomful of questioning eyes.
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