Written For: Quidditch League, Season 11, Round 2. Write about help

Position: Kenmare Kestrels Seeker!

Word Count (baring this): 1753
Warnings/AN: Nightmares, dark imagery, violence, friend hitting a friend, high emotions.

Summary: Like Bill Weasley, the aftermath of Lavender being attacked by Greyback left some pretty awful side effects. She's fine though.

The trees stand like silent sentinels, always watching, waiting, casting long shadows across the ground. The air is thick with the scent of moist earth and the faintest hint of decay. Small budding flowers push up from the dirt, reach high, high, higher- and then wilt, turning back into the earth from whence they came.

The sun never reached the bottom of the forest.

Even still, nightshades and buttercups and daisies pushed their heads through, looking for a single ray of the sun. Enough to survive, enough to bring them to another day. They knew their end, the seeds before them always talked, wailing about their lack of ability.

It's too high, too hard, too far away!

Yet every season they tried harder and harder than the last to grow.

Lavender ran through the forest, her bare feet thumping against the ground in loud thuds. She breathed in quickly, every breath sending pounding waves of pain through her lungs. She has to run, run faster than she's ever run before. If she doesn't, he'll kill her.

Behind her, the beast nips at her heels, close but not yet reaching. Its yellow eyes stare straight at her, always watching, noting the directions and turns she takes. It's the same path every time. Its fur stands straight as she takes her right turn, his nimble body following after her.

Lavender trips, sprawling onto the forest floor as her body tenses up. The beast jumps. Lavender can't even scream as the wolf sinks its teeth into her neck.

She wakes suddenly, body drenched in a cold sweat. Her throat manages a sequel, but she doesn't scream, not this time.

The same dream, almost every night. Lavender was grateful to be alive, but she could do without the nightmares. Her body shivered as she glanced out her window, being careful to take deep breaths. She hated the moon. With a wave of her wand, the shutters closed, trapping her in darkness.

The darkness was easier than being surrounded by the light of the moon.

"Lav?" A sleepy voice asked from the bed next to hers. Lavender cursed quietly, rubbing at her face with two dry hands. She needed some lotion.

"Yeah, it's me, go back to sleep." Lavender heard rustling and the pulling of covers. Suddenly Parvati, her dearest friend, was climbing into her bed.

"Same as last time?" Parvati asked. Lavender sighed, nodding softly.

"Yeah…same old same old I suppose. I'll be alright."

"Will you?" Parvati asked quietly. 'No' Lavender wanted to scream. She wouldn't be. Concealer couldn't hide the horrible bags underneath her eyes, or the way her once tan skin slowly grew pale. She couldn't focus during class, having returned to Hogwarts for a repeat eighth year, and had already fallen so far behind.

"Yeah, of course I will." She said, patting her friend's shoulder. Of course, she took the easy way out. It saved her from answering uncomfortable questions. "Get some sleep, please?"

"Okay, will you get some too?" Parvati asked after a moment of silence. Lavender smiled, although her friend probably couldn't see it in their dark dorm room.

"Yeah, promise."

Lavender was good at breaking promises.

Parvati left her bed, sliding back under her own comforter as she left Lavender with her thoughts.

Lavender was fine!

The next morning found Lavender pampering herself in the bathroom. Her hair was softly curled thanks to her magical hot iron (it was amazing and such a great gift to herself) and her eyelids dawned a soft blue shimmer. If anyone pointed out her eye bags, she could just groan and blame it on the fallout from her muggle makeup. It was a good plan, a constant plan, one she reimagined and reworked every day.

Lavender was fine.

"Hey Lavender, you're up early," Hermione said with a yawn, walking into their large bathroom. "You look nice."

"Thank you," Lavender told her sincerely. Now that she had slowly grown out of her boy-crazy phase, she had come to appreciate her fellow dorm mates a lot more.

"You're welcome," Hermione told her, slipping into a shower. Lavender sighed as she heard the water turn on. Her stomach growled painfully, just as it did after every full moon. Her body craved meat.

Bile rose up her throat. She left the bathroom in a hurry, grabbed her bag and headed down to the common room where she knew Parvati was waiting for her.

Breakfast was an exhausting time.

"Vati, I'm fine, I promise," Lavender whispered sharply, stabbing her fork into her eggs.

"You haven't slept in days, Lavender." Her friend pointed out with a sympathetic look. "I can see your eye bags. Those nightmares are affecting you."

"That's just eyeshadow fallout-"

"Don't lie to me, Lavender," Parvati said, looking at her plate.

"I'm sorry," the blonde grimaced. Parvati sighed, pushing her food away. She wasn't hungry anymore.

"You're gonna keep going until you break."

"I'm not going to break, honestly. I'll be fine." Lavender told her friend.

"Whatever."

The scent of freshly warmed coffee filled the common room, Lavender thanking the house elf that kept popping in with a fresh cup every now and then. She had been studying hard these past few months, throwing her all into her education. Parvati slept on the couch beside her, and Lavender's heart twinged in jealousy.

The nightmares had only grown worse with time.

Her eyes scanned over the pages, trying to focus on the text, but her mind kept wandering to the nightmares that haunted her whenever she closed her eyes. She constantly dreamed of earth and violence and sharp claws sinking into her ribcage. The shadows of the forest danced in her mind's eye, taunting her with memories she couldn't even recognise.

Desperate to avoid the terror of falling asleep, Lavender pushed herself to study all night, reading everything she could about charms or potions or defence. The only sounds were the rustling of papers as she turned the pages, the ticking of the clock on the wall, and the occasional snore from the girl next to her.

Lavender smiled as she looked at her sleeping friend. Parvati had been there for her through everything, every appointment and check-up and the horrid shit in between. Even trying to stay up with her every night. Lavender was grateful, but she knew it was taking a toll on her friend. Lavender was already accustomed to the nightlife.

The night wore on, and her eyes began to grow heavy. She chugged her cup of coffee, another one taking its place a few moments later. She flipped a few pages, but the words were beginning to tumble and change on the page. Her eyes grew blurry and she rubbed at them, not caring that she still had her makeup on. It didn't matter, she'd just take it off and reapply later.

A spider scuttled across the fireplace, but Lavender ignored it. It was just her mind playing tricks on her.

Laughter echoed around the common room, but no one was awake. She shoved her hands over her ears. A wolf howled nearby, sending Lavender tumbling out of her chair. She fell to the ground, head thumping against the ground.

Back in the forest, Lavender ran, feeling the dirt under her bare toes. She wandered through the forest, searching for answers, but the shadows followed her every step of the way. She stumbled, nearly falling asleep, but the shadows kept her awake, their laughter and howls echoing in her mind. Yellow eyes watched where she went, every turn documented in a haze.

Lavender sobbed, trying to climb a tree, only to feel it deteriorate around her, crumbling through her fingers like sand.

"I'm sorry!" She screamed at the wolf. No, not wolf, wolves. Werewolves. They had arrived to finally claim their meal.

Lavender was going to die.

The pack jumped on her, and she was torn from her dream with a scream.

She sat up in bed, arms wrapping themselves around her head. Her body heaved, but no food came up. A soft hand rubbed at her back, whispering placating words as she leaned back into the bed. A vile was pressed up against her lips and she instinctively gulped. Her muscles relaxed, her eyes closing almost instantly.

The next time she woke, it wasn't to her own screams of terror, but to the sun shining on her face. She sat up, rubbing her eyes with a yawn. Where was she? Oh-

"Lav." A voice said, almost shocked. Something fell to the floor as she looked to her side. Parvati!

"Vati, why am I in the infirmary?" She asked, Parvati wrapping her in a big hug.

"You fell and hit your head, Lav. You were exhausted."

"Oh, seriously? Explains the headache. Now I have an excuse to study less." She tried to play off. Her cheek stung suddenly, head whipping to the side. She stared up at her friend in shock and betrayal. Tears filled her eyes. Parvati looked like she was going to cry too.

"Why do you keep lying to me?" She asked, voice barely above a whisper.

"W-what?" Lavender stuttered out, too shocked to speak.

"Why. Do you keep. Lying?" She bit out, shoulder shaking. Lavender was stunned, not saying anything. "I've been watching you for months now! You're my best friend, I'm not fucking stupid! You need help!"

"I'm fine, honestly, I just need to study-"

"You are not fine!" Parvati bellowed, grabbing her friend's shoulders as tears ran down her face. "You need help!"

Parvati placed her head on Lavender's shoulder, holding the girl tight. A stray tear rolled down Lavender's face.

"I saw you wake up from your nightmare, Lav. I heard you. You needed two doses of dreamless sleep to put you to sleep. You need help." Parvati spoke into her ear, body shaking as she held her friend closer.

"I don't- everyone-"

"Please," Parvati whispered.

Lavender sobbed. Every emotion she had been feeling since the war exited her body in wet waves, screams, and cries as the two girls held each other on the hospital bed.

"Help me, please," Lavender said in between sobs. "I'm so scared, I'm always so scared, I don't want to live like this!"

"I'll help you, I promise, I'm so sorry I didn't say something earlier, I love you so much." Parvati consoled, squeezing tighter. "You're my best friend."

"I love you," Lavender told the girl. "I can't do this without you."

"We'll do it together, I promise."

Lavender would be fine.