lumos/ h.p.

35

harry potter was, to say the very least, incredibly concerned when saige black began hovering in her infirmary cot. he had been sitting with her ever since he had caught professor snape (much to his disdain) in the corridors, the floating, unconscious girl lazily following his irate form to the infirmary. harry absolutely hated the bloody git, but he would talk to snape a million times over if it meant that he was able to keep an eye on saige. she was truly the only person he felt could really understand his problems- she was just so empathetic and caring and kind and oh, he was blushing.

it began slowly, her body shifting microscopically off the cot's mattress. harry was tired- he had been sitting here for almost five hours, having skipped half of his classes just to stay- and he almost didn't recognize that yes, saige is floating a whole two inches off of the bed, and no, it is not slowing down. he had called for madam pomfrey in a panicked state, immediately trying to hold her shoulders down to prevent her from going further, but to no avail. it was as though she was laid on a solid rock, rising slowly but surely into the air. the poor boy watched in utter horror as her breathing quickened, chest beginning to heave.

madam pomfrey came over in a rush, a potion bottle already in hand, eyes widening at the state of the floating student in front of her. "dear lord, mr. potter, what did you do?" she shrieked, grabbing saige's hands and trying to hold her down as she rose. she was beginning to near almost a foot off the bed.

harry frowned angrily, a show of his brunt emotions even through the mounting concern for his friend. "i didn't do anything! she just started floating, miss, i swear!" her hands were trembling so much that he had to grab the one closest to him just to stop it.

madam pomfrey put a hand on saige's chest and began to work immediately. "mr. potter, i would appreciate it if you could go find professor dumbledore," she breathed, rushing back over to her station and grabbing three more oddly-shaped bottles from a shelf. harry was frozen, not quite sure what to do. he didn't want to leave saige, sure, but dumbledore would probably have a good idea of how to fix her.

"now, if you don't mind," pomfrey snapped, pouring a particularly oblong bottle into a bowl, and harry took off running.

he sprinted through the unusually empty corridors, painfully aware of the fact that dumbledore's office was ages away. harry likened the burn in his calves to that of running out to quidditch practice early in the morning. it was an ache that spread quickly, but he didn't pay it any mind as he ran deeper into the castle.

it was strangely quiet, but he could hear the bubbling noise coming from the great hall and knew that dinner must have just begun. a rush of relief ran through his legs- he definitely wouldn't have to run to dumbledore's office, thank merlin.

harry pushed himself towards the doors, and he lurched forward, the massive panels of oak swinging behind him. "professor!" he screamed across the hall.

whatever conversations that had begun ceased to exist the second everyone noticed him, sweaty and flushed, screaming over the crowd. professor dumbledore met his eyes in an instant, concern flashing through his features.

"professor, it's- it's saige, in the infirmary-" he gasped, finally aware of how out of breath he was. thankfully, he didn't have to wait long, as dumbledore had already began to move hastily towards him the second he choked out saige's name.

"harry, please stay here." dumbledore muttered softly once he met the boy. harry shook his head profusely, the sudden movement sending a wave of nausea through him.

"no, no, i've got to make sure she's okay," he spoke breathlessly, straightening up and beginning to prep himself for the sprint back to the infirmary. a knowing glint flashed through dumbledore's eye as he peered over the edge of his half-moon glasses, although harry didn't seem to notice.

"follow me." dumbledore began walking at a pace that harry couldn't even recognize- the man was moving faster than he had ever seen, sweeping down corridors in his long robes and nearly clipping harry with them several times. harry didn't need to run to keep up, but he was still walking hastily next to him in a state of shock.

harry didn't dare utter a word on their short trip back to the infirmary. there was a determined look that had glazed over dumbledore's kind features the moment he had said saige's name in the great hall that he didn't want to disturb.

when they finally reached the infirmary, dumbledore opening the doors with his wand in a large, sweeping motion, harry surged ahead of him at the sight. there, hovering six feet above the bed, was saige, who's entire body had began to spasm sharply since the last time he had seen her. her face was contorted into an unrecognizable shade of pain, anguish, and fear, mouth open as if to scream.

harry's heart dropped to his toes when she suddenly dropped, slamming back onto the bed with a sickening crack and the most tortured scream he had ever heard firsthand.

--

changed saige's faceclaim to the lovely elliot page!

when i made this book i failed to realize that the amazingly talented katie mcgrath was not really in the age group of the characters. also, elliot just fits saige's vibe much better in my humble opinion.

-L