Damages | Open

[sirius orion black]

Sirius Black was really beginning to make use of those frequent flyer miles. What, with the mysterious injuries that would occur during numerous experiments that may or may not have broken just about every school rule the marauders could think of, the Gryffindor was becoming quite accustomed to the boring, sterile interior of the Hospital Wing. If nothing else, his injuries left him quite entertained, and this particular wing of the grand castle never seemed to be devoid of visitors. Obviously Sirius wasn’t the only one with a tendency to get hurt. So they were usually first years; the boy never really tired of adoring fans, and he was the perfect role model.

Well, maybe perfect wasn’t the right word.

In any case, having just been tended to, Sirius hopped off of the bed he’d occupied and headed for the exit. The gash above his eye some Slytherin lass had amorously (and without provocation… mostly) opened was now only a bit of reddish, raised skin and the only evidence that it had been serious enough for a visit was the drying blood that surrounded it and stretched down his right cheek. Personally, he rather liked the look; it was a bit dangerous, wasn’t it? Perhaps he would leave it there all day. Ok, so it was probably going to start bothering him soon, but at least the long walk to the Gryffindor tower would allow him to turn a few more heads than usual.

As he suspected, the few people seated in the beds on either side of the aisle he was taking on his way out who hadn't pulled the curtains around (although those beds could just as easily have been empty) were first years - probably just having left an accident on the pitch. While he probably should've been more empathetic, Sirius had never had problems like these when he was a first year. He'd gotten his first broom before he could even walk, so flying hadn't been an issue by the time he made it to Hogwarts. Beyond that, he was practically bred to be just about as perfect as humanly possible (not to mention his strict upbringing before he'd finally just thrown in the towel on the whole family thing). He wasn't very good with having sympathy when it involved things he didn't understand (which, in all honesty, was most things that required sympathy).

[rachel]

There are an awful lot of stairs at Hogwarts. Rachel Dobson had disliked this about the school from the moment she got there. It wasn't really that she disliked the idea of there being more than one level at Hogwarts, it was just that Rachel was... well, accident prone. Back home, Rachel had fallen down stairs and tripped up the stairs as well. To be blunt, she was clumsy beyond what she could even handle. Yes, yes, laugh away. Many people have already laughed at her for her knack to trip, stumble, fall, run into things and just generally hurt herself. She wasn't sure whose genes she'd gotten to make her such a klutz, certainly not her athletic mother's. Probably not her father's either. Prehaps she was adopted. No, that wasn't possible, she was nearly a smaller, carbon copy of her mother. Where on earth had she gotten the clumsy gene then!? Was it possible that like spider man she'd been bitten by a radioactive spider? Well, maybe in her case it wasn't a radioactive spider. Maybe when she'd been younger she'd fallen into a vat of something radioactive and it had messed up her balance.

Or maybe not.

Either way, Rachel's clumsiness struck again that afternoon on her way out of charms class. Hufflepuffs and Slytherins had been together. It had been a good class, Rachel had mastered the charm and done quite well, it was after class that she didn't like so much. Rachel had been walking down the stairs when she missed a step, painfully went over on her ankle and proceeded to fall the rest of the way down the staircase. Of course the Slytherins had laughed. They laughed at everyone and anyone who made the slightest mistake in their presence. Oh bless their bloody perfection.

So anyways, Rachel had gotten up, blushing profusely. When she'd tried to put any weight what so ever on her ankle a fiery pain shot up her leg. A fellow Hufflepuff had been sent to the rest of their classes with the news that Rachel was on her way to the infirmery again. Go figure. Her professors had become used to her running into walls, falling off chairs and hurting herself in some way, shape or form. Her injuries always left her in the same place. The hospital wing. That's where Rachel was headed right now. After a long limp from the charms classroom, she was on her last leg of the 'course'. The final hallway. Rachel's ankle was swollen and puffy and red and to be quite honest, uncomfortable. She limped quickly as she could (which, really, wasn't very fast) towards the hospital wing and opened the doors quietly. She wouldn't make a big deal, she was here to often that they generally just got her in and out in five minutes. Rache walked into the hospital wing, trying not to make any noise and therefore not waking the first years who were quietly trying to recuperate. Rache, being Rachel, ran into a rolling bed which fell over with a terribly loud clatter.

Outfit

[sirius orion black]

And his insensitivity continued. To Sirius’ defense, he really did try. At least this time, as he watched the poor girl crash into the bed and rolling tray that dared obstruct her path, Sirius tried his damndest not to laugh. There was no way in hell he’d be able to hide the obvious grin that crossed his features, but at least he was making an effort – and that was more than could really be expected of the boy if you happened to be a person who knew anything about him. Besides, it wasn’t as if the average person (not that Sirius was anywhere near average) who came across the same sight wouldn’t have laughed. Sirius just wasn’t known for his kindness towards the general population or for his unending empathy; if that was what you were looking for, you’d best try your luck with Hogwarts’ resident werewolf.

While Sirius could understand that Remus’ experiences made him a more sympathetic person, this knowledge alone didn’t get him to try and change his ways. Sure, there were times when he wished he could undo some of the things he did like leading Snape to the Shack in their fifth year, but at the same time, he knew that there was no point in dwelling in the past. There was no such thing as a perfect person, and although he was as close as any human could get, there was just no way of predicting how another person would respond to any given action. In all honesty, Sirius’ problem was really that he lived in the moment and spent very little time worrying about consequences. To him, there didn’t seem to be any real fun in looking before leaping; it was all in taking that plunge.

Still, since the poor girl happened to be just that, Sirius would try and be polite. It wasn’t an angle or anything; he imagined a great deal of people accused him of using good manners to lure in the lasses, but that was all done by his looks. That just happened to be the only good outcome of his upbringing. While Walburga happened to be a harpy, she had a strict policy on manners. Use them… or else. He didn’t know if that was so engrained in his younger brother’s mind because Sirius had really been the focus before being sorted into Gryffindor, but it had certainly managed to stick with him. While this was something that often enraged him – he hated anything that related to his family except for his name and good looks, and even that was only because he placed his above theirs – Sirius also enjoyed a great deal of lenience that he wouldn’t have otherwise received simply for using charm and polite mannerisms when it counted.

Attempting to make his sympathy appear sincere, Sirius walked over to the girl and dipped down to help with the mess. “Are you alright?” he asked, although his smile may have betrayed him. Again, could she really blame him? That was rather comical…

[rachel]

Damn it, damn it Rachel cursed inwardly as she tried to move the bed away from herself. The aluminum frame was luckily not too heavy so she was able to move it away with enough ease, but she'd caught her leg under the rolling tray and moving that was a little more difficult. Honestly, Rachel should have been given credit just for trying to do that with her ankle in a less than fit-for-work state. She grimaced a the rolling tray put a slight pressure of her puffy red ankle. Stupid, stupid, stupid..

A few first years had leaned out of their beds to watch her. Some with wide eyes and others with stifled laughter. She carefully looked around the room, still sitting on the floor like a large toddler. She sighed, it must have been quite funny and honestly she couldn't blame them for laughing at her. She would probably initially have found it quite comical that someone had managed to completely knock over a bed, rolling side table and fall to the floor themselves. It takes a fair ammount of talent to do something like that. Or so Rache liked to think anyways.

Well, Rachel felt bad since the nurse who had been cleaning up looked over dishenteningly. She began to quickly try and right the things which had fallen off the rolling tray and bed. One pillow, a pack of chocolate frogs and a pack of bertie botts every flavor beans. The colorful jelly beans littered the floor. Rachel painfully got her knees and began to try and sweep them into a pile. She was so busy trying not to teeter over and fall again that she didn't notice the handsome Gryffindor until he was right in front of her.

Are you alright

[/b] The smile on his face gave away that his empathy was mostly just an act. She figured he'd probably found it quite comical too. Rachel carefully looked over his face. A trail of dried blood ran from his forehead to his cheek. She wondered what had happened to him but decided not to ask just in case it was something she didn't actually want to know about. "I'm fine, thanks." she smiled warmly. She knew him from somewhere, she could've sworn it. Rachel didn't get to involved with most of the other students due to her sky demenor, but there was something in this boy's face which, minus the blood, reminded her of someone. She tried not to be too obvious that she was studying him, but she was now desperate to know where exactly she knew him from. Then it clicked. "You're that Gryffindor boy!" she exclaimed involuntairly, making her flush deeply. "You're in my divination class." He sat in the back of the class with that boy with glasses. They tended to make wise cracks which were somewhere between funny and annoying. But there's a fine line there anyways.[/blockquote]

Outfit[/size]

[sirius orion black]

Sirius’ brow lifted quizzically as she referred to him as ‘that Gryffindor boy’. Sure, Hogwarts was a big school and he probably shouldn’t have been miffed by the fact that someone didn’t recognize him, but come on, he was Sirius Black! And then the only reason she knew him was because they shared a Divinations class? He imagined that if they shared that one, they must have had a few together over the years, right? Perhaps his thoughts were irrational; it wasn’t as though he knew her. This only showed him that he and the marauders had not, in fact, been doing enough to make a name for themselves. No, by the end of this year, Sirius was determined to see to it that everyone at Hogwarts would know who they were.

Shrugging in response to his own train of thought regardless of whether or not the reaction would’ve made much sense to her, Sirius decided, ”I’ve been called worse,” and replaced that signature grin of his. Well, this may have been the understatement of the century. Over the years, Sirius had been called much worse, and it didn’t all come from his family either. No, part of making yourself known (and staying entertained, in Sirius’ case) was making enemies; every great person had to deal with it. Maybe he was too talented or too self-centered or things came too easily for him (or he was a muggle-loving blood traitor), either way, people never really seemed too happy with Sirius after he’d known them for a while. Most people, anyway.

Some might think Sirius’ life lonely. Sure, he always seemed to have plenty of friends, but he wouldn’t even turn to James with his problems. No, it was best to deal with them alone. Complaining about things never helped anyone, after all. Maybe there were some things he felt he needed to get off his chest, but that was why had that journal tucked safely away in a magicked compartment of his trunk. It didn’t come out often, but when it did, Sirius wasn’t really sure he felt freer for writing his feelings down. Mostly it just seemed really lame and girlish…

”Sirius Black,” continued the boy, dipping into a dramatic bow. ”At your service. Here, let me help you.” He moved to her side so that he could help to support her and lead her over to a bed that wasn’t surrounded by the wreckage she left behind. Well, at least things weren’t so clean and boring in the Hospital Wing. Sure, maybe Madame Pomfrey would be annoyed (regardless of whether or not a simple flick of her wand would suffice in cleaning up the mess), but that would only serve to make things even more amusing as far as the Gryffindor was concerned.

[rachel]

She watched his face carefully. Was calling him that Gryffindor boy a bad thing? Gosh, he should be lucky she could even recall ever seeing him after the amount of times she'd knocked her head on something (yes, those stats are most likely innumerable. Really, it's quite lucky Rachel wasn't dead or in some hospital with a major concussion). Of course, she got to thinking that maybe he'd find the term 'that Gryffindor boy' offensive since it did make him sound somewhat mundane and typically the same as every other Gryffindor boy she'd ever met. This naturally wasn't true since no single person Rachel had ever met was exactly the same as the last person. Certain people were similar to others, but no two people were the same. They were like a finger print or a snowflake. Sometimes faces blurred together and there were few actual legible differences between faces, but there always was a difference, no matter how small.

His shrug of final acceptance relieved Rachel. She hated being insulting and rude. To be honest, the reddish coloring her cheeks had taken was still faintly visible on the apples of her cheeks. She tried desperately to figure out what exactly his name was. She racked her brain, searching in the darkest crevices of her mind for his name, but she drew a blank. Nothing came to mind. Just that boy. Oh well, it could be assumed that she'd knocked the memory of his name out of her head during this last fall and that it was floating around the room somewhere just waiting for her to pluck it out of nothingness and place it safely back inside her mind. Then again, she'd taken so many falls recently that really, his name could be floating anywhere in the school. It might be outside and have taken to the breeze disappearing easily into the infinity of the universe.

Mind you, there are much worse names one could be called. Rachel had taken her fair share of verbal abuse. If he found 'that Gryffindor boy' offensive, he obviously had never been called a mudblood or a filthy girl no better than a muggle. Due to her unfortunate blood status, Rache had taken lots of criticism of her parentage. She had been slightly senstive to it at the beginning, but during her third year, she realized that it didn't really matter. Yes, both of her parents were muggles, but they were better people than some wizards so the term really didn't bother her all that much.

Sirius Black! That's his name When he introduced himself something clicked. "Of course that's your name." She started faintly embarassed that she hadn't remembered his name right off the bat. "I do remember you. I think we've crossed paths a few times." she decided to omit the idea that she might have knocked his name loose during one of her falls. It might not be a good idea to reveal that these were a daily occurance. "I'm Rachel Dobson" She laughed lightly at his bow. Not only was he funny, but he was enough of a gentleman too. Helping her limp over to an extra bed was nice of him. He easily could've left her sitting on the floor, but helping her to the bed was a nice touch. "Thank-you" she thanked him when she was safely seated on the bedside. She stared at the mess in horror. Madame Pomphrey was going to die of a heart attack when she saw it.

Outfit

[sirius orion black]

Ahh, yes. The recognition. It wasn’t that Sirius was annoyed when he had to introduce himself (well, people should have known who he was by now - especially those of the female variety - but still…), it was simply that the antics of the marauders were usually enough to get people talking, and even in a school as large as Hogwarts, gossip went a long way surprisingly fast. What people said about the marauders, Sirius didn’t concern himself with; he just wasn’t used to nothing being said. Whether they were impressed by the Gryffindor boys or infuriated, at the very least they knew who they were.

While Remus and Peter may have been pining for the approval of their peers for one reason or another, but the young Black had little concern. (Sirius couldn’t really be sure about James. The boy seemed like he was extremely confident, but sometimes Sirius wondered. Of course, that could just have been his boredom activating his imagination, as it was known to do.) People - usually the ones who weren’t exactly his biggest fans or who he was breaking up with - seemed to think that the Gryffindor spent a great deal of time fussing over how he would appear to the world so that they would stroke his ego and that this was the secret cause of his deviant behavior and disregard for the emotions of others, but what they didn’t understand was that his ego was completely self sufficient. Why should he worry about what other people thought when he was content with himself?

When Sirius saw the look on her face, he simply winked. As amusing as the prospect of Poppy’s anger was to him, the boy figured she’d been through enough humiliation for one day. Besides, if he simply left it there, there was a good chance she would assume the mess was his doing. The marauders were often accused of doing things they hadn’t. Well, James, Sirius and Peter were. There were times that Remus wasn’t even accused of things he had done. Sometimes it was fairly annoying; Sirius hated having his name tacked on to some thoughtless, childish imitation of something he would have been capable of. That just showed him that the majority of people didn’t actually appreciate the marauders for their brilliance. It took a great deal of thought to do the things they did! Oh, and when they finished the map, it would probably be the most impressive show of magic the boys had ever done.

It was just too bad no one was going to see it.

Pulling his wand out of the pocket of his robes, Sirius turned it on the mess, righting the tray before levitating everything back into place. ”There,” he said with a nod, turning back to the girl as he placed his wand back into the pocket. ”Like it never happened.” Of course, there was nothing he could do about the sniggers of a couple of first years.

[rachel]

Sitting on the bed was, admittably much less embarassing then to be sitting on the floor. Rachel crossed her ankles in a dainty fashion as she watched the Gyrffindor boy's face carefully. She was, to say the least, relieved when she found that he didn't seem as offended at her inability to recognize him now as he had intitally. She was quite happy to notice that. She hated to think that she had offended him. She already had a name for being a klutz, she didn't want to add rude and/or unthoughtful to the mix. Everyone likes to be known and noticed, admittably, even Rachel liked the feeling when somebody recognized her. Of course, were it up to her, she wouldn't be recognized for the reasons she was known. Rachel was known for being clumsy. Running into inanimate objects and/or tripping over flat surfaces. It isn't exactly the name you want to make for yourself in a school where the students can be more vicious than piranhas. Slytherins were cruel, Ravenclaws often made you feel stupid and Gryffindors were always up to something, trying to play the hero. Hufflepuff wasn't perfect either. Far from! Sometimes, Rachel wished that the members of her house would stand up for themselves, but she didn't help herself too much so it would be hypocritical to condem someone else for their lack of bravery.

Sirius winked to her which made her blush slightly. Obviously he was the ladies man, enjoying flirtatiously conversing with, most likely every girl from the school. She couldn't help but laugh a bit at his casual demeanor though. Despite having blood on his face he seemed as though today were the most normal day possible and nothing was possibly different, abnormal or unusual from the others. She couldn't help but wonder where that blood had come from. Well, inside of him of course, that was obvious, but how had it gotten there was the more pertinent question which stubbornly refused to let Rachel take her eyes off of him. She wasn't staring at him in a kiss-me-now way, she was looking at him in a more curious way. She wasn't usually this open with others. Usually, she prefered to keep her eyes directed away from others, particularily boys. It wasn't that this particular boy was really that different from the others so she wasn't sure what it was that was making her so bold. "What happened?" she asked curiously motioning towards the dried blood on the side of his face. He might not tell her the truth, but anything, even a lie would satisfy her thirsty curiosity.

There was something else! Either he was very smart or simply quite talented. His clean-up job was done in a very thorough way. The entier area where chaos had reigned only seconds before was now quite pristine looking. In fact, the only sign that anything had happened were a few first years who were still laughing hysterically into their hands and a small Hufflepuff sitting on a hospital bed. "Thank-you" she cast her dark brown eyes towards him thankfully.

Outfit[/size]

[sirius orion black]

Normally, Sirius might have lied. He was a fan of embellishing for the sake of maintaining interest in a conversation. If that made him dishonest, so be it. When it mattered (to him, anyway), he would come through without doubt. For now, however, Sirius would tell the truth. “Oh, this little gem?” he asked, eyes rolling up as if he could somehow see the remnants of the gash above his brow. “Got this from a banshee.” Ok, so maybe it was just his version of the truth. “At least, it looked and sounded like a banshee, but when I pointed it out, she seemed to be insulted. I didn’t know it was something to be ashamed of,” the boy continued ‘innocently’, shrugging slightly. So maybe telling an already angry, insecure and armed teenage girl that she reminded him of a creature with a skeletal green face was not the cleverest of things to do, but what could he say? He was a bit impulsive. If nothing else, she should’ve appreciated the honesty, right?

Right.

“Looks like Hogwarts is becoming more and more dangerous by the day,” joked the lion, smirking slightly as he glanced over at some of the other patients inhabiting the Hospital Wing. It was looking rather packed today, though he was sure a few of the wing’s inhabitants were not nearly as sick as they were attempting to appear. There was one Sirius had never tried. If the boy really didn’t want to be in class, he would usually just not attend. Sure, he attended most of the classes because it was required if he had any hopes for a future and his friends were usually there so there wasn’t much incentive to be elsewhere, but when he managed to convince someone to skip with him, he had no problem with making up the work later. Other students seemed to be more afraid of getting in trouble for their laziness, so he could understand their need to find an acceptable out. With a nod in their direction, he continued, “What do you think? Dragons? Or perhaps Kettleburn has been experimenting again.” Far more interesting than ‘I fell off my broom during flying lessons…’ Not to mention less pathetic.

There was that undying empathy of his again.

It may not have seemed like it, but the did try… sometimes. It was just difficult to feel sorry for someone with problems that seemed minor in comparison to the ones he’d faced when he was younger. There were some things that were easy to get over, and Sirius wasn’t much for complaining. If he’d gotten a scrape during flying lessons, usually he’d just let it heal on its own. The only reason he’d had to come this time was because head injuries usually meant a great deal of bleeding and he’d sustained the cut in a very public setting. Still, he realized when his inability to feel the pain of others made him seem like a git and, although he didn’t care what others thought of him in most instances, he tried not to appear that way accidentally. Being falsely accused of something was endlessly annoying.

[rachel]

Cuts are really something one can marvel at for quite some time. Truthfully, the large gash above his eye with dry blood crusted around it was quite eye catching. Unless, like Rachel, in the first moments you met him you were to, oh, I don't know, trip and fall, the cut was impossible to miss. Okay, confession time. The cut itself wasn't actually as large as Rachel had originally presumed it was. Had it been of the grandeur she'd thought, it would probably have cut through his eye and continued down his cheek which, evidently, it didn't. There was just a fair ammount of blood. She cocked her head to the side and carefully examined the 'blemish'. It was fairly unpleasent looking with rusty red blood dried to his forhead above his eye. She wondered why he hadn't allowed Madame Pomfrey to clean it. Prehaps for the manly look it brought with it, or prehaps he just didn't want her to touch it, either way, Rachel desided against asking him.

Truth can be a funny thing, and when Sirius told her the truth about that gorgeous little scar, she guffawed with laughter. "My goodness," she said between laughs "That's a somewhat bold remark, is it not? No female I can even think of would appreciate such a comment!" Rachel paused a moment to wonder who it might have been who'd given Sirius such a beautiful gash above his eye. Obviously a Slytherin, a Hufflepuff would just have looked hurt and walked away, a Ravenclaw would've jinxed him and a Gryffindor would most likely have gotten into a heated argument with him before storming off. Which Slytherin girl would've been cruel enough to actually do such a thing? She paused for a moment and her eyes widened "Was it that dreadful Hastings girl?" she asked abruptly. Dominique Jennifer Hastings certainly seemed hot-tempered enough to do that, but then again, why on earth would he have compared to a banshee? Rachel would never tell the snake, but she actually thought the redhaired Slytherin was somewhat pretty. Of course, that girl strutted down the halls like a peacock. She acted as though she owned the place. Stupid Slytherins.

Not once in her entier being had Rache skipped a class or faked sick to escape the classes she was supposed to attend. Rachel Dobson prided herself on being a hard working student who earned good grades and attended her classes. She smiled at Sirius's joke. "I must say that the dragon story would be more interesting to hear, but Kettleburn having set the classroom on fire is fairly conceivable." She looked over the students, most of them in their first and second years. She figured that a more likely explanation had been they'd blown something toxic up in potions of had fallen down a flight of stairs. Then again, she flushed, had she not fallen down a flight of stairs to find herself here?

[sirius orion black]

”I don’t know,” Sirius responded, frowning slightly in a face of mock thoughtfulness, ”I think she took it rather well.” The evidence of this was all over his face, after all. Still, it could have been much worse, and it didn’t actually hurt as bad as it seemed like it would. Well, now that time had passed, it was easy for the Gryffindor boy to say that. In fact, right now it didn’t hurt at all. It wasn’t that he had forgotten having felt pain, it was just that now that the pain was gone, he was rational enough to compare it to scrapes he’d had in the past, and it didn’t really measure up to the horrible ordeal you might expect. Head wounds were deceptive. Sometimes they could appear to be nothing and end up being rather serious, and sometimes it was just the opposite. From what he understood, there was really no happy medium.

”Hastings?” he inquired as if he didn’t know who she was speaking of. That was how he usually treated the topic of people he once knew. Whether it was simply to spite the memory, to avoid the topic of his family and who he used to be, or just because he was a new Sirius and wanted to leave that life behind, he couldn’t be sure. Whether they had been close or not (and Sirius hadn’t really gotten close to many of the people he’d hung around because of his parents since he had only been eleven when everything started to go downhill), Sirius tended to treat all of these people the same way. Now he didn’t even live with his parents anymore, and everyone knew that he was no longer considered to be a part of that group that considered themselves so elite, so why should he treat them any differently?

”You’re probably right,” the boy decided, nodding. Old Kettleburn hadn’t lost all those fingers being careful, after all. Chances were, some silly accident was the cause of all of that. In the end, however, Sirius didn’t really care. He’d rather switch to a more interesting topic, say… ”So what’s got you here?”