Finished Insomnia Reversed PV Alec

The day Alec and Opeila had met up in the Library to work on their project for Muggle Studies, something didn't feel right. Opeila looked unwell, unlike her usual self. Throughout their session in the library Opeila had been acting in a way that was off-putting to Alec. It didn't take a healer to have to realize Opeila was sick. Something wasn't right, she'd seemed so drained, almost a shell of her former self in such a state. What kind of illness did that? Ever since Alec had seen her in the library for the project he'd been trying to make an effort to check on her, if he wasn't able to talk to her, he would settle for catching a glimpse to make sure she was alright. Opeila hadn't looked any better yesterday, she almost looked... worse? He was worried about her.

As hard as Alec tried, he couldn't keep her thoughts away from her. What could have been happening... Why she wasn't getting any better... Any homework or assignment was hard to focus on when the very second his mind drifted it was on her. The way she'd looked when they met up, the way she'd been acting, how unwell she was. Today was another day, he was trying to get through his classes just like any other day. He had History of Magic today. A class he shared with Opeila. In getting through the day he reminded himself he'd have a chance to check up on her at that class.

The day in the library, It felt to be a precursor of something far worse. Alec had never seen much of anything like it. Illness at the least the muggle kind was often able to be easily cured with magic around. It was rare you had to see anyone sick, far rarer would you see their symptoms develop further than that of a small cold, a case of the sniffles and usually they could be found in the hospital wing. It was easy to cure and you would be back to class just as fast. Was there no sudden cure all at the hospital wing for Opeila? What kind of illness did she catch? Alec didn't understand.

With the way in which Opeila had looked to deteriorate yesterday, he almost didn't want to imagine, didn't want to think of what a new day would bring. Alec wanted to help her, but he didn't know how, what kind of reasonable suggestion could he make when he didn't know what was happening to her? Alec was hesitant for a moment as he stood in the doorway, the entrance to the classroom. He could hear the hustle and bustle of busy students on the inside. He took a deep breath to settle his nerves on the whole Opeila situation as he walked in.

Alec's eyes flickered around the room, taking in the regular chaos of a professorless classroom. No more than a few minutes before class. Part of him enjoyed the ever-so chaotic and mischievous nature of his fellow Hogwarts students. Alec's eyes tracked a paper plane being thrown, watching it out of the corner of his eyes as he made his way to the back of the class. Alec set his things down. For a moment he'd nearly forgotten about the Opeila situation. All until the moment Alec had spotted her.

Opeila was leaning against the wall, asleep. He would have found it cute, however, her struggle to stay awake wasn't related to a late night study session cramming for homework or a project. Opeila was unwell. Alec's lips pursed as he spotted the dark circles under her eyes, he kept his feet firmly planted into the ground. He refused to walk over and disturb her. The professor wasn't here yet and it Opeila was asleep, she needed it. Rest was the muggle way for fighting off certain illnesses, right?

He would stay where he was, make sure Opeila was disturbed amidst the middle of her quick mid-day nap. Alec saw the professor walk in, and the class finally settled down. It was quiet with a few minutes here and there of everybody preparing, when the professor was about to begin their lesson was when Alec felt the need to step in. Opeila had insisted to attend class, if she was going to attend class it only made sense that she may as well be awake for.

Walking up to her Alec would whisper. “Hey, Opeila, it's time to wake up,” Alec would attempt to reach and put a hand on her shoulder in case it would somehow speed the process of waking her up(feel free to auto-dodge of course). His eyebrows furrowed in concern as he took in the state she was in from up close. The closer you were the more ill she looked. “Class is about to to start,” he spoke, he gave her a minute or so to let her wake up, adjust to the environment and her eyes adjust to the light.

The Gryffindor was silent for a moment as he searched for what to say before his eyes looked to meet hers. “How are you feeling? You look unwell,” It wasn't about him stating the obvious, he wanted to repeat the state she was in, as if it would add urgency or concern or the want to step back from classes and rest. “You don't seem to be getting any better.” Opeila never seemed to stop even when she wasn't getting any better. She always kept going and going and it was part of what worried him. Everything was going to be too much for her at some point when she didn't take the needed breaks. Or in this case he drive to keep going and attending class ill. From what he could tell, either she would continue to do it until she was fine or until something bad happened.

“I'm concerned for you. This isn't normal,” he didn't want to push her to tell him what was going on, that was, if he she knew anything at all about what was happening to her. He hoped she'd gone and tried to seek treatment from a healer of some sort. Perhaps the effects of the cure were delayed. Though he was worried, he knew pushing it on to her wouldn't help. Alec tried to lighten the mood, attempting to smile for her sake and leaning full into his attempt to lighten the mood, “did you at least have a nice nap?”

@Opeila Winters

@Alec Mason

Opeila's sleep was rather deep, deeper than a usual nap, but when Alec put his hand on her shoulder, she would move. Slowly she would open her eyes, entirely disoriented for a moment. It took a few seconds for her to recognize the classroom and the boy next to her. "Alec?", she said and pushed herself off the wall to sit straight. The professor had arrived which meant she had to focus now, although she felt so tired she was ready to cry.

"Thanks", she whispered in his direction, "I would have slept right through the class." If Professor Zahid didn't wake her up before, that meant.
To be quite honest, the Slytherin didn't feel quite comfortable, no, she felt almost ashamed that Alec found her like this. She knew that she hadn't looked well during their research session in the library, but now Alec had to think that she was really sick. Which was not wrong, but still!

But when Alec said it out loud, her frustration seemed to crumble away, instead she would groan and rub her palms over her face. Hide behind them, as actual tears gathered in her eyes. "I'm not getting better, no.", she repeated and sniffed. "I don't think I will be anytime soon either."
Maybe it was the tiredness that had torn down her walls and turned off her urge to appear strong, but Opeila didn't even try to pretend to be fine anymore. It would be ridiculous anyway, a lie that was so obvious, that it would only make the Gryffindor feel pushed away for sure.

"I feel tired all the time now. I can't eat properly, I sleep past mealtimes, in class... I'm falling behind everything." She would shake her head. "I feel like I am freaking losing control over everything. I'm..." ... so scared.

The fourth year was surprised, at the way she had admitted to it easily. He would have expected Opeila to put up some sort of fight as he mentioned the state she was in. She admitted the feeling of losing control over everything. “I'm sorry,” if she let him, Alec would reach to put a hand on her shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze. He was sorry that she had to go through this all of this, to suffer, fall behind everything, feel like she was losing control of everything, and the lingering underlining feeling that showed if words missed a step having trouble being uttered out. It was almost too much, to witness someone so usually put together now in such a state of disarray. “You're going to be okay,” Alec spoke, feeling it was the words she needed to hear right now. She was going to be okay, he wouldn't tell her something he wasn't going to make sure of. He'd do everything in his power to make sure she was alright. They'd figure this out, whatever this was. He didn't know how much she would have had the ability to do considering her current state anyway.

It was strange really... The way he had clung to this. Feel an immediate need to want to help. He knew her, but they weren't particularly close. Alec could have hoisted the blame on getting their project done; It was far beyond that. He could owe it to the feeling there was always more going on at school, things happening that people didn't notice or see. Alec had been trying to be cautious, and careful, the incident at spin the bottle over summer camp set off some red flags. He owed it to the need of making sure he would not end up kissing a hag again, or somehow, worse. “I want to help you, Opeila. I want to do anything I can to help.” He spoke of, part of him looking for suggestions, she would know what she needed wouldn't she? Alec empathized with her. Alec knew what the scary feeling of losing control was like. The world takes itself, collapsing in, crashing, and burning. Overwhelming, the fear of failing, continued falling, to find everything slowly moving away and just out of reach. Out of grasp. So close and yet so far.

The professor had started their lesson and he was well aware he wouldn't be able to focus on class that day. Dealing with whatever was going on with Opeila was more important. She was a mess and he didn't mean it as an insult, there was no other fitting adjective to describe her current state of falling apart. His eyes overlooked her, taking her in and trying to make a mental checklist of her symptoms and unusual appearance. “Do you think your sick... or that it might be something else? It's- It's not the common cold. It looks way worse.” Alec commented taking a deep breath. He didn't understand what illness would have her sleeping all the time, even if she was fighting it... His gaze was laced with concern.

Alec more to add more questions to ask. In his mind, besides going through his list of questions he had the temptation to offer her tea after school. Tea helped everything right? At least it would lift her spirits. Maybe even keep her awake for just a bit longer. “Have you gotten looked at in the hospital wing?” Alec asked, accepting that their hospital wing nurse was going to have more expertise in the medical field than the Gryffindor. He didn't want to overwhelm her with questions but he didn't know what to do, it was hard to know how to help when he knew nothing. A simple Pepperup potion or even Grand Pepperup potion wasn't going to be any help here. As he asked questions he waited a fair amount of time before he asked another, trying not to overwhelm her with them. “Do you think going to the hospital wing would help you?” Alec whispered to her, eyebrows furrowed. If there was something there that could help her why wouldn't she have gone before? It made his easier question useless. Unless they were going to make her stay in the wing overnight. It seemed fairly unlikely to happen, even so...

@Opeila Winters

@Alec Mason

Opeila would sniff again, muffled and hidden by her hands that were still covering her face, when Alec placed one hand on her shoulder again and assured her that she would be ok. Kind but empty words, that Opeila could appreciate, but that didn't help or calm her at all right now. The Slytherin had been sure that something would happen to her when she agreed to the deal, but she had overestimated her own mental strength and courage by far.

In her mind she had seen herself go down with grace when the time came, but that was nowhere near what was happening. No, in truth Opeila was terrified. Would this be her end for real? Was this how she would die?
When Alec asked her if it might be something else than a normal cold, Opeila nodded, rubbed her eyes and finally stopped hiding her face. The young girl interlaced her fingers together on the table in front of her, her eyes fixed on her hands when she responded.

"I think it is something else. It- it is all my fault, I agreed to- I have given- I did something really bad.", she stuttered, her voice low so the rest of the class wouldn't hear their conversation. And suddenly she wanted to open up so badly, she just blurted out. "Can you keep a secret, Alec?" If this sickness was to progress, it wouldn't even be unlikely that she would need someone who knew what she had done.

One professor already knew but... from her experience, it was usually a one way road of students informing professors, but never the other way around. Or- well, once it had been different, with Professor Browne. Who was gone now. Opeila needed someone who knew on both sides.

Alec had asked if Opeila thought was was happening to her was something other than the average muggle cold. He hadn't known what he had been expecting for an answer when he asked this. Alec hoped it was nothing more than a cold, even if it was a cold it would have been a bad one. Options were limited as to what it could be from beyond that point. With everything Alec had gotten himself into, over the summer, and still at the beginning of the school year.

It had barely started but it was hard to close your eyes once you see one thing that was right under your nose this whole time. You can't stop seeing the rest afterwards. You're bound to drag yourself into a mess. The supposedly obscure spooky magic was less obscure than he once thought. All you could do was expect the worst. Sometimes there was nothing you could do other than be prepared, prepared for anything and everything. Opeila nodded.

The situation had suddenly become ten times more complicated. What was it if not as simple as a muggle cold? Was there a magic virus he didn't know about that was spreading around? Opeila removed her hands from her face clasping them together as she set them on the table. She wouldn't look at him... It was hard to tell if that was accidental or on purpose.

Opeila said it was her fault, or at least she thought it was. She agreed to- she gave- Alec was lost as he tried to let her make out her words and listen. Opeila said she'd done something really bad. Alec eyed her confusedly. This... it still had to do with Opeila being unwell, right? In the silence Opeila would blurt out, asking if Alec could keep a secret. He couldn't help the way both of his eyebrows raised at this. Slowly he nodded, “I- yes- of course,” he spoke, he had then begun mentally preparing himself for whatever Opeila was going to tell him.

If it was about her being unwell, she had said she'd done something really bad. Opeila caused it. What could she have done? What did she do?

@Opeila Winters

@Alec Mason

Only for a split second Opeila's gaze would meet Alec's, before it darted away again, nervously her fingers traced a crack in the table. Part of her was relieved about being able to open up to another student- another feared that the Gryffindor would get up and call Professor Zahid when she finished.

"A few weeks- months- well, at the end of last school year, a boy from my house- I approached him in the common room, because he didn't look well." Opeila stopped and took a deep breath, trying to bring her thoughts into some kind of order. "He asked me if I trusted him and then... If I would give him my blood. He gave me a bottle and I agreed."

Opeila wouldn't wait long enough for Alec to be able to comment- this part needed some explanation, she knew that herself. "I gave him my blood at the beginning of summer camp and at some point... he started using it for a ritual that a hag told him to do. I know it was stupid of me to agree, but it was to save one of my best friends." Before she knew his reaction, she would not disclose the details of the ritual.
She would not sabotage the matter by trusting another too much again.

"Now for the last week... I've been feeling so sick and I just... It has to be because of this ritual, I don't know what else it could be. And at this point I'm- What if one day I fall asleep and don't wake up anymore? I have been sleeping for longer and longer."

The Gryffindor waited with baited breath for Opeila to answer. All the terrible possibilities were running though his mind. What could she have done that was so bad she'd gotten this sick? A potion accident? There was a small moment in which Opeila's gaze would look to meet before quickly flickering away. She was nervous and it only led Alec's thoughts to fall further down the rabbithole. Alec swallowed. His hands reached for the first thing on the table in front of him, fidgeting with an inkless quill subconsciously as he waited for an answer.

Something about a boy from her house looking unwell and approaching him in the Slytherin common room. Curious by the details there he raised an eyebrow though kept from commenting. Alec watched her take a deep breath and take a few seconds before continuing on again. The boy asked if she trusted him he asked if she would give her blood. She agreed. He gave her a bottle.

Alec couldn't help the way his mouth immediately gaped open at such information. He stared at her for a few moments, squinting his eyes at her as if he was unable to tell whether or not she was joking. As if he was unable to tell whether he needed to take her and what she was saying seriously. What if her sickness had started long before this point and if wasn't obvious because it had been a mental thing? What if that was why she was saying this? Or -or what if her memories had somehow been magically altered, he didn't know why they would be magically altered to this but part of him was having trouble making sense of it.

Then Alec's mind shifted, remembering all the strange things happening lately. He had to close his mouth by making his hand hold it closed while he pulled himself together. “You-you gave him your blood?” Alec repeated in a hurried whisper. It was implied. She had agreed, he did not need any confirmation otherwise. His face shown of a mixture of horror, shock, and confusion. He wondered how she had managed to do it though kept himself from going too deep as he realized there would have been gruesome processes involved. “Why would you give him your blood? How does this relate to you being unwell now...?” Health issues from blood loss? He didn't know what else it could be.

Opeila spoke, she said she'd given him the blood at the beginning of summer camp. At some point the boy started using it for a ritual a hag told him to do. The word ritual stuck out to him, causing him to pause. Just how many Hogwarts students were doing rituals? Is this was the kids were up to these days? Opeila said she knew it was stupid of her to agree the ritual, however, was to save one of her best friend's.

“It wasn't.” Alec interrupted. What use debating her on this would do now. “If put in your position I would have done the same.” Maybe it would have been a stupid decision of him as well, or maybe not. No regrets, right? That may have just been because he was the clingy type... Alec was dependent on one of his closest friend's in a way he realized was incredibly unhealthy. A subject for another day.

There were more details and the more he heard the more he- For the last week Opeila said she'd been unwell. She said it has to be because of the ritual, she didn't know what else it could be. Sleeping longer and longer. She was worried she was going to sleep one day and never wake up.

These strange odd few details he found given to him were lining up. He wanted to put it to a coincidence but there was a whisper the voice tempting fate and his belief of it that said otherwise.

He heard the detail of over the last week. Puzzle pieces, there were certain things that fit together. How many kids were performing rituals? “That's weird...” He spoke his words drifted off as his mind did as well. Recalling the details of his experience not so long ago and the finding out of what it was for. A bottled scream of pure terror. His grip on the quill he was holding loosened and the quill would fall out of his hands. The sound as it hit the floor was enough to pull Alec from his thoughts. “Sorry,” he spoke, blinking suddenly for a few seconds to get over it as he was pulled out of his thoughts. Quickly he reached down to pick up the quill, shaking his head as he did so. When he picked it up he sat it back down on the table.

Alec turned back to look at her, serious, with a frown. “Do you have a plan?” He asked, then realized he would have to explain what he meant, asking if she had a plan. “What are you going to do about this? What do you want to do?” Questions that sounded so simple and were increasingly complicated in reality. He was a problem solver, it was probably the last thing she wanted to think about. “What do you want done? If one day you don't wake up? Do other people know? Should I tell them? What about fixing this, looking for a cure? Or even stopping it before it comes to this point?” Alec asked, likely once again overwhelming her with all the questions.

@Opeila Winters

@Alec Mason

Opeila wasn't sure what kind of reaction she had been expecting when telling Alec about the ritual. More "You will be fine"'s? Maybe, although those would have been even more of a lie than the ones before. After hearing this, Alec had to know too that Opeila wouldn't be fine on her own again. Something dark magical was going on that needed to be stopped.

However, his reaction- pressing his hand onto his mouth, the repetition of her words with this disbelieving tone... It almost made it worse. Made her feel like a truly lost case. Was that what she was? Walking through her final days?
At least he told her that he would have done the same. Now she didn't feel like a crazy person so much anymore, but it seemed like her actions were at least somewhat relatable.

Opeila was too occupied with her own fears, thoughts- and of course the never ending tiredness- to notice Alec's short drifting away, but instead the noise of the quill hitting the floor brought her back to reality just as much as him.
A plan... "There is a second person involved. I don't know who, but if it is actually starting for me, then he has found a person that provided him with the other ingredient he needed. A Scream of Terror, however that works." Opeila shook her head. "I should find and warn them. You don't happen to have seen anyone behave oddly lately, have you?"

The next questions were not that easy to answer. "Yes. I asked the guy with the ritual to look for a cure when this ends up backfiring." A sarcastic chuckle broke out of her. "He didn't want to believe me. On the day he asked me for this, I was sure that this would end up being a trade of my friend's health against mine and whoever else is involved."

"Professor Galim knows.", she continued, "I don't know who else he told."

With all the similarities, everything that matched, it was hard to keep his mind from wandering to the 'what-if' scenario. What if this was related to the situation with Jack? I felt to be the most incredibly unlikely and yet likely at the same time 'what-if' scenario. It might have been because Alec simply didn't want to believe it could be true. What changed if it was true? Alec brought up a plan, trying to stay focused and on track. Opeila talked about somebody else being involved, something about a scream of terror. Alec blinked and glanced away. That was all the confirmation he needed. Opeila mentioned wanting to find them and warn them, and asked Alec a question, he'd zoned out and missed it. He was trying to figure out what to do about having this information. Should he tell her? Would it somehow worry her more? He pulled from a list of earlier on questions in his head to ask while he went through it. Alec needed more time, it would buy him time, and the answers would be useful.

Opeila said she'd told the guy doing the ritual to look for a cure when it ended up backfiring. She had told this to Jack. He didn't want to believe her, didn't want to think anything was going to be caused by it. Alec couldn't tell if that was a usual Burnett thing or use of hopeful optimism. Opeila said she had been aware when she did it, it would likely be a trade of health for her friend and whoever was involved. Alec kept his lips pursed, nodding solemnly. Opeila mentioned Professor Galim was made aware. Although Opeila didn't know if word had gotten around. “That's good. At least one responsible figurehead needs to be cued in. Er- do you think Professor Galim believes you?” Alec was far too familiar with the feeling of being disregarded by adults, it was likely to happen, though they had to believe something was happening to Opeila with the current state she was in now.

There was a pause as Alec tried to figure out what to say now. Frowning he would glance back and take a deep breath. “About finding and warning the person for the scream,” Alec spoke, his eyebrows furrowed and he would rub the back of his neck in an awkward manner. “Opeila, you already have,” Alec could only hope she would not be willing to ask how it was retrieved. It was an embarrassing sting in his memory. Nervously Alec chewed on his lip for a second before he spoke again. “Burnett asked you for the blood, didn't he?” Alec asked, he waited, giving her time to answer though would eventually cut in looking slightly downtrodden. “I'm sorry about Flash.” One of the things Burnett had managed to tell him was that the ritual was to help with a hag cursed Flash. It had softened Alec's reaction to the whole Jack collecting a scream ordeal.

Alec knew it! He called it! He said anything else involved in that freaking ritual was going to be dark! At least they were asked for their blood... “I'm not worried,” Alec said, speaking up eventually. “I have one weird hag disease- what's another? I'm probably already doomed.” He joked in a sarcastic tone both to help convey the information to her and gear their conversation towards light-hearted territories.

@Opeila Winters