Just your average afternoon... (Albus)

[.RORY KAY BLAKE !]

The typical chatter and activity that made the Gryffindor common room just that, a common place for the whole of the house to relax and gather, fell on deaf ears when it came to the red headed girl stretched out on her stomach before the fire. The idle conversations, study groups and general cutting up and antics, the last of which would have normally had her attention distracted from the papers spread beneath her nose had faded to the background. Her focus for the moment was on the task she was attempting to work on.. because for once it wasn't a painfully boring potions essay, or some other form of homework sucking away her ability to concentrate. What Rory had before her at the moment was actually yet another attempt at something she'd been trying to figure out how to make since the beginning of the year.

Before her lay two sheets of parchment, and each had a vibrant Fwooper feather quill laying atop it.. one a sky blue in color while the other was a striking green. The later of the two was clutched in Rory's left hand while her right held her head up, elbow planted on the carpet and palm wedged against her cheek. Her wand lay to the side, where she'd just placed it within reach. Maybe this time it would work..she could hope right? The incantation and wand motions had been time consuming enough for it to.. at least she thought they had. Time was running out, if she didn't get it soon here she'd have to give up and settle for some lame random item Hogsmead or Diagon. After dipping it in an inkwell near her wand, she placed the quill to the paper and scrawled her signature. Her eyes moved quickly to the blank sheet next to the one she'd written on. For one happy moment she felt her hope rise as a dark streak of ink welled up seemingly from the paper its self. After a moment though she realized that the writing showing up on the other page was spotty, incomplete.. almost impossible to really tell what it was suppose to say at all it you didn't know what your were suppose to be reading.

Sighing in frustration she chucked the bright quill down to land slanted, green across light blue to the other, and then reached out to drag a book to her. MUNDANE TO MAGICAL ..a wizards guide to self enchantments.[/b] She'd fallowed the incantation..tried really hard to focus on the motions of her wand as she'd cast it.. so why wasn't the bloody thing working? Was it the type of quill she'd chosen to use? She really hoped not.. Al loved light blue.. it would suck if she was forced to use something more common like eagle feathers or something. She'd saved an awful lot of allowance and done an awful lot of magic free chores over the summer to do so, all for the purpose of buying these particular quills. They'd even both come from the tail of the same bird, at least the shop keeper had claimed as much.

Reading down a page in the book.. trying to find some clue as to what she was doing wrong, she grimaced as an insanely irritating squeaking broke through her curtain of oblivion and assaulted her ears. Heaving a sigh she turned a deadly glare on a group of first years boys lounging in the chairs a few feet behind her. The same three first years that she'd already made it clear to earlier in the year that she wasn't exactly thrilled with the sounds that came about when eating Ice Mice candy.. one of them, a little blond, seemed bent on doing everything he could to be the most irritating little git he possibly could and focusing all of that pratish energy in Rory's direction. Lucky her...thick sarcasm there.. why couldn't he go find Peeves to harass or something? They'd be good for each other.

Reaching down to her side she rummaged in her book sack and pulled free her potions book. Leaning up a bit on one arm so that she could chuck it at the boy who's snickering face fell and eyes widened as he narrowly managed to doge it. Raising a brow at him as if to say 'get it now?' she glanced at her watch before turning back to the book before her. Al would probably be showing up before long. He'd said something about having to monitor a detention for one of the professors or something and she'd taken the chance to work on what was lain out before her, what she 'hoped' was going to be his Christmas present. If wanted it to be a surprise though she'd best get it packed up before he made it back to the common room. Sitting up she began chucking the various items in her bag.. her mind on Al now that thoughts of him had come to the surface. He'd actually been really sweet and thoughtful lately.. why she hadn't quite figured out. If she had to guess she'd say he was still trying to make amends for the fight they'd had some time back. But that had been what.. over a month ago? He had to know she was over all that by now didn't he? Sliding the book into her sack she reached for the quills.

[mgirl03]

Slowly, very slowly in Al's opinion, he was beginning to improve in the things that he and his father went over during lessons. It had been a little more than a month since they started lessons, and so far there wasn't too much improvement on Al's part--although in his defense, their lessons were sort of scattered in what took place. He was still working on Occlumency, but while he wasn't good at it still, he could control his mind and emotions when it came to anger now. Lately, though, he had been asking his dad to help him work on specific spells that he wanted to be able to do, and do well.

However, it turned out that working on spells with his father was way more painful than working on Occlumency with him. Al had innocently asked his dad if they could work on things like stunning, aim with spells, and other random jinxes, curses, or hexes that might come in handy that he could quickly learn. After making room in the classroom, Al's dad had enthusiastically started helping Al out--and by helping, that meant throwing spells at him as fast he could, having Al dodge and trying to throw spells back. It was practically impossible, and now, as he walked up staircase after staircase towards the common room, Al found himself wincing.

His dad was quick with wandwork, and so Al had found himself falling to the floor after being stunned on numerous occasions. He had barely been able to get up before another curse or hex was heading his way. A new spell, Stabilis, had caused Al the most pain and suffering--it was a curse that was basically a punch, where ever it happened to land. Now, Al had a bruise on one side of his hip, on the inside of his leg, on his left shoulder and his right arm. The bruise to his arm had been the most damaging as they hurled spells at one another, because when Al finally had chances to cast a spell or two, it hurt to bloody move his arm. He had managed to hit his dad a few times, and even stunned him once. The praise that he was pretty good at aiming while moving was good for Al's spirit, but it did nothing for his aching body, which he had decided he would keep as a reminder not to get hit anymore. You don't want pain, Albus? Move faster.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, Al made it to the common room and got entrance into it. Getting through the potrait hole was bloody murder on his body, and he had to take it slow that he didn't shout out in pain or something. As he straightened up, his eyes immediately fell on a certain somebody in front of the fire, who both made a smile alight his face and at the same time made a nervous twinge vibrate through his stomach. Rory was lying in front of the fire, working on something that was lying in front of her.

Ever since the game against Ravenclaw had taken place, Al had made a promise to himself. He had apologized to Soren, and had rekindled his friendship with Rory to full extent--but he knew that he still wasn't completely happy, so he had devised a plan. He liked Rory a whole, whole lot, and so his mind had came up with a way to try and get her to be his girlfriend. First, Albus knew that he would have to take Rose's advice, and he would have to flirt. If he did say so himself, he was doing it very well and very subtly. He was nice to Rory, and thoughtful--he tried not to fight with her, and he was always around if she needed him. Basically, he was himself, with a little extra charm. Hopefully, this would warm her up to him by Christmas, so he could follow through with his full plan.

However, while thinking of this made Al smile broadly while looking at the beautiful redhead, his mind also thought of the fact that he was constantly lying to her now. Rory couldn't know about these lessons, and now that he was sporting injuries, it would be even tougher to keep things from her. He honestly had no clue how he was going to keep this up, but he knew he must try. So, keeping the relaxed smile in place, Al slowly made his way over to Rory, running a hand through his dark hair and trying not to show in any way that he was feeling discomfort.

Just as he was nearing her, Al heard the squeak of Ice Mice and frowned, seeing three first years sitting right behind her eating them and grinning stupidly. Dumb first years knew how she felt about those treats, of that Al was sure. He watched, slightly amused, as Rory chucked a book at them, shutting them up. With a flick of his wand, he got the book to soar back over to him and caught it, limping the rest of the way over to Rory and stopping by her side, watching her stuff some things into her bag. He saw a flash of blue and green quills but thought nothing of it as he reached out with the Potions book.

"Hey," he greeted, his voice cheerful, green eyes still dancing with amusement. "You dropped this, I think. About ten feet that way." His smile turned into a grin, as with his wand he tapped the Prefect badge on his robes. "I'm going to have to pretend I'm taking away points from you, because that's my job and all." Once the book was out of Al's hands, he stored his wand into his pocket and was just about to take off his robes, when he realized that for one, it would hurt, and for two, it would have him more exposed for Rory to stumble upon the bruises.

"So, did you miss me?" he asked cheekly, tilting his head to one side as he let his grin soften into a smile while looking at her. He slowly lowered himself to the ground, and his smile disappeared to be replaced with a wince and a grimace as he jarred his hip, but he quickly put the smile back in place, hoping Rory didn't notice anything.

[.RORY KAY BLAKE !]

A grin split her lips at hearing Al's first word of greeting though as he continued on it altered to more of a sheepish grimace.. why was it he always managed to catch her on the retaliatory end of things? The little twerps had been provoking her! As she drug her gaze up from her bag though and took in the mirth filled eyes of her best friend, his cheerful tone registering, her grin resurfaced. He must have been watching longer than she'd thought, seen the boys doing their best to purposely irritate her with those evil little high pitched treats that for some reason known only to Merlin and themselves some people actually found amusing to eat.

Reaching up, she caught hold of the book and stuffed it carefully back in her bag, being sure not to damage the quills in the process. Glancing back up to find him tapping his Prefect badge she lifted a brow and smirked. " Sure, sure.. got you.. not even those you love are above the rules right?" Her tone had been a completely joking one and her smirk grew as she continued. " It's a good thing I've one of the 'law men' around here to cover for me or I'd spend more time in detentions than class,, you can bet your Galleons on that. " Of course Al would never be one to let even his best friend get away with something really serious. He was after all very fair in his Prefect role, something she'd always respected him for, he wasn't one of those pompous prats the got their badge and had their head swell to abnormal proportions..but he wasn't afraid to dock points when he thought a message needed to be gotten across either. But then Rory wasn't really that 'sort' of a trouble maker. She wasn't really mean by nature and wasn't one to go seeking trouble beyond what she considered 'innocent' pranks. It was only when provoked that her actions got just a 'touch' on the violent side and her temper flared just a 'bit'. It wasn't her fault that she seemed to feel provoked rather often, right? Normally most would blame that on her hair color.. redheads being hot tempered and all that, but as Rory was a metamorphmagi (even if still a rather un-gifted one in her opinion) one had to wonder if her 'natural' hair tone was more a visible manifestation of the rather unique and high strung personality within. After all she was the only redhead in a family of copper tones and blonds.

Her gaze still focused on Al, she was rather puzzled when it seemed at first he was going to pull off his robes, thinning down a layer to his clothing beneath... nothing odd in doing that. She'd shed hers in her dorms after all. Choosing instead to lounge about in a long sleeve maroon sweater and a comfortable pare of worn jeans. It was warm and comfortable in the common room and here by the fire side that warmth was magnified a great deal. So why in the name of Godric Al seemed to change his mind at the last minute and opt to roast instead was rather confusing. After eying him for a moment with a raised brow she glanced at the fire, her eye caught by a particularly bright tongue of flame, and when her gaze returned to Al again it was just in time to catch the pained expression as he lowered himself to the ground beside her. A firm frown tugged at her lips and her brow climbed again as he tried to cover with another smile. Right... Wanting to roast? ...Maybe he'd had to go out in the grounds for some reason.. or maybe the student in the detention had been hot, (there were a few odd people that could still be hot when it was snowing out.. right?).. and he had let them have a window open and was still feeling rather chilled. What ever the reason she could have let that slide.. not to bizarre a thing .. nothing to worry over for sure. But that obvious flicker of pain she'd just seen.. that wasn't right.. something was out of sorts here and for some reason Al was trying to play it off that the exact opposite where true.

"Sure I missed you, Not like these trolls are much in the way of good company, yeah?.." She tugged her head in a meaningful gesture in the direction of the first years who'd since busied themselves with the trading of Chocolate frog cards, the little blond casting the odd nasty glance in Al's direction when he was fairly sure he wasn't looking.. " But..." Lifting her right hand she set it on his left shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze, it was meant as a comforting action.. a soft touch of concern from one friend to another. Little was she aware of the bruise beneath her fingers. Her Frown remained in place and her worry was evident in her voice. "Al.. what's wrong? ..and don't try and go on about it being nothing either, because I'm not blind you know. " Al was a Quidditch player, as a rule he experienced pains that would make the average sore and aching from use muscle no big deal. Certainly nothing that would have brought on the expression she'd seen as he'd lowered himself down beside her.

[mgirl03]

It was a relief, after having such a hard lesson, plus having the stresses of the day (such as having to give out a few detentions for Slytherins making a mess in a potions class), to see Rory smirking up at him. It was odd, but ever since the two of them had fought, thus resulting in them not talking for a while, Al cherished every minute with Rory even more. One factor of this, though, had Al practically going ballistic-the fact that he had now, officially, fallen for his best friend. Sure, Al would have admitted in the past that he had feelings for Rory to maybe Rosie, but now he felt that it was becoming more deeper than just a little crush.

Each of her smiles made his heart jump, an odd feeling in his stomach and chest taking place. Seeing her made him smile, and it was as if he couldn't fight with her much anymore. They argued, of course, because they naturally contradicted each other as all people did, but he found that his anger towards her just couldn't stick around long. He would have liked to say that this was because of his ability to calm his emotions very well, but he knew it was just because it was Rory. Not only that, but he found himself...well, he found himself simply looking at her differently now. Noticing the way her hair glinted in the sunlight, how her eyes lit up when they talked, the determination on her face when practicing morphing or Quidditch...Not to mention that he was noticing her...body.

At this thought, Al felt the back of his neck flush bright red, and was sure that his face probably had reddened a bit too. Trying to cover up for it, and stop thinking such stupid things, he smirked back at Rory. "Yes, having somebody working inside the system helps. Just don't get too confident with what I'll let you get by with." Albus winked at her, hoping that this conversation with Rory would be distraction enough from any other thoughts that might want to pop up. Yeah, he got that he was a sixteen year old boy, he got that he was falling (or had fallen) for the girl in front of him, but why did he have to think things like that?! And right in front of her...

Fed up with such thoughts, Al snapped himself out of it by deciding to sit down. After painfully getting himself situated, and getting that smile situated back on his face, he thought he was pretty much in the clear--unaware that Rory had caught the pain that had clearly crossed his face. At her words for missing him, because of the company around her, Al felt his smile settle into a more genuine, trying not to look too pleased with himself as his green eyes twinkled just a bit more. He glanced to the side as she did, catching the nasty look from the little blonde kid, which made him slightly confused but also amused.

His amusement was gone, though, when Rory suddenly began speaking again and place her hand on his left shoulder; right on the bruise. Immediately, Al's eyes widened a bit and he sucked in a painful breath as her fingers closed ever so slightly around the sensitive area of skin. It seemed as if the punching spell that had been used on him made the bruises a bit more painful than a regular one did--probably had to do with the magic. All thoughts of acting like nothing was wrong were gone from Al's mind--here was Rory, asking what was wrong, and he was taking deep breaths, trying not to cringe away from her. She was right--she wasn't blind.

"Erm..." he trailed off, his eyes avoiding hers as he tried to come up with an excuse. It had already been stated clearly that Rory could know nothing about these lessons between Albus and Harry, and if he wanted o show that he could be trusted with this important of a thing with his father, he had to keep it a secret. How, though, did you explain coming back to the common room with injuries that were pretty obvious? Hell, Rory was barely touching him, and all he wanted to do was shove her hand off and grab himself a bag of ice or two to numb way the pain. He was really in for it now...

"I've just gotten a few bruises here and there," he finally said lamely, lifting his right arm slowly so that he could run his fingers through his hair, the nervousness showing clearly in his face and tone of voice. Just as slowly, Al placed his arm back into his lap, his eyes still not meeting Rory's. "They're just sensitive right now, is all. The pain'll go away not too long from now, and I'll be good as new." Finally meeting his gaze with hers, Al tried for a winning smile, which came out to be incredibly weak.

After a pause, he knew that there was no way Rory would allow him to just leave it at that, so he quickly tried to think over something he could say to her to cover up. His right hand reached up to rest on Rory's, and he gently shrugged her hand off, finally allowing a wince, his face contorting in pain again as he moved too much with his hip. After freezing and taking a few deep breaths, he hitched a smile and rubbed the bridge of his freckled nose.

"It was just Defense Against the Dark Arts," he continued, hoping he sounded convincing. "We were working on a few spells, and I offered up to be a target a few times. I stayed after for a few minutes too, to have Professor show me a little more advanced spell, and he managed to get me on the hip rather hard. It really isn't a big deal, Rore. Don't worry about it, alright?" He flashed her another smile, now rubbing at one eye while rotating his left shoulder painfully slow. He let his hand drop, feeling drained of energy but not wanting to talk about it. He wanted their conversation to be light again, so he could just relax.

[.RORY KAY BLAKE !]

Rory had no sooner finished speaking than Al's eyes widened and his features twisted into another painful expression, this one even worse than the last. Had she known that her own hand was the cause she'd have been quick to jerk it back from his shoulder. As it was though he'd only kept up the signs of being in obvious pain, so for the time being her hand had stayed in place. How was she to have known she was adding to his misery rather than providing comfort in the only way she could think of for the moment?

Watching him she tried to meet his eyes with her own but Al was having none of it. He was refusing to even look at her much less hold her gaze. The expression on his face was a clear mask of not only the pain he was feeling but also his nervousness at being asked after it. Her frown deepened and when he finally did answer her it was only at first to share the source of his discomfort. Bruises? But... she didn't get it..he'd been monitoring a detention hadn't he? How in the name of Merlin could you manage to get banged up doing that?? The thought crossed her mind that in might have been one of the snakes in his potions class who'd had the detention, maybe they weren't to keen on the idea of being 'baby sat' by a Gryffindor and had provoked him into a row.. if they'd hurt him like this!.. Her mind had turned to thoughts involving a beaters bat and a few choice members of the Slytherin house, thoughts that would likely have landed her not only in detention and off the team, but out of Hogwarts as well.

The confident smile Al tried to pull into place was so weak and shaky.. be it with the pain of his injuries or his nerves on her finding out about them, what? Did he think she'd do something rash? Go do her best to give a bit of payback on his behalf?... well, he was right!,... but that was aside from the point. She cared about the boy flinching in pain beside her, yeah 'cared' about him.. more than she had any right to as his best friend, more than she wanted to out of fear for their friendship, yet the feelings were still there making her even more protective over Al than their deep friendship had always done.. And seeing him hurting wasn't something that settled very well with her.. not that she often saw him that way because usually, on the few times he'd been hurt in Quidditch and what not, he'd used a healing charm on himself. Or if the need was bad enough and to much for his skill with healing charms, then he'd go willingly and without much fuss to the Hospital wing. The idea of going there didn't freak Al out like it was prone to do to her. So why then was her best friend still sitting here flinching and cringing with nearly every tiny move he made..and moving her hand from his shoulder because it was causing him to grimace.... Rory's eyes widened a bit as soon as it registered she must have been pressing on one of his bruises.. " Oh! .. sorry! " biting her lip at her mistake she pulled her hand quickly into her lap and cast an apologetic glance from where her hand had been back to meet Al's eyes as he'd finally stopped avoiding her efforts to.

The smile he'd managed to tug to his expression combined with his rubbing the bridge of his nose had her fighting back a smirk that was threatening to reach her lips and replace her frown.. Merlin he was cute when he did that, even more so because of the freckles she's always known he'd had and yet hadn't really 'noticed' till sometime in the last month. Giving herself a frustrated mental shake and a rolling of the eyes that was souly in her head she laid into herself..get a grip yeah? Not going there.. remember? For reasons just like this.. friendship.. always being their for one another..that's what's important...and he doesn't feel the same anyway so.. right... Al went on to say he'd gotten all the bruises in Defense Against the Dark Arts class, it was no big deal and she shouldn't worry?? ... Well of course she was bloody well worried! What kind of a best friend would she be if she wasn't?! And besides.. D.A.D.A ? ...Soren was a year ahead of Al and in the time she'd dated him she'd neither seen, nor heard from him about ever having gotten injured in that class to the extent Al's bruises seemed to be bothering him. Sure he just might not have wanted to upset her.. not mentioned such lessons, but still she couldn't recall ever seeing another student roaming about, outside of the Hospital wing at least, in quite as much pain as Al seemed to be in now. Something just wasn't adding up here.. "Defense Against the Dark Arts was earlier today though right? .. you just got done monitoring a detention.. so why haven't you healed yourself? Or stopped in at the hospital wing if you can't... why go on hurting like you are? "

Her tone of voice and expression were a good deal upset. She couldn't help it, she didn't like seeing Al hurting as it was, and to think that he was putting himself through it when he really didn't have to? Yeah, that was getting to her. Reaching up a hand slowly, she hesitated for a moment, trying to meet Al's gaze briefly if he'd let her, make sure it was alright, and then she gently tugged back the edge of his robe at his neck as well as the neck of his apparently unbuttoned collar. The loose tie? nothing new.. but Al always had his collar buttoned, it was one of his quirks that went with pride for his house and school uniform. She'd teased him on more than one occasion about it.. and yet it now tugged across his collar bone and a bit out over his shoulder, lax where he'd turned a button loose to keep it from pressing on his skin... his purple/blue, horridly bruised skin.. Rory's eyes widened as she took in the angry colors. She shook her head a bit frowning.. her voice catching a bit with an uncharacteristic near pleading tone to it. "heal it Al...please?.. and the others to.. or if you can't then see what they can do in the Hospital wing.. I'll even go with you, yeah? wait outside or whatever. "
Grabbing her sack she shouldered it and started to get up.

[mgirl03]

It was obvious that Rory was worried and upset about the fact that he was in pain. He wished that he could assure her that it was no big deal and have her believe him, because he hated to worry her, even more than he hated other people worrying her. And Al truly believed that this wasn't a big deal--he had dealt with bruises before, and sure, maybe not in such a quantity and intensity, but he had definitely been through worse. Besides, he would grit his teeth and bare it if that meant next time he and his dad dueled, he would dodge a few of the spells and have less injuries. He had no problem with dealing with some pain--but Rory obviously did.

As soon as she realized that her hand had been slowly causing him pain by pressing into a bruise, Al watched with guilt as she apologized, looking horrified with herself. He quickly shook his head, trying to tell her without words that it was fine, that it wasn't her fault, that she couldn't have known. However, Al knew that he must not have been too comforting, considering at that point he was keeping his mouth firmly closed so that he didn't make any noises of pain, and so he probably wasn't the most reassuring person ever.

Really, he had been so stupid not to come up with a way to explain these injuries. Al had left that classroom, determined to keep bruises that made it hard to move around, and yet he hadn't even thought of what he was to tell anybody if they asked what was wrong with him? He knew that, while he might have said his DADA lie convincingly, there were holes in it that Rory might see. Not to mention all she would have to do is ask a class mate of his and she would find out that they had not practiced spells on him--that they had not practiced spells at all that day, in fact.

Watching her face intently, Al was careful to stay relatively still, not wanting to show that he was in pain anymore than he had to. He could already tell from his best friend's face that she was really worked up about this, not to mention that his explanation seemed to have been less than satisfactory to her. He couldn't blame her, really--it was a horrible lie, and it was probably because Al's heart wasn't into it. Lying to Rory when they were best friends was bad enough, but when they were best friends and he had feelings as deep as the blake lake for her? It was practically torture to have to stare into her eyes and make up nonsense.

When she pointed out one of the many loop holes in his story, Al mentally scolded himself for not predicting this. Rory of all people would have been curious of his injuries, he should have come up with something long before now! Honestly, what was he thinking? Now she was asking another question that he would have to try and make up an answer for...although this time, he might be able to work a little of the truth into it. He glanced down at his lap briefly, before looking back up at Rory.

"Well...I was going to keep the bruises as a reminder to, y'know, move faster in...class..." he trailed off weakly at this point, because Rory had lifted her hand slowly, her expression more upset than ever. Al frowned deeply, bright green eyes roving his friend's face, slowly beginning to hate himself for what he had done, what he had made his friend feel. What kind of a person was he, to lie to her like this? What kind of a person was he, to keep injuries that made his best friend worry? He had feelings for her, and yet here he was, making her feel horrible.

As her hand stretched toward his robes, Al recoiled ever so slightly, but his eyes stayed connected with Rory's and he gave a tiny nod of confirmation that she could go on. He didn't know why he didn't just tell her no, tell her that she didn't need to worry about it and get up and leave, but something held him back. Part of him wanted to see these bruises, so that she would brood over it and figure out his secret, so that he wouldn't have to lie anymore. Agreeing to keep this a secret was turning out to be harder than the lessons themselves.

Al's breath caught as her fingers gently grabbed ahold of his robes, and he wondered for a moment how at this point in their conversation, he could be thinking about his feelings for Rory other than the matter at hand. Still, he couldn't help but to take in the features of her face, her being as close as she was. After a pause, though, he found that his mind couldn't stay trained on Rory's appearance just because of her upset expression. He closed his eyes briefly, taking a deep breath as his shirt slid from his neck and down his shoulder to reveal his very nasty bruise.

There was silence for a moment between the two, as Albus opened his eyes once more and glanced down at the discoloration of his shoulder, wincing. His eyes traveled to Rory instead, and what he saw and heard nearly stopped his heart. She was pleading with him to heal them. "Heal it Al...please?" He swallowed hard, not moving as she let go of his shoulder and continued on about him going to hospital wing. As she began to stand and grab her bag, Al quickly reached foward and grabbed Rory's wrist, tugging her back down to the ground, ignoring the screaming pain that was wracking his body.

"Alright," he said through clenched teeth, running a hand through his hair quickly, sending the black locks flying everywhere. He pried open his eyes and grabbed his wand, sucking in a slow breath before tapping his shoulder and murmuring under his breath. The bruise receeded in color somewhat, but he felt the energy required for the spell draining him, and he quickly cut the connection. With his left hand he wiped off the sweat from his forehead, looking up at Rory and trying to smile. When it didn't work, he didn't bother to try again.

"I must have...used a lot of energy in classes today," he muttered, trying to play it off. He didn't want a visit to the hospital wing, because that might mean having to lie to more people, and having more people looking into his stories. Closing his eyes briefly, Al fixed his shirt and robes before looking into Rory's eyes once more. "I could heal them tomorrow, after I get some rest. I'm just tired. I mean, they're not so bad, I'm just worn out from classes. They're fine the way they are, I don't mind..." His voice wasn't very convincing, and he knew that Rory wouldn't stand for this.

Biting on his lip gently, he tapped his shoulder again gently, but after just a few moments he had to lift away his wand once more, shaking his head without meaning to. No, there was no way he would be able to heal himself tonight. Not on his own--and he knew that Rory would want him fixed right now. A sigh escaped his lips as he realized that this was most likely going to be a trip to the hopsital wing. He slowly let his eyes hook on Rory's once more, looking tired. It didn't help that he had been up lately, working on Occlumency, so that there were bags under his eyes. Merlin, he probably looked a mess...

[.RORY KAY BLAKE !]

She'd been just about to straighten her legs and stand When Al's hand caught her wrist and he pulled her back down onto the carpet. Letting her books back down she took in Al's face as he uttered his agreement through gritted teeth. His face was riddled with pain at having moved so quickly to stop her and she grimaced, kneeling beside him as he drew a deliberate breath. She took in a steadying one of her own and focused on his wand as he lifted it to his shoulder. He was hurting yeah, but at least he'd agreed to heal them. Not fallow through on his whole daft 'keep it as a reminder" plan. True she'd had her own share of ignored injuries.. times she'd stubbornly refused to go the the Hospital Wing out of fear of what they'd do to her or make her swallow once there, but this had been different. Because she'd never refused to let Al have a go at healing what he could for her.. he was pretty good at simple healing charms unlike herself, so the idea that he'd keep such spells from himself when it could be so easy for him to get ride of the pain he was in with a tap of his wand, it just didn't make any sense.

She watched in anticipation as he murmured the incantation that 'should' have had his skin back to its normal color and pain free in moments, no such luck.. the bruise had barley faded in its deep and ugly coloring before he suddenly cut the spell off, she turned to meet Al's eyes again. The yellow that had been steadily building in her own since first seeing the bruise on his shoulder leapt to a bright topaz as she took in his features.. his smile.. no, it wasn't even a smile.. he didn't seem to have the energy to even do that. His forehead was sweaty from the effort trying the spell had cost him and Rory's stubborn resolve was building even as he tried to shrug off his injuries and claim that a simple nights rest would be enough to put everything right, that he could heal them all in the morning. Rubbish.. to hell if she was going to let her best friend, the guy who'd sooner curse off his own foot that let her go a minute more than necessary in pain, have a restless night dealing with the torture of this fix he'd managed to get himself into.

It wasn't just the bruises,.. she watched as he made yet another attempt at healing his shoulder, only to drop his wand a moment later and shake his head. Her own brightly colored eyes locked with his again as he gave a very weary sounding sigh. No, not just the bruises, he was horribly sore..all over if his grimaces and slow movements were anything to go on.. he looked exhausted and while she agreed he did need rest, he wasn't likely to get much tossing in pain all night in the dorms. She'd noticed he'd been a good bit more tired than usual lately, but as her own sleep patterns were far from perfect these days what with her extra work at morphing she'd had little room to talk and hadn't felt justified in badgering him about staying up late to work on lesson work that was due. That was, after all, what she'd thought he must be staying up to do. Rory's lips set in a firm line and she shook her head a bit at Al.

" Yeah.. I'm sure you'd get a load of rest flinching from pain every time you rolled over. Look.. I can't 'make' you go..its not like I can be a total prat and just scoop you up and tote you off anywhere I'd like, yeah?.. " She tried for a friendly smirk at bringing up an incident on the first day back at school this year when shed managed to twist her own ankle. the smirk was strained with her worry though and a few flecks of bright purple had worked their way into the yellow of her eyes, as show of her fear that Al might not listen to her. " But, com'on Al! Your beat!.. you've more wrong with you.. or your at least your more sore than just where your bruised at. I'm not daft.. I can see how much it hurts you to move.. do you really think your going to get any rest feeling like that? And after trying those spells just then now it's like your totally drained.." Guilt washed through her at that realization. " And that's my fault..I should have just asked you go right away, not suggested you try it yourself first... look, If you won't go for yourself will you at least go for me so "I" can get some sleep tonight? Don't hate on your best mate, yeah?"

Trying for a grin and managing a rather shaky one she leaned down a bit as if planing to help him stand up. though she paused in the process of it and furrowed her brow worriedly.. " can you get up ok? I'd try and give you some support but I'm bit afraid to touch you..don't know where all the bruises are at.."

[mgirl03]

There were very few things that Al knew about girls, but he did know quite a lot about guys, seeing as he was one. A main thing about blokes was that if they had a girlfriend, or somebody they liked, a lot of the times they felt as though they had to be the leader, the 'master' of the relationship. They didn't like being told what to do, and found that any worry that was placed over them was annoying. If a guy had a girl who worried over them a lot, fussing over injuries or having just a bit of an attitude, they would usually drop her. Guys liked to have free reign, and felt that these kind of girls just held them back.

Albus wasn't like other guys, though. He had been raised in a family where the girls were every ounce as strong, fierce, and brilliant as any guy, any day. His dad would have been nothing without Aunt Hermione through school. His grandmum was one of the strongest woman he knew. His cousins, his mum, every aunt--they were all tough, independent, and in his case the best kind of women the world had. It was probably why he found himself attracted to Rory Blake, a beater for Gryffindor, his best friend, who worried for him out of love and wasn't afraid to beat him around the head with a bat to get him to see sense.

As he watched her set her lips, and as she started in on him, her voice persuasive, Al felt a rush of affection. Her bringing up the first day back at school, where he had literally picked her up and taken her to the hospital wing, brought a tired smile to his face. He wasn't blind, though--he could see the worry in her face, the way her eyes were beginning to flicker purple out of fear. The fact that he was hurt, and couldn't even heal himself really scared her, and to be honest it half scared him. He was more harmed than he thought he was, and while he did think that a nights rest would help, he also understood what she was saying...

And then she put out the clincher--would he go to the hospital wing for her, so that she wouldn't have to worry. He watched her, half exasperated and half deeply grateful, as she stood and seemed to try and help him stand, but stopped herself before she could touch him. He didn't answer her question at first, but instead slowly lifted himself up from the ground, his face turning into one of pain again. When he was finally standing, he made sure to favor his leg and hip that wasn't hurt, wiping his face on his sleeve again with one hand as he stored away his wand.

"Okay," he said after a pause, mustering up the strength for a weary smile at his best friend. He noticed that they were getting odd looks, and felt a rush of nervousness take over--he was attracting too much attention. He forced his bright eyes back to Rory and gave a small nod. "I'll go the hospital wing, for you. And for the record, it's not your fault that you asked me to heal it. If I wasn't tired, I'm sure I would be able to." He tried for a reassuring look, before gesturing with one hand towards the potrait hole and starting off that way.

Albus made sure to keep a steady pace that was not slow, because he didn't want anybody who might happen to be looking to wonder what was up with him. He couldn't keep the limp out of his walk, though, and after he painfully made his way out of the potrait hole, he slowed his pace drastically, trying to cause himself as little pain as possible. He glanced at Rory for a moment as they walked, a small smile taking over his face again. Could he ask for a better best friend, really? Sure, she had guilted him into doing what she wanted, but she was worried out of her mind for him, and it was just a few bruises. The guilt that he couldn't tell her why he was so beat up intensified at the thought that while she was being a wonderful best friend, he was being a lying prat.

"I should probably start getting more sleep," he said, trying to sound humouress, although his voice was a bit to weak and weary for that. His face was now standing out greatly against his bright green eyes and dark, black hair, making him look more sickly than he actually was--although he felt ten times worse. So much for keeping injuries as a reminder to move faster--but, well, just this last half an hour was enough to make him want to make sure he never got injured like this again.

On the first flight of stairs they came to, Al tried to take them normally, but found himself wincing heavily, trying not to put any pressure on his left hip. Sure, his left leg hurt from the bruise on there, but Al had learned right quick that an injury on the hip hurt a hell lot more than people think. You used your hip for everything when it came to walking, which meant that it was constantly paining him. He refused to make any comment though, merely keeping his jaw clenched as they slowly made their way to the third floor.

Finally, the two of them were making their way down the corridor towards the hospital wing doors, after what felt like hours but was probably around fifteen minutes. To his surprise as the two of them made it into the room, it was quite crowded, with a few different healers darting back and forth between the beds. A confused look took over his face as he glanced at Rory. As he shifted his shoulder and hip at the same time, though, his face was immediately strained once more.

"Are...you going to come in or...wait outside?" he asked, and by his tone of voice, it was obvious that Al wanted her to come in with him. He tried for a small smile again and barely succeeded.

[.RORY KAY BLAKE !]

Al's efforts to seem 'normal' as they left the common room hadn't escaped her notice. But then Al had never been big on attracting attention.. he just wasn't the type to want every eye turned his way and the attention that entailed. So his regular pace as he left the room didn't really surprise her. It did however cause her to grimace a bit as she fallowed him to the portrait hole. It had to be killing him, moving so quickly like that, with the slow motions she'd seen him using by the fire she knew at the very least it wasn't a pleasant walk. Her worries were confirmed when on reaching the corridor his pace slowed considerably and the pain he'd been holding from his face crumpled in on its self. Rolling her eyes a bit, more out of frustration at what she 'thought' was a showing of the 'macho' attitude taken by most guys when it came to being hurt, and the discomfort it had cost him, she moved up closer to his side. She didn't want to touch him and risk hurting some black or blue mark she didn't mean to press on, but if it came between his tumbling down the stairs and accidentally pressing on one of them to try and hold him up right then she'd be doing the later in a heart beat.

Al's voice as he tried to joke about needing to get more sleep brought something of a half hearted smile to her face, though it quickly dropped when she turned her head to look at him. His face in the lighting of the corridors stood out pale in contrast to the dark circles beneath his eyes and she had to make an effort not to reach up and push the loose, damp locks of hair from his forehead in a gesture of care and worry. Sighing she frowned again and nodded before murmuring softly. " yeah Al... that might be a good thing to do.. " Making it down the rest of the stairs with out incident, the going had been slow, but if it hadn't been she'd have been after him for pushing himself to hard, they finally arrived out side of the Hospital wing. As they stepped inside the flurry of activity but Rory off quite as much as it had Al. At his question on weather she wanted to stay with him or not she managed a small grin.." I'll stay.. can't hurt.yeah? They've curtains i can wait outside of if the needs there."

She waited with Al for only a moment before a tall and rather haggard looking young wizard came bustling over. He was muttering and carrying on under his breath. don't see how they ever manged.. one healer in times like these Reaching the two of them his eyes skimmed Rory's worried face and then read the pain on Al's like a familiar book. Flickering his gaze back to Rory he addressed her in a short clipped tone. is he one of those from the potions explosion this after noon, or is it some thing else? Rory blinked on having had the healer address her rather than Al. Did he think Al couldn't speak for himself or? " errrr... " the healer rolled his eyes, heaved a sigh, and reached out to take Al's jaw in a gentle hand that belied his gruff attitude. No swelling of the lips.. your tongues fine then I take it? Turning he motioned for them to fallow him to one of the nearest empty beds and pulled the curtain around the outskirts of the bed and its little area of Floor. Well? come on now I haven't got all day now do I? Bit busy here if you hadn't noticed.. His gaze flickered over Al again from head to foot. I can see your fatigued.. but what other than that? Rory fell back a step to give the healer room.

[mgirl03]

Al couldn't deny that having Rory around while he was injuried was a lot better than having to deal with this alone. Sure, at first he had dreaded having to be around her after getting his lesson, because that meant lying to her and having her worry and wonder about what he was doing. However, he realized now that had he not seen her, and had he just got to bed like he wanted and skipped dinner and tried to sleep, it would have been disasturous. Perhaps he would have passed out in the morning or during lessons. Or maybe he would have injured himself even more, ruining the prospect of being in a Quidditch game again.

No, it was definitely a good thing that he had ran into her and that she had insisted on him going to the hospital wing. As they were walking and she had gotten closer to him, he felt another rush of affection and a slight calming effect, knowing that Rory was standing right there. Of course, he knew that she would always try and be there for him, but after their fight, and now his increased...feelings for the girl beside him, it meant all the more. It was why he had wanted to make sure she was coming into the hospital wing with him--because she made this thing easier. Her answer brought a small smile to his face, although he didn't voice how thankful he was that she wasn't going to make him go in there alone. It was a mad house.

Watching the chaos with very confused eyes, Al noticed that Rory looked just as lost as he did. He shifted again, grimacing, just as the rather large healer came up to them, firing questions at Rory. At first Al felt a stab of annoyance that he wasn't being addressed, as if he were some child, but then he realized that there must have been some sort of mishap in potions that had caused people to be unable to talk. Sure enough, after Rory failed to answer the man's questions, Al found his jaw being grabbed, although rather gently. He raised an eyebrow as he was inspected, and his suspicions were confirmed--swlelling of the lips and tongue seemed to be the cause of this traffic jam. Before he could answer the man's questions though, he was already bustling off.

Slowly, Al made his way over to the healer after he told him to hurry up. The pain in his hip and leg was getting worse, but he grit his teeth and took a very large, deep breath, making it to the bed without crying out in pain or passing out. His energy seemed to be draining even more, and all he erally wanted to do was eat some food and go to sleep. After a moment he realized that Rory couldn't come with him behind the screen, because he would undoubtably be changing. After the healer's question, Al unclenched his jaw and forced another deep breath.

"Bruises," he muttered tiredly, stopping by the bed and sitting down heavily upon it. Immediate relief coursed through his leg, but his hip screamed out in pain worse than ever and he couldn't help but utter out a slight noise of pain. Looking up at the healer, he hitched on a hard look to cover up the pain that wanted to show through, the only emotion being in the set of his jaw, lips, and the watery look of his eyes which were tearing up in pain. "My hip, my leg, my arm, and my shoulder. Er, and a headache."

Glancing over to the side, Al could still see part of Rory from where he sat on the end of the bed, which wasn't entirely covered by the screen. He tried to bravely smile at her but merely grimaced, looking up at his healer again as he ran a hand through his hair slowly.