The Black Lake

[NarwhalTears]

There it is again, she thought still peering through the rain.
A few seconds past and then she began to make out the silhouette of someone.
There is definitely someone there...

Slowly she walked back from toward the castle.
The figure became faintly clearer and she called back, "Hello?!"
Who could possibly... And then it hit her.
Will!?
"WILL!" She yelled into the cascade of falling water droplets
and immediately threw her weight forward, slipping on the wet grass underfoot.
Regaining her balance, she ran toward the figure, her heart hammering in her chest.

 

[Professor Tahiri]

//WILLIAM RADCLIFFE
THIRD YEAR GRYFFINDOR
QUIDDITCH TEAM KEEPER
AND I AM DEFINITELY A KEEPER!

Indala appeared through the rain and shouted his name. Will felt his knees go weak and he was suddenly unsure if he was happy to see her or if he was angry with her. However, before he could figure out which was which, he found his arms were around her, holding her wet self against him. His hand moved up to stroke her hair. "Indala, is it really you? Please tell me I'm not dreaming this..." His voice trailed off, a sense of uneasiness apparent in his voice.  

[NarwhalTears]

Before his image had even registered in her mind, she felt her arms wrap around his waist and his around her torso.
"Will..." she whispered, not knowing what else to say.
Tears welled up in her eyes as they stood embracing one another,
and a tumult of emotions battled for dominance within her.
The silent tears rolled down her cheeks but were lost, mixed with the raindrops which rolled off her skin.

She stared up unbelieving into his eyes which were noticeably higher than she had remembered them to be.
"...it's me Will," she said with earnest, her eyes begging him to believe her.
The feeling of warmth radiating from his body against hers was more than enough for her to differentiate dreams from reality.

 

[Professor Tahiri]

//WILLIAM RADCLIFFE
THIRD YEAR GRYFFINDOR
QUIDDITCH TEAM KEEPER
AND I AM DEFINITELY A KEEPER!

...it's me, Will.

He pushed away from her and turned, suddenly happy that it was raining and the tears in his eyes would be indistinguishable from rain drops. "How... how could you?!?" he yelled. You've... you've been gone so long... no messages... no notices! I thought you were dead!" He turned to face her again. He wanted to continue yelling, to vent the rest of his anger, but upon seeing her face again, he felt the anger melt away. He suddenly had an unstoppable urge to kiss her, and he caved to the urge. Drawing her face in his hands, he pressed his lips against hers, allowing her warmth to wash through him for the first time in a long time.  

[NarwhalTears]

One moment in his arms, the next being pushed away.
Indala could feel her brittle heart crumbling around the edges.
All she could do was stare at Will as he yelled.
Suddenly she could feel the walls reconstructing themselves, and she stood straighter,
steeling herself against his anger.
Tears continued to flow from her eyes without noise.
She was on the verge of retreating back to the castle as all the worst scenarios she had imagined became true.
Shifting her weight she prepared herself to flee.

And then...

Their lips met and the walls came crashing down around her.
Her heart felt like it was going to explode under the strain of her happiness.
He was so warm, more so than she had ever remembered him being.
Eager to convey her own feelings, she pushed up on her tiptoes and returned his kiss.

 

[Professor Tahiri]

//WILLIAM RADCLIFFE
THIRD YEAR GRYFFINDOR
QUIDDITCH TEAM KEEPER
AND I AM DEFINITELY A KEEPER!

Will held her in his arms, kissing her and drawing her warmth into him. For a moment, he felt as though everything in the world was right. He forgot that it was raining around them. He forgot that she had been gone for a whole semester. He forgot everything. Slowly, he pulled away from her face, looking into her eyes. "Indi... It's... It's been..." He stroked her cheek looking into her eyes. "I... I had my father look up your address... I was going to go to your house... I thought... I thought your father... I was going to kill him... I..." He pulled her in for another kiss.  

[NarwhalTears]

Indala swooned at Will's touch and his kiss made her shiver excitedly.
He pulled away and looked deep into her eyes,caressing her face.
Everything about him drew her in.

She would have done anything to stay like this forever.

And then he mentioned her father,and a searing pain shot through her left arm
as the rest of the world swam back into her recognition.
"Ahk..." she groaned as she moved her arm away from Will's back.

She smiled awkwardly up at him, panic swelled within her.
"Will, you can't think like that! If you had gone to Grey Manor he would have...he would have killed you in an instant!
I don't think that I...I could have..." she trailed off not able to bear the thought of life without Will.

Already she had assumed that he had moved on and found someone else to be with.
That scenario she could have lived with; at least he would have been happy. But dead....

Blurry memories flashed through her fatigued mind.
Feathers flying one by one out the window as a horrible noise filled her mind.
Blood splattering , making a grid pattern on the floor as it filled
the tiling grout with the metallic smelling liquid,
and a searing sensation breaking through the numbness...

She shuddered involuntarily and pulled him closer,no longer caring about her arm and laid her head on his chest.
Clearing her mind, she silently said a prayer,and thanked whomever was listening for the life Will's heartbeat conveyed.

Quietly she whispered. "I...I thought you had moved on, had forgotten about me.
I thought that maybe you...and..." she trailed off again,
closing her eyes and focused on his heart's palpitations.

"I'm so sorry Will..."

 

[Professor Tahiri]

//WILLIAM RADCLIFFE
THIRD YEAR GRYFFINDOR
QUIDDITCH TEAM KEEPER
AND I AM DEFINITELY A KEEPER!

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her head close to his chest. His heart thundered, blood pounding in his temples. And all at once, he was back in control. For the first time in a long time, he was in control of his own mind. Stroking her hair lightly, he started to lead her out of the rain and back to the shelter of the alcoves. "How could I? That's just a silly thought." His mind wandered to several possible thoughts about where she might have been, but he figured she'd tell him eventually. What mattered now was that she was in his arms and that he wasn't dreaming. "Have you seen Tammy yet?"  

[NarwhalTears]

Indala smiled brightly. Yes, I suppose it was a silly thought...

They reached the alcove leading up to the castle and got out of the rain.
She shivered slightly as a light breeze blew through the rain.
"No, I have only seen you and Tyler."
She let go of her hold on him briefly to pick up her notebook which she stashed in her bag.
Grabbing her shoes she returned to him.
Concerned she asked,"How is she? How is your family?"
Unconsciously she applied pressure to her left forearm as she spoke to him.
Standing back to look him over, her mind bounced from thought to thought.
She took a deep breath and let it out.

"Will, I've missed you..."

 

[Professor Tahiri]

//WILLIAM RADCLIFFE
THIRD YEAR GRYFFINDOR
QUIDDITCH TEAM KEEPER
AND I AM DEFINITELY A KEEPER!

"Oh..." Will responded, and his mind drifted off again, idling somewhere between dream world and the real one. He came back to when she squeezed her left forearm. A sudden, surprised look crossed his face and he gently took her arm in his hands. "Is everything alright?" Concern flooded his voice.  

[NarwhalTears]

Quickly Indala dropped her left arm behind her back and shifted nervously.
"Oh! Uh...nothing everything's fine."
She forced a smile and moved toward the large wooden doors that lead into the entrance way.

Damn it Eve, way to give that away.
Now is definitely not the time to have that conversation...

She nodded toward the doors as she walked toward them.
Using her wand she swung one open enough to let the pair of them through and grabbed Will's hand.
"Come on, Let's go find Tammy!"

 

[Professor Tahiri]

//WILLIAM RADCLIFFE
THIRD YEAR GRYFFINDOR
QUIDDITCH TEAM KEEPER
AND I AM DEFINITELY A KEEPER!

Will shifted uneasily as Indala avoided the question and hid her arm from sight. Something was definitely bothering her and William vowed to find out. For now, though, Indala seemed determined to find Tamara so Will shifted it to the back of his mind. Stammering a little, he said, "Oh, um, Tammy's probably either in the Library or the common room now... She may be in the Owlery to watch the rain though." He bit his lip as Indala led him through the door. "Probably in the Owlery, thinking about it."  

[NarwhalTears]

Relieved that Will wasn't going to pursue the question right now she nodded.
Pausing a moment she turned back to Will and used her wand to cast a
Hot-Air charm which quickly dried both of them.
She flashed a quick smile at him and then lead him toward the staircase biting her lip.
She didn't like the feeling she got from putting him off, but right now it was necessary.
"To the Owlery it is then," she said lightheartedly.

((Exit to Owlery))

 

[Professor Tahiri]

//WILLIAM RADCLIFFE
THIRD YEAR GRYFFINDOR
QUIDDITCH TEAM KEEPER
AND I AM DEFINITELY A KEEPER!

Will nodded idly, then smiled at her when she dried them off with the hot air charm. He patted his still wet hair. "Missed a spot," he said with a smirk. Then she said they should be off to the Owlery. "Alright then, lead the way then."  

[hocusss]

Eleanor led the crowd of first years on the shore of the Dark Lake, where waited a bunch of little boats enough for maximum ten persons. The water reflected the moon and the silhouette of the towering castle, slightly puzzled due to the smooth waves rolling over the vague images. Spinning around, Eleanor settled her lantern down beside her to whistle, in hope to catch the students' focus. It must be hard for them to concentrate with all the excitement in the air and all, "Dear newbies, these boats will lead you to Hogwarts!" she stole a glimpse of the boats over her shoulder before returning to the students, "Take a seat. These boats can handle like, what, five people at once? Yeah, five or so." she muttered under her breath before raising her voice other the students' whispers, "Anyone who isn't very comfy with water should come with me." she pointed to the middle boat before standing aside, letting the pupils dash to the water to climb onto the boats, wide grins on their young faces.