eachdraidh | ( video ; seelie + unseelie )

(ooc: link to a video representation here! tw for torture/blood)

THE DREAM;

[ It starts of as nothing more than blackness and screaming, the sounds flickering desperately and the panicked breathing soon taking over. When Hermione remembers this moment it's the pain that surfaces first, then the panic, then the horror of her memories, but it takes so, so long for the memories to crawl out and be more than just echoed sounds.

Then there are visions, flashes of a face bearing into her own, whispering to her and a wand moving in front of her eyes, the sound of a curse echoing around her body as she screams with the pain, twitching. Her vision swims, now, from the agony, even as she lies through her teeth - and she is lying, desperately, not expecting to be believed but relishing the fact that even now, when she's on her back on a cold floor with a witch trying to Crucio her to death, she can protect her best friends.

It doesn't take long for the other woman to come back and take over Hermione's light of sight completely, leaning close and shouting in her face even as she tries to bite back desperate sobs. It's almost impossible, not with the ravaging pain that's taking over her, and it's not until the woman moves to the side and jerks forward, body twitching as she does something out of Hermione's vision but she still screams, body lurching and everything twisting as she tries to get away.

Everything is burning pain and agony and there's nothing she can do but breathe and try to keep going, despite her tears, desperate sobs that overtake the entire nightmare. The one word that echoes, over and over, is Mudblood; mudblood, mudblood, each hiss like a stab to her heart and another cut to her body.

Eventually, finally, the screaming is over, her voice is hoarse, and she's left just... Staring. Her gaze is a little fuzzy and distant, a little lost, and her hands twitch a little, her body readjusting to it's pain threshold being pushed too far, too fast, pulling all her energy out of her and leaving her worse for it. Eventually there are more whispered shouts behind her and a hand lifts, grabbing her, a knife pressed to her throat and her best friends in front of her, their lives on the line again and she'd failed --

and then she wakes up. ]

ADDED ABOUT AN HOUR LATER, text;

I don't suppose there's any way to get rid of this, is there? I'm sorry for anyone who had to see that. I'm truly sorry.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[This is perhaps the one moment where Nico will willingly talk to someone after his own incident with the star. He can't ignore this one, not when Hermione has gotten so close to him.]

My mother was a mortal Italian woman and my father was Hades. Out of all demigods, we're the most rare, and perhaps the most hated. We're treated like we're covered in blood or sewage. In the 40's, we would've been treated as animals or felons because of a prophecy regarding the Big Three's children. After all, who ever heard of a child of Hades being a hero? That's reserved for Poseidon or Zeus' kids.

[He bites his lip as he types out the words carefully. He doesn't know if this helps at all, but he at least wants her to know that he's been there. He's been there; he's experienced prejudice and hatred for being born the way he is.]

I was a prisoner of war in my world. I got captured trying to find something to help seven chosen heroes to save the world. I spent who knows how long in Tartarus, the pit where monsters and only the worst of mortals go. It's nothing short of hell. The air kills you inside and out, and everything in that place is designed to hurt you physically and mentally. The closer you get to the heart of Tartarus, the worse it gets. The only way to survive is to drink from the Phelgethon, the River of Fire, and even then it's like drinking liquid ghost peppers. I was then used as bait to lure the seven demigods into a trap. I was trapped in a bronze jar for a week, unable to escape. The only way I lived was by eating pomegranate seeds from Persephone's Garden, and going into a 'death trance' to use as little air as possible. I still have nightmares about it. It's why I asked for those potions a while ago.

[ All of it stuns her and she has to bite back even more tears. Nico, her friend, has been through so much - all of them have been through so much and it's enough to make her feel sick, to make her want to curl up and cry for all the innocence they'd lost and all the pain they'd suffered through, separate from one another. At least, here, she can help, she can help make his nightmares go away and give him some good, cherished sleep. It's all she can do but she wishes she could do more. ]

I'm sorry, Nico.

[ then a pause, and - ]

I'm good at memory spells, if...?

[He almost smiles at the offer. Almost.]

The amount of times I thought about jumping into the Lethe is equal to the amount I've talked myself out of it. My memory has already been tampered by it, though, so I'm not sure how well a memory spell will work.

But, at the same time, this is kind of what a demigod's life is. We very rarely get a happy ending or even a long and happy life. A lot of us hardly reach the age of 18, though Romans are way more likely to live to adulthood.

No, it makes sense. Memory spells are tricky because memories themselves are tricky - they're complicated, special, dangerous, almost. It's hard to really legitimise using them. The times I've had have been because of necessity rather than anything else. My parents, people following us, Death Eaters. I had no other choice, then.

But you're here, now, right? And you have people who care about you and will take care of you. I don't think that's going to change, is it. The people that want you to be happy and safe.

No. Neither did my father when he had my sister and I take a dip in the River Lethe, and I can't blame him for it.

I can take care of myself.

[He doesn't mean to sound harsh, but, well. His emotions are pretty messed up, especially after the memory broadcast. There's a pause before another text comes.]

My sisters and I are originally from the 1940's. I don't remember much, just bits and pieces. [Enough to know that people who were different got treated with hatred and fear.] Bianca might have known, but I'm not positive and I can't ask her. She chose to be reborn after her death a couple years ago. I met Hazel almost a year ago. I brought her back from the Fields of Asphodel. She's all the family I have left, now.

[Hades doesn't exactly count, being a god. But maybe Hermione can guess why he's so reluctant and fearful, now.]

So can I. It doesn't stop people from worrying about me, though, does it? And it won't stop me from worrying about you. I'm sorry, Nico, but that comes with the territory. I'm sorry if that makes you feel uncomfortable but I can't really turn it off.

And, well. I think family is whatever you make of it. Harry and Ron are my family, and I have one here, too, a little one. John is a little like a father and Legolas is a bit like an older brother - a much, much older brother. I'd like to think we could be the same for one another one day, if you'd be alright with that.

[The offer causes Nico some pause. He doesn't expect it at all. He's never had someone offer to be a sister to him in the future. There's some hesitation before responding.]

I think I'd like to be part of your family. It'd be nice to have an older sister again.

Then I think you're going to be stuck with me for a very long time, Nico di Angelo.

I'll hold you to it, Hermione Granger.

( video ; seelie + unseelie )

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