Under the Willow Tree

[Willow Autumn]

Willow paced around her dormitory; feeling the anxiety mixing around in the depth of her stomach, mixing with butterflies that came out of no where. A few moments ago a school owl came through the window, dropping off a letter from her Cousin Jeremy. Ever since Kate and Sara's Housewarming party and what happened there, Willow decided she had better to listen to her Cousin who originally suggested she should have gone to see the doctor and apparently he knew something that she didn't know. Back in New Zealand she went and through the tyranny of blood tests and physicals she had to return to Hogwarts without knowing really what was wrong. She slept dreamless nights, thinking back to the scary time that happened at the party, the feeling of loosing her balance and feeling faint, she knew it wasn't normal.
The letter just confirmed everything.</SIZE></FONT>

<SIZE size="50">Just got the word back from the doc.
It's genetic, don't worry.
Just ask your friends to look out for you and
you should be fine.

Love;
Jeremy & Fam. xox

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Feeling sick and being cooped up in the house isn't really helping;
Willow dashed out of the common room and down the flights of stairs, startling a few students as she rushed past.
Her robes flying behind her as she ignored the stares and jeers of students calling after her to slow down, she probably startled a few ghosts and the raised eyebrow of a professor.
Running through the Great Hall, she felt the fear and panic - something she never really felt much of before, the thought of being incapable of her own body was scaring her. She dashed her way to the Willow Tree in the Great Lawn, remembering how she felt instantly better when she sat beneath one at the Moon's house. Tears streaming down her face, she collapsed on her knees in front of the tree, remembering a song she once heard back in the Muggle world, the words floating in and out through her head; ..Willow weep for me, bow your tallest tree - down into the infamous hands, of someone no one understands. I'm not unique in this, nor am I special sweet or kind, I court a thousand smiles - yet I keep my own to hide behind...Bend your branches to the ground and hold me close.. Willow clutched her stomach, trying to stop herself from crying, concentrating on her breathing and regaining her composure.

She knew what she was suffering from wasn't particularly life threatening if she lived a healthy life style and it'll only become an issue if something really did happen to her during a class or an examination. She was overreacting, but Willow didn't know how to deal with such emotions - a lot of things are happening to her that she wasn't ready to confront. Her feelings for Chris, Her academics, her music, her friends, her family and the adjustment in living in the magical world. All these feelings Willow was feeling right now was overwhelming and on top of that was her health. She can't blame anyone, it was all genetics. She can't blame or be angry at her parents. She didn't have any parents anymore. It hit home. She felt as lonely and as out of place in this world than she did in her other life. She sighed, ignoring the onslaught of by standing students and her tear streaked face , still trying to control her breathing. Leaning against the Willow Tree, she closed her eyes, wondering where her friends may be.

 

[Vayne Rozeleouxe]

Vayne was in a hurry. He had just received a note from Willow that she had found something out. He was worried about her, back at the party at the Moon's manor, he had already noticed something strange, she was not acting like her self at all. Willow was such a great friend of his, always ready to support them and always ready with everything that they needed. Checking himself in the mirror at his room, he fixed his jet black hair and started his way towards the great lawn. "Under the Willow tree.. she'll be there.." He muttered to himself, giving a smile to those that he happened to pass by, he can't have them to be worried about him as well, he needed to go as fast as he could but he couldn't just ignore his roommates.

After a few minutes, he was already out, already searching for the Willow tree that is supposed to be their rendezvous point. Looking at that familiar tree, he saw a figure in there, he knew instantly that it was Willow. Taking a deep breath, he ran towards her, a bit taken back by her tear-streaked face. He gently put a hand on her shoulder, politely informing her of his presence. "Willow?" He said gently and slowly, not wanting to startle her or anything.

 

[Sara Moon]

Sara ran as fast as possible down toward the willow tree, where Willow had told her to go when she got the note. She was worried about Willow, the note had been very vague and Sara was disconcerted. She saw Vayne coming from the opposite direction and quickened her pace, she wanted to be there for Willow and she knew that she needed her friends at this time, Sara had a tendency to see beyond the obvious and into the truth. She reached the Willow and took a breath before walking underneath it's branches.

Vayne was already there and Sara nodded to him in greeting. "I got your not Willow, what's wrong?" she asked, sitting down next to her and putting her arm around Willows shoulder, comfortingly. "We're here if you need us." she smiled, her voice soft.

 

[Danielle Warbeck]

Danielle ran down the hallways, zooming towards the Great Lawn. Clutching the note in her hand, she ran towards the Willow tree. She had already saw two people there - Danielle recognized both from the party - She ran down to the Willow. "Willow! What happened? Are you okay?" Danielle said softly. she didn't think she sould have been very loud today, as it seemed serious. She sat down, looking at Willow, very intently. Danielle had really hoped she was okay, Willow was very nice, and Danielle liked her a lot. She hoped that she would be okay in the end, and that it won't overcome Willow.

 

[Stefan Archer]

There were few things that Stefan did for others. Mainly just because he knew that no matter how simple the solution could be he wouldn't be able to come up with the answer. Stefan hadn't really bothered therefore to really ever offer his assistance or anything. However upon receiving a note from Willow Stefan wanted to find out if she was okay. Stefan however didn't want to appear like he cared. He wanted to see if she was okay, he wanted to be sure. Just because he was jealous of everyone and wanted to push all his own friends away didn't mean that he didn't still care. That was the most crucial thing about Stefan, although he was caught up in his own world, and that he was lost, he wanted to keep others, his friends away from it. No matter who they were, what they'd done and what they might end up doing. Stefan therefore decided to go. The willow tree would easy to climb. If there wasn't anyone there Stefan would be able to claim and have a birds eye seat. So he knew what was wrong with out having to say anything or be there. The only problem was that he had to go outside. Where it was sunny and bright. Stefan however kept in mind that this was not for him and that for once he had to do something for someone else, even if she wouldn't actually know it.

Stefan walked as quickly as he body could muster, to the outdoors. He was thankful that the Alytherin area was so close to the outdoors. He was able to be out of the castle pretty quickly and he began the long walk to the willow tree. He had to admit that it pretty much hurt to hurry and his slightly quicker breath was causing pains in his chest. He cursed the stupid bruises on his body. That morning Stefan had spent extra long washing the deep cut on his hand which seemed to be taking forever to heal. But so did the rest of his body. The bruises some how were hurting more now he was at school, mainly because there was no more constant pain to numb his body. Now at School, free and able to do as he liked the slightest nudge to one bruises caused Stefan to at times almost double over. He was thankful when the tree came into sight and that it appearred as if no one had arrived. Stefan wasted no time. As soon as he was at the tree, he used all the strength that he had and climbed. It was sore. And Stefan struggled, but as soon as he was past the first branch he climbed with ease. Although it hadn't occured to him, this was the first time he'd ever climbed a tree and was soon reminded why. He was afraid of heights. So he was at a branch that was neither too high but too low. Stefan was well hidden in the tree. And it was good. He was thankful. Now they wouldn't be able to see them and he'd be able to see them. The first to arrive was Willow herself. He had to remind himself to not move or to say a word. Which he was generally good at but considering she was a friend was proving difficult, thankfully a trickle of people arrived. And all asked Willow the same question. He felt like shouting at then, telling that that clearly no, she was not okay. It angered him that people who had almost perfect lives always had to ask others if they were okay. Stefan knew the signs of a person who was not okay, because he was one, but surely as Willow's friends they'd notice it more. Stefan stayed sat on the branch, listening and looking, waiting to see what was wrong and how things would play out.

Out of Character:

The only plausible way for Stefan to be there. He hates crowds, so being on the ground surrounded by people would not do well with him. Also, he can't be seen. Act as if he isn't there.

 

[Willow Autumn]

Dreaming.
It was a word that Willow always had on her mind. Dreaming for a better future, a better day.
She laughed mentally. It was such a playful word, a word that plays around in peoples heads giving them a sense of self-hope and positivity, it brings false images and thoughts into their mind of how everything was going to be okay and everything was all sunshines. And after that person thinks of dreaming the next word that comes to mind was reality. Reality was bittersweet, it had it's moments and it certainly wasn't all self-hope and sunshine at times.
Willow was thankful she had such nice friends and she was regretting that she hastily scrawled out notes to her friends saying she had something to say. She wasn't sure if she actually say anything just yet, but she knew she should have heeded the advice her cousin said, she should keep her friends close. She can count on them, but she wasn't sure if they can count on her.

"Willow..." The voice she knew to well to be Vayne's, she opened her eyes and looked at him sadly.
She noticed Sara and Danielle was hurrying right towards her way. She huddled, bringing up her knees to her chest. She couldn't think how lucky she was. She stared at them, and spoke quietly, trying to find her voice - she really needed her friends support right now. "It's...something to do with me and a reason why I was...out of it at your party." She nodded at Sara. The simple act of nodding made Willow feel faint, feeling the color loosing from her face again. It was the third time it happened this week and she all she had to do to make her feel better was just to actually eat something, but for now, Willow was loosing her appetite from such a bombardment of feelings.
"You see...I suffer from some...uh. Conditions." Willow spoke a little more clearly and a little more loudly. Wondering if her friends would understand her hesitant nature.

She looked at her friends, seeing their worried faces made Willow feel even more horrible luring them into such a depressing place. The Willow Tree that they were all sitting under didn't do much to make Willow feel better, it's magic didn't work like it did at the Moon's house. It was just a tree, nothing more and it was mostly wishful thinking on Willows part. ...medical conditions. I'm twelve and suffering.

Out of Character:

I have to admit, I wrote this topic when I had less than two hours sleep, so i'm really sorry if this was just sprung up. But, it makes sense I guess given the circumstances hah.

 

[Vayne Rozeleouxe]

Vayne sat down beside Willow, comforting her as he did so. He watched as the others arrived, asking Willow the questions that he knows to need not to be asked. Willow was obviously not feeling good, ever since at the party, he had already seen the obvious change of her features, of her personality. No matter how hard she had tried to tell them that she was alright back then, he knew there was something wrong. He didn't have a chance to ask because he knew that he should dampen the mood of the party that was organized by the Moons. However, today was the perfect chance to know what was wrong with his friend, he wouldn't take a Don't worry, I'm fine for an answer, because he knows that she's not. But still, he knows that he shouldn't be rushed in making her to tell them her problems, he should still be mindful whether Willow was willing to share to them what she was suffering from, the reason of her sudden change.

When Willow spoke his name, Vayne knew that his suspicions were correct, the sad look in her eyes tells him that something was definitely wrog, he just needed to find it out. He listened attentively to what Willow was to say, not uttering a single word as he digested the words that had come out of her mouth, "It's...something to do with me and a reason why I was...out of it at your party.You see...I suffer from some...uh. Conditions." At that, Vayne felt like something had collapsed on him, he didn't want his friends to suffer from anything, anything that would do them harm at all. He didn't really know what to tell her, seeing that she too, was still hesitant to tell them everything. Taking a deep breath, he placed his hand once again in her shoulder, squeezing it to show that he's there to support her no matter what happens. Words were not needed to communicate his concern and support, his gestures would surely show it to her.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate was running through Hogwarts as fast as she could with the note in her hand.The minute she had read it she had sped of towards the Willow tree but on the way a teacher had stopped her and given her a lecture about running in the hall way .So this had delayed her.

While running she could see a group of people around the Willow tree.Using her last bit of strength she sprinted to them "Hey guys"She said between her breath "Whats the matter Willow"She said trying to regain her breath and not keel over. "Sorry I'm late a teacher stopped me on the way and gave me a lecture for about 15 minutes about running in the hall way"She said her breathing more normal now she really needed to work on her fitness.She noticed the atmosphere and she also over heard Willow say conditions.She walked over to Willow and gave her a gentle hug "Its okay Willow we will help you get through it its what friends are for"She said softly and smiling even though inside she felt so much sorrow for her friend.It was all clear now why she was so sick at her party.She looked the same now pale and faint.She was determined not to stop smiling because she knew Willow would feel terrible if they all looked sad .There was no point in being sad they just had to look at the positive side and not be down in the dumps.

 

[Willow Autumn]

Willow was in some sort of hypothetical bubble. Not the type of bubble that you see young children squealing around shouting out that it was their personal space bubble and other children would try to pop it with a range of hypothetical tools before they shout out their personal space bubble and introduce what that bubble was made of. It was a game that Willow remembered playing when she was young and since she lived in a small community, the game was pretty memorable as there weren't many children of Willow's age back then. Fast forward to now and it felt like she was playing the same game, except this time her friends can't pop her bubble with hypothetical tools or create scenarios - Willow made this bubble to protect herself from the outside world. This time, she can only pop her bubble alone, as if it was a release of all was wrong.


She met eyes with her friends, Kate was bounding over - something about being kept in by a professor for running in the hall way. Guilt. She felt the hand squeeze from Vayne, just. She was getting out of it, something just didn't feel right. Willow slowly pulled the letter from her pocket and quietly read the contents out. ..see it's nothing serious... Willow thought, regretting her decision of making them rush over here - why didn't she just make a nice picnic and let it slip casually? The truth had to come out at some point, they'd probably got better things to do than to worry about Willow. "You see I suffer from Hypotension, it's nothing serious...well. it is...but..." Willow let them came to their own conclusions about it; [color]"Pretty much, Hypotension just means low blood pressure. I've inherited it from my.....parents."[/color] Willow cut off her own explanation again. Parents, only Stefan Archer knew about her parents. The bubble still wasn't bursting. "Which...kinda means...if my blood pressure drops to a certain point, there are a few things that could happen. Like uh. If there isn't enough blood going to my arteries to get to my heart, I could uh. have a heart attack, just say." Willow shrugged, the bubble was becoming dimmer. "uuh another example could be uhm...standing too long, or standing up too quickly." Willow started to frown; "Pretty much my uncle wants to tell you guys to look out for me and make sure i'm eating enough so I get enough nutrients and whatever and uh. If I do...uh. fall ill. give me a sports drink or some sugary-sickening drink and force me to drink it. There's electrolytes in it that'll help...of course this can be cured with magic, but I have to wait till i'm older." Willow saw the bubble grow dimmer, she couldn't believe she was making a big deal out of it. But she knew that it was essential.

She looked at her friends, she was starting to feel clammy and tired. After this she would head straight to bed and sleep the rest of the day off, thanking it was a day that had no classes. This was enough social interaction she could have for a day - the rest she can spend off in dream world. "There's also another thing." She paused and looked down; "I'm prone to uh. Sudden fainting or Syncope. Which, sounds pretty cliched I know. But yeah, it's just because of the hypotension and yeah. I just fall. No lead up or anything. Just...Faint." Willow gave her friends a small smile, she was thankful for their attention and patience as she spoke, as if they were in some medical lecture and learning about their professor's conditions instead of what was in their textbooks. Her back ached, she regretted sitting down but she would also regret standing up. She tried to focus on her friends but her eyes won't focus clearly, blurred vision took control and her head pounded. She should really be going now. Leaning on the tree, she stood up, using the tree as support and trying to balance her self. The bubble was gone and she looked down at her friends. "...i'm sorry for wasting your time. but i'm really..am....fine." Willow smiled, her bubble was gone, all was well apart from the vision thing. She took a breath in, feeling at ease and at peace. She gave a pained expression, clutching her head - something wasn't feeling right. She frowned and lost her balance and her vision turned black, falling back down to the earth. Under the Willow Tree.

 

[Sara Moon]

Sara was puzzled, usually Willow seemed so strong and vibrant, and here, in Sara's arm s, she was falling apart. Something was very wrong and when Willow explained, Sara's face went white with shock. What kind of "conditions" did Willow mean, Of course she remembered Willow being sick at the party and how weak she had been, but they'd thought it was a bug going around or something, not something serious. "Oh Willow!" she exclaimed, hugging her tightly and praying silently for her friend. "Don't worry, we're here, we'll always be here." Sara added, hugging Willow even tighter, she gestured to Kate, Danielle and Vayne to join her. "This will work out-I swear, there's nothing magic can't fix and we'll help you all the way." she stated, confidently, but there were tears in her eyes. She was worried about Willow, she seemed fragile, almost-it seemed as though she had almost lost her fire.

She hugged Willow, slowly, tears began to trickle down Sara's face "Do they know what it is yet?" she asked, managing to compose herself. She hoped it would be treatable, something Willow could live with. "You are not to worry about this." she stated "That's an order."

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate was worried Willow was usually so happy and strong and now she was so small and weak.She had looked exactly like this at her birthday.Then Willow explained what was wrong she hadn't known it was that serious.She was silent for a few minutes digesting the piece of information.She then took a big breath and went over and hugged Willow "Don't worry Willow we will be with you all the way ahd don't feel guilty about telling us like this its the best way"She said smiling but there were tears in her eyes. But she was comforted because if anyone could pull through this Willow would she was one of the strongest people Kate knew.

Kate then frowned when Willow said she had another condition.What a dose to have two conditions like that. "Its okay Willow you will pull through I know you will"She said giving her a confident smile.But Kate noticed something "Hey Willow maybe you shouldn't"But she broke off when Willow began to fall.She quickly caught her before she fell to the ground."Come one guys Vayne help me please"She said.She and Vayne with the others behind them then took Willow to the hospital wing.

 

[Vayne Rozeleouxe]

Vayne was really worried about Willow's condition, but he knew that he shouldn't feel any pity for her, she's a strong girl, what she needed is not the pity and worry, but rather, the support of her friends.He listened intently as the girl explained her conditions to them. It was rather painful to hear that she can't be the same girl that she was before, but deep inside, Vayne knew, and wish, that someday, she'll be fine. "You're a strong woman Willow, nothing will faze you, we'll help..." He said softly, smiling gently at her. Willing himself to not cry as he knew that it would only bring more guilt to the already frail girl.

He was about to say something when Willow just fell unconscious, he quickly stood up, ready to help her even though Kate hadn't said it. Kneeling down, he picked her up, one hand under her knees and the other, supporting her upper body. He, along with the others, at Kate's command, had brought her up to the infirmary.

 

[Willow Autumn]

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Although Willow was unconscious, she was still able to hear and feel everything that happened around her.
She was happy. She was surrounded by loving and caring friends. She didn't feel as scared anymore.
Even though she couldn't move a limb, she smiled mentally and was trying hard to tell her friends she was alright.
but she couldn't grab control in her body and had to accept that she'll wake up in the Hospital Wing.

She wasn't sure how life was going to go from, from here. But she knew that anything medical related was going
to be absolutely fine.

....thank you. ​

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