Until I Hear It From You

[Lily Drage]

All Godmodding of Drage characters has been pre-approved by their owners.


Darkness.

Lily tried to open her eyes, to move, but all she saw, all she felt was darkness. And pain. As she tried to move, the pain was excruciating. Well, at least I am not dead, she thought, realizing that the pain was a good sign of her being alive. A groan managed to escape her lips, faint but just enough to alert those in the room that she was beginning to surface. She heard the scurrying of feet around her, felt the pressure of a hand on hers. As she strained to stay above the darkness that threatened to consume her again, she struggled to identify voices. There was only one that she wanted to hear, but its tones were not reaching her ears. Then, as if it had a mind of its own, the darkness consumed her once again and she peacefully floated back down into the abyss of sleep.

 

[Julie Bennett-Drage]

Julie sat next to the bed of her daughter in law, watching her carefully. Sarah, Valcan and Tristan had gone to get food to bring back but she had not wanted to leave Lily’s side, knowing that Sumner would not have it any other way. He would want someone to be there with his beloved when he couldn’t be. As it was, he was frantic, wanting to be out of his own bed at the hospital and at his wife’s side. She had been horrified when he alerted them to the Quidditch accident and they raced to the hospital. Thankfully, Nastasia was there with Christian for their visit and volunteered to stay with the kids. Julie hated to travel by floo, but that is what they had to do to get there as quickly as they could. It actually had surprised them that Valcan and Sarah had arrived right after they did. It was all she could do to keep Tristan under control with her father-in-law there, but so far they seemed to be doing okay with each other – as long as they were not expected to talk to each other.

Lily let out a slight groan, moving just a bit in her sleep. The nurse type wizard in the room checked her over quickly while Julie grabbed her hand. “Lily. You’re going to be okay. I promise you will come out of this,” she said, hoping her voice was reassuring to the sleeping girl. The wizard summoned the healer from the hallway who gave her another dosage of sedative, which really was a potion of some kind. Tristan had tried to explain things as best as possible for her but she still did not always understand the magical way of healing. The healer assured her that sleep was the best thing for the girl at the moment so her broken body could heal itself. As he left the room, she held the younger girl’s hand and sighed. She knew that the healing of the body was only the beginning.

 

[Lily Drage]

The darkness was ebbed and waned a number of times over the week that Lily laid in the hospital. This time was different. Lily seemed to be floating above it. She was not in nearly as much pain as she was the previous times she had surfaced. Tentatively, she tried to move her arm. Her hand seemed to move with no pain so she tried the other. Same result. Slowly she moved her body around, checking various muscles. Very little pain, this is a good sign. Okay. Try the eyes now. She let her eyelids flutter a bit, then tried to open them and look around. I wonder where I am. St. Mungo’s? Probably. Who is that? Ok. Julie. Julie? What is Julie doing here? Opening her mouth, she tried to speak, but found that she couldn’t. Her mouth seemed so dry. Trying again, she spoke softly to the woman who was sleeping in the chair next to the bed. “Julie?” What was going on if her mother –in-law was sitting by her bed? The last thing that she remembered was falling through the air from her broom, the ground rushing towards her.

 

[Julie Bennett-Drage]

Julie sat up with a start. She could have sworn she heard her name. Looking at the sleeping girl in the bed, she thought she was imagining things. Then it hit her. Lily was awake. Her eyes were open and looking right at her. “Lily!” she exclaimed. “Merlin it is good to see you awake! Don’t move. I need to get the healer.” Standing quickly, the older Drage wife moved to the hallway and brought back the man that was assigned to her daughter in law’s care. She watched as he quickly waved his wand over her healing body, assessing her remaining injuries. The girl’s body had been broken in every way possible, and she really had no idea how to explain it all to her. Tristan had explained that this was a part of the game of Quidditch. Players were injured all the time and Lily would be fully prepared and would want to be back on the pitch as soon as she was cleared to do so. Sumner might have something to say about the idea, but that argument would be left to the young couple.

 

[Lily Drage]

Lily couldn't believe the flurry of activity around her. It was only a little fall off a broom, all part of the game. The way Julie reacted, it was as if she was back from the dead or something. Soon the healers were by her, waving their wands and checking her over. One gave her a small vial of potion, some type of pain killer, then they asked a litany of questions. Does this hurt, does that hurt, what is your pain level -- annoying really. Lily felt her temper start to rise. Fortunately, they left her to be with just nurse who fluffed her pillows and added another one to raise her up a bit. She left the room with the promise that her main healer would be back to talk with her in a few minutes with all her test results. Lily groaned, knowing it would be an hour before she found out if she could leave now that she was awake. She wanted to find out the score of the game, and then she wanted to know where her husband was.

Once she was alone in the room, Julie entered again. "Where is Sumner?" she asked the older woman, her voice still cracking from her dry mouth. "Is he still on his way?" Lily had no concept of exactly how long she was out cold, thinking it was only a few hours.

 

[Julie Bennett-Drage]

Julie was ushered out to the hallway while the healers did their work. How on Earth was she going to tell Lily about all of what happened? There was so much more than just the broken bones to worry about. "Maybe Sumner should tell her about everything," she muttered to herself. Why she was playing that day was still beyond her understanding. The healers tried to reassure them that she may not have even realized yet, but still, there had to be signs that the girl would have picked up on. Sumner had been through so much this whole time too. Watching her stepson and his gamut of emotions was heartwrenching for her.

Finally, she was let back into the room and she resumed her seat next to the bed. Since Sumner was not able to be at his wife's side the whole time, she promised him that she would stay there. Tristan was always near, same with Valcan and Sarah. The older men made sure to bring the youngest Drage to Lily's room regularly, facing down the healers on his floor. One was such an old battleaxe that she had been able to hear Valcan's threats all the way down to Lily's floor which was two below his. Hearing her daughter in law's questions, she steeled herself and began to speak. "Sumner is being released from his room today. He was in a training accident a few hours before your game. He is fine, just a few broken bones is all. He rebroke the ones that were healing when he was listening to your game. They finally got him healed up today." Taking a deep breath, she added "Sweetie, you have been out cold for eight days."

 

[Lily Drage]

Lily was in shock. Eight days? Really? What on Earth happened to her? She thought she was just hit with a bludger and fell to the ground. If she was out cold for that long, well, something else obviously had to have happened. "Wow," she was finally able to stutter out. "Sumner... is... okay?" she asked. She didn't remember anything about him having a training accident before the game, only that she was nervous and her stomach was flipping. That must have been why it was flipping more than normal -- she must have sensed that her beloved was injured. "Water?" she added then, hoping that if she was able to get a drink, she would be able to start to talk normal again. Her mouth was like a desert!

Just then, the healer entered the room. He was happy to see his patient awake and asking for water. "Welcome back to the world, Mrs. Drage," Healer Jones said with a smile. "Glad to see you are back with us. I was hoping your husband would be here so we can discuss all that happened to you in your accident. I feel its best with him around. Mrs. Drage," he said, looking up to Julie. "Do you know when he will be arriving?" He exchanged a look with the elder of the two, one that conveyed that he was hoping no one had shared things with the younger as of yet. He knew that what he was going to share would break this young girl's heart and having her husband to lean on would make things all that much easier, especially since he was fully aware of the situation.

 

[Julie Bennett-Drage]

Julie smiled, about ready to stand up and get Lily a glass - even if she had to kill someone for it. After everything, the girl deserved that. Healer Jones entered and Julie relaxed. She knew that he was good at his job, and would make sure that her daughter in law was well taken care of. "Yes, dear, Sumner is just fine," she whispered, taking Lily's hand in her own. She knew what the healer would reveal, and wasn't sure how soon he would tell her the full details. "Sumner should be here soon. I agree, he should be here so you won't have to discuss things twice."

 

[Lily Drage]

Lily heard the words the Healer said and wondered what she was missing. Why did they insist that Sumner was there for what they needed to tell her? What had happened to her? Gratefully, the Healer gave her a glass with water and advised her to drink slowly. She sipped on the water, enjoying the feeling of the cool liquid as it slid down her throat. "How soon is he going to be here?" she asked, glad that her voice was coming back to her.

 

[Sarah Hildebrandt]

Sarah held the tray of food in front of her as she entered the room. She was surprised to see that Lily was finally awake. "Lily!" she exclaimed as she moved to set the tray down on the small table that had been serving as a dining table for the various occupants of the room. Typically, either Sarah or Julie were there when Sumner was not able to be. Tristan and Valcan, well, they stayed put as long as the women were there to referee and keep peace. The fact that Tristan was polyjuiced did help the situation a bit, but his attitude was still there despite looking like one of his siblings. Today, he was wearing a lovely dress that he had borrowed from Brun -- along with a few of her hairs. It was a look that Valcan was not willing to let him live down and his snide comments throughout lunch made sure that the disguised Drage was fully aware of that fact.

Crossing the room, Sarah placed a hand on Julie's back. "Go eat, dear, before your food gets cold." With a smile, she moved to the bed and gave her pseudo-step-granddaughter a gentle hug. "Glad to see you are awake again. How are you doing, dear?" She looked up as Valcan moved into the room and resumed his seat in the corner. After the first day, Julie and Sarah had laid down the rules and separated the two Drage men to assigned seating in opposite corners of the room. Sarah saw a look of relief cross the older man's face as he assessed the young woman in the bed before them, then saw his normal scowl return. He hated being there, but wanted to impress upon Sumner that he was there for him. She knew he had his reasons, and knew better than to ask.

 

[Lily Drage]

Lily was surprised to see her husband's grandfather's girlfriend enter the room. She had no idea that Valcan and Sarah were there in the hospital -- or that they would even care to be there. Sarah was always wonderful to her, but Valcan, well, he always looked at her like she was wrong for Sumner for some reason. She watched as Julie and Sarah switched places next to her. "I guess I am okay," she said. "I am awake, that is a start." She laughed just a bit, then realized how much that hurt. "Ugh. Ow."

 

[Sumner Drage]

The young wizard could have dressed himself. Layer by layer he covered himself head to toe in familiar garb until he slowly straightened from tying his boot laces. Even clean shaven, he did not resemble the young boy who'd once called a magical school his home. None of the wonder of those years reflected in his eyes; they were hard, cold, deep set within a face carefully left blank. Sumner shrugged into a light track jacket then turned toward the hall. He kept his back ramrod straight during the long, solitary walk to his wife's hospital room. Once there, his light eyes narrowed in upon Lily. They rested and stayed there as he quietly ordered everyone out of the room.

Resistance was met with silence, save for the tick that formed in his strong jaw. He heard the door shut and took a seat on the edge of Lily's bed. He couldn't speak at first and instead picked up her hand, studied the clean, trimmed oval nails, felt her soft skin against his. His eyes met hers. "Lily." Only for her, now, did his eyes soften, even as the lines beside his mouth deepen in contained grief. Sumner pressed her palm to his lips, a tremor began in his before he could contain it. He wouldn't make her wait, he couldn't stand to see the concerned confusion on her beautiful face. "The fall...it wasn't your fault...we," he cleared his throat, eyes bright with moisture he tried to blink away.

"Lily, we lost our baby."

 

[Lily Drage]

Lily felt a sense of relief wash over her as her husband was finally in the room with her. Seeing Sumner there just made her feel so much better, but yet, she could tell something was wrong when he ordered everyone from the room. The change in his face was unbearable, like he had something horrible to tell her but didn't know how. The words that came from his mouth as he spoke shocked the former Ravenclaw to no end. Staring at her husband with shock on her face, Lily struggled to find the words.

"Baby? What baby?" she asked, confused. "What are you talking about Sumner?"

As she laid in the bed, Sumner explained that she was only a few weeks along and the doctor’s explained there was no way for her to be aware of the pregnancy yet. No matter how many times her husband tried to convince herself that it was not her fault, Lily couldn’t help but blame herself. She should have known that her deepest desire was becoming reality. That she was carrying her beloved’s baby. Gingerly, she was lifted into Sumner’s arms. She sobbed as he rocked her back and forth, giving her as much comfort as he could. His grief was still fresh, but no where near as fresh as hers