Burning Up (OPEN)

The world had grown so hot. Iva had woken up that morning, sweating. Sure, as she was used to a different climate, that was normal, but this was different. The warmth had also come with the shivers, making her unsure whether to cover up or strip.

In the hospital wing, Iva simply walked over to a bed, still in only a slip. Her hair was untidy contrast to usual, but she didn't care. She flopped down, pulling up the cover to get warmth again before closing her eyes.

J. J. wandered into the the hosptial wing without really thinking much of it. She had spent a fair bit of time there in the past few weeks - it must have almost been months now - that the place seemed like almost a second home.

Calming potions was what she was usually there for. Today, however, she was proud that it was merely a check-up. The healer liked her to check in every now and again.

As she looked around, bouncing on her heals, waiting she noticed one of the beds was occupied. Curiosity got the better and she skipped closer to the person.

"Iva?" the odd magically induced voice still sounded odd to her ears. It was nothing like her own. Almost metalic in its sound, and never seemed to convey emotions right, but she supposed she should be thankful that someone found a way for her to communicate without writing it down. "Iva, are you alright?"

She then berated herself for a stupid question. Of she wasn't alright, or she wouldn't be in the hospital wing.

Iva turned on to her side, cheeks rosy with fever. She sat up, a tired smile on her face.

"JJ, Why are you in my room?" she asked, as if it was a completely normal thing. She pointed to the girl, an uncommon thing for the Russian. "You do not live in Russia!"

A giggle escaped her lips as she sat down, her hair cascading into her face.

"I just love... love... everything, you know?" she blurted out, "It makes me want to cry,"

J. J.'s eyebrows furrowed with concern, as she heged a little closer to the girl and than sat hestitantly on the end of the bed.

"Iva," she continued slowly, trying for comfortingly but she didn't think the stupid magic-voice did that very well, "You are at school, remember? Hogwarts? We're in the hospital wing, not your room."

She couldn't help but smile a bit as Iva giggled. She was just being so... well unIva.

"Love is not supposed to make you cry. Is it not supposed to make you happy?"

Iva pushed her blankets down with her legs, her slip tangled and twisted. Hogwarts? Oh, yeah, school. That learn-y place.

"I want to go to home," she whined, her grammar leaving her in her dazed state, "I want your voice to returned,"

She pressed her head into the pillow, thinking about this.

"Damian makes me want to cry too. I loves him much," she stated, leaning up excitedly, "Where is Damian? I want him," She reached for the blankets again, "He will keep me warm!"

J. J. smiled slightly and after a moment patted the girls hand, "I don't think you can go home Ivz."

She sighed.

"I want my voice to come back to. Maybe if you see it you can send it my way," she gave a faintly teasing smile, " Do you think so? "

"I do not know where Dame is; but I'm sure if he knows your here he will come, yes?"

Iva grabbed the girls hand, eyes clouded with saddness. "I want to go! Please!" she pouted, "I want brothers! Kyire and Ewdin and Jorai and Vin and Pieter! And Papa!"

She yawned, leaning back. "I want Damian too! Damian is my favourite! And... And.. Iva Gray sounds pretty!" She lost track of what she was saying at this point, closing her eyes.

Damian was only half paying attention to his surroundings as he made his way into the hospital wing. The rest of it was on the rather spectacular scrape spanning from his right elbow halfway up his forearm, which the boy peeked at with moderate interest periodically, lifting the towel pressed against it to stem the flow of blood.

It seemed he was becoming accident-prone, this year.

His blue gaze was drawn upwards to two others in the room. "Hey, J.J.," he greeted his housemate with a smile, before he turned towards the other girl. "Iva? Oi - you alright? What's wrong?" Damian quickly crossed the room to stand next to the bed.

J. J. felt at lost for a moment, but decided giving Iva what she wanted to hear was going to be best for the situation - besides she figured at this stage Iva wouldn't remember anyways.

"Okay," she said softly, smiling slightly, "You can go home soon -okay? And your brothers will be there, and it-it-it will be nice."

She just smiled as she continued to talk about Damian, the girl was glad it seemed their relationship was going well. Though her brow furrowed with concern as she seemed to fall asleep agian.

"Iva?" she leaned closer, wondering if she should maybe go get the healer. Where was he anyways?

It was as she was debating the wisdom or logic of this that she heard another voice. She looked up and smiled at Damian as he entered.

"Hello, Dame. What did you do to your arm?"

She leaned over and gently tapped Iva's shoulder, "Hey, Ivz, want to wake up? Dame's here. See I told you he'd come. Don't you want to talk to him?"

Iva rolled over, her breath suddenly thick in her throat. Damian? Why was he here? Was he hurt?

Prying open her eyes, the RUssian gave a whimper, "Demushka, you are hurting," she reached for his arm slowly. His skin was so cold aganst hers, unlike usual. She wondered why.

"J.J, I go home now?" she asked, turning to the girl with wide eyes, "YOu come too. And Dame,"

Demetri Walked out of his office to See Miss Jones and Mr Gray talking to Miss Popov.

"Good Morning Miss Jones, Miss Popov and Mr Gray. I pressum that Everything is ok?" Demetri said to the students. He gave each one a look to see if anything was wrong.

"Oh," Damian said in response to J.J.'s question. The boy pulled the towel away for a moment, to allow her a look at the bloodied strip of flesh where he had managed to scrape a few inches of skin from his arm. "I slipped," he offered as explanation, pressing the towel back in place.

He frowned at how hot Iva's touch was against his skin. Holding the towel in place with his left hand, he rotated his arm around so he could press his hand against Iva's forehead. "You're burning up, Tiya!" Damian exclaimed. "How long have you been feeling like this?

"Um..." Damian's brows furrowed minutely. "Iva, I thought we agreed your father would hate my guts?"

The boy turned towards the healer as he made an appearance. "Iva's sick!" the boy exclaimed. "Sir. Oh, and I'm bleeding, but I'll live. Iva's more important." Damian's blue eyes roamed to J.J., brow furrowing a bit more. "And I don't know why J.J.'s here."

Demetri looked at Mr Gray's wound. Demetri got his wand out quickly and pointed it at Mr Gray's wound.

"Tergeo!" Demetri said quickly.

"There you go Mr Gray You wound has healed. Now Please can you two go out of the Hospital wing so I can help Miss Popov!" Demetri said to the lingering students.

Demetri went to her side and placed his hand abover the girls fore head and whispered. "temperatus".

Her temperature sparked up as 37.9C. Not Good

"I am just going to close the curtains and turn you on your stomach Miss Popov. Then I will lift your top up of your back." Demetri said to the girl as he closed the curtains around her bed.

Iva blinked, her muddling brain trying to keep up in the conversation. How long...? She held up two fingers, giving his a weary smile.

"Dva days," she slurred, grabbing the boy's hand to keep it in place. She savored the cold touch gratefully, "But, it not so bad yesterday,"

She whimpered at the healer, but didn't protest at the order for the two to leave. She didn't want to be without a shirt, but, at this moment in time, she couldn't seem to care. "I can turn myself," she protested, sitting up slightly.

The Girl had turned over and lifted her shirt up. he looked and could see a rash starting to appear.

"Just what I thought." Demetri muttered to himself. She was also suffering a delusional state.

Demetri muttered a cooling charm on her and summond the rash balm for the Wizarding Flu.

"Miss Popov you have caught the Wizarding Flu. Don't worry you will be fine in a couple of days. I am just going to put a balm on you neck and back and then I will give you a dose of Dreamless Sleep. I also am giving you a anti flu potion." Demetir said as he handed her the Anti Flu potion.

He opened the blam and rubbed it onto her neck and back until it dissapeared. Demetri watched her drink the potion and then he handed her the Dreamless Sleep Potion.

Iva choked down the potions, her eyes already closing with sleep. She opened her mouth to speak as she fell back onto the bed, but instead yawned and slipped into a truly dreamless sleep.

Damian had not been overly thrilled to have been ushered so unceremoniously out of the hospital wing. He stubbornly waited outside the doors to the ward, playing with the towel (still bloodied, of course).

"Dva," he murmured aloud. He wondered if that was actually Russian for two, or if Iva had gotten her numbers mixed up. Two days, though. The boy frowned. He'd kissed her yesterday! Merlin, he hoped he didn't contract whatever she had...

Demetri was only meant to say to Mr Gray to stay behind. He notcied the boy has where the hospital doors are. He looked at Miss Popov and placed a tracking charm on her to see how her proggress got.

"You can come back Through Mr Gray so I can check you fully." He said to the boy.

Damian looked up at the man, expression initially brightening... until the man finished speaking. His eyes widened in alarm.

"I'm already better - I'm not hurt anywhere else!" he exclaimed, taking a wary step back. "I just..." The boy gestured vaguely towards where Iva was, indicating that he'd wanted to see her.

If came to leaving or getting a check up, however, Damian was on-board for leaving. He could visit Iva later. The boy never had been fond of any sort of medical stuff being done to him, and in his opinion, he'd already spent far too much time in the hospital wing that year. Last time, the potions he'd been on had turned him into a babbling ninny.

"I-I can come back later if now is a bad time," Damian offered sincerely.

Demetri raised an eyebrow at the boy. He could see that something was wrong because the boy was nervous.

"Mr Gray, you are due for a check up anyway. I'll will lead you to one of the beds and you will stay Mr Gray." He lead the boy to a bed at the end of the room. Demetri summond a Hospital gown and handed it to the boy.

"Put that on and i'll be back in ten minutes." Demetri said as he closed the curtains around the boy. He walked over to Miss Popov to chech everything was ok.

Damian whined. It wasn't dignified, or mature, but he really hated check ups. "But I only came because I skinned my arm!" And he'd had to be told to go in for that, as well.

The boy took the gown - gown! - grumbling discontentedly.

"Next time she's sick, I'm sending flowers," he muttered as he changed. "I'm not even sick!"

Demetri head the boy and rolled his eyes. He went to his office and got out Mr Grays file. He walked over to the closed curtains.

"Are you ready yet Mr Gray?" He asked the stdent.

Damian sighed. "Yes, sir," he responded. "I thought I was finished with check ups? I'm better, now. Don't even have trouble doing magic anymore." The boy grumbled, before sighing again.

He wondered why he kept coming to hospital wing when he really didn't need to. He hated the place.


--
NOTE: Damian severely depleted his magical core the previous summer; while mostly healed, said core may not be completely replenished. Also, he did a lot of fist-fighting earlier in the school year. He didn't go to the hospital unless made to do so, however. Most recently, he managed to fall from one of the moving staircases and break a couple limbs and get a rather concussion)