Ebb and Flow

Hogwarts, Late September 1971

***

Ah, precious, sweet sleep, Althea thought, as she drowsily rested her chin against her hand. Professor Binns's monotonous voice droned on inside Althea's ears, and created the soothing sound of honeybees buzzing about in multiple beehives. Mmm...honey, she lazily dreamed--slightly licking her lips. The food at Hogwarts, though good, was not sufficient to satisfy Althea--the food was foreign to her and upset her stomach. She longed to taste the fresh, succulent fruits she was accustomed to every morning in Bermuda. She wanted seafood, not meat pies, or sausages, or eggs. For four days in a row, her breakfasts have consisted of toast and pumpkin juice.

Suddenly, Althea felt a nudge in her side--almost causing her head to fall on the desk--it was Lily. "What? Is class over?" she whispered sleepily.

"No, Professor Binns is handing back our papers," she said quietly, waiting for her name.

With great effort, Althea tried to stay awake. "Diana McGonagall," Professor Binns announced, looking at Althea.

Althea, embarrassed, sunk in her seat before standing. Why can't he call me Althea, and not my mother, she thought taking the paper off the desk. I've told him almost thirty times. I don't want people to know...it's embarrassing.

"Good work, Miss McGonagall," he said in his tedious voice.

"Thank you, sir, but it's Morrigan," Althea replied, wishing that this one time he would get her name right. "Althea Morrigan."

"You're welcome, Miss McGonagall," he replied.

Althea turned around and rolled her eyes. She hated to be reminded every day that she was related to Gryffindor Headmistress--a woman she had only previously met five times in her life. Sirius Black teased her mercilessly for it. He would taunt her, hex her, and even try to trip her just so he could remind her McGonagall was her aunt. "Going to run to Auntie are you?" he would tease after hexing her. Althea at first tried her hardest to ignore him, but now it was very difficult. She heard him behind her--he was snickering. She clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. Just concentrate on the lecture, she thought, staring ahead of her. But it was so difficult to concentrate!

"Don't pay attention to him," Lily whispered.

"How can I not?" Althea responded through gritted teeth. "He teases me every class."

The end of class was a welcome comfort for all students leaving History of Magic. Althea and Lily gathered their belongings and hurriedly left the mind-numbing class. The two girls walked quickly toward the Great Hall for lunch. As they were about to enter, Althea felt something push her from behind--causing her to fall face first onto the cold stone floor. She hit the floor and groaned--her bag landing on top of her.

"Are you all right?" Lily asked, helping Althea stand.

"Yeah," she replied, as she stood and looked around to make sure nothing out of her bag spilled.

From behind, Althea heard distinct bark-like laughter--the back of her neck prickled from anger. She slowly turned to see Sirius leaning against the wall, lazily twirling his wand between his fingers--the rest of his friends behind him. Althea clenched her hands into tight fists at her sides. He looked so pleased with himself. I'm not going to ignore this anymore, she thought, secretly reaching for her wand.

"Let's go," Lily said, taking Althea's arm.

Althea shook her head and Lily frowned.

"What have I ever done to you?" she said, stepping forward. "Leave me alone!"

"Oh, going to your Auntie, then?" he smirked and mockingly pouted. "Going to cry again?"

Althea inhaled deeply and narrowed her eyes as Sirius continued to laugh.

"Paronychia!" Althea shouted, pointing her wand at Sirius.

For a moment, Sirius was taken aback as the bolt of yellow light him in directly in the stomach.

"What did you do?" he shouted, looking down at his hands. His fingers turned blistered and red. "This itches!" he shouted and frantically scratched his fingers.

Althea felt mild satisfaction as she watched Sirius frantically scratching the ends of his fingers. It serves him right, she thought folding her arms.

"Let's go, Lily, I'm hungry," she said, turning away from the fuming Sirius and his friends.

"You shouldn't have done that! You're going to get in massive trouble!" Lily admonished.

Althea shrugged. "Maybe he'll leave me alone--"

"Oi, Morrigan!" Sirius shouted angrily.

Althea rolled her eyes and turned around. "What?"

"Alopecia!" he roared.

The jet of purple light erupted across Althea's chest and she gasped from the force. Sirius let out a great bark-like laugh as Althea's hair gently cascaded down her back. She looked down at her feet and saw her black, curly hair in piles on the stone floor. Slowly, she lifted her hands to her head and felt the smooth skin of her newly bald scalp.

"Oh God!" she whispered.

"Does anyone have a mirror?" Sirius joked, doubled over in laughter.

Her hair--her beautiful hair of which she took great pride and received envious compliments. It was the same as her mother's, and now her hair--her mother's hair--was in piles upon the stone floor. She shook with rage as Sirius continued to laugh and tease her. Lily grasped her arm and attempted to pull her from the scene.

"No!" she growled, breaking herself free from her friend.

Suddenly, in an action her grandmother would very much disapprove, Althea--screaming--charged full sped into the laughing Sirius. The laugh had not died from Sirius's face when Althea rushed into him at full force, knocking the both of them to the stone floor.

The laugh had transformed into a look of shock. "What d'you think you're doing!" he yelled as Althea struggled to hold him down. "Get off me!"

Althea pulled back her right fist and hit him directly in the left eye. Sirius pinched her side, and the two wrestled, attempting to hit and to pinch each other. A crowd developed around the sparring duo, until one of the prefects that encountered the fight summoned McGonagall.

"Morrigan! Black!"

The two continued to wrestle and Sirius yelped as Althea bit his forearm.

"Stop this at once!" she shouted and Althea felt herself being pulled apart from Sirius.

McGonagall had her wand pointed at the pair. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Now you've done it," he muttered angrily.

"Me! Look what you did! I have no hair!" she shouted, vigorously pointing to her bald scalp.

"Morrigan, that is enough!" McGonagall shouted. "The both of you--my office. The rest of you, please disperse."

Althea, still sore from the pinches and punches, walked with Sirius toward McGonagall's office. As they stood before McGonagall, her eyes narrowed and her lips tightened as she sized up both students: Althea was bald and her robes askew, but Sirius was worse--his fingers red and raw, blood from his nose splattered upon his robes, and his left eye swollen shut. Althea cringed when glanced at him--did she really do that?

"Miss Morrigan, I am ashamed of you. I don't know what caused you to do this heathen-like behavior, but this is unacceptable," Professor McGonagall said, restraining her anger. "I will be notifying your father and your grandmother immediately. You have detention this entire week."

"But--"

"Silence, or I will make it two weeks."

Sirius smirked.

"I am not done yet, Mr. Black."

"Again, what unacceptable behavior and an embarrassment for Gryffindor. Ten points will be deducted from Gryffindor."

Sirius growled.

"And, I will also notify your parents immediately, Mr. Black. You will also have detention this entire week."

"But, she started it!" Sirius quickly blurted out. "Look--look at my hands!" he added pleadingly and held up his hands.

"ME!" Althea roared and pinched Sirius's arm. Sirius pinched her arm back.

"Stop this immediately!"

Althea and Sirius stopped, and both took in a great gulp of air. "Sorry professor," they said in unison.

"I have never seen two students act in such a barbaric manner--and in the same House!" she said and nodded resolutely. "Maybe you two should learn some House cooperation for the both of you will be spending your week in detention together--"

Althea wrinkled her nose and Sirius groaned quietly.

"Maybe you will learn a bit of civility," she said, looking at the pair over her spectacles. "Now, please go to the hospital wing...the both of you."

Althea and Sirius silently walked together to the hospital wing. She waited for him to hex her or to trip her, but it never came. A shocked Madam Pomfrey applied a salve to regenerate Althea's hair, and she applied a soothing balm and wrapped Sirius' hands. Althea and Sirius sat next to each other in hospital beds, quietly ignoring one another. Sirius--with his arms folded--looked ahead of him, and Althea looked to her toes covered by the blanket. As the two sat in the hospital wing, time and conscience seeped into Althea. She had been dreadfully barbaric--what would her father say? She should not have hexed Sirius or continued with that savage display--she had caused Gryffindor to lose precious House points. Now, she would have to spend an entire week's detention with him--with that foul boy! She should have walked away--oh, but it was so difficult! Why did he tease her so? He was pleasant to her on the train, but the day after the Sorting Ceremony, he had changed--obviously brought on by the Howler his parents had sent. Unlike him, she received a congratulatory note from her father and a package of sweets. Seeing Sirius's glum nature, she felt sorry for him and offered him some of the congratulatory sweets her father had sent. He pushed the sweets away and called her an awful name. 'Don't pity me, Muckblood,' he said, she thought, touching the newly grown hair. It was short and would take years to grow--at least she thought so, but she knew she was thinking like a Muggle. How was she to know who he was? She had no idea surnames were so important in the Wizarding World. Morrigan isn't good enough, she thought, feeling that her hair was longer already. I think Morrigan is a brilliant name--Muggles respect it. Black is such a...plain name--boring, really.

"Er--I'm sorry," he mumbled, staring ahead of him.

Althea gasped, making a quiet, squeaking noise. He would apologize to her? She blinked.

"Oh--er--I'm sorry too," she mumbled, staring ahead of her.

Sirius cleared his throat. "That really took guts Morrigan. I didn't think you could do it."

"Well, I did it," Althea replied, still staring ahead of her.

"Yeah," he sighed, and Althea heard him shift on his bed. "Good job."

"What?" she asked puzzled, turning toward him.

"Good job," he repeated and nodded to himself. "Paronychia...I'll have to remember that."

What an idiot, she thought, frowning.