what we're made of | victoire

[Ondina Nell Weasley]

i dare you.

IT HAD BEEN ONDINA'S BIGGEST DREAM. To go to Hogwarts. To learn everything in spite of her parents concern. She had been the 'little wonder' performing tricks at home, but it had worn thin. Her sister was at Hogwarts, why not her? And when the letter had arrived she had almost jumped for joy.

But a dream is just a dream, in reality things were much different. Ondina shuffled her way from her cramped, dusty bedroom and in to the ladies room. It too was not up to scratch. Rusty in places, dank. The faint smell of mildew in the air. At home things were pristine. Ondina hadn't had to worry about a single thing. Her mother did that for her. Here she had to fend for herself, and she was truly tired of it.

Having shuffled in to the bathroom wrapped tight in a blanket, Ondina tossed it to the floor petulantly, kicking it away as she disappeared in to a cubicle to pee. But as soon as she was done and turned to press the flusher, it jammed. A hollow creaking made her jump as the pipes groaned to life and then abruptly died.

"Ugh!" Ondina growled, smacking the porcelain as if it might work before stomping out of the cubicle without trying again. Her heart was racing, anger thickening her blood. Nobody cared about her here. Nobody thought about how easily she could get sick. She was going to die at Hogwarts, and as the thought occurred to Ondina her chest tightened. She felt like she was drowning, head pushed under water until she couldn't breath.

Mouth flapped open, hands gripping the edge of a sink, Ondina gasped and gasped and gasped. Air scraped through her lungs at a snails pace and she felt as if she would faint. Tears wobbled from the corner of her eye as she thought with panic, 'this is it! i'm going to die here!'

@victoire

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Vic was... Protective, to put it lightly. She was he eldest of her cousins and that held a lot of weight to her. She wanted to be an example, guardian, a guide. She was quite a bit older than most of them, but she still got some Hogwarts time with the majority. Ondina, Rose, Albus, Anna and Lucy had all come in the same year. Getting three of them at once in Slytherin was a dream come true, really. She made it a point to look after each of them but had a special eye for those three, since they were in her house.

It was Vics sixth year, meaning she was a prefect. That meant she often patrolled. And, being Victoire, she did it more than she techincslly had to. This particular patrol brought her to the bathrooms. She was planning to just poke her head in, but the sound of gasping breath made her rush inside. There, she found Ondina.

"Ondina, Ondina, hey. Look at me," she said, her voice incredibly calm. Vic was always good at remaining constant in a crisis, and this situation wasn't any different, even if if was family.

Ondina Nell Weasley

[Ondina Nell Weasley]

i dare you.

STILL YOUNG AND EASILY FRIGHTENED, Ondina truly believed her time had come. In fact, every time she had a particularly awful attack she would think the same thing. Overcome with a thick black shroud of fear and self pity. She didn't deserve this! It wasn't fair!

So, she didn't hear Victoire enter the bathroom. Nor did she suspect her approach. One second the world was swirling to a pinpoint, her head light and chest screaming, the next hands were on her thin shoulders. Ondina jumped, jerking as she lifted her head. Her face a purple, gasping shadow. Panic ruled and Victoire's voice was an echo, faraway despite the fact that they were inches apart.

"I can't- I ca-" Ondina wheezed, reaching up to claw her fingers around Victoire's forearms. She had tiny little hands still. A short waif with frizzy red hair and dark, sickly circles under her eyes. She hadn't learned to cover them yet. "I can't breathe!" She gasped. Her medicine, a small phial usually kept on her person, was back in her room. She'd left it without thinking. Ondina was used to her mother dealing with such things. "Help me." She bubbled, her entire body quivering now. 

@victoire

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Ondina grabbed her arms after a moment, saying that she couldn't breathe and begging Victoire to help her. She was clearly in bad shape, but Victoire could handle it. Victoire looked straight into her eyes and lifted her own hand to take Ondina's elbow. Obviously Ondina didn't have her medicine on her, or her cousin would have just taken it herself. It was probably back in the room, but summoning it wouldn't go great. The bottle would most likely break on it's way here.

They were closer to the hospital wing then to the dorms, but it was still pretty far. Victorie pulled out her wand and whipped it toward the door, not taking her eyes from Ondina. A bright green flare shot down the hallway. Hopefully that would get help on the way. Thankfully, she was a prefect, meaning she had access to rooms other people didn't. She could get them there quickly. "Can you walk with me?" if Ondina refused, Vic would just levitate her.

Ondina Nell Weasley

[Ondina Nell Weasley]

i dare you.

IT WAS WITH GREAT RELUCTANCE THAT ONDINA NODDED. She could walk indeed, although he'd much rather not. What if another student saw her gasping, mouth flapping like a wild frog? What if somebody laughed? These thoughts were fleeting but vicious, alas Ondina still couldn't breathe and her medicine was all the way back in her dorm. She couldn't go back. Not alone. That left Victoire and her quick thinking.

As Victoire turned to lead the way, though Ondina didn't know where, Ondina reached to grip the sleeve of her shirt, snatching a fistful of fabric so that Victoire couldn't leave her behind. Her knees were shaking and her head was light, but she managed a steady pace. Running was not a smart idea then, and Ondina secretly wished that somebody would carry her. Her papa would have carried her. She wouldn't have had to do a thing. Maybe she'd see them soon.

Because after such a fit, Ondina had no intention of going anywhere but home. Just let them try and stop her. Once she could breathe again she was packing a bag and heading straight home on the next train. Hogwarts wasn't a thing like she expected it to be. Nobody seemed to care. 

@victoire

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Vic started to move once she got the nod from her cousin, but slowed when Ondina grabbed her sleeve. She paused for just a moment, and then wrapped her arm around Ondinas waist in order to support her as she let her down the hall. "The most important thing to remember," Victoire started, hoping distraction was a good way to go about this, "is that you can handle anything. Maybe it doesn't feel that way right now, but you can. You're a Slytherin for goodness sake," she said. She was proud of all her cousins, of course, but she had a soft spot for those who had ended up in their house. She wished she wold be at school longer with them, but alas, she was older.

"Though it might be better if you had access to more windows with fresh air. Maybe we should take walks together," Victoire barely made time for anyone, but maybe if Ondina really needed it... Well, she could try. Plus, as a prefect it was her duty to take care of the kids in her house.

She heard a voice is ahead and attempted to pick up speed, if Ondina would let her. A professor turned the corner and approached, Vic spoke before he could. "Asthma attack. She left her medication in the Slytherin common room. Hospital wing is closer, I know the nurse has some." The professor nodded, "follow me, we'll take a short cut," Victoire nodded, turning to Ondina. "Almost there."

Ondina Nell Weasley

[Ondina Nell Weasley]

i dare you.

VICTOIRE APPEARED SO MUCH OLDER THAN ONDINA, her tone so deceptively calm as she tried to inject some kind of composure back in to Ondina. Like all adults, in the redheads mind. Filling her head with hot air when all she wanted was to breath. She barely registered what was being said, blinking up at Victoire with a blind, gasping anxiety.

She leaned all of her weight on to her cousin, gripping the arm that helped support her at the waist. Her nails instinctively sunk in to her forearm, as if afraid she might change her mind at the last minute and let go. The hallway looked so terrifyingly long and daunting and her legs were weak with adrenaline and fear. "Don't you yell at me!" Ondina snapped through a raspy throat, her bottom lip pouted. "I'm not even supposed to be in Slytherin." Or so she'd gleaned from her mothers worried, insistent letters upon learning her doted daughter was placed there.

Ondina didn't even bother to consider Victoire's suggestion of 'walks'. She'd heard that one before, so instead looked at her feet with a scowl on her flushed face, tangled red hair falling around her face. "I hate fresh air." She whined under her breath, but a professor seemed to turn the corner just as she did, approaching with a rushed concern. Ondina allowed Victoire to explain, though she did not appreciate how their pace increased under her guidance. Ondina felt her toes scuff against the floor, the bottoms raw and bare. Not at all like the warm, polished wood of home. 

@victoire

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Victoire wasn't necessarily the strongest person physically, but that didn't mean she couldn't support the weight of her cousin leaning on her. She wasn't sure if Ondina was registering anything that she was saying, but she continued on anyway - hoping it was at least distracting her enough from the pain. As Ondinas nails dug into her arm, Victoire didn't flinch. She expected the iron grip from someone in need of serious help. Though, a little less of a pinch would have been nice... but alas.

Ondina told Vic not to yell at her, saying she wasn't even supposed to be in Slytherin. Victoire shook her head. "That's false. You were," Victoire countered, her tone still calm. "Slytherin is an incredibly noble house. You're smart, Ondina, and don't rush into things foolishly. You belong here. That is, if you want to embrace it," was this distracting Ondina or making it worse?

Ondina claimed she hated fresh air, and Victoire didn't have time to respond before they were following the Professor through some back doorways and hallways, paths Vic didnt' recognize that well. Some of the rooms looked like teachers lounges with couches, coffee and prep tables - so Vic assumed that's what they were since she'd never seen them. 

Finally, they were to the door of the hospital wing and it was flung open, The Professor moved ahead of them to fetch the nurse, and Victoire led Ondina toward a bed. "We made it!" she said confidently, trying to raise spirits.

Ondina Nell Weasley

[Ondina Nell Weasley]

i dare you.

DESPITE THE FACT THAT ONDINA HAD ALREADY decided she hated being in Slytherin, Victoire's declaration made her pause for a moment. She looked up at her cousin, still snivelling and blinked big, round eyes. What if her mum wasn't right, after all? She had always said the word 'Slytherin' as if it were dirty, and Ondina had always took her cues from her mother. But, the sheer force in Victoire's voice made her stop and listening. She wasn't convinced, but the words 'noble' and 'smart' sounded appealing to Ondina all the same.

Allowing herself to be led to a bed, Ondina's legs were like jelly as she collapsed on to it. She immediately rolled in to a ball, pulling her knees up under her chin and wrapping her arms securely around them. "I still wanna go home," She mumbled in to her pillow, a little wet mark forming where her damp lashes touched the scratchy fabric. She was suddenly reminded of how tight her chest felt, her nose stuffy and head tight behind the eyes. "I'm not supposed to be here..." She mumbled, pouting out her bottom lip and staring at her cousin while the Professor was gone.

@victoire

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Ondina looked up at her with big eyes and Victoire gave her one short nod, "I was raised to believe Slytherin was less than desirable too, Ondina. They only say that because they weren't great enough to be in it," she didn't fully believe that her parents and aunts and uncles weren't great BUT she did believe Slytherin was superior. "Slytherin is built for greatness, if you're willing to achieve it." Maybe this pep talk was distracting her enough for a moment...

Ondina was soon on a bed and she balled up, mumbling about going home and how she wasn't supposed to be there. Vics brows furrowed and she stood by her cousins bed, of course, but didn't try to be physically comforting or anything. She wasn't really into that, and Ondina didn't need it as far as she was concerned. "What would you do at home?" Vic asked, calmly. Another attempt at distraction.

Ondina Nell Weasley

[Ondina Nell Weasley]

i dare you.

IT WAS TRUE THAT HER PARENTS DISAPPROVAL in Ondina's Slytherin placement was palpable. Even she had been able to tell, had overheard her mother's impassioned rants about whether or not it was safe for her to be placed there. They had already considered not sending her at all, and for her to end up in such a ruthless house, it had sent them in to a frenzy. And that trepidation had been impressed upon Ondina, she felt sure she was in the wrong place.

However, Victoire's words struck a cord with Ondina and she was silent for a moment. Bar the odd sniffle, she listened with bright glistening eyes and a slightly parted mouth. Her bird-bone chest still heaved, but she wasn't sobbing any more. "I'-I'm great..." She declared after a moment, hesitance clear in her tone. Perhaps Victoire was right, and she was in the correct place. She'd have to think about it, plus she still ached for home regardless.

Shifting slightly on the squeaky cot, Ondina released her grip on her knees only to shift and sit up. It was hard to breathe lying on her side. She looked down at the ratty quilt, thinking about ignoring Victoire's question entirely before she shrugged her shoulders and crossed her arms over her chest protectively. "Watch my movies, I guess?" She mumbled, feeling awfully silly. Victoire had always appeared much older to Ondina. Like an adult, even if she were still at Hogwarts. It made Ondina feel embarrassed to cry for home in front of her. 

"Mum and dad are there, too." Though they often left for work, Ondina was rarely home alone. "I never have... I never have a fit by myself there." She struggled with that new reality, dealing with her own weaknesses without a single guiding hand. "They get it right every time." She shrugged her shoulders heavily, feeling rather useless. Eyeing Victoire from below her wet lashes, she wondered what the other Weasley would say. Something clever, Ondina thought. 

@victoire

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Ondina repeated that she was great, and Vic nodded slowly, hoping this was helping to calm her down and encourage her. Ondina sat up, which was a good sign. She said she'd watch movies if she went home, which made Victoire smile a little - not in a mocking way and she hoped it didn't look that way.

Ondina also added her mum and dad, which made Vics smile shrink a little. That was understandable. Ondina spoke further, and Vic paused in silence for a moment.

She leaned forward, lowering her voice to a whisper. "It's a hard thing to do, be on your own," she agreed. "But listen to me. When you're eighteen, or twenty, or thirty do you want to still live with Charlie and Natalie or do you want to be free to make your own life? Do you want to sit at home and watch movies forever?" yes, maybe that was a hard thing for a kid to consider... but Vic had been considering this from just as young. It was possible.

Ondina Nell Weasley

[Ondina Nell Weasley]

i dare you.

IT WAS ODD, BUT ONDINA HAD NEVER REALLY thought about the future before. She was too sick and too afraid. It was hard enough seeing all the things she couldn't do. Running, playing, eating whatever she wanted. She couldn't even be near the family owl, or have a pet. Which was difficult with a father who was a dragonologist. But, Victoire had a point and it made Ondina go silent as she thought.

"I-" She shook her head, her chest feeling tight for an entirely different reason. "I don't want that." She squared her jaw and tried to sit up a little straighter. "I want to be free to make my own life." She echoed Victoire's words and something began solidifying inside of her. Maybe going home wasn't the best idea. If she gave in her mum would certainly never let her go back. She'd be stuck inside all over again. Ondina didn't want to die cooped up in her stuffy, airless bedroom.

"I can change my mind, though, right?" She asked all of a sudden, sniffing and rubbing her nose. "Like, if I don't... want to be free anymore." It felt like a stupid question but Ondina couldn't help herself. She'd stay, and she'd show those stuffy Slytherin's what she was made of. Victoire had, so she could too. But, what if she couldn't? Then she'd like to go home.

Lifting her head, Ondina saw when the infirmary nurse entered the room again, that familiar phial glinting in her palm. She'd feel better soon, her heart would settle and her breathing would even a little bit. She was going to be fine. "Thanks, Vic." She said, dipping her head and rubbing at the humiliating heat in her face.

- END ONDINA

@victoire
 i figured we could end this here? do something a little more present sometime soon?

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!