The Sound of Silence (open)

[Heather Louise White]

(Since I got outed yesterday...)

It was a very rare moment for Heather. Her work was all finished, her classes were over for the day, and she had practiced earlier, so she found herself with nothing to do. Heather rarely took the time to relax, and truthfully, she wasn’t very good at relaxing. It made her feel anxious and nervous, like there was something else that she should have been doing.

She was sitting in the lounge, which was empty for the moment. Classes were still in session, so she was alone. It was a strange feeling, to be alone with nothing to do. It made her mind think thoughts that she really didn’t want to be having. Although she had a book in her lap, she kept re-reading the same paragraph over and over again while her mind wandered.

Mostly she was thinking about her best friend. She worried for Daphne, who just seemed to be too sweet, too sensitive for the rest of the world. People like Brenda were going to chew her up and spit her out, and Heather couldn’t bear to see it. Daphne was worth so much more than a tramp like Brenda.

Sometimes Heather just wanted to hold her friend, to protect her from the world and fight off the people who wanted to hurt her or use her. And sometimes… Sometimes she had these feelings that confused her.

A thought had occurred to Heather a while back and she was having trouble getting it out of her head. When she was alone, that was when the thoughts seemed to run out of control. She had always got along well with boys, but she had never had any interest in dating them. She noticed when guys were cute, but she also found herself looking at the girls. And the feelings she had for Daphne went beyond friendship. Although she had made excuses about wanting to finish her education before she joined the Harpies, the real reason she had stayed here at Hogwarts for her seventh year was because of Daphne. She needed to make sure she was going to be OK. Heather had never put a name on in before, but she was starting to realize that it was love.

But once she realized that, she kind of pulled away from Daphne, losing herself in her work and her practicing. She obviously couldn’t act on what she was feeling. Daphne liked boys. And the last thing Heather wanted to do was to make Daphne uncomfortable. So Heather suffered this secret in silence, not sure if she could tell anyone, even her brother. What would Micah think of her if he knew she was gay? She couldn’t bear it if he turned against her.

These thoughts were weighing heavily on her, and feeling certain that she was alone, she gave in to her emotions. Her book closed with a snap as she burst into tears.

[Micah White]

Micah didn't want to be in class today, and even though he knew if he was found to be skipping class, he wanted to, and needed to, he told his friends, to keep his sanity intact. At first he didn't know where to go to not get caught. He really wanted to go to the Black Lake, but he knew people would be looking around outside for students like himself, so he decided the Common Room would be a good place to go.

Getting out of his Divinations class was easy, he just told the professor he wasn't feeling well, and that he may be sent to his room to rest for the remainder of class, even though Micah knew that wasn't what happened when students went to the infirmary. Lucky for Micah, the professor was too wrapped-up in his lesson to hear half of what Micah said, so he left quickly and dodged everyone he saw in the halls.

Soon, Micah got to the Common Room, the one place he was sure nobody would go look for him. At first he thought he was alone, but once he calmed himself from his "escape" from class, he heard somebody crying.

"Hello? Who's there?" Micah asked, slowly walking further into the room. He saw someone sitting in a chair, and he soon realised it was his sister, Heather. The first thing Micah thought was how much trouble he'd be in once she saw he was there, and he was just about to jog up the stairs to hide when he realised she was the one crying.

"Heather? What's wrong?" He asked, rushing over to his older sister. He cared for her greatly, seeing as he didn't really have any other family. He was a stranger to his father, so Heather was all he had, in his eyes. To see Heather crying broke Micah's heart.

[Heather Louise White]

Heather really didn't cry very often. Most of the time, she liked to think of herself as being stronger than that. And if she ever did get emotional, she only would allow herself to give in to tears when she was absolutely sure she was alone. So her first instinct, when she heard the voice calling her name, was to hide her face and start wiping the tears away.

"I'm fine," she mumbled unconvincingly.

After a moment, she realized that she knew that voice, and her embarrassment increased. Of all the people to come upon her at that moment, it would have to be her brother. She loved Micah very much... but she always wanted to be the strong one for him. She was his big sister, after all, and she was supposed to be the one taking care of him, not the other way around.

On the other hand, of course, he was her brother, which meant that she really couldn't hide anything from him. He knew her too well. It wasn't like he was some random stranger or even one of her casual friends. He was Micah... he was her blood.

Sighing softly, she looked up at him, revealing her tear-stained face and a slight, strained smile. "I'm fine, really. I just.... I'm a little stressed, that's all."

He'd never believe that, and she knew it. But right now, she wasn't sure what else to tell him.

[Micah White]

(Sorry, I completely forgot about this thread!)

Micah wasn't sure if his sister was telling the complete truth or not, but he assumed she would be pretty stressed, with this being her last year. Micah couldn't imagine what next year would bring for him, but he knew that wasn't the only thing bothering Heather. He knew her too well for that.

But right now he wasn't going to worry about the real reason his sister was crying, he just knew that she was. Heather had been Micah's rock whenever he needed her, and now that she needed him, Micah sure wasn't going to question as to why.

He took Heather's hand and held it tightly.
"Heather, every thing's going to be alright. This'll all pass, you know that. I can't even imagine what you're going through right now, but I know I'll probably be in your shoes this time next year, too. What's bothering you? Could I help?" He asked, feeling so helpless. He wanted to know Heather was going to be alright, and he wasn't planning on leaving until he knew she was.

[Heather Louise White]

Would it pass? Would she wake up tomorrow and realize that she was just imagining that she was in love with her best friend? Would she suddenly find guys attractive and start giggling like the other girls did when a cute boy walked by?

It didn't seem likely. Maybe eventually, she could get over her feelings for Daphne, but it wouldn't happen right away. Most likely, she would have to find someone else... but would it be a boy... or a girl?

Heather sighed and leaned a little closer to her brother. She wished she could tell him what was going on, but she didn't think he would understand. She wasn't even sure she understood herself.

So she looked up at him and said, "I kind of.... like someone... that doesn't feel the same way about me."

[Micah White]

Micah held his sister closer to him, letting her know that he was here for her. She was the best friend he had, and nothing would ever change that. Milo smiled sadly and nodded when she told him what was up, knowing too well what that felt like.

"Yeah, I've been there. Little Shelley Madison, lived down the street from us growing up? She never liked me either. She claimed I had cooties and she didn't want to get them, too." He said with a smile, trying to calm Heather up.
"You'll meet someone better than him, someone who will give you the time of day and won't make a pretty, smart girl like you cry like this." He said, rubbing his sister's back for comfort.

[Heather Louise White]

But this only made Heather feel worse. How was she supposed to feel? Poor Daphne... none of this was her fault. They were friends, but Heather was quite certain that Daphne didn't feel anything for her but friendship. Now that she had realized that she did like her best friend as more than just a friend, Heather just had this sort of icky feeling in the pit of her stomach. If she tried to do anything about this, she might just lose her best friend. She had to keep it buried.

"It's.... it's not like that," she said, burying her face in her brother's shoulder. Just this once, she would let him be there for her... to a point.

"This person... it's not that they don't like me... But they only see me as a friend. And so, I feel like... not only am I losing a chance to be with someone I like.... I'm losing my... er... a friend..."