Darcy had been walking around the castle, trying to locate Ariel. It had not been an easy task. After all, the girl seemed to always be out on new adventures. She'd not been at the dormitory or the common room, and since there weren't any classes, she would probably be eating. So Darcy ventured to the Great Hall, but not even there was her little sister. She sighed and turned around, going for the kitchen. As she entered, she was met with a hundred of house elves who wanted to help her. But Darcy smiled and thanked them no, saying she was merely looking for her sister. And then they had all apparated away and returned a few seconds later, and one of them had squeaked that she was in the girls' dormitory.
Darcy frowned but then smiled, and gave her thanks to the elves, who waved it away in a completely overjoyed manner. She then started ascending the stairs. Ariel must've gone back to the Gryffindor tower after Darcy had left. Unless the girl had pranked her sister by hiding somehow and making Darcy walk all over the castle before returning. She was glad she'd gone to the kitchen that quickly, and not scouted outside first. It was freezing outside.
Darcy's mood was rather poor at that moment, and she had a feeling that Ariel might've hidden due to this. The younger Wilde had a way of telling when she was going to hear news she didn't want to hear. But this was too important. And it was hard. Darcy bit her lip to keep her eyes from tearing up again. Her hand was balled and inside it was a badly crumpled letter. Ariel wouldn't understand the seriousness of this. Not completely. And she'd hide. And Darcy was very prepared for it.
She entered the common room and walked up the stairs to the girls' dormitory. She found Ariel's dormitory, but she couldn't find Ariel there. Darcy sighed and started shouting her sister's name. When she was about to give up, Ariel appeared in the doorway. She was looking annoyed at her sister, the way only sisters looked at each other. And then Ariel turned on her heels and rushed further up the stairs. Maybe she was in Darcy's dorm? That would be better. She was the only Gryffindor girl her year. They would be left in peace. Maybe Ariel wasn't that ignorant after all.
Darcy walked into the fifth year dorm and saw Ariel sitting by the window, looking outside, her arms linked around her knees. Darcy started walking towards Ariel, and sat down opposite her. Ariel didn't want to look her in the eyes. How did she know that Darcy had only bad news? Was it some kind of a vibe Darcy gave off. Darcy sighed and looked into the window. It was dark out, so she was met with her own face. And she quickly understood why Ariel had figured it out, and why the elves had been so extremely helpful. They often were helpful, but on a calmer level. Her eyes were swollen, her cheeks were red. She didn't look good at all. She looked snotty.
She looked at Ariel, who had finally turned her eyes to her older sister. But Ariel didn't want to hear it. Ariel knew it was bad news and the thought of the letter so tightly locked in Darcy's hand made Ariel shiver. The letter would be from home. It had to be. And she didn't like that. Not when Darcy looked like she'd been crying for days on end. But Darcy had to tell her. There was no going back on that. So Darcy drew a deep breath and opened her hand. It felt stiff and sore from squeezing the letter so firmly.
"It's from home," Darcy mumbled, her voice low and thick. She sniffled a bit, and Ariel bit her lip, anxious to hear what was coming next, her eyes turning fearful, and her hair turning a nasty gray. Darcy took Ariel's hand in hers, trying to calm her sister. The gray color dulled a bit into a more blondish tone. "It's dad," Darcy continued, and Ariel's face turned gray, her hair a shocking white. Her eyes were also turning paler. Darcy held on tighter to Ariel's hands. "It's okay, it's okay," Darcy said, pulling her sister closer, placing a hand on her cheek.
Ariel shook her head. Of course it was not okay. It was so obvious that it was not okay that it was already hurting Ariel. "He's … he's sick," Darcy said, the words foreign on her tongue. Ariel drew a sharp breath, her lungs hurting. Ariel took the letter from Darcy's hands, and started reading it. Her eyes teared up the further down on the page she got. "No," she managed. Darcy felt her breath come up short and she was breathing quicker and quicker, looking at her baby sister, so broken.
Ariel's hair had turned a withered white, and she looked so frail, her eyes shocked into an icy blue, almost white, and her skin was still the same nauseating gray. Darcy grabbed her sister's shoulders and pulled her into her embrace. Ariel started the same breathing as Darcy until it turned into hysterical sobs. Darcy rocked her back and forth, silent tears falling down her face. She looked at the letter lying in front of her feet. Worst news to ever receive before Christmas. And to put it in a letter… Darcy felt that there was anger in her as well. They could've waited until the holidays to tell them. Face to face! This was so unfair!
Darcy sat with her arms wrapped around Ariel for a long amount of time, her tears having stopped falling, and left her eyes empty, staring into nothingness. Ariel had her face buried in her sister's neck and was still crying, but her breathing was normal and the only sound in the room was Ariel sniffling once in a while. They didn't speak. But when Darcy could see the break of dawn to the east, she could feel Ariel's pulse having slowed down a great deal. The girl was asleep.
Darcy slowly wrapped her arms underneath her sister's knees and back, and lifted her. She walked over to the bed, and laid Ariel down, lying down next to her. Ariel swiftly crawled into Darcy and they both fell asleep quickly after that.
[Co-created by me and Darcy]
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