Post by Kira & Lee Norris on Dec 9, 2007 19:04:43 GMT
Lee?
Lee didn’t like the name ‘Lee’.
Well, maybe he did. He wasn’t sure. But if he’d had a choice in it all, he would’ve gone for… Matthew. He liked the name Matthew… or possibly Luke? Except the whole, “Look, Luke!” thing would frustrate him. Or would it? Maybe he didn’t get frustrated easily. Maybe he was dead laid-back and easy-going. Or maybe he was super edgy, wound-up and tight. That girl… Kira, his cousin. She’d seemed dreamy once they got talking. Was he always like that? He hoped not. It was a little… eccentric, for his liking.
Lee’s liking.
Weird.
That other girl, Madeleine, Kira told him they’d been dating. Madeleine had been beautiful. That was something Lee had apparently not lost- the ability to appreciate women. She’d walked in behind his cousin… and he just had to smile at her. She was worried, sure, but that hardly affected her figure- that wonderful silhouette… Now, how could he forget something like that? It was a crime. Or darn near it.
The other girl had been pretty too- different to Madeleine, though. She was cute. She was sweet. Ellie. Lee tried it aloud and liked it. When Lee had first opened his eyes, and found himself staring in her face, he felt very prone to falling in love…
“Lee?” she asked him. “Lee- oh god, Lee! Are you okay?”
“Me?” he said stupidly, sitting up, but she forced him back down.
“Yes, you!” she giggled nervously. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” he replied, staring past her at the man standing over them both.
He looked… tired. Where had all those cuts come from? He shivered, scrambling to his feet and pushing Ellie away at the sight of the deep running scarlet train tracks.
“Sir…?” he asked tentatively. “I… what happened? You’re bleeding, sir! You-”
“I am aware of that fact,” the man had replied warily, a sad confirmation gripping his features. “Young man, would you be able to tell me your name?”
He stopped, stumped. “I…”
He knew this. Oh, god, he had to know this.
But… he didn’t.
“My head hurts,” he said eventually.
The man closed his eyes, inhaling deeply. “You are Lee Ryan Norris.”
“Oh.” Lee stopped, and frowned. “Lee. Lee. Doesn’t… doesn’t ring a bell.”
“No, I didn’t expect it to,” the man said sadly, then held forward his hand.
Lee shook it automatically, though he didn’t really know why.
“I am Professor Major Hoodham,” Professor Major Hoodham told him. “And I am your Headmaster. Lee, you have just been put through great stress, and have… have apparently been drained of all of your personal memories.”
Lee expected a cold panic to flush over him at that. All his memories? His identity? Gone? But… he didn’t. No sweating, or anything. No twisted, scary emotions that made him want to smash… well, he couldn’t have smashed anything in that office anyway. It was pretty messed up.
Except… Lee just looked over at the terror in Ellie’s eyes, and felt a little smug at her apparent concern for him.
“Ok,” Lee replied, looking up at Professor Major Hoodham.
“Oh, Lee,” Ellie whispered, her voice choked up with… tears? “Oh, Lee. What have you done?”
He shrugged. What HAD he done?
“He tried to…” Professor Major Hoodham began, then stopped, and sighed. “Lee, I should like Ellie here to escort you to the Hospital Wing. I shall send some family to visit you-”
“And, Professor, the Head of the Warriors,” Ellie chipped in. “She’s got to know.”
“Miss Baudelaire and Miss Norris will be informed accordingly,” Hoodham said to Ellie, and she looked relieved.
“Come on, Lee,” she said, taking his hand. “Don’t worry about any of this ol’ stuff. You’ve got Professor Hoodham. And Professor Hoodham… he knows how to sort out these messes…”
“Hello, Lee,” Nurse Gornray bobbed past, carrying the black medicine with her. “How are you today?”
“It’s my first full day,” Lee said stupidly. “How should I feel?”
She shrugged, pouring the scary, clotted mixture into a silver spoon. “This should ease your headache right up…”
Lee took the spoon from her, narrowing his eyes. “I don’t want that stuff.”
“Tough,” she said, and with a surprising force, she reached forward, and pinched his arm.
The second Lee’s mouth opened in a gasp of pain, the spoon was down his throat, and the ugly, burning black medicine was sliding sludgily down…
Down… down… down… To his stomach, sure. He knew all that stuff. How come he remembered that stuff? He knew the way to the Hospital Wing. He knew he was in Orchid Hill.
He knew the place, the words, and the daily routines. He remembered things he’d learned in his lessons. He remembered music. He remembered how to speak German (albeit badly). He remembered the concept of Heads, and things he’d learnt in Spy meetings… though Warrior stuff was stuck in there too, weirdly enough. And chess.
He seemed to know a lot about chess.
It was just the people he didn’t know.
He couldn’t remember much about his past. Well… obviously, he knew he was Irish. The accent had helped there. And he knew the place was green. He could picture places as easy as anything. He could remember an old country park up north- Castlewellan. And he could remember somewhere really north; a funny place, Bangor. It was by a beach, but someone had built over it. And down South… where he lived… he remembered sheep and green. And he remembered the names of the counties. And he remembered that there was something called the Orchid War going on.
But ask him anything about what he did, who he knew, who he loved, who he hated… ask him anything about the people, and the things he’d done in his life up to this point…
Nope. Nothing. Nein.
See?! German!
So everyone was a stranger. And girls especially were strange, unfamiliar creatures. And so were guys- but with none of the same impact. Girls were beautiful. Had he always known they were that beautiful? Guys were… guys were guys, if that made sense. Like he’d said- they had none of the same impact. Guys looked good fun. Guys made him want to mess about and have a laugh. He must’ve done it before.
He should like to do it again.
“Cruel, Nurse Gornray, cruel,” he gasped, rubbing his arm and grabbing greedily for the cool glass of water she had ready. “Why’d you do that?”
“Got the job done, didn’t it?” she said grimly, standing up again. “Sorry for being a bit rough with you, Lee. I like you, you know. We were friends of a kind, before…” Silence.
“Before I forgot,” he said dully.
“Before you forgot,” she echoed, just as dully, carrying her tray back across the ward. Lee watched her go for a few seconds; then leaned back, closing his eyes.
And couldn’t sleep.
Why couldn’t he sleep?
His dreams had been black last night. He didn’t understand why, but they didn’t happen. He saw nothing, heard nothing, touched nothing, was nothing.
Maybe Professor Major Hoodham would explain it some day.
But for now… For now, it was time to dream his empty dreams.
Lee didn’t like the name ‘Lee’.
Well, maybe he did. He wasn’t sure. But if he’d had a choice in it all, he would’ve gone for… Matthew. He liked the name Matthew… or possibly Luke? Except the whole, “Look, Luke!” thing would frustrate him. Or would it? Maybe he didn’t get frustrated easily. Maybe he was dead laid-back and easy-going. Or maybe he was super edgy, wound-up and tight. That girl… Kira, his cousin. She’d seemed dreamy once they got talking. Was he always like that? He hoped not. It was a little… eccentric, for his liking.
Lee’s liking.
Weird.
That other girl, Madeleine, Kira told him they’d been dating. Madeleine had been beautiful. That was something Lee had apparently not lost- the ability to appreciate women. She’d walked in behind his cousin… and he just had to smile at her. She was worried, sure, but that hardly affected her figure- that wonderful silhouette… Now, how could he forget something like that? It was a crime. Or darn near it.
The other girl had been pretty too- different to Madeleine, though. She was cute. She was sweet. Ellie. Lee tried it aloud and liked it. When Lee had first opened his eyes, and found himself staring in her face, he felt very prone to falling in love…
“Lee?” she asked him. “Lee- oh god, Lee! Are you okay?”
“Me?” he said stupidly, sitting up, but she forced him back down.
“Yes, you!” she giggled nervously. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” he replied, staring past her at the man standing over them both.
He looked… tired. Where had all those cuts come from? He shivered, scrambling to his feet and pushing Ellie away at the sight of the deep running scarlet train tracks.
“Sir…?” he asked tentatively. “I… what happened? You’re bleeding, sir! You-”
“I am aware of that fact,” the man had replied warily, a sad confirmation gripping his features. “Young man, would you be able to tell me your name?”
He stopped, stumped. “I…”
He knew this. Oh, god, he had to know this.
But… he didn’t.
“My head hurts,” he said eventually.
The man closed his eyes, inhaling deeply. “You are Lee Ryan Norris.”
“Oh.” Lee stopped, and frowned. “Lee. Lee. Doesn’t… doesn’t ring a bell.”
“No, I didn’t expect it to,” the man said sadly, then held forward his hand.
Lee shook it automatically, though he didn’t really know why.
“I am Professor Major Hoodham,” Professor Major Hoodham told him. “And I am your Headmaster. Lee, you have just been put through great stress, and have… have apparently been drained of all of your personal memories.”
Lee expected a cold panic to flush over him at that. All his memories? His identity? Gone? But… he didn’t. No sweating, or anything. No twisted, scary emotions that made him want to smash… well, he couldn’t have smashed anything in that office anyway. It was pretty messed up.
Except… Lee just looked over at the terror in Ellie’s eyes, and felt a little smug at her apparent concern for him.
“Ok,” Lee replied, looking up at Professor Major Hoodham.
“Oh, Lee,” Ellie whispered, her voice choked up with… tears? “Oh, Lee. What have you done?”
He shrugged. What HAD he done?
“He tried to…” Professor Major Hoodham began, then stopped, and sighed. “Lee, I should like Ellie here to escort you to the Hospital Wing. I shall send some family to visit you-”
“And, Professor, the Head of the Warriors,” Ellie chipped in. “She’s got to know.”
“Miss Baudelaire and Miss Norris will be informed accordingly,” Hoodham said to Ellie, and she looked relieved.
“Come on, Lee,” she said, taking his hand. “Don’t worry about any of this ol’ stuff. You’ve got Professor Hoodham. And Professor Hoodham… he knows how to sort out these messes…”
“Hello, Lee,” Nurse Gornray bobbed past, carrying the black medicine with her. “How are you today?”
“It’s my first full day,” Lee said stupidly. “How should I feel?”
She shrugged, pouring the scary, clotted mixture into a silver spoon. “This should ease your headache right up…”
Lee took the spoon from her, narrowing his eyes. “I don’t want that stuff.”
“Tough,” she said, and with a surprising force, she reached forward, and pinched his arm.
The second Lee’s mouth opened in a gasp of pain, the spoon was down his throat, and the ugly, burning black medicine was sliding sludgily down…
Down… down… down… To his stomach, sure. He knew all that stuff. How come he remembered that stuff? He knew the way to the Hospital Wing. He knew he was in Orchid Hill.
He knew the place, the words, and the daily routines. He remembered things he’d learned in his lessons. He remembered music. He remembered how to speak German (albeit badly). He remembered the concept of Heads, and things he’d learnt in Spy meetings… though Warrior stuff was stuck in there too, weirdly enough. And chess.
He seemed to know a lot about chess.
It was just the people he didn’t know.
He couldn’t remember much about his past. Well… obviously, he knew he was Irish. The accent had helped there. And he knew the place was green. He could picture places as easy as anything. He could remember an old country park up north- Castlewellan. And he could remember somewhere really north; a funny place, Bangor. It was by a beach, but someone had built over it. And down South… where he lived… he remembered sheep and green. And he remembered the names of the counties. And he remembered that there was something called the Orchid War going on.
But ask him anything about what he did, who he knew, who he loved, who he hated… ask him anything about the people, and the things he’d done in his life up to this point…
Nope. Nothing. Nein.
See?! German!
So everyone was a stranger. And girls especially were strange, unfamiliar creatures. And so were guys- but with none of the same impact. Girls were beautiful. Had he always known they were that beautiful? Guys were… guys were guys, if that made sense. Like he’d said- they had none of the same impact. Guys looked good fun. Guys made him want to mess about and have a laugh. He must’ve done it before.
He should like to do it again.
“Cruel, Nurse Gornray, cruel,” he gasped, rubbing his arm and grabbing greedily for the cool glass of water she had ready. “Why’d you do that?”
“Got the job done, didn’t it?” she said grimly, standing up again. “Sorry for being a bit rough with you, Lee. I like you, you know. We were friends of a kind, before…” Silence.
“Before I forgot,” he said dully.
“Before you forgot,” she echoed, just as dully, carrying her tray back across the ward. Lee watched her go for a few seconds; then leaned back, closing his eyes.
And couldn’t sleep.
Why couldn’t he sleep?
His dreams had been black last night. He didn’t understand why, but they didn’t happen. He saw nothing, heard nothing, touched nothing, was nothing.
Maybe Professor Major Hoodham would explain it some day.
But for now… For now, it was time to dream his empty dreams.
