Damaged (A Marauders Era story)

First Year, Part 20 (The Great Lake)

The headaches had gotten a bit better over time, but they still persisted every time I used my ability on someone. Perhaps it wasn't the headaches that had gotten better, but me that had gotten better at dealing with them.

After practicing for nearly a month now, reading people's moods had become easier for me. I didn't need to spend so much time trying to now, it just came naturally after having done it a few times. It was the side effects of using my eye that I had to worry about.

Aileen said it would probably go away after a while, but I didn't know about that.

Every time I read a person's mood, the cold pain behind my eye and the ache in my head would follow. At first, I had had to go straight away to my bed and lay down for a while, not being able to do much of anything due to the pain in my head. The girls in my dormitory had thought I was sick or something, as I was constantly laying down with a pillow over my head. After a few days of using my eye in this way though, I was able to continue on with my daily routines, despite the pain in my head.

The headaches only lasted a couple hours or so after using my eye. But sometimes, they were so bad that they lasted longer and I couldn't even concentrate on my school or what my professors were saying in classes. Today was going to be one of those days, I realized, as Frank and I made our way to the Charm's Classroom together.

At breakfast, Aileen had asked me to read the mood of a Slytherin girl who she sat next to every day. I had done as she asked, discovering that the Slytherin girl had been feeling happy at that time, and it had resulted in me getting one of the bad headaches. The ones that made it hard to stand without getting dizzy and nauseous.

That had only been a short while ago, and I still had a headache from it. I would probably have this headache for the rest of the day, and right now it was throbbing with pain.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Frank asked again as we entered the classroom. He had been asking me this every here and there since he saw me get up from the breakfast table and stagger back down again from dizziness.

"I'm fine," I replied, taking a seat in the front row of the classroom. "It's just a small headache."

"Yeah well," Frank said as he arranged his paper and quill on the desk, "Little headaches don't usually cause paleness and dizziness."

Before I could reply, Professor Filius Flitwick called our attention.

"Now class," He said, standing atop a large pile of books and facing the students, "Today we will be learning The Tickling Charm, also known as the Rictusempra Charm. Can anybody tell me what The Tickling Charm does? Yes, Miss Adams?" Professor Flitwick nodded to a Ravenclaw girl who was raising her hand eagerly.

"It creates a feeling of being tickled and causes the victim to buckle with laughter," She said.

"Very good! Five points to Ravenclaw!" Professor Flitwick said proudly. "The Tickling Charm produces tremendous tickling sensations in the victim, distracting him effectively. It is often used as a diversionary tactic in duels. It's quite a useful charm to know, as it can stop a threat that you don't necessarily want to injure badly. Since this charm creates a sensation of being tickled and makes the victim collapse to the ground, this charm can be called a "minor torturing" curse if it is continued too long. It is not to be taken lightly. I shall demonstrate The Tickling Charm to you all, and then you will practice it yourselves. Mr. Pettigrew, come stand here please."

The short boy behind me got up slowly, glancing back hesitatingly at his three companions who sat behind him.

"No need to be afraid," Professor Flitwick said reassuringly, "It won't hurt, and it'll last only a few seconds before I cast the counterspell on you."