30 september 1997. hospital wing: the aftermath. Who: Luna Lovegood, Michael Corner, Ginny Weasley What: Ginny and Michael both check up on Luna and find things to discuss Where: Hospital wing When: Evening, September 30 Rating: PG/PG-13 for thematic elements~ Status: Logged/nearly complete
A thin sheen of sweat had graced the forehead of Michael Corner, gathering in time to form droplets which tried to ooze into his eyes. Before they had the chance to blind him, however, he swiped them away with the slate blue shirt sleeve that he donned. He breathed heavily, mouth slightly open as he peered down at the masonry that laid broken on the floor. Shards of it looks charred and pitted, even charcoaled. Michael looked down at this with a mixture of grim acceptance and a veneer of trepidation. Human flesh was infinitely more breakable than ceramic. That was bound to give a boy of seventeen pause when he looked upon it with a shrewd enough mind that understood what it was unleashing.
The Ravenclaw lowered his wand and rolled his light colored eyes up. He saluted nothing in particular- the air- by drawing his weapon to parallel his face and then dropped it. Magically, the mason jars reformed themselves, settling on the small wooden table that they sat upon before Michael willed their destruction. The boy narrowed his eyes at them. Destroying jars was one thing. It was good for basic experiments, but it taught him nothing about how to defend, react,anticipate or counter such a thing. Anybody could hurl a dark magic spell or curse. Understanding what it did and how to counter it was Michael's want.
He sighed. He sheathed his wand and placed his hands on his hips. He would not find the answers just by staring at some pieces of kitchenware and then fixating on their destruction. His lips twisted to the side and he finally stepped away.
What had brought him here hadn't been a pressing need to practice. It had been a pressing need to destroy something that couldn't have him put in the clink. He had an image to maintain, and that image was uncaring neutrality. But the war had hit closer than he'd liked, at a time that he couldn't afford it. Still, she was a friend. Strange yes. Looney, probably. Someone you introduce to your family... questionably. But Luna was still a friend.
With eyes darkened and greyed by these thoughts, a scowling look aimed towards the door. For the third time, the images of floating heads in front of pots came to Michael's mind and he considered using force against them. But it wasn't getting them anywhere.
By now, Pomfrey should have had her time to administer over Luna. No doubt, Ginny and Neville where there as well. Michael swallowed- he'd be placing himself in a situation where he'd be possibly seen as sympathizing with rabble-rousers if he went to see her.
How to go about this in a more circumspect way... Michael pulled in thought at a single rogue hair on his chin.
---
Michael's face flush with red with muted anguish, teeth gritted and canines bared as he trudged down the hallway holding his arm. A nasty, swollen burn marked the inside of his forearm and part of his hand, which he even now was tying over with a piece of dark cloth. Unceremoniously, he slipped past a gaggle of Slytherin girls. Inwardly, he smiled at the perfection of their placement. Outwardly, a steely, determined gaze stayed locked as he seemed to disregard the girls. He muttered under his breath, "That Hades-damned Longbottom... can't he ever..." And by the time the sentence would have finished, he'd shut the door to the Infirmary behind himself.
Pomfrey, naturally, turned to first demand an explanation, but seeing the 'injured' boy she first paled and then rushed into action. "What happened?" She fussed, turning Michael's limb to and fro with precise finger movements.
"Bunsen burner overturned and ignited a potion." Michael commented, his gaze turning to a prone Luna and a redhead.
Pomfrey caught on quickly. "Ah. Yes." She said, turning his arm rather roughly to prove her hypothesis. Michael failed to wince and flexed his arm. "Well, I have something just for that. I suppose. You'll sit right here, and keep quiet Mister Corner. That girl's trying to sleep." Pomfrey gestured for Michael to take a seat near Luna.
Michael said nothing, and walked over to the group even as he produced his wand and flicked it at the lock on the door. "N’so?" Michael questioned, his West Country brogue flat and monotone in a controlled anger. “Whats the verdict then? She going to live? Or am I about to become a wanted fugitive?”
It was hard for Ginny not to jump up and give the Carrows what was coming. But Neville had held her back and insisted that they stay quiet, It would only make things worse if they made a scene. She knew he was right, but she struggled to sit there and let one of her best friends be tortured. Ginny could not fathom why the rest of the students weren’t trying to do something. They all sat there either looking away or struggling to watch like scared mice hiding in the wall as the cat eats their friend. There were also the disgusting rats, who laughed or who weren’t bothered by it. Surely they would have been if it were one of them!?
As soon as dinner was over Ginny had rushed to the Hospital Wing where they had taken Luna. She had to check if her friend was okay, then rant on about how worthless, disgusting and low Amycus was, making a student torture another. She felt sorry for Bones. She barely knew her but Ginny knew that she would have never done it if she had the choice. Ginny had felt a slight jump in her heart as Susan didn’t succeed in cursing Luna. That minor chance of hope she had felt was struck down as the two goon-heads of Slytherin, Crabbe and Goyle were called up. And they did what Susan couldn’t. Both of them.
She burst through the Hospital Wing doors looking around frantic. She was slightly reminded of her mother when Ginny had been rescued from the Chamber of Secrets in her first year. Molly could have torn the school down to make sure Ginny was fine. Ginny felt the same way with Luna. She saw Madam Pomfrey leaning over an unconscious blonde girl. Ginny was slightly calmed by the peaceful look on Luna’s face but as she rushed over to the bed, her heart began to race, worried something may be wrong. She whispered frantically, looking over Luna for any signs that she might be hurt. “How is she? She’s not severely hurt is she? If she is, I swear-“ “She’s surprisingly fine despite what she just had been through. She needs to rest so don’t you go waking her up.” Said a stern Madam Pomfrey. Ginny let out a long sigh and sat down on the corner of the bed. She glanced over at Luna and decided she would stay with her until she woke up.
A few hours later Ginny struggled to keep her eyes open. She was exhausted and as her stomach growled, threatening her for not eating. She didn’t know how long she had been there for and was getting bored. Nearly eight times, Ginny had folded her tie in different ways. A few times it seemed that Luna was stirring but as Ginny looked over, she saw Luna still fast asleep. Madam Pomfrey had been by a few times to check up on Luna and had even mentioned that Ginny go to her dorm, but Ginny resisted the call of sleep.
Ginny had a feeling that she must have dozed off for a few minutes without realizing. She was struggling to open her eyes fully. She hadn’t realized that there was another in the Wing. She quickly looked over to see Michael Corner looking back at her. Pomfrey was speaking to him. Ginny guessed that he must have been hurt. She looked back at Luna, checking if there was even the slightest chance she was awake. But the blonde was still sleeping peacefully. Ginny looked back up as Michael walked over towards the two girls. Ginny rubbed her eye before replying to Michael. “Pomfrey says she’s fine, but I’ve been doubting that woman’s healing ability lately. So I’ll be confirming that for myself when Luna wakes up. And why would you become a fugitive?”
MICHAEL
“Good enough,” Michael said, raising his wound, “To know an illusion spell from a proper bit of gore.” His arm truly did look disgusting however- raised, pink and flecked with black scabs and deep, coagulating red. Michael pocketed his hands and looked on at Luna and Ginny. He glanced at the redhead a couple of times, his shoulders tensing as his fists pushed more deeply into his pockets. “Give the old bird credit where its due, I suppose.” Michael tended to be rather frank with Ginny, especially since they had broken up. He felt little need to pull his punches any longer, and so he added, “I don’t recall a Healer’s license on your wall,” but he did it with an easygoing smirk.
“I’m sure transfiguring a Carrow into a dung beetle’s worth a few years in Azkaban, what with the current regime in place.” He murmured dryly, smile sidelining itself on his face. He seemed to relax at the news that Luna would be alright. No, they weren’t the best of friends. Michael thought she was weird like many others. But he accepted her. She was Luna. She, with all her talk of wracksplurts and nargles, was still quite talented. “And how’re things with you, Red?” Michael sat down next to her- but not too close- and folded his hands into his lap.