A/N - You know I'm still offering requests to anybody who want them - hint, hint.
12 - White Bedding
"Smith? Are you- is something wrong?"
Ginny's words were tentative, her curiosity at seeing the man replaced by concern as she took in the appearance of the young man who's presence had startled her so as she wandered through the hospital corridors. There was no fondness between her and the ex-Hufflepuff, they had fought viciously with each other in Hogwarts over every triviality, but her inner compassion allowed her to overlook that. It didn't really matter who it was, she would do her best to help anybody who was sat in a St Mungo's hallway looking like they would be better off dead. Smith was pale and his hands were shaking violently by his sides as he sat, slumped, upon a grey plastic chair in the otherwise empty waiting room. His hair was unkempt and his eyes were unfocused, rimmed with red and encircled with the darkness that most people associated with a lack of sleep. His breathing seemed choked, he had his wand in his hands, twirling it madly.
He didn't appear to hear her question so she slowly sat down next to him. She had the time to spare, her meeting with Harry and the others wasn't for some time yet but she had decided to arrive early, helping somebody, even somebody she didn't like, was worth being late for a casual meeting. She slowly placed a hand on his shoulder and he jerked his head around, finally seeing her. Up close, he looked even worse. There were tear tracks on his cheeks and his bottom lip was bloody. His eyes held no light. Zacharias Smith, with his constant, unwavering, dependable sarcastic cynicism, was lost. He looked desperate for something.
"Smith?" she pressed, "Zacharias?"
He shuddered and made a choked noise, he honestly didn't seem to recognise her. His eyes darted around frantically as he spluttered, "Merlin. What have I done? I'm so sorry. Oh God, Merlin, everything…"
His eyes were moist and his voice trembling. Ginny put her arms around him. It had been a purely instinctive gesture but Zacharias broke down, shaking, with tears seeping through her robes. He was like a child in desperate need of comfort. She pulled his wand away from him. She wasn't sure why but she had a suspicion that letting Smith hold on to his wand would be a bad idea. Although she didn't know why she heard her brain were warning her that the blond might well be considering doing something drastic. She wasn't sure how long they sat like that – it felt like only minutes but it could have been far longer.
"What happened?" she said finally, placing a hand on his.
"I was an idiot," Smith spat, his free hand reached across to the arm nearest her, his nails digging into it in some sort of desperate need to hold on to something, or to punish himself, she didn't know which, "An arrogant, self centred fool. I never gave any thought for anybody other than myself. I jumped to stupid conclusions. I should have been paying attention …now somebody else has to bear the price."
"What- What happened?"
The blond's eyes were glazed as he immersed himself in the memory. Shaking his head, Smith stood up sharply. There were tears in his eyes as he waved his hand towards the door opposite them as if telling her to see for herself.
He stalked out of the room and for a moment Ginny was indignant but then she resigned herself to the fact that she shouldn't have expected differently from Smith. He was clearly still hysterical and, although she wasn't certain, she thought that in the few words he spoke he sounded heartbroken. She was scared about what he was going do. She glanced over to the door off the corridor, it led to one of the few private rooms in the hospital, there weren't many of them in St Mungo's. Most things could be dealt patiently with on the wards. This was the sort of room her father had been placed in during the hours immediately following his snakebite in her fourth year. She wondered who it was that the room currently occupied. Who had shaken Smith to the core? What had happened to them? Who had brought such an emotional outburst to the usually untouchable blond? She stood up, walking slowly towards the door. With a hit of fear she pressed her palm against it, it opened at her touch.
Inside was the usual hospital set up. All clean and white. There was a table covered with potions and even some Muggle medical equipment. The bed was in the centre of the room. There were notes on the end of the bed, line upon line of unfamiliar medical terminology and acronyms. She took a deep breath and steadied herself as she switched her gaze to the bed's terrifyingly still occupant.
For a moment, she didn't recognise the man. He appeared to be glowing slightly silver as the light hit him. It made him look like almost angelic. He had dark brown hair, curly and expensively cut. He was pale, unnaturally so, and his eyes were closed. His features were friendly but there was a hint of the aristocratic about him. He looked slightly surprised but she recognised that faded smile that clung to his lips.
Justin Finch-Fletchley.
She felt her eyes prickle with tears. A schoolmate. He'd probably turned eighteen only recently. A very young adult in the wizarding world and still barely out of childhood by Muggle standards. Seriously harmed enough to be hospitalised.
She glanced at the charts to see what had happened to him. Words jumped out at her, 'mispronounced curse', 'resuscitation attempted', 'ministry appended attacker'.
Then she saw it. On the bottom of one of the parchments– his heartbeat detection spell had flat-lined half an hour ago. She let herself cry.
Three floors down, healers drew their wands urgently.
They were too late to save Zacharias Smith.