Hogwarts' Sleeping Beauty
Chapter 10
A Cold Rose and Death's Touch
He ran over to Rose's form on the ground and revived her with a quick "Ennervate."
Her eyes opened slowly and she tried to sit up but fell back. Rose gingerly felt the back of her head and winced. She was so dizzy and disoriented, and she felt a cold sensation creeping into her arms and legs.
Harry picked her up and stuck her wand and the rose in his pocket. He carried Rose all the way back to her bedroom and laid her down on the bed, putting the rose next to her pillow. She was having problems recognizing him and her eyes wouldn't focus, so she just let him carry her.
Harry was about to leave when she said, quietly pleading, "Wait. Please don't leave. Is that you, Harry? Could you just stay here with me awhile? I don't understand what happened." She sounded so scared, and shaken. She couldn't stop trembling, like the time she had driven the car through a garage door.
"Yeah, it's me. I'll stay," Harry said softly, trying to soothe her. He gave her his sweatshirt and when she still wouldn't stop shaking he tucked her under the covers. He pulled a chair up from her vanity and sat next to her bed.
"What happened? How'd I get here? I remember dueling with that girl Ginny, but that's it," she said shivering under the blankets, clutching the rose.
"She stunned you just as I turned up. But you seem to be reacting to it like you've been electrocuted," he said taking the rose from her and setting it on the bedside table, holding her outstretched hand.
"More like a car wreck," she said shakily. "Harry, I'm cold."
"Do you want another blanket?" he asked concerned. He felt her forehead to see if she had a temperature. She was just cold, icy to the touch. "What do you want me to do?"
She could tell that he was trying to help. "Come under the covers with me."
"What?" Harry was in awkward confusion.
"You always radiate body heat. P-please, Harry, I'm so c-c-cold." It was the chilled stutter that made him forget what people would think. He went around and crawled in behind her, trying to warm up her thin body.
"What happened to me, Harry," Rose asked curling up next to him, shivering. "This c-c-can't be n-normal."
"I don't know my little flower; we'll go to the Hospital Wing tomorrow if you aren't feeling better." He held her close, hoping that his never-ending supply of heat would flow into her. "All you need is a little warmth and you'll be back to your self."
It was a long night. Neither could fall asleep because of Rose's shaking. Harry got up dozens of times to get her hot chocolate, but nothing helped. Frustrated, Rose finally told Harry to get Hermione, that maybe she could find out what was wrong.
Harry called Hermione (a communication spell causing wands to act like cell phones) and in about ten minutes they heard her come through the portrait hole.
"What is so important that you would wake me up at one o'clock in the morning?" she yawned as she came into Rose's bedroom. "And Harry, why are you in Rose's bed?" she shot him a wary glance.
"I'm c-c-cold, and I can't warm up!" Rose stuttered.
"What do you have on?" Hermione asked, she almost didn't want to know the answer, but she knew that Rose wouldn't call her over for something as stupid as being cold.
"I've got j-jeans, a tank t-top, a sweatshirt, two pairs of s-s-socks, a quilted c-cover, two fleece blankets, and Harry as my temporary f-furnace. I have also had about f-fifteen c-c-cups of hot chocolate and Harry c-cast a warming spell. And I'm STILL c-c-cold!" Rose was still shivering uncontrollably. "What's wrong with me?" she pleaded with Hermione.
Hermione came over and sat in the chair that Harry had left by her bed and felt her forehead. It was cold to the touch.
"What happened to her?" Hermione asked Harry. Rose and Harry sat up while Harry explained what had happened after the duel.
"She said that I had ruined everything between her and Harry, but I just replied that it was her fault for sleeping around on him and she attacked me," Rose explained through another cup of hot chocolate. "We mostly blocked each other's spells but she distracted me and then I blacked out."
"I scared Ginny off with a threat, and revived Rose with 'Ennervate'. She woke up but couldn't focus or recognize anything. I had to carry her back here. And she won't stop shaking." Harry continued.
"It was that trembling feeling you get when you get into a car crash, but then I got cold," Rose pulled the blankets tighter around her and snuggled closer to Harry.
"I don't think that Ginny hit you with a simple stunning spell," Hermione concluded after listening to their story, "Unless you have some weird magical immune system malfunction. I've never seen or read about anything like this."
"I'll be right back," Harry whispered into Rose's ear as he got up and headed to the bathroom.
"So how'd Harry end up with you in bed?" Hermione asked, this question had been burning a hole in her brain and she couldn't keep it in anymore.
"Are you kidding? Did you seriously not notice that he never gets cold?" Rose asked (her voice was a bit steadier after she got the hot liquid in her.) "He is always warm! I noticed last night and today during class, when you and I are shivering, he still perfectly warm!"
"Right and you like him," they both smiled until Rose started trembling again. "What could this be? Maybe we should take you to the Hospital Wing?"
"No, let's wait. Maybe it's nothing and it'll clear up once I get some sleep?" Rose said, not wanting to worry anyone else.
"That's just it! You can't sleep because you can't get comfortable!" Hermione said defiantly. "Madam Pomphrey may have seen this before! She could fix…" Hermione stopped and had that far away look she gets when she has a 'Eureka!' moment. "I know what this is," she said quietly, she was still looking out into space.
"What?" Harry asked, coming back from the bathroom and sliding in behind Rose again.
"It's called Death's Touch," Hermione said finally coming out of her daze.
"Am I going to die?" Rose asked fear increased her shivers to a violent vibrating.
Harry tightened his hold around her. "No, I won't let you," he whispered fiercely into her ear.
"It does exactly what's happening to you; you get so cold that you can't bear it anymore. Most, out of the few cases that there are, commit suicide, thinking that if they're going to Hell, at least they'll be warm. You don't actually die from it, it's just a suicidal inducer," Hermione said grimly. Seeing Rose's face she said, "Don't worry, we won't let you die. We'll find the cure or counter-curse to it."
"Are you sure?" she asked.
"Pretty. But why don't we take you to McGonagall or Madam Pomphrey to make sure?" Hermione asked calmly. Rose nodded. She tried to stand up but she got dizzy and had to sit back down.
"I'll carry you," Harry said scooping her up as easily as you would pick up a kitten.
"It's a good thing you're so strong," Rose said laying her head on his shoulder.
"Well, it's a good thing you're so light. How are you so skinny?" he asked a hint of laughter in his voice.
"Picky eater," she said simply. "When I find something I like, I eat a lot of it. It also helps that I burn it off quickly." She smiled faintly and closed her eyes.
"What do you like?" Hermione asked. She had never seen Rose eat much of anything, except bacon.
"Chocolate, almost anything sweet, almost anything salty, popcorn, not kettle corn, meat, definitely chicken and steak, very few vegetables, most fruit, except grapefruit, it's just weird. And I disagree that tomatoes are a fruit, if you can't put it in a fruit salad or on fruit pizza then it isn't a fruit. Pineapple and grapes are the best," she said in a sleepy tone. Her quivering had gone down to a minimal shiver.
"You talk a lot when you're cold," Harry said, a broad grin lighting up his face.
"You should see me when I've eaten too much sugar and have something exciting to say," she started smiling too, not opening her eyes. "It's hilarious when I'm talking to my best friend Elizabeth, and just found out that her boyfriend brought me a date. We go into super, high speed, giggly, laugh you're googlaphonic butt off mode. It's also funny when we have a video recorder and, again, have had too much sugar, and a room that happens to have stuffed animals and a few of my brother's pretend weapons in it…after midnight. If you could see me in those videos you might rethink your opinion of my disposition," she gave a feeble laugh.
"What's googlaphonic mean?" Harry asked Hermione. Hermione shrugged.
"Googlaphonic is a word that my dad made up. It means about the same thing as hilarious, except it sounds funnier," Rose answered, never opening her eyes. "Isn't it kind of funny that when I'm talking I don't realize how unbearably cold I am?"
"Yeah," was all Harry could say.
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googlaphonic:(adj) meaning extremely funny, like so funny you can't stop laughing and start crying and nearly pee your pants from laughing so hard! my dad made it up:-D :-P