Chapter 9: Healing Arts
20 December 1995
St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries
"I honestly don't know why it isn't working. I've researched muggle medicine and this is exactly the sort of thing stitches would work on."
Healer Pye deflated as the second attempt at stitches began to dissolve. Healer Smethwyck had been hesitant to allow the barbaric treatment to begin with, and if he knew that it was failing this badly, Pye knew that any future attempts at incorporating muggle medicine would be hopeless. Bill, who was sitting beside Arthur's bed, was beginning to agree with Smethwyck, not wanting to see his father in pain any longer. Arthur however was just as fascinated with muggle medicine as the trainee healer and was trying to encourage him to try once more. It was past time for his next dose of blood replenishing potion and a grey pallor was coming over his already fair skin.
"Just one more try, lad. I'm sure it'll work this time." Arthur pressed.
Pye looked uncomfortably between the wound and the patient's earnest face and then nodded. As he was setting out the instruments on a tray, he suddenly brightened. "Hang on just a tick, I've an idea."
Without another word, the healer scurried to the end of the ward and exchanged a quick series of words with a healer in lime green robes sitting at the door desk and then came back to Arthur Weasley's bed as the other healer slipped out of the ward. Now looking more at ease if not eager, trainee Pye pulled up his stool and began the process of applying stitches to the wound once again.
It was as he tied the last stitch that someone new joined them. She was a healer, identified by her robes and by the somewhat disturbingly crimson stains on the apron she wore over them. Of average height, she was curvy, bordering on chubby around the middle but walked with a confidence that dared anyone to comment upon her weight. She had slate blue hair which was undercut and shaved on one side of her head, while the other half of her hair was faded up and trimmed into a punk-like pixy cut that put Bill in mind of something Tonks would do with her hair.
"What in the name of Merlin are you doing to that poor man, Pye?" The woman's accent was difficult to identify. Assuredly foreign, it had an American tinge to it but there was something else that Bill couldn't quite place.
Arthur was ashen and there was a ribbon of sweat beaded across his brow but he blinked up at the young woman and seemed to perk up in defense of his newfound muggle-curious friend. "Well, young healer Pye here, has been studying muggle medicine you know. He thought, ahem- that is we thought, perhaps that stitches might- "
Pye was silent, still holding the forceps and needle he had been using on the wound. He cleared his throat, looking nervously at the woman who had joined them. "Mr. Weasley, this is Healer Cleland. I asked her to consult since our first two attempts-"
"Your what?!" The woman exclaimed and then drew back, folding her hands together and closing her eyes as if imploring the universe to give her strength before turning her gaze back to the men folk before her.
"Trainee Pye, set down your tools and step away from the patient, please." As Pye did so, she took his place, working a quick cleansing spell over her hands as she sat down. When she met Arthur Weasley's eyes, she was calm and collected, though her voice still held a dangerous edge to it.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Weasley. As Trainee Pye said, my name is Healer Cleland, you may call me Althea. I understand the fascination with muggle medicine, however collaborations between muggle medicine and magical medicine are tricky at the best of times, as Trainee Pye knows full well. I am a registered nurse in muggle medicine as well as a healer in magical medicine and I have a good deal of experience in both."
Taking up the tools, she carefully began the process of removing the sutures that Pye had placed, though it took very little work, since the first few were already dissolving. Once they were all gone, through one means or another, she cleaned the wound meticulously and forced Mr. Weasley to take a double dose of blood replenishing potion while she reviewed his chart. After a few minutes she looked back and forth between Pye and Mr. Weasley and spoke with gentle compassion.
"I suspect the sutures would not keep due to the venom of the creature who struck you. It is possible that they might keep if you used unicorn hair for the sutures, but that would be a gamble at best and not the course I would suggest. If you'll allow me, Mr. Weasley, I would like to consult with your overseeing Healer as I have some suggestions that may help the wounds close and heal, given that the magical methods we've tried thus far haven't been helping."
Mr. Weasley gave a faint nod. He had finished his potions and was barely holding onto consciousness. Beside him, Bill spoke up. "We appreciate your consultation, Healer Cleland. My mother is going to be in later this evening and I suspect she'd like to be privy before anything significant happens, but right now, I'd take whatever chance you can offer to get my dad back proper."
Sending Remus and Tonks to retrieve the children at the portkey location had been a swift enough measure, but there were a variety of other order matters which had consumed the morning. Those working at the ministry were automatically excluded, as their absence from the usual routine would be unacceptably suspect. Once arrangements were made to retrieve the children from Hogwarts, Molly had returned to the hospital. Bill had reported back to Gringotts to inform his employers of what had happened if only to explain his absence from work that morning. Kat, meanwhile, had previously taken the day off in order to finish last minute holiday shopping and spent her morning instead helping Moody with Order business. She had dispatched owls to Charlie in Romania informing him of what had happened and providing him with both the most up to date information on Arthur's status and the current communication plan in regards to his care and recovery with the promise that updates would be sent each day until he was discharged home.
Mad Eye and Tonks had brought the children from Grimmauld place to join Molly shortly after lunch and now darkness was falling outside the condemned department store which served as the disguising front of the hospital. Kat passed through the barrier and stepped inside the clean and orderly magical hospital. The nurse at the front was in the process of escorting other visitors toward the exit and curtly informed Kat that visiting hours were nearly at their end. Kat voiced her understanding and sped her step to Arthur's ward. Molly was at the bedside, an arm around both Ron and Ginny while Fred and George stood at the foot of the bed. Arthur appeared to be sleeping at last. Tonks and Mad Eye were standing just outside the ward when she approached. Mad-Eye gave her a nod while Tonks held out an arm for a hug, which Kat gave before gesturing at the ward beyond.
"Any change?"
"Still getting blood replenishing potions, but he seems to be leveling out a bit since the American witch started weighing in on his care. Apparently one of the apprentices was trying to use muggle medicine and made a right mess before she stepped in."
Kat raised an eyebrow, "Well at least he's stable. They going to let anyone stay with him?"
Mad Eye grunted in the affirmative but his eye whirred as he ran it over the small crowd gathered by Arthur's bed. Too many people, all too emotionally attached to be able to keep a proper watch in his opinion. Tonks was quiet, which drew Kat's attention. She lowered her voice as Mad Eye left them, crossing to meet Molly as she gathered up the teens and started shuffling them into coats and scarves to leave.
"Where's Remus?"
Tonks stiffened and crossed her arms, her hair darkening several shades to a deep magenta. That wasn't a good sign. Kat reached out and touched her friend's shoulder gently. After several seconds, the other witch's hair shifted back to its most recent regular shade of bubblegum pink and she spoke.
"The pick up went 'aright. He's still so stiff though, when it's just the two of us. And abrupt, like if he's gruff enough it'll make me bugger off, y'know?"
Kat didn't know, not exactly. It was very different from her situation, wherein the man she fancied was both oblivious to the fact that she cared for him and was unavailable besides. But she knew of the growing affection Tonks had for Remus, and had seen, though he tried to hide it, the affection the older wizard had for the spritely and energetic metamorphmagus.
"Might just need to be straight with him, love. Men can be daft when it comes to affection. And you'll regret it if you don't at least try." Kat's words were soft and encouraging, while the voice inside her head screamed at her own past self and at the irony of her giving the advice that she had been given and had refused to follow in her own turn.
Anything that Tonks might have said in reply was quickly swallowed as Moody returned, his walking stick making steady thuds in his advance as he led the rest of the Weasley's to the door. In their wake, a young healer in lime green went from bedside to bedside checking blankets and dimming lamps with a soft flick of their wand, settling the ward down for the night.
"Right, according to Healer Cleland he's stable and they'll be administering a new round of potions to him in a few hours. In the meantime they want everybody to go home, eat, and sleep. Said they'll let one or two come back to check on him in the morning and if he's well enough they can do a proper visit in a day or so when the potion's run its course."
Kat paused as the Weasleys caught up to him and passed by, Molly shepherding the younger ones behind Fred and George, directing the elder boys to take Ginny and Ron back "home", by which they knew well she meant Grimmauld Place. Once they were out of earshot and eyesight, the weight and wear of the last day fell over her face and she seemed to bow a bit under the strain. Kat's heart clenched at the sight of the sweet woman's suffering and stepped away from the group to intercept the lime-clothed healer while Molly spoke with Tonks and Mad-Eye.
"Pardon, Healer-"
"Halloran, Miss." The healer supplied, still moving along the side of beds about their duties. Kat followed her, hands clasped behind her back.
"Healer Halloran, I am given to understand that the head healer for Arthur Weasley left directions for the family to go home and get rest-"
Kat paused, noting the look of weary chagrined anticipation that crossed the Healer's face before their mask of professionalism slid back into place. Kat held out her hands innocently and made a placating gesture. "Which makes perfect sense. Only I'm sure you understand that Mrs. Weasley would feel far better if someone she knew personally were able to stay with him."
The healer sighed and seemed to be mustering a well rehearsed speech about policies in regards to visitors, but Kat continued before she could interject.
"And I understand quite well that having non-medical personnel is not something you can sign off on after hours. It also occurs to me however that the holidays are a time during which most places can be somewhat short of staff. I'm not a healer, however I do have some skills which I would be happy to provide to St. Mungo's in exchange for the opportunity to be able to check up on Mr. Weasley while his family is unable to be with him. Do you know who I might speak to about such a proposal?"
The healer looked skeptical, but nodded and gestured her to a chair outside of the station just beyond the ward. Thus did she find herself quite alone in the steadily quieting hospital while Moody, Tonks, and Molly left to go back to Grimmauld place. The matron who came to speak with her looked fierce and unyielding, as if ready to punt her out the door by force, but paused long enough for Kat to explain her proposal, which was, much to Kat's relief, accepted.
The small mountain of gifts, baskets, boxes, and miscellany was a bit more than Kat had anticipated when offering to assist the hospital staff with the sorting of gifts and presents for patients to ensure no jinxes, hexes, or otherwise dangerous materials made it past inspections, but she counted it worth it to be able to support her friends and loved ones. Once the agreement had been reached with the head matron, she had scribbled off a quick note to Mad Eye informing him of the arrangement and had set to work.
The short wizard who worked beside her was a retired auror, who told her that he had volunteered during the holidays for the past fifteen years since his husband's passing. They chatted amiably for several hours until the clock in the hall chimed a soft but steady single chime, announcing that it was now an hour past midnight. Rising and stretching, the grey haired wizard, Harold by name, patted Kat on his way to the door and thanked her for volunteering to help with the holiday load. She watched as he wrapped a long scarf about his neck and turned to head back to Arthur's ward.
The weight of the day was settling on her heavily now, having been up since well before dawn. She reached the ward as a trio of healers were exiting. They appeared relieved, which Kat took as a definitively positive sign. The senior looked up as she approached and smiled, passing the chart off to one of the other healers as she fell into step with Kat.
"You must be the cursebreaker who sweet-talked their way into Matron Matheys graces. I'm Healer Cleland."
Kat gripped the outstretched hand that was offered and nodded. "Kat McCullough, pleasure to meet you. How is he?"
Althea Cleland smiled reassuringly at the clearly exhausted witch before her. "He's well. It took some collaboration and a fair bit of improvising, but we were able to brew a potion that countered the venom which was preventing his healing. It's really quite impressive. We've one of the widest varieties of antivenin resources in central Britain, but whatever struck him was unlike anything we had encountered. There will be a full report for Mrs. Weasley in the morning, but we believe he will be able to make a full recovery. What he needs now is rest. He'll still need several rounds of blood-replenishing potions, as well as a few other therapies before he's ready to go home, but he's on the right road now."
The relief was palpable and potent, seeming to sweep away the last of the tenuous tension which had been keeping Kat running thus far. The healer before her saw this and smiled kindly, gesturing back to the ward. "Matron Mathey left instructions that you were to be permitted to stay and watch over him thanks to your services. There's a chair by his bed. It's not the most comfortable, but it's yours for the night."
Kat nodded, "Thank you, Healer Cleland, I'm sure Mrs. Weasley will be relieved beyond measure."
The two separated, Althea to finish her rounds and documentations and Kat, who made her way quietly into the ward by the dim lights of the lamps and the moonlight streaming through the windows at the end of the room. The chair was, as advertised, not the most comfortable, being of plain worn wood with a somewhat threadbare cushion and uneven arms. Still, Kat did not complain as she settled down, looking over the sleeping wizard in the bed. He was battered and bruised, but his face was no longer drawn or ashen, and that was victory enough for the night.
21 December 1995
St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries
Morning sunlight streamed its way through the windows at the end of the hospital ward as the smell of freshly brewed tea and breakfast permeated the healer's desks beyond the doorway. Bill had stopped there to speak with the healer on duty before walking inside to find, much to his surprise that the chair beside his father's bed was occupied. Kat had pulled her legs up beneath her and had her arms tucked into her robes, her head leaning at an angle against the back of the chair as she slept. In the bed, Arthur was sleeping soundly. He had woken a couple of times in the night, relieved to find the friendly young witch who had befriended his eldest son at his side. After his last dose of blood replenishing potion he had fallen asleep and shortly thereafter so too did she.
Bill was at the foot of the bed now, his gaze shifting from his father to Kat. She wore the same robes she had on the previous day, leading him to believe that she had been there all night, though how she had managed that was beyond him. Her breathing was regular and steady, dark lashes fanned out against her cheeks as she slept. She would be stiff when she woke. The position she'd managed to squeeze herself into looked far from comfortable. She could have gone home the night before...after all it wasn't her father who had been hurt. And even taking the time they had spent in Egypt into account, the witch had only had the most basic of encounters with his father outside of the Order's business. And yet here she was.
"Quite a remarkable young woman, don't you think, son?"
Bill started in surprise, not realizing that Molly had arrived, much less that she had come up beside him, looking over the scene. Before he could reply there was a clatter at the opposite end of the ward as an apprentice healer wheeled in a trolly with breakfast trays. The sound woke Kat, who blinked blearily, scanning over Arthur from head to toe and then realizing that Bill and Molly stood at the foot of the bed. Still groggy, she shifted, pulling numb legs out from under her as she sat up.
"Sorry, I must have drifted off. Morning Molly, Bill. Oh holy-"
She winced as a shooting pain alerted her to the level of intense displeasure her neck felt at its treatment. More alarming was the fact that Bill, who had been at the foot of the bed moments before was suddenly beside her, a worried look on his face. "Are you okay?"
Blinking, she reached up and massaged the back of her neck firmly. "I'm fine, just a crick in my neck is all. Here, give me a hand up, my legs are all needles."
Gripping his outstretched hand, she braced for the sharp pain of returning feeling in her legs and pulled herself up. The joyous thing about trying to stand on numb limbs however, is that it can wreak havoc on one's sense of balance. Bill caught her by the waist with his opposite hand and steadied her as she squeezed her eyes shut and shifted from one foot to the other to bring back regular blood flow. After a moment or two, the sensation passed and she was able to focus again, realizing with a warm rush that his hand was still firmly on her waist. Clearing her throat she released his hand and thanked him before turning toward Molly to give her the most recent updates from Arthur's treatment the night before.
Behind her, Bill flexed his hand, now empty and tingling from the loss of contact. Shaking himself, he tried to focus on her words as she relayed the events of the night previous. She was right, Arthur was looking profoundly better than he had the previous day. The witch with the trolly approached the bed as Kat was wrapping up and the smell of sausages, bacon, toast and tea permeated the air. Kat blinked and looked around, awareness and concern creeping into her eyes.
"Merlin's beard-what time is it?"
"Half eight, Ma'am." The healer slid past them, setting down a tray next to Arthur's bed.
The smell of breakfast seemed the final touch needed to wake Arthur from his slumber and he blinked his eyes open, smiling as he saw Molly, Bill, and Kat.
"Well there's a pleasant sight in the morning." With the healer's help he sat up in the bed. Kat straightened her robes and patted Molly's shoulder fondly, murmuring a farewell as she turned to the door. Bill caught her arm as she did, looking at her with confusion.
"What? No goodbye for me? Kat you just spent the entire night curled up in a torture chair to watch over my dad-you can't just slip away silently after something like that-"
Kat freed her arm, letting her hand slide down to hold his. "I'm sorry, Bill, I've got to get to work. I only had yesterday by chance. I'm due in the office in less than an hour. As for last night, I knew everyone would sleep better if they knew he wasn't alone. Now he's not. He's got you and Molly. And I have to work. Go, be with your dad. I'll see you later."
She squeezed his hand lightly and then released it through sheer will and determination and gave him her best attempt at a reassuring smile before walking away, waving to Molly and Arthur as she passed through the doors and out of sight. Behind him, Molly and Arthur exchanged a look before promptly turning to talk of breakfast and tea when Bill turned back to join them.