The following week had been uneventful at Grimmauld Place, the house still fighting their efforts to clear it. Kreacher's hands healed within a couple of days, when he resumed enthusiastically cleaning alongside Penny. The young witch spent a great deal of time with the elf, learning a great deal about their culture, their history and abilities. This was partly out of genuine curiosity but also as a way of pacifying Hermione by way of contribution of knowledge to S.P.E.W. Penny couldn't help but admire the older witch's determination even if she somewhat disagreed with the premise. A trait, Penny had told the bushy haired witch, would have made her a student worthy of Slytherin. Hermione's uncharacteristically colourful response had made Penny snort loudly.
Kreacher also spoke passionately about the House of Black and the history of the family. Narcissa had told Penny a great deal about the family too, along with several of the other Pure blood families but Kreacher had a curious insight into their lives. Sirius' mother Walburga had been incredibly fond of her older brother Cygnus and her eldest niece Bellatrix who had stayed at the house a few times with her mother and sisters. Penny felt a painful pang in her gut as Kreacher described how her mother used to dance gracefully around the drawing room as Narcissa and Andromeda played a duet on the piano. Penny had snuck away from the others into the drawing room one afternoon. Her eyes wondered over the grand piano, running her long fingers along the dusty keys before playfully tapping on a few keys. An angry vibration was followed by a swarm of Billywigs emerging from the back of the piano buzzing loudly. Ron had enjoyed watching Mrs Weasley plucking several stings from her shoulders, Penny giggling slightly as she floated against the ropes holding her to the chair. On a few occasions Penny had watched Sirius struggling with Kreacher, the latter trying desperately to prevent Sirius from disposing of various Black heirlooms. She said nothing but more than once had helped Kreacher sneak items back out the black sacks, usually involving gesturing the elf whilst the others were distracted.
Penny had returned to St Mungo's on the Monday, to yet more cleaning. Hilda Smock and her team had rotated to each floor on various days, Penny going to wherever Hilda was for the day. Penny had seen Hippocrates a few times in passing, occasionally when he was treating patients. Although she had managed to hold her tongue Penny had lingered whenever she could to listen in on the Healers conversations. Once or twice she had seen Hippocrates scowl in her direction, his dark eyes disappearing beneath his eyebrows. He however, had evidently decided it was best just to ignore the young witch. Augustus Pye had come to speak with her during his breaks on a couple of occasions, talking about various branches of Healing and sometimes asking her opinion on patients. The other women had watched these interactions with interest, and whispered gossip when they thought Penny couldn't hear. It amused Penny, given that none of them had any Occlumency training, so their loud and opinionated thoughts was easy to read whenever she decided to make eye contact. For the most part she didn't bother, as she found most of their day to day thoughts dull and repetitive. As for Pye, she sensed he viewed her with more platonic curiosity and academic interest than any of the cleaners were inclined to believe.
On the Wednesday Penny followed Hilda to the fourth floor, Spell Damage. Walking around Penny looked at the various patients with interest, getting wrapped round the back of the head with a cloth by Hilda when she dawdled too long. In one such ward she saw a witch covered in scales, and gathered from the Healers conversation that this was the result of a poor attempt at becoming an Animagus.
"So you repeated the incantation at dawn and dusk every day?" The Healer asked the witch who nodded frantically, her eyes strangely bulged and round. "Are you sure?" He said frowning in bafflement. "That's strange. Our tests indicate the incantation was the source of the failed Transfiguration. Can you demonstrate what you did?" He asked. The witch raised her fin to her chest and began mumbling an incantation, through what sounded like a bubble. "Wait, you didn't use your wand?" The Healer asked to which the witch shook her head, saying something Penny couldn't catch. "Yes, it is true Uagadou students often become Animagi wandlessly but they specialise in wandless magic. It would take extreme skill and focus to successfully Self Transfigure yourself without a wand." He explained. Looking up he stared at Penny who quickly busied herself gathering the bed pans along the ward.
In the afternoon Penny followed Hilda into another fairly empty ward, peering round as she walked. One patient at the far end snored loudly on his side facing away from her, wisps of gray hair sporadically covering his head. As instructed Penny went along clearing and removing old bed sheets. Reaching the end bed she circled round, crouching to grab the bed pan underneath the bed. The man stirred, rolling over clumsily to face her, a long trail of drool dangling from his lips. Opening his eyes blearily, his came face to face with Penny. Meeting his eyes Penny froze, his look of horror revealing yellow stained teeth that were burned into her memory. The smell of petrol and tobacco flooded her nose, fear pulsing through her system.
The man let out a blood curling scream that echoed the ward. Penny scrambled away from him, crashing into Hilda in her haste to get away from the man, words that didn't penetrate Penny's mind uttered from the older witch. Flinging herself into the corridor Penny was oblivious to the stares as she bolted down the stairway. Reaching the Cleaners room she collapsed against the large washing drums, her trembling legs unable to hold her up anymore. She raised shaking hands to her wet face, images flashing rapidly through her mind, she could see the derelict building, feel his hand over her face, smell the stench of his breath. Tugging at her chaotic locks of hair she pressed her knuckles into her eyes, trying to force away the images, the feelings. It's not happening, she thought to herself, it's not real. The sound of the door opening made her jump out of her skin, crawling away from the noise and under a metal racking.
"Penny?" A voice called, Penny hissing at the sound. Hilda came into view, her expression wary. "Penny?" She repeated in a quieter tone, approaching the girl slowly. Penny didn't answer, staring at the ground as she wrapped her arms around herself. Hilda lowered herself to sit beside the girl, a grunt of discomfort as her old limps obeyed her. She remained silent, glancing at the young witch a few times as Penny blinked furiously.
"Want to talk about it?" Hilda asked bluntly, although her voice lacked its usual bite. When Penny remained silent Hilda continued. "Who is he?" She asked.
"Nobody." Penny replied curtly. Feeling Hilda's sceptical gaze Penny went on. "Just a worthless Muggle who got what he deserved." She muttered, standing up abruptly. Hilda followed suit, taking considerably longer to get to her feet.
"Muggles are not worthless Penny." Hilda replied as she straightened up, Penny scowling down at her.
"I didn't say that." She said.
"Yes you did. And what you say becomes what you think." Hilda retorted, Penny scowl deepening. "He isn't worthless because he is a Muggle, he is worthless because he tried to prey on what he assumed was the weak."
"Well he was wrong." Penny responded haughtily, her blue eyes blazing.
"That is not the point." Hilda said, her tone stern. "Power, real or assumed, will always show a person's true character." Hilda said as Penny stared at her.
"You are too smart to be a cleaner." Penny said sardonically as Hilda's lip twitched in amusement.
"I am a Muggle Born, if you think the prejudice is bad now, try forty odd years ago." Hilda said with a bitter laugh.
"You lost people." Penny asserted to a surprised Hilda.
"Both my parents were killed by pureblood supremacists…that said Muggles were worthless." Hilda said with a very pointed look at Penny, who shuffled uncomfortably. "Let's get back to work." Hilda said leading Penny back up the stairs. Pausing Hilda glanced at the ward sigh which said 'Janus Thickey Ward." Penny looked along the corridor at the adjacent ward she had run from and back at the ward in front of her.
"The Longbottoms are in this ward." She deduced, recalling the article in which Rita Skeeter had pointed out the irony. Hilda nodded before looking back at Penny.
"I'll get Miriam to find you another job to do. Wait here." Hilda instructed before strolling off. Curiosity got the better of the young witch, and she caught the door when the next Healer exited the ward. Holding it open she stared down the ward, looking for any familiar faces. On one side was a furry figure Penny couldn't have identified as either a witch or wizard if it wasn't for the flowery nighty. A loud thud on the other side made Penny jump as a Healer struggled with a tall slim figure throwing a tantrum. As the floppy haired wizard wrestled on the ground Penny recognised him as none other than former Defense Against the Art's teacher Gilderoy Lockhart.
"No Gilderoy! That's a very naughty boy!" The Healer said as Lockhart threw a box of crayons that smacked against the ward door. Penny snorted to herself before her eyes travelled further up the ward. A witch with a large decorative hat sat with her back to Penny, opposite none other than Neville Longbottom, who was looking strained. Looking at the witch and wizard on adjacent beds Penny felt nauseous. Unlike old pictures she had seen, the two of them looked frail and thin, both with bulging eyes and timid movements. As she watched Neville's father made a strange noise between a gargle and a grunt before lunging for his mother, causing her to shriek as he snatched her hat. Sitting back on the bed, he mindlessly shredded it to pieces, apparently oblivious to his mother's anger. Neville's mother on the other hand, her large bulging eyes on her son, shuffled up to him, pressing something into his hand, a wrapper of some sort Penny thought. Penny felt a rush of sadness as she saw Neville pocket the wrapper, his expression one of both happiness and grief.
Penny pulled back from the door, allowing it to close behind her, her thoughts whirling. That is what her mother had done to them. She thought to herself, broken their minds. A bitter pool of sadness formed in her gut as the image of Neville looking so broken lingered behind her eyes. Her eyes flickered along the corridor to the next ward, her thoughts still on her mother. Maybe we are not so different after all, she thought bitterly, her own victim in a similar state. Hopefully her own crime would not be the thing she too was remembered for, she contemplated. At that moment Hilda reappeared, leading her to a room further down the corridor. In there, amongst enormous piles of paperwork, the witch Miriam explained how the hospital had been intending to switch to a new filing system but the back log had gotten out of hand with nobody willing to give up their valuable time to sort it.
"Giving that some of the wards on this floor are…potentially sensitive to you…this seems like a good alternative." Hilda said as Penny looked apprehensively at the chaotic mountains of parchment.
"From Cleaner to Filing Clerk, how exciting is my life." Penny said sarcastically as Hilda gave her a stern look.
"Naturally some of this paperwork contains sensitive personal information, so you'll have to sign a Non-Disclosure Scroll." Miriam said in a cheery tone, pushing the parchment across to the young witch. Penny picked up the parchment, turning it over critically.
"I am guessing it has a Confidentiality Charm placed on it?" Penny asked, Miriam blinking in surprise before nodding. "Sure, why not." Penny said rolling her eyes before scratching Persephone Black onto the parchment in a messy scribble.
With a sigh of resignation Penny got to work, skim reading she quickly placed each piece of parchment into relevant new piles. The work was repetitive and dull but allowed her mind to wonder over the events of the day. She pondered on what treatment, if any, the Longbottoms were being given. As far as she knew, there was very little Healing magic relating to the mind, as any that had been trialled had not shown to cause much if any improvement. That's because very few Healers were very skilled in either Legilimency or Occlumency, Penny reasoned. It could be an area she specialised in when she became a Healer, she thought decisively. If anyone could cure them, it would be her, she concluded. At the very least she would give it a damn good try.
THAT is what she would be remembered for.