Written for Writer's Month 2022. Prompt #11: Hospital.
Happy reading!
It finally clicked. The whole mystery of the monster from the Chamber of Secrets just made sense to her, and she made a beeline for the library, wishing to get the full answer as soon as possible. If what she had in mind was true, it would mean everyone at the school was in great danger. She quickened her pace.
Getting to the library she went directly to the aisle with books focused on magical creatures – reptiles, to be precise. She could remember reading about a creature which fit into all the clues about the current situation at school, but she needed to find the book referencing it and check it. She browsed the books for a few moments and then picked one, opening it and going throught the contents. A few minutes later she found what she had been looking for.
Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size, and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it.
Hermione read the passage, becoming more convinced she had been right with every line she read. Flees only from the crowing of the rooster – Hagrid's roosters were being killed, presumably by the heir of Slytherin, in order to protect the monster. All who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death – nobody died, but... None of the students looked it in the eye! Most probably seeing its eyes indirectly, in a reflection of through a camera, caused only Petrification. It all made sense!
Now, the question remained – how did it move around the castle? Surely someone would have noticed a giant serpent going through the school halls – unless... The pipes! The creature was moving through the pipes, only coming out to attack. Hesitating for barely a second, Hermione scribbled the word pipes next to the text, and then, with a heavy heart, tore that part of the page out of the book. She held it in her hand and left the library, looking around every corner in her hand mirror, in case the basilisk was near. She cautioned Penelope Clearwater, a sixth year Ravenclaw who left the library then as well, to do the same – and it was good that she did. Two corners later she caught sight of a pair of yellow eyes, and then – darkness.
She was beginning to see. It felt like a great, black cloud had been pressed against her eyes and now it was disappearing in patches. She was also feeling quite disoriented – the last thing she could remember were the eyes of the basilisk seen in the mirror. She tried to move around and see where she was, but found it impossible – she couldn't move at all.
I must be petrified, she thought with confusion. Everything she read about Petrification caused by magical creatures pointed to the victim being unconscious while petrified, yet she was quite aware. Must be some kind of a fluke – I'm affected differently than most. Seeing as she wasn't in any pain, she didn't particularly mind.
She took in the surroundings she could see from her position – she was obviously in the Hospital wing. She could hear Professor McGonagall speaking with Madam Pomfrey about the situation getting more serious. Professor Dumbledore came shortly afterwards, saying how unless they found the attacker soon the school would have to be closed. They spoke some more, but it was too quiet for Hermione to hear. Soon enough Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall left, leaving her in the Hospital wing with Madam Pomfrey and the other victims of the basilisk.
- So terrible... Hogwarts has become a dangerous place...
Hermione could hear Madam Pomfrey muttering while moving about the Hospital wing, checking on her patients. There wasn't much to be done for any of them – they simply had to wait for Professor Sprout's Mandrakes to mature so the potion which would help them all could be made. However, Madam Pomfrey couldn't very well leave the Petrified students unattended in the meantime and, besides, she drew certain comfort from checking up on them.
She soon reached Hermione and entered her line of vision. Hermione tried blinking, or at least moving her eyeballs in an attempt to let Madam Pomfrey know she was conscious, but to no avail – there was no way for her to move any part of her body, save for those required for breathing and pumping blood. She even tried breathing in a different way, making shorter or longer breaths in order to get the Matron's attention, but it was impossible – it was like her whole body was operating on auto-pilot, not letting her affect it in any way.
The Matron checked on her very quickly – Hermione supposed she had already examined her more closely before the fog lifted from her mind and her senses. Soon enough, Madam Pomfrey once again left her field of vision. At the same time, Hermione could hear the door of the Hospital wing open. Footsteps could be heard, and then voices.
- Hermione!
- Oh, no! Hermione!
Those were Harry and Ron's voices – someone had brought them to the infirmary to see her.
- Now, now, boys, I know it looks scary, but she is only Petrified – she'll be back to full health as soon as the potion made of Professor Sprout's Mandrakes is administered.
And that was the voice of Professor McGonagall – clearly, she was the one who brought her best friends. The two of them came closer, and she even got a glimpse of them standing next to her. They looked worried, and scared – it warmed her heart to see how much they cared, but she was sorry they had to feel that way. McGonagall then showed them Hermione's mirror, asking them if they had any idea about its significance. Of course, they didn't – how could they?
Take the paper! Look at my hand and take the paper! Hermione's thoughts were filled with pleas for them to take the page torn from a library book, to find her clue – alas, it was not to be. Soon enough they left, leaving her to once again stare at the empty corner of the Hospital wing which was the only thing in her line of sight.
The rest of the day passed in a boring manner – she could do nothing, and nobody was there to entertain her, since they all thought her to be unconscious. She had counted the tiles on the walls she could see, as well as the cracks in the part of the ceiling covered by her field of vision. Then she did it again. And again. And twenty-six more times after that.
Finally, the night came, and something changed – there was no more light. Hermione wasn't sure if she should be happy or not – on the one hand, the corner of the Hospital wing was driving her crazy; on the other, now she could see nothing. She wondered at the prospect of staring into darkness for hours and hours, but then she found herself getting tired. Soon enough, she was asleep.
The next morning felt much the same as her regaining consciousness felt the previous day. She could see the darkness move away in patches, clearing the way for her eyes to see. It was a strange thought, sleeping with her eyes open – she wondered what her parents would have said had they been there to witness that. The wizarding world was truly curious – so much stuff made no sense, especially to someone raised in the Muggle world.
Hermione became more alert, and took in her surroundings. Madam Pomfrey couldn't be heard – she obviously hadn't yet come to check on them. Thinking of that, Hermione thought about the other students who had been Petrified – Collin, Justin, Penelope. Were they aware of the things happening around them as well? Or was she the only one conscious despite being Petrified?
Similar questions arose in her head concerning the current mental states of Mrs Norris and Sir Nicholas. One of them was an animal, and the other wasn't even alive, but a ghost – could that affect the reaction to the Petrification? Hermione couldn't really answer that, but she was curious – and, after all, she didn't have much better stuff to do than to think, did she?
Somewhere during the day Madam Pomfrey came a few times to check on them all, casting spells on them to ensure they were still healthy and freshening their beds with magic. Students came to the Hospital Wing as well – some of them in need of minor medical help, but most just visiting their friends.
The Matron wouldn't let many people visit – she claimed it wouldn't be beneficial to her patients. Hermione didn't really know about the other victims, but she certainly enjoyed the company – anything to distract her from the boredom of being stuck in the Hospital wing without anyone knowing she was conscious.
Harry and Ron visited as well. They told her how their day went, and even read some of the school books, guessing she would be distraught about missing classes. She was a bit dismayed at the prospect of missing weeks of classes – how would she pass her exams – but it wasn't really the main reason for her appreciation of their reading. She was just happy there was something going on that she could focus on.
The following days passed in a similar manner. She would sleep during the nights, waking when sunlight reached her eyes. She would pass the time looking at the corner and listening to the Matron bustling about the Hospital wing. She'd list potions ingredients, review Transfiguration theory, and even think about the Goblin wars. She did anything and everything in order to keep herself from going mad with boredom.
Harry and Ron visited every day. They talked a lot, trying to fill up the silence caused by her immobile state. She looked forward to their visits; however, she was getting frustrated by the fact that no one had found the ripped page in her hand yet. Seriously, they saw the mirror she held in one hand – was it that much of a stretch to think she could have been holding something else in her other hand as well?
Many days passed, and the atmosphere in the school got even more sombre and dark. Even Hermione, stuck in the Hospital wing, could feel it – Harry and Ron's stories were lacking in any joviality lately, Madam Pomfrey's mutterings were getting darker, and the professors that dropped by to talk to the school matron talked in hushed, but definitely worried tones.
Harry and Ron told her about Hagrid getting taken away to Azkaban, as well as the Acromantula nest they had found in the Forbidden Forest. Of course – spiders running away from the basilisk - she thought. Still, the two of them didn't know the answer. She wanted to scream at them – Take the paper from my hand, dammit! – but she couldn't. She was beginning to lose hope when, finally, Harry took her hand in his and felt the crumpled paper. The two of them pulled the paper out of her stone-like hand and read it, finally finding out the answer to the mysterious trouble brewing at the school. They left the Hospital wing shortly after.
The following events were presumably very action-filled; however, not much of the news reached her in her hospital bed. If she understood well, someone had been taken to the Chamber, and Harry and Ron went after them. Hermione was worried – how was it that they were always in the middle of it – but she didn't really know what was happening until it was all over.
Apparently, it was Ginny, Ron's sister, who had been taken – they brought her to the Hospital wing later on. Hermione was horrified – poor Ginny! And the rest of the Weasley family, of course – they must have been terrified! Still, it seemed Ginny would be alright eventually, thanks to Ron and Harry, who was also in the Hospital wing.
Harry and Ginny were released from the Hospital wing the same day, with the Weasley family coming to Hogwarts in order to be with Ginny. They all left, and Hermione was once again deprived of any significant news.
Shortly after, word came that the potion to revive the Petrification victims was ready. Hermione was elated – finally, she'd be able to move and leave the Hospital wing. The potion was administered, and she thought briefly how she'd be able to find out if anyone else was conscious as well while Petrified. Soon enough, the world started spinning, and everything got dark.
And then, she blinked. She could see Madam Pomfrey next to her, checking on her. A moment later the door to the Hospital wing opened, letting Harry and Ron inside. They both hugged her, telling her how happy they were she was awake again.
- So, you solved the mystery? Is the basilisk defeated?
Hermione looked at her two friends with a smile on her face.
- Yes, we did – Harry killed it, it's a long story – anyway, you were brilliant! If it weren't for your paper we'd never have known it was a basilisk!
She nodded in satisfaction, unable to stop the relieved laughter.
- Oh, you found it – I was worried if you would. Anyway, you'll have to tell me everything – I can't believe I missed so much time! How long was I petrified, anyway? I don't remember anything.
The boys faces became serious once more.
- Two weeks, Hermione – it was really scary. We came every day to see you, and the adults kept telling us you'd be fine, but seeing you so still for so long...
Both of them shuddered at that. Hermione hugged them once more.
- Don't worry now – I'm alright. We're all good.
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