Chapter 4
No Protection
The next few days past without incidence, unless you count the recurring dream about his master killing him.
First lesson was care of magical creatures. That wouldn't be that bad thought Patrick at least he would be able to see the unicorns again. He ate his breakfast and walked down towards Hagrids hut, instead of the usual unicorn fowls in the pen there was instead a green lizard like creature with glistening fangs and a long tail with huge spikes at the end of it.
'Just got it in,' bellowed Hagrid 'a spike ended Igron, they're a sort of wingless dragon, they can't breath fire but mind they still have fangs and watch out for the tail. I think it's poisonous.' Patrick stared in amazement at the Igron, it was about nine foot long and five foot high. 'Come on you lot, into the pen.' Said Hagrid. They all climbed in and walked cautiously walked towards it. Patrick felt really nervous but strangely exhilarated, every body stopped about three feet away from it. 'Come on you lot he's not that scary.' Said Hagrid. 'Right, I want each of you to go forward and pet him.' Every body murmured uneasily. 'Who wants to go first then?' nobody moved.
'I will.' Said Patrick at last. He walked forward and petted the Igron on the back. Unfortunately as soon as his hand touched the Igron it roared and swung it's tail at Patrick. He didn't have time to react and the tail hit him hard in the chest, he felt one of the spikes puncture his lung and he felt unbelievable pain. This time it was different, this time he could not ignore it, this time he realised something was missing. He let out an ear-splitting scream before slipping into a troubled unconscious.
When he awoke the first thing he saw was Madame Pomfrey's face looming over him. He tried to speak but found all he could do was cough, blood came out of his mouth as he coughed and Madame Pomfrey pushed him back onto his bed
'Don't try to talk.' She said sharply 'don't know why they let that thing into the castle, stupid if you ask me, far to dangerous but there you are.' Patrick tried to move his arm to get a glass of water on the table next to his bead but all he accomplished was getting himself a jolt of pain searing up his arm. He looked down at it and saw it was heavily bandaged and in a sling, his chest was even more bandaged. He looked at the calendar on the wall and realised that he had been in the hospital wing for five days.
'…How…' he managed to gasp.
'How come its taken so long for you to heal? Well that thing has very powerful venom and it's taken all this time to work itself out of you're system.' Patrick nodded to show his recognition and then lay down and went back to sleep.
When he awoke on Sunday he thought about what had happened. He had felt pain, but it had not been like normal. Normally it was dull and distant but this time it had been vibrant and real. He mulled it over in his mind for a while in his head and came to the only sensible conclusion, that every other time he had felt pain his master had dulled it for him and now for some reason that protection had been removed.
Patrick got out of bead and decided he had only two choices, one he could go and talk to his master or alternatively he could run, not physically of course that would be impossible but he could ignore his master, not answer her and of course not carry out his mission. Yes that would be the best way to go, just ignore her.
Patrick suddenly felt a weight being lifted of his shoulders, it was almost as if the link between him and his master had been broken. Of course there was a big draw back, he no longer came under the protection given by his master and if the dream was a vision of things to come then his master was after him. Just then Madame Pomfrey bustled into the room and said 'Oh good you're up.' She pulled the curtain round his bed and waited for him to get dressed. Once he was ready she insisted on giving him a final pepper up potion before letting him leave. It was the start of the Christmas holidays and Patrick decided to go for a walk in the grounds. When he reached the lake he saw Amy standing on the other side of it, he thought for a moment then went and joined her.
'Hello' he said clearly startling her.
'Hello' she replied and looked down at the sling, 'what happened?'
'Care of magical creatures happened' he replied, they talked for a while and eventually got to the subject of Leanne, 'That's the werewolf/Deatheater isn't it?'
'How did you know?'
'I have my ways,' he replied mysteriously