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Chapter 24- Aftermath
Lori and Daphne stood up shakily. There was a dreary silence in the Great Hall, now filled with upturned chairs and with food; plates and cutlery littered all over the floor. All the teachers stood with their wands raised, glancing fearfully around the room. Dumbledore was standing by the doors, surveying the scene. An icy wind blew in through the hole in the wall, making the scorched house tapestries flutter.
Suddenly, the wall behind them, which had been seriously weakened by the impact of whatever had made the hole, began to crumble. Lori and Daphne screamed and flattened themselves on the floor, using their arms to protect their heads. A piece of rock hit Daphne on the wrist and she screamed with pain. They heard Harry yell with pain as well and fall down next to them, followed by Ron and Hermione.
The next thing they knew was that Dumbledore had yelled something; there was a flash of blue light and then silence. The five of them looked up at the wall, which had been about to collapse on top of them to see pieces of falling rock suspended in thin air, frozen by Dumbledore in the middle of falling. On particularly large piece was a foot above Hermione head.
Daphne, Lori and Hermione stood up shakily. Daphne held her wrist to her chest. It seemed a little flatter than it should be, but was swelling and turning blue as she looked at it. And it really hurt. Ron and Harry were still sitting on the floor, looking at Harry's foot. A piece of rock had fallen on it, and it was bleeding badly and also swelling to twice its side. Ron had a nasty cut on his head.
Hermione turned to Daphne and Lori worriedly. "Are you two OK?" She asked. Lori nodded mutely. Daphne held out her arm. "I've hurt my wrist." She said helplessly. Daphne hated acting childish, but right now all she wanted was to be babied. Hermione smiled at her cousin. "We'll sort that out alright." She said softly, tucking Daphne's hair behind her ears.
Lori gasped. "Hermione- your arm!" she said, pointing at her. Hermione's left arm had a long, nasty cut on it, which was pouring blood down on to her hand. Hermione's eyes widened as she observed the cut; she hadn't even noticed it. Silently, she wrapped her sleeve around it and held it tightly.
Ron and Harry stood up at this point, still looking around at the debris. The other people in the hall were also beginning to stand up and come to life again- and all of them looked shocked and scared. Ron's head was still bleeding, and he was helping Harry to regain his balance on his foot, which was also bleeding badly.
Harry looked up. "Hospital Wing anyone?" He said. Hermione nodded, and put an arm each around Daphne and Lori, beginning to steer them out of the hall.
"Ron!" Ron spun around to see Ginny's best friend, Lisa Burbank, running towards them looking distraught. She skidded to a halt in front of Ron, trying to get her breath. "Ron, Ginny, she's hurt." Ron went pale. "Where is she?" He demanded. Lisa pointed across the hall to where Colin Creevey was bending down over something.
Ron ran off so quickly that Harry almost fell over, but Hermione caught him before he did. Her and Harry made their way across the hall after Ron, as quickly as they could with Harry limping unsteadily.
Ginny was lying on the floor, looking as if she was sleeping soundly. Ron kneeled down next to her, where Colin was trying to wake her up. "She's been stunned." Ron said, pulling out his wand and pointing it has his sister. "Enervate." He said, as Harry and Hermione hobbled over. "Is she alright?" Harry asked, leaning on the Ravenclaw table. Ginny's eyes fluttered open and she groaned. Ron leant over her. "Ginny?" He said urgently. Ginny looked up at Ron dazedly. "Ron?" She said. She shook her head slightly, and tried to sit up. "Ow!" She cried, reaching for her ankle. It was swollen badly, and bent at a nasty angle.
Ginny swore under her breath. "Ow." She said again, her eyes filling with tears. She looked up at Ron and her eyes widened. "What happened to your head?" She asked worriedly. Ron rolled his eyes. "I'm fine." He said, sitting back on his heels. "We need to get you to the Hospital Wing." He added.
Ginny nodded. "OK. Help me up." She said, putting her hand on his shoulder. She started to get up, but fell back down again. "Damn it." She said, trying again. She was almost standing up, when Ron lost patience, bent down, and picked her up instead. Ginny wasn't going without a struggle though.
"Ron!" She cried, hitting him hard on the arm. "Ron, I can walk you know!" She said in annoyance. "Hermione, help!" She said, looking over Ron's shoulder. Hermione shrugged helplessly at Ginny as her and Harry began to follow again.
Ginny noticed Harry had hurt his foot, and turned back to Ron. "Harry's limping- why don't you carry him instead?" She demanded. Ron glared at her. "Shut up." He said sternly. And she did. By this time they had reached Daphne and Lori again, who were standing awkwardly wondering what to do.
Ron and Ginny led the way out of the hall, and over to the marble staircase. The entrance hall was also littered with people's dropped bags and bits of food, with they all had to avoid carefully.
If Ginny had thought that her brother would put her down when they got to the staircase, she was sorely mistaken. He walked up them without any trouble, and she was left to just sitting there like an invalid. Even though she was secretly enjoying the attention Ron was giving her.
They all reached the Hospital Wing corridor after about five minutes, and there panic stricken students held them up, all looking around in terror. None of them seemed to be injured at all- they just didn't know where to go. Ron and Harry were starting to get annoyed, and Ginny was starting to get very bored, when Professor McGonagall's voice, magically magnified, rang through the school.
"All students who are not injured to go to bed immediately. All others report to Hospital wing. Only SERIOUS ailments please."
Ron, (and Ginny), Harry, Hermione, Lisa, Daphne and Lori jumped to the side of the corridor as the crowd turned on their heels and stampeded towards their prospective common rooms, glad to have somewhere to go. This left their way relatively clear, with only a few people making their way into the wing. The truth was not many people had actually been seriously injured in the attack, thank Merlin.
There were only about five people in the Hospital Wing so far when the group entered. Much to her relief, Ron set Ginny down straight away, and everyone gathered around her bed, while Harry sat down on the one next to it. His foot was still badly bleeding, and he was finding it difficult to walk. They had only just sat down, when many more people arrived, all of them with cuts and grazes.
Madam Pomfrey was rushed off her feet. She was running round the Wing, healing bones, putting sticky orange goo on burns, and completely ignoring those with cuts- except for pointing in the direction of the bottles holding the pink liquid that healed them. Finally, she got to where Ginny was sitting.
Madam Pomfrey examined Ginny's foot while muttering angrily to herself. She raised her wand and directed it at her foot, healing it instantly. She healed Daphne's wrist equally quickly and Harry was also cured within seconds before she moved onto the next students.
Hermione had fetched a bottle of pink liquid and she and Ron used paper towels to heal their various cuts and scratches. More and more students were coming into the Hospital Wing, most of them keeping their injured friends company, so the group hurried out of the room.
Lori was looking very white, and Daphne made her stand still, concerned. "What's wrong Lori?" She asked. On closer inspection, Lori was almost crying. She lowered her voice. "It's all my fault. All those people are injured because of me." She said, tears spilling down her cheeks.
Daphne sighed and put her arm around Lori, who could not stop crying now she had started. Harry, Hermione and Ron came over, also looking concerned. "Lori it's over- there's no need to cry." Hermione said soothingly, also putting an arm around her. Harry and Ron exchanged a glance- Harry didn't know why the Deatheaters had been there for Lori, but he was sure that's why she was now crying.
Lori shook her head, still crying. "No, I know, but it's." Her words were lost in a fresh wave of sobs. Finally, as the sobs subsided, she managed to say; "I just want to be alone."
Hermione looked very alarmed by this. "No one should be alone right now Lori. It could be dangerous." She said. "Just come back to the common room and."
Lori shook her head, fresh tears forming in her eyes. "I *can't*" She said desperately, stepping back. Hermione looked like she was about to say something else but Ron cut across her. "How about the Prefects' bathroom?" He asked Lori, who looked at him hopefully.
"You know that statue of Boris the Bewildered on the firth floor?" Lori nodded. "It's the fourth door to the left of that. The password is 'mild green'." He told her. Before anyone could say another word, Lori ran off up the stairs, still crying.
Hermione rounded on Ron immediately. "HOW COULD YOU DO THAT?!" She yelled at him angrily. "SHE SHOULDN'T BE ALONE RIGHT NOW! IF SOMETHING HAP-" Ron clamped a hand over Hermione's mouth to stop her yelling. Daphne stepped forward quickly. "Er, Ron I wouldn't."
"Aggh!" Ron yelled, pulling his hand back. "You bit me!" He accused Hermione, half way between fury and disbelief. Hermione eyed him coldly and Daphne sighed. "She always does that. I did try to warn you." She said. Ron rubbed his hand and scowled. "Yeah, well, Lori *does* need to be alone right now. Daphne knows that, don't you?"
He looked at Daphne, who nodded. Hermione frowned. "Why?" She asked. Ron looked over his shoulder at the students still milling around the Hospital Wing. Harry pushed open the door of an empty classroom and beckoned them all into it. Ginny and Lisa had hurried up to Gryffindor tower as soon as they'd got out of the Hospital Wing.
When the four of them were in private, Ron turned to Hermione. "They were here for Lori." He said, straight to the point. Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right." She said. Daphne meanwhile, was staring between Ron and Harry. "How did you know that?" She asked in disbelief.
Hermione rounded on her cousin. "You mean it's *true*?" She gasped. Daphne swallowed, and then nodded. Harry sat down on a desk. "I heard Lucius Malfoy say so when he had you under the Cruciatus." He told Daphne, in answer to her question. Daphne looked down at the floor, knowing it was best to keep her mouth shut. She could almost hear the questions forming in their brains.
"Why would they be here for Lori?" Hermione asked first. Harry shrugged, as did Daphne. Ron narrowed his eyes. "Daphne knows." He said simply. Three pairs of eyes stared at her as Daphne lifted her head. "No I don't." She said in a small voice that she knew sounded very unconvincing. She didn't like being interrogated like this, not one bit.
Ron lifted an eyebrow. "Yes, you do." He said. Daphne didn't answer, and looked back down at the floor again. Ron folded his arms. "How many other people know?" He asked her. Daphne didn't look up, but she was shocked. *He knew*. But how? Maybe he didn't know.but, but, oh, Lori would be so mad."
"Alright, you're not going to answer. Come on, let's get back up to Gryffindor." Ron said finally, heading towards the door. Harry and Hermione went after him, very confused. "What are you talking about?" Hermione asked curiously. Ron looked back at Daphne. "We'll have to ask Lori. Daphne's obviously promised she wouldn't tell anyone." He answered cryptically.
Daphne shot Ron a pleading look and he shrugged. Harry and Hermione frowned. "What?" Harry asked. Ron ignored him. "C'mon, our bags are still in the hall." He said, starting down the stairs. Harry and Hermione exchanged baffled looks but followed their confusing friend down the staircase towards the Great Hall, Daphne walking slowly behind them, lost in her own thoughts.
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Chapter 24- Aftermath
Lori and Daphne stood up shakily. There was a dreary silence in the Great Hall, now filled with upturned chairs and with food; plates and cutlery littered all over the floor. All the teachers stood with their wands raised, glancing fearfully around the room. Dumbledore was standing by the doors, surveying the scene. An icy wind blew in through the hole in the wall, making the scorched house tapestries flutter.
Suddenly, the wall behind them, which had been seriously weakened by the impact of whatever had made the hole, began to crumble. Lori and Daphne screamed and flattened themselves on the floor, using their arms to protect their heads. A piece of rock hit Daphne on the wrist and she screamed with pain. They heard Harry yell with pain as well and fall down next to them, followed by Ron and Hermione.
The next thing they knew was that Dumbledore had yelled something; there was a flash of blue light and then silence. The five of them looked up at the wall, which had been about to collapse on top of them to see pieces of falling rock suspended in thin air, frozen by Dumbledore in the middle of falling. On particularly large piece was a foot above Hermione head.
Daphne, Lori and Hermione stood up shakily. Daphne held her wrist to her chest. It seemed a little flatter than it should be, but was swelling and turning blue as she looked at it. And it really hurt. Ron and Harry were still sitting on the floor, looking at Harry's foot. A piece of rock had fallen on it, and it was bleeding badly and also swelling to twice its side. Ron had a nasty cut on his head.
Hermione turned to Daphne and Lori worriedly. "Are you two OK?" She asked. Lori nodded mutely. Daphne held out her arm. "I've hurt my wrist." She said helplessly. Daphne hated acting childish, but right now all she wanted was to be babied. Hermione smiled at her cousin. "We'll sort that out alright." She said softly, tucking Daphne's hair behind her ears.
Lori gasped. "Hermione- your arm!" she said, pointing at her. Hermione's left arm had a long, nasty cut on it, which was pouring blood down on to her hand. Hermione's eyes widened as she observed the cut; she hadn't even noticed it. Silently, she wrapped her sleeve around it and held it tightly.
Ron and Harry stood up at this point, still looking around at the debris. The other people in the hall were also beginning to stand up and come to life again- and all of them looked shocked and scared. Ron's head was still bleeding, and he was helping Harry to regain his balance on his foot, which was also bleeding badly.
Harry looked up. "Hospital Wing anyone?" He said. Hermione nodded, and put an arm each around Daphne and Lori, beginning to steer them out of the hall.
"Ron!" Ron spun around to see Ginny's best friend, Lisa Burbank, running towards them looking distraught. She skidded to a halt in front of Ron, trying to get her breath. "Ron, Ginny, she's hurt." Ron went pale. "Where is she?" He demanded. Lisa pointed across the hall to where Colin Creevey was bending down over something.
Ron ran off so quickly that Harry almost fell over, but Hermione caught him before he did. Her and Harry made their way across the hall after Ron, as quickly as they could with Harry limping unsteadily.
Ginny was lying on the floor, looking as if she was sleeping soundly. Ron kneeled down next to her, where Colin was trying to wake her up. "She's been stunned." Ron said, pulling out his wand and pointing it has his sister. "Enervate." He said, as Harry and Hermione hobbled over. "Is she alright?" Harry asked, leaning on the Ravenclaw table. Ginny's eyes fluttered open and she groaned. Ron leant over her. "Ginny?" He said urgently. Ginny looked up at Ron dazedly. "Ron?" She said. She shook her head slightly, and tried to sit up. "Ow!" She cried, reaching for her ankle. It was swollen badly, and bent at a nasty angle.
Ginny swore under her breath. "Ow." She said again, her eyes filling with tears. She looked up at Ron and her eyes widened. "What happened to your head?" She asked worriedly. Ron rolled his eyes. "I'm fine." He said, sitting back on his heels. "We need to get you to the Hospital Wing." He added.
Ginny nodded. "OK. Help me up." She said, putting her hand on his shoulder. She started to get up, but fell back down again. "Damn it." She said, trying again. She was almost standing up, when Ron lost patience, bent down, and picked her up instead. Ginny wasn't going without a struggle though.
"Ron!" She cried, hitting him hard on the arm. "Ron, I can walk you know!" She said in annoyance. "Hermione, help!" She said, looking over Ron's shoulder. Hermione shrugged helplessly at Ginny as her and Harry began to follow again.
Ginny noticed Harry had hurt his foot, and turned back to Ron. "Harry's limping- why don't you carry him instead?" She demanded. Ron glared at her. "Shut up." He said sternly. And she did. By this time they had reached Daphne and Lori again, who were standing awkwardly wondering what to do.
Ron and Ginny led the way out of the hall, and over to the marble staircase. The entrance hall was also littered with people's dropped bags and bits of food, with they all had to avoid carefully.
If Ginny had thought that her brother would put her down when they got to the staircase, she was sorely mistaken. He walked up them without any trouble, and she was left to just sitting there like an invalid. Even though she was secretly enjoying the attention Ron was giving her.
They all reached the Hospital Wing corridor after about five minutes, and there panic stricken students held them up, all looking around in terror. None of them seemed to be injured at all- they just didn't know where to go. Ron and Harry were starting to get annoyed, and Ginny was starting to get very bored, when Professor McGonagall's voice, magically magnified, rang through the school.
"All students who are not injured to go to bed immediately. All others report to Hospital wing. Only SERIOUS ailments please."
Ron, (and Ginny), Harry, Hermione, Lisa, Daphne and Lori jumped to the side of the corridor as the crowd turned on their heels and stampeded towards their prospective common rooms, glad to have somewhere to go. This left their way relatively clear, with only a few people making their way into the wing. The truth was not many people had actually been seriously injured in the attack, thank Merlin.
There were only about five people in the Hospital Wing so far when the group entered. Much to her relief, Ron set Ginny down straight away, and everyone gathered around her bed, while Harry sat down on the one next to it. His foot was still badly bleeding, and he was finding it difficult to walk. They had only just sat down, when many more people arrived, all of them with cuts and grazes.
Madam Pomfrey was rushed off her feet. She was running round the Wing, healing bones, putting sticky orange goo on burns, and completely ignoring those with cuts- except for pointing in the direction of the bottles holding the pink liquid that healed them. Finally, she got to where Ginny was sitting.
Madam Pomfrey examined Ginny's foot while muttering angrily to herself. She raised her wand and directed it at her foot, healing it instantly. She healed Daphne's wrist equally quickly and Harry was also cured within seconds before she moved onto the next students.
Hermione had fetched a bottle of pink liquid and she and Ron used paper towels to heal their various cuts and scratches. More and more students were coming into the Hospital Wing, most of them keeping their injured friends company, so the group hurried out of the room.
Lori was looking very white, and Daphne made her stand still, concerned. "What's wrong Lori?" She asked. On closer inspection, Lori was almost crying. She lowered her voice. "It's all my fault. All those people are injured because of me." She said, tears spilling down her cheeks.
Daphne sighed and put her arm around Lori, who could not stop crying now she had started. Harry, Hermione and Ron came over, also looking concerned. "Lori it's over- there's no need to cry." Hermione said soothingly, also putting an arm around her. Harry and Ron exchanged a glance- Harry didn't know why the Deatheaters had been there for Lori, but he was sure that's why she was now crying.
Lori shook her head, still crying. "No, I know, but it's." Her words were lost in a fresh wave of sobs. Finally, as the sobs subsided, she managed to say; "I just want to be alone."
Hermione looked very alarmed by this. "No one should be alone right now Lori. It could be dangerous." She said. "Just come back to the common room and."
Lori shook her head, fresh tears forming in her eyes. "I *can't*" She said desperately, stepping back. Hermione looked like she was about to say something else but Ron cut across her. "How about the Prefects' bathroom?" He asked Lori, who looked at him hopefully.
"You know that statue of Boris the Bewildered on the firth floor?" Lori nodded. "It's the fourth door to the left of that. The password is 'mild green'." He told her. Before anyone could say another word, Lori ran off up the stairs, still crying.
Hermione rounded on Ron immediately. "HOW COULD YOU DO THAT?!" She yelled at him angrily. "SHE SHOULDN'T BE ALONE RIGHT NOW! IF SOMETHING HAP-" Ron clamped a hand over Hermione's mouth to stop her yelling. Daphne stepped forward quickly. "Er, Ron I wouldn't."
"Aggh!" Ron yelled, pulling his hand back. "You bit me!" He accused Hermione, half way between fury and disbelief. Hermione eyed him coldly and Daphne sighed. "She always does that. I did try to warn you." She said. Ron rubbed his hand and scowled. "Yeah, well, Lori *does* need to be alone right now. Daphne knows that, don't you?"
He looked at Daphne, who nodded. Hermione frowned. "Why?" She asked. Ron looked over his shoulder at the students still milling around the Hospital Wing. Harry pushed open the door of an empty classroom and beckoned them all into it. Ginny and Lisa had hurried up to Gryffindor tower as soon as they'd got out of the Hospital Wing.
When the four of them were in private, Ron turned to Hermione. "They were here for Lori." He said, straight to the point. Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right." She said. Daphne meanwhile, was staring between Ron and Harry. "How did you know that?" She asked in disbelief.
Hermione rounded on her cousin. "You mean it's *true*?" She gasped. Daphne swallowed, and then nodded. Harry sat down on a desk. "I heard Lucius Malfoy say so when he had you under the Cruciatus." He told Daphne, in answer to her question. Daphne looked down at the floor, knowing it was best to keep her mouth shut. She could almost hear the questions forming in their brains.
"Why would they be here for Lori?" Hermione asked first. Harry shrugged, as did Daphne. Ron narrowed his eyes. "Daphne knows." He said simply. Three pairs of eyes stared at her as Daphne lifted her head. "No I don't." She said in a small voice that she knew sounded very unconvincing. She didn't like being interrogated like this, not one bit.
Ron lifted an eyebrow. "Yes, you do." He said. Daphne didn't answer, and looked back down at the floor again. Ron folded his arms. "How many other people know?" He asked her. Daphne didn't look up, but she was shocked. *He knew*. But how? Maybe he didn't know.but, but, oh, Lori would be so mad."
"Alright, you're not going to answer. Come on, let's get back up to Gryffindor." Ron said finally, heading towards the door. Harry and Hermione went after him, very confused. "What are you talking about?" Hermione asked curiously. Ron looked back at Daphne. "We'll have to ask Lori. Daphne's obviously promised she wouldn't tell anyone." He answered cryptically.
Daphne shot Ron a pleading look and he shrugged. Harry and Hermione frowned. "What?" Harry asked. Ron ignored him. "C'mon, our bags are still in the hall." He said, starting down the stairs. Harry and Hermione exchanged baffled looks but followed their confusing friend down the staircase towards the Great Hall, Daphne walking slowly behind them, lost in her own thoughts.
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