The trip down to the infirmary was infinitely less pleasant than the trip to the tower. As it happens, lionesses who have been transfigured into furry marbles cannot emote. They have no way of communicating pain. Lily, however, was no longer in spiffy furry marble form. She was very much a human, and very much in pain. She rarely cried out, but just watching the girl try valiantly to make it on her own to the infirmary, with gashes that went deep into her back, was painful.
"Miss Evans! Mr. Potter, Black, Pettigrew! And Miss Brandon!" Madame Pomfrey said, falling back on her old habit of announcing to herself who was in the room, it served to help her remember names. "What is the matter?"
Lily turned and lifted her blood-soaked shirt enough to reveal the wounds.
"Lie down on the bed there, dear. Stomach down." Pomfrey said, immediately barking orders. "Black! Go to the store room and get me the Impendus Potion! It's the purple one with the green stopper. Brandon! Go to the Med-Lab in the back and fetch the three tomes of "Wands and Wounds" from the shelf! Pettigrew, for heavens' sakes! Go back to the dorm and lie down, I know as well as you do that you cannot handle the sight of blood!"
As the four students complied, James remained standing, uneasy, staring at Lily's back. "And what about me, Madame Pomfrey?"
"Potter, sit there and hold her hand, this is not going to be pleasant for her." Poppy said grimly.
James slid into the chair next to the bed that Lily was laying upon. His hand found hers quickly and she turned her head to face him. "God, I'm pathetic. Can't even handle a scratch, can I?" She said, laughing weakly.
"That's a site more than a scratch, Tiger Lily. And you aren't pathetic in the least, if I were you I'd be bawling my eyes out. You're very strong…" He whispered, as Sirius returned with the purple potion.
"Here, Madame Pomfrey." He said, and hurriedly handed her the potion.
Pomfrey nodded and set about inspecting the wound. Lily jumped every time she touched it, and squeezed his hand tightly. Pomfrey dabbed the potion onto the wound, and Lily literally hissed from the pain. James clung to her hand, feeling stupid and useless as she jumped.
He made calming, soothing noises absently, and watched as Kaleb returned with the large books. She sat the tomes down on the table, and bit her lip so hard that she drew blood.
Pomfrey frowned as she worked, one hand applying the potion skillfully, the other flipping through the three volumes left on the table, searching for a specific spell, that apparently only she would have the knowledge of medicine to recognize.
The doors to the infirmary opened loudly, and in walked Minerva McGonagall, floating a young Mr. Lupin behind her. "Poppy, I've brought him." She said, ignoring the presence of the students.
"Place him there, Minerva, Miss Evans has a bit of a scratch." Pomfrey said, absently, gesturing to the bed beside Lily's. McGonagall quickly complied, and then promptly left the room, leaving no greeting nor word to the occupants of the room.
Remus lay completely still on the bed, his eyes transfixed on Lily's back, where blood was currently gushing from a rather large wound. 'Did I do that? What happened to her?' Remus thought frantically, searching his mind for the events of the previous night.
Sirius was instantly by Remus' side, checking his friend for broken bones and abrasions. "I'm fine, Siri." Remus said impatiently, batting his friend's hands away. "Is she alright, Madame?" He asked, his voice small.
"Time will tell, Mr. Lupin. Time will tell." Poppy was not one to commit herself to a false promise, nor to diagnose without sufficient data, and therefore would not predict an outcome.
Pomfrey spread the edges of the wound apart, causing Lily to cry out, loudly. "Ah! Just kill me and get it over with!" Lily hissed, tears welled in her eyes nearly to the point of overflowing.
James knelt beside the bed, and brought Lily's hand to his lips, gently brushing his lips across the smooth skin. "It'll be ok, Tiger Lily…I promise." James said, whispering sincerely to the girl.
Although Pomfrey was not about to back up his statement, she knew he was being sincere, and not giving empty promises. "Aha!" She said, obviously pleased with herself, as she paused on a certain entry in the large volume. Poppy touched her wand to Lily's wound, causing her to cry out when the incantation was made. The blood immediately stopped flowing from the wound, and Pomfrey cleared it away gently. Casting another spell, she began to sew up the damage, and ended with a clean white bandage around her middle.
Lily shuddered as the bandages scraped against the sensitive and abused flesh, fresh waves of pain coursing through her. "God--Jamie!" She said sharply, the tears finally flowing down her cheeks. She tightened her grasp on his hand, to the point that if she held him any tighter she would break bones.
Pomfrey raised her wand and summoned a flask. "Now, Miss Evans, I want you to take a swallow of this every hour, and come back here when it is empty. It will not rid you of all of the pain, I'm afraid, as the bite appears to have been made by a magical creature. You are free to leave. Mr. Black, how is Mr. Lupin?"
Sirius did not tear his eyes from his tawny friend, but responded, "He's fine…as well as can be expected anyway."
"Then you all are free to leave. Get some rest, eat some chocolate. And I do not want to see the lot of you for a long while!" She said, sternly although her eyes glinted with motherly affection.
Lily swallowed a mouthful of the clear liquid in the flask given to her and shuddered at the sour taste. "Thank you, Madame." She said as she rose to her feet, leaning on Kaleb for support as the group exited the infirmary.
Once the door had been securely shut, and the Marauders-plus were roughly halfway down that particular corridor, with no one else in sight, Remus turned to face Lily. He stopped her by placing hands on her shoulders, then retracting them suddenly, as if afraid to hurt her. "What happened?" He asked, his voice intense.
Sirius placed a hand on his tawny-headed friend's shoulder. "Rem…When Lily and Kaleb were in their animal forms…you didn't know them. Moony didn't know them. And you jumped at Kaleb, Lily, of course, threw herself in the way and…well a great deal of fighting ensued. You ended up biting Lily pretty deeply in the back before you realized they were friends." Sirius said, voice low and worried.
Remus stood, silent. He blinked, several times, as if to clear his head of the images rushing into it. He opened his mouth three times in succession, and no sound came from it. His mind, apparently, was incapable of formulating a response to the revelation, and in true fight or flight response, he ran. The sounds of his feet slapping the stone floors grew smaller, and the echoes began to dim.
"I--I have to talk to him." Lily said turning sharply to follow the werewolf. The pain in her back, although it began to ebb due to the potion, was intense. "I think you guys are bad luck, I've been hurt twice since I've started speaking to you!" She laughed.
James' eyes darkened, and guilt washed over him again and again. It grew extremely intense, to where tears pricked at his eyes. His stomach twisted in knots, and he felt the insane urge to hold Lily until Hogwarts fell down around them. To protect her from anyone that would dare try and hurt her.
"Miss Evans! Mr. Potter, Black, Pettigrew! And Miss Brandon!" Madame Pomfrey said, falling back on her old habit of announcing to herself who was in the room, it served to help her remember names. "What is the matter?"
Lily turned and lifted her blood-soaked shirt enough to reveal the wounds.
"Lie down on the bed there, dear. Stomach down." Pomfrey said, immediately barking orders. "Black! Go to the store room and get me the Impendus Potion! It's the purple one with the green stopper. Brandon! Go to the Med-Lab in the back and fetch the three tomes of "Wands and Wounds" from the shelf! Pettigrew, for heavens' sakes! Go back to the dorm and lie down, I know as well as you do that you cannot handle the sight of blood!"
As the four students complied, James remained standing, uneasy, staring at Lily's back. "And what about me, Madame Pomfrey?"
"Potter, sit there and hold her hand, this is not going to be pleasant for her." Poppy said grimly.
James slid into the chair next to the bed that Lily was laying upon. His hand found hers quickly and she turned her head to face him. "God, I'm pathetic. Can't even handle a scratch, can I?" She said, laughing weakly.
"That's a site more than a scratch, Tiger Lily. And you aren't pathetic in the least, if I were you I'd be bawling my eyes out. You're very strong…" He whispered, as Sirius returned with the purple potion.
"Here, Madame Pomfrey." He said, and hurriedly handed her the potion.
Pomfrey nodded and set about inspecting the wound. Lily jumped every time she touched it, and squeezed his hand tightly. Pomfrey dabbed the potion onto the wound, and Lily literally hissed from the pain. James clung to her hand, feeling stupid and useless as she jumped.
He made calming, soothing noises absently, and watched as Kaleb returned with the large books. She sat the tomes down on the table, and bit her lip so hard that she drew blood.
Pomfrey frowned as she worked, one hand applying the potion skillfully, the other flipping through the three volumes left on the table, searching for a specific spell, that apparently only she would have the knowledge of medicine to recognize.
The doors to the infirmary opened loudly, and in walked Minerva McGonagall, floating a young Mr. Lupin behind her. "Poppy, I've brought him." She said, ignoring the presence of the students.
"Place him there, Minerva, Miss Evans has a bit of a scratch." Pomfrey said, absently, gesturing to the bed beside Lily's. McGonagall quickly complied, and then promptly left the room, leaving no greeting nor word to the occupants of the room.
Remus lay completely still on the bed, his eyes transfixed on Lily's back, where blood was currently gushing from a rather large wound. 'Did I do that? What happened to her?' Remus thought frantically, searching his mind for the events of the previous night.
Sirius was instantly by Remus' side, checking his friend for broken bones and abrasions. "I'm fine, Siri." Remus said impatiently, batting his friend's hands away. "Is she alright, Madame?" He asked, his voice small.
"Time will tell, Mr. Lupin. Time will tell." Poppy was not one to commit herself to a false promise, nor to diagnose without sufficient data, and therefore would not predict an outcome.
Pomfrey spread the edges of the wound apart, causing Lily to cry out, loudly. "Ah! Just kill me and get it over with!" Lily hissed, tears welled in her eyes nearly to the point of overflowing.
James knelt beside the bed, and brought Lily's hand to his lips, gently brushing his lips across the smooth skin. "It'll be ok, Tiger Lily…I promise." James said, whispering sincerely to the girl.
Although Pomfrey was not about to back up his statement, she knew he was being sincere, and not giving empty promises. "Aha!" She said, obviously pleased with herself, as she paused on a certain entry in the large volume. Poppy touched her wand to Lily's wound, causing her to cry out when the incantation was made. The blood immediately stopped flowing from the wound, and Pomfrey cleared it away gently. Casting another spell, she began to sew up the damage, and ended with a clean white bandage around her middle.
Lily shuddered as the bandages scraped against the sensitive and abused flesh, fresh waves of pain coursing through her. "God--Jamie!" She said sharply, the tears finally flowing down her cheeks. She tightened her grasp on his hand, to the point that if she held him any tighter she would break bones.
Pomfrey raised her wand and summoned a flask. "Now, Miss Evans, I want you to take a swallow of this every hour, and come back here when it is empty. It will not rid you of all of the pain, I'm afraid, as the bite appears to have been made by a magical creature. You are free to leave. Mr. Black, how is Mr. Lupin?"
Sirius did not tear his eyes from his tawny friend, but responded, "He's fine…as well as can be expected anyway."
"Then you all are free to leave. Get some rest, eat some chocolate. And I do not want to see the lot of you for a long while!" She said, sternly although her eyes glinted with motherly affection.
Lily swallowed a mouthful of the clear liquid in the flask given to her and shuddered at the sour taste. "Thank you, Madame." She said as she rose to her feet, leaning on Kaleb for support as the group exited the infirmary.
Once the door had been securely shut, and the Marauders-plus were roughly halfway down that particular corridor, with no one else in sight, Remus turned to face Lily. He stopped her by placing hands on her shoulders, then retracting them suddenly, as if afraid to hurt her. "What happened?" He asked, his voice intense.
Sirius placed a hand on his tawny-headed friend's shoulder. "Rem…When Lily and Kaleb were in their animal forms…you didn't know them. Moony didn't know them. And you jumped at Kaleb, Lily, of course, threw herself in the way and…well a great deal of fighting ensued. You ended up biting Lily pretty deeply in the back before you realized they were friends." Sirius said, voice low and worried.
Remus stood, silent. He blinked, several times, as if to clear his head of the images rushing into it. He opened his mouth three times in succession, and no sound came from it. His mind, apparently, was incapable of formulating a response to the revelation, and in true fight or flight response, he ran. The sounds of his feet slapping the stone floors grew smaller, and the echoes began to dim.
"I--I have to talk to him." Lily said turning sharply to follow the werewolf. The pain in her back, although it began to ebb due to the potion, was intense. "I think you guys are bad luck, I've been hurt twice since I've started speaking to you!" She laughed.
James' eyes darkened, and guilt washed over him again and again. It grew extremely intense, to where tears pricked at his eyes. His stomach twisted in knots, and he felt the insane urge to hold Lily until Hogwarts fell down around them. To protect her from anyone that would dare try and hurt her.