Chapter Five

While You Were Sleeping

Cho clenched her eyes and stopped herself before she could let out a cry of pain. She took a shuddering breath and grabbed Neville's hand. "Not so tight." She said through gritted teeth.

Neville's already pink face turned even redder. "I-I'm sorry." He stammered, his hands shaking as he began to loosen the bandages he was tying off.

"Not too loose either.' Cho said with a slight tone of exasperation. Neville nodded again, turning even redder, and finished tightening the bandages. Cho sighed and pulled down her robes, covering her exposed back. Neville leaned against the wall, still red faced, but now looking exhausted and in pain.

Cho felt a moment of pity as she realized that he had been using his injured hand to tie off the bandages. She was too tired to feel anything deeper, exhaustion tugged at the edge of her consciousness, but try as she might it just taunted her with the promise of sleep.

She leaned forward, setting her elbows upon her knees as she sat on the floor, feeling a draft of cold air run up her back. She shivered slightly. Neville surprisingly was skilled with tailoring. He had managed to cut off the sleeves of his robes, clean them and used them to bandage the cuts upon her back. The shredded cloth on her back had also been cleaned and repaired as much as possible, Neville making a flap in the back of her robes so he could get to the cuts and bandage them. It was also the reason Neville was pink face, stammering, and embarrassed. Cho would have found it amusing, if she hadn't been so tired and in so much pain. But at least her cuts had been bandaged and he bleeding stopped.

The cuts themselves were not deep, flesh wounds that sent waves of pain across her when touched. Neville had been as gentle as he could, but he lacked experience in how to do it. So between waves of pain and Neville's nervousness it had been a trying few minutes for Cho. Now she sat there, the aching pain in her back and the day's events sending another shiver of fear through her.

She was beginning to realize how close she had come to being killed by the monster. If it hadn't been for Neville's timely rescue, she probably would have ended up as nothing more than shreds of flesh in the Hall. She looked to Neville, he leaned against the wall, eyes closed, face looking even paler, and his damaged hand clutched to his chest. She moved toward him.

"How are you?" She asked. He was looking too pale, his eyes were red rimmed, and his hands still shaking slightly. Cho pushed down the fear, Neville needed to be seen by a healer. The strain of the day's events had pushed hard. The concussion, broken hand, the fighting off of the creature. He should have been resting and healing, not fighting off a monster. Cho ran a hand through her hair. They all needed to be seen by a healer, but there was no way out of here unless it was through the creature that still occasionally scratched at the door.

Neville blinked, looking for a moment surprised at her concern. "I'm fine." He said, softly. "I'm just a little tired." He added, closing his eyes for a moment.

"You should sleep." Cho said.

"I thought you said I wasn't supposed to."

"I think it's okay now, after all it seemed we all passed out after the commotion in the Hall." Cho said, trying to smile.

Neville nodded wearily. "Okay, I think I'll just lay down for a while." He shifted and lay on his side, his eyes closing and immediately his breathing becoming regular. Cho sighed, wishing that she could sleep.

"Girl." The Bodiless Man hissed. Cho looked at him, hardening her face and glaring. It almost faltered as she took a good look at him. His face was a shallow pallor, his hair slicked with sweat, and his eyes bloodshot. He looked ready to collapse and in a lot of pain. Cho felt a moment of satisfaction; it was his fault they were here. He had also almost locked them out of the Tower, with the monster on their heels. She felt a surge of rage.

"What do you want?" Cho snapped.

"Heal me. Please." There was desperation in his voice. He looked at her pleadingly, tears almost in his eyes. Cho realized that he had gotten no treatment for his injuries. His getting up and trying to close the door, to her falling upon his injured leg seemed to have caused more harm to him. He looked ill and he looked very desperate.

Cho took a deep breath, her rage suddenly flowing away. "I don't know how." She responded.

"I can teach you." The man said, there really was desperation in his voice along with pain barely held at bay.

Cho looked to Neville. He could teach her how to heal his finger, the wound to his head, and maybe even the concussion, along with the cuts on her back. Cho winced as she moved.

"Tell me how."

XXX

"What is your name?" The Man asked. He grunted in pain as Cho pulled off the invisible cloth from his leg. Cho looked at the leg and felt her gorge rise. His leg had been broken in two places, the near the ankle and near the knee. She didn't know how that happen and the man seemed not to know either. The skin was badly bruised, a deep almost black color.

"Cho Chang." Cho responded, wiping her hands upon her robes. She looked up at the man, he was younger than she had assumed. Maybe in his early twenties, bright blue eyes, and sandy colored hair that fell to his shoulders. He smiled at her, his teeth very white and very straight, Cho frowned back at him. Did he actually think he could befriend her, after threatening to kill them and then trying to lock them out of the Tower?

"I'm Damon." He said, still smiling. Cho nodded, glancing back at the foot.

"Well, Damon." She said his name with scorn, but he still continued to smile. "Here's how we're going to do this. You're going to spill your guts, then you're gonna tell me how to heal our cuts, burses, and injuries, then you're going to tell me how to heal your damned leg, then we'll see if I can do that."

That made him stop smiling. "I don't know how to heal your boyfriend's concussions. Cuts, bruises, broken bones. They're all I know how to do." He said.

Cho ignored his jibe and continued to look at his feet. She had thought he had been wearing and invisible cloak, like the one Neville had had in his hand before they plunged into the Wardrobe. But from what she could tell, its was an invisible set of clothing. She didn't know if they were made that way or made out of other invisible cloaks. It didn't really matter.

"Take off you gloves." Cho said, as she pulled off the cloth from his other foot. Damon looked at her in puzzlement but did as she told him to do.

'Why?" He asked, handing her the cloth.

Cho took the bundle of cloth from him and stuffed them into her pocket. "So we can see your hands and feet." She said simply. Damon frowned deeper and Cho saw a flash of anger in his eyes. "Don't act outraged. You're sneak and a cowardly fool." She hissed, feeling her anger coming back. "You threaten us, you nearly let us die, and now I'm doing you a favor. So you'd better spill what you know, or we'll see which the monster out there likes. Us who'll be running or you who'll be lying here as bait."

The anger in her voice even shocked her. But the man drained of color and glanced to the door. Cho realized he was more afraid of what lay outside than anything she could do to him. She filed that thought away.

"Now." She said, regaining her composure. "Tell me what you know."

XXX

Response Time

DarkLordLongbottom: Wand's gone, man. Lost it in Hiding Places, when Neville got pulled into the Wardrobe. As for Cho, I don't think she's up to torture just yet, but desperate times call for desperate measures, as you can seee....

Until Next Chapter!