Hello all! Here's number seven! I was thinking about waiting a few more days before posting but since I actually have the time today and I won't tomorrow, I thought I wouldn't put you through the misery lol.

Before I let you start reading though, I have a few thank yous:
remuslives23 for reviewing and editing and everything else she does for me
cascade88 for reviewing
butherecomesthefall for reviewing
and my two anonymous reviewers Matilda and mcc

One last thing, my standard A/N: Anything you recognize (which will be quite a bit in this chapter) belongs to the wonderful JKR...everything else belongs to me.

Enjoy!

Fred, George, and Lee paced restlessly outside the large wooden doors, waiting for the Matron to come out and tell them something, anything, about how Evey was doing. Finally, after what seemed like three hours but was only forty five minutes, one of the doors swung open. The boys rushed towards Madam Pomfrey, all asking questions at once.

The Matron held up her hands. 'If you all talk at once I can't hear you! If you be quiet, I can tell you how Miss Collins is.'

The boys snapped their jaws shut and Madam Pomfrey took a deep breath.

'It appears that Miss Collins was involved in some sort of physical altercation. She has numerous scrapes and bruises, including quite a long, deep gash on her left bicep, which was probably done with a cutting hex. She also has a few broken ribs, causing a hemopneumothorax--or punctured and bloody right lung, her left shoulder was dislocated, she has a closed displaced fracture of the right ulna--'

'A what?' asked George, his forehead wrinkled in confusion.

'--a broken right forearm, Mr. Weasley,' the nurse explained. 'She also suffered from blunt force trauma to the back of the skull, causing a cracked skull and a minor concussion. I concluded that there was some spell work done, as her legs were magically stuck together. I was able to wrap, splint, and do some preliminary Healing, including a spell that will help her breathe easier, but until she can wake up and consume potions and communicate with me, I can do no more.'

'But she will wake up, right?' George asked anxiously, concerned about the extent of Evey's injuries. 'She'll be ok?'

'Yes, Mr. Weasley--it will just take time. Now, you may visit if you wish BUT--' she raised her voice as the boys rushed towards the door, stopping them in their tracks. 'Only if you stay quiet so as not to wake her, you all behave yourselves, and you agree to leave the moment I tell you to.'

The boys quickly agreed to the Matron's terms and rushed into the Hospital Wing to Evey's bedside. She looked liked an Egyptian mummy from a Muggle horror film with stark white bandages around her head and her right forearm, and her left arm held tight against her body in a sling. They could see more of the bandages peeking out from under her plain standard issue hospital wing gown, the white of the crepe standing out starkly against the darkening bruises on her lightly freckled skin. Her face was littered with cuts and bruises, her lip swollen and bloody and both eyes sporting very impressive shiners. Her breathing had evened out but, although they were regular, the inhales seemed a little ragged and forced.

'She looks...awful,' Lee finally said quietly.

Fred nodded, 'Well said, mate,' but George was silent, staring down at Evey in horror.

The three boys were absolutely furious; who could've done this, and why? Each boy felt incredibly guilty for leaving her in the castle alone while they went to Hogsmeade and had fun. They sat in silence, drowning in their remorse, until Madam Pomfrey finally shooed them out the door for the Halloween Feast. The boys were reluctant to leave Evey before she awoke, but they eventually conceded and left.

They were bombarded with question from their friends when they got to the feast, and the girls quickly burst into tears when they learned what happened to Evey. The group barely ate, too worried about their friend, and as soon as they could leave the feast they went up to the common room, intending to change clothes before rushing up to the infirmary.

However, when they arrived at the portrait of the Fat Lady, they were shocked to see that it had been viciously slashed to ribbons, the Lady herself missing. Within minutes, all of Gryffindor plus several professors were listening to Peeves the poltergeist tell them what a nasty temper that Sirius Black has.

Not ten minutes later, every student in the school were being hustled into the Great Hall, told they'd be spending the night there while the school was searched for any sign that Black might be lingering. Fred, George, Lee, Angelina and Alicia were frightened for Evey--who was still in the Hospital Wing and, when they saw Madam Pomfrey about to leave the Hall, they ran to stop her.

'Madam Pomfrey, Madam Pomfrey!'

The Matron stopped and turned towards the students.

'Evey--she's still in the Wing...will she be alright?' George asked as he and the others came to a stop before her.

Madam Pomfrey nodded, 'Yes, Mr. Weasley, I have locked the doors and the Headmaster is on his way to check the wing himself before sealing the doors with very strong protective spells.'

'But she'll be all alone! What if she wakes up and panics?' Angelina asked.

'I will be in there with her, Miss Johnson. She needs to be supervised; she's still in a very delicate stage of her healing. You may all visit her in the morning when the Headmaster deems the school safe. Now, to bed with all of you; I will not be giving you any Pepper-up Potion if you show up in my infirmary half asleep tomorrow.'

The group of friends reluctantly agreed and made their way to the big purple sleeping bags Dumbledore had conjured for everyone. It was hard for the five to fall asleep that night, worried about the mass murderer that was possibly roaming the halls and their dear friend lying unconscious in the Hospital Wing.

They all slept lightly that night, and awoke quite early the next morning. After a brief breakfast and rushed showers, the group of Gryffindors were sprinting towards the Hospital Wing. When they arrived, their jaws dropped--Evey was sitting up in bed, talking to Professor Dumbledore.

She looked much better; all the cuts and bruising to her face had been healed, her face blemish free. Her wrist and shoulder were no longer wrapped in gauze but it was quite obvious that she was holding them very carefully. She seemed to be breathing easier, which the group was sure was an excellent sign of recovery. When Evey saw her friends out of the corner of her eye, she turned and smiled at them.

'Hey you lot! It's about time you showed up,' she said with a small smile.

Immediately the group rushed over, all talking at once and quite loudly. Evey's eyes closed tightly and she held her right hand up, silencing the others.

'I appreciate your concern, but my head still really hurts,' she said with a wince. 'Do you think you could talk one at a time and maybe a little more quietly?'

The rowdy group apologized in much lower voices as they gathered around Evey's hospital bed and the wing backed chair the Headmaster was sitting in.

'We aren't intruding, are we Professor?' Alicia asked timidly.

'Not at all, Miss Spinnet,' Dumbledore said kindly. 'I was just asking Miss Collins here if she knew the identity of her attackers.'

'That's something we'd all like to know,' George said darkly, the usual playful glint in his deep brown eyes masked by fury.

Evey sighed, 'Who do you think it was? Odette and her cronies, of course! Oh, er, I mean Miss Saint-Pierre, Miss Clarke, and Miss Williams.'

It was all George could do not to sprint out of there and hex that Slytherin bitch into oblivion. Dumbledore steepled his fingers and nodded slowly.

'I see. Now, Miss Collins, I should ask if you wish to press charges against these girls--there was a considerable amount of physical damage done to you as well as a combination of hexes that are still affecting your legs.'

Evey thought about it for a moment before answering, 'I dunno, Professor. I'd ask my father what he thought, but...well, its not exactly an option. What do you think I should do?'

'I have a friend in the Ministry who deals with Magical Law--if you wish, I could arrange a meeting between the two of you, when you are feeling better of course.'

'I suppose that would be a good idea.'

'Excellent! Now, I'll just be off to talk to Professor Flitwick--I'm sure he'll be able to solve the little problem you are having with your legs.'

'Thank you, Professor,' Evey said as the Headmaster disappeared from view.

As soon as the Hospital Wing doors closed, the healthier Gryffindors started to rant and rave.

'Those BITCHES!'

'How DARE they attack you!'

'I don't care if I do get life in Azkaban, I'm gonna KILL them!'

'We'll NEVER leave you alone again, I swear!'

'We'll stay RIGHT HERE until you're all better!'

'Guys, please--I wasn't kidding about my head,' she said a little desperately as her head pounded, and the group quieted immediately.

George sat on the edge of Evey's bed, and gently took her right hand in both of his, 'Are you sure you're alright?'

Evey smiled slightly, 'Other than the fact that my legs are stuck together, yes I'm fine.'

'How did that happen?' Lee asked.

'Well, Odette's followers are smarter than we thought--one hit me with a Leg Locker, the other with a Jelly Legs. Madam Pomfrey said the resulting effect is pretty much paralysis. Flitwick should be able to reverse it, but if he can't, I have to go to St. Mungo's.'

'Don't worry, you'll be fine; Flitwick is great with this kind of stuff,' Angelina comforted Evey.

Evey sighed and nodded, and her friends kept her entertained while she waited for the small Charms teacher to show up. George didn't let go of her hand for one second, and she was comforted by the reassuring, protective touch.

Flitwick was able to reverse some of the damage and she regained some movement in her legs--unfortunately though, she was going to have to undergo physical therapy to regain all of the strength she'd lost, the combined spells having destroyed much of her muscle mass. She was upset to discover she would need to stay in the Hospital Wing until she could walk again, a goal that could take anywhere from one to six months to achieve, depending on how hard she was willing to work at her therapy. Her friends saw her distress and promised to visit her everyday, George squeezing her hand and smiling supportively. The Fifth Years were then ushered firmly out the door by the Matron who told them they were going to be late for class and she was NOT about to write excuse notes for them.

Hooray, Evey's going to be ok! Well, I already knew that but still HOORAY! As always, reviewing is much appreciated--this time your prize will be the character of your choice living in your closet to do with what you will (if that isn't motivation to review, I don't know what is lol).