Word Count: 464
Ministry: L9: Brain Room Novice: 5 different occupations: Auror
Easter Egg: Day 10, Polka Dot: St Mungo's.
Boredom Squared
The bed was comfortable. The walls white. The beeping, irritating.
Harry hated it.
He'd never been good at being in the Hospital Wing back at Hogwarts, but St Mungo's just seemed worse in every possible way. The Healers were professional but impersonal, the private room lonely.
Of course, it wasn't surprising that he was there. Being an Auror made it fairly likely that one would end up in the hospital at least once. Not that it made it any better. Just more expected.
Harry sighed to himself. He'd asked Ron to at least fetch him some paperwork to keep him occupied, but the Healers had said no; he was there to heal, not work.
It was ridiculous. Harry figured that if he was awake and… mostly mobile, he should be allowed to recuperate at home. The Healers would have a spare bed and he wouldn't have to suffer the absolute boredom of the hospital room, but apparently, they didn't trust him to take his potions regimen in the way it was supposed to be taken.
It was important to take them at the exact minute that they needed to be taken.
He'd tried to tell them he could manage, but they'd refused to listen.
The door opened, and Harry looked up, sighing in relief when Hermione slipped into the room.
"Hey you," she murmured, sitting down at the end of his bed. "How are you feeling?"
"Bored," Harry complained. "So, so bored."
"Well," she replied, smiling softly. "You'll be glad to know that I'm here to spring you then."
"I… how?"
"They might not trust you with your potions regimen, but they trust me to make sure you take them on time," she replied, grinning at his affronted look. "And since I'm home on maternity leave now, but not due for another month, they trust me to keep you on the straight and narrow as it were. You'll just have to come back in a few days for a check up and to get the medical forms signed for work."
"You're a whole angel," Harry said, his gratitude evident in his tone. "A whole one. I love you very much."
"Uh huh. Tell me that after you've slept on our spare bed for a few days."
Harry snorted. "I'd take a bed with rusty nails if it meant getting out of here. Seriously, Hermione. Thank you."
Hermione nodded. "Anytime. It'll be nice to have some company anyway. I'm going stir crazy at home all day. Who knew maternity leave would be so boring."
Laughing, Harry replied, "I'll see if you're still saying that a few weeks after my godchild is born."
She rolled her eyes at him, and then got up from where she'd perched. "Come on," she said. "Let's get out of here."