I woke the next morning stretching my hands high above my head and yawning. Swinging my arms back down, I was surprised when my right hand connected with something hard and squishy. Turning my head to the right I saw the hard-squishy object was the face of Fred Weasley. Apparently after drinking the dreamless sleep potion I fell asleep on Fred's stomach essentially using Fred's abdomen as a pillow. I tried my best not to wake Fred as I sat up. He must have felt me moving in the bed though because his eyes flew open and he smiled at me sleepily.
"Do we have to get up now?" Fred grumbled. I glanced around our curtained off area of the hospital wing. By the amount of light coming from the window near the bed I could tell that it was still very early in the morning, the sun had barely begun to rise.
"I suppose we don't have to, I mean Harry and I aren't really allowed out of the Hospital Wing until Dumbledore has a chance to address the whole school so…"
"So we can go back to sleep?" I rolled my eyes at him.
"Well if you stay here with me you're sure to miss breakfast."
"George will bring me some." Fred responded knowingly.
"Well then I don't see any reason not to go back to sleep."
"Good." Fred closed his eyes again as if to say he had no intentions of removing himself from the foot of my bed. "Hey Ali?" He whispered before sitting up suddenly.
"Yes Fred?"
"This time, can we use the pillows?" I glanced at the head of the bed where two fluffy white-covered pillowed laid. In response to Fred I just crawled across the bed and placed my head on the top pillow. Fred wordlessly followed me across the bed and lay down beside me. I didn't expect him to wrap his arms around me and draw me into his chest, but I didn't mind much. Somehow curled up next to Fred like that made me feel safe.
A soft giggle and a gleeful chuckle woke us several hours later. Fred and I looked up to see Emily and George had entered past the curtain. They were staring at us twisted up in each other's arms.
"Well aren't you two feeling a bit cozy this morning?" George teased. Guiltily I slipped off the bed, awkwardly standing between Emily, George and the bed.
"Piss off." Fred mumbled to his brother as he pulled himself into a sitting position.
"Now is that anyway to talk to your brother? A brother I might add who secured you two some decent breakfast?" From behind their backs Emily and George produced two plates that were overflowing with food. Emily surrendered the plate she was holding to me easily. I joined Fred on the bed and began eating. When Fred reached for the plate in George's hand his twin brother stepped back.
"Oh George don't you think you should give it to him? If nothing else just because of all the trouble you went through to get it here?" Emily said perching herself in the empty chair Remus had occupied the night before.
"I suppose you're right Emily." George handed over the plate and Fred began to devour the food.
"You should have gone to breakfast if you were that hungry Fred!" I scolded.
"Are you my mum?" Fred stopped chewing long enough to ask. "Sides I wasn't hungry till George said he had food." Fred continued to shovel food into his mouth reminding me slightly of the way I'd seen Buckbeak attack dead ferrets.
"Well the good news is Professor Dumbledore talked to the school this morning, so I think you and Harry will be allowed to leave the Hospital Wing sometime this afternoon."
"What exactly did Professor Dumbledore say?" I asked curiously.
"Not much." George assured me. "Only that we're all supposed to leave you and Harry alone. You know not ask any questions, or badger you about what happened."
"Well that is good I guess." Fred and I had both finished eating so we placed our dirty plates on the bedside table. "I expect I ought to open these now." I said gesturing to the curtain that divided us from the rest of the Hospital Wing.
"Or we could go back to bed." Fred suggested.
"Fred we'll have to get out of bed at some point, better now than later." As I opened the curtain I revealed Harry's bed where Hermione and Ron sat talking to my twin brother.
"It's about time you got up!" Harry called from his bed before returning to the game of wizard's chess he was playing with Ron.
"Wasn't exactly in a rush to get out of here." I said standing by the head of the bed. "I know it's the Hospital Wing but it's so peaceful, safe feeling you know?"
"Yeah." Harry mumbled as he captured one of Ron's chess pieces.
"Mister and Miss Potter!" Madame Pomfrey called as she walked our way. "You are both free to go!" As much as I didn't want to leave the comfort of the Hospital Wing I had suddenly remembered the clothes I was dressed in were the ones I had worn to the final task the night before.
"So much for not being in a rush to get out." Emily chirped behind me.
"Yeah…Uh look I think I'm going to head off to the dormitory and change into something a little less depressing. Then I think I'll just start packing my things." I told everyone without a second glance around the room.