June 1947
The first indications that something had gone wrong were the screams.
Trying to work out what was happening within the maze was impossible, as Poppy assumed trying to guess what was going on underwater during the Second Task had been. She'd been talking to Ro and Irma during the first half of the task, both of whom were obviously trying to distract her from worrying too much given how they weren't put off by her stunted answers, but they all fell silent at the first cry of agony that split the air. Despite knowing it wasn't Minerva, Poppy couldn't help gripping Ro's hand even tighter as she resumed her aimless chattering.
The shouts that followed had even Ro's formerly confident expression growing uneasy. Her voice trailed into silence as Poppy watched her glance backwards to where the Quidditch Team were sat a row behind them in the stands, looking first at Nancy Campbell's grim shrug then at Larry Spencer-Moon's poorly hidden terror. The silence that had fallen over the stands only made everything seem a thousand times worse, an entire stadium's worth of people waiting with baited breath for any further signal.
It came less than a minute later. Frantic screams split the air, the sound of someone shouting over and over again though the exact words remained lost in the maze. But Poppy didn't need to hear words to recognise Minerva's panicked shriek. Instantly she felt a sickening terror wash over her as she saw all her worst nightmares unfolding in front of her at once.
Even the Professors patrolling the maze had drawn to a standstill, their gazes switching between each other and the judges' table as no-one seemed to know what to do.
"Why aren't they doing anything?" Poppy broke the silence with a loud whisper, unable to tear her eyes away from the maze even as she felt several people's eyes on her.
Ro looked about to say something, but a voice from below made them both look down to see Minister Spencer-Moon watching the maze with a pinched expression. "They can't enter the maze until one of the Champions signals for help," he explained, though his voice was heavy with reluctance.
Larry let out a strangled cry. "They can't let them die in there," he said, a desperate plea written into even line of his ashen face as he met his father's gaze.
"They're all bound by the rules of the Tournament-"
"Please, father."
No sooner had Larry spoken did a glimmer of red shooting upwards catch everyone's attention, bursting into a shower of sparks over the maze. The patrollers hardly waited for Professor Dippet's shout of "Find them!" before they all dove into the maze and instantly disappeared between the hedgerows. The Minister was on his feet and hurrying to the judge's table a second later, speaking in urgent tones to Mr Rabnott and Madame Crickerley though it was impossible to work out what they were saying. The entire stadium was wrapped up in an atmosphere of confusion and fear which only made Poppy's hands shake harder as she clutched at Ro's arm.
It was nearly five minutes of terror before anyone emerged. But Poppy knew from the moment that Professor Dumbledore came running out of the maze shouting Madame Quinine's name that something awful had happened. Instantly she was pulling Ro to her feet and dragging her down the stairs onto the pitch, just in time to see Professor Beery sprinting out of the maze while carrying with difficulty a convulsing Reynaud. Just behind him were Professor Merrythought and Professor Aurelius, a second body held limply between their arms.
Ro sunk to her knees with a strangled gasp just as Poppy recognised her as Minerva.
Poppy was by her side in an instant as the Professors laid her gently on the grass, Professor Merrythought keeping her hand under Minerva's head to cushion it against the hard ground. Professor Aurelius immediately began to examine her as Madame Quinine rushed past them towards Reynaud who was still gripped by uncontrollable spasms. The sight of the ripped cloth and torn, bloody skin just above Minerva's hip brought with it a fresh wave of terror, but it was muted beneath the steely determination that had set in just like every time. She would have time to fall apart later when Minerva was stabilised, but now she had a job to do.
"What did this?" Poppy asked as she took a hold of Minerva's right hand, careful to avoid the dark blood coming in clumps from a bite to her hand as she took in the stark purple veins against greying skin.
It was Professor Merrythought who answered, her voice firm except for the faintest tremor. "Venomous Tentacula," she said. Poppy wracked her brain for what she could remember from her Herbology revision, picturing the specimen kept in Greenhouse 3 and silently reciting the effects of the venom that Professor Beery had told them.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a scream of despair that instantly made her turn around. Nadezda Kucera was stood at the bottom of the stands, her face twisted into an expression of pure anguish as she stared at something behind Poppy. Poppy's head whipped around to see Ogg the Gamekeeper walking out of the maze with the third Champion cradled in his arms; she only had a split second to wonder why he was walking so slowly with a critically ill patient before she caught sight of the gaping tear in Svetlana's throat and the way her head lolled. It was obvious then. She'd been killed.
People started running around frantically behind her, but Poppy just turned to focus on Minerva while trying to block out the heart-wrenching cries of grief from Svetlana's friends and family. No-one else had approached them so she assumed one of the Professors was with Minerva's parents, keeping them away while she and Professor Aurelius worked so they didn't have to see the state that their daughter was in.
"Miss Pomfrey, I need you to get an antidote from Madame Quinine. I can't close her wounds with the poison still in her body," Professor Aurelius said, her voice curter than Poppy had perhaps ever heard it. She'd packed Minerva's hip wound with gauze though the blood was soaking through before their eyes at a terrifying speed.
Poppy jumped to her feet without a reply, running over to where Madame Quinine and Professor Beery were struggling desperately to get Reynaud's seizure under control. The Professor held his head still while Madame Quinine forced an antivenom potion into his mouth though most of it was immediately spat back up. Just like with Minerva there were purple lines spreading beneath his skin from the bite wound on his shoulder, no doubt caused by the Tentacula's venom coursing through his veins. His breathing was more laboured than Poppy had ever seen, until it suddenly stopped and left only stillness.
Madame Quinine reacted immediately. Professor Beery scrabbled out of the way as she started chest compressions on Reynaud, pausing to listen to his chest before continuing with the same steady rhythm. There was nothing Poppy could do that wouldn't be getting in the Matron's way so she simply stood and watched for any sign that Reynaud was coming back round. The whites of his eyes practically glowed in the dusky light they were so prominent, his pupils pinpricks as he stared upwards without a hint of response.
It was nearly ten minutes before Madame Quinine listened to his chest again before she sat back on her heels. She glanced at Poppy first, then at Professor Beery, and shook her head.
Reynaud had died too.
"Is he alive?" cried a desperate voice, and Poppy wrenched her gaze away from him to look at a frantic Ghislaine Dubois who was being physically restrained by Madame Crickerley. Madame Quinine just looked wordlessly at them both but it was enough for them to know the awful truth. Madame Crickerley took a step back as Ghislaine rushed forward and flung herself over Reynaud's chest. Madame Marguerite appeared from nowhere and sunk to the ground next to her pupils, murmuring comforts in quiet French though it did nothing to appease Ghislaine's violent sobs.
A hand on her shoulder jolted Poppy back to the present, and she looked over to see Madame Quinine stood next to her with the antidote bottle held in her bloodstained hands. "We can do little for him now," she said, her voice unusually gentle, "but there is still work to be done. We will not lose another one tonight."
It was clearly Minerva she was referring to, and Poppy couldn't restrain her slight shudder as she realised that there was still a very real chance that Minerva could lose her life alongside Svetlana and Reynaud. But she only nodded firmly, leading the Matron over to where Professor Aurelius and Professor Merrythought were doing what they could for a still barely stirring Minerva. Madame Quinine took charge instantly, briefly sitting Minerva up to give her the antidote so she wouldn't choke on it before laying her back down with her head rested on Professor Merrythought's knees. The gauze that Professor Aurelius had used to staunch the bleeding as best as possible was replaced by cloth bandages soaked in antivenom, and Poppy was instructed to carefully put Minerva's dislocated shoulder back into place as the two mediwitches worked on her wounds.
She had no idea how much time had passed before Madame Quinine's hands stilled, looking Minerva up and down with a grimly satisfied look on her face. "She'll live," the Matron said, motioning for them to all back away as she conjured a stretched beneath Minerva's limp body. "Edith, come with me. I could use an extra pair of hands," she added to Professor Aurelius before the two of them hurried towards the stadium's exit, fearful onlookers hurrying out of the way as they approached.
Poppy didn't realise that she'd sagged sideways until she felt Professor Merrythought's hand on her shoulder, keeping her upright as she swayed slightly on her feet. "Are you alright dear?" she asked quietly, and when Poppy gave a shaken nod she squeezed her shoulder gently. "I think Rolanda and your other friends need you now."
With all the panic of getting Minerva stabilised, Poppy had completely forgotten that Ro hadn't followed her any further than the edge of the pitch. Once she nodded again the Professor started to walk with her towards them, only leaving her when they passed a stricken looking Madame Crickerley who was watching Svetlana and Reynaud's families crouching over their dead children with an expression of shock. Professor Merrythought immediately put her arm around the younger woman's shoulders, murmuring a gentle "This isn't your fault, Theodosia," as Poppy continued on.
Ro, Irma, Millicent, and Septima had all sat down on the podium, clutching each other's hands for support while Larry paced relentlessly a couple of feet away. They all looked over immediately when Poppy's footsteps signalled her approach, Ro jumping up to grip Poppy's arms with her yellow eyes wide. "Tell me she's ok," she begged, voice no more than a cracked whisper.
"She's ok," Poppy said. The words were firm but as soon as she said them she felt her knees buckle again, falling forwards into Ro's arms as she let out a sob. Ro was trembling herself but the arms around Poppy's back were unshaking in their support, holding her close until she found the strength to stand on her own.
Septima and Millicent were hugging tightly in relief, and to Poppy's surprise it was Irma who had her hand on a white-faced Larry's shoulder as she encouraged him to breathe deeply. "What happened in there?" Irma asked, glancing away from Larry to rake her gaze down the blood that Poppy hadn't even noticed staining her clothes
Poppy sighed, her strength threatening to fail her at the thought of having to explain what Minerva had gone through and how close they'd come to losing her. "They were caught by a Venomous Tentacula. All three of them," she started, gripping Ro's hand tightly as it slipped into hers. "It would have killed them all if the Professors hadn't found them when they did. Minerva was badly poisoned but she'll be ok. Svetlana and Reynaud…" her voice failed her then, swallowing hand as Ro squeezed her hand before forcing herself to continue. "They're both dead."
Larry sat back down on the podium with his head in his hands as both Septima and Millicent gasped in horror. Irma didn't react but her face was pale as she met Poppy's gaze, her dark eyes brimming with unspoken terror.
"May I have everyone's attention?" called an amplified voice, everyone looking over to see Spencer-Moon standing with his wand to his throat. "A great tragedy has befallen us all tonight. Your headmasters have asked that you all return to your dormitories for now, and tomorrow morning you will have everything explained to you."
Poppy wondered briefly why Professor Dippet couldn't have made the announcement himself, before she noticed him in deep conversation with Mr Rabnott. Both Professor Rykov and Madame Marguerite were still with Svetlana and Reynaud, and Poppy had to look away before she was overcome with grief again. Just like in the aftermath of Ro's accident and the battle against Grindlewald two years ago, she knew the fear of how close she'd come to losing her friend would stay with her for a long while yet.
When they returned to the castle it was in absolute chaos, the Professors doing very little to quieten the students in the aftermath of what they'd witnessed. Poppy had debated going up to the Hospital Wing to check on Minerva before Ro insisted that she wouldn't be able to do much for her if she didn't get some rest herself, so resigned herself to waiting until the following morning as Ro persuaded Irma to stay in Gryffindor Tower with them for the night. They parted with Septima and Millicent on the seventh floor corridor, promising that they would let them know immediately if they received any news on Minerva's condition during the night.
Sleep was a long time coming for Poppy, and when she did eventually doze off her dreams were fitful enough that she jolted awake more than once as the shadows in her mind receded. As the first light of dawn shone through the gap in the hangings around her bed she gave up on trying to get back to sleep, pulling a cardigan over her nightdress before she quietly slipped out of the dormitory. The castle was quiet as she padded down the Grand Staircase in her socks, the only sounds being the hushed murmuring of the portraits and ghosts as they watched her approach the Hospital Wing.
"I hope you're prepared for what you find in there." A voice cutting through the silence made Poppy jump, and she whirled around to find a woman standing beside her. Or rather, a ghost woman. "She's alive, don't panic yourself. But she's had a rough night."
Poppy's heart had started to race at the woman's initial warning, but as she took a breath to calm herself down she realised she recognised the woman standing before her. "You're Eliethia Ibelin," she said, recalling the witch depicted on the front cover of one of her many medical books. "You were the first paediatric matron at St. Mungo's. I've never seen you here before though."
Eliethia nodded, looking somewhat surprised. "I am normally found on my ward at St. Mungo's. The children find me amusing and the adolescents a good confidante," she explained. Poppy recalled that Ro had been on the Eliethia Ibelin ward when she'd been sent to St. Mungo's, making a mental note to ask her if she'd spoken to the ghost during her time there. "But I return here whenever there is trouble in the Hospital Wing. I came after the Battle and I am here again now. Madame Quinine appreciates my presence, not many Healers chose this afterlife."
On any other day Poppy might have asked why, but in that moment she had more pressing concerns. "Is Minerva alright?" she asked, glancing through Eliethia's chest towards the Hospital Wing doors before focusing back on her face.
"Like I said, she is alive. I cannot say much more than that. I watched her for a while so your Matron could rest and she only slept. But she should wake soon." Eliethia turned to look towards the Hospital Wing herself before continuing with "I was warned that a friend of hers may come in to see her and that I should allow it. I presume you are Miss Pomfrey?"
"Yes, my name's Poppy," she said, unsurprised that Madame Quinine had been expecting her to drop by at some point.
Eliethia's formerly stern features curved into a slight smile as she nodded. "I expect I shall be seeing you on my ward in this uniform before too long then," she said, before her form disintegrated into a wispy cloud of light that flew down the corridor and around the corner out of sight. Poppy spared a moment to be glad that she had chosen to go around her rather than through her as Nearly-Headless Nick was prone to doing as she hurried on through the double doors.
Despite being bathed in gold by the pre-dawn sunlight streaming through the windows, the Hospital Wing still felt cold and gloomy. The first thing her gaze landed on was the curtain surrounding the two beds closest to the door, and she froze for a moment as she realised that would be where Reynaud and Svetlana's bodies lay. Once back in control of her limbs she tore her gaze away and continued towards the far end of the ward where Madame Quinine was sat by the bed closest to her office. Professor Beery was there too, but as Poppy approached he bid the Matron farewell before passing Poppy on his way out of the Wing.
"Good morning, Miss Pomfrey," Madame Quinine said, gesturing for her to sit in the chair that Professor Beery had just left vacant. "I'm pleased to report that she is doing well. She seized twice in the night due to the remnants of the neurotoxin but there will be no permanent damage. Professor Beery and Professor Slughorn were up until the early hours making me an antivenom stronger than what I keep in the stores and it appears to be working well."
Poppy nodded, taking in the Matron's words before she glanced over at Minerva herself. She'd been put into a hospital gown and tucked under a thin bedsheet, exposing the bandaged leg that was propped up by several pillows. The arm nearest to Poppy was also elevated, her bitten hand wrapped in gauze that allowed Poppy a good look at the row of brutal teeth marks from the Tentacula that were in almost the same place as the ones Poppy still bore from the Grindylow attack during the Second Task. A wry smile flickered briefly across her face at the irony that she knew would make Ro laugh when she found out. But the sight of Minerva's sickly complexion and sunken eyes erased Ro's grinning face out of her mind, wondering how someone usually so invincible could look so small in a hospital bed.
The sound of Madame Quinine rummaging through a box of bandages brought her back from her thoughts, looking away from Minerva's face to see the Matron start to change the bandage around her lower leg. "Madame Ibelin told me she would probably wake up today," Poppy said, the words neither a question or a statement.
"I should think so. I should hope so too, it will be easier to get a blood replenishing potion in her if she's conscious. I've already given her a dose intravenously but I don't want to do it again, I'm always wary to use a Muggle method if there's a safer route." Madame Quinine shook her head slightly then, muttering something under her breath that Poppy didn't hear before glancing up to catch her gaze with a knowing smile. "That's something you'll be better at than me when you the one doing this job. On that note, you can change the dressing on her hand if you'd like something to do."
Glad to have been given a job to distract her, Poppy took the box of dressings the Matron handed her and gently got to work peeling the gauze from around her hand and wrist From the fact that both Eliethia and Madame Quinine had brought up her career aspirations in the last ten minutes, Poppy could easily guess that the two women had ended up talking about her during their midnight vigil. She didn't mind at all; instead she was quite touched that Madame Quinine had thought to mention her to the former Healer even without considering how prestigious she'd been during her life. Her Muggle heritage being beneficial to her Mediwitch training wasn't a possibility she'd ever really considered before but she had to admit it was a valid point.
Minerva's fingers were cold in Poppy's palm as she finished unwrapping her hand, though the skin around the puncture marks was still red and warm from the last of the poison lingering. After soaking the fresh gauze in antivenom as Madame Quinine did she pressed it down carefully, borrowing Minerva's wand from the bedside table to apply a mild sticking charm around the edges since she'd left her own in the dormitory.
It was then that she noticed there had been another wand beside it. Her curiosity getting the better of her, she picked it up gingerly and held it in her hands for a moment, feeling the rigid ebony wood carved with rune-like designs and wondering where it could have come from.
"Professor Merrythought left that here last night," Madame Quinine's voice made Poppy turn to see the Matron watching her, explaining how she'd seemingly read Poppy's mind. "Apparently Miss McGonagall was holding it when the patrollers found her, her own wand was in her pocket. Hopefully she can tell us more when she wakes up. Could you help me change the dressing on her hip?"
Poppy nodded, putting both wands back and pushing her question to the back of her mind. "Is there a reason why you haven't closed the wounds yet?" she asked.
Folding the bedsheet out of their way, Madame Quinine went to move the edge of Minerva's hospital gown before the paused and turned to Poppy. "Since you're here I'm sure she'd rather you do this than me," she said, sitting back to give her room. Poppy shuffled her chair closer and carefully lifted the gown to reveal the thick dressing that covered the whole left side of her abdomen as Madame Quinine continued to explain. "With poisonous bites there is a risk of sealing the venom into the wound if you heal if before the antidote has run its course. Once I'm satisfied that the toxin has been neutralised then we'll close the wounds over, but in the meantime it's a case of keeping them clean and covered. A good question though."
Under the Matron's watchful eye, Poppy unwrapped the many layers of bandaging from over the worst of Minerva's wounds before Madame Quinine cleaned the wound with a Sterilising Charm. If the injuries she'd sustained from the dragon in the First Task had scarred over then there was no doubt that this new wound would do too; the ring of puncture wounds from the Tentacula's fangs were deep, but it was the torn flesh around them from where the fangs had ripped through her skin that looked truly horrific. It took an extensive amount of antidote and fresh squares of bandage to cover them up again and the end product looked far more untidy than Madame Quinine's work, but the Matron looked satisfied nonetheless.
With everything done that needed doing, Madame Quinine checked that Poppy was comfortable being left in charge before she left to go and update Professor Dippet. Poppy shifted in her chair so that her legs were tucked underneath her, making herself comfortable since she didn't know how long she would be on her vigil at Minerva's bedside. She wasn't waiting long though before Minerva's hand twitched and her eyelids fluttered, and instantly Poppy moved to perch on the edge of the bed so that she'd be able to see her as soon as she woke.
"Minerva?" Poppy said quietly, instinctively taking hold of her uninjured hand as if she could physically pull her back into consciousness. "It's Poppy. You're safe in the Hospital Wing, you're going to be ok."
The first response she got was a quiet groan, then one green eye cracking open to look at her. Poppy smiled, both an attempt to make Minerva feel more at ease and a muted display of just how glad she was to see her friend awake after the terror of the night before. Minerva's eyes closed again and she swallowed visibly before asking in a thin voice "How long was I out?"
"Only ten hours or so," Poppy said, glancing over at the clock and noting that it was approaching 6 am. Minerva nodded, her expression looking increasingly pained as she woke up properly. "We don't have to talk about what happened yet, not if you don't want to," she added. She knew Minerva would probably face an endless slew of questions in the coming days and didn't want to start on her when she'd barely been conscious for a minute.
Shaking her head, Minerva muttered a barely audible "Thank you. It's too close right now."
Silence fell for a minute or two, with Poppy continuing to hang onto Minerva's hand before she pulled it back to help push herself into a sitting position. Once propped against the headboard she let out a pained groan, her injured hand gingerly touching her other shoulder which Poppy belatedly remembered had been badly dislocated when she'd been pulled out of the maze. "Serious question," Minerva began, her eyes barely open as she winced, "Should I be in this much pain?"
"No, but Madame Quinine left some pain relieving draught in case you needed it," Poppy said, glancing over the many bottles of antidotes and blood-replenishing potion on the bedside table before finding what she was looking for. Conjuring up a glass with Minerva's wand, she poured out a share of the draught and held it to Minerva's lips so she didn't need to use her hands.
Barely five minutes passed before she looked far more at ease, a great relief to Poppy since she hated seeing her friend in so much pain. Even her customary witty smile returned for a brief second as she quipped "I don't know if I should be grateful or insulted that my wand likes you that much."
Poppy laughed, having thought something similar earlier as she was using it to secure Minerva's bandages. "Well I'm just grateful, it's saved us a lot of trouble," she pointed out.
Minerva hummed in agreement, still smiling until her expression turned to panic in a split second. "The other wand. Where is it?" she asked desperately as she threw back the bedsheet. Her hands flying instinctively to where her pockets would have been had she still been in her Quidditch robe, before she practically threw herself towards the bedside table in a frantic search for either her glasses or the wand.
"Easy, easy Minerva," Poppy insisted as Minerva let out another pained gasp, pushing her gently but firmly back into bed before handing passing over her glasses. Picking up the ebony wand, she held it out to Minerva and asked "Is this what you mean?"
Minerva's eyes widened as she saw it, nodding as she snatched it from Poppy's grip and clutched it close to her chest. "It was Svetlana's," she said after a moment's quiet, her tone void of emotion. "I couldn't reach mine to signal for help. After she died it dropped by my feet and I used it to rescue Reynaud and I. We'd both be dead if it weren't for her."
The broken tale made sense with what Madame Quinine had told her. A confusing mix of emotions flickered through Poppy's mind as she watched Minerva cradle the dead witch's wand; gratitude to Svetlana's memory, belated fear only a sheer coincidence had saved them, and a persistent feeling that something wasn't right. But she pushed that to the back of her mind as she focused on comforting Minerva. "She would be happy to know she'd saved you in a way," she said quietly, placing a comforting hand on Minerva's arm.
Minerva nodded, sucking in a deep breath as if to steady herself. "We were very lucky," she said quietly, unsteadily. Before Poppy had a chance to add anything she opened her eyes to look around the Hospital Wing. "Where is Reynaud? Has he woken up yet?"
Poppy stared her as it dawned on her what had been bothering her a moment ago. Minerva didn't know the awful truth. She'd been unconscious by the time they left the maze – she had no idea about any of the events that had followed. In that second she felt her heart break again, not only for the families that had lost their children but for her friend too.
She shook her head hollowly as Minerva turned her gaze towards her, and tried not to wince at the hope in her eyes that Poppy was about to shatter. "Oh Min," she almost whispered, willing herself enough strength to break the news. "He… Reynaud didn't make it. He died after we pulled you both from the maze. We tried but we couldn't save him."
The silence that followed her words was horrible. Then Minerva let out a broken cry, her face crumpling as she covered her mouth with her hands and sobbed. Poppy didn't hesitate before wrapping her arms around her, holding her tight as she shook and sobbed for as long as she needed to.
Even after Minerva had calmed down, Poppy didn't leave her side despite Madame Quinine's return and then Ro and Irma's arrival an hour later. Ro hardly said a word as she hugged Minerva tightly, shaking her head and hanging on with a haunted look in her eyes even after Minerva went to let go. Irma was more reserved in her comforts, sitting resolutely by Minerva's side with a hand on her knee even as Madame Quinine came back around to check if her wounds were ready to be healed. Ro hardly glanced at open wound on Minerva's hip before the colour drained from her face and she made a hasty exit; Poppy checked that the Matron didn't need her help before hurrying after her.
She found her leaning on the wall just outside the Hospital Wing doors, eyes closed and head hanging. "Hey," Poppy said softly.
"Hey," Ro responded, still not looking up.
Poppy sighed, taking Ro's hand and tugging her down to sit on the floor. "Talk to me, please?" she prompted her, still hanging onto her hand as a comfort for them both. In the quiet that followed, Poppy was reminded of the day several months ago when they'd been sat on the stairs in Gryffindor Tower and Ro had asked her that exact question. It was ironic to think that here they were now, with roles reversed despite how everything that Poppy had worried about had come true.
"I know I like to live dangerously," Ro began after a lengthy silence, her voice so uncertain that it made Poppy's heart ache. "But this… this was something else. I mean shit, Poppy, we almost lost her. This was meant to be fun and games but two people are dead. They're not coming back, their families and friends have to learn to live without them and-." She broke off then, swallowing heavily.
Poppy squeezed her hand tight. "And?"
"And… and I'm sorry."
The unexpected apology left Poppy more confused than ever, and she shuffled over a little so she was sat looking at Ro rather than next to her. "Why are you sorry? None of this has anything to do with you."
Ro shook her head, rubbing hastily at her eyes before she spoke again. "No, I don't mean that. I mean I get it now. How horrible it is when your friend's nearly dying and all you can do is beg the universe to let them live." There was another lengthy pause before she finished in a shaking voice "I'm so sorry I did that to you."
This time Poppy didn't need to ask her what she meant, instantly taken back to a cold March morning when she'd watched Ro plummet to her almost certain fate. "Come here," she said, and Ro needed no further encouragement before her arms were around back and her head buried in the crook of her neck.
They stayed like that for a long while as Ro fought to keep her breathing steady, until the sound of footsteps approaching made them both look up. Larry was walking down the corridor towards them with a small bunch of flowers held in a white-knuckled grip, though he paused awkwardly when he caught sight of Poppy and Ro watching him. Smiling fondly, Poppy got to her feet and made her way over to him.
"Hi Poppy, hey Ro," Larry greeted them, attempting a smile but giving up within a second. "Is Minerva ok?"
Poppy nodded, glad she could do so without feeling like lying now that Minerva was awake. "She's been awake for a couple of hours. All the poison is gone, and I think Madame Quinine's healing her wounds now. She's grieving but she's ok."
Larry sighed, the weight of the world seeming to fall off his shoulders as he took in Poppy's words. "Thank you," he said, fixing her with an earnest look from tired eyes. "Am I allowed in to see her?"
"Of course," Poppy said, glancing at Ro and waiting for her nod before she lead them both back through the Hospital Wing doors. The sight of Minerva and Irma talking quietly made her hesitant in her walk down the ward, not wanting to interrupt Minerva's softly spoken words.
"-and I kept thinking that when I said goodbye before the Tournament it might have been the last time I ever got the chance to. I wasn't ready to never see you all again," Minerva was saying. Poppy managed to distract herself from her shameless eavesdropping by noting that Madame Quinine had indeed healed the wounds on Minerva's hand and leg, and she was looking a lot less grey after presumably being given a blood replenishing potion. "I made- I made Reynaud promise to tell Malcolm and Robbie I loved them if I died but I couldn't even think of what to say to you and the others. And now Larry too, I've barely told him what he means to me and the thought of him losing me now-."
Minerva trailed off then with a shake of her head, and Poppy felt like she'd done more than enough listening in. She opened her mouth to make their presence known but Ro beat her to it, calling out a dramatic "Speak of the devil and he shall appear!" as she gave Larry a hefty shove forwards. Poppy had been intending to be a little more subtle but she had to admit that it did the job.
Time seemed to stop for a second as Minerva's tearful eyes locked onto Larry. Then she was throwing her feet over the edge of the bed and jumping to her feet, causing Poppy's heartrate to spike in panic as she stumbled in her haste. Poppy went to steady her but Ro grabbed her arm to pull her back as Larry caught her instead. The flowers he'd been holding tumbled to the floor as Minerva grabbed his face and kissed him hard.
Ro let out a shocked guffaw, grinning from ear to ear, and Poppy quickly plastered a hand over her mouth to keep her from making another noise.
After a few long moments Minerva stepped back, one hand lingering on his cheek while the other leaned on his forearm for support. "I thought I was going to die without ever getting to do that," she said softly.
"So did I," Larry whispered back.
Poppy's hand was still over Ro's mouth to keep in whatever joyful shout she could sense coming, but it was her who nearly shrieked when she felt a hand on her shoulder. "Are we interrupting something?" hissed Millicent in her ear as Septima and Ro both laughed silently at Poppy's alarm.
"Maybe a little," Poppy grinned as Irma walked quietly over to join them.
Millicent shrugged. "Ah well. It's the sweetest thing I've ever seen, and I didn't think I'd ever get to see it for most of last night so I'm quite happy."
Poppy hummed in agreement, meeting Millicent's eyes in grim understanding before hugging her friend. She stepped back to see Minerva and Larry walking over to join them, hand in hand and both smiling despite the fragility that lingered in every line of Minerva's face. Ro grabbed Minerva's other hand and squeezed it hard, and when Septima went to hold Ro's other hand it started off a chain of them all holding on to each other as they had done in the aftermath of the battle against Grindlewald. The circle was closed with Poppy taking Larry's hand, wiping the hesitancy from his expression at possibly intruding on a tradition that predated his relationship with one of the six. Watching him look at Minerva with nothing short of adoration in his eyes, Poppy didn't think she'd ever been so grateful for Minerva's choice in boyfriend.
Casting her eyes around the circle, she was met with six people that visibly showed every shred of terror they'd all felt in the last day. They were all smiling though, glad of each other's company after all they'd been through. And even though it was early days yet and there was still a way to go before they could even think of moving on, Poppy couldn't help but hope that they were through the worst of the storm.
But then she caught sight of Minerva's eyes, rimmed with red and underlined with dark circles. For the first time ever, despite her height she looked like the smallest of them all.
Author's Note:
To everyone who thought we couldn't get any more heartbroken after the last chapter: I'm sorry. Like with Svetlana, I knew exactly how poor Reynaud would meet his end since the very earliest days when this story was just in note form. I thought writing Minerva's perspective of the tournament was sad enough, but putting it in the perspective of those who love her and couldn't do anything to help just made my heart hurt. I hope I managed to get across the frantic atmosphere I was imagining in my head during that first section.
From a writer's perspective, it was really interesting to write Minerva in a frame of mind that we just haven't seen her in before. We've had her recovering from a traumatic event (the near drowning in fourth year) and we've had her grieving to a similar extent (after Ro's accident and Aunt Felicity's death), but this combines both and amps them both up a hundred fold. I think while drowning there wasn't really much time for Minerva to feel fear, but in this case she had time to process the fact that she was probably dying and that would terrify anyone. Plus there's the survivor's guilt of being the one to live while Svetlana and Reynaud died too, that's something I'm looking forward to exploring next chapter. As for her reaction to Larry's arrival, it might seem a little out of character at the first impression and tbh I hadn't intended for her to do that but in the moment it just seemed right. She's just survived something awful, and there's enough raw emotion going on in her head at the moment asides from being a typical 16 year old girl that this is her first response. That entire scene made me smile a lot.
As for Poppy, as well as everything else going on in this chapter I think it's really one that demonstrates just how much she's grown. The terrified little first year is almost gone though of course she still has moments where she has to fall apart herself, and in her place is a young healer who is confident in what she knows and what she can do. I loved the moment between her and Ro, a real parallel to their moment in chapter 43 which I pointed out in the text. And moving onto Ro very briefly, I hadn't planned ahead for her to react like she did but once again it just felt so right in the moment.
While this chapter isn't the most plot-heavy, I didn't want to skip over any of the characters' emotional responses to everything that's just happened so it's important filler as far as I'm concerned! The next chapter will close fifth year at last, and it's one I've been really really looking forward to for a long time. And from several comments in reviews over the last ten or so chapters it's been one that I think a lot of you are looking forward to. And for a personal update: uni is still amazing. Since the start of 2019 I have gone to Budapest with my theatre society, competed in two dance competitions, and performed in a musical. With that in mind I'm sure you can all understand why I don't have much time to write other than during school holidays!
Until next time :)