Hospital Wing

Ara seemed more willing to go down and watch the quidditch match than either of her brothers thought she would be. They thought they were going to have to convince her to go. 

"You seem in better spirits after your trip," Hyperion pointed out as they walked down to the pitch. 

"I had a nice time. Plus, I am trying to concentrate on OWLs. I don't want to do poorly on them." Ara answered her brother's question in a way that satisfied her, but not him. Both of her brothers, in fact, were curious as to why she was in such a better mood. She was even doing better in Potions, which is the class they shared with James. 

"What was your favorite part?" Scorpius was trying to find out, along with his brother, if something had happened.

"What are the two of you getting at?" She had no intention of telling anyone about Ames. It would be pointless, seeing as she probably wouldn't ever see him again. 

The boys figured she wasn't going to tell them anything further and decided to drop the subject. The game was more evenly matched than anyone would have thought, and James struggled to keep up with the other seeker. He was focused today, which was good, but he didn't really feel that well, and it was slowing him down.  

He almost felt as if he would be sick right off his broom, but he wanted to win so badly that he pushed the feeling down and tried to concentrate on catching the snitch. It flew past him suddenly, and he took off in the opposite direction. It was fact and abrupt, and he hadn't looked before he turned, and soon he was falling end over end toward the ground. His broom was smashed into two by a bludger, and he braced for impact. 

It felt as if the air would never enter his body again when he hit the ground. The worst was yet to come, though. The pain in his shoulder and back her terrible. Also, he could tell from here that his arm and leg were probably broken as well. He closed his eyes and waited for someone to get to him. 

Albus and Hugo were holding Lily back from practically jumping out of the stands to see if her brother was alright. She was screaming and crying for them to let go, but the professors were almost there, and she really wasn't going to be much help. 

"Al, let me go!" She wriggled underneath their grasp and finally sunk into the ground and started to cry. 

"He's going to be alright, Lily. You'll see." Albus was stroking her back and looking down to the pitch every couple of seconds to see what was going on. Hyperion and Scorpius were trying to fight their way down through the crowd to see if they could find out anything. Ara was standing there, tears running down her face. She felt as though she couldn't breathe. It was like someone had punched her right in the gut and then ripped her heart out. He had to be alright. He just had to. She had never had the chance to apologize, to make him understand how sorry she truly was for putting him through everything. 

Everyone watched as he was levitated off the field, and as soon as he was, Albus let go of Lily, and they both started making their way to the hospital wing where he was surely being taken. The game resumed, and Ara couldn't bear to watch anymore. She found her two brothers, and the three of them walked to the hospital wing as well. 

"Well, Mr. Potter, it seems that you have a concussion, a dislocated left shoulder, two broken ribs, a broken right arm, and lastly, a broken right ankle. I must say, though, I expected far worse, seeing as you fell from so far. I will have you fixed up in no time, but you will be staying with me for at least a week. I do not take this serious of an injury lightly, and I will have my way in the matter," Madam Pomfrey was pouring several different things into a cup and then handed it to James. He drank it when she urged him to after several moments of them just looking at one another, and he coughed loudly at the taste. It was disgusting. 

"James!" Lily ran to his bedside and started to fuss over every little cut she saw. She couldn't help the tears forming in her eyes. She started to bend down to hug him, but Albus held her back.

"Lil, maybe you should see if that would hurt him before you go throwing your whole body overtop him." Albus started to rub his little sister's back once again, and even he was fighting not to cry at the sight of his older brother. His shirt was off, and there was a bandage over his chest, arm, and leg. His shoulder was wrapped tightly, and that same arm was being held close to his body.

"Don't worry, Lily. Madam Pomfrey said I'll be out of here in a week. Good as new. I reckon I got off lucky with the fall I took." James motioned for her to come closer and sit on the bed, and when she did, he kissed her lightly on the forehead. "Thanks for coming to see me; I love you." 

This was met by a see of girls saying awe and batting their eyelashes at James. Lily and Albus looked at their brother with a frown, and he just put his head back on the pillow and took a breath. Why wouldn't they leave him alone?

"Albus, make them go away," Lily whispered into her brother's ear. 

He leaned in toward her in return and whispered back, "I think that is more in your wheelhouse than mine." She scoffed at him and stared the girls down. She didn't like a single one of them and sighed softly as she watched Ara rush through the doors with her two brothers on her heels. 

James couldn't help but smile at the sight of her, and then he felt the dozens of glares from the girls surrounding his bed.  

"What are you doing here?" One girl started talking to Ara.

"You haven't spoken in weeks. I highly doubt he wants to see you." Another picked up. Her tone was nasty, and Ara could feel her face start to get hot and redden. 

"You should have never come." The girls were not stopping in their berating of Ara, and she finally turned the other way and ran to where she had just come from. Tears running down her face. She hated this. Hated crying. She just wanted to make sure he was alright. They had been friends since they were born, and now she couldn't even speak to him. By the looks of it, he was not okay, and that didn't help her state of mind any. 

"What the bloody hell!" James managed to push himself up to stare down the girls who were yelling at Ara. "If anyone should have to leave, it should be your lot. I don't want you here. I don't like you being here. I don't like the fact that you follow me around everywhere. Yet even after I tell you over and over, you still do it. I can't stand it. The person I actually want to be here is gone now, thanks to you." 

The girls all looked shocked that James had just yelled at them, and a couple of them even started to cry. They quickly walked out, passing not only a happy looking Lily Potter but two furious Malfoy boys. 

"Scorp?" James was looking at his best mate. They hadn't really talked much since everything that happened, but this seemed a good a time as any to get over everything. 

"Yes?"

"Could you please tell Ara I didn't want them to come? I really didn't. They show up. I don't know what to do to make them go away." James fell back onto his pillow. His head was pounding now, and he really was starting to feel every inch of pain that his body was in. 

"I'll tell her, mate." Scorpius went to find Madam Pomfrey to let her know that James wasn't feeling the best, and Hyperion jumped in on the conversation. 

"James, I think you might have just gotten rid of them for good. Hopefully, that makes you feel a little better." 

"It does, actually," James said with his eyes still closed. 

"We will let you get some rest." Scorpius had come back with Madam Pomfrey, and she gave something to James for the headache, and the two Malfoy children walked back to with the two Potter children in silence. Maybe this was the first step to James and Ara being happy once again. 

Scorpius and Albus found Ara crying to herself in the common room. She was trying to hide it, but they had both seen so much of it lately that it was pretty noticeable. 

"Ara, can we talk to you?" Scorpius started. His voice was sweet and comforting, and he hoped he would be able to make her feel better. 

She looked up and nodded for him to continue. 

"James just wanted us to tell you something," Albus smiled sweetly at her, and she smiled back at the mention of James's name. 

"He just wanted you to know that he never wanted those girls to be around him all the time. He didn't want them to be there in the hospital wing, and he was really sorry about what they said to you." Scorpius said. 

"I think he really got them to leave him alone this time by the way he stuck up for you and yelled at them," Albus added. 

"He really did that?" 

"Yes, he said that you were the only one he wanted there, and they ruined it for him." Scorpius smiled at his sister. He knew neither of them really wanted to be apart, and he hoped that they would realize how ridiculous it really was that they were apart.

"Should I go and try and see him?" Ara was getting up and brushing off the wrinkles in her skirt. 

"Ara, it is pretty late, and I wouldn't want you to be caught out of bed. Maybe you should wait until tomorrow to see him." Scorpius pulled his sister into a hug and hoped that everything would work out for her. He hated seeing her so upset, and he just wanted her to feel better. 

"Thank you both." She wiped her eyes one more time before heading off to bed. Thinking about what she was going to say tomorrow to James. She just wanted him to know how sorry she really was.