A Snake's Crutch Book 1

Part 11: Brought Together

Y/N walk out of the hospital wing into the adjoining office after wiping her tears away. When she looked upon her professors, speaking quietly to each other in the corner of the room, they hadn't seemed to have noticed her yet. 

"You know perfectly well that, without proof, Mr Malfoy's accusation means nothing, Severus. We can't punish anyone until we have solid evidence. And did you see Miss y/l/n's reaction when Malfoy accused Potter? She doesn't believe him! She was there! That's why we need to speak to her."

"Professor McGonagall," y/n said quietly, surprising both of the teachers. "You wished to speak to me?" Y/N sounded hoarse and she could tell the professors knew she was upset.

"Yes, Miss y/l/n. I wanted to ask you what happened? Where were you and Draco when the boys were cursed," McGonagall said softly, as if she would scare y/n away if she were too loud.

"Well, Draco and I had decided to go back to the common room and finish some charms homework, and when we were done, we went to meet our friends at the lake." Y/N thought hard to make sure her story wouldn't counter whatever Draco might say. "On the way down, we heard shouting. Not like, playful shouting. It sounded to me like our friends were in trouble. So we picked up the pace the see what had happened, and suddenly there was a yellow light, and Draco was on the ground, his shoes smoking green, and his feet burning from some sort of slime."

"And did you see anyone around you who could have possibly done it," McGonagall asked. 

"No, my friends and I were the only was around, unless someone hid themselves somehow." Y/N glanced at Snape, who looked bored, but y/n could tell he was interested. He looked at her and something -- understanding maybe -- flashed in his eyes. "And when I got down to the others, I told the girls to look around for anyone who could have cast it and, as far as I know, no one found anything."

"Who do you think could have done it? Do you believe what Mr Malfoy said? Do you think Harry Potter did it?" McGonagall looked desperate for y/n to say no.

"No. No, I don't believe Harry Potter could have done it. If we couldn't find anyone around us, they must have used some sort of cloaking spell. I've read about them, and I don't think any first year, not even Harry Potter, is strong enough to cast a spell like that yet." Y/n glanced again at Professor Snape, gauging his reaction to her words. What he did puzzled her. 

Professor Snape was grinning -- or the closest thing to a grin Snape was capable of -- as if y/n had said something funny. It calmed her nerves a bit, but not much. 

"Well, that sounds like a highly logical theory," Professor McGonagall said, turning to face Snape with an 'I told you so' look on her face. It made y/n smile. "I think you should tell your students that you will try and find the person responsible and that they need not worry and not to mention it unless the perpetrator is found."

"Of course, Minerva," Snape nodded and Professor McGonagall exited to the corridor, calling to some Gryffindor first years not to use magic in the halls.

Snape looked over y/n, going through the motions before he exited behind McGonagall. 

"Oh, have they gone?" Poppy had walked in behind her. "Good. Come, dear. Let me show you what we do now." Madame Pomfrey led the way to Crabbe's bed. As y/n past Draco's bed, she didn't allow herself to look over at him. Instead she put her nose in the air, and ignored him. 

"First thing, we need to check the wounds. Depending on the level of urgency of the wound and the difficulty of the treatment, you can check relatively quickly." Poppy flicked her wand, and the bandages undid themselves. "See, the wound looks very old and the tissue underneath looks almost good as new. I will only be sending these boys away with the demand that they wear socks for three days other than changing and washing. No exceptions." She gave Crabbe a stern look, who yet again didn't seem to care, so y/n decided to check her wand for dust.