A Cannon's Harpy

XII

Ginny sat impatiently on a hard bed inside the now dimly lit Harpies infirmary. Her legs swayed about, but she could not leave. A wand appeared before her eyes. A female Healer stood somewhere behind the bright light coming from the tip. Ginny blinked in agitation. The light vanished and the room appeared even darker for a moment. The healer waved her wand and the infirmary brightened again. The wand dropped onto the bed as the Healer moved behind Ginny to begin prodding her neck and back for any further injuries.

The process took an agonisingly long time, but eventually the Healer stood before her again. The woman did not look entirely pleased, but neither did she look angry.

The she held up two fingers. "How many fingers?"

"Two," Ginny replied quickly even though the image was slightly blurred. "I'm fine, really." The words probably more to comfort herself.

"Sure," the witch retorted. "What could be wrong after a forty foot plummet straight into mother earth?"

"Well of course I was hurt," Ginny burst out angrily. Not angry at the witch, but at being stuck in the small dark and depressing room while Harry needed her. "But you fixed me hours ago."

"And now I'm making sure you don't walk into a wall." The witch smiled knowingly and Ginny could tell the woman had seen the like before. "Relax, you seem fine. You'll be out of this room in another minute or two."

A low moan escaped Ginny's lips. "A minute's too long." She wanted to say more, but it wasn't the woman's fault that Ginny had to be in here.

As the Healer checked for other signs of injury, Ginny began to glance about. Blood soaked clothes lay on a nearby table; the one sleeve torn and bloodied from the early collision with the Bludger. Vials of blood restorative potions emphasised what her eyes were seeing and body felt. The amount made her stomach turn. Thankfully the cuts and bruises were mostly healed. She would be sore and stiff for a day or two, however.

"And there you go, Weasley." The woman sounded pleased. "I think we managed a right good job of patching you up."

"Thank you," Ginny replied even though she was in a hurry to leave. She slid of the bed gingerly, every part of her body ached. The process of pulling a practise jersey over her head took agonising minutes to complete. Yet, after each movement the muscles in her body began to relax and loosen. By the time she was fully dressed, Ginny felt almost human again. They really had done a tidy job. "You must be well practised."

The Healer smiled knowingly. "The average Harpy being smaller than the men they play against means that I do tend to get more things to fix than your ordinary team Healer."

"I never really thought about it." Ginny nodded absently.

"Few do, but you might as well know that your fellow Harpies don't do too well when connecting mid-air with a pair oversized Beaters." The Healer's voice sounded incredibly dry.

Ginny burst out laughing, unsure whether the woman had tried to make a joke or not, as she made her way to the door. "Thanks, I'll try to remember that." The laughter helped her spirit.

"Please do. Re-growing bones has becoming quite boring."

Ginny hesitated, one hand on the handle. "I'll try to add some flare."