The Muggle in St Mungo's

Chapter Two: Scarlett Ledger

Chapter Two: Scarlett Ledger

'Thank you,' she whispered softly, although it sounded more like she asked a question if anything. She stared at Harry for a little while before shutting her eyes once again, screwing her face together in either concentration or pain. He could not tell. Freeing her hand from the damp and mothball smelling bed sheets, the girl raised her hand just below her left shoulder and pinched hard with her purple painted nails. Peeking out of one eye, she scanned the room a second time. Then, without any warning, she slapped herself across the face, with such force she actually threw herself out of bed at Harry's feet.

Harry jumped. What had just happened? He looked back at Mr and Mrs Weasley, for reassurance that they had just seen what he had. The girl moaned on the floor, wincing in pain as she clutched her bandaged leg. A rustle of robs swept past him as Mrs Weasley helped the crazy girl back into bed, as he came to his senses to assist the two of them.

'There you are now dear, back into bed, that's right' comforted Mrs Weasley.

'That's not what usually happens in a dream,' mumbled the girl. She had an odd accent that Harry had never heard before.

'Yes, yes, that's right dear. Relax.' Mrs Weasley rearranged her pillows and patted her on the shoulder. 'Don't want you getting yourself seriously injured now, do we?' She sneaked a quick look at the girl's twitching leg as she swivelled and returned to her husband. Harry backed away very, very slowly, as if a sudden movement in front of the girl would send her back to self-beating. She had an air about her, an air that harry could not quite decipher. It was a sort of innocents, mixed in with confusion. But what fascinated Harry so much about the girl was a sense of non-belonging, like he had something in common with her without them speaking so much as a word.

The only other patient in the small Dangerous’ Dai Llewllyn Ward: Serious Bites was a man in a third bed, muttering under his breath. The man lay looking green and sickly and staring at the ceiling. Bitten by a werewolf, poor chap, Mr Weasley's voice repeated in his head as he recalled their conversation earlier that day, No cure at all. Harry looked in the direction of the girl sitting in bed, who was now immersed in a brochure with a large logo of St Mungo's emblem; a wand and a bone, crossed.

That girl over there won’t tell the Healers what bit her, which makes all think it must have been something she was handling illegally. Whatever it was took a real chunk out of her leg, very nasty smell when they take off the dressings. The man with the werewolf bite tousled in bed as the nearest Healer set down a vase of Wild Pansies on his bedside table, a nice finish to the collection of family photographs. A deep unnatural sound built heavily in the man's chest, as he let out a growl which brought Mr and Mrs Weasley's conversation to a halt.

'I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR RUDDY PANSIES!' The man swept out of bed to tower over the trembling Healer, and in a clean sweep, threw the vase and photos across the room.

'I-I, sir! I'm s-sorry sir! I just thought t-that it would be...nice...' whimpered the Healer, she held her hands in front of her face for protection. Where are the other Healers? Thought Harry.

‘THOUGHT IT WOULD BE NICE? THOUGHT IT WOULD BE-', the man stooped low and grabbed hold of the woman's wrist. '-If you don't want to be baying at the moon in two weeks I'd suggest you use your time more...constructively.' Although the man was no longer shouting, Harry thought he would choose shouting over the deep, menacing growl the man gave any day. The werewolf raised a threatening hand shaking in rage, and the Healer began weep.

'Now that's quite enough!’ yelled Mr Weasley, getting up. Although, as soon as his feet touched the ground he gave a small whimper and the bandages wrapped around his ribs dyed red. Where are they? Harry thought desperately. The man's hand stopped inches from the Healer's face, and appeared quite frozen if it weren't for his large blood-shot eyes turning slowly towards Mr Weasley. Suddenly, with amazing speed, the werewolf tossed the Healer away as she landed with a crash against a tall medicine cabinet. Harry's hand was on his wand, but it was too late. The werewolf broke into a sprint, pouncing into the air, wearing a savage expression with his jaw wide open.

'Stupefy!' A rush of red sparks flew out of Harry's wand and hit the man with the werewolf bite in the small of his back.