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Alastriona hadn't been able to find Darcy at all. Even at dinner she hadn't been able to see her. Alastriona's stomach was hurting and she was sweating uncomfortably as she sat in her bed with her knees clutched to her chest. She'd never felt like this before. She fell into a fretful sleep and when she woke it was in the very early hours of the morning and there was something between her legs.
Alastriona closed the curtains around her bed and whispered, "Lumos." The tip of her wand lit up and Alastriona's hand smacked over her mouth to cover the gasp that wanted to escape.
Her pyjama shorts, her sheets and her legs were smeared with blood. "What the—" Alastriona's eyes watered quickly and the tears didn't hold back.
"Alastriona?" The quiet voice came from behind her curtain and when Alastriona whimpered in reply the curtain opened.
Darcy was not prepared for the scene before her, she just thought Alastriona had a nightmare. Darcy assessed the hurt and surprise on Alastriona's face and realised this was her first one. "Oh, Alastriona." She sat next to her friend and hugged her from the side.
Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott begrudgingly woke up from the sounds of light sniffling and a dim light coming from Alastriona's bed. When they stood and walked over they realised what had happened.
Susan sat next to Alastriona on her other side and Hannah sat on the end of her bed. Both had sympathetic, albeit confused, smiles on their faces.
"Is this your first period?" Hannah asked softly. Alastriona nodded hesitantly but Hannah had no judgement in her eyes, "Mine came last year, it was horrible. I got it during class but Professor Sprout covered for me and no one realised."
Susan nodded, "Mine came last year as well and now I get it whenever Hannah gets it." She gave a small shrug, "It's kind of nice knowing I get to go through it with someone each time."
Alastriona was sitting up a bit straighter now, but the tears kept flowing as she was supported by each of these girls.
Darcy squeezed in closer to Alastriona, "Mine came when I was twelve." She said in the near total darkness of the room, "It was entirely unexpected and I was so mad at my mum because she hadn't told me anything about it. She never said anything, about what it was, what it would feel like or what it would do to me. Madame Pomfrey explained everything to me."
Hannah nodded in agreement, "Madame Pomfrey will explain it all to you as well, Alastriona. It'll be okay." She stood up from the bed and held out a hand for Alastriona to take, she did. Hannah started to lead her to the bathroom. "You have a shower, we'll get your bed stripped down and then one of us will take you to the hospital wing, okay?"
Alastriona nodded and sniffed, a fresh wave of tears coming through as she looked back at the girls, "Thank you." She whispered. They just gave sympathetic smiles before turning around and working on her bed.
The boiling hot water of the shower helped Alastriona to calm down as she cleaned herself up. When she came out wrapped in a robe she saw the girls had left some new pyjamas for her on Darcy's bed. Alastriona sheets, blanket and her mattress was all missing. They must've enlisted the help of a house-elf.
Alastriona dressed in the bathroom and when she came out Darcy had put some Ugg boots on and was waiting by the door with her hand outstretched. They walked slowly to the hospital wing.
Luckily for the two girls Madame Pomfrey was an early riser and when she spotted Alastriona's pale face she sighed, truth be told she'd expected the girl in here for some accident or another much sooner.
She approached the girl and guided her to sit on one of the cots, "What's happened, Miss Breen, are you ill?"
"I got my period." Alastriona muttered under her breath.
"I'll be right back." Madame Pomfrey offered a comforting smile and patted the girls hand gently.
When she returned she began talking to Alastriona about what she could expect each month, however she explained that when the first cycle starts it can be unpredictable and it may not come every month. She then lifted up a pair of black cotton underwear.
"These were designed by a witch several years ago. They're charmed so once liquid hits the surface the material is immediately cleaned. I'll give you seven pairs to wear during your cycle."
She handed a pack over to Darcy to carry and handed a small potion bottle with a blue liquid swirling inside, "This will help with any cramps, tenderness and soreness you may feel." Madame Pomfrey put it in Alastriona's hand and gripped her hand for a second, smiling kindly at her. "You'll be okay, Alastriona."
"Thank you, Madame Pomfrey."
Alastriona changed behind a screen and when she came out Darcy was waiting for her. Together they walked back to the Hufflepuff common room and they sat in their dorm room with Susan and Hannah and talked until the rest of the castle woke up for the day. Alastriona felt more comfortable now that she knew her and Darcy were okay.
Now all she needed to do was talk to Cedric to reassure him that Alastriona still wanted him to win the entire tournament and help Harry so he wouldn't die during the first challenge.
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