Accidents Happen ∙ Garreth Weasley

12 - Sick stars

After the trip to the beach, Garreth, Lina, Leander and Natty all headed back to Hogwarts before the snow got any heavier. The rest of the weekend passed slowly, most of Lina's Sunday taken up by last-minute quidditch practice, whenever the snow lightened enough to fly in. 

More white flakes littered the sky on Monday afternoon as the players made their way up to the pitch, light bouncing off which glared in Lina's eyes. She had been distant since her breakdown at Garreth's house, and walked up to the quidditch field alone. All Sunday, when not on her broom, she spent in the Ravenclaw common room or her dorm, reading or studying, and books had begun to form piles by the side of her bed which were so tall they could cause an avalanche if knocked over. Samantha Dale, her roommate, was hardly around so this gave Lina space to breathe.

Up at the pitches, she joined the horde of Ravenclaw players who were warming up and stretching. Team tactics were discussed, mostly consisting of not passing the quaffle to Everett, and the team filtered out onto the pitch. A deafening roar came from the blue stands above them, banners and signs waving about in the air in support of the house. Across the pitch, The Gryffindor team appeared, and the Ravenclaws began to fly up into the air.Garreth waved at Lina from the opposite side of the quidditch pitch, before mounting his broom and hovering in starting positions. 

She waved back just as the whistle blew, commencing the match. Lina's vision became more and more impaired as the light sleet turned into huge flakes of snow and ice. They both got swept up in the game, Lina's eyes darting around, trying to find the snitch through all of the new snow, and Garreth was busy hitting bludgers away from his teammates. A golden whirr buzzed in front of Lina's face and she sped up, following the tiny metallic ball. She moved down her brow a little, stretching her arm as far out as possible. She was so close...

Suddenly, Garreth saw a the flapping of blue robes as they fell through the air - a Ravenclaw player must have lost their cloak. Through a gap in the falling snow, he saw that attached to the cloak were arms and legs and a face - Lina's face. Without hesitation he sped towards her, wind rushing in his ears and ice-cold water dripping down his face. She hit the grass before Garreth could reach her, and she rolled onto her side, her face screwed her face up as she ground her teeth together. 

He leapt off his broom, letting it clatter to the floor, and knelt down next to her. "Hey, Lina? Look at me. Are you ok?" He asked, gently tuning her face to look at him. "Hey can we get a nurse please?" He shouted across the field.

"Gare... it hurts," she groaned, her breathing jagged and laboured. 

"It will be alright Lina, we'll get you some help," he told her softly. His tone quickly changed as he shouted again, this time louder. "Someone get a fucking nurse now! Did you not hear me the first time?"

Snow and hail poured from the sky, hitting them in cold, sharp waves. Garreth had given up on asking for help, and gently picked Lina up and carried her off the pitch. Madam Kogowa saw them approaching, and ran out with Nurse Blainey. "Mr Weasley, what is going on?" The professor asked, assessing the Ravenclaw held in his arms.

"She needs to go to the medical wing. I dont know what happened, but Lina fell off her broom and didn't get back up," Garreth explained worriedly. "I called for a nurse multiple times, but no-one came."

Nurse Blainey brought the two students into a small room underneath the bleachers. "Put her down on here," She told Garreth, indicating to a medical bed at one side. He rested her down on the bed, but she refused to let go of his hand, squeezing it hard.

The Gryffindor tried to prise his hand from her grip, but to no avail - she clung on tightly. The nurse began to inspect Lina, and when she lifted up the side of her quidditch gear dozens of raw, red bruises were scattered across her ribcage like sick stars, patches of purple and maroon blossoming across every rib. Lina winced, sharp intakes of air inflating her lungs briefly.

Madam Kogowa appeared in the doorway. "Mr Weasley, you need to get back on the pitch to finish the match."

"I don't care about the bloody match right now," he almost shouted, surprised at his tone. He had never sworn at a professor, and he knew he would regret it later. But now it didn't matter. Madam Kogowa seemed taken aback at his comment, but didn't get angry as she stepped outside again.

Garreth rubbed the back of Lina's hand with his thumb in a feeble attempt at comforting her. She winced again when Nurse Blainey moved her other arm, a misshapen bump jutting out of her lower arm. "She's broken some ribs, and probably her left wrist. Miss..."

"Clarke. Evangeline Clarke," Garreth said as he corrected the nurse.

"Yes. Miss Clarke, I am taking you back to the hospital wing, but beforehand I need you to drink this," She said, producing a wiggenweld potion. Lina released her grip on Garreth's hand, taking the vial from Nurse Blainey and knocking it back with a grimace. A green hue shot through her skin, fading as quickly as it arrived, and Lina stirred, slowly sitting up in the bed. "Are you feeling better?" the nurse asked, and when Lina nodded in response, Nurse Blainey took ahold of her hand and apparated away with a loud pop. 

Garreth paced, cracking his knuckles, and once they were all cracked, biting his nails. He hoped that a few broken bones were all Lina was suffering from - it was rather a high fall. 

"Mr Weasley, there is nothing you can do now. Miss Clarke is in capable hands, and you need to finish the game," Madam Kogowa told him from the door. "You can visit her in the hospital wing afterwards."

He began to protest, but quickly realised it would get him nowhere. "I- fine. But someone had better catch the snitch soon."