Arabella Black, The Daughter Of Padfoot (Redux)

Chapter 22

Severus had gone looking for Primrose to tell her that Ara had been injured. In a way, Primrose thought she should have seen it coming. Sirius and James had always been in the middle of almost all the trouble that went on in Hogwarts, obviously their kids were no different.

"You're limping"Primrose pointed out"Perhaps you need to see Madam Pomfrey yourself?"

"I'm fine"Severus growled

Primrose sighed, but didn't press the issue. If he didn't care about it, why should she?

By the time they had reached the infirmary, Madam Pomfrey was finished tending to Arabella. She greeted Severus and Primrose with a soft smile.

"Ms. Black is fine"She assured them"She does have a minor concussion; I'd like to keep her overnight to keep an eye on it"

Primrose let out the breath she didn't know she was holding. These kids were going to give her a heart attack if they kept this up.

"Nothing else is wrong?"Severus insisted

The healer shook her head"She has a few bruises but I didn't find any other damage"

Primrose noticed that the infirmary wasn't empty. There was a boy across from Ara's bed, he looked familiar actually. He was one of Ara's friends? He looked like he was passed out.

"What's he doing here?"Primrose asked, curiously.

"Poor boy came in not to long after the feast looking dead on his feet, complaining about a very bad headache"Madam Promfrey explained

Severus clenched his jaw. I hope that's nothing but a coincidence. I was really hoping this soul bond business was a fluke. He said to himself as he walked over to Ara's bed. There was a large purple and black bruise on her temple, but she looked like she was peacefully asleep.

"You're limping"The Healer noticed, Primrose snickered off to the side"I'll get you a potion, stay here"Pomfrey insisted as she hurried into the storeroom.

"I think she's in good hands"Primrose decided as Severus sat next to Ara"I'll come around in the morning"

Severus briefly nodded before she left. He settled down into a chair next to her, and sighed loudly.

This girl was really going to be the death of him.

~~~

The night had left Primrose with a fitful sleep, unable to close her eyes without a new sense of anguish washing over her.

A hot shower hadn't helped much; neither did both cups of tea that she had gulped down. All she could think about was Ara's bruised body, and how she almost could have lost her again.

"Get used to having your nerves put to the test, Evans. It only gets worse with some of the stunts they pull"McGonagall humored during breakfast, taking notice of Primrose's high-strung expression.

"Are troll's a usual suspect?"Primrose asked sarcastically"If that's the case, Quirrell and I won't last through the semester"

McGonagall made a sour face"I could only hope that Quirinus doesn't finish the rest of the term"

Primrose quickly noticed how most of the Professor's had a shared dislike for the DADA teacher, although most of them chalked their dislike down to his strange stuttering.

Primrose had stood from the table, unable to eat anything anyways, and was almost knocked over by an ambush of students.

"Whoa!"She balanced herself, glancing down at the young faces"How can I help you?"She asked the group of Gryffindor's and Hufflepuff's