Flora. {Credence Barebone}

Chapter Twenty-One.

Flora woke with a start when a hand feebly began to grasp at hers, searching among the crevices of the stark white bedsheets. She pulled her hand back abruptly, clutching it to her chest.

"Flora," Walter Adler croaked from the bed, stretching his fingers to find those of the girl he thought he loved.

Feeling terrible for her harshness, Flora leaned forward on her chair and slowly extended her hand towards his. He grasped it tightly and smiled at the dishevelled blonde who had fallen asleep in the bedside chair hours ago. He had watched her since he woke, after the hoard of Healers had left his bedside. Her hair wasn't in its normal smooth, bouncy state, it stood out from her small head, wisps of it straying in different directions. The stains of tears could be seen on her coat, and they had also left their mark on her petite face; makeup streaked her beautiful features like war paint.

"Have a nice slumber?" Walter asked her, smiling weakly. He hid grimaces of pain beneath his award-winning smile, and images of his still figure in the alleyway presented themselves in Flora's mind.

Ignoring his question, Flora presented her own: "When did you wake?"

"An hour ago," he replied, and before Flora could speak he continued talking. "The Healers told me of how you brought me here Flora; how you apparated. I know how much it troubles you to use magic Flora, I know how much it pains you after your.. after your mother. Apparating after such a long period of not using your magic, that's dangerous; and you did it for me Flora, for me."

Flora opened her mouth, and then shut it again. She didn't know what to say. Yes, in the darkness of the alley on 34th street she had plucked up the courage to apparate Walter to the infirmary on Canal Street, where she had once wanted to work. She had to, she couldn't have someone die because of her. She had lured him to the alley, and he suffered because of it.

Now, as she sat at Walter's bedside, her clothes wrinkled and her mind hazy, she felt the need to slap herself, as all she could think of was how in that moment, she had imagined it was Credence in a heap on the damp ground of the alley, not Walter.. and how she was now relieved that it was Walter in the bed beside her, not Credence.

"It- It doesn't mean-" Flora spoke groggily. "It doesn't matter." She turned her gaze to the ground, ashamed that she didn't care about Walter as much as he thought she did.

"It matters a lot Flora," Walter smiled, gripping her hand tighter, bringing her to look into his twinkling blue eyes.

After a moment's silence, Walter spoke up again, his smile never faltering.

"I don't know.. I don't know what I did to anger you Flora. I obviously upset you enough that you couldn't come to me, that you ran from your family and from those who care about you."

Flora suddenly felt ill at the thought of Walter, Elsie and Ernest searching for her as Mr Kozlowski at the floral stand said they had. They may have a convoluted way of showing it, but they do care, about her, and each other, and in her rush to leave her home, she had left them behind. She knew her father hadn't batted an eyelid at her disappearance, if he had, she would've been found already. She figured that in his mind, she was not missing, she just ceased to be.

"I-" Flora began but Walter interrupted her.

"No," he said. "Whatever it was, I wholeheartedly apologise for it."

Flora sighed. She didn't want Walter to think it was his fault that she left, but she also didn't want to tell him about the abuse she suffered at the hands of her father, and, she certainly didn't want to tell him about the love she had found in her exploration of New York.

"Thank you Walter," she said gently with a smile, patting his hand with her hand which he wasn't holding. But, Walter wasn't finished.

"I wanted to make things right," he said, his demeanour becoming sheepish. "So, while you were sleeping, I asked the Healers here did they take in apprentices. They said they didn't, but, I convinced them that I had the perfect apprentice for them."

Flora furrowed his brows, not truly understanding what he was getting at. She had been up all night. The terrors of City Hall and the alley had taken a lot out of her.

"I've gotten you a job, here Flora! If you want it that is. I just know how much you've always wanted to be a Healer Flora, and Elsie never ceases to talks about what an amazing Healer you would make.. and I'm just really, really sorry, I-"

Flora interrupted Walter as he continued to ramble.

"T-thank you Walter," She stuttered, not really believing what she was hearing. Walter, the boy she was always destined to, but never truly wanted to marry, had just acquired a way for her to learn what she had always wanted to learn; what she had been teaching herself with the help of the box under her bed, which, her father had destroyed in her last moments with him.

Silence loomed over the pair, but for the first time for them, it was a comfortable silence.

"Walter," Flora spoke, earnestly this time, looking towards the blue eyes that yearned for her gaze. "Thank you, truly."

Walter smiled, proud of himself, and gripped both of her hands with his.

"Elsie is going to be so happy that I found you," he said. "I had seen you running from City Hall, when I was out for a midnight stroll, I thought I was imagining things, but no, it was you."

Walter's story was endearing, but it suddenly brought a stormy cloud of worry to hassle Flora. If he had seen her, who else had?

"Elsie and Ernest are engaged now you know," Walter spoke again, waking Flora from her trance of thought. "There was, you know, something I wanted to ask y-"

Before Walter could finish, the door of Walter's ward flew open with an almighty bang. Flora turned in her large seat, gripping the back of the chair. Standing in the doorway, were two large men, with long brown, leather coats and black fedoras. Their gazes were stern, and they were staring right at Flora.

Aurors.

Flora jumped from her seat, but soon became frozen, a jagged wand pointing at her from across the room.

"What is-" Walter began to exclaim, sitting up abruptly.

"Flora Cuthbert," the Auror in front spoke, presenting an official ID card. "Magical Congress of the United States of America; you're coming with us."