MORALITY ⟶ Angelina Johnson [1]

Chapter Forty-Five

[Chapter Forty-Five]

With just under four minutes to spare before the hour was up, Saros and Draco reached the shore, but by then, Saros was in horrible condition. Everyone could see it from land as the two were swimming closer to the edge, the water stained with blood and Saros' strength declining from swimming through the cold water while injured. The crowd initially had been full of cheer when they surfaced, clapping excitedly, especially the Hogwarts students as Saros was keeping the trend of successfully completing each task in a timely manner that surely would land him in first place again. However, as they started to see that things were not all well with the Malfoy brothers, it grew eerily silent across the lake.

As soon as they were able to stand, Draco pressed his feet into the muddy bottom and attempted to help his brother out of the water, but Saros was practically deadweight at the time. Others gathered, including the Weasley twins, and Madam Pomfrey, who was carrying a thick blanket in her arms to wrap around Draco quickly. Once he had reached land, Saros collapsed to the ground in a heap. He was shivering terribly but he was no longer crying out in pain as he had been while they had been swimming. Draco nervously stood beside his brother as Madam Pomfrey moved in to assist and could only let out a sigh of relief when he saw that Saros still had his other leg.

But that didn't count for much because the Grindylow had obviously done a number on him and it made sense as to why Saros had lost blood so quickly and why he was in so much pain. Draco frowned at the sight of the ripped flesh, vividly remembering the day when he had come back to the tent with his father, only to witness Saros and their mother screaming at the bloody sight where the lethifold had attacked. And for a few moments, Draco didn't even care who was around him or who was watching as he started to cry. He suddenly felt like he was just a little boy all over again, wondering if his brother was going to make it, wondering if their mother or in this case, Madam Pomfrey, would be able to save him. 

Pansy made her way over, along with Crabbe and Goyle, but they weren't exactly full of comforting words as they didn't even know what to say or how to react. After all, the last they had heard, Saros was nothing more than a blood-traitor that needed to be avoided at all cost. But then there was Draco, crying and staying loyally by Saros' side as Madam Pomfrey worked her magic.

"Draco..." Pansy reached out her hand and touched Draco's shoulder lightly in her own attempts to comfort him, but she was surprised as he practically smacked her hand away. He demanded that she didn't touch him and to leave him alone before he turned back to the scene.

"He's going to be alright, isn't he?" Draco asked Madam Pomfrey. "He's not going to lose his leg, right? He's going to be fine?"

Normally, Madam Pomfrey would have easily become annoyed by all the questions that were distracting her from her work, but as she turned her head and saw the pure fear that laced the features on Draco Malfoy's face, her demeanour softened drastically.