"Ah" I bring a hand to my head slowly as I keep my eyes closed, a stabbing pain above my right eye grows and the pain spreads down my neck.
Groaning quietly I slowly open my eyes to see the shining blue sky above me, the sun is still at its highest but thankfully it is briefly behind a cloud. I push myself up into a sitting position and look around me as the stabbing pain in my head eases.
"Hello?" I look around me for any of the others but see I am alone in the garden. I look down at my dress and see blood splattered across the front of it from where Blaise was attacked. It is still covered in dust and my own blood from the ceiling collapsing at Theo's home.
I stand up slowly and reach for my wand that is still laying on the ground, as I stand back up my vision blurs and I feel a terrible pain in my head. I stumble slightly and press my hand against my face as I begin the walk back to the manor. I walk through the large french doors and look around at the destroyed room, scorch marks line the walls and priceless antiques still lay broken on the hardwood floors.
I turn and see Pansy sat in one of the unbroken arm chairs, she has a thick blanket wrapped around her and she is curled into a ball with her hands clutching a steaming mug of tea.
"Hey" I say softly as I walk towards her.
She looks up from her cup and offers me a very small smile "hey."
"How are you feeling?" I drop down onto the footstool besides her and wrap my arms around my legs.
"Better" she hesitates for a second "thanks."
I nod slowly and suck in a deep breath. I look around the room as an awkward silence passes between us.
"Where are the others?" I ask as I avoid her eyes.
"Blaise was carried to the wine cellar by Mrs Zabini and Xavier, think they've set it up as a make shift infirmary." She shrugs "no idea where the others went, Draco gave me this tea and then left quickly with his parents."
"Right" I stand up "I'm going to go check on Blaise then."
Pansy reaches her hand out and takes a hold of my wrist, I turn and look at her with my eyebrows raised.
"Thank you" she shakes her head slightly "Draco said that you sucked all the dark magic out of me and took it for yourself. I think you probably saved my life, so thank you."
I nod "it's fine. I mean it wasn't completely selfless, I needed the magic to defeat him anyway."
Pansy smiles warmly "you're never able to take the compliment are you? What you did today was amazing and you saved all of our lives. So thank you."
I offer her a tight smile "yeah, no worries." I step out of her clasp and offer her a wave "I'll see you later."
Pansy nods as she takes a sip of her drink her eyes now fixed back on the floor in front of her. I walk away from her my heart sinking slightly. Things still feel so awkward and stilted between us, it feels like days have passed since her blow out at me but it was in fact, only this morning.
I walk down the wooden staircase to the wine cellar quickly as the scent of blood hits me. I push open the large oak door and step into the stone lined room. Blaise is laying on the table in the middle of the cellar, bandages are wrapped tightly around him and yet blood still pours from his body. He lets out screams of pain as he clenches his eyes shut. Xavier is pouring a potion into his mouth and running a hand over Blaise's sweaty forehead. Mrs Zabini is cursing loudly as she waves her wand desperately at her sons wounds.
"Merlin!" I yell out as I run to my best friend looking desperately down at him "what happened?"
"It's getting worse" Xavier grunts as Blaise lets out a particularly loud scream "no matter what we try he just keeps bleeding. We are managing to keep him alive by giving him blood replenishing draught but hes in so much pain."
Mrs Zabini grabs my wrist "I need help Angelica" her eyes are wild and wide and her face is pale with exhaustion "I have tried every spell I can think of and his wounds are just not healing."
I nod my head and turn back to Blaise, I slide my wand into the holder on my arm and step close to him. I begin to unwrap the muggle bandages slowly as blood pours out in gallons.
"What are you doing?" Xavier watches me with worry as more and more blood spills onto the floor.
"I think I know how to heal his wounds, it must be the same curse Harry used on Draco last year. I tried to heal it as you have done but it only made it worse. Thats why I think it's the same spell. I was able to heal Draco and stop him bleeding but it is an insanely complicated spell." I glance back at Mrs Zabini "can you make a scarring and healing dittany?"
"Of course" she nods determinedly "I know I need Bat wings, hag eyes, , re'em blood, herbaria and pond slime. Is there something I am missing?"
"Dittany of yore" Xavier replies before I have the chance "small green square bottle."
"That's the one!" Mrs Zabini runs from the room "I won't be long!"
Xavier looks up at me as I unwrap the last of the bandages "what's the spell? Can I help?"
I throw the blood soaked bandages to the side and nod my head "definitely. Watch me first, the spell has to be done three times in a row for it to work. After that just keep repeating it until we see the wounds are closed. Watch my hand movement as thats the hardest part."
Xavier puts the blood replenishing potion down and moves to stand besides me so he can watch me carefully.
I take my wand and begin to work over Blaise's shoulder where the worst of the injuries are.
"Vulnera Sanentur, Vulnera Sanentur, Vulnera Sanentur." I draw my wand in the complex diagram that Snape had drawn into the textbook I found so long ago. As I finish it off the reaction is immediate and the largest wound moves slightly together stopping the majority of the blood flow.
I continue on in the same way working on the large gash, after several minutes Xavier appears to have learnt the spell as he begins to work besides me our voices blurring together as we mutter the same two words over and over again.
"Here!" Mrs Zabini bursts into the room with a large glass bottle in her hands, inside is a green translucent liquid which shines in the light. She comes and stands besides me and lets out a shocked gasp as she looks at her son "he has healed so quickly."
"It's the only cure for the curse used against him" I whisper as I step back and allow Xavier to finish the work. I look at Mrs Zabini "it closes the wounds and stops the bleeding but the dittany is vital to help with scarring and to stop the wounds from reopening. They are still very weak."
She nods and looks down at Blaise who has now stopped screaming, his eyes are screwed shut and he lets out sobs and shuddering breaths as Xavier closes the last of his wound.
"Pass the dittany" Xavier reaches his hand out and takes the bottle, he turns back to Blaise and without hesitation he begins to massage the liquid on.
Mrs Zabini lets out a long breath as she sits down into the wooden chair behind her, she looks up at me and I can see the emotions in her eyes. Her usually immaculate hair is messy and frizzy from sweat and her sons blood, her white expensive dress is covered in blood and mud and her hands are still shaking as she presses them against her face.
"He's going to be okay" I smile at her "really. Look at Draco now, you would never know he was in the same position just a few months ago."
Mrs Zabini nods "yes. He's going to be okay." She takes Blaise's hand and kisses it, as her eyes close a single tear rolls down her cheek and I feel my heart twist.
"Just shout if you need anything" I whisper to Xavier as he places the dittany to the side and takes Blaise's other hand.
"Where are you going?" He furrows his eyebrows at me as he runs his eyes over my dress.
"I need to find Theo and make sure he's okay, and then I need to find Draco and make sure him and his parents are all okay."
Xavier tuts at me "and you need to take care of yourself Ang."
I nod and smile "I will, after."
I walk forward and kiss Blaise's cheek softly "I love you" I whisper into his ear before walking from the room my heart aching even more now. I brush away the tear that slips out and walk up the basement staircase and up the second one until I reach the bedrooms. I walk quickly to Theo's and hesitate at his door, only this morning I would have walked in without knocking and held him in my arms but for some reason things feel different. Instead I raise my fist and knock three times slowly.
"Yeah" Theo calls out his voice strained "come in."
I do as he says and walk into the room shutting the door behind me. Theo is sat on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands. He looks up as I enter and offers me a nod.
"Hi" I sit down besides him and take a deep breath.
"Hey" Theo shifts slightly and a large space between us forms, he turns his head and watches me his eyes full of pain "I need to thank you."
"You really do not have to do anything." I shake my head "I mean it, please don't thank me."
"I need to" he runs a hand through his hair "we all would have died if it weren't for you." He grows silent for several seconds "and we all wouldn't have been in that position if it weren't for me."
"It isn't your fault Theo, your dad was fucking evil."
"Was" Theo lets out an empty laugh "I know he deserved to die, and I know it was the right choice but Merlin is it weird."
"Do you hate me for killing him?" I feel a knot form in my stomach as Theo looks away from me.
"Of course not" he sighs "if you didn't kill him then he would have killed us all. Killing him was the only choice. I am an orphan with an older brother who may as well be dead, it's going to take some time getting used to the fact that I have no family left thats all."
I reach for his hand and take it in mine, I link my fingers with his but his hand doesn't react. His fingers don't link with mine like they usually do and his hand remains stiff, I look up at his face to see his jaw clenched tightly and his eyes fixed on a spot on the wall.
"I think I need to sleep" he stands up and my hand falls from his, my hand lands back on the bed besides me. He runs a hand over his jaw awkwardly as he avoids my eyes "I just need to go to bed early."
"Right" I nod and stand up "I'll leave you alone then."
Theo remains silent as I walk past him our shoulders brushing, I open the door and step out into the hallway with the door slamming shut behind me. My heart seems to be so full with hurt now that I can physically feel the effect it is having, I screw my eyes shut and let out a small sob.
"Get a grip" I mutter to myself as I run my hands down my face. I shake my head and open my eyes wide as I take a deep breath in. "Be strong" I whisper over and over again as I walk to my room with my shoulders hanging down and my body completely empty. I push open my door and as I do I feel the tears welling up in my eyes, my heart seems to break with all the hurt and I feel my face crumple.
I step into the room and close the door behind me, as it shuts I finally and completely allow myself to fall apart. My vision is swimming with tears as I begin to sob uncontrollably, the pain in my heart takes over and the wall I spent all day building around my emotions finally crumbles down. My heart seems to tear in two from the sheer weight of everything that has happened today. Blaise's broken and bleeding body swims in my vision and his screams sound out around me, Pansy looking at me with such hatred and then looking dead flashes in front of me. I let out a loud sob as my friends broken and bleeding bodies swim in front of me, I replay the cold and dreadful feeling of the dark magic in my veins, of the feeling that the zombies left as I absorbed their bodies and finally the feeling of killing Theo's last living parent. Pain completely takes over me as I let out sob after sob and I finally fall to my knees as my body grows weak.
As I fall I feel two arms grabbing me and falling down with me, the arms crush me against their body. A hand runs down my back soothingly as I can't stop myself from crying, I can barely manage to open my eyes as the pain completely takes over any conscious thoughts I have. Lips press against my ear and soothing words are whispered as the arms pull me even tighter. Without even having to open my eyes I know who it is instantly.
Draco.
He holds me tightly as sobs rack my body, my eyes stay screwed shut and I feel my throat growing hoarse. I grab at Draco's arms and hold him back just as tightly as the weight of everything begins to lift away.
"I'm here, I swear I am here Angelica." He whispers as he pushes my wet hair away from my face "you're safe now, I am here with you. I'm not going anywhere, I promise."