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C H A P T E R   T W O | lumos

spell. illuminates wand.

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A FEW WEEKS have passed when nausea seizes Hermione so horribly that the stomach-churning pain forces her to fall to her knees right in the stairwell. Students continue around her, muttering as they hurry off to their upcoming classes.

Previous to that morning, she felt fine. Sometimes her chest hurt and she couldn't get enough sleep but she'd chalked it up to stress. Without having to save the world or her friends, she finally had time to focus on herself and perhaps she had always felt anxious, overworked. Maybe she just never had the time to pay attention to these symptoms before. Maybe it would have been best if she'd just graduated early like most of her classmates. Dealt with the effects of trauma on her own.

She raises her quivering hand to her forehead, wiping at the cool sweat that has formed on her clammy skin. Resting her head against the cool stone wall offers a bit of relief, but her breathing is labored and her vision threatens to go black. Why won't anyone help her, she wonders bitterly.

Breathing in her nose and out of her mouth, she attempts to quell the tumultuous sea in her stomach. Carefully counting each breath and the seconds she holds them, her mind eases off of nausea that has seized her. Closing her eyes, she touches her head to the chilled wall to her left.

When she opens her eyes, she is surprised to find herself lying down in a bed that is not hers. Glancing around frantically, she comes to realize that she is in a room in the hospital wing. Darkness has fallen over the school and only flickering gas-lamps give the room a warm glow. Next to the lamp on her bedside table is her wand. Her fingers grasp the thin wood; sudden comfort floods her as the ornate pattern presses gently into her palm.

Her legs are heavily weighed down, she realizes as she attempts to move from under the starchy covers.

"Lumos."

A silver light blossoms from the tip of the wand, illuminating the room entirely. Now, she notices that she is not alone in the room. On her legs lays a ball of caramel-colored fur that she instantly recognizes as Crookshanks.

"Silly cat," she whispers as he unfurls from his cozy ball to raise his head. As she pats his head, he shuts his brown eyes lovingly, enjoying the moment.

When she is sure that her cat has gotten a fairly decent introduction, although she knows Crookshanks could be petted all night and still find room to complain, she looks toward a sleeping figure across the room in an uncomfortable position on the hard wooden chair. The hood on their cloak has been pulled over their face and she can't make out much else in the darkness.

"Ginny?"

The sheets shift loudly beneath her as she slides from the bed to stand on the cold floor on unsteady legs. Holding her wand in front of her, she approaches the snoozing mound as it begins to stir from under the dark cloak. Then, the fabric falls away, revealing the identity of her visitor.

"Draco? What are you doing here?" Her wand's light suddenly gives out as she withdraws her focus.

The room is then lit as the lanterns are fully ignited by a silent spell. She wonders how long he's been working on that, silent spells are common in the west but not so much in Europe.

He pulls himself from the chair to stand, placing himself just a meter away from her.

"I wanted to make sure you were all right. Blaise found you passed out in one of the stairwells and brought you here this morning. How are you feeling?" His tone is more serious. He gazes into her eyes in a way that almost feels intrusive.

She takes a step back.

"It's probably just dehydration," she says, suddenly feeling unwell once more. She sits on the edge of the bed. "Graduation has me stressed - more than I thought possible, I guess."

The duration he takes to study her face makes her increasingly uncomfortable.

"I'm going to be sick," she says as she drops onto the hard floor. She hurriedly snatches the trash bin from under the side table before releasing all the contents of her belly loudly into the bin.

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