aeonian

Chapter Two

Elsie's eyelids twitched and fluttered open then immediately snapped shut once her pupils were met with the blinding light pouring in from the window to her right.

"Can someone please shut that bloody window?" she croaked out of her sore throat, lifting a hand up to shield her eyes.

"Elsie! Oh, thank Godric!" Elsie heard her mother gasp, "Hermione, dear, go fetch the healers for me, would you?"

Once she heard the curtains close over the windows, Elsie opened her eyes to investigated exactly where she was in the first place.

A hospital.

St. Mungo's, she assumed.

That thought was confirmed when she looked down and saw a red band wrapped around her wrist with "ST. MUNGO'S HOSPITAL" typed neatly, along with her name and birthdate below it.

"Oh, honey. Are you alright?" Elsie's mother, Margaret Carlisle, stroked the hair on the side of her daughter's head endearingly.

This gesture was supposed to be loving, but Elsie found herself incredibly bothered by it.

"Can you not touch my head right now, mum? I've got quite the migraine." Elsie put up a hand, nonverbally telling her mother to remove hers.

"S-sorry, dear." Margaret smiled apologetically, "How are you feeling?"

"Why am I here?" Elise ignored her mother's question and asked her own in a tone that came off as annoyed.

"You fell off a cliff, Ms. Carlisle." A healer in a long white jacket walked in the room with a quick quote quill and a clip board floating in behind him.

Elsie scanned her eyes up and down the abnormally tall man, making judgements about how his jacket was too short for his height.

"I'm Healer Jacobson. I've been over seeing your care since you arrived."

He stuck out a hand for Elsie to shake, and she begrudgingly returned the gesture.

"And when did I arrive exactly?" Elise asked.

"Three days ago." Healer Jacobson said calmly, folding his hands in front of him, "Mind if I ask you a few questions about the events that led up to your arrival?"

Elsie glanced over at Hermione as she slipped back into the room, and took a seat next to Ginny. They both looked at her with soft smiles that Elsie thought to be full of pity.

"You're going to ask them whether I want to answer them or not so...get to it I guess." Elsie huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

Margaret gave the healer an apologetic smile for her daughter's tone, which was uncharacteristically impertinent.

"It's quite alright, Mrs. Carlisle. Probably just a side effect of the sustenance potions we've placed her on since she's been unable to eat for herself. One good meal and she'll be good as new." Healer Jacobson assured.

"Yay..." Elsie said unenthusiastically.

"Now, Elsie—may I call you Elsie?" Healer Jacobson asked.

"You just did so yeah, I guess."

"Wonderful—Elsie, you are aware that you fell off of a cliff, correct?"

"Obviously..."

"Great, now, are you aware that you were also struck by lightning?" Healer Jacobson asked casually.

"I was what?" Elsie exclaimed.

"Struck by lightning." Jacobson said very matter-of-fact.