A Snake's Crutch Book 1

Part 10: The First Patient

"Bring them to these beds. Just there, yes." Madame Pomfrey rushed around and gathered three bottles of potions as Crabbe, Goyle, and Draco were laid on the hospital beds. "Come here, girl. Your first lesson starts now. This," she held up a vial of purple liquid, "is an antiseptic. Wound healing potion. This," she held up a blood red potion, "is a healing agent. And this," she held up a small bottle with a dropper for a lid, "is Essence of Dittany. Professor Snape will be teaching you all of them while you are at Hogwarts, so I won't go into detail."

Crabbe and Goyle were groaning loudly from their tables but, though he was in just the same amount of pain, Draco seemed quiet. Y/N suspected it was because the rest of their friends, especially Pansy, were told to go to lunch and that there were to be no visitors, and Draco knew y/n didn't fall for his dramatic nonsense. He had no one to perform to, so he didn't. 

As Madame Pomfrey made it to Crabbe in the first bed, she handed the vials to y/n. "First you need to clean the wound, especially after they've walked outside on their wounds. This hurts dear," she said, grabbing Crabbe's leg. She then poured a few drops onto his feet and purple smoke sizzled from the wounds. 

Crabbe started an awful chorus of screams before the potion even touched his feet, it seemed, and both Goyle and Draco turned to watch, looking incredibly frightened. Y/N pulled the privacy screens out, receiving protests from both boys, which she easily ignored. They didn't need to watch Crabbe's dramatics while he was treated. Maybe he wouldn't react so harshly if he didn't have an audience. 

When Madame Pomfrey was satisfied and there looked not to be a speck of filth in the burnt flesh, she stopped the bottle and handed it to y/n, asking for the blood red bottle. "Now, I'll pour this into a little cup. Accio," she said, summoning a cup. "Give this to him for me, my dear."

As soon as y/n put the cup to Crabbe's lips, it was gone, as he practically inhaled the potion. When she returned to the end of the bed, she saw Crabbe's blisters and burns disappearing before her eyes. 

"And last, the Dittany. This one hurts a bit, too. Hold his leg still, please, but be careful. He likes to kick," she said, giving Crabbe a stern look. He didn't look like he cared in the slightest. Y/N thought of a better alternative. 

"Madame Pomfrey, does magic effect the potion's curing him?" Y/N looked at Crabbe with a very smug grin. 

"I don't believe so. Wh--"

"Petrificus Totalus!" Crabbe's arms snapped to his sides, and his legs snapped together as the full body-binding curse took hold. Y/N heard Draco snicker two beds down. "Don't think I won't do it to you, Draco!" After all, he got them into this mess in the first place.

"I can't believe I never thought of that! Would've saved me so much pain," Madame Pomfrey exclaimed, rubbing her hip and remembering an old wound. She looked over at y/n, amused. "Clever girl." 

When Madame Pomfrey dropped a few drops of Dittany onto Crabbe's slowly healing feet, Crabbe screamed as loudly and dramatically as he possibly could through his sealed lips, which was blissfully quiet. Madame Pomfrey waved her wand, and a long strip of bandages and a pair of scissor came floating out of a nearby drawer. The bandage wrapped itself around one foot, then the other, binding his feet together until the scissors divided the one piece in two. 

"All done. Would you like to try, my dear?" Madame Pomfrey held out the vials.

"Er...maybe you should show me one more time. I don't want to mess it up." Like Draco had. 

"Alright dear. Would you like to release him or shall I?" Madame Pomfrey said conspiratorially, looking toward Crabbe's petrified form. 

"I'll do it, Madame Pomfrey." Y/N pulled out her wand. "Reparifors!" When Crabbe could move again, he quickly went to move away from y/n's wand, wincing when he put pressure on his tender wounds.