MATILDA - fred weasley

Chapter 4

The sun swept through the Shrieking Shack on a quiet Thursday morning, softly touching the face of Matilda Diggory. Her eyes flitted open as the sunlight pierced her sat up from where she had been laying on the dusty floor.

Matilda looked around at the damage she'd done. The stairs leading up to the second floor were missing even more steps than before, and the step that could be reached from the ground was splintering. She must have been trying to get up there, she assumed.

Blood was all over the floor, too. Matilda bent her left leg so she could get a closer look at the bite wound below her knee. The blood had started to scab, though it was still bleeding in some places, dripping down her shin.

"Bleeding hell..." she muttered, "Must have been a strange moon..."

Matilda undid the buttons on her oxford and wrapped it around her leg, covering the wound. She winced as it pressed against the flesh, colouring the white shirt crimson. She used the couch beside her to get onto her feet, but instantly cried out when she took a step. "Merlin's left tit!"

Matilda took her jumper, which was hanging over the sofa, and shrugged it over herself. She looked outside the window. From there, she could see the sun climbing the sky, almost reaching the height of the Owlery.

She didn't have much time to get back to school before students started waking up.

Taking a deep breath, Matilda stood up again. She bit her lip to prevent herself from cursing colourfully and picked up her bag from beside the trapdoor. Matilda lowered herself to the ground, opened the hatch and slowly climbed down the ladder.

By the time she reached the door at the other end of the tunnel, tears were streaming down Matilda's face. She hadn't even realised she was crying until there was a sting on the side of her face – just beneath her right eye – and she'd lifted her hand to it, pulled it away and saw a mixture of blood and tears.

Getting up to the castle remained another terrible feat, and Matilda didn't even bother going to her dorm before going to the Hospital Wing. She let herself in and limped over to the closest bed.

Madam Pomfrey exited her office at the sound of Matilda's entrance and widened her eyes when she saw the state she was in. Madam Pomfrey quickly gathered a selection of potions and carried them over to Matilda.

"Here, dear, take these," she said, placing a Calming Draught, a Blood-Replenishing Potion, Murtlap Essence, and a mirror down on the bedside table. "I'm sure you know the drill about applying the paste to your face, so I'll leave you with that while I go get Dumbledore. Don't touch your leg at all, I don't want to get it infected."

Matilda nodded, bringing the Calming Draught to her lips and drinking it all in one go. Madam Pomfrey smiled appreciatively and turned, leaving Matilda alone in the Hospital Wing. She placed the empty cup on the table and picked up the mirror and Murtlap Essence. She held the mirror to her face and frowned.

Matilda had been rather lucky with her disease as she had been yet to have any strikingly visible scars – most were either on her legs or arms or her chest which she could cover with clothing – but it seemed her luck had run out. A deep gash stretched from beneath her right eye all the way over to the left side of her face, just past her mouth.

Tears pricked at her eyes. She was hideous.

She dipped her fingers in the essence, trying her best to steady her hands as she brought her hand up to her face. The moment the salve touched the wound, Matilda hissed. She grit her teeth, pushing through the stinging pain and gently covering the broken flesh in the essence.