B.Q. Book One: Princess of the Blacks

Chapter 20: Opportunities Unforeseen

"I don't need to be in here, Madam Pomfrey. See, I'm fine!"

"Be that as it may, Miss Black, all champions are to be examined after every Task," the nurse said as she ran a wand over the blind girl. "If you're truly uninjured, you will be back out getting your score in just a few minutes."

Jen huffed at the unnecessary tests. Once she had been poked and prodded to the woman's satisfaction, Pomfrey went to the tent flap. "You may see her now. Last cubicle on the right."

Five figures entered and immediately ran towards her. Barely did she have a chance to stand before Narcissa grabbed her. "Jen Black, don't you ever do something that foolhardy again! Do you have any idea how terrified we were?!" The woman pulled her into a tight embrace.

"I'm okay, Auntie, I'm okay." Jen turned to the rest of her family. "What the bloody hell happened?"

"You fighting a dragon happened," Ted said succinctly. "We all were scared out of our minds with worry, though obviously some more than others..." He nodded at his sister-in-law, who Jen could feel silently crying into her shoulder. This worried her; Cissy would never lose her Pureblood decorum in public like this.

She cast a quick cheering charm on her aunt, friend, and former lover to slow the tears and set the woman on the exam table. She then sat next to Cissy, Andi taking the opposite side. "I was in no real danger. It was far too focused on my simulacrum to pay any attention to me."

"And we know that, up here." Sirius rapped on his head with his left hand, his right moving to his chest. "Down here, though, we were still stuck on you being in a pen with an angry dragon. I just hope the other Tasks aren't like this."

"Well, this was the Gryffindor Task. It makes sense that it would be the insanely dangerous one." Sirius put on an affronted expression and was about to respond when a commotion from the stall next to them caught their attention.

"What do you mean, you don't know if he'll be okay?!"

Jen felt Pomfrey quiver in irritation. "Dammit, Lily, I'm a school nurse, not a Healer! That means I treat broken bones and other minor injuries; I don't have a clue what to do about second-degree dragonfire burns! He can't be treated here."

"Please, just tell me my baby's going to be all right!"

"Healer Carson is one of St. Mungo's best and a specialist in creature-induced injuries. If he says to trust him, I will. I've told you all I know; for an actual prognosis, you'll need to floo to the hospital and ask him."

"What caused that drama?" Jen asked, feeling one of the three people in Potter's cubicle leave in a rush.

"Danny Potter flew a victory lap once he had his egg. The Horntail didn't like that too much and decided to teach him a lesson. The fire caught his legs and the tail end of his broom, but the kid managed to crash right in front of this tent before he passed out." Jen nodded at Dora's words; it explained the charred wood she had noticed on the way in. "Dragonfire's a lot like dark magic in that it resists magical healing. A friend of mine, Charlie Weasley, is a dragon handler, and he's covered in scars from them."

"He's not the worst injury, either," Sirius added. "That Durmstrang girl tried to attack her dragon directly. She was aiming at the eyes, at least, but she was too slow to get out of its way when it hit back. The handlers had to stun it and carry her in here."

"Yes, Danny was lucky today," interrupted the second Potter parent as he rounded the thin wall between cubicles.

Sirius scowled in his direction. "What are you doing here, James?"

"Look, I get that you're angry at me, and I don't blame you one bit. I just wanted to check on Jenny—"

"Thank you for the concern, Lord Potter," she replied. The formal title caused the man to wince. "However, not being a member of your House, I would ask that you not address me with such familiarity."