You Only Live Once

CHAPTER 25

The smell of clinical alcohol was the first thing to hit her. It was thick and biting, sticking to the back of her throat and making her head swim. Beyond that was the light. It was far too bright, a sharp, sterile white that pierced through her eyelids and made her want to retreat back into the darkness. Was it morning already? For a brief, confused moment, she wondered why her dorm in the dungeons was so bright. The Slytherin rooms were underwater, filled with soft greens and deep shadows, not this aggressive, blinding glare.

Mira slowly forced her eyes open, but the effort felt like lifting heavy stones. Her body felt strangely disconnected from her mind, weighed down by a fatigue she had never known before. As her vision began to blur into focus, she realized with a jolt that she wasn't in the dungeons. She wasn't in her bedroom at Potter Manor, either.

She was in a hospital. The high ceilings, the uncomfortable, starched mattress beneath her, and that never-ending smell of antiseptic told her everything she needed to know. It was St. Mungo's.

As soon as the realization hit, the memories began to flood back. They didn't come in an orderly line; they slammed into her brain like a physical weight. She saw the flash of Alecto's wand, felt the invisible blades of the Sectumsempra slicing through her skin, and heard the sound of Theo's voice breaking as he begged for help. The images moved so fast that her head began to throb with a sharp, rhythmic pulse.

"Ugh" she hissed, bringing her hands up to her forehead. Her skin felt tender, and even the simple movement of her arms made her muscles ache as if she had run a marathon through a storm.

"Mira?"

The voice was soft, coming from somewhere to her right. Mira turned her head slowly, feeling a pull in the skin of her neck that made her wince. Standing by the bed was a girl with bright blonde hair and a gentle, hopeful smile. It took Mira a second to recognize her. It was Christina, the girl everyone knew was destined to be Theo's wife one day through a family arrangement.

Mira blinked, her eyes wandering past the girl to the small wooden nightstand next to the bed. It was overflowing. There were vases of magical flowers that hummed softly and dozens upon dozens of cards—some glittery, some plain, and many with moving pictures of people waving.

"How long have I been sleeping?" Mira asked. Her voice was a dry rasp, sounding like she hadn't used it in years.

She looked at the cards again. Some of them clearly said Happy Birthday. Panic flared in her chest. When the attack happened, her birthday was still a few weeks away. It was only two weeks before the end of term.

"Three weeks" Christina replied with a small, sad chuckle. "You gave us all a real scare, Mira. A very real one. The healers had to keep you under a magical sleep almost every five hours. They said if you woke up too soon, the pain from the curses would be too much for your body to handle."

"Three weeks" Mira repeated, the words feeling heavy in her mouth. She had missed the end of term. She had missed the train ride home. She had missed her own birthday.

She tried to push herself up, wanting to sit against the pillows so she could feel more like a person and less like a patient. But the moment she put pressure on her elbows, a white-hot flare of pain shot through her chest and thigh. She gasped, her face twisting.

Christina rushed forward, placing a hand behind Mira's back and another under her arm to help her up. Even the light touch felt like it was pressing against raw nerves. Mira bit her lip to keep from screaming, eventually settling against the headboard with a shaky breath.

"Not to sound rude or anything" Mira started once she had found some steady ground. "But why are you here, Christina? Where is everyone else? "

Christina took a seat in the chair next to the bed, smoothing out her skirts. "Oh, I've actually been here every single day since it happened. Your friends were here constantly at first, but the healers had to send them home at some point . And as for Theo..." She trailed off, her expression turning sympathetic. "His parents won't let him come. They were furious about what happened—not because you were hurt, but because he was involved in a 'scandal' with a Potter. They've practically locked him in the manor."