Hermione opened her eyes a few minutes later and realized that she was still alive.
Everything before her was blurred, not quite clear. And she was too weak to turn her head even a little, the sounds coming into her ears were buzzing. So although she wanted to figure out who the three people standing by her bed were and what they were saying to her, she had no strength to do so.
Hermione lay silently in bed, gazing at the rotating crystal bubbles that provided illumination to the ward under the ceiling.
She had never seen bubbles that shone with halos before, which meant that she was not in Hogwarts dormitory or the school hospital. She was in a completely unfamiliar place now.
How did she get here? Why was she here?
Hermione knew nothing about all this. Her memory ended with Professor Brenn standing beside her, telling her not to worry and that he could save her.
Thinking of the young professor, Hermione felt a strong beat in her weakened heart. The warm current flowing through her heart quickly spread throughout her body. This warmth accelerated her recovery, and Hermione felt that the blurry white light in front of her faded away more quickly. Moreover, the voice she heard, which was like a dreamy echo, also became clearer.
The three people standing by her bed, one seemed to be in a hurry to lift her up, but the other heavily slapped the hand of the person who was going to help her, and severely scolded him.
Is it Professor McGonagall?
I remember.
Hermione's lips moved slightly to wet her dry lips, trying to say something, but what she uttered was only a very faint grumble.
Next, a crowd of people in dark robes surged into the narrow room, driving the three people in front of her bed out. They then lifted the cup covering her and unfastened the buttons of her clothing, exposing her naked body to the air.
The intense shame overwhelmed Hermione's heart. She closed her eyes and didn't want to see that scene, but the feeling of being touched by the delicate skin became more and more clear. The shame accelerated her recovery of body control, and Hermione curled up her toes hidden under the bedclothes.
It wasn't until half an hour later that the three people waiting outside were let in.
"--She should get out of bed and walk around every day; it helps keep her body active, but it shouldn't be for more than half an hour, as she is still very weak--"
The treating physician at St. Mungo's solemnly addressed Tonks and Remus Lupin.
"Moreover, her right arm is probably not controllable now, and you should be careful of this."
The treating physician and the nurses then left the bedside. In this hospital, there are many patients on the brink of death waiting for treatment.
"Remus Lupin--" Hermione mumbled a name.
"Oh, you've finally come to consciousness--"
"Ooh, you finally woke up," Remus Lupin said, hiding his worries and heavy mood, and smiling as he sat down beside the bed. "I suppose you don't know where this is-- St. Mungo's Magical Medical Hospital. To be honest, I've been here quite a few times over the years, but you must be visiting for the first time, aren't you?"
Hermione's back was propped up by thick, soft pillows. Although she had already guessed where she was, she nodded gently.
"How long have I been asleep, Remus Lupin?"
"It's been less than twenty hours..."
The answer came from Tonks. Seeing Hermione looking a bit tense, Tonks smiled brightly.
"Hello, Hermione, I'm Nymphadora Tonks. You can call me Tonks."
"Tonks is an Auror in the department, and she's currently partnered with me. We've been sent here to protect your safety," explained Remus Lupin.
Hearing that the other person was a member of the Ministry of Magic who had been sent to protect her, Hermione felt a little uneasy. But she still nodded gratefully to the young lady, who appeared to be easy to get along with.
"Thank you," Hermione said.
"Congratulations on surviving such a great ordeal, Hermione,"
The tall, elderly woman beside Tonks said.
This is the severe-looking old witch with a green robe and moth-eaten fur cape. The pointed hat on her obviously decorated with a specimen of vulture--this distinct style decoration made Hermione feel a sense of déjà vu, she seemed to have seen it somewhere, but due to the injuries, her brain now was not as clear as before.
"Oh, thank you too, Madam--"
Hermione, leaning back on the bed, struggled to nod at the old witch. She guessed that this old witch might be an official from the Ministry of Magic, an superior to Remus and Tonks. She was puzzled why she felt familiar with her, but seemed to have seen her picture in The Daily Prophet. Just as Hermione was hesitating whether to ask for the old woman's name, Remus smiled and explained, seeing her confusion.
"This is Augusta Lupin, Mrs. Lupin, she is Neville's grandmother--"
"Thank you, Remus--"
"Augusta Lupin addressed Remus, "
"I was about to introduce myself--"
In the instant she heard the word 'Lupin,' two thoughts flashed through Hermione's mind. First, she understood why she found Mrs. Lupin's attire familiar. She had indeed seen her before, during the lesson last year when Professor Snape transformed into this dressed-up look to face off against Neville in a class on how to deal with Dementors.
The second thing that Hermione realized made her horror!
"Hermione, weak-faced and pale," Mrs. Lupin? Neville, he...?"
"Oh, don't worry, Hermione," Remus soothed immediately, "Neville hasn't been attacked. Augusta is here to take care of... by the way, Harry and Ron are also not seriously hurt."
"There's nothing we can't talk about, Remus,"
Augusta Lupin looked disapprovingly at Remus and said in a firm voice, "
"I'm here to look after my son and daughter-in-law in the hospital. I heard from the treating physician that you were also brought here, so I came to see you. Neville told me a lot about you. He's gone through some tough times with you, oh, yes, I see now, you really are as good as he says, a kind girl..."
Hermione whispered another "thank you" but couldn't help thinking, Mrs. Lupin was taking care of her son and daughter-in-law here, wasn't that the same as Neville's parents?
"Neville didn't tell you about his parents?"
Mrs. Lupin's sharp gaze seemed to detect Hermione's thoughts, and she furrowed her brow.
The expressions of both Remus and Tonks seemed somewhat gloomy, and they didn't intervene in this topic.
Hermione was certain that Neville probably hadn't mentioned anything about his parents to her, and she didn't think he had told Harry or Ron either, but from the tone of Mrs. Lupin's words, there seemed to be something going on.
"Oh, I must write a letter to Neville and find out!"
Mrs. Lupin angrily said,
"Hmph, it's not something to be ashamed of. He should be proud of it! His parents sacrificed their reason and health, not for him to be ashamed of them!"
Then, Mrs. Lupin turned to Hermione, her face filled with pride.
"My son and daughter-in-law are Aurors, they are highly respected in the magical community. Because they stood up courageously against the dark wizard when he was harming the magical community, then--"
"Augusta Lupin!"
At that moment, a nurse rushed into the room in a hurry, looking anxious. Seeing Mrs. Lupin, she hurriedly entered the bed area and interrupted what Mrs. Lupin was about to say, grabbing her arm without a word and pulling her out.
"Quickly, Augusta Lupin, Alice has woken up, she's all over the place looking for you, scared to death and crying. She doesn't let anyone get close!"
Mrs. Lupin was pulled away without saying goodbye, and as she watched her back, both Remus and Tonks had a look of distress on their faces.
"What's going on?"
With only one arm able to move, Hermione struggled to support her sliding body, weakly asking, "What's going on?"
"Oh--" Remus pursed his lips,
"Well--" Remus bit his lip, "This is something you should know. Augusta's son and daughter-in-law, Neville's parents-- they were tortured by Death Eaters into madness by the Dementor's Kiss."
With a gloomy expression, Remus said to Hermione, who looked shocked, "It's true. The Dementor's Kiss is the mosthorrific curse in the wizarding world."
(End of this chapter)
