The second time around was not easier than the first, in fact, it was much worse. She could feel the pulsing and throbbing around her upper arm. And her eyesight had become less than perfect. She hadn't even tried to talk yet.
She reached out to the wall for support with her good arm. She swallowed the bile that was threatening to leave her mouth. Her chest prominently rose and fell as she tried to even out her breathing again. Her throat was still sore and dry.
She flinched when someone's hand touched her back, turning around quickly to examine them.
"Aye! Don't poke my eye out, Potter," Gideon advised.
Fabian teased, "I reckon he won't look nearly as good with only one like Mad-Eye."
Their tall figures stooped to put their arms under her good shoulder and take her to the make-shift infirmary in the kitchen.
"I... I..." was all Jo could muster but the pain was too much.
"It might be better not to talk," Fabian suggested and Jo nodded.
"Wolcott got taken to St. Mungo's," Gideon revealed.
Jo raised her eyebrows as one of the redheads placed dittany over her shoulder and continued, "She somehow took the imperius."
The other finished the sentence while grabbing the bandages in the pantry, "Dumbledore and Mad-Eye went to check her out. See if she's out of it or not."
Suddenly a pop was heard in the living room. She braced herself. Prepared to face her. She didn't actually do it on purpose. She had been under the imperius curse. She was her best friend. But Jo couldn't help but think about how strong the hands grabbed her neck. How those brown eyes could look so cold and filled with hatred. And how similar it was to when she was in the depressingly frigid manor. She remembered the cleanliness of the floor, it was so clean she could see her reflection. All bruised up and bloody. So clean you could hear a squeak every time her feet dragged on the floor. And how it felt to get the wind knocked out of her. The dirty, blood-stained hands around her neck.
Sirius questioned, his eyes practically escaping their sockets, "What the hell happened?"
"I..."
Fabian spoke up for her, "Wolcott got imperiod and those demented blokes made her choke Potter."
"Why's her shoulder wrapped as well?" Remus asked.
"... splinched," Jo whispered.
"Well, we should go. Leave you to it," Gideon mentioned before grabbing his brother and leaving the kitchen.
"I'm going to find who did this to you and show them how it feels to suffocate," Sirius fumed.
Remus suggested, "Maybe we'll leave that to Mad-Eye and the Aurors."
"This shouldn't have happened to you. They're just trying to get back at me," Sirius grumbled.
Remus inquired, "You think your cousin was behind this?"
"If it means getting that slimy nose wipe's attention, of course," Sirius shook his head.
"You'd... never... go with them," Jo reassured.
"Not willingly, which is why they're doing this. Hurting you," Sirius mumbled.
Remus added staring at Joanna, "Or getting you to join too."
Jo's gaze wandered around the floor.
Remus explained, "Getting someone as smart as Joanna would be a huge asset for them. And even more so when she's a pureblood."
Jo wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Joining would make me crazier than Bellatrix," she huffed.
"Right, but that didn't stop them from trying to recruit Prongs and Lily. They might've thought they would have more luck with you," Remus persisted.
"In that case, they're wasting their time. I'd rather die than stand beside them and betray you and Lily and everyone else," Sirius exclaimed.
"I know," Jo slightly smiled looking up to meet his stormy grey eyes.
YOU ARE READING
The Other One | Sirius Black
Fanfiction"I'm sorry, I just... remembered something," she muttered as her fingers traced the scars on her throat. He placed his hands on her shoulders before whispering, "It's just me." "It's just you," she sighed. ...
