Through All the Pain // N. Longbottom

Third Year // Chapter 17

We were sitting in the hospital wing, Ron was laid up in bed with his leg in a cast. Hermione had gotten few cuts healed on her face and her right wrist was bandaged up. I was laying on the bed beside Ron, getting a few cuts healed on my legs. She had already healed the cuts on my face.

Harry had been brought in a few minutes after we all arrived and was just laying in his hospital bed. As Pomfrey finished healing a cut on my leg we heard the doors thump open, and the sound of Hermione yelling.

"Professor Dumbledore! You have to stop them!"

"It's true, sir! Sirius is innocent -" Harry pleaded. I looked over and looked over at Ron. He leaned forward and tried to explain something. Dumbledore looked around at all four of us and just shook his head.  

"A child's voice, however honest and true, is meaningless to those who have forgotten how to listen." He spoke. "Ah..." he said turning out to look out the window. The clock was just starting to chime at midnight.

"Mysterious thing, time. Powerful. And, when meddled with... dangerous. Sirius Black is in the topmost cell of the Dark Tower." Dumbledore walked past us and turned to Hermione. "You know the laws, Miss Granger. You must not be seen. And you would, I feel, do well to return before the last chime. If not ... well, the consequences are really too ghastly to discuss. Three turns should do it, I think. If you succeed, more than one innocent life may be spared tonight."

Dumbledore started to walk out but he spoke one more time before he officially left. "By the way, when in doubt, I find retracing my steps to be a wise place to begin ... Good luck."

"What in the bloody hell was all that about?" Ron questioned from his bed.

"Sorry, Ron. But seeing you can't walk... And Lori, well you can help keep him calm, and you probably shouldn't be walking just yet." Hermione wrapped a necklace around her and Harry. I smiled seeing as she was using her Time-Turner to save Sirius. I gave her and Harry a small smile.

Suddenly the two disappeared and quickly reappeared standing over by the door. Ron's face went from confusion to shock. "How'd you two get over there? I was just talking to you ... over there." Ron asked. I chuckled.

"Harry, what is he talking about?" Hermione asked.

"Honestly Ron, how can two people be at two different places at once?" Harry said back. I just kept laughing and Ron stared at the two. He looked over at me with a look of wonder. I smirked. 

"Honestly Ron, are you sure it wasn't you who hit their head?" I slid off and walked over and leaned onto his bed. As I leaned over a quickly kissed his forehead. 

"I'm glad you're okay, Lori." He reached up and rubbed one of my cuts on my cheek. "Will those leave scars?"

"Pomfrey said they would. However, it's nothing I can't live with," I said looking down at him. 

"I should have just let Scabbers run. Then none of us would have been hurt." He looked away avoiding eye contact with me. I quickly reached down and turned his face to look at mine. Our blue eyes locked into each other, as I stared into his soul.

"Do not blame yourself, Ronald Bilius Weasley. Nothing is your fault here! We all chose to follow you, I literally chose to be dragged with you! So, if you blame yourself again I will report you to Mum!" 

"Please! Anything but Mum!" Ron quivered jokingly. We all shared a quick laugh before Madame Pomfrey came in and told Hermione and Harry to leave while Ron and I spent the night. Ron and I stayed up talking to each other for a while which lead to a funny conversation.

"I guess you were wrong, Lori," He spoke looking over at me.

"What?" I stared at him. "Wrong about what?"