The Crash

Part 5

Malfoy set the bottles down on the ground, then looked over at Hermione. "Where exactly does it hurt?" He asked her.

"Er...my arm. And...m-my legs. But not a lot. Shouldn't they hurt more? Since they're crushed and all?" Malfoy nodded.

"It's probably just adrenaline. And shock. Those would keep you from feeling how hurt you really are."

I moved over beside Malfoy and he handed me the purple potion bottle. I unstoppered it then handed it back to him and he held it up to Hermione's lips.

"No promises this'll work since it's for broken bones, but it's worth a shot. Just take two small sips, got it?" Hermione nodded and Malfoy tipped the potion bottle up.

As soon as the second sip disappeared from Hermione's mouth, she cried out. "Merlin that hurts!"

"It's mending your bones, so yeah, it will hurt. A lot."

"It works that fast?" I asked and Malfoy nodded.

"Take this." Malfoy handed me the blue potion and I quickly undid the top and he held it up to Hermione's lips.

"Just one sip." She sipped it and immediately relaxed. I had to appreciate how fast the potions worked.

I looked over at Pansy who was kneeling next to Hermione's head. I grabbed the purple potion bottle and handed it to her.

"Here. For your ankle." She shook her head.

"It's twisted, not broken. I'll be fine." I frowned, then handed the bottle to Malfoy.

"Your arm's broken. If you even think about fighting me you'll wish you died in the crash." For some reason I felt protective of him. Of everyone. We all could have died and I had to make sure none of them died now. Not when we had already survived.

Malfoy took the bottle from my hands and took a quick sip of the purple liquid, then set it back down. I then handed him the blue bottle and he took a sip of it then put it back in the first aid kit. His pained expression cleared and he looked more focused.

It'll be okay. We're all okay now. Hermione will be okay. We have medicine. We have magic. She'll be okay.

Just then, I heard a branch snap and jerked my head up. I calmed a bit when I saw that it was only Luna. I honestly hadn't noticed that she had left.

She had a small collection of berries wrapped up in a leaf that she was snacking on.

"Luna! Those could be poisonous!" I practically shouted. She just shook her head as she popped a few more into her mouth.

"Daddy used to have these in The Quibbler all the time. He talked about how they were good to eat and kept your belly full. The forest is full of them!"

She grabbed a couple and held them out to me. I slowly held out my hand and let them fall into my palm.

"You're sure?" I asked and she nodded.

"Absolutely!"

I bit into one and was surprised by the strength of the taste. It was incredibly sweet and filled my whole mouth with flavor. Soon I had emptied my palm.

"Er...right. We need food. And water. Did any of you happen to see any form of life while you were wandering? Like a village or smoke or just anything?" I asked. We had water bottles, but who knew how long those would last among the five of us.

"I was passed out until Pansy was shaking me awake." Malfoy said.

"I woke up in some trees and walked around until I found Hermione. There was nothing else interesting." Luna answered through a mouthful of berries. Her little leaf carrier was now empty.

"I was just surrounded by trees when I woke up. There was a small clearing nearby though." Pansy answered. I leaned back against a tree.

"How did this happen, anyway?" I groaned as I massaged my temples.

"I saw a bolt of green light. I think it struck one of the thestrals and that's why we crashed." Pansy said and started biting her nails.

"Maybe it was a Death Eater?" Hermione suggested faintly. I nodded.

"I'm thinking so. But why would they wanted to hit our carriage?" Everyone, even near-to-death Hermione, stared at me in exasperation.

"What?" I asked defensively.

"If it was a Death Eater, it's obvious they struck down the carriage because they knew you were on it." Pansy said with a roll of her eyes.

"But-But there are so many other times they could have done it!" I said in confusion.

"Like when I was leaving the Dursleys or getting on the train. Why now?" Luna tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"If I were a Death Eater...I would believe it would make more of a statement if you were in a Hogwarts vessel when you were killed or injured. It makes people afraid to trust the most trusted place and then they can make people more afraid. Because when you can't trust anyone, people reach out to anything they can trust, even if the thing is bad for them." We all stared at her in amazement.

"This is why we keep her around." Pansy said with a chuckle.

"That's really smart, Luna." I said and she gave me a small smile then walked back into the trees. "I'm going to get more berries." She called lightly behind her.

Once she left, Malfoy started digging around in the first aid kit and found that there were two compartments, as opposed to one. I hadn't noticed it before, probably because I was in such a hurry.

There was the one with the magical supplies and one with muggle medical supplies. The first aid kit was large enough that there was even a small oxygen tank with a mask. We put that on Hermione to help her breathe. Even with the potions, she was gasping for air, her breaths raspy.

****

We stayed by the carriage for a while until Pansy had the idea of going back to the clearing she had woken up near.

"But that's mad! That would make us easier targets for the wild creatures that live here." Malfoy said and Pansy nodded.

"But it would also make it easier for us to be spotted if someone was flying overhead in one of those muggle flying machines or if the Ministry or even the school comes looking for us. They have to have realized we are missing, right?" I shook my head sadly.

"We aren't even supposed to be at Illvermorny until tomorrow. Even then it will take a while for them to know because the school has to wait for us, then mail Hogwarts." Malfoy sighed and held his head in his hands.

"So what? We're just trapped here?" I rubbed my temples, trying to keep my throbbing headache at bay.

"We're just trapped here." I repeated.