The Fools Who Dream

Chapter 13

Cynthia groaned and rolled over where she was lying. She jolted suddenly as she realised that she was not lying on the stone floor in the dungeons, but instead in a bed. A soft and comfortable bed, in fact, one that made her want to stay there forever, despite the slight pain coming from her nose. She opened her eyes and propped herself up on her elbows and squinted, willing her eyes to adjust. At first, she could see only shifting shadows, but they soon turned into the shapes of people, talking at the end of the bed, and another one sat in the chair next to her.

"How are you?" asked the person next to her. She rubbed her eyes, but she still couldn't properly see anything except a blonde blob, sat in front of her. It was only then that she realised she was missing her glasses. The blonde blob handed them to her and she put them on: everything suddenly became clearer.

"Where is this?" she asked, looking around her in confusion.

She appeared to be in some kind of dorm, but it was nothing like the Slytherin dorm. It was bright white and filled with two rows of five beds on each side, and large windows between each bed. A set of curtains was pulled to the edges of her bed, although the end of it was left open and she could see McGonagall, Slughorn and Dumbledore talking with a woman that Cynthia recognised from the meals but had never properly met.

"Hospital wing." said Alice, who was sat next to her. "We found you bleeding with a broken nose in the broom closet near the common room."

"That would explain it." muttered Cynthia, rubbing the bridge of her nose painfully. "How long have I been here?"

"Only about half an hour." said Alice. "We brought you up and Madam Pomfrey cleaned up your face and your nose and fixed your glasses and everything."

"Miss Potter." said Dumbledore pleasantly, suddenly realising she was awake. "Welcome back."

"Thanks?" said Cynthia, raising an eyebrow, but she quickly stopped because it hurt her nose.

"How are you?" asked McGonagall.

"F-fine." Cynthia stammered, feeling rather awkward.

"Might you be able to explain why your friends found you unconscious in a broom closet with a broken nose?" asked Slughorn, as if it was just an everyday occurrence.

Cynthia felt rather as if she was in an interrogation, much like from one of her books. The spotlight was bearing down on her, blinding her in the eyes as her three inquisitors demanded questions of her.

"Um -" she began, but the woman – who must have been the school nurse – cut across her.

"I think that Miss Potter requires rest before you ask her any questions, please, Professor Dumbledore." she said sharply. "My recommendation would be for her to return to her dormitory for the night and you can ask her what happened in the morning."

Even though Cynthia didn't have a clue who she was, she had never felt more grateful to her.

"Very well." said Dumbledore. "Miss Potter, get some rest, and then come to my office after breakfast but before your first lesson in the morning."

"Yes sir." said Cynthia.

"Oh, and given that you both missed the feast, some food will be sent up to your dormitory." he added.

"Thank you." said Alice happily.

Thoroughly relieved that she had more time to try and come up with a fake explanation for why she was in the broom closet, Cynthia watched as the three teachers left, and the nurse put her hands on her hips and shook her head exasperatedly.

"Honestly." she said irritably. "Well Miss Potter, you can go back to your dormitory now. Get plenty of sleep and if your nose starts bleeding again, come straight back up."

"Okay." said Cynthia, and she quickly slipped out of the bed. She was still in her robes, although the blood had been magically siphoned off and they looked as good as new. As she stood, she suddenly felt a bit dizzy, but quickly steadied herself and smiled reassuringly at Alice, who was looking worriedly at her.

They left what Cynthia assumed was the hospital wing and headed into the very empty corridor. The feast must have either been over or still in full swing, as they couldn't see anyone anywhere.

"Do you think the feast is over yet?" asked Alice.

"Not sure." muttered Cynthia. "Sorry I made you miss it."

"There's always next year." said Alice, shrugging. "And besides, we've got some of it still in the dorm."

"I guess." A small smile edged its way onto Cynthia's face. "Thanks Alice. For everything."

"You going to tell me what happened?"

"Not until I can come up with a good enough lie." said Cynthia, attempting a joke, but she was too tired to make it sound right. "I just want to eat something and then sleep."

"I know it was James and Sirius." said Alice, matter-of-factly.

Cynthia stared at her. "If you're trying to trap me, it's not going to work."

"It still worked though." said Alice. "Look, you're clearly a better actress than we thought, and there's clearly something that you're not telling us. I don't want to pry or – you know – make you tell us anything, but I am getting worried."

Cynthia suddenly stopped. Alice immediately became afraid that she had stepped over a line: they had only met each other two months ago, and while they had instantly proclaimed themselves to be best friends, she was still afraid that she might lose her.

"What?" she asked.

Suddenly, she felt herself being pulled into a hug. Cynthia held her arms tightly around Alice and whispered, "Thank you," into Alice's ear, squeezing her eyes closed to stop tears from leaking out. Alice instantly hugged her back, relieved that she hadn't done anything wrong.

"It's okay." she whispered back. "But – uh – what for?"

"Everything." said Cynthia, grinning as they pulled apart. "For caring."

"You know you can tell me anything, right?" said Alice. "I promise I won't tell anyone else if you don't want me to."

"I know." said Cynthia. "I'm just... there's no point. I haven't got any proof. No one would believe me anyone."

"I would." said Alice firmly. "I promise, I'll always believe you. And I won't tell a soul if you ask me not to."

Cynthia sighed and checked her watch, and then looked up and down the hallway – it was empty – and spotted a window seat that was hidden by curtains.

"Okay." she said. "We've got an hour until curfew."

A/N

I'm still here! You should be legit proud of me lol.

Stay safe everyone, especially with Covid and now the protests and everything else that is going on. And Happy Pride Month!

See you all next week. Love you all xxx