#Hermione "It's not Orli's fault! She even saved Malfoy."
Hermione defended her.
Madam Pomfrey studied Hermione for a moment, her tone softening slightly.
#Madam Pomfrey "I've already given you blood-replenishing potion, but the wounds on your back will take two days in the hospital wing to heal. This isn't something a bit of dittany can fix. I'm sure you wouldn't want to be left with a long scar, would you? For kids your age, it'd be such a pity if you couldn't wear a backless dress in the future."
Orli smiled at her gratefully. She was still lying face down, unable to move, with only her head poking out from under the blanket, turned sideways to look at people, which made her appear a bit comical.
Madam Pomfrey soon left, reminding Hermione to stay only until seven o'clock. Once the ward was left with just the two girls, Hermione leaned in closer and whispered to Orli:
#Hermione "Why did you save Malfoy?"
She looked utterly puzzled, as though she'd been holding it in all afternoon.
##Orli "Think about it. What would've happened if Buckbeak had injured Malfoy?"
Orli guided her train of thought:
##Orli "He'd have screamed, 'I'm telling my father,' and then Lucius Malfoy would've stormed into the school. What would happen to Hagrid? To Buckbeak?"
#Hermione "Oh, my!"
Hermione gasped, covering her mouth in alarm.
#Hermione "Maybe Hagrid would've been expelled again… and Buckbeak…"
##Orli "They would've killed Buckbeak."
Orli sighed.
#Hermione "Hagrid had better change his lessons to raising Flobberworms."
Hermione said irritably, glancing at Orli's pale face.
#Hermione "But this is all Malfoy's fault. Hagrid clearly explained all the movements! If anyone's to blame, Malfoy bears a large part of the responsibility."
After helping Orli finish her dinner, Hermione left her with two history books for entertainment and returned to Gryffindor Tower. She had a more important task—to explain to Harry, Ron, and a bunch of Gryffindors why Orli had saved Malfoy.
In just one afternoon, several versions of the story had circulated, the most ridiculous being that Orli had been secretly in love with Malfoy and couldn't bear to see him hurt. Orli found this utterly laughable.
Meanwhile, they also planned to visit Hagrid. Orli wrote a card for Hermione to take along. Although Hagrid's first lesson hadn't gone smoothly and Hippogriffs weren't exactly ideal teaching tools, she didn't want Hagrid to blame himself too much.
——————
It wasn't until Thursday morning that Orli finally left the hospital wing. Her wounds had healed completely, and thanks to Madam Pomfrey's expert care, not a single scar was left behind.
When she finally reached the dungeons, the Potions class for Slytherins and Gryffindors was already halfway through. She had no choice but to knock on the door and enter.
#Snape "Well, look who's here."
Snape's low voice rang out, dripping with icy sarcasm. Orli hadn't heard him speak to her in this tone for a long time.
#Snape "The Gryffindor heroine. Have your injuries healed?"
Many Slytherins burst into laughter, with Pansy Parkinson laughing the loudest. Surprisingly, Malfoy didn't laugh. He impatiently turned his head away from Orli's direction and even slapped a guffawing Crabbe on the back.
Harry and Ron glared angrily at everyone who laughed, while Hermione quickly shifted to make space for Orli.
Just as Orli was about to walk over, she was stopped.
#Snape "Did I say you could sit down?"
Snape said without even looking up.
Orli had no choice but to stand silently at the doorway.
#Snape "Given your tardiness, you'll serve detention tonight at eight in the dungeons. And for this class, you'll stand at the back and observe."
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