Anne didn't know how long she'd slept. No one disturbed her, and the dormitory was silent. Slowly waking up, she rubbed her eyes, sat up, and pulled back the bed curtains. The lake outside the window was pitch black, and the only light in the room came from stone torches set into the walls.
A glance at her watch told her it was already 7:15 in the evening. She quickly changed into her school robes and made her way to the Slytherin common room. There, only three seventh-year students were chatting in hushed tones.
With just the fifth and seventh years left at school, and Slytherin always having the fewest students, Anne was used to seeing the common room this empty.
Leaving the dungeons, she strolled toward the kitchen with a relaxed gait. The house-elves had given her gifts, so of course she had to come thank them, and grab some dinner while she was at it. Besides, if her hunch was right, tomorrow was going to bring something big. These calm days wouldn't last much longer.
The moment she pushed open the kitchen doors, the house-elves excitedly swarmed around her, each one wishing her a happy birthday again.
"Thank you all, really," Anne said cheerfully. "I came tonight to share a few new dishes with you."
"Ooh, wonderful!"
"New recipes again!"
The elves squealed with joy and ushered her to the preparation counter.
"I'll need flour, carrots, cabbage, minced pork…" Anne listed the ingredients, and the elves immediately placed everything neatly in front of her.
"This dish is called spring rolls, "
"Spring rolls!" the elves echoed, their voices high and eager.
"First, we need to make the outer flour wrapper…" Anne washed her hands and began working, explaining each step as she went. Just like many times before, the elves listened with rapt attention.
With the help of magic to proof the dough quickly, it took Anne less than 40 minutes to complete the spring rolls.
"Here, try them!" she said, handing a large plate to the excited elves.
"Next, we're going to make fried dough sticks, it's a simple one," Anne continued, demonstrating the process.
She introduced three dishes in total, and after the demonstrations, she helped the elves make them on their own.
While she was explaining a detail to an elf named Lulu, there was suddenly a loud pop, Dobby had Apparated into the kitchen, looking panicked.
"Miss Reeve! Dobby, Dobby found! "
Startled, Anne fumbled the plate in her hands, nearly dropping it. Thankfully, Lulu caught it just in time.
Dobby rushed up to her, tugging at her robes with wide, frightened eyes, trembling all over.
"What's wrong, Dobby?" Anne asked, a chill of unease creeping over her.
"Professor Dumbledore is back!" Dobby shouted. "And he brought back Harry Potter's friends! "
The kitchen erupted.
"Professor Dumbledore is back?"
"That's great news!"
"Today? Now?" Anne asked, clearly shocked.
Dobby nodded furiously, then shook his head just as hard. "They… they don't look well, Dobby saw, they were all taken to the hospital wing, "
"Damn it, " Anne cursed under her breath. She turned to the other elves and spoke quickly, "Sorry, that's it for today."
She grabbed her school robe off the counter and managed a quick "Thanks," to Dobby before bolting from the kitchen. Racing through the corridors, two steps at a time up the staircase, she arrived breathless at the hospital wing.
The doors were wide open, and inside was chaos. Professors Lupin and Moody were there, along with several unfamiliar adults whom Anne guessed must be from the Order of the Phoenix. Professor Dumbledore stood by the doorframe and turned to glance at Anne, who was panting heavily.
"I…" Anne tugged at her tie, "I heard from Dobby, "
Dumbledore nodded. "Miss Reeve, I believe Madam Pomfrey will be glad to have your help right now."
Still catching her breath, Anne nodded and stepped inside.
Her heart clenched tightly at the sight of Hermione lying on a hospital bed, robes torn and bloodstained, eyes closed, her face pale. Madam Pomfrey was frowning deeply as she examined her.
Anne didn't stop to greet Neville or Ginny, who had called out to her. She rushed straight to Hermione's bedside, her voice trembling without her realizing it. "Madam Pomfrey, "
"Oh?" Madam Pomfrey looked up in surprise. "Finally, someone who's here to help instead of getting in the way!"
"I, " Anne's eyes remained fixed on Hermione. "How is she?"
"Not great," Madam Pomfrey replied with a frown. "She was hit by a silent curse, three of her ribs are broken."
Anne sucked in a sharp breath. That meant serious injury.
"Luckily, it was a silent curse," Madam Pomfrey added, retrieving a dark brown potion from a nearby shelf. "Otherwise, I might have had to send two students to St. Mungo's tonight."
Anne relaxed just a little. Her words meant Hermione would recover.
"What can I do?" Anne asked quickly, her eyes still on Hermione.
What followed was a blur. Anne darted between the storeroom and the beds, helping Madam Pomfrey organize supplies and even managing to shoo away the noisy adults from the hospital doors, Dumbledore had already left by then. She treated Ginny's broken ankle, gave both Neville and Luna a large dose of mid-level restorative potion, stopped the bleeding from Neville's nose, and bandaged his arm. With Madam Pomfrey's help, she removed a mysterious dark substance wrapped around Ron's arm, gave him a calming draught to stop his uncontrollable laughter, and helped him fall asleep.
After giving Hermione a glowing green potion, Madam Pomfrey finally sighed in relief. "That's it. She should wake up tomorrow. Though she's certainly been through a lot."
Anne let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding and gently pulled the blanket up around Hermione.
As Madam Pomfrey tidied up the potions and bandages, she looked over and asked, "Anne, not going back to your dormitory?"
Anne shook her head from where she stood beside Hermione's bed. "It's late. I'll stay here."
Pomfrey glanced at the two girls, nodded silently, and pushed the cart back to her office.
The hospital wing fell quiet, broken only by the steady breathing of its sleeping patients.
Anne pulled over a stool and sat down beside Hermione, staring at her face for a long time without saying a word. The soft flickering of firelight danced on the walls, mingling with the moonlight that poured in through the massive glass windows.
Some time later, there was another soft pop, Dumbledore Apparated into the room, accompanied by a hollow-eyed Harry. Anne stood up.
"Miss Reeve," Dumbledore said calmly, as if unsurprised to see her there. "Since you're still here, there's no need to disturb Madam Pomfrey. Would you mind giving Harry a calming draught? I believe he could use a good night's sleep."
"Of course," Anne nodded, retrieved a bottle from the shelf, and handed it to Harry.
Harry accepted the potion without a word and drank it in one gulp. Then, without acknowledging anyone, he pulled the blanket over his head and fell asleep.
For a moment, Dumbledore and Anne stood in silence.
"Professor Dumbledore," Anne suddenly said, "There's something I want to talk to you about, not as a member of the Roland family or anyone else. Just me."
Dumbledore's blue eyes flickered with surprise. "Oh?"
"Tomorrow afternoon, at three. In your office. Will that work?"
He studied her a moment, then nodded. "Yes. The password is lemon honey water."
"Alright. See you tomorrow, Professor." Anne turned and sat back down beside Hermione.
A soft pop sounded behind her, Dumbledore had Disapparated.
Anne looked at Hermione and muttered, "Maybe Gryffindor really is Slytherin's nemesis. Fated to be tangled, whether they want to or not…"
She sat for a while longer, thinking, but in the end, sleep overtook her. She drifted off at Hermione's bedside.
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Hermione woke up with a sharp pain in her ribs. Her eyes fluttered open. The last thing she remembered was the battle at the Department of Mysteries, she'd been hit by a spell.
Was this… the hospital wing?
Turning her head slightly, she saw Anne sleeping at her bedside and froze.
"You're awake?" Madam Pomfrey approached softly, carrying a few potions. "Here, drink these."
Hermione propped herself up just a little, careful not to wake Anne. She looked around at the other occupied beds.
"Madam Pomfrey? Us? And Anne?"
"Professor Dumbledore brought you all back," she said. "As for Anne, she heard from a little elf named Dobby that you were hurt. I came to help. Stayed the whole night."
"Professor Dumbledore is back?" Hermione exhaled in relief, and hearing about Anne's help made her smile. Even the awful potions couldn't erase it.
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Anne woke from hunger. It had been a long time since she felt this empty inside. As her awareness returned, she realized people were whispering around her.
She squinted, lifted her head, and the talking stopped.
Eyes wide, Anne saw daylight had already filled the room. Neville, Ron, Ginny, and Luna were gathered around Hermione's bed. Hermione held a copy of the Daily Prophet, and now they were all looking at her.
"Uh… good morning?" Anne said dumbly.
Hermione was the first to laugh. The others quickly followed, though Hermione stopped short, wincing and holding her side.
Anne tensed. "Hermione, are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she said, though she made no move to sit up straighter.
"It's already twelve-thirty," Ginny explained, grinning.
"I should get Madam Pomfrey, wait, what?" Anne paused mid-sentence. "Twelve-thirty?" She glanced at her watch, yep, no mistake.
"No wonder I woke up starving…" she muttered. Then, standing up, she looked around. "Since you're all okay now, I'll head back."
She grabbed her tie and robe from Hermione's nightstand, then leaned down to whisper, "If you feel uncomfortable, or in pain, promise me you'll call Madam Pomfrey. I'll come see you tonight."
Hermione nodded, cheeks flushing red, as the others strained to hear what Anne had said.
Anne paused briefly at Harry's bed, still asleep, before heading out of the hospital wing.
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