Turned - Tom Riddle

Chapter Thirty Five

"Matilda, is she alright?" Elizabeth exclaimed as she finally made it to the hospital wing. She saw the commotion and rushed over,
but no one let her through.

A nurse calmly stood and took Elizabeth's hand, guiding her away from the hospital bed where a curtain blocked off the area. "She was in a nasty accident at the book shop, but she is okay. You should thank that young man that she's alive," the nurse pointed behind Elizabeth. The nurse walked off and Elizabeth turned around. She saw Tom walking into the hospital wing at a rapid pace.

"You?" Elizabeth questioned. "You saved her?"

"Yes of course," he nodded, looking behind Elizabeth to the closed off area. "I was looking for a text on the topic of nonmagical remedies for burns," Tom lied, not ever wanting to touch something that endorsed muggle ideas.

Elizabeth was shocked at first. Of course, it had crossed her mind that he had conflicted the accident himself, but she didn't know why he would hurt someone as innocent as Matilda. "Oh my, well, thank you for helping her," she nodded.

"I felt it was necessary, her being your best friend," Tom explained.

"Did someone push the shelves on her?" Elizabeth interrogated. She wanted to know every detail. She didn't see any fault in the story.

Tom shook his head, "I didn't see anyone, I just saw them falling."

"Oh Merlin...," Elizabeth pondered. She couldn't imagine anyone who would want to hurt Matilda. She was a nice girl and had never done anything wrong.

"Times are changing," Tom ambiguously commented and left the hospital wing.

Elizabeth watched him walk away and furrowed her brows. He was such an enigma to her. The nurses wouldn't let her see Matilda, so she decided to go to the library and study to take her mind off of what was happening. After three hours, Elizabeth returned to the hospital wing. The curtain was removed and Matilda was laying in the bed, Melissa, and Walburga at her sides.

"Beth!" Matilda exclaimed in a raspy voice, trying to sit up, but winced and returning to her idle position. Her pale face was splattered with bruises and scrapes. Her left arm had broken and was in a healing splint.

"What happened?" Elizabeth asked as she set her bag down on the stand next to Matilda's bed.

"I have no idea, I was just in Tomes and Scrolls when the bookshelves came crashing down on me," she recalled. Of course, she had been obliviated and went by what Tom told her had happened.

Walburga sighed, dreamily, "Tom is such a hero for rescuing her in time before serious damage could have been done."

"She still broke both her leg and three ribs," Melissa pointed out.

"Three ribs?" Elizabeth repeated in disbelief.

Melissa nodded, "Oh you bet, she also split her entire lip open, it was nasty." She also explained that they had broken past the nurses and seen the injuries for themselves.

"That is going to leave a wicked scar," Walburga pointed out.

"I can't even imagine," Elizabeth over exaggerated. She had seen so much worse than a few broken bones and a busted lip, but she didn't want to belittle Matilda's pain.

Matilda yawned, "I love you all so dearly, but if you wouldn't mind stepping out while I sleep. I'm so exhausted."

"Don't worry, we understand," Walburga spoke for them. Elizabeth was forlorn, for she had just arrived. The three girls took turns to hug Matilda and said goodbye to her as well as the nurses.