Lucius POVSt. Mungo's emergency department was chaotic, even at this hour—the noise of it hitting me in full force as I apparated into the busy lobby with Y/N unconscious in my arms.
Her body was relaxed as I held her tight against my chest.
She was still—too still.
Fear clutched me. The only reassurance being the lift and fall of her chest.
This place, and her closed eyes, it was too familiar.
A reminder—metal handles, labored breathing, sheets too white, of waiting waiting waiting...
And death.
No.
Not again. Not this time.
I hurried to the front desk and demanded, "I need to see the specialist, Dr. Harper—"
"Is she breathing?" The witch cut me off, her eyes going to Y/N.
"Yes, but I need to—" I began, the witch relaxed slightly at my answer, as she interrupted again.
"Your name?" she asked too calmly, papers and forms beginning to fly on the table in front of her.
Her enchanted quill stared at me, waiting for me to speak.
"Lucius Malfoy." I emphasized and the quill began scribbling madly on the different forms.
The witches eyes flickered in recognition and before she could respond I interjected.
"This matter is urgent—I need to see Dr. Harper immediately," I insisted more forcefully.
"We can place her in a bed to see a healer but there is a queue for those who need more immediate attention. Since she's stable and breathing I'm afraid you'll both have to wait a while for someone to take a look—and Dr. Harper won't be here till the morning."
"Then wake him up and get him here now." I demanded.
The quill stopped writing and looked over at the witch, as if waiting for a response.
"With all due respect, Mr. Malfoy, it's the middle of the night—"
My patience broke.
"How much have I donated to St. Mungos—are you aware? How much to keep this ruddy place going?! How many treatments can now be administered at a lower cost because of my monthly donations—"
The quill began taking notes—probably documenting this whole interaction.
"There are protocols Mr. Mal—"
"I don't care about your damned protocols! I demand to see the Dr. Harper now! Call him and tell him just who is requesting his presence and remind the man the reason for his increased salary the past ten years."
The witch's lips tightened into a line as she clasped her hands together on the table.
The quill still scribbled on.
I knew I was drawing attention but I couldn't care less.
"Mr. Malf—" she began to object in a lowered voice.
"Please," the word came out desperate and terrified as I grasped Y/N tighter in my arms.
A momentary slip of my mask.
The girl I held—her life too precious to me.
The witch was stunned enough by that granule of emotion that her expression softened and she considered me—the wheels in her mind beginning to turn.
She exhaled through her nose and the quill stopped writing.
"Give me five minutes to contact him."
—-
Y/N POV
There were whispers at the edge of my mind—hushed and unintelligible, filling in the gaps of silence.
I felt cold and dry and too warm all at the same time.
How was that possible?
I tried to stir myself—stuck at the bottom of some endless darkness.
I managed to pull myself from it—the effort of it like slowly dragging yourself up up up, tunneling against some force trying to keep you under —until...
Light hit my eyes—blinding after such an absence of it.
I squinted, unable to see anything but bright light.
"She's awake," Draco's voice sounded with slight urgency. I cringed against it—feeling as though his voice was a loud striking bell next to my right ear.
"Why are you shouting?" I whispered as I blinked a couple times.
Blurry.
Everything was so blurry and too bright.
There were three blobbed figures around me—Maybe four.
Still nothing was coming into focus.
I heard a voice hush Draco.
"Give her this," a voice said from far away, unfamiliar and soft. I turned my head towards it and the world began spinning.
I covered my eyes with a hand—unable to stop the dizziness nor adjust to the light.
"Why are there so many lights?" I asked, my own voice bothering my now throbbing head.
"Turn that light off Draco," Lucius hissed in a whisper.
The light disappeared. It had only been one light.
I still kept my eyes closed savoring the relief of the darkness.
Footsteps approached the bed.
"Help me get her up," Lucius whispered next to me.
A squeak of the floor and I moaned in irritation as two hands on either side of me began helping me sit up slightly.
Lucius's body sat down on the bed to keep me propped up—I leaned into it and relaxed.
It was warm and I felt myself about to slip back into sleep as his arm wrapped around my back.
Something cold pressed to my lips and I made a displeased noise as I moved my head away, burrowing my face into the warmth of his chest.
The fabric of the shirt felt toasty and smelled so good.
A hand began stroking my hair—all the sensations were heavenly and I could've curled up like this forever.
"Y/N i need you to drink this," Lucius said softly by my ear.
I made a small noise in disagreement, making no move to turn.
"Y/N," he warned, still soft but more sternly.
But I didn't want to move—it felt too nice to be touched and held and burrowed in him.
Even in my half conscious state I knew he could pull away after I drank whatever it was he was offering.
"Draco," Lucius hissed and I heard footsteps round the bed.
A new hand went to my back as another
turned my head gently—the side of my face still leaning into Lucius—and I felt the cold glass at my lips again."Drink," Lucius said—a gentle demand as the other pair of hands tilted my head back.
I obliged even though the liquid was sickly sweet and thick in consistency.
"Good girl," Lucius cooed in a whisper as I swallowed it down.
Draco's hands pulled away as I finished the last drop of liquid.
I took the opening to turn back into the warmth of Lucius—frowning into his shirt as my tongue began to tingle unpleasantly.
He didn't pull away, beginning to stroke my hair again and holding me against him with his arm around me.
My body and mind were getting more and more numb with each passing second.
I heard the words spoken by the unfamiliar voice in the room—somehow muffled and clear at the same time.
"That will help with her sleep until she can be properly evaluated. You need to keep a sharp eye on her the next couple days—give her that elixir before she goes to bed at the same time everyday this week. I'll put in a referral for the psych healer. Watch for their owl in the late morning or early afternoon."
Psych?
It was the last thought I had before the darkness took me again.