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Chapter 246: Neville's Discovery
Chapter 246: Neville's Discovery
On the eve of Christmas, St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries was filled with a festive atmosphere.
The waiting room was illuminated by golden and red crystal bubbles, hanging from the ceiling like giant Christmas ornaments, continuously twinkling.
Neville held his grandmother's hand with one hand and clutched his book bag tightly with the other.
They made their way up to the fifth floor, passing by each ward door adorned with holly, the trees wrapped in colorful ribbons.
"Neville, hurry up—"
Madam Longbottom said to him. Neville quickened his pace and followed her into the Janus Thickey Ward, walking to the very last bed and pulling aside the flowered curtains. A pair of male wizards lay on the bed.
If you ignored their pale, sickly appearance and their gray, withered hair, they looked like a young couple who had overslept, their lips still curved in a natural smile. But Neville only looked at them sadly, taking a bouquet of flowers from his book bag and placing them in the vase on the bedside table.
Neville was about to throw away the withered flowers, but his grandmother said sternly, "Let me do it." She snatched the flowers from him, giving him a complicated look. "Neville—" but she left without saying anything more.
Neville sat quietly for a while. He had already brushed his mother's hair, tucked his father's blankets, and folded the towels, but his grandmother still hadn't returned.
He hesitated for a moment, then got up and walked toward the door. Two beds away, a woman with a furry face suddenly barked at him, nearly making him crash into the wall on the other side.
Still shaken, Neville opened the door and looked around, but there was no sign of his grandmother. The golden stars on the holly tips flashed, blinding him and making it hard to see the distant corridor.
Neville's expression was hesitant, wondering whether to go back, but he suddenly heard faint voices from the stairwell. He recognized the gentle voice—it was his parents' healer, Aunt Melanie.
"Mr. Heap—Longbottoms—two weeks—"
Hearing the familiar names, Neville's curiosity got the better of him. He tiptoed over, trying not to make a sound. At the stairwell corner, he saw Aunt Melanie, her back to him, chatting with a healer in a green robe.
"Nobody can guarantee when they'll wake up. Mr. Heap is quite confident, and Madam Longbottom believes in him", Melanie said.
The younger healer couldn't help but ask, "But it's said that Heap only published some articles in the newspapers. Who knows what his real skills are?"
Melanie hesitated, "Ms. Boham also believes in him."
The healer countered, "But as you said, Heap hasn't shown up for two weeks since his last visit, and the Longbottoms have been in a coma for two weeks. Maybe he got into some trouble and can't resolve it."
Melanie's expression grew more worried, but she was still looking for reasons, "The patients' conditions are stable..."
"Who can predict memory issues? They might just sleep forever. Heap is at most a professor at Hogwarts, not a healer."
Melanie seemed convinced, "You have a point. I'll talk to Mrs. Longbottom when she comes." The two of them left together.
Neville leaned against the wall, his smile fading. He tried to process the information he had heard. There was only one Professor Hup at Hogwarts, so was the professor treating his parents? But why had he never mentioned it to him?
Neville thought it might be because they were worried he would panic. But then he remembered the conversation between the two healers—two weeks in a coma—and his heart clenched.
He hurried back to the ward, rushed through the door, and returned to his parents' bedside—they were still sleeping peacefully.
'Two weeks in a coma...'
Neville tentatively nudged his mother's arms, but there was no response. He applied a bit more force, but his mother remained motionless, her smile unchanged.
He suddenly felt a pang of fear. The stranger healer's words echoed in his mind like a corrosive poison—
"Who can say what will happen with memory issues? They might never wake up!"
Neville muttered, "Never wake up—impossible! Professor Hup never does anything without being sure. He's so powerful and composed..." But he couldn't help thinking: the healer's words made sense. Professor Hup had never shown any healing skills.
Just like Harry, who excelled in Defense Against the Dark Arts but was worse at Herbology than himself.
Footsteps approached from a distance. One was his grandmother, and the other... it seemed familiar. Neville glanced through the crack in the door and saw a pair of elegant brown shoes—it was Professor Hup!
He realized he had rushed in and forgotten to close the door.
Neville huddled by the backpack at the foot of the bed, pretending he hadn't noticed anything, his ears perked up.
"Professor Hup, we need to talk."
It was his grandmother's voice, sounding anxious. What was going on?
"There's nothing to talk about! I should have quit long ago. If you hadn't found Dumbledore, I wouldn't be here tonight", a man's voice said.
It was Professor Hup... Neville thought. Why did the professor seem a bit strange, a bit... cold?
"Oh, Frank and Alice haven't woken up. They, they—"
Neville heard his grandmother sobbing, his heart racing. The healer in the green robe's words echoed in his mind, impossible to ignore.
The voices outside the door grew lower. Neville couldn't help but lift his head. Through the window, he could only see his grandmother's side profile, looking incredibly sad—an expression he had never seen before.
In his mind, his grandmother had always been stern and proud.
"Stop crying! Someone might see. Let's find a secluded place and talk this out once and for all", the man said impatiently.
A shadow passed by the window, and the footsteps faded away.
Neville's heart pounded. He didn't quite believe what he had just heard. The man's voice sounded like that of a villain.
He jumped up, not even noticing he had grabbed his backpack. He tiptoed to the door, peering through the crack, just in time to see the two figures turn at the end of the corridor.
Neville took a deep breath and ran out, leaving the long-haired witch's barking behind in the ward. His face flushed, and it wasn't until he reached the end of the corridor that he realized his footsteps had been too loud, and they might have heard him.
He leaned against the wall, waiting a few seconds. When no footsteps returned, he breathed a sigh of relief and cautiously peeked around. It was a row of empty wards, the corridor dimly lit.
Neville summoned his courage and walked over, unsure which room his grandmother and the professor were in. He had to check each one.
He pressed his ear to the first door, but there was no sound inside.
He tiptoed to the second door. Before he could get close, he heard clear voices from inside—
(End of Chapter)
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