A Decidedly Terrible Idea || [HW Emergency Drill/OPEN]

Thursday, April 12, 1923
The Quidditch Pitch
5:30 PM - Gloomy with a bit of wind

Gryffindors.

To be fair, she couldn't only blame those in scarlet and gold for the 'emergency' that saw several of the volunteers marching out to the Quidditch Pitch. The way she heard it, the afternoon's unsanctioned Quidditch match was the brainchild of students from several houses, and they'd managed to rope in at least three students from each.

Now, wanting a bit of exercise and the wind in your hair after a long day of school wasn't some cardinal sin. Every so often, she and Benji still arranged little scrimmages with their friends that were brilliant fun. Coming close to the end of her school life, there was a part of her that was sad to see no return of the official game. Quidditch was fun! Halloway was gone! Any question of safety could hardly be leaned on anymore.

...

.......

Then you had idiots like these...who gave professors all the ammunition they needed to deem the sport still too dangerous. Rae had been in the hospital wing when hell apparently split the ground of the pitch open to break loose. She hadn't been able to see how they could've fumbled the game so badly. By the time she and the team were involved, several were already lying in the grass, some groaning pitifully as if they weren't the authors of their own destruction. If you were going to play a game like Quidditch, you accepted that you could have your skull caved in, and you took it on the chin like any real player should.

The Slytherin sixth-year stalked across the ground with the others in tow, with strict instructions that if anything looked too severe, the healer be called in to handle it.

Much to her mild dismay, there would be no hero healers that afternoon. Cuts, scrapes, bones that didn't look quite right (with proper clearance) or general signs of disorientation, sure. Bones sticking out of skin, headlessness, bowels where they shouldn't be? Not their territory and not something Healer Graham would be happy to know they'd attempted on their own.

For that reason – and that reason alone – Rae hoped that no one was too badly injured. It had been a slow week in the hospital wing. Now that there was something interesting to do, she would hate to require it to be handed over to the real professionals.

"Make sure we've got enough supplies or someone will be running back to the wing to get more. And remember," she turned to look especially at the first years who'd tagged along. There were a few of them, the majority wide-eyed and ready for their first real 'emergency'. "We don't start touching and healing until we figure out what the issue even is. Keep your wands and potions to yourself until a proper assessment can be done. We don't need heroes, only practical nurses."

Better to get that out of the way before they began.

---

OOC: Hello and welcome to the term's HW emergency drill! We're only just starting out so feel free to jump in. Not signed up for the wing? No worry, you still can! For now, the volunteers are only arriving to the scene (nearing the pitch) so please don't have them walking up to students and assessing or healing. They aren't quite there yet. I'll describe the full scale of the scene in my next post. For now, you're free to write them in the lead-up, whether they were lounging in the wing when the call came for some to head over (or doing something else) or just their initial thoughts/excitement/trepidation as they headed over. Ideally, they would've already been inside the wing at the time as Rae didn't go hunting down anyone to help. It's only the opening. We'll be moving this along in a few days.

There were many reasons Matilda hated quidditch.

One, it required flying. Matilda Faye Nordstrom, to the surprise of many, was terrified of heights. Nope. not doing it. Ever.

Two, in her many years at Hogwarts, working in the hospital wing had taught her that stupid people did stupid shit while riding a stick in the air. She had seen her fair share of broken limbs, concussions, scraps and blood to last her a lifetime.

Three, it forced her to work on actual patients. Yes she worked in the wing. Yes she was thinking about pursuing a career at St Mungos, but unfortunately both of those things required work on actual human people. It was a very annoying result of her hobby.

In a perfect world she would work in the greenhouse, tend to the plants, create teas and tinctures, salves and potions. All of those things she liked. And all of those things could be done without ever having to deal with vomit, blood, bones or whining.

Unfortunately, she did not live in a perfect world and Rae was the dictator currently controlling this one.

Walking towards the pitch, Tilly hovered near the middle of the pack, eyeing the strangely tiny first years. And that was saying something, with her clocking in at 5’2”.

As a byproduct of her nearly six full terms in the wing, she had learned a lot. In fact, Tilly could diagnose broken bones, help with inflammation, repair broken bones, help with breathing difficulties and much much more. Even with her hate for patient care, she was happy with the knowledge she had retained.

Rae was headed to St Mungo's after Hogwarts. There was no doubt that she would be running the place one day. The Hospital Director might have something to say about that, but he hadn’t met Ruth Elliot yet. Matilda would love to pursue a career in the Herbalist trade, but that would require years of study that included learning more about healing and patient care. Which sounded awful.

"Make sure we've got enough supplies or someone will be running back to the wing to get more. "[/] Rae bellowed. Matilda looked at a scared looking first year? Maybe second? She didn’t care.

Looking at him with her eyebrows raised, she pointed at the medical bag slung over his shoulder, ”She’s talking to you, you better make sure you have everything.”

[i]"We don't start touching and healing until we figure out what the issue even is. Keep your wands and potions to yourself until a proper assessment can be done. We don't need heroes, only practical nurses."

Walking up to her friend, Tilly held onto the strap of her satchel, filled with concoctions made by the Herbalists in the hospital wing. ”You said practical nurses. Does that mean I can go? I don’t wear a name badge that says nurse. Mine says "Herbalist.” A sarcastic smile spread over her face.

She was joking. Kind of… Even with all her hate for patient care, she wouldn’t walk away from someone in pain.

"Ten bucks says our boys are part of this mess, but both have come away scratch free. I can almost see their shit eating grins now."

The news of an emergency related to several students having organized their own game of Quidditch came with mixed responses. Most seemed annoyed, few jumped with joy. The trek to the pitch wasn’t a short one after all, and a bunch of idiots caving their heads in always elicited a certain amount of eye rolls amongst the Hospital Wing volunteers. More work usually wasn't celebrated.

Maevie though had broken into excited preparations immediately. Finally something to do, something real and something less boring than making another bed or sorting through expired potions for hours. It was her first time volunteering as a nurse so she hadn’t been allowed many tasks and the injuries and maladies walking into the Wing weren’t exactly breath-taking either. Watching a more experienced nurse handle a case of disgusting boils caused by this plant or that potion was interesting only that many times.

A pile of broken Quidditch players sounded like more fun and more action and seeing they’d need every hand available, Maevie hoped she’d get her hands on someone interestingly broken.

Making their way down, Maevie walked at the head of the group, a little spring to her step. The bag slung over her shoulder was stuffed to the brim with bandages, a random assortment of potions that had looked and sounded useful, her wand, and a whole lot of plasters.

Rae called over the heads of their little group, reminding them to — one: assess first, two: be a practical nurse. Easy. Maevie nodded, ignoring the fact she was probably just as competent and useful as the first years tagging along, with little idea of how healing even worked. She sure as hell couldn’t perform any spells, but what she lacked in skill, she definitely made up in enthusiasm.

“I claim the broken bones!”, she announced to no one in particular**, grinning brightly as the stadium came into view. “There has got to be at least one.”

---

**this could be you <3

It seemed a little silly to Kathryn that others should be foolish enough to injure themselves yet that the burden should fall on them to make them better. Of all the things that puzzled her during her time working in the wing, that had to be one of them. Ruth had sat her down exactly twice before and had explained that a person's level of intelligence did not, inherently, qualify or disqualify them when it came to being cared for in the wing. It wasn't that she didn't understand. Kathryn was a smart girl, quite capable of understanding many things.

It was that she disagreed.

Fortunately, for all who needed medical attention at Hogwarts, disagreement was as far as the little girl ever went, and it was often rather silent and passive. There were many times she never saw eye to eye with others. None of them had ever amounted to more than a disapproving scowl and the girl's steely silence.

It never bothered anyone. Rather, nearly everyone found it easy to forget that she was even there.

Ruth didn't forget. Not today. Not while an emergency had been called and they'd needed every available volunteer to head down to the pitch. Kathryn had tried to pretend she hadn't heard the call, stubbornly continuing to make the bed she'd been assigned. The effort was futile at best. The older girl had taken her by the wrist on her way out, dragging her along with the others until she felt confident enough that they'd gotten far enough to ensure the Ravenclaw first-year was unlikely to attempt to return to the hospital wing on her own.

The Slytherin Prefect's grip loosened as they approached the pitch, allowing Kathryn's gait to slow marginally.

A quidditch game gone wrong.

It served them right.

Rules were there for a reason. The professors had already told them that the game was too dangerous, but she supposed there would always be those who didn't listen. Apparently, so long as she wore this white uniform, it was her job to make them ache a little less in the aftermath of their own disobedience.

"Make sure we've got enough supplies or someone will be running back to the wing to get more."

She wasn't a pack mule and carried nothing.

And remember, we don't start touching and healing until we figure out what the issue even is. Keep your wands and potions to yourself until a proper assessment can be done. We don't need heroes, only practical nurses."

Yet another command she didn't need. Kathryn never cast spells. No one was in danger of ending up on the wrong end of one she may botch from any inherent lack of skill or otherwise.

“I claim the broken bones! There has got to be at least one.”

Maevie grinned. Kathryn stared in response, solemn and unimpressed. The girl sounded as if she relished the injuries and the opportunity to be dragged across the grounds because others hadn't learned to find quieter means of passing the time. Was this...was this fun for her? Was this her treat? Curious, the first year supposed, but concerning as well. Perhaps the Hufflepuff should consider speaking to someone about it before it became an outright homicidal desire. One could only sit on the sidelines watching for so long and Golding certainly had the...enthusiasm...for it.

Matilda's question had her looking over at Ruth. If the other prefect could leave, then she was going to be needing the same exemption—despite her own badge very much reading 'nurse.'

Her gaze shifted from the emerging pitch to her friend as she caught up to her.

”You said practical nurses. Does that mean I can go? I don’t wear a name badge that says nurse. Mine says "Herbalist.”

"Nice try, Tills," Rae said, offering the girl a pat on the shoulder. "But there aren't many of us on duty today to start. We'll be needing all hands and herbalists on deck for this one." The first years were...mostly eager. Maevie was eager. The others? Much less enthused about being dragged across the school grounds, especially when some of them were nearing the end of their shift. It went without saying Rae didn't expect anyone to suddenly stop caring for a student just because the clock struck 6PM unless they planned to have some stern words with her the next time they showed up for their shift.

"Tell you what, when we get there, you can help keep an eye on potion usage if you'd like. You've got a better idea of what they put in them and dosages." Rae was getting better at it—had to in order to clench that "O" she'd needed in potions for her Collegium application—but she could admit that it didn't come as easily or readily as it did for Matilda.

"Ten bucks says our boys are part of this mess, but both have come away scratch-free. I can almost see their shit-eating grins now."

She laughed. "If Benji's involved, he'd better at least extend me the courtesy of being half-dead so I can nurse him properly." Imagine causing her all that trouble and having nothing to offer in return but that stupid grin that both aggravated her and made her insides warm.

Sacrilege.

“I claim the broken bones! There has got to be at least one.”

A mini-disaster waiting to happen. Bless her.

"You can help whoever's working on someone with a broken bone," she corrected, not unkindly but evenly. Rae could understand the enthusiasm and could recognise glimpses of it from her earliest days in the wing when ANY disaster was a good day and she was ready. Being older, she now understood why they couldn't let her help with every single thing she'd wanted to, but she certainly didn't mind keeping the girl involved.

As they approached the pitch, the carnage became clear.

No one had lost their head or any limbs – thank Merlin – but she could easily tell which players had been involved in the accident. There were two students who were laid out in the grass, while others crowded around them; another two sat close by, looking a little disoriented.

"Alright, alright, out of the way," Rae said, clearing a path for her and her volunteers through the small crowd gathered. "Move before we move you – back up already!"

She understood that they were concerned for their friends, but they were making things harder.

"Maeeeviiieeee," one of the boys sitting across from the main group called. "I'm dyyiiinnnggg. This is it. The final breath. Good bye cruel world."

"You're not dying," Rae called to him. She nudged at Maevie's back, gesturing her in the boy's direction. "Go check if he's dying." She would find he had a mild headache at most. Any hysterics were more a result of him wanting the girl's attention than any real risk death.

With the crowd moving further back, she could focus on the pair in the centre. A girl and a boy.

She looked to the remaining Volunteers.

"Let's get to work. Remember what I said."

---

OOC: First update is here! Below, you'll find a table of the injured. You can choose who your character is helping with and how they might want to help. If there's something they want to do but can't, you can assume they asked Rae for help. Keep it reasonable; Rae won't help them make a patient worse. There are basic potions available but anything stronger than a mild pain potion will need to be approved. Don't assume outcomes, I'll be handling that in my next post. This will move again in another 3 days <3

Player:	Gender:	Age:	Symptoms:
Aiden	Male	14	Headache Confusion/dizziness Deep purple bruising along ribs Gash on forehead Signs of shoulder dislocation
Grace	Female	12	Report of extreme pain Confusion/dizziness Swelling and discoloration along right arm Signs of elbow joint damage on right arm
Jordan	Male	15	Superficial cuts Mild ache in neck Complaint of headache Fatigue and dizziness Complaint of dry throat

If you'd like, you could also have your character checking the other unnamed players as a general check to make sure they're alright. They won't have serious issues and will be quickly dismissed.

Alice looked at the fallout from the unsanctioned Quidditch game, feeling nothing but incredulousness. She’d always thought the sport was extremely stupid, overly dangerous and just… something her little sister probably would have gotten into if the sport wasn’t banned from school grounds or the girl was still attending Hogwarts.

It didn’t help that her father had a hand in Quidditch.

The whole thing just put her in a sour mood. Honestly, that was Alice’s default these days.

Deciding instead of focusing on everything going wrong in her life, she decided to try to focus on the things that she could affect. With the question of who the hell her birth mother was always playing in the back of her mind, she’d play Thatcher’s game. The last thing she needed was to lash out and say something that would destroy her entire future.

"Make sure we've got enough supplies or someone will be running back to the wing to get more. And remember, we don't start touching and healing until we figure out what the issue even is. Keep your wands and potions to yourself until a proper assessment can be done. We don't need heroes, only practical nurses."

"Ten bucks says our boys are part of this mess, but both have come away scratch free. I can almost see their shit eating grins now."

For some reason the ‘our boys’ comment bothered Alice, but she swept it away and crossed her arms over her chest. Little Maevie announced that she was taking the broken bones, the excitement radiating off the bundle of red hair at the thought of more gruesome injuries.

"Maeeeviiieeee, I'm dyyiiinnnggg. This is it. The final breath. Good bye cruel world."

Alice rolled her eyes as Ruth responded by nudging the younger girl towards him. Alice turned to the more serious injuries, confusion, headaches… all signs of hitting their head on the ground.

That would be fun to deal with.

Alice knelt down by one of the boys who was holding his head [Aiden]. She could sense confusion coming off of him. “Put your hands down,” she said and looked into his eyes. He was having a hard time focusing. He had a gash on his forehead. And also said something about his shoulder hurting.

“Definitely hit your head.”

Avery was running. The little boy's shoes pounded the soft earth, his arms full of bandages - linen unfortunately - pain potions and a sack full of herbs for some unknown reason. He'd grabbed everything in his vicinity that he could reasonably run with. Would have thrown a bed on his back if he could have figured out how to manage it, but this would have to be enough. Ruth Elliot said if they didn't have enough, someone would have to play gopher and it definitely wasn't going to be him.

This was his first real chance to assist in an actual emergency, and he was going to throw his whole heart into it, even if he only got to observe.

Ruth Elliot was holding the key to his participation, despite his numerous complaints to the head healer, and he was more than a little annoyed about it. Alas, he would do as he was able.

"You can help whoever's working on someone with a broken bone."

"Me!" Avery exclaimed as he caught up to the crew, his smile growing wide in anticipation. "We can work together Maevie! I know all about broken bones - theoretically," he side-eyed Ruth Elliot before she could correct him that he had no practical field knowledge yet. He knew. "Did you know that even if someone out there has a broken bone, they'll heal fast because as teenagers, their bones are still growing and have a more plentiful blood supply?"

He knew that. He bet Ruth Elliot didn't.

Kathryn either. He glanced at her, wondering if she planned to help or simply observe.

As they came upon the pitch, Avery's eyes took in the...mess that sprawled around them. He'd never seen anything quite like it, and while Avery didn't like to imagine or see anyone in pain, he had to admit he was excited.

"Alright, alright, out of the way. Move before we move you – back up already!"

Ruth Elliot could certainly command a crowd when she wanted to. Maevie was off towards one boy while Alice was off for another. The next closest patient was a girl he recognized - vaguely. Taking hold of Kathryn's hand, knowing she wouldn't take initiative on her own, he tugged, pulling his fellow Ravenclaw with him.

"Hey Grace," he said kindly, as he kneeled down beside the girl, dropping his supplies on to the grass between him and Kathryn. "Looks like you took a bad fall." Obviously. Quidditch didn't seem the type of sport where one waltzed off the field with all their faculties in check.

"It hurts," the girl moaned, "Really bad."

"Kathryn, please administer a pain potion. A light one for now." He wasn't trying to be bossy but he wanted to give the girl a quick look-over while they got her pain under control. He glanced at her, "I've labeled them all there." He returned his attention to Grace, noticing the strange way her right arm was laying. Swelling and discolored and...sort of just laying there.

"Can you move your arm at all?" he asked, and looked back over his shoulder for Ruth Elliot. Did she need to assess before he could treat. If he were a betting man - and he was because he was smart - he'd guess she'd dislocated her shoulder. But the last thing he needed was another lecture or refusal to let him even polish the apothecary vials.

"We'll be needing all hands and herbalists on deck for this one." See, if people just stayed on the freaking ground, this would not happen. Grabbing a hair tie from her wrist, Tilly made quick work of her long hair, putting into a pony tail then twisting it into a bun, before securing it with the tie. She loved her hair, but it had a habit of getting in the way… much like first years.

"Tell you what, when we get there, you can help keep an eye on potion usage if you'd like. You've got a better idea of what they put in them and dosages." Matilda nodded, fine with that arrangement. Potions were more her forte than actual healing. After a bit of triage, she’d see what victim needed what potion. If any.

"I claim the broken bones! There has got to be at least one," she said, a smile appearing on Tilly’s face despite the grim nature of their mission. At least there were two people excited. Looking over at Kate, Tilly had a sneaking suspicion that her friend would also rather be anywhere else. Alas, most smart people were afraid of the tiny tyrant, which just proved that their sense of self-preservation was highly advanced.

As they approached, the horde of students in quidditch gear told them exactly where the injured parties were. Rae, with the ease of a bulldozer, moved the crowd so that the medical team could assess the scene. Ok… not as bad as she thought it would be. No vomit, a plus, but there was blood and bruises, a good deal of moaning and pain.

Lovely.

Before she started handing out potions, Tilly needed to assess the patients. There were potions that worked great for general pain, but could easily mask symptoms of other injuries. It was also imperative to look at bleeding before pain meds. One potion in particular had a blood thinning quality, so if the patient had a gash on their head or internal bleeding, things could go wrong quickly.

Taking stock of the three most obviously injured, Tilly went towards the boy with Alice who was showing obvious signs of pain and had a large gash on his forehead. ”Hey there, I’m Tilly. What’s your name? Can you tell me what hurts?”’ She asked, trying to keep her voice light. No reason to get worked up, just made the patients more stressed.

”Aiden.” He said, voice edged with pain. ”Ribs, head and shoulder, dizzy.” ”Nice to meet you Aiden. We’re going to take this gear off and cut your shirt. I need to take a look at that shoulder and ribs, ok?” He didn’t acknowledge her words, so she took his silence as acceptance. With her wand, Tilly quickly cut away the quidditch padding and made a slice up the center of the shirt with her wand. Fat-lot of good that padding did for him.

Alice continued her assessment, looking in his eyes. “Definitely hit your head.” Tilly nodded at her cousin in agreement.

Once the fabric was cut away, the injury became very apparent. His right shoulder looked dramatically different from the left, swelling and bruising already beginning to appear. More than likely dislocated. His ribs were also showing patches of purple and blue. Possibly broken, at the very least heavily bruised. ”Ok, Aiden, you’re doing great. I’m just going to run some quick tests to see what we’re dealing with here, ok?’

”Tessutovero Acutus,” she said, running her wand from the shoulder, slowly down over her elbow and forearm. Going over each finger and back up towards the shoulder. Her wand was warm in her hand, and grew warmer over certain parts. Her movements were slow and methodical, spending extra time over the ribs and stomach, hoping that internal bleeding wasn’t an issue. Thankfully he was breathing fine, so a punctured lung wasn’t looking likely.

”What do you think Alice? Concussion? Are his pupils dilating with light?” In her less-than-expert opinion, the boy had a dislocated shoulder, broken ribs, a large gash that would need cleaning and sealing and possibly a concussion. .

”Rae,” Tilly called. ”How are you at Vulnera Sanentur? I think his gash could use it, but I don’t know that spell yet.”

At nearly the end of her sixth year in the hospital wing, she was happy with the knowledge she had gained. Even if it required working on actual people. Thankfully, in some cases, the patients were unconscious. At least these three weren’t screaming or vomiting. Thank Merlin for small favors.

"You can help whoever's working on someone with a broken bone."

Maevie skipped a few paces, energy pumping into her muscles. It was better than nothing, she supposed, and Avery was already proclaiming his aid which sounded like massive fun. He was clever, even though he was a first year and she should probably know more than him but it was okay. She was better in other aspects. Maybe.

"Did you know that even if someone out there has a broken bone, they'll heal fast because as teenagers, their bones are still growing and have a more plentiful blood supply?”

“Really?”, Maevie said, the bag slung over her shoulder swinging with the momentum of her skips. “Does that mean adults have less blood than teenagers? And do teenagers have less blood than babies?” Somehow that didn’t sound right. It didn’t really matter though because at last their group made it onto the pitch and Maevie slowed to a walk, slightly out of breath but eager as ever.

A couple students were sprawled out on the grass, surrounded by a bunch of onlookers that Rae quickly dispersed. From a little way over, a voice called her name.

"Maeeeviiieeee. I'm dyyiiinnnggg. This is it. The final breath. Good bye cruel world."

Maevie regarded the boy with a sceptical but amused expression, chuckling to herself. When Rae nudged her to go check on him, she bounded over, sinking into the grass next to the dying player. “Are you sure you’re dying?”, she asked, grinning as she looked him over, unable to find even so much as a cut or abrasion. “Can you move everything? Does something hurt?”

“I am already dead,” the boy said, falling onto his back, spread-eagled, tongue out and very much giving the impression to be able to move everything quite well. Maevie giggled, saying nothing, brows flicking high. “My head hurts a little,” he added at last and Maevie nodded. Rummaging through her bag she extracted a small vial containing a pain potion.

“There you go,” she said, proffering the vial with an enthusiastic thrust into the boy’s chest, eliciting a small oof. When he took it, Maevie patted him on the shoulder and sprang back to her feet, calling over to Rae — "Not dying!" — before searching for another victim.

An older boy [Jordan] close by caught her attention, a few cuts along his cheeks and hands, and within the same breath, Maevie knelt down next to him. “Hi!”, she beamed, running her gaze along his body. “How many broken bones do you have?”

Confused, he blinked at her. “None?”, he said, brow furrowed as though he wasn’t quite sure himself. “But my neck hurts. And my head. And I'm kinda dizzy.” He swallowed, face scrunching. “Do you have water? My throat is so dry.”

Maevie’s shoulders sagged, levelling the player with a look of unimpressed disbelief. “What, do you have a cold?”, she asked, snorting. “Did you have those symptoms before playing today?”

Why did everyone want to work on broken bones? And why did Avery think that Ruth saying Maevie could help whoever worked with the bones meant him?

Last she checked, he was a novice like her. Last she checked, he didn't know any bone spells, even if he did seem to have swallowed an encyclopaedia on bone care before sprinting his way down to the grounds with the others. He would figure it out soon enough, probably after he got his millionth reprimand from the older girl who didn't particularly seem to like having him around. While Kathryn could certainly agree that the speed at which his mouth moved made it a little harder to think – and concentration was certainly important within the wing – she couldn't understand the broader decision to systematically shut him out.

Kathryn glanced down at the hand that held hers, neither pleased nor put out by the fact that Avery was pulling her along. All the way in April, she still couldn't label whatever it was that the pair had, but she could recognise patterns, and this one had been long-standing. One was usually tugging the other. For her, it was necessity; for Avery, he was often too bossy and excitable for his own good.

Dragging her toward someone with a funny-looking elbow definitely counted as going against his own good.

What did he plan to do? Pop it back in place? What happened if the bones were shattered? He'd only make it worse. While he played the gentle healer in training, Kathryn stood by him in grim silence. She knew Grace and knew the girl wasn't the sort to listen to common sense. That she found herself in this situation came as no real surprise to the Ravenclaw, who did nothing to hide the judgement that sprawled across her blue irises. The pain she described, the cuts she sported – it all could've been avoided had she kept herself firmly planted on the ground.

"Kathryn, please administer a pain potion. A light one for now."

Those judging blue eyes shifted to Avery instead. A pain potion before any sort of assessment? How would they discover any secondary injuries? How would they measure degree? There he went, trying to be the smartest in the room again, never stopping to actually consider what he was asking her to do. Besides, novices weren't allowed to hand out potions without permission. Healer Graham had made that clear enough herself. She needed to measure the doses herself. Failing that, they needed to ask the specialist nurses for help.

Was he trying to get them banned?

When her quill and notebook rose, it wasn't to explain all that. Instead, the cursive words read:

Too difficult. Let her die.

She waited for Avery to read it but not enough for him to protest her wording before taking him by his right sleeve and pulling him over to the far more reasonable patient with whom Maevie spoke. Nothing stuck out the wrong way, and he wasn't seriously bleeding from any orifices. If they had to be out here, then this was where they belonged.

Kathryn pointed to Jordan, indicating that Avery could play healer here instead. Maevie could be his assistant. She would watch.

Aiden

Player:	Gender:	Age:	Symptoms:
Aiden	Male	14	Headache Confusion/dizziness Deep purple bruising along ribs Gash on forehead Signs of shoulder dislocation

Aiden had definitely hit his head. The boy was unimpressed by the standard (read: obvious) observation of the other girl. He wouldn't have had a gash by his forehead or warm liquid trickling down his face if there hadn't been some form of impact.

The spell that Matilda cast revealed an area of dark red by the shoulder that gradually lightened as it moved closer to the elbow. By the time she got to the fingertips, there was not light and no reaction. The glowing on the boy's arm and the warmth of the wand remained for a moment before fading. The results were clear; there was an indication of damage and inflammation. This was further substantiated by the strange appearance of the area by the boy's shoulder joint.

”Rae.”

Rae was making her way through the scene, doing her checks and making sure the first years didn't let their enthusiasm get the better of them. When she heard her name, the girl drifted closer to Alice and Tilly. She caught sight of the glowing red before it faded, understanding what it meant for the boy's shoulder at the very least.

"How are you at Vulnera Sanentur? I think his gash could use it, but I don’t know that spell yet.”

Rae looked from her friend to the gash on the boy's forehead. It certainly looked nasty. She performed her own quick cast of "Tessutovero Acutus" to ensure the injury didn't run deeper. When the glowing red didn't go further than the edges of the gash despite her circling his entire head with the tip of her wand, she felt satisfied enough to proceed.

"Vulnera Sanentur." The gash slowly pulled in on itself until it closed.

Her gaze fell to his exposed chest. "Anyone checked the discoloured area yet?" While the ribs looked fine, the change in colour was surely telling them something. She'd leave them to it, turning her attention to a boy who had a potion that he shouldn't. Make sure you get the vitals, too.

Grace

Grace

Female

12

Report of extreme pain Confusion/dizziness Swelling and discoloration along right arm Signs of elbow joint damage on right arm

"Kathryn, please administer a pain potion. A light one for now."

Avery Hale.

Why was she not surprised?

That boy walked around the hospital wing like he knew every single thing there could ever be known about healing. The boy, while he'd never said anything, certainly acted like he didn't accept his position as a novice. She'd gotten complaints that he sometimes tried correcting others, usually with winding explanations that no one had asked for. He walked in thinking he was the smartest person in the room—probably thought he needed an immediate promotion without realising there was still too much he didn't know and still too much eagerness and arrogance for him to be in a position to learn.

Rae turned to him and Kathryn the moment he instructed her to start dispensing potions that a more seasoned nurse or the healer herself had not measured. There were reasons novices weren't allowed, but Avery would never stop to wonder why. The boy was convinced that reading books should be enough to put him ahead of volunteers who'd been working the wing for years. One of those books should've warned him you couldn't go dulling pain before you diagnosed the problem. It was an important tool for pinpointing problem areas that were harder to see and might otherwise go unnoticed.

Thankfully, Kathryn pulled him away rather than relent. Whether it was because she knew better or because she didn't want to be bothered by what Rae could easily see the girl considering to be a 'difficult patient' was a little hard to say. Either way, it was one less headache for her to handle.

She would have the healer speak with him later. Merlin knew he'd never accept anything coming from her lips.

For now, she turned her attention to the girl, noticing the swelling that shouldn't have been so rapid.

Ah shit.

"Oi!" Rae waved over a few of the players. The stronger, sturdier-looking ones. Rae conjured a stretcher. "Get her back to the hospital wing, stat. Be careful but don't go dragging your feet. Your friend's in real danger here." And as promised, Rae wouldn't make any attempts herself, nor would she let the other; she would get her to the healer.

They eased Grace onto the stretcher carefully and then took off.

Jordan

Jordan

Male

15

Superficial cuts Mild ache in neck Complaint of headache Fatigue and dizziness Complaint of dry throat

The pair moved over to Jordan. The boy had certainly not been on the receiving end of the worst of it, which probably worked out better for them and Maevie. A quick look over revealed nothing too alarming, though she knew looks could be deceiving.

Rather than trust that he was safe enough to be handled by the novices, Rae made her way over at the tail end of Maevie's amused little commentary.

“What, do you have a cold? Did you have those symptoms before playing today?”

"Doubt he's got a cold." From the corner of her eyes, she caught the 'dying' kid thumbing the potion Maevie had offered him. She accioed it before he coud bring it to his lips, her gaze turning to the Hufflepuff. "We don't hand out potions every time someone says they're hurt, especially without a thorough check."

Hadn't she said something along those lines not five minutes earlier?

"You shouldn't be passing potions regardless," she reminded her. "Now." Rae moved a little closer to Jordan, gesturing an apprentice healer over while she was at it. "Check the vitals," she said to the Slytherin apprentice before looking to the three novices again.

"We've got cuts we can start with. Avery, I saw you'd brought some supplies. One of you go get them. There's plenty you can start doing without casting."

He'd need his injuries cleaned and likely something to cool him down a bit. Once he was stable, they could send him on to the hospital wing, too.

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OOC: Sorry for the delay. The update is here! You can have your students continue working on their patients. There will only be one closing post after this one so feel free to have them doing what they think is best and trying things but as before, please do not assume the result. This should hopefully be moving again in about 3 days~

”What do you think Alice? Concussion? Are his pupils dilating with light?”

Alice looked briefly at Tilly, who even in her herbology focused mind, was being more helpful than she was. She sat momentarily, feeling something. Perhaps panic from another patient, perhaps her cousin’s uneasiness with patient care. She used to think she was good at this.

Used to.

She nodded after a moment. She could check his pupils.

Mostly her mind felt like a void. Broken, maybe. Not quite like her sister’s – half-sister’s apparently – but still not at the level it should have been. Had her father been perhaps doing something the last few times she’d seen him that would cause her mind to break?

She wouldn’t put it past him. Alice took out her wand – something she should have had out from the beginning, and cast a quick lumos so the tip lit up like a flashlight. She moved to the boy’s head.

“I am checking you for concussion. Keep your eyes open,” she said, before shining the light in his face. She leaned in, watching his eyes. One pupil dilated, the other didn’t.

“Concussion,” she noted. “Cordis Mensura,” she cast, pointing her wand at his wrist to capture his heart rate. Definitely increased. “Thermoscopio,” she tried, but her wand didn’t change temperature. “Pressura Sanguinis,” she cast and checked his blood pressure.

What she came away with was: Definite concussion, increased heartrate, normal temperature, and normal blood pressure.

Even just getting to that point was hard for her. Alice felt almost confused herself, but she wasn’t if that was because of her close proximity to a concussed patient or because she no longer understood health care.

“Anyone checked the discoloured area yet?"

She blinked.

His bruising.

“Tessutovero Acutus,” Alice said, her wand focusing on the bruising on his ribs. She moved her wand around the area.

Tilly and Alice continued to work on Aiden, the list of injuries not uncommon with quidditch, and not all together life threatening. The gash on his head was cleared up and Alice worked to get his vitals. “Concussion,” Alice said, causing Tilly to sigh.

Focusing her attention on his upper half, she also looked at his eyes to check for pupil dilation, and sure enough one was fixed and dilated. While the students could do general triage, head injuries were well beyond their pay grade.

The best thing for him now was the hospital wing. He needed a pain potion and for the healer to look over his concussion and dislocated shoulder. There was only so much they could do in the field… literally.

”Ok, let's get his shoulder stabilized and get a heat compress on his ribs. We can’t do a pain potion until we get his head checked out, but for that we need to get him up to the hospital wing. We can do a spell to help with the pain until then. Lenire Majoris.” She said, pointing her wand at the shoulder area and moving it towards the ribs.

With the pain temporarily managed, Tilly went about wrapping Aiden’s injured arm down to his torso. Securing it in place so that on the trip to the wing, nothing jostled the arm further out of its socket. Then, going through the travel bag, Tilly found a cooling pack and a heat pack. Placing the cooling pack under the wrapping on his shoulder, to help the inflammation. And then the heat pack on his rib for the pain.

”Aiden, we’re going to move you back up to the wing now. I need you to stay still, stay laying down and try not to move around a lot. Alice will be right next to you the whole way, if you need anything, ask her ok?”

Taking out her wand, she pointed it at the boy and concentrated on the task at hand. This was one of those spells that she needed to pay close attention the entire way up to the wing. The last thing she needed was for him to fall and go sliding down the stairs. ”Mobilicorpus.”

With that, Tilly started to move slowly up towards the wing to get Aiden more help.

Too difficult...let her....HUH?!

Avery had never let anyone die before. It went against the fabric of his moral code and who he saw himself as a healer. It wasn't that Avery had any sentimental feeling in particular about Grace; really, he didn't know her and he was neither here nor there about it if she continued drawing breath outside of being his patient and it being on his conscience. But he had an obligation! A duty! A -

The boy grunted as Kathryn took hold of his sleeve and yanked him to his feet. "Good luck Grace!" Avery called over his shoulder as he was led away to the patient Maevie was already working on. When Kathryn pointed, Avery rolled his eyes, pulling away casually as though she hadn't just herded him to the patient she preferred with little argument.

"Hey Maevie," Avery said, side-eyeing Kathryn pointedly before stooping down beside his....friend? Were they friends? She'd tried to get him to steal a flying horse once. It sounded friendly so...yes, they were probably friends. "What have we got here?" The girl had already administered something to someone else, apparently but Ruth Elliot was on the case.

"We've got cuts we can start with. Avery, I saw you'd brought some supplies. One of you go get them. There's plenty you can start doing without casting."

"On it." He was, without complaint. While he didn't care for Ruth Elliot and knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Ruth Elliot didn't care for him, Avery took his duties seriously. She was in charge, whether he liked it or not, and he wanted to show he could perform well under pressure. His job was more important than proving any points he may or may not have had.

Rushing back to where he'd deposited the supplies, he grabbed a handful of bandages, some antiseptic and a few cooling compresses. He settled back between the girls again as Maevie handled the vitals - or he hoped that's what she was doing - as he got to work. "See if you can get these cold?" he asked Kathryn, passing the compresses to her while he distracted himself with working on Jordan's cuts.

Gentle dabs and swipes. A soft warning that it may sting a bit.

"Want to hear a story?" he asked Jordan, and without waiting for a response, dove right in. "One time, my little brother Leith got trampled by a few of our sheep," his voice was low and unusually calm and quiet as he administered the antiseptic. "He was little. No more than three and thought he was bigger than his trousers. Wanted to help the sheep dogs I guess." Distraction was good for pain, and Avery continued even as the boy winced against the sharpness of the sting. "Mum was beside herself. But Dad picked him right up, set him on his feet, even as he swayed and cried and his skin bruised." Avery remembered the day well, having felt sick to his stomach watching the whole thing. "Said pain teaches us how to be stronger, but more importantly," Avery paused a moment as he administered a thin layer of petroleum jelly and unwrapped a clean bandage to lay it carefully along one of the larger cuts, "How to be better prepared when danger comes back around."

The next cut. The boy began again. Clean, keep it moist, bandage. He handed a few supplies to Kathryn so she could start on another, if she wanted. "Leith was alright, nothing a few patch-ups couldn't fix. And the next day, he was back in the pens, helping the sheep dogs. Knew better than to run in front of the sheep from then on."

Maybe Jordan would know better than to run in front of a Quidditch game next time.

"Doubt he's got a cold."

Maevie twisted, looking up at Rae. “But how do you know?”, she asked with genuine confusion. “He said his throat’s dry. When I get a dry throat, I always know I’m coming down with something! And then I always have headaches too!” She paused, eyes rounding with a sudden thought. “Ohhh, maybe he has a cold and a concussion!”

Now, that sounded logical, didn’t it!

A second later the potion she had just handed out came zooming back over, right into Rae’s hand. "We don't hand out potions every time someone says they're hurt, especially without a thorough check," she said and Maevie grimaced apologetically. Hadn’t she checked on him though? He had said he had a headache, wasn’t that…enough?

"You shouldn't be passing potions regardless."

Rae’s voice cut through her thoughts. “Sorry, Rae,” Maevie mumbled, cheeks warming. She thought she had helped but somehow that hadn’t been right, a reoccurring phenomenon — she never seemed to know what to do or how to act. A familiar needling, nagging self-doubt began to prickle under her skin, but Maevie quickly pushed against it. When Rae called over another volunteer to check Jordan’s vitals, she did her best not to take it personally.

At least Avery was here to hang out with her now.

“Hi Avery, “ she beamed, looking around to the girl by his side. “Hi, Kathryn! No broken bones unfortunately but a bunch of cuts. And apparently no cold, although I am not entirely convinced yet.”

While Avery sprinted to grab his supplies, Maevie watched the Slytherin apprentice take the player’s vitals. It sort of looked easy enough but she refrained from asking to try for herself. Maybe another time, when she hadn’t already messed something up.

It was why she continued to watch even when Avery returned and then began working on Jordan’s cuts, telling a story of his little brother in the meanwhile. Kathryn was handed a bunch of compresses, told to get them cold while Maevie sat there in another puddle of confusion. “What do we need cool compresses for?”, she asked, looking from Jordan, to Rae, to Avery and Kathryn. “Does he have a fever?”

Alice sighed to herself and stood, watching Tilly be better with patient care than she was. What the hell had happened to her? The question was constantly in her head, wondering if this was part of not knowing who she truly was since everything with her father started and then finding out her mother was not Margery. She had this whole question mark where half of her stood, constantly, that made her wonder what she even was.

For all she knew, she could be part alien. It was a terrifying thought, but instead of fear she was left feeling almost despondent about the whole thing. And the worst part was that yes of course she had her cousin to tell these things to, but she had to keep them to herself when she was Everleigh. Who knew what kind of damage this could do to the girl who was already severely damaged?

All of these thoughts happened by the time that Tilly had Aiden floating above the ground on the way to the hospital wing. And now she was doing what? She’d always been the one who had better bedside manner. She’d been able to read what people needed and wanted before they even spoke up.

Aiden seemed fine. Didn’t seem to need anything. Still, Alice kept her hand lightly on the edge of the stretcher as it floated, walking steadily with him. The boy had his eyes closed. “Just stay awake, I know your head hurts,” she said, with an emotionless inflection to her voice. She’d picked up on that pain, which made her own head hurt.

She didn’t want to be there. She knew it, and everyone with ears and eyes could see it. She used to live in the wing.