Chapter 220 - Awakening (1/2)
Rowan lets out a groan as she feels as though every single muscle in her body was sore. Her eyes felt incredibly heavy as she struggled to crack them open only to wince at the bright morning light. Slowly blinking she tries to swallow to only find that her mouth is bone dry. It was simply exhausting to turn her head and reach over for the cup of water next to her bed.
”Here,” a voice said, causing Rowan to flinch in pain, before turning to study the pale and rather angry face of her twin brother, Severus. Severus gently held the cup in hand and pushed the straw into her lips for her to sip from. She thirstily drank half of the cup, before pulling away and leaning her aching head back against the pillows.
”Am I at St. Mungo's?” Rowan croaked as Severus clutched the cup in his hand so hard that she was afraid that it would crack in his hand.
”You were in the intensive ward up until yesterday, but they moved you early this morning to this ward,” Severus said as clutched the water cup again rather too tightly.
”What day is it?”
”Christmas was yesterday.”
”Oh,” Rowan quietly said. ”Sorry to ruin your Christmas, it wasn't my intention too.”
”I know that,” Severus softly said as he reached over to squeeze her hand as she squeezed his back.
”Have you been here all night?' Rowan asked.
”Grandfather, Grandmother, and Aunt Georgine have been taken turns staying with you,” Severus confessed. ”They wouldn't let me see you until this morning. They said, that you were in rough shape before and that I shouldn't see you like that as I'd get nightmares.”
Severus makes a bitter face and harshly whispers, ”As if I could ever sleep well after knowing that.”
”So, what'd the healers say?” Rowan finally asked.
”They said, you'd been either cursed or been given a potion that was causing your magic to spiral out of control,” Severus tightly said. ”The healers tried everything as your body was threatening to break apart when suddenly your magic all on its own began to somehow be reabsorbed until it went back under control. The healers said, it must have been a miracle as they all thought you were going to die or end up as a squib.”
”Well, I'm happy to be a disappointment for once,” Rowan grumbled.
Seeing Rowan starting to lightly tease back, Severus says, ”I think you took it too far in trying to get out of attending our relatives' festivities. What did the Vernianc's ever do to you?”
Rowan lets out a low chuckle to only wince in pain as her stomach muscles protested the action. Severus must have noticed as he agitatedly rose to stand up, but Rowan hastily said, ”I'm just very sore right now and it hurts to laugh.”
Severus slowly eyes her until he's certain she's telling the truth. Sitting back down, Rowan finally asks him, ”So what were they like, the Vernianc's?