- matt chia's -
poetry, prose + commentary
poetry, prose + commentary
Sunday, September 12, 2004
Chapter XVI
“I am so glad the holidays are here,� Cheryl said, as she closed her eyes for a moment to blot out the pile of parchment in front of her.
“Yeah, but we have like, four tests today,� Muthu said wearily.
“Well, at least we can finally get to see Rachel,� Sunny said. After a few days in the school’s hospital wing, it appeared that whatever happened to Rachel could not be cured by Madam Lee, and she had to be moved to St. Mango’s, the wizard hospital.
“And someone still hasn’t admitted it yet,� Yihui snarled, as Desmond walked past. He turned round and looked at Yihui dolefully before slouching off.
They kept quiet. But at the sight of Desmond, Cheryl was sharply reminded – once again – that she didn’t have a broomstick.
“Well, c’mon, we’re late, and Professor June does not accept latecomers,� Matt said impatiently. He was checking his watch every few seconds.
“What’s the point in me hurrying, anyway,� Yi Fan drawled. “Like I’ll pass any of the tests today.�
They all stared at him exasperatedly, except for Minyu, who said, “Well, if you just tried, you’ll make it.�
“Maybe...�
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“That was horrible,� Barnabas wailed as they stepped out of their Charms classroom, where they had just finished their second test of the day.
“Really? I thought it was quite easy...� Yi Fan said thoughtfully.
They all stared at him incredulously.
“You mean you actually knew all that stuff on Summoning and Banishing Charms?� Eunice said, surprised.
Yi Fan nodded. They were all impressed.
“Oh, look what we have here,� a sickly-sweet voice said to their left.
Coming down the corridor was a whole group of Slithering fifth-years, smirking, sneering and smiling stupidly.
“We must all be so worried about that Charms test we just had, eh?� Yee Tien continued, still in that sickly tone.
“You don’t have enough brains to fill a teaspoon, you know,� another voice said. This time it was a whole group of Huffelpuffs coming down the corridor, and at their head was Yvonne.
The Griffindoors snorted. Meanwhile, Yee Tien was looking round. “Sorry, did someone say something? I didn’t see her...�
Yvonne’s face reddened.
“We’re so sorry that you’re so short,� Zhu’en said, his voice full of mock pity.
“Like you’re very tall,� Barnabas said caustically, rolling his eyes.
“Ooh, I forgot, I can take points from Houses,� Yee Tien mentioned casually. “So, erm, I think 25 points from Griffindoor, and 25 from Huffelpuff too – well, that’ll do. Goodbye, children.�
With that she turned and walked off arrogantly. Her bodyguards (i.e. the other Slitherings) slouched off after her.
“You know, I wish we could curse her,� Muthu said ruefully.
“Erm, guys?� Matt said.
They looked at him and raised their eyebrows.
“We’re about 10 minutes late for our Transfiguration test,� he said slowly.
The corridor was deserted in five seconds.
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“Well, you can’t say it wasn’t an interesting last day at school,� Muthu said dully, as their carriage flew high over the brightly-lit landscape of Singapore at night. They were not staying in school for the March holidays, so it had been a rush to pack their luggage immediately after their fourth test, Arithmancy, had ended. It had been an extremely tiring day, and it was showing. Yi Fan and Hu Ping were already nodding off.
They were quiet for a moment, as black clouds sailed past. Sunny peered out of the window. They were reaching the CBD – their landing point. Sunny’s thoughts strayed to her warm bed at home, she imagined snuggling under the covers as the air-conditioner hummed above her...
She was sharply brought back to reality by a jolt. She remembered. They were going to visit Rachel.
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Tan Tock Seng Hospital might have had every feature of a perfectly normal Muggle hospital – it might be perfectly air-conditioned at the right temperature, with its 16 lifts, its cafeterias serving normal Singaporean fare, its nurses and doctors going round the corridors briskly. However, its high, vaulted ceilings covered one little secret.
Well, maybe not so little.
Sunny, Yihui, Matt and Hu Ping walked into TTSH rather nervously. They had never been here before, but had been informed of the necessary procedure to proceed. They followed the stream of visitors to the lift lobby. At the end of the lobby, beyond the lifts, there was a large panel of glass.
The old man sitting at one of the benches near the lift lobby saw four well-dressed youngsters entering the hospital by themselves, without any adults. Quite surprising. He assumed they must be visiting their injured friend, or relative – though they didn’t look alike in the least. His eyes – sometimes cloudy with age but still sharp – followed them as they made their way to the lifts, right to the end of the lobby, to the large glass panel – and just vanished. He stared, and shook his head. Youngsters nowadays could do the most extraordinary things. Or perhaps it was just his eyes playing tricks on him.
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As soon as they had passed through the glass, which had felt rather pleasantly cool, the four Griffindoors found themselves in a wholly different place. There were still high, vaulted ceilings, but this time, they were paneled in a dark, rich wood, which glowed slightly in the light of over a thousand candles floating in mid-air, each with its own black candle-holder. There were strange signs – Runes – engraved on the ceilings, and they were rotating at regular intervals, the sleek black strokes glimmering in the yellow candlelight. The floor too was paneled in rich teak, but in stark contrast to the apparent elegance of St. Mango’s...
“Excuse me, can I get these wings removed please?� a stocky wizard in breeches was asking glumly. There were what appeared to be dragon wings growing out from his sides. Smoke was coming out of his nostrils.
The four of them looked round. Hu Ping was slightly amused, Matt was looking around in wonder, Yihui looked more than a bit repulsed, and Sunny was simply surprised.
To their left was a witch dressed in Muggle clothing, including a hat – but poking through the top of the hat was a bunch of daffodils. To their right was an old, wizened wizard who appeared to be having a very bad cold. He kept on sneezing – but to the teenagers’ horror, it was not mucus that was coming out of his nostrils – it was small slugs that were covered in bright green slime. Sunny retched.
“Erm, let’s go to the information counter, shall we?� Matt said slowly, still looking around at all these people with their ailments.
“How do these people even get here without being seen?� Hu Ping asked.
“Well, I guess you can Apparate,� Yihui replied, as a wizard who had bright pink smoke billowing out of his ears, nostrils and mouth appeared suddenly in front of them, “or they can use Floo powder,� she continued, as a witch who was totally covered in blisters appeared in a fireplace with a puff of green smoke.
“How may I help you?� a kind voice asked – it was the person on shift at the Information Counter. Behind him was a large sign saying, “Welcome to St. Mango’s Hospital for Magical Ailments� painted in bright orange. Minyu would have loved it.
“Erm... we’re visiting Rachel Kwan, she was warded a few days back,� Sunny said.
The man flipped through an extremely thick file, before he stopped at one page and scrutinized it. “Ah, Miss Petrified, I see. Well then, second floor, third door on your right,� he said with a smile.
“Thanks,� Hu Ping said, and they made their way up a flight of stairs to the second floor. There were still candles, but less of them, illuminating the corridor only dimly.
“One... two... three,� Matt counted, and they pushed open the door.
They stared.
“Well, at least it’s much more brightly lit,� was all Matt could manage after a few seconds.
The room was painted pink. Bright pink. Hot pink.
“It’s really too bad Rachel isn’t awake to enjoy it,� Sunny said sadly.
“Well, even she would be blinded,� Hu Ping said in distaste.
They made their way to the bed on the right side of the room. She was lying there, still as death, still stiff. Her eyes were still staring, and her mouth was still slightly open.
“Oh Rachel,� Yihui said sadly, as she held on to Rachel’s hand.
“We miss you,� Sunny said quietly.
After a while they realised Rachel couldn’t hear them. It was really quite stupid.
“Oh well, let’s go then,� Matt said impatiently.
They stepped out into the corridor, blinking. It took a while to adjust to the dimness.
“Hey... hey, you guys, hold up,� Hu Ping said from behind.
“What?� the other three chorused.
A peculiar expression had settled on Hu Ping’s face. “Look at this,� he said, pointing to a sign outside the door after Rachel’s.
It read: “Patient: Sivanesan s/o Makesan.�
They looked at each other, uncertainly.
Yihui took the initiative and pushed the door open a crack. They spilled into the room.
Professor Siva was sitting up, back ramrod straight, in his bed. He was staring directly ahead of him, into empty space. His hair was tousled, and he looked much older.
“Professor... Professor?� Sunny said timidly.
He did not answer.
“Well, he finally gets some visitors, I see,� someone said from behind, making them jump. It was a plump, kindly Healer. “The poor dear, he’s gone mad. Just mutters all day, or sits up like that.�
“What... why is he like this?� Matt asked slowly.
“We don’t know either, but we expect that its due to the fact that he was found in the Sahara Desert just yesterday. Totally dehydrated, nearly dead,� she said softly, shaking her head. “The nomads who found him sent him back here, after looking at his ID. Thank goodness they were good, kind wizards, otherwise who knows what might have happened to him.�
They were stunned.
“How on earth did he end up in the Sahara Desert?� Yihui asked as they walked out of Tan Tock Seng and into one of the taxis lined up. The girls and Hu Ping, who lived in Pasir Ris, would be dropping Matt off at his home in Marine Parade.
“Well, I don’t know about that, but whatever it is, I’m sure it has to do with Kiw,� Matt said darkly.
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The two of them suddenly found themselves on top of a sand dune, in searing heat.
“Where...?" Miss Ee asked, but the full question never came out, as she gasped, then uttered a scream.
Kiw felt groggy. He didn’t remember how he got here, but he had a vague feeling he had gotten here against his will. But he had to get back.
“Why don’t we just – Apparate,� he said, blinking and shaking his head in an attempt to clear the ringing in his ears.
“Okay,� Miss Ee replied, as she too got to her feet. “One, two, three..."
They closed their eyes and concentrated on getting out of this godforsaken place and back to Singapore. However, both of them could still hear the ringing, though it was fading.
Suddenly both of them opened their eyes. Something was amiss.
Kiw swallowed. He looked down. His shoe was there, but his left leg was missing, as was his right arm. He tried turning to his right – and, horror of horrors – found he could not do so, because his neck was missing.
Miss Ee attempted to scream, but she couldn’t talk as her voice box was somewhere else. She saw the Sahara Desert out of her right eye, but with her left eye – she gulped – she saw the turrets and bright lights of Hogwarts castle in Singapore.
Somehow, halfway between the Sahara and Singapore, something had gone wrong. Half of their bodies had gone to Singapore – the other half had remained, firmly, in some remote corner of Africa.
They had gone and splinched themselves.
Comments:
heyy~ its nice..wahaha..gettin more creative le..wahahah..yea man..bud too bad dun hav mi..whahah..bahx...bud nvm... it stil rocks~
yea man..jia you matt~
chERyL
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yea man..jia you matt~
chERyL
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