Chapter 96: Way Too Much Free Time
When Madam Pomfrey saw him, her brows were still drawn tight, but she did not stop him this time. "Five minutes."
"Thank you, Madam," Regulus replied politely.
She waved him off and returned to her work.
Hermes looked much the same as he had two days ago.
His complexion remained ashen. The dark blotches along his neck and collarbone had not faded, and the web-like veins continued their slow crawl across his arms.
But his breathing had steadied. His chest rose and fell in a more regular rhythm, and his eyes no longer twitched beneath their lids. He seemed… calmer.
Regulus stood by the bed without leaning in.
He let his magic extend outward, brushing against the currents within Hermes's body. The curse was still active, still gnawing at him, but the rate of corrosion had slowed.
A gentler magic flowed across the surface of his skin. Madam Pomfrey's healing spells.