A/N: Rated M just to be safe. I am looking for a beta for this story and my other stories. Interested? PM.
Disclaimer: None of the characters you recognize are mine, nor is 12 Grimmauld Place, 4 Privet Drive or Hogwarts.
Now: Read!
And for all crimes and humiliations, none is so vile as the rape of a child, for an act so cruel forces one's body to betray itself and one's magic to turn against one's body, mind and soul..
…
Minerva and Remus tried to make Harry memorize the address of 12 Grimmauld Place, but Harry couldn't do it. And so it came, that Remus went to get Albus – he was the Secret-Keeper, and therefore he could Apparate Harry to the house – and to alert Sirius to make a bedroom ready and to make sure the bedroom was empty except from Remus himself.
When Albus arrived at 4 Privet Drive, Harry's breathing became shallow and quickened. Therefore, Minerva held Harry and Albus held Minerva while Apparating. They arrived in a very modest bedroom, for there was only the necessary furniture – a bed, a desk, three chairs and a wardrobe.
"Couch," whispered Minerva (who was still holding Harry) to Albus. Albus seemed to understand what she meant, because with a flick of his wand, a comfortable couch stood in the room. "Send Remus in and alert Sirius and the kids to stay away," she continued.
Albus nodded and left.
XxXxX
When Minerva had ordered Harry to sit on the couch, she transfigured two of the chairs into comfortable armchairs and sat down across from him. When Remus walked in, she gestured to the other armchair and he sat down.
"Harry," Minerva began. "You are now in the house of your Godfather, Sirius. I am Professor McGonagall and I teach at your school, Hogwarts. Remus Lupin is a friend of yours and he is sitting next to me."
Remus understood what she was trying to do, and they talked in turn s for a few minutes – they described the bedroom to Harry, and told him that his friends – Fred, George, Ron, Hermione – were here, together with the Weasley parents and some Weasley siblings. They also explained to Harry that some acquaintances of his godfather were there, but that they meant him no harm.
Then Minerva stood up. "Harry, I will be leaving you for a few minutes. Remus will stay with you."
She nodded at Remus and left.
When she was outside of the room, Sirius immediately jumped from the chair he had positioned there and opened his mouth, but Minerva raised her hand and closed the door first. "Sirius. Gather the Weasleys and Hermione in the parlor and stay there yourself. Who else is present at the moment?"
Sirius had already started to walk away, but turned and answered the question. "Emmeline, Tonks and Elphias – of those I'm sure. Elphias is sleeping, he just returned from duty. I don't know if any others popped in."
"Where are Ms. Tonks and Ms. Vance?"
"In the dining room."
"Thank you, Sirius."
With that, both Sirius and Minerva walked away.
XxXxX
Minerva walked into the dining room to find Emmeline and Tonks there, discussing some new fashion trent. When she walked in, both women looked up.
"Wotcher, Professor!" That was Tonks, of course.
Minerva sat down at the table and asked if she could interrupt for a moment. At their nod, she Silenced the room.
"Harry Potter arrived here about an hour ago."
Emmeline and Tonks looked up – they hadn't expected this. "I thought he would be staying at his relatives until school term?"
Minerva responded gravely. "Yes, well – he has some problems with his health at the moment, and Remus and I need to discuss this at first with the Weasleys, Ms. Granger and Sirius. We cannot leave him unsupervised, though. Would one of you mind to stay with him for some time now? I think both of you would be a bit too much in the present situation.
"Of course," both women responded at the same time. Then Emmeline continued. "But what is the present situation?"
Minerva drew a deep breath. "Harry is in an almost catatonic state. Until yesterday, he would follow direct orders, but now he needs even help with that. We do not know what, exactly, is wrong with him. We do know what caused this, but that is, as for the moment, none of your concern."
Emmeline and Tonks both grew pale. "Merlin," Tonks breathed. "Is there anything we can do?"
"At this moment, the only thing you can do is staying with him and trying to gather his attention – Remus and I already described his room and the current occupants from this house to him, among other things. You could probably read to him. But do remember, that when addressing him, you should start a sentence with his name, and your voice should be calm and emotionless – otherwise he will panic."
Emmeline nodded. "I think I could better do it – at least, I believe you have Auror duty coming up?" She said this last part to Tonks.
"Yes, in half an hour – I'd better get ready. Professor, if there is anything I can do –"
" – Then I will let you know," Minerva finished.
Tonks stood up and left to one of the free-to-use bedrooms to change, and Minerva escorted Emmeline to Harry's room, while giving here some instructions and advice
There, she introduced Emmeline to Harry and gestured for Remus to follow her out.
XxXxX
When Remus and Minerva arrived in the parlor, they were immediately bombarded with questions. Minerva, however, raised her wand to put up a silencing ward around the room. The threat was evident: be quiet or you will also be silenced.
"Sit down, all of you," she started.
Once everybody was once again sitting, she continued. "Now Mr. Lupin and I will tell you what we want to tell you, and then you can ask questions. I want this quick, so any interrupter will be Silenced.
Then Remus spoke up. "Harry has arrived here little more than an hour ago." He immediately raised his hand, because he could see some drawing breath to speak. "You cannot see him at the present moment. Due to reasons I will not share with you, he is nearly catatonic. Until yesterday evening, he would respond to direct orders, but now he even needs help with that."
Minerva took over. "Emmeline Vance is now with him. He did not respond well to the presence of the Headmaster, whereas he seems to have little problem with Remus and his cousin. We do not know whether this is due to gender, but he has not seen Ms. Vance before and he responded well to her."
Remus spoke up. "We – that is, Minerva and I – will have everyone who tries to sneak into Harry's room facing consequences," his eyes wandered to the Twins. "We do not know whether Harry is up to that, and we cannot ask him, so do not try it."
Minerva nodded. "Do you really understand it? Do not try and visit Harry. I have given Emmeline instructions to use some very nasty curses on any intruder that is not or is not introduced by Remus or myself. Now, are there any questions?"
Everyone spoke at the same time. Remus raised his wand, and there was immediate silence. "Raise your hand, please." Everyone raised a hand. "Hermione?"
"Will he recover, and can we see him?"
Minerva answered. "I do not know the answer to any of your questions. We hope he will recover, and you can see him when you have Remus' and mine approval. That is not now. Molly?"
"Is there anything we can do to help?"
Remus answered. "You can, perhaps, look after Harry sometimes the way Emmeline is doing now." He looked at Minerva, who nodded. "But at this moment, that is not necessary, and when it is necessary, we will tell you and give you instructions." Now he looked at the rest of the group. "The rest of you cannot really do anything at the moment – I am sorry."
Ron spoke up without raising his hand, but Remus let him. "He is my friend – I want to see him!"
"And he is MY godson!"
Minerva raised her wand. "Will you shut up!" Everyone was shocked to hear her say these words, most of all Minerva herself. She quickly regained her composure. "We are doing the best we can to help Harry. If you have any idea how Harry can be helped, you may tell Remus or I, and we will consider it. But do not start to yell your selfish desires to see your friend, when there is a considerable possibility that it will only do him no good!"
Now most people looked guilty.
Remus spoke up softly. "Please leave now, except for you" – he nodded to Molly and Arthur – "and you, Sirius."
The students got up and left, Hermione last. When Hermione was about to walk through the door, Minerva called her back.
"Mrs. Granger? Please stay for a moment."
XxXxX
When everybody understood why Hermione was allowed to stay – basically, she was female, she knew Harry very well and she knew a lot about both Muggle and Magical things, so there was a good chance she might know something to help Harry – the conversation continued. After half an hour, Sirius understood why no one could enter Harry's room for the moment. Hermione had remained quiet for that part of the discussion, until now.
"Can I say something?"
"Of course, Mrs. Granger."
Hermione's face gave away that she was about to say something that made perfect sense, because she always wore this expression when she was about to do that. All of the present people noticed this, and even Sirius decided to listen without interrupting to her statement.
"I think that you should try and take Mr. Weasley to Harry. I think I know what has happened to Harry to force him in this condition, but you also know it, so that doesn't matter." She nodded at Remus and Minerva. "I know that Sirius is the more logical option, but it is possible that Harry's subconscious mind does register Sirius as 'dangerous' because at first, he thought that Sirius was dangerous. Mr. Weasley, however, has always been 'safe'. You said he did not respond well to Professor Dumbledore," she looked at Minerva when she said this. "But you don't know whether this is due to his gender. After all, he didn't seem to have problems with you, Remus, or with his cousin."
She received impressed looks by this, although Sirius was pouting. She closed her statement with "But then again, I am not sure, because I am not aware of the exact circumstances that forced Harry into this state. Would it be possible to enlighten me a little bit? There are a few details I'd like to know." She looked at Professor McGonagall, who nodded.
"Very well, Mrs. Granger. Please join me in the parlor again after lunch. You are excused now."
Hermione looked surprised that Minerva would answer some of her questions. "I will be there." With that, she stood up and left.
In the parlor, the discussion continued. Sirius understood, to common relief, that Hermione's statement had made sense. After some finalities, Remus and Minerva dismissed everyone except from Arthur. Molly went to make lunch a Sirius went to forbid Kreacher from stepping foot in Harry's room.
Minerva was the first to speak after the room had been Silenced again. "Thank you for your willingness to do this, Arthur."
"I'd do anything within my power to help Harry, you know that. He is like a son to Molly and me." His voice was filled with absolute sincerity.
Minerva nodded. "I am glad to hear that. I wanted to ask a favor from you concerning your visit to Harry."
"Sure, what is it?" Arthur replied.
"I must ask you not to speak of anything that you might notice about Harry to anyone other than Remus and myself, not even to your wife. Once she can see him, you can, of course, tell her, but for now, we would like to keep things quiet."
Arthur nodded. "That sounds reasonable. When can I see him?"
Now Remus stepped into the conversation. "This evening, I think. We already introduced Emmeline today, and don't forget that we've only fetched him this morning."
"Very well," Minerva answered. "Let's go to lunch now. It's nearly half past two."
XxXxX
Lunch was a quiet affair, because the general mood was depressed. Although it was late, no one was really hungry. Minerva and Emmeline ate upstairs – they took turns feeding Harry. The two of them exchanged concerned glances every other moment, because Harry was wholly dependent – he could not even decide for himself to swallow. Halfway through Harry's lunch – Emmeline and Minerva were already finished – Lupin walked in, telling Minerva that Hermione was waiting in the parlor – but that he had to tell Minerva "not to hurry, because she has a book with her." Lupin took over feeding Harry, but almost immediately, Harry's breathing quickened until he was hyperventilating.
"Back off, Lupin," Minerva told Remus in a very stern voice. Then she knelt down before Harry.
"Harry. Listen to me. No one is here to harm you. You are safe here. Harry. Listen to my voice. .."
After a few minutes, Harry's breathing evened. When he had calmed down, Minerva whispered to him. "Go to sleep, Harry."
Harry immediately fell asleep, and Minerva laid him down on the couch – while telling Harry exactly what she was doing. Then Emmeline took a blanket from the bed and laid it on top of Harry.
"Emmeline, can you please stay with Harry for a few more minutes while I have a word with Remus?"
Emmeline nodded and sad that she would be happy to stay the whole afternoon, for only had duty on 8 p.m. When she said this, Remus and Minerva left. Minerva gestured for Remus to enter the nearest bedroom and quickly shut the door. Remus looked extremely guilty.
"I have no time for this, for your ill-founded guilt, Remus. I think Harry is frightened by males when they come close, you didn't know that. I need to see Ms. Granger now – will you be alright to go back to Harry? I don't know whether Emmeline is planning on staying the whole afternoon, but if she is not, please let someone fetch me, or Emmeline if she is near, when he starts to wake up."
Remus nodded. "I'll see what I can do. I'll also perform some diagnostics." With that, he turned to the door of the bedroom. Minerva followed, but when Remus was about to open the door to Harry's bedroom, Minerva called him back.
"Remus. Don't blame yourself."
With that, she descended down the stairs to the parlor. Once she arrived there, Hermione was already waiting, fully engrossed in a book.
"Ms. Granger?" Hermione's head snapped up, and she looked up to see her Professor.
"Yes, Professor?"
"I understood you had some questions. I will answer them as I see fit, but I must ask you not to speak about this, or your theories, with anyone but Remus and myself."
Hermione thought of that for a moment. "That is reasonable, I guess."
"I thought so too. Now, what did you want to know?"
Hermione sat down a little more comfortable, indicating that this would not be a short conversation. She even pulled a Muggle journal from underneath her book, along with a Muggle pencil. She opened it and looked for a certain page. After studying it for a few seconds, she turned to Professor McGonagall.
"I will not ask you to confirm or deny my theory, but I think that Harry is raped – by his uncle, most likely, seeing as no one mentioned him – just his cousin and his Aunt. From Mr. Weasley, I gathered that his Aunt sought for help, thus I think they are divorced now. What I need to know is whether this incident – whether it was rape or something else – was repeated or did it happen only once? Was it something like rape or abuse or perhaps even grief, that influences the mind, or was it something like a car accident, which influences the body, that turned him into this state? Depending on these answers, I have some other questions."
Minerva nodded, proud that her student understood so thorough what she could not answer. "Very well, Ms. Granger. I can tell you that it, whatever it was, only happened once, and that it was something that, as you call it, 'influences the mind.'"
Hermione nodded. "I guessed so. Then, I wonder who found him after it happened, and what were the actions taken? And I wonder whether it happened at his home or somewhere else – I can understand it if you cannot answer this, but it can be important."
Minerva thought for a moment. "You do realize, of course, that this conversation probably violates Harry's privacy. But if it can help him.." Her voice trailed off. "It happened at home. His Aunt found him and called the police."
Hermione thought for a moment. "I guess I can work with that. Is it possible for me to write some things down – an essay of sorts – for you and Remus? I believe you are in charge of his treatment, so to speak?"
Minerva almost smiled at her perceptiveness. "That is true, Ms. Granger. And that is possible. Do you have any other questions?" Hermione shook her head. "All right. Then I suggest you go and find Mr. Black, and tell him to fetch you whenever there is a meeting concerning Harry. I think it would be valuable to have you present."
Hermione felt almost light-headed at the praise. "Thank you, Professor," she smiled. "Then I guess I will see more of you these days."
"I am sure." Minerva thought for a moment, and then made a decision. "Will I see you again here tomorrow after lunch?"
Hermione felt wonderful to have a change to help Harry. "Of course."
With that, she stood up and left.
XxXxX
Meanwhile
The four youngest Weasley siblings had gathered in what was once meant to be Harry's and Ron's bedroom. "It's not fair. I want to see him. Bloody Hell, he is my friend!"
Ginny nodded. "Yes, we can at least try and help him, can't we?"
The conversation continued for some time this way, while George was lurking near the door. The Extendable Ears couldn't go through the wards on Harry's door, but by having the end near the door, they could pick up some pieces of conversation anyway. "I don't believe it.." he muttered.
Fred, seeing his brother's distress, immediately asked: "What's wrong? George?"
"They're not even helping him! Do you know what McGonagall just said? I quote: "I don't have time for this!"
Fred went through the Extendable Ear, motioning for his siblings to be quiet. "Shh – we're missing conversation!"
At their next words, however, Fred's face grew angry. "Do you know what she's saying? Do you?"
Ginny quickly put a hand on George's shoulder in an attempt to calm him down.
"They said, quote, "Remus, don't blame yourself!" They are not helping Harry and try to make each other feel good about it!"
Ron had been unnaturally quit during the last part of the conversation. "Well, if they don't help him, we'll have to do it, hm? Let's sneak in tonight."
Ginny had some doubts, but was quickly persuaded by her brothers. They decided not to alert Hermione, because she would most likely have faith in the authorities. They could always alert her afterwards – perhaps she knew something they didn't, seeing as she had been asked to stay behind last time in the parlor, when the Weasley siblings had been sent out.
When they heard Tonks shouting for every Order member to present themselves immediately in the dining room, they decided that this was the best opportunity yet.
A/N This chapter is a bit of a filler, honestly. It's mostly conversation. My plan was to include the "break-in" into Harry's room, but I thought that would make the chapter a bit long, seeing as this one is about the lenght of the other chapter.
Next chapter will be up next weekend, or before that. It's already written, but I won't post chapter 3 before I've written chapter 4.
