Chapter 7

Severus slowly drifted back to consciousness. He felt comfortable and there was a comfortable warmth tucked against his neck. He would have gone back to sleep if it wasn't for someone bathing his forehead gently. The warmth against his neck was tense and shaking.

Groaning, Severus slowly opened his eyes. Luckily the room he was in, only slightly familiar to his exhausted mind, was dim enough to not hurt his eyes.

"Welcome back to the land of the living, Severus," a voice said gently. He recognized it as Madame Pomfrey.

He ignored her for a moment and looked to his left. The warmth against his neck turned out to be Riju, curled up against him. Onyx eyes connected to nervous green. He was apparently very uncomfortable by Pomfrey's presence, hence his tense shaking form.

He let a long breath out through his nose causing Riju's ears to twitch at the sudden warm gust of air. He returned his attention to Poppy, leaning his head more toward the cat's body. His cheek lay gently against the cat's trembling side. He slowly raised a hand and pet Riju gently, hoping to reassure him.

"What happened?" he asked, voice cracking from disuse.

"That's what I'd like to know," she frowned, hands resting on her hips. "I was suddenly summon here," she paused slightly seeing his questioning expression. "Headquarters," she supplied. "I was suddenly summon here only to find you moments from death. Albus had to put you in a deep stasis to even get you here safely."

She sent Riju a questioning look, "Apparently this little guy refused to be left behind. He's been stuck to you ever since you were brought here."

"Has anyone been giving him his potions?" he asked, worried any progress made could have come undone from the neglect of his potions.

"Albus has been visiting regularly to take care of his needs," she reassured. "You on the other hand had symptoms of prolonged exposure to the crutiatus curse, a severed leg causing severe blood loss, and a nearly completely drained magical core," she listed, looking at him crossly. "You are lucky to be alive."

Before Severus could reply, the door opened to reveal a humming Dumbledore. He felt Riju press further into his neck, clearly unnerved by the number of people in the room. He hadn't seemed to warm up to Dumbledore despite his care while Severus was incapacitated.

Severus continued to stroke the nervous cat's side. He held back a smile when he felt the tense body relax marginally at the touch.

"Severus!" he beamed. "How nice to see you awake, my friend! We were all very worried about you," he gave the cat a warm look, "none more than Riju though."

"The Dark Lord has learned of my spying," he informed the headmaster promptly.

"What gave you away?" he asked, a worried frown on his aged face.

"Some idiot Order members decided it was a good idea to discuss my role in public," he scowled darkly. "Pettigrew was there to witness the conversation and rushed back to inform his master."

"Oh dear," Dumbledore frowned unhappily. "I'm so sorry, Severus. Did he mention who it was?"

Severus shook his head minutely.

"Well it looks like I'll need to improve the secrecy charm and have everyone retake it. Their indiscretion nearly cost us all dearly," he said seriously. There was no twinkle in his eyes.

"Unfortunately, until Harry is found I will not be able to update the vow of secrecy," he said regretfully.

"The brat still hasn't been found?" Severus scowled impatiently. Of course the boy would indirectly be the cause of his exposure, nearly causing his death.

"No and others have begun losing hope," he responded sadly. "I do hope he is well."

"What is the date?" Severus asked. Last he knew it had been early August.

"August 19th," Poppy put in impatiently. "You've been unconscious for 9 days. Your wounds were healed within the first few days. You fell into a deep healing sleep while your magical core regenerated."

"When can I return home?" he asked shortly, still petting Riju. He wanted the comfort of his own home and to get Riju back into a familiar environment.

"I swear, Severus," she huffed. "You are the worst patient I've ever had to deal with."

Severus merely stared at her. She let out an exasperated sigh and threw up her arms. He felt Riju tense sharply and continued to pet him until he calmed.

"Now that's you've woken up from your healing sleep, you should be fine to leave after dinner," she said, irritated.

"I will take my dinner in here," he stated. "Riju will not eat in front of others and he cannot afford to skip any meals." Albus had done his job well while he slept. He had begun to fill out, still underweight but looking slightly better than he had before.

"That will be fine," Albus interjected before Poppy could reject the idea. He transfigured a muggle crutch for Severus to use. He had the gall to make it pink. With a deadly glare, Severus changed it to black. Dumbledore merely chuckled and left the room humming.

Once him and his feline companion were fed and potioned, they were given the all clear to head home. He held his head high and ignored those in attendance's stares and gasps as he limped to the fireplace using his new crutch. Holding Riju in his cloak, they flooed back to Spinner's End.

He left Riju on the couch and slowly limped toward his lab to brew a few potions. He noticed he was not being shadowed like usual and looked back to see Riju had left the couch and sat at the spot Severus had laid dying. He simply sat there, staring at the ground where he had lost consciousness.

Despite the situation, Severus was encouraged to see the cat's reaction to seeing him injured and his insistent closeness while he recovered. He saw it as a good sign that the cat was beginning to see him as a provider and friend instead of an enemy. He left the cat there to do whatever it wanted.