Thank you for the reviews/favs/alerts.
And apologies if I made character OOC.
On the plus side, at least the chapter's long no?
"E… Emily?" Sharon asked, looking in horror at the now still doll lying on her pillow. She'd been given Emily by Break as a goodbye present, saying that now there'd always be a part of him with her. Sharon had smiled, calling him a stupid man for being all mushy, eventhough she was the one crying and holding onto the doll like a lifeline.
Tears were brought to eyes once more as thoughts of Break came to her. She knew he and the doll were connected somehow, so when the blue overstuffed doll woke her by screaming and writhing, Sharon immediately panicked, fearing Break was hurt, or worse since the doll was now limp and seemingly lifeless.
Liam sat silently; hunched over in his seat, head in his hands. The scene just wouldn't stop playing in his head. Break bloody and fading in his arms, even his own master Lord Rufus had been shocked.
Liam sighed, turning to the all too pale figure on the bed next to his chair. The person was naked from the waist up, the majority of his torso clothed in bloodied bandages, the right arm was also heavily bandaged, lying limply on the blanket drawn up to the person's waist. Liam's eyes travelled not for the first time, and certainly not the last, up to the person's head, where yet more blood soaked bandages were found to cover the top half of the face. If it weren't for the messy white hair, Liam would hardly recognise that Break was the one lying there motionless.
Paranoid fear taking over once more, Liam reached out, seizing his friend's right hand, carefully moving so he could inconspicuously check the man's pulse: weak and irregular, but definitely there. Even if he and Break were the only ones in the room, Liam felt guilty everytime he reached out to the other man's hand. Break never did like people worrying about him.
"Ah!" Liam started as a hand placed itself on his shoulder. Turning to look behind him, Liam found the smiling face of Madam Pomfrey the school's nurse.
"You need some rest Mister Lunettes. Sitting there fretting won't help anyone." She said softly, her smile small and motherly.
Like Lady Shelly's… Liam shook his head, "I can't, at least not until he wakes."
Madam Pomfrey sighed at his stubbornness. "Alright, but if you wouldn't mind standing back a moment so I can change the bandages." Liam nodded, getting up to lean on the wall a few feet away.
Watching carefully as the woman severed the bandages on Break's chest, Liam's eyes widened. The wound had originally been over ten inches long, not to mention almost deep enough to go straight through Break. Now it was nearly half the size, and presumably half as deep too. Clearly the matron was shocked too as she stared at his friend's chest.
"I… impossible… it hasn't even been a day, how has it healed?" Madam Pomfrey breathed. But that wasn't what had caught Liam's attention. No, it was the once black markings of an illegal contractor that had captured his gaze. No longer was the incuse a cold black, it was still black in places, but around a third of the warped symbol was a deep red, the colour of blood. Liam stared in awed silence as slowly – so slowly Liam at first thought it a trick – a smaller segment of the clock became red, the black seeming to absorb the blood beside it.
"Wh-where's Duke Barma?" Liam asked, staring transfixed at the ugly mark.
"He went to speak with the Headmaster about moving Mister Break to St. Mungo's, though it doesn't seem all that necessary now…" Madam Pomfrey said absently, waving her wand over Break, casting spells Liam had no care for as he span on his heel, only running once he'd closed the Hospital Wing door.
Something was wrong. Incuses didn't change colour that, Liam was sure of. Break should have died, that was a fact too, and yet, it seemed the reason Break had cheated death was that the incuse was acting of its own accord and healing him by absorbing the blood. It just didn't make sense!
By now Liam had reached the gargoyle in front of the entrance to Professor Dumbledore's office. Giving it the password Liam hopped onto the revolving staircase, hating that it was taking so long.
"…Severe, he has to be moved." Liam stopped as he door as that woman's voice drifted through the door. What was she doing in there!
"We can't, his injuries would kill him if we moved him." Barma lied. Whilst he was sure moving him wouldn't do a great deal of good, he was also certain that someone would recognise him if that twit Dumbledore knew him. And with the reputation Break had created fifty years ago, Barma was certain the idiot Hatter would be killed on sight.
It was as Umbridge opened her mouth for another retort, that Liam opened the door after a quick knock. "I apologize for the intrusion, but your presence is required Lord Barma." Liam said before anyone could question him.
"What do you mean Liam?" Barma asked, knowing his servant was smart enough not to interrupt unless it was a life or death matter.
"It's Break sir. Something's wrong with the incuse." When Break had first been treated, they'd passed the incuse off as a tattoo, with some magic in it – there was little else that could be said for a warped clock that had changed shape to look like it was dripping down the albino's skin.
Barma raised an eyebrow. With Umbridge here they could only exchange so much information.
"Such as what Mister Lunettes?" Umbridge said, looking very curiously at Liam.
Liam gave her a flat look as he answered, "Changing again, in colour this time." Though that meant little to anyone else, Barma's eyes shot open wide. That should be a complete impossibility.
"Show me." Barma said, leading the way out of Dumbledore's office, noting to his annoyance that both Dumbledore and Umbridge were following.
Once there Liam opened the Hospital Wing door, eyes widening as, now uncovered, the blood seemed to writhe up from Break's body, contorting slightly as it poured into the incuse.
"H-his eyes are the same… I've never seen this kind of magic before…" Madam Pomfrey said, shocking everyone as she was sat on the floor next to the door, a slash in her sleeve, the small amount of blood suggesting she had healed whatever cut she had received.
"Poppy, are you alright?" Dumbledore asked, holding a hand out for the matron as Liam and Barma made their way to their fellow contractor.
"How long has the blood been doing this?" Barma questioned over his shoulder.
"A few moments after Mister Lunettes went to fetch you, it wasn't this violent until I took the bandage from his eyes, which was a couple of minutes ago." Madam Pomfrey managed, her voice quiet and worry filled.
"Liam." Following the silent command of his master, Liam moved closer to Break, absently summoning forward March Hare's power.
As Liam stopped before the bed and reached out a hand to brush Break's hair from his left eye, blood from the incuse shot out at Liam, piercing a hole in the man's forearm. Grimacing in pain, Liam continued his observations, the blood continuing to slash and jab at him.
Vaguely Liam noted the cries to stop from the wizards, but he paid them no heed, pausing only as his throat was thrust at when he tried to touch Break's seal. Backing away coughing blood as it began to block his air way, Liam snarled; his voice cracked by the hole in his throat, "Damnit Break, you're such an ass! I can't help if I can't see what's wrong!" Knowing the worlds had likely fallen on deaf ears, Liam lunged forward, slapping at the blood before nodding and going back to Barma, though not before hissing in pain and falling to his knees when the blood struck through his shoulder.
Barma turned to the matron, "Heal his wounds now. And do it quickly, I wish to know what Liam has learned." His voice was flat, and Poppy wasn't sure weather it was the uncaring master that scared her or the bored looking (though clearly in pain) servant, who was slowly dripping blood onto the floor.
"I demand an explanation!" Umbridge chirped annoyingly, causing Liam to sigh as Madam Pomfrey finished healing his wounds.
"Each member of Pandora has a Chain, like the two that appeared at the Quidditch match. Ours however, are tame and obey us completely." Barma said, "Mine is the Dodo."
"And mine is March Hare. Each Chain possesses an individual power, for example, my March Hare has the power to embody my will." Liam slowly explained, "That is to say, that if I were to will it, I would be incapable of dying, regardless of the damage received."
"Which is why with Hatter in this state, Liam is the only one we can risk to let near him. Now," Barma turned to look at his servant with an expectant expression.
"Break's eyes are still damaged, though seemingly healing. The arm is still broken near as I can tell and the chest wound is a third of its original size. My assumption is that the blood is being used as a medium to heal him."
"How is that possible? If he's using magic, won't he need to be conscious?" Barma questioned.
"Not always, magic can be cast regardless of what state the mind and body are in." Dumbledore answered, looking over at the man lying on the bed. "Though this magic feels darker than the barrier magic that was used at the Quidditch match…"
Barma closed his eyes a moment as he thought, before asking Liam, "What of the incuse?"
"Almost entirely red now, there's just the outer ring left."
"Then with any luck, Hatter should awaken tomorrow and fully healed most likely." Barma concluded, his mind reeling at the new information.
And yup, no diologue for Break, but at least I got to give March Hare a power, if a slightly obscure one...