Chapter Two

Thank you for all of the follows, favourites and reviews so far! This is my first Harry Potter story, so please be kind! I hope you enjoy Chapter Two. I will update when I can, but due to my studies, it may be sporadic.

'Weasley, Granger, please wait outside,' McGonagall said, as Poppy Pomfrey arrived with a breathless Ron through the floo. 'Tell the rest of the class that they are dismissed for today.'

Ron was about to protest, but Hermione pulled his sleeve. 'Come on,' she said. Her voice cracked. Ron leant against the wall outside. Hermione bit her lip.

'Scroungify,' Ron said, to Hermione's surprise. She had almost been too distracted by how ill Harry looked to notice.

'Thank you.'

In the classroom, McGonagall knelt by Harry's head. 'He didn't look well when he came in,' she told Poppy, anxiously. 'He just… dropped.'

'I need to get him to the hospital wing,' Poppy said, and Minerva nodded, feeling numb. 'Can you come with me? I'm run off my feet this week, and Harry's always had nightmares.'

'Absolutely.' McGonagall had always felt protective over all of her lions, some seemed to need her more. Her own stomach felt slightly sick as she looked down at Harry. 'He's lost weight.'

'He has. I think he's unintentionally been under a glamour charm and it's dropped.' Poppy pursed her lips. 'He's an adult now. Although it feels like nobody ever really let him be a child.'

Minerva felt tears sting her eyes, as Poppy apparated Potter onto a stretcher. The movement seemed to startle him, and he paled before their eyes. She noticed how his breathing seemed so fragile, his chest rising and falling irregularly.

By the time Poppy laid him on one of the beds in the hospital wing, he was almost as white as the sheets. She could see the dark circles under his eyes, as dark as bruises, now that the glamour charm had dropped. He murmured something at the movement, and turned his head away from the light, and from the nurse.

'It's alright, Harry,' she soothed. She took out her wand, and began to cast a diagnostic spell, but was stopped mid-chant by a sudden, painful scream from her patient. McGonagall was at his head in seconds.

'What's wrong, Harry?' she asked him, desperately. He was awake, now, his head lolling back. He gasped at her.

'Burning,' he managed. 'Stop. Spell.'

'I'm calling the headmaster.' McGonagall said, walking to the fireplace faster than Poppy had ever seen her move. 'And Lupin. If this is dark magic then we need his support.'

'Call Snape, too. Weasley said they've had potions today, you never know if he's been splashed by something.' Poppy flicked her wand, and the screens that had been neatly arranged by the entrance of her office moved themselves into perfect formation around Potter's bed. Again, he cried out as she moved her wand. She glanced down at it, and then suddenly, a thought came into her head. She shook it. It couldn't be. Could it? She laid her wand down on the cabinet, just in case.

'Come on, Harry,' Poppy said, trying to comfort him with a hand on his forehead. He was shivering, his skin cold and clammy. She turned for her wand, to spell him into a clean gown, but decided to wait until her colleagues arrived before trying that. He was too distressed for her to try and push and pull out of his robes and into a gown right then.

Lupin arrived first, concern and guilt etched across his face. He bent down next to Harry's head, stroking his hair. Harry's shivering worsened, and Remus pulled the blanket up and over him. He reached for his wand to cast a warming charm, before Poppy's voice called for him to stop.

'He's reacted very badly to magic, Remus. I want Severus' opinion, but I think his magical core is damaged.'

'He couldn't produce a patronus this morning. Thinking about it, his magic in my classes has been poor. I thought it was just readjusting being back in school,' Remus mused. Harry groaned, turning onto his side.

'Remus. Sick.' Harry managed to gasp, turning his head just in time. There was nothing except bile left in his stomach, which was churning. Remus very gently supported his head and held it over a sick bowl that Poppy quickly produced. Tears sprang to Harry's eyes as someone wiped his mouth and he lay back on the bed. He couldn't remember ever feeling so unwell before.

Footsteps were approaching. He recognised the voices. Snape and McGonagall. He felt the tears stinging. He didn't want to be seen like this.

'Potter?' Snape's voice, although it was concerned. 'Poppy. What's going on?'

Harry tried to stay awake, fighting the urge to just let go of everything and slip back into the warm, safe darkness. 'I'm worried it's his core,' he heard Madame Pomfrey say, 'Harry, Harry, darling. Stay with us.'

'Squeeze my hand, Harry,' Lupin said, putting his hand in his student's. 'Stay awake. Let me know if you're going to be sick again.'

The younger wizard nodded. His eyes were shut tightly.

'What does this mean then, Poppy?' McGonagall asked. She was battling the urge to hug onto Harry. Looking down at him, he was pale, thin and completely vulnerable. What would James and Lily have thought if they could see their son now?

'I'm going to have to scan him to see if I'm right. If I am, we'll have to treat him with muggle methods. Complete rest, and isolating from magic for at least a month. When I trained at St. Mungo's, I helped treat a very serious case. It's not easy to resolve, but it is doable,' Poppy sighed, pushing her hair back from her face. She wasn't easily ruffled, and showing it annoyed her. 'There's the chance that any dark magic that caused this could still have lingered. I'll perform the scan, but I want you to go behind the screen, in case.'

'I'm staying with him,' Lupin insisted. Harry was still gripping Remus' hand. 'If it's going to hurt him someone needs to be here with him.'

Poppy was too frazzled to argue. She simply nodded. 'Harry? I'm going to have to perform a diagnostic test. It could be painful. Remus is going to stay by your side during it. Do you understand?'

Harry nodded. He was still shivering, and Remus pulled another blanket over him with his free hand. Seconds later, he felt a stabbing fire start to seep through his veins, and screamed, feeling his limbs kicking out uncontrollably. Remus was holding him, stopping him falling from the bed to the floor. 'Help!' he screamed, ripping at Lupin with his nails. 'Stop it!'

Her hand over her mouth, barely able to look, Poppy continued with her diagnostic spell, knowing it had to be done. Remus was focused, his head almost touching Harry's as he tried to comfort James' son. Minerva was crying, leaning on Severus. It was unbearable.

It took three minutes for the scan. Harry was almost delirious by the time it was done, trembling from head to foot. Remus sat next to him, his hand on Harry's forehead. Poppy signalled for Severus to follow her into her office to read through the results, while McGonagall went through to Harry's cubicle, pulling up a chair. 'I'm sorry,' Harry croaked, turning his head to look at her.

'Whatever for?' she asked, genuinely confused. She wasn't sure if he was fully aware of his surroundings. He didn't look it, that was for sure.

'Interrupting transfiguration class,' Harry's teeth were chattering. 'I'm sorry.'

She laid a warm hand on his shoulder and gave it a very gentle squeeze. 'Don't be silly, Harry. I should be the sorry one. I should have noticed how unwell you were feeling far earlier.'

He fell asleep, then, feeling exhausted from the events of the day alone, illness aside. It wasn't a particularly peaceful sleep, either. Minerva watched, unable to take her eyes away. He muttered in his sleep, rolling over and then yelping, clearly in pain. Eventually, he half-settled on his back, wheezing slightly. He certainly didn't look restful.

In Pomfrey's office, the mediwitch was struggling to keep everything together. 'I was right,' she said, quietly. 'Dark Magic. Voldemort's last curse on Harry. It's curable. We've got it early. Severus. It's curable.'

Severus got the feeling that she was repeating herself for her own benefit, rather than his. He nodded, rather awkwardly, as she patted his shoulder.

'You'll require my support?'

Poppy sat on her desk chair, hard. 'I'll need more than yours. Muggle medicine is very different. We can't use potions, or any of the usual spells or charms. I'm trained in muggle medicine but it's difficult,' she blew out a breath, 'Remus seems to be good with Harry. But this is a long process. We're looking at weeks, potentially months. And then he'll have to build up his magic slowly.'

'Can we transfer him to St. Mungo's?' Severus asked. He was leaning rather awkwardly back against one of the filing cabinets.

Poppy's eyes flashed. 'Absolutely not, Severus. Hogwarts is the closest thing that Harry's got to a home. Yes- I know he's going with the Weasley's for the holidays- but this is different. I've been worried enough about his mental health after the war, and God forbid if I'm going to let someone else take control of his physical health.' She took another breath in, forcing herself to take control. 'I'm sure Remus will help me. I'll ask Minerva as well, she and I have already had a few chats about how the eighth years are doing this year, and she's very invested in her Lions. If you don't want to get involved, then that's fine.'

Severus rolled his eyes. 'Of course, I'll help. But I can't pretend to be skilled in this field. I don't want to injure Potter any further.' Despite everything, he still found himself pronouncing the name with a little venom.

Nodding, Poppy got to her feet. 'I'm going to move him to the side room next to my office. Are you coming?'