Disclaimer: Hey, as you all know I don't own the sandbox I'm just playing in it. Read on and enjoy.

Chapter 3

I kind of wanted to just stay there. Trying to find some kind of emotional balance or plan about what I was going to do now, but now we we're out the questions were starting to come. "What?" he started, sucking in more breath than any person could need.

"Doesn't matter. It's gone," I tried to rush over any questions he was going to ask. Leaning my weight against a dingy brick wall. Dodging his inquires was an effort in futility, but I had to try something. He didn't look happy about that. His whole aura vibrating and lit up like a Christmas parade.

"I've never seen anything like that in over a century of life, and I would beg to differ, Miss Potter," he argued just short of shouting. I started trying to pull away from him but he just wasn't having it.

"You don't..." I stopped and sighed trying to figure out the words for this, "It doesn't... just let it go, and be happy that you can. It's not your problem."

"Annessia!" he roared finally loosing his temper. I found myself slammed against the wall, my back thwacking across the bricks painfully, and attempting to pry my hand out of his grip. "This isn't a joke, this is not funny. I need to know what you do, otherwise I will never be able to stop it," he choked out in a panicked fury. 'Damn it. It's fine. I'll go back a kill it later. All I need is for him to let go.'

I'm thinking that this was the moment that good ol' Professor Dumbledore lost what fragile grip he has on his senses, because that when he spun and yanked reality out from under me. Compressed through a rubber straw, until his hand was the only thing holding me up.

"The fuck," I muttered embarrassed as my legs gave out. Arm extended out to the sky where my hand was still clamped in my now-kidnapper's. An awful stitch was making itself known quiet insistently just under my ribs on the right side, and I blinked in disorientation. The concrete pavers of a courtyard not-Hogwarts pressed into my legs, and it was with mild panic that I realised that my hand still wasn't going anywhere. "Professor?" asked somewhat hopeful. He gave no response. 'Shit. It's in his blood stream.'

"Love?!" A voice called from the castle, and my gaze shot to an elderly man on the steps. His hair was snow white and long around his face, curtaining mismatched blue eyes.

"I'm assumed you're a friendly?" I asked briskly, figuring any place that he'd run to was safe.

"May I also assume the same of you?" he asked silkily. I nodded sharply, and he stepped briskly for a man of his age too meet us.

"Can you help me get him inside, preferably a bathroom," I said struggling to my feet wobbling like a newborn fawn. I held up my hand still connected to the professor's, and shook half-heartedly.

"How bad?" the man asked letting his eyes slip shut momentarily. I had to remind myself to answer him, I was so exhausted and it was just so tempting to let my eyes fall closed for a moment too. I didn't because I worried I'd pass out on the spot.

"Bad. We're going to need blood replenishing potions. Lot's of them, and something to clean the cuts," I pushed out as efficiently as possible, "The black sandy stuff is toxic, it has to come off." With a sharp inhale the man let out a string of something in a language that I didn't understand. It was a low soothing hum, complete with hair petting and soothing circles rubbed into the frozen man's back.

"Come darling. You're home now, you came back exactly like I asked you to. Let's go inside and clean you up Al," he whispered finally switching to english. The whimper that left Dumbledore's echoed from deep in his throat was heartbreaking. I flinched and looked down at the ground in shame. 'Damn it, I shouldn't have waited to see who was following me. I should have just left.'

"No," he whined sharply, no less unsettling than the last sign of life.

"Shh liebling, it's okay. I'm here," the stranger cooed at him, and stepping forwards and taking his face in his hand. The fingers that I was beginning to fear would never let go of my hand suddenly released it, and twined immediately with the one on his face and holding on for dear life.

"Gel..." he whispered, "Gel you have to help... It's cold and it's dark, and I'm... not really sure you're here, my angel." Gel... Oh wow, no... that could be a coincidence. Either way, we had bigger problems, and if we didn't then I did.

It took twenty minutes to get him to a bathroom, lead through a massive bedroom and into an ensuite. An elf dropped off the potions as Gel started to pull off as much of the filthy soaked suit as he could while still being decent.

"Sit him on the shower floor, and give him a blood replenisher... possibly a glass of something really supremely alcoholic depending how strong blood flow is," I instructed. Gel got him situated, sitting behind Professor Dumbledore leaning him back to rest against his chest, and began the task of trying to get him to drink the potion.

"No. No I don't want it," he protested blearily, struggling to string his sentence together. He drank it in the end, and his blood started to pour out in an absurd amount of dark poison looking syrup all over the both of them and pooling on the floor.

"What is this?" Gel asks so dangerously that it marks another check in the Gel-is-short-for-Gellert theory I had going, "Who did this to him?"

"What," I corrected, "It was a what, and we can fix it."

"That does not excuse it," he bit out acidic and furious.That... that wasn't what I meant Still, it was dropped really fast when it triggered the man in his arms, turning the other into a doting partner. "This is not natural," he said a few minutes later, "Blood is not this colour. Not if something is not wrong." 'Yeah, because he got a bunch of tiny wounds and filled them with a magical infection at a bajillion fucking years old.'

The professor's foot connected with my shin, and even through it was incredibly half hearted Gel gave a small grin.

"I doubt he liked your train of thought," he said in amusement, bleak and barely there due to the situation.

"How would I know? He's still pretending that he can't/won't do it," I replied, running my fingers through the pattens in the grout of the tiled floor. The indignant snort that followed had so much vehemence in it that it was enough to make me chuckle. Oh... that hurt, I thought with my ears ringing while my body felt like it was splintering. "That looks about clear now," I said moving forward, kneeling in the pools of contaminated sludge drying on the floor to take a better look.

"Are you sure?" they said, eyeing me like he could tell if I were hedging.

"Bloods gone back a normal reddish colour," I confirmed, "Just turn on the water, get him as clean as you can and heal the cuts. He'll be fine."

"Maybe another dose of blood replenisher," Gel muttered. I nodded, that was probably a good idea.

"I'll get out of here then so you can get to it," I said going to stand up. 'Like all the way out of here. Exit stage left.'

"No!" Professor Dumbledore shouted, starting to babble. I grabbed two hands of his suit and that seemed to settle him.

"Okay. I get it, you're clever. You win," I said flatly, " I won't go anywhere yet. Just let me turn around." He nodded somewhat alert, and it gave me hope that higher thought was headed our way, and he'd be somewhat back to normal soon. Not that it was going to do me any favours when he regained his ability to question. I got up, made staggering look like walking, and sat heavily back in my original spot on the floor. The sliding glass door to the shower closed and I leaned against it. My head was swimming and I was so, so tired. The ringing in my ears had filled to a low continuous high-pitched note. All of it making me want to just bang the back of my head repeatedly into the door, until blissful unconsciousness came a-knocking. I was so tempted it burned, but letting out a deep breath, stayed absolutely still and started to hum a tune I didn't know the words for. Nor could I remember where I'd ever heard it. It echoed through the high ceilings of the bathroom much louder than I meant it to, but it was the only thing keeping me awake. Until suddenly it wasn't.

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