IV. DISCOVERY
The two Malfoys brought the unconscious Potter to the drawing room and laid him on the sofa.
Narcissa did a quick medical check-up charm on Potter's body and from the projected medical result in the air, she learnt that Potter had ankle fracture on his left leg, two broken ribs—one in the process of natural healing and another one was newly broken, and a state of malnourished.
"What the hell!" Draco, had also learnt the basic medical check-up charm from his mother, understood what the projection said, was staring at Potter in horror. In his shock, he was entirely unaware of his foul language spoken in the presence of his mother.
"What is going on, Draco?" Narcissa, so equally shocked by the result that she ignored his son's profanity.
"I think those muggles have been abusing him, Mother," Draco touched the check-up result in the air with his fingertips. "Not only physically, but also mentally."
"Please elaborate." Narcissa dismissed the check-up result and stood facing her son. Draco's hand fell back to his side.
"Yesterday, the Muggle man yelled at Potter of how...irrelevant of him to this life. How worthless he was, even to the Wizarding World. He said that again tonight to Potter when he kicked him. The Muggle kicked Potter on his stomach and ribs because his chore works didn't meet the Muggle's expectation. And they have starved him since Saturday."
"What?!" Narcissa was shocked at finding such cruel thing happened to a child. Harry Potter or not, no one had the rights to torture and abuse children. "But they are his relatives…"
"Relatives?! That ugly fat Muggle planned on starving him until next Sunday!" Draco spat at the repulsive cruelty.
There was silence for a minute. Then,
"We need to bring him to the Saint Mungo's Hospital and inform the Headmaster," Narcissa stated.
"No! Mother, we can't!" Draco grabbed his mother's upper arm.
"Draco, he needs to be checked and treated thoroughly. And the headmaster needs to know. Draco, the Dark Lord might be able to sense him here!" Narcissa whispered aggressively.
"But I have broken many laws bringing him here! From illegal Apparition, underage magic outside the school, and breached the ward on Potter's house!" At this, his mother opened her eyes wide. "Not to mention the Muggles —there were three of them— in the house saw me casting magic and I took Potter from the house that's supposed to protect him from something! Probably from the Dark Lord!" Draco was almost screaming frantically at the end of his sentence.
Draco was taken by surprise by his mother who walked out of the room hastily.
"Mother?" Draco followed her to the entrance hall.
"I'm going to visit the Muggles and Obliviate them. You move and take Potter to your bedroom before the Dark Lord got alerted by his presence here. Now!" Narcissa commanded and a second later she was gone, Disapparated to Privet Drive.
Draco did as his mother told him. Potter would be safe and undetected if he stayed in Draco's bedroom. His and the master bedrooms were the only two places in the Malfoy Manor that were warded strongly by some ancients protection charms, even the strong Dark Lord wouldn't be able to scan the inside of the room, yet…
~o~
As Draco laid Potter's unconscious body on his massive bed, knocks on his door were heard. Narcissa's voice followed.
Raising his wand, Draco stepped toward his door. After casting a scanning spell to verify that it was truly his mother, Draco opened one side of the door and let his mother stepped in.
"I have Obliviated the Muggles," Narcissa told Draco, then pulled two small objects out of her coat pocket and casted Finite Incantatem to them. "I took the liberty of bringing Potter's trunk as well as his owl's cage with me. The owl is on its way to the manor. How is he?" Narcissa walked toward sleeping Potter.
"Still unconscious," Draco informed her. "Is it normal to be unconscious that long? Or, damn! It's my first time to give someone a Side-along Apparition. Is this—" Draco didn't dare to continue his sentence.
"Don't worry, Draco. Your Apparition is perfect. The long unconsciousness is likely due to the intense pain and the wound and his body needs the rest. I'll do a thorough medical check-up charm on him," Narcissa decided and started the examination on Potter.
Draco, hadn't been that advanced at the medical charms his mother was performing, decided to set aside Potter's trunk by his wooden desk installed on the right wall. He put the owl's cage on his desk near the arched window where Potter's owl would follow afterward and then he watched strings of blue, green and red he didn't understand floating in the air above Potter's body, creating a lively medical graph.
Fifteen minutes passed and Narcissa exhaled heavily, finished with the check-up. Seeing his mother needed a support, Draco rushed toward his mother and held her body with his right arm. If Narcissa was at the state of a shock, her face didn't show it.
"Wait here," Narcissa said and she walked out of Draco's bedroom to take some potions needed from the manor's apothecary then came back quick. She put six different potion vials on the nightstand.
"Mother, what are those potions for?" Draco listed all the potions but was put out as he spotted some unusual potions, "I understand Potter needs the Skele-Gro, Calming Draught, and Nutrients Replenishing potions. But why he needs Cerebri Medela, Coratio, and Fomenta potions?"
"Cerebri Medela for his intracranial bleeding, Coratio potion for his chest trauma. Both potions evoke more pain than Skele-Gro so he will need Fomenta potion to ease the pain those potions will cause when he drinks them," Narcissa answered as she arranged the potion vials in an order of which should be drank first before another.
"Intracranial bleeding? Chest trauma?" Draco didn't understand nor liked the words.
"Intracranial bleeding is a result from head injury, and chest trauma is chest wall injury, both caused by physical trauma," Narcissa explained very brief and general so as to not alert and scare Draco.
"What? You mean, he's been hit hard on his head and chest by his own relatives?!" Draco asked in horror.
"Draco dear, it's already late night. You can go and sleep in my room. I'll take care of Potter," Narcissa ordered.
"No, Mother. This is my responsibility for bringing –rescuing him here. I'll take care of him." Draco put his hand on his mother's gently. Then his face paled. "Oh Salazar! I forgot the Trace! What if the Ministry tracked Potter when I Apparated him here? He's still underage, isn't he?"
"Don't worry. Your ring was enough to cover the both of you," Narcissa gave a reassuring squeeze to her only child's hand.
"...All right. Please take a good rest, Mother," Draco nodded.
Trusting Potter to Draco's care was a good idea. That way, Narcissa would be able to stand on guard in the manor, in case the Dark Lord decided to visit them without invitation that very late at night.
"Very well. He will be still sleeping for few more hours. You better get some sleep, too. Set alert on when Potter wakes up. Then give him a glass of water and the potions in precise order I've set on the nightstand. Wait for three hours before he takes meal." Narcissa walked toward the door, but then paused. She turned her body to catch Draco's attention.
"Mother? Is there something you need?"
"I…saw the cupboard under the stairs…" Narcissa said, moving her eyes to the unconscious Gryffindor teen, "It looked like…"
"I believe so, Mother, yes," Draco confirmed her suspicion. Somehow, he was furious remembering the small space with layers of worn thin quilts on its base. Some clothes he recognized as Potter's were folded untidily in one corner.
If his mother saw the rage on his face, she didn't mention it. She glanced at Potter lying in Draco's bed one more time and then left Draco's bedroom.
Author's note: I forgot to say that this work has no beta read. So any grammar corrections are welcomed and greatly appreciated.