Thank you to wonderful Beta of this chapter, SongOfStars

Chapter Six - The Wolf Within

Severus was still fuming from the conversation he had with Albus as he stormed down the corridors behind the man. Once the opportunity came, he would contact the Aurors and inform them of the werewolf attack. By the end of the week he would make sure that Remus is sent to Azkaban even if it meant having to escort the man himself. He would make sure that the man is punished for what he did, for what he is, the disgusting repugnant creature. Severus didn't care if it was a full moon, new moon, third quarter, first quarter. He didn't care what bloody stage the moon was in! Dumbledore should have never allowed Remus to teach at the school. Severus should have done what he wanted to do when he heard of Dumbledore's plan. If he did, none of this would be happening now. Harry wouldn't be fighting for his life.

As Severus stormed through the corridor, his black robes billowing out behind him, he noticed that the sun was just starting to make its way over the grounds of Hogwarts, giving the castle a deep orange glow. Students would be waking up at any moment now, flooding the corridors, stampeding towards the Great Hall for breakfast.

How long would it take before they noticed one of their own was missing? How long did they have until Harry's friends came looking for answers and what on earth are they going to say? They couldn't tell the truth. Severus could only imagine the war that would ensue if the wizarding world found out that the Boy Who Lived was a werewolf. There would be riots and only Merlin knows what would happen to Harry; at best they would lock the boy up 'for his own safety.'

What a load of crap.

The door to his office loomed in front of him and Severus's pace slowed. If he and Poppy did their job then the boy would be waking up soon - or at least, whatever was left of Harry...scarred face, mauled torso, sewn together with thread and twine as though that was enough to keep the humanity in.

If there was any humanity left in the child…

Severus shook his head, trying desperately to pull himself from the memories. Harry needed him now. Lily's son needed him and with that thought in mind Severus pushed his chamber doors open.

Once Severus opened his doors, his eyes landed on Poppy who was placing cooling pads all around Harry as Harry stared blankly at one of the walls, muttering something that Severus couldn't make out.

"He spiked a fever, hundred and five and climbing and he's hallucinating. Fever Reducer isn't doing anything to help him," Poppy explained frantically as she tried to get Harry's temperature to go down with multiple cooling pads and ice packs.

"When did he wake?" Severus inquired.

"About an hour ago, but…" Poppy looked down at Harry with deep concern and dropped her voice, "He isn't making much sense, Severus. Is he…? Did we do enough?" Poppy spoke with despair.

Severus forced himself to be calm and crossed the room towards the bed where Harry lay. There were no windows, no orange light of the morning to guide his way, only the ever-shifting flames of the fireplace that made the shadows on the wall curl and writhe.

Severus stood opposite of Poppy, looking down at the boy who was surrounded by cool flannels and iced sheets, although they were doing little to curb the fever that was burning his skin to a sharp red hue.

Harry's lips were muttering furiously, his eyes darting rapidly but seeing nothing. Poppy laid a hand on the child's forehead as he jerked in pain.

"Potter?" Severus said, his voice low and cautious. "Harry?" He tried again.

Severus frowned when he received no response from the child. "You know as well as I do that newly bitten werewolves barely survive the change to their nervous system. The fever burns them out and Harry wasn't in the best condition to start with. He is small for his age, underweight," Severus explained. "The best that we can do is keep him cool and comfortable and hope Harry can pull through on his own," Severus said but it was clear in his voice that he did not believe that Harry would make it through the next twenty-four hours.

Poppy closed her eyes as she brushed Harry bangs to the side, praying to anyone who was willing to listen, praying to Lily to give her son strength.

Severus turned his back to the two and began aimlessly tidying the empty potions bottles from the bedside. He didn't need to hear premature mourning of the child. There was going to be enough of that later…

"Mmmaah..."

Harry's voice was garbled, thick with sleep, pain and blood. Severus could hear his ragged breaths, as he choked for air. Severus kept his back turned from the child. He didn't need to watch another Evans die. He couldn't watch Harry die.

"Mum...Mum, please…"

The voice was like a whisper, so faint and tangled between other noises that Severus was sure he had misheard what Harry said but as Harry spoke again the word became clear.

"...Mum..."

Severus's head snapped around to the bed. Harry was still mumbling incoherently, his eyes darting blankly But Severus had heard...Harry had said…

"Harry? Harry," Severus said desperately, wanting to hear the boy speak again.

Severus watched as Harry took in another ragged breath before the child forced out another couple of words against his pain.

"Mum….hurts…"

Severus pressed his lips together in an effort to keep his emotion at bare as he took the child's hand in his. The heat that was waffling off the child was unbelievable, it felt like Severus had just put his hand into the fireplace.

Dumbledore kept silent, knowing that there was nothing he could do or say to ease the pain that Severus was feeling right now, knowing how much the man cared for the child.

"Poppy, would you be so kind and attend to Remus? I'm sure Severus can look after Harry from here," Dumbledore requested.

If looks could kill in the wizarding world, then Dumbledore would have dropped dead from the look Poppy shot him before speaking.

"With all do respect, I do believe Harry is in greater need of my assistance," Poppy said, unable to believe what Dumbledore was suggesting. There was no way she was going to leave the boy's side at the moment, not until he was in a stable enough condition.

An odd look passed between Poppy and Dumbledore. Severus felt the air shift in the room, something low and powerful buzzing through the air. Severus expected it to be Poppy's magic, her anger causing her to lose control and he couldn't blame her. What Dumbledore just suggested was unacceptable.

The tension only broke when Harry muttered and stirred again. "Mum...It's here…"

Severus's hands tightened on Harry's. "Remus doesn't need attending to. He needs to be taken away, Albus!" Severus spat as he clutched his teeth together.

Dumbledore signed quietly, shuffling to the end of Harry's bed. "Not right now, Severus. There is a more pressing matter. Harry-"

"The pressing matter is that Harry will die because of Remus and your actions. His fever is spiking, he's hallucinating. It's unlikely he'll-" Severus trailed off, watching Poppy apply yet another freezing cloth to the child's forehead. Severus couldn't bring himself to say that it was unlikely for Harry to make it through this. Eighty-Five percent of people die due to werewolf attacks. The odds didn't look great for Harry.

"We can only wait," Dumbledore said, though his face was as hard as steel. "The boy is strong, he had surprised us before."

"Yes, and this will be the time the boy won't make it!" Severus yelled "And it's all because of you. I told you not to offer the job to that WOLF!" Severus spat "And now your golden boy is going to die by the end of the night. How does it feel to have Harry's blood on your hands? Do you even care what happened? Because you seem more worried about the state of Remus than you do Harry!" Severus paused but seeing that Dumbledore wasn't about to say something he lost control. "YOU DO NOTHING!" Severus cried. It was all building up now, years upon years of anger and hatred tumbling out of him in a flurry of words. "You did nothing fifteen years ago when that halfbreed monster tried to kill me and you'll do nothing now when he all but killed Lily's child. You'd rather protect a monster then save your own kind-"

"Severus," Dumbeldroe's voice cracked a little.

It was the first chip in Dumbledore's armour. Severus knew it was a low blow to talk about kinds and halfbreeds. A language he had long since abandoned when he had left the Dark Lord ranks. But he had to get through to Dumbledore somehow. He had to break him, he had to get him to see the damage that was done.

"For once, do the right thing and save the right person." Severus could do no more than beg. "Save the person who deserves it, the victim, not the monster."

"You suggest I put an innocent man in Azkaban?" Dumbledore questioned.

"The last thing he is, is innocent!" Severus screamed. "Either you tell the halfbreed what he did or I will and I will make sure he feels every ounce of pain that Harry did when he was being ripped apart by that monster!" Severus threatened.

"Telling Remus that it was Harry that he attacked would…"

"I don't care what he does to the man."

"You two need to stop or take it somewhere else!" Poppy spoke up, noticing the distress Harry was in once the fighting started.

"There's no need to take this anywhere else. Get out of my chambers and if you don't do something by the end of the day, you can start looking for a new Potion Master!" Severus explained. If something wasn't going to be done about Harry then he would leave and do something himself.

Dumbledore stood frozen.

"Severus-"

"No Poppy!" Severus replied, not taking his eyes off Dumbledore. "I'm serious, you do the right thing or I'll go."

Dumbledore tried to raise his hands. "Severus, there is no need to be so rash…"

"Severus-" Poppy repeated, but Severus ignored her.

"I promised I would keep the boy safe. I have tried, but you let a werewolf into this school. I tried my best. My vow with you is done. '' Severus didn't break from Dumbledore's stern glaze.

Neither man moved. The magic and tension in the air was practically palpable as the two wizards stared down each other, neither giving an inch. The room crackled with it, sending hearts racing and the potions to bubble within the jars.

It was broken by a frantic scream from Poppy.

"SEVERUS! HARRY!"

Severus quickly turned back to the woman, hearing the panic in her voice for the first time since the fight started.

"Harry's temperature just jumped to hundred and nine. He's boiling!" Poppy quickly explained in a panic.

"Fire…" Harry breathed out before his eyes rolled into the back of his head and his body started to seize.

"Ice bath!"

Severus's head snapped up to Dumbledore, who was already conjuring it. A large copper tub filled with ice formed out of Dumbledore's wand. It was such a large display of elemental transfiguration, pulling gallons of water and tonnes of metal from thin air, freezing the water into ice and twisting the copper into shape in mere seconds. Severus could never have done such a feat alone. He didn't know of any other wizard who could except Dumbledore.

Severus said nothing in response, only scooping Harry into his arms. The boy was on fire. Severus hissed as he carried the child to the bath with Harry seizing and jerking in his arms. He lowered Harry as smoothly as he could into the ice water. Dumbledore took a step back, his eyes locked on Harry. There's a look in his eye that Severus couldn't quite place, something not often seen behind the twinkling eyes and half moon spectacles.

Shame, perhaps?

Severus didn't have time to analyze as he kept his grip on Harry with Poppy on the other side.

Within seconds but what felt like hours, Harry's body stopped seizing and laid still, too still for Severus's liking. Slowly reaching up, afraid of the outcome he pressed his two fingers against Harry's neck, breathing a sigh of relief when he felt a pulse.

"What's his temperature at?" Severus asked, not daring to remove his fingers from the boy's neck.

Poppy shook her head. "It's the same."

Severus nodded in understanding. "I have some cooling potions. If we can get some into his system, it might be enough to bring down his temperature." With that said, Severus quickly made his way to his private lab and rummaged through the shelves, pulling out the potions that he needed before he made his way back to Poppy.

"These should do," Severus murmured, pulling off the cork and leaning over Harry.

Severus almost leapt back in fright as Harry's eyes snapped open suddenly, staring wide eyed and frantic at the ceiling.

Harry's eyes darted in a panic around the room for a second before coming to rest on Severus and something in the pit of Severus's stomach dropped. Because Harry's eyes aren't the beautiful, amazing green anymore. There weren't Lily's eyes staring back at him. There is no more Lily left in Harry's eyes because Harry's eyes are molten gold and full of the wolf.

…

Harry was surrounded by fire, red hot flames threatening to consume him at any moment as the wolf stood back and watched, his mum long gone.

He could hear yelling, it was far away but he could tell that someone was angry, very angry and it sent a tense feeling down his spine. He could feel his heart beating faster as the yelling continued. Something was wrong. Harry knew this but he lacked the strength to do anything about the feeling.

He lay still as he allowed the fire to consume him, feeling the flames touching his skin. He looked over at the wolf, so beautiful. With the little strength he had left he reached out his hand towards the wolf.

He watched as the wolf took a step into the flames and placed its snout into the palm of his hand. Suddenly, Harry was pulled out of the flames and he found himself in a bright room, the flames now gone but only to be replaced with ice.

Harry quickly looked around the room, trying to figure out where he was until his eyes landed on his Potion Professor but something was wrong. The man looked older than he did before. The wrinkles around his eyes and mouth were more pronounced, his hair more thin and there was a smell to the man that Harry never noticed before, he couldn't place it but it was heavy and unwavering and it made Harry sick to his stomach.

But before Harry could do anything his eyes grew heavy and he allowed the darkness to take him, knowing that the wolf would protect him.