See the Voice of Alexian review from 25th July to read replies to reviews.

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Beta by Kristine Thorne

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Chapter Summary - Harry and Sev are left with another problem when Meg lifts the spells on Draco. Something is very wrong with Draco and events lead to Harry having to avenge Severus' death.

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Chapter Twenty Eight - Lucius's Curse
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Harry, Severus and Ron got up the next morning and got washed and dressed exactly as they had done on any number of occasions. They had almost forgotten that it really was a different kind of day until Meg came knocking at the door.

Harry went to let her in and so as to protect the secrecy she went straight through to Draco, she had to complete her work and get down to the hall for breakfast before anybody noticed that she was missing.

Harry and Severus were waiting for her when she came out of Draco's room; Ron had already taken his appetite down to breakfast.

"Well?" Severus asked.

"As I am sure you know," Meg began, "He still has other problems and he will experience a little pain and stiffness for a while but his bones are healed and I have removed the immobilisation. The rest of his care is in your hands."

"Thank you for your help," Harry said to Meg as she left.

"It was my pleasure," Meg answered with a certain edge to her voice meant for Severus.

"What now?" Harry asked his Kin.

"You go on ahead. I'll leave him his breakfast, I will lock the door and follow you down."

"It'll be nice to have breakfast together again," Harry observed as he left.

Severus went in to see Draco and summoned his breakfast from the house elves. He then pulled a table that he had borrowed from the hospital wing over the bed ready for the food to be placed upon it. Meg had removed the pillows that had been supporting Draco's broken limbs and his arms were now lying on top of the covers.

The food arrived quickly and Severus placed the bowl and mug of tea on the table.

"There you go," Severus said quite brightly for him, "At least I don't have to spoon feed you now, a relief for both of us I should imagine."

Draco said nothing and Severus was instantly irritated.

"I trust you will not be resuming the silent treatment when I return," he snapped before he left the room and locked the door behind him.

When Harry, Severus and Ron returned to the Headmaster's quarters after breakfast Severus unlocked the door and went to check on Draco. The breakfast lay untouched.

Severus was about to get annoyed with Draco again but when he looked at him he had to admit that the young man did look rather unwell, it was as if the pain had not left him despite the work Meg had completed.

"Surely you are hungry, do you not want this?" Severus asked as he gestured to the food.

Draco didn't reply but he also looked nervous.

"Please don't start this not talking nonsense again," Severus snapped, "I am not a Death Eater, I merely would like you to cooperate and eat your breakfast when it is left for you, I can't keep giving you rejuvenation potions, you have to eat properly."

"I can't, I thought that you knew," Draco spoke at last.

"Knew what?"

"I thought that you would have sensed it, I can't lift my arm up that high." Draco continued.

Severus looked at the table, which was positioned barely four inches above Draco's chest, "You can't move?"

Draco shook his head, "No, well I can, I tried, but it wasn't enough, it takes a lot of effort and when I do it's very painful, I thought you knew."

"Draco, I have examined you, there is nothing wrong with you that hasn't already been fixed by the mediwitch."

Draco turned his head away and looked genuinely distressed, "There must be."

"For an affliction to be undetectable to my healing it would have had to have been created by a particular kind of curse and one made by a very powerful wizard at that," Severus said irritably.

"Like my father," Draco sobbed.

Severus suddenly wasn't very irritated anymore. He reached down and picked up Draco's hand, sensing for any problem that was there. He felt the intense pain that Draco was experiencing and also the muscle spasms that resulted from the movement but found no evidence that there was a cause. Severus lowered his arm again, placing it back on the bed gently. He observed that Draco was indeed in exactly the same position that Meg had left him in. Severus sighed, the young man had had so many fractures that they had hidden the fact that not all of the pain had been coming from the most obvious source.

Severus took a pain potion from the bedside cabinet and ordered some fresh food from the fire. Severus administered the potion and then sat himself down in the armchair by the bed.

"When did this begin?" Severus asked.

"Shortly after I left home, I thought that he had let me go but I suppose he hadn't. Some of the potions that I stole helped for a while but that was why I ran out of them so quickly. I reached the shrieking shack shortly after the last one was gone and that was why I didn't make it up to Hogwarts after that. I deteriorated quickly and I was going to try to get to Hogsmeade village when I fell down the stairs, I shouldn't have tried to stand." Draco explained.

"Do you know what potions you were using?" Severus asked.

Draco shook his head, "I just grabbed a bagful from the medicine cupboard, it tasted a bit like your rejuvenation but not quite the same."

"I am sure that you know," Severus began to explain, "That such a curse from a wizard like your father is most likely irreversible, however, there are certain potions that may be brewed that would help to reduce the effects to a degree. There is every chance that I can find such a potion and I will do everything I can to do so."

Draco smiled albeit a little sadly.

Severus picked up the fresh bowl from the hearth and resumed his spoon-feeding duties. Draco took the food without any fuss.

"I will need you to move your arm for me, to demonstrate what effect the curse has produced," Severus explained as soon as Draco had finished eating.

Severus picked up Draco's arm again, raising it just above the covers and began to sense, when he nodded to Draco the young man tried to move his arm. He managed to move only a few inches to the side before the muscles began to spasm badly, Severus then instructed him to stop and soothed his arm into relaxing again.

"The nerves are sending all kinds of messages, erratically and randomly, they are damaged like torn threads, I can make a potion to mend them but the curse will always be there destroying them again, I will have to make it strong enough for it to keep ahead of the damage, it will take a while to brew and to become effective once you start taking it, but I think it will help," Severus informed Draco.

"But I will have to keep taking it for the rest of my life?" Draco asked.

"Most likely, yes." Severus had to admit.

"Can I stay here? I don't have anywhere else to go." Draco asked.

"At Hogwarts?"

"Yes,"

"I don't see why not." Severus replied.

"Who else is here?" Draco asked.

"Apart from Harry, both Ron and Hermione live here, countless others, would you like to sit in the living room for a bit?"

Draco looked unsure as he thought about all that it would entail, "Who is there?" he asked.

"Just Ron and Harry."

"Come to gawp have they? No thanks, I will just stay here."

"Very well, try to get some sleep then," Severus instructed.

Severus returned to Harry and Ron in order to break the news.

"I am afraid that you will be maintaining your peace for a while longer," Severus announced, he then explained all of what he had found out concerning Draco, "I am sure that Lucius must have been waiting for Draco to become incapacitated, thus making him easier to find, the Dementors may have been working on their own or they may have had their instruction before Lucius was killed. Either way they were unlikely to give up and we may have got to Draco just in time." Severus added.

"Bloody hell!" Ron responded.

"If I hadn't already killed Lucius I would be tempted to do it again," Harry added, "But perhaps that's only because I enjoyed it so much."

"Can I have your hand Ron?" Severus asked.

"What for?" Ron asked suspiciously.

"I just want to sense the curse that you had cast upon you," Severus explained.

Ron held out his hand and Severus sensed nothing of the curse, only the lack of balance that it had created.

"What have you found?" Ron asked.

"Looks like you encountered a curse from the same wand as Draco's, not that that helps any," Severus observed, "Gives you something in common upon which to build a new friendship though."

Ron grimaced, "Will you both shut up about that, I only defended him the one time."

"Twice actually," Harry added.

"Whatever, it still doesn't make us friends."

Harry smiled as if he knew better and Ron glowered at him.

"If anybody needs me," Severus announced, "I shall be in my potions room, I know of a potion that may help reduce Draco's symptoms while I come up with a better plan. I will brew it this morning and then hopefully I can research throughout the afternoon."

"And I shall be down in the defence classroom," Harry informed his Kin, "Are you coming Ron?"

"Well I'm not staying here to get dumped with feeding duties," Ron said to show how much he didn't want to be anywhere near Draco Malfoy.

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Ron followed Harry down to the Defence classroom not really knowing what he was going to do once he got there, he assumed that Harry might have a little job that he could give him.

"So what are we going to do?" Ron asked as he lowered himself down onto the floor of the classroom. All the desks were piled up against one side of the room and the equipment chests were piled up on the other.

"Today," Harry announced while he pulled a chest down off two others, "We are going to check through the equipment."

Ron looked horrified, "Will you levitate those things!" he insisted, "I don't want to have to explain anything to Severus, so you'll just have to look after yourself."

"Sorry," Harry said getting out his wand, "I got used to not using magic when I was away."

"He would bloody kill me if anything happened to you!"

Harry knew it was the truth, "Sorry." He said again looking suitably sheepish.

"So what do you want me to do?" Ron asked.

Harry pushed a trunk over to Ron, "Just look through that, make an inventory of the contents, then we'll label them, I hate to have to rummage around for things."

Harry got some parchment and quills and they both set to work with a trunk each.

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Severus reached a point in his potion making where there was nothing to add and it was left to simmer for a few minutes, he took out his map in order to check on Harry. Because of their current situation regarding Draco and because that they appeared to be fostering Ron, he had had his map enhanced to include the other two members of the old Gryffindor trio and Draco as well.

Severus didn't want anything happening to any of them and as he looked at his map now he found that Harry and Ron were so close together in the Defence classroom that the only explanation could be that one was lying on top of the other. A few seconds later Hermione entered the room but only came so far before standing completely still. Severus frowned and remembered the last time something strange had been revealed to him through the map, he would have to go and investigate.

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Harry and Ron had completed searching through two boxes each when Ron decided that he wanted a coffee and crawled over to the fire to order one. Harry asked Ron for his customary hot milk and opened his next box.

Out of the box emerged Severus clutching at his abdomen and obviously in pain. Harry froze and could do nothing but stand on the spot staring as Severus staggered towards him. Blood began to trickle out of Severus from between his fingers and the white shirt that he was wearing was becoming soaked with redness. Severus collapsed to the floor and Harry rushed towards him and flung himself down beside him. He pulled Severus' hands away and the blood flow increased; it now began to stain the floor.

"Sev?" Harry whimpered feeling powerless to help, "Sev!"

Severus became pale and unresponsive, Harry pulled up his shirt to reveal a gaping wound. Severus' body contorted in pain and a small, glistening and bloody misshapen ball of flesh slopped out of the wound and onto the floor, it was a foetus.

Harry was filled with anger and grief, the tears streamed down his face as the bloody puddle got larger and Severus' body went limp, "Who did this to you?" Harry demanded. He was trying in vain to stem the flow of blood by pressing his hand to the wound. He could feel the blood, warm and wet, trickling over his hand like a stream.

"Ron," Severus replied weakly, "It was Ron."

Severus' body contorted once more and then he died, his skin turning grey and his lips darkening to blue.

"Ron!" Harry shrieked, turning on his unsuspecting friend.

Ron turned as soon as he heard the voice, he saw the dead body lying on the floor and realised straight away what had happened. Harry had drawn his sword though and he had a dangerous look in his eyes, "You killed my Kin!" He thundered.

"Oh fuck!" Ron responded staring in shock at his friend. Ron knew that he had no time at all; he drew himself up on his knees, attempted to stand and launched himself at Harry so that when he fell his whole weight would take Harry with him. Immobility and months of overeating had left him with one advantage over the vengeful Kin and he was going to use it.

Ron lay on top of Harry wrestling with him; he couldn't do anything with his sword if only Ron could keep him pinned down.

"It's not real," Ron tried to explain as Harry struggled violently beneath him, "It's just a boggart."

Harry wasn't listening and he continued to struggle, Ron was vaguely aware that somebody else had entered the room.

"What ARE you two doing on the floor?" Hermione asked.

"Boggart! Get rid of it," Ron tried to instruct as he struggled, "It came out of a trunk," he tried to persuade Harry, "Why would your Severus be in a trunk?"

Ron chanced a look over at Hermione, the boggart hadn't changed but she was stood in front of it and was frozen to the spot.

"Listen to me," Ron continued persuading Harry, realising that Hermione was going to be no help whatsoever, "We left him upstairs and came down here together, that isn't Severus, it's a boggart, it's your worst fear."

Ron felt Harry begin to relax, "It's a boggart," Ron repeated while he and his friend's attention, "Look at the colour still glowing on your sword, see the red snakes." Ron was relieved when Harry burst into tears and he scooped him up into his arms in a jumble of emotion rather than anger.

Ron sat for a while with Harry, gently rocking him and saying soothing things but then he realised that the source of their problems was still lying in a pool of blood on the floor, it hadn't changed when Hermione approached it.

Ron pulled Harry off him, "I will get rid of it. Put your sword away!"

Ron crawled over to the boggart, which was still in the form of a dead Severus, as he got close it turned into something that he didn't want anybody else to know about and he dispatched it before either Harry or Hermione saw.

Hermione had wandered over to the other side of the room and was slumped on the floor looking into space.

"Thanks for your help," Ron criticised but got no response. He returned his attention to Harry who Ron was relieved to see had put his sword away.

Ron took Harry in his arms and hugged him again; in his distress Harry welcomed the comfort and melted in Ron's embrace, crying uncontrollably and muttering that he was sorry over and over.

"Come on," Ron said as he rocked Harry, "I'll take you back to your Sev and everything will be fine."

"I tried to kill you!" Harry wailed.

"You know, I might be getting used to it." Ron answered still trying to sooth his friend.

When Ron looked up Severus was staring down at him.

"What is going on here?" Severus demanded to know.

Ron had to admit that Severus still scared the hell out of him, "It wasn't me, I didn't do anything." He said quickly.

"Who did?" Severus demanded glaring over at Hermione who was still sitting on the other side of the room.

"Harry had an encounter with a boggart and has given himself quite a fright." Ron explained.

Severus knelt down on the floor and took Harry off Ron.

"You bled to death and said that Ron had done it," Harry told his Kin as he clung to Severus' chest.

"It would seem that Harry is not afraid of Dementors any longer," Ron commented.

"Quite, as children our fears are simple, at least those of most students are," Severus began as he rocked Harry on his arms trying to calm him, "It makes the Boggart a good phenomenon to study in the classroom, however as we get older so our fears grow and this also makes the Boggart an ever changing and formidable opponent, perhaps you should label the trunk to avoid any further incidents."

"I feel so stupid," Harry sobbed into Severus' robes.

"Perhaps we should also consider taking the class together if you wish to use that thing."

"It didn't change for Hermione," Ron observed, he found that the woman in question had snuck out of the room.

"Impossible," Severus observed but his immediate concern was for Harry as ever, "Let's go back home and have some lunch." He suggested.

Ron was pleased and relieved when Harry asked him to join them and he followed the two Kin back up to the Headmaster's quarters.

Ron and Harry sat on opposite sofas as Severus ordered them their lunch.

"Just as well these quarters were made so large," Severus commented as he came to sit beside Harry, "If I had known that we would end up with so many lodgers I might have planned it this way myself."

"Ignore him," Harry said to show that Severus was indeed teasing.

Once lunch was done with Harry put his feet up on the sofa and snuggled himself up to Severus. Harry lay with his head on Severus lap and Severus laid a hand on Harry's head in a way that said very clearly 'this is mine'. Ron began to feel another pang of jealousy coming on. Then he remembered about something he had been meaning to ask and thought that it was worth asking whilst Harry was still feeling a bit guilty about trying to kill him.

"Severus has been teaching me to sense," Ron began.

"He told me," Harry responded.

"I've only practised on Severus and a little on Draco," Ron continued nervously, keeping one eye on Severus to see what he thought about it as he edged closer to the point.

"You want to experiment on me?" Harry asked.

"Just while you're lounging there anyway," Ron continued still eyeing Severus warily, though Harry's Kin seemed to be quite content to let the plan go ahead.

"My eyes are all puffy and red, can you make it go away?" Harry asked.

"With instruction maybe," Ron admitted.

"Go ahead," Severus allowed.

Ron slipped down onto the floor beside Harry and reached forward to lay his hands on his face. Harry obliged by closing his eyes in preparation of the soothing and healing touch he knew was to come as Severus began to instruct Ron.

"Anything else?" Harry asked once Ron had lifted his hands, as if he knew what Ron really wanted.

"We took quite a tumble back in the classroom, I just thought…" Ron mumbled nervously.

"A tumble?" Severus demanded to know more.

"I'm fine," Harry quickly said.

Severus scowled, "You had better check that you have not done any harm," he commanded of Ron.

"I can sense the baby?" Ron asked hardly believing that he had gained permission.

"Yes," Harry replied unbuttoning his robe.

"Harry, you are to tell me if anything happens to you," Severus said almost snappily but Harry knew that it came from worry.

"Sorry," Harry replied.

Ron knew what to do, he had practised on Severus enough times since he had received his instruction and Severus was confident that he would do it well or he wouldn't have let him loose on Harry.

"Remember not to tell him anything," Severus reminded Ron.

"No, of course I won't," Ron replied, "I will like being the only one who knows what you two are going to have."

Harry reached for Ron's hand and placed it on his now exposed belly.

"You're fine and progressing well, the baby is the right size, it feels a bit different to when I do this on Severus."

"It will feel different," Harry said quickly.

"Oh," Ron responded trying to read the look that Harry was giving him, "The child is content, although your emotions and guilt are felt by him or her, you really need to worry less. Draco would probably be quite pleased to hear that you have killed his father you know, considering what he did to him, you should just tell him."

"I'll try." Harry responded.

"Well if you're quite finished, Draco needs his lunch too." Severus said tugging a little on Harry's hair, "After this you two are going to take turns, if I have to brew this potion I can't be entirely responsible for mealtimes too."

Both Harry and Ron groaned simultaneously but after a stern look from Severus gave in and agreed to the plan.

Harry sat up and Severus went through to Draco. Ron chose his opportunity to speak to Harry in private.

"That felt very bloody different," Ron told him, knowing that Harry probably knew exactly what he meant.

"I know," Harry confirmed.

Ron looked concerned, "You have to tell him."

Harry shook his head, "He will only worry more than he already is, I can't."

"Fine," Ron replied, "It's all in your hands, but I really think you should say something."

"It'll be fine," Harry tried to convince both Ron and himself, "Nothing we can do about it anyway."

"If you say so." Ron replied showing that he wasn't at all convinced.

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Coming Soon - Chapter Twenty Nine - Conversations With A Death Eater's Son - Severus is working on a potion and Harry and Ron have to take turns going in to see Draco who has nothing better to do than think of ways to taunt them.