11 Healing

Harry returned to Sharpclaw's office, where the youngest healer was still waiting to lead him to another room, much deeper inside Gringotts than he had ever been. "Strip down and lie on this bed," the healer told him, once they arrived.

Harry did as requested. Some more healers came in, repeating the diagnostic spells and adding some more. They then discussed the results for a while. Finally, one of them approached him. "We believe that the best way would be to start with your physical condition. It will take almost half a day for your body to gain its full health. This may also make you grow a bit, as your malnutrition didn't allow your body to grow to its full potential. We shall give you a potion now. It will do most of the work and would also make you sleep, as it may prove quite painful when your body changes rapidly. We then need to remove that dark entity, but we must first check you again after you wake up from the potion treatment. We are still uncertain if you should first put your Lord ring on, removing all binds and spells cast on you, and then have that entity removed or if the reverse order is better. Do you agree to the treatment?"

"Yes, I agree," Harry said, understanding that this official agreement was needed as part of the procedure.

He was given a large mug full of what looked and smelled like a thick nourishing broth. Harry only wished it also tasted as good, since he didn't like the taste, although it wasn't as bad as some of the healing potions he had the misfortune to take at school.

He gave the mug back and settled on the bed, closing his eyes. It seemed to him that he didn't sleep at all, but he could see that some of the healers looked quite tired when he next opened his eyes, and the room contained some more stuff that he couldn't identify. "How do you feel?" someone asked him.

Harry needed to consider his answer first. He didn't feel any different than before, really, except for the fact that he was now quite hungry and very thirsty. He also felt his bladder full. "I only feel hungry and thirsty, but I first need the loo badly."

He thought the goblin hid a smile, but he wasn't sure. "You can put this robe on now. The toilet room is the second door to the left on this side of the corridor. Please return promptly. We shall have something for you to eat by then."

Harry put on the robe handed to him and stood up. He felt a bit awkward in his movements, as if he wasn't in full control of his body, but the feeling passed almost as soon as he became aware of it. By the time he returned to the room, a table was set with a thick, meaty soup and some pumpkin juice. Harry enjoyed both. He still felt a bit hungry, though.

"It's not recommended to eat much, close to having magical treatments," one of the healers told him as if reading his thoughts. Harry nodded in understanding.

The healers did some more checking on him and had another discussion. "We weren't sure if releasing your magic would not help the dark entity gain some more power, making it harder to remove. Just healing your body seems to have doubled your magic, yet the dark entity doesn't seem to be any stronger than before. Now we agreed that you should first put your ring on and then we should tackle the dark entity, if still present. We suspect that the magic in the ring, combined with your own enhanced magic, may be enough to remove it, maybe with some minor help from us."

"What do I need to do, then?"

"You should first put on your clothes. We shall re-size them as needed, since they may prove too small now. We shall then take you to our secure room. It is an especially fortified room, able to withstand the magical backlash expected from unbinding your magic. It can also help with the removal of the dark entity."

Harry felt his boxers were a bit tight, once he put them on. A quick hand movement by the nearest goblin enlarged them, making them fit nicely. He then put his trousers on. He couldn't pull them all the way up, and they were clearly too short. Once again, they were quickly made to fit, and the process was repeated for his shirt. "Your shoes are too worn out to be made to fit. Instead, we had another pair ready for your new measures," a goblin told him, handing him a new pair of shoes.

When Harry stood up, he really felt like he was taller than before.

The secure room proved to be a round, almost spherical room. It had no furniture of any kind, its walls were lined with steel and it only had a very small door that forced one to crawl through in order to go in or out. Judging by the door, the walls must have been at least three feet thick. Harry crawled in and closed the heavy door behind him, as instructed. He then stood in the centre of the round floor, which was clearly marked, took the ring box out of his pocket, opened it, and put the ring on his finger. The ring flashed once and re-sized itself to his finger, yet Harry knew he had to expect some more.

It took a few seconds for the next step to start. A circle of light seemed to form at the floor, just around his feet. It started moving slowly up, stopping every few seconds and flashing various colours, before brightening again and moving up some more. Harry was fascinated by the light show, not really thinking about what it meant. Eventually, the circle moved up to the level of his forehead. Harry then felt a sudden pain. It was similar to what he felt when he met Voldemort in the room under the forbidden corridor, just a few weeks earlier, but much stronger. It then became too much to bear. Harry blacked out.

He woke up in the same bed where he started his treatment, not really sure where he was or what happened. Seeing a goblin face up close the first thing when he opened his eyes didn't help much. He thought he was still having a nightmare, yet the goblin stood back, its face resolving into Sharpclaw. "You gave us quite a worry, Lord Potter."

"Wh... What happened?" Harry asked, not quite awake.

"There were some screams coming out of the secure room, a few minutes after you went in. I came as soon as I could, followed by the head healer. By then you had already passed out, yet your ring was still fighting that dark entity. With the help of a few more of our staff, we managed to finish your healing, removing that entity. We found it to be a fragment of Voldemort's soul. How you managed to live until now with that inside you is a real wonder."

Harry wasn't sure he understood it all. "So, is it over now?"

"Yes, it's over. You may resume your life the way it should have been. Based on our findings, we're going to look for additional fragments of that dark soul. We have the means to handle it."

Harry reached for his eyeglasses. He then stopped in mid-movement. He could perfectly see every detail in the room, close or far. "Have you corrected my eyesight?" he asked.

"That was included in your healing, Lord Potter. I hope it worked well."

"It did, only... I feel weird not needing my glasses any longer."

"You should expect some more changes, some of which will become evident only after a while. You are much more powerful magically than you've been before. I'd risk a guess and say you are on par with your headmaster, at least, yet it may take you some time to fully realize your potential. Your body and your mind will also function much better than before. This will also take some time for you to be able to gain the full use of. And now, Lord Potter, I believe there are a few more matters to deal with before you leave the bank. You may eat breakfast while we discuss them."

Half an hour later, Harry returned to the main lobby of the bank. He had a money bag and a debit card in his pocket, and his Lord ring on his finger, although turned invisible to attract no attention. He also moved his bangs to cover his forehead, where his famous scar was no longer visible unless one looked very closely. Elsa and her father were already waiting for him there. She spotted him as soon as he walked through the side door and ran to him, grabbing him in a tight hug. "I missed you so much!"

It took her a moment to notice that she was now much shorter than him. "You've grown!"

She took one step back, still holding his shoulders. "You look well... Fresher, maybe, and more grown-up than yesterday. You're sure to attract many girls now." She didn't sound happy at the thought.

"Does it really matter?" Harry asked. "I'm with you, and that's what counts the most."

Elsa smiled at his words. Her father now talked. "If you want, we can still take the train to Paris and be there before dinner, or we can stay another night here and let you go to the theatre or the cinema if you like."

"I think I'd rather leave as soon as possible, but... don't I need a passport or some other document to leave Britain?"

Gerard smiled. "I'm sure that if you put your hand in that money pouch and think of your passport, you can get it. Besides, I also have your uncle's written agreement to let you go with me. You're not recognized as an adult by the muggle authorities, you know."

Harry smiled. "Let's go, then!"

Gerard shrunk their luggage, so they could each take it in their pockets. Harry told Hedwig to go to France before letting her free again and shrinking her cage. A taxi ride later, they reached the train station. Harry had vaguely heard about a tunnel being built under the British Channel. "Are we going through the tunnel?" he asked.

"No, it will take another two or three years before they finish the tunnel and open it for service. The train will take us to Dover, where we shall board a ship to Calais, and then continue on the train to Paris. I could also apparate us all or use a portkey, but I think it would be better for you if you don't attract undue attention. You may get more than you'd like to, once your Lordship becomes known." Harry grimaced at the idea.

Gerard bought first-class tickets. Elsa chose to sit with Harry in the wide seat instead of using her own, yet Harry didn't mind. His new, improved physique made her weight negligible, and he really liked hugging Elsa. The view of Kent through the windows was also something he had no previous chance to see.

The short voyage on the ship was much less pleasant. Despite the first-class accommodation, Harry found that he really didn't like the waves. He spent almost half the time in the toilet, emptying his stomach of all that he had eaten since that morning and feeling miserable. Elsa tried to comfort him, but neither she nor her father knew a spell that could ease his suffering. They would have probably been unable to cast one even if they knew, as they had no place to use magic unnoticed while on the ship.

"Maybe we should take a hotel for the night and continue our voyage in the morning?" Gerard suggested once they were back on solid ground.

"How long will it take to reach our destination?" Harry asked.

"By train, it may take about five hours. We may also use portkey if you agree. That will only take a few moments, but it can cause nausea, and I doubt you'd like it in your current condition."

Harry looked around. They were still in the port area, where the smell of the sea mixed with the smell of freshly caught fish and of motor oils. It was not a place for refreshing. Yet he could see a bit farther, where he thought he saw a nice public park, with some colourful flowers and green lawns and trees. "I think I can recuperate in that park for half an hour. Then I think I could decide what to do next."

Gerard agreed. "That's a good idea. It's a really lovely park."

Elsa took Harry's arm to give him some support and Harry smiled thankfully at her. He started feeling better as soon as he left the smells of the port behind. The fragrant flowers and the fresh air in the park revived him almost immediately. Gerard led them to a small café at the edge of the park, where they all had some cold tea. It refreshed Harry some more.

"A train ride now would mean arriving after dark, wouldn't it?" he asked.

"Probably," Gerard agreed.

"Do you think that a portkey would be safe enough for me now?"

Gerard thought for a moment. "Not now, but maybe in half an hour, after your stomach quietens a bit more. It will take us almost as long to reach the secure place I have in mind for activating it."

Half an hour later, the three appeared in the entrance hall of Elsa's family home. Harry looked a bit white and not too stable on his feet, but as Elsa hugged him, somewhat worriedly, he smiled reassuringly at her.