A/N: Okay I know that I have to be the most evil person on the face of the
planet. I can't help putting Harry through what I put him through. As if
I don't torture Harry enough as it is. And for the last time, NO! Lei will
not be in this fic. I have said a thousand times or what certainly feels
like it that she will not find out in this fic because it's not going to
have her in it. I already said that I would write another fic at a later
time on that story line so I would really appreciate it if people would
stop bugging me about it, it's starting to get annoying. I have already
said that I cannot write more than 1 story at a time because I get
confused. I want to get this series done though before I start on anything
else. So I beg you to just be patient with me and not ask me about it in
every single chapter that I write! I'm glad that you guys that reviewed
liked the last chapter and don't worry, Harry will be improving and going
back to Snape Manor in this chapter, I can't keep this up for long and you
all know it. So here's the next chapter and I hope you all like it.
ENJOY!!!!
Chapter 4
The day after Harry woke up he was finally able to be taken off of the ventilator. Harry couldn't have been more relieved because he absolutely hated being on it. He coughed so much when they took it out that he thought his lung was just going to come up.
It took another 2 days for Harry's levels to be back to normal and be totally taken off of oxygen intake. Harry was not ready to be released yet though. This really ticked him off but the doctor explained that they had to run some more tests to check everything over.
Harry quickly reconfirmed how much he truly detested hospitals after he had been put through the hell of the tests. He had been put through several different tests to check his mental status and brain activity. Then he had to go through two tests to check his lung capacity and function which was not particularly fun for him.
Harry was a bit upset to learn that his asthma status had been bumped up to a higher end of moderate because of the reaction. This meant more medications and having to get used to a new routine that he was not overly pleased about.
One good thing that had happened was that after he had been taken off of the vent he was moved out of the S.I.C.U. and Ginny, Ron and Hermione came to visit him. It was great to see his friends again even though it'd only been a week and he knew that they were worried.
He was so relieved to be initially taken off of the vent because his back was hurting from being flat on it for so long. That meant that he could be on his side which he preferred to be on anyway. During his time in the hospital he found out that his father was a rather gifted masseuse which really helped in getting his back muscles to relax.
Finally, after ten days Harry was ready to be released and go back home. Ginny, Ron and Hermione had stopped by the night before Harry was released and he said that he would owl them when he got home the next day. He knew that he was going to be released very early in the morning and there was no reason that they should come all the way there.
The next morning Harry was cleaned up and dressed in his clothes again. He looked himself in the mirror of his small bathroom that was in his room and noticed that he had definitely lost a little bit of weight. He knew that he would gain it back with his father around. He also got a really good look at his knee. It kind of grossed him out a bit because the incision area was still rather red and hadn't totally scabbed over. Then there were the stitches that had closed the area which literally went from just below his knee to just above it. 'At least the stitches are blue' Harry thought wryly.
Harry came out of the bathroom and saw a nurse that was there with a wheelchair and his father standing further back with a set of crutches. The doctor had already told Harry that he would have to use them to get around for at least a week because his knee couldn't support his weight despite how thin he was. Only after a week would he be able to walk on it with either 1 or neither of the crutches. He was told to come back in a week to have the stitches removed and a final check up to make sure everything was fine.
Finally Harry was free and he couldn't be happier. Even though he'd only been in the manor for a day he loved the house and missed it. He also missed Hedwig. He was especially desperate to see her.
Harry couldn't help but be a little angry about everything that had happened. Surely they should have been aware of the possibility of the anesthesia reacting badly to his medications. They had a full list of what he was on, the dosage and everything so they should've caught it.
After he had woken up and especially after he had been taken off of the vent he had been silent most of the time except around his friends. Whenever his father, doctors or nurses were around doing things he tended to be on the short side of his temper. He had inherited his father's short temper and it was becoming painfully obvious to Severus that Harry truly was his son in that sense.
Severus was quite frustrated because Harry was being his usual normal and happy self around his best friends and girlfriend but around him and the hospital personnel he was being snippy, indifferent and borderline rude in a sense. He kind of wrote it off that Harry was just in a lot of pain from the surgery but knew that there had to be something else.
Severus knew that Draco had noticed as well. Harry was being slightly in between with his brother. Draco hadn't been the same way as Severus in constantly reassuring and telling Harry that everything would be fine. He was helping where he could but Draco could clearly see that Harry was frustrated.
Draco noticed that Harry was frustrated but his father seemed to not be picking up on that fact. For as intelligent as Severus was he could be incredibly thick headed sometimes and miss some of the most obvious points that were practically slapping him in the face.
Draco knew that this was going to be interesting once the three of them got back to the manor. Harry knew that Severus was going to be spending several hours a day on physical therapy and rehabilitation but he wasn't exactly happy about it. He hadn't been able to move hardly at all while he was in the hospital and because of it he had muscle wastage which partially contributed to his weight loss.
Harry was really hoping that he would be able to build that back up too. Harry was mostly frustrated about the fact that he was almost completely helpless. He hated the feeling, partially because he'd spent so many years being completely self sufficient and reliant. He had nobody to take care of him so he had to do it himself. Now there was the fact that he had a father and brother who were more than willing to help him but old habits die hard and Harry still had a hard time relying on people.
He also hated the fact that he was not up to his top form and strength. He knew that he didn't have to worry about anymore Death Eaters or Voldemort attacking but he still liked to always be on top of things. The only reason he really agreed to having this done because the pain was really starting to annoy him and he knew that there was no way to make it go away otherwise. He also knew that he would have the pain and problems for the rest of his life if he didn't get it fixed. Harry did not want that at all. He had a high tolerance for pain, obviously from Vernon's 'conditioning' but he actually hated physically being in pain.
Harry, Draco and Severus took a portkey back to the manor since Harry obviously couldn't floo. The portkey deposited them in the second floor landing right in front of Harry and Draco's bedrooms. Severus didn't want Harry having to climb the steps just yet since Harry hadn't slept well the night before due to a nightmare and was rather tired and the last thing that any of them wanted was Harry to take a spill.
It was only 7:30 in the morning and Harry was exhausted to put it frankly. Both Harry and Draco definitely weren't morning people and both liked to sleep in. Severus pocketed the old handkerchief portkey and said,
"All right you two. I know you're both exhausted to go and get into bed and sleep for a while. Harry I need to show you a couple of things in your room so come on."
Harry nodded and followed his father while Draco disappeared into his room since he was practically dead on his feet. Severus and Harry entered the room and walked over to Harry's bed which Harry promptly sank onto and smiled for a moment relishing the softness of the feather mattress.
Severus couldn't help but smile and gave Harry a moment then said,
"Now Harry I don't want you going up and down stairs on your crutches without somebody with you just in case. I forgot to tell you that you have your own house elf that's assigned to help you. Draco and I have one too. This pull right here next to your bed will summon your elf to you. Your elf's name is Twinkle and she will assist you in anything, she's mostly responsible for keeping your room clean and collecting your laundry and the standard duties. If you need me during the night all you have to do is push this button on your night stand and an alarm will go off in my room and I'll come all right?" Harry nodded indifferently and Severus continued
"Now we're going to spend about 3-4 hours every other day working on your rehab. It's not going to be all at once though. We'll do an hour or two after breakfast and then some more in the afternoon. All right?" Harry snorted and shrugged indifferently and Severus said,
"All right, now I know you're probably exhausted so get some sleep. Don't forget to take your brace off and put a pillow under your knee. I'll wake you for lunch if you're not already up." Harry shrugged and started to unstrap the Velcro on the brace as Severus made to leave the room. He paused at the door for a moment and watched Harry and didn't know what he could possibly make of his son's personality change but decided to think about it later.
Harry slept until lunch. When Severus came to wake him up he said,
"I'm not hungry."
"I don't believe you Harry, you didn't eat breakfast because we left too early for that and you hardly ate any of your dinner last night."
"Have you ever had that food before? It's disgusting! If you'd ever had it you'd understand why I don't want to eat it."
"I don't understand why you don't want to eat Harry. You have lost too much weight and you were too skinny to begin with and now you're even skinnier. If you do not come down and eat lunch I will force feed you."
Harry's blazing emerald eyes locked onto his father's glittering onyx and said,
"You wouldn't dare."
"Oh I would Harry. Try me. I dare you. If you don't I will immediately take you back to Saint Andrews and have you put on a feeding tube. Now I'm sure they'd just love to see you again. Now you have one choice and one choice only. That choice is to get downstairs to the kitchen and eat your entire lunch."
Harry scowled and reached down to the floor and put on his brace and quickly put it on. He was really angry at his father at that point. He knew how much he hated being there and he was threatening to take him back!
Still scowling Harry picked up his crutches and wordlessly hobbled out of the room, shooting a glare at his father who followed behind him. Harry wordlessly went down the stairs and absolutely refused help and soon he was in the kitchen where Draco was sitting patiently waiting for his father and brother.
They all ate in silence with Harry throwing dirty looks at Severus whenever he caught him watching him eat. After lunch Harry got up without saying a word and left the kitchen and made his way down to the TV room with his father following him.
Harry paid no attention to the man as he quickly picked out a CD from the group Blink 182. He'd heard of them vaguely and knew that they were a loud American punk rock band. He put the CD in the player and plugged in the headphones and put them on and cranked the volume up then sank down into one of the many overstuffed bean bag chairs. He was still ignoring Severus who turned and left the room shaking his head.
Severus walked outside and saw Draco standing there and said,
"I don't know what to do about him. I don't know why he's acting the way that he is. All I know is that I'm already getting sick of his attitude and it's only just started."
"You know Dad maybe you should think about it from his point of view. He thought that this was going to be just an easy and basic procedure. In and out. But it didn't work out that way. You were the one who encouraged him to get it done and then told him that everything would be fine and nothing would happen. He's hurt because something did happen and he partially blames you for it since you told him to get it."
Draco paused for a moment then continued,
"You also know how much he hates hospitals. He hates being there. You know that places like that scare him to no end and there's nothing that can help that. You also know that he hates being weak and fully depending on people. You of all people should know that he is fully used to taking care of himself. He's not used to depending on people. He never had anybody before last year to depend on so why should it be any different?!" Draco paused for breath and started again.
"He's angry because of a lot of reasons. I heard what you said to him before you came down for lunch. He just got released less than 6 hours ago and you're threatening to take him back to the place that he probably hates most! I know you only want what's best for him but threatening something like that just after he got out was a big mistake. I know you love him and he knows it and I know you're just doing what you think is right but it's not the answer. Don't send him back there to be hooked up because you know that he'll probably end up being even more difficult and ripping it out and causing more damage.
"If he hasn't stopped by tomorrow I say talk to him then. I'll try and talk and get something out of him but I can't guarantee anything. So for now just back off and give him some space. You know how stubborn he can be so just let him be like a child in that sense. Merlin knows he never got the chance to be one before."
Severus nodded and said,
"You're absolutely right Draco. Sometimes I just forget about where exactly Harry came from and what kind of childhood, if you can call it that, he had. I was wrong and rash."
"Okay. I'm going to go riding I wanted to tell you that."
"All right, just make sure you're inside for dinner."
"Okay Dad, see you later."
Draco walked down the hall and disappeared up the stairs and Severus walked into his lab and immersed himself in brewing a potion. Severus found that brewing something helped calm his nerves and give him a chance to clear his thoughts.
Meanwhile Harry was still listening to the CD, he found that he really connected with the music. Especially what they were singing about. Not all muggle Americans were daft apparently. He could see why they were so popular with music like this.
Draco was out riding Lightning. Lucius had owned several horses and had taught Draco how to ride when he was barely 4 years old. Naturally Draco was a very good rider. One of his favorite things to do when he was frustrated or had something on his mind was go riding. It was the next best thing he could do besides flying and he wasn't in the mood for that at the moment.
Draco could understand where Harry was coming from partially but really didn't know how to go about pursuing talking about it. Suddenly it clicked in his brain. It was very easy to get Harry to talk if it was just in a relaxed atmosphere. He decided that he would try and talk to his brother after dinner.
Harry spent the rest of the afternoon listening to CD's in the media room. After the Blink CD was done he moved on to Dave Matthews Band who he found was very good then after that CD he moved onto GooGoo Dolls. Harry had really developed a liking for these groups and found their music very good. He really wished that he could play these at Hogwarts.
Draco spent the rest of the afternoon riding and Severus brewing. Before they knew it it was time for dinner and Severus walked into the media room to see Harry still listening to music. He tapped the boy's shoulder and pointed at his watch. Harry took off the headphones and Severus said,
"Come on. Time for dinner."
Harry smirked and tried to stand up. He swatted away Severus' hand and got up on his own then as quickly as he could manage left the room and climbed the stairs and went to the dining room. Draco was waiting again when Harry and Severus entered the room. The house elves had made roast chicken, mashed potatoes, dressing, carrots and green beans for dinner that night. The three ate in silence with Harry picking at his food but eventually eating it because the threat still hung over his head.
Harry finished and stood up from the table without asking to be excused. Draco stood up and gave a look to Severus that told him not to follow and followed his brother. Harry was heading for his room. Harry saw Draco while he was going up the stairs and was thankful that it wasn't Severus at least.
Harry entered his room and sat down on the couch and stretched his braced leg out on the couch. Draco came over and sat on the floor in front of his brother and said,
"What did you do today?"
Harry shrugged and said,
"I just listened to some CD's in the media room. They were really good but I partially did it to just ignore Dad. He's driving me mad."
"I figured as much. You know what's up with you? Why are you so mad at Dad and why were you so short tempered towards the Doctors and Nurses?"
"Draco you know how much I hate being in places like that and especially hate being around people like that. I don't like being in hospitals, not at all. The only reason I agreed to this," pointing at his braced leg "was because I knew that I'd have problems with it for the rest of my life and I didn't want that. I thought that this was just supposed to be an easy thing. In and out, no staying overnight let alone for 10 bloody days! I'll tell you right now that waking up with a tube down your throat is no fun! I hated it and it pissed me off that there was nothing that I could immediately do to get it out of me!"
Harry paused to breathe for a moment and continued.
"I hate being like this. Being weak! Being dependent! Being in pain! Everything." He screamed
"It drives me mad!" Harry whispered as resolve and barriers were breaking down steadily.
"Everybody said that everything would be fine. 'Nothing's going to happen Harry' 'Everything will be fine Harry' 'You have nothing to worry about Harry.' Nothing to worry about my arse!" He screamed as a tear leaked out.
Draco didn't really know what to say about this. He did the only thing that he could think of. He got up, walked over to Harry and pulled the smaller boy into his arms and onto his lap and slightly rocked back and forth.
All of the walls that Harry had built up were down and he was sobbing into his brother's shirt. Harry was still talking through the tears,
"You don't know how scared I was Draco. I seriously thought I was going to die. I felt everything. My last feeling was when I stopped breathing. That's the last thing that I recall happening. Do you know how scary that is?! I was so mad at everybody that this was happening to me."
Draco was rubbing Harry's back while the boy was still sobbing and said,
"I know Harry. I don't have a doubt in my mind that you were absolutely petrified. You also should remember what the doctor told you when you first woke up. There was no way that they could have known that you would react so badly. It's an extremely rare allergy. There are very few documented cases and there is no connection of your allergy to theirs. Unfortunately your allergy presented itself in the way that it always has. When the anesthesia is actively used. You should be glad that the doctors had the means to keep you alive and to fix what had happened with minimal negative effects."
By this point Harry had stopped crying, sniffed then separated himself from Draco and said,
"You're right. But I can't help this, it's just too much. Everything is too much. Everything is happening so fast. I mean so much has happened in the space of a year that I don't know what to do anymore! Now that Voldemort's dead and my 'purpose has been served' I don't know what to do with the rest of my life."
Draco sighed and said,
"Harry you're not even 16 yet, you're not supposed to know what you want to do with the rest of your life. You are Harry Potter in the eyes of the wizarding world. You can do whatever you want. You could play professional Quidditch, or anything your heart desires. But you have time to figure that out! You don't need to rush into things. Enjoy what's left of your childhood. You had to grow up too fast so just take some time to enjoy yourself and just be a kid!"
Harry swiped at his eyes, smiled slightly and said,
"You're right again Draco. Thanks. I needed to hear that. I wish that I could just disappear now that Voldemort's gone. Just enjoy a private life away from the public eye. Just enjoy having a family and not having to worry about what the press or public is saying about me. I wish Harry Potter could just disappear."
Draco slyly smiled and said,
"Who says he can't. You are Harry Snape. Severus is your biological father. We could easily have an article drafted to the Daily Prophet that announces that and requests that you be left alone to enjoy your family."
Harry thought for a moment and said,
"That's true. I just want to be left alone. I've been in the public eye ever since I've re-entered the wizarding world and I really hate the attention. I hate the fact that people used to idolize me for something I couldn't remember and now because I've finally destroyed Voldemort."
"Well then your problem's solved Harry. We'll just have the article drafted and printed. You've got nothing to worry about. Seriously." Draco said earnestly looking into Harry's eyes.
Harry full out smiled and nodded. Draco got up and said,
"Well, it's not even 7 what do you want to do?"
Harry thought for a moment and said,
"Well I need to write a quick letter to Ron, Hermione and Ginny and then after that I think I want to watch a movie."
"Sounds like a plan to me. Hurry up and write your letter." Draco said.
Harry got up and hobbled over to his desk and quickly wrote the 3 letters. He stroked Hedwig's feathers who affectionately nipped his fingers and took off through the open balcony door.
Harry and Draco made their way down to the media room and watched "Dumb and Dumber" so that Draco could see the whole thing.
While Harry and Draco were talking Severus was sitting in his study sipping a glass of Pinot Grigio losing himself in his thoughts. Then he heard the sound of Draco and Harry walking past the room and quietly followed at a distance and saw them enter the media room.
Severus stood outside the door and heard a movie come on then the sounds of laughter and sighed a bit and smiled. He was glad that Harry was at least laughing. It was very obvious that Harry and Draco had had a very good talk and Severus was glad. Hopefully things would be different for Harry now.
Severus made his way back down the hallway and up the stairs hearing the sounds of laughter. He went up to his study and finished the glass of wine then upstairs to his room and took a long bath to relax himself before turning in early mentally running down the list of what he would need to do with Harry for rehabilitation.
A/N: Okay I decided to leave it there since this chapter is pretty long. At least I think it is, I've been working on it for almost 8 hours off and on so I hope it's good. Now push that little button and tell me what you think and don't forget to sign the review and not flame me. So I'll sign off now and hope that that chapter was good. I felt that it needed to be this long and have that scene with Draco kind of chewing Sev out and Harry and Draco's talk. So review, review, review! TTFN!!!!!
Chapter 4
The day after Harry woke up he was finally able to be taken off of the ventilator. Harry couldn't have been more relieved because he absolutely hated being on it. He coughed so much when they took it out that he thought his lung was just going to come up.
It took another 2 days for Harry's levels to be back to normal and be totally taken off of oxygen intake. Harry was not ready to be released yet though. This really ticked him off but the doctor explained that they had to run some more tests to check everything over.
Harry quickly reconfirmed how much he truly detested hospitals after he had been put through the hell of the tests. He had been put through several different tests to check his mental status and brain activity. Then he had to go through two tests to check his lung capacity and function which was not particularly fun for him.
Harry was a bit upset to learn that his asthma status had been bumped up to a higher end of moderate because of the reaction. This meant more medications and having to get used to a new routine that he was not overly pleased about.
One good thing that had happened was that after he had been taken off of the vent he was moved out of the S.I.C.U. and Ginny, Ron and Hermione came to visit him. It was great to see his friends again even though it'd only been a week and he knew that they were worried.
He was so relieved to be initially taken off of the vent because his back was hurting from being flat on it for so long. That meant that he could be on his side which he preferred to be on anyway. During his time in the hospital he found out that his father was a rather gifted masseuse which really helped in getting his back muscles to relax.
Finally, after ten days Harry was ready to be released and go back home. Ginny, Ron and Hermione had stopped by the night before Harry was released and he said that he would owl them when he got home the next day. He knew that he was going to be released very early in the morning and there was no reason that they should come all the way there.
The next morning Harry was cleaned up and dressed in his clothes again. He looked himself in the mirror of his small bathroom that was in his room and noticed that he had definitely lost a little bit of weight. He knew that he would gain it back with his father around. He also got a really good look at his knee. It kind of grossed him out a bit because the incision area was still rather red and hadn't totally scabbed over. Then there were the stitches that had closed the area which literally went from just below his knee to just above it. 'At least the stitches are blue' Harry thought wryly.
Harry came out of the bathroom and saw a nurse that was there with a wheelchair and his father standing further back with a set of crutches. The doctor had already told Harry that he would have to use them to get around for at least a week because his knee couldn't support his weight despite how thin he was. Only after a week would he be able to walk on it with either 1 or neither of the crutches. He was told to come back in a week to have the stitches removed and a final check up to make sure everything was fine.
Finally Harry was free and he couldn't be happier. Even though he'd only been in the manor for a day he loved the house and missed it. He also missed Hedwig. He was especially desperate to see her.
Harry couldn't help but be a little angry about everything that had happened. Surely they should have been aware of the possibility of the anesthesia reacting badly to his medications. They had a full list of what he was on, the dosage and everything so they should've caught it.
After he had woken up and especially after he had been taken off of the vent he had been silent most of the time except around his friends. Whenever his father, doctors or nurses were around doing things he tended to be on the short side of his temper. He had inherited his father's short temper and it was becoming painfully obvious to Severus that Harry truly was his son in that sense.
Severus was quite frustrated because Harry was being his usual normal and happy self around his best friends and girlfriend but around him and the hospital personnel he was being snippy, indifferent and borderline rude in a sense. He kind of wrote it off that Harry was just in a lot of pain from the surgery but knew that there had to be something else.
Severus knew that Draco had noticed as well. Harry was being slightly in between with his brother. Draco hadn't been the same way as Severus in constantly reassuring and telling Harry that everything would be fine. He was helping where he could but Draco could clearly see that Harry was frustrated.
Draco noticed that Harry was frustrated but his father seemed to not be picking up on that fact. For as intelligent as Severus was he could be incredibly thick headed sometimes and miss some of the most obvious points that were practically slapping him in the face.
Draco knew that this was going to be interesting once the three of them got back to the manor. Harry knew that Severus was going to be spending several hours a day on physical therapy and rehabilitation but he wasn't exactly happy about it. He hadn't been able to move hardly at all while he was in the hospital and because of it he had muscle wastage which partially contributed to his weight loss.
Harry was really hoping that he would be able to build that back up too. Harry was mostly frustrated about the fact that he was almost completely helpless. He hated the feeling, partially because he'd spent so many years being completely self sufficient and reliant. He had nobody to take care of him so he had to do it himself. Now there was the fact that he had a father and brother who were more than willing to help him but old habits die hard and Harry still had a hard time relying on people.
He also hated the fact that he was not up to his top form and strength. He knew that he didn't have to worry about anymore Death Eaters or Voldemort attacking but he still liked to always be on top of things. The only reason he really agreed to having this done because the pain was really starting to annoy him and he knew that there was no way to make it go away otherwise. He also knew that he would have the pain and problems for the rest of his life if he didn't get it fixed. Harry did not want that at all. He had a high tolerance for pain, obviously from Vernon's 'conditioning' but he actually hated physically being in pain.
Harry, Draco and Severus took a portkey back to the manor since Harry obviously couldn't floo. The portkey deposited them in the second floor landing right in front of Harry and Draco's bedrooms. Severus didn't want Harry having to climb the steps just yet since Harry hadn't slept well the night before due to a nightmare and was rather tired and the last thing that any of them wanted was Harry to take a spill.
It was only 7:30 in the morning and Harry was exhausted to put it frankly. Both Harry and Draco definitely weren't morning people and both liked to sleep in. Severus pocketed the old handkerchief portkey and said,
"All right you two. I know you're both exhausted to go and get into bed and sleep for a while. Harry I need to show you a couple of things in your room so come on."
Harry nodded and followed his father while Draco disappeared into his room since he was practically dead on his feet. Severus and Harry entered the room and walked over to Harry's bed which Harry promptly sank onto and smiled for a moment relishing the softness of the feather mattress.
Severus couldn't help but smile and gave Harry a moment then said,
"Now Harry I don't want you going up and down stairs on your crutches without somebody with you just in case. I forgot to tell you that you have your own house elf that's assigned to help you. Draco and I have one too. This pull right here next to your bed will summon your elf to you. Your elf's name is Twinkle and she will assist you in anything, she's mostly responsible for keeping your room clean and collecting your laundry and the standard duties. If you need me during the night all you have to do is push this button on your night stand and an alarm will go off in my room and I'll come all right?" Harry nodded indifferently and Severus continued
"Now we're going to spend about 3-4 hours every other day working on your rehab. It's not going to be all at once though. We'll do an hour or two after breakfast and then some more in the afternoon. All right?" Harry snorted and shrugged indifferently and Severus said,
"All right, now I know you're probably exhausted so get some sleep. Don't forget to take your brace off and put a pillow under your knee. I'll wake you for lunch if you're not already up." Harry shrugged and started to unstrap the Velcro on the brace as Severus made to leave the room. He paused at the door for a moment and watched Harry and didn't know what he could possibly make of his son's personality change but decided to think about it later.
Harry slept until lunch. When Severus came to wake him up he said,
"I'm not hungry."
"I don't believe you Harry, you didn't eat breakfast because we left too early for that and you hardly ate any of your dinner last night."
"Have you ever had that food before? It's disgusting! If you'd ever had it you'd understand why I don't want to eat it."
"I don't understand why you don't want to eat Harry. You have lost too much weight and you were too skinny to begin with and now you're even skinnier. If you do not come down and eat lunch I will force feed you."
Harry's blazing emerald eyes locked onto his father's glittering onyx and said,
"You wouldn't dare."
"Oh I would Harry. Try me. I dare you. If you don't I will immediately take you back to Saint Andrews and have you put on a feeding tube. Now I'm sure they'd just love to see you again. Now you have one choice and one choice only. That choice is to get downstairs to the kitchen and eat your entire lunch."
Harry scowled and reached down to the floor and put on his brace and quickly put it on. He was really angry at his father at that point. He knew how much he hated being there and he was threatening to take him back!
Still scowling Harry picked up his crutches and wordlessly hobbled out of the room, shooting a glare at his father who followed behind him. Harry wordlessly went down the stairs and absolutely refused help and soon he was in the kitchen where Draco was sitting patiently waiting for his father and brother.
They all ate in silence with Harry throwing dirty looks at Severus whenever he caught him watching him eat. After lunch Harry got up without saying a word and left the kitchen and made his way down to the TV room with his father following him.
Harry paid no attention to the man as he quickly picked out a CD from the group Blink 182. He'd heard of them vaguely and knew that they were a loud American punk rock band. He put the CD in the player and plugged in the headphones and put them on and cranked the volume up then sank down into one of the many overstuffed bean bag chairs. He was still ignoring Severus who turned and left the room shaking his head.
Severus walked outside and saw Draco standing there and said,
"I don't know what to do about him. I don't know why he's acting the way that he is. All I know is that I'm already getting sick of his attitude and it's only just started."
"You know Dad maybe you should think about it from his point of view. He thought that this was going to be just an easy and basic procedure. In and out. But it didn't work out that way. You were the one who encouraged him to get it done and then told him that everything would be fine and nothing would happen. He's hurt because something did happen and he partially blames you for it since you told him to get it."
Draco paused for a moment then continued,
"You also know how much he hates hospitals. He hates being there. You know that places like that scare him to no end and there's nothing that can help that. You also know that he hates being weak and fully depending on people. You of all people should know that he is fully used to taking care of himself. He's not used to depending on people. He never had anybody before last year to depend on so why should it be any different?!" Draco paused for breath and started again.
"He's angry because of a lot of reasons. I heard what you said to him before you came down for lunch. He just got released less than 6 hours ago and you're threatening to take him back to the place that he probably hates most! I know you only want what's best for him but threatening something like that just after he got out was a big mistake. I know you love him and he knows it and I know you're just doing what you think is right but it's not the answer. Don't send him back there to be hooked up because you know that he'll probably end up being even more difficult and ripping it out and causing more damage.
"If he hasn't stopped by tomorrow I say talk to him then. I'll try and talk and get something out of him but I can't guarantee anything. So for now just back off and give him some space. You know how stubborn he can be so just let him be like a child in that sense. Merlin knows he never got the chance to be one before."
Severus nodded and said,
"You're absolutely right Draco. Sometimes I just forget about where exactly Harry came from and what kind of childhood, if you can call it that, he had. I was wrong and rash."
"Okay. I'm going to go riding I wanted to tell you that."
"All right, just make sure you're inside for dinner."
"Okay Dad, see you later."
Draco walked down the hall and disappeared up the stairs and Severus walked into his lab and immersed himself in brewing a potion. Severus found that brewing something helped calm his nerves and give him a chance to clear his thoughts.
Meanwhile Harry was still listening to the CD, he found that he really connected with the music. Especially what they were singing about. Not all muggle Americans were daft apparently. He could see why they were so popular with music like this.
Draco was out riding Lightning. Lucius had owned several horses and had taught Draco how to ride when he was barely 4 years old. Naturally Draco was a very good rider. One of his favorite things to do when he was frustrated or had something on his mind was go riding. It was the next best thing he could do besides flying and he wasn't in the mood for that at the moment.
Draco could understand where Harry was coming from partially but really didn't know how to go about pursuing talking about it. Suddenly it clicked in his brain. It was very easy to get Harry to talk if it was just in a relaxed atmosphere. He decided that he would try and talk to his brother after dinner.
Harry spent the rest of the afternoon listening to CD's in the media room. After the Blink CD was done he moved on to Dave Matthews Band who he found was very good then after that CD he moved onto GooGoo Dolls. Harry had really developed a liking for these groups and found their music very good. He really wished that he could play these at Hogwarts.
Draco spent the rest of the afternoon riding and Severus brewing. Before they knew it it was time for dinner and Severus walked into the media room to see Harry still listening to music. He tapped the boy's shoulder and pointed at his watch. Harry took off the headphones and Severus said,
"Come on. Time for dinner."
Harry smirked and tried to stand up. He swatted away Severus' hand and got up on his own then as quickly as he could manage left the room and climbed the stairs and went to the dining room. Draco was waiting again when Harry and Severus entered the room. The house elves had made roast chicken, mashed potatoes, dressing, carrots and green beans for dinner that night. The three ate in silence with Harry picking at his food but eventually eating it because the threat still hung over his head.
Harry finished and stood up from the table without asking to be excused. Draco stood up and gave a look to Severus that told him not to follow and followed his brother. Harry was heading for his room. Harry saw Draco while he was going up the stairs and was thankful that it wasn't Severus at least.
Harry entered his room and sat down on the couch and stretched his braced leg out on the couch. Draco came over and sat on the floor in front of his brother and said,
"What did you do today?"
Harry shrugged and said,
"I just listened to some CD's in the media room. They were really good but I partially did it to just ignore Dad. He's driving me mad."
"I figured as much. You know what's up with you? Why are you so mad at Dad and why were you so short tempered towards the Doctors and Nurses?"
"Draco you know how much I hate being in places like that and especially hate being around people like that. I don't like being in hospitals, not at all. The only reason I agreed to this," pointing at his braced leg "was because I knew that I'd have problems with it for the rest of my life and I didn't want that. I thought that this was just supposed to be an easy thing. In and out, no staying overnight let alone for 10 bloody days! I'll tell you right now that waking up with a tube down your throat is no fun! I hated it and it pissed me off that there was nothing that I could immediately do to get it out of me!"
Harry paused to breathe for a moment and continued.
"I hate being like this. Being weak! Being dependent! Being in pain! Everything." He screamed
"It drives me mad!" Harry whispered as resolve and barriers were breaking down steadily.
"Everybody said that everything would be fine. 'Nothing's going to happen Harry' 'Everything will be fine Harry' 'You have nothing to worry about Harry.' Nothing to worry about my arse!" He screamed as a tear leaked out.
Draco didn't really know what to say about this. He did the only thing that he could think of. He got up, walked over to Harry and pulled the smaller boy into his arms and onto his lap and slightly rocked back and forth.
All of the walls that Harry had built up were down and he was sobbing into his brother's shirt. Harry was still talking through the tears,
"You don't know how scared I was Draco. I seriously thought I was going to die. I felt everything. My last feeling was when I stopped breathing. That's the last thing that I recall happening. Do you know how scary that is?! I was so mad at everybody that this was happening to me."
Draco was rubbing Harry's back while the boy was still sobbing and said,
"I know Harry. I don't have a doubt in my mind that you were absolutely petrified. You also should remember what the doctor told you when you first woke up. There was no way that they could have known that you would react so badly. It's an extremely rare allergy. There are very few documented cases and there is no connection of your allergy to theirs. Unfortunately your allergy presented itself in the way that it always has. When the anesthesia is actively used. You should be glad that the doctors had the means to keep you alive and to fix what had happened with minimal negative effects."
By this point Harry had stopped crying, sniffed then separated himself from Draco and said,
"You're right. But I can't help this, it's just too much. Everything is too much. Everything is happening so fast. I mean so much has happened in the space of a year that I don't know what to do anymore! Now that Voldemort's dead and my 'purpose has been served' I don't know what to do with the rest of my life."
Draco sighed and said,
"Harry you're not even 16 yet, you're not supposed to know what you want to do with the rest of your life. You are Harry Potter in the eyes of the wizarding world. You can do whatever you want. You could play professional Quidditch, or anything your heart desires. But you have time to figure that out! You don't need to rush into things. Enjoy what's left of your childhood. You had to grow up too fast so just take some time to enjoy yourself and just be a kid!"
Harry swiped at his eyes, smiled slightly and said,
"You're right again Draco. Thanks. I needed to hear that. I wish that I could just disappear now that Voldemort's gone. Just enjoy a private life away from the public eye. Just enjoy having a family and not having to worry about what the press or public is saying about me. I wish Harry Potter could just disappear."
Draco slyly smiled and said,
"Who says he can't. You are Harry Snape. Severus is your biological father. We could easily have an article drafted to the Daily Prophet that announces that and requests that you be left alone to enjoy your family."
Harry thought for a moment and said,
"That's true. I just want to be left alone. I've been in the public eye ever since I've re-entered the wizarding world and I really hate the attention. I hate the fact that people used to idolize me for something I couldn't remember and now because I've finally destroyed Voldemort."
"Well then your problem's solved Harry. We'll just have the article drafted and printed. You've got nothing to worry about. Seriously." Draco said earnestly looking into Harry's eyes.
Harry full out smiled and nodded. Draco got up and said,
"Well, it's not even 7 what do you want to do?"
Harry thought for a moment and said,
"Well I need to write a quick letter to Ron, Hermione and Ginny and then after that I think I want to watch a movie."
"Sounds like a plan to me. Hurry up and write your letter." Draco said.
Harry got up and hobbled over to his desk and quickly wrote the 3 letters. He stroked Hedwig's feathers who affectionately nipped his fingers and took off through the open balcony door.
Harry and Draco made their way down to the media room and watched "Dumb and Dumber" so that Draco could see the whole thing.
While Harry and Draco were talking Severus was sitting in his study sipping a glass of Pinot Grigio losing himself in his thoughts. Then he heard the sound of Draco and Harry walking past the room and quietly followed at a distance and saw them enter the media room.
Severus stood outside the door and heard a movie come on then the sounds of laughter and sighed a bit and smiled. He was glad that Harry was at least laughing. It was very obvious that Harry and Draco had had a very good talk and Severus was glad. Hopefully things would be different for Harry now.
Severus made his way back down the hallway and up the stairs hearing the sounds of laughter. He went up to his study and finished the glass of wine then upstairs to his room and took a long bath to relax himself before turning in early mentally running down the list of what he would need to do with Harry for rehabilitation.
A/N: Okay I decided to leave it there since this chapter is pretty long. At least I think it is, I've been working on it for almost 8 hours off and on so I hope it's good. Now push that little button and tell me what you think and don't forget to sign the review and not flame me. So I'll sign off now and hope that that chapter was good. I felt that it needed to be this long and have that scene with Draco kind of chewing Sev out and Harry and Draco's talk. So review, review, review! TTFN!!!!!
