December 27, 2003
Disclaimer: I, TiniTinuviel, am in no way associated with Ms. J.K Rowling, Scholastic Books, or Warner Bros. Harry Potter and all of its characters, etc. belong, in turn, to all of the aforementioned parties and their subsidiaries. I claim nothing save for the particular plot of this piece of fan fiction and selected characters.
*Authors Note: Oh my God you guys, I'm so sorry I took so long! But school is out for the break so here's to hoping that fiction writing will find its due time! First off, thanks for sticking with me and if you're new, whoo hoo! I feel that I've taken too long to update, so we'll leave this note where it's at. Enjoy the chapter and I'm sorry for the wait! Review reviews are at the bottom and without any further ado, I give you Chapter Six of Tell it to My Face!
~*~
'They'll know in a few hours,' Remus told himself. 'There's no escaping it… They'll be devastated.'
He'd been sitting in his office for the past fifteen minutes running the conversation over in his mind.
"Harry's in trouble, Remus."
Those four small words… No four words had struck him so dearly since he'd heard, "Sirius betrayed the Potters." Of course those were proven false over time but somehow he doubted that these would change.
"You're going to have to elaborate on that for me." He had replied. "What do you mean he's 'in trouble'?"
He seemed to have to wait an eternity before Sirius had enough strength to answer his question.
"He had a stroke."
It struck like lightning on a cloudless day. An embolic stroke at age sixteen. Magic most likely involved. By who was the real question.
"Voldemort?" he asked; he was the most obvious adversary that wanted Harry in the grave.
"Or one of his Death Eaters. Plan 'B' in case that whole woods thing didn't work out, I guess," Sirius sighed. He looked like he was going to drop at any minute.
"Well, is it going to happen again?" Remus asked.
"From the way the staff was talking it sounds like it's a one time deal. But that doesn't mean that more than one person can't curse him with it at the same time and just not trigger it. What if they have five or six Death Eaters on this in case it doesn't work the first time? Voldemort has been cocky in the past, sure, but he's starting to wizen up. A lot of people could have come into contact with him in a week. What are we going to do?"
Indeed. However Remus was forced to tell him that there really wasn't anything they could do and should he really want to pursue this thought, he would have to do it on his own, at least for the rest of the day. The students would be up and about in less than an hour and there were rumors milling about Harry's absence, most were untrue but all of them spoke of the Death Eaters. He had to speak with Professor Dumbledore on the matter and try to think of a way to tell Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. It wouldn't be easy and the last thing he wanted was to scare them.
"Professor?" a voice asked from the doorway, breaking his almost solid train of thought. A wizened old man in long violet robes had his head peeked through the crack in the door.
"Headmaster! I didn't even hear you. Come in!" Remus exclaimed.
"I'm sorry," Dumbledore started as he began to walk across the office. "It seems old age has led me to tread quietly through the castle. I didn't mean to startle you; that was far from my intent." By now he was immediately across the desk from the younger wizard and delicately sat in one of the armchairs before him. He quietly studied Remus for a moment who faltered under his gaze, who instead turned his eyes to the rich, cherry wood of his desk. "From your appearance and behavior it seems as if Sirius has told you everything." A sigh and a nod were his reply. "How are you taking this?"
"Not well, actually…" he trailed, allowing another sigh to escape. He knew the old man was already aware of this, but it was just how Dumbledore did things. He liked people to say what they felt. It helped to ease their mind. Remus paused and put his elbows on his desk, next speaking through his fingers with a wavering voice. "What are we going to tell them, Albus? We can't lie to them like the rest of the school." Exasperatedly, he added, "Even then, the school will learn the truth somehow, whether we let it out or not."
"Professor Lupin, just remain calm," Dumbledore said, daring to bring Remus' hands back to the desk which was followed by his eyes. "We will tell the Weasleys and Ms. Granger the truth, and anybody else that we deem worthy. The rest of the school will be told a fabrication of the truth as usual. Harry is ill, and has fallen worse. That will suffice as far as they are concerned. Have you informed Professor McGonagall yet?" When he didn't answer, he tried again. "Professor? Remus?"
"No," he let out, barely louder than a whisper, "not yet. I suppose I should go find her."
"Are you up for teaching today?" Dumbledore asked him suddenly, seeing the pale and fragile look on his face.
"Yeah," he nodded, his voice coarse, his mind elsewhere. "I'll be fine."
"Remus-"
"Honestly," he said looking up, "they're just doing book work today anyway. We'll be fine... I'll be fine," he finished, as if to convince himself that the words were true.
"I am not convinced," the old man replied, watching him take in a shaky breath, "but if you are certain then I will let you teach. I will inform Professor McGonagall of what has happened. She'll come down and speak with you before breakfast and you can work out your plan of action from there. I recommend that you tell them as soon as possible; putting it off will only hurt all of you."
"Albus, we'll take care of it."
"Alright," he said, "and don't forget to take care of yourself. There is a full moon coming soon, in case you've forgotten." A moment, and then he added, "Minerva will be in shortly."
"Thank you," was all that he could muster in reply.
Professor Dumbledore stood up to leave and headed for the office door but before he reached the handle he turned and walked back to the quiet, crestfallen man in the desk chair and said, "Why don't you go and rest for a few minutes? Take a short nap? Minerva is more than capable of waking you when she arrives and I need time to explain to her all that has happened in the last few hours."
"If you insist," Remus blankly complied.
"I do," he said, and reached out to shake hands, pulling Remus to a stand before he left.
"I'll just sleep in here, actually. The couch is more than comfortable for thirty minutes time."
Dumbledore nodded and left without another word, closing the door behind him. With a pounding head Remus walked over to the lone couch, sitting down roughly before heaving a great sigh and lying down to sleep for the first time in over 36 hours.
He had barely closed his eyes, however, before he felt spindly old fingers shaking him back into wakefulness.
"Wake up, Professor Lupin, breakfast starts in fifteen minutes," Professor McGonagall said from above him.
"Professor," he started, looking through sleep-blurred eyes, "how did you get here so quickly? Albus just left to find you-"
"He left to find me over an hour ago," she said pulling up a chair beside him. "You've been sleeping near two hours now actually. I'm sorry to be so straight forward on this Remus but we really must decide what to tell Mr. Potter's friends and when. I suggested to Albus that the Houses be informed separately instead of over breakfast this morning to cut down on some of the incessant gossip that always follows such news. He agreed. The Gryffindors seem to be taking it fairly well-"
"You told them all of it?" he asked incredulously.
"No," she said, "only that he would be gone for a few more days. His 'flu' it seems has gotten worse with the cold and his relatives 'weren't keen on letting him come back to school in such a state.'" Remus looked at her skeptically. "I know what you are thinking and no, the Weasleys and Ms. Granger didn't buy it for a second. They tried to corner me as I left but I told them I would speak to them later. They didn't seem too pleased, but at least happier at the thought that they would learn the truth."
Remus sighed as he sat up, wiping the sleep from his eyes, wondering why they felt as if they had been staring into the sun since the dawn of time. His headache reflected the same feeling.
"Here, I've brought you some orange juice," she said, pulling a clear glass off the table behind her to hand to him.
"Coffee would have been better," he murmured.
"Hardly," she retorted sarcastically, not missing his small complaint. "While it would wake you up it would do nothing for your health. This will do both. Now, for the topic at hand…" she trailed, never one to digress for any long amount of time.
"What day is today?" he asked, rubbing his forehead. "Wednesday?"
"Yes," she replied after a flick of her eyes to a calendar on the wall.
"I have them in class this afternoon but not Ginny."
"I have Ms. Weasley this afternoon in Transfiguration. My class ends at 3:30."
"As does mine. How about I hold Ron and Hermione after class and we'll meet in your classroom by 3:45?" he suggested. Meticulously she looked him over.
"How about Ms. Weasley and I meet you three? It may not be far, but I don't think you're in any condition to be meandering the hallways when you don't need to," she pointed out. "I know you and Sirius think you're invincible, Mr. Lupin, but you are far from it. No," she repeated without time for his reply, "we will come to you."
"But what do you think we should tell them?"
"Everything."
"Everything? Are you sure? Because they are not afraid to ask the hard questions." It seemed much too rash to tell them everything, no questions asked.
"Yes, Mr. Lupin, I am fully aware of that. I have had them in class three more years than you have," she retorted.
"What I mean is, is there anything we should let Harry tell them? And what do we say when they want to know how he was taken? Even we don't know all the details on that yet."
"At the risk of sounding like an ominous old woman, I don't think we should leave anything for Harry to tell. Albus thinks they should know everything right now and… and we don't even know if he'll wake up."
It was like a slap in the face and gallons of ice cold water being thrown across him all at once. He looked up at her with amazed and alarmed eyes. 'How could she say something like that?'
"I'm sorry," she began, "but it is the unfortunate truth. That's not to say I don't believe he'll come through, but we must keep all possibilities in mind. That way we won't fall so hard when the undesirable happens." She paused, her eyelids turning a shade pink as she looked down. "Now if you'll excuse me," she said as she stood from her place, "I must go." She turned for the door but stopped when she reached it. She did not turn around as she pulled the handle open, rather turned only her head, and more to the floor than anything else. "Don't forget breakfast is starting shortly. I will be expecting to see you there and Ms. Weasley and I will meet you in your classroom at 3:45 this afternoon," and she snapped the door closed behind her leaving Remus in shock on the couch.
Distantly he noted his vice-like grip on his glass of juice from the militant old woman when his hearing caught something amiss: a sniffle from across the door, the shaking of a handkerchief, and the blowing of a nose. He knew what was happening without even seeing it and he refused to see Professor McGonagall cry. He knew to respect her privacy, but he never realized how much she cared. Instead he listened, heartbroken, at the door as she took in a steadying breath. He could practically see her dabbing at her eyes and replacing her spectacles, straightening her robes and adjusting her already perfect hat before marching once again towards the door to the hallway. Only when he heard that door open and close did he release his breath and sit on the arm of the couch, praying the day would already be over.
~*~
Against his own will, Sirius fell asleep when the morning sun was hours past sunrise. The nurses all commented to each other on how uncomfortably he slept.
"He's using his arms as a pillow, I saw," Henrietta, a plump, kindly, old nurse whispered as she passed, heading off to arrange fresh bedding in vacant rooms.
"He won't be using them for long. I've never seen anybody sleep for more than a few hours sitting in a chair like he is," Kyren said, ticking off information in charts as she sat leisurely in a black, swivel chair.
"But did you see the way he's holding his hand?" Eleanor added timidly, leaning against the desk with her arms crossed. "He must really love him to sleep holding Harry's hand like that."
"And with his glasses on too, I'll add," Larna said, striding up to the desk from the room across the hall. "I've just been in to check on them. His godfather wasn't wearing glasses when he came in, was he?"
"No, I don't recall so," Eleanor said, standing behind the U-shaped station with a look of deepest thought upon her features.
"Well, in any case, I left
them on. Thought if I tried to remove
them he'd wake up. He'll probably wake
up soon anyway. He seemed to be lost in
some nightmare, but I didn't wake him as I wasn't sure. It was pretty borderline."
"Probably for the best," Eleanor finished.
On a whim she asked, "Have any of you heard what his last name is? He looks quite familiar but I can't seem to
place him."
"No," they replied, "though," Kyren picked up, "I had a very ominous feeling about him when we first spoke, but it was strange. I felt as if I should be afraid, and everything in my mind was telling me to run but I just couldn't when I looked into his eyes. Something about those eyes suppresses the 'fight-or-flight' instinct. I'm not sure if I like that."
"I've felt the same way," Larna added, now leaning on the counter on her crossed arms, "It's so bizarre."
Eleanor only hummed her agreement. There was something bizarre going on here indeed and she was going to get to the bottom of it.
~*~
As 3:30 struck, Eleanor made her way into Harry's room. She shivered briefly at the change in temperature from his darkened room as opposed to the hallway and softly clicked on a lamp in the corner. Without a break from sound Sirius quickly stirred, eyes whipping impossibly fast around the room, finally resting on the light-blue clad woman before him.
"I'm sorry," she whispered nervously. "I didn't mean to wake you. I just came to… to check him over and I needed some light."
He only hummed his concurrence before lying his head back down again, looking toward Harry's face and softly closing his eyes again.
"Wouldn't you like a bed? It must be horribly uncomfortable to sleep like that."
"No," he said, his voice no louder than a hoarse whisper, "I really want to stay here. Besides," he said, checking his watch, "Remus said he would be here in about an hour. I need to be where he'll know to find me."
"That doesn't mean that you can't sleep someplace else and we can wake you up when he gets here."
"I'm fine staying here, thanks," and there was no mistaking the finality in his voice.
She fell silent, knowing she would probably never win the battle and went about her inspection. Stealing a glance at the man before her, she saw his bloodshot eyes that drizzled down into large, uncomely bags. He was rubbing his neck as so many hospital visitors do when they fall asleep where they sit, and his black hair flailed messily, shooting out crazily like sprigs from a dried bush. On any other occasion it would have made her giggle, but now she suppressed her laughter and silently cursed herself as her shoes clicked on the floor and reverberated around the room. She prayed that he wouldn't pay attention to the noise, but even though he feigned deafness, the sound shook him and hurt his eardrums. They may as well have been stilettos actually being driven into his ear canal instead of soft flats that merely seemed to press upon the mind. He couldn't wait for her to leave. Unfortunately, his wish required a payment, a payment that froze him to his seat when cautiously she asked him, "Sirius, what's your last name?"
When she saw him visibly tense up at the question, she tried to cover herself, quickly adding, "Because you look like a boy that I went to school with. You didn't attend the Rottbrenhurst Academic Estrella of Convalescence did you?"
Stiffly, and against all of his judgment, he very slightly picked up his head and jerkily shook it 'no'.
"Oh," she managed, trying to keep her responses as light as possible. "So I take it Rainhampton's is out as well then?"
Again, he nodded, this time raising his head to look at those dark brown eyes, to study them. With some hesitation and an adrenaline surge of power behind his muscles should he need them, he asked, "Why do you want to know?"
"Oh, it's nothing," she passed off, "the girls and I just thought you looked familiar and those were the only two places that we all attended together. I guess you just have one of those fa-" She stopped.
"One of those what?" he asked, frightened and dangerous.
"Just one of those faces…" She held Sirius' gaze for a very long time. Larna called for her twice before she dared to move. It took longer for him to remove his transfixed pupils from her alarmed features, but when he did, the tension in the room seemed to lesson from being like a claustrophobic with their head stuck in a jack-o-lantern, to merely new and twitchy company.
Fearing the worst, but knowing that he could never escape the inevitable, he heavily asked, "Have you remembered? Do you know who I am?" His eyes were cast low, straight through the floor, but his voice still seemed dangerous.
"No," she shook her head, breathless. "No… I thought for a moment… but, no… that would be impossible… It couldn't happen." Pulling herself out of her own thoughts, she turned to him once more, forcing a smile and hastily wished him a good day before walking briskly out of the room. Sirius caught her putting a hand to her chest in anxiety as she crossed the threshold and stopped abruptly at the nurses' station, frozen in time, Larna leaning over the desk, most likely asking her what had taken so long.
Sirius, on the other hand, felt lost in the darkness. Not just his life was on the line, but his soul. 'When is Remus going to get here?' he erratically thought, pulling his eyes away from the scene. 'I've really gotten myself into trouble this time, and there's definitely no escaping it without some help.'
~*~
That's it kids! Yep, Sirius has really landed himself in the shitter this time! (Sorry, I had to say it!) Again, I'm reeeeeeeeeeeally sorry that it took me so long and that this chapter isn't really long enough to make up for that, but hey, I'm trying! Now on to the good stuff!
Review Reviews!:
Tayce: Omg! I have to say that the email you sent me right after I posted… the little face… it just cracks me up!! I opened it and just started laughing so hard! I'm seriously thinking of making into desktop wallpaper! It's CLASSIC! It makes me smile just thinking about it! *lol* And thank you sooooo much for reviewing… next time if your computer is being stooopid, just drop me a line! But that means so much to me! You rock! As for Ron and 'Mione catching up with the Boy-Wonder, that is coming soon as this chapter leads to it! Thanks for reading! And don't sweat the tired part… I think we all are!
NightSpear: Yeah, I'm evil… *gives Voo-doo fingers and shifty eyes*… but that's coming to an end for now. As for Dumbledore, he always was powerful, I'm just reveling it in J.K.'s world. And the stroke… ah, the stroke… you'll just have to see! :D Why are you getting discouraged with Phoenix? It seems fine me… Muse being an ass-clown, if I may use the term? If you need anything, just drop me a line! Don't know if I can help, but I'm here for ya! And thanks for the nitpicks!
ParanoiaIn2005: Thank you! Yeah, I had to go depressing for a bit, but things are going to look up for awhile! I am way mondo flattered that you think I can make anything work! *lol* I don't write anything but ff's right now except some really horrible poetry about art which probably won't be shared anytime soon! (Read: ever *lol*) But thanks! I'ma try and grab some time to read some of your stuff too! It sounds really good!
Mel49: Glad to be back! Thanks!
Angeltears3: Thanks for liking it! Sorry for the wait!
JT14: I am soooo flattered that you reviewed my story and it absolutely cracks me up every time I read "tasty little morsel." My God, it just... it's so cool and it makes me feel good, and it's different! So thank you for that!! Thank you for thinking my fic is an ass-kicker and hopefully I'll be able to get more out over break!
~Tini :D