Deconstruction
Chapter Eleven: Dr. Maya Shah
When the ambulance arrived at the back of the kitchens where shipments and supplies were dropped off, the nurse had been sent to bring them in because Dr. White didn't want to leave her patient alone. With the help of the nurse, they were able to keep things as discreet as possible and got the patient out of the hospital almost without a hitch. And it was almost a triumph that they were able to do it under the supervision of Dr. McCoy.
Dr. White went along for the ride as the paramedics looked him over. They tried to argue that her patient didn't need to go to the hospital, but after her adamant insistence, they agreed to drop them off at a hospital. She had purposely requested for a hospital that was further away, which the paramedics were reluctant to agree to. She was able to keep their questions at bay.
When they arrived at the hospital, Dr. White managed to secure some scrubs for her patient. He put them on and they walked out of the hospital together. They hailed a cab and went for a long drive. "I don't suggest you return to your home or back to the hospital," he told her. "He's probably keeping an eye on you since you decided to become my psychologist. Let's stop here."
The cab pulled to a stop, and they got out. "We need to keep moving for now," he said.
"You sound like you've done this before," whispered Dr. White. She noticed how much more alert he was as he looked around. His eyes were constantly moving as he seemed to survey the landscape. "I knew that you weren't sick at all, but why were you there in the first place?"
"I needed a safe place," he answered. "And I am sick. I've told you a lot about my world and where I come from. I need you to tell me what you found in Dr. McCoy's office."
Dr. White nodded and began explaining what she had done and found. She didn't include the warning that Dr. McCoy had given her. When she was done, he looked thoughtful for a moment, and asked, "How well do you know Dr. McCoy?"
"Not that well," admitted Dr. White. "I only started about a week before we met, but he wasn't at all what I expected. He was one of the members of the committee board that hired me."
"How long ago was that?"
"About four and a half months ago."
"How did he seem then?"
"More friendly and open, but he was different when I met him again. Come to think of it, he didn't even welcome me when I arrived. It was only when I decided to take you on that he noticed me."
"Makes sense," he muttered. "I was never alone. Never free of him."
"What?"
"Do you know what they say about nightmares sometimes? Especially about memories. Ones that you don't wish to remember."
"They come out in dreams. Repressed memories."
He was still walking around in scrubs, while she wasn't in her lab coat anymore. They were drawing some attention, but he seemed to ignore him. "I had to find a place safe because of what I knew. I couldn't prove it without him." He faced her for a moment. "It's too complicated to explain, but we need to get you to some place safe. We can't continue being with each other."
The very thought had never really occurred to Dr. White. It never occurred to her that she would have separate from her. He saw the look on her face and placed his hands on her shoulders. "I can't have anyone else getting hurt," he whispered. His tone was never so tender before. "As much as I don't want to admit it, I do care about what happens to you. I have tried my hardest to keep what I feel separate from me as much as possible because of my work."
"You can't," she said softly. "It's part of who you are. Any person with any sense of who you are would know it. You can't stop empathizing and not caring about people."
He scoffed, "It's funny how both qualities can be strengths and weaknesses."
"I can't really confirm, if he's alive or not," said Dr. Shah. "He asked for my help and I gave it."
"Why was he going to you more and more?" asked Oliver.
Dr. Shah asked back, "Did he have nightmares?"
Oliver nodded, "They happened a often on and off. At first, he'd just go back to sleep, but eventually he'd tried to stay awake on purpose. He never told me what the dreams were about, but I think he had something to do with his work."
"You are correct in that assumption," said Dr. Shah. "Most of all of what I have done with Percy is supposed to remain confidential. I know of your world and I have heard about you. You were the one who saved his life, and he trusts you with some of his secrets."
"What did he tell you?" asked Oliver.
"Most of the time, I'm not practicing psychiatry. That is the true. I'm normally in the university doing research," explained the doctor. "My expertise is in the recovery and verification of repressed memories."
"You mean that Percy had something buried deep inside his mind?" asked Oliver. "Something happened to him?"
"I'm also an expert on hypnosis," explained Dr. Shah as she got to her feet. "It is one of the best methods used to uncover what is buried deep in one's psyche. I have spent more than twenty years of my career proving its validity and value to my profession by doing research and experiments."
"However, Percy was the oddest case I had ever seen," she admitted as she continued. "He was avoiding a lot of what he was experiencing through his work rather than confronting what was troubling him. It took the first couple of sessions before he was able to trust me. It took more than a month before he allowed me to do the first hypnosis. After that, it was even more difficult for us to interpret, even for him. I'm not one of you, so I couldn't even begin to understand myself."
"The first couple of sessions yielded very little. It wasn't until we dove deeper. There were several layers. The superficial layer was disturbing and one could easily take it at face value."
"Did it have something to do with the murder of someone?" asked Oliver, thinking of Penelope Clearwater.
Dr. Shah nodded. "I'm assuming that you know about the murder? I did a little research to his story and found the articles on the unsolved murder. It was covered by the newspapers." She stood up and went through a bottom filing cabinet and pulled out a thin file. "Here are the original articles."
Oliver looked through it and saw that it was about Penelope. He thought it was eerie that the pictures were frozen in time. She wasn't blinking nor moving about in anyway. It was like viewing a body in a casket with the eyes wide open. "Did he know something about the murder?"
"From all appearances, it looked like he was the one who killed her."
"He killed Penelope? I don't believe it."
"I didn't say he did it. It looked like he did." She got up again and this time went to a portrait that was hanging on the wall. She lifted the frame, revealing a wall safe. She put in the combination and took out a box. Dr. Shah explained, "I taped all of our sessions together, and he told me to allow you to listen to them in the event that you should come looking for him."
She picked up a tape recorder that was sitting on her desk and brought the box with her. She set them both on a small table that was between the two chairs that she and Oliver were sitting at. "There is a specific one that you should listen to." She read the dates on the labels before inserting one of them into the tape deck.
Oliver knew nothing about Muggle technology. In fact, he laughed at Percy when he announced he was going to be taking Muggle Studies back in Hogwarts. It seems that Percy had a good idea back then. Needless to say, hearing Percy's voice on the recording was haunting.
"Concentrate. As you dig deeper into your mind." The first voice was obviously Dr. Shah's. "What do you remember that day? What did you see?"
"I see her falling from the window. I'm standing just watching her fall. I see her body spattered all over the ground." Percy's trembling voice seemed to echo in the silence of the office. "I did it. It's my fault. I killed her."
Oliver gasped as he shook his head. "He didn't do it. He wouldn't do it," he denied. Dr. Shah stopped the tape player.
"I told you that there were several layers to all of this," warned Dr. Shah. "I don't think he killed her. I think that someone else did. It involved me learning more about your world. I'm sure you've heard, if not learned how to do memory modifying spells?"
Oliver nodded. "In school, just in case anyone of you should find out accidentally, we can use it to modify memories. Normally only our authorities learn how to use them, but some of us learn how just in case. As a government employee, he might have been required to learn it. I don't know how to do the spell myself."
"He had nightmares of things that came and haunted him," said Dr. Shah. "He was a very troubled young man. You knew that. You have covered it up for him and protected him, but you can't continue to do that and ignore what you are looking at. He knew that the time would come that you wouldn't be able to keep your questions to yourself. He didn't want to answer for himself, but I think that you can understand why."
"He didn't trust himself."
Dr. Shah gave him a grim nod as she looked through the tapes again. "This time I have left this recording at just his voice. We went over the murder over and over again. In my profession, one can say they committed a murder, but I am only suppose to break my code of silence if I am given permission to do so or if my patient intends to commit another murder."
She put in the next tape and pressed the play button.
"These nightmares are worse than seeing her dead over and over again. I see something coming at me. I have my wand out, but I'm overwhelmed quickly. The next thing, I see it's taking down it's hood. I know what it is. It opens its mouth and it's coming for me. I blacked out again. When I wake up, I'm back in my flat, but I don't remember how I got there."
"Dementor," whispered Oliver. "But I don't understand what happened. He never took any time off. I don't get it. He was out the first time after he tried to kill himself. Unless someone came into the Ministry looking like him. When did he say this happened?"
"That's why I had to get all the articles together on the murder. Together, we were trying to piece together a timeline, but he was starting to suspect that someone had posed as him and modified his memory. Are those things possible?"
"Yes," answered Oliver. "It still doesn't explain why anyone would do all that. What was it about Percy?"
"That was when he cut me off," said Dr. Shah. "He was protecting a part of himself that he didn't want other people to know about. He had a strong sense of duty about it."
Oliver thought of something else. Something that he hadn't even told Tonks, although it had been in plain sight in the flat the entire time. Why he didn't tell her, he didn't know, but right now it seemed that it mattered a lot. "One of the few hobbies he had other than reading was drawing. When he couldn't sleep, he'd start drawing. I kept some of them. He used both sides of the paper because the type of paper he liked to use is expensive."
Dr. Shah nodded. "I was the one who helped him," she continued. "About three months ago, he asked me to find him a safe place to rest and to put together what was the last of the puzzle. He said that he couldn't do it where he was anymore and that the people around him would be in danger, if he continued to stay. So, I got in touch with a friend of mine who worked for a hospital up north. His name is Gregory McCoy and he agreed to take him in as a patient. It's a hospital for the mentally ill. He should still be there."
"Good," said Oliver. "Would you mind giving me the address?"
"I don't know if he would have wanted me to put you in danger. I haven't heard from my friend in a while, but I suppose it is because he has been very busy," answered Dr. Shah as they both got to their feet. He followed her to her desk as she rifled through it and found the business card. "I hope you know what you're doing, Mr. Wood," she said softly. "Good luck to you."
"I have a feeling I'm going to need it. Thank you, Dr. Shah," said Oliver and he left the office.
Remus went to the Aurors after he had visited Tonks' apartment to find that she wasn't there, which wasn't entirely a surprise to him. She had left a note to the manager of her building, saying that she had gone on holiday. However, it seemed that the Aurors were going to be busy with something else. Remus found Kingsley looking very busy at the moment.
"What's going on?" asked Remus.
Kingsley looked up from a packet of work. "The Minister has called upon the leaders of the continent to come to Great Britain for discussions of the threat of You-Know-Who. It was just announced today."
"How long before this meeting takes place?" asked Remus.
"Three days," answered Kingsley. "I really wished that the Minister had given more notice to us, but we must get security ready for it. Did you find Tonks?"
"She went on holiday," answered Remus. "She didn't say where, but she's no where to be found."
Kingsley froze mid-movement as he looked up at Remus with a look that could only be classified as surprised anger. "She went on holiday?" he repeated. "I told that she was off the case, not to go on holiday. We need her here for what's going on now."
"Sorry," said Remus with a shrug.
Kingsley took a deep breath and said, "We can't continue with the investigation on Percy's disappearance. Our resources must be redirected to the security of the Minister and the other visiting dignitaries. I don't know what I'm going to tell Arthur."
"I think that they might continue the investigation on their own," offered Remus. "I'm pretty sure that Arthur going to know about this soon enough, if not already."
"Where do you think Tonks went?"
"No idea."
If Remus was lying, Kingsley couldn't tell. There were times when Kingsley had to admit that he never quite understood Remus. They weren't entirely too close, but after the death of Sirius Black, they had gotten to know each other better. Remus spent most of his time moving between groups quite easily, but never finding a permanent place. He was a werewolf, but a lone wolf all the same. Sometimes he wondered about what Remus did when he wasn't with the Order, but Kingsley never ventured to ask.
"Remus, would you mind telling Arthur about this?" asked Kingsley. "I would go myself, but I'm swamped."
"No problem," agreed Remus. "It will give me something to do."
"Thanks," said Kingsley and with that Remus was out the door.
When Oliver returned to the safe house, Tonks was waiting for him. She was pacing back and forth. She immediately pivoted when he Apparated in. "Where the bloody Hell have you been?" she demanded as she marched up to him. Oliver almost shrunk back from her. He was bigger than her, but she was scary and livid.
"You were suppose to stay here. Where did you go?" she demanded.
"I went to go and talk to Dr. Shah," he replied.
"You what?" demanded Tonks as her eyes widened.
"So, I just jumped in. You don't have to be overly prepared for everything. She told me a lot of things and I know where Percy is."
Tonks sank down into the sofa like air coming out of a balloon. "Oh. And all that research for nothing," she muttered.
"She wouldn't have told you anything anyway," said Oliver. "It's me she was waiting for."
"Tell me what happened. Just the gist of it because I have something you need to know, too," surrendered Tonks. Oliver told her what had happened. It took a while because she kept asking questions, but he wasn't too worried about them.
When Oliver was done, he asked, "What about you?"
"It wasn't that hard to find out about Dr. Shah. She has several articles about her research, so I was able to conclude by myself that Percy probably has some memories locked and hidden away. I did more searching for Alistair Xavier. He's been on his long term assignment since before Penelope died. No one has had visual contact with him since then from the Prophet. There hasn't been a face to face meeting either. He reports back to the paper with owls. I also did a background check on him. He had attended Drumstrang Academy in Bulgaria, but his mother was English, while his father was a Spaniard who was an ambassador to the Ministry of Magic. He speaks a multitude of languages."
"His parents haven't heard from him?"
"Both them are dead. They were living in England during the time that You-Know-Who was around for the first time," answered Tonks. "His father had attended Drumstrang, so Xavier was sent there as well rather than Hogwarts by his father's relatives. He was raised partially in England by his mother's relatives, then by his father's. He became a reporter while he was still a student and was hired by the Daily Prophet upon his graduation from Drumstrang."
"What about Percy? How did Alistair know him?"
"That's what I'm still trying to figure out, but for right now we may not have to worry about it. Let me see the business card," answered Tonks. Oliver handed it to her. "Dr. Gregory McCoy. Head of Admissions." She looked at the card. "We'll have to get out of here in order to use a phone."
"Fine," agreed Oliver. "I'm hungry anyway. Is there any place nearby that we can eat?"
"Sure," said Tonks as she grabbed her coat. "You'll owe me since you don't have any Muggle money."
After a quick lunch, Tonks used a phone to make the call. It was getting harder and harder to find one of the traditional red phone booths in London because more and more of the Muggles were using cellular phones. She called the number and found that he lived close to the hospital.
"It seems that he lives in another city. There's something happening in the hospital and he can't receive my call," explained Tonks as she got out of the phone booth. "We'll have to go there ourselves. Besides, we've stayed at one place too long anyway."
Oliver nodded. They returned to Tonks' father's house and prepared to move again. This time they didn't have to worry about the Ministry or the Aurors because of the preparations being made for the Minister's important meeting with other ministers. They Apparated to the city where the hospital was, but they didn't know that Percy was long gone and that their search would be diverted down another path.
AN: I threw in all the psych stuff I learned in school. After all, I have a degree in the subject. There are way too many doctors in this thing, but there are only two true doctors. I have planned for Tonks and Oliver to never make it to the hospital with something that will stop them in their tracks. Meanwhile, I've also thrown in the Minister's meeting, which is actually very important to the movement of the plot.
Kirikarin . livejournal . com
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. This story belongs to me and cannot be posted anywhere else without my permission.