Chapter Ten: Stand By You

Harry stared into the common room fire, watching the flames dance as he half-listened to Ron's rant. This was as bad as in the second year. Hermione had collapsed after the disaster at the pitch, and Madame Pomfrey didn't know what was wrong. Ron finished his ranting and stormed up to the dorm, no doubt trying to forget the things that were happening. Harry didn't have that option.

"What's wrong with Hermione?" He spoke to the flames, not really expecting an answer. So he started when Godric's book thumped open and started flipping through pages on its own. When it stopped, he picked it up and started reading.

The little known and rare power of Empathic Healing is different in many ways from the other abilities listed here. While it never appears before the Sixteenth year, it will sometimes not make itself known for some time after. It requires an additional push to be fully activated. Mental contact with another Empath will set forward the events that lead to a full Empathic Healer.

Warning : Once the Empath is activated, it is essential to distance them from any human physical pain or suffering, by at least a couple of miles. Dues to the sensitive nature of the ability, the newly emerged Empath will experience other's pains as their own. The ban will last for 48 hours, after which time a mental barrier will have formed to protect them form the worst of the sensations. If the Empath is subjected to too much pain with no relief, it is likely they will lose their sanity, as demonstrated by the Cruciatus curse.

There were warning signs listed, as well as another couple of pages describing different ways to use the ability, but Harry had read enough. With a wave of his wand, a piece of old parchment came soaring from hid dorm. Tapping it lightly, he whispered,

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Lines started tracing themselves on the sheet, soon creating a replica of Gryffindor tower. Scanning it carefully, he saw that most of the inhabitants were safely in their beds. He made his way to the door, watching as the map shifted, looking at the floors above and below. Satisfied that he could leave with no notice, he exited the portrait hole, keeping his eye on the map.

It was an interesting trip to the infirmary. The caretaker and Mrs. Norris seemed particularly active tonight, and having left his invisibility cloak in the tower, he was forced to hide a lot. When he finally did make it there, he was almost foiled by the nurse, as she was still making rounds. He hid in the shadows, watching as she checked many beds, including Hermione's. He held his breath, wondering at what she might do, but she only shook her head. The last bed checked, she headed towards her quarters. He waited an additional couple of minutes before he made his way to her bed.

Once he sat himself next to her, he concentrated on the explanation he had read in the book.

The Sharing Touch is one of the simpler forms of Empathy, as it requires a physical contact to invoke the mental connection. The first use of this ability is to transfer feeling, emotions, and, in an advanced application, images and words to the recipient. This effect can also be reversed, taking these things from another's mind. The use of Occlumency will hinder the process.

Harry thought about what he was planning to do. Here he sat, basically volunteering to put himself through an unknown amount of pain. He smiled a little as he remembered Hermione's comment about saving people. Time to get to work.

Placing his hand so that their fingertips touched, he concentrated on what she must be feeling, lost in the pain, as he had so many times. He searched for it, carefully treading the corners of her mind until he started catching glimpses, bright red lights wreathed in shadow. He called to them, slowly retreating to his own mind dragging the lights with him.

His breath caught in his throat as he became aware of the pain. It slammed into him with the force of a Bludger, almost causing him to cry out. It was not unbearable, though. It hurt mightily, but his experiences with both physical injury and the pain from his scar helped him diffuse the feelings until he felt he was in control. It settled into a steady flow of pain from her to him, but he barely noticed.

What was much more important was the fact that the shadow bruises were fading from he arms and face, and she stopped tossing around in the bed. Her breathing evened out until she at last fell into a natural sleep. His head slipping down onto the bed until the task of keeping himself awake was too much, and he too drifted into a slumber, kneeling her side.

Poppy Pomfrey walked into the Hospital area, trying not to yawn as the long night and scant sleep caught up with her. She stopped at the sight greeting her. Harry Potter lay sleeping, kneeling by the bed of Hermione Granger. Their fingertips were touching, and whenever her hand moved, his followed at the same time, never losing contact.

"What do you think you are doing, Mr. Potter!" She longed to yell, but the other sleeping patients kept her voice to a low growl. He jumped up at her question, though she noted his fingers still did not move. His face flushed red as he considered the situation.

Madame, if you will give me a second, I will explain." It was not to be as she interrupted.

"Absolutely not! Unhand my patient and exit the room at once." She expected him to comply right away, and was shocked when he merely winced.

"I'm afraid that's not possible right now. I do, however, have a really good excuse-"

"That's is ridiculous! Leave before I have to remove you by force!" When he shook his head, she was honestly surprised. "You refuse?" He nodded, prompting a sigh from her. Touching her badge, she said the incantation that she had only been forced to use twice in her twenty year tenure at Hogwarts.

Harry felt as if a powerful wind picked him up from the bedside, and started shifting him towards the entrance. He fought it with all his might, knowing that Hermione might soon slip into insanity if he wasn't there. There was at least another twenty-four hours left until the barrier in her mind was complete. He started protesting, trying to get the nurse to listen to reason, but she seemed implacable. When he glanced towards Hermione, he saw that she had started tossing again, and there was the hint of a bruise forming on her face. He drew his wand, sad that he was about to do this.

"I'm really, really sorry. Speculum Impellere!" The force moving him disappeared, rounding on her and freezing her in place. Ignoring her startled cry, he ran back over to the bed, quickly reestablishing the connection. When he was sure she was resting again, he turned to the shocked and still nurse. "As I was trying to say before, I have a valid reason for doing this. Hermione is an Empathic Healer." He was sure that she would have gasped if she was able. "I didn't know this, and I accidentally activated her about," he glanced at the clock "twenty-three hours ago. With all of these people injured...well, I'm sure you know the danger. I'm in the middle of channeling her pain so she can recover until her shield is finished. Now, I'm going to end the spell, and I would appreciate it if you would do the same. Finite Incantatem!" He felt a few seconds of the pulling force before she ended the spell.

"I must see the Headmaster, and inform him of the new situation."

"That's fine, but if you could hurry with healing the rest of the students, I would be grateful." At her raised eyebrows, he explained. "Well, I would like to eat and use the bathroom at some point, and Hermione needs another day or so before she can face it alone." She nodded her understanding before heading back to her rooms, no doubt to floo the Headmaster. Harry concentrated on the girl in front of him for a while, then reached into his pocket and pulled out Godric's book. It still amazed him that no matter what, it always ended up back in his pocket. He was reading up on the Foe Flames ability when a shout made him jump.

"WHAT GOING ON HERE?" The angry voice of Ron rang through the room, startling some of the other occupants. They moved, increasing the flow of pain Harry was feeling. His head started aching, which may be why he did what he did.

"Get you hands off of-" Ron stopped talking as he felt the pressure settle on him, pushing. He looked at Harry, and saw a familiar fire in his eyes.

"I'm afraid, Ron, that moving from this spot would have a negative impact on her sanity, so you're going to have to accept my being here." The boy's face turned a deep red at this, and he started struggling against whatever held him. Harry ignored him and tried to concentrate on helping his friend through this trial. Ron started cursing, and the healer came rushing into the room.

"Mr. Weasley, I will ask you to have some respect for healing people. If you cannot moderate your tone and language, you will be banned from this room."

"What about him?" She merely glanced at Harry before turning her gaze back to the redhead.

"Mr. Potter is assisting me, and he is being very quiet about it." Ron's face was doing a credible imitation of his uncle, and Harry decided to try for a little peace.

"Listen, Ron-" was as far as he got before the stupid boy started yelling.

"I guess the Famous Harry Potter can't go a single day without some special attention. Have to get everything, don't you? Can't leave anything for me? I should have known that you would take what I wanted!" Harry kept his face expressionless, but he felt the hurt and anger burning inside of him. He turned his attention back to Hermione, trying not to let his emotions out of control. Behind him, Madame Pomfrey shooed him out, above his protests and vituperation of Harry's character. Harry tried to block out the words, but they kept coming back to haunt him. By now, the anger was gone, but the pain stayed. He had hoped to head off any jealous rampages and tirades, because a repeat of his fourth year was not what he was looking for. All of those thoughts ran from his head when a pair of brown eyes opened up beneath him.

"Harry? What's happening?"

"Well, Hermione, that's a little complicated."

Thankfully, Madame Pomfrey finished healing the other students in a couple of hours, so Harry had the opportunity to go to the loo. He and Hermione had lunch in the infirmary, so as not to subject her to the staring and whispering. They were, at the moment, talking about the other part of their group.

"I can't believe he just went off an you like that! Didn't he learn his lesson last time?" She had been yelling for a couple of minutes now, and only the chastizing of the nurse calmed her down. Harry had sat quietly through the entire scene, and when she turned to him, she was surprised to see him staring pensively into space. "Harry? What's wrong?" She looked him in the eye and was shocked to see the lost expression there.

"I don't think I can go through this again." He leaned over and placed his head in his hands.

"Now Harry, you just need to give him time to come around." She stroked his hair, but his head shook beneath her hand.

"You don't understand. When I was in that coma, I was almost lost. The only reason I made it out was you two." She gave a start and he smiled wearily. "It's rather complicated, but I was something like an astral projection for a while." His face took on a blissful expression, one she rarely saw, and he continued. "There was no pain where I drifted, even though I knew my body was in pain. I had a hard time convincing myself to go back. Eventually, I had to do something rather drastic." He stopped talking, and she waited with baited breath before prodding.

"Go on."

"I used the thought of our friendship, you, me, and Ron, to tie myself to this plane, this body." He placed a hand on his chest, and she drew a breath in sharply. This could be bad. "I don't know if it was a permanent tie, or if was only needed that one time. The point is, Ron left, and it makes me feel uncertain. And when I feel like that, I'm not sure I'm as solidly here as I should be." His hand shook a little, and she grasped it. "Besides that though, it hurts when he turns his back on me. I would give anything for either of you, even up to my life. Why can't he just trust my actions?" Hermione was horrifically interested in the tears pooling in Harry's eyes. There was a time when he would never have cried in front of her, or even have shown any emotion besides anger. Now he had cried in front of her twice. She felt that he had gone through a rather profound change, and it was up to her to make sure it didn't destroy him.

Some hours later, after showering in Gryffindor Tower, they met by the lake to avoid both questions and the drama of running into Ron. They sat on a boulder kept warm with a heating charm, discussing something in very serious tones: Dumbledore's Army.

"Harry, we need to open up the group to more people. There's no reason to keep it secret this year, so we can advertise and everything." Her eyes sparkled, and Harry restrained a groan, thinking of DA flyers, or the possibility of her creating a longer, ridiculous acronym.

"Hermione, I don't want to come across as paranoid, but secrecy is a safety precaution." She opened her mouth, but he continued over her protest. "Last year, Umbridge made it illegal to have this club going. I know, that's not the way it is now,but can you guarantee the future? If we reveal ourselves totally, what happens when someone comes along that wishes us harm? It'll be too late then, we won't be able to hide." Her expression had slid into a thoughtful one, and he added another argument to firmly steer her to his side. "If we want, we can always come out into the open later, but re-concealing ourselves would be nearly impossible." They sat in silence for a few minutes as she digested his words, and he was rewarded with her firm head nod.

"Alright, I can see your point. But, we do need to open membership a little."

"Yes, that's a good idea, but we need to be careful about it, and we need to firmly reestablish the core group before then." He looked around, and cast a few privacy charms, tied them to a few hiding charms, and followed with an illusion. By the end, he was breathing heavily, and Hermione had a worried look on her face. "Don't worry, I'm just a little tired, and joining spells isn't that easy. Now, I have an idea about secrecy." He pulled out Godric's book and flipped to the Awakening Spell near the back. Placing it in her lap, he tapped it. "Can you read this?" She frowned at the pages, and shook her head.

"I can't even tell there's writing on it." She tried to turn the page, and gasped with surprise when they acted as if glued together. "What-"

"Shh." He placed a hand over hers on the book, and one over her eyes. He cleared his throat and intoned. "By right of blood and magic, lift the veil and unlock the hand, grant allowance to this person." His hands tingled, and he removed them. He heard her gasp when she read the pages, and he heard them moving as she flipped through them.

"Harry, this is..." He grinned at her shocked expression, and nodded back.

"I know, it's really cool. But, do you see the point of this?" She nodded with some shock, and he grinned even more broadly. "Now, I need to ask you to be my secondary." Together, they made plans to cast the spell, unaware that a pair of eyes searched for them from the school doors.

They stood now on the outside of the front doors, Hermione glancing around nervously, Harry trying to center his mind. It had been an interesting day. She and Harry had spent a lot of time closeted together, making plans to conduct the small ritual at midnight the next day. When Sunday morning had rolled around, Madame Pomfrey had gone through many test to make sure her abilities were firmly in control. There was talk of bringing in another Healer to train her, as there was hardly time for the school nurse to train her intensively. Hermione had only been partially listening, however, as all of her thoughts centered on this moment.

Finally, he opened his eyes and lifted his hands. In his right rested the sword of Godric Gryffindor, in his left, his wand. Handing his wand to Hermione, he began the instruction.

"Hold that with your own, and place them on the back of my neck. I'm going to be using that connection as the anchor for my magic, so try not to move it." His voice was slightly distant, causing a slight shiver, but she nodded. "It's best not to say anything, because I might get distracted, but there aren't really any horrible consequences to stopping the spell in the middle, so if there's an emergency, feel free to shout. Are you ready?" She went over the instructions in her mind, and satisfied that everything was clear, she nodded. "Good. Let's get started."

She placed the point of both her own wand and his on the back of his neck, making sure there was no obstruction. The collar of his black ceremonial robe (where had he gotten that?) presented no problem, as it ended at his shoulder blades. Her hands tingled when the wands made contact with his skin, and she could hear his chant, as well as feel the waves of magic falling from him.

"By the blood of Gryffindor that flows through me." The magic started gathering, almost as a ripple in the ocean. "By the ancient silver sword of my ancestors." She heard three light pings, but the brilliant light gathering on Harry's form prevented her from seeing what he had done. The magic was gaining strength, forming higher and higher. "Let my right be recognized as a power for life." The magic was the size of a tidal wave now, barely restrained by the three parts already incanted. She tensed in preparation for the end. "Let your power wake to my will." The power rushed forth, bombarding the ancient castle, as the coast is bombarded by the sea. There was a quiet moment, and then everything was reversed.

Power came towards them in waves, slamming into the wizard in front of her. She could see his body tensing with the pressure, though she felt only the smallest of ripples. What interested her more was the design being traced on his robe in liquid fire. Curved lines swirled in on each other as others formed angles.

When the flames had disappeared, she studied the whole effect and was immediately interested. Thin golden lines formed a sword that lay across the chest of a bird- looked like a Phoenix, if she remembered correctly. Thicker red lines formed a flame background that was actually swirling in on itself. It was rather impressive to say the least, but she didn't get more of a chance to admire it. The entire robe faded from her view, leaving him in his regular clothes. He turned to her and reclaimed his wand, smiling slightly, though there was an awed look on his face.

"Well that wasn't-" was as far as he got before he collapsed.

"Madame Pomfrey!" She dragged Harry through the door, slightly winded from her efforts. The nurse showed up, looking slightly disgruntled with her late visitors. The cranky look on her face disappeared as soon as she saw who it was.

"What has gotten to Mr. Potter now?" The question sounded almost resigned.

"He collapsed." There was some wand work from the nurse, and Harry was soon laid out on a bed, with some spell lights playing over him. Hermione stood nearby, trying to control the shaking she felt, and scrambling desperately for excuses. After some minutes, the lights faded, and Madame Pomfrey turned to her.

"He's going through a Re-forging, so there's not much we can do." Hermione gasped, wondering at the turn the events had taken. "What's more interesting is the fact that you're going through one as well, though it is very minor in comparison to his." There was a look on her face that spoke of trepidation, and even a faint hint of red in her cheeks. When she spoke, the words were both slightly hesitant and stern. "I know we are not very close, but it is part of my job to make sure that you are fully prepared for the physical and magical consequences of engaging in this particular activity." The implications of what she was saying finally made sense, and Hermione's cheeks flushed brighter than even a Weasley's. She opened her mouth to protest, but was interrupted by the opening of the infirmary door.

"I figured I'd find Harry down here." Neville stood there in some trousers, his nightshirt rumpled and a dazed look on his face. When the questioning looks turned to him, he shrugged. "I didn't see him in his bed, and Ron was still there, so I figured someone should make sure he was okay." Hermione gave him a shaky smile, then sat on the edge of the nearest bed as the room started spinning. The slight smile on his face was replaced with a frown of concern when he saw Harry's still form a few feet away. "What happened?"

"That, Mr. Longbottom, is a question I myself would like the answer to." The voice of the Headmaster shocked Hermione closer to stability, though she still had trouble telling which vision of him was real. "Now, I need to talk to Poppy, and then I'll be right with you." He took the slightly blushing nurse off to the side, and there was soon the faint murmuring of voices. Neville looked to her for an explanation, and she shrugged.

"Harry and I are both going through a re-forging." She took in the quizzical look on his face and clarified. "When a person's magic is forced to react strongly to an external magical influence, it starts changing, evolving into something different. Since each episode must be ignited by something more powerful than the last, they don't happen too often in a person's life. By the end, you may not have any new abilities, but it is likely that you will have access to more raw power, and your defenses are increased. I'm in the middle of a minor one, which only makes me fell dizzy and shaky. Harry is unconscious, so his is obviously much stronger than mine."

Off to the side, a somewhat similar conversation was taking place.

"Albus, I have some concerns about the activities these teenagers are engaging in." He almost laughed at her expression, but was able to control himself with some effort.

"Fear not, Poppy, it is doubtful that this is one of those situations. There is most likely a reasonable explanation for their joint re-forging." The healer frowned, shaking her head slightly.

"What is most curious, I suppose, is the fact that while this is Ms. Granger's third episode since her schooling started, this is the first I recall for Mr. Potter. It is most unusual for a wizard to go through his first six years of school with not a single event. I had thought he was experiencing a mild one at the end of his forth year, but on further review, it was simply shock." The headmaster looked at her gravely, then led her even further from the three students.

"This will be Harry's third major episode this year." Poppy gasped, putting a hand to her chest. Thee in one year? What had the boy been getting into? "I'm afraid I must ask you not to question him about tonight's events. I'll remind you," he continued over her objections, "that he becomes quite agitated with being pressured by questions. Add to that the fact that it will be some days before he regains full control of his magic, and I think it best that we not make an issue of his late night hospital visit." She nodded dumbly, her mind drifting back to the fact that this young boys magic was drastically changing for the third time this year. She would need to monitor him for further developments.