Gone Missing: Sleeping

by: Love Seth

Hey, everybody. Thanks for the reviews. This chapter is very short. I know it. I had to force this one myself. I love to write it (this story)- I have it mostly planned out- and someone keeps talking about James crying, trust me, it will happen at some point. But this is a bad week- like today for instants is Seth's 17th birthday. Or at least it would have been if he hadn't of died when we were freshmen in high school.

Also, on Tuesday night there was a bad snow storm in my town and on Wednesday morning we didn't have any delays or nothing. Roads were terrible. A boy in my grade that I was friends withdied in a car accident on his way to school. His funeral is Monday.

I just have a lot of things on my mind this week. Sorry about the chapter being short and sorry if it's not what you wanted to happen. I tried- I will write another chapter before long. Within the next few days. I just have to get my head out of the 'zone'. It's just weird when you know someone your own age that gets killed... It's like Seth all over again, only not as severe since I had a closer connection with Seth.

Thanks for understanding. Please keep reviewing! It's awesome!

When James got to Harry's room Harry was laying on his side on his bed. His back to James. He didn't move an inch when James entered.

"Harry?" James asked with a bit of anxiousness in his voice. You could tell how he was trying hard not to say what he normally would say if he would of decided not to use his better judgement.

"Why don't you just spit out what you want to say?" Harry asked, irritated.

James raised his eyebrows for a second before walking over to the side of the bed where he faced Harry. Harry looked up at him, James kneeled down and showed Harry the bottle. Harry looked at it and rolled over on his back.

"Knew that was coming. I'm not taking that. I refuse to sleep. I've made it this long and you never figured out a thing," Harry mumbled, his arms crossed across his chest.

"Yeah, well, it's too late to fix that. But I assure you, it's not going to happen again. I don't want you to talk to me right now, you're too tired. Take this and we'll talk when you are well rested," James said, handing Harry the bottle.

"I said I wasn't going to take it! I am not going to sleep!" Harry said, sitting up in bed.

"What are you so afraid of?" James asked.

"I'm not afraid," Harry said, his face going strait as he gave James a cold hard stare.

"Then why won't you take this?" James asked, putting the bottle right up close to Harry's mouth, who, in return, pushed it away with more force then intended.

"Get that out of my face, Dad," Harry said.

James took Harry's hand and placed the small bottle on it, then held Harry's fingers tightly around it,

"I am furious that you haven't slept. Now, I want you to swallow this, tuck deeply in your bed and fall asleep for hours and hours on end, with no disturbances," James said sternly.

Harry said nothing, and looked away from James.

"Ok, Harry. Either you drink it on your own or you make me force you to swallow it. This is the most powerful of all sleeping potions. If I'd of known you were having issues sleeping this whole time it would be been used a long time ago. I promise you won't dream a thing. Besides," James said, lowering his voice to a whisper now, "you're going to take this even if I have to make you,"

Harry heard someone come into the room and looked up to see Lily standing there, he looked away quickly.

"Come on. Drink it, Harry," James said, still not letting go of Harry's hand, figuring Harry would just throw the bottle if he did.

Wanting to be left alone Harry put the bottle up to his mouth and drank it.

"There! You happy?" he asked before throwing the bottle back at James and turning around so he was laying flat on his stomach with his face pressed to the cold pillow.

Hoping silently that James was telling the truth about the truth about not having to worry about having a nightmare, Harry closed his eyes and he started falling asleep so fast he didn't even hear what James was saying to him.

"You know what he's dreaming about don't you?" Sirius asked. It was nearly six in the evening on Monday. Harry was still sleeping peacefully. Not a peep had been heard from him. Lily went in every so often to make sure he was still breathing.

"What?" James asked. James sat across from Sirius in the living room. Lily had dragged Seth to the grocery store with her when Sirius had showed up to talk to James.

Sirius laughed, "You mean to tell me you haven't figured it out?"

James wasn't smiling as Sirius laughed at him, "No, I don't. What do you know? How could you figure Harry out when I couldn't?"

"I suppose I am just a bit better then you. A bit ahead of the game. And- I talked to Ron and Hermione. Ron strongly believes Harry is having these tormenting nightmares about Seth. And in the end it is always Harry's fault,"

"Nothing is Harry's fault," James said.

"No, I know that, but I'm saying in the dreams. He dreams of something bad happening to Seth and it's usually because of him. He feels responsible for Seth's safety so now in real life Harry refuses to be friends with Seth. I can't believe you never put two and two together. Or at least talked to Ron more about it. I just had no idea it was causing him to stay awake twenty-four hours a day. If I'd of known that part of it I would of done something," Sirius said, taking a drink from his goblet.

James covered his mouth with his hands and rested his elbows on his knees. Can't believing himself for letting Harry down.

"How could... How could I let this go on this long? How could I not of known? Lily didn't know either- you think? She would have told me," James thought out loud. Ashamed of himself.