Sirius woke up to the sound of crying and begging. He sat up quickly and looked about the hospital wing. Where was Harry? Jumping out of the bed he was lying on Sirius followed the cries of the little boy he loved into another room with a large bathtub. A hassled Poppy Pomfrey was trying, with out succeeding to get Harry to take off his shirt.
"Please... please I don't want to please... please don't make me." Harry cried as he huddled in the corner of the room. Poppy reached forward to pull the boy out of the corner only to have an invisible force stop her.
Sirius not wanting to startle the nurse reached out with his mind to Harry and was overcome by Harry's feelings, making him stagger back. The feeling of undiluted fear coursed through him making his stomach flip. Pulling back quickly away from Harry's mind Sirius stepped forward towards his godson, and the Hogwarts school nurse.
"Poppy." The nurse spun around holding her hand over her heart. "Let me do this..." Poppy was more than happy to oblige stepping away Sirius knelt in front of his godson feeling the barrier between the two of them.
"Harry." Sirius said quietly all he got as a reply was a soft whimper from his godson. 'Pronglet. Its Padfoot I'm here now... there's nothing to worry about. Open your eyes Har.' Sirius called into Harry's head making the little boy crack his eyes open ever so slightly.
'Padfoot?' Harry questioned opening his eyes a little farther. Sirius nodded his head and opened his arms to the little boy. Harry practically flew into his godfather's warm embrace shaking as sobs wracked his lithe form. 'She was trying to hurt me.' He whispered into his guardians head.
"Sh... it's okay now. She wasn't trying to hurt you Harry, she would never do that. She was trying to get you to take a bath. Do you want to take a bath Harry?" Sirius asked slowly looking down at the boy in his arms. Harry shivered in his arms. Sirius felt him shake his head. 'Why not Har?'
'I'll drown.' Was Harry's simple reply.
Sirius was a bit confused but tried again. 'You won't drown I'll be right there with you.'
Harry shook his head again. "No." He said allowed to scared to talk through his head. "No you'll hold me under the water... you'll make it hurt my skin... You'll put soap in my mouth and eyes." Harry cried pulling away from Sirius.
Sirius was shocked. What length did the Dursley's go to, to hurt his Harry? "I won't I'm your godfather... I care about you, I'll never hurt you. Never okay?" Sirius said reaching out to his godson brushing the shy barrier away from him. Grasping Harry's small arm, he pulled the boy to him hugging him gently.
'I... I...' Harry stumbled over his words. 'I'm sorry... I know...you won't...' He stuttered.
"Come on Harry." Sirius took off his shirt first showing that it was okay. Harry slowly, very slowly took off his own shirt.
The bath had no further incident. Harry let Sirius wash him like a concerned parent would. Stepping out of the room holding Harry in a towel Sirius looked for Madam Pomfrey. "Poppy!" Sirius called through the hospital wing.
Poppy bustled out of her office. "Yes?" She asked.
"Do you have anything clean for Harry to wear? I don't have anything." Sirius asked. Poppy nodded her head and went into a nearby bedside table and took out a hospital uniform for harry to wear. Shrinking it for Harry she handed it to Sirius. "Thank you." Sirius said as he walked back into the bathroom to let Harry change.