Title: Past, Present, Future

Summary: The past will come back, the present will change them, now what will the future hold?

Disclaimer: I do not own them, sad but true

A/N: Yes this is an AU fic. Reviews are welcome, flames are shared with friends for amusement.

Chapter 13

Remus Lupin was in his bed when he heard the fireplace in his room blaze. He was about to ignore it, but heard the voice of Severus yell, "Remus, get up I need your assistance." Remus cracked open his eyes, to make sure he was not dreaming. Did Severus just ask for his help? When he rolled over, sure enough there was Severus' head in his fireplace, and the man looked horrible.

"Severus, what is it? Is it Harry?" Remus asked, pulling on his robe.

"Harry has been ill all night, and I need to find something to help him, but I am stuck out here in this damned cottage. Could you go and get me this list of things from my classroom, and bring them to me here as quickly as possible?"

Remus took the list and, with a pop, he was gone. Severus sat back down and laid his head in his hands. All he wanted was to close his eyes for just a minute and get a few winks of sleep. Slowly his head lolled forward, and soon Severus was fast asleep. He did not hear the two boys in the other room talking, or he would have been overjoyed that Harry was awake.

"Harry, wake up" Ron whispered.

Harry rolled over, but moaned as his stomach felt like it was on fire. "What is it Ron? How do you feel?"

"I feel like my tongue has grown fur, but otherwise I am feeling better. How about you, mate?"

"I am fine, but my back hurts, and I am hungry enough to eat a horse."

Ron's eyes showed his concern. "Are you sure you should take any more of that stuff? It could be dangerous."

Harry sat up at hearing this. "I heard him, Ron. I don't think I was dreaming, and I heard him. He sounded concerned about me. I have to know if I am just something he has to take care of out of obligation, or if he really cares."

"From what I saw last night, he was furious. Don't you think we should tell him and think up a better way for you to find out?"

"Ronald Weasley, you promised me you would not tell, and I am holding you to that. You will keep your word right?"

Ron was torn, but a wizard's word was sacred, and he could not break it unless it was life or death. "You have my word, but, Harry, this is getting scary."

"The scarier the better, I say. Let him worry, it will do his cold heart some good. Now get back into bed and pretend to be asleep, I hear someone coming."

Ron scrambled back over to his bed, jumped in and pulled the covers up just as Severus was walking in. Harry was relieved when Severus went over and checked on Ron first, for it gave him time to get the vial out and place another drop on his tongue. Slipping the vial back, he watched as Severus felt Ron's head and then came over to his bed.

Severus felt his head and let out a sigh. "What in Merlin's name ails you?"

He placed a cooling charm on the cloth, placed it back on Harry's head and then pulled the covers up. He was about to do a spell to tell him how high the fever was when the swish of the floo caught his attention. Standing up from the bed, Severus went out to make sure it was Remus that had shown up.

"Severus, I brought all the things you asked for," Remus said, placing the things on the table.

"Thank you. Remus, I do not know what is wrong with him. I have given him enough fever reducing potion to bring down his fever, and yet it has done nothing."

"How about Ron? How does he fare? Mrs. Weasley was very worried when I told her he had fallen ill and asked if she could come and take him back home."

"He seems to be doing much better, but I would have him stay here. It could be contagious, and I would not have it spread to the whole Weasley house. Would you go and cast a spell on both to reveal their temperatures, while I start this potion to boil."

Remus got up and walked over to the door. "Severus, you look like you have not slept in days. Are you sure that you don't need to get some rest?"

"How can I rest when Harry is in there suffering?"

Remus shook his head and walked into the room. As he came in, Ron lifted his head and in a cracked voice said, "Hello, Professor Lupin. What are you doing here?"

"Do not try to sit up, Ron. Just lay down and drink this," Remus said, conjuring a glass of water. "Now is that better?" Ron nodded his head yes and lay back down on his pillow. "It seems you and Harry have caught some kind of bug, and I am here to assist Severus today. First off though I need to gauge just how high your fever is." Pulling his wand out, Remus pointed it at Ron and spoke the incantation "reprehendo siccus. " Instantly a bright red 100.6 glowed above Ron's bed. "It seems you are on the road to recovery, Mr. Weasley, but that does not mean you can get up. Is that understood?" Ron smiled at Remus and let himself be tucked back under the covers.

Remus then went over to Harry's bed. "Harry, Are you awake?"

Harry stirred and opened his eyes to mere slits. The pounding in his head was so intense that he thought two trolls must be beating each other behind his eyes. Remus could see the sheets tangled up under Harry and tried to pull them from under the boy and straighten them out. "Harry, I am going to set you up long enough to fix your sheets."

He got no response from the boy and preceeded to lift his back off the bed. At once he felt the heat radiating off the boy, and it scared him, but not as much as the small whimper that came from Harry. He had never known the boy to ever complain. When Harry began to whimper louder, he quickly fixed the sheets as best he could and laid him back down. Harry curled himself into a ball. Remus looked down at him, and his heart began beating faster. Harry's face was as pale as a ghost, and he looked to be in pain.

Remus choked back the sob in his throat and pulled his wand again. "reprehendo siccus," he incanted, and in a moment a bright red number flashed above Harry's bed. Remus looked up and yelled out in fright. "Severus! Get in here at once!"

Severus was standing in his lab when he heard the screaming voice of Lupin. Dropping the ladle he was using to stir, he rushed from the room. He bounded into the room, and saw Remus pointing to the glowing red 106 above Harry's bed.

"Severus, it is too high! It will fry his brain. We have to do something and do it now."

"Help me get him into the bathroom," Severus said, picking up Harry and cradling him to his chest. Once he got into the bathroom, he told Remus to draw a tub full of cold water, while he removed Harry's shirt and pants.

Remus filled the tub, and then Severus conjured ice in it. Placing a shivering Harry into the tub in nothing more than his boxers, he began to pour the water over him. "Help me keep him still, Lupin. We have to get his fever down some, and I can think of no faster way."

Remus transformed a nearby bowl into a cup and began to pour the ice cold water over Harry. It only took a couple minutes before Harry began to whimper again. It broke Severus' heart, and he could not hold back the tear that escaped his eye when Harry began to beg them to stop hurting him. Wiping his face Severus cradled the boy's head close to him and bathed it in the cold water, praying it would lower his fever. When Harry's lips began to turn blue, Severus pulled him from the tub, and wrapped him in a towel. Walking back over to the bed, he held Harry while Remus changed the sheets, and then laid him back down. Remus again spoke the spell, and then above Harry's bed glowed a red 104. Remus began to pace the floor, while Severus sat with Harry rocking him as he groaned.

Ron awoke sometime during all this and now laid in his bed watching the worst teacher he had ever known sitting in a bed rocking Harry like a baby. Sure that it was his fever, Ron lay back down and closed his eyes. When he woke again it was dark in the room, and he crept from his bed and over to Harry's. "Harry, can you hear me? Are you awake?"

Harry rolled over and looked at Ron. "I feel like I have been hit by a bludger."

"I saw Snape, and he looked like he was worried."

"Are you sure?" Harry said, wanting more than anything to hear Ron say he was.

"Not a hundred percent sure. It was the when my head was hurting, but maybe I did see it. Harry, this stuff is scaring me, and I think it is time to tell Snape."

Harry sat up in the bed and almost at once wished he hadn't. "You made a promise to me, do you mean to go back on your word? I thought your word was as good as a million galleons, or was that just something you told me?"

"I mean to keep my word, but, Harry, how long can we keep this up. I don't mean anything by this, but you look like hell, mate. We should stop this soon, before it kills you."

"The shop owner said it wouldn't kill me, and besides how else are we going to get him to reveal how he really feels. It is not as if he has ever shown even one emotion other than pure evilness. I promise just once more, and then if he reveals nothing, we will just give up."

"Do you promise, Harry? It is starting to scare me."

"If you are afraid, you don't have to do it, Ron. I'll understand." This struck a nerve with Ron, and he puffed out his chest.

"Never let it be said that a Weasley is scared of anything, except you know who."

Smiling weakly, Harry pulled the vial from under his mattress, and Ron placed one drop on his tongue and went back to lie down. He would have stopped Harry if he had seen what he was about to do. Harry took the vial and turned it up, drinking the rest. He instantly felt so woozy that he had to lie down, and he placed the empty vial under the mattress just as Severus walked through the door.

reprehendo siccus - check temperature