Thank you to the beta of this chapter- Born-of-Elven-Blood
Chapter Nine - Sleepless Nights
Harry was up all night reading, fearful of going to sleep. He was afraid that if he closed his eyes for even a second, Lockhart would show up in his dreams. He was used to nightmares; Voldemort, Cedric Diggory and the deaths of his parents ran through his head on a nightly basis. But he didn't think he would be able to handle it if Lockhart was there too.
Snape had gone to bed hours ago and ever since then, Cinsy would pop in every half hour. Every so often she would bring him a fresh glass of water, which he would push to the side. He could see that he was making the elf upset but he couldn't bring himself to drink it. She even went as far as to make him some cheese and crackers, which he also pushed to the side, his stomach protesting as he did.
"Cinsy,'' Harry said softly, not wanting to startle the elf as she went around cleaning the living room, periodically going back to reclean the same spots over and over, as though she was afraid she hadn't done a good enough job the first time. If the elf moved just right Harry could see the scars that littered her back. Harry suspected that the scars were made by a belt. Uncle Vernon also sometimes used a belt as punishment, so Harry had some of the same scars.
"You can go to bed…I will be fine on my own," Harry said when Cinsy looked up, forcing a small smile out in an effort to show the elf that he was fine. All he got in response was a small whine from the elf as she shook her head no and forced him to lift his feet once more so that she could clean under the couch.
Little did Harry know, Ron and Hermione weren't having much luck getting to sleep either. They sat together by the fire in the Gryffindor common room. Hermione, never one to remain idle, even in her distress, went over Harry's notes for the next lesson for the DA.
"David is still having trouble producing the Patronus Charm," she said, her voice startling Ron after ten straight minutes of silence.
"Who's David?"
"That fourth year Slytherin boy that joined the DA a few weeks ago," Hermione reminded him.
"Oh yeah. David."
"We should mention that to Harry…you know…when we have the chance," Hermione said, her voice getting softer as her mind traveled back to their absent friend. Ron noticed her renewed silence and guessed its cause.
"Perhaps we should bring Harry a few things, a few changes of clothes and stuff," he offered hopefully. " You never know, maybe it will get us in to see him."
"Maybe," Hermione said with a small smile. "I put some notes down from the DA so if Harry is feeling up to it he could look them over. I can bring the notes I took during class for him too. I'm sure he wouldn't want to fall behind."
"I just wish we knew what was going on," Ron mumbled, letting out a long sigh as he leaned back into the couch. Nothing was the same without Harry. Ron even found that he had trouble sleeping without hearing Harry speak parseltongue in his sleep. It was like listening to his brothers snore when he was home; it was normal.
"Did you remember to feed Hedwig?'' Hermione asked.
"Ya…she bit me," Ron sneered, showing Hermione the bite mark on his hand.
"I'm sure she's just upset. You know how much she loves Harry," Hermione said with a frowned.
"Still hurts," Ron muttered as Hermione went back to the DA notes, wanting them to be perfect before she brought them to Harry.
Meanwhile Harry was trying to calm Cinsy, who was currently banging her head on the coffee table after. Harry had told her that he wasn't hungry after she brought him a ham and cheese sandwich, and apparently that was the last straw.
"Cinsy…please…stop!" Harry whispered, afraid of waking up the professor. Too late, as he heard a door open, and looked behind him to see Snape approaching.
"What happened?" he demanded as he knelt down next to the elf, gently pulling her away from the table so she was unable to hit her head.
"She…She got upset when I wouldn't take the sandwich. I tried to stop her," Harry explained as he watched in shock as his Professor calmed the elf, speaking to her smoothly as he sent her to bed.
"I'm sorry…I should have known," Harry uttered. He had seen Dobby act this way; he should have known that Cinsy would be the same.
Snape paid no attention to Harry's apologies. "How long do you think you can stay awake?"
Harry pressed his lips together and fiddled with the sleeve of his shirt, not knowing what to say.
Snape let out a sigh. "I will give you a vial of Dreamless Sleep for tonight, but don't think it will be a nightly thing. You need to learn how to sleep without it." Snape spoke as he summoned the potion with a flick of his wand and handed it to Harry.
Relieved, Harry gave him a small thank you before heading off to the guest room. He downed the potion before laying down on the bed, letting out a long sigh as he let his eyes close and falling into a dreamless sleep.
