Harry moaned and his body went out of his control with weakness. He collapsed onto his knees, unable to process the news. Ron – the person – the person who Harry could not in good conscience name – followed him down and touched a hand to Harry's shoulder. His touch was like a knife that plunged into Harry, and he suddenly heard but could not control the bloodcurdling scream that emanated all through his body.

The other person in the room jolted away from him and – in a split second – was sprinting for the door. He was out of the hospital wing before Madam Pomfrey came rushing in and found Harry pulling at his hair, screaming at the doors that led out of the infirmary. She hushed him, cooed him, tried to silence him, but still Harry screamed. He yelled and he fought when Pomfrey got the help of two house elves to hold him down so that she could administer a Calming Drought, and then his body fell lax.

Minutes later, Harry was still on the floor. Pomfrey had wrapped a blanket around his shivering body and Harry held it tight around his head and shoulders. He was quite calm now, but he was still horrified and disgusted, rocking back and forth to move the memories of shame away.

Pomfrey called on the expertise of every Head of House, except for some reason most of the other teachers had arrived as well. Harry knew they were all there looking at him, and it was fine, but he wanted to stay under here instead.

"Come on, Harry," said Professor McGonagall. "Please let us see you. We need to know what happened."

Harry shook his head, but that only caused his nerves to shake, which in turn caused the blanket he was wrapped in to feel very hot and uncomfortable. He fumbled it over his head and tossed it, and then he stood up and began to pace.

"I thought you gave him a Calming Drought." said Professor Snape.

"I did. This is overly nervous behavior!" Madam Pomfrey said.

"Stop!" Harry shouted, digging his fingernails into his ribs and clawing at his skin, trying to get the last tingling feeling of – the Slytherin Prefect – off his skin. His heavy clawing caused him to bleed.

"Don't do that – " said Madam Pomfrey, reaching for him to stop his self-harm, and Harry flinched away so hard that he slammed his hands against his face instead and shouted, "Don't touch me! Don't – don't – please don't touch!"

Tears welled up, but they wouldn't fall. There was a block in his head that stopped anything great happening to him, but he needed it to happen; he needed to have something happen, so he gritted his teeth and looked out at all the teachers. They stood far enough away, but they were all looking at him – Snape, Flitwick, Sprout, even Filch the Caretaker was there by the door. Hagrid was missing, though. All their faces made him dizzy, and that's what did it: he lost the strength in his knees and fell to them, vomiting all over the floor.

Carefully, Headmaster Dumbledore kneeled nearby.

"Harry?" He said, and he carefully reached forward and just touched Harry's arm for a brief second. But Harry's head had cleared enough with the potion out of his system, and he jerked away as if struck – and he yelled. He pressed against the side of the bed behind him and pulled at his hair, his head bowed between his legs.

"What's wrong with him?" Shouted Professor Spout.

"It must be a side effect of Longbottom's plants," said Snape cruelly to her.

Sprout defended the missing student, "There is no way they could do this; they're not this potent!"

"Go away! Just go away!" Harry moaned, shaking with bursts of sobs.

Everyone stopped talking, but no one left, because no one knew if they wouldn't be helpful to him. Harry squeezed his eyes shut tightly, angry that they weren't gone.

Suddenly there was a bang and the door to the infirmary opened.

"What's going on?!" Shouted Ron, closely followed by Hermione.

"Who told them about this?" Demanded Professor Snape.

"Why are all of you here?" Asked Hermione.

"Is Harry okay?" Ron wondered, trying to get close.

He did get close – close enough for Harry to see Ron just feet from him – and he stared on with horror-filled eyes. Ron was reaching for him by the time Harry's body came back to him, and he stumbled back, crashing over the bed behind him and off the other side, further and tumbling over the nightstand before he got as far away from Ron as he could.

Dumbledore caught Ron and stopped him from moving any more.

"Harry?" Squeaked Hermione, dazed by his action.

Harry slid down the wall with his hands just about crammed down his own throat to stop himself from screaming – tearing eyes still locked on Ron – until Dumbledore pulled and pushed Ron further away.

"What's wrong, Harry?" Ron asked quietly, confused.

Harry shook his head and buried his face in his knees, weeping, wrapping his arms around his head. There he sat, sobbing, wishing to disappear.

"Harry?" Said Hermione coming forward.

Harry wanted to stop her, because she was on the verge of being with Ron as his girlfriend, but if he sent her away then there wouldn't be anyone. She kneeled down next to him but kept her hands to herself.

"Did you have a bad dream?" She asked.

It wasn't a dream, but he wished it was; it felt like one.

"What happened, Harry?"

Harry looked up into her teary eyes and he looked over at everyone. He reached for her then, gently bringing her closer. She came to him and rested her hands on his bare shoulders. He leaned up to her ear and whispered so quietly to her, "Polyjuice…I thought it was Ron…he…"

"He what?" She had no idea.

Harry swallowed and leaned closer still, whispering so quietly she could barely hear, but what she did hear was 'held me down' and 'sex.'

Her jaw fell and her whole body jerked sharply. Harry covered his face again.

"He…" Her voice was shrill, so she swallowed hard to clear it. "Did he rape you, Harry?"

There were gasps from everyone around and Hermione looked over at them angrily. She leveled them all a look and then said, "Professor McGonagall and…Madam Pomfrey…Everyone else…I think you should leave." She looked at Dumbledore. "Sorry, sir. Everyone else…just…us girls only! No boys at all!"

Hermione wrapped her arms around Harry's shoulders and pressed a kiss to his messy black hair. When it was just the three of them, Hermione said, "It's okay now, Harry. Tell us everything…"