Harry Potter and the Puppetmaster of Hogwarts, Chapter 7
Harry remained in the corridor, staring after Luna and clutching the parchment, for a long time, before at last rising and throwing his invisibility cloak over himself and creeping back through the halls and down the tunnel that led to the Shrieking Shack, where Sirius had told him he would be waiting if Harry changed his mind. Sirius was indeed waiting.
"Pup," he said, eyes lighting up. "You came back!"
Harry felt a little guilty when he saw that face, but only a little; he had still not forgiven Sirius for being a bully, and, worse, not telling him until he had already learned from the victim of said bullying. "Don't get your hopes up; I'm still mad. There is a way you could help make it up to me, though, but I don't think you'd like it."
Sirius looked as though Harry had slapped him in the face. "What do you want me to do?" he asked shakily at length.
A small, wicked smile flashed across Harry's face. "I want you to break into a haunted girls' bathroom, slide down a basilisk-sized pipe into the Chamber of Secrets, and help me heal Snape. He's drugged right now, though, so you have no excuse to snap at him instead of helping him."
Sirius's mouth gaped. "You what...?" he asked at length.
"I said I need you sneak into the Chamber of Secrets so we can try to break the spells on Snape."
Sirius stared at him so long that Harry worried if he had sustained some sort of brain damage. Then, at last, he nodded. "...wait, how did you know where the Chamber was to hide Sni-Snape there?"
"Long story; I'll tell you later if you're a good dog," Harry said, unable to resist winding him up, even if he had bigger things on his mind. "I believe it involved a phoenix, the Sorting Hat, and a sixty foot basilisk which I killed with a sword."
"Sounds like the start of a bad joke..." Sirius began, before what Harry had said actually registered. "Wait. Sixty foot basilisk which you killed?!"
"With the sword of Gryffindor," Harry replied, smiling.
Harry couldn't help being amused when Sirius fainted, even if he was still rather angry with him. But they didn't have time for fainting, so Harry cast the aquamenti to wake him up and led him out of the shack and up towards the school under the cloak. From there, they walked quickly and quietly through the halls to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, where the ghost, jubilant in her new usefulness as a sentry, asked them the security question which Harry had set up:
"What form does your boggart take and why?"
"A dementor, because they make me hear my mother dying," Harry said quietly, ignoring the choking noise that Sirius made at that.
"Got it in one," Myrtle said, giggling. "Go on down. Remember that you'll always have a place in my toilet if you die down there," she added cheerfully, giggling more when she saw Sirius's face at that. It seemed that having something to do besides swirl around in her u-bend and complain had cheered her more than she had ever been before, and Harry couldn't help but be glad for her.
Then Harry sobered, turning and leading Sirius over to the broken tap with the little copper insignia of a snake embossed on it.
"Open," he hissed breathily, and the sink did indeed open, revealing the great pipe that led to the Chamber. Harry looked down it and grimaced. "That pipe is disgusting," he commented, casting a scourgify. "There has to be another entrance somewhere- I doubt Salazar Slytherin slid down a slimy, dark hole every time he wanted to visit the damn basilisk..."
Sirius looked both excited and terrified at that, but, ever the Gryffindor, he slid in after Harry without complaint...well, except when he flew out of the pipe and landed in a pile of rat bones.
Harry simply smirked and banished said bones, then cast a few powerful reparos to fix the tunnel enough so that they could go down it to the Chamber itself.
Sirius was in awe. To be in a place that most wizards had only ever read about, a place built by one of the Founders...even if it was Slytherin, was something to aspire too. That lasted until he saw the basilisk.
"Bloody hell! Is that...?"
"The basilisk. Yes."
Sirius staggered. "You...actually killed that thing?"
"Yeah," Harry replied, enjoying Sirius's face.
"I...I'm not even going to comment on that right now. Where's Snape?"
"In here; Dobby is keeping an eye on him."
"Dobby?"
"The house elf I tricked Lucius Malfoy into freeing," Harry told him distractedly, leading him over to the office that he had converted into a bedroom for the Potions Professor and opening the door. Then they stepped inside.
The room inside was not elaborate, but it was nice enough; the walls were a cool greenish grey decorated with Slytherin tapestries, and there was a black lacquered desk decorated with astrological and alchemical instruments. Dobby sat mute, large green tennis ball eyes staring at both of them before going back to watch Snape. And Severus Snape lay on the watery-green sheets on the bed, face relaxed and at peace for the first time since Harry had saw him as a tiny firstie. Sirius stared down at him a moment, eyes tracing over the sallow face and languid, potion-stained fingers and nodded. Then he drew his wand and cast.
A few moments passed; then all the color drained from Sirius's face. "I...I never thought I'd feel sorry for Snivillus," he said at last.
"Why, what is it?" Harry asked, not sure if he wanted to hear the answer.
"Well, here," Sirius said, handing him the parchment produced by the diagnostic spell.
Harry took it and began to read. A wave of nausea washed over him.
Diagnostic:
Patient: Male, 35 years of age
Physical condition: poor
* Heavy crucitus damage
* Ill-healed bones
* Liver damage due to alcohol use
* Malnutrition
* Exhaustion
* Dark taint
* Magical drain
Magical condition: poor
Repulsion charm keyed to Gryffindors
Obliviate, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Repulsion charm keyed to James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew
Compulsion to seek Dark Magic, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Compulsion to swallow without tasting, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Lust potion, keyed to Lily Evans
Imperius, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Magic siphon, cast by Tom Riddle
Dark binding spell, cast by Tom Riddle
Empathy suppressant, cast by Tom Riddle
Cruelty enhancement, cast by Tom Riddle
Imperius, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Veritas charm, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Compulsion to swallow without tasting, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Trust potion, keyed to Albus Dumbledore
Loyalty potion, keyed to Albus Dumbledore
Repulsion charm keyed to Harry Potter and associates
Obliviate, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Obliviate, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Repulsion charm keyed to Neville Longbottom
Obliviate, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Obliviate, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Imperius, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Dependancy curse, keyed to Albus Dumbledore
Culpa exacerba, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Vinculas bonding, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Parea, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Obliviate, cast by Albus Dumbledore
Harry stared at the sheet, feeling sick- he didn't actually know what half of these spells did, but they did not look good. "Dear God."
"Yes." Sirius looked as sick as he felt. "I never thought Dumbledore- I mean I- This is-"
"Horrible, I know. Can you break any of them?"
"I can try," was the man's response. "I know most of the counters, but they've been ingrained in his mind for a long time..."
Sirius frowned again and then began to cast.
Half an hour later, the dog animagus sagged against the wall with a sigh, the wand slipping from his shaking fingers. "He'll have to counter the obliviation himself or talk to an Unspeakable, and I'll need to get him one of those Black rings that fights the imperius, because I was never taught the family magics. I also can't do anything about the Dark bonding spell- I think that's his Dark Mark because it was cast in parseltongue, and he'll need purging potions to purge the loyalty potions. About the physical damage, I healed most of it, but I can't do anything about the crucitus damage and the malnutrition and exhaustion- it's not like I'm a healer. But he'll live." And with that, Sirius Black slumped to the floor unconscious.