A/N: I own none of this. Honest. Nope, not me. I most certainly don't own the rights to a billion dollar literary work. I barely own my 92 Dakota.

A/N2: Wow, I got a sore throat just writing that. Sometimes (usually) it sucks to be Harry Potter.

Harry Potter and the Power He Had Not.

Chapter 2 – Prognosis

Healer Michael Slocomb was having an exceptionally bad day. Admittedly, his own choices and behavior was the root of his exceptionally bad day, but that didn't make it any easier to take.

First his wife had found out about a 'home visit' he had made for and exceptionally endowed young witch who he had met during an examination during office hours. If anything the penalties levied on the offending party in a divorce were even more punitive in the wizarding world when compared to muggles. Sarah had taken little Dot and moved to her mother's home.

Next when he arrived at St Mungos this morning, he was informed of the review board he was to sit that very evening. Something about a misdiagnosis that lead to a patent's death.

Then he over heard a small gathering of student mediwitches in their break room

"What do you call the man who comes in last in his class in Healer training?"

"Healer Slocomb!"

He had of course rampaged into the break room and confronted them jokers. They were embarrassed that he had heard them, but didn't seem overly worried about the repercussions of his knowing. The word on the ward was that he was on his way out and his next position would be lancing boils in some small country clinic.

Now an emergency response team returned without their team leader but WITH an addled patient who would not stop screaming. He performed a standard diagnostic sweep with his wand. Without seeing the read out he knew the man was hot. Then he did read the output. That couldn't be right. He did the scan again. Exactly the same result Body core temperature: 158° C. How was this man even alive?

"Why are you wasting my time? There is no way for this man to survive. He is dead; he just doesn't know it yet. Take him to the morgue!"

"HEALER SLOCOMB!"

Michael turned to face the speaker, knowing the voice even before he saw her face. "Senior Master Healer Pomfrey" His mind racing, there was no doubt that his bad day had just gotten so very much worse. "Do you have an interest in this case?"

The older woman looked as him like he was something she had scraped from the bottom of her shoe. "Get out of my way! This is my case." She turned to the mediwitches still attending to Harry. I want his temperature down. Get him wet. Use the Aguamenti charm until I tell you to stop." She turned back to Michael. "Clean out your desk. Now. Don't wait for your hearing. No one who gives up on a patient who is still breathing has any place on my ward."

Poppy Pomfrey returned her attention to the boy many called her 'favorite patient'. She cast Impervious on her spectacles to keep them clear of the steam issuing from his body, she needed more than the wand readouts that she was getting from the many diagnostic charms she was casting, and decided to risk a burn by touching him. She had always found that tactile feedback was an essential part of the diagnostic process. Amazingly at her touch (which did in fact burn her) he stopped screaming, and his temperature returned to normal over a period of 3 minutes. Having dealt with the most pressing of his symptoms (despite being fully aware that nothing she had done had made any difference so far and his apparent calming at her touch was purely a coincidence) she queried the mediwitches from the emergency response team as to what had happened and what they had observed, while cutting what remained of his clothing from Harry's body.

As soon as they mentioned the cursed gemstone in his right hand she grabbed it (still quite hot, but no longer enough to burn her) and found that the gem had dissolved into his body, another diagnostic charm concentrated on the entry wound she found traces of the curse throughout his body. She then did a scan on his magic, having scene in the case notes that his magic was spiking for several minutes prior to transport. His magical core was intact, but the level of his magic was at least 10 times higher than she had ever seen in him before. Her wand indicated that his magic was slowly draining, hopefully back to his normal level (which was frighteningly high enough as it was). She duplicated the case notes and had them forwarded to the research department so that hopefully they could isolate and identify what had happened to the boy.

After another hour, Poppy decided that he was stable enough to move from the trauma ward to a private room. After she had him settled in the room, she went out to the waiting area.

There she found Minerva McGonagall, the Weasleys (Arthur, Molly, the Twins, Ron and Ginny), Hermione Granger and a pair of muggles that she assumed to be Hermione's parents. They all turned their attention to her

"Poppy?" Minerva asked.

"Harry was cursed, we don't know what the curse was, but his temperature is back down to normal levels. He's in a coma. I don't know how long he'll be out. His magic is at an extremely high level"

"How could that be Madam Pomfrey?" Hermione asked. "Magic was just rolling off him. He shattered every window on the train as well as the entire roof of Platform 9 ¾. Shouldn't he be in a state of magical exhaustion?"

"I learned several years ago to not expect logical explanations for Harry Potter, Ms Granger." The look on Hermione's face gave her pause, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be flip. There are many things we don't know at this point. I promise that as soon as we know anything, we'll tell you." She considered for a moment. "If you would like to see him, I can let you go in, no more than 3 at a time for 15 minutes each. Then go home. Staying here won't do him or you any good."

---ooo000ooo---

Molly, Arthur and Ginny were the first in. Ginny rushed to his side, running her fingers through his hair, oddly and unexplainably untouched by the heat that had been pouring out of his body just hours earlier, sobbing and talking to his unresponsive form. Arthur and Molly stood at the foot of the bed, feeling like it was one of their own laying in the bed. They all spoke as if he was awake reassuring him that everything would be alright. When it was time to go, her parents tried not to watch as Ginny kissed the unconscious boy in a somewhat less than chaste manner.

---ooo000ooo---

Hermione and her parents were next. She also rushed to his side and ran her fingers through his hair, murmuring to him quietly. Her parents looked on quietly. Emma, her mother was proud of her support for her friend, Daniel; her father was a touch puzzled. Hermione seemed to have a lot of physical contact with this boy who was only a friend. None of his female friends at that age were as physical with him. Of course he had never been on the edge of death either, maybe that had something to do with it. He had been introduced to Ron outside, her purported 'boy friend'. Hermione hadn't touched him once. Very odd.

"Your Aunt and Uncle weren't at the station, and your Uncle hung up on me when I called to tell them where you were. I'll take your trunk and Hedwig home to take care of them until you are better." She hugged his unconscious form to hers. "Get better Harry. Don't you DARE die on me."

Daniel made another confused look at the still form in the bed, and it was time for the Grangers to leave.

---ooo000ooo---

Ron and the Twins were the last visitors for the evening. The twins stood at the foot of the bed while Ron slumped into the chair at the bed side.

"Don't think that this 'coma' act is going to get you out of the meeting we've got scheduled with the accountants Harry" Fred began

"– WE certainly don't want to talk to them, but you don't see us skiving off" George continued.

"Wait until you see the new product lines we've been working on – "

"– cash cows I tell you. We're gonna make so much money Partner!"

"More than enough to impress some of the cute little trainees on this ward right out of their knickers mate!" the twins were doing their patented whipsaw conversational technique. Until they noticed that Ron hadn't said anything.

"What?" he asked when he noticed their looks

"Nothing to say to Harry?"

"It's Harry. He does this. He gets cursed, he goes to the hospital, he gets better, we track down the one who did this to him, and we carry on. It's always like this" Ron stood and approached the bed, and took Harry's hand. "Hurry up and get better mate. We've got things to do."

---ooo000ooo---