Wow! reviews so quickly! Okay, Forget my idle chatter...Here's-
Chapter 10- Hospitals and Fan Clubs
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"Quickly! Move him onto the cot! Mr. Weasley, please! You aren't helping!"
Harry could barely hear through the blinding agony that was his head. The pain kept growing worse and worse until it was the only thing he could sense. He couldn't even tell if he was still screaming or not.
"Miss Granger, run and fetch the headmaster! Immediately!"
Hermione ran out of the room at full speed. Ron was trying to help Madam Pomfrey, but was only causing more chaos due to Harry's screams. Lucky thing that the hospital wing had silence wards all around it.
"Mr. Potter?!? Can you hear me?! Harry!?" Madame Pomfrey tried to get through to Harry, but all he did was clutch his forehead and scream in pain. He would open his eyes now and then, but only snap them shut again from the agony he was trying to withstand.
"Help him Madam Pomfrey! Please!" Ron's choked voice pleaded to her. He was in a terrible state. One minute they had all been studying peacefully by the lake, another Harry seemed to be under crucio, and there was nothing he could do for his friend. He and Hermione had flown Harry to the hospital wing (Hermione transfigured a branch into a broom) not without much difficulty, and he had almost been to tears with worry. Even in the hospital wing, there was nothing he could do for his friend.
Madam Pomfrey tried to administer potions to Harry, but he was thrashing and screaming so that she couldn't get him to ingest them. She took her wand and waved it over him, causing the screaming to stop, and his body to go limp. Harry, however, was not asleep, nor was he petrified. Madam Pomfrey had tried a spell to relieve the pain, but as she watched his hand remove itself from his forehead, and give her eyes access to his, she saw a most alarming thing.
Harry's eyes were open, and he was indeed looking around, but what he was seeing, she couldn't comprehend. He didn't seem aware of where he was. His eyes were moving all about like he was watching some non-existent muggle television, and seeing things that were not there. It frightened her, and she tried to get some sign of consciousness from him. Some sign that he was no longer in pain.
"Harry! Please, answer me! Harry, dear." She put her hand on his forehead, and withdrew it as his scar burned her hand. She looked at her burnt flesh, and watched as it slowly disappeared. Never before had she seen anything like this that was happening to him. His screaming had stopped, but his scar still burned. He was still in pain. Silent, excruciating pain.
She went behind one of her many curtains, looking for a basin of water and grabbing potions haphazardly out of her cupboard, when she heard Ron Weasley's terrified voice.
"Madam Pomfrey! His scar! I-it's bleeding!"
She rushed out with great alarm to Harry's bedside. He scar was actually bleeding. White-hot and bleeding. She panicked, and only hoped Albus would get there quickly.
A single drop of blood dripped from the bottom of his scar and settled in his eyebrow. She reached out to press a potion soaked cloth to Harry's forehead, only to have her hand stopped by one much older.
"I do not think it wise, Poppy."
"Albus! Thank the Gods!"
"Miss Granger has told me everything that has happened. But she did not mention this." He motioned to the now bloody scar on Harry's head.
"His scar just started to bleed, Sir! And he won't answer to us! His eyes, Sir! Look at his eyes!" Ron was getting more and more emotional by the second, and all he wanted was for someone to fix whatever was wrong with Harry."
Dumbledore leant over Harry, and looked the boy in the eyes. He saw the pain that was still inflicting itself upon Harry's being. Never once did Harry stare back at him, but Dumbledore saw something of recognition in his eyes.
"If you will please go to my office, Mr. Weasley, you will find Miss Granger waiting for you there..."
"Can you help him?!"
"I will do my best, but it would help me more if you waited for me in my office."
Ron didn't want to leave his best friend in this state, but the look in Dumbledore's eyes told him he'd better not stay. He forced himself to run from the hospital wing, because had he walked, he wouldn't have made it to the door. A loud slamming told Dumbledore that they were alone.
"What do you think, Poppy?"
"I don't know, Albus. I've never seen anything like this before. He's silent, but he's still screaming inside. His scar actually burned my hand." She showed it to Dumbledore, but it was nothing more than a memory. "What does this mean?"
"I am not sure, Poppy."
"Do you think it has anything to do with You-Know-Who?" She saw something dark in his eyes, but he said nothing of it.
"I am not sure. But I will get to the bottom of this. Would you please leave the wing, Poppy?"
"Leave?! I can't just leave a patient! I must try to help him, Albus! Let me stay!"
"There is nothing you can do, Poppy. I must insist that you go, and please, do not come back in until I go out."
His voice was very serious and determined. She looked hard into his eyes before she left, and found a rather large group of students congregating around the hospital-wing doors. It hadn't dawned on her that Harry's screams would have brought a crowd to the hospital wing.
"What are you all doing here?" Her words were followed by the somewhat muffled screams of Harry Potter. Albus had taken off the spell she had put on Harry. She decided that the silence wards needed to be stronger as his screams rang out. "Get off to your dormitories at once! This is a hospital!" Nobody moved. She was surprised that they had been smart enough not to enter. Either too smart, or too scared.
"What's happening, Ma'am?" Seamus Finnegan's apprehensive voice asked.
"Yeah," Fred Weasley came running up from down the hall. "What's wrong with him?!" He was out of breath, and his face was the color of his hair. He was surprisingly without his twin. She guessed that he had just come from Dumbledore's office.
Another scream came through the walls, and she moved to run in, but remembered Albus' request that she not enter. She surveyed the worried faces of the students. Most were Gryffindor, but there were also a few Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws in the mix. What unnerved her was that she saw a certain platinum-haired Slytherin leaning against the wall with two cronies. Regardless, all seemed concerned, and more than a few looked very curious.
"What's wrong with Harry?! What's happening in there?!" Fred was getting incredibly anxious. He told Ron that he would be back with any news, and had left his twin with their younger brother. He made a move to enter the hospital wing, but Madam Pomfrey blocked his way. "Tell me what's wrong, or I'm going to find out myself."
"We don't know..."
"Well, what happened?! Was he hexed?! Was he hurt?!" Fred looked about the crowd. "Will someone tell me what's going on?!" He was getting angry, for himself, and for his little brother, and he wanted answers. His eyes came to rest on the three Slytherins that were uncharacteristically out of place. His brain told him two things, one of which he dismissed. The Slytherins were concerned for Harry, or they had some part in it. He charged straight for Malfoy and pinned him up against the wall. "You had something to do with it! didn't you?!" He shook him once. Hard. Malfoy was too shocked to say anything. "You did this to Harry! Haven't you?! Why?!" Fred felt himself being lifted off of Malfoy, and scolded himself for not landing a few punches while he had the chance.
"Mr. Weasley, please control yourself!" Madam Pomfrey had him with her wand, and levitated him to the opposite side of the room. "I'm going to put you down, and if you choose to start something, you will receive detention." She set him down, and glared at him before looking at Malfoy. He was gone, but his cronies still lurked about.
The students seemed very nervous, and only then did she realize how quiet it was. She put her head to the door to listen, and it was then that she heard a blood-curdling scream. She wrenched open the door to reveal a brilliant white light which filled the hall, and ran in, ignoring her own well-being.
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~"Do not come back in until I go out."~
Albus watched as Poppy reluctantly left the room. He thought it best that she not be in the room, for he feared that he may have little choice in how to best help Harry.
Dumbledore bent over Harry, and looked him in the eyes. They were still unfocused, but searching, and he still seemed in a great amount of pain.
"Harry? Can you hear me, my boy?" He waited for some sign, and saw that same recognition in Harry's eyes. "I'm going to remove Madam Pomfrey's spell from you, Harry. Please try to concentrate on my voice." Albus knew it would be extra painful for him to take off a pain-relieving spell, but in order to reach Harry's mind, he had to, and fast.
To the untrained eye, Harry would seem to be minorly discomforted, and maybe dazed. But Dumbledore knew by Harry's searching eyes that he was far from minor pain. The bleeding lightening scar on Harry's forehead told him all too much of the pain inside the boy's mind. If Dumbledore didn't relieve the mental agony he was going through, it would all be over for Harry.
"Listen to my voice." Dumbledore hovered his hand over Harry's forehead and concentrated. He could feel the heat of the scar only inches away, and saw the blood that was slowly dripping down his head. "Just listen, Harry." Dumbledore mumbled 'relinquo' and Harry let out an ear-piercing scream. He immediately grabbed for his forehead, but Dumbledore stopped him. "Harry! Listen to me! Hear my voice!" Harry thrashed for control of his hand.
//What is this that has me?! It hurts so much!//
"Harry! Can you hear me?! Please try to concentrate on my voice!"
//Dumbledore?// Another scream. //Please, take the pain away...//
Dumbledore put two fingers on Harry's forehead, trying to focus his voice inside the boy's head. He couldn't use conventional magic to save Harry. It would only make things worse. "Listen to me Harry! You must relax! You must not fight the pain!"
Amid the flashes and pictures that were racing across Harry's eyes, he would make out Dumbledore's form, and then lose it. And the pain kept growing worse and worse.
"Harry! Do not fight it!"
"Dum-m-ble...d-dore..."
"Yes Harry! Listen to my voice. You must not fight it! Relax!"
//It hurts so much...I just want it to end...//
"Relax, Harry! Please!" Albus could feel his scar growing hotter despite his efforts, and Harry's screams indicated that the pain was not relenting. "Harry! Relax yourself to the pain!"
"...C-can't..." Harry screamed once more, full of the most pain yet. He was trying to stop it, block it somehow, but nothing could help. All he knew was the pain and Dumbledore's voice.
"Hear me, Harry! You must relax as much as you were in the beginning!" Harry screamed again, and Dumbledore forced his palm upon the white-hot scar. It was burning him, but if he could get Harry to hear him, it would be worth the burnt flesh.
Dumbledore forced all his pure magic into his hand, and spoke to Harry with great power and force. "Relax yourself now, Harry! Or you will not...return to us."
//I just want it to end...I don't want to fight it anymore...//
Things got very quiet, and Dumbledore saw this as his chance. It was now or never to end Harry's suffering and stop the pain plaguing him. He concentrated his magic onto Harry's scar, and as Harry finally relaxed himself, the old wizard forced the pain from him. Harry screamed a blood-curdling scream as he felt pain both entering and leaving his body. He opened his eyes to a brilliant white light that seemed to go on forever. He thought //So this is what death is like// until the light turned to dark and he lost consciousness.
"Albus!!" Madam Pomfrey's voice erupted into the room along with a herd of students. "What's happened?!?" She saw him standing over the bed, his hand on Harry's head. He looked utterly exhausted, and there was a fine sheen of sweat on his brow. "Albus! Are you alright?!"
"Everything is fine, now, Poppy. I believe young Harry here needs his rest, that is all."
Madam Pomfrey looked at Harry now unconscious on his bed. His eyes were closed, and his mouth slightly open. He seemed to be at peace, but was so very still. Dumbledore kept his hand on Harry's forehead, both to block the sight of blood from the students, as well as monitor Harry's temperature.
"Is he alright, Professor Dumbledore?" Fred was watching the old wizard with great anticipation. It was then that Madam Pomfrey noticed all the students in her hospital.
"All of you out of here! Mr. Potter needs his rest, and he won't get it with all of you gawking at him."
But Fred was very persistent, and he wanted answers badly. "Is he okay?!" he demanded.
"He will be fine with some peace and quiet, and plenty of rest," Dumbledore told him much wearied.
"Now out! All of you! Visiting hours are over!" Madam Pomfrey herded the students out of her hospital, not without resistance, and ordered them to their dormitories. She watched as Fred Weasley ran off in the direction of Dumbledore's office, and then closed the doors. She hurried back to Dumbledore's side and immediately began to fret over Albus and Harry. "Are you okay, Albus? Is he okay?"
"I'll be fine with a little sleep, and Harry just needs his rest now. A day's sleep and he should be back to normal." He smiled down at her and removed his hand very carefully from Harry's forehead.
"Albus! You're hurt!" She took his hand and examined the neat little burn that had become part of his being. "Let me put something on this." She went behind her curtain and gathered up a few bottles.
Dumbledore looked over his hand, and considered the unconscious boy on the cot. He suspected dark magic at work, and needed to get to the bottom of this as soon as Harry's strength returned. It looked like Harry's training would be postponed until he got better. And then it would be increasingly tough for the unconscious boy.
"Here, let me wrap that." Madam Pomfrey wrapped a bandage with a balmy substance around Dumbledore's hand. She moved to do the same to Harry's head, but then remembered how he had stopped her hand before. "Is it okay for me to put it on him?"
"You can treat him just like any other patient now. He should be quite alright in a few hours, and then all he needs is rest." Dumbledore watched as Madam Pomfrey wrapped the boy's head and gently made him comfortable.
"You come back to me tonight, Albus, so I can check on that hand."
"Of course, Poppy. You'll alert me once he wakes?"
"Of course I will."
The doors of the hospital opened and a few shrieks could be heard from students outside who had obviously not gotten to their dormitories. Striding in his full bat-glory came Snape, who promptly cursed at some students and shut the doors.
"Ah, Severus."
"Headmaster..." Snape looked at his bandaged hand, and Harry's bandaged head, and was upset that he wasn't informed of what was happening sooner. He could have helped. He'd learnt what he could from Malfoy about what was happening in this part of the castle, and even that wasn't adequate enough information.
"Severus! You're bleeding!" Poppy Pomfrey instinctively took Snape by the arm and rolled up his sleeve. She gasped at his bloody dark mark and quickly wrapped it with the balmy cloth. Before she could ask him questions, Dumbledore held out his arm to Snape.
"Would you mind helping an old man back to his quarters?"
"Of course, Headmaster."
"I'll be seeing you later tonight then, Poppy." He smiled gently and took support of Snape's arm. He didn't look it, but he was very weak from helping Harry get past his pain, and leant heavily on Snape.
"I'll be seeing the both of you back here tonight!" She told them as they left. "I'll be checking that arm of yours, Severus, whether you like it or not!" Snape's glare went wasted on the nurse as she tried to make Harry more comfortable.
"Headmaster, there are some...issues I need to discuss with you."
"My thoughts exactly, Severus. But the present time is not the best time. I think I need a bit of a nap." He smiled into the Potions Master's face and saw something of annoyance in his eyes. He expected nothing less from Severus, but he would be of no use to anyone if he fell asleep while trying to hear information.
"Potter's fan club is right outside..."
"I wouldn't expect anything else." His eyes twinkled and he tried not to lean on the younger wizard as he stepped outside. He had to keep up appearances for Harry's safety, as well as that of the rest of the students.
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That's it for Chapter 10! Yay! What exatly happened to Harry? What of the dractnoxes? Is Moldie-Voldie up to his old tricks again? And what part does Snape play ina ll of this? *Geez, I don't know, Shaggy*
Okay, enough of the scary scooby-doo questions. Yeah, I had to stop chappie 10 there. Makes for a more interesting chappie 11! Ha ha ha! I strike once more! Hope you're not too disappointed with this chapter, and I -really- hope I didn't confuse you with the two points of view. I Love You all my reviewers! I didn't expect to get so many reviews so quickly for chapter nine! It made me immediately have to start writing chapter 10!
PhoenixPadfoot89: Anything for you, my dear!
ParanoiaIn2005: You like my treats?! Ha-zah!
Katani Petitedra: I am the Cliffhanger Queen! You'll rue the day! Muhuhahaha!
Chapter 10- Hospitals and Fan Clubs
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"Quickly! Move him onto the cot! Mr. Weasley, please! You aren't helping!"
Harry could barely hear through the blinding agony that was his head. The pain kept growing worse and worse until it was the only thing he could sense. He couldn't even tell if he was still screaming or not.
"Miss Granger, run and fetch the headmaster! Immediately!"
Hermione ran out of the room at full speed. Ron was trying to help Madam Pomfrey, but was only causing more chaos due to Harry's screams. Lucky thing that the hospital wing had silence wards all around it.
"Mr. Potter?!? Can you hear me?! Harry!?" Madame Pomfrey tried to get through to Harry, but all he did was clutch his forehead and scream in pain. He would open his eyes now and then, but only snap them shut again from the agony he was trying to withstand.
"Help him Madam Pomfrey! Please!" Ron's choked voice pleaded to her. He was in a terrible state. One minute they had all been studying peacefully by the lake, another Harry seemed to be under crucio, and there was nothing he could do for his friend. He and Hermione had flown Harry to the hospital wing (Hermione transfigured a branch into a broom) not without much difficulty, and he had almost been to tears with worry. Even in the hospital wing, there was nothing he could do for his friend.
Madam Pomfrey tried to administer potions to Harry, but he was thrashing and screaming so that she couldn't get him to ingest them. She took her wand and waved it over him, causing the screaming to stop, and his body to go limp. Harry, however, was not asleep, nor was he petrified. Madam Pomfrey had tried a spell to relieve the pain, but as she watched his hand remove itself from his forehead, and give her eyes access to his, she saw a most alarming thing.
Harry's eyes were open, and he was indeed looking around, but what he was seeing, she couldn't comprehend. He didn't seem aware of where he was. His eyes were moving all about like he was watching some non-existent muggle television, and seeing things that were not there. It frightened her, and she tried to get some sign of consciousness from him. Some sign that he was no longer in pain.
"Harry! Please, answer me! Harry, dear." She put her hand on his forehead, and withdrew it as his scar burned her hand. She looked at her burnt flesh, and watched as it slowly disappeared. Never before had she seen anything like this that was happening to him. His screaming had stopped, but his scar still burned. He was still in pain. Silent, excruciating pain.
She went behind one of her many curtains, looking for a basin of water and grabbing potions haphazardly out of her cupboard, when she heard Ron Weasley's terrified voice.
"Madam Pomfrey! His scar! I-it's bleeding!"
She rushed out with great alarm to Harry's bedside. He scar was actually bleeding. White-hot and bleeding. She panicked, and only hoped Albus would get there quickly.
A single drop of blood dripped from the bottom of his scar and settled in his eyebrow. She reached out to press a potion soaked cloth to Harry's forehead, only to have her hand stopped by one much older.
"I do not think it wise, Poppy."
"Albus! Thank the Gods!"
"Miss Granger has told me everything that has happened. But she did not mention this." He motioned to the now bloody scar on Harry's head.
"His scar just started to bleed, Sir! And he won't answer to us! His eyes, Sir! Look at his eyes!" Ron was getting more and more emotional by the second, and all he wanted was for someone to fix whatever was wrong with Harry."
Dumbledore leant over Harry, and looked the boy in the eyes. He saw the pain that was still inflicting itself upon Harry's being. Never once did Harry stare back at him, but Dumbledore saw something of recognition in his eyes.
"If you will please go to my office, Mr. Weasley, you will find Miss Granger waiting for you there..."
"Can you help him?!"
"I will do my best, but it would help me more if you waited for me in my office."
Ron didn't want to leave his best friend in this state, but the look in Dumbledore's eyes told him he'd better not stay. He forced himself to run from the hospital wing, because had he walked, he wouldn't have made it to the door. A loud slamming told Dumbledore that they were alone.
"What do you think, Poppy?"
"I don't know, Albus. I've never seen anything like this before. He's silent, but he's still screaming inside. His scar actually burned my hand." She showed it to Dumbledore, but it was nothing more than a memory. "What does this mean?"
"I am not sure, Poppy."
"Do you think it has anything to do with You-Know-Who?" She saw something dark in his eyes, but he said nothing of it.
"I am not sure. But I will get to the bottom of this. Would you please leave the wing, Poppy?"
"Leave?! I can't just leave a patient! I must try to help him, Albus! Let me stay!"
"There is nothing you can do, Poppy. I must insist that you go, and please, do not come back in until I go out."
His voice was very serious and determined. She looked hard into his eyes before she left, and found a rather large group of students congregating around the hospital-wing doors. It hadn't dawned on her that Harry's screams would have brought a crowd to the hospital wing.
"What are you all doing here?" Her words were followed by the somewhat muffled screams of Harry Potter. Albus had taken off the spell she had put on Harry. She decided that the silence wards needed to be stronger as his screams rang out. "Get off to your dormitories at once! This is a hospital!" Nobody moved. She was surprised that they had been smart enough not to enter. Either too smart, or too scared.
"What's happening, Ma'am?" Seamus Finnegan's apprehensive voice asked.
"Yeah," Fred Weasley came running up from down the hall. "What's wrong with him?!" He was out of breath, and his face was the color of his hair. He was surprisingly without his twin. She guessed that he had just come from Dumbledore's office.
Another scream came through the walls, and she moved to run in, but remembered Albus' request that she not enter. She surveyed the worried faces of the students. Most were Gryffindor, but there were also a few Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws in the mix. What unnerved her was that she saw a certain platinum-haired Slytherin leaning against the wall with two cronies. Regardless, all seemed concerned, and more than a few looked very curious.
"What's wrong with Harry?! What's happening in there?!" Fred was getting incredibly anxious. He told Ron that he would be back with any news, and had left his twin with their younger brother. He made a move to enter the hospital wing, but Madam Pomfrey blocked his way. "Tell me what's wrong, or I'm going to find out myself."
"We don't know..."
"Well, what happened?! Was he hexed?! Was he hurt?!" Fred looked about the crowd. "Will someone tell me what's going on?!" He was getting angry, for himself, and for his little brother, and he wanted answers. His eyes came to rest on the three Slytherins that were uncharacteristically out of place. His brain told him two things, one of which he dismissed. The Slytherins were concerned for Harry, or they had some part in it. He charged straight for Malfoy and pinned him up against the wall. "You had something to do with it! didn't you?!" He shook him once. Hard. Malfoy was too shocked to say anything. "You did this to Harry! Haven't you?! Why?!" Fred felt himself being lifted off of Malfoy, and scolded himself for not landing a few punches while he had the chance.
"Mr. Weasley, please control yourself!" Madam Pomfrey had him with her wand, and levitated him to the opposite side of the room. "I'm going to put you down, and if you choose to start something, you will receive detention." She set him down, and glared at him before looking at Malfoy. He was gone, but his cronies still lurked about.
The students seemed very nervous, and only then did she realize how quiet it was. She put her head to the door to listen, and it was then that she heard a blood-curdling scream. She wrenched open the door to reveal a brilliant white light which filled the hall, and ran in, ignoring her own well-being.
***********
~"Do not come back in until I go out."~
Albus watched as Poppy reluctantly left the room. He thought it best that she not be in the room, for he feared that he may have little choice in how to best help Harry.
Dumbledore bent over Harry, and looked him in the eyes. They were still unfocused, but searching, and he still seemed in a great amount of pain.
"Harry? Can you hear me, my boy?" He waited for some sign, and saw that same recognition in Harry's eyes. "I'm going to remove Madam Pomfrey's spell from you, Harry. Please try to concentrate on my voice." Albus knew it would be extra painful for him to take off a pain-relieving spell, but in order to reach Harry's mind, he had to, and fast.
To the untrained eye, Harry would seem to be minorly discomforted, and maybe dazed. But Dumbledore knew by Harry's searching eyes that he was far from minor pain. The bleeding lightening scar on Harry's forehead told him all too much of the pain inside the boy's mind. If Dumbledore didn't relieve the mental agony he was going through, it would all be over for Harry.
"Listen to my voice." Dumbledore hovered his hand over Harry's forehead and concentrated. He could feel the heat of the scar only inches away, and saw the blood that was slowly dripping down his head. "Just listen, Harry." Dumbledore mumbled 'relinquo' and Harry let out an ear-piercing scream. He immediately grabbed for his forehead, but Dumbledore stopped him. "Harry! Listen to me! Hear my voice!" Harry thrashed for control of his hand.
//What is this that has me?! It hurts so much!//
"Harry! Can you hear me?! Please try to concentrate on my voice!"
//Dumbledore?// Another scream. //Please, take the pain away...//
Dumbledore put two fingers on Harry's forehead, trying to focus his voice inside the boy's head. He couldn't use conventional magic to save Harry. It would only make things worse. "Listen to me Harry! You must relax! You must not fight the pain!"
Amid the flashes and pictures that were racing across Harry's eyes, he would make out Dumbledore's form, and then lose it. And the pain kept growing worse and worse.
"Harry! Do not fight it!"
"Dum-m-ble...d-dore..."
"Yes Harry! Listen to my voice. You must not fight it! Relax!"
//It hurts so much...I just want it to end...//
"Relax, Harry! Please!" Albus could feel his scar growing hotter despite his efforts, and Harry's screams indicated that the pain was not relenting. "Harry! Relax yourself to the pain!"
"...C-can't..." Harry screamed once more, full of the most pain yet. He was trying to stop it, block it somehow, but nothing could help. All he knew was the pain and Dumbledore's voice.
"Hear me, Harry! You must relax as much as you were in the beginning!" Harry screamed again, and Dumbledore forced his palm upon the white-hot scar. It was burning him, but if he could get Harry to hear him, it would be worth the burnt flesh.
Dumbledore forced all his pure magic into his hand, and spoke to Harry with great power and force. "Relax yourself now, Harry! Or you will not...return to us."
//I just want it to end...I don't want to fight it anymore...//
Things got very quiet, and Dumbledore saw this as his chance. It was now or never to end Harry's suffering and stop the pain plaguing him. He concentrated his magic onto Harry's scar, and as Harry finally relaxed himself, the old wizard forced the pain from him. Harry screamed a blood-curdling scream as he felt pain both entering and leaving his body. He opened his eyes to a brilliant white light that seemed to go on forever. He thought //So this is what death is like// until the light turned to dark and he lost consciousness.
"Albus!!" Madam Pomfrey's voice erupted into the room along with a herd of students. "What's happened?!?" She saw him standing over the bed, his hand on Harry's head. He looked utterly exhausted, and there was a fine sheen of sweat on his brow. "Albus! Are you alright?!"
"Everything is fine, now, Poppy. I believe young Harry here needs his rest, that is all."
Madam Pomfrey looked at Harry now unconscious on his bed. His eyes were closed, and his mouth slightly open. He seemed to be at peace, but was so very still. Dumbledore kept his hand on Harry's forehead, both to block the sight of blood from the students, as well as monitor Harry's temperature.
"Is he alright, Professor Dumbledore?" Fred was watching the old wizard with great anticipation. It was then that Madam Pomfrey noticed all the students in her hospital.
"All of you out of here! Mr. Potter needs his rest, and he won't get it with all of you gawking at him."
But Fred was very persistent, and he wanted answers badly. "Is he okay?!" he demanded.
"He will be fine with some peace and quiet, and plenty of rest," Dumbledore told him much wearied.
"Now out! All of you! Visiting hours are over!" Madam Pomfrey herded the students out of her hospital, not without resistance, and ordered them to their dormitories. She watched as Fred Weasley ran off in the direction of Dumbledore's office, and then closed the doors. She hurried back to Dumbledore's side and immediately began to fret over Albus and Harry. "Are you okay, Albus? Is he okay?"
"I'll be fine with a little sleep, and Harry just needs his rest now. A day's sleep and he should be back to normal." He smiled down at her and removed his hand very carefully from Harry's forehead.
"Albus! You're hurt!" She took his hand and examined the neat little burn that had become part of his being. "Let me put something on this." She went behind her curtain and gathered up a few bottles.
Dumbledore looked over his hand, and considered the unconscious boy on the cot. He suspected dark magic at work, and needed to get to the bottom of this as soon as Harry's strength returned. It looked like Harry's training would be postponed until he got better. And then it would be increasingly tough for the unconscious boy.
"Here, let me wrap that." Madam Pomfrey wrapped a bandage with a balmy substance around Dumbledore's hand. She moved to do the same to Harry's head, but then remembered how he had stopped her hand before. "Is it okay for me to put it on him?"
"You can treat him just like any other patient now. He should be quite alright in a few hours, and then all he needs is rest." Dumbledore watched as Madam Pomfrey wrapped the boy's head and gently made him comfortable.
"You come back to me tonight, Albus, so I can check on that hand."
"Of course, Poppy. You'll alert me once he wakes?"
"Of course I will."
The doors of the hospital opened and a few shrieks could be heard from students outside who had obviously not gotten to their dormitories. Striding in his full bat-glory came Snape, who promptly cursed at some students and shut the doors.
"Ah, Severus."
"Headmaster..." Snape looked at his bandaged hand, and Harry's bandaged head, and was upset that he wasn't informed of what was happening sooner. He could have helped. He'd learnt what he could from Malfoy about what was happening in this part of the castle, and even that wasn't adequate enough information.
"Severus! You're bleeding!" Poppy Pomfrey instinctively took Snape by the arm and rolled up his sleeve. She gasped at his bloody dark mark and quickly wrapped it with the balmy cloth. Before she could ask him questions, Dumbledore held out his arm to Snape.
"Would you mind helping an old man back to his quarters?"
"Of course, Headmaster."
"I'll be seeing you later tonight then, Poppy." He smiled gently and took support of Snape's arm. He didn't look it, but he was very weak from helping Harry get past his pain, and leant heavily on Snape.
"I'll be seeing the both of you back here tonight!" She told them as they left. "I'll be checking that arm of yours, Severus, whether you like it or not!" Snape's glare went wasted on the nurse as she tried to make Harry more comfortable.
"Headmaster, there are some...issues I need to discuss with you."
"My thoughts exactly, Severus. But the present time is not the best time. I think I need a bit of a nap." He smiled into the Potions Master's face and saw something of annoyance in his eyes. He expected nothing less from Severus, but he would be of no use to anyone if he fell asleep while trying to hear information.
"Potter's fan club is right outside..."
"I wouldn't expect anything else." His eyes twinkled and he tried not to lean on the younger wizard as he stepped outside. He had to keep up appearances for Harry's safety, as well as that of the rest of the students.
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That's it for Chapter 10! Yay! What exatly happened to Harry? What of the dractnoxes? Is Moldie-Voldie up to his old tricks again? And what part does Snape play ina ll of this? *Geez, I don't know, Shaggy*
Okay, enough of the scary scooby-doo questions. Yeah, I had to stop chappie 10 there. Makes for a more interesting chappie 11! Ha ha ha! I strike once more! Hope you're not too disappointed with this chapter, and I -really- hope I didn't confuse you with the two points of view. I Love You all my reviewers! I didn't expect to get so many reviews so quickly for chapter nine! It made me immediately have to start writing chapter 10!
PhoenixPadfoot89: Anything for you, my dear!
ParanoiaIn2005: You like my treats?! Ha-zah!
Katani Petitedra: I am the Cliffhanger Queen! You'll rue the day! Muhuhahaha!