Chapter 10

To Trust or not to trust, I trust you'll decide

Harry was making notes in a speed no one had ever seen of him. He was currently sitting in the library together with Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Jack. Hermione was constantly running from bookcase to table to bookcase again. Ron was sorting all the books on the table and making homework. Ginny was also making homework. Jack was sitting next to the window reading a book on the different uses of herbs.

Harry was flipping another page of the book he was looking through. With a sigh he closed it and gave it to Ron. He grabbed another book from the pile. One Thousand Magical Herbs and Plants. Harry grinned. "Mr. Potter," he said with a voice that could match Snapes. "What is the use of a boazar?"

"I don't know sir, but it seems that Hermione knows the answer. Why don't you ask her?" A voice said from behind him.

Harry turned and smiled. "Didn't you take away five points for that?"

"And I had every right," Severus Snape sneered at him. "The cheek you had to your professor was unacceptable. You didn't even try to answer the questions."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Well, it's not as if I could have known every plant, herb and whatever by heart in a months time. Besides the true art of potion making had always been lost to me. But that's why you became a Potions Master and decided to teach those ignorant brads to have respect for those who do know. Right?"

This time it was Severus Snape to roll his eyes. "If you want to know, I was forced to take this position. But why would I be explaining my situation to you?"

"I don't know. You tell me." But Harry continued to study the older man.

"Oh, give it up Harry! You won't win against the mysterious Potions Master," Jack said from his place next to the window. "That's why he is who he is, no matter what people whisper behind his back."

"Excuse me, but I'm still in the room here," professor Snape said. The Flame Thrower amused one part of him and another part of him was annoyed with the brad. Who was he to discuss someone he had just met? "I was, however, under the impression that you needed my help. But it seems that you would rather fill your time with mimicking and chatting."

Harry laughed. "Now, now, don't be so mean professor. I was simply bringing back old memories. I have found some herbs that we could use. Maybe by the hand of these herbs, you will be able to make a potion, or at least a recipe, that we could use." He handed the professor a single piece of parchment.

Snape lifted one eyebrow but took the parchment nonetheless. He glanced at it and laughed. "Trust you to pick out herbs at random. I'll see what I can do."

And with that he left with a swish of his cloak.

"He can be really dramatic some times," Ginny said under her breath.

………………………………………………

The Hospital was quiet. Madam Pomfrey had finished her round and was sitting in her office, reading a book on the newest medical developments. Her only patient was Harry Potter. It didn't surprise her anymore that the boy would end up in the Hospital at least once a school year. But it did worry her.

The doors of the Hospital cracked and a sudden breeze seemed to move the sheets. Poppy placed her book on her desk and sat up strait. A sound that didn't belong to the Hospital seemed to have gotten her attention.

She took the emergency-call button from the desk and walked out of the office. At the door she took her wand in the other hand and pointed it out in frond of her, into the softly lighted room.

Her eyes searched for anything wrong, but the only thing moving was her and Harry, who seemed to be entering a nightmare. She walked up to him, but the moment she reached him she knew that something was terribly wrong.

"Harry wake up," she said in a strong, but soft voice. "Wake up sweetie." She reached for him to shake him awake, but the moment she touched him she drew back her hand. It was as if the boy was on fire. His face was completely blank but there were definitely traces of tears of his cheeks.

Just as she moved away again she saw a tears fall, but the teardrop seemed to evaporate while it rolled down his cheek. Poppy Pomfrey knew what to do. She pushed the emergency-call button and ran to her storage. She grabbed a calming potion, a cooling cream and a thermopile and rushed back to her patient's bed.

She stripped Harry from his blankets and tried to push the thermopile in his mouth. When that didn't work she pushed it in his ear and swished with her wand. Wand work wasn't always relay-able so she trusted the judgment of Muggle and Wizarding methods combined. A scan appeared out of her wand and two series of body movement appeared above her patient. One was a scan from the bones and the other from the nerves.

She took the thermopile and looked at it. "45C? The boy' literally on fire!" Poppy took the cooling gel and tried to rub it on the boys face, but it just seemed to boil and disappear no matter how many layers she brought on.

"Okay, that didn't work. Idea, idea," she muttered. She spelled his clothes away desperately trying to cool the kid down. She took a glass of water and threw it in his face. Harry erupted in screams and the water hissed, boiled and evaporated. Poppy pointed her wand at the storage room, not wanting to leave the boy alone, and yelled: "Accio Icepacks!"

Several icepacks raced towards her, just as the doors of the Hospital opened. Professor Dumbledore and professor McGonagall rushed through the doors. "Where the hell were you?" Poppy shrieked in light panic. She had placed the icepacks around the boy and watched as the ice melted almost instantly.

Dumbledore was dressed for bed and McGonagall seemed to have been sleeping for at least half an hour. They looked surprised at her, but the tone in her voice and her desperate movements around Harry seemed to shake them awake. "Minerva will you get Severus. I believe that he had just finished his potion," Dumbledore said. McGonagall nodded and rushed out of the room again.

He walked towards his school nurse and laid a calming hand on her shoulder. "Poppy, calm down. We will try to get his temperature down, but first we need more scans." The school nurse looked at the headmaster with hope in her eyes. Then she nodded. "Make a scan of his muscles first."

Poppy waved her wand and a scan of the muscles appeared above the others. Nothing seemed to be wrong at the moment. The headmaster nodded. "And the organs?" The nurse waved again, first to expel the others and then again to make a scan of the organs.

"Good gods!" The heart seemed to be beating in an even faster rate than possible. The lounges were ready to explode and the eyes seemed to be burning in their sockets. Harry's heart rate was nearly 160 and his brainwaves were screaming at them for attention. But the worst thing was probably the fact that Harry was not showing any signs of pain or discomfort at all.

The doors opened once again, this time to reveal professors McGonagall and Snape, Jack and Sirius Black. The sight that greeted them seemed to shock three of the four. Only Jack remained his pace. "I heard that something was wrong with Harry, so I decided to tag along." He reached the bed, the other three following at a slower pace.

Jack looked at Harry, at the organ scan and then moved to lay his hand on Harry's forehead. But madam Pomfrey stopped him. Jack looked at her for a second and something seemed to be discussed between the two of them that the others couldn't follow. After a second she let his hand go and Jack placed in on Harry's forehead.

Her eyes widened a little when she noticed that Harry's hot skin didn't seem to bother Jack at all. But she was more shocked when Jack smiled. "He's just having a nightmare," he said, struggling with his shoulders a little in amusement.

The nurse frowned and started to protest. "What are you talking about? No one could have a nightmare like this. His heart rate is skyrocketing, his lounges are exploding and his skin is on fire! That is not a normal nightmare!"

Jack shook his head. "Harry is not normal, not anymore anyway," he added when Snape snorted. Sirius shot his an angry look. "Let me show you." He clapped in his hands and showed them a full body scan of Harry's body, but no-one had ever seen it made like that. The body was made blue and was pulsing with every breath. Where is heart was supposed to be was now a yellow figure in the shape of a sun. His head was completely red.

"This is a soul-scan. The heart is now yellow, because it is shared with something else. The head, as you see, is red. This means that it is completely taken over by something else. This 'something else' is the Phoenix that has taken over. Professor Snape, I believe you had a special calming potion with you?"

Snape rolled his eyes. "Since you asked me to bring it with me, that question would be pointless." He reached into his robes and took out a special vial. The flask was small and blue and decorated with different figures and letters. When he opened the bottle a pleasant smell of flowers and an underlying scent of something burned filled the noses of all bystanders.

When Snape moved towards Harry's bed Sirius stopped him. "You don't think I'll let you poison my godson, do you?"

Snape lifted an eyebrow. "For your information Black, your godson gave me permission to make this potion. I wouldn't have thought it possible, since he was always hopeless in potions, but Potter had carefully selected herbs to make it. He trusted me to make it."

Sirius looked at the Potions Master for a few minutes before he slowly turned towards Harry. "If my godson decided to trust you in making his potions than I trust him to have made the right decision." With that he turned away with a sad look and walked out of the Hospital.

"We don't have the time for sentiments," Jack said, breaking the silence. "His heart-rape just went up."

Snape moved without a word. He gave the potion to the Flame Thrower and watched as Jack gave the potion to the boy. They all watched silently as the potion took effect. When Harry had calmed down again to their satisfaction and Jack had declared that he would stay in the Hospital Wing again, the professors turned back to their chambers.

A/N: I'm surprised that no one had asked for Sirius' return. Anyway, thank you all for reviewing so faithfully. You guys really give me hope in writing this story. Next one will be posted soon, I hope and then I'll put some speed into it. See you next time.