When Harry was done with his lunch, he too set aside his tray and laid back on his bed
When Harry was done with his lunch, he too set aside his tray and laid back on his bed. He was very confused about what had happened to his professor and was even more confused as to why his professor was being so nice to him. He was lying in his bed pondering Professor Snape when the Healer came back in to check on both of them.
With a flick of her wand, Madame Pomfrey had cleared the dishes away. She did a quick check of the Potions Master and was not surprised to find that his fever had not gone down and his body was still fighting to heal itself. Quietly and efficiently, she applied the healing salve to his wounds, all the while thinking how much he sacrificed every time he went back to the monster Voldemort for the sake of the side of the Light.
She looked up when she had finished applying the salve and was astonished to find Harry watching her from his bed. The boy had a glazed look on his face and she wondered if he had a relapse.
"Are you alright, Mr. Potter?" she asked quietly and chuckled when he almost jumped upon hearing her voice.
"Um, I think so. Is Professor Snape going to be alright? I don't understand why he goes back to that madman time after time," he whispered, careful to not wake up his Professor.
As she performed a quick diagnostic spell, she attempted to explain, "Professor Snape made some decisions when he was younger that he regrets now. Unfortunately, you can't just quit the service of You-Know-Who and so Professor Snape has chosen to live as a spy. It is a very taxing job, both physically and emotionally. He will not appreciate it if you mention what you have talked about to anyone else, understood? However, you should know that underneath his hard and cold exterior is a very caring man who happened to be best friends with your mother. Seeing as you're awake, do you want to talk about your nightmares with me?" she finished quietly.
"Um, no thanks, I already talked to Professor Snape about them. But thanks for coming back from the conference early to take care of us," Harry mumbled as he started to doze off again.
Suddenly, a high-pitched scream came from the other side of the room, startling both the Healer and Harry. Snape was obviously having a nightmare and he looked very distressed about something, his face was pale and sweaty while his hands were shaking uncontrollably. Madame Pomfrey rushed over to his bedside and attempted to soothe the man but he remained unresponsive.
"Severus, you are Hogwarts, you are safe in your quarters. It is safe here, no one is going to hurt you. Please come back to us, Severus," she said, trying to wake him up while she had her own tears threatening to fall down her face.
After a few minutes, his shaking stopped and his face slowly relaxed. He groaned at the light when he attempted to open his eyes.
"Lily?" he managed to croak out, keeping his eyes firmly shut to avoid the light.
"No, Severus, its Poppy. You are in your quarters, you had just taken a nap, do you remember?"
"Yes, I do now. I suppose you forgot to give me a calming draught and I forgot to ask for one before I went to sleep?" he questioned her as she a quick charm over him to dry his sheets and bedclothes.
"I believe you are correct. Why did you ask for Lily when you woke up?" she quietly asked, as she dimmed the lights with her wand.
"I had a dream about her and got confused," he answered succinctly.
"Why did you have a dream about my mother?" a very confused voice said from the other side of the room.
"Potter!" the Professor began to rage before his rage turned into a harsh coughing fit which left him gasping for air.
"I'm sorry, Professor. I didn't mean to get you angry. You don't have to answer my question, I realize its personal," Harry said when Snape's coughing had subsided and the Healer was helping Snape drink some water.
Snape quietly thought that if his throat and chest weren't so sore from the coughing or if his head wasn't pounding so hard, he might have been able to have a discussion with Mr. Potter about his mother, whom Severus had the privilege of knowing while her son never had the chance.
"Someday, Potter, I will explain it to you," he said before he had another brief coughing fit, "but for now, I do not think that Poppy would be very happy if I did anything but sleep. Am I right, Poppy,?" he asked, turning his head towards her.
"Severus, while I want you to sleep and recover, I also want both of you to recover emotionally. I realize that right now your body is weary and now is not the time for this discussion, but you will promise me that someday you two will talk. You need to talk about it as much as he needs to know about it, understood?" she whispered to him, so that only he could hear her.
"Yes, Poppy. Can I have more pain potion now?" he mumbled, clearly needing more rest.
"Yes, Severus, you may," she said before she got up and retrieved the potions from the cabinet. He downed them and fell asleep without protest.
"Harry ,dear, how are you doing?" she said as she sat down on the other bed.
"Why did he ask for my mother?" Harry demanded, angry that he had not gotten a clear answer, once again.
"Professor Snape was good friends with your mother when they were at Hogwarts. he has promised to explain it to you once he feels well enough, but right now he can hardly keep his eyes open and his infection is getting worse. Just be patient, Harry. Would you like to be released to your common room early?" she whispered, mindful that she had another sleeping patient in the room.
"I can be released early? Really? Thank you so much, Madame Pomfrey!" he exclaimed as he sat up quickly.
"Quiet! Professor Snape just got to sleep, but yes, as long as you check in with me tomorrow morning before you go to breakfast, understood?" she asked sternly.
"Thank you," Harry whispered as she transfigured his pajamas into robes and helped him get out of bed.
Harry went back to his common room and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening catching up on his work while Professor Snape slept through dinner peacefully.
AN: Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far! School will be starting soon but hopefully I will have time to update. Please review, it makes me write faster... And, as always, if you have a correction or suggestion or comment, please let me hear it!