You Can Live: Chapter 37
You guys are catching up to me! I'll try to find some time to get some more writing done. This semester's classes are just kicking my butt.
For clarification, Harry has a dream in this chapter. I have made it similar to the kinds of dreams he had when connected to Voldemort. He is himself in his mind, but it is his body doing the actions and bad things. So Harry will be warring with himself, while his body continues doing bad things in his dreams.
Disclaimer: you know I don't own HP. A very rich, brilliant lady does.
***Warnings!: Some disturbing imagery in this chapter! Graphic death and torture! If this is not your cup of tea, then skip the italicized section.
I Lost, We Won
They had spent longer outside than Harry had thought, and Snippy was in the process of making lunch for them when they came inside. Luna was chatting with the house elf when Harry and Albus entered. The owl flew up to his master and perched on his shoulder once more. Harry stroked his feathers, and a sudden exhaustion fell over him. His eye lids were drooping even as he was standing there. Luna saw this and came over.
"Perhaps a nap will help, Harry. I always find myself drifting off, and a couch is a better place to do it than a kitchen floor." Harry nodded and allowed himself to be pulled in the direction of the living room. Albus stayed on his shoulder until he sat, then fluttered up to sit on the top of the couch. When Harry was comfortable, Luna found a throw blanket and laid it over her friend.
Albus watched the blonde witch frown softly at his master, before she looked at him. He puffed up his chest to show he was capable of watching over his young wizard. He was a large owl and his wings were strong. Nothing would get past him to hurt Harry. Luna, however, didn't seem to think the same. Her eyes, while wise, held the burden of knowledge.
"I'm afraid, you won't protect him from this next hurt, Albus. He'll need you after though, all of you." With that, Luna conjured a chair and settled down next to Harry's head. His glasses and wand were on the short table nearby, and he pillowed his head on his arms, out before Luna could get a pillow under him. For all intents and purposes, he looked to be comfortable and sleeping peacefully.
It was not to last.
At first everything was dark, and it was hard to breath. A weight was pressing on his chest, and Harry felt like he was drowning. He was confused and no matter how many times he tried to cry out, no sound came out of his mouth. There was nothing around him, for Harry to claw his way out of. It was like he was suffocating in a room full of air.
Finally with a loud pop, he was free and oxygen flooded his lungs. He fell to his knees and coughed and hacked, arms shaking from trying to hold him up. When he was able to breath steadily and his heartbeat had calmed, Harry pushed himself up and stood. Fog was curling around his feet and began filling the…room. Yes, now Harry could tell that he was in a room shaped space. There were walls, a floor (obviously) and a door. He could not help but flashback to his nightmare when Menos had shown up and attacked him, and his anxiety ratcheted up a notch. It made him reach to his back pocket and grab for his wand. Harry could have fallen over again in relief when he had the wooden stick in his hand.
The fog at that point was reaching his elbows, and the room was becoming more clear and defined. A desk covered in haphazard stacks of paper dominated the room. Harry found himself standing on a cold, black marble floor. It was only then that Harry noticed he wasn't wearing any shoes. A few seemingly random paintings of landscapes decorated the dark walls. All in all, it looked dismal, and Harry was very confused as to why he was there. Surely it was a dream, but he had never been in that office before, and there was so much detail.
Suddenly, the thick wooden door on the wall opposite him, burst open and a slightly overweight man ran in. The wizard (obvious due to the robes) was frantic as he grabbed a briefcase and threw everything that he could into it. Dark hair stuck to his forehead due to the sweat coming out of his skin. His eyes kept flicking over to the door, as if waiting for someone to come through.
Harry stepped forward to ask him what was going on. As soon as he moved, the man in front of him froze and looked at him in terror.
"Wh-What are you doing here?! How did you get in?!" Harry meant to hold up his hands to show he was harmless, but instead it was like his arms had a mind of their own. His wand arm was outstretched, with his weapon pointed at the man's face. If possible, the wizard became even more pale.
The boy suddenly felt like a puppet, and his body continued on its own accord, despite his mind screaming in protest. His mouth smirked, and he stepped closer.
"You've done enough damage, Strant. Don't you think?" Inwardly Harry gasped in surprise. So this was the man that was responsible for the trial! But, what was Harry doing here? He did not have time to contemplate this as his body began acting of its own volition once more.
He snapped his wand over to the door and cast wards to lock it and sound proof the room. Magic continued to flow out of his wand then, and Harry could only look on in horror, as he did terrible, terrible things. Stupefy's flew and knocked Strant back, until he was slumped against the wall behind him. His fumbling for his own wand seemed trivial at that point, when Harry cast a binding spell.
Strant was effectively paralyzed, though Harry made sure he could still speak. He crouched in front of the officer and looked him up and down, sneer in place. The man had started sniveling and begging, which (while Harry enjoyed the begging) was not what he wanted to hear.
"Pl-please…I have a family. Please!" Harry rolled his eyes, and picked up Strant's fallen wand.
"I," Harry held up the wand for Strant to see, "Do not," he grabbed both ends, one in each hand, "Care," with that last word, he snapped the wand. Strant cried out in both fear and pain, his magical connection snapped.
Harry wasn't sure how, but he knew that the longer a witch or wizard relied on a wand, the more their magic depended on it. Break the wand, break the witch or wizard's ability to release their magical energy. Do that…and the magic tries to get out any way it can. Harry watched on then, gleeful outside but horrified on the inside, as Strant's magic began to attack him. Strant screamed and screamed as his skin began to split like a tomato and his blood boiled.
If Harry could he would be puking in his mind, but instead he was forced to watch as the man in front of him was, in essence, skinned alive by his own magic. Then he heard footsteps approaching, and sighed at Strant. The man was still alive and if left alone would still be for another hour or so, however, Harry knew he didn't have that time. So, he stood and held his wand up one more time.
"Sectum Sempra."
Draco and Severus both stumbled out of the floo and into the living room. The relief of the trial being over so quickly was undone by the murder of Fredrick Strant. It seemed quite the coincidence, and the chill from the courtroom had followed them back to Harry.
They were both a bit surprised at the scene they stepped into. Luna Lovegood was in a chair by the couch. She had a book in her lap and was reading intently, while one of her hands was combing through Harry's hair. Said wizard was sleeping, which was the last thing either of them expected. Albus was perched above him on the back of the couch, and seemed to be glaring at them for intruding on the peaceful scene.
Severus raised a brow at the bird and cleared his throat.
"Miss Lovegood?" Luna did not look at them, but she did close her book. A small sigh escaped her and and she looked forlornly at her sleeping friend. It was then that Draco and Severus truly noticed his state.
He was not sleeping peacefully as they had first assumed. His shirt was drenched in sweat and his face was pinched. Harry's hands were clenched into fists that were periodically opening and closing.
"How long has he been like this?" Both men made to approach the couch, but Luna held a hand up to stop them.
"He fell asleep a little over an hour ago. He's been like this for about forty five minutes. I suggest you do not force him awake." Then she stood, and set the book down beside Harry's wand and glasses. Luna smiled at Albus and pet him before turning towards the two other wizards.
"Harry will be happy to hear how the trial went, but be careful when you tell him what happened to the officer that accused you." She didn't let them respond, before she stepped towards the fireplace. "I'll stop by when you need me," and then she was gone, leaving Draco and Severus confused and a bit concerned.
Draco let a harsh breath and raised his hands in surrender whilst shaking his head.
"I am not even going to pretend to know what goes through her head." Severus nodded in agreement, before taking the now vacant chair by his ward's head. He ended up copying her earlier movements and ran his long fingers through Harry's hair trying to calm him. Draco settled in a chair across from them and just sunk into it. He would forever deny it, but he had been a bit nervous standing up the way he had in court. It wasn't like he had good memories of the Ministry, and it wasn't the first time he had been in that position, fighting to prove innocence.
Except this time was a lot easier than the last.
Snippy surprised them all, by popping in with a tea tray and sandwiches. Once it was all set out, she didn't leave but looked up at Severus expectantly. Snape smirked at the eager house elf and resisted the urge to pat her on the head.
"We won the case, Snippy. Harry's not going anywhere." The house elf jumped up excitedly, and her ears flapped, giving her the appearance of floating off the ground.
"Snippy will make treacle tart to celebrate. Does Mister Malfoy stay for dinner tonight?" Snape raised a brow at his godson as if daring him to deny it. Draco rolled his eyes, but nodded.
"Yes, I will stay for dinner, since your master insists." Snippy just nodded happily, but her smile quickly fell when she looked over at her Master Harry. She walked over and patted his cheek, before popping out.
"Everyone just loves him don't they?" Snape snorted at Draco's incredulous tone.
"What do you expect?" As he looked back down at Harry, a sense of nostalgia swept over him. "Much like his mother," he spoke quietly.
The men split the sandwiches, leaving a few for Harry. Severus was certain the boy did not eat. It was difficult watching Harry suffer through a nightmare, while they sat beside him. However, they heeded Luna's advice and did not wake up.
It was another half hour, before Harry woke up. He shot up and though pale at first, turned a very recognizable shade of green. Without warning, he flew off the couch and ran to the closest bathroom.
"I'll get the potions. I know where they are. You go to him." Severus nodded in thanks to his godson, before going after his ward. As he approached the bathroom door, he heard Harry retching. The worst part though, were the heart wrenching sobs between the bouts of retching. Snape pushed open the door and knelt beside the raven-haired boy.
Harry jumped when he felt a hand on his back, but quickly calmed when it rubbed soothing circles as he was sick. It felt like forever before he stopped throwing up, but in reality it was only a few minutes. When it was finally over, he laid his temple on the toilet rim and sighed at the cool porcelain on his heated skin.
The hand stayed on his back, and then he stiffened. He actually did not know who was with him in the bathroom. Harry looked over to the open door when he heard someone coming. A blurry figure appeared, but he recognized it instantly. The young wizard sat up quickly and turned to see the dark blur of his guardian.
"Sir!" He couldn't help himself and threw his arms around Severus. The potion master's responding 'oomf' made Draco chuckle, but he smiled as Severus wrapped his arms around his ward, holding him close. The blonde let them have a moment, before squeezing himself into the small, crowded bathroom.
"These might help, Harry." First he held out his friend's glasses. Harry reluctantly pulled away from his guardian to take them. It was then Draco saw the tear tracks on Harry's face and he grimaced. His friend ignored it and took the next proffered item: a stomach potion. Draco had a calming draught in his pocket, in case Harry needed it, but thought the young man was doing well without one.
Harry downed the potion and set the empty vial down on the sink counter. Then he took in his position and bit the inside of his cheek in embarrassment. He was on the bathroom floor, his sick still in the toilet next to him, and he was practically in his guardian's lap like a child. Harry made to stand, but Severus would not release him.
"Sir?" Severus did not look directly at his ward, and spoke through clenched teeth.
"You will stay where you are and let me have this….and neither of you will speak of this to anyone." Draco laughed loudly and stepped out of the bathroom, and Harry smiled hesitantly and settled back into the embrace. Severus squeezed him tighter and tucked Harry's head under his chin. Like Draco, he would never admit that he was actually nervous at the trial, but now they were back, and he had the boy he thought of as a son in his arms.
"No one is taking you away from me, Harry. We won. The next person to try will lose a hand."
To clear up anything else, I came up with my own idea about what happens when you break a wizard or witch's wand. Also, Voldemort is long gone, so Harry will be confused and distressed over why he is having such similar dreams. He won't be sure if he's now connected to someone else...or if was really him...
Till next time. ;)
Please Review :)