Remus whirls around as the hospital wing window is shattered inwards by raw concussive magic and Harry comes flying straight through. He drops down and tosses his broomstick aside, looking around at the empty beds. Sirius dismounts on the windowsill, throwing the broom down several stories and he jumps inside too.

Outside is the faint chaos of confusion because Harry and Sirius probably didn't even break for timeout. Remus is at least grateful that the second year he sent running for them was fast.

"James was taken to St Mungo's by Pomfrey, I wasn't allowed to go with them," Remus explains.

"I'm family, I can go," Harry blurts out like he's just remembered he has family rights.

"The floo is locked unless she opens it," Remus sighs. "I already tried to sneak in."

"I have my apparition licence," Harry tries. "We can sneak out of the wards."

"You two go," Sirius says with a scowl. "I'll find the one who did it."

"They were already gone when I opened the map," Remus admits. "I didn't catch another name, didn't focus on anyone that might have been leaving."

Harry gets to St Mungo's after Fleamont floos in and collects him only a few minutes later. Euphemia is already waiting at James' bedside, the boy sleeping with a thin film of blue magic over his bare torso, the thin hospital blanket pulled up to just under the injury. Harry sees the spell damage through the shimmering lights and sucks in a sudden breath through his teeth.

Sectumsempra.

"We can currently catalogue the damage and the symptoms but not the cause," a medi-witch is explaining to Euphemia, but turns to take in Harry and Fleamont as they arrive. "The spells might be rare, or particularly Dark. All that means is that me and my team will work on finding out what spells they are while we deal with the current injuries."

She offers up a reassuring smile. "If the spell damage heals naturally with a bit of time, then it's fantastic but even if it doesn't, it'll just take some research. James here is stable and he'll wake up soon. Once he does, we'll run some more tests and go from there."

Fleamont leaves with the medi-witch to take care of some things and Harry moves closer, peering at the closing lines on his chest. It's not bleeding anymore, and James himself has been cleaned up so it doesn't look too bad at least.

"Come here, darling," Euphemia says softly and pulls up another chair next to her. "Don't get too worked up, he's done worse to himself."

"Don't tell me about it, I'm just going to feel worse," Harry mutters. "What do you do, in hospital rooms?"

"You can go for the cliché and hold his hand," Euphemia suggests, not unkindly. "I've put a spell on him so I know when he wakes up, but I suppose it depends on if you prefer a manual approach."

Harry shuffles his chair closer and holds James' hand. "Can we get Sirius and Remus to come in later?"

"I'm surprised they didn't charge in here with you," Euphemia admits.

"They went to the crime scene," Harry explains. "You know, with their noses and all." He grimaces because he already knows who did it. Shit, he's going to have to tell his version of Sirius as well, isn't he?

"I'll expect a body to turn up then," Euphemia mutters. "Hope they at least warn me about – oh! There you go, that didn't take long."

Harry jolts when he feels James' hand squeeze his. "James?"

James wakes up with a groan, eyelashes fluttering. "Baby?"

"I'm here, dad," Harry answers immediately.

"Who'd I get into a fight with?" James asks with a pained laugh, turning to them but his eyes land somewhere in between.

"You don't remember?" Harry asks.

James says nothing for a long moment but he's blinking rapidly.

"I'm calling the medi-witch back," Euphemia says worriedly and strides from the room quickly.

"I was getting my quidditch gear," James says. "I was going back to the castle. That's all." He turns his head. "Are...the lights out?"

Harry is hiding in the hallway as the medi-witch looks over James again because the mirror started nearly burning a hole through his quidditch uniform's pocket. Harry had accio'd his mirror all the way from the locker rooms before Fleamont picked him up - which was still easier than getting a broomstick to a dragon pen.

Sirius answers with a familiar room behind him. He's in his house, obviously, because he's clearly seen James' hand on the clock tick over to 'injured'.

"Is he bad hurt or dumb hurt?" Sirius demands, which is a valid question.

"Was there a time when Snape attacked James?" Harry blurts out. "With a cutting curse and a blinding one?"

Sirius pauses. "James is cut up and blind right now?"

"Do you remember a counter spell?" Harry insists. "To the blinding one? I know the cutting curse is one Snape made himself but I don't know about the other."

"Where is James?" Sirius demands, tilting the mirror around to try and see better. "Are you in St Mungo's?!"

"He's safe and awake, just-" Harry grimaces. "Do you know a counter? Because the doctors – healers here don't."

Sirius grits his teeth and he looks up, the room moving around him like he's rushing somewhere – probably to the nearest floo. "It - Snape started talking shit second year about making a curse to take us down, something that can't be traced back to him because it's entirely new. He tried once or twice, none of them ever worked. I can't see why he'd bother making a counter curse."

"I know he wrote it in his textbook," Harry admits. "Nothing about how he made it, just the name and wand movements. Would - would a curse breaker maybe...? Who do you talk to for that kind of thing?"

"I vaguely remember a Black House contact who could make spells so maybe he can unmake them too?" Sirius offers. "I don't know."

"Can anyone do it?" Harry asks. "Or is it like..."

"It's a lot of research and testing to make a new spell, lots of arithmancy. The Marauders made a few but it was mainly Remus who did the calculations," Sirius explains.

"Someone super smart then," Harry realises. "Someone...a genius. Voldemort."

"No," Sirius says immediately.

"James is blind," Harry says. "And Voldemort needs to use James anyway, right? He's been – not nice but reasonably sane. It's for everyone's benefit."

Sirius drags a hand down his face with a groan. "Fuck, yeah, I get your point. I'll meet you in the lobby, warn your grandparents so they don't think I'm trying to kidnap James again."