Thanks to: RandomGerman, SiriusSunday, ChakraKitty, Colin Creevey, pallasannabeth and Guest for reviewing!
Questions:
Will qe hear or see anything more from madam Maxime?
In a word... maybe
Am I right in thinking this takes place in the week when the full moon comes up?
Last chapter took place just over a week before the full moon, this chapter takes place in between
Have u had my published?
No I haven't but I would like to one day, I have original ideas too
Who's still alive in this book?
You're going to have to be more specific because I have a lot of characters, it'd take forever to list them all
Author's Note: Okay, I know I haven't updated in forever and I don't usually like to explain why things take long just because I feel like no one cares and it just comes across like I'm making excuses but its been two months and I feel I owe it for anyone who was concerned. So for starters I have just been busy I am in college and as much as I hate it right now I'm close to finishing so I just need to do it and secondly... honestly I just haven't felt motivated. When I sit down to write I just start to feel really stressed and pressured about it being the last book and wanting it to be good then I can't focus much and I barely get anything written, this chapter was written in like sentences at a time which also then makes me worry it seems really disjointed and... its not fun, I haven't hated writing this much since book 4. But don't freak out I'm not abandoning this series, I did get this chapter done in the end albeit just more slowly and that brings me to the last reason it took so long: this chapter is long. Its 9000 words, usually I try to split chapters this long but it didn't seem right to do it with this one and longer chapters naturally take longer to write just in general. So for anyone wondering, that's why it took so long. I'm sorry, I don't like it to take long either. You'll just have to bear with me until I get out of this slump I'm afraid, I'm doing the best I can and I thank everyone still reading for your patience and continued interest in the series. Hopefully next chapter will be better
Molly Weasley lay on her bed, comfortably resting on her side and feeling kind of awake for once. She was sleeping a lot these days, Hogan encouraged it for healing purposes and had her take Sleeping Draughts regularly to ensure this. She hadn't been keen on using that to sleep at first but she warmed up to it, sleeping without it she found time passed more restlessly and she woke frequently even without bad dreams whereas the potion gave a long dreamless sleep she always woke feeling well-rested from. Drowsiness was also a side effect on the pain potions she was on, made her feel kind of sluggish but after months of torture she'd take it. It was just nice not being in pain all of the time.
She was feeling better in general, slowly starting to feel more human as her body healed. Though she still wasn't doing anything productive, Hogan insisted it was better in the long run to just allow herself the time to recover. She didn't doubt him but as bad as it made her feel, she really just didn't feel up to doing anything. She'd been through too much recently and she needed a break to think, for her own sanity even because she was still seeing things, visions or hallucinations or what she didn't know… it was kind of concerning.
Though none of that was on her mind today, Oathan had been moved into her room with the shifting of Gray people. Not the powerful adult Oathan of her visions but the little five year old boy battling for his life, each weak breath drawn from his unconscious body coming out as a pained and disjointed rattle. She gazed out at him lying across from her, struggling just to rasp for breath. It was surreal seeing him in real life, he was so small, so fragile. Just the single bed seemed massive for such a tiny body, crimson hair was spread across the pillow his skeletal head was sunken into and etched across the far side of his face was the intricate scar that had been built up already.
He wasn't doing so good, Hogan tended to him frequently and this state seemed the best he could accomplish regardless how much he poured over the boy as he fought to keep him alive. Oathan – the adult vision/hallucination one, the child had yet to waken – had said he'd be dead if not for Hogan, he was barely holding on. It was so strange to her that the fate of the world potentially rested with the small child struggling to hold on over there, kept alive by a grouchy damaged Healer. She thought Hogan was alright actually, he'd been good to her- Molly was jolted abruptly from her thoughts as she heard a knock on the door.
"H- Hello?" Molly called out nervously, Hogan didn't usually knock – with Oathan he often rushed in because something was wrong - and she didn't feel much like talking to Scorpius. The better she felt the harder it was to relax around him like nothing was wrong.
"H- Hey Molly," a familiar voice belonging to neither Hogan nor Scorpius called. Flannery Leebin, she was more than happy to talk to the former psychologist, "May I come in? I brought soup."
"Yes," Molly agreed readily, sitting up as Flan entered and somehow managed to simultaneously look both the same and different since the last time she'd seen him.
He still had the same short reddish-brown hair kind of spiked naturally and striking cyan colored eyes, then there were the scars. His hands were mutilated, both from the variety of overlapping scars scoring every inch and from some fingers partially or fully amputated, then his ears were jagged from slivers being cut out. They were horrific but she'd long since gotten accustomed to them, which was why it was strange they stood out to her so much now they almost seemed different. Probably because she'd endured similar torture, Hogan had said she wouldn't be bad as her captors hadn't been as sadistic as her cousin nor as stingy on healing but… she would have scars, she was also down two fingers. Flan also had a sword around his waist she had started seeing on Oathan – the future one – and something different in how he carried himself, something akin to confidence maybe.
"Here," Flan said, holding the bowl out to her as he'd crossed the distance between them while she'd been thinking, "Chicken vegetable."
"Thanks," Molly offered as she took it, the pleasant aroma reaching her nostrils as she did so. Not that that she was picky after months of torture but it smelled especially good, so familiarly good in fact she was pretty sure Flan's wife had made it. Myriam was a former chef and it showed whenever she'd cooked at the base, "It smells great."
"Myriam's cooking usually does," Flan confirmed her suspicions with a sheepish smile that immediately faded, his expression shifting to guilt which confused her only for a moment before she remembered his magical outburst had ultimately led to her capture, "I um… I want to apologize, I'm sorr-"
"You don't need to apologize, I don't blame you for anything," Molly cut him off quickly and truthfully, "One's the thing that caused it all then left me to be taken, if I blame anyone it's that. Or myself for knowing what would probably happen and not doing anything."
"You shouldn't blame yourself, seeing the future doesn't make you omnipotent."
"I suppose," Molly conceded, putting the bowl aside for a moment and moving a bit more to the left so Flan could sit beside her while she wracked her mind for the most pressing thing she wished to ask him, "How's Scorpius?"
"Scorpius?" Flan echoed in surprise as he sat on the edge of her bed in the space she'd made for him, "I only just got here so I haven't seen much of him to say. Why do you ask?"
"Because something's still off with him… I don't know what but it worries me."
"Well… I'll keep an eye on him," Flan assured her and she nodded in acknowledgement, feeling as if a he'd taken a weight off her shoulders. Albeit a small weight, only one of the many burdening her.
"Thank you. So… how's everyone else doing?"
"They're okay. Everyone's recovering and on the mend at this point anyway, mostly eager to be active again. People send their well wishes in fact, like Latimer, Roman, Ron-"
"They're not mad at me for betraying everyone and getting the base and everyone dying?" Molly wondered in surprise, realizing her tone gave away how much this had her worried.
"Of course they're not, no one blames you," Flan reassured her, sounding sincere, "And you shouldn't blame yourself either."
"What makes you think I do?"
"The way you said that last sentence, how you think others perceive you comes across a projection of the guilt you feel yourself," Flan reeled off, his psychologist background shining through, "But you have nothing to feel guilt over, there's just only so much humans can take. You shouldn't beat yourself up over being human."
"Maybe, I still feel horrible," Molly admitted, averting her eyes guiltily, "I betrayed everyone to save my sister, who was secretly a Shadow and it got people killed. You were right, that vision of Lucy was telling me it was too late to save her but I didn't listen because I didn't want it to be true."
"Its human nature to not want to be helpless, we're so desperate our minds will delude us into thinking we have more power than we do so we end up blaming ourselves for things and situations that in reality were out of our hands rather than just accepting we were helpless. Seeing the future – which are only potential futures anyway - doesn't change that, especially not an obscure vision."
"Maybe," Molly reiterated, opening and closing her mouth. Elaborating on her guilt meant going into more details then she felt up to talking about right now, "I'm sorry, I'm not ready to talk about this stuff."
"Hey, that's fine," Flan assured her quickly, holding up his hands as if innocent, "I wasn't trying to pressure you, I just wanted to see how you were doing and apologize."
"I know, thank you. It's nice to see a familiar face that's not flickering, be around people again."
"Well that's good because Latimer hopes to visit you soon," Flan told her and Molly smiled at the thought of seeing more of her friends, as well as relief to not be as hated as she feared. Not that she'd blame them, "I promise you it gets better. Probably not today or tomorrow, maybe not even 'soon' but eventually it starts to get better. You have people who care about you or even love you, who want to support you and help you through this. You don't have to talk about anything for them to be there, you're not as alone as you feel."
"Thank you," Molly offered, hugging him gently as she appreciated the attempt to make her feel better and knew there was some truth to it.
"Until everyone dies," she heard Oathan's voice in her mind, "Should Scorpius' window close with darkness still reigning, he will not survive and so many will go down with him."
"Actually there was something I wanted to ask you about," Molly said quickly as she pulled away, cutting off whatever Flan had been starting to say, "When… When I was a prisoner I stared… well I started hallucinating."
"Well… that's not unusual," Flan admitted slowly, fidgeting a little uncomfortably, "I mean many things can cause hallucinations but the extreme stress of every kind the whole ordeal puts you through… it's understandable. I… I hallucinated when I was urm… you know."
"I know but… it's still happening to me," Molly explained, making him raise an eyebrow slightly, "And I think it's linked to my being a Seer, mostly they're to do with the future and I know this has to be true some of the time at least as my hallucination helped during the escape."
"I suppose it's possible," Flan conceded thoughtfully, "I mean, I haven't heard of it before but Seers aren't that common anyway and the magical world is positively abysmal at looking into anything psychological. There is of course a link between magic and the mind though, that at least is common knowledge and there's no reason to think your Seer ability couldn't be bleeding into your regular life."
"So how do I stop it?" Molly asked pleadingly, "As much as I want to use my ability to help, I'm really scared for my sanity. I need to be able to tell the difference between what's real and what's just a vision."
"Well, like I said there are many things that can cause hallucinations so how to treat them varies depending on the cause. I'd guess preliminarily its most likely a result of the trauma you've been through and are still recovering from, which actually would be good as it would mean them 'stopping' would be a natural progression as part of your recovery and we could work on managing them in the meantime," Flan told her which somehow she'd expected him to say but was still somewhat disappointed, for once she'd like just a simple answer like a potion or a spell even if it would require multiple uses or something. It could be worse, she was scared of it being permanent.
"It's not permanent though, right?"
"Depends on the cause so I can't say for sure, though things can usually be done to manage it. This is new territory though and this is just my guess at a glance, it's not a thorough psychological evaluation by any means and I'm in no fit state to be giving such a thing so bear that in mind."
"Okay," Molly nodded in understanding, opening her mouth before changing her mind and closing it. They didn't have to get into it now and the soup did smell great, she had a basic answer anyway. She picked the bowl back up and tried the soup, "You were right, it tastes great."
"I'm sure Myriam will be glad to hear it, I look forward to mine later too… just got to wait for it to cool," Flan said with a smile that turned a tad sad while his eyes drifted to her new roommate, he couldn't ingest hot things without panicking and blowing something up, "So that's the famed Oathan, huh?"
"Yeah," Molly confirmed after swallowing the mouthful of soup, resisting the urge to specify child-Oathan since Flan didn't keep seeing adult-Oathan, "The one who'll end the war."
"Only if Scorpius fails," Flan pointed out and Molly bit her tongue, she didn't feel like getting into it now but she was pretty sure Scorpius wouldn't win now. Oathan had said it was as likely as her escape and she'd failed that – spectacularly – and the fact she kept seeing his future self, then Hogwarts had fallen… "If he even lives, Hogan isn't sure he'll make it. He's in bad shape and he's very fragile, almost hard to imagine him capable of ending Sal. Poor kid."
"Hogan's a pessimist," Molly brushed it off dismissively though glad to be distracted from her depressing line of thought, instead she went back to her soup, "Of course he's going to be critical but he underestimates himself, he'll ensure Oathan's survival. He's weak now but he'll recover in time, he'll be capable of ending anyone eventually."
"Too bad it'll be too late to save anyone you care about," future-Oathan's voice warned.
Scorpius headed into the kitchen for breakfast the next day, finding Leebin and his daughter Maurene already there. He couldn't help but notice they were still in pajamas just like when he'd stayed with the Weasleys, were his family really the only ones that wouldn't go to breakfast until they were already completely dressed, washed and presentable?
"Okay, I'll brush my teeth, Daddy," Maurene said begrudgingly and passed by Scorpius as she left, with a pang he was reminded of Cassia. He wondered how she and Antonius were doing with Professor Ashain being dead, hopefully they were holding up alright. For that matter, how was Brutus because Scorpius still wanted to talk to him. Whenever he had a chance to green light it with Varanian, wherever he was. Hopefully the Ashains were dealing with their grief better then Varanian, he was pretty sure he wasn't doing good.
"Good morning Scorpius," Leebin greeted him pleasantly as Scorpius continued over to the counter where the older man was making porridge, his pajamas also considered of checked bottoms and only a white t-shirt which made the numerous layers of horrific scarring that James had inflicted visible. It made him worry about Molly.
"Good morning," Scorpius offered in turn and Leebin gave a friendly smile in response, surprising him.
"How are you?"
"You don't hate me for what I did?" Scorpius questioned as he started to prepare some cereal, hopefully before Hogan walked in… Hogan had weird breakfast policies.
"Hate's a very strong word, it takes a lot to make me hate someone and I can count on one hand- yes, even with the limited fingers I have- how many people I truly hate, it has to be personal and irredeemable in my eyes. You're not even in the vicinity of hate, I don't even dislike you and I know your intentions were not malicious. The hate for you isn't as bad as you fear, it's just more vocal… as is often the case."
"Well… thank you," Scorpius offered as they continued making their breakfasts, though he supposed since Leebin's family survived it probably wouldn't bother him as much and he even had a sword now, "By the way, how did you get the sword of Gryffindor? Weren't you a Ravenclaw?"
"Oh, Albus gave it to me," Leebin brushed it aside while Scorpius started eating his cereal, Leebin just put the porridge to the side. This only raised more questions though and made him worry about how his friend was doing.
"Oh, well then how did Albus get the sword?"
"I don't know, didn't ask at the time and then he's been injured," Leebin shrugged, his gaze drifting to the sword worriedly for a second, "Pretty sure we'd be dead without it, it cleaves Inferi to ash and even then we barely made it through the horde. I've been practicing with it since I think it could still come in handy and if I can't do magic I can do that, and yes I was a Ravenclaw but I haven't burst into flames for using it so far so..."
"You must still have enough courage for it I guess."
"I doubt it," Leebin scoffed, reminding Scorpius of his own house insecurities, "It probably just doesn't care anymore, if it ever did. I'm not sure the full scope of its properties were ever fully revealed-"
"Scorpius, what are you doing!" Hogan demanded as he stormed in, Scorpius groaned as the bowl of cereal was snatched from him, "This is breakfast, for breakfast you have to have porridge. How many times do I have to tell you?!"
"I don't even like porridge!" Scorpius insisted incredulously, this was the same argument they had every morning Hogan caught him.
"Neither do I but we still have to eat porridge for breakfast!"
"But- But then why?!" Scorpius spluttered out in exasperation.
"Because that's the rules."
"The rules of what?! Who even invented such a ridiculous rule?!"
"I- I don't know," Hogan admitted a little flustered, "The- The orphanage people-"
"What?!"
"Hogan-"
"Flan, you know it's the rule!" Hogan snapped at his nephew, turning on him immediately angry, "Porridge is for breakfast, you know this and he's having cereal but its porridge you have to have for breakf-"
"I do know this but you see, Scorpius isn't not eating porridge for breakfast," Leebin randomly decided, earning a suspicious look from Hogan that Scorpius had to share since he didn't know how an obvious lie would help. Leebin slid one of the bowls of porridge he'd finished making towards Scorpius, "He's just having porridge with cereal on the side to offset the taste, just like you do. No rule against that, is there?"
"Well… no," Hogan begrudgingly admitted, continuing to scowl though his anger diminished, "But he still has to eat the porridge as well as the cereal."
"Of course and he shall, right Scorpius?"
"Absolutely," Scorpius lied in relief at this seeming loophole in Hogan's logic, the old Healer scowled at him suspiciously then at the door.
"Well okay," Hogan conceded finally and gave him back the cereal, "I have to go check on Oathan though so just… just make sure he eats it, Flan."
"I will," Leebin assured him and Hogan nodded, finally seeming satisfied as he trudged off.
"Thank you," Scorpius breathed in grateful relief, "He's been driving me crazy with that."
"He can't help it, his mind's a little scrambled so you just have to work with him not against him."
"I brushed my teeth, Daddy!" Maurene exclaimed excitedly as she ran back into the room, grinning at her father with her teeth clenched as if to prove it.
"Very nice, that's my girl," Leebin praised her and promptly handed her the bowl of porridge Hogan had wanted Scorpius to eat.
"Thanks, Daddy."
Leebin – and Myriam for that matter - did seem to have a good relationship with his children, Scorpius noticed over the following week. True to his word he spent a lot of his time outside practicing with the sword and his children would often go watch him, cheering him on or he'd be inside helping them with their homeschooling. It was also the week before the full moon and Lysel took a turn for the worse fast, his energetic singing quickly was silenced and instead he'd sleep a lot bundled up in blankets to be near them and have to take even more potions. Leebin would often sit with him, cuddling him and chatting to him – often telling stories - to keep his spirits up. In fact, considering their home had been destroyed by Inferi, Maurene had an injured arm from the ordeal and Lysel suffered from life-threatening lycanthropy, they were actually surprisingly happy and well-adjusted kids.
Scorpius actually ended up spending a fair amount of time with them, especially as the week wore on when Lysel needed more care and Myriam was also a werewolf so afflicted by weakness before the full moon, albeit not to the same severity as her son. So he'd also help Maurene with her work, which included spells despite her being only eight. Unlike Michael, the Leebins seemed subscribed to the idea that since she was willing and able it was best she knew some magic just in case even if they hoped she'd never have to use it. Scorpius agreed with this and didn't really get why Michael hated his sister – who was actually older then Maurene and whose magic had actually helped when the base was attacked - learning magic, he wondered if Michael was still mad at him. Maurene was nice enough, smart kid and unlike her brother did not complain about how he apparently smelled.
"Why do you smell wrong?" Lysel continued to complain at him, "Sol doesn't, everyone doesn't- the dead doesn't smell wrong like you."
"I don't know, Lysel," Scorpius sighed.
He really wasn't sure what his problem was, he had technically died but Lysel had complained about it before that, he considered it might be because of his being an animagus but then he'd been one before Lysel had started complaining. The only other thing he could think of was it being because of Calderon's soul being attached to his, soul level stuff could be why Lysel considered it 'wrong' but he didn't know. Regardless, the toddler did remind him of and make him miss his own brother who people continued encouraging him to see. This was why he decided he would see them, just after the full moon because he wanted to be there. After the full moon things would hopefully look up for everyone – Lamb also was a werewolf after all thus afflicted by the same weakness as half the Leebins – and Hogan said after that Molly's feet should be healed enough for her to get back on them, she had been a bit more social – Leebin also visited her – but still not being bedridden would be good for her.
One more major thing happened that week, in the dead of night Scorpius was startled awake by the sound of the front door. He went for his wand but Hogan was already out into the corridor, Scorpius had no doubt because he was such a ridiculously light sleeper the footsteps of someone approaching him had awoken him. Lamb didn't wake but Scorpius didn't expect him to, he was pretty wiped from the upcoming full moon. Scorpius hurried out after the old Healer, not sure who he'd expected but he was surprised.
"Varanian!" Scorpius exclaimed and lowered his wand as he recognized their leader, joy at seeing him soon turning to concern as he noticed Varanian was injured, "You're hurt!"
"How observant of you, not like any of us have working eyes," Hogan shot out sarcastically, already helping Varanian down the corridor, "Fucking idiot."
"What happened?" Scorpius asked instead, deciding to just ignore Hogan as he sat Varanian down on one of the stools in the kitchen.
"Just got too close to the Inferi," Varanian muttered in response, moving him as arm away from his chest so Hogan could look at the wounds.
"That was stupid," Hogan criticized him bluntly, waving his wand over the wounds and examining them, "Why were you even around Inferi?"
The wounds looked pretty nasty, he had several bloody gashes across his right shoulder and his chest closest to it. In fact, in general Varanian looked rough. The burn scars he usually hid using his metamorphmagi power were fully visible, threads of gray now spiraled through his scruffy tawny hair and he looked like he'd aged a decade even without that. His lips were cracked and thick black bags clung under his eyes, the way his whole body including his hanging head was slumped only contributed to how he seemed to exude exhaustion. He gripped the counter with one hand and Scorpius wasn't entirely unsure it was the only thing keeping him upright, the one thing stopping his fatigued body from dropping.
"Wyatt. Hogwarts has stripped down the number of Shadows- like enough we could easily take them down but there's the Inferi everywhere- still everywhere, I mean, it was like that from when it fell but they're still everywhere so I was exper- trying to figure a way through- to get through to- I mean, get through them since they're really the main issue in the way of the- I mean saving Wyatt because we have to- we have to save him- our people, we need to save them and there's Inferi every- wait yeah, I said that already," Varanian rambled off in reply without looking up, sounding unusually unfocused and disjointed. Hogan looked away from the wounds long enough to exchange a concerned look with Scorpius, "They're in Hogsmeade too so that's- I mean the passageway is blocked even if it's not blocked- I mean blocked by them even if it's not caved in or whatever and they'll attack you if they see you but they seem to have a set range- place to stay and they won't follow you beyond a certain point- It's kind of a big problem in getting people out of there- I mean if we can get in its easier but with them to get out it's not easy to get out, wait did I just say that-"
"Varanian, when was the last time you slept?" Scorpius interjected and Varanian finally raised his head to look at him, showing he had one silvery gray eye and one icy blue one but that wasn't even the main issue. Both eyes were red from tiredness , plus he kept blinking unevenly and at odd intervals as if he was fighting to keep them open.
"I- I don't know, when Annie was still alive."
"That was weeks ago!"
"Well I have more important things to do then sleep, I have to save Wyatt and then there's Jack/One who's only helping us for splitting them but we know now it'll kill Jack at least- Oh yeah and we find some way to kill a pissed off all-powerful apparently immortal- We need some way to know when she shows up so I've been trying to make some kind of spell to register when she does, kind of like the Trace but to pick up her and I know it's for kids but I think something can be done to detect power of her magnitude so we can fight her-" Varanian descended into another ramble, this time cutting himself off as he almost fell but Scorpius and Hogan quickly grabbed him to steady him, Varanian was trembling.
"Out of curiosity, when was the last time you ate?" Hogan queried as Varanian shakily gripped the counter again.
"When Annie was alive…"
"Okay, you need to eat. Right now," Scorpius decided determinedly and lit up his wand, grabbing whatever from the cabinets that was quick to assemble into something edible.
"I need to get some potions, I'll be back in a moment," Hogan also added, heading off while Scorpius put together a sandwich and brought it over to Varanian.
"Eat," Scorpius demanded of the man still fighting to keep his eyes open as he dropped the plate in front of him. He half-expected him to argue but Varanian seemingly recognized his body needed food to survive, he shakily picked up a slice and started nibbling on the corner. Scorpius let out a relieved breath, "You need to take care of yourself."
"I need to think of something."
"You're not going to think of anything while you can barely string a coherent sentence together!" Scorpius insisted determinedly as Varanian really started to devour the sandwich as if he hadn't realized how hungry he was until he'd started to eat, "We knew the situation before-"
"Before the country wasn't under attack! We had time then, we don't now- There's no time to take things slow and think of something anymore."
"We still have time, she's not even taking cities just attacking them! And you're not going to think of anything like this, you need to sleep," Scorpius reiterated as Varanian finished off the sandwich, licking the crumbs off his fingers before sighing heavily.
"I can't sleep," Varanian admitted after a second, so under his breath it was barely audible and while not on Scorpius, his eyes stopped fighting to close, "Every time I lie down it just reminds me that she's not there beside me… I can't cope with that."
"Varanian…" Scorpius started to say and realized he absolutely no idea what to say to that, anything encouraging he could think to say sounded like a lie. Varanian's broken mismatched eyes slowly shifted to him and Scorpius had to close his mouth, instead he pitifully tried to pat his arm comfortingly.
"Thanks," Varanian muttered and his eyes drifted further to Scorpius' hand, widening slightly, "Hey, give me that."
"Give you what?" Scorpius wondered in confusion, glancing at his unscarred hand.
"My ring," Varanian elaborated and Scorpius looked at the rings upon his fingers, one a silver Thestral ring that Calderon had given him as a present while beneath it was a simple golden band that doubled as a Portkey and communicator which Varanian had given to him. Varanian held out his own horribly burned hand, "Give it back."
"Wh- Why?" Scorpius stammered out in surprise, pulling his hand back protectively. He was used to wearing it, he never took it off.
"I want it back. What's the point in it now you're here anyway?"
"I- I erm…" Scorpius continued to be flustered, finding an answer eluding him. Begrudgingly he took it off, feeling naked without it and glanced at Varanian who held his hand out to him again, seemingly determined to have it back now and his own attachment to an item loaned to him was not a valid reason to hold on to it. He dropped it into Varanian's palm, hoping he just wanted to rejig the enchantments or something before returning it.
"Okay, I'm back," Hogan announced almost cheerfully as he returning holding several vials of potions that he set down on the counter while Varanian pocketed the ring, "Here, drink. Then take the red one."
Hogan handed Varanian one of the vials, not even waiting for him to drink it before conjuring a cloth to pour another of the vials onto which he then started applying to the wounds. Scorpius couldn't do much else but watch since he knew nothing of healing, he considered making Varanian more food but eating it would be awkward when Hogan was actively treating him. Treating him in his pajamas, Scorpius noticed as he was accustomated to seeing the older man in his lime green Healer robes but they had jumped out of bed for this. Hogan actually wore long plaid bottoms and a white t-shirt just like Leebin did, showing off bony arms that had surprisingly several scars.
"Wh- What's going- going on?" Lamb wondered sleepily as he wondered into the kitchen with his blanket wrapped around him as best he could when his wrist was twirling uncontrollably, he looked about as ready to drop as Varanian and suppressed a yawn, "Th- There was noise."
"It's nothing, you can go back to sleep," Scorpius assured him.
"Oh ok- okay," Lamb mumbled and nodded his head a few times before shuffling away.
He couldn't wait for this full moon to pass already and people could be healthy again, it also wasn't good if the Shadows attacked or anything while the Gray werewolves were weakened and vulnerable. There were more at the base since Michael would also be down, Hugo too. He wondered what the plan was for that, they'd been taking Wolfsbane since they had been stocking potions but he didn't know whether they stayed in their rooms or together somewhere or what. It was actually finally the perfect time that he could spend the moon will Michael to support him… except Michael was probably still mad at him.
"Can't you do anything for that guy's wrist?" Varanian questioned and yawned as Scorpius turned his attention back to them, "I mean he's not- he's not gonna be good in an attack with the- he can't wand good- spells need wrist movements. You know what I mean."
"Well from the looks of it his nerves already healed wrong so the best you could do is destroy them and regrow them," Hogan answered distractedly, still very much focused on his healing, "Aside from being excruciating painful, it's very risky and due to how important it is to keep the limb as still as possible the middle of the war would not be the best time to perform said treatment so I wouldn't recommend it. Not that I've examined him nor was he my patient but that's my guess from what I've observed."
"You didn't think to examine him?" Scorpius wondered, frowning slightly at Hogan even though he hadn't looked away from his patient so wouldn't know anyway.
"Patients usually come to you, you can't go around asking every random person on the street if they'd like to be examined or need healing. Unless someone has a medical emergency right in front of you, it's on them to ask for help."
"Fair enough," Varanian muttered tiredly before frowning at Hogan, "Are you nearly done? I need to- I have to get back to things to do, that alarm is important since she's gone by the time we hear about the attack."
"Isn't the whole point of having a whole group to not have to do everything yourself?"
"I'm letting you heal me, aren't I?"
"Only because you tried and failed to heal yourself," Hogan seemed to guess as he finally tore his eye away from Varanian's wounds to glance at the metamorphmagi as if to gauge his reaction, which was surprise turned scowl.
"I'm still doing it, aren't I?" Varanian reiterated through gritted teeth.
"He has a point," Scorpius spoke up, also realizing his chance to ask about Brutus. It earned Varanian's glare which was still piercing despite his exhaustion, in fact it looked pretty menacing coming from him in such a demented state.
"No one else knows anything about this stuff."
"Did you ask? Rutherford made an alarm for Hogwarts, he has experience."
"Who?"
"He's one of the new people, isn't he?" Scorpius queried when Varanian looked puzzled, he was sure he'd heard Rutherford was new.
"I thought he was Lamb?"
"No, Lamb is the one here I mean the new people at the base or wherever from Hogwarts."
"Oh… right," Varanian muttered, a scowl returning as he looked away, "Why did I agree to let new people in again?"
"Okay, your wound is treated," Hogan spoke up, stepping back from Varanian whose wounds were now bandaged and the metamorphmagi immediately stood, "You haven't lost enough blood to need a full regime of Blood-Replenishing Potion but you've lost enough to have weakness so you should have a couple more in the next few days, you also need to eat regularly. It's not like you can starve yourself for a fortnight then binge eat and it makes up for it, it doesn't and doing that will just make you throw up. But most importantly: rest. You need to rest, you've got to give yourself time to heal and you can't not have noticed how bad a state you're in. If you keep pushing yourself without any regards to your health you'll die. If you want to kill yourself, there's faster ways and if you want to keep fighting the Shadows you need to take care of yourself, or you've already lost."
"If I don't do the things I need to do because I'm too busy sleeping we could still lose! Besides, I can't sleep."
"That's why sleeping potions were invented," Hogan offered, waving the final vial of potion at him but Varanian merely scowled at it.
"Why? So if something goes wrong I can't do anything?"
"It'll be fine, Varanian, please," Scorpius pleaded with him and Varanian glanced at him with a slightly less harsh expression, meeting his eyes, "It's not that long, Gray can survive a day while you sleep and you'll think straighter to solve problems better. If something happens we can deal with it because of I'll ask my teacher Rojer for advice about Jack/One, it's not like we have anything to lose at this point and… and I could try talking to Brutus, he knows the Shadow Master better than anyone and might know something to track her. Okay? You don't have to think of every little thing by yourself."
"Okay," Varanian said with a reluctant sigh, "I'll take the Sleeping Draught."
"Really?" Scorpius couldn't help but blurt out in surprise, expecting more resistance but reconsidered that might not be the best thing to say when Hogan shot him a glare as if expecting it make Varanian change his mind again, "I mean, that's great! Do you want me to roll you out a sleeping bag?"
"Sure," Varanian agreed blankly, his tone devoid of any enthusiasm.
Scorpius went to do so, allowing himself a relieved breath once out of the room. He raided the sleep supply, there were thankfully still sleeping bags and he rolled one out on the living room floor beside his. He heard Varanian suppressing a yawn as he and Hogan followed him in just after he threw down a pillow with it, he flopped down onto the sleeping bag for a second and his eyes fluttered.
"So how long until this potion…" Varanian started to say but trailed off, asleep pretty much as soon as his head hit the pillow.
"Wow, that stuff works pretty fast," Scorpius commented to Hogan in surprise.
"Figured I should use something strong and fast acting in case he changed his mind," Hogan shrugged nonchalantly, flicking his wand lazily to have Varanian's boots remove themselves and the sleeping bag wrap around him so he'd be more comfortable.
"Wise," Scorpius added as Hogan left, probably to go clean up the vials and stuff.
Scorpius sighed, putting the boots with the rest of the shoes before he went and he crawled back into his own sleeping bag. He hadn't realized how rough a shape Varanian was in and how badly he was taking things, it was understandable of course but somehow he just thought Varanian would be okay or at least better then this. It made him worry how everyone else was doing, Varanian wasn't the only person to have lost someone – or two, counting the unborn baby – of late. He wasn't sure what he could do to help with the grief but he'd just have to try make sure he got Varanian to do basic things like eat, he seemed to listen to him at least.
He also felt good at the thought of having something to do, asking Rojer about Jack/One was totally something he could do and he had permission to talk to Brutus like he'd wanted. He didn't see why he couldn't ask him about Calderon as well as about tracking Sal, conversations could have more than one topic. He'd just get Lamb to apparate him over there since he couldn't do so himself because of his humiliating and frustrating in ability to apparate… Scorpius' line of thought trailed off as he glanced over to Lamb who had already curled up and gone back to sleep, his wrist still twitching unhealthily. Lamb, who was a werewolf and was in such a tired and weak state because of the upcoming full moon... so not really up to apparating. Scorpius sighed again, he supposed it'd just have to wait a few days.
Antonius Ashain hobbled onwards weakly, leaning heavily on a former branch turned walking stick for support that creaked dangerously each time. His injured leg throbbed painfully, every step sending a fresh rush of pain through it. It didn't hurt as badly as when it first occurred but that didn't mean it didn't hurt, in fact he swore it had only gotten worse lately and that the bandage felt tighter. The heat didn't help, the summer sun beat down on him. He felt like he was on fire and was very aware of the film of sweat on his brow, the heat also very much sapped his strength and he felt ready for bed even though it was only the middle of the day.
His dog Hope loyally plodded along by his side, occasionally sparing him a concerned look and having to slow down to keep up with him. Cassia's vulture flew overheard, despite knowing Convaris was friendly he couldn't help but feel like it was just waiting for him to drop so it could eat him. Cassia herself was walking ahead, smoking another cigarette. He wished she'd stop doing that, or at the very least stop putting them out on her arms. He was worried about her, she didn't seem to care though.
He didn't think it helped that they were barely sleeping, they were focused on keeping moving and found sleep hard anyway which he thought was probably a combination of everything on their minds and sleeping rough. Cassia insisted they avoid civilization as much as possible since they didn't want to draw attention to themselves and risk being sent to Skye or something so they just slept outside, as much as he'd hate to admit it he missed that house they'd broken into. They weren't eating much either, just whatever Convaris – and sometimes Cassia depending how close to civilization they were – scraps could scavenge for them. He'd never admit it aloud but he thought Florian did a much better of job of this kind of living, they ate real food and slept in comfort if not real beds then.
Cassia said they were getting close to Plymouth at least, not long now. Apparently, Cassia was the one handling directions since she could communicate with birds and go into town and all. He just limped through fields that all looked the same, they could be going around in circles for all he knew. Especially now when he was burning up, it was all he could do just to keep putting one foot in front of the oth-
Antonius' line of thought was cut off abruptly as his walking stick snapped, sending him tumbling to the ground. He cried out in pain as his injured leg collided with the ground, having to lay there for a minute breathing through teeth gritted against the pain. Cassia was on him in the next instant, helping him to sit up.
"Are you okay?" Cassia asked of him with concern while Hope started nuzzling him less helpfully.
"Yeah, my stick just broke," Antonius admitted, breathing heavily through the pain. Well, in truth he wasn't so sure he was okay but not because he'd fallen. He glanced instinctively at his leg, Cassia's identical eyes following suit where he saw the branch must've caught the bandage as the bloody, dirt-stained thing was now torn, "It's not that bad a rip, I'm sure its fine."
"Well there's the ruins of some place the Shadow Master hit nearby, can scavenge for some bandages there. No reason to take a risk. Depending how bad it is, we might even have shelter for the night."
"I guess," Antonius agreed vaguely, not really wanting to slow them down but also liking the idea. Now he was sitting all he felt like doing was sleeping, after stripping down of course because his clothes felt like an oven.
"Come on then, lean on me."
On that, Cassia helped him to back up with his arm slung around her shoulder so he could lean on her for support. He gritted his teeth again for the pain once more and they trudged on again, progress was painfully slow and the heat only seemed to get worse even though the day should be getting cooler the closer they got to night.
"Here we are," Cassia said abruptly.
Antonius' head shot up quickly – he hadn't even realized he was sagging – to see… well, what had probably been a town not too long ago. It was ruin now, you could see random walls marking where buildings had once been but now were just vomiting out the rubble that was strewn about everywhere. Strangely enough, there was a sign that seemed new and untouched by the destruction with the message: Please contact us immediately if you are aware of a Shadow attack in progress so appropriate action may be taken. Civilians are advised during this time to stay indoors as much as possible or alternatively come to the shelter nearest to you, these are magically protected locations were you will be provided with food and accommodation during this crisis. It then had some locations, contact information and fine print acknowledging this was a government notice.
"What's that all about?" Antonius wondered aloud at the sign.
"Oh, that's just the Ministry," Cassia brushed it off dismissively and he felt her shrug as they kept moving into the ruined town, "They have signs like that up all over and they broadcast it on the radio all the time too, advertising these safe areas for people to go to so they can protect them. More people seem to be going to them the more attacks happen, other people are not but there is lots of traveling. If your leg wasn't hurt we could've hitched a lift and probably got to Plymouth much faster."
"It's not like I did it on purpose," Antonius grumbled while Hope suddenly ran off eagerly.
"I know."
"What's Hope doing?"
"Sniffing stuff, just like she usually does," Cassia answered disinterestedly and unhelpfully before they heard Hope whine, "Actually, I think she's found something."
Antonius opened his mouth to comment but it quickly became a pained grunt through gritted teeth as Cassia moved them into the rubble, the uneven ground meaning he had to move his broken leg even more which hurt even more. They also had to move even slower because it wasn't solid ground anymore, loose rocks and shards of glass shifting underfoot were a lot more frightening when you only had one usable leg and were leaning heavily on your little sister for support.
Hope it seemed was in the ruins of a building though only two walls remained now and both only partially, it actually still had the remnants of a lopsided half-collapsed roof that crushed what might've been a desk or a shop counter. In fact, upon stepping on a piece of a sign with a bone and the letter 'P' – the rest was lost under debris – he thought it probably had been a shop, beneath that he also saw the remains of cracked linoleum tiles. He wondered if anyone had been in it when it collapsed, if anyone had been or died here. There were some fragments of plastic and rope amidst the grave of wooden shelves buried by broken bricks, Hope was pawing at something around there.
"What is it, girl?" Antonius asked his dog gently though Cassia was moving him more over to the roof going through the counter, "Cassia-"
"I can see what it is she's doing easier without you," Cassia explained before he could ask as she stopped by it.
He sighed as he leaned against it, if he was slowing his sister down what use would he be to Gray? It hurt so badly and he still felt like he was on fire, even though he knew the air had to be getting cooler. Using the roof – which was angled more like a wall – for support, he slunk down to the ground and leaned against it breathing heavily. Now that he was sitting down, it occurred to him that he was actually pretty tired.
"Acuta!" Cassia's voice cried, jolting eyes he hadn't realized had closed back open in panic. He wasn't sure what she'd done but Hope dived into the spot she'd been pawing at, seeming scoffing down something. His sister saw him looking, "Dog food. There's a bag of dog food under this rubble, I just cut it open for her to eat. You just rest here with her, I'll scavenge around for the bandages and see if there's any food."
"Be careful," Antonius urged her, it wasn't like there was much else he could do.
Cassia's narrowed slightly as if annoyed he told her that but said nothing as she walked off, leaving to be more useful then him while he boiled alive. He really wasn't feeling good. Not even slightly.
He rested his head against the rather uncomfortable roof, shingles did not make for a good surface to rest on. He still found his eyes inexplicably closing though, listening to Hope munch away at the food. He just wanted to sleep. And to not feel so hot, he could feel his shirt smothering his skin. In fact, why was he wearing it? He was completely alone right now, it wasn't like it mattered. Without further thought, Antonius took off his shirt and was relieved to feel the chill of the wind on his bare chest. He still felt too hot but it helped a little, it also allowed him to ball his shirt up to put between his head and the roof to be more comfortable. That was much better…
"Anton?"
Antonius' eyes snapped open at the sound of his name, shocked to find it was much later judging by the near dark sky. He felt like he'd only closed his eyes a second ago, he didn't feel like any time had passed. He was still tired, his leg still throbbed and he still felt hot. Cassia was kneeling beside him, an armful of bashed boxes of biscuits and cereal by her side that Hope had come over to sniff.
"Strange food choice," Antonius said the first thing that popped into his head.
"You're complaining about the food I found in rubble while you're sitting here shirtless?" Cassia countered readily and he felt his face burn a little in embarrassment.
"I feel really hot, okay?"
"You're shivering," Cassia pointed out what he hadn't actually realized until then, he was shivering but he could feel beads of sweat on his brow. Cassia put her hand on his forehead, pulling it away almost as soon as she touched him, she scowled, "You do feel like you're on fire though. You have a fever?"
"I'm sure it's nothing," Antonius insisted, not wanting to seem any worse than he already was and quickly pulled his shirt back on, "Did you find the bandages?"
"Yeah," Cassia confirmed and held up a sealed bandage, "You ready to change the bandage?"
"Yeah, we should do it before it gets dark," Antonius said, swallowing nervously while sitting up a little straighter, "Go for it."
Cassia started unraveling the bandage he had on while he could just grit his teeth against the pain, bitterly he supposed at least it was keeping his mind off his grief. He was already dreading to see how bad his leg looked and seeing his sister cringe told him it didn't look good, just the bandage itself was gross.
The wound looked bad, it looked really bad. Without the bandage he could see he hadn't been crazy about it seeming too tight, the area around the large jagged wound was all red and swollen, it still didn't look properly straight either. And the wound itself was disgusting, it was drowning in a quagmire of manky yellowish green puss. He averted his eyes, suddenly feeling sick to his stomach.
"Do… Do you want me to wash it again?" Cassia asked of him, sounding very unusually uncertain, "Would that help?"
"I don't know," Antonius sighed heavily, sparing a glance at his gross leg again and regretting it instantly. It looked so bad, almost like someone had thrown up inside the wound, "I think it's infected already."
"And that's not good?"
"It's not good, it's probably why I have a fever."
"I guess I should wash it again then," Cassia decided and proceeded to pour some of her bottle of drinking water over the wound, he wasn't entirely sure that was how you were supposed to clean wounds, "So how long does fever last for?"
"I don't know," Antonius admitted as he closed his eyes, resting his head against the roof again.
He wasn't particularly knowledgeable about such things, maybe running off alone hadn't been the greatest idea in the world. But then what was the alternative? Abandoning his friends? Letting the deaths all be in vain? How was he supposed to just do nothing while the world was falling apart around him? In fact, he could just as easily have gotten hurt from staying since the Shadow Master was attacking randomly out of nowhere… he tried not to think about Skye being at risk of the same thing.
"You will be okay though, right?" Cassia asked of him, a hint of fear in her voice making his eyes flutter back open to see her opening the new bandage for his leg, "Like it's not serious, they should still be able to just heal you… right?"
"Yeah," Antonius brushed it off, least he thought it was. He hoped it was anyway, "And like you said, we're pretty close to Plymouth anyway so I'm… I'm sure it'll be fine."