Harry sat at the table with Sirius and Remus for the second week in a row, rather less nervous than before for the second Occlumency lesson. He reckoned that he had a better idea of what to expect this time, even if his godfather would slowly put more effort into his attacks.
On the table sat a few large pieces of chocolate from Honeydukes. Remus had always made sure Harry ate chocolate after an attack with a bogart dementor, and by the end of Harry's third year, he had nearly gotten tired of eating it. Not that this near aversion had lasted very long. When Harry recalled how much better he had felt the previous term after sharing his chocolate egg from Mrs. Weasley and talking to Ginny about contacting Sirius, he thought chocolate might have healing benefits beyond coping with dementor attacks.
"You should have a few bites after each-for lack of a better word-attack," said Remus as he placed them on the table. "If nothing else, to keep up your strength, Harry."
Harry nodded, then managed a smile of thanks.
Sirius gave his hand a squeeze from across the table.
"Let me know when you're ready for me to begin."
Harry, frowning a bit, turned to Remus. "Does the book say if I should always have a warning?"
Remus must have expected this question, because he answered without consulting the text the three had relied on (but the werewolf clearly knew the best).
"Warnings shouldn't be withheld from the aspiring Occlumens until after six months after training begins. That being said, it requires direct eye contact on both ends, so..." He left the sentence unfinished.
"You can always avoid looking at Snape when you're in the same room as him," Sirius suggested, only half teasingly.
"Yes, I reckon he won't become at all suspicious if I do that," Harry teased right back. At Sirius's appreciative chuckle, he took a deep breath. "All right, I'm ready."
Immediately after Sirius performed the spell, Harry could feel him trying to work his way into Harry's mind. The warmth he felt from his godfather was difficult to resist, just as it had been before, and he felt the emergence of another memory before managing to push him out.
Not that it was easy to do so. He found himself shaking, and Remus was pressing a piece of the chocolate into his hand. Sirius had, it seemed, disappeared, until he felt his godfather's hands massaging his shoulders.
"Deep breaths, pup," Sirius murmured. "Deep breaths."
Oh. Right. His breathing had felt almost labored, and the room paler than before. He forced himself to inhale, pause, then exhale. After several repetitions of this, the room became clear and his breathing even. Cautiously, Harry took a small bite of the chocolate, and the familiar warmth filled him.
Sirius's hands were still massaging his shoulders, and as nice as it felt, Harry knew they had to get back to work. A few more bites, larger than the first, and Harry spoke up.
"I'm ready for a second go."
Sirius didn't protest, just gave his shoulders a squeeze before resuming his seat.
"You sure? You had a tough time with it, Harry," he said, softly.
Harry shrugged. "It was powerful, but maybe it was because it was a week since we did this last? I've been clearing my mind and all, but I'm not exactly used to...this."
Sirius and Remus exchanged glances. "Let's try again. See how you feel after that," Sirius replied.
Harry nodded. "Ready."
The next attack certainly arrived with the same level of force (though maybe half as much as Snape's attempts), and, prepared, Harry fought hard against it. He barely felt the overwhelming warmth before it was over.
He still needed some chocolate, but, this time, he could breathe on his own.
The third attempt was easier still, but Sirius refused to go ahead with any more.
"How about we move on to twice a week?" Harry asked.
Sirius frowned. "Let's see how you are doing by tomorrow."
Harry nodded, knowing that this was fair.
"Right now, I want you to take a hot shower and get some rest," Sirius added, coming around to help Harry up. "Or perhaps a long bath?"
"I can handle a shower," Harry insisted, trying not to let his irritation show.
"All right, pup," Sirius agreed. "There's one on this floor. I'll summon your pajamas...or would you rather have your casual robes?"
"Casual robes," Harry decided.
Sirius nodded. "Then, I want you to have a rest, here. I'll keep you company, if you like?"
Nodding, Harry emerged from the table. His head did hurt, more than before, and not wanted to withhold any information, he mentioned this.
"My head, er, hurts more than before," he added, a bit reluctantly.
"I'll fetch a pain relieving potion," Sirius promised, giving Harry a hug. "This way."
The shower, if anything, increased Harry's feeling of exhaustion, but seemed to help his headache a bit. Once dried off and dressed in his favorite pair of yellow robes, he returned to the sitting room, where Remus gave him a hug and insisted he eat some more chocolate before resting on the couch. Sirius also gave him the pain reliever, and Harry ate a bit more chocolate to remove the taste. It was hardly the foulest tasting potion he'd had, but it certainly wasn't palatable.
After he left, Harry turned to Sirius. "Stay with me a bit?"
"Of course. How about I rub your head? That might help," Sirius suggested, speaking softly.
Harry nodded, feeling better as the pain reliever had already taken effect.
Sirius placed a pillow to the side of him, and Harry climbed onto the couch and set his head on it. Smiling as the two blankets tucked him in, he closed his eyes. Sirius immediately placed one hand over his forehead and began to apply a small amount of pressure in small circles. With the other, he ran his fingers through Harry's damp hair.
"Mmm," Harry murmured. With a bit of a laugh, he said, "Thank you."
"You're welcome, but, pup, you know I'm happy to do this for you," Sirius answered, moving around to just above Harry's left eyebrow.
"It's still kind of new for me," Harry admitted.
"I know. As horrible as my parents were, they took care of me and Reg when we weren't well. That is, they sent our house elves to it," Sirius amended.
Harry opened his eyes in surprise. "Kreacher took care of you when you were ill?"
Sirius snorted. "He took care of my brother. No, Miffy took care of me. She was very devoted to my family, of course, but stayed out of their pure blood fanaticism. She was my favorite elf. Took care of me when...anyway, she was a good elf."
Harry might have asked what Sirius had meant before he trailed off, but between feeling relaxed enough to sleep and not wanting to force his godfather to talk, he stayed silent.
"How's your head now?" Sirius asked after several minutes.
"Much better, thanks," was Harry's truthful reply.
"Want me to stop?" Harry's momentary pause was answer enough. "All right, I won't. And before you tell me that I don't need to, I will have you know it's relaxing. A bit like petting a cat."
"I'm not a cat," Harry murmured, through a yawn.
"'Course not. You're my pup."
A/N:
Rather short chapter, I know, but hopefully still enjoyable!
Next up-the summer holidays draw to a close, and Harry's looking forward to Hogwarts less than usual.
