The next few days seemed to get progressively easier. Most of the potions, mostly foul tasting though they were, were the easiest part of his recovery. The potion that forced Harry's body to draw out the poison was easily the worst for his body to handle, but even the pain from that was gradually diminishing. Well, to an extent. Over the first four days, Harry had gone from experiencing agony to very painful. Harry no longer felt that his very insides were burning, and he could look forward to enjoying the feeling of being without pain as Sirius held him afterwards, gave him a very large bar of chocolate from Honeydukes, and then rubbed his back until he almost fell asleep.
With the exception of Remus, Harry hadn't had any visitors until he'd reached the fifth day of his recovery. It wasn't that he hadn't wanted to see Ron and Hermione, but he didn't have very much energy by the time their classes were out. It seemed unfair to make them come by just to watch him try not to fall asleep. He had learned that the match had been rescheduled to the following Saturday. Not that he's be well enough to play, but at least he could watch. In the meantime, Harry had enough on his hands with the numerous potions and studying for exams. Now, five days into the potion regime, he felt like he felt well enough to see Ron and Hermione for a bit. After his morning pain treatment, extra chocolate, and the nap that followed, Harry felt considerably well rested and pain free.
"Are you sure you're up for it, pup?" Sirius queried, his hands now on his shoulders.
Harry nodded. "Not for hours, of course, but maybe a half an hour? Please?"
Sirius smiled. "Let me examine you, first. Sound fair, pup?"
Another nod on Harry's end. Over the past few days, Sirius had taken a more paternal role than the older brother role Harry had been used to. He'd issue orders, not the way that Uncle Vernon or Aunt Petunia did, but with a similar level of authority. He must have felt guilty about telling an almost seventeen year old what to do, because more than once, Sirius would assure Harry that it was temporary and only because Harry was ill and not capable of making all of his decisions. Harry had managed a smile and a hug. Really, he trusted Sirius completely, and it was sort of nice to let someone else take over and handle things for him.
"Tell you what. I'll let them know they can come for at least fifteen minutes, and see how you feel," Sirius added, firmly.
Well, firmly for Sirius.
"That sounds fair," Harry answered, smiling, and hugging his godfather.
Sirius returned it with warmth.
Harry felt as good as he legitimately could feel when Ron and Hermione arrived several moments later.
Hermione looked like she wanted to give him a bear hug, but a quick look at Sirius made her restrain herself, and she settled for a far more gentle hug. Ron placed a hand on his shoulders, briefly, and then they sat on the couch across from Harry. Sirius remained in the room, but a bit off to the side. Ready to help if needed, but wanting to give Harry and his friends some space.
Harry was a bit glad. Not because he wanted Sirius to go away, but he appreciated that Sirius wanted him to have some time with Ron and Hermione.
"I'll bring the tea and biscuits out in a few moments," Sirius offered. "Let me know if you need anything, any of you, all right?"
Harry nodded, and Sirius disappeared into the kitchen.
"How are you, Harry?" Hermione asked, immediately.
"Yeah, we heard that you were on twenty potions a day!" Ron put in
Harry just shrugged. "Not quite that amount."
"Does it still hurt?" Hermione went on. "I read all about recovering from the Cruciatus Curse. About how the poison has to be drained from your body. Is that true?"
Harry nodded. "It's definitely not fun. Wouldn't recommend it as a way of getting out of classes," he added, jokingly. "It's not so bad as it was in the beginning."
"But you're feeling a bit better?" Hermione asked, anxiously.
"Yeah, when we asked him, Snape said you're supposed to experience less pain each time," Ron put in.
Harry nodded, again. "It's loads better than before."
That was probably an exaggeration, but Ron and Hermione didn't need to know the gory details. Really, he almost wished that Sirius and Remus (although the latter to a much lesser extent) knew. Even Snape, having been through it, seemed to look at Harry with something almost like pity when he delivered the daily dosages.
"D'you know how Malfoy is, well..?" Harry trailed off.
Fortunately, they understood. After chatting with animation about what should have happened to Malfoy, they revealed what they knew about his punishment.
"To begin with, Snape took away over three hundred points from Slytherin!" Ron announced with jubilation. "As of this morning, they only have five."
Hermione smiled in a very self-satisfied manner. "The other professors are taking away their points whenever someone acts up, and hardly giving any. I expect everyone is still irate that they won the House Cup by over six hundred points last year. They'll be lucky to be at fifty by the time the feast comes around!"
"Yeah, and Malfoy has to serve detention with Filch after class every day and on Saturdays for the rest of the year!" Ron added, with an equal amount of glee. "Prat's never had to do manual labor before, and Filch is giving him the worst of it. Anything that has to be cleaned or polished, it's Malfoy. For hours and hours, too!"
"It's not half of what he deserves," Hermione put in. "If he was of age, he'd likely be expelled, perhaps even sent to Azkaban."
"Not that Azkaban is likely to be all that bad, with the Dementors gone," Harry put in. "Just dark, gloomy rooms."
Not much unlike his old cupboard, really.
After complaining a bit more about how Slytherins seemed to get away with everything, they talked a bit about classes. It was mostly going over their lessons for the upcoming exams.
"I haven't done much studying so far," Harry admitted. "Maybe a couple of hours a day, but it's not as though I have classes. I hope I will be all right by the time they come around."
"They won't make you take them if you're still ill, mate. Not like Hermione, who would insist and still get above full marks," Ron added, grinning at his girlfriend.
Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Ron, even I am not that good. Anyway, Harry, everyone knows that you just need to concentrate on getting better."
"Yeah, even Snape said as much!" Ron chimed in. "He might stop by on Monday."
"Who might stop by?" Sirius asked, entertaining with a loaded tea tray.
"Snape," Harry answered. "Did you know?"
"No," said Sirius, rather shortly. "Well. He better not simply appear and expect to be welcomed."
"Yeah, even you two had to get through Sirius' screening process," Harry teased, making room for Sirius to join him.
Sirius placed the tray on the table and sat next to Harry, placing an arm around his shoulders. Instinctively, his godson leaned against him.
"A very intense screening process," Sirius answered with a mock intense stare that fooled no one. "Despite multiple references, you nearly didn't pass," he added, grinning.
"No way Snape's getting in, then," Ron determined, helping himself to an eclair.
"In all seriousness," Harry's godfather continued. "It rather depends on how Harry's feeling and, nearly as important, what he's wanting to say. Now, I would hardly object to him groveling. I might spell out a 'kick me' sign on the back of his robes."
Hermione's eyes widened as she nearly snorted tea from her nose. Ron didn't understand the joke, and Harry had to explain it.
They remained for nearly an hour, after which Hermione made an excuse about having to study. Of course, being as it was Hermione, it might not have been an excuse.
After they left, Harry hugged Sirius tightly.
"Thank you," he murmured.
Sirius hugged him back, smiling at his godson. "You're welcome, pup."
Harry decided that he felt well enough to study, so with the help of his godfather to ask for help, he made his way through two chapters of Herbology and another two of Charms. He also managed to learn the refilling charm after only a half an hour of practice. By then, Sirius gently ordered him to put the books away, at it was nearing time for dinner and, afterwards, his evening potion.
"I reckon you could stand another bath afterwards," he added, mildly.
Harry nodded, putting his books away. "If I need help with my hair again..."
"I'll be happy to," Sirius promised, placing a hand on his shoulder before, gently, pulling him into a hug.
Almost before Harry could blink, it was time for the match against Ravenclaw. Harry, while certainly feeling well enough to watch, knew that Madam Pomfrey would never clear him to play. He just had to hope that, even if they lost the game, they would still win the Cup.
Even though he couldn't play, he could still talk to his team. He headed into the changing area and, once they were all ready, gave a brief pep talk.
"We might have a decent lead," he concluded, "but that's no reason to take it easy on them. Play your best, and Ginny-" Ron's sister gave Harry a bright smile. "-Catch the Snitch as soon as you can."
They all promised to do their best, and Harry thought that if the match had been against Slytherin, there might be bloodshed. Good thing that Ravenclaw was having nothing to do with Slytherin.
Draco Malfoy, of course, was not in the stands, but much of the Slytherin team was. Snape was absent, and Harry wondered if he was supervising Malfoy's detention, or if he simply had more important things to do. The Quidditch Cup would go to either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw-Slytherin was long since out of the running.
Hermione was with Sirius, waiting for Harry and gave him an encouraging smile. The weather was warm, almost deliciously so, and Harry was glad that he could be outside and enjoy it. Sirius remained at his side, partly for practicality and partly in case Harry had any belated side effects and needed immediate attention. Not that this had happened yet, thanks to the regime of the potions, but they both knew he was hardly out of the woods. While many of the students stood, Harry and Sirius sat down, and Sirius kept a protective arm around his shoulders. Harry didn't mind. If anyone said anything, so what?
Ginny played Seeker in Harry's place, and Dean was back on the team. Watching him, Harry had to admit that he wasn't wrong in placing his hopes there. He might not be as good as Ginny, but he scored three goals in the first fifteen minutes. Katie was playing as well as ever, scoring another two goals in the next half hour, despite having not practiced in several months. By the time Cho and Ginny caught sight of the Snitch, Gryffindor was up eighty to ten.
"Doing good, Harry," Sirius murmured as Gryffindor scored another goal. "You got a real solid team, there."
Cho nearly fell off her broom as a bludger came towards her, and even though Harry didn't fancy her anymore, he was glad that she managed to stay on and seemed uninjured.
Ravenclaw caught up a bit in the next hour, scoring a total of sixty points, but the score was only sixty to one hundred and ten by the time Ginny caught sight of the Snitch again. It was closer to Cho than it was to her, but Ginny now had a Nimbus 2001 (later, he learned that it had been a gift from the twins) and she covered the distance easily.
And then, it was over. Gryffindor had won the game, and the Cup.
"Harry, come on down!" Ginny yelled, grabbing hold of the cup.
Before Harry could turn to Sirius, both to ask if he should as well as if it was all right, his godfather gave him a gentle push.
"Go ahead, pup. It's your victory as well. You trained them!" he murmured.
Grinning, Harry joined his team on the pitch. The Ravenclaw team looked a bit disappointed, but hardly spiteful, and Cho and Ginny shook hands amicably enough. Ginny grinned at Harry, her eyes vivid and expression both vibrant and jubilant, and a part of him thought that she looked rather striking.
He and Sirius joined the team in the common room, but about a half an hour into the festivities, he thought he was going to collapse. Sirius, thankfully, must have noticed, because he gently pulled him aside and asked if he'd had enough. When Harry nodded, they discreetly made their exit. If anyone was upset, well, they would likely forget by Monday.
"I overdid it. I know," Harry murmured, nearly collapsing onto the couch. "I feel like I could sleep for a week."
Sirius flicked his wand at Harry, and his school robes became his favorite pajamas. After removing the top, Sirius began to gently massage his shoulders, which were certainly beginning to ache.
"I'm hardly going to scold you, pup. Especially as I reckon it was mostly my fault. I should have pulled you away as they were going to celebrate," Sirius said, his voice full of concern. "How much pain are you in?"
Harry closed his eyes and let his head drop over his shoulders. "I suppose a four on a scale of one to ten. Maybe a five. Mostly, I'm just so...drained."
"Adrenaline crash," Sirius noted, moving to Harry's mid back. As his body leaned forward, Sirius chuckled a bit. "That can't be comfortable. Come, let's get you onto the bed so I can do this properly."
"Help me up?"
Sirius chuckled a bit, then easily lifted Harry into his arms. Instinctively, Harry rested his head against Sirius's shoulders.
"How can you carry me so effortlessly?" he mumbled as Sirius walked down the hallway.
"I carried your dad half the time after Quidditch, and both of us carried Remus when he was studying too much or recovering. And you're much skinnier than your dad," Sirius explained.
"You can thank the Dursleys for that," Harry said, yawning.
"I do," answered Sirius, honestly, gently placing Harry on his stomach on the bed. "And that's among the lesser of their crimes."
Harry didn't answer, just lay on his stomach as Sirius placed a pillow under his face, propping him up. Harry sighed with relief, and Sirius chuckled again.
"Comfortable, now?"
"Very. Thank you."
Moments later, just as Harry was falling asleep, Sirius tucked him in under the blankets, brushing some stray hairs out of his eyes.
The celebration lasted most of the weekend, according to Ron. Even some of the other houses were getting in on the festivities. After having won the House Cup last year by over 500 points, the other houses were determined that this wouldn't happen again. The shortest path to this victory was winning at Quidditch. According to Hermione, the house points as of Monday morning were Gryffindor in the lead at 530, Ravenclaw at 350, Hufflepuff at 310, and Slytherin at 50. All the same, by Monday, the fact that exams (and, for Ginny, OWLs) were hardly a month away took precedence for most of the student body over celebrating the likely triumph of Gryffindor in the house rankings. Harry was still not not well enough to attend classes, but Ron and Hermione were daily visitors, and Ron's euphoria at his own performance at the finale had given way to complaints about their unending workload. Even Hermione didn't seem herself, and Harry wasn't looking forward to learning how far behind he was.
After they left on Wednesday, Sirius received an abrupt floo call from Snape asking if he could come over. When Sirius said no, Harry could hear the fury in the professor's voice.
"Black, it is imperative that I examine the boy!" Snape snapped.
Sirius blinked, not expecting this response. "Why you, as opposed to Madam Pomfrey or, perhaps, myself?" he asked, with only a moderate level of acid in his voice.
"Have you not forgotten that Potter was subjected to the same curse under the Dark Lord?" Snape responded with a similar amount of distaste. "Or that it was likely your cousin who taught Draco the curse, as she has been teaching him Occlumency?"
This was news. He didn't even know that Bella knew Occlumency.
"Your point?" Sirius asked, tapping his feet on the floor to indicate his impatience.
Really, he might have come to a truce with Snape, but that had been before his snake got away with torturing Harry. His pup was living with the aftermath of that every day for at least another week, and what was Malfoy doing? Scrubbing cauldrons and cleaning bedpans?
"I am aware that your parents used it on you, but there is a level of hatred behind the Dark Lord's usage that most parents, even his supporters, refrain from," Snape explained, his face expressionless. "If Potter needs a higher level of therapy or extra potions, I would be the one to know."
"You distrust Madam Pomfrey's evaluation, then?"
"She does not have the same level of experience with dark magic!" Snape pointed out, tone oddly calm. "I will not tear your 'pup,' as you call him, away from your clutches. I only need to see him and evaluate him."
A year ago, Sirius would have uttered a few choice words at his nemesis. Now, with the sole responsibility of seeing to Harry's protection, and nearly having failed at that, he forced himself to remain calm. Everything Snape had said was true. If more was needed than he or Madam Pomfrey could know, was it not better to find out?
"You will not lay a hand on him after seven in the evening, and you will warn him before causing even the smallest amount of discomfort," Sirius warned, "or so help you, Snape, you will wish you were dead."
It was an empty threat.
Mostly.
"Understood. Will five o'clock this evening be sufficient time to warn your ward of my impending arrival?" Snape retorted.
"Yes."
Snape disappeared, then, and Harry came into the room, rubbing his eyes and looking far younger in his school robes.
"'S Snape here?" he murmured, walking carefully towards Sirius.
Sirius nodded, pulling him into a hug. "He'll be over at five to check on you. How's Herbology?"
Harry looked sheepish. "I fell asleep after one chapter."
"Better than after the first page. Come, let's see if I can help..."
Which led to something else that had been on his mind.
"Sirius? Could I have a word?" he asked, a bit timidly.
Sirius nodded and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Is everything all right?"
Harry nodded, then shrugged. "It's...do you remember when you thought it might be best for me to work with you and Remus privately next year? Instead of returning to school?"
"I remember," Sirius answered, his voice calm, his face trying to be open.
"I've been thinking about it. A lot. And, well, d'you still want to?" Harry pressed.
Sirius frowned a bit, then smiled. "Well, I don't believe that you're receiving the type of education I would want, and I certainly worry, especially after last week. Do you think that you would rather not go back next year?"
Harry nodded. "Yeah. I mean, I don't know for sure, but I don't know if I would ever know? And, besides, I reckon I am a lot safer from Death Eaters at Grimmauld Place than here. I dunno, I just wondered what you thought."
"I want to keep you safe, and I want you to learn as much as you can, as well as you can," Sirius began, "and I don't see either of that happening here. I see teaching that varies from reasonably good to nearly abysmal, although your current teachers fall more on the 'reasonably good' end. That being said, Remus and I scored very high on our NEWTs and we could teach you to do just as well, if not better. Additionally," Sirius added, softly, "other parents have already withdrawn their students. Others have seriously considered it."
Harry nodded, as this was hardly new to him.
"You have a bit of time before the summer holidays, though, and I think it would be premature to make any decisions before then. That being said, I am glad we are thinking along the same lines. We will talk more about this, all right? I won't make any decisions about your future without your consent," Sirius finished.
Harry hugged him. "Thanks, Sirius."
"You're most welcome, Harry."
They had just let go of each other when there was a knock at the door.
Sighing, Sirius muttered, "And that would be Snape."
Author's note:
Not quite where I wanted to end this chapter, but I didn't want it be be monster-sized. So, the favor will come later. The payoff should be worth the wait!
As always, I love constructive feedback!
Up next:
Snape's advice, followed by a visit to Madam Pomfrey, and Harry returns to class...but not before receiving some news. Vague enough for you?
