If We Didn't Have You Part 2
Summary: The continuation of If We Didn't Have You Part 1.
A week had passed since James's accident, a long week. He still hadn't woke up and despite the assures from the healers he will wake up, Lily, Harry, Sirius, and Remus were beginning to lose hope of James ever waking up. Lily was still keeping a vigil at James's bedside with Harry, Sirius, and Remus coming and going. In the time since James's accident, Lily felt like she had aged ten years and looked like she hadn't slept in five. The alarming part of all this was that Harry had the same bags under his eyes as well.
Lily sat in the armchair in the corner of James's hospital room, watching a mediwitch check James's vitals and to check on Lily.
"I've decided that James is taking me to Paris once he is recovered. For the weekend," Lily declared to the mediwitch. "James and I haven't been anywhere by ourselves without Sirius, Remus, or Harry in a long time. The last time that James and I went away, Harry was six. That was ten years ago."
"Then you are overdue for a romantic trip. Send Harry off to stay with friends or Sirius and go. Have a good time," Joan, the mediwitch said.
"Well." Lily looked at her comatose husband. "That would be a while. But it's nice to dream."
Joan smiled knowingly. "If you need me for anything, Lily, let me know."
"Thanks, Joan," Lily murmured. "See you in an hour."
Joan left the room. Lily vaguely heard "Hi Sirius" and the said man entered the room.
"Any change?" Sirius asked, sitting down his bag beside a chair.
"No," Lily deadpanned. "Where's Harry?"
"Tutoring," Sirius replied. "He only had one tonight and he'll be here after he's done."
Lily nodded. "How's he doing?"
"The professors have all been accommodating for him. He got an extension on his Potions essay. Horace said that he had given it to Harry because he needed the extra time, given everything that's going on. Of course, Remus and I told him we would work with him, though we don't need to do much, on anything he's missed in Defense and we've given a longer extension than the others because we're close to the situation. Dumbledore understands that and we're keeping that information between us, him and Minerva whose doing the same thing."
Lily leaned back in her chair, looking up at the ceiling.
"How's Harry doing, really?" she asked.
Sirius sighed, knowing Lily was looking for more. "He's trying hard not to fall behind in class work."
Lily leaned forward, looking Sirius in the eye. "Sirius, what is going on?" She asked. "Tell me." It wasn't a request.
Sirius sighed again, leaning his head back. "He's not sleeping. Ginny makes him eat. Otherwise, he wouldn't."
"That explains the bags under his eyes," Lily whispered. Turning to Sirius she said, louder. "Can you keep an eye on him?"
Sirius smirked at her. "Who do you think has since you have been here with James?"
Lily smiled, nodding. "Thank you. I'll need to remember to thank Ginny too."
"She's been trying, I'll give her that," Sirius murmured.
They sat in silence, watching James and waiting and watching for any signs of him waking up. Sirius pulled out some papers to grade. Lily pulled out a book she had been reading or trying to read.
Joan came back in for the hourly check, making small talk with Lily and telling her some things Healer Chorley put in James's file after Lily said it was okay to talk with Sirius. They were both encouraged with the new test results and hope had been restored in Lily that James would soon wake up.
As Joan had worked with patients like James before, she gave Lily an idea of what would follow when James did wake up. Lily was familiar with the regular checkpoints for patients when they were being discharged, but the checkpoints James needed to meet was a lot longer and there was the chance of going to a rehabilitation center.
When Joan left, Lily said to Sirius, "That was a lot of information to take in."
Sirius nodded, agreeing.
They looked up at the sounds of footsteps only for it to be Healer Jackson.
"Hello, Lily, Sirius. How's he doing?" He asked, pulling the rolling chair out from under the table.
"He's improved," Lily said. "Have you seen the notes from Healer Chorley?" She asked.
Healer Jackson nodded. "I have," he confirmed. "It looks promising. The coma was more of a potion-induced, but the potions we used have been stopped. As you know Lily, we generally do that with patients with injuries similar to James's."
Lily nodded.
"The wound of his left shoulder is healing, finally, but it will still take time for it to completely heal. It was a deep wound, going to the bone, and those take a while. The tests we've done on his brain show no damage, but we'll know more when he wakes up. One positive note, though, patients who were hit with the spell James was, don't usually make it."
Sirius sat up straighter. "They said they didn't know what the spell was."
"I think you may want to talk with Kingsley Shacklebolt. He said after an investigation they figured it out," Healer Jackson explained.
Sirius nodded, making a mental note to contact Kingsley.
When Healer Jackson left, closing the door behind him, Sirius warded the door and pulled out his mirror, similar to one that he and James have. This one worked like a walkie-talkie.
"Kingsley Shacklebolt," Sirius said to the mirror. Soon Kingsley's face appeared.
"Sirius, I was about to call you. We know what the spell was," Kingsley explained. "After reviewing memories of those who were present when James was injured and analyzing them, we've determined it was the Dolohov curse."
Sirius cursed softly. "Was the light purple?" He asked.
"Yes," Kingsley replied.
Sirius cursed again. Lily spoke up.
"Is that what hit James? Was that the curse that they were unsure of?" Lily inquired.
"Yes. This curse causes major injuries, and if performed with enough power, has the capacity to kill, depending on what part of the body it hits."
"Had it been a little more to the….." Lily realized it before she finished her sentence and realized how close she came to losing her husband.
"Thanks to the quick work of the Aurors present who got him to St. Mungo's, James wouldn't be here right now and their tireless efforts into finding out what happened," Kingsley continued.
"Let me know who they were," Lily said. "I want to thank them personally."
Kingsley nodded. "I will," he promised. "Take care, Lily. Sirius if there is more development in the case, I'll let you know, especially if we catch Dolohov."
"I hope you do," Lily deadpanned.
After the conversation with Kingsley, Lily and Sirius sat in silence, taking in the information that had been given to them.
"Should I tell Harry?" Lily pondered out loud.
"Yes," Sirius replied. "You should."
OoOoOoOoOoOoO
Ron entered the Great Hall for lunch alone. Hermione was in the library and would join him and Harry when she finished. Ginny was in class and one of the benefits of sixth year was a shorter schedule, but a larger workload. But somehow, they managed to find time to relax and have fun without the worries and stress of school work and what was going on in the world.
Neville was sitting with Hannah a development that started after Professor Dumbledore announced students could sit where they want and only had to sit at their tables at the End of the Year Feast. Ron and Harry had encouraged him to talk to her when he admitted he had feelings for her.
He found Harry sitting by himself at the Gryffindor table, glaring at a pitcher sitting in front of him.
"What did that pitcher do to you?" Ron asked, sitting down across from Harry.
"They figured out the curse," Harry said in reply.
"What….." Ron trailed off, realizing what Harry was meaning. The curse James was hit with. "What was it?" He asked, leaning in closer and speaking low enough for only Harry to hear him over the echoes of conversation around the Great Hall.
"They call it the Dolohov curse because that is the name of the Death Eater who uses the curse," Harry explained, trying to remember all of what Sirius told him. Lily told him they found out what the curse was and Sirius explained it. Needless to say, it was a lot for Harry to take in. "They don't know the incarnation, only the color of it which is purple and that it causes internal injury and…." He trailed off.
"What?" Ron prompted.
"Death," Harry continued. "The location where Dad was hit, he got lucky. If it was just a little lower…." He trailed off again.
Ron cursed, realizing what Harry was saying. "Has he woken up yet?"
Harry shook his head. "The healers said it could be anytime and they mean anytime now. I think they said that before just because it was something to say."
Ron watched as Harry stabbed a tomato with more force than necessary, causing tomato juice to spew out. He knew Harry was a hard time as of late since James's accident. In his last letter home, he had mentioned to Arthur that he knew what Harry was going through. Arthur understood what Ron was meaning and had written back on his own, telling him that it was time he returned the favor.
Summer before Harry and Ron's fifth year, Arthur was hurt during a raid and his injuries were serious enough that Healers were warning Molly that he might not make it through the night. He did. Lily had broken down the healer speak for Molly and volunteered to take Ron. Ginny went to Luna's and Fred and George went to Lee's while Molly at the hospital.
Ron had admitted to Harry in the dark that he feared Arthur wouldn't come home. Lily found Harry and Ron sharing Harry's bed as Ron had been sleeping on a camp bed. She didn't say anything until Harry told her he had invited Ron to move to his bed following a nightmare he had.
James had mentioned he had done the same for Sirius when they were in Hogwarts. Harry told Ron of this when he said it would be a onetime thing. It wasn't.
Ron was brought back to reality at the sound of a bag falling to the floor and Hermione's voice.
"Are you okay Harry?" She asked.
Harry launched into telling Hermione the same thing he had told Ron about how they had discovered what curse had hit James. She gasped, covering her mouth when Harry mentioned that it could cause death and how James narrowly escaped.
"Does Professor…."
"Yes, she knows. Mum told her," Harry said.
Lily had told Minerva when she came to visit James. She waited until she was back at Hogwarts before she cried in relief, looking at a picture of Monty and Mia she had sitting on her dresser in her personal quarters. James was her only true link to Monty and Mia. Harry never knew them.
"Did you tell Ginny?" Hermione asked.
Harry nodded. Ginny had met him in an unused classroom. She found him conjuring vases and then blasting them to pieces before he repaired them and repeated the process. When she caught his attention, she asked what was wrong.
The single question led to Harry unleashing his frustration, anger and finally letting himself break down under the stress and worry of what could still happen. James wasn't out of the woods yet and he could still die due to infections or the curse could move. Harry had collapsed in the floor, taking Ginny with him. She said nothing, pulling him into her arms and holding him until he stopped crying.
Ron, Hermione, Remus nor Sirius knew.
Harry sighed, dropping his fork. "I'm not hungry, I'll see you later." With that, he left the Great Hall. Professor McGonagall had seen Harry get up and was about to follow him when she saw Sirius get up from the table and follow him, Remus watching with concern.
OoOoOoOoOoOoO
Remus and Sirius were discussing the next lesson for the third year class when Sirius looked up and seen Harry getting up and leaving the Great Hall.
"Did you see him eat anything?" Sirius asked.
"No, not really," Remus murmured.
Making a decision he stood up and walked around the table, glancing over at Professor McGonagall, noticing she was about to get up. He held his hand up, motioning he would go. He left the Great Hall, standing in the hall for just a moment before he headed outside. The weather was nice for late November and unusual for Scotland this time of year.
He headed down to the oak tree near the Black Lake. It was at this tree, he, James, and Remus had spent many an afternoon sitting under and now, he would look out here and see Harry, Ron, and Hermione or Harry and Ginny sitting under the shade of the oak tree. It was also among one the places Harry went when he needed to be alone and to think.
The quidditch pitch was first, the tree was second, and the astronomy tower was third. If Harry wasn't in one of those places he was usually in an unused classroom. There were times that Lily cursed James for giving Harry the map and times like this was when she cursed him.
A sniffle made Sirius pause when he approached the tree. He recognized that sniffle.
Slowing his pace, he approached the tree, walking around it until he found Harry staring out at the Black Lake. His glasses were off, tears were running down his cheeks and his cheeks were starting to turn pink due to the wind. He looked like a little boy sitting there with his knees bent to his chest, his chin resting on his knee and his arms wrapped around his legs.
"How did you know where I was Siri?"
Harry question made Sirius jump. He didn't know Harry knew he was there.
"I guessed," Sirius admitted, sitting down beside his godson. "There are three places here you would go. The tree was my first guess."
Harry nodded, sniffled again, wiping his eyes with his free hand.
"Was Dad targeted because of me?" Harry asked.
Sirius was shocked by Harry's question. His heart broke at the thought that Harry had been carrying that worry around for the last week and in half.
"Harry James Potter, listen to me and listen to me closely," Sirius said. "Your Dad wasn't targeted because of you. Anyone who's an Auror would have a target on their back by any Death Eater," Sirius explained. "You did not cause this. This wasn't your fault."
"How can you be so sure?" Harry inquired, voice cracking.
"Because there would be a note or something after the attack and we would have put you and your Mum in the safe house. We didn't because there was no note or any concern this was about you," Sirius replied. "I would have known because I told Kingsley to keep me in the loop."
Harry nodded, leaning his head against Sirius's shoulder. He knew he shouldn't be doing this at sixteen, but he wanted nothing but comfort and assurance that everything is going to be okay. Sirius's arm wrapped around him and he leaned down and pressed a kiss on the top of Harry's head, something he hadn't down since Harry was little.
"He'll wake up soon, Pup," Sirius whispered. He wished he could promise Harry he would. But he couldn't, he couldn't bring himself to do it.
Sirius was afraid of breaking that promise if James didn't. Harry was the one person in the world he didn't want to break a promise to.
OoOoOoOoOoOoO
Lily stretched her arms over her hand and yawned. Sirius was stretched out in an armchair, while Harry was sprawled sideways across another armchair, reading The History of the Appleby Arrows aloud to James.
"Sirius, take over for a second. I'm going to the restroom," Harry requested.
Sirius took the book from Harry as he got up and continued to read where Harry left off.
Lily started picking up the mess on the side table of empty candy wrappers and water bottles.
She scooped up the cards from the game of War Harry and Sirius played to pass the time, in her hand and slipped them into a side pocket of Harry's rucksack.
Harry came back from the restroom, stretching his arms above his head, trying to get the kinks out of his back. He stretched backward, causing his shirt to ride up. Sirius couldn't resist and poked Harry's belly.
"Sirius," Harry yelped.
"I couldn't resist. It was either poke or tickle."
Harry returned to his chair and sat down, hard. "You don't usually when I'm lying on the couch. You've yakked up my shirt a few times and blew raspberries on my stomach, which by the way don't ever do that again."
"That was wasted breathed, sweetheart," Lily said from where she was standing at the foot of James's bed.
"I know," Harry sighed.
Sirius got up and declared he needed to go to the restroom and headed out the door.
"Will you be alright if I pop out to the tea room a moment?" Lily asked.
Harry's eyes darted between his father and then back to his mother. He repeated this for a moment before he nodded.
"I'll be okay, go on."
"Alright. Want anything?"
"I'm fine." Harry resumed reading the chapter that about the team's most glorious hour was their 1932 defeat of the team who were then the European champions, the Vratsa Vultures, in a match that lasted sixteen days in conditions of dense fog and rain.
When Lily stepped out of the room, Harry's shoulders slumped and he leaned back in the chair with his head resting on the back. He was exhausted. He had tossed and turned all night last night, mostly due to a stomachache he had caused himself. With all the stress he was under, he knew it was only a matter of time before his body started reacting to it. He had gotten up at some point to look for a stomach soother. Even after he returned to bed, after finding and taking a stomach soother, he laid on the bed, staring at the ceiling.
Dark smudges marred the skin under his eyes, matching the shadows Lily and Sirius had under their own eyes.
Harry slumped forward until his head rested on the bed, near James's hand. The book in his hand fell to the floor with a loud thump that echoed in the quiet room. Harry lifted his head up and looked at James's face.
"Wake up, Dad. I need you, Mum needs you, Remus needs you, and Sirius needs you. Dad, wake up." Harry leaned his head against the side of the bed. "I don't ask for much, all I want is for you to wake up."
Suddenly, something brushed across the back of his head, running down to his neck and back up. Harry's eyes snapped open and he held his breath, hoping he wasn't imagining things. The feather-light touch passed over his head, the feeling sent shivers down Harry's spine.
Slowly, Harry sat up and turned his head towards his father. He felt the floor drop out from under him.
James's eyes were open. They were slits of hazel brown, puffy and heavy-lidded. But they were open all the same.
Harry's breath caught in his throat. "Dad?" he croaked. James's eyes blinked slowly.
Harry shot up out of the chair and to his feet.
"Don't go anywhere, I'll be right back." He bolted to the door, thankfully opened or it would have been slammed open, and ran down the corridor, towards the stairwell that he would take him up to the tea room.
He dodged patients and staff, ignoring them when they called for him to slow down. He ran past Sirius and slammed into the door to the stairwell, and took the steps two at a time up to the tea room.
Meanwhile, James blinked a few times and smiled the closest thing to a laugh, he could manage at the moment.
"Where does he think I'm going to go?" James chuckled to himself.
OoOoOoOoOoOoO
Lily sat, slouched at a small table in the tearoom, a green cup cradled between her hands. She inhaled the steam from the tea, remembering the many nights she spent here with tea and the quiet moments during her break. She spent many an hour in the tea room, before, during, and after her shifts. It was one of the only truly quiet places of the hospital.
"Mum!" Harry called, as he burst through the door.
Lily shot up from her chair, nearly knocking the table over. "What's wrong?"
"It's Dad," Harry panted. "He's awake."
Lily approached her son and placed her hands firmly on his shoulders. "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
Lily ran out of the tea room and stumbled down the flight of stairs back to the Spell Damage floor, clinging to the handrail to keep her balance. She banged the door open and rushed through it, dashing past the same people Harry dodged only just a few minutes ago. She ran past the waiting room, bypassing Sirius and continued to run and skidded into the room Harry following behind her.
"James?"
"Hi," he croaked.
Lily approached the bed and leaned over until she was nose to nose with her husband. "Scare me like that again and I'll kill you."
Harry and Sirius burst into the room in the next minute and noticed his brother in everything but blood was awake.
"Prongs, buddy, you had us scared to death."
"Sorry." James's gaze went to his son. "Hey, kiddo."
Harry, breathing heavily, approached the bed. "Don't scare me like that again, Dad."
Lily scooped and picked up her handbag, digging around until she pulled out James's glasses.
"Here, these are your spare pair. Yours broke."
When he didn't think he'd be missed, Harry backed away and strolled down the corridor and opened the door to the stairwell as nonchalantly as possible. He slipped through the small gap and went down a few steps before sitting down on one. He wrapped his arms around his knees and buried his face in his arms.
He let the emotions he had been holding in, out. He was more than relieved that James was awake. He didn't hear the door open not did he realized that Sirius had joined him until Sirius wrapped an arm around his shoulders.
Harry looked up at Sirius, who held out a hand. Harry took his glasses off and handed them to Sirius before burying his head in Sirius's shoulder. He let the tears of relief flow and let out everything he had been holding in. Sirius's hand was rubbing his back as he cried.
When he was done, Sirius handed him a handkerchief. Harry took it and rubbed his face.
"I won't say a word," Sirius whispered.
"I know I'm supposed to act like a man, but this…." Harry trailed off.
"Harry," Sirius began, patiently. "It's okay. You were scared of losing a parent. I won't hold it against you. I cried when I found out myself because I was afraid of losing my brother."
Harry nodded, understanding what Sirius was meaning.
"We can stay here as long as you want."
"Thanks, Sirius." Harry swallowed thickly. "For everything."
"You're welcome. I'm your Godfather, I'll always be there for you."
Sirius and Harry sat there until Harry was ready to go back to be with his parents. No one knew what happened in that stairwell.
OoOoOoOoOoOoO
Remus was sitting in the teacher's lounge when he heard Sirius through the communication mirror he had in his pocket. He reached in his cardigan pocket and pulled out the broken piece of glass, seeing one of his best friends face.
"Hi Sirius," He greeted.
"He's awake," Sirius said in greeting. "He'll recover. It's going to take time for him to get back to where he was, but he's okay."
Remus sighed, closing his eyes. "Thank Merlin," he breathed. "How's Lily? And Harry?"
"Relieved," Sirius replied. "Harry's coming back with me to the castle tonight and we'll come back tomorrow."
Remus paused. He thought for a second before realizing it was Friday and tomorrow was Saturday. They could go and spend all day. Harry could stay the night if choose too or the weekend and come back on Monday.
"Okay, should I tell Minerva?" He asked.
"Lily said to tell her and to pass on that he can have visitors outside of us starting tomorrow," Sirius explained. "Healer Chorley said he needs some rest. He'll talk to Lily about the next step on Monday when he's gathered more information."
"Good…" Remus trailed off. "We came close Padfoot," he whispered.
"I know. Lily knows that and Harry knows that. But we didn't lose him," Sirius murmured. "Tell Minerva I'll have Harry back after curfew. Visiting hours end one hour after."
Remus nodded. "I will. I'll keep the lamp on in the sitting room for you so you don't wake me up again."
Sirius nodded. "Okay, if there's anything else I need to tell you, I'll call you on this."
Remus leaned back in his chair, sighing and closed his eyes slowly. Then he leaned forward, scrubbing his face in his hands.
"Remus?"
At the voice, Remus looked up to the face of his former head of house. Minerva sat down in the seat across from him and leaned forward.
"What happened?" She asked.
"He's awake," He said. "James is awake. He'll recover, but it will take time but he's awake."
Then in an act unknown to Remus, Minerva burst into tears.
"They're happy tears," she assured him when Remus got up, walked around the table and sat down beside Minerva, pulling her into an embrace.
"He can have visitors starting tomorrow. Would you want to…?" Remus didn't need to finish the sentence before he got his answer.
"Yes, I'll come."
They sat there in the teacher's lounge, hugging each other, relieved that James was going to be alright.
OoOoOoOoOoOoO
Harry walked in the Gryffindor common room to find Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Ginny sitting in the loveseat and chairs around the fire. He paused for a second, wondering why they were waiting on him when he realized this had become routine as of late. The four would wait for Harry to come back if they knew he was coming back to the castle and that was how they were updated. It saved Harry from repeating himself.
Before anyone asked, Harry announced, "He's awake."
"Oh thank Merlin," Neville murmured as Ginny stood up and approached her boyfriend, embracing him in a hug. Hermione, Ron, and Neville followed.
"He's got a long road to recover, but he's going to be okay," Harry continued. "Sorry if I ever snapped at you guys or if I said anything snarky. It's been a long two weeks."
"Is that normal?" Hermione asked.
"Dad's other injuries played a role and the fact that part of his coma was potion induced," Harry explained. "Healer Chorley is going to talk to Mum on Monday about the next step and what we could do to help with his recovery."
"I'm glad he's okay, Mate," Ron said, repeating the same words Harry said to him when he received word Arthur would recover. Harry nodded and then leaned over, pulling Ron in a brotherly hug similar to one he seen James and Sirius give each other.
"How long do they think he'll be in the hospital?" Ginny inquired.
"Two weeks at most," Harry replied. "But it would be longer if Mum decides to go with the inpatient rehab. She'll talk it over with Dad and they'll make the decision together. Though knowing Dad he'll say take me home and Mum will most likely bring him here."
Ron snorted, Neville smiled knowing, Ginny and Hermione laughed.
"Mum had worked her magic with your Gran and you can come with me and Sirius tomorrow if you want to see Dad," Harry informed Neville.
Neville nodded. "I would like to."
When they got up to head bed, Harry stopped them when he realized something.
"Hey guys," he called, making them stop.
"What is it?" Hermione inquired.
"I just want to tell you guys, thank you for your help and everything the last two weeks," Harry said. "I don't know what I would have done without you guys, especially you Gin."
Ginny approached her boyfriend, hugging him tightly and giving him a kiss. "You're welcome," she murmured.
"Anytime, mate," Ron said, patting his back.
"You would do same for me," Neville shrugged.
"If you ever need anything, help, support, whatever, you know I'm going to be there," Hermione reminded him. "You're like a brother to me and I love you like one."
"Thanks, guys," Harry said once more. "I appreciate it."
Harry followed Ron and Neville up the stairs after kissing Ginny good night. He looked forward to getting a good night's sleep for the first time since James's accident. Since then, he had been plagued with nightmares about James not waking up or getting killed that he had lost many a night's sleep if the bags and dark circles under his eyes were anything to go by. When they entered the sixth year boys' dorm, Harry was the first in the bathroom to shower and the first to get into bed first.
Ron and Neville shared a look between them and approached Harry's bed. They put his feet under the duvet and the tucked it around him. Ron used his wand to dry his hair and took off his glasses. They left their curtains open and Ron put a charm around Seamus and Dean in case Harry woke them up again.
"It's a force of habit now," Ron murmured.
They whispered good night to each other and climbed in their individual beds and fell asleep as the moonlight shined through the windows.
All was right with the world.
AN: There will be a first for this series: A Part 3. There is more to this that I would like to add and I felt this was a good stopping point. Part 2 of The Defense Club should be up soon or a new chapter completely I haven't decided which I want to finish first. Thank you to everyone who's still reading this series after four years. I hope you've enjoyed reading this series as I've had writing it.