"It is sooo hot," Harry complained. He, Seamus, Ron, and Hermione were walking around the courtyard for break. As it was not yet winter, breaks still had to be conducted outside. Harry started fanning himself with his hands.
"You know that will only make you hotter, Harry." Hermione said, matter-of-factly.
"Babe, you're wearing your full robes – you're going to overheat. Take them off." Seamus stopped in his tracks and turned to Harry. Harry looked around nervously; Seamus sighed in understanding. "I know you're worried about people seeing your arms. But if you pass out right here in the courtyard, everyone is going to see them regardless when we have to strip you to get cool."
Harry sighed. With slightly shaking hands, he removed his robes. He felt instant relief as a light breeze played across his exposed arms.
"Feel better?" Seamus asked, smirking at his boyfriend.
"Much."
The group continued their walk, Harry and Seamus hand-in-hand. As they walked around the perimeter, they heard a sudden commotion coming from the other end of the courtyard. As they got closer, it was to find most of the Gryffindor Quidditch team surrounding Katie.
"Harry! Ron! There you are!" Katie ran excitedly to them. "We got the team reformed! McGonagall just told us!"
Harry and Ron whooped in excitement. "When's the next practice?"
"Tomorrow night, eight pm sharp. Don't be late!" Katie squealed happily, and she went back to the others.
"Finally! I thought we were never going to play!" Ron said excitedly.
"It would have been kinder to not let you play."
The others turned around; Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were sauntering over to them, smirks plastered on their stupid faces. "What do you want, Malfoy?" Ron asked, glaring at them.
"Just coming to say hi to the losers of the next Quidditch match. You haven't practiced in a month – there's no way you're going to win against us!" Malfoy sneered.
"We may not have practiced, but we've got better players on our team!" Harry retorted. "We're going to wipe the field with your sorry asses!"
"Is that so? You think you've got the mental capacity to play a game, Potter? Think your fragile little self can handle it?" Malfoy said in a disgusting baby voice.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Harry asked, confused. He saw Malfoy look down, eying Harry's arms. Harry turned slightly pink and folded them across his chest.
"One scars not enough for you, Potter? You had to give yourself more to stay relevant?" Malfoy let out a bark-like laugh, the other two joining in.
Before Harry knew what he was doing, he was on top of Malfoy, punching every inch of him he could find. Malfoy screamed in pain as Harry laid a fist right in his nose.
"Harry, no!" With a huge effort, Seamus and Ron pulled Harry off of Malfoy. Malfoy was curled up on the ground holding a bloody nose. It took a huge effort to keep Harry from jumping on him again.
"Harry Potter! What is the meaning of this?!" Snape was running over, his black robes and hair billowing in the breeze. He bent over and helped Malfoy to his feet. No sooner had Snape come, McGonagall was nearly by Harry's side.
"What is going on?" McGonagall asked sharply. Everyone started talking at once. McGonagall put her hand up in silence. "That's enough. Ms. Granger, what happened?"
"Malfoy was making fun of Harry's mental health and scars, so Harry punched him." Hermione said, looking satisfied with the outcome. She was very near to punching Malfoy herself.
McGonagall looked at Harry, who was being held back by Seamus: She knew Hermione wasn't talking about the scar on his forehead. Her gaze briefly fell to Harry's arms. She nodded. "Very well. Twenty points from Slytherin, Mr. Malfoy. And don't let me hear you ever making fun of someone because of their mental health." McGonagall said, looking absolutely furious.
Draco glared at her and then looked at Snape, who looked angry himself. "And twenty points from Gryffindor for hitting one of my students. And a detention for you tonight as well." Snape sneered at the indignant looks on Harry and McGonagall's faces. He and Malfoy turned away and headed inside the castle, Crabbe and Goyle right behind them.
McGonagall turned to Harry. "Thirty points to Gryffindor, Mr. Potter. And may I pray you do well in the next game – kick Slytherin's ass." She said sternly and walked away.
The gang couldn't help but smile at each other. "McGonagall's such a badass!" Seamus said, finally letting go of Harry: He definetely felt much better after punching Malfoy and gaining McGonagall's support for it.
"I'm sorry you have detention for it, though," Ron said sympathetically. "At least it's not tomorrow!"
"Honestly, I'll take a detention with Snape than Umbridge any day," Harry said. "And it was honestly worth it."
"I can't believe he would stoop that low." Hermione said.
"I'm not surprised," Harry said. The bell rang just then, signaling the end of break.
Harry was walking down the hall later that night, just having finished his detention with Snape. It wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be: He ended up having to scrub the bottoms of every chair in the Potions' dungeon. Harry didn't mind the hard labor – he was used to it because of the Dursleys. He made it to the last set of stairs when he suddenly got a sharp pain in his scar. Harry stopped short, grabbing the railing to steady himself. He closed his eyes, waiting for the pain to subside. When it did, he started up the stairs, slowly this time.
It happened again in a flash: A sharp pain shot through Harry's scar, and this time he dropped to his knees, nearly slipping onto the steps below. Harry screwed up his eyes in pain, but this time, it was getting worse. Harry let out a moan as he started feeling dizzy. He carefully laid his head down on the cold stone step, hoping that would help…
He was walking the hallway once more….this time, he knew where the door was….he went to the end and turned right….through the door, into another dimly lit room…he glided across the floor, through another door and found himself in a room filled with glowing orbs…Which orb was the right one?…Down row fifty-two…fifty-three…no, this wasn't right…he had to keep going…
"Harry! Harry!"
Harry's eyes flew open. He felt out of breath and sweaty. He looked around and his eyes landed on Seamus, who was bending over him, looking scared. He gently lifted Harry into a sitting position. Harry felt dazed and confused, his brain a bit foggy.
"Harry? Baby, what happened?" Seamus asked, watching Harry closely.
It took Harry a moment to find his voice. "I-I'm not sure. I was coming back from detention…and then I got a pain in my head…and now I'm here."
"You blacked out again?" Seamus took a seat next to Harry, his arm around him. Harry laid his head on Seamus' shoulder.
"I'm guessing so. I was fine before. It just came on so suddenly." Harry felt his eyes getting heavy. "Seamus…I don't know what's happening…I don't know if I can stand up."
"Should I get someone?" Seamus asked. "Harry?" Seamus turned to find Harry unresponsive. He shook him, but with no results. "Shit!" Seamus said under his breath.
Seamus repositioned himself to try and scoop Harry into his arms. Harry was a lot heavier than he looked, but Seamus managed to get him into his arms and slowly headed down the stairs – it was the closest to a ground floor. When he made it, he gently laid Harry down. Seamus looked around him, not really wanting to leave Harry there unconscious, but not really knowing what else he could do for him. Just then, a set of footsteps could be heard coming from around the corner of the next hallway.
"Hello? Can someone help me?" Seamus called out, hoping it was a friendly face. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Hannah Abbott, the Hufflepuff prefect, coming around the corner. "Hannah, thank god!"
"Seamus? What's happened to Harry?" Hannah rushed over to the boys and bent down.
"He's passed out – something about a head pain. Could you get Madame Pompfrey? I don't think I can carry him all the way to the infirmary." Seamus explained. Hannah nodded and ran off.
"You cannot touch it," a cold high voice spoke.
"I swear, I was unaware! I thought anyone could –"
There was a scream of pain and a flash of red light. The man started sobbing. "You have disappointed me for the last time, Rookwood!" The cold voice said. There was another flash of red light, a terrified scream.
Harry sat bolt upright, looking around him once more. He was lying in a bed in the dark hospital wing. Seamus was sitting beside him, his head resting on his arms, which was resting on Harry's bed: He was sleeping soundly.
"Ah, Mr. Potter, you're awake." Madame Pompfrey strolled into the wing from her office.
"How did I get here?" Harry asked, confused.
"Mr. Finnegan and Ms. Abbott found you and brought you here." Madam Pompfrey started checking Harry's vitals. She checked his temperature, his pulse, his eyes, and even peered closely at his scar. "Everything seems in order, Mr. Potter. Do you remember what happened?"
Harry scrunched up his face for a moment, trying to remember. "Er…I was coming back from a detention…I just remember getting a sudden pain in my forehead –"
"Was it your scar specifically or just your head in general?"Madame Pompfrey asked, watching Harry closely.
"I think it was a little bit of both. My head first, and then my scar…but I don't remember anything after that."
"Very well. It's nearly passed midnight, so I'll have you finish the night here." She glanced at Seamus, who was still sound asleep. "I'll have to wake Finnegan."
"You're not going to make him go back, are you?" Harry asked, not wanting to be alone.
"No, it is far too late for anyone to be roaming the halls. He may stay in one of the empty beds. He's going to hurt his neck if he sleeps like that much longer."
"Thank you, Madame. I can wake him for you." Harry offered. Madame Pompfrey gave him a curt nod before heading back to her office.
Harry waited for the door to shut before he gently shook Seamus awake. He sat up, yawning and stretching. "Harry, you're awake! How are you feeling?"
"Tired and confused. But definitely a lot better than before." Harry said, scooting to make room for Seamus.
"You gave me a right scare there, babe, not gonna lie." Seamus cuddled up to Harry, who put his arms around him.
"I'm sorry. I honestly don't know what happened. I was completely fine – and then I wasn't. And I didn't even have a headache this time."
"Professor McGonagall was in here earlier – she mentioned maybe it had something to do with your scar." Seamus said, looking up at Harry.
"Pompfrey was asking about my scar too…I don't know. I'm just glad it wasn't something more serious." The pair fell silent, listening to the various creaks and moans of the castle. "I'm sorry you had to deal with this," Harry said after a while.
"I don't mind, Harry, honestly." Seamus said, squeezing Harry tighter. "There's nothing that's ever going to change that…I want to take care of you."
Harry smiled widely. "You want to take care of me?"
"Forever and always," Seamus sat up and planted a gentle kiss on Harry's lips before settling down for sleep once more.
It was the very early hours of the next morning. Professor McGonagall made her way to the infirmary. When she entered, it was to find Harry and Seamus, in the same bed, spooning. She couldn't help but smile as she shook her head slightly and proceeded to Madame Pomfrey's office.
"Ah, Minerva! Please, take a seat." Pomfrey offered.
"Thank you, Poppy." McGonagall sat down. "How has Potter been since I left last night?"
"He seemed fine when he eventually woke up. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. However…." Madame Pomfrey paused.
"What is it, Poppy?"
"Potter was talking in his sleep last night…it didn't quite sound like his voice, but his lips were moving." Poppy gulped, almost as if she was nervous. McGonagall pushed her seat closer. "He kept saying someone was disappointing him. He kept saying the name 'Rookwood'. Does that name mean anything to you?"
McGonagall sat up a little straighter at that. "It might possibly. I will be informing Albus at any rate. Anything else?"
"He was holding his scar a lot during this – dream? Episode? Whatever it was…that is no ordinary scar, Minerva."
"I'm well aware, Poppy." McGonagall sighed heavily. "Thank you." With that said, she took her leave.