Disclaimer: I own nothing and make no profit.

Acknowledgment: Rpeh for the beta work.

Chapter 4

Blood stained the snow. Harry watched it spill from her and spread through the crystallized white particles. He stood completely still as he watched it pooled around her before he remembered that he had to act.

Harry reached for her. He leaned down to try to pull her to her feet. She screamed in pain as soon as he touched her. He stared down at his hand on her back. Her skin shifted as he touched her, sliding off of her like the photos he'd seen of bad burn victims. The flesh beneath was raw and bloody. He immediately pulled his hand away and kneeled next to her.

"Just. Kill. Me," she gasped through the pain. She curled into a ball in the snow. Already her pale flesh was turning a dark blue. Harry held his hands over her before reaching for his wand and trying to cast a healing spell on her. He felt the magic flow into her. But there was no visible change in her body.

He tried again, and again, and again. But still, there was no actual change. She whimpered a few more times before she became silent. Harry closed his eyes but felt nothing as he tried to focus on the door. He opened them and saw her shoulders were rising and falling slowly. Each breath she took seemed to take longer than the last.

Harry stood up and looked around. He knew that there was little chance of his healing her. Sure, he knew healing spells, but he didn't know exactly what she needed. And his go-to had failed.

But he hadn't expected her to be in this condition. And he wasn't sure exactly how to transport her. A portkey was the easiest solution. But with how her body seemed to be falling apart he didn't think he should subject her to traveling in that way.

He levitated her out of the snow and put a warming spell on her, hoping that would at least buy her some time before he looked toward his silver watch. He could summon Avery. He knew the man would respond if called. But what good would that serve? He'd just be in the same situation he was in now but with Avery chiding him.

No there was only one thing he could do. He'd have to Apparate her back to better medical care. He thought the hospital would be the best idea. But it was ministry monitored and he would prefer that they weren't aware of what he'd attempted. And there would just be too many questions if Harry Potter showed up with a nearly dead woman.

So he'd have to take her to Hogwarts. He didn't want her to be at the school yet. He'd hoped to let her adjust on her own, away from that part of him. But that didn't seem to be an option. He took a deep breath and reached out toward her floating body. He closed his eyes as his hand wrapped around her wrist. He held it tightly, his fingers sinking into her tissue as he did. Her eyes flashed open and she screamed as he Apparated with her.

She was whimpering when he arrived at the iron gates of Hogwarts. He slipped his hand off her and pressed the top button on his watch as he moved toward the castle, floating Emily before him as he walked.

Avery and Fumiko met him at the main gate. Fumiko gasped loudly and conjured a silken sheet around Emily's body as he entered the castle.

"What did you do?" she whispered harshly. Harry raised his brows and then saw that the Great Hall was filled with students. They hadn't seemed to notice him so he rushed toward the Professor's tower.

"Get Poppy," Harry ordered.

"Harry, what happened?" Avery asked as he and Fumiko chased after him.

"Get. Poppy," Harry ordered again. "My room."

"Harry there's something you need to know," Fumiko said.

"Poppy!" Harry yelled. Fumiko yelped and flushed crimson but turned and ran off toward the infirmary.

"Harry!" Avery scolded.

"She's dying, Alex," Harry said. "And I can't fix her. I'll worry about whatever else happened later."

"You didn't need to yell at her, you know she's sensitive," Avery said.

"I'll apologize later," Harry said, with no intention of doing such a thing. He entered his room a moment later, levitating Emily over the bed and turning his attention back to the door. Moments later Madame Pomfrey and Fumiko came rushing in.

"Heal her," Harry ordered the nurse. She raised a brow at him but then turned toward the floating patient. She slashed her wand and the silk cloth Fumiko conjured vanished. She started the examination quickly, scanning her wand over her legs and then up her body, examining every inch where the flesh seemed to melt off of her, prodding at every open wound.

"What happened to her?" Pomfrey asked.

"I don't know. She should be in better shape than this," Harry said. "The potion should have healed her."

"Vancouver obviously took its toll," Avery said.

"Apparently. But last time," Harry sighed. "Last time she was fine.

"She's malnourished. Her skin is falling off. She can barely breathe," Pomfrey said as her examination continued. "I have never seen injuries like this."

"Crouch and Pettigrew were feeding her before, last time," Avery said.

"What?" Pomfrey asked.

"That can't just be it. It has to be Vancouver," Harry said.

"Is this…?" Pomfrey asked.

"Probably," Avery said. "But she looks like she couldn't even be ninety pounds right now."

"One-oh-three per the diagnostic," Pomfrey responded. Her attention focused squarely on the patient's face.

"Why aren't you doing anything?" Harry asked.

"Is this Lord Voldemort?" Pomfrey asked.

"No," Harry lied. "Her name is Emily Price."

"It is her," Pomfrey said. "I've seen this face too many times. She's killed my friends. She'd killed thousands. What in God's name are you doing bringing her here? Thankfully she's dying."

"Heal her," Harry ordered. Pomfrey paused and looked at him, before looking back at Emily. She shook her head.

"No," Pomfrey said.

"You swore an oath," Harry said.

"I did," Pomfrey said. "But I will not be responsible for bringing this terror back into the world."

"I brought her back. I'm responsible. Heal her. Now," Harry ordered.

"No," Pomfrey said. "I refuse. I'm going. This is wrong, Harry. I'm going to get Minerva and-"

"Avery," Harry ordered. Avery stepped between the nurse and the door.

"Let me leave," Pomfrey said, looking rather startled.

"No," Avery responded. Pomfrey drew her wand but Avery simply raised his brows at her. She paused and looked back at Harry. Harry ignored her and moved toward his fire place. He snatched a handful of floo powder from the container there and threw it into the flames.

"St. Mungo's," he said. Moments later a young man's face appeared in the flames.

"St. Mungo's Hospital," he said formally.

"It's Harry Potter. I need Healer Patel. Immediately."

"Right away, sir!" the young man said. His face vanished and Harry tapped his foot as he waited for another face to appear. But when one did it wasn't Priya's.

"Yes, Mister Potter?" Farha Patel said from the fire. She looked exhausted as the flames flickered around her wrinkles.

"Where's Priya?" he asked.

"Priya is in India on vacation. I am covering for her. Now how did you manage to frighten one of our secretaries on a floo call?" Farha asked.

"I have an injured patient here in desperate need of attention. It is apparently beyond Poppy's abilities," Harry said.

"A student?" the elder Healer Patel looked alarmed.

"No," Harry said. "Prospective staff. Can you come through or send someone?"

"I'll come," Farha said. Her face disappeared from the flames and a moment later they roared up and she stepped into his bedroom.

"Thanks for coming," he said. She paused and looked around. Her eyes rested for a moment on Madame Pomfrey. She raised her brows and looked to Harry for a moment. But then her gaze shifted past him and toward the floating patient. Her jaw fell open.

"Oh my God," she said softly.

"Heal her," Harry said. An edge of desperation slipped into his voice as he spoke. Farha Patel regarded the patient for a moment, her expression hardening before she nodded her assent.

"Poppy I will need a hand," Farha said. Avery leaned against the door and Pomfrey shook her head.

"I can't," she said quietly.

"Into whatever house I enter, I will enter to help the sick. I will abstain from all intentional wrong-doing and harm, especially from abusing the bodies of man or woman, bond or free," Farha said.

"I know. But. I can't," Poppy said. "It's. Farha…She's…"

"I will never see in the patient anything but a fellow creature in pain," Farha said.

"I know," Poppy responded again, not moving from her position near the door.

"I'll help," Harry said.

"No," Farha shook her head. "This is out of your league. And I have a feeling that when it's done, we may need you as rested as possible. Poppy will have to help me. As will the Averys."

"Yes ma'am," Fumiko said, drawing her own wand and stepping toward the elder healer. "I don't really know any healing magic though."

"That's alright," Farha said.

"Harry?" Avery asked.

"Go ahead," Harry said. Avery nodded and moved toward his wife, leaving the exit clear. Pomfrey looked toward it and took one step before Farha barked.

"Poppy," she said.

"I can't. I'm so sorry but I can't," Poppy said once more.

"The health and well-being of my patient will be my first consideration," Farha snapped. "You will help me. Now."

"I…I," Poppy started.

"We do not have time for this Ms. Pomfrey. Save your objections for later I'm sure plenty of people will listen to them. For now, you will help me save this life or…" Farha started. Pomfrey froze as the threat sunk in. She took a deep breath and stepped away from the door.

"Yes, Healer Patel," she said, drawing her wand out as well.

"Now what did you find," Farha asked as she stared to cast her own diagnostic spell. Harry leaned against the wall and watched as they worked.

"Her body is functioning normally. Her heartbeat is weak and slowing. She's starved but I doubt we can get any nourishment into her given the condition of her body," Poppy said.

"What did you find in regards to that?" Farha asked.

"I stopped my diagnostic before I explored it too much. If I had to speculate it seems like something is separating her skin from her muscles and her muscles from her bones. She is literally falling apart," Poppy said. Harry watched as a chunk of Emily's calf did exactly that, landing with a wet plop on his bed.

"Yes," Healer Patel said as Fumiko dove toward the waste basket. Pomfrey and Avery both turned rather green. Farha prodded at the mass of flesh on his bed with her wand and frowned.

"What is it?" Pomfrey asked.

"It's like something is missing. Like some sort of essential component just isn't there. Things aren't staying connected like they should, for lack of a better term. I've never seen anything like it," Farha said.

"Can you fix it?" Harry asked.

"I don't know," Healer Patel said. "But I will certainly try. Poppy we're going to have to guess and check a bit here. Start with her feet and I'll focus on her hands. Go through every restorative spell you know. I would start with bonding spells rather than direct restorative spells. The flesh is healthy it just…isn't complete."

"Yes Healer," Poppy said. She paused for a moment before turning her wand onto Emily's left foot and doing as instructed.

"Mister Avery I need you to monitor her vitals. If her heartbeat drops let me know immediately. Mrs. Avery if you could attempt to keep the areas where we're working free of blood," Healer Patel said.

"Yes ma'am," Fumiko said. Avery nodded and obeyed. Harry continued to lean against the wall and fight back the urge to do something. He knew Healer Patel was one of the best healers of the last century with a very distinguished record. And he knew she would do everything in her power to save the patient. But he still disliked being idle.

But all he could do was watch them work. And so he watched them work. It was slow going. They cast and cast and cast. With each failure his frown grew. Nothing they did seemed to work. Nothing at all. He saw them grow more and more frustrated, their failures affecting theme very bit as much as him.

It went on for hours. Fumiko looked dead on her feet as she leaned against Avery and tried to continue on her work. Poppy and Farha continued through it all. Harry summoned an elf after four hours with some tea and coffee and snacks. They took a five-minute break and then went back to work.

It was at the six-hour mark that Poppy shrieked.

"What is it?" Healer Patel asked.

"It…worked," Poppy said, poking Emily's foot. Healer Patel rushed over toward her and took Emily's foot in her hand. She rubbed the skin around and laughed as it stayed in one piece.

"What did you do?" she asked.

"A combination of Aceso's bonding and Vejovis's cleansing. It flushed it out and then restored it," Pomfrey said, waving her wand over the foot once more. "And it's reading normal now."

"Her heart is very weak," Avery said.

"Show me how you did it. Mister Avery, watch as well, we may need a third wand," Healer Patel said.

"Yes ma'am," Avery said. He and Healer Patel watched as Pomfrey repeated the spell on Emily's other foot. It took a few attempts but then, Harry watched as the flesh seemed to bond normally to her once more.

"Okay," Farha said after going over numerous diagnostic spells on the freshly healed feet. "Well, let's get to work on the rest of her."

And they continued. It was slow going. They could only do inches of her at a time. Pomfrey and Avery worked up while Healer Patel worked down from her head. Harry noticed that Farha seemed to be able to cover more ground than the other two in less time. Her wand movements were quick and precise and she seemed to struggle way less with it than Avery and Pomfrey.

Fumiko slouched against the bed after a few more minutes. Harry walked over toward her and pulled her back to his desk. He sat her there and poured a cup of tea for her. She sipped it as she slouched into the chair. Harry moved toward the healers after. He tapped Avery on the shoulder and gestured to his wife. The older man nodded and moved away.

He watched Pomfrey cast the spell twice before he joined her. She frowned at him, sweat coating her brow, her eyes drooping with exhaustion. But she didn't refuse his help. And it went faster then.

An hour later, though, Poppy tapped out. She collapsed against a wall in his bedroom and watched as Healer Patel and Harry finished putting Lord Voldemort back together. Once the first step was complete, Farha let out an exhausted sigh. She conjured underwear onto the patient now that her skin wasn't falling off at the slightest touch and started casting more diagnostic spells.

Harry turned his attention to the bits of flesh that had fallen off of her in his room. A meaty smell filled his bedroom as he vanished what had been pieces of her moments earlier. He vanished the blankets and sheets from his bed as well as part of the cleanup process as Healer Patel continued her diagnostics.

"I need a nutritional potion and blood replenishers," she said.

"I have some ready made in the infirmary," Poppy said, starting to rise to her feet.

"I'll get them," Fumiko said as Poppy's legs gave out from exhaustion. Fumiko stepped from the room quickly and Harry went back to work cleaning up the mess.

"I'll take Madame Pomfrey back to her room," Avery said.

"No," Poppy said. "We aren't done."

"We've done all we can do," Healer Patel said. "It's up to her now. Get some sleep."

"Are you sure?" Poppy asked.

"Yes," Healer Patel said.

"Okay," Poppy said as Avery helped her to her feet. They left together. Minutes later Fumiko returned with the potions in question. Healer Patel took them from her and placed them on Harry's bedside table. She transfigured the remains of his bed into a hospital bed and lowered the floating Emily onto it.

Harry watched as she conjured some small tubes and a needle. She mixed the potions carefully and stuck the tube into the contents before jamming the needle into Emily's arm. Harry watched the grey liquid flow through the tube and into Emily. He thought it looked like color started to come back to her skin at that moment. But he figured that was simply his mind playing tricks on him.

Healer Patel went back to examining her then. Harry stood over his bed and looked down at her. She didn't look like he remembered. Her features were sunken. There were still some scars on her body, long slender strips of pink flesh, that Healer Patel was attempting to fix. Her hair seemed lank and she seemed too small and too weak. Harry frowned to himself at the thought. What if she wasn't enough? He'd have to cross that bridge if it came.

He watched Healer Patel work in silence then. After a few moments the healer seemed happy with her work and tucked her wand into her robes.

"There," she said. "That's all we can do for now."

"Thank you," Harry said.

"It's my job," Healer Patel said. She stretched her arms out and seemed to let the tension melt out of her as she relaxed. Harry continued to examine Emily's body. His eyes traced over her stomach as Healer Patel started to conjure a hospital gown around her.

A small star-shaped wound caught his attention. It looked like a puncture wound of some type. Harry frowned at it before looking at healer Patel.

"Why didn't you heal that one?" he asked, gesturing to it. Farah raised her brows at him.

"She didn't want me to heal that half a century ago, I highly doubt she'd want me to now," she said.

"You knew," Harry said.

"I'm not an idiot, Mister Potter. Of course I knew," Healer Patel scoffed.

"Then why did you help me?" he asked.

"I swore an oath," Healer Patel shrugged.

"That isn't it," Harry said.

"I wasn't helping you, Mister Potter," Healer Patel said.

"Then why?" he asked.

"I owed it to her," Farha said.

"I don't think you could owe her anything," Harry said. "You know what she did."

"As do you. And yet here you are, standing almost protectively over her. As if she deserves that from you of all people," Farha said.

"That's complicated," Harry said.

"Life is complicated," Farha agreed.

"So, what could you owe her?" Harry asked. Farha shook her head.

"What do you even know about her?" she asked.

"Everything," he said.

"Really?" Farha raised her brows at him.

"Yes," Harry said. "I learned most of it from her."

"Well, then you know what happened to her years ago," Farha said.

"The baby?" he asked. Farha's brows raised once more as if she was utterly surprised he managed to guess right.

"She told you about that?" she asked.

"In a way," Harry said. "I'm not sure what you think you could have done about that."

"Oh, Harry. That's easy. I could have saved Martin and Amelia," Farha said.

"I don't think there's much you could have done there," Harry said.

"We weren't paying close enough attention. You know we monitor the Muggle hospitals in the event of emergency. And she'd either never properly changed her name or it wasn't recorded right or something. Whatever the reason, whoever's fault it was, Emily Price didn't trigger our alarms right away," Farha said. She turned her gaze down toward Emily on the bed and brushed a strand of lank brown hair away from her eyes.

"What are you saying?" Harry asked.

"It wasn't until a few minutes later when one of the on-duty monitors floo'd me asking if I had a patient named Price. It had stuck out in his head. He almost hadn't bothered to contact me. By the time I got to the muggle hospital those fools had already killed Martin and butchered Emily in a vain attempt to save Amelia. I could have fixed it all in minutes. They were all still alive when they got there. But I was too slow. And they were dead when I arrived," Farha said.

"She didn't blame you, you know," Harry said.

"Of course she didn't. The thought never occurred to her that someone should have been watching out for her. That someone would have protected her. When the system failed her, it wasn't a failure she could even comprehend," Farha said.

"Well, now you're even," Harry said.

"Perhaps," Farha said. "Now what are you hoping to accomplish with this gambit?"

"I can't beat Grindelwald alone," Harry said.

"Gods. You are too much like her. You should never even try to beat Grindelwald alone. What is it with you two? You have support, you have friends. Alone shouldn't be an option. Alone is stupid," Farha scolded.

"I get the feeling you didn't really have that hard of a time with figuring out who I reminded you of," Harry responded.

"No. But I wasn't going to tell Priya her boyfriend reminded me of You-Know-Who," Farha said.

"We're not," Harry said.

"I know," Farha responded. "Or you'd be in India being chided about when you were going to commit to her."

"You sound happy about that," Harry said.

"You and Priya would not have worked," Farha said. "That had rocky relationship and then a baby to try to save it before an eventual divorce written all over it."

"Glad you think so highly of me," Harry said.

"I'm old, Harry. Neither of you could provide what the other is looking for," Farha said. She took a moment to examine the potion that was slowly being pumped into Emily's arm. She flicked the tube once.

"Well I honestly hadn't thought about it. I'm curious to know just what you think I'm looking for, though," Harry said.

"Nothing that Priya Patel or Hermione Granger are going to provide you," Farha said. "And I hope nothing that you think is going to magically happen now. But I won't assume you're that dumb."

"Ouch," Harry said.

"Sorry, I get annoyed easily when I'm exhausted," Farha responded.

"Are you going to stay?" Harry asked.

"In your room with her? No. But I will take a guest room at the castle. It'll be easier incase there's a complication or for when I check on her in the morning," Farha said.

"I'll have an elf prepare one," Harry said aloud, knowing full well that was all he had to do to make one of the on-duty elves prepare a room.

"Thank you," she said. "As is there is nothing more we can do for Mrs. Price this evening. I suggest you either get some sleep or catch up on what you missed in the last week."

"Right Avery wanted to show me something before he realized just what was going on. Can you just tell me and be done with it?" Harry asked.

"Sure. Those Iranians that claimed responsibility for the attack in France? They're all dead," Farha said.

"What? How?" Harry asked.

"The room is ready!" An elf squeaked as it popped into the room.

"Go find a copy of the paper and figure that out yourself," Farha Patel said as she and the elf left his room.

Harry frowned at that but did decide to simply summon another elf with the evening paper and some dinner. He conjured a couch and a table before sitting down and eating. He didn't turn his attention to the paper until he was done eating.

It only took him a few moments to piece together exactly what they were talking about. The terrorist group in Iran that had taken responsibility for the attack in France had been entirely wiped out.

There was all sorts of speculation as to just what had happened to them. At first there was nothing but guesswork. But, as the article summarizing the events told Harry, things were finally starting to make sense.

A few days earlier there was a rash of unexplained deaths in a small village in Iran. The Muggles assumed it was some type of airborne agent. The people that died had all been connected with the terrorist group. But when they returned to their homes it spread. A few thousand people dead in just a few days.

Harry had to dig through the paper to find the symptoms. The Muggles assumed some type of gas. But no one had been able to determine just what kind of gas would cause the heart to explode out through the ribs.

At least that's how the villagers were found. And then how the remaining terrorists were located a few miles away in a cave complex. Members of the International Confederation of Wizards went to the scene immediately because the nature of the deaths seemed too unusual.

But they were shocked by what they discovered. There wasn't any trace of magic in the air. There seemed to be nothing magical at all about the deaths. The wizards stayed to assist the investigation. But it only lasted a day or two.

They found a few small grey canisters littered in with the bodies. Magical identifying on them managed to trace their origins easily enough. It was some type of American chemical agent.

There were also traces that the investigators and Muggle aide workers were not the first people into the area. There were traces of American, Israeli and French military presence. It seemed all too clear that this was some type of response to the attack in France. At the very least the group that had claimed responsibility was gone.

The ICW officials seemed content with that explanation. They gathered up some of the canisters and sent those back for testing to see if they could replicate the weapon and then went on their way.

Harry frowned at the summary of the article. It made sense, sure. But it didn't feel right to Harry. Still, it was making waves through the Muggle governments. The United Nations was up in arms about three member nations simply eliminating a population. And doing so with some type of weapon that the world hadn't seen. And that certainly was against their rules.

All the while the French and the Israelis claimed they hadn't been responsible. As of that evening, the Americans hadn't issued a statement. Harry couldn't help but frown at the article. There seemed to be more missing than there should have been given the dates on it. But he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

There was no commentary from American or Israeli magical government officials. And the few comments from the French indicated that they honestly didn't believe that their military was involved. But that just led to more debate in the ICW.

And then two of the investigators still in Middle East, fully trained wizards both with Auror experience, both succumbed to the same gas in an area that appeared to be free of contamination. Eight Muggle aid workers joined them.

From then the debate became quite clear. The ICW decided it had to pull its resources out of the Middle East and investigate the biological weapon. The debate switched to whether or not Muggles should even be allowed to have such weaponry. Preventing them from using the nuclear armaments had been difficult enough since the last World War.

And now they had other weapons? Weapons that wizards weren't fully aware of? Weapons that they weren't sure how to counter? By all reports the investigators had taken every precaution they knew against the old poison gasses and biological agents. And still, they were dead. And all of this just weeks after an unidentified weapon had taken out an entire magical village.

The debate in the ICW turned quickly to finding a way to figure out just what weaponry these muggles had and trying to prevent them from using something again. And from there it quickly turned to making sure they couldn't even produce more weaponry like it.

The next few pages of the paper were devoted to transcripts from the debates and different writers giving pros and cons of intervening with the Muggles. Harry balled up the paper when he got to that point and tossed it into the fire. It shocked him that others couldn't see it. But he didn't feel like thinking about that much longer. Before he did, he'd check with Avery to see if they'd come to the same conclusion. But from there he wasn't entirely positive how he wanted to act.

He wasn't looking forward to that conversation. Hopefully this next one would be able to occur without Hermione screaming at him to not go and do something stupid. Which, as much as he loathed to admit it, was probably the correct play.

He kicked his feet out on the couch and closed his eyes. He figured his best option at this point was to simply think and let sleep take him. Perhaps he'd come up with something brilliant, or perhaps he'd just clear his head and hope for better in the morning.

Pain in his healed arm woke him. At first, he thought the poison must have been back. He sat up in a rush and turned his attention to his shoulder. He pulled his shirt over his head and rushed to the mirror to examine it.

His arm looked perfectly normal. He rolled his shoulder, frowning at the ache as he did, before prodding it gently. He shook his head, chuckling at his own stupidity. It shouldn't have shocked him, he thought, that sleeping on a couch he conjured without putting much thought into comfort would have some negative effects. He shook his arm out once more, stretching his neck as he did, and figured the pain would go away in moments.

He looked back into the mirror and ran a hand through his hair, frowning at it. He sighed and thought a cup of coffee would be nice. He summoned an elf to get him one. Judging from the tired expression on the creature's face and the fact that it was still dark out, he figured it was either still too late or far too early for coffee. He drank it anyway.

Harry turned his attention back to the mirror and stared in it once more. This time, though, a pair of exhausted looking dark eyes stared back at him. He met them in the glass for a few moments.

In his mind, what he'd say had been easy. The words would come to him without question. The conversation would come, the topic would be settled, and that would be entirely that. But that wasn't happening. Instead it was all he could do to just keep his eyes on the pair in the mirror. For the first time in a very long time he had no idea what to say.

It would have been so much better, he thought, if she'd just say something. But she didn't speak. She just kept her eyes on his in the mirror. He couldn't keep staring at them. But he couldn't look away either. He distracted himself with a sip of coffee before he went back to staring. Her expression was entirely unreadable.

He closed his eyes and focused on the door. Part of him told him that was stupid. That the door should be gone. But it wasn't. There was a sliver of it left there in his head. But, in that moment, it was sealed tightly against him. Eventually, though, he won the battle of silence.

"Get this thing out of my arm," Emily Price nee Riddle ordered. Her voice was soft and sounded weak but still managed to send a pang through his chest.

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Harry said. He expected her to just rip the tube out. But she didn't move. He wondered if she even could. He hadn't asked Healer Patel just what was in the potion. He'd assumed it medicinal. Could it have been a sedative? That wouldn't have been the dumbest thing in the world.

"Get this thing out of my arm, please?" she asked again. Harry laughed aloud and shook his head.

"Promise not to curse me?" he joked. She raised her brows at him, but only slightly. Even that minimal of an effort seemed exhausting to her.

"I don't even have a wand," she said.

"And I'm supposed to believe that's stopping you?" Harry asked.

"Right now it is," she said.

"That's not promising not to curse me," Harry said.

"I once said I wouldn't bring harm to you while you were in my presence," she responded.

"And then told me later that only applied to picnics in Highbury Fields," Harry responded.

"Then take me to Highbury Fields and get this damn thing out of my arm," Emily retorted. Harry stepped toward her and pulled the tube from her arm. She winced as he did. He turned his attention to the potion. There wasn't much left in the cup on the bedside table. He tossed the tube next to it and reached down toward her arm and brushed the small wound with his thumb to heal it.

"There," he said.

"Thank you," she responded. "Now sit me up."

"Can you not move?" he asked.

"Not enough," she responded.

"Fine," he said. He stepped toward the bed and reached down until he could prop her up against the headboard. The blankets pooled around her waist. The hospital gown that Healer Patel put her in hug off one shoulder. He adjusted it back into place and then stepped from her.

"Where are we?" she asked.

"Hogwarts," he responded. "More specifically the Head's chambers. I'm sort of the new Headmaster."

"Did Albus die or retire?" she asked.

"Die," Harry responded.

"Pity," Emily said as if she didn't think it was a pity at all.

"He never really recovered from…" Harry started. He didn't finish the sentence. He didn't have to. She knew he was referring to when they'd dueled in the Ministry of Magic all those years ago.

"He wasn't supposed to," she said.

"I see," Harry responded purely because it was his turn to talk.

"How long since then?" she asked.

"A decade," he responded.

"Tough old bastard," she said as a soft knocking emanated from the door.

"I guess," he said before turning toward the door. "It's open."

"Hey Harry," Avery said as he walked in. He was dressed in his sleepwear and looked like he'd been failing at sleeping. "Can't sleep either?"

"I got a nap in," Harry said.

"Hello," Emily said. Avery froze and stiffened. He took a deep breath and turned to face the bed. His eyes were wide with fear as they settled onto her. But his mannerism seemed more like he was worried he'd disappointed her than anything else. Her expression was still completely blank.

"My Lord!" he gasped. "I did not realize you were awake. Is there anyth—" he started. But she silenced him with a shake of her head. Harry marveled at how quickly he responded. He wondered just what it took to really build that devotion.

"I think you have me mistaken for someone else. I'm not anyone's Lord," she said quietly. "My name is Emily."

"Emily," Avery said as if testing the word on his tongue.

"It's good to see you, Alexander," she said.

"I..uhm," Avery stumbled with his words. Emily gave him a pained smile and nodded.

"And less so to see me, I suspect," she said.

"No. No. Of course not. It's…It's…" Avery said.

"Like the Devil came back for seconds," Emily scoffed.

"Thirds," Harry shrugged.

"Quiet. The adults are talking," Emily scolded.

"Hey now," Harry frowned.

"In his defense he's probably older than you right now," Avery said.

"Do you really want to debate that with me?" Emily asked.

"No, my Lord," Avery said.

"Emily," Emily corrected.

"No, Emily," Avery amended.

"I didn't think so," Emily responded. "So how have you been, Alexander? I notice you're wearing your wedding ring again." Avery looked toward his hand as she spoke.

"I got remarried," he said.

"Congratulations," Emily beamed, her solitary dimple reappearing for the first time in a decade. "Who's the nice young lady?"

"Her name is Fumiko. We met a few years ago in Japan and really connected. I never really thought I'd meet someone who made me feel like Celia had…but, well," Avery let his voice trail off as he spoke.

"I'm happy for you," Emily said, the smile not faltering on her face. "Although I do have to wonder just what took you to Japan."

"We were fixing Nagasaki," Harry said. Emily's eyes narrowed and her gaze turned to him, the smile evaporating in an instant. Harry suddenly felt incredibly small under her gaze. And like he'd rather be anywhere else in the world.

"It's a long story," Avery said.

"I'd like to hear it," Emily said.

"I'm not the one to tell it," Avery said.

"Ah," Emily responded. She did not look at Harry. "Has he grown up?"

"In some ways," Avery said.

"Hey," Harry said.

"But not in all," Emily said.

"No. Not in all," Avery said.

"Tell me," Emily said.

"He's still too brash. He'd rather solve problems by breaking through them than any other means. And he still hasn't learned to ask for help, or to properly value those who stand with him," Avery said.

"Hey," Harry said again.

"You know it's true. Your solution, ten times out of ten, is to rush head on into the problem and rely on power to solve it," Avery said.

"Wonder where I learned that from," Harry scoffed.

"Who's decision was I?" Emily asked.

"His," Avery said.

"Fantastic," Emily said, shaking her head as she spoke.

"Last time you had that tone you cursed a great many people," Avery said. "Am I to believe that you aren't entirely pleased with his decision."

"That will depend on why the decision came about," Emily said.

"Grindelwald is back," Harry said.

"Well that's a better answer than I expected," Emily said.

"What did you expect?" Avery asked.

"Something that appeared less altruistic," Emily said.

"I'm not entirely sure it is," Avery responded.

"Ah," Emily said.

"We need your help," Harry said, interrupting their conversation.

"So, he has learned to ask for help," Emily said.

"So far only from you. And only after getting his ass kicked," Avery said.

"By Grindelwald?" Emily asked.

"I didn't think I needed to ask for your help," Harry scoffed at Avery.

"Yes, by Grindelwald. He nearly died," Avery said.

"Harry got absolutely destroyed by Grindelwald," Emily said again.

"Yes," Avery said. And Emily burst out laughing. It was a high and sweet laugh that was almost infectious. Avery chuckled. Harry just crossed his arms and glared.

"Are you done?" Harry asked after a couple of moments.

"Almost," Emily chuckled. "Just recalling someone here insulting me for losing in to Grindelwald."

"You fought Grindelwald?" Avery asked.

"Yes," Emily said. "Shortly before Dumbledore did. I prevented him from escaping his citadel base before Dumbledore showed up and bested him."

"Wow," Avery looked impressed.

"Anyway," Harry said, doing everything in his power to stifle his annoyance. "I can't beat Grindelwald by myself-"

"Duh," Emily interrupted.

"—So. I brought you back to help me fight him," Harry continued.

"For what it's worth I advised him against it," Avery said.

"I think I see what you mean," Emily said.

"Together we can beat him," Harry said.

"Maybe," Emily shrugged. "But I don't even have a wand. And I'm a wanted terrorist and murderer that everyone thinks is dead."

"I'm sure we can work around that," Harry said.

"If we wanted to," Emily responded.

"And you're not entirely correct," Harry said. He waved his hand toward his desk and a long, slender box flew from it and floated over toward him. He levitated it toward Emily.

"What is this?" she asked, eyeing it and not opening the box.

"Well you're old one was immediately destroyed by the ministry. I had this one made a few months ago," Harry said. Emily gazed at him for a moment and then opened the box.

"What is it?" she asked as she stared at the wand.

"Willow and phoenix feather," Harry said. "Ollivander said it felt like a promise."

"A promise of what?" Emily asked.

"He didn't say," Harry said.

"That's your move? Bring me back, bribe me with a wand, and hope I help you?" Emily said. "You had to know that wouldn't work."

"No. I was going to ask something of you," Harry said.

"Oh? And just what would that be?" Emily laughed.

"I'm going to ask you to help me stop Grindelwald. Because the world will be a much better place with him gone. And you know that," Harry said. Emily stiffened in the bed as he spoke. Her eyes narrowed and focused on him.

"You think you're clever, don't you," she said quietly.

"I have my moments," Harry said with an air of triumph.

"When did you figure out what the ring did?" she asked.

"A few years ago," Harry said.

"What ring?" Avery asked.

"And you think that's all it will take? Reminding me of a promise made half a century ago. Knowing full well that my hatred for Grindelwald and what he did to me would immediately make me think that you were right?" Emily said.

"You know I'm right," Harry said, smiling.

"You forget that Grindelwald believes in the superiority of magic. The same cause I championed for many years," Emily said. "There's an equal chance that I believe the world would be a better place if he's left to his devices than if I interfere in any way. Perhaps he's the leader I couldn't be."

"But you hate him," Harry said.

"I hated him when I was a teenager. You never bothered to compare platforms, did you?" Emily spat.

"You'd rather side with him?" Harry asked. "You'd rather follow him?"

"I don't follow anyone," Emily said.

"I need your help," Harry said.

"I already gave you everything you could possibly need. Are you telling me you've squandered that already?" Emily asked.

"I couldn't beat him alone," Harry said.

"And you shouldn't have tried to," Emily said.

"I told you," Avery said.

"Yes, you should have listened to Alexander," Emily said again.

"The two of us wouldn't be enough to stop him," Harry said.

"Bring three people then," Emily said.

"That's the plan," Harry said.

"Pass," Emily said.

"Don't be like that," Harry frowned.

"Don't be like that?" Emily laughed. "Don't be like that? You have to be kidding me, you imbecilic moron. You rush off to do something you can't possibly understand without ever thinking of the consequences. You haven't grown up at all."

"What?" Harry blinked in surprise.

"What did you think I would say?" Emily laughed. "What did you think would happen? I'd smile and agree to whatever you wanted? Were you not listening when I told you I was done? Did you not realize I made you the hero and that it was time to move on?"

"You what?" Avery asked.

"And then another decade of abject misery with some minor torture worked in. Finally, finally I can just let the icy oblivion win and then you show up and drag me back into even more pain," Emily said.

"I didn't know you would-" Harry started.

"Of course you didn't," Emily scoffed. "You didn't bother to think about anything that could have happened."

"I thought you'd be grateful," Harry said. Emily snorted.

"Then you weren't paying attention," she said.

"Please," Harry said.

"And then you have the sheer audacity to try to bind me with magic you don't understand," Emily said.

"I understand it just fine," Harry said.

"No. You don't. As Alex said you found one quick solution and assumed it correct and all powerful," Emily said. "You never even bothered to think of how I would react to being used."

"I'm not using you," Harry said.

"Oh no please help me kill some old wizard so the world is a better place. You must better the world. Make everything better," Emily mimed. Harry pressed his jaw tightly together and stared at her.

"You know I'm right," he said curtly.

"No, Harry. That's just it. I know you're wrong," Emily said.

"You can't actually mean," Harry started.

"Of course not. You just are assuming it is a you versus him scenario. That one of your ideologies is better. That what the two of you does matters. When all the two of you will do is cause death. And there is no way that makes the world better," Emily said.

"You expect me to just do nothing?" Harry asked.

"I don't have an opinion on what you should do. I lost so that I would not have to be involved in these decisions. But before you go crying to me I would have thought you would have actually considered other options and the ramifications of your actions. But thinking does not appear to be one of your strongest suits," Emily scoffed.

"I remember you being less bitchy," Harry said.

"Amazing how a lady can act differently when she's trying to get something," Emily rolled her eyes.

"I don't believe you," Harry said.

"That's fine. The only thing you have to believe is that I will not help you," Emily said.

"Fine," Harry said. He felt his muscles tense. His entire body seemed to be on edge. But he knew it wasn't an argument he could win at that point.

"Good. I'm glad we came to an understanding," Emily said.

"There is one more thing I would like your help with, though," Harry said.

"Of course there is," Emily scoffed. "And just what insane request is that now."

"Well I do run this school as of right now. And at the end of the year there's going to be an open position. One that I believe you've had interest in in the past. If that's something you're still interested in I would think it would make for a lasting situation that could provide great benefit to all those involved," Harry said.

"You're kidding me," Emily laughed. "And now you're trying to bribe me?"

"No," Harry said. "I'm trying to come up with a solution to a rather lasting problem this institution has. And I feel like you could be that solution. And that you'd be able to provide great educational benefit for students."

"You'd never get me approved," Emily said.

"Only if you were dumb enough to advertise who you were," Harry said. "I would think a professor Phoebe Mitchell wouldn't draw any attention."

"I see," Emily said.

"Regardless, I don't need to know until July or so. You have plenty of time to mull it over. Now if you'll excuse me I think I better fetch healer Patel. I'm sure she'll want to see how her patient is doing," Harry said. He turned toward the door.

"Farha?" Emily muttered quietly. Harry didn't respond as he left to fetch the healer.