The Founders Awaken

Chapter 7: Emotional Release

TW: mentions of miscarriage.

Harry and Neville were stood behind one of the greenhouses, Harry's arms around Neville's neck as he leaned into the other boy, whose arms were around Harry's waist, and tried to breathe through yet another contraction that almost sent tears flowing down his cheeks again.

Apparently working on the wards that morning wasn't a good idea and had, in fact, set his recovery back a little as that was his eighth one that day and there were still plenty of hours left for more.

Neville was swaying him gently from side to side, and rubbing small circles into his lower back, and Harry wanted nothing more than to sink into that comfort and love and everything, but he couldn't because all he could see in his mind's eye was that blasted memory that tore his heart to shreds every time he saw it.

"It's okay, Harry, we'll figure this out. We'll cure you this time, I promise," Neville whispered softly into his ear before kissing his temple.

"I hope so," Harry breathed shakily, "I can't keep doing this, Nev, I can't-"

"Oi, let him go," Ginny shouted from a few feet away, and Harry really just couldn't deal with her right now.

"Can you please just fuck off," Harry whirled around, glaring at her as he held his stomach with one hand, "I really cannot deal with you right now, Ginny. How many times do I have to tell you, I'm gay, I have never and will never have feelings for you. If I want my boyfriend to hold me, and he wants to hold me, then that is okay. So please just bloody leave us the hell alone,"

"What's going on here?" Professor Sprout said, somewhat sternly.

"N-nothing, Professor," Harry said before gasping as another sharp pain rippled across his stomach, sending Harry to the floor and Neville with him as the slightly older boy held him close.

Professor Sprout and Ginny rushed towards them.

"What have you done to him?" Ginny spat at Neville as she knelt in front of Harry, trying to look all caring and loving, and get close to touch him, but Harry kept squirming away.

"Nothing. I've done nothing to him," Neville growled protectively as he moved Harry gently away from her, "But you stressing him out by trying to demand he love you certainly isn't helping things,"

"I'm not demanding anything," Ginny squealed, "I know he loves me, you have just confused him, or spelled him, or something,"

"Right, can you all stop arguing whilst Mister Potter is clearly in pain," Professor Sprout said sternly, noticing Harry's shaking body, "Sweetie, let's get you to Madame Pomfrey, shall we?"

Harry just nodded, needing anything to be away from Ginny right now. Professor Sprout helped him up, and yet Ginny was still trying to fuss over him, no matter how many times he flinched away from her.

"Miss Weasley, I do believe he has made his position quite clear in not wanting to be with you, let alone be smothered by you when he is clearly unwell. So please, leave him alone or I will be forced to put you in detention for harassing a student," the Professor said sweetly, though with a clear air of annoyance.

Ginny just nodded and glared at Neville who was looking at Harry worriedly.

"Mr Longbottom, I think Harry here just needs some peace and quiet, you can be with him again in a few hours, when he is feeling better,"

Neville nodded solemnly.

Then she was leading Harry slowly away, her arm supporting his waist as he hobbled along, trying to breathe through the pain in a way that left her looking at him rather questioningly a few times, although she didn't say a word, and he didn't care.

"Can you take me to Professor Snape, please?" Harry asked quietly, causing her to look at him, shocked.

"I… I thought you and he didn't get along," she said gently.

"We've burned some bridges over the last few days, and… he knows what's going on with me and has been helping, so I… I would feel better going to him if that is okay," he said.

"Okay, dear," she nodded and started leading him towards the dungeons, "What is going on with you, if you don't mind me asking?"

Harry chuckled slightly, although there was a darkness to it, "I don't think you would believe me if I told you. At least, not yet,"

"Hm, you never know until you try," she said gently, smiling slightly at him, "I know I'm not your Head of House, Mister Potter, but I am here for you if you ever want to talk,"

"Thank you," Harry said, and then breathed a sigh of relief as he noticed that they were at the Potion's classroom door.

Professor Sprout knocked on the door softly and it wasn't long before Professor Snape was there, his glare disappearing as he saw them.

"Severus, dear, Harry is having some difficulties and requested for me to bring him to you for help as you know what is going on with him. I have a free period so I can take over your class for you whilst you help him," Professor Sprout said softly.

"Of course, Pomona. Thank you for bringing him to me, and for offering to take over my class for me. They are already working on the potion so you just need to keep an eye on them to make sure they don't blow anything up," Professor Snape said, looking at Harry with worried eyes as he stepped forward to support Harry so that Professor Sprout could head into the classroom.

"Okay, dear. I will also write to Harry's teachers to tell them he won't be in classes for the rest of the day. You rest up, sweetie, I hope you feel better soon," she said, and then she was in the classroom, closing the door behind her.

And Harry took a very shaky breath.

"Right, let's get you somewhere more comfortable," Professor Snape said softly as he gently guided Harry into his office and through a door in the back, which apparently led to the living room of his personal quarters.

The Professor helped him gently onto the comfortable, dark, forest green sofa and covered his legs with a thin yet warm fleece throw as Harry curled in on himself, turning so he was sitting with his side resting against the back of the sofa, his legs tucked as close to his chest as they could get with his arms wrapped around his stomach, his shoes kicked to the floor as they were hurting his feet.

"Do you need anything?" the Professor said, "Food, a drink, a pain reliever?"

"My baby," Harry whispered, before chuckling darkly, "And for this to end would be rather lovely,"

"I know," the older man said, a sad smile on his face, "But I will try and help cure you from this curse,"

"I know you will. And I have no doubt that you will succeed. I just… I don't want to keep doing this. I can't keep doing this. We searched for decades last time and we found nothing. Nothing," Harry said, rather pathetically in his opinion, but he couldn't find it in him to care.

"Yes, but there is more information available now. On pregnancy, male pregnancy, curses, and everything else. More books available to pursue. More opportunities. I will find something. We will find something," the man said, running his fingers softly through Harry's hair and Harry leant into the touch.

"I don't think doing the wards this morning was a good idea," Harry said.

"Hm, perhaps it wasn't. But I understand the need to work to take your mind off things. Even if it, sometimes, slows down the physical healing process," Professor Snape said, "I'll go make us some tea, and get you a pain reliever which you can take if you would like to,"

"Thank you," Harry said, his voice a tad hoarse.

The Professor nodded and went to the little kitchenette next to the large window that looked into the depths of the lake, and Harry watched him pottering around with the kettle and such, trying to take his mind off everything. Soon the man was heading back his way, the tray of tea, biscuits and potions hovering in front of him, and then onto the ebony coffee table in front of the sofa.

"How do you take your tea?" the Professor asked as he sat next to Harry.

"Erm, milk and two sugars, please,"

The man smiled and nodded, and Harry watched as he prepared two cups of tea the same way. Harry couldn't help but smile, too, as the man handed him the black ceramic mug, and he unfurled enough to take it and drink some small sips, allowing the warmth and sweetness to engulf him.

"Where's Neville?" the man said softly.

"Professor Sprout told him to give me a few hours of peace and quiet so I can get some rest. She caught Ginny harassing us and the two of them started arguing so the Professor wanted to get me away from it," Harry said, somehow managing to sound annoyed, "I don't mind, too much, though. I don't… I don't like being a burden, and I know that it hurts him, seeing me like this. So, some time away from him, where he doesn't have to see me this way, might do us some good," he shrugged.

"You aren't a burden, Harry. No matter what you have been forced to believe over the years, you never have been, and you never will be. Though, believe me when I say that I understand it will take you a while to believe that. And he hurts because he loves you, and he loves your baby,"

"I know. That was one thing I never doubted in anything we went through. That he loves me, and he loves our children," Harry said, focussing on the mug, or trying to anyway, "I just, it hurts knowing that he's hurting because of me. Because I couldn't get my magic to work in time. Because I-"

"It wasn't your fault, Harry. Draco showed me everything, and you tried as hard as you could to stop him. To get your magic to work. You and I both know that magic is fussy when you're pregnant, you need a wand in order to control it properly, especially in a stressful situation. You did everything you physically could do. What happened wasn't your fault. You didn't kill your baby. That bastard of a man did,"

"I know that, logically, I just…"

"I know," the Professor said gently, resting his hand on Harry's knee, "I promise you that I will do whatever I can to rid you of this curse, Harry. So that you can remember your son in the way he is supposed to be remembered. With love, and not with physical pain,"

Harry just nodded.

"When you are feeling up to it I will need to ask you for information about how the curse effects you, I am hoping that might help lead me to some answers. But only when you are recovered, physically from it. I don't want you to be worrying about that when you are in pain," the man said.

"What kinds of things do you want to know about it?" Harry said.

"Just whether there are any other symptoms you experience after or during the vision. How it affects your body in other ways, if it does. I will probably need to do some magical scans and such also just to see how, precisely, it is tied to you,"

"Well, the contractions usually last about a week after the vision, with some each day, though it lessens as the week goes on usually, sometimes it lessens, gets worse, then lessens again. But it depends. I… If the pain gets really bad I sometimes purge whatever is in my stomach from the not very much food I am able to eat. In regards to the vision itself, it comes late in the afternoon, around the time we woke up in the cell, I will feel off for the whole day, though, but not really know what is wrong, then when the vision is about to start, I feel really tired, and my back and head start to hurt. Then I am just unconscious, I guess, until it is over, that is when the pain is usually at its worse, but again, it depends,

"I… If I get pregnant and the pregnancy… If I am pregnant when the curse strikes I… I lose the baby. So we, for our last few children, we had to time it so that I wouldn't be pregnant at the beginning of September," his throat bobbed painfully, "It doesn't matter what stage of the pregnancy I'm at, the magic and stress of it all just… We had to stop having kids because I couldn't… I couldn't keep going through that. Especially when our youngest almost died at birth. He was a week overdue when he decided to come, and the curse struck when I was in labour with him, we had some trouble conceiving him so we were worried when we learned I was pregnant, but… The only reason he survived was because Helga cut him out of me and they were able to resuscitate him. I couldn't do it again after that. I couldn't-"

Harry's hands were shaking so much that the Professor had to gently remove the mug from them and place it on the coffee table. The man then pulled him close and held him in a way that no one had ever done so, like a mother would. It was warm, and loving, and understanding, and comforting. It felt like home in all the right ways.

Of course another pain chose to strike at that moment and he curled into the man even more, gripping tightly at the black robes and trying to breathe through the pain, however shaky those breaths may have been with the tears that were flowing down his cheeks.

"I can't do this anymore," Harry quietly sobbed into the man's robes.

"I know, child, I know," the man said softly, holding Harry close, "We'll find something, I promise. No matter what it takes I will find something to help you get rid of this curse. So you don't have to keep re-living this pain, and so that any babies you may get pregnant with in the future will be as safe as possible. I will protect you, Harry, and I will help you in everything I can. And not just because you used to be Salazar Slytherin, but because you are you, and you deserve all the love, and care, and happiness in the world,"

"What if we don't find something? I can't keep… I can't keep losing my babies,"

"I know, Harry, I know," Professor Snape choked, "And I will do everything in my power to make sure that your children will be safe, that you will be safe. I promise. Even if we can't find something for a while, I will be here to help you in any way I can, and to protect you from everything I can,"

Harry relaxed into the man's arms, seeking the comfort all the more. He needed it. And yet, at the same time he couldn't help but wonder why. Why was the man so… motherly towards him? Why were they bonding so quickly? What was happening?

He wasn't going to complain about it, though. Because he needed this. He needed someone, an adult someone. He had always craved a mother. A mother's love. A mother's warmth.

And now, perhaps, he had found it. Even if it confused him slightly as to how they were able to get past everything so fast. Though Harry supposed they had both had enough of being forced to be people that weren't themselves, and so they relished in now being able to be their authentic selves with each other.

Before he could think about it any more, though, Draco rushed into the room, clearly trying to hold back his own tears, although he stopped in shock when he saw Harry and Severus on the sofa.

"Harry, what's wrong?" Draco said as he rushed over and knelt in front of the sofa.

"Oh, just everything," Harry chuckled darkly, "Are you okay? What's the matter?" Harry said, concerned as he gently rubbed some of the tears on Draco's pale cheeks away with the pad of his thumb.

"I just… I just realised that The Grey Lady is my youngest daughter," Draco choked slightly and Harry's heart clenched in pain as his few memories of seeing the ghost flashed before his eyes and he realised that yes, she was, in fact, Helena.

Hiya, how are you all?

Sooooooo, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I need to go and cry myself to sleep now so that I can be somewhat awake for work in the morning, haha. What do you think is going to happen next? Or just, at some point in this story? Where is this story going? What would you like to see, even if it is just something small? I would like to know what you think if you would like to share it. Also, has anyone else noticed that Helena is half of Helga's name and half of Rowena's name? And is anyone else using this as a reason to ship them?

Anywho, I posted an essay/petition where I (un)officially explain why I think I should be cast as my favourite character, Severus Snape, in the new HBO series, despite the fact that I am a woman. It would mean a lot if you went and read it, but no pressure. It isn't going to lead to anything, unless, by some miracle, it goes viral, but it was fun to write. It is on my AO3, Maraudering_Paige. Feel free to go and check it out.

Also, I am working on some Spotify playlists for my fanfics, so if you can think of any songs you think work with the stories as they are so far, or where you think they are going, or songs that give you the vibes you get from the stories, then please do let me know and I will give them a listen, then potentially add them to the playlists. If you would like to go and give them a listen as they are now then you can find me on Spotify under the name Maraudering_Paige. They aren't that long at the moment, but we are making progress and I will continue adding to them the more music I listen to and when I have the time to do so. But still, if you can think of any relevant songs then do let me know.

I have a Facebook group called Maraudering_Paige which you are all welcome to join if you would like to and are able to. It is where we can talk about Harry Potter, fanfics, life, share memes and more. It is also where I have somewhat of an update schedule for my fics and will be keeping you up to date on what I am working on, in regards to fanfics, original works, and more things. So if you are interested in joining then I am more than happy to accept you all.

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And finally, if you like poems, then I write them and I have started a where you can read 1 or more poems every month depending on how many I have the time to post. You also get access to information about my original books I am working on before anyone else. And you get your name listed in the acknowledgements section of any book I publish whilst you are a Patron. For £2.22 a month. If you would like to join me over there and read some rants I call poems, and get updates on original work, then you may. My username over there is Paige_Makepeace. No pressure, by the way, you certainly do not have to if you can't or don't want to. I understand. I just thought it would be a cool thing to try. Any money made from this will go towards helping me write and publish the original novels I am working on. Including the one I am hoping to publish first which is a slow-burn, witchy, bisexual/lesbian enemies to lovers book. You will also be able to read the first draft of the first chapter of my book, so, if you are interested in doing that then feel free to go and subscribe if you want to.

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Kind regards,

Paige xx