The sharp smell of disinfectant and the feeling of an uncomfortable narrow bed under his back told Snape he was in the Hospital Wing before he opened his eyes. By the silence that surrounded him he also deduced that he must be in a private room rather than on the main ward. He was thankful that he wouldn't have to witness the myriad of student mishaps that came for Poppy's aid and relieved that he would not have to contend with said students staring at him - he knew Poppy liked to use that method to show him who was boss in these parts.
Since she had given him his privacy however, it must mean that she had things to do or say that were not for little eyes and ears to notice. That meant either a long convalescence, a severe lecture or a detailed examination. Right now, Snape would put money on all three occurring.
"No need to feign sleep Severus, I know exactly what you're doing" Poppy said as she came in, a tray of bottles clinking in front of her.
"I'm resting go away" he muttered.
"I'm afraid that's not possible right now" she replied, setting the bottles down next to the bed. "I even gave you a private room so that we could have this discussion in peace."
Snape sighed and forced his eyes open. "If you insist. Pass me my chart."
Poppy started to respond but Snape simply summoned the board to his hand.
"Severus!" she admonished. "Do you know how dangerous that was? You don't have much usable magic at the moment, most of it is healing your battered body. Using wandless and wordless spells is just reckless in your condition, it could kill you!"
"Hmmmm" Snape said as his turned over a page, completely ignoring the woman standing over him.
There was silence for a few seconds. Snape continued to read and ignore Poppy and Poppy continued to stare daggers at Snape as if she could bore compliance into her patient's head by willpower alone. When Snape finished reading he placed the chart down on the bed.
"I would send it back to where it came from but my ears have not yet recovered. Are you finished haranguing me now?"
Poppy gave a slight smile. "On that point. For now. No magic again though."
"Understood."
"Harry sent a patronus to fetch me when you fell. In it he said he was sorry, but when I asked him about it later he was curiously close-lipped. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?"
"Do not ask me to read the Golden Boy's mind, I have enough terrors thinking of the Occlumency lessons Albus wants the brat to take with me. I cannot tell you the way his mind works."
"A bit of quite advanced magic though, a messenger Patronus wouldn't you agree?"
"Given that Potter managed a corporeal Patronus at the age of thirteen strong enough to drive away one hundred dementors it does not surprise me in the least."
Poppy sighed. Ah well, she'd tried to talk to him. She would just have to treat his current injuries and wait for the next piece of the puzzle to form. No harm in making him squirm a bit in the process though.
"With your head injury and punctured lung you are not to move from that bed, do you understand? If you so much as try, I will tie your wrists and ankles to the bed railings. Due to the sudden nature of your injuries, Albus and I have agreed that constant monitoring would be best from here on in. So unless you would like to divulge how you received five broken ribs, a shattered wrist and a cracked skull, I can only assume it must be a bone deficiency and treat it accordingly."
"An acceptable hypothesis. However prescribing such a treatment on assumption alone leaves you at full reproach should your assumption turn out to be false later on."
"I did not know you were so keen for a bone density test Severus. As you wish."
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It was midnight and Snape was lying awake. He never slept well at the best of times, but being in the Hospital Wing somehow made it worse. Forbidden from performing his usual activities, his mind was free to worry about everything, and worry he did. When the door to his room opened of its own accord therefore, he sat bolt upright, desperately wishing for his wand. He did not relax when Harry Potter removed that damned invisibility cloak and revealed himself.
"Potter" Snape hissed. "What on Earth do you think you're doing?"
"Yokko said you might need a top up of this sir, but I can go if you'd prefer?" Harry proffered the man a turquoise potion. "He said if you took it now it probably would have worked by morning."
"Potter how did you get in unnoticed? The main door is very well warded at night and neither portkey or apparition work in the castle. Not to mention the monitoring wards on this room itself."
"Not every form of apparition is blocked. And whilst you and the magic use in this room are monitored, the door is entirely unadorned. You're not the only one who detests being stuck here. But since you don't seem to want my help, I'll just leave this on Madam Pomfrey's desk to give you in the morning."
Harry turned towards the door and begun to put on his cloak again.
"Potter, wait" Snape said resignedly.
Harry turned around, the cloak sitting over his shoulders so only his head was visible.
"Give me the damn potion. I made it to the room in time and then managed to avoid certain people until my first class. Madame Pomfrey does not know quite what happened last night and that is the way it is going to stay. Understand?"
"Perfectly sir."
Snape took the bottle, downed it and then thrust it back at the floating head. Harry stared at it.
"Can't leave such a bottle lying around idiot boy. You'll have to take it with you."
"And if I refuse?" Harry asked in amusement.
"Then she will find out and you will have doomed the entire world to the Dark Lord's rule" Snape growled in response.
"Ah yes, that little problem. Well that should be dealt with soon, and then what will make me keep quiet?"
Before Snape had time to respond, Harry had plucked the bottle from the man's fingers, flicked up the hood of his cloak and vanished. The door opened and shut a few seconds later. Snape was gobsmacked although he guessed he probably shouldn't be. It appeared Potter could enter and leave Poppy's domain at will. But since he could cast a messenger patronus at fifteen, entering a restricted area was probably child's play. And what had the brat meant by "that would be dealt with soon"? He couldn't be intending to face the Dark Lord surely? He wouldn't last ten seconds. With all these thoughts whirring around his head it was no surprise that Snape got very little sleep that night.
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"Good morning Severus" Poppy said brightly the following morning.
Snape groaned as the curtains were pulled back to expose the bright sunshine to his eyelids.
"No use trying to pretend you're asleep now, I know you didn't get much last night."
"Obviously I require to catch up now then."
"Oh don't worry, you'll get plenty of time to sleep shortly. How are you feeling this morning?"
"Perfectly well. Since you have awoken me at this ungodly hour, I expect you will permit me to attend breakfast before my first class?"
The replenishment of his magic overnight had been a godsend. He could actually function this morning, and if he could manage to get out of here soon, he could even get to the room and recover the rest of the way before breakfast. That time charm was the best thing he'd ever invented, too bad he hadn't thought of it before they'd got suspicious.
"Certainly not Severus. You are in no state to be going anywhere."
"On the contrary woman, I feel as fit as a fiddle. At least allow me the courtesy of going to the bathroom? If I cannot manage that alone, I assure you I will do everything you bid."
The two stared at each other, trying to find a weakness. Poppy broke away first.
"Very well, if you insist. I will be just outside and will come in at the slightest sign of difficulty."
"As you wish."
Snape walked with his usual long stride over to the adjoining bathroom. He chuckled as he turned on the shower and stepped underneath the spray. Poppy was going to be furious and that just made his day.
He left the bathroom several minutes later straight into the fierce glare of the medi-witch.
"I went to the bathroom, the shower was in the bathroom. If anything I feel better now than I did before. Now will you let me to go to breakfast?"
"No Severus. There is still the issue of unexplained broken bones and that wrist will take Skele-Gro to fix."
"The Dark Lord was in a reasonably good mood, what of it?" Severus quipped. That was a total lie of course.
"You were called? You know you are to report here immediately after every meeting for just this reason Severus! I will be telling Albus about this."
"I would expect no less. Now I have answered your question, may I go to breakfast?"
"Still no Severus. Get back into bed and don't move. I'm going to talk to Albus."
"If you insist."
Snape sat on the bed with his back to the mediwitch and silently conjured a sheet of paper. His hand flowed over it for a few seconds and then once Poppy had left, he changed the hospital pyjamas he was wearing to his standard teaching robes.
"Severus what have you done!" Poppy exclaimed hurriedly as she returned. "I thought we agreed no magic!"
"My magic has recovered perfectly overnight. Have I moved whilst you were gone?" He handed her his completed self-discharge form. "Now I may go to breakfast, what of it there is left" he added with a smirk.
Poppy's wand flashed over him and then she almost pushed him out of the door.
"If my care's not good enough for you Severus Snape, you won't be getting any more of it! I have other patients and matters to attend to so hop it!"
Snape realised he would have to go to breakfast before heading to his office. Since he'd made such a fuss about it, he couldn't just skip it like he normally would. But he needn't be there longer than ten minutes or so, which would leave him enough time to get to the room and put wards on the door that would take Albus at least five minutes to break. That was four more than he needed.
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Snape expected a summons from the Headmaster, so when he received a message requesting his presence after his last afternoon class, he was unsurprised.
"Ah Severus good afternoon. Lemon drop?"
"You know how much I hate those Albus. You asked to see me?"
"Yet hate and love are two sides of the same coin my boy."
"If you start quoting Catullus over those lemon abominations Albus, I shall be leaving. Get to the point if you would?"
"Never been one for smalltalk, have you Severus?" Albus quipped. Seeing the glare he continued, "alright alright. Are you sure you're fit to be teaching? Poppy was quite upset and worried about you."
"If that meddlesome woman truly thought I was not well enough to teach she would not have let me go, self-discharge form or not. She has threatened me with those often enough."
"Indeed. Well in that case I really must insist you teach Harry Occlumency. With Voldemort's resurgence and Harry having visions of what's happening, it's only a matter of time before Voldemort finds out and plants a fake one in there for a trap. Harry must learn to block him out."
"And why can you not do it yourself? The relationship between him and me is acrimonious at best."
"Alas I cannot say. But I cannot be the one to do this. It would be too dangerous for both of us. I have scheduled Tuesday and Friday evenings for Remedial Potions. Do not let me down Severus."
Snape stalked back down the stairs to his dungeon. More time with the bloody Boy-Who-Lived. At least this might stop the boy turning up at midnight uninvited. But he'd lived through one teenage mind, he didn't envy going through another's, especially one as inflated as Potter's. But since Albus had now ordered it, he had no say, and maybe he could even wheedle out of the brat his ways of escaping the Hospital Wing so effectively.