It was the end of year staff meeting and Severus was tense. Really tense. Since his last set-to with Potter, he had specifically avoided giving the boy detentions, and he had managed to live his life as well as he now could, what with weekly checkups and the monitoring. He couldn't even hide from the check ups because the bloody bracelet told Poppy exactly where he was hiding. But so much for Potter's promised doom. It wasn't like the boy could get to him over the summer. Especially if he didn't stay here for the summer. Then it would be significantly harder for Poppy to get her claws into him as well. But then why was he so uneasy now?
"Severus? Are you feeling alright? You look very pale" said a voice to his left. He turned to see who it was, but his eyes rolled into his head and he fell onto the floor with a thump.
He woke up in a private room of the Hospital Wing, a myriad of syringes, bottles and needles laid out on trays around him. To his added horror he found he was dressed in just a hospital gown. Immediately he knew that whatever happened here, it wasn't going to go well for him.
"Ah Severus, you're awake!" Poppy greeted him brightly as she entered.
"As if you didn't know that already" he growled in response. "What's all this for?"
"Your stats show no reason why you should have collapsed like that. You went from normal, to unconscious with no symptoms. Albus has asked me to ensure that you are fit to teach in the new year and we're worried about you. You've been in here more in the last few months than the years before it combined. If this is the start of something long-term, we want to catch it early."
"What will it entail? I assume you need my consent before you can begin?"
"Technically yes, but since it is basically a fit for work examination, if you refuse, you lose your job and you run the risk of missing something vital to your continued wellbeing."
"How long does it take?"
"Anything from a couple of days upwards really. Should you truly be as healthy as you claim then you will be out of here before the weekend."
"The method?"
"Acute and chronic diagnostic, blood and urine sample, muscle and bone scan, medical history-"
"No."
"If you are worried about your childhood Severus, I have seen it all before."
"Leave me alone."
"As you wish. I will return in one hour. I expect you to be ready to talk by then."
Harry crouched by Snape's door, hidden under his cloak. As Madam Pomfrey left, Harry slipped in. He waited a few minutes and then placed a potion bottle underneath the man's pillow, before stealthily creeping back through the door he had left open.
"It's been an hour Severus. What is your decision?"
"I agree to everything except the medical history. There are parts of that that you do not need to see."
"I'm afraid that is a major part Severus. Often the history tells us more about the patient than their current health."
"Then I do not give my consent."
"I shall tell Albus you are not fit to teach then. Nor are you fit to brew and so he must find an alternative Potions Master as well."
"I am perfectly able-"
"No you are not Severus. If you have a fainting spell whilst brewing Draught of Peace or Dreamless Sleep you could very easily kill yourself. I'm afraid that whilst this remains undetected you must go nowhere alone."
"That is outrageous!" Snape spluttered, sitting upright
"It is standard procedure I assure you" Poppy replied calmly. Suddenly her sharp eyes caught onto something and her gaze shifted to it in an instant. "Severus... what is that sticking out from under your pillow?"
"What?"
"This bottle of Core Repair Potion. This empty bottle of Core Repair Potion."
"Potter must have put it there. He keeps doing things like this. The brat needs to be expelled."
"Severus you're already under 24/7 observation and relieved from all of your duties. Do I really need to make a case for a psych evaluation as well? You've been caught, just own up to it."
"This one was not me!" Snape hissed.
"Oh this one? So you have taken one recently? There is a reason why I don't keep a stock of these Severus. But it seems you do. So if and when I ever need one I'll just come to you shall I?"
"Potter took one too. After that stint when he was missing."
"I had guessed that Severus. No-one recovers that fast from such a depletion. Why do you think I kept him so long? You provided him it I assume?"
"With a House Elf hanging off my leg."
"Why did you not mention it?"
Snape gave her a look that clearly indicated he thought she was mad.
"Ah right, unlicensed use of a class one potion."
"Just get Potter in here and ask him what's going on."
"As you wish."
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Harry was having a lovely afternoon walking around the lake with Hermione. Exams were over and the Express left tomorrow. Ron was off playing Quidditch. With Umbridge lost somewhere in the forest he probably could have joined in the game but it was sunny and warm and he was actually enjoying the intellectual discussion he was having about their recent Charms exam. He saw a brown school owl head towards him, bearing a letter and his face lit up with glee.
"Bullseye" he cried, pumping his fist in the air. "I wasn't sure that would work."
"What is it Harry?" Hermione asked.
"Revenge on Snape. It's best you don't know. I'll see you later, I've got to go - bye!"
Upon entering the Hospital Wing Harry made straight for Snape's room.
"Afternoon all. Lovely gown you're wearing there Professor."
"You came quickly Mr Potter."
"Yes ma'am. Sprinted all the way across the grounds to get here."
"But you walked through the castle I hope?"
"Of course. Running is not allowed in the corridors."
Poppy smiled at his cheeky grin. What a boy he had turned out to be.
"Professor Snape claims you planted this bottle under his pillow."
"I did Madam Pomfrey."
The mediwitch started. "You did? For what reason?"
"To facilitate this conversation ma'am. I hoped he would blame me for it and get so angry that you actually would summon me. You see our dear Potions Master has not been very forthcoming with his injuries and has refused every option I've given him of me keeping quiet."
"Potter, you know our deal" Snape growled.
"Yet whilst not a teacher you can't give detention and the second part is irrelevant now anyway. Do you think Madam Pomfrey would let me get away with saying that and no more? I don't want to be stuck here whilst she pries it out of me, this way is much more fun."
"In your patronus, you said you were sorry, did you mean sorry for keeping quiet?"
"Sorry for helping him and not bringing him straight here ma'am. But that has actually worked better than I ever thought now."
"You were sorry for helping him?"
"I was about to bring him here but as I called for Dobby he interrupted me. We went back to his quarters and Dobby found an elf with some healing magic to bond his core back to his body. I think that was when his ribs cracked. He asked for some potions and then as it was not meant to be obvious, I went to breakfast. I was surprised to see him teaching my first class though."
"No wonder. Can you remember the potions he asked for?"
Snape buried his head. He was doomed.
"Core and Organ repair and a pain reliever. "
"I see. Was that the only time you helped him?"
"Only time I helped him yes, but I did see him heal himself on a few other occasions."
Snape allowed himself a sliver of hope. He couldn't be leaving that out could he?
"Anything I need to know dear?"
No of course he couldn't.
"Apart from having the word traitor branded onto his stomach, just the usual gashes and broken limbs" Harry shrugged. "Probably some lingering Cruciatus in there too. Never was good at spotting that one."
"Thankyou Mr Potter, you've been most helpful. Have a pleasant holiday."
"Thanks Madam Pomfrey. You too!"
As the door shut, Poppy turned back to her patient.
"So Severus, I expect you'll have no qualms with a medical history now?"
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Why he had ever agreed to this Snape had no idea. Over the past few days he had been prodded and poked more often than a porcupine had spines. He'd had all sorts of different samples taken from him including something from in between his spine where he didn't know there even was anything to sample. It felt like every bone had been rebroken or regrown and his left leg had even been put in plaster! It wasn't fair. He couldn't do anything for himself, and if the amount of tubes connected to his hand was any indication, that wouldn't be changing soon.
"Here's your dinner Severus! Eat it up then you can have all your lovely potions."
"You are far too jolly to see me like this."
"Finally Severus I feel like I might actually be able to treat your injuries properly. Isn't that a cause to be happy?"
"No. And I'm not hungry. Leave me be."
"You know what happens to people that don't eat their food Severus. Consider this your one warning."
After a few seconds, when the covers began to slide down to expose his bottom, Snape quickly picked up the fork and began to eat. Patients that did not eat were fed a nutrient potion through a tube. It was thick, gloopy, a disgusting shade of brown and acutely embarrassing. The embarrassment was compounded by requiring a muscle relaxant first which meant you had no bladder control for hours afterwards. He often thought Poppy made it that embarrassing to make sure no-one denied food twice. He could still feel the time he'd been there like it was yesterday, even though twenty years had passed.
"Good boy. Whilst your leg is in plaster and you recovering, I thought you might take a brief trip to St Mungo's."
Snape almost spat out his mouthful of food.
"I thought you said you could do everything here."
"Physically yes, but I think you should see a mind healer. It's obvious that what you've seen and done has affected you, and doubly so when you go to such lengths to cover up your self-medication. I am not a qualified mind healer Severus, I cannot help you here."
"I am not going to confess all my worldly secrets to a shrink!"
"It will do you good Severus. We will be leaving at ten in the morning."
Snape glared at the mediwitch as he finished his dinner. He was so not talking to a bloody shrink!
xxxxxxxxxxxx
"Now Severus..." the Healer began for the umpteenth time.
"Why do you insist on calling me by my first name when I have repeatedly informed you that you do not have my consent to use it?" Snape replied icily.
"My apologies Mr Snape. Most of-"
"I assume you must be deaf as well as stupid. I am a Potions Master, the youngest Potions Master ever. You will address me by my proper title."
"Most of my patients do not like to be so formal and I find first names lend themselves better to these types of discussions."
Snape stared at a patch of wall about two inches above the Healer's head. He loved this tactic, it worked so well on students, they thought you were staring at them. He'd been here two hours so far, two hours and twelve minutes to be precise. Why did this office have to have such a ridiculously large clock in it? It didn't really matter, he supposed, but it did allow him to keep track of how long he'd been kept here. This Mind Healer he'd been dragged to see had got precisely nothing out of him, he thought smugly. Snape had omitted facts and even outright lied under torture when he'd had to, this little weed of a boy stood no chance. He was barely even out of school by the looks of him. Couldn't be any more than twenty.
"How old are you?" Snape blurted.
"Twenty four" came the response.
Snape knew that the boy was eagerly waiting for him to continue on that vein, so he did not. These past few days had had so little for him to enjoy he was going to take the little pleasures whilst they lasted.
"Do you enjoy making potions?" the boy asked eventually.
"No, I became a Master because I hated it" Snape replied evenly but with deep derision.
"Which part do you enjoy the most?" he pressed on.
"The part where I add annoying Healers that don't know when keep their mouths shut. In case that's still too difficult for you to understand, allow me to rephrase it. Shut up."
The Healer sighed. Every time he tried to start a conversation, any conversation, it always ended up with Snape telling him to be quiet. Well, he knew how to deal with patients like this. Everyone broke in the end.
"I'm afraid we're out of time today. But I think we should meet again. Does this time suit you every morning?"
Snape just glared at him.
"Excellent. I'll see you tomorrow at ten then. Remember to keep your weight off that leg!"
As Snape hobbled out of the office on his crutches he met Poppy in the hallway.
"Right on time I see Severus" she greeted him. "See, it wasn't that bad, was it?"
Snape did not respond.
"When's your next session then?"
Snape ignored her again.
"I see. Tomorrow then. Well it's back to bed for you now. I agreed you didn't have to stay here, didn't I?"
Snape grumbled under his breath whilst Poppy secured his leg and portkeyed them away. As soon as he was settled back into his room, Poppy had his lunch provided and busied herself checking him over, clucking, frowning and scribbling notes to herself. Only once he had eaten to her satisfaction did she finally leave him to himself.