Bonding

Harry groaned into consciousness. His body was numb, but for the sensation of feeling like someone had just tried to dig out his eyeballs from their sockets. Thoughts pounded the inside of his skull, harassing him; thoughts of when he was younger, when he used to hear the Voice all the time. It used to taunt and provoke, seemingly feeding off his self-doubt and loneliness. He thought of the times when it would offer assistance, usually after Harry had sustained an injury, whispering that it could take the pain away if only Harry did as it asked. How he sometimes listened to it, obliging the Voice, just to feel something other than the misery he felt in that moment. How it asked him to cut himself. How he had.

It had been years since the Voice had spoken to him, years that he hadn't even remembered it existed. Now it was back, all the pain, hurt and fear, and Harry wondered how he could have forgotten it all in the first place.

Groaning again, Harry shifted slightly, trying to relieve the increasing pressure in his temple and right behind his eyes.

"Harry?" a tentative voice called from very near, causing Harry to jolt upright in fear, only to smack his forehead against something, creating an audible crunch.

"Bugger," the now muffled and pinched voice cussed.

Harry finally opened his eyes, his head throbbing, where he could hazily see Tonks' nursing a freshly broken nose. Blearily, he realised he had caused it. Everything was getting progressively blurrier.

Suddenly, he felt a brush of feathers on his skin, and a flood of warmth filled him. Harry's vision cleared somewhat, the pain in his head receding, though not as much as he would like; there was still a dull aching pressure that seemed to come from the depths of his skull. Instinctively, Harry knew that the feathers belonged to that of a phoenix, and that they weren't Fawkes' either. No, he knew that they were from his own guardian phoenix. As though to prove that fact, she let out a gentle and soothing trill that dispelled the rest of the pain.

Looking around now, Harry could see that he was in the Hogwarts infirmary, his phoenix perched gracefully on the headboard of the bed in which he was laying. A bloodied and clearly still injured Tonks was healing her nose to his left. No one else was in sight, but there was one other bed that appeared occupied, with the curtains drawn around it.

"What happened? Are you okay?" Harry asked, just now taking note of Tonks' burnt hand and the slightly blackened gash on her neck.

Tonks just stared at him, mouth gaping as though grasping for the words, before she started to tremble and shake, tears forming in her eyes. Harry instinctually reached out to her, and she wordlessly fell onto the bed half on top of him, wailing and hiccupping.

Harry was shaken by the display. What could have happened to make the usually unfazed Tonks so broken and fragile? Thinking further about it, Harry realized he couldn't remember much beyond making it to the bank and meeting up with Tonks in the first place. That combined with the revelation of the Voice made Harry feel nauseous.

He pulled Tonks closer as she continued crying. 'Just what is going on?' he wondered.

Eventually, Tonks' breathing steadied, though tears still ran down her cheeks.

"It was awful," she finally whispered, burying her head in Harry's chest. "You were suddenly floating in the air and then were hurled against a wall. And then those things… those things popped out of the cup at me and I… and I…" Her voice trailed off and she shook, wrapping her arms around him.

Harry still didn't know what had happened, but he knew that Tonks needed tending to. Gently he squeezed her in a hug before pulling slightly away and looking closer at her wounds. The one on the neck seemed not too deep, looking like it hadn't bled at all and was cauterized as it was made. He was unsure what, if anything, he could do about that one.

The burn on her hand, however, was weeping slightly and needed immediate attention. Harry didn't know any spells to cast but knew that Essence of Dittany would help heal it, though he was unsure about where the knowledge came from. Since they were in the infirmary, he figured there must be some around, so he pulled out his wand and sat up slightly.

"Accio Essence of Dittany," he summoned.

A small phial of liquid flew off one of the shelves at him and he nimbly caught it. He went to pass it to Tonks, only for her to wince when she tried to move to grab it.

"Here, let me then," Harry insisted. He opened the stopper, and as gently as possible, applied a drop of the liquid to one side of her hand before flipping it over and applying one more. She flinched at the touch but didn't pull her hand away.

The drops produced a green smoke as the potion went to work healing her hand. Soon, the flesh was no longer blackened and weepy, instead looking slightly raw and scarred.

"Is that better now?" Harry asked Tonks as she lightly flexed her hand in his.

"Much, thanks," she stated, though something still seemed slightly off about her; Harry couldn't place what it was so decided to save it for later.

"Sorry I didn't get to it before it scarred. I can't do much about your neck. I mean, I could try the Dittany on it, but I doubt it would work. I'm not even sure how I knew what to do with your hand. It kind of just came to me," Harry blathered, still trying to figure out what exactly was going on, though reluctant now to push Tonks on the issue.

Tonks finally smiled, though only just a little, at his ramblings. "Well, I'm glad it came to someone, cause I sure didn't think of it. I had barely even noticed," she sighed. "Besides, I should be checking if you're okay."

"I feel fine," Harry said, assessing his body. Everything seemed to be in the proper place and functioning normally. In fact, he almost felt better than he had in a long time, other than the pressure creeping back into the depths of his skull.

"Right. Phoenix tears work wonders," Tonks laughed dryly. "Now if only he would've healed me."

"She," Harry automatically corrected, and his phoenix let out an affirmative trill.

Tonks' eyes grew wide at that. "You mean to tell me that not only are you bonded to a phoenix, but that they're an extremely rare female?"

"Yeah, I guess," Harry answered shrugging his shoulders. "Not sure how I know that either, but I do."

"That might be the bonding," Tonks replied. "I mean, your connected now in some way, as in all magical bonds." She glanced at the curtained bed with an inquisitive expression, but then shook her head and looked back at Harry intently. "Just remember that this is a good thing, Harry."

Harry was puzzled by this statement. 'Why would it be bad?' he wondered, curious what she meant. Before he had a chance to question her further though, the floo burst to life and a figure strode out.