Harry tried to smother another cough that was fighting to escape his lips, and he ended up making the cough sound a lot worse than it was, at least, in his mind. He leaned over the sink, balancing over the stepstool on his tiptoes. It did not take long for Severus to appear in the doorway of the bathroom, and he gave his son a concerned look.
"You've been coughing a lot this morning, Harry," Severus said. "You seem to have had a rough week with your asthma, perhaps we should take the day off."
"No, I want to go," Harry said. "I feel fine."
"I disagree," Severus said as he leaned against the doorframe. "You sound quite the opposite of fine."
"I don't want to miss the party," Harry complained.
"It's not really a party, just a get together." Severus hesitated for a moment before sighing heavily before walking into the bathroom. He placed a hand over Harry's forehead, and upon not feeling any warmth, he summoned Harry's inhaler. "Alright, seeing as you are not sick, how about you take another dose of your medication before we go?"
Harry nodded and picked up his inhaler and took another puff of it.
"It's empty," Harry said, shaking the inhaler.
"You were bound to run out soon," Severus said as he opened the medicine cabinet and pulled down a new inhaler, pulling it out of the box and shaking it vigorously. He grabbed another new inhaler and handed it to Harry. "Here, this is your rescue inhaler."
"If your asthma worsens while we are at the park, we will leave early," Severus said. "You have an appointment with Healer Villin in a few days, so hopefully, we can figure out your medication and what's triggering your flare ups."
"Maybe it's Ghost," Iris said as she walked into the bathroom with the grey kitten, who was purring in her hands. She held up the cat. "Maybe you're allergic to cats."
"I was coughing before we got Ghost," Harry said as he picked up the new inhaler and shoved it in his jacket pocket. He hopped off the stepstool and gave Ghost a few ear scratches before he looked up at his father. "But I feel better now. Can we go?"
"I want you to take it easy at the park today," Severus said.
"I will."
"Then we can go. Iris, set up Ghost in his containment box."
"Yes, Daddy." Iris carried Ghost back to her room where his containment box was. When they had first brought Ghost home, the kids had argued over where he would sleep at night, especially since he still needed to stay in the box until he was a bit older. They had managed to agree to alternate nights, and Iris had had the kitten last night.
She opened the lid of the containment box, which had a small cat bed, a water dish, and a litter box inside. Iris placed Ghost inside it before filling a bowl with a scoop of kitten food that she placed in the box as well. When she put the lid on, Ghost cried out as he stuck a paw through one of the holes at the top.
"Sorry, Ghost," Iris said. "It's just so you don't accidentally teleport yourself into the wall or something. It's just until you're older."
Iris said goodbye to the kitten before running out of her room and down the stairs where Severus and Harry were waiting for her.
"Did you feed him?" Harry asked.
"Of course I did," Iris said. "He's upset we're leaving him though."
"I'm sure when he's all grown up, he'll follow you two everywhere," Severus said. "Now come, we have a bit of a drive to Deer Mountain National Park."
Severus had not been lying when he said it was a bit of a drive, much to the kids' annoyance. It was an hour drive that was filled with playing "I spy" and listening to the radio before they finally made it to the park where a large lake was surrounded by mountains and greenery. Several people were seen hiking trails, splashing in the lake water, kayaking or paddleboarding, playing with their dogs, or sitting at one of the many picnic tables. Iris and Harry jumped out of the car as they looked around for any sign of Tori's family. Severus grabbed a bag from the trunk and threw it over his shoulder before leading his kids through the park. It did not take long to track down Tori, Samuel, and their kids.
"I see them!" Iris said, pointing at Tori sitting at a picnic table with Jemima in her arms. Iris ran ahead to them while Harry stayed at his father's side and walked to the table calmly, hoping to keep his asthma in check as much as possible so they did not end up leaving early.
"How is it that you always manage to beat us to every event we plan together?" Severus asked. "You have more kids than I do."
"Hence," Tori said, pointing a finger at Severus, "more experience in time management and chaos coordinating. You'll get there, Sev, I've got faith in you."
"I don't," Samuel said as he walked over to the table with Esther over his shoulder, the little girl laughing and squealing in his grasp. "Two kids should be easier than four. You've got to up your game, man."
"Oh, you're one to talk," Severus fired back with a smirk. "I'm pretty sure you're a part of the chaos. Who's the real ringmaster in the family?"
"Baby, do I give you a hard time?" Samuel asked his wife.
"Oh, never dear," Tori said with a serious shake of her head.
"See," Samuel said, gesturing to Tori. "We're a team."
Tori made a face and gave a subtle shake of her head to Severus, who snorted before setting his bag down in the grass. Iris found Ruth and the girls ran off to the nearby playground. Harry frowned when he didn't spot Joshua right away, so he sat down on the bench across from Tori, staring at the month-old baby she was rocking in her arms. It was strange how quickly they changed in just a few weeks.
Severus followed Samuel over to the coolers he had charmed to show what the stash of food was, and after he set his daughter down, he opened the coolers and began discussing the set up he had inside. Harry watched his father and Samuel for a moment before he stared off at the playground once more. As he stared off looking for Joshua, he felt a small hand tap his shoulder, and he turned his head and found himself face to face with a small red-headed girl.
"Hi," she said, clasping her hands behind.
"Hi," Harry said with a small frown.
"I'm Ginny," she said with a smile, showing off two missing front teeth.
"I'm Harry."
"Hey, sweetie," Tori said to the small girl. "Where are your parents?"
"Ginny!" an older red-headed teen snapped as he ran up to the little girl, grabbing her arm and pulling her away. "Mum said to stay close."
"I am!" Ginny whined, pulling against her brother's hold.
"Bill!" Harry greeted, remembering the older redhead from school.
"Oh, hey, Harry," Bill said. He looked around before waving briefly at Severus. "Professor Snape."
Severus simply nodded his head in return.
"What are you doing here?" Harry asked.
"Same as you, I reckon," Bill said. "Spending a day at the park with the family."
"There you two are!" An older man who looked a lot like Bill led a group of redheads toward Tori's table. Harry's eyes widened as several freckled faces caught up with Bill and Ginny, and who could only be the mother scolded Ginny briefly for running off, receiving a pout from the little girl. Harry knew that Charlie had mentioned other siblings, but he had not expected this many in one family. He had thought Tori's family was large with just her own kids and husband, forget the extended family, but even this one put that to shame.
"So sorry to intrude upon your outing," the older man said.
"No harm done," Tori said with a smile.
"Dad, that's Professor Snape," Bill said, pointing out the potions master.
"Well, what a small world we live in," Mr. Weasley said as he walked over to Severus, who seemed to take a heavy breath while Samuel smirked at him. Severus obligingly shook hands with the boisterous man who continued talking about his sons' progress at Hogwarts and the latest Hogwarts addition, Percy. Harry could tell his father was doing his best to look engaged in the conversation while Samuel added his own amused input now and then, dragging out the small talk, and Severus couldn't help but glare at his friend. Mr. Weasley did not seem to notice the unspoken banter while he talked away.
"Oh, what a precious darling," Mrs. Weasley said, staring down at Jemima in awe while keeping a hold of Ginny's arm. She circled the table and smiled down at the baby. "So little still. How old?"
"Six weeks today," Tori said, holding her little girl up so Mrs. Weasley could see her face better.
"So sweet! Ginny was my only little girl. I remember when she was this tiny. Such a beautiful time."
"Mum's not going to stop staring at the baby for at least half an hour," Charlie said as he stepped through his brothers. "They are her weakness. Hey, Harry. Who knew we'd run into each other over the summer."
"Charlie!" Harry jumped off his bench to hug Charlie, then pulled back to ask in a whisper, "What about Spitfire?"
Charlie held a finger to his lips, then smirked as he unzipped his muggle jacket, revealing the tiny barkeater dragon hiding underneath. The lizard flicked out his tongue and tilted his head at Harry, who grinned and put a finger to his own lips and nodded.
"You should meet my little brother, Ron," Charlie said, grabbing his younger brother's hand and pulling him forward. The boy was as redhaired as the rest of his family, his face covered in freckles, and he stood a hair taller than Harry. He gave a shy smile as he was placed in front of Charlie, who said, "You two are the same age. He'll be going to Hogwarts the same time you do, you know."
"Hi," Ron said.
"Hi," Harry repeated. He pushed his trainer around in the grass as he tried to think of something to say next. "Do you like to play football?"
"I don't know what that is," Ron said.
"I can show you," Harry decided, then ran over to where his father was still talking with Mr. Weasley. Severus looked relieved to be pulled away from the chat for a moment to locate one of the footballs Samuel had brought to the park, and he inflated it quickly with a spell for Harry, who took the ball and ran back to Ron. He noticed that Charlie and Bill had wandered off, and another older boy was sitting at the table with a bored expression as he stroked the head of a pudgy rat. Mr. Weasley had managed to pull Severus back into dialogue while Mrs. Weasley was sitting next to Tori discussing who knew what, little Ginny sitting in her mother's lap. Harry gestured for Ron to follow him a bit away from the table.
"I'm not as good as Joshua," Harry started to say, "but I know the basics. Here, you kick it like this."
Harry kicked the ball over to Ron.
"Then you kick it back like I did."
Ron gave the ball a hard kick, and it went flying past Harry and toward the playground. Harry ran after it and stopped it with his foot. He kicked it back over to Ron.
"Maybe not that hard though," Harry said.
"Sorry. Can I try again?"
Harry kicked the ball back, and Ron gave the ball a much softer kick, and soon, they passed the ball back and forth at a steady pace. Their game was interrupted when a boomerang haphazardly flew around them, making strange spins and turns in the air, circling the boys and acting as if it might hit one of them. Ron swatted at it when it came a bit too close to his nose, but it darted off.
"Fred!" Ron shouted, glaring at two identical boys leaning against a tree and laughing at the show. "George! Get your boomerang. It's not funny!"
"Looks funny from here," Fred shouted back.
"I'll tell Mum on you," Ron threatened.
"Okay, okay," George said, holding his hands up in surrender. "We'll grab it for you."
"Don't get your knickers in a knot, little brother," Fred added.
The two older boys ran down the hill and jumped up to catch the boomerang, but it flew out of their reach. Ron tried to grab it as it whirled past him, but he was too slow in slapping his hands at it. Harry tried to catch the strange boomerang, but it avoided his hands as well. He knew this was not normal behavior for boomerangs, and he figured it must have been a magical toy the Weasleys had brought.
As Fred held a hand up when the boomerang flew his way, Esther suddenly jumped up and caught the boomerang, then ran off toward the table, crawling under it with the toy and sitting down in the grass.
"Hey!" Fred said, and he and his twin ran over to the table and glanced under it. "Little girl, give that back!"
"She can't hear you," Harry said as he walked up to the table as well, Ron following him. "She's deaf."
"She's a ghost?" the twins asked at the same time, their eyes widening.
"No, not dead. Deaf." Harry enunciated the 'f' the second time he said it. "It means her ears don't work. You have to wave at her to get her attention."
Harry waved at Esther under the table, but she seemed to be intently studying the boomerang, completely ignoring Harry's attempts to get her to look up. Harry stopped trying after a minute and shrugged at the other boys.
"She doesn't always . . . err, listen," Harry said.
"I guess we'll have to just take it from her," Fred said. "Before she finds the duplication switch."
"Uh, Fred?" George paled considerably. "She found it."
Esther was laughing as the boomerang made several copies of itself, clapping her hands happily before she picked up as many as she could.
"No, no, no," Fred said shaking his head and his hands at Esther with a pleading face. He acted out each word as best he could, shaking his head before miming a throwing action, then ending with a pleading look, his hands clasped together and a placating smile pulling at his lips. "Don't throw them please."
Esther only grinned maliciously.
"What an evil little girl," Fred muttered, then he shouted, "Everyone take cover!"
Fred and George dived dramatically for the ground while Harry and Ron backed away, just in time to avoid the boomerangs that were flying out from under the table while Esther giggled.
The boomerangs flew in all directions, smashing into trees and nearly whacking into several people. Tori held Jemima closer and leaned back as a boomerang flew by her, startling Mrs. Weasley, who jumped up with Ginny in her arms as two more boomerangs circled them.
A boomerang smacked Samuel in the head, and he ducked to avoid being struck by another while Severus jumped back in time to avoid one nailing him in the neck, and he swatted at another that flew awfully close to his nose. Mr. Weasley tried to smack one out of the air but missed it.
"Boys!" Mr. Weasley shouted angrily. "Fred and George, put an end to this!"
"We didn't start this!" Fred said, dodging a boomerang.
"Kinda wish we had, though," George muttered, and his brother shared a smirk with him.
Joshua finally appeared, and Harry watched as the older boy crawled under the table with Esther, snatching the original boomerang away from her, and Esther crossed her arms and pouted as Joshua hit the duplication switch once more, and all the copies flying haphazardly in the air disappeared. Everyone sighed in relief.
Tori looked under the table and gasped in disbelief.
"Esther Adalyn Brown!" Tori scolded, using one hand to sign at her daughter. "Come out from under there."
Samuel started laughing while Mr. Weasley smiled in relief that the family wasn't too mad at his own children for the near chaos that was created. Esther shook her head and stuck her tongue out.
"Joshua, bring me your sister," Tori said, but when Joshua tried to push Esther out from under the table, the little girl made an angry noise and crawled away before running for the playground.
"Go easy on her, love," Samuel said in between fits of laughter.
"Sam, you're not helping," Tori growled at her husband. "Do something about your daughter."
"Alright, alright," Samuel held his hands up submissively. He turned to Mr. Weasley. "Duty calls. We should talk again, maybe at the Leaky Cauldron with some drinks. On me."
Samuel jogged over to the playground in search of his daughter.
"That would be great," Mr. Weasley said. He said to Severus. "It was nice talking to you and Samuel, but I think we intruded on your family long enough. Molly and I were taking the kids for a hike up Whisper Mountain to see if we could hear the whispers of the spirits trapped in Old Miner's Cave. It's quite the experience if you've never been."
"I'm sure it is," Severus agreed. "Perhaps another time, we could join you. Take care, Mr. Weasley."
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley rounded up their kids, Bill and Charlie sneaking back into the group from wherever they had wandered off to. Fred and George took back their boomerang from Joshua.
"You should be careful playing with things like that when there's little kids around," Joshua said.
"We were careful," Fred argued. "Did you see the way your sister snatched this out of the air? Devious one, that girl."
"And we though we caused trouble," George added.
"It was nice meeting you," Ron said, kicking the ball over to Harry. "Thanks for teaching me how to play football. It's kind of fun."
"Maybe we can play again, sometime?" Harry said.
"Maybe. Bye." Ron waved goodbye and ran to catch up with his family as they headed for one of the trails leading up the biggest mountain.
"Are you okay?" Joshua asked as he stood next to Harry.
"Yeah, none of the boomerangs hit me. They seem like fun."
"The boomerangs?" Joshua asked.
"No, the family." Harry pointed at the Weasleys before they disappeared up the mountain. "Ron was nice."
Joshua huffed.
"They seem like a lot of trouble. Someone could have gotten hurt."
True, someone could have gotten hurt, but that was Esther's fault, not the twins. Of course, if not for bringing the boomerang in the first place, Esther would not have captured the toy and used the duplication switch. Currently, Esther was once again over Samuel's shoulder as he carried her back to the family, though she didn't seem to be enjoying it this time if her annoyed cries were anything to go by. Samuel set Esther down in the seat next to Tori, who had set Jemima in a swing in the grass next to her. Tori immediately began signing while talking lowly while Esther pouted and refused to look at her mother, who kept having to turn Esther's chin so her eyes could see Tori's hands.
Harry was distracted from the silent scolding between Tori and Esther when he heard very familiar voices greeting Severus, and he swung his head around to see Eileen and Tobias talking to Severus. He smiled and ran over to his grandparents.
"Nami, Pappy!" Harry greeted as he held his arms up, and Tobias turned and lifted his grandson.
"Hello, there, sport," Tobias said.
"Tobias, honestly, be careful," Eileen said. "The doctor still wants you to take it easy."
"It's been years since my surgery," Tobias said as he spun Harry around a few times, earning a laugh from the boy. "Oh, and Severus, he said I'm still in remission. Clean as whistle."
"I'm glad to hear," Severus said. "But maybe you should listen to Ma and put Harry down before you throw out a rib."
Tobias sighed as he set his grandson down and ruffled Harry's hair as he whispered to him, "They're both conspiring against me."
"Nami! Pappy!" Iris exclaimed as she ran over to her grandparents and hugged Eileen first. "Are you staying here for the day?"
"Well, we came out this far, didn't we?" Eileen asked.
"Yay! Come push me on the swings!" Iris demanded, tugging her grandmother toward the playground.
"Okay," Eileen said. She looked over her shoulder at Severus. "I'll fill you in on the doctor's visit when I get a chance."
Severus chuckled as he watched his daughter lead his mother away. Tobias snorted at that and shook his head.
"It was the same as any other visit, son," he said. "They did a few scans and bloodwork and everything checked out. I still take your mother's diluted potions, too. She's obsessed with those and let me tell you, they are nothing like her shepherd's pie."
"But they are helping you stay in remission," Severus said. "You had stage three lung cancer. Remission may not be permanent. And you certainly do not take care of your own health as well as you could."
"I'd like to live a little while I still can, you know," Tobias said, hands on his hips.
"Want to play football with Joshua and me?" Harry asked, tapping his grandfather's arm.
"Of course I do!" Tobias said. He looked at his son. "If that's okay, doctor?"
Severus rolled his eyes and nodded his head. Harry cheered while Tobias smirked at his son before he allowed himself to be dragged into a game of football with the boys, Joshua practicing his footwork in between passing the ball between Harry and Tobias. Esther was freed from her timeout, and she joined in the game as well, stealing the ball from her brother and forcing the others to chase her to reclaim the ball.
After eating lunch at the table, the family changed into swimsuits and decided to swim at the lake for a bit, and everyone enjoyed cooling off in the cold water briefly before the kids returned to playing on land for a while, mostly at the playground. As evening approached, Joshua asked his father repeatedly if he could check out Whisper Mountain, to which Samuel continued to reply not today.
"But Dad, it's supposed to be really cool," Joshua complained. "Can I go up just a little bit?"
"By yourself?" Samuel asked, his eyebrows shooting up.
"Harry wants to go," Joshua said, and Harry's head shot up at the sound of his name. He had been sitting next to Tobias on the bench, a bit tired from all the activities that day, but he perked up and leaned across the table when Joshua mentioned his name.
"Right, Harry?" Joshua said. "You want to hike up Whisper Mountain so we can hear the whispering spirits, right?"
That actually sounded terrifying, but Harry didn't want to disappoint Joshua, so he nodded his head and smiled. A hike was the last thing he really wanted to do, his body was feeling a bit achy and tired, and a nap sounded more favorable, but he figured he could probably manage a little way up a hill.
"So if Harry and I go together, would you let us?" Joshua asked his father. "I'll stay on the path, and we won't go up far. You know I always listen."
Samuel sighed and glanced at the trail he could see from where he sat, then checked his watch.
"What do you think, Severus?" Samuel asked, looking over at Severus sitting across from him.
"I suppose if they agree to stay on the lower trail and within hearing distance, I'd be okay with it," Severus said, looking at his son and Joshua in turn as he spoke. Joshua nodded in agreement before looking at his father.
Samuel sighed, then unclasped his watch and handed it to Joshua.
"You have thirty minutes," Samuel said, "to explore this path, right here, and stay where you can still see and hear us. If you stay quiet enough, you might be able to hear the whispers. Do you have your stone with you?"
Joshua reached into his pocket and pulled out an opal stone.
"Good. Use that if you come across any trouble. Stay close."
"Thank you, Dad!" Joshua said, taking the watch and pocketing it. "Come on, Harry."
Joshua ran for the path, and Harry ran after him, staying close to Joshua's side. Joshua led the way to where the mountain divided into three trails, one that stayed fairly level at the bottom of the mountain, one that had many twists and curved that worked its way up, and another path that had many stairs chiseled into the side of the mountain that shot straight up at a steep incline. Harry noted that the yellow marked path would have been the one Samuel had been referring to, it was ground level and if they didn't go that far down it, they would remain in hearing distance of the family. However, Joshua began climbing the steps of the red marked path, the steepest one.
"Come on," Joshua said, waving Harry to follow him. "If we're quick, we can get up high enough to hear the whispers and come right back down."
"But Dad and Samuel said to stay on this one," Harry said, pointing at the yellow one.
"Yeah, but we'll never hear the spirits down there," Joshua said, pausing on an upper stair. "We have to go higher. We may not have to go that high, really. Don't you want to hear it?"
Harry hesitated, and Joshua bit his lip as he glanced up the steep hill, then he took the few steps back down to Harry, a look of disappointment on his face as his smile dropped.
"We don't have to if you don't want to," Joshua said, walking toward the yellow marked path. "We can do this one."
Harry didn't like that he was ruining Joshua's fun, and he felt bad for chickening out on a little adventure, so he quickly shook his head and pointed up the steep hill.
"No, I want to," Harry said. "Let's do this one."
"Are you sure?" Joshua asked with a frown. "I don't want to make you do something you're not comfortable with."
"I'm sure," Harry said, and he climbed up the stairs without another thought, and Joshua grinned as he chased after him.
"Hey, wait up!" Joshua said, quickly catching up to Harry.
The boys ran shoulder to shoulder as fast as they could up the stairs, laughing in excitement as they climbed higher and higher up the path. Harry ignored the small knot that was developing in his chest as he tried to keep up with Joshua's pace.
Esther sat under the picnic table playing with a stick in the dirt around her, fishing out a worm and allowing it to dangle on the end of the stick before dropping the stick and sighing heavily in boredom. She knew her mother would have a lot to say about her sitting in the muddy dirt as she was and ruining her new jean shorts, but Esther didn't mind it one bit. Besides, the point of clothes was to dirty them up, wasn't it? Why else would laundry exist?
Esther glanced over at the mountain she had seen Joshua and Harry run over to, and she stared at it longingly. Why hadn't she been invited to hike up the trail? That wasn't fair. It'd be more fun than sitting here under the table bored as can be.
As Esther turned her head away, she sucked in a breath as every muscle in her body went rigid, and she felt her breath chill on her lips as her eyes hyper fixated on the playground.
For a split second, the world was blurry, then shapes and colors shifted around her, and she saw her brother and Harry sitting on a rocky slope surrounded by shrubs and sharp rocks. Harry appeared asleep or unconscious, and he was slumped against Joshua, who was holding him tight in his arms. Joshua shivered in the wind, tightening his arms around Harry, before opening his mouth, probably shouting something, and Esther had an instinctive feeling that it was a call for help.
Just as quickly, the world blurred once more before she realized she was staring at the playground once more. She blinked a few times before moving her arms in a stretch, glad they weren't so rigid now.
Whatever she had seen, it had to be a warning! A sign that her brother and Harry were in trouble!
Esther crawled out from under the table and stood up, looking around for anyone she could tell. Her mother had taken Jemima to the restroom, and by the looks of the cleared-up table, Samuel and Severus were packing up the cars. She didn't see Eileen anywhere, and guessed she may have run off to the restroom, and Tobias, who was sitting down on a bench watching Iris and Ruth at the swing sets, was not entirely familiar with sign language nor could he use a translation spell like Eileen or Severus sometimes did.
Ruth it was.
Esther ran for her sister as fast as she could. Ruth was not like Joshua. She struggled a bit with sign language but for the most part, she could usually make out what she was saying. She grabbed a hold of one of Ruth's swing chains to stop it, earning an annoyed look from her sister.
"Joshua, Harry, on mountain," Esther signed quickly when Ruth had her attention on her. "Fell, hurt, stuck, we go help, quickly."
"Stop it," Ruth said while slowly signing, looking even more annoyed. "Slow down, you know I can't read it that fast."
Esther threw her hands out and made a frustrated grunt at her sister. Iris was also staring at her now, a frown on her face, and Esther could tell that neither girl had picked up a single thing she had said. Ruth rolled her eyes at Esther's grunt and turned away, leading Iris by the arm.
"Go to Mum," Ruth managed to sign over her shoulder
Esther reached out a hand to stop Ruth, then pulled back, stopping herself from trying again. Her lower lip quivered before she stomped her foot and turned away, her eyes scanning for anyone else she could tell. Anyone who might be able to hear her voice through her hands, but such a world was limited and distant, and Esther wrapped her arms around herself as she rose on her tiptoes to see over strangers while she looked for her mother or father.
The knot in his chest slowly grew as they continued to climb higher and higher into thinner air, following the curves and slopes of the mountain, and Harry could feel his throat starting to narrow slightly, and he was starting to lag a few paces behind Joshua, but they had to be close to the top now. He couldn't slow Joshua down. Just a little further. He could do this.
"We're almost to a good height, I think," Joshua said. "Then we can listen for the spirits."
"Okay," Harry managed to say without wheezing too much.
However, the slight change in his voice caught Joshua's ears, and the older boy stopped and looked back at Harry.
"Are you okay?" Joshua asked.
Harry nodded as he leaned forward and put his hands on his knees, taking a few deep breaths. The small break seemed to help a bit, and his throat felt better now that he wasn't moving. As he took a minute to catch his breath, he felt Joshua's hand on his back.
"Hey, we can stop here," Joshua said, rubbing his back a bit.
"No," Harry said, shaking his head and standing upright. "I can keep going now."
Harry started climbing up the stairs once more, following the curve, but just a couple of steps up, he began to cough violently.
"Harry, no, come on, don't overdo it," Joshua said, following Harry and grabbing his shoulder to stop him. Harry didn't fight it as he was pushed down on one of the steps and he fought the coughs that were starting to shake his body. His throat was narrowing on him, and he felt a strong pain in his chest, something that was a bit unusual from his typical asthma attacks.
"I'm sorry, Harry," Joshua said. "I shouldn't have dragged you into following me."
Harry shook his head, not wanting Joshua to blame himself for Harry's stupid asthma, but he couldn't talk as his coughing worsened.
"Where's your inhaler?" Joshua said. "You have it on you, right?"
Harry couldn't answer, but he allowed Joshua to check his jacket pockets for him, and Joshua successfully pulled out his inhaler, but unfortunately, it was still in the box, and Joshua pulled it out and looked at the back of the box.
"Is this new?" Joshua asked, more to himself than to Harry. He followed the instructions on the back, pulling the dustcap off before shaking the inhaler.
Harry stood up as he took in a few deep breaths, the upright position feeling better on his chest than sitting down had. He wanted to help Joshua with the inhaler, so he didn't feel so useless, but as he stepped closer, another coughing fit attacked him, and he covered his mouth and backed away instinctively as the hacking racked his body, hurting his chest, his lungs, his head. His eyes watered from the effort, blurring his vision even through his glasses.
"Okay, I primed it for you," Joshua said, turning to face Harry. His eyes widened and his face paled as he shouted, "Harry!"
Harry took another step back, except his heel did not meet any resistance, and his toe slipped on the slippery slope of the mountain, and he felt himself fall backward over the cliff.