Walk the Shadows

stupid idiot thing to do,' he muttered as he felt for the boy's pulse and checked his breathing. Both were weak and thready, and Severus cursed again as he shouldered his burden and prepared to leave. His quarters had better stocks than here, now that he had treated Albus. 'I've never met such a remarkably stubborn, stupid child, amazing powers, but with no brain to speak of. . . .'

Stepping up to the fireplace, Severus glanced at the faux bookcase that hid a staircase to the upper floor of this tower. Minerva was with the Headmaster now . . . in his bedchamber, and had promised to alert him if his condition changed at all. As far as he could tell, Albus was just sleeping soundly now. Unlike when Severus had first broken the curse Potter had him under. He shifted the dead weight of the boy on his shoulder, grabbed a handful of Floo powder and threw it down, calling out his quarters, as well as the password.

Once in the sitting room, Severus laid the boy out on the settee, Accio'd various potions he thought he might need, and set about treating Potter for shock. Potter's skin was cool and clammy, so he needed warming, and Severus did a few other diagnostics, as well – which he realized he should have done earlier, instead of just yelling at the boy, but that couldn't be helped now.

Potter's eyes were open, still, but glassy and barely responsive to light. Within a half hour, though, with Pepper-Up, a Wit-Sharpening Potion and a half dose of the Draught of Peace in his system, among other things, he looked much better.

From several steps behind the couch, Severus watched him as he came to his senses, the owlish eye blinking, the tight lines of tension that appeared on his forehead, and he waited.

'Sir?' The boy's voice was ragged, as if he had been screaming . . . which he had, of course, for who knows how long before Severus managed to break the boy's spell. The sound itself was likely to give him nightmares. What the hell had he been doing?

'Sir? Professor, are you there?'

Severus was still wrestling with his frayed temper when, after another minute, Potter's eyes filled with tears. Rather than let them fall, though, the boy struck viciously at his own face, clawing at his eyes and cheeks with his fingernails, drawing blood almost immediately. The sight jarred him forward, too much a reminder of what he'd found in Albus' office, and he grabbed the boy's wrists and held them away from both their faces. 'Potter, stop it. Potter . . . Harry! Stop this instant!'

Potter shriveled into a ball, drawing knees up to his chest, his wrists still captured. 'Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god . . .'

'Potter. Harry. Cease this caterwauling immediately. Quiet down, now. I need to know what happened.' He squeezed the boy's wrists tight, then clapped their four hands together, a sharp motion and sound, designed to startle.

It worked; the boy looked at him at last. His eyes were wide and still slightly dilated, and his teeth were chattering in his head. 'I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean . . .'

'Harry, stop.' Severus sighed, more of his rage draining away, and shook his head, avoiding the gouged marks on Potter's cheeks as non-critical for the moment. He nodded toward the other half dose of the Draught of Peace sitting on the table, then, when he got an answering nod, slowly released one of the boy's hands and picked up the potion. He gave the bottle to the boy immediately, and waited until he'd swallowed it down. Watching for any sudden movements, Severus said, 'Now. You can be sorry all you want, but right now I need to know what you did, specifically, so I can help the Headmaster.'

'He's . . . I didn't . . . He's not dead, is he?'

'No. But he is wounded. What. Did. You. Do?'

Potter shook his head, as if confused, then leaned back against the settee, obviously calmer thanks to the potion. 'I showed him.'

Severus frowned. 'Showed him what?'

'All of it. He said he understood, but how could he if he didn't know? So I showed him.' Potter drew a hitching breath. 'God, it hurt.'

Squeezing his eyes shut, Severus gave in to the need to rub his forehead with his fingers. It hurt. Well, that much was obvious. He turned back to the boy. 'How did you show him?'

'With my mind.'

Severus' frown deepened. 'What spell did you