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Only Time Will Tell	By : chrmisha Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female Views: 3087 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 12
- 13
- 14
Chapter 13: Recovery

Hermione awoke late that morning, feeling a bit nauseous and thoroughly exhausted. She knew she needed to study, but she couldn�t study like this. There were only three more days until N.E.W.T.s. Reluctantly, she visited Madam Pomfrey, who was very happy to see her for some reason that Hermione couldn�t understand. After explaining her symptoms, Madam Pomfrey asked, �Why didn�t you come to me sooner, dear?� Hermione just shook her head. Madam Pomfrey gave her a potion to drink and told her to rest until noon, at which time she should be well enough to study.

As she laid back down in bed, she thought about Remus. If he was still alive, he�d be a man again. Remus, please come back to me. I need you. She pulled out one of the last letters he�d written her and gave herself over to the happy memories, hoping against hope that they�d be able to make more some day. As Madam Pomfrey�s potion took over, she drifted off to sleep.

Harry and Ron were pouring over their notes over sandwiches as she arrived in the Great Hall for lunch.

�You okay, Hermione? You look awful?� Ron said with a mouthful of food.

�Thanks, Ron, it�s great to see you too.�

�You do look like you�ve felt better in your life,� Harry added a bit timidly.

�I had a rough night. I did see Madam Pomfrey this morning though and she gave me something to make me feel better.�

When their concerned gazes did not relent, she leaned in and whispered, �It�s girl stuff.�

At that, they both abruptly turned their eyes away from hers to focus on their food, red color rising in her cheeks.

She laughed. Men, she thought. Wait until they have wives and daughters.

***

As Monday morning approached, Hermione was incredibly nervous about her first N.E.W.T. in Transfiguration. Her and Harry had practiced turning paper clips into butterflies one last time on Sunday night before turning in for the evening, but she couldn�t help being distracted. Try as she might, she could not get Remus off her mind.

The written exam took up the whole morning, while the practical portion would be done in the afternoon. Leaving the exam hall that afternoon, she was relieved at how well it had gone. There was only one question on the written exam she was unsure of, but checking her notes later, she�d gotten it right. Her proctor for the practical portion had complimented her on her superb abilities and given her top marks as far as she could tell. Harry seemed a bit less confident about his performance. He accidentally turned his goblet into a toad instead of a hare, but did manage to get it right on the second try.

�One down, five to go,� Ron said, looking as though he had been sentenced to his death.

�You�ll do fine,� Hermione said absently, picking at her food. Four more days and N.E.W.T.s would be over. Four more days and she�d graduate and leave Hogwarts forever.

***

�Good evening, Margarie, how are you?�

�Fine, Emma, and you?�

�Couldn�t be better. Oh, by the way, there�s a handsome young man asking for you on the Imina Jergins Ward,� Emma said, winking at her.

�Really? Who is he?� Margarie�s heart started beating faster.

�Couldn�t say. Some unidentified wizard that was brought in unconscious a few days ago. He awoke early this morning for a brief period and all he would say was your name.�

Margarie tried to look preoccupied with adjusting her uniform. �Hmm� how old did you say he was?�

�Well, we don�t know really, but I�d guess maybe early twenties.�

Margarie�s heart sank. She shrugged her shoulders and said, �Well I guess I�ll just have to go see for myself. Hopefully I�ll be able to identify him. I�m sure his family�s going mad over his absence.�

As soon as Emma left, Margarie dashed off to the ward. The Imina Jergins ward was a recovery unit; patients usually arrived there after being treated for serious injuries or traumas. Surely this could not be the man she was looking for; the man she was looking for could not pass for a wizard in his early twenties. Still, he had asked for her by name. Intrigued, she sought out the Healer working the ward.

�Margarie!� a warm voice called to her. �We�ve been waiting for you! The wizard in bed four has been asking for you all morning and we are dying to put a name to that handsome face of his,� the older Healer said as if she knew something Margarie didn�t.

Margarie studied the young man sleeping in the bed. It can�t be him, she thought to herself. His hair was golden brown, not a trace of gray. His face was barely lined. He had a beard and mustache, although, considering he�d been missing for a month, that would be possible. And he was very, very thin, too thin, she thought.

She picked up the chart next to his bed. According to it, he�d been found by a witch out searching for lichens in a remote wooded area north of Surrey. Odd, she thought to herself, he was found the morning after the full moon. Quickly, she scanned the rest of the chart. �Unidentified wizard, approximately 18 years old.� Emma was right, looks more like early twenties to me. �Condition Upon Arrival: Unconscious; suffering from severe blood loss due to a severed abdominal artery, dehydration, starvation, broken bones, the after affects of being cursed� The list went on and on. Is that all? Margarie thought to herself as she studied his chart, shaking her head. Poor thing.

�Margarie?�

She jerked her head up to meet his gaze. There was no mistaking those haunted, gray eyes.

�Remus! I didn�t recognize you. You look so�� so young. And you�ve grown a beard.�

She moved swiftly to his side and grasped his hand. �We�ve been worried sick about you!�

Remus tried to sit up but gritted his teeth as the pain and groaned.

�Just try and relax,� Margarie soothed, fluffing the pillows beneath him. �Broken ribs, they take a bit to heal, even for someone like you.�

He closed his eyes, his breathing labored from the effort.

�Rest, Remus, I�ll be back as soon as I can. I need to send word. I�m so glad you�re are all right,� she said, kissing him on the forehead before rushing out of the room.

Margarie hurried to the admitting area of St. Mungo�s hospital. Carrying a clipboard, she stopped in front of the portrait of Dilys Derwent. She mumbled to herself as she made notes on her clipboard. Seeing that Dilys was now paying full attention to her, she leaned in closer and whispered, �He�s here.� She then finished her note and sent it off with one of the urgent delivery owls.

***

Sirius sat absently in front of the fire. He had barely slept in days. The only good thing about that was that his mind was nearly numb from exhaustion. He couldn�t remember the last time he ate or showered. Feeling the hair on his face, he figured it had been awhile. No one from the Order had been to headquarters in over a week.

Just then he heard the unmistakable cough of Phineas Nigellus. Looking around the room, Sirius saw him lounging in a landscape waiting to be noticed. Sirius jumped up. �What is it?�

�Wallowing in your self pity again? It�s quite unbecoming you know. If I didn�t know better, I�d think you were a sullen teenager.� Phineas�s droned as Sirius gave him a dirty look. �The headmaster sent me to deliver a message. It seems your friend has turned up at St. Mungo�s.�

�REMUS?� Sirius cried in disbelief? �How is he?�

�How should I know?� Phineas rolled his eyes and disappeared from the landscape.

***

It was almost 9 pm that Thursday evening when he arrived. The line at the admitting desk was short. He waited patiently as an ornery witch with thick glasses called him to the front of the line.

�I�m hear to see Healer Margarie Dawes.�

�Please have a seat, I�ll alert her to your arrival,� the witch�s nasally voice rang.

Margarie rushed up to him, �Professor Dumbledore! It�s a pleasure to see you.�

�And you as well, Miss Dawes.�

She blushed, �Please, call me Margarie. We aren�t in school anymore,� she laughed.

�I received word from Dilys as well as your owl. I appreciate your thoroughness.�

�Well, I�m just sorry I didn�t contact you sooner. He actually came in last Friday,� she said as they walked towards the Imina Jergins ward. �I�ve been watching the registry faithfully for any unidentified wizards, and I did see him come through, but it said he was 18 years old, and it never occurred to me that he might be mistaken for someone so young.� She watched nervously as Dumbledore plaited a strand of his beard.

�Indeed,� he nodded, seeming to realize something. �I should have thought to mention that to you.�

�Mention what?�

Brushing her question aside, he asked, �So how is he?�

�Well, he was in terrible shape when he got here, but they�ve patched him up pretty well.� She went on to tell him about the condition he was found in, the treatments that had been administered, and that he would make a full recovery.

�If it wasn�t for his eyes, I wouldn�t have recognized him,� she finished.

Remus awoke to see an old man sitting next to him, studying something intently in his hand. As the realization sank in through the fog, he tried to sit up. He felt a gentle but firm hand come to rest upon his shoulder.

�Relax, my son.� Professor Dumbledore�s voice was warm and comforting. Remus hadn�t spoken with him alone since he brought Hermione back to the castle. The look in Dumbledore�s eyes, though, was full of compassion and concern, nothing like the look of betrayal and disappointment that had been there before.

�I believe this is yours,� Dumbledore said, handing over the object he�d been studying. To Remus�s amazement, Dumbledore placed a familiar looking gold band in the palm of Remus�s hand. �I do believe I know of a young woman beside herself with worry at this very moment. I am sure Miss Granger will be thrilled to hear of your miraculous return.� He gave Remus a moment to let his words sink in, a knowing twinkle in eyes. �As would I.�

Remus slipped the ring back on his finger, a sense of calm settling over his aching body. He reeled with the knowledge that not only did Dumbledore somehow know about his continued relationship with Hermione, but it seemed as though he was giving them his blessing. I�ll be damned, Remus thought to himself, astonished by the turn of events.

***

Sirius sat in front of the fire, showered and shaved, eagerly awaiting word from Dumbledore. His mind had been running wild with possible scenarios as to how Remus escaped and what condition he was in. It was a week after the full moon. He couldn�t help but wonder what happened during that transformation.

It was almost 1 am when Sirius heard the door open; he had been dozing on the couch. He jumped up and sighed with relief as Remus came through the door, followed by Dumbledore. Remus looked thin and exhausted. Sirius grabbed him in a bear hug.

�Easy mate,� Remus�s voice sounded pained.

�Moony, I�m so sorry, I should never have left you.�

Remus just smiled and shook his head, trying to catch his breath.

�You never change, do you Padfoot? Always blaming yourself.�

�You should talk,� Sirius joked.

As the three of them sat around the fire, Remus explained everything he could remember about the Death Eaters. There wasn�t much to tell, though. He hadn�t recognize any of the wizards, nor did he know where he had been held. Having no memory in the wolf�s body, he couldn�t describe the area he�d ran through when he escaped.

Dumbledore, picking up on Remus�s feelings of uselessness, added that some Order members would be returning to the site where he was found to see if they could trace their way back to where he had escaped from.

Remus cringed. Without it being said, he knew what they would be looking for; his blood. The blood from when he had impaled himself on the window upon his escape.

The one bit of information that Remus had that he thought might be useful was Lucy. Dumbledore was intrigued by this bit of information and said he would check the house-elf registry, as well as speak to Dobby, Winky, and the other Hogwarts house-elves to see if they knew of her. Sirius said he�d talk to Kreecher as well.

Remus had a more pressing concern, though. Taking a deep breath, he asked the question that had been haunting him since he�d awoken in St. Mungo�s. �Did I� Did the wolf�� he swallowed, fear coursing through him at what he might have done.

�There have been no reports of injured or missing wizards or Muggles since the full moon.� Dumbledore�s voice was reassuring.

Remus nodded, still looking at the floor, and breathed a sigh of relief.

After Dumbledore had left, Sirius prepared the healing potion for Remus that the St. Mungo�s Healer had sent home with him. Sirius helped Remus to bed, noticing the pained expression scrawled across his face. Handing Remus the potion, he sat down next to him.

�Moony, are those bruises and broken bones from the wolf?� Sirius asked, holding his breath.

Remus didn�t meet Sirius�s eyes as he shook his head.

�Dammit! I knew it! What did they do to you Moony?�

Sirius watched as Remus eyes snapped shut, his hands clenching into fists. Remus just shook his head, gritting his teeth.

�I�ll kill those bastards if I ever find out who did this to you!� Regaining control, Sirius put his arm around Remus�s shoulder. �I�m so sorry, Moony.�

Remus took a deep breath and squeezed Sirius�s hand momentarily. �There�s nothing to be sorry about, Sirius, but I do need to rest.�

Sirius nodded and got up to leave.

As Remus drifted off to sleep, he could hear Sirius�s words echoing in the distance, �My god, Moony, I almost lost you. Never again.�

Remus awoke in the early morning hours to the sound of snoring. He looked over to see Sirius sprawled out on the overstuffed chair in the corner of his room. Remus smiled, laughing to himself. If he hadn�t been so exhausted, he�d have gotten up and told Sirius to go to bed. Nevertheless, he appreciated knowing that Sirius was worried about him.
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Only Time Will Tell