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Amore et Amicitia	By : Kimmimaru Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Sirius/James Views: 6685 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any characters or settings by JK Rowling. I make no profit from this story.

Chapter List
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Chapter Twenty-Three: A Venenum Arbor (A Poison Tree)

James, Remus and Peter stood outside the doors to the Hospital Wing. Remus paced back and forth, he had blood on his hands but seemed unaware of it, James leaned against the door and glared furiously up at the ceiling while Peter sat by the wall with his arms wrapped around his knees. “It was his fucking brother.” James hissed, stopping Remus in his tracks.

“What?” Peter asked.

“It was his brother, he was going to speak to him before he got hurt...I reckon Regulus set him up.”

Remus looked doubtful. “I’m not so sure, James, we can’t go making random accusations.”

James looked at him, his eyes dark with barely controlled fury. “Oh really? You know what Regulus said to him a few years back, he practically disowned him after he had got the crap kicked out him.”

Remus simply shrugged. “Well, I suppose we will learn the truth when he comes around.”

A little while later the Hospital Wing door opened to reveal McGonagall, she was pale and James felt a shiver down his spine as he realised she looked...afraid. “Professor, what’s wrong with him?” He asked.

“Potter, I recommend you go back to your common room. It’s nearly dawn and you have lessons tomorrow...” She trailed off distractedly.

“But Professor, I have to know if he’s ok.”

McGonagall looked at him with pursed lips for a moment, then it seemed as if her face softened. “I will warn your teachers where you are then...you may wait here until he regains consciousness...” She turned as she heard footsteps. “Ah, Headmaster!” She stepped forward and James frowned as he watched Dumbledore whispering with her. Finally Dumbledore nodded and when he raised his head he looked grim.

They walked past the remaining Marauders and stepped into the Hospital Wing, the door swung shut behind them. James chewed his lip a minute before pressing his ear against the door.

“James, what on earth are you doing?” Remus asked as he stepped up behind his friend.

James glared at him. “Shh!” He hissed and closed his eyes, listening intently.

XXX

“His friends found him lying outside by the front doors, Albus.” Pomfrey said, her eyes were crinkled in concern and more than a little fear.

“What is the damage?” Albus asked slowly.

“Well, the most obvious injury, and probably what caused him to lose consciousness is his broken arm. It was broken clean in half, the bone pierced the skin. This doesn’t worry me so much as the other things I found...” She trailed off and began fussing with her hands. “Professor...I also found some disturbing evidence...I...I’m not sure if I should...”

“Please, Poppy, continue. Mr. Black is a student and I wish to know as much detail as you can give me.”

Poppy sighed and looked over at the boy lying in the bed, she knew his parents beat him, but she was also helpless to stop it. As a nurse it infuriated her that anyone could ever be so cruel to a mere child, but practicality told her that Sirius was stuck with it until he turned seventeen. It was a sad, cruel fate and she wished desperately that she could help, but she could do little more than heal the wounds he picked up over the summer and be glad that he would remain under her watchful eye for a good while. Finally she sighed again. “I have found some evidence of the Cruciatus Curse being used upon him.” She said softly.

Dumbledore’s frown deepened. “How?”

“I was examining him for extra, unseen injuries when I realised that there was some partial nerve damage...no physical attack could have done something so precise and intricate. They have seen it many times before in St. Mungos, I checked in one of my recent medical books and the same pattern shows in all victims of the curse.”

Dumbledore’s blue eyes glittered like shards of ice behind his half-moon spectacles, his anger was felt as if a physical weight descended upon the gathered people. McGonagall pursed her lips as she gazed down at her student, she was rather fond of Sirius and his friends, they were amusing and brighter than most of her other students, James in particular showed an aptitude for Transfiguration. “What else have you found?” Dumbledore asked, correctly interpreting Poppy’s expression.

“Well...this is difficult...While I was running the basic diagnostic tests I found...” She paused and gazed down at the poor unconscious boy lying in the bed. “I found some rather disturbing internal damage...”

“From what?” Dumbledore frowned, hiding his impatience at the woman’s dithering.

“There was unusual scarring on the inside of his colon...” She looked into Dumbledore’s eyes. “It is very clear evidence of rape.”

McGonagall gasped. “Oh my!”

“I see...” Dumbledore gazed thoughtfully at the wall before sighing. “We will wait until he wakes and then we will find out who did this.”

Poppy nodded. “The scarring is a few months old, I...I believe the rape occurred during the summer.”

XXX

Sirius slowly rose to consciousness, he felt a bit like he was trying to swim through thick syrup. He moaned and moved his head as his eyes flickered open, he saw a white curtain. As he turned his head to look around he realised he was in the Hospital Wing, he sighed and lifted his hands to scrub them over his face. He was shaky and felt slightly odd, his thoughts fluffy and difficult to decipher. There was the sound of footsteps and he forced himself into an upright sitting position as Pomfrey appeared around the corner, when she saw he was awake she smiled. “Excellent, you’re conscious.” She said and bustled over to him. “How do you feel?”

Sirius frowned. “Not sure...a bit wobbly...”

“Yes, that’s understandable considering what you’ve been through.”

“What happened?” Sirius asked the nurse as she took his arm and began gently flexing it.

“Your friends found you lying in a heap by the front steps, you had broken your arm. I fixed it up for you, no permanent damage.” Sirius noticed her smile was too stiff as she refilled his water glass. “Drink plenty of fluids and wait here until I can tell the Headmaster you’re awake.”

Sirius watched her bustle off, he frowned into the water he held in his hand. He had only a hazy memory of what happened, but he could feel it slowly coming back to him. He saw Regulus’ face, turned away to hide from his shame. He saw tall figures surrounding him. He smelt the earth, the cool air. He remembered the sudden, violent agony as someone snaps his arm almost in half. He sees a shadow standing above him, a sadistic grin on his face. He can see his own wand being pointed into his face. A bright crimson flash and pain. Pain the likes of which Sirius had never felt before. Sirius opened his eyes and gazed at the opposite wall. They had tortured him. Tortured him until his voice broke with the sheer strength of his screams. Slowly he lifted his knee and drew it close to his chest so he could rest his chin on it, he sighed. They had, of course, cast the silencing charm on him so his screams didn’t rouse the castle. And they knew, they knew as well as Sirius did that he would not speak a word of it to anyone. He would get his revenge, if it took him a hundred years, but he wouldn’t tell anyone who was responsible for breaking his arm.

When Poppy returned Sirius saw Dumbledore and McGonagall trailing behind her, they smiled when they saw Sirius sitting up. “Sirius, it’s good to see you awake.” Dumbledore said calmly, he scrutinised him carefully before taking a seat by his bedside. “Now, we must have a discussion about what happened.”

Sirius looked away. “I fell down the stairs and broke my arm...Sir.”

“Come now Sirius, don’t treat us as if we are stupid.” Dumbledore continued in that calm tone. “Poppy did a very thorough diagnosis on you, you see. She discovered some nerve damage that indicates the use of the Cruciatus curse, tell us who did it so we may exact the correct punishment.”

Sirius shook his head. “I fell down the stairs and broke my arm.” He said firmly. “Sir.”

McGonagall sighed. “This is ridiculous Mr. Black, we have every reason to believe...”

“I fell down the stairs and broke my arm.” Sirius repeated.

Dumbledore sighed softly. “Alright, if you are unwilling to tell us we have no choice but to accept it.” He continued to look at Sirius with those irritatingly piercing blue eyes. “Poppy has also found more rather disturbing injuries...although she says they are old.”

Sirius tensed, his fingers tightening on his bed sheets. Sure they wouldn’t bring up the abuse he suffered at home? They couldn’t do anything and they already knew what he went through.

“She found some scarring in a....ah...place there should be no scarring.” Dumbledore said carefully, Sirius frowned in confusion. “To be more clear...”

“You have scarring indicating that you were perhaps, subjected to unwanted attentions by another male.” Poppy said firmly.

“Indeed.” Dumbledore inclined her head in her direction, he looked back at Sirius.

Sirius sat there, he was at first confused as to what she meant but then in a sudden rush of sickening memories he saw a pair of blank eyes, rough hands and harsh whispers; “I’m going to fuck you bloody for that!”

His heart skipped a beat and his hands tightened on the sheets, he gazed blindly at the opposite wall and for a long time all he could hear was the violent rushing of blood through his body. They knew! They knew he had been having sex with men! They knew what he did with Lestrange! Panic set in and he uttered a tiny gasp, turning to Dumbledore and scooting back away from him. “It wasn’t my fault!” He said before he could stop himself.

“No, of course not.” Poppy said softly, her eyes filling with concern. “No one could ever blame you for something like that.”

“I-I...I...Didn’t mean to...” Sirius couldn’t control his emotions, they swirled inside his head until he wanted to scream. Suddenly his water jug shattered into fragments, water cascaded over the side of the bedside table and soaked Dumbledore’s feet. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!” Sirius rushed to the bed, he climbed off with his bare feet crunching over the glass and began picking the pieces up.

McGonagall watched this odd behaviour in shocked silence, Sirius’ eyes were huge like a hunted animal, they darted around the room randomly as if surrounded by enemies as he muttered to himself and gathered the broken glass. She spotted crimson streaks of blood mingling with the water as the sharp glass shredded Sirius’ tender feet and hands.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry...I’ll clean it all up...I promise...J-Just don’t...don’t hurt me anymore...please...I’ll clean it...I...I...”

“Sirius.” Dumbledore reached down and touched Sirius’ arm, the boy suddenly wheeled around, pressing his back into the corner that formed between the bed and the bedside table. A vase of fresh flowers exploded above his head, he winced and covered his head with his arms. “Sirius, please calm yourself...”

“No. No. No. No. No.” He moaned the mantra and shook his violently from side to side. “Please...please don’t...no more...”

Poppy stood with one hand over her mouth, her eyes wide. She had never even guessed that Sirius’ abusive home life would have affected him in such a horrific way, the boy was a mess. He cowered in the corner, shaking violently as his blood ran in rivulets down his wrists from his lacerated fingers. But he didn’t cry. No tears stained his face.

“Poppy, please get him something to calm him down.” Dumbledore said sharply, Poppy jumped and nodded before fleeing to her office, silently berating herself for not doing this immediately. Dumbledore crouched and in a surprising display of strength he lifted the shaking boy and placed him back on the white sheets. Sirius curled into a tight little ball and fell silent.

Poppy returned at half a run, she placed a vial of soft light purple potion down on the table and conjured a glass from mid-air. She poured the potion with surprisingly steady hands before prising Sirius’ hands from his face. “Here, dear, drink this and you will feel a bit better.”

Sirius looked at her, but she was convinced he was blind to who she was. Those large, haunted grey eyes were seeing another person, he was trapped in some kind of horrific waking nightmare. Reluctantly Sirius took the potion and began drinking it, when it was all gone he handed the glass back to her as he fell back to the cushions, his ebony hair splayed across the white sheets.

“Just...don’t hurt me again...” He muttered, his voice thickening as the calming potion took effect. He sighed softly and his eyes half-closed.

Dumbledore gazed down at the boy and shook his head before standing, he moved away from Sirius’ bed. “It seems that he was indeed abused sexually...”

Poppy looked back at Sirius. “He’s still a child.” She whispered. “What can we do?”

Dumbledore’s eyes suddenly turned cold and hard. “If it was a member of his family, we can do nothing. We are bound by the old laws.”

“We will still be helpless if he doesn’t tell us who did it...” McGonagall replied. “We can’t force such information from him.”

“Indeed not, Minerva.”

Poppy opened her mouth to speak but she caught movement out the corner of her eye, she spotted Sirius out of bed and stumbling towards the door. “Oh!” She moved to catch him and take him back to his bed but before she came within a foot of him the doors burst open. James ran to Sirius and caught him just as he fell, he sank to his knees with him and held him close.

“It’s alright now Siri.” He whispered, his voice full of shaky tenderness. “I’m here now. I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”

Sirius’ eyes opened and he saw James’ face, he smiled weakly and curled up in his arms. “Jamie.” He whispered and let sleep cloud his senses. “I wasss...Loookin’ for you...”

“I know. I’m sorry I couldn’t be here with you, but I am now.”

“Mmm...I know.” Sirius’ breathing evened out and he fell into a deep sleep, his head cradled in James’ arm.

XXX

When Sirius next woke he had no recollection of what had happened, when the teachers asked him about why he had freaked out he simply frowned at them in confusion. Finally he was left alone with his friends and James moved to sit on his bed, Remus sat on his other side while Peter watched them from a chair. “So...I really went mental?” Sirius asked slowly.

“Yeah, Pomfrey had to sedate you...” James gazed at him in concern. “We were listening to everything.”

Sirius blinked. “Oh.”

“We know that you were-...” Remus cut James off mid-sentence by putting a hand on his arm and shaking his head. “Well, it doesn’t matter. We’re together now and we can plan our revenge.” He let an evil smirk cross his face and Sirius mirrored it.

They spent the day discussing ways to get revenge on the Slytherin’s for trapping Sirius, they tried to think of a way that wouldn’t get them in trouble but that was difficult. Finally Sirius decided what he was going to do.

“I look like Regulus...” He began thoughtfully. James raised an eyebrow. “Well, if I can get hold of a Slytherin tie and we can get Regulus out of the picture I can easily pose as him and get into the Slytherin common room. I could sneak in and find as many of their secrets as possible before leaving again...” He smirked, eyes glittering. “Then we can publish them as a newspaper, get it delivered to every student in the school...they’ll never live it down.”

Remus nodded his head thoughtfully. “But if you’re caught...”

“I won’t be.” Sirius said quietly. “I can act like my brother, we used to confuse our parents sometimes by switching roles...”

James grinned. “An excellent idea Mr. Black.”

END NOTE: If you're wondering why Sirius freaks out, its because no one who has been subjected to that amount of abuse would be able to live without some serious mental side affects. He's not totally mad, but he will suffer from strange episodes, or a more exaggerated version of what Molly Weasley calls in Canon 'Fits of the Sullens'...in my story he has fits of the insanity. :p Hope you enjoyed this chapter.
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Amore et Amicitia