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In His Place	By : SpeedyTomato Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Sirius Views: 72865 -:- Recommendations : 16 -:- Currently Reading : 16
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, so sad for me, and make no money off this story, even sadder for me.

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
- 10
Beta'd by the amazing Tenchi. Love you, woman, you're the best!

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Chapter 9

Brow furrowed at what he was seeing, Severus sat down, straddling the bench, facing Black and Potter, who were seated the same way, with Potter leaning back against the other man, obviously sleeping. He had seen the readings Black had sent, along with the description of what the issue was, but this appeared worse. Running a couple of very basic diagnostics, he asked, tone distracted, “How bad is this? And the lethargy and sleepiness are the issues?”
“It's plenty bad, Snape,” Sirius told him with a shake of his head. “He just keeps falling asleep. And I mean out of the blue with no warning, though he's already dozy when it happens. If he's eating, chances are that at least once a meal he's going to just conk out and land in his plate face first if one of us doesn't catch him before that happens. Even if he does that, it doesn't wake him. It's even worse now as he had another migraine yesterday and took the new potion for that. It worked, no doubt there, a helluva lot quicker than the other did too, but its exaggerated what's already happening.”
“We thought to give him some Pepper-Up, but didn't want to chance that with all that he's taking,” Lucius added, shaking his head.
Groaning and rubbing a hand over his face as he looked at the readings, Snape then glanced at the sleeping Potter. “It's the new potions, I can tell you that plainly. They aren't pain killing draughts, but work in a similar way. Is he—does he act slightly wonky, as though he's drunk or something, when alert?”
“Oh, yeah.” Sirius nodded. “He's stoned out of his gourd most of the time. We're not even chancing trying to work with him on anything as out of it as he is. All he does, mostly, is sleep.”
“I thought so,” Severus sighed. “Alright. Let's add the potion for the lethargy back, the one that he stopped taking because he was doing better with that after getting his wand. It's not going to fix this, but it'll help. He's just going to have to adjust and that's going to take time. He's been on them less than a week, so he's not had time to adjust to the strength. In a couple of weeks, most of this should go away as he'll be used to the potion. I'll give the readings to Poppy to look over, but I don't think she's going to change them as they're warranted because of the cause of the headaches. It's just a case of--” stopping, he shrugged. “And Pepper-Up is fine if you don't give him more than two doses a day of it. I would suggest before meals so he can make it through without trying to breathe in his food. The only thing I can tell you is to let him sleep until he adjusts. Just be extra careful with things like bathing and whatnot so he doesn't do himself an injury.” Seeing nods, he looked around then asked, “What was the new issue that cropped up? You said you didn't want to discuss it through the communication. And I brought the books on odd reactions to head injuries. Is it something we need to concern ourselves with and get Poppy over here?”
“No, we don't want her involved,” Remus said quietly, shaking his head. “And, Severus, you're going to have to experience this to truly understand what we're talking about, because I doubt you're going to believe us if we tell you.”
Brow furrowed, Severus glanced around then asked, “What does it pertain to? Is it physical in some way?” Already he was wracking his brain to see what he could come up with that it might be, hoping it wasn't something worse than they were already dealing with.
“It's not physical,” Narcissa told him softly. “We think it's related to the head injury, at least that's what I've been able to come up with when it comes to me reading up on the topic. And, Merlin, until we get him back to where he was and not falling asleep all the time, he can't be around anyone with some of what he comes across with. We do not want anyone knowing he can do this.”
Eyes widening, Severus looked around then asked, tone wary, “What is it? And what's it related to?”
“Remember me telling you about him telling me about passing through the Veil those times and how he can describe James and Lily, including things he has no way of knowing?” Sirius asked. When he saw the man give a jerky nod, eyes wider, he pressed on, “We think it's related to that, though we aren't sure. And, I swear to Merlin, whatever he comes across with about you we won't say anything about. I swear, Snape. He's come across, when he's like this and wakes slightly, though we're all damned sure he's not really awake, with stuff about all of us. And he has no way of knowing about some of it. None.”
Not sure what to make of that, Snape glanced around, seeing nods then asked, tone wary, “What kind of 'stuff'?”
“Severus, it has either to do with the past, things he has no way of knowing, none, or a communication from someone that's died. He's even come across with a couple of predictions that are valid,” Lucius told him with a shake of his head. Lowering his voice, he added, “And if you ask him something specific, on a topic you know he can't know anything about, he can answer you. Merlin! When it started I asked him, when he was in a state similar to this after just 'waking', my mother's nickname for my father and he came across with it. He has no way of knowing that, Severus. Going in, he didn't even know my father's name! There's no chance he could have known that nickname.”
Looking back at the sleeping Potter, Severus put a hand over his mouth then glanced around. After a few moments, he asked, tone very wary, “Are you sure this is real?”
“We're sure,” Remus nodded vigorously. “Harry has no way of knowing some of this, none. We've never talked about it around him where he could hear or even with him. Some of it—we've not even talked about it with anyone here. He has no way of knowing!”
“Merlin,” Snape muttered, looking back at Potter. Brow furrowing as the young man stirred, he wondered where this was coming from.
Feeling Harry start to stir, knowing what kept happening when he came around like this, Sirius looked around with his finger to his lips to keep everyone quiet. As softly as he could, he said to Snape, looking back at him, “We won't say anything, I swear we won't.”
After looking at Black, Snape then focused on Potter as he opened his eyes, well slightly anyway. “Mr. Potter? Are you alright?” He asked, softly. He did need to judge some of the reactions they were describing so he could pass that on to Poppy. The other—he would wait and withhold judgment on that until he saw an example of it.
Harry wasn’t awake, at least fully, he knew that. He was just in that strange new place he seemed to spend a lot of time in since waking from the coma. It wasn’t a bad place, honestly, but it was the one that brought on those dreams, something he hated. When he was here, he knew things. How he did he didn't know, just that he did. That and there were things he was supposed to tell people. How he knew that, he didn't know either, but was well aware they were real. It was like the person that wanted him to talk was sitting beside him telling him what to say.
Focusing on Professor Snape, he felt that nudge, the same as he had before, and knew who was beside him. He loved her, no doubt there, and trusted her so he would pass it along. Besides, he knew that what he had to say wasn't bad. Quietly, eyes locked on Snape's face, he said, “Mum said to tell you that she forgave you a long time ago. You made a mistake, yeah, but you fixed what you could long ago by doing the right thing. And, since then, you've more than made up for the rest with all you've done. She said to tell you that it's time you stopped beating yourself up over it and move on. Everyone makes mistakes. The both of you did in that situation. She shouldn't have taken that kind of offense at a name she knew you never meant to call her and she's sorry for that. You'll always be someone she loves and will always be her best friend. She'll be waiting to hug you when it's finally your time to move on.” Stopping, he felt sleep pull him again but the nudge of something else was there, so he pressed on, knowing he could sleep again when he finished. Quietly, he said, grinning, “And she promises if you don't give what's there with Professor Sinistra a chance, she's going to make sure someone lands enough stinging hexes on your backside that you won't be able to sit for a month, no matter what anyone does. She says to stop being a fool and give it a chance.” Feeling his mum hug him and give him a kiss on the cheek, Harry smiled and sighed then slipped back to sleep.
Starting to tremble violently, Snape stared at the young man, mouth dropping open. Oh, Merlin! Some, maybe, Potter might know. But Aurora? There was no chance. No one knew about that, none of them. Not even in school! Lifting his eyes, he looked around, not sure what to say, mouth dry. The boy wasn't awake, that was obvious from the seriously slurred speech and tone of it, but—damn!
“We won't say a word, Severus,” Remus told him softly, shaking his head. “He's come up with something similar for all of us. And I mean things he can't possibly know.”
Swallowing convulsively, Severus didn't know what to say. After a couple of moments, he shook his head then asked, voice uneven, “When did this start? And—Merlin, I don't even know what to ask!”
“With the new potions. We think them wonking him out just brought it to the forefront,” Sirius told him, holding the once more sleeping Harry tightly. “Because it's there all the time, even when awake.”
“If we ask him something when he's 'with it', he will profess not to know, but come across with the right answer in a couple of minutes,” Lucius explained softly. “I think it's a case of his logical side fighting something new. Our guess is that the potions are just making it easier for him to do it as his natural logic is 'asleep' because of the effects.”
“They didn't teach Divination when we went to school, but it was a subject I read up on as a hobby for years,” Narcissa told him, reaching across the table to pat the obviously shaken man's hand. “What I read was that, sometimes, when someone has a serious head injury, this can come about as it 'awakens' something we all have. From reading now, I've learned that even some Muggles have noticed something similar, though their beliefs in such things aren't nearly as widespread as ours. If even they notice it, it might be related.”
Taking that in and nodding slowly, Severus just stared at the sleeping Potter, mind going all over the place. Rubbing a still trembling hand over his face, he shook his head then said, “Keep him away from everyone until he adjusts to the potions and this doesn't continue. Merlin! I don't even want to ponder the reaction of so many if it comes out that he can do this.” Looking around again, he asked, “Is everything he comes across with accurate and verifiable?”
“When it comes to what we can prove; yes,” Remus nodded. “Even the two predictions were. They were in the paper the following day after he came across with them. It was about the Death Eaters Rufus got his hands on; Crabbe and Goyle. Harry told us, just before dozing off, that the Hitwizards had caught them, alive.”
“Merlin's beard,” Severus muttered, shaking his head. Trying to think, he asked the first thing that came to mind, “Does he realize what he's doing?”
“We don't know about that,” Sirius admitted with a shake of his head. “He's so wonked out most of the time that we're not sure what he gets and what he doesn't. Even when he comes across with something when awake, he's so out of it that it's hard to tell if he understands what he's saying.” Glancing at Narcissa and Lucius, both of whom were giving him pointed looks, he then looked back at Snape and said, “There is something we need to check on though. He came across with it just after breakfast today. And we do not want Draco to know, at least until we find out if it's true one way or another.”
Nodding, taking that in, Severus' brow then furrowed as he looked at Black and asked, tone wary, “What's that?”
“Harry came across with something about Crabbe, Goyle and Parkinson trying to get a letter through that has poison or some kind of other potion on it. He said they are going to send it in the guise of it being from like one of the Weasleys or Hermione, hoping to get it through. He didn't say if the intended target was Draco or his parents, but we think it might be Lucius or Narcissa since they have to know both of them are going to check anything he gets. You might want to check the dorms for them brewing something they shouldn't be or if they have something in their possession. I'm sure you can come up with something, somewhere, that gives you a reason to search.”
Mind honing in on that, Severus gave a firm nod. “Will do. I'll come up with something and get help to check when I get back. If it's there, we'll find it. And I'll let you know one way or another what we find.” Shaking his head again, he glanced at the sleeping Potter, not sure what else to say. Quietly, he finally uttered, “If this continues, he needs to hone it to a degree. It can only help him, and us, if he can sense some areas, such as protecting himself. How to do that is beyond me. Even Trelawney wouldn't be any use in this. We just can't tell anyone.”
“Cissy is going to try with it. She's at least read up on the topic,” Sirius sighed. Shaking his head, he added, “We're going to get our hands on every book we can on the topic. Remus picked up an owl-order catalog from a couple of bookstores. We're going to try, Snape. We thought, if we can even just hone something about danger, we're going to get a shiteload of help. He might not like dealing with it if it doesn't go away, but we'll handle it.”
“Good plan,” Severus nodded. “Just—Merlin, keep him away from everyone you can. Especially Albus. We do not need the old man knowing he can do something like this. Anyone else either. Maybe, if it continues, Rufus and Moody. It can help them, depending on what he comes across with. I don't know. Let's wait and see here.” Shaking his head, he sighed, “Let me look into what I can find on brain scans to see if we can detect where this might come from. I'm not sure I can find anything, but I'll try. If nothing else, it tells me we probably need another of the more complete scans to determine what is going on there. Let me see what I can do on that end and get with Poppy. Even if he comes across with something strange to her, she won't say a word.”
“As long as she says nothing, especially to Albus,” Remus said. “I don't know. Narcissa said, from what she's read, it doesn’t go away. Once it activates, it's there. So, we'll work with it. Hopefully, once he's adjusted to the potions, it won't be so pronounced. If he can figure out when he's getting something, we can work with it to get him to leave or something. I don't know. We'll see what comes.”
Nodding at that, saying nothing, Severus thought it over then told them, “Let me talk to Poppy about another scan to see what's going on there. I'll also press to see if we can find something stronger for the lethargy to see if we can't minimize this. I don't know if there is anything, though. Let me look that up. Or she might know something. I'll let you know when I find out.” Sighing, he shook his head. “Alright, let me get back to the school. I'm going to go to Minerva and Albus about a search of the dorms, all of them, for something dangerous, saying I got a tip delivered about something. We'll start with Slytherin. If we find anything, I'll let you know.” Seeing nods, he stood, trying to stop shaking then left, mind all over the place.

Looking at the small, innocuous looking vial of bright blue liquid that was suspended in the air and the three letters that purported to be from Ron, Ginny and Hermione, Albus sighed then shook his head in a sad way. Glancing around the empty Slytherin common room, he said, “You're certain everyone is secured in the Great Hall, Severus?”
“Absolutely,” Severus told him with a firm nod, glowering at the poison that came from one of the more disreputable shops down Knockturn Alley. “Not only are the house ghosts keeping watch, the doors are sealed with Aurora, Rolanda and Septima keeping watch on them. We're going to do this house by house.”
Glancing back at the poison, Albus said, tone weary, “It appears your tip was right, Severus. Now we press on. With the fingerprints confirming that Miss Parkinson, Mr. Crabbe and Mr. Goyle all handled it and the parchments, there is very little doubt about what they were intending.” Looking at Minerva, he asked, “What is the next step? It's been a while since I've had to deal with something so serious. I would like to see if we can't save these children, but I'm not sure that's possible.”
“We secure them in a room then call for the Aurors,” Minerva sighed, looking dour. “In this case, I think we need to go by the book, Albus. I understand that these children just made a horrible error in judgment, but they weren't under pressure to do something like this, at least that we can find. There is nothing in their personal letters to indicate someone was telling them to attempt such a stunt. We all know none of their families are high-ranking enough to get He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named involved. Severus has no intelligence at all that indicates they were doing that at the behest of the madman, nothing. I think this was just a foolish stunt on their part to act like they're doing something. With Mr. Crabbe and Mr. Goyle, probably as revenge for Lucius' defection. We can't allow this, Albus. If they get away with it, others are going to try.”
“Very true,” Albus said with a sad shake of his head. “Alright. Let me take the evidence and call Kingsley. He can work from there. We'll leave them in the Great Hall until he shows up then press on with the other dorms. Just make sure to issue detentions for other bits and bobs you find so this doesn't appear to be done from a tip. If you find anything else serious, let me know.” Seeing the two nod, he then swept out, taking the evidence with him.
Once he was gone, Minerva looked around then shook her head. Quietly, she said, “Thankfully, someone gave you a tip, Severus. This could have ended up very badly if they didn't do that.”
Mind working on the magnitude of what Potter had imparted, Severus gave a slow nod. “It could have. Once we're done, I'll get a message to Lucius and Narcissa to make sure they check everything, thoroughly. And we might want the younger set to send any correspondence to Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy through you. That way we can hold off on any issues like this again.”
“We'll do that,” Minerva told him with a firm nod, looking determined. “I'll get with those in my house to let them know to bring all letters to me. I'll check them before I send them out. Then I'll get with Filius to have him do the same with Miss Lovegood, as she's the only other one that writes to Mr. Potter. Let them know that if they come another way, without a handwritten notation from one of us, to check it and hold it for us. Hopefully, that will catch any foolishness before it goes too far.”
“I will,” Severus told her firmly. “Let's finish the search then press on so no one gets suspicious. Then we work on the rest of the mess.” Seeing her nod, he went to the next set of dorms to start looking, hoping like hell he didn't find anything else.
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In His Place