Foreshadowing the Unexpected

Chapter 19 - A Moment of Decision

In a moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing to do. The worst thing you can do is nothing.--Theodore Roosevelt

Christmas morning, the Potter family sat gathered together in their living room, having finished opening the presents that had been piled under the Christmas tree.

Connor had received, and was wearing, his anticipated new jumper. It was black this year, with no stripes or pattern to speak of. He had also received more books from his Aunt Hermione, new prank supplies from Fred and George's families, a chessboard from Charlie's family, and a new schoolbag from Bill's family. His parents had given him his own Wizarding Wireless, and much to his surprise, a new owl of his own.

"She's brilliant," Connor said when he saw her. She had grey and white stripes, with dark brown eyes.

"She's a Barred Owl," Harry told him. "They're native to North America, but she should do quite well, here. I'm afraid that Lucy went and named her before we could stop her. You can try to change it, but owls are contrary that way. Once you give them a name, they almost always stick with it."

"I'm afraid to ask," Connor said, looking at his sister, who stuck her tongue out at him.

"Her name's Cliodna," Lucy answered. "Clio for short."

"Not bad," Connor conceded. "Why that name?"

"Well," Lucy said eagerly, "Cliodna was an Irish druidess who had a bird animagus form. She also had three magic birds that could heal people."

Connor looked sharply at his parents, but Ginny gave an almost imperceptible shake of her head in answer to his unspoken question. His brothers and sister were completely unaware of Connor's healing abilities.

"I guess that's as good as anything," Connor said, stroking Cliodna's breast feathers. "I hope she gets along with Godric."

"Hedwig likes her," Ian said, "and Hedwig's gotten awfully grouchy in her old age, so that's saying something."

Adam, on the other hand, had gotten a new broom for Christmas, and this was his first one without a safety tether. He was in raptures over it, and hadn't stopped smiling since his father had handed it to him. He was all but dancing in place, waiting to find out when he would be allowed to go and try it out.

"After breakfast," Ginny told him as she headed for the kitchen. "Your dad can take you out while I start getting ready for tonight's dinner."

"Can I help, Mum?" Lucy asked. "It's too cold out to fly."

Connor, who knew that his sister enjoyed flying in any kind of weather, thought that Lucy was simply looking for some mother-daughter time.

"I'm sure I could find something for you to do," Ginny agreed, seeming pleased.

Once the 'girls' had left the room, the boys went to go get dressed. Connor gathered his gifts; Cliodna fluttered up to his shoulder when he clicked his tongue at her. He was careful to look for any puffskeins and their tongues as he climbed up to his room.

"Godric," Connor said as he dumped his presents on his bed, "meet Cliodna. Clio, this is Godric--he's staying with us for a few days while Zack is on holiday. He doesn't normally live here."

Connor watched as Cliodna hopped down his arm and onto the perch beside a wary-looking Godric. They peered at each other for a few moments, and then both tucked their heads under their wings and went to sleep.

Connor chuckled. At least they didn't hate each other. He finished dressing quickly, and was back downstairs just as Lucy set down a huge plate of sausages.

"That's enough for three families!" Connor said when he saw that amount of food being laid out. "Is Uncle Ron coming to breakfast, or something?"

"Hey! I resemble that remark!" Ron said, coming into the room and sitting beside his nephew.

"Hey, Uncle Ron!" Connor smiled, passing him the enormous platter of eggs. "Is Rachel here?"

"No," Ron answered with his mouth full. "One of our clients is having serious problems with the broom he ordered from us for Christmas, and Harry and I need to have a look at it before the guy kills himself trying to ride it."

"Speaking of which," Harry said, coming into the room dusting his hands off, "I just Flooed him, and he should be here in about twenty minutes."

"What about flying?" Adam asked plaintively, coming into the room, his new broom clutched in his hand.

"Sorry, Adam, but I have to take care of this first," Harry said. "I promised this customer the best broom his money can buy, and my job's not done until he has what he paid for. Hopefully the problem is more with the rider than the broom, and I can finish quickly."

"I can watch him for a bit," Connor offered as he scooped some fried potatoes onto his plate. "We can fly on the west side of the house, and that way Mum can keep an eye on us from the kitchen window."

"I'll help watch him, too," Ian said, taking a seat and filling up his plate. "I'd like to break in my new Quaffle."

Harry looked sceptical. "I don't know. It's his first time on the new broom."

"Please, Dad?" Adam begged. "Please? I'll listen to Connor, I promise!"

"What kind of trouble could they get into right under Ginny's nose?" Ron asked.

The three boys looked up at him hopefully, and he laughed before giving in. "All right, but no stunts--no rolls or flips or loops."

"I promise," Adam said fervently. "Thanks!"

As the family ate their breakfast happily, Ron (a born story teller, in Connor's opinion) gave a report on what his family had received for presents. He had a funny story about Hermione's mum coming to stay with them that he shared amidst a lot of laughter from his appreciative audience.

"She gave Rachel, Gwen and Prue each fifty Euros," Ron told them. He explained that Euros were a kind of Muggle money made out of paper equivalent to about eight Galleons.

"Wow!" Ian said, impressed.

"Yes," Ron said with a chuckle. "Except that the girls have never really had any money made out of paper, before. They were trying to fold it into paper cranes, convinced it was some sort of magical parchment that would make them fly or something. Hermione's mum was very confused."

Finally there was a heavy knock on the door, Ron and Harry excused themselves to work.

Connor and Ian took Adam outside and tried to give him some pointers about the new broom he was going to be riding. Adam, however, did not want their advice and waved them off with a vehement, "Leave me alone!"

Connor shrugged, and resolved to fly close to his youngest brother at all times. Adam tended to be something of a clumsy flier, though he loved being up in the air. Still, their father surely wouldn't have given Adam a new broom without a tether if he felt that he wasn't ready for it yet.

They flew around the large garden, keeping close to the ground until Adam had the feel of his new broom, and then played a three-way game of catch with the Quaffle. As they played, Connor observed that Adam seemed to be doing quite well, and relaxed a bit.

Professor Lupin came out into the yard at one point and waved up at them, calling out, "Happy Christmas!" He watched them for a few minutes before going back inside the house where it was warm, and snow flurries weren't starting to fall from the steely sky.

After about an hour, Connor was feeling cold and tired.

"Come on, you guys," he called to his brothers as the snow began to fall more thickly. "I want to go inside now and see Uncle Remus. I'm cold!"

Ian and Adam protested, but Connor reminded them that their father would probably be done soon, and they could come out again later.

Ian nodded and landed his broom beside Connor, his feet crunching in the thin layer of old snow left over from last week. Adam, however, was being stubborn. He still had Ian's new Quaffle, and was tossing it high into the air, and then darting after it."

"Adam," Connor called up to him, as he threw the Quaffle high and caught it easily. "You know you're not allowed to fly without someone else out here to watch you."

"Then stay out here with me," Adam whined. He tossed the Quaffle high again and floated upward a few more feet, as if to mock his older brothers.

"Let's just tie him and his new broom to a tree," Ian suggested to Connor as they stood looking upward. "We can take him."

"You know Mum would kill us. It took her an hour to find him when Lucy tied him up in the tree house last summer," Connor said, shaking his head.

Connor was about to threaten Adam with telling their parents when the Quaffle suddenly fell back down a foot or so behind Adam. Adam lunged backward to grab at the errant ball, but the sudden move threw him off balance, and he lost his seat. Even as he was beginning to fall, Connor shouted for Ian to go get help, and cursed the fact that he'd left his wand in his room.

From the corner of his eye, Connor saw Ian takeoff at a sprint for the house. Connor was practically underneath Adam, and tried to catch him when the younger boy crashed down. There was no time for Connor to think of anything else as Adam collided with him, taking them both to the ground in a heap.

The impact knocked the wind out of Connor, and he heard more than one sickening snap as he hit the ground under the weight of his brother. Pain radiated from his left elbow and shoulder, and he shook his head to clear it before he took stock of what had just happened.

Adam was lying still across his left leg, his eyes closed. His head was bleeding from the back, where it appeared to have hit a rock, staining the snowy ground. Connor was breathing hard and flinched as his hands flared into heat, itching viciously.

"Adam?" Connor tried to rouse his brother, but Adam didn't move.

Connor eased his leg out from beneath Adam's prone form, then knelt beside him, trying to ignore both his pain and the itching.

"Adam!" he shouted, willing his brother to wake up and cry or shout or do anything but lay there helplessly. Connor used his right hand to try to slap Adam's cheek lightly, and that was all it took for his healing power to take over.

Connor's right hand clamped onto Adam's head, fingers splayed in the red hair, and began to tingle and burn. Connor cried out as the back of his own head felt as though it would burst from the sudden stabbing pain. He only dimly heard the shouts coming from the direction of the house, but couldn't make out who was yelling or what they were saying. By the time he felt an arm grab him around the chest and drag him backward, he was already blacking out.

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"...don't know why he's been out this long."

A voice began to come into focus as Connor's mind returned to consciousness. He had a strong ache all along the left side of his body, and his head hurt as well, though it was a bearable pain. He couldn't recall for few moments what had happened to him, and then it all flooded back in a rush. He sat straight up in bed before his eyes were even open, crying, "Adam!"

"Whoa, there!"

Connor looked to his left to see Lupin jumping to his feet and urging him to lie back. One look around at the bed and generic furnishings told Connor that he was back in St. Mungo's. Lupin looked haggard with worry, but his hands were strong and sure as they eased him back.

"Oh no," Connor moaned when he caught sight of the healer in her lime green robes. "Not again! Where's Adam? What happened to him? Is he all right? How did I get here?"

"Drink this," the healer said, shoving a beaker of blue liquid that was faintly smoking. She grabbed Connor's other wrist, and began to take his pulse.

Dutifully, Connor swallowed the sour contents of the beaker with a grimace, and then asked, again, "Where's Adam? Is he okay? How long have I been here? Where are Mum and Dad?"

Within moments, however, Connor didn't feel quite so urgent about matter as he had done from the moment he'd opened his eyes. He turned questioning eyes to the healer who simply said, "A mild Calming Draught."

"You've been here about two hours. Your parents are with Adam," Lupin told him gently. "I told them that I would stay here with you."

"What's wrong with him? Is he all right? Where are Lucy and Ian? How long have I been here? I have to go find Adam!" Connor fought the Calming Draught fiercely and tried to swing his legs off of the bed. He was shirtless and barefoot, but still wearing his own trousers.

"Could you give us a minute, please?" Lupin asked the healer politely as he restrained Connor against the bed.

The healer nodded. "Let me know if he needs anything else," she said before exiting the room.

Connor looked around, searching for some sign that might tell him exactly where he was, or where he might find Adam. The last thing he recalled was trying to wake him up, and the blood on his head. Then the healing powers had taken over, and someone had pulled Connor away from Adam.

"You need to calm down long enough for me to tell you what's going on," Lupin said firmly. "Stay put, and give all of the potions and charms time to work. You won't do anyone any good by getting all worked up."

Connor stopped struggling against his uncle's restraining hands, and settled back onto the pillows behind him. He had a very bad feeling about what he was going to hear, and a sense of intense trepidation filled him. He suddenly knew without a doubt that he had not had a long enough contact with Adam to heal his properly.

"He's not...." Connor said around a sudden lump in his throat as his eyes began to burn with tears, "He hasn't died?"

"Oh, Connor! No! Adam isn't dead!" Lupin hastened to assure him. "But he is in very serious condition. Ian said that he fell from about twenty feet in the air, and then he landed on top of you."

"I remember," Connor said with a shudder. "He hit his head on a rock, and I tried to get him to wake up, but he wouldn't."

"What made you attempt to heal him?" Lupin asked in an unusually scolding tone. "Why would you endanger yourself like that?"

"You know about me being a Healer, then?" Connor asked in a small voice. Lupin had never sounded so accusatory.

"Yes," Lupin said with a sigh. His displeasure seemed to subside a little at Connor's obvious discomfort. "I know all about it--Ms Grayson does, as well. She was in the next room when I found out, and accidentally overheard. Don't worry; she knows the importance of keeping it strictly secret. She's actually met a healer before, in South America."

"I wasn't sure you knew, so I didn't say anything to you about it," Connor said. "So, Adam's really alive?"

"Yes," Lupin answered. "He's alive, but he's got a longer recovery ahead of him. I daresay that your efforts on his behalf when he first fell are what saved him. He shouldn't have any lasting damage to his brain."

Connor remembered the pain he'd felt in his own head just before he blacked out, and put his hand up to inspect the place were his scalp had torn open.

"Ginny washed your hair with a Scouring Charm before the healers could see the blood and get any suspicious thoughts. You were trying to heal Adam and had partially absorbed the wound. Thankfully, it didn't get much farther than it did," Lupin told him, sounding shaky. "If you had gone any further, we might have lost you both."

"I don't understand," Connor said.

"When Adam hit his head, he was very nearly killed. His brain immediately began to swell, and there was no telling what kind of damage had been done. His skull had been fractured, and according to the healers, his spinal cord was partially compressed at the moment of impact. You softened some of the blow with your own body." Lupin explained.

"Yeah," Connor said, rolling his shoulder experimentally to feel that it was still tender. "My left arm didn't want to work after he fell on me."

"You're lucky that's all that stopped working," Lupin told him. "If you had continued to try to heal him, you very well could have suffered brain damage, because of the way you absorb others' injuries when you heal them. If you had sustained damage to the part of your brain that controlled your healing ability, you might have both been stuck half way between healed and injured. Permanently."

"I didn't think of that," Connor admitted thoughtfully. "I wasn't trying to heal him. It just kind of took over when I was trying to wake him up."

"That's good to know. At least you weren't being deliberately reckless. As it is, your elbow broke, and your shoulder was dislocated in the collision," Lupin said bluntly.

"Did I heal those, too?" Connor asked.

"No. That's the curious part," Lupin said. "Your body healed the skull fracture you absorbed from Adam right in front of our eyes. We actually watched the wound close and heal itself as if it had never been there."

"But the other stuff didn't go away on its own?" Connor asked, puzzled.

"No," Lupin said. "It seems that any injury done to you is up to you to heal the same way that anyone else would. You can't heal yourself--just others. The healers fixed you up when we brought you in."

"Can we go and see Adam, now?" Connor asked suddenly.

"We'll have to wait and see what the healer says. You were unconscious for a while longer than they would have expected from just fainting because of the pain. With no evidence of a head injury, they're worried that they're missing something."

"They are," Connor said, "thank goodness."

"Yes," Lupin agreed. "I'll go and find someone to tell us..."

At that moment, the door opened, and Ginny stuck her head into the room. Her eyes were red and puffy, and her nose was raw-looking. The rest of her face was pale, and her freckles stood out in sharp relief against the pallor of her skin.

"Thank Merlin," she whispered to herself as he came in and sat beside Connor, pulling him close. "Thank Merlin you're awake! How do you feel?"

"I'm fine, Mum. How's Adam?" Connor said, hugging her back tightly. "I want to see him."

Ginny let him go to look him in the eye. He chin quivered for a moment, and she swallowed hard before answering. "He's sleeping right now. The healers say that it was a near thing. You saved his life, Connor, but you took an awful risk! Don't you ever, ever do that again! Do you hear me?"

Her eyes filled with tears, which made Connor's own eyes prickle with unshed tears. "It's okay, Mum," he assured her. "You know I'd do anything for Adam."

This only made Ginny sob once before she got herself under control again. "I know you would, honey. Right now, I don't know if it's safe for you to be near him. I don't know how being around him would affect you."

"I'm fine. My mental shields are still up--my hands don't itch at all." Connor held up his hands as if to prove that they weren't at all inflamed.

"You're not in close proximity to anyone really sick or injured, though," Lupin pointed out.

"Please," Connor said simply. "I won't touch him at all, and if I look like I'm going to, you can use Petrificus or Immobulus on me. I need to see him."

"All right," Ginny said after a moment's consideration. "As long as you stay away from his bed. I don't want to take any chances."

Connor nodded in agreement as a healer bustled into the room with another potion for him.

"After you drink this, and I perform one last diagnostic charm," she said brusquely, "you're free to go. I understand that you have a brother being attended to here, as well."

"Yes, ma'am," Connor said. He didn't plan to protest over any potion or procedure that might delay him from seeing Adam.

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Ten minutes later, Connor was dressed again and was being led on shaky legs down a series of corridors until they came to a small private room.

Connor sneezed at the strange smell as he entered Adam's room, and ignored the anxious stare his mother was giving him. He knew she was watching him for signs of his healing powers showing themselves, but Connor felt normal. His hands didn't even twinge when he approached the bed were his brother was lying unconscious.

There was a small cauldron on the table beside Adam's bed, with a low purple flame beneath it. The surface of the potion inside was bubbling vigorously, emitting a white steam that made the air seem humid. Connor knew that the steam was most likely some sort of airborne medicine for Adam, and that they wouldn't be allowed in the room if it was dangerous. The vapour smelled of dandelions and feverfew as well as a hint of ginger and a few other herbs.

The walls were scattered with parchments charmed to record any activity that Adam might experience. They looked frightening to Connor, who could barely make them out from where he stood.

Harry was sitting on the far side of the bed. He looked up at Connor and nodded reassuringly before turning his eyes back to Adam. Ian and Lucy were sitting on either side of Harry, and both looked as if they were in shock. Lucy's eyes looked too big for her face, and Ian looked suspiciously as if he had been crying recently, though his face was dry for now.

Ginny let Connor advance into the room only a short way. She halted his progress by putting a hand on his shoulder and guiding him to a chair by the window and then standing beside him. He knew that he was just watching out for him, but found himself feeling mildly annoyed. Then he got a good look at Adam.

Connor's throat tightened and he felt a sting behind his eyes. He fisted his hands at his sides out of frustration, curbing the urge to go to the bed, not to heal, but to sit and comfort. His baby brother was lying on the bed, unnaturally pale and quiet against the stark white of the sheets pulled up across his chest. His head was wrapped in thick gauze bandages that only let one or two locks of Adam's red curls escape.

"I'm sorry," Connor said, looking up at his mother.

"You don't have anything to be sorry for, Connor," Ginny said quietly, squeezing his shoulder.

"I was supposed to be watching him," Connor said miserably.

"This isn't your fault, Con," Harry said from across the room. "It was an accident. We're not going to blame anyone."

Connor nodded, but didn't feel any better. He had told his parents that he would look after Adam, and now Adam was lying in a hospital bed with his head in bandages. Connor couldn't see how this wasn't his fault.

Lupin drew in another two chairs and everyone sat and settled into a watchful silence. Healers and Apprentice Healers came and went, refilling the steaming cauldron occasionally, or checking the charts. Someone brought tea that none of them drank.

Lupin left for a short while after what seemed like hours, and when he came back, he wasn't alone. Connor found himself engulfed in a hug from his Grandma Molly before he really even registered her presence in the room. Molly also went and hugged Lucy, Ian and his parents.

"I've come to take the children home," Molly said to Ginny as she gazed sadly at Adam for a moment. "I know you and Harry will want to stay here with Adam."

Lucy and Ian stood and stretched, taking their cloaks from the backs of their chairs. Lucy leaned over Adam and covered his limp hand with hers, saying, "Bye, Adam. See you tomorrow."

Ian did the same, and he and Lucy went to hug their parents.

"I'm not going," Connor said when Molly looked at him expectantly. "I'm staying here."

"You need your rest, darling. You can come back tomorrow." Molly coaxed encouragingly.

"No," Connor said firmly. He looked to his father for support.

"It's all right, Molly," Harry said quietly. "I appreciate you taking Lucy and Ian. Connor will be fine here with us."

"Are you sure that's wise?" Ginny asked Harry pointedly. "Connor really shouldn't be around all of this..."

"He'll be fine," Harry interrupted. "Lucy and Ian will have a great time with Molly, and we'll Floo the moment we know anything new."

Connor let out a breath he didn't even realize he'd been holding, and stayed in his seat. Lucy was looking at Ian as if questioning what was going on with Connor, but she kept her own counsel. Connor waved to the twins and Molly as they left, and acknowledged Lupin when he said that he had some things to see to.

The Potters kept up their bedside vigil, eating stale sandwiches and drinking cold tea when the hospital volunteers brought them. Connor eventually felt his eyes grow heavy, and fell asleep in his chair.

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Connor woke up to the sound of crying, and was on his feet looking blearily around before he was even aware that he was awake. The room was dimly lit, and there was a rustling as Harry and Ginny rushed to get to Adam's bedside to comfort him.

Connor blinked away his fatigue, and went to the door of the room to look for a healer. He spotted one at the end of the corridor, and signalled to him to come.

"My head hurts!" Adam wailed.

"I know, darling, I know," Ginny soothed, holding onto his hands so that he wouldn't tug at the bandages.

The healer came into the room and began to check the parchments on the wall, then pulled at vial of pearly white potions from his robes and inspected the label. It only took him a moment to pour about half of the potion into a small cup, and urge Adam (now calmer) to drink it.

"That was some fall you took, young man," the healer told Adam as he tipped the cup to his patient's lips. "You gave your parents quite a fright."

Connor had a sudden picture in his head, and quickly grabbed a nearby basin from a table in the corner of the room. He stepped forward and shoved it under Adam's chin as soon as the doctor administered the potion, and wasn't the least bit surprised when Adam was immediately sick.

"Quick thinking," the healer said to Connor gratefully.

"Adam hates potions," Connor informed the man. "He never keeps them down--always spits them out."

Adam now had his arms crossed over his chest defiantly, and nodded in agreement with Connor. "It's nasty!"

"Adam," Harry said in a warning tone.

"It is nasty stuff," the healer commiserated, "but it will help with the concussion and the pain."

Adam steadfastly refused to swallow any more potions, gagging and biting when they tried to make him. The healer finally conceded defeat. He cast a pain-relieving charm that he warned was short-term and mild, and went to see if there was a specialist currently working who could magic the potion directly into Adam's stomach. It wasn't the best way for him to get the full potency of the potion, but it would be better than nothing.

When he had gone, Ginny yawned hugely, and Harry stood and stretched. Adam was looking around the room with interest, even though he was still tearful and obviously in pain. Connor was so glad to see Adam awake and alert, that he couldn't stop smiling.

"Now that Adam is awake and coherent," Harry said to Ginny, "why don't you take Connor home for a proper meal and some rest. I'll stay here until you get back."

Ginny agreed, and didn't protest as Connor leaned down and whispered to his brother, "If you take the potions the healers give you, I'll try to sneak Sweetie and Pit-Pat back with me later."

Adam eyed him suspiciously.

"If you don't take your potions, you won't get to see them for a week. Maybe longer," Connor warned.

"Snowball, too," Adam said firmly.

Connor hesitated, but couldn't deny Adam anything when he looked so frail. "Snowball, too," he agreed wearily.

Adam agreed, and if Ginny heard Connor's promise, she acted as if nothing was amiss.

Connor followed his mother through the corridors and down some steps until they reached the Floo station in the lobby of the hospital. Ginny paid an attendant for some Floo powder, and saw Connor safely into the large grate.

"I'll see you at home," she said to him as she stepped away from the Floo.

Connor nodded, then shouted out his address as he threw down the powder.

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Connor sat at the kitchen table, telling Ian and Lucy between huge bites of his sandwich, that Adam was doing fine. Now that he was home, Connor felt like he hadn't eaten in days, and eagerly loaded his plate with the chips that Dobby set on the table.

Ginny had gone to take a shower and a short nap, and said to wake her around lunchtime.

"Your father will be ready for a break by then, and you three can visit with Adam while he comes home to freshen up," Ginny told them.

After Ginny had left the room, Ian and Lucy exchanged what Connor liked to call a 'twin' look.

"Are you all right, Con?" Ian asked. "From the house, I could see you trying to help Adam, then suddenly Uncle Remus was pulling you off of him, and you passed out and everyone was panicking."

"Sorry," Connor said. "I'm okay, now."

They just stared at him as if waiting for him to elaborate.

"Look," Connor said. "Lately my magic's been a little...unpredictable. My, er, precognition is making my magic act up in weird ways, and they didn't want any accidental magic flaring up and hurting anyone. That's why Lupin grabbed me. Then when everyone realized what had happened to Adam, that's when the panic started."

"They knew about Adam already," Lucy persisted, her gaze seeming to bore holes into Connor with its intensity. "Ian yelled it out as soon as he got to the house."

Connor knew that the twins could sense that more was going on than what they were being told, and he really wanted to tell them his secret. However, his parents would probably skin him alive for it, and then Obliviate the twins to make them forget about it, anyway.

"I reckon they didn't realize how serious it was until they saw him," Connor said by way of answer.

The twins gave him a considering look, as if they weren't sure whether or not to believe him. They seemed to be trying to discern the truth without speaking, but finally Lucy sighed and said, "I guess."

"Look, I made a deal with Adam," Connor said, quickly diverting attention away from his own stay at St Mungo's. "I'm going to need some help getting Snowball, Pit-Pat and Sweetie into the hospital without anyone finding out."

"So what do you need us for?" Ian asked with a sly smile. "Pit-Pat and Sweetie can each go in one of your pockets, and you can hold Snowball under your cloak."

"You know Snowball doesn't like me," Connor said pleadingly.

"Can you blame him?" Lucy asked with an arched eyebrow. "You stepped on him yesterday morning."

"Come on, guys," Connor said, refusing to sound as desperate as he felt.

"Nope," Ian said happily.

"Lucy?" Connor turned pleading eyes to her. "You'll help me, won't you?"

"Sorry," Lucy answered. "Maybe this is a chance for you and Snowball to come to a truce. Can he really be that mad at you after you take him to see Adam?"

"You guys stink," Connor said, sulking.

The twins remained unmoved, and Connor decided that they would have to pay for this insolence later. Maybe he could sneak a couple of Flatulent Fancies into the Fizzing Whizbee bags they had gotten for Christmas.

Lucy went and woke Ginny at lunchtime, and everyone gathered their cloaks. Connor carefully slipped the two smaller puffskeins into his pockets, and then carefully approached Snowball, who was sitting on Adam's bed, on top of the pillow. Connor kneeled down and made sure no one was listening in to his attempt to talk to Snowball while the fur ball growled quietly at him.

"Look," he whispered to the mutant puffskein uneasily. "Adam got hurt yesterday. Bad."

Snowball quieted a bit. Connor wasn't sure if it understood him, or if it just recognised Adam's name, but either way, it was no longer growling.

"I promised Adam that I would bring you to see him, but you can't be seen," Connor rushed on, while his mother called up the stairs for him to hurry. "If you make any noise, they might find out I brought you, and take you back home. Okay?"

"Connor! Hurry up!" Ginny called up the stairs again.

"Coming, Mum! I'm just grabbing some stuff for Adam!" Connor called back. He scooped snowball up and help him to eye-level for a moment. "Remember, no noise."

Connor slipped Snowball beneath his cloak and grabbed a couple of Adam's favourite books and a pair of his favourite pyjamas on his way out, and met up with Ginny and the twins in front of the Floo.

"What's all that stuff?" Ginny asked him as he came in, carrying it all in front of him, and using its bulk to disguise the fact the Snowball was secreted beneath his cloak.

"Oh, just some stuff for Adam. To make him more comfortable," Connor said, only half-truthfully.

Ginny eyed him strangely, but didn't ask any more questions before she saw each of the twins, and then Connor off in the Floo.

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Connor stood in the hallway outside of Adam's room with Lucy and Ian. The healer was in the room examining their brother, and had asked them to wait outside for a few minutes until he was finished. Connor didn't mention that his hands were beginning to feel a slight tingle in the palms, and worked hard at concentrating on his Occlumency. He hadn't felt that he had needed it earlier, but now he wondered if he should have taken the time to practice it that morning, as usual.

An apprentice healer stopped to stare at them for a moment when Snowball growled impatiently under Connor's cloak.

"I'm really hungry," Connor said by way of excuse at the apprentice's strange look, causing Ian and Lucy to laugh unabashedly. They quieted when the door across from them opened.

"You kids can go in and see your brother now," a healer in green robes told them when he came out of Adam's room. "Don't overexcite him."

Connor nodded, and hurried into the room. Ginny and Harry were standing at either side of Adam. Adam himself looked miserable, and had tears drying on his cheeks.

"The healer just changed the bandages and gave him some potions," Ginny explained quietly as her other children filed in. "He's a little uncomfortable right now."

"Did he take his potions, okay?" Connor asked, looking into Adam's unhappy face.

"Yes, he did," Harry said with an impressed smile. "He didn't even argue."

"Well, then," Connor said, not taking his eyes from Adam, "a deal's a deal."

Adam's eyes lit up when Connor dropped the books and pyjamas on the coverlet and withdrew Snowball from the inside of his cloak. He quickly set him down on Adam's chest, ignoring the mock-disapproving sound his mother made. Pit-Pat and Sweetie joined Snowball a moment later, and Adam gathered them all up with a joyful hug.

----------------0--------------

Connor and the twins stayed with Adam all afternoon, reading to him, playing cards and talking. Harry had gone home a few hours before to get some rest and a meal, and Ginny had left to Floo Grandma Molly with an update.

When Hermione came into the room with Harry, the four children were involved in double game of chess.

"And how did these animals get in here?" Hermione asked sternly when she spotted the puffskeins on Adam's pillow.

"Auntie Hermione!" Adam said happily when he saw here. "Connor brought them. He said that if I took all of my potions without a fuss, he would bring Snowball and Pit-Pat and Sweetie to visit me! The potions were really gross, and I didn't even complain, and then when Connor came back, he brought them, just like he promised, and I missed them so much! You won't tell the healers, will you? They would make Connor take them home, and I like having them here!"

"Well, I can tell that you're feeling a bit better." Hermione smiled indulgently.

Connor glared when Hermione patted Snowball, and the little freak began to croon for her.

"And how are you, Connor?" Hermione asked casually. "I can't think that it was much fun to have your brother land on top of you."

"I'm good as new," Connor hastened to say when he noticed Adam's lower lip begin to tremble.

"Will you kids be all right if Hermione and I go to have a word with the healers?" Harry asked.

"We'll be fine," Ian assured him, moving one of his chess pieces on the board.

Harry nodded, and led Hermione out the room with a meaningful expression.

Connor, curious about what the healers might say to his dad, left the bed and crept across the room until he was at the door. He could hear his dad and his aunt talking out in the hallway, and stopped to eavesdrop.

"He's been in there for hours with Adam, and there's no sign at all that he feels any urge to use his healing power at all. What if...what if whatever Connor did to help Adam," Harry asked Hermione in a half-hopeful voice, "somehow cancelled out whatever it is inside of him that makes him a healer? I mean, maybe there was some brain damage to Connor, but the only damage was to the part that makes him..."

"Sorry, Dad," Connor interrupted, sounding sheepish as he stepped into the hallway, revealing his presence. "After I healed Ivy, I didn't need to Occlude or anything for a couple of days after: I think that my healing senses were just tired out. My hands actually started bugging me a bit this morning. I didn't want to say anything, because I thought you'd make me leave."

"Connor," Hermione sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "So you know how dangerous it is for you to be here if your hands are acting up?"

"Right," Harry said decisively at almost the same time, "get your cloak. It's time to get you out of here before they get worse."

"But--" Connor began, only to be stopped in the middle of his argument by two scowling adult faces.

"No arguments," Harry said firmly.

"You can come home with me for a day or two," Hermione decided. "Rachel's been worried sick about you, anyway. It'll do you both some good."

Connor was going to protest once more, but could see that the adults' minds were plainly set. "I'll go say goodbye to Adam."

As he was turning to go collect his cloak and say goodbye, he could hear Hermione saying, "We'll stop by your house to get some things for him."

Connor was sad to be sent away, even though he understood the reason. Still, it didn't seem fair.