Foreshadowing the Unexpected

Chapter 26 - Dire Consequences

Great deeds are usually wrought at great risks. - Herodotus

Connor slowly came back to consciousness with a fierce headache. It didn't take more than a few moments to realise why, and when he did, he sat upright with wide eyes. Hospital wing.

"Connor." Professor Lyra was seated beside his bed and reached out to ease him back against the pillows. "Take it easy. You might be a little sore; that was quite a display you put on in the dungeons."

"Professor Snape!" Connor said desperately. "He put Rupert in a closet and locked him in!"

"It's being taken care of as we speak," Professor Lyra said. "Madam Cosgrove asked me to sit here with you until you woke up, so she could devote all of her attention to Rupert."

Connor relaxed a little at this news, and stayed lying down so that Professor Lyra wasn't straining to keep him from sitting up.

"How do you feel?" she asked gently.

"Tired," Connor answered truthfully, "and sore."

"Grace left some potions here for you to take," Professor Lyra gestured to a tray on the bedside table. "A pain reliever, and Calming Draught, and some Dreamless Sleep Potion. She said she wants you to try to go back to Gryffindor Tower before taking the Sleeping Draught, and that she'll look you over in the morning."

"What's happened to Rupert? What's going on?"

Connor nodded and accepted pain reliever and the Calming Draught, swallowing them down obediently. The two flavours mixed made Connor screw up his face in disgust, but he didn't complain. Almost immediately, he felt the potions do their work in this system, and the aches left his muscles even as a feeling of peacefulness descended over him. He still remembered everything that had happened with perfect clarity, but it no longer seemed so urgent or important.

"That's better," he said in a relaxed tone.

Professor Lyra gave a sigh of relief and sat back in her chair. "I checked your mental barriers while you were asleep," she said quietly. "They're a little battered, but all right to leave alone for the night, especially with a Calming Draught and Dreamless Sleep potions inside of you."

"All right," Connor said unconcernedly, his mind on his bed.

"I'm going to walk you as far as the entrance to your common room, then you're to go straight to your room and get in bed. Take the potion once you're settled. I'll leave word that you're to be left alone to sleep."

"Why? What time is it?" Connor asked with interest.

"It's after two in the morning. Professor Snape was forced to stun you when you got hysterical, but stunned sleep isn't as restful as regular sleep," she explained. "You're going to feel it if you wake up at your normal time."

"All right," Connor agreed. It sounded perfectly sensible.

"You're not to talk to your friends or anyone else about what happened tonight," Professor Lyra said firmly, eyeing him closely as if suspicious that he was faking his placid behaviour. "You're to report to the Headmistress as soon as you get up in the morning. Don't worry about going to classes."

Connor wasn't faking his placid behaviour. The two potions left him feeling pleasantly detached. He nodded. "I understand."

"Good. Let's get you to bed, then." Professor Lyra got to her feet and helped Connor to stand. He was shaky for a moment or two, but steadied quickly.

They walked quietly and without speaking all the way up to the seventh floor. The Fat Lady was napping in her frame, but Professor Lyra woke her by saying the password loudly, and the frame swung away from the wall.

Handing over a glass phial, Professor Lyra said. "Here's your potion. Take it after you're ready to go to sleep. It'll work quickly, so be sure you're in bed when you swallow it."

Connor crawled through the portrait hole with a murmured, "Good night," and then the portrait closed. He wearily climbed the steps to his room.

It was quiet, except for the light snoring of his roommates, and he quickly undressed, pulled on his pyjamas and climbed into bed, clutching the phial of Dreamless Sleep that Professor Lyra had given him. Once he was settled beneath the blankets, he yawned widely, wondering what had really happened in the dungeons that night.

He pulled the Marauder's Map out from its hiding place beneath his pillow and activated it. It didn't take long to find the dungeon classroom where everything had happened. Snape was still there, as were Professor McGonagall and Madam Cosgrove. Rupert was still in the closet and appeared to be throwing himself repeatedly against the door.

Connor watched sadly as the small dot reading Rupert Dursley battered himself around the small room, looking for an escape route, no doubt. It was obvious that Snape had not opened the door and Madam Cosgrove was not seeing to her patient. Instead Snape was pacing back and forth, Professor McGonagall was near the far wall, possibly using the fire to call someone, and Madam Cosgrove was standing in the middle of the room, apparently doing nothing.

"Why?" Connor asked himself softly. "Why aren't they helping him?"

A fat tear fell from Connor's eye and landed on the map, directly over the dot labelled Severus Snape. Even his sadness seemed somewhat small and distant through the haze of the potions.

Hoping that all of this would make more sense in the morning, Connor wiped the map clean and drank his potion, not even having time to put the phial on his bedside table before his eyelids were too heavy to keep open.

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

"Potter! Hey, Potter!"

Connor blearily opened his eyes to find a Gryffindor prefect looking down at him in annoyance. For the life of him, Connor couldn't bring a name to mind that matched the face above him. "Hunhm?" Connor asked incoherently.

"Look, Potter," Annoyed Prefect said impatiently, "I was sent up between classes, during my break, to make sure you got your arse out of bed. McGonagall wants to see you."

"M'kay," Connor said with a yawn, feeling like he could sleep for another few hours, easily.

"Get up, Potter," Annoyed Prefect demanded. "I'm not getting into trouble because you're too lazy to answer a summons from the Headmistress!"

"I'm up! I'm up!" Connor said in annoyance, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "See? This is me, getting out of bed!"

Annoyed Prefect just snorted and said, "I'll wait. I don't want you to keep McGonagall waiting, or I'll get in trouble for it."

Connor yawned widely and stumbled to his feet, walked over to the washbasin and poured water from a large pitcher into it so he could splash his face and head. The events of the previous night flooded into Connor's mind as he quickly wet his hair.

The prefect tapped his foot impatiently. "It's after ten in the morning, you know," he said crossly. "Some of us aren't being excused from classes today, so I'd appreciate it if you'd pick up the pace a bit."

Connor simply glared. He quickly towelled his head, discarded his pyjamas and pulled on his robes from the day before. He combed his fingers through his damp hair and gestured for the prefect to lead the way out.

Once in the corridor outside the Fat Lady, Annoyed Prefect said, "Go straight to see McGonagall. I have to go, or I'll be late for Arithmancy."

Connor nodded distractedly. He hadn't had a chance to check the Marauder's Map to find out where Rupert was. Talking to Professor McGonagall would probably be a good place to start.

He headed to the Headmistress' office, but when he arrived there saw the stone gargoyle in place, realised he didn't know the password, and was momentarily stumped. Then he decided that if Professor McGonagall had sent for him, she'd be likely to come looking for him sooner, rather than later.

"Here, now," came a voice from the end of the hallway. "Why aren't you in class?"

Connor turned and groaned inwardly to see Mr Sweeper striding toward him with a purposeful gleam in his eye.

"I was told that Professor McGonagall wanted to see me," Connor said truthfully, "but I don't know the password to get to her office."

"Won't do you any good," Sweeper told him bluntly, looking mildly disappointed. "Headmistress was in the hospital wing five minutes ago. Your father's there, too--got here late last night."

Connor wasn't about to wait around for Professor McGonagall to show up--not with Sweeper standing there staring at him. What would his father be doing here at the school, anyway? Maybe he was in trouble for the way he'd reacted to everything that had happened last night.

"Thanks," he said hastily. "I'll just go to the hospital wing, then."

Without waiting to see if Sweeper had anything else to say, Connor hurried down the corridor and up a flight of stairs to the hospital wing. Maybe Rupert would be there, and he could find out what was wrong with him last night.

There were no voices coming from the hospital wing when Connor arrived, so he went in to investigate. It only took a few seconds for his hands to flare, itching and heating up as though he'd stuck them in an oven. Willing himself to fight off the urge to rush ahead, Connor forced himself to walk ahead slowly, placing each foot with deliberation. "Hello?" he whispered loudly, "Is anyone here?"

No answer came, but Connor could see that one small area was screened off from the other beds in the room. He could also see a pair of legs and booted feet sprawled out from a chair, and the hem of some robes below the curtain. He inched forward, determined to ignore the very insistent distraction of his hands while he investigated.

The curtains were all drawn tightly closed. Connor carefully opened them a tiny bit to peer inside, and was surprised to see his own father, asleep in a chair. The bed in front of his father was also occupied.

He only allowed himself to look at Rupert for a moment, but that was enough. The image would be burnt into his memory forever.

There were bandages covering most of his face, along with a thick paste that Connor recognised as one of many healing ointments that Madam Cosgrove favoured. Blankets covered up to Rupert's chest, but his arms lay atop the covers, also wrapped almost completely in bandages, as was his chest, which would have been bare without the rolls and rolls of gauze that were quite clearly covering bloody wounds. Rupert's hands were swollen and bruised, his fingernails torn and bloody.

"Merlin!" Connor whispered, relieved to see that Rupert was still breathing. He resolutely stood back from the other boy. Connor's hands were almost to the point of unbearable pain, so he firmly turned his back to the bed and nudged his father's leg with his foot. "Dad!" he said in a slightly-louder-than-normal voice.

Harry's eyes shot open immediately. He sat up so abruptly that Connor was startled into taking a step backward, and was only saved from tripping over Harry's legs and falling onto Rupert's bed by Harry, whose hands shot out to catch him.

"You're not supposed to be in here!" Harry said sternly, sounding slightly panicked, and fully alert.

At the same moment, the door to the hospital wing crashed open, and Madam Cosgrove, Professor McGonagall, and Professor Snape all rushed in. All of them spoke simultaneously, causing a commotion.

"Get him out of here!" Snape snarled as he approached. "This is the last place he should be."

"Connor, come away from there at once!" Madam Cosgrove demanded.

"Supposed to go to my office!" McGonagall was saying.

Connor was startled by the sudden cacophony of voices, and stared at them all for a moment before saying, "I'm fine. I couldn't find Professor McGonagall, and Mr Sweeper told me that she and my father were here."

"Sweeper!" Snape spat out viciously.

Connor nodded, and grit his teeth against the pain in his hands. "I need to get out of here--"

But even as he said it, moving to turn and go, a hand grabbed onto his from behind. Connor felt the jolt of the contact through his entire body. Everything was a confusion of voices. A deafening roaring filled ears, and finally an all-consuming agony. He was only vaguely aware that there was movement all around him--each moment seemed to drag out into an hour as Connor felt his bones cracking and his skin splitting.

Then miraculously, there was blissful nothingness.

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

Connor woke to the sound of quiet weeping.

He wasn't sure where he was, nor did he have any immediate recollection of why his body should ache so much. Every joint, every muscle, every breath he took was steeped in a dull throbbing pain. He couldn't raise up the strength at the moment to open his eyes, but he could hear the nearby weeping and the indistinct murmur of distant voices. He could almost make out the identity of the person crying: it was quite familiar, but then he was drifting again, and it didn't seem to matter at all.

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

"Connor."

The next thing that Connor heard was his father's voice, calling his name.

"Connor. Son, you need to try to wake up, now."

Connor was sorely tempted to ignore the voice and go back to the comfort of sleep, where he didn't hurt so much. His father was obviously here, wherever here was, and he sounded concerned. Maybe he should make an effort to find out why?

"Connor James Potter."

Uh-oh. Mum's here too. She doesn't sound happy. Connor struggled to remember how to open his eyes, and then promptly regretted it when the light stabbed in and made him groan, closing them tightly again.

"Thank Merlin," Ginny sighed. "Connor! We're turning down the lights. Just try to open your eyes again."

Eyes streaming, Connor eased his eyes open, blinking rapidly to rid himself of the tears clouding his vision. He could see the distinctive red of his mother's hair, but it was a bit blurry until he'd managed to lift a hand rub tiredly at his eyes. "Mum?" he asked in a weak voice.

"Yes, sweetheart," Ginny said, taking his hand and squeezing it. "Your dad's here too."

"Right here, Connor," Harry said almost immediately. Connor winced a bit at turning his head, but smiled as best he could upon seeing his father sitting on his other side.

"Where am I?" Connor croaked, his mouth dry, and his tongue feeling too big for his mouth.

"You're in the hospital wing at Hogwarts," came a third familiar voice. Madam Cosgrove stepped into view, and Ginny and Harry both stepped back to let her near. "I expect you're thirsty?"

Connor nodded, and was relieved to have a strong arm help him to sit up enough to sip from a proffered glass. He sighed happily as the cool water moistened his parched mouth, and tried to drink more, but the glass was taken away too quickly.

"Take it easy, Connor," Ginny said gently from a few paces away. "Don't try to drink too much at once."

Madam Cosgrove offered the glass again, and allowed in another sip. She repeated this several times until Connor turned his head away.

"Enough," Connor managed. "Thanks." He tried not to whimper as his father lowered him gently back onto the bed. "What happened to me?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Madam Cosgrove asked as she performed several different charms over his head and chest.

In Connor's unfortunately wide experience, it was never a good sign when a conversation started off with those words. He sighed, and tried to think back. "I remember helping Snape brew a Calming Draught. I remember Rupert coming in and saying he was sick, then.... Rupert!" Connor struggled to sit up, but was pushed back down by Harry. "You don't get it! Snape locked Rupert in a closet and stunned him! Rupert was ill! He needs help!"

"Shhh. It's all right. Rupert's being seen to," Ginny said comfortingly. "That was two nights ago. He's in better shape than you are right now."

"What happened to me? It was Rupert who was ill," Connor asked, bewildered.

"There was an accident," Harry said quietly, his voice sounding a little hollow. "Do you remember anything after Snape stunned Rupert?"

An accident? Had a cauldron exploded or something? Connor closed his eyes as he tried to remember anything. Had it really been two nights ago? "Rupert was stunned, and...and...and I, what was I doing? Snape was angry about something. I remember waking up and being told by a prefect that Professor McGonagall wanted to see me...but it's all choppy. I only remember bits and pieces that don't really make any sense."

"That's quite all right, Connor," Madam Cosgrove told him, making a note on some parchment.

Connor realised that she must be especially worried--she was using his first name. He allowed himself to be hoisted up again and fed some water and a potion before asking again, "So, what happened?"

"Rupert Dursley was bitten by a werewolf," Professor Snape said bluntly as he strode into the cubicle, waving his wand to cast what Connor assumed was a Privacy Charm of some sort.

"What!" Connor was utterly shocked, and would have thought it a joke if he thought that Professor Snape had any sense of humour at all. "Lupin never--"

"There is more than one werewolf in the world," Snape said derisively. He was obviously in a bad temper.

Harry, Ginny and Madam Cosgrove were all staring at Professor Snape with varying degrees of anger and incredulousness.

Connor wasn't sure how to feel about this new bit of information. "Is he--did he survive?" It was all he could think to ask.

"It happened a month ago," Harry said sadly. "He thought he'd been bitten by a dog. His first transformation was two nights ago."

Connor felt his stomach clench. "He had a bandage on his hand a month ago."

Harry nodded.

Snape began to pace back and forth. "From what Mr Dursley has shared with us, he used a secret passage out of the castle to sneak into the cellar of the sweetshop in Hogsmeade after the Quidditch Match with Hufflepuff. He had intended to steal sweets for the victory party, and when he arrived, found the passage blocked by something." He continued to pace agitatedly as he related the tale. "That something turned out to be the corner of a large cage. He forced trapdoor open, and foolishly taunted the occupant of the cage, thinking it to be a guard dog of some sort."

Connor listened with his mouth hanging open slightly in horror and disbelief. "It was a werewolf?" He already knew the answer, and didn't need Snape's disdainful glare, or the solemn nods of everyone else to confirm it. "Wasn't the werewolf on the Wolfsbane Potion?" Connor asked.

"Yes," Madam Cosgrove said quietly. "We confirmed that right away, but it seems that Mr Dursley provoked it, and got bitten while...while jabbing at it with a broom handle."

Connor brought his hands up to his face and shook his head sadly. It was exactly the sort of mean-spirited thing that Rupert would do. He dropped his hands back to the bed, and sighed heavily.

"Stupid boy," Professor Snape said venomously. "Thought he was being clever, still able to sneak in to steal sweets, right under the shop keepers' noses."

"So, Rupert snuck into Honeydukes, found a werewolf in a cage, and thought it was a dog," Connor summarised, more for himself than anyone. "He finds a broom and decides it would be fun to jab at the 'dog' before stealing sweets. The 'dog' bit him."

"Yes," Ginny said, "The owners of Honeydukes were questioned, and they admitted that a cousin who is a werewolf was staying with them at the full moon, and that they had him caged in the cellar for the night. He'd taken the Wolfsbane Potion, but they also said that in human form, he's normally of an unpleasant disposition. They were quite relieved when he suddenly left the day after the full moon last month, and thought nothing of it."

"Mr Dursley was afraid to tell anyone he'd been injured while stealing from Honeydukes, and so didn't come to me to have the bite looked at," Madam Cosgrove added.

"And then when the full moon came around again, he got sick and went to find Professor Snape," Connor groaned.

Professor Snape still looked furious. "Correct."

"I guess I don't have to ask how I got this way, then, do I?" he asked miserably. "I tried to heal him, didn't I?"

"Not this time," Harry said. "Professor Snape realised what was wrong with Rupert right away, and knew that without the Wolfsbane, Rupert would be extremely dangerous when he transformed."

"I locked him up and warded the storeroom to protect anyone from being attacked by him and to keep you from trying to help him. You were very...determined to reach Mr Dursley, and I was forced to stun you," Snape said stiffly. "Then I called for aid."

"Then what happened to me?" Connor asked. "Why do I feel like I got tossed off my broom into the Whomping Willow?"

"You were sent back to your room after you woke," Madam Cosgrove explained, "and given a Dreamless Sleep Potion to take. Professor McGonagall sent a prefect to wake you late the next morning, and to ask you to go and see her. From what we've been able to tell, you went to her office but couldn't get in. Mr Sweeper found you outside the entrance to Professor McGonagall's office and told you that she was here in the hospital wing with your father." Professor Snape made a contemptuous noise and resumed his pacing, but Madam Cosgrove ignored him, and continued. "You apparently decided to come looking for them and found your father here, asleep in a chair, beside Mr Dursley's bed. Mr Dursley was gravely injured from his transformation and imprisonment."

Connor was listening intently to the explanation, and felt a curious sense of detachment. He couldn't really recall most of this, and it was as if they were talking about someone else.

"You woke me up, and startled me," Harry said. "You tripped backward, and I caught you just as Professor McGonagall, Madam Cosgrove, and Professor Snape came in. You said that you needed to get out of here, but all the noise must have woken Rupert. He reached out, and grabbed your hand."

Connor could picture it all in his mind, but it didn't really have any personal meaning for him. His imagination could fill in the rest, though, and he winced at the mental image of what must have happened next. "That's all my magic needed, wasn't it?"

Ginny and Harry nodded tearfully.

Connor was disconcerted to see tears in his father's eyes. His mother cried from time to time, and it was never comfortable to witness, but it wasn't unheard of. His father, however, was usually so...strong.

"But I'm all right, now!" he told them soothingly. "And you said that Rupert was doing better than me--does this mean he's not a werewolf anymore?"

Ginny gave a strangled sob, and turned her face away. Harry rounded the bed and gathered her close before looking helplessly at Madam Cosgrove.

"Connor--we just don't know," Madam Cosgrove said tiredly. "The tests we did on Mr Dursley before his encounter with you were all positive for Lycanthropy. Now, tests on both you and him come up inconclusive."

"On me and....oh, no," Connor said quietly, turning pale at the implication. "My magic makes me absorb any injury or illness..."

"There is no need to jump to conclusions, yet," Harry interjected sharply.

Connor took a deep breath and nodded. "So how do we find out for sure?"

"We wait," Professor Snape said simply, "until the next full moon."

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

Connor was very tired, even though he'd only been awake for a couple of hours. He suspected that a lot of the potions that he was taking were making him sleep while he healed. It was strange that his body had healed so quickly after any other Healings he performed, but this time, his body wasn't cooperating.

Madam Cosgrove assumed that his slower healing was due to the alien nature of Rupert's injuries. That was the only thing that really seemed to make sense. Professor Lupin had told them in class that self-inflicted wounds by a werewolf were resistant to magical healing. Maybe this was proof?

Connor was having a hard time accepting that he might not be completely human anymore. Aside from being injured and bandaged like a mummy, he didn't really feel any different than he normally did. Did werewolves in their human form have any sense of being different from other people?

"What did you tell my friends?" Connor asked his parents as he tried to feed himself some soup.

"They were told that you were in a Potions accident, and that your cauldron exploded," Ginny said. "We kept it simple, and said that Rupert wasn't feeling well and went looking for Snape. He found you working on a potion, and the fumes made him sneeze into the potion. You pushed him away, and the potion reacted to whatever he sneezed into it."

"Ugh," Connor said, making a face. "Gross."

"But plausible," Harry said. "We were going to say that he vomited in the cauldron, but the story that's being given out is that Rupert wasn't directly in the way, so he didn't get it as bad as you did. The adulterated potion managed to work its way into your wounds, and that's why they aren't healing as fast."

Connor nodded. "That's as good as anything, I suppose. How is Rupert, really?"

"His physical injuries are almost gone, except for his hand, where he got bit. We're sticking to the same story - the potion is keeping his hand from healing properly." Ginny said. "Of course, he's terrified and very, very sorry. He only remembers bits and pieces of the actual transformation, and nothing at all about grabbing your hand. We've considered altering his memory about you healing him, but it wouldn't do any good until after we know if he's still infected or not."

"He's asked to see you," Harry said quietly, his voice neutral.

Connor wasn't sure what to think about that. Did he even want to see Rupert right now? "Why did they call you when he...changed? Is it because his parents couldn't come to Hogwarts?"

"I'm his legal guardian while he's in the wizarding world," Harry said quietly. "They called me as soon as they were sure of what was happening to him. "I still need to contact his parents, but don't know if I should do it now or just wait until we have more information for them."

"Sweetheart, you look like you're getting sleepy, again," Ginny said, changing the subject. "Your dad and I need to meet with Professor McGonagall, so why don't you go ahead and rest. Maybe you can see your friends when you wake up."

Connor agreed, and was soon dozing off again.

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

"Shut up! You're going to wake him!"

Connor's lips were already twitching by the time he opened his eyes. He had woken up this way one too many times, and wasn't surprised to see Rachel, Ivy, Quentin and Zack arguing quietly at his beside.

"Hey," he said tiredly.

"I told you!" Rachel said to Zack, elbowing him in the ribs.

"S'fine," Connor said with a huge yawn. "What time is it?"

"It's almost dinner time," Ivy said, setting a huge bouquet of cabbage roses on the table beside his bed. "They told us we could come and see you for a few minutes, but that we weren't supposed to wake you up or bother you if you were asleep. Practically the whole house wanted to come see you, but Madam Cosgrove wouldn't allow it."

"Seems like all I do is sleep," Connor said, not even attempting to try sitting up. He accepted the large pile of envelopes and sweets that his friends were bringing on behalf of those who hadn't been allowed to come. "Glad you came." It didn't take long to see that Quentin was looking at him strangely, and Rachel and Ivy were looking everywhere but at his face. "What's the matter? Do I look that bad?"

"You look like crap," Zack said in an honest tone. "But your eyes are really gross."

"Zack!" Rachel admonished sharply. "Shut up!"

"What's wrong with my eyes?" Connor asked, feeling slightly alarmed. "I can still see all right."

"They're just badly blood-shot is all," Ivy assured him unconvincingly.

"All right," Connor said, seeing Quentin's fake smile as he nodded in agreement, "get me a mirror."

"I really don't think you should," Rachel said soothingly. "There's no need to upset yourself."

"Now it's upsetting?" Connor asked, starting to feel paranoid. "How bad is really gross?"

Ivy sighed and reached into her pocket. She brought out a small compact with a mirror inside and handed it over. Rachel glared at her, and Ivy shrugged and said, "He was going to find out sooner or later, and there's no need to let him imagine it a million times worse than it really is."

Connor tended to agree. He flipped the compact open and brought it to his face to examine his eyes. The whites of his eyes were extremely red, and looked like they were swollen with blood, just below the surface. No white could be seen at all. "Ew, gross," he said, making Zack chuckle. "You guys weren't kidding. That looks nasty."

"Does it hurt?" Quentin asked. "It looks painful."

"No, it's not hurting," Connor said, "but they've got me on a lot of pain killing potions, so I reckon it might, if the potions wear off."

"I can't believe Rupert could be so stupid!" Ivy said, changing the subject. "What kind of idiot doesn't cover his mouth when he sneezes? And over an open cauldron?" She made a sound of frustrated anger.

"I heard that he got detention for a month from Snape," Rachel said.

A month, Connor thought, until the next full moon, and the answer to so many questions.

"Serves him right!" Ivy fumed. "I don't care if he got hurt in the explosion, too. He's not the one stuck in here looking like hell!"

Connor appreciated her indignation on his behalf, but couldn't help but remember how awful Rupert had looked just before touching Connor. How awful Connor must look, now.

His friends stayed for a few more minutes, mostly talking about what they'd like to do to Rupert for being so stupid, but were chased away before too long by Madam Cosgrove who claimed that it was Connor's dinner time as well.

Once they were gone, Madam Cosgrove told him that she needed to change his bandages, and that it might be uncomfortable for him. Connor considered asking if she would call one or both of his parents while she made the changes, but was saved from that embarrassment by the arrival of Professor Lupin.

Lupin looked terrible. His hair looked as though he had run his fingers through it dozens of times, and was standing up in odd places like Connor's was wont to do naturally. His eyes were red-rimmed, and his face was flushed.

"Connor," he said as he entered. He sat down immediately and went to take one of Connor's hands, only to stop as if scalded, unsure what might happen. "I only just found out this morning."

"Hey, Uncle Remus," Connor said, glad to see him. Connor did not miss his uncle's abrupt avoidance of touching him. "Madam Cosgrove's just about to change my bandages. Want to hang around and distract me?"

"Of course I will," Remus said at once, "anything you need."

It was a difficult fifteen minutes as new bandages and salve were applied, and Connor was lifted, shifted, prodded, and poked in the process. All the while, Lupin held tightly to Connor, careful not to make any skin-to-skin contact, murmuring words of comfort and encouragement. Connor turned his face away from the sight of his raw wounds and buried his face in the soft warmth of his uncle's robes, trying to focus on anything but the pain. At the end of it, he was breathing hard and his teeth were clamped tightly shut. He was sure his eyes would be tearing on the their own if the matron hadn't already put some sort of drops in them.

When she was through, Madam Cosgrove declared that he would be ready to leave the infirmary in another two days. She left Connor and Remus alone while she went to fetch a dinner tray.

"Oh, Connor, I'm so sorry," Lupin said as soon as Madam Cosgrove departed. "This is exactly why I didn't want you trying to Heal me before."

Connor's eyes widened at the thought that his uncle had been this badly injured before. "I--I didn't know," Connor said sadly. "I didn't understand."

"I know you didn't," Remus said quietly. "By the time I came back to Hogwarts, I was already mostly healed. You couldn't have known how bad it really was. I didn't want you to. I never wanted you to."

"I'm sorry," Connor said miserably. He wasn't sure if he was apologising for being so stubborn before, or because his uncle had to endure such pain, or because his own foolishness had been partially responsible for his current predicament.

"This isn't your fault," Remus said firmly.

"I just can't believe that Rupert--" Connor began

"It isn't really Rupert's either, much as I hate to admit it. No one could expect a first year Muggle-born student to recognise a werewolf," Lupin said. "It was fool-hardy of him to antagonise any caged animal. Normally, getting bitten by that animal would have been a deserved punishment. In this case, however..." He let the sentence trail off, its conclusion clear.

Connor nodded. "He's a real git, but he didn't deserve this. Plus, he couldn't have known what grabbing me like that would do." Connor didn't mention that he had doubts that Rupert would have stopped even if he had known. The younger boy didn't seem to have much of a conscience, and might not have thought twice of using Connor to be healed.

"You don't deserve this, either," Lupin said sadly.

"So we have to wait until the next full moon to know anything for sure?" Connor asked.

"Yes," Lupin said. "I have great hopes, though, since the diagnostic charms don't indicate conclusively that either of you carry the infection."

"What's going to happen at the next full moon?" Connor asked. "I mean, I know that there's no way to tell if Rupert and I will transform, but I reckon they'll have to take precautions."

"Yes," Remus said with a nod. "For everyone's safety, both you and Rupert will be locked up separately. I've offered the use of my home for it, since it's already fortified and charmed appropriately."

"Where will you go?" Connor asked with concern.

"I'll have taken the Wolfsbane Potion," Remus told him calmly. "I can go through the transformation in my own bed chamber with no trouble at all."

Connor put two and two together quickly. "Rupert and I won't be allowed to take the Wolfsbane Potion."

"No."

They both knew the reason why, so there was really no need for Connor to ask. The Wolfsbane Potion would be very dangerous, possibly fatal to them if they weren't infected. They would be forced to undergo any possible transformation without the tranquillising effects of the potion.

Connor took a deep, shaky breath, and nodded in understanding. "Is there a way to tie me up, to keep me from hurting myself if I transform?"

"None that are effective," Remus said, not sugar-coating the subject.

"Because werewolves are too strong," Connor said. He appreciated Remus's candour--he didn't want any false hope clouding his thinking.

"That's part of it," Remus acknowledged. "Binding often does more harm than good; especially psychologically. There have been those who have gone mad when they were bound tightly for the duration of their transformation. Professor Snape will brew some special sedative potions that may help to make you lethargic, should you transform, that will be safe for you to take."

"Good." It was all Connor could think to say. He tried not to think about what a long month it was going to be, and what would happen at the end of that time.

Just then, Madam Cosgrove returned, levitating a tray before her. "Remus, he needs his rest now," she said kindly. "Once he's finished eating, I'll have to ask you to go."

Even as Remus nodded, Connor felt a pang at being left alone with his rather morbid thoughts, but could already feel the tiredness creeping over him again. No doubt Madam Cosgrove would make him drink even more potions to help him sleep, so it wasn't too terrifying.

He didn't have much of an appetite. He managed a small bowl of soup and a little bread, then pushed his tray away. It suddenly made sense to Connor why his uncle was always so thin. It was exhausting to be ill like this, and Remus had to endure something like this every month. Maybe Connor would as well.

As predicted, Madam Cosgrove appeared with several different potions, and allowed Remus to stay long enough for Connor to swallow them all. Connor felt himself drifting off to sleep even as Remus stood to go. The last thing he heard was his uncle's voice saying, "Get well, Connor."

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The next morning was filled with an almost non-stop parade of visitors for Connor. Not just Gryffindors, but several students from the other houses dropped in from time to time as well. Connor felt that many of them had just come in to gawk at him, or to see how badly injured he really was, but he didn't mind. Every person that came through the door helped him to keep his mind from wandering into the macabre.

Until Rupert came.

It was lunchtime, and Madam Cosgrove had shooed everyone out. It was also the weekend, so Connor expected the visitors to resume after lunch. He was less tired today, and suspected that he had been slipped one or two potions to boost his energy levels.

He had just pushed his tray away after managing to eat a small portion of shepherd's pie when Madam Cosgrove came it and asked him if he was feeling up to seeing Rupert Dursley. After a brief moment's thought, he nodded. Madam Cosgrove whisked his tray away. Rupert stepped in a moment later, looking scared and miserable.

Rupert's hand was still neatly bandaged, and there was an unnatural brightness to his eyes that suggested either fever or held-back tears. While Rupert was still grossly fat, Connor could see that Rupert's skin was hanging more loosely on his face, as though he had lost a large amount of weight very quickly.

Connor watched while Rupert fidgeted nervously, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. Neither of them seemed inclined to speak for a moment, until Connor finally took pity on the other boy. "Would you like to sit down?"

Rupert jumped as if scalded, then gingerly perched on the edge of the chair beside the bed. He still seemed too frightened to say anything.

"I'm not going to attack you, you know," Connor said when the silence had stretched too long. "I don't even know where my wand is."

"I...I wouldn't blame you if you did," Rupert said quickly. So quickly in fact, that it came out more like Iwouldenblameyifyedid."

Connor sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, only to wince when he disturbed a healing bit of skin. "Rupert, what happened was an accident. A terrible one, but an accident just the same."

Rupert nodded his head emphatically. "I never would have gone in there if I knew there was a werewolf," he avowed nervously.

"Keep your voice down," Connor said. "I don't know if the Privacy Charms are in place right now.

Rupert looked around, seemingly terrified that he might find an audience standing behind him. "S-sorry."

"You should have known better than to taunt anything in a cage," Connor said bluntly, making Rupert blanch. "But what's done is done. You're paying for it now. We both are."

"I was only getting some sweets! I didn't mean for this to happen, you know," Rupert said with a weak sort of defiance in his voice, completely negating any apologetic demeanour he had upon arrival.

"For what to happen, exactly? For me to become involved, or for you?" Connor asked levelly. "Because I only see one of us in a hospital bed right now." Connor knew that he was being harsh, but the hint of bravado in Rupert's voice had triggered something inside of Connor that he couldn't keep inside. "And I wasn't the one who thought it would be a good idea to go jabbing at a 'guard dog' with a broom."

"I didn't know, all right?" Rupert said defensively. "How was I supposed to know?"

"Didn't know what, Rupert? Didn't know you weren't supposed to be sneaking out of the school to steal sweets? Didn't know it was both mean and stupid to taunt a caged 'dog'? Didn't know that grabbing my hand...." Connor paused to get his breathing back to normal after letting himself get worked up. "That's not fair. That last part isn't fair, because you didn't know about that--but you knew everything else."

"Oh, like you never snuck out to get some sweets," Rupert said bitterly.

"You think this is about sweets?" Connor asked in disbelief. His voice was very loud in the quiet space, and Rupert winced. Connor lowered his voice and took a minute to regain control. "Maybe I have used that passageway, but I never stole the things I took. I left money behind, at the top of the stairs for all of it, every time. And I'm sure not stupid enough to force my way into room with a huge caged animal! Didn't it bark at you or something?"

"Of course it did," Rupert said hotly. "It was making an almighty racket--that's why I used the broom! To try to shut it up!"

Connor just stared at Rupert as if he couldn't believe his ears for a few moments, giving Rupert time to realise how incredibly stupid those words were. Rupert, however, didn't seem to think that anything he'd said was irrational.

"Do you have any idea," Connor asked with a strange sort of calm in his voice, at odds with the blood roaring in his ears, "what is going to happen to us at the next full moon?"

"He should," came Professor Snape's cold voice from the opening in the curtain he'd just pulled aside, "I've spoken to him about it at length."

Rupert jumped to his feet so fast that it would have been comical at any other time. "P-professor Snape!" he stuttered.

"I think the problem here," Professor Snape said in an eerily silky voice that made the hair on Connor's neck stand up, "Is that Mr Dursley has little to no memory of what the transformation actually did to him."

"What do you mean?" Rupert asked warily. "I remember some of the transformation. It was horrible!"

"What I mean," Professor Snape hissed, "is that you were unconscious for most of the time after you were released from the storeroom. You don't seem to have any concept of how close to death you actually came, not what Mr Potter has had to endure because of your foolishness."

Rupert seemed slightly confused, but stammered out nonetheless, "So he healed me. He'll get better--Madam Cosgrove said so."

"Look at Mr Potter!" Snape commanded, grabbing Rupert by the shoulders and turning him to face Connor's bed. "His injuries are light now, compared to what they were after your folly. That's not to mention the life-long consequences that he now may face. You were not the only one affected by all of this. By all rights, you should be the one in this bed, these injuries should have remained yours, and I can promise you that your wounds would not be healing anywhere near as quickly at Mr Potter's are, due to the nature of his gift."

Rupert was visibly shaking, and Connor truly thought that the other boy finally understood the gravity of what he'd done. He almost felt sorry for Rupert for a moment. That was, until Rupert opened his mouth. "So then...it's good that Connor healed me. Isn't it? He can recover from this faster than I could."

Connor watched in a detached kind of horrified fascination as Snape's sallow skin took on a sunburned hue and his face contorted in rage. For a terrible and thrilling moment, Connor thought that Snape might actually strike Rupert, or pull his wand out and hex him. Rupert must have felt the same, because he was cowering with his arms over his head, as if expecting a blow.

"Get out of my sight," Snape growled menacingly at Rupert. "Go directly to your room and stay there until I send for you. Speak to no one."

Rupert didn't need to be told twice. He ran from the hospital wing as fast as he had probably ever moved in his life. Connor remained silent as Professor Snape worked to get his temper back under control.

"Get some rest, Mr Potter," Snape said moments later. "It appears I still have some issues to work out with Mr Dursley."

Connor wisely said nothing, but settled back against his pillow and closed his eyes.

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