Angelinus

Chapter 8

Dealing with the Fallen

Hearing a very familiar voice raised in querulous argument, Remus smiled to himself as he blinked awake. What was irritating Severus at this time of the morning? He glanced around curiously when he realised he was still dressed in his good clothes. It was not morning, but late night, the curtains mostly closed and stars twinkling in the gaps. He was laying on a narrow gurney that was totally uncomfortable in the middle of the Infirmary's aisle. As he sat up he raised his eyebrows when he spotted Draco Malfoy elegantly draped across a chair, sound asleep. 'He must be one of the few people in the world to be able to sleep in that position, and keep his mouth shut!' Remus speculated mischievously as he carefully rolled to his feet and stretched mightily.

The sight of a tiny child curled up on a gurney head to head with his own made him blink, the previous day's events flooding in on him in a series of snapshots. Checking his chest, he saw that the diagrams Severus had drawn in blood were no longer present. Whether they had been washed away or soaked into his skin, he didn't know, but he did feel a little weary so he assumed it, whatever 'it' was, had worked.

Leaning over the child, a boy at this point, Remus smiled when he realised his thumb was firmly plugged into his mouth and he was sleeping deeply and dreamlessly. Something deep in Remus' chest twisted and he realised that he would kill to protect this tiny scrap of humanity. It was an odd thought, almost a repudiation of his attitude on killing and he wondered why.

The wolf, usually so deeply buried that it rarely troubled his daily existence, suddenly made itself known in the most primitive way possible. This was the pack's cub, he was one of the alpha pair, and it was his duty to protect and nurture the child or die trying. That's what love was all about. On another level, the children were now bound to him 'human' and him 'wolf', by magical bonds that had been set up by his bonded mate. They were intangible, unexpected and unbreakable and a wash of wonder lifted Remus' heart with joy. Brushing a stray lock of hair aside, he dropped a kiss on the child's smooth brow then girded his loins for the upcoming battle with his irascible husband. Ties of love, soul, law and magic might bind Severus to him but that didn't stop the curmudgeon having a temper tantrum every now and again.

Severus sat on the bed with his arms folded tightly over his chest and glared impartially at the three women who stood over him in various attitudes of 'kill'. Poppy's foot tapped angrily on the marble tiles, steam almost coming out of her ears. Hermione's fists were dug deeply into her hips, elbows akimbo as she glared. Sandy's arms were firmly crossed over her chest and her bottom lip stuck out pugnaciously.

"Severus Snape! I have been treating you, man and boy, since you were eleven years old and I have absolutely no designs on you virtue apart from getting you into these pyjamas. Now for goodness sake, act your age, man!"

"Those flannelette monstrosities are an affront to the name, to say nothing of the senses, and I wouldn't be seen dead in them, even in this bloody infirmary!" Severus volleyed back flatly.

"That can be arranged," Hermione muttered under her breath to Sandy who smothered a giggle.

"I heard that Miss Granger," came the icy purr.

"And if you would take the time to use your very fine brain you would know that I am not Miss Granger and therefore your censure is irrelevant," Hermione replied pertly.

If looks could kill then Hermione would have dropped down dead in that moment and Remus shook his head, deciding it was time to intervene before they degenerated into name calling. The small movement drew Severus' eye and his jaw dropped when he saw his husband peering in at the door of the private room. Discovered, Remus eased carefully into the small room and smiled tentatively. The three women were no help as they turned to stare at the new intruder in various stages of astonishment.

"What are you doing awake?" Severus demanded, swinging his long legs off bed and trying to stand. He staggered; listing left until Remus caught him around the waist and eased him back onto the mattress.

"You woke me up with your complaining. It looks as though you are in worse condition than me. What have you been doing? And what have you done to yourself now?" he asked, holding his hand out behind his back for the offending garments to be deposited.

Poppy placed the fabric in his questing fingers then quietly slipped away, the other two following her at her signal. Remus carefully laid the nightclothes on the bed and pulled his wand to transfigure them into one of the soft cotton nightshirts Severus preferred. Lifting his hands, Remus began to unbutton Sev's tailored shirt with a slightly inquiring air that caused Severus to sigh and lose his belligerence.

"My own stupid fault, I'm afraid. Granger remembered to feed the brats but I was busy so I didn't stop to gorge. Granger gave me a pepper-up potion...."

"Oh dear, was it the blue one?" Remus remarked, pausing in his unbuttoning to frown up at Severus. "You vomited it all up I assume?"

"Oh yes, violently!" Severus confirmed with relish, making Remus chuckle. "I thought I had removed the entire supply of the potion but I must have missed a bottle or two. Trust Granger to find the stray. Still, the look on her face was brilliant!"

"Severus! Behave! Put your arm in here. Good. So, when did you eat? Oh bloody hell, no wonder you went down like a bag of rags. When did you last eat properly? It was probably the night before last as you barely touched your breakfast this morning or the scones at the Thirsty Dragon. Honestly Severus, when are you going to learn, you have to take in to put out. Your health is not what it used to be and you must learn to take care of yourself," Remus lectured in exasperation as he eased his partner into bed. "Do you have any of the vitamin potions you are not allergic to ready?"

"Oh, Poppy has some somewhere. I am more interested in why you are moving around and are so chirpy? Blood magic tends to turn people into dull-eyed cattle until the spell is revoked. How is the child? I think I have the damned poison identified and an antidote worked out. I gave Draco the recipe as, between him and Granger; they make a fairly competent brewer." He grinned evilly when a strangled squawk of outrage sounded from beyond the door. Remus slapped his arm in retaliation although he couldn't keep his grin entirely controlled. Severus kissed Remus on the nose then yawned noisily. "Oh dear, excuse me. I think, you know, I really should get some sleep."

"Yes indeed, much more dignified than passing out," Remus agreed tongue in cheek, helping him down the bed and pulling the bedclothes up to his chin only to have his wrist grasped.

"Stay with me," Severus murmured softly, his eyes already closed, his breathing settling into sleep even as he finished speaking.

"Yes Sev, of course I will," Remus murmured into the black hair as he eased the thin arm under the covers again. Sighing deeply, he folded his partner's clothes and slipped out of the private space to face the four people waiting in the body of the ward. "He's exhausted himself, that's all. He hasn't eaten for over thirty-six hours and I assume he has been working like a demon while I was out for the count. So, what has his work produced?" Remus turned his attention to Draco who looked all of twelve years old with his ruffled hair and sleepy eyes.

"Humm, the solution is brilliant really. Looks like he invented an effective treatment for direstium addiction in less than twelve hours; complete with potions and wand work back-up documentation. I knew the old boy was brilliant but to see genius at work is a little daunting. All it needs now is someone to test it on and I think I have the perfect candidate. I'll arrange that for tomorrow, never fear. I will also keep the notes and stuff safe of course, and make sure he gets the patents registered tomorrow...."

"What patents?" Remus blinked stupidly.

"Of course it needs patenting. My dear Remus, this will be invaluable to so many people that I expect it will make you both a tidy fortune. Suppose you were a parent with an addicted child. How much would you pay for the cure?"

"Draco! No! How can you hold people to ransom for their children's well-being?" Remus protested, shocked to his core.

Draco blinked then smiled maliciously. "The people who can afford to support a direstium habit can certainly afford to pay the price to be cured. And if Severus' fears prove to be true then we are going to be giving the cure away to Muggles for free without them even knowing they were poisoned in the first place. Relax Remus; there will be nothing to upset your very Gryffindor conscience, I promise. Anyway! I'm taking my lovely wife and going home to get at least five hours sleep this night. Come one Wildhair, time to go home."

"What have I told you about that particular nick name Draco Malfoy?" Hermione protested, their voices fading as they headed for the nearest floo exit.

Smiling to himself, Remus turned and nodded to Poppy. "Do you want to cast Acclaro over me and see if I am really as fit as I feel? Umm, how does it look?"

"It looks very interesting. Let me see - you have an outgoing flow of energy, not a lot, just a trickle at the moment, going to the child. That's amazing. The vampire spell is still in force and it is still working but it is not sucking you dry. You seem to be in good condition, a little low on nutrients perhaps, but not too bad at all. In fact, you are a lot less depleted than Severus. I wonder what it all means." Poppy frowned deeply, all but scratching her head. "So, let's see what the child reveals. Confiteor. Humm. There's incoming energy from you, just a tiny trickle. And something else - nothing bad Remus, don't panic - just different. I don't know what Severus did but it doesn't seem to be too dangerous at the moment. What worries me is that Hermione said there was a lot of old blood when Severus vomited. Now, I do know something of the Dark Arts and I know very well that the Dark Practitioner is not supposed to throw up the partially digested blood half way through a currently invoked spell. Whether this would curtail the spell or make it worse, I don't know but as soon as I get a chance I am going to have a look in the library's Restricted Section and see what I can see."

"Well I feel fine and you tell me I am well so perhaps there will be no consequences after all." Remus sighed before turning to the girl who was looking a little shop worn and exhausted. "So, Sandy, if I may use your first name? How are you managing to cope with all of our eccentricities?" Remus asked the young woman with a humorous twist to his wide, mobile mouth.

"I have never seen so much magic used with such nonchalance in all my life, it's fascinating! You're a lot different from Aussie wizards who tend to be a bit self-conscious when they use magic, sort of 'not very Okka', if you see what I mean?"

"Ah, Aussies are not really comfortable with swish and flick then?" Remus asked, tongue-in-cheek and Sandy laughed aloud as she nodded. "I met a couple of Aussies during the War who came over to show the flag. They were bloody good scrappers but appallingly bad at everyday magic, no sense of rhythm or flow. Poppy, is it alright if Sandy kips in here tonight? Severus wants me close and I assume the kids will want Sandy as soon as they wake up in a strange place."

"Of course she can. I have a spare bed in my quarters if you like or you can bunk up on one of the ward beds. Remus dear, can you see if you can get some of that fortified soup into Severus? He is such a fool about looking after himself and so stubborn too. He damaged his health in the war you know, Sandy dear, not that he'll admit it for a moment. Many too many Cruciatus curses fought off or endured for far too long." Both older people exchanged long, regretful looks. "So then, do you need a night dress? And Remus, you might want a pair of pyjamas even if his highness puts up such a fuss." Bustling and organising, Poppy sent them both off to bed.