FicWad

I don't own it and I'm not making money off of it. All hail the JKR for she is creator almighty.



Chapter 53: Visitors

"Master?"

Harry awoke to find Gabrielle standing over his bed with the sun streaming through her hair like a halo, he sat up quickly and pulled her into an embrace even as the tears began running down his cheeks. "Master it is okay. It was not your fault."

He continued to sob into her shoulder. "Protection charms...should have...instead I..."

She smiled into his hair. "Instead you were making love to me; I would have it no other way."

He pulled back and looked into her perfectly clear blue eyes. "But I protected everyone else except for you; all you have is a useless piece of jade hanging around your neck."

Her hand went to the hollow of her throat where the lightning bolt hung from her collar. "I love my necklace very much Harry, it shows everyone who I belong to."

"But it could have done more; it could have saved you from that curse..." He noticed how eerily silent the room was and looked around, Hermione and Ginny were nowhere to be seen and Pomfrey should have rushed from her office the moment the charms told her Gabrielle was out of bed. "Something isn't right." He stated.

She simply smiled back at him. "Everything is right my Master." She leaned in and kissed him and he closed his eyes as he drank in her taste and the feeling of her soft lips against his. His world spun dizzily and began to fade away as she pulled back from him. "Everything is right my Master, now that I am with you."

$$$$

Harry awoke with a start and found Hermione snuggled up against his side, it was dark in the room and he quickly looked at the bed to his right side where Gabrielle still lay sleeping. Hermione felt his movement and woke up. "Harry? Harry, thank goodness!" She said sitting up on her elbow.

"What is it Mione? Is Gabrielle still..."

"She's as good as can be expected Harry, the scar is healing but... it's been a difficult week."

"Wait, a week?"

Hermione nodded as she snuggled back into him. "You've been out for a week; Pomfrey had to stun you before you hurt yourself or anyone else accidentally. I don't need to wake her do I?"

Her voice was full of real concern and Harry took a moment to compose his thoughts. "I...don't think so. Mione I talked to her..."

"To Madame Pomfrey? When was this, Gin or I have been with you nearly non-stop for the past six days."

He shook his head and looked once more at the girl in the bed next door. "Gabrielle, I think...I think she came to me in a dream. That can't be a good sign can it?"

She wondered if he was speaking to his sanity or to the girl's condition but mentioned neither. "What do you think it means?"

He smiled sadly as he turned back toward her. "I think someone is deflecting...I also... Mione what if she's gone already and we are keeping her body alive for nothing?"

Hermione went quiet for a moment, "There have been cases in the Muggle world just like that Harry...but surely a Healer could tell if she were..." She couldn't finish the statement as a single tear ran down her cheek. Harry ended up pulling her against him and comforting her, which felt strange to him through his own pain.

"She said everything was right, now that she was with me..."

"That is good then isn't it? She doesn't blame you just like none of us do."

Harry's eyes went dark, she couldn't see very well in the darkness but it appeared almost as if his pupils had taken over the whole of his irises. "I blame Snape; this could not have been a last minute call."

Hermione shook her head, "He may have been kept in the dark Harry, if he was not expected to be there."

"Then what use is he!" Harry half shouted. "If he can't pass pertinent information then he should stop serving the Dark Wanker. Maybe his mood would improve."

A light came on in the office near the doors and Madame Pomfrey came bustling toward them even as Hermione was trying to shush him. "Miss Granger, what have I told you?"

Hermione smiled sheepily as she got out of bed and back into her chair, meanwhile Poppy began casting diagnostic spells. "You have no physical trauma Harry, how do you feel about what has happened?"

His eyes went dark again and his tone was cold. "I think that those responsible need to pay, and keep paying."

Both women shivered but thought it was just from his tone of voice, Poppy asked another question. "Are you one of those who need to pay?"

He looked up at her slightly confused before remembering what Hermione had told him. "No, not any more...I have a list but I am not on it."

The healer nodded, "Then you may return to your room if you wish, you may also stay here for the night but no longer and you will be expected in classes tomorrow."

He got up slowly, his legs didn't want to work right after laying in bed for a week, and slowly made his way over to Gabrielle's bedside. "Hey you...you can't leave me you know that right? I forbid it. So you just have to get better and come back to me..."

"Are we staying here Harry?" Hermione asked softly.

He shook his head but placed his hand around the pendant that lay against Gabrielle's throat. "I couldn't remove that Harry, I don't know what spells are on that chain but it would have done more harm than good to try and break them."

He nodded once and closed his eyes, his hand began to glow a few different colors before he let go a minute later and collapsed back onto his own bedside. Poppy coughed politely, "I would have recommended no magic..." She cast her diagnostics once again but shrugged at the results. "However I see that no harm was done, you are free to leave, and free to visit at any time."

He stood once more and Hermione rushed to his side where he put his arm across her shoulders. "Thank you Poppy...you will take care of her for me?"

She nodded once and he and Hermione made their way up to his rooms. "Milord! You had us all worried; I trust that everything is alright once more?" Bernard asked as he stopped his pacing.

Harry shook his head, "I'm fine Bernie but my love is in the hospital wing. Thank you for your concern."

"Of course Harry, you have made my existence more than bearable again, it is the least I can do."

The portrait clicked open and they quickly made their way into his room where Ginny lay curled up in the middle of the bed. Rather than wake her Hermione helped him under the covers behind the girl before doing the same on her other side. The redhead sighed contentedly as they snuggled close together for the night.

*************************SFTP************************

"Harry!"

He was awoken to an excited girl practically bouncing on the mattress beside him and despite the situation he couldn't help but smile up at her. "Hey Gin."

She leaned down and kissed him even as a groggy Hermione rolled to face both of them. "We were so worried when you collapsed, are you okay?"

He nodded, "I think Gabrielle came to me in a dream...I don't know if that is a good thing or not."

Ginny was looking at him with a mixture of expectation and pity so he sighed and sat up. "I guess all we can do for now is spend time with her and hope she continues to heal. But I'm worried that we are keeping her here when she is ready to move on..."

She hugged him close, which was rather nice as she was on her knees forcing her bosoms in his face. He felt the slightest bit guilty to be enjoying himself while Gabrielle might be dying in the hospital wing. "Enough of that, I want to go see her before classes."

The girls understood his mood and hopped out of bed, even if Hermione did not look like she was fully awake just yet. After quick showers they made their way to the hospital wing where they found Pomfrey in her office eating breakfast. "Oh, good morning dears. Will you be eating with Miss Delacour?"

"No change overnight then?" Harry asked quietly.

"I'm sorry Harry but it is going to be very slow going. You are welcome to take meals with her unless the beds start to get crowded as well as visits between classes."

Harry loved the idea and soon Dobby had brought them all their favorite breakfasts and they sat down to talk about the day's schedule. The bell rang too soon letting them know they needed to depart for first period, Harry was none to enthused about leaving but was thankful it was not Tuesday. He could face Snape tomorrow; he didn't know how he might react to the man today.

He was welcomed back warmly to Charms as the Hero of Beauxbatons which annoyed him but some of the tales he heard about himself bordered on fantasy as far as he was concerned. If anything like that had actually happened he assumed that Gin or Mione would have grilled him about it by now. He was able to pass the Genetics book to Daphne in shrunken form without much fuss and a good number of Slytherins seemed happy to accept his help on the practical portion of class.

Harry had been expecting Draco to say something, anything about the death of his father, but the blonde boy was absent. He wondered if he was grieving his father or attempting to claim his adult status as the Malfoy Head of House.

He spent the free periods before Herbology with Gabrielle, he began by reading to her but the more time he spent with her silent form the darker his mood became. He nearly skipped the class but Hermione had dragged him along with Poppy pushing behind him refusing to let his studies suffer when there was nothing more he could do. On a logical level he completely agreed but there was a large part of him that wanted to do nothing but sit with her.

They ate lunch at her bedside once again and tried to include her in the conversation as much as possible. Madame Pomfrey was not optimistic that it would help but Hermione assured her that Muggles had studied the phenomenon and that many times people in a Coma were completely aware of their surroundings and the conversations were the only thing that kept them sane. The healer began keeping a journal as a result and planned to publish the theory for the magical community if it worked.

Hermione had to leave for Arithmancy and Ginny for Potions leaving him alone with her for an entire double period. He called Dobby to bring him the next book in the series Magic Most Dark and read silently as he sat holding her hand. He would remark every now and then about how most of what was discussed did not even seem to pertain to evil or dark magics but to Wandless magic. It seemed that most of the spells could be performed with a wand but would be a weakened form. It also made little sense to him why many of the ceremonies and rituals were even needed.

He discussed one such ritual with her at length using her as a sounding board, he thought through the process for the power boosting ceremony outlined and could not find any logical reason to sacrifice a virgin. It was implied that the power gained was from the person being sacrificed but as he worked through it in his mind he could find no evidence that the magic did anything but open up access to power reserves you already had. If he read correctly it meant that you could be twice as powerful for half as long but it didn't seem to actually increase the reserve available. He wondered exactly which of the rituals Voldemort had used and if they actually weakened him in a drawn out fight.

All too soon he had finished the reading and the bell had rung, he called Dobby to take the volume back to Grimmauld just before the girls showed up. They were sitting discussing the improvements in Potions since they had anonymously circulated the PITT and how Slughorn kept commenting that Severus must have been teaching a different set of students. As they sat talking a visitor walked nervously in and stopped halfway to them.

"Um...How is she?" Susan asked quietly.

Harry stood quickly, not knowing why he felt nervous at her appearance when he had no trouble talking to her in class; he guessed it must have something to do with the girl in the bed behind him. When he didn't speak up immediately; Hermione answered for him.

"She is as well as can be expected, the spell damage is deep and she seems to be having some difficulties but she is still with us."

Susan nodded and approached slowly, "I...I mean I just wanted to..."

"It's okay Susie; I know you care about her too..." Harry said as he moved aside.

Susan stepped up to the bedside and grasped the girls hand in hers. "Hey you, I missed you so much and then this happens...it isn't fair..." She turned around with just the beginning of tears in her eyes. "Can I...I mean..." She couldn't find the words but Ginny understood and nodded pulling both of her Lovers away from the bed and pushing the curtains closed.

"What?" Harry asked.

"She had something to say that she didn't want us to hear. I think it is important that she get some privacy."

"Who Susan? I mean of course...but..."

"No Gabrielle, Harry. If we are trying to make things normal for her then we should let other people see her if they want to..."

It suddenly hit Harry, "Has anyone told her Parents? What about Fleur?"

Hermione put a hand on his arm to calm him, "They were here while you were in a coma, and her father was all for moving her but her mother and Fleur explained your bond and he consented for her to stay here as long as you are here. They believe the bond should help strengthen her. They should actually be visiting this evening."

Susan peeked her head out from the curtains and smiled shyly at Ginny. "Um, thank you. Is it okay if I come see her later?"

Ginny nodded and they watched as Susan quickly slipped out. "That was interesting..." Harry commented as they walked back to her bedside and sat down.

"It's good though, I knew they had gotten close while staying with you, I'm glad she felt comfortable enough to visit." Hermione said.

Harry nodded and picked up Gabrielle's hand and placed it in his own before he began stroking it lightly. Hermione and Ginny shared a look as he seemed to fade into his own little world. "Why don't we go for a walk around the lake Harry? Spending all of our time here isn't good for us and I am sure she wouldn't want you to put your life on hold."

He shook his head, "You two can go ahead, maybe tomorrow we can do something...right now I just...I just need to be here." He said quietly.

They shared another look, communicating without words before Hermione shrugged a bit sadly. "Alright Harry, we are going to go for that walk and then back to your room."

He nodded without saying anything and they left throwing slightly worried glances over their shoulders. Harry sighed and sat down beside her still holding her hand. He closed his eyes and dipped into his center to begin analyzing all his emotions from the last few days.

It took almost no time however before he was overwhelmed with sadness and hatred and had to put emotional dampeners in place. He knew he had just chastised Lavender for doing something similar but if he was expected to function with some semblance of normalcy through this he could not deal with those emotions just yet. He was able to sort his memories with the dampeners in place, though the fuzzy blackness that permeated his memory of the battle at Beauxbatons troubled him somewhat. When he tried to remove some of his barriers to examine the memory as a whole he was nearly knocked unconscious by the sheer power contained within. He began to give some credence to the stories he was told about himself that day.

The girls showed up just before dinner; soon after came Fleur and Bill followed by a couple who could only be Gabrielle's parents. He stood quickly feeling suddenly very nervous.

"Monsieur and Madame Delacour." He said as formally as he could.

"Ah you must be the Harry we have heard so much about, I am Apoline and this silent imposing figure is my husband Jacques. You of course know Bill Weasley and our daughter Fleur?"

Harry nodded to the two still barely breathing so as not to appear scared before the imposing figure of their father. The man extended a hand and he took it quickly, but not too quickly before shaking firmly. "I am sorry we could not meet under better circumstances, your daughter means the world to me."

The man seemed to size him up for a moment before making some internal decision. "This is indeed a sad circumstance but from what your friends and her sister have told me you have treated my Gabrielle with respect. If she must inherit the Veela I am thankful that she bonded with such an upstanding young man."

Harry breathed a very small sigh of relief before turning back to the girl in question and going quiet for a moment he then turned and walked to the other side of the room so that her parents could visit with her, Gin and Mione following quickly along with Bill.

"That could have been worse." Bill commented as he was hugging his sister.

Harry nodded, "How is Fleur taking it?"

Bill was quiet for a moment, no matter what his answer Harry knew she was not taking the news well. "She is dealing with it; mostly she is glad that she her sister is so happy with you. Many Veela never find true love and many more who die young...Sorry I..."

Harry was very glad for his emotional blocks at the moment. "No you're right, I am thankful every day that she found me. She is my first real love you know?"

Bill nodded and sat down beside Harry on the bed. In a surprising move he wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulders and hugged him for a moment. "For what it's worth, I'm glad you and Ginny are together no matter what the circumstances, and I am glad you made Gabrielle so happy."

Even with the blocks in place a single tear ran down Harry's cheek. "Thank you...but please try to talk about her in the present tense. She isn't gone yet." Hermione placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and he smiled up at her before returning his attention to the conversation.

Bill realized immediately what he had said and looked as if he were about to apologize but Harry help up a hand. "No, I made the same mistake after I brought her back, but she isn't gone yet and I intend to see her back to full health. We had a discussion and I told her she simply has to get better and come back to me. She isn't allowed to leave me."

The redhead's eyes went wide for just a fraction of a second before he nodded, "Then I know she will wake up when she is ready, she won't be leaving any time soon." Ginny traded places and hugged her brother as Harry stood and walked over the group by his girlfriend's bed.

"We were just about to have dinner, would you care to join us?"

They agreed and soon Harry had transfigured a table large enough for them to sit at comfortably with Gabrielle in range of the conversation. They sat and visited, learning more about each other and the events that led to her injury before Madame Pomfrey came out and called an end to Visitors Hours. She chased them all away with the promise to notify them of any changes, Harry and his girls made their way back to his room for the night.

Once they were settled in bed Harry decided he needed to know what story was currently being circulated about him in the school. "So, what is the current lie that is being perpetrated upon my person?"

Ginny spoke up from his left side. "They say you went crazy and murdered over a hundred Death Eaters in a fit of Dark Magic after driving off a thousand Dementors."

"I heard you took at least four killing curses though the number varies depending on who tells it. What really happened Harry?" Hermione asked.

He sighed, "I don't really remember, after Gabrielle was hit my memory gets sort of fuzzy."

"Fuzzy?" Hermione asked quietly.

He nodded into the dark, "I only ever saw a hundred Death Eaters and the Dementors couldn't have been more than two or three hundred..."

Hermione gasped and sat up, "Three hundred? That would have to be every Dementor in Britain!"

He shrugged, "I didn't stop to count, but it looked like a swarm about the size of the one after Sirius."

She nodded and lay back down on his shoulder, "What happened next?"

"I helped the French Aurors gain the upper hand and then I went to find Gabrielle; she was headed right for the swarm until I caught her in the woods. Then Voldemort showed up."

It was Ginny's turn to gasp, "What did you do?"

"I killed Lucius Malfoy..."

"Harry!" Hermione said pulling him closer. "Nobody knows that! Are you okay?"

He was silent for a moment, "It was self defense Mione...they were throwing AK's at us until I sent Gabby back to the school...you should have seen her, Shielding with her wand and throwing fireballs with her free hand."

"Fireballs?" Ginny asked.

Hermione spoke up, "Full Veela have the ability to conjure passion fire in defense of themselves and their mates. However I don't know of any documented case of part Veela having the ability; that is rather amazing."

He nodded, "She was great...then Bellatrix said she would be more fun to play with if she was still alive...I almost managed to get her as well but she was too quick for me. Voldemort was rather upset when Lucius died so I had to duck and cover, then I managed to Apparate to Gabrielle...just in time to see her..." His voice hitched and even through his blocks the sadness threatened to consume him. "I killed Dolohov Hermione; he'll never hurt someone I love with that spell again..."

"You killed two Death Eaters? Harry you need to talk to someone about this."

"Not now Mione...I just can't talk about...in any case that is where my memory goes fuzzy, I remember finding Gabrielle and not finding a pulse and then waking up in the Hospital Wing." The brunette was staring at him as if waiting for a sign of impending breakdown and confused that there was no reaction.

Ginny asked the next question. "How did you disappear from the Great Hall like that?"

Once again he shrugged, "I have no idea, I just knew it would take too long to reach the edge of the wards so I left."

Hermione was shaking her head, "It is impossible to Apparate onto or within Hogwarts Grounds, I don't understand how you could have done it."

"Elves can Apparate in the school so it is possible, just not the way that most Wizards do it...when I was training with Nym we thought I might be doing something different, I hadn't given it much thought until now."

"Different?" Ever inquisitive Hermione asked.

He scratched his head as he tried to remember it all but a headache was forming from overuse of his Occlumency blocks, "I think it is more like teleportation than normal Apparation but I don't know enough about either to tell you. I just needed to be there so I was...can we go to sleep now, my brain hurts."

"Alright Harry." Hermione said as she cuddled into him, Ginny did the same on his other side.

He fell asleep hoping against hope that Gabrielle would visit him again and tell him what to do.