The Strongest Force - Part 1/2 (H/D, 14+)
Title: The Strongest Force - Part 1/2
Author: sesheta_66
Beta: softly_sweetly
Pairing: Harry Potter / Draco Malfoy
Rating: 14+
Wordcount: ~12,200 words
Prompt: As requested by shadowclub for slashfest: Harry/Draco - As a last ditch attempt to hurt Harry Voldemort arranged some sort of time bomb that slowly turns Harry into some sort of creature (can be Dark or light!). Bonus points if you can include Healer!Draco.
Summary: At a time when Harry's life had finally settled, his career well established, the constant publicity he'd known since age eleven finally waning, and love in his life, things never looked better. It was only a matter of time before tragedy struck. Now it's a race against time to prevent the tragedy from becoming permanent. Can Draco and the team of Healers at St. Mungo's save Harry, or has his fate yet again been determined by forces beyond their control?
Disclaimer: Characters and setting all belong to JK Rowling and her publishers. No infringement is intended, and no money is being earned.
The Strongest Force
Harry, sated from their recent coupling, lazily swept his hand over Draco's chest. He smiled goofily at his boyfriend, thinking that this was the first time he felt that they'd ever made love. Sure, they'd had sex before. They'd fucked. They'd even had slow, loving sex. But as Harry looked at Draco's face, he was struck hard by the realization that he loved this man.
"What?" Draco asked, grinning at the picture of Harry staring at him.
"I was just thinking ..." Harry said, leaning in for a kiss.
"Don't hurt yourself there, Potter," Draco joked, giving Harry's bum a playful squeeze and kissing him on the forehead.
"I ...." He looked into grey eyes, so open, so loving, and knew without question that he could trust this man with his heart. "I love you," he said for the first time ever.
Draco's smile could have lit up the room. He pulled Harry into his arms and gave him a luxurious kiss. Pulling back, he brushed a few stray strands of Harry's hair off his forehead and leaned in. Foreheads and noses touching, he whispered into Harry's mouth, "I love you too."
Harry pulled Draco in for a crushing kiss, as if to seal their love.
Suddenly, Harry's world exploded in a flash of colour and light and pain, as a wave of ... something ... magic perhaps ... came crashing down on him. Excruciating pain crushing him, not unlike the pressure of Apparition, only worse. Much, much worse. Every bit of his skin felt like it was shrinking, like there was an invisible pressure compressing him. Then at once it reversed, the pain pushing outwards from the core of his body. His head felt like it was going to explode. Surging pain pulsed through his body. His blood felt like it was boiling, his skin melting, his bones turning to gel. He broke out in a sweat, and began to convulse. He had trouble breathing, gasped for air. Then quite suddenly there was nothing.
~*~*~
Draco watched as Harry's body went rigid and he started to scream. He was sweating and began to convulse, his skin red and burning hot to the touch. He gasped for air.
"Harry!" Draco screamed, shaking him by the shoulders. "Harry!"
He watched, horrified, as Harry's eyes rolled back in his head, and his body fell limp on their bed.
With a wave of his wand, Draco spelled clothes on them, wrapped his arm around Harry's waist and Apparated directly into the Emergency treatment room at St. Mungo's.
~*~*~
"Help us!" Draco screamed, not knowing who was on duty, whom to call out for. In the years since becoming a Healer he had spent many hours in this room, but none as stress-filled as this moment. "Help me!" he begged.
"Healer Malfoy, what --" the head matron of the unit asked.
"I don't know what's happened to him, but he's burning up. He needs some fever-reducing potion and a cool bed immediately. Then get me the Spell Damage Healer on duty and whoever's on call from Magical Maladies."
"Right away, Sir."
As he levitated Harry to the closest bed, he called over his shoulder, "And round up my department. I want everyone in as soon as they can make it." She nodded her understanding and was gone.
"You'll be okay, Harry. You have to be," Draco said, as much to calm himself as to reassure an unconscious Harry.
His team, the team specializing in curses involving Dark Magic, had to be able to figure this out. Even if it wasn't Dark Magic that caused this, Draco's team had been hand-picked by him, and he trusted them with his life. With Harry's life. As he looked at Harry's unconscious form, he realized that he didn't have much choice in the matter.
~*~*~
About an hour later, Harry's temperature had gone down, though not quite back to normal, and he was resting comfortably. Draco was surrounded by Harry's friends and a crew of Weasleys in the family waiting area, while Molly was by Harry's side.
"What happened?" Hermione asked.
"I don't know," Draco said, close to collapse. "One minute we were ... talking, the next minute he started screaming in pain, his face went a ghostly white, his skin started to burn, and he started convulsing. When I tried to ask him what was wrong, his eyes rolled back and he collapsed." He looked at the sea of blank stares, reflecting the same worry he felt inside. "I spelled our clothes on and Apparated here."
Ron ran his hand through his hair and paced the room. "Did he eat something different, or --"
"No, there's nothing that we did that was out of the ordinary," Draco responded. "We couldn't run any in-depth diagnostic spells with him in the state he was, but we should be able to soon, so long as he remains stable. We were able to rule out basic poisons, and there was no sign of a virus, but beyond that we needed to stabilize him before subjecting him to more rigorous tests." He took a deep breath and stood up. "I should get back."
Hermione looked contemplative, but everyone else simply looked shell-shocked.
"Draco, may I speak with you privately for a moment?" Hermione asked.
A bit perplexed, but too emotionally exhausted to protest, he nodded, and they made their way to a more private area.
"I wanted to ask you --" She looked at him, almost as though she wasn't sure how to phrase her question.
"What?" Draco snapped. He wanted to get back to Harry.
"Now don't take this the wrong way," she started, again looking unsure.
"Just spit it out, Granger. I need to get back."
"Fine." She took a deep breath and with a determined look asked, "Were you ... you know ... engaged in some sort of ... well ..."
"Sex?" Draco blurted out. "Are you asking if we were having sex?" Any other time, he might have found her hesitation and nervousness amusing, but ...
"Well, yes." Her face had gone pink with embarrassment, but she steadfastly looked directly at Draco. "You said you spelled on your clothes --"
"No, Granger, we weren't in the middle of anything at the time. If you must know, we had just ... finished, but were actually lazing about ... basking, as it were. Is that all you wanted to know? Because as fascinating as this conversation is --"
"You know you need to tell the Healers everything, right?"
"Yes, Granger - Hermione - I do know that. As you may recall, I am a Healer."
"I know that, Draco, but you're hardly objective here. And it sounds to me like a curse hit him suddenly or something."
"Shit!" he said, that thought not occurring to him in his haste to get Harry treated. "I need to talk to Ron."
They went back out to the waiting room where everyone was gathered, and Draco had a quick word with Ron. He handed Ron a key that was coded to drop the wards at their house and grant him access.
"I'll be back as soon as I can," Ron said. "Come get me if there's any change."
"Thank you," Draco said sincerely. "I know you want to be here, but there's no one else I trust," he said to Harry's best friend, meaning every word of it. He knew that Ron would find out if a spell was cast in their house. Not only was he Harry's partner at work, but he was a damn good Auror. And his personal interest would ensure there would be no media leak.
"I know," Ron responded with a hint of a smile. "If there was a spell cast, I'll run preliminary tests, but I might need to call in experts."
"If absolutely necessary, that's fine. We need to know if Harry was cursed. And if he was, we need to catch the person that did it, so we can find out what the curse was and reverse it."
Ron Disapparated and Draco went back to Harry's room.
~*~*~
"Is he stable enough for the other tests?" he asked the emergency Healer on duty.
"Yes," Healer Branson replied. "In fact, I was just about to call the others in." He looked down at Molly and added, "I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave while we run some further tests."
She looked up at Draco, and he saw the unshed tears in her eyes. He placed a soothing hand on her shoulder and nodded. "You need to let them do their jobs, Molly," he told her. Suddenly, he was pulled into her embrace.
"You make him better, Draco. Make sure they do their best." He could feel rather than hear her sobs.
"I'll do what I can."
"I know you will, dear. You love him, and I know you'll take care of him." She smiled sadly and left the room.
Well, considering they'd only just professed their love for each other that day, she was certainly up to speed. He smiled briefly as he realized that they had been in love for some time. They'd only just got round to acknowledging it out loud. And now ...
"Healer Malfoy, you really should --"
Draco fixed him with a glare. "Don't imagine for a minute that I will be leaving this room."
The other Healer's eyes grew wide. Draco may not be in charge of the Emergency Department, but his reputation certainly preceded him. And he imagined that his reaction solidified his position.
"I'm not going to argue with you, but --"
"Good," Draco cut in. "I believe you said you were getting the other experts?"
~*~*~
One week had passed, and Draco was frustrated beyond belief. Ron had determined that no magic had been cast by anyone but Harry or Draco in their bedroom or anywhere else in the house. Though they didn't know exactly what caused Harry's condition, all the experts agreed that it had been a curse, cast to have what they believed to be a delayed reaction, prompted by an as-yet-unidentified trigger. The fact that no magic had been detected near them suggested that the trigger took some other form.
However, try as he might, Draco was unable to determine what that trigger might have been. They had done nothing out of the ordinary, had eaten nothing strange, had not brought any foreign substance, plants, food or anything new into the house. It had been a typical day, until Harry had screamed out in pain, had a fit and collapsed.
Harry's condition was the most frustrating thing. He had not yet regained consciousness, although his body had seemed to adjust to the onslaught of whatever it was the curse was doing to him. Because the curse hadn't stopped. Draco had been stunned when the Head of the Spell Damage Unit had told him what they had concluded. Harry's body was changing at a molecular level. His body was transfiguring into something else.
They didn't know what he was becoming, but she had suggested that the changes were similar to those experienced by werewolves during their transformations. However, she assured him that Harry was not a werewolf. In fact, as the full moon drew nearer, the transformation seemed to slow. It was still occurring, but not nearly as rapidly as it had on the night Draco had brought him in. That news didn't comfort him in the least. At least if Harry was a werewolf, there was Wolfsbane which, with his skills at potion-making, Draco could readily make. This was unknown. And he knew of no cases where damage to a human body at the molecular level had ever been cured.
Draco had never felt so helpless in all his life.
The most frustrating development, however, was the morning's Prophet. On the front page was the headline, "Saviour of the Wizarding World Dying?" The article reported that sources at the Ministry had confirmed Harry Potter's unscheduled absence from duty, and a source at the hospital had reported that he had been in isolation for a week, but could not provide details.
It was only a matter of time before Draco would be inundated with owls. Cringing at the knowledge that he would likely be blamed for what had happened (there were still plenty of people who thought he had tricked Harry into being with him), and would probably be receiving Howlers that would only serve to distract him from the task at hand, Draco Apparated to St. Mungo's.
He had spent the first few nights at Harry's bedside, but eventually took the advice given him by Molly and Ron. The five of them - Molly, Arthur, Ron, Hermione and Draco - would all take turns remaining by his side, to ensure that he was never alone. They all had coins, an idea left over from the DA days, which they could use to alert each other of any change in Harry's condition. This would allow them all to get proper rest and nutrition to better focus their efforts during waking hours. He could hardly disagree with the logic, so he had relented.
He and his staff worked around the clock in shifts, trying to figure out which dark spells might be responsible for such a thing, but as yet they'd come up with nothing. And certainly nothing that had a hidden trigger to set it in motion. Of course, not knowing what Harry was turning into made this task even harder. That was left to the group in Spell Damage.
Ron and the rest of the Aurors were working around the clock as well, trying to determine who the likely culprit might have been. Harry had pissed off a fair few in his years as an Auror, so the list was fairly long. Fortunately, most of those were eliminated fairly quickly, for sheer lack of skill. They had reduced the list now to fifteen that were currently free, plus, due to the delayed nature of the spell, another twelve still in prison. So far, they didn't have enough evidence to be granted permission to use Veritaserum on any of them, unless they volunteered. This frustrated everyone, knowing how much faster it would be to eliminate suspects. So far, only three had voluntarily presented themselves, lawyers alongside to ensure only the one case was discussed, and they had been cleared.
Perhaps there was a positive side to the article. Now that Harry's condition had been revealed, Ron could more actively seek voluntary interviews. He hadn't revealed that it was Harry who was injured, but rather had been asking, "Have you done anything to directly injure an Auror?" Perhaps they could eliminate a handful more now.
~*~*~
"Any new developments?" Draco asked as he entered his office, having quickly checked up on Harry. It was shift change between Molly and Arthur, so he'd only spent a short while telling Harry to be strong, and that he'd be working on finding him a cure.
"Nothing," Sarah replied. She had been two years behind them in Hogwarts, a Ravenclaw, and was a potions genius. Not quite to Draco's level, but pretty darn close. He had considered it quite a coup to recruit her onto his team, and she had yet to disappoint. She was relentless, just like Draco. "I'm sorry."
He knew she meant it. He could see the dark circles under her eyes, yet the fire in them, that which was always there when she was trying to solve the seemingly unsolvable, was still flaring.
"Go home, Sarah. You need your rest."
"Not yet, boss. I still have a half dozen things I need to consider before going."
"You need your rest."
She looked up at him with a raised eyebrow, as if to say, Oh, really? "And you don't?" she asked.
"That's beside the point."
"No, it isn't. You've only allowed yourself the shortest of breaks, and I believe that was only after the unrelenting pressure of Harry's adoptive family. You're here eighteen hours a day. I've only been here ... let me see." She consulted her watch. "Eleven. That gives me a whole seven hours more before I reach the point when I have to leave."
"Sarah, I appreciate your tenacity, but --"
"But nothing, boss. This is important to you. And, in case you hadn't noticed, I happen to like Harry. So it's important to me too."
He smiled at her, but still insisted, "Thanks, Sarah, but you need --"
"Not to mention it's the most intriguing thing I've ever worked on, and I couldn't possibly let anyone else crack this case, could I?" She gave him a cheeky smile, and he caved. Damn, she was good. Should have been in Slytherin.
He laughed. "Fine. Stay. But let it be on your conscience. Let me note for the record that I tried to send you home, but you were entirely insubordinate, and stayed regardless." She gave him a smug smile in response.
He got the update from her. They'd been going through medical texts, and had exhausted the hospital's library days ago. Hermione had been relentless in her pursuit of more information, taking a leave from work to help with the research efforts. Draco had taken her to the Malfoy library, and she had been short-listing books, giving them to Draco's team with notes and tags indicating possible spells, potions, curses. So far, they'd eliminated everything. Everyone was getting frustrated. Sarah had five things left to consider in the current text, which she was determined to complete before leaving.
He left her to it, and went to the other department to get an update on the blood work they had done.
"Any news?" he asked. There was no need for clarification. Everyone knew Draco's position, and what he needed to know.
"The best I can determine is still that it's similar to a werewolf's transformation," the lab tech, Richard, replied. "But we're a long way in determining the pattern of cell growth, now that it's been a week. We weren't able to determine much on previous blood panels, but the changes that recently happened seem to be more conclusive."
"And?" Draco asked. The newbie was keen, that was for sure, but he liked to build up for his big reveal, which drove Draco mad. Knowing, however, that he needed the man on his side, he reined in his temper and waited.
"We've consulted a few books over about werewolves, and there are many parallels. It's just that the cell changes are not canine in nature. They seem to be more feline in nature."
"Feline?"
"Yes, but not entirely. It's strange, but there seems to be a bit of dragon in there as well."
"Is there anything in the literature about this?"
"Not in any medical texts I've read," he replied, looking rather excited by the possibility of something new. Ordinarily Draco would be intrigued as well, but with Harry as the patient, he would happily have had it be something mundane and well-within the ordinary.
"Well, keep at it, and let me know if there are any further developments."
"Will do."
Draco went back to his office and made a Floo-call to the one person who knew more about strange creatures than anyone.
~*~*~
"Draco, what is it?" Hagrid asked in a panic. "It's not Harry, is it? He's still okay, right?"
"No, Hagrid, he's not okay," replied Draco, "but he hasn't taken a sharp turn."
"Oh, well okay, you scared me for a mo'." He sat down with his hand on his chest, trying to regain his breath. "Why don' you come through? I hate talkin' ter body parts."
Draco made his way into Hagrid's hut, wondering just what body parts he'd been talking to previously. Not the time to make jokes, he set that thought aside.
"Hagrid, the lab at the hospital has made some progress. I don't know how much Ron has told you, but Harry's body seems to be transforming, but up until now we've been unable to determine what it's transforming into."
"Yeah, Ron was sayin'."
"The transformation is gradual, and was indistinct until yesterday. The change in the blood taken yesterday was significant enough for them to isolate some of the properties that are non-human."
"Er ... I'm not sure what that has ter do with me."
"The changes indicate feline and dragon presence in his blood. Do you know of any creatures that are part cat and part dragon?" Draco asked. "You're the one person I know that has the most knowledge of creatures."
Hagrid's chest puffed out and his face wore an expression of pride at Draco's words. "Er ... I'm sure there's summat like that. Can I get back ter you later today?"
Draco smiled, knowing that Hagrid would make this his priority.
~*~*~
An owl interrupted Draco as he returned to his office after his shift with Harry. He had brought some of the books Hermione had sent over with him, to study while he was there, but it was hard to concentrate while he was waiting for Hagrid's reply. He had felt that they'd made some progress, and that it was the key to helping Harry.
The owl was from Hagrid.
Draco:
You didn't answer your Floo, so I've sent this owl off to you while I go to class.
I think I might have come up with something. A manticore is a creature that's part human, part lion and part either dragon or scorpion, depending on the variety.
They're not very common any more, and have pretty much died out. But there have been stories of one in Albania. I have a contact over there that I've owled already, to get more information.
Let me know what you want me to do next.
Hagrid
Draco re-read the note again. Stories of one in Albania.
Fuck! It couldn't be! It's been ten years, but ... fuck! It's too much of a coincidence.
Pushing his thoughts to the side, he scribbled a quick thank you note, asking Hagrid to keep investigating, and to let him know what else he finds out. Then he went to see Sarah.
"I think I know what it is," he said.
"What?"
"A manticore. And," he continued as calmly as he could, "I think Voldemort did it."
"But he's been dead --"
"Ten years. I know. But if this creature is a manticore, which I think it is, don't you find it a little too coincidental that the one place Voldemort was known to have been hiding out for over a decade is the only known location of a manticore?"
"You're kidding!"
"I'm not. Now it may not have been him; it could have been one of his minions. But aside from my father and my crazy aunt, I don't think any of them would have been capable. And with my aunt dead at the same time, and my father switching sides at the end, it's not bloody likely that either of them is responsible. Besides, I have to admit that the man, or whatever he was at the end, was a brilliant wizard. No one knew the Dark Arts better than him. And he was always after Harry. This would be just like him. If he couldn't kill Harry, he'd find something to torture him with."
"But why would he delay it?"
Draco frowned. He had wondered the same thing. "I have no idea, Sarah. It makes no sense. And when would he have done it? And what triggered it?"
"Well, I say we focus on figuring out what spell could initiate a change into a creature like a manticore. And let the others determine whether or not it really is a manticore, or something else. And what the nature of the change will be, if and when it happens."
"But we need to fix him," Draco said almost helplessly.
"Right. But to fix him we need to know how Voldemort or whoever hurt him."
Draco nodded. "Of course."
"And you're going to have to face the fact that we might not be able to fix him. Before he transforms, or ever."
"But we can't give up!"
"Of course we won't give up. But we need to consider the possibility that he will end up transforming. Perhaps there's a way to delay it or minimize the effects of it. That might be our best hope. So let us figure out the how, and let them figure out the what. The when, why and who can wait."
~*~*~
Three days later, and little had changed, Harry's transformation continuing. The full moon had now come and gone, with no noticeable change. Perhaps the lunar cycle had nothing to do with it. But how long did they have then?
The best they could come up with was that it was, in fact, a manticore. Harry's blood remained a mix of human, lion (they'd determined it was lion rather than any other cat) and dragon. Unless there was some other creature they hadn't heard of, that was what they were dealing with. Not a pleasant thought, since the locals often assumed that when people went missing without a trace, manticores were to blame. The stories were of a creature that could kill instantly with a bite or a scratch, and will then eat the victim entirely, bones and all.
Hagrid had gone on to explain that the creature was related to the sphinx, and may or may not ask its victims riddles before consuming them. Not much comfort, but Draco welcomed any information he could get. Because there hadn't been much experience with manticores, and precious little documentation over the years, they were left with speculation rather than fact. Draco, being of a scientific mind, abhorred speculation, but had little choice in the matter.
Draco was growing desperate. He knew that Harry's body was still changing, however slowly, and that he couldn't stop it. They could wait until he completely transformed, but they had no idea whether it would be permanent or temporary, fixed or cyclical. Their main goal was to prevent the change from taking place at all, but as time ticked away, that seemed less of a possibility. The lesser of two evils, if he were to transform, was to hope that it was like a werewolf's transformation at the full moon, and would recede afterwards, only to return when it was time.
Considering the nature of a manticore, if the stories were true, Harry would have to be confined to a space that could contain him. That was where Hagrid's expertise would come in handy. Of course, knowing Hagrid, he couldn't be trusted to actually execute the segregation, because he'd just figure that Harry would be there, underneath it all, and he'd probably put him on a leash or something.
Merlin, what am I thinking? I can't lock Harry up, or put him on a leash like some animal! But inside he knew that if he didn't do something soon, that would be exactly what Harry was - an animal.
~*~*~
"Healer Malfoy!" Draco heard a voice coming through the Floo several days later. "Healer Malfoy, are you there?"
"Yes, yes, I'm here. What is it?" As he entered the sitting room, he recognized the disembodied head as one of the lab techs working on Harry's case. Oh, who was he kidding? The entire hospital was working on Harry's case. If they knew what was good for them.
"Is it about Harry?"
"Yes, Mr Potter's condition has worsened. The transformation is accelerating, and his body temperature is spiking again."
"Oh, God."
"Everyone is there with him, but they asked me to call you."
"Thank you. I'll be right there."
Draco had placed the coin on the bathroom counter while he showered, and he'd just gotten dressed, and must have missed Molly's alert. He went back into the bathroom, retrieved the coin, then gathered up his notes and, not trusting his ability to Apparate, he Flooed to the hospital.
~*~*~
As he entered Harry's room, he saw all but one of the Heads of Units on site, some clearly having been called in from home, in various states of dress. He watched, helpless, as Harry appeared to be going through a similar fit as had happened that first night. Only ...
Oh, God! They had removed Harry's pyjama top, and Draco could see that his skin had stretched, and reddish hair was growing from his arms and torso. His shoulders and chest had broadened, and although he wasn't conscious, his face was contorted in pain. His face seemed a bit ... off, his mouth slightly wider than usual.
"When did all this happen?" he asked.
"In the last half hour."
"Do you know what's happening, what triggered it?"
"If it's anything like the werewolf transformation, it could be based on the lunar cycle," someone said. "The new moon is tonight."
"Then why would he be changing now?" Draco asked.
"How the hell should we know?" someone snapped. They had a point.
"Right. Sorry," he said. "What does this mean?"
"It means we're going to have to restrain him."
"But --" Draco knew that it had been a possibility, but hadn't really accepted it.
"Draco, we have no other choice. There are people in danger if this really is a manticore. We don't know what we'll be dealing with, what his strength will be like."
"If this is any indication, he'll need much more than the standard restraining spells."
Draco went up to Harry, and placed a calming hand on his forehead. "Come on, Harry," he whispered as he stroked Harry's face. "You can fight this."
Harry's eyes opened, vibrant blue staring right through Draco. "Help me," he cried, and as he did so, Draco could see why his mouth had looked distorted. He had three rows of razor-sharp teeth that had been dangerously close to Draco's wrist.
"I'm trying," Draco managed to choke out, tears in his eyes. "We're trying."
"Get back!" one of the Healers called out. They all stepped back, Draco whispering, "I love you" as he did so.
The Healer surrounded Harry's bed with a set of wards to prevent his escape, then mercifully released his arms and legs from the restraints. "Further back," he called, then put a second set of wards up, and continued to do so until there were seven protective wards between Harry and everyone else in the room.
"I can't be sure they will contain him, but it will do for now. At least it will buy us time."
"Time for what?" Draco asked.
No one answered. No one knew what was to come.
~*~*~
Draco stayed in the room as he watched Harry, who had succumbed to sleep shortly after opening his eyes and begging for help. He was writhing in pain, which was no small surprise, considering his body was growing and transforming before Draco's eyes.
It was then, while watching Harry but unable to touch him, having heard his voice begging help me, but being unable to help him, that Draco finally let the tears flow.
After a time, Harry had become increasingly larger, and Draco had to call the Healer back to adjust the wards. He'd based the size on the average lion, but clearly Harry was going to transform into something significantly larger. After making the adjustments, the Healer left them alone again.
"Oh, Harry, I wish I could stop this. I wish I could help you. I wish this had never happened. I won't stop working on a cure, you know. But for now, I'll stay here with you. I can't work anyway, knowing the pain you're in. I just wish I could hold you. I love you so much."
A sound reverberated through the wards, sounding like trumpets. Draco couldn't make out any words, but it sounded almost as though there were some buried beneath the musical hum.
By morning, it was clear that Hagrid had been correct. Pacing around the inside of the wards was a manticore, the head a distorted version of Harry's face with blue rather than green eyes, but still with that scar; that would piss Harry off, Draco thought. It figures, the one thing he'd want to get rid of the most would still be there in his transformed state. The body was that of a red lion, and the tail that of a dragon, a Hungarian Horntail, if Draco wasn't mistaken.
If it weren't such a sad situation, he might find the transformation ironic. Harry, Golden Boy of Gryffindor, partially transforming into a lion. Harry, would-be Slytherin and boyfriend of Draco, partially transforming into the very same dragon he'd defeated during the Triwizard Tournament in fourth year.
~*~*~
That morning a new headline graced the cover of The Prophet: "Hero a Danger to Himself and Others?" The article spoke of the containment wards placed on Harry's room, and suggested that his affliction might be something dangerous. They speculated on his being a vampire or a werewolf, something far too close to the truth for Draco's liking.
A staff meeting was called, and Draco wasted no time. "Who the fuck leaked this information? I want the names of everyone who has access to his room or his records by lunch time!" he yelled to the room, not caring that they were his equals and not his subordinates.
"I'm taking care of it," the head of Administration advised him. "Leave it to me." Draco calmed slightly after that. Although he would prefer to take care of it himself, he knew he had other priorities.
"Keep me apprised of any developments."
"I will."
Within the hour, hospital security had one Amanda Fletcher, cousin of the reporter who wrote the two articles on Harry, escorted out of the building by Ron Weasley. She was facing multiple charges, and Draco was satisfied.
~*~*~
That mess taken care of, and the security department adding further background checks to its standard hiring protocol for anyone with access to higher than mid-level security records, Draco could get back to Harry.
Harry, in his new form, wandered almost endlessly. Draco wondered if he would sleep, but it seemed not. He occasionally made trumpet-sounding noises, but otherwise was silent. He seemed to consider the people around him, looking menacing, but not attempting to attack. He got agitated when they took pictures of him, all the while Draco assuring him that it was only for his medical file, and to help find a cure, but still didn't attempt to break through the wards. He was still pacing by the time Draco fell asleep that night.
Draco woke up to find the creature that was Harry sitting down staring at him. The body seemed to have shrunken in size, but the form was still that of the manticore, although the hair seemed to be receding back into the skin, and the tail had lost the spikes, now looking bumpy. The eyes were a blue-green, and the mouth seemed to be slightly smaller.
"Harry?" Draco asked. The creature's trumpet sound tugged at Draco's heart. "I think you're turning back now. It looks like you're well on your way," he assured Harry. "I can see it in your eyes; you're coming back to me. I'm going to call the others in, but I'll be right back."
The team of Healers came into the room with their notes. "He's been going down in size at approximately the same rate as he had increased before."
"It looks like the worst has passed."
"We'll run a full diagnostic once he's transformed completely, but it looks like he'll be back to normal soon."
"Then you'll drop the wards?" Draco asked.
"Yes."
Good. Draco couldn't wait to hold Harry in his arms again.
~*~*~
Once Harry had transformed back, he had asked Draco what had happened. He looked so drained that Draco told him to rest first, and that he would explain later. Uncharacteristically, Harry agreed and fell almost instantly asleep.
He left Harry under the care of the other Healers and went to his office. Within minutes, Ron Floo-called.
"Draco, we need to talk."
"Come on through." He waited until Ron entered his office, offered him a seat and asked, "What is it? News about Harry's case?"
"Yeah, it seems the little media leak may have had a silver lining after all."
"What do you mean?"
In reply, Ron handed him a piece of parchment.
Head of Auror Department:
If you're reading this missive I am sad to say,
That wee baby Potter has done me away.
Oh, I'll be back again, of that I am sure.
But in the meantime, you'll be needing a cure.
A surprise I left, in wee Potter's mind,
Came to life it did, when love he did find.
Oh yes, how wonderful this little treat.
For in love he finds glory and in love, defeat.
Answer me this, now my work is unleashed,
A shame that young Potter will turn into a beast.
A cousin of his was at Hogwarts one time,
To riddle a riddle and rhyme a rhyme.
Once you've figured out what he will be,
You will have some time, but no more than three.
The first time it happens will be a curse,
But each time afterwards, it only gets worse.
A treatment you must craft; it's a race against time.
I created the curse, so a cure you can't find.
Remember these words as he writhes in pain.
After three, forever in this form he'll remain.
"It sounds like my aunt, with the wee baby Potter shite," Draco said, putting the letter down and facing Ron.
"That's what I thought, but the part about I'll be back ... that's got Voldemort written all over it."
"Fuck."
"Yeah, that's pretty much what I thought."
"He gets him from beyond the grave."
"It sure looks that way."
"Fuck!"
"So, Draco, what do you figure he means by three? We have three what?"
"We think, but we can't be sure since it hasn't even been a month yet, that the transformation is based on the lunar cycle."
"Like a werewolf?"
"Yeah."
"Hermione mentioned that."
"Yeah, but it looks like Harry changes on the new moon rather than the full moon," Draco explained. "But I suppose we'll only know for sure in another four weeks."
"What, you're just going to wait?"
"Hell, no. We're looking into a way to reverse it. I presume he used manticore's blood to initiate the spell, so Hagrid is going to Albania to try to get some for me to use."
"Albania? Isn't that where --"
"Yeah, where Voldemort hid for over a decade. That's what made me think it was him back when Hagrid told me about it. I guess this letter validates that thought."
"Seems that way."
"Where did the letter come from?"
"It seems that it was left with a lawyer who was directed to send it to the Head of the Auror Department, should he hear anything about a strange illness befalling Harry Potter."
"And he read the article in the paper."
"Yes. We brought him in for questioning just before I came here. He said he saw the first article, but didn't hear anything more, so he didn't send it. But after the second one ..."
"That could have saved us some time, had we seen it earlier."
"I know, but you can hardly blame the guy, after all the articles that have appeared in the paper about Harry over the years."
"I suppose you're right."
"This is your copy; I still have the original in my office. I need to get back to finish questioning the guy. I'll catch up with you later, yeah?"
"Yeah. Thanks, Ron."
Ron slapped him on the back. "No problem, mate. Anything for Harry."
"Yeah. Anything for Harry."
After Ron left, Draco kept re-reading the one stanza over and over again:
A surprise I left, in wee Potter's mind,
Came to life it did, when love he did find.
Oh yes, how wonderful this little treat.
For in love he finds glory and in love, defeat.
What a cruel, sick bastard he was. Then again, it shouldn't surprise Draco. And if he thought about it from Voldemort's point of view, he had to admit the whole thing had a terrible irony to it.
~*~*~
Hagrid was sent a team to work with him in Albania, to track and capture the manticore. Not many were willing to volunteer, but he had four magical creature experts that took up the challenge, after they'd heard it was for Harry Potter.
Meanwhile, Draco's team continued working with Hermione to find a curse that might have been used, or some variation Voldemort might have enhanced or altered, while Draco set out to figure out a potion that might help. He'd decided to focus on two approaches. One was an outright cure, and the other was the permanent nature of the cyclical transformation. If he couldn't find a cure, the latter would theoretically sustain the transformations at one two-day change each month, if it turned out the new moon was the trigger. And presuming Voldemort hadn't lied.
"He didn't lie," Harry told Draco after he'd explained everything.
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because he always shot off his mouth, bragging about his great plans and schemes. He was like the villain in every bad Muggle movie I've seen."
"What are you talking about?"
"Well, he grew up in a Muggle orphanage, so I figure he watched his fair share of Muggle telly, right?"
"Okay." Draco still didn't get it.
"Well, in all the good guy/bad guy movies, the bad guy, just as he's about to kill the good guy, confesses everything, and tells the good guy his plans, because he can't resist bragging about how great he is. Then the good guy manages to get away, and with the information the bad guy gave him, manages to save the day."
"You'd think Voldemort would keep his plans to himself then, right?"
"You'd think, but he fancied himself smarter than everyone else. So he would feel cocky enough to do it."
"Alright then, if you say so."
"So, my hero, how goes the potion development?"
Draco cringed. "I hate being called a hero," he said. Harry laughed.
"Well, hell has officially frozen over. So, ferret boy, you don't like the limelight?" Ron asked as he entered the room.
"Very funny, weasel."
"Hey, guys --" Harry began, but Draco stopped him by raising his hand.
"Relax, Harry, we're fine. It's all in good fun, right, Ron?"
"Absolutely. Your imminent demise united us like nothing else could." Draco cringed.
"Well, I'm so glad something good came of this."
"Well, gotta find that silver lining, right?"
"You did not just say that!" Draco exclaimed.
Harry laughed. "Draco, really, leave it. He's always been insensitive, and frankly I wouldn't want him any other way."
Draco leered at Harry and glared. "You'd better not want him any way."
"Eeeewww!" both Harry and Ron exclaimed together. Satisfied, Draco took his leave to work on the potion now that he had a good sample of Harry's blood.
~*~*~
Three weeks later, a very irritable Harry Potter was still under observation at the hospital, and itching to go home.
"Draco, enough of this. I'm not a guinea pig."
"No, you're a manticore. Now shut up. We need to observe you as the month progresses, to see if we're right about the lunar cycle."
"What about the cure?"
"I'm afraid Hagrid hasn't been able to capture the manticore yet, and it seems that Voldemort was telling the truth about inventing the spell himself."
"I told you he wasn't lying."
"Yes, I know, but we still had to look, right?"
"What about your work on the other potion?"
"Ideally, I need the manticore's blood for that too. But I'm working with yours in the meantime. Because it's diluted with your blood - even more so now that you are in your human form - it isn't working. My best bet will be to draw blood from you when you have fully changed. That way, the concentration, if it's anything like it was during your first transformation, should be high enough to work. In theory anyway."
"Oh, well that makes me feel so much better," Harry deadpanned.
Draco took a calming breath, knowing that if he were in Harry's situation, he would have blasted the place down by now. "Harry, I'm doing everything I can, but there's only so much I can do without the more highly concentrated blood."
"I know, but it's frustrating."
"It's frustrating for all of us."
"Yeah, but at least you're not about to change into --" Harry's eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed. "Aaarrghh!" he screamed. "Hot. Burning up. Draco, make it stop! Hurts so much!"
Sure enough, Harry's skin was hot to the touch, like it had been the night he first brought him to St. Mungo's. Draco called for assistance and began running diagnostic spells. "You still with me, Harry?"
"Yeah, but it hurts. Can't you do something?"
"We need to make sure your body can take it, but yeah, I think we can. You're not convulsing like you did that night. I think your body isn't in quite as much shock as that first time."
"Good to know," Harry choked out. "Now could you do something about this pain?"
"He can't, Mr Potter, but perhaps I can," another Healer explained as he entered the room.
"His body seems to be tolerating it better this time. His heart rate, though elevated, isn't as erratic as the last time."
"Fair enough, then." He cast a calming spell on Harry and gave him some pain potion. "Is that better, Mr Potter?"
"Yeah," Harry panted, sweating. "Thanks."
"You'll be okay," Draco reassured him as he wiped his brow with a damp cloth.
"You're a crap liar," Harry said. "But thanks for trying."
Draco smiled at him. "I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you're okay."
"I know you are," Harry said, as he took Draco's hand and brought it to his lips. "Maybe you should start by taking some blood."
"Oh, right!"
Harry rolled his eyes. "No wonder they won't let you work on me! You can't concentrate at all."
"Shut up!"
Harry winced only slightly as Draco drew some blood. "I'll be back to get more later."
"No worries. I'll be here. Not going anywhere tonight."
"Prat." Draco kissed him on the forehead. "I love you."
"Mmm, love you too. Hurry up and find that cure." He pulled Draco down so he could whisper in his ear. "I miss you, if you get what I mean," he said.
Draco got what he meant. As part of the observation, the Healers thought it best for Harry to refrain from having sex, should it prove to have been part of the trigger, or worsen his condition. They both thought it was a load of rubbish, but weren't willing to risk it.
~*~*~
Harry's second transformation went more smoothly than the first, presumably because his body was already prepared for the onslaught, in a way. However, once he had transformed, Harry took on a decidedly more aggressive demeanour.
"The aggression is more in line with what a manticore is like," Hermione pointed out, quite unnecessarily.
"Yeah ... I suppose that's what Voldemort meant by it gets worse," Ron added.
"What are we missing?" Draco asked. "We have to be able to find a way to cast a spell that lies dormant for years, then once it activates with some trigger, it releases progressively."
"I still think it's a series of spells, Draco." Hermione had mentioned that thought a few days ago. "I've found a spell that acts as a timer, often used for detonating a destructive spell, to give the caster time to get away. Then there's another, commonly used on potions, that delays the release of the medication. But I've found nothing that can regulate the intensity to increase, or to start and stop in bursts. I'm at a loss."
"Well, if what Voldemort says is true, we've got precious little time remaining to find a cure."
"And what if we don't fine one?" Hermione asked.
"I can't think like that, Hermione. I ... I just can't."
"Yeah, 'Mione," agreed Ron, "we can't give up on Harry."
"I know, but --" Her words broke off as the tears came. "I can't believe this is happening."
Ron took her in his arms to comfort her. "You can't fall apart now, 'Mione. Harry needs you. He needs all of us. You're the one with all the book smarts, Draco here is the potions expert, and me ... well, I provide the comic relief." She chuckled as his self-deprecating remark.
"And you catch the bad guys," Draco said.
Ron looked up and smiled sadly. "Yeah, I catch the bad guys." He held Hermione a bit closer. "But how do I catch a ghost?"
Part 2
Author: sesheta_66
Beta: softly_sweetly
Pairing: Harry Potter / Draco Malfoy
Rating: 14+
Wordcount: ~12,200 words
Prompt: As requested by shadowclub for slashfest: Harry/Draco - As a last ditch attempt to hurt Harry Voldemort arranged some sort of time bomb that slowly turns Harry into some sort of creature (can be Dark or light!). Bonus points if you can include Healer!Draco.
Summary: At a time when Harry's life had finally settled, his career well established, the constant publicity he'd known since age eleven finally waning, and love in his life, things never looked better. It was only a matter of time before tragedy struck. Now it's a race against time to prevent the tragedy from becoming permanent. Can Draco and the team of Healers at St. Mungo's save Harry, or has his fate yet again been determined by forces beyond their control?
Disclaimer: Characters and setting all belong to JK Rowling and her publishers. No infringement is intended, and no money is being earned.
The Strongest Force
Harry, sated from their recent coupling, lazily swept his hand over Draco's chest. He smiled goofily at his boyfriend, thinking that this was the first time he felt that they'd ever made love. Sure, they'd had sex before. They'd fucked. They'd even had slow, loving sex. But as Harry looked at Draco's face, he was struck hard by the realization that he loved this man.
"What?" Draco asked, grinning at the picture of Harry staring at him.
"I was just thinking ..." Harry said, leaning in for a kiss.
"Don't hurt yourself there, Potter," Draco joked, giving Harry's bum a playful squeeze and kissing him on the forehead.
"I ...." He looked into grey eyes, so open, so loving, and knew without question that he could trust this man with his heart. "I love you," he said for the first time ever.
Draco's smile could have lit up the room. He pulled Harry into his arms and gave him a luxurious kiss. Pulling back, he brushed a few stray strands of Harry's hair off his forehead and leaned in. Foreheads and noses touching, he whispered into Harry's mouth, "I love you too."
Harry pulled Draco in for a crushing kiss, as if to seal their love.
Suddenly, Harry's world exploded in a flash of colour and light and pain, as a wave of ... something ... magic perhaps ... came crashing down on him. Excruciating pain crushing him, not unlike the pressure of Apparition, only worse. Much, much worse. Every bit of his skin felt like it was shrinking, like there was an invisible pressure compressing him. Then at once it reversed, the pain pushing outwards from the core of his body. His head felt like it was going to explode. Surging pain pulsed through his body. His blood felt like it was boiling, his skin melting, his bones turning to gel. He broke out in a sweat, and began to convulse. He had trouble breathing, gasped for air. Then quite suddenly there was nothing.
~*~*~
Draco watched as Harry's body went rigid and he started to scream. He was sweating and began to convulse, his skin red and burning hot to the touch. He gasped for air.
"Harry!" Draco screamed, shaking him by the shoulders. "Harry!"
He watched, horrified, as Harry's eyes rolled back in his head, and his body fell limp on their bed.
With a wave of his wand, Draco spelled clothes on them, wrapped his arm around Harry's waist and Apparated directly into the Emergency treatment room at St. Mungo's.
~*~*~
"Help us!" Draco screamed, not knowing who was on duty, whom to call out for. In the years since becoming a Healer he had spent many hours in this room, but none as stress-filled as this moment. "Help me!" he begged.
"Healer Malfoy, what --" the head matron of the unit asked.
"I don't know what's happened to him, but he's burning up. He needs some fever-reducing potion and a cool bed immediately. Then get me the Spell Damage Healer on duty and whoever's on call from Magical Maladies."
"Right away, Sir."
As he levitated Harry to the closest bed, he called over his shoulder, "And round up my department. I want everyone in as soon as they can make it." She nodded her understanding and was gone.
"You'll be okay, Harry. You have to be," Draco said, as much to calm himself as to reassure an unconscious Harry.
His team, the team specializing in curses involving Dark Magic, had to be able to figure this out. Even if it wasn't Dark Magic that caused this, Draco's team had been hand-picked by him, and he trusted them with his life. With Harry's life. As he looked at Harry's unconscious form, he realized that he didn't have much choice in the matter.
~*~*~
About an hour later, Harry's temperature had gone down, though not quite back to normal, and he was resting comfortably. Draco was surrounded by Harry's friends and a crew of Weasleys in the family waiting area, while Molly was by Harry's side.
"What happened?" Hermione asked.
"I don't know," Draco said, close to collapse. "One minute we were ... talking, the next minute he started screaming in pain, his face went a ghostly white, his skin started to burn, and he started convulsing. When I tried to ask him what was wrong, his eyes rolled back and he collapsed." He looked at the sea of blank stares, reflecting the same worry he felt inside. "I spelled our clothes on and Apparated here."
Ron ran his hand through his hair and paced the room. "Did he eat something different, or --"
"No, there's nothing that we did that was out of the ordinary," Draco responded. "We couldn't run any in-depth diagnostic spells with him in the state he was, but we should be able to soon, so long as he remains stable. We were able to rule out basic poisons, and there was no sign of a virus, but beyond that we needed to stabilize him before subjecting him to more rigorous tests." He took a deep breath and stood up. "I should get back."
Hermione looked contemplative, but everyone else simply looked shell-shocked.
"Draco, may I speak with you privately for a moment?" Hermione asked.
A bit perplexed, but too emotionally exhausted to protest, he nodded, and they made their way to a more private area.
"I wanted to ask you --" She looked at him, almost as though she wasn't sure how to phrase her question.
"What?" Draco snapped. He wanted to get back to Harry.
"Now don't take this the wrong way," she started, again looking unsure.
"Just spit it out, Granger. I need to get back."
"Fine." She took a deep breath and with a determined look asked, "Were you ... you know ... engaged in some sort of ... well ..."
"Sex?" Draco blurted out. "Are you asking if we were having sex?" Any other time, he might have found her hesitation and nervousness amusing, but ...
"Well, yes." Her face had gone pink with embarrassment, but she steadfastly looked directly at Draco. "You said you spelled on your clothes --"
"No, Granger, we weren't in the middle of anything at the time. If you must know, we had just ... finished, but were actually lazing about ... basking, as it were. Is that all you wanted to know? Because as fascinating as this conversation is --"
"You know you need to tell the Healers everything, right?"
"Yes, Granger - Hermione - I do know that. As you may recall, I am a Healer."
"I know that, Draco, but you're hardly objective here. And it sounds to me like a curse hit him suddenly or something."
"Shit!" he said, that thought not occurring to him in his haste to get Harry treated. "I need to talk to Ron."
They went back out to the waiting room where everyone was gathered, and Draco had a quick word with Ron. He handed Ron a key that was coded to drop the wards at their house and grant him access.
"I'll be back as soon as I can," Ron said. "Come get me if there's any change."
"Thank you," Draco said sincerely. "I know you want to be here, but there's no one else I trust," he said to Harry's best friend, meaning every word of it. He knew that Ron would find out if a spell was cast in their house. Not only was he Harry's partner at work, but he was a damn good Auror. And his personal interest would ensure there would be no media leak.
"I know," Ron responded with a hint of a smile. "If there was a spell cast, I'll run preliminary tests, but I might need to call in experts."
"If absolutely necessary, that's fine. We need to know if Harry was cursed. And if he was, we need to catch the person that did it, so we can find out what the curse was and reverse it."
Ron Disapparated and Draco went back to Harry's room.
~*~*~
"Is he stable enough for the other tests?" he asked the emergency Healer on duty.
"Yes," Healer Branson replied. "In fact, I was just about to call the others in." He looked down at Molly and added, "I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave while we run some further tests."
She looked up at Draco, and he saw the unshed tears in her eyes. He placed a soothing hand on her shoulder and nodded. "You need to let them do their jobs, Molly," he told her. Suddenly, he was pulled into her embrace.
"You make him better, Draco. Make sure they do their best." He could feel rather than hear her sobs.
"I'll do what I can."
"I know you will, dear. You love him, and I know you'll take care of him." She smiled sadly and left the room.
Well, considering they'd only just professed their love for each other that day, she was certainly up to speed. He smiled briefly as he realized that they had been in love for some time. They'd only just got round to acknowledging it out loud. And now ...
"Healer Malfoy, you really should --"
Draco fixed him with a glare. "Don't imagine for a minute that I will be leaving this room."
The other Healer's eyes grew wide. Draco may not be in charge of the Emergency Department, but his reputation certainly preceded him. And he imagined that his reaction solidified his position.
"I'm not going to argue with you, but --"
"Good," Draco cut in. "I believe you said you were getting the other experts?"
~*~*~
One week had passed, and Draco was frustrated beyond belief. Ron had determined that no magic had been cast by anyone but Harry or Draco in their bedroom or anywhere else in the house. Though they didn't know exactly what caused Harry's condition, all the experts agreed that it had been a curse, cast to have what they believed to be a delayed reaction, prompted by an as-yet-unidentified trigger. The fact that no magic had been detected near them suggested that the trigger took some other form.
However, try as he might, Draco was unable to determine what that trigger might have been. They had done nothing out of the ordinary, had eaten nothing strange, had not brought any foreign substance, plants, food or anything new into the house. It had been a typical day, until Harry had screamed out in pain, had a fit and collapsed.
Harry's condition was the most frustrating thing. He had not yet regained consciousness, although his body had seemed to adjust to the onslaught of whatever it was the curse was doing to him. Because the curse hadn't stopped. Draco had been stunned when the Head of the Spell Damage Unit had told him what they had concluded. Harry's body was changing at a molecular level. His body was transfiguring into something else.
They didn't know what he was becoming, but she had suggested that the changes were similar to those experienced by werewolves during their transformations. However, she assured him that Harry was not a werewolf. In fact, as the full moon drew nearer, the transformation seemed to slow. It was still occurring, but not nearly as rapidly as it had on the night Draco had brought him in. That news didn't comfort him in the least. At least if Harry was a werewolf, there was Wolfsbane which, with his skills at potion-making, Draco could readily make. This was unknown. And he knew of no cases where damage to a human body at the molecular level had ever been cured.
Draco had never felt so helpless in all his life.
The most frustrating development, however, was the morning's Prophet. On the front page was the headline, "Saviour of the Wizarding World Dying?" The article reported that sources at the Ministry had confirmed Harry Potter's unscheduled absence from duty, and a source at the hospital had reported that he had been in isolation for a week, but could not provide details.
It was only a matter of time before Draco would be inundated with owls. Cringing at the knowledge that he would likely be blamed for what had happened (there were still plenty of people who thought he had tricked Harry into being with him), and would probably be receiving Howlers that would only serve to distract him from the task at hand, Draco Apparated to St. Mungo's.
He had spent the first few nights at Harry's bedside, but eventually took the advice given him by Molly and Ron. The five of them - Molly, Arthur, Ron, Hermione and Draco - would all take turns remaining by his side, to ensure that he was never alone. They all had coins, an idea left over from the DA days, which they could use to alert each other of any change in Harry's condition. This would allow them all to get proper rest and nutrition to better focus their efforts during waking hours. He could hardly disagree with the logic, so he had relented.
He and his staff worked around the clock in shifts, trying to figure out which dark spells might be responsible for such a thing, but as yet they'd come up with nothing. And certainly nothing that had a hidden trigger to set it in motion. Of course, not knowing what Harry was turning into made this task even harder. That was left to the group in Spell Damage.
Ron and the rest of the Aurors were working around the clock as well, trying to determine who the likely culprit might have been. Harry had pissed off a fair few in his years as an Auror, so the list was fairly long. Fortunately, most of those were eliminated fairly quickly, for sheer lack of skill. They had reduced the list now to fifteen that were currently free, plus, due to the delayed nature of the spell, another twelve still in prison. So far, they didn't have enough evidence to be granted permission to use Veritaserum on any of them, unless they volunteered. This frustrated everyone, knowing how much faster it would be to eliminate suspects. So far, only three had voluntarily presented themselves, lawyers alongside to ensure only the one case was discussed, and they had been cleared.
Perhaps there was a positive side to the article. Now that Harry's condition had been revealed, Ron could more actively seek voluntary interviews. He hadn't revealed that it was Harry who was injured, but rather had been asking, "Have you done anything to directly injure an Auror?" Perhaps they could eliminate a handful more now.
~*~*~
"Any new developments?" Draco asked as he entered his office, having quickly checked up on Harry. It was shift change between Molly and Arthur, so he'd only spent a short while telling Harry to be strong, and that he'd be working on finding him a cure.
"Nothing," Sarah replied. She had been two years behind them in Hogwarts, a Ravenclaw, and was a potions genius. Not quite to Draco's level, but pretty darn close. He had considered it quite a coup to recruit her onto his team, and she had yet to disappoint. She was relentless, just like Draco. "I'm sorry."
He knew she meant it. He could see the dark circles under her eyes, yet the fire in them, that which was always there when she was trying to solve the seemingly unsolvable, was still flaring.
"Go home, Sarah. You need your rest."
"Not yet, boss. I still have a half dozen things I need to consider before going."
"You need your rest."
She looked up at him with a raised eyebrow, as if to say, Oh, really? "And you don't?" she asked.
"That's beside the point."
"No, it isn't. You've only allowed yourself the shortest of breaks, and I believe that was only after the unrelenting pressure of Harry's adoptive family. You're here eighteen hours a day. I've only been here ... let me see." She consulted her watch. "Eleven. That gives me a whole seven hours more before I reach the point when I have to leave."
"Sarah, I appreciate your tenacity, but --"
"But nothing, boss. This is important to you. And, in case you hadn't noticed, I happen to like Harry. So it's important to me too."
He smiled at her, but still insisted, "Thanks, Sarah, but you need --"
"Not to mention it's the most intriguing thing I've ever worked on, and I couldn't possibly let anyone else crack this case, could I?" She gave him a cheeky smile, and he caved. Damn, she was good. Should have been in Slytherin.
He laughed. "Fine. Stay. But let it be on your conscience. Let me note for the record that I tried to send you home, but you were entirely insubordinate, and stayed regardless." She gave him a smug smile in response.
He got the update from her. They'd been going through medical texts, and had exhausted the hospital's library days ago. Hermione had been relentless in her pursuit of more information, taking a leave from work to help with the research efforts. Draco had taken her to the Malfoy library, and she had been short-listing books, giving them to Draco's team with notes and tags indicating possible spells, potions, curses. So far, they'd eliminated everything. Everyone was getting frustrated. Sarah had five things left to consider in the current text, which she was determined to complete before leaving.
He left her to it, and went to the other department to get an update on the blood work they had done.
"Any news?" he asked. There was no need for clarification. Everyone knew Draco's position, and what he needed to know.
"The best I can determine is still that it's similar to a werewolf's transformation," the lab tech, Richard, replied. "But we're a long way in determining the pattern of cell growth, now that it's been a week. We weren't able to determine much on previous blood panels, but the changes that recently happened seem to be more conclusive."
"And?" Draco asked. The newbie was keen, that was for sure, but he liked to build up for his big reveal, which drove Draco mad. Knowing, however, that he needed the man on his side, he reined in his temper and waited.
"We've consulted a few books over about werewolves, and there are many parallels. It's just that the cell changes are not canine in nature. They seem to be more feline in nature."
"Feline?"
"Yes, but not entirely. It's strange, but there seems to be a bit of dragon in there as well."
"Is there anything in the literature about this?"
"Not in any medical texts I've read," he replied, looking rather excited by the possibility of something new. Ordinarily Draco would be intrigued as well, but with Harry as the patient, he would happily have had it be something mundane and well-within the ordinary.
"Well, keep at it, and let me know if there are any further developments."
"Will do."
Draco went back to his office and made a Floo-call to the one person who knew more about strange creatures than anyone.
~*~*~
"Draco, what is it?" Hagrid asked in a panic. "It's not Harry, is it? He's still okay, right?"
"No, Hagrid, he's not okay," replied Draco, "but he hasn't taken a sharp turn."
"Oh, well okay, you scared me for a mo'." He sat down with his hand on his chest, trying to regain his breath. "Why don' you come through? I hate talkin' ter body parts."
Draco made his way into Hagrid's hut, wondering just what body parts he'd been talking to previously. Not the time to make jokes, he set that thought aside.
"Hagrid, the lab at the hospital has made some progress. I don't know how much Ron has told you, but Harry's body seems to be transforming, but up until now we've been unable to determine what it's transforming into."
"Yeah, Ron was sayin'."
"The transformation is gradual, and was indistinct until yesterday. The change in the blood taken yesterday was significant enough for them to isolate some of the properties that are non-human."
"Er ... I'm not sure what that has ter do with me."
"The changes indicate feline and dragon presence in his blood. Do you know of any creatures that are part cat and part dragon?" Draco asked. "You're the one person I know that has the most knowledge of creatures."
Hagrid's chest puffed out and his face wore an expression of pride at Draco's words. "Er ... I'm sure there's summat like that. Can I get back ter you later today?"
Draco smiled, knowing that Hagrid would make this his priority.
~*~*~
An owl interrupted Draco as he returned to his office after his shift with Harry. He had brought some of the books Hermione had sent over with him, to study while he was there, but it was hard to concentrate while he was waiting for Hagrid's reply. He had felt that they'd made some progress, and that it was the key to helping Harry.
The owl was from Hagrid.
Draco:
You didn't answer your Floo, so I've sent this owl off to you while I go to class.
I think I might have come up with something. A manticore is a creature that's part human, part lion and part either dragon or scorpion, depending on the variety.
They're not very common any more, and have pretty much died out. But there have been stories of one in Albania. I have a contact over there that I've owled already, to get more information.
Let me know what you want me to do next.
Hagrid
Draco re-read the note again. Stories of one in Albania.
Fuck! It couldn't be! It's been ten years, but ... fuck! It's too much of a coincidence.
Pushing his thoughts to the side, he scribbled a quick thank you note, asking Hagrid to keep investigating, and to let him know what else he finds out. Then he went to see Sarah.
"I think I know what it is," he said.
"What?"
"A manticore. And," he continued as calmly as he could, "I think Voldemort did it."
"But he's been dead --"
"Ten years. I know. But if this creature is a manticore, which I think it is, don't you find it a little too coincidental that the one place Voldemort was known to have been hiding out for over a decade is the only known location of a manticore?"
"You're kidding!"
"I'm not. Now it may not have been him; it could have been one of his minions. But aside from my father and my crazy aunt, I don't think any of them would have been capable. And with my aunt dead at the same time, and my father switching sides at the end, it's not bloody likely that either of them is responsible. Besides, I have to admit that the man, or whatever he was at the end, was a brilliant wizard. No one knew the Dark Arts better than him. And he was always after Harry. This would be just like him. If he couldn't kill Harry, he'd find something to torture him with."
"But why would he delay it?"
Draco frowned. He had wondered the same thing. "I have no idea, Sarah. It makes no sense. And when would he have done it? And what triggered it?"
"Well, I say we focus on figuring out what spell could initiate a change into a creature like a manticore. And let the others determine whether or not it really is a manticore, or something else. And what the nature of the change will be, if and when it happens."
"But we need to fix him," Draco said almost helplessly.
"Right. But to fix him we need to know how Voldemort or whoever hurt him."
Draco nodded. "Of course."
"And you're going to have to face the fact that we might not be able to fix him. Before he transforms, or ever."
"But we can't give up!"
"Of course we won't give up. But we need to consider the possibility that he will end up transforming. Perhaps there's a way to delay it or minimize the effects of it. That might be our best hope. So let us figure out the how, and let them figure out the what. The when, why and who can wait."
~*~*~
Three days later, and little had changed, Harry's transformation continuing. The full moon had now come and gone, with no noticeable change. Perhaps the lunar cycle had nothing to do with it. But how long did they have then?
The best they could come up with was that it was, in fact, a manticore. Harry's blood remained a mix of human, lion (they'd determined it was lion rather than any other cat) and dragon. Unless there was some other creature they hadn't heard of, that was what they were dealing with. Not a pleasant thought, since the locals often assumed that when people went missing without a trace, manticores were to blame. The stories were of a creature that could kill instantly with a bite or a scratch, and will then eat the victim entirely, bones and all.
Hagrid had gone on to explain that the creature was related to the sphinx, and may or may not ask its victims riddles before consuming them. Not much comfort, but Draco welcomed any information he could get. Because there hadn't been much experience with manticores, and precious little documentation over the years, they were left with speculation rather than fact. Draco, being of a scientific mind, abhorred speculation, but had little choice in the matter.
Draco was growing desperate. He knew that Harry's body was still changing, however slowly, and that he couldn't stop it. They could wait until he completely transformed, but they had no idea whether it would be permanent or temporary, fixed or cyclical. Their main goal was to prevent the change from taking place at all, but as time ticked away, that seemed less of a possibility. The lesser of two evils, if he were to transform, was to hope that it was like a werewolf's transformation at the full moon, and would recede afterwards, only to return when it was time.
Considering the nature of a manticore, if the stories were true, Harry would have to be confined to a space that could contain him. That was where Hagrid's expertise would come in handy. Of course, knowing Hagrid, he couldn't be trusted to actually execute the segregation, because he'd just figure that Harry would be there, underneath it all, and he'd probably put him on a leash or something.
Merlin, what am I thinking? I can't lock Harry up, or put him on a leash like some animal! But inside he knew that if he didn't do something soon, that would be exactly what Harry was - an animal.
~*~*~
"Healer Malfoy!" Draco heard a voice coming through the Floo several days later. "Healer Malfoy, are you there?"
"Yes, yes, I'm here. What is it?" As he entered the sitting room, he recognized the disembodied head as one of the lab techs working on Harry's case. Oh, who was he kidding? The entire hospital was working on Harry's case. If they knew what was good for them.
"Is it about Harry?"
"Yes, Mr Potter's condition has worsened. The transformation is accelerating, and his body temperature is spiking again."
"Oh, God."
"Everyone is there with him, but they asked me to call you."
"Thank you. I'll be right there."
Draco had placed the coin on the bathroom counter while he showered, and he'd just gotten dressed, and must have missed Molly's alert. He went back into the bathroom, retrieved the coin, then gathered up his notes and, not trusting his ability to Apparate, he Flooed to the hospital.
~*~*~
As he entered Harry's room, he saw all but one of the Heads of Units on site, some clearly having been called in from home, in various states of dress. He watched, helpless, as Harry appeared to be going through a similar fit as had happened that first night. Only ...
Oh, God! They had removed Harry's pyjama top, and Draco could see that his skin had stretched, and reddish hair was growing from his arms and torso. His shoulders and chest had broadened, and although he wasn't conscious, his face was contorted in pain. His face seemed a bit ... off, his mouth slightly wider than usual.
"When did all this happen?" he asked.
"In the last half hour."
"Do you know what's happening, what triggered it?"
"If it's anything like the werewolf transformation, it could be based on the lunar cycle," someone said. "The new moon is tonight."
"Then why would he be changing now?" Draco asked.
"How the hell should we know?" someone snapped. They had a point.
"Right. Sorry," he said. "What does this mean?"
"It means we're going to have to restrain him."
"But --" Draco knew that it had been a possibility, but hadn't really accepted it.
"Draco, we have no other choice. There are people in danger if this really is a manticore. We don't know what we'll be dealing with, what his strength will be like."
"If this is any indication, he'll need much more than the standard restraining spells."
Draco went up to Harry, and placed a calming hand on his forehead. "Come on, Harry," he whispered as he stroked Harry's face. "You can fight this."
Harry's eyes opened, vibrant blue staring right through Draco. "Help me," he cried, and as he did so, Draco could see why his mouth had looked distorted. He had three rows of razor-sharp teeth that had been dangerously close to Draco's wrist.
"I'm trying," Draco managed to choke out, tears in his eyes. "We're trying."
"Get back!" one of the Healers called out. They all stepped back, Draco whispering, "I love you" as he did so.
The Healer surrounded Harry's bed with a set of wards to prevent his escape, then mercifully released his arms and legs from the restraints. "Further back," he called, then put a second set of wards up, and continued to do so until there were seven protective wards between Harry and everyone else in the room.
"I can't be sure they will contain him, but it will do for now. At least it will buy us time."
"Time for what?" Draco asked.
No one answered. No one knew what was to come.
~*~*~
Draco stayed in the room as he watched Harry, who had succumbed to sleep shortly after opening his eyes and begging for help. He was writhing in pain, which was no small surprise, considering his body was growing and transforming before Draco's eyes.
It was then, while watching Harry but unable to touch him, having heard his voice begging help me, but being unable to help him, that Draco finally let the tears flow.
After a time, Harry had become increasingly larger, and Draco had to call the Healer back to adjust the wards. He'd based the size on the average lion, but clearly Harry was going to transform into something significantly larger. After making the adjustments, the Healer left them alone again.
"Oh, Harry, I wish I could stop this. I wish I could help you. I wish this had never happened. I won't stop working on a cure, you know. But for now, I'll stay here with you. I can't work anyway, knowing the pain you're in. I just wish I could hold you. I love you so much."
A sound reverberated through the wards, sounding like trumpets. Draco couldn't make out any words, but it sounded almost as though there were some buried beneath the musical hum.
By morning, it was clear that Hagrid had been correct. Pacing around the inside of the wards was a manticore, the head a distorted version of Harry's face with blue rather than green eyes, but still with that scar; that would piss Harry off, Draco thought. It figures, the one thing he'd want to get rid of the most would still be there in his transformed state. The body was that of a red lion, and the tail that of a dragon, a Hungarian Horntail, if Draco wasn't mistaken.
If it weren't such a sad situation, he might find the transformation ironic. Harry, Golden Boy of Gryffindor, partially transforming into a lion. Harry, would-be Slytherin and boyfriend of Draco, partially transforming into the very same dragon he'd defeated during the Triwizard Tournament in fourth year.
~*~*~
That morning a new headline graced the cover of The Prophet: "Hero a Danger to Himself and Others?" The article spoke of the containment wards placed on Harry's room, and suggested that his affliction might be something dangerous. They speculated on his being a vampire or a werewolf, something far too close to the truth for Draco's liking.
A staff meeting was called, and Draco wasted no time. "Who the fuck leaked this information? I want the names of everyone who has access to his room or his records by lunch time!" he yelled to the room, not caring that they were his equals and not his subordinates.
"I'm taking care of it," the head of Administration advised him. "Leave it to me." Draco calmed slightly after that. Although he would prefer to take care of it himself, he knew he had other priorities.
"Keep me apprised of any developments."
"I will."
Within the hour, hospital security had one Amanda Fletcher, cousin of the reporter who wrote the two articles on Harry, escorted out of the building by Ron Weasley. She was facing multiple charges, and Draco was satisfied.
~*~*~
That mess taken care of, and the security department adding further background checks to its standard hiring protocol for anyone with access to higher than mid-level security records, Draco could get back to Harry.
Harry, in his new form, wandered almost endlessly. Draco wondered if he would sleep, but it seemed not. He occasionally made trumpet-sounding noises, but otherwise was silent. He seemed to consider the people around him, looking menacing, but not attempting to attack. He got agitated when they took pictures of him, all the while Draco assuring him that it was only for his medical file, and to help find a cure, but still didn't attempt to break through the wards. He was still pacing by the time Draco fell asleep that night.
Draco woke up to find the creature that was Harry sitting down staring at him. The body seemed to have shrunken in size, but the form was still that of the manticore, although the hair seemed to be receding back into the skin, and the tail had lost the spikes, now looking bumpy. The eyes were a blue-green, and the mouth seemed to be slightly smaller.
"Harry?" Draco asked. The creature's trumpet sound tugged at Draco's heart. "I think you're turning back now. It looks like you're well on your way," he assured Harry. "I can see it in your eyes; you're coming back to me. I'm going to call the others in, but I'll be right back."
The team of Healers came into the room with their notes. "He's been going down in size at approximately the same rate as he had increased before."
"It looks like the worst has passed."
"We'll run a full diagnostic once he's transformed completely, but it looks like he'll be back to normal soon."
"Then you'll drop the wards?" Draco asked.
"Yes."
Good. Draco couldn't wait to hold Harry in his arms again.
~*~*~
Once Harry had transformed back, he had asked Draco what had happened. He looked so drained that Draco told him to rest first, and that he would explain later. Uncharacteristically, Harry agreed and fell almost instantly asleep.
He left Harry under the care of the other Healers and went to his office. Within minutes, Ron Floo-called.
"Draco, we need to talk."
"Come on through." He waited until Ron entered his office, offered him a seat and asked, "What is it? News about Harry's case?"
"Yeah, it seems the little media leak may have had a silver lining after all."
"What do you mean?"
In reply, Ron handed him a piece of parchment.
Head of Auror Department:
If you're reading this missive I am sad to say,
That wee baby Potter has done me away.
Oh, I'll be back again, of that I am sure.
But in the meantime, you'll be needing a cure.
A surprise I left, in wee Potter's mind,
Came to life it did, when love he did find.
Oh yes, how wonderful this little treat.
For in love he finds glory and in love, defeat.
Answer me this, now my work is unleashed,
A shame that young Potter will turn into a beast.
A cousin of his was at Hogwarts one time,
To riddle a riddle and rhyme a rhyme.
Once you've figured out what he will be,
You will have some time, but no more than three.
The first time it happens will be a curse,
But each time afterwards, it only gets worse.
A treatment you must craft; it's a race against time.
I created the curse, so a cure you can't find.
Remember these words as he writhes in pain.
After three, forever in this form he'll remain.
"It sounds like my aunt, with the wee baby Potter shite," Draco said, putting the letter down and facing Ron.
"That's what I thought, but the part about I'll be back ... that's got Voldemort written all over it."
"Fuck."
"Yeah, that's pretty much what I thought."
"He gets him from beyond the grave."
"It sure looks that way."
"Fuck!"
"So, Draco, what do you figure he means by three? We have three what?"
"We think, but we can't be sure since it hasn't even been a month yet, that the transformation is based on the lunar cycle."
"Like a werewolf?"
"Yeah."
"Hermione mentioned that."
"Yeah, but it looks like Harry changes on the new moon rather than the full moon," Draco explained. "But I suppose we'll only know for sure in another four weeks."
"What, you're just going to wait?"
"Hell, no. We're looking into a way to reverse it. I presume he used manticore's blood to initiate the spell, so Hagrid is going to Albania to try to get some for me to use."
"Albania? Isn't that where --"
"Yeah, where Voldemort hid for over a decade. That's what made me think it was him back when Hagrid told me about it. I guess this letter validates that thought."
"Seems that way."
"Where did the letter come from?"
"It seems that it was left with a lawyer who was directed to send it to the Head of the Auror Department, should he hear anything about a strange illness befalling Harry Potter."
"And he read the article in the paper."
"Yes. We brought him in for questioning just before I came here. He said he saw the first article, but didn't hear anything more, so he didn't send it. But after the second one ..."
"That could have saved us some time, had we seen it earlier."
"I know, but you can hardly blame the guy, after all the articles that have appeared in the paper about Harry over the years."
"I suppose you're right."
"This is your copy; I still have the original in my office. I need to get back to finish questioning the guy. I'll catch up with you later, yeah?"
"Yeah. Thanks, Ron."
Ron slapped him on the back. "No problem, mate. Anything for Harry."
"Yeah. Anything for Harry."
After Ron left, Draco kept re-reading the one stanza over and over again:
A surprise I left, in wee Potter's mind,
Came to life it did, when love he did find.
Oh yes, how wonderful this little treat.
For in love he finds glory and in love, defeat.
What a cruel, sick bastard he was. Then again, it shouldn't surprise Draco. And if he thought about it from Voldemort's point of view, he had to admit the whole thing had a terrible irony to it.
~*~*~
Hagrid was sent a team to work with him in Albania, to track and capture the manticore. Not many were willing to volunteer, but he had four magical creature experts that took up the challenge, after they'd heard it was for Harry Potter.
Meanwhile, Draco's team continued working with Hermione to find a curse that might have been used, or some variation Voldemort might have enhanced or altered, while Draco set out to figure out a potion that might help. He'd decided to focus on two approaches. One was an outright cure, and the other was the permanent nature of the cyclical transformation. If he couldn't find a cure, the latter would theoretically sustain the transformations at one two-day change each month, if it turned out the new moon was the trigger. And presuming Voldemort hadn't lied.
"He didn't lie," Harry told Draco after he'd explained everything.
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because he always shot off his mouth, bragging about his great plans and schemes. He was like the villain in every bad Muggle movie I've seen."
"What are you talking about?"
"Well, he grew up in a Muggle orphanage, so I figure he watched his fair share of Muggle telly, right?"
"Okay." Draco still didn't get it.
"Well, in all the good guy/bad guy movies, the bad guy, just as he's about to kill the good guy, confesses everything, and tells the good guy his plans, because he can't resist bragging about how great he is. Then the good guy manages to get away, and with the information the bad guy gave him, manages to save the day."
"You'd think Voldemort would keep his plans to himself then, right?"
"You'd think, but he fancied himself smarter than everyone else. So he would feel cocky enough to do it."
"Alright then, if you say so."
"So, my hero, how goes the potion development?"
Draco cringed. "I hate being called a hero," he said. Harry laughed.
"Well, hell has officially frozen over. So, ferret boy, you don't like the limelight?" Ron asked as he entered the room.
"Very funny, weasel."
"Hey, guys --" Harry began, but Draco stopped him by raising his hand.
"Relax, Harry, we're fine. It's all in good fun, right, Ron?"
"Absolutely. Your imminent demise united us like nothing else could." Draco cringed.
"Well, I'm so glad something good came of this."
"Well, gotta find that silver lining, right?"
"You did not just say that!" Draco exclaimed.
Harry laughed. "Draco, really, leave it. He's always been insensitive, and frankly I wouldn't want him any other way."
Draco leered at Harry and glared. "You'd better not want him any way."
"Eeeewww!" both Harry and Ron exclaimed together. Satisfied, Draco took his leave to work on the potion now that he had a good sample of Harry's blood.
~*~*~
Three weeks later, a very irritable Harry Potter was still under observation at the hospital, and itching to go home.
"Draco, enough of this. I'm not a guinea pig."
"No, you're a manticore. Now shut up. We need to observe you as the month progresses, to see if we're right about the lunar cycle."
"What about the cure?"
"I'm afraid Hagrid hasn't been able to capture the manticore yet, and it seems that Voldemort was telling the truth about inventing the spell himself."
"I told you he wasn't lying."
"Yes, I know, but we still had to look, right?"
"What about your work on the other potion?"
"Ideally, I need the manticore's blood for that too. But I'm working with yours in the meantime. Because it's diluted with your blood - even more so now that you are in your human form - it isn't working. My best bet will be to draw blood from you when you have fully changed. That way, the concentration, if it's anything like it was during your first transformation, should be high enough to work. In theory anyway."
"Oh, well that makes me feel so much better," Harry deadpanned.
Draco took a calming breath, knowing that if he were in Harry's situation, he would have blasted the place down by now. "Harry, I'm doing everything I can, but there's only so much I can do without the more highly concentrated blood."
"I know, but it's frustrating."
"It's frustrating for all of us."
"Yeah, but at least you're not about to change into --" Harry's eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed. "Aaarrghh!" he screamed. "Hot. Burning up. Draco, make it stop! Hurts so much!"
Sure enough, Harry's skin was hot to the touch, like it had been the night he first brought him to St. Mungo's. Draco called for assistance and began running diagnostic spells. "You still with me, Harry?"
"Yeah, but it hurts. Can't you do something?"
"We need to make sure your body can take it, but yeah, I think we can. You're not convulsing like you did that night. I think your body isn't in quite as much shock as that first time."
"Good to know," Harry choked out. "Now could you do something about this pain?"
"He can't, Mr Potter, but perhaps I can," another Healer explained as he entered the room.
"His body seems to be tolerating it better this time. His heart rate, though elevated, isn't as erratic as the last time."
"Fair enough, then." He cast a calming spell on Harry and gave him some pain potion. "Is that better, Mr Potter?"
"Yeah," Harry panted, sweating. "Thanks."
"You'll be okay," Draco reassured him as he wiped his brow with a damp cloth.
"You're a crap liar," Harry said. "But thanks for trying."
Draco smiled at him. "I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you're okay."
"I know you are," Harry said, as he took Draco's hand and brought it to his lips. "Maybe you should start by taking some blood."
"Oh, right!"
Harry rolled his eyes. "No wonder they won't let you work on me! You can't concentrate at all."
"Shut up!"
Harry winced only slightly as Draco drew some blood. "I'll be back to get more later."
"No worries. I'll be here. Not going anywhere tonight."
"Prat." Draco kissed him on the forehead. "I love you."
"Mmm, love you too. Hurry up and find that cure." He pulled Draco down so he could whisper in his ear. "I miss you, if you get what I mean," he said.
Draco got what he meant. As part of the observation, the Healers thought it best for Harry to refrain from having sex, should it prove to have been part of the trigger, or worsen his condition. They both thought it was a load of rubbish, but weren't willing to risk it.
~*~*~
Harry's second transformation went more smoothly than the first, presumably because his body was already prepared for the onslaught, in a way. However, once he had transformed, Harry took on a decidedly more aggressive demeanour.
"The aggression is more in line with what a manticore is like," Hermione pointed out, quite unnecessarily.
"Yeah ... I suppose that's what Voldemort meant by it gets worse," Ron added.
"What are we missing?" Draco asked. "We have to be able to find a way to cast a spell that lies dormant for years, then once it activates with some trigger, it releases progressively."
"I still think it's a series of spells, Draco." Hermione had mentioned that thought a few days ago. "I've found a spell that acts as a timer, often used for detonating a destructive spell, to give the caster time to get away. Then there's another, commonly used on potions, that delays the release of the medication. But I've found nothing that can regulate the intensity to increase, or to start and stop in bursts. I'm at a loss."
"Well, if what Voldemort says is true, we've got precious little time remaining to find a cure."
"And what if we don't fine one?" Hermione asked.
"I can't think like that, Hermione. I ... I just can't."
"Yeah, 'Mione," agreed Ron, "we can't give up on Harry."
"I know, but --" Her words broke off as the tears came. "I can't believe this is happening."
Ron took her in his arms to comfort her. "You can't fall apart now, 'Mione. Harry needs you. He needs all of us. You're the one with all the book smarts, Draco here is the potions expert, and me ... well, I provide the comic relief." She chuckled as his self-deprecating remark.
"And you catch the bad guys," Draco said.
Ron looked up and smiled sadly. "Yeah, I catch the bad guys." He held Hermione a bit closer. "But how do I catch a ghost?"
Part 2