Chapter 7
Harry sat, frozen. Not daring to move, not even to breathe. The room seemed warped, shook, and spun. He could hear voices afar off, but couldn't quite make them out. The edges of his vision started to turn black as his mind ran wild with all the things that they could have seen on his back, when a pair of hands wrapped themselves around his wrists.
He snapped back to reality. He wrenched himself away from whoever had a hold of him, and would have toppled over the back of his seat if a pair of arms hadn't steadied him. He looked up, expecting to see the face of his Uncle, but hoping for his parents. But it wasn't any of them.
It was Sirius.
Sirius was looking down at him, not with anger, or hate, or disgust that he is used to. Or the pity that he had come to expect from those that he lets in on what goes on at the Dursleys' house. No. Instead, he sees nothing but understanding.
Understanding from someone who has been in his shoes before. Understanding from someone who knows on some level what he has been going through, and won't judge him for it.
Harry turns in Sirius' gentle hold, and wraps his arms around him as best as he can. His shoulders shaking with the force of the sobs that he lets out into Sirius' shirt.
Harry's parents, both by birth and adopted, all came to comfort him. Whether that be rubbing his back, running their hand through his hair, whispering soft words of comfort, or even just being a comforting presence.
Sirius wraps his own arms around Harry in a hug. After a moment he slowly sits down on the ground with Harry in his lap, rocking him back and forth. His hand rubbing Harry's back as the small child clung onto him. Minutes ticked by, as Sirius helps Harry through his panic attack. Whispering comforting, and funny quips into his hair. Finally, Harry was able to pull himself together, and they were able to continue on with the book.
And although they wanted to know what it was that they had seen, they didn't think it would be a good idea to bring up a touchy/painful subject so soon after Sirius got Harry to calm down.
Harry's parents on the other hand, were adamant that they were going to sit down with Harry, and see if maybe he would tell them what happened. They'll also be bringing Bones along as well. But they'll let Harry calm down and cool off right now. They'll wait until, maybe in between books, to get him to tell them the truth.
Chapter Seven: Mudbloods and Murmurs
Ripples of anger spread throughout the Hall.
...
He, Ron, and Hermione were planning to visit Hagrid on Saturday morning. Harry, however, was shaken awake several hours earlier than he would have liked by Oliver Wood, Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.
"Whassamatter?" said Harry groggily.
"Quidditch practice!" said Wood. "Come on!"
Harry squinted at the window. There was a thin mist hanging across the pink-and-gold sky. Now that he was awake, he couldn't understand how he could have slept through the racket the birds were making.
"Oliver," Harry croaked. "It's the ass crack of dawn."
Steve opened his mouth to reprimand Harry on instinct, when half the Hall laughingly said, "Language!"
Bucky looked at Steve with a smile on his face.
"Don't look at me like that Buck. I may have a worse mouth than you, but you're the one who would curse at superior officers. So when they saw that I wasn't swearing, and that we are friends, they asked me to do what I could to keep you in line." Steve said, they could all tell that he's been wanting to get this off his chest for a while.
