Harry potter and the breeding darkness

Chapter 54

Landing in the tunnel, making sure his cloak covered him, Harry held still to let the wave of dizziness subside. It was the first time he Apparated since being hit with the curse, so there were problems, especially since he wasn't fully back to normal yet. He was mostly there, but some of the 'fuzziness' still remained. Despite that, he and Tom, both, thought it was best to get him back into the castle to minimize any problems Barty may have or his chance of getting caught. As he had a couple of days left of isolation, he would be fine and mostly 'with it' by the time that ended. Besides, this would get him back into the routine enough that nothing would appear 'off' when he had to go back to attending classes.

Once he was under control and the dizziness left, Harry pulled out the map to make damned sure Thor and Draco were waiting on him. Seeing their names at the entrance, he nodded, pleased with that. This was going to be a delicate dance anyway, especially getting Barty out of the castle, so he wanted it to go as smoothly as possible. Then he could get filled in on everything that happened. That, though, he was going to have done over the next couple days to negate any of the effects of what he was dealing with. Snape could handle most of it, and probably would, the others were trickier to work with. Once he was settled, he would have to set up the plan he and Tom had come up with to get him out of the castle every night. It was easy enough, of course, but their help was needed.Stepping out into the hallway, he hissed Thor and Draco's name after checking to ensure that no one else was close. Seeing them look in his direction, he lowered the cloak a little so they could see his face then raised it again. "Alright, keep an eye out and let's get this done."With a firm nod, Thor pulled out his own map and began to lead the way down to the isolation room where Barty was. Quietly, he asked, "Are you alright, Mr. Potter? We weren't told exactly what happened.""I'll live," Harry told him grimly, following along. "It's just taking time to get back to normal is all.""What happened anyway?" Draco asked in a whisper, keeping an eye out."I'll explain it all, just not right now. It's too much of a risk if something, or someone, overhears," Harry told him, walking along and staying focused."It had to be bad to put you out of commission," Draco mumbled, looking around and consulting his map."You have no idea how bad," Harry sighed, shaking his head. "I'll explain, I promise. I need filled in on everything that's happened anyway, just to make sure I know what to be wary of.""We'll handle it, don't worry," Thor told him, leading them down a lesser known passage that would take them straight to the dungeons where Severus would meet them. "Are you going to be up to getting back to 'normal' around here in a couple days?""I should be," Harry told him. "There might be some problems here and there, but it won't be anything to worry about.""Good," Thor nodded, directing them to the side passage where Severus was waiting at a hidden door. "We made it with no problem," he sighed as they stepped through, meeting Severus.Panting a little, feeling tired, Harry said, "Good. Let's get this over with so it doesn't look off." Checking the map once more to make damned sure that no one else was around, he then stripped the Invisibility Cloak off. Quietly, he asked, "Is he ready?""He is," Severus said with a firm nod. "Give him the cloak and Professor Rowle will bring it back when we're done."

"Let's do this then. Once he's off, you need to fill me in," Harry said, stepping through the door that the man opened. Looking at Barty, he grinned, chuckling. The polyjuice hadn't worn off yet, so he was staring at a duplicate of himself. "This is strange," he snorted, shaking his head.

"It is!" Barty said with a big grin, happy for the confirmation that his friend was, indeed, fine. "You doing better? Last time I saw you, you were still out.""Much better," Harry told him with a firm nod. "We'll talk more tomorrow about it. Just get out of here and keep yourself safe while you do." Harry said, passing the cloak over.Taking it and draping it over himself, Barty said, "Will do. Good to have you back." Covering himself completely, he gave Harry a clap on the shoulder then said, "Let's do this," to the other two.Waiting for them to leave and the door to shut, feeling the wards slide into place, Harry flopped in a chair with a tired sigh. Rubbing his face, he said, "Give me the basics of what's gone on. I'll get more details in the next few days. I'm still a little fuzzy and don't want to overload myself."Ordering his thoughts, Snape rattled off the biggest of what had gone on, making sure to add that Albus had tried getting in once. When he finished, he said, "He's going to try again, we both know that. I doubt he's going to let this state pass him by as he may think that he can get something out of you."Snorting, Harry shook his head then said, "Let him try. I'm not up to 100%, but I'm good enough he won't get anywhere." Looking at the man, he said, lowering his voice though there was no chance of being overheard, "There is a full meeting the day after tomorrow, at night. Expect a summons. Only Thor won't get one. We're handling Wormtail then."Nodding, Snape said nothing, crossing his arms over his chest and waiting.Trying to think, something affected by the aftermath of the spell and his tired state, Harry sighed, "I assume you have a way to tell if Dumbledore tries to get in again.""I do," Snape told him firmly with a nod. "I'll be alerted if he even steps close to the entrance and will deal with him. It'll set off a signal in here so you can prepare.""Good enough," Harry sighed. Thinking it over, he decided that most everything else could wait until the following day then said, "Do you know anything that can speed up the healing process of the burn? I have the makeup part down, mostly. It's at least passable. I would prefer that it heal to where I can put a glamour over it."Looking down, thinking it over, Snape then slowly shook his head. "Not that I know of. Burns don't like magic of any kind. Even some potions. The creams you apply are very delicate to make and help, some. With as easily as they can get infected, most shy away from doing more than the creams. I'll look, but I wouldn't count on finding much.""I didn't think so, but I was hoping." Pulling a note out of his pants, he handed it over, "That's from the Dark Lord. It's what I've been using for the pain. It's not as bad now, but it's still enough that I will probably need something. Can you come up with anything that's milder that doesn't put me to sleep?"Reading the note quickly, Severus then incinerated it with a wave of his wand. "I have a couple that will work. I'll get them to you in the morning with your breakfast." Changing topics, he asked, "Can you work with the makeup so it's not revealed?" That was something he didn't know anything about, so he was going to ask."I've got it passable. It's not as good as a woman could do it, but it'll work. Narcissa gave me a spell that will hold it in place, or however you want to term that, so it won't run, even if I get sweaty. That way I can manually take it off. For now, I'm fine. I just would rather go with the glamour."That was understandable to Severus so he nodded. "You need to be cautious with the makeup and take it off at times so the wound can breathe and heal," he told the young man."No problem there. When I switch up, I won't wear it when with the Dark Lord. That'll give it plenty of time." Harry told him, reaching up to rub his eyes. Sighing, he said, "I need sleep. I'm done for. I'll go over everything in more detail tomorrow.""If something is wrong, let me know," Severus told him. Seeing the young man nod, he then swept out.Sighing when the man left, Harry grinned and shook his head. Still as prickly as ever, despite knowing the secret. Standing with a groan, Harry found his trunk then his pajamas and went to get changed into them so he could get some sleep.