The Year of the Revolution IV. The Outbreak

18. Declaration

Sev woke up at ten past seven in the morning. He spent five minutes daydreaming about what would happen two hours later, waiting for Poppy to show up with her little tray.

She did it at a quarter past seven. "Good morning, Severus. How did you sleep?"

"Like a prince."

She put the tray on the bedside table.

"Don't put the pillows for me, I'm going to get up now," he said.

"Sure."

He sat up on the bed. He drank Poppy's potions and calculated the Stimulant dosage. Dumbledore is going to appoint me in the afternoon, after lunch. It's quarter past seven. Until a quarter past one, six hours, and another five for the Time Turner, eleven. He served and took the dose.

"I'm going to unslint you right here," she told him.

Ugh... how bad I smell. Two days without showering and after yesterday afternoon, he thought.

She removed the bandage, unwrapped it, and examined him. "You still have it somewhat inflamed, today you shouldn't use the wand excessively."

Precisely today. "Well, I think I'm going to have to, Poppy."

"How sacrificial you are. It will hurt you."

She is overwhelmed, poor woman. Someone else I've worried.

"I left your clean clothes in the bathroom," the mediwitch said.

"Poppy, can I ask you a favor?"

"Of course dear."

"It takes me a long time to dry my hair with my wand. At home I have a Muggle towel that I brought, but at school there aren't any. Can you lend me a pillowcase or something?" Sev asked.

"Sure, I'll bring it to you."

She's almost about to cry.

Sev showered quickly. Drying his hair with the pillowcase already hurt his arm. Only with this and even though I just took the painkiller potion. I'm going to have a terrible time, and I'm not going to be able to demonstrate the level that I have. He dried himself with his wand, when he finished it was almost eight.

He got dressed, it hurt too. Ugh... If it hurts me just from this, I'll hallucinate with the spells.

He started to leave the Infirmary. Poppy was waiting for him at the door. "Take it," she said, handing him an envelope with no addressee. "I just received the letter from my colleague, he has attached a message for you. I don't know what it tells you because I haven't had time to read mine."

"Thank you, Poppy."

"Stop by when you can so I re-examine you and give you another dose of painkiller potion if you need it."

I'm not telling her that it's already hurting because she's going to spend the whole day suffering, and even more so when she finds out about the one I'm going to mess with.

They parted with a kiss and a hug. With his wand in his right hand, this time, the letter and pen in his robe pocket, and his Muggle notebook in his left, he quickly headed for the dungeons. I'm almost late.

He got home at eight fifteen sharp. Lauren was waiting for him in the same chair where he found Ariel at Christmas. There was no one else in the Common Room.

He didn't think it. He went to her, who stood up when he approached, without saying anything. He hugged her and kissed her. An intense kiss of wet lips, while he projected to her, "Imagine what I did yesterday for the first time thinking of you, with my left hand."