“Merlin, Severus, what’s the matter? Has he taken…” she couldn’t finish the sentence.

“No, no, he’s woken up.” He dismissed her statement frantically.

“Then what on earth?” she demanded, hand on hips, like an irate mother, scolding a naughty child.

“There seems to be something wrong. I don’t know, I’ve tried to get him to talk but he has just closed up completely, with this odd look on his face.” Severus seemed perplexed. “Poppy, could-could his brain be affected. You know, brain damage or something?”

“Aye, it could. But there was no previous evidence when I scanned him.” She walked over to the bewildered boy. He sat up slightly, arms folded, but his eyes were staring unnervingly with such intensity and in such a way, that she doubted he and she were seeing the room in the same way. She gently perched at the edge of the bed, beside the panther cubs, grabbing his attention immediately. Snape stood by, arms tense, straight by his side. He looked tired and drawn and worried. “Harry, dear, can you tell me if anything is wrong? Do you feel pain anywhere? Any weakness?”

He hesitated. It seemed like he was trying to articulate what was wrong and for a moment fear gripped their hearts, that his brain really had been affected. This wasn’t calmed by the boy’s next words. “Everything! Everything is wrong. Nothing is right. No, I feel no pain, no weakness. But everything is wrong!” He reiterated.

“Slow down child.” She placed a delicate hand upon his leg, and he seemed to flinch subconsciously. She and Severus shared a significant look, knowing that was an issue for a bit later. “OK, explain to me exactly what is wrong.”

Harry rubbed his temples in frustration, closing his eyes, then opening them and closing them again. “It’s hard to explain.” He whispered. “Every time I open my eyes I see a kaleidoscope of colours that seem to encase everything, all objects. In fact the only thing that seems ‘normal’ is that pen over there. It’s starting to give me a massive headache.”

Severus didn’t understand, but he did acknowledge that the boy was in need of a headache reliever and rushed off to get one. Poppy was, however, struck by what the child had said. She had only vaguely heard of what might be ailing the child. “Colours, you say? And nothing around this pen here?” She picked up said pen. Severus at this stage had returned and Harry had downed the potion in one disgusting swallow. He sighed in relief before tuning in again.

“Yeah, nothing around the pen at all. In fact…” he looked around the room, taking in every detail, “… even the walls seemed to be soaked in different colours. “

“And this is the first time this has manifested?” He nodded. You could see the excitement building within her. Her tight brown curls bounced as she bobbed her head, her cheeks were flushed a rosy colour and her eyes sparkled with mirth which had been absent the last couple of days. “Merlin, Harry, you’re seeing magic itself.”

She was met with a stumped silence. Harry sat wide eyed, awash with the multitude of colours that surrounded him. Several gold tendrils from the stony walls of the hospital wing, curled out tentatively towards him. He was mesmerized. Each colour, each strand, tendril, even texture seemed to tell a story. Convey a message. They swirled and twined together like weaves of thread creating a tapestry. They had sentience, an awareness of their surroundings. They were all separate and yet at the same time, as one, part of Magic herself, all sprung from the same source.

Madame Pomphrey broke his concentration. “Do not mistake this for seeing auras. This is totally different, than seeing auras, or bonds or such. This is so much more and yet there is not much known about it, as no one in the last 500 years or so has had a gift such as this. All knowledge was lost of it.” Her hands were constantly a flutter, always moving and expressing herself in her excitement. She rambled on, Snape was listening intently, but Harry was enthralled. As she twisted her wrist, letting her fingers flicker, small swirls and star bursts shot from her fingers like a miniature fireworks display, in greens and yellows. He zoned out, as he noticed that the whole room was in constant flux and motion. Colours were always changing, and magic was flaring up and falling back. It had become like the heartbeat of the room. One question though brought him right back to earth.

"…Will he be able to shut it off, or will he have to learn to live with it?” Snape inquired.

“Fortunately, there is a way to reign in your inherent magic that enables you to see this. Such a meditative state will do this, allowing you to switch it ‘on’ and ‘off’ at will, formally known as Occlumency.” she stated.

And then the room became thick with tension. Defiance bled from Harry’s posture as well as a bit of fear. The tendons in his hands could be seen straining as he held tightly to the blanket. He wanted nothing more than to disappear.

Snape was filled with reluctance. It was too fast. He was thrown into the deep end. He had planned to ease himself upon the boy, apologising for his hideous treatment of him in the past. He rubbed his temples in weariness. It was too fast, but there was nothing for it. “Poppy, can you give us a second?”

She nodded, aware of the sudden tension within the room. And then cast another significant look at Severus before leaving. He knew what she meant, he was to talk to him, or at least start gently, easing the boy into letting him help. After all he had experience in these matters and they were going to be spending an awful amount of time together if he were to start up Occlumency lessons again.

Harry was wary. Why the sudden attitude change with his most loathed Professor. And anyway, in all the excitement, he had completely forgotten about how in Merlin’s name he had ended up in the hospital wing. Gone was the fragile child that he held in his arms. Up were his masks.

“Po-Harry, I know this is abysmal but for what it’s worth I apologise for my, for lack of a better word, verbal abuse of you throughout the years. I don’t have an excuse for it except stupidity, but I ask you to allow yourself to forgive me, just enough to let me help you.”

“How do I know you’re telling the truth Snape?” Harry all but sneered.

Snape didn’t even bother to correct the disrespect. He deserved it and a lot more. “You don’t.” he replied simply. “But I am willing to work with you now, with a clear mind and without prejudice. And face it, I’m not trying to be harsh, but honest, who else is there to help you.” He pointed out.

It was true. His friends had deserted him when he needed them most and his Professor’s turned a blind eye to his apathy, in favour of pretending everything was fine and dandy, even the Headmaster. He ran a hand through his messy hair in exasperation. “I’m willing to call a truce, for now.” He slowly enunciated. “But any hint of your previous attitude and that’s it.” Snape gracefully acceded. It would be the best he got.

“And now, how in Merlin’s name did I end up in the Hospital Wing. Again! And how come Madame Pomphrey didn’t immediately kick my friends out?” he queried pointing vaguely to his bonded.

That was a difficult question that would lead to more difficult questions. “I found you two days ago, by the lake, almost frozen solid, suffering from severe hypothermia and the beginnings of frostbite. Without your friends, and other circumstances, you most certainly would have died. Harry, you know Madame Pomphrey did an extensive scan to determine your injuries?”

Harry paled even more if possible. He had completely forgotten about that. He had secrets. Dark secrets, that bore marks upon his bare skin. No one could find out. Those were his secrets to take to the grave.

“Harry, she found old injuries and some more, not so old ones. How…”

And down Harry’s masks fell, leaving in place the delicate, broken child. “Don’t! Just don’t. You don’t need to know. Not yet. Trust hasn’t been established enough for it and besides I DON’T want to talk about it. “He closed his eyes, his young shoulders stooped in remembered pain and sorrow, his hands trembling from the suppressed emotion. “I owe you a life debt, Professor. But please, not yet.”

He nodded in acceptance of the child’s reasoning. It was too early yet. But he would bear watching in the meantime, because of the self-harm. “How about something lighter, to build trust. How did you meet your bonded there?”

And as quick as lightning, the boy returned to normal and a genuine smile lit his face. “Oh my bonded? They’re just my friends. When I wanted to just sit and think on my own, I go down by the lake. Have been for years. Anyway, I met them all at various points. Lia, the unicorn foal, I met first. She had injured her leg and I did what I could for. The panther cubs, Shadow and Mist, and Sal, the Wolf were both in similar situations. They had lost their mother to some forest creature and I nursed and weaned them. And Flora, the phoenix just appeared to me one day. I visit them regularly and they’ve all gotten on like a house on fire.” He smiled fondly at them all as they all fought for his attention. “They’ve helped me through some tough times. I don’t know what I’d do without them. It was like Fate that I met with them. I would sometimes just go down to my tree by the lake to think, end up napping and when I wake, dozens of flowers and plants would have sprung up. Or the trees would be green and luscious, despite being in the middle of winter. It was odd, but it became a place of my own.”

“You do know that they have all bonded to you. You can speak to them right? In your mind? They have amazing loyalty towards you. They lent you each a bit of their magic to help you need. Just like you seemingly do for the forest outside and its inhabitants, without thinking. No wonder they all had their part in saving your life.” Snape reasoned.

Harry smiled again, this time in wonderment. “I did always feel at home here in the castle and just as comfortable outside under the boughs of the trees.” A yawn forced its way from his lips. He was becoming tired from his exertion.

Snape didn’t miss a thing. He bowed his head slightly, “I’ll leave you to your rest. We’ll talk again Harry.” And with that he left with a small feeling of accomplishment. It wasn’t much but it was a start. Much more than he expected.

Harry rolled onto his side facing the window. He felt his friends, no his bonded settle against him comfortably. He watched as the inky sky lightened to a magnificent pink of the early morning. The sun rose slowly and majestically in the sky. The snow had stopped for the moment, leaving a blanket of soft down upon the earth. It still lay untouched by the day, a smooth expanse of white silk on the earth, dotted by the sun’s rays. Icicles decorated the trees, and the lake was a smooth mirror of thick ice. The predators of the night had long gone to bed but the day dwellers had yet to rise, leaving a perpetual silence in their wake. It was a sacred silence, not like any other found at any other time of the day. It was pure and the embodiment of nature itself. It was beautiful. And with this to send him to sleep, his eyelids drooped heavily and serene smile graced his lips as he dropped off.