Donning a pair of fresh robes, Severus made his way down to the hospital wing. Noises led him in the right direction. Apparently, Potter had visitors, but Poppy wasn’t allowing them inside. He spotted Granger among the group waiting in the hallway, along with quite a few Weasleys. Lupin was there too, as well as a few other members of the Order.

Making his way past everyone, Severus dipped his head in greeting towards the mangy old wolf. There were dark circles under his eyes, and he looked more worn out than usual. Come to think of it, most of the group assembled looked the same. Apparently nobody had gotten much rest while they waited anxiously to see if Potter would return safely. Severus continued down the aisle, stopping only when he was ambushed by the boy’s friends.

“Please, Professor—“

“Sir, they won’t let us see him—“

“Tell us what’s going on!”

Severus ignored the children and swept past them, reaching the white curtains where Albus stood waiting.

“Good morning, Severus.” Professor McGonagall stood with him.

“Minerva.” Turning to Albus, he motioned towards the teenagers that stood around, looking huffy. “Why are they out here?”

Minerva answered for the headmaster. “They’re waiting to see Potter.”

“I know that. I meant why out here, why are they not with Potter?”

This time Albus answered. “Poppy apparently refused to let them in.”

Severus felt his insides churn, remembering their conversation from last night.

“Did something happen, Albus?”

“Not that I know of.” Shaking his head, the headmaster turned and slipped behind the curtain, Severus and Minerva following.

The mutterings of the crowd seemed to be drowned out as the curtain closed behind them. Poppy was fluttering around the boy, waving her wand.

“Good morning, Professors.”

Startled, Severus glanced down at the boy. He hadn’t expected him to be awake.

“Hello, Harry. What are you doing up so early?” Albus moved closer to the bed and gently reached out, placing a hand on the boy’s shoulder. Severus was sure he saw the boy flinch. He looked to Minerva to see if she noticed anything, but her face held only a look of concern and pity.

“I’ve been up for ages.”

“Mr. Potter here refused to take his sleeping potion last night. He insisted that he didn’t need it,” Poppy scolded.

Albus chuckled as Harry grinned sheepishly in the matron’s direction. She smiled back at the boy and continued waving her wand, checking him over.

“I don’t see any harm in that.” Minerva added her two cents and Albus nodded as well.

“True, true. As long as you are following the rest of Madam Pomfrey’s orders.”

Poppy huffed at the headmaster, clearly disagreeing.

“Thank you.” If Severus didn’t know better, he would have sworn that Potter was avoiding the headmasters gaze. “If I may ask, what are you doing here so early, sir?”

“Checking on you, dear boy. How are you feeling?”

“I’m alright.” Potter’s eyes seemed to be flitting everywhere in the room except for the area around the headmaster. Severus was sure of it now. Dumbledore seemed to have caught on as well and quickly glanced at Severus, his eyes clouded over with worry. He looked up at the matron, seeing if she had anything to add.

“The fractures and bruises have been healed. He’ll be stiff a while longer, but other than that, he’s fine. No lasting damage this time.”

Harry looked up at her, gratitude etched on his features. “Thank you, Madam Pomfrey.”

“It’s no trouble, dear. Just watch out for yourself.” A smile flitted across her face as she handed him a potions vial. He glanced at it warily. “A nutritive potion. I don’t think you’ll be handling food very well just yet.”

Harry nodded and took the bottle from her hand, downing it quickly. Madam Pomfrey took the empty vial from him and gently smoothed the hair back from his forehead.

“Rest now, Mr. Potter. I’ll come back to check on you in a bit.” He nodded and lay quietly back on the pillows. The matron turned to leave the curtained area, motioning to the other three to follow her. Harry was asleep before the curtain was pulled closed behind them.

“Just a nutritive potion?”

Poppy blushed as Severus raised an eyebrow in her direction. “A sleeping potion might have found its way in there.”

Severus felt a smile tug at the corner of his lips. The matron always made sure to get her way.

“Don’t you think he’ll realize?” Minerva asked.

“He needs to rest. After Severus left last night, it took Harry ages to fall back asleep and when he finally did, he was tossing and turning the whole night. I don’t understand why he refuses to take the potion.”

The door to the office closed as the four of them filed into Poppy’s office. The air tingled as a simple silencing spell was cast. The noise from out in the ward disappeared, reminding Severus that Poppy had forbidden the children to see Potter. Albus seemed to be thinking along the same lines as him and, as they settled themselves in chairs around the room, asked Poppy, “What happened last night?”

Poppy looked up at them, confused. “What do you mean?”

“With Harry.”

“Nothing happened.” It was their turn to look confused.

“Then why are you keeping Potter’s friends from seeing him?”

“You’ll have to ask the boy. He asked me to keep them away.”

Severus and Albus exchanged a quick look. Keep his friends away? That made no sense. They were his lifeline; nothing should prevent him from wanting to see them. This information didn’t bode well.

Minerva caught on to the silent conversation passing between the two.

“Albus? What’s going on?”

“There’s something wrong with Harry, isn’t there?” Poppy glanced back and forth between the headmaster and Snape.

Albus tilted his head in Severus’ direction, motioning him to go to the boy. Severus quickly followed the silent instruction and swept out of the room.

“I do not know, Poppy. I have some concerns…”

“What sort of concerns?”

“Severus thinks someone might be trying to influence Harry’s mind.”

Minerva rejoined the conversation. “Someone meaning You-know-who.”

Dumbledore nodded gravely. “We cannot know for sure, but yes. We fear that Voldemort may now hold some sway over Harry.”

Silence fell among them, as they waited. After a few minutes Severus came back into the room. He glanced around. The two witches looked ready to pounce on him. Albus stood back slightly, worry etched into his features as he waited to hear the outcome.

“He was unable to block me at all.” A sigh of relief escaped the old man.

“Do you think we were wrong?”

“I do not know. He definitely pushed me out last night.”

“You think he just let you in today?”

“No. Potter did try to block it, but he couldn’t. Last night the boy made a conscious effort to push me out. The fact that he didn’t today means nothing.”

“And you found nothing?”

Severus shook his head. “Nothing that shows any form of manipulation. There was a struggle going on. Whether it was against another power or just his pathetic attempt to get rid of me, I couldn’t tell.”

“What are you going to do, Albus? The proper precautions must be taken.”

“I doubt the boy will be very compliant.”

“Harry would never disobey an order from you, headmaster.”

Albus interrupted. “If Severus is right, it won’t be Harry who has to cooperate.”

“You really think the Dark Lord is in his mind?”

Albus shook his head. “At the moment, there is no proof, but I fear it. The child is weak – he must be after his ordeal. If Voldemort has managed to find even the smallest crack in Harry’s defenses, he will have no trouble latching on.”

A small alarm sounded throughout the office. Poppy jumped up from where she had settled herself behind her desk and headed out of the room. The curtains around Harry’s bed were pulled wide open, the boy standing, panting next to his bed. His face was pale and covered with a sheen of sweat. The Order members had already left, but Harry’s friends remained behind. Hermione Granger stood still and silent while Ginny and Ron shared heated whispers.

“What is going on out here?” Madam Pomfrey rushed forward. “Mr. Potter, get back into that bed. Now.” Harry made no move to listen, barely glancing at her. Choosing to let him be for the moment, Poppy turned back to face the other children.

“I thought I told you to stay out of here?” Madam Pomfrey herded them out of the ward.

“We were just so worried. We only wanted to see that Harry was alright,” Ginny pleaded.

Madam Pomfrey crossed her arms across her chest as she glared at them. “I told you, Mr. Potter is fine. When I give an order, I expect it to be followed. Is that understood?” she glanced behind her. Harry was leaning against the edge of the mattress, breathing heavily. “Now what happened?”

Hermione answered her. “He just got so worked up when he saw us. We didn’t even have a chance to say anything to him.”

Ron snorted loudly. “He called you a mudblood!”

“Ron...”

“Don’t defend him, Hermione!”

“Ronald! Harry’s been through a horrible ordeal. He’s not in his right mind.”

Madam Pomfrey sighed. “That’s very kind of you, Miss Granger. He has indeed been through a lot and should not be condemned for his actions. In addition, he is currently under the influence of several potions which are likely to cause confusion and disorientation.” Hermione sent a knowing look in Ron’s direction. “However, next time you visit, I’m sure you will receive an apology from Mr. Potter.”

“When can we see him again?” Ginny piped up.

“After today, I’m not sure Mr. Potter will be up for much company. We will let you know when it is advisable for you to visit.” With that she closed the door on them.

“Mr. Potter.” She practically stormed up the aisle to his bed. He didn’t acknowledge the nurse even when she placed a hand on his shoulder. His grip on the mattress tightened as she gently tried to turn him around. She pulled on his arms, trying to release the tension. “Come on, let go. That’s it.” Slowly the fingers flexed, letting go of the bedding.

Poppy gently coaxed him onto the bed as Minerva, Severus, and Albus came out of her office. She pulled the cover up over the boy and fluffed his pillows behind his head, allowing him to lean back against them.

As soon as he was settled, Poppy moved over to join the three others behind the partition.

“What happened?”

“The alarm was to let me know if Harry was out of bed. His friends snuck in to visit him.” Poppy kept her gaze fixed on Severus as she explained. “He apparently called Miss Granger a ‘mudblood’.”

“Harry would never say that!” McGonagall gasped.

“I think we’ve just established the fact that Harry is not himself right now, Minerva.”

“Headmaster?”

Another sigh escaped the old man as all eyes turned to him. “I think for right now, we should transfer him to Grimmauld Place. Remus Lupin can watch him and there’s no reason for the poor boy to be cooped up in the castle during the summer.”

“Are you sure that’s wise?” Skepticism crept into Poppy’s voice. “What if Severus is right and You-Know-Who has—“

Albus held up a commanding hand. “Let there be no more talk of it for now. Until we have proof of anything untoward, I do not want it mentioned.” He raised an eyebrow at the other three, demanding their compliance.

Reluctantly, each agreed.

“Good. I will contact Remus to let him know that Harry will be coming, the Weasleys as well. Molly and Arthur can help out until Remus has had time to recover from the recent full moon, and it will be good for Harry to be around his friends.”