Going Home by Swamygliders

Don opened his eyes with a sigh. In the next moment, though he was off the transfigured bed and running towards Harry's door as fast as he could. Before he had fallen asleep, he had cast a silencing charm on Harry's door so that if Harry were to wake Severus would not hear. Not only that he had also had cast a monitoring charm on the room so that he would know whether Harry woke up in distress. That way Don could Help Harry through his nightmare and there was no need to worry that Severus would come running in as well.

When the Healer reached Harry's door he flung it open and then quietly closed it behind him. He didn't want to risk waking Severus who desperately needed all the sleep he could get. He then quickly proceeded the boy's bed and expertly untangled the child from his sheets while drawing the child so that he was sitting sideways on his lap. He then uncorked the calming potion that had been placed beside his bed and started to try to gently wake the boy so he could calm him down properly.

"Come on Harry, wake up for me. You're safe here at Hogwarts, and I've got you."

Slowly Harry's eyes opened, but immediately after they did he buried his head in Don's chest and started to sob openly. He hated having these nightmares and how emotionally weak they made him. It felt as if his heart were being ripped out every single time, it was horrible.

"Harry, everything's fine. Can you please look at me so I can give you a calming potion? It will make your chest feel better and slow your breathing down."

As slowly as he could Harry turned his head up to look at Don. To encourage Harry the Healer gave him a warm smile and brushed back a strand of stray hair from his face. He then held the vial to Harry's lips and helped the child drink it down.

"That's it Harry, very good."

As soon as Don removed the vial from the child's lips Harry turned his head back into Don's chest and continued to cry, but this time more controlled. Sensing that Harry just needed kind arms and soothing words the Healer did just that. He placed the vial back down and encircled his arms around the child while whispering small words of comfort in his ear and rocking him back and forth.

When the Healer felt the potion take its full effect and Harry's cries considerably slowed down he gently pulled the child back from his chest and started to wipe away the tears with the washcloth he had silently summoned.

"How are you feeling Harry?"

"I'm...I'm sorry!"

"Hey now. I didn't ask for you to apologize, because there in no need. I was asking you how you feel in here."

Don placed a hand over Harry's heart and gave the boy a gentle look. He then lifted his hand and wiped away the new tears that had fallen onto Harry's cheeks.

"Talk to me Harry."

"Scc...scared."

"What are you scared about Harry? The dream you just had?"

Harry gave a small nod and Don gently readjusted Harry so that his head rested on his shoulder.

"Can you tell me about it Harry? It will feel less scary after you tell me what it was about."

"It's just the same dream I always have."

Gently Don stroked Harry's hair back. "How often do you have this dream?"

Harry shrugged his shoulders as best he could in Don's arms. "I don't know...maybe once a week...more?"

"Ok Harry. Can you tell me what it was about?"

Harry clung to Don a little tighter if possible and buried his head in Don's chest again. Don had thought that was as far as they were going to get, but he then heard a small mumble come from his chest area. Gently Don leaned down and brushed the hair behind Harry's ear.

"I can't hear you Harry. Could you face me while you talk?"

Slowly Harry looked up, but still had his face somewhat hidden in Don's pajamas.

"I...I was really small...and I could hear my dad telling mum to take me and run. Then...there was a...green light in the hallway and a scream...and...and mum she picked me up and hugged me tightly to her chest...I...I...could hear men talking...and...and then there was...the...the same green light...only it was brighter...and mum she screamed...and...and my forehead...it hurt...as we fell to the floor..."

Harry then turned his head and started to cry softly into Don's pajamas again. Gently Don wrapped his arms around the now sobbing child and set his sights on calming him down. He was thankful he had fed the child that calming potion; otherwise, he knew it could have been close to impossible to calm him.

"Shhhh It's all over now Harry and I'm here. I will always be here for you just like Severus."

Harry continued to cry though while Don rubbed soothing circles into his back. Eventually, Harry calmed down and relaxed back into Don's arms.

"How are you now Harry?"

With a few sniffles, Harry looked up at Don and gave a small nod. Gently Don reached down and again wiped away all the tears that had fallen with the still warm washcloth.

"Does that nod mean that you feel a little better?"

Again, Harry gave a small nod and then yawned so wide that Don could see the boy's tonsils. Looking fondly down at the child Don let out a small chuckle.

"I think you're tired. Do you need any help to get back to sleep?"

Slowly Harry shook his head. "No, but...thank you sir."

As Don moved Harry so that he was lying back onto his bed he shook his head slightly.

"I thought we talked about calling me sir already. You don't have to be so formal with me Harry; I'm both your Healer, and friend."

The man then gently tucked the child into his bed and placed both his stuffed toys near by so that he could reach out and hug them if he wanted.

"I know, I'm sorry."

"No need to be sorry Harry. Now try to get some rest."

With that Don patted Harry on the arm and started to make his way towards the door, but he was stopped by a small boy grabbing his arm. Looking down at the boy he sat on the edge of his bed and gave Harry a small smile.

"What is it Harry?"

"Can you stay with me...until I fall asleep?"

Don gave a small smile. "Yes Harry, I will. Now, close your eyes and relax, I'm right here."

With that Harry relaxed and pulled the small kneazle to his chest while closing his eyes. Quickly Harry fell into the land of nod.

When the Healer was sure that Harry was fast asleep he established he was all tucked under the covers and then silently left the room shutting the door as he left. Outside the room he rested his head against the door, closed his eyes, and let out the small sigh he had been holding. The poor child remembered. He remembered his parent's murder. Maybe it was time that he started to see his Healer again.

Opening his eyes Don let out another sigh. He was definitely making a visit to his Healer sometime soon. As he told his two patients there was no shame in having to ask for help and while he knew he could help his two boys he also knew that he needed to talk to someone to get things off his chest. Earlier it had taken everything in him not to go find that doctor in jail and hex him into oblivion.

Pushing those thoughts away for later Don gently lifted his head from the door and quickly turned to the door next to Harry's room so he could check on Severus. Quietly he opened the man's door and peeked in. Pleased to see the man still sleeping he silently made his way over to the bed, and very lightly he rested his hand on Severus's forehead. Feeling it slightly warm as it should be Don gave a small nod. He then withdrew his hand from the man and confirmed that the man was still sleeping. The last thing he wanted to do was wake the man. When he saw that he was still sleeping he let out a relieved sigh and then quietly left the room closing the door behind him. The Healer then proceeded to his transfigured bed and when he sat on the edge he kicked off his slippers and collapsed onto it exhausted. Curling under the covers Don closed his eyes and was fast asleep in moments.

The next morning Severus was woken to a gentle shaking. He figured it was Don shaking his shoulder to wake him and when he opened his eyes confirmed what he had assumed. Grumpily Severus closed his eyes and rolled over so that his back was to Don. The Healer just chuckled at the man's antics.

"Come on Severus, you're normally such an early riser!"

Severus groaned, but pulled back the covers and swung his legs over the edge of the bed.

"Yes that is true, but it feels as if I just fell asleep."

"Hmmm, can I do a quick examination?"

Severus heaved a sigh. "If you must."

Don then placed a hand on Severus's forehead and when he felt nothing he moved down to the man's throat to see whether there were any hidden signs of illness. When he felt nothing wrong with his glands he moved down to rest a hand on the man's chest. Still, nothing the Healer looked quizzically at Severus.

"It doesn't seem that you're sick and your fever has gone down. Let me know if you feel any worse or anything strange. I want to monitor you closely to make sure you aren't catching anything."

Severus nodded and got off the bed. "Can I get dressed now?"

"I'll go wake Harry then."

Before the Healer left though, he was stopped by Severus.

"Did he have any more nightmares?"

Looking over his shoulder Don gave him a sad look and nod. "He did, but you shouldn't worry about what it was about."

Severus reluctantly nodded. He knew that if Don didn't want to tell him what had happened then it meant the content was distressing and he didn't want to upset him. With a small sigh Severus did realize that it was probably for the best, but inwardly he didn't like being kept out of the loop.

When Don saw, the nod from Severus he gave his own and closed the door behind him grateful that Severus hadn't pushed him to tell him. The last thing he wanted to do was to tell Severus that Harry remembered how his parents died it might just push the man over the edge.

Sighing again he walked over to Harry's door and quietly entered. He then went over to the boy's bed and gently shook his shoulder in an attempt to wake him. Slowly the boy's eyes opened, and Don gave him a kind smile.

"Good morning Harry."

Shyly Harry smiled up at him. "Is it time to get up?"

"It is. Why don't you get dressed and I'll go order something to eat. Do you want anything special?"

"Can I have some fruit?"

Don gave a small nod. "How about some scrambled eggs and toast to accompany that fruit?"

Harry gave a small nod and smile while Don reached out and ruffled the boy's hair.

"I'll meet you out in the kitchen then."

With that Don backed out of the room and shut the door behind him to give the boy some privacy. He then summoned a house elf and ordered breakfast for the three of them. When the food popped on the table, he went over to the bag he had brought with him last night and removed the potions his boys needed.

While he had been setting the potions before each of their plates Severus had come out of his bedroom and groaned when saw the array of potions before his plate. Don hid a smile and then turned to the man and gave him a scolding look.

"You know they are for your benefit Severus."

Sighing Severus sat down in his seat and downed his potions. As he did so a still sleepy eyed child came out of his room dressed for the day. When Don saw the boy come out of his room he gently patted the seat where Harry next to his.

"Come sit down Harry."

The child nodded and then walked over and sat in his seat. Curiously he looked at the three potions in front of his plate and then up at Don. Two out of the three he recognized as a nutrient potion and a stomach soother, but the third he had never seen before. Could that be the supplement he was supposed to take?

Don sat down in his chair and watched the boy for a few minutes, but then when Harry looked up at him he gave him a small smile and patted him on the arm.

"I'm sure you can recognize two of those. Do you want to tell me what they are?"

Harry looked at the potions and picked up one. "I think this one is a nutrient potion?"

"That is right Harry. What about that other one? Do you know what that is?"

"It's...it's a stomach soother."

"Very good Harry." Don smiled and let a smile grace his face. "What do you think the that other potion is?"

"Is it that calcium thingy you told me about yesterday?"

A snort came from Severus's direction. "Very eloquently put Harry."

Don sent an amused look at Severus and then back to the blushing child. "It is the calcium and vitamin D supplement. Do you think you can take that one first and then the nutrient potion? I brought the stomach soother for after breakfast when we have to go through the floo."

Harry gave a nod in understanding and then took the two vials Don had said to take. Quickly he gulped down the two potions and then grabbed his glass of milk taking a few sips to wash away the bitter taste. Harry then looked up at Don who gave him a small smile.

"Drink your milk now Harry and then eat up. We have a long day ahead of us."

Harry nodded and started to drink his milk so Don focused his sights on his other patient who had just been sitting at the table watching their interactions. He gave the man a knowing look and then gestured down to the food in front of him as to give him a silent stern reminder to eat.

Sighing the man got the hint and picked up his fork to eat some eggs. Don reached out and patted Severus on the hand. When he saw Severus gaze on him, he gave the man a small smile and a nod. His small way of praising the man without Harry taking notice. He didn't want to unnecessarily embarrass the man.

Returning the nod Severus began to eat while Don removed his hand to do the same. The rest of the meal progressed without incident with Harry and Severus clearing every inch of their plates. Even if Severus would never admit it those appetite stimulants really did work.

When the three were finished, Don banished away the plates and sent his two boy's to wash up and grab what they wanted to bring to the clinic while keeping in mind what they had left there.

Just a few minutes later Severus came back into the room with what Don recognized as his journal and another small book that he assumed he was going to give to Harry so that he could write as well. That was good it always helped to write down those feelings you just couldn't discuss. Don had been planing on giving a journal to Harry to write down his thoughts as he had with Severus, but it seemed that Severus had beaten him to it.

"I see you have something there for Harry?"

Severus blushed a little and nodded. "I know it helped me; I thought it might help him as well."

Don just nodded and smiled as Harry came out of his room with just his small black cat in his arms. Both adults looked towards Harry, but it was Severus who spoke.

"Is that all you want to bring Harry?"

Shyly Harry looked down and blushed. "Yes."

Severus then came over and put an arm around Harry's shoulder. "Then, I think we're all ready to go. You just have to take the stomach soother and we'll foo to the clinic."

Harry nodded and accepted the potion Don handed him. As he gulped it down he grimaced ever so slightly at the taste. After handing the vial back to Don, the three made their way towards the floo and flooed over to the clinic.

When they landed Severus caught the child as he stumbled and muttered something about definitely needing lessons making the boy smile. Before going any further though, Don stopped before Harry and knelt down slightly so Harry would not have to look up to look him in the eyes.

"We're going to go to a different room today. Just you and me Harry and we're going to do some mind exercises and see where you are in your studies. Does that sound ok?"

Shyly Harry nodded and grabbed onto the hand Don had extended to him. As the Healer got off the floor, he looked up to Severus.

"You're going to wait here for Minerva?"

Severus nodded and Harry looked up in confusion. Don saw the confused look on Harry's face and gave the small child a smile.

"Your Head of House is coming here to discuss some things with Severus. There is nothing to worry about Harry."

Reassured Harry nodded and Don gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

"Let's go then."

With, that the two went down the hall and towards where Don would see where Harry was learning wise while Severus stood waiting by the floo for Minerva.

Just ten minutes later the floo flared to life and Minerva stepped out a bit flustered. "Sorry I'm a bit late, Albus decided to ask me about his upcoming classes. I don't know about that man sometimes. I know that he is going to let them goof off the whole day there is no need for him to pretend as if he is going to teach them something. I bet you ten sickels that tomorrow the entire school will know how to turn each others hair different colors, and my Lion's hair will all be green and your Snake's hair will be bright red."

Severus just shook his head and smirked a bit. "Now, you know why I won't let him step foot in my classroom. I'm sure if I did they would end up brewing those darn lemon drops he is forever handing out."

Minerva chuckled at the image in her mind. "Indeed. Did Don and Harry already start?"

Severus slightly shook his head. "No, he just left a few minutes ago to get him settled. He won't start until we get there."

"We should head that way then. How is Harry doing by the way?"

Looking at the witch with a calculating gaze Severus let out a small sigh. "He seems to be doing ok, but he had a nightmare last night, and Don won't tell me what it was about so it must have been pretty bad. Other than that he seems to be adjusting well, at least he's not afraid of Don any more."

Minerva reached out and patted Severus on the arm to offer what little comfort she could. "He will heal Severus; you know it takes time."

With that Severus, just nodded and started to lead the way to the room he knew Don and Harry to be in. When they got there they entered the adjacent room where they could watch the tests Don was giving without interfering or distracting them. Plus they knew that Harry would feel less pressured without people watching him and they all wanted the boy as relaxed as possible.

Sitting down on the couch in front of the one way window Minerva and Severus saw Don standing beside Harry, and they were both looking at a chart of letters on the opposite wall. Next to them it looked as though Harry had placed his small plushy on the table next to the few books, some papers, and two quills. It was a good sigh that Harry felt comfortable enough to set down his toy. This was the first time since Severus had bought that small plushy that Harry had let it out of his line of vision.

As Don gave Harry's shoulder a gentle squeeze he slightly turned his head to wink at the window so Severus would know that he knew they were there. He had put a charm on the other room before they had entered this one so that he would know when Severus and Minerva arrived so that they could begin. When Severus saw the wink he leaned forward on the couch a bit and pushed a small button to turn on the speakers so that they could not only see the two they could also hear what was said.

"You see that chart Harry? Can you read the smallest line that you can see for me?"

Harry started to read the fourth line out of the ten clearly and carefully, but was squinting the entire time. As Harry was reading, Don had been watching him closely and saw all the difficulty Harry was having. Sighing a bit he knelt down in front of Harry and gently took off Harry's glasses.

"Why didn't you say you were having trouble seeing?"

Harry shrugged his shoulders and looked down to his feet, but as Harry looked down Don knelt down in front of him, reached out and gently lifted his chin so that he could look nowhere else.

"Look at me Harry. I didn't think this was necessary yesterday, but I'm going to check your eyesight and see how bad your vision is. Ok?"

As best he could with Don holding on to his chin Harry gave a nod.

"You won't feel a thing Harry. I'm going to light up the tip on my wand and look into your eye. I want you to try to keep your eye open as wide as you can and try not to blink. Are you ready?"

As Harry again nodded Don removed his hand from Harry's chin and moved it up to his cheek and gently placed a finger on Harry's eyelid to draw it upwards. He then it the tip of his wand and placed it before Harry's eye. Quietly he whispered a spell that would tell him Harry's true eyesight. A quill and paper popped up beside the Healer and started to write down some numbers. With that eye done Don moved to the other eyes and repeated the process.

When Don was done, he gently removed his hand and picked up the sheet of paper that the quill had been writing on. The quill quickly popped away, and then Don again picked up Harry's glasses that he had laid on the floor. Pointing his wand at them he muttered a charm to correct the lenses and then he handed them back to the child.

"Try these out Harry."

Harry placed the glasses on his nose and looked around in wonder. "Everything's so clear."

Don gave the boy a sad smile and nodded. "These are only temporary the charm I placed on them will ware off. Later on we'll go down to the optometrist here and pick out some new frames. That sound ok?"

Harry nodded still a bit preoccupied by the fact that he could actually see to really hear what Don was saying.

The Healer sent the sheet of paper down the optometrist while getting up off the floor and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. Gently he led the child to the table that still had the cat plushy on it and pulled out a chair for him to sit in.

"Have a seat Harry."

Harry sat down, and Don sat in the chair next to him pulling out a book so that it was in front of Harry. This was a unique book that he liked to use in these situations. Every page was a level harder so that he could gage just how well Harry's reading was.

"Ok Harry, can you read this book out loud for me?"

Harry nodded and pulled the book closer so that he could read it. As Harry began to read Don listened carefully for any stumbling or trouble with words. Around the sixth page Harry started to stumble over the larger words and by page eight he was having major difficulty so to stop him Don placed a gentle hand on his arm.

"It's ok Harry; you can stop right there."

Harry looked up at Don nervously. When the Healer saw the nervousness, he just gave the boy a smile and another gentle pat on the arm.

"It's ok Harry. I just want to ask you a few questions about what you just read, ok?"

Harry relaxed a bit and nodded his head.

"Can you tell me what the story you just read was about?"

Harry sat there and thought for a few moments, but then looked up at Don; hopefully. "It was about a boy who..."

Don gently placed a hand on his arm. "Do you remember Harry? It's ok if you don't."

"I'm sorry I can't remember."

"That's ok. Let's try to read it again, but a little slower and tell me when you need help."

Harry nodded and flipped back to the first page and read a little slower. After the third page though Don stopped him.

"Ok Harry. What did you just read?"

"A boy went for a walk in the forest and he saw a bear."

"Very good Harry! Now try to continue with that pace, nice and slow."

Harry nodded and started to read where he left off. This time though he read just a bit slower and seemed to be taking in what he was reading. When he got to where had been having trouble before Don again stopped him.

"For right now that's enough Harry. Can you remember everything you just read?"

"The boy...he...he saw the bear and then...and then he slowly backed away like...like the ranger had told him. When the bear was out of sight, he saw a...moose...and...and he hid behind a tree...like his mother had said he should do..."

"I'm so proud Harry that was really good."

Even though Don was praising the boy, he was inwardly sighing. Harry was only reading at a grade five level when he should be at grade six or seven. Even then that was only if he slowed his reading down considerably or else he was not retaining or comprehending what he had just read. This could be the main reason why Harry was having so much trouble last year in school. A tutor was definitely in order to try to catch him up, and he had the perfect person in mind for the job. Another inward sigh and Don shook those thoughts from his head. He had to focus on the here and now.

"You went to a Muggle day school didn't you?"

"Yes."

"How were your grades at that school?"

Harry looked down and started to fidget with his hands. "Everybody always said I was really stupid. That I couldn't do anything right."

The boy then looked up at Don with determination and tears in his eyes. "But...but that's not true. I...I had to act that way because if I ever got a grade better than Dudley Uncle...he...he would..."

Seeing the imminent breakdown Don placed a hand on Harry's cheek and made the child look at him with his tear filled eyes. "Harry calm down now. You are right. You are not stupid; you are a very bright child. It seems though that your teachers did you a disservice though, and never really tried that hard to see what was wrong and why you were doing so poorly. I want to correct this Harry, I want to ask a good friend of mine, a fellow Healer, if she would tutor you, help with your homework, or anything else you have trouble with. What do you think Harry? Will you let me help you?"

The tears had started to trickle down Harry's face in the middle of Don's little speech, but now they were coming down in streams. Gently Don drew the boy out of his chair and placed him on his lap so that he could hold the child and send some calming magic into him.

Leaning back on his chair Don gently started to rub gentle circles on the distraught boy's back. He had really hoped that this session would not have ended with Harry in tears, but it seemed that he had to throw that hope out the window now. He supposed though that if he could calm Harry down enough that they could at least finish with the testing. Drawing this out another day wouldn't do anyone any good. He still wanted to test his memory, math skills and see where he was with a quill.

One of the boy's sobs brought him out of his thoughts though, and he closed his eyes while resting his chin on Harry's head. Opening his eyes again Don threw a look at the window and mouthed "calming potion" to where he thought Severus was.

"Calm down Harry everything is all right. We just want to help you. Severus will be here in a moment with a calming potion, just try to take deep breaths for me."

A few moments later Severus quickly came in the room with the potion in his hand. As he handed it to Don to feed to the child, he uncorked it for him. Gently Don held the vial to the child's lips and poured it down his throat.

"That's it Harry. Now swallow for me."

Harry gulped down the potion and then turned his head into Don's chest so that neither men could see his tears embarrassed that he was so weak. When Severus saw Harry turn he placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Look at me Harry."

Harry turned around and looked at his guardian. Gently Severus reached out and wiped away the tears with his fingers.

"I have to go back to be with Minerva. Are you going to be ok here with Don? Can you finish the tests he has yet to do?"

Harry gave a small nod as Severus removed his hand. The child had stopped his crying as soon as he saw Severus and the potion had kicked in.

"Can you give me a smile before I go so I know you are truly ok?"

Harry flashed a smile at his Professor and made a move to get off Don's lap. Don didn't stop him, but helped him so that Harry was sitting in his own chair again. Severus then patted Harry on the shoulder and made his way to the door. After he left, he shut the door behind him and went back to the other room hating himself every moment as he left his child behind.

When Severus left the room Don gently brushed the hair behind Harry's ear and gave him a smile. "Do you want to play a game Harry?"

Harry gave a small nod so Don removed a special deck of memory cards. This way Don could test Harry's memory without the boy really knowing. Sometimes it was best to disguise a test as a game; it would make Harry feel a little more relaxed.

Don then laid down the cards in a grid like pattern in front of Harry.

"Have you ever played memory before?"

Harry shook his head. "How do I play?"

The Healer explained how to play the game while Harry was staring determinately at the cards. When Don was finished explaining the game Harry started to flip cards over and trying to match the pairs. Don watched and saw what he had expected to see. Harry was doing well, but was having trouble remembering sometimes where the right card lay. He had seen that part on his brain damaged the day before, but this was just another confirmation.

Don sighed and rested a hand on Harry's shoulder more then halfway through the game.

"I'm going to go grab a small snack for you. Are you going to be ok playing memory for a few moments? If you finish this game, you can play another if you want."

"I'll be fine. Can I have some fruit?"

Reaching out to ruffle Harry's hair Don smiled. "I think I can arrange that."

With that Don got up and went to the door. Once outside, he called a house elf and ordered some apple slices and a glass of milk for Harry to munch on. He then went to the door next door and knocked lightly before entering.

When he entered he was met with Severus and Minerva sitting on the couch looking up at him. With a smile, he walked over to the two and sat down on the armrest of the couch.

"Are you two ok?"

Minerva and Severus nodded, but then Minerva spoke. "I'm more concerned about Harry. Why didn't we see why Harry was having so much trouble in school? I mean with his vision I doubt he could read the board!"

Don placed a calming hand on Minerva's shoulder. "You are not at fault here. Teachers at his day school should have seen his troubles and helped him when he was younger. As for his glasses, how could you know when you had to watch all the other students as well?"

Minerva sighed. "I guess you're right. I still can't help, but blame myself for not noticing anything was wrong through."

Don sighed. "I know, but you mustn't beat yourself up too much. What is in the past is in the past and we can't change it now. We can only look to the future."

Minerva nodded, and Don removed his hand from her shoulder. "I have to go and tend to Harry now. Call a house elf or ask a nurse for anything you need."

The two on the couch nodded so Don went to the door and exited the room. Just outside the house elf he had asked for the snacks appeared before him and handed him a tray. Don nodded at the elf and thanked him as he entered the room where he had left Harry.

Quietly closing the door behind him Don smiled when Harry looked up at him. He then strode over to where Harry was at the table and set the tray down in front of the child careful not to disturb any cards.

"Have something to eat and then we'll continue with the tests ok?"

Harry nodded and set down the card he was holding only to pick up the glass of milk and take a few greedy sips. Putting it down on the table Harry looked up at Don.

"Thank you sir; for everything."

Gently Don placed a hand on Harry's arm and smiled at him with a touch of mirth in his eyes. "Is my name sir?"

Blushing Harry looked down. "no..."

Gently Don moved his hand form the boy's arm to his chin and made it so that Harry could look nowhere else.

"I'm just teasing you Harry. Now drink up your milk and then have some apples."

Harry nodded, and Don removed his hand from the boy's face. Harry then took up his glass and started to drink it down. After he was finished, he started in on the apples and just ten minutes later they were all gone.

"Feel better Harry?"

Harry gave a small nod and smiled at the Healer. Don smiled back at the child and reached out to ruffle his hair.

"Are you ready for some more exercises?"

Reluctantly Harry nodded his head. Seeing the reluctance Don pulled his chair a bit closer and faced Harry.

"What are you worrying about Harry?"

Ashamed Harry head dropped to look at his lap, and he started to fiddle with the ends of his shirt with his hands. Gently Don placed a hand on Harry's cheek.

"Talk to me Harry. What's up?"

Letting out a sigh Harry lent into the comforting touch of Don's hand. It was kind of nice that an adult was finally caring how he felt.

"What if I don't have the right answers?"

"There are no right or wrong answers Harry just like the tests we have already done. I just want to make sure you are where you should be with your studies."

"How have I done so far?"

Gently Don patted Harry on the shoulder. "I don't want you to worry about that Harry, but if you really want to know I will tell you."

"Could you tell me please?"

"Harry I want you to listen to everything I say very closely. Nothing today will tell me that you are stupid, because that is not true. Do you understand that?"

Slowly Harry nodded although he didn't quite believe what he was agreeing to. As Harry nodded Don saw the conflict in the child's eyes. With a small sigh Don Placed a hand on Harry's cheek.

"It's ok if you don't believe me, but I hope you will eventually. You are a very smart boy, and nothing can ever tell me different. Your reading was a level lower then where it should be, but with a bit of work we can get you to where you should be. As for the memory game you just did; you did as well as you could. You are doing just fine."

"Are you sure? I'm...I'm not dumb?"

"Yes Harry, I am sure."

Harry gave a small nod. "You mentioned something...about a tutor?"

"Yes, I did. Minerva went through your grades from last year and noticed that you were having some trouble in your classes. This Healer would help you with your homework and make sure you are understanding everything. Many Muggle born students need tutors to help them with the new world they are thrown into, and I'm sorry no one offered you the help last year."

Again Harry nodded. "So...so what else do we have to go over?"

Don removed his hand from Harry's face and gave Harry a gentle smile. "Well, I wanted to do a few math problems and then see whether I could help you at all with writing with a quill. Does that sound ok?"

Harry gave a small nod. "I always liked math."

"Well that's good Harry, math is very important."

Don then pulled out the paper and quill and placed it in front of Harry while he also cleaned up the cards.

"I'm going to write down a few problems, and I want you to try to answer them. Can you do that?"

As Harry nodded his head Don started to write down around twenty simple math problems. Some addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. After writing down the problems, Don again placed the paper in front of Harry.

"Just do as much as you can Harry."

Harry gave a small nod and picked up the quill. Diligently Harry solved and wrote down the answers for all the problems written.

"Very good Harry!"

Don then took the paper and checked to see whether they were correct and when he saw they all were he wrote down a few more difficult problems for the child to try to figure out. Immediately after Don placed that paper back in front of Harry the child quickly solved them.

To be frank Don was impressed. Some of those last problems had been pretty advanced for someone Harry's age.

"I am very impressed Harry. This just further proves that you are a very bright child. Those were some very hard problems."

For the first time since Don had met Harry, the boy's smile grew a mile long and he was practically beaming from the praise. Right then and there Don made a vow to try to praise the child as much as he could just to see that happy smile.

"I've always been good at math. It was the one thing I could be good at and still pretend to be really bad at it."

Don reached out and patted Harry on the shoulder. For the first time, he didn't really know what to say to Harry's statement. It was horrible that Harry had to hide that he was good at something, but then a blessing in disguise that he had actually learned his math.

With a small sigh Don switched to a clean paper and quickly wrote out the alphabet in both upper and lower case. Below each letter, he left a small space for Harry to put his.

"Can you write the alphabet below where I wrote mine Harry?"

Harry nodded and again picked up his quill to write down the letters. Carefully and with a lot concentration Harry wrote each letter as neatly as he could. Don let out a small sigh when he saw the amount of concentration it took for Harry to write just one letter without smudging or dripping ink. When Harry was finished with the upper case letters, Don stopped Harry so that he could help him.

"Harry can I show you a better way to hold the quill?"

Harry gave a small nod, and Don got off the chair and stood behind Harry. Gently he placed his hand on Harry's and showed the child how to hold the quill the right way. He then guided Harry's hand to gracefully write out the letter a. When he was done, he released Harry's hand and patted him on the shoulder.

"Is that better Harry?"

"Much! Thank you!"

Don then watched as Harry wrote the rest of his letters a lot neater and with a to less ink spots. When he was done, he proudly looked up at Don who was still watching over his shoulder and smiled.

"We're still going to have to work on it a bit so that you can write with more ease, but I think this is a huge improvement."

Don then sat back down in the chair next to Harry and moved the boy's chair so that he was facing him.

"You did very well here Harry, and I am so very proud of you."

The Healer then took a quick look at the table to confirm that Severus had indeed left the journal here for Harry. When he saw it, he reached out to pick it up and then handed it to the boy in front of him.

"It seems Severus left something here for you. This is a journal that both Severus and I want you to have so that if you ever need to get something off your chest, but don't want to talk about it you can write it down in here. You don't have to write anything in here if you don't want to or it makes you feel awkward, but I think it would help you feel better."

Running his fingers over the small leather bound book Harry looked up at Don. "This is really for me?"

"Yes Harry and I promise no one will read it without your permission. I can even teach you some privacy charms to make sure no one can even open except for you."

"No one will be able to read it?"

Don just nodded. "Do you want me to show you those charms now?"

Looking down at the book Harry nodded so Don told Harry to place his hand on the cover of the journal and say "abscondo". Harry did as he said and then looked up at Don.

"Did it work?"

"It did Harry. That Journal will now only open to your magical signature and to open it all you have to do is place your hand on it and say 'ostendo sum vestri specialis,' and it will open. The only problem with that is though that anyone looking over your shoulder can still read it. Do you also want to put a charm on it that would allow it took like gibberish to everyone, but you?"

Shyly Harry nodded and Don again told Harry to place his hand on the cover, but this time he had to say "somnium".

"Now if you wanted to show what you wrote to someone all, you would have to do is place your hand on that particular entry and say 'exibeo'. Ok?"

Again Harry nodded. "Thank you."

"You're very welcome Harry. Now if you want I can go call my friend and you can meet her now. We don't have to do this now, but her office happens to be right down the hall."

"If I meet him now can...can we start with the tutoring?"

Don smiled at the eager child. "Why don't you meet her today and then you two can work out a schedule?"

Harry nodded. "Ok"

"I'll be right back then."

With that Don patted Harry on the shoulder and left the room closing the door behind him, Quickly Don went down the hall and knocked on his friend's door.

"Pam?"

The next moment a red haired woman with warm brown eyes opened the door. As soon as she saw it was Don a smile spread across her face.

"Do you want to come in Don?"

Returning the smile to the woman he had a crush on Don sadly shook his head. "I'm afraid I came here on business. I told you about my new patient, Harry. Right?"

Pamela nodded." Yes you did. You need my assistance after all?"

"It seems so." Don then began to explain the results of Harry's tests and what Harry would need. The whole time Pamela just nodded and head, and slowly her warm happy smile turned to a sad one.

"I do whatever I can to help. You said he wanted to meet me now?"

Don gave a small nod. "Yes, if you have time and thank you Pam."

Pamela placed a hand on Don's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. "You know you don't need to thank me. Come by later though, and tell me more about Harry. I can tell something is weighing heavily on your mind."

Don smiled at the woman in front of him. "I would love take you up on that offer, but I think I should talk to Quin about this."

"That is fine, but I will have a chat with him later to make sure you did go to him. Is that understood?"

Blushing Don nodded. "Please don't worry so much. You know I will."

"I know, but I can help it. Now let's go see that boy and you can talk to Severus and Minerva."

Don nodded, and they both strode down the hallway towards where Harry; Severus and Minerva were.