Redo

Chapter 13

"The Hero Albus Dumbledore secretly evil?

"In the previous article we seemed to have been too kind on one Albus Dumbledore, giving him the benefit of the doubt with his hiring of Severus Snape. It appears we were wrong.

"As we were all already aware, Dumbledore was the one who vouched for Snape in his trials for being a Death Eaters. We didn't know that he was fully aware of not only Severus' crimes, but also his lack of remorse. This is not the first time that Dumbledore had taken an individual on trial under his wing, the previous time being the gamekeeper at Hogwarts, who truly was innocent.

"We were all under the impression that Dumbledore was an overall good and fair headmaster, but an interview has found this to be untrue for many students.

"We all know how many families were ripped apart due to the war, and how many parents are in St Mungo's, or living out a sentence in Azkaban without a chance of Dementor's kiss. It is common to believe that the children of these individuals to be able to meet their parents as regularly as possible. Either at the monthly visits for Azkaban, or when the parent in St Mungo's is lucid enough to meet.

"While we have had many first hand cases of these commonplace courtesies being ignored, only one was willing to have a named interview.

"Lexsaidh Wood-Michelle is a seer student at Hogwarts, she saw her parents get tortured into insanity after the war was over. Fortunately, her parents are lucid at times, which she has a bracelet to make her aware of.

"'When I was 11 my aunts and zizi talked to Dumbledore, and we were reassured that I would be allowed to leave to see my parents, as I have throughout my time at Primary School. Even though he promised, I was never allowed to leave to see them.

"'I miss most of the times they're lucid, I visit them whenever I can, and the healers say that they ask for me, but I'm not allowed to see them when they're really there.'

"Wood-Michelle had to take a break to wipe her eyes, clearly very hurt by what Dumbledore was putting her through. Is this really what our future deserves?

"'I'm also a seer, and I can't stop my visions. Unlike some I do remember everything that I see, and I need my adopted brother to be there in order to ground myself with his magic. I am only able to do this because Professor Sprout had already set this up for me, along with a private room. She hasn't told me anything, but both through my visions and in person I have seen many arguments between them. Dumbledore wants me to neither have a private room, nor have my brother around.'

"We all here at the Daily Prophet agree that Wood-Michelle should be allowed to have the accommodations she has listed above that she needs. Let's hope that Dumbledore either steps down or changes his ways."

"I'm proud of you." Killian nudged Lexsaidh, who was stuck in bed due to sickness from one of her visions.

"You think the healers will read it to mum and dad?" Lexsaidh poked her head out of her duvet, her room artificially chilled to make it more comfortable for her.

"I'm sure they know you love them and aren't avoiding you, but if you write to the healers asking them to you know they will." Killian pulled Lexsaidh so she had her head on his lap, still fully wrapped in the duvet, just like they did when they were children.

"It sucks I can get actually sick from the visions of worlds when I'm sick." Lexsaidh complained, pulling her feet back inside the blanket.

"You're not actually sick, Mme Pomfrey told you it's like a hangover of the feelings you had when you were that you." Killian, ever pedantic, corrected her, getting a gentle hit on the side of his face as she reached her hand out of her duvet cocoon

-----

"Boop." Lexsaidh poked Draco's nose, the other hand behind her back, it was the next day, and he was on his way to the Hospital Wing again, Harry still paralysed.

"Lexsaidh?" Draco took a step back, not really having been looking at where he was going. "What's up?"

"What? I can't greet my baby cousin?" She grinned, both hands behind her back.

"I mean, of course, I would love to chat once Harry is better, but, just, you don't really know me." Draco felt a little flustered, he had far more memories together than Lexsaidh ever would or did.

"And how else am I going to get to know you? Anyway, next time you see your parents, please pass this on to your father. Zia isn't ready to have letters straight to each other or talk face to face, so we have to be messengers." Lexsaidh handed Draco the letter. "I'm sure you'll know where to find me when you have time to talk il mio piccolo."

"Non sono piccolo." Draco called over his shoulder as he went to the Hospital Wing.

-----

"Have there been any improvements?" Draco entered the curtained area, Ron and Hermione already there, sitting either side like worried parents.

"Nothing either way." Hermione shook her head, Harry's hand tightly, trying not to let her hand shake.

"Mme Pomfrey says that if it lasts much longer then he'll have to be moved to St Mungo's for more tight observation." Ron was focusing on the folds of the curtains, also clearly upset and trying to keep it together.

"How much longer does he have at Hogwarts?" Draco moved to sit on the foot of Harry's bed, which was empty due to Harry being propped up.

"One to two days." Hermione took a deep breath to steady herself.

She hated that there wasn't anything she could do. Was this how Ron and Hermione felt when she was petrified by the basilisk? Maybe that was why Ron had become slightly more clingy to her.

"Please wake up soon." Draco sounded desperate as he begged Harry, not even knowing if Harry could hear him. "I know you don't have control over that, but I want to keep being able to see you."

Harry still didn't react in any way. After he had spoken, Draco hoped that Harry was sleeping, he didn't need to feel like this was his fault. It was Snape's.

"Do we have plans against Snape yet?" Draco still couldn't take his eyes off Harry.

"Not yet. There are so many thing he deserves that would make it difficult to do the rest that it's hard to come up with a plan. When Harry is better or... Well, when we aren't here we can brainstorm." Hermione couldn't bring herself to suggest that Harry wasn't going to make it on his own and would need St Mungo's to heal.

-----

Harry was spending more time unconscious recently, he had no idea if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but every time he was awake there was a kind touch somewhere on his body. He was both dreaming more, and when he was awake it lasted less long. He guessed it was a little easier, as he was spending less time trapped inside his body, he just hoped it wasn't a bad sign.

He was pretty sure he had heard something about St Mungo's, but that meant nothing to him. Could that be a term that wizards use for death?

Harry didn't want to die, life was just getting better with his new friends, learning magic, and staying at Hogwarts.

"Please wake up soon."

That felt like the wrong word for whoever it was to use. Harry could be awake and this condition to not be over. He wanted it to be over too, more so than he wanted to let himself realise. He was tired of this already, and he didn't have any way of knowing how long it had lasted.

-----

"Mme Pomfrey!" Ron yelled when he and Hermione entered the Hospital Wing first thing the next morning.

Harry had been propped up and sitting when they had left late the previous evening, the position Mme Pomfrey wanted him to be in, but now he was slumped over.

At Ron's yell Harry's eyelids twitched.