An Ally

Chapter 9

The next day found Harry standing in the middle of his room being poked and prodded every now and again by an old wizard who looked suspiciously like he would fall over at any moment.

"Alright look here sonnie, you need to get out of these blasted pajamas. Tom why on Earth would you put him in something that doesn't fit him at all?!" Tom rolled his eyes and explained to him that it was all he had for the teen even though he knew his argument was falling on deaf ears. "Hmm," Harry felt his stomach being poked a little harder and winced. "Yes, off with the pajamas sonnie. I can't measure you properly when you have clothes on already. I'll be back in a few minutes." The old man promptly shuffled out of the door, leaving Harry and Tom on their own.

"He's right Harry. He can't possibly measure you this way, the pajamas will crumble up under his measuring tapes and cause your fit to be off. I can leave if you'd like." Harry shook his head, his body starting to shake ever so slightly. "N-no you can stay. I just...I don't want you to think differently of me..." Tom stood, taking Harry's hands in his.

"I understand how you feel. But I will have to see the extent of the damage they have done sooner or later. Frederick won't be back for at least half an hour, and I'm sure I can heal most of what hasn't healed already." Harry nodded, but didn't make any move to undress himself. Tom let go of his hands and slowly unbuttoned his shirt. Tom's red eyes never left his, kindness swirling in their depths. When the shirt fell open, he closed his eyes. He didn't want to see the pity that would appear as soon as he looked down.

He heard the small gasp and felt a featherlight touch tracing the scar that trailed from his left shoulder to his right hip. Vernon had given him that on a particularly nasty day when he had lost two major deals in one shift. He winced as Tom's other hand gently caressed a blue bruise on his shoulder. Suddenly the hands were gone although he could sense that Tom was still there.

The hands were back, a warm feeling following them. His eyes flew open as the warm sensation grew warmer. Tom was applying some sort of salve to his injuries and to his surprise the bruises were going away. It was slow progress, but the blue faded to greenish yellow until it was the same as the rest of his skin. Tom didn't say anything, he just moved on to all the other injuries on his chest before moving around to his back. He felt the silk being gently removed from his back and slipped his hands out of the sleeves.

Something in the air changed as his back was revealed. Tom had stilled, a growl emanating from his chest. Harry's arms wrapped themselves around his front, embarrassment and shame making him hang his head. Suddenly the noise stopped, and Tom got to work on his back.

When Fredrick burst back into the room, he smiled. "Right as rain sonnie, I'll have your proper measurements in a jiffy now. Here now, put your arms up..." The measurements took a relatively short amount of time. Much less than the lecture he had received to begin with about wearing pajamas that didn't fit him properly.

After Fredrick left, Harry hung his head once more. His secret was out, or at least a part of it. He might not be able to read backwards but he knew enough to know what some of the words carved into his back were.

"Harry, would you come here? I didn't get to finish earlier." Tom's voice was soft, but there was no pity hidden within it. He went to stand in front of the man that was sat in an armchair. Without warning, he was pulled onto his lap and cradled to his chest. A gentle hand was repositioning his arm and then rubbing more salve into the wounds. The cuts warmed as his flesh knit itself back together. Only the worst of them left small silver lines. Tom repeated this on his left arm, although that one took longer as it was were the majority of the damage took place. Before he knew it, he was drifting off to sleep.

Harry woke to find himself in Tom's arms still. He yawned and rubbed his eyes. A quiet chuckle came from below his ear.

"Well, it seems you waking up is just as adorable as you sleeping. Now come, I believe it is time to teach you about potions."