❝If by my life or death I can protect you, I will.❞
The Chosen One is kidnapped from the Dursley household and it turns out to be the best damn thing that's happened to him.
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CHARLUS' SYMPTOMS continued to escalate after he announced that he couldn't recall his mother's name. His erratic breathing was suddenly accompanied by him grabbing at his chest as it ached and raced at the same time. He couldn't stop shaking but even when he felt like he was going to topple over, Charlus couldn't bring himself to stop moving. When Sirius called out to him, trying to tell him to relax, Charlus caught none of it, and moments later, he claimed he couldn't breathe.
"What's wrong with him?!" Sirius questioned Maeve in his own form of panic. "What's happening? Save him!"
For a moment, Maeve seemed unsure of her next course of action. It was painful to witness Charlus in such a state, mainly because he had been progressing so well since leaving St Mungo's. But it appeared as though some of her fears were finally coming to the surface. Inducing patients into comatose states was not a regular practice among the wizarding kind, but more so muggles. Whatever could not be fixed with magic right away or over the course of a short period of time, was deemed as irreversible damage.
However, when Sirius begged her years ago to save Charlus' life, she was willing to try just about anything.
"Listen to me," she said to Sirius, " we need to get his breathing under control first. Just help me calm him down and we'll discuss this afterwards. We just need him to take slow and deep breaths."
Under Maeve's directions, Sirius approached Charlus but continued to keep some distance between them. More than anything, he just wanted to go over to his husband, wrap his arms around him, and hug Charlus until he was calm. And yet, Maeve advised against that, claiming that it would only make things worse for Charlus if he suddenly felt trapped. They couldn't just call out comforting things to him either since he couldn't hear him.
But Sirius had a plan as Maeve watched him start to sign. It didn't seem to work in the beginning but eventually, the movement caught Charlus' attention and he, at the very least, stopped pacing.
With his hands out in front of him, his palms facing downward, he moved them up and down, to tell Charlus to "calm down." Of course, it was easier said than done, leaving Sirius to move his hands up to his chest and slowly move them outward to make the motion for breathing.
"Breathe, Charlus," Sirius told him, " it's alright, we're all here with you. Just breathe with me."
"I can't, I can't!" Charlus gasped out. It was clear that he could still breathe, enough that he could talk, but as Maeve observed, it was the panic that made Charlus believe that he couldn't.
Step by step, as he repeated the same actions over and over, Sirius continued to near Charlus, all the while as Charlus continued to claim that he couldn't breathe. Eventually, Sirius was able to get close enough and cautiously reached out to grab one of Charlus' hands. Maeve was going to warn him against it, but it was too late.
Fortunately, Charlus didn't have a negative reaction, but instead, watched and allowed Sirius to place his hand against his own chest. Sirius took several deep breaths, inhaling and exhaling slowly. Every so often, he would remind Charlus to breathe and to relax because he was safe and nothing was going to happen to him. And finally, Charlus closed his eyes and continued to breathe along with Sirius until he was calm enough to speak.
