Potions & Charms

Visiting

Scott had gulped down his tea and half an hour later they were on their way to London. Since Kirstie's classes were usually in the afternoon, sometimes even after dinner after the sun had set, she was free to join Scott. They left the grounds and once they had climbed over the old and shabby looking wooden fence they disappeared into air and manifested again in a small alley in the middle of buzzing London.

Kirstie was wearing her usual black, flowy pants and a black, cropped shirt which was covered by a dark blue cardigan. Her hair was up in a low bun and the large shades she was wearing on her nose allowed her to look even more badass than before, which Scott admired. He was stumbling behind her, trying to catch up as she made it through the large mass of people on the busy streets. Scott had ditched his cloak as well and was dressed in a large hoodie and ripped open pants that split over his knees.

He didn't know where he was, but after just a few minutes of walking he stumbled into a building that had looked like a regular Department store from the outside. Inside, however, were almost countless of witched and wizards. Some were wearing a uniform while others seemed to be there for a visit or even treatment. Scott didn't have a whole lot of time to look at the others, Kirstie had pulled him with her to the front desk.

Everything had been a blur until Scott stood in front of the dark green curtains that kept the beds in the room separated and granted at least some privacy. He heard wizards and witching groaning and panting, some where in so much pain that they screamed, others tossed and turned from side to side - but Kirstie squeezed his hand lightly and pulled him back. "He's in there" she said softly. "I'll wait here. Take your time."

He nodded slowly and then pushed the curtain to the side, just wide enough to enter the small space. The harsh light from above the bed almost burned his eyes, but the man on the mattress didn't seem bothered by it. "Avi" Scott mumbled and pulled the chair from the corner closer to the bed. "Hey, Avi."

The man kept his eyes closed. He was breathing heavily, the blanket had been kicked off and was by now on the floor, and the skin which was peeking out from between bandages seemed ashy and pale, covered by a thin layer of sweat. However, most of Avi's body was covered. Parts of the bandages were soaked and not white but stained yellow by now, probably by different potions, cremes and ointments that had been applied to the bite marks but Avi didn't seem to notice. He was still fighting for air with every breath he took as his body tried to heal the wounds.

Seeing him like this broke Scott's heart and he reached out to take Avi's left hand that was curled into a fist and gripping the thin sheets covering the mattress. The man didn't show any reaction to the touch, but Scott didn't care. He held his hand, sat through the physical pain he experienced when Avi was squeezing it tightly as well as the mental pain he had to endure with his friend on the bed, fighting against whatever substances shot through his veins.

Scott looked up half an hour later, when a healer pushed the curtain aside. She was fairly young and had a gentle smile on her lips.

"Hello" the woman chirped and sat down a bowl of water with a cloth hanging over the side on the small bedside table. "I didn't know Professor Kaplan had a visitor!"

The baritone cleared his throat and forced a smile. "Scott Hoying, hello. Charms professor at Hogwarts."

"Oh, I'm glad Professor Kaplan made friends. He started teaching during my last year at the school and always seemed to be a loner."

Scott nodded and looked at him. "Yeah...that's him" he mumbled and looked back at Avi, who was gritting his teeth as he arched his back due to his cramping muscles. "He's struggling so much, is there nothing you can do to help him?"

"I'm sorry, Professor. No. Not until we have an anti venom of the plant, but I am sure that Mr. Scamander is working on it already. Until then he has to fight. We usually see this kind of behavior and symptoms in survivors of vampire bites but it usually doesn't take long for them to turn, and he is neither growing fangs nor are his pupils turning red." She reached out and carelessly pushed Avi's upper lip up to show him his teeth. "See?"

"Yeah" Scott mumbled and frowned for a moment, happy when she let go again. "How bad is the pain he is experiencing?"

"Pretty bad, I believe. His body is burning through the potions pretty quickly but if we give him more he might experience side effects" she explained and looked at him. Professor, we're trying to help him. I promise. But even magic can't take every kind of pain away and it is safer to just observe how things are for now. We will step in when it is necessary." She had noticed the worry on Scott's face and patted his shoulder.

Once the healer had left Scott scooted closer to the bed again and reached for the cloth. He dipped it into the water, squeezed any excess out and then began to dab Avi's heated skin. First his forehead, down over this temples to his cheeks, all the way to his neck and parts of his shoulders. He pressed gentle kisses against the top of his hair, mainly for his own comfort, but the calm energy surrounding him had its effect on the Potion Master. At some point Scott even began to hum softly and he was so focused on cooling down Avi's body that he didn't notice the change in Avi's behavior. His muscles twitched less and his breathing was slowing down as well, and at some point the man started blinking.

Avi reached out shakily, his muscles still felt as if they were on fire, and when he came in contact with Scott's skin he exhaled.