Chapter 10: Injuries

This was a long delay too, but I'm going to try to update more often. No promises.

Severus gently pushed Harry into a bedroom in the Grimmauld's Place. Sirius and Remus were already waiting, and Harry quickly looked at the floor. He had broken enough rules today. There was no need to break anymore. He wasn't even sure what the rules were here. They might not be exactly the same as at Vernon's house. What if they were all different? What if he had already broken in some of them? Was he expected to know them already? Would they still take him in? Of course they wouldn't. They weren't even trying in the first place.

"Come over here, pup," Sirius said gently and quietly. Despite his efforts to not scare the poor boy, Harry still jumped. He hesitated before deciding it would be better to just obey for now. He could always run later. Maybe he could convince Severus to take him with them. Draco and Severus were nice to him, and Draco was abused too. Severus was safe. He hadn't hurt Draco or Harry yet. Also, he didn't care about Harry's hero status, so he had no reason to pretend to like Harry. In fact, for most of Harry's Hogwarts years, Severus had hated him. So he was being genuine.

When Harry finally reached the bed, Remus gently instructed Harry to take off his shirt and lay on the bed. Harry shakingly did as he was told. Severus made sure to stay in sight of Harry, and Draco even sat on the end of the bed. Harry gave Draco a small, insecure smile, and Draco returned it with a grin. Harry relaxed minutely. Draco was always genuine with him as well. Draco had no reason to pretend to like Harry. Harry appreciated the true disdain they held for him. However, he was happy it was over. He was glad he had found friends in them. At least he thought they were his friends. Ron and Hermione were his friends, but they wouldn't understand the abuse he suffered. Remus quickly cast the diagnostic spell. Harry flinched when he saw Remus lift his wand, but he relaxed a bit more when the spell didn't hurt him.

The list of current injuries was long, and Sirius's heart broke more than he thought was possible. Harry was far below his healthy weight limit and ninety percent of his body was covered in bruises. Most of his ribs were bruised. A few were cracked, and two of them were broken. He had one punctured lung. His lip was split, and both of his ankles were sprained. One of them was a low ankle sprain, and the other one was a high ankle sprain. He had two major concussion, and three more minor concussions. His back had welts that were caused by a belt. He had several long gashes in his back, stomach, and chest. He also had some burns on his hands and wrists. He had some blisters on his feet. He also had the word FREAK carved into his right arm. Harry was also severely dehydrated.

"Severus?" Sirius asked quietly, "What do we do?"

"I'm going to brew you some nutrient potions. He'll need one of those with every meal. He needs three meals a day, and several light snacks between each meal. As he gains weight, you can lessen up on the snacks. I know most people don't eat like that. Remus will know what potions to give him for the other injuries. Make sure he drinks lots of water," Severus said, "And Sirius don't give up on him. He needs you to be strong and love him."

"I will always love him," said Sirius.

"I know, but he doesn't," said Severus, "He is quite convinced that you don't love him, and neither did James."

I hope you guys enjoyed this. I'm sorry if it's too short or too much dialogue.