Tearmann 2

Remus paused briefly inside the door to search for Madame Pomfrey. As his eyes scanned the room he heard a startled cry from the bed nearest him.

\"Profess - OUCH!!\" Draco Malfoy screamed loudly, sitting up in the bed. He was covered in what appeared to be hundreds of long needles growing out of his skin. At the harsh sound, Severus whimpered and buried his face deeper into Remus\' chest. Remus gave Malfoy a glare then turned to Pomfrey as she hurried down the row of beds.

\"Mr. Malfoy, keep your voice down!\" She said very sternly. \"What happened, Remus?\" her voice grew soft with concern.

\"He said he\'s got a migraine,\" Remus replied softly.

Poppy Pomfrey shook her head sadly. \"Take him to the back room'll 'll be there in a moment.\" The medi-witch gently instructed Malfoy to lie back down then went to gather some supplies before following Remus into the small room.

Remus tenderly laid Severus on the bed, careful to lower his aching head slowly onto the pillow. His eyes were squeezed tight but the tears seem to have stopped, at least for the moment. His face was a picture of pure agony. Remus brushed the hair from Severus\' sweating forehead, feeling the heat radiating from it.

He stepped back as Pomfrey entered the room with a large tray floating in front of her. He could see several vials and bottles of varying sizes and colours and her wand resting in the middle of it. She sat on the edge of the bed and took Severus\' face in her small hands.

\"Severus?\" When he didn\'t respond she raised her voice slightly. \"Severus, have you taken anything yet?\" When he finally opened his eyes they were glassy and unfocused. \"Severus, have you taken anything?\" She asked again more firmly.

\"..No... happened... suddenly... too sudden,\" Severus was becoming delirious from the pain. His eyes fluttered shut again, his chest heaving in rasping breaths.

The medi-witch turned to the tray still floating beside her. She picked up a large grey bottle and began filling a small cup. When it had three fingers worth of the creamy white liquid she picked up a tiny vial and poured its entire lime green contents into the mix. She picked up her wand and used its tip to blend the potions together.

Pomfrey turned back to Severus, slipped one hand under his neck and gently elevated his head. She pressed the cup to his lips and tilted it back. Remus watched as some of the pale potion dribbled out the side of his mouth but was glad to see most of it swallowed. He stared at the man\'s torso as it continued to rise and fall with harsh breaths. As the older witch laid Severus back down, he noticed the man\'s face begin to soften, the hard lines around his eyes relaxing. It wasn\'t long before Severus was breathing calmly as sleep took away the worst of the pain.

\"What did you give him?\" Remus asked curiously.

\"A very strong sedative with a mild pain killer.\" Pomfrey tucked the blanket around Severus\' sides and softly touched his face. She could feel the fever flushing his cheeks bright pink.

\"Just a \'mild\' pain killer?\" Remus looked confused.

Madame Pomfrey shook her head sadly. \"Severus doesn\'t do well with pain killers.\" She stood up and waved Remus out of the room, assuring hhat hat she\'d take care of the Potions master.

Remus was lost in thought as he walked down the isle between the mostly empty beds. He had forgotten about Draco Malfoy until the young man\'s voice reached him.

\"What did you do to Professor Snape?\" He asked, glaring menacingly at the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher.

\"I didn\'t do anything. He has a migraine,\" Remus answered, eyeing the odd-looking wizard with open curiosity. A smile slowly crept over his lips. \"Were you and Harry duelling again?\"

\"No. We were not!\" Draco said hotly. \"It was that damn Weasley again!\"

Remus laughed as he sat down on the side of Draco\'s bed. \"Ron or Ginny this time?\"

\"Ginny,\" the blond ground out between clenched teeth, clearly embarrassed by the admission. He started to cross his arms over his chest then grimaced and groaned as he was reminded of the quills that covered his upper body.

Remus laughed again. \"You\'d better be careful, Draco. You\'re going to end up marrying her... or him!\"

\"NO WAY,\" Draco shouted at him.

\"Malfoy!\" came the holler from near the back of the infirmary.

\"Do you have any idea,\" his voice back down to a stage whisper, \"any idea at all how my father would react? A Malfoy marrying a Weasley??\"

\"Well, they are purebloods...\"

\"Not as far as my father is concerned. Weasleys are worse than mudbloods.\" Draco sounded saddened by this, which slightly surprised Remus. He knew Draco was nothing like his father especially as far as \'mudbloods\' were concerned but he also didn\'t think the young man worried about what his father thought about anything. Ever since the end of the war, Remus had been under the impression that the Malfoy\'s had had a falling out and weren\'t talking.

\"Draco, you\'ve followed your heart this far, and it\'s served you well. Don\'t you think you should keep following it?\"

The young wizard looked thoughtful a moment, then a small smile broke out. \"You\'re right! I have done well so far on my own. I don\'t need father\'s approval for anything! If I want to marry a Weasley, then I\'ll damn well marry a Weasley!\" He started grinning widely, looking very pleased with himself.

\"That\'s the spirit! So, which one is it going to be?\" Remus couldn\'t help laughing and soon Draco joined him.

\"Well... um... girls have never done anything for me,\" Draco was looking decidedly bashful.

\"Ah! So it IS Ron who lights your fire! I knew it!\" Remus gave a smug smile as he rose from the bed. \"Don\'t worry, though. I won\'t tell him... yet!\" As he reached the door to leave he turned back to the blushing man.

\"By the way, what exactly did Ginny do to you?\"

\"Porcupine hex. Madame Pomfrey said they should be gone by morning.\" Draco looked like he couldn\'t decide if he should be amused or angry at the youngest Weasley\'s curse.