The Troubled Wizard (A Harry Potter Fan Fiction)

Chapter 8

Arthur and the kids were all waiting anxiously in the kitchen when their mother walked in. "How is he?" Ron said immediately.

She looked to her husband. "Did you tell them?" he nodded. She wiped a tear from her eyes and continued. "He's stable now. Madam Pompfrey said that he has a concussion and should avoid any strenuous activity for the next few weeks. His leg was broken but she has sense mended it. He should still stay off it for a few days to give it time to heal. She also fixed a broken wrist, 3 broken ribs, and a fracture in his cheekbone. He had some wounds on his shoulder that..." she hiccupped.

Arthur wrapped his arm around her shoulders, "It's ok..."

She took a deep breath, "There was glass in the wound, probably from being struck with some kind of bottle. The wounds were a day or so old so had already tried to heal around the glass, which caused an infection. He's ok now, but if we had waited much longer, she said things could have turned out much differently..."

"Any... anything else...?" Ginny said with tears in her eyes.

Molly opened her arms and held her daughter close. "His back was covered in bruises that looked like... they had come from a belt. There were a lot of scars there too, it looks like this has been... going on for quite some time..."

"Can we see him?" Ron asked sadly.

She nodded and they walked up to Charlie's old bedroom. Once they had finished healing him, they had taken him up here so he could get some rest. When the kids saw him, they all froze. They had only been able to get a quick glance at him when their parents had first brought him in. He was covered in bandages from head to foot. His shirt had been left off so that his wounds would be better able to heal.

"He... He's so tiny..." Fred commented sadly.

Molly nodded, gesturing at the way his ribs stook out from his body. "Madam Pompfrey said that he was extremely malnourished and dehydrated. She thinks that the reason Harry hasn't grown much over the years is because his body hasn't been getting all of the nutrients it needs to grow.

"But surely he eats when he gets to Hogwarts..." Arthur said sadly.

Ron shook his head, "He... he's never eaten a whole lot at school. He says it's because he doesn't have a very big appetite... On the few times I have seen him eat a fair amount, I would hear him getting sick in the dorms later that night. I never mentioned it... I was afraid I would embarrass him..."

"He's probably grown up used to not eating much, so when he does eat like a normal person, it messes up his insides..." George muttered sadly.

"So, what happens next?" Ginny asked.

Molly looked at her husband. "Madam Pompfrey left me with some potions for Harry to take over the next few weeks. They're to help with the pain and his overall healing process. There's also one that is supposed to help get some more nutrients into his body. The next thing we need to do is tell Professor Dumbledore so that he can set up new living arrangements for him."

"Where's he going to be staying?" Fred asked.

"Here." Both Molly and Arthur said at the same time. They smiled at one another. "Harry's going to be living with us from now on, whether Dumbledore likes it or not," Arthur said firmly.

The Weasley children all grinned, before wrapping their parents in a hug. "Don't worry..." Molly patted their heads, "We're going to take good care of him..."

(A/N - Hey guys, thanks for reading! I hope you like it so far!)