Going Soft | JAMES SIRIUS POTTER HP NEXT GENERATION

xviii || sectumsempra

James skidded to a halt outside of the hospital wing, out of breath. Not because of his run there, but because he was in a frightful state of panic.

First he got the ominous note warning him to stay away from Bella, and now Albus is in the medical wing? Could the two possibly be connected? Was it really his fault?

He hadn't noticed that his feet were rooted firmly in place and his pace of breathing was increasing until he felt a hand on his arm, tethering him back to earth.

"James," Scorpius whimpered, tightening his grip on his arm. "Come on," he said, nervously tugging him towards the door.

James's eyes flickered back between Scorpius and the door, nervous as to what he'd find on the other side of it. He knew he should go in, he knew he had to, but he was absolutely terrified.

"Charlie," He questioned, not finding it in him to be embarrassed about the way his voice cracked. "Can you go get my dad?" He begged him, his voice growing smaller.

"Of course mate, yeah. Come on Noah," he said softly, and hurried down the hall, back the way they came.

James took a deep breath, and stepped forward with Scorpius still grasping his arm tightly. He pushed the door open to see Madam Pomfrey fretting over Albus's pale, unconscious body. He had his head propped up to stop it from limply rolling back, as she forced some sort of liquid down his throat. She finished emptying the vial before laying him down gently. It was then that she turned around to greet James.

"Dear me, I think Scorpius and Charlie brought him to me just in the nick of time. Don't worry, he should be quite alright if I do say so myself." She informed the two terrified boys in front of her. "Well go on, take a seat. I do believe you've informed your father? He should be here any moment, wait for him."

James sat down one seat over from Albus's bed, choosing to let Scorpius have the seat closest to him. He knew it was what he needed. Those two—they had a special bond—they were absolutely inseparable. James could only imagine how he would feel if the same thing had happened, but only to Annabella.

But perhaps it would feel as how he felt now.

He could hardly bring himself to look at Albus's frail body without feeling the urge to throw up. Not because of how he looked, no, (although there was an abundance of bright red wounds littering his body, surely to leave a scar), but because of the fact that it was his fault. He caused it, because for some reason, someone didn't want him around Annabella.

And this was only their first warning.

But who could it be, who could do such a horrible thing?

"James!" Someone called, snapping him out of his thoughts. He looked up, startled, to see his father staring down at him.

"Oh, hello," he mumbled, feeling slightly disconnected from his surroundings.

"What on earth happened? Why is your brother in the hospital? Who did this to him, and what even is it?" Harry said, his voice growing even more shrill with every word, a telltale sign that he was either going to cry, yell, or do both.

"It's all my fault." James confessed, his voice cracking.

"What?!" Scorpius exclaimed, finally turning away from Albus and letting go of his hand. "James, how could you say that?"

He pulled he crumpled letter out of the pocket of his robes, and handed it to his father. His eyebrows shot up to his hairline, and Scorpius leaned over the note to read it as well.

His face turned red.

"James, this is not your fault. You had no way of knowing this was going to happen, and didn't you just get it anyways? There would have been no time for you to do anything," Scorpius assured him, and Harry just stared at the note.

"I've got to get this to McGonagall," Harry muttered.

"Ah-ah-ah, not so fast there Mr. Potter, I need to debrief you on your son's situation," Madam Pomfrey spoke up as she walked back in the room.

"Now for starters, I just gave him his blood replenishing potion. He should require two doses a day, for about a week. As long as he gets those as he needs them, he should be alright. As for what curse he was hit with, Well I suppose I should thank you for my knowledge on how to cure it," she said wryly.

"What? Me? What did I do?" Harry asked, flabbergasted.

"Does your little duel with Mr. Malfoy in the bathrooms ring a bell?"

Harry's face turned red, as Scorpius furrowed his brow.

"What duel? Not—oh no..." Scorp trailed off, as he must've realized what she meant. James seemed to be the only one who wasn't clued on.

"Sectumsempra?" Harry whispered.

She nodded. "But never fear, your boy will be alright. Now, if I were you, I'd go deliver that note to Headmistress. This is a threat we need to take care of immediately."

Harry nodded and left without looking at James. James's heart sunk in his chest.

"For enemies," Scorpius spoke up. "It's a spell for enemies. Your dad didn't know what it did when he used it on mine, don't worry. But I'd say whoever did it on Albus knew quite well."

James uneasily nodded in agreement, feeling tears burn at the back of his eyes.

As much as he hates to say this, because he had just gotten her back in his life—he knew one thing with certainty.

He could not talk to Bella until the problem was resolved.

Up until further notice, he was going to act as though she didn't exist for the sake of his brother, and Scorpius.

~~~
i literally haven't updated in two months, and i'm so so so sorry for that. i feel bad to have let you guys down because you've been so patient with me, and even got this to 17k :( i couldn't be more grateful. i love all of you, and i hope you enjoyed the chapter.

never fear, albus is okay :)
but the person who did it is still out there. any idea as to who it could be? maybe albus will remember something when he wakes up.