Formidable

Chapter 16

And all of a sudden, everything slowed down. Everything went quiet. Even his blinks became slow. Hermione's shouting and soothing was now silent, her movements as though time had stopped, as though they were in a movie.

And then, everything went into overdrive. Ron held Draco down as he screamed and cried, his tears spilling onto Draco's shirt. He saw Ron mutter apologies to Draco.

"I'm sorry.... I'm so sorry. Just hang on tight. It won't be long now. Don't worry." He tried to soothe, his voice gravelly, even more so as he choked up.

He turned his head to Hermione, who had another needle in her hand. She held onto Draco's arm and inserted the needle, pressing the tube as the clear liquid filled Draco's veins.

"It's okay. It's okay. Just one more. One more, come on, that's it." She said as she took one more needle and pressed it into his arm, sighing as the fluids began to take effect.

Harry watched, curled tightly in a ball, as Draco's thrashing became less so, his sobs beginning to subside. The peace didn't last for long though, as Hermione said to him and Ron,

"He's going into something the Muggles call Septic Shock. The bond's caused this. We need to use a range of muggle and magical medicine to save him." She said frantically, her voice becoming scared and breathy.

Harry just nodded, looking at Draco who was sobbing on the other end of the bed. He reached for him, but Hermione stopped him with a hand to the chest.

"Don't." She said, firmly.

"But—"

"Don't. If you touch him, the bond could cause more harm than good. I'm so sorry." She said, tears finally spilling out of her eyes. She pulled Harry into a hug, squeezing as tightly as she could for her little frame, strong, for her size.

"There's nothing you can do. It's a waiting game, now." She cried, cradling Harry's neck as Harry sobbed into her hair. She rubbed up and down his back, trying to soothe his shaking and jolting, with little coos of "It's okay. Don't cry, sweetheart. He'll be okay." Over and over again, speaking empty words into Harry's ear.

"Will he, though?" He said as he pulled back, wiping his eyes and sniffing loudly, looking back over to Draco and weeping again. "Will he be okay? Will he survive this?"

"I don't know, Harry. I don't know." She admitted.

Ron was sat at the end of the bed with Draco, smoothing back his hair gently, and running his fingers over the frown lines etched onto his face, even as the anaesthetic took effect. Draco quivered and convulsed, flopping back onto his back unceremoniously.

"I've administered him a muggle sleeping draught, called an anaesthetic, to put him under while the other medications take effect. I've also given him two other injections, an intravenous antibiotic, to fight the infection—"

"Infection?!" Harry gasped.

"— Yes, infection. And I've also given him vasopressor medications, which are drugs that constrict blood vessels and help increase blood pressure. That's all I can do for the moment, while I try to get his temperature under control."

Harry exhaled heavily and rubbed at his eyes, wiping his nose on his arm once he'd done so.

"Come on, mate. We'll get Draco into bed, and you can have a little sleep downstairs, yeah?" Ron suggested, placing a hand on Harry's shoulder. Harry looked up at him and gave a weak smile, and then looked back down at Draco. He climbed off the bed, his eyes not leaving his fiancé until he was completely out the door.

Twenty minutes later found Harry Potter in the arms of Ron Weasley, half asleep. Ron was laid on the sofa on his side on the outside edge of the couch, and Harry was wedged in between Ron and the back of the couch, his face smushed into Ron's chest and his hands holding Ron's shirt in limp fists. Ron's arms were wrapped around Harry, pulling him in closer to his chest, keeping him warm.