Chapter 5
Chapter 5
“Pick it up.”
A loud thump and burst of pain.
Harry groggily pushes himself up, his head smarting something bad. His magic starts soothing the ache immediately but the sting lingers for a few moments. He blinks as he takes in his surroundings, relaxing when he recognizes where he is. The living room is silent and still except for his laboured breathing, the bed solid against his back. The nightmare sifts away slowly, leaving him shaking and wrung out.
Damn, he had been hoping his usual habit of sleeping like a log would hold up. He never dreamt while in that room and he hadn’t had any since he got here, as far as he’s aware. This wasn’t anything like waking up in the bedroom, thinking he had been back in the White Room for a terrifying moment. No, this was just a plain, disappointing nightmare of his time spent being trained in that office like space filled with dog toys.
In retrospect, those dog toys probably belonged to Terrence.
A door opens. Abruptly, Harry’s Sense flares into life, bringing numerous Will’s into focus near and beneath him. The bright one that is his Godfather approaches but it’s the one pacing in tight circles that catches Harry’s attention. There’s a much dimmer, flickering Will next to the first that keeps snuffing and re-flaring at each pass, seeming almost like a heartbeat more than someone’s Will to Live. The third Will in the same small space is steady and unmoving, likely asleep going by how late – or early – it must be.
“Bad dream?” Sirius asks quietly.
Harry sighs a little, nodding as he takes in his Godfather. Though the Sense doesn’t go away with the distraction, they do dim quite a bit. “The Matron,” Harry confides, bringing a hand up to rub at his face.
“Tell me about it?” Sirius hesitantly asks, settling down across from Harry.
Harry focuses back on his Sense and checks on the others. Zoey’s is still, burning steadily and brightly despite the hard week she’s had. Even while locked in her room those two days, her Will never flickered enough to worry him, which is why he kept Negan from forcing her out. Speaking of, the man and Lucille’s Will’s are the same; steady with the stillness of sleep. Assured they won’t be waking for this, Harry feels more comfortable sharing.
“It was the... the training,” Harry hedges a little, glancing at Sirius and seeing the moment his Godfather catches on to what he’s saying. Sirius’ face darkens and his teeth visibly clench, the vein on his temple throbbing prominently. “I’m fine, Sir’. It was just a bad dream.”
“Bad memory,” Sirius corrects, shuffling close enough for their knees to touch. “You wanna talk about it?”
Harry drops his eyes to his hands, not wanting to share what really happened in there, “Not really.”
Sirius’ hands slowly come into view and carefully wrap his hands over Harry’s. The motion makes Harry smile a little, adjusting so that he can grasp Sirius’ hands in turn. His Godfather is trying really hard not to set him off, has been since that moment in the Prison where Harry flinched from Sirius during their heated argument.
“I’m here, whenever you need, Harry,” Sirius murmurs, gently squeezing Harry’s hands. “Always.”
“I know, Padfoot,” Harry replies simply, again relishing in the fact that his Godfather from his previous life is actually here. They have time, now, to spend with each other that they never really got before. Harry can’t really remember the moments they shared in their previous life but he knows he cherished them greatly in the years after he lost Sirius.
“Let’s go to the roof,” Sirius suggests after a long moment. “Today is going to be hairy and we may as well enjoy the peace while we can.”
Harry chuckles at the pun and agrees. Today is the day, after all.
Sirius stands first and offers a hand, pulling Harry to his feet and into a hug with one quick yank. Harry sighs as he buries his face in Sirius’ shoulder, appreciating how warmth seeps into every crevice in seconds. The closest he came to warmth in the Commune was the ratty blanket he was given and later, Terrence. This is nice and just what Harry needed to shake off the remnants of the nightmare.
Sirius plants a kiss on Harry’s crown and pulls back, “Been wanting to do that all day.”
Harry laughs, “The day just started.”
“Well then,” Sirius waggles his eyebrows. “I’m ahead of schedule.”
Harry shakes his head, amused at his Godfather’s antics.
Sirius pulls Harry along to the door and they both take a moment to shove their feet into their respective shoes. The hall is empty but for a man near the end where the stairs meet the landing. Harry is startled to see him there because he hadn’t sensed a Will on this floor other than Zoey, Negan, Lucille and Sirius. Is he just out of range or...?
The man looks at them and after a moment of confusion, merely nods in acknowledgement. Sirius waves once and pulls Harry to the rooftop access in the opposite direction, “He’s just there to keep people from coming up here in their curiosity,” Sirius explains quietly as they head up.
“I couldn’t Sense him,” Harry confides, frowning. His Sense is still active, brighter now that he’s actively concentrating on it.
Sirius pauses, looking down at Harry, “No?”
Harry shakes his head, “No. I could be mistaken and he was too far but I’m pretty sure he’s in my range.”
Sirius opens the door and prompts Harry to head out first, “If you can’t sense it, it means... they don’t want to live?”
Harry shrugs, taking in the crisp early morning air and revelling in the fresh scent of rain. The storm last night was loud, flashy and absolutely beautiful to watch. By the time Sirius herded Harry back upstairs for the night, all the anger and frustration had been washed away, almost literally. Harry was soaked and had to bear the bathroom again for a much needed hot shower.
It was worth it.
“Probably?” Harry finally answers after giving it some thought. “I don’t know the details of that ability just yet.”
“Fair,” Sirius seems to let it go with a nonchalant shrug. He changes the subject easily, “We haven’t had much time to talk since we got here.”
No, they haven’t and not by any fault of theirs.
“They treating you okay?” Harry asks, leaning on the railing to consider his Godfather.
Sirius half nods, tilting his head as he answers, “Much better than I was expecting. Lucille is a lovely woman.”
“Don’t get any ideas,” Harry warns him, feeling like there’s something underneath that statement.
Sirius solemnly denies it, “No ideas have popped into my overactive brain.”
Harry snorts, “That’s a lie.”
Sirius pauses and then shrugs, “Okay, okay, no ideas regarding Lucille going on up here. Just ways I can prank Negan and get away with it.”
Harry can’t help the amused grin, “Oh yeah, what do you have in mind?”
Sirius doesn’t rise to the occasion for once, “Oh, no, I’m not giving away all my secrets, young Padawan.”
These vague references just keep coming. Harry has no idea what a Padawan is.
“For real, though?” Harry prompts curiously. “None?”
Sirius half shrugs, shifting from one foot to the other, “Nothing like you’re thinking. She kind of reminds me of Lily, actually.”
Harry pauses, taken aback at the reference to his mother, “Does she really?”
“Mm,” Sirius affirms with a nod.
Harry gravitates closer to his Godfather, strangely eager to know what Sirius means by that, “How, exactly?”
“We talked a few times while you slept,” Sirius starts with. “She’s just as shrewd and perceptive as Lily back in the day. Kind, too, despite Negan’s attempts to dissuade our interactions. You should have seen it, Harry!” Sirius chortles with genuine amusement. “The berk tried to shuffle Lucille away from our conversation and she ripped him a new arsehole. It was majestic. Just as fierce as Lily was, too. Forgot to say that.”
Hearing the similarities between Lucille and Lily eases something in Harry that he hadn’t known was tense. Why it has this effect on him, Harry has no idea. He’ll ponder on it later, when he doesn’t have such a huge day already pressing down on him, when he doesn’t know how it’s going to go. It can go right or wrong, there’s not really a middle ground and that makes Harry nervous.
Today is the day. In a couple of hours, Negan and Lucille will be introducing Harry to Sanctuary and announcing the mass vaccinations that will be taking place. Harry is uneasy, immensely so. His relative anonymity in the community will blow up into infamy and he doesn’t know if it’s going to be positive or negative. Vague impressions from his fractured memory of his previous life tells Harry it’s going to be a rollercoaster ride of both extremes. Harry can handle it – but if it does turn out bad, what will happen to Zoey? She built herself a life here, gained parents and is even interested in dating. Will this cause a rift to appear between them? If things go wrong, will she blame him for it?
Harry looks down over the railing, the distance to the ground not even giving a swoop to his stomach. Being high up hasn’t bothered Harry in a long time, so it’s easy for him to simply watch the growing number of small heads moving about down there. The gate is busy, half open and letting in Runners and Saviors that were out and about even this early. Though... there really shouldn’t be that many residents awake right now... should there?
“Hey, things will be fine,” Sirius’ voice draws Harry out of his contemplation. Harry glances at him, not feeling as confident. Sirius reaches out and squeezes Harry’s shoulder firmly, “I’ve got you, Harry. If anyone gets any ideas about you, I’ll be right there to stop them.”
The nerves don’t abate, despite Sirius’ confidence. Harry knows that his Godfather is more than capable but there are over a hundred people staying in Sanctuary and Sirius is only one man. How much can he really do against that many if things do go sideways? Sure, not everyone will have the same reaction but it only takes one to turn the tide of opinion.
Sirius’ shakes Harry’s shoulder a little, emphasizing sternly, “Trust me, Pup. I won’t let you down.”
“Okay,” Harry nods shakily, swallowing down the urge to argue. Sirius is one man... but perhaps today, that will be enough. “I trust you, Sir’. Always.”
Sirius pauses, his eyes gaining a watery sheen before he abruptly pulls Harry into another, tighter hug. Harry folds into it and just for the moment, allows Sirius to be strong for both of them.
Today is the day... that Harry takes the spotlight that will allow his little sister to hide in his shadow. Today, things will change, for better or worse... though Harry sincerely hopes it’s the former. He needs to build something that will protect his sister from those seeking to bleed her dry for a carrot-stick cure. He won’t allow the Commonwealth to come in and destroy that in which Zoey, Negan and Lucille spent so much time and energy building up.
This is for Zoey’s future. Harry will do anything to ensure she has one.
“Come on,” Sirius grunts as he pulls away, blinking rapidly as he guides Harry to the door. “I hear Lucille. Best we get back down there before she becomes worried.”
---
They walk into the alluring aroma of coffee being made. The woman glances over as they toe off their shoes and gives them a quick smile, "Morning, Harry, Sirius. Sleep well?"
"I slept fine," the lie slips off his tongue so easily and it bothers him a little.
“I slept like a dog,” Sirius replies cheerfully, gaining an amused glance from Harry at the double entendre.
"Thank you, Lucille. How was your sleep?"
Lucille ducks her head a little and shrugs lightly, "Not particularly well, I'll admit. Today's the day."
Harry sits down at the table, his arms resting on top as he nods in understanding, even though Lucille can't see it, "It'll be fine." He lies again, not wanting to share his own anxieties about today. A lot can go wrong and the consequences of today will be felt for weeks, months… even years from now. Thankfully, Sirius will be right there at every moment. Harry trusts his Godfather to keep people from trying something, if it came down to it.
“Harry’s right,” Sirius bobs his head imperiously and his tone gains a pompous, nasally edge. “I, the Illustrious and Most Handsome Sirius will be there, so nothing can possibly go wrong.”
“Hm,” Lucille is most definitely amused by Sirius’ claim but doesn’t want to show it. “If you say so.”
“I do,” Sirius snarks, crossing his arms and sticking his nose in the air.
Lucille snorts, unable to keep it down this time, “That confidence is astounding.”
“Thanks!” Sirius chirps, heading into his room with a spring to his step. “I am astounding.”
Harry shakes his head, exchanging glances with Lucille that makes both of them smile.
“Hungry, Harry?” Lucille asks him, turning around to start breakfast.
No.
“I could eat something,” Harry says instead, knowing that a negative will only make Lucille worry about him more.
“It won’t take too long, did you want tea or coffee this morning?”
Harry stands, “I got it, Lucille.”
Lucille looks over her shoulder, “I insist, please sit down.”
“I can get my own tea, Lu. It’s not a big deal,” Harry presses as he walks around the table.
Lucille actually stops what she’s doing and presses a gentle hand to his shoulder, “Harry, I know you can but I... I need something do to right now, okay?”
Harry stops, realizing for the first time how nervous she is right now. Lucille doesn’t look like she slept last night, even though Harry knows she was deeply asleep not even an hour ago. Her eyes have developing bags under them and her skin is a tad pale. Evidently, Harry isn’t the only one bothered by today and that honestly makes him feel better about it.
“Okay,” Harry shrugs it off, allowing Lucille to lightly push him back towards the table. “Tea, please.”
Lucille nods, her smile a bit wobbly. Lucille works quietly after that. Harry can’t help the grimace when she pours oats into the boiling pot of water and mixes it before tending to the now screaming kettle for tea. The coffee maker sputters dark liquid into the clean coffee pot, filling the silence with hissing grunts.
“I’ll take some coffee when it’s done!” Sirius calls out just loud enough to be heard by Lucille. The bathroom door shuts after him.
She starts speaking as she tends to the stove, "Negan has made every security preparation he can think of. Sirius will be with you the entire time and there will be Saviors around as well. No one is allowed outside the gate until they've been vaccinated, so I expect it to be quite crowded."
“Just how crowded?” Harry asks, curious.
Lucille’s shoulders tighten and her voice comes out a tad flat, “Negan called in those at the Outposts, so about a hundred and fifty.”
Harry eyes Lucille’s back and wonders where that came from. Does she have a problem with Negan’s idea or is it something deeper? Regardless, Harry isn’t sure if he can vaccinate a hundred and fifty people. He’s not even sure if he can manage a hundred. He’ll have to see and let Lucille know...
Wait, how are they deciding vaccination order?
Lucille sets down a steaming bowl in front of Harry, breaking him out of his musings. It's porridge and the very sight makes him sick. It's covered in an unhealthy amount of brown sugar and a dash of honey. Harry mixes the porridge a little, the brown sugar and honey melting together weirdly. Lucille comes back around, placing a steaming cup within Harry's reach and then busying herself with something else. The aroma of tea is enough to make Harry reach out before thinking about it, pulling the cup towards himself and inhaling the lovely scent of Earl Grey tea. It's more than enough to wipe away Harry's inherent disgust at the porridge and he relaxes, smiling gently. He blows on it a little and takes a hot sip. It's still not quite the right taste but it's better than no tea.
Lucille sits down across from Harry, looking even more nervous. Harry pauses as she hesitantly says, "Negan told me what happened between you two yesterday…"
Harry sets the cup aside, "Oh?" He doesn't really want to talk about that. That wasn't his proudest moment, he can admit to himself that much but he wasn't going to take it back or apologize for it. At the time, he meant every word; regardless of how the couple views him, Harry is too old for someone to step into a parental role in his life. Zoey is his little sister and Harry will do what he thinks is best for her without Negan's and Lucille's say in the matter unless that's what Zoey wants. The way Negan tried to exert control over Harry triggered some nasty emotions and memories.
"You know…" Lucille bites her lip and sighs. "You know Negan didn't mean it, right? Not in the way you might have been thinking."
"Sure," Harry replies a touch scathingly, staring down at the porridge.
Lucille clasps her hands together, "Negan cares for you a lot, Harry. Zoey went out as much as she could to put up your symbols but Negan dedicated a whole team of his Saviors into looking for you." Harry almost looks up at that, stilling entirely. Negan did what? "Every time we made contact with a new community, he was showing them a drawing of you, asking if they had seen you. He left them a copy of your drawing so that if you ever showed up or… or if someone had seen you, they could let him know."
Harry finally looks up at Lucille, taking in her expression and seeing her sincerity. She smiles a little, her eyes watery and she tentatively reaches a hand out. Harry allows her to grasp his hand, her grip gentle but firm, calluses where there had been none before. "There was never a day that he stopped looking for you. I know… that you haven't had an easy time since… well, that day but Negan-we really care about you, okay? You and Zoey disappearing like that scared the hell out of him and he didn't handle it well."
Harry focuses on her hand and thinks. Negan certainly seemed contrite since their spat. The previous night, when Harry finally came in from the downpour, Negan had hesitantly nodded at them before turning back to the telly. Now that Harry is thinking about it, both of them have been going out of their way to make him comfortable. Including allowing Sirius to take the bedroom they had fully intended on giving Harry. Maybe he has been too hard on Negan and too defensive to see the man’s genuine intention to reconnect.
"Even if you don't like it, we do feel like you are family," Lucille admits softly. Harry feels his chest clench at that. "If it really bothers you that much, we'll understand and respect that but please don't discount us."
The sound of the toilet flushing has both Harry and Lucille startling. Harry clears his throat and nods at Lucille. She smiles and stands, heading back to the counter as Harry looks over his shoulder. Sirius gives Harry a wink as he heads back into his room, his hair dripping from the shower he took. Zoey appears from the short hall leading to her room, her hair crazy and wild with tangles. She rubs her eyes as she shuffles into the bathroom and her grumbled complaints of stepping into Sirius’ leftover puddles can be heard through the door.
Lucille busies herself with making a few cups of coffee. Zoey finishes in the bathroom very quickly and exits, groggily sitting at the table. She then practically face plants into the clean surface.
"Morning, sweetheart," Lucille intones lightly, filling a bowl with the porridge still steaming on the stove.
Zoey groans into the table, not surfacing from her slumped position.
Harry's lips quirk in his amusement, absently spooning the porridge into his own mouth and chasing the near revolting texture with another sip of tea. His tongue scalds a little from the heat but it's far more palatable. He tucks the conversation away to think about later. Instead, Harry studies Zoey; she doesn’t seem worse for wear from yesterday’s funeral. She does have some bags under her eyes and her hair is crazy bed head level of tangled. Harry ponders what braid he should use to tame it.
The clink of the bowl being set down prompts Zoey to lift her head and sleepily pull the bowl under her face, immediately digging in without mixing. It has a smattering of chocolate chips and a light dusting of brown sugar. She hums in groggy enjoyment, leaning onto her free hand lazily with her eyes closed.
"Sleep well, Zo?" Lucille asks as she fills two more bowls.
"Mhmm," Zoey hums in answer, scooping another spoonful into her mouth without opening her eyes.
Lucille just shakes her head with amusement lacing her features. She sets the bowls on the table, one with just a dollop of honey and the other smothered in brown sugar and then heads towards the rooms murmuring, "Always the last one up, that man."
Harry remembers Negan's reasoning for sleeping in and shakes his head. Despite Zoey's half asleep state, she's making quick work of the porridge, nearly done already. Harry is barely halfway through and wants to stop but forces himself to take a much larger bite in an effort to get it down and done with. Sirius stumbles into the chair next to Harry and pulls his porridge, the one with the honey, towards himself with a, "Morning Zoey. How’s the porridge, Pup?"
"Why do you call him that?" Zoey asks before Harry can reply.
Sirius takes a moment to wink at Harry as he answers, "My spirit animal is a dog and Harry here is my Godson, so it's only natural I call him Pup. Why? Jealous?"
Harry smirks at the answer, knowing just how on the nose it actually is.
"Nope, I've eaten dog," Zoey quips, taking the last bite of her food.
Sirius laughs, shaking his head and digging into his food. Lucille comes back out of the bedroom with a huff, her face red but smiling. Harry forces the last bite down, chasing it with an unhealthy gulp of tea, gritting his teeth at the burn. It should bother him that things got desperate enough for them to eat dogs but at least they were able to eat and not starve. He remembers the teens and children in Ruby who were on the cusp of running out of food… would they have been able to eat something that's considered to be a pet? Would they have made that hard decision to kill an animal to live another day?
Harry shakes those thoughts away, now isn't really the time for them.
Zoey scrapes her bowl clean with practised movements and then grabs his bowl along with hers, taking them to the sink. Harry finishes his tea as she quickly washes the bowls and spoons.
"Thanks, Zo," Harry murmurs, taking his cup to the sink. “That tea was lovely, Lucille.”
Sirius perks up, "There wouldn't happen to be coffee?"
"There may be," Lucille hints, nodding her head at the counter where the still steaming cups sit. "And you're welcome, Harry."
Zoey takes the cup from Harry and rinses it, setting it into the dish rack on the side as she asks, "Can you braid my hair?"
Harry is nodding before she even finishes the question, "Of course. Got something in mind?"
Zoey shrugs, drying her hands on a nearby towel, "Just want it out of my face. Getting sick of pushing it out of the way."
Well, he can certainly do that. He quirks a smile as he nods again.
Zoey perks up, "I'll go get my stuff!" She takes off before anything else can be said, a small skip in her step as she goes. Well, she certainly seems a lot more cheerful today. Harry isn’t going to question it because it’s nicer to see her smile than it is to wonder when she’s coming out of her room. Those two days had been rather intense.
Negan shuffles out of the bedroom. He and Harry pause when they catch each other's eye. Negan's tired face reflects a lot more than a few nights of poor sleep. Now that Harry has that moment to really look at the man, with Lucille's words ringing around his head, a few things become startlingly clear.
The Negan before winter had been a healthy weight with almost unhealthy levels of stress that almost immediately eased when Harry healed Lucille. The man after that was easy going, funny and devoted to evolving to the world instead of hiding away while hoping for the best. The Negan of now, however, doesn't resemble that man. Haggard, drawn, stressed are but a few words Harry can think of to describe him. Underweight, weighed down. Battered, in a way, from the responsibilities of his position. Deep bags, redness in the whites of his eyes, wrinkles where there had been fine lines...
This Negan looks a decade older than he actually is. Considering it's only been half a year, the changes before Harry's eyes are almost unbelievable if he didn't possess the perspective of absence.
How could he have missed all of this?
"Mornin'," Negan rumbles, breaking their brief stare off to rub his face.
"Morning, Negan," Harry replies, moving to the couch.
Lucille's warm voice drifts over, “Morning, honey."
"Morning, Dad!" Zoey greets as she passes him.
Negan's arm shoots out and nabs Zoey, making her squeal as he reels her in for a bear hug, "Where do you think you're going without giving me my morning hug?"
“Da-ad,” Zoey sighs dramatically but gives Negan a quick hug. She escapes a moment later, jumping onto the couch next to Harry. She sets her small bag on the couch between them just as a knock sounds out from the door.
Negan, pausing just as he's about to sit down, scowls in confusion and heads for the door. Sirius and Lucille also look up from their conversation. Zoey is frowning; worry creases her features and that alone makes Harry figure that anyone that comes knocking is out of the ordinary.
"Who could that be?" Lucille asks rhetorically.
Negan opens the door and reveals Simon standing there. Simon nods once with a grave expression on his face, "Sorry, Boss. This is urgent."
Negan straightens, glancing at Lucille before stepping out of the door. Sirius stills entirely, his head partially tilted. Zoey tenses anxiously when a loud what pierces the door.
What feels like an eternity later, Negan comes back inside, bee-lining for the rooms. "Sorry, Lu," he says as he goes. "Can't eat, need to go."
Lucille's countenance becomes worried. She rushes after Negan, the door closing behind them. Harry looks at Sirius, who nods and flicks his head at the couple's shared room. Then he idly goes back to drinking his coffee.
Assured, Harry turns his attention to Zoey, grabbing her attention by rifling through her small bag nonchalantly. Her eyes snap down and he says, "Quite the collection. Which ones would you like in your hair? Pick two."
The tension nearly eases off as she considers but the door opening and Negan's, "-you, Lu. I gotta get." puts it right back on.
"Dad?" Zoey utters worriedly.
Negan shakes his head as he quickly walks to the door, "Not now." He’s dressed in his full Savior Leader attire, minus the sledgehammer. It must be urgent if the man can’t even take a moment to eat.
The door snaps shut behind him.
"Hey," Harry lightly pats her leg, distracting her from Negan's abrupt exit. "We'll find out later. Pick two, I've gotten an idea for your hair."
Zoey gives the door another glance before she glumly pokes through the bag. When she pulls two out, Harry sets them aside and motions for her to turn around. Zoey does, looking marginally excited. Harry grabs the comb and starts by halving her hair in the middle and then quartering them, tying the sections with clips and spare elastics. Then, he sits up and gets to work.
Harry carefully braids in four Dutch braids, starting at the temples and nape of the neck. They connect a bit roughly atop the back of her head, wherein Harry ties them off, the short, frizzy, curly ends resembling two puff balls. Throughout the process, Zoey relaxes and wiggles a little impatiently. When Harry finally sits back, Zoey is up and away. Harry grins, watching as she zooms into the bathroom and the grin widens when a squeal erupts.
"Harry! It's so cute!"
"That was amusing to watch," Sirius comments, his jaw resting on his palm. "You told me about this but I didn't imagine you'd be so proficient at it."
Zoey hums in appreciation as she lingers in the bathroom. Harry cleans up her sparse collection as he replies, "Lots of practice."
The double meaning isn't lost on Sirius. He nods, finishing off his undoubtedly cold coffee and gets up to take it to the sink. Zoey comes out of the bathroom long enough to send Harry a dazzling grin before she disappears into Negan and Lucille's room.
"Ma?" Zoey calls out in confusion, coming back out to ask. "Where did Ma go?"
"Lucille snuck out while you two were busy," Sirius informs her, taking Harry off guard. How did he not notice her leaving? He must have been very focused on Zoey's hair. Sirius looks at both of them, "She said to bring you two down when you're dressed."
Zoey looks at Harry, beaming at him and then chirping, "Thank you, Harry!"
Harry doesn't even have time to respond. Zoey disappears into her room. Shaking his head, Harry rubs his hands on his pants and then stands, heading to his dresser. He quickly dresses in something a little more presentable than pyjamas, again luxuriating in having no white on his clothes.
"You ready?" Sirius murmurs, giving Harry a significant look.
"As I'll ever be," Harry replies wryly, shaking out the nervous energy from his hands. He needs to be. “What's going on?”
Sirius grimly replies, “A group of Saviors has gone missing.”
—
There are so many people.
Undoubtedly, not as much as the Commune but up there. While there is a steady patrol of Saviors keeping strict watch, the rest of the denizens of Sanctuary, and what looks to be the rest of the Saviors, mill about, almost crowding with some more noticeably closer together. The children, Erin, Rachel, Ryan and what seems to be the little girl, Jodi stand with their parents, making up one such group. Zoey’s friends Emillia, Jake and Darren stand with Tina and a few others. Saviors, Workers, Runners... Harry doesn't have time to count but it must be very close to the one hundred and fifty Lucille had told him. Harry descends the rail stairs to the platform, seeing Negan talking to a group of Saviors by the gate. Sirius stops right behind Harry, feeling like a wall at his back. Nothing is going to be sneaking up on him.
Lucille glances over and spots them, her face worried and tight. She waves them over, Zoey pushing past them to run up to the older woman. They hug briefly, Lucille gently grabbing Zoey's head to closely examine her hair.
"I love it," Lucille declares, some of the tightness melting away. She smooths down a few of the wild strands that refused to be tamed and then squeezed Zoey's shoulder. Zoey smiles brightly but then sobers as she asks, "Ma, what's going on? Why did Dad suddenly leave?"
Lucille pauses and then sighs, her hands messaging Zoey's shoulders anxiously, "The Saviors that went out yesterday…" Zoey gasps a little, eyes wide as she starts shaking her head minutely. Harry suddenly remembers Zoey's Savior friends heading out as they were heading up to meet with Negan. Lucille grimaces, "The dispatcher failed to inform anyone that they didn't call in until someone relieved them this morning."
"What?" Zoey squeaks. "It's not-"
"I'm sorry, sweetie," Lucille interrupts. "Negan is looking into it and organizing his Saviors to make a run into town to find out what happened to them. But we can't put this off anymore. The Saviors need to be vaccinated before they can go anywhere."
Zoey, though stiff with worry over her friends, visibly takes a deep breath and does an impressive job getting a hold of her emotions.
"Okay, Negan and I have discussed the vaccination order," Lucille tells them, looking over the crowd that has gathered. "The Saviors are to be first to be vaccinated-"
"Are you sure?" Harry interrupts curtly, already knowing how bad of an idea that is. What were they thinking?
Lucille just nods tiredly, "They are vital to Sanctuary and our ally representative will take their vaccination status back to the other communities with our invitation to a Summit. Though I prefer to have the children and workers done first, Negan is right about the Saviors. It's necessary."
Harry isn't convinced but agrees anyway.
"You're going to have a lot of unhappy people," Sirius warns with a shrug.
"I know," Lucille replies grimly, waving her hand a little. "No matter what, someone is going to be unhappy. It's unavoidable." After a moment, Lucille turns to Harry and asks, "Are you ready?"
No.
"Yes."
Lucille doesn't seem convinced but she nods, pulling him to the rails to look over the entirety of Sanctuary's denizens. Some automatically look up but Lucille's strong voice cuts through the general din like a knife, "Good morning, everyone!"
Everyone's faces turn up, over a hundred eyes settling on Harry and Lucille. Harry feels like there are bugs crawling up his back from being under such scrutiny. There is a smattering of responses, ranging from ‘good morning’ to ‘what’s going on?’. The din grows a bit more as they restlessly gaze upwards.
Lucille’s waves her hands up and down in a calming motion to get them to stop talking. Once the din has died down a little, Lucille continues, "We have a couple of announcements for you all today. I know it’s crowded but hopefully we can get everything back up and running soon! Now, there are some of you that don't know that Negan and I have been searching for a young man since before the founding of Sanctuary. That young man is named Harry and we have finally found him," she grips Harry's shoulder briefly. "But I admit this isn't the reason we called all of you together. As happy as we are about finding our boy," Harry twitches minutely at the term. "There is something we feel you should be aware of. This will change the future of Sanctuary and the future of our ally communities!"
Another wave of chatter, some looking at others, some gesturing upwards. Many look to be bored of the proceedings already, crossing their arms and staring dispassionately.
"I ask that you all suspend your disbelief," Lucille continues, her strong voice casting over Sanctuary. "The Council is aware of this."
Lucille takes a bracing breath, glancing at Harry and Zoey. She seems to gain some kind of new confidence but when she goes to continue, something catches her attention. At the same moment, a walkie goes off. There is sudden commotion at the gates. They open a little and several people sprint out along the road. Harry follows the road with his eyes and then sees something that makes him move.
"What is it already?" Someone finally pipes up, everyone restless. Harry slips around Lucille before she can catch him and he races down the stairs.
A radio crackles again, Negan answering it immediately. The response is lost in the general wave of impatience the denizens of Sanctuary exude with idle chatter and gesturing. However, the sudden, sharp clang! silences everyone.
As one, heads turn towards the gate as Harry makes his way through the thick crowd. Some Savior is standing at the bell near the gate, staring out unerringly with the hammer he used clenched in one hand. The crowd scatters like roaches to light, jostling Harry around. The children and teenagers are ushered, some forcefully, into the building for cover.
Harry wonders what the hell the significance of the bell is to draw this reaction.
Harry pushes his way through, sometimes having to grab someone to keep from crashing into each other. Every face is twisted in some negative emotion, fear, terror, grim determination. Getting through the crowd becomes a little easier as some race up the stairs to the tower. As he nears, Harry can hear arguments getting louder and more expressive. Finally, Harry gets to the gate and stops dead.
"How the fuck did we miss the fucking herd?" Negan finally snaps, getting into Simon's face. The mustachioed man stands his ground stoically as Negan rips into him, "I put you in charge of all this! There's a fucking reason I set up the herd tracking program! How the fuck did they sneak up on us?!"
"I told you, Boss," Simon drawls, sweat dripping down the sides of his face. "John was on duty. How was I supposed to know he had a stash? Everyone knows your rules. It ain't on me that he was stupid enough to break them."
Before Negan can reply, Harry cuts in, "What's happening?"
"There's a herd on our doorstep," Negan responds, glaring at Simon and then glancing around at the Saviors surrounding him. He hefts his formidable sledgehammer over a shoulder and announces grimly, "No choice. We have to fight. No guns, or we'll draw more from the city."
"We don't have enough fighters!" Simon points out aggressively, stepping into Negan's space. "You are going to kill all of us!"
Negan's response is just as aggressive as he angrily lords over Simon's slightly shorter frame, jabbing a thick finger into his chest, "I wouldn't have to if you did your fucking job!"
"We need to evacuate!" Arat says firmly, pushing Negan back and getting in between them. “We don’t have time for this shit!”
There’s a herd on their doorstep and over a hundred people capable of defending Sanctuary. Unfortunately, as much as their numbers are formidable, they can’t fight off a horde with so little forewarning. Harry is certain that they could figure something out if they had more of a warning but it’s too little, too late now. They won’t be able to defend Sanctuary, not with the children at risk should even one get past the adults to get in the building. All it will take is one to infect many and Sanctuary may very well fall. What can they do? They can abandon Sanctuary but Harry has the feeling they won’t make it out in time, not with the herd so close and not with so many people.
Think, Harry!
"Sirius!" Harry yelps, whirling around as an idea slams into his head. His Godfather is standing right behind Harry, as he promised earlier. Harry grabs Sirius' shirt, gaining his attention immediately and cutting into the argument going on overhead. "Did you study the maps?!"
It takes a moment for Sirius' mind to begin spinning, catching onto what Harry is asking just as Arat says, "Kid, the maps ain't gonna help us right now!"
"We can't abandon Sanctuary."
"We'll die if we stay here!" Simon barks, his voice rising a couple of octaves.
"Yes, I have," Sirius answers shortly. “What do you need?”
"Simon's right!" Arat snarls, ignoring them to turn on Negan. “We need to leave right now, Negan!”
"Open the gate!" Someone calls, almost drowned out by the increasingly loud yelling match.
"Some of the traps we talked about on the way here," Harry says, seeing Sirius' eyes light up as he catches onto what Harry is getting at. "Is there anywhere we can use that will hold them?"
"Hold them?" Negan whirls on them.
Arat is seething in anger at the inaction, "What the fuck are you guys talking about?! We need to get the fuck out of here!"
"Yes, there is! " Sirius states confidently, a manic grin blooming on his face as he grabs Harry's head and plants an exaggerated smooch right in the middle of the teen's forward, "My genius Godson! Of course!"
"Can you please share with the fucking class?!" Negan barks in aggravation, now sounding distinctly unnerved by the encroaching danger.
"Make space!" Sirius yells out, forcing his way through the crowd of armed and tense survivors. "Clear the gate!!"
"Sirius is going to redirect them," Harry explains hurriedly, rushing for the gate.
"Redirect?" Arat repeats in confusion, the general community starting to panic at the sheer size of the herd and nearly drowns her out.
"He's going to make a lot of bloody noise and lead them somewhere else!" Harry snaps, waving her off impatiently. "Negan, calm your people! This won't work if we're making more noise than Sirius!"
"I will!" Lucille says from behind them. She turns to yell out over the rising commotion. "Everyone, I need you all to calm down-!"
While Lucille is dealing with that, Harry heads to where the three injured Saviors are brought in. They are bloody, beaten and exhausted. He hears Sirius starting the bike and rev loudly, momentarily drowning everyone out. He nods at Harry and then rips away, barely turning in time to miss the gate. Sirius revs the engine and whoops loudly. Harry watches for a moment and then turns towards the injured Saviors.
"Someone get Doctor Carson!"
"Let me go!" Zoey snaps, pulling away from whoever grabbed her to collapse next to her friends. "Cindy! Sandra! Diego! What happened?!”
"Z…!" Cindy gasps out, her left leg facing the wrong way. Her clothes are ripped more than usual and she bears open, deep cuts on every part of her body.
"Oh, fuck," Sandra hisses, slowly sitting down. Her arm is clearly dislocated and there's a bloody cloth bandage on her forearm. Tell tale black veins seep out from it and Harry doesn’t have to focus on her to know she was bitten recently.
"She's bit!" Someone exclaims in alarm, sounding terrified.
"Hello, mija," Diego grunts. There's a gunshot wound on his left leg and a brightly colored arrow sticking out the back of his shoulder. All three look like they've been repeatedly thrown into the ringer.
"It's going to be okay," Zoey's voice is muffled and distant as Harry examines Cindy. "Just don't freak out, okay?"
Just by looking, Harry Knows Cindy is the worst off. What can't be seen on the surface is Known to him, immediately and intimately. While Sandra and Diego have undoubtedly been beaten and tortured, Cindy didn't get as lucky. Harry can't heal the emotional and mental damage Cindy has suffered since yesterday but he can heal her of the physical. He can make sure that she lives to see another day and give her the chance to move on. It’s the least he can do for the few friends Zoey made in the Saviors.
Harry isn't paying attention to anything else anymore. Knowledge explodes in his head, telling him of every tear, bleed and rupture inside Cindy's body. Beyond the damage of the assault, the spunky woman has a surprising amount of internal bleeding from the vicious beating she must have taken to her abdomen. Harry raises his hands, unaware of the audience surrounding him.
Cindy gasps and whines in confusion as her body heals. A large hand tries to pull Harry away but Zoey's distant, protective tone draws the hand away instead.
"Wh-what-?" Cindy asks, sounding stronger but disbelieving. Her leg straightens and cracks back into place, making her hiss and flinch. The cuts that had been sluggishly bleeding began to close on their own before their eyes. Sandra and Diego's angry tones melt away, to be replaced with utter silence.
There is a sharp gasp from the crowd, "He bears the Lord's healing hands!"
"No fucking way," Sandra finally blurts out as Harry finishes. He leaves most of the bruising, as he still needs to save energy for the other two but everything else is healed. Cindy's life is no longer at stake.
"Que carajo…" Diego mutters to himself.
"What the fuck-"
"Alright," Harry says, turning to Diego and ignoring the crowd watching his every move. "I think it's time we got that arrow out of your back, mate."
Diego shakes himself out of his thoughts and nods quickly, recovering from the shock admirably, "That would be appreciated, amigo."
Cindy is examining herself with utter disbelief, "Am I dreaming, Sandy?"
Harry puts his hand on Diego's back under the arrow. His other hand grabs the shaft and pulls. Certainly, if Harry was a doctor, he would have been far more graceful and precise when taking the arrow out to keep from making things worse. However, he had no time nor mind to take things gently. Diego grunts and huffs, his back flexing in pain as the shaft is pulled from his body, the damage healing immediately. The hole in his leg dumps out a ruined shell before sealing and the cuts close on their own.
"Oh my God!"
"No, you fruitcake," Sandra replies in a tired, pained voice. “This ain’t no dream.”
"Look at them! They're closing! On their own!!"
"Simon, hail the other communities. I want an updated map of the fucking herds yesterday," Negan's voice wafts over.
"Is this actually happening?"
Harry pulls away from Diego, leaving the bruises for another time. Diego examines himself in awe, "Santa Madre de Dios, es un puto milagro."
Though he doesn't understand, Harry just nods, Knowing Diego will be fine and turns to Sandra. She and Cindy are hugging. Or rather, Cindy is tucked into Sandra's uninjured shoulder and weeping quietly. Sandra's face is utterly stoic but her eyes practically burn the ground in unadulterated fury. Harry kneels next to Sandra's injured side and wordlessly hovers his hands over her shoulder and arm. She was bitten a few hours ago. She's doing well for her age.
"But isn't she-?"
"Don't bother," Sandra grunts at him, shaking her head. "I was bit. Just get it over with."
Harry pauses, "Trust me."
"It's okay, Sandra," Zoey pipes up from Cindy's other side. She and Sandra share a look and then the older woman sighs.
"Fine."
"Look! He's trying!"
Harry begins before she can change her mind. The bite is healed first, the tiny cracks of black coming out from the bandage disappear. Healthy skin tone comes back quickly. Her arm pulls up and snaps back into place, her pained flinch smoothing into a sigh as magic heals the nerve damage. Cuts knit back together and the damage the beating did to her organs is reversed.
Someone is praying zealously in the background.
When Harry pulls back, he wavers sluggishly. The healing trance he had unintentionally fallen into fades away. Everyone is murmuring to each other, a humming buzz of sound that doesn't travel far enough to catch the attention of the now thinning herd following each other blindly. Harry sits on his ass, feeling just how much magic he expended on them and marvels at the difference.
When he arrived in this world, healing a fresh bite and infection made him pass out. Healing Amy's wounds resulted in the same, only Amy's wounds were worse off and Harry didn't have the capacity to heal them all the way. Harry first healed Lucille's cancer and then the damage the chemo did to her body in two sessions. Now– now he can heal three people in critical condition and only feels heavily drained. The frame of reference he had for his powers then and now shows a startling power increase. He had thought it was just an advancement of his abilities to detect the ails of the body but it seems to have also directly affected his magic as well. This couldn't have been the result of the healing he had to do under the Matron's thumb or the healing he did for Lori.
This is something else and Harry thinks he has a good idea what it could be.
Without dislodging Cindy, Sandra unwraps the bloody cloth bandage. Her throat emits a strange, shocked grumble at revealing… nothing but bloody skin. Her finger traces where the bite used to be.
"Why would she have a bandage there for nothing?"
"No! She was bit and he did-his weird-voodoo shit and healed it!"
Dropping the useless, bloody cloth, Sandra murmurs something to Cindy. The tattooed woman nods and her sobs die down, pulling back enough to let Sandra stand up. Sandra pulls Cindy up with her, outright glaring Simon down as he steps forward to help.
"Back the fuck off," Sandra spits and pulls Cindy away, Zoey following close behind. Simon raises his hands in surrender and steps aside.
"Harry?" Negan ventures. "You okay?"
Harry stares after Zoey, Cindy and Sandra, "I'm fine." Cindy won't be. Not for a long time. It's a good thing she has friends to lean on. Harry looks at Negan, "If all goes well, Sirius will be back with the bike."
"What if it doesn't?" Negan presses. "Where did he go?"
Harry ignores the first question, "Somewhere to put them."
They averted certain disaster by the skin of their teeth. Sirius will be fine. He'll be back with or without the bike. The Biters won't bother Padfoot, so Harry is confident that he'll see his Godfather by sundown.