I'm not a kitten... Okay, I'm Kitten

Chapter 9

Boy put down his quill and breathed a sigh of relief. They'd been taking exams all week, and they were leaving for the holidays in the morning. Boy was struggling a bit with his feelings about that. He was excited about the four person party tonight, relieved that he'd been able to have a set of robes commissioned in time for the Malfoy Yule Ball, nervous for the Ball itself, worried that his friends wouldn't like their gifts, and terrified of going back to Potter Manor, especially after what happened when Sir came to the school.

Flexing his cramping hands, he let his scroll roll itself up and vanish with a pop. With his final test finished, he got up, wincing. His leg was not happy.

As soon as they left the room, he climbed on Bear's back and went up to the infirmary for the salve that helped ease some of the pain. It would never fully go away, but the salve at least gave him a few hours of tolerable walking.

"And how is my favorite patient today?" Madam Pomfrey asked with a little smile.

In response, Boy pouted.

Her smile faded a bit. "Alright, dear. Off with the trousers and onto the bed. You know the routine by now."

Of course he did. He'd been getting the salve thrice weekly for some time now. As usual, Boy slipped behind one of the curtains, folded his trousers neatly, and covered his lap with the bed linen. "Ready, Madam Pomfrey," he called without raising his voice. From past experience, he knew he didn't have to shout. She was always nearby.

"Alright, let's see what-oh." She paused, taking a seat. "How long has your knee been this size?"

"Just today," he assured her, looking down at the grapefruit sized joint. "I had a bit of a rough start this morning and I didn't get to do my stretches." It was true. Sleeping in the broom cupboard was getting more and more difficult. While Bear hadn't grown, he had started to. It wasn't much, but it was enough to make things uncomfortable. Well, more so than September. It didn't help that he'd tripped getting dressed and fell to his knees.

"Do you have any exams left?" She asked him, twisting the lid off the ceramic pot.

"No, ma'am," he said, hissing as the cold salve touched his swollen knee.

"Good," she said with a nod. "I'll be keeping you here until the swelling goes down. I can't combine this salve with an anti-inflammatory, so we'll have to do this the muggle way. Elevation and compresses."

"Yes, ma'a-ah!" He clamped his jaw shut, breathing slowly through his nose. "Waitwaitwait!"

Her fingers stopped massaging the salve into his skin. "Let me know when you're ready for me to continue, dear."

She helped him lie down and prop his leg up on some pillows. They had to stop twice for a few minutes.

"Okay," Boy said tightly, giving a quick nod.

In the end, it took about an hour longer than normal to get the salve absorbed into his skin. He felt bad for stopping her so often, but he just couldn't help it.

Bear lay down next to his bed, his head still high enough to rest within reach of his left hand.

Throughout the entire tedious process, Boy pet his doggy. It was more of a comfort for himself than for Bear, but Bear didn't seem to mind at all.

A little after three, Bear licked his face and left.

Boy was honestly shocked. His doggy had never left him when he was hurt before. If he was honest, it made him a bit sad.

It didn't last long, as Bear showed up after about fifteen minutes with his friends in tow.

"Hey, Buh-Harry," Penny said gently. Her face was full of concern. "Bad day?"