The Encounter in the Alley

"Whatever are you blathering about, child? What is a scientist? And why are you accusing me of being mad? I assure you, my mind is intact," she asked and then it registered what else he had said. "How did you lose your memory?" she gasped as she clutched her chest with her free hand.

"I wouldn't really remember that, would I?" the boy spat, then seeing she was worried he softened. Oh, he was still going to try and escape, but she seems to really care, so he answered what he could. "All I know is that a week ago, I woke up to some creepy man yelling at me, and a hologram of a man in bloody robes.

The real man was threatening me, so I ran," Harry stated with a shrug of his shoulder. He shuddered as he recalled vials of strange things, the horsemen, and the giant. But, he refrained from telling her that.

"Do you know the man's name?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at the thought that Severus knew there was something wrong with the child and didn't say anything.

"No, and I couldn't see him very well," he confessed with a shake of his head. "My mind was all muddled and my vision was blurry. I remember he was tall with dark hair and a long nose, that's it," our hero hesitated, a bit put out that he couldn't identify the crazy scientist.

'Well, that could be Severus, but it is not enough to accuse him of anything. Perhaps Albus can get the memory,' she thought and with a nod she lifted her wand in case he tried to run again. "I am going to need you to come with me, Mr. Potter," McGonagall stated primly.

"Again, why the fuck should I go anywhere with you? I have no clue as to who you are," the teen demanded, slipping his feet into a position that would make it easier to run.

"I would like for you to get some medical help," she tried to appeal to his basic need. "If you come back to Hogwarts then Madam Pomfrey will see if she can get your memory back." She was sure the Poppy could help; perhaps the child hit his head or something easy to cure.

"What the hell is a… hogwarts?" he asked, inching to her right, where there was space to break free.

"It is the premier school for witchcraft and wizardry," was the haughty reply.

"Right, magic, what is with you people? Are you a cult or something? This is the third time I've heard someone mention wizards," he stated as he looked at her like she was completely barmy.

"I assure you, Mr. Potter, we are not a… cult. However, this is not the venue to be discussing this. Come with me, or I will take you forcefully. For your own good," she said with a bit of steel in her voice. There was no way she was leaving anyone with amnesia on the streets of Muggle London, especially not the hero of the wizarding world.

Harry didn't bother to reply. He made a break for it as he dashed to her right, but before he even got two steps he was hit with a red light and fell to the ground.

The old woman huffed, waved her wand and levitated him; with another flick, she had him in a standing position. She grabbed his arm and twisted and with a 'crack' the alley was empty. She and the boy reappeared at the gates of Hogwarts. With a lifting of her wand, he was floating behind her. The first person she ran into was Snape, who was just about to go on his scheduled hunt, which meant he was on his way to the Leaky Cauldron for a pint.

"Ah, Severus, I have found the lad, there is no need for you to search," Minerva stated, giving him a sidelong glance as she made her way to the Hospital Wing. She still had no proof, but he might be the reason they were in this mess to begin with. She wouldn't put it past the man, he did hate everything to do with young Mr. Potter.

"Did he say where he had been and why he left?" the very concerned man asked as he turned to walk besides her. Oh, he wasn't alarmed for Potter, only what the dunderhead had told the old cat.

"He did mention memory loss, and that he might have had a run-in with someone who fits your description," she confessed, narrowing her eyes at the Head of Slytherin.

"I assure you, madam, I did not see the child after he left the antechamber on the night he ran. I am very troubled about the memory loss," he stated as they walked along the corridor. "I wonder if it was the shock of someone meaning him harm again." His voice dripped with faux anxiety.

'Well that is a different tune,' the Transfiguration Teacher mused. 'Perhaps, Albus is correct and he is seeing the light.' She looked the man up and down and didn't see any duplicity. "I will take your word, Severus. However, if I find you have lied to me, then you will see why mother lions are so feared," she said as they made it the double-doors of the medical wing.

"Of that I have no doubt," grumbled Snape as he walked with her, trying to figure out how to get the memory of the dungeon from the boy's mind. It would ruin all his plans if the boy were to let it be known that he was the one who ran him off.

Potter couldn't prove that he had anything to do with his amnesia, but he could inform people that Snape was the last person he saw, and that would not be in the Potion Master's best interest.

"Poppy, I have a patient for you," the Deputy Headmistress called as she floated Harry to one of the beds.

"Oh, thank Merlin you found him. Can you give me any clue as to what is wrong with him?" the nurse asked as she bustled into the room. She waved her wand and did a diagnostic spell, but could find nothing wrong but for some bruising, a few small lacerations, and the blisters on his feet. A little underfed, but nothing life threatening.

"He was eating out of a dumpster and tried to run, so I had to stun him. He did not mention much, only that he has lost his memory," McGonagall reported, moving out of the way and letting the matron do her work. "I will leave him in your hands, Poppy. I must go and inform Albus that he is back," she said, and went out the doors.

"Oh dear… amnesia… well there is little I can do about that…. I don't see a head injury… I will do a further diagnosis when he wakes… better to let him wake on his own… oh dear, blisters," Poppy mumbled to herself as she went over her report.

Then she turned to the Potions Master. "Watch over him for me for a minute, Severus, I have to get a salve from the storeroom," Poppy said, thinking of the damages to the poor boy's face and torso.

"Of course," Snape said sharply with a curt nod, like it was anything but okay. Internally he was wringing his hands with glee, he would get a few moments alone with the stupid child. Madam Pomfrey hustled to the storeroom and no sooner had the door closed, when the dark-robed man whipped out his wand, opened the boy's eyes and Obliviated the memory of the night he ran.

The only thing the teen would remember is waking in an alley, cold and scared. He made a mental note to purge his wand the moment he was alone. He quickly put his wand away and stood sneering at the comatose boy.

The nurse came back out with a jar of medical cream and asked, "Did he stir?"

"No," was the succinct answer. "I must go, I have a potion brewing. It was bad enough that I had to leave it in stasis to look for the brat, now that he is back I must tend to it," he made his excuse and left. The second he was out of the wing, he was casting cleaning and repairing charms at the walls.

After about thirty he stopped, that would be enough. He almost had a bounce in his step as he hurried to the dungeons. He still needed to talk to the Grey Lady, but he did foresee a problem with that. Then that ghost would leave him in peace.