Alternative Medicine
Ch 11: Stones
By canoncansodoff
Disclaimer: Not my characters, no money being made, etc., etc.
Healer Patil’s sixth sense was given an unexpected holiday in the hours immediately after the Maharajah’s visit…not once was she forced to raise her voice to keep her nieces’ roaming hands in check, and that afternoon’s medicinal massage and sponge bath were completely chaste and professional. When Padma and Parvati’s Auntie entered Harry’s room after dinner, they (and Hermione) were still wearing cholis underneath their saris, and the Kama Sutra lay unopened and untranslated on the bedside table.
“If you are finished with dinner, I wish to examine my patient prior to his travel,” the Healer announced. She waited a bit, expecting Parvati to wisecrack about wanting to perform her own examination…but her niece remained silent.
The Healer arched an eyebrow, then added, “Why don’t you ladies run upstairs and pack?”
That the teenagers quickly complied with this request and left the room without so much as a kiss on Harry’s cheek only added to the list of uncharacteristic behaviors.
As Madhura Patil approached her patient’s bed and began to visually inspect his bare arms, she asked, “So what has been happening this afternoon, Harry?”
“Nothing...nothing at all.”
“Exactly my point, young man,” the Healer stated. “It is as if you’ve had a ‘randy witch repelling charm’ applied to your person.”
“Is that a problem?”
“No, just…unexpected,” Madhura replied, as she pulled down the thin sheet and moved the focus of her examination Harry’s bare legs.
A chuckle escaped from Harry’s lips.
“What was really unexpected was your acceptance of the Maharajah’s plan to move us to his island tonight,” he admitted.
Auntie Patil’s eyes twinkled a bit as she began to understand the situation.
“So they’re on their best behavior, to keep me from reconsidering the wisdom of leaving the four of you to your own unescorted devices?”
The black-haired wizard shrugged as he watched the Healer poke the soles of his bared feet.
“Or you could think of it as a demonstration that your faith is justified in their…erm….”
“In their ability not to turn your copy of the Kama Sutra into a shag-by-numbers guidebook?”
Harry closed his eyes and sighed.
“I was going to say ‘discretion’, but…yeah.”
It was the Healer’s turn to chuckle.
“I’m afraid that I’ve set the four of you up for some disappointment, then,” she admitted. “And I hope that any supervisory presence isn’t taken as an indication of my lack of trust.”
“So…you will be staying with us on the island, then?” Harry asked.
“Oh, no…as much as I might fancy a few days in Paradise, I’ve got patients here whose needs can’t be ignored. I’ll be using a reusable two-way portkey for my house-calls.”
“Somebody else will be staying with us, then?”
When the Healer nodded, Harry asked who that person would be. The elderly witch shook her head slightly in response.
“You’ll find out soon enough…despite their status as legal adults in the wizarding world, I can’t allow my unwed nieces to be unchaperoned while they share a house with a non-relative male.
“Even if that non-relative male is bedridden, and incapable of forcing himself on these young maidens?” asked a bemused young wizard.
“Especially if the handsome young man in question is temporarily disabled,” Healer Patil replied. “You are a very stationary target.”
Harry tried to push the “knew it was too good to be true” thoughts towards the back of his head, so that he could change the topic of conversation towards his stationary status.
“So how am I doing, recovery-wise?”
“Much better than you were a few days back,” the Healer replied. She held Harry’s left leg up in the air and added, “As you can see, the treatments have done a good job of restoring muscle mass and skin tone.”
“I still can’t feel anything, though?”
“True, but it’s still early in your treatment program, and neural pathways take longer to restore than muscle tissue.”
“But they will eventually be restored, right? So that I won’t need the hand feedings, and help using the loo, and…well…vega relief.”
Healer Patil arched an eyebrow, causing Harry to babble a bit as he tried to recover from what he thought was a serious bit of mis-speak.
“Not that I don’t appreciate all of the care…and help….and the way those three have been there for me…in a professional…and, erm…therapeutic….way….”
The Twins’s Auntie smiled, and patted Harry on the shoulder. “Relax …I understand your… frustration. And with the situation regarding my nieces….if only their father could be here to address the issue directly…”
Harry furrowed his brow, then glanced out the opened door to his room. Not seeing or hearing either Padma or Parvati, he looked up at their Auntie and asked (using almost a whisper), “I know we’ve been joking and dancing around the issue…and I don’t want to risk losing what we have by being plain-spoken…or by asking awkward questions. So I’m sorry for asking, but…what’s really going on with this talk of their father, and dowries...and marriage contracts?”
Healer Patil gave her own glance towards the door, then gathered her thoughts and looked at Harry straight in the eye.
“It is a rare occasion when my obligation to family comes into potential conflict with either my personal beliefs, or my obligations to my patients. This is just such an occasion, Harry, and it limits my ability to provide the kind of plain-spoken answers you not only seek, but deserve.”
“Oh…well…I’m sorry…didn’t mean to put you in a spot, Auntie…”
“No, no…it is not your fault, do not apologize for asking,” Madhura quickly replied. “What I can say is…hmmmmm…well…..certain facts.”
“First, off…in this country, arranged marriages are not only socially acceptable…they are the norm. Especially in the wizarding world…notions of marrying for love are practically considered subversive.”
Harry nodded. “I’ve heard that it’s not as bad in Magical Britain…it’s only certain pureblood families that make those kind of arrangements.”
“Indeed,” the Healer replied. “The second fact…within Magical India, it is the typically the Patriarch of a family or clan that negotiates betrothal contracts…and the third fact is that…Padma and Parvati’s father is not the patriarch of the Patil clan.”
“So…not only does Padma and Parvati not have a say in who they marry, but neither do their parents?” Harry asked incredulously.
His Healer nodded. “Their great-grandfather Patil is currently Patriarch…has been for over fifty years.”
“So their great-grandfather gets to decide?”
“As long as Padma and Parvati are here in India, then…yes.”
“But if they were to return to Britain?”
“Then….not so much.”
“But they can’t go back to Britain, because they helped bring me here, so it’s my fault?”
“No, no…oh, my…even certain facts get me into trouble,” Harry’s healer said with a sigh. “A few more facts, then….where was I?”
“Erm…four or five, I think?”
“Really? Oh, well…sixth, then…dowries are an accepted part of any marriage contract negotiations, and seventh…the money that Padma and Parvati’s father would use to provide that dowry is presently in Britain, and contained within vaults that have been legally frozen by the British Ministry of Magic.”
“What? Why?”
“Some gibberish about potentially aiding and abetting wanted fugitives,” Madhura said with a smile. “This effectively prevents any marriage contract negotiations to take place, whether it’s with the Potter Patriarch, or with some balding, middle-aged oaf from Mysore.”
A frown formed on Harry's lips. “But…if the Maharajah takes the statements given today, and clears up the legal issues for Padma and Parvati…then those accounts will be unfrozen, and they’ll have to get married?”
The elderly witch nodded. “There are some intermediate steps, but….”
Her patient waited a beat for his Healer to finish her sentence, and then asked, “So when would that kind of decision be made for them?”
Madhura sighed.
“Had my nephew not moved his family to Britain when the girls were five years old…well, let us just note that it is rare for a seventeen year old witch to be unwed, unless they or their family are an unusually poor match.”
“And Padma and Parvati are unusually good matches, aren’t they?” Harry guessed.
When Healer Patil nodded, Harry shook his head. “So there’s the simple choice….either they remain wanted fugitives and their family is kept from their vault, or they’re forced into a loveless marriage?”
The elderly witch shook her head. “Not necessarily, Harry…if the legal issues are resolved, the Twins could return to Britain, and make a life there…or…they could stay here and fall in love with a wizard whose match would benefit the entire Patil clan.”
“Ah, so if….just as an example…they were to fall in love with me…then I would need to convince their great-grandfather than I’m a good match for their entire clan?”
“It would be the patriarch of the Potter family that would need to make that case,” the Healer replied.
“Which, in this case, is me,” Harry said with a sad smile. “So, speaking hypothetically….hold on…would I need to choose one or the other…or…..”
Madhura Patil smiled. “Polygamy is still legal within Magical India. It was legal in Muggle India up until thirty or forty years ago…and still is if a man is Muslim…and it is often the case that twin witches are betrothed to the same wizard.”
“I see,” Harry replied, as the cogs turned inside his head. “And still speaking hypothetically… what would a wizard need to do to convince a patriarch that he would be a good match for his great-granddaughters?”
“Twin hypothetical magical great-granddaughters?”
“Erm….yeah…sure…hypothetical twin witches…”
“Ah, well, in that case…the usual things matter,” the Healer stated. “The ideal potential husband would come from a respected family, and have a job, and strong magic, and a strong body. Financial and political considerations also come into play.”
“Oh,” Harry said, with no small amount of dejection in his voice. “So if the potential husband is a foreigner with no political connections, and isn’t fabulously wealthy, and is an invalid….”
“Hush, now,” the Healer admonished. “If you were to seek a bride…or brides…here in India, you would be an outstanding match for any family. Because you will recover from your injuries, and you already have a job offer from the Maharajah…can’t get any more politically connected than that…”
“So…Merlin, I don’t know what to do…or what I could do….”
The Healer nodded. “It is a lot to take in, all at once…and again, I am not really at liberty to offer an opinion, but…here is one final fact. Before he left, the Maharajah stated that it would take at least a week for any legal issues to be resolved with the British Ministry…and not less than a month’s time for the Twins’ father to regain control of his vaults. That is time that could be spent getting to know someone…or more than one…better. Time that could be spent exploring possibilities…and options…and well….”
Madhura reached up and tussled Harry’s hair with no small amount of affection.
“I have been told that you are permanently affected by a ‘saving people thing,’ and that this ‘thing’ might cause you to do something brave, and selfless, especially if it is for someone or some ones…that you feel obligated to help.”
The Healer shushed Harry’s protests, then continued.
“Nothing would please an old witch like myself more than to see my nieces spend their life with the one…or ones…with strong ties to their heart chakras. And also…that those that do share my nieces' lives do so more out of love than obligation. Does that make sense?”
Harry sighed, and then nodded in agreement. “No decisions need to be made right now, and I should use the time that is given….we should use the time that is given….to get to know each other better…to explore possibilities….and dreams….and desires…”
The Healer giggled in a girlish way that shed years from her face.
“So I’m to believe that you and the others haven’t already begun to explore your desires?”
“Of course you are, Auntie,” said a voice from over her shoulder. Both Harry and Healer Patil turned towards the door as Hermione and the Twins entered with bright eyes and bright smiles.
Madhura began to waggle a finger towards Parvati, who had made that innocent claim, then thought better of it.
“Good that you are here…all packed then?”
“Yes, Auntie.”
The Healer turned towards Harry, and held his gaze with her eyes for a moment…trying to divine whether their conversation had done more good than harm. A slight smile and head nod from her patient gave her enough hope to leave the discussion…at least for now…where it had ended.
“Then I will use the time remaining to show you the next part of our patient’s therapeutic program,” the older witch then announced. She then walked over to a small cabinet on one side of the room, and removed two small cloth pouches.
She opened each pouch, slipped their contents out onto Harry bed stand, and stated, “These are neuro-stimulative healing stones.”
The four teenagers examined the two fist-sized stones that now sat on the cover of their Kama Sutra. Each was round, flat, and highly polished; one was predominately dark green in color, with coarse-grained crystals of black orthopyroxene and dark red garnet, while the other was more whitish, with stringers of dark-colored micas and hornblendes.
“Neuro-what, Auntie?” asked Parvati.
“Neuro-stimulative,” the Healer explained. “They are used to treat disorders of the nervous system, by providing a flow of healing magical energy from one stone to the other.”
“I’ve never heard of anything like that,” Hermione stated.
“I’m not surprised,” Healer Patil replied with a grin. “It is local magic, and the local rock quarry that both stones were taken from has a unique combination of composition and location…it sits on top of intersecting magical ley lines.”
Hermione frowned as she picked up the green stone and examined it. “They don’t teach geology at Hogwarts, but…isn’t it odd to have such different rock types in the same quarry?”
Madhura shrugged. “I am a magical Healer, not a Muggle rock doctor…but I have visited this location, and seen the two different colored rocks right next to each other on the quarry wall. The white magically becomes the green…just as a caterpillar become a butterfly. And when each rock type is quarried from close proximity…and the quarried stones cut and polished by magical means…the magic imbued with each rock comes out.”
Hermione innocently reached for the second polished stone so that could make a comparison, only to have it quickly pulled away from her reach.
“These stones require careful handling,” Healer Patil explained. “The magical link between the two is quite…invigorating… and manifests when they come into contact with the same flesh.”
“So she can hold one, or the other, but not both at the same time without establishing the connection?” asked Harry.
“Yes.”
“What exactly happens when they are held at the same time?”
“There is a transfer of energy that flows from one stone to the other through the flesh,” the Healer explained. “This energy flow is therapeutic where there is nerve or muscle damage, but when the connection involves healthy tissue, the effect is rather…well…these stones are supposed to be used for only therapeutic reasons. Am I clear?”
“Yes, Auntie,” the three witches droned in unison.
Parvati caught Hermione’s eye and winked at her, suggesting that she considered her Auntie’s explanation all too clear. Her former dorm mate shook her head and furrowed her eyebrows.
“Ixnay!” she hissed.
Parvati’s pursed her lips in an unvoiced, “Doh!” and nervously glanced towards her Auntie, who was pretending that she didn’t understand Pig Latin. Instead, the Healer proceeded to instruct the three witches on how the stones were to be used, so that they could provide this treatment to Harry in her absence.
“The green stone must be placed on healthy tissue, as close to the affected area as possible,” Madhura explained. “Use the same inked boundary lines that were drawn for salve applications.”
“So for the arms, that would be at the edge of his collarbone,” Hermione reasoned.
Parvati’s focus was, unsurprisingly, elsewhere.
“And for Harry’s legs, it would be right next to his…Auntie…you said that the stone needed to be placed on bared skin, didn’t you?”
Healer Patil nodded seriously. “Ladies, it is important for me to trust that you will perform these tasks in a strictly professional manner. This is your patient’s health we are talking about, and if you aren’t able to act professionally, then perhaps the Maharajah’s healer….at the Maharajah’s Palace….”
“No worries, Healer Patil,” Hermione interjected. “I’ll make sure that Parvati handles any medically necessary…treatments of Harry…in an appropriate manner.”
The sound of a feral cat marking her territory with a “Meowwww!” caused Hermione to whip her head around and frown at Padma, who was sporting her best “sweet and innocent” look.
Healer Patil once again displayed some selective hearing, and pushed on with her lesson.
“Once the green stone is in place, you rub the white stone up and down the length of the treated limb. All parts of the arm and leg must be covered with this movement, so you will need to turn the patient onto his stomach at some point, to treat the backs of his arms and legs.”
“And we’ll need to balance the green rock on each bare bum cheek?” asked Parvati mischievously.
Her Auntie snorted, almost as loudly as Harry did.
“The green rock must be placed on healthy flesh, as close as possible to the treatment area,” Madhura reiterated, with a stern tone of voice that conflicted with the amusement shown in her twinkling eyes.
The Healer then treated Harry’s left arm as a demonstration, then closely monitored the three witches as they took turns working on his right. After indicating her satisfaction with their efforts, Auntie Patil announced that she needed to attend to other patients, and asked the three teen-aged witches to carry on with the treatment of patient’s legs.
Looks of disbelief followed the Healer as she left Harry’s room.
“She’s going to let us…I can’t believe it!” Padma hissed.
“Shush!” Hermione hissed. “She’s obviously testing us.”
Harry snorted. “Seeing if you three can do this treatment without mucking it up?”
“More like seeing if we can do this treatment without jumping your bones,” Hermione replied quietly. “Right then…need to focus…eyes on the prize, girls…”
“Yes, Ma’am!” Parvati said smartly.
Hermione rolled her eyes when she noted that the black-haired witch’s eyes were presently focused on Harry’s crotch.
“Parvati!” she hissed.
“What?” her dorm mate replied.
“Stop it!” Padma hissed.
“Fine,” Parvati countered. “I was only trying to see if we could treat Harry’s legs without removing his dhoti.”
“Sure you were,” replied Hermione. She then looked up at Harry’s face, which bore a look of extreme amusement.
“Sorry, Harry…but we’ll have to remove your dhoti to do this right.”
“Why are you apologizing?” he asked. “It’s not like you haven’t….”
“Erm…you’re right…aren’t you?” his bushy-haired friend replied brightly, risking a glance back towards the door.
“And since you two each have a stone in hand, mine are free for the job…aren’t they?” asked Padma.
“You can have the silly stone, then,” replied her sister.
“No thanks…I’ve got this,” replied Padma, as she began to unfasten the knot in Harry’s dhoti.
Eyes darted about, as each tried to wordlessly divine intentions and acceptance in the others. Padma got grins from both the patient and the patient’s girlfriend, and didn’t hear any protests (either from within the room, or from outside of it), so she kept going, and pulled off the thin cotton trouser/skirt.
There was a moment of silence…as the three witches stared at Harry’s semi-erect penis, and he stared at them staring at him.
“Oh, come on,” Harry snorted. “It’s not like you haven’t see my Full Monty before.”
“Is that what you nickname it?” Padma wisecracked.
“I’m starkers during the salve application…twice a day,” Harry noted. “And then there’s the peeks under the sheets, and the gropes…”
“Is that a complaint?” Hermione asked with a smile.
Harry snorted. “So what’s different?”
Padma glanced over her shoulder towards the doorway, then shook her head.
“Check this one off the list, sister,” she said.
“What list?” Harry asked.
“Oh…never mind,” replied the Ravenclaw with a wink. She then quietly added, “Harry…while it’s true that Parvati and I have seen you naked before, it’s almost always been when our Auntie is in the room.”
“And only for a quick glance when she hasn’t” Parvati added. “So…does it make you uncomfortable Harry? Because if it does…maybe if we got naked too it would be more comfortable for you….”
Harry snickered. “I thought you three were trying to be on your best behavior for the trip.”
“Erm…right,” Parvati decided, as she balanced the green stone that she’d been holding on his hip bone. Her fingers started to stray towards his penis, before they pulled back sharply, as if she’d been close to a flame.
“And so we shall be….Hermione?”
“Erm…right…thanks,” replied the bushy-haired witch, as she placed the white stone against Harry’s toes and began to rub.
The-Boy-Who-Won couldn’t feel a thing as the three witches took turns stroking the round rock up and down his leg. But he could see how they reacted when the stone approached his crotch, or when they pushed his legs apart to gain better access to his inner thighs. And their poorly-disguised excitement got him excited, which brought his wand to full-length…which made the three even more excited.
The positive feedback loop caused the three to occasionally lose focus…a condition most prominently displayed when Padma lost her grip on the white stone and it slipped in between his thighs. The polished rock came to rest against his scrotum…which was definitely not part of the curse-affected area of treatment.
Harry instantly knew this to be the case when a jolt of stimulation passed from his hip bone straight to his balls.
“Oh….fuck!” he hissed.
“Oh, no!” Padma exclaimed as she snatched the stone away from its point of contact. She stared at Harry’s penis, which had hardened fully and begun to twitch.
“Did that hurt?” she asked.
Hermione snorted when she spied the wide smile on Harry’s face.
“More like it hurts so good,” she whispered.
“Is everything okay in there?” Healer Patil asked from a distance.
Harry opened his eyes and tilted up his head.
“No worries, Healer Patil,” he called back. “They’re doing a fine job.”
“Sorry, Harry,” Padma whispered.
“No apologies needed,” he replied. “While I wasn’t expecting it…that jolt of…whatever…wasn’t unwelcomed.”
“Are you sure?” Parvati asked. She stepped forward and added, “Maybe we should do a close-up inspection?”
Harry arched an eyebrow. “Thought you three were trying to stay on best behavior?”
“Oh, well…it would be purely for medical reasons,” Parvati explained.
“Stop, Parvati!” Padma hissed. “Tropical island?…no chaperones?….giving Harry the full treatment?…remember?”
“Erm..right. Sorry.”
The patient did his best not to laugh at how the three witches were reacting to the situation, and to their misconceptions.
Not that he didn’t wish that they’d guessed correctly…especially as he admired the way Parvati’s hardened nipples pushed against her choli.
“Better wrap this up, ladies,” he snarked, “before you need to self-administer some vega relief.”
“Oh, you’d love to see that, wouldn’t you?” Hermione quipped.
Harry snorted. “Well as much fun as it was to listen to your play-by-play this morning…”
“Behave,” his girlfriend hissed. And then, seemingly contrary to that command, she said, “Time to turn you over so that we can do your back side.”
“Oh, that sounds so….naughty,” Harry replied. “When can I do your backside, Hermione?”
“Maybe later.”
“Promise?”
Hermione snorted. “Let’s get you to Fantasy Island first, okay?”
Harry smiled and wondered just how many fantasies would be fulfilled over the next few days.
The answer seemed in doubt a half-hour later, when the four teen-agers discovered just whom they’d be sharing Paradise with.