He was there when I woke; I don't know if he stays the whole night or gets here very early in the morning. I could actually feel my feet, one month after the accident and I could finally feel my feet! I was thrilled, I was almost giggling when I told him to stop tickling my feet.

He traced on the heel of my foot. 'You can feel this, D?' I just nodded, trying not to fall out of the bed laughing. He had moved up to my head, or at least this is where I felt his touch next, combing my hear as I lay there.

'They say you can go home, D, they say there is nothing more they can do for you here.' I was starting to panic; I did not want to go home, at least not without my shadow, and I told him so. He just pulled me into a tight hug, then traced 'Let’s get you cleaned up, D.' I nodded.

After I was showered, fed and watered, my shadow sat behind me, combing my hair. I was starting to crave his touch more and more; it let me know that I was not alone, that I was still alive in my lonely mind. I had asked him when his classes start, and he told me he was supposed to be at Potions, but he normally skipped that class, and no one cared. I found this funny; normally, if anyone, myself included, skipped Snape's class, it would be on that student's head. I voiced the fact Snape would skin him for skipping, or at the very least fail him.

'The Headmaster has given me a permanent pass as long as the time is spent in the infirmary.' He traced on my arm. I asked him how many people knew I was blind and deaf. 'Only five,' was his answer, followed closely by 'You will get better, I promise, no one else needs to know.' I then asked if Potter knew. His response was to dodge the question with 'Does it matter?' I thought about that. Did it matter? Potter was not like me, he was not one to hold things over someone's head, but for some reason it did matter and I told my shadow so. 'Yes, Potter is one of these five.' I asked if he counted himself as one of the five, and the answer was a yes. I was getting close to figuring out who he was, and he knew that, so he was quick with a 'No more questions, D.'

The day was a slow one after Shad left. I was left with my own devices. I could twitch my big toes, but I could barely move my legs. If I could get them working again, I might be able to live with being blind and deaf. That is if I can keep Shad with me.

Weeks flew by, as Shad visited me before and after classes and spent all his weekends with me. It was Saturday, and he asked again. 'Do you want to go home and recover there?' I told him that there was no one and nothing there for me, and I didn't think I could make it without him. 'School lets out in a month, D, I could go with you. That is if you will have me.' I could not believe I lost so much track of time; I guess it is a side affect of being so trapped in one’s own mind; after all, it’s not like I can look at a calendar or watch. It was rather disconcerting, and so I frowned. 'Are you feeling all right, D?' Shadow traced on my arm. I told him that not being able to see and hear was just depressing, and I did not want to talk about it.

Before I left the school for home, I could find my way around by feel. Shad had helped me with exercising my legs to get them strong enough for me to use them. This was my 7th year, and both me and my Shadow missed the leaving ball. I did not want to be seen like this; Shadow understood and would not leave my side, even though I could feel he was dressed in dress robes for the ball. I tried pitching a fit to get him to go, but I should have known better – he is more stubborn than me.

I, of course, graduated. I really don't know how I pulled that off, but I did. Snape handed me my diploma in private, I could tell by his grip. It is odd how I can sense things about people by just touch alone. Shadow was there; I could not feel him, yet I knew that he was just about four feet to my right. If I was to reach out with my right hand, I would be able to feel him.

I was hit hard by a bout of depression after getting to the Manor, but no matter my mood he was still here, tending to me. I started having the nightmares again, or are they dreams? I never did solve that dilemma. It was after one of these dreams that it happened. I woke up, and because I was not 'so' paralyzed anymore I could tell I was hard. From the shower scene of the dream, I am sure. I was hoping that Shadow was out of the room; I really had no way of telling about my problem. This was not the first time I had to go about doing this, and Shadow never mentioned it, so I assumed he was never in the room when I did it. However, this time while I was going through my normal moaning and groaning thing as my orgasm hit, my vision cleared just for a split second, long enough to see that someone was reading a book at the foot of my bed.

It was too fast for me to take in color, and everything appeared to be in black and white, but I could have sworn it was...

Potter... and all I could think about was how he could stand

...My Touch...