Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Nor do I own "True Tears of Joy".
Free
Your thoughts are scattered like paper everywhere
Tiny pieces of laughter and despair
But you cry true tears of joy
Why you showed up on my doorstep that evening, I hardly even recognised you. You looked terrible. There was a lot of half-dried blood down one side of your face that seemed to have come from an ugly looking gash on your head and you were deathly pale. You had a crazy, hunted look in your eyes and I could easily tell that you were scared and upset beyond all reason, but you were grinning. You were grinning like a maniac. When you spoke, your voice trembled unsurely and almost broke.
"James," you said, "I just did the stupidest thing."
I put an arm around your shoulder and half carried you to my room. I made you lie down on my bed and called my mother. She cleaned you up and healed you, then she gave you a sleeping potion.
I stayed with you that night. You tossed and turned in your sleep and kicked the covers off countless times, even though you were shivering a little. Whether you were shivering from the cold or from something else, I don't know.
When you woke the next morning, I took you down to the dining room for breakfast. My father had already left for work, but my mother was still there.
You hands shook as you told us you'd run away from home. You filled us in on the details: Your mother and father had thrown curses at you as you ran from them, and your brother had shouted insults. You stopped talking at that point and buried your face in your hands.
You were shaking a lot and sobbing loudly, but after a while, the sobs began to get broken up by bursts of wet laughter. Then you stopped making any noise at all and you looked up at me.
You smiled.
There were still tears cascading down your cheeks and you looked pretty awful, but you were smiling, and I knew. I knew what it was that you wanted to say but couldn't find words for.
You were free.