A/N- Do not own. Sorry this took so long! For those who read INOS and Saving Harry, I am trying to have the next chapter of each up by the end of December. Life gets in the way sometimes, so sorry for the wait. I hope this is worth it. Teddy receives some letters from his friends and we meet Karrie. The trio, Harry, Karrie, and Teddy, have a much needed moment of childishness. Phil and Charlie have their own problems and Alexis and Tim have to intervene! Enjoy. As always, x's are scene breaks. Italics are letters or thoughts here. And finally, use your words.
~Case
-x-
Teddy sighed, staring at the barn owl for a moment before taking the package it offered. A tap of his wand and the package enlarged. He knew the owl of course, it belonged to Mr. Malfoy and Draco used it when he wanted to not attract attention. He locked down the feeling of Draco knowing where he was, and probably why he was here, before slowly opening the box. There were envelopes there, most addressed to him, from many of their Slytherin year mates. As well as a large assortment of sweets, a few marked specifically for him, and several new books. He picked up a tin of sweets, reading the label for a moment before grinning. Mrs. Malfoy was an amazing woman. She had sent him sugar-free cookies! Oatmeal raisin was his favourite, so it was even grander.
Dear Teddy,
Dad said you probably wouldn't be coming over this summer. But he said we could send you letters. Blaise is spending most of the summer here, his mum is on her honeymoon with her newest husband. Blaise likes this one, so hopefully he sticks around. Mille is also here, but she's only staying for two weeks. Her father had to go to Russia and her mother is redecorating. Daphne and her sister spend the days here and Neville is staying with us. One of dad's coworkers went to Neville's house for a home visit and then called dad in. We aren't suppose to bug Neville about it, but it wasn't difficult to figure out why, as we all know what my father does. He called in a life debt to the Longbottom family, so Neville is my foster-brother until something permanent can be found. Anyway hope you are well. We sent you candy! If Harry is with you, tell him I said hello. Heard dad talking to Mum about Harry...figured you'd be together somewhere. We don't know the details and I really don't want to know, either. Figure it has to be something bad.
Best, Draco.
To Teddy and Harry,
Mr. Malfoy won't tell me where either of you are, but he said he could send the letter to you. Mum's married again. Husband number eight! I like him, he doesn't hit me. I picked out the book on Dragons for you, Teddy and the book of mythology for you, Harry. Write me back!
Blaise Zabini.
Hey Teddy,
Blaise's mum is getting married again. Can you believe that? My mum told Mrs. Malfoy that Mrs. Zabini really needs to get her act together and settle down. Hopefully this man doesn't die 'mysteriously' because Blaise really likes him and according to mum, Blaise needs a stable male figure in his life. I wish you have had a stable male figure. We all knew something was wrong Teddy but we figured, I figured, that it wouldn't be polite to ask. That you would tell us if it got bad. You should have told us. We would have figured something out. Helped you. Something. Anyway, tell Harry I said hi. Daphne also says hi! She broke her wrist flying and didn't feel up to writing. We picked up a few books for some girls at your camp...I heard Mr. Malfoy talking about it when I was supposed to be in lessons. But I was skimping. I hate extra lessons. Mr. Malfoy said he'd send them to the Headmistress but we included one in the package. I think Karrie should be there. Could you give the book to her? It's the next one in the series and we were reading it before school let out. I know Karrie's home life wasn't great but she didn't talk of it much. She's in our year too, so if she's not there...could you ask Severus to check on her? I worry about her.
Millicent
Teddy stared at that last sentence for a moment, before rifling through the box. He glanced down the table to where Karrie was sitting alone before turning to meet Harry's eyes. Harry had a letter from Neville in his hands and he knew he had a similar one to read still. He knew Neville well, they usually spent a week or two at Malfoy Manor every summer. Malfoy summer camp was more like it. So many pure and half blooded children stayed there in the summers, it was very much a zoo sometimes. Teddy darted his eyes toward Karrie, raising an eyebrow at Harry. The black-haired boy thought for a moment before nodding. They both placed the letters and treats back into the box, before he picked it up, standing. Harry followed him and together they walked down to Karrie, plopping down across from her.
"Hey Karrie." Harry murmured quietly, pulling his letter back out of his pocket and returning to reading it for the third time. Neville's letter was quite interesting actually. He had shared a dorm with the other boy for two years, he thought they were something of friends. It was not so shocking to find out that Neville's home had been less than ideal, but it was still a bit upsetting. He didn't like it when his friends were hurt.
"Here Karrie. Millie sent this for you." Teddy held the book out to the silent brunette, waiting patiently until she finally took it from him. She opened the book to the middle, removing a letter from within before shutting it back. Light green eyes met his for a moment before dropping down to the letter.
Karrie,
I hope you are where Teddy is. If not, I will tell Mr. Malfoy to check on you. Daphne and I were worried when we didn't hear from you. I remember what you said, about going home. I never understood before but I think I get it now. Well no, actually, I don't get it. I can't relate. But what I do know is that your home sounds very...as Mr. Malfoy would say, unhealthy. I know I promised I wouldn't tell but you are my friend and sometimes promises must be broken to help. My mum says that sometimes. I asked her if you could come over for the summer and she said if it was possible you could. She had to check something or another though. She wouldn't tell me. Adults won't tell us anything, it's really frustrating. We aren't little kids after all! We're thirteen! Do you remember Neville? He's staying here at the Malfoy's with us, only I think they plan to keep him. His uncle was hurting him, I heard him talking in his sleep. And no, I will not tell the Malfoys that I can't sleep at night. I never told Severus and I won't tell them. It's only been three months since that happened...but I should be able to sleep. Oh well. I hope you are alright. Please let me know. And enjoy the book! I'll sent you another soon. Also, there are some rainbow wands and sparkly dust in the box for you. Get them before the boys eat them!
Your friend, Millicent.
"I want the rainbow wands please." Karrie remarked, blinking rapidly for a moment before looking back to Teddy and Harry. "And the sparkly dust."
Teddy smirked, digging through the box for a moment before producing the rainbow wands. They were lollies, shaped like 'magic' wands, because girls were weird, that shimmered different colours and made your mouth look like a rainbow. He passed them over with out hesitation. He absolutely hated rainbow wands. Lollies in general, really. They always made him gag. He did hesitate with the containers of sparkly dust however. That stuff was delicious. And sugary.
"What's sparkly dust?" Two sets of eyes turned to stared at Harry, both gaping slightly for a moment before the masks were firmly in place once more. Harry scowled, raising an eyebrow at Teddy. He hated feeling like he was ignorant. He just didn't know much about wizard society, and apparently its candy. But he did feel really stupid, because Karrie was muggleborn, so she should know as much as he did. But she seemed to know more, at least about books and candy.
"Millie introduced me to it last year. It's this..well sparkly dust. It is almost like sugar but it is sparkly and glittery. It changes colours and you never know what flavour you will get, although it is never a nasty flavour like those disgusting beans." Karrie explained quietly, her tone light and almost happy for a moment. Almost...childlike.
"Hey! Bertie Bots aren't all gross. You're just a girl." Teddy retorted, rolling his eyes. None of the girls he knew liked Bertie Bots, at all.
"So? You're just a boy!" Karrie stuck her tongue out at him, grabbing one of the containers of sweet powder.
Harry giggled, glancing between his two friends. "Can I try some, um sparkly dust Karrie?" He grinned brilliantly at her, watching her tip the container to her mouth, pouring in quite a bit of sparkly sugar. It looked almost like a muggle candy his cousin liked, one he never got to try. One that his aunt had banned because it made Dudley very energetic. Karrie handed him another container of the sugar, as Teddy hesitantly tilted one to his own mouth. He popped his open and poured a bit into his mouth, grinning around his orange flavoured sugar. "It's good!"
"Of course it is!" Karrie grinned, pouring more of her sparkly grape flavoured dust into her mouth. She glanced at Teddy, raising an eyebrow at the boy. But if he wanted to go easy on the candy, that was alright with her. More for her and Harry.
It took a few minutes before Harry and Karrie started bouncing in their seats. Teddy smirked at them, pulling his last letter out of the box. He read it quickly before pocketing it. He would write to Neville later, the other boy really needed it. He knew Neville was confused, much like Harry was sometimes. He, at least, had known that his father had been doing bad things. But he also knew that he deserved them. He must had. Teddy shook his head rapidly, trying to clear away those thoughts. He didn't need them right now at all. Movement down the table attracted his attention. Phil was coming toward them and he didn't look happy. "Karrie, Harry. Settle!" He hissed, darting his eyes toward Phil meaningfully.
Harry stilled, or tried to anyway, following Teddy's eyes. He had never had so much sugar before! He had only eaten a container and a half of the sparkly dust. He knew that Karrie had eaten the same amount, it didn't really seem like a lot of candy. But he couldn't stop jittering. He really only had sweets a few times a year, and usually chocolate frogs. But chocolate frogs never made him feel like this, he was never so...floaty. It was great!
Phil frowned down at the three children, stopping beside them. He raised an eyebrow at the two hyper children, children who never acted like this, before glancing at the vials of candy. Great, that stupid sparkly mystery sugar. It had been quite popular at the school he had went to, so he wasn't surprised to see it. But more surprised to see these children eating it. He wasn't in the best of moods but he also knew better than to be heavy-handed with this lot. "May I have the rest of the sugars, please? I think that is quite enough for one evening." He requested quietly, gazing between the three of them.
Teddy frowned, glaring down at the table. It was their candy, they should be allowed to keep it. It wasn't like they had candy all the time or like they would eat it all at once. Well...Harry might. But he wouldn't. And the sparkly dust made Karrie smile and she so rarely smiled. It just wasn't fair.
Harry hesitated before handing over the half empty tube of candy. His face was perfectly blank and a glance at Karrie showed that hers was as well. It wasn't fair, but that was their life. Perhaps they really didn't deserve such treats. It had been good while it lasted.
Light green eyes glared at Phil, one eyebrow arching briefly before a bland mask took its place. Karrie did not hand over her container of sugar, instead merely staring at Phil. If he wanted the sugar, he could take it. But she wasn't giving up the only real treat she have had this summer. Her birthday was the second week of August though and she knew Millie would send her sparkly dust then, as she had last year. Just like last year, her candy was being taken away now. She knew that they, the three of them, were not like the other children and so perhaps they were just not suppose to have sweets. Perhaps they were too dirty and disgusting for sweets.
Phil sighed, taking the vial that the child had sat down on the table before collecting the rest of the flavoured sugar from Teddy. He would give it back tomorrow, or at least some of it. But these children did not know how much sugar was too much. He had seen too many children get sick from the candy, which was very close to being pure sugar, because they didn't realize that much sugar was bad for their bodies. Especially as they were just starting puberty. He glanced at the other treats but hesitated. He really did not want to take all of their treats. But two of the three were already hyper and they really did not need anymore sugar tonight. Perhaps just a warning would do though. They were nearly teenagers after all. "No more sweets tonight, guys. You can have some tomorrow but that is quite enough sugar for one day." Phil remarked briskly, waiting for the three nods before turning and leaving with the containers of sugar.
-x-
Charlie frowned, gazing at the seven containers of sugar that rested of Phil's desk, three of which were half empty. He knew the other man was not it the best of moods, but then neither was he. He was just much better at hiding it, better at still being himself around the boys. Boys who were currently trying to straighten their 'cabin' before the last group meetings of the night and free time. Nearly three hours until lights out and then he would have a bit of free time. Not much, as he did have some work to finish but there was no counselor meeting tonight and hopefully all of the children would stay in their beds. Or at least not leave the common room. He needed to mediate tonight, he knew that. Otherwise he would just keep thinking and that was completely unnecessary and foolish.
Phil sighed, striding into the room. The boys were so messy. He could not remember being that messy at their age, but he was sure he had been. It was just a bit ridiculous how fast they could destroy a room. It had been cleaned that morning but by lunch the boys had managed to make it resemble a war zone. Again. He did not feel patient enough to deal with them tonight, so Bain was helping them. Clearly Charlie wasn't feeling patient either. He raised an eyebrow at the blond, glancing at the confiscated candy.
"Whose candy do you take?" Charlie asked finally, raising a brow of his own.
"Teddy, Harry, and Karrie's. Harry and Karrie were bouncing off the chairs at dinner tonight. They didn't need anymore sugar." Phil shrugged, turning to pick up another note from his bed. Stupid pesky Headmistress. She was being annoying, although he had agreed to see Tim. He just wasn't going to. It shouldn't matter to her if he did or not. He crumbled the note up and tossed it into the bin, not bothering to read it. Unless she was firing him, and then she probably would tell him in person, the note probably was the same as the first.
"Karrie and Harry...did you explain to them as to why you were taking their candy? Or when you would give it back?"Charlie asked, frowning at the back of the other man. Karrie and Harry did not get hyper often and it was something he would pay to see. Those two children just being...children. He understood limiting their sugar intake, especially of this kind of candy, but he was against just taking it away from them.
"I told them they could have more sweets tomorrow." Phil shrugged, glancing at Charlie. Why should he have explained to three twelve year olds why he was taking their sweets? They were twelve, not eight. Quite old enough to know the reasons, even if they didn't know their own sugar limits yet. Especially Teddy, who would have to learn new limits to how much sugar he could have.
"You didn't explain it, did you? Damn it Phil." Charlie murmured, scowling at the other man. He knew the three children well...or as well as could be expected from three who did not speak often. But he understood them and they were in his, Mary and Jake's group. The worst of the worst. The children who were so badly abused and so brainwashed into it that they thought they deserved such treatment. The children who were too much like he was once, hurting and scared. Children who probably had rarely had sweets and treats, who would believe they didn't deserve such treats. And Phil had just made it worse, by reinforcing that belief. That even here, even when they were safe, they did not deserve what other children had. Damn it.
"What? They're twelve, Charlie. Surely they would understand. I'm sure they have had sweets taken away before, so that they wouldn't make themselves sick." Phil snapped, glaring at him. He was not in the mood to put up with an overprotective Charlie tonight.
"You are a fool. Chances are, they have rarely had sweets. Perhaps not at all. They would believe that they didn't deserve sweets and you reinforced that! You can't just be so thoughtless, Phil! These children have been hurt gravely! You have never been this careless, but it the last three days? Pull yourself together!" Charlie snarled, turning cold blue eyes to meet a deeper blue pair.
"Me? You've been on edge since lunch! I made a mistake, it happens! I will talk to them." Phil retorted, folding his arms across his chest. Damn. So perhaps they hadn't understood. But they never spoke up, never argued. Which should have set off alarm bells, other children would have argued the unfairness of it. They just silently glared at him but given it. Defeated. Like they thought they had been doing wrong. Fuck. Now I have to convince them that it is okay for them to have sugar. Damn it to hell. Why must I always screw everything up? Phil scowled, slamming his hand into his head, forgetting for a brief moment that Charlie was there. Before he could repeat the action, however, a hand was wrapped around his wrist.
"Stop." Charlie whispered quietly, keeping hold of Phil's wrist. He gestured toward the other man's bed before releasing his wrist and touching the pendant around his neck. They needed help or one of them would get hurt, either from each other or, in Phil's case, of his own doing. He watched Phil for a moment before sitting down on his own bed, directly across from him. "Phil. Hands on your knees." He ordered softly, causing the blue-haired man to glare at him before removing his nails from flesh and resting his hands on his knees.
-x-
Alexis stopped outside the boy's dorm, hesitating before deciding to go in another way. There was a second door to the counselors room, one that meant she would not walk in on any half-dressed preteens. Tim, however, held no such concerns, going straight into the boys room and stopping to talk briefly with Bain. She entered Phil and Charlie's room at the same time Tim did, frowning slightly at the two younger men, both who seemed quite unhappy. She also smelt blood, although barely, which did not make her happy. Charlie's call had been non-specific, a silent plead for someone to come help with a counselor dispute. Fight seemed like the better word and both men seemed angry. At each other or themselves was not quite clear, however. She surveyed the two men for a moment, noting their body language. Phil's fingers were digging into his knees, in a way that reminded her of children who had been ordered to put their hands on their knees, to help fight the temptation to harm themselves. She glanced at Charlie with a sigh; his magic seemed to barely be under control. She touched her own pendant, canceling Charlie's request and letting the senior staff know that she was handling it. Although she wasn't quite sure what she was handling.
"You called them? Fool." Phil hissed, digging his nails into his palms, fighting the urge to take off. The flight instinct was always strong in him when he was confronted with something or in trouble. It was never there around Charlie, but he was also much more comfortable with Charlie seeing his flaws. He had a lot of them and he knew it. Especially oversight. Sometimes he forgot that the children might not be at the same level of understanding as some of their peers, because they weren't used to the same things or situations as children should be. He always tried to be gentle and patient, but he was out of patience today and perhaps he could have done better. He knew that. He was just...angry. Especially now, at Charlie. Damn fool.
"Idiot." Charlie growled, forcing himself to take a breath. He could not take his anger out on Phil. He wasn't even angry with Phil. They all made mistakes. He needed control, now, or he would do something rash. That's why he called for Alexis. Or whoever was nearby. She was his choice though, if he have had to make one. She could handle the situation. He did not have the patience today, his temper was shot. And now his fellow counselor was harming himself. He had guessed but he had never seen it, so he had let it go. He wasn't going to let it go now.
"Enough." Tim ordered quietly, checking the silencing ward around the room. It was still up but he strengthened it, to prevent any further shouting matches from being overheard. Thankfully, the children had not heard this one. He was curious to know what had caused this between the two of them, although he could guess. Tempers were short, they both looked exhausted, and they had a group of active boys to look after. Active, hurting boys. He had honestly expected one or two of the ca,p counselors to meltdown in the near future; he just hadn't expected it to be so soon. "Who would like to tell us what happened?" He requested finally, eyes going between the two. His eyes landed on Phil's hands and he sighed, catching Alexis' eye.
She followed his gaze for a moment before nodding and conjuring two armchairs, positioning one near each young man. "Stop Phil. Let Tim see to your hands please." She ordered softly, turning gray eyes to land on Charlie. An angry Charlie. Perhaps she should have pushed him further earlier, but she knew he would have just shut down. He might shut down, even now, if pushed. She arched a brow at him and he bit back a sigh.
"We were arguing over...Phil's thoughtlessness in just taking sweets from three of the children without offering them an explanation. Apparently, they were hyper." Charlie scowled.
"You call that arguing? I made a mistake. You don't have to be so high and mighty over it. You are far from perfect, Charlie." Phil bit out, trying to keep his hands away from Tim's reach. Yes, there were drops of blood forming around some small cuts but he didn't need a healer. Didn't want a healer. He was fine.
"No one here is perfect, Phil. What sweets did you take from them?" Tim asked quietly, raising an eyebrow. From Charlie's demeanor it was three children who rarely had sweets, so he could understand where the blond was coming from here.
"The kids call it sparkly dust. It's this flavoured sugar concoction that is way too much sugar at one time." Phil grimaced, finally allowing Tim to take hold of his wrists. Alexis had been giving him that look...he hated receiving that look. The one that said she was not pleased at all with his behaviour.
Alexis made a face for a fleeting moment, shaking her head. She hated that candy. She had seen too many cases where an older teenager had tried breathing it in to see what it did. The answer was, quite frankly, nothing besides making them sick. Too much of the sugar could send a child's body into shock, there were even warning on the packages! Wizarding children would burn it off faster, of course, but sugar like that could cause out of control magic in younger children, and even some older ones. She had even seen an asthmatic child almost die from accidentally inhaling it. If she could ban the candy she would, but she knew better. Banning it would make it much more appealing. Besides that, most children who were raised with the candy were thought to never eat too much of it. It was the muggleborns and raised that didn't know the dangers of too much sugar to their magic. "I'm sure you realize now that you should have explained why you took the candy and the dangers of the sweet to the children." She remarked finally, raising an eyebrow as the younger man jerked his hand out of Tim's grasp, again.
Tim frowned at the man, smacking his leg with his free hand. "Stop fighting me, Phil, or I will do a full scan on you." He ordered, causing the young man to still instantly. He knew the smack would stick, but he also knew that it would do no real damage. The boy had ignored his quiet warning a minute before and he did not make ideal warnings when he was trying to heal or at least investigate the damage. He would be doing a full scan on the younger man later that night if he could, since Phil was determined to avoid him and there was usually a reason for that.
"Yes, fine. I made a mistake. I'll fix it tomorrow. Either they will understand or they won't." Phil growled, speaking irrationally and without thought. He would talk to them tomorrow and make sure they did understand, because he did actually care for these children. They were good kids and he had made a rash judgment of the situation, something that he shouldn't have. But he was still learning as were they. They were teaching him much more about his job and about himself than his training ever had.
"They won't. You'll be lucky if the three even take the candy back. Harry, Teddy, and Karrie were not raised to understand apologies, or to even receive them." Charlie snapped, fighting to keep his temper. He knew Phil was upset and frustrated, but the man spoke so thoughtlessly! Doing so around the children could be damaging. He would not lash out, he wouldn't. It was not Phil he was angry at. I am loved. Cared for. Safe. Sane. Okay. Everything is fine. His mantra was not helping this time, no matter how often he repeated it in his head. Sane? Yeah, right. Sane people didn't have tempers like he did. He knew that.
Ah. That made more sense then. Charlie was extremely protective of those two boys and that little girl. They had been through so much and he knew the young man probably came from a much similar background as they did. "Alright, enough. The two of you could use some space from each other right now, until you are both thinking rationally again. Phil, why don't you come to my office, the two of us have much to discuss." Tim ordered finally, standing and turning warm brown eyes to the blue-haired youth. Phil grumbled under his breath but stood, following him slowly toward the door Alexis' had come through.
"Oh, and Phil? Don't run from Tim. He is not as lenient as I am."Alexis remarked, catching the boy's eye for a moment. He blushed and averted his gaze, dragging slowly behind Tim. Once they were gone, she sighed turning back to face Charlie. "Tell me what is bothering you?"
"I am fine." He hissed, staring at the wall and forcing himself to take another deep breath.
"You are not. We both know that while Phil might had fueled your anger, he is not the reason for it."She replied quietly, gray eyes concerned for the young man in front of her. He was one of their best counselors and she knew he needed someone to talk to. But he had to be willing to talk to them. She had been willing to wait for him to come to her, but perhaps now was the time to try to get him to open up.
"He was not, no. I just...need to meditate Alexis." He sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. He could not talk about it, he would break if he did and he had to be strong for his boys.
"Perhaps. Talking about it might help though. It doesn't make you weak, Charlie, to ask for help."
"I don't need help. I just need to be alone." He snapped, biting his lip. Help...only a few times had he been offered help before. But he was older now. He could handle this. He just needed to breath.
"I am not going to leave you alone when you are this upset. I'm sorry, Charlie, but I cannot. However, we can just sit here in silence if that is what you need." Alexis responded finally, watching him closely. Head bowed, eyes closed, his temper was barely held within control and she could see his magic trying to stray out, his aura expanding.
Charlie sighed, breathing slowly for a few minutes. He sat there, in silence, with her close by. When he had finally reigned his magic back it, cooled his temper down a bit, and opened his eyes, she was still there. Watching him. And her eyes...they were concerned. For him. "Sorry, Headmistress. I just...needed a minute. Sometimes it becomes too much and my temper flares."He explained softly, staring at the floor. It was a bit embarrassing, that he could not fully control his temper. But he was, had been, angry. Angry at a fifteen year old bully, angry at Phil, angry at himself for getting angry. Angry that he had almost lost his temper at the bully, angry that his children had been hurt so badly, just...angry. He had been that way as a child, turning all emotions into anger, but he had much better control of it now. He would not turn into...that. He wouldn't.
"What becomes too much?"
The soft question caught him off guard and caused him to raise startled blue eyes to meet gray. "Everything. My boys are hurting and I cannot even protect them here, for they are still bullied. Watching them flinch at every touch or slight movement, seeing their blank masks and hurt eyes...it is too much sometimes. " Charlie hesitated but decided to be honest with himself, and her by extension. "It reminds me too much of my own childhood, of my own experience with bullies here. Many of the counselors did not go to Hogwarts. I did. I still cannot even look Professor Snape or Professor Flitwick. in the eyes." He admitted finally, meeting her eyes once again. There was no pity there, just understanding and care. Concern.
"Why is that?"
"They both tried to have me removed from my home. Dumbledore ignored them. They both offered to help me and Professor Snape spent a few weeks of detention teaching me to meditate, so that I could better control my temper. So that I would stop starting fights." He shrugged, flushing slightly. He greatly respected the older two men and they never brought up the past. They were both quite good to him and Professor Snape..Severus had told him that he was always welcome to come to him for anything.
Alexis bit back a sigh. More damage that Dumbledore had caused. She had known, of course, that he had not a good home life, although not the details. Severus had mentioned it when Tim hired him on, that the boy would probably relate to the students well and he had a bit of emotional empathy...that he might lose his temper. But Severus had also not know the extent of his abuse, just that it had been there and the little the man had told him. Details of which were confidential and she knew better than to press for. She had learned of a tower incident, as it had been in his old student file, another incident where the old fool had done nothing and Severus and Filius had tried to pick up the pieces, to find out reasons. The very thought of such an incident was nearly heart stopping. But that was in the past and there was a young man in front of her who needed her now. "You are an adult now, Charlie. No longer a student. You can do something about the bullies, the training sessions we will be holding a couple of nights a week should help you now how to address it rationally. If you ever do get too angry, send them to someone else and come see me. Even if it is just to sit in my office for a bit, until you have control once more. You are not the person you once were and the boys absolutely adore you. I am here for you Charlie. Severus, Filius, and Tim are also here and ready to listen if you should come to them. We care about you. You are not your past." Her quiet words made him visibly relax. She knew he had expected her to brush him off, to hold his past against him. But she would not, could not. He was a good young man and they needed him, the boys needed him. And he needed them.
"I...thank you, Alexis. I admit that I am not quite ready to talk just yet. About anything. But it means a lot. Very few people have ever cared." He murmured quietly, blinking rapidly.
"I am here whenever you are ready to talk, whether it be about your past or your future. Or even the terrors of trying to get eleven boys in bed by nine-thirty." She replied softly, smiling softly when he chuckled. She had been trying to get him to laugh, to light the mood a bit.
"Would you stay for a bit?" He requested after a few minutes of silence. Although he didn't want to talk, he didn't really fancy being alone. A glance at the timepiece showed that free time would start in a half hour, he knew Jake was probably running his group, and then he would have to go back out to check on his boys. But right now, he needed the quiet and the calmness that was the Headmistress.
"Of course." Alexis leaned back in her armchair, pulling a muggle notebook from her robe pockets. She had planned to be in the common room during free time, as she was every evening, so she didn't mind staying with him. Especially when he was still a bit upset, when he still needed a bit of quiet. She understood completely. She wouldn't have wanted to be left alone with the demons in her head, either. And although it already felt like it would be a long night, she didn't really mind. These people, the adults and the children, and this school were her life now. And she was perfectly okay with that.