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Harry watched with satisfaction as the students filed out of the classroom. One of his students…Collin…came to stand in front of his desk and spoke timidly,
"I…I need to talk with you, Sir."
Harry rose to his feet and walked around the desk towards Collin,
"What is it, Collin?"
Collin was an orphan but he'd been taken in by a family…Something about Collin's circumstances reminded him of his own before his uncle had sent him off to die…He cupped Collin's cheek and asked,
"Tell me what's wrong."
Collin looked up at him with wide, tear filled eyes and spoke,
"I can't come to school from tomorrow."
Harry frowned and made him sit down before leaning over him,
"Why not, Collin? I talked to your guardians. They had no problem with your school routine."
Collin buried his face in his chest and started crying and Harry couldn't help but pull him close and rub his back,
"Collin, what happened?"
Collin continued to sob into his chest and Harry continued to soothe him, but his heart was beating out of control. What could have happened to make Collin cry so much? He felt extremely anxious and concerned for the little boy crying so desolately in his arms. When Collin had calmed down some, Harry spoke,
"Let me take you home. I'll take to your guardians and ask them what's going on."
Collin stiffened in his arms and began pulling away from him,
"No…No…I don't want to go home…I don't want to go back…Take me with you, please…please…"
Harry held him close and spoke,
"Okay…Collin…Calm down…I'll take you home with me."
He didn't know how to soothe the little boy. He picked him up into his arms and carried him to his cottage. He only had one bedroom, so he laid Collin down on the bed, took off his shoes and pulled the covers over him,
"Try to get some sleep."
Collin nodded softly, nuzzled his head in the pillow and fell asleep. He looked peaceful now but Harry needed to know what had happened. He got up from beside Collin, grabbed his bag and headed for his house.
The door was opened on the first knock by Mrs. Harrison, Collin's guardian,
"What are you doing here? Where's Collin? He hasn't run off, has he?"
Harry smiled up at her politely,
"May I come in and talk with you for a minute?"
She stepped inside reluctantly, and he walked into the house. She sat him down on a settee and sat opposite him in an arm chair,
"Where is Mr. Harrison?"
Mrs. Harrison glared at him,
"He's at work."
Harry nodded and then spoke,
"Has something happened regarding Collin? He told me that he couldn't come to school from tomorrow?"
Mrs. Harrison rose to her feet sharply and spoke,
"Our private matters are none of your concern, Mr. Potter. If you do not know Collin's whereabouts then I will have to request you to leave."
Harry rose to his feet,
"I do happen to know where Collin is, but you must tell me what has happened to make him fear returning to his home."
Mrs. Harrison glowered at him scornfully and then spoke,
"He's a grown boy…grown enough to go out and earn us some money. He'll be working as a servant starting tomorrow."
Harry stared at her in disbelief,
"He's eleven. You can't do this to him."
She scoffed,
"You have no business interfering in our matters."
Harry picked up his bag,
"Collin is my student and his well-being is my business."
Mrs. Harrison laughed derisively,
"Have you looked at yourself in the mirror? You're just a kid yourself. Leave the important matters for the adults."
Harry was about to walk out of the house when she grabbed his arm,
"Where is he?"
Harry stopped and spoke,
"He deserves his childhood. I will not allow you to steal it from him."
He headed towards the door again, but his path was blocked by Mr. Harrison standing in the doorway with none other than his uncle Vernon…
He stood at the edge of the forest and debated whether he should go in or not. He had to go in. Visiting his grave was the only way to get rid of this guilt. He drew in a deep breath and stepped into the woods. He weaved his way through the dark trees…the rustling of the leaves teased him…the murmur of branches…the soft susurrations of the trees…they were laughing at him, teasing him, haunting him…They were questioning him…asking him why he'd murdered him, why he'd slit his throat and stolen the light from his beautiful eyes…why he'd deprived the world of his purity? Why…Why…WHY! The questions grew deafening and the tumultuous uproar brought him down to his knees.
He covered his ears with his hands and screamed,
"NO…NO... HE HAD TO DIE!"
Everything inside him began shouting against him as well and he wanted to escape from his skin. He curled up on the forest floor and cried,
"HE HAD TO DIE…HE HAD TO DIE…HE HAD TO DIE!"
Tears streamed down his temples and he couldn't stop them from flowing. Why was he crying? Why wasn't he happy? Killing him was supposed to bring everything back to normal. Why wasn't it back to normal? Voices echoed inside his head and he cried out,
"Make it stop! MAKE IT STOP!"
Harry's laughter echoed all around him. The way he had laughed when he'd caught him after chasing him down the forest and tied him up to a tree. He sat up straight and looked down at his bare feet. It had always amused him. His lack of shoes had always amused him. Was he laughing now? Was he laughing at him from the heavens above? He would be…He was sure of it…
He took the support of a tree and pushed himself to his feet. He couldn't bear it. He couldn't bear to visit the grave…It would most certainly be the end of him.