Hey y'all! :)

I wanted to update before the month is over lol, and I am hoping to finish this story in February!

Thank you Nimphxdora and Gypsyrose98 for your, as always, lovely feedback! :)

It was cold. It was so very cold…

Tom was freezing in his pajamas, wishing he had at least taken his jacket with him- it was crazy to walk around in October like this, with the wind and the rain coming from all directions.

It had been the right decision, though- there was no point in staying any longer, pretending he could really be Aurelius' boy.

He's probably gonna be glad to see me gone.

Tom fought back the tears, forcing himself to keep walking. He would get Squirrel, and then he would leave London- it would be too painful to stay this close to Aurelius and Gryffindor. He had a little bit of money saved from his job, and he would use that until he found another job somewhere else. Somewhere far away.

Tom stifled a sob, he was tired, cold, and exhausted, and he'd have to walk for at least another hour to get back to his hiding spot.

Unless…

Just for a few hours. Just until I am feeling better.

His feet had already started to walk in the direction of Gryffindor's penthouse, and when he saw the lights of the building and felt the warmth surrounding his body as soon as he entered the lobby, he exhaled in relief.

"Good morning, young Master", Gregory smiled at him kindly, "you are here to see your father?"

I wish.

"Uhm…I was just…gonna go up to the rooftop", Tom stuttered, "my…uhm…Dad, he gave me the key, but…I…I lost it I think."

He did not lose it of course- it was safely stored in his jacket, the jacket he had left behind in Aurelius' apartment.

Gregory's smile turned soft, "that won't be a problem, young Master Gryffindor. I'll take you right up."

"Thank you", he let out a deep breath, "and…please don't tell…him. I just…need to be alone for a while."

"Certainly, young Master", Gregory replied politely, like it was nothing out of the ordinary to have a young boy walk in by himself at four in the morning in his way too thin pajamas, asking to be left alone on the rooftop.

He took him all the way up in the elevator, and Tom leaned his head against the wall, completely exhausted. Everything felt so heavy, and he just wanted to lay down and sleep.

"We are here, young Master."

"Thank you", Tom replied automatically, slowly exiting the elevator. He felt dizzy, so he had to walk carefully, Gregory watching him with concern. He took the privacy of his clients very seriously indeed, but he could tell that this was a boy in need of his Daddy. He watched the boy basically fall to the ground a few steps from the elevator, his whole body trembling. Shaking his head with concern, he wasted no time walking back to the elevator, going down one level to Gryffindor's penthouse. He knocked on the door, surprised when it opened a few seconds later.

"I apologize for the disturbance, Sir", Gregory began politely, "but it seems like your boy needs some help. He is…"

"On the rooftop, I know- I was on my way to get him", Gryffindor could not tell the elderly man that he had put protection spells on Tom, "I am assuming this matter will be dealt with privately?"

"Most certainly, Master Gryffindor. Nobody else will ever know about any of this."

"I appreciate it. You may leave, Gregory."

The man simply nodded, glad to know that the boy on the rooftop was going to get the help he needed. His work was done.

Gryffindor was in the elevator within seconds, impatiently waiting for it to take him up to his boy. He exited the elevator quickly, and when he saw Tom curled into a small ball on the ground, his heart clenched.

"That's a strange place to sleep you found there, baby boy", he kept his voice soft, not wanting to scare his boy, but Tom instantly winced, turning his head to look at him, "didn't…wanna wake you", he whispered, his voice hoarse, "being…quiet for you."

"And you're doing such a great job being my quiet and sweet little boy, Tommy", he walked closer, easily lifting the boy up into his arms, "you're all cold, my little polar bear- someone needs a hot tea and a nice warm bath."

"Hot…chocolate", the boy mumbled, pressing his face into his chest, "no…bath. Gonna…leave and…get Squirrel and…"

"Shhh…you can do all that later, baby boy. Right now, it's a hot drink and a bath for my boy."

Tom had to sob, "not…your boy", he croaked out, "no…no one's boy!"

Gryffindor laughed softly, "not my boy? You've been my boy for quite some time now, Tommy. Or do you think I make animal pancakes for just anyone? Or tell anyone scary vampire stories?"

His eyes were filling with tears, barely registering that Gryffindor had gone back to his penthouse, entering the bathroom now with him, "can't…be your boy", he finally whispered, "I…I'm a bad boy! A very bad boy!"

"Hmmm…that's hard to believe. I think I would know if my sweet little Tommybear was a bad boy", Gryffindor replied, undressing his boy, "why do you think you are a bad boy, Tommy?"

Tom sobbed again, not bothering to protest when Gryffindor lowered him into the warm bathwater in the tub, "I…I lied", he blurted out, "lied…all the time. I am a…a runaway, I'm homeless, I don't have no family, I ran away from them, I…I…", he started to cry, expecting Gryffindor to get angry now, to demand him to go back to his foster family, but instead...

"Was that so hard now, baby boy?", Gryffindor sounded like he was smiling, "to finally tell me the truth?"

Tom was so shocked that he even stopped crying, "you…you knew? You knew about…me being…homeless?"

"Of course I knew, Tommy. The adoption agency contacted me a while ago- a few days after the Retrospective to be exact. Apparently, you had left way earlier than that, but your foster parents seemed to have been undecided until then to even tell the agency. They seemed to be afraid to never get another foster child for some reason."

"Cause…Felicity got rid of the other two as well", Tom mumbled, "she's…evil."

"Is she the reason why you ran away, baby boy?"

"One…of them", he stared at down at the bubbles on top of the water, "and…cause…of the…the…"

"The strap?"

Al he could do was nod, feeling like crying again, "hurt so much", he croaked out, "and then…I took Squirrel and left."

"To stay in some former office building."

"How do you know that?"

"I searched your mind one night when you were asleep- I had to make sure you were at least staying somewhere warm and safe."

Tom suddenly realized something else, "that's why…you gave me…so much money", he whispered, "cause you knew. And…why you never asked about my parents when I slept over…and I…I thought you just…don't care."

"I do care, baby boy. I had hoped that the more often you stay here, the more you would start to trust me to tell me the truth- because that's not the only thing you've been keeping from me, hmm?"

Tom bit his lips, "no", he finally admitted, his voice thick with tears, "there's more."

"Can you tell me, sweet boy?"

"I…I have a job. Pettigrew stole all the money, so I started working at this café, but then Aurelius came to have tea with his friends one day…", he had to sob, the memory a painful one, "and…I was gonna try to be good for him so he wouldn't hate me anymore, but then he was so cruel, and I got so mad, and then…the tea set suddenly broke, and I still don't know how that happened, and he…he made me kneel on the shattered tea set, and…my knees hurt so bad. That's why…I came to see you that night", he took a deep breath, exhausted from all the talking.

"My brave boy", Gryffindor's voice was still very soft, "I knew about that as well- Aurelius told me he'd met you there right after you stormed out. He was trying to hide it, but he was worried about you, Tommybear."

"He…came to see me last night", and then Tom blurted out the whole tale of what had happened so far during the night, and Gryffindor listened, eventually picking him up to dry him off and to put him into a pair of cozy pajamas, carrying him over to the bedroom.

"I…I did the right thing, right?", Tom asked at the end in a small voice, "I mean…he doesn't want a liar like me, right?"

Gryffindor knew he had to be careful now since the boy still seemed very much convinced everything was somehow his own fault, "Tommy…anyone would have want to run away from that foster family of yours. They were abusive", he had to make that very clear, "they did not treat you how you deserve to be treated."

"Maybe…did deserve it, though. Relius said I…I ruined his family. Ruined…everything."

How he wished his oldest son was here now, have him see what damage his words had done to the boy, "you did not ruin everything, sweet boy. Salazar and I…we had problems beforehand. The divorce had more than one reason, trust me. I have forgiven you for all that, haven't I?"

Tom blinked, tilting his head, "you…you don't hate me?", it sounded like a question, and Gryffindor knew at that moment they still had some work ahead of them, "no, baby boy, I don't hate you", he simply responded, "you are my sweet boy, Tommy. My boy."

The boy stared at him for what felt like an eternity, the meaning of the words slowly dripping in, "you…still want me?"

The simple question broke Gryffindor's heart, and he hugged his boy tighter, meaning to show him how much he meant to him, "you can be the worst bad boy there is- and I'd still want you", he whispered into the boy's ear, "you can lie every day, curse, and scream- and I'd still want you."

"But…why?"

"Because I love you, Tommybear. You're my boy, my son", he gave him a soft kiss on his tousled hair, "back then at that Retrospective, I found you amusing at first- until I realized what a clever, funny, and sweet little boy you are. You were so helpful at Maynard's, behaving so well for me, and you are such a brilliant little artist, and you are so brave, Tommy. So very brave."

"Say…that again?"

"You are brave, Tommybear."

The boy wildly shook his head, "the…the other thing", he croaked out, "wanna hear…the other thing."

Gryffindor smiled, understanding, "I love you, sweet boy", he repeated, "I love you so very much, Tommy…my perfect little baby boy…"

His eyes filled with tears again, but this time, they were happy tears, "again", he demanded quietly, "wanna hear it again."

"I'll tell you all night if you want me to- I love you, baby boy. My sweet boy…", and then Gryffindor went to lay down next to him in the bed, holding him tight, all while he kept telling him in a low voice how perfect and amazing and brilliant and sweet he was, and with those words in his mind, Tom feel asleep again, his mind and body finally at rest.

Father?

Gryffindor sighed, slowly getting up. He had expected his oldest to contact him as soon as he realized Tom had left, he just had not expected it this early. He had barely had any sleep himself, too worried about Tom, Aurelius, and how to progress from here.

Good morning, Aurelius.

Morning. I…I need to talk to you. It's…rather urgent.

What happened?

Tom…Thomas. The boy. He's…gone.

Gone?

He…stayed with me last night. I mean, he was working late, Olivier told me he was working late, I took him with me, it was…really late. It was also raining.

Godric made his way over to the kitchen, putting a quick dressing spell on himself while doing so. He could clearly hear the distraught and anxiety in Aurelius' voice, and for a second, he debated to just tell him that Tom was safely sleeping in his penthouse, but then he remembered again what hell Aurelius had put the boy through, and how he had treated Sirius for weeks, and he knew it was time his oldest learned a lesson as well.

Thomas stayed with you and has now disappeared? Do I understand that correctly?

Yes, Father. I…I don't understand why, we…we had a good talk last night, I…I even told him a story, and I just don't understand this.

Have you looked everywhere around your place?

I have, Father. He…he is just gone. And he left his jacket here. He must be freezing.

Gryffindor started to pour himself some freshly brewed tea, not acknowledging the worry in Aurelius' voice.

He most likely went back home, Aurelius.

In the middle of the night? I mean…it is six in the morning now, but who knows how long he is been gone for!

Again, the pure anguish in Aurelius' voice almost made him change his mind, but he knew he needed to stay strong for his oldest boy. He needed to learn what his actions had resulted in.

I am rather busy this morning, but it might be a good idea for you to check on him at his foster family's house.

I don't understand why you are so calm about this! Didn't you give me shit just weeks ago about how I treated him?

Watch your tone, Aurelius.

I am sorry, Father. It's just…he's gone. He just…left and I don't get why.

I understand that, Aurelius. That is still not a reason to talk to me in a disrespectful tone.

I…apologize.

I accept your apology. I am going to give you the address of Tom's foster family, so you can make sure the boy is doing well. Please let me know as soon as you talked to them what they told you.

I will, Father. Thank you!

Godric smiled to himself while he mentally told Aurelius the address. His boy was going to be in for a shock when meeting Tom's foster parents, but it would be a very eye opening shock for him- realizing he had been treating the boy badly when he should have offered him help a lot sooner than he had.

I am expecting you to update me as soon as possible, Aurelius.

Yes, Father. I will.

Aurelius closed the mental connection, exhaling deeply. Olivier and Quentin were still asleep, and he had only woken up so early because he had realized how much colder the bed had gotten without Tom snuggling up to him- just to realize the boy was gone.

Dressing himself quickly, Aurelius was out the door minutes later, the school still silent and dark. He would probably not be back in time for breakfast or even his first class, but he did not care. He needed to find Tom.

The address his father had given him turned out to be quite some distance away, and while he walked across the cold, dark streets of the city, his mind was racing with possibilities, none of them pleasant to think about.

I thought we made progress last night…but maybe I just imagined all that. Maybe he does not want to be my boy after all.

Aurelius arrived at the foster family's house just as the sun began rising, making him feel a little bit better, now that he could feel some sunlight on his cold face.

He exhaled again, and then walked over to the door.

Not caring that this was hardly a time to disturb someone, he loudly knocked on the door, being greeted by a dog barking seconds later.

"Princess! Be quiet!", a female voice shrieked, which did not seem to bother the dog, who kept barking in excitement.

Seconds later, the door opened with a bang, and Aurelius saw himself confronted with a shabby looking man, wearing nothing but his underwear, a tired looking woman with curlers in her hair, a girl who looked like she had just swallowed a whole lemon, and a dog who kept on barking- Tom's foster family.

What. the. Hell?

yep...Aurelius is in for a rude awakening in the next chapter...not that he doesn't deserve it, right? ;)

I'd love some feedback from you!

See you soon!

Antonie :)