The Boy Who Lived

A Syllabus of Curses

The next day wasn't as quiet as Harry might have hoped for although Draco had to go to work; and Minnie and Ron had to start preparing for the school term; and Luna set to work in the grounds with Tilly; and Arthur and Angelina had to go back to the Ministry; and George had to go back to the shop; there were still Mione, Pansy, Narcissa, Dromeda, Hebe, Molly, Teddy, and Blaise in the Hall. And although Minnie and Ron disappeared for the morning, they were back early afternoon. And when Draco came home, he brought Theo and Daphne with him.

Harry was pleased to see Theo again. At school, he felt the boy was surly and ignorantly silent. And it was well-rumoured that he was inordinately obsessed with cursed or hexed objects. Later, he understood through their work together that, like Draco, Theo was put in a terrible situation by his father, though at least he'd never been forced to take the Mark.

'We weren't rich like some of the older Sacred Twenty-Eight families even though we were on the list. My father had aspirations and pretenses that were well beyond his means,' Theo said as he sat on the grass in front of the Hall with Harry, Draco, Daphne, Ron and Mione, Pansy and Luna, Blaise too.

At first it seemed painfully unnecessary to be hashing over events from the past but Theo wanted to talk to the others about it and was the one who asked to explain his part in the past. Daphne held his hand tightly, supporting her fiancé fiercely as if protecting him from his past. Harry didn't fail to notice that Draco had shuffled in close to him too and was holding his hand tightly. He offered Draco a small sympathetic smile. He knew it was hard for Draco too. He pulled him closer, his fingers playing comfortingly on his thigh.

'School was hard for me,' Theo continued, 'maybe more because we became indebted to that world. Father owed people money, including Lucius. Loss of control was part of the problem because he felt angry with the world. He believed Dark Magic and taking the Dark Mark before the first war would free him by making him powerful. Instead, it made him weaker,' said the quiet man.

'You don't need to explain,' Mione said as Hercules nuzzled against Theo, seeming to know when to offer comfort.

'I want to. To all of you, and Dray too. I think I owe it to you. I never explained to anyone beyond Daphne. I confided in Daphne in the seventh year. At a time when I really needed it, she found me and I eventually chanced confiding in her. It was the best risk I've taken in my life.' He smiled at Daphne and the love was clear. 'And Harry knows a bit of my story through work. You see, I just let people think the worst about me. It was easier to survive that way and then just get on with things quietly.'

So, Theo, sitting cross-legged in front of them and intermittently playing with his boot laces or Hercules's ears or reaching out to hold Daphne's hand, told them his story. He said how he'd seen the truth about the Dark side long before the others as he watched his father become more and more obsessed with the Dark Arts and his growing collection of Dark and dangerous artefacts. And, as his obsession with Dark Magic consumed him, a brutal cruelty towards his wife and only son grew. One day, when Theo was ten, his mother disappeared without explanation from anyone. Nothing was done about her disappearance; no questions were asked and Theo wasn't allowed to mention his mother, ever. He still didn't know what had happened to her.

'Father said she ran off with another man but I suspect he killed her,' Theo admitted softly. 'He was quiet for a period of time. More reserved but I assume he was scared someone might come around asking questions. After a time, he returned to his crueller ways.'

'Would you like me to open the case?' Harry asked gently.

'What's the point? The bastard's dead now.'

'For your own peace of mind. To find out what happened to her.'

'Maybe you should,' said Daphne, looking gratefully at Harry. 'So you can finally lay the past to rest and either reconnect with your mother or mourn her properly, if that's what you need to do.'