The Boy Who Never Lived

CADENCE'S PAST. NEWT'S PERSPECTIVE.

I pushed past the thick leaves of the jungle and sighed softly. I'd been walking for quite a long time at this point and didn't seem to be any closer to finding the Poaceae Macaca Fascicularis (grass-monkey) that rumoured to live around these parts. I heard a snap from behind me and withdrew my wand from its holster. The sun was starting to set and I didn't want to be caught in the rain forest after dark. I cautiously stepped forward, my body tense with the promise of a fight. The noise was different this time, sounding like something running around on two feet. My heart skipped a beat as I thought to myself that perhaps my voyage was finally over. The demiguise must be behind these leaves. I pushed aside the large leaves and stepped cautiosly into a rather large clearing that had the softest grass ever. But what remained behind the dense forest was not at all what I had been expecting. A small child ran around the green padding and let out high pitched squeals of utter happiness. I sighed dissapointed and put my wand back in my pocket. The child was male and ran naked between the trees. I looked around for the village nearby when I noticed something odd. There were no other people around. No signs of settlement at all. The child also was pale, white for lack of better phrasing. This region of the rainforest was mainly dark-skinned tribes and rarely would even the whitest of people remain that way if they ran around in the sun completely naked as this child did so carelessly. I sat down on the grass and waited for the child to notoce me so I could find where it came from. He appeared to be about two years old and it made me uneasy knowing he was out here alone. I saw something waddle out of the woods. It was a green demiguise and it grabbed the childs hand gently and led it to sit down in the grass. That explains it. It's being babysat. Okay well then I will just wait until the parents come back and remind them of how careless their decisions were. Honestly leaving a child with a helpless creature in the forest. They shouldn't have a child if they are going to treat it so poorly. The demiguise looked over at me and watched me cautiously. I lowered my head in a sign or respect and held my hands palm up to show I mean no harm. It relaxed and led the child towards me. The boy had chocolate eyes and dark brown hair, his body was lean and strong. He was in much better shape than my sixty year old body. I looked at the gold that was flecked in his eyes and the small C shaped birthmark that lay where his neck met his shoulder. I had to tear away my eyes as my heart broke.
"You look just like Credence. He was alone too." I looked around for anyone. The sun was starting to dissapear over the horizon and it was rapidly becoming colder. The child shivered and rubbed his arm to keep some heat. A small silver chain was wrapped around his ankle and I frowned.
"Hello..." I said, looking at the locked cuff around the chaffed appendage. "What are you doing here?"
The boy looked at me seeming afraid the second I touched the lock and I realised suddenly that he had been kept chained. Whoever had been his parents hadn't been kind to the child. I pulled out my wand and he flinched. How did he know what it was? Could he perhaps be a wizard? If so who were his parents? I pointed the wand at the heavy metal and whispered 'Alohamora' quietly. It fell off him and he sighed audibly. The demiguise turned and walked off into the forest and my instincts told me that it didnt plan to return again. It felt that it's job was done and obviously deemed myself worthy to care for the boy.  The boy looked at me with trust filled eyes and took my hand in his own and I sighed softly. I picked up the boy carefully and placed him on my hip.
"Well I guess you could be useful with my animals." I sighed looking him over. "But we can't just call you child forever. Youre going to need a name."
The boy tilted his head curiously showing off that odd birthmark. I felt my heart squeeze painfully as a name popped in my head.
"Come on then, Cadence. Let's go home."