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Feeling Theo's emotions and understanding where they came from, all I could do was let out a sigh.
He was my friend.
But, if I was being completely honest... the poor guy was pretty messed up in the head.
Not that I could blame him.
After growing up with a bastard like Nott, it would've probably been stranger if he'd come out of that situation completely normal.
Even so, situations like this always made me question just how competent the wizarding world's healthcare and child protection systems really were.
'Don't they have something like Child Protective Services here? Or at least a therapist?' I wondered with a grimace.
'Or I don't know... maybe a psychiatrist or a psychologist? Someone whose job is actually looking after people's mental health?'
The more I thought about it, the more I started to think nothing like that existed.
Not in Britain, at least.
'Well, if it does exist...'
I discreetly glanced at Theo.
Then I thought about half the people I knew in the wizarding world.
'...they seriously need to hire better staff.' My lips twitched.
Seriously.
The longer I spent in this world, the more I realised that a frightening number of problems could probably be solved with a few therapy sessions.
In fact, if certain people had simply sat down and talked to a professional the moment the first signs that something was wrong appeared, half the problems in this world probably would've never existed in the first place.
Or maybe not.
After all, the Muggle world, both in my previous life and this one, had plenty of therapists, psychiatrists, and every other kind of mental health professional you could think of.
And that definitely hadn't stopped humanity from screwing everything up anyway.
I sighed inwardly.
'Then again... maybe the problem isn't neglecting mental health.'
'Maybe human beings are just like that. Troubled, damaged, and chaotic.'
The Muggle world had its own problems.
The wizarding world had theirs.
And apparently, in both worlds, people had an impressive talent for turning their own traumas into someone else's problems.
Shaking my head, I dropped that train of thought before it became any deeper and more cynical than I liked.
After all, I was in the middle of a conversation with Theo.
After a few moments of silence to get his emotions back under control, Theo spoke again.
"Hm... actually, Ethan... there's something I wanted to ask you..."
"What is it?" I looked at him curiously.
"When you attacked that Death Eater..." Theo began slowly. "Did you already know who he was? Did you already know he was my father?"
I blinked.
"Does it matter?"
"Yes. It does!" Theo replied firmly, looking straight at me.
Seeing how serious he was, I thought for a few seconds before nodding.
"Yes. I already knew that Death Eater was your father the moment he showed up in the graveyard."
"...I see." He murmured.
Then he seemed to hesitate for a moment.
"So... there's one more thing I wanted to ask..." he continued. "Did you... do that because of me?"
The question caught me completely off guard.
But then I realised where he was going with this.
"What do you mean?" I asked, pretending not to understand.
"Ethan... you know exactly what I mean." Theo sighed.
"I've already told you how he treated my mum and me at home... the horrible things he did to us."
"You knew how awful he was. How much I hated him." He said quietly, lowering his head.
"And then, the first chance you got, you crippled him... And don't tell me that was just a coincidence."
He lifted his head and looked me straight in the eyes.
"So I'm asking you again..." he took a deep breath. "Did you do that because of me? Because you wanted to get revenge for us?"
Understanding the weight behind that question, I paused, looking at him for a few seconds.
"That was a war, Theo." I finally answered. "In that graveyard, every Death Eater was my enemy."
Hearing that, Theo lowered his head slightly.
A faint shadow of disappointment crossed his face.
Noticing that, a small smile appeared on my lips.
"But..." I continued, making him meet my eyes again. "If I said thinking about you didn't make that decision just a little bit easier... I'd be lying."
Theo's eyes wavered for a brief moment.
He understood.
I really had done it to get revenge for him and his mother.
I targeted the man he unfortunately had to call his father precisely because I wanted to punish the one who'd hurt my friend so much.
Then, before I could even understand what was happening, he took a step forward.
And hugged me.
...
For a few moments, my brain simply stopped working.
"Theo...?" I looked at him in surprise.
Theo didn't answer.
He just kept hugging me tightly.
His shoulders trembled almost imperceptibly.
There were no tears and no sobs, but I didn't need them.
My Empathy told me far more than words ever could.
Relief. Gratitude. Safety.
It was as though years of fear had finally found a tiny crack through which they could escape.
Not really knowing what else to do, I simply raised one hand and gently patted him on the back.
Sometimes, silent support was the best answer.
Almost half a minute later, Theo finally stepped back.
His face had already returned to its usual neutral expression, as though nothing had happened.
Only one small detail gave him away.
His ears were completely red.
"...Sorry." He looked away, clearly wishing the ground would swallow him up.
"You don't need to apologise." I smiled at him understandingly.
I understood... I really did.
For someone as withdrawn and shy as Theo to show that much emotion, he must've been genuinely moved.
A few seconds later, Theo took a deep breath and looked at me again.
"Thank you, Ethan." He said with a sincere look in his eyes.
My smile widened.
"You're welcome, mate." I gave him a light punch on the arm.
That small friendly gesture seemed to ease some of the tension he'd been carrying.
And, for the first time that day, I saw a faint smile appear on his face.
Then, right after that, something even more unexpected happened.
Out of nowhere, Theo let out a quiet little laugh.
"Huh?" I raised an eyebrow in surprise. "What's so funny?"
"Oh, I just remembered something." He replied, trying to suppress his amusement, but without much success.
"What?" Now I was even more curious.
"Well... in the letter my mum sent me, besides telling me about my father's injury, she also told me he seemed completely... terrified."
I blinked.
"...Seriously?"
"Very."
This time, he didn't even try to hide the amusement in his voice.
"My mum wrote that he wakes up in a panic every night. And she also said that, whenever your name comes up..." He paused, clearly enjoying the moment. "...he starts shaking."
"..."
Hearing that, I couldn't help myself.
A smile immediately spread across my face.
"You're serious?"
"Mhm." Theo nodded. "She wrote that she's never seen him like that before."
"According to her, he's become completely paranoid... like he's constantly scared and on edge."
"He keeps checking every corner, like you're going to jump out at him like some kind of bogeyman."
"From the way my mum described it... he's acting even worse than Moody." He joked.
With that new piece of information, my mood instantly improved.
Mission accomplished.
Right from the beginning, this had been one of my goals.
I never wanted to just defeat the Death Eaters.
Every one I took down, every one I injured... was also meant to send a message.
I wanted the remaining Death Eaters — and any other Dark wizards — to start looking over their shoulders.
To feel the same uncertainty that so many innocent families had lived with for years because of them.
To understand that, from that moment onwards, they could become the prey as well.
And, above all, that Voldemort wouldn't be able to protect them forever.
If what Theo had just told me was true, then that message had been delivered perfectly.
And, judging by the sound of it... in an unforgettable way.
Hearing that left me feeling far more satisfied and proud than I'd expected.
'So the great Lord Nott now shits himself just from hearing my name?' I thought with a mocking grin.
'Apparently, all that "pure" blood isn't worth much once fear kicks in.'
"Oh, I almost forgot." Theo suddenly said, pulling me out of my thoughts.
"Hm?"
"At the end of my mum's letter, she asked me to tell you something..."
"Wait... she asked you to tell me something?" I pointed at myself in surprise.
"Yeah." He nodded calmly. "She asked me to thank you."
That made me blink.
"Thank me? For what?"
"For teaching that man a lesson he'll never forget... and for being my friend."
For a brief moment, Theo looked away, clearly embarrassed to be saying those words.
"Really?" I smiled, amused.
"Yeah." He said. "She said... it'd been a long time since she'd seen me smile this much."
My smile faded a little when I heard that.
Those words, simple as they were, carried an enormous weight.
For a few seconds, neither of us said anything.
Before the conversation became more melancholic than I liked, I decided to change the subject.
"So... your mum knows we're friends?" I asked.
"I've never hidden it from her." He shrugged. "Actually... she was really happy when she found out."
"According to her... it was the first time I'd ever had a real friend." A small, genuine smile appeared on his lips.
"Well... what about Malfoy and the others?" I asked with a faint mischievous smile.
Theo let out a quiet huff.
"Those pure-blood boys were never my friends." He said, waving a hand dismissively. "They were just the sons of people who knew my father."
"And to make things worse, most of them think and act exactly like him."
"Oh, I wouldn't say that..." I shook my head. "Malfoy's far too stupid to be like your father."
Theo raised an eyebrow.
"Are you saying my father was intelligent?"
"No." I answered immediately. "What I meant was that Malfoy's ridiculously stupid... your father's just stupid... and an absolute asshole."
"..."
"..."
"Okay. That makes sense."
I nodded, pleased that he'd understood the flawless logic behind my explanation.
"But wait..." Theo spoke up again. "If Malfoy's that stupid... what does that make Crabbe and Goyle?"
"Hang on." I held up a hand. "That's a whole different league."
"That level of stupidity has already gone beyond human limits... Maybe not even the Unspeakables — or science itself — could measure something like that."
Theo stared at me for a few seconds.
"...Fair enough."
End.
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