At first, he thought it was a joke. When an owl thumped into his bedroom window, he was sure it was some of his mates playing an elaborate prank. He didn’t even read the letter, just picked out a feeding rat from his snake tank to feed to the owl. It was more interesting to him than a sheet of paper, anyway.
But then another letter came.
And another.
And another.
Eventually, with a stack of old parchment letters stacked up on his desk and his dad whinging about all the bird shite on his car, Stephen sat down to tear one of them open.
Mr. Stephen Hart The Attic over the Garage 16 Emerson Way, Cressington, Liverpool
He read the message, but it didn’t convince him. It wasn’t until a week later, when a cat showed up on his doorstep that turned into a person, that he realized this was serious. They were serious.
Subin loved being a study hall proctor. She loved the time it gave her to talk one-on-one with her students, and she always looked forward to it when it appeared on her schedule. Walking down one row of students, she peered over a shoulder or two, asking here and there if she could offer any assistance when a student looked to be struggling. Deep as she was in thought over one particularly tricky-looking herbology assignment, she managed to walk right into someone with a rather hard “thump.”
“Oh! I’m sorry!” she called, scrambling to her feet to offer a hand. “I didn’t see you there.”
Stephen eyed her hand, but didn’t have a free one of his own to take it with. He had an old tome he’d nicked from the potions professor in one and a quill in the other for the notations he was supposed to be doing.
“No worries,” he said. “I’m easy to miss.” It was a joke. At six-one, he tended to stand out among his peers.
Thankfully it’s just the pair of them in his class. The rest of the students were far off. The door locked, and a moment of privacy was valuable as it was likely fleeting. Either way, he toys with his coffee and flashes a smile at Stephen’s words.
Yeah, seeing the kid hexing a helpless book would be fucking hilarious.
Call him sentimental for keeping the thick tome. Now he laid his broken dreams out as a gift to Stephen. Sentimental it seemed, even now when he shouldn’t be. With a person he shouldn’t care for.
”Long time ago, yeah. Things changed.”
“Things usually do."
Nobody ever ended up where they saw themselves when they were younger. The world didn’t work like that.
But he’s curious. He doesn’t get many glimpses behind the curtain with Jack. He turns the book over in his hands and summons a smile.
"I’m not gonna find any hearts scribbled in here, am I? Jack loves Lucinda or something like that?”
Coal meant a family that was there. Not one that was broken then ripped apart. He only remembers the few years he had with his sister. Not the distraught mother or the absent father.
”It’s alright.”
The last gift he’d gotten was a stupid toy truck when he was eight. The books he’d bought on his own. Nowadays he had this stupid kid in front of him and a half-delirious sister. At the mention of the gift though, Jack shrugs, sips at his coffee, and finds no need to stick to tradition.
”Open it now.”
"Trust meyou weren’t missing anything.“
The coal was never a gift; it was just there. Everywhere. All over the house, all over the town. The only thing that killed more people than black lung was liver failure.
"If something jumps out at me, I might hex it.”
It’s more of a joke than a warning as he sits down on Jack’s desk, legs folded under him as he starts to open his gift. His fingers touch the worn leather of the book cover, and his eyebrow arches when he sees the name inside.
As if he’s one to talk. Either way, he’s not looking forward to covering up the fresh set of another round of ‘talking’ with his family. It meant something blowing up. It meant more scars to hide. Jack smiles pleasantly around his coffee as he takes a seat across from his student.
”Not exactly. Could be fruitcake.”
But it’s a thick tome of valuable information. A little worn around the edges. He hopes Stephen will like the countless pages of creatures. The annotations though are the only thing he couldn’t spell off. Though neither could he erase his name on the first page, scribbled in youthful haste.
”Unless you prefer the coal.”
“I’m from Liverpool; I’ve had plenty of coal in my life, thanks.”
He takes the box and has to fight the childish urge to shake it. Curiosity is a blessing and a curse.
“I didn’t get you anything.”
Not true. He’s found him a few things, left them sitting around Jack’s office for him to find. He’s never been good at giving gifts, not even to Kadi. And he always thought she enjoyed the puzzle of finding things.
Their relationship should prove that. Yet for all of it, here he was, poorly wrapped gift in his hands and too late to give it when it counted most. Either way it’s pushed across the table.
”Be good on holiday, kid.”
“I’m secretly an optimist.”
Because sarcasm is easier than admitting he’s just that desperate, and just that little bit was enough honesty for the day. He takes the gift, eyes it skeptically.
Question: You’ve been one of my favorite people of 2014. Send this to everyone who has had an impact however big or small on your life this year.
Answer:
The pain is something he’d expected when he’d shoved Stephen out of the way. It’s agonizing the way the curse ripples through his body, causing his limbs to seize up as he struggles against it. A sharp breath rattles free as he slumps back against the wall.
”You have to, kid—-“
Teeth grind and he casts a glance towards the wizard bearing down on them. Jack can feel their magic twisting up his head, coaxing his body into moving while he fights against the pull. The hooded stranger wants him to kill Stephen, the thought at the back of his mind like an itch and his grip tightens around his wand.
Stephen Hart Appreciation Week - Day 3 - Favourite Episode:
The first episode of season 2 was not only a great episode, but it was the calm before the storm. Nick and Stephen’s friendship had taken a hit but it wasn’t broken. This was before Helen came back and fucked everything up.
#gifset #not my gifs #queue must have gone through hell
“You’re not funny, old man. Justdon’t you have a class to teach or something? I’m fine.” He’ll be even better once his palms stop sweating, and his heart crawls down out of his throat.
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