𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐎𝐘 𝐖𝐇𝐎 𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐃 ━━ harry potter

chapter thirty-eight

Ben couldn't be happier to have gotten Harry, Ron and Hermione those notebooks for Christmas last year. Since he could communicate with them in a much quicker way, he didn't need to send them letters. And, since he only used the mail to talk to Thomas, Leah and Cedric, his parents didn't suspect him.

But, one morning, he received a letter. It wasn't carried by a regular owl, but by a large, brightly colored tropical bird. He would be lying if he didn't admit he had nearly had a heart attack when he saw it on the ledge of his window after coming back from having breakfast with his sisters.

Snowflake, his most extroverted cat, was observing the animal from a safe distance, while Boots was hiding under his bed, as usual. He approached the animal, and took the letter it was carrying before sitting down on his bed.

'Dear Benjamin,

I am not sure if writing down who I am would be smart of me, but I believe you are smart enough to figure out who sent you this, so I will not say my name. I am reaching out to you to ask how your summer is going.

I don't want to make any assumptions, but I have got a feeling that my past experience, from when I was a child, might be similar to your current one, and I wanted to let you know that, if it is the case, everything will get better.

I know that it is very difficult to talk about this sort of thing, but I thought it would perhaps be useful for you to have an adult you can talk to. You might be wondering why I am telling you about this, since you and I don't know each other very well, but I do know your family. As I told you when we first met, my family and yours used to share a lot of dinners back in the day and, if I am not mistaken, the Walkers and the Malfoys still celebrate dinners every now and then.

Well, the thing is that I know how our families usually are. And, although I barely know a thing about you personally, I think it is safe for me to say that you are not like them. At least, that's what Harry has told me. And, since you are friends with him, Ron and Hermione, it is very clear that you don't share your family's beliefs. This is where my imagination, and past incidents, come into picture as I assume how they might be treating you.

Please forgive me if my assumptions are wrong. I am in no way trying to offend you or your family, I just wanted you to know that, if you want to talk to someone, I am here.

Sincerely,

Padfoot.'

Ben stared at the letter in silence for a good amount of time. When he saw that bird on his window, carrying an envelope with its claws, he would've never imagined it had been sent by Sirius Black.

He wondered what exactly the man thought was happening to Ben at home. Maybe he thought his parents were not very sweet, which wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the whole truth, either. However, it seemed like Sirius knew what he was talking about.

Also, what exactly did Harry tell Sirius about him?

Not knowing why, exactly, he felt a need to tell the man the truth. He had never, ever, told anyone outside his family about his problems at home, since he didn't think it would bring him anything positive, and he didn't want anyone's pity.

But perhaps telling Sirius everything could be useful. After all, he had grown up in a probably similar situation as him, and he had escaped his family when he was younger. Maybe, if he told Sirius that he wanted to run away with his sister, he could give him advice.

Ben didn't waste any time before taking a piece of parchment. Snowflake jumped on his desk, and sat on it as Ben searched for one of those muggle inventions Professor Burbage had given them last year, which he now knew was called a pen.