REQUIEM - [h.p]

III; under the willow

| YEAR 3; CHAPTER TEN |
UNDER THE WILLOW

     EVER SINCE HIS CREATION WAS DISCOVERED, paranoia has been the unfortunate highlight of his weeks. It had become a habit to glance behind his shoulder if only to comfort himself knowing that no one was watching him from the distance, nor any teacher striding in his direction to drag him to the headmaster's office.

Time passed by swifter than any top-tier racing broom could ever hope to achieve, and yet it also broke to a near-infinite stop all the same—as if everything that was him grew stagnant. Things would continue to go on, but it was like watching from an outside window. He could not interact, so the only thing left for him to do was to observe.

He needed to finish what he started—Consequences be damned. Assuredly he was beyond dazed from all of this stress, it was something that continued to spread like a plague into his life, and it terrified him. No matter what his brain yelled at him, it still proved fruitless in the end. His desire to prove to himself that all of this wasn't worthless was far stronger than that of his fear and weariness. That this obsession—because that's what it is now, no matter how many excuses he came up with to claim otherwise—mattered. The medical advancements he could pave the road for if he succeeded were endless, but the means leading him to this very moment still troubled him...

Hogwarts, despite being a cesspit of disaster and mayhem, went on as normal. Meanwhile, everything around him was spinning out of control at breaking speeds—and there was nothing he could do to stop it. He continued putting on an act in front of everyone, despite knowing they saw the cracks behind his faux smiles and stumbling attempts at normalcy. No one had said a word regarding it, of course, but Edwyn noticed those concerned glances they would throw at each other when they thought he wasn't watching.

He closed his eyes momentarily. Letting the frosty bite of the outside air slash against his face. When he finally opened his eyes again, he tried his best to stop thinking of any other developments in his bizarre, twisted life. 

Instead, he chose to survey the quidditch field from his resting place beneath a tree. Nobody seemed to lurk too long around this area, and Edwyn was fairly certain that this was where the animal's body was found. Stop it, he chided at himself. This was not the time to be thinking about that. He was nearly finished with outlining his rune experiment. Guilt will lead to nothing but failure.

He took in one final breath before relaxing his tense muscles and watching the Hufflepuffs practice. Their game was less than a week away, after all, and Edwyn had a feeling that the Gryffindors didn't know that Slytherin forfeited the game due to the tumultuous weather. 

He was surprised the Hufflepuffs were willing to take the mantle. The Ravenclaws certainly weren't. Still, there was a sense of trepidation when he thought of the upcoming match. This weather was not safe at all, and with the presence of those dementors... Edwyn shook his head. The headmaster would have made sure that the field was safe to play in, especially with Harry playing.