Freaks: Year Two

Mariam Farhat

"A...child psychologist?"

"Yes," Ro said. Like they had both agreed, Celestina and Ro had told Harry their plan of making an appointment at St. Mungo's today with a child psychologist/therapist as they both thought that would be the best thing for their child.

"But..." Harry started, slowly. He could not even believe they were having this conversation. They were just nightmares. They would have to go away at some point. "I don't need one!"

"Darling, you have been having nightmares non-stop ever since you have come home," his Mother said. He had them so much so that he was barely awake for Christmas Day. She knew they would have to do something for him, and seeing a child psychologist or a therapist seemed like the best option. "That isn't normal. Going to a child therapist can help you. They can give you the help you need. You can talk about anything that is bothering you...are you sure nothing happened at Hogwarts?"

"No! Nothing happened at Hogwarts. I don't need to go to a therapist."

"But Harry, they can help you. These people are professionally trained and they can give you advice on ways to maybe lessen the nightmares. I don't want you to have nightmares all the time, and I am sure you don't."

Harry slowly shook his head. "No...but..."

"Why don't you give it a shot?" his Mother asked. "It could help. If you don't want to talk to us, and that's okay, you can confide in a professional. You have nothing to be scared of."

"But therapy is for like...sad people," Harry said. "I am not sad. I don't want people thinking I am sad."

"Well...er, therapy isn't just for..." Ro shook his head, unsure if he should even explain it to him. "People go to therapy for a lot of reasons. Not just because they're...er, sad."

"Some people go to therapy because of unusual nightmares," Celestina said. "Usually there is a reason for them, and going to a therapist can get to the bottom of it. It isn't scary at all. We know her too! She's so kind."

"How do you know her?" Harry asked, still unsure about this idea.

"Oh, well...she helped Aunt Amara quite a lot last year," his Father said.

"Why? What happened to her?" Harry asked, now worried. He hadn't known that his aunt had gone to see a therapist. "Why didn't I know about this? What happened?"

"Oh, well..." His Mother seemed hesitant to answer at first, but she continued, "She got in an accident after work. There was an explosion. She wasn't really injured physically, but she is quite jumpy around loud noises and she needed to go to therapy. She is doing a lot better now."

"Why didn't you ever tell me about this?" Harry asked, upset.

"Well...we didn't want you to be upset..."

"Well, I am upset," Harry said looking up to his parents. "Of course I am upset! She was hurt and I didn't know?"

"She didn't really want anyone to know," Ro said, trying to calm him down. "She wanted to keep it quiet, can you understand that? Not wanting anyone to know because they may treat you differently?"

"I-I guess..." Harry murmured. "But I thought whoever this was a child psychologist. Why would she help Aunt Amara?"

"Well, she specialises in children, but she does sometimes help adults. She even works with muggles and wizards both," Celestina said. "She has helped many children who suffer from confidence issues, unresolved trauma, and-"

"I don't have unresolved trauma, I am a very happy person!" Harry exclaimed.

"But therapy isn't just for those who are suffering from well...depression, do you know what that word means?" Ro asked.