The Bear House

Act 2. Chapter 8: A study on the boy in the Bear House

Act 2. Chapter 8: A study on the boy in the Bear House

The air is lighter for he recognized it, flowing and still, present and cold. Colin waited for the pulse of power he felt running from his center to his hands. When he opened his eyes, he focused on the bottle set a top of the chair. He concentrated, he contracted his muscle, and yet... nothing happened.

He set his hands down, sad and frustrated. "I can't do it. It's my head. The thing in my head."

"It alright, Colin." Arthur walked up in front of him. "You do not need to practice witchcraft. You said so yourself, this exercise just quells your boredom"

"You're right." Colin smiled. "But it's frustrating. I kinda... wanna be like you. But not you, you. I just wanna be amazing."

"Amazing how? Different? Special? Powerful?"

"Independent." Colin corrected. "I'm tired of trying to fit myself in somebody else's taste. I want to have my own taste, and then just live with it without needing anyone's acceptance. You feel me?"

Arthur perked up at Colin's statements. Blinking once and twice, he said. "Very." He took smaller steps towards the boy who was giving him a wondering stare. "Like you have your own concept of right. But you don't need people's shallow herding opinions to feel right. You are right on your own, everything else be damned."

"Yeah." Colin shrugged. "Quite like that. Like, I wanna be powerful enough not to care about people's shit, ya know. But it's not like I wanna be on top, I just wanna be away. Things like that."

Arthur went behind Colin, removed both his gloves, and then guided Colin's hand towards the bottle again. "You are amazing Colin. You are perfect. I knew your experiences and terribly mediocre reactions to them will eventually grant you this amazing reflections about the real importance of humans. Now please, Colin, try to imagine that bottle as the people who told you... you never belonged. Show them their places. Tell them you don't care."

The man behind him has voice that lulled his frustrated head. He let Arthur guide his thoughts to the bottle, channeling his anger to it. Moments later, it exploded, sending pieces everywhere. Some would have gotten to them if Arthur hadn't guided individual broken pieces away. It was a sloppy burst, which earned Colin a little jerk, but it's something.

"And now, to heal your brain tumor."

Arthur convinced Colin that they must drive to the Bear House. Colin was a bit skeptical about it, but Arthur did assure that he will always be by his side. Noah Goldie is long gone since he 'cleaned' the estate, he told the boy. The boy may be less perturbed about it, for deep within, he really want to return to the Bear House. In his moments with that house, he may have been a different person, but he felt safe and light. He felt protected. He felt a bit powerful.

They halted on the clearing in front of the house. The house is still the same, just less maintained like Noah Goldie hadn't been living here. Maybe they really did shoed the bad spirit away. Arthur guided him upstairs where he knew Noah's old study room was. When he opened the door, he heard a loud calling murmur of a man he tried to forget.

"This is a practice for the next magic I will teach you."

Colin stared face to face with his father, tied to a chair with a white cloth around his mouth as a gag. He is suddenly shaken, staring at Arthur and his father and back in disbelief. "W-What's going on?"

Arthur removed the man's gag quite abruptly. "I want you to know how your dear father values you. The next craft I will teach is... mind reading. Though I have to advise you, don't read too deep or you might end up incorporating their thought processes to yours."