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Chapter Text

Forgotten

Chapter 1

Seph lay in his bed, trying his best to stay awake. It had been a while since he had sent his email to Mr. Houghton or anyone from Sloane's, since Jason had left it was becoming unbearable for him to stay there. He thought he would have some form of contact but none had come as of yet. It was going on two days, his third would be tomorrow. He had all intentions on keeping true to his word, he planned to kill himself if he did not receive a reply soon enough. He would wait until the night and if nothing came he would try to escape or at least drown himself in the lake that sat by the school. He could try and make it look like an accident, after all others knew he held a deep hatred for water.

He crawled out of bed, facing that he wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight. He sat at his desk; turning on his desk lamp and grabbing pieces of paper and a pen. He began to write a suicide note. If no one came for him then he would escape like he had thought before and wouldn't bother him because they would think he was dead.

To whom it may concern (or who ever found this note.):

As you have noticed, I'm no longer residing in this institution or possibly this world. I would like you to know that the fault has to be given to a variety of people. I have tried to kill myself because of the fact that this placement has been nothing short of a disaster. I have been tortured for many months now, both mentally and emotionally. The one friend I had made in this wretched place was killed because of my own foolishness. For that I blame myself the most. But like I said before the blame falls on more than one person. Though I blame myself for the cause of his death I was not the one who pulled the trigger; just simply loaded the gun. The ones who actually killed a boy, far before his time, falls to the Headmaster of this institution; Gregory Leicester and his Alumni.

My life has not been an easy one but has been far from hard. I wish for those who cared about me; though there are not many or none at all; that this is my decision to make and I have made it. The Headmaster has sought out to alienate me from the other students here to draw me closer to him, but I have refused his invitation many times now and have paid a heavy price for it. He has been submitting me to torture, more mentally than anything and I have not the strength to fight him anymore.

I now finish this letter with the closing thought that the person who is supposed to be my guardian has not made an appearance after my letter or at least made an effort to make contact with me all year to check on me. If one had made an effort than this note and action would not have needed to take place. But like I had stated in the opening of this note the blame falls on more than one individual.

Yours truly:

Joseph McCauley

Seph finished his note and placed it inside of his desk and moved over to his bed again. He thought of the time he had spent with Jason, learning about his magic and how to control it. Jason had been his first teacher to ask for nothing other than his friendship. He wanted so badly to go with him when he left. He hoped that he wouldn't be to taken aback at his death of disappearance. He hated to think of what had happened to his teacher if he was caught before he was able to escape but he had faith in him that he was smart enough to evade the Alumni and escape this prison.

He lay down on his bed once again and looked over to his clock. 4:32AM. It was going to be a long day.

Chapter Text

Forgotten

Chapter 2

Seph spent the day sitting inside the library, out in the open so that everybody could see him. He wanted people to know where he was, just in case someone needed to find him. He spent his entire school day there; missing every meal. Waiting inside the library until he was forced from its walls. He walked into the cold night air and made his way to his room, passing the small damp yard along the way. He let out a deep long sigh, his frustration showing through his tired face.

He finally made it to his room to find the door ajar. He tiptoed quietly so whoever to the room so not to be noticed. He dropped his back with a soft and quiet thump onto the floor of the hallway and pushed the door open a little more so he could see inside. He crouched down low, standing on the ball of his feet, and leaned against the wall with his back. He heard two hushed voice arguing about something; he couldn't hear what they said. He could hear shuffling, the pulling out of drawers, then the rustle of paper. "Found it," came a husky voice from the other side of the door. "Hm, looks like little Seph wants to make good on his promise. He sure does have a funny way of wording suicide though."

There was the rustle of paper again, like it was being passed. "I guess, but I kind of feel bad for the kid though. He's held out for so long against the headmaster and now we have to go and do this. I mean after Trevor, you would think he would've given up. But the kid is strong I'll give him that much. I think the Headmaster knows, now that Jason Haley is out of the way, there is nothing stopping him from making Seph basically disappear."

"You're thinking too much on this again. He has had since September to come around; times up now and Leicester wants him in his control now." At that the voices stopped talking and moved towards the door. Seph sprung up from his spot, but from the lack of sleep combined with stress, he tripped over his own two feet and feel flat on his face. He could hear himself give a loud yelp as he hit the floor, the quiet hallway making it seem louder than what it really was. The next thing he knew was a shadow standing over him, giving a soft chuckle. "Look what we have here Martin, were you spying on us Joseph?"

When Seph looked up he found Warren Barber standing above him, talking in a condescending voice. Seph tried to get up but was stopped by a foot planting itself in his back. He turned his head to look over his shoulder and glared at him. Oh, how he could hate this man. Barber chuckled softly again and pulled his foot off Seph's back; leaning down and placing his hand in his unruly curls. "Hm, who would have thought you would make our job that much easier?" he used a voice saved for when disciplining a young child. "Will you be a good little boy or are you going to make this hard on yourself? Which will it be Joseph?" he stood back up and placed his foot back on Seph's back, taking a little pleasure in the young man's pain.

"Get off of me." He let out in a hoarse whisper. The man's foot pushed against his spin painfully, making it hard to breath. "That wasn't an answer Seph." He let out a long groan as the bigger man twisted his foot, digging it deeper into his already tender back. "LET ME UP!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, finally dislodging him from his back. He took the chance and sprang up; this time without an accident. He took off down the hallway, heading for the stairs, chancing a look over his shoulder to see Warren and Martin in hot pursuit. He ran down the stairs reaching the bottom in minutes, but hey might as well of been hours to him.

He finally made it to the entrance when he tried to open the front door to the dormitories. He fumbled with the lock, his hands shaking furiously and his fingers not quite cooperating with him. Just as he got the door open and he stepped out into the night air, he felt a hand grab his shoulder, ripping his t-shirt at the neck. He was tugged against Warren's chest while restraining arms kept him from moving his upper body. He trashed in his arms trying to free himself from the restricting hold. "Let go… let go…" he whined out.

Warren began to move then; pulling him towards the lake. He was pushed forward when they were a short distance away from it. He scrambled to his feet and tried to back away. Not think of what he was really doing or the fact he was being stirred towards the lake on purpose, he ran into it, trying to get away from the immediate threat that was after him. When he entered the water he turned back to see warren was a short distance behind him. Fear over took him as went further in the water, having it come up to his waist when he looked back again. The second time he checked though he couldn't see the man anymore. It was if he had vanished.

He looked around, trying to see into the darkness that the night gave him. The moon was really the only source of light, with the exception of a few lamps here and there. His breaths came out in gasps, panic gripped his heart painfully. This whole situation was as if he walked into one of his many nightmares. He could feel someone watching him, waiting for him to come out. His mind was foggy, nothing really made sense, the only thing he could think of was getting away from this place and every threat in it. He went further into the water then, feeling it come up onto his chest.

"Joseph! Come out of there this instant! What are you doing?!" he turned to see who was yelling at him. Barber stood at the shore line with none other than the man responsible for all of this; Gregory Leicester. He was yelling at him, but why? His man was the one who chased him right? He had to get away from them! The only option given to him was going into the water! "Joseph, come out of the water please. Come on out so we can talk." Seph shook his head violently, muttering to himself.

"No, no, no , no, NO, NO!" he voice started out soft and worked into a scream. "LEAVE ME ALONE! …Just leave me alone…" the last sentence came out as a whisper. He turned himself away from the group of Alumni forming and tried to move further into the water. He couldn't really swim though; fear gripped his heart tighter than before, would he drown if he went further in? Drowning was a very slow way to die, painful almost.

He heard a splash behind him, he turned to see Warren Barber and Bruce Hays come in after him. This sent him into to panic mode. Not thinking about drowning any more he went further in to where he felt the water come up to his neck. He lost his footing for a moment and went under, his lungs filled with water as he opened his mouth in shock and swallowed. He felt someone wrap their arms around his chest and haul him up to the surface again. He looked up and saw the face of Barder, he was tugged tight to the older boy's chest while Hays got his legs together and picked up his lower half. He was dragged back to the shore. Though he was a little weak and disorientated, he struggled in their hold, scratching at the arms that held his chest and trying to kick out of the other. He was finally brought back to shore and laid down on the sand.

When he was released, he tried to get away but the strong arms that held him before were back and holding him down. Tears formed in the corners of his eyes and began to fall. "No…" he whimpered and groaned.

A large shadow came over him, cover the moon light that was encasing his body. He felt an almost tender gentle hand card through his wet hair, pushing it away from his face. "Shhhh, it's alright Joseph, everything is okay." He looked up to Leicester leaning over him; he was passing a syringe to another boy off to his right as he lifted his shirt, exposing his slim wait and hips. Warren and Bruce held him tighter so he wouldn't move. There was a sharp pain then a numbing sensation that swept through his body from his side. After a few minutes he felt sluggish and overly tired. Had they drugged him with an anaweir drug?

He could feel himself be lifted into strong arms. He didn't have the strength to fight anymore, he was so tired. The warmth from the body that held him was almost welcoming. His head fell against the hard chest of Barber as he was carried bridal style to the Alumni's building. The last thing he heard before he let the overwhelming darkness claim him was the Headmaster's sinister voice.

"Looks like I won Joseph."

Chapter Text

Forgotten

Chapter 3

Seph work up with a slight groan. His shoulders ached and his head wouldn't lift from his chest. He tried to open his eyes and barley had enough strength to do it. When he looked around the room he looked up to see his was hanging from shakes connected to the ceiling. He barely had enough length from the chains to reach the floor. His shoulder hurt from his arms being stuck above his head for who knows how long. They were supporting his whole body weight too.

Across the room sat a hospital cot with restraints placed for arms, wrists, waist, upper thigh, and ankles. A table sat on the other side of the room, covered with different objects, the wall behind it held things like knifes and one long whip. The room itself was brightly lite, the walls white, making it seem all the more brighter. The door seemed to blend in because Seph had no way of telling where it was. The only way he knew there was one was because it opened and revealed both Barber and Leicester walking through it.

"Well it looks like you've finally woken Joseph." He walked up to him and stood in front to him. He let a sinister smirk grace his lips, causing a shiver to run up Seph's spin. "I warned you Joseph, all you had to do was join me and none of this would have happened."

"They could still come for me Leicester. They could still come and when they find me missing and you'll have a problem on your hands." Seph tried to sound confident but even he knew that his threat held little to no grounds. He knew that he was probably never be found. If no one had contacted him already than Sloane's law firm didn't give two shits about him.

Leicester gave a small chuckle as walked in a circle around him. Warren still stood in the corner just watching as the Headmaster taunted the boy. "Do you really think that those petty humans stand a chance against me? Not to mention you threatened to kill yourself within three days. You left a suicide note my dear boy. You tried to drown yourself in the lake. We have the video of you rushing out of you r dorm room and heading down to the lake. At least six other boys saw you out of their window. It took at least three Alumni to hold you down so we could sedate you. You are a danger to yourself and other, if anyone comes to see you; trust me when I say you will be no condition." He circled the young man while he talked, finally stopping behind him. He leaned over him, putting his lips right by his right ear. "You mine Joseph McCauley, and you will stay mine. A wizard's life time, all to ourselves. Nobody leaves this place until I say they can leave, and you are never leaving my side, my dear, dear naïve little boy."

Seph found his voice when shivers worked up his spin again. "Jason left, he left and you couldn't stop him. He got out of here." His voice was no louder than a hoarse whisper. His eyes stayed trained on Warren as he left Leicester left his place from behind him. All of a sudden he felt the tension leave his arms as the chains holding him up let him go. The shackles still attached to his wrist but he was let down on to the cold cement floor.

"Jason Haley left, yes to that I admit, but do you really believe that he left alive? Like I said, nobody ever leaves without my permission!" Leicester shouted out the last part as he came over to where Joseph still lied. He towered over him, casting his large shadow over Seph, lean frame. He bent down and came closer. Seph just stared at him, searching his eyes for a lie, wish no hoping that what he said was all lies. Tears gathered in the corners of his eye but he refused to allow any to fall. The headmaster leaned in closer to him when he saw the boy's eyes go glossy. He brought his hand up and brushed away a loose strand of hair from the young man's face. "How does it feel Joseph? How does it feel to have not only one but two deaths that can be placed on you?"

Seph just stared at him in shock, his eyes going wide at what the man before him was saying. Was it really his fault that not one but two of his friends were now dead, they had both promised to help him get out of this god forsaken place. He shook his head, dislodging the hand that was on his face. He could not believe that, the man was just trying to break him; he would not break so easily like he thinks. He was not a lost little boy to be bent out of shape by a few mean words. He was not the boy that believed that he was evil because the church said so. "I know what you're trying to do Mr. Leicester. I won't fall for it; Jason wanted to leave long before I ever came here. If he is dead, then the blame could not solely fall on me and me alone. You and your group of mindless monkeys are to blame too."

Leicester let out a low chuckle. He rose to his feet once more and began to look down at Seph again. Seph just stared up at him, his eyes glowing with power and anger. He could feel his magic begin to build up. He could almost taste it. It frizzled in the air, making it feel all the more heavier. Leicester and Warren stilled, they looked around the room, their eyes finally landing on the boy that lay before them. Leicester let out another low chuckle. "What are you trying to do boy? Are you trying to threaten us? Your power is great, I will admit to that. You are showing all the more reason I cannot let you go. If I let an untrained, suicidal, teenage wizard out unto the world; who knows what could happen."

Leicester turned around and motioned for Barber to come closer. He leaned in to his ear and whispered a command Seph couldn't hear. Warren just nodded his head as his eyes fixed on to Seph's crumbled form. Leicester stepped away and returned to standing over Seph. Warren left the room, walking up the stairs that lead out of where ever he was being held in. Seph was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't notice Leicester leave from his sight and walk behind him again. The next thing he knew was he was being lifted off the floor by the shackles around his wrists.

He screamed in pain as his extremely sore and tender shoulders were once again made to support his body weight. Leicester came back to the front and laughed when he saw the pained look on Seph's face. "Did that hurt? I could only imagine, you were hanging there for almost twelve hours before you woke up. But don't worry; I'll be fixing this pretty soon. This position is just easier to work with."

As he said that, Warren barber reentered the room, closely followed by another alumnus, Bruce Hays. In Warren's hand was a small bottle with a strange looking liquid in it. They both came over to him, standing only a bit behind Leicester. The headmaster gave a crud nod and the two boys approached Seph. Bruce went to stand behind him while Warren moved to stand a few inches in front of him. "W-What are you guys doing?" Seph could feel fear and panic grip his heart and send a cold shiver swept over his body.

Bruce wrapped his arms around Seph, one around his waist and the other his jaw. Seph tried to struggle out of the hold but once again his feet didn't reach and he was tired. His body and mind were exhausted. "N-No… Let go…" his voice came out in a whine, sounding like a child that was too tired to do anything. Warren brought the bottle to his lips but he kept them tightly shut. Bruce applied pressure to the hollow of his cheeks, forcing his mouth open. Seph tried to move his face around to dislodge Bruce but nothing worked.

Warren poured the liquid down his throat; Seph was trying to spit it out but his head was forced back so he had no choice but to swallow what was in his mouth. When the bottle was emptied, Bruce let go of his mouth and both he and Warren covered his mouth and nose so he swallow what was left in his mouth. When he didn't continue to swallow, Warren started to massage Seph's throat. On reflex Seph began to swallow and when they were sure that he had swallowed everything they both let go.

When they stepped back, Seph was panting and gasping, trying to force himself to throw up. Leicester walked up to him again, he lifted his head by his chin. "Don't do that Seph, you won't like what happens if throw up." He let Seph's head fall on to his chest, letting him go back to panting.

Seph felt weird, it was as if something was missing from within him. It was almost as if he was disconnected from something. Then it hit him, his magic! He tried to concentrate on it, to make anything happen but nothing came to him. All the training he had done with Jason, he had gone down without a fight! It was all for not! He tried to focus harder, but still nothing happened. What had they done; was it because he was so tired still or did it have something to do with that weird liquid they forced down his throat?

"W-What did you do?" his voice was hoarse, tears started to gather at the edge of his eyes, threatening to fall. "W-What was that?"

Leicester turned around so his back was facing Seph. He walked over to the table and picked up one of the objects. He turned back around to Seph, showing a large hunters knife to him. The light catching it, giving it a sinister gleam. Leicester leaned against the table and played with the knife, a smirk on his lips. He turned to the two alumnus, "You may go, I will call you when I'm finished here." The two left with a bow of their heads.

Leicester turned back to Seph turned his gaze back to Seph. "What they gave you is something called Weirbane. Its whole purpose is to disable your weirstone. It makes what I'm going to do a lot easier without your magic getting in the way." He walked up to Seph again, still playing the knife. "Your lessons start now Joseph, when we're done here you'll be begging me to join with me.

Chapter Text

Forgotten

Chapter 4

Seph hung from his shackles; his body hurt all over, everything. There was not one spot that didn't hurt, maybe if he had to guess; his nose was a good spot for not hurting. They hadn't hit him there just yet. His head hung low, against his chest, shaking breathes racked his body. God how it hurt to breathe. Why was this happening to him, what had he done wrong? Had he angered God somehow? Was he paying for the sins he had committed? Was this some punishment for them? Or was this just a sign that no one really cared for him? Hadn't that been proven when no one came for him when he sent his letter or when no one inquired him though out this whole year? A shaking sob escaped his lips, tears gathering in the corners of his eyes; falling as if a dam had broken.

He shook his head furiously. NO! He couldn't think like that, this was what Leicester wanted! To break him; making him think that this was all his fault and that no one cared. He knew someone would come and get him! He could feel it in his bones that Jason isn't dead! He would find the Dragon and he would convince him to come and save him! He had too! These people might break his body but they would not poison his mind, he would not bend to their will. He still had his magic, he knew he was powerful, he just lacked complete control. As soon as that stupid potion wore off he would take down Leicester and his little brainless minions and be free of them for good. Yes that was it! Just keep up spirits, and don't give in to these bastards.

While Seph was busy convincing himself with positive thoughts he didn't notice Warren and Leicester walk in to the room, followed closely by Hays. While the two others waited by the door, waiting to be brought in all the way by Leicester who approached Seph with a sinister smirk on his face. He stood right in front of him with his hands in his pockets. "Are you awake Joseph?" he said with a hint of amusement in his voice. He brought one of his hands out of his pockets and grabbed the boy's hair with a sharp tug.

Seph let out a yelp as his hair was almost tugged out of his scalp. With the young boy's dirty curl in hand Leicester looked him in the eyes. Tears gathered in the corners of Seph's eyes again but this time he refused to let them fall. He would not give this man the pleasure of his tears. "What, you decided that you need to beat up a helpless kid again while he's tied up? You know all of this is a coward move. If you were an ounce of a real man, this wouldn't be happening right now. But then you're a coward. You decided to hang me from the ceiling in chains and beat me bloody then you had your little boy toys there finish the job for the night. You're weak, you're pathetic."

Leicester just stared at him with a blank face, he gave nothing away on how he was feeling. This child was trying to provoke him but then he was just that a child, all talk and no action. These words didn't bother him in the least. He would soon enough learn to respect him; but until then, he would need to have that fire put out.

"Are you quite done Joseph?" when no answer came he let out a soft chuckle. He released his grip on the boy's hair and began to pet it instead. "Oh child, if I wanted to show you how powerful I really was I'm afraid I might kill you in the heat of battle and that would be counterproductive wouldn't it. But this little verbal spare is not what I came down here for." He turned and motioned for Hays and Barber to come over to him. "Clean him and change him, make sure no other marks appear on him, we can't make it seem like we did this to him." He began to walk out the door when he turned around suddenly and came back over. He reached for Seph's head again. "It seems that I forgot to do something. Can't have you making this too difficult for them." He felt power move through him, but this power didn't make him hurt or anything of the sort. It drove away what little strength he had in his muscles. 'Shit, this is an immobilization charm isn't it?' He couldn't move, couldn't even lift his chin when Leicester's hand retreated and he left.

Warren gave a slight chuckle when he examined the smaller boy before him. Though he would never tell the boy, or anyone else for that matter, that he found him very pretty and he would be lying to himself if he said he didn't want him. Then again most of the Alumni desired him, mainly the older ones though. The boy really had no choice to do anything but lay there and wait for them to help him. This was perfect; he looked down at his wrist watch and gave a long sigh. There wasn't any time for fun though and he rather not have any in front of Hays, or anyone else for that matter. He didn't perform for an audience.

They pulled the younger boy down from the chains that held him. They lowered him to the floor slowly laying him on his side. Warren turned to Bruce and motioned for him to stand. "Get the bucket of water and the other stuff." When hays got up Warren began to undress Seph. He gently pulled his arms from what remained of his shirt and over his head. "There we go, let's get these pants off too."

Bruce came back over and helped Warren drag Seph up and take him over to the metal table. While they were pulling off his pants they laid him down on the cold metal. If he'd been able to move he would be wrapping his arms around himself and shiver from the cold air and metal and from shame. At least they didn't take his underwear from him. That would have been embarrassing and humiliating, but that was the point of all of this wasn't it. To humiliate him and brake him down.

They brought over a large bowl of warm water, a bar of soap and a few rags. They worked together to clean and wash him; whipping off all the sweat, dirt and grime from him. They tried washing his hair too, soaping his hair up and rinsing it with the water. It was almost refreshing, almost. If it wasn't for the fact that he was being held captive and that it was then his underwear was going to be lost.

He let out a soft whine as his bottom met the cold metal of the table. He didn't like the way Warren scrubbed his inner thigh and made his way higher. He would've slapped his hand away or have moved away and start shouting but he could do nothing but lay there.

When they were finished Bruce brought a pile of clothes. Warren held them up to show Seph with a smile on his face. He brought out a pair briefs with little designs of cute little bears. For a second Seph thought they looked like underwear that his foster mother had gotten him when he first was being potty trained; he would've cringed at them when Warren showed them to him. "Look at these things, Headmaster sure has a wicked sense of humor doesn't he?" they dressed him without interruptions. He was dressed in simple light pale blue pajama draw string pants and a long sleeve white t-shirt.

They both lifted him off the table and Warren cradled him in his arms holding him bridal style. They took him out of the room and somewhere else Seph couldn't see. He was laid down on a hospital bed then, he could feel his wrists be wrapped in something soft and restrained it to the bed. The same was done to his ankles. It was then that a hot hand was dropped onto his forehead and he felt the strength come back to his body and muscles. He jerked his head away from the hand on his brow only to stare back up at Leicester. He glared back at him, if looks could kill, Leicester would be six feet under already.

He looked down at his wrists and saw that they were tied to the bed, he tried to yank his feet up but he found the same with his legs too. He wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. He dropped his head back onto the pillow and let out a long sigh. "What's with all of this Headmaster? Why did you have Barber and Hays wash and dress me? Why bring me up here?" The headmaster sat down in a chair by the bed, looking down at the boy with amusement in his eyes. Seph could feel his heart drop; this could not be good for him, why had this man brought his up here. He could've just left him in his little hell hole if he wanted to torture him, why bring him up now? To reiterate, his heart dropped into his stomach and his breathe was caught in his throat.

"Joseph, you are sick and must have treatment for it."

"Sick? Sick!? The only illness I have is you! You're the reason I'm here because of you! You're a bastard Leicester! And I promise you, if you don't kill me, I WILL kill you!"

Leicester let out a long sigh. "Now Joseph, these thought that dwell on death are not healthy. You have tried to commit suicide already. I have every right to hold you here, you've had a mental break down and I fear what will happen if you were to be left to your own devices. It is in your best interest that I keep you here." Leicester brought his hand up and brushed a strand of blonde hair from Seph's face. The gesture would've been called endearing if it had not come from this man. "The children of this school are all here because they are troubled one way or another. You, dear Joseph, are one of them; you came here after you supposedly set fire to a club that burnt down. There have been other incidents before that too, it's pretty clear that you have a hard time dealing with the outside world. You were sent here to help deal with that. Now with this attempt at suicide it seems that you have not been receiving the attention that you so desperately need. All the blame falls on me, I am responsible for all the children here and I have failed to keep a good eye on you."

There was silence as Leicester stopped talking; he just continued to star at the young boy before him. Seph stared back, not quite understanding what he was being told. "What the hell are you on about? I didn't try and commit suicide! You had me drowned in the lake and then pulled me out to look like you were rescuing me!"

"Oh, but Joseph you left a note in your room, a suicide note if you will, and in that note you sent to that law firm that holds your guardianship, you stated that you were going to kill yourself if there was no reply. You said you would kill yourself in three days and by all means, it's been five days since that day. We sent an inquiry to the firm and got a response. Someone has come to check on you. You will be seeing then in a few minutes. But first, we need to take care of something. Since you are an emotionally disturbed and have just attempted to kill yourself you can't be as coherent as you are now."

Leicester gestured to a random nurse that was standing in the hallway and had her come over to Seph. She produced a syringe from her pocket and held in over Seph's bound arm. He began to struggle then, jerking his arm away as if he could get away. He heard Leicester give another sigh and before he knew it he was being held down firmly against the thin mattress. He felt the sharp prick of the needle and a slow numbing sensation rush through his body after a few moments. His mind went into a fog and his limbs felt like they were made out of lead.

"W-what w-w-was t-that….?" He whimpered out in a long groan. His tongue felt like cotton in his mouth and made of lead as well. This could not be good. Even if that damned potion wore off, he wouldn't be able to do anything if he was not able to think clearly. He saw the nurse shift beside him and bring out a bag of some sort of liquid and hang it over his bed. A tub was attached to it and then a needle at the very end. He felt a slight pinch on the back of his left hand as the needle was tapped there and connected. He didn't know what it was but when it started to enter his body it made him feel warm and fuzzy. It was almost a good feeling. He felt groggy all of a sudden, he wanted to sleep but to his foggy mind it was as if he closed his eyes he was sure that the boogeyman would be able to get him. Even if he wanted to sleep he knew he couldn't, whatever Leicester had in store for him he wanted Seph helpless not unconscious.

It almost seemed unfair to Seph. Did children always feel this way when adults dictated what was good for them or was it just him that got the shitty end of the stick? The thought made him giggle. He didn't mean for it to be heard out loud but whatever they gave him must have shut off that part of his brain. After a few minutes of silence Leicester walked back over to him and began to brush his hair away from his face again. "When this is over, we will need to give you a haircut I believe. You are overdue for one it seems." Leicester chuckled when Seph began to giggle again. The boy seemed to be as high as a kite by now. He leaned over him and looked into his eyes. He could see the dilated pupils and nodded in satisfaction.

Now just to make sure the boy could understand what was happening around him. "Joseph, Do understand that you're about to get a visitor? Can you give me a verbal answer?" Seph looked up at the man, and let lose another giggle, this man was a right found bastard. And he told him just that, "You're a bastard Leicester. A real, real… real bastard…. Did you know that?" his voice was slurred; he hoped that his sarcasm could be heard. Leicester smiled and panted his head. "Good." With that he walked out of the room, turning off the lights as he went. A soft glow encased Seph as a single overhead light shown down a few feet over. It gave the room and ominous feel to it.

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Leicester stood at the entrance gate to the school with a few of the other boys. Warren stood off to his right and Hays to his left. A timid Peter stood the furthest away from them. They all watched as a shinning expensive looking car came down the dirt road. It pulled up and stopped right in front of the headmaster.

The door opened to reveal a small woman come out. She stepped out and stared at the group of boys. Her finally pressed dress clothes fit perfectly around her small body, showing off her curves. She wore a stern look upon her face, her eyes held a sort of annoyance, almost as if she was annoyed to be there. Her eyes swept the group of boys and finally landed on the Headmaster. "Gregory Leicester?" The man nodded in confirmation, "My name is Linda Downey, I'm from the law firm that holds the guardianship of Joseph McCauley. I'm here to represent the firm in checking in on him. We received an email from him about his stay here and that he was being mistreated and if we didn't arrive soon that he would kill himself."

"Yes, Joseph seems to have it in his head that we're torturing him and holding him against his will. There has been an incident though."

"Yes, well the firm could spare no one until this day. We did not his letter seriously, teenagers seem to exaggerate and make things into something bigger than what they are."

"Well I must say ma'am that you should have. But let us continue this discussion inside of my office." The woman, Linda, nodded and followed the headmaster into the staff building and into his office. Once there, he offered her a seat and a drink. The seat she took.

"Let's get down to business shall we? I haven't a lot of time on my hands and have another engagement after this." She said as he rearranged her skirt around her before clasping her hands over her lap and looked at Leicester expectantly. "What is this problem with Joseph? This incident?"

"Yes well, you see Joseph sent his email after breaking into my office. The students do not have access to the internet unless for homework and even then the websites are monitored by the teachers and staff members. For a while now Joseph has been acting withdrawn and has started to isolate himself from other students and adults, I'm afraid, after the death of a fellow student of his. A boy that lived right across from him. He has started to have paranoid tendencies and has been having nightmares since he came to attend this school. He has even gone into a depression it seems. We found his email a day after he sent it, we have been prepared for your firm to contact us since then, and I must admit that I was expecting you sooner than this."

"Well, like I said before, we have not been able to spare anyone for a venture here. Joseph has caused problems before and we thought it time he take the punishment he seems to greatly need."

"That's all nice and good to want him to take responsibility for his actions but as it is Joseph was quite serious when he said he would try and kill himself. The boy wrote a suicide not to those he felt had let him down or who had wronged him. He then proceeded to try and drown him in the lake by our school. A few of our staff members found him and were able to drag him out and bring him to shore. I'm not sure what was going through his head but he tried to fight us and I had no other option but to sedate him. For the past day or so he has been confide to his room here, yesterday night he had an accident. He tried to break the door down and injured his shoulder, back and face. He gave himself a black eye and a few other bruises and cuts. Right now he is in our infirmary under heavy sedatives and being monitored. When you contacted us, we were wondering if you would know if Joseph had any history of mental illness or depression."

The woman looked at him for a long moment then opened her mouth to talk. She looked strained to give up the information. "He has never acted like this before. But the boy has never been very open about how he was been feeling. To tell you the truth, I have never really met the boy, not even in passing. I've only read his file before coming."

"Do not take offense to this Ma'am, but why are you here if you have never met the boy? Why not send someone who has met him or is familiar with him? He is at a very rough time right now and a little familiarity would do it some good for him. He needs someone to feel safe with. But it seems like that we won't be getting that. From what I know the boy doesn't have anyone who specifically looks after him after his foster mother died. Or does he now?"

Linda nodded slowly as she listened. "No, no one at the firm knows him all that well. If it's not in the files then we don't know it. Most of us are very busy all the time and one teenager is all that important it seems. His foster mother dying was very unfortunate but it happened and it is sad. He really loved her, but as I said before, most cannot concern their little free time with a troubled teenage boy. This was unfortunate and was by no mean the intention of the firm. His mental health has never been evaluated."

Leicester nodded and stood; he walked around the table and went towards the door. "As it is the child is in no condition to travel but you may see him and we can discuss what we will do with him afterwards."

He led the woman out the door and down a few halls until they came across a pass code locked door. It slid opened and they both stepped in they walked further down the hall to come across another a door that only opened by pass code. Leicester opened it and they stepped inside, Linda could see across the room was a boy laying on a hospital cot tied down to it with a heart monitor and an IV in his arm, the boy looked around quietly as if in a trance. His untidy blonde curls were messy from sleeping it seemed, some of it in his eyes. Once they got close enough to him Leicester leaned down and brushed his hair from his face and smiled down at him. Linda stood slightly behind him.

"Joseph, you have a visitor, they wanted to answer that email you sent to them. They're sorry for not answering it sooner but they are here now." He stood up again and motioned for Linda to talk to him.

She pulled up the chair next to the bed as Leicester to a seat on the other side. She cleared her throat before starting, "Um, hello Joseph, my name is Linda Downey. I was sent here to check on you. It seems like you've gotten yourself into quite a mess. Was there any reason why you did this?"

Seph stared at her for a moment, he didn't know who she was, he knew most of the staff at the law firm but this woman was unknown. He didn't even know there was a female member of the staff. He just continued to stare at her, making her uncomfortable it seemed. 'Good,' he thought, 'It's the least she should feel. They left me here to die and have no remorse for it, it seems.' When he said nothing Leicester cleared his throat, calling Seph's attention.

"She asked you something Joseph, can you answer it?" his voice was something one would use if he was talking to a small frightened child.

He opened and closed his mouth but nothing seemed to want to come out. He just stared at the woman then would switch his gaze back at Leicester. This woman seemed to care nothing for him, why come at all them?

"Joseph, please answer her question. Why did you do this?" Leicester leaned forward in his chair to caress Seph's forehead, sweeping the hair from his eyes again, pretending to really care for him and the woman seemed to be buying the man's act.

Seph just shook his head, he didn't want to talk to this man, and he really didn't want to utter a word to a woman who had just abandoned him because her and her bosses were too busy to so much as answer one of his calls. He had heard the conversation between her and Leicester; the headmaster made sure of that; so he knew she didn't want to be here. He was brought out of his thoughts when he felt a hand pick his arm up and be brought into a firm hold.

"Joseph," that drew his attention. His eyes trailed up his arm and saw Leicester holding it with his own. He tried to pull it back, but he had no strength to. "Stay focused here Joseph. Listen to what we're saying. I want you to answer the question."

"Why? W-Why do you need to know?" Seph's voice wavered, he was scared, this man wanted him to tell her what was happening then rip it away by saying it was all in his head. He didn't want to fall for it, but if he didn't say something to the woman she would think all was fine and he was just acting out. He didn't want that, he had come too far and had lost so much just to try and escape and fail. The anger for the woman and the firm was still there but he had swallow his damned pride, cause that was all that was stopping him from talking to them, that and maybe the drugs that were coursing through him.

His though were all over the place and he couldn't break through the damn fog there to be able to string along a coherent sentence. It was all so muddled. Tears gathered at the corners of his eyes again, this time though he had no strength to fight them from falling. He didn't even know he was really crying until he felt someone whip his cheek. A hand went through his hair as if trying to comfort him. He closed his eyes and tried to think of something to say. He had to say something to this woman, he just had to!

He opened and closed his mouth, drawing in deep breathes that hurt his bruised ribs. "I-I-I…" he looked between the woman, Linda or whatever she said her name was, and Leicester. This man wasn't going to let him go. He turned his head to the woman and tried to tell her what was really happening. "Y-You have to get me out of here. Please, please don't leave me here. They were the ones that tried to drown me and then t-they pulled me out and b-brought me here. They beat me, I didn't try and escape and hurt myself, and they did this to me. They've been torturing me since I started here. They won't let me sleep, I can't eat, please just take me with you when you leave. Please, please, please take me with you." His voice was desperate and a bit whiney; it was no louder than a hoarse whisper. His pleads for freedom fell on deaf ears it seemed cause as so as he finished talking the woman looked over him to the headmaster.

"It seems you're, he needs help that the firm is unable to acquire right now, we will look into other placements for him but until then I hope you can keep him on. " she stood as she spoke as did Leicester.

"Yes, yes it will be no problem keeping Joseph on. He will get all the help he needs here." he lead he to the door and opened it for here.

Seph lost it then. "No, NO you cant leave, please don't leave me here! I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING BAD! PLEASE! I'll do whatever you want, please don't leave me here, They'll kill me ! Please, LINDA! Ple-"

His screams were cut off when a pair of male nurses and the female nurse from before came forward when he started to scream and tried to hold him down as he fought wildly against his restraints, tearing the IV out of his arms as he did. Leicester and the woman had already left though, leaving when the nurse came in. his last hope at escape was gone, not looking twice when he lost it.

He bucked his hips and wriggled around, trying to escape his imprisonment. The male nurses held him down while the female nurse gave him another injection, a sedative this time, a stronger one. He could the fog come back with a vengeance. He couldn't even remember his own name now. He didn't know why he was trying to move around but he found he couldn't. He was so tired.

The redid his restraints and whipped away the blood from pulling at the IV and redid that too. He felt another pich, this time above his hip and felt like he was floating. The nurses left whne they were sure he had settled down and could do anything like that again. Leicester seemed to suddenly reappear then and lean over him. Seph's head flopped to the side and he let loose a few more tears.

"Shh, it's okay, you're fine. It's alright Joseph, just sleep then we can start on your real training when you wake. That's it, don't fight the drugs, they'll make you feel all better. Just sleep." His voice was like a lullaby. It carried him to sleep and in a few seconds he knew no more.