Chapter - 1.2

 

"Oh! You are back," the head nun looked up and exclaimed when she saw the boy enter, "Sooner than last time, I reckon."

 

"Hmmm..." the boy nodded and went on to sit in front of her. For all these years that he had been in this orphanage, he had never seen that smile leave her face. Something that his sister got from her.

 

"Was there any problem? Are you hurt anywhere?" the head nun asked with concern. Similarly... For all the years that the boy had been in the orphanage, the head nun had rarely seen him smile. And rarely if ever, did the boy reply to anyone in more than one sentence. He never caused trouble for anyone, stayed out of any commotion and minded his own business. And the only time she could see any emotion on his face would be when he was with his sister.

 

"I am fine," the boy shook his head.

 

"So..." the head nun paused. A bit hesitant or maybe trying to phrase her words, "I am guessing he will pay you a visit very soon." The head nun asked.

 

"I don't know," the boy again shook his head, "Maybe."

 

"In that case, why don't you go freshen up and rest?" the head nun suggested, "I will have the kitchen prepare something nice for you," the head nun said with a smile, "Is there something you want in particular?"

 

"I am fine with anything," the boy said and got up to leave.

 

"You know you can tell me," the head nun softly reminded him, but the boy left without replying.

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

Walking into his room, the boy put the backpack he was carrying beside the table and crashed on his bed. There was this weird obsession he had with sleeping. Even if he had gotten a second, he wouldn't mind spending it on his sleep. And to make it better, he had no one to share his room with. Well, except for his sister. This was something of a perk he got over other children who had to share a room among four of them at the very least. And it was all because of the man backing him up.

 

The sun was already setting when he arrived at the orphanage, and soon it was pretty dark outside. The head nun also had one of the children deliver his dinner to his room. And by the time he was done with his dinner, it was already past nine. But his sister was still not there. With nothing else to do, he decided to read. He grabbed a thick, worn-out book and started to read. He wanted to sleep, but today he was going to be visited by someone, so he needed to be prepared.

 

Not long after the boy had engrossed himself in reading, his sister walked into the room and, without saying anything, got on the bed and rested her head on his lap.

 

"What are you doing?" The boy asked.

 

But the girl did not reply and snuggled more into him. Getting no response from the girl, the boy shook his head, and with the book in one hand, he started stroking her hair with the other.

 

At midnight,

 

The boy suddenly looked up from the book. His sister was fast asleep by now, and a man dressed in black was sitting on the chair by the window. And even though the moonlight shone through the window, his face could not be seen.

 

The boy slowly put his sister on the side, and covering her properly with a blanket, the boy knelt in front of the man on one knee.

 

"Master," the boy greeted the man.

 

"You are getting better at noticing my arrival," the man praised the boy, "Good."

 

The boy did not say a word and continued to kneel in front of him.

 

"... Stand up," the man told the boy, "Did you collect everything I asked you for?" The man further asked.

 

"Yes, master," the boy nodded and pulled out a small pouch from his jacket. It was the same small pouch he used to store that monster in the jungle.

 

The man took the pouch from the boy and pulled its mouth open as he peeked inside.

 

"3 trolls, 9 Alizors, 5 Limaxs, 7 Grindylow, 6 Ashwinder, Dittany, Moly, Shrivelfig. On top of that, you also got me a Niffler's fancy and an unconscious Augurey, " the man's tone changed from being calm to that of surprise. No matter how many times he got the boy to do this job, this boy in front of him managed to surprise him. And the fact he managed to get this done in four days only added to the surprise.

 

"Everything is fine, but how did you manage to get an Augurey inside? It's even alive," the man asked.

"It was easy after I understood the space inside this pouch," the boy extended his hand to take the pouch from the man. Wanting to know more, the man readily handed it over to the boy.

 

"I don't know what goes into making this, but it is very well made," the boy continued, " There is a space where you can put your things and surprisingly, there is gravity in there."

 

"So?" The man did not know what the boy was getting at.

 

"If it was just a random space, everything would have been floating around, but since there is an attracting force in there, everything is stuck to the floor." The boy explained, seriously, it was getting too much for him. He was not used to talking this much, and when he saw the look of confusion still persisting on his master's face, he sighed.

 

"Let me make it simple. There is gravity in the pouch, which holds things to the ground, providing stability. Now all that is lacking in there is air, importantly oxygen," the boy said, "For that, I put in some hydrogen peroxide in a container and added some blood into it, human blood."

 

"What does that do?" The man asked. What he was doing right now was completely different from what he was here for.

 

"It produces oxygen," the boy said. He did not elaborate any further.

 

"Is that so," the man got into some contemplation, "So can we even have someone like me or you in there?" The man asked. It was a path-breaking discovery which might change the world.

 

"No," but unexpectedly, the boy shook his head, "The force keeping it all together is too much for a human body," the boy said.

 

"Ohh..." The man was a bit downhearted, but now it was time to get back to business, "You have done very well for all these years." The man appreciated the boy's efforts.

 

"I have taught you most of what I can without getting you or me in trouble," the man said, "Now it's time for you to do this one last thing for me. You don't need to worry about the orphanage. I would continue to support it as usual. Now, all you need to do is focus on this one last job."

 

The boy nodded, ready to hear about it, but the man had something else in mind.

 

"For now, all you have to do is wait," the man said and got up from the chair, "I will be in touch." And with that, the man disappeared into thin air, leaving some black smoke behind.

 

But the boy was not surprised now. He had gotten used to this sleek exit from the man after all this while.

 

"Brother, why are you standing by the window?" a sleepy voice sounded in the room.

 

"Nothing," the boy said as he looked outside the window for the last time before turning towards his sister, "Go sleep on your bed now."

 

But the girl ignored him again and made herself even more comfortable.

 

* * * * *