Gideon Maxwell had hoped his very last day of primary school would be spent simply exchanging well wishes, playing games or maybe re-enacting the Year Six musical one last time. Unfortunately, his classmates had other ideas. After a vote, they decided on an extended PE session with the whole year group.

Gideon was sure it wouldn't be anything particularly strenuous or educational, but he would sooner just spend the time reading. Still, he could endure it knowing that the summer break would finally begin at three fifteen PM. He begrudgingly got changed into his PE clothes for the last time, and hastily re-flattened his long fringe of dark brown hair over his forehead.

After a quick warm-up followed by some games with bean bags and hoops, the teachers suggested a round of dodgeball, which Gideon despised. The pupils began to split into teams and Gideon waited patiently until his name was finally called, last, of course. He was used to that. With his health issues, he couldn't even be angry with his classmates for picking him last.

He had always been something of a sickly child and physical activities just weren't his forte. In fact, on the rare occasion when he performed well in PE, it was usually preceded by him requiring a puff from his inhaler.

Gideon wasn't disliked, but he'd never made any real friends at Johnston Primary. In his first few years at the school, his differences weren't that noticeable to the other children. It was only when they were seven or eight years old that his classmates started to notice Gideon's health issues—and odd looks.

He was easily the shortest boy in his year. He was also very pale. It was his eyes, however, that stood out the most. Gideon had heterochromia, which his parents told him meant he was born with two differently coloured eyes. His right was a deep blue while the left was a vivid green, with hazel around the centre.

Gideon didn't mind his left eye, he thought it looked interesting. Unfortunately, the contrast of bright and different colours against his dark hair and pale complexion was extremely noticeable. To Gideon's way of thinking, it made him look creepy. That was why he had grown his hair out enough to cover the right side of his face with his fringe, although, it didn't really make much of a difference.

When Gideon was younger, there were occasions when he was invited over to the other pupils' houses for birthdays, sleepovers and such, but something would always happen to him to ruin the fun, and his parents would have to collect him.

Whether it was because of his asthma, his anaemia, his allergies or simply being unable to keep up with the other boys, eventually the invitations just stopped coming. He soon found himself playing and eating alone most days. Then, the teasing began.

Gideon had begged his mother to let him be home-schooled on numerous occasions, but she always maintained her belief that it was important for him to learn about the Muggle world and mix with Muggle children. So, he adapted to the pressures of school life by keeping his head down.

He spoke only when spoken to in classes and found quiet areas of the playground to read or draw by himself during break times. When bullies targeted Gideon, he quickly learned not to fall for their provocations or even to react at all, and eventually, they opted for pretending he didn't exist, which was just fine by him. Johnston Primary School had been a lonely place for Gideon, but he had stuck it out knowing that it was only a temporary inconvenience.

After the dodgeball teams had been picked, Gideon decided to head to the back of the hall, where he wouldn't get in the way, and where he could avoid getting hit or having to throw for a while. It would at least look like he was making an effort to join in.

As he absent-mindedly made his way to the far corner, Gideon failed to notice the whispers making their way around the room. Jason Crawley was his team's Captain. He was also something of a bully, and top of Gideon's list of people he would not miss come three o'clock. As the two teachers engaged in conversation, it was Jason who called a start to the game, 'NOW!'

Gideon took a stance and prepared to look busy. He watched in what seemed like slow motion as Jason and the rest of his team's players turned away from their opponents and towards him. They all seemed to be wearing the same devilish grins as they simultaneously launched their balls in the wrong direction. Gideon's direction.

Recognition slowly dawned on Gideon as the first ball, Jason's ball, hit him square in the mouth. The others followed quickly, landing blows all over his body as Gideon's embarrassment became apparent, and the room echoed with laughter. Just one more day, he thought, couldn't they have left him alone for just one more day?

He knew he wouldn't be seeing these people again, but after all the years he had spent keeping to himself, carefully avoiding them, barely speaking, barely existing, only for this to be their last memory of him. It was just too pathetic, too frustrating, and too much to bear.

As Gideon fell to the floor, his frustration turned to anger, and suddenly, he felt the pain. Not from the barrage of balls, but from somewhere inside his head. It was a pain he instantly recalled having just once before, but he couldn't remember the circumstances.

Gideon, at last, felt the impact of the floor, but it was nothing compared to the searing pain in his skull. The laughter around him slowly dissipated until all he could hear were the screams, his screams, reverberating around the large hall as he writhed on the floor with his hands clutching his head.

'Wha... What are you doing, idiot?' yelled Jason with a mingled look of anger and horror on his face. 'It was a joke!' he pleaded to no avail as Gideon continued to roll around, 'They're just rubber balls! Get up! GET UP!'

As the teachers rushed over to Gideon and ordered someone to go get the school nurse, the screaming finally stopped. He had passed out. The Year Six students were all in shock and some of the girls were crying. Even the teachers were terrified.

***

Gideon awoke sometime later, squinting against the bright lights of what turned out to be the school medical room. He raised himself off the paper-covered examination bed and tried to get his bearings. It was a few seconds before he could recall what he was doing there.

He remembered being hit by the balls, falling to the floor, and then the screaming. Some of the feelings of embarrassment and anger came rushing back, but it was confusion more than anything else that he felt. It wasn't the balls which had hurt him. So, what had happened to him?

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Gideon made to stand up when he heard raised voices from the corridor outside the room. He recognised one of the voices as his mother's. It was rare for her to shout, but he was sure it was her. Gideon guessed that the other might belong to the headteacher, Mr Cahill.

'And what's going to be done about it?' Mrs Maxwell demanded. 'What about this Jason boy?'

'We can, of course, contact his parents, Mrs Maxwell, but given that it's the last day of term, there isn't much we can do in terms of disciplinary action,' said the other voice.

'I don't accept that. I know that boy's caused problems for Gideon and others over the years, and what he did today was beyond cruel,' she asserted strongly.

'As I said Mrs Maxwell,' Mr Cahill replied, 'I will contact Mr and Mrs Crawley, but I think we should bear in mind that what happened to Gideon today was not likely a direct result of Jason's actions. I think the best thing to do now is to have Gideon examined by a doctor.'

Gideon didn't hear the rest of the conversation if there was any. The sound of the door startled him, and Mrs Maxwell pulled back the curtain at the back of the office to find her son awake.

'Are you okay, sweetie?' she asked in a very different tone from before. He nodded in reply as she felt his forehead. 'Come on, we're leaving. I've got your things here.'

Mrs Maxwell led Gideon out with a hand on his shoulder and gave the headteacher a severe look on the way to the reception area.

As they left together through the doors and out towards the car park, Gideon asked, 'Are we going to the doctor's, Mum?'

'The doctor's?' she replied. 'No, no.'

'Then, what's wrong with me? Didn't Mr Cahill tell you what happened?' he questioned hesitantly.

'Of course, and he's going to speak with that Crawley boy's parents, but you're feeling better now aren't you, honey?' she answered.

Gideon considered it as they approached their aged red Ford Fiesta, 'Well, yes, but I don't understand what happened. My head. I thought it was going to explode or something!'

Mrs Maxwell unlocked the doors and got in the car without meeting his gaze. Gideon got in the passenger side and watched his mother as she started the car, waiting for a response. When it didn't come, he added, 'I think I remember it happening before, but I don't know when. Maybe when I was little?'

As they drove away, Mrs Maxwell sighed, 'I know you don't like to hear it, honey, but you know your health isn't great. It's just one of those things we'll have to manage.'

Gideon was not satisfied with this answer, but he had experienced plenty of other embarrassing incidents due to his health. In the past, he'd had asthma attacks, heatstroke, and even fainting spells. Maybe this was just something else he would have to put up with. At least it didn't happen often.

There was one positive aspect to this incident, Gideon realised. He was done with Johnston Primary School. Forever. Summer had finally begun. This thought cheered Gideon up a little, as did his mother turning on the radio.

She turned the dial as far as it would go and tapped it with her wooden wand in an attempt to tune into the hidden Magical Modulation (MM) stations. Strangely, it took her a few tries to make it work, but after a few more taps, the old radio came to life, and Gideon's favourite band, The Stargazers were playing on Moonlight MM.

He sang along quietly until they turned down a country lane and into a wooded area. After another few turns, they reached the long, gravelled driveway of Maxwell Manor, and suddenly, the old car looked quite out of place. The driveway ended in a large circular area with a fountain at its centre.

The natural stone house beyond it was very grand. It wasn't quite a mansion, but it had all the impact of one, standing tall against the backdrop of the surrounding trees. Immaculate white rose bushes lined each side of an arched entranceway with huge, black-panelled doors.

The house had belonged to the Maxwells, an esteemed but otherwise average wizarding family, for generations. With its six bedrooms, there was plenty of room for Gideon, his parents, his older brother and sister; Anthony and Jennifer, and his paternal grandmother, who had moved in with them some years ago after a fall and hadn't ever gotten around to leaving.

Gideon and his mother parked the old banger haphazardly and entered the house's gleaming, marble-floored foyer. They were quickly greeted with big smiles from the family's little house elves, Tilly and her son, Tolly.

Unlike others of their large-eyed, bat-like-eared kind, Tilly and Tolly wore close to full outfits. Each wore a multi-coloured patchwork wraparound toga, made to their tiny sizes, and held together with a gold tasselled curtain rope tie, and both had little hand-made shoes.

They had, however, only consented to wear such garments as Gideon's sister, an up-and-coming designer, had fashioned them out of scraps of spare fabric, old tea towels, potato sacks and other materials. This way she convinced them, they didn't count as "clothes", per se, which when given to a house elf, would dismiss them from their position.

Tilly was a very polite but serious, older elf who took great pride in serving the Maxwell family, just as her ancestors before her. She mainly saw to the needs of Gideon's parents and grandmother, while Tolly looked after the children.

'Afternoon, Tilly, Tolly,' Gideon's mother greeted them. 'Is my husband home?'

'Good afternoon, Mrs Maxwell, Young Master Maxwell,' said Tilly as she took Mrs Maxwell's bag and coat from her, 'Master Maxwell is in the study. Will that be all Mrs?'

'Yes, thank you,' she replied. 'Gideon, take your things up to your room. I want to speak with your dad.'

Gideon headed up the winding staircase with Tolly in tow. Tolly was perhaps Gideon's best friend. They had grown up together in the house but were careful not to let their friendship interfere with Tolly's work or to play when Mr Maxwell was home.

Mr Maxwell was rather strict, especially, Gideon thought, with him. More so than he was with his siblings at least, but then, why wouldn't he be? Jennifer had talent and drive, Anthony was a star player on his school Quidditch team, and then, there was Gideon, who on top of everything else, was now having seizures.

That's why Gideon threw his bags into his room, kicked off his shoes and socks, and doubled back with Tolly to the end of the hall. If he was going to be in trouble over what had happened at school, he wanted to know ahead of time.

'Think you can do your trick, Tolly?' he asked the eager elf.

'Tolly will try, Sir,' he replied.

They had learned a long time ago, that if you adjusted the old-fashioned heating vents in a certain way, you could sometimes make out conversations from some of the rooms downstairs. Tolly had become particularly adept at this since house elves had considerably better hearing than humans.

After a while of playing with the different vents and their nobs, Tolly found a combination that connected with the study, and they heard Gideon's parents having a discussion.

'...you called him, then?' they heard Mrs Maxwell ask.

'Of course. He said he'd be coming by, probably anytime now,' Mr Maxwell confirmed just before the doorbell rang. 'Speak of the devil!'

Gideon was disappointed that they hadn't heard anything interesting but at least his father didn't seem to be in one of his moods. He made his way back to his bedroom as Tolly headed downstairs to answer the door.

Curious about who his parents might have been talking about, Gideon held back behind the wall at the top of the landing to observe the door discretely. Mr Maxwell, a distinguished-looking, full-bearded gentleman in navy blue robes shooed Tolly and Tilly away before opening the door himself.

'Thought that might be you, how are you both? Come on in,' Mr Maxwell said as he stepped aside to welcome a man in his early forties with wavy, golden hair, and his equally blonde, shaggy-haired son.

Gideon recognised them. The man worked at the Ministry of Magic with his dad. He visited once a year or so, but not always with his son. If he recalled correctly, this was Mr Jonathan Grimsby, and his son, Alex.