The Forbidden Love of Aesop Sharp

Chapter 6 - The Sorting Ceremony

Watching her leave had stirred conflicting emotions within me. Her shattered gaze and the pain etched across her once sweet and pure face made me ache, causing me to question all my beliefs and desires. Yet, on the other hand, the suffering she endured in my presence only solidified my conviction that she was better off without me.

I couldn't allow her to cling to hope and a dream, a mirage she, a young woman barely into adulthood, had glimpsed in her professor. I had let her believe in things I couldn't provide, and I bore the burden of my mistake every day since her departure.

Of course, I, too, had succumbed to her charms. How could I not? She was a stunning young woman, intelligent, brilliant, and so gentle. Her vulnerability had touched my heart, and her courage had shaken my own. This small woman, who had experienced so much pain and suffering, yet remained strong and determined to pursue her desires.

I poured myself another glass of whisky and sank into my chair at the desk. My leg was hurting tonight, more than usual. It had been a long time since I had stood for so long. But in her presence, I couldn't bring myself to show her any weakness that ashamed me.

I wiped my glass against my temples to cool down, berating myself for how I had treated her. I knew she had cried during my absence, and upon entering the room and seeing her red-rimmed eyes and tear-streaked face, I had wanted to pull her into my arms, hold her close, and comfort her. But what message would I have conveyed?

Katherine Evans wasn't one to give up easily. If I showed even a hint of vulnerability or weakness, she would never accept moving on and making a life for herself. Yet, that's all I wished for her.

That's why I had left the school at the beginning of her seventh year. Feeling her getting closer to me after Fig's death, and sensing my feelings growing stronger and deeper for her, I had decided to leave, to allow her to live her life.

Unfortunately, that good-for-nothing Black had decided to remind me, deeming the replacement I had recommended not competent enough to teach Potions.

I had to return during the Yule Ball. I rolled my eyes as I thought back to that evening. Katie's beauty as she danced in her blue dress, her enchanting face. Unfortunately, she was smiling for someone else. It was this Ethan who had the chance to enjoy her dances and be by her side.

And that's all she deserved. Someone her age, who knew how to make her smile and dance. Not a man my age, limping and unable to offer her what a young man like Ethan could provide.

Finishing my drink, I poured another one immediately and massaged my injured leg to alleviate the increasingly sharp pain. But I deserved this suffering after what I had inflicted on her earlier in the day.

If only she hadn't come back here... if only she had been able to stay on the other side of the world, far from the broken man I had become. She could have found happiness and built something for herself. Instead, she was attaching herself to the embittered man I had become.

When Matilda Weasley had informed me of her return to Hogwarts, all the feelings I had buried for four years had resurfaced, almost driving me mad. What I felt for her exceeded anything I had ever felt for anyone in my life.

After her departure from Hogwarts, my heart had gone with her. I had never managed to regain even a fraction of the happiness I had once felt. But it was all illusory. We had never been together, our shared moments were illusions tinged with vulnerability. Together, we could be ourselves, trying to overlook the differences that separated us.

Until she shattered all of that one night, in a moment of madness. I brought my hands to my lips and closed my eyes, remembering the softness of her hands and the taste of her...