Reid put a hand over his mouth, feeling as if his mouth had been stuffed with cotton. Terry had witnessed a murder... He didn't know when, but it was obviously late enough in Terry's life that he remembered it vividly. Strongly. It had to be hard to live with that each day. "Terry... did she stop you from going to the police?" He could imagine that. Idle threats that were masked as otherwise, seeding fear into a young boy that had witnessed a terrible act and, perhaps, at the time, couldn't figure out what it meant. He couldn't imagine witnessing murder. Harm, of course, but never murder.

"Would you like to tell someone else...?" He asked quietly. The door was still closed, and no shadows moved beneath it when Reid glanced that way. "Something this dreadful should be given to the police, to have her arrested... If anything you'd just have to relate the story from the phone..." He snapped his mouth shut. "Oh, never mind, I'm sorry Terry... I shouldn't have said that. I can't imagine how... scary it is to see that. And then know what you're living with. You're quite brave." He nodded. "It's no wonder you're so quiet... I'm just glad you can talk to me." He blinked, hiding tears that came from an abundance of thankful, glad emotions rather than negativity. "Any time you want me to do something... about your mother, I mean... you can let me know. Or talk about the happier times you had with your father. I think you should focus on those positive times a little more." Reid sat up straight, tilting his head to Terry's next response.

Terry flinched, knowing that was the reaction anyone would have. Go to the police, have her arrested... But how could he ever talk to them? He was terrified of talking to anyone, let alone authority figures. He was glad Reid dropped it, and showed that he wanted to help. The one person Terry could trust... If only Reid had been a student here... Terry sighed and put his head in his hands.

"I was young... But... The more I thought about it... She must have killed him..." That evil witch who then got all of his father's money and traveled around the world with it, sampling the men in each country. But even though all of that happened... He had to love her. She was his mother after all, and she did care for him a lot. "I know it's wrong... I know I have to say something but..." He bit his lip. "If she goes, I'll have no one..."

Reid shook his head. "That's not true, Terry..." He had others. Perhaps one other, if not an actual family member. "But... well, look: I want you to know that if you want to say something... or just act... you can come to me. And I'll figure something out so you don't have to face anyone else to speak." He already had ways to do that. He would be Terry's witness. And if the woman was capable of killing one man, what was to say she couldn't kill others once she got tired of them? He shuddered at the thought. "It's your choice, okay?" He grasped the young man's hands. "I won't push you." He thought for a moment. In several months, Christmas would be coming, and students would be headed home for two weeks. Others, however, remained at the school for the break and owned the school, with those few teachers remaining behind to keep them in check. "Terry... do you... go anywhere for Christmas...?"

"I like to stay here over the holidays..." Terry said, slowly calming down. He liked how Reid was treating his secret. Changing the subject to stop him from worrying too much. "If I went home, I'd just be staying with my granma." The crazy old lady who liked to watch the weather channel all day and knit small jackets for her multiple corgis. Terry shuddered at the mere thought of spending Christmas with her.

"Will you be staying?" he asked, fiddling with his hands as he always did when he was nervous. Grinner would be going home over the holidays and so would most of the boys he liked. He hoped at least one of his friends would stay.

Reid shrugged a little, leaning against the table beside him. "Well, I usually head home, and I visit my grandmother... Sweet woman, old as dirt but stronger than the men of the family sometimes. Ah..." He glanced around. "Well, if I could get the right papers, maybe you could come along? It's got to be boring staying here for two weeks, without any classes to distract you or friends gone for a while..." He thought about that. He would go crazy! He'd have painting to do, writing to take care of, both with their own downsides---it grew boring, doing so for hours on end. And he wouldn't have Adam to take his mind off the bore---the history teacher would be off to visit family, his large, extensive family, and go to Mexico for a time.

"Usually it's only the two of us... She's all I really have. So... It'd be nice to have someone else along for the ride. She lives in a warm part of the States." Because of that, the two weeks of warm weather helped him love the cold even more.

Hope raised a little in his chest. He'd love to go home with Reid and meet his grandmother. Hopefully she was different to his own. "I'd like that!" It was as though nothing had happened between the two. As though Reid hadn't found him with Grinner and he hadn't told the teacher about his murderous mother. He was glad to be able to think about something else for once... Something that wasn't going to slowly eat away at him. Maybe he'd get the courage to go to the police... His father had to be avenged.

"Could we go fishing...? I used to always go fishing with my dad..." Was Reid a father figure now? Terry wouldn't object to the thought, having Reid as his male role model.

He grinned widely. He was glad that nothing had changed---that in fact, Terry seemed to be more comfortable opening up. Telling him about his father's obvious murder was something that not even a close friend could tell another close friend. Perhaps Terry saw something in Reid that let him open up in ways that no one in the school had ever heard. It made a feeling well in him. That feeling of being needed. He'd never felt that so strongly, even from depressed, friendless students that had managed to overcome it and find peers that understood. Reid hadn't started the club for 'misfits' for nothing.

"I'd love to, Terry... I... rarely went fishing with anyone... Only my granddad, and... he died early on. But my grandma has a lake on her property full of fish, I think you'd like it." He smiled brightly, shaking off the mention of his grandfather. "I'll... get some paperwork to fill out a couple weeks before, okay?" He nodded, sliding his glasses back up his nose as a knock at the door sounded. He jumped up. "You ought to get going, Terry, can't be late for dinner. And if you'd like to take care of the day of class you missed, you can hand me something that details your... human ability. Give me a drawing of a person, since it's a slightly weak spot for you."

He stepped to the door, unlocking it and widening his bi-colored eyes at Benjamin. "H-hey, Benny, what are you doing here?"

"Just wanted to talk with you, Reid. Got a second?" Benjamin looked through the door and into the room. "Oh, am I interrupting something?"

"Naah, not really. I figure I took enough of Terry's time, eh?" He looked back over to the young man.

Terry nodded, feeling a lot better than he did just awhile ago. He smiled at the headmaster and left the room with his stuff, going straight to his bedroom. When he got there, he found that Grinner had dozed off in his bed, still fully clothed. The boy seemed to have spent his study break snoozing. Terry smiled at the scene, setting his bag down quietly. He still held onto his sketch pad from art class.

He sat on his bed and slowly pulled out a charcoal pencil. He started to sketch Grinner sleeping, hoping that the sound of the pencil running over the paper wouldn't wake his subject.

Once the dinner bell rung, he had finished his drawing. He grinned at it, at how perfect it seemed. As his room mate stirred, he quickly put it away. Grinner stretched and blinked, giving him a weird look. "I dozed off after our little love making session," he laughed. Terry continued to smile as he walked down to the cafeteria with Grinner.

As Terry left, Ben came in, closing the door behind him. "So." Ben sat on one of the tables in the middle of the room. "Have you heard anything from...?"

"No, no students are talking about anything now. I think threatening to send them home for a few stupid rumors got them thinking about how angry their parents would be..." He chuckled, going around to another desk and taking a seat.

"Well that's good..." Benjamin looked genuinely glad that the rumors had been quelled, and Reid could understand that. "So." He looked up to the older man. "I've seen Adam around. Looking much happier now. Says you two've been talking. Between you and me, though, he's a pretty bad liar." Ben raised an eyebrow, and Reid bit his lip.

"Uh, right... I... Look, Ben, I'm sorry, it was just---"

"Reid, I don't care." Ben laughed. "Look, I know how it can be around here. You're basically here for most of the year, after all. All I ask is you two to keep to your dorms if you 'talk', okay?" Reid nodded quickly, letting out a relieved breath. "So c'mon, let's get to the lunchroom." He stood, and was followed by Reid. His heart had nearly stopped in that small conversation, but was slowly returning to a normal rate.

The air was growing colder as the month of December arrived. Snow fell thickly over the school, blanketing the forest in its frigid whiteness. Students were getting prepared for the holidays and Christmas trees and decoration began to spring up in the corridors and classrooms. Terry still hadn't heard more about Reid's proposal, so he was getting ready to spend Christmas at the school.

The last day of classes before their two week holiday went by too fast. Before Terry even realised it, he was sitting in art class, waiting for Reid to enter. They had finished most of their work until after the holidays, so they were wondering what sort of exciting activities the teacher had planned for them. Terry felt a bit guilty that he hadn't handed in his human form work yet. The sketch of a sleeping Grinner was still tucked away in his folder.

Reid adored how the school was changing. The thick snow outside that he would walk in at night, the paintings he would do by candlelight if he got tired of the pure white spotlights in his room, the evening love and companionship he got from Adam, and the way he decorated his room for Christmas. At the start of November he brought up his proposition to Benjamin, his request to take Terry with him when he returned home for the holidays. It took a few days, but the man relented---his longtime friendship with the pink-haired teacher let him understand the safety Reid had in mind. He signed the documents, and Reid did as well. Terry's mother was generally considered to be unconcerned with her child, and thus, left to wherever she decided to go for the holidays. All that was required was Terry's signature.

He arrived at his last class a bit late, having nearly lost the documents in his piles of folders, and stepped in. "Hey, boys. So, it's the last day before we're off for two whole weeks, and you know what...?" He leaned against the wall and tilted his head to the side. "I'm tired of work. Do whatever you want for the rest of the class! Just don't leave and don't get loud, okay? Don't need a party going on!" He stepped forward as the students cheered rather quietly, and set the documents on Terry's desk. "I hope you don't think I forgot about you." He said, crouching slightly. "Benny and I got the documents that'll let you come with me for the break. All you need to do is sign your name and you're free to go." He turned several pages to the last one, the line blank.

Terry was happy to see the papers, quickly signing them without reading. He was certain that they were the usual release forms, stating terms of conditions and whatnot in case he got hurt while in Reid's care. He set the pen back down and smiled up at the man. Finally, after glancing about to make sure no one else was listening in, he pulled out his folder. "Sir, I... I haven't handed in my human form papers yet...." He pulled out the drawing of Grinner, hesitating before showing it to him.

"I drew it awhile ago... I just... I didn't want to part with it... Because..." He sighed and stared at the forms still on his desk. It had a been a few months now, with Grinner being his boy friend. It felt nice to be loved and cared for, and he only had to worry about pleasing one boy. It made his days a bit more enjoyable. "I couldn't give it to you because... I love him... A lot."

Reid tilted his head, pushing his glasses up and taking the paper from him. "This is amazingly done." He said, smiling. William had been captured precisely, so well it looked as if a photograph had been colored in with a graphite pencil. "I... Hold on, Terry..." He went down to one knee and brought out a pink gel pen, something he used for general grading. He flipped the paper over and in the corner, wrote a hundred-percent mark. "The shading is perfect, Terry." He handed the page back to him. "The formation, texture of the cloth, the facial expression is amazing. I can tell that a lot of work and care went into your drawing. I'm glad you love someone enough to tell me you do. Loving someone, just one person, can make life so much easier." He smiled brightly. "I'll be back in a few, okay?"

He stood, stretching and grabbing the documents. "Hey!" The dull roar of conversation silenced and the students looked around to Reid. "Get out of here. I know boys, procrastinating to the very last second. Pack you bags to get ready to leave tomorrow, then waste the rest of the class doing what you want, just don't go wandering the halls until the bell. I don't need a flood of teachers asking if I really let you go early or not..." He giggled, walking out of the room as the boys started grabbing their things and piling out. He was nearly sprinting up the stairs to Benjamin's office.

Terry followed the others, excited to be leaving the school with Reid. He hoped they could still go fishing like the man promised. He had read a bit about icehole fishing, in case the lake would be completely frozen over from the cold weather. He got to his dorm and starting packing, pleased that Reid had given him his drawing back. He tucked it carefully into his suitcase, so he could always see Grinner while away for the holidays.

As he finished packing, he heard someone come into their dorm. He looked up, surprised to see Grinner standing in the doorway with his usual huge smile. "So you are going away for the holidays?" the boy asked, coming into the room and kissing Terry on the top of his head. "Where to?"

Terry still hadn't been able to talk to Grinner as much as he would have liked to. He had barely said a word to the boy since he asked that question months ago. "Reid's house," he said quietly.

"Who's that?" Grinner didn't take art class, so he wouldn't know who Reid was at all. He sounded slightly jealous, but his smile never left his face.

"Mr... Seridano..."

"Oh, the guy with the pink hair? Why are you going there?" Grinner sat next to him and wrapped an arm around Terry's shoulders. If Terry did ever say anything to him, Grinner always seemed to try and make him talk more by asking lots of questions. Terry couldn't find anything else to say, however, so simply shrugged.

He finished packing and got up, leaving to back to class. Perhaps he could practice painting for the last half of the period. Grinner didn't try to stop him, but there was a strange sadness in the air as he left. Would he miss Grinner? It was only two weeks... But that seemed like a long time.

He got back to class to find the other students talking, drawing, listening to music and even dozing on the desks. He sat near the front of the class, hoping he could talk to Reid some more.

Reid hurried back to Benjamin, finding him collecting some documents on his desk and sliding them into his desk drawer. "Hey, got the signature!" He handed the papers over, glad to see that Benjamin looked happy. "So Terry's free to come with me for the holidays?"

"Sure is." Benjamin studied the signatures, nodded, then slid them into the drawer before shutting it. "He's all yours."

"Don't say that, Benny, that sounds..." Reid shuddered. "I don't like it. He's basically an adult, as it is."

"Yeah, sure, sure. But technically he's under your---"

"Lalalala!" Reid turned and escaped the room, followed by Benjamin's laughter. He bounced down the stairs, free of his document burden and glad to return to his classroom to see that the students had left and returned, even Terry, and he was in the front of the room. He slid toward the student and took a seat near him. "So you're free with me for the holidays, Ter." He grinned widely. "I hope you like where my grandmother and I live... We're on an old country road in the south of the States, live just a few miles apart from one another. Down there it stays pretty warm, not even still bodies of water freeze. I guess you could say we're close to Mexico, but not too near. More to the west." He thought about it. Rolling hills. Quiet, secretive little streets and roads that hide beautiful homes on acres of property. And it was warm. Terry would probably love that. Getting away from the cold, into a warmer area. And the variety was nice.

Terry nodded, his face brimming with excitement. He had never really left the city he was born in or the school. They had gone on field trips, but he had never been able to go somewhere completely different for leisure. Whenever his mother went around the world on her little flings, she never took him. He wasn't sure he'd want to go anyway. Thinking about his mother made him think about what he told the teacher.

"Sir, I've been thinking a lot and... Maybe you could help me talk to the police..." Maybe with Reid by his side he wouldn't get to scared and could tell them about what he had saw. He went quiet before smiling up at the teacher. "My dad would have liked you. I just know he would have... He was a doctor, but he always wanted to be a teacher..."

His smile became a bit calmer, and he rested an elbow on the desk. "I think I'd have liked him too." Reid said, nodding a little. "He seemed like a good man. I'd be happy to help you talk to the police, any time you feel you're able. It might be a good idea to do it near the end of the school year... They'll want you to be in the trial as a witness... I could probably negotiate something so you don't have to speak in front of an entire court..." He looked down, then around to the others. They had a fair amount of space to speak without other students overhearing them---they were in their own little groups and pairs and trios.

"I wouldn't want much bother to take up what's supposed to be an easy-going time." Reid added. "But when you feel like you're strong enough, I don't care what day it is. I'll help you go to an office." He nodded.

Terry sighed in relief. He didn't want anything to ruin their holiday either. He really dreaded talking to a court full of people, especially if his mother was present. He just hoped that she would be caught or confess to her crimes without the need of him having to really say anything. He smiled at the teacher as he got some paints out. "Sir, do you think my drawing was really that good?" He had been flattered, if a little embarrassed at the 100% grading.

Reid smiled a bit more, and nodded. "I can tell that a massive amount of care went into what you drew. Because you care about the object, or the subject, you take your time to make it come out as perfectly as you can make it. I can tell that you really care about William just through this drawing. You cared about your art. And to make good art, you have to care about how it turns out. I try to rate as highly as I can, but also as fairly as I can. Your drawing of William was clean, well-shaded, and very realistic. And I figure you would want to keep it... Taking it to evaluate later just seems like a stupid thing to do, know?" He pulled his hair out of its ponytail and he twisted it between two fingers. "I think you should try to take as much care with the rest of your art as you did with William. And feeling positive about it will help it turn out much better, as well." He smiled brightly. Terry was a very good artist---he just needed that confidence.

He smiled, feeling very modest and embarrassed. Surely it wasn't that good... He started to paint something random, which started to look like another landscape. "So, when do we leave tomorrow?" he asked his teacher, feeling a bit excited. "How are we getting there? Do I need to bring anything specific?" Not that he had anything that was specialized specifically for anything. He didn't have any swimwear, and didn't know how to swim at all.

Reid chuckled, sitting back a bit and twisting his hair. "Ah, we'll be off to town at about noon. My car's in the staff garage, so we won't have to rely on any of the buses that'll be shipping the rest of the students off to their pickup points. I hope you don't mind flying---it's the quickest way to get there, and I'll have to call in for you too..." He thought. He only had one ticket so far, but his flight was rather empty---the town it was headed to was far too small to be overly packed, or even paid much attention to.

"I figure you can take what you want. Anything you think you'll need---medicine, books, notebooks, something you might not want to go two weeks without. I actually have to make a call right now... I guess it's close enough to the end of class..." He stood, putting the chair away. "Hey, listen up!" He stepped toward the door as the students fell quiet. "I figure I'll let you all go early if you want, so get out and have a good break." He ducked out before the flutter of paper and shoes filled the air, pausing just outside the door and digging out his phone to make room for Terry.

Terry stayed until the bell rung, finishing his painting and hanging it up to dry. It was of a beautiful landscape, or distant places he had never seen. There was a few gentle slops, leading out to an ocean. He planned on giving it to Reid when it was dry, but that would be after their holiday. He wouldn't see it again for a few weeks.

He picked up his stuff and went straight to his room, where Grinner was waiting for him. Not much was said between the two, and they fell onto Terry's bed in an embrace. The time flew and before he knew it, the bell rung to signal the last dinner he'd be having at the school until next year. Grinner held him tightly, smelling his scent as though he never wanted to let him go. It felt nice to be loved so much. Terry closed his eyes and let Grinner do what he liked to his body.

He had missed out on dinner, but he wasn't hungry at all. He rolled over and rested his head on Grinner's bare chest, listening to the boy's internal sounds. "I love you, Terry," Grinner said quietly, stroking his hair. Terry just smiled and buried himself into the wonderful sweaty warmth of his boyfriend.

When it was finished, Reid went into the classroom and organized the shelves he wouldn't see for the next two weeks. To prevent finished or half-finished projects from gathering dust, Reid pulled protective sheeting out from under his desk and began stringing it up to hang over damp or partially finished paintings, drawings, and so on. Then he brought up the chairs and set them upside down on the desks, and pushed them against the back of the classroom, beneath the window. He covered used easels and finished sculptures looking to be fired and painted, and shut down his computer and flipped the lights off, and locked the classroom door.

He met Adam downstairs, following him along and meeting Marcus halfway to the lunch room. Already it was rather bare there---some students had gone home a day early, so many tables that were often full of young men were now desolate and empty. It felt a bit odd to Reid, who liked the noise of conversation. Rather than dwell, however, he let himself be drawn in with Marcus, Adam, and the other teachers.

Terry woke a bit later than he usually did the next day. Grinner had already left, but left a note on his bedside table for Terry to read. He blushed when he read it and hid the paper in his suitcase to use later on. Grinner may have been a sports jock, but he also was surprisingly gifted with words. His love poem and story could fuel Terry's fires later on if he missed the boy.

He made sure he had everything in his suitcase, and took it to the door to easily find it later on. He then made his way down to the cafeteria for breakfast. It was strange seeing the school so empty. Most teachers and students had left already, those that stayed were very few. He saw Reid talking to another teacher and walked up to him, hoping he wasn't interrupting anything. "Good morning," he said quietly, wondering where he got the courage to talk in front of the other teacher and also the headmaster, who stood nearby. The headmaster and teacher looked shocked, and the way they stared made him blush and look away.

Before bed the night before, Reid made sure he had everything he needed. He managed one bag, mostly full of half-finished works he would complete when he had time. One was a painting for Adam, which he slid into a black cover to keep from being seen by the world. Come morning, Reid bundled himself up and took his bag to his vehicle, a newer model thing that leaned toward sport car, painted as neon as he could make it with various additions in even brighter tones. The interior, at least, was slightly toned down, using cool colors of green, blue, and purple. He hurried back in to meet Adam before breakfast.

Today it was extremely bare. Most had been taken out before breakfast, and would eat on their way home. He was glad to be leaving---a little variety in weather was necessary, and a foot of snow, while beautiful and peaceful, could get tedious. He kept up a conversation with an older science teacher, detailing their various plans for home. He seemed rather surprised that Reid had let a student come along, but it wasn't unheard of. As Terry came up, Reid glanced around, surprised that he had spoken to others so quickly and without hesitation. Reid grinned, and slightly pushed the teachers that stared at him. "Hey, Terry, ready to get going?" he pulled the young man into a one-armed hug, looking over his glasses at the other teachers and Benjamin in a disapproving manner.