Sherry had stepped into the study, then stopped, thinking of something all of a sudden. She turned around and walked to the library, knocking softly on the door before opening it and entering the library. She stood in the doorway and observed three sets of eyes looking at her, and said, "I helped Toby up to his bedroom to clear up and put on clean clothes. It might be good for one of you to be there when he comes out of his bedroom so you can help him down the stairs. I'll be in the study with Marie." She didn't wait for a response, but stepped out of the library and closed the door behind her. She started for the study just as Marie came out of the kitchen carrying a plate of chocolate chip cookies. She quickly caught up with Marie, took a cookie off the plate, and asked Marie, "How'd you know these are my favorites?"

After chuckling, Marie said, "I've known many who find these a favorite. Why should you be any different? Besides, the girls made them. And they taste unlike any chocolate chip you've ever tasted."

Sherry bit into the one she'd taken. Marie watched as Sherry's eyes lit up as she chewed the bite she'd taken. "Ohf, mif. gawdf. Whaf dhey pud intof dhese tings?"

Laughing, Marie told her, "I'll tell you later. Right now though, we need to talk."

Marie walked into the study first, Sherry following her and closing the door behind her. "Why don't you go ahead and have a seat, um, maybe after standing up the chair on the left. I want to make a phone call before we get started."

Waiting until Marie had uprighted Toby's chair, Sherry dialed a number and waited while it rang. "Hi Ruth, it's Sherry. Do you have a minute?...You do, good. Has anyone discussed where Toby Camber will be living after he leaves Seasons House?...It's been discussed? Good, because he can't go back to that apartment...Two reasons: He'll kill his brother if he tries to beat Toby again. If he goes back to that apartment, he's going to relapse. He had a rough first session with me a few minutes ago. It was rough, but necessary for his well-being...No, it was a start, but I plan on seeing him for the foreseeable future...Okay, let me know when it's set in stone...Thanks, Ruth...Bye." After hanging up the phone, Sherry sighed, shook herself, turned to face Marie, and asked her, "Did you have a good cry up in your bedroom?"

Marie cocked her head, giving Sherry a 'how did you know' look, before Sherry laughed as she walked over to the table, righted her own chair, sat down and told Marie, "How did I know? Well… you didn't come up the stairs behind me and Toby, so you had to be already upstairs. Plus," and looked at Marie with a soft loving look, "your eyes are still red. So… why the crying jig? Are you like Toby and bottle everything up until it gets too much for you to handle?"

It was Marie's turn to laugh, saying afterward, "Vous feriez une excellente détective (You would make an excellent detective,), Sherry Daniels."

Sherry shot back with, "Je suis déjà un excellent détective, mademoiselle Marie (I am already an excellent detective, Miss Marie.). You're as bad as Janie. Now stop evading my question. Why the crying jig?"

Marie became very somber, and quiet for several minutes. She stood up, turned, and took two steps until she was standing in front of the study window. Watching Marie, Sherry calmly waited. "Why did I have to go to my bedroom and have a good cry? I'd only heard such a soul-wrenching sound once before, at my father's funeral. It came from my mother, God rest her soul. I've seen loving couples over the years, but none as devoted as were my parents. They would finish each other's sentences. They knew what the other was thinking before either voiced their thoughts. And they never wavered when it came to discipline or punishment, they were together on both." Marie laughed at a memory and told Sherry, "Once, I tried going to my mother because my father was punishing me for something I did. I thought my mother would be more reasonable. That was the first time and the last time I tried that trick. She ended up giving me more of what my father had given me. But, I deserved everything I earned."

"My father was at work one day, I guess I was fifteen or sixteen, it was a long time ago. He was meeting with several clients and in the middle of his presentation, he suffered a major heart attack. They tried to revive him, were doing CPR on him until Paramedics arrived. They tried shocking his heart, several times but got no response. They continued working on him as they took him out of the building and on their way to the hospital. But he never revived. Dad's work called mom, who came and got me at school, and we rushed to the hospital." Marie chuckled yet again, then said, "We had a police escort to the hospital when the policeman who stopped mom for speeding found out why she was speeding. The policeman had to slow mom down, she was talking so fast. But once he learned what was going on, we were doing 60 the entire way to the hospital. Mom called dad's brother, and he and his wife arrived shortly after. We must have been there for an hour before the doctor came out and told mom there was just too much damage to dad's heart, and he never regained consciousness. Of course, you can imagine mom was devastated, and collapsed to the floor. Me and dad’s brother lifted her off the floor and sat her on the couch in the waiting room; a nurse brought her some water. I held her and so did dad's brother as she cried, as a person would after suffering a loss."

"Toby's wailing brought all this back to me, especially the time at the cemetery. Up until that point, mom had just been sad, unhappy at the loss of her husband. Her beloved partner was gone and now she was alone. Oh, she still had me living with her, but it wasn't the same thing. She'd spend time crying, and I'd hold her, but it was different the day of the funeral. I think she'd cried herself out by then, or so it seemed. She was stoic at the church, and on the drive to the cemetery, but when dad's casket was being lowered into the ground… Toby's wailing brought it all back. He sounded just like mom did as dad was laid to rest. Dad's brother and I had to hold her back because she tried to get on top of dad's casket as they lowered it into the ground. But that gawd awful sound she made, I never wanted to hear another human make such a sound again as long as I lived."

Sherry could hear the anguish in Marie's voice as she recounted her father's story. She felt in her gut what Marie was about to do, so had pushed her chair back, stood up, walked around the table, and put her arms around Marie, who turned and began crying on Sherry's shoulder. While holding the crying woman, Sherry told her, "It's okay, Marie. Even big girls have to cry sometimes, especially when they really care about something and know they can't do anything to help."

Slowly, Marie's crying subsided, allowing her to tell Sherry, "You must be a mind reader, Sherry Daniels. That is exactly how I feel at the moment." Marie straightened up, took a tissue out of the box she'd brought with her, wiped her eyes, then said, "Ich muss schrecklich aussehen (I must look terrible)."

Reaching up, Sherry wiped more tears off Marie's cheeks, telling her, "Es ist nichts, was man nicht reparieren kann (It's nothing that can't be fixed)." The shocked look on Marie's face caused Sherry to laugh. "Why the shocked look, Marie? You act as though you've never heard German spoken before."

"Ja, I've heard German spoken before, but not from YOU," and she poked Sherry in the chest with her finger. "How long have you been fluent in German? And where did you learn the language? It wasn't in this Country, was it?"

Guiding Marie back to her chair, Sherry poured water into an unused glass and offered it to Marie. She debated with herself how much to tell Marie about learning to speak German. Deciding she didn't need to know everything, she said, "I was fortunate enough to do my graduate work in Germany. After that, I spent several years there, almost staying there to practice. I worked on my PhD while I was there, finishing it when I came back to the States. It's such a beautiful country, that in itself was enticing. Because I was studying and living there at the time, I had to learn the lingo if I was going to get around, have some fun, and help those in need. I don't know why, but German seemed easy for me to learn. I got so good speaking it, that I'd fool tourists who thought I was a native German and ask directions to something they wanted to see."

Sherry saw the twinkle in Marie's eyes, then heard, "Donc, vous parlez allemand. Et français? Parlez-vous français aussi couramment que l'allemand ? Et l'italien ou l'espagnol (So, you speak German. And French? Do you speak French as fluently as German? And Italian or Spanish)?"

Marie had a big smile on her face, she was enjoying herself. Sherry dropped her head, shook it, then decided if this was war, then it was going to be war. She lifted her head, sighed, then told Marie, in Italian, "Parlo fluentemente tedesco, francese, italiano e spagnolo. Me la cavo parlando russo e polacco, anche se ricevo sguardi strani quando parlo quelle lingue (I speak fluent German, French, Italian, and Spanish. I get by speaking Russian and Polish, although I get strange looks when I speak those languages). An' 'o 'op i' all off, I even do a grea' cockney, love. And summit else ter tickle your fancy is cockney rhyme Matheson Lang. How did we get off on me? We're supposed to be concentrating on you," and she pointed to Marie.

Marie almost fell out of her chair with laughter, after Sherry's antics. When she finally wound down, she asked, "Where did you learn cockney? I've not heard that spoken in years."

With an impish smile on her face, Sherry said, "Well… I did say I had some fun while I lived in Germany. I spent a couple of weeks in the UK, having some, um, fun. And boy was he fun!"

The laughter from the two women filled the study, until the study door opened and Jane stepped into the study, still in her riding clothes. "Are we alright in here?" The expression on Jane's face said she wasn't sure what was occurring, but it didn't sound clinical.

Marie laughed before saying, "We're as wite as Pleasure and Pain me sweet. Sherry just reminded me of something I haven't heard in years."

In a dull voice, and before Marie could go on, Jane said, "Yes, I heard. Cockney rhyme. Eh gads, my house has been invaded." Jane shook her head, turned, and walked out of the study, causing Sherry and Marie to break up with laughter again.

Marie reached across the table and taking Sherry's hands, told her, "You might not realize how much you've just helped me with your foolishness. And listening to my story. Listening to him wail like that made me feel so helpless, and made me remember. Something I thought I'd buried. Seems we all have something to face and deal with this time around."

Sherry squeezed Marie's hands, telling her, "You aren't helpless. You are there when he and those other boys need you and Jane. Where would they all be today if not for the work you and that woman do here at Seasons House? Toby might be dead right now. Francis might be living on the streets, or worse. And what about all the other boys you and Jane straightened out? None of us can be helpful one hundred percent of the time. We each can only be helpful in our corner of the world. Never lose sight of that, Marie. We both know how he affected both of us, and what we'd like to do about it, but can't for various reasons. It's going to hurt, sometimes, it's part of being human. At least a caring human. If you don't want to feel the hurt anymore, go buy yourself an island and live there by yourself. It won't be much of an existence, but at least no one will hurt you again. Except maybe yourself."

A puzzled look came over Marie's face, causing her to ask, "How could I hurt myself living on a deserted island? Aside from the physical possibility. But emotional? How?"

"Marie, humans need others around them, even for short periods of time. Some people have to have others around them constantly, they never learned how to be alone with themselves. And if they have no one around, their soul starts to crumble. If that continues too long… " Sherry shrugged her shoulders, watching as Marie nodded her head, showing she understood what Sherry left unsaid. "Hurting because we care helps us realize we're alive. Helps us realize we are breathing, thinking, and feeling. Never shy away from your feelings, Marie. Embrace them, deal with them, don't let them control you." She released one of Marie's hands, reached up, and wiped a tear sliding down Marie's cheek. "You and those like you, dedicating your lives to helping the young of our population, specifically boys, are unique, Marie. You aren't unique because you're helping these boys, but because unlike some, you truly care about their welfare. You care about the life they live and what the best for each one. Like me, you know the hurt and disappointment possible in the work you do, but you continue anyway. Because you CARE."

In a voice not far above a whisper, Marie said, "Thank you for that, Sherry. Sometimes it's good to hear others praise the work you do. Sometimes it's possible to become lost in the process and lose sight of the person." Marie looked up at the clock, saying, "I'd better get to the kitchen, the animals will be getting hungry about now."

Both women stood after pushing their chairs back. They held one hand as they did so, that hand then going around the other's waist as they moved away from the table. Marie turned towards Sherry, hugged her before opening the door of the study and heading towards the kitchen. Sherry watched her as she walked to the kitchen, thinking back to everything Marie said, before she disappeared when the kitchen door swung closed behind Marie. 'That is one strong woman,' Sherry thought to herself. 'Another woman would have folded in on herself years ago,' she added to herself. Leaving the door open, she walked over to the window and peered out, thinking through what she'd experienced so far. Hoping her advice would produce the positive results needed.

As she looked out the window, she heard a knock on the open study door. Turning, she sees Toby standing there, much cleaner looking than a few minutes ago. She starts walking across the study towards Toby, asking as she's walking, "Toby, is everything alright?" Sherry sees Toby trying to organize his thoughts and stops two steps in front of him and waits.

Toby became frustrated the minute he stepped into the study, after planning out everything he was going to say while taking a shower. "I… I… aw hell. I had it all planned out what I was going to say to you, and now that I'm here, I can't even remember what I was going to say."

Sherry smiled at the frustrated boy before telling him, "Just say what you feel. It doesn't have to be a research paper or elaborate. Just speak from the heart."

After hearing what Sherry said, Toby had a 'deer in the headlights' look on his face. He then laughed, shook his head, and said aloud, "I keep forgetting how simple 'simple' works the best." His face then took on an appreciative look before he said, "I, um, just wanted to thank you for being there for me earlier. I was really a mess right then. I'm not sure I'd have made it through that time if you hadn't been there. I'll always remember that of you." Toby shrugged his shoulders, then added, "That's all I wanted to say."

Sherry placed her hands gently on Toby's shoulders, telling him, "Young man, it was my pleasure to be there for you. You had dammed up your soul far too long with that poison and it needed to be released. I was not going to leave you to handle it yourself and maybe drive yourself insane. I still want to meet with you, once everything is settled, and I'll come to you wherever you end up living if you can't come to me. Today was just the beginning of your healing, there's still a lot of work to do before you remember it all as a distant memory. You need to learn how not to let those events rule your life, as they will for a while. Now, maybe you better head to the library and see what Susan has for you, right?"

Toby nodded his head at Sherry's suggestion of going to the library. Before he left the study, he stepped into Sherry, put his arms around her, and quietly said, "Thank you very much. I won't ever forget this." He broke his hold on Sherry, causing her to release him, turned, and slowly made his way through the living room and to the library.

Sherry was about to turn around and return to her solace at the window when Jane suddenly appeared before her. "Are you alright, Sherry? Things have been rather intense so far."

"Janie, why are you three so stubborn? Toby had a good reason to hold everything in, his back is a testament to his reason. But you and Marie? Why couldn't you have picked up the phone and called me, Janie? You know I would have dropped everything and come running." Jane put on her best headmistress look, only to have Sherry tell her, "Oh, gads, Janie. That headmistress look has never worked on me and you know it. It's your damn way of avoiding an issue. You aren't Supergirl, ya know. In fact, despite what you think, you're probably the most sensitive one in this whole house. You wear your heart on your sleeve, hidden behind that headmistress look." Sherry stepped forward, and gently took Jane's hands in hers before telling her in a soft voice, "I don't want to see my most dear friend end up in some hospital because she tried to take on the whole world all by herself, as you often do. I'd really be pissed at you if that happened. Call me, come to me, let me in so I can help when you get tied up in knots." It was Sherry who stepped into Jane and held the woman. "I love you too much to stand by and watch you destroy yourself because you refuse to get the help you need," Sherry whispered in Jane's ear. She felt her right shoulder getting wet. When the two women separated, Sherry said, "I'd like to speak with Charlotte next. Would you send her to me, please?"

Wiping her eyes, Jane nodded her head, before turning and walking towards the library. Watching Jane walk away, Sherry said under her breath, "Damn that woman."

Sherry was again standing at the window when there was a knock on the open study door. Turning, Sherry saw Charlotte standing at the door. "You wanted me in the lion’s dens next, Dr. Daniels?" Charlotte asked, a smile playing on her face.

"Come in, Charlotte. Close the door and come take a seat." She watched Charlotte close the door, then pause at the bookcase, starting to reach for 'the book' on the second shelf. "Hard to break a habit, isn't it? Forget 'the book' and come and sit down. I want to hear your story."

As Charlotte was walking over to the table, Marie came into the study with a tray of clean glasses. After setting the tray down on the table, Marie shocked Sherry by putting her arms around her, kissed her on the cheek before she turned and left the study. It was Sherry's turn to have the 'deer caught in the headlights' look on her face.

"Marie must think a lot of you, Dr. Daniels. That isn't something she normally does to anyone other than Aunt Jane. That's high praise from her." Charlotte pulled out the chair Sherry pointed to, sat down, and watched as Sherry walked around the table and sat down opposite her. "Will Toby be alright, Dr. Daniels? It sure hurt listening to him."

The first question out of Charlotte really impressed Sherry. She didn't ask Sherry how they would be proceeding or what questions Sherry had for her. No, she was worried about Toby. Thinking to herself, 'Is this the real Charles Thorton? Does he always think of others before himself? "Before we proceed, Charles, it's Sherry when we're alone like this. And why are you asking after Toby instead of yourself? He isn't your responsibility, is he?" She was taking a chance pushing Charles' buttons, but she had to know the real boy. But she wasn't expecting what happened next.

Charlotte was silent for a heartbeat, before s/he started laughing. The laughter continued long enough to cause tears to start flowing from Charlotte's eyes. There were times when Charlotte was laughing but no sound could be heard. Charlotte's laughter had started to abate until she saw the puzzled look on Sherry's face. It was several more minutes before her laughter finally ended. Sherry was not pleased, to put it mildly. With an edge to her voice, Sherry leaned towards Charlotte across the table and asked, "You think these talks are funny, Charles? You're as messed up as Toby, Jane, and Marie. Are you trying to insult what I'm trying to do here in helping all of you? Your actions so far are totally disrespectful."

Sherry could see how her words had stung Charles, causing him to sober quickly. "Ah, no, Sherry. I wasn't being disrespectful to you or what you're trying to do for us. I, ah, was laughing because I recognized you were trying to push my buttons to get me to react. I'm… sorry for making you think I was being disrespectful."

Before Sherry could respond, Charlotte pushed the chair back and stood up. "I'm sorry I upset you, Dr. Daniels," Charlotte said before she turned and started walking across the study and to the door.

"Just where do you think you're going, Mr. Thorton? I haven't given you permission to leave, so get your ass back here and sit down." Sherry's words froze Charlotte in her tracks. "Do you always run away from things you don't want to face?" Sherry asked, as she pushed her chair back, stood up, and began walking towards the frozen Charlotte. "You do, don't you? You'd rather run away than face something you find unpleasant, right?" She reached Charlotte, put her arms on her shoulders, and gently turned her until she was facing Sherry. "Why, Charles? Why do you shy away from things instead of facing them?" She then put an arm around Charlotte's shoulder and started walking her back to the table. As they walked, Sherry said, "Talk to me, Charles. I want to help you, not bite your head off."

She guided Charles to the chair everyone else had used, before walking around the table and sitting down in the chair she'd been using. She watched as Charles put his hands on the table, fingers laced together, and stared at his hands. "Why won't you talk to me, Charles? I can't help you if you're unwilling to speak with me. As I said, when it's a physical confrontation, you stand up and deal with it. But not emotional situations. Why?"

Sherry remained silent, watching Charles stare at his hands, his fingers doing an intricate dance as they lay on the table. After several silent minutes, Sherry said in an almost exasperated voice, "Okay, let's do it this way. You were at Taylor's department store to buy your mother a necklace for her 35th birthday. That Conner guy put his hands on you and you put him on the floor with your knee in the back of his neck and his arm twisted up behind his back. Then you were taken to the store's holding room where Conner again inserted himself into the situation by locking you and him in the holding room. He tried intimidating you with a collapsable police baton, but you got ahold of it first. He tried lunging across the table to grab you only to have you break his left clavicle with that baton. Because he had all of his weight on his left shoulder, he collapsed onto the floor, where you then tried leaving the room, only to have him grab your leg. You then took that baton and broke both the ulna and radius in his right arm. How'm I doing so far?" Charles never reacted to Sherry's question.

"Then, when Judge Ruth and the Prosecutor determined there was no evidence to prove you were involved in the shoplifting, Ruth was going to dismiss the charges until Strom threatened to take you to Federal Court and add additional charges. Right so far?" Charles didn't answer Sherry's question. He just stared at his hands, still dancing their intricate choreography. "So you were sent here in order to keep you out of Federal Court, where you volunteered to become one of Jane's girls. Am I right so far, Charles?" This time Charles simply shrugged his shoulders. To Sherry, that was something at least.

"As Jane does with all of her girls, she took you to the Mall so you could experience what other girls experience. And you did, thanks to a jerk who didn't understand what 'go away' meant. So, when he took exception to how you spoke to him, and tried to hit you, you smashed his nose against the store window where you were standing. Bet that surprised his butt." This time Charles snorted, remembering the look on the guy's face when his nose hit the glass. Sherry saw the small smile on Charles' lips, wondering if he wasn't reliving the experience. "When the security guards asked if you were okay, and after confirming you were, you pointed out how that boy was a slow learner and was after another girl. Your help got that boy banned from that Mall and he is now attending an all-girls school as one of the girls. You actually saved any number of other girls from that piece of crap, didn't you?" Again, a shrug of his shoulders.

"Then, while you were looking at the display in another store window, four boys blocked you in the store entrance. After telling them to let you leave, one moron tried to stroke your cheek, only to find himself down on his knees with his wrist bent backward. Of course, he didn't take kindly to what you did, and when the security was dealing with the other three boys, that boy attempted to hit you. His attempt failed, and for his troubles, you struck him and knocked him out cold. Oh, and that first boy was waiting for you outside of the Mall, and was dealt another blow when he tried to punch you and ended up having Jane speak with him. And once again, he got his head handed to him. Not only by Jane but his parents, who read him the riot act before packing him into their car and taking him to the girls school. And it just so happened as he was getting reamed by his parents, the three creeps he'd been hanging with showed up. Creep one and two took exception to how you and Jane spoke to them and tried to do something about it. You put the toe of your kitten heel shoes into the stomach of creep one and coldcocked creep number two. Do I have the gist of the action right so far?" Once again Charles simply shrugged his shoulders.

"Then after you were 'perttified' at the salon, Jane took you to the Mall again. She told you reactions would be different this time because you looked different. She wasn't wrong, was she?" Another shoulder shrug. "You met the queen bitch and her hangers-on, a real ignorant queen bitch. She thought she was something, didn't she? Wasn't she dumber than a sack of rocks? And when she tried to slap some manners into you, you grabbed her wrist and applied a bit of face-cringing pressure to that wrist. Then, didn't you ask her if she wanted things to get real ugly? Then she called you a female dog, right? And you showed her the itch you had on your nose, correct?" This time, the shrug Charles gave to Sherry's question was substantially less than his previous ones.

Now Sherry waited for Charles to speak, say something to her that she could use to help him. But he remained silent, sitting in the chair staring at his hands. When the silence in the study became a weight on their shoulders, Sherry finally broke the silence with, "You aren't going to talk with me, are you? You're just going to sit there like a lump of clay, and stare at your hands, aren't you?" Sherry then slammed the palm of both hands down on the table, causing Charles to jump and look up at her. "I said, you aren't going to talk with me, are you? That's a question, Charles, in case you don't remember the form of a question."

Then, as Charles continued looking at Sherry he said, "What's to say? You got the gist of each situation. What do you want me to say?"

"I want you to tell me what's in here," and Sherry reached across the table and thumped Charles’ forehead, as you'd flick a fly off of something. "I want to know what you're thinking about everything that's happened to you. I want to know why you run away from emotional situations." Sherry sat back in her chair and continued looking at Charles, who sat there looking at her.

In a voice pitched to almost a growl, Charles told Sherry, "You don't want to do that again."

Sherry immediately sat up, leaning over her arms sitting on the table. "Why not? Or, maybe I should ask, or what? Does Snookums not like getting his head thumped?"

Charles' hands shot out, in an attempt to grab Sherry's arms. She saw it coming before it ever happened, and moved back at the same time Charles' hands flew forward. "You shouldn't telegraph your moves, Charles. That was sloppy." Then, before Charles could react, Sherry had reached out and captured his hands at the wrist. "I have years more training than you do Charles, training from people who can do things some think are impossible. Don't try getting physical with me Charles or I'll deal with you like you dealt with the boy whose nose you smashed against the store window."

Sherry watched Charles' face as he tried to pull his hands back; she held onto them tightly. No matter how hard he pulled, he couldn't break Sherry's grip. He tried twisting his arms, only to be prevented by Sherry's grip. She watched as he started getting frustrated, and how his eyes started getting moist.

"Talk to me."

"Let go of me."

"Then talk to me."

"Let go of me."

Tears were not streaming down his cheeks, "GET YOUR DAMN HANDS OFF OF ME!" Charles now shouted, more frustrated than when Sherry first grabbed his wrists.

In a soft voice, Sherry told Charles, "Then talk to me, Charles."

Now he started crying while saying, "PLEASE, let go of me."

Sherry now understood why Charles wouldn't talk to her, he, like Toby, had experienced something in his past he was hiding. "Talk to me Charles, tell me about it."

Charles was now bawling, close to wailing. He slid off his chair and only Sherry holding his wrists kept him from falling to the floor. "PLEASE... PLEASE... PLEASE... LET ME GO!!

Sherry released his left wrist, but held onto his right wrist, as she quickly stood up and made her way around the table to reach Charles. Once Sherry had released the tension on his arms, Charles had slumped to the floor, now in a complete meltdown. Letting go of his right wrist, Sherry all but threw Charles' chair back before she gathered Charles up in her arms and held him while he bawled. "Oh, babe, I'm sorry. You let it out. Get it out of your system. Get it all out."

While Sherry had been in a position to see the study door while holding Toby, she wasn't while holding Charles, so didn't see the door open and Jane come into the study. Jane ventured no further than just inside the door, watching as Sherry rocked Charles and talked to him as she did. 'What else is Charles hiding?' Jane thought to herself, and she turned a left the study, quietly closing the door behind her.

Charles' breakdown wasn't as intense as Toby's, but it was bad enough. As Toby had done, Charles ended up bear-hugging Sherry, bawling into her chest. "It's okay, Charles. No one is going to hurt you, it's alright, baby."

Since Sherry wasn't watching the clock, she didn't know how long Charles bawled before it turned into crying. Or how long he cried until it turned into whimpering, and finally silence. His hold on Sherry was fierce, but gradually started to relax. When Sherry felt his hold start to relax, she asked, "What is i, sweetheart? What set you off? It's okay, you can confide in me. I'll tell no one unless you give me permission."

Silence lingered in the study for several minutes before Charles started speaking. "I was seven, and in the boy's bathroom at school. Two older boys came into the bathroom and as I was starting to leave, they grabbed me. I asked them to let me go but they just laughed and started slapping me and punching me in the stomach. Then, when I was crying, while still holding me, they forced my head into one of the toilets. One of the boys was holding my arms behind me by my wrists, and they kept dunking my head into the toilet. A teacher came into the bathroom after hearing all the noise, and grabbed both boys by the back of their necks. I had to follow the teacher and the two boys to the principal's office, dripping wet from having my head dunked into the toilet. My parents were called, as were the two boy's parents. When the parents arrived and saw how wet I was and the reason why I was wet, if the principal hadn't stopped the boy's dads, they would have slammed their sons through the wall. From what was said, this wasn't the first time they'd done something like this or had been warned to not do it again. The principal told the boy's parents that both boys were suspended for two weeks. The following year, after I turned eight, it happened to me again, and the boys were expelled because they'd caused problems before.

"Oh dear Lord! And you've kept this buried all of these years? Did you speak to anyone about it? Is that why you started Martial Arts training, to protect yourself?"

"Mom and dad wanted me to talk with someone, but I lied to them and told them I was alright. I just wanted to forget about it all. And, yeah, it's why I started Martial Arts and Self Defence training, so I could protect myself from then on. But when you grabbed my wrists, it all came rushing back to me. The slapping, being punched in my stomach, and having my arms held behind me by my wrists and my head dunked into the toilet. And I couldn't stop it from happening at the time. I feel so foolish breakdown as I did. I should have been able to control myself."

Charles didn't see Sherry look up to the ceiling and close her eyes, mentally kicking herself for causing Charles' breakdown, even though he needed to get it out of his system. Had she known about the attacks he suffered, she would have handled things differently. But how would she have known? He never gave anyone the slightest hint of the help he needed. "Are you feeling better now? How about we get you back into your chair?" Charles nodded his head, and with Sherry's help, stood, Sherry pulled his chair back to the table, and Charles sat down. Sherry poured a half glass of water, handed it to Charles, and watched as he drained the entire contents. He asked for more, 'please,' and stopped asking after three half glasses of water.

Waiting until Charles had his fill of water, Sherry then asked, "Why didn't you want to talk to anyone, Charles? They would have helped you come to terms with what happened to you, so it wouldn't have been waiting to bite you in the butt. Were you embarrassed because of what happened, or afraid to talk to someone about what happened?"

After asking her questions, Sherry could see Charles was thinking about the questions she asked. "Well… I was embarrassed, because the whole school eventually found out what happened. Some felt bad for me, others thought it was funny and they should have done it more. Some even thought it'd be fun for them to do it to me, but they ended up getting suspended for several weeks. Oh, their parents were not happy with them. When they came back to school, they were different boys. I also think I didn't want to talk with anyone because, after a while, I sort of forgot about what happened."

"So why didn't you break down during your training? Surely you had your wrists grabbed then, it was part of your training?"

Again Charles thought about Sherry's questions. She saw the minute he had an answer, as s/he said, "I think because it was training and didn't trigger the right memories. I knew my wrists would be released by the move I was learning or for whatever reason. Sitting across from you, I didn't know if you were going to release my wrists. Because of that unknown, those memories came flooding back to me. I feel so foolish."

"You have no reason to feel foolish for breaking down. Older people than you have had breakdowns because of something they experienced during childhood or because of some recent experience. You needed to get that out of your system, it might be the reason you walk away when things get to the emotional level. I believe that may have changed today. I think you'll stand your ground from now on. Have some more water."