I felt empty.

  I’m n to be deep or emo, but I really felt purposeless at the moment. What else was left for me to gain at this point by tinuing to act? I had already achieved all the highest honors in ag that any actor would want in their life. True, I could yearn frammy to finish my EGOT, but at the moment, I couldn’t think beyond the two Tony trophies I had with me—one for ag, and one for Best Musical. While legally my father may have been the producer of the show, he had written a letter to the Ameri Theater Wing telling them about the circumstances, so they had added my o the producers for the award. So teically, the award was shared between my father and me.

  [Billy Elliot the Musical] had already broken the record of most nominations for a musical ever with 15 in hand; it went on to tie with [The Producers] for most wins by a musical with 12 wins. The awards were for Best Musical, Book of a Musical, inal Score, Leading Actor, Featured Actor, Featured Actress, Dire, Chraphy, Orchestrations, Sic Design, Lighting Design, and Sound Design. Everyone iheater se was talking about [Billy Elliot] and how it was the best thing. Some eveed that the show may go on to bee the lo-running musical ever, beating the record held by shows like [Cats], [The Phantom of the Opera], or [Les Miserables].

  Yet, that didn’t solve the matter at hand. I felt aimless. What else would motivate me to act after [Harry Potter]? When I started ag five years ago, (Gosh! Is it that long already?) one of my biggest goals was to bag all the important ag awards in the world. When the [Harry Potter] films are plete, I may even bee the highest-grossing actor of all time. Now I uand why so many A-list actors’ careers fall after their big award wins. They lose the drive to keep on making more and mood movies. Take Leonardo DiCaprio, for example. Before he won the Oscar for [The Revenant], he had bee a meme of sorts for not winning. Every year, he would give a phenomenal performahat would leave everyone in awe of his ag prowess. But after his win, he didn’t do a single film for the four years.

  Strangely, I didn’t feel this fatigue after my Oscar win, but now I am after the Tony.

  “What’re you thinking?” Emma Watson asked curiously as she sat beside me on a chair o of [Prisoner of Azkaban].

  “Nothing,” I shook my head off of the useless thoughts. “Stuff. Ig. What about you? How are your studies going?”

  “They’re fine,” She harrumphed. “Holy, Troy, how did you mao skip so many csses? I’m not even studying for my A-levels yet and I’m already knackered with the workload.”

  “That’s simple,” I smiled. “I’m n to score the best marks in the world, because I don’t io go to uy.”

  “You should,” she said seriously. “I’ve heard uy is airely different experience. Right now you go there, but when you grow up, you will regret it for the rest of your life if you don’t.”

  I snorted, “I doubt it.”

  Before we could tihe versation, Alfonso Cuaron walked over with two boys following behind him. Jamie and Evan. Jamie, because he was a little te ooday and had just e out from his trailer, and Evan because he had decided that the best pce to learn filmmaking was o of [Harry Potter] from a professional filmmaker like Alfonso Cuaron.

  “Are you kids ready?” Alfonso asked the three of us actors. Evan was silently standing behind Alfonso, everything.

  “Do we really have to do this?” I asked dejectedly as Alfonso handed us each a piece of paper.

  “You don’t have to do this right this moment,” he crified. “I want you to think about your character and their motivations. Were we starting with the first film, it would be a different thing, where I would guide you on what your characters feel and think. But currently, you know more about Harry, Ron, and Hermiohan probably even Jo Rowling does. That’s all you have to do. Write down all you think about your character from the first two films and where they stand before we begihird film. Take your time and give it to me by tomorrow.” Theuro Evan and said, “e on, Evan. We have to set up the se while they brainstorm their essays.”

  “Essay?” I mouthed to Jamie as Alfonso and Evahe se. I’m not really a fan of creative writing.

  “Let’s just write a page,” Jamie said weakly. Clearly, he didn’t like this homework either.

  “Don’t do that,” Emma chided Jamie with a slight smirk. “Aren’t you the older one among us? You should write at least twice as much as I . And I’m pnning to write a big essay. At least five pages.”

  “By that logic,” Jamie said, “Troy should write thrice of yours since he is doh his schooling.”

  “No,” I shook my head. “I’m writing as Harry. He is not the most bookish kid, so I’ll do only enough to get a passing grade.”

  Hearing my argument, Jamie grinned, “Ron wouldn’t even do his homework unless he copy it off of Hermione.” He then turo Emma with a grin.

  “Absolutely not!” Emma said heatedly. “You will do your homework. I won't be the only oo finish the work.”

  I ughed at their antics before ging the topic, “Let’s leave it be for now. We do this at home sihis is our homework. Let’s practice our se for the day.”

  (Break)

  “Let me get this straight. Sirius Bck broke out from Azkaban to e after you?” Jamie asked me in character.

  “Yeah,” I said somberly.

  “But they’ll catch Bck, won’t they?” Emma asked hesitantly. “I mean, everyone’s looking for him.”

  “Sure,” Jamie said sarcastically. “Except no one’s ever broken out of Azkaban before… and he’s a murderous, raving lunatic.”

  “Thanks, Ron,” I said with equal sarcasm. “That reassures me a lot.”

  Suddenly, the carriage we were in shook wildly before ing to a halt. Jamie stood up and looked out of the window, which had a green s outside.

  “Why are we stopping?” Emma asked no one in particur. “We ’t be there yet.”

  I stood up to get out of the carriage to see what was happening when the carriage shook wildly once more, and I fell bay seat.

  “What’s going on!?” Jamie said in a panicked voice as he looked out of the window again. There ause of a few moments before he said, “There’s something moving out there. I think someone’s ing aboard.”

  The carriage shook wildly once again as the window fogged up with ice within a matter of seds. Then the door to our partment opened as a floating bck figure stood in the way. The figure was not the final product of what the audience would see because a lot of CGI would be added to it ter on. What I saw was a big bck teddy bear sort of figure that was more ical than menag. I suppressed the urge to ugh and tried to remain in character.

  “Cut!” Alfonso’s voice rang ihe set before he walked over to me. “Troy, you o show more fear of the unknown. You have to act as if you are afraid of this…creature in front of you. You seem as if you are one breath away from ughing.”

  I couldn’t suppress my ughter anymore, nor could my fellow actors. After a couple of moments, I turo our director, “I’m so sorry fhing, Alfonso. But have you seen this dementor wahis is not scary at all.”

  “I know,” Alfonso agreed with me patiently. “But we o show your fear. Think that you’re w on a horror film. Like that tent se you did in [The Sixth Sense]. I want the same rea from you in this se.”

  It felt like such a distant thing. We had shot [The Sixth Sense] more than three years ago.

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