The Darkness Within

Chapter Twenty Four - Whispered Conversations

Chapter Twenty Four

Dinner was agonisingly long. Harry hardly ate, pushing the food from one side of the plate to the other, waiting avidly for the minutes to tick by, for the clock to strike eight so he could talk to Draco. He resisted the temptation to look behind him at the Slytherin table. He knew he was being watched, not just by the curious students but by the staff as well. He knew if he looked to his left he would meet the twinkling eyes of the headmaster. So he focused on his plate, fighting with himself to not look over at Draco or Dumbledore.

"Harry?...Harry?...Harry?"

Sighing, Harry looked up to meet the narrowed stare of the twelve year old sitting in front of him.

"What?" he hissed.

Damien narrowed his eyes further.

"You weren't listening, were you?" he accused.

"No." Harry answered simply.

Damien huffed at him indignantly. He stared at Harry for a moment before shrugging his shoulders.

"Oh well, I'll have to start from the beginning."

"Can't you sit quietly?" Harry asked with a growl.

"Nope." Damien smirked. "It's a proven fact, actually."

Harry dropped his gaze back to his plate, picking at his food with his fork.

"Don't you know it's rude to talk at the table?"

Damien chuckled.

"Not anymore than playing with your food." he replied.

Harry fixed him with a hard stare.

"Go and sit somewhere else!"

"Why?" Damien asked.

"Cause you're giving me a headache." Harry returned.

Damien pulled a face but stayed where he was, refusing to move seats.

"Not until I finish my story about Filch." he stated. "So, I had just set up the perfect prank, exploding ink pots timed to go off just at the right moment..." Damien started his story again, looking very excited at the retelling.

Harry tried tuning him out but couldn't quite manage the task. He glared at Damien but the boy didn't seem to notice. He was engrossed in his own tale of mischief. Behind Damien, two boys passed him, on their way further down the table. Harry looked up, distracted by them. Fred and George Weasley gave Harry a dirty look before heading further down the table and taking a seat next to their brother and sister. Harry watched as the twins nodded in his direction and said something to their red haired brother. Ron Weasley looked over at Harry but quickly looked away. Ginny met Harry's eyes and held it for a few seconds before looking away, clearly in disgust.

"What age are those twins?" Harry asked suddenly, interrupting Damien.

"Wha-oh, who?" Damien had been so into his story he didn't even realise Harry wasn't paying attention, again. He looked over at where Harry was staring. "Fred and George?" he asked. "They're eighteen." he replied.

Harry broke his gaze from the twins and looked at Damien.

"Why are they still here then?" he asked. Even he knew that students graduated when they came of age.

Damien grinned and shook his head.

"They didn't get enough NEWTS." he replied. "Their mum was furious and spoke with Headmaster Dumbledore, to see if they could repeat their seventh year."