Closed Oh Dam

[Eluned Strangewayes]

Dinner time at the Gryffindor house table was always a little chaotic. It wasn’t unusual for Ned to get separated from Ten in the rush for the best seats. What was unusual was for Ten not to show up at all. Eluned cut up her roast potatoes, tonging a few spares onto her plate before all the crispy ones went. No doubt Ten would arrive soon, and she wouldn’t want the soggy ones at the bottom. Ned was just constructing a gravy dam out of carrots when her best friend swept in as expected. “Hey! I saved you some-“ she started, but she didn’t get any more of her sentence out before Ten had flounced off again. Uh oh. What had Ned done this time? She cast her mind back over the last twenty-four hours but couldn’t remember doing anything offensive. After a second’s hesitation, she dropped her knife and fork and rushed out to catch her.

“Wait! I saved you some tatties,” she tried again. “Come back. Ten!”

godmodding approved

 

[Ten Layton-King]

Ten was getting quite frankly p*ssed off with everyone. After she'd been rejected by Felix, and made to feel like a fool for even trying to build bridges with her brother, it had occurred to the Gryffindor she didn't have anyone left. Everyone was so caught up in what they were doing for themselves, that even on the odd chance they did notice the fifth year it was usually only for what Ten could do for them more than how she was doing.

"What do you want?" Ten asked as Ned chased her out the Great Hall, her mouth full of mash potato as she walked. It had been quick, to dart in there and grab the entire bowlful. What? It wasn't like anyone would mind, beside it was already half full by the time the Gryffindor got her hands on it. "I'm not staying in there," she said again, not looking over her shoulder to her dormmate that was now trying to catch up with her in the corridor.​

 

[Eluned Strangewayes]

Ned didn't realise Ten had made off with an entire bowl of mashed potatoes. It took her a moment to recover from the surprise. "Well, I want some of those tatties back," she said, prudently maintaining a bit of distance. With Ten in a mood like this, Ned was liable to receive those potatoes directly to the face. "Why? What happened? Who hurt you? Ten! Why are you running away from me? Slow down." She was always chasing people everywhere these days. It was getting tiresome.

 

[Ten Layton-King]

In hindsight Ten could have done picking up a tablespoon or a fork, however in her rush out the hall it now meant she was stood in the corridor trying to lick mashed potato out of a rather large ladle. She stopped in her tracks before turning to face her aunt. "Where have you been?" Ten suddenly yelled at her. She barely saw the.. apparent blonde.. these days. Whatever Ned had been doing recently, she looked to Ten like a completely different person to the one she'd started the year as. "You haven't seemed to care that I've been absent from lunch for the most part of 8 months, so why do you now?" Her angry facade was lost a little as she took another tongue delve into the large spoon. "Stop pretending like you care," she added once she'd finished her mouthful, turning to leave once more.​

 

[Eluned Strangewayes]

Ned stopped sharply. What? Where had she been? Where had she been? “Where have YOU been?” she shot back. “You abandoned me! I always left a space for you, and you didn’t come!” If Ten wanted to start picking at her for being a bad friend, she had to admit she’d been a rubbish one herself. “I have my own stuff going on! You never cared about that - you never asked why I’ve been weird lately. All I’ve ever done is care about you, and chase you around like a puppy, and try not to say anything wrong and I can’t, you're never happy! I’m sorry I haven’t been the perfect person but get this into your head - I LOVE YOU AND I CARE ABOUT YOU!” Maybe shouting it wasn’t the best way to get the message across, but it was true. Ten was family. How could Ned not care?

 

[Ten Layton-King]

Ten was getting angrier now, something she'd been working on forever, and now Ned was here riling her up again. Maybe she was the problem. "I've been in the greenhouse, where I've always been?! I'm not exactly hard to find if you'd ever bothered to try," the only person that had joined her there was Veronica, no one else ever tried to seek her out despite that being the only place Ten spent her days when she wasn't asleep or in class. "I never abandoned you, you told me to find out who I was for me, and I did. Yeah you have your own stuff going on but you never bothered to tell me about it did you?" Ten was screaming back just as loudly, without caring if anyone else in the vicinity could hear. Ten didn't know what Ned meant when she told her she was never happy. How the hell would she know what made her happy these days? "I never know where you are because you're always off galivanting, doing Merlin knows what! You don't just get to tell me you love me and care and then not show it." If people weren't going to bother with her, well then she wasn't going to bother with them, either, and right now no one had shown they wanted her in their lives.​

 

[Eluned Strangewayes]

“I didn’t know you wanted me to!” Ned cried. “I didn’t used to have to ask you to invite me to things. We used to do everything together, we didn’t plan it, we just did. Now you’re off ‘gallivanting’ round the castle while I sit around on my own, waiting for you to show up. So project harder, you b!tch.” The b-word slipped out before she could stop it. “You don't care about me. Why am I the one who has to make all the effort to show I care? You haven’t made any. At least I try to chase after you when you’re upset. At least I care enough to ask you what’s wrong. Maybe I shouldn’t bother!”

 

[Ten Layton-King]

Ned was a hypocrite. Complaining that she didn't know Ten wanted her around, and yet in the same sentence claiming that she'd wasn't used to having to ask to be invited. "Why are you waiting for me to show up when you could be off doing something for yourself too!" It was true that Ten didn't know where Ned had been recently, but if she was going to pretend her time at Hogwarts required Ten's attention well maybe she'd attached herself too deeply to the Gryffindor. Ten wasn't responsible for Ned's happiness, in the same way Ten had never relied on her to make things right. Ten had actually started to make something of herself, and sure she'd only done that because Ned had told her to, but she'd still put in the work to find out what that was. Felix had been right though, things were always about her. Ned was just confirming it. "Okay sure, fine, I never care about anyone else but myself! I am a terrible friend, a terrible sister, so why don't you just leave me alone?"​

 

[Felix Layton-King]

Felix had been minding his own bloody business at the table when he heard the shouting come from outside the hall. He'd been debating the last few days whether or not to talk to his sister about the other afternoon, especially after the conversation he'd had with Tori. It was embarrassing quite frankly, to hear the girls arguing so loudly that a number of students around him were giggling to themselves. Felix excused himself from his dinner, making a beeline toward the hall.

The blond found the fifth years easily enough, although he was immediately confused why both of them were holding potatoes. He advanced quietly, trying not to raise alarm as he approached behind Eluned. Felix hadn't seen the girls hanging around together since.. well since Christmas at home, and by the sounds of it they were both feeling the effects of their absence. Chills ran down Felix's spine as his sister announced to everyone, she was a terrible sister. That wasn't entirely the case, although he was partly responsible for feeling that way. Felix glanced at Eluned when he reached her level, the blonde hair striking against her features. No wonder Leda had been worried. "Can you both shut up?" he said, approaching the pair finally when he could get a word in edgeways. "The entire hall can hear you," a nod to some students lingering in the doorway behind them as he tried to motion to them to bog off. "Get in there!" Felix stood a little taller and pointed to a nearby classroom, hoping neither of the older girls would have the energy to argue with a second person.​

 

[Eluned Strangewayes]

Ned scoffed. So it was her fault Ten didn’t want to hang out with her any more, because she should have found something else to do? The girl was ridiculous. She wanted to be a victim, that was her problem. She’d hidden from Ned and expected her to realise there something was wrong. But until recently, they’d always told each other everything. So how was Ned supposed to know? She wasn’t a seer. Of course she was going to assume Ten didn’t want to hang out with her any more.

Yes, Eluned wanted to say, you are. But she didn’t have a chance before Felix butted in. Ugh - Felix. Well, he was obviously going to side with his sister. But Ned wasn’t ready to walk away. She was furious, but they couldn’t avoid this conversation forever; the dorm was already awkward enough. So she rolled her eyes and went into the classroom, dragging her feet.

 

[Ten Layton-King]

Ten was ready to just turn around and leave her aunt to it. She thought that a couple of tatties would win her over? Act like the last year hadn't happened? There was a lot Ten wished hadn't happened, and now she was here and there was nothing she could do about it. The easiest thing was just to accept it. Felix however decided then was the perfect time to get involved. She thought that her brother was about to have another go at her, to tell her she was terrible again and remind her that no one wanted to be her friend anymore, but instead they were ushered into an empty room away from the prying ears. Ten didn't care if anyone heard, but she was too shocked by the way Felix was commanding them around that by the time she'd regained some sense of her voice, the door had already closed behind them.

The Gryffindor was unusually speechless, and while she normally would have crossed her arms over her chest to keep some sort of sense of an uncaring demeanor, that was hard to do while laden with mashed potatoes. ​

 

[Felix Layton-King]

The fact that his plan had actually worked, made Felix beam with pride for himself. At least, on the inside because he didn't want the girls to see and think he'd given them a one-up. After A Loon Head and his sister moved into the room he closed the door behind them before following after, pausing a few feet away. He didn't have anything prepared. He didn't think bringing them in here was going to be a success.

"What the f*ck are you two arguing about this time?" They were like sisters themselves sometimes, always bickering with each other. "Wait, wait." No he needed a more methodical approach if he was going to stop them from talking over each other. "One at a time, not just why you're annoyed, but what you would need to be less annoyed," he clarified, gesturing first to his aunt. ​

 

[Eluned Strangewayes]

Now that Felix the Mediator was here, Ned suddenly felt a bit sheepish. She avoided looking either of them directly in the eye as she leaned against a table. “Ten thinks I don’t care about her because I don’t chase her around enough. Then when I do chase her around, she tells me to go away.” Ned shrugged. “She doesn’t even talk to me any more. Why should I bother?”

 

[Ten Layton-King]

The last time Ten saw Felix, he hadn't wanted anything to do with her, so why was he even here right now trying to keep the peace? The fifth year listened to Ned and had to agree though that did sound about right. "Ned doesn't care about me anymore. She used to just hang out with me and now she doesn't even try. She knows I'm in the greenhouse but never comes to visit me. I never know where she is, or what she's doing, she never tells me anything," Ten didn't even know she'd been wanting to dye her hair. She glanced toward her brother, feeling very exposed between them but what else did she have to lose. "You don't want me around, nor does Ned. Teddy barely notices me, Veronica is always busy. Dad doesn't care, Pho never writes, Leda is busy with the triplets and Mervyn only shouts at me," tears were rolling down the fifth years cheeks as she stared at the floor. Ten didn't know what would have to change for things to be better, for her not to be annoyed. But she'd all but given up trying to prove to others that she was worth noticing, she was just better off by herself.​

 

[Eluned Strangewayes]

Ned had managed not to cry thus far, but as soon as she saw tears rolling down Ten’s face, the emotion came. “I do want you around,” she said. “I just feel like you’re always angry with me. I feel like you want me to go away.” She hadn’t realised how much Ten has been going through. That was the problem, really - but she couldn’t accept full responsibility for her ignorance, not when Ten had pushed her away instead of opening up. Ned wiped her snot with her sleeve. “Why didn’t you tell me you were upset? Why did you make me think it was me? I’ve always listened when you needed me.” Merlin - Felix was going to be insufferable if he got them to make up with each other.

 

[Felix Layton-King]

Felix listened intently, his head darting from one to the other as they said out loud the root of the problem. Both of them felt like the other one didn't care anymore, but then both of them still cared about the other? It made no sense. "So you're both.. waiting for the other to make the first move?" he asked out loud, still glancing between them. This really didn't need to be so difficult.

Seeing Ten in tears for the second time that week was unsettling. As she listed off the people that didn't seem interested in what she was doing anymore, it made more sense the other day when she told him she didn't have anyone else. She wanted to be his friend and make amends because she didn't think she could talk to anyone else.

Ned started to talk to Ten before Felix had the chance to say anything, so he too took a step backwards to sit on the edge of one of the desks. Felix had thought it had been his fault too, and he nodded when Eluned pointed out that Ten, even if she thought she was a problem, had still managed to make others think it was their fault.​

 

[Ten Layton-King]

Ten wasn't sure why she was so certain Ned was lying, that she didn't want to be around her at all. "I'm not angry at you," she said truthfully, swiping at her own tears. She looked to the floor again when she was asked to explain herself. "I never tell you because, I don't know, I don't want to get in your way. I see you with your other friends, and you never tell me about them either. How can I tell you everything when you don't want to talk to me either?" she asked, glancing to her brother who seemed to have taken himself out of the circle.

"I don't want to be on my own, but if it means I stop making situations worse then I will," she shrugged. Mervyn had made it quite clear that she should have reigned herself in, that it was unkind to bully her brother. She could accept that, although she'd never apologized to his face. "I'm just tired of everyone being annoyed at me, or feeling sad for me, that it's easier just to work by myself."​

 

[Eluned Strangewayes]

When had Felix gotten so mature? Eluned didn’t like it. Mind you, he’d always been the sensible one. That was why she liked to pick on him so much. Mervyn had given her a stern talking to about that, too, but it hadn’t stopped her; making Felix miserable made her feel better.

She was a horrible person, wasn’t she? Only horrible people felt good about being mean. Maybe there was also a certain nostalgia to it. Bullying Felix was Ned and Ten’s favourite pasttime; if Ned stopped, would she lose the last part of their friendship?

No - that was a lousy excuse. She was a bully, plain and simple, and a rubbish friend to boot. It was true that she’d thought Ten didn’t want her around, and it was true that Ten hadn’t made much effort to hang out either, but Ned had been keeping secrets from her. She’d kissed Marama and purposely kept quiet about it, even before things had got messy. It was just… Well, Ten had her greenhouse and her gardening, and Ned had wanted something that was all hers. The secret was hers. She hadn’t meant to hurt Ten with it - only make herself feel special for a change.

“I didn’t mean to make you feel like that,” she said. “I’m sorry.” Her other friends weren’t really friends, but she could see why Ten would think they were. “You only make things worse when you run away. You’re my best friend. I always want to hang out with you. And, OK, I could have come down to the greenhouse more, but I thought you’d shout at me.” Fresh tears started to flow. She just wanted her best friend back, her partner in crime. “I miss you so much, Ten - I’m sorry I made you sad.”

 

[Ten Layton-King]

As Ned started to confess how she was feeling, it was becoming harder still to stop the flow of tears on her face. Suddenly she'd gone from not being able to cry at all to wetting her cheeks twice in one week. "You're my best friend too, I don't want you to go away or think I don't want you around," if Ned was happy to be there well then of course she was happy to have her. "I'm sorry too, that I made you think it was your fault or you'd done something wrong," she added, looking to Ned before moving her gaze over to Felix. "And I'm sorry to you too," Ten hadn't had a chance to update Ned on the conversation they'd had, "for making you feel like I didn't care about you, and for making things more difficult," Ten didn't expect things to change between her and Felix given he'd already made his feelings quite clear, but at least she could tell herself she'd apologized.

"I miss you too, I miss talking to you," she had a lot to update her best friend on, a lot had happened over the last year.​

 

[Felix Layton-King]

Felix silently sighed to himself as the girls made up, apologizing to one another and coming to a mutual understanding. How long would this have gone on if he hadn't interjected? Would he have returned to his dinner in the other room in a few minutes only to find one of his friends had eaten all his chicken wings? The second year knew in that moment that perhaps he did have a use in this strange trio. He may have been overlooked for years, but these two needed him even if they didn't realize it themselves.

No sooner had Felix decided he would try to slip out unnoticed, Ten addressed him with the first apology he'd ever witnessed in his direction. It caught him off guard, so all he could do was nod in reply before she was distracted again talking to Ned. He'd had time to think about how things had gone in his room the other day, and how he'd come to understand that even if Ten wasn't his friend, he still didn't want to leave a student in the castle feeling as though they didn't have anyone they could turn to.

Felix waited for the appropriate time to interject, before sliding off the desk and coming closer once more. In truth even though Ten had told him she wanted to get to know him, Felix still wasn't sure whether Ned shared her sentiments and so he only spoke toward his sister. "We should, do something together some time." It was casual, it didn't want a make a big deal of things, nor make anything awkward since there was already enough going on. But showing Ten he was willing to spend time with her? She had to know that would count for something.​

 

[Eluned Strangewayes]

Ned nodded. Now that she knew Ten wasn’t mad at her, she was going to go down to the greenhouse every single day. Maybe she’d even try her hand at gardening too. She’d never had Ten’s natural affinity for it, but she was sure she could make herself useful watering flowers or digging holes. Something nice and easy.

She went in for a hug, which first involved extricating the bowl spuds from Ten’s grip. Her own dinner was probably cold by now, if it hadn’t been pinched by an opportunistic first year, but she didn’t care. As she let go of Ten, she stuck a finger in the mash and scooped some out to nibble on. Oh - right. This was probably a good time to apologise to Felix as well. If he didn’t want to hang out with Ned then, well, she could respect that, but he still deserved her kindness for a change. “Hey - Felix,” she said, trying to lean nonchalantly on the table. “You’re OK. Sorry for laughing at you, and pushing you in lakes, and um… stuff. I won’t do it any more.”

 

[Ten Layton-King]

As the potatoes were prized out of Ten's grasp, she knew Ned was going for a hug. She didn't really like them to be quite honest, but it felt like the kind of situation where it was appropriate. Ten gave Ned a squeeze in return, followed by a mandatory pat on the back to let her know that enough was enough, before pulling away again. If this meant now that she wasn't about to be left in the dark by her best friend then she was glad Felix had intervened, this time.

However hearing Felix's offer to hang out, took Ten more by surprise than she thought she would've been. Despite his previous comments about not wanting to be around her, he was now willing to spend time with her? Had he had time to think over her previous offer or was he just feeling sorry for her? Either way, if this was the opportunity she needed to prove to him that she did care and did want to know more about her brother, then she was going to take it with both hands. She nodded quickly, trying not to make too big of a thing of the way her heart felt like it was doing flips in her chest, before looking back to Ned who was now eating her lunch. "Oi," she may have made up with her but that was no excuse for her eating her mash. "Get yer filthy fingers out my food," she joked, half a smile on her face as she made back for her bowl. They would be okay.​

 

[Felix Layton-King]

Felix wasn't entirely sure whether or not to believe Ned when she said she'd stop pushing him in a lake. What would happen when Ten's back was turned? Regardless he gave her a small smile, glad that at least she was apologizing for it in the past. "You should both know I now run a student campaign," he told them, not wanting to hide the fact that he was working on helping the others that didn't feel comfortable in the school, for whatever the reason. "For students that are struggling. Whether that's because they're being bullied," it took all of his effort not to look at his sister as he said it, "or because they're struggling to fit in at school." They were bound to find out sooner or later, especially when the next school newspaper was released. If now was a good time for anything, it was a good time for being open. "I hope you mean it when you say you won't do it again, because for the longest time it was because of both of you that I didn't feel like I fit in," perhaps it would help Ten to know context of why he hadn't wanted to be her friend, too. "I can put it behind me, but don't think I won't do something about it if you try again." Sure, it was a threat, but the fact he seemed to have somehow found the confidence to tell the girls such only proved to him even more that he'd found a home in coming to Hogwarts. ​