The Dark Side

[Liam Kale]

Liam kicked against the cold stone wall of the Dungeon. It was so dark down here, the dark side of Hogwarts perhaps? was this where bullies hung out? Was this where fights happened? He didn't know, he didn't really like it, but he wanted to explore, and this was the part of the Castle that he didn't know very well. He sat down on the ground, lying his head against the cool wall, and flattening his hair against his head. He'd already been here a full term, and he had no real close friend. He knew a lot of people, but nobody really well. He closed his eyes, feeling incredibly homesick. He missed Cat, she'd be turning four soon. He'd have to get her a present, or maybe he could make her something? She always liked it when he made things. He could try building her something, or whittling something. Who did she dance with? Gran wasn't able for it, she was too old. Who did she show her pictures to? Mother? Maybe? Father-no-he was always busy.

She hadn't sent him any pictures recently. He hoped she wouldn't forget him. He adored his sister. He wouldn't cry. He knew he wouldn't cry. He never cried, but he did miss her. He stood up, and stuck his hands in his pockets, not sure what he was doing with himself. He could be studying, or doing homework, but instead he was here, wishing something would happen, something to liven him up a bit. He really needed a laugh.

 

[Kyle Cavanaugh]

Kyle was back at Hogwarts New Zealand after spending the holidays with his family back in London. He couldn't decide whether he had liked his time off school or not. With his mother it had been fun and normal but between his father and him, it had been a whole different deal. Kyle was trying as hard as he could to not think about the boring parties and formal events that he was forced to attend by his father. The seasons were finally taking a turn and the summer of the southern hemisphere was fading away but the dungeons remained cooler then the rest of the castle above it and Kyle felt the need to pull out his jacket as he strolled through them.

Kyle was trying to cool his mind which had an attack when he had discovered that his father had taken away his broomstick. At first Kyle could not understand the reason behind this. He had got all straight O's in first term and for sure Patrick Cavanaugh could not stop Kyle's flying. The owl which he had received from his father,a few minutes back had explained that his broomstick needed some special maintenance. Kyle wanted to punch someone or find some way to take out the anger he felt right now. Kyle was not usually angry but what his father had done was outrageous. His broomstick had been brand new and he was taking very good care of it. Due to such turn of events he had decided to come down to the dungeons were he could find an empty classroom and shout or cry perhaps.

He looked at the dungeon walls which were illuminated by very little light that came from the oil lamps. They looked old and some parts of the wall even had some small writings or drawings scribbled in them. He was not bothered to see what students before him had written on the walls because at the moment he was too occupied with the thoughts that ran through his mind. Kyle realized as he walked a little further that despite coming to the dungeons for a whole term for his Potions he had never really seen other parts of it. Spotting a door that was half open he wondered if someone was in the room to which the door led. Pushing the heavy door aside to fully open it he scanned the empty classroom. It was dusty and seemed like no one had used it for sometime now. As he made his way into the classroom, Kyle could no longer hold his anger and let them out in a loud angry shout. The young gryffindor hit one of the tables that fell to the ground and also ended up sending impulse of pain through his leg. This time, Kyle did not make any noise due to the pain that had risen in his leg. Angry tears escaped his chocolate brown eyes and he let them flow. Finding it hard to stand, Kyle sat down on the dusty floor in a corner of the room as he continued to cry.

 

[Liam Kale]

Liam took out his wand, passing it idly from hand to hand. He wished he could've brought Obi Wan to Hogwarts with him. He had Yoda of course, and he loved the owl, but it wasn't the same. He always worried that Obi wasn't getting enough exercise. A jockey had told him he'd do it, and one of the stable-hands was going to help in the evenings, but he missed his horse. Plus-his Faher had already been to two Pride's games, and Liam desperately wanted news of the Magpies. It was weir not having news straight away. He felt like an inadequate supporter. He hadn't been training for rugby at all. His coach would be raging.

His head snapped up, his eyes adjusting to the dim light. He'd had them closed, and so didn't see the shadow that passed through the room. He was sure he'd heard footsteps. Who else would be down here? Surely nobody would come here by choice? He recognised the irony in the thought and chuckled to himself. Perhaps this would be his adventure for the day. He was being careful about going into the forest since he was caught with Minoas. Professor Kingsley wouldn't be happy with him if he got into more trouble. He wasn't even sure if he was allowed be down here. If he were caught he could plead ignorance. He doubted it was out of bounds-if it was he hadn't been told.

Now, for the mysterious noise. There were doors to the right and left-which should he try first? It was as he was wondering this that a loud cry, and bang came from behind one of the doors. He walked over, cautious. Someone was angry. He opened the door a crack and saw a boy, a boy around his age-he recognised him from class-a fellow Gryffindor. He was huddled on the ground, crying Liam thought. What was he supposed to do? He couldn't leave the poor lad there. He strode over to him and sat beside him; "Hallo-I'm Liam, are you alright?" he asked, then frowned; "Well, tha's a stupid question, anything I cin do to help you?" he suggested. He didn't thin he knew this guy well enough to hug him or anything, but he wasn't going to laugh at him either.

 

[Kyle Cavanaugh]

Kyle had tried to convince himself many times to take things lightly, especially when his father was behind them but sometimes it was just to hard for this twelve year old. Just because his father owned a broomstick manufacturing company and knew a lot about brooms did not mean that he could gift his son a brand new broomstick that was not yet released in the market and a few months later take it back and to top it all send to this news with an owl. Most of the times Kyle was his happy and cheerful friendly self but this part of him was new and no one at Hogwarts had seen him cry so far.He would have hoped it to remain that way because he was not weak and being seen like this would just give others a reason to think so and bully him. But today was not the day when things went according to Kyle' s hopes. As he sat on the dusty cold floor of the dungeons, crying he realized the sound of the door's crack. Someone had heard him and was soon going to find him in this weak state. Kyle quickly wiped away his tears and squinted his eyes as he tried to stop more angry tears to flow. He took a deep breath and tried to clear his mind as he heard the sound of a young boy. He did not look up to see who it belonged to because the name ringed a bell in his mind and the boy was fast approaching him. Wiping away a few more tears he recognized the boy's face as it finally came into focus in front of his eyes. He had seen Liam in classes and in the dormitory but they hadn't got a chance to have a proper chat. Kyle was not worried about not having had a chat with Liam before because by the tone of the boy it seemed like he was worried and concerned and Kyle knew he would have to explain Liam that he was fine.

The one thing that had happened right today was that Kyle had chosen to wear his glasses instead of his contacts. Contacts made him look presentable but his glasses were more comfortable and with all this crying his contacts would have probably been damaged or something. Kyle got hold of his glasses which were lying on the floor beside him and put them on as he looked into the familiar face of his classmate. "No thanks. I'll be alright" Kyle said ,his British accent reflecting in his voice even more than usual as he had been crying. He hoped that Liam would leave him and never mention this to anyone. Kyle did not want everyone to know that he was crying like a girl in the dungeons. That would be embarrassing and so far Kyle had managed to get himself noticed when he had played a master prank with Wes on Halloween and had gotten Gryffindor to lose twenty points. Many Gryffindors especially seniors had not liked this and had stared at him for at least two weeks. The last thing that Kyle wanted was for everyone to tease him about this. He shuddered to imagine what their Qudditch Captain Ms. Snow would say when she found out that the reason for this had been because he had no broom! Surely he would be kicked out of the team. Looking up once again to meet Liam's eyes he asked "Are you going to tell people that I was crying?" His eyes searched the young face of the boy trying to figure out if he would do that. Kyle's head was filled with too much emotions and anger and having never talked to Liam before did not help him to figure out if the other Gryffindor boy was friendly or not.

 

[Liam Kale]

Liam had never seen a boy cry before. He'd seen his sister cry, and his Mother, and even his gran, but the furthest his Father had ever gotten was watery-eyed at Grandfather's funeral. Liam was the same, even during his worst falls, he'd never cried. There must be something seriously wrong with this boy, or perhaps he was just more sensitive than Liam. Liam didn't really take life that seriously, so nothing much upset him. If something happened to Cat, or to his family-that woudl be the end of his world. He just sat beside the other boy-what was his name? Karl? Myles? Something between the two... He sat for a moment, trying to remember and it popped into his head; "Ye'r name's Kyle isn't it?" he smiled, glad to have remembered it. In so many ways, he was still a child. He'd never encountered deep emotion. he had a simple, happy life. Noy much toys, plenty of animals, and space and fun. It was all he needed. that, his broom and rugby. He'd even give up dancing, though he really enjoyed it. He wasn't entirely sure what to do, and scratched the back of his head as he watched the boy pick up his glasses, and he recognised the accent; "Oh-you're British too!" he grinned, crossing his legs beside him; "I'm from Scotland meself, it's so warm here don'tcha think?" he conversed casually, choosing to ignore the fact that Kyle was still crying, and give him a chance to compose himself.

He waited as Kyle composed himself, and looked up at him. He hoped he was okay. At Kyle's question, Liam frowned, his eyebrows creasing; "Why would I do tha'?" he asked, tilting his head to one side. Cruelty was a foreign idea to Liam. He'd never bullied, or treated anyone badly. Why would anyone do that It didn't seem right or fair. "I dunno who you've been hangin' around mate, but if you're afrad I'd tell-they mustn't be the nicest of people." he added, looking striahgt at Kyle; "Why were you crying anyway?" he asked, genuinely interested. He hoped asking wouldn't upset him again. Liam wasn't very good at comforting people-his Mother was. She smelt of lavender, and worre soft, comfy clothes, that were good to snuggle into if you were scared or sad. Cat was, she would rub his hair if he were annoyed, and sing her little childish lullaby to him, but Liam took after his Father, and Grandmother, both of whom believed in being a man, and facing up to your problems, no time for moping. Liam didn't necessarily agree, but this kind of idea suited him, suited his personality. Kyle was different to him, he supposed, more like Cat, and if he were like Cat-he was sure he'd like him.

 

[Kyle Cavanaugh]

Kyle tried to calm and compose himself. Despite the dislike that he currently felt towards his father he recalled being told that he should always put up a brave face and stay cool, not let anyone see his emotions. Kyle knew his father could easily do that and so could many other people and Kyle was slowly learning to do that but today he had slipped. He was twelve after all and it drove him mad when he was expected to act all grown up like a man. Kyle nodded as Liam asked to confirm if he had gotten Kyle's name right. Cleaning his glasses that had caught the dust from the ground he put them on once again and noticed that Liam was smiling and had sat down beside him. Kyle took this to be a positive sign. Maybe his day wasn't going to go very bad after all. He nodded once again as the boy recognized his accent and asked if Kyle too thought that New Zealand was warmer. "Its cooler in the dungeons but I don't think the would ever freeze like winter in London" Kyle said, his mood lighting up a little as Liam continued to talk to him. Kyle wondered if the boy thought he was over emotional for crying.

Kyle was watching Liam to see his reaction to his question. The frowning did not help but the words did. Kyle now felt his cheeks turn a little red as Liam asked him back why he would do that. Kyle had only had proper conversation with two other gryffindor first years, one was Tybalt who he had later found out was colourblind and the second was Nikandros. Nikandros had not been very nice and had clearly tried his best to scare Kyle that night in the forest. Kyle had been proud that he had been able to stand up to him but after this two encounters he was not sure what he expected Liam to be like. "I'm sorry but I had to ask" Kyle stated hoping that Liam would not be offended. "Yes not all people I know are nice" he agreed confirming what Liam was guessing about the company that Kyle had in his first term. He was usually with Rose but other than her he hadn't made any other close friends. Kyle was glad that his voice had come back to normal and he was calm again.

Kyle had secretly been hoping since he arrived at Hogwarts that he would be normal and mix with witches and wizards his own age and so far everything had been going great. He had gotten a chance to do his own bed and even learn to cook a few things and no one had recognized him as the son of one of the richest wizards from Europe. He was also not planning to tell anyone in detail about the sucess of his father's business and luckily no one had asked him so far but Liam had asked him why he was crying. Kyle could not think of a way in which he could explain the boy the exact situation that Kyle was in at the moment without explaining him all the details and Kyle did not know where to begin. With a shrug he said, admitting the truth "My father thought my broomstick needed maintenance." After he said the words he realized how crazy he must have sounded to Liam. With a chuckle he continued "My broom was very new and I was taking care of it. The model is not even officially out in the market yet." Kyle was not good at this type of conversation. He was usually on the other end and he asked the right questions and said the right things to comfort people. He hoped Liam would not think that he was mental and leave. Kyle's mood was just getting better and maybe talking about what was bothering him would help him feel better.

 

[Liam Kale]

Liam visibly brightened; "It's sorta dark in here." he commented, taking out his wand; "Lumos." The light of his wand lit up the room a bit more, and he could see Kyle more clearly; "I dinae think I've seen you in glases before." he grinned; "They suit you." His Gran had to wear glasses for reading, and when she was making potions they would fog up from the steam. It looked funny, and the image stuck in his head whenever people mentioned glasses. He nodded as Kyle answered him about London; "I've only been to London a few times, for parties, and for meeting family-most of us are in Scotland. The snow here isnae as thick as the snow in the Highlands-tha's where I live. Still, all the green reminds me of home." he smiled, hoping he was cheering Kyle up; "Do you live in London, I'm a country lad, we work with horses, and Father thinks it'd be stupid to get a house further South when we spend all our time in the castle." he rambled, not realisiing it probably wasn't polite to talk about himself so much. Mother wouldn't like it, but in the semi-darkness, he'd let himself forget about being gentlemanly and proper. This was much more interesting.

Liam frowned in confusion once more as Kyle began to blush. He hadn't complimented him or anything had he? He hoped he wasn't making him feel uncomfortable. Anxiously, Liam ran his hand up and down the handle of his Holly/Ebony wand. Then, he answered him, and he laughed slightly; "I understand, I donnae really know that many people here-I was banned from outdoors during First term, an' I missed the snow." he admitted, smiling wryly. That had not been enjoyable. "Do you know many people-have you met anyone from other houses?" he asked eagerly, wondering if Kyle had made many friends; "I met an older boy in the forest-his name's Minoas and he seemed pretty nice." he added, he hoped Kyle didn't know about the points they'd lost for Gryffindor. It had been so terrible.

Liam waited patiently for Kyle to respond, to explain why he was upset. It must be terrible. He looked at Kyle, as he shrugged and then when he spoke about his broom, Liam raised an eyebrow-he was crying, because his broom needed maintenance? However, Kyle did explain himself, and Liam completely understood; "Really? Tha's terrible!" he replied, sitting straight, his eyes wide; "If it was only a few weeks old-why did it need maintenance? I've a Streak at home-Ruby to match Gryffindor. Imagine having a broom tha's not on the marktet! that'd be so cool!" he said all of this in a rush, Quidditch was a huge part of his life, and his was imagining the magic of having such a broom when a thought occured to him; "Does it really matter though if First Years aren't allowed bring their brooms?" he asked, looking at Kyle quizzically. It had been so hard to leave his broom behind, and he couldn't wait to try for the team next year-if his grades were good enough. If they weren't-he wouldn't be allowed join.

 

[Kyle Cavanaugh]

As Liam lighted up the room a bit, Kyle could see more clearly how dusty the room was and the dark shadows that Liam and him made against the walls. His eyes took a minute to adjust to the light but it was not very bright and did not hurt his eyes. He smiled as he heard Liam comment that he had not seen Kyle in glasses before. "Yes, I don wear glasses much. I usually wear contacts" Kyle explained to Liam still smiling as not many people thought that glasses suited him. His father thought different as usual and had told Kyle he would be getting a laser treatment to correct his eyesight once he was eighteen. Kyle was not so sure that he wanted to do that and that was not because he was afraid of lasers but because he wanted to be the way he was. And it was going to be a long time from now and then Kyle would be making his own decisions whether his father liked it or not. "I've never been to Scotland. Is it fun to live in the highlands?" he asked Liam curiously. Kyle did have some relatives up north but they usually visited London and he had never gotten chance to visit their home yet. Kyle nodded as Liam asked if he, Kyle lived in London. "Yes we've got our estates just on the outskirts on London but with all the cars and wizarding transport its equivalent to living in city center"

Kyle was glad when Liam said he understood but as the boy mentioned the part of being banned from outdoors Kyle was instantly curious to know more but he was taught not to be nosy. Liam seemed like a nice lad who liked to talk and if he wanted to share then he would but if not Kyle was not going to ask. "I know a few. I know two people from Ravenclaw...two from Slytherin and one puff" he said counting the first years he had so far had been able to talk to and have proper conversations. As Liam mentioned Minoas Kyle instantly recognized the name as he had been the chaser from their team who had scored most of the goals in the last Qudditch match. Kyle grinned and said "He's brilliant chaser." Kyle had been thinking that from all the first years he would be knowing the least people possible but he suddenly realized how bad it must have been for poor Liam to be banned from outdoors in his very first term at Hogwarts and here he was brave and not crying about it. "Have you seen any part of Hogwarts then? I mean the lake, cliffs, Qudditch pitch and what about Brightstone village?"

Kyle watched Liam's reaction that changed from a shrug to what seemed like surprise or maybe shock. Kyle heard Liam as he spoke of his broom being a Ruby Streak. Kyle had flown on one of those and they were cool. Kyle wouldn't mind having a normal ordinary broom as long as he was allowed to keep it. "My father owns a broomstick manufacturing company. He likes to think that he can control everything about brooms and Qudditch and ...my life which so far seems to be true" Kyle explained to Liam who seemed nice and as Kyle had not really talked to him before today Kyle was assured he would not be surprised the way Rose might be if she knew what kind of person Kyle's father was. When people knew other people it was common for them to make an opinion about each other and such but with new people that could be avoided. Kyle now was grinning, a little proud as he said the next words "First years are allowed to bring a broom if they make it into the Qudditch team. I got selected to be an alternate seeker or chaser. I asked Ms.Snow, the captain if they made exceptions and she said I should try out"