Okay, this chapter is definitely darker. The boy is Harry's age, and he's talking about his family. Yeah, I know it's cliché, but there's this idea I want to work in, and it's introduced to Harry by means of this kid. I'm sure you can all guess who he is, but Harry's rather thick, and I can prove it too. He doesn't know, at least not yet.
Enjoy! (or not, really, it's up to you, but I hope you enjoy it.)
Wolf-Child
Harry leaned forward and closed his hand over the hand holding the knife. "Yes. Friend. Now please, tell me why you want to kill yourself."
The boy studied him for a moment before lifting his left sleeve. Harry recoiled slightly at the ugly red skull on his arm.
"Pretty, isn't it? Father made me get it last Hogsmeade weekend. Father always wants me to be the best. Top of the class, youngest Death Eater . . . it doesn't matter to him, so long as I'm the best. Doesn't matter to me either. I'm never good enough. I'm a prefect, I have the highest scores in my house, but Granger's better. I received my mark last week, but so did a rotten third year. I can't throw off the Imperius curse, but Potter can. The only thing I have that my father approves of is my looks, but that isn't even mine. It's Father's."
Now that the boy had gotten started, it seemed easier for him to continue. Harry got the impression that the boy was releasing years of pent-up anger and frustration. The boy took a deep breath and continued.
"I've always been a disappointment to my father; as far back as I can remember. He always delights in finding new ways to punish me."
"What about your mother?" Harry had to interrupt.
"My mother?" The boy laughed harshly. "My mother is a frigid bitch, pardon my language. As long as she can dress up prettily, she cares for nothing else. Why on earth should she care for me? Merlin forbid, I made her fat!"
Harry thought the boy had stopped, but a minute later he found he was wrong.
"My father is planning to challenge Voldemort. He's going to try to take over as a Dark Lord with the support of the good guys."
"Dumbledore would never allow that!"
"Dumbledore would be the first to go! I've overheard my father talking about this plan. The worst part is that he actually has a chance to be successful!"
"Do you want him to succeed?"
"Yes . . . and no. It would be great to get Voldemort out of the picture, but my father is a cold genius. Once he gets in power, no one will be able to stop him." The boy studied Harry curiously. "Have you ever been torn between what you know you should do and what you know you can do?"
Harry smiled wryly as memories resurfaced. First year with the stone, second year with the chamber, third year with Sirius, fourth year with his Voldemort duel, and fifth year with a boy who desperately needed a friend. "Yeah, yeah I have."
"What did you do?"
Harry paused, trying to figure out the best way of phrasing it. "Well . . . most of the time I went with what I should do and found it usually was the same as what I could do."
"What should I do?"
Harry shook his head. "I can't tell you that. You have to listen to your heart and your mind, and do what they tell you to." There was an uncomfortable pause. Harry gestured at the entrance. "Ready to face the world again?"
"Yeah, I think so," the boy smiled. Harry slid out of the statue first and helped the other down. "Potter, do you think Dumbledore' side would accept me?"
Harry's eyes widened. "You know who I am!?! But how?"
The boy pointed at Harry's eyes. "There's only one Gryffindor with those bewitching eyes."
"You pay attention to my eyes?"
"They're far more interesting then Binns' lectures," he shrugged.
"Should I be flattered?"
"Why not?"
"We're both male!" Uncle Vernon had always drilled it into Harry's head that two men together intimately was wrong, evil, and demonic. Then again, now that he thought about it, Uncle Vernon also always insisted magic was wrong, evil, and demonic too.
"Potter, we live in a world where there are giant/human, wolf/werewolf, and hag/banshee relationships, along with many more scary ones. How can male/male of the same species be considered disturbing?" He laughed. "Honestly Potter, you're acting like a homophobic muggle!"
Harry sputtered. The boy laughed again and kissed him on the cheek. Under his mask, Harry flushed bright red.
"Thank you," the boy whispered against the mask. "See you tomorrow." With that, he spun on his heel and dashed back into the castle, leaving a dazed Harry to touch his cheek.
Ron and Hermione went with Harry to pick up Noko after the ball. Remus greeted them with a tired smile. Noko was curled up in his bed.
"She slept most of the night away, no trouble at all."
Ron shoved Harry playfully. "See Harry! I told you she was fine! You didn't have to keep checking the map!"
"The map!" Harry cried, searching his pockets. "I forgot to wipe it! Where is it? Oh, please don't say I lost it! Fred and George will kill me!"
Remus deposited Noko in Harry's arms. "Don't fret, Harry. I'm sure it will turn up in the morning. Now go get some sleep, or you'll regret it tomorrow."
~Crawler