Chapter 15 – Initial Conversations
Darren woke up on Sunday morning feeling well. He was sure that last night had been a dream. A bad dream, but still only a dream. He rolled over in bed and felt someone next to him. He opened his eyes to see Cho looking at him, a small smile on her face. She leaned in to him and kissed him softly.
"Good morning Darren," she said to him.
Darren could not help but smile in return. Even with all that had happened last night before he had met her here, he was in a good mood now.
"Good morning Cho."
She moved closer to him and laid her head on his bare chest. Her hair and the faint smell of strawberries flowed over him and he closed his eyes to enjoy the moment. Cho lay very still and he caressed her back softly as she lay still in his arms. Darren could feel years of emotion welling up in him, due to both Cho and the Dark Lord, and he felt a small tear leak from his eye. With his free hand he wiped it away before Cho saw it, but she could tell there was something wrong and she asked him about it.
"Are you okay Darren?"
He thought about telling her the truth but decided against it.
"Yes, I'm good. I am just so happy to be with you, that's all."
It was the truth, just not the entire truth, and that made him feel badly that he had not been entirely honest with her.
"I know you are," she said teasingly. "Last night was very nice. O hope we can do it again soon."
"Me too," Darren replied.
Cho then sat up, the silk sheets sliding off of her back and started to get up. Darren did not want to go. After everything that had happened lately, he wanted to stay here forever with her. He had been infatuated, possibly in love with her for almost three years. When he was in his third year, he had passed it off with teenage infatuation, but now he realized exactly what it was. He did love her, but he probably could never tell her. Not now, not after what he had been ordered to do. It would put her in a very bad situation, and he could not have that on his conscience.
Cho picked her watch up off of the bedside table and looked at the time.
"Come on Darren, we better get going. It is almost nine and breakfast is almost over."
She pulled the sheets off of him and laughed at his nakedness. Darren laughed and pulled the covers back. He then took her by the hand and pulled her back to him, back to the bed, back to where he wanted her more than anything else right then.
His hand was on her body touching her softly and making her skin break out in chills. He kissed her shoulder softly and then moved down to her breasts. Cho had his head in her hands and was holding him closely. Her moans were coming louder with each passing second and suddenly she pushed him forcefully back down on the bed and took him one more time before they left the room that Darren hoped he would be meeting her in again very soon.
At eleven, breakfast was out of the question. Darren had left the Room of Requirement five minutes after Cho. He was quite hungry as he had not had anything to eat since dinner last night. He had spent the night walking to Hogsmeade and back, and then the rest of the night had been spent with Cho. Actually, he had the feeling that he was feeling what it felt like to starve, but he knew that was not the case as he walked to the Great Hall in the hope of finding something to tide him over until lunch. In the Hall he saw some house elves cleaning up after the other students and he walked up to one that was wearing several pairs of socks and a large amount of hats.
"Excuse me," he said to the house elf.
The house elf turned quickly to see Darren towering over him. A pair of huge green eyes peered at Darren from under the hats it was wearing.
"Morning sir, morning!" the elf said cheerily. "What can Dobby do for you sir?"
"Umm, well, I was hoping that there might be anything left to eat since I umm, sort of overslept."
"Oh yes sir! We have lots of things in the kitchens. What would master like?"
"Well, how about some toast bacon and sausages?" Darren asked hopefully.
"Oh right away sir! No problem, no problem at all."
And then Dobby disappeared in thin air with a loud snap.
'How can a house elf disapparate when a person can't?' Darren found himself thinking when Dobby returned with a large platter full of what he had asked for along with a pitcher of orange juice and a goblet. There was enough for five people and Darren thanked the elf for his kindness.
"Oh it is no worry sir. We are most happy to do what is needed."
"Well, thanks again Dobby," Darren said.
"You're most welcome sir, most welcome. Now, if you will excuse me, there is lots more work to be done."
"Of course Dobby and thanks again."
Surprisingly to him, Darren ate almost the entire platter of food. He was apparently even hungrier than he realized. After finishing, he washed it all down with the juice and decided to leave the platter where it was. He had no idea where he would put it anyway. Out in the Entrance Hall he decided to take a walk on the grounds. It was a fine cool day but not cold enough to discourage people from walking the grounds. Outside he saw a lot of students enjoying the clear weather. The Creevey brothers, as usual, were in a corner of the courtyard attempting some sort of magical spell that seemed to not be working. There was a large scorch mark on the wall that looked to Darren as if it was fresh. He just smiled to himself and shook his head as he kept walking.
He had been walking for quite a while when he found himself at the pen that held Brogan the Griffin. Brogan was alone and seemed to perk up at the sight of Darren. Darren had always felt more secure around Brogan for some reason. The Griffin was an animal that only trusted Harry and Darren in the sixth year class. Whether anyone else in the school was looked on that way by the animal was unknown to Darren, but he had the feeling that he and Potter were the only ones that could approach Brogan.
Darren leaned on the pen and found himself wondering how the pen held Brogan in. It wasn't tall; no more than one and a half meters, and Brogan was at least five meters tall at the neck. He could easily just step over the fence and fly away if he wanted, but something kept him there.
"Why do you stay Brogan?" Darren asked. "Hmm? Do you have to stay or do you have a reason?"
Brogan just leaned his large head down and nuzzled Darren in the shoulder. Darren put his hand on Brogan's beak and rubbed it as if the Griffin were a cat. Brogan made a sound that sounded like he was happy and then Darren heard someone clearing their throat behind him. Brogan looked up and Darren turned quickly to see Professor Lupin standing there.
"Hello Darren," Professor Lupin said. "I see you have found Brogan."
"Yes sir," Darren replied sheepishly.
Being seen cuddling with a Griffin was not something he had wanted to happen, but now that it had, he was at least glad that it was Professor Lupin that saw him instead of Snape, or worse Malfoy and his friends.
Lupin started to come closer to the pen but Darren told him to stop.
"Griffins only let people they trust approach them Professor. Don't come any closer."
But Professor Lupin kept walking until he was close enough to reach out and touch Brogan's beak. To Darren's surprise Brogan did not bite or pull away. Instead he let Professor Lupin rub his beak and he made the same noise he made when Darren had come to see him. Darren could not help but have a look of curiosity on his face and Professor Lupin let out a little laugh at Darren's confusion.
"Brogan and I have known each other ever since I was a student here Darren. We have been friends for almost twenty five years."
"But…?"
"But what, Darren?" Professor Lupin asked.
"Well, Professor Grubbly-Plank said Brogan is a young Griffin, so how could he and you be here at the school at the same time?"
"Well, actually Brogan is almost fifty years old. Griffins live for centuries, so technically he is a young Griffin. He won't be fully grown until he is almost one hundred years old. By then he will stand at least ten meters tall at the shoulder and weigh more than one thousand kilograms."
'Wow,' was all that came to Darren's mind at the last bit of information.
"No wonder it is the enemy of a Basilisk. It is one of the few creatures able to fight it."
"True, but also because it is also the opposite of everything a Basilisk is. A Basilisk is only able to be controlled by a Parselmouth. Hence, the Basilisk is usually controlled by a dark wizard. Snakes also, and that is why snakes have suck a bad reputation in the wizarding world. Griffins however are only able to be controlled by someone it trusts completely."
"So, you or I could actually get Brogan to do what we wanted then sir?"
"Well, it will only do what it is asked if it thinks that the task is an honorable one. It would not attack someone solely because we asked it to. It would however accompany someone on a task or journey if he felt that person was in grave danger or if he felt the task was worthy of his attention."
"'Worthy of his attention'?"
"Yes, a creature such as the Griffin will not go along on just any adventure. They will only go if they believe it is, as I said, worthy of his attention. If you explain the situation to a Griffin that trusts you, he will then make his decision to accompany you or not. If he does, he will do everything in his power to see the task through and to protect that person he accompanies even if it causes his death."
Darren did not answer the last statement. Instead he looked at Brogan who was staring at him in anticipation that Darren might pick up a deaf ferret from the bucket that was next to him. Darren tossed a ferret and Brogan gulped it down without taking a bite.
"Griffins are the most loyal magical creature known to us. It will fight a Basilisk on sight, no matter how young or small the Griffin may be and no matter how large the Basilisk is."
Darren let that sink in for a few moments. It was information that could be useful in the future and Darren tucked it away in his memories for possible future use.
The teacher and student spent the next few minutes in quiet for several minutes as they fed Brogan and groomed his neck feathers. Brogan seemed to be enjoying the attention and made several attempts to nip playfully at them. The two had to be careful to not let him actually bite them, no matter how lightly. Brogan may have been playing, but even a small nip could cause a grievous injury.
"Well Darren, I must get back to the school. I hope you have done your homework this weekend because we will be discussing the Unforgivable Curses next class time."
"But sir, we already went over them with Professor Moody two years ago."
"Yes, but Professor Dumbledore feels that since it is well known now that Voldemort is back that it would be wise to have a refresher course."
Darren had never heard anyone except Professor Dumbledore say Voldemort's name and it surprised him to hear Professor Lupin say it so casually.
"So Darren, you had better make sure you get you reading done before the next class. Have a good day."
Lupin turned to leave but was stopped short by Darren.
"Sir, I have a question about the Unforgivable Curses, if you don't mind that is."
"Can it wait until class Darren?"
"I don't think so sir."
"Okay, then go ahead. What is your question?"
"Well, it has to do with the Avada Kedavra curse sir."
Lupin's eyebrows raised in surprise at the curse Darren was going to ask about.
"Go on," he said.
"Well, I know that wizards and Muggles have spirits and that for some reason only magical people can become ghosts, but can they do so if they are killed by the curse, or only if they die in a non-magical way?"
Professor Lupin rubbed his mouth before answering. "Well, it is true that only magical people can become ghosts, but they can only become ghosts if they are killed in a non-magical manner. If someone, whether Muggle or wizard is killed with Avada Kedavra their spirit becomes trapped in the wand that takes their life."
"So, they are trapped there forever then?" Darren asked in wonderment.
"No not forever. At least not all the time. If the wand is broken then the spirits trapped inside will be released. Other things can draw the spirits out of the wand, but they can only be released by the destruction of the wand."
"What if the wizard that is responsible for the deaths is killed? Would that release the spirits as well?"
"No, only snapping the wand in half will do it because when a wand is completely broken it will lose its ability to channel magical power and become useless. Once it is useless, it therefore would release the spirits trapped inside it."
Darren just nodded his head at the answers and looked at the ground.
"Why do you ask Darren?"
Darren did not look up because he did not want Professor Lupin to see the tears that were welling up in his eyes.
"It is just something that I thought of while reading what you assigned us, that's all."
"Well, if you are still curious about ghosts, you can ask on of the ones that live in Hogwarts Castle. I know a lot about the Dark Arts, but how or why a person becomes a ghost is beyond my knowledge. I would expect that Sir Nick would be able to help you Darren."
"I might just do that sir. Thank you."
"You're welcome. See you in class."
Lupin turned and headed back to the castle to do whatever it was he did on a Sunday afternoon. Darren decided to stay with Brogan for a while longer until it was time for lunch. After about twenty more minutes he checked his watch and saw that there was thirty minutes left until lunch stopped being served. He got up from where he had been sitting and started to leave. However Brogan nudged him and made a gesture with his head towards the last ferret. Darren laughed and gave it to him. As the Griffin swallowed the treat Darren rubbed him goodbye and made his way back to school.
In the Great Hall he found Neville sitting with Seamus and Dean. They all smiled knowingly at him as he sat down and helped himself to a plate of cold cut sandwiches. None of them said anything but Darren could tell that they had probably been talking about him and the fact that he had not returned to the dormitory last night. Finally Dean spoke up.
"So, how was the Ball last night Darren?"
The three of them looked at each other as if they did not believe that he would answer, but that the question had to be asked anyway. At least it had to be asked by a group of sixteen year old boys.
"It was good," Darren answered.
"I bet it was," Seamus said.
"What does that mean?" Darren said coolly.
"Nothing, nothing at all," Seamus said hurriedly. "Just that you and a lot of other students didn't return to the dormitories last night and it is very clear what you all were doing."
Darren chose his words before answering. "It is not the sort of thing that a gentleman talks about Seamus, so leave it alone, okay?"
"Okay," Seamus said, but his tone told him there were other questions that they all wanted to have answered.
After all Darren had just spent the night with the one girl that every boy in school would have cut his own arm off to sleep with and he was not even thinking about bragging. What came to his mind was that the reason he did not want to say what he had done or with whom was because he truly cared about Cho and did not want her to be hurt by anyone or anything they might say or think about her.
Darren decided to turn the tables on them. "So, how did the night go for you three?" he asked.
Seamus and Dean looked like they were about to blush in embarrassment and Neville found a sudden interest in the fork he had been eating with.
"Well," Darren asked again, "how did last night go? You three are so interested in my night but I see that you don't want to tell what you did."
Darren leaned back and crossed his arms in mock defiance.
"Well, Seamus got slapped at the foot of the stairs, Neville got a handshake goodnight, and I didn't even leave the Ball with my date," Dean admitted.
Darren looked at Neville who was still looking at the fork. "At least a handshake is better than getting slapped and dumped. Congratulations Neville," he said while slapping Neville on the back.
Neville just smiled meekly in response and changed the subject.
"The tryouts for the beater positions are next Saturday. Are any of you going to tryout?" he asked.
"I am," Seamus said. "I can't wait to get in the air against the Slytherins."
"No, I would prefer football to quidditch," Dean replied.
"I think I might," Darren replied. "What time is the tryout Neville?"
"Ten o'clock," Neville told him.
"Why don't you tryout Neville? It would be fun to play," Darren asked.
Neville almost choked on his pumpkin juice when Darren said that. "Me? I can hardly stay on a broom much less play quidditch."
"Oh come on Neville. For once try something. Stop being so damned scared all the time. What could happen?" Seamus asked.
"I could get hit in the head by a bludger, which is very possible, or worse, get hit with a bat by one of the other beaters, which will probably happen."
Darren just shook his head slightly at Dean and Seamus who seemed to want to try to get Neville to tryout and they stopped trying to convince him. Darren had all week to try to get Neville to tryout for the team and if they kept it up they would just make him more adamant not to give it a shot.
For a few minutes they sat in silence until Darren saw Nick leaving the Great Hall.
"Hey guys, I have to run. See you all later."
Nick was heading out into the Entrance Hall and Darren had to almost run over four first years that were huddled in the entrance way.
"Nick, hey Nick!" Darren called out.
Nick stopped and turned in mid-air as he looked to see who had called him.
Ah yes, Mr. Clarkson, or newest Gryffindor. What can I help you with? Always glad to help a Gryffindor you know."
"I need to ask you a few questions if you don't mind."
"Of course I don't mind. I have nothing but time anyway so you are not keeping me at this time so ask away Mr. Clarkson. Sir Nicholas de Mimsey Porpington is at your service."
"Umm, thanks," was all that Darren could say. Nick was floating there in anticipation of Darren's question but Darren knew he could not ask where others could hear him.
"Can we go into a classroom or something Nick? I want to talk in private if you don't mind."
Nick raised an eyebrow at Darren but only said "Very well, lead the way young sir."
Darren went into one of the empty and unused classrooms on the first floor and Nick followed. When Nick had entered Darren closed the door and locked it which made Nick raise his eyebrow once more.
"You want to ask about death," Nick stated plainly.
"How did you know?" Darren asked in surprise.
"Every year, sometimes more in some years than others, I get asked about friends or family that have passed on so it is no surprise to me Darren."
Darren did not say anything. As he thought about it, it made perfect sense that a ghost would be asked about death.
"Well Nick, what I want to know is about how a witch or wizard can become a ghost. How does a wizard make the decision and can he decide long after he has died?"
Nick looked at Darren out of the side of his eye before answering.
"Well Darren a witch or wizard has the choice to either go on to the next plane or dimension or whatever you want to call it, or he has the choice to remain behind and roam where he once lived. Why do you ask by the way?"
"Curiosity. So, the wizard can stay if he wants, or he can go?"
"Yes."
"What about someone that is killed instead of dying by natural causes?"
This question brought only stony silence from Nick for a few minutes but he answered after a long awkward silence.
"If a witch or wizard dies due to old age, accident, or any other reason, they have the choice to go on or to stay. Is that enough for you?"
"Well, no actually. I have one other question for you."
After folding his arms Nick told him to go ahead and ask.
"What about a wizard killed by the Avada Kedavra curse. I know that their spirit is trapped in the wand that kills them and they are trapped there forever until the wand is broken completely in half."
"So, what is your question then Mr. Clarkson?"
Darren did not fail to notice that he was now Mr. Clarkson again and not Darren as before.
"If the wand that is used to kill someone is broken in half and it loses its magical properties, can the spirit or spirits inside it then make the decision to stay or go?"
"The person or persons can make the decision then, yes, and if a Muggle is trapped in there that person will automatically go on as Muggles are incapable of becoming ghosts," Nick answered.
"Will there be any other questions Mr. Clarkson?"
"One more please, if you don't mind Sir Nick."
"Okay, but no more after this one. I have to see the Bloody Baron about peeves in few minutes so I must hurry along."
"Okay, I'll try to keep it short."
"Then ask your question Mr. Clarkson."
"Okay. Does a ghost keep any magical power or ability when he or she dies?"
"No, but they can interact with their environment under some circumstances."
"What circumstances sir?"
"Well, if a ghost is in the presence of someone he loves completely he can touch them and be felt in return. If a ghost is angry enough he can actually pick up things and throw or move them, sometimes with great force. However, hat can only happen in the most extreme moment of anger or love or whatever emotion the ghost might be feeling and I have never been able to do this."
Nick was quiet for a minute in order to let his answer settle with Darren. Finally he turned to leave. As he was half in the wall he turned and looked back at Darren.
"Remember one thing Darren. When a ghost is new, he has until dawn the next day to make his decision. If he does not decide, he will go on to the next level of being."
"How does he choose?"
"He only has to say his choice aloud and then it will happen all by itself Darren. Now, good day to you young sir."
With that Sir Nicholas floated completely through the wall and left Darren alone with only his thoughts.