6-Books and Graves – 1989
That Summer, when Harry turned nine, was the first time he had a birthday party. There were still very few whom he considered close friends, but there were enough friends for a small party. This time, it was Dudley who helped Petunia serve the guests, although he also took part in the party. Both Harry and Dudley helped with the cleaning after the party.
Still, Petunia took Harry to "help her with her shopping" a day later, covering his scar just as she had done before. This time they visited Gringotts again, where the teller gladly informed them of very nice monthly deposits into Harry's vault. They then bought some potion ingredients. The list was longer this time, as the books bought the previous summer had some useful potions in them, needing a few more ingredients.
Some ice-cream was a must, of course. Petunia even allowed Harry to join a few children playing nearby, as long as he told them he was Harry Dursley.
Harry liked it. There was a nice redhead girl there, named Susan, along with her blonde friend – Hannah. A shy boy presented himself as Neville and an older, skinny dark boy, who bragged that he was going to start Hogwarts at fall, introduced himself as Lee. Harry got along with them all.
"Can you do any intentional magic?" he asked them.
He got an unexpected reply. "Children are not allowed to use wands, and very few adult wizards or witches can do wandless magic," Lee told him knowingly.
Harry decided not to tell them he could already do quite a bit, and silently as well. He didn't think that bragging about this would make them friendlier.
Yet his aunt didn't feel comfortable in the magical environment, despite having visited a few times already. She seemed quite glad to leave Diagon Alley behind and head to a "normal" shopping area.
She didn't buy him much, though. "I'm taking you and Dudley for shopping tomorrow, so we needn't bother with it today. We may go to the theater, though."
Walking through London streets, Harry noticed some advertisements for children shows, targeted at children on vacation from school and at the many tourist families visiting London. He was sure his aunt would take him to one of these. He was quite surprised when she took him to see a musical show.
He didn't notice the name, but it was fantastic nevertheless. The costumes, the music, the dancing, the lights, and the décor were all breathtaking. He wasn't even sure he managed to follow the plot, but he didn't mind it. Had he not known better, he would have said it was a magical experience.
"Why didn't we visit the bookshop this time?" he asked on the way back.
"Did you have anything specific in mind?"
"No. I just thought you wanted me to read more about my heritage."
Petunia seemed very serious. "I do want you to read and to learn, but I don't think you'll find what you need in that shop. Have you seen there any of the books you've already read?"
"No. I've seen none."
"Do you remember how you found the first books?"
Harry tried to recall the events. "They kind of presented themselves when I wanted the information."
"Do you want any information now?"
Harry thought for a moment. "I'd like to find more about my ancestry, especially my father's side, of which you could tell me almost nothing."
"Well, try to think of a book with that information."
Harry frowned. He had never done this intentionally. Yet it only took him a minute or two to concentrate enough, closing his eyes.
"Is this the appropriate book?" he heard his aunt ask.
He opened his eyes. There was a book on the unoccupied bench opposite him, one that hadn't been there before. He took it in his hand and read the title: "The Most Noble and Ancient House of Potter".
"I think it is. Can you read the title?"
Petunia shook her head. "All I can see is some unintelligible signs, more like decorations than like writing. Do you know where this book came from?"
This time, Harry shook his head.
"Try to find some kind of stamp or sticker stating where this book comes from. It is normally on the back side of the front cover or one of the first pages. It may read 'Ex Libris'."
Harry checked the places she mentioned. A moment later he gasped. "This comes from the Potter Manor Library. I wonder if the other books came from there as well."
He then frowned. "Where is Potter Manor?"
"I don't know, Harry. I've never been there, but I know Lily liked that place very much. They didn't stay there, though, as they needed to hide."
Harry nodded sadly. He had already heard all the stories, practically everything his aunt knew about his parents. There was still much she didn't know. Harry wondered if he would ever find out more. He just moved closer to his aunt. Although she had never really shown him love, being close to her made him feel a bit better, and she didn't seem to mind.
They went to the big mall, about half an hour drive from home, the next day. Petunia made sure to buy both boys enough clothes to last at least until winter. Both were growing really fast, so she bought some clothes a bit larger, feeling quite sure they would be small by the time they went winter shopping.
"Mom, can we buy some books?" Dudley surprised her with a question.
"What kind of books do you want?" Her son had never been fond of reading, and even his new ambition at better grades, with Harry's help, didn't change that much.
"I thought some advanced books about fitness and exercising could benefit both Harry and me." He stopped to think a bit. "Maybe an adventure book would also be nice, to pass the hot days more pleasantly."
She couldn't refuse him, not that she'd done that very often anyhow. Her son was changing, and she had Harry to thank for the change.
Vernon didn't change much, though. He was grumbling a bit less about "the freak", now that he was getting paid for keeping the child. He was also less hostile to Harry when he needed to talk to him, but he still would have liked nothing better than Harry leaving his family for good. Yet his wife left that morning with some explicit orders, so he had to follow them. The few times he had to sleep on the couch were not something he would have liked to repeat.
By the time the shoppers returned home, Harry found a new computer, similar to the one Dudley already had, perching on his desk, along with a note: "Happy birthday, Harry. Enjoy this belated gift from Petunia, Vernon, and Dudley Dursley."
Vernon only nodded when Harry thanked him, but Aunt Petunia also accepted a hug, noticing that the boy was already as tall as her shoulders, about the same as Dudley.
Harry needed the library no longer. Any book he wanted would just appear when he needed it. Every book he no longer needed would vanish as soon as he expressed his will, even silently. The book he had summoned during the train ride proved most interesting. It provided not only a detailed family tree, showing his connection to his ancestors as well as connections to other magical families (at least he assumed most were magical), but also a detailed history of the deeds (and misdeeds) of his ancestors. Some terms mentioned there were unknown to him, though. He had to think of some other books to help him understand.
This led him to read a bit about the history and politics of magical Britain as well as about law, etiquette and the customs of the Noble Houses. He spent most of August just reading avidly, stopping only long enough to train alone or with Dudley and to attend to his body's needs: food, sleep and other necessities.
They returned to school in September. Dudley no longer dreaded school. After catching up the previous year, he was actually starting to like it. He still liked the breaks better, but learning new things and gaining new insight was also kind of fun. He knew it was thanks to Harry that he was now quite a good student, almost rivaling Harry.
Dudley wasn't as stupid as some had thought and he was really determined to do well at school. That was even more important. Harry liked this new Dudley much better than the old, and so did his classmates.
\/\/\/
"Harry, I want to visit my sister's grave tomorrow. Would you like to come along?" Petunia asked him the day before Halloween.
Harry felt unsure. He had already known how his parents had died. He learned most from his aunt and then found some additional information in some books. Yet he had never been to a cemetery. Wasn't it kind of spooky? Still, if his parents were buried there...
"I'll come with you. Wouldn't it cause me to miss school?"
"I'll give you a note to excuse you. Make sure to wear warm clothes, as it is quite windy there."
They had to change train twice and then take a taxi before arriving to the small graveyard, adjacent to a church. Petunia didn't look so sure now. "I've only visited here once, after I was officially announced of..." Harry was surprised to see some tears in his aunt's eyes.
She didn't remember the exact place, but it didn't take long to find it. Harry also noticed some names on the other graves, names he had previously read only in the books. There was also a symbol carved on a few. It looked familiar, but he didn't remember why. He noted the symbol and the names, hoping to find the explanation back at home.
They stood in front of a double grave. Harry noticed the house crest at the top, which he now knew as his own. He read the names and dates silently. He then saw the next inscription and read it out loud. "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death."
He turned to his aunt. "What does it mean?"
She smiled sadly. "I wish I knew. This probably comes from some magical stories that I've never heard of. It sounds beautiful, though, as if they continue living even after death. Maybe it means that you, their son, are the continuation of their lives."
"I hope they would have been proud of me," he said softly.
"I'm sure they would," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder.
"We didn't bring flowers," she noted a moment later.
"What for?"
"It is customary to leave some flowers when visiting a grave," she said.
Harry concentrated. He recalled a scene from a book he'd read. They had red roses put on a grave, in that story. Concentrating some more, he made a circle with his hand. A moment later he was holding a large garland of red roses. "Will these do?" he asked.
"Yes, Harry. These will do very nicely. Your parents would be glad of your talent." She helped him place the garland correctly, honoring both graves equally. She then straightened up, wiping her eyes furtively, although Harry did notice.
They stayed a bit longer in front of the graves, each deep in thoughts. Petunia was regretting the jealousy that made her lose the little time she could have been with her sister. Harry was contemplating about both his parents, wondering how his life could have been had they not been killed.
"We need to go back now," Petunia finally said. "It's been a long road coming here and it won't be any shorter on our way back."
Harry still looked at as many graves as he could, committing the names to memory, so he could later check them against the books he could find at home.
It was only a few days later when he recalled the names and checked them He then recalled the strange symbol from Ignotius Peverell's grave. He found it in the children's book, where he thought everything was just legends. Now he was starting to reconsider. Could that name, Peverell, be the name of the three brothers in the legend?