Summary: Everybody lies. It's the only truth sometimes. Doesn't matter if it's out there somewhere waiting for the world to find. Or buried deep inside. Everybody lies. - Jason Walker/ Harry Potter has a twin sister cliché. Not a twin bashing story.
A/N: All outfits are on my profile. A picture of Harry and Val are on a polyvore account, but there will be a link on my profile under Everybody Lies.
A/N: Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter world. All rights go to J. and Warner Bros. I do not own the song in this chapter. I only own Valyn Adar Donelle Potter. (Pronounced: Val-YIN A-dar Don-el (like belle, the 'e' is silent) Potter.)
A/N: Italics is Valyn using her eyes and body language to convey her message to her twin, and Italics with underline is Harry responding. The twins cannot read each others minds, they are just in tune with each other and knowing each others feelings helps them figure out what the other twin is trying to 'say.' I repeat, THEY CAN'T READ EACH OTHER'S MINDS!
Reviews are always appreciated!
Thanks for hanging on guys, we will be going AU during this chapter! Just a fair bit of warning, I will not be writing from Harry's point of view as he goes to Hogwarts. Instead, I will have him tell her about his adventures through letters. Dumbledore is not evil, just kinda manipulative. If you fought in a war long enough where you were the leader, eventually you would start to look at people as chess pieces. Dumbledore still looks at people like they are people, but he does also think of them a little bit like chess pieces.
And I would just like to send a thank you to my newest followers: agdudley and empressris! You guys make me happy when you fave and follow my story!
Chapter 7:
Harry's last month with the Dursleys hasn't been fun. True, Dudley is now so scared of Harry he won't stay in the same room, but while Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon didn't shut Harry in his room, force him to do anything, or shout at him - they didn't speak to him at all. Half terrified, half furious, they acted as though any chair with Harry in it were empty. Although this was an improvement in many ways, it did become a bit depressing for him after a while. Harry kept to his room, (except for small visits with me at night) with his new owl for company. He had decided to call her Hedwig, a name he had found in A History of Magic.
The school books were very interesting. We would lay on our beds late into the night, and I could tell every time Hedwig swooped in and out of the open window as she pleased because Harry would have a spike of interest followed by disgust at the rat Hedwig brought him. It was lucky that Aunt Petunia didn't come in to vacuum his room anymore, because Hedwig kept bringing back dead mice. Every night before he went to sleep, Harry ticked off another day on the piece of paper he had pinned to the wall, counting down to September the first. Every night before I went to bed, I would do the same. The only difference was I did it with a growing sense of dread that was carefully hidden from my twin.
On the last day of August Harry thought he'd better speak to our aunt and uncle about getting to King's Cross station the next day, so he went down to the living room where they were watching a quiz show on television while I watched from the bottom of the stairs. Casting a nervous look at me he clears his throat to let them know he is there, and Dudley screams and runs from the room. I snort, now he knows how we feel every time we see him or any of the adult Dursleys.
"Er - Uncle Vernon?" Uncle Vernon grunts to show he was listening. Eyes glued to the telly. "Er - I need to be at King's Cross tomorrow to - to go to Hogwarts." Uncle Vernon grunts again. "Would it be all right if you gave me a lift?" Grunt. Harry cast me a look and I shrug. I don't understand pig. Harry turns back to Uncle Vernon. He was about to go back upstairs when Uncle Vernon actually speaks.
"Funny way to get to a wizards' school, the train. Magic carpets all got punctures, have they?" Harry doesn't say anything but I feel the hurt. "Where is this school, anyway?"
"I don't know." Harry says, realization dawning through the bond. Twin pulls the ticket Hagrid had given him out of his pocket. "I just take the train from platform nine and three-quarters at eleven o'clock." He reads. I snicker softly into my hand while our aunt and uncle stare.
"Platform what?" Uncle Vernon repeats incredulously.
"Nine and three-quarters." Harry repeats, a bit of his disbelief leaking through the bond and into his voice.
"Don't talk rubbish." Uncle Vernon snaps. "There is no platform nine and three-quarters." A stubborn expression settles on Harry's face.
"It's on my ticket. "
"Barking." Uncle Vernon exclaims, "Howling mad, the lot of them. You'll see. You just wait. All right, we'll take you to King's Cross. We're going up to London tomorrow anyway, or I wouldn't bother." Uncle Vernon turns back to the telly but Harry's curiosity isn't sated.
"Why are you going to London?" Harry asks, trying (and failing) to keep things friendly.
"Taking Dudley to the hospital." Uncle Vernon growls angrily. "Got to have that ruddy tail removed before he goes to Smeltings." Smirking, I stand. While they are there, they could get Dudley a brain transplant, and have his fat removed, and give him plastic surgery, and basically change everything about him, including giving him a personality transplant.
Harry wakes at five o'clock the next morning because he is too excited and nervous to go back to sleep. I couldn't fall asleep.
Two hours later, Harry's huge, heavy trunk has been loaded into the Dursleys' car. Aunt Petunia had talked Dudley into sitting next to Harry and I, and we set off. We reached King's Cross at half past ten. Uncle Vernon dumps Harry's trunk onto a cart and wheels it into the station for him. We exchange glances at his oddly nice behavior. It all makes sense when Uncle Vernon stops dead, facing the platforms with a nasty grin on his face.
"Well, there you are, boy. Platform nine - platform ten. Your platform should be somewhere in the middle, but they don't seem to have built it yet, do they?" He was quite right, of course. There was a big plastic number nine over one platform and a big plastic number ten over the one next to it, and in the middle, nothing at all. "Have a good term." Uncle Vernon says with an even nastier smile. I quickly hug Harry before Uncle Vernon roughly grabs my arm and drags me out without another word. As Uncle Vernon shoves me in the car, I can see Harry turning around and seeing us drive away.
All three of the Dursleys are laughing. A feeling of helplessness spreads through the bond and I shove all the love and encouragement through the bond to Harry while I still can. Neither of us have any idea how far we can be separated before the bond snaps, or if it even will. I am afraid the bond will stretch so much that I won't be able to feel Harry.
September 1st - 1991 - 12:15 - Headmasters office
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore sits at his desk, awaiting the Potters, Black, Lupin, Professors McGonagall, Snape, Flitwick, and Pomana, along with Hagrid. When Hagrid came back from taking young Harry to Diagon Alley, all of the aforementioned people wanted to know everything about them. When Albus said no, everyone started shouting. It wasn't until Fawkes intervened with a song, that they calmed down. Albus didn't deny them to be cruel, he just want to wait. No one could know where the oldest Potter children were hidden just yet.
But now, now is the perfect time. Harry would be coming to the school and Valyn Potter would be coming next year. She hadn't been registered before the letters were sent out, and the magic of the quill wouldn't allow them to add another name after all the names on the List have been written out. No one had even thought of the fact that Valyn had never been enrolled in Hogwarts. Now they have to do the enrolling the hard way. Through the Ministry.
Paperwork has to be done, then the paperwork will be passed and approved through half a dozen departments and finally landing at the Ministers desk. Then, they have to work the wards around the List to get it to accept Valyn as a new student, and that takes a few more weeks, so eventually, Dumbledore told the Potters Valyn would not be coming until the next year. She would be far behind the classmates her age if she came through the middle of the year. So she would be coming next year. All the children would be a year younger than her, but it would be for the best.
Her brother would be able to get used to Dumbledore as the Headmaster and someone to trust. Dumbledore, having already peaked at Hagrid's memories, knows that Valyn is the one with the most potential to go bad. To go Dark. She would be wary, and she would influence her brother. This way, Dumbledore can establish a relationship with Harry before adding Valyn to the mix. Meanwhile, he would still push to get her enrolled. It would get Harry to trust him even more.
Albus surveys the group sitting in his office with a benevolent smile. James Potter, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin shift nervously in their seats. He suppresses a smile. There is no doubt in his mind those three are remembering the days when they sat in those very chairs and received many detentions. His eyes move to Lily Potter. She has three children around her. The 7 year old twins are on her left. While Harry and Valyn Potter have their father's hair and mother's eyes, this set of twins has their mother's dark red hair and their father's hazel eyes. On Lily's right, she has her 2 year old daughter. Unlike her mother and father, she has blond hair and hazel green eyes. It was a bit of a shock but when Lily showed everyone a picture of her grandmother, it faded away. Like Petunia, the 2 year old had gotten her grandmothers blond hair.
"Not to be rude, Headmaster, but will you get on with things? I do several potions that need to be tended to." Severus Snape drawls in his his silky voice.
"Yes, yes. I have called you all up here to review Hagrid's memories. I am sure you are all anxious to get to it, so I will not tarry. Hagrid, if you will?" Dumbledore gestures to the Pensieve. Hagrid nods and Dumbledore uses his wand to pull the silver memory strands from Hagrid's temple and deposits them into the silver bowl. Them memory swirls as though it is alive. Everyone stands up and grabs hands. Then, they step into the memory.
The memory is blank at first before it slowly swirls into the image of a door. The unlikely group watches in silence as Hagrid bursts down the door, steps inside and puts it back before turning around. Lily steps forward, arms reaching out to her first babies. James steps forward and wraps an arm around his wife, his eyes hungrily looking at his children too. Sirius whines as he looks at his godson and Remus lets out a sort of whining growl when he sees his cub for the first time in 10 years. Severus would later deny it, but he drew forward, eyes on his beloved goddaughter. He uttered her name, affection in every syllable.
Albus, McGonagall and Hagrid all watched this heartbreaking scene with tears in their eyes.
The scene moves forward as Memory-Hagrid finishes looking around. Everyone sees Harry step in front of his sister, determination and defiance in his emerald green eyes. Lily laughs a bit as Valyn (looking put out) stands on her toes and puts her chin on her brothers shoulder. As Memory-Hagrid scolds the Dursleys, all eyes are locked on the twins. Harry's eyes are wide with shock. Valyn looks at Memory-Hagrid with warmth in her eyes, but that warmth is quickly replace with a neutral one.
Severus frowns along with Remus, Lily and James. Sirius only has eyes for his godson. They exchange glances. Valyn shouldn't look that cold. The twins shouldn't look so small and skinny and wary. Something is wrong. With a mutual agreement to keep an eye out for more things like that, the four turn back to the memory.
"Budge up, yeh great lump," Hagrid tells Dudley. Dudley squeaks and runs to hide behind his mother. Valyn stumbles and Harry turns to catch her.
"What's wrong?" He asks worriedly. And Valyn smirks.
"Earthquake." She says innocently. Harry's face is blank before he gets it. He snickers before they turn, in perfect unison back to the mysterious stranger.
James, Sirius and Remus burst out laughing. Valyn joking about how her cousin made an earthquake lightens the mood some. Severus smirks in pride. His goddaughter is quick, witty and smart. She would be perfect as one of his snakes.
"Hey!" Sirius says with wide eyes as the memory pauses. "Valyn's smirk is exactly like Snape's!" James looks at him and blanches.
"That is my daughter. She can't have the characteristics of Snivellus!" Severus frowns before smirking again.
"Never the less, my goddaughter still manages to share my smirk." Severus drawls triumphantly before turning back to the memory. Severus and James have been having possessive issues toward Valyn for the longest time. They both love her, but James can't bare the thought of having to share his daughter with his schoolyard enemy. Severus has no plans of giving up his goddaughter. He does have his godson Draco, but he still loves Valyn as well.
The memory starts again.
As memory-Hagrid tells the twins how alike they look to their parents, the group can see Harry's eyes light up. Valyn's eyes are eager, hungry and she draws closer to Memory-Hagrid. When Harry grabs her arm, she gives him a thankful look and pulls back and away from Memory-Hagrid. She takes her place by her twin's side, face cold and it doesn't escape their notice that she is turned protectively towards her brother.
Memory-Vernon tries to intervene but Hagrid twists the gun into a knot before turning back to the twins. Harry looks a little frightened but Valyn draws all eyes as a calculated respect dawns in her eyes. When Memory-Hagrid hands them a cake, the twins look shocked. They share glances and open the little box. They stare at it and lean on each other. There is a fragile quality about them that make everyone want to shelter them.
Memory-Harry stiffens and following his cue, so does his twin. Severus sneers at the mini-James (with Lily's eyes, a fact he tries to ignore) rudely asks Memory-Hagrid who he was without thanking him for the cake. They watch with bated breath as Valyn elbows him and Harry turns to her. They hold each others eyes. Not like they are challenging each other, but more like they are communicating in the odd way twins do. Valyn snorts and a brief grin flits on Harry's face as they turn back to Memory-Hagrid.
When Memory-Hagrid make a passing want of fire-whisky, Lily glares at him. They watch as Valyn stiffens and fear flashes on the twins faces. When Memory-Hagrid notices the fireplace and snorts, Valyn grins. Everyone catches their breath. Her face is transformed when she smile. Her forest green and silver eyes sparkle, and the general sense of sadness disappears. Her brother, responding to her happiness perks up as well.
Everyone stiffens in shock when she first speaks. Her voice is soft, and almost shy. But that isn't the reason for the shock. Her voice, so much like her mothers but with something more, has a drawling, musical, aristocratic element to it. Her brothers was different but the same all at once. Harry's had a bit of a rougher edge to it so it wasn't so feminine.
When Memory-Hagrid declines her offer, she goes back to her twins side, but everyone notices how she never turns her back on him or the Dursleys. Lily smiles as they relax when the fire gets started. She doesn't like them looking so guarded. That look shouldn't be on their faces. She is clinging to the hope that it hasn't been caused by her sister. Valyn's eyes darken as she stared into the fire, clearly a bad memory plaguing her.
Harry and Valyn tense as Memory-Hagrid take a sip of an amber liquid. James, Lily, Severus, Remus and Sirius all advance on him.
"Alcohol! Around my children?!" Lily shouts angrily.
"What the Hell Hagrid?!" James.
"How dare you?! You bumbling fool!" Severus hisses and angrily, eyes narrowed.
"How could you be so irresponsible?!" Remus growls, eyes flashing amber. His wolf in complete agreement.
"That's my godson! You-!" Sirius begins before Dumbledore cuts them all off.
"Hagrid had a moment where he didn't use his brain, however, he did not drink a whole bottle and neither of the children were hurt by that one action. Please, let us continue to view this memory." Lily, James, Sirius, Remus and Severus reluctantly turn away back to the memory, but they are all still fuming at Hagrid.
After the sausages are done cooking and Memory-Hagrid gives them to the twins, everyone notices Valyn look at them warily. The five stiffen when Harry takes a small bite out of each sausage and then Valyn tucks into the sausages. They exchange glances, no child should be wary of poison in their food.
Finally, as nobody seemed about to explain anything, Memory-Harry spoke up.
"I'm sorry, but I still don't really know who you are." The giant takes a gulp of tea and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand.
"Call me Hagrid," he said, "Everyone does. An' like I told yeh, I'm Keeper of Keys at Hogwarts - yeh'll know all about Hogwarts, o'course." He assumes, turning back to his tea. Harry and Valyn exchange glances.
"Er - no," Harry awkwardly replies. Hagrid looks shocked.
Everyone stiffens in shock and turn accusing eyes on Dumbledore. The five with the closest connection to the twins draw closer together, something that draws them farther from Dumbledore.
"Sorry." Harry apologizes quickly. Valyn rolls her eyes and pinches him on the leg. He sighs exasperated.
"Sorry?" Hagrid barks angrily , turning to stare at the Dursleys, who shrink back into the shadows. "It's them as should be sorry! I knew yeh weren't gettin' yer letters but I never thought yeh wouldn't even know abou' Hogwarts, fer cryin' out loud! Did yeh never wonder where yet parents learned it all?" Valyn grins.
"All what?" Harry asks. Valyn nudges him in the side.
"All we can do Harry. I told you our parents must have been like us! We aren't freaks. In this room, the only freaks are them." She points victoriously at the cowering Dursleys.
Severus stiffens in shock while Lily, James and Sirius yell at the Headmaster. Remus is just barely keeping the wolf under control. Freaks. That is what Valyn said. And so casually. Like it was nothing.
As the twins show further ignorance about the Wizarding World, anger levels rise even farther. When Memory-Vernon attempts to speak up and Memory-Hagrid shuts him up, no one misses the vindictive pleasure that flashes on Valyn's face before it is swiftly hidden.
"You never told them? Never told them what was in the letter Dumbledore left fer them? I was there! I saw Dumbledore leave it, Dursley! An' you've kept it from him all these years?"
With those words, Valyn's whole demeanor goes colder than before. It is clear that she doesn't appreciate the fact that Hagrid had a hand in leaving her with the Dursleys. A horrible suspicion is forming in the fives minds.
When Hagrid tells them they are magical, Harry's face screams disbelief. Valyn's on the other hand, shows not shock, but acceptance. Like she had just been waiting for someone to tell her that she was different. That she was special.
When Hagrid attempts to hand the letter to Harry, Valyn knocks it out of the way and produces another letter to hand to her brother. While her brother is reading it, she keeps wary eyes upon Hagrid, only taking them off him once to flash a hate filled, cocky look and smirk to the Dursleys.
When Valyn reads the letter, Harry asks Hagrid a question and Valyn looks up to briefly whisper something to her brother that causes them to both smirk.
"Why isn't there a letter for me?" I ask curiously. Hagrid pales and scratches his head.
"Uh.." He fruitlessly searches in his pockets before coming up empty. "You aren' registered."
"Why not?" I cross my arms, narrow my eyes and tap my toe on the ground.
"When you were a itty babe, yer mum an' dad signed yer brother up but didn't have the time to sign ye up. They thought they had years to sign ye up but you were unexpected. Yer brother was signed up before he were even born. They didn' know they was havin' a girl too." I freeze.
"What happened to our parents Hagrid?" I ask icily, my forest green and silver eyes narrowed harshly and unrelenting upon the giant. Unfortunately, Uncle Vernon, still ashen-faced but looking very angry, chooses that moment to move into the firelight.
"He's not going." He says. Hagrid grunts unconcerned.
"Do you think they know we are alive?" Lily whispers to James. He smiles softly and gently kisses her head.
"I don't know Lil's." They turn back to the memory.
"I'd like ter see a great Muggle like you stop him." Hagrid reply's.
"A what?" Harry and Valyn ask together, interested.
"A Muggle." Hagrid explains, "It's what we call non-magic folk like them. An' it's your bad luck you grew up in a family o' the biggest Muggles I ever laid eyes on." I snort.
"Quite literally." Valyn says vindictively.
Severus fails to hide a snort at that.
"We swore when we took them in we'd put a stop to that rubbish." Uncle Vernon snaps. "Swore we'd stamp it out of them! Witch and wizard indeed!"
"Albus?" Lily asks dangerously.
"Yes, dear?"
"How often have you checked up on my children?" He smiles.
"I have someone watching them at all times. Rest assured, the twins have not been harmed." Not assured, Lily turns back to James.
When Harry looks like he is about to cry, Valyn steps in front of him as Petunia rants.
"You knew?" Harry asks, hurt. I move closer to him and tuck myself into his side. Harry needs reassurance that he isn't alone. "You knew I'm a - a wizard? And that Twin is a witch?" Tears are glistening in Harry's emerald green eyes and pain resonates through the bond. She steps in front of him to shield him as Aunt Petunia begins her little rant.
"Knew!" Aunt Petunia shrieks. "Knew! Of course we knew! How could you not be, my dratted sister being what she was? Oh, she got a letter just like that and disappeared off to that-that school-and came home every vacation with her pockets full of frog spawn, turning teacups into rats. I was the only one who saw her for what she was - a freak! But for my mother and father, oh no, it was Lily this and Lily that, they were proud of having a witch in the family!" She stops to draw a deep breath and then goes ranting on. It seems like she had been wanting to say all this for years.
"Then she met that Potter at school and they left and got married and had you, and of course I knew you'd be just the same, just as strange, just as - as - abnormal - and then, if you please, she went and got herself blown up and we got landed with you!" Valyn wavers and Harry is instantly there supporting her. They are both very pale as everything they had ever know was torn up and spit on right before their eyes.
As soon as they find their voices they say together, "Blown up? You told us they died in a car crash!"
"CAR CRASH!" roars Hagrid, jumping up so angrily that the Dursleys scuttle back to their corner. "How could a car crash kill Lily an' James Potter? It's an outrage! A scandal! Harry an' Valyn Potter not knowin' their own story when every kid in our world knows their name!"
"But why? What happened?" Harry asks urgently. The anger fades from Hagrid's face. He looks suddenly anxious.
"I never expected this." He says, in a low, worried voice. "I had no idea, when Dumbledore told me there might be trouble gettin' hold of yeh, how much yeh didn't know. Ah, Harry, Valyn, I don' know if I'm the right person ter tell yeh - but someones gotta - yeh can't go off ter Hogwarts not knowin'." He throws a dirty look at the Dursleys. "Well, it's best yeh know as much as I can tell yeh - mind, I can't tell yeh everythin', it's a great myst'ry, parts of it..." He sits down, stares into the fire for a few seconds, and then says, "It begins, I suppose, with - with a person called - but it's incredible yeh don't know his name, everyone in our world knows-"
"Who?" They ask together.
"Well - I don' like sayin' the name if I can help it. No one does."
"Why not?" Harry asks.
"Gulpin' gargoyles, Harry, people are still scared. Blimey, this is difficult. See, there was this wizard who went... Bad. As bad as you could go. Worse. Worse than worse. His name was... " Hagrid gulps and trails off, but no words came out.
"Could you write it down?" Harry suggests.
"Nah. Can't spell it." Hagrid shakes his head. Valyn sits forward and look at Hagrid through her lashes.
"Please tell us Hagrid. We need to know. Please!" She makes her voice broken and hurt.
"All right - Voldemort." Hagrid shudders. "Don' make me say it again. Anyway, this- this wizard, about twenty years ago now, started lookin' fer followers. Got 'em, too - some were afraid, some just wanted a bit o' his power, 'cause he was gettin' himself power, all right. Dark days, Harry, Valyn. Didn't know who ter trust, didn't dare get friendly with strange wizards or witches... Terrible things happened. He was takin' over. 'Course, some stood up to him - an' he killed 'em. Horribly. One o' the only safe places left was Hogwarts. Reckon Dumbledore's the only one You-Know-Who was afraid of. Didn't dare try takin' the school, not jus' then, anyway."
"Now, yer mum an' dad were as good a witch an' wizard as I ever knew. Head boy an' Girl at Hogwarts in their day! Suppose the myst'ry is why You-Know-Who never tried to get 'em on his side before... Probably knew they were too close ter Dumbledore ter want anythin' ter do with the Dark Side."
"Maybe he thought he could persuade 'em... Maybe he just wanted 'em outta the way. All anyone knows is, he turned up in the village where you was all living, on Halloween ten years ago. You was just a year old. He came ter yer house an' - an' - - " Hagrid suddenly pulls out a very dirty, spotted handkerchief and blows his nose with a sound like a foghorn. "Sorry." He says. "But it's that sad - knew yer mum an' dad, an' nicer people yeh couldn't find -anyway... "
"You-Know-Who killed 'em. An' then - an' this is the real myst'ry of the thing - he tried to kill you, too." He points at my twin and I protectively grab his hand, silently daring anyone to try it again. "Wanted ter make a clean job of it, I suppose, or maybe he just liked killin' by then. But he couldn't do it. Never wondered how you got that mark on yer forehead?" He points at Harry's head. We did wonder but without this information, we couldn't wonder very much before we ran into a metaphorical wall.
"That was no ordinary cut. That's what yeh get when a Powerful, evil curse touches yeh - took care of yer mum an' dad an' yer house, even - but it didn't work on you, an' that's why yer famous, Harry. No one ever lived after he decided ter kill 'em, no one except you, an' he'd killed some o' the best witches an' wizards of the age - the McKinnons, the Bones, the Prewetts - an' you was only a baby, an' you lived." Harry winces and I clutch his hand harder. Through the bond I can feel his turmoil.
As Hagrid's story comes to a close, Harry flinches and whispers aloud,"The blinding flash of green light, and now more clearly than I have ever remembered it before, I can remember something else. For the first time in our life, I can remember a high, cold, cruel laugh." Valyn flinches and curl further into Harry's side.
Hagrid is watching them with sadness and pity in his eyes. She bristles and shoves her feelings away. She composes herself and leans in front of Harry.
"Take a deep breath Twin. Count to ten, just like I taught you." He follows her instructions and gains control over himself. She nod at Hagrid to continue.
"Took yeh from the ruined house myself, on Dumbledore's orders. Brought yeh ter this lot..." Hagrid begins.
"Load of old tosh!" Uncle Vernon exclaims. Harry jumps and she flinches; Uncle Vernon certainly seemed to have got back his courage. He's glaring at Hagrid and his fists are clenched. "Now, you listen here; boy, girl." He snarls at us. "I accept there's something strange about you, probably nothing a good beating won't have cured - and as for all this about your parents, well, they were weirdos, no denying it, and the world's better off without them in my opinion - asked for all they got, getting mixed up with these wizarding types - just what I expected, always knew they'd come to a sticky end-" She gets up and focus an ice cold glare on Uncle Vernon, Hagrid leaps up from the sofa and draws a battered pink umbrella from inside his coat.
Pointing this at Uncle Vernon like a sword, he says, "I'm warning you, Dursley -I'm warning you - one more word..." In danger of being speared on the end of an umbrella by a bearded giant, Uncle Vernon's courage (what little he had) fails him again and he flattens himself against the wall and falls silent. "That's better." Hagrid says, breathing heavily and sitting back down on the sofa, which this time sags right down to the floor.
She slowly sits, her eyes still on Uncle. He glares back and she smiles, slowly and viciously and he flinches.
Harry, meanwhile, still has questions to ask, hundreds of them.
"But what happened to Vol -, sorry - I mean, You-Know-Who?"
"Good question, Harry. Disappeared. Vanished. Same night he tried ter kill you. Makes yeh even more famous. That's the biggest myst'ry, see... He was gettin' more an' more powerful - why'd he go? Some say he died. Codswallop, in my opinion. Dunno if he had enough human left in him to die. Some say he's still out there, bidin' his time, like, but I don' believe it. People who was on his side came back ter ours. Some of 'em came outta kinda trances. Don' reckon they could've done if he was comin' back. Most of us reckon he's still out there somewhere but lost his powers. Too weak to carry on. 'Cause somethin' about you finished him, Harry. There was somethin' goin' on that night he hadn't counted on - I dunno what it was, no one does - but somethin' about you stumped him, all right."
Hagrid looks at Harry with warmth and respect blazing in his eyes.
"Hagrid," Twin asks quietly. "I think you must have made a mistake. I don't think I can be a wizard." She smirks and shakes her head.
"Not a wizard, eh? Never made things happen when you was scared or angry?" Harry looks into the fire.
"See?" Hagrid says. "Harry Potter, not a wizard - you wait, you'll be right famous at Hogwarts." But Uncle Vernon wasn't going to give in without a fight.
"Haven't I told you he's not going?" He hisses. "He's going to Stonewall High and he'll be grateful for it. I've read those letters and he needs all sorts of rubbish - spell books and wands and-" Hagrid cuts him off.
"If he wants ter go, a great Muggle like you won't stop him." Hagrid growls angrily. "Stop Lily an' James Potter's son goin' ter Hogwarts! Yer mad. His name's been down ever since he was born. He's off ter the finest school of witchcraft and wizardry in the world. Seven years there and he won't know himself. He'll be with youngsters of his own sort, fer a change, an' he'll be under the greatest headmaster Hogwarts ever had...Albus Dumbled-"
"I AM NOT PAYING FOR SOME CRACKPOT OLD FOOL TO TEACH HIM MAGIC TRICKS!" Uncle Vernon yells. But he had finally gone too far. Hagrid seizes his umbrella and whirls it over his head.
"NEVER," he thunders, "- INSULT. ALBUS. DUMBLEDORE. IN. FRONT. OF. ME!" He brings the umbrella swishing down through the air to point at Dudley and there is a flash of violet light, a sound like a firecracker, a sharp squeal, and the next second, Dudley is dancing on the spot with his hands clasped over his fat bottom, howling in pain. When he turns his back on us, Harry and Valyn see a curly pig's tail poking through a hole in his trousers. Harry and Valyn exchange glances and break down in laughter.
Uncle Vernon roars with anger. Pulling Aunt Petunia and Dudley into the other room, he cast one last terrified look at Hagrid and slams the door behind them.
"Good riddance."Valyn calls with a self satisfied look on her face. Hagrid looks down at his umbrella and strokes his beard.
"Shouldn'ta lost me temper," he says ruefully, "But it didn't work anyway. Meant ter turn him into a pig, but I suppose he was so much like a pig anyway there wasn't much left ter do." Harry and I giggle. Hagrid casts a sideways look at Harry and I under his bushy eyebrows. "Be grateful if yeh didn't mention that ter anyone at Hogwarts." He says. "I'm - er - not supposed ter do magic, strictly speakin'. I was allowed ter do a bit ter follow yeh an' get yer letters to yeh an' stuff - one o' the reasons I was so keen ter take on the job."
"Why aren't you supposed to do magic?" Harry asks.
"Oh, well - I was at Hogwarts meself but I - er - got expelled, ter tell yeh the truth. In me third year. They snapped me wand in half an' everything. But Dumbledore let me stay on as gamekeeper. Great man, Dumbledore."
"Why were you expelled?" Harry and Valyn ask curiously.
"It's gettin' late and we've got lots ter do tomorrow." Hagrid says loudly. "Gotta get up ter town, get all yer books an' that." He takes off his thick black coat and throws it to us. Harry catches it and then Valyn has to catch him as he buckles under the weight. "You can kip under that." Hagrid says, "Don' mind if it wriggles a bit, I think I still got a couple o' dormice in one o' the pockets."
No one says anything as it settles in. There is no doubt the twins have been abused. There is no doubt Dumbledore either doesn't know about it, suspects it and is doing nothing or knows and does nothing. No option is a good one.
Everyone is back in the office.
"Thank you for your time, I would like to have a rest before tonight. I shall see you later, Professor Potter, Professor Evan, Professor Snape, Professor Flitwick, Professor McGonagall, Professor Black, Professor Lupin, Professor Pomana, Hagrid." Dumbledore nods at them and they slowly leave. There is one thought in their minds.
'We have to help the twins.'