Thank you, everyone, for all your wonderful reviews! I'm loving the positive feedback. I'd also like to thank the guest reviewer who pointed out the holes in my plot. That's one of my weaknesses as a writer. I appreciate that kind of feedback because it helps me improve. I'll try to incorporate some of the things you pointed out in the future. Until then, I hope you keep reading!
Chapter 9: Reconciliation
Following the full moon and discovering his natural form, Harry threw himself into his studies. He was absolutely determined that Remus would not spend another full moon alone, so he spent every moment he could without arousing suspicion on his animagus transformation. He also spent a lot of time with his Occlumancy, steadily working through fourth year. He'd made it backwards through the second task and was nearly at the Yule Ball, though he was deliberately skipping over the third task. Perhaps the procrastination was childish, but Harry didn't think he could face that night again anytime soon, as it still featured in his nightmares even more than a year later.
But in addition to these studies, Harry also worked hard at his Charms and Transfiguration work and he was constantly striving to improve his dueling and his spell repertoire. He was making decent progress with Ancient Runes and Potions. Not only did he know the information would be vital to know, but a part of him wanted to make Remus proud. It may not have been official, but Harry saw the older man as his surrogate father, and like any good son he wanted to make that father proud of him. So he worked hard, basking (though still shyly) in the praise he received and determining over and over again to keep getting better.
Another area that saw some progress was Harry's relationship with his cousin. The week before the full moon Harry had, to his surprise, received a short note from Dudley, mostly full of questions and curiosities. Hedwig seemed quite pleased to have delivered a muggle's mail. From the content, though, it appeared the other boy was actually reading Hogwarts, A History, though slowly—a fact which shocked Harry more than the note itself. Harry had replied with answers as short and simple as he could. And five days after, Harry received yet another note, this one with questions more about Harry than about the book or magic. And from the content, Harry knew another letter wouldn't suffice. They would have to meet in person.
So, Harry scribbled a reply, asking for a time and a place they could meet to talk. As he sent Hedwig off once more, he briefly wondered if his aunt and uncle even knew that he and Dudley were in contact, and by owl no less. He hoped Dudley was discreet; he didn't want his cousin to come to grief over the two of them trying to be friends.
Once Hedwig had disappeared into the clouds, Harry turned to the stack of other notes and letters he'd received over the course of the last few weeks. He'd been so busy and preoccupied with everything else that was going on that he'd nearly forgotten about his friends, so he sat down to read through them. Hermione and Ron had sent him two letters each, inquiring as to how he was coping with Sirius's death and his own general health. Neither of them gave any indication that they knew he'd left the Dursleys, which was fine by Harry. The longer he stayed hidden, the better. The Weasley twins, to his surprise, had sent him a sampling of some of their new products and an invitation to visit their new shop in Diagon Alley, as well as a brief letter asking him how he was, but without any prying questions and unwanted advice like Hermione's or blunt confusion like Ron's.
Ginny had also sent him a note, much to his surprise, that left out almost any mention of his godfather and simply prattled on about her exploits at the Burrow, the success the twins were having with their shop, rants about Percy the Minister's shadow, the horror of her brother Bill dating Fleur Delacour and her attempts to prank them as well as Ron. That one Harry appreciated the most, and replied to first. He mentioned that he was studying more that summer, but didn't say that he had left the Dursleys. Unfortunately that left a lot of stories that he couldn't tell. Mostly he just responded to her comments and wished her luck with her future sister-in-law. He encouraged pranking Ron and even gave her a few ideas. He ended with an expression of appreciation for her letter, then signed it and set it aside.
The rest of the letters he only wrote brief replies, relaying virtually the same information to Ron and Hermione as he had to Ginny. He felt a little vindictive as he wrote those as they were so vague—serves them right for leaving him in the dark the previous summer. The twins, though, he felt could be trusted with a little more information—plus they'd love such a great prank. So he detailed his escape from the Dursleys and summarized his training and the fun he was having with Tonks and Remus (whom he accidentally-on-purpose referred to as Moony once or twice, knowing they would be over the moon when they discovered who the Marauders really were). However, he deliberately left out the part about him being a metamorphmagus, wanting to surprise them when he finally got to visit them—his own version of a prank. Then he charmed it with a little help from Remus so it could only be opened with the Marauders' password—Harry didn't want anyone but Fred and George to know what he'd put in the letter, just in case it got intercepted. Then he prepared to send them off, the letters to Ron, Ginny, and Hermione with Hedwig when she returned from Surrey and the one to the twins with Tonks's owl right away.
When all the letters were sent, Harry sat back and flexed his wrist, noting the quiet in the house. Remus was still resting, though he continuously insisted he didn't need it, and Tonks was busy with paperwork from the Ministry. So Harry decided to work on his animagus transformation. He put a charm on the door to alert him if anyone approached, then he moved to his bed.
Harry had decided to focus on his wolf form for the time being because it would be infinitely more useful on the full moon than an oversized bird. He'd virtually memorized everything about the wolf's anatomy, habits, and behavior—a task made much easier by his progress in Occlumancy—and was just now beginning to venture into the transformation itself. Tonks had okay'd him to practice on his own so long as he let her know when, just in case something went wrong. Harry had told her when he asked to borrow her owl, and so he began.
The animagus guide Harry had found at Flourish and Blotts described the transformation as a difficult process. It required going into a meditative state and trying to force one's magic through the entire body to transform it. The tricky part was that, as a human, his magic resisted the change to an animal and so it took a lot of willpower and concentration. Harry certainly had the willpower; the concentration, while better that it used to be, was still difficult for him. But he persevered. In fact he spent nearly an hour trying to get at least something to change. All he achieved was slightly longer and pointed fingernails and a sore back from slouching for so long. As it was by now early evening, Harry stretched and went to prepare dinner.
Hedwig returned just before Harry sat down to do his usual nightly Occlumency exercises, bearing a short note from Dudley, bearing the words: The café on Magnolia Crescent, 11am on Tuesday. Simple, to the point. And not too far away, as today was Sunday. Harry scribbled on the back, see you then and retrieved the rest of his letters for Hedwig to deliver.
"I'm going to keep you busy, girl," Harry said with a smile as he tied the notes to her leg. He put the one to Dudley in her beak. "Take that one to Dudley first, then the Weasleys and Hermione. You don't have to wait for a reply."
Hedwig hooted in acknowledgement and nipped Harry's ear affectionately before taking off through the window.
Tuesday came quickly. Harry had told Remus and Tonks about the planned meeting with Dudley. Remus was reluctant to let him go by himself because of everything happening. Harry insisted he'd be fine. Tonks came up with a compromise that left Remus blushing and Harry grinning in approval. She suggested that if Remus was so worried, he could go with him—on a date, to the same café, to keep an eye on things. She not-so-subtly implied that she would be the logical choice for Remus's date. Since Harry pointed out her obvious crush on the werewolf, she'd given up trying to hide it and had in fact become rather bold. Remus obviously returned her affection but for reasons only known to him he was reluctant to act on it. Harry innocently suggested that this was a perfectly safe way to see how he performed on a date.
After some haranguing, Remus finally agreed. So, at 10:30am on Tuesday, the trio apparated to the park Harry had met Remus in the day after school ended. Remus and Tonks went ahead, looking exactly like an ordinary young couple on their first or second date, and Tonks looked thrilled. Harry made a mental note to tease her about it later, and Remus, too, for that matter. He followed shortly after the pair.
The café that was Dudley's chosen location was a little run-down and very unassuming and unremarkable. Harry knew that the windows had been broken and replaced frequently due to the rocks thrown at them previously by Dudley and his gang in their idea of fun. Harry spotted Tonks and Remus at a corner booth, Tonks looking amused and Remus awkward. He smirked to himself and scanned the rest of the tables for his cousin.
He spotted him on the other side of the café from Remus and Tonks, looking nervous and every bit as whalelike as Harry remembered. Harry made his way over, surreptitiously checking that his wand was in place in its holster at his wrist. Harry had worn his hair at chin-length and tied back, as per usual, and he no longer had need of glasses or contacts, and in dark-washed jeans and a plain grey t-shirt that actually fit him plus his dragon-hide jacket it was no wonder his cousin didn't recognize him. Instead he looked terrified as Harry approached.
"Hi, Dudley," Harry said, trying for friendly.
"H-hi…" Dudley answered, not quite meeting his eyes. And Harry realized that he did look significantly different than he had three weeks previous, when he'd left.
"Dudley, it's me. Harry," he said, a little sheepish.
"H-Harry?" Dudley stammered, looking more closely at his cousin. "But—what…how…?"
Harry grinned as he slid into the chair opposite Dudley, but cast a glare toward the corner where Remus and Tonks were sitting when he heard a familiar feminine snicker. "It's just some new clothes and a pair of contacts, Dud," Harry said, shrugging. He was lying about the contacts, of course, but Dudley didn't need to know all the details about how he suddenly found himself not needing glasses anymore after ten years of using them.
"But you look so different," Dudley persisted.
"Yeah, a little self-confidence goes a long way," Harry replied, knowing that it was his change in attitude, more than the change in wardrobe, that had taken his cousin by surprise. It really was quite remarkable what happens when one has such unconditional support as Harry had found. Dudley just nodded dumbly, still clearly surprised, and Harry had a fleeting image of how Aunt Petunia would react if she saw the way he was dressed. She'd certainly chase him away, accusing him of being a tramp with his long hair and leather. Harry smirked a little at the mental image. A moment passed in uncomfortably silence that Harry finally broke by awkwardly clearing his throat. "So, er, how have you been, Dudley?"
His cousin shrugged. "Fine, I s'pose. Mum and Dad have hardly noticed you're gone and they mostly leave me alone now. I, uh, broke ties with Piers and his lot. Half of them have gone to jail in the last year. I don't wanna get in trouble."
"Good for you, Dud. That took courage," Harry said, pleased at the news. It was further evidence that his cousin really was turning over a new leaf. There was still some awkwardness due to their history, but Harry was confident that would fade with time.
"Uh, thanks," Dudley replied. "Should we, I dunno, order or something?"
"Sure," Harry answered, shrugging. Several minutes passed in silence while they both examined the menu, and finally, after they'd placed their order, Dudley finally broached his questions.
"What is it like at Hog…at your school?" he asked. Harry was happy he'd started with an easy question. He discreetly cast an anti-eavesdropping charm before answering—it wouldn't do for any ordinary muggle to hear them talking about magic and Hogwarts.
"It's Hogwarts. And…it's amazing. The castle itself is magic. The staircases move, the portraits talk, and there are secret passages everywhere. The coursework is, of course, magic, but other than that it's much like any other school. We live in dormitories and we have houses with whom we take meals and attend classes. The professors are strict, and assign mountains of homework every week. We get rewarded for good behavior, punished for bad. I've been in dozens of detentions," Harry added, smirking.
"Really?" Dudley seemed shocked. "But it was always me getting you in trouble."
Harry shook his head, grinning. "Nah. I've gotten into loads of trouble. Granted, it isn't always my fault, but trouble seems to follow me wherever I go."
"What do you keep doing then?"
Harry smiled. "Mostly just sneaking around after hours, going out of bounds. Last year I started an unauthorized defense club," he said, grinning still.
"Wow," Dudley breathed. It was amusing, actually—he looked like his whole world view had been shattered by the simple fact that his cousin was a troublemaker.
Their meal arrived at that moment and some minutes were lost in savoring the simple fare. Harry was impressed that Dudley's portion was normal-sized. At second glance, he saw that his cousin had even lost a bit of weight. Perhaps he'd noticed Harry's exercise routine of two days and decided to follow his example.
After a little while had passed in idle conversation, Dudley finally broke a silence with a question out of the blue. "Who's Cedric?"
The name hit Harry like a bludger to the stomach. Deeply entrenched in his memories of fourth year due to Occlumency, the third task had been hovering around the edges of his consciousness, never given enough space to truly invade but weighing on Harry all the same. And, frankly, his cousin who had hated him up until a month ago was the last person he wanted to tell.
Harry took a deep, calming breath, drawing upon his Occlumency to keep his emotions in check. He'd promised Dudley answers, so Harry would do his best to give them to him. He deserved at least that much. "He was a…friend, I suppose. We were just rivals on the Quidditch pitch—" Dudley's nod told Harry that he understood what Quidditch was—"until fourth year, then we were fellow competitors in a tournament the school hosted. We helped each other out. Then…everything went horribly wrong in the last task of the tournament." Harry sighed, pulling his fingers through his hair. Dudley's expression turned slightly sympathetic but there was still curiosity there and Harry knew he'd have to explain it all.
"The task was a maze. Simple enough, right? Get through the obstacles, be the first to reach the center and the Cup and you win. Only…someone turned the Cup into a portkey—er, magical transport—that would take us straight to Voldemort." Harry paused momentarily to appreciate that Dudley didn't react to the name like most wizards did. His cousin's eyes just widened, remembering at least something his story. "Cedric and I reached the Cup at the same time. I insisted we take it together since it was only fair. The Cup took us both to Voldemort. He wanted me, but didn't care about anyone else. So…he killed Cedric." Harry's voice cracked and he cleared his throat.
"Oh," was all Dudley said, barely even voicing the syllable. Harry could tell he mildly regretted bringing up the topic.
"It's fine, Dud," Harry replied wearily. A long moment passed and Harry could feel Tonks's and Remus's eyes on them—he'd seen them glance over right after Dudley had asked his question and they'd probably seen him stiffen even if they hadn't heard the inquiry itself. He'd known they'd be watching him, but he didn't like it any better.
A moment passed in uncomfortable silence and one of the waitresses cleared their dishes and left the bill. Harry almost unconsciously reached for it, but Dudley got there first, meeting his eyes and basically telling his cousin he had it covered. Harry was surprised at the determination in Dudley's eyes. It was gradual, but he really was changing.
"It's the least I can do for making you wear my cast-offs," he mumbled, uncomfortable.
Harry managed a small smile. "Thanks, Big D," he answered. A little longer passed in silence that Harry finally broke. "So, er, d'you have any more questions?"
"Loads. But, not now," Dudley answered, still seeming uncomfortable with being so nice. "It was, uh, good to see you again, Harry," he said, standing. Harry stood, too, and shook his cousin's proffered hand.
"Good to see you, too, Dud. Er, maybe we can do this again sometime?"
Dudley shrugged. "Sure," he answered. "I'd, uh, better get home. Mum and Dad will be wondering where I am."
"See ya, then, Big D," Harry answered, summoning every ounce of cheerfulness that he could as he waved. Dudley waved, too, and then vanished through the door. Harry slumped against the table and, with a hint of amusement, counted silently the seconds until Tonks and Remus were at his side.
It took them fourteen seconds.
"How'd it go, cub?" Remus asked, seeming far too relieved that his "date" was over.
"Good. He's actually reading Hogwarts, A History that I loaned him," Harry answered, determined to stay cheerful.
Tonks whistled in amazement. "Wow. I barely got through chapter eight before I gave it up as a bad job. Now I'm being shown up by that lump of a boy," she pouted. Harry couldn't help but smile as he rolled his eyes.
"I doubt he's even that far yet. He mostly asked about Hogwarts and what it was like going to a magic school."
"I'm glad you're getting along. You should keep your family as close as they'll let you," Remus said, squeezing Harry's shoulder. "Now, shall we go?"
Harry and Tonks nodded in agreement and Tonks led the way out of the café.
"How was your date?" Harry asked, smirking, as they walked back to the park and their apparition point.
Remus flushed slightly and Tonks snickered, nudging Remus with her shoulder. "It was quite romantic. You should hear this one when he gets going on all the reasons we should and shouldn't be together."
"Well, you knocked over your water glass four times," Remus retorted. Harry snorted in amused surprise. "And stuck your elbow in your salad, and spilled the dipping sauce, and—"
"Okay, okay!" Tonks cut him off, the tips of her hair turning pink with her face. "I'm a klutz!" she exclaimed. "And you shut up," she said, glaring at Harry who was now full-out laughing. He choked as he tried to speak.
"You're perfect for each other, I always knew it," he finally managed, and only laughed harder when they both flushed a deep red, Tonks's hair turning fuchsia to match her face. Tonks stuck her nose in the air and sped up to walk ahead of the other two, which sent Remus into guffaws right along with Harry. It wasn't often he showed his Marauder side, but it was moments like this you couldn't deny he deserved his place in the group—he drew his wand and silently charmed Tonks's hair to stay hot pink and added pink ribbons with cupids and hearts on them from behind. She didn't even notice.
They apparated back to the cottage and Harry set about getting his things together to start studying. Tonks cast frequent glares as she began on her paperwork from the Ministry, but hadn't noticed what Remus had done to her hair, which made Harry hard-pressed to contain his laughter. He also had to avoid Remus's eye as they began Ancient Runes in the front room with Tonks or else they'd both break out into uncontrollable laughter.
However, Harry was just as amused at Remus and his reluctance to go on the date, so when he moved on to Transfiguration with Tonks, she helped him cast a few spells that had a very similar result to those Remus had used on Tonks—which she either still hadn't noticed or didn't really care. Harry also spelled a phrase onto the back of Remus's robes without Tonks's knowledge: "In love and proud of it!" that flashed different colors. Then, when he moved on to his personal study, Harry kept an eye and an ear out for their reactions.
Harry's patience was rewarded when he heard running water in the bathroom and Tonks's indignant shout of "Remus!" He heard the bathroom door slam shut and only moments later the two of them were in a full-out war. He grabbed the camera he'd purchased with Tonks in Diagon Alley a week previous and quickly set it up to snap constant pictures, unable to contain his laughter at the creative pranks they pulled on each other. Harry, was, however, smart enough to put up a shield between himself and the other two as they frequently tried to retaliate against him for laughing at their expense.
Their shouts mixed with the spells until he could hardly keep track of what was going on, but finally it ended. Tonks had spelled Remus into a sundress and given him curly blonde hair and thick makeup, and Remus had half-transformed Tonks into a pink flamingo by causing feathers to sprout from her head, arms, and back, and transfigured her jeans and t-shirt into gaudy turquoise robes that were very reminiscent of Gilderoy Lockhart. Harry had long since collapsed to the ground, eyes streaming and struggling to breathe through his laughter.
It was some minutes before Harry regained his breath and the two of them mostly cancelled the spells on each other. Tonks retained several feathers and Remus's face was still caked with powder, but at least they'd stopped casting. Tonks was glowering but her eyes shone with amusement, and Remus looked younger and happier than Harry had ever seen him. He couldn't help but think how lucky he was to have them, however rag-tag and unusual a family they were.
It was nearing dinnertime now, so Harry went to start the meal with a bit of help from Remus. Tonks disappeared into her room, presumably to work on her own animagus transformation. The meal passed in easy conversation and banter. Harry didn't participate as much, preferring to bask in the happiness surrounding him. That afternoon definitely qualified as a Patronus memory, and Harry would cherish it.
