Chapter 11 – Leaving, Arriving, and another Celebration
Harry was of mixed feelings when he told the Dursley's that he would be leaving after breakfast on the 30th. He was happy to be leaving and going to the Weasley's for the rest of the summer but Harry was a little confused as he felt he had only really started to get to know the 'new' Aunt Petunia and his cousin Dudley. Those two were starting to grow and change a little and Harry wondered if and where they would end up in the grand scheme of his life.
His Uncle Vernon's reaction was just what Harry expected. "You'll not be going anywhere until I've received the last bit of that compensation." Harry watched as Dudley rolled his eyes as he looked at his father. Harry was going to chuckle but didn't want to tempt fate by setting his uncle off.
Sending Hedwig along to The Burrow, Harry was 'informed' by Ginny that she and her mother were the ones coming the next morning to collect him. Harry said he could manage moving his meager belongs himself and Ginny laughingly said that her mum was just coming to make sure that there wasn't going to be any problems. Harry threw in the towel then; he knew not to try arguing with Mrs. Weasley when she had her mind made up about something.
That evening Harry packed everything back into his trunk except for the money that his uncle expected in the morning and a change of clothes to wear. He spent a bit of time in maintaining his mental defenses before heading for bed and bidding a good evening to Hermione and Ginny.
When Harry returned from his usual morning run the next day he was a little surprised to find to find Dudley waiting for him at the front walk. Dudley fell in walking beside Harry as he took a couple of minutes to walk down the street and cool down a little.
Harry's cousin was the one to start the conversation then. "When I visited Piers yesterday he said his cousin Tomas was starting rehab and had started to get some feeling back in one of his legs. He might return to school in a wheelchair but if he's lucky he might get back to walking by spring."
"That's really good news Dudley. How's Tomas' mum getting along?"
"She ended up getting a mid-shift job at Duggers' Chemist shop. Tomas' brothers go over to Piers house after lunch and she picks them up when she gets off work at midnight."
"That sounds like an awful rough way to live for a bit. Hope things work out for her."
"I think she and all the kids will work out. Piers and I are going to help Tomas out when he returns; pushing him around and homework and stuff like that."
"That's good Dudley. I'm sure he'll appreciate the help."
"Can I write to you and let you know how he's doing?"
"Yes but I want to hear how you and Aunt Petunia are doing also."
"How do I ..?"
"Take your letters down to Mrs. Figg. She'll make sure it gets passed along to me."
"Mrs. Figg is a witch?" Dudley asked with surprise.
"Not really. She was born into a magical family but doesn't have any magic herself. She's really a nice lady once you get to know her."
Harry and Dudley had finished their walk and were back on the front porch of #4. Harry looked around carefully and held out a hand to his cousin. "You best get in before you have to explain to your dad why you're consorting with 'the freak'."
Dudley shook Harry's hand and smiled. "It's been nice getting to know you Harry. I hope we can do some more next summer."
Harry smiled back. "Me too Dudders. Take care of yourself and your mum."
Dudley went in through the front door while Harry slipped around the house to come in through the patio doors. Harry rushed upstairs to take a very quick shower before his Uncle Vernon woke up. Grabbing the money off his dresser, Harry changed and went downstairs to start fixing breakfast.
Harry set the table just as his aunt came down and made sure that she saw him placing the 'compensation money' next to Vernon's place at the head of the table. Dudley came down next but picked up Harry's plate and silverware from the kitchen and put them on the table next to his. He nodded at Harry and went and grabbed the juice and milk out of the fridge. Harry put the food on the table just as his uncle came down the stairs and sat down. He stared as he saw Harry sitting at the table but Petunia held up the small pile of cash and waved it once at her husband before she set it back down.
"As long as you act like a normal person, you can sit here" Vernon said as he came to the table. He counted the money twice though before he started eating. Harry made his uncle choke a little on his food when he told him that Mrs. Wrightgate's letter indicated that she might be interviewing Harry and him about the first part of the summer. Vernon blustered his way around a bit and finally choked out a request that Harry "take care of all that folderol." Harry couldn't believe that his Aunt Petunia winked and smiled at him for that.
Breakfast was soon finished and Uncle Vernon just gave Harry a general caution before he left for work. "Don't go getting yourself in any trouble, do you hear? I don't want to be visited by any 'official' types because of something you did."
"Of course, Uncle Vernon. Bye bye." Vernon shut the door and they all listened to his car start up and drive away. 'That went better than I hoped it would' Harry thought. He made to start gathering up the breakfast dishes but Petunia told him to leave it. "We have struggled along without you most of this past year, haven't we Dudley?"
"Yes mum, even though it was Harry that showed us how to do it correctly." Harry was a little shocked; he had no idea that his aunt and cousin could so easily make jokes between them. He smiled as they managed to do the cleanup and then Harry sensed Ginny coming through the floo upstairs.
Harry waited at the bottom of the stairs for Mrs. Weasley and Ginny to come down. Aunt Petunia came over bedside him and greeted the pair and actually shook Molly Weasleys hand. Molly looked around carefully but relaxed when she was told that Harry's uncle had already left for work.
Not waiting for anymore awkwardness, Harry turned and gave his aunt a small hug and said goodbye. He waved at Dudley and turned to go back up the stairs.
"Harry?" Harry turned to look back down at his aunt.
"Please be careful, I'm not ready to lose any more relatives." Harry nodded and waved at her.
Ginny was almost at the top of the stairs but made a decision and turned and rushed back down. She gave Harry's aunt a surprise hug and then went and just poked Dudley on the arm. "Thanks" she said to the both of them and hurried to catch up with her mum and Harry.
Harry shrank down his trunk and looked around his room for the last time that year. It was more of a home here than he ever had before but Harry wanted to get back to his real life at Hogwarts and his hug buddies.
Xxx xxxx
Harry laughed when he emerged through the floo at the Burrow without stumbling. He tried to be extra careful this time but it was evident that he was expected. There were pieces of paper all over the floor and the table with targets hastily drawn on them. There were Weasley names scrawled on each piece of paper. Harry stood and looked at the family standing around him and then deliberately stepped on the closest target that had Ginny's name on it.
"I win", the youngest Weasley said. She walked over to where her brothers Gred and Forge were standing and patiently held out her hand. Three sickles came out of a pocket and were placed in her hand. Ginny turned back and skipped over to hug Harry. While she was hugging him, Harry felt her dump the money back into his pocket. "Now we're all square again" she whispered in his ear.
Harry released Ginny and turned to say hello to the twins and Ron. He was immediately mobbed by the brothers and welcomed back to the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley finally had to step in and restore a little bit of order.
Harry followed Ron up to his room and he was joined there by Ginny and the twins. Once he made sure everyone was comfortable, Harry told the three brothers what had been happening to him in the last week or two. He started with the conversations with his Aunt Petunia and some of the reasons that Dudley had been treating him decently. The twins were disappointed that Harry forbade them from pranking two of the three Dursleys but Harry pointed out that there was still a remaining target out there if they felt that they needed to really do something. Even Ron promised that he would help out with anything the twins decided to do.
Ginny brought up the matter of Harry's trunk and they both told her brothers about the discovery of the second year notebooks written by his mum. Ron groaned at the mention of course work but did concede that it might help looking through them before they went back to Hogwarts. Neither Harry nor Ginny thought disclosing the Eye of Horus bracelet was something that the twins needed to know about. Harry thought turning a possible prank back on the two was something they needed to keep secret. Harry also didn't let anyone else know what the other key in his trunk might be. Founders key or not, it wasn't something Harry felt turning the twins loose with. The visit by "Dobby" was also kept out of the talk.
The last thing that Harry told the Weasley boys was the letter his parents had written to Dumbledore. He made them promise to never disclose the matter to anyone before he told then the fate of his different Godparents. They were all sad for Neville but said they would try looking out for him a little more. Their reaction to the situation with his godfather was one of sheer confusion. A dangerous mad criminal was Harry's innocent godfather?
Harry agreed that only an improbable fact like that could happen to him. They all were interrupted by Mrs. Weasley shout from the kitchen that lunch was ready. As the boys scrambled down the stairs to get to their favorite chairs, Harry took a look around Ron's room. Everything looked the same as it had before they had all left, but it seemed a little different to Harry's eyes somehow. He finally figured out what it was.
"Coming Harry?" Ginny asked.
"Just a second Gin. Can you come over here a second?" Harry held out his hand and Ginny wasted no time in coming over and grabbing it. Harry hadn't asked to hold hands with her very often and she liked the feeling.
Harry picked up Ginny's hand and kissed the back of it briefly. Ginny just giggled but then Harry showed her what he had seen. Opening his connection, Ginny saw the color burst of magic that came from atop Ron's dresser.
"It's ok Harry. Dad just charmed Scabbers' cage to make it escape proof. After all the times that Ron had trouble with the pet, he actually asked dad for help. It seems he didn't want to waste any more time wandering around the castle. So the cage has a powerful charm on it that only Ron can turn on or off."
Harry took a last look at the cage and rodent and promptly discarded anything abnormal about it from his mind. He walked down to the kitchen and lunch holding hands with Ginny.
The rest of the day was the first real day of summer as far as Harry was concerned. He got to play some Quidditch and fly on his broom and trade jokes with Ginny and the others. Watching her fly around on his Nimbus 2000, gave Harry an idea of what to get his girlfriend for her upcoming birthday. He of course would have to get the approval of both her parents but hoped he could talk them into it without too much trouble.
After a delicious supper, Harry spent a lot of time 'talking' to Hermione and Ginny while they were all lounging in bed. It was an indulgence Harry gave to himself as a way of celebrating his 'escape' from Privet Drive. The girls eventually felt Harry drift off into a nice relaxing sleep.
Xxx xxx
It was the whispering that woke Harry up in the morning. At first he thought it was just the wind running through the trees outside the window, but as he rolled over to grab his glasses, Harry heard a distinctive chuckle.
Harry rolled back to take a good look around the room and was shocked almost off the bed. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY HARRY!" Standing around his bed was the entire Weasley family. Everybody yelled it one more time and then Harry was subjected to a round of hugs, slaps on the back, handshakes and two kisses to his cheek. One from Mrs. Weasley and one from a grinning Ginny. "You really didn't think you would get to sleep in on your own birthday, did you?"
Looking around at all the grinning faces, Harry blushed. "I was just so happy to get here that I forgot all about the actual date."
Fred turned to his twin. "You kept the receipts, right?"
George winked at Ginny and replied. "They may be in the trash. I never expected that we'd returned the birthday presents we got Harry. But if he doesn't want his birthday…"
A pillow to the side of George's head stopped his joke and the rest of the family just applauded Harry's accuracy. "Best get going Harry or Ron will eat all your breakfast that mum's fixed up."
Ron pretended to be shocked at that insult but Harry did notice he did edge a little closer to the door. Until everyone turned to look at him.
Harry thanked everyone for the wakeup call. "Let me get up and get changed; I'll be down in a few minutes." The Weasley children headed back down to their rooms to change and get ready for breakfast. Ron just headed down for the food. Mrs. Weasley cast a look at her daughter who had gone over to sit on Harry's bed and held up one finger. She nodded and then Mrs. Weasley headed down the stairs back to her kitchen.
"Any other surprises I should be aware of then?" Harry picked up Ginny's hand and rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand.
"If you know what was coming then it wouldn't be a surprise then, would it?" Ginny smiled at her own logic while Harry rolled his eyes. He really couldn't think of anywhere else in the world he wanted to spend his birthday at than right here at The Burrow.
'Happy Birthday Harry!'
'Thanks Hermione. You are coming over later aren't you?"
'Wouldn't miss it. My parents are working but they asked me to pass along their best wishes and you're invited over next week to spend a few days with us.'
'Great! I'll see you later Hermione.'
'Ginny, make sure you let Harry know how much we like him!'
Ginny blushed as Hermione left their conversation. Harry waited for what Ginny had planned but she just gave him a quick kiss to his forehead and hurried down the stairs to change out of her robe and pajamas.
Harry grabbed some clean clothes out of his trunk and changed before he stopped at the loo on the way downstairs. Mrs. Weasley had fixed all of his favorites to eat and he actually enjoyed being the center of attention for a change. Mr. Weasley jokingly told Harry to leave a little appetite for the birthday supper later and gave him a quick hug before he left for work.
The rest of the morning was caught up in unpacking his trunk and laying out the books he owned and his mum's notebooks. Harry hadn't decided how to divide up the 2nd year notes over the remaining weeks between the four of them. Ron did want a look at them. Harry hoped that just a week's worth of studying on each and then a rotation would be the best solution. There was still the magical ban on bringing anybody else's notes to Hogwarts to consider so Harry hoped there was enough time to get some benefit out of the notebooks.
The twins dragged Harry into their room after Harry went down and dropped off the 'new' charms notes to Ginny. It was the first time that Harry had been into Fred and George's room and he was very curious about all the containers and flasks of 'ingredients' that were stored on every available surface. Harry sat on one of the beds and looked around at the various scorched and stained surfaces around the room. He started wondering how dangerous it was to actually ask the twins to help him out.
George took a look at Harry's face and dug out a small pouch from the top drawer of his desk. Harry untied the drawstring holding it closed and reached in. He pulled out something he couldn't see. "Two dozen invisible marbles Harry; how's that for a start?"
Harry held up his thumb and forefinger to check out the feel and smoothness of the little ball. "This is fantastic guys, exactly what I was looking for. What else have you dreamed up?"
"That's what we wanted to talk to you about Harry. We've got five or six other ideas kicking around but then we realized there might be a problem. If you're in the dark or just reaching into your pocket for one of these surprises, you just can't have them all be round like the marbles."
"That's a good point. Either I get a lot of different pockets or pouches or…"
"We thought if we could package them into different shapes it might work out better for touch recognition. Squares, small pyramids, lozenges, etc."
"That's a very good idea. Do you need any more money for supplies?" Harry asked.
"No we're doing ok with what you gave us at school. We'll get a few of the easier ones made up for you before we head back to school. Of course you do realize that there's a restocking fee for getting refills if you use any up."
Harry laughed. "Of course. I would want to compensate you for any additional work."
"That brings up the next little detail. How serious do you want us to get?"
"Nothing permanent, for Merlin's sake guys. I'm just trying to take make sure that anybody would be inconvenienced or delayed if they came after me or your sister. Oh, and nothing with very sharp points either. I can't be disabling myself just walking the halls either."
The twins just laughed with Harry at that point. "It probably would also save us getting hexed by our dear little sister" Fred said with a grin.
Harry left the twins discussing the finer points of hexes, charms and shapes and went back down the stairs. He arrived just in time to watch Hermione come through the floo. She placed a few wrapped packages on the table and gave Harry a short hug.
'How's the birthday boy doing so far?'
'Just fine Hermione. Are you staying over?' Harry indicated the little bag she was carrying.
'No, Dad and I are going through the Leaky Cauldron for your big will reading tomorrow. This is just something for later.'
Harry shrugged his shoulders and watched as Hermione headed up the stairs to Ginny's room. Harry talked to Mrs. Weasley for a bit and then he was sent upstairs to summon everyone for lunch.
After lunch, everyone but Mrs. Weasley and Percy decided that it was such a nice day that they would all go swimming. Harry never saw the glance that Ginny and Hermione exchanged as he headed up the stairs. Ron, of course, finished changing and headed out before Harry even remembered where he had put his trunks. By the time he came down, it was to find Ginny and Hermione waiting for him with towels. They both had windbreakers over their swimsuits and Harry resisted the urge to peek. The three walked to through the orchard and found Ron and the twins standing on the small dock talking to Luna Lovegood, who was in the water.
"Hi Harry. Happy birthday – you're looking especially worry-free this afternoon."
"Thanks Luna, have you been in swimming long?"
"No, I'm not even wrinkly yet. Here, I'll show you."
Luna waded out of the pond to the astonished eyes of everyone around. She was wearing a teeny white bikini that showed a lot of skin on her small body. Harry blushed as Luna came up to him and just closed his eyes as she gave him a quick hug. Harry heard both his girlfriends laughing and opened his eyes once Luna had released him.
Luna had turned back to walk back in the pool but stopped once she had got next to Ron. "Is there a problem Ronald? Something flying over maybe?" She looked up to follow his steadfast gaze skywards.
Ron had blushed as hard as he ever blushed as he tried to frame a reply to his neighbor. "I guess I'm not used to seeing girls in two piece swimsuits, Luna."
"Well, I can fix that Ron." Luna took three steps ahead so that she was on the edge of the dock and peeled her top off without turning around. She threw it over her shoulder to Ron without looking back and dived into the pool. When she came up she shook her hair out of her face and yelled back to a dumbstruck Ron. "Did I give you the right piece? I'm only wearing one piece now but if you want the other one you'll have to bring that one in to me so I can change."
Harry, Hermione and Ginny all broke out laughing at the look of absolute terror and embarrassment that was on Ron face. Ginny took pity on her brother and plucked the top out his hand where he had caught it. Ron looked down at the garment and suddenly turned and sat down covering his eyes. George and Fred were laughing at him and discussing whether they should go back to the house for the camera.
Ginny sat on the edge of the dock and motioned Luna a little closer. "That's not exactly what Ron meant Luna. You should put this back on and keep it on."
"Well ok." The four boys were studying the ground intently so they didn't see how Luna managed to put her top back while she was in the water. Ginny called out an all clear and the twins picked up Ron from where he was sitting on the ground and chucked him off the dock. He went in with a big yell but Luna went over and made sure he came up ok. Harry couldn't tell if Ron was happy or scared when he surfaced to see Luna next to him.
George and Fred took a leaping run off the dock and just started splashing Ron and Luna. Harry sat down and just watched the fun for a bit. He just felt nice having the sun on him and his friends.
Ginny knelt down next to Harry. "Not interested in going in Harry?"
"Not quite yet. I'm just relaxing and enjoying the moment. It seems so different from Privet Drive. It's like I'm living two different lives."
"I think I understand. I'm going in; don't wait too long." Ginny stood up and shrugged off her cover. Harry got a bit of a blush himself as he saw that Ginny had got a new suit. It was a lot sleeker than her old one and had a certain tightness that Harry really couldn't explain but liked. Ginny leaned down to ruffle Harry's hair once and then ran off the dock herself, trying to cannonball Fred.
"I hope you appreciate that Ginny spent a lot of time picking out that swimsuit. For you." Harry turned a quizzical look at Hermione. "She wanted something that wasn't too revealing but still attractive."
"Well she certainly succeeded with that" Harry said quietly. "Please tell her I like it a lot if I don't find my tongue when I'm around her."
"How about mine then Harry?" Hermione shrugged off her shell and Harry whistled in appreciation. Hermione had got a two piece suit for herself. It wasn't nearly as brief as Luna's but Harry still got a good look at some of Hermione he hadn't seen before. 'I approve. It looks really nice on you.''
Hermione giggled at the interest she got from Harry. "I took your suggestion and had a good time sunning at the beach. It was nice feeling. I wanted to look good for you."
'You always look good to me Hermione.' Hermione grinned a little but leaned in a little to whisper to her boyfriend. "There's no tan lines either." Hermione got up quickly and went and lowered herself into the water from the dock.
"Harry you coming in?" Harry looked up quickly to see the three girls waving at him.
Harry's mind finally kicked in and he worked through Hermione's last statement. "Be there in a minute." He sent a quick thought out to Hermione. 'Too much information Nonnie!'
'Problem Harry?'
Harry grinned at Ginny. 'I'll be there when I can stand up without embarrassing myself.'
Seeing the two girls almost flounder in their laughter at him, Harry resolved to do the best cannonball he could on them. When his trunks weren't so crowded.
xxxx xxxx
The birthday supper was everything that Harry could have asked for. While there wasn't as many guests as his surprise party in the orchard last summer, the people who were there more than made up for any shortcomings. Just having Luna and Hermione with all the Weasleys made it more homelike for Harry. The food was just marvelous and the chocolate cake for dessert was rally tasty. Harry made sure that Hermione had a couple of pieces wrapped up to take back home for her parents.
Harry was surprised and happy with the presents he got from everyone. Mr. Weasley had found some more books on Runes and Charms that Charles and Bill had left and Mrs. Weasley had knitted a small Gryffindor quilt to place on Harry's bed. Ron had somewhere found a book on Seeker strategies that Harry thought was just great. The twins gave Harry a nice selection of candy and gags from Zonko's. Percy gave Harry a history book he had found on Godric Gryffindor. Luna even chipped in a subscription to the Quibbler that Harry thanked her for.
Mrs. Granger's gift to Harry included a nice red dress shirt and a tie that had the Gryffindor colors in a wild pattern on it. Mr. Granger had wrapped up some elbow and forearm guards for Harry but his note said he'd like to see Harry play Quidditch sometime. Harry thought that the presents from Hermione's parents were very nice.
That left the presents from Ginny and Hermione. The twins and Ron were especially interested in what the two girls had got for Harry. Harry opened up Ginny's present first. What he found was an older Wizarding Wireless Set that was supposed to go to his dorm room. Harry thanked her but privately let her know there was another type of reward he'd like to give her.
Hermione was waiting on the edge of her seat to see what Harry's reaction to her present would be. Harry opened the package and smiled at her. Inside was a suede vest that felt wonderful to Harry's touch. Underneath it though was a grey T-shirt that Harry didn't really want to explain to anyone; the Weasleys wanted to know what the cartoon of a mouse in red and yellow tights and cape meant but Harry said it was a private joke between him and Hermione.
'Harry, Hermione told me what that was! No matter how old or big we get, you'll always be Mighty Mouse to us.'
Harry groaned to himself. If it wasn't one thing with these young ladies then it was something else. Usually embarrassing – but Harry wouldn't have it any other way!
Harry only gave Hermione a kiss on the cheek before she flooed home because everyone else was watching them in the kitchen still. Ginny ambushed him later as he was walking up to Ron's room and he asked her to 'share' the nice hug and gentle kiss he gave her with Hermione. Both girls 'thanked' him and Harry went to sleep with another contented grin on his face.