Come On, Dudders
Sweat slid down his back in rivulets and coated his body. He knew without looking that he wasn't the only one. The pair moved in relative silence. The only sound between the two were their soft footsteps and the repetitive - huff, huff, huffhuff - breaths from his companion. It made their time out on the road a chance for reflection.
They kept a steady pace as they rounded the corner. Privet Drive stood before them with its nearly identical homes and immaculately kept lawns lining each side. Many families would be waking up about that time. The sun was lazily spreading its sunbeams across the land and lighting the blue sky overhead. The day promised to be another stifling summer day with little relief.
Harry had been home for just over a fortnight. The wards had been refreshed and he'd be leaving for the Black family home soon. He looked down the road towards number 4 and squinted. He couldn't see the wards around the house, but he knew they were there and that bothered him. He should be able to see something. No, that wasn't right. Harry couldn't see wards, but he could feel them. He felt the magic brush over him as he passed through them. Only he had never felt the wards around the Dursley house. Why was that?
Perhaps his growing up with those particular wards had him so intuned with them that they didn't register when he passed through them. Still, Harry had purposefully searched the home for any sign of magic. There should have been a warding stone on the property, but he hadn't found any sign of one. Was it possible that there were no wards and he was simply told he was protected, but wasn't? Harry frowned as that thought struck him and he shook it off as foolish. Snape told him there were wards on his home and he believed - without a doubt - that the man wouldn't lie to him.
His guardian was another matter to think on. Snape was a spy for both Old Voldy and Dumbledore. His life would always be complicated and dangerous. Especially now that Voldy was back. Harry wondered, not for the first time, if Snape had already been called back to duty as he said he would be. Was the man still alive? Would he be informed if his guardian wasn't? Was Snape okay? Healthy? In trouble with the DL?
Dudley's arms shot out in a jab motion with each expelled breath. Right, left, rightleft. As if his cousin was sparring with the air in front of him. The boxer was in good condition. Dudley had lost the weight his coach required of him. He'd gained muscle and was balancing his newly attained power with dexterity. When he wasn't jabbing, Dudley was weaving.
Harry allowed his mind to drift from one random thought to another. Conversation wasn't necessary on their run. Every morning it was the same thing: huff, huff, huffhuff. A jog around the neighborhood, sparring, weight training, showers, breakfast and a lazy summer vacation day doing whatever it was that struck their fancy or nothing at all.
It was quite cathartic: breathing, weaving, runes, wards, homework, tests (mathematics, reading, history and science) and plans. Harry had plans to make. Plans about his future: dreams, wishes, realistic goals. Those plans changed daily, if not hourly.
"You've snogged your girl, haven't you?"
His mind was drifting once again from one subject (wards) to the next (Grimmauld Place) and on to the next (a possible excursion to Diagon Alley). So it was not surprising when the sudden sound of his cousin's voice startled him. The question itself astounded Harry so much that he nearly tripped over his own feet from the shock. Harry physically shook his head to bring his mind back into focus and gawked at his cousin, "What?"
Did muggles speak of such things? Blaise never asked such questions of him. Of course he knew that Harry had indeed snogged Hermione, but was that the only reason they didn't discuss such matters? Sirius and Remus never broached the subject, but then Harry would never talk to them about such personal matters. Dudley slowed his pace as they were nearing their home and asked, "You're still with that bird? What was her name? You must have snogged her by now."
Harry and Dudley have never spoken about their personal lives. Granted Dudley had asked for advice early on in his relationship with Sally-Ann, but that was strictly on what to say in his initial letters, not about the physical side of things. This line of thinking had taken a turn to a new - and interesting - twist, but Harry wasn't about to give any details regardless of how few there truly were. Snogged yes, more no, but that was still none of his cousin's business.
These types of intimate details just weren't spoken about in polite society… were they? Neither of the boys spoke of their betrothed in such a way and Theodore wasn't about to gossip about some bird (or bloke) he fancied. Some of the older boys bragged about conquests, certainly, but those weren't the girls they were intending to marry upon graduation. Perhaps it was a muggle thing to speak of such details so openly. Harry didn't speak with any muggle teen aged boys other than his cousin. Was this normal?
Harry came to a stop and swiped his forehead with his shirt sleeve in an attempt to stave off the sweat from getting into his eyes. Still, he was a Slytherin and heard the unspoken words implied by Dudley's tone. Harry didn't bother to hide his amusement when he asked, "What happened with Perkins?"
"Nothing," Dudley said flatly.
That didn't sound promising. Dudley wasn't simply defensive, he was troubled. They had been on the last stretch of their run. Harry kept his voice as non-judgmental as he could manage when he asked, "What's going on, Dudley?"
The blonde had stopped alongside his cousin and looked at Harry for a moment before he turned towards the park. Dudley's pace was steady when he started jogging again. They had gone half a block before he started talking, "She…" Dudley shrugged and tried once again, "Just before the end of term, Sally-Ann wrote something about how hard it was dating someone from another school. Said dating me was difficult because of how far apart we were day to day. It wasn't as we ever said we'd be anything more than friends. We dated a bit last year, kissed some then, but I haven't seen her once this summer."
Dudley's pace slowed again and soon the pair was walking in the park. Harry wasn't sure what he was expected to say, but his cousin seemed troubled. So the brunette tried some sage advice, "Have you tried calling her?"
"Yes," Dudley admitted. "She's busy or not there." He shrugged and admitted, "I think she's going to break up with me."
Harry tried to lighten the mood when he asked, "Can you break up with someone you're not technically dating?"
Dudley snorted giving his cousin a two finger salute, "You git. We were dating… of sorts," Dudley combed his fingers through his sweaty hair and dropped his hands in frustration. "Bloody hell, I don't know."
"Sorry, mate." Harry shrugged, "Don't know what to tell you. I had a bit of trouble with Hermione. Worked it out eventually, but girls are complicated. They don't always say what's the matter and expect us to know anyhow. Sometimes I think they're all mental."
"I suppose," Dudley agreed distractedly. He stared at his empty hands and clenched them a time or two as if they held the answers. Dudley balled his hands and took up a defensive stance. Harry followed suit and began weaving immediately to dodge the jabs headed his way. "I'm better off without a bird right now." He jabbed twice more with his right, "Boxing is taking up a lot of my time."
Harry barely ducked in time to miss a left upper cut, "Then what's the problem?"
Dudley dropped his hands and stared at his cousin as if he were daft, "Sally-Ann is breaking up with me."
"You don't know that for certain."
The blonde just stood there staring at his cousin for a moment before he sighed, "I suppose I won't know until I talk with her."
"Come on, Dudders. Let's get some breakfast." Harry said with a mocking grin. Dudley growled at Harry for using that dreaded moniker and ran after his laughing cousin all the way back to their home on Privet Drive.
Dudley did his best not to gawk like a dying fish, but it wasn't exactly the easiest thing for him to accomplish as they strolled down the sidewalk. Harry had given him numerous chances to back out, but he refused to stay home given the chance to go to London. Besides seeing the city, Dudley was quite curious to see what magical stores looked like. The Slytherin had given his cousin a nod of approval and called him a Gryffindor before discreetly holding his wand out for the Knight Bus.
The purple, triple-decker bus had dropped them off in front of the Leaky Cauldron thirty minutes ago. Dudley was green and felt queasy from the ride, but they managed to make their way through the pub without incident. They then proceeded down the alley with a quick stop at the bank vaults for some spending money. Harry knew he had a bank card that he could use in both the wizarding and the muggle world, but he needed the cash for the food stands they'd visit later.
The two teens were currently making their way to Magical Menagerie for some owl treats and do a bit of window shopping for anything that caught their eye along the way. Dudley's head kept swiveling around to see as much as he could manage without appearing too obvious. The teen came to an abrupt stop when he was in front of Quality Quidditch Supplies.
"One of my favorite shops," Harry stood beside his cousin and gave Dudley a nudge, "Want to go in?"
"Yes," Dudley agreed immediately.
Harry understood the wistful look his cousin held. He had felt the same way at the thought of flying. The two teens slowly made their way through the store; Dudley looked at the brooms while Harry searched out new gear.
In his excitement Dudley began pointing out the differences between the brooms that were notated along with the prices of each model. Soon the cousins were discussing the importance of skill over superior equipment which caused a few other shoppers within hearing distance to join in on the conversation creating quite a debate in the store.
The conversation was entertaining. Harry especially enjoyed the fact that no one - other than himself and his cousin - knew that Dudley wasn't a wizard. The entire conversation had nothing to do with magic, so Dudley was able to debate effectively against differing opinions. The blonde was so enraptured that he hadn't noticed when the Slytherin stepped away.
Harry stood at the counter with his new purchase. The man at the register was watching the circle of teenagers as the heated discussion turned to quidditch. Harry caught his cousin's eye giving the blonde a nod. Dudley said something before making his way over to Harry and asked, "Get what you needed?"
"I did," Harry gestured with the small package in his hand, "I've been using the school issued gloves. I really should have gotten my own long ago. Are you ready to go?"
"Yeah," Dudley glanced behind him at the small crowd currently breaking up, "We agreed to disagree right before the conversation turned to quidditch. It was turning ugly when someone mentioned the Chudley Cannons."
"Worse team in the bloody league," Harry shook his head, "They're a disgrace to the game."
"For the record, I agree with you." The two boys were surprised when the proprietor spoke up, "Not about the Cannons, well about them too, but about your views about gear versus skill making the better player. I'll not admit that too loudly. Not very good for business, but a player is only as good as his skill allows. Granted, excellent equipment will give any flier an edge, but if he ain't got the talent, then there's just no helping a bloke."
"Exactly!" Dudley exclaimed.
Harry just gave the man an amused nod, clapped his cousin on the shoulder and urged him towards the door. As they made their way out of the shop, Harry slipped his new gloves into a pocket, "Owl treats and then to Camden Town?"
Dudley slowed as he spotted Sugarplum's Sweet Shop and swallowed hard. Harry nudged his shoulder when he spotted what caught the other boy's attention, "Come on. A few sweets won't hurt if you work them off before you head back to school."
"Yeah," Dudley quickly agreed. "Just a few."
The two made their way through the pink store. Harry stole a glance at Dudley as he eyed each confection with admiration and reverence. These two teens were an unlikely pair of friends. Their beginning wasn't the best in any stretch of the imagination yet there they were shopping, hanging out and actually enjoying each other's company. Harry was looking forward to their next destination in muggle London where he'd be the tourist and Dudley would be the guide.
Harry looked out the shop window at the various customers making their way through the alley. So many people were oblivious of each other, simply coexisting and going on with their day to day lives. Did they have any idea how much danger lurked out there now that Voldy was back? Would they believe the DL had returned if they were told? Should they be told?
The Slytherin turned from the window and handed the clerk his bank card. It was time to move forward. No time to reflect too much on what was, what had been. The masses needed to know that evil was back among them so they could prepare for the coming war, but who would be the messenger?
AN: Happy belated Labor Day peeps. Every year I head home to visit family for the long weekend. And now I'm back…
*music plays suddenly* …And now you're back from outer space… I just walked in to find you here, with that look upon your face… *music fades just as quickly*
Oh you know I couldn't resist. Anyhow, I apologize for the delay. I should be back on schedule, whatever that may be. Also I warn you: this is summer time for the Hogwarts students, that usually means filler and nonsense. *dances away to continue writing, etc.*
Erimenthe: According to IMDb Casper came out on 26 May 1995, so that was totally doable providing - as you pointed out - he watched the movie. Thanks for the idea. Maybe it will come in handy later... who knows?!