A/N: You know I am glad I created a completely separate email account for my Fanfiction account. I logged into it recently and it has 6000 emails waiting to be read! I would have gotten rather impatient with having to delete that many off my main email!
Anyway, thanks to all reviews, favourites, and follows, and generally to anyone who gave my story a chance and enjoys it! As always I'm grateful for seeing the stats spiral up for this story, I probably would have given up long ago without your support. And to show my appreciation here is an early update. And a quick warning, I'm away on Friday (having a mini reunion with my university friends) so I will not be posting then. I shall try to update again before then!
Chapter Thirty Seven – Diagon Alley Reunion
Whilst Kevin had been in America he had offered for Mateo to sleep over his for a few days before they returned to Hogwarts so that Bruce only had to make one journey to England in a fortnight. Mateo had checked with Bruce and Kevin's parents before accepting the offer, so they planned their trip to buy their second year supplies to occur close to the end of the holidays. With trunk and Garuda's cage in tow (the owl itself had been quite content with the plan for him to fly straight to Hogwarts) Mateo, Bruce, and Tony headed towards the dark pub once more.
Mateo was wearing the new clothes that he had received for his birthday a month ago and even Tony had commented how smart he looked in the leather jacket Clint and Natasha had bought for him. It was pretty obviously not magical attire but this time around Mateo was less concerned about sticking out. A few students nodded at him when they made eye contact and Mateo was surprised by how many smiled at him.
"It seems your prowess on a broom has made you quite well known already," Tony said as he observed another group of older students recognise the boy by his side.
"I helped beat Slytherin and apparently that is something that hasn't been done in many years, I'm not surprised with their reactions even if I do think it is pointless," Mateo sighed.
They had very few shops that they needed to visit this year in comparison to their first shopping excursion in the alley, which was a blessing as the alley seemed to be heaving that day. There was a small queue at Gringotts for their services, and thankfully once Mateo had money again the majority of the shops seemed to be relatively quiet compared to earlier. As arranged they met Kevin at the robe shop as both boys had grown an inch or so over the last year, and despite their best attempts their old clothes did show signs of wear.
It was in the clothing shop that they discovered why the alley was so busy. Gilderoy Lockhart, the extravagant man who was releasing an autobiography of his daring exploits, was holding a book signing in Flourish and Blotts. Mateo looked at his list of books needed for the year and groaned.
"What's the betting he is our teacher this year?"
"At least he has some evidence that he is good at defence, hopefully he can teach it as well as he can tell a story," Kevin replied hopefully from his own stool.
"It's good your core textbook likely holds all the spells you'll learn in that subject, as none of Lockhart's books describes how to cast a single spell," Tony noticed everyone looking at him. "What?"
"Why exactly did you read them?" Bruce sighed and rubbed his eyes.
"I thought they were fiction and thought it would be interesting to see what the Wizards make up in the way of myths seeing as the largest segment of muggle fiction is apparently real. To be honest I am not entirely sure they are not fabricated, the lack of detail makes it sound more like a bedtime story than an actual account of events."
"Please don't ask him whether they are faked to his face, you can find out some details about him from his autobiography then set JARVIS on researching him," Mateo didn't want to incur the wrath of a teacher before term began if the man was to be going to Hogwarts.
Thankfully Tony did take it as a challenge and was eager to meet the man to get started. The gaggle of people around the bookstore had grown since they had arrived and the six of them were forced to join the back of the line in order to buy the books required for the year. Once they were inside the shop Tony disappeared off into the furthest corners of the shop in search of anything that could be relevant to their private research. To pass the time Mateo and Kevin chatted about various games they had played in the last two weeks since they had last met. Bruce struck up a conversation with Nikki and Tim about dealing with a magical child whilst being a muggle, and the three of them actually had quite a fruitful discussion.
Tony just reappeared in time for them to be near the front of the line with a couple of books tucked surreptitiously under his arm. Mateo and Kevin had noticed the Weasley family were a few paces in front of them in the line, but they had been unsuccessful in trying to attract the attention of the twins. The two redheads seemed engrossed in a whispered conversation that only they were privy to. Mateo's interest was piqued by the sight, the twins looked to really be quite serious about what they were talking about.
An overly enthusiastic reporter was pushing through the crowd taking photos of the impeccably dressed blonde seated at the table. Each time he clicked the button of his camera a puff of smoke erupted from the lamp filament, and the room was slowly becoming filled with haze. Mateo had no idea why the photographer needed to take more than five photos of the man at the table, but during the time they were there he seemed to have taken at least twenty. In his frenzy to get shots from every angle the photographer ended up knocking a few of the Weasley's aside and caused Ron to grumble rather loudly.
"Good Lord, is that Harry Potter?" Gilderoy asked loudly. His attention had been drawn from the person getting their book signed to the crowd by Ron's slightly colourful language. It was just Mateo's luck to be in a clear line of sight for the celebrity to see through the crowd.
His question had everyone looking excitedly around the room, and while a few adults clocked and gazed at Mateo curiously the assembled students didn't even look twice at him. However the reporter grabbed his arm and yanked him forwards so that he was flung into the waiting arms of the glittering man.
"Smile Harry, together you and I will make the front page," Gilderoy clamped an arm around Mateo and gave him no room to move.
"I'm not Harry Potter!" Mateo protested loudly as the photographer went into a frenzy.
"Unless you want to meet a very unpleasant end you will release my son at once, sir," Bruce strode forward angrily.
The scientist was uncaring of any injury he caused by shoving the photographer to one side whilst relieving the man of his camera. He didn't care about what kind of scene he was creating as he marched past towards the man who had trapped his child.
He was, however, very aware of how the Other Guy was snarling in the back of his mind, and how his other side's anger fed into his own to the point he was almost turning green. With enhanced strength he crushed the camera in one hand and was satisfied with the sounds of destruction that accompanied the act. He ignored the spluttering reporter and stomped up to Lockhart, and had to make a conscious effort to not break the celebrity's arm as he wrenched it off of Mateo.
His son gladly stepped away from the man and moved to stand slightly behind and to the side of his father and matched the glare the greying-haired figure was giving the cowering man. Lockhart didn't know what colour eye's Bruce normally had, he was just concerned by the fact he was pinned in place by two matching sets of glaring green eyes. Being face to face with the two males gave the writer an opportunity to see every similarity, which provided a good distraction to the way his spine felt like it was turning to jelly.
"Ah yes I see the resemblance. Please accept my apologies but we are all anxious to see the return of the Boy-Who-Lived, and your son looks remarkably like him," Gilderoy babbled in an attempt to pacify the pair.
"Apart from the fact I don't wear glasses. Oh, and the fact I have no scar, which is a pretty large give-away that I am not the same person," Mateo said in an irritated tone.
"Indeed, again I apologise and I shall pick up your bill in recompense," Gilderoy hurriedly offered.
"Two sets of your books and these then," Tony slammed the two books on the desk and glared at the shop owner until the relevant stacks of books were handed over to Mateo and Kevin.
Bruce had disappeared to the outside of the shop to calm down, Mateo hadn't failed to notice the green in his father's eyes, and Tony was not far behind him with Kevin's parents in tow. Mateo had stopped briefly to say hi to the twins, and by association the rest of the Weasley clan, before moving to head outside. However someone stopped him.
"Bet you loved that Mudblood, nothing like getting your name in a Wizarding paper to improve your social standing," Malfoy taunted from his spot on the stairs.
"Not really, I am quite content to be happy in my own world without trying to force my way into yours. See you at school Draco," Mateo said pleasantly and tried to leave.
"Why don't you introduce me to your friend Draco," a man, obviously Draco's father, said silkily as he appeared behind Mateo and effectively blocked his exit of the shop.
"Father this is Kevin Entwhistle and Mateo Banner, both muggle born Ravenclaws," Draco's tone was thick with distain.
"Ah you are the one that caused the false alarm, I can see why the idiot Lockhart made the mistake," the elder Malfoy said as he scrutinised the pair.
"I am nothing like what you seem to think Harry Potter is like, apart from genetics dictating that I should apparently look like him," Mateo said firmly.
"You should learn to watch your tongue when addressing those who are infinitely more important than you are," the man hissed angrily.
"I am watching it fine, I am merely stating facts. My tone may not be as respectful as what you are used to but, as your son points out, I am a mudblood. So I expect you are going to ignore my existence as soon as this conversation is over, and I shall assist with that. See you at school Draco, pleasure to meet you Mr Malfoy," Mateo nodded and bowed to the two white haired males before nudging and incredulous Kevin. "Come on."
The two purebloods let the two leave and were staring incredulously after them long after the door to Flourish and Blotts had closed once more. It was only as the Weasley's approached that Lucius regained his senses after being outwitted by the Mudblood child. In order to reassert himself he turned and started to rip apart the Weasley family's reputation. He may have gained a bloody nose for his trouble but he also managed to slip a specific item into one of their cauldrons and cleared his family of any danger associated with it.
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Tony and Bruce had left Mateo with Kevin and his parents soon after the incident in the book shop. The drive back to their house took just over an hour thanks to the traffic, but soon enough they were pulling into a rather orderly neighbourhood compiled of rows of very uniform houses. Mateo gazed around him curiously as a small part of his brain was telling him that this place was familiar to him as they drove through. They kept driving and reached the other side of the suburban housing estate where the houses were a little less rigidly maintained and more personal. Tim pulled the car onto the drive of a house with a deep blue door and a riot of colourful flowers growing in the flowerbed out front.
A small pink scooter was abandoned on the front lawn whilst a skateboard was propped against the wall by the door. Mateo had forgotten that Kevin had mentioned having other siblings, and now he was being dragged into the building by his brunette friend to go find them.
"Molly! Rich! Mateo's here!" Kevin shouted loudly.
"Kevin they can hear you even if you speak loudly, shouting is not necessary," Nikki sighed.
"Sorry mum," Kevin said contritely, however further discussion was cut off by the sounds of feet upstairs.
Mateo was then subjected to an evening of playing with Molly, who turned out to be seven and twice as animated as Mateo had been at that age. At the same time he chatted with Rich, an eighteen year old with a gift for computers, about Stark Industries. Kevin seemed a little quiet but didn't seem to resent Mateo talking to his siblings.
Not having had any siblings Mateo was still surprised at how similar genetics could make relatives. All three Entwhistle children had bright blue eyes and the same shade of brown hair. Whilst Kevin's always was cut short enough to spike up, Rich's was cut brutally short and Molly's was almost at her waist. The bone structure of their faces variated depending on which parent they inherited it from, but there was no denying they were related.
Nikki had put a stop to the questioning at dinner time and Mateo had insisted on helping with the dishes afterwards. The time difference meant that he was still relatively alert when bedtime rolled around at 10pm but Mateo was content to head up to Kevin's room with him.
"Sorry it isn't as magnificent as your room in New York," Kevin said as Mateo settled down on an airbed on the floor.
"That's all Tony's impression of how we should live, Dad and I were quite content living in two room houses in India. It took me all of last summer to get used to my room in the tower, so this is much more to my liking," Mateo said hurriedly.
"I still can't believe you used to live in lots of different countries, you've lost your accent and you barely seem fazed by anything," Kevin yawned.
"Apart from double yellow lines," Mateo reminded his friend who chuckled at the memory.
The next day Kevin had apparently arranged for his closet friends to meet at the local park so that he could say goodbye before term started again. The fact that Mateo was also going to be there so that he could show off his friend was just an added bonus. Previously Mateo had been confused by Kevin's wish to flaunt his kind of famous friend, but after meeting his siblings Kevin's behaviour was more justified.
It was obvious that their parents loved all three of them, however Molly was special as she was the only girl, whilst Rich was the oldest and was starting out in the world. Although Kevin was special because of his magic he couldn't show it and so for the next few years he probably felt like he was going to not be as special as his siblings. Being separated for nine months of the year did not help matters as he didn't get any of the attention his siblings received.
The gathering of youths in the park was almost hilarious for Mateo, they were all obviously friends and enjoyed each other's company but they were incredibly awkward about playing. So once introductions had been made and about ten minutes of awkward standing around had happened Mateo decided to change that.
"How about we play a game?" Mateo asked.
"Nah, kiddie parks are lame for games," a boy called Phil drawled in an attempt to act mature.
"Not the game I'm thinking of," Mateo hinted.
"What is it then?" Mark asked, he was much less worried about his reputation.
"Tag with a twist, you are only it if the previous person manages to rugby tackle you. Safe places include the monkey bars and roundabout," Mateo pointed out.
"Is it supposed to work out like we saw the Avengers playing?" Kevin asked.
"Perhaps not as rough as the ground is too hard to do that today, but yes. Trust me it's quite fun."
"I'm in!" Kevin called as he legged it.
"I'll give you two a five second head start," Mateo offered.
As promised the four of them had quite a bit of fun running around and feeding off the adrenaline and endorphin rush. Half an hour later they had burnt off quite a lot of energy and they called a truce to flop lazily on the grass near the monkey bars. Mateo had ended up being chased to them just before the game ended and he was still hanging upside down from the bars.
"Stop showing off, you're head's turning red," Kevin called.
Mateo merely smiled at that and easily swung the right way up before sliding back to the ground. He flopped down next to the three and listened in to their conversations about past games they had played at school. Apart from living in the same area it turned out the three had gone to primary school together and had a lot of stories about their past exploits.
"It looks like the runts have attempted to take over our park again boys," a voice snapped them out of their reverie and had Mateo sitting upright very quickly.
A short distance away from them stood five other boys who were probably the same age as Mateo, Kevin, and his friends. Where they differed was the standing group were intentionally trying to look more threatening than they actually were.
The one who had spoken was standing in the middle of the group and seemed to be the leader, despite not having much of an intelligent look about him. However what he lacked in brains he made up for in bulk, and Mateo guessed that he could fit three of him in the clothes that the boy wore. The bulk boy was dressed in a tracksuit set and it seemed that his friends had copied him. However the other four seemed to not be as spoilt as the leader, as his looked barely worn.
"We weren't, this park is free for everyone to use," Mark said nervously.
"Not if we say it is ours," the smallest boy of the other group said in an annoying nasally voice.
"Very true Piers, and we say that this park is ours. So beat it unless you want us to beat you," the leader said imperiously.
Mateo had barely paid attention to the two groups as they talked, he was more concerned on fighting back a panic attack. It was just his luck for his best friend to live within five streets of his old relatives, and that the Dursleys hadn't thought about leaving in the last few years. Mateo wasn't sure if he wanted to throw up or pass out, but either way he was having to focus on remaining calm and not showing his emotions.
Dudley had grown taller and wider since Mateo had last seen him, but the spoilt arrogant personality was the same. It didn't surprise the runaway that the Dursley child hadn't changed at all, nothing of the Dursleys probably had. What did surprise him was the fact that Dudley didn't recognise him at all. Mateo had remembered that his cousin had always been quite thick, but to not see the resemblance took the idiocy to a whole new level.
'Unless I really have changed that much?' Mateo thought. Bruce had repeatedly commented on how tall he had grown, and how much healthier he looked. Maybe actually looking well fed, coupled with the lack of a scar and glasses, was enough to disguise him from his relatives?
It was only because Kevin and his friends began to fearfully stand and back away that Mateo was pulled back to reality. He didn't want to cause a scene or get anyone in to trouble, however he couldn't just slink away. Memories of his treatment at the Dursley's hands flashed through his mind and his resolve solidified into a plan.
He would never comment on how the three boys were willing to leave, it would be a bad move for them to try to fight Dudley's gang. However Mateo was not going to roll over and let the spoilt brat continue his reign of terror. Dudley's confidence would be his demise, and Mateo's unassuming appearance would help him beat his cousin.
"If you seriously hold this park in such regard then we shall leave you to it, but I hardly see why a patch of dirt is worth arguing over," he said.
"It's part of our turf and so you have to obey our rules. No one else is allowed here, so beat it runt," another of the group said.
"Technically the government own all recreational sites, would you go and beat them up retain rights over your 'turf'?" Mateo questioned.
"Stop talking and get lost, or I'll let Gordon and Malcolm use you for practice you ponce," Dudley spoke once more.
Mateo was surprised that Dudley knew the meaning of a word that was actually quite intelligent. He let the insult wash over him, he was wearing smarter clothes than everyone else there and it didn't surprise Dudley picked up on that first. Instead of reacting and commenting on the insult Mateo turned Dudley's last sentence back on him.
"Ah the benevolent leader allows his dogs of their leashes every now and then then?" Mateo spat out. "Tell you what, Dudley, how about you and I settle this between us? Whoever wins get authority over the park and the losers get to leave in peace and won't come back. Leave the mutts on their leash and show us what you can do."
"You think you can take me?" Dudley guffawed. "Alright runt you're on."
"Are you mad?" Mark hissed as Mateo moved forwards to face his opponent.
"You guys just watch," Kevin was grinning and held the other two back. He hadn't wanted for Mateo to get into a fight but he was confident that his friend would easily handle the situation.
Unsurprisingly Dudley attempted to catch Mateo unawares by swinging a punch at his face before the fight had properly started. Back when Mateo had been Harry and had lived not far from here such a move would have probably resulted in a broken nose. However Mateo had had much more self-defence training than Harry had ever had, and he easily dodged the punch. For the next few minutes he merely circled Dudley and dodged the blows that were aimed at his face and stomach while the Dursley heir became even more enraged.
It was quite amusing from Mateo's perspective, he had plenty of memories of Dudley hitting him despite his attempts to avoid the blows. Now he was effortlessly almost dancing around Dudley, and his cousin was getting more worn out with each swing. Mateo almost didn't want the fight to end, he was not in any discomfort and watching Dudley lumber around was quite comical. And the fact that his cousin still hadn't recognised anything about him just added to the hilarity. However eventually Dudley got sick of being made to work to hit someone and glared past his red chubby cheeks at his unknown opponent.
"Fight back you coward!" he shouted in frustration.
"As you wish," Mateo said coolly.
In no time at all he had punched Dudley in the chest once and the stomach twice. He laid the boy out with a fierce punch to the nose quickly followed by an uppercut to the jaw. The boy went down and stayed down as he whimpered and clutched his nose.
"Anyone else want to try?" Mateo turned to face the other four boys.
For a few seconds the four remaining gang members stared dumbly at Mateo, but then Gordon and Malcom did move forward. However Mateo rushed towards them and landed a couple of punches to both of them before they had much chance to react. As a result the two retreated back to their friends and the four looked unhappily at the floor.
"As promised, you may leave freely. If I hear you've been having a go at my friends then you can be sure I will be back to carry on what I've started," Mateo growled and waved a hand to let them go.
The four promptly took off and left Dudley lying on the grass clutching his broken nose. Mateo sighed and turned to the mass on the floor, and almost laughed as Dudley whimpered and tried to wriggle away. He gestured for the other three to give them space, and thankfully Kevin challenged his two friends to see who could stand being on the roundabout the longest.
As satisfying as it was seeing his cousin in the position he himself had been in so many times before, Mateo was overcome with a tiny bit of guilt. He decided that a small conciliatory gesture was needed and he walked over to the fallen boy. However Dudley was not happy with his movement and tried to wriggle away on his back whilst clutching a hand to his bleeding nose.
"Oh stop being an idiot Duddykins, I just need to check your nose is straight before you go," Mateo sighed.
"What did you call me?" Dudley mumbled from behind his hand clamped against his nose.
"I had hoped your idiocy was just a product of being a child but it seems that it is something that is going to be with you for the rest of your life. Did you end up getting that red monster truck in the end?" Mateo asked.
Dudley just gaped at him as Mateo pulled his hand away from his face and inspected his nose. "Harry?"
"Not anymore, after I ran away I changed my name and it's Mateo now, your cousin is long dead to me. If it helps you can also act like I am not your cousin and that the person that bested you in a fight is just a visitor to the area. No one's going to believe you that the tiny Harry Potter came back merely to beat you up before leaving again, and I am certain your parents will tell you off for mentioning the freak again. I bet the house has been peaceful without me darkening your doorstep," Mateo rambled. "Alright the bone looks straight and the bleeding has stopped already. Just say you were mucking around with your friends and didn't dodge quick enough."
Dudley was still gaping at Mateo as if he had seen a ghost, and Mateo guessed that it probably was quite a similar analogy for his cousin. After a short while Dudley did get up but continued to stare at his cousin. "What happened to you? Dad was really angry when that weirdo appeared at Christmas and pointed out you had gone."
"Typical Dumbledore, always too late," Mateo muttered. "I ran away, found someone who actually wanted to look after me and travelled the world. I've moved on and Harry Potter is dead to me now, I hope you will have the same view."
"Dad said we could never mention you again, so you kind of have been dead since you left," Dudley admitted.
"Then everything has worked out well. Sorry about the nose by the way," Mateo apologised. "I'm not likely to see you again, I'm never coming back here if I can help it. So, have a good life Dudley."
Dudley nodded to his cousin and started walking off before Mateo called him to stop. "You should take up boxing, seriously you have a good swing and it will give you someone to beat up who is deserving of you anger. But I will be back to stop you if I hear you've started picking on innocent people in the street again."
Dudley disappeared quite quickly after that, and Kevin dragged Mateo off home again just in case Dursley and his gang decided to return for a second round. Kevin repeatedly mentioned how awesome Mateo had looked taking Dudley out, but Mateo just shrugged and said that it hadn't been hard. He never mentioned how he had actually beaten up his cousin and just made sure Kevin kept occupied so he never mentioned it in front of his family.