Author notes: Harry's birthday celebration is shattered as time takes a turn. Dudley must face a new life.
Warnings: Time travel, Redemption, Bisexual Harry Potter, Bisexual Dudley Dursley, Wizard Dudley Dursley, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Racism, WIP, Relationships will be added later on, The Dursleys are terrible parents, Based on a Tumblr post, updates will be random and without order, Unreliable Narrator, POC Harry Potter, POC James Potter, Indian Harry Potter, Indian James Potter, Liberties with Goblin Culture.
Chapter 10: Time Shattered
The chink chink chink echo in the dining room.
The lack of conversation gave the way Harry was passive-aggressively sharping the carving knife with the sharpening steel much more emphasis. His green eyes were narrowed, never looking away from the seemingly more nervous by the minute visitor, making sure to keep the eye contact with every new strike of metals in his hands.
Hagrid for his part keeps bouncing his eyes from both the boys and the silent but very real threat Harry was sending his way as he tended to his kitchen equipment. The giant shifted awkwardly in the recliner that groans under the weight of his body- Dudley had to bring in his father's recliner from the lounge since it was the biggest chair they had and even that wasn't big enough- clearing his throat as Harry increased the speed of his sharping barely taking a break in between rubbing the metals together.
Dudley sat as further away from Hagrid as physically possible without being overly obvious about it. He kept half an eye on Harry, ready to throw an arm out and in front of him should the bigger male get violent with his pink umbrella.
Did I just think "Get violent with his pink umbrella"? Dudley thought bewildered. It's hasn't even been a full hour and already he wanted Hagrid to leave, because not only was he making him feel unsafe, he was also messing with his mind. He sighs glancing down at the letter Hagrid brought with him wondering how in the world he never noticed Harry sending it.
It was rather short but undeniably had Harry's sharp and quick handwriting- Dudley spent hours getting him to do his letters and even then his handwriting had gone for horrid to mediocre. At least it was legible- in elegant green ink, the official color of wizarding paperwork. All government-er Wizengamot, matters were required to be written in this coloring, as the two learned when they went to the magical post office a few weeks ago. The letter only had seven words in it.
It read as so:
Dear Headmaster Dumbledore,
No.
Sincerely,
Harry Potter.
Dudley read it and re-read it but the words did not change, the results stayed the same. Harry had sent an official letter telling the Hogwarts staff he was not going to be joining them come September.
"When did you send this?" Dudley asks turning to his left. Harry didn't stop his hand movements though he does turn his head as well looking into Dudley's eyes with something close to defiance.
"I sent it the day we went to the post. Remember when I accidentally knocked over the ink bottle and had to re-write the letter you did for me? It wasn't an accident. But it gave me the opportunity I needed to change my answer." Harry lefts his chin in a challenge when Dudley makes a sound that expresses the blond's displeasure wordlessly. "Don't act like you didn't do the same."
"I beg your pardon?"
Harry jerks the metal a little rougher surprisingly causing the visitor to flinch at the aggressive chiiiiiiiinkk. Hagrid had attempted to make friendly conversation with them at first but the pair of cousins had been rather frosty with him, and he eventually realizes it be not to speak until things were settled. It's a much-needed break from the booming voice even if the giant was a bit more jolly then Dudley was expecting.
"Cut the crap-" Harry's language makes the Hogwarts staff member look shocked but his cousin doesn't even acknowledge him. Dudley also frowns at the swear word. He knows that it's due to him and his loose tongue that Harry has developed the cursing habit but he doesn't have to like it. Harry is too young to be using those words. "-I saw your letter. I know you're magic."
Dudley freezes only momentary before forcing a laugh "Of course I'm not Harry. Whatever gave you that idea?"
"The morning I got my letter, you got one too. Don't try to deny it, I took it from your back pocket." Harry flips the blade over and starts to sharpen the new side forcing. Dudley can only gawk at his cousin who very casually admitted to pick-pocking as if though he hadn't spent their whole ages of five till seven teaching him not to take what wasn't his without permission. This was Stacy's missing teddy bear all over again.
"Why would you do that?!"
"I thought it was the letter from my mom you were hiding from me," Harry admits making Dudley wince. "When I realize it wasn't I put it back but I have known you're a wizard for weeks now. I got to thinking and it made sense. All those accidents when we stood next to each other, how you just seem more than the kids around us, how you're smarter then you let on, how I felt closer to you than your parents and how you are the only person in this world who loves me for me? You're magic. What else could you be?"
Dudley didn't know what to say to that but it was Hadgird cooing gently (as gently as a man his size can) that forced him to push the sudden warmth and affection Harry had just burst to life in his chest. Now wasn't the time to get sappy. He could clinch his chest and scream about how adorable Harry is, later. "I'm not magic. It was probably a mistake-"
"Don't lie to me. You can lie to your parents, to our teachers, to the other kids, hell to yourself if you want but you can't lie to me, Dudley." Harry says firmly, his lack of nickname showing just how serious he is. "I know your magic, and I know you don't want to be. You've spent the whole day we met Trox and the others telling everyone you aren't. That you aren't worth it. And that's a damn lie. There is no one else who deserves it more."
Tears gather in his eyes, suddenly more aware of the stranger shifting awkwardly in his father's recliner. He can't cry now, he can't. Because this is not his world, not his place and he's come to terms long ago that Harry would be the only magical child in this generation. He didn't want to be like his Mother and Auntie Lily, he worked hard to better his cousin's life, he knew that there was a future in a secret world he would be distantly aware of but never really apart of.
He had accepted it. Harry Potter is meant for extraordinary things and Dudley Dursley is not.
He can only try to be a good cousin, a good husband, and a good father. Those were all the goals he had for this second life. Hell, he never even ask for a re-do because surely if he had, fate would laugh in his face. Dudley hadn't done anything even remotely worth the change in time.
"I'm...magic now but I'm not...I wasn't before...I don't deserve it." He tries to explain trying to keep his hitching breath out of his voice. Harry needs to understand that he was a mistake, that him being here was wrong and he wasn't worthy of the second chance. "I don't belong at Hogwarts."
Harry frowns very displeased but then his eyebrows knit together and his lower lip curls in the face he makes when he's being stubborn. His face starts to flush with anger and his cousin's hands curl into fists at his side. For a second, Dudley thinks he's going to argue before he shockingly works himself through his rage and starts to take slow breaths. Harry's temper had always been an issue, even when he was older the arguments with Albus a prime example but he never thought the gentle lessons he tried to teach the boy in his developmental years stuck.
He spent hours trying to get the boy to realize it was better to calm himself or walk away but Dudley had thought he was as successful as when his cousin eats with his mouth full. When Harry was a cute kid he always made sure to not speak while eating and nowadays, the blond thinks the wild hair boy only does it to make him squirm.
He's grown Dudley thinks numbly almost detached from the situation Somehow, over these last ten years he's grown. He's still a little kid but he's not the little tot that blindly followed me around. When did that happen?
Eventually, Harry's face is back to its natural color letting his shoulders uncoil at the same time. He's still upset but he's thinking now and Dudley can all but hear Tiffiny approving voice in his head. It's okay to have emotions, healthy to understand them but not let them rule you. A skill every child needs is to be able to work through them.
"I don't like it but I understand" He acknowledges making Dudley relax. "But if you don't belong at Hogwarts then neither do I"
"Harry please," Hagrid cuts in suddenly "Hogwarts is an honor to be apart of, it's one the best magical schools in the world and it opens so many doors-"
"If Dudley is not going there, then I don't want to either," Harry scolded "Stonewall can open just as many doors for me as some secret magic school can."
Hagrid looks overwhelmingly unprepared for any child not wanting to go to Hogwarts. He makes another appeal about the opportunities and the adventures he can find but Harry shoots every single one down before he switches tactics. His accent makes the words sound almost gruff but there is warmth in his tone- genuine warmth- as he says "Your parents were both Head Boy and Head Girl in their generation. They would have loved it if you went to their old school."
Harry freezes in place his jaw drop "You knew my parents?"
There is hunger in his voice, the kind of hunger Dudley knows will never be satisfied. It makes him ache to know he has a similar hunger for the family he's left behind. Some days are better than others but the emptiness remains a constant yearning.
"Oh, you bet" Hagrid chirps looking fond "James was a trouble maker but one loyal friend. Lily was one of the brightest witches of her age and had a fiery temper. Those two were good friends of mine."
"What were they like?" Harry leans in hungrily. Dudley watches him, the way his eyes are all but begging Hagrid to tell him everything he knows, the tight grip he had on his knife and he remains quite letting the conversation move away from him.
"Both were some of the best Gryffindors to ever walk the halls-"
"What is a Gryffindor?"
Hagrid looks surprised. "Why it's their Hogwarts house of course."
Dudley forces his face to appear confused, not overly sure he pulls it off but thankfully the giant buys it as Harry is making an authentic one right next to him. Suddenly the giant looks very unhappy and Dudley throws a hand out to cover Harry, his heart racing with panic.
His eyes unwillingly drop to the pink umbrella. Was he going to give them pigtails? Or worse? What would Dudley even be able to do to stop him? He didn't have any defenses against magic and Harry is too young to be much help either. Dang it all, he's the adult! He should be able to do something to keep Harry safe!
"Have these muggles taught you nothing!?" Hagrid roared causing the two boys to jump back. Harry quickly raised his knife and Dudley had to push the hand holding the handle down, because he knows down to his very bones, that given half the chance, Harry would bury the blade in Hagrid's skin if he felt threatened enough. He doesn't want to think about what that would cause, since while an impressive size to a normal person, the carving knife looks sort of like a toothpick in comparison to the giant.
"My parents..don't like to talk about Uncle James and Auntie Lily." Dudley allows attempting to diffuse the tension. "They never told us about the magical world. Whatever we know on the topic we had to find it ourselves and we are still missing a lot of information, such as what is appropriate to ask. Harry meant no offense with his question."
There. Hopefully, that will calm the other man down.
Hagrid gave him a long look that had Dudley sweating a bit and his grip on Harry's hand tighten. It didn't help that Harry was slowly putting more force into raising the blade again thus making their hands shake with the effort of raising and lower their respective limb. "You are...surprisingly very mature for your age."
"I ugh...thank you?" Dudley wasn't sure what else to say.
"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that the muggles didn't tell you anything. I can't expect them to know how Hogwarts works without going there." The giant sighs visibly calming down. "It's also understandable that talking about their deaths would upset them. If my brother had been killed-"
"Mr. Hagird, please watch what you say" Dudley cautioned not liking the way he was tactlessly going to inform Harry the real way his parents died. Over the years he attempted to tell Harry that a drunken car crash wasn't the reason he was an orphan and had tried his best to inform him of the truth but Harry had shot each and ever attempt down with a simple question: how would you know?
A loaded question with a conflicting answer. He hasn't told Harry he's from the future mostly because, like the ugly truth of war, somethings one shouldn't tell a child until they were ready. He was planning on having that conversation and the Talk in just a few weeks before Harry left for Hogwarts. Dudley wanted Harry to go to a boarding school as prepared as he could for the few things in life he did know since magic wasn't something he was quite so knowledgeable on.
Puberty was upon them and while Dudley didn't want to go through it again, he knows that someone got to inform Harry of all the body changes. He dreaded this day like any guardian but sometimes you just had to put on your big boy pants and get it over with.
Mostly though, he was still worried about the books claiming Harry slept with the entire Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff Quidditch teams, even if he knows they were rubbish. Not that Harry can't have relationships just that they were healthy and safe. Also to learn some self-control. The stories were lies, he knows but rumors usually had to start on some truth.
How many were on a Quidditch team anyway? Wouldn't that just be exhausting? Dudley couldn't even imagine the amount of effort to-
Not the time, Dursley. He forces his mind away from that track of thinking. He'll talk to Harry soon and make sure the boy understands to focus on his studies until his fifth year. At least.
"Killed?" Harry whispered, "My parents were killed?"
If Hagrid seemed angry before it had nothing on the rage that bleed into his face then. His pink umbrella made an alarming crack sound as his knuckles went white from how strong he gripped the curve handle. A spike of panic and fear rush through Dudley. "You don't even know that?"
"My parents claim that Uncle and Auntie died in a car crash due to Uncle James being drunk" Dudley informs him with a whimper. His heart was beating a thousand miles per minute in his chest and he felt the beginning of panic start to set in as his bum flared with phantom pain. "I never believed it."
"Well, at least one of you has a brain! You have a good head on your shoulders lad! James and Lily, killed by a muggle car!?" Hagrid shouts outraged. "Let me tell you what happened!"
And so he does.
By the end of it, Harry looks so pale Dudley is afraid he's going to faint. His cousin clings to the arm Dudley has wrap around his shoulders like a lifeline and the half-giant - As Dudley had learned is what Hagrid is during the other's explanation of the magical world- said nothing as the Boy-Who-lived kept pressing his face into his cousin's neck. Dudley is glad to offer him any sort of comfort he can give.
Hagrid had flattered at certain parts his own emotions making it tough to continue and he felt bad about it but Dudley knew this was a rare chance to give Harry as much information as he could about his parents. So he asked a lot of questions, subtly driving the conversation.
So far they've learned about the barebones of the Magical War, and the general Death Eaters attacks. The half-giant not lingering on those topics since they weren't exactly the most child-friendly.
What he did talk a lot about, however, were the antics his Uncle James and Auntie Lily got up to in Hogwarts. Hagrid knew a lot more about James then Lily, mostly due to being one of the few to clean up after the pureblood pranks but Lily was well known in her own way. His uncle was captain fo the Gryffindor Quidditch Team, ran tutoring session night for his house and like to test the limits of every staff member.
He excelled in Transfiguration, followed by charms, which he used often in his pranks. Apparently, according to the amuse Hagrid, he was one of the reasons the first years couldn't have brooms anymore. James had wit with a devil-may-care personality though he did fret over his friends like an overprotective mother hen and was confident in his skin. The man had been popular with looks, wealth and personality.
Auntie Lily, on the other hand, was the proud member of the Gobstones Club, the Witches Fashion Club, and the Slug Club. Gobstones- which Dudley concluded was the magical version of marbles- made her seem childish to the other students but her fashion sense had the envy of many witches. Slug Club sounded like a glorified honor society so Dudley assumes that meant she was in one sense of the word, a nerd.
She had a temper that was legendary among the halls often putting herself between feuding students to defend those who needed it. She helped James with his tutoring night, as reluctant as she was since she was one of the brightest witches of her age.
Lily was the best at Charms and Potions, and while not as popular among her peers as James, all the Hogwarts staff had something nice to say about her.
"They sound amazing" Harry wiped his eyes as Hagrid finished another tale of Lily throwing her shoes at James.
"They were." The half-giant whispered back. "One of the few wizards and witches to publicly call me friend. I miss them every day."
They all sat in silence for a while before Harry sigh. "I'm still not going to Hogwarts."
"But Harry!"
"No" He's cousin growls "Not without Dudley."
The half-giant swings his eyes to the blond and he tenses up. He opens his mouth to inform them, once more, that he doesn't deserve to be allowed to study there when a scream slices through the air like a hot knife in butter. The three jump to their feet alarm just as his mother rushes in screaming "We've been rob! They took the recliner!"
She rushes to the phone on the wall, grabbing it to punch in some numbers and then twirling around to stare in surprise at them, most likely not have noticed them until now. Her eyes flicker to the boys before they land and widen in alarm on Hagrid. The woman turns three shades of white as her hand clenches the phone harder.
Dudley can barely make out the words of the emergency dispatcher attempting to get his mother to respond as she freezes in place. She's still wearing her work clothes, a bashful but elegant blouse and presses business skirt, her hair up in a perfect bun and he wonders why she is back so early. Did she forget something?
"Mother?" Dudley asks.
This seems just what she needs because she snaps into action screaming into the receiver as she moves to push Dudley behind her. "Help help! A man broke down my front door and is at my house! My son is in danger! please help!"
Hagrid desperately tries to shake his hands at her looking close to tears which is odd since the woman didn't even reach his shoulders and yet he looked scared of her "No, this is a big misunderstanding! I never meant to break the door!"
"Help! Popkins stay behind me!"
"Aunt Petunia please calm down-"
"He has a knife!" His mother screeched into the phone, eyes wild as she looked at Harry "My disturbed nephew has a knife! He's helping the bugler!"
"Mother!" He shouts "Harry had nothing to do with this!"
Hagrid raised his umbrella and Dudley felt himself go cold at the half-giant change in tone. "Are you threatening Harry?"
Petunia sneers, attempting to look braver then she is because they can all see her shaking limbs. "That freak is threatening us with his existence! I knew he would be just like her. A mistake! Abomination just like Lily!"
Harry flinches back as if though he's been struck and Dudley feels rage rise in his body. He moves around her despite her desperate attempts to not let him, rushing forward to embrace his cousin. He feels Harry shaking under his hold, so Dudley leans forward to press him as close as possible, running his hands up and down his tiny back. Hagrid let loose a sneer of his own the second he spots Harry's tears, his umbrella's tip lighting up all while keeping aim on the woman who is still holding the phone.
This is a mess. This is all a mess. Dudley needs to do something. Anything.
"Mother, this man is a staff member of Hogwarts. He's here to explain things to Harry and I. I'm a wizard"
Petunia drops the phone in shock at the same time Hagrid nails her with a spell. Before their eyes, the woman is covered head to toe in the trash, screaming as the smell makes every hold their noses. It's the kind of horrid stench that you can taste in the back of the mouth and Harry gags.
Dudley ignores the half-giant who grumbles how the spell didn't work like he wanted to, instead, he is keeping his eyes lock on his mother and knowing that at this moment, holding onto Harry on his cousin's birthday is the day he will cut out his parents from his life once more. He didn't deserve Hogwarts but he did know he would do anything so Harry wouldn't feel alone again.
If that meant turning his parents against him so be it. He hasn't accepted it, not really, but he will not allow her to take the one thing Harry still has of his parents and ruin it for him.
"What? Popkins what did you say?" Petunia sounds like she is daring him to repeat it. Harry clings tighter to Dudley and it's the boys hitching breath that gives him the strength to admit it.
"I'm a muggle-born wizard Mother, and I'm going to Hogwarts with Harry."
"No, you're not," She says "You're normal."
"I am normal." Dudley agrees, his stomach twisting. This hurts. This hurts so much. "I'm normal and I have magic."
His words echo in the room until Petunia's face twists with fury and disgust. "Get out of my house freak. You and that freaks brat don't belong here anymore! I won't have it!"
Dudley flinches at the venom in her voice but he nods, dragging Harry towards the stairs and reaches out to pat Hagrid's arm. The bigger man is making a face of pure disgust right back to the woman and it takes Dudley three rough pushes before the man steps away. Petunia watches them go, the person on the phone promising to send a constable in a few minutes from the ground.
"Where are you going!? Get out!"
"We need our stuff," He says as calmly as he can. "We're going to get it."
"No! I want you both gone! Get out! Don't come back!" She screams moving forward but then backing away quickly as Hagrid moves to block her. He slams his umbrella into the ground which sents the woman scrambling away with her hand on her bum. Dudley thinks he knows what just happen to her.
Hagrid doesn't look away from her but he does soften his voice as he tells the two boys, who have yet to let go of one another "Go up. Get what you need. I'll be down here waiting for you."
"Dudley?" Harry whispers unsure. He wrestles his emotions under control to nod his chin to the stairway. His cousin takes the hint and the two rush upstairs each going to their rooms and packing everything they can get their hands on. Tears make it hard for him to see clearly, but with a few frustrated arm wipes and a quick trash bags that he pulled from the bathroom, Dudley has most of his things packed.
He goes to check on Harry, finds the lad crying in his room, surrounded with his belongings overwhelmed and his heart breaks a little at the sight. He grabs some bags, throwing everything in without a care. Dudley triple checks to make sure Harry has everything he needs and then does the same in his room making sure to take everything under the floorboards as well.
They won't be able to take everything and he fears that his parents will throw or burn whatever they leave behind but he knows that he needs to be practical. Clothes, school supplies, magical items and a few pictures of each other is what they take.
Hagrid comes up taking all their bags in his arms without breaking a sweat and then pushes the boys to leave. His mother watches them with a mix of horrified hatred from the kitchen entrance lingering in the doorway. The half-giant sneers at her making Petunia lean backward but the trio doesn't pause as they make for the broken front door.
Just as they walk through the door the woman yells. "I should have never given birth to you! I can't believe I ever loved you!"
Dudley's heart shatters and he feels Harry tighten his hold on him, while his tears rolled down his face. He had hoped, in the smallest corners of his heart that she wouldn't have cared. That she would love him no matter what because she was his mother. But she had proven before that blood meant nothing to her. Petunia hated her sister and her granddaughter for their magic, why would he think her son would be any different?
"What's going to happen now?" Harry asks hollowly as they follow behind the outraged half-giant. His voice is low so only Dudley can hear him.
"I don't know." It's a terrifying realization. For someone who came from the future, he has no idea what is in store for them now. "We just got kicked out. I made..us homeless. On your birthday."
"Dudley?" Harry sounds far away
It's getting hard to breathe. His chest is crushing in on itself. He can't see with all the tears in his eyes. Black dots are appearing. What's going on? "What have I done? What have I done? What have I done?!"
"Dudley!" Is that Hagrid?
Had he failed in the one goal he had? To make Harry's life better? He got them kicked out! They didn't have a house! What were they going to do!?
"Dudley, please! You're scaring me! Dudley!"
Suddenly, Dudley finds himself falling, his legs no longer able to keep him up. He felt his head smash against the cold hard ground, while someone screamed, and the scent of copper fills the air.
The world turned black.
The sound of running water wakes him. Dudley raises his head, surprised to find himself at a bank of a river. His clothes are dry but he can feel the water washing over him, splashing like any liquid would and getting his skin wet. He's half-submerged, laying with his upper body on wetland and his legs underwater.
Pushing himself off of the sand that his left cheek was resting on, he looks around confused. The river is large, clear as glass, allowing him to see the bottom of the water, spotting rocks of various sizes. On both sides of the river are dense luscious green forests, but besides the running water, he can't hear any other notice. He looks upwards and sees nothing but a clear blue sky.
What happened? Where was he?
"Well," Says a voice making Dudley snap his head upwards. Sitting a bit under the trees before a fire is a male teenager with dark curly black hair and silver eyes. He's beautiful in an almost otherworldly way. The way he is sitting on his wooden log is graceful and Dudley is reminded of his high paying clients. A son of an important man. "It's been so long since I had a solid guest. Forgive me, I don't have tea to offer you."
