They ended up being told to scrub cauldrons. Without magic. So, gloves on, they did. Harry went after them with vigor, speeding through, then called them good as he pushed them to the side. Which, they were. They had grown up with a whole potions lab in the basement for Aunt Lily after all. Yet Dudley caught the expression on Professor Snape's face and had hastily forewent the cauldron he'd been working on, grabbing Harry's and scrubbing the outside of the cauldron as well. Working together on the task did not seem to bother the professor enough to speak up, even if he narrowed his eyes at them.

Dudley did wonder as he worked. Professor Snape wanted this to be done to perfection, a complete and well-done job of it rather than something slapdash passable. Which meant this detention, while not the worst they could have gotten, would take the whole allotted time. Harry seemed completely oblivious to this. Either that or extremely hopeful on being allowed out early for a quick scrub to get the job done. Dudley wondered the why.

Sure his cousin had taken to exploring the castle at times he was not supposed to, like Dudley didn't know exactly why there were certain mornings Harry slept in, but it was almost as though there was something in particular his cousin felt he needed to go see tonight. There did seem to be a habit of this night, this night of the week for sure, the other times Dudley knew were not quite so regular. He had thought before it had merely been a regular exploration, but now? What was Harry trying to get out early for?

Cautiously, Dudley studied his cousin's fast scrubbing job and then peered over on the sly to Professor Snape. With the smoothing polish set out and in the look given for a quick scrub, Professor Snape wanted them to do a whole cleaning and he'd proven to be a professor who held high standards, wanting things just so. Getting out early did not seem likely at all. Carefully, Dudley sped up as much as he could without missing spots or streaks, arm starting to throb at how hard he was scrubbing.

"Grab the coat of smoothing polish," Dudley said as he scrubbed the last cauldron.

Harry nearly fell off the back of the stool he'd jumped onto, hands up in celebration coming down to catch himself from falling, green eyes wide. "The smoothing polish? We finished with what Professor Snape asked of us. Freedom, Dud. Freedom. Done early with scrubbing, let's go."

Dudley merely stared at Harry's whining sternly. "And the smoothing polish is out why?"

"So Professor Snape can charm a Polish lady later tonight," Harry grouched out as he trudged over to grab the bottle. And he not nearly under his breath well enough.

"Harry!"

"Mister Potter!"

"Fine," Harry whined even louder. "A Polish man then!"

The professor looked right on the edge to burst, but Dudley beat him to it.

"I swear," Dudley snapped. "Fine! I'll ask you the boring question if you're using Sirius's jokes of getting kicked out of helping your mum! A yes or no one, I will do it, because I do not want to scrub cauldrons that came from who-knows-where and have had who-knows-what in them again. Three of them had something in them that rusted pewter Harry. Rusted pewter. Pewter isn't supposed to do that. Only lose some luster over time."

Setting down the smoothing polish at the table they'd been scrubbing cauldrons at, Harry plopped down onto the stool, scowling and pouting at the same time. And heaved out a long breath. "Fiiine. I was trying to get done and out early because this is the night, and almost time, that I go watch someone trying to get past that er, that dog. The thing I almost thought Hermione actually had a sense of humor until I went to go uh, listen at the door and found them there. Every week, trying something new and I've been watching for when they finally succeed and make it past, to see what works."

Harry spun on the stool away from Dudley. "Sorry Professor Snape. My rudeness was not... Uh, you aren't going to tell my mum I used that joke are you? It's only, uh, I'm eleven. Even if it was hilarious to see Sirius being hunted down by this Polish wizard she knows from... Uh, sir?"

Lack of pallor in his face from shock absolutely did not detract from the scary intensity of Professor Snape. "Someone," he said. His voice did not rise, but the deliberateness of the word and sudden stillness from the professor was all the more for Dudley to slide a step back in worry. "Has been making attempts into the third floor? Yes, I know where you speak and I am not surprised, Mister Potter, but we will be having...discussions about your ideas of free time outside of the classroom. And you did not alert the headmaster about this?"

Dudley turned to Harry. Good question. Why did his cousin not bring this up? Outside of the continued entertainment of watching every week.

Green eyes blinked. Harry tilted his head, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "No. Why would I? Albus knows. I mean, it's in his job description. Of course he tests out a creature meant to guard and defend."

Wait. Dudley spun his head to face Harry straight on. "Quirrell? Are you talking about Professor Quirrell? Who is nervous and stutters through his information and makes me glad we don't have to face anything this year?"

"Yep!" Harry beamed.

Dudley stared, unbelieving.

"The same professor who ran into the Great Hall and fainted about the troll on Halloween?"

Harry shrugged. "So he's not so good with trolls."

Dudley gaped.

"Or maybe it was the surprise of it," Harry mused. "But he was hired as the Defense professor and he's not bad at it. Runs down a whole list, crossing out th—"

"Out," Professor Snape interrupted. For a quick moment, Dudley saw the man squeeze his eyes shut and take in a resolving breath. "Back to the common room."

His cousin's face brightened. "Freedom? No polishing?"

Professor Snape narrowed his dark eyes at Harry, as though reminded of why Harry wished for early freedom. "Straight back to the common room."

"Yes sir," Dudley agreed. And then tied Harry into it, fairly sure of where Professor Snape was heading after this dismissal of them. "We both will."

Harry visibly wilted, giving Dudley a large puppy eyed look of betrayal. Raising his own eyes up to the stone ceiling, Dudley shook his head at dealing with his cousin. Sometimes, sometimes he wondered why Harry had these moments of being oblivious when it came with certain things. And then being very alert and aware when it seemed to suit him in the moment.

His cousin trotted along after him, back to the common room. "Why'd you promise we'd go, Dud?" Harry pouted. "We've got time before curfew. We don't... Oh!"

Teeth flashed over lip, green eyes glinting with glee, Harry's footsteps changing into a bounce ready to sprint away. Concerned, Dudley glanced to his cousin. Cautious of the sudden change.

"He and you never said what common room." With a dramatic point upwards of his finger, Harry grabbed a hold of Dudley's sleeve with his other hand. "Onward! To Gryffindor Tower!"

Sputtering, stumbling a bit on his left leg as Harry pulled, Dudley sped his feet up to catch up and tried to talk Harry out of the loophole spotted. Talk Harry out of a spotted loophole? There wasn't going to be much luck. Especially as Dudley's head was trying to work through Professor Quirrell being more qualified to his job than previously thought for the entire school year and what exactly his actions on the third floor meant. Testing, sure. Job description did have him as the Defense professor. But the surface level of it that Harry took, well...

Professor Snape appeared entirely unaware and very much concerned at what Harry saw. Of Harry's idea of Professor Quirrell testing defenses. Was it as simple as Professor Snape not know about it? Dudley hoped so, because the alternatives of why were, well, unsettling.

Author's Note: It's been a while? I'm still kind of not the happiest on a few of the last chapters from this, but I'll go back through them again later. And in the meanwhile, I had part of this written and thought I may as well put it up. Here you go? Even if it's a little on the shorter side? I'm just, posting it without many rereads and doublechecking on myself, or well, not as many as usual. Because, yeah. It's been a while. Thanks you for the favorites and follows in my stretch of not having updated this. Sorry about that.
Also, oh my goodness at this version of Harry and his influences. I'm shaking my head at this boy. And while I'm of the mind Snape and Lily aren't on huge speaking terms, more polite kind of stuff, but oh boy. I can see Snape having words with Sirius about the polish/Polish joke Harry pulls out.