CW: mentions of mental health, school, neglect, custody cases

:TWENTY:

The rest of the summer went by relatively smoothly after that. Dudley had a few supervised visits with his dad, but settled back into the routine at home quickly after that. Petunia had good days and bad days, which meant that Dudley practically lived in both his flat and Remus'. Harry got annoyed occasionally, but for the most part enjoyed having someone to play with. Especially because Dudley's bullying days now seemed to be behind him, at least where Harry was concerned.

Petunia was having a bad day when it was time for the boys' first day of school. It may have also been because it was Dudley's first unsupervised visit after school. She managed to help Dudley get ready, but let Remus walk both boys over to the bus stop. Remus gently touched her shoulder for reassurance, then walked out the door with both children tugging at his hands.

"Now, do we both remember the phone number to call home?" Remus asked them both seriously as they waited for the bus.

"Yes!" They chorused, singing the phone-number-song Remus had taught them.

"Alright," Remus said. "And Harry, you'll be coming back here on the bus today. Dudley's going with his dad first."

They nodded, Dudley looking excited. He hadn't seen his dad in ages, and there'd always been a strange lady in the room too. The two boys boarded the bus, waving at Remus until they turned the corner and vanished from sight.

Harry and Dudley were very happy at school - Natalie was there and Dudley got to see all of his friends from their old neighborhood. Their teacher was also really nice, and Natalie's mum worked right down the hall!

"She's an office lady." Natalie explained importantly at lunch. "You only see her if you go in there though."

Dudley became more and more excited as the day went by. Harry was less excited as he was still scared of Mr. Dursley - he didn't look forward to seeing him when Dudley got picked up and dropped off later. But Papa Lupin said that he would be okay, so Harry tried to just be happy for Dudley.

But when it was time to leave, Mr. Dursley wasn't there. He was supposed to be there early so he'd be waiting for Dudley to come out, and Dudley had been very careful to remember where he was supposed to be when school let out. He just stood there, waiting for his dad and looking more and more confused.

"I'll stay with you." Harry said, coming to stand by Dudley on the sidewalk.

"But you'll miss the bus!" Dudley cried, watching the buses fill up with other kids.

"I can just have Natalie's mum call Papa Lupin." Harry shrugged him off. "It'll be okay."

And so they waited. And waited. And waited some more.

Harry tried to distract his cousin several times, but Dudley didn't want to play or talk or move anywhere. He just stared at the road, watching the cars very carefully as they drove by. Eventually, Harry went inside to ask Mrs. Walters if she'd call Papa Lupin, but otherwise he just sat by Dudley on the sidewalk. He couldn't help fidgeting, and eventually he started practicing his letters, but he was right there with his cousin.

"...Harry?" Dudley's voice quavered, distracting Harry from practicing the letter 'c'.

"Yeah?" Harry looked up to where Dudley was still standing next to him.

Dudley sighed and sat down next to Harry. "Why isn't my dad here?"

"I dunno." Harry shrugged, feeling awkward. "But I'm here."

Dudley nodded slowly, his eyes too bright.

"Oh, Dudley," Harry said, seeing Dudley's face. "Don't cry!"

"I'm not crying!" Dudley sniffed, very obviously crying.

Harry patted his shoulder. "I know he's your dad, Dudley. But I think he's a…."

Harry looked around to make sure no adults were around.

"I think he's a no-good tosser." He whispered.

Dudley chuckled weakly, rubbing at his eyes. "You really think so?"

Harry nodded emphatically. "Yes, especially because he made you cry. And he put me in a cupboard. That's mean."

Dudley nodded slowly, then looked at Harry. "I'm really sorry, Harry. You didn't deserve to go in the cupboard."

Harry blinked at Dudley, then grinned widely. "Wasn't your fault, Dudley."

He stood up, dusted off his shorts, and held out a hand for Dudley. "Let's go see if Mrs. Walters will give us a snack while we wait."

Dudley smiled, taking Harry's hand and letting his cousin take him back inside. Mrs. Walters gave them each a cup of crackers in the office, where they waited for Papa Lupin for another fifteen minutes. Natalie had gone home with her grandma, which Harry privately thought was a good thing. Dudley had a crush on her, so he wouldn't likely appreciate it if she saw him crying.

"Papa Lupin looks mad." Harry whispered when he saw Remus coming into the office.

"Maybe he's mad we called him to come get us." Dudley whispered back.

"Nah," Harry dismissed that idea. "He's probably mad at Mr. Dursley."

"Oh." Dudley's face perked up a little. "You think so?"

"Well, yeah," Harry said, looking confused. "He's our family now - it's the adult's job to get mad when someone is mean to us kids."

Dudley looked like he was about to respond, but Remus came over before he could.

"Hullo, boys," Remus knelt down to their level. "I'm sorry about how long it took me to get here. Petunia's got some cookies waiting for us though, are you both ready?"

They nodded, hopping off their office chairs and following Remus to the car.

"Where's my dad?" Dudley asked immediately when they'd started driving.

Remus looked frustrated, but just said. "Your mum's trying to find that out, Dudley."

Dudley asked again once they'd gotten home, which meant that Petunia had to think on the spot how best to tell him. She knelt down to his level, looking absolutely devastated.

"Dudley, darling," She began, her voice quivering. "Your daddy went to Aunt Marge's house for a while. He said he was sorry he missed seeing you though."

The last sentence was a lie, but Petunia added it because she didn't want to hurt Dudley any more than she had to. But, to her surprise, Dudley didn't cry. Instead, he looked calmly at Petunia and said.

"That's okay, mum. Papa Lupin is our family now." He nodded to a shocked-looking Remus. "And dad's a tosser!"

After that particular outburst, which both Dudley and Harry were 'scolded' for, Remus came to school every time there was supposed to be a visit. After Mr. Dursley consistently didn't show up for months, the courts granted Petunia full custody without visits. But Remus continued to pick the boys up once a week out of habit. Remus never really knew, but being picked up became one of Dudley's favorite childhood memories.

Notes:

Oh I hated writing that bit, but this is definitely what Mr. Dursley would do if Petunia left him. Which is just the worst thing to do to a kid. I know this chapter can hit a little close to home for a lot of people, so please take care of yourselves and read the warnings! Chosen families are just as valid and important as biological families can be.

Happy Reading!