oooOOOoooOOOooo
Years blended together as the little Dursley family and their new friends ebbed and flowed with the new way of life. Vernon got used to his world turning like a broken wheel. Usually, things went smoothly but occasionally the grief over the loss of his darling Petunia would wash over him again. It had been four years since her death and not a single day went by that he didn't think of his wife. She had become the perfect woman in his mind. No other could ever hope to compare. Not that Vernon wasn't willing to try.
It was a new thing but Vernon had started dating. He would wine and dine beautiful ladies, or ladies that were beautiful in his opinion anyway. Every Saturday night, Vernon had a new date. He would take the ladies out for dinner, dancing (which Vernon was surprisingly skilled at), and would often take them back to his place for a night of even more fun. The ladies would be served breakfast in bed before being escorted in a gentlemanly fashion out to the car. The driver would take the lovely woman wherever she desired to go and Vernon would stroll back into the house, singing and dancing still. The boys thought it was hilarious.
Saturday nights had become Sirius nights. The boys would head out with Sirius on one adventure or another. The boys were preparing to start Hampstead Primary School in just a few short weeks. Sirius wanted them to be completely ready for the end of their freedom for the next 20 years or so of their lives, so he took them to a theme park, a water park, a zoo, or the cinema every chance they got, all summer long.
Sirius also took them once per month to a playdate with other heirs to lordships or ladyships. Vernon was ecstatic about the playdates. These were the movers and shakers of the world. He just didn't know they were the movers and shakers of the magical world, not the muggle one.
The boys were heading out for another big first in their lives. It was their first time being filmed in a commercial. Vernon's jewelry business was booming. His golden jewelry was so finely made, the shine never dulled and the chains never broke. Each piece was custom made and was at least slightly different from every other piece in the store. Vernon's connection with Filantius was mutually beneficial and left both men feeling they received the better side of the bargain. Filantius was even able to source extremely precious and rare gemstones for pences to the pound. Vernon's business had grown so quickly that he'd had to hire a manager, four girls to work the sales floor, and an advertising firm to keep the customers coming.
The advertising firm had the brilliant idea of including Vernon and his sons in the commercial for the business. Both boys and Vernon arrived at the store where the cameras were already set up. They were all dressed in their very best suits. Even Harry's hair was mostly cooperating on such an auspicious day.
The cameras followed as a richly dressed couple, without any jewelry, entered the store. Dudley opened the door for them and bowed them through. "Welcome to Dursley & Sons Fine Jewelry," he said with a pompous air that he had learned from Astoria Greengrass. That little girl was beautiful but she was much too much like her mother for Harry's tastes.
Harry met the handsome couple at the counter and said solicitously, "Please have a seat and let us treat you like royalty."
The scene flashed forward to the woman gazing at a tray of beautiful diamond rings. Then, flashed to the man, looking at the finely crafted watches and sets of cufflinks and tie clips. Finally, it flashed forward to both couples trying on necklaces with the tray of options finely displayed in between them.
The scene shot to Vernon, standing with a hand on each boy's shoulder. "Fine people deserve fine jewelry. Come to Dursley & Sons Fine Jewelry, where you'll always leave feeling like a prince among men." The scene then flashed to the happy couple, exiting the store, gold and jewels dripping off of them and huge, snooty smiles on their faces.
Vernon took the boys out for ice cream to celebrate their successful venture onto the silver screen. His darling Pet would have loved to be in a commercial. Vernon had the thought without terrible pain for the first time in a very long time. He smiled even wider at his boys.
"Papa, we've been good boys today, haven't we?" Dudley asked, angling for a present.
"Yes, Papa, we were very good today," Harry said. He knew what Dudley was up to and decided to help. Harry didn't really care about things. He cared much more about people but he and Dudley were not exactly alike.
"Haha!" laughed Vernon. "You chaps are angling to get paid, are you?"
Dudley grinned. "It's just, Harry and I don't have a television of our own to watch the commercial on. Our playroom doesn't have one," Dudley said, forlornly. Vernon's mustache twitched as he tried to keep his smile under wraps.
"Don't have one, do you?" Vernon asked. Dudley shook his head sadly. Vernon looked at Harry. The smile dropped instantly off his face and he shook his head sadly, too. Vernon had to cough to cover up his laugh.
"We don't have a Nintendo, either, Papa," said Harry, with a sad smile. Dudley gave him a thumbs up.
"What's a Ninny-tendo?" asked Vernon, confused.
"It's only the best game you could ever hope to play, papa!" said Dudley, excitedly.
"Yeah!" said Harry. "You play it on the tele!"
Vernon grinned at his boys. He valued people who could ask for what they want and make a good argument about why they should have it.
"Alright then. I'll tell you what. We'll give you gents the tele from the sitting room and we'll buy a new tele for there. Then, we'll buy you that Ninny-tendo game. What say you?"
The boys' eyes grew huge. The television in the living room was almost as tall as their papa. It was the biggest tele they'd ever seen outside of the cinema.
"Yes!" The boys cried in unison as they danced around the table, ice cream dripping from their spoons.
Vernon made good on his promise. They stopped at the electronics store on the way home and found the new tele for the sitting room. They also bought the Nintendo along with the Super Mario Brothers and Duck Hunt Games and accessories. Vernon thought that should do them for a while. He tried not to give the boys everything they wanted right when they wanted it. He wanted them to have a good work ethic. Petunia would never have allowed for a fat, lazy couple of sons. No. They made their own beds and worked at the jewelry shop for extra money. Their father often let them help place jewelry into the display cases. Each boy had his own thick, gold chain with a manly square locket with a deer head on Harry's and a bear head on Dudley's. The lockets had a picture of the three of them on one side and a copy of the picture of their two mothers together at Petunia's wedding on the other side. Vernon didn't care that he left James Potter out. Sirius Black certainly never let them forget the man.
The boys were very helpful and Vernon was very frugal. He had started investing his money and stockpiling galleons for when he needed them. They had enough stock to last for six months and Vernon liked to keep it that way. No more, no less. He also asked for Filantius to focus on making classic pieces of jewelry rather than too many modern or flashy pieces, unless they were custom orders. Vernon wanted Dursley & Sons to be known for their taste and quality rather than their ability to keep up with the latest fads. It was paying off big time. Vernon had already amassed almost a million pounds. He had no real cost to his inventory. Just income that came to him from a passive stream. It was basically all profit and business was good.
Not that Vernon focused solely on the business. He had his children to think about as well. They spent every Sunday together, just the three of them. They went golfing and fishing. They took trips every summer to Harry's summer home in Majorca, which had its own staff of 6 to see to the home's needs. Vernon made a huge fuss over each boy's birthday and Boxing Day was always an extravagant affair. Vernon was proud of what he was accomplishing.
Things were going well with Sirius and Remus, Vernon was surprised to say. Sirius mostly stayed away from Vernon, which was probably for the best. Vernon was well pleased with the doors Sirius had opened for Vernon's business and his boys within the upper crust of society. Strange people, the wealthy and elite, Vernon thought to himself. Most of the business Sirius had sent his way was lucrative but were also some of the strangest clients he'd ever seen. One couple in particular, the Greengrasses, came to the shop at least once a month and spent a few thousand pounds. They'd cackle with glee and promise that all the necklaces and bracelets would find good homes. Vernon was glad to make the sale but he really didn't understand what their need was. How many necklaces does a woman need? Of course, Vernon didn't know that the Greengrass family were enchanters who sold their wares internationally. They bought so much stock because the goblin gold was so good at holding enchantments and the gold was easy to carve with runes and the like. The items were also lovely. It was good business for everyone.
Remus was doing a fantastic job teaching the children. Both boys could mostly speak French and German as well as they could English. He understood they were making great strides with the difficult Latin language, as well. They were both smart fellows who could read and write very well.
Vernon didn't know that Betsy regularly fed the boys a babbling elixir before their language lessons so the knowledge would stick better and wit sharpening elixir with their breakfast to help train their young brains to learn quickly and remember things well. Betsy had also been feeding both Dudley and Vernon magically copied food for years. The Dursley men could then eat large quantities of food while still losing weight. Both man and boy had been at healthy weights for over a year and were doing very well. Vernon felt great and thought he looked handsome too. He was still a very large man. He was over six foot tall and quite stocky. Yet, the ladies in the neighborhood and about town had been noticing him for quite some time, and not just because he now gave off the air of money!
It was the boys first day at school, finally. They had been driving Vernon insane with their desire to get on to school already. Remus would be arriving to take the children to school and make sure all their forms were filled out properly. The school the boys attended encouraged outside activities so would make room for certain classes to be met by outside tutors. The boys had been taking taekwondo for several years now. They were allowed to continue their thrice weekly classes on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday with their current Sensei in place of their physical education class on those days. They were also entered into a special immersion class that spoke a different language in class each day of the week. French and German were the languages practiced but Latin was also taught in the school.
Remus was expected to volunteer in the classroom for a half day three days per week. It was technically a requirement for the parents but at this fancy pants school, it was mostly fulfilled by the children's governess or governor or the parents would just pay the fee to get out of their duty.
Remus also took the boys to take part in a library reading club once per week. They played soccer, and much to their papa's ignorance, junior league quidditch. It had turned out that Dudley was magical. Remus was honestly relieved. It would mean many fewer problems as the boys grew up but it would create an entirely new set of problems. How would they keep the information from Vernon? Right now when the children rushed in telling tales about the unicorn they'd been allowed to pet or how Harry had managed to crash his broom during flying lessons, Vernon just thought they were fanciful children. How much longer would he keep believing that?
The adult wizards in Harry's and Dudley's lives had decided to keep the wizarding world from Vernon. Vernon was a no-nonsense kind of man. Most muggles were, if they weren't crazy. While most could appreciate a bit of fantasy, Vernon didn't have much tolerance for it. They didn't want to make him uncomfortable in his own home so instead they'd started teaching the boys not to talk about magic or the magical things they saw or did from a very young age. The boys did a wonderful job most of the time but occasionally, they let something slip. Vernon never reacted positively to what he called airy fairy nonsense, so the boys found it easy just not to tell him.
Remus truly did think of Vernon as both boys' Father. He acted like he had borne both children from his own loins. He never treated them differently and he showed equal care and concern to both boys. Remus couldn't say he always loved the toxic masculinity Vernon displayed but Vernon didn't always like the namby pamby nature of Remus either so it was fair trade.
Even Sirius now accepted Vernon as Harry's father, too. Harry had been very upset when Sirius tried to insist Vernon wasn't his father. After Sirius had made Harry cry, Remus had had a firm word with the other man. Harry needed to be able to move on and have a family. James and Lily would have wanted that. Also, Remus made Sirius admit that he was relieved Harry lived with Vernon. Even four years later, Sirius still wasn't grown up enough to care for a child full time, not even with hired help. Sirius enjoyed the bachelor lifestyle too much to want to change it. Plus, he saw his little buddy for at least a few minutes pretty much every day except Sunday, which was family day at the Dursley household.
Remus arrived at the Dursley household and rang the doorbell. Dippy, the driver/butler, let him inside.
"Good morning Mr. Remus. The boys is being in the kitchen grabbing they lunches. They will be being along in just a moment." Sure enough, the boys could be heard on their way to the front door before they could be seen.
"... and I hope our teacher Mrs. Masefield will be nice and pretty," said Harry.
"Yeah. I hope she's not a mean old ogre like Mrs. Bilsby," Dudley said. He hated Mrs. Bilsby, the instructor for piano. Dudley hated learning piano but his father wouldn't let him quit. Both boys were told they had to pick an instrument to learn and a piano was what Dudley had chosen. Harry chose the piccolo.
"I've met Mrs. Masefield. She's a lovely woman. Just don't get caught getting into any fights. If someone picks on you, don't let them get away without a bloody mouth. Always be nice to the ladies and never, ever hit them or I'll tan your hide. Just ignore them if they get mouthy. It's in their nature. I know you'll both do well. Make me proud, boys," Vernon said, slapping them each on the back.
"Oh! I almost forgot. I got these made special for you," he said, digging out the special tie pins he'd had Filantius make with the school's logo on the pin. He helped each boy put one on.
"Give one to Mr. Middleton, too. That's how you get on the headmaster's good side," Vernon said with a wink and a nudge. He gave Harry the tie pin to gift to the administrator, while he gave Dudley a set of matching cufflinks. They were made with the same level of care and craftsmanship that Dursley stock was always made with.
"Okay, Papa. Do we have a gift for Mrs. Masefield, too?" Harry asked, ever the shrewd one.
"My smart boy. Here's a bracelet with the school logo from you and a set of finely crafted gold hoop earrings from Dudley," Vernon said, handing over the jewelry. He felt it was only proper for a boy of their caliber to offer gifts to the people they considered important staff. Betsy was acquiring quite the collection and even the Tonkses, Remus, and Sirius had been gifted with a piece or two over the years. Both boys wore gold watches and a gold ring with the Dursley and Potter family crests, as was suggested by Sirius. Apparently, it was a sign of station. It was but for Dudley it was also a sign of protection and brotherhood. It showed Harry considered himself both a Potter and a Dursley.
Sirius didn't mention that he'd borrowed the rings from the boys during a playdate with Daphne, Astoria, and Neville. The rings now had permanent tracking charms, protection against moderate level mind magics, and a warning if the person were going to ingest a potion. Hot for a mind control potion, cold for a body control potion, squeezing for a poison. The boys knew that any kind of reaction from the rings was bad news. They would need to tell Betsy, Sirius, or Remus right away and not eat or drink the thing causing the reaction, as it was dangerous.
The children hugged their father goodbye then hurried after Remus to climb into the Jag with Mocksy the other driver. What kind of name was Mocksy, anyway? Thought Vernon as he climbed into his own car with Dippy and headed to work.
Remus rode with the excitable children all the way to Hampstead Primary School. They walked inside and found the classroom that they'd visited during orientation night. The children hurried over to the cubbies with their names on it and put away their things.
Remus helped each boy place his lunch box in the correct place. Then, he helped them empty their backpacks of the needed supplies both for the classroom and for themselves. They set up their desks then approached the teacher.
Vernon had purchased two of everything on the classroom list as well as two of everything from the classroom wish list. He wanted his children to have good reputations with the school staff. Remus followed them up to Mrs. Masefield.
"Mrs. Masefield?" Dudley asked in his most charming voice. "Our father asked us to provide these supplies to you," he answered after she gave him her attention.
"Thank you, boys," she said shocked as she saw the great pile of stuff Remus was holding. "Please, place it over here," she said pointing at the rather bare table behind her desk. Remus handed the boys the things, which they neatly stacked behind the teacher.
"Mrs. Masefield?" Harry asked in his most charming voice. The teacher looked at him with fondness in her eyes already. Remus almost rolled his eyes at Harry's theatrics. "Our father also asked us to give you something else. Just a small gift, a token of our gratitude," Harry said. He didn't really know what a token of gratitude was but he knew his papa said it all the time when he was gifting someone with jewelry. He handed her the first box with the bracelet.
She gasped when she opened it. "This is absolutely gorgeous!" said the woman, admiring the lovely bracelet.
"He also wanted you to have this," Dudley said, handing over the little box containing the earrings. She gasped twice as loud this time. The earrings were solid gold.
"These are darling! I'll send a thank you note along for your father at once," she told the dear little boys smiling shyly at her from the front of her desk. Remus almost laughed out loud. Sirius had taught them that.
"Thank you, ma'am. I'm sure he'll appreciate it," said Harry sweetly.
"May we be excused?" Dudley asked innocently. It was almost too much.
"Will you be needing assistance today?" asked Remus. "I'm free if you need a helper in class today."
"That would be wonderful!" Mrs. Masefield said. These people were now her favorites. Most parents didn't fulfill their part of the classroom assistance role. Some didn't have time and some just didn't want to. Since you could buy your way out for 100 pounds per semester, most parents just did that instead. Remus just wanted to keep his eyes on his charges.
"We need to go speak to Mr. Middleton for a few moments and we'll be back," said Remus. Since there was still 20 minutes until class started, Remus knew they'd have plenty of time. The trio walked back towards the front of the school and approached the Headmaster's office.
"Hello, Mr. Middleton," Remus said, politely once they'd been shown to Mr. Middleton's door. "Do you have just a moment?"
The man looked up from his list of announcements and to the man in front of him. He almost sighed. The first day hadn't even started and he already had a parent in his office. He just hoped he wasn't about to be read the riot act. That's usually the only time parents talked to him, unless their children were in trouble.
"What can I do for you? Always glad to assist a HPS parent," Mr. Middleton said, hiding his reticence.
"Actually, I'm the governor for these two lads, Harry Potter and Dudley Dursley, the Dursley boys," he said, waving to each child that bowed when they were introduced. "I'm Remus Lupin. You'll probably see me volunteering regularly," Remus said, holding out his hand. Mr. Middleton shook it, then shook the hand of each boy.
"It's a pleasure, I'm sure. What can I do for you today, boys?" Mr. Middleton asked. If he had to guess, he'd guess these two were in their reception year.
"We wanted to thank you for admitting us to your fine establishment," said Dudley, meaning every word.
"It is a true honor and pleasure to attend school here," said Harry, 100% genuinely.
Mr. Middleton couldn't help but smile. It was nice to see some manners in a young person. "The pleasure is all ours, I'm sure. We're lucky to have such fine pupils as you two."
"Our father asked us to pass along this small token of our gratitude," Dudley said, copying Harry's words from earlier. He handed the man the fine gold cufflinks with the school coat of arms on them. Mr. Middleton's mouth fell open.
"These are fine indeed. Thank you," Mr. Middleton said, admiring the gift.
"He also asked us to give you this," said Harry, handing over the tie clip.
Mr. Middleton's eyes bulged; this was solid gold. He could tell from the weight. He more closely examined the cufflinks and saw they were solid gold, too. It was fantastic.
"Why this is quite the treat! Please tell your father thank you from me. With such fine families in our midst, this is bound to be a great year," Mr. Middleton said. He sat down right that moment to write a thank you note. He sealed it up and handed it to Dudley.
"Please, pass this along. The Potters have been valued patrons of our school for generations. I can see the Dursleys will be just as much of a benefit. Welcome boys," Mr. Middleton said, chuffed at the gifts.
"You are absolutely welcome, sir," said Dudley.
"May we be excused?" asked Harry, pulling the shy innocent act all over again. Remus couldn't help but smile to see it.
"Yes, you may, Mr. Potter, Mr. Dursley. Have a good first day. If you need anything, please let me know," Mr. Middleton said, grinning at the boys as they left the room. He sat admiring the new golden accessories until it was time for the announcements.
Harry, Dudley, and Remus headed back to the classroom. The boys took their seats and got their supplies organized until the other students started trickling in. The first student to enter the classroom looked shocked to see someone there before her.
Hermione Granger had arrived 20 minutes early to her first day of Reception. She was hoping to give the teacher her gift in private before the other students arrived. She had just arrived from the headmaster's office where she'd given him a lovely pen set for his desk. It had real gold fittings on the pen and on the holder. The man looked at it and smiled at the little girl with somewhat condescending delight.
"It must be my lucky day!" he'd said, the gold from his cufflinks and tie sparkling in the light as he reached to take the gift she presented. He replaced the shoddy wood and brass set that looked several years old with the sleek black marble and gold set that had his name and title engraved on the front. It truly was a nice gift and he was delighted. It was just a poor follow-up to the cufflinks and tie clip.
He sat and quickly wrote a thank you note to the little girl's parents and wished her a wonderful experience at Hampstead Primary School. Hermione grinned in her guileless way and hurried to her classroom. She was somewhat flummoxed that someone had obviously beaten her to the gift giving punch and had outshined her to boot. She wasn't used to that happening. She had been taking classes of one kind or another for almost four years already, since she was two years old. She was used to glowing praise from her parent's generous gifts.
She was shocked to see the two little boys already seated at their desks with their supplies organized when she walked into the room. She glanced at the man who was talking to the teacher and saw he was wearing a crisp brown suit and a yellow and brown checked tie with a soft yellow shirt. He looked dashing. Hermione was instantly in love.
Harry saw the tiny girl with the giant bush of brown hair surrounding her head like a halo and thought she must be an angel. She had a pink knapsack and a brown jacket. She had her arms wrapped around a stack of books. When Harry saw the gift stacked on top, he knew he was in love. This was the person he was going to marry.
Remus watched the byplay as the little girl stared hearts at him and Harry stared hearts at the little girl. His mustache twitched as he smiled. The Potter men were blessed or cursed, depending on how you looked at it. They always fell instantly in love with the woman they were going to marry, as soon as they met, no matter the age. They were cursed that they instantly fell in love with someone who didn't even know them and might take ages to even like them. It was a real hardship that sometimes led to heartbreak before the happy union. Remus just saw the love match spark into being before his very eyes. Too bad it looked like the girl had a crush on the teacher, so to speak.
The little girl walked forward and stood patiently waiting for the teacher to acknowledge her, even if her eyes didn't leave Remus. Mrs. Masefield finally turned to Hermione.
"Yes, dear?" Mrs. Masefield asked.
"I wanted to introduce myself again and thank you for welcoming me into your class. My parents and I wanted you to have this gift of our appreciation," Hermione said, presenting her teacher with a pen set that was just like the one the Headmaster had received. The teacher oohed and awed over it, but Hermione could see she was more focused on the gold bracelet and gold earrings she was wearing than she was on the black marble and gold desk set that sat before her.
"Thank you very much, Hermione. Will your mummy or daddy be joining us for class today?" Hermione straightened a little.
"My mummy and daddy paid the fee. They run their own office and unfortunately work all week long," Hermione said.
"Oh," said the teacher a little disappointedly. "Please take a seat dear. If you have any trouble finding your cubby or your seat, let me know.
"I'll help her get settled. Give me the seating chart and I'll help the children get settled while you get ready for the day," Remus said, taking the list of student name, cubby number, and seat assignment.
He looked at the list. "You're in seat A4, Hermione. Let's go get you settled. Can you find cubby A4?" he asked her. Hermione looked at him like he was mental.
"Of course, I can. I'm not a baby," Hermione huffed.
Remus grinned at the spunky little girl. "Let's go get your things settled."
Remus walked Hermione to her cubby where they put up her jacket and her knapsack, after Hermione got all of her supplies out of it. She dutifully took a bulging bag of supplies up to the teacher. The teacher thanked her graciously and asked her to add it to the stack. Hermione gaped. It was everything on the list times two already! Hermione had brought half of the list. She glanced over at the Dursley boys and narrowed her eyes. Hermione had competition.
oooOOOoooOOOooo