Thank you to CrazycheeseCake, Calani, Rickman's Girl, Melissa Lupin, Ms.
Padfoot, kateydidnt, sev1970, Silver Angel, Me, Lokia, Herogirl, eh?, Lady
Lightning, ROGUE-sorceress, trekkie87820, Immortal Rose, Ms. Issues, chips
challenge, Kateri, RaistlinofMetallica, Nagini, Teigra, ShanniC, luna699,
Rix, angeL_1215, Phoenix Angel, Darcel, darby, selua, Kalih, Barbara,
Myst4Drgn, Lei Dumbledore, Bonnie, Kyra, soul, Cresha Potter, sarou, Them
Girl, blackunicorn, Zaeria and Jarvey for reviewing!
Also thank you to kateydidnt for pointing that out, but for this fic I'm just going to say that Scabbers was Ron's! It works better for me!
As you can imagine I was quite shocked when I got over 100 reviews, then I saw that someone had posted over 60 'aw' reviews! So umm... thank you to that person but maybe not quite so many next time, one will be enough thanks! Haha
All I have to say about this chapter is... I am so cruel...
A Different Life
Chapter 20 - The Park
Harry and Severus were sitting down getting breakfast about five days after Harry had called Severus 'dad'. It was not something that they had repeated to each other or anyone else, but it was a moment that they both held in their hearts.
Harry sat thoughtfully in his chair for a few minutes before breaking the silence that had erupted between them.
"Severus..."
"Yes Harry" Severus answered, not looking up from reading The Daily Prophet.
"I'm..." Harry trailed off.
"Yes?" Severus asked, finally looking up from what he was reading.
"I'm bored" Harry finally said
Severus raised an eyebrow.
"Seriously, it's gotten to the point where I'm considering doing something wrong just so you will give me a punishment and therefore I will have something to do."
Severus frowned
"Well what do you want to do? I guess you could see Ron-"
"Severus, I want to do something with you!"
Severus looked confused
"Me?"
"Yes you! Can you tell me the last time that we actually did something out of the house? It's either work or maybe just talking. But we never really do anything together."
Severus narrowed his eyes in thought. He supposed it was true. Nothing he and Harry did had come to mind, well not anything that involved going outside.
"What did you have in mind?"
"Let's go out somewhere? Please! It's a nice day, let's go to the park!" Harry put his puppy eyes to work.
"I'm not aware of any parks around here" Severus answered, aware of what Harry was trying to do.
Harry thought about that for a bit.
"Well I know a park, Dudley used to love it, he always got to go. The only reason I know of it is because once Mrs. Figg couldn't look after me and so they had to take me."
Anger flashed in Severus' eyes but he said nothing.
"Do you happen to know where this park is?"
"Well..." Harry thought for a moment, he was trying to remember something that happened quite a few years ago.
"It was only a few streets away from the Dursleys, so I guess if we look around there then we will be able to find it."
Severus nodded
"Okay, go grab your coat."
Harry smiled and ran upstairs.
Severus watched him go. He was fully intent on saying no to Harry, not really being the outdoor person, but when he heard about Harry not being allowed to go when he was with the Dursleys he decided then that he would. Besides, it would be good to get out a bit with Harry, spend some time together, especially after what had happened the week before with his father.
So after Harry finally got his coat and found some suitable shoes, they left, by flooing to Diagon Alley, and leaving that way.
**********************************
They easily found the park without having to see the Dursleys house and Severus had to admit that it did look nice. It was very green and very well gardened. There was also a playground, which Harry immediately ran over to. Severus just walked around a bit, admiring the work and smelling the fresh air.
He sat on a bench, watching as Harry was having fun on the playground, surrounded by other kids.
The time flew for both Harry and Severus, but either seemed to notice too much. Severus was enjoying breathing in the fresh air and seeing new surroundings, occasionally watching Harry.
Harry had sat with him for a while, but was now back out playing. Soon a woman sat next to him, he thought she looked vaguely familiar, like he had seen her before. But he shook the thought away, she was obviously a muggle and he was very sure he didn't know any.
************************************
Harry was just about to go in the jungle gym when he heard someone call his name out. He knew it wasn't Severus and was surprised that someone else there knew his name.
He turned around and right in front of him was Dudley.
He took a sharp intake of breath as a flood of memories came rushing back, but he quickly pushed them all back.
It seemed too that Dudley was pushing back memories of him own, probably things that he had seen his father do to Harry.
"Hi Harry... How are you?" Dudley asked awkwardly.
"D-Dudley..." Harry was feeling slightly nervous, he hadn't ever seen Dudley act like this, he seemed quiet and very nervous. Nothing like what he used to be,
"I'm okay... umm you?" Harry asked, not really sure what to say.
"Alright I guess... It's different without you home, and without dad."
Harry winced at the thought of his uncle.
"Oh, S-sorry Harry"
Harry was shocked, was this really Dudley Dursley? Definitely not the one that he knew. He could see differences just in the way he was acting. He was quieter, less confident, and seemed almost shy talking to Harry. The absence of his father had certainly changed him.
Harry shook his thoughts away and forced a smile for Dudley's sake, if not his own.
"Don't worry about it."
"I'm really sorry about what my father did to-"
"Don't worry about it Dudley, it wasn't your fault."
"Well I'm sorry about what I did to you Harry, I never helped you at all with your chores, and I even pushed you around. I was just a spoiled brat."
Harry was even more shocked. At that moment he was sure that this was not Dudley Dursley standing in front of him.
"I mean I never really thought about what it was like for you, and now that you're gone, and dad... well I have to do a lot more around the house to help out, especially now cause mum has to go out and work. I just don't know how you did it all"
Harry nodded his head.
"You must hate me"
"I don't hate you Dudley; it really wasn't your fault. I never blamed you."
It seemed that Dudley had had something lifted off his shoulders, like he had been carrying around this guilt for a while. Harry guessed that Dudley really hadn't known that what his father was doing was wrong at the time.
It looked as though Dudley was going to say something else when Harry heard his aunt's voice. He hadn't even noticed her coming.
"Harry?"
"Hello Aunt Petunia" Harry said quietly, getting nervous at seeing the anger written all over her face.
"How dare you! How dare you disrupt my Dudley from playing! My husband gets locked up all because a freak like you couldn't abide by a few rules and handle a few small punishments. And now you see fit to corrupt my Dudleykins!"
"Mum!" Dudley exclaimed.
Harry winced and was about to reply when a hand from behind him landed on his shoulder.
"Is there a problem here?" Severus growled from behind Harry
***
Severus has been closing his eyes, just dozing off when he felt the woman next to him move, he opened his eyes to see that she had gotten up and was heading over to Harry. It was then that he realized that Harry was with someone. And that person he did recognize. It was the whale of a boy that he had seen when he was looking for Harry all those years ago, although he did look older now and he had definitely lost a fair bit of weight. It was then that he finally caught on to who the woman he had been sitting next to was. It was Harry's aunt, and she was almost where Harry and his cousin were. Cursing under his breath, he quickly made his way over to them, hoping that the woman and her son would not cause any problems. Harry had had enough trouble from that family. He didn't need any more to add to the list.
When he got there he didn't hear what she had said to Harry but he could tell it wasn't anything nice.
***
Petunia glared at Severus, one that could very well match his own.
Harry stepped back from it, but only ended up walking into Severus.
She then glared at Harry, who immediately stopped moving altogether.
"Come along Dudley, we are going home."
Dudley looked like he was going to argue but he stopped himself.
After a few steps Dudley turned back around and faced Harry.
"Hey, maybe when this is all over, and my mum gets over all this, perhaps we could hang out?" Dudley sounded almost hopeful.
Harry smiled.
"That would be great."
Dudley smiled back and then let Petunia drag him off and towards the car.
"Are you okay Harry?" Severus asked, concerned.
"I'm better then okay"
Harry was happy; he actually had a family member who wanted to know him. He knew that Severus was his family and all, but what Harry was talking about was a blood relative. Even if his aunt hated him, all that mattered to Harry was that his cousin didn't.
Harry couldn't ignore a warm feeling come over him.
He stood watching as Dudley was led away by his aunt, who obviously wasn't happy that he had been talking to him, he watched as they got into a car, he watched as they drove onto the traffic lanes, driving back to their home, back to Harry's hell.
And he watched in horror as another car dangerously swerved and hit them, pushing them into another car.
He watched as at least 6 cars were hauled into the wreckage, killing all instantly.
Also thank you to kateydidnt for pointing that out, but for this fic I'm just going to say that Scabbers was Ron's! It works better for me!
As you can imagine I was quite shocked when I got over 100 reviews, then I saw that someone had posted over 60 'aw' reviews! So umm... thank you to that person but maybe not quite so many next time, one will be enough thanks! Haha
All I have to say about this chapter is... I am so cruel...
A Different Life
Chapter 20 - The Park
Harry and Severus were sitting down getting breakfast about five days after Harry had called Severus 'dad'. It was not something that they had repeated to each other or anyone else, but it was a moment that they both held in their hearts.
Harry sat thoughtfully in his chair for a few minutes before breaking the silence that had erupted between them.
"Severus..."
"Yes Harry" Severus answered, not looking up from reading The Daily Prophet.
"I'm..." Harry trailed off.
"Yes?" Severus asked, finally looking up from what he was reading.
"I'm bored" Harry finally said
Severus raised an eyebrow.
"Seriously, it's gotten to the point where I'm considering doing something wrong just so you will give me a punishment and therefore I will have something to do."
Severus frowned
"Well what do you want to do? I guess you could see Ron-"
"Severus, I want to do something with you!"
Severus looked confused
"Me?"
"Yes you! Can you tell me the last time that we actually did something out of the house? It's either work or maybe just talking. But we never really do anything together."
Severus narrowed his eyes in thought. He supposed it was true. Nothing he and Harry did had come to mind, well not anything that involved going outside.
"What did you have in mind?"
"Let's go out somewhere? Please! It's a nice day, let's go to the park!" Harry put his puppy eyes to work.
"I'm not aware of any parks around here" Severus answered, aware of what Harry was trying to do.
Harry thought about that for a bit.
"Well I know a park, Dudley used to love it, he always got to go. The only reason I know of it is because once Mrs. Figg couldn't look after me and so they had to take me."
Anger flashed in Severus' eyes but he said nothing.
"Do you happen to know where this park is?"
"Well..." Harry thought for a moment, he was trying to remember something that happened quite a few years ago.
"It was only a few streets away from the Dursleys, so I guess if we look around there then we will be able to find it."
Severus nodded
"Okay, go grab your coat."
Harry smiled and ran upstairs.
Severus watched him go. He was fully intent on saying no to Harry, not really being the outdoor person, but when he heard about Harry not being allowed to go when he was with the Dursleys he decided then that he would. Besides, it would be good to get out a bit with Harry, spend some time together, especially after what had happened the week before with his father.
So after Harry finally got his coat and found some suitable shoes, they left, by flooing to Diagon Alley, and leaving that way.
**********************************
They easily found the park without having to see the Dursleys house and Severus had to admit that it did look nice. It was very green and very well gardened. There was also a playground, which Harry immediately ran over to. Severus just walked around a bit, admiring the work and smelling the fresh air.
He sat on a bench, watching as Harry was having fun on the playground, surrounded by other kids.
The time flew for both Harry and Severus, but either seemed to notice too much. Severus was enjoying breathing in the fresh air and seeing new surroundings, occasionally watching Harry.
Harry had sat with him for a while, but was now back out playing. Soon a woman sat next to him, he thought she looked vaguely familiar, like he had seen her before. But he shook the thought away, she was obviously a muggle and he was very sure he didn't know any.
************************************
Harry was just about to go in the jungle gym when he heard someone call his name out. He knew it wasn't Severus and was surprised that someone else there knew his name.
He turned around and right in front of him was Dudley.
He took a sharp intake of breath as a flood of memories came rushing back, but he quickly pushed them all back.
It seemed too that Dudley was pushing back memories of him own, probably things that he had seen his father do to Harry.
"Hi Harry... How are you?" Dudley asked awkwardly.
"D-Dudley..." Harry was feeling slightly nervous, he hadn't ever seen Dudley act like this, he seemed quiet and very nervous. Nothing like what he used to be,
"I'm okay... umm you?" Harry asked, not really sure what to say.
"Alright I guess... It's different without you home, and without dad."
Harry winced at the thought of his uncle.
"Oh, S-sorry Harry"
Harry was shocked, was this really Dudley Dursley? Definitely not the one that he knew. He could see differences just in the way he was acting. He was quieter, less confident, and seemed almost shy talking to Harry. The absence of his father had certainly changed him.
Harry shook his thoughts away and forced a smile for Dudley's sake, if not his own.
"Don't worry about it."
"I'm really sorry about what my father did to-"
"Don't worry about it Dudley, it wasn't your fault."
"Well I'm sorry about what I did to you Harry, I never helped you at all with your chores, and I even pushed you around. I was just a spoiled brat."
Harry was even more shocked. At that moment he was sure that this was not Dudley Dursley standing in front of him.
"I mean I never really thought about what it was like for you, and now that you're gone, and dad... well I have to do a lot more around the house to help out, especially now cause mum has to go out and work. I just don't know how you did it all"
Harry nodded his head.
"You must hate me"
"I don't hate you Dudley; it really wasn't your fault. I never blamed you."
It seemed that Dudley had had something lifted off his shoulders, like he had been carrying around this guilt for a while. Harry guessed that Dudley really hadn't known that what his father was doing was wrong at the time.
It looked as though Dudley was going to say something else when Harry heard his aunt's voice. He hadn't even noticed her coming.
"Harry?"
"Hello Aunt Petunia" Harry said quietly, getting nervous at seeing the anger written all over her face.
"How dare you! How dare you disrupt my Dudley from playing! My husband gets locked up all because a freak like you couldn't abide by a few rules and handle a few small punishments. And now you see fit to corrupt my Dudleykins!"
"Mum!" Dudley exclaimed.
Harry winced and was about to reply when a hand from behind him landed on his shoulder.
"Is there a problem here?" Severus growled from behind Harry
***
Severus has been closing his eyes, just dozing off when he felt the woman next to him move, he opened his eyes to see that she had gotten up and was heading over to Harry. It was then that he realized that Harry was with someone. And that person he did recognize. It was the whale of a boy that he had seen when he was looking for Harry all those years ago, although he did look older now and he had definitely lost a fair bit of weight. It was then that he finally caught on to who the woman he had been sitting next to was. It was Harry's aunt, and she was almost where Harry and his cousin were. Cursing under his breath, he quickly made his way over to them, hoping that the woman and her son would not cause any problems. Harry had had enough trouble from that family. He didn't need any more to add to the list.
When he got there he didn't hear what she had said to Harry but he could tell it wasn't anything nice.
***
Petunia glared at Severus, one that could very well match his own.
Harry stepped back from it, but only ended up walking into Severus.
She then glared at Harry, who immediately stopped moving altogether.
"Come along Dudley, we are going home."
Dudley looked like he was going to argue but he stopped himself.
After a few steps Dudley turned back around and faced Harry.
"Hey, maybe when this is all over, and my mum gets over all this, perhaps we could hang out?" Dudley sounded almost hopeful.
Harry smiled.
"That would be great."
Dudley smiled back and then let Petunia drag him off and towards the car.
"Are you okay Harry?" Severus asked, concerned.
"I'm better then okay"
Harry was happy; he actually had a family member who wanted to know him. He knew that Severus was his family and all, but what Harry was talking about was a blood relative. Even if his aunt hated him, all that mattered to Harry was that his cousin didn't.
Harry couldn't ignore a warm feeling come over him.
He stood watching as Dudley was led away by his aunt, who obviously wasn't happy that he had been talking to him, he watched as they got into a car, he watched as they drove onto the traffic lanes, driving back to their home, back to Harry's hell.
And he watched in horror as another car dangerously swerved and hit them, pushing them into another car.
He watched as at least 6 cars were hauled into the wreckage, killing all instantly.