Disclaimer: I own nothing. Cricket is powerful. Resist the urge.
Harry Potter and the Strength of Three
Chapter 5: Unexpected Meeting
After handing Cricket the last piece of candybar, Harry opened his pack and pulled out the book he had spent the most time reading, Fight Fire with Fire. After realizing that Tonks followed him everywhere, he couldn't help but wonder how. He never heard her unless she wanted him too. Indeed, if she hadn't revealed herself to him and Dudley after Harry was ambushed he probably still wouldn't know she was there. How does an Auror think? Why, and how do they do the things they do? What better way to get in the mind of an Auror, than to read one of their official training books?
First of all, she was silent. She couldn't have a silencing charm cast about her entire person, otherwise Harry wouldn't have heard when she spoke to him. She had to have somehow charmed her feet or shoes or something. And how did she avoid contact with the muggles? Surely someone was bound to bump into her at times, but it had never happened that Harry was aware of. Unless she simply avoided them. That can't be it. She'd be spinning around and dancing like a bloody ballerina. If she followed him everywhere he went, she had to stick close to him. Real close. Otherwise, how would she follow him through doorways? He knew she did, because she had been in Maggie's the morning before for sure. He hadn't noticed the door opening and closing of its own volition as an invisible body passed through, so she must have followed him through when he opened it. And she hadn't even bumped into him.
Where did she sit, or stand, while he was in Maggie's? Or when he was in Parlow's? Harry knew from experience that walking around invisible wasn't as easy as one might think. How did she avoid collision with people? Besides that, from what he knew Tonks was extremely clumsy, always breaking things and stumbling around. Remembering her movements over the past few days, however, Harry began to wonder. Her hands and feet had moved with confidence, not with the hesitant quickness he remembered. This made him frown, and he began to worry. What if it wasn't really Tonks, but a Death Eater using Polyjuice potion? But then he remembered that the Order had acknowledged her presence, and said he was safe. So it had to be Tonks. Unless someone took her place. Harry shook his head roughly. The woman he had spoken to ealier that day felt like Tonks. He knew her, he was just being paranoid.
He was so involved with his thoughts he didn't hear Dudley at first. Looking over the edge of his nook, he saw his cousin standing beneath the tree. "C'mon, Harry, lets go." Dudley waved his hands at him for emphasis. With a grin, Harry stood up and stuffed the book back in his bag. He gently picked Cricket off his knee and placed him beside where he was sitting before standing up. As soon as he was on his feet, the little creature shot up his leg and stood on his shoulder, squeaking. Frowning, Harry picked him up and held him in front of his face.
"Sorry mate, I gotta go." He smiled warmly at his small companion. "I'll bring you some more peanuts tomorrow, allright?" With that, Harry leaned over and set the squirrel on the tree, turning to go. Cricket chattered angrily before running up his body again, resuming his seat on Harry's left shoulder. Harry chuckled. "C'mon Cricket, I have to leave. I'm sorry, bud." When he reached up to take him off, the squirrel dug its claws into his shirt, refusing to let go. Harry frowned. "You want to go with?" Cricket chirped agreement in his ear. "Suit yourself, furball, but if you don't like it don't blame me."
"Hurry up, Harry, we have to go." Dudley shouted from below. "You can talk to the squirrel tomorrow." His voice was amused, and Harry flushed. Leaving the rodent to cling to his shirt, he climbed down the tree. Dudley looked askance at Harry's passenger, but shook his head and said nothing. He began to walk through the park and Harry followed, his face still flushed.
"Cricket wanted to come with," he said, jabbing a thumb at the offending ball of fluff on his shoulder.
"Nice clothes," Dudley said, ignoring Harry's explanation. "Its a pretty long walk. I'm starting to wish I had a car, all this walking is fine, but it would be nice to be able to get somewhere a little faster for once."
"I know what you mean," Harry nodded. The two walked in silence for some time. Eventually they came to a residential district, leaving the storefronts behind. Most of the houses were rather run down looking, but interesting nonetheless. It didn't have the sterility of Privet Drive. Each building had its own personality, each house of a different design. Some had children's toys scattered about the front yards, one had a kiddie pool set up at the side. Some had large patio's while others simply had a door leading to their sidewalks. Some had flowering bushes scattered about, bird feeders hanging from tree branches. Each yard and home looked different at first glance, but each home shared a few things in common with its neighbors.
Each house was in varying states of disrepair, peeling paint and broken shingles. Missing numbers from the doors, broken picket fences or small sheds with doors swinging freely. Despite this, each home seemed inviting. Whereas the houses along privet drive were all so clean looking, orderly, almost aligned with military precision, these homes looked lived in. Loved, in a way. The sight made Harry smile.
As he and Dudley walked, Harry looked around at the various people going about their business. Children shrieked gaily from one yard, chasing eachother around a tree. An older woman stood in her front yard, trimming rosebushes with a pair of shears before turning in for the night, thick gardening gloves reaching halfway up her wrists. A younger man knelt beside his lawnmower, tinkering with the engine. Several tools lay scattered about him. A few of the people looked up from their activities to smile and wave at the boys, who waved back. Harry liked this place. It brought a feeling not unlike the one that the park gave him. Peaceful, calming. Serene.
A small boy and girl ran onto the sidewalk in front of them, giggling hysterically. "You're it," The little boy yelled, running back towards the yard they had run out of. The girl giggled some more before giving chase, and the two disappeared from view at the side of the home. Is this what it would've been like? Harry wondered. Would mum and dad have bought a little house like this? Was Godric's Hollow like this? The thoughts brought a sort of bittersweet longing to Harry, as he imagined running about, playing tag with siblings of his own. He was startled out of his musings by the sound of Dudley's voice.
"This's Penny's flat." He explained, walking up a cobblestone sidewalk to the door of a light blue colored house. "I told her we'd stop by and get her before we go." His tone was apologetic, but Harry merely smiled warmly at his cousin, glancing around the yard curiously. A tire swing hung from a branch of a large tree on one side of the yard, while a platform of nailed together boards sat in its branches. A treehouse. Would I have had a treehouse? Dad would have helped me build one, I'm sure. A picnic table sat towards the other side, a white ceramic birdbath tucked into one corner near it. The yard was surrounded by a white picket fence, slats missing here and there. Looking closely at the house, Harry noticed how the wooden siding was rotten in some places, the light blue paint chipping and pealing off in others. The steps leading to the open air porch gave a little when they walked on them. Through the windows Harry could see white, flowered curtains fluttering gently. Dudley reached up and pressed the doorbell, and Harry heard chimes jingling merrily in the house as a result. This is the kind of place I want one day, peeling paint and all.
Before long, the door opened to reveal the smiling face of Mrs. McMartin, who nodded to the boys and stepped aside. "Come on in, Dudley, Harry. Penny'll be down in just a minute." She stopped suddenly as they were about to enter, giving Harry a questioning look. He fidgeted before realizing she was staring at the squirrel on his shoulder.
"Oh!" He muttered, face flushed. "This is my...umm..pet, Cricket. Cricket, say Hi." Cricket chirped at Susan, who smirked at Harry before turning and entering the house.
"Cute, Harry." Harry wondered if he should take his shoes off, but when Dudley followed Susan into the kitchen he shrugged, doing the same. "Coffee? Tea?" She asked politely as they sat at the table, before turning to Harry. "Orange Juice?" She smirked. Harry laughed.
"No thanks, Mrs. McMartin, I'm fine." She looked even more motherly without the waitress uniform. She wore a simple dress of a yellow material, with small flower designs along the hem. Sandals peeked from underneath the dress, toenails unpainted. Whenever Harry saw her at Maggie's, she had her hair in a rather severe bun, but here at her home she let it down, the golden brown curls brushing against the careworn lines of her face.
"Call me Susan, Harry." She beamed. "Dudley?"
"I'll take a cup of tea, thanks." Susan began filling the tea kettle as the two teens sat at the table. Harry jerked suddenly, turning to Dudley with a look of impending horror on his face. Dudley raised an eyebrow.
"Dudley!" Harry whispered furiously. "What's everyone gonna think?" He jabbed a thumb at Cricket. "Everyone's gonna think I'm some nut, going to a party with a squirrel." Dudley laughed as Cricket chattered disagreement. Susan looked over her shoulder at the noise.
"Don't worry about it. They might think its a little off at first," he smirked, "but the girls are gonna love it. You heard Susan, 'Cute, Harry', Girls are gonna be all over you just cause you carry a rodent around." Harry blushed at this.
"That's not the reason I brought him along!" He whispered a little louder, "I couldn't get him to stay put." Dudley was laughing openly now, along with Susan who had heard the conversation between the two.
"Dudley's right, Harry." She proclaimed. "You'll be fine." Setting a cup of tea in front of Dudley, who thanked her with a smile and a nod, she turned and walked down a hall towards a stairway. "I'll go see how Penny's doing, we'll be right down." The two sat in silence as they waited for the two to come down. Cricket chirped every now and then, causing Dudley to snicker into his tea. Harry suddenly felt nervous. What if Penny hated him? She didn't have a very good opinion of the rest of Dudley's family. What if she jumped to the conclusion that he was just as bad? What if she broke up with Dudley because he brought Harry?
"She'll like you, don't worry." Dudley said, seeming to sense Harry's mood. "I've already told her a bit about you, and how I....well.." He cleared his throat, suddenly looking nervous himself. "You'll be fine." He finished lamely. Harry nodded, unsure.
Sudden steps on the stairs caused both boys to jump guiltily to their feet. Susan appeared first, with a small brunette in tow. Harry looked her over without trying to stare. Except for the darker hair, she looked like a younger version of her mother. Short and lean, wearing a simple pair of blue jeans and a light yellow t-shirt with curves in all the right places. Her face appeared tiny compared to the large expressive brown eyes that twinkled joyfully upon the sight of Dudley. A pert nose and small, full lips completed the picture. Harry was incredulous. She was beautiful, and Harry suddenly felt ashamed to call Dudley's parents family. He looked askance at his cousin, catching his eye he smirked and winked. Dudley blushed, grinning.
"Hi Dudley!" She exclaimed, throwing herself into his embrace as Susan looked on warmly. Her voice tinkled merrily to match her eyes. Giving him a quick peck on the cheeck, she turned to Harry. "You must be Harry," She said happily, disentangling herself from Dudley. "I'm Penny, nice to meet you." She held her hand out to him. On a sudden fit of Gryffindor courage, Harry took her hand and brought it to his lips, looking her in the eye through his lashes as he did so.
"Madam." He intoned grandly. Penny giggled and blushed. Harry chuckled, but catching Dudley's scowl, he let her hand drop. Susan looked at him curiously. What the hell was that? Smooth Potter, real smooth. Dudley invites you to a party and you flirt with his girlfriend.
Clearing his throat, he looked pointedly at Dudley, shrugging his shoulders as if to say 'can you blame me?' Dudley smirked. "Ok, now you kids have fun." Susan said, ushering them to the door. "But stay out of trouble, hear?" After three mumbled agreements, she smiled warmly and closed the door.
"What's that thing?" Penny asked curiously, pointing at Harry's small friend.
"This, Madam, is my friend." Harry said, using the same theatrical voice from before. Sweeping his arm in a grand gesture to point at his own shoulder, he continued, ignoring Dudley's scowl this time. "Penny, meet Cricket." He swept his arm around to point at Dudley's girlfriend. "Cricket, meet Penny." Penny giggled throughout his overdone introduction, grasping Dudley's hand in her own. The three set off towards...wherever they were going. "Hey Dud," Harry asked, dropping the melodramatic tone, "how much farther to this place?"
"Just a little ways, we should be there in a few minutes." Harry nodded. He didn't recognize Penny from primary school, so she must have been a year or two behind him, or maybe she moved to the area only recently? The couple walked with their heads together, Penny occasionally breaking out in peals of tinkling laughter. Harry watched her from the corner of his eye. She's real pretty. A lock of hair was hanging along the side of her face, and Harry had to fight the sudden urge to tuck it behind her ear. What are you thinking!? Snap out of it, Potter!
Face flushed, Harry sidled a few feet farther from the two. Dudley apologizes, and you thank him by flirting with his girl. Looking at his feet to avoid staring at Penny, Harry walked along in silence, listening to them giggle back and forth about something. She must be real good for him. Maybe this is why he's turned around so much? He looked up as the three approached a house. Without him knowing, they had left the street with all the other homes behind, instead they were on a gravel driveway. The house was tucked in its own secluded area, leafy trees surrounding it. A few cars were parked out front, and he could see two figures sitting on the porch. Suddenly nervous, Harry reached into his pocket, grabbing his pack of smokes. Lighting one up, he felt slightly better as the soothing smoke filled his lungs, no longer tickling his throat as it had at first. To the side and a little behind the house he could see what looked like felled tree trunks serving as benches, surrounding a fire that blazed merrily. A stack of firewood stood a few feet beyond that, leaning dangerously to the side.
Whereas the houses from earlier had seemed to be in need of work, this house looked as though it had undergone a refinishing just recently. The paint looked fresh, the tiles sparkled slightly in the setting sun, and the porch out front was pale and new. Unweathered. Seeing Harry's curiosity, Dudley beamed at him with a look of pride. "I helped paint it, and we built the deck just two weeks ago." Harry nodded. "This is where I've been staying, I didn't want to feel like a freeloader, you know? So I helped him out, It was actually kind'a fun." As they approached the house, the two figures sitting in front lept to there feet, striding the few paces to meet them.
"Oi', good to see ya Dud, Penny." The guy looked friendly enough, dressed in a pair of khaki slacks and a white t-shirt. He was roughly the same hieght as Dudley, although not as bulky. Athletic, but not on the scale of Harry's muscular cousin. His hair was short, spiked and blonde, and blue eyes sparkled with a hint of mischief as he looked at Penny. His companion was a taller girl, dirty blonde hair pulled back in a small ponytail, blue eyed and beautiful. She wore a light blue baby-t and bleached jeans. Harry suddenly felt very self conscious about his height and muscles....or lack thereof. He looked Harry over curiously, doing a double-take as he caught sight of Cricket. Harry smiled nervously. "And this is...."
Dudley brought his arm down from its resting place on Penny's shoulders, and stepped forward. "John, Alicia," He nodded to each in turn. "My cousin Harry. Harry," he nodded at his cousin, "John and Alicia, friends of mine." He noticed the curious glances being sent to his cousin, and hit his forehead with his hand. "Oh, and that's Cricket." He said, pointing to the squirrel. Cricket chattered madly, causing John to jump and the girls to giggle and coo affectionately at the creature. Both Penny and Alicia walked to Harry, stroking and petting Cricket as he preened under the attention. Maybe Dudley was right, heh. Cricket, you're my new best friend. Harry smiled sweetly at both girls as John and Dudley scowled.
John cleared his throat, causing both girls to blush and walk back to their former positions. "Anyways," he chuckled, giving Harry a warning look out of the corner of his eye. Harry pretended not to notice. "Zack's inside, but so i..." He didn't get to finish as the door to the house banged open at just that moment and a dark haired girl stormed from the house in a snit. A tall brown haired bloke followed in her wake, and the two quickly passed by the four of them, who all turned unabashed to watch the confrontation.
"Awww, c'mon Steph, Don't be like that." The dark haired man pleaded, jogging to catch up. "I said I was sorry!" Harry almost snickered at this, the guy sounded alarmingly like Ron. "Don't go, c'mon, we got the party tonight." The girl whipped around at this, stalking towards the man furiously, who stumbled back a few paces in surprise.
"What the hell do you think we've been arguing about for the past hour, Zack?" She practically screamed. "The parties! Always partying, its all you do!" Stopping her advance, she sent a glare at Harry and his group, who all turned away sheepishly. Harry watched from the corner of his eye. "Maybe I'm sick of it. You ever think of that?" She turned again, storming towards a red sedan, Zack following in her wake, still pleading with her to stay.
"Well Harry, that's Zack." Dudley laughed, causing the other three to crack up as well. "And the girl he's arguing with is his fiancee, Stephanie." Harry's jaw dropped at this, his mouth open in an o of surprise. Engaged? And they fight like that? "This is pretty normal. They'll argue for a few minutes out here, but eventually they'll snog like mad and everything will be fine again." Harry laughed aloud at this, looking back over to the quarrelling couple. As he watched, he saw evidence of Dudley's theory as the two began kissing as furiously as they had been arguing. His face flushed, Harry turned back to his three companions. Reaching up, he ran his fingers gently across the back of Cricket, who chirped softly in his ear.
"Lets go inside, they'll be a while yet." Dudley chuckled, walking up the steps and through the still open door. "Don't worry about your shoes, mate." Harry stood up from untying his new trainers, blushing. The five walked slowly through the house as Dudley dropped back to walk beside Harry. "I painted the inside too, like it?" Harry nodded, looking at the walls as he walked further along the hallway. The painting job looked fine to him. Just walls, they all look the same to me. But he said nothing, noting the pride in Dudleys tone. The linoleum gave way to hardwood floors as they entered the living room, but Dudley took him by the elbow and held him back, whispering softly. "You're not gonna try anything with Penny, are you?" A hint of a threat was in his voice, and Harry looked him in the eye as he replied.
"No." Apparently, his voice conveyed his honesty because Dudley nodded to him, his smile returning. "I won't try anything, I promise." Liar! Harry shuffled his feet guiltily, but Dudley seemed not to notice as he led the way into the living room to join the others. You were practically drooling! The living room was richly furnished, a big-screen TV stood proudly in one corner, to the right of it a stereo system and various other muggle entertainment devices stacked in a black cupboard with a glass door. Large speakers stood at intervals around the room, facing three leather couches spaced evenly in front of the television. A loveseat sat in the other corner, a large coffee table situated in front of it. Three plush armchairs stood facing the couch, all looked comfortable enough to sleep in. A small round table stood in the middle of the room, a deep rish mahagony in color, four matching chairs spaced evenly around it. A pool table was situated a little closer to the hall they had entered through. Dudley was making his way to a bar arrayed on the far wall, various bottles of liquor and glasses on shelves behind it. Harry stopped in the middle of the room, gazing about in shock. All the plush furniture was upholstered in rich black leather, even the arm rest on the mirrored mini-bar. The entire room oozed class. And money.
Dudley realized that Harry had stopped, and returned to his side, chuckling. "When he bought the flat, the room we're in wasn't quite this big. He knocked out the walls to two bedrooms, and retiled the floor." Tiled? Must not really be hardwood then. "This floor of the house only has three rooms now, this one, the kitchen, and the bathroom. There's two bedrooms upstairs." He caught Harry by the elbow and led him to the bar.
"I thought he worked on the line? At Grunnings? How'd he afford all this?!" Dudley glanced at him, miming a 'down' motion with his hands.
"Not so loud, yea? You sound rude." Dudley admonished, eliciting a blush from Harry. He took a seat on one of the three chromed, black leather stools in front of the bar as Dudley walked behind it, reaching for bottles. A standard sized stainless steel fridge was situated underneath the many shelves. Dudley opened the freezer and grabbed a handful of ice, dropping it into a glass he had grabbed from beneath the bar. "He says he inherited loads of money when his grandpa died. Parents hate him for it." Dudley grimaced, dropping ice into another glass with a chink. "They never got on much, you know? Him and his parents I mean. Him inheriting all of his grandpa's money just widened the rift." Opening a bottle of dark liquor, he sloshed some into each of the glasses. One of them was noticeably fuller. Opening the fridge, he removed two cans of Coke, opened them both at the same time and dumped their contents into the classes in one smooth motion. Reaching into a container on the shelf, he produced two straws, sliding the glass with less liquor in it across to Harry, who looked at it dubiously. "Captain Coke. You should like it."
With a nervous twitch somewhere in the region of his stomach, Harry picked up his glass hesitantly, before sucking on the straw quickly. A cold liquid burnt its way down his throat, and he coughed violently, causing Cricket to chatter madly in his ear. He set the glass down carefully and glared at Dudley. His cousin was leaning over the bar, guffawing loudly in peals of laughter. Glancing behind him at the other three on one of the large the couches, Harry saw them looking his way, and embarrassed, whipped his head back to Dudley.
"W-what is t-this stuff?" he choked. Dudley chuckled a few moments more before picking up his own glass, swirling the straw around slowly.
"Try stirring it next time, yea?" He smirked. With an apologetic look he set his own glass on the bar, grabbed Harry's, stirred it, and gulped the contents down. Harry's throat burned in protest. Opening the fridge, Dudley grabbed a bottle before turning back to Harry. "Here," he said, twisting the cap off a beer bottle, "try this instead, for now." Harry took the bottle, eyed the label carefully before taking a large swallow. It was good. "We'll save this for later, eh?" Dudley laughed, swirling the bottle of Captain Morgan. With three big gulps, he downed his own glass, before turning to the fridge and extracting two bottles of the beer Harry was drinking. Walking to the couch where his three friends were sitting, he handed one of the bottles to Penny, who smiled at him. With a loud sigh, Dudley flopped onto the couch beside her. Harry sat on the other couch, nearest Dudley.
"So Harry," Alicia began, smiling at him with a hungry look in her eyes, "How come you've never been around before? I mean, being Dud's cousin and all..." She left the question hanging, and Harry sighed, reaching up to stroke Cricket softly with his free hand before he answered.
"I go to a Boarding School up in Scotland for most of the year." Dudley's three friends nodded. "Never got out much during the summers, until this one, that is."
"Well, that explains the accent." John muttered, glancing sideways at Harry.
"Accent?" Harry asked, surprised. "I have an accent?" Dudley snorted loudly at this, and Harry glared at him,
"You never noticed?" Dudley snickered, "You've had a hint of ireland in your voice since your first summer back!" Dudley guffawed loudly. "Now its just a mish-mash, I can't even place it," he explained, sobering. "It was worse every time we went to pick you up." Seeing Harry's scowl, he put his hands up in a placating gesture. "Its not bad or anything, don't get me wrong. You could be either a scott or an irishman, either one."
"I like your accent." Alicia said. Harry looked at her blushing, then back down seeing the scowl on Johns face. This isn't going so well. First Penny, now this girl. Every boyfriend in a ten mile radius will be itching for my blood at this rate. Digging through his pockets, he produced his pack of cigarettes, looking questioningly at his cousin.
"Gotta take that outside, I'm afraid." He said apologetically. Harry shrugged, getting to his feet. "I'll go with you, Harry, I could use one myself." He beamed at Penny and kissed her on the forehead, before standing and following Harry to the porch. Harry glanced nervously towards where Zack and his girlfriend had been snogging, but sighed in relief when he didn't see them. Pulling out a smoke, he lit it.
"Be careful Harry," Dudley warned, pulling out his own cigarettes and following suit. "John can be a little overprotective at times. He's an ok guy, don't get me wrong, but his temper has a short fuse." Harry gulped.
"But I didn't do anything!" Harry moaned, putting a hand to his face and wiping at his eyes beneath the glasses. "She keeps looking at me, what do I do?" His cousin chuckled, slapping him on the back warmly.
"That, cousin, you'll have to figure out for yourself." The two looked up at the sound of a car horn. Looking about, Harry could see no vehicles that weren't there when they had arrived, and frowned. Dudley caught his eye, and nodded towards the red sedan Zack had been snogging his girl by earlier. The windows were fogged up. He felt his face flush, looking back at Dudley, wide-eyed. So that's where they went. Idly, he wondered where Tonks was hiding, feeling his face flush even warmer.
Flicking his cigarette onto the grass, he took the last swallow of his beer and followed Dudley back into the house. His cousin went to the fridge again, calling over his shoulder to see if anyone wanted anything. John and Alicia both called for a beer, and after handing Harry one, he grabbed three more bottles out of the fridge, closing it with his hip before walking back to the couch. They spent the time waiting for people to arrive chatting over mundane things.
Starting on his third beer, Harry began to feel a little light headed. It was a pleasent feeling, just like Dudley had told him earlier. He began to open up a little more, adding his own to the conversations they were having. Dudley flipped through the channels on the huge television aimlessly, glancing at his watch now and then.
The five of them looked up in alarm as Zack came pounding into the house, whooping and hollering. "Lets get this party started, boys!" A stream of people followed him inside, spreading out across the room. He must have been talking to them outside or something. The noise level suddenly skyrocketed from so many people talking and hollering at once. People laughed and jibed good naturadly with their friends. Flashing Harry a grin, Dudley picked up a remote and turned on the stereo, sending waves of rock music pulsing through the room. The people in the room, mostly teens a little older than Harry, began breaking off into smaller groups and dancing. Zack walked to the center of the room followed by two guys carrying a large metal cylinder between them clumsily, where they deposited it. Zack ran to the bar, and back to the cylinder with a...pump of some sort. Harry looked questioningly at Dudley and nodded at it.
"Its a keg," Dudley laughed, talking loudly to be heard over the sounds in the room. "Its full of beer." He grinned at this, then nodded his head and the two got up and made their way through the writhing bodies to Zack. Dudley slapped him on the back, turning to Harry, he yelled something in Zack's ear, and the dark haired teen stuck out his hand, grinning. Harry clasped his hand, and got it shook so hard he thought his teeth were chattering. Harry smirked, holding up his empty bottle, and pointed at the keg. At this, Zack turned and yelled into the croud for Steph, who bounded to his side happily with a bag of plastic cups in her hand. He grabbed the bag from his fiancee, kissed her full on the lips, then ripped it open and handed Harry and Dudley each a glass. Nodding to each in turn, he and Steph disappeared into the crowd.
Dudley smirked, "See what I mean?" He yelled, "right as rain, even after all that fighting." Harry snickered loudly, as he held his cup out for Dudley to fill. People were pointing at Cricket and laughing, several girls squeeled in delight, and Harry's head was spinning. Looking at Dudley crookedly, he put a hand on his cousin's shoulder, leaning over to yell in his ear.
"I'm gonna head outside, I need a smoke." Dudley nodded, grinning, before waving at Penny to come join him in a dance. Harry stumbled his way through the crowd, Cricket chattering angrily at all the noise, while several girls began to make their way to him. Flushing, Harry picked up his pace, bursting through the door and rifling through his pockets, he withdrew a cigarette and lit it, puffing furiously. I hope all those girls aren't taken, or I'm a dead man!
A large group of people mingled around the fire, but it was still quieter outside than it had been in the house. Slowly, his breathing returned to normal, and he took another pull from his glass. The light headed feeling had intensified dramatically, but it still felt wonderful. With a smile, he wondered how Tonks was managing to hide among so many people.
"Harry? HARRY!" Suddenly, his vision was obscured by bushy golden brown hair as he was enveloped in a bone-crushing hug. His keg glass went flying from his hand and he stumbled, falling backwards. He heard Cricket screech in terror and felt the squirrel jump from his shoulder before he bashed his head and everything went black.
A/N Second Chapter today, third if you count my new prologue! Hope you like it! I never did get to take my nap, humph. I spent the whole day writing, reading, and cleaning up my earlier chapters. Everyone should be able to guess who the person at the end is:P Are my descriptions of the people pretty good? I was kinda worried about that, but I think I did ok. If you guys think I'm doing a good job, good, I'll try to keep it up. If you see any mistakes or don't like something, feel free to tell me, this is my first fanfic and its a learning experience, yea? Apologies, and Invitations both got a run through my mind again. Minor changes and corrections, and some small additions. No time to clean this one up before I post it, sorry. I'll do it after work tomorrow.
Edit: 10/13/2004 I read through this chapter again and did the usual cleaning, adding, and changing.
Shaz124 Nope, I don't plan on having Harry going anywhere anytime soon. I had a good laugh writing the alley scene, glad you liked it:)
Me262 I went back and rewrote the scene of Harry's first encounter with Dudley in the tree. It should be a little easier to understand now, sorry about that. Dumbledore's name was tickling the back of my brain too, and when you said that I speled it wrong it clicked in my head. Sorry about that, too. Thanks for your comments and thanks even more for the criticism.
Kalee Thanks. I thought I did a pretty good job with Dudley too, I just hope I can keep it up.
What would you guys rather see? Harry/Tonks, or Harry/Hermione? I was planning on doing H/HR, but Tonks kinda swept in the room and glared at me with those pink eyes, all sexy-like.
Please Review!