Chapter three.

After a full day of chasing after the bundle of energy that was Harry, Nell was regretting her promise just a bit. It wasn't that Harry wanted treats or presents (as his cousin Dudley would certainly have done in his place); no, he simply wanted to see everything, right that moment.

But as much as her feet ached, she wouldn't have traded a moment of the day. Harry had been rather reserved at the Dursleys, rarely laughing out loud, though he would occasionally smile. But after only one day away from them, his laughter rang out frequently.

He was currently sitting beside her in front of the telly, laughing his head off at cartoons. Nell grinned and dug into her bowl of ice cream, watching Harry watch telly.

The next morning began the same way. Nell and Harry made breakfast together (French toast this time) and cleaned up the kitchen together. But Nell didn't give Harry a choice of activity this time. She mock-glared down at him and said, "Young man, you are coming shopping with me, and that's final!"

Harry tilted his head to the side, looking at her warily. After a moment, he smiled uncertainly. Nell dropped the stern act immediately, tousling his hair further. His smile grew.

They traipsed off to the car.

That evening, Nell was left once more with sore feet but a sense of satisfaction mixed with fury. Harry was much too small and thin for his age, and his clothes were pathetic. Hadn't the Dursleys fed and clothed him properly? Clearly not.

He was so grateful to get new things; it had been obvious, of course, that he had previously been wearing Dudley's hand-me-downs. Nell didn't have much extra money to spend, but she made the pence stretch 'til they squeaked, just for Harry. He did look nice with clothes that fit. And now he could go to school with his head held high.

School. Nell groaned. She hadn't done any schoolwork the whole weekend. She was absolutely buggered for Monday, and probably Tuesday. She looked over at Harry, sleeping peacefully, and she tiptoed off to her computer.

She stayed up altogether too late working that night. The next morning, Harry had to jump on the bed and poke her before she consented to wake up. Yawning, she made her way toward the kitchen. Harry, of course, was fresh as a daisy and looking forward to wearing his new clothes to school.

They had a nice fry-up and then Nell looked at the clock. And panicked. She became a whirlwind around the close flat, trying to get everything together and out the door in under five minutes. They were going to be so late!

Nell got Harry to school barely on time, much to his relief. He had told her how much he dreaded spending time on the schoolyard with Dudley's gang around.

Nell threw herself into her classes, and it wasn't until the third class of the day, a psychology course, that disaster struck. Well, not disaster exactly, but her mobile rang in the middle of class. She slunk out, embarrassed, and took the call.

It was Harry's headmistress. And she sounded angry.

"Miss Burton?" she snapped.

"Yes?" Nell answered cautiously.

"Mrs. Dursley had informed us that you are the emergency contact for Harry Potter this week. Is that correct?"

Nell's heart jumped into her throat as she managed to stammer out an affirmative. But before she could ask if Harry was okay, the other woman was rolling on.

"I will have to ask you to come to school, then, and take him home for the day. He has caused quite a regrettable incident, and we think it best if he spends the rest of the day away from school."

Nell gasped. "What did he do?" She started calculating the fastest route from her class to Harry's school in her head.

The headmistress paused. "Well, he – er – he climbed onto the roof of the school, as it happens. That sort of behaviour is strictly inappropriate!"

Nell wanted to laugh. Or cry. Was that all? "Can you wait until my class is over?" she asked. "It will only be half an hour or so more; surely he can go back to class for that long."

The headmistress's voice gained frost. "I'm afraid not, Miss Burton. I'm very sorry."

She sighed and closed the mobile. She sneaked quietly back into class. Futilely, as it happened, because the professor stopped lecturing to watch her return to her desk and gather her things.

"May I ask where you're going?" she inquired coolly.

Nell thought quickly. "Family emergency. I'm sorry."

The professor looked abashed. "By all means, Miss Burton. I'm terribly sorry."

Nell ducked her head and left the classroom, heading straight for Harry's school.

When she arrived, Harry looked terrible. Scuffed up, dirty, and frightened-looking, the poor boy looked miserable. The first thing Nell did was sweep him up into a big hug. Now he simply looked astonished. Clearly, he had not been expecting a warm welcome.

"All right, Harry?" she said. He nodded dumbly. "Good," she said. "Do you mind waiting here for –" she began, then reconsidered. "Will you come with us? You can tell us what happened."

Harry smiled tentatively, encouraged. They walked into the headmistress's office.