A/N: Sorry about the cliffy there… I just had to do it… I put in a little clue as to an upcoming plot point and was disappointed to see that only one reviewer noticed it… I think most everyone else needs to go back and read chapter 5 again very closely, particularly the part in which Harry and Dudley get ready to go out and play in the snow.

You can thank Emma Barrows for helping me get through this chapter. See I had a VERY bad case of writers block. (to the point where I was stuck at one small point and couldn't get past it no matter how many sodas I drank or how much popcorn I stuffed my face with…) Anyway another explanation is needed. Yes, Harry's magic is quite strong despite the wiring of Harry's mind.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, if I did, I'd buy my sister and nephew new computers and hire a team of computer technicians to keep the computers running correctly without any problems like the problems my sis and nephew are having right now… Heck… if I owned Harry Potter, I'd have the best computer money could buy and the best laptop money could buy just so that I could write this fic no matter where I go should I be so inspired. Then I'd get chapters done much faster… That and I'd be able to play The Sims 2 and Sim City 4 any time I got the urge to!

Dum spiro, spero

Butterfly

Chapter 7: Checkups

"Harry, sweetie, please don't ever scare Auntie Petunia like that ever again, okay?" Petunia's soft words were whispered in the boy's ear as she lovingly stroked his face with her thumb and kissed Harry lightly on the forehead.

"I-I'm sorry." Harry apologized once he had calmed down enough. Still the sound of unshed tears lingered in his voice.

"It's okay sweetie. Now why don't you play with Dudley or perhaps talk with Mr. Dumbledore and his friend?" she suggested, her eyes darting towards their visitors.

Dumbledore and Poppy both sat on the sofa, carefully watching the boy. There was no doubt in either of their minds that the Harry Potter in front of them had the potential to be an amazing wizard.

Harry looked up at the witch and wizard, his eyes still showing evidence of his earlier fit.

"Hello, Harry. I'd like to introduce you to my friend, Madam Pomfrey." Harry gazed at her warily for a few seconds. Obviously, she must have given the child a good impression for he slowly got up and sat between the witch and wizard.

Dumbledore sensed Harry was a bit wary so he turned to him with a cheery tone:

"Would you like something to drink? At this Harry nodded and Dumbledore conjured a smoking silver goblet. "Here's some Cream soda. I hope that your aunt won't mind you having sweets so late in the evening." Dumbledore smiled at the shocked expression that crossed the young boy's face.

"Woah…" Harry said, gazing at Dumbledore and then back at the goblet, his eyes wide in amazement. "That was c-cool! H-how di-did you do t-that?" he asked

"With magic, Harry." Dumbledore replied, his eyes smiling. "I'll teach you how to do that when you're older, okay? Now, why don't you drink your soda there?" Harry looked down as if he had done something wrong.

"I-I'm not su-susposed to t-take things from stra-strangers." The boy said, his emerald orbs looking up at the old man.

"It's okay, I assure you that it's only Cream Soda." Dumbledore replied.

"A-aunt Pet-Petunia said… I h-have to ask h-her…" Harry slowly got up to walk into the kitchen where his Aunt was busily cooking dinner for her family and their two guests. He remembered the last time he had interrupted her while she cooked but he needed her permission to take the soda from Mr. Dumbledore. He took a deep breath before marching into the kitchen just as his Aunt was straining the noodles for the Macaroni & Cheese.

"Aunt Pet-Petunia…" Harry mumbled. His aunt jumped, almost getting the hot water from the noodles all over herself and her nephew.

"Harry! What are you doing in the kitchen? I've told you and Dudley to stay out of here when I'm cooking a million times!" she snapped. Harry backed up against the wall, startled at his Aunt's tone.

"I-I…" Harry's green eyes seemed to glaze over as he was pulled far the present and dragged into a memory of the past.

"I've told you a million times not to break a single one of my sweet Petunia's dishes, and look what you've done!" the loud voice of Vernon Dursley boomed. A small boy of only four, perhaps five years looked up at the man, tears welling up in his eyes. "Don't try to tell me you don't know how to carry a dish to the table without breaking it!" The man yelled even louder, grasping the boy by the back of his t-shirt and forcibly pushing the boy to the wall. "What do you have to say for yourself, boy?" He yelled, his face red with anger. The child trembled with fear, clutching an arm that was slightly burned from the hot soup that had been in the dish. "Well!" The man yelled again. Harry looked directly into the man's eyes, tears freely running down his face.

"I-I s-sa-w-wee" He answered as best he could despite his stuttering. A small part of him had tried to make his answer come out right but it was drowned out by the sheer terror that ran through him as he remembered his punishments for all the other times when he didn't do something the right way.

"If you're going to apologize, say it right!" his Uncle Vernon boomed, smacking the boy's cheek hard. Harry just sunk down to the floor, crying even harder at the added physical pain he felt along with the slight sting of his burn. "Stop your crying and clean up this mess, you useless child!"

This only made Harry cry even more as his uncle threw down a cloth with which to clean up the spilt soup that covered the white linoleum floor.

"I mean it! Stop that useless noise and clean the mess you made up, now!" Harry crawled over to the mess and fumbled with the cloth, trying to avoid the ceramic pieces of the shattered dish. Of course, it was an effort that didn't pay. His fingers were cut badly by the time he was half done getting the soup cleaned up. He got up, intending to clean his fingers and get bandages for them but his Uncle wouldn't allow it.

"That's it, I'm sick and tired of your uselessness! You're going in the cupboard!" He yelled at the boy, smacking him hard and grabbing the child's burnt arm, dragging him to a cupboard under the stairs to the first floor of the house. It was the place where Harry was usually put when his Aunt and Cousin wasn't home and it was dark and full of creepy, crawlies that would crawl all over one if they were so unfortunate to be shut inside.

Harry howled in the pain that came from the contact with his arm, praying that his aunt would come home soon. She was the nice one, the one that didn't yell at him for every single thing he didn't do as well as his cousin. He sobbed for what seemed ages, eventually falling asleep, tears slipping down his face as his eyes shut.

"Harry…"

"Harry, it's time to get up. Come on. We have to hurry." Came the panicked voice of his aunt some time later. The first thing that the small boy noticed was that the house was dark, and once he was led into the living room, he saw that it was dark outside as well. His aunt never woke him up at night time, and it was far too late for the family's usual suppertime. Dudley was sitting on the couch, looking terrified as he clutched his stuffed bear in his slightly pudgy hands. Harry looked down at his hands, remembering before when they had been cut and saw that someone must have cleaned them and bandaged them for him.

"Harry, sit down with Dudders, okay?" came the whisper of his Aunt Petunia. Silently Harry nodded and made his way to the couch and sat by his blonde haired cousin.

"H-harry, I'm scared. Mummy and Dad were fighting. I think Mummy is taking us away from Dad." Dudley whispered to his cousin, tears falling down his pinkish face. Harry could only remain silent, not quite understanding what was going on through the sleepy haze his mind was in. After ten minutes, his Aunt came back into the living room, a heavy duffle bag filled to the point of no return.

"Dudley, Harry, c'mon, lets go. We're going to be taking a long walk and it's best if we start while it's still dark out." Petunia took the small hands of the two boys, and was out the door and down the street just before a raging Vernon Dursley came bounding down the stairs yelling for his Petunia to come back, that he was sorry.

"Harry… Harry, look at me. I'm sorry for yelling. It's okay now." Petunia took her nephew in her arms, clearly realizing that he had just been stuck in an old, rather bad memory, most likely of her ex-husband. The tiny boy's body shook as he sobbed.

"I-I sa-sawree." Harry's voice came, the childish pronunciations finding their way through his terror.

"No, Harry. It's my fault. I shouldn't have yelled. You didn't deserve to be yelled at." Petunia cooed, hugging the boy tight, the noodles she had been draining forgotten in the strainer lying in the sink.

It took several minutes for the boy to come back to the present rushing back at him in full force.

"Harry…" She said, once the child had calmed down enough to breathe properly. "What was it you wanted earlier, sweetie?"

Harry got a blank look on his face for several seconds before answering.

"M-mister Dum-Dumble-d-door wa-wants to-to give m-me s-some-the-thing." Harry replied slowly, still shaking slightly.

"Well, lets go talk to Mister Dumbledore and see if it's okay." She led the teary-eyed child into the living room where Dumbledore and Poppy were chatting amongst themselves, both with worried faces.

"Ah, there you are Harry." Dumbledore said cheerfully as he noticed the boy and his aunt come into the living room. A slightly alarmed look crossed the old Wizard's face as he eyed the tale-tale signs of fresh tears in the boy's eyes. "Miss Evans, I hope it's no trouble to you, but could we speak in private, with, of course, the exception being Madam Pomfrey?"

"Of course, please, why don't you follow me into the kitchen? I've got to get that macaroni and cheese done before the noodles get too cold. Dudley, why don't you and Harry go wash up for dinner? It will be done shortly, and please, make sure you boys get your fingernails clean as well." Petunia said, eyeing the dirt that was obviously under the boys' nails. The two of them always seemed to get dirt under their nails no matter what.

"Yes, Mum. Harry, c'mon, dinner's almost ready!" Dudley said. Enthusiastically, Harry followed after his cousin.

All too soon, Poppy Pomfrey and Albus Dumbledore were in the kitchen conversing with Petunia.

"It really is important that we have a chance to give Harry a look over. You'd be amazing at the multitude of illnesses known to Wizarding society that can impair the various types of development in a child." Poppy insisted as she watched Petunia put the finishing touches on the Mac & Cheese, stirring in chopped hot dogs and draining the water from the mixed vegetables she had prepared as well.

"I suppose it would be okay, but I should warn you, Harry doesn't like needles or foul tasting things. It was a miracle I ever got him eating Cauliflower, let alone taking medicine, especially when he came down with Pneumonia when he was eight." Petunia replied. "We should eat dinner first. Then I can talk to Harry and convince him that it's okay."

"Of course." Dumbledore cut in. "I'm sure Harry will be in a much better mood once he has filled his stomach with good food."

It wasn't long at all that the five were to be found eating at the table, conversing about their day. Dumbledore found himself recounting a modified version of his day out shopping with Remus and Severus and Harry quickly warmed up to the man, and started to stumble through a tale of how he and Dudley had beat Petunia in their snowball fight earlier that day.

"Now Harry, I hardly think that two against one is fair. After all, you and Dudley are young and have a lot of energy for pelting snowballs at people."

"But Aunt P-petunia wan-wanted to play with uh-us." Harry said through his last mouthful of Mac & Cheese.

"Now, Albus…" said Poppy. "I believe it was you that said that what matters is doing the right thing, even it if isn't always fair."

"I did say that didn't I, Poppy? I must thank you for reminding me of that." Dumbledore smiled.

"Oh, Harry, do you want more?" Petunia asked, noticing Harry's empty plate. "Or perhaps you're anxious to find out what I planned for dessert?" At that second, Harry's face lit up, a wide smile crossing his face. "Okay, fine, we're going to have some sliced fruit for dessert." Petunia said getting up and opening the fridge to reveal five bowls with sliced fruits and pieces of seedless watermelon and cantaloupe.

The five of them sat eating the fruits, Harry getting the juice from them all over his face and clothes. Soon enough they were all done and Harry was an absolute mess. Dudley started clearing the table without being asked while Petunia went with Harry to clean him up and change him into some nightclothes.

Meanwhile, Dumbledore and Poppy were busy discussing the more intricate details of what had happened at the toy store earlier that day.

"Really, don't you think you three went overboard?" Poppy asked as she envisioned the many things that the three Wizards had purchased.

"Not really. After all, only a few of the things are going to be given to them on Christmas. The others are going to saved for later on." Dumbledore explained just before Petunia walked in with Harry who was clad in deep read thermal pajamas and grey sox on his feet. It was then that the Witch and Wizard realized that it was chilly inside the apartment.

"Harry, sweetie. Madam Pomfrey wants to give you a checkup. Are you going to be a good boy and let her?" Petunia asked, looking directly into her Nephew's eyes, swallowing as she remembered her sister. To her relief, Harry nodded and sat down on the couch, blinking away his sleepiness.

"Well, it's nice to finally meet see you again after all these years, Harry." Poppy said as she took a muggle stethoscope from her bag. She remembered the day Harry had been brought into the world, how his cry had been so strong. She recalled the day when Voldemort had attacked the Potters and Hagrid had brought the orphaned child to her for a small check up before taking him off to be placed with his relatives. Her eyes lingered on his scar and sighed. She listened to his heartbeat, and sighed, there was nothing wrong with it that she could hear. She took his pulse and found it a bit faster than normal. 'But of course… He must be nervous.' She reasoned before checking the child's ears for infection. To her relief she found nothing wrong as far as the child's physical health except perhaps a few bumps and bruises that were typical of any child. "Well, I suppose I ought to give you a clean bill of health, Mister Potter, although I might add that it would be wise to be a little more careful when you're out playing." Poppy said, finally putting away the Muggle equipment.

She smoothed out the child's hair, taking note of how he tensed a bit. She would talk to Dumbledore about that later.

"Petunia, you've done a fine job of caring for this one here. I hope to see him in Hogwarts when the time comes." She smiled at the younger woman. "And Harry, I hope you stay in good health."

"I suppose we ought to go. Poppy has a hospital wing at the school to attend to." Dumbledore said, standing up.

"Well, I must thank you for coming. Will we be seeing you again?" Petunia asked, suddenly worried.

"Of course. Goodbye, Harry, Miss Evans, and even you, Dudley. We shall meet again." Dumbledore said as he and Poppy exited the apartment.

Once outside Poppy began prodding Dumbledore for answers.

"Well, Harry seems to be in good health, but his behavior towards others tells a different story. I just don't understand it. He acts as if he's been abused, but there are no physical marks to show for it.

"I think we can safely assume that Harry's behavior has something to do with why Petunia relocated to this town." Dumbledore mused. "I shall have to inquire about that at a later date. Now lets get you back to Hogwarts."

A/N: Okay I'm sorry this took so long and that it's a little shorter than usual, but my tendonitis has been acting up and if I made this any longer then it would be put up late. Oh and guess what, I get to celebrate about this being the first time for me to put up a seventh chapter of anything. Don't worry I'll keep it going. I promise at least one chapter a week unless I state otherwise in a chapter or on my profile…

Oh and for those who have this story on alert, but haven't been reviewing, please start reviewing. The more reviews, the better I'll be able to ignore the pain in my hands and get upcoming chapters written…

Quod incepimus conficiemus