Disclaimer- Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling. I have taken characters and added new ones for this fanfiction. The idea for this fanfic alone is mine. Everything else you recognize is J.K. Rowling's work! Let's get started.


Dudley and Beryl


Dudley had always been his parents' child — perfectly normal with nothing strange or mysterious. He had been pampered throughout his childhood and taught several wrong things too. As his parents wanted, he had attended a normal school, received a boring desk job at Grunnings, and even married the Grunnings manager's daughter, Beryl. Beryl was from a family that was just like the Dursleys — completely nonmagical. Her family hated anything out of the ordinary and that was why Vernon had gotten a twenty-year-old Dudley married to a nineteen-year-old Beryl. Harry was brushed off as just another acquaintance and wasn't invited to the wedding. Nor were the Dursleys invited to Harry's wedding. Only a card with the photo of Dudley and Beryl was sent to the Burrow's address, which Dudley had acquired from Hestia Jones so long ago. Dudley's and Beryl's families wouldn't want freaks running about the place. That doesn't mean that Dudley remained the same bully he was before turning fifteen. He was a changed man. Now, he knew what was right. He regretted the way he and his family treated Harry over the years. Since they sent Dudley's wedding card, they also received Harry's wedding card — the photo of a young man with a complicated past seen in his brilliant green eyes, his messy jet black hair seemed to sail in the wind, and his arm was around a pretty redhead with expressive brown eyes leaning against him. That, the card read, was Ginevra Molly Potter.

Dudley was openly happy for his cousin. He grinned and happily told Beryl about his cousin. However, she just rolled her eyes, taking no interest in freaks. Although Vernon and Petunia huffed indignantly at the card and turned away without a second glance, Dudley hadn't missed a sigh (of relief?) erupt from Petunia. Perchance his parents didn't want to be seen worrying about 'a freak'.

Apart from the exchange of cards in 2000 about their weddings, the cousins hadn't contacted each other for a long time. It wasn't that they didn't know how to contact each other, but life got in the way.

That afternoon, Dudley sat in the office patiently waiting for his turn.

"Mr. Dursley!" A voice called. Dudley stood just as the same voice continued, "Mr. Potter!"

Dudley's expression mirrored Harry's expression. They had met briefly in the aftermath of the war when a bloodied and bruised Harry had appeared out of thin air at their hiding spot on the second of May and told them that, basically the war was over and that they were safe. Then, Harry had nodded at the three Dursleys and disappeared into thin air.

Six years had definitely changed Dudders, Harry thought. Dudley looked a bit taller and had indeed lost some weight. Dudley no longer saw the scrawny little boy from seven years back (during the war) or the bloodied Harry with haunted dark green eyes who had told them the war was over. He looked tall, was no longer skinny, and had the look of a young man who had matured way faster than any other. Still staring at each other, the cousins entered Dr. P's office.

"Mr. Potter. I just needed to inform you that your report is good. It would help if you got close to people. Even the ones you don't regularly contact. That will keep the nightmares from occurring frequently. As for you, Mr. Dursley, I needed to remind you that close company is what you need. You have been surrounded by toxic people for most of your life. That's why you need therapy. Sorry I called you both in together. I am calling it a day early because I need to visit my ailing aunt. She has been in the right state since my uncle died in the war." Dr. P said quickly.

Harry and Dudley could just nod even as Dr. P apologetically left.

"See you later, Poseidon. Give your aunt my wishes for her recovery." Harry said, earning a grateful nod from Poseidon.

"Blimey! Big D! Long time no see! Six years, I believe?" Harry said.

"Yes, Harry. H-How are you? And Mrs. Potter?" Dudley asked.

"Ginny and I are coping, just like the rest of the wizarding world." Harry said darkly, "What about you? And Mrs. Dursley? Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon?"

"They're obviously fine! They haven't seen half of what the wizarding population has seen, much less go through!" Dudley said darkly.

Harry nodded thoughtfully. Then, his head shot up, "Why don't you come over to my house? It's in London."

Dudley, for sure, was in no mood to go home to his wife, who would never understand things slightly out of 'the normal'. Or his parents, for that matter. He figured going to Harry's house and spending an extended afternoon with his cousin would do him some good.

Dudley stared. There was a "Number Eleven" on one side and a "Number Thirteen" on the other. Then, Harry did something, and a "Number Twelve" appeared out of nowhere between Numbers Thirteen and Eleven.

"A newly renovated Grimmauld Place, which I inherited from my Godfather, Sirius Black. We now call it Potter Residence." Harry grinned. "Welcome to my house, Mister Dudley Dursley!"

"Newly renovated? What was it like before?" Dudley couldn't help but ask.

"Oh, after the war, Arthur, Bill, Percy, George, and Ron helped me renovate the house, Big D. We removed all the filth and made the house habitable. Even Fleur, Angelina, Hermione, and Ginny lent hands for this project, you know? For house decorations. Molly insisted she design the kitchen and the living room. When Charlie came briefly, he also helped with the renovations wherever he could. That's how Grimmauld Place no longer looks like Grimmauld Place now!"

Harry froze when the door opened. Ginny's eyes were red.

"Ginny? What happened?" Harry asked, panicking.

"Oh, nothing much, Harry. You know, hormones?"

"You had a nightmare? Oh, I should've been here!" Harry lamented.

"Don't be silly, Harry. Your therapy is important! Besides, I'm fine!" Ginny said. She looked at Dudley and said, "We have visitors, do we? Please come in and make yourself comfortable. You look familiar to me, Mister…?"

"Dursley. You can call me Dudley. Please, Mrs. Potter." Dudley said pleasantly.

"That means you call me 'Ginny'." came the reply.

Dudley sat on the couch even as the Potters took their seats. Harry kept glancing at Ginny with concern. He put his arm around her and pulled her closer.

"Really! I'm fine, Harry. " Ginny kept saying. "How was your therapy?"

Harry merely repeated everything that had happened till now and once again asked Ginny if she was okay. She nodded. Dudley sighed. He wasn't as lucky as Harry and Ginny. His own wife never understood him nor cared about his true identity. Beryl was always interested in the 'normal' she and Dudley were accustomed to.

Just like Harry had asked Ginny if she was alright, Dudley had once asked Beryl if she was alright. It had been one of those infrequent occasions where Beryl had been her own self. She had seen a painting and had cried. But, as though realizing something, she quickly hid her tears and put on her usual fake smirk. Dudley, however, hadn't missed this. He had kept asking her what was wrong, and she snapped back at him to shut up and that she wasn't a 'freak' that she would show "something as silly as crying" in her own words.

Dudley and Beryl lived behind masks. Rare were those occasions when their true interests, feelings, desires, emotions, likes, and dislikes were ever expressed, and even then, they were shut down. Beryl lived like a robot. Like his parents, Dudley often thought. Unfortunately, Vernon had created a fake image of Dudley that he was some sort of a robot with no feelings and emotions and was just like his parents and Beryl's family, that Dudley now had to live up to. He couldn't show his true self. He couldn't talk about things like depression, trauma, and therapy. His interest in anime would be laughed at if it ever came out. God forbid if he ever shed a tear, Beryl and the others would scorn him for "being a crybaby", again in their own words. This was why Dudley was attending therapy. It was his big secret from his parents, wife, and in-laws. He was depressed, ridden with guilt over the past, and suicidal.

Like his mother, his wife loved to gossip. Beryl was always more interested in the neighborhood scandal than her husband's mental health. Hell, she didn't even care that she had once found an empty bottle of sleeping pills beside Dudley's pillow and that Dudley had looked sick for days

"Dudley? DUDLEY?" Harry's voice shook him out of his reverie as he realized he was staring at a six-year-old boy with red hair, just like Ginny. He had moved from the entrance to the living room to sit on his mother's lap.

"Your son looks just like your wife. I didn't realize you were a father." Dudley smiled. "What's his name?"

Harry looked at the boy with such love and adoration that Dudley had only seen in his parents for him and Beryl's parents for her.

"He is most certainly our son!" Harry said. He took the child from Ginny's lap and held it in his arms. Ginny kissed the child and left the room, announcing tea. Harry continued, "He is my world!"

Dudley's eyes watered. Harry and Ginny doted on this boy so much. It was pure love, and Dudley could see it. He tried imagining him and Beryl holding a baby. The thought made him blush furiously.

"What's up, Big D?" Harry asked, not knowing Dudley's thoughts.

"Nothing. You didn't tell me your son's name." Dudley said.

"Teddy, meet Uncle Dudley. Big D. This is Teddy Remus Lupin. I am his Godfather. He is a Weasley — Potter in all but surname." At this, Teddy's hair turned from Ginny's vivid red hair to Harry's messy black hair. Dudley, however, merely saw it but didn't register anything. He had suddenly felt something inside of him. Uncle Dudley? UNCLE?

He was an uncle? Harry was Godfather? There was so much he had never known about his cousin!

"Uncle Lee." Teddy said.

"No, it's Dudley. Uncle Lee is not Dudley." Harry laughed. "Uncle Dudley."

At Dudley's questioned look, Harry explained, "Lee Jordan, a family friend."

"Can I hold little Ted?" Dudley asked.

Harry laughed, "Sure! Careful, though!"

When Dudley stood up and held the young boy in his arms, the boy changed his hair to Dudley's blond hair, and Dudley gasped. Harry was there and held the boy in case Dudley dropped him. Both cousins, however, were quick and Teddy happily giggled where he was.

"H-How did he do that?" Dudley asked.

Harry explained all about Metamorphmagi and some basic introduction of Remus and Tonks and what happened to them in the war. Even as he spoke, Harry had a distant look on his face, which comes when you reminisce something dear from the past.

Just then, they heard Ginny puking.

"Ginny?" Harry ran out of the room in a panic. Dudley, holding the boy, followed.

"It's the baby, Harry." Ginny said.

"Baby?" Dudley said.

"Yes, Big D. We only found out two weeks ago." Harry said.

Dudley stared. His cousin was already proving to be a really good father, first to Teddy, and Dudley was sure Harry would be a good father to his upcoming baby too.

"I…. Congratulations, Harry!" Dudley said.

"Thanks! I've always wanted my own family, and thanks to Ginny here, I have one!" Harry said, blushing.

An exhausted Ginny could only manage to shake her head before puking again, "No…Don't thank me alone for…"

Harry insisted that Ginny goes to bed for a while, so she took Teddy with her. Then, pouring himself and Dudley two glasses of Butterbeer, Harry sat down on the couch.

"So, Big D? How's your life going? I haven't met Mrs. Dursley at all."

Dudley shook one shoulder. "All you need to know about her is that she is more Dursley-ish than I would ever be, Harry. Honestly speaking, I wasn't keen on getting married, much less to her. It is obvious to me that she feels the same. She doesn't like anything out of the mundane routine. We always do the same routine. Waking up, tea, breakfast, work, lunch, work, tea, supper, T.V., and finally sleep." He said.

"What about you, Harry? And Mrs. Potter, Ginny, was it?" Dudley asked.

Harry nodded happily. "Yes. I'm an Auror, a Dark Wizard catcher. Ginny plays Professional Quidditch for the HolyHead Harpies. Our relationship had its ups and downs, but after the war, we made up. We've been together since then. We help poor Andromeda take care of Teddy since she has health issues and has faced trauma. She lives in her and Ted Tonks' old house. Teddy lives there too and visits us every day."

"That is nice!" Dudley said.

"So, Aunt Petunia? Uncle Vernon?" Harry asked.

"They live with Aunt Marge in a country house." Dudley said.

"What about Privet Drive?" Harry asked.

"We got the house fully demolished and sold the site because Death Eaters had anyway destructed the property." Dudley said to Harry's shock.

For a while, the two cousins drank some more Butterbeer and discussed how muggle technology was being introduced slowly to the wizarding world, starting with telephones. Then, there was silence.

Harry was evidently bursting to ask just then. "Why are you attending therapy? Is anything wrong? Is there anything I can do to help?"

Dudley sighed and put down his glass, "This thing is so good! What did you say it's called?"

"Butterbeer." said Harry.

Dudley stared at his empty glass of Butterbeer and felt Harry's eyes on him. Although Harry's voice sounded impatient, he was waiting patiently for Dudley to start.

"I feel ashamed and guilty over how we all treated you, Harry, for so many years. We didn't even thank you properly for keeping us safe during the war."

"That's in the past. Forget it." Harry said. "I don't think about that anymore."

"No, Harry. It still hurts." Dudley insisted.

Before he could speak, Ginny came in. "Dinner! Dudley, join us for dinner."

"I thought I told you to sleep." Harry frowned. "You have a tendency to neglect your health. You know that?"

"Right, because you don't, am I right? Come on, Harry! I'm fine." Ginny insisted.

"That's Ginny. Just like her mother, Molly." Harry told Dudley with a chuckle.

Dinner was a relatively quiet affair. After dinner, Harry Accio-ed some strong Firewhisky.

"Ginny, where are you going?" Harry asked. "Come, join us."

"I've to drop Teddy off at Andromeda's, and I'm feeling rather sleepy, Harry." Ginny shrugged.

"See! I told you! You need your rest, Gin. I'll go drop him."

"No, no! It's fine. I'm going to do it. It's no problem at all."

"But you need rest…."

"Okay, okay. Now don't pull a Hermione Weasley on me. I'll be okay." Ginny laughed and shut the door behind her. Truth be told, she wasn't feeling sleepy at all. She understood and appreciated the need for Harry to have a private talk with his cousin.

Ginny had had many heart-to-heart conversations with her father, with her mother, and everyone from Bill Weasley to Ron Weasley, her sisters-in-law included. She was the closest to Ron Weasley, and it was with him that she had had the most intense, tearful, and meaningful conversations. During all those times when she had a private talk, she would call Harry over. Harry would shrug and find an excuse so that Ginny could privately talk with whoever it was. Now, the tables were reversed. Harry, who never had much of a heart-to-heart talk with anyone except her, Ron, and Hermione, now had the chance to have one with his cousin. Ginny wasn't going to invade his space. He always respected her space, after all.

Dudley watched Harry pour two glasses.

"Whisky?" Dudley asked.

"Firewhisky," Harry said, as the brothers took their first sip. This conversation was getting more serious (no pun intended).

"You are a lucky man, Harry. You get to fall in love, marry the one you were meant to be together with, and have a beautiful family!" Dudley said. Harry raised an eyebrow. Harry didn't think he was the luckiest man, if anything Dudley was luckier simply because he had parents, and did not live amidst a war.

Over the next few minutes, Dudley explained everything from his guilt and shame to how robotic everyone in his life was and how they were turning him into some sort of robot as well. He lamented his loveless marriage and expressed his inner desire to leave his desk job at Grunnings and open a fast-food chain, something he was passionate about, getting drunk in the process.

"Enough about me!" He suddenly declared, making Harry jump. "Tell me about you, Harry. Why were you there?"

"The war made an entire generation face trauma such as never before, Big D. Many people from earlier generations too faced significant trauma in this war! The wizarding world has been affected badly due to the Voldemort wars. Whatever little had been improved since the defeat of the Dark Lord Grindelwald by Albus Dumbledore in 1945 had been sabotaged because of Voldemort's ascent to power in the 1970s onwards. It all ended only after the Battle of Hogwarts in 1998, but the after-effects are still there and won't go anytime soon."

"What trauma?" Dudley asked.

"I have met and fought Voldemort many times, Big D. Each more traumatic than the other! I'm diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and I've had PTSD since I was fourteen. Remember the summer when we got attacked by Dementors? I used to shout in my sleep about one Cedric Diggory." Harry said, and Dudley shivered at the memory. The Dementor attack had changed Dudley for life.

"You don't know what happened that night my parents were killed, do you?" Harry said. Dudley sat up straight.

Harry explained how there was a prophecy because of which the Potters had to go into hiding, how they were betrayed, how the truth came out, who the Marauders were, a brief account of Harry's third year at Hogwarts, and the different fates of each Marauder.

"Teddy is the son of a Marauder? Like you're the son of a Marauder!" Dudley was amazed. Harry nodded.

Harry explained who Voldemort was, his origins, Horcruxes, the four founders of Hogwarts, Salazar Slytherin's bigoted views, the Chamber of Secrets, and a brief account of Harry's second year at Hogwarts.

"I destroyed that diary and that diadem. Dumbledore destroyed the ring. Ron destroyed the Locket and let Hermione destroy the Cup. Neville Longbottom destroyed the snake, Nagini. I sacrificed my life and died and came back, thus letting the Horcrux in me die." Harry said.

"YOU DIED AND CAME BACK? But how?" Dudley asked.

"Magic. It's complicated." Harry said. "But know this much. Remember I told you my parents had to go into hiding because of a prophecy?"

Harry explained the prophecy and how Neville almost became the Chosen One.

Dudley swallowed the last remains of his Firewhisky and poured himself and Harry some more.

Harry gave a brief account of each year at Hogwarts, starting from the fourth to the seventh year, and explained all about Voldemort, his Death Eaters, the idea of pure blood supremacy (and the slur they used on muggleborns), the unforgivable curses, and the frequent deaths and disappearances. He explained how he had been Undesirable Number One (At this point, Dudley remembered a vague memory of having seen one such newspaper back in 1997).

"You guys have been through so much! Harry! You and Ginny, and the others." Dudley said. "Really puts things into perspective, doesn't it?"

"Everybody has seen horrors during the war, Dudley. This is why the majority of the wizarding world is undergoing therapy now."

"How did you meet the Weasleys and your friends?" Dudley asked, prompting Harry to give a small explanation of his first year at Hogwarts.

"B-Back of his head?" Dudley was horrified. "Dear Lord!"

"Yeah, and many witches and wizards have had encounters with Dementors, trolls, giants, werewolves, and the like." Harry explained.

"Wasn't little Teddy's father a werewolf too?" Dudley remembered from earlier that afternoon.

"You see, Dudley. some werewolves, such as Remus Lupin, are good werewolves. Some others are bad. Just like with people." Harry shrugged. "The war took its toll."

Dudley shivered. "No wonder I see loads of people in Dr. P's office looking young but like they've lived several decades of misery!"

"Dr. P and group provide therapy for all those affected by the war and are undergoing trauma. Dr. P is a muggle. He's done his Ph.D. in therapy and psychology. He knows the existence of the wizarding world because his cousins were witches and wizards and lived through the war. Dr. P isn't the only one though. His team consists of one Dr. B, one Dr. D, and one Dr. T, all of whom are therapists and are sworn not to reveal anything about the existence of the magical world."

"Okay." Dudley nodded.

Harry jumped. "Blimey, Big D! It's twenty minutes to one in the morning! Won't Mrs. Dursley be worried?" Dudley shrugged and said, "No problem. She won't worry…"

Just then, as though on cue, Dudley's phone rang. Harry was right. Dudley said, "There are loads of nights where I just stay at the office, Harry."

"Hello? Wait, what? You're worried about me?" Dudley drawled.

Harry stared. Whenever Harry would be late, he would always inform Ginny that he was at the office or at a friend's place and will be late. Ginny would be worried about Harry otherwise. What was going on between Beryl and Dudley?

Suddenly, Dudley's face lit. He grinned ear to ear and said, "Really? Oh, that's wonderful!"

Dudley kept the phone and jumped. "I can't believe this!"

"What's up, Big D?" Harry asked.

"I'm going to be a father!" Dudley said excitedly, even as Harry cheered for his cousin.


This fanfiction focuses on Dudley's progeny in the following chapters rather than Dudley. Have fun reading!