A/N: For those that have read this story before, most of what was previously the first chapter of this story is now here as chapter two. There have been some tweaks made to it, mostly regarding the relationship between Harry and Tonks as well as the occlumency lesson. If you're interested in rereading I then I'm thrilled, but if you'd rather not revisit it then you will miss some context for future chapters but I'm sure you'll be fine.
DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor will I ever, own the intellectual property of Harry Potter, or any related properties. This work is not intended to produce a profit of any sort.
Chapter Two: Growing Pains
August 21st, 1994
The deafening roar of battle reigned supreme across the grounds of Hogwarts and it was all that Harry could do not to lose himself to the chaotically shifting tide of the battle, made even worse by the insidious glow of the dark mark hanging overhead. Spells rocketed through the air around him as he raced across the battlefield, occasionally stopping only to fling a ribbon cutter at an enemy or transfigure the heaps of debris into hazards to tangle up and maul any death eaters that stood in his way. 'Bloody hell, this is a nightmare...' Finally he skid to a stop as he caught sight of his godfather locked in a vicious duel with a death eater who had apparently discarded her mask in the chaos. Before he could so much as raise his wand a twisting purple curse broke through the marauder's shield and struck his godfather. The moment the curse burned into his chest Sirius collapsed and began hemorrhaging a thick black sludge, violently convulsing all the while.
"Sirius!" A shout of unadulterated hate escaped Harry as he rushed towards the robed figure and slammed into her, sending both of them to the ground in a jumble. Immediately he scrambled to knock her wand away before straddling her, swinging his fists recklessly before delivering a final blow to her head, accompanied by a bone breaking curse. His chest heaved as he stared furiously as the woman's brain fluid leaked from her cracked skull before soaking into the dirt. Suddenly a loud explosion in the distance shook him to his senses and he pushed himself up to rush over to Sirius. He had only made it three steps before a stray banisher sent him flying across the battlefield, skipping along the rough ground like a stone before coming to an abrupt halt after slamming into a tree on the edge of the forbidden forest.
Harry let out a pained groan as he struggled to pick himself back up, only to find himself staring down the wand of another Death Eater. His gaze narrowed furiously as he recognized the grey eyes staring back at him from behind the bone white mask. Moving as quickly as he could the younger wizard tried to bring his wand to bear, the starting syllables needed to conjure a fire whip already on his lips, but even as flame sprouted from his wand he knew it was over, 'Well, this could have gone better...' He reflected bitterly mere seconds before his vision was filled with a blinding flash of pale green followed by an all consuming darkness.
Harry coughed violently as he regained consciousness while an amused auror doused his face with a spout of water from her wand, "Damn it, Tonks, do you have to do that every time?" He sputtered, frustration clear in his tone as he stumbled to his feet and tried to wipe his face off.
Tonks smirked as she watched him make his way to a small table on shaky legs before snatching a water bottle from it. "That would be a yes, Harry. I'll stop dumping water on you when you stop dying before the exercise is completed."
Harry snorted derisively and coughed again as water came out his nose, ignoring Tonks' laughter he finished the bottle off before turning back to her, "I doubt that's going to happen any time soon, Tonks. Term starts in just over a week and I'm still nowhere near where I need to be. I haven't managed to come anywhere near finishing that simulation all summer, not even once."
Tonks' eyes softened as she watched him down another bottle of water before limping over to the small shooting range that had materialized on the opposite end of the room. The sound of curses clanging off of targets filled the room as the wizard practiced a spell chain introduced to him the day before by Professor Flitwick. The auror let Harry work out his frustration for few more minutes before walking up and laying a hand on her friend's shoulder, "Harry, you need to rest, you've had plenty of training today. Hell, to be honest your training this summer has been worse than my entire first year at the academy. Don't forget, you still have to go to your occlumency lesson in an hour too. Please remember what we talked about stretching yourself too thin."
Harry let out a tired sigh, letting his shoulders sag for a moment before straightening back up with a wince as the near constant ache in his chest that had started off so mildly back in June pulsed stronger. Desperate to take his mind off the itching sensation he turned his back on the range, offering the metamorphmagus his full attention, "I appreciate your concern, Tonks, really, but I have to keep training. There's no way I'm going to be able to beat Voldemort if I can't even make it through a combat simulation. I'll admit that I've made good progress this summer, mostly thanks to you, but it isn't enough. For all we know Voldemort could be trying to get his body back right now, there's no time for me to sit around."
"Listen, you need to let up on the throttle a bit, seriously. There's a limit to how long you can push your magic before it burns out and, as your friend, I'm not going let you do that to yourself. You need to take a day off. Not an easy day of training, but an honest to Merlin day off. Hell, when was the last time you even did that?!"
"Well, you should know, after all you've been here the entire time. Or were you too distracted telling Kingsley about your date with this Weaver guy to remember?" Harry shot back, unable to resist a soft chuckle when she blushed. "What, you thought I didn't notice?"
"The question was rhetorical, Harry." The metamorphagus retorted, pointedly ignoring his jab, "The point is that you're pushing yourself too hard, it's not good for you. I mean all this training is great, and I appreciate why you're doing it, but you're only fourteen...don't lose the fact that you're a teenager to this."
Harry rolled his eyes, "I don't really even know how to be a teenager. Besides, even if I did I don't have time for that kind of thing."
"Nobody knows what they're doing when they're your age, but you should still find time to try."
"Gee, that's helpful. Alright fine, you want me to act like a teenager, what kind of things should I be doing, huh?"
"Well that's an easy one, Harry! You should be out having fun, getting yourself into trouble. Normal stuff, not the life threatening sort that you're always getting in. Hang out with your friends, snog your girlfriend, that kind of thing." This time it was Tonks' turn to smirk as Harry blushed and brushed a stray strand of hair behind his ear as he avoided her eyes.
A silence fell over the room that threatened to turn awkward until Harry managed to brush past his embarrassment, "Yeah, well I'll admit that training isn't really 'fun' but it fills my time well enough. As for the other stuff, I don't think I'm able to get into regular trouble, I'll be able to hang out with Ron and Hermione in a couple weeks, and the last one is just..." He shrugged, doing his best to avoid meeting her gaze as he seemed to retreat further into himself, "I don't know, it's complicated."
A nervous feeling washed over him at his own response as he realized the lack of subtlety in his evasion,'Yeah, sure, if complicated means that the that Blaise Zabini makes your stomach flip just as much as Cho Chang does, never mind whatever the hell's going on with my body. Merlin only knows what Ron would say if he knew about that...hell, who knows what Hermione would think?'
"Why do you say that?" Tonks asked, trying her best to sound nonchalant. Harry shrugged noncommittally, but didn't say anything, "Oh come on, Harry, you know you can talk to me. What's wrong, mate, trouble in paradise or something like that?"
Harry sighed and fixed her with a somewhat wounded stare, "I don't have a girlfriend, Tonks, is that what you wanted to hear? Between my wild shifts in popularity and I mean...look at me, who'd want to date this?" He asked ruefully, motioning towards himself critically, "The only people that have asked only want to date 'The boy who lived' and I don't want any part of that. I don't even really talk to any girls aside from Hermione or you anyways, and I'm not even sure where to start with...well, that's not important. Besides, if you think about the way things tend to blow up around me it's probably better that I'm not dating anyone." He explained, a dark crimson burning furiously across his face at airing his insecurities so openly.
A puzzled expression dominated Tonks' face at her friend's response, "What are you talking about? I mean yeah I'll give you that you could do with a better wardrobe than those rags you wear, but that's easy enough to fix. And have you even looked in the mirror lately? With all this training you've been doing you're in better shape than half the aurors that I went to the academy with. Besides, you were already pretty but since you let your hair grow out you're drop dead gorgeous! Who cares if you don't fit some masculine stereotype of handsomeness?" She reasoned, a grin tugging at her lips as she eyed watched her friend try to fight an embarrassed smile at her compliment, "Face it, Harry, you're a bombshell if I've ever seen one."
'I'm supposed to be handsome though, aren't I? But then why do I like it so much when she says things like that?' He shook his head, as if he could dispel the thoughts before letting out a soft sigh.
"I...I'm a boy, I'm not supposed to be 'pretty'. Besides, that doesn't change any of the other stuff I mentioned." He muttered noncommitally.
Tonks' confusion only grew at Harry's attempt to deny her compliment, "You know me, Harry, I say what I think. I'm being serious when I say that you look good. To be completely honest if I was younger I'd be doing my best to try and have a go at you myself…don't tell anybody I said that though." Harry couldn't help the small grin that tugged at his lips, even as he rolled his eyes at her antics, "So why don't you believe me? What's the problem here?"
Harry's grin faded at the question as he tried, but failed, to meet his friend's eyes, "It's not that I don't believe you, Tonks, it's just that...I don't know. Maybe things would be better if I hadn't spent those years with the Dursleys, but..." He shrugged, "It's not a big deal."
"What do you mean by that, Harry?" Tonks asked curiously, though an unmistakably hard edge tinged her voice.
"Which part? I mean I have to be handsome, right?"
"Well, no you don't. We'll come back to that, but it's not what I want to talk about right this second. I want to why you think you'd be better off if you hadn't lived with the Dursleys."
'Shit.'
"Oh…" Harry muttered, suddenly feeling extremely small, "I'm sorry, Tonks, but I really don't want to talk about it, there's not a lot of good memories to be had there." He replied tiredly, "Can we just please just drop it?"
Tonks shook her head slowly before sighing, "Fine, I'll let it go..."
"Thank you."
"For now. We're going to talk about this more later. But right now you need to go get a shower, because frankly you stink, and then you need to eat before dealing the greasy git that dwells in the dungeons." Tonks continued seriously, although she let a small smile creep across her face at her jab at Snape.
Harry fixed her with an annoyed look, though he also couldn't keep a straight face at her roundabout mention of the potions master. "Fine, I can take a hint. I'll go and get washed up before eating...all alone. Maybe I'll find one of the ghosts to keep me company instead, they're more fun anyway."
The blue haired witch rolled her eyes and snatched last bottle of water from the table to throw at his head, only for annoyance to wash over her as he caught it effortlessly, "Prat!" She called after him as he took off in a sprint out the door, unable to keep the laughter out of her voice. She spent a few more minutes in the room gathering her personal belongings before leaving for Dumbledore's office intent on speaking to him about her concerns for her friend.
An hour later found Harry reluctantly delving back down into the dungeons, trying his best to clear his mind and bury his conversation with Tonks. The last thing he needed right now was to give Snape any more material than he already had to mock him with, as if the perpetually furious man needed an excuse to degrade him. Truthfully Harry had made a lot of progress since his first lesson with the potions master. Even so it didn't matter how much improvement he made in shielding his mind or developing the ability to lock the professor in a memory until he was forced to give up and start again, it was never enough to avoid a snide comment.
"You're late, Potter."
It took everything the younger wizard had not to roll his eyes at the accusation, instead he simply sat down and fixed Snape with an unimpressed stare, "I headed straight here from dinner, Sir."
The greasy haired professor's eyes narrowed at the retort, "Don't bore me with your excuses, you're lucky that term hasn't started yet or I'd dock extra points for your lip. Now, are you ready?"
Harry took a deep breath and focused on the memory of his mother before nodding, "Ready as I'll ever be."
"Then prepare yourself, Potter, I won't be taking it easy on you tonight. Legimens!"
The now familiar suffocating presence of Snape trying to batter his way into his mind washed over the younger wizard. He grit his teeth and stared back at the man defiantly as he felt an unrelenting wave of magic crash into his defenses for several minutes before the first crack developed, but once it did he knew the barrier between their minds wouldn't last much longer. Moments after that realization the image of his parent's wedding crumbled away and Harry felt the potions master delving deep into his mind, almost as if he were searching for something specific.
Immediately he went to work throwing a medley of insignificant memories at the invading presence; his first Bertie Bott's Every Flavored Bean, Hermione and Ron arguing over a transfiguration essay, having tea with Hagrid. Despite his best attempts Harry found that containing Snape within any given memory was proving next to impossible tonight, the man was relentless, almost as if he were looking for something in particular. Unfortunately it didn't take him much longer to find what he was after and Harry felt a knot develop in his stomach as a memory he had no recollection of came into focus.
' The dark haired girl he had seen once before wriggled desperately in his uncle's pudgy grasp, "No! No, please don't cut it! I'll be good, I promise!"
"Stop struggling, boy! I warned you that if you didn't cut that damned hair then your aunt would do it for you!" Vernon roared back furiously, squeezing her tighter while Dudley blinked in confusion from across the room.
"I'm not a boy, I wanna be a girl like my mummy!" She screamed back, kicking desperately against her captor's legs.
Wait...
The fat man reeled back in anger as a little foot caught his gut, momentarily dropping the girl only to snatch her back up by the shoulders and slam her into a wall, "Like fucking hell you aren't! Petunia, have you found those bloody scissors yet?!"
Petunia hurried into the room from the kitchen, looking somewhat shaken at the sight of her husband pinning a bawling child no older than four to their living room wall, "Darling, are you sure this is-"
"DO IT, PETUNIA!" Vernon demanded before slamming the girl against the wall again to quell her kicking, "I'll not have a fucking poof in my bloody home! I won't! I draw the line at allowing your freakish sister's spawn to live here, I'll not have him embarrassing me in front of the whole bloody neighborhood!"
"It hurts! Stop! Mummy, mummy please hel-"
A pudgy first reeled back before slamming into the girl's face, bloodying her nose and breaking her glasses in half, "Shut up! Your stupid whore of a mum is dead, she died in a car accident caused by your drunk of a father and if there were any justice in the world you'd be with them!"
No...let me out now...stop the spell!
"Darling that's enough!" Petunia cried out over the sound of the girl's tears, looking almost as if she'd seen a ghost, "I can't cut his hair if you send him to the hospital!"
"Then do it, by god! What are you waiting for?!"
The thin woman looked like she was going to be sick as she closed in on her husband and the child he was holding hostage. For a moment she almost looked as if she might turn against Vernon until, with one last look at the girl, she brought the scissors up to her hair and started snipping.
"NO PLEASE! PLEASE STOP IT, I PROMISE I'LL-"
"I TOLD YOU TO SHUT UP, BOY!" Vernon raged back before shoving a meaty hand over her lips, muffling her cries. "Hurry up and finish so we can throw him back into the cupboard, Petunia!"
Petunia went back to snipping with a shaky hand, shearing away the girlish cut and exposing the lightning bolt scar etched into her nephew's forehead. While the girl's cries may have been muted there was absolutely no hiding the betrayal that shone behind the tears that streamed down her face as she sobbed at the sight of her wavy locks discarded on the carpet. "Vernon, dear, don't you think we shou-"
GET OUT OF MY HEAD! '
The stifling atmosphere of Snape's classroom swam back into focus as Harry ejected the greasy man from his memories and sent him stumbling backwards into a line of potion supplies. In any other circumstance the sight of the potions professor staring at him wide eyed as he struggled to escape from a cauldron would have been hilarious. Unfortunately Harry wasn't in much of a laughing mood, "What the hell was that?!"
"Are you truly that thick, Potter? We've been doing this for mo-"
"No! I'm not doing this anymore, you've been torturing me with my own memories for months, and now...why didn't you listen to me when I told you to get out?!"
"The Dark Lord wouldn't hav-"
The younger wizard leveled an acid glare at his tutor, "You know what, I don't care! I'm sure you're right that your precious Dark Lord wouldn't have stopped, but you're supposed to be better than him!" He shouted before turning on his heel and storming towards the door.
"Potter, you can't go yet, I'm not finished with you!"
"Well I'm finished with you! I don't care what Dumbledore says, I'm not going to let you in my head ever again!" Harry retorted venomously as he slammed the classroom door behind him.
Harry took a deep breath as he stormed up the stairs to the Headmaster's office, not even trying to calm down before spitting the password at the gargoyle that barred the door, "Toffypops!" As soon as the statue slid to the side he started stomping up the revolving staircase and within seconds he found himself pounding on the wooden door, still having the presence of mind to at least avoid storming into his mentor's office.
"...You may enter."
The second the confirmation came Harry flung open the door, giving his face one last swipe in a vain effort to make it appear as if he hadn't been crying. "Sir, I'm done with having Snape digging around in my thoughts, I'm not going to let him do it anymore and you can't make me!" He announced stubbornly, only to stumble over himself somewhat as he caught sight of Tonks on the other side of Dumbledore's desk.
"Harry? Is everything alright, mate? It looks like you've been crying." His friend asked with concern as she stood from her seat.
The boy who lived hesitated for a moment before shaking his head vehemently, "I...you know what, no I'm not okay. I've had it with Snape torturing me with my own memories!"
Dumbledore's eyes hardened somewhat at his pupil's accusation, "I realize that there is no love lost between you and Severus, Harry, but are you certain that he meant to-"
A wounded expression crossed Harry's face at the question while Tonks rounded on the Headmaster, "Professor, you know as well as I do that Snape delights in torturing anybody that isn't a Slytherin! And I've been watching Harry all summer, he's tough as nails! If he says he can't handle it anymore then it's bad enough."
A heavy silence blanketed the office as Dumbledore stared back at the auror, seemingly weighing her concern against the value of Harry's continued occlumency tutoring, before sighing heavily, "Very well, Nymphadora, I do concur. Harry please take a seat and we will discuss this further...in private."
"Professor, I feel like maybe I should sta-"
"I appreciate your concern, however if Severus has prompted an incident severe enough to move Harry to tears then I believe it would be best that he and I discuss it on our own. I assure you, the plans that you've made for tomorrow will still come to pass, regardless of what may have transpired in the dungeons."
Tonks stared back at the headmaster for several seconds before sighing and heading for the door, pausing just long enough to squeeze Harry's shoulder before stepping out of the office. As soon as the door shut Harry sat down in the chair she had been occupying previously, "So...Harry, please explain to me what has been happening in your occlumency lessons. Severus reports that you are making little progress, though I suspect that his assessment does not perfectly line up with reality."
Harry frowned tiredly at the question, "All he ever told me to do was clear my mind and try to resist him. I've managed to get to the point where I can hold him off completely for a few minutes before having to tie him up in a memory. But he always goes for the worst ones, either with the Dursleys or where I almost die, and this time he...I don't know what he did. I don't remember this ever happening to me, but the very first time he went into my mind I saw something similar."
Dumbledore nodded slowly, seemingly calm but lacking the characteristic twinkle in his eyes, "And could you describe these memories for me?"
"I..." He hesitated, unsure if he wanted anybody else to hear what he'd discovered about his memories, "They're kind of personal, sir...but they involve the Dursleys and how they treated me before my Hogwarts letter came."
"I'm afraid, Harry, that unless you tell me-"
A sinking feeling spread through Harry as his mentor dismissed his concerns, "Fine! I just...I can't tell you, professor, but I'll put them in your pensive if it'll get you to listen to me!" He interrupted, drawing a surprised look from the headmaster.
"Very well then, let me pull it out. I'll be just a moment." The older wizard stood from his desk and made his way to pull the stone basin from one of the many cabinets. Fawkes trilled from his perch as Dumbledore shuffled through the shelves before returning and gently setting the pensive down. "Here we are, my boy, now if you will draw out the memories that you'd like to show me..."
Despite volunteering to do it, Harry still felt sick to his stomach as he concentrated on every memory he had of his abuse at the potion master's hands throughout the course of the summer and pulled them from his temple in one long strand. He focused particularly on the number of times he had been forced to listen to his mother die and, while he was loath to include the memories of the little girl he now knew to be himself, he ensured that they went in at the very end in vivid detail, especially his pleas for Snape to leave the memories be. "That's it, Sir..."
"Very well, please be patient Harry, I will rejoin you in a few minutes." His mentor assured him before leaning forward and submerging his face in the silver liquid. As soon as Dumbledore had delved into his memories Fawkes lept from her perch and glided across the office to land on Harry's shoulder, offering him a soft coo in greeting.
Almost on instinct Harry's hand reached up to pet her head, "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Fawkes, I really appreciate it."
The phoenix trilled softly, lifting his spirit just a little, right up until the headmaster's face reemerged from the pensive wearing a furious expression that had no business on the old wizard's face. "My bo-" For the first time in Harry's experience Dumbledore hesitated, "Harry, I am deeply sorry to have given others the opportunities to mistreat you in the ways that your relatives, and indeed Severus, have. It was my genuine hope that Professor Snape could look past his hatred of your father in order to teach you how to defend yourself, but clearly he is incapable doing so. Thankfully it would seem that his negligence has not negatively impacted your ability to defend yourself, as your last memory proved quite sufficiently. If you are capable of ejecting Severus from your mind then I am more than satisfied with your grasp of occlumency. There will be absolutely no need for you to continue your occlumency lessons so long as you continue practicing on your own, and I will be having a very long conversation with Severus later this evening."
A sigh of relief escaped Harry's lips at his mentor's decision, "Thank you, Sir, I'm sorry that I couldn't make it work but...it just got to be too much."
"You have nothing to apologize for in this case, Harry. I assure you that I will not make the same mistake twice in regard to isolating you with Professor Snape. Now, you've had a long day and I would recommend that you head to bed soon..." He replied before reaching out a staying hand as Harry began to stand up, "However I would appreciate it if you stay for a few minutes longer."
The younger wizard returned to his seat with some confusion, "Alright?"
"I had hoped to discuss this in a somewhat less emotional setting, however given the circumstances I'm afraid that won't be possible. Nymphadora has informed me that she has acquired top box seats at the World Cup tomorrow. She told me that she had intended to take a friend with her, but given that the full moon is tomorrow he has been reassigned to a patrol."
Harry quirked an exhausted eyebrow at the news, "Really? She didn't mention anything about it to me, but I guess maybe she was planning to let Kingsley be in charge of training tomorrow. Did she mention who she was going with instead?"
Dumbledore offered his apprentice an amused smile, his previous anger seemingly discarded, "She asked me if I would let you have the day off to go with her to the cup tomorrow. While I'll admit I was initially hesitant to allow it, your friend made quite the argument concerning your improvement. She also was rather insistent that you needed a day off and now, more than before even, I see the wisdom in that. So, if you would like, you may accompany her tomorrow. Additionally I feel that you should take Monday off as well."
Despite his exhaustion a beaming smile lit up Harry's face, though it quickly faltered as he thought about his earlier conversation with Tonks, "Thank you, sir. I really appreciate it, but are you sure I shouldn't be training tomorrow? We only have one week left before term starts, and I still have to go to Diagon Alley too."
Dumbledore nodded confidently, "After considering Nymphadora's proposal I have to agree with her. You'll be taking the entirety of this next week off of magical training, and I would like to discuss both that and your trip to Diagon Alley." Harry's eyes narrowed suspiciously as he nodded for the headmaster to continue, "We have discussed in the past the blood wards on your...relatives' home, if you recall."
The younger wizard let out a long sigh, his earlier excitement sinking a little as he realized where this was going, "Sir, please don't tell me you're sending me back to the Dursley's..."
"I'm not overly excited about the prospect myself, particularly with this new evidence that you have brought to my attention. However it only takes a week to charge the wards for another year and if we do not then the Dursleys may well be vulnerable to an attack by Tom's forces. We may not have seen any activity from Tom's followers as of yet, but there are stirrings beneath the surface, Harry."
A conflicted expression found itself onto Harry's face at his mentor's explanation, "But...they're the worst, Professor! They probably won't even want to take me back now, anyways!"
"My b- Harry...I know that your relatives have given you little reason to care for them, and while I wish that I could alter that fact, the truth is simply that I cannot. However, not only would allowing them to be vulnerable to attack be immoral, it would also be unwise on our part. The death eaters may not realize hurting them to provoke you would be met with little success, but they would be able to gather information on you that they could use against us. As regretful as it is, it's important that you help keep them safe until we can come up with a better solution. By next summer, I expect that will no longer be an issue."
Harry struggled against Dumbledore's logic for a few moments before collapsing back into his chair with a low groan, "Fine...I'll do it, but this is the last time, Professor. I don't want to ever go back to Privet Drive again after this, deal?"
A heavy silence hung over the headmaster's office for a few moments as Dumbledore eyed Harry thoughtfully while the younger wizard stared back obstinately until finally the giving in with a sigh, "Very well, I promise that you will never have to stay with the Dursleys again after next week." He agreed, before continuing as the twinkle in his eyes returned, "Now that we have that settled, let us move on to the discussion on Diagon Alley. I would like to accompany you to pick up your school supplies."
"Well...alright, but why?" Harry asked, bewilderment clear on his face.
"It never hurts for one to get out and experience the world, Harry. I have not often had the chance to simply explore the alley for several years, and I have found that the most wonderous kinds of magic are abundant during the week after Hogwarts letters go out." The old man beamed brightly at his reasoning, "Though, there are other reasons as well. For one, I would like to speak to your relatives in person, but I also believe that you may have outgrown your wand and if that is the case then it would be prudent to replace it now rather than later."
Harry's blinked in a mixture of confusion and disbelief at the suggestion, "Are you sure about that, Sir?" He asked, a note of skepticism tinging his voice.
"I'm not entirely sure, but Ollivander will be able to tell us for sure. If it turns out that you have not then I would still recommend acquiring a backup wand, as it could prove quite useful down the road. Aside from that I suppose that I should give you your letter, so as to save one of Hogwart's owls an unnecessary trip to the great hall." He explained while opening a drawer in his desk to pull Harry's letter out and hand it to him. "I do believe that congratulations are in order, by the way."
Harry quirked a questioning eyebrow at the Headmaster as he opened the envelope and pulled his letter out,understanding, quickly followed by a small amount of surprise, dawned on his face as he looked over his schedule "I…is this right, sir? All of these classes are on the advanced track!"
Dumbledore smiled and nodded patiently, "I only approved the classes, Harry, it was Minerva that insisted you be enrolled in them. She believes, despite your performance during previous years, that you've shown an unprecedented amount of growth this summer, and I'm inclined to agree with her. I'm afraid that this year will be quite a busy one though, you won't take the O.W.L.s yet but you'll still be expected to keep up with the fifth year students. I would also encourage trying to make bonds with the students that will be visiting come October, it's never too early to start building strong ties on the continent."
Harry nodded in understanding, having been let in on increasingly open secret of the Tri-Wizard tournament, given the necessary preparations that the staff were making to the castle over the summer. "I'll make sure to thank her next time I see her, sir."
"Very well. Now run along, Harry. I believe Nymphadora will be here fairly early tomorrow morning to pick you up, so I suggest you get a good night's sleep."
Harry smiled brightly and wished Dumbledore a good night as he stepped out of his office and made his way, however slowly, back to Gryffindor tower. 'I guess Tonks got me that day off whether I wanted it or not.' He mused as he climbed the stairs leading to his bed, 'Honestly though, I'm glad she did...maybe she was right about me actually needing a break.'
August 22nd, 1994
Harry smirked at Tonks as they trudged towards the portkey departure zone in Hogsmeade, "You know, Tonks," He started, his amusement growing by the second as the witch shot him a groggy glare.
"Don't even start, Harry." She grumbled tiredly.
Ignoring her warning he continued, "I was just thinking, weren't you telling me about how I was a wimp for complaining about getting up at five the other day? How's it feel now, old lady?"
Tonks shook her head in annoyance, "Shut it, Harry. I stayed up a little later than I meant to last night, and for the record I'm only six years older than you, so watch it."
"Alright, fine. I'll stop teasing you, Tonks. I understand that you, as my elder, need to get plenty of sleep." He continued prodding, laughing as her hair briefly flashed crimson before settling back into shamrock green while she fixed him with a glare.
"Just wait, Harry. You're laughing now but you'll get what's coming to you later." She responded in a somewhat menacing tone, although it was immediately undermined by the yawn that followed.
"If you say so, Tonks."
"I do. Anyways, it looks like we're about there. Our portkey is going to be a skillet, you know how to use one right?"
'Better than you might expect. Except for the portkey part.' The younger wizard thought cheekily, before nodding at her question.
"Yeah, haven't actually used one yet…hopefully it works out better than floo travel for me." At Tonks' inquiring look he shrugged, "See every time I go through the floo I come out and immediately fall on my arse."
Tonks broke out in hysterical laughter, "That's great! The illustrious Harry Potter is completely incapable of landing on his feet."
"Whatever…I thought you were tired, Tonks." He muttered as he found the skillet she mentioned surrounded by a small group of people.
"I was, Harry, but then you told me a great joke to wake me up. You're such a wonderful friend."
Harry considered making another smartass comment but decided against it, "So when are we supposed to leave?" He asked, doing his best to ignore the stares that were being directed at him by the surrounding people as he subtly brushed a few strands of hair that had fallen loose from his bun to hide his scar.
"Here in about three minutes." Tonks answered after glancing at her watch.
Harry nodded and the two began casually talking about how they thought the game was going to go for another two minutes before turning their attention back to the skillet and grabbing it along with the other passengers. As the seconds to departure ticked by Harry took a deep breath and tried to brace himself for the trip, despite not quite knowing what he was in for. When the last second ticked away and he felt the tug on his navel he immediately knew he wasn't the least bit prepared. 'Merlin this is terrible, why does every form of wizarding travel except broomsticks have to try to kill me? Scratch that, brooms are death traps too.'
They were being whipped around as they rocketed towards their destination at a ridiculous rate, 'If this keeps up much longer, I'm going to be sick...' He reflected, holding back a groan. The second they landed Harry let go of the pan and stumbled backwards until he tripped and fell roughly on his rear, making Tonks break out in laughter again.
Harry glared at her as he stumbled to his feet, rubbing his butt, "Shut it, Tonks. I'm surprised you've managed to stay standing as long as you have."
Tonks just grinned at him, still laughing lightly, "Oh come on, Harry, it's funny! It's not every day that I get to watch somebody else fall down."
Harry sighed and let a small smile cross his face, "I guess, anyways let's get going. You said earlier that we have to get the tent set up and I'd like to check out the vendors before the match starts." He said, doing his best to act like he hadn't just fallen down.
"Alright, let's go. Watch your step, we wouldn't want you to trip again." Tonks said, leading the way to the camp ground after paying the old muggle man at the gate.
The grin on Tonks' face as she glanced back at him was infectious and soon the two were laughing and making jokes again as they made their way through the grounds. Harry marveled at their surroundings and, more than once, found himself blushing whenever Tonks caught him staring at a witch. "Harry, I'm a little jealous, you're staring at all these witches you've never even seen before but you don't even give me a second glance!" She teased after catching him for the third time, this time it happened to be a particularly beautiful witch with silver-blonde hair.
"How can you be so sure that I don't look at you, Dora?" He shot back, grinning cheekily at her through the blush that had appeared on his face, his amusement only grew when her eyes widened and a blush momentarily graced her own cheeks. He laughed at her reaction, "To be honest, Tonks, you're beautiful but you're kind of like a big sister to me, that'd be weird." He replied honestly before pausing with a shrug, "Besides, I'm still in school and you're an auror...I doubt that'd work out well for either of us, you know?"
"Oh, Harry, you're going to break some poor girl's heart one of these days if you go around saying things like that."
Harry rolled his eyes, "I told you already, Tonks, I really don't think dating's in the cards for me any time soon."
"You say that now, Harry, but just you wait. I bet that this year there's going to be girls begging to go out with you…and not just because you've got a scar."
"If you say so, Tonks. Tell you what, if I end up going out with somebody any time soon you'll be the first to know about it." He replied, somewhat skeptically.
"I'll hold you to that, Harry." Tonks responded before glancing around and grinning, "Aha! It looks like we're here, Harry. Drop the tent over there and I'll put it up, once we're done you can put the bag inside and we'll figure out the plan." She directed, pointing towards a somewhat small open space between two large tents.
Harry nodded his understanding and pulled the tent out of its bag, tossing it to the stretch of ground she'd pointed at when he was done. Almost as soon as the tent had landed Tonks waved her wand at it and it immediately put itself up, even going so far as to hammer its own stakes into the ground. Once it was finished he followed Tonks through the flap and grinned as he entered what resembled a two bedroom apartment complete with a kitchen and bathroom.
"I really do love magic."
"I know, it's brilliant isn't it?" Tonks grinned, "Alright, I've got the room on the right you get the left. Go ahead and toss your bag in there and we'll talk a bit, then you can go roam about the grounds buying souvenirs that you'll regret getting in a week and talking to pretty girls you probably won't see again."
He couldn't help but roll his eyes at the continued prodding but did as she said and after taking a minute to look around the room after dropping his bag he walked back into the kitchen, "Alright, miss bossy pants, what rules are you wanting to put down?"
Tonks tried to look angry but failed miserably, succeeding in making Harry laugh before bursting into laughter herself. Once she'd managed to calm down again she started, "Alright well you're right, unfortunately. This is the part where Molly would normally warn you against wandering off on your own and such, but we both know that I'm not her and that you are far from incapable of defending yourself." She said, gaining a thankful smile from Harry, "That said basically the only thing I'm going to tell you is that you need to be back here in about two hours so we can get to our seats before the match starts. Also, no drinking until after the game, we're going to be in the same box with Fudge and a bunch of other stuck-up prudes and I'd prefer to keep my job thanks very much. Price of the good seats, I suppose, but on the bright side Arthur's got tickets as well so your friends should be there too."
Harry perked up significantly at the mention of the Weasley patriarch, and he smiled widely at the thought of seeing Ron and Hermione again, "Alright, Tonks, seems like a fair enough deal. For the record I really do appreciate you bringing me along and not treating me like a kid."
Tonks shrugged, "Well you deserved a break, and as far as not treating you like a kid goes you've more than proven to me that you're more mature than most of the aurors in the academy were. I meant it when I said I knew you could take care of yourself, just don't prove me wrong on that or I'll never hear the end of it from Molly, assuming I ever see her again."
Harry nodded, "Alright. Before I go is there anything you want from the vendors? I know I saw a guy selling omnioculars somewhere around here and I'm definitely going to get a pair, if you want I can grab another pair."
"No thanks, Harry. I appreciate it but I've got plenty of money to get a pair if I see him. That said, if you happen to see an Irish jersey I'd pay you back if you could snag one for me."
"Okay, I'll make sure to look for one then." He said, before heading out into the grounds to wander a bit.
Nearly an hour and a half passed and he hadn't seen anything worth buying, but just as he was about to turn around and head in the opposite direction he saw a vendor selling the jerseys that Tonks had asked for. Harry quickly made his way over to the man, not paying much attention to where he was going and was surprised when he suddenly ran into somebody who seemed to be paying just as little attention as he was, sending him crashing to his rear with a soft "Oof!"
The dark-haired wizard started pushing himself up from the ground, rubbing his behind sorely as an irritated look flashed across his face. He opened his mouth to apologize when a familiar voice rang out in his ears, "Hey, watch where you're going, or you'll get yourself hurt!"
Harry's eyes widened in shock and his gaze whipped upwards to see the scraggly ginger hair of his best friend, shortly joined by an out of breath Hermione as she caught up to the taller boy, "Ronald, I told you not to-" Her sentence trailed off as she finally noticed the dark haired wizard staring up at them, a simultaneously incredulous and excited look spreading across her face, "H-Harry?!"
"Wait, Harry? Where's-" Ron practically shouted, looking around excitedly before catching on and following Hermione's gaze, "Wait...Harry?!"
A beaming grin found its way to Harry's face as he finished pushing himself up from the ground and stepped forward to pull both of his best friends into a hug, "Hey guys...err, sorry for running into you, Ron." He laughed, nervously glancing around at the crowd before letting out a breath of relief to see most everybody paying no attention to them. "I didn't expect to see any of you until the game started."
Curiosity and excitement warred on both Ron and Hermione's faces, though as the two of them finally broke out of their own shock they returned his hug forcefully as they laughed, "Why didn't you tell us that you were coming? Dad got tickets, and was planning on taking you with us but he said that Dumbledore changed his mind at the last minute!"
"Oh, well Tonks got an extra ticket and offered to bring me along." He explained simply, before realizing how little he was actually tell them, "Ah...I mean, one of my tutors brought me."
Both Gryffindors nodded, Hermione still clearly curious while Ron simply pushed forward with a beaming smile, "Well, it doesn't really matter, what's important is that we're all here now!" He exclaimed before letting go of Harry and taking a step back to look at him. "Woah...mate, what happened to you?"
Harry glanced down at himself self consciously, before looking back up to his friends with a nervous smile, "I...well, I guess I've been working out, if that's what you mean...but I couldn't have changed that much right?"
Ron simply blinked, seemingly unable to form words until his mouth started to open, only for Hermione to cut him off before he could start the sentence, "What Ronald is trying to say is that you're, ah...developing differently than he expected." She offered delicately, a light blush of her own powdering her cheeks as the two of them examined him.
'Differently? What's that supposed to mean? Unless...oh, Merlin, if Tonks noticed that I look different then of course they would too.' The blush dominating Harry's own cheeks grew brighter as he struggled to find a response, before finally settling on an unintelligent, "Oh..."
Panic flashed across both friends' faces at his response and they quickly shook their heads, "Oh, Harry! It's not a bad thing, I just thought...well, never mind. Pretty is a good look for you!"
A soft sigh escaped Harry's lips and he shrugged, but before he could brush it off Ron's hand settled onto his shoulder, "Cheer up, mate, you might not look like a normal bloke, but it suits you."
Hermione's face twisted into a horrified expression as she stared at the redhead, only to blink in surprise as Harry let out a soft laugh, shaking his head, "Thanks guys, I appreciate it." He muttered, drawing a bright grin from Ron as he let his hand drop to his side.
"Don't mention it, besides I always wanted to be the tall one anyways." The youngest Weasley quipped back, drawing a more sincere laugh from all three of them.
"Well, I think you'll win that one, Ron." Harry replied before straightening up completely and glancing around curiously, "So you said that your dad's here? Where is he?"
"I dunno, the blokes next to us had a ray-doe or something and he wanted to talk to them about it, Hermione and I just got tired of listening to Percy ramble on about his cauldron bottoms, so we decided to explore a bit."
"It's a radio, Ron. It picks up frequencies from a...oh never mind." The witch shook her head as she thought better of trying to explain it to him, "But yes, that's basically what happened."
Harry had to fight back a smirk at the idea of the two of them trapped with the immortally strict Weasley sibling lecturing them on cauldrons before shrugging, "Well, okay then...what do the two of you want to do? I'm not sure how long we've got until-" Suddenly his eyes widened as he remembered what he was supposed to be doing, his gaze quickly passed over the crowd again looking for the jersey vendor, only for his heart to sink as he realized he was already gone. "Ah, great...well so much for that idea."
"What idea?" Hermione probed, clearly confused as he frowned.
"Oh, well I promised Tonks that I would help her find a jersey, but it looks like the guy's already gone." He explained, drawing an embarrassed look from the taller of his friends as he seemed to realize that he had stopped Harry from getting there. "It's not a huge deal...I should probably get back to her soon, though. Do you want to come along? She said that we're in the same box."
"Do you even have to ask, Harry? Of course we want to come!"
Hermione shook her head, "I think that Mr. Weasley is waiting on us to go to the box, though. He'd be worried if we didn't come back..."
"Bollocks, she's right...if we don't get back there soon then Dad might send Percy after us to torture us with his 'ministry work'." Ron groaned with a grimace mirrored by the bushy haired girl. "Well...if we're in the same box then we'll meet back up there."
"Alright, deal. I'll see you two in a little bit then." Harry grinned, waving at both of them as they turned and disappeared back into the crowd, leaving him alone as he made his own way back towards Tonks' tent. 'Well, that was...unexpected. If Ron and Hermione of all people thought I looked different, then...well, at least they said it wasn't a bad change, right?' He took a deep breath and did his best to push the thoughts of their surprise away, at least for a moment, instead focusing on the excitement of the coming game and being able to spend more time with his friends.
By the time that he'd managed to make his way back to the tent he was wearing a wide smile, one that spread to Tonks' own face as she saw him, "Wotcher, Harry! You didn't happen to find the jerseys, did you?" She asked hopefully.
"Shit...yeah, I did but before I could get to them the guy apparated away." He explained, his smile faltering slightly.
"Aww, well that sucks, but I guess I can try to find them again later. Out of curiosity, what stopped you from getting them?"
"I uh...I ran into Ron and Hermione." He stammered, not meeting her eye as he tried to breeze past the actual impact.
"Oh, that makes sense." Tonks replied, before a smirk creeped across her face, "I was half expecting you to say you ran into that silver haired girl you were staring at earlier."
"I-I wasn't staring at her, Tonks!" Harry stammered out, drawing an incredulous look from the auror before rolling his eyes as color returned to his cheeks, "Anyways, shouldn't we get going? You said we needed to leave early to get to our seats on time."
Tonks nodded and began walking, "You're right...but that doesn't change the fact that you were staring, Harry."
"Don't you have anything better to do than torment me?"
"Nope! But I'll drop it for now, why don't you tell me about your friends instead?" She asked expectantly as they began walking up the stairs to the stands.
Relief passed over Harry's face as she changed the subject to a safer one, though as he thought back to the brief meeting with his friends his mouth quirked downwards, trying to figure out how much he really wanted to tell her about it, "Well...it was only for a few minutes, but it was pretty much like it always is with them." Tonks smiled at that before motioning for him to continue. Harry sighed, "They were happy to see me, but...I guess they were surprised to see how much I'd changed."
The auror raised a curious eyebrow, "Changed how?"
"Err, well...they said that I looked different." He sighed, drawing a confused stare from the metamorph before shaking his head, "You know...pretty not handsome."
Tonks' smile faltered somewhat as she realized what he was saying, "That's not a bad thing, though! Different people grow up in different ways, and besides it really does work for you."
Embarrassment washed back over him, even as he couldn't help but smile at her compliment, "That's what they said, too."
Relief seemed to flow over Tonks, allowing her smile to settle back into place, "Good, then there's no reason to worry about it. All that's important is that you're happy with the way you are."
"Well...maybe I'm starting to get there." He murmured, 'I just wish I understood what's happening to me. The Dursleys didn't exactly tell me anything about any of this stuff, but that pamphlet McGonagall handed out doesn't really explain any of this either...' Harry's mind turned these thoughts over in his head as they left the stairs and came into the top box, they had barely even stepped through the door before the Minister of Magic had spotted them and directed a bright smile at Harry, causing him to groan quietly beneath his breath.
"Harry! It's good to see you, my boy! How has your summer been so far?" Fudge asked excitedly, shaking his hand vigorously.
"It's been good, Sir." Harry responded, forcing a smile on his face.
"Good, good, I'm glad to hear it, Harry. There's somebody I'd like to introduce you to, once he gets here. He's the Head Auror in the French ministry and since I heard you wanted to become an auror I figured you might want to talk to him."
Harry's smile turned slightly more genuine at that, though not by much…this was still Fudge he was dealing with after all. Still hopefully between this French guy and the other politicians in the box he wouldn't have to deal with the minister too much. After a few more minutes of excited conversation from Fudge and polite nods and answers from Harry the minister finally turned to the others in the booth allowing him to make his way towards his seat next to Tonks. Harry had managed to get half way to his seat when another voice, one he was much more interested in hearing, called out to him. "Harry!"
Harry turned on the spot, beaming with a genuine smile as the Weasleys and Hermione descended upon him, "Hey, everyone, sorry I couldn't come to the Burrow this summer."
Arthur waved off his apology, smiling gently as he directed his children into their seats before patting the younger wizard's shoulder in a fatherly way, "Don't worry about it, Harry, we know you've been busy. I'm just glad that you got the chance to come to the world cup after all, seats like this can be a once in a lifetime chance."
"Definitely, I wouldn't miss this for the world. It's a shame that Mrs. Weasley couldn't come though."
Mr. Weasley laughed, shaking his head as he led Tonks and Harry over towards their seats, "Oh, I wouldn't worry about her, Harry. She doesn't care too much for quidditch." He reassured him, before briefly stopping to introduce the two oldest Weasley sons, Charlie and Bill, and then letting him continue on to sit between Ron and Ginny.
"Hey, Ginny, how are you doing?" He asked, causing the younger girl to flush furiously, though given her lack of escape routes she managed to swallow her anxiety long enough to offer him a shy smile.
"I-I'm alright, Harry. How was your summer?"
'Well, at least she's finally talking to me now...even if the staring has only gotten worse.' Harry thought to himself while returning her smile, "Long...but good. What about yours?"
"S-same." She replied shortly, before sinking further down into her chair, apparently at her threshold for interaction with him.
Deciding to let Ginny be for now, he instead turned back towards Ron and Hermione, not surprised to hear the redhead lamenting that the Cannons hadn't made it to the world cup, though clearly he was still excited to be here. Harry joined into the conversation, making light talk with the two of them until the festivities started. As the two teams' mascots took the field Harry couldn't help but feel that something was very off about the women that had come to cheer the Bulgarians on, though all thoughts of the beautiful women were discarded the moment that the match began.
Both Ireland and Bulgaria put on a good show, even if it was clear that Krum was carrying the rest of his team, something that became even more apparent as the officials called a time out to check out Ireland's seeker. While the players hovered on the sides of the field and Harry found himself lost in a conversation with Hermione a wave of tension seemed to roll over the stadium. He tried to clear his mind as he turned his attention back to the field and was met with the sight of the Bulgarian's cheerleaders flying in formation across the stadium, Harry's stomach did a summersault and his breath caught in his chest as he watched the witches.
A ruckus seemed to have erupted somewhere in the stands, but Harry could hardly care less as his heart pounded and his skin began to tingle hotly. In a desperate attempt to understand what was happening he looked back towards Hermione, only to see her flushing brightly as she gawked at him, "M-M'ione, what's wrong?" He gasped out, before doubling over as a strange sensation rushed through his navel mixing both pain and an unidentified pleasure, his bushy haired friend all but forgotten, "Nngh...s-stop, please..." He pleaded quietly to himself as he sat bent over in his seat.
Finally, as the stadium around him shouted out angrily, the worst of the feelings faded away and he managed to briefly glance up at the field to see the mascots being escorted from the field, now covered with smoldering feathers. Before he could fully process what might have happened, a strong hand landed on his shoulder, feeling cool against his still hot skin even through his shirt. "Mr. Weasley, w-what was that?" Harry asked miserably, until he realized with a start that the Weasley patriarch was standing in front of him directing a concerned look at somebody behind him.
"The feeling will pass, mademoiselle, do not worry." Harry's eyes followed the smooth voice to see an older wizard with a goatee connected to the hand on his shoulder, "It is simply part of growing up."
The confusion dominating Harry's mind only intensified at the man's unhelpful explanation, "Excuse me, sir, but would you mind letting go of Harry? He seems uncomfortable."
Harry whipped his head back towards Arthur, grateful for the man's protection as he continued to hold his stomach tightly even after the strange man's hand left his shoulder, though the pressure inside of him did seem to let up slightly with his retreat. "Of course, I was only trying to help." The man answered respectfully, though his gaze held a certain curiosity to it that Harry didn't appreciate.
Mr. Weasley's eyes bore into the unknown man protectively, even as he offered an understanding smile, "Of course, it's just that Harry doesn't usually like people he doesn't know touching him, do you, Harry?" The redheaded man waited patiently for the dark haired wizard to shake his head in confirmation, "But we do appreciate the thought, mister..."
Rather than being insulted, the older man chuckled at Arthur's protectiveness, "I apologize, I should have considered that first." He relented with a smile as Tonks joined Harry's side as well, "But, my name is Sebastian Delacour, Head Auror in the French Ministry."
Harry blinked in shock, momentarily forgetting his discomfort as he turned and looked up at the French wizard, not overly thrilled by the realization that practically everybody else in the box was staring at him as well, including the silver haired witch he had noticed earlier. 'Wonderful, just when I thought I could relax I turn into the sideshow.' He mused ruefully, before forcing himself to concentrate on the conversation happening around him.
"Ah, I see...I apologize, Mr. Delacour, I didn't realize-" Mr. Weasley started, looking almost as uncomfortable as Harry until the other wizard waved his hand dismissively.
"Think nothing of it, I was the rude one after all, and I should let you return to watching the match. However, if you are he- excuse me, his guardian I would like to speak to you afterwards, if that is alright."
"I, well..." Arthur started, clearly unsure what to say as he looked towards Harry with concern, "That's up to Harry, here."
Harry's previous discomfort returned under the Weasley patriarch's gaze, 'Why would he want to talk to Mr. Weasley about me? Better yet, why wouldn't he want to talk to me about it?! How come everybody always keeps-ngh!' Another wave of the disorienting sensation pulsed through his stomach, interrupting his thoughts and leading him to reluctantly nod his head towards Arthur, after all if he couldn't trust Mr. Weasley with this then who could he trust? 'Fine...if he knows what's happening to me then maybe he knows how to get it to stop...'
"As long as you're sure, Harry..."
"Just...whatever will help stop the pain." He muttered back, drawing a sympathetic look from Hermione and Ginny next to him while Sebastian smiled softly.
"I can't promise anything, but I believe that I can help. Or at least, I know somebody who can. I'll meet with you after the match, monsieur." The older man offered, before retreating back to his seat and leaving Harry to try and suppress his embarrassment and pain while Tonks took Arthur's spot near him.
"Are you sure you're alright, Harry? We can leave if you need to." The young auror offered, concern clear in her eyes.
"N-no, I'm fine." He answered, drawing a skeptical look from his friends, "Really, guys...I've had worse, besides it's starting to pass now. Let's just watch the rest of the match."
An uneasy silence fell across the row as Tonks nodded hesitantly and everybody started to turn their attention back towards the game. Harry did his best to follow along, but found it difficult to track the snitch from his doubled over position. Finally, after far too long in Harry's opinion, the stands roared to life along with Bagman's voice shouting over them that Krum had caught the snitch, but the Irish had won the match.
Despite the fervor erupting all around him, and his desperate attempt to enjoy the game, all he could think as the twins hugged each other tightly was one question.
'What's wrong with me?'