CHAPTER FOUR
TYING UP LOOSE ENDS
With all of his school supplies bought, Harry was ready to go to Hogwarts in no time. But there was so much left to do before he would go off to school, all of which Lily explained in due course.
"What do we have to do exactly, mom?" Harry asked.
To which Lily answered by unraveling a list of items, "Well, sweetheart, why don't I show you what I have in store for us?"
And as Harry looked at the list and saw what all his mother included on the list, here's what he saw on the list: Give Lupin his share of a fair amount of the well-sized fortune, move and settle into the Potter Mansion, Visit Godric's Hollow and pay respects to James, meet Petunia and attempt to start fresh, help Harry study for his upcoming classes.
Upon wrapping up on reading the list, Harry handed back the list to his mother.
"Which one do you want to do first, mom?"
Lily was quick to answer, "I've actually already taken care of the first one, sweetheart. So, I figure we'll move to Potter Manor next."
Quick to follow his mother's orders as per usual, Harry started packing all the necessities needed. In no time flat, the packing was done quickly with help from Dumbledore and the other teachers, by the time the week was over, after unpacking and tidying the place up, Lily and Harry were officially settled and moved into their new home.
Following the request from James's will, Lily insisted that Lupin stay with her and Harry, being Harry's uncle, Lupin, of course, was overjoyed, as he had no place to stay and he was happy to spend time with Harry.
He arrived a day or two later.
"I can't begin to thank you both for letting me move in." said Lupin, as he unloaded his bags. "I'd have nowhere else to go."
"Well, we can't have you living out on the streets, Uncle Remus." Harry replied. "You are, after all, family."
Lupin laughed warmly, "Truer words have never been spoken, Harry. Plus, I'd like to still spend time with my favorite magical nephew." *
"Don't forget Remus, Harry is your only magical nephew." Lily beamed. *
"I know." Lupin nodded warmly, as Harry took some of his items and unpacked them in his room. "I just don't want to lose sight of what's important."
"Nonsense, Uncle Remus, our house is your house for as long as you like." Harry added, as he gave Lupin a sack containing his share of the fair amount of a well-sized fortune James left him.
"And I thank you, Harry. Mark my words, I will have a job soon." Lupin put in, taking the sack of Galleons, Sickles and Knuts.
Ultimately, by the start of the following week, and after moving in, to Harry and Lily's amazement, Lupin was indeed successful in finding a position that saw him working as a tutor for young wizards and witches who were either of or not yet of age to go to Hogwarts. Even better, Harry was delighted when he learned that his magical uncle would be happy to give him lessons on how to use various magical skills too.
"Thank you, Uncle Remus," said Harry.
"Don't mention it, Harry," beamed Lupin.
Now it was a known fact that while Remus John Lupin was a good man, he was one a wizard who always had trouble looking for work. The reason for this was because he had a deep dark secret, one of which he swore Lily and Harry to not tell anyone all about it. For he knew that if someone in the Ministry of Magic were to discover the secret, it would cost him his job… he was a lycanthrope, a lusus naturae, if you will. In layman's terms — Lupin was a werewolf.
In the end, both mother and son agreed in the end they would not tell a soul. And to ensure if nothing went awry, and if he needed to work nights, Lily often brewed a Wolfsbane potion that would help Lupin's night shifts be a little less painful.
When that task was done, Lily asked Harry, "What would you like to do next on the list, Harry?"
Harry's answer came quick as a flash, but when he did make up his mind, which was to meet his Aunt Petunia and attempt to start fresh, he asked his mother as to why she never mentioned her or why he never saw her before, Lily's answer was simply on the grounds Petunia grew to hate her after the latter learned her sister was a witch. Adding to this, she then described the last time they ever saw one another was when she and James were in the seventh and last year at Hogwarts. During a dinner, the two couples tried to get to know one another better, Petunia was engaged to a man named Vernon Dursley, whom James's banter with went too far, Vernon then decided it was time for him and Petunia to leave. *
"Even if it doesn't work out as we hope, mom, I'd still like to try and meet Aunt Petunia." Harry pleaded. "Please?"
"Okay, Harry." Lily sighed, "Just promise me you won't hold against me."
"I won't," replied Harry.
Now at number four, Privet Drive, where Aunt Petunia lived, she and her husband Vernon with their son Dudley. sat in the living room watching a favorite program of theirs. Remember, Petunia was thin and blonde and had nearly twice the usual amount of neck, which came in very useful as she spent so much of her time craning over garden fences, spying on the neighbors. Vernon, as said, was the only one with a job, he was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills. He was a big, beefy man with hardly any neck, although he did have a very large mustache. And Dudley pretty much took after his father's looks, he had been accepted at his father's old private school, Smeltings. Safe to say, they did their best to dissolve any knowledge of magic or anything else that was abnormal out of their and Dudley's minds, they didn't want their son to know their nephew, Dudley's cousin was, as Vernon summed it up best, 'a freak' . Little did they realize that all was about to change.
Number Four, Privet Drive:
Eleven years ago
It was on the day that Harry and his mother survived, both Vernon and Petunia Dursley woke up on a dull, gray Tuesday. There was nothing about the cloudy sky outside to suggest that strange and mysterious things would soon be happening all over the country. Vernon hummed as he picked out his most boring tie for work, and his wife gossiped away happily as she wrestled a screaming Dudley into his high chair.
At half past eight, Vernon picked up his briefcase, pecked Petunia on the cheek, and tried to kiss Dudley good-bye but missed, because Dudley was now having a tantrum and throwing his cereal at the walls. "Little tyke," he chortled as he left the house. He got into his car and backed out of number four's drive. As he drove toward town he thought of nothing except a large order of drills he was hoping to get that day.
But on the edge of town, drills were driven out of his mind by something else. As he sat in the usual morning traffic jam, he couldn't help noticing that there seemed to be a lot of wizards and witches in cloaks. Vernon couldn't bear people who dressed in funny clothes — the getups you saw on young people! He supposed this was some stupid new fashion. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and his eyes fell on a huddle of these weirdos standing quite close by. They were whispering excitedly together. He was enraged to see that a couple of them weren't young at all; why, that man had to be older than he was, and wearing an emerald-green cloak! The nerve of him!
But then it struck him that this was probably some silly stunt. The traffic moved on and a few minutes later, he arrived in the Grunnings parking lot, his mind back on drills. Vernon always sat with his back to the window in his office on the ninth floor. If he hadn't, he might have found it harder to concentrate on drills that morning. He didn't see the owls swooping past in broad daylight, though people down in the street did; they pointed and gazed open-mouthed as owl after owl sped overhead. Most of them had never seen an owl even at nighttime. Vernon, however, had a perfectly normal, owl-free morning. He yelled at five different people. He made several important telephone calls and shouted a bit more. He was in a very good mood until lunchtime, when he thought he'd stretch his legs and walk across the road to buy himself a bun from the bakery.
He'd forgotten all about the people in cloaks until he passed a group of them next to the baker's. He eyed them angrily as he passed. He didn't know why, but they made him uneasy. This bunch were whispering excitedly, too, and he couldn't see a single collecting tin. It was on his way back past them, clutching a large doughnut in a bag, that he caught a few words of what they were saying.
"The Potters, that's right, that's what I heard —"
"— yes, their son, Harry —"
"And his mother, Lily —"
"But, the father James — he's — he's dead."
Vernon stopped dead. Fear flooded him. He looked back at the whisperers as if he wanted to say something to them, but thought better of it.
He dashed back across the road, hurried up to his office, snapped at his secretary not to disturb him, seized his telephone, and had almost finished dialing his home number when he changed his mind. He put the receiver back down and stroked his mustache, thinking… no, he was being stupid. Potter wasn't such an unusual name. He was sure there were lots of people called Potter who had a son called Harry. Come to think of it, he wasn't even sure his nephew was called Harry. He'd never even seen the boy. It might have been Harvey. Or Harold. There was no point in worrying his wife; she always got so upset at any mention of her sister. He didn't blame her — if he'd had a sister like that… but all the same, those people in cloaks…
He found it a lot harder to concentrate on drills that afternoon and when he left the building at five o'clock, he was still so worried that he walked straight into someone just outside the door.
"Sorry," he grunted, as the tiny old man stumbled and almost fell. It was a few seconds before Vernon realized that the man was wearing a violet cloak. He didn't seem at all upset at being almost knocked to the ground. On the contrary, his face split into a wide smile and he said in a squeaky voice that made passersby stare, "Don't be sorry, my dear sir, for nothing could upset me today! Rejoice, for You-Know-Who has gone at last! Even Muggles like yourself should be celebrating, this happy, happy day!"
And the old man hugged him around the middle and walked off.
Vernon stood rooted to the spot. He had been hugged by a complete stranger. He also thought he had been called a Muggle, whatever that was. He was rattled. He hurried to his car and set off for home, hoping he was imagining things, which he had never hoped before, because he didn't approve of imagination.
As he pulled into the driveway of number four, he tried to calm himself down about the situation at hand. Trying to pull himself together, he let himself into the house. He was still determined not to mention anything to his wife.
Petunia had had a nice, normal day. She told him over dinner all about Mrs. Next Door's problems with her daughter and how Dudley had learned a new word ("Won't!"). Vernon tried to act normally. When Dudley had been put to bed, he went into the living room in time to catch the last report on the evening news:
"And finally, bird-watchers everywhere have reported that the nation's owls have been behaving very unusually today. Although owls normally hunt at night and are hardly ever seen in daylight, there have been hundreds of sightings of these birds flying in every direction since sunrise. Experts are unable to explain why the owls have suddenly changed their sleeping pattern." The newscaster allowed himself a grin. "Most mysterious. And now, over to Jim McGuffin with the weather. Going to be any more showers of owls tonight, Jim?"
"Well, Ted," said the weatherman, "I don't know about that, but it's not only the owls that have been acting oddly today. Viewers as far apart as Kent, Yorkshire, and Dundee have been phoning in to tell me that instead of the rain I promised yesterday, they've had a downpour of shooting stars! Perhaps people have been celebrating Bonfire Night early — it's not until next week, folks! But I can promise a wet night tonight."
Vernon sat frozen in his armchair. Shooting stars all over Britain? Owls flying by daylight? Mysterious people in cloaks all over the place? And a whisper, a whisper about the Potters…
His wife came into the living room carrying two cups of tea. It was no good. He'd have to say something to her. He cleared his throat nervously. "Er — Petunia, dear — you haven't heard from your sister lately, have you?"
As he had expected, Mrs. Dursley looked shocked and angry. After all, they normally pretended she didn't have a sister.
"No," she said sharply. "Why?"
"Funny stuff on the news," Vernon mumbled. "Owls… shooting stars… and there were a lot of funny-looking people in town today…"
"So?" snapped Petunia.
Vernon sighed, "Well, I just thought… maybe… it was something to do with… you know… her crowd." Petunia sipped her tea through pursed lips. "Her son — he'd be about Dudley's age now, wouldn't he?"
"I suppose so," said Petunia stiffly.
Vernon tried at recalling name, "What's his name again? Howard, isn't it?"
Petunia rolled her eyes.
"Harry. Nasty, common name, if you ask me."
"Oh, yes," said Vernon, his heart sank horribly. "Yes, I quite agree."
He didn't say another word on the subject as they went upstairs to bed. While Mrs. Dursley was in the bathroom, Mr. Dursley crept to the bedroom window and peered down into the front garden.
What did it matter about having anything to do with the Potters?
The Dursleys got into bed. Mrs. Dursley fell asleep quickly but Mr. Dursley lay awake, turning it all over in his mind. His last, comforting thought before he fell asleep was that even if the Potters were involved, there was no reason for them to come near him and Mrs. Dursley. The Potters knew very well what he and Petunia thought about them and their kind… He couldn't see how he and Petunia could get mixed up in anything that might be going on — he yawned and turned over — it couldn't affect them…
How very wrong he was.
Number Four, Privet Drive:
The present…
Ten years later, they heard a loud knock on their door, Petunia answered it. To her surprise, their stood the very person she hoped was nonexistent, but all just the same she was taken aback that her sister and nephew were in fact alive and breathing, she had received a letter from Dumbledore who told her everything. Evidently, this was not the first time he wrote to her.
Knowing it would be awkward if Vernon saw her talking to her thought to be dead, yet now alive sister, Petunia closed the door and started what seemed a like a rather long talk with her sister, on the one hand she didn't want to see her sister, but on the other hand, she decided that people rarely ever get second chances in life, so she decided it be best take that approach. After learning what really happened that night in Godric's Hollow, thanks to Dumbledore's letter, it was safe to say Petunia was, for once in her life, filled with relief and remorse.
She then excused herself quickly brought down Dudley outside to meet his cousin and aunt, before going back outside.
"Who was it, Petunia?"
"Just some nosy kids, Vernon." Petunia answered.
"Very well then, shoo them away, dear."
With introductions made between Harry and Dudley, it was safe to say, Lily was happy that things worked better than she expected. Before leaving, the two sisters, having amended their relationship, decided to leave each other with their addresses so as to stay in contact with one another, but to make sure all would work out, Petunia knew the letters would have to come in a time when Vernon was out of the house and at work or otherwise noted.
"It was lovely to meet you, Aunt Petunia" Harry said with a bow. "I look forward to seeing you again, Dudley."
"It was our pleasure, Harry." Petunia replied.
"Just let us know when you're off to school, cousin. We'd like to see how you get there." Dudley chimed in.
"That's a promise." Harry answered.
Later on, with the to-do list halfway completed, Lily decided the best thing to do now was to one day visit Godric's Hollow and have her and Harry pay their respects to James, until then, Harry could make enough free time to read all of his schoolbooks. Their trip came just one week before Harry was to go to Hogwarts, with Dumbledore accompanying them, the three were well on their way.
On the trip, Harry was told by both adults he would also come to learn of a man that Lily briefly saw all the while who may or may not have played a part in being his unseen stepfather, his name was Tobias Prince, he had never seen Harry before, but Lily loved him very much, and him her and Harry too.
"But where is my step-dad?" Harry asked as he and the adults left flowers at James's tombstone.
Thinking for a minute, Dumbledore arrived at his answer, "We had many wizards and witches who helped us in the war, Harry." Harry nodded, "Your step-father, Tobias Prince is an Auror."
"Auror?" asked Harry, who was still learning the ins and outs of the Wizarding world.
"Dark wizard catcher." replied Dumbledore. "Kind of like what James was. Anyway, your step-father is always on the road searching for remnants of Voldemort's followers. One of them, a man named Severus Snape, was the first of many to defect. After defecting, he was recruited to help teach at Hogwarts. For some reason thereof or another, he didn't think too highly of your father."
"Why not?"
"Ask me again some other time." Dumbledore answered. "But try not to hold it against him, Harry as Professor Snape will be one of your other teachers this and your other six years at Hogwarts, his specialty is Potions."
Surprised that the Headmaster would recruit a former follower of his father's killer for a teacher, Harry tried his best not to show his shock, knowing that a simple grudge or even vengeance would not bring back James.
"I won't," Harry promised.
After paying their respects to the fallen, Harry, Lily and Lupin headed on home, knowing Harry had still much to be ready for school, while Dumbledore went back to Hogwarts. All the while studying, Harry took to advice what Dumbledore said, for if indeed this Professor Snape was a former Dark wizard, let alone hated his father, he would do his best not to let his emotions blind him by hate, especially towards one of his teachers.
Author's notes:
* So that was my fourth of the Sorcerer's Stone, and as always with every one of my stories, let me know what you all think so far by leaving your feedback in the comments area.
* For the first Easter egg, on Lupin and Lily calling Harry magical nephew/only magical nephew, I drew inspiration from the (original) Lion King movie for that exchange between Lupin and Lily.
* And for Lily's explanation as to why she fell out of touch Petunia, this has been revealed to be canon by Mrs. Rowling herself, so I thought I'd use it here.
* The Harry Potter franchise, its characters, elements and everything else are owned and were created by J. K. Rowling.
That said, until the next chapter my fellow Wizards, Witches and Muggles:
I'm M. R. Parkerson signing off…
