Chapter 11

Saturday, 30 November 1996

Potter House, Pottershire

Dumbledore Pleas Guilty!

By Eric Vane

Yesterday afternoon, Director of Magical Law Enforcement Amelia Bones announced that Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, and former Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, had accepted a Ministry-offered deal in exchange for his plea of guilty to the six charges filed against him, all of which relate to his guardianship of Lord Harry Potter, the imprisonment of Lord Sirius Black, and the fight against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. As part of the guilty plea, Dumbledore, 115, has agreed to resign as both Headmaster of Hogwarts and Supreme Mugwump of the ICW. In addition, he will forfeit Ɠ200,000 in fines, the majority of his estate, surrender his house to the Ministry for auction, and surrender his wand. By the terms of the plea deal, Dumbledore will also swear a magical vow not to obtain another wand during his lifetime, or seek the death of anyone. In exchange, Dumbledore will see no jail time for crimes which would normally command stiff sentences.

"The Ministry feels that Mr. Dumbledore does not pose a threat to society at this time, nor is he likely to do so in the future," Bones said during a press conference at the Ministry. "We're happy for this outcome as it spares the nation and Mr. Dumbledore the ignominy of a trial during these difficult times. I'm certain that Mr. Dumbledore has seen the error of his ways, and as a result of this deal will be unable to commit similar acts in the future, even if that is not the case."

The six charges were laid against Dumbledore, the wizard who, in 1945, defeated Gellert Grindelwald, at the autumn meeting of the Wizengamot, shocking members and the public alike…

Harry didn't need to read the rest. He handed the Prophet to Katie.

"Dumbledore took the deal," he said simply.

"That's good, right?" Katie said. Harry nodded.

"As far as I'm concerned," Harry said dismissively.

"Hello, the house!" Sirius called from the entry.

"We're in here, Padfoot!" Harry shouted back.

"Good morning," Amelia said, pushing the door open. Sirius followed her in. "Is there room for two more?" Considering the table consisted of Harry, Katie, Hermione, Ron, Neville, Fay, Dean, Ginny, Leanne, Demelza, Jimmy, Richie, and Natalie, that wasn't as idle a question as it appeared at first glance.

"Help yourself," Harry said, indicating the nearest free spots. The two adults sat.

"I see you've seen the news," Amelia commented. "There's some additional items that didn't make the paper. Dumbledore would like to meet with you nearer to Christmas, to talk to you about them, if you're amenable."

"I'd be willing so long as you're there," Harry told her. "Is this about Dumbledore, or Voldemort?"

"Dumbledore," Amelia said as she served herself from a tray of eggs. "I believe this is about planning for when he's gone, though it's also related to the plea deal." Beside her, Sirius was busy buttering a croissant.

"I'm surprised it took this long to hammer out a deal," Katie observed. "I would've expected it sooner."

"There were quite a few moving parts," Amelia admitted. "Both Dumbledore and myself were quite keen that his resignations should have as few adverse effects as possible. The school board was perhaps the easiest of those, and that took a week and a half to negotiate."

"Who's taking over as head?" Ginny asked.

"The school board agreed that Professor McGonagall would be made headmistress," Amelia told them. "Dumbledore's preparing to announce this at dinner tonight, however, the actual handover of responsibility won't be until the leaving feast prior to the winter holiday, to give McGonagall time to properly take charge, find a replacement for her teaching position, and have time to acclimate before resuming classes next year."

"And the supreme mugwumpship?" Harry asked.

"That'll probably end up in French hands," Amelia sighed. "It's not the worst that could happen, and honestly, with the problems we're having right now, I can hardly expect a better outcome. Still, it stings."

"Does it really affect us with regards to what we have to do to Voldemort?" Harry reasoned.

"No," Amelia replied. "It just means we can't guide the direction of the world anymore."

"Frankly, I don't see an issue with that at the moment," Hermione interjected. "The French have a much more enlightened opinion of quite a few issues I'm passionate about. Their stance on muggleborns and blood purity is far more favourable to those new to magical society, and I think their position on house elves is something we should seek to emulate. This might be just the shot in the arm we need to begin to modernise."

"As you say," Amelia nodded, unwilling to disagree with the girl.

"I have word from the Department of Mysteries, as well," Amelia informed Harry. "They'd like to see you at some point over the break to talk with you about your problem."

"That sounds like good news," Harry said with a smile.

"I hope so," Amelia agreed.

-oooo-

That afternoon, Harry was studying in the library with Katie, Hermione, and Fay when Neville entered. He crossed the room nervously, and approached Harry.

"Could I have a word?" he asked tentatively. Harry immediately realised what this was probably about.

"Sure," Harry said, standing. He led Neville out and into the smoking room. "What's up?" he asked once they were seated.

"I thought about your offer," he began. "I talked to Hermione about it…"

"What did she say?" Harry wanted to know.

"She was surprised," Neville said, "but once she got past that, she was actually quite helpful. She confirmed that you and Katie had helped her overcome some issues she'd been having, including some she didn't know that she had. That, and she told me it was good fun, as well."

"Well, I'd hope so," Harry laughed. "That's often the point of sex, isn't it?"

"I suppose," Neville said, offering a wry grin in return.

"So, what did you decide?" Harry asked.

"I'd like to accept your offer," Neville told him.

"That's great, Nev," Harry smiled at him.

"Erm… how do we do this?" Neville asked.

"We'll I'll go let Katie know," Harry said. "How about you meet us up in my suite? We'll start off in the sitting room."

"Alright," Neville agreed. With a nod, Harry left to go find Katie. He poked his head in the library.

"Katie?" he called. "I need you for a few minutes." Katie smiled and popped up.

"I'll be back in a bit," she told the other girls, and walked to where Harry was holding the door open. "Well?" she asked as the door closed.

"He's waiting for us upstairs in the master suite," Harry revealed.

"What are we waiting for then?" Katie asked, grinning widely. "I'm ready for a good shagging or two."

The couple found Neville sitting on a couch. He started when the door opened and looked over.

"Hi, Neville," Katie said. "Harry says you agreed?"

"Yes," Neville nodded, suddenly unsure. Katie walked over and sat next to him.

"Don't be nervous," she instructed. "I won't bite… but I do suck." She winked at him. Then she popped up as Harry walked over. "Thanks for finding me such a stud for my first time with someone else," she said, kissing him deeply. Neville blushed at that. "Now," she said, turning back to Neville, "do you wanna start out here, or move into the bedroom?"

"I don't know," Neville said. Katie decided to sit.

"You need to relax," she said, placing her hand on Neville's thigh. Before he could say anything in reply, she leaned in and kissed him. Harry sat down in a chair nearby, watching. The kiss seemed to go on for a while, and Harry could see Neville's hesitation melting away with each passing second. He started reciprocating the kiss and he reached out for Katie, pulling her closer. She moaned encouragement at him, and moved one of his hands to her breast.

As the snogging got hotter, clothes started coming off. Katie was still leading, but Neville was no longer hesitant. In a few minutes, they were nude. Harry was feeling a little overdressed, so he pulled off his clothes as well. As Katie pushed Neville's face into her breasts she looked over at Harry. She smiled and blew him a kiss.

Harry smiled back. It was different watching Katie and Neville being intimate, but it didn't seem wrong. He'd watched Fred, George, Angelina, and Alicia enough to know that sex was just sex sometimes. He'd also watched Dean and Ginny shag, and he was fairly close with Ginny, so while he felt protective of Katie, he didn't feel possessive. She was his, and he was hers, but there was also room to play, so long as they talked, and agreed ahead of time. Plus, he'd have fun with both her and Hermione tonight, so this was a more than fair trade.

When he smiled, Katie leaned back until she was laying on the couch, pulling Neville with her, so that he was laying on top of her. From her supine position, she managed to roll Neville over so she was on top, then slid down his body until she reached his erection. She grabbed it and began stroking. Neville was surprisingly well endowed, and had managed to shed most of the baby fat he'd had as a first year. Neville was quite the catch, and it was Hannah's loss that she was stupid enough to fuck around on him.

Neville, now no longer occupied with kissing Katie, finally found time to glance over at Harry to ensure he wasn't about to fly into a murderous rage at what his girlfriend was doing to him. Harry gave Neville a thumbs up as Katie's mouth engulfed Neville's manhood. At that, Neville's eyes fluttered closed and a satisfied look spread across his face.

From this angle, Harry was able to watch Katie's tits bouncing as she sucked. He also focused on how her arse was moving ever so slightly in its bent position. Harry started rubbing his cock in anticipation.

"I'm about to…" Neville gasped. Katie pulled her head up a bit and Neville ejaculated all over her neck and collarbone. Katie smiled at him.

"Oooh," she said. "That feels nice." She rubbed it a bit. "Have you ever given a girl a pearl necklace before?" she asked Neville. Neville shook his head, dazed. "How do I look?" Katie asked Harry.

"Like a fucking goddess," Harry replied. She'd done a good job aiming, and there was a nice semi-circle of come from one shoulder to the other, with a bit more in the middle. It did almost look like a necklace.

"You look so uncomfortable over there," she pouted. "Neville looks like he might need some time to recharge. Do you have a way I can occupy the wait?"

"I think we can find something for you to do," Harry said thoughtfully. Katie leaned over and kissed Neville on the mouth.

"I'll be back in a bit," she promised. "Do your best to get hard for me again. I want that thing to go off in my cunny next time." Neville's eyes were a bit glazed, but he smiled and nodded, then watched as she walked over to where Harry was.

Without a word, she dropped to her knees, and relieved Harry of his cock. She inhaled it, and started sucking energetically. As she sucked, she looked up at Harry. That was his undoing, and he unloaded in her mouth. She swallowed it all, then cleaned up his slowly softening dick.

"Oh, look," she said, turning back to Neville. "It looks like Neville's ready to go again." As she walked back to the other boy, Harry got a good look at her bum, and knew why Neville was so quick to get back into shape. She threw a leg over and straddled him, grasping his manhood. She gave it a few strokes, then manoeuvred and angled it at her steaming centre. Sinking onto it, she moaned loudly. "Yessssss," she hissed.

Neville's eyes rolled back into his head as his jaw went loose. Then she started riding him. Harry watched her breasts bouncing and her arse flexing as she moved up and down. Little Harry quickly rose to the occasion, and Harry was soon back to stroking his manhood as he watched his girlfriend riding his friend.

Having come recently, it took Neville quite a bit longer to come again. Katie actually managed to come first, with Neville finally climaxing a minute or so later. After he did, she leaned in and kissed him soundly.

"That was great, Neville," she said. "Thank you." She kissed him again. She looked over at Harry. "If you don't mind a little Neville-juice on your dick, I can finish you off as well," she told him.

"I don't," Harry said, still slowly stroking his dick. Katie gave Neville one last kiss and dismounted him. Standing, she walked over to where Harry was. He could see the semen dripping down her inner thigh and she had a lazy just-fucked look on her face. Reaching him she climbed onto his lap and kissed him. A moment later, she was sliding onto his cock. Between the sex show he'd just watched and the jacking off he'd done, he was already fairly close, so it was less than a minute before he too was emptying himself into Katie. Once he did, she kissed him again, and rested her head against his shoulder.

"I feel bad," Harry said after a few moments of silence.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because we each came twice, and you only came once," Harry explained. She laughed.

"There'll be plenty of time for me to orgasm a bunch next time," she told him. "And the time after that, and the time after that."

"Erm… how many times are we going to do this?" Neville asked.

"With a cock like that, as many times as you want," Katie laughed. "Until you get tired of us."

"Oh," Neville said.

"How often did you and Hannah have sex?" Katie asked, shifting on Harry's lap so she could see the other boy.

"Once a fortnight or so," Neville said. "She was always busy…"

"She was always a bloody idiot, more like," Katie told him. "She clearly didn't know a good thing when she saw it."

Just then, the door opened and Hermione entered.

"Oh!" she said, embarrassed. "I'm sorry. I just need…" She trailed off as she pointed to the bedroom.

"Don't worry about it," Katie said. "C'mon in. I don't think Neville minds, do you?" Neville blushed all over, but shook his head.

"So, you decided to try it?" Hermione asked him.

"Yes," Neville agreed, not bothering to cover himself.

"How was it?" she asked.

"Good," Neville said, embarrassed.

"How good?" Katie asked.

"It was the best sex I've had so far," Neville told her, still blushing.

"It was excellent for me as well," Katie told him. "You don't have much to learn about pleasing a lady. Though I must say that Harry never had much trouble there either."

"You can say that again," Hermione grinned at them. "Well, I'll not interrupt you longer. I just needed to get some of my notes." She hurried off, passing by again briefly a minute later, clutching her bookbag, and waving.

"This was nice," Katie said. "But I need a shower." She popped up and exited towards the bedroom and the loo beyond, leaving the two nude boys alone.

"Are you alright?" Neville asked. Harry actually laughed.

"You know? I am," Harry said. "I wasn't sure I was going to be, but it was… reassuring in a way. I'm glad you… pleased her, but I know she still loves me, and I know she wouldn't hurt me, just like she knows I'd never hurt her. Are you OK?"

"More than," Neville nodded. "I feel like I exorcised some demons. Like, Hannah can't get to me anymore, because I know I'm not the reason we broke up. It was her. I also know her cheating wasn't because of some defect on my part, but because of her." Harry nodded knowingly. "But you're right, I'm not ready for a new relationship just yet. That's alright, though, because I can have some casual sex with you and Katie, and what was the phrase you used? Clear my headspace? Yeah, and get ready for a new relationship."

"Just so long as they're not a Hufflepuff," Harry said pointedly.

"Yes!" Neville laughed. "No Hufflepuffs." Then he looked at the door to the corridor. "D'you think… I know Hermione used to, erm… D'you think Hermione might still be interested? You know, when I'm ready?"

"I think there's a very good possibility," Harry told him.

-oooo-

"When you return next year, there shall be a new Transfiguration professor," McGonagall reminded them near the end of the last Transfiguration lesson before Christmas. It was Friday, 20 December. "I expect that you will not embarrass myself or the school in your conduct and scholastic endeavours in this class. Should you, I shall hear of it." She glanced around the class, daring them to ignore her. When she saw all the students were properly cowed, she nodded. "You may go. Have a pleasant Yule, and I shall see you all again next year."

"You can't believe how much I need this holiday," Harry said to Hermione as they left.

"It's been quite rough this year," Hermione admitted. "Between classes, Young Aurors, and revision, there's been not much time for anything else."

"And I've got quidditch, therapy, the Wizengamot, and trying to find time with Katie to squeeze in a quickie during the day with Neville, on top of all that," Harry groused.

"You make it sound like sex is a chore," Hermione laughed. "Getting too much of a good thing?"

"No, but it'd be a lot easier if he could just sleep with us at night, and we could do it then," Harry sighed.

"So, why not do that?" Hermione wondered. "There's more than enough room in that bed for four."

"Would you be OK with that?" Harry asked pointedly.

"How would watching Neville shag Katie be any different from watching you shag Katie?" Hermione countered.

"And what would you and Neville do while Katie and I were shagging?" Harry reasoned.

"Oh…" Hermione said softly. "Yes… I suppose…"

"Unless you think you're ready for that," Harry proposed.

"Is he?" Hermione asked pointedly. "I'm mostly recovered from Justin, but Neville's only had a month and a half, and he's only been shagging with you for a fortnight."

"It's been an… eventful fortnight," Harry informed her. "Neville said he was over Hannah after that first time, and he doesn't seem to have a problem sharing, that's for sure." Harry recalled earlier in the week when he and Neville had double teamed Katie. Harry shagged her from behind while she sucked Neville off. Then the two boys traded. The experience had almost made Harry and Neville late for Charms.

"I'll think on it," Hermione hedged.

"You do that," Harry said. "I need to get to practice."

"I can't believe Ginny scheduled practice on the last day before the Christmas hols," Hermione huffed.

"It's not like we have to catch the train," Harry reasoned. "See you at dinner." With that, he hurried off with Fay and Dean following close behind. Fifteen minutes later, Harry and the rest of the team were in uniform on the Potter House pitch.

"So, I showed you my tricks for dealing with an active seeker," Harry told Natalie as the other players broke off to drill their respective tasks. "It took a while to figure out how to show you the tactics I use when the other seeker's not an issue." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a brass doorknob which he'd shrunk slightly. "I think I figured out how, though." He levitated the doorknob. It looked vaguely like a snitch as it moved, though it had no wings. It was the proper size, though, and it would glint in the sunlight. "Fly up to about a hundred feet and put your back to the sun. Then, look down and look for the doorknob. I'll move the doorknob around like a snitch. Try to find it, and when you do, catch it."

Natalie nodded and took off. While her back was to him, he moved the snitch over to by the goalposts which weren't being used. Once Harry saw she was in position, he directed the doorknob slowly back and forth across the front of the goals. It took her just five minutes to spot the doorknob, and when she did, she dove quickly and captured it, handing it back to Harry with a smile on her face.

"That was easy!" she said happily.

"Well, the doorknob didn't put up much of a fight," Harry conceded. "A real snitch would be more difficult, but you understand the concept, right?"

"Yeah," Natalie agreed.

"Great," he said. "Get back up there and let's do it again."

Harry spent the next forty-five minutes directing the shrunken doorknob around the quidditch pitch for Natalie to practise. Then, he showed her how to levitate the doorknob and took fifteen minutes for himself to practise.

"OK," Harry said at last. "I think that's all the value we'll get out of that today. Let's try something else. I'll fly, levitating the doorknob in front of me as I go, and you try to nab it."

"Is this like that game of tag we played during the trials?" Natalie asked.

"Yeah," Harry said. "But this time you've got an actual snitch, and you have to outfly me instead of just flying as well as me." With that, he snatched up his broom, levitated the knob, and streaked away. Natalie was only a heartbeat behind him, eager to prove herself. Harry led them all over the pitch, twisting and turning, bobbing up and dropping down, spiralling and looping. He had a bit of a concentration problem as he was also directing the doorknob's levitation, but that only shaved a small percentage off his skill. He was still slightly better than Natalie, though she tried hard to keep up.

After fifteen minutes of stomach-churning acrobatics, Harry relented and slowed his flight fractionally, allowing Natalie to pull abreast of him. She extended a hand to grab the doorknob, and he compensated by causing the doorknob to dance up and down and side to side like a snitch would. He toyed with her for two minutes before she managed to catch it.

"Good job. Time for a break," Harry told her, and they descended to the grass. "What are your questions?"

"How can I fly like you?" she asked.

"A lot of it's the broom," Harry told her. "If you can afford it, a Firebolt's an excellent investment, especially for a seeker. The rest of it's practise, practise, and more practise. Ginny's got some omnioculars with game footage from the last World Cup on it. You should ask to borrow them and watch the seekers. Watch their tells. You can see when they're going to go a certain way, or do a certain thing; small muscle movements or a twitch of their hands. Most seekers, hell, most quidditch players, are the same. They'll all give away what they're going to do if you look close enough."

"Alright, you lot!" Ginny called from across the grass. "That's it for today! See you all back out here next year."

"Thanks," Natalie said to Harry. "I'll do that." She ran over to where Ginny was talking to Katie and Fay. Harry pocketed the doorknob again and headed for the changing room. He followed Jimmy, Richie, and Dean in. As he stripped, Harry contemplated the slight change that had come over the team in since the Gryffindor-Slytherin match. After Richie had started dating Natalie, things in the shower had tapered off somewhat. Ginny and Dean still went at it like maddened beasts, and Harry and Katie occasionally got up to some serious shenanigans, but Jimmy and Demelza had held off a bit. Demelza would give Jimmy a hand job or blowjob, but that was the extent of it. Richie had begun concentrating entirely on Natalie. They'd started snogging a bit, but nothing too serious.

Harry headed into the shower and started washing. He was the only one there for several minutes. Eventually, Dean and Ginny entered, followed quickly by Katie and Fay. Dean and Ginny immediately started fooling around. Katie washed a bit first, then joined Harry in his shower and kissed him. Harry looked up when the youngest four arrived, and caught Fay watching him and Katie.

Katie pulled his face back to her, and they resumed kissing. Harry slid a hand up to her breast and his fingers danced across her nipple, causing her to moan his name softly into his mouth. Taking that as encouragement, Harry lowered his mouth to her other nipple, flicking his tongue across it. Katie gripped the back of his head and pressed it tight against her. In response, Harry dropped his hand from her breast to her cunny and slid his fingers between her legs. Not thirty seconds later, Katie pulled Harry to the shower floor, laying herself down, and pulling Harry on top of her.

"I want you inside me, now," she said in a throaty voice. Harry obliged, sliding his erection into her. His palms firmly planted on the shower floor, and his arms extended, he started thrusting. He slid easily in and out, his body tingling with pleasure. He kissed her wantonly, then threw his head back and let out a shuddering sigh of excitement.

Opening his eyes, he got a shock. Not four feet away, Richie was laying on his back and Natalie was riding him like an equestrian at a champion jumping event. She was leaning forward, his hands on her breasts supporting her. Jimmy was lying on Richie's far side with Demelza mirroring Natalie's form. Across the showers from them, Ginny was on her hands and knees, with Dean thrusting into her from behind, her breasts shaking with each impact. Harry wondered how Fay was taking this new development, so he looked over. To his astonishment, she was watching Harry and Katie and fingering herself. To his knowledge, she'd never done that before, but there she was, one hand between her legs moving in a blur, while the other hand groped one of her breasts.

"Someone's excited," Katie whispered. He glanced down at his girlfriend, and saw her watching him. She grinned. "You're harder than steel right now. It feels fucking amazing."

"Did you see Richie and Natalie?" Harry whispered back while he went in for a kiss. When he pulled back, Katie looked over.

"Good… for them," she managed to get out between moans. Harry went back to concentrating on Katie. Half a minute later, he pulled out and motioned for her to roll over. She did, rising to her knees, and Harry entered her from behind. In this position, she was almost face to face with Ginny.

"You look so fucking hot," Ginny told her as their boyfriends serviced them.

"Yeah," Katie panted. "You… too. Ungh. Yesssss." Harry tried to slide a finger between her legs and manipulate her clit, but was only partially successful. Still, Katie started meeting his thrusts and her moans increased.

Harry looked over to the younger teens. They'd shifted positions as well and both pairs were in missionary. The girls were holding hands as they lay there, expressions of pure joy on their faces. As Harry watched, Richie pulled out and started wanking, clearly close to finishing. Natalie gestured toward Demelza, and Richie quickly aimed his cock at his best friend's girlfriend. A few seconds later, he unloaded all over her chest, the shower washing much of it away immediately. Half a minute later, Jimmy pulled out, and Demelza gestured to Natalie. Jimmy repeated Richie's trick, emptying himself onto Natalie's chest.

In the shower closest to the door, Harry heard a loud moan, and looked over to see Fay, coming. It was clearly a powerful one. Her knees were shaking so much he thought she'd fall over, but she recovered before she did. Then Harry's attention was drawn to Ginny and Dean as they came together. Dean collapsed back against the shower wall, exhausted, but Ginny stayed on her hands and knees watching Katie as Harry fucked her.

They were the last ones standing. Harry redoubled his efforts and was rewarded a minute later as Katie shuddered through her orgasm. Feeling the ripples inside her pushed Harry over the edges as well and he finished with force inside her. Feeling him done, Katie disengaged, rose up, and lay back next to Harry against the front wall of the shower.

"That was bloody excellent," she sighed happily as she looked around the room at all the heaving chests and tired grins.

"Real teamwork," Ginny smiled as she sat back next to Dean.

"Why do I feel left out?" Fay asked. Harry looked over. She was sat on the floor, her back against the wall, arms crossed. She didn't look mad, just a bit melancholy.

"You can come over here," Katie said. "Harry'll give you a snuggle if you like. Won't you, Harry?"

"Sure," Harry agreed warmly, holding out a hand. "If you want." Without a word, Fay crawled across the shower floor and moved into his embrace. She leaned against him and sighed.

"I need a boyfriend," she said to herself. It was so soft that Harry could barely hear it.

"If you'd like," Katie said, just a bit louder than Fay, "I think we could talk Harry into taking care of you until you can fix that."

"That is a service I've provided in the past," Harry acknowledged quietly. "To a select few friends."

"Hermione's said," Fay revealed. "If this gets much more intense, I may take you up on that."

"Just let us know," Katie instructed. Fay smiled and nodded.

Things wrapped up soon after that. The team made their way back into the changing room and put on their normal clothes and headed back to the house. When Harry landed it was nearly dinner time. The sun had gone down long before, almost the moment they'd entered the changing rooms after practice.

When he entered the brightly lit house, Tonks was waiting for him in the entry.

"Wotcher, Harry," she said brightly. "You've a guest in the parlour." Harry looked to Katie and the rest of the team.

"I'd best get this started," he told Katie. "Thanks for bringing him, yeah?" he said to Tonks.

"Always happy to be of help," Tonks grinned, tipping an imaginary cap. "I'll just be off then. Remus is taking me to Flusskneipe. I'm telling you because I'd rather not see you there, unlike the last time I told you my dinner plans."

"I think this has my evening fairly solidly booked," Harry assured her dryly. "No promises about the rest of the holiday." He turned to Katie. "We'll be in for dinner in a bit. You can go ahead and start without us if you like."

"OK," she said with a quick smile. She kissed him. "Good luck."

"Thanks," Harry said, kissing her back. "Here goes nothing." He pushed open the door and found Dudley standing in his Smeltings uniform, a suitcase on the floor next to him. He seemed rather surprised to be in a conversation with a portrait. "Hello, Dudley." Dudley was startled and looked towards the door where Harry was standing. Dudley was thinner than Harry remembered. He wasn't thin by any means, but there was quite a bit less fat and substantially more muscle than there had been when Dudley was younger.

"Hi," Dudley said lamely. "I… erm… was just talking to the major here."

"That's my grandfather," Harry offered. "He's a friendly bloke."

"Such a ripping endorsement," Flea sniped playfully from his portrait.

"How are you?" Harry asked Dudley, ignoring the painting.

"Fine," Dudley said, still struggling to find his footing in this new environment.

"There wasn't any trouble with Smeltings was there?" Harry wondered idly.

"Nah," Dudley said. "That woman did something to the Head and suddenly he was fine with everything."

"Tonks is a good friend," Harry allowed. "I'm glad you came. I… I was sorry to hear about your parents." That was both the truth and a lie. While Harry didn't really give a damn about Vernon or Petunia one way or the other, at the same time, Healer Droop had helped him realise that Dudley was merely a pawn in their torment of Harry, and as a result, he held no ill will toward his cousin. In fact, Harry empathized with Dudley. He wouldn't wish the loss of parents on anyone, and Harry would've been perfectly content having never laid eyes on any of the Dursleys ever again. They didn't need to die.

"Thanks," Dudley said, looking at his feet. There was a brief silence while the two former enemies tried to figure out what to say.

"For what it's worth I did try to get them to move," Harry said lamely.

"I know," Dudley nodded, eyes still glued to his feet. "Dad was bloody furious when mum got your letter. He raged for hours and called you all the names in the book. I don't know if he was more mad that you'd presumed to tell him what to do, or that mum wanted to follow your advice."

"I wish they had," Harry offered.

"Yeah," Dudley sighed. He looked up at Harry, eyes searching for… something. "Look, Harry, I… I'm sorry… about everything. I'm sorry I was such a berk to you growing up. I'm sorry dad was an arse and mum was a bitch. I'm sorry I hit you and yelled and all that."

"It's OK," Harry said. "I know it wasn't your fault. I've actually gotten some counselling recently and it's really helped me understand things better. I'm not happy with what happened, but I understand why you did it."

"You saved my life," Dudley said, seemingly unable to comprehend what Harry had just said. "My family shit all over you your whole life, and you saved me."

"I couldn't let you die," Harry shrugged.

"Why don't you hate me?" Dudley pressed, becoming emotional.

"I haven't seen you in a year and a half," Harry pointed out. "People change. You were nearly killed. You lost your mum and dad. If you hadn't come here you would've been at Marge's."

"The only person who treat you worse than us," Dudley snorted. "Y'know, I hate her too. That dog's a bloody menace, and she smells weird. Couldn't let on, though. Dad and all…"

"Glad I could help," Harry said. Silence fell again for a bit.

"I'm not who I was when I was eleven," Dudley said suddenly. "School's changed me."

"I know," Harry said.

"No, I mean…" Dudley paused to find the right words. "That first year was an eye opener. Mum and dad weren't there. My mates weren't there either. Suddenly, there were all these blokes I didn't know, who I had to live with. Most of 'em are dead smart, like you were before dad beat it out of you. Some of 'em are my mates now. I'm not really mates with Piers and that lot anymore. We'd still hang out over the summer, but it wasn't the same.

"Anyway," he continued, "At school, I found out treating people like crap wasn't what made people like me. To them, I was just some fat arsehole who wasn't good at school. I got beat up. Blokes called me tubby, or piggy… That one hurt quite a bit after what that giant bloke did to me that one time." He laughed. "So, I started studying harder. A few years ago, I started exercising, and I made the boxing team. I lost some weight, gained some muscle, and learned some stuff. Lately, I've even gotten some attention from the ladies. I'm actually happier now.

"When I'd come home over the summer, I'd fall back into old habits," Dudley admitted. "My new friends weren't there to check me. My old friends expected me to behave that way, and mum and dad… especially dad, would yell at me if I was nice to you. After those demented things…"

"Dementors," Harry corrected, gently.

"Right, after they attacked us, and I stood up for you, dad gave me a royal bollocking," Dudley said. "That was when I knew they'd never change. But I couldn't keep being the son they expected and wanted me to be anymore. I spent a lot less time at home last summer. I was with my new friends. I… I regret that now, but I realise that that also saved my life."

"It sounds like you saved yourself," Harry commented. Silence reined for nearly a minute while the boys decided what needed to be said next. "So," Harry said, breaking the tension. "You'll stay with us, then? At least for Christmas?"

"Yeah," Dudley said, smiling at last. "I'd like that."

"Great," Harry smiled back. "Dobby!" The elf popped in and Duddley gasped.

"That's that thing that was at our house for that dinner party that one year!" Dudley exclaimed.

"So, you did see him," Harry mused. "I'd wondered. Yes, this is Dobby, he's a house elf, and he's my friend. Dobby, would you take Dudley's bag up to his room?"

"Dobby is happy to meet Harry's Duddeldy," Dobby said excitedly. "I is happy yous be staying with us." With that, he grabbed Dudley's bag and popped away.

"He's a pretty excitable little guy, but he grows on you," Harry told Dudley. "Now, it's dinner time, and everyone else is in the dining room. Are you hungry?"