Chapter 15: Dudley
"Mione!" Harry chirped. "Mione! Look!"
Hermione turned from where she was inspecting several pieces of antique jewelry, necklaces that were eye-catching for their simplicity. Her eyes widened as she spotted the beaming little boy followed by a smirking Draco Malfoy.
The black mop of hair was still as messy as ever, the green eyes glimmering in pride as he stood in a little black tuxedo. It wasn't a robe, but he looked so proud of himself. The vest underneath the black, contrasting the white shirt, was a deep maroon. A little bowtie was settled on the boy's neck, a beautiful shade of green.
"You look adorable!" Hermione instantly cooed. Abandoning the counter, she made her way over towards the two, laughing when her compliment made Harry's face screw up in indignation.
"Handsome," the child argued, obviously having been hanging around the Slytherin's a little too long. "I'm not… adore…" He trailed off, unsure how to use the word.
"Handsome," Hermione agreed with a nod. "You're very handsome!" She leaned down so she was eye level with the boy, her next words spoken in whispers so that no one would overhear the sentence. "We'll charm an animal or two onto the jacket for you, okay."
The boy instantly clapped his hands in delight. And upon closer inspection Hermione realized that the tuxedo wasn't black at all, but a very dark shade of green.
Resisting the urge to role her eyes because of what her fiancé had chosen, the witch merely stood up and nodded. "How about we get you something handsome to wear for the holidays? Surprise your daddies."
Instantly Harry agreed, looking up at Draco as if here was the idol he had never met before. "Can we Dwaco! Can we?"
At the blonde's nod the child exclaimed that he was going to show his uncles the outfit before running towards the entrance. Draco fast on his heels.
Remus and Sirius had taken an inconspicuous post at the only entry and exit of the store. While they were pretty sure that Albus wouldn't attempt to kidnap the child amidst the muggles, they wanted to be cautious. By monitoring anyone who came into the store for magic, or traces of it. They also trusted that the other duo would keep their eye on the child, and wouldn't let anyone touch Harry without permission. So, no one could predict the boy running at full speed into the legs of a brunette man as he ran for his uncles.
With a surprised sound from the collision, Harry instantly fell to the floor. It was almost in unison that he began to cry from the impact, having not only fallen on his bum but having dirtied the new outfit he was so proud of.
The man, startled about the child having come out of nowhere, didn't react for a moment. Before Draco could reach the pair, the adult had already crouched down to speak to the sobbing child.
"Hey kiddo," he seemed kind. Brown eyes glittering as he tilted his head at the small child. "You're not hurt, are you?"
When Harry's sobbing turned into sniffles, he made eye contact with the older man and shook his head in response, still too shaken to respond verbally.
"You look very handsome in that tuxedo. You know, you look like one of my cousins, he was quite handsome too." The man held out a hand to pull up the little boy.
"Let's dust you off," the male grinned when Harry took his hand and helped him to his feet. The little boy now face level with the crouching man. "Is this your dad?" The man inquired as Draco stepped forward, having witnessed the interaction. He didn't want to make a scene unless they absolutely had to.
Before Harry could answer Draco stepped in, smiling in a way that was charming to anyone who didn't know him. "Draco, I'm his cousin. Thank you for stopping the tears."
"Dudley Dursley," the man introduced himself. "Not a problem." He glanced down at the little boy that had moved towards Hermione. "He looks so much like my cousin… I haven't seen him in years."
Draco shrugged.
"What's his name?" Dudley asked, smiling when the little boy whom had started to suck on his thumb followed the woman towards the dressing rooms. Another brunette man joining them to help the child change from the tuxedo.
"Harry," there didn't seem to be any harm in telling the muggle the truth.
"That was my cousins' name!" Dudley grinned wide.
"What a coincidence," Draco spoke casually.
"Yes," the man agreed. "Um…. This may seem strange but… here." Reaching around his neck, Dudley pulled off a long necklace that had been hidden underneath his shirt. At the end of the chain a small lily flower. It was obvious that the jewel cost a lot of money.
"My cousin, he disappeared. I think he might be gone permanently," Dudley admitted to the raised brow of the blond.
"I… I didn't treat him right when we were younger. I didn't know any better, but that isn't an excuse," he explained. "Before I left our childhood home, I found a box of things from his parents, I've carried this around ever since." He held out the necklace to Draco. "I'm giving it to your Harry, if that's alright."
Draco took the necklace tentatively, looking at the details in surprise.
"I know it doesn't make things right with my cousin, but I think he's gone forever. I've searched for him, but he's truly disappeared. Maybe… just maybe giving this to you can represent some semblance of how sorry I am. His mother's necklace."
"I can't take this," Draco protested to the muggle. There was no traces of magic on the charm, but it seemed like too much value to just give up.
"Please," the man's eyes had started to color in what appeared to be tears. "Please take it, give it to him. For me."
Draco nodded after a brief pause, watching as the man smiled in relief. It seemed like whatever weight had been on his shoulders had lessened a little. Dudley stood straighter, grinning. "Thank you mate."
With that, the brunette turned and left, unaware that he had just delivered Lily Potter's necklace to her son.
The street seemed a quite busier than it had been when they had first arrived. In fact, the muggles seemed to be in a hurry as they tried to shop for last minute presents they had not purchased. The good news was that the muggles were so caught up in their own world that they didn't notice the odd group walking towards an undescriptive door. A door they all walked past.
Hermione curled the little boy in her arms closer to her chest, glad that the men had offered to carry their purchases. Sirius had whined that they couldn't shrink the packages until they were out of prying eyes, especially the heavy books they had found for the wedding.
Somehow, the witch had also managed to purchase an elf onesie for the little boy. She was sure that Severus and Tom would truly enjoy seeing the child beaming in the Christmas outfit.
Harry had fallen asleep, still a little sick from earlier the child had tired quickly. They had decided to dine in the wizarding world, the dark lord having access to private dining rooms at most establishments.
"You could have bought bricks and there wouldn't have been a difference," Draco complained, carrying most of the books.
"It sounds like you can't hold your own weight," Sirius teased, although he had been saying similar things only moments before.
"I can hold more weight than you, stupid dog." Draco sneered.
"I dare you," Sirius laughed.
When the blond male smirked at this challenge and faced the old wizard, he didn't except the man to lift his own items and toss them atop of the stack Draco was already carrying.
"Hey!" Draco yelped, withholding the urge to throw the items at Sirius as the black-haired man took everything back. Hermione telling them to be quiet even as Remus reached over and smacked the dog behind the head.
Harry groaned, instantly silencing the whole group. He moved slightly in Hermione's arms before burying his face in the witch's shoulder once more.
Stepping into the Leaky Cauldron, they instantly spotted the dark lord and Snape. The men sat in a darker corner of the pub, both with a pint in their hands as they awaited the group to return. Unlike when they had left, the two men looked content, as if they had just taken over the wizarding world again.
Moving to the table Hermione was the first at the table, smiling when Severus reached for his son. There was no hesitation as they smoothly transferred the sleeping child from one to the other, Harry simply nuzzling his father.
The packages were instantly shrunk and shoved into pockets. The rest of the group having moved so that they could take a seat at the table. Curtains were instantly drawn over the table, the two men having closed off their area without having to be told so by the group.
"He wasn't feeling great towards the end, so we thought we should eat here instead." Hermione explained.
"They have some simple soup," Remus shrugged. "I think some simple chicken noodle soup will be beneficial for him."
The two-father's approved, signaling that they wanted food for their table. It wouldn't take long to serve as they had already decided before the group arrived that they would not return to the muggle world for their meal.
"So, how did the task go?" Sirius inquired when silence had set at the table.
"Splendidly," Tom grinned. "In fact, I haven't felt this good since the ministry takeover."
Severus matched the feral look. "Harry won't ever have to worry about those people again. Blasted muggles."
Before anyone could inquire further, the little boy started to wake. Everyone changed the subject, unsure how mention of the past might affect the spell that had changed all their lives. What if mention of Harry's history brought back the memories that they wanted the child to forget?
"Daddy?" Harry whimpered, his little hands clutching the man's robes even as he pushed himself away to look.
"Yes Harry," the man confirmed softly. "I'm right here. Will you wake up a little bit for me, for some chicken soup?"
The child, although tired, nodded gently. When he released his father's clothing the potion's master finally noticed the small necklace on his son's neck. He froze, hand gently touching the charm as he looked at the group.
"Where did you get this?" He spoke in a whisper.
"A man gave me it!" Harry explained joyfully, missing the way that Severus had frozen.
"We ran into a muggle who wanted to give Harry something. I checked it for magic, it's cleared." Draco explained.
Severus looked up at them, frozen and pale. Tom even put his hand on his husband's frozen shoulder, drawing his eyes. "Severus?"
"This necklace," Severus whispered. "It belonged to Lily."