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Tuesday 16/1/90
Dear Spencer
I'm sorry if I offended you. I didn't realise that you weren't Christian. Are you religious? What religion are you? Are there other days you do celebrate? Have I said the wrong thing?
If you don't like talking about it it's okay, it's really none of my business. I don't think I've met anyone who doesn't celebrate Christmas before, or if I have, they weren't stupid enough to tell the Dursleys. Vernon hates anyone who is different to him in any way. It doesn't make any difference to our friendship, the Dursleys claim to be Church of England but they aren't churchgoers, I think that Petunia might have liked to be but getting Dudley to sit still in Church would be impossible and it's the one place I expect even she would be embarrassed by his behaviour.
I had a great Christmas feast. You'll laugh about it I'm sure. On the night before Christmas eve I couldn't sleep and I heard Dudley come down and help himself to the shortbread, gingerbread and other sweets, and I heard Petunia scolding him as he went back upstairs with a big bowlful of stuff, then later I heard Vernon come down and help himself to things, I heard him cutting Christmas ham and opening the tin Petunia used for the fruitcake, this time Petunia caught him as he put the ham back in the fridge but she didn't open the fridge to check how much he'd eaten, so I waited until I was absolutely sure they were all asleep and went out and helped myself too. I had a big feed of the ham and hid a couple of old lunchboxes full of treats that will keep for a week or two in my cupboard. Petunia was furious with both of them and gave them a stern lecture when they tried to blame me. They didn't really think I'd done it Vernon thinks Dudley took more than he admitted to and Petunia thinks it was the two of them, I don't think that Dudley thought about it at all. Petunia sent Vernon out to buy another ham and more ingredients and we spent another day baking Christmas treats to replace the ones she thinks they ate, and I spent the day eating the scraps as I baked. I didn't get much of the roast dinner, not even a few small bits of meat as I was dishing up because for some reason Vernon likes to carve the meat at the table at Christmas. I can't think why! He never does any other day, he thinks it's a waste of time and Petunia has to carve and dish up before she calls him to the table. Still I managed to hold back a bowl of vegetables and the Yorkshire pudding with a little bit of the sauces for me as I was putting things in the serving platters. They had so much food it's a wonder that the weight of it didn't break the table so I'm sure they won't've missed it.
I'm sorry if I've spoiled the hideout for you. Meeting you there has changed my whole life for the better in so many ways, and I'm sad that it's made yours worse in anyway. You need a place to feel safe and comfortable. I hope you will get over what you're feeling about it now. Remember that it was yours long before you met me and that you spent a lot of happy and comfortable hours there safely. Hopefully it will seem normal to you again soon. I wish I could send you something that would help.
I hadn't thought about school funding and stuff like that before, but it is the same here. I thought the teachers just believed the stories that the Dursleys told about me and that they were stupid not to notice or care that Dudley's homework is never in his handwriting. But you're right about the class sizes and we haven't had any new books or equipment in an age, half the readers are nearly falling apart, or at least half the ones they give to Dudley and I are, maybe they know that they're more likely to be wrecked with us. Dudley doesn't treat any books well and he takes delight in getting me in trouble by stealing or ruining my books, and making me hand them back to the teacher in the most horrendous condition.
I read up on some of the things you said about the stars and their origins, it all sounds interesting but it also sounds like there might be a bit of guesswork in all those theories. Or maybe it's not guesswork, just things so far out of my understanding that I don't even fully know what I don't know about it. But it sounds like we might never know which theory is right, I guess that's why the people working on it are so interested it's like a giant mystery. I guess it's people with a mind like yours that may one day solve it, I found it interesting to think about but even one look at the math theories involved was enough to make my head swim. Is that something you think you might want to study?
Don't worry about me, I'm safe, warm and eating well, between the cooking Petunia is teaching me and helping out with the basic ingredient preparation for the restaurant I'm becoming quite a proficient cook, and I've been getting to eat the ones that don't turn out good enough to serve to Vernon or in the restaurant. Thanks to his pigging out on desserts in all the buffets in Las Vegas, Dudley has grown out of his new winter coat already so while it's still so much too big for me that it looks ridiculous and has some disgusting stains down the front that I can't get off, it still feels almost new and thick and warm. Petunia should have known better than to buy Dudley a light blue coat, but of course he got to pick it out. It's also one of those waterproof coats that has an interior drawstring to make it fit better around the waist so it isn't quite as drafty as it could've been and being too big for me it makes an excellent blanket as well.
I spend most of my free time at lunch and recess in the library, thought the librarian has started to look at me suspiciously because the books I'm reading are far beyond the reading level I have to pretend to be at in class. She must have been talking to my teacher. Still she can see that I'm not harming her precious books so she's left me alone so far. I miss our conversations about books. I'm currently reading the Chronicles of Narnia series, which is a lot easier going than the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings but still really interesting. Of course, I'd get in trouble if anyone tells the Dursleys I'm reading it. It's not normal enough to fit into their world view, and I think the whole idea of a fantasy world that children enter through their cupboard would especially upset them, since I spend so much time in one. Maye they'd stop locking me in it though, which might be good but I'm coming to appreciate the alibi being locked in gives me. Fantasy novels, movies and video games are the only thing I've seen them refuse to buy for Dudley and not give in on, they'll buy him the most violent and inappropriate things instead. They seem almost afraid of anything not normal. Can you recommend me anything else I should read?
I'm still practicing card counting when I can. I borrowed a second pack of cards from Dudley since I could do one pack nearly all the time now. Don't worry he won't miss it, he hadn't even opened it. I think he came home with a pack from all the casino's Vernon and Petunia went to.
Your friend
Harry
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