“Dad.” Dudley looked pai.”
“Well, we did!” Eveunia looked afraid, now. “We fed him, ahed him, a him up as one of our own—”
Harry ould a like that night with Aunt Marge, where it beame ooo ma goi this hurt more tha it would, beause after all those nights with Dudley and how well din, he had atually onvihey might start to like him. He was wrong.
“How you raised me?” His voie was low, but everyo. “You didn’t raise me. Him—” He jerked his head towards Dudley, who was linging to his wine gss and lookih the floor. “Him you raised. He’s the ohe one you bought all the presents for, ahdays fave him a real bedroom. The one you ared for. He was your son. And what was I?”
No answer.
&ed an answer, and he was goi o was I, Vernon?” If he was youhis level of anger would send his magi spiraling out of ontrol, but as it was he ould just feel himself shaking with the i all. “Say what I was.” Nothing. “I was the thing that showed up on your doorstep that you wa with the week’s garbage, wasn’t I? A stain o family image. I wasn’t the one you raised. I was the oarved. I was the oed. I was the one you loked i ao, for years.” No one moved. Only Drao tried to make it better, reahing out to grab at Harry’s hand, but he flung him off. “Tell me if I’m wrong.”
Mehanially, Harry sat down the wine gss. “You want to khihese years, all the horrible things I’ve seen, all the people I wathed die, I still fihinking that ehis house was what ruined me.” He was sayihing he had never had beeo say before, but sudde wahere anymore, so he left, yanking ourning to go.
“Wait just oe!”
Unle Vernon seized him by the wrist, and Harry was done, was going to turn and hit him aop, but he dido, beause Drao was there, the threat lear even without the wa go and Drao moved between them.
“Don’t touh him. You doo y a hand on him, you uand?” He eaking softly, but i made it lear he was used to beio. “You said he was a war hero, but he’s he war. He saved this whole damimes over, and not even one of your filthy fingers should ome lose to him again or I’ll persohat you lose a hand.”
Drao lets him go. Uaggers bak, leaviunia aaring at him. Harry thinks he would rather die thahe fall out of this.
“Thank you for dinner, Mrs. Dursley.” Drao said, bak to perfetly polite, buttoning up his oat and smoothing out the wri was lovely.”
The looks on their faes almost made it all worth it.
Drao
He ould hear Harry talking on the ph on a oion with Dudley.
“Listen, no, I’m sorry.” Pause. “I should never have ome, I knew I was going to lose my ool, it ause. “I just feel horrible, I ruined your birthday.”
A lohen Harry made a sound that Drao thought was a sob but was atually just a strangled ugh.
&?” Uer. “Luky bastard. Should tell her it’s your birthday every night.”
Probably the girlfriend. Do guys always disuss their girlfriends? Drao wouldn’t know.
“I mean, yeah, we aher ae, just let me get a piee of paper. You want to go where?” The sounds through draen. “You kno lub?” Pause, mhter, this time muffled. “Does Alie khere?”
They really are friends, now. “Okay. And I’m sain, about today, I didn’t mean…” Longer pause, a soo, Dudley.”
There was a bang, ahi the robably the pad of paper he had been writing on, but maybe the phone. Drao didn’t want to go fi.
People suk, he th to hear when Harry roahing him. But you quite like family.
Drao gives him an h enet a shower ale down in the living room ao Lee aly radio show.
&ly radio show. Gee is a very spuest.)
“I didn’t know.” Drao stayed by the doorway, letting Harry deide if he waalk or not. pany wasn’t alful. “How bad it was.”
“I didn’t tell you.” Harry aepted the gift of hot hoote, and Drao took that as an invitation to sit down beside him. “I did of people, outside the Weasleys and Hermione. MGonagall, one.”
Drao he information wash over him. He didn’t ry, but part of him thought that Harry alk about it. Or maybe that was just the selfish part of himself that wao ompare sars. “How old were you the first time?”
“Five.” Harry took a dri in his mouth, even though Drao had war was still muh too hot for that. “I had draiture of a magiian. You know, the muggle kind—big wand with the sparks that flew out, pointy hat, the lohey loked me i for a week, o one a day. Like they ould starve the magi out of me.”
It was a wohey hadn’t killed him. Drao wants to say something, but sorry does whehi.
(He has a horrible fsh of bak i year, when he moked Harry about not bei home for the holidays, but he had ed it to be really true, just thought