Despite the small age difference, Petunia made sure to give each of the boys a separate birthday. She didn't do it the first two years, considering them too small to really understand, but at four they were already quite intelligent. She had to grudgingly agree that Harry was much more intelligent and mature than Dudley. This was no surprise, though. He took so much after his mother that he could not be any less intelligent. Yet he seemed to be a good influence on Dudley, moderating his temper and making him more intelligent than she had a right to hope, considering her and Vernon's (lack of) academic achievements. She could even see this in their auras.
Vernon wasn't happy when Harry's accidental magic started to show on more than bath toys. At first, he wanted "to wipe this weirdness out of the boy!" but a stern lecture by Petunia made him realize that this may be too costly for him, even if he wasn't convinced that it could not be done.
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Petunia was thankful that her parents had the foresight to register the house in her name alone, although it was given to them as a wedding present. Otherwise, she would have felt much less secure in her position and would have probably let Vernon's prejudice prevail, harming Harry more than she could ever forgive herself.
Vernon wasn't a bad adoptive father, though. Although he needed occasional reminders, he treated both boys about the same, encouraging them to stretch their abilities to the maximum. He trained Dudley for power and endurance, judging his heavy build, similar to Vernon's, unsuitable for speed. He trained Harry for speed and agility. The boy had his father's build — skinny and light, which made him perfect for such activities. He still tried to give him some strengthening exercises which Harry did dutifully.
Each boy had his birthday celebrated with their kindergarten friends, eating pizza and cake and finishing off with some ice cream. Dudley's birthday had vanilla and cream cake with some colourful frosting, while Harry's was chocolate-based, as the boy seemed to like this brown concoction best, although Dudley was slightly allergic to it.
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Harry also had some late-evening visitors. Albus Dumbledore used to visit on Halloween and on his birthday. Minerva McGonagall — another Hogwarts teacher — used to visit in autumn and spring while Remus ('That's good enough. When somebody calls me Lupin I usually need to beware,') came whenever he could, no more than four or five times each year.
Petunia, who at first thought not to let any of the magical people into Harry's life soon thought better of that and grudgingly agreed that although the magical world didn't deserve Harry, he still needed to know his heritage.
–..–
It was the day after his fourth birthday that Harry asked, "Aunt Petunia, why don't you let me call you Mum, as Dudley does? Don't you love me?"
Petunia felt her heart overflowing along with her eyes. She bent down to Harry and hugged him for all her worth. "I love you, dear. I love you more than words can tell, but I'm not your Mum. It wouldn't be right if I let you call me Mum when that title is reserved for somebody else."
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"Then who is my Mum?" he asked stubbornly.
Petunia was holding him in her arms. She walked to the living room, sat him on the sofa and sat at his side. "Your mum was my sister. She loved you so much that she was willing to give her life for you. That may be why she eventually died, although nobody knows. She's now in heaven and watches over us from there. I want you to know that. As much as I love you, I can never replace her."
Discover moreFan fiction merchandiseAuthor collaboration toolsDigital book publishingStory writing promptsFan art commissionsHarry looked sad. "I can't remember her at all."
"We have some photos. I'll show you." Petunia took him to the study, where she kept the family albums. She didn't dare show him the Potter albums with the moving pictures — they could raise too many questions — but there were a few muggle photos of his parents in her regular albums.
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She started from the end. "You see, this baby is you when you were just a few days old, and your Mum is holding you close to her heart."
Harry studied the picture closely, following his mother's features with his fingers, yet he said nothing.
"This is a picture of your parents about a year before you were born. They visited us here and we took a picture together."
Harry studied the picture, paying attention to his father this time. "Where's Dudley?" he asked.
"Dudley was not born yet, just like you. Both of you were born about a year later."
This seemed to be a difficult concept for Harry to grasp. Petunia decided to show him only one more picture. "This is a picture from their wedding. They both looked magnificent."
Harry just looked and said nothing.
–..–
Petunia almost forgot that day, when Harry approached her again, a few weeks later. "May I look at the album, Auntie? I want to see my parents again."
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This made her decision. She took the album to a photo shop the next day. A week later she gave Harry his own album, containing copies of all the muggle pictures of his parents that she could find. She was rewarded with a big hug and several wet kisses, along with the statement, "I love you, Aunt Petunia." It made her consider the money spent on the album as a very good investment.
Discover moreWriting contest entriesBook review servicesCrossover story ideasAnime merchandiseComic book subscriptions–..–
Petunia continued monitoring the auras of her children. Harry's was growing wider and brighter as he was growing up, except near his scar, where the darkness seemed to devour it. Dudley's was also changing, yet she couldn't seem to pinpoint the changes. It was still thin and dim, roughly the same as his father's, but not quite, and it was different than the previous year. Was it more colourful or a bit brighter? She wasn't sure.
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Dudley's fifth birthday happened to be on a bright and sunny day. It was natural to celebrate it in the backyard, where the lawn was freshly mowed and the flowers shone brightly. The children started arriving shortly after ten and the last left them before two o'clock, leaving the adult Dursleys quite exhausted.
The children were playing with some of Dudley's presents when Vernon spotted a movement in the grass. It wasn't the straight line of a small animal running, but an undulating line — a snake. He was unable to react fast after having a bunch of brats and their mothers as his guests and he was watching with morbid fascination as the snake approached the children, hissing menacingly.
Discover moreMovie memorabiliaTV show guidesWatch CartoonsCartoonsShop Kids' BooksDudley looked suddenly frightened, yet Harry only looked at the snake and hissed back. There followed a short exchange of hisses and then Harry moved to the remains of the feast and threw a piece of half-eaten cake to the snake, who caught it in its mouth and slithered away. It looked to Vernon as if Harry and the snake had conversed.
"What was that?!" Vernon asked, still terrified of the snake and thankful nobody was harmed.
"Didn't you hear? It just wished Dudley happy birthday and asked if it could also have a bit of the food," Harry replied.
"It talked to you?" That was more than Vernon could accept.
"I've heard it," Dudley added. "It sounded like English to me."
Discover moreRead Sci-Fi BooksFind Family LawyerHire BabysittersWatch Sci-Fi FilmsTrack PregnancyPetunia was coming out of the kitchen with a big plastic bag to collect the garbage. "What are you talking about?"
"A snake came here and wished me a happy birthday. I was too frightened to answer, but Harry answered instead. It then asked for some food and Harry gave it some remains of the cake," Dudley told her.
"You heard it all?" she asked, still a bit unsure.
"I only heard them hissing unintelligibly," Vernon said.
Petunia sighed heavily. "Are you sure the snake talked to you?" she asked the boys.
"Of course," they both answered, sounding offended by her disbelief.
"And you answered in a language the snake understood?" she asked Harry.
"I thought I was speaking English," he said apologetically. "I also invited it to come at my birthday," he added reluctantly.
Petunia sat heavily on the chair near Vernon. "I actually hope it won't remember the invitation," she blurted. "Others may not welcome a snake's presence among their children."
"That's what it said. That's also why it waited until all our friends left before coming to greet me," Dudley said.
His mother was desperately looking for a change of subject. She saw the boys' clothes, stained with pizza, cream and other foods. "You're quite dirty now, and so are your clothes. Go in and wash your hands and faces and then leave your clothes in the bathroom and put on clean ones. Up you go!"
As the children were leaving she looked at her husband's reddened face. He was trying so hard to do the right thing, she thought, and now he would need even more restraint. She was quite sure now that Dudley was also magical to some extent. It would not be easy for Vernon to accept this, she thought. "We'll talk later," she said, making it sound a bit suggestive. That would keep Vernon on good behaviour.
–..–
Albus came to visit Harry the next evening. Harry liked the old man who was always wearing very colourful robes. Petunia suspected he was seeing the old man more like an entertaining clown than the figure of authority that the wizarding community saw. It was alright with her, though. That man, the so-called 'most powerful wizard of our times,' had failed to protect her sister. He deserved no better.
Yet she respected his knowledge. Once he told Harry a good-night story, tucking him into bed, she stopped him on his way out. "Both children conversed yesterday with a snake. Does it mean anything special?"
Albus looked surprised. "Are you sure?"
"Vernon saw the snake hissing and Harry hissing back. Dudley was only listening, understanding it well."
Albus thought for a while, his hand going along his beard. "That is a very rare gift, you know, and it's certainly magical, yet it is usually associated with dark wizards…"
He thought some more and then added, "It shouldn't worry you, though. Just let me know if Dudley does any accidental magic, will you?"
Petunia nodded and the headmaster took his leave and vanished.
–..–
She was thankful that it was raining on Harry's birthday, keeping the celebration inside and the snake outside. She didn't mind that it meant some extra cleaning work for her. It even turned for the best, as Harry volunteered to help her and Dudley followed suit, not wanting to seem less of a loving son. Harry also took the garbage out. Petunia wasn't aware of the fact that he met the snake outside and had a long conversation with it before stepping back inside.
The children had also devised a new game that year. As Dudley could never catch Harry on his own, Harry agreed to play against a few of the other boys, all of heavier build. With four boys chasing him, they should have had some chance of catching him. It even worked well a few times. Harry would get patted on his shoulder for a game well played.
–..–
It was during early spring when Dudley showed his first burst of accidental magic. Petunia had never let Vernon act any differently with Harry than with Dudley, yet she couldn't force that rule on Vernon's sister. They were visiting her for Easter when one of her dogs started menacing Harry, baring its teeth and growling threateningly. Marge, with her finesse, commented, "Dogs are quite keen at spotting any abnormality."
This didn't sit well with Dudley. He turned to his aunt. "You must take that dog away and apologize to Harry!" he told her.
The big woman didn't budge. "Don't worry, he's too skinny to be of any interest to Ripper."
That was a mistake, as both Marge and Ripper were unceremoniously slammed to the nearest wall. "You! Must! Apologize!" Dudley repeated.
Harry tried to calm him down. "The dog didn't touch me. It's alright, really."
Dudley disregarded him, focusing only on his aunt.
"Alright, I apologize! Now leave my house! All of you!" she shouted, still forced against the wall, her feet a few inches above the floor.
"Good. We're leaving," Dudley said, turning around and walking out, the others following him, while his aunt and her dog slid to the floor.
–..–
Vernon was fuming all the way back home. As soon as they closed the door at home he lashed at Dudley and Harry. "What have you done? Are you becoming a freak? I won't allow this!"
Harry didn't know what to say. Dudley stood up to his father, though. "I was just protecting Harry, as he would have done had the dog attacked me. I was so furious! Doesn't she know Harry is part of the family?"
"But you blew her into that wall! How did you do it?"
"I… don't know, really. I was just furious. Her wretched dog was misbehaving and she was badmouthing Harry instead of keeping her dog where it should be. Then… it just happened."
Vernon looked suspiciously at him. "Is it the first time things 'just happen' around you?"
Petunia, sensing a problem, intervened before it grew out of proportion. "Vernon, dear, why don't we sit for some tea and discuss this civilly? I know that driving always makes you edgy and you drove both ways with barely a pause."
Vernon grumbled but knew better than to argue. He followed his wife into the kitchen, missing the kids' conversation.
"When you sent your aunt to the wall it was almost like magic, you know."
"It looked like it, but I didn't do anything, really. I only wanted to stop her and her dog."
Harry started thinking. There had been a few incidents when things happened at times he was nervous or excited, but also when Dudley was in similar moods. His aunt never mentioned these incidents, though. This was the first time Vernon had seen one.
"I'll ask one of my parents' friends when one comes to visit. They seem to know weirder stuff," Harry concluded. Dudley just nodded as they both entered the kitchen.
Petunia took her time preparing tea and serving it. The kids were served biscuits as well, but Vernon had to follow a strict diet by the doctor's order forbidding the biscuits and most other sweets. By the time she sat down with her family, she had already decided how to proceed.
"Harry, dear, do you remember what I've been telling you about your parents?"
"They loved me a lot and they were very special people," Harry replied what he had already known by heart.
"That's right, yes. They were special not only in the way they loved you and were loved by others, which was really special all by itself. They were also special in a very different way — they could do magic!"
Vernon scrunched his face but said nothing.
Harry's eyes opened wide. "Magic? Is that real?"
Petunia smiled reassuringly at him. "Yes, Harry. Magic is real, but very few people can do it. My sister could, but I can't. I believe you can, and maybe Dudley too."
Vernon could no longer keep his mouth shut. "Dudley is a normal boy. He wouldn't go for such a…"
Petunia's raised eyebrow stopped him immediately. Although he was much bigger and stronger than his wife, she still had enough power over him. He didn't fancy sleeping on the couch or on the lawn.
"Dudley is normal and so is Harry. Having some special talent doesn't make one abnormal nor a freak, or we would still be living in caves." She turned her attention back to Harry. "Lily was very talented, and not only in magic, but she was surely a great witch, as magical women are called, just as your father was a wizard, as magical men are called, and I believe you may also be a great wizard one day."
It was too much for a five-year-old boy to comprehend at once, yet he did understand some of it. "Will Dudley be a wizard too?" he asked.
Petunia smiled at him. "I'm not sure. His talents are different. He has some magical ability, but I'm not sure if that is enough to make him a wizard, just like you have muscles, but it's not enough for you to become a boxer."
He could understand the analogy well enough.
Petunia let them finish their tea with no more interruptions. Vernon also knew that whatever he had to say should only be said in their bedroom, with the door closed.
–..–
Dumbledore visited the next day. Petunia first told him all she could about the incident. She skipped over the family conversation after returning home, though. Dumbledore then talked to Harry.
"Were you frightened by the dog yesterday?"
Harry shrugged. "It looked vicious but… I think it was more afraid. I didn't feel threatened. I was afraid when Aunt Marge and the dog were blown into the wall. I didn't know what did it, at first."
"Do you know now?"
"It was Dudley's anger. He didn't like how she talked about me and he wanted to protect me. He insisted she apologize."
"Have there been other incidents when Dudley was scared or angry?"
Harry thought for a moment. "There were a few. I don't remember… Maybe it was because of me, though."
Dumbledore tried to find some more and then took Dudley aside for a private conversation. Dudley couldn't explain it any better than Harry had done, though.
"Do keep an eye on Dudley. If anything unexplained happens, let me know, will you?"
Petunia nodded. "Will Dudley also be a wizard?" she asked.
"It's too early to know, yet blowing a full-grown woman and a dog and sticking them to a wall is certainly an act of magic. Only time will tell if it grows within him or shrinks back. You're bound to know by the time they're eight or nine at most," he assured her. "Still, they don't need to already know about the magical world. They should still enjoy as normal a childhood as possible."
Petunia just nodded.