Chapter 3
“Hello,” said the visitor jovially. “I’m Professor Dumbledore.”
Why on earth was he here? Unless he’d come to deliver their letters in person which would be far from usual. Harry couldn’t help his trepidation thinking of the last time Dumbledore had appeared unannounced, hopefully, there would be no bad news this time.
“Hello, professor,” Harry replied warmly. “I’m Harry and this is Damion.”
“Why are you here?” Damion asked shooting a derisive look at the headmaster’s lilac robes.
“Well, I work at a rather special school that you’ve both been invited to attend.”
Harry found the man’s eyes far too sad to match his contented expression. He tried to remember if they had always been like that here in this new world but his memories from being a baby lacked the sharpness to properly tell.
“We’ve already got scholarships to Foxvally thank you.” Damion dismissed. “Whatever they’ve told you we are perfectly capable of functioning in normal society.”
Harry chuckled, it amused him how Damion would default to talking with prickly eloquence whenever he met someone new. Still, he laid a comforting hand on his brother’s shoulder and asked, “Why don’t we hear him out first?”
“I won’t let them ship us off to some mental institution!” Damion replied quickly.
“Nor will I.” Agreed Harry and Damions tense shoulders loosened slightly.
Dumbledore paused as if temporarily lost in thought. “I assure you Hogwarts isn’t that kind of school.” He said finally.
“What kind is it then?” Demanded Damion.
“It is a school of magic.” Said Dumbledore.
Harry noticed the headmaster was watching Damion's reaction intently and for a brief moment, he was struck by the memory of watching a much younger Dumbledore meeting eleven-year-old Tom Riddle for the first time.
“What… there’s a school for magic?” Damion asked breathlessly turning to Harry in wonder. “Is… is that what I did, magic?”
Harry smiled back but his brain was racing. Did Dumbledore see Tom in Damion? Did that make him a threat? No, surely not.
“What is it you did?” Asked Dumbledore calmly.
Harry was quick to interject. “Surely you know Professor? As you’re here.”
“I’m afraid not, after all, I have more pressing tasks than constantly monitoring prospective students.”
“And yet here you are.” Harry countered.
“Here I am.” Dumbledore agreed.
Damion seemed to notice the underlying tension and glared at Dumbledore. “My cousin hurt Harry, I made him pay, sent him flying all the way across the room. I’d do it again too.”
“Damion!” Harry snarled. He very rarely used such a harsh tone with his brother especially when he knew the latter was simply being protective but the words:
‘I can make them hurt’
Where echoing around in his brain. He felt like his brother was mimicking Tom on purpose at this point. He wanted to yell at Dumbledore that his brother was nothing like Tom, that he was just scared. Damion quieted instantly turning to Harry looking guilty.
“Apologise to Professor Dumbledore!” Harry demanded sternly.
“Sorry, Professor.” Said Damion quietly.
“I apologise for my cheek too,” added Harry tensely, “as Damion said I was recently attacked, as such we are both a bit on edge. Still, we should not take that out on you.”
Dumbledore's attention was on him now, his face a mixture of intrigue and reservation. “Apologies accepted, I understand this is all a lot to take in.”
“Thank you, Professor.” Harry replied.
Silence dragged awkwardly for a moment before Damion glanced at Harry who gave a nod in return.
“So… there’s really a whole school for magic?” Damion asked.
“Yes, it’s one of many around the world.” Dumbledore agreed.
“Does that mean there are people all over the world that can do magic?” He continued.
“It does.”
“Can you?”
“I can.” Agreed Dumbledore.
“Can you prove it?” Damion asked his voice somewhere between hopeful and demanding.
Next to him, Harry let out a pained huff, clearly remembering Riddle demanding the same.
“Harry, are you ok?” Damion demanded quickly, all focus going straight to his brother. “Should you be resting?”
“I’m fine, just a twinge.” Harry lied.
“The phrase two birds with one stone comes to mind.” Dumbledore said wand appearing in his hand.
He brought it over Harry with one quick swish and all the pain in his body disappeared.
Damion gasped in amazement touching the pale skin of Harry’s arm that had been black and blue only moments before. “Can you teach me how to do that?”
Dumbledore chuckled, “That spell will be a bit beyond you at the moment. But I’m sure if you do decide to come to Hogwarts you’ll be able to master it by the time you leave.”
“Can we?” Damion emplored.
“Of course we can.” Harry agreed. “Wherever you go I’ll follow remember.”
“Magic! It’s like a dream.” Damion muttered distractedly.
Harry on the other hand was still trying to figure out why Dumbledore had come in person.
“As Damion said we'd be happy to attend… however our situation is somewhat… Er… undesided at the moment. Do you know what’s happening with our housing?” He prodded hoping to get something useful out of the cryptic man.
“Ah yes, I’ll be taking you back to your parents.” Dumbledore replied.
“They are not our parents!” Damion spat angrily but Harry gripped his arm.
“I don’t think he means are aunt and uncle, do you, professor?” Harry replied.
“No, I don’t.”
“Which is strange as we were told our parents were dead.”
Dumbledore looked truly surprised then his face hardened. “I see, you were never given your parents letters?”
“No, we got nothing. Only a story about drunks who liked to drive.”
Damion interjected, “Harry what’s going on?”
“It seems our dear cousins have been bending the truth once again.” Harry explained.
“I would call it maliciously lying myself.” Said Dumbledore his expression dark. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t expecting to explain, but clearly I’ll need to. First of all James and Lily… your parents that is, are alive and well.”
Harry watched Damion carefully but the boy didn’t react much.
Dumbledore continued, “The reason you were left with your aunt and uncle was because you were all in great danger. A wizard going by the name Voldemort has been targeting your family for years now if he knew of your existence, he would seek to do you great harm. As we believed you were Squibs, people without magic that is, your parents thought you be safer living with muggles.”
“We?” Asked Damion and Harry couldn’t help but feel a spike of pride at his brother's sharpness.
“Yes, I was the one who incorrectly made the call that the two of you were not magical. As such hiding with muggles is no longer…”
“You’re the reason we had to grow up with the Dursleys?!” Damion demanded furiously.
Harry had never been surprised Dumbledore had mistaken them as squibs, they practically were at the time, and how could the headmaster have known they had just expended all their magic? He had no idea they’d been anywhere near the fight. It was a reasonable assumption.
“No,” Harry interjected firmly, “our parents made that choice. In order to protect us right?”
“That is correct,” Dumbledore agreed, “although I do take some of the blame. They chose your aunt and uncle because of my mistake, they believed you would be safer.”
“They believed wrong.” Snarled Damion, “I don’t care why it was, they abandoned us, I won’t go back to them. We are fine on our own!”
“Damion.” Harry said gently. “You know I won’t let anything bad happen right?”
Damion was breathing heavily and looked to be on the edge of tears. “I don’t want to see them.”
“Okay, if you don’t want to we won’t.” Harry agreed.
Dumbledore looked conflicted so Harry addressed him. “If you try and force us to see them we’ll run away and you never see us again.”
“No, I won’t force you. This is all just rather unexpected. Your mother believed so strongly in your Aunt… this is not a situation any of us saw coming.” Dumbledore said regretfully.
“Clearly. Some due diligence would have gone a long way.” Harry replied coolly.
“Yes, it certainly would have.”
“Do…” Damion started, “Do you want to see them?”
Harry sighed, “If you never want us to see them again that’s okay with me.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“I would like to see them,” Harry admitted.
“But what if they’re just like the Dursleys?”
“Then I’ll turn them into frogs and we will run away. We are wizards, right? It can be that hard.”
Damion snorted slightly. “Ugly frogs?”
“Yeah, super ugly.”
“What if… they like you but not me?”
“Then we’d have to leave before I did something worse than turn them into frogs.”
“You promise?”
“Promise.” Harry agreed.
“then… maybe we… we can just see what they’re like?” Damion said quietly.
Dumbledore looking incredibly relieved added, “I’m glad you’re willing to give them a chance, my word may not mean much to you yet but I promise, your parents love you dearly.”
“One thing first.” Said Harry, “I want you to promise that if we decide to leave you will help us however you can.” He didn’t know why he needed the extra insurance. He already knew their parents loved them and that they’d be safe. He was sure of it, and yet, his stomach still squirmed uncomfortably. He told himself he must be asking for Damion's sake, yet he was the one who would be assured by Dumbledore's allegiance. Damion evidently didn’t trust the man.
“Okay.” Dumbledore agreed easily holding out his hand for Harry to shake. Harry took it gratefully some of his own apprehension melting away.
“Thank you.” He muttered squeezing the man’s hand. Looking up he saw the headmaster's conflicted face. “Is something wrong?”
“No, no. Just an old man reminiscing. I held you once when you were just a baby, you were so tiny. I struggle to believe how much you’ve grown.” Dumbledore replied sadly.
Damion let out a weak snort, “getting a taste of your own medicine there Harry.”
Harry grinned back. “Yea, yea.”