Dudley's Cousin, chapter 2
Feb. 3rd, 2015 08:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
scripsiTitle: Dudley's Cousin, chapter 2
Fandom: Harry Potter
Rating: G
Genre: Humor
Characters: Dudley Dursley, OFC, Harry Potter, Ginny Weasley, Petunia Dursley, Vernon Dursley
Warnings: None
Summary: Sue thought Dudley was such a nice, normal guy. And he was, but then there was the matter with his cousin.
AN: The first chapter of this story was written in Spetember 2011. Oh dear. But I am working on cleaning out my fic closet and this is a Little step in the right direction.
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
The Sunday visit from Dudley’s parents was as boring as usual. Petunia had cleaned, punctuating her work with some rather barbed comments on Sue’s housekeeping and now they were drinking coffee. Petunia was holding a monologue on how she, as the opposite to Sue, always made sure that she had always made the cookies herself when Dudley grew up. Vernon grunted in affirmation, though Sue noticed that he crammed the offending cookies into his mouth like there was tomorrow. Sue wisely kept her mouth shut, though Dudley told his mother several times that he happened to love Jaffa cakes, but Petunia pretended not to hear that. It was then the phone rang.
“Who could be calling at this time”, Petunia sniffed, as if calling on an early Sunday afternoon was more offensive than phoning in the middle of the night. Dudley went to answer and after a short conversation he returned, looking a bit odd.
“It was Harry”, he said and to Sue’s amazement his parents reacted surprisingly violently to this simple statement. Petunia went white and Vernon red, choking on his cookie.
“Harry!” Petunia said in a high-pitched voice and Dudley nodded.
“Yeah. He is in the vicinity and wanted to come up and say hi to Sue. They have never met before.”
“That’s it”, Vernon rose with an unexpected speed and agility. “We are leaving. Now, Petunia.”
Sue didn’t even have time to react before Dudley’s parents were dressed and ready to leave. In the door Petunia turned around: “How is Harry?”
Her voice trembled a little and Dudley had barely time to say “Fine. Got a nice girlfriend”, before Vernon yanked her away and they were gone.
Sue was completely dumbfounded. “Who is Harry?”
“My cousin. Our mum’s were sisters. I better make some more coffee.”
Sue was still wondering what kind of ogre Harry must be to provoke Vernon and Petunia’s speedy departure when the doorbell rang and she went to open the door. The man outside looked perfectly normal to her, though she could see no family resemblance to either Dudley or Petunia. He was not very tall and quite thin and with lots of unruly black hair that hung down over his forehead and with rather stunning green eyes that his glasses did little to hide. . He wore a leather jacket and jeans, both expensive by the look of it. She also noticed that he had an odd wary air about him, as if he was used of being stared at and had grown used to it even if he didn’t like it. Sue had once served coffee to a popular actor who had had the same air and she wondered if this Harry perhaps was famous for something and if she ought to know who he was.
Harry smiled and said, “Hello, I’m Harry and you must be Sue” and shook her hand before he turned to the girl behind him and said “This is Ginny.”
Ginny was gorgeous and looked very glamourous with her long red hair, but she also had a very nice smile and Sue liked her at once.
“Hello Dudley,” Harry said to his cousin and Sue noticed that they both seemed a bit strained and hurried to invite them in.
“Oh, Jaffa cakes!” Ginny said. “Mum always bakes the same old biscuits; you get to long for something else.”
They chatted a bit about Sue’s job and then she and Ginny realised that they both had a gaggle of older brothers and they compared notes for a while, but then Harry spoke.
“So, how is old Privet Drive? As awful as usual?”
“Did you spend a lot of time there when you were a kid?” Sue asked and Harry laughed rather bitterly.
“I grew up there, for my sins.”
“Oh, so you are more like brothers than cousin? Funny that Dudley never-”
“No!” Harry and Dudley answered together with such force that Sue jumped and fell silent.
“You see”, Harry explained after an uncomfortable silence, “Dudley and I never had many common interests and then I went away to a boarding school when we were eleven, St Brutus Sec-”
There Ginny threw a cookie at him, hitting him on the nose. “Behave, Harry!”
Harry smiled a bit ruefully. “Sorry, Big D, I’m just teasing you a little.”
“S’alright.” Dudley said and Sue saw that he was quite flushed.
The visit didn’t last long, but just when they were leaving Harry turned to Dudley. “I really think you should tell Sue everything about the family.”
“Mmm,” was all Dudley answered.
When they were gone Sue told him that she thought Ginny was great, but that she didn’t quite liked Harry. “I thought he was a bit mean to you. I bet he used to tease you all the time, when you were kid.”
“Harry’s all right.” But Dudley still looked flushed and unhappy. There really was something strange going on here.
“What’s the matter, hon?”
Dudley’s look of unhappiness deepened. “I can’t tell you, you’ll hate me if you know.”
“I would never! Tell me and you will feel better.”
Dudley nodded and they curled up in the sofa. Dudley took her hand and held it so tightly that it almost hurt. “I was really mean when I was a kid. Really, really mean.”
Sue could hardly believe it, Dudley was the nicest guy she had ever met, but she just nodded to make him go on.
“I never understood why my parent’s decided to take care of Harry, because they never liked him. And you know, you think your parents are always right when you are a kid. I never thought about how strange it was that they made Harry sleep in the cupboard under the staircase, or never getting mew clothes but my old ones, or never getting to celebrate his birthday, because that was how things always had been.”
Sue felt a surge of nausea. Dudley’s parents were awful, but she hadn’t though they could be this nasty? “That’s child abuse, didn’t anyone notice?”
Dudley stared down on his hands, shamefaced. “No, no one. And I just did what my parents did, I never thought about it at all. And I wasn’t just mean to Harry, I bullied everyone.”
He looked up at Sue. “It’s really hard to talk about it.”
She squeezed his hand. “You are doing fine.”
“Well, Harry came home for summer every year and my parents got a little bit nicer to him, but not much. And then the summer when we turned fifteen.” Dudley stopped again and Sue bit her lip not to urge him on, this was clearly very hard for him and after a while he continued.
“I was in an accident; I suppose I can call it that. A bad one, one that would have killed me. So bad that my whole life went through my head and I could see, really see, for the first time, how horrible I had been my whole life. How horrible I had always been to Harry. You see, Harry was there when it happened, it wasn’t his fault, but he was there and I realised that he wouldn’t help me, because he would just be happy if I died. And I felt so lonely and scared.”
“But Harry helped you?”
“Harry saved my life. And when we came home my parents threw him out because they thought it was all Harry’s fault and I was so shocked that I couldn’t speak at all so I couldn’t tell them until the next day. So you see, don’t you, that if Harry wants to tease me a little, then it is all right. I’m glad that he still wants to have a little contact with me. Do you see, Sue?
“Yes, yes, I do.”
“Don’t you despise me now?”
“Dudley, I think you are wonderful!”
He looked at her with such surprise that she had to laugh. “But I was awful!”
“Yes, you were. But most people who are bullies never change, you know. They go through life being as nasty as they were as kids, only they usually get better at hiding it. You changed. That is so awesome!”
“You really mean that?”
“Of course I do.”
Dudley sighed in relief. “You are awesome, Sue. You are the best that has ever happened to me.”
Sue smiled and hugged him. Then she remembered what Harry had said. “Was it this that Harry wanted to tell me?”
Dudley hesitated a little. “Yes, yes of course it was.”
Somehow it didn’t ring completely true, but Sue could see how exhausting it had all been for Dudley, so she decided to let it go for now. Eventually she would find out what it was that Harry really had wanted her to know.
Fandom: Harry Potter
Rating: G
Genre: Humor
Characters: Dudley Dursley, OFC, Harry Potter, Ginny Weasley, Petunia Dursley, Vernon Dursley
Warnings: None
Summary: Sue thought Dudley was such a nice, normal guy. And he was, but then there was the matter with his cousin.
AN: The first chapter of this story was written in Spetember 2011. Oh dear. But I am working on cleaning out my fic closet and this is a Little step in the right direction.
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
The Sunday visit from Dudley’s parents was as boring as usual. Petunia had cleaned, punctuating her work with some rather barbed comments on Sue’s housekeeping and now they were drinking coffee. Petunia was holding a monologue on how she, as the opposite to Sue, always made sure that she had always made the cookies herself when Dudley grew up. Vernon grunted in affirmation, though Sue noticed that he crammed the offending cookies into his mouth like there was tomorrow. Sue wisely kept her mouth shut, though Dudley told his mother several times that he happened to love Jaffa cakes, but Petunia pretended not to hear that. It was then the phone rang.
“Who could be calling at this time”, Petunia sniffed, as if calling on an early Sunday afternoon was more offensive than phoning in the middle of the night. Dudley went to answer and after a short conversation he returned, looking a bit odd.
“It was Harry”, he said and to Sue’s amazement his parents reacted surprisingly violently to this simple statement. Petunia went white and Vernon red, choking on his cookie.
“Harry!” Petunia said in a high-pitched voice and Dudley nodded.
“Yeah. He is in the vicinity and wanted to come up and say hi to Sue. They have never met before.”
“That’s it”, Vernon rose with an unexpected speed and agility. “We are leaving. Now, Petunia.”
Sue didn’t even have time to react before Dudley’s parents were dressed and ready to leave. In the door Petunia turned around: “How is Harry?”
Her voice trembled a little and Dudley had barely time to say “Fine. Got a nice girlfriend”, before Vernon yanked her away and they were gone.
Sue was completely dumbfounded. “Who is Harry?”
“My cousin. Our mum’s were sisters. I better make some more coffee.”
Sue was still wondering what kind of ogre Harry must be to provoke Vernon and Petunia’s speedy departure when the doorbell rang and she went to open the door. The man outside looked perfectly normal to her, though she could see no family resemblance to either Dudley or Petunia. He was not very tall and quite thin and with lots of unruly black hair that hung down over his forehead and with rather stunning green eyes that his glasses did little to hide. . He wore a leather jacket and jeans, both expensive by the look of it. She also noticed that he had an odd wary air about him, as if he was used of being stared at and had grown used to it even if he didn’t like it. Sue had once served coffee to a popular actor who had had the same air and she wondered if this Harry perhaps was famous for something and if she ought to know who he was.
Harry smiled and said, “Hello, I’m Harry and you must be Sue” and shook her hand before he turned to the girl behind him and said “This is Ginny.”
Ginny was gorgeous and looked very glamourous with her long red hair, but she also had a very nice smile and Sue liked her at once.
“Hello Dudley,” Harry said to his cousin and Sue noticed that they both seemed a bit strained and hurried to invite them in.
“Oh, Jaffa cakes!” Ginny said. “Mum always bakes the same old biscuits; you get to long for something else.”
They chatted a bit about Sue’s job and then she and Ginny realised that they both had a gaggle of older brothers and they compared notes for a while, but then Harry spoke.
“So, how is old Privet Drive? As awful as usual?”
“Did you spend a lot of time there when you were a kid?” Sue asked and Harry laughed rather bitterly.
“I grew up there, for my sins.”
“Oh, so you are more like brothers than cousin? Funny that Dudley never-”
“No!” Harry and Dudley answered together with such force that Sue jumped and fell silent.
“You see”, Harry explained after an uncomfortable silence, “Dudley and I never had many common interests and then I went away to a boarding school when we were eleven, St Brutus Sec-”
There Ginny threw a cookie at him, hitting him on the nose. “Behave, Harry!”
Harry smiled a bit ruefully. “Sorry, Big D, I’m just teasing you a little.”
“S’alright.” Dudley said and Sue saw that he was quite flushed.
The visit didn’t last long, but just when they were leaving Harry turned to Dudley. “I really think you should tell Sue everything about the family.”
“Mmm,” was all Dudley answered.
When they were gone Sue told him that she thought Ginny was great, but that she didn’t quite liked Harry. “I thought he was a bit mean to you. I bet he used to tease you all the time, when you were kid.”
“Harry’s all right.” But Dudley still looked flushed and unhappy. There really was something strange going on here.
“What’s the matter, hon?”
Dudley’s look of unhappiness deepened. “I can’t tell you, you’ll hate me if you know.”
“I would never! Tell me and you will feel better.”
Dudley nodded and they curled up in the sofa. Dudley took her hand and held it so tightly that it almost hurt. “I was really mean when I was a kid. Really, really mean.”
Sue could hardly believe it, Dudley was the nicest guy she had ever met, but she just nodded to make him go on.
“I never understood why my parent’s decided to take care of Harry, because they never liked him. And you know, you think your parents are always right when you are a kid. I never thought about how strange it was that they made Harry sleep in the cupboard under the staircase, or never getting mew clothes but my old ones, or never getting to celebrate his birthday, because that was how things always had been.”
Sue felt a surge of nausea. Dudley’s parents were awful, but she hadn’t though they could be this nasty? “That’s child abuse, didn’t anyone notice?”
Dudley stared down on his hands, shamefaced. “No, no one. And I just did what my parents did, I never thought about it at all. And I wasn’t just mean to Harry, I bullied everyone.”
He looked up at Sue. “It’s really hard to talk about it.”
She squeezed his hand. “You are doing fine.”
“Well, Harry came home for summer every year and my parents got a little bit nicer to him, but not much. And then the summer when we turned fifteen.” Dudley stopped again and Sue bit her lip not to urge him on, this was clearly very hard for him and after a while he continued.
“I was in an accident; I suppose I can call it that. A bad one, one that would have killed me. So bad that my whole life went through my head and I could see, really see, for the first time, how horrible I had been my whole life. How horrible I had always been to Harry. You see, Harry was there when it happened, it wasn’t his fault, but he was there and I realised that he wouldn’t help me, because he would just be happy if I died. And I felt so lonely and scared.”
“But Harry helped you?”
“Harry saved my life. And when we came home my parents threw him out because they thought it was all Harry’s fault and I was so shocked that I couldn’t speak at all so I couldn’t tell them until the next day. So you see, don’t you, that if Harry wants to tease me a little, then it is all right. I’m glad that he still wants to have a little contact with me. Do you see, Sue?
“Yes, yes, I do.”
“Don’t you despise me now?”
“Dudley, I think you are wonderful!”
He looked at her with such surprise that she had to laugh. “But I was awful!”
“Yes, you were. But most people who are bullies never change, you know. They go through life being as nasty as they were as kids, only they usually get better at hiding it. You changed. That is so awesome!”
“You really mean that?”
“Of course I do.”
Dudley sighed in relief. “You are awesome, Sue. You are the best that has ever happened to me.”
Sue smiled and hugged him. Then she remembered what Harry had said. “Was it this that Harry wanted to tell me?”
Dudley hesitated a little. “Yes, yes of course it was.”
Somehow it didn’t ring completely true, but Sue could see how exhausting it had all been for Dudley, so she decided to let it go for now. Eventually she would find out what it was that Harry really had wanted her to know.
