The next day, Albus Dumbledore made an appearance.
Severus was a bit surprised to see him come to visit Harry. Albus had practically abandoned the boy to him, apparently not being able to handle the lack of sanity.
But here he was. With a dog.
“What. Is. That?” Severus asked dangerously.
“Why, it’s a dog, Severus! Surely, you can recognize a dog?”
“I can most certainly identify a dog,” Severus snarled. “I am merely wondering why one is present in my home. What is it doing in my house?”
“I brought it for Harry. I thought that perhaps-”
“The last thing that boy needs is a pet. He can’t even take care of himself!”
“Severus, it’s-“
Suddenly the dog bolted away from Albus and ran towards the stairs. Severus turned to see Harry standing there, petting it.
“Macy,” Harry said, nearly inaudible.
“I thought you might like to see him,” Albus said, oblivious or uncaring of the stress he was causing for Severus.
“She’s a girl,” Harry muttered, sitting down on the stairs and hugging the dog close to him.
“Miss Carpiniello left her and-”
“Obviously, she left him,” Harry snapped, eyes growing dark. “She couldn’t exactly take him with her, could she?”
Harry rarely ever spoke so many words at once, and certainly never with this level of ferocity. It could be good for him, Severus thought.
“We’ll keep the dog,” Severus said, opening the door. “You, Headmaster, are free to leave.”
“Severus, really…”
Severus pushed him out the door.
***
Perhaps it should have been the baby that scared the ever-loving crap out of Harry, and while it was certainly a shock, it wasn’t a dog.
Harry hated dogs.
More like, dogs hated Harry, which in turn made Harry hate dogs. It was sorta like with the Dursleys, if they didn’t have such a problem with him he most likely wouldn’t have a problem with them, but seeing as they started the dislike…
Harry had no lost love for dogs.
Thank goodness it was on a leash being held back by Alex, otherwise Harry probably would have bolted.
“Harry!” Alex called, grinning broadly. “Meet Macy! Oh, and uh, this is my sister, Charlotte.”
“Chwarlie!” the baby cried, apparently not exactly an infant if she could talk. So Harry wasn’t all that good with ages, whatever.
Alex rolled her eyes. “We call her Charlie for short.”
Harry really didn’t know where to go from here. Obviously, the whole Alex-Has-A-Baby-Sister thing probably should have been his first concern. But as the group came closer, Harry really couldn’t help but to hyper-fixate on the dog.
“Alex,” Harry said once the dog’s nose was only inches away from his person. “I don’t- I don’t like dogs.”
Alex laughed, she actually laughed. “Oh, come on, Harry. She’s just a puppy.”
If that gigantic thing was a puppy, then Harry really didn’t want to witness it grow up. He took a couple steps back. “Alex, I’m serious, I, I- I don’t like dogs.”
Realization flooded her face. “Oh. You’re not afraid of dogs, are you?”
Harry had a lot of fears, and he hated admitting to every single one of them. But this one was perhaps ultra embarrassing, and having a baby-toddler-thing staring at him with a shocked expression on her face (and drool exiting her lips), while the dog itself was right there, doing the same thing, didn’t help one bit.
Harry flushed. “Alex, I really, I really can’t-”
“Okay, okay,” Alex relented, turning back towards the house with the puppy. “Um, watch Charlie for me, I’ll be right back.”
Harry started down at the child, blinking owlishly. “Um, hello.”
Charlie grinned toothily. “Hwello!”
Harry struggled to come up with something to say. No one really spoke to him when he was a toddler, so he really didn’t know what the norm was. Luckily Alex came running back before he blurted out something stupid.
“I put her up for now, um, yeah, anyway, this is my sister, well, half-sister, Charlie. She’s three.”
“‘M’lmost fwour!”
“Uh, yeah, she’s almost four. Like, next year, but whatever.”
Harry bit his lip. “Um, when did you get a sister?”
“Well, like, four years ago, I guess.”
Harry laughed, perhaps a little hysterically. “I mean, like, you’ve never mentioned her before.”
“She was still living in the states with my grandmother, so she just, you know, wasn’t around so… yeah, anyway, do you wanna meet my mom? She’s in the house.”
Harry wondered if he was dreaming, as this whole situation was terribly strange and chaotic, but the dog had been removed from the picture and his dreams were typically much more frightening than this, so, no, probably not dreaming. He followed Alex into the house, Charlie stumbling after them.
***
Alex’s mum was certainly an interesting character.
She was… young, for one. Yet she seemed so old at the same time. Harry supposed that drugs could do that to a person. She hardly seemed like someone who would be a mother and as far as Harry was concerned, she wasn’t. She hadn’t been there for Alex when she had really needed her, so what right did she have to waltz right back into her life now?
But she clearly did hold the power to take Alex away from the foster system, so Harry kept his mouth shut and his personal opinions to himself.
Alex’s mother, Rebecca Andrea Carpiniello Davis, did not seem exactly fully recovered, but she was certainly back in her daughter’s life. Both of them.
“I’m so glad to be reunited with my babies,” Ms. Davis said as she hugged Alex close to her side, kissing the top of her head. “I’m just so sad about Emerson, I, I can’t believe…”
Harry glared down at the kitchen floor tiles. How did Alex bear it?
“I suppose that my children’s fathers just keep disappearing,” Ms. Davis laughed a little, just a bit less hysterical than Harry felt inside.
Harry’s eyes widened in realization, looking from Charlie to Alex who seemed to be making a point of not looking at him.
“At least everything is alright now,” Ms. Davis said wistfully, motioning for Charlie to come sit in her lap. “I know I messed it all up before, but it’s going to be good now, I promise.”
The look on Alex’s face said otherwise.
***
Harry hadn’t been in Alex’s bedroom in ages. The appearance hadn’t changed any, but somehow Harry felt that it should.
“So, um, sister, huh?”
Alex nodded, silently thumbing through her cassette collection. Harry didn’t know why she bothered looking for something different, they were just going to end up with the Beatles as usual.
“Is she…”
“She’s his, yes,” Alex muttered, finally settling with Abbey Road. Her favorite.
“Oh,” Harry murmured quietly, watching as she slipped the tape into her stereo player. It was apparently on side B as You Never Give Me Your Money started playing.
Alex sat on the floor next to him, closing her eyes. “I don’t wanna talk about it.”
“A-are you sure?”
“I’m sure.”
“If you ever do…”
Alex opened her eyes, glaring up at the ceiling. “Don’t you realize how hard it is for me?” she hissed. “To look into her eyes and I know that her beloved Daddy was my-”
And in the middle of investigation, I break down
“I’m- I’m sorry,” Harry apologized quickly. “I’m- I’m so inconsiderate-”
“Jesus Christ, Harry, you are so stupid.”
“I- I know?”
Alex rolled her eyes, laughing lightly. “Your self esteem is so low, it makes it so hard to be mean to you, I swear.”
“Sorry?” Harry said again, smiling a little.
Alex turned to face him, smiling slightly back at him before sighing. “Anyway… That's why I never mentioned her,” she mumbled. “I know it’s not her fault, but it's just, a lot, I guess.”
Harry nodded in understanding, his mind somehow conjuring up an image of Dudley in the midst of this. Did Harry allow his cousin’s parents' actions against him influence how he felt about him? Of course not, not really. Dudley was a terrible bloke by his own merit. But, well, lately…
“Anyway,” Alex said, breaking his train of thought. “It’s time to conquer your fear of dogs.”
***
Aunt Marge was as horrible as the Dursleys on her own, but it was her dogs that made her way worse in Harry’s mind.
Harry had never been overly fond of the creatures, but it was those bulldogs that really cemented his hatred and Ripper in particular who created his fear.
Terrified didn’t suit. Petrification was closer.
Harry hated dogs, really, truly, despised them.
But he had to admit that this one was awfully cute, even while he kept his five foot distance.
“How is she a puppy?” Harry asked, genuinely curious. The creature was huge.
Alex laughed. “I guess she’s not anymore. She’s like three or so now, but she’s a Labrador Retriever so she’s always been pretty big. Mom got her for me so I wouldn’t be jealous of the baby or something.”
“Yeah, because you’d be too focused on fear to worry about jealousy, I suppose,” Harry muttered, hugging his arms against his stomach.
“Oh, come on, Harry,” Alex said, rolling her eyes and gesturing for him to come closer. “She’s really gentle.”
“People say that about a lot of things before they attack you,” Harry said uneasily, stepping a few feet closer.
“She’s not gonna attack you,” Alex promised, stepping forward a bit so they met in the middle. The dog’s wet snout nearly touched his hand and Harry held his breath.
“Say hi, Macy,” Alex murmured softly.
Macy barked and Harry jumped back, letting out a very girly sounding shriek. Alex laughed at his discomfort and he glared at her.
“I’m sorry,” Alex apologized, voice sounding sincere but the smile on her face stated otherwise.
“I’m sure,” Harry said sarcastically.
“Alright, alright… why don’t you just pet her?”
“Are you kidding me?”
“No,” Alex giggled. “Really, Harry, just give it a try. You might be surprised.”
Harry mentally said a quick prayer before coming closer to the dog, who was wagging her tail like crazy. He closed his eyes before resting his hand on her head, flinching slightly at the feeling of smooth fur. He might have been expecting to feel something similar to needles rather than the softness he felt instead.
Harry hummed slightly, opening his eyes to find that Macy was still wagging her tail and Alex was grinning broadly. “You did it!” she cheered.
“Yes, and I hate it,” Harry said, though he may have been lying just a little. He supposed that it felt kind of nice, maybe.
“I’m gonna go grab her treats, I’ll be right back!” Alex said, tossing the leash to Harry before bolting. Harry stared at the doorway before turning back to the dog when she started to whine.
“Um, it’s fine,” Harry said awkwardly, still a bit terrified. “She’ll be right back. She only left for a minute because she hates me, I guess.”
Macy started wagging her tail again, and it seemed like something akin to a smile.
Harry smiled slightly. “She’s horrible to me, really. I dunno why I still hang out with her…”
The dog licked his hand and Harry made a face, but still took a seat on the floor beside her. “You’re not so bad, I guess.”
Macy nuzzled her nose into his hair. Harry sighed, allowing it to happen. “My relatives hate me because I have weird powers or something, I hate you because you’re a dog. Neither makes much sense, does it? Seems kinda silly to condemn an entire species when they can’t even help who they are, I guess.”
Macy barked.
Alex slid back into the room, still grinning widely. “Getting acquainted?”
“Seeing as you left us with no other choice… Where’s the treats?”
Alex looked down at her hands, flushing. “Oh, uh, guess I forgot. Be right back!”
Harry rolled his eyes. Girls.
***
And so, the year of 1989 was something of a good one.
The Dursleys didn’t want him around anymore than usual, and Harry had more freedom than ever before. Even while Harry wasn’t exactly a fan of Ms. Davis, he was glad that she seemed okay with him being around. It was so much better spending time with Alex now that Emerson was out of the picture, and Charlie being around wasn’t exactly a bother. He even overcame his fear of dogs, to a certain extent. He liked Macy pretty well, anyway.
It was in April on Alex’s tenth birthday, after they’d eaten a great helping of cake, that she brought up the school.
“Mama said that I should apply to art school,” Alex murmured, sketching a vague portrait of Harry as My Girl played on the stereo in the background. “There’s like a boarding school in Woodford that sounds really cool.”
Harry looked up from his own sketching, blinking. “Chatfield?”
“Uh huh,” Alex hummed, her tongue sticking out slightly as she highlighted. “They teach the main subjects, of course, but the focus is on art.”
“Sounds like she’s just trying to send you away,” Harry muttered, worry filling his chest at the thought.
Alex gave him a look, one she always brought out when he suggested something less than stellar about her mother. “I don’t even care. I’d love to go… and I think you should come with me.”
Harry rolled his eyes. “Come on, Alex, I’d never get accepted into a school like that.”
“You have talent, and that’s all that matters.”
“Nowhere near as good as you.”
“Everyone has a different style, it can’t be compared.”
Harry rolled his eyes again. “It doesn’t matter. They’d still never accept me.”
Alex sighed. “It doesn’t hurt to try. Just… apply, please? I don’t wanna go without you, and you could finally get away from the Dursleys.”
Well, that was more than enough to spring Harry into action.
Time Marches On
To be continued...