Celandine's Chronicle (celandineb) wrote in cels_fic_haven, @ 2011-09-07 09:21:00 |
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Entry tags: | hp ficlets dudley, hp ficlets harry, hp ficlets petunia, hp quill-it 100.3 |
HP ficlet: Forgiveness [Harry, Dudley, Petunia, general]
Title: Forgiveness
Author: celandineb
Fandom: HP
Characters: Harry, Dudley, Petunia
Rating: general
Length: 255 words
Summary: It's what Lily would have wanted, Harry thinks.
Note: For quill_it, 100.3, prompt 86, "pride". For accioslash who requested Harry and Petunia.
The Christmas following the defeat of Voldemort, Harry was astonished to receive a Christmas card from Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. Opening it, he saw that Dudley had signed his name first. Perhaps it had been his cousin's idea to send the card?
They were the only family he had. Harry supposed it wouldn't hurt anything to send a card in return, so he did, inaugurating a regular annual exchange and even a tentative détente. Harry received an invitation to Dudley's wedding, and went. None of the Dursleys came to Harry's, but their absence was explained when they sent an announcement of the birth of Dudley's daughter, who arrived that same day.
Still, Harry was unprepared for the black-edged card that arrived a few years later. Uncle Vernon had died: a heart attack while he was on the telephone at work, probably shouting at someone over an order of drills. He couldn't honestly say that he would miss Uncle Vernon, but he went to the funeral anyway.
Despite his size, Dudley looked like a bewildered little boy as he hugged Harry and thanked him for being there.
Aunt Petunia looked at him, sniffed, and asked, "Why did you come?"
Pride kept Harry from making a tart retort. Instead he said gently, "I came for you and Dudley, Aunt Petunia, to see if there was anything I might do to help."
It was what he thought his mum would have wanted, even though Petunia had never forgiven her sister for having the talent she so envied.