Eeman

Petunia and Dudley's Visit

The next morning, Harry took a bath. Hermione knew he loved baths when she gave him a bottle of bubble bath soap, besides all the books she thought he ought to read. Baths were relaxing and he did not get the opportunity at school. He felt somewhat better now about the other boys seeing him without his leg. They were all used to it for the most part. The quidditch team was used to seeing him change in the locker room while wearing his leg. He knew he had worried over the summer, but finally Harry had decided that he could not do anything to change the situation so made up his mind that if others did not want to see him as he was, then that was their own problem. He was not willing to hide himself. He and the mind healer spoke together often about this.

Besides bathing, Harry really wanted to go out for a fly. Minerva had placed some charms on his Nimbus 2000 to make it safer for him, but his leg worked all right up on the broom since he did not have to lift his leg forward for the most part. He could even dive for the ground and stop before hitting it! Hermione seemed to hate flying, and Harry admittedly had trouble understanding this. He loved playing Seeker for the Gryffindor team because it used up so much of his anxious energy. Because of this, he was able to focus better on his studies, so Hermione did see this as a good thing for Harry, although she worried. He reckoned he would have to wait until he was back at Hogwarts to fly again.

Eventually he pulled himself out of the tub using the handgrips and sat on the toilet cover to dry himself off properly before pulling on his leg and clothing. Recognizing that he was getting anxious about Petunia and Dudley's visit, he tried his deep breathing. I invited them, he reminded himself, and it will be fine. Really fine, not fake fine. He would not get panicked or angry, as he was apt to do. No accidental magic. Breathe in. Breathe out.

"Harry, are you finished? I need to get in there, too." Harry startled as Hermione's voice came through the door.

"Yeah, just a minute," he replied, pulling on his leg and dressing as quickly as he could.

"Took you long enough," Hermione teased when Harry finally exited the bathroom. Flashing her a smirky grin as he proceeded to his room, he realized he still needed to brush his damp hair. Once in his bedroom, he sat on the bed to pull the hand mirror and the brush from the bedside drawer. And sighed. This was impossible.

After several minutes, he gave up. He had tried. He had really tried. Aunt Petunia was just going to have to put up with his hair as usual. Maybe someday he would learn a "hair spray" spell? He had not read of any specifically yet, but no need to be worried. His father's hair had been like this. Minerva had given him some photos of his parents, and he loved her for this. Perhaps he should ask her about a hair spell? Wait a moment, then his dad wouldn't have had so many problems with his hair, right?

After slipping the mirror and brush back into the drawer, Harry gathered up his crutches, and went help prepare the kuku*. It was similar to quiche, but there was no cheese or crust. He quite liked it, and what was the best about it was that many different ingredients could be added. Today they were making Sabzi Kuku, with various green herbs mixed in. Harry had not eaten this since before going to Hogwarts and looked forward to it with pleasure. When he reached the kitchen, he put on an apron to keep his clothes neat. Taraneh passed him a cutting board, a large onion, and a knife. He stood at the counter chopping the onion into small pieces, humming 'Mysterious Ways' without really noticing he was doing so.

Tim answered the door with Harry when Aunt Petunia and Dudley arrived. Harry was glad in part because the anxiety came up his throat as he approached behind Tim. When Tim opened the door, Harry studied their faces briefly. Aunt Petunia looked nervous but hopeful, which was very different from Harry's experience. Dudley looked petrified. Serves him right, Harry thought.