"Don't worry, Harry! There's still nearly two months before school starts. Who knows? Things might change!"
Dudley, holding the owl, smiled confidently, dispelling Harry's disappointment with his words.
Harry brightened up again: "I know, cousin! You've always said that until the very last moment, anything is possible, right?"
"Exactly!" Dudley stopped smiling and took the letter from Harry with his free hand, quickly scanning it.
"But before we look for future opportunities, we need to secure a stable foundation first.
Are you ready to convince stubborn and ignorant adults, Harry?"
Hearing this, Harry realized something. His emerald eyes widened with shock and admiration as he looked at Dudley.
"Cousin, are you going to…"
"Shh! Take my cane and the bag of beef jerky, and go open the door," Dudley said, his voice still calm and steady.
"Yes, cousin!"
Harry felt a flicker of excitement but mostly nervousness. Still, whatever Dudley had decided to do, Harry would support him wholeheartedly.
Picking up the fallen Smeltings cane and the bag of beef jerky, Harry walked with slightly heavy steps to the white wooden door. He turned the handle and pulled the door open, standing aside to let Dudley in.
Dudley, with an owl in one hand and the acceptance letter in the other, stepped inside with a steady stride. Harry quickly followed.
...
"Oh, my darling Duddykins, you're finally back! Are you hungry? Mommy made you some fried bacon, but it's a bit cold now. I'll heat it up!"
"Hahaha! My boy is amazing! Look at that! He caught an owl! Duddykins, are you going to fry it or roast it? I say roast it—it'll look more golden and smell even better!"
As soon as Dudley entered, he was greeted with enthusiastic welcomes from his parents, the Dursleys.
Petunia tied on her apron, and Vernon put down his newspaper, showering Dudley with genuine concern and praise, filling the room with their adoration.
However, they habitually ignored Harry, who stood behind Dudley. There were no sneers, no extra care—just their usual indifference.
Surrounded by such overwhelming affection, Dudley, living his second life, knew this wasn't entirely right, but he couldn't help feeling a little intoxicated by it.
Still, he had important matters to address today.
"Mom, Harry and I had some beef jerky on the way, so I'm not hungry yet. Dad, this owl isn't for eating. It's a messenger owl, here to deliver letters to the wizards at Hogwarts!"
Clang—
The spatula fell to the floor.
The usually lively Dursley household fell into an unusual silence.
Petunia and Vernon Dursley widened their eyes, their gazes shifting in perfect unison from Dudley to the owl in his hand, and finally to Harry, who stood awkwardly beside him.
"No—"
A sharp scream echoed through the house.
"No, Duddykins, throw that strange bird out! There's no such thing as wizards, no magic, and no owls delivering letters!"
Petunia, recalling her painful past, shouted hysterically. Her voice was shrill, and she rarely spoke so harshly to Dudley. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears, filled with complex emotions.
Meanwhile, Vernon, who had been sitting on the couch reading the newspaper, turned his anger toward Harry.
He heaved his round, bulky body up and stormed toward Dudley and Harry, yelling furiously at Harry:
"It's you who brought these strange things here, isn't it, Harry? I've told you before—don't bring these weird things into our lives!"
"Uncle Vernon, I… I…" Harry shrank back, seeking refuge behind Dudley's sturdy frame.
"Don't be afraid, Harry!" Dudley said firmly.
"There's no time left. We can't let them stay in denial any longer. Go on, calm them down!"
With that, Dudley used his free hand—the one holding the letter—to block Vernon's thick arm as it reached for Harry. Then, with a swift and precise movement, he delivered a close-range push, sending Vernon spinning back onto the couch.
"That's my boy, Duddykins…"
Vernon Dursley, sprawled on the couch, instinctively praised his son.
Meanwhile, Harry, emboldened by Dudley's command, stepped forward and raised his hands toward the Dursleys.
"Harry, what are you doing?!"
"Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, just calm down… calm down…"
The scene repeated itself.
A wave of magic, fueled by Harry's whispered words and his earnest hope, spread through the room, carrying a soothing energy.
The anger on the Dursleys' faces visibly dissipated.
"Mom, Dad, let's sit down and talk this through," Dudley urged, his tone sincere.
"Alright…"
A moment later, the owl was settled into a large birdcage Harry had found in the cupboard under the stairs. Everyone gathered around the coffee table in the living room, the crumpled Hogwarts acceptance letter lying in the center after the Dursleys had read it.
"Mom, Dad, first, I need to make something clear that you've always known deep down," Dudley began, breaking the silence. "Magic and wizards are real. What Harry just did is living proof!"
"Dudley, so what if these strange things exist? Our lives shouldn't have anything to do with those blasted wizards! Stay away from them, and everything will be fine! If they come looking, maybe we should just move…"
Even now, Vernon Dursley wanted to bury his head in the sand, to run away from what he couldn't understand.
"When faced with something that affects us deeply and is hard to comprehend, we shouldn't run from it or reject it. We should try to understand and accept it, and eventually, control it—turn it into our own strength!"
Dudley spoke patiently, trying to reason with his loving but stubborn family.
"Dad, let me ask you this: if Grunnings, the drill company you work for, faced a competitor with new drilling technology and machines, threatening to steal your clients, what would you do as the manager?"
Vernon's mind began to work. He was proud of his son's intelligence, but he also wanted to prove his own worth and earn his son's admiration.
"Well, we could start a price war to keep our old clients, upgrade our technology and machines, or maybe even buy out the competitor with the new technology!"
"You're a good manager, Dad," Dudley said approvingly. "But if you understand the importance of embracing new things, why are you so against magic?"