Moments of Warmth

He looked up and noticed their expressions. "I'll be fine," he said hurriedly. "The professors will be here of course and I'll have Hedwig. I'll have plenty of time to do homework and I might even do a little extra." He smiled. "Maybe I can beat Padma's marks."

That made them smile and giggle, alleviating some of the tension. "Maybe you might even beat Hermione's," Padma smiled.

"He'd have to study all the time and not cook at all," Parvati said. "Are good marks worth that?"

"Please don't do that," Lavender begged. "I'd miss your food so much. And your company."

"Good to know," Harry said, wiping his brow with faux-relief. After he left to use the restroom, the girls looked at each other.

"He doesn't talk about his home life much, does he?" Padma asked quietly.

Parvati shook her head. "He changes the subject now that I think about it. He likes hearing about ours but…"

Lavender sighed. "From what I've heard, I don't blame him for not saying anything. It doesn't sound very pleasant."

"Should we do something?" Padma asked.

Parvati shrugged helplessly. "Like what?"

"I have no idea," Padma admitted, mirroring the gesture.

"Well, he's been slowly opening up more," Lavender said. "Let's just be there for him like he does for us and we can hopefully help when and how we can."

"That's a good idea," the twins said together and looked at each with surprise.

"You two just did a Weasley twins," Lavender giggled. The giggles became laughter when the girls made identical faces of disgust. "You did it again!"

Harry walked back in and stopped. Flour and other things were strewn about and Lavender was being chased by a vengeful pair of twins. "Uh, what did I miss?"

Lavender ran to him and hid behind him. "I made an innocent comment and they attacked me!"

"She compared us to the Weasley twins!" Padma said loudly.

"And you got flour and sugar into my hair!" Lavender shouted back.

"I'll get more than that in more than your hair! Come here!" Parvati chased after Lavender who ran squealing.

"I'm not cleaning this up!" Harry smiled and shouted.

....

Harry was sitting in front of the fire in the common room. He was the only person from Gryffindor that stayed at Hogwarts for the holiday. Being the only person in the tower was a novel experience for him.

It was so quiet when the tower was usually never quiet except for the middle of the night. Even then, there was sometimes some noise due to something or someone.

It had been a very long time since he was perfectly alone like this. Even in the days of cooking all day in the kitchen at Number 4 Privet Drive, Petunia was somewhere in the house, if not Vernon or Dudley as well.

He could still remember a time where he was kept somewhere out of the way, in darkness and silence, but that thankfully was a very long time ago. The silence of the tower was almost enough to be familiar, however, though luckily the large open space kept him from feeling exactly like he did back then.

The crackling fire helped a lot too.

He looked up when the door to the common room opened. His confusion grew when Dumbledore came walking in. "Oh, hello Headmaster."

"Hello Mister Potter," Dumbledore said warmly. He looked about the common room fondly. "It is good to see the old common room once more. I was in Gryffindor when I was a student here."

"Really?"

He nodded. "Yes, many many years ago." He frowned a little. "The décor has not changed since then. I am unsure if that is a good thing or not." He smiled when he saw Harry smile. "How are you doing, enjoying yourself?"

"Yes Sir. I'm usually spending most of the day and night cooking or shopping or cleaning for the holidays. Being able to relax like this is very nice," Harry said sincerely.

A flicker of a frown flashed over Dumbledore's face but it dissipated swiftly, as if it never appeared before at all. "Well, it is good to recuperate over a holiday," he said instead, smiling warmly once more. "Now, I have a bit of a gift for you."

"Oh, you didn't have to, Sir," Harry said, embarrassed.

"Ah but I wanted to," Dumbledore assured him. "First, you are allowed to visit the kitchens and cook with Inky and the other House Elves." He enjoyed the gigantic smile that appeared on Harry's face. "Actually, they have asked me and are rather insistent. My tea time treat hangs in the balance it seems."

"Extra jam and cream, right?"

"Indeed," Dumbledore chuckled. "Now mind you, I do not want you spending all day and night in the kitchens. As in all things, moderation is good, notwithstanding my excessive tea time condiments."

Harry snickered. "Yes Sir, thank you."

"Splendid. I would also like to offer a time where we can meet. I believe I made a promise to share stories with you about your parents."

"Oh, yes please," Harry said earnestly.

"Wonderful. How about tomorrow then? During tea time?" At Harry's eager nods he smiled. "I will see you then. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Could Hedwig be in the tower too?" Harry asked after a moment's thought. "I promise to clean up after her."

"That will be fine," Dumbledore said.

.....

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