The Dursley's adopted son

Chapter 22

I could not talk to Piers tomorrow, because I forgot that it was the weekend. Now I would have to wait until Monday.

Weekends at the orphanage had a routine, just like everything else. Sure, it could be a bit annoying to not really have time off to just exist and have fun, but I also understand that when you live in a group home situation like I do, you do have to contribute to the chores and wellbeing of the collective.

Anyways, half of the time the chores weren't even that bad. Weekends were for two main things, washing clothes, and prepping meals. 6 kids would be on clothes duty, 6 on meal prep, and the other 3 on any other chores that were left over. I preferred being in the clothes washing group. Much like washing dishes, I found it soothing. However, this particular weekend, I was on meal prep with Olivia and some of the younger kids. I would have dreaded it completely if not for the fact that Olivia and I got to go to Tesco.

It was a pretty lengthy walk, but neither of us minded. The weather was pleasant enough, and it gave me the opportunity to chat with her about the wrestling team. She was horrified upon hearing the story of how I learned that wrestling might be something I'd be good at, but was also full-heartedly willing to support me in any way she could.

"I'm just saying Percy, as long as you are staying safe, I think wrestling could be good for you! You'd have the chance to get out of the orphanage, release some of your energy, and I know you, so I know that you are capable of handling Dudley."

It felt good to hear that Olivia was confident in me. When we got back from our grocery run, our wagon full of food for the coming week, I darted up to my room and filled out the wrestling tryout form, and shoved it in my backpack before I forgot.

The rest of the weekend passed just like every other weekend in the orphanage had before. I hung out with Olivia, Alexander, and Henry. I did my chores. I ate. I slept. The monotony of it all was almost painful, but I was eternally grateful to Madame Wool, because I know that she was doing her very best to give the kids in her care a good, if predictable, life.

On Monday, Dudley was back at school. When he caught sight of me across the schoolyard, he stormed over, crowd parting like sardines for a shark. I braced for a punch to the face. Instead he grabbed my arm somewhat harshly, and pulled me out of sight of the prying eyes of other students. When we were sufficiently hidden he whispered, voice tinged with fear,

"Do you believe in magic?"

He glanced around anxiously, as though he thought someone would jump out of a bush and scold him for daring to utter such a thing. I scanned his face, trying to figure out what reaction he was looking for. Obviously, I do believe in magic, or at the very least, I believe that I have gifts that others do not. There's simply no other way to explain some of the things that have happened to me, some of the things that I can do. But looking at Dudley, I wasn't sure if admitting I believe in something out of the ordinary would freak him out more. I decided to reply with the classic strategy of turning the question around.

"I don't know, Big D, do you believe in magic?"

That was not the right way to reply. Dudley paled drastically and his eyes gained a faraway look. I felt horrible. Poor guy seemed on the verge of crying. I opened my mouth to apologize, but was cut off by Dudley whispering something I couldn't make out. Before I could ask him to repeat it, he let go of me and hurried back to the schoolyard. It was unsettling to see Dudley move that fast. I stood there for a few minutes, simply running that interaction over in my head, and thinking about what it could mean. I stayed until I heard the 30 second warning bell ring, and quickly darted off to class.

When I got to class, Dudley was already there, sitting in his seat in the back of the room, seemingly back to his normal self. He was chatting with Malcom, and attempting to sharpen a pencil with a pair of scissors. He ignored me when I walked in.

This continued throughout the day. Even during lunch, when I was chatting with the rest of the friend group, laughing and sharing food, Dudley ignored me. Maybe he felt embarrassed for being weird earlier?

Another weird thing that I only noticed towards the end of the day, was the way people split crowds for me now. Other students would clear the path in front of me, the same way I had observed them all go for Dudley, even the upper years. With Dudley, it made sense. He was a big guy, and clearly not afraid to throw a punch. Even if you weren't scared of him, you'd still have to move for him simply because of how wide the kid was. But me? I'm just a scrawny 12 year old orphan. I wouldn't hurt a fly! (Unless of course the fly was hurting someone else first.)

When I got home from school, I relayed all of this to Henry and Alexander. They put in their two cents.

"Percy, dude, you are like the least physically intimidating person I've ever met. However, having said that, you do need to realize that within a week, you somehow infiltrated a group of bullies. People are probably scared of you."

"Yeah man, you managed to make the schools lead bully cower. Of course people are gonna clear out of your way. They're probably worried you'll make another pipe explode or something!"

"But Alex," I protested, "The water fountain thing literally couldn't have been my fault. No you two, don't look at each other like that. Explain how I could have done it!"

"Magic?" They said in sync. I glared at them with no real heat and they burst into laughter. Despite not looking much alike, the twins' laughs sounded identical, and soon enough I was laughing with them. So what if other students thought I was scary? Tomorrow at school I would talk to Dudley, and show everyone there was nothing intimidating about me. It couldn't be that hard right?

Besties, I am alive! This story is not dead! I have graduated highschool. (I started this story in middle school. It has been years. This is tragic.) As long as people keep enjoying the story, I'll try my best to keep updating, even if it's only for one reader lmao. Anyways, word count is 1100, I hope you enjoyed!

And for the record! I do actually have a full outline for this! I'm not winging it, believe it or not! Just trust me lol.