Tasty Thoughts

Biscuits

Harry had gone out of his way not to end up in the same situation as the last time his aunt had an appointment with Dr. Lecter. He did everything in his power to make sure that his aunt would leave him at home for her next appointment- even if it meant being home alone. His aunt had already decided some time ago that her visits to the psychiatrist should be as little visible as possible to the rest of the family. This meant that she had planned a weekly outing for Dudley and Vernon that happened to fall on the same afternoon as her appointments. It was really nothing more than a smokescreen- everyone knew she was going to the psychiatrist, but everyone pretended they didn't know.

However, with the summer holidays in full swing, this meant that Harry would stay home alone when his aunt lay down on Dr. Vermont's sofa, shedding many tears over the ongoing troubles her neighbors caused or the eternal thorn in her side: Harry. However, his aunt and uncle could not allow Harry to stay home alone when Petunia was away. This wasn't in concern for Harry, no, it was a concern for the condition of the house, belongings, and most importantly: the status they had built in the neighbourhood.

For Harry, this caused minimal discomfort; the appointments with Dr. Vermont were only once, occasionally twice a week. Although Harry was dragged to the practice in Guildford by his aunt, she never spoke to him and ignored his presence. This suited him just fine, it was a welcome break from the long list of chores, plus Dr. Vermont's waiting room was cooled by an air conditioner.

Harry had only been to his aunt's appointments three times. The first appointment had been with her usual psychiatrist (Dr. Vermont), and the last two appointments were with Dr. Lecter. His aunt had loudly complained that the appointments with Dr. Vermont were taken over by an American- who were known for rude and rowdy behavior. She'd feared that a snarky, sweaty, and insolent man would take the place of her perfect, normal doctor... only to lament that a young Eastern European man was sitting in Dr. Vermont's chair. Harry had chuckled when he remembered Petunia's complaining because her description of an American had resembled the walrus she herself had as a husband.

After two appointments with Dr. Lecter, however, Petunia reconsidered her prejudice and concluded that the doctor might have been the best thing that had happened to her. The praise for the European- because that was still better than American- was not over and she looked forward to seeing the sharp lines of his face more often. And that was precisely what was a problem for Harry. He wanted to see Dr. Lecter as little as possible.

Not now that he'd been talking about Sirius. Not now that he'd caught his eye.

It was, of course, nothing more than a feeling- a theory Harry had, but until now Harry had learned to listen to his instincts. His instincts were sometimes wrong- the fiasco at the Ministry of Magic being the greatest example- but he knew he was right now. Dr. Lecter had looked at him the same way Madam Umbridge had looked at him. It had been a look of cool calculation, but also pure interest and curiosity. The only thing missing from Harry's hypothesis was whether the interest should be interpreted negatively or positively. After many hours of pondering on the subject (Was Dr. Lecter more like Umbridge or like Ginny's obsession with him in his second year) he decided it didn't matter: Dr. Lecter had looked at him like would a frog laid out on a cutting board during a biology class; a damn interesting subject, but with a deadly outcome for the poor animal.

Harry had therefore resolved to keep a low profile and get out of the way of any interaction with Dr. Lecter. After all, this had been the advice of his Head of House, Professor McGonagall. She had told him to keep quiet around Umbridge, advice that suited Dr. Lecter as well. Easiest would be to stay home on Privet Drive. However, if his aunt was determined to take him to her appointment, he might suggest that he would wait in the car... In the summer... with no air conditioning. Really not a good option, but better than waiting in the same building as Dr. Lecter