Chapter 173
Chapter 173
The night passed without incident. With Mr and Mrs Ellison away, however, Suer had also lost his chance to sleep in. His alarm rang precisely on time.
Suer opened his eyes blearily and stared at the ceiling. Once his head had cleared, he rubbed his face hard, climbed out of bed and washed.
He went to check on Angel first. The little girl was still fast asleep, her nightdress hitched up to reveal her round little tummy.
Judging by Angel’s body clock, she would wake in about half an hour.
That gave him just enough time to prepare breakfast. Suer was no great cook, but even he could manage fried eggs and toast.
They could make do for breakfast and eat out at lunchtime. The money Mr Ellison had left was more than enough to keep them well fed for the next few days.
Still planning the day’s outing, Suer went downstairs and spotted Harry sitting alone on the sofa.
When Harry had woken that morning, he had almost thought he was dreaming. His birthday had been wonderful beyond belief. He had visited an amusement park and eaten hamburgers and enormous chicken legs — whole portions that no Dudley could snatch from him, with no one hovering nearby to sneer at his every fault.
Hogwarts served chicken legs and plenty of other delicious food, but this had meant something different.
Then, after coming home, he had received birthday presents as well.
Happiness seemed to fill Harry’s entire being. He could not bear to waste such a wonderful time on something as pointless as sleep.
He had therefore risen at first light. There was no Aunt Petunia shrieking downstairs and no one ordering him to fry bacon and eggs. With nothing else to do, Harry sat on the sofa and read his friends’ letters over and over, grinning foolishly until Suer came downstairs.
“Hey! What are you grinning at?” Suer clapped Harry on the shoulder, making him jump.
“Morning, Suer.” Harry relaxed when he saw him. He picked up the letter he had dropped in fright and folded it carefully.
“Morning. How did you sleep?”
“Brilliant.” Harry smiled. The large bed had been soft and comfortable, and the duvet had carried the warm scent of sunshine. It had made him feel as though he were back at Hogwarts.
“Good.” Suer nodded and wandered towards the kitchen.
“Do you need any help?” Harry sprang to his feet and followed. “I always had to get up early and make breakfast when I was there.”
“I’m very good at frying bacon.”
“Perfect. There is bacon and ham in the fridge, so you can take care of those. Can you fry eggs as well?” Suer was delighted to be spared the work. If Harry wanted to help, he was happy to let him.
“No problem.” Harry thumped his thin chest with confidence and grinned. “Just watch.”
Harry took Mrs Ellison’s apron from behind the door and cheerfully set to work. It was the first time he had ever cooked breakfast without the slightest resentment.
Toast was even simpler. Suer only had to put slices of bread into the toaster and wait for them to spring up with a ding.
He left the kitchen to Harry, took the milk from the fridge and asked him to warm it in a saucepan later.
Little Gray and Hedwig had surrendered their cage to the elderly Errol. The two owls had dragged a cushion into a corner and were dozing with their faces pressed together.
The two owls looked exceptionally close.
“Mrrrow.” Crookshanks leapt down the stairs and raised a paw in greeting. The large ginger cat had clung to Angel ever since Hermione left on holiday and even slept beside her. Crookshanks clearly adored the little girl who smelled of milk and always shared her treats.
Crookshanks bounded nimbly towards a bowl that Suer had already filled with cat food. A still-drowsy Angel came trailing down the stairs behind the cat.
“Bwother!” The sight of Suer topping up the owls’ food and water woke Angel at once. Her short legs carried her across the room like a cannonball, and she struck him squarely in the lower back.
“Are you trying to kill your only brother?” Suer crouched down and gently pressed his forehead to hers.
Angel giggled and planted a kiss on his cheek.
Not long afterwards, Suer brought a freshly washed and dressed Angel downstairs. Harry had already arranged breakfast neatly on the table and watched the two of them with a trace of nervousness.
There was toast browned to perfection, fragrant fried ham and bacon divided neatly across a plate, golden fried eggs and three glasses of warm milk.
“Wow, Harry, you’re amazing,” Angel said freely. After spending the previous day together, she and Harry had already become familiar with each other.
The little angel’s sweet voice brought a shy smile to Harry’s face.
“This is excellent.” Suer gave him a thumbs-up as well. He sampled the bacon with his fork. It was lightly crisp, cooked just enough to bring out the meat’s full flavour.
Harry truly was an expert at frying bacon.
“It was all quite simple.” Embarrassed, Harry sat opposite Suer.
Thanks to Harry’s cooking, the two boys and the little girl enjoyed a very pleasant breakfast. Afterwards, Harry carried the dishes into the kitchen, wiped the dining table spotless and picked up a sponge.
“I’m good at washing dishes too.”
“No…” Suer shook his head and pointed beneath the sink. “We have a dishwasher.”
Mr Ellison had bought it because he hated seeing his wife cook and then have to wash all the dishes as well.
Only Suer knew, however, that his dear father had also wanted an escape from washing up after dinner.
The television was on, but Angel was not sitting in front of it because it was not showing one of her favourite cartoons.
Instead, a newsreader in a suit was reading from a report. Beside him was a photograph of a man with tangled hair and a scruffy beard.
“…the public are reminded that Black is armed and extremely dangerous. A dedicated hotline has been established at XXXX-XXXX. Anyone with information is encouraged to call, and a reward is being offered.”
“It sounds dangerous outside. Perhaps we shouldn’t go out today,” Harry said anxiously, his eyes fixed on the television.
“It will be fine, Harry. We are only going to the zoo, nowhere else. There won’t be any criminals there.”
Suer offered the reassurance casually, though his heart gave a jolt. Black — that was a name he knew very well. The Ministry of Magic was clearly taking the Azkaban escape seriously if the Muggle news was broadcasting the wanted notice.
He glanced at Harry with an unreadable expression. If Harry only knew that the man on the screen was actually his godfather…
Much of what Harry had suffered in this world seemed to have someone manipulating events from behind the scenes. Dumbledore undoubtedly had plans of his own, and Suer saw no reason to tell Harry prematurely that this man was family.
Learning part of the truth without understanding its causes would only make matters worse.
As far as Suer was concerned, Black was not truly dangerous. Ten years in Azkaban might have left him unstable enough to act rashly, but he would never hurt Harry. From the beginning, Black’s only target had been Ron’s rat, Scabbers. He wanted to atone for his failure.
That did not mean Suer felt any warmer towards him. Black bore no small share of the blame for Professor Snape becoming the cold old bat he was today.
“Besides, if we stay at home, there will be nothing for lunch or dinner. Don’t look at me — I can’t cook.”