Pure and Simple

Summary: The Dark Lord’s return is the beginning of the war. Harry meeting a certain auror is the beginning of something else entirely. Harry/Kingsley

Main Pairing: Harry Potter/Kingsley Shacklebolt

Genre: Romance/Adventure

Rating: M/NC-17

Warnings: Mature themes, slash, gay (male/male) relationships, violence, some angst, attempted noncon (just in one chapter), possible threesomes.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters…but can you imagine the possibilities if I did…

Author's note: Thank you everyone for the reviews, favs and alerts and a special thanks to cait-the-fan girl who was my first ever reviewer and to Cari Marie for pointing out my spelling errors!

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Jerking awake to the sound of an alarm blaring, Harry slammed his hand down on the infernal device and groaned as he rolled over onto his back. His eyes blinked blearily as he attempted to adjust to the light shining through the frayed curtains at the window.
Harry sighed as he rubbed his eyes, trying to dispel the images that lingered from a night of the horrifying dreams that seemed to seek him out since Cedric's death.

With effort, Harry rose from the bed and dressed in one of Dudley's old t-shirts, a pair of jogging shorts and his new trainers. He took his wand out from under his pillow, where he had left it last night for easy access and contemplated his new, previously unforeseen problem. Where the hell was he going to put his wand? There wasn't exactly numerous places to hide it when he was dressed like this. Harry frowned in thought. He had a arm holster for his wand but that would be of little use. Seeing no other option, Harry stuck his wand into the tight elastic of his shorts. It looked odd, but at least he could protect himself until he came up with a better idea.

Harry headed towards the bathroom and dumped his clothes in the laundry basket. He completed his necessary early morning tasks, before quietly making his way downstairs, hoping not to wake the other occupants of the house.

The kitchen was as clean as ever, the white tiles of the floor gleaming and the counter tops sparkling. Harry shook his head, and poured himself a glass of orange juice from the carton in the fridge. He lifted the glass to his mouth, then jumped as he heard a noise behind. He whirled around, splashing himself with his drink as did he so, to see Dudley standing in the doorway, wearing almost the exact same attire as him. His cousin was staring at him and Harry tensed and turned away quickly.

However, he could not help glancing back at Dudley as he wiped the drops of juice from his t-shirt. Dudley looked….different. Those were the only words Harry could use to describe his cousin. His eyes assessed the older boy and noted that gone was the whale-sized, red-faced child from the year before and in its place was a heavily muscled sixteen year old boy. Apparently, Dudley's diet had finally taken effect and while he still appeared bulky, it was made up of muscle rather than fat. It was obvious, even from where he stood, that he was at least two inches taller than Harry and the green-eyed felt a stab of dread at the thought of being on the receiving end of his cousin's fury this year. Punches with muscle to back it up would a hell of a lot more.

Attempting to seem nonchalant, Harry gave Dudley a fleeting look from his position by the sink. Quick as he was, he still managed to catch the other's eyes and was relieved and almost worried when he found none of the usual hostility or hatred in them. Instead he was faced with a bright, blue gaze of simple curiosity. What on earth had happened while he was gone? His uncle appeared to be his usual charming self so it was only his aunt and cousin. What the hell was going on?

Dudley took a step further into the kitchen and Harry reflexively moved back. His cousin stopped and after a moments pause, gestured to the carton of juice behind Harry. Warily, Harry handed the juice to his cousin who took it silently and moved across the kitchen to get a glass from the cabinet.

It was Harry who finally broke the silence that now lingered between them.

"What the hell happened to you?" He winced once it was out of his mouth. It wasn't difficult to imagine Hermione standing behind complimenting his subtlety or lack thereof.

Harry firmly told the phantom Hermione to shut up, and focused his attention back on his cousin. The changes in Dudley's appearance really were extraordinary. The weight loss showed the strong jaw that had been previously hidden behind three chins. His blue eyes behind pale eyelashes were now a dominant feature in his face rather than hidden between his bulbous cheeks, his hair now fell straight around his face instead of being plastered to his head like a second, blond skin.

"Could ask the same about you," Dudley replied after a moment, and gestured vaguely at Harry. He seemed surprised that Harry had spoken.

Harry shrugged in response and gave Dudley the same brief explanation he had given his aunt the night before. The silence fell between them again and Harry shuffled awkwardly. He could sense that something had changed within Number Four, Privet Drive. Something was different and until he knew what was going on Harry knew he wouldn't be comfortable.

Dudley gave a hesitant smile at Harry's reason for his change and Harry's stupor began to rise. Dudley had smiled at him? Dudley didn't smile unless he was about to beat someone up. It happened to be his favourite pastime. Harry's tenseness went almost unnoticed by the other boy, and he found himself relaxing as he realised that Dudley's eyes were trailing over the high ponytail on top of his head.

"Recruiters came searching at our school to apprentice boys in different sports. I decided to try out for the heavyweight boxers. I didn't bother joining the recruiters but I started training on the school team and we won a few matches." Dudley gave his own explanation to what had made the differences in his own appearance. "And the diet started working." he admitted, looking embarrassed.

Harry had never had a conversation before, in his life, with his cousin and felt fairly uneasy. All the same he was reluctant to change Dudley's pleasant manner by refusing to speak to him.

"So the stuff upstairs is yours then," Harry concluded, referring to the equipment in his room.

Dudley appeared puzzled for a moment before his face dawned in comprehension. "Yeah, it is. I gathered up a lot of stuff over the school year and ran out of places to put it all in my room. I can take it out later on."

"No, its alright." Harry hesitated for a moment before taking the plunge like he had done with his aunt last night. "I was wondering if I could borrow some of it? Not the heavy stuff, just the light weights and the mat." Harry finished his orange juice in one long gulp and then looked thoughtfully at the empty glass. "My best friend will kill me if I don't keep up on my yoga and stuff."

Dudley choked on the orange juice he had just drank.

"Y-yoga?" he spluttered, attempting to hide his chuckles by quickly drinking again but small snickers kept escaping him.

"Uh-huh," Harry sighed as he scowled at his sniggering cousin. "Its not so bad for flexibility and it's a good workout." He glance at his watch. "I better be going I have four miles to jog and I have to find the gym later."

Dudley nodded. "Its a great place. I got a membership there last week."

Harry frowned at that. Was Dudley offering to take him to the gym or was he simply mentioning that he had joined? Shaking his head for thinking to much at this god damned hour of the morning, Harry headed outside and took off to the left of the house. He began at a easy pace, slowly built up his momentum while he passed the duplicate houses of Privet Drive until he was jogging at a greater speed along the bigger roads outside of the private estates of Little Whinging. Cars sped passed him as drivers attempted to avoid the first rush hour of the day. Harry nodded politely when he passed fellow joggers.

Knowing instinctually when he had gone far enough, Harry turned around and began to make his way back, noticing as he ran that the roads were rapidly becoming busier as more people set off for work. He arrived back at the house shortly after 8.30 and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that his uncle's car was already gone. He couldn't avoid Vernon Dursley forever but he would do so for as long as possible.

Wrinkling his nose at the stench of sweat his body emitted, Harry opted to take a shower before he made himself breakfast. He could already hear the shower running as he headed upstairs and presumed that Dudley had arrived back before him and decided to take a shower too. He rifled through his clothes as he waited and picked one of his new black t-shirts and a loose grey tracksuit.

Hearing the sound of pouring water fade, Harry until Dudley's bedroom door closed and entered the bathroom himself with his clothes over his shoulder. The blue and white tiled room was still steamy when he went in and he blinked through the hot mist. Harry checked the racks to make sure there was another towel and placed his clothes with them, then turned the shower on.

He stripped down and untied his hair, which was stiff from sweat and stepped under the warm gush of water with a relieved moan. He lathered his body with soap and thoroughly washed it, ridding himself of any sweat or dirt he has accumulated since he had last washed. After finishing with his body he started on his hair using both shampoo and conditioner and then rinsing it carefully. His hair might be more controllable now, but damn did it take a lot of time to wash.

Harry turned off the water and grabbed one of the large, pale blue towels and one of the smaller white ones. He hurriedly dried himself with the larger towel and pulled on his tracksuit, leaving his top off for now. Harry now turned his attention to the mass of curls lying in disarray around his face and shoulders. Heaving a sigh he began to wring the droplets from his hair and watched as they travelled down his lightly muscled chest and over his flat, toned stomach.

Harry knew that without a mild heating charm to dry his hair, he would need ask his aunt for a blow-dryer. Sighing again, Harry threw his used towel in the laundry basket and placed the other one over his shoulders. With his t-shirt in hand he left the bathroom and proceeded downstairs where he could hear Aunt Petunia and Dudley talking.

They were sitting at the kitchen table when he came in and both stared in bemusement at the chaotic state his hair was in. Harry winced as he remembered how his aunt use to shear off his hair when he was younger only to have it grow back the next day. Instead of the usual reprimand he received, he was shocked when his aunt smiled at him in amusement.

"I have a blow-dryer in my room if you want it," she offered, hiding a smile behind the cup in her hands.

"Um- thank you," Harry replied warily. He accepted her offer politely even if he was cautious of her kindness. Although, he was rather glad he didn't have to ask her for it outright and wound his male ego even further, he still avoided Dudley's eye as he walked across the tiled floor.

"Is it alright if I get breakfast, Aunt Petunia?" Harry didn't trust this new Petunia and opted to play it safe until he found out what was going on.

Petunia opened her mouth to speak, then closed it and merely nodded. Harry gratefully began to make himself a bowl of porridge and gently rubbed his stomach as it growled its impatience. Unlike Ron who continued to protest having to eat "pure and utter shit" Harry didn't mind the taste of porridge. He grabbed a banana from the fruit basket and chopped it up to add to the porridge, a habit he had developed from Hermione.
Dropping the sliced banana into the bowl, Harry sat at the table opposite his aunt and cousin, and began to shove the food into his mouth like only a teenage boy could do. He listened absentmindedly as Dudley informed his mother that he would probably be busy for the rest of the day.

"Aunt Petunia," Harry began, after he had washed his bowl. "Could I have my list of chores now? Only I want to make sure I'm back in time to do them all."

Out of the corner if his eye Harry watched as Dudley's jaw tightened considerably. He brought his attention back to his aunt who looked uncomfortable.

"Harry, I decided that you don't need to do any chores this summer. I really don't need any help."

Harry gazed at her incredulously. There wasn't a chance that his uncle hadn't left a list of chores for him before he left that morning. Why would his aunt tell him otherwise? Raising his eyebrow, Harry repeated patiently, "Could I have the list of chores please?"

Aunt Petunia looked conflicted, but she finally muttered that it was on the table in the hall and called after him that the blow-dryer was on a vanity table in the guest bedroom as he left the kitchen.

Grabbing the sheet of paper from the hall table, Harry gave it a fleeting glance. It wasn't too bad. Nothing that he hadn't done before. Mow the lawn, pull the weeds, clean the living and dining room and make dinner. Actually for Uncle Vernon it was a miracle it wasn't nearly a page longer.

Harry stopped abruptly as he entered the guest bedroom. It was a beautiful room with cream walls and a purple carpet. The bed covers and curtains matched the carpet, and a mahogany wardrobe and a vanity table with a mirror were located opposite the bed. Usually this room was only used by Vernon's sister Marge, but what had caused Harry to stop so suddenly was the fact the room was obviously in use. His eyes raked over the room taking in every detail and attempting to memorise it. Although the bed had been neatly made it still gave the slightly wrinkled look of being slept in and there was a small indent of a head on the pillow. Clothes hung in the open wardrobe door, a book had been placed on the bedside table and the vanity table was covered in make-up, hairbrushes and other items. The blow-dryer amid them indicating that it was his aunt sleeping here. The mirror of the vanity table reflected his confused expression. With his mind whirling with the possibilities of what this could mean, Harry grabbed the blow-dryer and left the room for his own.

Harry glanced at his watch as he finished drying his hair, which now hung in a curly, slightly less chaotic mess around him. Quickly he pulled on his t-shirt and tied his hair back loosely. He planned to head over to the gym and ask for some basic information and maybe a timetable of the martial arts classes available. Knowing that he wouldn't be starting at the gym today Harry left his room empty handed and walked downstairs just in time to see Dudley opening the front door with a duffle bag in his hand. He turned when he saw Harry.

"You can come with me if you like," Dudley offered.

Harry appraised him silently, looking for a hint of the usual malice he saw when his cousin was planning something. However, Dudley's expression was open and honest. For some reason this worried Harry even more. Harry merely nodded his agreement, knowing that this way he wouldn't get lost even if he did end up spending more time with Dudley than he had planned. But Dudley had been surprisingly…pleasant since Harry's return. While wary of the change, Harry welcomed the peace…and lack of bruises.

They walked in rather uneasy silence past the numerous, indistinguishable house of Privet Drive. Harry had always wondered how so many people managed to keep their houses exactly like every one else's. The silence was broken as they walked past the owner of Number Fifteen mowing his immaculately kept lawn.

"Harry," Dudley began. Harry turned to face his cousin curiously and was surprised to see him chewing on his lip, his face uncertain. Dudley was never uncertain. His cousin had always been confident, certain that everyone would listen to him because he had his fists to back him up. What could Dudley have to say that would make him so nervous? But Dudley began to speak again and this time he sounded more sure of himself.

"Harry, you should try to stay away from Vernon as much as possible this summer." Harry blinked in confusion at the use of his uncle's name.

"He's been in a really…bad mood this year," how is that different from usual, Harry thought, " since he was demoted at Grunnings. He's just looking for an excuse to take it out on someone, and he's probably hoping it will be you. Just don't give him an excuse to get mad at you."

Harry blinked again. Dudley was serious. Harry could tell by the tone of his voice. He really believed his father was dangerous and he sounded worried. For Harry. Something from that morning suddenly clicked in Harry's head.

"Wait a minute, does this have anything to do with why Aunt Petunia is sleeping in the guest room?" Harry already knew the answer. The way his aunt had acted around Vernon the day before became immediately more clear.

"Yeah," Dudley confirmed, not even attempting to deny Harry's line of thought. "She's afraid of him. She wrote to me at school and we talked on the phone, but I didn't really understand what she meant until I came home. He's so angry all the time and I don't want him to-"

Dudley broke off with a frustrated expression on his face but Harry knew what he was trying to say. He was afraid that Vernon was going to hit his mother and he wouldn't be there to stop it. Harry suddenly realised that Dudley loved his mother very much, and perhaps didn't love his father as much as Harry had thought.

"Has he hit her?" Harry asked, keeping his voice neutral despite the anger he felt. He may not love his aunt, however she had never been cruel to him like Uncle Vernon had. He glimpsed Dudley's pain-filled expression as they reached Magnolia Crescent.

"I don't know," his cousin whispered. "He shouts a lot and threatens to use violence. He never actually follows through though. But I wasn't here most of this year, he could have beating her for months and I wouldn't know and she won't tell me."

Harry nodded and decided not to reply. Instead he thought about what he had been told. If Vernon was really as angry as Dudley claimed then Harry would do best to stay out of his way. But that didn't mean he wouldn't interfere if he saw his uncle using violence against Petunia. His thoughts stopped brusquely as a large, stone building came into view. The walls were painted a pale blue, and one wall consisted of glass windows rather than stone. The doors were revolving glass ones and the large painted letters above the door signalled that this was the place he was looking for. Harry admired the area surrounding the building as the walked towards the doors. Apparently the owners had found the only natural area left in Little Whinging as the area closest to the gym was covered in trees and wildlife. It really was very beautiful.

It was cooler inside the building than outside and Harry breathed a sigh of relief. The sun beating down on his back had been incredibly warm. The entrance of the gym was a large corridor, painted in a slightly darker shade of blue than the outside walls. The floor however, was made up of wooden panels that made a muffled echo as Harry's trainers crossed them. Doors ended the long stretch of walls every few feet and a large reception desk stood at the end of the corridor, with a large notice board behind it covered in information about the gym and advertisements for different businesses.

A young man sat behind the desk that was occupied with a computer, pens, files and various stacks of pare. The receptionist hadn't noticed their arrival and was leaning back in his chair with his feet on the desk and doodling on a piece of paper. Harry watched him in amusement for a moment before clearing his throat softly. The boy glanced up and blushed at their amused smiles as he lowered his legs to the floor.

"Sorry," he mumbled, a light blush had stolen across his cheeks and was spreading, bringing his features to Harry's attention.

The boy was beautiful Harry noticed and looked to be roughly Harry's own age. His looks were exotic, his skin was darkly tanned, with curly, dark brown, shoulder-length hair. His frame was lithe and his features made him one of those boys who would always been pretty rather than handsome. Tendrils of dark curly hair fell into chocolate eyes, eyes which were now fixed on Dudley. It was with effort that the young receptionist dragged his eyes away and focused on Harry instead. Harry's amusement only increased when he saw the blush on Dudley's face, but he gave the smaller boy a bright smile that was shyly returned.

"Alexi will help you out Harry. I have to go," Dudley turned away from them with a small wave and disappeared through a white pair of double doors at the end of the hallway.

"What can I help you with?" inquired the receptionist, his blush fading with Dudley's absence.

"I wanted to apply for a summer membership to the gym," Harry replied. "I also wanted to know about the martial arts classes they have here." He was still smiling slightly at the odd interaction he has seen between Dudley and the other teenager. Harry had seen Dudley as someone inclined towards the opposite sex. The blush on his cheeks and the smile he had worn stated otherwise.

"Well these are the forms for the membership. Its free for the first month, a special offer for summer, but its twenty-five pound a month after that," he was informed and handed a bunch of papers. "This is the list of all the martial arts classes available and the days and times they're on. The classes are pretty small at the moment so there is plenty of vacant places. Sign these forms and state which class or classes you want to take." Harry nodded that he understood, took the pen being offered to him and quickly began to write the information needed on the forms.

"So, are you a friend of Dudley's?" a cool voice interrupted him as he ticked off the class he wished to take. Harry smirked at the hint of jealousy he caught in the other boy's voice.

"No. I'm his cousin." Harry replied as he handed back the bundle of paper and then offered his hand to the receptionist. "My name is Harry Potter."

"Oh. My name's Alexander Bianchi. Alexi for short." He smiles, his tone much warmer and shook the outstretched hand. "I haven't seen you around here much," he commented as he put Harry's forms into a file.

"I go to a boarding school in Scotland," Harry replied.

"Dudley told me that you don't really go to that criminal centre that everyone else says you do. He said it was a lie and not to believe any of the stuff people around here say about you."

Harry started in surprise at this very un-Dudley like thing to do. His cousin usually rejoiced in the fact that everyone thought Harry was a delinquent and a nut-job. To contradict what his family had being saying for years was just…weird. His surprise must have shown on his face because Alexi questioned him.
"Do you and Dudley not get along?" His face was sincere, but his eyes held a knowing look that made Harry feel as if he had known the answer before he asked.

Harry chuckled in response. "No, we've never got along." He didn't elaborate and Alexi didn't ask question him further.

"I think…I think Dudley's changing though." Harry frowned in thought. "I've noticed how different he and my aunt are being since I came home. They're being…nice. It's a bit weird really." he admitted, smiling sheepishly at the other boy.

"I've heard about how he was before," Alexi replied. "I only moved here recently but I heard people saying that he bullied other people. I can't see it though. He's obviously changed." He trailed away with another blush and quickly set about filing Harry's information on the computer in front of him.

Alexi was right, Harry mused as he watched the flustered receptionist's fingers fly over the keyboard. Dudley had changed and Harry was betting that something had happened to cause his cousin's personality adjustment. It could have something to do with Vernon's new mood swings but Harry had a feeling that something had happened to Dudley in Smeltings that year. While Harry thought about Dudley's attitude altercation, he watched people come and go through the doors exiting off the corridor. The double doors which Dudley had entered clearly led to the gym. There was also a white door across from Alexi's desk and a black door near the entrance.

"Here you are," Alexi said, handing Harry an envelope. "It's an information packet on all of the gym's facilities and the class you'll be taking. I'm in your kenpo class." he added, smiling.

Harry grinned at this news, happy to know that he wouldn't been entirely alone in his new class. He had decided to take kenpo as his new martial arts class. Having already started to learn the theory before school ended, it seemed appropriate to choose that one.

Choosing to stay and wait for Dudley rather than return home early to the list of chores that awaited him, Harry began to talk in earnest to a delighted Alexi, who was glad to have some to talk to rather than spending the rest of the day aimlessly doodling. Harry began to unknowingly gain admiring glances as he bent over the desk to talk animatedly to the receptionist.

Alexi, Harry discovered, was a genuinely lovely person albeit very exuberant. It felt so enlightening to speak to a person that didn't know him as Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, but simply as another ordinary person. And Alexi was so vibrant and easy to talk to. Harry had been nearly correct is his estimation of Alexi's age. He had only recently turned sixteen, and was two months older than Harry. He had been born in Italy to an Italian mother and a English father, and they had moved to England when he was nine and he had attended primary school in London, where they had lived until his parents had decided to move to a less populated area.

Alexi still attended his private secondary school in London, which specialised in art and music, both of which he was extremely talented at. He had an older brother Lucas, who was training to be a doctor in Cambridge and a younger sister, Briseis, both of whom he was very close to. Alexi informed Harry that he had developed a love of martial arts when he was twelve and had first seen "Enter the Dragon", and, like Harry, he had recently become a black belt in judo.

Harry told Alexi that he had lived with his aunt, uncle and cousin ever since his parents had died in an accident when he was a baby. Unlike Alexi, Harry couldn't give the honest details of his life, so he gave vague details about Hogwarts and described his friends, teachers and the school's appearance. Alexi continued to pry details out of him and startled Harry when he sneakily discovered Harry's sexuality by asking if there was any hot guys at his school. Harry blushed and was too involved at aiming a slap at his new friend to notice Dudley's reappearance. Alexi, however did, and that familiar pink flush spread across his cheeks as well as a shy smile, causing Harry to turn his head and become aware of his cousin's presence.

"Hey. Ready to go?" Harry asked as he hopped down off Alexi's desk, where he had been comfortably perched.

Dudley nodded, his eyes flickered rapidly between Harry and Alexi suspiciously. Harry snickered as he recognised the jealousy present in Dudley's eyes as he took in Harry and Alexi's smiles. Jealousy was something you learned to identify when he spent most of your time in the company of Ron Weasley, who glared in the direction of any boy who looked at Hermione in what he deemed was a "suggestive manner".

Dudley returned Alexi's shy smile with a larger grin and a wink, then left the gym with Harry trailing behind him, still grinning in hilarity. Though the happy mood he had gained from being with Alexi soon began to evaporate as they came close to Number Four, Privet Drive and the list of chores waiting there. Harry sighed and started to make out how long each chore was going to take him, followed by how long his aerobics and yoga would take. He reckoned that he had enough time to do everything an unpack the rest of his possessions from his trunk. Peeking to his left, Harry noticed the small frown on Dudley's face and stifled a snicker as he marvelled at how strongly a simple emotion such as jealousy affected humans.

Dudley and Alexi reminded Harry of Hermione and Ron's inevitable relationship and he smiled as he wondered how long it would take the two to get together. He prayed to Merlin that it would happen faster than his best friend's relationship seemed to be progressing. Watching Hermione and Ron dance around each other was enough for anyone.