They decided to go that Saturday, and the week passed quickly despite Harry's worry that it would take forever. He was surprised by the amount of preparation necessary. All but Harry, Draco and Alexander needed to purchase appropriate muggle clothing. Harry went along to make sure they bought casual clothing, as opposed to the formal clothing they were accustomed to. It took him quite a while to convince Narcissa that she shouldn't wear an evening gown to the cinema. While they were out, Harry bought a newspaper to find out which movies were playing.
When they all returned to Malfoy Manor, Harry dug out the Entertainment section as he had seen Vernon Dursley do many times before. Together, Harry, Draco, Alexander, and even Violet looked over which movies were playing. They settled on Batman Returns.
On Saturday, Harry woke early, extremely excited about the planed events for the day. He had even managed to convince the adults to try a muggle restaurant for breakfast.
Harry could tell that his aunt and uncle were uncomfortable in their casual muggle attire. He knew Aunt Cissy wasn't used to showing so much skin. She was wearing a dark green, knee-length sundress with a light-weight, elbow-length sweater over it. She had curled her long blonde hair. Harry thought she looked nice, but was worried he would embarrass her by saying so. His uncle looked good as well. Harry figured he was more bothered by the colors than the clothes themselves. Uncle Luke always wore black and dark grey with green. Today he wore a beige sweater with a pair of khaki pants. Violet seemed a little uncomfortable, but was willing to give it a try. She was wearing a light purple sundress with a pair of black flats. Harry's parents seemed marginally more comfortable with their attire, and Draco and Alexander seemed to have no problem with muggle attire at all.
After they were all dressed, they Apparated to London for breakfast at a muggle pub. Bella added their names to the waiting list as Harry had told her to do the day before. Narcissa, who was used to the Malfoy name ensuring top service, was confused.
"But sister, why must we wait?"
Harry was the one to answer. "At places like these, it's first come, first served, Aunt Cissy. Mum, how long is the wait?"
"Only five minutes, dear."
"Well, that's not bad at all. Aunt Cissy, I've heard of people waiting for half an hour or more." Harry didn't mention that those people were the Dursleys.
"How odd. Well, I do hope they have good service, seeing as we have to wait just for a table." Before Harry came up with anything to say to that, their name was called and they were led to a booth in the back.
"Is this an acceptable table for you?"
Harry noticed the bothered look on his aunt's face and spoke up. "This is great, thanks!" The hostess smiled at him and passed out menus as they sat.
"Your waitress will be with you shortly." The hostess turned and walked away. As soon as she was out of hearing range, Lucius turned to his nephew.
"Harry, I'm confused. How do we order now that she's left? I can't imagine that we order directly from our menu in a muggle restaurant, and there don't seem to be any house elves."
"You have to wait for our waitress, like the hostess said."
"Our what?" Before Harry could answer, a pretty young woman appeared, answering Lucius' question.
"Hi, I'm Chelsea. I'll be your waitress this morning. Can I start you with some coffee, tea, or juice?" Seeing the bewildered looks on his family's faces, Harry ordered first.
"I'd like an orange juice, please." Following Harry's example, Alexander got a juice as well, as did Violet. Draco ordered some tea. Understanding the procedure, the adults ordered as well.
"Ok, I'll be back in a moment with your drinks."
As soon as she was gone, Narcissa turned to her nephew. "Is she really going to physically acquire our beverages?"
"Yes, Aunt Cissy. Remember, no magic. You'd best decide what you'd like for breakfast. When she returns, she'll be taking our food orders." By the time Chelsea returned with their drinks, they were ready. They ordered much more easily this time, then they had to wait. After ten minutes, Lucius turned to his nephew again.
"Harry, how long will this take?"
"Well, they have to cook the food, and they do so in the order that they receive the requests. It isn't instant Uncle Luke." Not long after, their food arrived. No one had any complaints, and Harry, in fact, found it quite delicious. After Chelsea took their plates away, and while they waited for the check, Narcissa expressed her admiration for the waitress.
"I'm amazed she can carry so much at once! And without magic!" Harry did not point out that he was sure it was a matter of practice. Lucius already had his card out to hand to the waitress when she returned with the bill, which surprised Harry.
"Uncle Luke, I didn't know you were part of a muggle bank."
"I'm not, Harry. But as head of the Malfoy family, I often need to make payments or donations in muggle money. That card allows me to do so."
"Oh, that's great! Do you think I could get one for my account?"
"Why would you need one, Harry?"
"I thought I ought to take advantage of the fact that the people who stole me left me a large sum of money." There was a moment of complete silence before Lucius erupted in laughter. The rest of the adults and Alexander followed suit and even Draco got in a few chuckles. Violet giggled softly. Tom managed to calm down first.
"You Slytherin rascal. I love the way your mind works." Harry smiled, and soon after, the waitress returned with the card. Harry saw his uncle staring at the receipt, obviously confused.
"What's wrong, Uncle Luke?"
"Harry, why are there all of these lines? Usually I just sign at the 'x'." Lucius handed the bill to Harry who took a look at it.
"Well, the first blank line is to leave a tip. Usually about 12-15% of the bill. The second blank line is for the total of bill and tip; then the long line at the bottom is for your signature." He handed the bill back to his uncle who quickly filled out the information.
On their way out of the restaurant, Harry asked the hostess for directions to the theater. Having done so, he led his family to the theater only four streets away.
They were lucky in their timing, as the next movie was showing in half an hour. As it was still early in the day, the ticket line wasn't very long. There were only a few people ahead of them.
When there was just one family left in front of Harry and his family, Harry was surprised in a most unpleasant way. Coming from somewhere behind him were two of the last voices he ever wanted to hear again.
"Now, Dudders, which movie do you want to watch?"
"I already told you, father. I want to watch Batman Returns." Bella was the first to notice the change in Harry who was standing stock-still. Alexander had recognized the voice and squeezed Harry's hand.
"Harry, darling, whatever's the matter? Tom, dearest, something's wrong with Harry!"
Tom strode forward and knelt in front of his son. "Harry, what's wrong, you can tell me, son. Don't be afraid."
Harry looked at his father and whispered. "The Dursleys are here." It took Tom a moment to comprehend, and Harry watched him go from confused to furious as he figured out what Harry meant.
"Where are they?" Harry pointed a slightly shaky finger at the people who had been his guardians for so many years. Tom whirled around to face the Dursleys.
Bella looked to Tom, confused. "Tom, what...?"
"Bella, dear, please buy the tickets, I have something to take care of."
Bella turned to Harry. "What's going on?"
"That family is the Dursleys." Alexander said coldly. Bella's eyes instantly shot wide with understanding. With a whispered word to her sister, she followed Tom.
As it was now their turn, Harry, Violet, Alexander, and the Malfoys purchased the movie tickets before going in search of Tom and Bella.
They found the five of them (Harry's parents and the Dursleys) around the corner in a deserted alley. Either Tom or Bella had cast a silencing charm as the Dursleys were obviously shouting, but Harry heard nothing. Harry started to walk forward, but was stopped by his aunt's hand on his shoulder.
"Harry I think you ought to leave this to your parents."
As he turned to his aunt, he missed his father punching Vernon Dursley. "But Aunt Cissy, if they really get going, we'll never get to watch the movie.
"Let him go, Narcissa. Harry is as much involved in this as his parents are, if not more so." With a quick look at her husband, Narcissa let go of Harry, who ran forward until he passed the boundary of the silencing charm.
"...Our nephew! You have no right..."
"How dare you! We have every right to worry about Harry. He's our..."
"Mrs. Riddle!" Harry couldn't let his mother reveal their relationship. Simply by Tom being present, they had revealed too much. Everyone fell silent then turned to look at Harry.
"Boy! How dare you run off! Do you have any idea what we went through as a result of that stunt you pulled?"
"You mean actually having to do your own housework?"
"Don't you dare speak to your uncle that way!"
"Oh, stuff it, Petunia Dursley! As far as I'm concerned you are no family of mine. Never in the years I was with you, did you treat me like family. So I see no reason to treat you as such. I'm sure my life would be far better if I never saw you again." Harry walked over to his parents. "Do they know you're married?"
"I'm not sure, Harry."
"How can we make sure Dumbledore doesn't find out about this?"
"I'll take care of it. Harry, Bella, go join the others. I'll be done in a moment, then we can go watch the movie."
"What are you going to do to them, Dad?"
"I'll Obliviate them and send them on their way." As Bella led Harry away, he looked over his shoulder, a bit worried about what his father might do.
"Mum, what does he mean, he'll Obliviate them?"
"He's going to modify their memories." Harry nodded.
"Bella, how did it go?"
"Harry summed up everything nicely, Cissy. He gave them a right talking to. Tom's Obliviating them now. We'll go in as soon as he's done."
"Wonderful; and we still have fifteen minutes." As soon as Tom joined them, they went straight into the theater. At Harry's urging, Tom and Bella purchased popcorn, soda, and candy for everyone, and they hurried to the correct room. As they entered theater 5, they were amazed by how full it was. They could only find one option for seats together: the front row. As their only alternative was using magic, and they all knew that eight muggles suddenly giving up their seats would look suspicious, they decided to take the front row.
As the previews played, the entire party felt they had decent seats, but as the lights went off and the movie started, that opinion changed. Harry, Draco and Alexander all silently vowed they would always sit in the front row, while the adults all vowed it would never happen again. Violet didn't really have a preference.
Overall, however, it was a pleasant experience, and the adults watched in awe of what muggles could accomplish without magic. As soon as the film was over, they all started talking at once.
"Harry, that Batman is awesome! The way he got Penguin was really cool!"
"Cissy, isn't it amazing what muggles can do without magic?"
"That was rather good, wasn't it, Bella?"
"Mum, can we go see other movies this summer?"
"Yes, of course, Harry, but not for a while. I think we've had enough excitement today to last a while. Besides, we have a party to plan and a Gringotts Withdrawal card to acquire." They quickly Apparated to Malfoy Manor from the deserted alley. After they were settled in the sitting room, Harry continued the conversation.
"What party are you planning, Mum?"
"Your birthday party, of course, silly."
"I get a birthday party?"
"Of course, son. Why wouldn't you?" asked Tom.
"I've never had one before. Did you hear, Draco? I get a birthday party!" In his excitement, Harry missed the pained look his parents shared. Alexander also scowled and Violet looked horrified.
"Well, yeah, of course you do, Harry. What kind of party do you want to have?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, Harry," said Bella. "We can plan several different types of parties. You can have a formal evening party, or a daytime party for just your classmates, or we can have a small party with just the family, or you can invite a few friends to go somewhere special with you."
"Go somewhere special?"
"Yes, like the British Magical Animal Park, or out to a nice dinner, or to Merlin's Broom Park, something like that."
"What's Merlin's Broom Park?"
"Oh, it's great, Harry!" answered Draco. "You can play Quidditch, or practice stunts, or fly obstacle courses. Oh! You can even run simulations in Pensieve memories!"
"That sounds like lots of fun, but I'm not sure how comfortable Luna and Hermione are on brooms, and I definitely want them to be at my party."
Draco looked thoughtful for a moment. "Good point. So, what kind of party will you have?"
Harry turned to Bella. "I'd like to go to the Magical Animal Park, Mum."
"And who would you like to take with you?"
"Well, besides Draco, Alexander, Violet, Hermione and Luna."
"Is that all?"
"Well, it would be nice to have Vince and Greg along also."
"Very well, I'll take care of the invitations. We should be able to go on your birthday. The 31st is a Friday this year." Harry ran to his mother and enveloped her in a tight hug.
"This will be the best birthday ever. Thanks, Mum."
"You're welcome, Harry." Harry turned to his father and gave him a hug as well.
"It will be nice to have my first party with you present." Tom smiled over Harry's head at his wife.
"I look forward to it, Harry."