"You are deluding yourself as you always have Petunia." Harry told her surprisingly calm. "You're willing to make a deal with the devil right now to save Dudley, but I will not use the thing you've made quite clear you despise me for to get your son out of the trouble he's made for himself, even if you got down on your knees and begged my forgiveness for all the wrongs you have done to me in my life. Your son is a bully and has been since he was little. You both taught him by your treatment of me that it was okay to beat up on those who were smaller or weaker than he was. He and his friends used to engage in a game called 'Harry Hunting' and if they found me they would beat me to a pulp. Once I was gone to Hogwarts, he would pick on the children in the neighbourhood. You and Vernon never disciplined him when his bullying and assaults were reported to you so he learned from that was that he would never be punished for anything that he did wrong. He also learned that you would always excuse it or buy his way out of whatever trouble he'd gotten himself into."
A few of the curious neighbours who had come over to see what was going on and had congregated near the open front door had missed the first part of Harry's speech but they applauded for the last part.
" Get out of my house! " Vernon roared.
The neighbours scattered like startled birds, but they didn't go very far, just to the next door neighbour's yard.
As Vernon started to slam the door shut a pair of men in dark suits walked up to the door and asked, "Are you Vernon Dursley of Number 4 Privet Drive?"
"Yes," Vernon sighed, wondering what else could go wrong today.
"Mr. Dursley, I am Mr. Parks and this is Mr. Lyle. We are from Inland Revenue and we have some questions regarding the returns you have filed for the last seventeen years."
Seeing the curious neighbours were still near enough to overhear, he waved them inside and after closing the front door brought them into the sitting room.
"Vernon, who are these men? What do they want?" Petunia was worried more trouble might be about to visit her beloved son.
"They claim to be from Inland Revenue and want to discuss our returns for the last seventeen years." Vernon told her. While his face didn't show it, he was worried that they might have found out about the money he'd been paid for taking in the Potter's brat. He'd never told his accountant about it preferring to use it for their trips and things for Dudley.
"Why would Inland Revenue suddenly want to talk to us?" Petunia demanded of the two men standing in her living room. "You be better off going after those who avoid trying to pay their taxes. We pay ours every year and personally I think they are way too high as it is."
"Pet," Vernon tried to hush her.
"My husband is an honest man and he pays all the taxes he owes." Petunia ignored him. "I don't work so there is no other income coming into this house to account for."
"What about the money paid to you and your husband for the care of your nephew, one Harry Potter?" Mr Lyle wanted to know.
"Me?" The young man leaning up against the wall spoke up in surprise. "They received money for taking care of me !"
"And who are you, sir?" Mr Parks asked, pulling out his notebook.
"I'm Harry James Potter." The dark-haired young man identified himself. "I'm her nephew, the one your companion was just talking about."
"I take it from your reaction that you didn't know about them being paid for your care?" Lyle spoke up quickly.
"No, sir," Harry was smiling inwardly though he kept a shocked expression on his face. "My Aunt and Uncle always dressed me in my cousin's cast-offs and I never received birthday or Christmas gifts from them. Just out of curiosity how much did they get for taking care of me?"
Mr Lyle pulled a notebook out of his briefcase and checked it. "From the age of one year old to the age of six, they received a thousand pounds a month to provide for your care. From the age of six to the age of eleven they received three thousand pounds a month. From the age of eleven to now they received four thousand pounds a month during the summer months."
He looked at Harry questioningly as if wanting to know why they weren't paid for his care for the rest of the year after age eleven.
Harry obligingly told him, "I went to a private school in Scotland that was paid for out of a trust left me by my parents. My parent's bank handled everything having to do with the trust, until I inherited it recently. I didn't even know about the trust fund until I started school when I was eleven. So you're telling me that the Dursleys received almost…" he did some rapid calculations in his head, "a quarter million pounds for my upkeep and they never spent a penny of it on me ! They always made it sound like I was stealing their life's blood with the little they did provide me."
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