Chapter Text
"Welcome home, little one," Lily whispered as she stepped through the door James had opened for her. It was painful to walk, but she could sit down at any point again. Harry opened his eyes, looking up at Lily. He had been washed at the hospital and his hair was incredibly floofy and wild already. She loved it.
"Are you excited to see where you will grow up?" James cooed. Harry blinked. Lily smiled as she walked further into their house. "Welcome home my two loves." She smiled at James before sitting down on the couch, Harry in her arms.
"We're a little family now," she said softly, looking from Harry to James who sat down next to her. She wanted to shower and sleep but she didn't want to let go of Harry just yet. She didn't think she ever wanted to let go of him.
"We are. I love you," James told her, kissing her softly. She kissed back, her cheeks growing red.
"I love you so much," she said. "And you too," she looked at Harry, gently tapping his little nose. "Oh he is so small and cute and his hair... so much hair."
"Guess the name Harry fits," James smirked. Lily chuckled, bumping her shoulder into his.
"It does," she smiled. "Welcome home, Harry."
✰
"Okay one more bite," James cooed, hoovering a spoon with some green-yellowish mix of pureed veggies in front of a tiny, one-year-old Harry. "Here comes the plane," he said, blowing raspberries. Harry took the last bite happily, clapping his hands.
"Well done, Bambi," Sirius cheered next to them. Harry reached out his hands to Sirius and Sirius happily picked him up. He was genuinely one of the best uncles in the world in Harry's opinion, and everyone else's. "You like it when he pretends in an aeroplane, don't you!?" Harry giggled, clapping his hands again.
"How does he do it?" Sirius asked, blowing a raspberry into the air just as James had done. Harry blew out air, trying to mimic Sirius. He was always trying to mimic Sirius. Anyone else, not so much, but Sirius... oh that boy wanted to do everything Sirius did. "Oi! Well done."
James laughed, watching his best friend with his son was heartwarming. For a little over a year now, they had been a family and he could not be happier. He had a good teaching job, and Lily was working hard on her master's and was doing brilliantly. They were happy, really happy.
"He does it like this," Sirius said, lifting Harry above his head and making propellor sounds again. James's smile faded.
"Sirius, no-"
It was too late. A yellow-green goo drooled down from Harry's mouth right onto Sirius's shirt. Sirius gasped, quickly lowering Harry again.
"Never after he eats!" James said, taking over Harry while Sirius panicked about their shirt which was now covered in baby vomit. Harry clapped his hands happily again, giggling at Sirius.
"Oh, you little devil..." Sirius said before laughing.
James laughed, putting Harry back into his chair. "You're such an idiot."
"Am not! I just wanted to make him laugh," Sirius murmured, grabbing paper towels to get the goo off their shirt. Harry laughed harder than ever, clapping his hands in excitement and wiggling his legs.
"Oh, you think that's funny, do you?" James asked, wiping Harry's cheeks. He couldn't help but smile, but who could at the sound of that laugh? It was pure, innocent joy. James had never felt so grateful in his life.
✰
"Aunty Mary," Harry said, holding Lily and Mary's hands as he walked in between them. "Where are we going?"
"We are going to an incredibly fun arts and crafts event," Mary said excitedly. It had been her initiative and today was her first group. In her and Sirius's studio in which they gave art classes and worked on their own artworks, she was now doing art and crafts afternoons for children between the age of three to six, and another group for kids from six to ten.
Harry, who was now four, had been the first to get an invite.
"I told you that yesterday," Lily chuckled, shaking her head. Harry cheered loudly, swinging their hands.
"Is Uncle Padfoot there?"
"I still hate that they taught him that-"
"Yes, he will be," Lily said, ignoring Mary's comment.
"And Uncle Moony? And Aunty Marlene and Dorcas?" Harry asked. He let go of Lily's hand for a second to push his glasses back on his nose before taking her hand again. It hadn't been long before they found out something was wrong with his sight. It was nothing a pair of glasses couldn't fix though. It looked rather cute but it made him look even more like James than he already did. He just had Lily's eyes.
"No, love, only Uncle Sirius and Aunty Mary," Lily explained to him. Harry nodded, happily babbling until they reached the studio. Sirius was already setting things up inside and Mary went to help him while Lily took Harry to the bathroom in the back.
Harry didn't stop talking until Mary started the afternoon. There were a total of eight children present. Lily was sitting next to Harry, watching as Mary explained what they were making today: paper plate dinosaurs or jellyfishes, they could choose themselves.
Harry was eagerly starting on making a dinosaur as Lily guided and helped him where needed. Harry had always loved arts and crafts, Sirius and Mary being the main reasons, so he could do a lot independently already. Mary and Sirius helped some of the kids whose parents had left or were not very helpful or who simply wanted an extra hand.
"Mummy, could I please use the glue?" Harry asked, reaching out his hand to the glue but not reaching it. Surprisingly, it had been Marlene who had taught him most manners.
"Of course," she said, taking it and handing it to him. "But not too much. If you need help, tell me, okay?" Harry nodded. His tongue was poked out between his lips as he worked on his little project. Lily smiled, proud of her son already.
Raising a child while doing a master's and while your boyfriend was just starting a new job wasn't easy, but they managed. She was now starting a job at a human rights organisation and for a few months now a new dynamic had taken place in the Evans-Potter residence, but so far it was going really well. Lily couldn't be happier, and neither could Harry or James.
"Ta-da!" Harry cheered eventually, holding up his artwork. It was a purple and blue dinosaur with wobbly eyes and a little smile. "I made it for daddy!"
"I'm sure dad will love it a lot," Lily said. "It looks fantastic, Harry!" she cheered.
"Oh look at that! Isn't that beautiful!" Mary said happily, ruffling Harry's wild locks.
"A true masterpiece," Sirius determined, shooting Harry a wink. Harry giggled, happily starting on another one.
✰
"Be careful, Harry," Marlene said as she lifted him up to sit on her lap. She was sitting next to Mary who was holding a tiny little baby. Harry nodded, leaning forward so that he could see the baby.
Lily was hugging Dorcas tightly and James was sitting on the armrest next to Marlene, also looking at the baby. She couldn't believe it. Mary, Marlene and Dorcas were parents. They had adopted the cutest little baby.
"Wow," Harry gasped as he looked at her. "Was I that small?"
"You were five years ago," James laughed, ruffling his hair. "But you had a lot more hair than she does." They all chuckled, remembering Harry's full head of hair when he was just a week old.
"She is so cute," he said, looking at the baby in awe. Lily sat down next to Mary, a smile on her lips. Mary looked so proud and so in her element with a tiny baby in her arms. Lily had thought this from the moment she had seen Mary hold Harry when he was just a baby.
"She really is," Lily said, pressing a kiss on Mary's cheek.
"She's beautiful. What do you think her name is, Harry?" Mary asked the little boy who was still staring at the baby with adoration.
"I like Lily," he stated. They all laughed quietly so as not to startle the baby.
"That's my name, little one," Lily said, shaking her head.
"It's a nice name," James stated, shooting her a wink. Lily rolled her eyes, a smile on her lips.
"What other name do you like? Do you remember what you told me last week at arts and crafts?" Mary asked Harry again. Harry thought for a moment, his mind going a hundred miles a minute as he tapped his finger on his chin.
"Oh! I know! Her name is Jane!" he said. Mary nodded, looking over at Lily. Lily looked at her, tears appearing in her eyes.
"Jane?" she asked. Mary nodded, a smile on her lips.
"Jane Maeve Meadowes," Mary said. "A piece of me," she nudged her head in Lily's direction, "Marlene's sister's name, and Dorcas's last name. A piece of all of us in her name." Lily smiled, pressing another kiss on Mary's cheek, her heart filling with joy.
"I guessed it!" Harry cheered, bouncing in Marlene's lap.
"Yes you did, mister," Marlene laughed, protectively holding her arms around him so he wouldn't stumble off the couch - he was as clumsy as James had been as a child.
"Mummy, can we have a new baby too?" Harry asked.
Lily and James shared a look. They had considered it. She didn't want to be pregnant again but they had been thinking about fostering or adoption.
"Who knows? We can always get a puppy first," James said without thinking. Lily's eyes widened and Harry cheered so loud, that little Jane started crying.
"A PUPPY!"
Oh, James...
✰
Remus took his cup of tea to the couch and sat down. Sirius and six-year-old Harry were sitting on the floor at the coffee table. Their dog Nellie was laying with her head in Sirius's lap and the Evans-Potter's dog Barney was laying in his basket. Lily and James were gone for the weekend to go to James's cousin's wedding in India and so, Sirius and Remus were baby- and dogsitting.
Harry and Sirius were making a puzzle, Sirius as focused on it as Harry was, if not more. It was adorable, Remus thought. They didn't have children of their own and didn't want them either, but they loved every minute spent with Harry or Jane.
"Uncle Padfoot," Harry started. Sirius looked at him, raising his eyebrows. "Where are mummy and daddy?"
"At your dad's cousin's wedding in India. We told you," Sirius answered.
"What is a wedding?" Harry asked again.
"Well, it's when two people get married. They sort of... confirm their relationship on paper," Sirius tried to explain. "They promise to love each other forever."
"Can we get married then?" Harry asked. Remus snorted, quickly hiding his face behind the book he was trying to read. Sirius chuckled, shaking his head.
"No, and you don't have to get married to love each other forever," Sirius said. "Marriage is for adults, but not every adult chooses to get married. Your Uncle Moony and I are married, but your parents aren't."
"Why?"
"I don't know," Sirius answered honestly.
"Why?"
"I haven't asked," he answered again.
"Okay," Harry said, picking up another puzzle piece. Sirius breathed out, happy the questions stopped there. Harry was asking a lot lately.
"Are Aunty Dorcas, Marlene and Mary married?" he asked after putting the piece down again. Sirius clicked his tongue before shaking his head.
"No," he answered.
"Why?"
"Because you can only marry one person here."
"Oh," Harry said, thinking for a moment. "Why?"
"I don't know. Old traditional rules?" Sirius suggested. Harry looked at him with confused and curious eyes.
"But they have a baby," Harry said.
"They do. They adopted a baby."
"You don't have a baby," Harry noted. Remus snickered again, knowing exactly which questions were going to follow. Sirius shook their head. "Can you make a baby as mummy and daddy made me?"
"Uh," Sirius said, clearing his throat. "No."
"Why?"
Oh my God, Harry, Sirius thought.
"Because we're both male," Sirius answered shortly, picking up a piece and handing it to Harry, trying to distract him. Harry put it down.
"But why?"
"Because... It doesn't work like that," Sirius said. Remus was trying his hardest not to laugh out loud.
"How does it work?"
"No more questions!" Sirius decided. Harry frowned at him, opening his mouth again.
"But why?"
✰
Growing up, Harry had a loving, tight family. He had his two loving parents, two loving grandparents, his Uncle Padfoot and Uncle Moony, his Aunts Marlene, Dorcas and Mary, his cousins Jane and Jamie, and of course, Nellie and Barney.
This meant, that every part of him was shaped by these people.
He was sporty, like his father. He was caring, like his mother. He was creative, like Aunt Mary and Uncle Sirius. He was good with children, like Uncle Remus - or Mr Lupin in school. He was sarcastic like Aunt Marlene and Uncle Remus. He was outspoken like Aunt Dorcas. He was a good cook like his father and his grandmother. He was funny like Uncle Sirius and his grandfather. And so many other qualities of Harry were present in his family too.
It made sense. These people had shaped him. He had spent so many of his days with them in his twelve years of living. Yes, Harry was twelve today.
Lily couldn't believe it. Those twelve years had flown by in a matter of seconds. She remembered going into labour while James was unreachable as if it happened yesterday. But no, Harry had turned twelve today.
He was running around with Jane and Jamie, Marlene, Dorcas and Mary's children, and with Sirius and James, playing football. Remus was standing by the grill, chatting with Dorcas. Mary was helping Lily pour drinks for everyone while Effy and Monty were sitting down, occasionally yelling 'foul' or 'go! go!' at the players.
But Harry's family was getting even bigger. Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnigan, and none other than Neville Longbottom, were running around with them. Harry had met most of them in grammar school. He had befriended Ron instantly, and not much later Hermione had joined the two of them.
Neville, however, was what had surprised Lily the most. He was a year younger than the others, and Harry hadn't met him in grammar school, but at an arts and crafts Christmas event at Mary's studio in London. They had instantly clicked. However, then Lily found out he was Alice and Frank's son. Alice Fortesque, the one who had broken her heart when she was in her early twenties. James and she had laughed about it because what were the chances?
They lived in a small village near Brighton (Sirius and Remus had moved there and James couldn't be so far apart from Sirius so they had decided to move near there too. Lily was very happy with that decision), and the chances of coming across Alice were small - not that she ever thought about it. The Longbottom's lived in Crawley, where Frank had grown up, and thus not too far from the Evans-Potter's.
It had been a weird coincidence, but not one that bothered Lily nor Alice. They were adults, both happily in love with the true loves of their lives, and if their sons turned out to be friends, so be it. Actually, it had restored their friendship too.
"Who wants a burger?" Dorcas called out, bringing a plate with burgers fresh from the barbecue to the table. All the kids - and James and Sirius - ran over to the table. They all downed their lemonade as if it was the first drink they had ever had in their lives before excitedly waiting for their turn to get a hamburger.
"Are you having a fun birthday?" Lily asked Harry as she refilled his glass with lemonade.
"The best! Can Ron sleep over, please? Please, mum! Dad said it was okay!" he begged. Lily glanced at James who quickly looked away, a grin on his lips.
"If Mr and Mrs Weasley are okay with it, I don't see why not," she laughed, ruffling his hair. Harry immediately turned to Ron.
"She said yes! Come let's go call your-"
"Oi," Lily said, stopping him from getting up. "I'll ring Mrs Weasley, you boys eat and get some more fuel before you beat your dad, yes?" Harry nodded heavily, immediately digging into his burger. Lily smiled, proud of who her son had become, and grateful to all the people that shaped him and that would continue to shape him.
✰
"Dad hurry!" Harry shouted up the stairs. He was so excited that he was very annoyed that his dad was late. James, who wasn't really late, rushed down the stairs.
"Sorry, sorry," he mumbled. Lily threw her bag over her shoulder and looked at them. James was dressed in his regular clothes, jeans with a t-shirt, however, he had a pansexual flag tied around his neck. Harry was dressed in his regular clothes too, shorts and a t-shirt, and he had a bisexual flag tied around his neck. Lily had a bisexual pin on her own dress but didn't have a flag tied around her neck.
"Ready to go?" she asked. It was Harry's first pride. He was sixteen now and had been begging all year long to go this year. He had come out when he was thirteen when he said he fancied a boy from his class but that he also liked girls. He had never been afraid that his parents would be mad or disappointed, his whole family was queer after all.
James drove them to Brighton, parking the car at Sirius and Remus's house. Marlene, Mary, Dorcas, Regulus, Barty Crouch and Evan Rosier were already there. Everyone had something representing their sexuality. It didn't matter how old they would get, they would always go to pride and always wear their sexuality and gender identity with pride.
Harry showed his new flag proudly to his family, as did James, before they all walked into the town where the event was taking place. Lily chatted with Mary. Harry walked next to them in silence, which was incredibly uncommon. He was as chatty as his father usually.
"Harry, love, is everything okay?" Lily asked him carefully. He looked at her, biting his lip.
"Is it okay if a friend of mine joins us in town?" he asked. Lily tilted her head, surprised at his question.
"Of course. Who is it?" she asked. He looked at her, pressing his lips together. There was an unsure, scared look in his eyes. Lily looked at Mary. "We'll catch up," she said, Mary nodded, immediately understanding. "James!" Lily called out. James - who was walking next to Sirius up front, immediately turned around and jogged over to them.
"Hi, everything okay?" he asked, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder.
"Harry asked if it was okay if a friend joined us in town today," Lily said. James frowned at her, not knowing why it was important he came over for this. "Do you want to tell us who it is now?" she asked Harry gently again. Harry looked from his father to his mother and then took a deep breath.
"He's my boyfriend actually. And it's... It's Neville," he confessed. Lily's eyes widened a bit and James's lips turned into a grin. Neville. They shared a look before looking at their seemingly embarrassed son.
"Ah... You have your mother's type then," James joked. Lily bumped his side with her elbow, rolling her eyes as James chuckled at his own joke.
"That's so lovely, darling. When did you start dating?" Lily asked kindly, wanting to make sure Harry knew they supported him.
"Erm... Two months ago. I've liked him for a bit but I wasn't sure if he was queer. He is," Harry said, the usual sparkle in his eyes returning and a smile forming on his lips.
"I'm happy for you, kiddo," James said, ruffling Harry's hair. "So can we embarrass you in front of him now?" Harry groaned. James and Lily took a hand each, Harry in between them.
"Oh don't groan, Harry, we are going to embarrass you. We have to. We're your parents," Lily teased, giving his hand a squeeze.
Harry groaned again.
When they got to the event, it took a while before Harry and Neville spotted each other, three more people joining the already big group. Alice bumped Lily's shoulder.
"Can you believe they're dating?" she laughed. Lily shook her head, snickering behind her hand.
"It's a bit... odd. But it's not too weird. They make a cute couple," she answered. Harry was dancing to the music, waving his flag around Neville who was giggling, his cheeks flushed red.
"They do make a cute couple," Alice agreed. "I wasn't too surprised either. All he does is talk about Harry." Lily thought for a bit before her eyes widened. Had she really been so blind?
"Shit... Now that you mention it, Harry talks about Neville way more than his other friends too," Lily laughed. "Suppose that happens when you fancy someone." She peered over to James who was talking to Mary and a drag queen. Alice nodded.
"I suppose it does," she said, before walking over to Frank again who seemed to be getting hit on - who could blame them, Frank had the best butt. Not better than James's though. Lily walked over to James and wrapped her arm around him. No one was better than James.
✰
Lily knew this day was coming.
Harry was going off to college. She was happy, excited, scared, sad and simply feeling overwhelmed. Her little baby was not so little anymore. Harry was an amazing child. He was kind, and bubbly, had lots of love to share with the world, was smart and witty, and he stood up for what was right.
She was so incredibly proud of him that she couldn't help but wipe away a tear when she saw him at the bottom of the stairs with his last suitcase to pack into the car.
"Oh mum," Harry said, chuckling softly. He dropped his bag and walked over to her, taking her in his arms. He was as tall as James, if not taller, and he was still the spitting image of his dad, apart from his eyes. He had his mother's eyes.
"Sorry, darling," she said with a slight chuckle. She grabbed his shoulders and scanned his face. "You're just... so grown." He laughed - he even sounded like James when he laughed.
"Of course, I am mum. I'm eighteen now!" he said as if that would make things better. She just pulled him into a hug again, holding him tighter than she ever had. "I love you, mum... but we have to go."
"Ten more seconds," she whispered. Harry nodded, tightening his grip on her too. She breathed in deeply before letting go, blinking the final tears away as she did. "Let's go, yes? Are you sure you have everything?"
"I do. And if I don't, then you will come to bring it," he said. She rolled her eyes.
"I won't come to bring over every little thing, Harry," she laughed. He nodded, his happy demeanour fading for a second.
"But you would come, right? If I needed it," he asked. She nodded immediately.
"In a heartbeat," she reminded him, cupping his face in her hands. "No matter the time, no matter where I am, you call, and I'll be there. It's only a two and a half hour drive. I'll be there as quick as I can, always. Okay?" He nodded, granting her a smile again before once more wrapping his arms around her.
"One more," he whispered. She smiled into his shoulder. No matter how old and grown he would be, he would always be her little one. She would never be alone because she would always have Harry. She had never felt alone since he had come into her life.
"There'll be many more, don't worry darling," she whispered. He let go again and nodded.
"Now I am ready," he said, taking a deep breath. Lily nodded. Harry picked up his bag and together they walked outside to the car where James - and Sirius, who had insisted on helping pack the car even though they had thrown a small going-to-college party last night.
"Last one?" James asked, taking the bag from Harry and putting it in the trunk with the other stuff.
"That's it," Harry confirmed. James shut the trunk and leaned against the car, looking at how Sirius scooped Harry into his arms.
"I'm so proud of you, Bambi. Going to the same university as your parents and your family! Now, London is great - as you know - so be sure to have a good time, yes? Don't get your boyfriend pregnant like your dad did your mum-"
"Sirius!" the three Evans-Potter's exclaimed. Sirius chuckled, patting Harry on the cheek.
"Nevertheless, Neville and I can't. We're both males," he teased, referring to the conversation he had with Sirius when he was six years old and wanted to know every answer to every question in the world. Sirius laughed, shaking his head.
"Have a good trip, okay? Say hi to Neville for me. Be good, yes? I'll see you... soon?" Sirius asked carefully, hugging Harry tightly.
"You're all coming to Aunty Mary's exhibition in the city next week, so yes," Harry smiled. "And after that, you're nearly always welcome to visit me too."
"Good choice on that nearly," James commented. Sirius flicked his ear. James rubbed his ear, rolling his eyes with a grin on his lips.
"Love you, Bambi," Sirius said, hugging Harry one more time before stepping aside. He wrapped his arm around Lily's waist for a moment, looking at Harry and James. They hadn't said a word of goodbye to each other yet. Lily knew it was because they were both dreading the moment intensely.
Now that Harry was going off to university, James's second-hand man, his son, his everything, would be away from home and he didn't know how to deal with that. He always had his family close, but now Harry was going to be two and a half hours away. It was strange, they both felt weird about it.
Usually, neither of them struggled with expressing emotions but this past week both of them had been avoiding it greatly.
"So..." Harry said, rubbing his neck. "Shall we leave?" he asked. James nodded.
"You agreed to meet Neville for dinner right? If you want to make it in time, we should go," James said, running a hand through his hair.
"You're gonna be fine with these two?" Sirius whispered to Lily. She nodded.
"They're going to burst a few seconds before James and I go back, I know it," she whispered back.
"Well, call me when you get back home, alright? I'm going to distract Moony with my tears now," he teased.
"Don't be too hard on him," Lily chuckled softly. James hugged Sirius once more, as did Harry, before the little family got into the car. They waved Sirius goodbye as they drove away, all the way up to London.
The car ride was fine. Harry Facetimed Hermione at one point who was on her way to go to Cambridge, and Ron, who was going to the same university as Harry in London but who had left a tad later due to his twin brothers pranking him by emptying all his suitcases right before they wanted to pack the car. They sang songs, chatted, and simply stared at the landscapes passing them by.
When the landscapes turned into big buildings and tiny streets with way too many cars, the tension in the car rose. They were getting closer to dropping Harry off. Sure, they would see him the week after at the opening of Mary's newest exhibition, but still, tonight when they would get home, the house would be emptier than usual.
When they reached the dorms, it got even worse. Harry and James barely dared to look at each other when moving Harry's bags into his room. He had his own room in one of the university's student flats, he didn't have to share his room like Lily had to save costs, but he still had flatmates and Neville was going to be living across the hall. Nevertheless, he hadn't been afraid of not knowing anyone, he was quite social. A good mix between his father and mother in that area.
They helped him set up a little, putting up the picture frames he had brought as well as his books. Lily made his bed while James put Harry's clothes in the wardrobe and Harry put away his books.
When they were nearly done unpacking, there was a soft knock on the door. Harry's eyes lit up right away. They always did when Neville showed up. He swung open the door and greeted his boyfriend in a tight hug.
"Nev!"
"Hi Harry," Neville chuckled, hugging him back tightly. "Hi Mr and Mrs Evans-Potter," he greeted them.
"Hi, Neville. Please, Lily and James will do just fine," Lily said, giving him a hug too. James hugged Neville as well.
"Are you ready to go grab dinner or do you need more help here?" Neville asked.
"I can unpack the rest later," Harry said. "Erm... Is it okay if we go now?" he asked his parents. Lily wrapped an arm around James's waist.
"Of course, darling," she said, offering him a smile. James nodded too. Lily could sense his muscles tensing up. She looked at Harry and then at Neville and then back at James. "Well..." she walked up to Harry, wrapping her arms around him again. He hugged her back, burying his face in her shoulder.
"Love you, mum," he whispered.
"I love you too," she whispered back. "Just a call away, yes? You're going to have the absolute best time here."
"I know," he said, pulling back to smile at her. "Thanks. I'll see you next week."
"See you next week," she repeated, nodding. She gave him a quick kiss, and ruffled his hair before stepping towards Neville. "Shall we give these two a moment and wait in the hallway?" Neville nodded, following her out. Lily closed the door behind him and walked with Neville to his room to check out how he had decorated it.
Neville was a good person. Really good. Lily was happy that he made her son the smiliest person on earth. "Harry's been really scared to say bye to James," Neville told her.
"James has been really scared to say bye to Harry," Lily smiled. "Those two are... inseparable. And this won't change their bond but it's weird. It's going to be weird for a bit. Quiet, you know? James and I only lived together a few months before Harry came and well, we have our two puppies but it's different." Neville nodded.
"But they'll be fine. So will you," he said.
"Oh definitely. James is probably going to come up here every two weeks if not more," she laughed a little. "Me too." Neville smiled at her.
"Well, you're always welcome, that's for sure," he said reassuringly. She nodded.
"Thank you, Neville," she said kindly. "Are you excited about university?"
"Very! It's exciting. A bit scary, but exciting. And I'm happy to have Harry here with me," he said conversationally.
"I can imagine. I had the absolute best time at university. It was stressful, but my friends made it more than bearable. We had a blast and I know you will too," she said. He nodded. They stepped outside again to wait for James and Harry. They could hear muffled voices through the door but they couldn't make out what they were saying. Lily imagined they were probably hugging and maybe crying.
She was right about the crying part. When they came out of the room a good five to ten minutes later, they both had red, teary eyes.
"Ready?" Neville asked Harry. He nodded, finally letting go of his father and taking Neville's hand instead.
"Ready?" Lily asked James, holding out her hand to him. He nodded, taking hers. She gave his hand a squeeze. They walked behind Neville and Harry to the exit, splitting up as the boys went to a restaurant nearby on campus and James and Lily got back into the car.
They shared a look, James's eyes full of emotion and Lily's too filling up with tears once more.
This is where their story had begun.
This is where their family had begun.
And to think it had all started with one night.