When Harry woke up the next morning, the first thing he heard were a lot of loud noises coming from downstairs. Hugging Fudgy Bear as tight as he could, he decided that he would be brave and go and see what was going on downstairs. Clumsily he stumbled out of his covers, climbed off the side of his bed and waddled over to the staircase.
As he opened the door the noises grew louder, and they seemed to echo all around him in the cold, dark staircase as he put one small foot on the stone step. Immediately, he withdrew it. The step was freezing cold. Looking down the steps, he heard the voices growing more and more angry, and his resolve grew stronger. If it was Mione and Ron shouting, he would go and cheer them up.
Squeezing his eyes shut, he tentatively plodded on down the steps, his green eyes darting around the cold, draughty staircase. Relieved, he reached the end of it and eagerly stepped onto the soft, warm scarlet carpet. The noises around him seemed ten times louder now, and he looked up at their source with wide blinking eyes.
'You are SO inconsiderate, Ron!! You had NO regard whatsoever for my feelings yesterday!!'
'What else did you want me to say, Hermione?! The only thing I can do is say sorry! What more do you want? Blood?'
'Then you just buggered off, leaving me with Harry! He was upset Ron! He thought he'd done something wrong!'
'Well, that's not my fault! It was you shouting!'
As Harry waddled silently nearer to the two of them, he could see that Ron's ears were burning red, as well as Mione's face. He grabbed onto the side of the huge red sofa, tears forming in his eyes again. He hated it when people shouted, and he hated it when Mione and Ron were upset.
'That's not the point, Ron! You left me there to deal with it on my own!! Harry looks up to you at this age, you know he does! He thinks the world of you!'
'Oh, come on, Hermione, how hard can it be to look after a five year old Harry?'
Mione immediately grew silent. Her face seemed to be getting redder, and Harry began to grow a little scared. Ron seemed to know that he'd said something wrong, as he began to back away as he always did when she was angry.
'Fine,' she said, her voice low again, but it filled Harry with the same worried feeling. 'Fine. If you think it's so easy to look after a five year old while having to deal with your idiotic actions, then you do it. You can look after Harry today. I have homework I now need to catch up on.'
With this statement, Harry let out a little worried groan. He wanted Mione with him as well as Ron, he didn't want them to fall out.
Upon hearing him, Mione and Ron spun around to look at him, their eyes wide. He let out a little sniffle.
'You can take care of this, Ron. I have to do my homework.'
Mione walked over to Harry and laid her soft hand on his forehead, smiling at him apologetically. Harry instantly threw his arms around her and hugged her.
'I want Mione…'
'I know, Harry, but I have a lot to do today. You'll have lots of fun with Ron.'
Harry nodded gently and stepped away from Mione, looking up with sad eyes. She smiled kindly.
'I'm sorry, Harry, I'll still see you today, okay?'
'Okay…' He sniffled.
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The day wasn't as fun as it was the day before, Harry thought as they sat on one of the red squishy sofas, Ron trying to teach Harry about broomsticks. Apparently, people flew on them and chased funny balls around a field, and it was a game. Harry didn't want to play it. He wanted to sit with Mione and draw like he did yesterday.
He looked across at the other table, where she was sitting by herself, her notes all around her and sighed. She looked sad again. Her eyes weren't as happy and glowing as they usually were, and she was writing very slowly like she didn't really want to be writing at all. Harry wondered why she didn't come and play with him and Ron.
'You really like Hermione, don't you, Harry?'
Harry looked back at Ron with startled eyes. He wasn't exactly embarrassed that he liked Mione, but he didn't really like talking about it to Ron. He felt his face go red.
'Yes… She's always really nice to me, and she's pretty and clever. She makes me feel safe.'
Ron bowed his head and sighed, leaving a confused Harry to stare at him, blinking. Did he upset Ron now? Why was everyone getting so sad? He didn't like it.
'Ron…' Harry tentatively shimmied forwards on the sofa, so that he was closer to Ron. He reached out and laid a small hand on Ron's face, which made him turn his head slowly up to meet Harry's. 'Did I make you sad?'
'No, Harry. You didn't make me sad… It's not your fault really.'
'But you are sad, aren't you? Why are you sad?'
Shifting slightly, Ron turned to face Harry completely, so that they were both sitting cross legged, face to face. Harry put his hand down and blinked at Ron.
'Because I like Mione. Like… um… like your Uncle likes your Aunt.'
Harry smiled. He knew that everything would get sorted out in the end. Mione and Ron weren't really angry at each other, they were still friends, and they were very good friends if they were like his Aunt and Uncle. His Aunt and Uncle were such good friends that they sometimes did funny things together, like hugging and kissing. He didn't really like the thought of Mione and Ron hugging and kissing, but if it made them happy, he would be happy too. However when he saw that Ron wasn't smiling as well, his own faltered.
'Why does that make you sad?'
Ron looked over to Mione, who glanced in his direction, narrowed her eyes and turned back to her work, scribbling hurriedly.
'Because she doesn't like me… like your Aunt likes your Uncle.'
'Oh…'
He looked over at Mione with a wistful expression, with a funny feeling in the pit of his stomach. He began to wonder whether Mione did like anyone like his Aunt liked his Uncle, and why.
'I can tell she likes someone else, Harry. And I think I know who it is too,' Ron continued, as Harry turned his attention back to him. His ears had gone red, but his eyes were determined. 'And… after this week… I'm beginning to see that they need her more than I do.'
'Do they like her too?'
Ron grinned, though it was a sad grin, not like the ones he gave Harry when they did 'Thumbs up.'
'Yes, I think he loves her.'
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'Come on, Harry! You really need to go to sleep now! If Hermione knew you were up at this time she would kill me!'
As the clock on his bedside table struck 9, Harry threw back his neatly tucked in covers, his expression angry and stubborn.
'No!'
Ron sighed, which made Harry bad. He knew he wasn't making this very fair on Ron. After all, Ron was only trying to make him go to sleep, so that he wouldn't get too tired and then not be able to play any more. However, he would not go to sleep until his Fudgy Bear was back in his bed with him.
'Fudgy Bear!'
'I'm sorry, Harry, I don't have the faintest idea what the hell you're talking about!'
Harry slumped back into his pillows violently, his arms crossed and his face puffed up angrily. Where was his Fudgy Bear?
'I want Fudgy Bear!'
'Here's Fudgy Bear, Harry.'
Both Ron and Harry's head spun around to locate the source of the soft voice, and came across Mione, standing in the doorway, a tender smile on her face and Fudgy Bear firmly in her hands. Instantly, Harry held out his hands for his Fudgy Bear, which Mione brought over with a chuckle, much to Ron's indignation.
'How was I supposed to know what Fudgy Bear was? I thought he wanted some sweets or something…'
She laughed, and sat on the side of Harry's bed gently, her eyes skimming across Harry's face. He grinned at her adoringly.
'It's okay, Ron, I'll tuck him in if you want.'
'Oh, thank Merlin!'
With that, Ron jumped up, emitting a loud sigh which made Harry giggle slightly. He turned around and stuck his thumbs up at Harry.
'I had a fun day today, Harry. Thumbs up!'
Harry beamed at him and stuck his own two small thumbs up in reply.
'Thumbs up!'
Mione chuckled again as Ron grinned thankfully at her, turning for the door and sauntering wearily away. She then turned back to Harry, her eyes bright and happy once more.
'So, did you have a good day today?'
Harry nodded. 'Uh huh, we talked about Quiddish and brooms and Snatches, and we talked about you and my Aunt and Uncle too!'
'You talked about me?'
Harry nodded politely. He would not tell Mione what Ron said. After all, Ron had told him that it was their secret. Harry was good at keeping secrets. Mione seemed to know that it was a secret too, as she didn't ask any further questions about it.
After a while, Mione told him it was time for sleep. It was way past Harry's bedtime and he was feeling very tired indeed. As Mione held up the covers for him to slide underneath, he nearly didn't even have the energy to move. From the moment his head hit the pillow his eyes drooped, and he was asleep.
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He was lying in a large wooden cot, above him a lot of shiny toys were hanging from a mobile, spinning around slowly. From his left was the sound of a beautiful voice, the most beautiful he had ever heard. It was a lady's voice, and she was singing softly to him, the most wonderful song in the world. Harry felt so incredibly safe and warm, and so happy.
Her face suddenly swam in front of him, but he couldn't actually see it. All he saw was light, but he did know that she had a pretty face. He also knew that she was smiling at him, and he smiled back, a funny little amused gurgle coming out of his mouth. She broke off her singing with sweet laughter.
'Oh, Harry…' she said, reaching down into the cot. Harry felt her hands slide underneath his body, and she picked him up with such gentleness, Harry thought he was floating. 'Always remember, Harry… you're my baby. You'll always be my Little Green Eyes… I love you so much.'
'Don't talk like that, Lily…'
Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw a black haired man with glasses appear at the lady's side. He was smiling down at Harry happily, and Harry thought that he looked like the bravest and strongest man he had ever met. His face was also covered in a white light, but he didn't seem to notice as he held his arms out to him, his throat emitting a strained little moan.
'Da… daddy…'
They both gasped, and Harry grinned.
The scene suddenly changed.
He was sitting on the floor, his cot had fallen over and his room was messy. He looked over to his right and he saw his mother, her back to him, lying motionless beside him. Tears were in his eyes as he made to move towards her, but he was stopped by a cold, chilling hiss.
He froze and blinked up into the face that had caused his mother to fall to the floor with a shriek. It was covered in light as well, but from inside the light Harry could see two terrifyingly red eyes, both staring relentlessly at him. He let out a petrified sob.
'Don't worry, Harry,' the man hissed, his voice sending shivers and chills through Harry's body like ice. 'You'll be with your dear mud blood mother soon enough.'
Suddenly, Harry felt a gut-wrenching sense of foreboding in the pit of his stomach, and a split second later, all he saw was a flash of violently green light. His head felt like it had split open, the pain was unbearable. He heard a cold shriek from somewhere in the room, like someone had been stabbed or burnt alive. Yelling tearfully, Harry couldn't take the pain anymore. His eyelids drooping, he passed out.
The scene swirled around dangerously, and the pain in Harry's head stopped. His eyes opened again to a familiar scene.
He was watching the man with the cold voice and the red eyes again. He was pointing a stick of wood at a lady who was cowering underneath, crying and shaking madly. He hissed something Harry couldn't quite hear at her, and she raised her head to meet his eyes, flinching. Harry audibly gasped, but no one heard him.
It was Mione.
It was all over in a matter of seconds. Harry heard the evil voice cry something about 'Mudbloods' and in a flash of green light, she was lying motionless on the floor as his mother had done before.