Conquered Love
Disclaimer: JKR owns.
Chapter 7: Jamie's First Birthday
[AN:] Thanks to everyone for being so patient with me. Like I said when I updated M&MS, I've had a heavy work load after the VMA's, and on top of raising a four year old it's been difficult to get away and post. But please read and enjoy and know that I haven't forgotten about the story and I hope to be posting more consistently. Thanks!
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February 19th
…
"Okay, who's present's next?" Hermione asked maternally, with her one year old daughter perched on her lap. Jamie bounced and squealed, pointing her chubby hand at a long rectangular box on the table in front of them. The group gathered around the table chuckled at Jamie's vocabulary.
It was a Saturday night, and Harry and Hermione held a small dinner for Jamie's birthday with Hermione's parents, Ron and Lavender, and then Remus and Tonks. Various Weasley's and other friends of theirs had stopped by all day to see her and give her first birthday gifts. They had understood that Jamie got a little overwhelmed with large crowds and settled with a little visitation time instead of dinner.
Ginny and Draco Malfoy were also supposed to stop by with their nine month old son, but Logan had caught a sudden cold and they chose to stay in to take care of him.
"Who's it from Jamie?" asked Harry who was sitting next to his wife and daughter, holding up a muggle video camera. Hermione had insisted that Harry start carrying the thing around at all times, adamant to get Jamie's first steps (that she had yet to make despite Hermione's constant work to get her to) on camera.
"Won!!" she shrieked as she started trying to tear apart the wrapping paper.
Hermione smirked at her daughter's name for Ron, "Oh Won-Won, you shouldn't have."
Ron gave her a mock smirk back before muttering, "Hermies."
"Easy there- we don't want any brawling on Jamie's big day," Tonks intervened holding up a hand.
Hermione sent him a look before helping her daughter get rid of the last of the coverings. Once it was all gone Jamie shrieked again at the present and clapped her little hands together while Hermione gasped.
The whole room got quiet and Ron cowered back, not wanting to be the victim of Hermione's wrath. Hermione turned her eyes on Ron with a dangerous glint in them.
"A broom?" she asked in a deathly calm voice.
"Booom!" Jamie screeched, trying to reach for it.
Ron cleared his throat, "I-it's a t-training broom."
"And I suppose that makes all the difference in the world? She's one for Merlin's sake! A bloody one year old could fall from anything, even if the word 'training' is in the title!" Hermione finished sharply. Ron must have been thanking god that Hermione had her daughter in her lap or else she would be across the room in an instant trying to strangle him.
"Mum, why don't you take Jamie into the kitchen to refill her sippy cup with some orange juice," Hermione said with a smile at her daughter.
'Oh wonderful…' Ron thought, scared out of his wits.
Both Ron and Harry gulped in fear as they watched Hermione hand Jamie to her grandmother. Hermione grabbed for the broom throwing it back on the unoccupied sofa next to her. The broom bounced off a lay peacefully on the ground.
"You know what, I think I'll go get refreshment as well," Hermione's dad said, rushing out of the living room and into the kitchen after his wife. He'd known Hermione's tempers were ones to avoid at all cost.
"Us too," Lavender said, speaking for herself, Remus, and Tonks.
"Explain yourself," Hermione said with her hands on her hips, looking at Ron like she was about to hex him into the next century.
Ron opened his mouth about to defend himself, but when he saw the furious look in her eyes he abandoned his plan and instead pointed his finger at Harry, "He made me do it!"
"What?"
Hermione jerked her heads toward her husband who smiled innocently.
"You," she started lowly.
"Yes, love?"
"I told you! I told you not to even think about getting her a broom and then you go and do this?!"
"The gift was from Ron, and despite what he says," he shot his best friend a glare, "he got it for her on his own intentions."
"Don't play me like that Harry James Potter, I know you coerced him into doing it!" she nearly shouted.
"Hermione, sweetheart, I didn't-"
"Yes you did! It makes perfect sense! I told you that she was too young and you disrespect my wishes by getting Ron to do your dirty work for you! Do you think I'm stupid? Don't you think I would have realized?" she said, flinging her hands around to emphasize her point.
Ron swallows, "So, uh… if this conversation doesn't involve me anymore… then I'll just… go…" He turned to leave without any notice from Harry or Hermione.
"I just don't get why you're so against it!" Harry said back desperately.
"Because she's one! She can't even walk yet so what makes you think she'd take to flying? What would you say if something happened-"
"Nothing would happen! It's a training broom! She can't go but a meter off the ground-"
"A meter is still enough for her to crack her bloody head open!"
"No, there's a protective boundary around it! Its like a cushion so when it falls she hits that before being gently put on the ground."
Hermione faltered and bit her lip, "Oh?"
"Yes. Love, I respect your wishes of you not wanting me to take her out on the Firebolt. I get that, but this one is flawless, honestly…" he finished in a softer tone, coming up to cup her cheek.
Hermione leaned into his embrace for a moment before swatting him away, "How do you know she'll even know to wrap her hands around the handle? And I bet the protection charm wears off, too! No Harry, it's a bad idea! Maybe in a few years, but not when she's barely one!"
"But Hermione…" Harry started with a pout.
"No! I said no and that's final Harry!" she stomped her foot and then started off for the kitchen to retrieve her daughter.
But Harry was hot on her heals, "You're being unreasonable you know, she'd be fine."
"May I remind you that she can't even wa- oh my god…"
"What?" Harry asked, looking down to see what Hermione was looking at. "Bloody hell, will look at that?" he asked just as much in awe as his wife.
"Get the camera, Harry, get the camera!" she said quietly, hopeful to not interrupt her daughter from walking.
She was walking with a slight bounce, which was normal for first timers. She also had her hands spread out next to her for balance and her mouth was formed into a happy and excited 'O'.
Hermione could feel tears come to her eyes and she watched her daughter. Harry rushed back and turned the video camera on her. Jamie started to stumble and reached for a leg of furniture for support.
"Oh, come on Jamie, you can do it!" Hermione told her enthusiastically, coming to stand in front of her and helping to ease her way away from the leg and back onto the support of her own feet.
"Ma," Jamie squealed as she started walking again in direction of Hermione who was backing away from her slowly.
"Yes baby, you can do it," Harry said also coming to stand in front of Jamie so the camera could get a better view. Jamie held her hand out and grasped hold to two of Harry's fingers.
"Holy hell!" Ron said loudly as he came out of the kitchen to find Jamie walking. "Oi, Jamie's walking!" he called into the people in the kitchen.
"What!" Mrs. Granger shouted excitedly, running out to find her granddaughter toddling towards her parents.
"Will you look at that!" Mr. Granger said proudly, wrapping an arm around his wife's waist and watching his granddaughter contently.
"Come on," Hermione continued to coo at Jamie. Jamie grinned and her bright green eyes sparkled as she took a sudden step to the left and fell down next to the training broom.
She wrapped her precious fists eagerly around the handle and grinned, looking back up to her father.
"That's my girl," Harry said smiling.
Hermione sighed but held a secret smile of her own as her daughter excitedly pawed at her broom.
"If that's a sign that she'll be an amazing quidditch player one day, then I don't know what is. Honestly Hermione, she made her first steps, leading her right to her broom. You can't say no to her…" Harry said softly, kissing his wife on the cheek.
"Come on, Hermione, she's a Potter, how can you keep her from flying?" Ron asked cheekily, trying to lighten the mood.
Remus nodded, "Aye Hermione, it's in her blood."
Hermione bit her lip as she continued to stare lovingly at her daughter, "Well… I guess if it's safe…"
"It is Hermione, I promise!" Harry said excitedly.
"Oh, alright then… but she has to be supervised every time she's on the bloody thing… and she can't have a real broom at least until she's five, so no trying to persuade me when she gets older." she ordered turning back to her husband and giving him a pointed glare.
"Okay, but I think she'll have an easy time convincing you herself when she's older," Harry said smugly, kissing her on the nose. He powered off the video camera and went over to his daughter and her new broom.
He helped show her how to put her hand over the broom and she even effectively shouted 'up!' even though the broom levitated on its own. Harry picked her up and was about to place her on it when Hermione's instincts took over again.
"Harry, wait!"
"What?" he asked, placing his daughter back down.
Hermione bit her lip hesitantly, "I just… I'd feel better if someone else tested it out first."
Harry looked around, "Who?"
Hermione shrugged innocently and dug her toe into the carpet while staring at him.
"Hermione," Harry exclaimed, holding his hands up, "Are taking the mickey out of me? That things the size of my arm!"
Hermione shrugged defiantly, "You wanted to get it for her so bad, you should own up and take responsibilities for all the extras that come with it. And that means testing it out."
Harry stared at her for a few moments before turning to look at the others for support. When no one moved but looked expectantly at him he sighed, "Fine."
"Thanks love," Hermione said with a smile, going over to pick up Jamie and sitting them on the couch.
Harry looked down at the broom that was hovering a meter off the ground with a reluctant look. The things he did for his family…
He lifted a leg over the side of the broom and squatted down. He sent Hermione a resentful look as she started to snicker.
"Ooh, Hermione, get the camera!" he heard Lavender say cheekily across the room.
Harry glared at her but Hermione acquiesced and turned on the camera.
"Smile love," Hermione said sweetly at Harry.
Harry clenched his jaw and kicked up from the ground, only having room to hold onto the very tip top of the handle. The room started to giggle and chuckle as Harry floated around at a conservative pace. Jamie held out her hands at her father and started squealing wantingly.
"Can I get off now?" Harry asked, masking his impatience.
"Okay, but you have to fall." Hermione told him dead pan.
"Why on earth would you want me to do that?"
"So I can test out those protection charms… and so I can get you looking like an idiot on film. Please sweetheart?"
…
Thank you for all the lovely reviews! I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while… but right when I think I might, I get a good idea for a scene that would have happened before the chapter that was already written. So sorry if it annoys some of you about the sporadic updating routine…
PLEASE REVIEW and let me know if I should keep writing chapters for this story or if I'm just wasting my time! Because honestly, I have three other fics I'm writing right now, and if this doesn't rate high on the totem pole, so to speak, then I won't continue to take the time out of my busy schedule to write.
And again, thank you for reading.