When the doctor confirmed what Hannah already knew, she immediately thought of the man her unborn child would become and smiled. And seven months later, after an agonizing sixteen hours of labor, she stared into her son's eyes for the first time and knew she'd die to protect him, no questions asked. "Hello, James. It's nice to meet you - again. Mama loves you." The baby let out a cry, and Hannah placed a finger on his tiny cheek. "It was a rough entrance into this world, wasn't it? If I have my way, you won't have to get used to it." A tear rolled down her cheek and landed on the blanket. "I'm sorry your daddy isn't here but I had to protect him, baby, just like I'm trying to protect you. And don't think I won't give you shit about the hell you put my body through when I see you the grown up you again, James. Be prepared," she teased. And then Hannah leaned down and kissed his forehead. "Oh, my beautiful, sweet boy."
Single motherhood was exhausting but Hannah never once regretted her decision to have James. She missed Matthew with everything she had and wished she could have accepted his proposal but leaving had been the right choice. And then eleven months in, the two of them were hunted down and would have been killed if she hadn't gotten to the bastards first. And it was then that she knew that James needed to be with his father. To protect him, she had to leave him. "Mama," babbled the baby as they pulled up to the trailer.
A sob escaped and she tried to rein herself in, to be strong because her son was depending on her. "You're finally going to meet your daddy. Are you excited, James?"
"Mama," the baby repeated.
Hannah sniffled as she unbuckled him from the carseat and then walked up to the trailer. She didn't even have time to pull herself together and knock on the door before it flew open and Matthew stood in front of her. "Marion?" asked Matthew.
She smiled. "Hello, Matthew. Can we come in?"
"Of course," he answered, even though his eyes had bugged out upon laying eyes on James, knowing without being told that this was his son. "Is this why you left?"
"Partially," Hannah answered, hoping he wouldn't question her any further.
"And this is my son." Matthew just needed it confirmed.
"Yes. Matthew, meet James William Cole. He was born on December 11th, 2009, and he's the most important person in my life. But I can't raise him anymore. It's not safe."
"Marion, what's wrong? You can tell me," he urged. She was clearly terrified and he wanted to know why.
She shook her head. "I wish I could but I can't. I'm so fucking sorry, Matthew. I never meant for any of this to happen." Hannah took a deep breath, kissed James, whispered that she loved him, and handed him over to Matthew. "Just know that I love you."
"I love you too. We can work this out. The three of us can be a family. Please," he begged.
She shook her head, trying to hold in the sobs and failing. Hannah's breath started to hitch. With their son between them, Hannah kissed Matthew for the last time. "Mama wants you to be good for your daddy, James," she managed to get out.
And then she turned around to flee before she could change her mind, Matthew at her heels with James in his arms.
Although Hannah couldn't raise her son, she made sure to keep an eye on him, her heart breaking when Matthew was murdered. Her heart burst when James found Ramse for the first time. She was grateful her little boy had someone who loved him with both his parents gone.
In 2017, when her mother and an adult James showed up after finally discovering the truth, she wasn't even surprised to find out she gave her life to protect him. The look of shock and grief in his eyes was heartbreaking, and Hannah wished she had more time with her family. To ease the tension for a minute, she decided to go for a joke. "So, how it's feel, Grandma?"
Katarina and James simultaneously groaned. "Fuck," was Katarina's response.
"Yeah, that's what I figured you'd say." Hannah winked at James.
He huffed out a laugh despite the rage and despair threatening to swallow him whole. "Nice one," James reluctantly admitted.
"And don't think I've forgotten what you put my vagina through, James William. Why did you never tell me how much labor hurt?" she asked her mother.
"Because I didn't think you'd time travel and end up with a son," Katarina replied, knowing she'd have to leave her daughter behind to die and desperately wanting to stay in this room forever.
James sighed. "One minute more."
Hannah stood up and he followed suit. "Can I hug you, James?"
He nodded and hugged her so tight she had to catch her breath. "I don't know what to say," he admitted, his voice cracking.
"That's okay. I love you. Just remember that, okay? My beautiful, sweet boy," Hannah murmured. She wiped away some tears after he reluctantly let go.
"I love you, Hannah. We'll see each other again," Katarina vowed, swaying on her feet. James grabbed her hand to keep her upright.
"Of course we will. You'll fix this. I have the utmost faith in you." Hannah smiled at them both and sank to the floor to cry when the two disappeared back to the future just seconds later.
They would save the world, that much was for sure. They hadn't come all this way for nothing. But right now, Hannah could only mourn for the life they could have had and would never come to fruition if this all worked out. Dying for her son didn't scare her at all. James had been her priority ever since the moment she figured out she was pregnant and that would never change. They'd find each other again someday, once everything was set back to normal.