Written for: The Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition, Round 9.

Team: The Ballycastle Bats

Position: Seeker

Prompt: What if Severus Snape hadn't told Lord Voldemort about the prophecy? (In my head, since Snape didn't tell on the Potters to Voldy, they got to live and celebrate…that's right. Little Harry's second birthday!)

Happy Birthday, Harry!

"James? JAMES! The doorbell is going to make me deaf, answer the door, will you?" Lily's voice echoed from the attic above and James jumped.

"I'm busy with something, Lil! Why don't you get the door?" He'd taken apart the little mobile above Harry's crib and was now examining it with a little too much enthusiasm while a contented Harry watched on, his gums clamped firmly around a chewy toy.

"You fiddling with the mobile above Harrys crib really isn't an excuse, James, he is too old for that thing anyway!" James hung his head low, embarrassed at being caught yet again by his wife and stood up in resignation.

"Er, right. Well, I'm off to answer the door, then."

"Thank you!" She sounded rather out of breath; no doubt a side effect of the dust that had been gathering in the attic since the age of his great grandfather.

"What are you doing up there, anyway?"

"Oh, umm, I'm -" Lily was interrupted by a muffled thud as something went crashing to the floor.

THUMP.

"Ouch!"

"Lily?" He wondered briefly if he had to go up there to rescue her from whatever force of evil she seemed to be battling up there before opening the door to welcome anyone in.

"Just answer the door, will you James?" She sounded impatient, and an impatient Lily was never a good thing. He had learnt his lesson a few years ago.

"Alright, alright, don't get your knickers in a twist." He smirked as the mental image of Lily in nothing but her knickers floated into his mind, but Lily was quick to pop that bubble.

"Harry can hear us!" she sounded exasperated, but James also knew of the fiery reds that her cheeks would currently be painted in.

"Dad-da! Knicks!" Harry chimed from his crib, and James slapped his forehead in despair.

"JAMES!" Lily had the hearing of a watchdog, and he knew that he was going to receive a long lecture on the benefits of censoring one's language around one's two year old pretty soon.

"LILY! I'm sorry! Harry! Don't say that!" He gently admonished his happy baby, unable to hold his laughter in.

"Say what?" Harry's face was the epitome of innocence, and James picked his baby up once more.

"Harry, you cheeky rascal."

"Ras-cal," Harry repeated obediently. James shook his head. Today's just not my day.

"James, watch your mouth around him!"

"Lily, are you ever going to get your head out of the attic?" He tried turning the tables on her and the doorbell rang violently once more, causing them all to jump.

"James, are you ever going to answer the door?" Her voice reminded him scarily of the voice that used to wake him up at seven am during his vacations.

"Jeez, and I thought my mum was a terror," he muttered beneath his breath before grabbing a firmer hold on a squirming Harry and answering the door.

Sirius and Marlene burst in through the door the second James decided to open it and screamed in unison.

"Happy Birthday, Harry darling!"

"Where's the birthday boy?"

Sirius hugged James hard, slightly squishing Harry after which James planted a soft kiss on Marlene's head. He grinned at the happy couple. "Welcome home, guys." Marlene bent for a moment to retrieve a rather large package from the ground and James' eyes widened.

"Hey, Sirius? Marly? What is that monstrosity of a gift that you see to have for my boy? And Marly, you're not supposed to be lifting weights!" he added accusingly.

"I'm not due for another five months, James! Don't handicap me already." She laughed before spotting Harry, who had grown greatly excited by the hammering doorbell and was now screaming a string of gibberish. Marlene picked him up from James' embrace after depositing the package in her husband's outstretched arms, ignoring the dirty glares James shot her.

"Happy birthday, baby!" she cooed, lifting him up and rubbing noses with him.

"Thankie," Harry gurgled out.

"I taught him that myself, this morning," James added proudly, his eyes actually misty at the sight of his son actually speaking.

Sirius clapped James on the shoulder. "Growing soft, are we, Prongs?" he laughed. His head cocked to one side. "Say, where's Lils?"

"I'm here, I'm here!" her voice floated down the staircase and all four heads turned in unison.

"Ma-ma here!" Harry cooed, raising his hands eagerly towards his mother, who was just walking down the staircase with another immense box in tow.

James' eyes narrowed in suspicion now.

"What have you been planning for my son?" He asked, trying (and failing miserably) to sound stern.

Marlene burst out laughing.

"We are going to make little Harry into a quidditch player juuust like his papa and godfather, aren't we Lily?" Marlene giggled. The thought of Sirius in his quidditch robes made its way into her mind, however, and she blushed prettily at the thought of his hair all windswept and tousled after the match.

"Sirius, can you grab the cake from the kitchen, please? It's smack in the middle of the counter. And, oh, crap, candles! I forgot candles!" She twisted her hair around agitatedly and James grabbed her hand, preventing her from tugging her hair out.

"Lily. We are wizards. Just conjure one, for Merlin's sake!"

"Oh. Er, right," she stammered.

Sirius walked in right then, a luscious chocolate cake floating before him.

"Presents before cake, or after?"

"Before!" clamoured Marlene and Lily, and Sirius grinned. He landed the cake gently upon the little decorated table that Lily had placed in the living room and enchanted a huge number two onto it.

"There. Cake's complete."

"Thank you so much, Padfoot. Um, candles, candles." She waved her wand twice and two tiny little candles in the shape of wands positioned themselves on either side of the 'two'.

"There," she smiled with satisfaction.

Harry dived from his father's arms and nearly into the cake.

"Whoa, easy there little guy!"

"He's getting hungry, James, the poor baby hasn't eaten in over two hours!"

"Is cake really healthy for a baby that young?" Sirius wondered as his stomach let out a soft grumble.

"Pwe-sent," Harry reminded them all just then, and Lily conceded.

"Alright, gather round here!" They all moved away from the table with the cake. Marlene sat on the couch with Sirus, and James sat by their feet with Harry on his lap. Lily dragged the two huge boxes with her ad sat with a huff near James, nearly getting Harry squished for the second time that evening.

"Watch it!"

"Sorry," Lily apologised. "Lost my balance there."

She gently prised Harry away from the vice-like grip he had on his father and left him by the boxes.

"Happy birthday, sweetheart," she wished softly, kissing him on his pudgy cheeks.

He cooed happily.

"Mama. Thankie, mama!"

Tears shone in Lily's eyes as he started ripping the paper off the boxes in the most random manner possible.

"Who thought we'd live to see this moment?" She whispered to her friends and husband as a tear threatened to splash down her cheeks. They nodded in silent agreement. Marlene's eyes, too, shined with unshed tears and James grabbed Harry off the presents suddenly, enveloping his son and wife in a tight hug.

"I love you guys," he choked out, suddenly emotional.

Sirius ruffled Harry's hair and kissed Marly soundly on the lips, then planted a soft peck on Lily's head. "It's a good thing we got to live to see today," he added gruffly.

"Gift! Me want my gift!" Harry cried, getting rather eloquent as he was being denied the right to unravel his lovely presents.

A laugh broke out in the group, and James let Harry waddle off to the boxes.

"Say, what did you guys get Harry, anyways?" James' eyes sparked with curiosity.

"Wait and watch," Lily responded mischievously.

Soon enough, two huge boxes sat before them. Harry looked a little confused, but James looked like he'd just been awarded a million galleons.

"Oh," he whispered, his eyes growing wider than quaffles. "Harry my boy, do you know what your mum and aunt and god father have gifted you?" Harry shook his head obediently as half the terms made no sense to his little two year old brain.

James opened the first box excitedly and extricated two pairs of mini-sized quidditch robes excitedly. "Seeker, Gryffindor!" He proclaimed happily. "So you think our boy is going to be a seeker, eh?"

"He's fast as a snitch already, James. I have no need to believe otherwise," Sirius responded, laughing at his friend's response. Harry promptly put the sleeve of one robe into his mouth and chewed on it happily while Lily opened the other box.

"Harry, no!" James tried taking the sleeve out of his son's mouth, but Harry was stubborn.

Lily took out a beautiful miniature broomstick and a huge box that could only mean one thing – the quidditch balls.

She took Harry from his father's arms and placed the bewildered boy on the broomstick which was now hovering half a foot above the air. Harry looked extremely enthusiastic.

"Fly? Owl fly? He questioned, intrigued.

"Yes, baby, you can fly just like an owl!" Lily enthused. She let go and stood up quickly, cautioning Harry to hold on tight, which he did. She, too, did not leave her grip on the broom. The others looked on, fascinated beyond belief.

"Up, up and away!" Lily sang, and the broom rose slowly, almost at her head. Harry held on tightly, laughing.

"Fly, me fly me fly!" He repeated, and everyone laughed. "Yes, sweetheart, you're flying!" And Lily relinquished her grip on the broom just a little, and it took her son slowly around the house. Harry's excitement knew no bounds.

"Fllyyy!" he screeched every two seconds. "Me flyyy flyy flyy!"

"Brilliant choice, Padfoot," James grinned, slapping his best friend on the back. Sirius smiled. "How did you know it was my idea?"

"Because I know you a little too well, old friend."

PLEASE do leave a review on your way out; means a lot to me! Thank you; hope you enjoyed :)