Déjà vu
A/N This is a sequel to my story Too Fast, if you haven't read it… I suggest you do, but it's not necessary. I've written this on a request from .me.2000, so you can all thank her if you like this. Reviews are, as always, appreciated.
I swung my niece through the air as she flapped her arms like wings, squealing with delight. She was trying to pretend to be a butterfly, in the hopes that she could trick a butterfly into coming near her. I placed her into the soft grass, and pointed out a butterfly perched in the old tree in the yard. She clapped her hands over her mouth so as not to disturb it, and I smiled at her muffled giggles. With her firey hair splayed under her head, standing out starkly against the grass, she looked so much like Lily had when she was younger. It was eerie, really, how strong the resemblance was. Almost like I was playing with my little sister again, way back when we were kids.
Trying to get the Easter basket into the living room was no small feat, even when Emily was still fast asleep. Lily and Scorpius had let me babysit all week long, while they were in some exotic country whose name I couldn't pronounce. Lily had frowned when she saw how much chocolate I had brought, chocolate bunnies, chocolate eggs and such, and I had to promise that some was for myself, not just her daughter. That, of course, was total rubbish. Emily had inherited Lily's love for chocolate, and Scorpius' cunning way of getting the things he wanted. There was no way I could resist those puppy dog eyes.
Here we were. The day I had been dreading. Emily was off to Hogwarts. I was going to have a teaching position there soon enough, but that was after Christmas break. She was skipping along behind her father, who was pushing the trolley, and holding her mother's hand, singing "I'm going to Hogwarts!" I remembered when Lily had been so anxious to leave home and go to a world full of magic. Just as Scorpius finished loading her trunk onto the train, and Lily's last minute warnings ended, Emily turned to me, asking "Will you write, uncle Jamie?" I nodded, unable to speak until I cleared my throat. "Christmas break'll be here before you know it, and then I'll be your new professor. You can't escape Uncle Jamie!" I said, and with a devilish grin, I tickled her. She squirmed from my grip, and I said, "go on, munchkin. They're waiting for you at hogwarts". She spun around, her red hair flying, and dashed towards the train, just in time. I waved, following the train until it had picked up more speed than I could. It was strange. The last time I had done this was with Lily, and it had been so similar. It was like deja vu.