Author's Note: Hello, fellow Potter fans. As I said in the summary, this is my first Harry Potter fic so I hope you like it. I've loved HP for a while now but could never think of a fic idea since I figured everything had already been done. But I've always wondered what happened right after the epilogue, so here is my interpretation.
Oh and just FYI, I don't know if the slang word 'awesome' is used in Britain but I couldn't find a British equivalent, so if anyone from Britain happens to read this, sorry!
Special thanks to acciodanrad9 for betaing!
And Then There Were Three
The trek back through King's Cross was considerably quieter than when the Potters had walked through the station earlier that day. It was so quiet in fact that Harry found himself periodically looking behind him to make sure Lily was still there.
And she was. She was gripping his elbow just as she had when they had first entered the station except this time her face had a faraway look. Harry smiled to himself as he looked ahead again, certain that she was thinking of Hogwarts. He knew that if given the chance, she would've boarded the train right after her brothers. Although he was proud to be able to send his children to the best wizarding school in the country, he was secretly glad that they could keep Lily for two more years. He didn't know what he would do with himself with an empty house when all of his children had gone off to Hogwarts and frankly, he didn't want to think about it.
Once Harry and Ginny had deposited their now empty trolleys near the station entrance, the three of them making their way to their car which they only bothered with for trips into London.
When Harry had buckled himself safely into the passenger's seat, (he had driven the morning trip to the station) he noticed that Lily wasn't with him anymore. Looking over his shoulder, he saw her sitting in the backseat, looking dejectedly out the window.
"Want to come up and sit with us, Lily Bily?" Harry asked, wanting to cheer her up.
Her face brightened instantly at his question. "Really?"
"Sure," said Harry, scooting over to make room for her. Due to the amount of luggage and people in the first trip, Harry had magically expanded the front seat so that two owl cages could sit comfortably side by side on it. As such, it was now more than spacious enough for two people.
When Lily was buckled in beside him, she immediately began examining the numerous buttons and knobs on the dashboard while Ginny backed out of the parking lot. Harry gritted his teeth in nervousness the entire time and cringed as she narrowly avoided hitting a nearby parked car. Ginny might have passed the Muggle driving test but that didn't necessarily make her the best of drivers.
Much to his relief, they made it safely out of the parking lot and onto the highway. Satisfied with Ginny's speed, Harry looked down at Lily and asked. "So how does it feel sitting up here with Mummy and Daddy?"
"Awesome, Dad," Lily replied.
"Good," said Harry, "and where did 'Dad' come from?"
"Just testing it," Lily replied.
"What for?"
"For when I turn ten and all grown up."
"And who told you ten means that you're grown up?"
"Sounds like James," Ginny remarked.
"Uh-huh," said Lily nodding. "He said it's 'cause ten is the first double digit adult age." She paused in thought and her face fell. "But, maybe I won't be really grown up until I get to Hogwarts." Looking at Harry she added, "Dad, couldn't we have just gone to see Hogwarts on the train with Al and James?"
"No," said Harry as gently as he could. "Al's nervous enough without us there and besides, I don't think James would like his parents being on the school train with him."
Lily nodded in understanding but she still seemed upset. Wanting to cheer her up, Harry shifted her onto his lap and hugged her to his chest.
"You miss your brothers, don't you?" He asked.
"Uh-huh," said Lily. "I didn't think I would 'cause they tease me and don't let me play with them a lot, but—but—" Her voice began to quiver as she struggled to find the right words.
"You're going to miss them," Harry supplied.
"Y-yes!" Lily wailed as the floodgates opened and Harry found himself momentarily unsure of what to do. It had been years since Lily had really cried like she was now as she determined to be a "big girl" in front of her brothers. Thankfully, his parental instincts kicked in and he began patting her back and shushing comfortingly.
He glanced up at Ginny as he did so and saw her glance sympathetically down at Lily before she reached out a hand and patting her head, said. "It's okay, honey. It's okay."
"That's right," said Harry, lifting her up from where she had been crying into his shoulder. "It's okay that you miss your brothers. Your mom and I are going to miss them too."
"R-Really?"
"Of course," said Harry, brushing away a few tears. "We all live in the house, don't we? It's going to be pretty quiet with them."
"Yeah," Lily agreed. "I guess that's why I'm gonna miss them."
"Never a dull moment with Al and James around," said Harry with a smile and his smile widened when he heard Ginny murmur, "You can say that again", only loud enough for him to hear.
"And if it ever gets too quiet," Harry continued. "We can always invite Uncle Ron and Uncle George over."
"And Teddy!" said Lily happily.
"Of course," said Harry. He brushed a few more of her tears away before he added. "Feel better now?"
Lily nodded. "Yeah, but I'm still gonna miss them."
"We all will, Lily," Ginny cut in then. "But, they're not gone forever, you know. And you can send them an owl whenever you want."
"Okay," said Lily, nodding vigorously in agreement. Harry smiled, seeing her happy and tear-free face as she settled herself more comfortably in his lap.
And so the three remaining Potters continued driving toward home in contented silence.
Author's Note: Any and all comments would be welcome! Thanks for reading!