The Child of the Eagle
The warm spring air swept over the city of London. Everyone was enjoying hot cups of cider and tea in different cafes. One couple walked hand in hand down Winchester Street. The sun had begun to set and people were heading home after a long day's work. Children had emerged from their homes to get a few more hours of play time in before bed. The time had come when the mysterious murders and disappearances had ceased, peace and calm was restored to the area. The news had reported that The Boy Who Lived had successfully defeated The Dark Lord in the end. Families were able to enjoy their lives once more and not fear the worst. No one would forget the day that Harry Potter had won the war.
Twenty-three year old Leonard Summers had set down his copy of the Daily Prophet on his coffee table. His wife Helen had brought him a hot cup of tea. "Anything good in today's paper, Leo?" She asked giving him a kiss on his forehead. His shaggy dirty blond hair had always gotten in the way of her forehead kisses. "Nothing new, if that's what you're asking." He smirked at her and took a sip of his tea. Leonard and Helen had met each other in their second year of schooling at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. They hadn't met until it was Christmas break. Leonard was eating breakfast the day before Christmas when he saw a pretty girl with jet black shoulder length hair and brown eyes. She walked over and asked Leonard if she could sit down at the table with him. Leonard, not used to talking to girls, nodded his head. After a few days of talking and getting to know each other, Leonard, a Gryffindor, discovered Helen was in Ravenclaw. When school let out for holidays and summer they had sent each other owls to keep in touch. In their fifth year, Leonard had sent an owl to Helen's parents asking if it would be okay for him to go home with her to meet them during Christmas break. They had sent him an owl agreeing and told him they couldn't wait to meet him. By the time their seventh year had come to an end, Leonard had asked Helen to marry him. She had told him no. For her, seventeen was much too early to be engaged. Helen told him that if he wanted to marry her that they both had to have steady jobs and had a decent home to live in. By the time they turned twenty-one, they had steady jobs, he was working for the Ministry of Magic and she was working as a Librarian for muggles. Leonard had also purchased a flat in London that was a surprise gift for Helen.
"How's our little one doing?" Leonard asked as he took a bite of buttered toast that was cooling on his plate. Helen rubbed her stomach gently as she spoke. "He should be here any day now. The doctor says we need to be packed and ready to go to the hospital at a moment's notice." Leonard got up and put his plate in the sink. He walked over to Helen and pulled her close to him, giving her a gentle kiss. Then he leaned down and kissed the top of her bulbous stomach. "Well, if we need to be packed in a moment's notice, let's not waste time then." He said as he pulled out his wand. He walked into the living room and headed up the stairs. She went over to the table and pulled out her wand from out of the bun in her hair. With a wave, Leonard's teacup had floated its way to the sink and the newspaper found its way to the recycle bin. The table cloth had folded itself up neatly and put itself away in the closet. When Leonard came down stairs the kitchen was cleaned up except for a puddle on the floor where Helen had just been standing. "Helen, I think you missed a spot." He said pointing to the spot under her. She gave him a stern look. "Why are you looking at me like that?" She waited. "Oh m'gosh! Let's go!" She laughed when he realized what the puddle meant. "It's about time he got here!" Leonard said as he grabbed the backpack he had just packed for their trip. "Now, you have everything we need right?" Helen inquired before they left for the hospital. "Darling, I have both of our dressers in here plus the babies, just to be safe."
They arrived at the hospital in ten minutes. "I hate that we can't apparate here. It would have been a lot quicker." Leonard complained as they got out of a taxi car. "Shut up, and hand the man his fare!" Helen scolded at him, "I swear, if this child is as whiney as you, I have no idea what I'm going to do." Leonard handed the taxi driver ten pounds and thanked him. He walked swiftly with Helen towards the doors, before grabbing her a wheelchair. "If this wasn't an emergency I would totally challenge you to a race in these." He whispered in her ear as he wheeled her up to the counter. "You're such a child." She said playfully. After about thirty minutes, Helen had gotten situated into her hospital gown and into her bed, while Leonard sat patiently in the chair beside her bed. Helen shimmied her weight around so she could look at him. "Can you believe that by tomorrow, we're going to be parents?" she smiled gleefully. Leonard looked at her. He saw how bright her eyes were, this was the reason he had fallen for her. He loved seeing her happy like this, he wanted to make her happy forever and always. Nothing could stop that from happening. He smiled back at her, "Do you think maybe we should call our parents and tell them that they're about to be grandparents in a few hours?" Helen's eyes widened. "I can't believe we forgot to call them!" she cried. Leonard reached over and held her hand. "I'll go call them, I'll be out in the hall if you need me. I love you so much." He kissed her forehead and squeezed her hand, then went to call his parents and hers.
As soon as Leonard left the room, Helen could felt like something wasn't right. She pressed the call button that the nurse had handed her not ten minutes ago. The nurse ran into the room and saw the look of panic in Helen's eyes. "What's the matter, M'dear?" She checked all of Helen's vitals as well as the babies. "Everythin is all well and accounted for lass, shouldn't worry about a thing." The nurse winked at Helen and Helen started sobbing. "Oh my, my. Whatchu crying for?" she turned around and sat on the corner of Helen's bed. "This is your first one ain' he?" Helen nodded. "You might go through a difficult time after he comes, but it'll get better. I remember when I had me first." The nurse looked at something on the wall, "she was a fighter me daughter. Stayed in for twelve hours longer than I wanted her too." She picked up a box of tissues and handed Helen a handful. "My lad, strapping little one he was. Came out right on time. Just when his mum wanted. Always been a mommas boy he 'as." Helen calmed down as the nurse kept talking. Once the nurse was certain Helen was fine she left and Helen was all alone. All she could think about was Leonard and their unborn child.
"Alright mum, see you in a little while." Leonard hung up the phone at the desk and sighed. In a few hours' time, he would be a father to a little boy. A son he always wanted to have, to continue his family's male legacy of all the men getting into Gryffindor. Of course, he'd teach him the other stuff too, the things that Helen would want him to be raised on. Her Ravenclaw traits. Their son would get a taste of both worlds. Leonard couldn't be prouder, he walked into Helen's room and saw her laying there reading one of her books. He could tell she had been crying because her face was puffy and red. "Helen? Is everything okay?" he asked her as he sat down in the arm chair next to her bed. She looked up from her book and smiled at him. "Just a bit of a panic attack, the wonderful nurse that we have helped me get through it though." Leonard smiled nervously and reached for her hand. "Everything is going to be okay. When he gets here, we'll be a complete family. How much better can our lives get having him in our lives now?" He saw a trace of a smile on her lips. Helen reached down and rubbed her stomach. She knew for sure now that whatever it was she was panicking over had resided and that she would be alright in the end.
An hour later Leonard and Helen's newborn son lay in his bed in the nursery of the hospital. Adler Summers had been born on the day Harry Potter had defeated Lord Voldemort. News spread nationwide across the wizarding world as owls flew here to there sending letters to important members of the Ministry. Leonard read his copy of the Daily Prophet in the lobby of the hospital. He had went to go get coffee and found a copy sitting on the counter next to the coffee pot. He couldn't believe that someone so young had defeated one of the most powerful wizards of the time. The dark times were over and new beginnings could start again. Adler wouldn't be raised in fear, but with love. Leonard ran to the room that Helen was in, she had just finished feeding Adler and was putting him back in the bassinet. "Harry Potter has defeated You-Know-Who!" Helen smiled widely. "That's wonderful! Such a brave young man to do so, no wonder he was chosen for Gryffindor." She covered Adler up and sat back down on her bed. "I remember hearing Professor McGonagall announce his name when they did the first years sorting's in our sixth year. You were so ecstatic to find out he was in your house." Helen smiled at Leonard. Leonard sat down next to her in the armchair by the bed. "That year, was certainly a crazy one for all of us." They reminisced on the year when Harry Potter had begun his journey in Hogwarts. "Thanks to Dumbledore we won the house cup." Leonard stated. "You mean, because of Neville Longbottom's bravery in standing up to his friends, Dumbledore awarded him ten points, which put Gryffindor in the lead above Slytherin." Helen remarked. "I can never win with you can I?" Leonard questioned playfully. "For as long as we are married and I am alive, I will always win. You've known this from the beginning. It's just who I am darling." Helen laid down and pulled the blanket over her. "Adler is asleep, I'm going to get some rest. Check in on my parents for me please." Leonard got up and kissed Helen on the forehead. He went over and made sure that the blankets that Adler were wrapped in were secure and gave him a kiss on the forehead as well. Then he went to go call their parents.