Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

49. "She's gone. She's gone."
Harry x Petunia

Baby Harry lay in her arms. He was oddly quiet and still. Dudley, her own baby boy, was much more vibrant and soulful and childlike than this odd child who had eyes that knew too much for one so young.

She hugged him close for a brief second. She hated him and everything he stood for, but right now he was just a defenceless, motherless, fatherless baby, and you couldn't hate a baby.

He looked like her, Lily. There was a whole lot of that good for nothing wizard freak Lily had married in there, but there was a definite trace of her freak of a sister in Harry's face.

The eyes.

It was definitely the eyes. The baby had her eyes. They seemed to taunt her.

"Lily." She said softly, looking into the baby's eyes. Only, they weren't the baby's eyes, they were Lily's. Lily was standing before her and this was the last chance she'd ever get to talk to her baby sister.

"I'm sorry, Lily. I messed up. I was so jealous cos you were special and I wasn't and then you went off and left me and you never looked back. And you came back a different Lily, you didn't care about me or what I thought and you could do things, things that scared me a bit. The fear took over. I was hurt and angry and scared and I pushed you away. I'm sorry, so sorry. I loved you, loved you a lot. I should have told you. Sorry, sorry." She whispered frantically. A single tear ran down her thin cheek. She stifled further sobs away quickly, wiping her face quickly. She couldn't be caught crying.

Lily disappeared and baby Harry was back. Lily was gone.

Petunia blinked in shock. "She's gone." She said, as the terrible fact sunk in – Lily, her beautiful little sister, was gone. Gone forever. "She's gone."

Baby Harry blinked his eyes once. Coincidence surely, but right there, right then, it was as if this baby was agreeing with her. She shook her head hurriedly, dismissing the thought, pushing it from her mind. She put the baby back.

Best not to get close to the child, she thought, safer that way - you can't be hurt by those you don't care about.