A/N: This chapter is really short - sorry. Thanks again to everyone who has reviewed.
Chapter 8
About Jamie.
The tone of his voice showed no anger or resentment, it was more like he was begging her to tell him. So she began-
"He was born on the 25th May. Healthy seven pound little angel." She was crying silently before she'd started to speak and the tears continued to flow and she continued.
"He looks so much like you – your eyes, your hair. I'm afraid, now he's older, he's as stubborn as I am and definitely much intelligent than either of us. He was fourteen months the first time he did something magical – I was feeding him in the park and he was playing around with my wand and before I knew it he'd summoned my sandwich from the bench. I just squealed at him in delight and he looked at me like he'd done nothing out of the ordinary. He's adventurous, brave in everything he does... a proper little Gryffindor. He reminds me of you in lots of ways, the way he talks, how he says things, but he's calmer than you or I. I think that's a good thing though, after all he's never had anything to worry about...never had any problems."
Hermione paused.
"The day he was born was the first time I let myself think about you since I left – I wanted so much for you to see him, lying there so beautiful and new-but it was better, I told myself, that you lived your life. He's such a beautiful child Harry – so kind and compassionate. He's only seven years of age and he already thinks about people more than I did when I was a teenager. He's amazing..."
Harry took a while to think about this. The tears he had tried to hold back were free-flowing from the moment Hermione had begun to talk. Now he was just thinking. There were so many things he wanted to know – he didn't know where to begin with it all. He returned from his thoughts and said-
"What's his name?"
Hermione let out half a laugh. An old trait he recognised, that she only did when remembering something she'd forgotten that should have been so obvious-
"James Sirius Harry Potter." He breathed in. "But I call him Jamie" she said.
Harry sobbed. His head was in his arms and he couldn't think. She came to him, herself still crying, and held him for a long time, gently stroking his hair and wishing away all the pain she had mistakenly caused him, willing herself to be able to turn back the time.