Yes, it's been a while. I've been on holiday and I have mock exams this week so I wasn't able to post before now, even though this chapter has been written for... well, lets just say it's been written for a quite a long time.

Nothing much happens in the next chapter, but from their on the story starts to pick up, and about time as well!

Thanks for all of you who reviewed! It's always appreciated. And yes, feel free to criticise mistakes as well as make complements. It always helps.

Chapter 6- 31st July, 1980:

"Prongs! Congratulations, mate! So, how is she?"

Sirius, Remus and Peter stood around James who looked both anxious and angry. Sirius was grinning from ear to ear.

"Sorry, getting ahead of myself, here. So how are you Prongs? Would you like me to hold your hand for you?"

He motioned as if to grab James hand with and expression of mock concern on his face, but James moved away, looking extremely irritable.

"They won't let me in!" He spat at the healer who had just come out of what the other Marauder's could only assume was Lily's room. "I want to watch my baby being born!"

The healer rolled her eyes and began walking away, but James leapt up followed her down the corridor. "How is she?" He asked anxiously, "Is she alright? Did she ask about me?"

"Yes and yes!" The healer answered, not stopping to look at him and disappearing into the next corridor.

James finally turned to acknowledge his friends' presence. "The great prats won't let me in" he repeated, collapsing once more onto his armchair. "Her pressure went down and she isn't making it much easier for me. Says she doesn't want me to see her like that. So obviously they won't even let me come near her." He glanced bitterly at the door.

Remus sat next to him "Don't worry." He said bracingly. "She'll be just fine. How long has she been in labour?"

"About three hours." James replied moodily "Honestly, 'doesn't want me to see her like that.' Who's she kidding? I've seen her in states that no one would believe-"

"-Or care to know!" Sirius added, laughing.

"So how long have you been here?" Peter asked quietly.

"They kicked me out of the room about an hour ago, if that's what you mean."

And with that James sat in silence, throwing occasional furious glances at passing healers.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake James!" Sirius burst out after a half-hour. "If you want to go in, then just go, its not like you haven't burst in on Evans unwanted before! If not, then take us down for some tea. But whatever you do stop sitting here like an idiot, the tension is killing me!"

"Alright then." Said James "Alright, I'm going in!"

And before anyone could say anything, James had got up and disappeared into the next room. Remus turned to glare furiously at Sirius.

"Why on earth would you do that? Lily is going to have his head and in the state he's in, they'll probably end up fighting!"

"Nah, they won't." Said Sirius knowledgeably. "I know them well by now, James is not going to explode in front of her when she's in that state. And she'll probably be relieved to see him."

James started walking slower as he reached Lily's bedside. She looked very tired and very weak. Her eyes were half closed and her hair and nightdress were drenched in sweat. She seemed to feel rather then hear him getting closer, because she turned to look at him. Her eyes widened and James was slightly amused to notice that had she not been very tired she'd already be telling him off. Lily seemed to settle instead for giving him the sternest look she could muster. He smiled, sitting next to the bed and grasping one of her hands, gently brushing some of her hair from her face.

"Alright?" He asked quietly. She nodded. He hesitated for a moment.

"I know you don't want me here..." He paused, hoping she'd say something, but she didn't, so he continued feeling slightly put out. "But I'm going to stay anyway."

Lily stared at him for a moment, then she tightened her grasp on his hand and closed her eyes. "I love you, James." She whispered, with a small smile.

Weeks later, as he looked back on the events that happened on the 31st July, James would never understand how soon after bursting in he had come to regret (even if only for a moment) disobeying Lily. For one thing, he had come to the conclusion that Lily really was off her rocker. How she had planned on going through the birth of their child without squeezing his hand until his whole arm felt numb, James did not know. But for the first time since their marriage. James had felt extremely uncomfortable around her. Besides lending his hand, he found that there was little more he could do to help his wife. She had screamed in pain and said some things to him that he would have liked her to apologise for... at that moment.

But after the baby was born, after their dark haired, green eyed baby boy had been born none of this mattered. Nothing that had happened in the past two hours mattered as James leaned close to Lily and looked down at his newborn son. Harry opened his eyes and James smiled at him, he could already tell that their baby was going to have his wife's eyes.

Lily grinned at James. "Do you want to hold him for a bit?"

"What? Erm- No! I'm alright really. Just looking is fine."

"Here, take him a little." Said Lily moving forward to pass Harry onto James' arms. He hesitated.

"I'm not sure how to hold a baby"

"Just make sure you hold his head and his back."

Figuring that holding a baby could not be that different from holding a Quaffle, James reached out to take his son. Lily drew back, looking uncertain.

"He's not a Quaffle. You know that, right?" she asked with a mock smile.

"Of course I do!" He snapped, trying to sound indignant but slightly perplexed that Lily had guessed exactly what had just gone through his mind.

And finally taking matters into his own hands, James moved forward and took Harry gently into his arms.

He had never in his life held a baby before, but somehow knew how to do things with this one. Harry was surprisingly light, and as James shifted him to his other arm he found that he could stand there holding that little thing forever. He amused himself for a moment, noticing how much his son looked like a miniature version of himself.

Lily tilted her head. "Well? Are you going to move closer so I can look at him too, or will I have to summon him back?"

"You've had him for the past half-hour!" Said James indignantly, but he sat on Lily's bed.

Lily opened her mouth to reply, but at that moment Harry began to cry. James got up and tried rocking the baby gently in his arms. He winced as the screaming got loader.

"Already got Mummy's temper, then?" James said to Harry. "Great, now I have two." He shifted the baby again, giving Lily a winning look.

"Well, as long he's got you're brains." She said leaning back onto her pillow and watching James' progress around the room. "And not your knack for trouble. I'll go insane if he burns down the house."

"We don't burn down houses, we blow up toilettes, steal teacher's wigs and..." James' eyes brightened. "Work out ways of getting into the girl's dormitories and leave snails in their slippers."

Lily's eyes widened. "That was YOU! I KNEW IT! I knew it, James! That could only have been you! And was it you that put the invisibility charm on my transfiguration book?"

James shook his head, and then sighed dramatically "Unfortunately not, I missed out on that one because I was serving detention for giving Snape a Mohawk... Sirius did a good job with that, though." He grinned mischievously "It got you talking to me at any rate! Anyway, Harry." He turned his attention back on the crying baby. "If you do want to burn down the house, then daddy will help you with it! And maybe Sirius and I can advise you on how to become an illegal animagi like us before you go to Hogwarts..."

"Will you keep you're voice down James!" Lily hissed urgently.

James snorted "I very much doubt anyone heard what I just said Lil, with the racket you're son is making." He focused on the baby, and slowly the screaming subsided and Harry turned his attention on his father's hand and closed his own little hand around James' finger.

It was at that moment that reality hit James for the first time, he was a father.