Author's Note: Hey there, sorry it has been so long since I last posted! Finding time to write anything but my challenges with a deadline has been, well, a challenge! Sorry that was a terrible joke. Anyway, here I am with chapter 8, I hope you enjoy it! I checked out a baby website to see what sort of milestones we could expect each year, cute huh?

Prompt: Start with the month you were born and pick one prompt for each month. Write no more than 150 words per month!

JANUARY: Cheerful
FEBRUARY: Sad (Smile)
MARCH: Excited
APRIL: Drunk (Laughter)
MAY: Mine (Sit up alone)
JUNE: Tired (Sleep through the night)
JULY: Magical (crawl)
AUGUST: Ginny Weasley (wave bye-bye)
SEPTEMBER: Curious (eat with fingers)
OCTOBER: Mischievous (stand)
NOVEMBER: Cake (step)
DECEMBER: Rubeus Hagrid (First words)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise!


A Year in the Life

January

Days old and already little James held the attention of the whole room. Scorpius watched on, proudly, as a gaggle of female relations gathered around Hermione Weasley who had the honour of holding her young grandson at the moment. Scorpius glanced to one side, Rose slept peacefully in a large chair by the fire. Scorpius wandered over and brushed a finger down her cheek, smiling gently at her. As Scorpius looked between his wife and child he couldn't help bursting with emotion. Cheer, pride and loved welled up inside him. His wife slept peacefully, his son gurgled happily and all was well with his little family.

February

Rose looked down at James with tired eyes. He nuzzled happily against her breast, enjoying his midnight feast, early morning feast. Rose turned her eyes to the window, it was still dark outside, there was no natural sunlight waiting to breach the horizon, but the birds that chirped in their nests betrayed the early hour.

"Oh my son, why didn't you inherit your father's ability to sleep through the world falling apart?" She looked down again at her baby who looked back at her with wide, brown eyes. Rose smiled gently, running a finger down his chubby little cheek. James detached himself from dinner with a smack of lips.

Rose laughed. "Did you enjoy that my son?"

In response, for the first time ever, James smiled.

March

"Rose? Rose?" Scorpius called, bursting through the door to their small apartment. He could feel the excitement bubbling up inside of him.

"Shhhh!" Rose hissed, appearing for the direction of the bedrooms. "I only just got him down to sleep I swear if you wake him up then you have to deal with him."

Scorpius ignored her instead swooping forward seizing her around the waist and spinning her around the spot. "I got it! Rose I got the job! I am going to buy you a house and a holiday and a cat!"

Rose squeaked in alarm at the sudden movement, clinging to his broad shoulders. "Scorpius, darling that's wonderful but please, put me down!"

In the background, James began to cry.

April

It was time for James to be put down to sleep and Rose was gently rocking him around the room. She bounced her baby gently, rocking and lulling him into sleep. Scorpius had gone out, it was Albus's bachelor party and she didn't know what time her errant husband would come home.

A bash from the hallway answered her question followed by a shushing almost louder than the original noise. Within seconds her husband had stumbled drunkenly into the sitting room.

"Rrrrose!" he slurred grinning widely at the sight of her, "you're awake!"

"Even if I wasn't before, I would be after your racket," Rose replied wryly. Scorpius stumbled forward, reaching out towards her and tripped over an end table sprawling on the floor.

Rose couldn't help but laugh, and in her arms James laughed with her.

May

"Open wide, here comes the broomstick!" Scorpius swooped the mush filled spoon down towards his son's mouth. The young Malfoy obliging opened his little mouth. Cheeks chubby and pink, eyes fixed upon the coming food. His pink lips closed on the plastic spoon and his little eyes flushed with glee. Scorpius chuckled at the delight in his son's eyes. He had certainly inherited the Weasley gene.

Scorpius paused, scraping around in the glass jar to accumulate another spoon of the mush. Obviously, however, he wasn't working quick enough to please his hungry boy as James emitted a loud, high pitched and impatient noise. He reached chubby little arms out towards his father, making little grabbing motions with his hands, the universal sign for 'mine'.

Definitely a Weasley.

June

Rose opened her eyes and groaned. She felt so awfully tired but she could hear her baby crying from the room next door. She got up, slowly, groggily, pushing herself up into a sitting position and then up, onto her feet.

She rubbed her knuckles into her eyes wearily, ignoring the way it stung. A yawn fought its way up her throat but she smothered it quickly as James's cries became sharper. Rose stumbled down the corridor to her son's room and rounded the corner.

Her sore, tired eyes were flooded with unnatural amounts of daylight and with her dazed mind it took her a few moments to realise what this meant. For the first time ever, James had slept through the night.

July

Rose let her eyes drift, just for a second. They were sore, and heavy, and though James had been sleeping for a good eight hours every night, that still meant he woke up at the crack of dawn. She stifled a yawn as her eyes drifted to black.

She swore quietly, jerking violently awake and scanning the room. James had been playing with blocks just in front of her, his chubby little fingers attempting to stack them but to no avail. He wasn't there anymore.

Rose jumped up, her head snapping frantically from side of side. The kitchen door was open and Rose had awful images of her 7-month old baby climbing along countertops and finding all the knives. She rushed through to see James crawling along the tile, babbling to himself happily one brightly coloured block tight in his little fist.

August

Scorpius hoisted James up onto his hip tracing a finger over the happy little face and laughing as he dodged the gummy little mouth determined to trap his finger.

"So I will talk to your mother, Rose, and we will get everything set up for Lily's birthday, okay?" Scorpius looked up as Rose and her Aunt Ginny passed through the sitting room. James stopped his quest and looked up, gurgling at the new arrivals.

Ginny laughed as she saw the little man's attention and waved at him. "I have to go now, James," she cooed, "bye-bye!"

James looked for a second, his expression hovering between happy and confused, before he smiled back at her. One little arm raised in the air and he jerked it back and forth; a wonky imitation of her own wave. "Bub, bub, bub, bub."

September

Scorpius looked over his shoulder as he heard a knock at the door. He frowned slightly, unaware of who could be knocking at this time. He looked at his son, pointed a stern finger at him, and told him to "stay there." He put the plastic bowl and spoon of mush down on the table beside his highchair and went to open the door.

He came back, his arms full of letters from the muggle postman and as he rounded the doorway into the kitchen he could not help but laugh.

James had been very enterprising in the last few minutes. The bowl of baby friendly banana flavoured mush was perched atop his head. The mush was all over his highchair, the table, the floor and him. James had his mush covered fingers in his mouth, curious delight written all over his face.

Scorpius reached for his camera.

October

Rose laughed along with Scorpius as she chased James across the floor of their house. His little backside was wiggling violently in its nappy as he crawled. James gurgled in a mixture of hysteria, delight and excitement as he headed towards the stairs.

The parents watched proudly as he started up the stairs. One step at a time as if he was climbing a mountain each time. Rose gasped as he reached the top of the stairs. Little hands, full of strength reached up and grasped the pole at the top of the bannister and he hoisted himself into a standing position.

Their son looked down on them, mischievous delight on his little features. He stood proudly for the first time, before his legs gave out and he landed on his nappied bottom with a little thud.

November

"James! Come on, James! Come to mammy!"

James's little head swivelled and he looked toward the voice that usually fed him. His mother was smiling at him and his little chest filled with joy. She was knelt just a little way away from him. He smiled and lifted his arms towards her, wanting her to pick him up.

She laughed. "No, James, you have to come to me."

James frowned, but as his mother held her arms out towards him, he noticed a fluffy, sugary bit of cake in her hand. He bent his knees and went to crawl but she shook her head. James stood back up slowly.

"Come, come on!"

He put all of his effort into moving his foot, arms out for balance, and took his very first step.

December

"Oh, thank you for coming Hagrid. I know James loves to see you and, erm…"

"Thank you for the rock cakes," Scorpius jumped in. "I'm sure they'll last for, well, ages!"

Hagrid chuckled as he ducked out of the doorway to their house. Scorpius winced as his massive frame scrapped across the fresh paint he had applied only yesterday.

"I will visit again another day, your young man there is getting quite big. Nearly one now!"

"Yes," Rose laughed hoisting the ever growing James on her hip. "Say good-bye to Hagrid now, James."

James lifted his arm and waved. "Bub, bub Hag-eed!"


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Much Love, MaryandMerlin x