When Harry read the same paragraph three times and still hadn't digested it, he sighed and put the book in his hand down on the table. He had too much on his mind, what with Hermione's announcement about being pregnant and so much work waiting for him in the office and the massive argument he had with Ron plaguing him guiltily whenever he tried to distract himself.
Lightly massaging his temple, he stood up and turned the lamp off. His feet protested at the cold surface of the floor in contrast to the warm sofa he had been curled up in.
"Ginny, I'm going to bed," he called to where his wife was tinkering in the kitchen. There was a flash of purple light and Harry quelled the urge to investigate - last time he had entered the kitchen, Ginny had hexed him for messing with her 'concoction'. It was bolognese, but she had been in a sulk for ages, apparently blaming Harry for it's inedible state. It was in the same state as the last three times she tried, Harry had wisely refrained from pointing out.
"Sure thing, honey," she replied, sounding distracted. "I'll be up soon, kay?"
"Alright," Harry smiled fondly. Ginny had started attempting at cooking and, after finally finding one thing she was bad at, was determined to improve. Her dedication sometimes kept her up all night.
He headed up stairs and planned on throwing himself ont he bed and, hopefully, not waking up for the next twenty-four hours but just as he passed one of the rooms, he heard a small whimpering.
Harry froze. Was Teddy having a nightmare? Did he have trouble sleeping? Harry hadn't even asked Andromeda any of these questions before Teddy came to sleep over and suddenly, Harry panicked. Was there anything he was supposed to give him? Potions? A glass of warm milk?
The whimpering continued and, pushing these worries to the back of his mind, Harry pushed the door open and entered the room they had dedicated to Teddy.
The lights were off and the whimpering was even louder, punctuated with sniffles and the occasional sob. Harry's heart wrenched at hearing his godson sound so distressed.
"Teddy?" he called softly.
There was a pause, and the whimpering subsided. "Uncle H-Harry?"
"Yeah, it's me," Harry said, smiling softly and drawing his wand out of his pocket. He muttered a quick 'lumos' and light flooded into the room. Teddy was curled up in the corner of the bed, body rested against the headboard. His hair reached up to his shoulders and a distressed red colour. His watery eyes stared at Harry, terrified.
"What's the matter?" Harry asked quietly, walking over to the bed to sit next to him. Teddy rubbed the tears from his eyes and snuggled next to Harry, watching the light streaming from the wand rather than Harry.
"I don't like the dark," Teddy admitted almost shamefully. He hid his face in Harry's arm immediately.
Harry smiled sympathetically. "Hey, don't be embarrassed," he said lightly, poking Teddy's cheek. "It's totally normal to be afraid of the dark. You'd be surprised how many people are terrified when they turn the lights off."
Teddy peeked at him, a single, large blue eye looking at him intensely. "Really?"
"Really," Harry said seriously, eyes sparkling. "Even I am. Whenever I have to turn all the lights off at night, I turn them off and sprint to my bed straight away, because I get scared."
Teddy removed his face from Harry's arm, finally looking at Harry properly. His eyes were widened with intrigue, slowly turning from blue to a soft brown colour. "Why don't you just shine light with your wand?"
"I do," Harry replied with a sheepish grin. "But it's still pretty scary, knowing that there are corners that I can't see. There's only so far that the light can go, right?"
"Mmm," Teddy agreed. An idea struck Harry and he grinned suddenly.
"Hey, Teddy, how about I get you a lamp, and you can sleep with that next to you?" Harry offered. Why hadn't he thought of it before? It was perfect!
Teddy's eyes lit up, suddenly turning green and his hair returning to it's common turquoise blue colour. "Yes, please, Uncle Harry!"
Harry smiled fondly, stroking the young boy's hair. "I'll go get it. Do you want to come with me so you don't have to be by yourself?"
Teddy nodded eagerly, and hopped off the bed. Harry followed him with a fond laugh, making sure to light the path in front of them as much as possible. He took Teddy's hand and led him to the door.
He hadn't had someone to hold his hand in the dark when he was Teddy's age. He hadn't had someone to wipe his tears when he was Teddy's age. He didn't even have a bed, let alone a lamp to put beside it.
But as he led the light blue-haired boy next to him, Harry swore he would give him everything Harry had missed out on.