Where Did My Little Boy Go? Part 2

Summary: James's thoughts regarding where did his little boy go, as he ponders over the last year.

James remembers the day he held his son for the first time. Harry was no more than a minute old when he first held him. With Sirius and Lily peeking over either shoulder, they watched his little eyes open for the first time. They were the emerald green that made him fall in love with the boy's mother.

He remembers the first night after they brought Harry home. He watched Harry breath, his chest move up and down with each breath and how his little fist would clench and unclench. He knew he should have been asleep himself, but he couldn't help but stare at the little human he and Lily created. He didn't think he could be any happier.

James felt like a proud father as he showed Harry off during his first visit to Daddy's work. The men patted his back while the women awed and cooed at the infant and offer to hold him for a second. A lot of them were mothers and grandmothers themselves and James trusted them.

With a jolt, James came back to reality. Almost sixteen years had passed and he felt like it was yesterday when Harry was a little baby in his arms.

The little baby grew to an active toddler, who thought it was funny to drive his mother crazy. The active toddler then grew to a shy little boy. He was so shy that he didn't speak to anyone and most thought he couldn't talk. But around people he knew, Harry was the same active child James and Lily knew and loved.

He had inherited James's knack for finding mischief, much to Lily's dismay. But to Lily's relief, Harry had inherited her love of learning. He was a smart boy who did well in his classes at the Muggle primary school Lily and James enrolled Harry in when he turned five.

James remembered every teacher's meeting, each one with a story funnier than the one before it. The only teacher that didn't call them in constantly for meetings was Mrs. Greene. She was Harry's Year 4 teacher and Harry loved her. She didn't jump to conclusions like the others and blame Harry for anything abnormal that happened in her class. When Harry moved up to Year 5 Lily and James missed Mrs. Greene.

She encouraged Harry more than any teacher before her and continued to even after Harry was no longer in class.

The last James heard, she was offered a job in London and had moved the summer after Harry's first year at Hogwarts.

The shy little boy grew and become the teenage boy they knew and loved today.

Sitting at the table, James sighed as he remembered all the moments he had shared with Harry. Memories flashed in James's mind over the last three years, especially the last year when James realized Harry wasn't a little boy anymore. They all rolled through James's head like a picture show and it made him think just how quickly Harry had grown up. The first talk he had with Harry when he was thirteen and was starting puberty. It was an updated chat compared the one he had with Harry after he turned eleven.

James didn't want to overwhelm Harry is so much information that he had told Harry what he could expect from age eleven to thirteen and then when he turned thirteen, he told him what he could expect until he turned fifteen. After Harry turned fifteen, James finished the talks on puberty and teenage boy development by telling Harry that he could come to him if he needed anything or to ask questions. Soon after, Harry bombarded James with questions, all of them concerning whether or not he thought Harry was normal.

Between James, Dr. Jacobs, and Healer Morris, they assured Harry he was worried for nothing.

James understood Harry's concern, as he had the same concern at Harry's age.

But those talks weren't when James realized Harry had grown up. It was when he taught Harry how to shave.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

James studied Harry's face at the kitchen table during breakfast one morning following Harry's fifteenth birthday. He would turn his head from side to side, trying to figure out if he was seeing what he thought he was seeing.

"Dad? What are you doing?" Harry asked when he looked up from the paper and noticed James was staring at him.

"I think it's time I taught you how to shave," James said in answering Harry's question.

Once Harry had finished his breakfast, James took him upstairs to his and Lily's bedroom. Once inside, James opened the door to his bureau and pulled out a small parcel he'd hidden there a few months prior. He'd been planning on giving it to Harry for his birthday, but this wasn't something he wanted to do in front the guests, but in private. James handed it to Harry, who had been watching James, confusion painted on his face.

Harry sat down on the bench that sat at the foot of James and Lily's bed.

"Open it, Son. Go on."

Harry untied the dark blue ribbon that was tied around the parcel and opened the box. Inside was a shaving kit.

"What's this for?" Harry asked.

"Well, if you're going to start shaving, you should do it right," James explained. He propelled Harry into his own bathroom, rather than the one off of James and Lily's bedroom. James turned the light on over the sink and positioned Harry right in front of the large mirror.

Putting his hands on Harry's shoulders, James smiled. "I've been waiting to do this since the day you were born."

"Really?" Harry said as James unpacked the shaving kit

"It's one of those father things," James explained with a shrug. "Such as teaching you how to ride a broom and about Quidditch, among other things."

"Shouldn't Sirius get an honorable mention? He was there too if I recall."

"He does. He taught you the fancy tricks that nearly cause your mother to have a heart attack."

Harry took a face cloth and cleaned his face before under James's direction he applied the shaving soap to his face.

"Seems like it was yesterday my own father was teaching me to shave. Now I'm teaching you. One day, Son, you'll be doing this with your own son."

James suppressed a sigh at the notion that Harry was growing up so fast. In no time, he would be finished with school. James wondered how did time slip by him so quickly.

"Okay, Dad, now what?" Harry asked, his face sporting the amount of lather required.

"Hold the hand of the razor parallel to your face," James said, handing the razor to Harry. "And use your arm to move it. Short strokes, going in the direction the hair grows." He stood behind Harry, laying his hand lightly over Harry's, gliding down the slope of his cheek.

"Just like that," he murmured. James leaned against the counter and watched Harry carefully shave, showing him how to rinse the razor. Watching his son in the mirror, James wondered if there was going to be anything else he needed to teach Harry. Driving a car? Driving a motorcycle? Speaking of a motorcycle, he had been thinking of buying one for himself. He had driven Sirius's a few times and liked it. But what else would he need to teach his son?

"Dad?" Harry's voice brought him back to the present.

"Yeah, son?"

"What do I do here?" Harry pointed to his upper lip.

"Like this," James said and pulled his upper lip over his teeth.

Harry nodded, mirrored James, and then carefully scraped the razor over his upper lip. Rinsing the razor, Harry ran his free hand over his newly shaven face.

"Not bad for your first time," James said, approvingly.

"Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for the help," Harry said, looking at his father in the mirror.

"You're welcome, son."

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

James smiled as he remembered what had happened when they went downstairs. He had broken the news to Lily that he had taught Harry how to shave. Lily burst into tears and grabbed a hold of Harry, sobbing.

"My baby," she said, in between sobs.

She had been crying since she realized that she had two years left until Harry was seventeen. She didn't want to see Harry grow up, but how could she stop him?

Teaching Harry to shave was a bonding moment for him and his son. He remembered when his own father had taught him how to shave and how it had bonded them. He had hoped that it would be the same for him and Harry. It was.

The clock on the wall said it was eleven o'clock at night. In one hour, it would Harry's sixteenth birthday.

"Where did the time go?" James whispered. He had said the same thing before Harry turned thirteen.

When Harry became a teenager, like Lily, James had wondered what kind of relationship he'd have with his son. To his relief, nothing changed in their relationship. Harry came to him more and they talked more, mainly because the questions Harry had, he didn't feel comfortable going to Lily about.

He was more than relieved when Harry turned thirteen and nothing changed in terms of his relationship with his son. He had seen friends and colleagues, whom their relationship with their teenage sons suffers until they reach adulthood. James didn't want to go through that. That's not to say that he and Harry had their fair share of arguments.

Of all things, Harry had inherited from Lily, her temper was James's least favorite.

But to James's relief, instead of them drawing apart, they got closer. Harry confided a lot in James especially when Harry and Ginny started dating. James had a stifle a chuckle as he remembered how nervous Harry was before he took Ginny out on their, technically the first date.

Harry had talked to him about taking Ginny out to Muggle London for an afternoon date. James liked the idea, but Lily needed to be sold on it a little more. Sirius and Hestia had volunteered to go with them to make Lily happy, but James had told Lily that Harry and Ginny would be fine in Muggle London on their own. Harry managed to go to Muggle London on his own just fine.

Lily agreed and then Harry moved on to the task of convincing Molly. Arthur had talked her into it and she agreed, as long as Ginny was home before nine when it got dark.

James and Lily said the same thing and Harry were able to move on to making plans. This would be their first official date and Harry wanted to make it a night that Ginny will remember.

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James leaned against the door frame of Harry's bathroom, watching his son prep for his date with Ginny. He chuckled to himself, his mind off elsewhere.

"What is it, Dad?" Harry asked, glancing at his Dad in the mirror.

Realizing Harry had heard him, he turned to his son, smiling. "I was reminded of a time you used to watch me get ready for a date," James explained.

Wiping the remaining shaving soap off his face, Harry asked, "You mean when you and Mum would go out and Sirius would come and stay with me?"

James nodded. "Now, you're older and…"

"Not you too," Harry deadpanned. "I already have Mum crying over me being of age next year."

"That's not what I meant," James said. "I meant that you're old enough to go on a date."

Harry moved on to brushing his teeth, while James gave him some dating advice. He didn't show it but he was nervous about the date with Ginny. It wasn't like this was their first time alone. On Valentine's Day, Harry had arranged for them to go to Lily's quarters for dinner and to exchange gifts and to spend some alone time together. Harry was more than surprised when Lily approved Harry's plans and had made plans with James to be gone that evening.

He and Ginny were back to Gryffindor tower before curfew and Ginny had mentioned she wanted to do something like that again.

They did, only they went to the Room of Requirement a few times.

Harry spit the toothpaste out of his mouth and rinsed his mouth out with water. "I hold the door open for her, pull out her chair and help her push it in, anything else I'm forgetting?" he asked.

"I think you got it covered," James murmured. "You also let her go before her when you're being led to the table or heading to the table."

"I was about to say, what restaurant do you think we're going to?" Harry asked. "We're going to the Pizza Express in Soho and then to the Odeon Cinema in Leicester Square, taking the tube from the cinema to the restaurant. Then we're taking to the tube to Charing Cross where we'll walk back to the Leaky and take the floo to the Burrow, once there, we'll talk for a little bit and then I'll come home."

"What movie are you going to see?" James asked, moving from the doorway of the bathroom to Harry's room as Harry had walked through the door that divides his room and the bathroom. James had added it when they moved it to make it easier for Harry to get to the bathroom as it would be his and his alone.

Harry paused, putting on his shirt. "It's the classic movie matinee and I read over all of the movies and Ginny picked, The Wizard of Oz."

"Really?"

"She said it sounded interesting and I told her what I remembered about it and how the flying monkeys gave me nightmares for weeks."

James chuckled, remembering that time fondly. "Hopefully they won't this time."

"Now that I remember the movie, I'm starting to doubt whether or not she'll like it," Harry admitted.

"I think she'll love it. I figured you'd pick a romantic movie this time," James said, folding his arms.

Harry slipped his glasses back on once he had his shirt on, starting to tuck into the jeans he was wearing.

"I asked her about that as there is a romantic comedy Matinee. Ron and Hermione were talking about instead of us getting together and hang out in Muggle London for the day, we'd double date instead. Ron already run the idea by Arthur and Molly and they said it was okay for him and Ginny to go."

"Is this you asking my permission or you telling me this is what you're doing?"

"Asking if it was okay," Harry replied, slipping on the belt and pulling the shirt out a little so it wasn't so tucked in and tight.

"You can go, when are you guys planning this?" James inquired.

"Next week. Hermione will be home from her holiday then."

"Is this so it isn't so awkward for you," James asked. Ron and Hermione had been dating a month or so longer than Harry and Ginny. They had told Harry when they met in Muggle London last year. While Harry was happy for his friends at the time, he was feeling a little left out and a little lonely. He had begun to question whether he would ever have a chance to have a girlfriend, one that didn't see the Boy Who Lived and the fanfare that went with it, but Harry himself.

He found that with Ginny.

Harry was dressed and ready by the time James had headed to his bedroom and slipped on his shoes. He was apparating Harry to the Burrow where they planned to floo to London.

Lily was in the kitchen when they headed towards the back door. She motioned for a hug and embraced her son in a tight hug.

"Have a good time, be the gentleman I taught you to be, and I can't wait to hear about it when you get home," Lily said, breaking away from the embrace and fixing Harry's hair.

"Do you enough money?" James asked, reaching in his pocket.

"Yeah, I have enough for dinner and the movie."

"Here," James said, handing Harry more money. "That should be enough to buy popcorn and a cola at the movies."

"Thanks, Dad," Harry said, putting the money in his pocket.

"Ready?" James inquired. "We don't want to keep Ginny waiting."

Harry nodded, gave Lily one last kiss on the cheek and followed James out the door to head to the Burrow.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

James had to smile when he recalled what happened when Harry came home. He and Lily were still up, sitting in the family room watching a show on the television. Harry came in and sat down on the love seat and told them about the date with Ginny. They had gotten separate drinks and shared the popcorn, Harry introducing Ginny to the sweet and salty popcorn.

They had shared the garlic bread with mozzarella cheese and a Margherita pizza. They finished the meal with chocolate cake and had spent the meal talking about things in general.

Lily had said that she was happy that they had a good time and she was more than willing to let Harry go to London later that week with Ginny. Soon after that, if Harry wasn't at the Burrow or if Ginny wasn't at their house, they were out exploring Muggle London, Potter's Bar or Ottery St. Catchpole.

She had checked on Harry before she had gone to bed to see if he was okay and didn't need any potions. She was worried that Harry might have eaten too much and needed a potion. To her surprise, Harry said he was fine and he knew where to find potions if needed one.

James's mind went to a time when Lily was working a night shift and it was just him and Harry at home. It was one of the handfuls of times that James had taken care of Harry on his own when he was sick. Usually, he had Lily or Sirius to help when Harry was sick, but there were times that James on his own and that time was one of them. But luckily it wasn't anything serious, one that a stomach potion and a little bit of fatherly comfort took care of it.

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"Dad!"

James flew up the stairs, taking them two at a time. He had been relaxing on the couch in the family room, watching some television when he heard Harry call for him. The tone of Harry's voice, made James rush to his son, thinking that something was seriously wrong.

"Where are you?" He asked when he reached the landing.

"Bathroom. My bathroom."

James rushed to the closed bathroom door and opened it to reveal his fifteen-year-old son, huddled in front of the toilet.

"Are you okay?" He asked, concerned.

"My stomach," Harry began, pausing when he felt his belly rumble. "Hurts," he finished.

James approached his son and kneeled down in front of him, reaching over and feeling Harry's forehead. He felt warm and sweaty.

"When did you start feeling sick?" James inquired, pushing away the stray hair from Harry's face.

"All of a sudden," Harry answered. "I think it was something I ate, but I don't know what."

James reviewed what they had eaten for dinner and nothing stood out to him. Lily had made something for dinner before she had left to go to work. She had eaten with them and James volunteered to clean up. He had a few guesses of what might have made Harry sick, and the vegetable dish Lily had made was one of them.

"Do you still feel like you're going to be sick?" James asked, softly while rubbing Harry's back.

"I think I'm done for now," Harry murmured, leaning back against his father, lolling his head back against James's shoulder.

James helped Harry up from the floor and helped him to the sink. While Harry brushed his teeth and rinsed his mouth out, James flushed the toilet and helped Harry clean up.

"Do you need a stomach potion?"

Harry nodded. "A pink one," he said, softly.

He shuffled his way back to bed, while James searched for a potion. He found one in his and Lily's bathroom. He checked it and seen, it was still good and took it with back to Harry's room. He paused at the top of the stairs for a second before deciding to summon a bottle of water. It sailed up the stairs and into James's awaiting hand.

He carried both the bottle of water and the potion into Harry's bedroom. Harry was lying in his bed, curled up in a ball.

"I need the purple one too," Harry groaned.

"Stomach cramps?" James inquired, as Harry winced.

"Yeah," he sighed, before wincing again.

"Be right back," James said. He checked Harry's bathroom first and found the purple potion in behind a box of plasters. He got it and the grey bucket from under the sink, just in case, and returned to Harry's bedroom.

When he returned, Harry was sitting up in his bed, arms wrapped around his middle.

"What is it with you and your stomach, Kiddo? This is the third time in a month you've had stomach problems."

"It wasn't my fault the first time," Harry said. "I didn't plan on getting food poisoning." He paused as the memory it brought up made his stomach churn. "And how was I supposed to know that when you take so many sleep potions, it would give you stomach cramps." He groaned, wrapping his arm around his middle, as he sat up.

He reached for the pink potion, the stomach soother first, swallowing it quickly so the taste didn't linger on his tongue. He took a drink of water and then took the purple potion, the stomach calmer, and sipped the water to try and get the yucky combination taste out of his mouth.

"And we wait," Harry said, lying back down. The wait time waiting for the potion to work was agony for Harry.

James sat down on the side of the bed, reaching over and rubbing Harry's back. Then he moved his other hand to Harry's stomach, moving it under Harry's shirt and started to rub the soothing circles Lily had taught him. He looked up at Harry's face and noticed that he had closed his eyes and wasn't asleep, judging from his breathing. He noticed how his hands were rough compared to the skin of Harry's abdomen.

"Am I hurting you?" James asked after he had been rubbing Harry's stomach for five minutes.

"No," Harry replied.

James paused when Harry turned to lie on his back and continued the stomach rub when Harry was comfortable.

"Are the potions working or do you need another dose?" James inquired when he noticed the time and how long it had been since he'd given Harry his potions. They should be working by now.

"The potions are working," Harry assured him.

"Good," James sighed.

He kept up with the stomach rub until Harry fell asleep. Like with Lily, he kept rubbing Harry's stomach until he was sure that Harry was asleep.

He laid down beside Harry as the bed was a double and he wanted to be close in case Harry needed him if he got sick in the middle of the night.

He was still there when Lily came in and checked on Harry before she went to bed. She smiled at the sight of James and Harry, snuggled up together. She kissed Harry and then James, and the left the room quietly, deciding to wait to talk to James when he woke up.

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Lily had thought it was the vegetable medley dish had made for dinner. She had made it go with beef roast she had made. She decided not to make it again, only when it was her and James unless she found out which vegetable it was that caused Harry's stomach upset. She was able to eliminate the carrots off the list as they were among the few vegetables Harry would eat.

Much to Lily's chagrin and James's amusement, Harry was still a picky eater.

When Harry came down the next morning, he made himself a bowl of cereal while Lily and he talked, catching up as Lily was finished with her required night shifts. Harry admitted to her that it was the peppers as he had them before and they did the same thing, given him an upset stomach.

James got up from the table, stretching and returned his cup to the sink. He glanced at the clock and noticed it was now in half past twelve.

Harry had been sixteen for thirty minutes.

Knowing he better get back upstairs and get some sleep, James headed towards the stairs, climbing them quietly. Just as he reached the landing, he saw Lily coming out of Harry's room.

"What are you doing up?" Lily whispered.

"I was about to ask you the same thing," James said, softly.

"I asked you first," Lily said.

"I couldn't sleep," James replied, sighing.

"Me neither."

Silence followed for a just moment before Lily broke it.

"Our baby is sixteen," she said. "Where did the time go, James?"

"It flew by, Lily," James said.

"I'm going to bed," Lily whispered. "Are you coming?"

"I will in a little bit," James replied. When Lily headed into their bedroom, James went to Harry's room. He stood at the doorway and watched as Harry slept. He had done this many times since he had become a father. He watched his son sleep.

He was grateful for the relationship he had with his son. Harry came to him when needed advice about something or if he was in trouble and needed help. If Lily wasn't available for the comfort Harry needed when the weight of the world was on his shoulder, James stepped in and helped Harry in any and every way he could.

He encouraged Harry in anything and everything he did. From Quidditch to dueling, James offered words of advice, encouragement or a soft reprimand when Harry did something wrong and if that was the case, James would follow it up with giving Harry suggestions on how to do something, whatever it was, easier or better.

He was surprised that Harry still hugged him, figuring Harry would think he was too old for his hugs. But James welcomed them and like Lily, wondered if there was going to come a day when they didn't get Harry's hugs. They hoped it never came.

James smiled as he recalled the little boy who followed him everywhere, who greeted him when he came through the door after work and who dressed up like him, even creating an Auror game using a Muggle toy police set. How little did James know how serious Harry was now when he said he had planned on following in his footsteps and becoming an Auror?

James didn't know whether he should be proud or terrified.

But Harry had two more years of Hogwarts left, and next year, he would be among the handful of students who will join the Aurors out of Hogwarts. For that, James hoped time would slow down. He wasn't ready for that yet.

James quietly walked to Harry's bedside and bent over, kissing his son's forehead and pushing back the hair away from Harry's face.

"Happy birthday, son," he whispered. "You've made me proud to be your father."

James knew he would be repeating this later when Harry was awake. He quietly left the room and headed to his own bedroom.

Lily was awake when he came in and sat down on his side of the bed. He followed her gaze to the cluster of pictures sitting on the table in between two armchairs.

"Where did my little boy go?" James thought as he looked at each one. Then he realized what happened to his little boy. He grew up.

Happy Father's Day!