October

2. B-side: Family, Friends, Loved Ones

"Padfoot!" James exclaimed, unable to hide his enthusiasm. The door slammed shut behind him, and he practically bounced into the living room where Sirius was lounging on the couch, reading the latest Rider Magazine. "You won't believe what happened today!"

Sirius looked up from his magazine, a bemused smile playing on his lips at the sight of his excited best friend "What's got you all worked up, Prongs?"

James flopped down in the armchair opposite Sirius, his eyes sparkling with joy. "It's Harry! Our son, Padfoot! He did something incredible today!"

Sirius raised an eyebrow, genuinely intrigued now. "Well, don't leave me in suspense, mate. What did he do?"

James leaned forward, his enthusiasm spilling over. "He said his first word, Sirius! A real one, not just some accidental babbling. I heard it with my own ears!"

Sirius's eyes widened, and he set aside the magazine, fully engaged now. "No kidding? What was it? Mama or Dada? It better be Dada I bet on it with Remus"

James shook his head, his pride practically radiating from him. "Even better! He said Padfoot. I was helping him practice his letters, and I turned away for a second, and when I looked back, he was babbling your name. Wait! Lily said she caught it on video"

A few seconds later a phone was practically against his eyes. Sirius delicately released it from James's fingers. 

And hit play, the screen showed the inside of Godric's Hollow. 

"It's Harry's first Halloween, Lily," James exclaimed, his voice filled with enthusiasm. "We have to make it memorable!" 

“I don’t sound like that! Right Pads?” Sirius ignored his friend's question “Shut up! I’m trying to watch something here Prongs”

Lily chuckled at her husband's exuberance. "Of course, James. But remember, Harry is just a baby. No scary costumes or loud noises."

James pouted playfully. "Fine, fine, no pranks this year. But I do have something special planned for our little pumpkin."

“Pumpkin? he doesn’t look like a pumpkin though” Lily’s wasn’t visible in the image since she was recording, instead James was approaching a crib. Harry, who was nestled in his crib, cooed happily upon seeing his parents. His wide green eyes sparkled with curiosity.

“He does look a little round to me Lily Flower,” James said gently pressing a finger at Harry’s tummy only to suddenly duck out of the camera frame when a hand playfully tried to hit him 

“Are you calling our baby fat, James?” Prongs' laughter was the only answer Lily received because suddenly James carefully lifted Harry from his crib.

“But you are right, he doesn’t look like a pumpkin. After all, he is my son. How could he look anything else than a little prongslet” Baby Harry, dressed as Bambi, was an utterly charming sight.

James was excitedly babbling about taking Harry out for his first experience of trick-or-treating, even though he was just a baby. 

Lily chuckled, imagining their little Bambi collecting candy "I think we'll have to enjoy the candy on his behalf, James. He's far too young for sweets"

James agreed with her and lowered the baby until he was sitting on the floor surrounded by toys “Look Harry, all your favorite toys are here” He started to play with some trying to get Harry to play as well.

After a few minutes of James playing with baby Harry watching him enthralled Lily spoke again “Are you sure those are Harry’s favorite toys and not yours” James directed a glare at the camera but continued talking to Harry, this time he grabbed a large stuffed toy of a shaggy black dog. Baby Harry clapped his tiny hands in delight, his chubby cheeks dimpling with happiness.

"Pa’foo! Pa’foo!" Harry babbled, his little lips forming the word as best as he could. He reached out with his tiny hands, attempting to pat the furry dog on the head.

James' betrayed gasp interrupted the heartwarming scene “What is this betrayal my lovely Bambi? I clean your diapers, I feed you and you go and say the name of that shameless person. I’m devastated son” 

Lily’s indignant “I change him and feed him too” went ignored by James’ rant. 

“Lily delete that, if there isn't any proof, nobody will know what were his first words. We can still fix this” This time it was Lily’s turn to laugh and slowly the camera started moving away until James stood up. After that it was a blur of images too fast to decipher accompanied by Lily’s laughter and James' intend of negotiation “Fine, we can even say he said Mama first”

James leaned back, his face a mixture of pride and nostalgia. "I can't believe it, Padfoot. He's only one, and he's already showing such promise. He is such a smart cookie, just like his father" 

Sirius grinned and playfully rolled his eyes "Oh, please, James. You know he takes after his uncle. After all, what was his first word again?" He couldn’t resist teasing his friend. Sirius was so proud of little Harry. 

James laughed, but his expression turned more serious. "I just... I want to make sure we give him the best childhood, Sirius. I want him to know how much he's loved and how proud we are of him."

Sirius reached over and squeezed James's shoulder, his voice soft "He does, Prongs. He knows. We're going to give him the best damn childhood anyone could ever have. And he's going to grow up knowing that he's got a whole family who love him more than anything in the world"

James's smile returned "You're right, Padfoot. We're going to give him the world"