Meant To Be

Chapter 12

The weeks passed quickly after Wynter's birth. Ron and Hermione went back to work and Harry settled down into motherhood. The first few days were rough, but Harry had his friends to help him. Diaper changing, midnight feedings, and her fussy crying. Oh God, her crying! Wynter may be small at 5 pounds, 8 ounces, but she had a pair of lungs on her.

Eventually, Ron and Hermione's vacation days were over and they had to go back to work.

"You going to be alright?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah. I'll manage," Harry said smiling down at his daughter in his arms, who was watching them all with curious eyes.

"Okay then," Hermione said and leaned down so she was eye level with Wynter. "Bye, bye sweetheart. I'm going to miss you, but I'll come by and see you okay?" she kissed her on the forehead. "Oh, Harry she is just so cute!"

Harry chuckled, "Thanks." He looked down at Wynter in her soft pink onesie with a matching headband that had a bow; she certainly was very adorable.

"Yeah, she's cute and all but I just want to get some sleep," Ron said dragging his trunk into the living room.

"Yeah. I won't miss that either," Hermione said.

"Thanks a lot," Harry said dryly.

Ron smiled and touched Wynter's tiny hand where it was curled into a fist. "I sure am going to miss her though."

"I'll keep you updated," Harry said.

"You better," Hermione said giving him a hug, "You owl if you need anything."

"I will."

They said their last goodbyes and then they were gone.

"Well Wynter, just you and me," Harry said to her. Wynter only blinked up at him with her big green eyes. Harry chuckled and kissed her forehead, then adjusted her so that she lay against his chest. "Let's get you something to eat, shall we?" He placed her in a playpen that sat behind the couch where he could easily see her through the kitchen door. When she was settled he went to the kitchen to prepare a bottle.

He was getting pretty good at it if he said do himself. Harry had only been at it for a few weeks and he was pretty sure he had this whole mother thing down. When the bottle was cool enough he went back into the living room, turned on the TV, picked up Wynter, and sat down on the couch to feed his daughter.

Harry gazed down at Wynter fondly, his heart swelling with love and happiness and also pride. Was this how parents felt when their child is born? Was this how it was when they looked at them, not really doing anything, yet they were the most amazing thing ever? Was this the piece that is always missing in your life yet you don't even know it until it's here? It must be because Harry was practically floating. He could already say that he would do anything, anything to protect his daughter. And if that meant pulling out of the war, then so be it.

He had talked briefly about it with Ron and Hermione and they had been, as always, understanding. He wasn't sure about everyone else though, they were all expecting him to fight, but they didn't know about Wynter.

Hearing about the destruction that was going on in the world broke his heart, it really did. At another time, before all this Harry would have been right out there on the front lines fighting. But now he had his little girl to think about. She was his life now; he would not leave her alone, he knew how that felt and Harry did not want Wynter to go through the same. Ironically, he was doing the exact same thing that his parents had done, gone into hiding. He was not one to just hide away while others fought, it wasn't in his nature, as he was sure his parents had felt, but they did, as he did, for the safety of their unborn child. Harry was also facing the same yet very different threat-Voldemort. In both cases, Voldemort wanted Harry dead, but along with that Harry had the problem of him finding out about Wynter. Not only because he might use his daughter against him, but the very real fact was that Voldemort was Wynter's father.

No one knew the truth, he hadn't even told Ron's parents or the Order, and Ron and Hermione didn't push. Harry didn't even want to even think of what they might say. Even on Wynter's birth certificate, the area under "father" was blank. Writing it in would not only reveal his biggest secret but would make it all the more real. Harry would every so often think about that fateful night, the night that had changed everything. Thinking about it always brought the dreams and with the dream came the incredible longing and desire to once more lie beneath him, to feel his strong arms around him. To feel his—

No. Those thoughts were bad, dangerous. They made him ache all over made him unable to think properly. It was even worse when he was pregnant because he could hardly reach to, uh, relieve himself. No, scratch that. It wasn't worse then, it was worse now because now he could.

Harry pulled the bottle away when Wynter was done and placed it on the table. Then put a towel over his shoulder, turned her over his shoulder, and started to gently pat her back to burp her. He smiled as her tiny fingers curled into his shirt and she leaned into him, trusting him completely. Despite the horror of what had happened that night, Wynter had been the result; his little miracle, a light at the end of a long dark tunnel. After a minute, Wynter let out a little burp.

"Wow, that was a big one," Harry commented as he gently cradled her in his arms. Wynter blinked up at him and let out a yawn. "Sleepy?" She only nestled against his chest and closed her eyes. Harry smiled and rocked her until she fell asleep, then he went to her room to put her in her crib.

Harry had made up the room before Wynter had been born and he hadn't known what sex she was so he had just gone with gender-neutral colors. The room was done up in light greens and beige. There was a running theme of a brown bear, it almost looked like Winnie the Pooh, but it was gentler, and softer looking. Harry had fallen in love with it the moment he saw it.

Harry carefully exited the room and clicked on the baby monitor that was on the table, then sat back and relaxed.

This was what his day was like. It started with a 3 am feeding, back to sleep. Then later a changing, back to sleep. Actual wake up time, make himself breakfast, Wynter wakes up for a changing and feeding. She'll be up for a few hours so he would play with her and talk to her and then she would go to sleep for an afternoon nap. Wake up for a change, back to sleep. Feeding, back to sleep for the night. Harry would eat dinner, take a shower and go to bed and wake up later in the night for another change. Rinse and repeat.

That was their routine as the months passed by. He would only be able to relax while she was asleep, but that was also the only time he had to get chores done, so he had to juggle between the two. Ron and Hermione would of course visit; they would sometimes let him take a nap while they entertained Wynter for a while. Harry also took Wynter outside when the snow had melted, just a little walk around the front to get some fresh air.

But as the months passed, nightmares would keep him up. Ones where he would wake up and Wynter would be gone. As life settled down and he was able to relax, there was that little worry that something would happen. But no, he was safe. They were safe. They were just that, nightmares. But even so, Harry would be damned before he let anyone take his daughter away from him.

xxx

Tom walked down the street of a Muggle town heading to the outskirts, ignoring the furtive glances he got from passerby. He stopped at the last house on the road that had the flashing lights of a television in the windows. He stepped off the path and walked around the house, it was only an illusion anyway. The one he wanted was further.

When he felt the surge of magic near him he stopped and gently started to strip the layers of protective magic until a lonely cottage stood in front of him.

Tom's lips curved upward into a cruel smile.

"Found you."