More Meaning than a Phoenix Feather
Chapter One ~ Decisions, Decisions
Disclaimer: I own an orange pen, I own a laptop, I don't own a watch and I sure as hell don't own Harry Potter ...
~~(unless JKR died and there is something on her will i was not aware of. - Geez, a girl can hope, can't I??)
A/N: Hey All! Thanks for picking my story for a bit of I'm-bored-give-me-something-to-do entertainment! I love you all! Hope you enjoy!!!! Just so you know, I have also submitted this story on Harry Potter Fan Fiction but I got no reviews so hopefully someone here will have enough sympathy to review!! **hopeful grin**
Lily stood by the window, curling her hair around her wand absentmindedly. The dishes were cleaning themselves in the sink, the carrots were being chopped up by several knifes for dinner and the soup was stirring itself in the pot. There was no housework to do and James wasn't home from work yet. A cry from one of her two children brought her back from her daydreaming; she hastily removed her apron and placed her wand on the bench. She climbed the stairs to where her son Harry was calling to her from his crib. She picked up her son and brought him downstairs so he wouldn't wake up their two month old daughter, Holly. Harry half walked and half crawled over to the toy box that their cat was happily sleeping on and threw the lid open, scaring the cat and making it jump onto the couch, ruining the furniture with its sharp claws in the process.
Lily picked up her wand from the bench and pointed it first at the cat, causing Harry to laugh and clap as the cat flew out the open door and into the garden, and secondly at the furniture which immediately stitched itself up, leaving no sign that the cat had even been indoors. Once Harry's attention had returned to the toy box, Lily climbed the stairs to check on Holly. The baby was sleeping peacefully and Lily smiled as she lifted Holly from the cot into her arms. Holly's eyes fluttered open and she gave a large yawn before closing her eyes again.
Lily brought Holly down stairs to where harry was now playing with quiditch figurines and put her in the rocker, charming it so it would rock while she supervised the knives in the kitchen. Lily's husband James had bought the figurines for Harry when he was only as old as Holly was now. He was so sure that Harry would be the best quiditch player England had ever seen, he even hinted, more than once, to his mate, Sirius, that one of the toy broomsticks in Zonko's would be a perfect present for Harry's first birthday. And so of course Sirius dropped it round, with a card and some extra 'bits and pieces' as he put it, that he saw while he was in Zonko's. Lily had confiscated the Zonko's products, excluding the broomstick, and she had them locked away with a charm that would stop even the most skilled of wizards from being able to summon the items.
A loud crack announced that James had arrived home from work. He walked in the front door and, putting his arms around Lily in a hug, kissed her on the cheek. "Hello, Love," James held her in the hug for a few moments before releasing her. Lily smiled at her husband and with a flick of her wand sent his jacket and briefcase upstairs to his office.
"Daddy!" Harry ran to his father, grabbing hold of and hugging James' leg.
"Hey champ!" James knelt down to Harry's height, "How about you get the broomstick Uncle Sirius gave you for your birthday and I'll teach you some tricks so that we can put on a show for Uncle Sirius when he gets here."
Harry ran quickly over to the toy box he had forgotten earlier and, throwing aside a toy wand, a pretend sneakoscope and a stuffed gnome, pulled out his treasured broom. It was a miniature Cleansweep; 'Top of the range' as Sirius had put it. "Daddy, can Holly watch our show too?" Harry asked James very seriously. Lily was happy to say that Harry had loved the idea of having a sibling as soon as they had suggested it to him; not that he really would have had a choice seeing they asked him when Lily was already five months pregnant.
James winked at his son as he led him outside into the garden, "Of course she can, you're both going to be quidditch players, so she might at least learn a few tricks from a professional while she's young." Harry Giggled. James held Harry as he mounted the miniature broom, although it took off at such speed that he couldn't hold onto Harry; his son had his own talent and was happily soaring around the garden at a good five feet in the air.
Sirius arrived later that evening, bags under his eyes suggested that he hadn't slept as much as he ought to have. Lily rushed over to him, capturing him in a hug. Sirius returned the gesture before slapping James on the back and taking a seat on the couch nearest to where Holly was playing with a stuffed phoenix toy in her rocker. Sirius leaned down to say hello and she pulled on one of the many locks of hair that fell from his mop-like head.
"Ow!" Sirius screeched and pulled away from the baby. Holly started crying and Harry laughed at Sirius as he tried to calm her.
"Just tickle her stomach and she will stop crying," Lily called from the kitchen where she had returned to watch the dinner cook. Sirius looked at Harry with disbelief and Harry just nodded at him. Sirius reluctantly tickled the crying baby and almost immediately she stopped. Sirius placed Holly back in her rocker and handed her the Phoenix toy that was on the floor.
After Harry and James had performed for Sirius and Holly, they sat down for dinner: Roast Beef and Veggies followed by yellow jelly for desert – Harry's favourite. Lily Put Holly to sleep after desert was over and Harry fell asleep on James' lap soon after. Sirius and Lily sent the dishes to the kitchen to be washed and dried while James took Harry upstairs to bed. The adults sat in the lounge room to talk.
"Whats the verdict?" Sirius asked hesitantly.
"According to St Mungos – and Dumbledore – she's a squib." Lily placed her head in her hands and James put a comforting hand on her back. Sirius' face fell as he knew what decision his best mate and Lily were facing being the prime targets of Voldemort and having a squib as a daughter. All three adults knew that Holly Potter would have no life being a squib in the line of the evilest wizard the world has ever seen.
"Dumbledore couldn't make it for dinner but he should be arriving any minute now with details on some families who would be willing to take her," James' voice cracked as he spoke about giving away his daughter, but something inside of him knew it was the only way to give him a life. "Dumbledore has removed her from the list of students destined for Hogwarts and also cleared her name from the list of Squibs kept by the ministry – Dumbledore has officially created a fidilius charm for her. No one must be told that she exists."
A loud knock signalled that Dumbledore had arrived.
James answered the door – armed with his wand. "State your name and business." The answer was muffled though James the voice as though it were his own. "Albus Persival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore. I am here to discuss matters of Holly Jonquil Potter." James opened the door to let Dumbledore in out of the cold. He shook Dumbledore's hand and showed him to the Lounge where Lily and Sirius were waiting. Sirius stood to greet Dumbledore with a handshake also and Lily ran to hug him, tears in her eyes at the prospect on what he was here to discuss.
A cry from Holly followed by a, "Mummyyyy!!!!" from Harry came from upstairs. Lily released Dumbledore from the embrace and headed for the staircase followed by Dumbledore, leaving James and Sirius in the lounge room. Lily reached into Lily's crib and pulled the baby to her shoulder. Harry continued to cry from his crib until Dumbledore picked him up and cuddled him. They returned to James and Sirius downstairs with Holly and Harry in their arms. Dumbledore sat on the armchair by the fireplace while Lily perched herself on the arm of the couch next to James before moving to the rocking chair between the bookshelf and the window. Holly quickly fell back to sleep in Lily's arms as she rocked her in the chair. Harry snuggled into Dumbledore's beard and nodded back into dreamland.
The discussion about Holly's future continued as the children slept. It was decided that Holly would go to Ms Arabella Figg who lived next door to the Hog's Head in Hogsmead. Arabella was a squib and Lily saw it fit for her daughter to grow up with someone equal to her rather than someone who might possibly look down on her. They were to travel to Kings Cross Station in London at 9 o'clock the following Tuesday to meet Ms Figg and to pass on Holly to her. The Hogwarts Express would take Dumbledore, Ms Figg and Holly to Hogsmead where she would live until the downfall of Lord Voldemort when she would be returned to her family. Until that time her name would be changed on all documents to Holly Jonquil Potter-Figg. Dumbledore tried to convince them to leave Potter out of her name but James would not budge and said that if it took a long time to fight Voldemort he wanted proof that she was his daughter. He wanted her to know of her true identity without really knowing.
And so it was decided the fate of the baby lying in Lily's arms that night to become the greatest wizarding secret in history. A far better fate than would be given to the boy whose face was buried in Dumbledore's beard, although none of them knew it, it was only a matter of time until their paths will cross in the most twisted acts of fate that anyone had ever dreamt of or foreseen.
A/N : Thanks all for reading – the little review button below is just calling out to you – I think its saying "Review the Chapter!" :P