Dedicated to the brilliant Siddy for inspiring me with talk of Gone With The Wind ;)
A Night Can Change A Life
Lucy distractedly twirled a quill between her fingers, contemplating the empty application letter that lay on the bed in front of her.
"Shit!" she swore as the quill snapped in two, ink splashing all over her fingers and bed. It was her own fault for being such a careful spender. "Stupid side street, stupid shop, stupid cheap quill!" The door to her room flew open.
"Lucy, are you alright?" Molly asked. "What are you doing up here? Why aren't you downstairs at the party?"
"I'm fine, Molly," Lucy said, frantically mopping at the ink stain and distractedly wiping her hands on her skirt. "I'm trying to fill out my application for an intern at the law firm that Dad works at."
"Do you mean J. Moss and Associates?" Molly asked, shutting the door and sitting down on the mattress. "Why can't you just get Dad to pull a few strings and get you a job?"
"It wouldn't feel right if I got a job just because I'm his daughter," Lucy said. "I want to impress them as Lucy, not as Lucy Weasley, Percy's daughter." Molly rolled her eyes.
"Why don't you fill it out later and join us downstairs?" she asked, flicking her wand so the mess of ink vanished. "We've got Firewhisky and cake and music and Teddy is at his funniest."
"You know, Molly, for some reason I don't particularly feel like celebrating the fact that Victoire and Teddy got engaged," Lucy snapped, grabbing another quill from the pot on her desk.
"Sorry, Lucy," Molly said, putting a gentle hand on Lucy's arm. "I know how much you care about him." Lucy leant against her twin and blinked back tears.
"Molly, Lucy, why aren't you downstairs partying?" Roxanne shouted, running into the room. "Lucy, what's wrong?"
"The fact that Teddy's engaged," Molly answered. Roxanne joined them on the bed and patted Lucy's back.
"You could always just tell him how you feel," she said. "You're a far better deal than Victoire."
"Roxanne is right, Lucy," Molly said. "Victoire's a volatile, high-maintenance, clingy bitch. You're sweet, accepting, gentle-"
"And I come with extra emotional baggage," Lucy said, wiping away her tears. "I've had my heart shattered too many times to want another relationship that doesn't work out."
"Please come downstairs, just for five minutes?" Roxanne begged, the amber eyes inherited from her mother wide and pleading. Lucy stood up and started unbuttoning her blouse.
"What are you doing?" Molly asked as Lucy pulled a drawer open and extracted a crumpled dress.
"I'm coming downstairs to join in," Lucy answered, performing a quick ironing charm and sliding the dress over her head. "But don't expect me to congratulate them." A grin spread slowly across Roxanne's face and the woman was soon on her feet, pulling Lucy's hair into a bun and brushing mascara across her lashes.
As the three women descended the stairs Molly squeezed Lucy's hand behind the swirling hems of their dresses.
"You're very brave," she whispered as they opened the door and came face-to-face with a scene that would have terrified someone less used to the Weasley parties. A pounding beat shook the floor while dancers took up valuable floor space and couples vanished into dark corners to kiss away from watchful eyes.
"Lucy, at last!" Fred shouted. "I saved a balloon for you!" He handed her a slightly deflated blue balloon with a trailing silver ribbon. "I thought it matched your eyes." Lucy smiled at him and tied the ribbon around her wrist.
"I love it, Freddy," she said. "Would you like to join me in a dance?" She winked at him and the music changed to one dance that all the Weasleys knew.
"The Time Warp!" Roxanne shrieked excitedly as the younger generation took the floor. Lucy giggled and followed the music with a dance that was instinctive after so many years of practice.
"Let's do the Time Warp again!" the dancers sang. Lucy allowed herself to be pushed around in a crowd of happy revellers until her eyes alighted on a sight guaranteed to ruin her evening. Teddy and Victoire stood aside from the general crowd, whispering to each other. Teddy's arm was around her enviably tiny waist while her golden head rested on his shoulder.
"Lucy, where are you going?" Rose called as Lucy ran back up to her bedroom and threw herself onto the bed, sobbing desperately. She lay alone in the dark much later, the distant sounds of the continuing party filling her ears as tears continued to slide down her cheeks.
"Lucy, I brought you some food," a voice said from the doorway. Lucy raised her head and saw Teddy standing just outside the boundary of her room, holding a tray filled with food that would no doubt be delicious to anyone but a sufferer of heartbreak.
"Thanks, but I'm not hungry," she mumbled, burying her head in the pillow. She heard the muffled sound of footsteps and the mattress groaned in protest as Teddy sat down beside her.
"What's wrong with you?" he asked. "Normally you never miss a party but today you weren't down for hours and then you just ran back up here."
"Well, I'm sorry if I didn't live up to your expectations," Lucy said scathingly. "But I'm not sweet, innocent little Lucy any more and I have things to do that are more important than a party." Her voice was rising. "I have to find my own house and a job and stop being so shy and meek all the time. I have my own life to live, Ted!"
"Something is wrong with you," Teddy said. "You never call me Ted except when you're annoyed with me and you don't shout at anyone. You're being unreasonable, Lucy."
"For a Ravenclaw you're unbelievably blind to what is right under your nose!" Lucy shouted. "I'm not the same girl I once was and you haven't even considered why I'm annoyed with you!"
"Why are you annoyed with me?" Teddy asked and, though her head was still buried in the pillow, Lucy could see him scrunching up his face as he always did when he was confused.
"Teddy, I'm annoyed with you because you chose Victoire," she mumbled, hoping that he couldn't hear her. "I want you to change your mind and choose me because…because I love you." She could clearly hear Teddy's shocked gasp.
"Oh, Lucy, I didn't know," he whispered. "But I'm engaged and, besides, you're six years younger than me."
"I don't care," Lucy whispered. "I love you and I don't care what emotional baggage you come with. Godric knows I've got enough for two." She turned her head and saw Teddy staring down at her with such love, such tenderness in his eyes that she nearly broke down again. "I've always loved you, I was just too shy to admit it and now you have someone else."
"I care about you a lot," Teddy said slowly, as if he was still unravelling the intricacies of their relationship that even his Ravenclaw mind found confusing. "I don't know how I care about you." Without warning, he lowered his head and captured her lips in a kiss.
Lucy's mind short-circuited, freeing her of any reason, of her morals, of her common sense, leaving her floating in a sea of fiery passion and only able to respond to Teddy's kiss.
"This is wrong," she murmured against his lips. "You're engaged to Victoire, you're six years older than me-"
"Lucy, you just listed all the reasons why this is right," Teddy said. "We're two young adults madly in love." No further words were spoken as the two embraced a love that was forbidden and all the more enticing because of it.
"Lucy, if you don't open this door right now I will blast it open!" someone shouted. "I don't care what you're doing in there, just let me in!" Lucy opened her eyes groggily. It took her a few seconds to register the hammering of fists on the door.
"I'll just be a minute!" she called. An attempt to get out of bed and let her visitor in was thwarted by a hand on her thigh and a body entwined with hers. Lucy let out a terrified shriek.
"Lucy, what the hell is going on in there?" the person at the door shouted, returning to the heavy assault of the door.
"Give me a minute!" Lucy shouted back, shaking Teddy's shoulder frantically. His eyes were barely open before she threw a bundle of clothes at him and pointed at the window. "Get out, quickly, before anyone sees!"
She turned to the wardrobe and yanked on the first clothes her hands touched before opening the door a crack to see Roxanne standing outside.
"Don't try and fob me off and tell me nothing was going on!" she shouted before Lucy had even opened her mouth to give some weak excuse. "Tell me what you were doing!"
"Teddy kissed me," Lucy confessed before collapsing in tears.
"Lucy, let me in!"
Lucy blinked away tears and wrapped the small stick in her hand in toilet paper. She was contemplating flushing it down the toilet, her head spinning.
"LUCY, NOW!"
Shoving the stick into her pocket, Lucy unlocked the door to find Fred standing outside, his legs wrapped around each other, one hand raised to tap on the door. He looked like a woodpecker doing a yoga pose.
"Need to piss," he said by way of explanation as he dashed past her and slammed the door. A small smile spread across Lucy's face. Fred, the little idiot, could always cheer her up, even when he didn't mean to. She crossed the hall and opened the door to the small bedroom she was currently sharing, in cramped companionship, with Roxanne.
"Was that my stupid brother?" Roxanne asked, looking up from her magazine. "Honestly, there are two other loos he could use." She looked up at Lily's face, where the tears had left faint mascara lines behind. "What's up?"
"I can't tell you," Lucy murmured, tears spilling from blue eyes. Wordlessly, she held out the small stick she'd hidden from Fred. Roxanne's eyes grew as round as toffees as she stared at it.
"How late are you?" she asked, gesturing at two faint blue lines running across the white surface.
"Three weeks," Lucy answered. "It has to be."
"You're pregnant," Roxanne whispered. "Merlin's frilly codpiece."
"What am I going to do?" Lucy sobbed. She almost seemed to be curling in on herself where she sat. "I enticed Teddy into cheating on my own cousin and now I'm carrying his child! What do I do, Roxanne?" Roxanne had no answers, but, seeing Lucy's trusting, tear-stained face, she did her best.
"You have to tell your parents, and Teddy," she said, improvising and desperately thinking on her feet. "Molly and I will help you. Whatever you decide to do, we're here for you."
"But I could just…get rid of it," Lucy murmured. "It would be so easy. Go into a clinic and come out without a baby."
"It's a crime to abort a magical baby in Britain," Roxanne reasoned. "We can't afford to go overseas and your mum and dad will kill you if you buy those dodgy potions cheap."
"But what am I supposed to do?" Lucy asked, her voice rising to levels of hysteria. "I've only just graduated Hogwarts, I can't raise a baby with a man six years older than me and engaged to my cousin!"
"They won't be engaged for long when Victoire finds out," Roxanne said grimly.
"You mean they're going to split up because of me?" Lucy screamed. "I can't be a home-wrecker, I just can't be!"
"Girls, what's going on up there?" Lucy's mother called. "What's all the screaming about?"
"Nothing, Auntie Audrey!" Roxanne called. "We're just having a sing-song!"
"Well, lunch will be ready in ten minutes, so make sure you're ready!" Audrey called. Roxanne turned back to Lucy, now shivering and crying, hunched-up on the bed.
"Calm down, Lucy, it's not good for the baby," she ordered. "You won't be a home-wrecker, because Teddy and Victoire are bad enough already. He told James, who told Fred, who told me, that he's thinking of leaving her."
"But it would be me having his baby that would totally destroy them," Lucy whimpered. "It would be my fault."
"Well, don't just sit there moping," Roxanne said, getting up and pulling a cardigan around her shoulders. "We're going to tell Teddy right now. He'll be at Quidditch training with James, right?" Lucy nodded, twisting a strand of hair around her finger in her usual nervous way.
"But how do I tell him?" she asked.
"Just get him on his own and tell him," Roxanne said. "Now, take my arm and I'll Apparate us." Her eyes flickered to Lily's still-flat abdomen. "On second thoughts, maybe we should just walk."
"I'm pregnant, Roxy, not disabled," Lucy said, the ghost of a smile flickering across her face. "I can still Apparate!"
"It's your funeral," Roxanne murmured as Lucy took hold of her arm and she spun on the spot.
The moment they landed at the entrance to a Quidditch stadium just outside Lancaster, Lucy released her vice-like grip on Roxanne's arm and, bending over, threw up and up.
"I did warn you," Roxanne chided, holding back Lucy's hair. When the shaky woman finally straightened up, Roxanne vanished the mess with a quick Evanesco and conjured a glass of water for Lucy to rinse out her mouth with.
"Thank you, Roxanne," Lucy said, swilling the water around her mouth and spitting it into the grass. "I'll remember next time not to Apparate pregnant."
"You should have listened to me," Roxanne said, flashing her VIP pass at the security guard as they walked under the entry arch. "I'm training to be a Healer, I know these things."
"Well, excuse me, Miss Trainee Healer Roxanne, but I'm entitled to make my own mistakes and discover the horrible consequences," Lucy said, a small smile gracing her features.
"Hello, ladies," Randolph Vane said, slowing his broom to a halt beside them and gazing appraisingly at them. "I s'pose you're here to talk with Teddy and James." Lucy rolled her eyes at the heap of blushing, stuttering jelly her normally cool cousin had become faced with 'ol' Randy'. Why Roxanne had a crush on the man was one of the great mysteries of life.
"Yes, we are, Randolph," Lucy stated. "So could you call them over for us?"
"Sure thing, chicks," Randolph said with a wink. Cupping his hands to his mouth, he yelled, "OI! Teddy, James, couple of hot chicks here to see you!" Two men soared over, one of them with hair the same blue as the robes he wore and the other with messy dark hair.
"Thanks, Randy," James said. "Cover me while I talk to these two, would you?"
"Sure thing, Captain," Randolph agreed. He nodded and flew off, winking at Roxanne and Lucy and saluting to his two team mates as he went.
"What's so important that you need to interrupt our training?" James asked, jumping off his broom and landing lightly on the ground. "We're playing the Harpies later this month, we haven't got time for distractions."
"Oh, so now we're 'distractions'?" Roxanne asked, raising an eyebrow. "Anyway, we're here to talk with Teddy, not you." She nudged Lucy. "Tell him."
"What's wrong, Lucy?" Teddy asked, leaning on his broomstick and looking concerned for her. Lucy was overcome by a terrible desire to collapse into his arms, but, somehow, she resisted.
"I'm pregnant."
Teddy's reaction was instantaneous. He crashed to the ground with a yell of pain and leapt to his feet with a look of undeniable shock on his face.
"That's some fertility you got there, man!" James exclaimed, slapping Teddy on the back.
"No, it's not yours," Lucy said quickly, ignoring Roxanne frantically shaking her head. "It's Lorcan's."
"I thought you two were just friends," James said, ignoring a blushing Teddy. "What happened?"
"Well, you know how it is," Lucy said, faking a little laugh. " A bottle of Firewhisky and an evening alone - boom, one night and your whole life's changing."
"I'm happy for you," Teddy said. "Does Lorcan know?"
"He's been away, photographing cursed skeletons in Egyptian tombs," Lucy explained. "But he'll be back later today, so we're going to greet him." She smiled at the two men and, seizing Roxanne's arm, walked away, dragging her spluttering cousin behind her.
Seconds later they were standing outside the door of Radish House, where Lorcan and Lysander still lived with their parents. Groaning, Lucy bent over and vomited again. This time, an exasperated Roxanne didn't help her.
"I told you not to Apparate!" she scolded. Lucy straightened up, wiping a hand across her mouth and straightening her clothes.
"No time for that now, I have to get inside, warn Lorcan and figure out our story." Grabbing Roxanne's sleeve, Lucy rushed up to the door and knocked three times. A yawning, shirtless Lorcan answered.
"Oh, sorry, girls, I've only just woken up," he said, not even appearing the slightest bit embarrassed at being caught half-naked. "Come in and tell me why you're here."
"It's nearly midday, Lorcan," Roxanne chided. "You're such a lazy arse. Anyway, we're here because Lucy's got herself into a bit of a mess. I'll leave you alone to talk." Roxanne left the room to search for sustenance in the kitchen and Lorcan and Lucy were alone.
"I'm pregnant," Lucy explained. "It's Teddy's, but I lied and said it was yours."
"Whatever possessed you to do that?" Lorcan exclaimed. "You know I bat for a different team, Lucy. My toilet doesn't flush the same way as yours."
"Yes, I do know that, Lorcan, I was the one who caught you and Albus," Lucy snapped. "But I know that you're my best friend and I can trust you to help me without trying to make any advances." She widened her eyes in the way her last boyfriend had sworn was irresistible and gazed up at Lorcan. "Please?"
"Oh, alright," Lorcan sighed, dramatically rolling his eyes. "But we need to work out a story. A good, convincing one."
"I already told James and Teddy we were having a drink together one evening and one thing just led to another," Lucy explained. "You have to explain to Albus and tell him how sorry I am that's it's come to this."
"Don't worry, he's the most understanding person I know," Lorcan soothed. "Well, we'll say that our night was before I left for Egypt and now I've found out and I'm ecstatic to be a father."
"You do realise we'll have to act like we're in love?" Lucy asked. "We have to put on a convincing show or they'll never believe us."
"I played Romeo when I attended Muggle school," Lorcan said thoughtfully. "Even then I knew I was gay, the girl playing Juliet was nowhere near as pretty as you and yet I still managed to portray the star-crossed lover. For someone of my extreme talents, I doubt this will be much of a challenge."
"Well, all we have to do for everyone to find out is tell Dominique," Lucy said. "She'll tell everyone she sees the news." Lorcan got up to wash and prepare himself for the day ahead.
"Wait!" Lucy exclaimed. Lorcan looked around at her and found himself being kissed. Lucy didn't know about him, but she felt something down deep inside. Not as strong as feelings, but stirrings. Maybe the act wouldn't be as hard as she thought.
"This might be harder than I thought," she said dolefully. "We don't exactly seem in love and we've never shown any signs before now."
"Like you said, a night can change a life," Lorcan said. "It won't take much to pretend to be madly in love. After all, the eyes only see what they want to see." He stood up. "I must say, it's going to be rather fun playing a part."
"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players," Lucy quoted. Lorcan smiled and left her sitting on the sofa alone while he took a shower.
"How did it go?" Roxanne asked, bouncing back into the room. Lucy wondered momentarily if she should tell Roxanne Lorcan's secret, but decided against it. It was no business of Roxanne's if the man she was about to pretend to be madly in love and expecting a baby with was gay, and it was Lorcan's secret to tell if he so chose.
"He agreed to the plan and said that he'll easily manage to pretend to love me for nine months," Lucy explained quickly, omitting any mention of their experimental kiss or Lorcan's sexuality.
"Well, as long as you're happy, I won't begrudge you anything," Roxanne said grudgingly. "I hope you don't mind, but I phoned Dominique." She checked her watch. "I would say everyone will know by about half past one."
"We should probably go back before Mum starts wondering where we've gone," Lucy said, standing up. "Bye Lorcan!" she yelled. They heard a response, the words of which weren't discernible over the roar of the shower.
"We're taking the bus," Roxanne said sternly as Lucy made to grab her arm. Lucy looked sheepish and followed Roxanne out of the house and towards the bus stop on the edge of Ottery St. Catchpole.
After a long lunch, sitting on chairs in the sunny garden, Roxanne and Lucy departed for the Burrow, Lucy preparing herself for the inevitable onslaught of questions and congratulations. By the expressions on their faces, her parents and sister clearly already knew. When they knocked on the door of her grandparents' home, a slim blonde answered and immediately enveloped Lucy in a tight hug.
"I can't believe you're going to have a baby!" Dominique squealed, releasing Lucy. "How did it happen? Since when have you and Lorcan been madly in love? Come inside, everyone's waiting! We've prepared a surprise party for you!" She led a slightly shell-shocked Lucy and a heavily-sighing Roxanne through the house into the living room.
"Surprise!" the family shouted, letting off party poppers with loud bangs and blowing on their party blowers. After Dominique's squealed confession, the whole thing was rather anticlimactic, but Lucy was gratified to see that her family didn't appear too disappointed or ashamed by her situation. They certainly would if they ever found out the true father of her child.
"It couldn't 'ave 'appened to a lovelier girl," their Aunt Fleur said, kissing Lucy on both cheeks and hugging her. "I trust ze bébé will be born in St. Mungo's?"
"Oui, bien sûr," Lucy answered, returning the warm hug.
"Ah, ma chère, I've never been prouder of you," Fleur said, wiping her eyes. "Ze bébé will be such a wondrous addition to our family and ze father is such a charming young man."
"Where is Lorcan?" Granny Molly asked, twisting to look behind them as if expecting Lorcan to charge in like some white knight.
"He wasn't expecting a party," Lucy explained gently. She didn't tell them that Lorcan had gone to explain to Albus about the situation. No sooner had she said those words than the door crashed open and Lorcan walked in. He was a far cry from the cheeky, grinning man Lucy and Roxanne had said goodbye to not two hours ago. His eyes were rimmed with red and it looked as though he'd been crying.
"Sorry, everyone, but would you excuse Lucy and I for a moment," he said quickly, grabbing Lucy by the hand and pulling her out into the hallway, shutting the door behind them.
"What's wrong, Lorcan?" Lucy asked, concerned for her friend. "What are you doing here?"
"Albus said he couldn't understand why I was doing this," Lorcan mumbled. "He said he couldn't stay with me and left me."
"Lorcan, I'm so sorry," Lucy whispered, appalled, tears springing to her eyes. "It's all my fault."
"No, it's Albus who won't understand that I'm doing this for a dear friend," Lorcan argued. "If he can't understand friendship I wouldn't want to be with him anyway." Lucy admired his bravery. He must have felt like crying but he was staying strong for her. She stretched up and gently brushed her lips against his.
"Aww, look at you two!" Dominique squealed. "You're so darling together!" Lucy jumped away from Lorcan, embarrassed at having been caught in the act.
"Sorry, Dom, we'll come in now," Lorcan said, taking Lucy's hand and smoothly winking at her. She could feel the heat creeping up her face while Dominique giggled.
"All that remains to be seen is when you propose!" she declared. Lysander raised an eyebrow, a gesture that made Lucy laugh. They walked back into the kitchen to find a party already in full swing. Old Muggle music was issuing from a glowing, spinning Orpheus Orb and James and Fred were devouring cake at a rapid pace.
"Boys, boys, slow down or you'll make yourselves sick," Granny Molly chided, her smile affectionate despite the telling off. "Save some cake for the happy couple."
"Thanks, Granny," Lucy said, cutting herself a small slice from the half of the cake that remained. "Feel free to eat it all." Grinning and slyly high-fiving James, Fred cut himself a slice that could have fed a family of Chihuahuas for a week.
"You greedy bastard!" James shouted, hitting Fred up-side the head. Fred growled at him and they began circling each other like dogs before a fight.
"No fear, boys, I made another cake," Granny Molly said, taking an identical iced cake from the fridge. James and Fred both grinned and started eating the new one too.
"Congratulations, Lucy," Rose said, hugging first Lucy and secondly Lorcan. "Do your family know, Lorcan? When are you going to make an honest woman of her?"
"I haven't told my family yet, Rose," Lorcan answered. "As for making an honest woman of her, we're perfectly content for the moment without rings."
"Well, it's your choice," Rose said doubtfully. Lucy could see her eyes flicker to the emerald that took pride of place on her left hand. Rose was a one-man woman and her first order of business after becoming Scorpius' official one-and-only had been to get engaged. Lucy, she was too confused to even consider a real relationship.
"You never know what the future may hold," Lorcan said with a smile, reassuring Rose. Lucy knew that he was saying, in a roundabout way, that they would eventually not be together at all. Rose perceived the words differently and a smile spread across her face.
"I can't wait for the wedding!" she declared, giving both of them another hug before departing back to Scorpius' arms and attentions.
"I think we've become the new subject of chatter within this family," Lucy said. "At least until the next family dinner."
"Why until the next family dinner?" Lorcan asked curiously, filling two mugs with tea and handing one to Lucy. "Do you still like three sugars?" Lucy nodded and wrapped her hands around the mug that read 1 Grandpa, warming them.
"Well, at the family dinners, whoever doesn't show up gets talked about," she explained, taking a sip and recoiling as the scalding liquid burnt her tongue.
"And if we don't show up?" Lorcan whispered, putting an arm around her as people looked in their direction. Lucy shivered when she felt his breath on her skin.
"We get talked about," she breathed.
"Look at them, snuggled up and whispering together!" Dominique squealed. "You two are so adorable!" Lucy grinned up at Lorcan. He winked and brushed a kiss to her hair. All part of the act, obviously.
"Well, thank you for the party, but we must be going," he said. "We have urgent business to attend to." Dominique's loud giggles followed them out into the garden. Flutterby bushes wafted gently in the summer breeze and curious chickens stalked gnomes through the bushes.
"You made a good impression," Lucy said, allowing Lorcan to let go of her and moving away.
"It didn't go too badly, all things considered," Lorcan agreed. "We may have convinced them." He kissed the top of her head. "See you later, I have to break the 'news' to my parents." Lucy watched him go with a certain odd feeling in the pit of her stomach. Wistfulness? Envy? Loneliness? Pregnancy hormones? She shook it off and started walking towards the nearest coffee shop to satisfy her sudden craving for gingerbread.
Lucy was three months pregnant and starting to show by the time it occurred to her that Teddy didn't know that he was really the father. The bulge under her shirts was his child and he had the right to know. Even if he was married and probably no longer interested in her, he should be given the chance to take care of his son or daughter.
She arrived outside the flat Teddy and Victoire had lived in since their wedding a month previously. It was old, grotty and could do with a lot of fixing up, but to them it was home. Diagon Alley had never had the best reputation for residential properties anyway. She knocked and breathed a sigh of relief when Teddy opened up instead of Victoire.
"Teddy, the baby is yours," she said before he'd even opened his mouth, all plans of easing him into the news flown from her head. All she could think about was getting it over with as quickly as possible so she could go back to Lorcan and normality.
"What?" Teddy exclaimed. "I thought it was Lorcan's!"
"We made up the story so you wouldn't end up in trouble," Lucy explained gently. "Do you want me to keep it a secret?"
"I thought you were on the contraceptive potion," Teddy murmured.
"I haven't been for a while," Lucy whispered, feeling a blush heat her cheeks. "Not since I broke up with Jake. There didn't seem to be any point."
"If you weren't acting responsibly, it's your own fault," Teddy said sternly. "I'm married now, Lucy, and I have no ties to you. It was one night and it was a mistake. Goodbye." He shut the door, leaving Lucy standing outside, staring at the scratched, graffitied door where a moment previously there had been Teddy's face, trying desperately not to cry.
She Disapparated from the block of flats to her new home. She and Lorcan had purchased a small, two-bedroom flat to keep up the charade and she was focused entirely on venting her anger on something. Ignoring the feeling of nausea, Lucy ran up the stone stairs, shoved open the door and ran into her bedroom. Flinging herself down on the bed to cry, she saw a smiling photo of herself with Teddy, pinned to her wall with a heart etched around it.
"I hate you!" she shouted, pulling it off the wall, sending pins rolling across the carpet, and ripping it into tiny shreds. The feeling of release that came from releasing the pent-up rage on something was brief and weak. Turning to her dressing table, Lucy seized a vase with a single rose inside and threw it against the wall. Shards of glass rained down like snow and Lucy looked around for something else to destroy, to take her anger at him out on.
She seized the picture frame that took pride of place on her bookshelf, staring at the violet-haired man for a moment before smashing it against the wall. She grabbed a stack of papers from her desk, a collection of letters, doctors' appointments and job applications, and threw them into the air so they drifted down to join the shattered glass already carpeting the floor. Several heavy textbooks received the same treatment, thrown across the room or having pages ripped out of them.
Tears were filling Lucy's eyes now, making her almost blind as she pulled books down, hardly feeling the pain as they rolled across her feet or hit her legs. She scattered make-up and perfume bottles across the room, sweeping them off the dressing table. Every single thing she found with the slightest mention of Teddy was torn to pieces or smashed. She flung furniture across the room, breaking the legs from a spindly table.
"Lucy, what's going on up there!" Lorcan yelled. Lucy heard heavy footsteps on the stairs, but it didn't stop her from lifting a stool above her head to throw.
"Lucy, put that chair down right now!" Lorcan shouted, charging into the room. "You'll strain yourself and hurt the baby." Lucy dropped the chair immediately, looking around with tear-filled eyes.
"I destroyed it all!" she sobbed. Lorcan carefully picked his way through the destruction to sit her down on the bed and conjure tissues.
"It won't take long to fix," he reassured her. "Here." He waved his wand and watched as everything fixed itself and floated back into place. "What made you do it?"
"Teddy said it's my fault and he wants nothing to do with me!" Lucy wailed, mopping her eyes futilely. "I can't help him, I just love him so much." An exquisite jolt of pain hit Lorcan as she spoke of loving Teddy. Why it hit him quite so hard, he didn't know. But it hurt.
"He doesn't deserve your love, being that way," he growled, putting an arm around her. "He should know not to do what he did, the bastard."
"Why are you so upset?" Lucy asked, her voice rising. "You've got nothing to do with it! If anything, I've made everything worse for you!"
"I'm upset because Teddy shouldn't treat you that way!" Lorcan exclaimed. "I'm upset because you still seem to care about him, not me!" He covered his mouth, frightened that those words had slipped out. Lucy's eyes widened and the tears stopped flowing. She seemed to be asking him with her eyes to tell her more, there was new hope blooming in her eyes.
"What did you say?" she whispered. "Do you mean what I think you mean?"
"I think I might," Lorcan admitted hesitantly.
"You might what?" Lucy's eyes were hopeful and a slight smile twitching the corners of her lips.
"Might have feelings for you," Lorcan whispered. "Strong, real feelings outside of acting." Lucy drew in a breath and for a long moment they remained silent, unsaid words communicated through their eyes.
"I think the same of you," Lucy murmured. There was another long silence before she softly pressed her lips to his. Soft, sweet, loving and positively perfect. The moment was never-ending, just the two of them.
Lucy's gentle kisses were sweeter than anything Lorcan had ever experienced. Her hands were gentle too, stroking his hair and neck while he ran fingers through dark red tresses. He could feel the slight bulge of her child pressing against his chest. She was so small, so fragile, so delicate, rare and beautiful like an exotic flower. He couldn't help increasing the passion of their kiss, teasing her, letting their lips part. Hands strayed from respectable places and words became groans as they let themselves get carried away.
That was it. The beginning of something unimaginable, of something disproportionate to anything else they've ever experienced. It was the beginning of something they couldn't return from. There would be questions afterwards, there would be guilt, there would be shame and, after all of that, everything would go too far, but, if only for that moment in time, everything would be pushed to the side to be dealt with later.
Lorcan awoke to the honking of car horns and shouted expletives rather than birdsong, but he doubted he had ever been happier in his life. He looked down at the innocent, sleeping figure of the woman next to him. Lucy looked far more peaceful in sleep, dark lashes fanned out across pink cheeks and glorious red hair spread across a white pillow.
She might have appeared fast asleep, but her hand was straying a little too far for Lorcan to believe that little lie. Grinning wickedly, he let his hands do a little roving of their own.
"Lucy, are you in he - Oh."
Taking his hand off Lucy's arse, Lorcan rolled the duvet back down and looked up to see a blushing Roxanne in the doorway. He cast wildly around for something to say, just to cover up the awkwardness of the moment.
"So, how 'bout them Chudley Canons?"
From the way the mattress was shaking, Lucy found the whole thing ridiculously hilarious. Lorcan couldn't agree, face with a blushing cousin and a horrible awkward silence.
"They're great," Roxanne said, backing out of the room. "I'll be in the kitchen. I'll leave you to…um, talk." She slammed the door and Lorcan heard a faint Lorcan and Lucy, oh my God.
"I hate you," he muttered as Lucy sat up, very much awake and red in the face from laughing.
"I wish I could have seen your faces!" she spluttered. "That was priceless!" She stood up, clutching the sheets around her. "We should probably get dressed, seeing as that's what she expects."
"No, didn't you hear the way she said 'talk'?" Lorcan asked. "She expects us to be having a quickie." Lucy took his face between her hands, gazing into his eyes.
"Well, I'd hate to disappoint expectations," she whispered. Lorcan grinned and helped her to not only meet, but exceed expectations.
They entered the kitchen to find Roxanne whispering frantically into her mobile. Ignoring her, Lucy put the kettle on and pushed several slices of bread into the toaster, while Lorcan remained lost for words and blushing slightly. They had been caught in a rather compromising position, after all.
"What was that?" Roxanne asked. "I thought you had a plan to remain platonic through this."
"Plans change," Lucy said coolly. "And being platonic isn't anywhere near as much fun." Roxanne blushed at the mention of having fun, making Lorcan snort with laughter.
"Did you…um…have fun, then?" Roxanne asked, her blush brightening.
"It would be hard not to," Lorcan answered, deciding to join Lucy in her cunning plot to make Roxanne blush more than was humanly possible. "We were in the middle of things when you walked in." Roxanne was speechless and just stared at the two of them for a moment.
"And…and Teddy?" she asked, addressing Lucy, who was preoccupied with preparing tea and toast for the three of them.
"Who?" she asked. "He doesn't care about me or our baby. As far as I'm concerned, Lorcan is the father now." Roxanne blinked a few times in shock, her mouth falling open.
"So, that's just it between you and Teddy?" she asked after a few minutes of silence.
"Over, done with, tossed over my shoulder and into the past," Lucy answered. "I'm over him and his turquoise hair." Roxanne smiled briefly and squeezed Lucy's hand.
"You're so brave," she whispered. "I can't believe you weren't a Gryffindor."
"True blue, forever and always," Lucy giggled. "I'm happy, now, Roxanne." A brief hug was exchanged between the cousins and, when they part, Roxanne has a wily gleam in her eyes.
"So, when will I get to start planning the wedding?" she asked innocently. Lucy choked on her tea, spraying her white T-shirt with pale brown flecks.
"I don't know if you noticed, Roxanne, but we're not even officially together yet," she coughed, gazing through watering eyes at a laughing Roxanne.
"Well, you have to do it, Lorcan," Roxanne ordered, speaking to the bemused man, sitting at the table munching his way through a stack of toast. "It's the only way to justify bopping like bunnies every night."
"I wouldn't say we did it every night, but whatever you say," Lorcan said with a grin. "Lucy Weasley, will you be my official girlfriend?"
"I'd never dream of saying anything but yes!" Lucy exclaimed, flinging herself into his arms.
"Excellent!" Roxanne said, clapping her hands. "We'll go straight to the Burrow and spread the word." She winked at Lucy. "It's a family gathering and, if you aren't there, you'll surely be talked about."
"We'll be there," Lorcan said, entwining his fingers with Lucy's. Lucy smiled up at him before turning back to Roxanne.
"We're already talked about so much I doubt missing one gathering would make much difference," she said, winking. "But we'll dress properly and get going." Roxanne nodded and sat down at the small table to eat some of the toast Lorcan had left.
An hour - and six shirt changes on Lucy's part ('Too tight.' 'Too loose.' 'Too bright.' 'Too dull') - later, the happy couple and Roxanne - who was feeling decidedly de trop - departed for the Burrow.
"I heard that you two are official and showing it!" Lily said, answering the door with a wicked grin and a wink. "Come in, Gran's made a gorgeous chocolate and cherry cake and she'll be devastated if you don't get to try a piece before Fred and James eat it all." Watering at the mouth at the thought of Granny Molly's cooking, Lucy was the first into the kitchen, picking up the silver knife and cutting herself an enormous slice with a dollop of cream.
"You're so greedy!" James exclaimed, looking at the rather less large cake sitting innocently on the glass dish, just looking delectable.
"Hark at the pot calling the cauldron black!" Lily giggled. "Where did your massive slice go, oh dear brother of mine?"
"I'm pregnant, Jimmy, I have an excuse," Lucy said, winking at him.
"Don't call me Jimmy!" he shouted. "And, shut up, sister!"
"Whatever you say, dear brother," Lily said, bouncing away into the crowded living room.
"You can have the rest of the cake, Jimmy," Lucy conceded, leaving him in the kitchen, just him and the cake. This time, James took no offence to the nickname. Rather, as Lucy shut the door on him, she saw him wielding the knife expertly, ready to cut a large slice of moist chocolate temptation.
"I'm so happy for you two!" Dominique squealed. "Are you going to get married soon?"
"I think we'd prefer to wait until after the baby," Lucy answered, as Lorcan seemed, once again, shocked into silence by the sheer nosiness of her family. She took Lorcan's hand and led him to the only sofa unoccupied by crazy Weasleys. Now, everything was going to change.
Lorcan's head was reeling as he paced the long corridor, wearing out the linoleum floor with his shabby trainers. The smell of antiseptic, just the smell of hospitals, was one he'd always hated. But he had a responsibility to be there.
"I hate all this waiting!" Molly shouted, throwing aside her copy of Cosmopolitan Witch and frightening a young trainee Healer.
"Your middle name never was patience," Roxanne said, looking up from the riveting activity of drumming her nails on a paper plate that had once held pumpkin pasties.
"No, it was always Penelope," Molly said cheekily. A green-robed young man poked his head out of the maternity ward.
"Anyone here for Miss Lucy Weasley?" he asked.
"We are," Roxanne said, throwing the paper plate towards the nearest bin and standing up. "How is she?"
"I am very pleased to inform you that she has given birth to a healthy baby girl," the Healer said. "She will see you now." Smiling and laughing delightedly, Lorcan, Roxanne and Molly spilled into the ward.
"Well done, babe," Lorcan whispered, pressing a kiss to Lucy's pale cheek. She looked exhausted, on the verge of collapse, but an ethereal, almost angelic glow surrounded her.
"She's so beautiful," she whispered. "How could little Lucy Weasley create such a miracle?"
"Aw, the little girl's adorable!" Roxanne squealed. "Hey, baby, I'm Auntie Roxanne. You always come to me when your mummy and daddy are too busy bonking to answer your questions."
"Roxanne, not in front of the innocent new arrival!" Molly chided, though a smile was gracing her face. "I can't believe I'm an auntie!"
"What should we name her?" Lorcan asked. Lucy looked down at her child, her daughter. She had been gratified to see that barely any of Teddy's feature reigned in her appearance. She'd inherited the inevitable Weasley hair and her eyes were all Mummy's.
"Scarlett," she murmured. "Scarlett Roxanne Scamander." She turned to Roxanne. "Will you be godmother?"
"Of course I will!" Roxanne exclaimed, her eyes filling with tears as she hugged Lucy.
"It's a beautiful name, given by a beautiful mother," Lorcan said, kissing the top of Lucy's head. "I love you so much, Lucy. So much, I have to ask," he got down on one knee, taking a small, ring-sized box from his pocket, "will you marry me?"
"You finally did it!" Roxanne shouted gleefully, hugging Molly and grinning at a shocked Lucy. "Say yes, dummy!"
"Oh, Lorcan," Lucy whispered, tears spilling from her eyes. "I love you so much. Yes!"
"Let's celebrate!" Molly cheered, grabbing the arm of a passing ward attendant. "Could you please bring us a bottle of champagne? We have a birth and an engagement to celebrate." The attendant nodded and left, to return a few minutes later with a bottle of good-quality champagne. Lorcan popped the cork so spectacularly it flew halfway across the room with a loud bang and frightened little Scarlett into crying.
"Ssh, baby, it's alright," Lucy whispered, rocking her child in her arms. Looking guilty, Lorcan blew a kiss to the pair of them and poured the champagne carefully into four glasses.
"To new life and new love!" Roxanne shouted, holding her glass high. "To Lorcan, Lucy and Scarlett!"
"Lorcan, Lucy and Scarlett!" Molly echoed, crashing her glass into Roxanne's and taking a drink.
"All is right within the world," Lorcan declared, bending down carefully and kissing Lucy, Scarlett cradled between them, her wide blue eyes seeming to shine as she witnessed her parents love.
"You look so beautiful, Lucy," Roxanne said, pulling up the bust of her dress, which was sneakily slithering down in an attempt to shame her.
"This is one year to the day I found out I was pregnant," Lucy said, her eyes clouded over with nostalgia. "I can't believe we're back to summer."
"I can," Molly grumbled, fanning herself with an invite. "It's bloody hot!"
"Well, let's get this show on the road," Roxanne said, shooing Molly from her chair and looking out of the window. "Everyone's ready." She bestowed a brief, lavender-scented hug on Lucy. "Good luck." With those kind words, Lucy's bridesmaids dashed off to take their places by the arch.
The sun outside was blindingly bright, and Lucy wished for a moment she hadn't immediately rejected Dominique's suggestion of having sunglasses as part of their outfits. But any regrets were short-lived, as she took her father's arm and walked down an aisle carpeted with flowers, towards a white arch, entwined with climbing roses. Under the white arch waited Lorcan, smiling proudly.
"I love you, Lucy-Lu, no matter what," her father whispered, hugging her as they reached Lorcan. He took her hand and held it briefly before transferring it to Lorcan's waiting hand. "Take good care of her for me." He took his seat and the minister cleared his throat and began.
"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of two honest souls," he said in a high, reedy voice. "Lucy Audrey Weasley and Lorcan Arcturus Scamander will be joined in holy matrimony in front of their families and friends."
Lucy was flying high on a cloud of euphoria through the long, droning speeches. When Roxanne read a poem for them, tears filled her eyes. Lorcan's heated gaze on her throughout the ceremony gave her a fatal desire to giggle. A summer breeze was blowing through her hair and rustling the skirts of her dress. Everything was perfect.
"Lorcan Arcturus Scamander, will you take Lucy Audrey Weasley to be your wife, to have and to hold until the day you depart this life?"
"I will," Lorcan answered enthusiastically, squeezing a tearful Lucy's hand.
"And will you, Lucy Audrey Weasley, take Lorcan Arcturus Scamander to be your husband, to have and to hold until the day you depart this life?"
"I will," Lucy whispered, her voice constricted with emotion.
"Then I do declare you bonded for life and beyond," the minister said, waving his wand over their heads. Blue and green sparks drifted down onto them and for a moment they were cocooned in a golden web. Then it was over and they were gloriously married, contemplating golden rings on their finger and smiling at each other.
"I will kiss my bride," Lorcan murmured, making Lucy giggle. He silenced the merry sound by pressing his lips to hers. The kiss grew ever more passionate and his hand was straying when they heard a loud cough.
"Release the doves!" Molly called. James opened the catch of a large chest and white doves flew across the field. Great Aunt Muriel's shriek as one of the birds sullied her pale lavender suit brought Lucy back to reality. She giggled and snuggled against Lorcan.
"Music, maestro!" Roxanne shouted. Louis, a pair of headphones hanging at a rakish angle around his neck, obeyed immediately and spun a few orbs. A slow, beautiful song began to play.
"Let's dance," Lorcan whispered into Lucy's ear. Accompanied by loud cheering, he led his new wife onto the conjured dance floor and began to spin slowly with her, holding her tightly. He mouthed the words to the song, letting Lucy know that, by her, he would always be Amazed.
"This song is boring!" Lily shouted from the sidelines. "Something else!" Louis obeyed, despite the black looks the newly-weds and several other couples were casting Lily.
"Ooh, I love this song!" Dominique squealed, grabbing the nearest man's hand to take him to the dance floor and Sway.
The new song was much beloved by Weasleys, having been played at many a-wedding, engagement or anniversary party. Lucy showed Lorcan exactly how to express desire through dance, swaying and pressing against him. He dipped her back so red curls touched the floor and pressed a kiss to her lips.
"Ahem, may I interrupt?" Teddy asked. Lorcan nodded and left the new arrival with Lucy. A moment later he was twisting rambunctiously with Roxanne.
"What do you want, Teddy?" Lucy asked, anxious to get back to her dance with Lorcan.
"I wanted to say that I'm sorry, I do love you and I want to be with our child," Teddy said quickly.
"And it's taken you this long to realise that?" Lucy asked sceptically. "No chance in hell, Teddy. I love Lorcan and he is Scarlett's father."
"But, Lucy, I know now that I love you," Teddy said desperately. Lucy gave him a cold, narrow-eyed look.
"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn," she retorted. She left him and found Lorcan. He took her hand and led her back into a tango, pressing their bodies tightly together as he dipped and twirled her around the dance floor. He dipped her back far enough that her feet brushed his shoulder and smiled down at his new wife.
"I love you," he whispered. Lucy smiled up at him and brushed her lips lightly against his.
"I know you do, as I do you," she answered. Lorcan grinned and, pulling her upright once more, kissed her soundly.
Sitting on her great-grandmother's knee, listening to nostalgic grown-up conversation, a smile graced Scarlett's small pink lips. She knew that this was a very important day, that Mummy and Daddy were very happy. All was right within her family. Her namesake would be looking down upon her Mummy and smiling. The night that had changed many lives had been gotten over. Now everything was about sunshine, blue skies and the future. All was well.
I hope you liked it! I never expected it to end up this long, but it was one of those I started typing and couldn't stop cases. Scarlett's namesake is, of course, Scarlett O'Hara from Gone With The Wind, the book that inspired (along with Siddy ;D) Lucy's retort to Teddy. This is my real and proper entry to FF Idol. I hope you all liked it and will guarantee blue skies and sunshine in my future by leaving a review :D