Lily Potter lumbered into Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix feeling as big as a boat. Her lovable, but ridiculous husband buzzed around her, peppering her with questions.
"Are you sure, you want to do this? Maybe you should go back home and lay down? You know what, I think we should-" Lily tried to glare at him, but could not help smiling at his rumpled hair and the look of concern in his brown eyes.
"James, I told you, I don't want to slow down just because I'm having a baby." He grabbed her hand and moved a piece of red hair out of her face.
"You haven't slowed down; I mean you took on two Death Eaters when you were six months pregnant!" She smiled at him and gave him a peck on the cheek, for the first time all day James gave her his signature crooked smile.
"And that was three months ago." Replied Lily has she headed towards the meeting room, grinning broadly and not daring to look at James in case she would start laughing. He froze for a minute before racing after her.
"You don't mean that you're-?" As the panic flashed across his face, Lily took pity on him and shook her head.
"No, I won't be going on any more missions, but honestly James, I think I can sit in on a few more meetings." She gave him a quick kiss on the lips and tried to smooth down a little patch of his black hair.
"I'll see you later, good luck today and I'll see you at home." Reluctantly he watched his wife march through the meeting room, her stomach leading the way.
Lily sat down in the chair next to Sirius, secretly relieved to be off her feet. No matter how many potions she tried, her ankles continued to swell and her feet always hurt. However, she wouldn't tell James that, mostly because then he would never let her out of the house. Which is always why she couldn't tell Sirius, because then he would just turn around and tell James. So, she plastered on a conspiratorial smile,
"So, how was your date with Vanessa?" Sirius groaned and sank back into his chair, Lily laughed, "That good huh?" He shot her a dirty look, which she politely ignored.
"You know there is a reason why I normally only go on one date with a woman." The only response Lily could deem appropriate for that comment was an undignified snort. Sirius just threw his head back and laughed which started Lily laughing until her stomach hurt and the baby started kicking again. She put a hand over the baby and smiled before turning to Sirius.
"Did she spend the entire night talking about shoes like the last one?" He shook his head, his eyes also on Lily's belly as he replied,
"Worse, fleshing eating slugs." She swallowed heavily, suddenly feeling very nauseous and determined not to think about anything that resembled food. Slyly, she looked at Sirius before he added,
"She sells slug repellant." Despite herself, Lily smirked and studied Sirius's typically rumpled appearance.
"Are you sure?" Sirius pretended to look offended,
"Are you trying to insinuate something?" With a snort Lily smacked him on the arm.
"Big word Sirius, where did you learn that?" Sirius shook his head with mock shame, but seeing Lily's skeptical face he couldn't help breaking into a wide smile.
"From you of course."
At this time, the meeting began, Mad-Eye Moody stood at the front of the table, attempting to keep it under control. However, inevitably it deteriorated into a shouting match over the best way to protect the ministry, which they believed was Lord Voldemort's prime objective. Not surprisingly, Sirius was one of the loudest people yelling. Lily just sat back and shook her head at the insanity before glancing over at where Alice Longbottom usually sat. Although the two of them had never been close friends, Lily and Alice had bonded over their pregnancies. Both of them had insisted on being present at the meetings, despite the objection of their husbands. Usually when the meeting fell into chaos they would discuss baby toys and potential names. However yesterday Alice did not show up to the meeting, Lily heard that her water broke early that morning. Lily hoped that she had rethought some of her name ideas; most of the names Alice liked were rather horrible.
Seeing at the meeting did not appear to be going anywhere, Lily just leaned back and rested her hands on her belly. As the baby shifted around, she couldn't help smiling, at least until the baby decided to lean against her bladder.
"Ugh oh." With one hand on her hair and the other hand on the table top, Lily managed to pull herself to her feet. Sirius, who had been standing up yelling about something or other, looked over at her, immediately concerned.
"What's wrong?" In some ways he was just as bad as James when it came to the baby. Lily shook her head and tried to wave him off,
"Nothing, I just have to use the bathroom." Despite her protests, Sirius insisted on walking her to the bathroom, acting as annoying and endearing as her husband. As she waddled down the hall, Lily shook her head as he watched her anxiously.
"You realize women are built to do this right? We're not so fragile that at one little bump we'll break the baby." He did not look convinced and all she could do was roll her eyes. The baby shifted again slightly, taking the weight off of her bladder, but Lily froze, her eyes widening as she realized,
"My water just broke."
Sirius froze for a moment before slowing turn to look at her, he looked absolutely terrified. Lily might have considered it funny if she wasn't so concern that he might pass out. Suddenly she realized that those slight stomach pains she had been having might have been more than the mistake of eating ice cream for breakfast. For a moment Lily panicked, she was having a baby and the only food she had in the house was ice cream, frozen pizza and beer. That panicked passed as she remembered the reason why she had nothing in the house, James did the shopping because he wouldn't let her go and he only remembered half of the list. So rather than worry about her current lack of food, Lily decided to focus on Sirius, who seemed to be taking the matter worse than she was, even though she was the one having a baby.
"I'm not ready, I don't know what to do, what should I do, this was never the plan, and did we even have a plan?" He seemed to be hyperventilating, so Lily put a hand on his shoulder and tried to speak in a calming voice as she explained,
"Sirius, I'm going to give you two jobs, okay?" Although he still seems to be breathing rather heavily, he nodded his head in understanding. Speaking slowly, Lily instructed him,
"First, send James a patronus saying that the baby is coming and to get the midwife, understand?" For a horrifying second Lily thought he wouldn't respond, but then he smiled a little and nodded his head. He pulled out his wand and started creating the patronus, giving Lily a moment to wipe a sweaty piece of hair out of her face. She hadn't even realized that she was sweating, but the stress of Sirius's minor mental breakdown just added to the physical stress that her body was experiencing. Lily wanted a chair and her husband- although chances are he would react exactly like Sirius- maybe the only people she really wanted were her mother and the midwife. She glanced over at Sirius, who was babbling while he created his patronus.
"And we'll be there soon, and we'll- oh, I need to contact Remus-" Lily watched wide eyed as the patronus disappeared and looked at Sirius,
"Did you just send that to Remus?" He stared at where the patronus had sat a minute ago and then turned towards Lily looking rather pale. Lily wanted to support him, but seeing as she was the one giving birth she felt entitled to being a bit hysterical.
"Great, so I'm going to have a baby, whose Father is God knows where, but at least two of his best friends will be there!" Before she could feel guilty about making Sirius feel bad, she grabbed his hand and apparated home.
The two of them appeared right outside of the Potter household fully intact. Lily had to thank her lucky stars that she didn't have a contraction while they apparated, who knows what would have happened otherwise. However Sirius seemed to be hyperventilating, which was rather annoying.
"I can't do this; I'm not ready to be a father!" He yelped and Lily rolled her eyes as she waddled up to the front door.
"That's good because it's not your child." Sirius let out a breathy bark like laugh and shook his head as she began fiddling with the front door.
"Lily, this is going to be everyone's baby! James was the first one of us to get married and you're practically a wife to all of us! Now the baby-" Lily grabbed onto the door knob for a moment, gripping it tightly as a painful contraction temporarily demanded all of her attention. Sirius stared at her for a moment, his own face twisted in pain and confusion, which only made her scowl. There was no way he could begin to understand what she was going through. After a minute the contraction passed and Lily panted for a minute before straightening up.
"First, don't go around saying that, I don't people to get any ideas, and second, you have no idea what it's like to have a wife." It took a moment the color to return to Sirius's face before he responded weakly,
"You get mad when I stay out too late, you cook dinner for Peter at least twice a week and you constantly remind Remus to take his medicine." Lily snorts as she walks into the entrance way of her house.
"Sirius, that's a mother not a wife, also I don't remind Remus to take his medicine, I make the potion for him." He simply shook his head in disbelief and Lily ignored him as she turned towards the flight of stairs. They were beautiful stairs, with an intricate hand carved railing and a soft cream colored runner covering the rich hardwood floors, one of the biggest selling points for Lily when they bought the house. Now she stared up the flight of stairs like it was Mount Everest. A knot formed in her stomach and Lily let out a groan of frustration. Sirius stared at her in concern, his big dark eyes reminding of a helpless puppy. Lily put her hand on smooth wooden banister and looked up at the stairs.
"Any ideas how to get a heavily pregnant woman up a flight of stairs?" She wondered, fairly confident that the answer would be no. For a moment Sirius considered this conundrum as Lily considered apparating up the stairs, but she worried about having a contraction mid-apparation. Her attention returned to Sirius as he snapped and fingers and grinned with a little twinkle in his eye. As if it were the most natural thing in the world, he suggested,
"James's broom."
How Lily heaved herself up onto that broom was a bit a minor miracle in itself. Unlike James, she never really felt completely comfortable on a broom, but she had played enough games of Quidditch with James and his friends to fly herself up the stairs. Judging from the various giggles and snorts coming from Sirius, it was quite a sight to see. A pregnant woman who looked to be the size of a house flying on a broom up a set of stairs and occasionally bumping into various family portraits was certainly not something people saw every day. Lily looked over her shoulder and shouted down,
"Say one word Sirius and I swear to God-" All she heard was more chuckled before she finally reached the second floor. Holding onto the railing of the staircase, Lily dismounted from the broom- although calling it a controlled fall might have been a bit more accurate description. Sirius easily bounded up the stairs and Lily glared at him enviously while still firmly gripping the railing. It felt like years since she could easily do anything other than sitting or lying down, and usually forcing her body to sit or lay down was a bit of struggle.
Another contraction came, sending pain all throughout her midsection and Lily had to close her eyes for a second. When the pain mostly passed, Lily opened her eyes to see Sirius looking pale again.
"I can't do this." He muttered and Lily rolled her eyes as she pushes a sweaty piece of hair out of her face.
"Good thing you don't have to." Came a familiar voice from downstairs and Lily couldn't help letting out a sigh of relief.
"Remus, it's good to see you." She called down over the railing at the rather shabby looking Remus Lupin. His hair had grown long and coarse and his clothes were patched and worn, reminding Lily that he had been undercover with the werewolves for the last few weeks.
"I think you prefer James, seeing as the message was intended for him." Glancing over at Sirius slyly, Lily replied,
"We had a little mishap." Sirius tried to glower at her, but still seemed rather shaken up by the last contraction. It was apparently quite hard to remain angry at a pregnant woman about to give birth- probably for a good reason. Downstairs, it sounded as though Remus smothered a laugh before racing up the stairs to stand beside Sirius.
"Just help be into the bedroom to lie down, and then one of you can contact the midwife and the other contact James." With that, James's two best friends stood on both sides of Lily and helped her into the bedroom and then onto her bed. Staring at her for a second, Sirius seemed to be reassuring himself that she would be fine and then went back into the hallway. Remus smiled at his retreating figure and looked at Lily with a cocked eyebrow.
"Did he give you speech about how this would be everyone's child?" She smiled and nodded, running her fingers over her large belly.
"Yes, but seeing as I want this child to live to adulthood, there will be no wild and crazy nights with Uncle Sirius- unless of course Uncle Remus wants to supervise the children?" Lily said jokingly, but Remus's face seemed to freeze for a second,
"U-uncle Remus?" Tears sprung to her eyes at the surprise and love in his voice, and Lily grabbed his hand, staring up at him to ensure that he understood every word.
"Remus, you are one of our closest friends, you've been like to a brother to both of us, and I want you in my baby's life." Breaking into a wide grin, Remus squeezed her hand before clearing his throat and taking a step away.
"I should probably contact the midwife." With a little laugh, Lily agreed,
"That would probably be good, because this baby is going to come, whether we're ready or not." His eyes widened a little at the thought and he hurried out into the hallway. Lily sighed to herself and rested her head against the pillow.
As much as she tried to block them out, Lily could not escape her fears and they bombarded her while lying helplessly in bed. Was she ready, could she really take care of a baby? They did not even have any names ready! Would she be able to protect him against Death Eaters and other evils of the world? In her heart, Lily knew she and James were ready, but dread squeezed her heart. What if the baby was squib? She immediately smiled and laughed at herself. Of all the things she had to worry about, her baby not having magic would be the silliest. The baby could be as green as the wicked witch of the west and she would love him or her.
Yet another contraction, Lily gritted her teeth and squeezed a pillow until it passed. Panting heavily, she thought about Alice Longbottom and smiled to herself. Maybe their children could play together, and Molly Weasley had a few boys around their age, rumor had it she was pregnant again. It was possible that they could grow up as best friends. Perhaps the moms could alternate who looks after the children during missions, although Lily wasn't sure she was prepared to look after four Weasley boys, or was it five. No one could ever keep track of all those wild redheads, especially the twins who seemed to find trouble where ever they went.
Eventually the midwife, Mrs. Reese, came and began fussing around Lily. The midwife was petite to say the least, with short, curly black hair and deep wrinkles carved into her brown skin. She may have been small in stature, but had a personality few people dared to reckon with. Mrs. Reese had no trouble ordering Sirius and Remus to find plenty of towels and bucket of water, which they did without thinking. Looking at Mrs. Reese questioningly, Lily wondered what the towels and water were for. During meetings they had with her previously, Mrs. Reese had assured them that her method of giving birth relied on a potion of her own invention to make the entire process quick and easy. Smoothing Lily's hair with her wrinkled hands, Mrs. Reese explained,
"I hate when anxious family members hover in the birthing room." For a second Lily considered correcting her, but then realized that Remus and Sirius were family. They certainly cared more than her blood family. As the midwife began finishing the last of the potion, Lily drowsily admired quick, accurate movements, signs of a potion master. There was also something in her age that Lily found comforting, a woman old enough to be her own grandmother and yet as vernal as someone a third her age.
Finally, James entered their bedroom with his eyes the size of dinner plates. Mrs. Reese glanced over at him before nodding her head in he sat down next to Lily, still treating her like she was made of glass.
"Lily?" Came the worried and almost frighten voice of her strong husband, a man who eagerly stood up to Death Eaters be feared the wrath of his wife. Lily attempted to smooth that one piece of hair that always stuck up in the back.
"Hello darling, glad you could make it to the birth of your first child." While she kept the tone of her voice light and mocking, Lily did feel relieved to have James there.
"I came as soon as Remus sent me the message." She did her best to hide her laugh, but after a moment of realizing how tired and emotionally drained she felt already, Lily decided to just laugh. James furrowed his brow and almost seemed to think she was having some kind of attack.
"Lily?" Once the last of her laughter subsided, Lily looked up at James and explained how Sirius tried to send a patronus to James, but it accidentally went to Remus. Then he went out into the hall to do it right while Remus sent a patronus to the midwife.
"I wonder what random fellow he accidentally told that I am giving birth?" Lily finished and James managed a small smile. Perhaps it was not really that funny, but as her hormones were completely out of control, Lily thought it was hilarious. Another thought struck Lily,
"Did Sirius tell you how this is going to be everyone's baby?" The way James looked at her, Lily knew that Sirius had, but he wanted to lie and say that he hadn't. Lily could always tell when James lied. "He did, so are they all helping to change the baby's diapers, getting up at three in the morning to feed the baby and holding him or her as he or she cries?" Smiling, James put his hand on her belly,
"I think he was more along the lines of buying the baby their first broom." Lily attempted to look serious and shake her head no, but her mouth pulled into a small smile.
"Sirius would."
Remus and Sirius reappeared at the top of the stairs, and Lily could not help noticing that Remus was soaking wet and carrying the bucket of water while Sirius held what looked like a tower of towels. James stared at them in confusion, but Lily chuckled to herself before asking Remus,
"I'm guessing Sirius had a little trouble with the water bucket?" Shaking his head back and forth, sending little droplets of water everywhere, he grumbled,
"He spilled the water not once, but twice."
"On you?" Guessed James cheekily and Remus slowly nodded his head, clearly considering dumping the bucket of water on James.
Mrs. Reese glanced over at the soaked Remus and Sirius, who seemed to be shaking- although whether it was with laughter or anxiety, Lily could not tell.
"Out, both of you, we are about ready to begin."
With those few words, Lily's anxiety level reached a new high as she realized, this was happening, she was going to have a baby. Not needing a second invitation, Sirius and Remus sped back downstairs, forgetting to leave behind the unnecessary towels and water. James took Lily's hand and squeezed, which helped a little to sooth her nerves by knowing he was there. Breathily, she whispered to him,
"What should we name it, if it's a girl? I think I like the names Alice or Matilda." James shook his head and muttered,
"We aren't going to name the baby after fictional characters- what about Lydia?" Lily smiled up at James and replied,
"It was worth a try- Lydia could be a nice middle name." Mrs. Reese came over to her and handed her a smile vial.
"Here you are dear, once you take the potion it should be a matter of minutes. You won't be able to remember much, but when you wake up, you will have your baby." Doing her best to suppress a nervous smile, Lily nodded to the midwife and took off the top of the vial. Raising it to James, she muttered,
"Cheers." Taking a single sip, she wanted to spit it out, bringing to mind a particularly disgusting Bertie Botts garbage flavored bean. Still she swallowed, and the potion instantly took effect, making her feel as though she were floating away on a cloud. Before the potion took full effect, Lily said,
"If it's a boy, don't name him after you- James Junior would be silly- perhaps his middle name…" Kissing her forehead and leaning back to smile as his wife who could no longer see straight, James wondered,
"What do you suggest?" Lily had never been particularly good at boys' names, but this one felt right as she murmured,
"Harry…Harry James Potter…I like that…" The last thing that Lily remembered after that was James saying,
"Me too."