A/N: The idea for Gringotts came from another fic, if any of you know that fic (which I can't remember to save my life) please let me know so I can give proper credit.
Tittle: Promises of forever
Chapter: 11 – Cindy
Pairing: James Potter & Severus Snape
Summary: James survived that fated Halloween night, now with an infant by his side he has to face adulthood and a world that demands his son. Thank goodness he has Severus Snape on his side.
Warning: Character Death, OOCness, cuteness, AU, Harry's three months old instead of 15 months. Manipulative!Dumbledore, Evil!Tom Riddle
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction, written to win the NaNoWriMo challenge. No money is being made from this and no copyright infringement is intended.
Previously:"He does... and I saw him curse Alice Longbottom to insanity along with the LeStranges... one of the worst things I've ever seen. It's wrong of me but... I hope they get the kiss."
Cindy and Moody
"You what?" Remus and Sirius cried while Dumbledore stared at him in shock.
"James I don't..."
"It's my wish Albus, don't try and change my mind... I saw they curse a woman to insanity and I saw Bellatrix casting crucio on a baby the same age as my son, a baby that might never recover his magic! If they don't deserve The Kiss, I don't know who does."
"That might be your wish, but I doubt it will happen." Sirius muttered, and for a moment the three of them were reminded of the old times, of their youth, times when War and adulthood complications were as far away from their minds as Monday's homework. The moment was shattered by Albus himself as he looked at the three marauders.
"I have to agree, Crouch has too much influence in the decisions, his son will probably get Azkaban for life instead of The Kiss. The same for Bellatrix, though Lucius was just recently under trial, I doubt he'll let his sister in law get The Kiss, maybe Azkaban for life." he said thoughtfully, stroking his beard as if lost in thought, even if James knew he wasn't.
"Nothing we can do about it is there? If you ask for leniency for one Death Eater you've got to give it to them all." Remus shrugged, clearly uncomfortable.
"Anyway," Sirius said pointedly, a roguish smile on his face. "Where's Harry? You didn't bring him to battle did you?"
With a glare, James sent a stinging hex straight at Padfoot before he sat on the armchair again. "Of course I didn't! Left him with his muggle babysitter."
Remus' eyed widened comically, while Sirius started to laugh as Albus choked on his lemon drops. Needless to say, the Hogwarts Headmaster had NOT been expecting that one.
"You left him with a muggle babysitter???" the werewolf cried out.
"Of course! Can't leave him with wizard folk can I?" he muttered, crossing his arms over his chest. "Half of them want to worship the ground he's not even walking on yet and the other half wants to murder him!"
"You could have left him with Minerva and I." Albus gently prodded, but James just rolled his eyes.
"Albus, neither you nor Minerva could keep up with him... he wakes every three hours demanding to be either fed or changed or, Merlin forbid, with a nightmare. You're over a hundred Albus, and Minerva, if I'm not mistaken, is over seventy. Sorry but no." he finished with a pointed look, that discussion was over as far as he was concerned.
"What about Remus?" Sirius asked, oblivious to the werewolf's look. James just looked pointedly at his friends.
"You haven't told him?" the stag asked the werewolf, rolling his eyes at the flinch he saw.
"Told me what?"
"Never mind Padfoot. Moony will tell you later... now I really do have to go, have to pick up my spawn." he said with a grin, waving goodbye to his friends and mentor and hastily getting out of the magical hospital.
He had a feeling that Snape would kill him.
Back in Sirius' room, the werewolf cursed, he had thought James hadn't noticed his slip of behaviour towards Harry but he had. Did that mean he would be shunned by his friend? Loose part of his pack? He hid his face in his hands, elbows on his knees as he continue to curse colourfully.
"Moony, what was James talking about?"
"I can't take care of Harry."
"What? Why not?! Of course you can!!" Sirius cried out, not noticing that Dumbledore's eyes had sharpened at the comment.
"Moony did not accept Harry as part of his pack. Hell he barely even accepted Lily!" He cried, storming out of the room.
Albus and Sirius just looked at each other before the later lay down on the bed, voicing both of their thoughts.
"Fuck."
Alastor Moody stared as one of his best aurors walked up to a known Death Eater house. Usually he wouldn't do some underlings' work, but Albus had asked this of him as a personal favour, to find where James was. At all times.
He agreed, first because it was his long time friend. Besides, it gave him an excuse to spy on Potter without having 'I was curious' as an motive.
He watched as Potter got his wand out and poked the wards. A baby screech came from inside, followed by the thunderous footsteps of one Severus Snape.
Despite himself Alastor was impressed, of all the Death Eaters – specially considering the Inner Circle ones – Snape was not only one of the most feared, he was also the Order's spy. Not to mention no one would ever suspect that Severus Snape, Death Eater, Potion Apprentice (and soon to be Master), with a temper as nasty as a nesting dragon would ever be able to take care of a child.
Never mind that said child was the boy-who-lived.
"He's insane." he muttered to himself. "I knew I liked him for a reason."
He waited five minutes before knocking on the door. Only to be greeted by the pointy end of two wands and a howling baby.
"Put that wand down now auror! You too Snape!" he barked, immensely relieved when both men obeyed, even if the obedience was somewhat reluctant. Given a few years and even him would be afraid to face both of them at once.
Walking inside the old house – uninvited one might add – he round up and glared at both of them.
"Care to enlighten me why one of my best aurors is in the same house as a known Death Eater?" he growled.
"Because he's my new lover and we were about to have hot steamy sex in my living room." Severus replied, sarcasm dripping from his voice, while James just rolled his eyes his arms too busy with a howling child to properly whack Severus upside the head.
Moody did it for him instead.
The elder auror simply hit the Death Eater with his wand, watching in satisfaction as Severus cursed and rubbed the back of his head.
"Now one of you will enlighten me to what's going on before I feel the irresistible urge to do as Albus told me to and run to him with information of where you are." He said pointing at James.
James stared at Snape innocently, blinking up at him with seemingly innocent eyes, eyes which were magnified behind his glassed.
"Could you darling? While I take care of our sweet little smelly Harry?" He grinned, before sweeping out of the room before Snape could respond.
Snape and Alastor just rolled their eyes at his antics, one of them too used to it while the other was just too damn tired to give a proper damn.
"Care to tell me what happened?"
"I do... but I don't suppose you care enough for my wants to actually leave it be." It wasn't a question.
"Got that right."
With an eye roll Severus told him about the life debt, and how he was currently paying it up. Truth be told it was the only thing he was willing to tell the Head Auror. Moody just snorted as James came down, now with a fuzzy Harry instead of a howling one.
"Don't suppose there's anything you want to add to Snape's story, is there?"
"You think I'm stupid enough to tell you anything while knowing that from here you're going directly to Dumbledore?"
"Fair enough. What happened to your spawn? It's 3am and he has yet to settle down."
With a sigh he settled down next to Snape, his son whining while he was moved around, until James settled down with Harry's ear against his breastbone, the sound of his heartbeat soothing the child, along with the body heat.
"He woke up with a nightmare... and he's having colics again, not a good combination."
"Suppose you tried chamomile with anise seed?" He elder auror mused, chuckling at their surprised looks.
"I did have children you know. I might not have been the best father in the world but when I could I did look after them. That's one of the things my wife and I used when Thomas and Rebecca had colics."
James just stared at the auror for a moment before turning to Snape, an inquiring look on his face.
"Suppose we should try?" He barely finished before Snape was up and moving to the kitchen.
"I'm on it."
Both men watched as Snape left, grumbling about handful infants and impossible hours and when was he supposed to study for his mastery with James Bloody Potter showing up all the fucking time?
Alastor hid a smirk as James rolled his eyes. Alastor knew the signs, he knew what to look for. From the last five minutes he knew that before the midget on his father's lap turned one both Auror and Death Eater would be involved. How serious it would be on the other hand...
"Got him wrapped around your finger do you?" He grinned, one of the more terrifying things James had ever seen.
"Me? No... Harry on the other hand..." he grinned at the sleepy head on his chest.
"I see..."
"He can deny all he wants, the Kitty has him wrapped around his tiny fingers."
Alastor chuckled, getting up from the uncomfortable couch, giving it his evil eye.
"I must make my report to Albus, anything you want to say to him?"
"That instead of a Death Eater I got a blond twenty-something year old girl to look after Harry. Her name's Cindy."
Alastor just shook his head at James before getting himself out of the house, just as Snape was coming back with a tiny bottle and demanded with a fierce glare towards the auror that was easily ignored, and which he didn't mind being ignored.
"Tell me you're not spending the night again."
"I'm not spending the night again." James replied with an innocent smile. Snape just snorted in return, throwing the bottle at the former chaser and stalking out his living room, muttering about bloody liars and their spawn.
James just grinned.
Moment later Severus came back, just to lead him to the guest room again. James gently put the baby on the transfigured crib before turning to Snape with a serious look, even if his eyes were sparkling with mischief.
"If anything happens, you're a twenty-something year old blond girl named Cindy."
In hindsight, James supposed he really should have expected that punch.
In hindsight James thought that he really should have known that the goblins wouldn't take being 'ripped off', as the one in front of him was ranting and raving. It had taken but two weeks before the goblins found out about the scheme with him as the figure head and plot manager.
And James was now bound to a chair (a rather comfortable one even), gagged, with four other goblins wielding spears pointed in his direction and the manager of his accounts stalking up and down the room. Curiously he looked around the bank, he had never been this deep in Gringotts, and as such this one was a new experience for him.
He rolled his eyes as the manager started to rant about wizarding thieves and whatnot. James thought he sounded a bit like Filch did all the way back in Hogwarts. All talk and no bark because seriously, if he was supposed to die, they would have done so already and so this was probably a scare tactic.
Not that it was working.
His manager was, surprisingly, not a pers- bein-... he was not an individual that could threaten someone. Even the new aurors were more threatening then him.
Wearily and hurting because of the uncomfortable position he was in, James thought back on the last two weeks. The day after Snape had punched him James had accepted his rightful seat on the Wizengamot, of course he had been under a glamour.
The same day he had asked Moody – who had laughed at the purple eye he had – to fire him from the Aurors. His now former boss had done so with some reluctance... they still had Death Eaters to catch and he was without Frank, and then he had to give up Potter too.
That same week he had started selling gold in the muggle market. Despite not understanding how it worked at first he continued to go, day after day... selling the gold and getting money – which he would later turn into galleons. At that time he had thought himself clever, what with the gold/pound rate that had been going.
He had even bragged to Snape that it was more profitable to sell gold than to change galleons into muggle pounds.
He really could have cursed himself for his stupidity.
If the goblins had their way – like whatshisname was implying – then he would never get to see Harry nor Neville growing up, and he didn't want to lose one single moment of his son's life. He loved seeing those bright green eyes searching around the room. The kitten had already discovered his foot and either James or Severus would see him playing with it whenever he was being fed. Tiny feet and toes high in the air as he tried to grab them.
And he could, theoretically, lose it all.
Did he regret it? Not at all... mainly because he knew Harry would be taken care of. Not only money wise, he also knew Severus would do whatever it took to take care of him.
Severus was also another thing to think about. He had no idea what was it that they had. On one hand James had formally hired him as Harry's babysitter, paying not only Harry's expenses but also his Mastery. Lucius has refused after Severus had taken 'taking care of Harry' as part of his duties, legally it was because he didn't believe in Severus' talent stating it as a waste of time, the real reason, however, was not only his half-blood status, but also the 'betrayal of their cause'.
On the other hand, they had become more civil towards each other. There were times when time itself seemed to stop, while others – generally when arguing some point or other – were too fast for him to keep up. There was also times when...
His daydream was finally over when the door opened behind his manager. One of the ugliest goblins James had ever seen and he had just walked up to his previous manager and backhanded him.
Now that was an intimidation tactic. Much better than the talking machine at any rate.