Lily was seething for a long time after she left the building, at one point she stuffed her stupid wedding ring in her pocket, but the long walk to an apparition point, and then another long walk helped her cool down before she reached Delacour's Dress Robes. When she entered the building, a salesgirl headed in her direction, but Madame Delacour emerged from the back of the elegant little shop with a tape measure across her shoulders and her wand stuck through her hair.
"It's lovely to see you again, Mrs. Potter." Lily smiled slightly, and the owner continued, "Can I help you find something?"
"I'm trying to find something to wear to a job interview."
"What sort of job? An office job? Chef? Ballerina?"
"I have no idea yet."
"Oh. Well, dear, let's see if we can't find the perfect all-occasion set of robes for you."
They did find the perfect all-occasion set of robes, and Lily was surprisingly happy with the plum red garments. Now, she only had to find a job, and she suspected that would be the hard part. Out of a street corner dispenser she bought a copy of the Daily Prophet and pulled out the portion that always held job openings. "The Hog's Head needs a waitress," she read aloud, and then shuddered. Who would want to work around a bunch of filthy, dodgy drunks? She kept scanning until she saw the bold print TOUR GUIDE WANTED! No knowledge of locations necessary. Inquire at 59 Diagon Alley. Lily grinned, this could be perfect. It would probably be great fun, visiting interesting places and maybe wearing a neat uniform. Armed with a little bit of hope, she found 59 Diagon Alley; it was a ratty looking building with murky windows and a creepy sign that read Terrortours. She heaved a deep sigh and walked in.
She was instantly disgusted. The ceiling was covered with cobwebs and every surface had a liberal coating of dust.
"Hello, can I help you?"
Lily jumped and turned to see a tall, emaciated man standing at a filing cabinet. "Umm, I saw your, er, ad in the Prophet."
"Oh, yes, we are looking for a tour guide. We have a difficult time finding someone willing to give tours of some of the more dangerous locations."
"Dangerous?" she asked weakly.
"Well, they're not that dangerous if one knows how to handle oneself. It's a pity more people don't know how to ward off vampires or zombies."
"Zombies?"
"Yes, we have a special called Zombie Trail. Of course, if you want something more adventurous, we have Translyvanian vampire tours, or excursions through the Bermuda Triangle, or Cretian Minotaur tours, or Yetti-spotting climbs through the Himalayas, or, well, the list is endless."
"Do you have any Yetti-spotting availabilities?"
"We have every opening, or we'll put you on standby because we'll be having an opening."
"Do Yettis bite?" Lily asked nervously.
The man smiled, revealing lengthened incisors, "No more than the average vampire."
Lily stopped breathing, her eyes grew wide, and she pressed herself against the door. "I'm afraid I have a daughter, and I can't take that kind of risk. Thank you for your time." She tried the doorknob, but she couldn't make it turn. Her fear grew into panic, and then icy hot terror as he approached her. At the last moment, he reached past her and turned the doorknob.
"It's a fickle thing; sometimes it sticks. Goodbye."
She was frozen a second before she remembered to leave the building. She hastily walked onto the sidewalk, and then onto the busy High Street. So much for her first attempt. She didn't think she could handle another like that. Lily drew out her newspaper again, and this time she read all of her options. There was an opening at the junk shop, and also one at Obscurus Books. Deciding the publishing firm sounded much better than some musty closet, she gamely trekked to 18A. This time a discreetly elegant sign reading Obscurus Books…Publishers of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them hung over the doorway to a deceptively large business.
She opened the door, and to her right was a frazzled looking pregnant woman at a desk, talking on the phone and filling out some forms. When she hung up the phone, she glanced up at Lily. "Can I help you?"
"I'm here to apply for a job. It was listed in the Daily Prophet, but there was no job description."
"We desperately need another secretary. Ever since Scamander's book was reprinted and edited three years, we've just been getting more and more business, and as the secretary, the majority of it passes through me. Still interested?"
"Yes."
"Thank Merlin. Can you type?"
"No."
"Neither can I. These damn Muggle machines are too hard to work, but the Muggles get suspicious if official correspondence isn't pecked out on that blasted contraption." The woman indicated toward an ancient looking type-writer before saying, "You'll be in charge of paying the company's bills and directing the mail owls to the right department. We'll split the rest of the paperwork and the manuscripts."
"What about the manuscripts?"
"We dig through the crap to find legitimate books in legible writing and discernable grammar. Still want the job?"
"Definitely."
"Are you desperate or something?" The woman asked and pushed her blonde fringe off her forehead.
"I just went into Terrortours looking for a job."
"You poor girl. As far as I am concerned, you're hired. Nobody had applied since we began running the ad when I was only four months pregnant. I'm in month eighty now," she laughed ruefully. After shuffling through a folder, she pulled out a sheet of paper. "I need to you fill out this application just for our records. When can you begin?"
"As soon as I fill out the application."
"Lovely. Here, sit and fill out. I'm Henrietta, by the way. You can call me Henry." Lily sat down on a large box filled with papers and began scratching away with the quill. When she handed it back, Henry glanced over it and stared at her. "You were Head Girl at Hogwarts and you're working here with me?"
"Looks like it."
Henry bit her bottom lip, but didn't say anything else for a moment. "You're desk will be over there. It'll have to be cleared off first."
"Obviously," Lily said with a laugh.
"Aren't you even going to ask the hours or the pay?"
Lily shrugged, "Anything is wonderful after nearly dying in Terrortours."
"One and a half Galleons per hour, Monday through Friday half eight until four."
"That sounds fine to me." Lily smiled slightly and turned to her new desk. Perhaps she was hopeless at cooking spells, but she had become fairly handy with housekeeping spells. She pulled her wand out and a couple quick waves had it nearly perfect order and sparkling clean. Lily turned to Henry and grinned with excitement evident on her face. "Do you have the bills here for me to fix, or should I jump in with the manuscripts? This is going to be great."
"The bills are always put in this box here. They're in terrible order, so you'll just have to dig through at your own pace. Since you're supposed to be some kind of genius, I assume you can handle it."
Lily was taken aback by the sharp note in her co-worker's voice. She wondered if she did something wrong, or if she had just misinterpreted her tone. Either way, she settled into her chair and began diligently sorting through the envelopes and invoices crammed into a box on her desk. She scribbled away, writing up the Gringotts drafts to pay the bills and recording them in a comically large, dusty book. Lily became absorbed in her task and in her thoughts. She couldn't keep from mulling over Henry's statement.
"I'm glad to see Henry finally got some help in this place. I thought she would end up having and raising the baby behind that desk."
She jumped frightfully at the voice suddenly over her shoulder. Lily twisted in her chair and gripped the quill she was using until her knuckles turned white.
The man standing near her laughed quietly and apologized, "I didn't mean to startle you. I'm glad to see we have one employee who concentrates around here. I'm Aidan Cartwright."
He held out a hand and Lily cautiously shook it. "I'm Lily Potter." She had resigned herself to using James's last name. Everyone knew her as Lily Potter; she even knew herself as Lily Potter, and technically, all of her legal papers had Potter on them.
"Welcome to Obscurus Books, Lily," Aidan said with a wide smile. "I'm sure it will be a pleasure having you here."
Lily frowned and took her hand away.He walked away none too soon.She recognized that sort of smile. James smiled that exact same way when he decided that he was going to get exactly what he wanted. The last thing on the earth she needed was having a co-worker decide she would be a fun roll between the sheets. Having two men on two fronts pressure her for her time and commitment was more than she could handle.
"He's single," Henry commented.
"So?"
"He's good looking and rich. What more could a witch want?"
Lily already had a rich, good looking wizard pestering her. "A cat, a little alcohol, and a decent book."
Henry chuckled and Lily was surprised. "I'd wager you'll be sleeping with him before the month's out."
"Excuse me?" Lily asked rudely and spun her chair around to face Henry.
"He's the owner and you're a working girl wanting to work her way up. From what I hear, it wouldn't be a hardship."
"The owner?"
"Yes."
Lily sat her jaw stubbornly, "I am not like that. If I get a promotion, it will be on my merit."
"In bed," she heard Henry mutter. Lily stared at her co-worker's back for a moment before her mouth quirked in a half-smile. She raised her wand and muttered a hex under her breath. Ten minutes later, when Henry opened her desk drawer, the whole thing fell out. Lily felt a little guilty, but at the same time she felt pleasure at getting even with this heifer. She didn't speak to Henry and Henry didn't speak to her until four o'clock when they were both gathering their things to leave.
"Have a nice evening, Henry."
"You too, Lily."
Lily decided to walk home and hopefully find someplace to eat dinner on her way. She was too tired to face James for several hours until she went to bed. As she put a warming spell on herself before walking toward the cold and the dimming February day, she saw Aidan Cartwright hurrying down the stairs from the upper level offices. "Lily, wait a moment!"
Lily saw Henry smirk at her, and she tried to sidle toward the door. Her plans of a quick getaway weren't entirely dashed yet. As he approached her, Lily tried to size up her new boss. He appeared to near thirty with hair just a bit darker than hers and blue eyes instead of green. She figured he was just a smidgen shorter than James, but he had a sturdier, more athletic build. All in all, he was nothing like her husband. When he reached her, he smiled with just a hint of nervousness. "Can I help you with something, Mr. Cartwright?" Excellent. Just the right tinge of frosty leave-me-alone in her voice.
"Can I walk you somewhere?"
"I can walk myself."
He frowned. "I have no doubt about that. I thought perhaps I could accompany you. We could stop for some coffee?"
Oh no. Her getaway had just been trashed. So had her job. How could she turn her boss down? How could she go out with him? Crap. Lily looked around desperately for a way out.
"If you have somewhere to be, I understand. I just thought-."
"No, it's fine. Let's go." Lily turned and walked out the door, wondering what she was going to do about this. She hoped she didn't see anyone she knew. On one hand, James's reaction would be priceless, but on the other hand, she didn't particularly want to hurt him, and she definitely didn't want a real relationship with this guy. Of course, there was the fact James would probably go berserk and stop helping her get Celeste. Yep, this was definitely going to be bad.
Aidan followed her with a perplexed look on his face. "Are you always like this, or just with me?"
"Always."
"Interesting. So, do you have a favorite coffee spot?"
"I'll drink it anyplace they brew it."
"I have similar feelings." They made small talk until they both had a styrofoam cup and were sitting a small table. "What brought you to Obscurus?"
"I quit my old job and I needed another one. This was the first one I found that didn't involve Yettis…at least to my knowledge."
"Where did you work before?"
"I was a Hit-Witch," she said without thought. That was a normal enough job, right?
Apparently not. Aidan opened his mouth, closed it, and repeated the process once more. "Can I ask why you quit a prestigious job at the Ministry for a dead-end job at a publisher?"
"It was too hazardous. The prestige wasn't worth it."
"Henry told me you went to Hogwarts."
"Yesss," she said slowly. Where else would she have went.
"And you were Head Girl."
"Is this a secret interview or something?"
"I just don't understand why someone like you would want an entry level secretary position at Obscurus. I have to admit I'm baffled."
"Were you equally baffled when Henry started?"
"She's been there since I bought the place. Besides, she didn't go to Hogwarts."
"Where did she go?"
"I don't know, some primer school."
"Did she go to Beauxbatons?"
"She didn't go to a magical school."
Lily paused a moment before asking doubtfully, "She isn't a Squib, is she?"
Aidan tilted his head questioningly. "She just didn't have enough magic to get into Hogwarts. Are you a Muggle born?"
She swallowed nervously and tried to think of a plausible way around the question. Muggle borns didn't just go around flaunting the fact today. Not with Voldemort reigning the way he was.
"Relax, I'm one. I grew up in Birmingham."
"Really? You're a big city kid. I lived in Grantham for a couple years awhile back, but I grew up in Lincolnshire. What house were you in?"
"I was a Ravenclaw. I graduated in '67. You?"
"Seventy four, Gryffindor. How did you end up owning Obscurus?"
"I worked here the summer after Hogwarts, and I really liked it, so stayed on. A couple years ago it came up for sale, and I had to have it. I've never regretted it. It's just one of those things that feel right. Do you know what I mean? Sort of like a chair you just sink into and snow's falling outside the window and you don't have anything you dread."
"I haven't felt like that in a long time," Lily said softly. She looked out the window, wishing to see the snow he described.
"Well, Lily Potter, I hope you do soon. By the way, are you related to Potters? Well, I guess it's just James, now."
"Is he someone you know?"
"His wife Penelope published a medical book with us last year. He came in with her to negotiate her contract. He nearly fleeced me. Scary guy, Potter is. He was married before, but his wife went missing. I've heard it completely tore him up. Poor chap. So, are you related?"
"Of course not, I'm a muggle-born, remember? He's a pureblood, there's no way we could be related."
"True. I forgot. Hey, I know this is probably completely inappropriate since I'm your boss, but-."
"Look at the time!" Lily exclaimed, rising from the table to cut him off. "I have got to be getting home. It was lovely talking to you. Good evening, Mr. Cartwright!" Lily smiled briefly and dashed out of the small shop before he could continue his invitation that would embarrass them both.
She was looking forward to the relative safety of her flat. Maybe James wouldn't be there yet. After apparating, she let out a happy sigh and touched her hand to the door knob to gain entrance. The interior of the flat was dimmed and lit only by glowing candles. Soft music lulled her to step forward, and the door quietly closed behind her. On the table, a place setting for two was displayed, and on the stove several pots and skillets steamed.
James stepped out of the bathroom freshly showered and dressed in dark trousers with a crisp shirt. His teeth and glasses gleamed in the night as he approached her.
She knew she was in way over her head.
A/N: I finally updated! I know I took a ridiculously long time but we all lived through it. If you want a good time-filler until my next updated, go watch The Phantom of the Opera. That is the BEST movie I have ever seen in my entire life. I might actually write a PotO fanfic sometime. Gee whiz, it was really good.