A/N: HELLOO! happy new year everyone! hope you've all had a wonderful christmastime, and best wishes for 2012! i've already broken my 'lose weight' resolution and stuffed myself with chocolate cake at a family dinner, but hey, you can't win 'em all. :P

Disclaimer: The lovely JK Rowling owns all... unfortunately!

Chapter Thirty – Seven

The entire Order was gathered in the Hog's Head for our makeshift Christmas party. It was nothing like last years party, but no one was really in the mood for celebrating. It had been a difficult few months. Attacks were getting more frequent, and disappearances were getting all too common. And with Janie gone and a traitor among us, our morale was flagging.

"Can I get anyone a drink?" James suggested, getting up to go to the bar.

"Sure." I nodded, along with a few others.

"I'll help. You're going to need an extra pair of hands by the looks of things." Lily stood up, following after him.

"Not having one?" I asked Lily when she returned and handed me my Butterbeer.

"No…" Lily shook her head, a little smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. I took a sip of my drink, watching her carefully.

Surely she's not… pregnant?

"Sorry I'm late." Dumbledore appeared in the pub, the only member who had not yet arrived.

"Fashionably late." Marlene smiled.

"I like to think so." Dumbledore chuckled, taking a seat.

"What kept you, Albus?" Benjy Fenwick asked good-naturedly.

"I had a rather interesting bit of news actually." He said, and turned his gaze to Caradoc, Gideon and Fabian who were still ordering drinks.

"Interesting?" Sirius leant forward in his chair.

"Yes, I'd say so." Dumbledore nodded, and waited patiently for everyone to be seated back at the table. In the corner, Remus sat back in the shadows, only his hand on the table in the light. Since… Janie, he had gone so quiet. More quiet than he'd ever been before, now it was rare even to hear him speak. Nevertheless, he was at every Order meeting, putting in every spare hour he had running extra patrols. It had almost become an obsession.

"It has come to my attention, that three Death Eaters were attacked last night." Dumbledore began. Remus' hand clenched into a fist.

"One was very seriously injured, the other two killed." Dumbledore continued, and a cheer rose up around the table.

"Who was it?" Remus asked in a monotonous voice from the opposite end of the table. The room went silent as everyone turned to stare.

"Rosier and Wilkes were killed. Avery got away." He replied.

Remus' hand flattened out on the table then screwed up again into a white knuckled fist.

"It was Rosier and Avery who attacked Janie." I whispered. The atmosphere around the table was heavy.

"Who killed them?" James questioned.

"From what I have found out, Avery has been charmed so that is not able to reveal the identity of the attacker."

Regulus. My heart leapt. It must have been him.

"Well it wasn't any of us…" Caradoc said slowly.

"Well done." Sirius said sarcastically. I wasn't sure whether Sirius really disliked Caradoc or whether he just liked making him look an idiot. Either way, Sirius was constantly on his back these days.

"No, it wasn't any of us." Dumbledore confirmed, pretending he hadn't heard Sirius.

"Well whoever it was, I'd like to send them flowers." James said.

"To them." Frank lifted his glass into the air.

"To them." The rest of the table followed, glasses raised.

"And while we're making toasts…" James began, pushing his chair back and standing up. "Lily and I have something to say."

"James… not now…" Lily mumbled.

"Come on, my love." James grinned.

Lily flushed pink, and stood up too, James' arm wrapping round her waist.

"I'm having a baby." Lily announced, placing a hand on her belly.

"Congratulations!" Sirius leapt up and pulled James into a very unmanly hug. Everyone around the table clapped and cheered.

Lily sat down again and I gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"Wow Lily, congratulations." I told her.

"Thanks Aurora." She said, a huge smile slipping onto her face despite her best efforts.

"I'll admit, I had sort of worked it out when I noticed you weren't drinking." I laughed, pointing to her pumpkin juice alternative to alcohol.

"Really? I'll have to be more sneaky next time." Lily laughed with me.

"Next time?" I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

"Well…" Lily stuttered slightly, "James didn't have any brothers or sisters, I'd love for this baby to have lots of siblings to look out for her."

"Or him!" James piped up.

"Yes, or him." Lily smiled at James. I averted my eyes when they started kissing and looked down the table. Remus was gone.

I felt guilty all of a sudden. Here we were cooing over James and Lily and their baby, and only months ago Remus had lost exactly that – his girlfriend, baby, and the future they could've had together.

"I'll be right back…" I told Lily and James and headed out of the Hog's Head to find Remus.

"Remus?" I called, stepping outside into the snow. The night had that muffled quality that snowfall brought, but the silence was broken by a quiet sob.

"Remus?" I called again, quieter. I followed the sounds round the side of the pub to a narrow alleyway between the pub and the building next to it. Here the snow hadn't reached, and Remus sat against the wall in the dark.

Not saying a word, I sat down on the cold floor next to him. Remus' breathing was shaky.

"It's so hard." He whispered brokenly, leaning his head back against the wall. In the dim light, I could faintly see tear tracks glistening on his face.

"I know, Rem." I said, taking his hand and holding it comfortingly.

"It's just not fair."

A/N: Poor Remus :( but hey, first mention of the arrival of baby harry! and yes, he will be in the story :D

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-DaizeeG x