***The Marauder Chronicles; The End of Innocence, is a fan fiction. Characters belong to J.K. Rowling. Concept of the IWBI belongs to me. No copyright
infringement is intended.***
Authors note: some at end of chapter. Just to spare confusion, when the poem comes up, a year has passed. So 1978 has gone, and you are then reading from 1979.
Sparklecharm, I tried emailing you but your address isn't working or your inbox is too full.
Three: The October Ball
The door closed behind her. She stepped in closer but not too close. She believed she was in one of the towers, for the room was quite circular and tall. She tried to relax and stay calm.
"Mrs. Potter," a cold, high voice sounded from the far end of the room. Lily turned to see him, but he was cloaked in darkness, sitting in a deep, high chair. There was a black desk in front of him and bookshelves along the wall behind him and at the sides. "Come in," he said.
"You are one of the very last people I expected to see in my abode," he said, getting up and walking towards her. He stretched out his arm, grabbed the back of her hood, and lowered it, grinning at the sight which stood before him.
Lily remained silent; she stared into his glowing red eyes never breaking eye contact.
"My men said you were looking for me, said you wanted something with me."
"Something like that," she said, amazed that she found her voice. He smiled his snake-like face at her, then paced around her, touching her hair with his spindly fingers. He raised a long lock to his slit's for nostrils and took a long deep breath.
"My you are beautiful, even for a Mudblood," he whispered.
"Mudblood?" she said. "Tall words coming from a man whose father is a common Muggle."
He released her hair and moved directly in front of her.
"I am a bit confused, I admit, as to why you stand here before me. Perhaps you can clarify," he said.
"I have a proposition for you," she said.
"Is that right?" he asked with a cruel grin. "Do you admire my cause?"
"Not in the slightest," she said coolly. "I think you're a killer, a monster one could say. I don't like or admire what you do, nor do I want to partake in any of it," she said flatly. Voldemort looked both amused and impressed by her.
"You're either very brave, or very stupid. You are in no position to insult me." But he didn't seem insulted; he looked smug and pleased. He started to pace again. "If you're so appalled by me, then why are you standing here? What is this proposition you bring me?"
"I can give you information. Valuable information regarding missions in the IWBI," she said, still looking him in the eye.
"Isn't that fascinating," he sated. "You want to give me information." It wasn't a question.
"Yes," she said.
"Why do you want to give it to me if you don't approve of my cause? Hmmm? Why hand over free information, information which will put people's lives on the line, if you hate me?" he asked.
He was testing her, she thought. Play along.
"I never said anything about hating you. I see what you do, and it disturbs me. I think murder is wrong, savage, and despicable. However, you are moving up the chain of power rather quickly, and I can't help but notice that you have control. I think you'll have all the power you want very soon, so I might as well contribute to the inevitable."
He closed distance between them, stretched out his arms, and put his hands around her waste. Even through her cloak she could feel his cold touch to her skin. She wanted to recoil and run, but that would cost her life.
"You're being somewhat inconsistent, Lily. Do you want to become one of my own? I would be happy to have such a lovely woman such as you among my ranks."
"No," she said.
"No? And why is that?"
"This place gives me the creeps," she said without emotion. Voldemort laughed and moved his hands up her back, pulling her closer. She clutched the collar of his robes, trying to keep her distance but not look like it. He was so cold, so thin, so unpleasant it made her want to throw up.
"It needs a woman's touch; I think you're right. No one does something for free," he started. "What do you want if you don't want to join my Death Eaters?"
"Respect," she said.
"And what does that refer to?"
"You're doing very well. It won't take long before you take over. I want you to remember that I contributed; I want you to remember what I did when you gain full power."
"I don't share positions with anyone," he said.
She shook her head. "No, you misunderstand me. I want to be left alone. I want to live in peace, be respected, and have room to breathe. I won't be a part of your masses."
He withdrew his hold on her, and paced around her again.
"Does your husband know you're here?" he asked greasily.
"No," she said honestly. He examined her closely.
"Why should I believe anything you say? How do I know you're not spying for that Bureau your husband belongs to? How do I know that Narayan woman didn't send you here?"
Lily whirled around to face him, staring into his eyes. "You don't," she said. "I guess you'll have to take a gamble."
He returned her gaze and grinned spookily, but she could tell he was happy about something.
"A gamble," he said. "I must say I value bravery, which you have. You can give me this information, and I will repay you in time. But I won't sacrifice my goals for yours. Never get in my way," he said firmly. "Never. It would be a pity to lose you."
She gave him a slight smile, almost undetectable. "I don't want to come back here on a regular basis; James will start to suspect something. I'll pass information to you through Fox, whatever James slips out. He's not allowed to discuss his work with me, but he's always played by his own set of rules."
"Fox?" he asked, looking mildly surprised. "Why him?"
"Why not him?" she said. "I found him first. Would you prefer I give it to someone else?"
He grinned again. "No." Voldemort went over to his desk and ran his fingers on its black surface. "Tell me, Lily, do you love your husband?"
"Very much," she said. "I'll always love him."
"Then why are you going behind his back and countering all his good deeds?"
She sighed and shook her head. "James is naive. He believes he and his Bureau can overcome you, but I know better. The rest of the world is too caught up in its political correctness and personal agendas, that they can't sort themselves out. You know what you want and you go for it."
He reached for his wand then started for her. She stood rooted to the spot. He grabbed her left arm very roughly and pushed the robe sleeve back to reveal her soft, white forearm. He rested his hand on the underside then flipped it over.
"What are you doing?" she asked, unable to hide her fear.
"All my Death Eaters carry my mark. It identifies them to one another and allows for me to call them. It's a simple little tattoo, Lily."
"No," she said trying to pull back, but he wouldn't release her. "James would see it," she said.
"No he wouldn't. It's invisible until needed. That's one of the many benefits to magic, my dear. I promise it won't hurt much," he said smiling, putting his wand to her arm. But she couldn't do this; it was crossing the line. She started pulling back.
"Please don't do this," she said. "There has to be another way." She felt tears coming on, which he also noticed. "I won't participate in your conquests."
"Handing over information is participating in your own livingroom instead of saying the spell and pointing the wand," he leered, gripping her harder.
"I'm not a cow in your herd. I don't want this brand, for that's all it is. Let me come here with an escort. Send someone for me, but don't brand me, please don't brand me. I know James would see it, I just know he would."
He considered her for a moment. He moved his cold hand up and down her arm, eventually letting it travel to her ring finger. "This is what keeps you restrained," he said, slipping her wedding ring off and holding it before him.
"That is what keeps me free," she replied sternly.
He laughed maniacally then pushed it back into her palm and released her. "'It's what keeps me free!' I will call on you again and you will answer me by returning here. If I want you to preform something for me, you will do so. If little Jamie asks where you're going, make an excuse, lie to him. Though even if he did find out what you really are I doubt it would matter so much. They have strong attachment to family."
"Who?" she asked.
"Potters. His father asked me to spare his life because he wanted to see his son grow up, graduate, marry you. He said he didn't want to leave his wife alone. But she wasn't for long. Byron was an excellent dueler, he put up a great fight," he said with an evil grin.
"Why did you kill him?" Lily asked.
"Ah..." he started, shaking his head at her. "He got in my way. Let us leave it at that."
"It wasn't because he was an Auror, was it?" she asked. She always thought that was the reason, it was so simple, but the way he explained it to her...
"It's getting very late, and you're too young to be out at night. Why don't you go home? I'll see you shortly, I'm sure." He walked up to her, ran his hands down her cheeks, then pulled up her hood. He walked back over to his chair and took a seat. "You may leave," he said from the shadows.
Lily nodded, turned, and left. Four hooded men stood waiting for her. She never thought she'd be happy to see them. They all escorted her out of the Fortress of Shadows and back to the forest's edge where Fox led her back to the portal from which they came.
After conjuring it up again, Lily walked through with Fox right behind her. The ended up in the same alleyway from which they left. Lily expected to go back to the Bureau through the same portal, but Fox led her to a different alley for that. In seconds, she found herself back in the conference room, Ashika stood waiting.
Lily threw her cloak off and began to sob uncontrollably.
"It was awful!" she cried, sinking down to the floor. "It was so awful!" Lily pushed herself back against the wall, then pulled her knees to her chest.
"Did you get in alright?" Ashika asked.
Lily nodded.
"Perfect," she said. She took a cigarette out, popped in her mouth, then lit it with a snap of her fingers. "Did he ask for you to return?"
She nodded again.
"Excellent. For once something is starting to go right. The information I'll give you to pass on to him will be accurate. I'll have to see what kinds of things I can have setup for your credibility."
Lily tried to gain composure, but couldn't stop feeling his cold touch on her face.
"There's a mark they all have," she told Ashika, wiping tears away. "Why can't you pull up all the agent's sleeves to look for it?"
"Can't do that for two reasons: one being that it only appears sometimes, the other is that I have to have reasonable cause to search them. I have my suspicions about some people, but they are just suspicions. Still, I would love to make them wear tank tops all day if it didn't go against code." She took a long breath of smoke then breathed it out her nose. "You want one?" she asked.
"No," Lily said. She stood, wiped her tears, and glared at Ashika.
"Lily," she said, "I won't make you go back there every week. You'll probably only go back a dozen times at the most," she said.
"Twelve times!" Lily yelled. "I can't stand that place. What about James?"
"He goes into dark places, too, you know. It's not like he doesn't face danger," she said.
"I thought he was an-"
"Operations Agent, yes he is. Everyone in this building is threatened in some way. James goes out into the field with Amin as his guide, but I suspect he'll be on his own in a few months. He's good; I never expected him to do this well."
"Did you hire him with the idea of getting me?" Lily asked.
"Don't flatter yourself," she said, exhaling more smoke. "James is perfect for the job, the fact that you came with him is an added bonus."
Lily gave her a piercing look. "How can you be this cynical?" she asked.
Ashika looked flattered by the question. She took a deep breath of smoke and didn't release it. "My father was killed by Voldemort," she said.
"I'm sorry," Lily said.
Ashika laughed and shook her head.
"You didn't like him?" Lily asked.
"No, no. He didn't kill anyone in my family. People love to hear a sob story for why I joined the Bureau."
Lily stared at her. "So why did you?"
"I was sought out, much like I did with you. I studied human psychology for eight years in school, then I applied my education to interrogations and profiles in Law Enforcement. Then about ten years ago, Alex H. Edgar, now the Director of the IWBI, recruited me to head up Operations. It didn't take long to be promoted to this job."
"How old are you?" she asked. Asking questions of this mysterious woman took her mind off Voldemort, which she needed for the moment.
"Older than you. Actually, I'm a bit older than Voldemort, I just take better care of myself."
"Are you married?"
She laughed again. "No," she said. "Never been married nor do I plan on it." She put her cigarette out then sat on the long table. "Is there anything else you want to ask or tell me before you return to where we took you?"
"How did you know Voldemort would take so well to me?" she asked.
"I told you I studied psychology, Lily. The human mind is very complex to those who can't work it out. I know that doesn't make a whole lot of sense to you, but it's true. The Dark Lord's mind isn't that uncommon, no one has ever said it was. He's smart, talented, extremely powerful, and has a gift to mess with people's minds. That is what drew me to him. Being able to make other people so suspicious about each other is a rare gift. His mere existence has dramatically changed the way this Bureau is operated. As soon as he took to power, when you were in your first year at school, I started examining his personal history.
"Mother dies after his birth, father left before that, he's dumped into an orphanage where no one cared about him for eleven years, then sent off to a school where he learned of his great powers. His abilities didn't begin at Hogwarts, though. He gained that manipulative ability, that untrusting nature, in the first eleven years of his life. Those years are the most important in human development. He didn't have an adult role model, or anyone to look up to, someone to emulate...nothing.
"You, Lily, have something about you, as I said before you left. Something about the way you carry yourself, the way you enter a room, the way you smile, laugh, cry...men love it. And not just good men like James, men like Severus Snape. Yes I know about that," she said looking at Lily's surprised face. "I have agent's in many places. But getting back to you-the Dark Lord doesn't see you in the way he sees his other Death Eaters.
"My agent at Hogwarts told me about this witch with extraordinary abilities and unusual modesty about it. That's when I started taking a closer look at you."
"Professor Gellar," Lily said calmly, as if never suspecting her was a stupid mistake.
"Another reason I wanted you for this job; quick mind. Yes, I recruited her for many of the same reasons I picked you. She's smart, slick, and beautiful. Men trust women, most of the time, there are always the strange ones. But Celeste has that rare quality about her which brings their thoughts out."
"Like Sirius did," Lily said calmly again.
"Spilled his heart out didn't he? Sirius is one who keeps things very private, but when Celeste was around...he couldn't contain himself."
Lily let all of this digest in her mind. It all made sense now. Somehow the pieces fit.
"I'm hoping you share that ability with her. If Voldemort pours his heart out with you, we're in the clear."
"He hasn't though," Lily said.
"Of course not. He won't do it right away. But he's already treating you differently. He didn't give you his mark, right?"
"I told him I didn't want it," Lily replied.
"Exactly. He's willing to give you leeway he won't give any other. Did you stand up to him without fear?"
"I tried my hardest to. He's terrifying," she said, a shiver rolling up her spine.
"Did he tell you anything?"
"I asked him why he killed James's father," she said, looking into Ashika's eyes.
"What did he say?" she asked, standing back up and looking very interested.
"He said he got in the way. That's all. Do you know why?" she asked.
Ashika shook her head and sighed. "No. We assumed it was his profession. Byron spoke out against him, but Voldemort sought him out, it wasn't the other way around. There's a reason to it, we just don't know what."
Lily stared into Ashika's eyes for a long time. She wasn't the most easy going, the nicest, or the most understanding and caring person. There probably wasn't a caring bone in her body, but she knew what she was doing and Lily grew to respect that very quickly.
"Wait," Lily said. "If Professor Gellar has qualities you hope I have, then-"
"He's onto her. She's been tainted by Dumbledore; he hates Dumbledore. You're a mind of mush, no offense. You're fresh out of school with naive opinions and lofty ideas for what the world should be like, so you can be molded to go his way much easier than say a teacher, though they too tend to have lofty ideas," she said. "She's safe there, if you're concerned for her safety. But don't go spreading the word that she's a spy."
"Does Dumbledore know?" Lily asked.
"Yes," she said, though it sounded to Lily like Ashika wasn't happy with that. "I think it's time for you to go," she said. "It'll be hard, I know, to keep this from James, but if you can fool the Dark Lord, one of the greatest sorcerers in the world, you can fool your husband."
Lily shut and covered her eyes. They'd been married thirteen days, and she was going to cover something up already.
"You'll be fine," she heard Ashika saying. Lily didn't respond.
She was returned, as if she'd never left, to the London street with her bag. It was as if time hadn't passed, but she knew it had. She tried hard not to think about it, to go about her normal day like she was planning, to think about the mitochondria and ribosomes of the cell for her lab tomorrow, but all she could think about was Voldemort.
She walked through the markets to buy groceries; carefree people bumping into her as she stood comatose in front of the refrigerators.
She entered her empty apartment, put away the food, stacked her new books on the dining table, and sat before them. She opened The Principles of Biology and started to read, only she didn't remember what she had read. After reading the same paragraph several times, she shut the book and threw off her clothes as she walked for her bathroom.
She turned the shower dial to as hot as she could stand it. She let the water hammer the spots Voldemort had touched to the point it left her skin very red with heat. But no matter how much soap she used, she couldn't forget it.
After half an hour in the shower, she got out, dried, and put on a bathrobe. She needed to do something to take her mind off of the days events, but nothing she did could do that.
Lily moved the furniture around without lifting a finger, then put it all back (James would know something was up), tried her biology book again, and even installed an Identification charm outside her door (guests would have their name announced instead of having a knock). She decided to write her ordeal down on paper, get it all out of her system, then burn it.
She sat down at the table, took out a quill, and began to write. She listed everything, her thoughts, emotions, and chronology of all events. It did make her feel a little better, but she knew time was the only answer.
"James Potter," the voice sounded. There was a turning of the knob-he was coming in. Lily set fire to the parchment with the snap of her fingers, got up, and awaited her husband.
"Hello beautiful," he said with the kindest of smiles. Lily warmed up immediately and grinned. She walked forward, flung her arms around his shoulders (Artemis screeched angrily and flew off), and kissed him with as much feeling as she could. He wrapped his arms around her. He was so warm and tender, so much different from that monster she had seen earlier that day. She snuggled her head between his neck and shoulders and let him hold her.
"How was your day?" she asked calmly.
"Fine, but how was yours?" he asked enthusiastically. "How was the first day at med school?"
"Very different from Hogwarts. My first class is in a very large lecture hall which was filled to the brim. My professor didn't even take roll; he passed around a sheet for us to sign instead. Magic wasn't even discussed in the first lesson," she began, then launched into all her science, anything to keep it away from that afternoon. After she finished, James said he was proud and glad she was pursuing her dreams. James couldn't tell her anything about his day other than it was busy, but she didn't care today; she was glad enough to have him.
"Remember how we said we'd get a hobby?" he said.
"Yeah," she said.
"I got us one," he said, rubbing his hands together.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Pool," he replied.
"Pool?"
"Yes, got us a table today."
"Why?" she asked.
"I heard some people talking about it today and it sounded rather fun. It's downstairs still, I just thought I should tell you before I brought it up."
"We don't know how to play pool," she said.
"That's why we learn. I'll go get it," he said, then left. Lily ran her fingers through her uncombed and wet her and sighed. He believed everything to be fine, as it was this morning.
"Remus Lupin," the voice said at the door. Lily went to it and opened it.
"Remus!" she said cheerfully. But he didn't look so happy.
"Is now not such a good time?" he asked, pointing to her bathrobe and hair.
"Oh," she said, looking at herself and going slightly pink, "you're fine, I'll go and change. James is downstairs, but he'll be up in a minute. Come in and make yourself at home," she said before going back to her bedroom to change.
Remus took a few steps inside and closed the door behind him.
"What am I doing?" he asked himself. He turned to leave just as James opened the door to come inside.
"Remus!" he said happily. "How the hell are you?"
"I got a job," he said. "It's not the best, nor does it pay too well, but it's a job and a way out of the house and on my own," he said with a mild smile.
"That's terrific," James said. "What kind of job is it?"
"The kind where they don't care what you are. It's a simple processing job. I file evidence for the Law Enforcement Department in the Ministry."
"That's great!" James said. "When do you start?"
"Next week. I am looking forward to it," he said with a small smile.
"You should be," James said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Could you help me with this table?" he asked.
"Absolutely," Remus said, chuckling. The two propped it up so it would fit through the door.
"Wingardium Levisoa," Remus said, and the pool table flew inside. "Where do you want it?"
"Here," James pointed to the middle of the livingroom. Remus set the table down then admired it.
"Pool?' he asked.
"Yeah. Here are the sticks," James said ,pulling out a few long pieces of wood.
"I think they're called cues, James," Remus said smiling.
"Cues, huh? Interesting," he said.
"That's it, is it?" Lily said, coming over to it and walking around. Her hair was now dry and fell down to her waist. "Wow. What are the sticks for?" she asked.
Remus covered his mouth and chuckled silently.
"We hit the balls with the sticks," James said, as if it was perfectly obvious. He took a set of multicolored balls from a leather bag and dropped them randomly onto the table. "And we put them in this triangular thingy," he said, throwing the balls into it, "to shape them up. Then we remove it, take the stick and this white ball," he said lining them up ready for him to hit, "and strike," he said thrusting his cue forward to make contact with the cue-ball. The ball moved, maybe, three inches.
Lily and Remus laughed.
"So it takes some practice," he said to them. "I'll get it," he said, attempting it again. After several hits, in which all pockets stayed quite empty, Lily picked up a cue and had a go, but with very little luck. Remus took great pleasure in watching the two brightest students of his class fail miserably at pool.
"Sirius Black," the voice said. James gave a quick glance to Remus, who looked unfazed. James went to the door.
"Nice charm you got here," he said coming in and smiling.
"Remus is here," James said quietly.
"That's fine," Sirius replied, though he looked a bit uncomfortable now. He walked into the livingroom and said hello. Remus smiled to him, formally with a distinguishable hint of friendliness.
"Pool," Sirius said, looking at the table. "You guys just start a game?" he asked.
"They've been playing this game for half an hour," Remus said.
"Half an hour? Isn't it getting boring?" he asked them.
"It's our new hobby," James said defensively. "We'll get better with practice."
"Maybe you should stick to the marital act and keep away from pool," Sirius said; Remus nodded in agreement.
"The two of you are a slander to the art of this sport," Remus said.
"I don't remember asking for outside opinions, do you, my darling?" James asked Lily.
"No," she said. "I don't." James took up his cue and went in again for a strike. To everyone's disbelief, he sunk one.
"Who's the man?" he yelled, throwing his hands up into the air as if he was the new Heavy Weight champion. "I made one in!"
Lily clapped for him. Sirius grinned and shook his head.
"You're nuts, the both of you," he said. "I'm going to raid your fridge," he said, as he walked into the kitchen.
"I'll go with you," Remus called after, which deeply surprised Sirius. They both stopped in the kitchen and stared at each other.
"So," Sirius said.
"So," Remus said back.
"How's...life?" Sirius asked.
"It's the same as it's been for millions of years; it goes on," he said.
"No, I know that, but how is your life?" Sirius asked.
"I got a job, in processing in the Law Enforcement department at the Ministry."
"That's terrific!" Sirius said. "Law Enforcement! Wow. Good for you, Remus. Though you should be working in a much higher profession if this world wasn't so hung up on..." he didn't finish.
"Yeah," Remus said.
They didn't talk for several minutes.
It sounded as if Lily had sunk a ball, for she was cheering for herself, but James's laughter told them she had sunk the cue-ball.
"So how's your job?" Remus asked.
"Fascinating. I get to see top secret documents, photographs, all that good stuff. It's loads of fun, and I get paid for it, not much, but still."
"I hear you got a motorcycle," Remus said.
"You heard correctly. She's downstairs right now. I have to put this special charm on her so she won't be stolen or pooped on by some damn bird. You want to see?" he asked.
Remus looked back at Lily and James who were walking around the pool table, as if it might help them. "Sure," he said.
Sirius grinned and led him down to it. His Harley was sitting in the shade of a tree. It was very clean and shiny, even the leather seats looked unused.
"Have you given it a name, yet?" Remus asked him, as he paced around it.
"Not yet, and I doubt I will." He took a white rag from his heavy leather jacket and wiped a spot on the headlight.
"How's Jade?" Remus asked.
"Good. She's good. I've been thinking about telling her how I really feel about her. Those three words are hard to say. What about you and Liz?" he asked, though he had ominous feelings about it.
"We're no longer-"
"I'm sorry," Sirius said quiclkly.
"This isn't your fault. I knew it wouldn't last forever, I mean it rarely does. She was my first girlfriend, not my last. She loves someone who works in her office with her. I saw something there a while back, so it wasn't surprising when she told me."
"I'm sure it'll all work out for the best," Sirius said.
"Probably," Remus said, kicking the dust at his feet. "Look, I've been thinking a lot over these past months about what happened."
Sirius looked up at him.
"There isn't a way to keep avoiding each other. James is my friend too. Maybe-"
"Alright," Sirius said with a slight smile.
"Fine," Remus said with a sigh.
"But, for the record, I really am truly sorry, Remus. I didn't think about anything. It was brash and stupid and wrong and I'm sorry. If there was a way to go back and change it, I would. We could have confronted Snape instead of doing what I did."
Remus nodded. "I know. I know all of it."
Sirius stared into his eyes for a while. "So are we okay now?" he asked.
"Yeah, I think so."
It was a very awkward moment, really. Sirius didn't know whether to shake his hand or ruffle his hair. Neither, apparently, did Remus. Instead they changed the subject.
"So how fast does this thing go, anyway?" Remus asked, pointing to the Harley.
"Ah, well that has a story to it. You see, I kinda tinkered with it. This model can get up to about ninety miles per hour, but mine can hit about one fifty."
"Good God, Sirius," Remus said. "You'll kill yourself!"
"Well it'll be a rush, that's for sure. Besides, we only live once."
"One hundred and fifty miles per hour. I hope you don't hit a tree, or a bus, or a wall at that speed."
"Me neither. You know how to play pool, don't you?" Sirius asked.
"Better than those two can. You?"
"I've played a few times. Should we go up there and teach them how?"
Remus nodded. They ascended.
After Remus beat both Lily and James (badly, may I add) the four of them sat down and had dinner (Remus cooked).
"What's Jade up to this night?" James asked Sirius.
"She's having dinner with her grandparents," he said.
"Have you told her yet?" Lily asked.
"No, I haven't. Have you?" Sirius asked her.
"Of course not."
"So Sirius, what are you waiting for? Just go up to her and say 'Jade, from the moment I saw you, I've wanted to be the man who serves you. You don't have eternity you know. She is rather dishy," he said, smiling.
Remus laughed. Sirius stared back at James with a funny smile.
"Is this pay back?" Sirius asked.
"Yes," James said. "It's not as easy as you thought it was, is it?"
"No, Mr. I-have-to-be-right-all-the-time, it's not. I apologize for trying to get you to make a move with Lily two years ago. What a horrible person I must be."
"How long did it take you to arrange that seating chart in Binn's class and keep it a secret?" Lily asked.
"Few weeks and some bribes. Well worth James's facial expression when he walked into the room, that's for sure," Sirius said.
"So Lily," Remus started, "how's Medical school?"
"It's an adjustment. Nothing like Hogwarts, though I don't know why it should be. But I like it so far. I have a lab tomorrow that I need to study for, now that I think of it," she said.
"But you can't go before you have dessert, you know?" Remus said. "Do you have any ice-cream?"
"Yeah, there's some behind all that other food in the freezer," she told him. Remus got up, opened the door to the freezer, then started to rummage for the ice-cream.
"How often do you have a lab?" James asked.
"Twice a week. It's a fairly light class load until I hit third year when everything increases ten fold." She turned to look at Remus still looking for the ice-cream. "Can you find it? Maybe we don't have any," she said.
"Wait," Remus said. "Eureka! Here's a whole mess of it. You must have some kind of charm on this thing. We've got chocolate chip, french vanilla, mocha, and something else."
James turned to Sirius to ask what flavor he wanted, but Sirius had gone very rigid; his eyes wide with concentration.
"Are you alright?" James asked him.
"What did he say?" Sirius asked slowly.
"He named the flavors, chocolate chip-"
"Before that," Sirius said. "What did he say before that?"
"Remus looked at James and Lily then back to Sirius. "I don't remember," he said.
"Eureka," Sirius said breathlessly. "You said Eureka. E-U-R-E-K-A. I've gotta go," he said suddenly and leaving the flat. Once in the hallway, he Disapparated then reappeared in the Apparation chamber of the IWBI. "Help," Sirius said quickly so the portal would appear. It did, and he walked through it. He ran through the entry room, heard it rush away, then skidded to a halt at the Analysis and Development Unit portal. He walked hastily inside and sat in his revolving chair. There, on his desk, was the intercepted letter, still unsolved. He put it on the magnifier and looked at the last line: Easily understand reeking killer aura.
Sirius took a highlighter and marked 'E', from Easily, 'U', from understand, 'RE' from reeking, 'K' from killer, and 'A' from aura. It was the signature. The letter was from someone going by 'Eureka.'
It took him a while to get the rest of it, using the same method he did to get the signature, but he managed it. To him it didn't make much sense, but it was clear English.
Taking his sample of the letter, which was marked severely with pencil and highlighter, as well as his translation of it, he put it in a folder, stuffed it in his robes, and left his unit. He was going to give it to Ashika personally.
He passed through the maximum security portal which led to her office.
"May I help you?" the secretary asked.
"I need to speak with Director Narayan," he said hastily. "It's about an intercepted letter; I've broken the code."
"I'll tell her," she said, then left.
Sirius started to sweat. He had broken his first code! This was huge!
Ashika came into the main room, her face alight with anticipation. "Let me have it," she said. Sirius reached into his pocket for it and gave it to her. She snatched from his hands, threw the original letter back at him, then looked at the message.
Sirius had difficulty reading her face.
"You're sure this is right?" she asked him.
"I'm pretty sure. Here's how I got it," he said, giving her his draft. She grabbed that and examined it closely.
"Brilliant. There's no pattern here, none at all."
"What does it mean?" Sirius asked.
"Plenty. Eureka is a new name, we don't have them in our books. They've evaded us."
"What does the rest of it mean?"
"Maria," Ashika said to her secretary, "kindly escort Mr. Black out of this office," she said.
"But I solved it! I need to know what it means," he said.
"No you don't. And if you share any of it to anyone outside of your unit, I'll have you killed. Do I make myself clear?"
She had a finality to her tone that scared him. "Yes," he said.
"Fine. Now kindly leave my presence. Thank you for solving it," she said, then disappeared into her private office with his letter and the message.
"Well," Sirius said lightly, "that wasn't what I expected." Maria pointed to the portal. "Yeah, yeah, I'm going," he said. He left the portal, wishing he was in Ashika's office figuring out that clue...
Ashika put her feet on her desk and stared at the message.
"Who are you?" she asked to herself, running a finger over the name 'Eureka.' "But more importantly, where are you?" She put the letter in a drawer, having it memorized, then left her office and headed for security which was just down the hall.
"Director," the man in charge said, "what do you need?"
"I would like all video surveillance on James Potter, and a closer eye on him from this day forward. I want a list of everyone he has spoken to, everyone he has laughed
with, everyone who has passed him a slip of paper. I want the film and the list on my desk in ten minutes," and she left.
* * * * * *
* * * * * *
...And now one year has passed.
Some difficulties brew
But you need not worry,
For I'll be sure to review.
So now the clock ticks on
And two years now remain
Which hold more mystery and splendor;
Behold the 'Winds of Change!'
In this End of Innocence
New evils will arise.
They'll corrupt the weak, the strong,
The stupid, and the wise.
Yet this world holds more
Than dark, satanic strife;
It offers to the good
The power to give life.
Through these months, weeks, or days
You have read this story.
You may have laughed or cried,
Scoffed or given it glory.
And now it will continue
To chronicle the lives
Of those who fought or crumbled
To the darkness which will arise...
"James Potter," the woman's voice sounded as he stepped into the War Room. He gave a sideway glance at the map of the world, then descended the few steps, and walked to the back of the room.
"Morning James," a woman said to him.
"Buenos dias Araceli," he said to her. She grinned then went back to work. James stepped through the portal and headed to his office.
"Ready to go to Bangkok?" Amin asked.
"Now? I thought that was tomorrow," James said.
"It was. I've moved it today. Ready?"
"I guess. Artemis," he said tapping his shoulder. She looked at him then flew to his shoulder. "Okay," he said, "all set."
"Great, let's get going." They set out, falcons on their shoulders, to the Apparation chamber. Once there, they looked at each other, nodded, then Disapparated.
Though it was a normal dreary October in England, Thailand was very sunny and extremely hot. James felt the affect of it very soon and felt as though he might pass out. Amin, who lived in Saudi Arabia, seemed quite comfortable. The falcons were not; they ruffled their feathers to keep cool.
"Station is this way," Amin said, pointing to the east. James nodded.
"Is everyone in position?" he asked.
"Of course." They soon approached a run down shack with a tin roof. Inside, however, it was quite different. It was very dark and much cooler. Screens held camera views from all across the country, and men and women were stationed at various tables throughout the room. James and Amin walked over to two free screens, sat down, and took up the headphones which lay in front of them.
"Take roll," Amin told him as he took a folder from his robes.
James nodded, brought the speaker closer to his lips and spoke. "All units report in," he said. He took a quill and waited for the agents to report before he put a check by their names.
"Three here," a voice came through. "Seven," came another. James marked them off accordingly.
"All units accounted for," James told Amin once all eleven agents had checked in.
"Perfect. Agent four, deposit the package. Five, toss your newspaper." On the screen in front of both James and Mohammed, they saw two people throw trash into a dispenser. "Eight, I need you to block that main entrance." A woman spilled her purse, looking quite accidentally, at the main entrance to the business building. Agent seven helped her pick things up, only he hindered her by flirting with her.
"I don't see our target yet," James said.
"He's late," Amin replied.
James tapped an area on his screen to enlarge it. "Hold on," he said. "He's coming."
To the untrained eye, James was watching a teenage looking boy, not much younger than James. But he knew not to be fooled. How often did a teenager walk through a business building?
"Agent one, target is heading your way, north west. Confirm identity."
Agent one, an old man in a wheel chair waiting at a door, put an inhaler in his mouth and inhaled it while watching the boy. Instantly, numbers, photos, and medical facts popped up on James's screen, all about the boy.
"Taomi Chao," James said with a grin. "We've got him." Amin didn't grin as fast.
Chao walked down the stairs of the building and made his way for the wastepaper basket. He stopped and looked inside it, then as covertly as possible, removed a tin box.
"No one move," Amin commanded his agents. "Let's see where he goes."
"Maybe two could follow," James suggested, coving his mouth piece.
Amin nodded. James got back online. "Agent two, follow target at a safe distance." On the screen, James saw a woman in a business suit start to follow him. "We're going to lose visual in a second. Should I send Artemis?" James asked. Again Amin nodded. James took off his head set, walked out of the shack, and told his falcon to take flight and fly south. "Stay high, we don't want him seeing a peregrine in the middle of the tropics." She flew off his shoulder, beat her sharp wings, and ascended high into the sky. James walked back inside.
"She's up. We should have this thing back online in a minute."
"We got agent two tailing him. He's walking through the street markets."
"She won't fit in there," James said. "She's a suit."
"I know. Send eleven in after him."
"Agent Eleven, you got a visual of the target?" James asked.
"Yes," came a voice. "Heading my way."
"Follow him." James tapped his screen and saw an arial view from the falcon. Their target was walking casually down market street. Agent eleven was very close behind him, looking interested at a booth. "I think he'll go into that run down building," James said, pointing to a building which looked as run down as the one they were sitting in.
"Let's hope," Amin said.
James was right. Chao walked inside it.
"Yes!" James yelled. "We've got him." Everyone in the room applauded.
"Carol, I need you to mark this building as a hub on the network," Amin said with a sigh of relief. "Oh, long minutes of nervousness then seconds of pure accomplishment. Well done, James. Let's head back."
Moments later, both of them were back in the IWBI War room walking back to their office. "With all the magic we have access to, we still have to file paper work," James said.
"Yeah it's a real pain in the ass. Have any plans for the twenty seventh?" he asked.
"Um...not really," James replied. "Why, what happens on the twenty-seventh?"
"The first annual October Ball. It's a charity thing that the British Ministry is holding to raise money for families who've been victimized by the Dark Lord," he said. "I think you should attend."
"Are you going?" James asked.
"Yes. Me and the wife, she insists on it. It's supposed to be quite nice, black tie kind of thing. Should be interesting, and it's good for charity."
"What time?" he asked.
"Evening. It's starts at six and goes till whenever. You should take Lily, I'd like to meet her after hearing all about her," he said with a subtle smirk.
"I'll see what her schedule is like. That's a Saturday, right? She's got finals coming in mid November so she's been studying when she has the time."
"It's an evening thing. She's going to need a break from all of that."
"I'll try to be there."
"So did he say that anyone can go, or is this strictly for those involved in intelligence gathering?" Sirius asked when James told him about the October Ball.
"I'm pretty sure it's most everyone. I'm going to ask Lily about it, but I'm sure she'll want to go." James didn't say more.
"Guests huh?"
"Yeah," he said nervously.
"Wonder who I can get at this late of notice. It's next week, who's available?"
James didn't answer.
"Maybe Liz would go with me. Well, maybe that wouldn't be such a hot idea. I could ask Emily, but that's probably not a good idea either. You sure you want to go to this thing?" he asked James.
"Yeah. That is if Lily has the time."
"Pretty girls are hard to find these days. They seem to pool together, you know. Does Lily have any other friends?" he asked.
"Friends you haven't either slept with or cheated on? No," James said.
"I didn't cheat on Jade, James, you know that."
"Kissing another girl while you're dating Jade is considered cheating," James said with his eyebrows raised.
"We had a huge fight and she was seeing that guy in her office," Sirius said.
"You said that. She denied it and still does. And having a fight doesn't actually mean you've broken up. It sort of needs to be said."
"Whose side are you on?" Sirius asked.
"I'm Switzerland," James said, as they approached the Apparation chamber. "I think it took two to break you up, but you still cheated on her. She lost herself in work for a little while, you thought she was seeing someone else, you got really jealous and overbearing, and you had a fight. You didn't actually break-up, though."
"I still don't think I cheated on her."
"You got drunk in a bar and kissed Emily when Jade walked in. What do you call it?" James asked.
"I call it being drunk and in no control of my faculties. I was upset because I thought it was over! Can't you see how I can justify this?"
"Yes. Can you see how she justifies it?" he said with a wry smile.
"I wasn't this critical when Lily broke up with you," Sirius said.
"You threatened to bite me if I didn't fix things, remember? We can continue this at my place," he said.
"Fine." They Disapparated to James and Lily's apartment.
"Is she even here?" Sirius asked as James let them in.
"I think she's got a lecture this evening. Oh, I wouldn't go into that fridge if I were you," he said to Sirius.
"Why not, more of Lily's cooking?" he asked.
"Yeah. She can't get any of the spells right for some very strange reason. Granted she doesn't really spend time on them. She studies twenty-four seven."
"So what do you eat around here?"
"I bring stuff home, already prepared. So we were talking about you and Jade," James said.
"Yeah. You were telling me off for being such a bad person. See, I still think she over reacted to me being with Emily. It was just a kiss, it wasn't like I was in the sack with her."
"Oh that's a nice way to describe it. That image will have me off food for at least a week. Thanks man."
"No problem, but you see my point, right?"
"If you saw her kissing that Kevin guy the way you were kissing Emily, you would forgive her?" He popped his eyebrows up and walked over to the pool table, and picked up a cue.
"Eventually," he said slowly.
"I'm sure you would," James said lightly as he went in for the strike.
"I think I would...yeah...well..." he said scratching his head. "Let's not discuss this anymore," Sirius said. "This happened six months ago, not yesterday."
"It's a good conversation topic," he said jovially, hitting the five ball in the side pocket.
"You're home!" Lily said, as she came in the apartment. She had about five large books in her hands, which James took from her.
"Yeah. This looks like fun," James said sarcastically, looking at some of the titles.
"Especially this one," Sirius said as he picked up Human Reproduction. "Why is it so big? It's just sex-oh look pictures," he said, as he sat down with the book. Lily lightly laughed, then kissed James.
"I got us Chinese and extra figuring that Sirius would be here," she said, showing them bags of take-out.
"You're the nicest woman I know," Sirius said, though he was still reading from her book.
"Well, I have my moments," she said.
"So what are you doing on the twenty seventh?" James asked her.
"Probably studying," she said, nose wrinkled. "Why?"
"There's this charity thing we could go to. It's to help raise money for victims of Voldemort. You want to go?"
Lily looked down at her stack of books, then back up at him. "Maybe," she said.
"Maybe? Lily you're going to burn yourself out if you don't get a break. I know you want to practice medicine, but you need to relax sometime," James said. Lily looked up at him and frowned.
"It's a lot of work James. I don't have time to kick back and relax."
"I don't like seeing you with bags under your eyes, being so uptight that you can't sit without opening your books. Lily, you get up and you study, you hardly sleep, you hardly eat, you sit and study and that's all you've been doing for two weeks."
"Is this about me or is this about you and your wants," Lily asked, her knuckles leaning on her books. Sirius looked up uncomfortably.
"Both. You have to be a part in my decision making, so I think it only fair that I be in yours. We're married, Lily, we're not two separate people anymore."
"I know that," she said, trying to be calm, but she was on edge. "It's finals, James. In mid-November, when I take them, it'll be over."
"Until next semester. You know how much I want you to be able to reach your dreams and goals," he said. "You've wanted to be a doctor since you were very young, and I want you to have it. But you're torturing yourself. You need to take a break."
"But I can't. If I don't pass this semester then I can't go on to the next one. I need to do all of this studying, just for a few more weeks."
James closed his eyes and sighed.
Sirius got up and started for the door. "I think I'm going to leave you two alone," he said.
"You don't have to leave, Sirius," Lily said.
"I saw the last fight and wished I wasn't there, so thanks, but I'll leave."
"We're not fighting, were having a discussion," Lily told him. "Stay and have dinner with us."
Sirius looked at the back of James. He was pacing the room with his hands on the back of his head, clearly frustrated.
"You didn't have this much work last year. I assume it's going to get harder next year. And after that, you'll start seeing patients," James said. "You're fourth year at this school is going to be rough on you, but also rough on us. We talked about our future together, but we didn't know how much this would take. We need to figure out what to do. I feel as if I haven't seen you for weeks, and it only gets worse as time goes on. Where is the end to all of this?"
"When I become a doctor," she said.
"In five years. I have to wait five years to see you again." James sighed again.
"Are you saying you want me to quit?" Lily asked, her tone wasn't so kind.
Sirius eased out the door and shut it quietly behind him.
"No. No, Lily, I'm not. I want you to be happy. To be happy, you need to be a doctor. But we have to figure out a way to be married and for you to be a doctor. You have to have some time off, and not just the summer. And you'll hardly have that off. You break in the beginning of July and return in mid August. That's not enough time. I need to see you, and not just see you walking around with your head in a book or making songs to remember what bones are where, I want to be with you. Hell, that's why we're here!" he said in a raised voice.
"Okay," Lily said, taking a deep breath. "Okay, I'll try to budget my time better. I'll limit my studying to eight to nine hours a day."
"That's still a lot. You should see what you look like. You're exhausted, Lily, you need to take a break from all of this."
"James I'm trying to figure this out, just listen to me. I review everything, I'll get into a study group, I'll make this work if it kills me. I'll go to this charity thing of yours, and after that we'll try to start a new regiment thing. How about that?" she asked.
James looked into her tired eyes, nodded, then went to hug her.
"Good," she said, smiling. She loved it when he would hold her. It was such a wonderful feeling.
"I think that was our first argument," he said into her ear.
"We did good. There was no yelling," she said. "Where's Sirius?"
* * * *
.....October 27, 1979.....
"And in reports today, Jill Prewitt of Prewitt Manufacturing calls for the courage of all witches and wizards to stand and face He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named," the Wizarding Wireless Network sounded though the livingroom.
"Did that," Lily said silently as she read through yet another text book. Then she looked at her watch. "Oh no," she said. She slammed her book shut, ran to her bedroom, and opened the closet. "He's not going to be happy," she said hastily, taking off her clothes and looking in her closet. "Budget your time, Lily, budget your time!" And of course when your in a hurry, there's nothing to wear. "Crap!" she yelled, throwing dresses and robes on the bed. "All crap!" She looked at her watch again; she was half an hour late. She ran into the bathroom, showered, dried her hair, sprayed it with a special potion which made it smooth and shiny, then threw on a robe and ran out of her apartment, hand bag at the ready.
"They have to hold it at a Muggle facility," she mumbled in disgust. "Now I have to get there slowly, and I still have nothing to wear!" She stomped down the stairs and
headed out the building.
James grabbed a martini from a passing tray, then looked at his watch; Lily was late. He walked into the large convention room which was decorated with maroon trappings. There were wizards from all over the world here, but he wanted to see Lily.
"Still not here?" Sirius asked. He was handsomely dressed in very formal robes of billowing black.
"No," James said flatly. "She's not. She's been home all day long and she's not here. She promised she would be."
"And she will. Maybe something came up," Sirius said reassuringly.
"Like what?"
"I don't know." Just then Amin came up to them, his wife at his side.
"So where is Lily, James?" he asked.
"God only knows. I can't believe she's doing this."
Lily told the cab to stop in front of a shop she saw. She dashed out, ran inside, and was quickly assisted and given a black dress. By the time she ran out, her cab had gone. She swore under her breath. Lily, with high heels on, wrapped her robes around her and started walking to the convention center which was a few blocks away.
She saw a short curly hair woman kissing a brown haired man; apparently a newly wed couple kissing in a dentist parlor, which was having it's name changed in the window. She smiled but didn't slow her pace.
A funny breeze rustled some leaves in a tree. Lily looked up. The leaves fell down and swirled around her as if she was caught in some kind of tornado. She slowed down a bit, her eyes sagged in relaxation, and her hips began to sway as she started to walk more like a run way model. The leaves fell down to the concrete sidewalk, then vanished.
Lily smiled devilishly and started to hum a throaty tune. People looked at her strangely, but for some reason it didn't bother her. The convention center was dead ahead;
she made her way.
"Have you been talking to her lately? I mean, I know you had an argument but you haven't said if it was the last one," Sirius said, as he and James walked over to their table for dinner.
"Define talking. I swear she's hardly listening to me. Last night during dinner, I was talking to her about that attack, you know? She was zoning out. I had no idea that this med school thing would consume her like this."
"So how long as it been since you..." he hesitated; he was in a formal place.
"Too long. Weeks. She's too tired," he said. He took another long drink then sat down at his table with Sirius and others.
Suddenly, the music, which had been playing since the start of the event, started to fumble over. People started to whisper to each other.
"That's a woman," a older man, sitting at James and Sirius's table, said with gusto. Sirius turned around first and looked. His jaw dropped. James turned in his chair, too. It was Lily.
She wore a long black dress, a slit cut up one side up to her thigh and her shoulders were bare. Her hair fell down straight and shiny, passed her waist, which James hadn't seen for a long time. She was scanning the room for him, ignoring all the stares she was getting.
James got up and went to her.
"Where have you been, I've been worried about you," he said.
Lily moved closer into him, ran her hands up his chest to his face, then smiled; eyes closed. "I'm sorry," she said in a low voice. She leaned on him, tapped his lips with her pointer finger, and giggled at him.
"What's gotten into you?" he asked.
"Nothing," she whispered, kissing him so lightly, he barely felt the touch of her lips on his. "Aren't you going to introduce me to everyone?" she asked in the same seductive voice, her eyes alight with a spark he hadn't seen before. Indeed, she had never acted like this.
"Y-yes," he said.
"Wonderful," she whispered.
James took her by the hand, Lily squeezed his and watched his face as he took her to their table. Amin Mohammed walked quickly up to James, as well as many other men. Lily didn't look at them; she kept her eyes locked on James.
"This is your wife?" they asked, as if surprised James could have one like her.
"This is Lily," he said looking back on her.
"You're damn lucky," one of them said.
James stared into her eyes. "Yeah," he said.
"Are you going to take me to the table?" she asked.
"Yes," he said.
"Hello, Lily," Sirius said to her.
"Hello," she said, without looking at him. They sat down. Dinner arrived, which they ate, but Lily didn't take her eyes off James for more than ten seconds, which everyone found rather strange. When discussion turned towards the Dark Lord, she would reach for him and clutch his hand, then kiss his cheek and whisper something in his ear.
When dessert was taken away, speakers went to the podium, including Jill Prewitt, who gave a fervent speech calling for bravery and action from all of them. Lily applauded her, the only one she did, then turned back to the conversation at her table.
"Who knows when he'll be conquered. As far as we can tell there is no diminishing in him or his supporters," Amin said.
"The attacks are becoming more frequent," another would say.
"My brother was killed by him," the elderly man mentioned. "His sixteen year old daughter found him dead, his eyes half open but lifeless."
"He has spies everywhere. It's impossible to tell who they are," James said.
They kept silent and let the music wash over them.
"Well," James said, breaking the silence, "let's try to have a good time. Lily," he said, turning to her, "dance with me?" he said.
She smiled again, nodded, then allowed him to lead her to the dance floor where many other pairs were dancing.
"So what's really going on with you?" he asked her.
"Nothing," she said. She slung her arm around his shoulder, her other hand in his.
"I'm not buying it. I would say you've been drinking, but you still have total control. First your late, then you appear wearing this truly sexy dress, you say hardly anything, and you can't stop looking at me. Something's gotten into you."
"I feel terrible for how I've been neglecting you," she said. "I've been thinking about you all day, but you were gone."
"Have you been drinking?" he asked. She smiled subtly and shook her head.
He let go of his hold on her and examined her face. Something was very different. It was if Lily wasn't even here, but someone else. Oh he liked it, alright. She hadn't ever been this sensual. He couldn't take his eyes off of her. For some reason, he kept staring into her eyes, drowning in those eyes. She got closer to him, never blinking, not even breathing. Without even seeing it coming, he felt her soft lips on his. Her hands traveled up his back, pulling him closer to him. She exhaled as she drew back from him. But those eyes, he thought. They had always been a source of great attraction, but tonight they were intoxicating him.
He couldn't resist her any longer. He hadn't had this kind of touch for a long while and he wanted it. And by the looks of it, so did she. James pulled her back to him and kissed her as if he'd never see her again. He let his hands move all over her hair and bare back. Either the music stopped playing or he stopped hearing it. She made sounds of pleasure with his movements and smiled into him.
Neither of them realized that half the room was staring at them with gaping mouths. They stood in the middle of the room, making out in a way Sirius had never seen or done himself. James nor Lily took the slightest notice that they were putting on a production. Of course it would be hard to tell; neither of them once opened their eyes.
Sirius had to take action. There were very prominent wizards here, including the Minister of Magic and James's boss. "They've been apart for a while," he said with a light chuckle. He walked over to them; they were becoming more enthusiastic about it. He tapped James on the shoulder. He murmured but didn't open an eye or stop kissing her. "James," he said.
No response.
"James," he said more loudly, tapping him again.
Still, nothing. More people began tuning into the show.
"James!" he said firmly. James pulled slowly back, eyes still shut peacefully. He turned his head to face Sirius. Lily nuzzled her head under James's chin and glared back at Sirius with anger.
"People are watching you," he whispered urgently.
"Hmmmm?" James mumbled, a deary far off look on his face.
"I think you should both leave. Now. Go home, you're causing a scene."
James looked around the room. Yep, people were staring at them. Lily didn't seem to care. She looked up at him and smiled in the same seductive way. She began to kiss his cheeks and neck. James started to succumb to it and went back into her, when Sirius pushed him harder than he intended.
"What is wrong with you?" James said.
"What's wrong with me?" Sirius asked, astounded to hear it. "What's wrong with you? Go home!" he yelled.
Lily looked at James and nodded in agreement.
"Fine, I will," he said. James took Lily by the hand and walked out of the main room and into the entrance way. The attendant went to get their cloaks. They started again as soon as the attendant had left and had to be tapped by him, blushing, so they could take their cloaks.
"See you at home?" he said, forgetting all about the rule not to Disapparate here.
"Uh huh," she said back. In a pop they were both gone then reappeared instantly in their livingroom. James tripped over an ottoman as he made his way for her. Lily jumped into his arms, wrapped her legs around his waist, then started kissing him again while she began to remove his tie and unbutton his shirt. He started walking towards their room, occasionally bumping Lily into walls. Once there, he set her down then quickly unzipped the back of her dress, which fell to the floor with his shirt and tie. His hands traveled all over her soft back as his lips attacked her neck.
"Sorry about the party," she whispered.
"Don't be," he said into her ear as he steered her toward the bed.
The October sky was cloudy the next day, but a beam of light pierced the gray and lit some spots of England. One of them was an apartment building which held two people, who were still sleeping, though it was well after twelve noon. The woman lay comfortably in her bed, her husband was close by her. Long had they waited for this moment of peace.
Lily stirred first, then opened her eyes to see James resting right beside her. She smiled at him, then reached over to get her watch.
"Oh my," she said lightly. James groaned then yawned. He put his arms up around Lily's back then started to kiss her lightly.
"It's afternoon," she said quietly, looking down on him.
"I'm not surprised," he said with a wry grin. "We were up rather late."
She laughed. "Yes. I still think we're too young to be up that late," she said.
"I think we should do it much more often," he said, rolling them both over so he could look down upon her warm face. "I wish I could see that girl more often, you know."
She laughed again. "I bet you do. I don't know what came over me," she said sincerely.
"Try doing it again some time," he said. "She was great."
"I made a fool out myself in front of all those people and I don't know why. I plead temporary insanity for now."
"You're talking too much," he said before going for her mouth.
"Talking," she said, pushing him away. "Oh no!" She made grab for her watch again. "I missed it! I had a lecture today at eight, and I missed it."
James laughed this time, a deep hearty laugh that even made Lily smile in her time of despair. "Yeah you missed it," he said. "You missed it good. Let's miss it again," he said, trying to get hold of her.
"I'm starving, though. Let's have some lunch or something," she said, getting up and putting on James's shirt, which seemed to look better on her than on him, he thought.
"Food's for mortals," he said, looking at her.
"I know, but it's fun sometimes. Come on," she said. She tossed him his glasses then walked to the livingroom, rubbing her eyes. The owl post had arrived, though it shouldn't have surprised her. She looked through it and found a letter from her mother.
"Mail opening isn't allowed," James said, coming up behind her and holding her. He brushed her hair away from her neck and nuzzled her.
"It's from my mum," she said, ripping it open.
"Another reason to leave it alone."
She unfolded the letter and started to read it. James picked up a funny emotion in her she hadn't had before.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"Petunia," she said.
"Dead?" James asked bluntly.
"No," Lily said. "She's having a baby." James let go because Lily pulled away and started pacing around the kitchen as she read the letter.
"Read it out loud," he said.
"Dear Lily," she began. "I finally decided to tell you something that I thought you should know, even though you and your sister haven't been talking. I feel that I should share what's important to me with you, and this is important to me. You see, dear, your father and I are going to be grandparents. Petunia told us when she found out she was pregnant. She and Vernon were surprised but overjoyed by the news. Doctors had told them that they might not be able to conceive, so it's a bit of a miracle. I am so happy that I'll be able to have a grandson or daughter by next year. The baby is due the first week of June, 1980. I've never seen your sister happier. I'm glad this happened to her. I only wish that her new found joy could bring her closer to you. I've suggested Aaron if it's a boy, and Alice for a girl. I'm rather found of A names, seeing as how I have one myself, but they didn't take to them. Wouldn't it be funny for you to suggest a name, which I could give them without telling it was from you, and then they would name it that? Imagine the look on her face when the baby was six months old and telling her, 'Lily thought of a great name for him or her.' I'm hoping for a girl.
"I hope this letter doesn't make you sad, Lily. I just though you should know that you'll be an aunt very soon. Send James our love, Mum." Lily folded the letter, but continued to stare at it. James thought she did look a little different.
"Poor kid," he said, hoping for a smile.
"I'm going to be an aunt to a child I'll never see," she said, putting the letter back in the envelope. "I'll never get to be cool Aunt Lily. And I am really cool," she said.
"Maybe you will," he said hopefully. But Lily shook her head.
"No, I promised I wouldn't contact her and she clearly doesn't want to see me. Under those circumstances, you would expect her to announce it to the world, but she didn't. She didn't tell me. Not that I expected her to, but..."
"She doesn't seem like the child rearing type to me. She's to obsessed with order," he said, trying to cheer her up.
"We'll have to wait and hear from my parents about that."
"Oh come on Lily, don't let this get you. We had a terrific night, and we're going to have a great day. Don't let a prat like that spoil everything for you. Let's go out for lunch, huh? We'll bring it back here and try to imagine what the poor kid will look like. Fat like dad, or horse-faced like his mum?" he said. Lily smirked.
"Both," she said quietly, unable to resist giggling.
"Probably. Don't you know all about dominant and recessive genes now? We'll have Jade come over and draw a picture of him and you can laugh at the miracle baby she's going to have."
"Yeah," she said. "Where do you want to go for lunch?"
* * * *
....three weeks later....
"Thank God those damn finals are over, now I can have my wife back," James said to Remus, Sirius, and Peter one cold November afternoon. I'm telling you guys, all she did was study. When you decided to get married, make sure she's not going to graduate school."
"I can't even find a girl," Peter said. "I tried talking to one yesterday, but all my words kind globed together and she looked at me funny."
"James did that once," Sirius said. "Fourth year, to Lily. One word: wannabemycharmspartner? She looked at him with so much confusion."
"Yeah well it worked," James said with a smile.
"How's Lily taking this thing with her sister?" Remus asked.
"She's fine with it now, I think. That kid is family she'll have but never meet. That's gotta be tough. I've been trying to joke about it," he said.
"Your cure to everything," Remus said, taking a sip of his coffee.
"Mostly," James said. "I told her to imagine her sister fat."
"I saw a pregnant woman yesterday," Peter added. "She was huge. Looked like she'd swallowed a whole watermelon," he giggled.
Remus laughed so hard he spewed his hot coffee all over Sirius's face.
"There's a woman in my office who's eight months pregnant. Now I've met some mean people," Remus started, "but she is the most wretched woman in the world. She snaps at everyone. I tried talking to her about it, but she threw a stapler at my head, then blamed her rage on the baby."
"A pregnant woman tripped me yesterday," Sirius said. "She did it on purpose, I know it. I really feel sorry for this Vernon guy. I mean I know he's a total ass, but Petunia is already mean. Pregnant women can be really nasty, so put those two together."
"My mum's still picking on me," Peter said.
"You need to move out," James said. "Maybe you could live with Sirius," he suggested. Sirius kicked him under the table.
"Could I?" he asked.
"Um, well, the thing is...I sort of have this different...I have a routine, Pete, and I need space..."
"You want to live alone," he said. "I get the message."
"Great. Tell you what I'll do, though," Sirius said. "I'll tell you a secret about attracting women."
"Okay," Peter said jovially.
"Remember, Peter, Sirius has been dumped before," Remus said.
"Remember, Remus, everyone sitting at this table, and probably in this café have been dumped. So here's the secret: confidence. Women love a man who's confident in himself. All you have to do is believe that who you are is enough to get the most beautiful woman in the world."
"Really?" Peter asked. "James, is that true?"
"Well I think there's more to that, but it's a good start."
"Allow me to demonstrate," Sirius said.
"This is going to be entertaining," Remus said, taking a sip of coffee. Sirius winked at all of them, then walked casually over to the woman at the bar. She looked to be about his age, possibly a little older. She was mildly attractive. She looked up when Sirius came to the bar.
"Can I get you something?" she asked.
Sirius gave her his million watt smile and chuckled. "Well I don't know," he said. "I was wondering if you could tell me what kind of-" he broke off and stared into her eyes. "Wow," he said.
"What?" she asked, smiling a little.
"Did you get those new colored contacts that they're selling to witches these days?" he asked.
"No, I don't need glasses."
"Maybe it's just the light, but you have the brightest eyes I've seen in a long time. You're not wearing those contacts?" he asked slyly, leaning on the counter.
"No," she giggled.
"It seems silly for you to be serving coffee with a gaze like that," he said.
The girl blushed.
"How does he do that?" Peter asked quietly.
"But I'm avoiding the real issue," Sirius said to her. "I was wondering if I could have another cup of coffee," he said. Her face dropped a little.
"Sure," she said.
"Only tomorrow, here, with you," he said, tapping the bar counter with his finger.
Her face lit up. "Sure. I'll be working, but I can still get you some coffee."
"Great," Sirius said. He smiled at her again, then went back to the table.
"That was brilliant!" Peter said.
"It was gross," Remus said. "You just gave her a bunch of mush."
"Which brings me to rule number two, Peter. Girls like mush and romance. You can never go wrong. Now go try it on that group of girls over there." He pointed to a gaggle of girls standing in a corner.
"This isn't a bar, Sirius," Remus said.
"Well you are going for the obvious tonight, aren't you? Peter, be confident and talk to one of them," he said, pointing to them.
"O-okay," he said. He got up from the table and started his long journey over.
"He'll freak out," James said.
"Give him a chance," Sirius said. They continued to watch Peter, who stood two feet away from the girls without saying anything, for thirty seconds. A few of the girls looked over Peter's head and looked at James, Sirius, and Remus instead. After a minute, Peter turned and scuttled back to the table.
"I couldn't. Let's leave," he said.
James looked at his watch. "The girls are still at my place."
"So?" Peter said.
"It doesn't bother me," Remus said.
"Me neither," Sirius agreed.
"Okay, let's get out of here," James replied, tossing some money onto the table. But just as they got up and headed for the door, one of the girls tapped Remus on the shoulder. He turned around to see who it was, but the girl pulled his face towards hers and kissed him. Sirius, James, and Peter stood dumbstruck as they watched. Remus didn't appear to be struggling against the stranger.
"Hi," she said after she pulled back.
"Hello," Remus said.
"I'm sorry about that. You see, my friends dared me to kiss one of you, and I thought you were the cutest. I hope you don't mind," she said smiling. She was a tall girl, a little on the thin side, but the rest of her was quite unconventional. Her short hair was dyed black with pink and purple streaks running through it. She had three earrings in each ear, and a tattoo of a black dragon around her naval, which could be seen because she wore a white crop top over which were robes she obviously made; they were blue denim with multicolored patches. There were several rings on her fingers and she wore a necklace of a purple butterfly.
"I don't mind. I'm Remus Lupin," he said.
"Sonja Woods," she said, shaking his hand.
"Well," Sirius said, looking at Remus and Sonja stare at each other, "I think we'll just leave the two of you to get acquainted. Guys, shall we?" he said to James and Peter, motioning to the door. They both winked to Remus then walked out and headed back to the James's home.
Lily, Jade, and Liz were still there playing pool and laughing very loudly when the boys came back.
"You're home early," Lily said as James came in.
"Yeah, seeing as how I live here. You like tired," he told her.
"I am. I'm done with finals," she said smiling. "All done for six weeks."
"Hallelujah. So you're too tired to..."
She nodded. "But tomorrow is another day," she said happily. She didn't actually realize how right she was. Once everyone went home, only after Sirius filled them in on Sonja and Remus, Lily and James retired. James fell into a deep sleep very quickly and Lily not too long after him. But before long, she awoke.
Lily felt a strangeness lurking about her, like something was watching her from a hidden alcove. She sat up suddenly, looking around her bedroom as her skin prickled with chills. She looked to her right and saw that James was sound asleep and totally unaware of a presence. Maybe she was just imagining it. Yeah, that must be it. She threw the covers off and swung out of bed to use the bathroom. She walked silently to the door and opened it, quietly stepping inside. She tiptoed to the sink and turned on the water to splash her face, hoping to cleanse herself of the queer feeling that was crawling on her skin. The water was so cool and refreshing as it flowed over her hands. She scooped some into her cupped fingers and splashed her face once, then gazed into the mirror.
At first she felt her heart stop. Before long she could no longer hear the water running in the sink or feel the drops slide down her cheeks. Her breathing quickened as she touched the mirror with her clammy hands.
Her eyes, her once enchanting green eyes, were black. Instead of glowing with magic and love, they looked more like deep, dark, tunnels. She saw her mouth drop in fear in her reflection. She heard her heart thump in her ears and beat against her rib cage. She turned around fast and went for the door knob...but it wouldn't turn. She started beating against the door, screaming so that James would surely hear her, but no sound escaped her throat. She pounded harder, screamed louder, but it was futile. She even continued her effort when she saw the cracks in the door seal up; the bathroom window shrunk to nothingness; the very walls around her closed in on her as she screamed for her life...
She sat up quickly, sweating all over. It was a dream. She breathed hard, looked to her right; James was there. She got out of bed and almost jogged to the bathroom, left the door open, and stared into the mirror.
Her eyes weren't black, but they weren't her normal green, either. It was as if an electric storm was taking place in her irises. Even in the dark bathroom, they glowed and sparked. A strange heaviness suddenly hit her. She braced herself on the sink, but she couldn't keep herself up. She nearly collapsed as she tried to sit on the toilet but fell to the floor beside it. She clutched her stomach and leaned her head back against the wall, waiting for this to pass. It was as if her head was swimming and her body was trying to catch it.
She looked at a vase holding a closed rose, sitting on the sink top. Lily summoned it to her, she didn't know why she wanted it. She took the rose from its vase and touched it's closed bud with a finger. Instantly, it opened up and vibrated red. As she held it, more buds began to sprout from the stem, the petals grew, the color changed to purple. Lily forgot about her pain. She sat up, took the rose in her hand, then left her bedroom and headed for the spare room which held many flowers.
Each one she touched grew instantly. "Oh," she said loudly as a carnation doubled its size with her touch. "Ah," she said, giggling as they all seemed to obey her wishes.
"Lily," James said groggily. "What're you doing? It's two in the morning." He wasn't wearing his glasses so his face looked strangely naked.
"Nothing," she said. "I'll be back in a second."
James made a funny noise then sauntered back to bed. Lily kept to her promise and followed behind him. He crawled back into bed, pulled the covers back over him and closed his eyes. Lily got on her side, but moved to his, getting on top of him.
"Lily, what's come over you?" he asked.
"Shhhhhh," she whispered, her finger to her lips. James sat up, but Lily roughly pushed him back down.
"It's two in the morning," he said. She kissed him to shut him up; it was more like biting, actually. She didn't stop when he slightly recoiled, but continued to push him down.
"Two in the morning," she said, pulling back from him. "Should that mean something to me?" she asked in a low voice.
Whether it was slight fear or deep curiosity, James didn't know. "No," he said. "I was simply stating a fact." He grabbed the back of her head and pulled himself up to
her lips, then rolled her over.
The next morning held many surprises. James showered, got dressed, and made breakfast like he had for many months, now, preparing himself for work. But Lily wasn't herself, and it worried him.
Sirius dropped by saying he'd left something from the night before. Lily came into the room.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, like he was an invader.
"Getting this," he said, holding up his I.D. badge.
"Now get out!" she yelled.
"What?" he asked, giving a sideway glance to James.
"You heard me. I want you out!" She ran after him, but James stopped her and held her back.
"What's wrong with you?" James asked.
Lily shook her head and started to cry. "Nothing," she said.
"Did I do something wrong?" Sirius asked.
"I said get out! Why are you here all the time? What do you want from us!" she screamed. "Why can't you leave us alone. James is mine, not yours. Go away!" she cried. James kept hold of her, but she was trying to attack Sirius.
"Lily," James said in a quavering voice, "please tell me what's wrong. This isn't you." She burst into tears and buried her face in his robes. "You're scaring me," he said to her. "What's the matter with you?"
"Don't leave me," she mumbled. "Please don't leave me."
"I'll never leave you," he said, as if the idea was ridiculous. "Please tell me what's wrong," he pleaded with her. "What's wrong?"
She shook her head again, then drew away and looked around the kitchen. She moved to the counters, looked at knives, scoffed, then put them in drawers. Sirius looked at James with concern. Lily walked over to the pool table, took the cues and put them on top of the cupboards in the kitchen. Then she put the pool balls in a box and put them up with the cues. She started to laugh.
"What's funny?" James and Sirius asked.
"I don't know," she said, giggling. "You know what I think, though?" she said, swaying over to him, moving her hands over James's chest.
"What?" he asked.
"I think you should stay home with me. We could have a good time," she whispered.
"Lily, I have to work today."
She frowned. "You're seeing someone else, aren't you?" she asked, crying again. "I'm not good enough for you? What's she like? Is she pretty?"
"I'm not having an affair!" he said. "Lily what is wrong?"
"Maybe it's left over stress," Sirius suggested.
"Shut up!" Lily yelled at him.
"Is it stress? Did finals really get you like this?" James asked.
"Maybe," she said, now sobbing. "Probably." Lily picked up a napkin from the counter, wet it with her mouth, then wiped parts of James's face. "You've got some crusty stuff here," she said.
"Are you going to be alright, when I go into work today?" he asked. "I'll try to get off early."
She nodded. "Yeah, sure, why wouldn't I be?"
James tried scanning her face, as did Sirius. "I don't know," he said, going along with her. "I'll see you this afternoon. Be careful today, alright?" he said, going to kiss her goodbye.
"Yeah, you too," she said.
"I love you," he said, looking into her eyes so she would know it.
"I love you back," she said smiling.
"Okay. Um...goodbye for now," he said, pushing Sirius out the door.
"Bye," she waved. When the door closed, Lily relaxed. She went to the fridge and grabbed a chocolate bar. But the first bite was disgusting. She looked at the date of expiration, but it wasn't for months. She threw it away, then got some marshmallows and strawberry jam, which tasted very good together. She stared at her stack of library books for school, then flipped through some of them.
It was different to look at the books now that it was over. She picked up Human Reproduction and skimmed it, cooing at pictures of babies both in and out of the womb.
There was a picture of a mother holding a pink carnation; she was smiling. Lily read the caption underneath: 'Pregnancy carnations are one hundred percent accurate in determining whether a woman is with child and now even come with, if chosen, abilities to determine the sex. Angela (above) will be having a girl.'
Lily smiled, then flipped back a few pages and picked up the words "strange dreams" which peeked her interest. It was under the caption "First weeks of pregnancy." Lily started the column.
'Witches are usually unaware of pregnancy during the first two weeks for little emotional and physical changes take place. Some witches are only aware of a change if their menstruation cycle is late.'
Lily looked up. She looked at the calender on the opposite wall...she was late but assumed it was normal. After all, she had been late before. She went back to the book.
'During the third week of pregnancy, however, certain behaviors start to take place. One of the first signs is a series of strange dreams focusing on fears (arachnid, vertigo, cloister-phobia) which include the loss of control of voice, sight, or touch. These dreams occur frequently but discontinue in the fifth week of pregnancy. Also in these weeks are behavioral changes. Most common is an increased sexual appetite, a fear of losing her mate, sudden mood changes, dislike of favorite foods, and a nesting period (removing dangerous objects such as knives, wands, heavy projectiles, from reach). These stages are quite different from Muggle pregnancies, so many women are unaware of their health until a visit to a doctor, or mention of these behaviors to her parents.'
Lily shut the book quickly. Surely this couldn't be happening to her. They had been on contraceptive charms since the wedding day and hadn't lifted them. This was impossible. It was stress, it had to be, James was right. Stress. It was stress, she told herself. So she was feeling a bit frisky since last night, that meant nothing. She had been too busy and tired to engage in such activities while preparing for finals, and now that they were done, she could. Yes, yes, that was it.
Lily sighed, piled the books up and left her apartment. She was going to return the books to the school library. She Disapparated to it, put the books in the slot and started out again, when David, one of her classmates, stopped her.
"Lily!" he said. "You look radiant."
"Yeah, well I had sex last night," she said before she could stop herself. David looked at her strangely. "I don't know why I just told you that."
"Me neither," he said. "I'll see you around." He left, mumbling to himself. Lily walked to the Obstetrician department, saw a doctor in a classroom, picking up her things. Lily opened the door.
"May I help you?" she asked.
"I think so. Um, I'm a student here, and I have this friend, you see," Lily started, using her hands to tell the story. "She's been acting a little strangely; having weird dreams, being really moody, lashing out at friends...so I was wondering if she was maybe...you know...pregnant? She and her husband have been using contraceptive charms for well over a year. Is it possible she could still..."
"Of course," the doctor said.
Lily's stomach did an uncomfortable flip.
"But I thought those were bomb proof," she said in what she hoped was a light tone.
"No. They're very good, but they can be beaten. They're usually only good for a year, then you have to renew."
"They did," Lily said.
"Well, don't know what to tell you. Have you taken a test yet?" she asked.
"No...I," she looked up and saw the doctor was smiling.
"It was obvious. Those charms can get very tricky. A lot of them have requirements...I would rather not get into the details, if you know what I mean. Levels of....passion...can knock them out of place. If I were you, I'd take a test. You can get them here in the health center. Now, those are one hundred percent accurate so you'll know for sure. Good luck," she said, then left.
Lily stood in the classroom for several seconds before making her way to the health center. She hadn't been in here before. It looked much like a Muggle pharmacy. Lily walked slowly to the pregnancy isle. She tried to look as though she was just strolling along, minding her own business, then she reached over and grabbed the first one she saw, and booked out of the building as if it were blazing. She got back home, slammed the door behind her, and ran to her bathroom.
She set the cover down on her toilet then sat on it. She looked at the box, opened it, and pulled out a green stem, and an instruction paper which she read:
'Hold the carnation stem in both of your hands. Taking deep cleansing breaths, stare into the center of the stem (a black dot should be visible). If positive, a flower will bloom. If negative, stem will not bloom. To see the sex, match the color of the carnation to the chart below.' Lily didn't look at the chart; she didn't know she took one of the sex matching tests. She tossed the paper aside, pulled the stem out of the plastic, and held it firmly in both hands.
"It's stress," she said. "I'm not going to have children until I finish med school. James and I have this planned," she told herself. "Kids in six years at least. We had a discussion," she mumbled. "I'm doing this just to prove that it's stress."
Lily took deep breaths, sighed, then looked down on the black dot and concentrated on it.
It bloomed. It budded, then opened and grew ten times in two seconds. Then it started to change from white, to sky blue, to blue, dark blue, then finally it fluctuated to the darkest midnight blue, almost black, she had ever seen. Lily breathed in short breaths. She was pregnant; she was going to have a baby. A very peculiar feeling came over her, one she couldn't describe because it wasn't one emotion.
But what was the sex? She knew this much, she might as well know the rest.
Lily reached timidly for the chart...she debated looking at it. Thoughts like, 'what am I going to do', or 'how am I going to tell James', kept popping into her mind all as
she looked at that chart. She grabbed it and looked at it. There was a graph showing different shades of blue, white, to different shades of pink. Lily matched her color
with the one on the graph. It was ninety-nine percent sure. She was going to have a boy.
*********************************************************************
Yay! It finally happened, right? Sorry if some spots were slow, I had to set it all up. Now, for those of you that know the stages of pregnancy and the emotional changes
that follow, good for you. I have made my own for witches so please spare the corrections if you have any for me. There will be more on Sonja Woods, the issue from
Bangkok, the code Sirius broke (which will be revealed in its totality in the future) and Lily will go back to the Fortress of Shadows. Jill Prewitt will be developed, Lily
will be a basket full of emotions, and more changes will occur in relationships, all of them. And now you have seen our little hero, well not actually seen him, but you
know more than Lily does. Thank you for joining my Yahoo Group. I will be posting an essay titled "Lily's seeming perfection" for those of you who think she's too good
for life and characterization. My Yahoo Group is now under "Fan fiction" rather than "Adult/HarryPotter/Fan Fiction" so now all people of all ages can view it. The URL
won't work on this page, so you'll have to click my name "CK Talons" which will take you to my author page. Click the URL under my "Home Page" category. Thanks
a bunch.
