Author's Note: I am so excited for this chapter! ZOMGPLOT!
Dedications: Here they are, yet again.
My notebook: It holds the secrets of my plot Ricky so desperately wants to know.
Disclaimer: Finally! One of these!
None of the subtle Snicket references are mine, unfortunately.
Chapter 3: Baneful Bargain
(August 31. 7:01 p.m. Hogsmeade.)
The sight of a familiar owl soaring from the direction of the mountains made Lucius Malfoy give his pocket a tap to ensure the safety of its contents and hurry, weaving his way in and out of the crowd of residents and tourists, toward the tall gates of the small village's housing section. The jet black owl called Raven--because Bella was such a voracious Poe fan--met him there, perching upon the rim of the gate above his head. Raven and Lucius had never quite been on good terms with each other, and the bird displayed its dislike of him by dropping the roll of parchment rudely atop his head and swooping down to nip his ear before disappearing into the sunset.
"Evil creature," Lucius muttered, yanking at the thin ribbon that held the scroll together. It unraveled gracefully. He ducked behind a row of rosebushes to read it in secret. The letter was addressed "Pickles," the code name used for him because of his eye color; hazel with prevalent green. He read on:
We've got an extra egg. The man we met up with needed to get rid of it, so we took it off his hands. Regulus came by a second H.B., so you're free to do what you want with yours. Master'll be pleased.
Lucius pocketed the letter with a grin. He'd make a bit of extra dough off of his Hebridean Black egg. Voldemort had assigned each of his Death Eaters a country housing a breed of dragon egg to retrieve. He couldn't imagine why one of his Master's cohorts would be frightened of any authority coming after him for the violation of the statute; the Death Eaters were that authority. They decided, for the most part, what went on in the Wizarding World. They were the ones who came after you.
He kept his hand in the egg's pocket as he strolled contentedly up the main street. The street gave the impression of a scene from a Christmas card. It was lit by streetlights, shop lights, and strings of lights woven around poles, rails, and awnings; large, decorative trees popped up here and there along the side walks, and even though it was the middle of the summer, some of the shop owners had charmed large piles of sleet around the shop doors and down the sidewalks to amuse the children and keep the passersby cool as they walked.
A bell tinkled over head as he pushed the door to the Hog's Head open. As usual, very few people were seated inside the dirty pub; most preferred the cheerful cleanliness of the Three Broomsticks. Eager for amusement, he walked over to a large, cloaked man at a small table who was idly shuffling a pack of cards.
"'Evening," he said conversationally, pulling the chair back. "Mind if I join you?"
The man looked startled to have company; his sausage-like fingers trembled. "N-no. Don' mind at all." Lucius took his seat, watching the man gather up his stream of cards.
Trembling still, he dealt them out, five each. They were playing poker. Lucius picked up his hand, glanced it over, and exchanged two cards.
"What brings you to this part of Hogsmeade?" asked Lucius, leaning back in his chair. His hood slipped slightly and he hurried to fix it. "Come here often?"
The man nudged his mug. "On'y for a cuppa Firewhiskey now an' then," he replied.
Lucius let the four legs of the chair hit the ground again. "Only for Firewhiskey? No trade? Business?"
"No. Don' know how ter contact any o' them folk even if I wanted ter," he said, wanting to change the subject.
"Do you?" he inquired. If the conversation went well enough, he'd sell the egg and have time enough to do a bit of shopping afterward.
The man glanced around the pub, then over both of his shoulders. He leaned closer to Malfoy and spoke in a whisper. "Why? Yeh know any who trade...beasts?"
With a grin, Lucius placed his cards face down on the table. "As a matter of fact, I do."
"What're yeh saying?" He pocketed his cards. He sounded interested.
Lucius took care to lower his voice. "I've got a bit of...stock...I'm willing to sell."
If the man was not wearing a mask, Lucius would have seen his arched eyebrows. "What kind o' stock?"
He patted his pocket. "An egg. A dragon's egg."
The man's eyes grew wide. "Where'd yeh come by...ah, tha's not important....How much're yeh chargin'?"
"What have you got?" he asked, smiling inwardly at the bargaining skills his father had once taught him. It had been, after all, the way he'd acquired his vast riches, and Lucius hoped to do the same.
The man dug through the many pockets of his cloak, upturning a ring of rusty keys in the process. Lucius blinked. Hagrid? The school's gamekeeper? He thought he'd recognized that accent. And he was too large to be anyone else. Well, he decided with a smirk, here's my chance to over charge the bastard brute and get him back for setting that stupid dog of his on him back in first year.
Hagrid dumped a fistful of change onto the table with a rattle that stung his ears. He grouped the coins into three piles. When he finished, he said, "Seventeen galleons, ten sickles, and twenty-eight knuts."
The younger man frowned. "Is that all?"
"I can get more," he said quickly, fearing he was losing his interest. "I jus' need time."
Lucius placed both hands on the table in front of him in a very business-like manner. "Alright. I'm giving you exactly two months to get me one hundred more galleons."--Hagrid's eyes shot open, but he said nothing--"You'll bring them back here to me."
Hagrid nodded vigorously. "Do I get it tonight?"
Lucius glanced about, searching for a way to pass the egg unnoticed. His eyes rested on the frosty mug of Firewhiskey beside Hagrid's monstrous wrist. In the blink of an eye, he swept his hand of cards up from the table and stood up, allowing the chair to fall backwards and rattle on the brick floor. He tossed the cards at Hagrid, who looked somewhat alarmed. Several people at neighboring tables paused to stare.
"You dirty cheat!" Lucius shouted. He smacked the mug to the floor, soaking the hem of his robes with the fiery liquid.
"OY!" yelled the bartender. "You pick that mug up and get the hell outta my pub!"
Lucius knelt down beneath the table, grinning at his success. With amazing speed, he dropped the grapefruit-sized coal-black egg into the hollow of the mug and set it on the table. He blinked his right eye ever so slightly at Hagrid and scooped the coins into a small sack.
"Sorry about the disturbance," he said loudly, addressing everyone present. In lower tones, he added to Hagrid, "I'll see you on October thirtieth."
"Lily, would you stop fidgeting?" snapped James, grabbing her arms and forcing them into her lap. "Here, have a Chocolate Frog"--he held one out toward her--"you'll feel better."
She waved it away. "No. I don't think I could keep it down. The bumping of the train is making me sick."
"I'll take that," Sirius said, stretching his arm across the cramped train car. Rolling his eyes, James gave it to him.
It didn't seem so bumpy to either of them in there. James was perfectly fine sitting on the cushioned bench, glancing out the window every now an then at the rushing scenery, and Sirius had stretched himself out on his bench and was flipping through an outdated edition of the Quibbler. Remus and Peter weren't with them in the car because Remus had been rushed to Hogwarts to prepare for the full moon and Peter lived in Hogsmeade; he took a carriage to school.
James glanced over at Lily as she rubbed her temples. "Still got your headache?" he asked.
"Yeah," she said glumly. "I've had it for days now." He put his arm around her shoulders and drew her close. He kissed the top of her head.
"You'll feel better soon. Madam Pomfrey will be able to help you once we get to school."
"I...I don't know if I want to tell her, either," said Lily, turning to look him in the eyes. "What if she tells Dumbledore?"
"You don't trust him anymore?" asked James.
Lily narrowed her eyes. "I never said that. I'd just prefer to keep it a secret."
"Lily," he said, "You know that if you asked, he wouldn't tell a soul."
"I know, I know."
"So you're going to ask her for help? She is the school nurse; I'm sure she'd be able to help you with your headaches," said James, and it was obvious that he wasn't going to give up.
"I don't have much of a choice anymore, do I?" She smiled.
"Nope." He grinned in return. "You'll go to the hospital wing if I have to carry you myself, young lady."
She smiled wider. "I'd like to see you try."
Sirius groaned, slapping the magazine against his arched knees. "Would you two stop with the cheerful conversation? It's not a ride to Hogwarts without you tearing each others' heads off. And get your arm off of her; you've been naughty enough, mister."
James laughed and Lily stuck her tongue out at him. "You just read, Sirius," she said.
"Should I shield my eyes?" he asked, holding the magazine up near his nose. "I don't want to witness you two trying for twins."
With more agility than James thought she had, Lily stood up, snatched the magazine away, and smacked Sirius over the head with it. At the pink tinge on her cheeks, Sirius laughed.
"Is widdle Wiwy embawassed?" Sirius cooed, giving her belly a pat. She kicked his shin.
"Ow!" he griped, holding the spot. "James, can't you control your girlfriend?"
James grinned. "She was provoked."
Lily swatted him playfully. "You make me sound like some zoo animal," she tittered.
"Probably sounded enough like one when you--" Lily's hand came in contact with his head before he could finish his sentence.
"That's enough, Sirius," she warned him.
He rubbed his head and grinned. "This is the kind of trip I'm talking about!"
Severus Snape wandered the long hall of the train, glancing from side to side, making sure no one was doing anything outlandishly sinful in their cars. He joined his hands behind his back, trying to look severe. He hated Prefect duties, most of all the one that required him to pace the train, when he could be up to much better things.
Studying, for one. He was sure the teachers would spring some sort of quiz the moment they got back to school. Might as well be prepared.
When he reached the back of the train, he sighed, relieved. It was over. He could sit down now. But out of the corner of his eye, he saw that the last car door had been left ajar. He peeked inside, mouth dropping at what he saw.
Sirius was innocent enough, sprawled on his side of the compartment, sleeping, magazine steepled on top of his face. The edges of the pages rose and fell with his breathing.
Lily and James, too, were asleep, looking squished because they shared a bench. James was turned on his side against the wall to give her more space, but she lay flat on her back, hand on her belly.
Her belly. That's what the shock had been.
There was a lump there that hadn't been two months ago.
"So far, so good," said Lily to James, almost cheerfully, on their way through the front doors of the massive castle.
With the large crowd engulfing her, no one gave Lily a second glance. At least that was what she thought until Sirius nudged her.
"You might want to button up your robes," he muttered, glancing over his shoulder, "Malfoy's giving you weird looks."
Lily flushed and buttoned the middle three buttons. She really wasn't all that noticeable--at least she thought--,but the Slytherin boys were generally very harsh and cruel, and both she and her companions knew that if word of her pregnancy were to get out, Malfoy and his band of cronies would be the first to make comments.
It wasn't until James put his arm around her waist that she noticed it wasn't just Malfoy giving her odd stares. With everything that had happened during the summer, Lily had almost forgotten that none of the school knew she and James had finally reconciled. Some of them had noticed that James bore no more physical marks of fights with Lily, which were common after he worked her up into a duel, but weren't bold enough to act upon their wonderings of whether they had stopped brawling--whether physically or verbally--completely.
As she and her peers poured into the Great Hall, Lily heard whisperings of:
"James and Lily....How odd...."
"You think it's a joke?" one particularly snooty girl--whom Lily disliked--asked her friend. "Potter would never date her. And it looks like she's gaining weight!"
"Potter's sure got his hands full...."
"I would kill to be Potter...."
Needless to say, Lily was very relieved when the crowd thinned and they found the Gryffindor house table. Easily picking out small, round Peter at the end of the table, Sirius shoved his way over and sat down across from him, followed by James and Lily, whom James was trying to make sure didn't get trampled.
"Lily!" came a familiar male voice. She and James turned around to see Daud Vaswani, an Indian Gryffindor boy who was a good friend of Lily's. She smiled at him in welcome.
"Hello, Daud," she said as she and James took adjacent seats beside Sirius. Daud sat down in the empty seat next to Lily, and she couldn't help the rush of pink in her cheeks when his eyes drifted down to her middle.
He cocked an eyebrow at her. "You bulking up?" He had always been blunt. Lily slit her eyes at him.
"No," she replied indignantly, "I've just..."--she tried quickly to think up a lie--"taken a job at an ice cream parlor. The workers get it free, and--"
"Lily," he said pointedly, "I know you didn't take a job at an ice cream parlor. You're lactose intolerant; who're you trying to kid?"
She felt like kicking herself because of her lie; James snickered behind his hand, allowing the other boy to speak to her so bluntly only because he knew that Lily would take no offense, and Daud looked mildly amused, but persistent.
She fiddled with her ring--which she had finally taken off of its chain and put on her finger--debating whether or not to tell Daud about her baby. She sighed. "Alright, here's what's--"
The enormous golden doors of the Great Hall creaked open and everyone seated fell silent. Strolling toward the High Table in a stately manner, Professor McGonagall--a new teacher--led a line of tiny children between the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables. They formed a shivering, nervous cluster while McGonagall pulled out a stool and battered wizards' hat from a small closet behind the High Table. Once in place, the hat sprung to life--some of the children gasped--and began to sing its yearly song. Lily hardly heard any of it over Sirius and Peter's chatter.
"They're even smaller than last year," commented Sirius, grinning. Lily shushed him as the hat's song drew to a finish.
"When I call your name," said Professor McGonagall to the first years-to-be, "you're going to come sit on the stool and put on the Sorting Hat." She shook the lengthy scroll, unraveling it, and cleared her throat. "Abod, Carine."
A shivering dark girl in pigtails walked up to the stool and slid onto it, shoving the hat on her head so it covered her eyes. "RAVENCLAW!" With a relieved grin, she hopped off and joined the table to the group's right.
"Brown, Megan!"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Eberling, Patty!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Fredrickson, Todd!"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
I think now would be a good time to mention something a wise Snow Scout leader once said: "When Snow Scouts tell stories, they skip everything boring and only tell the interesting parts." And I think I will take a page out of his book--a phrase which here means "Do as he suggested and skip the rest of the Sorting Hat ceremony"--and skip the rest of the Sorting Hat ceremony.
No one was more relieved than Sirius when McGonagall called the last child's name--"Snicket, Kit!" "Gryffindor!"--and the stool was taken off of the platform and replaced with Albus Dumbledore.
"I think I'll skip the lengthy welcoming speech for now," he said, a twinkle in his eye, "Wouldn't you agree, Mr. Black?" A swift, cloth-like swish flooded through the Great Hall as hundreds of heads turned Sirius's way.
Sirius grinned. "I'd say so, Professor!" The room filled with laughter.
Dumbledore smiled. "Tuck in."
There were gasps all throughout the Great Hall from the first years when the food appeared before them. Sirius, James, and Peter wasted no time in piling their plates with goodies, and Daud began to resume his and Lily's conversation as the two of them dug in.
"Okay," he said, "now you can finish. Tell me what's going on. You're never this negligent about your health."
Again, Lily frowned, feeling rather offended. "It's not"--she paused in mid sentence--"entirely my fault that I've gotten...bigger."
His eyebrows shot up; the chicken leg fell to the rim of his plate, rocking it dangerously. "C-come again?" The light caught the diamond on her ring, bringing it to his attention for the first time. He was beginning to form a connection.
I'm sorry to say that as Daud was slowly piecing together the two clues while Lily blushed and tried--with much stammering--to explain to him the situation, another connection was being formed. That connection happens to be called "Lucius Malfoy's wand with his hand." As he was in a very good mood from his recent sale with Hagrid, he took much pleasure in saying the next two words of dialogue you will see, two words that conjure a symbol most girls--as well as their respective boyfriends--dread.
"Experientia Graviditas."
The jet of white light soared inconspicuously through the air, over many heads and plates, and hit Lily--without her knowledge--square in the belly. She didn't notice of course, as the spell was not meant to cause physical harm, and sprouting slowly, from about an inch above her head, was a white line growing taller and taller until it reached a height of about seven inches. Two leaves erupted from the middle and a bud stuck to the upper end of what was now obviously a stem. The bud pulsed, as if deciding whether or not it wanted to open, and then erupted in a shower of white sparks into a beautiful lily.
The sparks gave it away. Heads turned from all directions to gaze at the flower above Lily's head, and the ones that didn't right away were tapped on the shoulders by their friends. The hall had grown silent again, as if another group of frightened first years were coming down the aisle toward the Sorting Hat.
James and Sirius said nothing. Peter was in shock, along with most of the school and the staff. Daud did, however, because Lily'd been turning her head every which way, trying to find the source of the disturbance, not realizing yet what had happened to her.
"Your head," he hissed. "Look up."
Fearing for the worst, she gazed heavenward, eyes widening when they came to rest on the flower.
She'd had every right to be frightened. Everyone in the hall--except perhaps some of the first years--knew what that symbol meant. They had wizard parents, they read books, they'd been through Professor Flitwick's "Sex-Ed" class just like everyone else.
The white lily was a form of wizard pregnancy test. If it didn't bloom, if it withered and disintegrated, you were fine. But if it bloomed...you were pregnant.
And now everyone in school knew Lily's and James's secret.
O O O
Finally! Finished with chapter 3! -wipes sweat from brow- About the sorting--I just had to! Too good of an opportunity to pass up! I am SUCH a Gryffindor.
And do I have a long "thank the reviewer" section ahead of me, or what!
Chapter one:
pink0614: Thank you!
lily hostetler: I'm glad! Hope you keep reading.
poorpadfoot: Yay!
Moony Lover: I tried emailing you, but I don't know if any of them got through. You didn't leave me anything after the at sign, so I tried MSN, Yahoo, and AOL.
Oxynthes: This is a couple of years before Harry is born, so they've got plenty of time. And this story only goes in depth--or even covers, really--their first encounter with Voldemort, not the other two. Thank you for your kind words!
DramaQn621: Thank you! I tried to make it sooner!
Sesshieluver89: It's MeggIE. Hehe. Oi, don't you listen to Holly. She needs to keep her mouth shut about that! But it's all Mrs. McMasters's fault, really. Hah, my mind, fortunately, is not like hers. She's the bisexual one! (Not REALLY....) Glad you like it, Rachel!
Kristanna: Nope. Didn't graduate already. But I daresay you've figured out the situation by now, ne?
Sierra Charm: Oh, you're not an uptight prude, Si. If Lily is so much based upon you in your fic, as you say, then you're not too bad. You're just very skeptical about teenaged relationships--as am I in most cases, excluding that of my own--and against any sort of pre-marital sex, as am I. I'm very glad you liked it. I hoped you would, because you were the one who introduced me, indirectly, to the wonderful world of L/J fanfiction, and I rather looked up to you way back in the day, and still admire your writing...muchly. I will most surely keep writing, as you should as well, and I hope you have a happy new year!
ms dumplings: Thank you, I will!
weird and wonderful: Thank you!
XxSacredDreamsxX: Yeah, yeah. You and your Seamus and Lavender stories. Glad you liked it, though, Nat!
FallenFlower: Thank you!
Jazzyln's-Mama: Wow. Never been called "amazing" before. Thank you!
apotterlover: Glad you liked it!
lovingHP: Glad you liked it!
ArtemisiaQuill: I tried! It was indeed ASAP. Thanks for the fav!
cilverblood: Ah, it's only your favorite because there's no John. AND NO I WILL NOT KILL HIM! HE IS MY DARLING! I think the best way to make you happy would be to write a complete story of Lily/James lemon. You'd grin ear to ear then. I still cannot BELIEVE how MEAN you are to poor John! I wuv him.
I gave you sneak peeks, you naughty girl, you. So you can no longer blame me for your jiggly thighs. You can save the slobbery kisses, thanks. Hope you liked the chapter, you pushy little thing.
RICKY! RICKY, RICKY, RICKY! HA! Take that!
Chapter two:
ArtemisiaQuill: Thanks! Glad you liked it!
cilverblood: Ricky signed in this time! Twelve times? Twelve? You've sure got a lot of time on your hands, mi amiga! You only love me because you want me to update! -feels used- xD
Jazzlyn's-Mama: Interesting form of reviewing. Hehe.
DramaQn621: Thank you!
Piper Of Locksley: You get weirder with each story of mine, you know that? You know what else? Calling it crap defeats the whole point of saying you love it!
Sami Potter: Don't shiver, Sam! You'll love this baby! You cannot resist one, so I shall only have to wait until you change your mind. Glad you like the fluff!
FallenFlower: Thank you!
Sesshieluver89: -blush- Thanks, Rachel. I try with my book, but I need a bit of a break from it. It's a work in progress as of now.
Whew! Finally! Now I can read!
Night all!
Megan