Wow, guys! Way to stress! Hehe. I've never actually left a cliffhanger with any amount of importance to it, so this has been a real interesting experience for me! I got a lot of "OMG" and "you evil author!" and so on. I guess this is a good thing, right?
Sorry to keep you all in suspense! But get ready for some real twists these last chapters, and a lot of "oh-no-you-DIDN'T!" moments. It'll be good practice for Serendipity, anyway. ;-)
Disclaimer: "Har-ry Pot-ter": (sp. noun) the magical world and/or one of the many things not owned by one author, LaRohaZeta, of suburban America also see "authentic cowboy boots", "Brad Pitt", and "parakeet"
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
The letter was pushed out of Harry's thoughts for the time being, as everyone's priorities shifted over to Petunia's baby. Vernon, who had gone faint when his wife's water broke, was little help as Tabitha – was that even her real name? – guided her down the stairs and into the family car.
Five people – one of whom was going into labor, and two others who really counted as several people combined – stuffed into the tiny car together did not make the ride to the hospital a pleasant one. Tabitha had to drive, since Vernon was close to passing out as it was, and Petunia had screamed out for shotgun, so Harry found himself squashed between his white-faced and sweating uncle and cousin. Petunia was shrieking and cursing out everyone from the baby to the doctor to her long-gone sister Lily, who of course had nothing to do with anything, and was just really being the most unreasonable and unbearable he had ever seen her. Yet, she was about to have a baby, so that had to count for something, Harry reasoned.
When they arrived at the hospital, Petunia was rushed into a wheelchair and up to the maternity ward. Harry lost sight of her when nurses pushed the shell-shocked family out of the enclosed room and doctors swarmed over his aunt like vultures to a carcass. Through the glass window and sliding screen, Harry saw the outline of his aunt's full belly being covered with a sheet. He turned away, a little more anxious now that everything was actually coming into play.
Turning back to face the Dursleys, Harry watched as Tabitha guided Uncle Vernon into a chair. Dudley, he already saw, had raided his father's wallet and was waddling off in search of the vending machine. Harry sighed and sank into a cold plastic chair. It was going to be a long wait.
o-o
Hospital bathrooms were not the best places to have emotional breakdowns, but Lily supposed there could be worse places. I could be back at the Dursleys', or at St. Mungo's, she thought dryly as the tears subsided.
Lily turned the sink setting on to warm water and splashed a few drizzles onto her face. It was a mind-clearing technique she had learned from Remus back in fifth year.
She reached over to the paper towel dispenser and tore off a generous piece for herself, patting her face dry. A few deep breaths later and she was calmer than she had been in hours.
Lily reached into her pocket and pinched the tip of her wand, stroking its surface absently. Few times in her life had her emotions been so haphazard and jumbled, and even less had they been over something as serious as this.
Petunia, as far as she could tell, was in safe hands. Although Lily liked to think she could care less about her sister, she knew in her heart that she would always be concerned about Petunia's wellbeing. Not that she could say the same for her…
The matter with Harry was a whole different issue. The secret – or part of the secret, anyway – was out now. And (looking down at the letter she had taken from the house while Harry wasn't looking), it seemed that the guise was up anyway. While news of Dumbledore's success had recharged some of the feeling inside her, Lily was also petrified of the conversation that would have to happen. But how do you tell a teenage boy that his dead mother has come back to life?
Well, why do later what you can do now? Lily resolved, straightening her black bun in the mirror, taking one last clearing breath, and walking proudly as ever through the bathroom door.
o-o
"Harry, I think we have to talk."
He glanced up from his lap. Tabitha was standing over him, a strange expression settled on her face.
"It's about that letter. I – "
A crying baby interrupted her from the row of seats behind her. A young woman started cooing over it and trying to calm it down.
Tabitha looked annoyed. "Er, can we go somewhere a little more…private?" She pointed to an open, empty storage room down the hall.
Harry glared at her. "I don't think so. Only an idiot would walk into an empty room with a stranger," he said, putting a sharp emphasis on 'stranger' that made Tabitha wince. "Especially one who they know could hurt them."
"I'm not going to hurt you!" Tabitha whimpered indigently. "Listen – take my wand!" She thrust the stick at him and Harry took it, somewhat surprised. Maybe it wouldn't be so dangerous now, to hear what she had to say…
"Fine." Harry stood, strode over to the deserted room and allowed Tabitha in before snapping the door shut behind them. He pocketed the wand and drew his own, holding it tightly at his side. "First – most importantly – how do I know you're not a Death Eater or something?"
Tabitha's hand went to her brow, massaging it as if the whole ordeal was giving her a headache. Somehow, this made Harry angrier, and he was about to start yelling at her when she – quietly – spoke.
"You read Peine's letter, didn't you? It was from Dumbledore. In Dumbledore's handwriting. No one alive today would be able to get away with forging a letter from Dumbledore. Dumbledore trusts me and knows that I've been staying with you and the Dursleys for the past two weeks. And I hope to Merlin you're smart enough to trust Albus Dumbledore, because he thinks the world of you. He's told me so hundreds of times, ever since we started working together."
Harry sighed, the grip on his wand loosening. Tabitha was making sense, though he didn't want to admit it. Dumbledore didn't trust just anyone. He needed to know more, though. Like, why Tabitha didn't tell him she was a witch when they first met. "Who are you?" He somehow ended up asking instead.
Tabitha took a breath.
"I'm your mother, Harry. My name is Lily Potter, and you are my son."
o-o
"Wha…what?"
Harry thought he was having an attack. He couldn't feel his heart beating for ten whole seconds. Suddenly the dusty gray walls of the closet seemed a lot closer than they had a minute ago. He started to sway on his feet.
"Why don't you sit down?" Tabitha asked, alarmed. "If you give me my wand back, I can conjure a chair for you –"
"NO!" Harry slapped away her outstretched hand. "Don't touch me! Don't come near me! You're delusional; you're a mad person –"
"I'm sorry, I won't touch you! Please, calm down – just take a deep breath –"
Harry let out a chilling laugh. "Ha! Why would I take advice from a crazy person? You're not my mother; my mother's dead, she died a long time ago –"
"No, she didn't, Harry! If you'll just relax for a moment, I'll explain –"
Harry had his wand pointed at on her now. "Stop it already! Stop pretending to be my mum! I don't care if Dumbledore trusts you! I DON'T! Do you really think you can just come into my life and change everything? You can't! You're just some nutty woman who I thought I could trust! But I was wrong, wasn't I? WASN'T I!"
"Please! Just listen to me; I promise you there's a reason for all of this – all of your questions – I can explain everything!" Tabitha begged desperately.
Harry was breathing hard. There was another fifteen second pause in which Harry collected himself. His shoulders were shaking, but he kept his wand steady and tight in front of him. "Fine. Talk."
o-o
Lily nodded gratefully. "I suppose I should start from the beginning. You see, your father and I first found out about the prophecy that was made about you – you do know about the prophecy, don't you?" Harry narrowed his eyes, but nodded. "Well, when James and I found out that, we realized we had to go into hiding. The Fidelius Charm was placed, and Peter chosen as our Secret Keeper –" Lily heard Harry growl at the name, despite his anger with her "– but Dumbledore thought you needed even more protection. Without telling James, he used an experimental charm on me. It was something that he had been developing for years, that was supposed to keep a person alive after being cursed by the Avada Kedavra. It worked, though it had drastic side effects. My looks, for one." Lily pointed to her sharp face and dark hair. "They're completely altered. No magical or Muggle methods can change them back – believe me, I've tried everything: hair dye, transfiguration, morphing potions. It's as if my body grew a protective covering that stops any altercations from being made to it. Because I looked so different, and because Dumbledore and I were so afraid that the charm would somehow make it into enemy hands, I had to go into hiding. Those fifteen years were some of the worst of my life – I just sat in my house, thinking about you and how I couldn't see you…it was absolutely torture.
"But recently, Dumbledore's been trying to find a way to reverse the side-effects. And today, he finally finished it." Lily gave Harry a tiny smile. His face was expressionless. "It's a potion that should restore me to my normal self. And not just to my old looks – I can go back to my old life, with my son."
Harry was staring into his lap. Lily noted that sometime during her tale, he had sunk to the floor and dropped his wand next to him. She wanted nothing more than to pull him into her arms and hold him, but she knew he was still afraid.
"If this is all true…if you aren't lying to me…then why didn't you come for me before this? Why now…?" Harry questioned her, speaking to his knees and speaking in a tone barely above a whisper.
Lily sighed once again. "Dumbledore didn't want me to come to you at all. He thought I should wait until he discovered a cure and I was back to normal. But I insisted; I had to see you, I had to meet this amazing boy who I'd heard so much about. And when Sirius died…" Lily swallowed. "When Sirius died, he thought it would be a good time for me to make an appearance. You needed a mother in your life. I suppose he also knew that the potion was almost finished, and it would be better if you got to know me a little before we suddenly sprung all this on you." She chuckled slightly. "So much for that, eh?"
Harry was still silent, still gazing into the floor. Lily tried one last time to reach him.
"It's still me, you know, Harry. It's still Tabitha," she consoled him gently. "I'm the same person, just with a few…slight differences."
She thought he was laughing at first, but when Harry looked up at her, she saw he was sobbing. "I know. And that's what gets me the most – that you're still Tabitha to me!" The same Tabitha who brought food to my room when I was supposed to be starving; the same Tabitha who walked with me in Shrine Park and out-jumped me on the swings. The same Tabitha who held me when I wanted to cry about Sirius. The same Tabitha who was there for me.
"Oh, come here already!" Lily reached out and grabbed her son. He flew into her embrace, kneeling on the floor and still shaking with emotion. A great rush of satisfaction filled her as she wrapped her arms around the boy and buried her hands in his trademark messy hair. "Shhh, it's okay now. I'm here, Harry. We're together again. Shhh." She whispered into his back.
Harry couldn't remember ever feeling so peaceful.
o-o
Five rooms away, a woman screamed. Inside of her, a child squirmed. It wanted to come out now. It was time for things to be done.
o-o
In another hospital not so far away, a red-haired boy paced around his sister's room, thinking about the future. On a floor above him, a re-haired man grasped his wife's cool hand, thinking about the past.
o-o
Inside a tower in a magical school hundreds of miles away, an elderly wizard sat at his desk, stirring the contents of a large stone cauldron, thinking about what needed to be done.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Whew. You guys don't know how hard that chapter was for me to write. It had to undergo about ten revisions and five drafts, but it was all worth it. I wanted to make sure I didn't screw this one up. And please – constructive criticism is appreciated, especially for this chapter! I really really really want to know what you think!
Trivia Question: So, what did you all dress up as for Halloween? If you ask nicely, I might tell you what I was ;-)
Review replies are on my profile!
LaRohaZeta