Author's Note:
The Houses Competition (or THC)
Story Type: Drabble (up to 1,000 words)
House: Hufflepuff
Class: Astronomy
Prompt: 9. [Object] Motorbike
Word Count: 963
Disclaimers/triggers: None
Beta Love: Thanks to my teammates for looking over my story!
Further notes: There is nothing that says that this isn't canon if you read between the lines. ;)
The Ride of A Lifetime
Lily paced back and forth in frustration as Harry screamed bloody murder from his bassinet. "A quick trip to the pub with the lads," James had said, but it had already been more than six hours, and Harry was refusing to sleep. Lily had been a popular babysitter, but it was only after having a baby of her own that she realized that her infant knowledge was woefully inadequate. Tunie had been older than she was, and her parents had always told her that their family was complete when she'd begged for a sibling. Lily was beginning to understand why that was. Now it seemed to her that having more than one child was utter madness.
This went doubly for a magical child.
After all, Lily was quite certain that Muggle babies did not randomly zap their mothers while breastfeeding or accidentally set the cat on fire.
She went from worrying that her husband had run afoul of a group of Death Eaters to utter fury that he hadn't returned to give her a much needed break. Lily's eyes burned with unshed tears as she struggled between the all-consuming love for her baby and utter revulsion at the harsh sounds he was making. Mandrake babies had nothing on the human sort.
If only she could have just a little bit of— Lily opened her eyes. "Silence?" Her voice seemed to echo.
The only sound worse than the incessant squalling of her baby was none whatsoever.
Lily ran to Harry's room, her heart in her throat.
What if he had found them despite all of their precautions?
But, as she reached the open doorway, she could see the mobile above the bassinet shaking as Harry floated blissfully through the air, one of his fists shoved into his mouth.
"HARRY!" she shouted, jumping up to grab him, but he had already risen too high to reach.
It felt like it was happening in slow motion. She had grabbed the chair in the corner to get high enough to grab him when Harry floated right out of the open bedroom window into the early morning darkness. Lily ran after him, nearly falling from the window as she desperately grabbed for him.
There was no time to think. Harry would be above the rooftops in moments. She nearly leapt out before remembering that she'd left her wand downstairs. In any case, Lily couldn't remember the spell that she'd created back in school with her best friend that could let her fly unaided. Her eyes landed on the motorbike that Sirius had left when he'd gone with James to the pub. As her baby began to float into the sky, she ran as fast as her legs could carry her, not even stopping to put her shoes on before she rushed out into the night and leapt onto the motorbike. It was easy enough to start it, but moments later she crashed into a hedge.
Swearing under her breath, Lily backed up the motorbike, and then angled to her left, finally rolling onto the street. Luckily, she'd dressed Harry in white and the waxing moon hadn't quite set, so it was easy enough to see him. He was making a gurgling coo of contentment, and seemed utterly unaware that he was nearly fifty feet up in the air. Lily pressed the button to ascend and the motorcycle's wheels left the tarmac with a shudder. She gripped tightly on the handlebars, and leaned forward, her gaze focused solely on her son.
The motorbike's engine sputtered and she pushed on the throttle desperately, hoping she wouldn't flood the engine. She gritted out a frustrated scream and it was then that a tiny jolt rolled through her. The motorbike' ascent evened out almost immediately, the motor purring like a kitten. Lily floated just underneath her son and took one arm off the handlebars. It held steady. Shakily, she removed her other hand, but still it maintained its course. She reached up and, in a moment that felt like it lasted forever, she gently plucked her son from the sky. The bike hovered like a cloud as she tucked Harry up against her chest, his little nose snuffling into her as he made himself comfortable and promptly fell asleep.
It had been years since she'd had a bout of accidental magic, and yet, in her moment of need, Lily's magic had risen to the occasion.
Back in the nursery, Lily was sure to close the window completely and placed a locking charm on the latch. As Harry lay there against her chest, she couldn't bear to let him go. The thought of losing him was unthinkable. She slowly made her way back to the front room and sank down onto the couch, promising herself that she'd get to bed in just a minute, just until—
Lily slept.
James Potter snuck into the house as the sun rose, trying and failing to keep the giggling to a minimum. Sirius was looking askance at his motorbike, which now appeared to be facing the other way round and had leaves wedged in the housing of the headlamp. James shrugged unhelpfully and they said their goodbyes. Inside, James was surprised to see Lily on the couch, her head thrown back as she snored softly. Harry dozed against her chest and James resisted the urge to grab the camera and snap a photo. Gently, he took the infant in his arms and walked him to the nursery, then returned with a blanket and pillow to make Lily more comfortable. His heart swelled with love, even though there was a second, quieter tinge of guilt.
A night out with the lads was fun and all, but this was where he belonged—with his family.
