Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
Chapter XV: Lily's Secret
Teddy Lupin walked through the halls of the Potter Estate, his feet leading him through the home without any conscious effort on his part. The place was marvelous, and it was without doubt Teddy's favorite place to be. He tapped his wand on a vase of daisies that were running low on water, "Aguamenti," he smiled in a satisfied way. He found himself strolling throughout the house looking for the children, he had missed them on his trip.
He knocked on the doors of the boys room, but found none within it, save for the bullfrog Albus kept in a geranium. Teddy closed the door and left the room the way he had found it. Teddy crossed his arms in the hallway and wondered why the estate was so dreadfully silent today. Harry had told him that Luna was still out, which was a shame, he had been eager to see her. On his trip he was able to find an island which had a supply of Sea-Faring Plimpies, and he just knew Luna would love to hear about their bubbling skin scales and bulbous eyes.
"Meh, Harry said she'd return soon. Plus, I'm here all night, I'll see everyone in time, I suppose," he reassured himself and set off at a brisk walk down the velvety carpeted corridor, his shadow passing him by on the wall, offset by the orange glow of the evening sun.
He was quite sure that he needed to have some sort of excitement, so he shrugged his shoulders and turned his hair to the color of a cucumber, and with a grin, transformed his nose so that it was a bit more square than any nose should ever be. Quite happy with his new look, he continued his trek and arrived at the flower covered door that led to Lily's room. He knocked thrice upon it and entered, to find Lily watering her tulips.
She turned her head and her face was as bright as any sunrise, her eyes widened to the size of Knuts as she exclaimed "Teddy! You're back!"
He knelt down to give her a hug as she leapt into his waiting arms, and she placed a kiss on his cheek. "Good to see you too, Lil. How've ya been keeping' eh? Gettin' those brothers of yours in line?"
"No! They've been especially bothersome, Albus keeps letting his frog loose in my room." she crossed her arms and pointed to a stack of books.
"What did he do then, once he got in?"
"Look at the books, they've got little froggy foot prints all over the covers, that really makes them look dirty. Dirty little frog." she pouted, before noticing something particularly interesting about his face.
"What do ya think, is it me?" he struck a dramatic pose as if for Witch Weekly.
"Teddy you're so goofy. Aunt 'Mione's right about you."
He focused intently on her and his curiosity had been ignited. "How so?"
"Sorry Teddy, she told me that you might want to find out something about something some day…and I can't tell you a word of what she thinks. Just know that she's right." she nodded and her hair fell over her face and ruining the serious gaze she was giving.
"Hmm. Fine, fine. I'll figure her out one of these days, I've got ways. How's school going though?"
She seemed to choose her words carefully, and for an eleven year old, that must be a truly maddening thing, Teddy thought.
"Professor Neville is the best, he's a lot of fun. A lot more fun than Professor Binns."
"Yeah, I much feel the same about all that."
"You should teach there Teddy, I think that would be great fun." Lily nodded, before breaking into a tiny grin.
"Maybe. Just let me know when they lose the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, then I'll pick up. It might be a while though, Professor Corner doesn't seem to be close to retiring any time soon." Teddy rolled his eyes.
Lily went around the room and picked out a purple flower from her tiny window side garden. "Here you go Teddy, welcome back."
Teddy accepted the flower with an air of being presented with an Order of Merlin. "Lily, your kindness will change the world, I accept this gift with full joy. Thank you."
Lily smiled as if she knew something Teddy did not.
"What's that smile for?" he twirled the flower in his hands.
"Can't tell you that." she said sheepishly.
"Aunt 'Mione's doing again?"
She did not reply.
"Oh come on Lil, I'm your friend…you can tell me, right?" he asked, turning his hair bright orange and making it so he only had one large eye at the center of his head.
Lily burst into laughter, and Teddy smiled as well. "No good Teddy, I can't tell you anything about it. It's time for you to leave, a lady needs her privacy." she crossed her arms and nodded smartly.
Teddy got up, holding the flower carefully now and he bowed to her. "As you wish, my Lady. I shall see you at dinner, to be sure."
"Good bye Teddy." she said as she motioned him out the door, and it shut behind him with a puff of mystery lingering in the air.
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Harry lingered in the doorway of his and Luna's bedroom, and his mind just wouldn't stop worrying about something being amiss. There was nothing really out of place in the bedroom, but he was sure that gnawing feeling at the back of his mind meant something significant at least. The afternoons' events had been so peculiar, even for him. He just knew something was happening, and if his Luna was involved, it would have to be interesting.
He went over the last few hours in his head. Albus' strange behaviour could just be attributed to the craziness of being a thirteen year old with an almost equally young House Elf. James…well James was reaching the point where he was no longer a child, he was maturing faster than Harry could even appreciate. Harry thought of what things he had gone through at fifteen, and hoped desperately that James had nothing like that on his plate. He thought about Teddy and his comment about the laundry…that was just him being strange, positively. He and Luna had been close since his birth, Luna having spent so much time at all of the Order and DA meetings that had been held since the fall.
Harry felt certain that the troubling feeling he was experiencing was based solely of Draco Malfoy. He had refused the idea at first, for when had he cared so deeply about the discomforts and insanity of Draco? The idea took him though, and he could not shake it. Draco had acted most strangely of all of his house mates today. Of course, Harry could not speak for Ginny who had been strangely absent most of the day. Yes, he was sure it was Draco's strange departure.
Teddy had said he'd taken off abruptly, and Harry thought he would have told Ginny…or anyone for that matter. Strange things indeed, Harry thought. Harry turned to sit down on the bed, and he breathed a sigh of exasperation. He looked down and viewed a light blue glow emanating from the chest of drawers. He smiled and knew it to be the Worrywhims. He felt ashamed that he was keeping the creatures locked up in that drawer, after all, they were proof that Luna knew her stuff when it came to magical creatures.
So, with a smile, he opened the drawer and picked up the jar holding the buzzing blue faeries. His smile was short lived however, when he realized that the jar was only half full. He at first felt scared that maybe they had died due to lack of air, but no, the air holes were still intact.
Had James or Albus taken them out? He trembled at the thought of these creatures being on the loose, no matter how cute they seemed in captivity.
"Just a tick…" Harry said, turning his head one way and then another. "What if everyone has been exposed to them….yeah!" Harry snapped his fingers as he gazed at the creatures. "that would explain nearly everyone's behavior!" he collapsed on the bed. "No it wouldn't…they only make you troubled…not …." he exhaled, turning the jar over in his hands. One of the little faeries fluttered close to the brim of the jar, and Harry realized there was no way for them to escape through the air holes. No. Someone had let them out, Harry surmised.
"Worrywhims on the loose…what a bother." Harry put the jar on his chest and soon realized that it might be best if he hid them a little more securely. "Wizard Repellum!" he said, tracing an outline of a circle above the jar. "There, that should keep the kids away."
He was about to leave the room and turned to close the curtains of the window, there was a curious grin on his face. "Al's got his frog…I've got my Worrywhims… maybe I should get them a geranium." With a wave of his wand the curtains closed, and Harry closed the door to the bedroom. He hoped Luna would be home soon, and he felt a tidal wave of eagerness. He very much thought that he should work up an appetite for the both of them before dinner.
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AN: Reviews Loved. Anything seem off this chapter? Love, TowerMage