All the buzz about a spy in the Order was making everyone very uptight. Remus found himself jumping at every little sound and he was drawing his wand before he answered the door at night.
James didn't want to say anything but Lily had confided in him that she though it might be Remus who was the spy.
At first he had dismissed the idea as ridiculous, but then again. Voldemort did tend to have werewolves among his Death Eaters. Look at Greyback for instance.
Sirius didn't seem to notice any of the tension and was his usual lazy self but James found himself being extremely careful in Remus' presence and he didn't like it at all.
Remus was one of his closest friends after all. Peter was acting overly paranoid but they cast it off as nervousness.
Molly and Arthur's newest baby was born shortly after the wedding on March 1st and they had named the little boy Ronald Bilius Weasley, after his uncle who had died not to long ago.
He carried the trademark Weasley hair and freckles. Fred and George were absolutely fascinated by him.
"Were we that wittle?" George poked Ron's foot.
"Yes dear, leave your brother alone."
"Nah, Won is too wittle." Fred poked Ron's head, making Ron scrunch his face. Molly slapped his hand away. "Leave your brother alone and go bother your father." The twins ran from the room to climb on their father's lanky limbs.
'Life at the office is becoming unbearable.' Sirius thought miserably. Lucius Malfoy kept strutting around announcing the birth of his son, Draco.
'Now, the git doesn't even work here but he likes to come and watch us work. Is that it? Why the hell would he name his son Draco anyway? I swear Purebloods have no idea how to name a child. Stop gloating you moron! Wait, oh no, he's coming over here!'
Lucius Malfoy, can swinging and fur robes swishing, paused in front of Sirius' office. Leaning against the door frame Lucius began to talk without invitation, ignoring Sirius' glare.
"Ah Black, the noble Malfoy line continues eh? Draco Malfoy will be a powerful boy mark my words." The smile was fake, as was any sentiment behind the statement.
Sirius smiled politely and turned back to his work. He was not in the mood to get in a fight today. He had too much bloody paperwork to do.
It would appear that Lucius was not done however, seeing as how he had not gotten the reaction from Sirius that he wanted.
"May the day June 5th be forever remembered as the day the Malfoy heir came into being." Lucius strutted away with a smirk on his face finally satisfied with seeing Sirius turn in his chair, his face red.
What he didn't know was that Siriuds' face was red from the effort not to laugh directly into Malfoy's face and simply wait until he had turned the corenr.
As he collapsed against his desk with a bark-like laugh, he thought 'I actually feel bad for the kid, being born with such a big-headed prat like that for a father.'
It was nearing the end of July; actually it was the last day of the month, the 31st. James was scrambling around the house looking for his shoe with his tie flapping around his neck, while Sirius and Remus looked amusedly on.
"Have you checked the bread box Prongs?" Remus offered, grinning a toothy smile.
James hurdled over the armchair to get to the kitchen.
"Maybe its in the laundry chute." Sirius said helpfully, carefully avoiding Remus' eyes lest they both start laughing.
James sidestepped Lily as she came down the stair in all her pregnant glory and opened the small door in the wall and looked down.
"I don't see it Padfoot. Are sure you guys haven't seen it, Those are my best shoes and I need them for my Auror initiation meeting today!"
Sirius looked up at the ceiling at the same time Remus looked down at his shoes, carefully avoiding each other's faces and James'.
"Your shoe dear? I saw it in the medicine cabinet today for some odd reason." Lily said absentmindedly while pouring some tea into a chine cup.
"Bathroom? Should've looked there." On his way up the stairs James smacked both Remus and Sirius on the backs of their heads.
"Ow! Lily you just had to go and ruin our fun didn't you?" Sirius sat down with a scowl. Lily smiled over her tea.
Remus sat down opposite Sirius with a scalding hot cup of tea in one hand while rubbing the back of his head with the other.
Lily put her cup down on a saucer and turned to the cupboard to get a plate. "I saw a frantic man with a job to get to in less than five minutes and two idiots trying to prevent that just to get him in some trouble."
Remus shook his head as he drank his tea. "You got us all wrong Lily. We would have told him where his precious shoe was at the two minute mark just to make him sweat."
"That's horrible and you know it Remus John!" Sirius cringed. "Ooooh, the middle name. Hit him with the book next Lils." Lily turned on the animagus who visibly shrank back.
"And you Sirius Valentine Black. I am just as mad at you so don't think you're off the hook!"
Remus snickered quietly into his tea as he always did when he heard Sirius' middle name, earning him a smack on the arm.
"Bloody isn't my fault I have a deranged mother. Just because I was born on," he shuddered, "Valentine's Day doesn't mean she can name me after the blasted Saint." Sirius muttered quietly, trying to cover up for his name.
"Didn't your mum try and get your first name to be Valentine?" Lily asked quietly with a smile.
"Where did you hear that?" Sirius asked with a horrified expression on his face.
"James told me."
"Of course. Yes, the old bat tried to name me Valentine Eridanus Black."
Remus snorted, splashing tea onto the table and Lily tried to keep a straight face. "Yes, well that would have been a very nice name." Her mouth was twitching in her effort to control her laughter.
Sirius blushed and vanished under the table. He reappeared a moment later completely composed and took a muffin from the tin on the table.
James came bounding down the stairs two at a time. He stopped to kiss Lily and grabbed a muffin, stuffing it in his mouth he ran to the front door and apparated from the front stoop.
Sirius looked at his hand, which was now empty. "He took my muffin."
"Yeah, right out of your hand too." Remus lifted his glass to his lips, his mouth still twitching.
"How can you drink that? It's so hot and unflavored." Sirius quirked an eyebrow, looking at the cup of tea in question. "I like my tea hot thank you. Whereas you like to put in five or six sugar cubes and a gallon of cream before you drink it."
"I like the extra kick." Sirius retorted sticking his tongue out. Lily rolled her eyes at the two of them. "Real mature Siri…" That was when she felt it.
"Uh guys." Lily said quietly her eyes widening. "Get. James. Now." Remus looked up at her with a trace of worry on his face.
"What's up Lils?"
"It's time."
"IT'S TIME!" Sirius stood straight up almost overturning the table. "Bloody Prongs has the worst timing. I'll get her bag, Moony firecall James. Try and get him before the meeting can start. They never let anyone interrupt the initiations."
Remus nodded and stood up to walk over to the fireplace when he fell flat on his face. "Padfoot!" He wailed struggling to sit back up to untie his shoes, which were knotted several times around his chair leg. "You bloody mongrel!"
"Sorry." Sirius dashed up the stairs with a grin on his face and not looking at all sorry.
Lily was gasping for breath now. Her whole face was screwed up with pain.
Remus stuck his head in the fire and looked up at the secretary sitting at the desk in the Auror Help Center. "I'm looking for James, you seen him Hestia?"
Hestia Jones looked up from her paperwork and smiled at the other Order member.
"Sorry Remus, you just missed him," she indicated a locked door off to her right. "Meeting started just a minute ago." Remus swore very colorfully and Hestia raised an eyebrow. "I take it you needed to see him?"
"Yeah, considering his wife is going into labor right now."
Hestia gasped. "No, right now? That's awful. The doors are charmed shut. I can't get in to tell him." There was a cry from inside the fireplace, somewhere behind Remus. The werewolf turned around so Hestia got a good look at the back of his head.
"Oy! Lily no! No strangling Sirius!" There was a yelp Hestia could only guess belonged to Sirius before Remus yanked his head out of the fire and the connection was broken, leaving Hestia looking at the back of the brick fireplace.
"Oh dear."
James kept fidgeting nervously. He was having an odd cramping feeling in his stomach and he kept thinking about Lily.
Finally, the meeting let out. James walked from the room clutching his new auror badge when a very flustered Hestia Jones approached him. "James! Thank goodness! Lily's giving birth! Remus and Sirius took her to St. Mungo's. If you hurry…"
James was already sprinting for the Floo.
James skidded around the corner of the maternity ward and burst through the doors to Room 5. Remus was coming out from behind a curtained off bed in the corner of the room and the Longbottoms were in a bed near the window cooing over their new baby boy Neville.
The Longbottom's son had been born a few weeks early and they had to stay in the hospital for a while longer as a precaution
"Lily! Bloody hell! Leggo, I can't feel my hand! James recognized Sirius' voice from behind the curtain and the sound made Remus look up.
"James! You're here! Go in now, Lily's just starting the pushes now." Remus pulled James toward the curtain and gave him a push.
James flung the curtains open and knelt by Lily's bed. "I'm so sorry Lily. The meeting ran late and I…" Lily smiled and put a finger to her husband's lips to silence him.
"You're here now and that's all that matters." James smiled and looked down as his baby started to arrive.
"Um…I'll be over here." Sirius pointed beyond the curtains looking uncomfortable and made to leave but James caught him by the back of his robes.
"No you don't Pads. My son and your godson is about to come into this world and you're going to be here to greet him."
"Do I have to?" Sirius asked looking anxiously as the bloody mass spouted a head.
"Yes." James pulled Sirius beside him.
"All right the heads out now. One more push Lily come on." The doctor urged, his hands a blur between Lily's legs.
Lily grunted and trickle of sweat rolled down her forehead. James watched in amazement.
"Eww. Lily how're you doing this?" Sirius pulled a face. James snorted and bit back a laugh. Lily looked ready to kill.
There was a cry as the baby sprang into life.
"Congratulations Mr. Potter. You have a wonderful healthy baby boy." James felt tears sting the sides of his eyes and even Sirius was looking at the little child with awe now instead of horror. Lily laughed and tears started to stream down her cheeks.
"What're you going to name him Prongs?" Remus asked a little later while Lily slept and James held a newly washed and clothed baby.
James looked up from the wrapped bundle in his arms. "Me and Lily liked the idea of a simple name. Something no pureblood would ever name their child."
Sirius snorted and Remus smiled. "Inspired by Malfoy's new kid then, huh Prongs?" Sirius asked, leaning back in his chair.
"Actually yes, a little. Purebloods just can't name a kid. I mean really, Draco? It means Dragon but it would have been a better name had they just named the kid Dragon and got it over with."
"I dunno Prongs, you got an okay name." Remus smiled as the baby wrapped a small hand around his finger. And then refused to let it go. Remus tugged his hand to no avail.
"Well yeah but then they went all purebloodish on my middle name. Tertius. It's awful." James wrinkled his nose at the very thought of his middle name.
"Fine, but name him something classy and straight forward." Sirius reminded him.
James looked carefully down at the little bundle and surveyed his face. The little boy opened his bright green eyes and smiled up at his father.
"Harry." James said simply.
"Harry Potter." Remus said musingly, finally retrieving his finger from Harry.
"I like it." Sirius announced with a smile.
James rolled his eyes. "Yeah. Like it was up to you Padfoot."
Author's Note:
Remus' idiosyncrasies are a mystery. The boy legend is born.
Next chapter: Prophecy time!
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