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DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN ANY OF THIS, EXCEPT FOR ANY CHARACTERS YOU DON'T RECOGNIZE. JK ROWLING IS JESUS!
CHAPTER 79
The fall sped by us very quickly; I was traveling a lot and performing all over the world. It was exhausting yet rewarding, and due to my current medical state, I was allowed a few days break in between gigs to come home and see Sirius. He was still in training to be a hit wizard, and was technically a spy for the Order along with some Ministry officials who were on our side.
By the time we reached November, I still wasn't showing as much as I probably should have been. With my mother gone, I didn't really have anyone to turn to with questions. Did I show at all when she was carrying me? I did not know…
November 7th was a peculiar day, it was incredibly overcast. I was in Austria performing for Austrian Minister of Magic. Austria was one of few countries that had a very strict policy against dark wizards, and therefore, they remained tall and vigilant, while the rest of the magical world was fighting and losing to a revolution that would destroy everything we knew. It was safe to be inside their ministry, but due to my being seen the previous summer, Albus wanted me shadowed by a trusted auror every time I had an engagement. Alastor Moody was my shadow that night; I could see Edgar was a bit annoyed by him. Alastor trusted very few, and Edgar was not one of the few. After my performance and meeting with the Minister, I went back into the coatroom to put my cello away when it started…
Audrey felt a sharp pain, and exhaled, followed by another shortly after.
"Edgar!" Audrey called, there was no response.
"EDGAR?" She called again.
Contractions were starting, my water broke, I was in Austria…and Sirius wasn't there.
Alastor burst through his door with wand ready, he looked around the room.
"Oh." He said gruffly. "I thought you were being attacked." He then grumbled something about false alarms.
"No." Audrey breathed. "I'm going into labor…if…I was being attacked…I would have handled it…trust me…"
"Whatever you say, Mrs. Black." Alastor rolled his eyes.
"FANGS!" He barked.
That was one of a few reasons Edgar did not like Alastor.
"What is it?" Edgar asked, running into room.
"The baby's coming." Audrey breathed, Edgar's eyes widened.
"I'll take her to the hospital." He said, looking at Alastor. He gave Audrey's cello to him. "Take this back to Oxshott and tell Sirius, then alert the others."
"How can I be so sure you'll take her to the hospital?" Alastor barked, on full guard as Edgar waved his wand, sending a patronus.
"Because I'm her bloody mentor!" Edgar shot back, dissapparating.
I must say, dissapparating while going into labor is a most unpleasant feeling. I was set to deliver at St. Mungo's, under very high security. By the time we arrived at the hospital, there were three aurors waiting for me. They were in the Order and assigned to stand inside and outside the delivery.
"Ah, Mrs. David!" said a Mediwitch by the name of Lena. "This way, m'am!"
The Healers, Mediwitches, and Mediwizards were all under the impression that our last name was David. After all, I was known under a different name entirely as a performer. Only one Mediwitch knew the truth, and that was Lena. She was a member of the Order.
"Hi Lena." Audrey breathed, feeling as if she were about to fall over. Everything felt painful right now.
"Sit, sit." She said, pulling out a wheel chair. "We'll go into the room, Sirius should be on his way, I'm assuming."
"I hope so, Lena." Audrey moaned, doubling over in pain.
"We need to get you out of that dress too." Lena tutted.
It was only moments after Audrey was set up in a bed that Sirius could be heard running down the hallway. Audrey knew it was him, she could tell by his footsteps.
"Audrey." Sirius breathed, finding the right room.
"Hello, Sirius" said Lena.
"Lena." Sirius acknowledged, out of breath. "Did I miss anything?"
"Just…contractions." Audrey breathed, gripping the bar on her bed.
"Well…good…or bad…wait, I don't know is that good or bad?" Sirius asked.
"Just go put these on." Lena said, throwing Sirius some scrubs.
"Okay, okay!" He said, running out of the room. Audrey gripped the bed, letting out a groan.
Sirius came back with Remus, Marlene, James, Lily, and Sarah. All of them were in scrubs.
One would think that having the people you considered your family in the delivery room with you would be fantastic, but it was rather distracting…
"My, what a large family." Lena joked.
"Got a problem, Lena?" James said sarcastically.
"Nope." The Mediwitch smirked.
"I think we pull these off quite well." Sarah grinned, gesturing to herself, Marly, and Lily.
"Marlene looks the sexiest, hands down." Audrey laughed, but then groaned again.
"Don't make her laugh, the baby will just shoot out of her!" Sarah said.
"Maybe that's what we want." James said thoughtfully.
"Not quite." Audrey sat up.
Sirius was about to hold Audrey's hand when James stopped him.
"Maybe Remus should, mate."
"Why?" Sirius asked.
James pointed at bar on the side of the bed that Audrey was gripping. It was dented and crushed.
"Good point." Sirius said. "Would you mind, love?"
"Not at all." Audrey breathed. "Would you mind, Marly?"
"Of course not, we have the same brain."
"Might as well share men." James finished for her.
"Shut it, James." Marly punched him in the arm.
Audrey gripped Remus' hand, he laughed.
"What's so funny, Moony?" Sirius asked.
"I'm laughing because James was right, if Audrey would have held your hand she would have crushed your bones instantly." He replied.
"Well then, thanks for taking one for the team, Remus." Sirius grinned.
"Anytime, Pads." Remus laughed as Audrey groaned again.
"I think you're ready, Audrey." said Lena, below her.
"Erm…can you lot not crowd around me like that?" Audrey asked her friends. "I'd rather you not staring at my privates, thanks."
"I thought we were at that point in our friendship." Marlene said sarcastically.
"The lady said back up, Marly." Remus said in a tough voice, Marlene laughed.
"She's not technically a lady with those legs open like that." James called from the side.
"Oh shut it, James!" Marlene said, elbowing him. Audrey laughed.
"Oi, don't make her laugh like that! As I said before we don't want the baby to cannonball out or anything." said Sarah.
"Start pushing!" Lena called. Audrey nodded.
The pain was excruciating, but I just kept concentrating. I blocked out any noise around me, and I lost track of time.
"It's a girl." Lena smiled.
"I knew it!" Sirius grinned.
"Fine, Sirius. You won that round." Audrey breathed a sigh of relief and laid back in the bed as Lena took the baby away to clean her off.
"Oh, I can close my legs now? What a relief." Audrey joked, sitting up excited, Sirius held her hand.
"Aren't you exhausted?" Remus asked, surprised.
"A little bit, but the excitement of having a daughter is kicking in." Audrey grinned.
James, Lily, Sarah, and Marlene came back over and congratulations were said.
"Sirius, you better be a damn good father to that baby." Marlene threatened.
"Marls, I haven't killed Audrey yet so I think we're okay." Sirius joked.
He had such a terribly dark and ironic sense of humor.
"Ahh! We're godparents!" Sarah squealed.
"Godparents is just a fancy word for six babysitters really." James joked.
"Oh shut it, Prongs." Sirius said, grinning. He then turned serious. "But really, it was hard picking godparents and there's a bloody war going on. Any of us could get picked off tomorrow for all we know…I just want her to be safe."
"We know, Sirius." Remus replied softly as Lena came back in.
"She's an interesting one." Said Lena, handing the baby over to Audrey. "Her eyes have changed to five different colors in the last few minutes, and she hiccupped and the shelf fell down."
"Is that true?" Audrey asked that baby, she gurgled.
"Now, you can't go knocking people's shelves down, love. That's rude." Sirius said, wagging his finger. She cooed.
"Well?" said Lena.
"Well, what?" Sirius asked.
"What's her name?" Lena asked. "We need to make a birth certificate, you know."
"Oh right." Sirius said.
We had thrown out names a lot over the last few months, but we decided that we would pick one on the spot depending on when the baby was born.
Audrey and Sirius exchanged a look.
"Anastasia." Sirius said suddenly.
Though we had been together nearly three years, I was surprised her remembered a date so personal to me…my grandmother's birthday.
"Anastasia." Audrey confirmed, looking at the baby. Anastasia giggled.
"I think she likes it, Mum." Lily smiled.
"She's going to be twice as gorgeous as her parents." Remus smirked.
"Oh, you." Sirius said, waving him off and laughing.
"Yeah, and I'll bet you that she's going to marry some big shot Quidditch player." James said, looking at Sirius.
"Oi! Don't say that!" Sirius said, taken aback. "She was just born, that's my daughter, you nutter!"
"Sorry, Pads. It's just a prediction." James said. "And if she marries a Quidditch player she'll be set for life." He turned to the baby. "Isn't that right?" He cooed.
"Anastasia's the third baby in the Order this year." said Lena, as she was making up the birth certificate. "Claire Wood just had one a few months ago."
"It's a boy, right?" Audrey asked.
"Yep." Said Lena. "His name's Oliver, he's a cute little thing. All boys in that family, I can't imagine how Clare copes."
"Who knows?" said Audrey, laughing.
The baby's eyes traveled the room, soaking in all the people. Her eyes stayed on Remus for a while, she gurgled when he smiled at her.
"Uncle Remus has instant popularity." Sirius said, as Anastasia then turned her attention to Sirius.
"Hey, love." Sirius grinned, taking her from Audrey. The baby smiled and squealed. Sirius' put on a surprised face. "My my, you're noisy!"
I could see the exact moment when Sirius fell in love with Anastasia.
The baby gurgled in response.
"Are you going to keep your mother and I up all night?"
The baby laughed.
"Definitely a Marauder baby." Sarah said, looking over Sirius' shoulder at the baby.
"Asia, you are going to be so witty and clever. I can just sense it." Sirius said, gently rocking the child.
"So, does Walburga still want to see the baby?" James snickered.
"Oh god, she's been sending me so many howlers." Sirius groaned, Asia was startled by the sudden noise. "Sorry, love." He cooed.
"Why does your mother want to see the baby?" Marlene asked, taking her goddaughter in her arms.
"Because her bloody stupid fortune teller Nadya told her that I impregnated a pure blooded woman!" Sirius replied. Audrey burst out into giggles.
Walburga Black had been sending her son Howlers for nearly four months, the first time that she contacted him, it was a normal letter. She was being very formal and wanted to take back disowning her son because he was going to have a "pure blooded" child.
"I guess Nadya didn't foresee this." Audrey said, flashing her eyes a few different colors.
"Or this." Marlene said, gesturing to Asia, who was mimicking her mother and giggling. A vase of flowers fell of the windowsill and broke.
"Asia, what did I tell you about knocking things over?" Sirius cooed, scooping the baby from Marlene's arms.
"She's going to do that a lot, love. I know I did when I was an infant." Audrey laughed. "Better prepare yourself."
"Is that why you don't own many vases?" Lily asked.
Audrey nodded smiling.