Unintentional

"I'm going over to Petunia's later," Lily Evans Potter said dryly, "so Marlene's going to be doing my shift at the Order. I know you don't like Petunia, but she should at least know that she's going to be an auntie soon."

At the mention of her sister, Lily saw James Potter freeze, his arm in mid-air as he reached for his cloak. Lily knew that to her husband, Petunia was like a Muggle incarnate of Snape. Every time Lily mentioned Petunia, James always had an awkward expression on his face, which meant, Lily guessed, that he was having the distinct urge to whip out his wand and hex something. Matters hadn't been helped by the way Petunia had treated Lily at their parents' funeral, but Lily could hardly approve of the way James had shot a Quietus charm at her sister.

"James?" Lily asked.

"Just..." James' facial expression twisted, obviously he was wondering how to phrase his comments. As a compromise, he stepped into the closet to stall for time. Lily watched, caught between loving amusement and irritation at her husband's protective nature. Prankster though he had been, and still occasionally was, he was a terrible liar, and never seemed to be able to string a coherent lie together when he spoke to her. Certainly, it had its perks, but it also meant that she knew exactly what he was thinking on the topic of Petunia.

While Petunia didn't seem to care about insulting Lily in public, to James, it seemed that Lily never reciprocated those feelings. In fact, from his tortured expression before his disappearing act, James was sure that Lily loved her sister. Although James thoroughly believed in familial love, he'd found it was hard to believe that such a foul, high-pitched person could be related to Lily. Half the time, Lily thought wryly, checking her watch, Lily wondered the exact same thing

But then, Lily supposed, it was wholly possible that she really did act like she loved Petunia. After all, she'd spent a better part of seven years telling James how much of a Pratt he was, only to marry him.

James finally reappeared, cloak in hand. Running a hand through his hair, he said, "Just be careful, alright?"

Lily shook her head, her hair tumbling around her shoulders. "James, she's my sister. She wouldn't hurt me, and besides," Lily said teasingly, leaning forward to kiss James, "we both know that Voldemort doesn't accept Muggles."

"Yes...well...be careful anyway. You never know who you might meet on the way, and in your condition..."

"James!" Lily looked slightly irritated. "I'm only four months pregnant, I'll be fine." Lily's face suddenly lit up. "Besides, if this little fella could survive dodging Voldemort with me when he wasn't even four weeks old, then I'm sure he can survive a walk down to Petunia's."

James looked hardly reassured. Their last encounter with Voldemort had been harrowing, and after escaping third time lucky, James hadn't been so sure that their luck would continue to hold strong.

For a moment, they stared at each other, before James sighed in resignation. Leaning in to give her a goodbye kiss that lasted for a good five minutes, Lily felt James cradle her carefully, the lush texture of his lips against hers. Pulling back, James crouched down slightly to brush his lips over Lily's stomach.

Laughing, Lily gave him a reluctant nudge. "Go on. I can look after myself fine. Besides, you need to get to work."

James grinned boyishly at Lily. "Love you."

With a pop, he disappeared.

Staring at the place where he'd been, Lily gave her stomach a gentle pat. "And we love you too."

***

After he'd left, Lily wandered upstairs, and changed into Muggle clothes, grimacing as she tried to close the clasp of her jeans. She would be, Lily thought as she sucked in her stomach, going to be showing soon. Not that she minded. Giving her stomach a careful pat, Lily grinned, her excitement barely contained at the thought of having James' baby.

Pulling on a green t-shirt that accented her eyes, Lily wondered how her sister would react to her showing up in the morning to announce that she was pregnant. Sighing, Lily reached for her wand on her bedside table, knowing that it would be too dangerous for her to Apparate soon.

"Well, might as well go find out while we can."

With a flick, Lily disappeared.

***

Lily walked up the drive to Petunia's perfectly suburban house. A queasy feeling that had nothing to do with morning sickness welled up inside her. The entire area that Petunia lived in looked overly ordered and strict - exactly, Lily thought, like Petunia. Sighing, Lily reminded herself that Petunia was the only family she had, whether for better or worse.

A loud squalling sound from inside the house jolted Lily out of her contemplative thoughts, and Lily remembered that her sister had sent her a letter earlier that year, telling her that she'd given birth to a baby boy. Swallowing hard, Lily continued down the drive, until she reached the door. Out of the corner of her eye, Lily noted that the family car had gone - presumably; Petunia's husband had left for work.

Although Lily had been a Gryffindor, the thought of having to face Petunia now left her feeling more than a little nauseous.
"Well, here we go," Lily muttered, knocking twice on the door.

There was immediate silence from inside, as the baby, whose name was Dudley, Lily recalled, abruptly quietened. A moment later, Petunia's eye peered through the eyehole, and Lily looked right back at her.

"Petunia."

Silence. Lily sighed, crossing her arms in front of her, knowing that her sister was deliberating over whether to open the door to her or not. Several minutes passed, before Lily became impatient. "Petunia, open up. If you don't I'll use ma-"

The door flew open to reveal Petunia's agitated face, still as slim as ever. She wasn't, Lily thought as she walked into the hallway, pretty exactly, but her sister definitely had a way with how she looked. Striking, was the word. Her sister was striking.

"Well?" Petunia asked, as she closed the door, her neck glancing around furtively, obviously on the lookout for any neighbours who might've seen Lily's entrance. "What is it?"

Lily watched her sister, long enough to make her uncomfortable. Finally, Lily said calmly, "I think you should sit down before I tell you."

"If you need our help, then you won't get it," Petunia threatened, her face ashen. "You...you and that...degenerate...freak..."

Lily tried to keep her temper. As coolly as possible, Lily replied, "It's nothing like that. James and I are fine. I just thought you'd want to know that...you're going to be a...an auntie."

Petunia looked away from Lily, her eyes on the doorknob, which she was still holding, as if she would open it and throw Lily out of her house any moment. "Why would I want to know?" Petunia finally asked. "Why would I care?"

Lily felt immobile. She hadn't known what to expect when she'd told Petunia, but she hadn't thought it would be this. No matter what had happened between them, Lily had been so sure that Petunia would simply accept it. Maybe not be happy, Lily knew that was too much to ask, but Petunia's questions seemed so...strange. As if she knew something Lily didn't.

The two sisters stared at each other in the hallway, a standoff. It wasn't until Dudley's cries came through that Petunia looked away, her voice tight as she muttered, "You better come in."

Lily slowly walked after Petunia, noting that inside the perfectly arranged kitchen, was a small bassinet on a chair. "Diddy Dumpkins, don't cry," Petunia cooed softly to her son. It was as if her son had transformed her from uncaring sister to loving mother, and Lily could immediately see how attractive her sister was, with her high cheekbones and long, graceful neck.

Lily looked on enviously, before Petunia turned back around, her son held protectively to her chest. Petunia's eyes glittered slightly as she looked at Lily. "Coffee?" It wasn't a matter of politeness, Lily knew, but a matter of keeping up appearances - Lily could see one of Petunia's neighbours was trying to see into the kitchen, her neck bent at an awkward angle.

Before Lily could answer, Petunia had poured Lily a coffee at the kitchen bench, her back towards Lily, one hand doing all the work, while the other was wrapped around Dudley. Turning away, Lily realised how pristine her sister's home was compared to her own. It was definitely a home that their mother would've approved of, Lily knew, and although Petunia had never seemed aware of it, their mother had been proud of Petunia's domestic accomplishments, things Lily could never achieve. Certainly, Lily was handy with a Scourgify, but beyond that, she was hopeless at most household charms, and instead, had to clean things up manually.

"Sugar?" Petunia asked, thumping the coffee in front of Lily.

Lily turned back to Petunia and nodded. Looking down at the cup, Lily took a cautious sip of coffee, wondering if her stomach would rebel. Surprisingly, nothing happened, and Lily took another sip, enjoying the rich taste of it. It tasted different from her usual cup of coffee, but then, Petunia, Lily recalled, had always been handy with the coffeemaker. When the coffee was half gone, Petunia spoke. "So. Why are you here?"

Lily frowned. "To tell you about the baby."

"You could've sent me a letter."

"By owl?"

"There are things called post offices Lily."

"We don't have a return address. These are dangerous times Petunia."

"Who cares about a child you'll have with another freak?"

Lily was silent, and looking over at Petunia, she could see that her sister's face was a mask of anger and dislike, her arms tightening around Dudley as if Lily were contaminated. Quietly, Lily replied, "Because of Voldemort. Because of-"

Petunia's reaction was stunning at the word 'Voldemort.' The chair she sat on went flying as she stood up, her eyes glittering with rage. "The one who killed our parents?"

"Petunia-"

"It was you then."

"Petunia..." Lily's voice seemed to be pleading with Petunia at its own accord. "Please..."

"Get out. Get out! Now!"

Lily watched as her sister's face turned blotchy with fury. As Lily walked towards the door, she heard Petunia call out shakily, "And whatever happens, you get what you deserve."

As Lily walked out the door of Petunia's house, Petunia slammed the door shut behind her.

***

"Oh Merlin." Lily gasped out, her stomach cramping. "No, no, no..."

Beside her, Sirius Black gently held her hair back, as Lily threw up again. Ever since she had returned from Petunia's house, Lily had been feeling unwell, but was unwilling to call James. Instead, Sirius, James' best friend, was sitting beside her, having been the only person available, and was currently holding her as she sicked up everything she'd eaten that day, helping her through her horrific stomach cramps.

"Lily..." Sirius sounded worried. "Lily, are you sure you don't want James here?"

Lily gave a violent shake of her head, worried that she would throw up on Sirius' leather jacket if she opened her mouth. Although she was sure James had the right to know that she was ill, her husband could occasionally be overprotective.

Sirius frowned, but nodded, flicking his wand at the bowl beside her, making the vomit disappear. For a moment, they sat in Lily and James' room, Lily's head pillowed by Sirius' leather-clad arm, before the cramps took over again.

"Hey...hey..." Sirius murmured soothingly, as Lily let out a whimper. "It'll be alright."

When the cramps subsided, Sirius gave her a one armed hug, before standing up. "I'm going to go get a drink for you, alright? I'll be right back." Lily gave a dozy nod, and as Sirius slipped off, she drifted off to sleep.

***

Lily awoke to whispered swearing an hour later, and opening her gummed together eyes, she saw James and Sirius standing together, arguing furiously.

"-been like this?" James was muttering to his friend.

Sirius, his back to Lily, answered his words indistinguishable. Lily gave a weak smile. Who would've known that leather-wearing chick-magnet Sirius Black was such a good nurse?

Sirius turned around, looking sheepishly at Lily. "Oh. Lily. You're...awake."

James stared at his best friend. "She told you not to get me?!"

"Only because I knew you'd react like this," Lily whispered, as her stomach began cramping again. James and Sirius rushed over to the bed, their arms wrapping protectively around her, trying to guard her from something they couldn't understand. When it was over, James wiped her brow.

"Who would do this to you?" James said softly. Not what, Lily realised with surprise, but who. "Who would know about the baby besides us?"

"Baby?" Sirius looked up, his face lighting up. "You're...you..."

"Yeah, we are," James replied absently, one arm around Lily.

"You're pregnant too?"

James wasn't listening to Sirius though, as he reached the inevitable conclusion, his expression slowly changing to anger.

"Petunia."

***

That night, Lily was given a potion made by one Remus Lupin, which tasted like an earwax flavoured Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Bean. It had, however, helped stop her stomach from rebelling, and quenched her urge to sick up everything inside her. Bad potion maker though he was, in a hitch, Remus could pull off most potions relatively well. Even if they tasted like earwax.

"So..." Sirius sat in front of Lily, James cradling her in his arms. "When's the baby due?"

James shrugged, and gave Lily a nudge. "Hm?" Lily asked absently, as she snuggled into her husband's embrace. "What was that?"

"Baby. Due date." James said absently, his fingers playing with the strands of her hair.

"Oh. Sometime in July I think. Definitely a boy, I did the spell a week ago," Lily said sleepily.

"Oh?" Sirius' brown eyes lit up. "Hey Prongs," he said, jarring James out of his reverie, "we're going to have to teach your kid how to-"

Lily cut him off with a groan. "No way Sirius."

"Aw, c'mon..." Sirius whined. "He can't not know the tricks of the trade."

James grinned. "What, with you as his godfather? Oh, he'll know them alright."

Lily stared at them, as realisation dawned. "You two figured it all out while I was being tortured by Remus weren't you?"

"Hey," Sirius said defensively, "you could've gone to St. Mungo's-"

"And created a whole new crate of problems?" Lily asked archly. With a sigh at her husband and his best friend's blank looks, Lily shook her head. "I can't believe you two were plotting while Remus was mauling me with that awful potion of his..."

James' arm tightened around her, and he smiled innocently. "Us? Plot? No..."

Lily was not fooled by his innocent expression.

***

"I'm going James. I need to see Petunia. By myself." Lily stared James down, as he readied himself for work the following day. Having recovered from her cramps with two more doses of Remus' potion overnight, Lily was determined to see Petunia, to prove James wrong, that it wasn't her sister that had caused her sudden illness.

James stared at her, hand in closet, before leaning forward to kiss her firmly on the lips and then gently brushing his mouth over her stomach.

"Take care alright Lily? 'Cause I love you both too much to let go of you."

Lily nodded, a sad smile on her face as James reluctantly Disapparated to work. "I know."

***

"You!" Petunia sounded shocked as she peered through the peephole to see Lily, who appeared perfectly healthy, if a bit pale. This time, Lily had walked up the drive of Petunia's house without preamble, and given a firm knock on the door. At the tone of Petunia's voice though, Lily had known. In one moment, her sister had told Lily that she'd tried to kill the baby inside her...

Petunia had placed something in her coffee to make her miscarry.

A mix of sadness and anger roiled inside Lily's stomach and pushing the door open now, Lily walked in with sturdy strides. Hurriedly, Petunia slammed the door, before turning to Lily, her face ashen, and her voice shaken. "What gives you the right to come in here like that?"

Lily looked calmly at Petunia, pinning her older sister under her gaze until she started squirming. Slowly, Lily turned to walk towards the kitchen, over to the chair that held Dudley's bassinet. Peering inside, Lily saw the cute, if overweight child, sleeping quietly, thumb in mouth.

"Don't you dare touch him!" Petunia screeched out, racing in after Lily. Lily spun around, hand on stomach, barring Petunia's way to Dudley.

"After what you did to me-"

"I was trying to save you!" Petunia yelled. "From that freak!"

Lily froze. "I have told you," she said coldly, "that James is not a freak, and neither is our child. "

The two sisters stood glaring at each other, the silence only broken by Dudley's wailing. It seemed, Lily thought inanely, completely inappropriate to be having this argument in Petunia's pristine and sterilised kitchen.

Finally, Petunia broke the silence, her face resigned. "I promised mum that I'd look after you, a week before she was...murdered."

"By killing my baby?"

"By keeping you alive."

Lily frowned, ignoring little Dudley's loud wails of despair. "What?"

Petunia swallowed hard, her blond hair gleaming in the sunlight that filtered in through the kitchen window. "The wizarding world's going to be the end of you Lily. With Volde-"

Lily turned away from Petunia's pained expression, fighting to keep her tears in check. For all the animosity between them, Petunia had thought that she was helping Lily. That she was helping her baby sister.

But she could only go so far.

Slowly, Lily walked past Petunia, brushing her sister as she walked out. When Lily reached the door that lead to the outside world, Lily said quietly, "I'm sorry Petunia. But you can't save me from everything."

As the door closed behind her on its own accord, Lily could hear her sister begin to cry.

And tears began silently running down her own face, knowing that she could never forgive her sister for what had happened.

***