Syzygy

NOTE: Don’t forget to check out my novel length fanfics, Snitch!, Dracaena Draco and Time of Trial, and keep a look out for my upcoming collaboration with the undisputed queen of fan art, Starling.Coming soon, to http://www.schnoogle.com .

CHAPTER TWO.

For a moment, Lily just stood there, looking at James with an expression approaching stunned disbelief written across her face.

James' eyes darted back to Harry.Still, the thick, crimson blood was trickling freely ...

Lily padded across the room."I don't see anything," she said."What's to see?"

James looked up at her."What's to see?He's fucking bleeding, Lily!"

"He's absolutely fine."

She craned over them both, her hair brushing against James' bare shoulders, tickling him.Harry blinked owlishly, and stretched out tiny fingers.Lily took his hand in her own.

"See?"

James suddenly felt very sick indeed.He looked down at Harry's pyjamas.They had little flying griffins on them, flapping their wings.There was no trace of blood.

"Eug bub bus," said Harry, plaintively.

James ran fingers tentatively across the boy's forehead."Bambi?Are you fucking with Daddy's mind?"

"Fuzzg!" said Harry, clutching Lily's hand in that exceptionally tight grip of his, which they had come to fear above Voldemort himself.

"Nothing whatsoever to be worried about," Lily said, "nothing at all, James.How much did you have to drink?"

"Don't be silly," James snapped.

Lily rolled her eyes."Harry is fine ... he's beyond fine.He's absolutely fine.Now let's go back to bed.You're thoroughly overexciting the poor boy.Heaven knows he's going to be excited enough tomorrow."

James stood up, causing the ancient leather seat to creak somewhat alarmingly.He looked around the nursery.Golden snitches were chasing one another round and round the wall frieze, pursued by a cherubic looking seeker on a broomstick.The bookshelves were crammed with all the books that nobody ever seemed to read, and the floor was littered with toys, mainly die-cast Dinky cars, for which Harry had developed a taste.In one corner was a vast pile of cuddly toys.

The whole room suddenly seemed dangerous.

"I'd be happier if he slept in the big bed with us, tonight," James said.

Lily looked at him disapprovingly."We've got over this," she sighed."Leave him be in here.If it makes you feel any better, I'll cast a baby monitoring charm ... we'll hear him immediately if something goes wrong," she put a supporting hand on James' shoulder ... and the sudden warmth surprised him.He had not realised he was that cold.

"Put him to bed," Lily said softly.

Reluctantly, James crossed the room, and lowered Harry, who was still wide awake, back into his cot."Do you want Mr Snaggles?" he asked, reaching for a huge, overstuffed black bear from the pile."Do you?"

Lily grinned."I'll fix some milk ... help you sleep."

She crossed to the door, then turned, smiled, and was gone, her footsteps heavy on the uncarpeted landing.James deposited the black bear in Harry's cot.It curled up next to him, and growled contentedly.Harry's eyes were half closed as James tucked him up under the blankets.

For a moment, he just stood there, watching the tiny boy as he gradually dozed off.The bear put its paw around him protectively, and grunted in its sleep.

"Come to bed," said Lily, who was standing at the door.

James sighed, turned away from the cot, and went back to bed.

* * * * *

Remus never knew exactly what woke him up.Probably, it was the sudden flash of lightning, and the near-deafening peal of thunder that followed immediately after.He gave a start, and opened his eyes.

The digital clock on his bedside table read 03.40.That meant it ought to be getting light quite soon.But his tiny bedroom was still bathed in oppressive darkness.

Remus could hear the soft patter of rain falling on the leaves of the trees outside.He sat up, and closed his bedroom window a bit.It wouldn't do to get wet, now.The lighthouse at the entrance to the harbour was flashing, a beam of light winking.Lightning briefly illuminated the scene again, and Remus shuddered involuntarily.There had been a time in his life when he had found thunderstorms exhilarating ... a time when, if he saw that tell tale, blinding, electric flash, or heard the distant rumble, or spotted the tall, black, anvil clouds building up, he would run outside to bask in it.He had relished the feel of the rain on his face as he inclined it towards the angry sky, breathed in that heady, humid smell that only thunderstorms bring with them.

But when he was eight, that had changed.If only, he thought, he had not been outside that night.He shuddered again.These days, he hated the elemental force, the unpredictability of it.For he never knew ... nobody did, what might happen during a thunderstorm.Remus drew his curtains tight shut, and relaxed back amongst his fluffy pillows.

But he couldn't quite nod off again.

Deciding, finally, that he needed a drink of some description to set himself straight and send him off to sleep, he threw back the covers, and reached for his dressing gown which, as always, was lying in a crumpled heap upon the floor where he had thrown it.

He wandered through to the tiny kitchenette, flicked on the radio for some light music, and stuck a pint glass under the cold tap.Water gushed out.

Thunder rumbled again.Remus left the tap running, put the glass to his lips, and downed it in one go, then he filled it up again, raised it to his mouth, and was just about to drink when he noticed something that made him drop the glass on the floor.

The water had turned red.

The glass hit the tiled floor with a resounding crash, splintering into tiny glass fragments that flew everywhere.

Remus turned off the tap, took a deep breath, and then turned it on again.That same, reddish water was gushing out.Gingerly, he stuck his finger under it.It was warm ... thick ... blood.

Gasping, he looked down at the floor.Sure enough, it was covered in a sticky, red mess, it stained his bare ankles and soaked the soles of his new slippers.

"Oh fuck."

* * * * *

The next day dawned bright and sunny, and brought with it fresh, cool air.The repressive, nasty humidity of the previous few days seemed to have lifted from around Godric's Hollow.Even James felt it, as he woke up at seven precisely to find sunlight pouring in through the open windows.The events of the previous night seemed, now, no more severe than a bad dream.He rolled over in bed to put his arm round Lily, but she was not there.Her spot was still warm, though.Perhaps she was making coffee.

Special day ... special day.Hmm.

James climbed out of bed, shrugged off the underpants he had been sleeping in, and crossed to the window.Then he flung it wide open, and for a moment, just stood there.Fucking lucky, he thought, to have a view like this, over the foothills of the Brecon Beacons.

"James, whatever are you doing?" Lily's voice roused him from his reverie, and he turned around, sharpish.

"Looking out the window," he said, although he could feel himself blushing.

"You're completely naked," she said, setting down steaming coffee mugs on the bedside table.

"You said it was important to let my pores breathe," James protested.

"Not in full view of Mid-Wales," Lily replied."Come back to bed for a while.Harry's still asleep ... I doubt he suspects a thing ..."

"He didn't suspect a thing last birthday, either," said James wryly, turning back to the window.He heard a rustling sound as Lily slipped between the sheets.

"Come back to bed," Lily said again."I feel quite frisky, this morning."

James grinned to himself as he surveyed the lane, down below.Someone was walking along it.The Muggle postman, by the looks of things.He ducked hurriedly out of sight.

* * * * *

"Who's this one from?"

"Fub!"

"No," Lily said, smiling, and holding the birthday card just out of reach of Harry's already sticky fingers."It isn't from fub.It's from Sirius.Can you say Sirius, Harry?"

"Eeeries!" gurgled Harry, making another spirited grab for the red coloured envelope.

"What does it say?" asked Lily.

"Eeeries!"

"It might do," said Lily, slitting the envelope open, and extracted the card within.It was in the shape of a teddy bear holding a balloon with a large number one on it.Inside, Sirius had scribbled his name in his usual untidy scrawl, and Padfoot had made a paw print for good measure.

"Isn't that nice?" said Lily, waving the card just in front of Harry's nose.Harry grabbed for it, and this time, managed to grasp hold of it in his tiny fists.He promptly shoved it in his mouth.

"No ... not for eating," said Lily, wresting the card free.

"Eat, eat!" said Harry, banging his plastic spoon on the tabletop.His hair already had mushy cornflakes stuck to it.He would need a bath before they could take him anywhere.

James tipped the red envelope upside down.A slip of paper fell out, and drifted to the kitchen floor.

"Hey, look, a cheque."

Sirius, who was leaning casually on the fridge, blushed to the roots of his hair."Um, yeah," he said."I thought it might be a good idea for him to have some money put away ... for later, you understand."

James picked up the cheque.In shimmering golden letters, it spelled out, 'I undertake the covenant to pay into the bearer's hands upon redemption, the sum of fifty Galleons.'

"That's a ... that's a hefty ... Sirius ... you sure you can afford it?"

Sirius grinned."It would just have gone on new sparkplugs for Rosalind, if I hadn't given it to you."

It was signed and everything, and bore Harry's name.James pocketed it."It's far too good for Harry, he'll just eat it."

"He won't be getting a Halloween present, mind," Sirius said."His other present is upstairs in my bag."

"What is it?" asked James.

"I'll show you."

It turned out to be a large Quidditch Subbuteo set.Sirius set it proudly down on the kitchen table, and Harry banged his fists in delight at the prospect of such a lovely box.

"Fuggle!" he babbled to himself.

"I bought four teams," Sirius said."The 1972 historic Double-Winning Caerphilly side, the Caerphilly Catapaults, 1980-81 Edition, the Caerphilly Five Hundredth Anniversary Dream Team and the Caerphilly 1981-82 Edition."

"Sense a pattern developing?" asked James.

"Cappily!" giggled Harry.

"How," began Lily, "is this useful for a one year old baby?I rather think you bought this so that you boys could play it, didn't you?"

"Well ... we might have a go," said Peter."Harry will need to be taught how to play, after all."

"We can help Harry set it up," said Sirius, enthusiastically.He indicated Harry, who was hitting the box with his fists and humming a ditty of his own composition."He'll have difficulty gluing the pieces together ... tiny fingers, you see.No good with small parts."

"He can have a go, if he wants," said James."As long as he doesn't try and eat Dangerous Dai."He turned to Sirius."It's brilliant, mate.Thanks a lot!"

"I suspect he'll have more fun with the box," said Lily, exasperated."You boys are practically unbearable, sometimes."

Harry shrieked with laughter.

Lily folded her arms and looked defiant."See, he's happy now because I told you off."

"I got him this, too," said Sirius, sheepishly.He produced from behind his back two smaller, brightly wrapped packages.They glittered in the sunlight pouring in through the kitchen window.

Lily eyed them oddly.

"What would those be?" she asked, suspiciously."More things Harry can appreciate later in life?A box set of lagers of the world?A gift pack of vindaloo flavoured condoms?"

"Unwrap them and see," said Sirius.

"The second one is partly from me, too," Peter cut in."It was a bit expensive, so we thought we'd club together.Remus put a couple of Galleons towards it, as well."

Lily raised her eyebrows.

"Do you want to open this one, Harry?" she asked, handing him the smaller of the two packages.It was cylindrical, shaped roughly like an overlarge tube of Smarties.

Sirius leapt in."I wouldn't," he said, hurriedly."That one is a bit delicate."

Lily gave him a suspicious look.She was prepared to admit that it probably wasn't a condom.Tentatively, she pulled off the wrapping paper.

"A kaleidoscope?"

Sirius shook his head."Almost, but not quite," he said."Give it here, and I'll show you what it does ..."

"You activate the charms," Peter explained.

Sirius nodded, and tapped it with his wand."Recollectio!Now ... you hold it up to something ... whatever you want.Go on," he handed it to Lily, who took it, looking extremely puzzled.

"What do I do?"

"Hold it up to your eye, and look through it," Peter said."It's brilliant ... we were playing with it in the shop."

Lily looked through it.Sirius' face swam into unusually sharp focus.

"I still don't understand what it is," she said, squinting slightly.Nobody noticed Harry eating Sirius' birthday card.

Sirius smiled."Well, it's recording at the minute," he said."Now, give it here."

Lily handed the kaleidoscope back.

"Now we play it back," said Sirius."Relinquo recollectionem."

Instantly, the kaleidoscope shot a thin stream of silvery smoke, that looked, Lily thought, not unlike a Patronus, into the air.The smoke swirled around their heads for a minute, and then resolved itself into a crystal clear, moving image of what Lily had seen through it, which floating in midair, repeating itself over and over.

"A memory stick," said Sirius."Sort of like a miniature Penseive."

"It's lovely," said Lily.

"We thought it might be useful to Harry," said Peter."To replay his childhood, and so on.You can operate it for him until he's old enough himself."

A broad smile spread across Lily's face.Then she stepped forwards, and took both Sirius and Peter in a hug.

"It's lovely," she said.She seemed to be crying."He'll love it ... I mean ... he ... he loves it ... don't you, Harry?"

"Bus!"

END OF CHAPTER TWO.

TO BE CONTINUED IN CHAPTER THREE …