Unofficial Portkey Archive

SGR's Note: I do apologize about the lateness of this chapter. I'm having a lot of issues with figuring out what it is I want to do with each chapter. Not to mention, it's the end of the semester, and we all know what that implies.

On the upside, chapter eight comes relatively easy after chapter seven, so you shouldn't expect a long delay. Chapter nine, however, we shall see.

Oh yes, and thank you to Nicole for being my receiver of spam and poker of inspiration. Congrats on your 13th page.

"If you should stop for a while
You will find me standing by
Over here at the side of your life
I like to hold you still, remind you of all you've missed
If you have a little time."
-Do You Have A Little Time, Dido

Those Who Have Thrice Defied Him
Chapter Seven

"Why do we have so much junk?" James grumbled, putting down the final box. "I thought it all got destroyed, but oh no."

"Because I've been b-b-b-breast-feeding every three hours," Lily yawned, gently rocking forward and backwards in the chair, the baby suckling at her.

James turned around, a very confused expression on his face. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Lily yawned again. "I d-d-don't know."

He walked over to her and kissed her on the forehead. "I love you," he smiled down at her.

She looked down at Harry. "I swear, I'm not going to have any left if he continues the way he's going."

"Hey," James said, kneeling down to Harry's level. "Leave some for your dad, eh?"

"Dirty," Lily smiled. James got up and walked behind her, gently rubbing her shoulders.

"We're due," he whispered.

"James, come on," Lily whined, closing her eyes. "I can't take a piss without the baby crying, how on earth do you think we're going to fit in sex in his naps?"

"I daresay we've done it quickly enough before!" James said, indignantly. "Don't you remember that one time in the office?"

She gave him a sly look. "How do you know that I didn't fake it?"

His jaw dropped. "You what?!"

"James, I'm not nearly as horny as you are," she said, gently stroking Harry's cheek.

"You've faked it before?!" James could not get over it.

"Oh, come on, honey, it was playful banter," she cooed at Harry, who had finished eating.

"It was hurtful banter," James pouted. "You don't tell a man that you've faked it before. It plants a seed of paranoia that never goes away!!!"

Lily shook her head and walked into the bedroom, placing Harry down in his crib. She turned around and unhooked her bra, flinging it out the door as an invitation to James. She flung herself on the bed and looked at the ceiling.

"I'm only doing this if I don't have to move," she whispered.

Dumbledore was less than pleased to hear that Sirius and Remus had been to visit the Potters shortly before the village they were staying at was destroyed. He had instructed James and Lily that there were to be no more guests, and that contacts to Hogwarts were to be in the form of letters sent to him and him alone.

Fearing for the safety of their child, James and Lily followed their new instructions enthusiastically at first. However, it was after the first two days that the reality of the situation began to sink in.

"Lily! Guess what!" James cried, running into the room. His wife was curled up under a blanket on the couch, grasping a few moments rest in-between feedings.

"Hm?" she said, half asleep.

"He did it again!!" James was nearly hopping. That morning, he had walked into the bedroom where Harry was awake and to his surprise, his son had smiled at him in recognition. Lily had doubted the validity of the recognition, because Harry had been smiling for weeks now. James subsequently walked out of the room and back in five times with the same response to prove to his wife that Harry was recognizing people.

However, this was not enough for James who had been getting the same response out of Harry for an hour now.

"James, 'm trying to sleep," Lily mumbled, putting the blanket over her head.

"Fine then," James huffed. "I'll go tell Sirius."

This elicited a quick response from Lily. "Oh no you don't!" she exclaimed, bolting upright. "You know we can't communicate with anyone except Dumbledore!"

He blinked at her and then pouted. "Dammit."

Lily was watching him wearily, but slowly fell back down on the couch.

"At least Harry wants to hang out with me," James muttered, walking back into the bedroom, only to find Harry had fallen back asleep.

With his wife and son on the oddest sleeping schedule known to man (sleep for three hours, feed, sleep, feed, sleep, feed, etc), James found himself increasingly bored and subsequently lonely.

He had tried reading some of the books that Lily still had in boxes, but reading long boring books was never his style. He tried getting Harry and Lily up and about, but found the two of them ill- suited for daily entertainment. There was nothing to do in the all-Muggle town, and James couldn't go out often in case someone who wasn't a Muggle recognized him.

It had been a month and a half since they had moved into Pembroke, and they had two notes from Dumbledore telling them the same things. Firstly, that they were to continue to stay hidden, use little magic, etc., and secondly, that by all outward sources, Voldemort was still after them. Only, he was not yet searching personally, as with both the Scottish village, and the two towns that Alice and Frank had been found out, he had used his Death Eaters to attend to the families personally.

Dumbledore thought that this meant two things: Firstly, that he did not have the full prophecy, or else there would be more danger, and secondly, that because he was not actively searching for either family, that he was not yet sure who the prophecy referred to.

However, Death Eaters were still dangerous, so extreme precautions were necessary where communication was concerned. He even recommended they put a charm around the house that would sound an alarm whenever a wand passed through it. It went off whenever James or Lily left or came back to the house as well, but increasingly, it was only James that passed through it.

As the days went by, and James became more and more isolated from the rest of his family, the danger seemed to ebb away from the front of his mind. While Lily slept, he took long walks around the village, spending time at the docks, and frequenting a small pub nearby.

The thing that was killing James the most was the absence of his better half. He was sure that he wouldn't feel half as lonely if Sirius was with them, but he was sure that Dumbledore had made him swear on his perfect locks that he would not try to visit or contact James in any way. Remus probably respected Dumbledore's word without having to swear on anything. Damn, but he annoyed the piss out of James sometimes, being so perfect (except for the whole werewolf thing)...

James winced as he stood at the edge of the dock, watching the frothing sea below him. He had forgotten all about Remus' monthly business. He only hoped that Sirius and Peter were around to help him.

Hell, James never even saw Peter any more, and he missed him.

He looked down at his watch and sighed, turning and walking back to the house. It had been three hours, so Lily was probably awake by now.

When he walked into the door, he found Lily sitting on the chair, looking nervous.

"Where were you?" she asked, standing up.

James looked at his watch. "You're up early."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lily said, a bit of a bite in her voice.

"Nothing," he shook his head, smiling. "Glad to see you're awake, though!"

"No, James, what is that supposed to mean?" she said.

"Nothing, honey," James smiled, nervously. "I just take walks while you're asleep, is all..."

"Wait, what?" she said. "You leave the house while I'm sleeping?"

"Just for quick walks to get out of the house," James said, stepping back a bit. "I'm always back before you wake up...?"

"But what if something happens?" Lily said. "What if somebody comes to the house?!"

"The alarm will go off," James nodded.

"I obviously don't hear it when you leave and come back, so what's to say that I'll wake up when it's a Death Eater?" she exclaimed.

The baby started crying from the bedroom.

"Now, look what you've done," he said, walking past her to the bedroom. "You woke up the baby."

"James, I don't think that you're taking this seriously enough," Lily seethed, following him. "I know it's difficult for you to take anything seriously-"

"Hey!" James exclaimed, rocking the baby. "I take a lot of things seriously."

"Quidditch doesn't count, Potter."

"I take my job seriously," James exclaimed, hotly. "I take Harry very seriously. I'm not as stupid as you think I am."

"I don't think you're stupid," Lily softened a bit, watching him hold the baby. "I just don't think that you understand the severity of our situation."

"I understand it just fine," James hissed. "But it's been six weeks since anything has happened. Frank and Alice have been hit two more times than we have. I haven't spoken to any of my friends in weeks, I haven't seen you awake or not busy with the baby in weeks, I'm-"

Lily walked over to him and put her arms around his waist, looking over his shoulder at the baby. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

James sniffed. "I'm lonely. You never want to do anything with me anymore. I thought you said that you were over your post-mortem depression."

"I am," she whispered. "James, having a seven week old baby is tough."

"Not having anyone to talk to is tough too," James sniffed.

Lily closed her eyes and pressed her nose to his shoulder. "I look terrible, but let's go for a walk, hm?"

"Really?" James asked.

"I'll put on my trainers," she whispered.

"I look terrible," Lily muttered, her hand flying to her messy bun.

"You look fine," James sighed. He'd rather she didn't come along if she was going to complain all the time.

"Here, you've been holding the baby long enough," she said. "Let them at least think I have an excuse for looking so horrid."

James rolled his eyes, but handed her the baby.

"It's a bit cold for September," she said. "Did we dress the baby warm enough?"

"Yes," he groaned.

"Well, sorry," Lily grumbled. "Sorry for being concerned at the welfare of our only son."

"You're cranky."

"Somebody was pissed at me for not spending time with him."

"Can you please stop complaining?" he sighed, looking around.

"Can I go home and go back to sleep?"

"Fine by me-"

"James Potter!"

Both of them stopped dead in their tracks, fear washing over them. They turned around slowly to face who it was that had found them out.

James's fear turned into a different sort of fear, a nervous fear. Lily's fear turned into complete and utter shock.

The young woman bounding up the walk bore striking resemblance to Lily...and she had a look on her similar face that Lily did not like.

"James Potter, where have you been over the past few years!" the woman exclaimed, throwing herself (and her rather large bosom) onto James. James fell back a bit, gently patting her on the back and trying to run over possible scenarios in his mind, both on how to explain his absence, and how to explain to his wife.

"Er..." he said, dumbly. "School and...things..."

"You...oh my..." She caught glance of Lily, who was holding the baby very obstinately. She looked back to James, a hint of a smile on her face, and then back to Lily, spying the ring on her finger.

James took a step back from her, running his hand nervously through his hair.

"Um, Ann, this is my wife, Lily," James swallowed. "And our son Harry."

"Pleasure to meet you," Ann said, her eyes darting back to James, knowingly. He was sure she was thinking about the stark similarities between the two women before him, and he knew Lily was as well.

"Lily," James said, looking to her as if expecting an explosion. "This is my...first girlfriend, Ann."