*A/N: Ok, so this is the last of the rewritten ones. The next chapter is the new one. Please remember to read and review! Thanks so much!*
*Just a Twinkle*
"'Jamie, this pram has been in our family forever…'" James jeered, sarcastically recounting his mother's words as he tried desperately to assemble the antique baby carriage. "No kidding, Mum. By the looks of this sodding thing, it was first created around the time of man's discovery of the wheel." He continued to grumble as a bolt flew off and hit him in the head. "Why you bloody bastard of a…" he started to hiss at the half assembled carriage when he was interrupted by his wife calling him from the other room. Immediately, his eyes got big and he began to sweat. In three days, Lily would be one week over due. After a small scare last week, he had been on red alert since then.
"JAMES!" Lily called again. She hated when he disappeared into the nursery like this. She had become so big that she couldn't even go up the flight of stairs without feeling tired. "This has become highly obnoxious." She thought, as she tried to pick up a rogue napkin which had fallen from the table. After several minutes, she gave up and resigned herself to thinking that it looked better on the floor anyway.
"Lily? Is everything ok?" James asked after he emerged from the baby's room. His head was covered in light gray dust from the pram's cloth cover.
Lily looked at him and giggled. "Yes dear, all is well. Dinner's ready. Good lord, James, all this stress has caused your hair to go gray. Never fear, sweetheart, I'll still love you." With that James gave her an odd look. "Just go look at your head." Lily chuckled as she turned off one of the burners and dished some spaghetti onto one of the plates from table.
*~*~*
"Ok, so if you need me for anything, just give me a shove. I'll wake up in a second." James cautioned as he crawled in to bed. Lily rolled her eyes and hummed an affirmative reply. He had given her the same speech every night before they went to bed. She never realized how much of a worrywart James was until recently. Despite it being slightly annoying, she felt secure with him by her side. She knew that he'd do anything for her. Rolling over, she fell asleep, still smiling
James, however, wasn't asleep yet. He just laid there and stared at the ceiling. He recalled his Auror training years ago and Mad Eye Moody's voice hissing "CONSTANT VIGILANCE" resounded through his head. He was afraid to go to sleep, afraid that Lily would try to wake him and he wouldn't awaken, leaving her for those few minutes, alone and in pain. He was afraid that when the baby came, he'd sleep through his cries. Somehow, he soon found his eyes slowly drifting downwards and within minutes he was asleep - lightly, of course.
*~*~*
When Lily woke the next morning, she awoke to find that it was much later than she usually slept and that James had already left for work. With effort, she managed to get herself out of bed and plodded to the bathroom. "I had better get to the store today and pick up the mattress for the crib. Don't want my son growing up knowing that for the first night of his life home, he slept in a pram." Stepping into the shower, she proceeded to lather her hair and let her mind wander to thoughts of what the future would be like for James, the baby and herself. Would they have more children? Would they be happy? Sighing, she rinsed her hair and grabbed the razor. But because of some left over lavender shampoo left on her hands, it slipped and went crashing to the shower floor rather violently. That's when she noticed the little stream of rust colored water making its way from her foot to the drain. "Must have nicked myself when it fell" she thought and finished her shower.
Not long after, she heard a soft tapping from the window. Getting up, she opened it and found the small brown owl that belonged to her best friend Katie waiting patiently with a note tied to its foot. Tossing her a treat, she untied the letter and read it quickly:
Lils,
Have some free time this afternoon. Lunch? I was thinking Hogsmeade @ 1PM. Let me know.
Love ya lots,
Kate
"Oooh. That sounds good" Lily murmured to the little owl, who hooted a soft, patient reply. Lily quickly scratched out a reply that she would meet her at the Three Broomsticks after she went and picked up the mattress for the baby's crib. Tying the note securely to the owl's outstretched leg, she tossed her another treat and watched the little bird eloquently fly off. Looking at the time and realizing that she had very little, she gather her belongings and tried, as quickly as a woman 9 months pregnant can, to leave the house.
*~*~*
She just managed to catch the Knights Bus and was in Diagon Alley in no time flat. Hurriedly, she made her way to Evrard's Enfant Emporium. "Oh lord, I wish James was here to help me" Lily thought "He's good with this stuff, freakishly good, but good all the same"
Her thoughts were interrupted by a small man with thick spectacles. "Can I help you, Madame?" He asked with a thick Parisian accent. "I am Etienne Evrard, owner of this fine establishment. What can we do for you today?" He asked as he peered up at her with a helpful interest.
"I need a mattress for a baby's crib. Here are the measurements" Lily said handing him a slip of paper. She was relieved that she had someone who could help her with this.
"Ahh, mais oui, Madame. Right this way, please." Monsieur Evrard said as he quickly darted towards the back end of the shop.
Trying desperately to keep in pace with him, or at least in sight of him, Lily floundered after. "I feel like a beached whale attempting to get back to the sea." she muttered to herself.
"C'est bonne." Monsieur Evrard exclaimed as he found a mattress that fit the dimensions that Lily had handed him. "Here we are, Madame. This is the best mattress we have. Have you any particular color preference?" He asked, again peering helpfully in Lily's direction.
"Red, gold, or if possible, a pattern with both colors involved" Lily said quickly. She had noticed the time and was due at the Three Broomsticks in twenty minutes.
"Wonderful choice, Madame" the shopkeeper praised. He took out his wand and muttered a charm which instantly turned the pale mattress into a striped menagerie of red and gold. He noticed the smile that came to Lily's face when she saw it and knew that it was as it should be.
"Would it be possible to have this delivered to my home around 5 this evening?" Lily asked as she paid the little shopkeeper.
"Of course, Madame. We would be very happy to accommodate you. Please leave, if you will, your name and address for the delivery personnel." He responded, jovially handing her a slip of paper and her receipt.
Lily scratched out the information and bid the man a kind farewell. Looking at her watch, she had 10 minutes to get to Hogsmeade. "I'll just make it… I hope" she thought as she dashed as best she could to the nearest Knights Bus stop.
A/N: Ok, I know its short, but the rest is covered in the next chapter. I just thought here would be a good place to stop. I've never been good at making things long - it's been an issue time and time again on papers for university. Please bear with me!