THE WOLVES | R.L.

Chapter 34

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter World belongs to J.K. Rowling.

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Chapter 34

1 year later

"How are you, Lils?" Ardelle asked with a bright smile as Lily answered the door.

Ardelle was carrying her baby in her arm, who was wrapped up in a blanket and asleep at the moment. The baby girl's tuft of black hair was soft and though her eyes were closed Ardelle knew that they were hazel.

However, though the baby had inherited Ardelle's hair and eyes, her face partly resembled Remus and party resembled Ardelle.

Her baby was only very little and couldn't do much other than eat and sleep, but Ardelle loved her already.

Lily and James' house was in Godric's Hollow, protected by the Fidelius Charm ever since Dumbledore informed them that their unborn son—already named Harry James Potter—could be the child of the Prophecy.

James and Lily had been living in Godric's Hollow ever since, in hiding to keep themselves and their son safe.

But that didn't make them any less happy or cheerful than James and Lily had always been, because they knew that one of their most trusted, closest friends was keeping them safe—Sirius was the Secret-Keeper.

"Good, actually," Lily said chirpily as she stepped out of the doorway so that Ardelle could enter, "Peter just dropped by and said hello, and that was lovely—though he was a little stressed; probably because of the war and all that," She sighed, "Anyway, would you like to have some tea, Mrs. Potter-Lupin?"

"Of course I would love to, Mrs. Potter," Ardelle said in a posh voice, shutting the door behind her as she went into the house, gently making sure not to disturb her baby, "Where is your husband?"

"Well, he went on a mission yesterday with Kingsley and Arthur and Molly," Lily explained, "So he's sleeping now. But if you want to speak to him, I'm sure he wouldn't mind waking up just for a little while." She gave the bundle in Ardelle's arms an adoring look as she said, "Little Astraeia is here, is she?"

"Yeah," Ardelle said, affectionately stroking the little girl's brow gently.

Lily yawned, "Well, watching her sleep just makes me tired."

"Why don't you sleep, Lils?" Ardelle asked, furrowing her brows, "You're carrying a baby."

"I am," Lily agreed, "But I can still do whatever I want—and in this case, I'm feeling good enough that I don't need to sleep. Did you sleep when people told you to sleep?"

Ardelle sighed in resignation as she admitted, "No, I didn't. I didn't listen to them—though sometimes I couldn't help but fall asleep anyway. Astraeia is quite a handful. Though we usually call her Astra. We like to think that she'd like being referred to as a nickname."

"I've heard it gets better," Lily said lightly, "So you won't have to worry. Just get through the next couple of years and all, and then you'll be fine."

"There're still a lot of years," Ardelle sighed, "But of course," She added with a smile, absently rocking Astra gently, "I wouldn't trade these years with anything. I want to watch Astra grow up, and I want to be by her side. I love her, even though she can be quite a handful at times. And Remus helps, too."

"When can you start going on missions again?" Lily asked as she gestured for Ardelle to take a seat on the sofa.

"Well, it hasn't been long since she was born," Ardelle said, "Just over two weeks—but magical healing has helped me feel better faster than muggles. I honestly don't know when I'll be able to go on a mission, because Moony and I won't be able to go on the same mission since somebody has to take care of the baby and..." She sighed, "Well, I don't know. I might check with Dumbledore about it."

"I could take care of Astra," Lily offered, "So you and Remus would be able to go together."

"No, Lily," Ardelle shook her head, "You've got enough on your shoulders as is, I don't want to make you feel even more stressed by having you take care of Astra. I'd probably give her to Molly, since she has a lot of experience in handling children," Ardelle and Lily shared a knowing look.

"She does have a lot of kids," Lily agreed, "But they're all really cute. Especially Fred and George. They're adorable."

"They're troublemakers, those two," Ardelle said with a chuckle, "Right now they can still be contained, but they're masters of mischief, Jamesie and I can already tell—the last time we visited them they started pulling faces at us while their mother wasn't looking."

Lily laughed, "Delightful."

Playfully, Ardelle pulled a face, imitating the twins—and Lily just laughed harder.

There was a moment of silence between the two young women.

Ardelle took a good moment to take in Lily and James' home—a comfortable, cosy place, with the walls lined with framed photographs and memories, the room decorated with Gryffindor banners and Quidditch Posters, with James' three brooms; the three that he'd used throughout his years on the Gryffindor Quidditch Team, propped against the wall by the stairs.

The walls were painted a warm cream colour.

It was the perfect house for Lily and James—who were both friendly and kind and brave.

"What made you think to name your son Harry?" Ardelle asked, finally breaking the silence.

"James named him," Lily said with a smile, "He said he always liked the name. And it's a good thing I liked it, too. Harry James Potter. What about Astra?"

"We liked the name Astraeia, and we gave her the middle names Lily because, well," Ardelle said with a grin, "we couldn't pass on naming our child after such a wonderful woman. And her other middle name is Gemma, because Remus' grandmother was called Gemma."

"Astraeia Lily Gemma Potter-Lupin," Lily murmured, "Quite the name."

"Yes," Ardelle said with a smile, "Well, do you want my help in making some tea?"

"Nah, it's fine—,"

"Fine," Ardelle said, "Do you want me to help with anything?"

"Just wake James up," Lily said, "He's been sleeping all day now—he should get up anyway."

A smirk spread across Ardelle's face, "Now that, I can do..."

Author's Note:

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