The Marauders - Order of the Phoenix Part Three

The Double Shots

"Something's the matter with Prongs," Sirius said suddenly.

It was mid-afternoon, Sirius and Remus were on the couch in the flat in East London - Remus was reading and Sirius was listening to his record player before he had spoken, his legs across Remus's lap, head on a pillow at the opposite end. 

Remus looked up from his book.

Sirius sat up, pulling his legs from Remus's lap and looking concerned as he bent forward and pulled the needle off the record that was spinning on his playing. "I'm going to pop over to the Potters, I think, and check on Prongs." Sirius got up and flipped the lid on his record player closed as he crossed the room to the hearth.

"You want me to come?" Remus asked.

Sirius shook his head, "Nah, I'm alright. I'll be back." He took the floo powder down, chucked a handful into the hearth, and stepped through into the Potter's living room. Dora was sitting in one of the chairs and watching the telly, Roger purring loudly on her lap. She looked up in surprise when Sirius came through the hearth. "Hey mum," he said, looking around. The scene was more peaceful than he'd been expecting from the anxiety he was feeling. Both Lily and James were upset, he could feel it in his bones the way one can feel a chill in the air. It sort of danced through his nervous system in a horribly unsettling way.

"Hi honey," she answered, smiling. "James and Lily are out at the moment."

"Oh," Sirius said.

Dora's brows cinched. "Are you alright, sweetheart?"

"Yeah," Sirius said, nodding, "Yeah, brilliant." He nodded some more.

"Are you sure?"

Sirius continued on nodding. "Yeah, great. Do you know when the Prongses are expected back?"

"Any time I'd imagine. They just had an appointment was all," she said.

"Oh shit, right - I mean shoot. The appointment." Sirius's stomach dropped.

"You're welcome to sit with me and wait for them to come back," she suggested. 

Sirius hesitated, then, "I was just checking in to see if James wanted to go for a lark but I reckon they're busy and I'll check back later. Tell him I came by."

"Alright," Dora smiled.

Sirius left, but instead of flooing home, he flooed to St. Mungo's.

The hospital was busy and bustling with activity, loads of witches and wizards with all sorts of maladies sat about the waiting room when Sirius came up from the hall of floos in the hospital. He went up to the reception witch. "Which way to the - er -" he wasn't sure what the office would be called, so he ad-libbed, "The wing for baby-makin'."

"The birthing center is --"

"No, no - the - er - mechanics of baby making, I guess."

"Fertility specialties?"

"That's the one."

"Level nine." 

"Thanks." 

Sirius hurried up the hall to the stair well and was nearly there when the door to the stairs opened up and none other than Lily and James came out of it. James looked rather pale, his hair a mess from having run his hair through it such a good number of times and Lily was looking at him, worry clear on her face, and her hand on her stomach. James was so distracted that he ran smack into Sirius before he realized he was there, and he stared at him in shock.

"Padfoot?"

"Hey Prongs."

"What the bloody hell are you --" then realization went across James's expression and he looked at Lily, tone irritated. "Did you call him or something?"