Thicker than Water (Marauders Era)

2 September, 1980 - Godmother

It was a blisteringly hot Thursday right at the end of July when news came to the little house on the sea that Lily had given birth to a healthy baby boy named Harry. It was almost a shock to Lavinia, for all that it shouldn't have been, that there was new life coming into the world even in times like these, where death and pain seemed to be so horribly normal.

Sirius visited the new family occasionally in those first few weeks, mostly to bring them food and news while they stayed safe and hidden in their home. Everyone else sufficed with pictures and word of mouth until Harry was about a month old and the whole group was invited over to meet the child and have dinner.

Lavinia and Sirius arrived early, since Lavinia had offered to cook. She was very glad she'd done this because both James and Lily looked like they hadn't slept properly in weeks - probably since the boy's birth. Lavinia had assumed that this was the only reason James and Lily had accepted her offer so readily, but another reason became apparent as Lavinia began preparing the meal and set the kettle on to make tea for her over exhausted friends.

As she was chopping vegetables, Lily entered the kitchen, apparently having left baby Harry with James and Sirius in the sitting room. Lavinia turned as she noticed the approaching woman and frowned.

"If you're here to offer help with dinner, the answer's no," she informed Lily. "You should be resting." Indeed, Lily looked utterly exhausted. The bags under her eyes could have rivaled even some of Lavinia's worse times. Her hair had been tossed into something that might have been a bun, or maybe just a ponytail the redhead had given up on halfway through and her clothes were the loose, comfortable attire of someone who was going to take every opportunity she could to snatch a few minutes of rest whenever and wherever the chance arose.

So Lavinia was most definitely not going to let her do anything even resembling work.

But Lily just sniffed a light laugh, "Actually," she corrected, "I'm here to ask you something."

"Oh?" asked Lavinia, not at all sure what sort of thing Lily could want from her that sounded so... serious. She certainly hoped it wasn't about the baby. It wasn't like Lavinia was qualified to give any advice at all about children. Actually, she was probably the least qualified person she knew, seeing as how even her own memories of childhood amounted to the social pressures of a very different world mixed with less than stellar parenting.

"I wanted to ask you to be Harry's godmother," Lily continued, apparently choosing to disregard all the many reasons why that was, in Lavinia's opinion, a terrible idea.

The blonde froze and set her knife down before turning to look fully at the woman, keeping her face blank as she gave her head time to catch up to the knee-jerk reaction of her heart. She wanted to say no. She was not going to be any child's anything. But... but Lily knew Lavinia wasn't one for children. It wasn't like Lavinia had ever made a secret of it. Which suggested that there was some reason other than sentimentality that made Lily ask.

"Why me?" asked Lavinia carefully, her voice even and emotionless. "And," she added, with a bit more feeling, "Don't waffle about how we're such good friends and I'd make such a good mother because we both know I wouldn't and that's not why you're asking."

Lily narrowed her eyes at Lavinia for a moment, pursing her lips. "We've been over this," she began, her tone a bit tight. "And for the millionth time, you would make a wonderful mother. But I know you don't want to. And I wouldn't ask except..." She sighed and leaned back against the counter, looking too old for her twenty years and so very very tired. "These are dangerous times, Vin. We all know that. And... and these are not good times to be having children. We all know that, too. It was selfish of James and I to have him, but we wanted kids and now we're here and I wouldn't trade Harry for the world."