Sirius dumped the next memory into the pensieve and took a deep breath before he and Remus tackled it. Both Remus and Sirius tensed as they realised they were in the front parlour of Potter House during the Yule holiday of nineteen-eighty.
Lily sat on one overstuffed armchair; Harry was asleep in his bassinet beside her. Arcturus sat across from her. Green and red tinsel decorated the mantel; a tree laden with glittering and sparkly ornaments took up a whole corner, and there were already presents wrapped in shiny red and gold paper under it.
"Thank you for allowing me to visit, Lily," Arcturus said, "and to offer my condolences for Charlus's death in person. We didn't get a chance to talk at the funeral."
"James needed me." Lily said simply. Her hand crept to Harry and she smoothed his blanket.
"How is James?" asked Arcturus politely.
Lily sighed. "He's taken Charlus's death very hard but he's distracting himself with Yule; he wants Harry to have a good first Christmas even if Harry's too young to remember any of it." She grimaced as she reached for the mug of cocoa next to her on the coffee table. "He's also resigned as a Hit Wizard since the estates will take up all of his time. He and Sirius went off to Gringotts this morning to sort everything out."
"And how is Sirius?"
"About the same as James truthfully." Lily said bluntly, sipping her drink before placing it back on the table. "Sirius considered Charlus the father he would have chosen for himself and Charlus…Charlus was happy to play that role for him."
Arcturus nodded. "And you?"
Lily's eyes shone with tears. "I miss him."
He offered her a clean handkerchief and Lily took it dabbing at her eyes so her mascara wouldn't run.
"Lily…" Arcturus began gently, "I'm not sure if you were aware but Charlus and I met regularly after the events where Sirius was rescued from the Death Eaters."
Lily nodded and gave a watery smile. "Who do you think made sure he had the photos?"
"Thank you for those," Arcturus said softly, "I had the one of Sirius and Harry framed."
"Harry loves him already," Lily's smile lit up her face, "did you know Sirius was the only one home when I went into labour? He ended up being the one in the labour room with me."
Arcturus shuddered delicately. "It was the practice when I was a young man to be far from the actual birth as it was possible to get."
"I couldn't have done it without Sirius supporting me through it." Lily said simply.
Sirius felt his own eyes prickle again with tears. Remus placed a hand on his shoulder to comfort him.
"Lily, Charlus was worried that the obliviation had failed with Albus; that he was taking an unusual interest in Harry…what are your thoughts?" Arcturus got to the point of his visit.
"He visits Harry once a week but I know from Alice he does the same with Neville." She gestured with the handkerchief. "We joke that he's picked the pair of them as substitute grandchildren as he's not likely to have his own."
Arcturus nodded slowly. "Well, if you're comfortable with his interest…"
Lily shrugged and a small frown flitted across her face for a moment. "In hindsight, I'm not sure we had to obliviate him. James and I…we've spent a great deal of time with him recently. He's a good man, Arcturus."
"Even good men have their own agendas, Lily." Arcturus advised her and held up a hand when she made to disagree. "I will say no more except this: the House of Black will always recognise the House of Potter as extended family. If you ever have need of help, I hope you'll consider coming to me."
Lily smiled. "Thank you, Arcturus."
Sirius exited the memory and found Remus looking as disconcerted as he felt. Sirius silently handled replacing the last memory with a new one.
They were back in Arcturus's study only it was Lily in a dark cloak sat opposite Arcturus. She looked pale and Arcturus poured her a glass of Firewhiskey, pushing it across his desk. Sirius realised with a start that a framed photo of a young Sirius holding a baby Harry took pride of place on his desk.
Lily drank down the liquor and pointed at the photo. "I'm surprised you have it displayed so openly."
"To anyone who isn't me, you or your husband, the photo appears to be that of my late wife." Arcturus corrected her, surprisingly gently.
"Oh." Lily looked lost.
Sirius's heart clenched with fear for her; why did she look so upset? And why had she gone to his grandfather rather than James?
"Did you know my parents died two weeks ago?" Lily asked, her eyes on the empty glass she held.
"I had heard a rumour to that effect." Arcturus replied. "My condolences on your loss."
"It was a house-fire. It's been ruled accidental in the muggle world but a spy informed Albus that it was Death Eaters." Lily stated bluntly, slamming the glass down on the desk and wrapping her cloak more tightly around herself. "Bastards!"
"What do you need from me?" asked Arcturus.
"I need a way to protect my sister and her family." Lily said, finally raising her head, her green eyes ablaze with anger and determination. "Albus says there is nothing that can be done because they're muggles but I want to place wards around her home and I know the Black wards are considered the best."
Arturus looked at her for a long moment. He got up and retrieved a book from a shelf on the far side of the room. He handed it to her. "The blood wards described within will keep your sister safe but they are considered borderline illegal these days. The House of Black is fortunate that most of ours were lain down before the Ministry started to object to blood magic. You shouldn't be discovered in placing them since the Ministry only monitors wand magic in muggle areas."
Lily clutched the book to her. "Thank you." She sighed heavily, obviously hesitating over saying something else; indecision written across her delicate features. Finally she heaved a sigh. "Arcturus, do you believe in prophecies?"
"To some extent," Arcturus allowed, "I have a friend who is a Seer and she is usually very accurate about her dreaming. Other than that…" he did a half-shrug in a dismissive gesture.
"There is a prophecy that might concern my son." Lily said quietly. "Albus saw fit to tell James and I about it the night he informed me of the truth concerning my parents' deaths. He believes that our families are being eliminated to get to us, that we should go into hiding."
"I would be happy to offer my home to you, Lily." Arcturus said.
Lily smiled and it alleviated the pained look she wore. "Thank you, Arcturus, but nothing's decided and if you took us in, it would mean declaring your side once and for all; you would find yourself a target for the creepy bastard."
"I can handle Albus." Arcturus said dryly.
Lily laughed at that before she sobered again. "I'm so scared for Harry. We probably will go into hiding but…I just don't think it's going to be enough. Call it maternal instinct but I can't help feel that I need to do more to protect my son."
For the second time, Arcturus rose and raided a bookshelf, pulling down three old books which were handed to Lily.
"My wife followed the Old Religion and these contain witches' magic; spells that can only be cast by a mother or a woman." Arcturus said. "Perhaps you will find what you need in them."
Lily's face brightened. "Thank you." She sighed and got to her feet. "I should get back before Harry turns Sirius's hair pink again."
The memory ended. Sirius and Remus were cast out of the pensieve again.
"Your grandfather gave Lily the spell that saved Harry!" Remus said sinking down into one of the nearby visitor chairs.
Sirius sank into a chair beside him. "I can't believe she came here! What was she thinking?"
"They clearly had a very civil relationship, Sirius." Remus said absently. "Do you think James knew?"
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