November 25, 1979
7:46 pm
The Burrow

Anneliese looked slowly to James, then Lily, then Dumbledore, who just nodded.

She was trying to decide if she wanted to stay and figure out what they were talking about or follow her gut instinct to get the hell out of here before getting too deeply entangled in whatever mess was afoot now while she still had a chance.

"Why did all of the Death Eaters leave?" Anneliese asked, breaking the silence. "It can't just be because this old man showed up. What's going on?"

There was a wooden creak as the side door swung open, all heads turning as Regulus walked in, pure panic written all over his face. Callaway instantly knew Myra had told him something based on his expression, the only way he would have known to come here.

"We have an issue," he said, nodding in acknowledgement to Dumbledore. "I'm not trying to interrupt anything here, but look."

Sirius's eyes widened as he lifted up his sleeve, the previously faded Dark Mark severely black and writhing against his brother's milky white skin.

"What does that mean?" Dorcas asked, eyes darting from his forearm to his eyes.

"It means that Myra got a call for an attack, and I'm guessing the only reason all of you are in here right now is because they all just went away," Regulus said, planting his hands on the back of a chair. "And I'm guessing you thought it's because Dumbledore showed up."

Black shook his head with a dry huff of laughter, looking down at his mark with a furrowed brow, concentrated in the burning pain shooting through his whole torso.

"The reason you were saved is because all of them were summoned somewhere else," Regulus said, wincing as the searing sensation intensified. "Which means that Voldemort just figured something out, and based on this, he's angry-"

Sirius and Remus both rushed over to help Regulus as he stumbled against the counter, clutching his arm as he was cut off by his own pain.

None of them could imagine how it felt to be called by the Dark Lord, but knowing that this boy had a very high pain tolerance yet quite literally couldn't speak because of the torment being inflicted upon him right now, they could imagine that it was very far from pleasant.

James and Lily exchanged a glance with Dumbledore, hopeful for some guidance, but he looked equally as confused as they were.

"How do they know?" Lily asked in a hushed voice, one hand going over her belly. "You only found out a few moments ago."

"Someone else must have been there," Dumbledore replied after a few moments. "It's the only reasonable explanation. It truly does make sense. Voldemort has spies everywhere. I should have known it wasn't safe to have so much as an interview in such an eavesdropping place."

James looked at the headmaster in disbelief before taking off his glasses and digging the heels of his palms into his eyes, hoping he and his wife could wake up from this nightmare already.

"Someone else must have been where?" Marlene asked impatiently, getting sick of all the whispers. "I know half the people in this room have a place to be besides here right now, so can we just get this over with?"

"Very well, Miss Mckinnon," Dumbledore said, standing up and clasping his hands. "It would be best if only Anneliese, Sirius, James, Lily, Remus, Regulus, and Leo stayed in the room. Everyone else please exit or make your way home. The less people, the better."

There were a few offended glances exchanged among the Longbottoms and more permanent residents of the Burrow, but none of them questioned the headmaster's authority.

The eight remaining witches and wizards all made their way back to the fire, sitting in a circle of chairs and couches. Anneliese got the odd feeling that she was in some kind of council meeting, about to make some kind of new law or decision.

Sirius looked over to her and squeezed her hand reassuringly.

"So what's going on here?" Leo asked. "And starting from the beginning would be best."

Dumbledore looked to the Potters for permission, who just nodded in confirmation, giving him their permission to reveal what they had just learned to their friends. Lily and James trusted every person in this room.

"As you may know, Hogwarts needs a new divination teacher," Dumbledore started. "And while I was in the Leaky Cauldron going to interview a potential candidate for the position, that candidate made a prophecy."

"What?" Remus asked dubiously as the rest of them blinked in shock. "But that happens like once every decade at the least per Seer-"

"I know," Dumbledore nodded solemnly. "Which is why we are so lucky, lucky indeed."

"Well, what did it say?" Leo asked, scooting slightly closer to Lupin.

"It said that there was going to be a boy born in the closing days of July to parents who had defied Voldemort three times and lived to tell the tale," James said, taking over. "And that the boy would have a power that can kill the Dark Lord, one that he is unable to comprehend."

Everyone in the room stared at the Potters in disbelief, only the fire crackling audible over the complete dubiousness of all of their expressions.

"Alright, what the fuck," Regulus said plainly after a few more seconds. "What the fuck. Can't you two just be normal? Why did you have to be so horny and then make a savior mega baby?"

"It's not our fault," Lily snapped defensively. "We just- why are you laughing, Anneliese?"

They all looked at Callaway, who had a gloved hand over her mouth and tears in her eyes. The corners of James and Sirius's mouth both twitched up in amusement as well, understanding Anneliese's reaction and silently agreeing.

"I mean, it's all just rather ridiculous, isn't it?" she said finally. "Just the idea that some baby is going to save all of us. I mean, look around. Do you realize how much of a tangled mess this is in about a hundred different directions? All that can't just go away with one child."

"Unless the child comes out like flying and glowing or something," Sirius snorted, and they all started to laugh, even Lily having an unwilling smile forced onto her face from amusement.

"This is why we don't condone teen pregnancy," Anneliese said, and James had to wheeze to try and catch a breath while Leo clapped him on the back.

It was Dumbledore's turn to look at them in disbelief. Only the Gryffindor Class of 78 and Regulus Black could possibly make something this large a laughing matter. Kids scared him sometimes, more than he would like to admit.

Then again, they were just that. Kids.

There was still the playful, childish spirit inside all of them that was desperate to break loose at any chance it got, and now was one of those times. They wanted to just go out and watch quidditch games and make stupid, drunk decisions together.

They didn't want to be sitting in a circle and making their friend's pregnancy a war strategy, half of them beaten and bloodied after being attacked a half hour before.

Every single one of them had been forced to grow older because of the awful things that had been inflicted onto their bodies and minds.

The horrors of Anneliese being tortured and assaulted more times than just at Malfoy Manor to Remus's full moons to the Black's trauma since they were no more than five feet tall to Leo's scar to the Potters facing death of family and even more threats at every corner, every turn.

It was a foolish hope that their lives would ever be normal, but it was one they indulged in during times like these. Stolen moments of relief and happiness where it felt as though all of them could be sitting in the common room together, sixteen and full again.

They may never be able to understand what these years were supposed to be like, but at least they would never understand together.

As long as they could be surrounded by their people, their family, not just the ones in this room but also Alice, Frank, Dorcas, Marlene, and so many more, there was still that joy they could find in one another getting them through the times growing darker and darker by the day, every morning the sun shining a little less brightly.

Anneliese looked to her boy, wide grin fading into a soft smile. Sirius gently smiled back.

"But really," Black said, linking his pinkie with hers across the chairs. "How can we help? Why are you telling us this? Shouldn't it be kind of a secret?"

"Wait, wait," Remus said, mind starting to turn deeper into this as well. "But Alice is pregnant right now as well, and the Longbottoms have gotten away from Voldemort just as many times as Lily and James. Shouldn't we be worried about them as well?"

There were a few murmurs of consent from everyone except Anneliese.

"No," she shook her head. "If there are two options, one pureblood kid and one half blood kid in this case, Voldemort is going to choose the half blood, Lily's."

"What makes you say that?" Leo asked, tilting his head curiously to one side. "Not disagreeing of course, just asking."

"Voldemort thinks that the people most like him are threats," Anneliese said. "So, logically, whichever kid is more similar to him knows more about him, is therefore more in tune to his vulnerabilities."

Dumbledore felt slightly uneasy.

"Vice versa, Voldemort is gonna know more about the kid," she continued. "And if he already has some kind of power to defeat Voldemort, then he's goin to want to use that advantage of understanding."

They all looked at Callaway a bit warily, but she wasn't done.

"Besides, when prophecies are presented with two options like they are now, then it takes the fate of the subjects of the prophecy to decide between the options," Anneliese explained. "Us being here right now is pushing the prophecy towards the Potter kid and not the Longbottoms, and the fact that Voldemort has most likely already chosen yalls baby supports that."

"So you're saying we're putting ourselves in danger and that we essentially chose this for ourselves?" Lily asked, expression rapidly flickering as she blinked and parted her lips and tilted her head to the side, face mirroring the pace of her racing thoughts.

"I mean, yea," Anneliese said, tone slightly apologetic. "Like, if I was theoretically pregnant right now when Sirius and I have defied Voldemort at the movie theater, Malfoy Manor, and just by escaping all of the attacks he sends on us, then it doesn't matter even if I do fit the description perfectly. Yall are the ones in the prophecy because we've made it that way."

"But you're not pregnant, right?" Sirius asked, and Anneliese shook her head. "Because the kid would be a halfblood as well, and you just went through all of that logic-"

"No," Callaway cut him off. "I'm not pregnant, Pads. Chill. I'm on my period right now."

"Oh, thank Merlin," Sirius muttered, slumping in his chair in relief and running a hand down his face. "God, James, I feel awful for you right now- you know what, not helping. Sorry. Please continue."

"And she's right about all of this, right?" Lily asked Dumbledore, wanting some other clarification on the matter.

"Yes, she is, on all accounts," Dumbledore nodded, and Anneliese rolled her eyes. "You've been doing your research, Miss Callaway."

"I've been doing my job, professor," she countered. "Now, like Sirius asked earlier, how can we help? This baby is going to have to be protected at all costs, right? So how do we make sure he and Lily are going to be alright?"

"Wait, another question before we start," Leo said, holding up a hand to pause the talk. "Who told Voldemort about the prophecy? What assholee was listening to you and the new professor?"

Dumbledore turned quiet, not certain that anyone in the room, especially James, needed any more animosity towards the man who had been thrown out of the pub the second he was caught eavesdropping.

The last thing any of them needed was him to do something stupid over a petty feud that had lasted for nearly a decade by now.

"I do not know," the professor said, and Leo raised a brow. "It is irrelevant, Mr. Anderson. Please, back to your sister's question of how we're supposed to protect this child."

Everyone leaned forward, hoping that it would be more of a secure plan than a weighty, unhelpful 'stay safe and remain aware' like they had received as parting words from Dumbledore so many times before.

"Do any of you know what the Fidelius Charm is?" the professor asked, and every single one of them instantly nodded. "Ah, it is most refreshing to be in such an intelligent company. Mr. Lupin, would you do us all a favor and remind us of the definition of the charm?"

All of them felt like they were in a classroom again, back at school where answering the professor's question correctly and turning in that essay on time was their biggest concern.

Those were the good old days, Sirius thought, looking over to Anneliese and briefly seeing a girl with two braids and a Gryffindor tie. When we were all stressing out over Slughorn holding up paint samples to our potions to figure out if they had turned just the right shade.

Callaway caught his gaze, looking in the same way and seeing the boy with an ink smudge on his cheek and white sleeves rolled up past his elbows instead of who he was now.

They both looked away towards Remus, who they realized was answering the question.

"The Fidelius Charm is a really, really old and difficult spell that literally hides a secret inside a living soul," Lupin explained. "The person who has that secret is hence called the Secret Keeper, and they can only divulge the information completely willingly."

"Which means that any of the Unforgivables, Veritaserum, Legiminecy, or anything else that isn't natural is completely useless to affecting the charm and getting the information out of the Secret Keeper," Regulus added. "So torture, even if it may be tried, is useless."

He knew just as much as the rest of them through working for Anneliese at Callaway Investigations even though he hadn't finished his years at Hogwarts.

"All correct," Dumbledore nodded. "And when placed onto a building-"

"It turns invisible, intangible, unplottable, and soundproof," Anneliese said, catching onto where he was going with this. "So if we put the charm on James and Lily's place, then Voldemort wouldn't know they were there even if he was staring right into their window."

A sense of security washed over all of them. The Potters clasped hands, looking at each other hopefully. Maybe this was the solution.

"But wait," Sirius said, holding up a hand. "Then what? Lily and James and the kid are all safe, yea. But then we never get to see them again? And they're going to go crazy stuck in there. Until when? The war is over? Voldemort is dead? Not likely."

"Rather be going crazy in there than dead," Leo muttered, but Sirius shook his head.

"They might as well be if they're just gone," Black said. "With all due respect Leo, you don't have the same bond with Lily or James that I or Anneliese or Remus do. You don't understand. I can't lose my brother and his wife."

"He has a point," Regulus said softly. "The prophecy specifically says you must have defied Voldemort three times before. Why go into hiding when you could just do it again?"

"It's not just doing it again," Anneliese said firmly. "We all barely made it out alive each time, yall. We can't stay that lucky. Besides, most of their run ins were through circumstance and not direct targeting. Now that it's James and Lily specifically, they need to go into hiding."

"But do we even need to cast the spell before their kid is born?" Sirius asked. "We can still have eight or nine more months together before they disappear-"

"The baby is still inside her, dipshit," Leo snapped. "And if Lily's dead, then he's not being born and Voldemort is going to get exactly what he wants."

James visibly paled as the image of a dead Lily flitted through his mind, body limp and unmoving on the floor as her green eyes went blank and glassy. It was a brief sight, but it was absolutely terrifying.

He gripped her hand more tightly.

"Wait," Sirius said again. "They can go into hiding without the charm. Anneliese has been an enormous target for nearly two years at this point, yet she still hasn't been caught because she's clever. Lily, James, both of you are as well. We can do this together without this whole mess."

They all heard the desperate edge Sirius's voice was taking on, and knew that Black was deathly afraid of losing his brother.

And to be honest, James didn't really want this either. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. They were letting fear drive them into this, letting it make them shy away. This group had been through everything from Transfiguration essays to the Cruciatus Curse together.

They could handle a prophecy that didn't even start for another nine months.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Dumbledore asked, feeling the decision settle in the air. "Delaying the inevitable is only going to cause more danger."

"Yes," Lily and James said in unison.

"Living in fear isn't quite living, professor," James said. "And I'd like to enjoy my youth and take advantage of the fact that we're all still young while we still can. It's what my mum and dad would have wanted me to do."

Dumbledore couldn't argue with what the undeniable will of Euphemia and Fleamont Potter would have been.

Anneliese turned her head over her shoulder as if she was looking at something behind her, blinking our tears and taking a deep breath in before shutting her eyes for a few moments.

She wished that Mia was still here.

She would have been able to soften her up again in a way that didn't involve tears. She would have been able to get through Sirius in a motherly way that Anneliese just couldn't. She would have been some form of guidance.

She would have been able to get that file for her instead of Anneliese going through that herself.

Queenie was still here, but barely. Goldstein's letters were as energetic as ever, but they were less frequent. The updates from Cliff, Mitchel, and Violet contradicted Queenie's apparent perfect health.

Callaway knew it was just a matter of time before she slipped away, too.

Anneliese inhaled deeply through her nose, forcing her breath to be steady as it came back out through her lips.

"Very well," Dumbledore said, standing up and straightening his silver robes. "I am always quick to reach if you need me. But for now, good night."

Sirius barely noticed as the headmaster apparated away, his eyes too focused on Anneliese.

She looked just about ready to break down in tears on the carpet right then and there, a deep kind of longing that he knew he could never fulfill in her blank gaze as she stared at nothing in particular.

Callaway's gaze was raw as she turned and looked at Lily, who was already looking at her as well.

Anneliese thought of her calling Safa by Lily's name by accident, the friendship she had accidentally projected onto her without even realizing it. She knew it wasn't fair to Chopra, but it wasn't fair that this had happened to her and Lily, either.

Even though Callaway hadn't gone pale like James had, the image of Lily dead and all of this talk of her being