The Squib and the Werewolf

63. The Chosen One

After one term, Raya still hadn't gotten over Fleamont and Euphemia's deaths, or the fact that she was now the owner of the Potter Manor.
Which is why when Christmas came around, James and Lily took over organising the Marauders Christmas dinner, which would be taking place in their cottage for the first time. So that Raya didn't have to be the one to hold the Christmas gathering, which normally took place at the manor.
The Potter Manor had always been the Marauders safe space, but with Fleamont and Euphemia gone, none of them felt right about being there. As the place just felt empty.
So, Raya ended up spending a lot of time at Sirius's bungalow over Christmas, since she didn't like being in the manor without any Potters.

"Here's to another Happy Christmas together" said James, as he raised his glass on Christmas Day.
The Marauders were all huddled in his kitchen around the small table, with strange hats on their heads, that had come out of the Christmas crackers.
"Cheers" chorused the Marauders in unison, before taking a sip of their wine.
"What an excellent meal you have prepared for us, Prongs" praised Sirius, as everyone began tucking into their dinner.
"Thanks Padfoot" beamed James.
"Taking credit for my work again are you, James?" Asked Lily.
"Of course not, my love" replied James.

"You're certainly the most mature out of all of us, Lily, none of the boys could pull this off by themselves" admitted Raya.
"I know" smiled Lily.
"I did try to cook that ham thing last night" reminded Sirius.
"Yes, and you nearly burned down the kitchen in the process. So, I don't want you doing that again" replied Raya.
"Is Padfoot not a natural cook then?" Asked James, trying to suppress a grin.
"Definitely not" answered Raya.
"Rude" mumbled Sirius, who didn't seem hurt in anyway by Raya's comment.

"I'm not a bad cook" informed Peter awkwardly.
"Well, we will all be around yours next Christmas then, Wormy" replied James.
"I don't know about that. I still live at home remember" said Peter awkwardly.
"There's no shame in that, Peter. I would still live at home too, if the Potters hadn't left me their manor to stay in" admitted Raya.
"And I am working all the time, and I can barely afford the small place I'm living in. Having your own house isn't as fun as it seems" sighed Remus.

"Oh, Moony, don't bring the mood down. It's Christmas, it is time to celebrate" announced Sirius.
"Padfoot is right... In fact, me and Lily have some good news we want to share with you all" revealed James.
"Go on" encouraged Sirius.
"Well, Lily is pregnant. So, we are going to have a baby!".
Raya's jaw dropped, "You're going to be parents?".
Lily blushed, "Yes. The baby is due in July".
"Congratulations" praised Remus.
"Yes, that's amazing" added Peter.
"Wow. Just wow" said Sirius, who didn't seem capable of forming proper sentences, as he was still in shock from the announcement.

James placed his arm around Lily's shoulders before kissing her cheek, "I am so proud of you".
"I couldn't have done it without you" reminded Lily softly.
"You are going to be an amazing mother" replied James.
"Thanks. And I know you will be a brilliant father".
James turned from Lily to look at the others, and his face turned from happy, to serious.
"What's wrong?" Questioned Raya, who noticed the change in his face.
"I'm afraid our good news comes with some bad news" answered James.
"What's happened?" Demanded Sirius.

"Dumbledore has heard a prophecy about a boy born in July, to parents in the Order, who will be able to stop Voldemort. This is great news of course, as it means Voldemort may be defeated soon. However, Voldemort has also heard the prophecy, and he will do anything to stop it from coming true" revealed James.
"And he thinks this prophecy is about your child?" Asked Remus.
"Yes. The prophecy could refer to our child, or the Longbottoms. So, he is likely to come after both of our families" informed James.
"Alice is pregnant too?" Quizzed Raya.
"Yes, her and Frank are also expecting a child at the end of July. So, this prophecy could refer to either of our sons" replied James.

"Sons? So the prophecy states that you will definately have a boy?" Questioned Raya.
"One of us will. Either me or Alice, or both of us" answered Lily.
"What exactly did the prophecy say?" Inquired Sirius.
"The one with the power to vanquish the dark lord approaches. Born to parents who have thriced defied him, born as the 7th month dies. And the dark lord shall mark him as his equal, but he shall have a power that the dark lord knows not" recited James.
"You know it word perfectly?" Frowned Sirius.
"We have pondered over the meaning of every word in that prophecy, ever since Dumbledore recited it to us. It wasn't long before we could both recite it perfectly" sighed James.

"The prophecy might not be about your child" Peter said quietly.
"I pray that it is not. But Voldemort will come after us regardless. Which means that me and Lily are in grave danger. Dumbledore is even going to start lessening the amount of missions he sends us on, to protect us. And he is going to place some protection magic around our home, like anti-apparition spells" revealed James.
"I would just like to see Voldemort try to get through us. We will have your backs, no matter what. We will lay down our lives to protect you and your unborn child" promised Sirius.
"Thank you Padfoot, that means a lot" replied James.

"Yes it does, and it confirms to us that we made the right choice" announced Lily.
"What choice?" Questioned Sirius.
"We want you and Raya to be our child's godparents" answered Lily.
"Us?" Gasped Raya.
"Yeah, are you sure? Don't you want someone older and wiser than us?" Asked Sirius.
"I was going to say more sensible" added Raya.
"No, we want you two. There is no one I would trust more with my child. We know you will protect them no matter what. And in this crazy world, our baby will need someone daring to look out for them" admitted Lily.

"Are you sure you want me, someone without magic, protecting your child?" Raya asked quietly.
The idea of her being responsible for her best friends child, who could also be the saviour of the wizarding world, terrified her.
"You know that we don't think of you any differently because you are a Squib" replied James.
"I know that, but this is different. This is your defenseless child, whom Voldemort has already marked for death. I won't be able to protect him from Voldemort" reminded Raya.
"We aren't going to have aurors around our child 24/7. Our baby is going to have a normal life. And since you don't go on as many missions as we do, you are the perfect person to babysit our child. If the rest of us are on a mission, you are the only person in this world I would trust with my kid. And Lily feels the same way".

"So, you are making me a godparent, because you want me stuck at home looking after your child, so that I can't go out on missions? I didn't spend all summer training to fight death eaters, to not go on missions. I know you want to protect me, but this idea of yours will not work" said Raya firmly.
"I know I can't keep you out of the fight, even though I want to. But you misunderstood me, I'm not saying you need to stop going on missions, to babysit for me. I just need you to look after our child if you are free, while me and Lily are out, since the chances of all of us being on the same mission, at the same time, is very low. You might have a mission one day, and us the next. And we will need someone not working, to keep an eye on our baby" replied James.
"Oh, I guess that makes sense" mumbled Raya.

"So, do you both accept our offer?" Quizzed James.
"Of course. If you want me to be your child's godparent, then I accept" answered Sirius.
"I mean, I don't think I will be any good at it. But if you want me, I will of course agree to become your baby's godmother" said Raya.
"Good" smiled James.
Sirius turned his head to look at Raya, who was sat beside him.
"I think we just became godparents" he whispered.
"Yes, I think we did" agreed Raya.