| INTIMACY | - HPxTMR

Chapter 16 [Ceremony]

 30th January 1998

When the post owl flew through the window, whilst she was reading at breakfast, Lily dropped what she was doing and descended upon the poor creature with eagerness. It squawked and pecked at her hands, but she wasn't deterred as her eyes lit up at the sight of her son's handwriting neatly scrawled across the front of one of the letters. Setting the rest uncaringly on the table, she ripped it open eagerly, scouring its contents.

As letters to and from the Emperor's court were heavily regulated, Harry couldn't contact them as frequently as both parties would have liked, but today was a special occasion. It was her birthday, and her son had sent along a heartful letter detailing his daily tasks in the harem, his feelings about being away from them, wishing her a happy birthday [whilst calling her old], and filled with eager questions about how her pregnancy was progressing.

Lily's due date had passed a little while ago, and it was now only a matter of time before the long-awaited arrival was finally upon them, so she could barely fault her son's eagerness.

She chuckled as she read some of his well-hidden complaints about some of his fellow concubines, concealed behind false praises and sugary words, designed so that even if those who read the letters before they were sent out saw any insults within, it wouldn't be enough to take them to the concubines in question. The most mentioned was Bellatrix, who Harry didn't seem to be fond of, especially since the birth of her baby girl and the consequential change this had on her personality, and Regulus, who was surprisingly described as kind towards him, no malice detected within the words he wrote about the man.

It was lovely to hear from him, and especially to know that he wasn't having much trouble despite being in such a dangerous, cutthroat place. But Lily knew that the peace he had been experiencing could only last for so long, and hoped that her little boy was prepared for any hardship that could come his way at any moment.

It would all come out when he received his promotion, something she knew was inevitable. The small comments he had added about the Emperor's interest in him, much more than was average, was as concerning as it was elating to hear.

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2nd February 1998- Monday

The dreaded day, or greatly anticipated by some, was upon them with the coming of the first day of the month. Ranking day. It had been moved a day later since Bellatrix hadn't wanted to hold a meeting on Sunday, or possibly so that she could pretend she held the upmost, unrivalled power in the harem, officially, for a little while longer.

Today, Harry surmised, would be one of upheaval for their placements within the Harem, with Penny becoming a Consort officially, and the repercussions for Erin if his Majesty was feeling crossed enough.

Despite Harry's heartfelt sympathies for her, there was the situation that she still left her pregnancy unreported, and therefore put both herself and the life of her baby in danger, which had led to this unfortunate circumstance. There had been the week mourning, and he had worn black as was expected and kept to all of the regulations as was decreed, but yet there was a faint feeling in the air that many did not treat this as they had when Jasmine had lost her baby.

After sitting in his seat, now in between Secondary Noble Cordelia and Noble Erin, he settled down to watch the usual procession of dramatics from Bellatrix and her followers, sans her baby for once, who she had realised was now bringing her less awe and jealousy and more annoyance from her fellow concubines. Children were not something to be paraded in such a way, despite their royal status and the benefits they brought to their parent.