As the month wore on, it appeared that Dumbledore was keeping a tighter rein on Potter. Any time he saw Lucius Malfoy, or any of the trio, he would sneer, his hand twitching towards his wand, before freezing, his body trembling before he’d manage to close his mouth and turn away.

Severus – well versed in male pride – wasn’t sure this was a good thing.

“It just deepens his anger and resentment,” he explained to Bellatrix and Lily one night at the beginning of July. “When Dumbledore finally lets him loose, he’ll act with a vengeance.”

“Wouldn’t that ruin his career, though?” Lily queried.

“If Dumbledore turns him loose again, it’ll be for Dumbledore’s cause,” Bellatrix said. “Potter won’t care about his career then, and neither will anyone else.”

The trio were sprawled out in the back garden, soaking in the last of the day’s sunshine. Harrison had been put to bed hours earlier, complaining loudly all the while that his playtime had been cut short when it was still light outside. Now Lily sat up, and hugged her knees to her chest.

“Can we afford to wait until your birthday to start protecting Harrison, Trix?” she asked. “It’s such a long time to wait, and goodness knows what Dumbledore will do before then.”

“Or Voldemort,” Severus added. “He’s been quiet enough lately, but that whole mess with Potter gained him positive publicity . . . or at least, didn’t cause him negative publicity. With Dumbledore keeping Potter’s head down, Voldemort will think he’s free to act again.”

“The ritual will be the strongest it could ever be if we perform it on our birthdays,” Bellatrix said, in the exasperated tone of one who has to repeat themselves numerous times.

“But what can we do in the meantime?” Lily demanded. “You can’t expect me to just leave Harrison unprotected for months!”

“Don’t you think I want him protected too?” said Bellatrix, stridently. “Talk sense, Lily!”

A loud whistle from Severus interrupted whatever else she might have said. “We all want Harrison protected,” he said once he had their attention. “If it’s a choice of waiting and giving him the ultimate protection we can give, or giving him a minor protection now that may fail when he needs it the most, then I say waiting isn’t that bad. It just means we need to be extra vigilant until we can do the first part of the ritual.”

“I’m sorry,” Lily said, after a pause. “I just can’t bear to think of anything happening to my baby.”

“Sev’s right,” said Bellatrix softly. “We all want the best protection for the Imp. We just have to figure out a way.”

“Once my new placement starts, Harry can come with me,” Lily said, nodding her head decisively. “Voldemort isn’t doing anything on the Continent at the moment.”

“And we can always ensure that at least two of us are around him whenever you’re home,” Severus agreed. “But I don’t think Voldemort will attack him directly, no matter what the prophecy says. He knows what we’d do to him if he ever hurt Harry.”

Bellatrix snorted with amusement, and even Lily had to smile. They’d never explicitly discussed it, but they all knew if Voldemort ever caused Harrison to receive even a scratch, they’d turn him into pulp.

“We’re family,” Bellatrix said, reaching out to touch both Severus and Lily. “We’re the Hearth, the fire that protects, and it will never go out.”

By the end of July, Voldemort was making small, continuous raids that seemed to dance around the country. There was such a lack of reasoning to his targets that Severus suggested one night he was choosing them by sticking a pin into a map. It was certainly keeping Dumbledore’s forces hopping, although they never arrived in time to do more than help to put out any fires. Despite that, James Potter and, to a lesser extent, his crony Sirius Black, were strutting around as if they had personally defeated Voldemort.

To Lily’s disgust, he had even been overheard one day in Diagon Alley, loudly proclaiming that everyone could carry on their business as usual, as he was there to protect them.

“As if he’d be able to single-handedly hold off thirty Death Eaters if they appeared,” she murmured to Severus as they headed towards Flourish and Blotts. 

“He’ll only protect them if they’re Gryffindors,” Severus muttered back under his breath. “And maybe, if he’s feeling generous, Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. But Slytherins are on their own.”

“Look!” Lily hissed, and pointed down the street.

Potter had been approached by a little girl, who couldn’t have been more than six years old. Her light brown hair was pulled back into a loose plait, which was already starting to uncurl. Her blue eyes blinked up at Potter in awe, as he struck a heroic pose before crouching down in front of her.

“Well, hello, pretty lady,” he purred. “And what’s your name?”

“Sarantha de Marci,” she said, the remains of a faint lisp in her voice.

“De Marci?” Potter tilted his head in thought. “I don’t believe I’ve heard of a Gryffindor called de Marci. Where’s your father, sweetling?”

“You wouldn’t have heard of me,” a tall man interjected before the little girl could speak. He stepped up behind her and laid a firm hand on her shoulder, pulling her back to rest against his legs. His other hand hovered by his side, where Severus and Lily could see his wand holstered to his thigh. “I wasn’t a Gryffindor.”

“Ah, well, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw aren’t bad, either,” Potter replied, although his grin wasn’t as wide nor as friendly as it had been just seconds before. Sarantha stuck a fore-finger in her mouth and began chewing on it.

The man shook his head. “I didn’t attend Hogwarts at all,” he said. “Not everyone does, you know.”

“Oh, well, home-schooling can be just as good . . .” Potter trailed off, obviously not convinced. The man scowled down at him. “What about your mother, young lady?” Potter asked. “Was she home-schooled, too?”

“No, my wife attended Durmstrang,” the man replied for her.

Potter instantly shot to his feet, a thunderous scowl appearing on his face. “Then what are you doing here?” he demanded, his hand instantly going towards his own wand. “We don’t want your kind here!”

“Speak for yourself, Potter!” Severus interrupted, harshly, stepping forward. Lily hissed and tried to grab his sleeve to stop him, but missed. “Not all of us are as prejudiced as you are.” He placed himself squarely in front of de Marci and his daughter, facing Potter. “Leave them alone.”

Potter sneered at him. “All you Dark Arts enthusiasts stick together, huh?” he said. “Should have known . . . You-Kn – Voldemort calling in extra support, is he?”

“You are nothing but a narrow-minded little fool,” Lily spat, appearing suddenly beside Severus. “If Voldemort is ever defeated, it will be in spite of you, not because of you.” She beckoned behind her, half turning to face de Marci. The man nodded, lifted his daughter to his hip, and strode off in the direction of the apothecary. Lily glanced back at Severus, touching his arm. “Come on, Sev.”

“That’s it, run along like the dirty cowards you are,” Potter sneered as they turned away. Severus paused, and looked back over his shoulder, his lip curling up into a much darker sneer than Potter had managed.

“Like to attack us, would you, Potter? Attack a woman who hasn’t got her wand in or anywhere near her hands? Guess Gryffindors have to gain an advantage somehow.”

Potter bellowed in rage, took a step forward, and froze in place. His eyes rolled frantically as he tried to move.

Startled, Lily and Severus looked around, and discovered the owner of Endelburt’s Enchantments, a cosmetics shop, standing in his doorway, his wand pointed casually at Potter. They nodded at him in thanks, and at his return nod, they hurried away up the street to apparate home. Flourish and Blotts could wait for another day when Potter wasn’t around to grand-stand.

They arrived home to find Bellatrix frantically rooting through her wardrobe. A large pile of dress-robes on the floor behind her showed she’d been at the activity for some time.

“Trix?” Severus asked, cautiously. After living with them for so long, he was understandably wary about getting between a woman and her wardrobe. “What are you doing?”

“The stupid Department of sodding Multi-Culture decided that tonight would be a wonderful time to throw a party for the visiting Ministers from India . . . except they only decided an hour ago that it might be fun to have a few of us Seers and other Unspeakables there, too,” Bellatrix’s voice echoed out of the wardrobe. “So now I have to spend the night with people I don’t know, and who likely speak terrible English, and I have nothing to wear!” she finished on a wail, flinging herself back to sit on her heels and throwing down the dress-robes she held in her hand.

“Now, Trix, I’m sure someone will be able to cast a decent Translation Charm—” Severus began, but at the glares both Lily and Bellatrix gave him, he flung his hands up and did what any sensible male would do.

He retreated to the living room to have a drink.

“Don’t worry, Trix, we’ll find you something that will knock everyone’s socks off,” Lily said, soothingly. She stepped forward to examine what was left in Bellatrix’s wardrobe. “Hey, Trix, what’s in that bag?” she asked.

Bellatrix looked up and frowned at the robes covered in plastic. “I think it’s a set of robes that my great-grandmother had made for me,” she said.

“And they survived to get to you?” Lily asked, her eyebrows arching in surprise.

“I think Great-Grandmother hexed them to make sure of it.” Bellatrix suddenly snorted. “Apparently my great-aunt Dorea thought she could make good use of them ‘until I came of age to wear them’, and spent a week sporting multi-coloured polka dots that danced all over her. Nobody else touched them after that.”

“Have you ever worn them?” Lily reached in and pulled the plastic bag out of the wardrobe.

“I’d forgotten all about them,” Bellatrix admitted. “What are they like?”

“Oooh!” gasped Lily, as she pulled the robes out of the protective covering. “They’re velvet, Trix, with a silk lining. And have you ever seen such an intense shade of green?”

It was perhaps unsurprising that the deep green robes – that were about three shades darker than the colour of Lily’s eyes – fitted Bellatrix as though they’d been tailor-made for her that very day. A form-fitting bodice hugged her from her shoulders to her waist, and then it dropped out to a loose floor-length that swayed with her every movement. The sleeves ran to a narrow point that rested on the back of her hand, and an in-built cape swung from her shoulders, just brushing the back of her knees.

“With a few loose curls, and those boots with the stock heel, you’ll knock ‘em dead, Trix,” Lily said, eventually, stepping back to admire the effect.

“Great-Grandmother had excellent taste,” Bellatrix said. Her eyes met Lily’s in the mirror, and they both laughed.

The ball was just as noisy and chaotic as Bellatrix had feared it would be. She could hear several languages amongst the babble, all of which were overlaid with the dull monotones of Translation Charms. Holding a glass of champagne firmly in front of her as a shield, she meandered her way around the room, trying to avoid all the stuck-up Ministry workers who had all but tripped over themselves to get her attention when she’d first arrived.

Ducking into an alcove draped in shadows, she breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

“Ah, I see madam does not care for this kind of event either,” a smooth voice said from the deeper darkness at the rear of the alcove. Bellatrix startled, and almost dropped the glass. A hand shot out and steadied it before it could do more than dangerously tilt. “My apologies, I did not mean to scare you so,” the voice said, and the person it belonged to stepped closer.

The man cut a dashing figure, although since he was entirely a milky-brown colour, from his hair to his skin to his clothes, then he rather looked as though he’d been carved out of wood.

“My name is Soreen Virtu,” he said, and reached for her empty hand. Taking it in a firm grip, he brought it to his lips. “Namaste, madam.”

The instant his lips brushed the back of her hand, Bellatrix was lost. It was as though she could see the entire expanded world, and yet could see nothing but this man in front of her. His eyes met hers, and if she didn’t know better she would have sworn that he was reading her very soul at the moment. Something very deep down inside of her seemed to let out a breath of relief and realisation: Ohhhhh, it’s YOU! You’re here at last!

When he lowered her hand what could have been seconds, or hours, or weeks later, it felt as though she’d been dashed with cold water. Blinking rapidly, she stared back at him, and then realised he was waiting for her to tell him her name.

“Oh, uh, Bellatrix Black,” she said, and all but stammered over her own name as though she didn’t know it herself. Shaking her head slightly to try and clear it, she hastily took a sip of the champagne she still held. She was quite surprised that she hadn’t just dropped it altogether.

This would very definitely be something to tell Lily and Severus.

It turned out she didn’t have to tell them – they already knew. Or had made several good guesses, at the very least.

Bellatrix stumbled blearily into the kitchen the following morning to discover Lily and Severus already seated at the kitchen table, with Harrison playing with his ‘family figures’ in the corner. Bellatrix paused at the smirks on the others’ faces.

“What?” she asked, suspiciously.

Lily’s smile broadened. “Have a good time last night, Trix?” she asked, casually.

“As much as you can at a Ministry function,” Bellatrix responded, slowly reaching for a chair. She narrowed her eyes at the pair. “What are you two up to?”

Before either of them could respond, Harrison toddled over to her, and held up one of his dolls for her to look at. “Look, Mama T’ix!” he crowed, delightedly. “New toy!” Bellatrix went pale as she stared at the nut-brown figure. No, surely that couldn’t mean . . .

“Something you want to tell us, Trix?” asked Severus, his smirk widening too.

Bellatrix shot them a wide-eyed look. “Where did that come from?” she gasped out. Looking back at Harrison, she winced as he waved the doll around through the air as though flying, and then stuck its head in his mouth. She really hoped that those figures weren’t too attached to their real-life counterparts; otherwise Mr Virtu would be developing one heck of a headache right about now.

Lily smothered a chuckle as she pulled the boy to her side and rescued the doll. “It just appeared late last night,” she said. “Strangely, it appears to be mostly connected to you, Trix. I wonder why!”

“I, uh . . .” Bellatrix stammered, then blushed a fiery red. Severus and Lily burst out laughing, while Harrison gazed up at her in confusion. Lily pointed her son back in the direction of his other toys, and he toddled off, quite happy to leave the mysteries of the grown-ups behind.

“So, spill it,” Lily said. “What happened? What’s he like? What’s his name?”

“When do we meet him?” Severus chimed in. “Got to make sure he’s good enough,” he teased, and ducked away as Bellatrix swatted at him.

“His name is Soreen Virtu,” she told Lily, “and I have no idea if I’ll meet him again. He was part of the Indian Ministry’s delegation, so I doubt he’ll be here for long.”

“Means you’ll have to work fast,” said Lily, grinning.

Unable to come up with a response to that, Bellatrix stuck her tongue out at Lily, and then hastily changed the subject. “Did Dromeda decide where she’s having Nymph’s party?” Nymphadora’s birthday was in the middle of August, and the soon-to-be-four-year-old had been begging for a party. Her mother, Andromeda, was understandably concerned about Dumbledore’s group attacking them again, and the debate had been raging for weeks on the best place to hold the event.

“They’ve decided to hold it at their house,” Severus responded, shaking his head at Bellatrix’s almost Gryffindor attempt at diverting them. “But Andromeda asked if we’d ward it for them, just to be on the safe side.”

“Sev and I already said we would,” Lily added. “After all, Potter and his cronies have a bad habit of popping up like bad Knuts.”

“Goo—oh!” Bellatrix breathed, suddenly, her eyes going wide. Then she began to giggle.

“What?” “Trix, what is it?” Lily and Severus asked over each other.

“Nymph is going to get a special present this year,” said Bellatrix, still chortling. She glanced up at her blood-siblings, and smiled. “Dromeda’s going to be announcing a new arrival.”

“A new . . . ?” Severus’ voice trailed off, and then his eyebrows rose. Lily looked from one to the other, then gasped, her hands flying to her mouth.

“Oh, Trix, how lovely!” she exclaimed. “Boy or girl?”

Bellatrix descended into giggles again. “Both, although she doesn’t know that yet,” she crowed. “It’s twins!”

“Sev, I’m leaving for the Ministry now,” Lily called into the basement laboratory. There was the sound of a muffled explosion – and a not-so-muffled curse – and Lily cringed. “Sorry, Sev!”

Harrison, perched on her hip, chortled. “Papa Sev BOOM!” he crowded, delightedly, and waved his arms in the air to simulate the blast.

“Papa Sev’s lab went boom,” Lily corrected her son. “I don’t think you’d like it if Papa Sev himself went boom.” She peered at the lab door, where tendrils of smoke were beginning to escape from under it. “Uh, Sev, we’ll be back later this afternoon,” she informed him, loudly, and then scurried for the front door, where her handbag was sitting on the hall table. Why the silly man hadn’t put up a Silencing charm if he was at a delicate stage, she’d never know.

Tucking the bag securely under her arm, and adding a Sticking charm for good measure, Lily tightened her grip on Harrison. “Hold tight, baby,” she instructed. “We’re going to be apparating.” Harrison obediently wound his arms around his mother’s neck, and buried his face into her shoulder. Placing a protective hand on his head, Lily spun on one foot and disappeared.

They reappeared outside the official entrance to the Ministry. Really, she should have been using the visitor’s entrance, or the common worker’s entrance, but certain people in the Department of Mysteries – Bellatrix being one of them – were allowed to use the ‘special’ entrance, and so of course Lily and Severus were able to use it, too. It was extremely useful whenever she had to bring Harrison along, as she had no doubt that having to use the more common employee entrance – flushing themselves in – would have had a detrimental effect on their own plumbing at home.

Once inside, they made their way to the Department of Licenses. Harrison was busy trying his best to see everything at once; his head was spinning this way and that so much that Lily was vaguely surprised it didn’t just pop right off.

A fireplace flared with green flames as someone Floo’ed in. Lily didn’t pay much attention, since the fireplaces were constantly busy, but Harrison, peering over her shoulder, suddenly let out a squawk. “Mama, toy!” he proclaimed, loudly, bouncing in delight.

“What?” Lily paused to adjust her grip on the toddler. “What toy?” She glanced around, wondering if one had somehow fallen out of her bag, or whether Harrison had seen something he would like as a toy.

“Mama!” Harrison scowled at her obtuseness. “New toy, Mama!” He pointed emphatically over her shoulder. “New toy going that way!”

Puzzled, Lily turned just in time to see someone disappearing around a corner. She glanced back down at Harrison. “I have no idea what in Merlin’s name you’re on about, young man, but we’re going this way,” she said, striding forward again.

Harrison slumped and folded his arms, sulkily, frowning at his mother. Honestly, how hard was it to understand that the big figure of his new toy had been heading in the opposite direction to them? He considered yanking on the bond to get New Toy to come to him, but the little figure had only been connected to his Mama T’ix. Really, that would have to change. What good was New Toy if he wouldn’t come when Harrison wanted him?

It took Lily an hour to find the department she needed, and – with typical bureaucracy – by the time she had the forms necessary both for setting up a semi-permanent, long-range portkey and to allow her the right to teach in France, a further three-quarters of an hour had passed, and Harrison was getting bored.

 Huffing with her own exasperation, Lily moved to a corner off the office, and barricaded it with several of the chairs placed there for those who had longer waits than they were anticipating. Rummaging in her bag, she removed several toys, then placed Harrison in the temporary playpen and warded him in. “There,” she said, straightening up and looking around for another chair for herself. “Just stay there, baby. Mama has to fill these forms in, then we’ll go see if Papa Sev is able to play.”

Harrison folded his arms, and dropped to sit on his bottom on the floor, glaring at the chairs holding him in. When this did not cause the chairs to burst into apologetic flames, he snatched up one of his toys from beside him and angrily smacked it on the floor. It bounced, and ricocheted off a chair to land on the floor some distance away.

Gearing himself up for a full-blown sulk, Harrison dropped onto his front on the floor, ready to throw a major tantrum. It was then, however, that he discovered something marvellous.

Lily, in her frustration and her rush, had not done her normal thorough job of warding his little corner. Instead of warding Harrison, she had warded the chair backs, meaning that if Harrison tried shoving a chair out of his way, it wouldn’t budge and she would be alerted.

What she hadn’t considered, though, was that the gaps between the chair legs were quite wide enough for Harrison to squirm his way through.

Especially with a little bit of accidental wish magic greasing his way.

Carefully wriggling his way across the room on his stomach like a snake, Harrison jerkily got to his feet once he’d reached the open office door, and gleefully toddled through it. Now he could find New Toy!

With a great deal of satisfaction, Lily finally scrawled her signature across the last page of the last form, and added it to the tall pile of papers with an enthusiastic thwap! She hoped that her permits would come through before she was due to start teaching on the 2nd September. Knowing the Ministry, she wouldn’t be surprised if they took three months minimum to arrive, but Bellatrix had assured her that yes, all her permits would arrive before she had to depart for France . . . even if only by ten minutes.

Shaking out her hand to get rid of the cramp it had developed, Lily rummaged in her bag for the Galleons to pay the license fees, then lifted the stack of papers. “Come on, Harry,” she chirped, turning with her hand already raised to un-ward the corner. “Mummy’s almost done . . .” Her voice trailed off as she registered the lack of a little boy behind the chairs. “Harry?” Puzzled, Lily tilted her head. “Are you being invisible again?” The trio had had a minor panic two months before when Harrison – annoyed at being told it was bedtime when he didn’t want to go – had accidentally turned himself invisible. It had taken a major dusting of flour and the help of Lissy before they’d managed to find him and turn him back.

Becoming more puzzled, and slightly cross, at not hearing any response from Harrison, Lily clambered over one of the chairs and gingerly felt around the area, not wanting to accidentally poke Harrison in the eye if he was playing a game with her. But no little boy met her questing hands.

The puzzlement beginning to turn into concern, Lily raised her head to look over at the Ministry desk. “Excuse me,” she called across the room. “Have you seen a little boy? Black hair, green eyes? He was in this corner . . .”

“Nope,” the bored-looking official replied. He didn’t even lift his gaze from the desk.

Lily hopped back over the chairs and swept her glance around the room. Surely Harrison had to be in there somewhere. Her gaze froze on the open doorway. “Oh, no!” she murmured, then spun back to the desk. “How long has that door been open?” she demanded, frantically.

“Hmm?” The official finally deigned to raise his head. “Oh, it doesn’t close until five,” he said, before losing interest again.

“No, not the office, how long has that door been open?” Lily countered, slapping her hands on the desk in front of him. The official jumped, and finally looked at her properly. Whatever he was about to say died as he met her wild eyes.

“The door is open as long as the office is,” he said. He shrank back in his chair as Lily first went pale, then flushed an alarming shade of red that almost matched her hair.

“And you don’t make provisions for anyone who brings their children?” she screeched. “Nothing to prevent their child just walking out?!”

“Uh . . .” Nervously, the official ran a finger along the neckline of his shirt. That was answer enough for Lily, and with a noise somewhere between a growl and a scream, she headed for the door to go and find her lost child.

Except that was easier said than done.

The Department of Licenses office was at the end of a long hallway, with closed doors spread out along both sides. At the end of the corridor, it split into three, all of which branched off again and again. Once she’d ensured that Harrison hadn’t managed to gain entrance to one of the other offices, there was no telling which way he would have gone.

Beginning to feel frantic now, Lily shoved the feeling through the bond to Bellatrix. Bellatrix was somewhere in the Ministry, and could hopefully See where Harrison had got to. Less than two minutes later, Bellatrix’s patronus, a stately Hippogriff, had bounded around the corner and come to a skipping halt in front of Lily.

“I Saw,” it said with Bellatrix’s voice. “But I can’t See Harry. Cast for a trace of his magical signature and see if you can follow that. I’ll try from my end and work my way towards you.” With a bow, the silvery Hippogriff faded away.

Her hands trembling so much that she almost dropped her wand, it took Lily four tries to cast the spell that allowed her to see Harrison’s magical signature. The thread of it was weak, barely visible in the bright, artificial glow of the office hallway. Surprisingly, considering how young Harrison was, it moved in an incredibly straight line. Almost as though Harrison hadn’t just gone exploring, but had gone after something specific.

Lily carefully followed her son’s trail. The few office workers she passed ignored her, while the casual visitors gave her inquisitive looks but carried on past her. Not once did she see any sign of any security personnel. Where were they all?

She finally found Bellatrix when she was almost back to where they’d Floo’ed in. Bellatrix shook her head as soon as she saw Lily, and ran a hand through her hair, worriedly.

“This was where we came in earlier,” Lily told her, her voice shaking. “Trix, what if Harry’s gone through the Floo with someone? He could be anywhere!”

“I don’t think so,” Bellatrix said, as calmly as she was able to. “I think it’s something here in the Ministry that’s blocking me, so if Harry left, then I should have Seen him.” She wrapped an arm around Lily’s shoulders. “Don’t fret so, Lil. We’ll find him. Should we call in Sev, too?”

“No, he was busy brewing – and exploding – when we left,” said Lily. She cast the spell to see Harrison’s magical signature again, and let out a breath of relief as it went straight past the public Floos. “Look, Harry went that way!” She pointed to where the thin trail had disappeared around a corner. “What’s down there, Trix?”

“Space for visiting dignitaries,” Bellatrix replied, frowning. “What on earth would draw Harry down there?”

Shaking her head, Lily plunged into the crowd, elbowing her way through to keep her son’s trace in sight. With a sigh, Bellatrix followed. She wouldn’t like to be in Harrison’s shoes once they caught up with him.

Two corridors later, the trace petered out. Lily spun in frantic circles, casting every spell she could think of. “Where is he, Trix?” she wailed. “Where’s my baby?!”

A soft cough from further down the hall caused them both to spin. Bellatrix’s breath caught in her throat. “Excuse me, madam,” said the soft voice of Soreen Virtu, “but I believe this belongs to you?” Harrison was perched snugly on the man’s hip, one hand fisted firmly in his hair, his head contentedly on the man’s shoulder. He was beaming proudly.

“Look, Mama,” he chirped. “New Toy!” Then his eyes fell on Bellatrix. “Hi, Mama T’ix!” He waved madly at her.

“HARRISON ORION EVANS!!” Lily said, very loudly and forcefully. Harrison’s expression fell and he cringed back against his rescuer. “Just what did you think you were doing, running off like that!” She swooped over and plucked her son from Virtu’s arms. “Just wait until I get you home, young man! Don’t you ever dare do that again!” Lily was scolding, in between frantically kissing Harrison’s face.

Virtu stood to the side, watching with an air of calm bemusement.

“Thank you, Mr Virtu,” Bellatrix said, softly, sidling towards him. “As you can see, Lily was very worried. We both were.”

“It was my pleasure,” he said, with a short bow. “Alas, I’m afraid boys do tend to always find themselves in trouble. I’m sure you’ve seen this already in your son.”

Bellatrix snorted. “Oh, I have that. But Harry isn’t my son. He’s Lily’s.”

“Surely parental feelings are not incumbent upon carrying the child,” Virtu said, stiffly. “He calls you both ‘Mama’, after all.”

“Oh!” Bellatrix breathed, suddenly realising the conclusion Virtu had come to. She laughed. “No, Lily and I are siblings. We did a blood ceremony when we were kids, and it bound us almost into one person. That’s why he calls me Mama. His father is . . . well, someone who attended the same school we did.” Really, that was about the nicest thing she could say about James Potter.

“Oh. My apologies,” Virtu said, a dull flush highlighting his cheekbones. He made a deep bow.

Bellatrix smiled at him as he straightened up. “It’s alright; you couldn’t know,” she said.

“Thank you,” Lily said suddenly from beside them. She frowned down at the sulking, tearful toddler in her arms. “I think it’ll be a very long while before someone comes back to the Ministry.” Harrison just sniffled. She looked back up at Virtu, and her eyes widened very slightly. She’d obviously recognised Harrison’s ‘new toy’. Bellatrix bit back a groan as Lily flicked her gaze over to Bellatrix, then smiled warmly at Virtu. “Lily Evans, and this little rapscallion is Harrison.”

“Soreen Virtu.” Virtu gave her a small, dignified bow.

“Perhaps you’d like to come to dinner tonight, at our house, so we can thank you properly,” Lily said, and ignored the frantic, wide-eyed look Bellatrix shot her.

“Honestly, madam, there is no need—” Virtu started, sounding slightly uncomfortable, but Lily steamrollered over him.

“Nonsense,” she said, briskly. “Trix can give you the apparition coordinates. We’ll see you at seven, yes?” She barely waited for the cautious nod that Virtu gave her. “Right, then. I have to take this Imp home for a very well deserved time out. I’ll see you later, Trix.” And she scurried back down the corridors in the direction of the Floo chamber.

Bellatrix met Virtu’s gaze and barely stopped herself from groaning again.