Artemis looked at the chalk circle and flicked her hand towards it. The circle altered itself a little and the goddess gestured towards it, "Step in with me and we shall begin."
They obeyed, when she suddenly had a thought. Artemis looked to the heavens and called out, "Father! I have need of your assistance!"
A few moments later, lightning crackled and a bolt struck the ground. The two mortals and Zoe instinctively looked away. When they turned back to the spot, they saw a tall, imposing man with electric blue eyes, neat shoulder-length black hair and a full beard. He also wore a dark blue pinstriped suit.
He effused such a powerful aura that James could feel the hair on his arms standing straight and an urge to kneel. Zeus spoke, "Hello daughter, you have summoned me?"
The goddess explained the couple's plight, before saying, "I wish to aid this young couple in conceiving a child. I've surmised that a Blood Ritual should suffice. Will this be in violation of my oath?"
He adopted a thinking pose with furrowed brows, "Hmm… This does offer an interesting situation. You know that your oath was on the River Styx, right? I may have to consult The Fates, but I do not think that the Blood Ritual will be in violation of your oath of maidenhood. If we are going by technicalities, you will be counted as the child's Godly parent even though have not birthed it. Very well… I shall bear witness to this ritual!"
Both Lily and James bowed to the two gods, before taking their positions in the circle. Artemis unsheathed a dagger and handed it to Zoe, before instructing her to make a cut on both of the Goddess' palms. After that, she requested her lieutenant to do the same for the couple. Standing in between the couple, she took each of their bleeding hands, while James took Lily's free hand with his own.
From there, Artemis began chanting in Ancient Greek. As she chanted, a dull white glow formed in front of the Goddess. It travelled through her body and through James' body before it finally entered Lily's body. Soon, the ritual was over and Artemis gave a small smile as she healed all of their cuts, "Congratulations! You are with child. As far as parentage goes, both of you are the child's parents, as am I."
She paused before focusing her gaze on Lily's womb. The smile morphed into a mildly disappointed sigh, "The child is a male, I can tell. Oh well… It matters not. When the time comes, I shall still love him as my own."
Zeus gave a single nod in their direction before leaving, and only Artemis and Zoe remained. The other girl gestured to the Goddess, "Come, my Lady. The hunt waits for no one."
Just then James called out to her, "Lady Artemis!"
"Yes?"
"With this wizarding war raging, mine and my wife's safety is not guaranteed. Should anything happen to us, do you promise to take care of our child? We were thinking of naming him Harry."
The Goddess smiled, "Should anything happen to the both of you, My Hunters and I promise to look after Harry, I swear on the River Styx!"
As soon as she said that, thunder boomed in the distance. James bowed respectfully, "Thank you Lady Artemis. Farewell and good hunting."