Hello and Welcome,

This is my third story. I hope you enjoy this one as I plan to make it fairly lengthy. The tentative update schedule can be seen on my profile page.

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Chapter 1

He apparated on the outskirts of the quiet, charming town. It was Halloween night, and the dark grey clouds promised rain, yet the gloomy weather was nothing to the panic inside his chest. Walking swiftly towards the collection of houses, the man stopped, his black eyes staring at a cloaked figure marching left and right across the cobbled street. This man wore black robes too, but he also had a tall, black pointed hat and a dark silver mask.

The newcomer instantly knew who this man was. It had to be this way, of course; the Dark Lord trusted only two wizards to accompany him. Well, one wizard and one witch, to be precise. The witch was nowhere to be seen right now, and this was a blessing for the newly-arrived wizard. He increased his pace, almost breaking into a run, tiny beads of sweat appearing on his white forehead.

'What are you doing here?' Lucius Malfoy asked in a rush, looking over his shoulder to make sure they were not watched.

'I need to know, I need to see. Is he here?' This was spoken in a rush too, but it failed to conceal the desperation in the man's voice.

'If he finds out, he will be displeased. He told you to stay back,' Lucius tried to reason with the man, who looked unearthly pale.

'Is he here?' The newcomer asked again, desperation apparent in more than his voice – the man`s thin form was shaking slightly, hands bound together tightly, fidgeting. 'Yes, he arrived ten minutes ago. It will be over soon.'

'No! I need to be there, I need to see.' The newcomer strolled towards another cobbled street, his eyes fixed on a house in the distance. He only marched for several feet before Lucius grabbed him hard by the forearm, spinning the man around.

'You can't go. You mustn't. Just think of the punishment.' Lucius decided to use his pleading voice again, looking straight into the newcomer's black eyes.

'I don't care. He promised to keep her alive, they both promised!' The man wrung his arm away from Lucius' slack grip and tore of, his eyes still on the dark house.

'Severus! Stop!' Lucius ran after him, catching up only when his friend reached the Potters' house.

It began to rain; huge droplets of grey water made their way down Severus Snape's face as the man watched the house. He did not know if it was a trick of the light, but he saw something green flash momentarily in the gap of the open door. His breath hitched, eyes not leaving the house.

'You must leave Severus. If the Dark Lord finds out...'

'I don't give a damn! He promised, he told me he would keep her alive.' Snape closed his eyes, a deep frown appearing on his face. Lucius could just hear the whispered 'Lily' coming from the man standing next to him.

Even after years of silence on her part, Severus Snape loved Lily Evans. She was his dream, a dream that could never come true. Severus had seen a glimpse of her this year, in Hogwarts, on Dumbledore's birthday. On that occasion, Lily simply looked at the hook-nosed man with pity. And Snape absolutely hated pity; it made him feel worthless and undeserving of life.

'Come to your senses!' Lucius growled this time, trying to grab the man and push him away from the house. 'She isn't worth it. She does not love you. She never did.'

Snape took out his wand, pointing it at the blond man standing next to him. But before he could do anything, he heard the sound of a baby crying.

Lucius ignored the wand pointing straight at his face. Instead, his silver eyes were focused on the house now too. The child's crying was getting louder, the sound shrill against the howling wind.

Snape just stood there, biting his lower lip. His eyes widened instantly as he saw a flash of green in the window on the second floor, followed by an explosion that rocked the house, making the ground shake. The whole house flashed, the color intense enough to be seen everywhere around Godric's Hollow. Yet no one seemed to notice. The street was eerily silent; there was no howling wind, no thrashing trees, and no excited voices of children trick-or-treating.

Snape and Malfoy both ducked to avoid the falling debris. The house, although damaged, showed no sign of life. Snape was the first to recover, breaking into a run and pushing inside the charming garden.

'What are you doing?' Lucius asked, sounding apprehensive.

Snape turned to look at him, saying 'Leave.'

But Lucius did not leave, at least not for another minute. He watched as Severus opened the door and closed it behind him. After another thirty seconds, Lucius realized that his master would not be emerging from the dilapidated house. Something had gone wrong. Terribly wrong. Lucius needed to utilize his backup plan now, a plan that would place him on top of the Wizarding world. Knowing that he had minutes before the Aurors would be swarming the place, Lucius turned on the spot, letting the howl of the wind carry the resounding "crack" of Disapparition.

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