Lily took in a deep breath and, with a shaky smile, walked into the next room where James was sitting on the couch, staring absently into space. Walking to his side, she sat on his lap and ran her fingers lightly through his hair.
Turning slightly glazed eyes to his wife, James smiled softly and pulled her to him, holding her close. He sighed and looked out the window at the setting sun. "Why us? Of all people, why us?" he murmured.
Lily looked at him sadly and kissed his forehead. "I don't know, James, I really don't know. What will be, will be, I suppose."
"Isn't that always the way of it?" he asked no one in particular.
"It would seem so," Lily replied hesitantly.
Hearing the hesitation in his wife's formerly calm voice, he turned to look at her questioningly.
"Oh, James," Lily whispered, leaning over and resting her forehead against his, closing her eyes. After a pause, she continued. "The world is crazy right now. Everything is crazy, but someone deemed it fit to make it just a little crazier." Taking James's hand in her own, she clasped it tightly. "James, I'm-"
Suddenly, James eyes widened and he jumped up, hoisting Lily up with him. Panic filled his eyes as he shouted to his wife. "Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off."
Lily, gripped with fear, didn't question him. She grabbed Harry out of his playpen on the floor and stumbled in haste out of the room just as the door burst open and a cackle of high-pitched laughter filled the small house.
Blundering blindly up the dark staircase, Lily flung open the nearest door and threw herself inside the room, slamming the door shut and locking it. Sliding down the wall to the floor, she murmured to Harry, trying to calm him while she shook and sobbed with unrestrained fear. "I love you, Sweetling," she muttered over and over, mingling words of devotion to her husband in with her words to her son.
She cried out as the door was blasted off its hinges and stared in pure terror at the figure before her. A cold, high-pitched voice flowed over her, chilling her to the core.
"Stand aside," the voice ordered.
Realizing exactly what he wanted, she tightened her arms around Harry's tiny body, pleading with the dark lord. "Not Harry! Not Harry! Please- I'll do anything-"
"Stand aside. Stand aside, girl!"
She was sobbing harder now, deep choking sobs. "Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!" She repeated the phrase again and again in vain.
Once more the voice repeated, "Stand aside, you silly girl…stand aside, now…"
"Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead-"
Apparently oblivious to her pleas, the dark lord raised his arm, wand in hand.
"Not Harry! Please…have mercy…have mercy…"
Realizing her end was near, Lily pulled her son as close as she could and kissed him one last time. She offered him a shaky smile through her tears and placed a hand on her stomach, almost protectively. "I love you, James. I love you, my children," she whispered.
The shrill voice began laughing, a word was uttered, and Lily screamed.
A/N: Just my take on the infamous scene. The lines that James, Lily, and Voldemort say, the pleading and all, are taken straight from the third book. I don't know what page, but I'm sure all of you recognize them.