~~~James's P.O.V – Halloween 1981~~~
I lay on the couch bouncing Harry up and down. I couldn't believe that at age 21 I had a wife and child, a beautiful baby boy. I put the baby down and pulled out my wand. Harry cooed excitedly. 'Oh, you like that, huh?' I started to conjure smoke, making it coloured and in rings, and Harry tried to catch them in his tiny fist.
Lily walked in then, saying she needed to put Harry to sleep. I handed the little boy over, saying 'Good night, Harry. Daddy loves you.' Lily walked off to the bedroom. I went into the hallway, yawning and rumpling my hair.
Suddenly, I heard the door crash open. I sprinted into the hallway. No, this couldn't be happening! Harry was one year old! But it was happening. Voldemort was at our house. 'Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!' Where was my wand? Oh, no. I'd left it on the couch. I'd have to fight the Muggle way. Before I could even raise my fists, Voldemort laughed, and said 'Avada Kedavra!' The world went black.
I woke up in a bright white room. Or was it a room? It seemed almost unreal, like it wasn't really there. Light fog breezed over me, forming pillars and a floor. Immediately, I knew what had happened. 'Noo…' I moaned. 'Lily…Harry…no!' I sank to my knees. My wife and son were out there, fighting for their lives. Suddenly, someone spoke behind me.
'You need not worry.' I turned to find –
'Dad? Mum?'
'Yes, James. We came to help you on the journey onwards.' Mum smiled and held out her hand. 'Lily and Harry will be okay. They will always remember you.'
For the first time since Harry was born, I broke into tears. 'I won't be there for them! I won't get to see Harry grow up! I won't…won't…' I collapsed into a heap of tears and sorrow. Suddenly, I sensed someone behind me.
~~~Lily's P.O.V – Halloween 1981~~~
I finished putting away the laundry and sat down on the bed with an exhausted sigh. Who knew taking care of a husband and son would be so hard? Husband and son.Who knew I would be saying that after living for only 21 years? And yet, I had no regret for starting a family so early in my life. I loved Harry and James more than anything. I checked the clock near Harry's crib. 'Merlin, is it that time already?' I cried. I went downstairs to pick up Harry.
When I walked in, James was making little puffs of smoke come out of his wand, and Harry was trying to catch them. I smiled and told James that I needed to put Harry to sleep, and he handed him over with a smile. 'Good night, Harry. Daddy loves you.'
I was upstairs in Harry's room, finishing up his pajamas when I heard a crash and James yelling, 'Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!' Suddenly, all my exhaustion was gone. He was here, and he was trying to break apart my family. I began to push all the furniture against the door, hoping to keep him out long enough to get Harry somewhere safe. Then I heard those horrible words: 'Avada Kedavra!'
No. Not James. Not now! But I had no time to grieve. Voldemort was looking for Harry, and I needed to protect him. I kept pushing the furniture against the wall. Wasn't there an easier way to do this? My wand! I'd left it downstairs, in the kitchen! Before I could think any more about this, the door was forced open. I dropped Harry into the crib and threw my arms out. I had to protect my child.
'Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!' I cried.
'Stand aside, you silly girl... stand aside, now.' He replied coldly. Stand aside? How could he think I would do that? Stand aside so he could kill my child?
'Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead -' I pleaded desperately.
'This is my last warning -'
'Not Harry! Please ... have mercy ... have mercy ... Not Harry! Not Harry! Please - I'll do anything ...'
'Stand aside. Stand aside, girl!' He raised his wand. I opened my mouth to convince him. Before I knew what was happening, he had spoken the words, green light flashed across my vision and everything was black.
I woke up a long time later. Or maybe it was only a little time. I was scared until I saw a familiar untidy black-haired someone. As if he had sensed my presence, James turned. 'Lily!' he cried. We embraced.
'Harry…' I began to sob uncontrollably.
'He'll be okay,' James murmured. 'Sirius and Remus will take care of him, I know they will.' His words reassured me, but only for a little while.
'But what if…what if they can't take him? What if they're hurt? What if Voldemort killed them too?' Tears poured down my face at the thought of Voldemort killing my husband's best friends too.
'No, Lils. They'd be here too.' He patted my back.
'What if they are? What if they are waiting for us somewhere else?' I cried.
'We would have heard about it , Lily. They wouldn't keep that secret.' I raised my head, and for the first time I noticed two people standing behind James.
'Mr Potter? Mrs Potter? What are you doing here?'
'We came to help James find his way onward. We sensed he'd be here. And we'll have none of that Mr and Mrs,' Mrs Potter said. 'James told us so much about you when he used to come home. He always seemed to describe you as 'the beautiful, smart, amazing Lily Evans', so we practically know each other already. I am Dorea, and this is Charlus,' she said. I know I should have said thank you or something, but I couldn't get over the fact that Harry – No!
'Voldemort was after Harry! What if he killed him?' I started crying again.
'Lily. I think he survived.' I raised my head hopefully. 'Wouldn't he be here otherwise? It's been a while since Voldemort – ' His voice caught. But I understood, and started breathing less heavily. We sat on a bed that seemed to come out of nowhere. After a while of comforting each other wordlessly, with James's parents watching us silently with wry smiles on their faces, I dried my eyes.
'James? I think I'm ready.' He understood, and immediately I could hear a faint whistle in the background. A pearly white train pulled up. It was almost like it was made of fog. Silently, a white compartment door slid open.
'Come, dears. Let's go.' Dorea took my hand while Charlus took James's. Together we stepped onto the train.