Disclaimer: Harry Potter. Not mine.
A/N: The kind reader should take into account that this story is AU (alternate universe) and does not follow the regular timeline of events.
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CHAPTER I
Midnight.
Cloudy.
Godric's Hollow.
The residence of Mr. and Mrs. Potter.
James apparated in front of his humble house with a tired expression on his face. The war was not going well. That's an understatement, he thought. We're losing people left, right and center.
As the Head of Aurors, it was his duty to track down Dark wizards and witches and stop them from harming anyone, magical or not. The tracking was easy. The Death Eaters wanted to be found. They would draw in Aurors from around the country by killing masses of Muggles, a demonstration of their terrible power. Once they had gathered hundreds of Aurors, they would strike the Aurors with a force unexpected. The Death Eaters only sent out ten or twelve to do the killings, but hundreds of them waited in nearby buildings or the sewers. Like a giant tiger they waited for the ultimate prey.
The tracking was easy. Stopping them was hell.
James opened the door soundlessly. He frowned. The door was supposed to be locked. Where was Lily?
The warmth of the house enveloped him as he stepped onto the welcome mat. Closing the door softly behind him, he turned to look if Lily was nearby. Slowly, he drew out his wand from his belt…
The house was lit. The fireplace in the living room to his right was cackling. He lowered his wand, but kept it in his hands, nonetheless. A lit fireplace meant Lily was upstairs.
James collapsed unto the couch in the living room and buried his head into his hands. The burden of his job finally toppled him over. I'm not doing anything to stop Voldemort. We always run away and never stand our ground! How the bloody hell are we supposed to win this war?
"Where," a cold voice from behind him spoke, "exactly have you been?"
James had immediately stiffened his grip on his wand. He turned and saw an irate Lily Potter with eyes glinting and hands on her hips.
"How do I know it's you, Lily?"
"Your Animagus is a stag."
"And your father used to play golf on Sundays."
Lily's eyes did not soften nor did she drop her stance. Her mouth was curved in a frown and she began tapping her foot. "Well?" she said in her frigid voice. "Where were you at eight o'clock?"
"At work. Where else would I have been?" replied James in a sarcastic voice. "Majorca?"
"You were supposed to be here, O great Auror. Dumbledore wanted to see us, as in you and me," said Lily, growing a bit angrier. "He had a job for us."
James closed his eyes. He had enough to worry about at work. Now Dumbledore wanted something as well. It was too much.
"I'm sorry," he said as best as he could, though it was obvious he wasn't. "What did he want?"
Lily jerked her head toward the dining room behind her. "There is a list of confirmed Death Eaters within the Ministry. Dinner's on the table. It's gone cold. Enjoy."
She sighed and went upstairs again, cursing under her breath. James stood up and glared at her back as she marched the stairs. It was clear both of them were too tired for a fight tonight.
SSS
James lay in bed that night, looking at the ceiling and hoping it would swallow him up so that he needn't worry about anymore Death Eaters, Lily, Voldemort, Lily, the Ministry, Lily, life in general, Lily…
Grunting, he turned on his side, pulling the blanket over him. The good thing was that he and Lily never fought over the blanket owing to the fact they never slept together. Lily worked during the night while he during the day. Her footsteps coming into the bedroom was his alarm to get up and go to work.
When had they last slept in the same room together? That was during their honeymoon, of course. They had opted for two beds in the hotel room instead of one, to the confusion of the hotel clerk. But James knew for a fact that they had never slept in the same bed at the same time.
James snorted. If Witch Weekly or some other magazine had found out that Britain's model celebrity couple never slept together, it would cause quite a stir.
As James tried to draw his mind away from such thoughts, a piece of parchment caught his eye. It lay innocently on the bedside drawer, tucked away under Hogwarts: A History.
James rolled his eyes. Lily loved that bloody book. The piece of parchment happened to be a memo, of sorts.
It read:
Supply J.N. with vials + give notes.
L.B. needs new copies of Dernstein's Grimoire.
Remind C.F. and B.C. to push for draft legislation
James groaned while reading the last line. C.F. was no doubt Cornelius Fudge, a rising star in the ministry and B.C. was a no-brainer. Barty Crouch, the most influential man in the ministry. Lily had too much leverage being the second most powerful Auror, a favorite of Slughorn and being married to the Head of the Aurors.
He grabbed a quill and wrote under the notes:
Butt out. Legislation's my responsibility.
Sighing, he closed his eyes and thought of Quidditch.
SSS
Lily and James both had smiles on their faces as they greeted the Ministry men. They kept their smiles while they conferred in the cold, dark dungeon underground, laying out plans. When they discussed darker matters, their faces turned grave, but they tried to keep their frustration out of their faces. They always stood or sat close together, but never did they touch.
The men assembled plans, plans that were folly when put into fulll perspective. Lily tried not to fall asleep, and instead focused on the map in front of her.
"Any suggestions, Mrs. Potter?" asked the old man in the corner.
Smiling, she shook her head. Inside, she nodded. There were a thousand and one ways this plan was going to go wrong, and all of them resulted in dead Aurors and wizards.
"Mr. Potter?"
She looked at him. There was no difference in the way he smiled and shook his head. He looked at her once the men began conferring again. His eyes told her: We're dead meat.
Once the council dispersed, James and Lily walked in the cold hallway to the stairs that led above. "This plan is as suicidal as deranged teenager on the edge," said James quietly so the men in front of him would not hear.
"Don't be so negative," snapped Lily in return.
"Don't get snappy. You know I'm right," replied James coolly.
"Stop acting like an idiot, James," said Lily through clenched teeth.
One of the men looked back. Both Lily and James grinned fake grins. James said a bit loudly, "Yes, honey, you're right of course."
After the man smiled at them and turned back around, Lily glared. "I hate you," she whispered.
"No love lost between us, then."
SSS
"You're pushing my wizards too hard, Lily!"
"Your wizards? They're not possessions! Anyway, they're not doing enough work as it is."
"What else can we do, other than enlist them in the army? They are doing their best, Lily!"
"There are attacks everyday, James. Everyday. None of them are stopped! Innocent people die because your men are not sufficient enough!"
"So you're saying I don't train my men hard enough? They don't have enough time! Most of the working crew are eighteen year old boys with nothing to lose and no experience whatsoever! And after going out on a mission once, they lose it. They lose it, Lily. They're not ready. Not ready for the blood and carnage." James ended in a whisper, falling back into the couch.
Lily, on the other side of the room, fumed. Neither of them needed to do anything else. This was what war did to you.
"If I was Head of the Aurors…." began Lily.
"If you were Head, they'd be no different," said James harshly, "Drop it."
"If you didn't exist, I'd be Head," sneered Lily. James did not look hurt. He'd gotten used to this, after a year or so. Not looking hurt, however, did not mean he wasn't.
"If we'd never wed, I'd have a better life," continued Lily in her quiet voice. She threw him a dirty look, as if to say, My messed up life is all your fault, you worthless bastard.
She turned and went to the kitchen. James got up and went over to the window, to watch the rain clouds unleash their fury. Lightning flashed and thunder boomed. Over the hazy distance, James could not mistake the Dark Mark in the dark clouds. How fitting, thought James.
The newspaper headline on the coffee table read:
OVER A THOUSAND MURDERED IN BRISTOL. DARK MARK STILL LOOMS.
SSS
James turned the letter over. This was too good of an opportunity. Where was the catch?
He sat in his desk, reading the letter over and over. James felt a grin tug at the corners of his mouth. "Tell Barty he's my hero," James said.
Kingsley Shacklebolt and Mad-Eye Moody both straightened up in their seats in surprise. "Are you sure you want to do this?" said an incredulous Kingsley in his deep monster of a voice.
"So damn sure, Kingsley, I'd go there right this instant," replied James.
"Look, James, none of us here want you to go. You're too valuable to lose in this war," protested Moody in his growl.
"Believe it or not, Moody, I'm just a wizard who knows a lot of hexes and curses. I'm nothing special. My wife taught me that," said James, trying to keep the hatred and malice out of his voice. She taught me that pretty well. Still does. Every single damn day, in fact. I'm a worthless bastard. "I might die. So what? I'll know that I gave everything I got to those Death Eaters."
Moody sighed. Kingsley saw an opportunity. "Think about your wife. How will she feel about this?"
She'll love it. "Kingsley, my wife and I know the dangers of this war. We're willing to do anything we can to stop Voldemort," replied James, leaning forward and resting his elbows on top of his desk, hands on top of one another.
This gives her that chance to be Head of Aurors, doesn't it? As an added bonus, I won't be in her life anymore. There's even a chance I'll die! This'll definitely make her day.
"Men, sign me up. I'm going to be the commander of the bloody army."
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Review. Please. Should I continue?
