Title: Mother's Thing

Rating: T

Summary: Starting the series "In Loving Memory", here is the first of six short stories...

The moment is here, nightmare they have been dreading since they first heard the terrible news. But how? How has he found them? Maybe some friends should not had been trusted...

Disclaimer: Sadly and obviously I don't own nothing related to Harry Potter. It belongs to J.K.Rowling and not to me. I wish I owned it but I don't. Okay, now I think I'll go back to sulk about it...

Author's note: I thought about this the other day I was talking to my sister, and, to me, it seems a very interesting idea to do a series of stories starting from the end to the beginning. I hope any one finds this idea as interesting as me.

A Mother's Thing

Her breathing becomes fast and irregular. She can hear the wooden floor cringing below his swift footsteps, the hem of his black robe swishing as he walks, his victorious breathing loud as a hurricane. She casts her husband a look of utter desperation and he presses her harder to his chest, kissing affectionately the top of her head, after all there's nothing he can do.

"Go and hide Harry", he whispers, pressing his mouth to her ear. She looks at him, her emerald eyes glistening with tears but doesn't move an inch. He nudges his head towards their only baby-boy's room, but she still doesn't move. "Lils, if he dies - "

His barely audible voice brakes, betraying him as his own hazel eyes fill with tears. She shakes her head and he moves closer to her. He pulls her into a tight hug, both of them allowing tears to flow freely down their cheeks. After a few minutes he lets go of her and caresses her pale cheeks, brushing a tear away.

"You have to go", he repeats, nudging his head once more. Her heart shatters into a million pieces and she leans closer to him and closes the space between them in what will be their last kiss. She has always felt safe in his arms but this time it's different – this time she knows that nothing will be able to save them from what is coming. He breaks the kiss by pulling away from her and she nods, her emerald eyes glistening with tears again.

She walks to the door that connects their room with baby Harry's room and places her hand in the cold brass doorknob. She turns around and gives her husband a loving look, reminiscing everything they had been through together. They had always been true to their wedding vows, for they had always been together through thick and thin, through dark or bright, through everything that life had placed their way.

"I love you James Potter", she whispers. He looks at her with tears in his beautiful hazel eyes and gives her a faint smile.

"I love you too Lily Evans", he answers in a whisper. She returns the faint smile. "Always have, always will."

As she hears those words, her resolution of leaving him wavers but she knows she has to protect her son. She takes a deep breath and opens the door, leaving him behind. He looks her figure disappear behind the door and he feels the usual guilt that has been in his stomach since they went into hiding burn like hot coal. Guilt for making them go through this, guilt for not being able to protect them from what was happening as he had always swore to do so.

She walks to the wooden cradle in which her baby lays without making a sound. As she gets nearer, she sees in baby Harry's nightstand a picture frame with a moving picture of his first Christmas - James holds Harry in his arms while Sirius tries to snatch Harry out of his father's arms, both of them laughing sincerely. She is scolding them and Remus hugs her, making her laugh at him. Peter keeps casting wary glances at James and Sirius as they play with the baby - and remembers it just as it had been yesterday as she keeps walking to her baby. When she's standing next to him, she smiles and places a kiss in his unmarked forehead. He begins to stir in his sleep and she holds him in her arms, rocking back and forth. Suddenly, a loud bang is heard and her barely forgotten fear catches up with her. Her mind begins to become dizzy and full of thoughts. She thinks about a million escape plans but all of them go back to the love of her life all alone behind that damned door.

She rushes to the door and yanks it open to reveal the scene she has feared since that last encounter with her former headmaster. Her beloved husband is duelling with the wizard that has been guilty of thousands of murders and uncountable nightmares from the wizarding world, with the same one she herself has battled against in more than one occasion and mysteriously and miraculously survived them all. But in this particular battle, Voldemort seems to be having the lead.

"Oh! Look who's here", Voldemort sneers as he catches a glimpse of Lily standing in the door. "Missed me much?"

Her husband had been too distracted with the battle to notice her, but with Voldemort's leer he turns to look at her as Voldemort keeps blasting curses his way.

"Lily, take Harry and go!" He shouts as she stares at the battle dumbfounded and he continues to fight him away. He knows Voldemort is sure to win but he wants to give her enough time to get away.

"Give him to me and I might just kill you quickly", Voldemort says with his calm voice - as they are discussing the matter over drinks - but his wand flashing and slashing non-stop. James gives a sarcastic laugh that makes her blood curl and continues to battle. They battle for what seems ages to her but suddenly her heart misses a beat as she sees him slip and fall to the floor, letting go of his wand. He gets up and moves towards his wand as fast as he can but he is not fast enough.

"Crucio!" Voldemort laughs - but this laugh was not one of joy, it was cold and empty. She sees her husband writhe and squirm in the floor, his screams of pain pressing her heart roughly and she feels as all the air has been squeezed out of her lungs. As suddenly as he fell, he stopped writhing. His face was a sickly white and his breathing was shallow. She begins to shake with fear, waking her baby from his peaceful slumber. Baby Harry begins to stretch his little arms and his mother watches Voldemort walking closer to her husband. She hopes she's wrong in her assumptions about what Voldemort is about to do, but deep inside her she knows there is only one way in how this night will end.

He looks up at her in the eyes and, for the first time, she sees fear in them. Voldemort fails not to notice their connected eyes and gives a cruel snort.

"Don't look so sad – " Voldemort councils with fake concern and a derisive grimace in his snake-like face, " – you'll be seeing each other soon enough"

As Voldemort keeps walking closer, James's expression changes completely. It becomes strong once again, decided to save them even if he is not able to save himself. His hazel eyes give her the tender look that made her fall for him and she begins to shake even more violently.

"GO! Take Harry and go!" He repeats forcefully. Her mind tells her to obey, that he is going to die and she has to get their son safe; her heart is screaming her to stay with him, to try to help him. She obeys what had always been ignored before, she obeys her heart. With her baby in her hands she searches frantically for her wand with her stare but it is not good nor fast enough. With a slashing movement of his wand, Voldemort mouths the two words that will shatter her world.

"Avada Kedavra!"

Everything turns into slow motion. She sees the green beam of light ignite from the wand and travel to him, standing rooted to his place. In what seems ages, the green light goes through his chest and he looks for the last time to the two loves if his life: his wife and son. He soon discovers that it is true when people say that when you are in your final moment your happiest moments flash through your eyes…

She watches helplessly as his body lays the floor completely lifeless now and hopes with every fibre in her heart that she is only dreaming and she will wake up any moment now to find herself sleeping next to his warm body. She looks desperately at his now empty hazel eyes and searches eagerly for their usual spark, but her mind knows better and repeats her that he is gone. Suddenly reality catches up with her, she still has to take care of her child. She looks directly into Lord Voldemort red eyes and feels nothing but unadulterated loathing rising through her willowy figure, she knows she has never hated anybody as she hates him.

He looks at her rather bemused, as if waiting to see what stupidity is she going to do next. She moves faster than he expected and runs to next room, sealing the door with magic and a rocking chair. But it is no good, for in no time he blasts the door and gracefully walks inside the room. She places the baby back in his crib and points her wand at him but her mind freezes and she feels panic and desperation flowing in her veins instead of blood.

"Now, now Lillian!" He says as he flicks his own wand and her own wand flies out of her hand and into his. "It is rude to point a wand to someone's face".

Voldemort walks closer to her calmly and she feels her panic and desperation clouding her mind. When he is finally a few steps away, she looks at him pleadingly.

"Please no! Please not Harry!" She pleads to him, hot desperate tears running down her cheeks. He looks at her disgusted by her weakness and sneers malevolently at her. He doesn't know what fate has waiting for him.

"Tsk, tsk Lillian!" He reprimands again, clearly enjoying the effect he has on her. She cries desperately and he savours every moment of it. "You really should stay calm, you don't want to die pleading and begging, do you?"

"Please not Harry! Please!" She continues pleading, part of her knowing it is having no effect in him whatsoever. He looks at her now clearly annoyed and disgusted. His face becomes harsh and soon it has the expression that torments all the wizarding world.

"Move", he orders but she does not move. "You really want to move Mudblood!"

She stands there, decided. If she is going to die, she will die protecting her baby. Lord Voldemort gives her a murderous glance and repeats his order but with the same response.

"I will repeat it one more time you filthy mudblood, move out of the way!" He barks, furious.

"Over my dead body", she says slowly and clearly. Voldemort gives a blood-curdling laugh and points his wand to her chest.

"That can be easily arranged", he whispers with the most wicked smile yet. He slashes his wand and the green beam of light shoots right out of it. "Avada Kedavra!"

She turns around and looks confidently at her baby's emerald for the last time and smiles — for she knows he'll be fine. It a mother's thing…

A/N: Okay, so here it is!! If you liked it, please drag your mouse to the pretty review button and give me a nice little review!! Pretty please?