Hey everyone. This is the first chapter of a Voldemort Wins!AU. This story was brought to you by Hogwarts Eastern Winter Funfair's Christmas Eve Boxes, Hogwarts Southern Winter Funfair's The Naughty List, and Hogwarts Northern Winter Funfair's Menorah Candles on Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. For Christmas Eve Boxes I wrote for (Stage 10) Your story is: The Grinch and the prompt I used was to write about someone who seeks redemption. For The Naughty List I wrote for Sam and the prompt was a Voldemort Wins!AU. For Menorah Candles I wrote for the Onions prompt of someone crying. Warnings for mentions of character deaths and their aftermaths. I hope you all enjoy the first chapter of To Gain Forgiveness.

The sounds of a woman's wailing cry come down to Peter Pettigrew from the upper floor. A pang of guilt hits him as he knows that he is the one responsible not only for Lily's crying but for the death of one his best friends. He looks down on James Potter's corpse laying where he'd made his last stand. He wishes he'd have been a better man and told James this might happen.

"Mama is so sorry, Harry," he hears Lily cry sending another painful pang of guilt through his heart. "Mama is so sorry."

Peter finds himself walking up the stairs as though in a daze. He doesn't want to take in the ruined house that used to be one of the most beautiful places he'd ever seen in his life. He doesn't want to look over at the signs of the door to Harry's room being magically unlocked. Because all these acts might as well have been done by his own hand.

Walking into the room the guilt becomes to painful for Peter to deal with. He sees Lily react by pulling her wand on him and he's happy she does this. If she knew what he'd done he's pretty sure she would kill him right were he stood. Instead upon seeing who it is she lowers her wand and takes up the one year old boy in her arms again.

"Peter," she cries, "their dead. He killed them." She breaks down into tears yet again ripping what's left of his heart to shreds.

Peter finds himself going over to Lily to comfort her and knows that in way should he ever be the one to have to do this. It should be Sirius, or Remus here comforting her. Hell, he should have maned up and told them he was compromised. He hadn't wanted to hurt Harry or James for that matter. He definitely hadn't wanted either one of them dead. But as soon he learned that Voldemort had threatened his mother and father he couldn't help but do what the Dark Lord wanted.

"I know," he whispers consolingly to her knowing that there is nothing he can do to take away the pain this first time mother is suffering. "Why don't we..."

"What are you doing here?" came the voice of the last person Peter wanted hear, Severus Snape. The bat like man walked into the room wand pointed at Peter as he moved between Lily and the cowering rat of a man. "Do you think, considering the fact that you were the only person who knew where the Potters were, you should be anywhere near Lily or this house right now, Pettigrew?"

Peter admits to himself that he deserves that one. He watches as dawning comes over Lily. He was the only one who knew the address that the Potters lived at. He hangs his head because he see that she hates him. "I'm so sor..."

"Don't even finish that sentence, Peter," Snape yells pointing his wand at Peter yet again. "Having an attack of conscious now that the deed is done? Are we? You can't undo this Peter. Nothing can fix what you have done tonight."

Peter watches Lily though because she looks like she wants to say something to him. He wishes she'd yell at him like Severus did. He wishes she'd use one of the Unforgivable curses on him. It's nothing less than he deserves in his mind. But what comes out of her mouth surprises not only him but the unflappable Severus Snape as well.

"If you want to earn my forgiveness, Peter," she says pressing her dead child against her chest, "do the right thing from this point forward. Turn against him. Help us. Help the Order of the Phoenix like you promised to when we all joined the group. Prove to us all how sorry you are."

"Lily..." Snape's voice lashes out like a whip against his ears.

"You are Death Eater too, Sev," Lily pointed out. "I'm giving you the same chance to change as I am Peter. Please the both of you don't make me regret making this decision."

There's a crashing sound from downstairs and he knows that Sirius and Remus are here. He hears the two men sobbing as they find James Potter defenseless on the first floor. He knows they won't give him the same change Lily is and he knows he doesn't deserve it. But Peter also knows that he has to take the chance Lily is giving him. It's much more than he deserves but he will do his best to earn it like she said.

I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of To Gain Forgiveness.