A/N: This is for QLFC Finals Round 1! Our team had to choose ONE person out of a list of many and pair them. My prompts and pairing are listed below
Prompts:
#1: (word) planets
#4: (word) curious
#5: (word) solution
Team Pick: Lucius Malfoy
Pairing: Lucius Malfoy/James Potter
Betrayal Under One
James waited under the practically dilapidated sign at the Three Broomsticks. He had been waiting to find out if Voldemort was off his trail. Due to the prophecy, he knew that it was impossible to imagine, but James would have tried anything to save his loving wife and infant son. They were in trouble, and the only solution was to seek out help from an enemy. It was from a very unlikely enemy.
"I must say, your letters are becoming quite sloppy, Potter," Lucius Malfoy commented monotonously.
Lucius was slightly uninterested in the whole situation, but a part of him understood. After all, they both had newborn babies and families to protect. He understood, but he didn't agree with his choices. James had the option to join the dark forces and forget about his silly, little Order of the Phoenix club, but he never left them.
"Well, I'm not hoping to call attention to myself," James replied haughtily.
They both looked around to make sure no one was listening before continuing their conversation. If the wrong person were to hear them then the jig would be up for both of them. Voldemort had eyes and ears everywhere.
"Do you have an answer?" James whispered.
"Why won't you join us?" Lucius questioned.
He was curious as to why James wouldn't take the oath and the obvious choice to keep his family safe. If he joined the Deatheaters, then his family would live and he wouldn't be in hiding for the rest of his life. It may not be the ideal life, but it was better than death, according to Lucius.
Of course, Lucius knew it had to do with the Order, and he knew more than he ever wanted to know about that group full of miscreants.
"I don't believe in the same things, Malfoy, and I never have. You know this. I believe in the protection of muggles and the restriction of dark magic. I want to protect those that aren't of pure race, like you. I will not live in fear," James said harshly.
"I would rather live in fear than not live at all," Lucius said simply.
"What kind of life is that? To never be free or happy is a miserable life to lead," James countered.
"But it was the only choice I had at the time to keep my family safe," Lucius argued.
"But it's not mine," James whispered.
They stood there in awkward silence as rain began to fall lightly from a clouded sky. The stars weren't ever visible from the Three Broomsticks, and they sure weren't going to be visible now.
"So, I'll take it that the Dark Lord is still searching for my family?" James questioned, knowing good and well what the answer was going to be.
"I doubt that he will cease his search. Even if the planets came to a halt and the world exploded, he would still try to find you if it was the last thing he ever did," Lucius informed James, looking down.
He heard James sigh heavily and he could feel the fear rush through James's veins. James ran his hands through his hair and looked up at the sky. He was at a loss for answers.
"He will find that shack you call a home in Godric's Hollow soon, Potter. Anything that Dumbledore told you to do, you need to do it," Lucius whispered, careful not let anyone else hear.
"Moving won't make him stop and it will just keep getting worse with each new place," James commented, more to himself than to Lucius.
"I can't give you any more help than this. My hands are tied, Potter," Lucius said, holding up his palms as if he were being accused.
"Will you go tell him that you've found me? You don't have to be loyal to me. We aren't friends," James questioned.
"I'm cruel but I'm not that cruel. I know what it's like to try and save your family. You would do anything for them and it wouldn't matter how large the request. I'm very loyal to those I like…I may not like you, but I respect you."
James was shocked with that kind of news. Enemies were enemies, but that didn't meant respect was ignored. At that time, no one had a clue what the future might look like and no one really cared. They lived in the now, and that's how they preferred it. However, looking back on it, one of them might have done things differently if they had known the result of their actions.
"Potter, there is something I need to warn you about before you leave," Lucius started "You need to be careful of what friends you confide your secrets in. I may not tell the Dark Lord where you are, but someone else might."
Without saying a word, Lucius apparated back to his mansion where his family resided. Lucius knew that Peter Pettigrew had already ratted out the Potter's location and that Voldemort was planning a raid. Lucius had tried to persuade The Dark Lord from doing anything immediate, but attempting to save them was going to end in inevitable disappointment.
James would be dead this time next week. There was no questioning it, and there was no stopping it. Lucius had tried to get him to make the move, but James wouldn't budge. Voldemort would have known if the whereabouts of the Potter's had been tampered with.
Just like James, he wanted to keep his family safe. The only way Lucius could have done that was by keeping his mouth shut and his emotions locked away.