A/N: Hello ! I wasn't exactly sure where I was going with this story when I wrote it. I always wanted James and Lily to live, so I thought maybe I could write a piece where they did. This is supposed to be a one shot, as I'm not the most reliable person when it comes to updates, but I'm not exactly sure what will happen. All criticism is welcomed and any praise : ) Thanks for clicking this! x
Ps. Thanks to my mate 'S' for checking this before I published it!
James sat silently in the kitchen, twirling his wand around in his hand. His gaze lingered on the sink, as he watched the tap slowing leak water. Drip. Drip. Drip. His eyes watered slightly from staring at the tap for too long, shaking his head as he thought about the day, an odd day to say the least.
First, he had woken up at 6 am-that might sound quite normal, but for James Potter it was anything but normal-; he had then proceeded to try to take a shower in a cupboard and then for the rest of the day he had had the feeling of dread constantly looming around him. He couldn't help shaking the feeling that something bad was about to happen. James was no seer but it didn't mean he didn't get those feelings. It was a strange sensation of anticipation and fear mixed together.
Looking up at the ceiling, James silently prayed to Merlin he was just imagining things. It was bad enough he was suck in this house all the time. I mean, don't get him wrong. James adored being with Lily and Harry. He loved spending time with them, it was great, but he missed being able to walk outside freely. Ever since this prophecy had been told, everyone had gone into protection overdrive. Lily, Harry and himself had to go into hiding and they couldn't tell anyone about their location (other than their secret keeper). This rule had prevented him from seeing his friends as frequently as he would have liked. He missed Sirius' bad pick up lines, he missed Remus' annoying lectures; he even missed Peter's ridiculous twitching. Maybe it was silly? Maybe he was being a tad over dramatic, he had only seen them over a week ago.
Yeah, he was being stupid. James ruffled his hair and stood up, walking to the banister. "Lily," he called, "Are you up there, love? I'm starving and you know I can't cook for the life of me."
A giggle echoed through the house. A woman with bright green eyes appeared at the top of the stairs, holding a small boy. "Honestly, James. Don't even try, I know you can cook, you prat." James could only grin, shrugging.
"Well, you're better, my Lily Pad. And anyway don't try to pretend like you don't love cooking for me. I know you do."
Lily shook her head, trying to cover the small smile forming on her face. "Potter-" But Lily didn't get to finish her reply.
A green flash appeared outside their window, followed by a loud bang. The hall light flashed hastily before going out completely. Lily looked at James, terror written across her face, "James."
James stood still for a moment, shock buzzed through his body. Was this what he had been dreading all day? Was this the feeling he couldn't understand? It didn't make any sense. They had taken extra precautions. They hadn't told anyone of their location. No one knew they were here, other than Peter. How could he even find them? They had changed the secret keeper for this exact reason.
He looked at Lily and shook his head, silently pleading with her, "Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!" Lily stared at her husband, her eyes glistening.
"I-I love you, James," She said in a small voice. Tears leaked down her face as she looked at him with all the love she could muster in that moment before sprinting down the hall to Harry's room.
James whipped around, his wand pointed at the front entrance. He stared at the wooden door, the only thing keeping him for coming face to face with the man who was ruining in life. He took a shaky breath, preparing himself for the man with the blood-clouded eyes. James watched silently as the doorknob turned, creaking slightly.
A cloaked figure emerged through the door. The man's head was bent as if he was bowing. His wand appeared suddenly in his pale, almost ghost like, hand. "It seems as though you weren't expecting me?" His cold voice seemed to echo through the small house.
James laughed harshly, "You could say that. I can't exactly pretend like it's a nice surprise"
The man nonchalantly lifted the hood of his cloak, his natrual snake like features were barley visible in the dimly lit hall. James shivered. Looking at him was like looking at death itself. It was horrible. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named considered James for a moment, but shook his head, "Silly blood traitor. Your talents wouldn't have gone unrecognised had you joined me," He voiced, "Move a side, boy. I'm not here for you." He watched James Potter lazily, treating him like he was nothing but dirt on the bottom of his shoe.
"No," James replied, his hand raising slightly as he pointed his wand at the Voldemort. James watched the man as he stood tall and proud, not moving a muscle, "This is my home and you are not invited."
"Alarte Ascendare," He shouted moving toward Voldemort. The Dark Lord barley flinched as he awaited James' next curse. "Diffindo," James roared, holding his wand so hard it seemed it would snap.
Voldemort cackled darkly, raising his wand, "Crucio." James' body withered as he took the full force of the spell. His legs twitched uncontrollably as he tried fighting the unforgivable spell. The Dark Lord only cackled more as he inflicted the curse on James. He watched, clearly enjoying watching the young man scream in pain. Voldemort removed the curse, watching as James staggered into a standing position.
He leaned against the wall, wiping his mouth. "Pathetic," James spat at the man before him, "You'll never get Harry. Lily's already left. There's nothing you can do." He made a move at the man, jumping at him, but his foot landed funny, causing James to go off balance.
Voldemort's eyes blazed, "Avada Kedavra."
James' damaged body fell to the floor, a 'thump' echoing through the halls as he hit the ground at an odd angle. His finger twitched one last time before he blacked out. The cloaked Lord paid no attention to the body, moving gracefully up the stairs.
He looked disdainfully around the house. The walls were painted cream and covered in photos of family and friends. An obvious muggle photo was placed in the center of the wall. "Disgusting," he muttered. Lighting a small flame, the Dark Lord carefully dragged his wand across the wall, causing flames to slowly spread. Voldemort continued moving further up the stairs, towards the glowing light.
He glided across the corridor towards Harry's room. He could hear the quiet whimpering of a small child and a young woman as he pushed open the door. "Move aside," he called out to the woman. Lily stood, moving in front of Harry.
Tears flowed freely down her face, "Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!"
Voldemort only stared, pointing his wand at her, "Stand aside you silly girl … stand aside now."
Lily whimpered, but was determined to guard harry, "Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead - " Voldemort moved closer, magically moving any object out of his way, "Not Harry! Please … have mercy … have mercy… "
"Avada Kedavra," Voldemort cried.
Lily Potter flew across the room, her arms reaching out to protect Harry, but she missed, her head hitting the wall with a crack. The Dark Lords spell had barley missed, but the Lily's distribution had caught him off guard. A cold cruel laugh echoed through out the house as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named watched the woman.
"Why even try? Stupid mudblood," Voldemort scoffed turning to face Harry again, raising his wand, "Avada Kedavra."
An intense green flash filled the room for a mere second before it all went black. The Dark Lord crumbled to the ground, his body disappeared, and a lone cloak laid on the floor- the only representation of his previous presence. The room was destroyed from the powerful spell; its mark was burned into the house.
Harry stood in his crib, tears rolling down his blushed cheeks as he shook in fear and confusion.
Harry Potter had survived the killing curse. The Potters had survived… barley.
Edit: 22/4/2014 Some of the readers seemed a bit confused by how Lily and James survived. I went through the story and realised that I had not made it very clear. Basically James fell over and Voldemort didn't hit him- James just blacked out from the fall, and Lily- She jumped in front of Harry when Voldemort tried to hit him, this took Voldemort off guard and the spell did not hit Harry (it missed and hit the wall).
I hope this clears things up- I edited the wording a bit to make it more understandable.
Anyway, thank you for the reviews! The advice was brilliant, I'll be sure to remember it when I next write a story! :))