"I'm sorry, Harry. I'm so, so sorry." Lily Potter crouched before the creaky, antique crib where her young son cowered, whimpering in fear.
"Step away from the boy and I may spare you, Potter," the high, commanding voice said, pacing ever closer. "We just want the boy. Just him. We have no need for your blood, my girl. Move slowly away and you shall be spared."
The lie struck her squarely in the chest, striking a new blaze of fury in the hearts of her green eyes. This intruder had no intention of sparing her life, nor that of her husband's. He wanted them dead. All of them. All defectors were to be eliminated under Riddle's militant regime- no exceptions or exclusions. No mercy.
"No!" She growled, tendrils of red hair plastered to her damp face. "You can't have him. Not my son." Lily splayed her arms protectively in front of the crib where her only son sat. "Please, I beg you, spare him. I know I must die, but spare my son. He's a baby. Just a baby. No threat to you or yours. Please," Lily winced at the desperate whine in her own voice, but she would do anything- say anything- to insure Harry's survival.
The cold, sharp laughter that rang out from the line of black-clad figures sent a shiver up Lily's stiff spine. The head of the shadowy pack seemed to take note of her sudden change of demeanor, reveling in the cracks in her strength. "You must not know who I am, my darling. No, " he shook his head in mock disappointment, hood sliding upward, threatening to fall. "I will spare him, Potter. In fact, I have plans for your boy. He is to be honored with a noble task. You should be proud. If he succeeds, he will be remembered in infamy, his fame only superseded by my own. Take heart in that, dear girl."
"You can't have him," Lily felt her son shift behind her, no doubt pressing his chubby face against the bars of his crib. Her eyes began to water, but Lily refused to allow her tears to escape. Her beloved husband would never show this man that he was afraid, and neither would she.
"You believe you can stop me?" The pure amusement in his tone threatened to weaken her resolve; she was no match for him, she knew. Yes, she was courageous and powerful, but she was no opponent for a dark one like Riddle and his allies.
Lily's chin went up in defiance regardless. "I'll give it my best go, Riddle."
He paced closer, impatience evident in the line of figures behind him. In unison, they shifted forward, leaning in to watch- spectators watching sport./span/p
Lily chanced a glance behind her. Harry's frightened eyes met hers. The steady green of them soothed her mother's heart. Her baby was so innocent in all of this, so uninflected by the evil of the world he had been born into. "I love you, Harry," Lily breathed to him, a sad smile touching her lips.
Harry raised his face closer to his mother's, a thick stream of tears sliding down his round cheeks. "Mama?"
"I tried to keep you from this, Harry, my angel. But I failed you. I'm sorry. I'm-"
"Enough! Enough of this blubbery! Move or we will be forced to kill you, Lily Potter, just as we killed the others-your compatriots."
Lily shuddered. Fabian and Gideon Prewitt, Edgar Bones, Natalia Edgecombe and Andros McNair all dead because of Tom riddle and his Loyalists.
"Last warning," Riddle hissed coldly.
Lily took his words for what they were- a promise. Her eyes searched for the familiar stoic gaze of her once-best-friend. With a start, she met the agonized, pleading stare of Severus Snape. His hood had fallen free from his head, revealing a black curtain of hair and the oddly comforting dip of his hooked nose. Lily had always loved his face. It was so honest, or so she had thought. His normally cold eyes seemed to bore into hers.
Lily bit her lip anxiously. Hot tears fell freely down her face, mirroring that of her son's. "Sev," she croaked.
His gaze seemed to search hers for one, infinite moment. The pleading she found there was a punch in the stomach. Please, his gaze seemed to say, choose me.
Lily stared back steadily, drinking in her last glimpse of the man she had loved since childhood. "I can't."
His shoulders sagged in defeat, knowing where her heart belonged, and yet denying it all the same.
"Very well," Riddle bit out. "I tried to be merciful, to be forgiving, but in vain. You've made your choice, girl." And with that, he snapped his fingers imperiously. The foreboding line of onlookers snapped to attention, advancing on her.
"So sorry." But this time, her apology was not meant for her son's ears, but the lost friend she so yearned to know again.
As the band in black advanced on her, Lily reached a hand behind her and cupped her son's soft head soothingly. "Close your eyes, Harry," whispered Lily and Harry obeyed.
AIt was not until the young woman's furious scream echoed around the tiny nursery that Harry's green eyes snapped open again. BY then, it was too late. Lily Potter was already gone.
Author's Note
This story is really close to my heart. The Snape/Lily dynamic in this story came to me a while ago while I was rereading the series. I wanted to capture what their relationship would be like as adults in an alternate reality created by my science-focused mind. In this story, the gang and a few others navigate through a totalitarian society. Of course, there is a twist... Or five-million. It wouldn't be a story of my creation without the odd twist. Please rate review! I love hearing what you all have to/strong say.