Hello again! Thanks for all the positive response I have already received on this. I apologize for the poor format of the last chapter, I used the copy-paste option, forgetting entirely how rubbish that one can be! I hope this one will upload better! A lof of this chapter is based on what I wrote for the prologue in my 'original version' of this, but a lot is different. I have also added a lot of new content. I hope you will like it! I also hope the changes between Lily and James' point of view won't be too difficult.


*Lily's POV*


The smell of burnt wood and the cold winter air filled her nostrils. Everything was quiet, maybe a bit too quiet. Lily's head was spinning, her entire body aching painfully. At first, she could hear nothing at all except her own rapid heartbeat and short breaths, but bit by bit she was starting to gain her hearing back. Her body felt heavy, and she struggled to move at all, to open her eyes. There was a growing feeling of dread and confusion at the bit of her stomach. What had happened? To Lily, it felt like an eternity before she managed to open up her eyes and blink slowly. To get her eyes to focus properly on her surroundings. It didn't truly hit her before that. Suddenly she remembered. Remembered how Voldemort had found them, how she had grabbed Harry from the floor and run upstairs. How James had told her to protect Harry, and that he would hold him off. How she had been hit with the killing curse…
A sense of urgency filled her suddenly, and she tried to get up, to lift her body from the floor. Lily noticed that she was still in Harry's nursery, or what was left of it. The only light in the room was from the lamp in the corner of the room, and even that had been knocked over, dimming it considerably. She noticed that she was covered in dirt and broken pieces of wood, and most of the roof and the outer wall had been blasted off. It was then that her eyes landed on the crib.

"Harry…" she whispered, terrified to go over to look what Voldemort had done to him. Her baby son. Her heart sank.

Slowly she started to drag her heavy body along the floor of the nursery, towards the crib. Lily tried to get up but found that her legs wouldn't support her. Her entire body was shaking in anticipation. Maybe a combination of shock and dread. She didn't quite know. All she knew was that she had to get to that crib, despite the great pains shooting through her with every inch. So many feelings were flowing through her all at once, it made her feel very overwhelmed. Suddenly, a desperate cry filled the room. It startled her at first, but she was relieved. He was alright. Voldemort had not managed to kill him.

Arriving at the crib, at last, Lily leaned into it carefully for support as she got on her knees. There he was, her baby boy, sitting in the crib crying quietly to himself. She was shocked when she looked at him. There, on his forehead was a bright red lightning bolt scar. Immediately when Harry laid his eyes on his mother, he started wailing and crying heavily, like any child in the presence of their own mother.

"Hey, love, shush. Mommy's here," she spoke soothingly, lifting Harry carefully out of his crib and into her arms. He clutched to her tightly, like any terrified child would. It made her wonder how long she had been unconscious. How long he had been so scared and alone. A few tears escaped her eyes just then. Her overwhelming feelings finally getting the better of her.

Lily just sat there like that for a while, holding her baby boy tightly to her chest, staring into nothingness. His presence calmed her greatly and helped her finally calm down her breathing. It helped her think clearly, at least for a bit. It was unclear how long they sat there like that, but when the moment passed at last, Lily was able to get up again. Stand on her own two feet. She held Harry close to her as she walked over to the nursery door. It wouldn't open. She realized that for all she knew, James might not be alive. He might be lying dead somewhere.

"Oh, blasted door. C'mon, open." She hit her body hard against the door a couple of times, trying to nudge it at least a little bit, but it didn't even more an inch. Her first thought was to look around for her wand, but it was nowhere to be seen among the wrecked room.

"JAMES!? JAMES!?"

Lily screamed at the top of her lungs as she continued to hit the door with her shoulder and arms. Begging for a reply, for her husband not to be dead. She wouldn't be able to bear it. She was growing more and more hysteric by the second, more desperate. More confused, more afraid.

"Please! JAMES!?" she called again, tears welling up in her green eyes. "Is anybody there?"

Faintly Lily finally heard some movement from somewhere in the house. Someone was coming up the stairs hurriedly.

"Hello?"

"LILY?" a desperate voice called out from further down the hall. "Lily, are you alright?"

"James?"

"Yes, it's me, Lil, I'm alive! Are you alright?" James almost shouted. "-i-is Harry…?" he stopped short. Lily could only imagine what was currently running through his mind.

"He's alright! We both are!" she almost laughed back, a few tears running down her cheeks once again, this time because they were alive. They were all alive.


*James' POV


James supported his wife carefully through the hallways of Hogwarts, holding her close to him. Whether it was for her sake or his own, he couldn't properly tell. They had escaped what was left of their home and were hurrying over to Dumbledore's office. They had to speak to him, explain to him what had happened. How they had survived. Lily held a sleeping Harry in her arms, and she was holding him tightly to her chest, almost like she was afraid that he would disappear if she didn't. The walk from Hogsmeade to the castle had felt very long, almost never ending. Every time the two of them met eyes, it was only to be met with the same tense and horrified expression. He studied his wife as they walked, she was covered in wood chips, dirt, and blood. He could only imagine what he himself looked like.
They were just about to enter Dumbledore's office when he noticed the arguing coming from the other side of the door.

"They can't be! No! Never!" There was a loud thud, almost like someone had just knocked over a chair. "You are lying. Sirius would NEVER betray them like that. "

"Listen to the facts, Mr. Lupin."

"No! You listen. IT. IS. IMPOSSIBLE!"

Suddenly there was a crash coming from inside of the room, almost like glass objects being hurled and broken. At first, James assumed that someone had done it accidentally, but as the banging and breaking continued, he realized what was happening. In all of his years knowing Remus Lupin, he had never been a witness to him being in such a state. He had snapped completely.

"Remus, calm down for Merlin's sake!" what sounded like Alastor Moody snapped.

For a moment everything was entirely silent until Dumbledore spoke up again.

"What Alastor here was trying to say was that as the Potter's Secret Keeper, Mr. Black was the only one that could have informed Voldemort of the Potter's whereabouts. And for the moment, Mr. Black is missing, nowhere to be found."

"What about Peter? Have you informed him of this?"

"No, we could not locate him either."

Once again there was silence in the room. It was a deadly and hopeless kind of silence, so quiet that it almost became loud. James locked eyes with Lily, before opening the door carefully. What met them there was at first confusion, then relief, but at last, anger. In the room was Dumbledore, together with Alastor Moody and Remus, but also Alice and Frank Longbottom, as well as a couple of Aurors that he could not properly identify. Remus was standing there, pale and wet-eyed, in the center of the room. The second their eyes met, he came running across the room, embracing James in a hard, desperate hug.

"You're alive. You're alive. You're alive." Remus kept whispering over and over, as he sobbed into his chest.

All eyes were on them, eying them suspiciously at first, but once they noticed a sleeping Harry in Lily's arms, some of them relaxed once more.

"How is this possible? How are you alive?" Moody almost barked in astonishment, still giving them a suspicious eye.

"We were hoping you could answer that. What happened? Where is Voldemort?" Lily answered as she sat down in one of the armchairs carefully, looking from Moody to Dumbledore in the hopes of an answer.

"Voldemort is gone. At least for now." Dumbledore spoke "The scar on Harry's forehead speaks it all. Those kinds of scars only occur after there has been dark magic involved. He came to kill Harry, but failed to do so."

Lily's eyes widened in shock. James could barely believe it himself. Had Harry, his 1-year-old child, just defeated Voldemort?

"But how can that be? How are we alive? He cast the killing curse on me. I felt it, curse through my body. I felt my life leave. But I still woke up." James said after a few seconds, confusion running through him.

"I'm afraid I cannot answer that question. At least not yet. It's a miracle that you survived, especially so that you ALL survived."

James gave a sigh of defeat but nodded. He understood that although Dumbledore was a wise, old man, he could not know everything. Although at times like that he certainly wished that he did. Instead, he sat down at the armrest of Lily's chair, taking her left hand in his, holding it tightly. She looked up at him, smiling weakly to try and comfort him. They both needed that.

"Oh, one more thing."

"What is it, Mr. Potter?"

"Sirius was never our Secret Keeper. He was just the decoy."

"Then who was it?"

"Peter. Peter was out Secret Keeper. We realized that no one would imagine that we had chosen him, so he would be safe."

There was a shocked silence in the room, some looked shocked, afraid even, at this sudden reveal. Dumbledore just looked at him from above his glasses, eying him carefully. It was then that James realized what had really happened. Peter had betrayed them. He had given them away to Voldemort freely.

"That RAT." Remus almost screamed, suddenly starting to pace around the room.

James could tell he wanted to break something, but that he tried to hold himself back. To keep collected to some degree.

"That is probably why you can't find any of them Alastor. James, did Sirius know that Peter was the Secret Keeper?" Frank Longbottom said. When James nodded, he continued. "Peter has probably run away, and Sirius is going after him.

James nodded once again, looking at Dumbledore for any clue. Any indication as to how to proceed. Honestly, all he wanted to do was go to sleep. The past few hours had been exhausting, and it was the middle of the night by now. His body was aching terribly like he had been hit repeatedly with a Beater's bat.

"There is something else you should be aware of."

"What?" Lily almost whispered, sharing a look with James, before starting intensely at Dumbledore again.

"A while ago I got a notice that Death Eaters have attacked St. Mungo's hospital."

"What!? Why would they attack there? What could they possibly want?"

"Oh, they made it quite clear by their attack pattern by what they are after. We sent some people down there to help a while ago."

James just shook his head, trying not to cry. Lily, however, started sobbing almost immediately. It had been a rough day. He hadn't seen her cry like that in months. A desperate, silent cry.

"A-any news?" she managed to utter between sobs.

"Sadly, no."


Most of St. Mungo's Hospital lay in absolute ruins, making it look more like a warzone than a hospital. James and Lily had apparated at site soon after they got the news, leaving little Harry in the care of his Uncle Remus. Partially so that they could leave knowing their son was safe, partially to prevent Remus from doing anything foolish. Lily hadn't truly stopped crying since receiving the horrible news. James felt awful as well, but he had to stay strong. For all of their sake. They were headed towards the eastern part of the hospital, which had obviously also been the target of the Death Eaters.

"James, what if they have -"

"No, we cannot think like that. I'm sure they haven't."

They didn't speak much after that. They just walked quickly but silently further into the hospital. They knew they were on the right path eventually, as they started to pass corpses of patients and healers alike. Occasionally they would pass someone injured, hiding behind furniture or laying at the side of the hallway. He wanted to help them but knew he couldn't. Few asked. As they headed deeper they started to pass healers rushing in the opposite direction. Lily stopped a few of them to ask for directions, to ask where people had gone to seek refuge when the Death Eaters had attacked. He started to imagine that it was her, every time he noticed someone injured or dead. James couldn't look at them anymore, in fear of it being true. Lily must have thought the same, as she suddenly got closer to him, gripping his arm for support or comfort. He felt sick ike he would throw up any second.
They passed the room she had stayed in, and he found himself lingering on it.

"Mr. and Mrs. Potter?"

A healer suddenly appeared in front of them. He was a tall, middle-aged man with brown, graying hair. His uniform was almost entirely covered in blood, making them uneasy. James nodded carefully.

"This way please, we had to seek refuge further into the hospital when the Death Eaters attacked. If you would please follow me."

Lily followed the healer immediately, walking ahead of James down the rest of the hallways. They were walking fast, almost like the healer was afraid that there might be more attacks coming. James just hoped that it was just a precaution and not something that would happen. He had had enough fighting in the last 24 hours. He was tired. The healer lead them into a part of the hospital they had never been in before. It looked more protective, more closed. After a while James figured that this must be the place they put sick people who were a danger to themselves or others due to their illnesses. Some of the rooms looked almost like prisons. It made him feel uneasy, on edge. It didn't last very long, as they were lead into a big room, what must have been the dining hall. The healer held the door for them, letting them pass into the room.

"Where is she?" Lily asked suddenly, her voice sounding urgent. Terrified.

"There's a back room further back there, that's where we set up for all the children that had to be evacuated."

"Thank you."

It wasn't easy, but the two of them shuffled through the room, past sick and injured. There were so many people in the room that there was barely any room to walk at all. Occasionally they would receive an understanding glance from one of the healers or Order members if they recognized them. At last, they saw the back room, and Lily gave him a weak smile.

"At last." she breathed.

What met them in the room, however, was not at all what they had expected. James could feel his entire body grow stiff, as deadly anger filled him to the very core. He balled his fists and could've sworn he saw red.

" Who's idea was this?!" he almost screamed to the healers across the room.

What met him was a crowd of shocked and startled healers, all giving him uneasy looks. Lily tried to soothe him, brushing his lower back carefully, but it didn't help. James glared at each one of the healers, in turn, annoyed that none of them would present him with an explanation.

"James, calm down." Lily tried

"No! I don't even understand how you can be calm right now. You know what he is."

Lily gave him a sad look, and he knew he had been right. She knew perfectly well.

Finally, an elderly healer hurried over to them. She was small and gray, but all the same looked like she could tackle a grown man with no difficulties. Maybe that was why they sent her, James thought.

"Mr. Potter, when the Death Eaters attacked we had to evacuate everyone in here, especially the children. Unfortunately, she would not stop screaming. We tried everything to calm her, but she started to kick and bite. He came with the team Dumbledore sent." the lady began, sending looks between the child and him. "She calmed down with him."

James looked over there once again. She looked very calm, safe almost, in the lap of none other than Severus Snape. Their 3-year-old daughter, Emerald Lily Potter.


*Lily's POV*


James and Lily only slept a few hours that night. Dumbledore had let them stay in the hospital wing, to make sure no one came after them while they slept. After being confirmed of Voldemort's disappearance, Lily felt calmer than she had in years, more safe. However, when early morning came, yet another problem found its way into their lives. It arrived with Dumbledore around 5 AM.

"What is it Dumbledore? Is something wrong?" Lily whispered, trying not to wake the other three sleeping forms next to her.

They had pushed two beds together so that they could all sleep in the same bed. James was still sound asleep, Emerald curled up to his chest.

"I just got a report from the Ministry. They found Sirius."

"Well, we have to meet him, then. Tell him we are alright."

"I'm afraid it won't be that simple. He was arrested for killing Peter Pettigrew and 13 muggles. He was sent to Azkaban without a trial."

"What!?" she burst out more loudly than she meant to. It woke James up.

"What's going on, Lils? What's wrong."

"They have sent Sirius to Azkaban for murder."

This woke him up, and James almost leaped out of bed, pulling on his clothes, buttoning up his shirt within 5 seconds. Lily looked from James to Dumbledore with desperate eyes, carefully letting her hand run over Harry's small body, lingering on his chest for a moment.

"Mr. Potter, there were witnesses that confirmed that he killed those muggles, as well as Mr. Pettigrew. There might not be much we can do."

James just shook his head. Lily's heart sank as she watched him dry his eyes for a moment, before clearing his throat shakily.

"I have to try Dumbledore. He's like my brother…"

Dumbledore nodded, already turning to walk out of the door. James hurried over to her, giving her a long kiss, before hurrying after him.

"I'll be back as soon as possible, Lils."

"Bring him home, James. We'll be fine."