"I will let you go." The man said quietly. It was the first thing he was when he entered the dark room. "I will also let your child live. On two conditions." He kneeled in front of the huddled mass that was Chasidy Lithmen, just entering her third trimester. He smiled gleefully.

"Please take into consideration, my dear, that there is an innocent life at stake," he ran a finger across the top of her pregnant stomach and a violent shudder ran through Chasidy.

She had tears running down her cheeks but she couldn't make a sound. She thought long and hard about what she was probably going to be asked. Could she betray her friends for the life of her child? For Sirius's child? She automatically knew her answer.

Yes.

She nodded to the man before her, hoping this wouldn't harm anyone too extensively or permanently. She wasn't ignorant to hope that no harm would come to anyone. Not in these times anyway.

His white teeth shined in the dark room. "Excellent. First, tell me where the head quarters to the Order of the Phoenix are."

This shocked her. Surely, he would realize that it would be under the fidleus charm. She started to panic. If she couldn't tell him what he needed, he would kill both her and the baby. Her little baby.

"I—I cant tell you that,"—she flinched when his wand arm reacted instinctively, but he controlled himself—" It's under a fidleus charm, Dumbledore's secret keeper."

"Yes, I had surmised as much." He said in a dangerous voice. "I still want to know where it is. I have my ways around such trite protections." Now she was staring at the tip of his wand, and she watched as it's angle dipped a couple degrees to be pointing at her stomach. Terror crashed through her.

"Alastor Moody's home," she gasped out, trying to repress the shock waves coursing through her chest.

"Thank you, that was exactly what I needed. But tell me, if it is under fidleus, why could you tell me where it is?" his voice was deadly now, and it hinted at an extremely unpleasant future. "Did you lie about the charm?"

Chasdiy shook her head from side to side as fast as her neck muscles would allow. "No! Maybe it is down, or they haven't placed it on the house ye—please!" she cried, as he had moved forward, pointing his wand threateningly at her. "Please! I'm telling the truth! That is what I was told a few days ago!"

"You have not been to Head Quarters since?" he demanded.

Shaking her head again, "No."

The silence that fallowed was nearly tangible, and Chasidy held and caressed her stomach like she could comfort her unborn child this way, still crying but making no sound.

"Very well. You are telling the truth to Lord Voldemort. My second request is that you leave your husband and your friends. Flee the country."

This made her look up, surprised and hurt. Leave Sirius? And leave James and Lily behind? She had never been friends with them in school, but they were now, and they were so good to her. "Why?" Chasidy demanded. "Why does it matter to you if I am here or not?"

Voldemort just stared at her. "I have no obligation to tell you my reasons. Just know that you are lucky you and the child will remain alive. This is only because someone pleaded for your life in return for something he did for me. A traitor among those you call friends." Voldemort snapped his fingers, smiling maliciously at Chasidy's eyes, which were wide with confusion and the anger of betrayel as the man stepped out of the shadows.

"Peter?" he only looked down in shame. "How could you do this to them Peter?" Chasidy cried, "They-are-you-friends!"

"It matters not!" Voldemort snapped. "See how ignorant and foolish it is to place your life in the hands of others? See how you do not know who are your true friends? Say you will leave the country, and have no more contact with friends or family here!"

Now her tears were accompanied with a sound that would break anyones heart, besides the evil man before her. She nodded. "Please," she whispered. "Let me say goodbye, explain in anyway I can."

"Oh, it is nesicary for you to go back anyway. Someone needs to deliver a…message of sorts to the Order for me. You will go back Chasidy Lithmen, but you have twelve hours to say your goodbyes and meet Peter at the Shrieking Shack for a portkey to America."

Suddenly, she remembered that Sirius and James weren't back yet. But at least she would be able to leave a letter.

"Excellent." Voldemort hissed. "Here is what will happen now," and he aimed his wand at Chasidy's baby. She never heard the incantation he spoke, because of her screaming.

James woke up, trying to blink the blurriness out of his eyes. He groaned, and instantly there were a set of dainty hands on his face. "Oh, James!" the person to who the hands belonged to cried. "I'm so sorry we stunned you! But we were being attacked and Chasidy—" Lily broke off, sounding like she had been crying.

He tried to sit up and she helped him. He looked around the unfamiliar room. "Where am I? I thought we went back to Head Quarters."

"No, we were attacked. Someone got the location and came before Dumbledore had time to establish a fidleus."

James blinked, and finally looked over his shoulder at his wife. She had never looked so beautiful to him, even dirty and worried as she looked. "Oh, Lily!" he said softly, moving to take her into his arms. She threw herself into her husband's arms, and he kissed her hair tenderly, ecstatic to be with her once more.

"James," she sighed softly, looking up and kissing her husband sweetly on the lips. When he started to get a little too into it, she pulled back, blushing. That was when he looked up to realize that the room was full with dirty, fight exhausted people looking away out of respect for their private reunion.

James smiled smiled and ran his fingers along her jaw line softly. "I missed you Lils."

She placed her hand on his to hold it to her cheek and closed her eyes. "It was a long month," she agreed. When she looked at him again, she whispered, "I love you."

"I love you too."

Then a look of guilt and terror passed Lily's face.

"What?" James asked, alarmed.

"Chasidy."

:.:.:.:

Lily watched her husbands questioning look, but her mind had traveled to the girl crying in the corner.

"James, they took her. Voldemort kidnapped Chasidy." Lily said, starting to cry as well. "We'd been out shopping for baby clothes. Things had calmed down for few days, so we figured it was safe, and—and…" she trailed off, unable to keep talking though her tears.

James tightened his hold on her, and looked over at Chasidy, who was covered in blood, haunted eyes gazing unseeingly in the direction of Sirius's body.

Apparently no one wanted to bring Sirius back to the land of the conscious. The state that Chasidy's in, no one should have to deal with something like that.

"She's back though Lily, she's alive." James tried to comfort his wife, but was deeply troubled by his friends condition.

Lily shook her head. "James he—he took the baby. The baby's d-dead." She sobbed into his shirt, shaking uncontrollably.

Dread washed though him, icy cold and piercing. "The baby?" he asked, his voice monotonous and dead.

Suddenly there was movement from across the room, as Chasidy's head snapped up. "What time is it?" she asked, her voice lacking emotion, her hands still roaming over the ghost of her once infant bearing body.

Someone from the shadows answered, some light disappearing from the room. It was Mad-eye's voice that responded, he had been peering through the curtains, but he dropped them when he said, "Eleven thirty."

"I have a message for Dumbledore. It's urgent." But despite her words, her voice didn't convey the urgency. But people still moved in curiosity.

Many inquires were voiced, but Chasidy insisted it was just for Dumbledore. Somehow, Dumbledore was there before anyone could summon him.

"Three bodies were found on a hill." He said gravely.

The room was silent. "That was the message." Chasidy said sadly. "I was supposed to tell you they would be there.

More silence.

"Who?" Arthur Weasley asked from a corner.

"A muggle woman, unidentified, Alan Paris from the Department of Magical Cooperation, and—" he stopped, looking pityingly at Chasidy. She covered her ears and moaned, shaking her head when he finally revealed the last body. "An unborn fetus."

Many people cried, and Lily had to duck her head back into her husband's shirt because she had started crying too hard.

:.:.:.:

The news was disturbing, but after about half an hour, someone suggested Chasidy be cleaned up before Sirius was waken up, to help minimize the initial shock. Lily helped with that, and now it was just Lily, Chasidy, James, and Sirius's body in the small room.

James took a deep breath, and pointing his wand at his best friend, he muttered the counter curse.

It took a couple moments for him to come around, the curse being on him for longer then was healthy, but soon he and Chasidy were embracing.

With tears streaking down her cheeks, she looked at her would-be husband. They were going to get married, but the idea was in the past now. Suddenly, she felt like a terrible, horrible person. If only there were some way to tell him the real reason she had to leave…

"If the baby were a girl, what would you want to name it?" she asked quietly.

The question shocked Sirius, but he answered. "I was thinking about it while I was away. Maybe Hope? And the middle name could be Lily. I know it doesn't sound right but…" he trailed off.

"No, no it's perfect." Chasidy said, kissing Sirius on the cheek, pulling away to look at her friend, who had tears rolling down her cheeks. Then she took a deep breath and faced her fiancé.

"I lost the baby." It was out there now.

She watched as the words slowly sank in, and settled into Sirius's thoughts, one by one. When understanding took over, she had to stand up and walk away. She couldn't bear to lie to him.

Sirius buried his face in his hands.

The minutes of silence started to build, each one bringing with it a higher level of despair. "James, Lily, will you give us some time alone?" she asked their company quietly. She couldn't do this with them in the room. The nodded their heads in consent and left the room quietly.

"Sirius I…" Chasidy trailed off, willing herself to be strong. "I have to tell you something."

He looked up from his hands, eyes bloodshot. He looked so lost and crushed that she almost lost it right then. But she was doing this to protect them, their family.

"The baby….she wasn't yours."
He just stared at her blankly. Then he finally blinked. "What?"

She turned away to face the window. This was going to be a hard lie to pass off. "It was a one night stand; just before we…" she took in a deep breath. "I had the DNA test done. It's not yours. I'm so sorry."

"You-made-me-believe—"He cut off, too furious to even continue. He was mad at her. But it would be easier to leave this way. "What do you mean, 'she wasn't mine'? I thought you didn't know the sex." He demanded.

"I found out. A girl it was—"Chasidy cut off, unable to continue. She turned to face Sirius. "I'm so sorry. I have to leave. This war, this country, I can't do it anymore. And I want to go alone." She enunciated the last sentence so the meaning would be clear. She was leaving with out him.

Just the thought made her want to stay stuck to him forever. Again, her hands moved over her stomach.

He stood up. "Why?" he demanded.

"Because," she snapped back, grateful for what little acting classes her muggle parents had put her though in her childhood. It took all her will to pull this off. "I told you, all this is too much for me. I need to get away. And with your involvement in the Order…. Well, I don't want to be with someone who won't always be here for me."

His eyebrows had pinched together in anger. "Fine. I don't want a clingy girlfriend anyway."

"Fine." Chasidy snapped back, turning to face the wall again so that some of the tears she had been fighting rigorously could escape without his notice. He would be heart broken at this later, but for now he would let her leave in the heat of the argument.

"Goodbye Sirius." She said, turning to him for the last time, trying to memorize his face. It wasn't ideally how she wanted to remember it, contorted in anger, but it would have to do.

Chasidy flipped her hair and crossed the room to the door, only hearing Sirius's furious 'humph' as she left him.

She pulled out a piece of parchment, tapped it with her wand, and made sure the words spread across the page before she folded it up and tucked it away once more.

Once last glance over her shoulder at Sirius. The last time she will ever see him.

:.:.:.:

Lily and James had been snuggled together in silence on the couch when the door slammed open, and Chasidy ran out of the room, tears streaking down her cheeks. Sirius was no where in sight.

Lily stood, and so did James. Chasidy said nothing, but just hugged Lily tightly, and kissed her on the cheek. "Thanks so much for everything. Bye." As she said this, something slid into the back pocket of Lily's jeans.

She pulled away from Lily and quickly kissed James on the cheek as well. "Bye James. Take care of him for me, please." Then she disapparated.

They just stood in shock.

"What…. What just happened?" James asked, confused. At that moment, Sirius came out the door, looking furious.

"It wasn't mine." He spat, looking heartbroken underneath all the anger.

"What?" James repeated, looking even more confused.

"The baby?" Lily asked, looking shocked.

Sirius nodded. "She lied. And now she's gone. Fleeing the country." He said bitterly.

"I'm sorry Padfoot." James said, moving forward to place a consoling hand on Sirius's shoulder, but he shook it off.

"Bug out." Then he also left the room.

It wasn't Sirius's baby? But they seemed so in love, and knowing Chasidy, that's not something she would just hide. James and Lily just looked at each other in shock, the past two minutes replaying in their minds as they tried to grasp what just happened.

Then Lily gasped. She had put something in her pocket. Sure enough, when Lily checked, it was a folded piece of parchment.

"Whats that?" James asked.

"Chasidy put it in my pocket." Lily explained, and opened it. They both leaned over the letter to read:

Lily, and James I'm sure,

I'm so sorry, I know this must be so confusing. I'm risking so much with this letter, but I couldn't just leave without someone knowing the truth. First, the baby is fine. It was just a disillusionment charm You-Know-Who cast, to make you believe I had really lost the baby. It seems out of character for him, but he's letting me and the baby live in America, if we go quickly and quietly. I leave tonight by portkey.

The baby is a girl. I'm going to name her Hope Lily Black, like Sirius wanted. And she is his. I'm doing this for Hope's safety, I know you will understand. Please don't tell Sirius why I left. Don't tell anyone. It will crush him, and I had to leave him behind like this so he would let me leave.

End this war soon, so I can come back to him.

Loving farewell

Chasidy and Hope

James and Lily looked at each other, both moved to tears. She and the baby were fine. But how were they going to get Sirius through this?

"Lily! James!" came Remus's voice from the doorway. "You have to come quickly! Death Eaters in Muggle London!"