Giggles emitted from Lily's open bedroom window. Bright sunshine poured into her room, and a fresh breeze gently blew.
Lily and Scorpius fell onto her bed, a few feathers from her down comforter flying out of nowhere.
Lily's lips were puffy from kissing him, and her body yearned for more of his touch. Lips playfully crashing against each other, Lily placed his hand right underneath the bottom of her shirt, inviting him to do whatever he wanted.
She felt his fingers start to climb up her stomach, sending delicious chills throughout her body, but then she felt him stop.
"What's wrong?" she asked, leaning up on her elbows.
Scorpius' grey eyes looked hungry for her, and his hair was messy from the fingers she been intertwining through it.
"Your mom's been good to us, Lily. I don't want to run the risk of her catching us in her home," he said, more of his rationale senses taking control of him than Lily would've preferred, but she knew he was right.
"Goody two shoes, Malfoy," she teased and plopped back down on the bed. Scorpius traced random designs on her stomach with his finger, and smiled. Neither of them wanted to stop.
Since Ginny was now on their side, Lily had decided that running away would do more harm than good. Since they graduated, Scorpius had already purchased an apartment above a store in Diagon Alley, and they had spent nearly everyday of the summer together. It was pure bliss, much to the chagrin of her brothers who had taken to working long hours to avoid seeing Lily and Scorpius together.
"It's just as well," Lily said yawning. "I'm sleepy anyway." Scorpius patted his shoulder and she repositioned herself so that she could cuddle up against him. His scent mixed with the warm summer breeze was a perfect sensory experience.
She let him play with her hair, twirling and untwirling it around his finger. The beat of his heart and breath in his lungs lulling her into a sense of calmness.
"What are you thinking about, Scorp?" Lily asked, curiously.
"The future," he said honestly.
Since he'd been better and in more control, everyday Scorpius found himself day dreaming of his life with Lily. He could see them traveling the world together, having homes in many exotic lands. He saw Lily, a trained healer, and himself helping people around the world. He saw little strawberry blonde children running around, bringing joy to both their parents. The images made his heart warm because he knew that's what the future held in store for him.
"Oh, really?" Lily said, not letting him feel the increase in her heart rate. The more time they spent together, especially now that she had her mother's approval, the worse she felt about lying to him.
Since Matil had told her what her future had in store, she had not wavered from her decision for one second to die so Scorpius could live curse free. What had gotten harder, especially the stronger he got, was lying to him about it. But she knew there was no other way. She knew Scorpius would rather throw himself into the pit of hell than let her die for him, but she couldn't let him. At least he could be happy if Lily did this; Lily knew that she had no life without Scorpius.
"Mhm," he said. "Speaking of which, when do you think you'll start your healer training?"
Lily couldn't help but roll her eyes to herself. Although the formal training program didn't kick off until September, she had been reading every book about healing in her spare time, trying to bandage her symptoms that were getting worse and worse.
Lily rarely left the house anymore, the simple act of going down the stairs made her exhausted. She forced herself to eat because she was already getting enough comments about her weight, but she was rarely able to keep down her meals. The nosebleeds hadn't stopped, and the chest pains she had felt months ago would savagely attack her when she least expected it. Her breathing had also shortened, and her skin and hair were duller shades of what they should've been.
Despite all this, Lily didn't let it stop her for enjoying her days with Scorpius and her mother. Despite having to hide such severe symptoms, Lily felt playful and free. She didn't know if she would just fade away, or if she'd go out in a big bang, but she hoped that everyone would come to understand in time.
"Fall," she responded. "Then we can really play Doctor and patient," she said winking up at him. In all honesty, she didn't know if she'd make it to fall at the rate Scorpius was getting healing, but it was better to be prepared than not.
"Outfit and all?" he said and she nodded, he threw his head back in desire and in laughter.
"I'm sure he's there right now," James said resentfully sitting in his father's office. The boys had taken to coming in there on their breaks, working on the case and venting to each other.
It was mid July, and the presence of Scorpius had only increased. They saw him in Diagon Alley, his new home; they saw him at their home. He was everywhere. Tension had grown in the house too, the boys almost as upset with Ginny as they were with Lily. But they realized Lily was oblivious this, too caught up in her warped sense of the world to realize it was tearing the family apart.
"Rather him there, than she with him elsewhere," Harry had said working on some reports. He was not happy with his wife or his daughter, but he knew he didn't have a legal ground to stand on. For now, it was better to keep a close eye than nothing.
They had been both requesting daily updates from Albus and his contacts at Mungo's on the acquisition of Connor's memory. Everyday it was the same; they were close but not there yet.
To keep their minds busy, the boys had taken on a slew of new cases, which kept them in the office and in the field more often than they had been before. It felt good to be actively solving cases; they hated the fact that the trail of evidence on Scorpius had gone cold.
After a few moments of silence both Harry and James heard a commotion outside Harry's office door. Jumping up to see what was the matter, they were surprised to find a squad of auror's suited up and heading for the outside of the ministry ready to apparate.
"What's going on?" James tried to stop and ask one of them, but the auror shouldered past him giving him a look of pity.
"Oi!" Harry said, but the auror walked past.
"Dad!" Albus shouted getting Harry and James' attentions. Albus was trying to shoulder his way through the on coming Aurors, but got pushed back.
"What's happening? I didn't authorize this!" Harry said wand at the ready.
"They were able to uncover Connor's memory," Albus said and James face lit up. Now was the time for arms against the Malfoy name at last.
"And?" Harry asked. He didn't have the same sense of victory James did, he could tell something was wrong.
"It wasn't Malfoy." He looked from his brother to his father. "It was Lily."
"What?" both Harry and James said at the same time. Albus held up a vial with the wispy memory inside. Grabbing it from his hand Harry raced back into his office and poured it into the pensive. Jumping in he watched the scene play out around him.
Connor was walking into the library, looking for Scorpius. He needed to confront him about the curse to protect Lily. He found him sitting at a table in the back, scratching away at parchment.
"Where's Lily?" He asked approaching Scorpius.
"Not here, yet," Scorpius replied with a smirk. Then like a dream, Lily appeared to Connor's right.
"At least I choose to spend time with him, Connor, instead of running away from you," Connor was hurt, but he stayed his ground.
"Has he told you his secret, Lily?" Connor bit back.
"You have know idea what you're talking about," Lily replied, a look of evil on her face.
Suddenly Scorpius was gone from the image, and Lily was pulling out her wand. Her red hair shone brightly from the candlelight.
Connor was flung up against the wall by a spell. Lily looked calculating, taking steps closer to him.
"If you hadn't been so jealous, maybe you could have avoided this," Lily said wrapping her hand around his throat. "Did you really ever think you'd have a chance with me, Lily Potter?" Lily laughed menacingly again.
Pain made Connor's body fold in on itself. He wanted to scream but couldn't. Lily let him fall to the ground, and, still with an evil smirk on her lips, stomped on his face.
Before they realized it they were back in Harry's office.
"That can't be true," James said. The memory looked real, felt real, but that wasn't Lily. Even if Scorpius had corrupted her, they would be able to tell if she had committed a crime like that.
"Where were they going?" Harry asked referring to the Aurors, looking at Albus in a panic.
"They're going to arrest her," Albus said, dumbfounded and not sure what to think any more.
"Go, try to stop them. Use my floo!" Harry ordered his sons. Without a word they stepped into the fireplace and allowed the green flames to consume them.
Lily gracefully bounced down the stairs into the kitchen. Scorpius had just left for the afternoon, and she was thirsty for the pumpkin juice Ginny had made that morning.
Lily's hair was tousled from her afternoon with Scorpius, and she couldn't fight the smile that was playing at her lips. Scorpius had told her that the next evening he had planned a special date, but was keeping the details a secret to surprise her. Her heart flitted with excitement at the thought.
The fireplace began rumbling and Lily turned around, surprised. They weren't expecting any company.
"Lily!" Albus cried, James on his heels.
"What?" she said. She had never seen the looks of worry or concern on her brother's faces before.
"You have to go now!" James shouted reaching out for her.
"Go where? Why? She said, confused. But before James could put her hand on her arm to drag her away, the door to the kitchen burst open.
"Lily Potter," a tall witch that she didn't recognize said. The witch took steps forward into the kitchen, other aurors behind her.
"You are under arrest for the torture of Connor Wood."
"What?" Lily cried out in shock. Before she could say anything else the witch flicked her wand and, golden handcuffs made of magic incased Lily's wrists. The pumpkin juice she had been drinking crashed to the ground.
"Hey!" Albus shouted trying to get in front of the witch, to stop her taking Lily.
"Back away Albus or we'll arrest you for interfering," a wizard said in all seriousness.
Lily was forcibly dragged outside her house; she could hear her brother's yelling behind her. Before she could turn around or ask what happened, the witch side along apparated her back to the ministry.
"I want to speak to my father!" Lily insisted, as the witch put her into a holding cell. "I don't know what this is about, but I want to see him immediately!"
"Right away, sweetheart," the witch said sarcastically, and locked the cell. The handcuffs dissolved into nothing, and Lily grasped the bars.
"Potters," the wizard said disgustedly, taking his seat. "How the mighty have fallen!" he laughed a little too mirthlessly.
Lily was frightened and angry. Taking a seat, she replayed what had just happened. What had they arrested her for? The torture of Connor Wood? It didn't make any sense.
"Why have you taken her?" Harry demanded. He had call Eloise Goyle, the witch who had arrested Lily into his office. James and Albus had stood on either side of Harry, stone faced. It was hours past when Lily had been taken into custody, and no one in the Potter family had been able to see her.
"You've seen the evidence, sir," Eloise responded. "We apprehended a tortious criminal. Just because she's your daughter doesn't mean that she's exempt from the law."
"It's circumstantial, you haven't even questioned her," Harry yelled back. He couldn't believe he was losing control of his own department.
"In due course, sir," Eloise said. Harry had known that after the war ended, former Voldemort supporters had joined the force, but for over twenty years they had been compliant. Now, it seemed, they had gone rouge.
Harry had lived through the recovered memory a dozen times that evening, looking for some fault in it. A blurred edge, a scene that didn't fit together. Unfortunately, it seemed genuine. But he knew it couldn't be. The girl in the image wasn't his Lily; he knew that beyond a shadow of a doubt. The memory seemed too dream like. Scorpius there one second, and had vanished the next. It didn't' feel right but he couldn't prove it out.
"You're dismissed, Goyle," Harry said after another moment's silence. The witch gracefully stood up and exited the room, a smirk playing across her lips.
"Anti-Potter supporters?" James asked his father once he heard the click of the door behind them.
"More than that… Something isn't right here." A thousand thoughts raced through Harry's head, trying to figure out what was the most probable.
"Clearly," Albus replied, exasperated. The boys watched as Harry looked into the fireplace, his brow stiched in thought. They then saw as he arrived at his ah-ha moment.
"Dammit!" Harry said running over to the bookcase. He started picking up books, rifling through them.
"What?" James and Albus watched him closely.
"I knew it," Harry said pausing on a page in one his books, he handed it to the boys. "Podrick vs. Robbins." The boys both raised their brow in question.
One of Harry's least favorite parts of being an Auror was studying centuries old cases. Having had the perk of defeating Voldemort, he had been able to eschew the responsibility of reviewing the Auror literature of old, but before he could become head of the department, he had to pass that portion of the test. Clearly his sons had missed their lessons in Auror trainings as well.
"Timothy Podrick was arrested and sentenced to death after Violet Robbins shared a memory of him murdering two young muggles. Podrick claimed innocence and accused Robbins of modifying her memory, or having the thought implanted in an attempt to have him convicted," the boys looked at him, not understanding where he was going. "Podrick tried to argue that memories, as they can so easily been modified and manipulated, couldn't be used as evidence in a conviction. I don't know who and I don't know why, but someone is trying get us to stop them from arresting Lily on the claim that memories can't be used in arrests or convictions, so that we can't arrest Scorpius with the same piece of evidence."
The boys stood in silence, damned if they did, damned if they didn't. If they argued the case and won, they would be back to square one with Scorpius. If they didn't, Lily would go to Azkaban.
"We have to get her to confess it was him," James said weighing all their options.
"We still don't have the proof, and she won't do it," Albus countered, all three men knew that would be the case.
"Albus, go floo home, your mother has no idea what's going on. James, try to see if you can check in on her," Harry said looking at the pensive again. "I have to see if we can disprove this memory."
All tasked with their charges, they went their separate ways. It was late enough now that James thought he could get to Lily relatively easy, even if she was a high profile subject. But he was wrong.
Getting to the holding cell area, he saw a healer emerge from the room where Lily was being held. His heart dropped.
"Lily!" he cried crashing through the door, only to be met by the auror behind the desk.
"You're not allowed to be in here, Potter," the gruff man said. Pushing him back.
"Did you hurt her? What's wrong?" James yelled. He had a smaller build than the guard, but was able to push past him.
Lily was lying on the bed, her nose bleeding. She was as white as a sheet.
"Lily," he said. She looked scared.
"James, I don't know what's happening. I didn't do it," she pulled her hand away from her nose, but the blood continued to steadily trickle out.
"I know, dad's trying to figure it out. What did they do to you?" he asked referring to her nose.
"Nothing," she said. She squeezed her nostrils shut, as if blowing her nose to stem the flow of blood.
"Lily," he said almost scoldingly.
"Really, they didn't do anything. It just stared," like it always did at night, but she wasn't about to tell him that.
James raised an eyebrow at her and pulled out his wand quickly. He said a spell under his breath and she felt the blood dry up. At least it was a quick fix if not a permanent one.
"Hey, no wands!" the guard said, standing closer than James wished he would be. He knew he had seconds before being escorted out.
"Lily, you have to confess," he whispered to her.
"I didn't do it," she whispered back, didn't her brother her know her at all?
"You have to confess that it was Malfoy," James insisted. He watched his sister's eyes grow wide with realization. Even at her worst, he wouldn't let up on Scorpius Malfoy.
"I won't, he didn't do it!" Lily said. And it was not a lie, because the curse made him.
"Lily," James whispered exasperatedly. "It's him or you!" Lily screwed her face together in resilience and anger.
"Than it's me." She crossed her arms and sat down, turning her face from her brother.
"Stop being stupid!" James cried out. But the guard was already on him, escorting him out of the room.
Lily sat there shaking her head. She didn't know what was going on, but it came as little surprise to her that James was ready to blame Scorpius yet again.