A/N: I do not own the characters of the Harry Potter or Star Wars universes, save those of my own invention.

Special Note 1: For an explanation of how Harry's presence influences the timeline, please read my preface to chapter 1. For an explanation how this applies to the portraits and boggart in the Room of Requirement, please read my epilogue in chapter 11.

Special Note 2: I apologize for the long layoff. Life has gotten very much in the way of my writing. New puppy, new girlfriend, promotion. Lot to handle. For those who have stayed with me, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I'll do my very best, not that things have settled, to be more regular with my posts.

Chapter 39

Spinner's End, Easter 1978

A man peered through the window of the small suburban home for perhaps the tenth time in the last ten minutes. As before, there were only two lights on in the home across the street: one in the master bedroom, one in the downstairs living room.

"Wonder why we're waiting," asked a second man, twirling his wand with anticipation.

The first man shrugged. "That's not our call Briggs. We have our orders." The man could speak not more reverently then a disciple discussing matters of the Lord.

The second man—Briggs—rolled his eyes, though he made sure his companion noticed. Still, he didn't let the issue lie. "Stands to reason Murdoch that the longer we wait, the more likely it is we'll have troubles." He pointed at the house across the street. "Those are some right powerful wards, even if they aren't what you'd call complicated. It'll take time, time I'd rather spend now when things are quiet."

Murdoch turned his dour eyes on Briggs. "We have our orders and shall essay to carry them out as fit," he said in tones that brooked no argument.

Briggs turned away before his mouth got him in trouble. Then, just as he was about to step out of the room, a green flare erupted over the house. He was out the door, invisible and silenced, right on Murdoch's heels.

About half a mile away, on a little hill overlooking two tiny villages, the Dark Lord watched his minions move forward. Of course very few of his followers could see the attack moving forward; only he, Bellatrix, Lucius, and Avery were proficient in magical sight.

As he watched the Death Eaters surround the house, he smiled under the shroud of darkness of his hood. They did not know he was here, nor did they know any other Death Eaters were here. They thought this was simply a raid against the muggle family of a prominent foe. They did not know that they were bait. If he were lucky, he would kill the muggles and their daughter and nephew. If he were blessed, he would take out the village and a sizable number of Aurors.

"Milord," purred Bellatrix. "They are dealing with your ward."

"I see," he hissed. He waited exactly three minutes before casting an arrow of midnight black at a weak point in the ward. It hit the other wards protecting the home with a ripple.

Now he waited.

Hogwarts, Easter 1978

Happy Easter mum Lily said in her mind.

Happy Easter sweetheart replied her mum. I so love the Christmas gift Nathan gave us.

Lily smiled. I know. I love it too. How's dad?

He's well. He's your dad. Lily could picture her shrugging. He's been a little on edge lately. I'm not sure why.

I wonder what's troubling him.

I couldn't tell you dear. I'm embarrassed to say that, considering how long we've been married. But I can't read him now.

Lily couldn't imagine what would be troubling her dad. Maybe it was something with work.

Don't fret yourself dear her mum said. I think he's having a problem at work is all. Of course it may be nothing.

You're probably right. Later—not very much later—Lily would realize the tragic error in their judgment. How are Petunia and Vernon?

They're doing well as a matter of fact. They're stopping by tonight for dinner. I hope…

A deafening bang cut of her mum. Lily had her bed and desk overturned and warded within a heartbeat. Her housemates looked at her, fear and shock on their faces.

"What's going on Lily," asked Kim, a pretty redhead much like Lily.

"I don't know," she said, her wand never leaving the door, her body still mostly hidden behind her barricade. "We should…"

She never said what they should do. Harry yelled for her from the common room. She raced to the door, threw it open, and ran down to her son. "Ha…Nathan, what's the matter?"

"Come with me. We need to hurry." He grabbed her hand. She was perforce to follow. Only when they were reaching the Headmaster's office did she dig in her heels. "Harry," she said in a whisper though there was no one around to hear her. "What's the matter?"

"Your parents are in danger. The wards I put up at Christmas are being attacked. They're not down yet." He looked ready to say more but he shook his head. "I'll explain the rest in a moment. We need Dumbledore."

The gargoyle, perhaps sensing their urgency, perhaps wisely determining Harry was in no mood to dawdle, jumped to the side even before they were within five yards of the door. Harry bounded up the stairs two at a time; it was all Lily could do to keep up with him but she managed.

Harry slammed open the door without waiting for admittance from within. Dumbledore was sitting at his desk, reading something closely. He looked at Harry and Lily with a raised eyebrow. "Mr. Potter. Miss Evans. To what do I owe the pleasure of this early morning visit?" He sounded only slightly ironic.

"Sir, Lily's parents are in danger." He explained his wards and his theory about why they had been tripped yet very little else had been done to take them done. Lily looked horrified at the possibility.

"Sir, if there is any way to stop the Aurors from advancing, you need to do it immediately. This is a trap, nothing else but."

Dumbledore looked thoughtful for a few seconds. In lieu of answering, he walked over to the fireplace and called out to the Auror office. Whatever he was searching for, it must not have been there. "Alastor is already gone," he said when he pulled his head out of the fire. "He will have sent Aurors the moment he learned so many people had apparated so close to her home in such a short period of time. Lily is one of only two witches or wizards in that part of the country. And only her home would be a target. When the scouts ran into trouble, he would commit everything available to the battle."

"Very well. We need to help him as soon as possible," said Harry. "Round up as many Order people as you can and meet us there."

Dumbledore snapped his head up. "Meet you there? I think not Mr. Potter. You are not going on your own."

Harry rose to his feet, motioning for Lily to do the same. As she rose, she noticed with a start her clothes had been transfigured into something much more functional for combat. Harry had transfigured his clothes in a similar fashion, again without any visible effort.

"Headmaster, we are adults and our family is in danger. You have no authority to stop us from leaving. If you attempt to exercise power where there is none, we will not be responsible for the consequences."

Harry did not raise his voice or even glare at Dumbledore. All the same, Lily took a discreet half step back. Dumbledore didn't move, but she was surprised he didn't rebuke Harry. Instead, he sighed wearily. "Very well Mr. Potter. I will not stop you. But be careful until the Order and I arrive."

"Of course we'll be careful Headmaster." It was a thumping lie. Lily, Dumbledore, and Harry knew as much. But the Headmaster waved them away.

"Harry," Lily asked when they were nearing the entrance out to the grounds. "What are we going to do?"

"We're going to apparate into your house. I've arranged the wards so a blood relation can come and go. The only problem is that Voldemort's ward will be immediately removed, as will my own. Their magic cannot coexist, not after we punch through."

"Won't Voldemort attack us then?"

Harry shook his head. "No. His forces are dealing with the Aurors. I suspect he'll know when we breach but he won't be able to do much, not without disengaging himself from the battle. A few Death Eaters, the decoys who were—are—trying to take down my wards, will probably try. We can take them though. I want to remove your parents as quickly as possible. Hopefully after they are safe, the Order will have arrived."

When they reached the gate, Harry said a string of Latin. The only parts she understood were the names of the Hogwarts founders. It must have been a spell Ravenclaw taught him because the wards sparkled around the entrance.

He grabbed her hand. "Come on. The wards will reengage in a few seconds." Before she could ask where they needed to apparate, she felt the tug at her naval. A couple heartbeats later, she was in her den. "We need to find your parents quickly."

They found both of them in their bedroom. Her dad nearly shot her but her shield kept her safe. "Thank God you're both safe," she said, throwing herself into their arms. Her mum kissed her, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Lily, what's happening," asked her dad urgently.

"They're Death Eaters—followers of Lord Voldemort," answered Harry. "We need to leave quickly. We're taking you to Hogwarts. Come on."

Lily held her mum's hand and followed Harry. Her dad brought up the rear. Harry made sure to keep a magical eye on him. He did not want to lose him, especially since he hadn't thrown away his weapon.

When they reached the landing, he held up his hand, keeping them on the stairs. "Lily," he began.

But she nodded before he said anything. "I know Harry," she said thickly. She let go of her mother's hand and stepped next to her son.

Voldemort cast three killing curses in quick succession. Three Aurors fell.

Moody was leading an impressive counterattack all the same. His men may not have had the advantage of surprise or cover. But they did not lack for spirit. In the end though, spirit couldn't carry a battlefield, not by itself. Aurors continued to fall far out proportion to the number of Death Eaters down.

As he was taking aim at another Auror, a red flare burst into existence over the Evans' home. Voldemort watched the spot closely.

The seconds dragged by until finally a…

Voldemort screamed with fury when another red flare erupted in the sky. He threw his arms wide, a blast of magic throwing everyone with a ten-yard radius flying away like rag dolls thrown by a precocious toddler.

He descended on the house, murder in his eyes.

Once Lily was at his side, Harry grabbed her hand. Together, they collapsed the stairs underneath the Death Eaters in disguise. The Death Eater masquerading as Jacob tried to cast curses at the teens as he fell, but they went wild.

When they crashed on the ground, Harry bound and gagged one. Lily did the same to the other. Then Harry noticed Lily was crying. He embraced her. "I'm sorry mum," he said, his voice thick with unshed tears. He kissed the top of her head. "I wasn't fast enough."

Before Lily could say anything, if she was going to say anything—if she could say anything—Harry stiffened in her arms. "He's coming," he said in a horse whisper. Harry pulled Lily around the corner into the kitchen. "Lily, we need to apparate somewhere close by. Can you get us out of here?"

If she didn't nod, he would get them out but they would reappear at number five. That was too far from the battle. But Lily grabbed his hand, wiped her eyes, and apparated just as Voldemort blasted the doors down.

They reappeared outside a small, ramshackle house. A middle-aged man with greasy black hair streaked with gray was past out in the yard, a whiskey bottle lying just out of reach of his left hand.

"Lily, we need to get back to the house." She looked deflated. Harry could hardly blame her. It was hard for him; it undoubtedly was ten times harder for her. But they needed to help.

She followed him at his second urging. He hoped she would be all right to fight.

Like a thief, she seemed to pick the thought from his mind. "Those bastards will pay," she ground out, red and gold sparks shooting out of her wand.

"Good," Harry said, though now he was afraid she would take dangerous risks in her anger. He was smart enough to realize he couldn't comment on that without drawing a piece of her ire. "Stay close to me."

They picked their way through the shrubbery, careful to avoid notice even though they were both protected from almost all forms of detection. The ground they passed was largely unharmed. The Death Eaters were engaging the Aurors about a quarter of a mile east. Harry realized they were surrounding the cul-de-sac where Lily lived.

They had put up an incredible defensive perimeter. Muggle authorities were ramming headlong into magical wards that destroyed their cars on contact. When the men fired their guns, their bullets ricocheted impossibly fast, gutting the cops before they knew what was happening. Only the Aurors could break through the wards.

That did not mean they were advancing. Concealed trenches, cursed mines, and old-fashioned muggle guerrilla weaponry magically modified to accommodate the battlefield (Harry watched three Aurors fly threw pieces of hemp, "tied" to stars it seemed, cut their heads off at the jaw, nose, and neck) made a hash of the Auror advance. All around injured Aurors screamed for their mothers or lovers. Some just screamed.

Having no clear shots at any Death Eaters—their black robes and invisibility charms worked almost as well in the early twilight as his and Lily's protections—he searched out Moody. After a few moments, he found him conferring with two Aurors, one with red piping on his collar, Albus Dumbledore, and—his heart soared—Charles and Dorea Potter.

Lifting their charms, they ran up to the delegation. "It is good to see you Nathan and Lily," Dumbledore said, as if nothing more unusual then a quarrel between two teenage girls was happening. Harry respected the Headmaster's calm without wishing to emulate it. People were dying; he should have some reaction.

"My dear," said Dorea, walking over to Lily, holding her arms gently. "What happened?"

Lily looked down. "We couldn't save them," she said, her voice thick with tears. Dorea pulled her tightly to her chest, muttering soothing words. Lily's resolve broke then, the tears she was trying to hide bursting forth.

"Dumbledore, we need to get Voldemort out of here," Harry said, his eyes focused on his mum all the same.

"We're waiting, as it were, for you Mr. Evans. We are going to approach Voldemort's forces from three sides. I will command the Order of the Phoenix, Moody the Aurors, and I will ask you to take charge of half a dozen of the fastest draws in the Ministry and two squads of Gatling guns."

"What are Gatlings?"

"They are basically the magical equivalent of muggle machine guns. They are charmed to fire a particular spell until their magical charge is depleted. Like machine guns, they can be reloaded. You will have two of the best crews."

"Why do I need so much firepower," he asked, though he had some idea.

"You're leading the feint Evans," said Moody gruffly. "You're level-headed, calm, and a top-notch wizard. All the same, you're inexperienced facing Voldemort. You'll open the way for Dumbledore and I to ambush him."

Harry was ready to blow up but he clamped down on his anger. As far as Moody was concerned, he was inexperienced fighting Voldemort. Trying to assert he was capable would be more suspicious than helpful. Well, even if he had to feint in the beginning, he resolved to find a way to press the attack.

All that went through his head in the space of a couple heartbeats. "Of course sir," he said stoically. "I'll do my best."

Moody smiled and clapped him on the shoulder. "Atta boy. Hit 'em hard, keep 'em busy, and maybe we'll get the bastard." He didn't sound as if he really believed they could capture Voldemort. But he needed to buoy the spirits of his men. Dumbledore and Harry knew the truth.

"Okay. Clarkson, Swift, you and your squads are with the boy. McSweeney, Roosevelt, Wilson, Jackson, Smith, and Smith, you'll also be with the boy. I'll take the rest. Dumbledore, you'll know what to do."

Moody took his men immediately. Dumbledore hesitated. "Miss Evans, under the circumstances, I would like you to come with me."

Lily looked at Harry. "Why Headmaster?"

Harry and Dumbledore shared a look and Harry understood: Dumbledore wished to see how capable Lily was, or at least Harry judged that was his principal reason.

So Harry nodded towards Dumbledore. "Go ahead Lily. I'll be fine." She didn't move away right away but after a second—and before Harry or Dumbledore could chastise her for brooking delay—she went with Dumbledore. The Headmaster smiled at them both.

Together, Dumbledore and Moody cast several concealing wards and charms. Unspeakables attached to them cast more. The soldiers moved into place quickly: Dumbledore on the left flank, Moody the right, and Harry nearly in line with his grandparent's house. When he saw Moody's patronus, he yelled for the two Gatling crews to open fire.

When he was in primary school, he learned that machine guns were loud, almost terrifyingly so. These magical imitations were loud, but not overly so. But they pounded the shields in front of him. Against orders, he moved his men forward, joining the others firing curses. They said not a word. One—Roosevelt—tipped him a wink.

The Death Eaters seemed to think he was leading the next attack. They got out of their trenches or lifted their protection charms. With the rate of fire Harry's men were putting out, they seemed to be stronger then they were, which was of course the plan. Far too many Death Eaters were leaving cover.

Then Voldemort appeared, apparating on the scene. At first he tried to launch his own offensive. But he didn't count on Harry Potter. Harry shifted his own fire to Voldemort and ordered the six men with him to do the same. The Gatling men kept continued to pour fire on the rest of the Death Eaters. With no other option available, Voldemort cast defensive charms and shields to protect himself and his Death Eaters. But even his shields collapsed quickly under such pressure. He needed to continually cast new shields, leaving no time for offense.

Two minutes later, Moody's men opened fire with everything they had. The Death Eaters screamed with dismay as the trap descended on them. Unsure of what to do, their commander—Harry's blood boiled when he heard Lucius Malfoy's upper-crust drawl—ordered a push on Harry's men. Voldemort continued to cast shields, though he widened their perimeter. In so doing, he had to make them correspondingly weaker. But it was enough to allow his men to move forward. Even the combined firepower of Harry and Moody's units was not more then what the Death Eaters could bring to bear. And they had to move forward; if they offered their flank to the swifter, albeit weaker attack, they would be mowed down.

They were mowed down anyway. Death Eaters fell in droves as Moody's men tore at their flank. Harry's force was cutting down their fair share of scum too. And he was pushing hard for Voldemort. He didn't know if Moody was cursing him. If he was, Harry didn't care. He would not sit on the sidelines, not now.

They were roundly whipping the Death Eaters, Voldemort and all. Harry smiled nastily when Voldemort met his eyes. The Dark Lord's hood was raised. All the same, Harry could imagine his nostrils flaring in anger, his eyes mouth muttering imperfectly sweet nothings. And when the Order of the Phoenix opened fire, it was a rout. Harry heard Voldemort bellow retreat.

Harry had hoped Voldemort would stay and fight at least until his minions were dead. But he knew better. The only person who could lead the Order so well was Albus Dumbledore. Voldemort had his doubts whether or not he could beat Lily's nephew. He knew he could not beat Albus Dumbledore. Together…better to save the fight for another day.

He was not finished though. Before he apparated away, he threw two bones into the air. As they fell, they rearranged themselves into people—into Jacob and Emily Evans. They were not silenced; their screams of fright rang across the battlefield. Harry heard Lily's scream. But he focused on Voldemort.

The Dark Lord seemed to wait for Lily's scream. He cast two cylindric clouds of greenish black smoke. As the slammed into their chests and forced them into the ground. Blood and gore erupted from the impact.

Amidst Lily's wails of despair, Voldemort disappeared. No one—not Harry, not Dumbledore, and not Moody—tried to stop him.

A/N: Thank you all for reading and please review.