20. Even though

Even though Katrina no longer felt anything on seeing Lily with James, even though she had dumped Frank for another turtle and finally married off to a Chinese muggle known as Dr Chang, even though the old gangs had all graduated, even though Frank and Nalia had their names registered in the book of married witches and wizards, even though their friends had counselled them countless times before, and even as now as they sat in front of us-Lily with her hands around her baby, who were gazing in wonder at the emerald hanging freeing on the black string around her mother's neck; James, sitting in a guy's way, with an arm over Lily's shoulders and his fingers playing with a strand of her auburn hair, their answer had not changed a bit.
'Are you two in love with each other?'
Lily and James rolled their eyes and said in union, 'how many times do we have to tell you that we are only pretending to be an item?'
Little Harry looked between his parents.
Some pretended love, isn't it?


21. Forever and ever more

'Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off-'

His knees fell, but his torso was still upright.
Voldemort let out a high-pitched laugh in front of him.
'So, you are going to die like a hero, are you not?'
James stared, determined not to show a trace of fear in his eyes.
'Do you want me to give you a clean and painless death?' The Darklord pointed James's wand back at him. 'Or maybe not. Beg me, and I will let you die without pain.'
'No, I will not.' The words escaped through James's gritted teeth.
'Oh, our brave hero here holds no fear of physical pain.' Voldemort moved his head next to James's ear. 'Then, how about the pain of witnessing your loved ones' death?'
'You leave them alone!' James glared as hard as he could.
'Do not resist. Or it'll hurt.' And then the evil strolled away, leaving the wounded man alone in the room.
'You're not done with me yet!' James cried, trying to call the monster back and give time for them to escape.
Before thinking about what Voldemort had meant, James found his wand was suddenly back in his hands.
But he could not feel it, he could not feel his fingers, nor could he move an inch.
James could only see, in his eyes, the photo on the wall-a photo of him and his friends, taken during their sixth year, after they learnt how to be Animagus. That was a time of pure happiness, when they knew no worries, no evil, a time that still brought a smile to his face.
James knew what would happen.
Goodbye, my friends.

'Not Harry! Not Harry! Please-I'll do anything-'
'Stand aside-stand aside, girl-'
Voldemort directed his wand at Lily, throwing her across the family room. She landed painfully on the floor next to her baby.
With all pace, Lily carried it in her arms, and screened it from Voldemort. Panting, she thought of what she could do.
Something called for her.
Lily looked up and saw the moon, the same moon that she used to see in Hogwarts, with James, when both of them were lying next to each other talking endlessly about the future, about each other, about everything, and attacking each other with words at every given chance at the same time.
James...with the weeded head and dirted eyes...
Lily knew what she would face-the Unforgivable curse, the unblockable curse, the curse of tragedies, tears and pain that had taken the lives of so many people she knew and loved.
What was she going to do? Never had she felt so helpless, so hopeless.
Lily looked at the little thing in her arms. It beamed at her happily, despite the circumstances.
The baby looks exactly like James-his jet black hair, his playful face. But it has my eyes, my own green eyes.
Like the necklace she was wearing. 'Do you know that green always looks great against black?' The mirror had said.
Lily couldn't take her eyes away from her baby. 'You're James's and mine. You will be great.' She whispered.
Unlike her friends, her parents, and...James, nobody was going to take it away.
Nobody.
Behind them, Voldemort was approaching them with demonic speed.
Holding her wand tight in her grip, Lily felt her strength coming back, and a power rose from deep inside her heart to her hand.
Lily smiled lovingly at her baby, hers and James's, she repeated with determination, and performed her last charm.
Loving you forever I will.
I will.

James heard it.
He shouted, he screamed, but his senseless body was still bathed in the dead silence.
The Imperio Curse had bound him, bound him on the spot so that he could hear the own death of those he loved before he himself died.
In front of his eyes, his wand was raised by a hand.
His hand.
He was going to die like them too. The only difference was, his death would be a suicide, as Voldemort had planned.
James fought with all his will, however, the wand didn't stop till it was at his chest. Voldemort's power was too strong. No matter how hard he tried, no matter how his bones were giving out cracking sounds from the struggle between his mind and body, his effort was yet in vain.
A warm wind blew into the room, and into his heart.
Is that how all of us feel when we are going to die?
The wind brought a scent and a strange feeling that were both faraway and familiar. It cleansed his pain, and calmed his soul. It held a hope, a sign that no others could tell.
But James.
Even though so many tears have been brought, so many lives of our loved ones have been lost; even though the hope is fragile; even though the light is just a line, we should never give up.
Because-because...
'Avada Kedavra.'

The smell of smoke choked him and woke him up from his deep sleep. Harry opened his eyes and saw lines of red, red roaring fire. Reaching out his tiny hands into the air, he seemed to hear them.
'Romeo and Juliet? Is this what you're reading to Harry? Easter hasn't arrived yet.'
'Why does it have anything to do with easter?'
'It is an easter tale, after all.'
'Excuse me? An easter tale?'
'Isn't it about two jerks selling easter eggs on the same street?'
'Jerks?! Easter eggs?! How can you regard the book of the century as some stupid easter tale? James, you are a miracle!'
'Well, it probably took a miracle to get you married off.'
Harry chuckled. However, after waving his hand in the air for minutes, he couldn't find the faces he could always find. For the first time in his life, Harry felt fear.
The emeralds that were his eyes darted nervously, from the burning table, to the empty doorframe and to the broken windows, where they stopped because he saw a round silver orb, and because he felt a warm wind blowing over his forehead.
In the wind, he heard music; in the music, he found peace and those he's been looking for. It sang to him, just like any other night.
Little Harry could feel his eyelids falling down and when he fell into sleep again, the wind was gone but the music still reverberated in his head, again and again.
Loving you forever I will.
I will.

The play ended here.

...... Twelve years later,
If there is one thing Voldemort cannot understand, it is love. He didn't realize that love as powerful as your mother's for you leaves its own mark. Not a scar, no visible sign...to have been loved so deeply, even though the person who loved us is gone, will still give us some protection forever.
Forever, Harry, and ever more......

So is this story.

Created with Text2Web