A WALK TO REMEMBER

Summary – The summer before his fifth year, Harry Potter stumbles across his father's old journal from his seventh year at Hogwarts and he reads about the continuous adventures of him, the Marauders, and his mother, Lily Evans; how they met, how they fell in love, and what brought them to their horrendous deaths. This story is based on the movie and book called A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks.

Disclaimer – Unfortunately, I own absolutely nothing. All of the characters and their names belong to author JK Rowling and the plot and character traits belong to Warner Brother's and author Nicholas Sparks.

Chapter 8 – Kidnapped:

James stared long and hard at his girlfriend, trying to soak in the information that she was trying to tell him.

"W-w-what?"

"I'm the Heir of Gryffindor," repeated Lily, now looking at the fingers fidgeting in front of her nervously. "Voldemort is the Heir of Slytherin and he finds all of the other living Heirs a threat and wants all of us…including Gryffindor Heirs…dead."

"But…but you're Muggle-born!" said James, almost accusingly as though desperately trying to find a reason for her not to be a target of Voldemort. "How can you be an Heir of a wizard if you're Muggle-born?"

"Yes, my parents were Muggles and my sister is a Muggle, so he wasn't after them," explained Lily softly, trying to be patient with him. She knew that this had to be a lot for him to take in. "But, my great-great-ever-so great grandfather was a Squib. But, I guess I broke that mold and became a witch…"

"But, I thought your parents were killed by Voldemort?" asked James confusedly. "Why would he kill them if they were Muggles and didn't pose a threat to him?"

"He's Voldemort," said Lily reasonably. "When has he ever needed a reason to murder somebody? Besides, he only killed my parents because they wouldn't give me up; where I was…that I was living with my uncle. Now, after graduation I have to go into hiding."

"Why isn't he after your uncle?"

"My uncle is my mum's brother," explained Lily, now sounding casual. "The Gryffindor blood ran through my father's side."

"Why does he want the Heirs of the Hogwarts Founders dead?" asked James, now running a shaking hand nervously through dark, messy locks.

"To be honest James, I really don't know…" Lily whispered, shrugging helplessly, as though desperation for the answer as well. James's eyes welled up with tears and he ran his fingers through his hair again and took heaving, heavy breaths, as though trying to compose both his panic and his temper. Lily just watched him nervously, fidgeting with her hands as he soaked all of this in

"Why didn't you tell me?" James asked, almost angrily, finally breaking the heart-wrenching, deafening silence. Lily's heart stopped beating painfully in her chest as her mind searched for an answer that James deserved.

"Dumbledore said I should live life as normally as best as I could," said Lily, almost sobbing uncontrollably. "If I told you…if I told anyone…I didn't want anyone acting all weird and sympathetic around me."

"Including me?" James shouted angrily, now trying to hold back the tears.

"Especially you!" Lily shouted back, still sobbing hysterically. This answer confused James, but he was feeling way too much already to express his confusion. It did not matter anyway because Lily had turned away and was trying to force herself to calm down a bit. James wanted to comfort her but in truth, he felt like he needed the comfort. All he could do was watch her as she dried her eyes and turned back to him.

"Lily-"

"You know I was getting along fine, I accepted it, and then…" Lily sounded annoyed now. So, James got annoyed.

"And then what?" he snapped.

"And then…you happened!" retorted Lily, pointing at James accusingly as tears once again began rolling down her cheeks.

With those words, James felt like his heart had been ripped out and stomped on. Did she mean that she regretted every dating him and falling in love with him? That everything they had shared had been a mistake? Because that is what it had most certainly sounded like she said. Knowing that that could be the case, James stared at Lily with such hurt and pain in his eyes that Lily could not bear to look at him that way. She could only mutter a hurried apology, turn away, and run back to the castle. James would have gone after her; he knew he should have gone after her but he could not seem to move his feet in her direction; almost as though he were unable to. He just slowly sat down against the wall of the Shrieking Shack and stared out into the abyss, tears welling up in his eyes and sliding down his cheek.

James could not believe it. He had lost his Lily. If not just this moment, but he would surely lose her in the future, especially with Lord Voldemort after her. What chance did she stand against Voldemort? What chance did he stand trying to protect her from the darkest wizard of all time?

Suddenly, out of nowhere, James heard a high-pitched scream that broke his morbid thoughts; it was Lily's scream.

James whipped around and, to his horror, saw five or sixth Death Eaters advancing on Lily, pushing her towards the Forbidden Forest. Without thinking, without even contemplating the dangers or consequences, James jumped to his feet and sprinted towards Lily, pulling his wand out of his pocket.

Lily sobbed as she ran towards the castle, thinking about what she had said to James. She knew that loved him more than anything and simply because of whom her ancestor was, she could no longer be with him. It would hold him back in life and put him in danger and he deserved so much more and better than that; more and better than her anyway.

As she ran past the Forbidden Forest, she thought she heard whispers coming from within. Curious, Lily slowed down a little and began to investigate. But, before she could soak in what she was seeing six Death Eaters suddenly jumped out in front of her and she let out a blood curling scream.

"Well, hello, Miss Evans," snarled one of them. Lily took a few steps back, breathing heavily. Unfortunately, she did not have her wand on her, and therefore had no way to defend herself. She started to panic and her heart was pounding painfully against her ribcage as she realized that these men were going to take her to Voldemort. As fear and panic soared through her veins, the Death Eaters were advancing on her, pushing her into the Forbidden Forest. Lily continued walking backwards, but stopped once she was pressed against a tree.

One of the Death Eaters raised his wand and pointed it at Lily, ready to attack and torture. Lily held her breath and squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the Cruciatus Curse to hit her and for the pain to begin. But, instead of pain, all Lily felt was a slight breeze against, as though somebody had ran past her. Ignoring it, she continued keeping her eyes tightly squeezed shut, until she heard a Death Eater snarl; "Move out of the way, boy!"

Lily's eyes immediately snapped open and she saw James's tall, thin figure standing protectively in front of her with his wand pointed at the Death Eaters. She gasped and held her breath. This action by James was why she knew that she could not be with James. She knew he would try and protect her and end up getting killed in the process. Lily watched in horror as she watched the boy…the person she loved more than anything in the world face a group of very powerful Death Eaters.

"I said move out of the way, boy!" the Death Eater shouted again, but James stood his ground.

"Make me…" James hissed in a deathly whisper. Lily whimpered a little, silently pleading with James to go away and leave; not wanting to see him in pain, get hurt, or worst of all, dead.

"Fine," the Death Eater said coolly. "You won't move out of the way, boy? I'll make you move! Crucio!"

Lily watched in horror as James fell to the floor shrieking in pain. Finally, he wails of pain he somehow managed to scream, "Lily! Go! Run!"

Lily, not knowing what else to do, ran out from behind James and immediately towards the castle, desperate to get help. James watched her as he seethed in pain and clutched on to the grass with tight fists. But, to his horror, out of nowhere, a Death Eater ran in front of Lily and grabbed her. Lily screamed as the Death Eater Disapparated with her from the village.

"LILY! NO!" James shouted over his pain. The other five Death Eaters, who were cursing James, also Disapparated.

No matter how much he wanted to, James did not faint or collapse; he just could not. He knew that Lily's life was at stake and that every moment counted. He immediately summoned his broom, being much too weak to walk or run back to the castle. When his broomstick flew towards him, he slowly climbed on to it and flew into the night sky and, surprisingly, towards Godric's Hollow.

James reached Godric's Hollow around midnight. He stared at the huge manor for only a minute, shaking his head to erase away the memories, and then ran to the front door and pounded furiously on it.

"Dad!" James shouted as he slammed his fist against the fine, oak wooden door. "Dad, wake your bloody arse up and open the damn door!"

Nobody answered.

'Big surprise,' thought James as he turned to walk away, but he was halfway down the walkway, he heard the door open. James whipped around and saw Reginald Potter standing in the doorway.

"James?" he said, almost choking from shock over seeing his son; whether seeing him in general or seeing him this late into the night, James did not know. "James, what's the matter? Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not okay," said James, now sounding completely desperate. "It's my girlfriend…and she…she…"

"Oh bloody hell; she's not pregnant is she?"

"NO!" James shouted angrily, going red with both embarrassment and anger. "I love her! I would never do that to her or put her in that kind of position! Bloody hell, why does everyone assume I just want sex from this girl?" James was not ranting with anger; a habit that he normally had around his father.

"Alright James, I'm sorry," said his dad hastily. "Now, what's wrong? What is it?"

"Lily…she…she's the Heir of Gryffindor and Lord Voldemort wants her dead," said James quickly and bluntly. Reginald's eyes immediately widened. "And she was just kidnapped by Death Eaters and I need you to go and look for her!" James said all of this in one breath and was now breathing heavily, sweat streaming down his forehead. Reginald nodded and placed his hands firmly on his son's shoulders.

"James, I want you to calm down-"

"CALM DOWN?" James bellowed, growing impatient. "There's no time to calm down! Every second counts! Now can you help me or not?" He could not believe how indifferent and calm his father was being; it was infuriating him. His girlfriend, the girl he loved more than anything in the entire world, had just been kidnapped and his father was acting like nothing was wrong.

"James, I can't just go after her," said Reginald, sounding both uncertain and ashamed. "I need special permission from the Department of Law Enforcement. I mean for Merlin's sake, James, I'm an Auror, not the Minister of Magic, and-"

"I knew it," James snarled, "I knew you wouldn't care. You're useless." With that, James he pulled away from his father's grasp and stormed towards his broomstick with his fists clenched and anger rising dangerously high in his chest. The thought of Lily not being safe in his arms and in the clutches of Lord Voldemort and his father not caring made him beyond furious. James was so furious that he did not know what to do with himself. All he really could do was get on to his broomstick and fly back into the night sky, his father screaming and calling after him.

As James flew through the sky, tears welled up in his eyes. For all he knew, Lily could be dead right now and he would not be there for her. He suddenly felt like a failure. When Lily needed him most, he was not there and he was not able to protect her, especially when those Death Eaters attacked. He sobbed uncontrollably. He cried so hard, that in the end, he could not cry anymore, no matter how much it hurt inside him.

When James returned to Hogwarts, he immediately ran to Starkson's office, realizing that he should have gone there in the first place. Unlike Reginald Potter, Parker Starkson was a man that anyone, especially Lily, could rely on. James wanted to kick himself for thinking impulsively and not going to the right man.

When he finally reached Starkson's office, like his father's manor, James banged furiously on the door. Parker opened it looking very annoyed and tired all at once.

"Potter, what do are you think you're doing here banging on my doors during the middle of the nig-"

"It's Lily!" James shouted, interrupting his professor. Starkson immediately stopped lecturing his student and James knew that he had the man's undivided attention. "She was kidnapped…" Starkson held up his hand to stop James from talking; there were no more words needed. He knew exactly what the teenager was trying to tell him.

"Voldemort," muttered Starkson more to himself than anyone. He looked up at James with narrowed eyes. "Did she tell you?" James nodded. "I see, well, you better follow me." He and Starkson sprinted straight to Dumbledore's office and James told him everything that had happened.

"Well, I'll inform the Minister immediately," said Dumbledore, after James had finished his story. He picked up a quill and started writing a letter and this action only caused James's fury to increase.

"THAT'S IT?" he roared, standing up so fast that the chair behind him flung to the ground. "WRITE A LETTER TO THE MINISTRY? WE'RE JUST GOING TO SIT HERE AND DO NOTHING?"

"James, please calm down," said Dumbledore calmly, in a harsh whisper. James growled at the man and just stormed away, but Starkson grabbed him by the arm.

"Potter," he started, "it is best if you stay out of this. We're dealing with Voldemort and it is much too dangerous. It's better if you just leave this to us and its best that you just forget about Lily. It's too dangerous for you and it's my job to look after her."

"There's no chance of that happening, Professor" James whispered harshly, as though the very thought was ludicrous. "I'm never leaving Lily; Voldemort or no Voldemort."

James pulled himself out of Starkson's grasp and ran out of the office, slamming the door behind him.

Parker Starkson stared at the door long after James had gone through it. And strangely enough, there was a slight smile on his face. To him, that was proof; proof that James truly loved Lily and would look after her always.

James Potter had earned Parker Starkson's trust.

James did not go to any classes that morning. He just sat in his dormitory staring out of the window. He desperately wanted to go out there and look for Lily, but he did not know where to look, or where even to start. And he could not exactly go to Dumbledore or Starkson for answers because they surely were not going to give him any. They would just tell him not to worry about it and to move on with his life. But, James knew that was never going to happen because he knew he would never do better than Lily Evans.

As he continued to stare out of the window, he heard the dormitory door open, and then close. James sighed and ran a hand through his hair, knowing it had to be either Sirius, Remus, or Peter who entered. James was still not exactly on speaking terms with the Marauders ever since he had punched Sirius.

"James?" a voice asked timidly; it was Remus's voice.

"What?" James responded, almost in a breathless voice, his thoughts on Lily and Lily only; nobody else. She was all the mattered to him at the moment. Lily, sweet Lily, his Lily was in Voldemort's hands, and it killed James to think he was not there for her. The very thought seemed to suck all life out of him.

"Dumbledore told me and the rest of the Marauders about Lily," he said quietly. "He apparently doesn't know we're on non-speaking terms. Sirius and Peter just brushed it off." James ignored him. There was a long silence where no one spoke. The wind just rustled James's hair and he heard Remus sigh.

"James, I think we need to talk," said Remus, though he sounded very unsure of himself.

"About what?"

"About you…about Lily…"

"What's there to talk about?" James asked casually, turning to face his old friend. "She's the best person I know. I'm in love her, Remus." Remus sighed in disappointment: disappointment with himself and the rest of his friends for doing what they had done to both Lily and James. Remus placed a hand on James's shoulder and shook it lightly.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, and he sounded sorry, "I was just afraid. I…I didn't understand." James gave a weak grin at him and punched him lightly and playfully in the stomach.

"Hey," James said quietly, "don't worry about it…Moony…" Remus smiled at him and the two did their infamous Marauder handshake.

Remus walked into the Great Hall for dinner that night and saw Sirius and Peter sitting at the Gryffindor table. Sirius was kissing Fiona as Peter and Achelle talked casually. Remus took a deep breath and plopped into the empty seat next to Sirius.

"Where have you been, Moony?" Sirius asked as Fiona positioned herself in his lap.

"I was talking to James, actually," Remus answered truthfully and without hesitation as he loaded food on to his plate. Sirius, Peter, Achelle, and Fiona all looked at him as though he had lobsters crawling out of his ears.

"Erm…Fiona…why don't you and Achelle head up to Gryffindor Tower. We'll meet you there," Sirius suggested slowly, not taking his eyes off of Remus. Fiona nodded and dragged a protesting Achelle out of the Great Hall. Sirius and Peter turned to Remus furiously.

"You were what?" hissed Sirius, once the girls were out of earshot. Remus narrowed his eyes at him.

"I was talking to James," he said coolly and much more slowly so Sirius and Peter could hear him better this time. Sirius glared at him and opened his mouth to retort but Remus interrupted him: "Don't give me your bullocks Sirius! Maybe you haven't realized it yet because you're too stupid to see it, but Prongs is in love with Lily Evans. He truly loves her! And, the girl is the Heir of Gryffindor and You-Know-Who has kidnapped her! James is miserable, Sirius. He needs friends; he needs us! And, if you're the person who has been friends with him since you two were kids, and you're his true friend, then you'll go find him and work things out with him!"

"But, Moon-"

"Don't you 'Moony' me!" Remus yelled, slamming his fist down on the table. "You know what I think, Sirius? I think you're scared of Lily!"

"Why would I be scared of Lily Evans?" Sirius asked dryly, though he refused to meet Remus's eye.

"Because you know she is the only woman in this world that can take your best friend away." Remus said quietly, though glaring dangerously at his friend. "You know that James had fallen in love and you got scared about losing your best friend. So instead of having your best friend taken away, you pushed him away."

"I..." Sirius took a deep breath. "I just hate how one girl could ruin fifteen years of friendship."

"Was it Lily who ruined your friendship with James," asked Remus, "or was it you?" Sirius's eyes widened and he dashed out of the Great Hall as fast as he could without another word. Remus smiled to himself and looked at Peter.

"The same goes for you too, Wormtail," he said. Peter nodded.

"I'll talk to him later," said Peter. "I think James and Sirius need to sort things out on their own for now."

"I agree!"

Sirius was running as fast as he could towards Gryffindor Tower thinking about what a complete arse he had been to his best friend. As he ran, he bumped into something, or rather someone and ironically, it was James.

"James!"

"Sirius..." James said slowly. The two both looked at each other for a minute. Truth be told, Sirius did not know what to say to his old best friend. He had rehearsed it in his head but now that James was standing in front of him, he had been rendered speechless. But when he finally got a good look at his friend, he felt his world shatter. He had never seen James look so lost and hopeless; he looked even worse than he did when his father had left him and his mother and sister. All he wanted to do was embrace his best friend and be there for him. But, he knew that there was only one way to do it; Sirius knew he had to apologize. And not just to James; he had to apologize to Lily as well. Because once Lily came back, Sirius would no longer be James's best friend…she would be. Is that not why he had ruined his friendship with James in the first place; because of that fear?

"I talked to Remus," said Sirius simply.

"Did you?" James asked tonelessly, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah…and I'm sorry, James," said Sirius sincerely, looking down at his feet, clearly ashamed over his actions. "I…I was just worried that some girl would come between us and steal my best friend."

"Stuff like that never bothered you when I was dating Achelle," said James, raising another eyebrow.

"Well yeah, because I knew you and Achelle were never going to last. Just like I know that Fiona and I are never going to last," said Sirius honestly. James stared. "They're not the types of girls that we're going to fall in love with. But, I…I knew Lily was different; I knew she was special to you. I saw the way you looked at her and the way your eyes lit up when she walked into a room. It scared me, James. I was losing my best friend to a girl."

"Sirius, you're only going to lose me as a friend is if you keep acting like an arse; like the way you did when making the flyers of Lily," said James truthfully. Sirius took a deep breath and ran a hand down his face.

"I don't know what else to say except that I'm sorry," whispered Sirius helplessly. James grinned weakly and patted his best friend on the back.

"That's all you needed to say, Padfoot."

Sirius smiled at his best friend, did the infamous Marauder handshake, and shared a brotherly hug.

A few weeks went by and James had made up with all of the Marauders; Sirius, Remus, and Peter. Fiona had broken up with Sirius for making up with James, so the Marauders and Fiona and Achelle were no longer on speaking terms, which had become something of a relief to the boys. The girls had grown to be more of a thorn in their side then an asset.

As the owl post arrived, James ate his breakfast, all depressed as usual. But, he had to admit that it was a whole lot better going through this with his friends at his side rather than alone, but it still was not easy thinking of Lily and whether she was dead or alive. He was so absorbed in his depression that he did not notice letters arrive for both Professor Starkson and Dumbledore. Starkson raced out of the Great Hall as Dumbledore immediately strode towards James.

"James," he said, standing in front of James at the Gryffindor table. James looked up at into the Headmaster's bright blue eyes. To James's immense surprise, Dumbledore had a huge smile on his face and his blue eyes were twinkling once again. James raised a confused eyebrow. "James, they found Lily. She's alive."

A note from the Jitterbelle. Woot woot to another revised chapter! I know this didn't happen in the movie or in the book but in the movie and book instead of getting kidnapped, she gets really sick...and since she's not sick I had to think of something else. I hope you have enjoyed the changes so far. Thank you so much to those who have reviewed; they mean a great deal. Please keep reading and enjoying and don't forget to keep reviewing