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 13 – A Walk to Remember:

The date was July 31st, 1980.

It was the day that Lily Potter would give birth to her first born child.

"James, would you please stop pacing!" Peter snapped as James continued to pace the living room floor. They were not in a hospital, much to his concern and dismay. But, due to Lily's unfortunate circumstances about not being able to leave her home, Professor Dumbledore brought a trusted doctor and nurse who helped him organize the Order of the Phoenix to help her with the delivery.

James clenched his fists and narrowed his eyes at his best friend, clearly annoyed with his comment. What did Peter expect? Of course he was nervous and was going to pace to lessen the anxiety!

"Peter, my wife is upstairs giving birth to my child so excuse me if my nerves are an inconvenience to you. You'll have to learn to bear with my so-called pacing!" James snapped furiously at his friend. Sirius and Remus both silently gave their friend a dirty look, telling him to shut his mouth and to let James be. Peter, in turned, ignored his friends' warnings and continued hassling the soon father-to-be.

"Don't you dare snap at me, James!" retorted Peter, glaring. "You just think that because you're going to be a father, you can talk to us like that?"

"Wormtail, just leave him alone!" Sirius nearly shouted, now standing to his feet, as though daring Peter to challenge him. "It's Lily and his son or daughter! Of course he's going to be a little anxious and short-tempered! You know if it was us, we would be just as psycho!"

"But-"

"Peter, you head James and Sirius," snapped Remus, now rubbing his temples. "Shut the bloody hell up!"

"Bugger-"

"Mr. Potter?" a voice called out, interrupting the Marauders' argument. James immediately whipped around and saw the doctor walk down the stairs and into the living room, wiping his hands on a bloody rag.

"Doctor," said James in a breathless voice. "How's Lily? Is she okay? How's the baby? Is it a girl or a boy?" The doctor laughed affectionately over James's concern. He smiled and nodded politely.

"Your wife is fine, Mr. Potter," said the doctor with a sincere smile. "And as for the baby…"

"What?" James asked urgently.

"Mr. Potter, you are noq the father of a healthy baby boy," said the doctor with a big bright smile. "You may go in and see them. But may I recommend that you only bring one other visitor? Just so not to overwhelm the two of them…"

James nodded and turned to Sirius.

"Come with me, Padfoot?

"Me?"

"Yes, of course you; don't you want to see your godson?"

"My…my…WHAT?"

"Yeah, Lily and I decided to make you godfather to our child," said James, smirking. "Didn't we tell you?"

"NO! No, you didn't tell me!"

"Well the job is yours…if you want it…"

"Of course I want it!"

"Well come on then!" James dashed up the stairs and into his bedroom; followed closely by Sirius. When the two men burst through the door, Lily looked up startled, but then smiled when she saw James and Sirius. She had a small bundle of blankets in her arms.

Despite the fact that her flowing red hair looked like a bird's nest and she was extremely pale with very dark rings around her eyes, James decided that she had never looked more beautiful than she did right there holding their newborn son.

"James, come and meet your son," said Lily, smiling tiredly, holding the bundle towards him. James took a deep breath and walked over to the side of his wife's bed and looked within the pale blue bundle. He saw the tiny baby sleeping peacefully in his mother's arms. There was a small untidy patch of jet-black hair on the top of the baby's head and James already knew that he boy had inherited is messy black locks. But, all in all, all James could do was stare at the boy.

"Would you like to hold him, James?" asked Lily sweetly, holding out the bundle out towards him.

"Yes," said James in a deathly whisper as Lily handed the baby to him. James carefully took his son in his arms and gently touched his nose and ran a finger over the baby's lips. He stared in awe; he could not believe this was his son, is child, his flesh and blood. Lying in his arms was something that he and Lily had created together with their love. James gingerly hugged the tiny boy close to him.

"So, what do you want to name him?" Lily asked breaking the calm silence.

"We should call him Sirius Jr." Sirius said grinning brightly and teasingly. Lily rolled her eyes playfully and looked over at James.

"James, honey?" she asked again. "What do you think we should name him?"

There was a long pause as James continued to stare down at his newborn son; now the youngest Heir of Gryffindor. He knew that his son was going to suffer the same kind of fate as his wife, and for that, James knew that it would force his son to grow up much faster than most children would. He would deal with horrors and terrors that no other child or person would ever have to face. And if his son had managed to inherit both Lily and his genes; he knew that the boy would become a great leader; a leader who would rule the Order and many good witches and wizards in the fight against Voldemort. James knew this; he knew that his son would be a leader against evil. So there was only one name for him:

"Harry…" said James, his voice trailing off. Lily and Sirius stared at him.

"Harry?" Lily repeated. James nodded.

"Where'd you get that name?" Sirius asked curiously.

"Harry means army ruler," said James, never taking his eyes off of the baby. "My son is the Heir of Gryffindor…and a wizard who will fight in the war against evil…" As he said those words, he finally met Lily's eyes and she was staring at him with a soft, yet hard look. They did not need words to understand what the other was saying; they did not need words. Tears welled in Lily's as the realization of what James was saying dawned over her.

Sirius, maybe for the first time in his life, stayed quiet and watched the exchange between husband and wife curiously.

"Harry Potter," she whispered to herself, as she closed her eyes. After a moment reflecting on the name, she turned to her husband and smiled brightly. "Harry James Potter. I love it. It's perfect…"

James smiled and looked down at his son, Harry, and smiled, gently kissing his nose and the boy snuggled into the blankets.

"Hello Harry," said Sirius as he looked over James's shoulder, down at his godson. "I'm Sirius, your godfather."

James was ignoring Sirius and continued to rock Harry gently. It was his child, his baby boy, his son; it was Harry James Potter.

"James?" Sirius called out through the empty kitchen as he popped in his head in through the front door of the cottage in Godric's Hollow.

"Hey Sirius," came Lily's voice from the kitchen. Sirius walked in and saw Lily carrying Harry on her hip as he sucked on a bottle, wearing a toothless grin. Harry was now a happy, bouncing one year old baby boy. He was also still the youngest Heir to Gryffindor. But as a baby, he thought nothing of the hardships that awaited him as he playfully pulled on his mother's hair as she held him in her arms while cooking dinner.

"Hey Lily," said Sirius as he walked over to the pair and ruffled Harry's already messy hair. "Is James home by any chance?"

"No, he's in a meeting with Dumbledore," said Lily as she stirred the pot with a large, wooden spoon. "Would you take Harry please?"

"Sure!" said Sirius brightly, always eager to play and hold his godson. He reached out and relieved Lily from the baby. "Hi there, Harry!" Sirius took the small boy in arms and spun him around fast and recklessly. But, Harry did not cry or scream; he simply giggled with delight. And Lily did not lecture him; she did not mind the rough play so much; she simply smiled as she scrambled the eggs.

"Why don't you just use your wand?" asked Sirius curiously as he continued bouncing Harry in his arms. Lily shrugged.

"It just tastes so much better the Muggle way in my opinion," she said simply. Sirius shrugged.

"Food is food to me!"

"Food is all you ever think about!" teased Lily.

"That's not true! I think about sleep, women, and Quidditch as well," said Sirius. Lily laughed heartedly as she stirred the sausage. Sirius started playing with Harry again and threw the baby up in the air and caught him. The small boy giggled with pure delight as he landed back in his godfather's gasp. Lily gasped and slapped Sirius on the arm disapprovingly.

"Sirius, be careful!" she hissed, being the classic overprotective mother. At that moment, there was an amused laugh from the doorway in the kitchen.

"Calm down, Lily," said the voice. "If my boy is going to be a fantastic Quidditch player like his father, he's going to have to get used to flying high in the air." Lily turned around and narrowed her eyes at her husband, who ruffled Harry's promise-to-be messy hair in the same way Sirius had done earlier.

"He's got a long time before those try-outs, James!" said Lily in mock sternness, placing her hands on her hips. "Besides, his father wasn't all that fantastic of a Quidditch player anyway." James's mouth dropped as Sirius burst out into obnoxious laughter.

"Oh that was cold, Lily," said Sirius laughing. "I can't believe you shot down Prongs! Right in front of Harry too!"

"What did you say my flower?" James asked slowly, playfully advancing on his wife. She smiled and grinned mischievously.

"You heard me!"

James grinned and chased after her menacingly as she ran out of the kitchen, squealing playfully. Sirius laughed, sighed, and turned to the laughing baby boy in his arms.

"What are we going to do with those two, Harry?" Sirius asked in playful, mock defeat. Harry just giggled again and reached out to tug on Sirius's hair.

"Is Harry asleep?" asked Lily, as she sat on her bed reading a book. James ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

"Yes, finally! That boy of mine is so stubborn!"

"He gets that from his father," said Lily as she read her book. James chuckled and flopped down on the bed next to her.

"What are you reading?" he asked playfully nudging. Lily smiled.

"Actually, I'm reading the passage that was read on our wedding day," she said looking into his eyes. James stared at her for a moment before kissing her lightly. There was a long pause as the couple laid in the bed, staring and enjoying a moment of comfortable silence.

"James?" asked Lily, breaking the silence, though sounding reluctant.

"Yeah, Lily?"

"Do you regret it?"

"Regret what?"

"Marrying me," said Lily quietly, as though afraid of the answer. James looked at her startled, clearing not expecting that kind of question and just stared at her blankly.

"How could you say something like that Lily?" James asked quietly, caressing her cheek with his finger.

"If you didn't marry me, you wouldn't have Voldemort after you and you could live your life. You wouldn't have to go into hiding or worry about Voldemort showing up to kill you! You…you'd be able to have a life-"

James silenced her by kissing her tenderly on the lips.

"You're worth it," he whispered as he pulled away. Lily nodded, with tears in her eyes. But, James was not sure if they were tears of joy or sadness. Either way, he wanted to make sure that his wife understood something. "Lily, I'm going to tell you something…"

"Yes?"

"I…I can't explain it. There are no words to describe how strongly I feel for you. You…you saved my life. You changed me!" James looked into her eyes. But her eyes told him that she did not fully understand. So, she continued. "Lily, before you came into my life, I was a reckless teenager with no hope of snapping out of my way cut-throat and cruel ways. But, you…you're my guardian angel. You guided me and changed me for the better. You made me who I am today. You made me want to be a better man. Without you, Lily, I'm incomplete. Walking this journey with you has been a walk to remember, and I'll never forget this life time walk with you Lily Potter."

"Oh…James!" Lily cried before she threw her arms around her husband's neck and cried tears of joy into his shoulder. "I love you!"

"I love you too!"

After many minutes of sitting in each other's arms, James took a deep breath, knowing that this conversation would ruin the moment, but it had to be done. This conversation had to be had.

"Lily?"

"Yeah?"

"Sirius and I have been discussing it and he…wants…he thinks it would be best if we switched Secret-Keepers," said James quickly, not wanting her to panic over the idea. To his surprise, Lily just looked at him startled.

"Sirius thinks we should switch Secret-Keepers? But, why?" she asked, sounding both curious and breathless. She whispered it as though Voldemort himself would be able to hear their possible change in plans.

"He says he'll be the obvious choice," explained James. "Voldemort is bound to go after him first; he knows how close we are to one another. He says if we use Peter, no one would suspect him…"

"What do you think, James?"

"Honestly, I think it makes sense…" said James, his voice trailing off. "Sirius has a good point and no offense to Peter, under our circumstances, who would appoint a Secret-Keeper like Sirius?"

"But, what about the spy Dumbledore warned us about?"

"With all due respect, Lily," said James, sounding both impatient and frustrated, "I'm tired of Dumbledore thinking he runs everything and meddling with our affairs." Lily bit her lip uncertainly.

"He seemed pretty sure about it, James," she said, as though choosing her words as though not to upset her husband. "He said that the spy was warning Voldemort about all our choices and movements…"

"Hence why the switch would benefit us," explained James. "No one would know about the switch except for us, Sirius, and Peter." Lily stilled looked unsure of the situation as she continued to stare blankly out the shaded window. James sighed and ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up at all angles. "If Dumbledore is right about there being a spy within our inner circle, Lily, it honestly could be anybody. And this switch would be ideal because the spy will never know if we switch Secret-Keepers. We're not going to tell anyone; not even Dumbledore."

Lily bit her lip hard and looked into her husband's eyes.

"Do you really think that this is a good idea?" she asked, clearly looking for reassurance from her husband. James sighed and nodded…reluctantly. Lily sighed and it her lip again.

"Alright then…let's make the switch…"

"Okay Harry, catch the Quaffle," said James as he tossed his son the big red ball. But Harry did not catch it. He just watched the ball fall to the ground blankly before grabbing the little toy snitch and chewing on it. James let out a groan of frustration.

"I guess my boy is more interested in being a Seeker than a Chaser…" James said to himself, his voice trailing off, almost in disappointment. He chuckled to himself and shook his head before picking up Harry and spinning the tiny boy around playfully.

"Either way he's going to be a great Quidditch player," said James as he continued to spin Harry around. "Aren't you Harry?"

Harry just stuffed his fingers in his mouth and giggled in pure delight. Lily sat in the doorway and grinned with amusement.

"Don't yell at me when he pukes on you from being spun around too much," said Lily smiling. James chuckled and stopped spinning Harry, who was scratching his head from being dizzy. Lily and James laughed in amusement before Lily took her son in her arms and cradled him.

As she took Harry in her arms, James could not help but notice the worry and concern in her bright emerald green eyes as she looked at her baby boy, her son. She sighed and cuddled Harry close to her and kissed his forehead.

"Are you okay, Lily?" James asked as he saw how shaken up and pale his wife was. She nodded as she cradled Harry.

"I'm fine. I'm just nervous is all," she said kissing Harry's little nose as he pulled on her long, beautiful red hair.

"Are you shaken up about the big switch?" James asked knowingly. Lily nodded and held her son close to her.

"I just have a feeling we should have told someone; anyone. We should have told Dumbledore. I know you don't care much for him, James but we still should have told someone. We could have told Annie…or Uncle Parks! We know that neither of them is the spy," she said quietly. James smiled and kissed his wife gently, but deeply.

"You worry too much," he said smiling. "We're perfectly safe."

"If you're so sure…" she whispered. James nodded and kissed her forehead before Harry giggled. The couple looked down at him and smiled brightly.

But their happiness was short lived.

The happy couple smiled until they heard they front door of their cottage open and a cold high-pitched laughter echoed throughout the house. Lily gasped and clutched Harry close to her chest, nearly crushing. Sensing danger and tension, Harry immediately began wailing helplessly. Staring determinedly at the front door, watching Lord Voldemort's shadow walk towards them, James took out his wand and faced the door, shouting.

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

Over fourteen years later, fifteen year old Harry James Potter shut his father's journal with a snap; his eyes wide and his face deadly pale.

A note from the Jitterbelle. Here is another revised and improved chapter! The next chapter will be the final chapter of the story. I know I rushed through some of this but us readers of the original series know the details about their lives and deaths so I really did not feel the need to g into it. I don't find it very interesting and very repetitive when I read fanfiction and it would be even worse writing it. It would also seem hypocritical of me to put it in my story and expect people to enjoy it. A special thank you all my reviewers! Please don't forget to keep reading, reviewing, and enjoying!