A/N: Well, this is it. The last & final chapter of the Lily and James: Their Story of Love/Catch My Fall extravaganza. Someday I am going to go back and completely edit, fine tune, and fix up to the best of my ability L/J: Their Story of Love. I can't even read it, it's so horrible. After that, it's onto Potter's Charm. I'm not even touching Beyond The Veil as it disgusts me so much. When I've completely redone L/J: Their Story of Love, I'll be sure to post it in my live journal, as well as my profile on this site. Look forward to that. I've enjoyed all your reviews immensely! It's sad to be finally completing this after about a year and a half (I'm including the prequel in this time count). I hope you all enjoyed it. Please don't flame me for the inevitable. That would be immature & not appreciated at all. I do hope I write this chapter as well as I wish to (although I most likely won't.) Please review & be sure to check out some of my other stories! Thanks!

Catch My Fall

Chapter 27-The End of a Beautiful Thing

After Dumbledore's departure, James and Lily sat in silence, their thoughts far too important to ignore. They would need a Secret Keeper as soon as possible, but sadly, Sirius was starting to sound less and less appealing. As if their thoughts aligned, James and Lily looked at one another, sighs escaping from their lips.

"I don't know if this is a good idea," James informed his wife sadly. "I trust Dumbledore's judgment and I trust my own, but something he said today isn't settling right."

Lily nodded. "I know what you mean. I trust Sirius. I really do. If I had to trust my life with one person in the world besides you, it would be him. He is Harry's godfather for a reason. Yet, I think our attachment to him may not be particularly good in a situation like this."

"I know he would die for us," James assured her. "I know he would do anything to protect us and our child. I just don't know if I want him to die in the process. I don't think I'd be able to live with myself if something happened to him because of us."

"I agree," Lily said. "But I don't see any other choice."

That was exactly what James had been afraid of.

.X.

Professor Dumbledore's office hadn't changed much since the Potter's had last been inside of it. It was still as interesting and detailed as before. Lily and James sat in two armchairs, baby Harry in James' arms.

The four of them (counting Harry) sat in his office for a specific reason. Lily and James had expressed their doubts and concerns with the headmaster earlier on. Lily reached over and squeezed her husband's hand. To James' surprise, she was trembling. He sent a reassuring smile her way, although knowing it wasn't as sincere as he'd hoped. He too was worried for the safety of his friend.

Along with Harry, something else sat in James' lap. A silver parcel was folded neatly and he was hardly able to allow himself to do what he needed to do.

"Professor," he said slowly. "I have something I wish to give you."

He handed Dumbledore the parcel with his other free hand and watched as the professor set his eyes upon it.

"It's my Invisibility Cloak," he explained. "A family heirloom. I want you to keep it safe for me."

"I'd be honored to, James," Dumbledore said. The old man smiled and tucked the cloak away in a cabinet that seemed to contain a large, silver basin. James demised that this was a pensieve.

A knock came to the door before Sirius entered. His hair was windblown and his gray eyes lacked the usual spark they held. Instead of energetic and fun, Sirius seemed much older. Something about him seemed entirely too grim.

He lightened up a bit as he saw Lily, James, and Harry. Apparently, the lack of their presence in his life had been torturous.

"Sirius," Professor Dumbledore acknowledged, leading him to a seat before sitting down behind his own desk. He cleared his throat and began, "Upon recent news, I have learned of Voldemort's quest to kill young Harry." His voice quavered a bit, the steadiness in his tone absent. "The safest and most intricate way of securing their lives would be the Fidelius Charm."

Sirius' lips traced over the words, although Dumbledore, James, and Lily knew that they meant nothing to him. It was a rare and ancient magic that was often forgotten.

"The Fidelius Charm is a protection charm that enables one person to withhold a secret inside of them. In this case, Lily and James' home. The Secret Keeper is the only person who is able to approach the house normally. Everyone else must hear or read the location directly from the Secret Keeper to enter the location. Lily and James have mutually decided on you, Sirius. That is, if you're willing."

He seemed very overwhelmed. His answer came out sure and steady, "Of course."

"Need I remind you that if Voldemort was to hear of this charm, he would immediately hunt you down as you're the closest to the Potters?" Dumbledore asked, clarifying the danger in accepting the job.

"I would die for them," Sirius assured his previous headmaster. James held onto Harry a bit tighter and Lily wiped a tear from her eye.

"As we would for you, Padfoot," James reminded his friend, smiling and feeling a tear of his own escape from his hazel eye.

.X.

Lily, James, Sirius, and a sleeping Harry flooed back to Godric's Hollow and landed in the Potters living room.

Before they had left, Dumbledore had specifically asked Lily and James to restrain from using magic unless defending themselves. He advised them to keep their wands on them at all times, but to never use it unless absolutely necessary. The idea of living as Muggles was frightening to both of them, but they agreed. Their son's safety always came first.

Lily went into the kitchen to make some tea, James went to put Harry to bed, and Sirius sat on the couch, his head in his hands.

When Lily and James returned, they found him crying. They hadn't seen Sirius cry since Halle's death and sat down sadly before him.

"I just can't stand it," he said slowly, choking a bit. "Everyone I love seems to die. Everyone. Why is that? Everyone dies. Everyone. I would give my life just to bring them all back, but it's no use."

"We're not dead, Sirius," Lily reminded him, reaching over to grab his hand. He looked up at her and James.

"We love and trust you," James assured him. "But we can't let you take on anymore suffering."

Lily caught his eye and nodded. They needed to cast the charm that night, but they had to alter the plans a bit.

"We can't let you be our Secret Keeper, Sirius," James told him, his head lowered. "It's not fair to you."

"Why isn't it fair?" he demanded. "If it means I get to prevent the three of you from being killed, then so be it. That sounds more than fair to me."

"It isn't," Lily snapped at him. "It is not. We don't want you to die. We need to change Secret Keepers. As much as we would hate to put Remus' life on the line, we've decided upon asking him instead."

"No," Sirius barked at them. His eyes were alive and alert. "You can't. You just can't. I won't allow you to use Remus."

He would hand the three of you straight over to Voldemort on a silver platter, Sirius thought to himself. I can't allow it.

After a couple of moments of silent and intense thinking, Sirius felt an idea pop into his head.

"Use Wormtail," Sirius insisted. Lily and James shot glances over at one another. Lately, the two of them hadn't been particularly close with Peter. He was their friend and all, but they had pretty much assumed he wouldn't be up for the job. "Voldemort wouldn't expect it. Peter is weak and need I say it, pretty selfish. Yet, James, you've always been the one he looked up to. If it were for you, I know he'd do it. He would be one of the least likely people you'd pick."

"What about you?" Lily asked desperately. "What if he kills you? What if Voldemort thinks you're the one we've chosen?"

"Trust me," Sirius insisted. "I'll go into hiding. Voldemort doesn't know about my Animagus form. I can simply live off the streets a bit. We'll put Peter into hiding, just for good measure. We can't let a soul know about this though."

Lily and James nodded. Sirius seemed to have thought this through in the moments time he'd had. It sounded full proof to them.

"I want what's best for you both," he told them, standing to leave. "I'll send Wormtail over immediately."

With that, he flooed from their fireplace and to Peter's house, leaving Lily and James to anticipate his arrival.

.X.

The charm had been placed and Lily, James, and Harry were left alone once more. It felt as if they'd never be able to reach the outside world again. The three of them often sat together before the fire, Harry exploring the house while Lily and James simply gazed into the fire.

Yet, James was often alone in his thought. Lily was often found studying that book he had seen earlier. Ancient Magic seemed to be occupying most of her time. He couldn't really understand why she was doing it, but thought it best not to ask.

At times, his thoughts focused solely on death. He had always been so happy to be alive. He sickened at the fact that Voldemort was making him think about death at such a young age. He was constantly worried that Voldemort would find him and his family and that they would lose the battle. He kept his wand with him at all times. He had advised Lily to do the same.

One evening, when he was feeling particularly low and his thoughts had drifted onto a worst-case scenario, he confronted his wife. She had just come from laying Harry down to sleep.

"Lily," he had said. "If Voldemort ever does find us, I want you to take Harry and go."

"What?" she asked, clearly alarmed and shocked. "You know I couldn't do a thing like that. I could never just leave you behind to die. What kind of wife would I be?"

"Lils," he sighed. "How do you think I'd feel knowing that I led you and Harry to your deaths? I need you to promise me that whatever may or may not happen in the future, you'll put Harry and yourself before me."

Reluctantly, Lily had agreed. Although she didn't seem to bring it up again, James noticed that she had started reading Ancient Magic a bit more vigorously since their conversation.

Peter hadn't been over the entire week, but he had agreed to being their Secret Keeper. James hoped that soon someone out there would be able to defeat Voldemort, even if it wasn't him or his wife. He longed for the man that had made the last years of his life a living hell to die.

The evening of October 31st, Lily had pried her eyes away from her book and was sitting by her husband, his hand locked with hers, their baby lying across the two of them. They smiled down at him. Even if they hadn't been able to conquer Voldemort, he had not been able to stop them from starting a family.

"Do you ever think about having more kids?" James asked, looking over at his wife.

"Yes," she answered softly. "I do. I love Harry so much and I sometimes wonder that if there was more people like him in the world, life would be much less complicated and much more happy."

The two of them stared admirably down at their son while his eyes drooped low, hinting that he was ready to fall asleep. Lily gently touched her son's hair, cradling a soft curl in her palm. She leaned down and kissed him on the forehead.

"Well, even if we can't live a normal life, at least we have each other," James said, seemingly saying exactly what Lily had been thinking.

.X.

Sirius had been living off the streets of Hogsmeade as a stray dog. He tried to keep a close eye on the headlines, checking newspapers as often as possible. On Halloween night, a week since Peter had been made Secret Keeper, Sirius decided to check in on his dear friend, Wormtail.

Sirius had advised Peter to hide in a small, barely recognizable loft that was relatively close to Godric's Hollow. The loft was located in a Muggle neighborhood and had been abandoned years ago.

Sirius stood outside of it, having retrieved his motorcycle earlier that day. He had flown it over to Peter's. He figured he may as well check up on Peter and make sure that nothing horrible had happened to him.

When Peter failed to answer the knock after ten minutes, Sirius grew impatient and blew open the door. All he found was an empty room and a blanket of guilt laying itself down in his stomach.

Remus hadn't been the spy after all.

.X.

The silence in the living room of the Potters home was soon disturbed by the sound of crackling leaves outside. James rushed to the window and saw a cloaked figure unlocking their gate. He had a piece of parchment in his hand that James imagined to be their address.

Damn Wormtail, James cursed inside his head before he turned to Lily and panicked. He gripped his wand tightly in his hand and said, "Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off---"

He was interrupted by the sound of the door being burst open followed by a cackle of high pitched laughter.

Lily seized her baby, clutching him close to her, and ran up the stairs as fast as she could. She reached the baby's room and locked the door behind her. She set him gently in his crib and began to pray. She could feel her heart beating loudly, thumping against her chest quickly.

She nearly screamed as heard a loud scream, knowing her husband was dead. She let tears stream freely from her eyes and knew what she had to do. She was ready when she heard the door unlock from the outside. She was ready for him. She was ready to die.

A/N: Well, how'd I do? Sound pretty canon to you all? I'm sorry if it was upsetting, but that was what I had to do. Tell me what you thought of this chapter, this story overall, and the prequel. I'd love to hear whatever you have to say. Thanks & please review!