A/N – Okay, this chapter may seem a bit weird; the flash backs are in italic's and when I return to the present time, it will be normal font and the characters will do their thinking thing and all that! I am also going to give more of an indepth look at Grizzelda and her relationship with Riddle and there is a bit in there about her and James -- anyway, please enjoy!

Harry Potter and the Price of Love

Part 6

"Lily!" the call came through the strangely dark house; James Potter ran inside, wand drawn and ready to use. He called his wife once again; but there was no answer. James lit up the end of his wand; he was breathing hard and he was shaking, badly.

"James," the voice was not that of Lily….

"Dumbledore? What happened here?" James asked, his senses thickened then, telling him not to lower his wand, not even when face by an old friend.

"I am sorry, my boy," Dumbledore shook his head.

"What do you mean? What did you do to here?" James yelled.

Dumbledore raised his wand and without batting eye he flicked James' wand out of his hands. James stood there, defenseless and he knew, he knew at that moment that he was dead. The job had been botched, and James knew that neither his wife nor son survived.

"Lily did put up a fight, you should know, shame she had to die," Dumbledore said.

"Tell me, did she suffer?" James asked.

"No, she went quickly," Dumbledore said James lowered his head; tears came unbidden to his eyes. His body was seized by fear and rage, Lily had died and he hadn't been there to protect her! Just then, a cry, from above came to him. James stiffened and listened…he knew that cry! That was…

"Harry!" James made to run up those stairs and get his son as far away as possible, but Dumbledore stopped him, with just a simple curse, the old man had James pinned to the wall.

"Don't do this! Leave Harry something! He's innocent!" James yelled.

"He is not! He has Death Eaters for parents," Dumbledore whispered in an angry tone.

"That was not his fault, we were Death Eater's before Harry ever came along," James glared.

"You act proud; maybe if you bound yourself to me I might be able too…"

"Never! I will never bow down and call you Lord!" James hissed.

"Really?"

"Don't be daft, I made my choice, I have to suffer the consequences for my actions, Lord Voldemort has taught me that much," James replied.

"What else has he told you?" Dumbledore asked.

"Something so very important that you would never understand, even if I tried to explain it to you," James replied.

"Very well, good by, my boy, I had a great hope in you," Dumbledore leveled his wand at James.

"And I had trust in you, but look at what that has brought us,"

With a flash of green light, James Potter was dead, and Harry's crying echoed through the night. For years to come, Halloween at Godricks Hollow would be a horrid affair. With the memory of malice, anger and love….

How could anyone forget?

Remus woke with a jerk! He was breathing hard and sweat glistened on his body; he pulled the covers up and buried his head in them, he did not want to think of his old friends; he was sorry that they had died the way they did. They were only doing what was right! Why did they have to die? They were the best people around, they were happy!

Lily and James Potter had been a happy family, they had plans to raise Harry and to send him to some other Wizarding school (they hadn't decided where), they wanted to take him for long walks in the summer, and they wanted him to enjoy his first Halloween ever! They only had a short year with the baby before they died.

Lily had been torn to pieces, Remus remembered; body parts strung across the room, letter's written in blood on the wall…Remus could smell the blood even now…

A hand on his shoulder brought Remus to life; he gasped and sat up straight at the touch. Sirius looked at him; he wondered if his friend was sick? What made him cry?

"Remus? Are you all right?" Sirius asked.

"Blood, that was what was on the walls, I'm glad that you didn't see," Remus whispered. Sirius looked at his friend, but instead of asking the questions that his soul longed to have answered, he just wrapped his arms around his friend, and gave Remus that which he needed most.

"Thank you, my friend," Remus muttered.

"Don't worry, we'll fix everything," Sirius replied.

"I hope so," Remus said. They sat in silence for a very long time.

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"Potter, you have to concentrate!" Grizzelda glared.

"Let me go! You can't keep me here!" James yelled, he backed away from the old witch, she had kept him captive in her home for a couple of day's now, and he wanted out!

"Don't you want to learn the old magick?" Grizzelda asked, with a wave of her hand she had James tied to the post in the middle of the cottage. James tried to get free, but the ropes just held him tighter. He gasped as the ropes almost squeezed the life out of him, then they loosened.

"You are powerful, I know you are, you can be a great wizard," Grizzelda muttered, she went about preparing something for her guest.

"I don't want to be powerful," James replied.

"Of course not, no not a strong Gryffindor, oh no…" Grizzelda muttered to herself. In no time, something hot was poured into a cup; she added some sort of red potion and crossed the room from her wood stove to the captured boy.

"You will carry on the deep magick," Grizzelda said and laid the rim of the cup against James' lips. He glared at her and did not open to drink what she had prepared.

Grizzelda smirked some, then with a wave of her hand, she made James' mouth open for her and the steaming potion waspoured down his throat. His mouth closed with a snap and with another wave of her hand Grizzelda made him swallow.

"You can do a lot with the old, deep magick! I made you take the drink because I am powerful, I could take over Hogwarts if I had a mind too, and no one could stop me," Grizzelda explained.

"Then why don't you? If you are so anxious for an apprentice why not go to the school?" James asked.

"Because, that would defeat the purpose! My own Master kidnapped me when I was but five, I learned everything I ever needed from him and now I need another apprentice, the deep magic must live on," Grizzelda replied. She rubbed a knarred hand against the pale young skin of her captive's cheek.

"I've all ready told you, I don't want to be here, let me go!" James said, his voice was amazingly calm.

"And I have told you, I do not let my charges off so easily," Grizzelda snapped her fingers and James was gagged. Grizzelda laid her hand against the young Potter's temple and he was asleep in the next second. He would be a hand full, but he would learn. Grizzelda was sure of that.

The old hag watched the young boy sleep; it was not surprising to her at all that Harry looked so much like his father, she had never met Lily Potter, but she assumed that the bright green eyes of this child had belonged to his mother at some point in time.

The boy had talked to her some, but she assumed that he would be more talkative once he began to get used to her; she had always wanted children of her own, but had never married and she knew that she wouldn't anytime soon. She was an old hag, and that was the way it was going to stay. However, she knew that this boy needed her help, if he was ever going to defeat his destiny.

Destiny is a fickle thing, Grizzelda knew, it could destroy one moment, and make happiness the next; it could make the earth quake in fear, and then heal with rays of joy. But, it was choices and not Destiny that made Harry Potter the Boy-Who-Lived. Harry did not ask for it, and yet here he was. Seven years old and he understood more than one would think.

Grizzelda smiled as she got up from her rocking chair, she knelt beside the boy and pulled the worn blankets up to his neck to keep him warm. The forest got unusually cold at night, even now, Grizzelda was feeling it in her bones.

I'm getting too old for this, Grizzelda thought as she stood and made her way to the curtained off partition that hid her room. She looked back at the boy, who was sleeping peacefully. She knew a lot of things, the old hag, but the things that this boy had to endure as his life went on…she did not want to know.

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Voldemort look at his followers with a weary eye – he was tired of fighting, and he was tired of the lies, all of it was just wearisome and he longed for the peace that the Wizarding world had been deprived of for so long.

"We're here to discuss plans," he said – no one bothered to answer. H espied Sirius in the room next to Malfoy and Snape. The man looked weak but determined.

"I have placed Potter in a very safe location that only I know of, we do not need to worry about him because he is with a strong witch, that said…Black, I have a mission for you,"

"What is it, My Lord?" Sirius asked.

"I need you to get as far away from England as possible…" Voldemort went on explaining his plan and giving others their own duties. Lupin was out of the question since he was still injured and besides, Voldemort needed some research done and Lupin was the best for book learning.

"That is all," Voldemort said, and he left the underground room.

Sirius left with Severus and Lucius – he smiled grimly to himself. This was it, he thought as he went to the room he shared with Remus, This is what I have been waiting for…I know it's a gamble, and I know that it might not work…but what if…he stopped himself there!

This was no time for doubts, he reminded himself as he entered the room. He was tired but he had convinced the medi-witch that he was fine. He was fine, he was just stir crazy, he had to get out of the manor, he had to do something….he had to do something that would ensure their win of the war.

"Sirius? What's wrong?" Remus asked his friend.

"I'm going to fix it, all of it," Sirius said, he trudged to the wardrobe.

"What do you mean?" Remus raised an eyebrow.

"I have a mission, I need to do it alone, don't worry though, The Lord Darkness has assignments for you," Sirius gave Remus a small smile.

"Homework? And here I thought I was passed all that!" Remus joked. Sirius pulled on a ratty old robe and got out a knap-sack.

"Going to be a long one, huh?"

"Yes, maybe a couple of months…" Sirius trailed off.

"Don't worry about me, I handled it when you were in Azkaban, a couple months is nothing like six years," Remus said softly. Sirius finished his small bit of packing and turned to Remus. The other man was sitting up in bed and a book was open across his lap.

"Please, Moony, don't worry about me, I'll be fine," Sirius smiled, but cringed at the awfully sad face Remus gave him in return.

"It broke my heart when I heard you had been taken to Azkaban, and it got worst when I couldn't even visit you – Padfoot, if you even think of dyeing on me…"

"I won't, I promise," Sirius got up and hugged his friend, Remus hugged him back and it was then that Sirius had to leave.

"I'll leave a light on for you," Remus whispered, Sirius looked back and gave him a thumbs up, not trusting his voice, and then he was gone, and Remus was left in the room, with his lamp shinning, the only thing repelling the darkness that almost consumed the Werewolf.

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A/N Okay, just so ya'll know, this is not a Sirius/Remus pairing in this fic, there never will be! I guess you could view it like that if you want, but there will be no kissing ext. between them. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not against slash pairings, I've written a few boy/boy fics in Bey Blade so, ya'll know that. The relationship between Sirius and Remus is just a VERY STRONG friendship. Besides Harry, that is the only thing keeping the two going! I hope you all liked this chapter.

Please leave a review!

Ta,

Poppy!