"What am I doing?"

The question ran through Lily's head, and she quickly let go of Remus, who was equally surprised by her actions. Lily's eyes avoided Remus's, and her eyes rested on Sirius, who was furious.

"What the bloody hell was that, Evans?"

Lily inwardly flinched at Sirius's tone, but her outward stance was fierce. She was not going to back down. Sirius, on the other hand, was ready to tear apart Lily piece by piece. He glared angrily at her, as she scoffed of his question.

"I was staking my claim, isn't that what you wanted, my lord?"

Sirius growled and step forward while Lily stood her ground. Remus, hurriedly, stood in the middle between his two friends.

"Stop it now…"

Before Remus could finish his sentence, loud cracks filled the forest, startling the trio.

"Do not move under the orders of the Prince!"

Remus, immediately grabbed Lily, and shielding her with his body while Sirius stood protectively in front of them. Six men created a circle surrounding them, trapping the three from the middle. A man suddenly appeared in front of Sirius, a serious expression on his face. Sirius snapped.

"What is the meaning of this, Shacklebolt?"

Shacklebolt sighed, but did not answer Sirius. He turned looked toward Lily and Remus.

"Lily Evans and Remus Lupin, the Prince demands your attention. You must come immediately."

"Now wait a minute, Shacklebolt, Prince James and I have an understanding …"

Shacklebolt turned toward Sirius, and interrupted him.

"That…understanding…has been terminated on orders by the Prince, Lord Black."

Sirius glared, but he knew he could not do anything. He turned around and saw his friend's angry glares at the aurors. The aurors moved past the lord, and moved to grab the maiden and the werewolf. They struggled a bit, but they knew that it was no use. Shacklebolt looked around the forest and then turned his gaze unto Lily.

"My prince tells me that there is a child with you, and our orders are to bring the mudblood, the werewolf, and the child. So, Ms. Evans, where is the child?"

Lily stared at the auror with a frozen gaze, shrugging her shoulders. Remus stared down at the ground; anything coming from him would bring more trouble, thanks to his curse. Lily was, essentially, on her own. She had to, on all costs, protect Harry. Shacklebolt step closer, and grabbed Lily's arm harshly. Remus moved to protect Lily, but the auror holding him kicked him into the ground. Lily's eyes widened.

"No, please…"

The auror pointed his wand at the werewolf, who was on the ground. Shacklebolt glanced down at Remus and back to Lily.

"Bring me the child, and no harm would come to the werewolf."

Lily bit her lip, and Remus tried to get up. The auror kicked him back down to the ground. Sirius stepped in to protect Remus. He pointed his want at the auror.

"Enough or I will kill you."

Sirius, then, turned toward Shacklebolt. "Kingsley, there is no child. I was tailing the two and there was no child with them."

Kingsley Shacklebolt knew Remus and Lily for awhile. They were the nicest people he could have ever met, and the most surprising. He did not know another muggle-born who was protected by a Prince, or a werewolf protected by a Lord. He sighed, and he knew that he had to give them a chance.

"Alright, but it is on your head, Lord Black."

Sirius nodded, and bent down to help Remus. Remus grabbed on tightly to Sirius and whispered to him.

"Protect Lily and Harry, Padfoot, they need you to survive. They need to leave."

Sirius nodded, and the auror grabbed Remus harshly. The team of aurors apparated out of the forest, and Sirius did, too, right after. He landed in front of the gates, they magically open for him, and for the first time in his entire life, Sirius felt like he was entering the depths of hell. This palace use to be a place of solace from the temperaments of the Slytherin Kingdom. The Gryffindor Kingdom was a second home, sometimes his only home, yet, at that very moment, it was a castle filled with dreaded secrets and a cold queen…

And he was about to go face-to-face with the ice queen's son.

"…And don't make a sound!"

The guard slammed the door shut, leaving Remus and Lily, wandless, in a small, damp room. Remus growled silently, not wanting to hurt another person as much as he wanted to the guard. The guard practically lusted after Lily, and he knew the guard would come back to take Lily away. Remus sighed, and turned around to face Lily. She was staring at the dingy window, biting her lip, and Remus knew that she was scared.

"Lily…"

Lily cut him off, "Remus, we have to leave. We have to leave, get Harry, and run!"

Lily crumbled down to the ground, her face in her hands, and she was sobbing. Remus crouched down, and held her.

"Sirius is going to help you, Lily. He's going to help you and Harry."

Sirius stormed into James's room. James was sprawled on his seat, looking like the lazy prince he was always made out to be. His head went up when he heard the door open, but he lazily went back to twirling his wand when seeing it was Sirius. Sirius stood in front of James.

"What the hell, Potter?"

James stood up angrily and pushed Sirius away. "What the hell is your problem, Black?"

Sirius and James glared at each other, neither backing down. James groaned and turned away from his best friend.

"I always trusted you, Sirius, always."

Sirius stared warily at James, "I know."

James abruptly turned around to face Sirius. He could not stand to see his friend lie bluntly in front of him. How could Sirius do that to him, and still have the audacity to say he knows that James trusted him?

"Sirius, what was going in the forest?"

Sirius stiffened and then relaxed. He grinned at his best friend. "Nothing, I was just trying to convince the two to come back peacefully to the castle."

Sirius, then, frowned, "It would have work if you haven't brought the entire fleet of private aurors to arrest them."

James stared coldly at the young Lord, "You took too long."

Sirius raised his eyebrow. He absolutely had no idea what James was talking about. He remembered clearly that James gave him at the most two days, so what was James going on about? Sirius gave his best friend a questioning glance. James did not acknowledge the look; in fact, he stared at Sirius with hate. What was James so angry about?

"Is it true, Shacklebolt?"

Kingsley Shacklebolt always considered himself a fair and just man. It was the reason why he was so high in the auror ranks, just under the head auror himself, Mad-Eye Moody. The King even said that once Moody retired, Kingsley was a shoo-in to replace him.

So, why did he feel so bad about arresting two people that his Prince needed?

Maybe it was because he knew those two people. Prince James Potter and, then, the son of the Lord of Slytherin, Sirius Black, were always unreachable; they were not raised to talk to commoners like Kingsley. Kingsley was just a loyal subject.

Remus Lupin and Lily Evans were a different story. They were on the same boat as him; actually, they were further down than him. Remus was a werewolf and Lily was a mudblood, both of them were not even allowed to look at the higher ranks. He did not believe in that load of crap, and knew that Lily and Remus were good people. They were friends, not close, but friendly. There was something about the two that made you care for them, even with their status.

Remus and Lily were both intelligent; there was no doubt about it. They were both one of the top five students in Hogwarts. Remus, despite his lycanthropy, had a gentle soul. He was loyal to his friends, and always watched out for them. Lily had a fiery temper, but was fiercely loyal and kind. She always protected those she cared about. Kingsley never met a pair like them, and he always valued their input.

Maybe that why it was not so surprising, to him at least, that those two captured the attention of a Lord and a Prince, something that people spent their whole lives trying to achieve. It was shock to see Prince James so infatuated with a mudblood, who, surprisingly, did not return his affections. It took five years for the Prince to capture the attention of the beautiful red-head, and they fell in love.

Remus Lupin, the werewolf, was best friends with the Prince and the Lord for years before that. That was another controversial shock, how could two high ranking people be in the presence of a lycan? He was also extremely close to Lord Sirius Black, and there were even rumors that the two were something more. No one, though, had a decency to ask the pair, especially when the werewolf, the mudblood maiden, and the Lord were all under the protection of the Prince. No one could understand…no one wanted to understand, yet they kept their mouths shut because the Prince took it as a great offense if they talked.

"Shacklebolt, I asked you a question!"

Kingsley looked at his regal queen. She was furious, at what he did not know. She could be either furious that he did not answer her question quickly, or that the two people she hated more than anyone were in the same castle as her. Kingsley nodded his head.

"Is what true, your majesty?"

Queen Victoria held her want out, furiously staring at the auror. She smirked at Kingsley, whose face paled. He quickly bowed his head.

"Rephrase your answer, Shacklebolt."

"Yes, your majesty."

Victoria smiled triumphantly, "Where?"

Kingsley let out a sigh, "The dungeons."

He, then, bowed as the queen hastily walked toward the direction where the two people, the same people he always considered as friends, stayed. The people of the Gryffindor kingdom always had an opinion about the friends that the young Prince made. The people knew that the Queen, herself, did not approve of that friendship. So when Kingsley found out that Remus had disappeared and a week later so did Lily, he knew that the Queen was not so innocent.

For when the Prince was depressed, she was, rumored to be, laughing viciously behind closed doors.

"Okay, James, this moody crap is getting old. What is your problem?"

James turned around; he could not face Sirius anymore. How dare Sirius demand to know what was wrong with him? Sirius knows what he did; he should be a man and admit to it!

"Do you need a hint, Sirius?"

Sirius was absolutely frustrated with his best friend, "James…"

"You know what, Sirius, think: forest, you, Lily, and Remus."

Sirius opened his mouth, ready to ask what James was talking about. Then it came to him, James knew. James saw, saw Sirius goading Lily. He saw Remus and Lily kiss. That image probably broke him, and James saw his best friend just watch. In fact, he saw his best friend practically encourage it. Sirius sighed and James stiffened. He slowly turned around, watching Sirius fidget.

"Did you find it funny, watching the love of my life kiss your best friend?"

Sirius started to talk, "Our best friend, not just mine, ours."

James smirked sadly, "Your mate kissed what was mine. He is not my friend. He stopped mattering to me when he kissed what was mine. Now, he's nothing but a werewolf who needs to be put down."

Sirius whipped out his wand, aiming it at James. James had his want out as well. He laughed coldly at Sirius.

"Are you going to hurt me, Padfoot?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes at James's harsh tone. He knew that James was trying to play it cool, like a Slytherin, but James could never accomplish that. He was sort of like Remus in that department; they both wore their hearts on their sleeves. People could see what their weaknesses were. James was not Sirius. James was not a Slytherin.

And now, Sirius needed to make a choice. He made a promise to Remus, to Lily, to protect Harry. And, for making that promise, he was going to betray his best friend. Protecting Harry meant that Harry needed to leave the Gryffindor Kingdom. Sirius had to figure out how, before the Queen finds out where her grandson is.

Sirius turned to head toward the door. James widened his eyes.

"Where are you going?"

Sirius stop, "Leaving, I have to head out to the Slytherin Kingdom in a couple of days and I still have business to do here."

James froze, "Is that it? You are not going to say a word."

Sirius turned slightly to face his friend, "Open your eyes, Prongs. Don't just look at the outer surface, but dig deeper to uncover the truth."

And with that said, Sirius slammed the door, and shutting the door between him and James.

"Remus, we need to get out of here."

Lily was pacing around the cell. She was worried, frighten, scared, and furious. She looked at the window, the moonlight coming through, and she wondered if Harry was safe. Was he still with the centaurs, or was he in the castle at the very moment?

Remus placed his hand on Lily's shoulder. "Don't worry. He's safe."

Lily shrugged his hand off, and turned toward him. "How do you know? How do you know?"

Remus embraced Lily, and whispered, "Have hope, sister, have hope."

"Well, isn't this a cozy, little moment."

Remus and Lily both stiffened. There standing in their cell was Queen Victoria. The same Queen who had threatened Remus and Lily eleven years ago. The same Queen who will now kill them because they had returned.

"Where is the brat?"

Lily narrowed her eyes at Victoria, "Who needs to know?"

Victoria frowned, "Now, mudblood, I wouldn't want to separate a son from his mother."

Remus snorted. Victoria glared at him. How dare the monster scoff at her as if she was some sort of commoner!

"I wasn't speaking with you, Lycan!"

Remus growled while Lily placed her hand on his arm. She, then, stood protectively in front of the werewolf. Victoria smiled.

"I see that you still care for your…friend."

Lily glared, "Go to hell."

Victoria stood up straight, directing her wand at Lily. Lily, though, did not back down. Before Victoria attacked, the three heard footsteps coming their way, and the Queen, quickly, hid her wand. The cell door open widely and there stood Prince James. Victoria grimaced but then smiled greatly at her son.

"James! I was just visiting your old friends."

Remus and Lily both rolled their eyes, but James did not see. He rarely did when it came to his mother. He loved his mother and he did believe that she could do no wrong. Then James' eyes flickered to Lily, and both the Queen and Remus could see, that he had no eyes for anyone but her. And the Queen and Remus knew that it would never happen, that their love could never be.

James, then, turned to his mother and smiled gently. "Mother, I would like to speak to them in private."

The Queen frowned slightly but nodded, "Of course, son, I will speak to you later."

James nodded and did not speak until his mother left the cell. They all heard the footsteps descend quietly until they knew that she had left. James smiled sadly, keeping his eyes only on Lily.

Sirius raced to his room, after having a chat with Kingsley. He could not go and see Remus or Lily because Victoria was down there. He needed to stay away from that situation for now. James was probably down there, ready to whisk away Lily and Harry, and ride out to the sunset.

Too bad that Sirius was going to have to stop that dream.

Sirius rushed to his desk, writing a letter to a man that Sirius had faith would come and rescue Lily. Sirius can take care of Remus, but this man would be able to help Lily because this man truly cared deeply about the red-head maiden.

This man had to save Lily. This man had to save Harry.