AN: Hello! Thanks so much for the lovely reviews! (and the help with Ron's eye colour!!) bit disapointed though, no one picked up on the little insinuation last chap! hehe, it'll be a lovely surprise then. Hope you like this chapter. bit longer than normal. ok, Enjoy!

"I am displeased, Lucius."

Lily blinked. Her head felt strangely heavy as she raised it off of the cold, stone floor. She blinked again and tried to see through the darkness as her eyes adjusted to the nearly non-existent light. What had happened?

"My Lord, please forgive me."

"I do not forgive, Lucius. Do you think my time is invaluable? Do you believe that I enjoyed spending an entire week arranging circumstances where the four teenagers would be together, out of the Order's protection, only to have two of them slip through my fingers?"

"My Lord, Potter and the girl, we brought-"

"Silence."

The voices grew fainter until Lily could no longer hear them. So. Remus and Sirius had got away. But what about everyone else? There had been so many muggles at that wedding. Had they all survived?

She sat up, and felt thick chains pull at her wrists. Across the dark cell, she could just make out a dark form, slumped on the floor.

"James," she whispered, trying to free her arms so she could go over to him. "Please don't be dead."

"Lily?"

Lily spun around, scrambling back, so her back was pressed against the damp wall. "Who's there?" She recognized that voice.

"Lumos."

Wincing at the sudden light, she peered up into the shadowy face of Severus Snape, standing over her, his face masked with shock.

"What are you doing here?"

"Severus?" she whispered. "What are you doing here?"

He crouched down in front of her, his face dark with worry and fear. "It's you. It's you he wanted."

"Please, Severus, you didn't. Please say you didn't join them."

"I didn't know about this, I swear." He reached out and touched a cut on her eyebrow, but she jerked her head away from him.

"You're a Deatheater? You're actually a Deatheater?"

He looked away from her, his eyes glinting with tears. "Why are you here, Lily? What did you do?"

"What did I do?" she asked incredulously. "I didn't take the easy way out. I chose what was right, and if I have to die to -"

"No," Snape said, his voice stronger now.

"Sev," she said quietly, and his eyes found hers in the half light. He seemed to want to reach out and touch her, but restrained himself. "We used to be best friends," she murmured. "Why have you -"

"It wasn't enough for me, Lily," he said with a choked voice. "You were all I had."

Her chains clinking against the grimy floor, Lily reached out and touched his cheek gently. He closed his eyes, and a look of pain came over his face. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry I couldn't save you from this. But I wish I could, Severus. I really wish I could." They held each other's gaze for a moment longer before Lily dropped her hand and looked away, over into the corner where James lay unconscious on the floor. "Please, is he alright?"

Snape followed her gaze until he also saw the dark shape on the far side of the cell. Slowly, he rose to his feet and crossed over to the body, nudging it gently with his shoe. "He's still breathing."

"Severus, listen to me," Lily said, her voice now frantic. "If you really love me, you'll do this." Snape's face drained of colour, but he did not speak. "I'll stay here until he kills me, I'll stay here with you, but please…please get James out."

"Lily," Snape said, his voice now nothing more than a weak whisper. "How could you choose him? Potter? The arrogant bully who hexed anyone that didn't fit into his perfect little world?"

"Please, Sev. If you actually love me, you'll do this."

"Lily, I can't…you don't understand…The Dark Lord…He'll kill me." Snape looked hard at the girl kneeling before him, tears streaming down her face. "I'll get you out, I'll speak for you. He'll listen, I know he will."

"No," Lily sobbed. "Save him."

Snape crouched down in front of her again, and wiped the tears trickling from her eyes. "Say my name, again," he whispered. "Please."

"Severus," she murmured, her eyes flitting between his. "If our friendship meant anything to you, you'll do this for me."

Getting to his feet, Snape crossed to the door. "Your wands?" he asked. Lily shook her head. "I'll find them," he said, then pointed his wand at her shackles and they broke, releasing her hands. Rushing across the room, she knelt and pulled James' head into her lap. He groaned deeply and a bubble of blood burst at the corner of his mouth.

"Don't do this to me, James," she whispered, cradling his head and kissing his forehead. "Please be alright."

---

"We're looking for them, Sirius, there's nothing else I can do." Dumbledore's voice was severe, but not unkind. "If you have any idea where they -"

"No, of course I don't," Sirius retorted, a little more rudely than intended. "I just don't understand, Professor. How did they know we were all there? The Deatheaters came after Remus and me as well, they weren't just after James and Lily."

"I don't know," Dumbledore said slowly, pacing his study.

"Voldemort won't let them escape again, not a third time, Dumbledore," Remus said, his voice pleading. "We have to find them."

Dumbledore did not reply, merely bowed his head. "They are the most talented witch and wizard Hogwarts has seen in many years. They've escaped him before - don't give up hope."

Sirius shook his head bitterly. "Empty words," he muttered before stalking to the door and wrenching it open. He disappeared out of sight down the spiral staircase.

"I better go after him," Remus said, but did not move to leave. With hesitation in his voice, as if he wasn't sure he really wanted to know the answer, he asked, "Do you think they'll be alright, Professor?"

"They have escaped him before. And Voldemort may attempt to use them to bargain. At any rate, he will not be quick to kill them."

Remus nodded and left the study, following Sirius' echoing footsteps. They left the castle, and school grounds in a tense silence, and disapparated outside of the gates, reappearing at the door of Sirius' flat.

"Sirius?"

The tall boy ignored him as they both entered the apartment.

"Sirius?"

"It's our fault!" Sirius cried. "We must have somehow led the Deatheaters there."

"Don't be stupid," Remus said quietly. "They can't have a trace on us. The Deatheaters knew where Lily and James were all along, they were just waiting for us to arrive too."

"But how did they know we would go?" Sirius cried pulling a glass out of one of the kitchen cupboards and slamming it down on the counter. It shattered, and he cried out, grabbing his now bloody wrist with his free hand. "Fuck," he muttered, wincing at the bloody gash extending down his palm and across his wrist.

"Come here," Remus murmured, his voice tired. He took Sirius' hand and pointed his wand at it, muttering a few incantations and watching as the wound knitted itself closed.

"He's going to kill them, Remus," Sirius said, looking up at his friend through thick brown hair. "He'll kill them and there's nothing we can do to help."

Remus felt tears well up in his eyes as a feeling of despondency washed over him. "I know." He let go of Sirius' hand and turned around so his friend wouldn't see his tears.

"I'm going to find them," Sirius said, his voice stronger.

Remus turned back to face him. "Don't be stupid, Padfoot." His voice came out more aggressive than he had intended.

"I'm not going to sit back as they get killed. I'm not a fucking coward! If you want to cower here as Voldemort tortures them, then be my guest, but I'm going to actually do something."

Fury masked Remus' face as he glared at Sirius. "How dare you?" he spat, his voice laced with venom. "How dare you insinuate…You're not the only one who cares about James, you know!"

"You care about him?" Sirius taunted, his eyes flashing in anger. "Surely that would involve you actually having feelings -"

Sirius' words were cut off as Remus grabbed him, and slammed him against the kitchen wall. Chest heaving in anger, Remus glared at the boy in front of him. "You have no idea what I feel," he whispered, his voice thick with emotion. "How dare you say I don't feel…if you even knew…"

Their eyes met and locked, their breathing shallow as they glared at each other.

"You," Remus continued, tears shining yet again his light brown eyes. "You don't even know what love is, and yet you claim I don't feel. You fuck everything that stands still long enough, and tell me I don't feel?"

"Get off me," Sirius panted, trying to push the smaller boy off of him, but he was too strong.

"No," Remus sobbed. "No. You're James' best friend. You make that very clear, but where does that leave me, Sirius? You don't even notice me."

"Don't notice you? How can I not, when you're always putting me down?" he yelled, grabbing Remus by the shirt and throwing him off with all his strength so he flew backwards and landed sprawled on the floor . "Everything I do is wrong. I'm the hopeless case, I'm never going to be fucking good enough for you, nothing I do is EVER GOOD ENOUGH!"

Remus picked himself up and slowly stood, glaring at his friend, who, for the first time, saw the wolf within the human. With a snarl, he dove at Sirius, knocking him to the ground and pinning him down, their noses mere centimetres apart. "Maybe you are worthless," he whispered, wishing his eyes would clear of tears. "Maybe you are nothing more than a worthless piece of shit." His grip on Sirius' shirt tightened and he leaned in closer so his nose pressed into Sirius' temple, his mouth touching his ear as he hissed, "But even that is a thousand times superior to what I am. I'm nothing more than a fucking animal that should be put down."

Freeing one of his arms, Sirius reached up and grabbed Remus' face, digging his fingers painfully into the back of his friend's neck and forcing Remus to look at him, their foreheads pressed together, allowing Sirius to feel the hot tears leaking from the fair-haired boy's eyes and splashing on his face. "Don't ever say that again," he whispered. "Don't even think it. You don't even know…you can't begin to imagine…" and then their lips were pressed together in desperation, their mingled tears trickling down Sirius' face, both moving with hunger as fingers dug painfully into flesh and heat surged through them.

---

"Come with us," Lily said, standing at the open door of their temporary cell, supporting James' weight. "We can hide you."

Severus shook his head. "Go with you to what? There's nothing for me in your world."

"At least you'd be on the good side."

"The good side?" Snape repeated. "You don't understand, do you? The only thing I've experienced in your world is loneliness, cruelty and neglect. Nobody here winces when they look at me, or sneers when I speak. This is the only place I have ever fit in. What does that say about 'your side'? No, Lily. Without you, that world has nothing for me."

Lily hoisted James' arm further around her neck, and reached out to touch Snape's shoulder in gratitude. Smiling sadly at him, she replied, "I wish you could see what you're doing, Sev. It's the same world, and you're letting a childhood hatred destroy it."

"Leave, before someone sees you."

"What about you? Will you be in trouble?" Lily looked genuinely concerned, and Snape felt his heart ache. Suddenly, he realised this would be the last time he ever saw her.

"He won't kill me. I'll make it look like you escaped by yourselves."

Lily nodded and took a step backwards. "Take care of yourself." She set off down the passageway, half-carrying the barely conscious James. "Remember, it's never to late to do the right thing."

She heard him mutter, "Stupefy" behind her, and heard his body fall to the floor as she proceeded as fast as she could down the dark passageway, to where she knew a doorway to the outside lay ahead. Tears slowly filled her eyes as she realised the childhood friendship, which she considered to have ended years ago, was now well and truly over. They'd taken different paths, but who was she to say her path had been the right one? She, herself, hadn't killed anyone, but the Order had killed many. And who was she to admonish his choice when she had never experienced what he had at the hand of the Marauders – now the central figures of the Order of the Phoenix.

A doorway lay ahead, and with a quick look around the deserted passageway, Lily pushed it open. An alarm sounded far off, but she was already outside, the cold night air biting into her face, and, with a crack, she disapparated, pulling James with her.

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