A/N: Wow, I have some great fans out there! Thanks to the following reviewers:

mervoparkite: I'm glad that you are looking forward to the memories. It was fun writing them and you will see them in this chappy. It is so interesting reading predictions and knowing whether they are spot on or totally off. I think I have an inkling of what J.K was feeling as she was writing the stories. You will see how accurate your predictions were.

the-dreamer4: I always imagined Dudley becoming more mature when Harry was in his 5th or 6th year, rather than right before the 7th. I had SO much fun writing those threats. I always wondered why no one has ever written about Snape using them as leeway to get one up on Dumbly. I can just imagine our lovely headmaster's face. Thanks for your awesome review

lionesseyes13: Wow, I can definitely tell you are an AP student. I was so excited to put up my story that I've hardly gone back through to make sure everything was grammatically correct. Thanks for reminding me to do that! I'm glad you are enjoying my story so far.

Adajsemaj and DebsTheSlytherinSnapefan: I'm glad you like that Dudley and Harry became friends. Harry could always use an ally with his relatives. More about Petunia will be revealed.

Someone aka Me: thanks!

Anyway: On with the story!

Previously, with our headmaster and potions professor:

Snape nodded curtly and Dumbledore poured the memory into the pensieve. "Well then," Dumbledore said, grasping his colleague's hand. "Let us take a deep plunge into your past." And with that, they dove in to the younger man's forgotten memories.

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Chapter Four: In which memories are regained

Snape and Dumbledore were standing outside on Hogwarts grounds. They were in a secluded section of trees next to the lake. Snape recognized it immediately. It was the place he always went to when he wanted to get away from everyone, though he couldn't remember when he had stumbled upon it. It was clearly fall, for the trees were beginning to loose their leaves, and there was a certain bite to the air. Suddenly, two people came into view.

"Come on, quickly Severus!" A 17-year-old Lily Evans came into view dragging a much younger version of the potions professor. Snape was shocked to see himself with her, and his younger self was smiling. "Now Severus, you tell me what has been bothering you! You have been distant since school started over a month ago. Out with it now!"

Young Snape lost his grin and tugged his arm out of her grasp. "I- I can't tell you!"

"Yes you can, and you must! You can't keep it bottled up inside. Now please, tell me." Lily paused. "Is it about your mother?"

"NO!" was the emphatic reply. "No, it's… fine. I'll tell you. But you cannot tell anyone, do you understand? I would get kicked out of school if anyone found out."

"Oh, Severus, you are always being so dramatic about –" she stopped at the sight of his left forearm. "Oh, Sev, what have you done?" she started backing away a look of horror on her face.

"Lily, I can explain…" he started walking towards her. She stopped walking, a suspicious look on her face. He took this as an invitation to continue. "I didn't want it." He said hurriedly. She did not say anything so he continued.

"It happened at the beginning of the summer. My father tricked me into going to a death eater's meeting. He's always been hinting that he wants me to follow the Dark Lord. I told him that I would think about it, but not make any decisions until my seventh year. I told him that to buy myself some time. Although my father himself is not a death eater, he has always been proud because of our family's pureblood status. My father thought it would the greatest honor to have his only son serve the man who was going to kick all the unworthy mudbloods out of the magical world. My mother, on the other hand, was not as fond of the idea. But what was she to do? My father would hurt her if he knew that she disagreed with him.

One night, about a week after last term ended, my father called me into his office. He handed me a book that he claimed he wanted me to read. I stood there holding it for about two minutes while he talked to me, before I felt it pull me away. It was a portkey. I found myself transported to a death eater's meeting. The Dark Lord was standing directly in front of me. I don't remember much, only that I felt a searing pain in my left arm and when I looked down…his mark was branded into me. I felt so disgusting and dirty.

After the meeting I apparated home. I…I threw up everything in my stomach. It happened so fast and now I'm in a situation that I can never back out of. I don't know what to do Lily!" he looked wildly at the redheaded girl who suddenly enveloped him in a hug.

"Oh, Sev," she murmured quietly into his ear. "We can fix this. It won't be easy but we will. You have to go to Dumbledore. He is the only one who can help you. I'm powerless."

Young Snape shoved her away. "You don't understand Lily! Do you know what the Dark Lord does to traitors and deserters? He kills them as slowly and painfully as possible. Then right before they die, he finds everyone they care about and kills them in front of the traitor! I can't let that happen to my mother… to you! If he were ever to find out about our relationship, he would stop at nothing to find you! I won't let that happen!"

The elder Snape's eyes widened in shock. Him and Lily Evans? But…but she was infatuated with James Potter! No, that's not right, he thought the memory slowly returning, she was in love with you and pretended to date James so your relationship could be kept secret.

"Severus Snape!" Lily yelled. "Voldemort will NOT be able to eliminate me that easily. I should hope I would be able to put up a decent fight. And besides, it would be such a relief to have 'us' out in the open. This is getting harder on James and I to keep this up! Both of us have relationships we are trying to hide!"

"You know what would happen if my parents found out about you. They would disown me, send people after you and I…your safety is too important."

"I don't care about that!" She yelled. "All I want is to be with you. Whatever happens because of that, then so be it." She paused. "It will be easier to keep us safe while we are at school, with Dumbledore here. Sev, you need to talk to him. I'll come with you. He'll believe you, please trust me on this."

"All right," Young Snape muttered. "Let us go see Dumbledore."

The two disappeared from view just as the elder Snape felt himself being pulled out of the memory.

Dumbledore looked at him from across his desk, a knowing look in his eye. "Well, Severus, is that part of your memory coming back to you?"

The potions master stared at him. "I- I can't believe it. Me with… Lily? I mean, of course I remember now, but then how does this fit in with my having a son? She still married James Potter, any newspaper can tell me that."

So he hasn't figured that part out yet, Dumbledore thought. "Then let us continue. I will let you view the majority of your memories on your own. Many of these are ones of yourself and Lily from years to come, but I have picked out four more to show you that I believe are vital to your knowledge. These are the land marks of those five years." He poured four bottles of liquid memories into the pensieve and once again, grabbed the professor's hand. "Once more into the pensieve." They dived in.

Snape and Dumbledore found themselves in the same clearing, but this time, it was spring. The trees were in full bloom, and the air was calm and sweet. The two colleagues heard three people coming into the clearing.

Snape was not surprised to see his younger self and Lily come laughing into view. The third person was not expected. It was James Potter. Suddenly Lily smacked James' arm.

"James, stop making fun of me! You're just jealous that I finally beat you on a Transfiguration exam! Leave me and my red hair out of your comic relief!"

"Really James," young Snape said, a small smile gracing his face. "What would Cissy think if she heard what a terrible person you are. She would dump you within seconds."

"Speaking of her, where is she? I haven't seen her all day." Lily glanced around. "We did say that we would meet after lunch didn't we? I wonder where she could be."

"I don't think she had a very good Easter holiday." Young Snape said quietly. "I tried to speak with her last night, but she brushed right past me. I think something might have happened."

"Well I hope that she's all right." James said. "I know she was worried about her parent's reaction towards me. She said that she was going to tell them about us during break."

All five turned around at the sound of someone running towards the clearing. A young woman with white blonde hair that fell to her waist came around the corner. The elder Snape gasped out loud "Narcissa?" he was completely unprepared for what happened next.

"James!" she cried, throwing herself into his arms. He held her, kissing the top of her head, and whispered soothing words to her, unsure of what was wrong. After a few minutes she pulled away.

"What's wrong, Cissy?" James asked her, a worried look in his eye.

"I –" she stopped trying to put her words together. "I'm betrothed." She whispered finally. James stared at her in disbelief. Lily and Snape looked at each other with shocked looks on their faces before silently leaving their two friends alone.

"Your – your betrothed? To who?" he asked.

"Lucius Malfoy." She said brokenly.

"No," James whispered fiercely. The elder Snape was shocked to see tears forming in his eyes. "I can't – I won't let you marry that… that death eater!"

"I don't have a choice, James!"

"Why not?" he paused, unsure if he should go on. The tears had broken free and were streaming down his face. "Run away with me, Cissy. Come with me and we'll go and forge a new life someplace where they don't care about blood purity, and don't have to worry about a psychopathic dark lord trying to take over."

"I want to James, I desperately want to," she sobbed. "But it's magically binding. When I refused to agree to the marriage, they forced me to swear an unbreakable vow. If I don't go through with it, I'll die..." James held onto her fiercely. "And Lucius –" she stopped. Taking a deep breath, she said. "Lucius will find us. He will kill you, or worse. Turn you over to him. And if I don't produce an heir within five years, I loose the ability to have children ever again. I love you James, but I can't be with you."

"Cissy –" he whispered.

"Please, don't make this harder than it has to be. I have to do this. I can't abandon Andromeda." She pulled off the necklace she was wearing and put it into James' hand. Tears were running down her cheeks at an alarming rate. "I'm so sorry James. I can't ever see you again. I hope someday that you can find someone who can love you half as much as I do. She will be such a lucky woman. Good-bye."

The young woman turned and ran from the clearing. James looked down into his hand and let out a strangled sob. The elder Snape saw that on the chain was a diamond ring.

"He had proposed to her two weeks before," he said out loud to Dumbledore. "I remember now. They were so happy. She was going home to break the new to her parents when they told her that they had arranged a marriage for her. She was distraught. She tried to kill herself, but I found her and stopped her in time. How is this important for me to see?"

"It shows that you did not hate James Potter as you have always thought." Dumbledore answered quietly. "You were actually quite close. You were not the only one to lose someone you loved. He had to endure watching Narcissa marry a monster and bear a son who would be doomed to follow in his father's footsteps. She did not have Lily's strength, and much more to lose besides her life."

The memory faded into darkness and another took its place. They found themselves in a small chapel. Snape and James were dressed up and looked older, but a younger Dumbledore was also with them. James was talking to Snape.

"Will you calm down? You are acting so jittery, it's unnerving. You're always calm and collected. It's your wedding days for goodness sakes!"

Young Snape threw his you-better-shut-up-before-I-hex-you glare (#64) at James. "You would be nervous too if it as your wedding day! What if she decides this is a mistake? What if she doesn't show up? I don't know what I would do. I don't deserve her. She is too beautiful, and kind, and compassionate, and –"

"Severus," James said quietly, but firmly. "Lily loves you more than life itself. She would do anything for you. She is going to enter this room, take your hand, and become your wife. Try not to mess it up." A grin formed on his face. "After all, she may never forgive you if you ruin her wedding day. Do you know how long they dream about this day? It's absolutely ridiculous!"

"Ah, but James," Younger Dumbledore spoke for the first time. "This is a day that usually only comes once in a woman's life. For some, it is the day where they are wearing the most beautiful and expensive dress they will ever wear, and it is all about her. But Lily has a sensible head on her shoulders. I'm am quite sure that she will not maim you too much if you mess up."

"Albus, this is not doing anything for me! Stop making me more nervous than I already am or I swear that I'll –" Young Snape paused, trying to come up with a threat that would instill fear into his former headmaster.

"What will you do Severus? I am not sure that there is anything you can threaten me with that will strike fear into my heart." Dumbledore chuckled and popped a lemon drop into his mouth for good measure.

"I'll convince the Dark Lord to blow up every single lemon drop producing factory in Europe." Young Snape said menacingly.

The elder Snape nodded in understanding. "So that is how I came up with that threat Albus. I could not, for the life of me, recall where it came from. I thought it just popped into my head one day. But I see that it works just as well now as it did when I first thought of it." He said this last bit while looking at the younger Dumbledore's face, watching as it turned paler.

"Yes well," Dumbledore responded, chuckling slightly. "You did manage to find my one weakness, Severus. I have always admired you for that discovery. No one would think that a muggle candy would hold any sway over me. My younger self just realized how creative and frightening you can be when you want to, Severus."

Both turned as the door to a side room of the chapel opened and Lily emerged. She was glowing. She had opted for a muggle wedding dress, rather than the white dress robes. Dumbledore's younger self was ministering the marriage. Snape watched as he married the most beautiful woman alive and his younger self seal the bond with a fervent kiss. Everyone in the room, including the invisible watchers, was smiling during the entire ceremony.

All too soon, the memory shifted once more. This scene found Lily and Severus sitting across from Dumbledore, the young woman looking distraught.

The elder Dumbledore whispered into Snape's ear, "November 1st, 1979"

"What has brought you here today?" pensieve-Dumbledore inquired, looking at the secret husband and wife.

"Albus," Severus said quietly. "The Dark Lord is onto me, I believe. Lucius has been following me, catching a glimpse of Lily at one point. He has taken his suspicions to the Dark Lord. He is jealous of my good standings with our 'master' and is trying to catch me in a… compromising situation. Sooner or later, my marriage will come out. Something must be done, and quickly."

"And what do you think of all of this, my dear girl?" Dumbledore asked Lily.

"He's right." She said, her eyes bright with tears. "I don't know what to do though. It was just much easier when we were in school. There were so many students to hide what we were doing, and James and Narcissa were there. We were able to cover for each other. But now, Narcissa is married to Lucius Malfoy with a child on the way, and James is so busy at the Ministry so missions with the other Aurors. I haven't seen either of them for weeks!" She could not fight the tears and longer and it was difficult to decipher her speech.

"And then, there is the Dark Lord," Severus continued when it became clear that his wife could not say another coherent word. "He and the death eaters are attacking here and there. Many times I have no idea where they are going next until it is too late. Until he falls, it is too risky for us to be together. The Fideleus is no option, because I have to be at the Dark Lord's side at a moments notice and there is no one who has the ability to be by Lily's side all day to make sure that she is safe. I think our only option, is to go our separate ways until the Dark Lord is defeated. Once he is gone, we can finally live in peace."

Dumbledore looked pensive. "And what of your memories of Lily? The Dark Lord might stumble upon them by accident…"

"I don't know what to do Albus. If that were to happen, our sacrifice to separate would be all for naught. But how to you propose we protect our minds?"

"Lily's memories can stay safe with her. If something were to happen, it is quite unlikely that the Dark Lord would search her mind for Severus Snape. Your memories, on the other hand… I think we only have one option. I will be honest with you, you will not like it."

Dumbledore paused, unsure of how to present his idea as gently as possible. Severus looked at his expectantly.

"I believe that our only choice is to… remove any happy memory of Lily from your mind."

Severus bit back a cry of disbelief as Lily squeaked out something intelligible. Forget every moment that reminds him of what he was fighting for? Could he truly give all of that up? Taking one look at his beautiful wife, he made the decision that would change his life forever. "I'll do it, Albus. But, how are we to keep these memories intact? Obliviation would remove them forever unless we can protect them somehow."

Dumbledore seemed to be a step ahead of him. He walked over to his cabinet and removed his pensieve. "Do you know what this is?" he asked, setting it down on his desk.

Lily gasped in recognition. "Is that a pensieve? I've never seen one before."

"Indeed it is. We will leave a copy of the memories in here, and then remove all trace of them from your mind with the Obliviation. Once it is safe, I will simply siphon the memories out of the pensieve and return them to you. Or, you can simply enter the pensieve and watch them, and they will be returned through that manner. Are you ready?"

Severus looked at Lily before pulling her into a tight embrace. "I love you so much, my dear tempest." He said his special name for her softly, kissing her hair. "Although I will have no memory of my love for you, it will remain there. It will simply be hidden. When all this is over, we can truly begin our life together. I want us to grow old together, and raise our little ones. I want us to be happy together."

"And we will be," Lily whispered. "I will wait for you, Severus. No matter what happens, I will wait for you. I love you. Until we meet again."

"Until we meet again, in peace." He confirmed. He kissed her fiercely, with a sinking feeling that this would the last time he would do this for a very long time. He looked into her eyes, those gorgeous emerald eyes for the last time before turning away.

"My dear," Dumbledore said sadly. "You must leave now."

She nodded. With one final kiss, she mouthed 'I love you.' Then she turned and disappeared through the door.

"Are you ready, Severus?"

Severus nodded. "How do I put my memories into the pensieve?"

"Take out your wand and place at your temple." Severus did this. "Concentrate hard on Lily. Think of all the times that you have spent with her. Think of her face, her hair, and her eyes. Now slowly pull your wand away." Severus pulled, and saw to his surprise, that a thick, silvery liquid thread seemed to be pulled straight from his mind. "Now, place the thread into the pensieve." As Severus did this, he flashes of the memories swirl in front of his eyes before dissolving into silver liquid.

"Now, if you would please look at me, and allow me access into your mind so I do not erase anything unnecessarily. Dumbledore pulled every happy memory of Lily to the front of Severus' mind, concentrated and said clearly: "Obliviate!"

Severus' eyes glazed over for a few seconds, and the memory faded away once more.

The elder Dumbledore looked over at Snape who was standing there with tears in his eyes. "I remember," he whispered. "My dearest tempest. My love…Albus, please let us leave these terrible memories. I don't want to see any more of them right now."

"There is one more you must see, my dear boy. But this time, it is mine. You must know the truth about your son." They reappeared back in Dumbledore's office, where the headmaster was seated behind his desk, stroking Fawkes' feathers. "This memory takes place two weeks after you and Lily separated."

An urgent knock on the door startled Snape and the pensieve Dumbledore. "Come in!" he called, wondering who would be visiting him so late at night. He hoped it was not a student caught out of bed.

His eyebrows shot up in surprise as Lily Evans came barreling through the door, tears running down her face. "Albus," she gasped through sobs. "I need your help!"

"My dear! Please sit down. I will get you a cup of tea. Twinkle!" he called. A small female house elf appeared. "Can you please bring up a cup of your strongest tea for this young lady? It would be very appreciated." The little elf nodded and disappeared. Ten seconds later, she reappeared, holding a tray with a teapot and two cups and saucers. She set them down on the desk and disappeared once more.

Dumbledore poured them both tea. "Now, my dear, will you please tell me what has you so troubled? I know it is difficult without Severus, but you must be strong for him. What is wrong?"

"Oh, Albus," she whispered. "Something wonderful and terrible has happened. I was feeling ill this morning, so I visited St. Mungo's to see what was wrong. The healer told me –" she swallowed a gulp of tea before plunging onwards. "She told me that I'm pregnant. I'm two weeks along." Dumbledore, for once, was lost for words. "I don't know what to do Albus! The child is Severus' but he has no recollection of our marriage and I will not have a child born without a father! Please, I need your help."

"My dear child, do not worry." Dumbledore said calmly, although inside, his mind was racing. An idea popped into his head. "Perhaps we need to call an old friend who is experienced with this sort of thing."

"What are you talking about, Albus?"

"I think we should enlist the help of your old friend, James Potter." He said carefully.

"But how could he help? We 'broke up' just after finishing Hogwarts! I don't see how he could be of use, unless –" understanding flooded her face. "You mean for me to set up a false marriage between James and I?" "Yes, my dear. I do not think that it would be too far-fetched. Because of Voldemort, you hardly see any of your old acquaintances, and James has been far too busy with the Aurors to keep in touch with anyone except for Remus, Sirius, and Peter. Even with those three, it has been a long time since they have seen each other. I think it would be the perfect ruse."

"You're right. I think it is my only option right now. Where is James at the moment?"

"He is actually in this castle. I will send Fawkes to fetch him." The phoenix disappeared in a flash of flame and reappeared in the same manner a minute later, James in tow.

"What is it Albus? The wards are all as strong as ever, I don't believe that there –" he stopped mid-sentence at the sight of Lily, who was still crying silently. "Lily! What in Merlin's name are you doing here at this time of night? Where is Severus?" at the mention of Snape, Lily let out a small wail and covered her face with her hands. Albus explained the situation to James.

James stood silently through the tale, before looking thoughtful. "Of course I'll help. Since my parents were killed, I have too many possessions and no one to share them with. I would be more than able to provide Lily with protection and a safe house for her child."

"Thank you, James!" Lily cried, throwing herself into his embrace. "I don't know how I will ever be able to repay you!" he hugged her, letting her cry until her eyes were dry.

"Think nothing of it. What are friends there for, if not to help when there is need." He gave a small smile. "Come, we have a fake marriage to certificate to create, and some stories to make up of how we got married without anyone's knowledge. It will work out in the end, I promise. You will have Severus back when this is all over." He looked up at the headmaster. "Albus, we must be off. Thank you for your help. I'll take it from here."

"Goodbye Lily, James. Good luck." He responded and they left through the door. The two memory watchers were swept upwards and landed in the headmaster's office.

"A little less than nine months later, Lily gave birth to a beautiful and healthy baby boy on July 31st, 1980. They had to hide the fact that his father was not James, so Lily found a charm to make him look like his pretend father. It had to be reapplied every five years. A bit difficult to pull off, but she gave me instructions to continue with it, should anything happen to her. Her son lives now, attends this school, and has led quite an eventful life."

Severus looked up as a realization hit him. "If Lily gave birth to my son. Then that means –" he stopped, horror seizing him.

"That is correct, Severus." Dumbledore said, the twinkle back in his eyes.

"Harry Potter is my son?" Severus yelled, before fainting dead away.