James felt a sick feeling rising in his chest as his eyes skimmed over the room. Where was Lily? And Harry! He couldn't see either of them. But at last he spotted a ghostly white hand protruding from the rubble. He would recognise that hand anywhere. Lily! James felt a surge of relief. In all his haste he had been careless in his search, like an elderly person looking for their glasses only to find that they are wearing them. But his relief didn't last long. He might have found her, but was she still alive? Wading his way through the debris, he felt his foot slip over the edge and in to nothingness. He flung his arms out to the side and latched on to what might have previously been the coffee table. Grunting, James pulled himself out of the hole through which he had fallen and with his eyes locked on his wife's hand, he began to force his way through until he reached Lily's side. He scrabbled, his hands as numb as ungloved hands on a snow day, at the rubble covering his wife until he had freed her chest and face.
He rested his hand against the side of her neck and could not feel a pulse for several heart stopping seconds. "LILY!" He bellowed. I'm panicking, he thought. Forcing himself to calm down, he touched her neck once more and finally felt a tiny flutter. James shook her, very gently and slowly she opened her eyelids, blinking as though staring into a very bright light. "James...Harry...is he…?" it sounded as though every word was causing her unimaginable pain.
James seized his wand which he had just spotted under Lily's side and leapt to his feat. "Harry!" he called, knowing that even if Harry were alive he could not yet speak.
He heard a hearty chuckle from behind him and James spun wildly, searching for the son he was sure had just laughed. Did he dare to get his hopes up? Was his son still alive? Could his entire family have escaped the wrath of Lord Voldemort...unscathed?
And there Harry was, sitting cross legged in his crib like a prince on a throne. Catching sight of his Father, his lips curled into a wide, gummy smile as he clapped his hands as though this were all an elaborate game, invented purely for his entertainment.
"He's okay, Lily!" James called, unable to keep the excitement out of his voice. And he was, aside from a small, jagged cut above his right eye. James had to think quickly. What could he do? For all they knew, they could still be in terrible danger. Suddenly very aware of the fact that Voldemort might still be lurking in some dark corner, he picked Harry up and slung him over his hip. One hand securing his son and the other holding his wand, he sprinted over to Lily.
"Lily...we have to get out of here...it's not safe. We don't know if he's still here, and lord knows how long the roof will hold up."
He gazed up at the sky, which he could now see through a gaping hole in the ceiling and shivered as a cold draft sent autumn leaves swirling into the living room.
Lily pulled herself up into a sitting position and took James's hand into hers.
"Dumbledore. We have to get Dumbledore. He'll know what to do."
Still holding their gaze, James stood up. He held out his hand for his wife and helped her up. Lily put her arm around his shoulders and James noticed that she was bleeding from the side of her head. He lead the way to the top of the stairs but came to an abrupt stop as he noticed that they were not there. It had completely collapsed while they were in the living room. There was only about a three meter gap between the floor they were standing on and the floor below them.
"We'll have to jump, Lily." he said apologetically.
He set her down so that her legs were dangling over the edge and then did the same, still holding Harry.
"On the count of three…"
They slid off and landed with a not so gentle thud, Lily stumbling on the remains of the staircase. Quickly, they made their way out of the house. As the door closed behind them, James spotted a tall, thin figure hurrying down the street.
"Dumbledore!" he cried.
"Good evening." Dumbledore replied gravely. "First of all, I am pleased to find you all alive. What happened tonight…well, none of us could have known that Peter would betray the secret, but we are now forced to come to terms with the situation and find a way to deal with it."
"But-" James opened his mouth to disagree, Pettigrew was one of his good friends and he would not believe that he would do such a thing.
Dumbledore held up his hand to silence James. "Now, I trust that both of you can apparate?"
He paused only long enough for James and Lily to nod in agreement before continuing. "A member of the order who I shall not name at the present moment has very kindly offered to have you stay with them. We've cast every kind of protection spell we can muster between us over the house and you have my word that it is completely safe. Now, I would like you both to read this," he handed them a folded piece of parchment with an address scrawled across the page in thin, slanting writing "and memorise."
Dumbledore gave them a few moments to do so, tapping his foot on the pavement. "Ready?" he asked with a nod towards the note. Dumbledore pocketed the parchment and without another word between them, the four of them (James with Harry still on his hip) walked purposefully towards a point a few feet ahead of them before spinning on their heels and disappearing.