Chapter Thirty-Eight
Potter House, Godric's Hollow, England, 28 December, 1991
She had been holding Harry in her arms, whirling him around as he shrieked in delight, her wand lying on the couch in the sitting room. James was in the yard with Henry, shooting sparks out the end of his wand to entertain his young son.
And there was a knock at the door.
Lily set Harry down carefully and grabbed her wand and stealthily made her way to the door. She flung it open to find Peter Pettigrew, an old friend of James'.
"Oh, Peter, you startled me," she breathed, lowering her wand and smiling at him.
"James, co-"
Peter stepped aside, revealing a tall, cloaked figure behind him. All she could see of the stranger were glowing red eyes…
A flick of the stranger's wrist, a whispered incantation, and she was trapped.
She was flailing in he own mind, fighting against whatever he'd done to her. She'd never suspected… but there was no time for that now. She was trapped in her own mind, and she desperately kicked and punched and tore at the net of blackness ensnaring her. Its weight pressed down upon her, trying to suffocate her.
The figure was behind Lily, pushing her along, and Peter laughed wickedly, a high, keening noise she'd never heard from him before.
She was aware of moving to where James and her children had been, but they were no longer there.
She heard a noise from upstairs.
She felt herself glide up the stairs, and she struggled all the harder, causing strains in the net, the oppressive ropes fraying slightly.
'Please, Peter! Please not my family!' she begged, the words never leaving her mind. 'Please, Peter! Don't!'
A high, cruel laugh behind her, long fingers grabbing her hair and twisting it.
"Thank you, Mrs. Potter," he purred. "Your cooperation has made this all the easier."
She struggled, twisted, screamed in her mind but nothing happened.
She walked into the nursery, where James had just put both of the boys into Henry's cot. Turning to her, he became confused.
"Lily, what is going o-"
"Crucio!"
He fell to the floor, twitching but silent.
It hadn't worked, not fully….
"You have to mean it, Mrs. Potter. Perhaps, you should simply put him out of his misery…" the cold voice mused.
'NO!'
She felt her wand rise.
'Fight! FIGHT!' she screamed in her mind, tearing some of the net away.
She felt her lips move.
'No, Lily! Fight!'
"Avada Kedavra."
He lay still.
'JAMES! I DIDN'T MEAN IT! Please, I didn't mean it!'
The cruel laughter sounded, echoing off the walls. Her children wailed.
"Ah, and here we are, the main attraction," he purred, dragging her with him to the side of the cot and looking down into two sets of eyes, hazel and green. "Look here. Two brats for the price of one…"
"Lily! Lily, wake up!"
Someone was shaking her violently.
She opened her eyes, sobbing, and strong arms wrapped around her, pulling her close. The body smelled of cloves.
James.
"It was awful," she choked. Her throat felt raw.
"You were screaming," he panted. He'd been holding her down, evidently, because he collapsed next to her, sweating and breathing heavily. "Was it the same one?"
She nodded and took in her surroundings. It was bright outside, if the light streaming in through the window was any indication. She was in her bedroom in Godric's Hollow. James was here. Henry was in the next room. She was safe.
Her nightmare had caused some damage, though. The bed was smoking slightly, the wall behind the bed black and charred. James had angry red burns running up his arms, covering his chest and face. His warm hazel eyes showed no fear of her though, only love and concern.
"You didn't kill me," he whispered reassuringly. "You didn't mean it. It didn't work."
She buried her face in his chest and breathed him in deeply. "I'm so sor-"
He tightened his grip on her and whispered, "There is nothing to be sorry for." He tilted her chin up and kissed her firmly, "I forgave you anything you could ever do when I asked you to marry me." He winced as she squeezed his hand. "About these burns, though…"
She hastily grabbed her wand from the bedside table and healed the burns.
"You'll have to stop doing that," he chuckled wryly. "It's much too hot for me to handle."
She rolled her eyes at him and pulled on her bathrobe, hiding her smile.
"MUM! DAD!"
Henry burst into the room face glowing with excitement. Seeing his parents' disheveled appearances and bedding, he wrinkled his nose.
"What, Henry?" Lily asked, plastering a fake smile on her face. Luckily, the room was just dim enough that her son didn't notice.
"Ron invited me to his house for today! Can I go? Please?!" he begged, jumping onto their bed and making a puppy face at them.
Lily and James exchanged glances. The Weasley's were good people and old friends, and both Ron and Ginny had been very polite and well-behaved at Christmas.
"Sure, you can go," James smiled, ruffling their son's hair.
Henry laughed and batted his father's hands away. He hugged both his parents, smiled, and ran off to find hi owl, whooping as he thundered down the stairs.
"How do they move so quickly?" James groaned, falling back into the bed.
Lily laughed and rolled him onto the floor, where he landed with a dull thump. "You used to be quicker, James."
"Yes, but I was on a broom," he retorted, not bothering to get off the floor, simply dragging the comforter off the bed and falling asleep.
She laughed and headed down the stairs to get her morning coffee. She marveled at how after all they'd both been through, he never failed to cheer her with a few simple words.
