A.N.
I in no way own Harry Potter or it's related brands, this is merely fiction
James was having a bad day.
It started when he had woken up late this morning, and had to rush out the door with an irate wife on his heels and a baby's cry heard throughout the house. Were the two inconsistencies related?
Possibly.
Then, as he got to work, he realized that he had no coffee. Good thing the lounge room had a working coffee machine, right? Wrong. The machine was broken, and for the first time, his magic had failed him, and he could not fix it.
It was then that he realized that he was not going to have a good day.
It only got worse as the day progressed, with two new Death Eater cases coming in within 15 minutes of sitting down in his office. Why he had decided to accept the job of Head Auror, he would never be able to quite understand.
Was the comfy paycheck worth brain deterioration?
Probably not.
...Maybe.
Later on, he had lost track of time trying to "solve these cases." It was obvious that it was Death Eaters, but NOOOO, they HAVE to take everything in consideration and truly investigate something that is obvious.
Why these stupid rules were still in place in the middle of war would never be something he could understand. The sheer amount of times he had begged the Minister to repeal them was uncountable. Then again, he had people like Nott and Malfoy whispering in his ear. Bagnold was never a particularly brave person.
Then lunch came around, the second best part of the day. James and Lily met for lunch every Wednesday, at the Leaky Cauldron. James would give her a kiss and they would both sit down and talk about their day. Today was an amusing day for Lily due to Charlus and Harry. They had spent the day playing with Mallow, their family house elf.
As they finished their food and were getting ready to leave, James told her that he would be home late tonight. She was sad of course, but understood the workload and pressure he was under.
James apparated back to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. As he sat back down at his desk, he noticed a new paper in his bin.
The paper read:
13-5-5-20-9-14-7.
James understood immediately. It was a simple letter to the number code. It read:
MEETING.
The Order of the Phoenix had done this code thing mainly to help with non-verbal communication. It was not meant to be flashy or complicated, due to the fact that no one is going to check what paper Moody, a decorated war hero, was giving to the head of the Auror Department James Potter, a person that has already shown himself to be a skilled and smart fighter. It was mainly to keep people from knowing what it says at one glance, like a secretary or auror looking for a paper in his office and finding it.
James was not very confident in The Order however, though he kept that to himself for the most part. The ineffectiveness and "rules" that were in place only helped the Death Eaters kill them easier. James felt that the non lethal and "forgiving" mindset pushed forward by Dumbledore hinders any and all impact they may have without them.
James was tired of it. The unproductive meetings, his friends dying around him, the target they all put on their backs by helping and associating with Dumbledore, he had had enough.
So, he simply put:
23-15-18-11 (Work)
From here on out, James would avoid going to meetings and being apart the best he could. He would also try to convince others to do the same, mainly The Marauders, the Longbottoms, and Arthur, Gideon, and Fabian Weasley. He knew that Lily already agreed with him and was already distancing herself, using Harry and Charlus as an excuse of sorts, even though it was the truth.
James walked to Moody's desk and put the paper in his bin. Moody was not there, likely out in the field working on a case.
James then went and worked on cases until around 9, when Apprentice Auror Shaklebolt burst through the door, gasping for air and looking terrified. He yelled at James "Attack! Godric's Hollow! Your house!"
James was frozen for a second in disbelief, until his brain kicked it into high gear and he leapt from his chair and ran to his floo, yelling "Potters Cottage!" and was gone.
HPAD*HPAD*HPAD*
When James stepped out of the Floo, he barely noticed the carnage around him, the couches flipped, the scorches and holes in the wall. Instead, he immediately started yelling "LILY!"
From upstairs, he hears Dumbledore's voice from upstairs hollering "She's up here James!" James sprinted up the stairs, taking 3 at a time and almost breaking his nose twice on the way, and made it to the nursery. Sitting there on the rocking chair was Lily, holding both Charlus and Harry close and crying.
Lily's chest and neck was covered in blood, and her ear was torn at the top, while the twins were bare of any harm, except a small cut with a small amount of blood dripping from Charlus head.
James felt the world lift off his shoulders. She and the boys were okay! James rushed to Lilys side, crying and hugging her children, and hugged her with all his strength. Lily looked up from her trance and, with widened eyes at recognizing her husband, hugged him back.
After they had their moment, James asked, "W-What happened?" in a choked voice.
Lily responded in a whisper, "It was her."
"Who Lily, Who?" James asked in a rushed tone.
"Lady Voldemort," Lily says louder than before.
"I should've known," James whispered, rubbing his forehead in frustration and anger, anger at himself just as much as Voldemort.
"James, she was so fast, so strong… I don't know how I am still breathing," Lily whispered to James. "But… Charlus, he saved me," Lily breathed with wide eyes.
"Charlus saved me James, I can't believe how amazing it was. She beat me, completely and fully, I was defeated. I've never been more ashamed, James, the things she said… the things she bragged that her and her followers would normally do to such a "beautiful young woman…"
"It's okay Lily, you're safe, I'm here and I will never leave your side again."
"But it's over now James, it's all over." Lily said, leaning back slightly and pulling her babies closer while crying tears of happiness.
"What's over Lily? What happened?" James asked, worried his wife had gone manic.
"She's gone James, Charlus defeated her. Charlus had some sort of accidental magical outburst and was able to protect me, sending a piece of debris in the path of the killing curse she sent towards me. She turned to look at him, and with a growl, sent another in his direction. I was so scared, James, she was going to kill him. But a shield, a magical shield with a pink hue was erected before the curse, I've never seen anything like it. It didn't absorb it though James it seemed to have no effect on the spell at all, the spell passed right through. But it hit Charlus, I'm certain of it, and it seemed to be absorbed by Charlus. In the split second after, I watched Lady Voldemorts eyes widen, and Charlus shot a killing curse from his body, right at her, at a speed I've never seen before."
"W-What? Charlus k-killed Voldemort?" James asked, not believing what he was hearing.
"Defeated, James, not killed I'm afraid." Dumbledore intersected, finally making himself known in the conversation. "She was only defeated, or a body would be present, no?" he asked, gesturing towards the fallen robes with no body of any kind present. "She will return, I believe, but she is most definitely as weak as she could possibly be."
"My son… defeated Voldemort? How is that possible, Dumbledore? He's only a child." James asked in sheer confusion and full of doubt.
"We have only scratched the surface of the wonders of magic, James, and accidental magic often leads to the breakthroughs we make. It appears, at least from what I can tell, your son was able to convert the magic sent to him into his own with the "pink shield," and was able to then absorb and even reflect the magic towards the user. It is truly remarkable, and an incredible discovery."
"Our son found a way to counter any magic sent to him, James, this is something us Charms specialists have been looking for for eons, since before the time of Merlin and Morgana. This is incredible!" Lily exclaimed, unable to believe the groundbreaking discovery.
"But he's only a child Lily, and once this gets out, he will have a target on his back. He needs to be kept safe. And Pettigrew obviously betrayed us, can we trust anyone? Even you, Dumbldore, how can we believe you?" James says, rounding towards Dumbledore and pulling his wand out, realizing how vulnerable his family is right now.
Dumbledore calmly and slowly reaches the pocket in his robes, and slowly pulled his wand out as well, before pointing to the air and swearing, "I swear on my life and magic, that the only ambition I have is towards the betterment of the greater good, so mote it be."
James watches with baited breath, but realizing that Dumbledore ultimately didn't drop dead, that he's telling the truth, and slowly lowers his wand.
"It's okay James, he's safe." Lily said, rising to her feet and leaning her head on his shoulder with both babies still in her arms.
"You're right, but we're not. We need to be kept safe, Lily. What do we do? How do we keep these two safe until they can defend themselves?" James worries.
"We can't keep them together James, Harry will be in unnecessary danger if we do. Voldemort's followers will be after Charlus, not him." Lily says, her lips trembling.
"Are you saying we… give up… Our son?" James whispers, choking on his words.
Dumbledore steps forward, and says,"That would be the most safe solution, James. Keep Harry unaware of his heritage, until it's time for him to go to Hogwarts, where, after years of training, Charlus will be able to protect them both in the Gryffindor house until Harry catches up."
"Are you seriously telling me to GIVE AWAY MY SON!?" James yells, unable to believe what he's being told.
"J-James, please, just h-hear him out." Lily whispered, seemingly deep in her head.
"Lily? Y-you're genuinely considering it? How? How could you?"
"James, we need to focus our efforts on Charlus, he will be in danger later in life and we need to prepare him. Harry will feel left out, unincluded, and will resent Charlus for it. We can give him to my sister, she might hate me, but she could never hate a child for no reason. He will be safe, and still close to us."
"But- he's our son, how could we just give up on him?"
"We're not giving up on him, James. We will make up for all our lost time when he goes to Hogwarts, he will live with us afterwards."
"I happen to agree with Lily, James. This would keep everyone safe." Dumbledore said.
"… Okay. But h-he needs to be kept safe there, t-too. Dumbledore, you need to make sure he's s-safe." James relents, feeling immense regret in his decision as soon as he spoke it out loud.
"I will set up wards James, have no worries, your son will have one of the most secure homes in the world. And I'm sorry, but this is what's best for us all, even Harry. Have faith, you will be reunited in the future, but until then, you must prepare Charlus. Not only for his sake, but Harry's own." Dumbledore said, providing comfort and reassurance to both parents. "Now, the sooner we separate them, the sooner they will both be safe. May I?" he asked, gesturing towards Harry, "I can transport him to your sister's house, along with Professor McGonagal."
"N-now?" Lily asked, suddenly very reluctant to let go of her sons. "Can't it be tomorrow? To allow us time to say g-goodbye?" Lily asked, suddenly choking up.
"Lily, the news will be broken to the public within the hour, there is nothing we can do about that. And from the moment that information becomes public, your sons are in grave danger. We need to act now, I'm sorry," Dumbledore explained.
Lily looked towards James, and finding resolve in his eyes, looked down at her baby. She hugs him close, letting her tears fall for the abandonment of her son, all the things she will miss, the birthdays, the Christmases, primary school, and the time lost. She then slowly placed him in Dumbledore's hands, incredibly reluctant to let go, until finally she relented. James walked closer, put his arm around his wife, and let his tears fall as well. "We love you Harry, forever. We're so sorry, we hope you will understand."
"I'm sorry James, Lily, but we will have to be leaving. Every second counts right now." Dumbledore reminds them gently.
"Y-yeah. Yeah, I-I know, I'm sorry." Lily says, backing away slightly.
"There is no reason to apologize, this is a truly difficult thing to do, and I do not fault you for your reluctance, it makes you human, shows you still feel, even through the adversity of tonight." Dumbledore says.
"Goodbye James and Lily, we will be off, and your son will soon be safe." Dumbledore says, before leaving the room and apparating through the destroyed wards around the house.
"Did w-we do the r-right thing J-James?" Lily asked.
"I don't know honey, I truly do not know." James answered, "But we will have faith, he will be okay."