*Why I think this is how the timeline went, bc the author has contradicted herself so many times:

-MOST sources agree Snape defected only days before the Potters went into hiding using the Fidelius charm, because:

-Dumbledore wouldn't have delayed; he would have acted right after Snape went to him, and:

-Something had to have changed for them to resort to the use of the fidelius charm, as opposed to whatever protections the Potters were using before for their previous level of "hiding."

-Flitwick says in PoA that they were only under the protection of the charm for a week before Voldemort found them.

-We know from Lily's letter to Sirius (Deathly Hallows) that Peter knew where the Potters lived and could've given Voldemort their whereabouts at any point BEFORE the charm was cast, leading me to believe Voldemort hadn't decided to target Harry until that point (just before Snape goes to Dumbledore.)

-This seems rather late, but we know Voldemort would have wanted to act quickly after the decision, and it would have taken him a while to figure out what children born the previous July fit the criteria of the prophecy, on top of all his normally scheduled evil overlord mayhem.

Canon nerds: feel free to argue any of these points in the comments, I want to hear your thoughts.

***I would like to thank my beautiful friend Caitlin for her research on the Fidelius Charm which helped me to edit this and the next few chapters.

***Don't worry - we got a little ways to go before Halloween...but only a little.

.

.

.

Ch 48 - Semper Fidelius

October 24th - 8:47pm

"I don't quite know how long this could go on for," Albus explained as he sat across from the Potters in their living room. An un-sipped cup of tea rested in his hands while he spoke. "What I do know is that the protections we've put in place thus far will no longer suffice. He will stop at nothing until he's found the boy."

The homey cottage with its curtains and cupboards starkly contrasted Dumbledore's grave tone and the topic of conversation. The room seemed to grow dimmer and drop a few degrees in temperature; at least that's how it felt for the young parents.

Lily's eyes darted to her infant son - who was playing with a set of miniature quidditch balls at her feet - and was bewildered that the fate of their world rested on his small shoulders. For the last year, they'd been paralyzed with fear that he might set his sights on Harry. She would never be able to understand what might drive someone to wish harm upon an eighteen month old - to wish harm upon her son, let alone anyone else's.

"Nothing's going to touch him," she declared, her voice nearly coming out as a growl.

James reached for her hand, though his own was trembling. "We'll stay hidden for as long as it takes, so long as Harry's safe."

"This charm," Lily began, her eyes still on Harry. "It will hide us in plain sight?"

"Precisely."

"Do you not think it safer just to leave?"

"Leaving will do nothing to deter Voldemort. I believe that this is the best chance we can give Harry," said Dumbledore, his eyes also on the infant.

Lily nodded distractedly. "I trust you, Albus." She looked to her husband. "We both do."

"What do we have to do to prepare?" James asked, picking Harry up and sitting him in his lap. Even a few feet away, he was too far; not close enough to keep safe.

"Before you cast the charm, you must select your Secret-Keeper," Albus informed them, setting his cup of tea on the end table. "If this person were to reveal the secret of your location, whomever they shared it with would be able to find you, so it's imperative that this be someone you can trust with your very lives. I would be more than happy to offer myself; or Remus, perhaps?"

"No," James disagreed. "Remus has enough to worry about right now; I don't want to burden him further." In his mind, there was only one clear choice for who should bear this responsibility. "I hope you won't take offense Professor, but I think it should be Sirius. He's my best friend and Harry's godfather. It's only right that we make him our Secret-Keeper."

"You're positive you can trust him with this? Positive that Sirius Black could look Voldemort in the eye, face his own death, and not reveal your whereabouts?"

This was a scenario James sincerely did not want to think about, but in the event that it did happen: "Sirius would die before he let anything happen to us or our son. I'm willing to bet my life on that." He looked to his wife.

"As am I. It should be Sirius," Lily agreed, reaching up to caress the freshwater pearl that now hung around her neck.

"Very well then, it's settled. You should inform Sirius straightaway, so as not to delay casting the charm." Albus produced his wand, ready to give them a lesson on how to cast the difficult spell; but he stopped just before, and looked right at James. "You've always had a talent for mischief, James; but after tonight, no more excursions out of the house for you, I think." James cracked a guilty smile, unsurprised that Dumbledore knew he'd left his house once or twice. "Perhaps it's a good thing you so kindly loaned me your cloak," Albus continued. "That way, you can't be tempted."

James nodded.

After tonight.

…

October 25th - 2:32am

As he had most nights for the last few months, Remus left the realm of slumber at about half past two in the morning. Unlike most nights for the last few months, Emmeline was sound asleep next to him, looking incredibly serene and drooling onto the pillow. Remus did not want to wake her, especially since she was beginning to get in the habit of sleeping through the night again. He crept slowly out of the bed, grabbed his wand, and tip-toed into the kitchen where guzzled down a glass of water.

He hadn't the heart to tell Emmeline just how depressed he was becoming. After all, she was still navigating her own sadness, and he would never want to add his on top of that. The grief of Marlene's death had finally caught up with him, and that compounded with the splintering of his friend group had sent him into an emotional nosedive unlike any he had ever experienced before. He'd even been looking forward to his excursion for Dumbledore tomorrow, as he hadn't been on one since July. He supposed Albus had taken pity on him after Marlene and given him a break, but the break was over now and he welcomed the next distraction. He was not looking forward to going without the potion again, but at this point, he'd trade his body falling apart for his mind to have something else to focus on; if only in the waxing and waning of the moon.

It was beginning to get cold during the night, and he only had on a pair of underpants. Careful not to prompt any creaks from the floorboards, he inched towards the front room where he retrieved the throw quilt from the couch and wrapped it around himself. But as he turned to exit the room, the walls around him illuminated with an icy silver light. He spun around with his wand and found himself face to face with a patronus - James' stag.

James' voice began to flow through the patronus: "I need you to meet me at St. Jerome's right now, it's urgent. Come alone."

As the stag dissipated, Remus took a moment to consider the request. Mad-Eye and Dumbledore definitely would not approve of this. Then again, James Potter was not known for keeping the rules, and Remus knew from experience that he certainly did not expect those around him to either.

Remus snuck into the bedroom, dressed hurriedly, then strode back to the front room where the sound of his disapparition would be less likely to wake Emmeline, and left immediately.

...

Remus apparated to the narthex of the church, but it appeared that James was not there yet. The sanctuary was dimly illuminated by two stations of votive candles that had been lit to honor the departed. Aware of his wand and his surroundings, Remus cautiously entered the sanctuary. Drawn towards the light, he walked past the pews up to one of the candle displays. On a small stand next to the display was a jar full of long matches and a few unlit candles, as well as a sign inviting congregants and visitors alike to light their own candle for their own loved one.

Remus wouldn't say he was much of a church goer; given historical tensions between the wizarding community and the church, most wizarding folk weren't. Emmeline had always been somewhat saddened by this, as she'd grown up attending services with her father and found it to be a source of comfort. Remus had gone with his own mother once or twice on Christmas eve when he'd been home from school, and he might've attended more if he'd been permitted to leave the house in his youth. When he was a child, she used to bring him leaflets from Sunday worship with prayers or bits of scripture on them, and she'd even read the bible with him before bed. Remus was not much of a church goer, but the jury was still out on whether or not he believed there was a God. Sometimes he and Emmeline had thought-provoking conversations on the subject. It seemed to him that, if there was a God, he did not much care for Remus, despite what Emmeline, his Welsh mother, and the Church of England had to say.

Nevertheless, Remus felt compelled to select a candle, and thought of the McKinnons as he lit it. "May they rest in peace, and may they not die in vain," he whispered, as Albus' words were the closest thing he had to liturgical prayer.

"Moony," came a voice from behind. Remus turned just as James was striding through the entrance to the sanctuary. "Sorry to keep you waiting, I had to be sure you weren't followed."

"Prongs." Remus dashed forward and embraced him with zeal, having missed him for so many months.

James returned his vigorous embrace and could not help but smile. "Godric, I've missed you."

"Lily and Harry alright?"

"Fine, we're doing just fine," James lied, releasing him from the hug.

"That's a relief, because the rendezvous in the middle of the night suggested otherwise."

"I know, I'm sorry. I would've called at a more reasonable hour if time allowed."

Perhaps Remus shouldn't have counted this against him since it was nearly three in the morning, but James looked worn out; like, really worn out. More worn out than he had when Harry was still a newborn. "What's going on?"

"Listen, I have loads to tell you and I haven't got a lot of time. I'm not going to be...available...for a while, so I just had to see you and give you this." James sat Remus down in a nearby pew and thrust a small leather coin pouch into his grasp.

Puzzled by the necessity of meeting at this hour to deliver such a trinket, Remus drew the string to peer into the pouch. A magical extension charm had allowed James to fit an inordinate amount of gold inside. Remus' jaw hung slack.

"I don't know what you're dealing with as far as rent goes. If it's anything like the mortgage on the old house, this should cover everything for the next six months."

"What on earth-"

"I couldn't make it to Gringotts to transfer it to your vault, so I'm sorry for the dodgy handoff."

It is important to note that James Potter was a vital person in Remus' life for many, many reasons. One of those reasons being that, when Remus came to terms with the fact that he'd never have much career success due to his condition, James vowed to financially support him indefinitely. He made himself Remus' patron, and even opened a vault at Gringotts for him which he filled every month with gold enough for all of Remus' expenses. Without James, Remus would have no chance of a life above the poverty line. The excessive sum in the pouch only heightened Remus' concern.

"If this lasts longer than that, I'll find a way to get you more somehow."

"If what lasts longer? James, you're really starting to scare me. Tell me what's going on."

James looked more somber and serious than he'd ever looked before, and took his time with the words. "He's after my boy."

"Who's aft-..." Remus' eyes widened. "You don't mean-"

"Voldemort's going to try to kill Harry."

James had always worried about his ability to protect Lily and Harry - this had to have been just about his worst nightmare.

A prospect as horrifying as this raised so many questions, and yet Remus found himself at a loss for words. He stared at James terror-struck with his mouth agape.

"Dumbledore's advised us to perform the Fidelius Charm," James continued. "That way he won't be able to find us, but it means I won't see you for a while."

Remus dug through his memory back to seventh year Charms class when they'd been assigned reading on the Fidelius Charm. "And you've got someone to keep your secret for you?" The words came out strangely. His mouth had suddenly gone very dry.

"Yes, we've got a Secret-Keeper."

Remus nodded, still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Voldemort had set his sights on an infant; his best friend's infant, no less. It seemed not only sadistic, but strange. Didn't he have more worthy adversaries to focus his attention on? "Why? Why Harry?"

James let out an exasperated sigh. "It's a lot to explain. Point is, we've got to disappear for a bit, so I wanted to make sure you were all set."

The fact that James was even considering Remus' budget at a time like this nearly brought him to tears. He suddenly felt incredibly guilty. "James, you'll never know how much-...I'm very grateful for everything."

"S'okay, mate."

Remus swallowed a few more times to return more moisture to his mouth and to get the lump in his throat to go away. James had done all he could to help Remus; perhaps there was something he could do to help James. "I'm going to ask Dumbledore to postpone my trip. What can I do to help?"

"No, don't. We're going to be just fine. We'll perform the charm soon, then nothing will be able to touch us." James recalled Dumbledore's words: "Positive that Sirius Black could look Voldemort in the eye, face his own death, and not reveal your secret?" It was not outside the realm of possibility that they'd go after Remus as well as Sirius. "Actually, you should go on your trip. Might be best if you get out of town for a bit. You won't have to worry about us, you just stay safe."

"Well after what you've just told me, not worrying is going to be easier said than done."

James smiled his handsome smile and placed his hands reassuringly on Remus' slouched shoulders. "Here's what you can do: You can go home to Emmie, kiss her for Lily, and keep out of trouble on your trip. Yeah?" The light from the candles cast ominous shadows upon his face.

Remus got the sense that their discussion was coming to an end, and was scrambling for things he felt he should say before what might've been a very long hiatus until they saw each other again. "James, I-..." He placed one of his hands on James'. "You three mean so much to me. Just...be safe. Please."

"We will. And you do the same." He stood and pulled Remus into a hug one final time, with even more intensity in his embrace than before. "I love you mate, see you soon."

The candles flickered as he disapparated. There was something about the gravity in James' voice…

Remus was left standing alone in the pew with a knot writhing in his gut, and had never felt such a divine sense of dread in his life.

…

7:08am

"Is it going to hurt?"

"No Pete, it's not going to hurt, you ninny."

"How do you know?"

"Well, I don't; but I've got to get you to the door, haven't I?"

After receiving James' patronus the night before, Sirius had apparated to the Potters' house immediately, and was more than willing to take up this task for them. They agreed to meet the next day, as James had mentioned he needed to get some affairs settled before the charm was cast. But early the next morning, after some careful consideration, Sirius went back with the offer of a different plan; a better plan; a more fool-proof plan, and just the fool to help them with it. Now that he'd managed to convince Peter, the only thing left to do was get to Godric's Hollow and cast the charm.

"Right then, best to get it over with, I think." said Peter, talking himself into it. Anxious to get it done as well, Sirius reached for Peter's arm, but Peter spun around to scan his room for possibly-necessary supplies. "Do I need to, er, bring anything?"

Vexedly, Sirius rolled his eyes, and seized this opportunity to torture him a bit. "I trust you've got your Fidelius-proof pants on."

"Actually, I d-...my what?"

He cracked a smile. "You do own a pair of Fidelius-proof pants, don't you? You'd better get them on; otherwise when you cast the charm, your tallywacker will disintegrate."

Before Peter could yowl that he had not thought to purchase a pair before today, Sirius grabbed him by the elbow and disapparated.

The Potters were waiting for them in the front room when they arrived.

"You're both a sight for sore eyes." James leapt forward to embrace them tightly.

"JAMES!" Peter exclaimed, panicking. "Have you got a spare pair of-"

"Pipe down Wormtail, Merlin's beard - I was only having a laugh," said Sirius.

"You mean-...oh."

Lily watched on fondly, but the infant in her arms kept her from the group-hug. Harry gurgled some noises reminiscent of "Padfoot" and reached toward Sirius, who stepped forward to take him from Lily's arms onto his hip. "And you lot said I wouldn't be good with children." He blew a raspberry into Harry's palm, which triggered an eruption of giggles.

"You ready, Wormtail?" James asked.

"Yeah, yes. I can do it." He nodded vigorously, his hands twitching ever so slightly at his sides.

James beamed and clapped him on the shoulder, causing him to wince. "That's the spirit, old boy."

"Peter, we'll never be able to thank you enough," Lily gushed.

Nobody caught on to the fact that Peter would look neither her, nor Harry in the eye.

"Love, take the baby, will you?" Lily instructed James. He untangled Harry's fist from Sirius' locks before transferring him to his own hip.

Sirius pointed at Harry. "Beater, I'm telling you."

"We'll see about that," James chuckled, lifting Harry high into the air and making a silly face at him.

Lily turned to Sirius, her smile slowly fading.

"You be safe, you hear?" she bade him, poking him playfully in the chest. "Don't you dare try to be a hero."

"Anything for you, Lily-flower."

"I'm serious," she murmured, her voice crackling from the tears rising to the surface.

Sirius smirked, then bent down and whispered in her ear: "I'm Sirius."

This earned him a swift punch in the arm, followed by a very tight hug and an affectionate kiss on the cheek.

"Gonna miss you."

"Gonna miss you, too."

Lily released him, took Harry from James, and went to stand by Peter.

James and Sirius stood there for a moment, regarding each other as brothers. James was grimacing apprehensively; he knew what Sirius might face once he left there. Sirius would do anything for them, including go and get himself killed to maintain a clever diversion.

"Don't do anything stupid," he patronized him.

Sirius raised an eyebrow. "Me? Do something stupid? What a ridiculous notion."

As if they'd communicated it telepathically, each of them stepped forward at the same time and embraced the other so hard that the hug made an audible thud. They gripped one another so tightly that it seemed they were responsible for maintaining the earth's center of gravity.

"Love you, mate," Sirius mumbled into James' shoulder.

"Love you."

"We're gonna get the sonofabitch, then you won't have to worry. That's a promise."

"Wish I could be there when you do."

"I'll see you soon."

"Yeah."

They let go of each other, James quickly wiping a tear into the crook of his arm.

"Alright Wormtail, you're up."

Sirius kissed the top of Harry's head, nodded at James and Lily, then stalked outside to do any necessary muggle control. Luckily nobody was out this morning, so they wouldn't have to worry about witnesses. Sirius gave an "all's clear" signal to the front room window, and waited.

He thought back on his conversation with James in the graveyard. Nothing was going to happen to them now that they were protected; but if the death eaters caught him, there was still a chance he would never see them again.

He kept his eyes on the front room window, taking in every last sight of James and Lily and Harry that he could. He watched as Lily, wand in hand, began reciting the charm's incantation. The full spell took several minutes, and Sirius took advantage of every second to memorize this scene in his head. While his eyes crafted a mental image, he could not stop his mind from drifting to thoughts of his potential demise. He was prepared; he had been for many years, actually. If it came down to it, James would give a smashing eulogy at the funeral. Lily would make sure there were nice flowers. They'd be sad, but they'd be fine without him, and Harry would grow up knowing that he once had a godfather who loved him very much.

After nearly ten minutes of the incantation, a small, golden ball of light emerged gracefully from the tip of Lily's wand. It caught Sirius' eye as it drifted from the wand right into the center of Peter's torso. Peter flinched, but James kept a sturdy hand on him to let him know that everything was okay.

Then Sirius blinked, and the house was gone. It had vanished. He smiled.

Peter seemed to emerge from nothing as he walked back towards Sirius.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Did it hurt?"

"No," said Peter, shoving his hands in his pockets and looking at the ground. "It was fine. Just made me feel kind of warm. Can you see the house?"

"No, I can't. Just looks like an empty patch between the neighbors. Can you?"

"Yeah. Looks the same to me."

It had worked.

"I'll arrange to meet with you every so often, just to check that you're alright."

"You don't- er...I don't think that will be necessary."

Sirius understood that Peter probably wouldn't want anything to do with him now that he had an even bigger target on his back than before; but though he was not the Secret-Keeper, Sirius thought it best that he be the one in control of the situation.

"I'll swing by on Hallow's Eve, let's say 10:30," Sirius insisted.

"...Sure. Halloween. Okay."

"You don't have to be nervous about them going after you, you know," he tried to reassure him. "It's me they're going to want."

"Right, yeah."

"You're going to be fine. That's the whole idea. They won't suspect a thing."

Peter looked up from the ground and eyed Sirius quite intently.

"Yes, I think you're right. They won't suspect a thing."

It really was the perfect plan.