LILY AND JAMES (part 4): “What Goes Around Comes Around”
By, Joni
Written January 2000
Revised May 2002 and June 2003
James
Potter was studying intently in his dark study.
Not a sound could be heard besides the ticking of a clock in the hall,
which had its hands pointing at
“Hmmm…” he muttered to himself. He pointed to an interesting passage in the book as he set it down carefully on the desk and reached with his other hand to grab a quill and jot some notes down on a spare parchment nearby.
No record of Godric Gryffindor’s line of descendants can be found after 1714 when Arthur Gryffindor passed away, James wrote. However, it is interesting to note that there are written accounts from that time period, including documented news articles, stating that Arthur had several sons and daughters. The eventual whereabouts of these supposed children, or any of their offspring, is unknown.
James set down his quill and reread this passage again then sat back in deep thought.
“James?” sounded a quiet voice from the doorway.
James jumped and spun around. “Oh…Lily, it’s you. You startled me. Am I keeping you awake?”
Lily Potter came into the study and stood by her husband. “I’m sorry I scared you and no, you aren’t keeping me awake. I just can’t sleep.”
“It’s no wonder after what Dumbledore told us the last time we saw him.”
Lily sighed. “That and…” she said while rubbing her swollen belly affectionately.
“The baby is keeping you awake, eh?” asked James, while taking his own turn to pat Lily’s tummy softly.
Lily rolled her eyes. “Yes. Whenever I want to sleep, that’s when he starts kicking me. I’m afraid he’s going to be a rebel…just like his father!” she teased as she kissed James on the cheek.
James laughed at Lily’s little joke and then groaned loudly as he looked at his watch. “I had no idea it was so late,” he exclaimed as he removed his glasses and rubbed his tired eyes.
“You look exhausted. Why don’t you come to bed and work on this later?” Lily said with concern.
“I can’t,” James sighed. “I think I’m finally getting somewhere…” he trailed off deep in thought.
“Well then let me stay and help you,” Lily said.
James snapped out of his thoughts and looked concernedly and his wife. “No, really, you should go back to bed and get your rest.”
Lily dismissed the suggestion with a wave of her hand. “I can’t sleep anyway so I might as well stay. Why don’t you tell me what you are doing?”
James surveyed his wife for a moment and then smiled at her and said, “Have a seat,” as he pulled a chair over next to him for her to sit in.
“Our last conversation with Dumbledore has been bothering me all day. First, this whole business that one of our friends might be spying on us for Voldemort…”
“I can’t believe that!” Lily interrupted hotly.
“I know…I know…it’s just doesn’t make sense. But it’s definitely got me worried. Why would Voldemort have any interest in us whatsoever? I just don’t get it. However, Dumbledore still hinted heavily that he has his reason so I decided to get to work and try to figure out what’s up. I thought maybe my family history might tell me something important, I mean, I hardly know anything about my family at all.”
“Okay,” said Lily with a hint of uncertainty.
“I know, it probably won’t tell me anything and I’m wasting my time, but something…I don’t know how to describe it…a feeling, I guess, is telling me I have to do this,” he pauses and stared into the candlelight briefly. Then with the wave of his hand he looked away and said, “I’m only more confused now then before, everything is strange.”
James jumped up and began to pace the room nervously as he continued. “There are no records of my family’s history. All that I know about my family is only from memory, and all I can remember is my father, mother, and grandparents. I thought it was a little strange, don’t you think?”
Lily
thought about it for a moment then answered, “I don’t know. It’s not completely strange. Not everyone has a thorough family history
recorded. Why don’t you try and find
some pedigree charts. The Ministry must
have some on record.
“That’s just it!”
exclaimed James with emotion. “I’ve been
trying for several days to do the standard kind of research to explore my
family, but I can’t find records of any kind, not with the Ministry or
anywhere. I do know, based on something
my own father told me once, that I come from a long line of witches and
wizards. The Ministry is usually a
reliable source for pure-blooded or close to pure-blood families because so
many of us care about blood lines,” James said sarcastically with a roll of his
eyes. “The records aren’t there
though. They don’t seem to exist. I even went over a bunch of papers belonging
to my father left to me when he died. I
can only find one reference to family history in the whole pile and it only
seems to create a bigger mystery.”
“What is it?” asked Lily curiously.
James returned to his chair and sat by Lily again. After rummaging through his papers for a few minutes he produced a few old and worn sheets of paper containing ink writing in a neat hand.
“See these? From what I can figure, these were torn out of some kind of journal. See the ripped edges?” James pointed the one sides on the papers that made the paper appear to be torn out of a book.
“These were written by my grandfather, I recognized the handwriting. I don’t know where the rest of the journal is. Most of what is written contains information about his research and work in potion making. It’s interesting, but has little to do with what I am looking for, except the last page.”
James flipped pulled the sheet off the bottom of the stack and set it in front of Lily. She leaned in close so she could read it better in the dim light of the candles.
“See the date?” James pointed to the top of the page. “This was written when I was ten years old, about a week before my grandfather died…I remember,” he said sadly.
Lily smiled sadly at James as she briefly remembered her own grandparents’ deaths and then quickly pushed the thought away as she read the page:
For
many days my thoughts have been turned to something I should told my family
years ago. My children are grown and
have families of their own, but I have yet to inform any of them of my family’s
past. I have been negligent. Not only have I failed in my duty to tell my
children about where I come from, but my dear wife, Henrietta, has been kept in
the dark, for her own safety, all these years.
I should have told them all sooner.
I can’t blame myself for hesitating and I don’t know what they will
think of it. I am weak and frightened
but I have no excuses left. They must
know. I am an old man and can only guess
that my time left is short. Thankfully,
my work here is nearly finished and Henrietta and I will be returning
home. I shall call them all to the house
for dinner and tell them there. I hope
in the depths of my heart that I have not waited too long to make these things
known to them.
“How strange,” murmured Lily softly. “What was it he was so eager to tell?”
“I don’t know,” James whispered. “He never made it home. About a week after this date he died suddenly from fire beetle fever flu. My father never mentioned anything about any of what is written here to me. I guess he didn’t know what it was either.”
James glanced at the page and then said, “See here where it says ‘for her own safety’? He was guarding the information from my grandmother, to keep her safe. That struck me. Dumbledore is concerned about our safety, too. It occurred to me that if my grandfather were still alive that he would be able to tell me what I need to know.”
He sighed heavily, “So I’m left to figure this out the hard way. The only thing I can think of to do is to research the first known witches and wizards from history and trace them forward until I can find some connection. It’s a long shot, though, and I know it. I don’t even know where to start or how far back the wizard blood in my family goes. And I still don’t really know what I am looking for. Even if I can trace my blood lines doesn’t mean I’ll find the ‘family secret’, or whatever it is.”
Lily smiled, “If Dumbledore would just tell us, then you wouldn’t have to go through all this!”
“I know,” James agreed. “But I think it’s important for me to discover this on my own. Maybe Dumbledore isn’t certain, but if I discover it myself, with your help of course, then he’ll know it’s true. I don’t know…it’s late, I’m just making things up now.”
“No, it makes sense. You like to figure things out on your own anyway.”
James nodded, and then passed his most recent notes to Lily. “Here,” he said. “I’m trying to trace Godric Gryffindor’s line forward but I lost it. Maybe you can help me. I’ve already traced Salazar Slytherin’s line to a man named Tom Riddle, but I’m not sure what happened to him His name sounds familiar…though I don’t know where I’ve heard it before. I can’t find a death record, but he went to Hogwarts about 40 years ago so he’s likely still alive, I just don’t know if he has any children.”
~~
Two weeks later, Lily and James sat tensely waiting in Dumbledore’s office at Hogwarts. Dumbledore entered after a few minutes, and if he suspected why the Potters were there he made no indication.
“How are you?” he asked, smiling affectionately.
“Er…” James started, not sure of what to say.
“We are fine,” Lily said with a forced smile, taking James by the hand to offer him support.
Dumbledore peered at them seriously over his half-moon glasses as he sat down at his desk. He did not say anything but instead just waited for Lily or James to explain why they were there.
After several minutes of strained silence James finally leaned forward in his seat toward Dumbledore. “Sir, I need to ask you something. I know it might sound like a crazy question but it’s just something I need to know. Uh…well, I need to know…am I…am I related to…Godric Gryffindor?”
Dumbledore raised his eyebrows in surprise at the question but only said, “Why would you think that?”
James looked defeated and waved his hand absently in the air. “It’s a crazy question, I know. I just thought…”
“No, you misunderstand me,” Dumbledore reassured him with a small smile. “I just wanted to know why you would ask.”
James pulled a package of parchments he had been concealing in his cloak and tossed them onto Dumbledore’s desk. “Lily and I have been working really hard on my family history. After I spoke with you last I got the impression that I needed to find out more about my family line to figure out this ‘secret’ that I need to know. The problem is I have no line. It’s untraceable past my grandparents and I think it’s been unrecorded on purpose. So, I decided to try and trace other known witches and wizards from the past forward, in the hopes of finding a connection.”
“I wouldn’t think you’d have much luck doing that,” Dumbledore noted offhandedly.
“No luck at all. There are just too many to trace, it’s basically impossible. However, we did find some interesting information. I started researching the family lines of the Hogwarts founders, because they are notable witches and wizards from the past. Did you know the conflict between Slytherin and Gryffindor extended past their arguments concerning Hogwarts? Their ideas stretched over the entire wizard world?”
Dumbledore picked up the parchments James had laid on the desk and looked through them slowly as James continued.
“Not only that, but Slytherin and Gryffindor seemed to have many long and drawn out conflicts continue for generations…like a huge family feud that never ended, until, abruptly it seems, the Gryffindor lines just disappeared! I don’t understand it…”
“I see here that you’ve discovered a little known historical fact,” Dumbledore said when he came to a parchment about halfway through the stack. “It is well known that Slytherin and Gryffindor argued about the status of muggle borns and pure bloods at Hogwarts. But their ideas and conflicts affected many beyond these walls. It all has the do with that argument they had just before Slytherin left the school for good…”
“Salazar, we’ve been over this a thousand
times. I tell you one last time, we are
NOT going to run the school your way!”
Godric Gryffindor pounded his
fist on a nearby desk to emphasize his point even more clearly.
Rowena Ravenclaw cleared her
throat and cried to speak in a reasonable tone, “Salazar, I thought we had
agreed that we could all choose the students for our own houses in any way we
wished. If you would like to continue to
rely only on pure-blood students, that is your right but the rest of us don’t
want to fill our houses that way.”
Helga Hufflepuff nodded in
agreement, “It’s what we decided from the beginning. Or at least I thought we had decided. This argument is getting very old, why do you
keep insisting on doing it your way?”
Salazar Slytherin looked upon
the other three with an expression of increasing impatience. He drummed his fingers loudly atop a nearby
window sill. “As I’ve stated time and
again, Muggles don’t trust us and our magical ways, why should we trust
them? They make poor witches and
wizards. I’d have thought you’d all
learnt that by now after the way that Muggle student tried to sabotage the
school!”
Godric groaned inwardly at the
memory. Just that past term and young
Muggle-born student had gone home for the summer and been tricked into leading
an angry mob from his village to the Hogwarts grounds.
Helga sighed heavily, for the
student had been in her house. “You know
that poor boy had no evil intentions.
Indeed, he paid dearly when those villagers couldn’t find Hogwarts.”
“Burned at the stake,” Rowena
added with disgust, “And too young and unlearned to defend himself with magic
against his attackers.”
“My exact point,” said Salazar
triumphantly. “He was a weak Muggle-born
fool, easily led astray and stupid at that.
We needn’t entice these Muggles into causing more deaths than there has
already been! It is because of Muggles
that our kind is dwindling in number, we should not invite them into our
society…they do not understand us! They
are scared of us, as they should be, and we do not need them!”
“That Muggle-born boy was not
stupid,” Godric defended hotly. “You
know as well as I do that any young wizard, Muggle-born or not, does not have
the ability needed at that age to protect themselves from a crazy mob like
that. It is our fault—if anyone is to
take blame—that the poor boy was harmed.
We should have been more careful to protect him when he left our care.”
Helga and Rowena stood by Godric
to show their united front. Godric
continued.
“As for our dwindling number, we
need Muggles who will accept us to help us survive. If we turn them all out now, it’s the end of
wizarding kind—you of all people should know that, Salazar! Not all Muggles are inept and magicless, we
need what they have to offer keep our bloodlines going. Do you want to see all magic disappear off
the face of the earth forever?
“No!” Godric shouted. “I for one will not let that happen! We, the founders of Hogwarts, have always agreed on
admitting all eligible students, regardless of parentage, since the day our
doors opened. It’s three against one,
Salazar. The precedent will not change.”
Salazar Slytherin eyed his
companions with scrutiny one by one. He
had never really counted any of them as friends, but at one time they were at
least compatible working companions. But
it wasn’t until this day that he saw them all as enemies, especially
Godric. Enemies not only to him, but to
all magical kind.
“I have failed to convince you?”
he asked as calmly as he could. “Not
even after you have read the letters from my supporters? The vision of what I have proposed is a
growing movement among our kind, you know.
You do not want to position yourselves against a majority now, do you?”
“I seriously doubt your position
is held by a majority, Salazar. You only
have ‘supporters’, as you call them, because you continue to insist on making
this an issue in public,” responded Godric.
Salazar sighed heavily and
straightened up throwing his shoulders back and taking a hold of his staff
importantly. “If I cannot convince you
then I can no longer stay among those who are so narrow-minded.”
“What do you mean?” Helga burst
out.
“You’re leaving?” Rowena asked.
“Unfortunately, yes,” Salazar
confirmed. “I can no longer show my
support for the poor standards put forth by Hogwarts. It was a truly noble idea when we all agreed
to found this marvelous school, but I can see now that Hogwarts has fallen
beneath dignity. I no longer wish to be
a part of it.”
Godric looked aghast. “I can’t believe what you are saying, Salazar! You know full well that Hogwarts is a stellar
school and always will be. We have
established ourselves as the premier institution for the training of young
witches and wizards! Why, we alone came up with the idea of organized and
formal education in the ways of magic. You must be out of your mind!”
Salazar closed his eyes in an
attempt to remain calm. “We will each
see things as we will, of course,” he stated.
“So be it,” Godric sighed,
causing the other two to look at him with surprise. “If you wish to leave, then go. We won’t stop you.”
There was a prolonged
silence. Finally, Salazar drew his cloak
around him and turned to leave. When he
reached the threshold of the doorway he turned and looked at the other three,
particularly Godric with a twisted and evil smile.
“You
do know what this means, don’t you?” he asked.
“I
thought you were leaving, Salazar,” said Godric with his arms folded across his
chest. “What is it you are talking
about?”
“Are
destinies are forever tied, didn’t you realize that would happen when you
refused to follow me?”
Godric
dropped his hands by his sides and took a few strides toward Salazar. “Explain!” he demanded.
“We
carry far too much influence in the magical world for this to stay a private
argument,” Salazar said. “Our conflict
will become public and of great influence, I’ll see to that. Only one of us can win…such are the
fundamental ‘laws’ of the magical world.
Forever our destinies will be bound together…”
“It’s
not a contest!” interrupted Godric.
“Maybe
not,” agreed Salazar. “But there can
still be only one who…prevails.”
Godric
did not say anything. He knew of what
Salazar was speaking of, an old form of magic that needed no spell cast or
potion to take affect. When two wizards
of high influence could not agree on a fundamental concept, the argument bound
them until it was resolved, or one of them died. Whoever was left standing last would be left
to greatly influence the thinking of the magical world, for good or for bad.
“This
‘argument’ as you call it could go on for a long time,” Godric pointed
out. Salazar’s smile faded
slightly. “I have children, as you
do. The ‘conflict’ does not end with
us. I have taught my children the value
of Muggle-born wizards; they will carry on even after
I am gone. I have no doubt in my mind
that you will do the same. This conflict
may never end! The wizarding world may
always be in confusion on the issue of blood lines, but there is no right or
wrong in this matter…we can stop this here and now by agreeing to that one
simple thing and let everyone else just make up their
minds.”
“I
will do no such thing,” said Salazar, apparently convinced that his way of
thinking was the only correct way.
“Then
be gone!” Godric shouted.
With
a swish of his robes, Salazar departed from Hogwarts, never to set foot on the
grounds again.
“According to what now is only seen as legend, and a lost legend that few even remember, Slytherin and Gryffindor’s descendants will always be at odds with one another until the bloodline of one is lost.” Dumbledore informed Lily and James. “Interestingly enough, these descendants seem to always be drawn to one another and the conflict continues, usually ending in the death of someone.”
Lily gasped at these words.
Dumbledore patted her hand comfortingly and said, “Once this fact was realized by the Gryffindor family they decided to go into hiding by changing their names and creating confusion. By doing this, the conflicts seemed to cease for at least a few generations until one true Gryffindor or another was discovered and the curse began again. More hiding and name changing continued for the Gryffindor family right down until there was only one line of Gryffindors left, making it of the utmost importance that the secret be kept until the time was right and they were ready to fight the last fight.”
“But something was lost,” James stated with eyes widening in understanding. “The secret of the real family name was never passed down. My grandfather…”
“He never got the chance to tell
his family the truth and it was a costly mistake. Thankfully, there are family guardians in
place—those sworn to protect the bloodline of Gryffindor from being lost—to
remember who the heir is. I am one of
those guardians, one of the chosen to also help protect the family and the
family ideals.”
“Me,” James said vaguely.
“You.”
“Tom Riddle is the last heir of Slytherin. That I know. His name seemed to jog some sort of weird memory in me, but I could never quite figure out what it was all suppose to mean. Now I know—I’m being drawn to him by this weird curse. Who is he?”
“None other then the Lord Voldemort,” said Dumbledore.
“No!” shouted Lily and she immediately broke down in uncontrollable tears. James drew an arm around her to comfort her as best he could.
“Now I understand it all, why Voldemort would have reason to want me dead. There are no others then?” he asked Dumbledore.
“None. You are all that remain which carry the blood of Gryffindor. His only heir.”
“Our baby…” Lily sobbed.
“Yes,” agreed Dumbledore, “Your baby as well. When the baby is born there will be two Gryffindor heirs, but only one Slytherin heir. He already suspects you to be the Gryffindor heir but he does not yet know for sure. Yet I cannot guarantee he will not act before he knows the facts.”
“What do we do?” James asked, looking at Dumbledore.
“You are safe, for the time being. I have a very useful spy who is keeping watch for any sign that Voldemort knows your true identity. At this point, he knows you exist, but he doesn’t know who you are, nor that you have a baby on the way. I will do all I can to keep this information secret, but I need you both to be prepared at a moment’s notice to go into flee your home and go into hiding. You should prepare.”
Lily continued to sob quietly. Dumbledore cleared his throat and said, “Have you given any more thought to what we discussed before?”
“Our friends?” asked James. Dumbledore nodded.
“I just don’t see how that’s possible,” said James. “Lily and I trust them too much, we’ve done too much for each other to except betrayal!”
Dumbledore surveyed them carefully and then said, “All I ask is that you be careful.”
~~
Lily and James went home frightened, but resolved to do what they could to protect themselves.
“You know,” mused James to Lily one night, “I have always believed in the ideas of Gryffindor. I was always glad that he stood against Slytherin and made sure Muggle-borns could go to Hogwarts. If he hadn’t done that I would have never met you.”
They moved around a few times during the next few months to try and keep ahead of Voldemort, but disturbingly he always seemed to know where they were. One night they mentioned their concern to Sirius when he was visiting their home.
“A friend could be spying,” he suggested through gritted teeth. “I’ve had the thought for some time now but was afraid to mention it.”
Lily and James looked at him in surprise. “Who do you suspect?” demanded James.
Sirius looked uncomfortable. “I’d rather not say,” he said. “It’s only suspicion but I have no proof. I’d hate to go pointing fingers at my friends for no reason.”
They had no choice but to except Sirius’s statement and leave it at that.
Not long after that, a son was born to Lily and James. They named him Harry and he brought such joy to their lives that for a time they nearly forgot all their troubles.
Not long after the birth Dumbledore arrived at their home to pay a visit. It should have been a happy occasion but as Lily let him in the door she could not ignore a terrible sense of foreboding pressing in on her senses.
“There’s the wee little Potter,” Dumbledore beamed as he lifted the offered baby into his arms from James. He laughed heartily as Harry took a fistful of Dumbledore’s beard and gave an almighty tug.
Lily relaxed within herself. “There is no reason to get all jumpy every time Dumbledore comes around. He will not always be the bearer of bad news,” she told herself.
However, when Harry was close to his first birthday, Dumbledore arrived again and this time when Lily opened the door, she knew the visit would not be pleasant.
“Do not panic,” Dumbledore said calmly as he sat in a nearby chair. “Voldemort may be nearly as resourceful as you in figuring out all these deep dark family secrets but he has not made any plans concerning you. However, according to a spy of mine, that I deeply trust, Voldemort is much too preoccupied by your whereabouts as of late for my comfort. There is still time to act. You are prepared, I assume?”
“Yes,” said James. “We have it all planned out. We have saved an extraordinary amount of money, considering the short amount of time, and we know where we are going to move.”
“Have you considered the use of the Fidelius Charm?” suggested Dumbledore. “I have found them highly useful for things like this in the past.”
“Good idea,” said Lily. “We had not thought of that, but it makes perfect sense. Plus I would feel much better for using it.”
“Then I volunteer to be your secret keeper,” said Dumbledore.
“Oh, sir, we couldn’t possibly—“ said James.
“No!” exclaimed Lily. “It’s too dangerous for you and Hogwarts
“We’ll use Sirius,” they said together.
“You are sure he is trustworthy?” questioned Dumbledore, the concern heavy in his voice.
“Yes,” said James. “I’ve known Sirius all my life, he would never betray us. Plus, he has certain…skills…that will help him stay out of trouble and away from Voldemort, should he come after him. He’s the perfect choice.”
“Very well,” Dumbledore sighed, “The choice is yours. I wish you both the best of luck.”
~~
It was a sad evening to see Dumbledore leave, knowing that it could be a very long time before they saw him again. Especially after all he had done for them.
“You are the dearest friend,” Lily told him just before he departed and quickly gave him a kiss on the cheek.
Dumbledore turned to leave. As he walked out to the nearby street and was just preparing to apparate he heard James calling him and running up behind.
“Sir, before you leave, could you do me a favor?” James said breathlessly.
“Anything.”
James quickly handed him a small parcel. “It’s my invisibility cloak,” he explained. “My father gave it to me and I would really appreciate it if you could keep it safe for Harry as well as a few other small items I included with it…just in case…” he trailed off.
Dumbledore smiled. “Long has this cloak been in your family,” he said. “I will keep it safe, for you,” he emphasized.
~~
That night Sirius was summoned and with the exception of one unexpected hitch, the Fidelius Charm was preformed by Lily as planned. Sirius would not agree to be the secret keeper, but insisted that it was a better plan to use their other friend, Peter, because, “Voldemort would never expect that!” Sirius explained.
“Plus,” he added, “I have my reasons to think that Remus may be passing information to Voldemort, and he would automatically expect me to be your secret keeper.”
Lily and James were stunned by this revelation and protested vehemently to the idea that Remus could possibly be anything but completely trustworthy.
However, there was not time to argue, to change the plan, or to notify Dumbledore so Lily and James agreed and the Charm was performed as Sirius suggested. The Potter family settled in their new home in Godric’s Hollow and Sirius agreed to help protect Peter, if needed.
~~
As the days in their new home passed slowly and at first Lily and James were constantly on the edge, jumping at small noises and keeping the drapes drawn even during the day. Their wands were kept in their pockets, even as they slept, with Harry between them. Once the first week passed with no incident they began to relax and little, but not enough for either of them to feel comfortable leaving the house for long, nor to venture away from each other or Harry.
One night after a quiet family supper, Lily and James sat together, taking turns holding Harry.
“James,” said Lily quietly, “I love you…I just wanted you to know…you know…in case something happens…”
“I love you, too. Don’t worry; everything’s going to be alright.” He held her close and all three of them fell asleep on the living sofa together.
Several hours later, James awoke with a start. He looked around and saw his sleeping family. He smiled to himself and rose from the sofa to turn out the light as silently as possible so not to bother Lily and Harry. When the light was turned out and the room was dark he thought he saw movement outside on the lit street. He went to the living room window and parted the curtains slightly to peek outside but he didn’t see anything. He couldn’t help feeling a little apprehensive so he continued to watch outside, fingering his wand in his pocket.
Lily stirred on the sofa and woke up. When she saw James she asked, “What, do you see something?”
James whispered, “I thought I did but I can’t see anything now…still…” He still felt a distant prickle of fear he couldn’t explain so he continued to watch. Then he did see something...it was a person. The person was hard to make out, but they were wearing wizard’s robes and carrying a wand. James watched and as this person passed beneath a lamppost he saw his face. James jumped away from the curtains as if they were on fire and drew out his wand.
He stumbled over to Lily and Harry, his face as white as a ghost, “Lily, take Harry and go! It’s him! Go! Run! I’ll hold him off…”
Lily felt the panic within her as she grabbed Harry and started to run toward the back door of the house. Just before she left the living room she turned back to see James standing bravely with his wand ready. All of a sudden she remembered, “Oh James,” she cried, “Peter! He betrayed us!”
“I know,” James shouted back, “There’s nothing we can do about that now! Please go! Before it’s too late!”
Suddenly the front door burst open and there was Voldemort. Lily turned and ran as fast as she could, holding Harry tightly. She heard a horrible bang front the living room and deep in her heart she knew her beloved James was dead, killed by the hand of the wicked Voldemort. But, there wasn’t time for grief now; she had to get out, to save Harry. Finally, she reached the back door but as she grabbed the door handle she felt it lock beneath her fingers. She tugged on it hard several times and knew she was trapped. Then she heard the most horrible laugh she had ever heard not far behind her. She grabbed her wand from her pocket and spun around. There was Voldemort, standing a few feet away, smiling the most evil smile she had ever seen and laughing wickedly at her. Her heart was pounding and she had never been as scared as she was at that moment, but she had to protect Harry, no matter the cost.
“Give me that child!” shouted Voldemort; “He must be destroyed!”
“Never!” Lily screamed back at him. She raised her wand to cast any spell she could to stop Voldemort.
However, Voldemort was much too quick and powerful. Before Lily could even speak he raised his own wand and shouted, “Expelliarmus!” and her own wand flew out of her hand and landed in his. He gripped the wand so tightly at shattered into pieces and fell to the floor. Again he demanded, “Give me that child!”
Lily
backed away from Voldemort right into a corner.
There was nowhere to go or to run.
She could think of nothing else to do but plead with Voldemort, “Not
Harry! Not Harry! Please—I’ll do anything…”
“Stand aside. Stand aside, girl!” Voldemort yelled through
gritted teeth, his patience running thin.
Lily could think of nothing else to say so she just shook her head and held Harry, who was awake but surprisingly calm, as tight as she could.
“So be it,” said Voldemort advancing on Lily with raised wand, laughing shrilly. He threw the deadly curse straight at her and she screamed and slumped to the floor, still clutching Harry.
“You foolish girl. You needn’t have died. If you would have just given the child to me…” muttered Voldemort with no pity in his voice.
He bent down to examine Harry as closely as possible, still pointing his wand at the innocent baby. He muttered to himself, “This is the last heir of that dratted and meddling family. Once he is gone nothing will stop me.”
Harry stared back with his fingers
is his mouth, but hardly moved.
Voldemort laughed his piercing laugh again anticipating final victory.
Voldemort raised his wand
to destroy the last of the Potters.
Bright green light shot out of his wand but something went wrong. For some unknown reason, the light bounced
off little Harry, who screamed with all the breath his lungs could hold, and
landed right back on Voldemort. Voldemort
gave a short yell, fell to the ground, and suddenly burst into a pile of
dust. The explosion was so powerful that
the house fell to pieces around the screaming baby who had fallen backwards. Slowly a light green vapor rose out of the
dust that had once been Voldemort. A
weak and faint voice came from the vapor that said, “I…I…am no more…” and the
vapor slowly drifted away leaving Harry alone, crying, in a pile of rubble.