epiphany || james potter

twenty nine

April 26th 1980

Pregnancy seemed easy for Eloise, as long as you forget there was a war going on as she went through her days. Dumbledore stopped sending her on missions, James still had to go as much as Eloise protested.

Lily and Marlene helped whenever she needed them, they were like saving graces. They finally moved in together a little before the end of March, telling everyone about their blossoming relationship. It felt as if nothing could go wrong with them.

That was until Eloise woke up at 11pm, something not feeling right at all. Everything felt off.

So she woke James.

"James, somethings not right, I think we need to go to Lily's." Eloise said worriedly.

"Els, you need to breathe, you're being paranoid." He kissed her on the head. "Go back to sleep, love."

"No, get ready. I don't care what time it is I'm going." Eloise got up and got her shoes and wand.

"Fine." James reluctantly agreed. "But if anything happens there you are not fighting."

"Okay."

The couple apparated to a house. A house that felt as if the life had been sucked out of it.

They immediately knew.

What they were going to find would be grim.

The house was smashed. To the point things were no longer recognisable.

But amongst the mess a familiar lock of red hair poked out from the living room.

"James, find whoever did this." Eloise screamed.

She knelt down by the once happy girl. "Lily please wake up, please, I need you. I need you more than anything." Eloise sobbed. She felt a small pulse, it was clear she didn't have a killing curse used, but it was unforgivable.

"Expecto Patronum!" Eloise shouted. "Go to Dumbledore, we need help at Marlene and Lily's."

She had to leave Lily, she was still breathing, Eloise needed to find Marlene.

She ran around the house, it was like a maze of broken glass and destroyed memories.

And within minutes, there she was.

Her silky blonde hair matted, her once alive eyes now looking hollow and lazy, and her blood trickling onto the white sheets. There was no chance of her being alive.

The blonde girl fell to the floor, nothing could hold her. Nothing could save her.

James POV

He was running. He'd find the person who killed Marlene McKinnon even if it was the last thing he'd do.

Not even ten minutes away there he was. Peter Pettigrew crying, scrubbing blood off his hands. Marlene's blood.

"Peter, don't move. We know you're the spy." James shouted.

Peter didn't even bother to try and fight back, he just sobbed.

"What were you thinking! You had everything here with us!" James screamed.

"I had nothing! I was the joke of the group, I was the chore, I was everything no one wanted." Peter shouted back.

"Peter, you were loved, you were wanted, you are a rat. Everyone's on their way, everyone's going to hear of what a pathetic person you truly are." James cried out, wondering what became of his best friend.

"I'm sorry, I had no choice." Peter said back with a completely innocent face, as if he did nothing wrong.

"You made choices Peter." James clapped back. "Sirius and Remus are on their way, then we can all see the pathetic coward you became."

"I'm no coward!" Peter screamed.

"You disgust me Peter." James whispered, he was hurt that the boy he loved like a brother would betray everyone in the worst way possible, killing Marlene Mckinnon.

Peter rose his wand but as soon as he did Sirius and Remus turned up on the beach near the once Mckinnon house hold, along with Dumbledore.

Eloise's POV

It seemed like forever before someone turned up at the house. But once she'd paced the floor at least 100 times there was a knock, Minerva Mcgonagall was there. She explained that the rat was Peter, the news knocked the wind out of Eloise sending her to even deeper sobs. The healers came for Lily and Marlene, Lily was stable but Marlene wasn't breathing, her heart had stopped, leaving Lily without the love of her life.

"It can't have been him. Minerva, he was an angel." The blonde woman cried.

"I'm so sorry, Eloise, he wasn't the man you knew." Minerva held her like a mother would. Making her feel safe and together.

"Where are they taking him?" Eloise asked through sobs.

"Azkaban. This doesn't mean it's over. Dumbledore found out the dark lord has made Horcruxes, and Regulus black has left to find them." Mcgonagall explained.

"He's eighteen! We have children fighting a war! Surely this isn't allowed." Eloise stood, angrily pointing out the corruption of the order.

"I am aware, it's Dumbledore who is not."

Eloise stood silently.

"She's gone. Oh merlin, my best friend is gone." This was when she truly broke, when the realisation of the war hit her like a wave of deep emotions.

Minerva stepped in getting her out of the house to where James was stood. Like her guardian angel.