Enchanted | James Potter

Epilogue.

Flora and James sat in the living room of their cottage in Godric's Hollow playing with their son, Harry, and discussing their future. James was making puffs of colored smoke erupt from his wand for Harry’s amusement. He was laughing and trying to grab it from his small fist. Flora then picked Harry up as James threw his wand down upon the sofa and stretched, yawning. Then he heard a voice, a small voice but it made him alert nonetheless. 

Flora was in the hall when James came sprinting into the hall. “Flora, take Harry and go! It’s him! Go! Run! I’ll hold him off!”

Hold him off, without a wand in his hand! . . . Voldemort laughed before casting the curse. . . .“Avada Kedavra!”

The green light filled the cramped hallway, it lit the pram pushed against the wall, it made the banisters glare like lightning rods, and James Potter fell like a marionette whose strings were cut. . . .He could hear her screaming from the upper floor, trapped, but as long as she was sensible, she, at least, had nothing to fear. . . . He climbed the steps, listening with faint amusement to her attempts to barricade herself in. . . . She had no wand upon her either. . . . How stupid they were, and how trusting, thinking that their safety lay in friends, that weapons could be discarded even for moments. . . .

He forced the door open, cast aside the chair and boxes hastily piled against it with one lazy wave of his wand . . . and there she stood, the child in her arms. At the sight of him, she dropped her son into the crib behind her and threw her arms wide, as if this would help, as if in 

shielding him from sight she hoped to be chosen instead. . . .

“Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!”

“Stand aside, you silly girl . . . stand aside, now.”

“Not Harry! Please . . . have mercy . . . have mercy. . . . Not Harry! 

Not Harry! Please — I’ll do anything —” 

“Stand aside. Stand aside, girl!”

He could have forced her away from the crib, but it seemed more prudent to finish them all. . . .

The green light flashed around the room and the spell hit her chest. She dropped like her husband. The child had not cried all this time: He could stand, clutch-ing the bars of his crib, and he looked up into the intruder’s face with interest.

“Avada Kedavra” he screamed again but then something miraculous happened. The spell ricocheted and the curse hti Voldemort instead. He screamed as he vanished into thin air.

Edward did not believe it at first. He could not believe it. His fault. It was all his fault. He had made the biggest mistake and now Flora was dead. 

He was slumped forward in a chair and Dumbledore was stand-ing over him, looking grim. After a moment or two, Edward raised his face, and he looked like a man who had lived a hundred years of misery since leaving the wild hilltop. 

“I thought . . . you were going . . . to keep her . . . safe. . . .” 

“She and James put their faith in the wrong person,” said Dumbledore. “Rather like you, Edward. Weren’t you hoping that Lord Voldemort would spare her?” 

Edward’s breathing was shallow. 

“Her boy survives,” said Dumbledore. With a tiny jerk of the head, Edward seemed to flick off an irksome fly. 

“Her son lives. He has her eyes, precisely her eyes. You remember the shape and color of Flora’s eyes, I am sure?” remembering them, her eyes, her beautiful, enchanting eyes only brought more tears.

“DON’T!” bellowed Edward. “Gone . . . dead . . .” 

“Is this remorse, Edward?” 

“I wish . . . I wish I were dead. . . .” 

“And what use would that be to anyone?” said Dumbledore coldly. “If you loved Flora Abernathy. if you truly loved her, then your way forward is clear.” 

Edward seemed to peer through a haze of pain, and Dumbledore’s words appeared to take a long time to reach him.

“What — what do you mean?” 

“You know how and why she died. Make sure it was not in vain. Help me protect Flora’s son.” 

“He does not need protection. The Dark Lord has gone…” 

“The Dark Lord will return, and Harry Potter will be in terrible danger when he does.” 

There was a long pause, and slowly Snape regained control of himself, mastered his own breathing. At last he said, “Very well. Very well. But never… never tell, Dumbledore! This must be between us! Swear it! I cannot bear . . . especially Potter’s son . . . I want your word!”

Edward swore to protect Harry for Flora that day. 

Meanwhile, Harry was left on the front door of the house of Flora's muggle half sister, Catherine. Harry would remain with her till he turns seventeen.

A few days later Sirius had been imprisoned in Azkaban for betraying James and Flora Potter and killing twelve muggles along with Peter Pettirgew. The real truth wouldn’t come out until years later.

Alice and Frank had been tortured to insanity by death eaters soon after that night in October. Both of them were put up in St. Mungos and Neville Longbottom, their son, were entrusted to Augusta Longbottom, his grandmother.

Mathias left the country with his wife, Evanna and daughter, Marlene. Whilst the entire Wizarding World was celebrating the downfall of Voldemort, they had nothing to celebrate. They had lost their best friends that day. They would not return back to England until a decade later, when their daughter's term at Hogwarts would begin. That day, Mathias vowed always to support Remus and never leave him. Remus, his last remaining friend. His best friend, inflicted by a curse, worse than any pain in the world. He vowed to be there for Remus every full moon and be his support.

Severus and Lily’s romance blossomed in the wake of the tragedy. Tragedies tear people apart but every once in a while, it could also bring people together. They supported each other through the loss of their loved ones. Their best friends. 

A few years later, Severus succeeded in becoming an animagus. It was a decision he made in honor of all the people who had given him, the lost boy, a home and taught him how to love. Remus was glad to have another friend in Severus. He was glad that he still had Mathias and Severus to be there for him every full moon. 

That fateful night changed everything for these group of people, quite insignificant in the entire story of the universe but very essential in their own way.

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AUTHORS NOTE: The epilogue already (internally screaming!!!)
This had to be done.
FLAMES FOREVER!