"I love you Severus." Lily Snape said as she wrapped her arms around her husband.
"I love you too Lily. Everything will be fine." Severus said in a calm voice, hoping to soothe his wife's nerves. He was using all his mental strength to occlude his own worries. He did not want to add to Lily's distress.
"I don't want to forget you. I don't want to forget that you are my husband and father to our son." Lily said sadly, her emerald eyes wet as she glanced over to their son Harry who was playing happily in his playpen, oblivious to what was about to happen.
Severus followed her gaze and felt a moment of grief. Erasing the memories of their life together, even temporarily, filled him with immense sadness. Lily and Harry were everything to him.
At Albus Dumbledore's request, Severus had agreed to take the dark mark and join as one of Voldemorts death eaters in order to spy for the Order of the Phoenix. Albus was aware of Severus exceptional skill at occluding yet despite that there could not be a risk of Voldemort finding out about his marriage to Lily or their son. The plan was for Dumbledore to perform a memory charm on all of them, a delicate spell just slightly less strong than obliviate as these memories were not meant to stay away forever. The charm would make Severus and Lily forget that they had ever fallen in love in their seventh year at Hogwarts. The charm would make Lily believe she had married James Potter, who despite being an arrogant bully in school had grown up a lot and become a successful auror. James had agreed to the plan as he wanted to be rid of Voldemort just as much as everyone, as well as he still cared for Lily and wanted to make up for how he had treated Severus in school. He would believe he was married to Lily and father to Harry. A charm had already been placed on Harry to make him look like James though he still had Lily's emerald green eyes and her nose. The charm had been enhanced so that everyone they came in contact with would be affected by it and believe James and Lily had been married all along.
Albus was confident that it would only be a matter of weeks before they were ready to destroy Voldemort once and for all and the moment he was completely gone, the memory spell would be lifted automatically. With the information Severus would be able to get at the death eater meetings and the destruction of the horcrux's, Albus was sure that the nightmare of Voldemort was almost at an end.
Severus tightened his arms around Lily, burying his face in her beautiful red hair. "I hate the thought of you believing Potter is your husband; Potter thinking he is Harry's father." He admitted in a gruff voice. Even though Potter had apologized for the way he and his friends had treated him in school, Severus couldn't help still feeling the bitter resentment. He had been worried at the thought of James and Lily thinking they were in love but Lily had added her own powerful magic to Albus's charm to ensure that the memories included that they were having problems in their marriage, enough so that they wouldn't be intimate. Lily had not wanted to risk being unfaithful to her husband, fake memories or not.
"It's only you Sev. I've only ever loved you and only you could ever be Harry's father. He loves you so much." Lily smiled. As if Harry understood, he stood up in his playpen gazing at his father. "Daddy up!" He demanded holding up his slightly chubby arms.
Severus hid the smile that wanted to show itself as he walked over to his son. "Daddy up what?" He asked trying to sound stern.
"Pease." Harry corrected himself and grinned when Severus picked him up in his strong arms. Harry snuggled into his daddy's neck, feeling safe and loved. Neither one of them noticed the picture Lily slyly took. She added it to a photo album she had been keeping since her and Severus had started dating.
"This will all be over soon." Lily said as she walked over to her husband and child, joining the hug. "We will be back together before we know it." She said determinedly. She would not lose her family for long, she couldn't. She had already lost her parents a year ago and had no contact with her older sister Petunia who hated anything and anyone to do with magic. She wouldn't even have agreed to this plan if Albus hadn't seemed so sure that Voldemorts end was near. Getting rid of him meant a safer world for all of them.
The floo flared to life and Albus Dumbledore walked out, his face serious. "It's time. Are you ready?"
Severus closed his eyes. He would take the mark tonight, having no memory of the wife and son he adored. After the charm was cast all of them would be in a daze and he would find himself in his old home at Spinner's End. Lily and Harry would find themselves at James house in Godric's Hollow. Severus gritted his teeth at the thought of Lily with James. He knew about her extra enhancement to the charm but the idea still upset him. But he knew that James would keep Lily and Harry safe, even if he believed they were having marriage problems. He looked into Lily's eyes one last time. "You have saved me in so many ways. I love you Lily. Always."
Lily's tears spilled over as she kissed Severus. "Same here Sev. You have no idea how happy you have made me. Always."
Severus looked down at his son who was still in his arms. "I love you always Harry." He dropped a kiss on top of Harry's head and hugged him for a moment longer before handing him to Lily. He turned to Albus. "We're ready."
Albus nodded, feeling sadness that his idea to defeat Voldemort was breaking up this family even if it was temporary. He cared about Severus and Lily and hated doing this to them. But he was confident that his plan would work. "You will be reunited soon." He assured them. Taking a deep breath he began invoking the charm.
Lily felt hazy and strange, as if in a dream. Her last thought before her memories fully changed and Albus took her and Harry to James was the precautions she had taken in case things didn't go the way Albus thought they would. Even Severus did not know about the letters, photo album, and pensive that would be sent to Severus and Harry and herself if for some reason the charm did not get lifted. The pensive would reach Severus first and restore his memories. Unfortunately the charm was so complex that the only way she had only been able to find a way to have the memories restored, whether Voldemort was gone or not, was to have it delivered ten years after the memory charm was set. If something went wrong then Severus and Harry and she wouldn't be reunited until Harry was twelve. But at least that was better than never. It won't come to that though, she told herself as she felt new memories begin to take place. The Order of the Phoenix would be successful in defeating Voldemort soon. They had to be.
