Watching Over Our Nation

Chapter 3: The loss of the Good

James' POV:

It was 1981, January 15. And we were finally going to do it. Lily and I were going to visit my parents to tell them the big news. The news that they were going to be grand- parents. Almost the last people we were going to tell it.

You might ask yourself why. I had an amazing bond with both my parents after all. They love me to death, and I feel the same way about them. All our friends, or at least, all our friends who are still with us, already know. It kind of surprised me Sirius had been able to keep this from them all this time.

Truth is, I've been avoiding telling them and no one except Lily knew why. I was scared they wouldn't approve, seeing as I'm only 20. Plus, do they see me fit to be a father already? I had a kind of childish history after all, if you ask some people. Was I responsible enough? Even I don't know this for sure.

"James," Lily squeezes my hand and I look into her eyes. Those beautiful green eyes. I hope our child gets his mother's eyes. "It's going to be fine. They'll love it. They're your parents and they love you so much." She was right of course.

Lily was always right.

"Let's go then." I squeeze her hand back and we apperate to my parents' house. I start to get a bit nervous, OK, very nervous to tell them.

I go and ring the bell, but no one answers it. I swallow a lump in my throat, thinking about their illness. They were diagnosed with Dragon Pox only two weeks ago and seeing their age, they aren't likely to recover from it. They probably won't see our child much before they die.

Lily rings again, but no one comes to the door. "Alohomora," I open the door and step inside. I half expected Lily to scold me for breaking an entrance like that, but she doesn't: she follows me inside.

The house is quiet, way too quiet, even for a house this large that holds only two people. "Mom? Dad?" I call, but no response comes. "I check here, you'll check upstairs?" I am considering which would be more risky, you never knew, these days. An attack from outside comes downstairs first, but from inside, they might be upstairs. But also here.

"I'll check here," Lily says decisively and the matter is settled. "Anything and you call me back OK?" I turn to see her, with a very serious (*Sirius) look. She nods. "Same goes for you, Potter."

I go upstairs, very slowly, and trying not to make a sound. I stand before my parents' bedroom in two seconds, despite it being at the other end of the hall.

"One, two..." I suck in a breath and open the door. The room was dark, but empty. My parents were lying peacefully in bed. Except it was noon and they should have been awake at least two hour ago and they're not.

"Dad?" I shake my father's shoulder, but he doesn't stir, not even a bit. This is unsettling me, so I call Lily to come here. No one is in the house, other than my parents, it seems.

"What is it James?" Lily enters the room and stands next to me. "Are they still asleep?" Lily knows, just like I do, that they don't sleep until this late. I go to shake my mom's shoulder, but I freeze the moment I look at her face.

Her eyes are open. Only just a bit, but they definitely are. But she still doesn't move. "Mom?" My voice sounds nothing like my own and Lily follows my gaze. When she sees what I just saw, an odd, strangled sound escapes her mouth.

"James..." Lily engulfs me in a hug and I hug her back. "I'm so sorry!" I sink into her hug and turn away from the sight: my mom was dead and by now, I was kind of sure that my dad was too.

"Expecto Patronum," Lily muttered, conjur- ing a patronus. How, I have no idea. At all. Her doe disappears, I'm assuming to alert our friends. "Lily... they can't have died already... they were diagnosed just two weeks ago..." Lily's breath catches in her throat and she hugs me tighter.