Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any related titles/characters. I am simply borrowing them for the enjoyment of myself and others. I am making no profit off of this.
Chapter One
"James, I think it's time to put little Harry to bed." Said Lily Potter. James Potter walked over to where his 14 month old son, Harry, lay in his mother's arms.
"Hey, buddy. Are you tired? Let's get you upstairs." James took his son in his arms, ready to put him to bed.
"James, he hasn't even had his bath yet! Here, give him to me. You go check the wards, make sure they're still strong. We can't take any chances."
"Fine, but make sure he doesn't fall asleep until I get to say goodnight." James replied, as he went to check the wards and his wife made her way upstairs to give Harry his bath and put him in bed.
James was checking the last ward when he heard a loud crack, much like the one caused by apparating. Suddenly, James was pushed back by an unknown force. He looked around for the face of his attacker, and was met with the cold gaze of Lord Voldemort.
"Tell me where the boy is and I might spare your life."
"Never." At this point, James looked up the stairs to catch a small glimpse of his wife and son. Somehow, he had to warn them.
Realizing he had about zero chance of making it out of this situation alive, he wanted to make the best possible escape for his family. Taking a chance, he cried out to them, with Voldemort's wand pressed against his throat, ready to kill.
"Lily, take Harry and run! I'll try and hold him off!"
Lily was upstairs, finishing up Harry's bath. She noticed she had forgotten his pajamas in the other room.
"Oh, well, I guess this is why I'm a witch. Accio Harry's pajamas!" Harry's clothes came soaring into her hands and she began to dress him. As she was finishing, she heard a loud crack, much like the one made when apparating. Lily wondered who was visiting them at this late hour. What she saw surprised her. Knowing to be quiet, she made her way into Harry's bedroom. Lily heard James yell to her.
"Lily, take Harry and run! I'll try and hold him off!"
As any of her Hogwarts teachers would testify, Lily Potter was a quick thinker. Desperate for a way to save not only her life, but that of her son and husband's, Lily disillusioned herself and Harry and silently apparated downstairs, as the steps were blocked by the presence of James and Voldemort dueling. Lily crept up behind Voldemort, as he was currently not moving from his standing position. She undid her disillusionment spell and pointed her wand at Voldemort's heart. Managing to catch James' attention, she mouthed her plan: cast avada kedavra on three. With the hand that was holding Harry, she held up one, two, three fingers. With the other, she cast the killing curse at Voldemort's heart.
Voldemort, not knowing Lily was behind him, was shocked to say the least. He glowed green for a moment, and then burst into green flames. By the time the blinding flames had vanished, there was but a pile of ashes on the stairway of the Potter home.
For a long while, James and Lily just stood there, neither sure of what to do next. Lily, realizing Harry was still invisible to James, undid his disillusionment charm as well. Fatigued from casting such a powerful spell, both made to sit on the sofa.
"Lily, you never cease to amaze me. I would have never thought of such a brilliant plan." James said as he kissed her cheek. She blushed and replied:
"James! Don't you realize what we just did?! We just killed one of the darkest wizards to ever exist! We need to talk to someone, someone who will understand…Dumbledore! He'll know what to do!" As she said this, both her and James (and Harry too) moved in front of the fireplace. James threw some floo powder in and shouted: "Hogwarts Headmaster's Office.!"
With surprising speed, Dumbledore appeared in his office.
"Yes, James, what is it?" asked the kind old man.
"Albus, Lily and I need to talk to you, could you please come over here?"
After the young couple told Dumbledore the story, he gave them some very good advice.
"James, Lily, you must realize that the press will find out sooner than later. Although you may prefer later, sooner is undoubtedly best. After they know the truth, I assume you won't want to be bothered by them. I suggest moving to the muggle world, at least until young Harry here is old enough to go to Hogwarts. I know that it seems like a long time, but it is necessary. At that point, if you wish to move back, I will not stop you. In fact, if you do prefer to stay here in the wizarding world now, I still cannot stop you. Only offer advice. Either way, you may be known as 'the family who lived'. You know how Rita's articles always have a way of showing people in a bad light. Once again, I can only offer advice."
"Albus, thank you so much. James, would you mind living in the muggle world? I grew up there, but well, you grew up in a pureblood family." In fact, Lily Potter thought it was an excellent idea to relocate to the muggle world.
"I also extend my thanks to you Albus. Lils, if it would make you happy, I would move half way around the world." James the Romantic.
"I think it's best if I leave. Oh, once again, congratulations on your excellent plan, Mrs. Potter. Don't hesitate to owl me for anything." And so, Dumbledore flooed away, leaving the three Potter's to contemplate their next move.
Three days later
James Potter looked at this morning's edition of the Daily Prophet. There, on the front page was the article about Lord Voldemort's demise. Little did the wizarding community know that he would once more rise to power. Recently, James had remembered who their secret-keeper had been. I'm going to kill that little rat with my bare hands if it's the last thing I do… Peter Pettigrew had betrayed him. Not like it mattered anymore. He and his beautiful wife were moving to a high-class neighborhood in Bristol.
As James pulled the moving truck into the driveway of their new mansion, he noticed the real beauty of it. The manor was about seven stories tall, white with blue shutters and shingles. There was a large back yard, big enough to hold a quidditch pitch. He figured that when Harry was older, he would take him to Hogwarts on weekends to learn how to play quidditch. Maybe he would put a pool in the backyard. James stepped out of the truck and opened the back, so he could get their stuff out. Lily, however, was inside taking care of Harry. Unfortunately, they had to live as muggles and make everything seem normal. Not that it was a bad thing, he would enjoy the experience. Deciding to take some of the heavier objects in first, he grabbed the large big screen TV, thinking he could handle it. 'Where did he get a big screen TV?' you might ask. Well, the Potters had been a very wealthy family, more so than the Malfoys, and James had inherited a lot of money, so he wanted to indulge in the pleasures of being muggle. And that included big screens.
Not realizing the immense weight of the TV, he had almost dropped it until a stranger came along to help him with it. Grateful for the help, the two men moved the TV inside and carefully set it down.
"Hello," the stranger said, "my name is Adam Granger. My wife, daughter, and I welcome you to the neighborhood. We're your new neighbors!"
A/N: Okay, so I have most of this story planned out. This story will take Harry and Hermione through the end of fourth year. The sequel will cover years five through parenthood. Yeah, they are going to be long, really long. In this fic, Hermione was born after Harry, not before. The reason she attends Hogwarts early will be explained in a later chapter. By the way, if you don't like, don't read, and don't flame me. That really annoys me.
british tears