Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters within. I'm not making any money off this. However, this is my National Novel Writing Month project so wish me luck as I try to finish the month with 50,000 words! This is purely a "what if" story, so please, no one tell me that Lily died and this isn't part of canon…I know that. That's why I'm writing this story.

And remember, reviews are a wonderful thing!

The Road Home

Chapter One: Intervention

October 31, 1981

He was told to wait. To just sit and wait while other people were suppose to take care of what he wanted protected. He fell into the old armchair, exhausted from his hours of pacing. Kids dressed in homemade costumes wandered in front of the house that sat at the end of Spinner's End. He had charmed it that night so it would looked abandoned. He really didn't want any guests. All he wanted to know was that she was safe.

It was all his fault to begin with. He had been replaying so many things in his mind that night, trying to find the part where everything went spinning out of control and all he ever wanted from life slipped through his fingers. It had happened six years ago, by the Black Lake at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. And all it took was one word spoken out of fear, humiliation and the desire to be part of something that was bigger than himself.

He still felt intense shame at that particular memory. The countless times he had attempted to apologize to her afterwards held no condemnation for him, only sorrow. She had been right though. She had given him more than enough chances to adapt to her standards but he had refused. Not because he wasn't capable but because she was able to go to Gryffindor Tower and be accepted while he descended into the dungeons and was demanded to align himself with the pure blood mania that was spreading like wild fire through the House. She didn't understand, he didn't have a choice to make. When the sorting hat placed him in Slytherin, the choice had been made as to what path he would take in life.

He tried to excel in that path, God knows he tried. He thought if he could gain favor as the Dark Lord's most trusted servant, he would be able to protect her. Or at least be the first Death Eater to leave the service of the Dark Lord and live to tell the tale. He didn't know what he was doing when he reported the prophecy back to Voldemort. If he had known that by doing that, he was signing her death warrant, he would have gladly carried that prophecy to the grave with him. He hadn't spoken or seen her in so long, he didn't even know she was expecting. He hadn't even considered the possibility that the prophecy could refer to her at all.

Using the prophecy as a bargaining chip, he asked the Dark Lord to spare the mother. To everyone's surprise, most of all his own, the Dark Lord agreed. It was merely an act to show his followers that he rewarded such faithful behavior though he also mocked the sentimentality he had for a 'mudblood.' But the Dark Lord's promise to spare the mother wasn't a good enough assurance so he went to the only other man who could possibly intervene.

Albus Dumbledore had proved to be a fair minded Headmaster while Severus was at school. He was a man who believed in second chances which meant he would believe in Severus. When it came down to it, he trusted Dumbledore's word over the Dark Lord's, a thought that would get him killed in an instant. He had arranged a meeting with Dumbledore and pled his case. The wizened wizard, though initially disgusted, heard his plea. He had traded his service for the Dark Lord to another. He had swapped one master or another. Even if she was spared, he was still an indentured servant for the rest of his life.

He sat there with his head in his hands and wondered where he had gone from being the "Half-Blood Prince," a man who created spells and modified potions to someone who had to rely on others to do a job he should be doing himself. He loved her. He cared about Lily Evans and he had placed her life and safety into the hands of two other men, one of which he didn't trust at all and one who he didn't know if he could trust.

His mother's words came back to him through the haze of worry and fear. She had taken him by the shoulders as he was about to board the Hogwarts Express for the first time and looked him in the eye. He had learned to listen to her when she did this. She didn't speak often but when she did, it was worth listening to.

"Severus, there is one person you can count on to do the right and proper thing."

"You?" he had foolishly answered.

She shook her head, sadness etched onto her features. "Yourself."

And that was the last time he had seen her alive. The pain still felt fresh, even after ten years of getting accustomed to the loss. He was not particular close to his mother but her loss was still significant. It was not knowing the woman that she really was underneath the hidden bruises and broken spirit. He could not imagine what the pain would be if he lost Lily, someone he did know. The only person he had ever called "friend" and meant it in every sense of the word.

No, he couldn't rely on Dumbledore's protection or Voldemort's mercy. He had to be the one that protected her, and if need be, Potter and their son. He was the only one that he could count on to do the job right and to the best of his ability. He would no longer sit on the sidelines and wait for someone else to do what he wanted done. He knew they were in Godric's Hollow and he concentrated on the small square at the center of town and apparated.

He felt the world stop spinning and when he opened his eyes, he was in Godric's Hollow. Children still wandered the street, though not in many numbers due to the late hour. He pulled his wand and held it at the ready as he ran down the street where he was certain she lived. The Dark Lord knew where the house was, that sniveling coward of a man had told them, breaking the Fidelius charm that had been set. He scanned the houses, wanting some sort of sign as to which one was the Potter's. No sooner did he wish for that, then it was revealed to him.

A flash of green light lit up the small yard two houses in front of him. He didn't hesitate as he barreled his way through the front gate and up the walk to the front door that was already standing open. He flattened himself against the side of the door jam and peeked into the house. Potter was already dead on the floor, his hazel eyes empty and staring directly at him. He thought he would feel a thrill of joy or at least a moment of happiness at seeing his school rival finally defeated but the only feeling that assaulted him was a tragic sense of loss and waste.

He glanced up the stairs and saw Voldemort ascending the stairs while Lily rushed into the nursery and slammed the door shut. Severus was able to get just enough of a look at the nursery in order to apparate there. He concentrated on what the crib looked like, the color of the walls and Lily herself. By the time he had reappeared in the room, Voldemort was already there, wand held at the ready, pointed directly at the screaming mother who was holding her child against her.

He watched as Voldemort's red eyes widened in surprise at his sudden appearance. This was good, he wanted his Dark Lord to know that he no longer his lord. He kept his gaze level, and steady as he threw his arms around Lily and the child and apparated from Godric's Hollow. Severus Snape had only one master now and that was the love he felt for the woman he just saved.