it's not really goodbye, after all

It was then that she felt the prickling on the back of her neck. The same sensation she had whenever she went out in public. She knew that someone was watching them. As discreetly as she could she waved her wand at the window in the kitchen and the curtains flew across it.

Walking quickly into the living room, she leaned on the doorway, pretending to watch her son and husband playing together while secretly trying to look out of the window, attempting to catch a glimpse of whoever was watching them but all she saw was the spookily illuminated front garden.

"James," she said softly and despite Harry's shrieks of delight and how much fun he was having, her husband sat up abruptly and looked at her, concern written on his face.

"What is it?" he asked.

Lily glanced at Harry who was still chasing the bubbles from James' last spell around the room. She lowered her voice, "Don't look now, but I think we're being watched."

James' eyes flicked to the side, trying to see out of the darkened window in his peripheral vision, "It's probably just some kids Lils, it is Halloween after all."

Lily bit her lip worriedly, before deciding that James was probably right. The kids in the neighbourhood couldn't see their house, but they were bound to be looking at it sometime or another when they walked past. The neighbourhood was crawling with children tonight anyway.

James set his wand down on the table beside the couch and stood up, wrapping Lily in his arms

"Everything is going to be okay, Peter will keep our secret. We're safe here Lils, Dumbledore made sure of it, remember."

Lily nodded grimly. This wasn't the life that she wanted for herself or her family. She hated being cooped up twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Not being able to see her friends or her family because of how dangerous it was for anyone to be out in the streets nowadays.

The muggles were blissfully unaware of what was going on right under their noses and there were some days when Lily wished that she had never got her Hogwarts letter on her eleventh birthday so many years ago. She would be safer now if it hadn't happened.

Lily planted a kiss on James' lips, "You're right. We're going to be okay."

That was when the two of them heard the lock on the front door click open. Lily and James looked at each other with identical looks of horror on their faces. They knew that everyone who had their location was at an Order of the Phoenix meeting tonight that didn't finish until the early hours of the morning.

James barrelled off into the corridor as Lily snatched Harry up, her heart beating in her throat.

"Lily, take Harry and run! It's him! I'll hold him off," James yelled from the corridor. Lily ran towards the stairs that lead to the upper floor. In the same moment that she realised that James' wand still lay on the table beside the couch, a flash of green light filled the living room. Lily sprinted up the stairs, fighting to hold back tears as she felt her heart shatter into a thousand tiny pieces, because there was nothing that could ever survive that curse.

She ran into their bedroom and placed Harry in his cot and bent over and whispered into his ear

"Mummy loves you so much, we're gonna make it, I love you, be brave for me Harry. Be brave."

A light filled the room as Voldemort unlocked the bedroom door and Lily knew it was time. It was time to say goodbye to Harry, to life, to anyone that she ever loved. But she knew that saying goodbye wasn't going to be so hard, it was just a prelude to Hello. She would see James again soon, and eventually she would see Harry as well.

"Stand aside, girl," the figure in the hood said.

"Not Harry," Lily begged, shielding her son with her body.

"I said, stand aside silly girl."

"Please, not Harry. Have mercy!"

Lily saw the mouth underneath the hood twitch into a smile. There was a flash of green light and Lily Potter fell. She fell so far, down, down into the darkness and into the waiting arms of her husband, assuring her that death really wasn't goodbye after all.

AN: I know that this is horribly cliché'd but the prompts fitted it so well that I couldn't resist. ALSO ALLIE YOU AND YOUR WORDLIMITS ARE RIDICULOUS AND IT WAS SO DAMN HARD TO KEEP THIS UNDER 800 WORDS I HATE YOU *hugs*

For the big/lil sis competition with the prompts: "It's always easier to say goodbye when you know its just a prelude to hello", friends and the pairing Jily.

I'd love it if you could leave a review!

DFTBA,
Best Wishes

Nayla xx