Saving Their Lives

The next morning Lilly and James woke to the sound of Harry’s happy giggles. He was sitting on the floor with another baby about his age levitating blocks between them. The two of them were having a great time throwing the blocks back and forth to each other magically. Lilly smiled when she saw the happiness radiating from her son. Just then his bright green eyes looked up and met hers and he grinned.

He threw his arms up in the air and yelled, “Mamma!”

The other child looked at her and must have thought she was family and lifted his arms up to her as well. Lilly grinned and climbed out of the bed and picked the two babies up and cuddled them close, kissing first Harry and then the other one on the head. Lilly thought that this must be Harry’s best friend, Ron. “Are you Ron?” she asked softly to the smiling baby.

He grinned wider and snuggled in against her chest. Harry patted her chest and said, “Mamma!” and then screamed, “Eat!”

Lilly chuckled and walked toward the kitchen. If there was one thing Harry could always be counted on to remember, it was to eat. He loved food. “Are you hungry, baby?” she cooed to her son.

“Eat!” Ron hollered at her as well.

“Well then, we had better get you two little tyrants fed then, hadn’t we.” Lilly smiled when she entered the kitchen and saw Molly standing at the stove stirring a pot.

“Good morning, dear,” she smiled and then noticed Ron. “Well hello there,” she said walking up to take him from the young witches arms.

“No!” he shouted and buried his head back in her chest.

Lilly smiled. “He’s fine, I don’t mind holding him,” she said.

Molly looked hurt but she smiled and returned to her pot. “Are they hungry? Ronnie is always demanding food,” she sniffed.

Taking his cue from his mother he shouted again, “Eat!” and scrambled to get out of Lilly’s arms. She set him on the floor and he totted to his chair smacking his hand on it, shouting again, “Eat!”

Harry, not wanting to be outdone struggled until Lilly put him down as well and followed Ron to his chair, shouting, “Eat!”

Molly and Lilly grinned at each other. “I guess that answers my question,” she said. “Could you put them up in the chair? I think that they will both fit in one,” she smiled.

Lilly pulled the chair out and helped the two toddlers into the chair where they sat grinning and waiting for their breakfast. “I’ll go wake James. It’s not like him to sleep in so late,” she said walking back to the family room.

“Honey,” she whispered into his ear.

“Mmm,” he said sleepily.

“Time to get up, love,” she said smoothing his hair back out of his face.

“What time is it?” he asked.

“About eight. Harry is up at the table and Molly is giving him breakfast.”

James grinned. “Harry does like to eat, doesn’t he?”

Lilly smiled. “What time are we leaving?”

“I told Sirius to meet us at nine in front of Gringotts. I think that Arthur needs to come as well. He will need to sign the papers agreeing to become Harry’s guardian. We also might as well take him with us to the Muggle development and perform the Fidelius charm. We need to disappear as soon as possible.”

Lilly sadly nodded. “I know. Harry seems to be enjoying himself,” she said when she again heard his laughter.

“In the future, the two of them are best friends. Of course they would like each other now. They are drawn to each other for some reason,” James said sitting up and reaching for his glasses. “Do you need anything from the cottage? I didn’t bring anything with me when I left and I need to pick up a few things.”

“Oh!” Lilly gasped. “Is it safe for you to return there?”

“I would imagine so. Halloween night is when we are to die; I would suspect that anytime before that we should be able to go back. I don’t want you or Harry anywhere near there, but I’ll go and pick up what I need and then perhaps we can hire a house elf. They would be bound to us and couldn’t reveal our secrets. That way they could pack up our home and help in the new one. We will probably need help now with household chores and Harry since we will be gone often looking for the things that Harry told us about,” he said.

“A house elf?” Lilly asked. “You know how I feel about house elves!”

“I don’t know of any other way, Lilly. We can’t do this all by ourselves, and we can’t trust anyone else.”

Lilly thought for a moment and sighed. “I suppose you’re right. I’ll make you a list of what we need. Please be careful, darling,” she whispered.

“I promise, love. Now hurry, or we’ll be late. It should only take me a few moments to apparate there and return here.”

Lilly hastily walked to the kitchen and asked Molly for a quill and a piece of parchment. When she handed to her Lilly made her list and then handed it back to her husband. She kissed him passionately and watched as he disappeared. She felt a tear run down her cheek and she quickly wiped it away. Putting a smile on her face she returned to the kitchen where Harry, Ron and several other redheaded children were eating oatmeal. “You have your hands full, Molly. Are you sure that you want another?” Lilly asked.

Molly grinned. She patted her belly and said, “One more on the way, and your Harry won’t make any difference to this brood. I love children, the more the merry,” she said happily.

Lilly thought that the woman was insane, but she kept telling herself what Harry had told her and she smiled back. “I know that you are a good mother, Molly. I can never thank you for what you have done for my son,” she said with a watery smile.

“It’s just some oatmeal, Lilly,” she said wiping her own tear away.

Lilly walked to the older witch and wrapped her arms around her. “Thank you, Molly Weasley, for being there when I couldn’t.”

Molly hugged the younger woman back and smiled. “Let’s just make sure that you are here to raise him this time,” she said. “Now, go get yourself ready, I’ll watch this one for you,” she said grinning at Harry, who’s face was covered with the cereal.


James quickly gathered the items on Lilly’s list and was about to leave when he heard a knock on the door. He wondered who it could be and quickly stashed his bag under the stairs and went to answer it. He cautiously pulled his wand from his pocket and partially opened the door, having his wand at ready. “Dumbledore!” he said in surprise.

“Hello James, may I come in?” he asked.

James knew it would be strange if he didn’t let the man in so he stepped back and welcomed in to his home. “How are you?” he asked.

“Good, good. I was wondering, if I might borrow your invisibility cloak a bit longer. I know that I promised you that I would return it by today, but I would like to study it a little longer,” he said with a twinkling smile.

James felt his heart beat faster as he remembered one of the things that Harry had told him. “Actually, I have a mission that I must accomplish this evening and I need it back now. I was actually just about to come to the castle and retrieve it from you,” he said.

“Oh, well perhaps another time then,” he said. “No need to come to the castle, I have it with me. It is a very intriguing bit of material. You say it was handed down in your family for many years?” Dumbledore asked.

“As long as anyone can remember. I used to hide from my parents with it when I was a kid,” James smiled at the memory. He reached his hand out and took the garment from the older hand. “Thanks,” he said.

“No, thank you. How is everything going here? Where is Lilly and Harry?” he asked looking around at the quiet house. It was usually loud and chaotic in the Potter home.

“They went to visit Petunia,” James lied. “Lilly is trying to rebuild their relationship.”

“I fear that wish is a lost cause. Petunia could never get over what she perceived as Lilly’s betrayal. When Lilly left to attend Hogwarts, Petunia could not forgive her.”

James nodded. “Still, she feels she must try. I am sorry to rush you out the door, however, I am to be at work at nine, and it is nearing that now.”

“Yes, yes, sorry. I will see the two of you at the meeting tomorrow evening?” he asked.

“Of course. We shall be there. Anything new that I need to be aware of?” James asked, because it was his usual comment.

“Nothing that can’t wait until tomorrow. Till then,” he said walking back towards the door. “I really would like to study your cloak again, at your convenience, of course.”

“Sure,” James said trying not to glare. He knew that Dumbledore was up to no good and it involved his cloak. He wished that he could ask Harry more questions. “Good day,” he said shutting the door.

Quickly he ran back to the closet under the stairs and pulled out his bag that he packed and shoved the cloak into it. He took one more quick glance around and apparated away, not knowing that Dumbledore stood outside of the window watching him.


Sirius pulled himself out of bed and stumbled to the shower. He had a headache from the night before and wished that he had some hangover potion. He had used his last vial the prior weekend and had forgotten to ask Lilly for some more. He figured if he hurried he could stop in the apothocary shop and purchase some before he met James and Lilly at Gringotts. He used his wand to remove his clothing and climbed in turning the water on. It was charmed to always come on at the same temperature. He moaned in pleasure when the water hit his skin. He closed his eyes for a moment and let the heat penetrate his sleepy body. Usually in the morning he would awaken with a morning wood and masturbate in the shower, but he was in no mood this morning. He was too worried about his friends. He opened his eyes and reached for the soap quickly lathering up his body. After rinsing he reached for the shampoo and lathered his hair and the rinsed. He leaned down to turn the water off and then stepped out of the shower, again reaching for his wand, which he used to dry himself and retrieve clean clothes.

Once he was dressed he stepped into his shoes and grabbed his cloak and then apparated to Diagon Alley. It was early, but most shops were already open. He went straight to the apothocary shop and purchased the vial of hangover potion, which he downed while standing in the shop.

“Do you need some more for a later time?” the sales clerk asked shrewdly.

Sirius looked at the man and then nodded. Who knew when Lilly would have time to brew anymore? “Give me a dozen vials,” he said. He could feel the potion already working.

The clerk handed him the wrapped package, which he set in the pocket of his cloak and Sirius handed him several galleons. “Thank you, sir,” the man smirked.

Sirius glared at him and left the store heading across the way to get a cup of hot tea. He didn’t feel awake in the morning without his cup of tea. He tossed a few coins on the counter and sighed in relief when the first mouthful hit his belly. He loved the smell and the taste of the hot beverage. He slowly made his way down the street to the steps of Gringotts where he sat and waited for James and his wife. He hoped that everything would be all right.

“Good morning, Sirius,” a happy voice said.

Sirius looked up and almost groaned out loud. Standing before him was the little rodent traitor. It took everything that he had in him to stay calm and not jump up and kill the little man. “Wormtail, I am in a very bad mood this morning and my hangover potion is not working. It would be to your best interest to disappear before I take it out on you,” he growled.

Peter Pettigrew looked at the angry man in horror. He was known to be cranky in the mornings, but usually he was fine after consuming his cup of tea. He could see the tea resting in his hand so he assumed he would be fine. “What are you doing about so early?” he tried again.

“Do you have a death wish?” Sirius snarled.

Peter shivered. He couldn’t understand why Sirius was so angry. He couldn’t possibly know that he had changed sides could he? “Well, I guess I’ll go then,” he said trying to figure what was going on.

“And don’t return,” he hissed.

“Have I done something to offend you?” he asked bravely, not knowing why the other man could be so angry.

“I told you, I am not in the mood this morning,” Sirius wanted more than anything to point his wand at the traitor and avada him into the next life.

Peter nodded. He knew Sirius’ temper and was not stupid enough to hang around when he wasn’t wanted. “Well, I am off then,” he said walking away.

Sirius watched as the rat walked away down the street. He kept his eyes on him until he disappeared into a shop and then he looked down at his cup. It was empty and he wanted another cup. He looked up at the building to see what time it was and decided that he did not have enough time. James and Lilly would be there within minutes.

A second later he heard the apparation pop and looked up to see his two best friends. “Where’s Weasley?” he asked.

“We thought it would be better if the three of us went in first and then he came a few moments later. It is better that we are not seen arriving anywhere together. Once we are inside we will request a private room and then he will join us there.”

Sirius nodded. “That’s probably a good plan,” he said. “Guess who was just here?” he asked.

At the same time, James said, “Guess who came by the house this morning?”

“Wormtail?”

“Dumbledore?” they both said together again.

“What?” James said. “Wormtail was here?”

“He just left. Don’t worry, I didn’t do anything to him, though I wanted to.”

“Does he suspect?”

Sirius snorted. “I told him I was hung over, which I am, and to leave me alone. He ran away fast enough.”

Lilly laughed. “Do you need a potion?” she asked reaching into her bag.

“No, I bought some this morning. I’m fine now,” he said. “Why did Dumbledore come to the cottage?”

“He wanted to keep my invisibility cloak longer,” James said.

“Didn’t Harry tell you to get it back from you?”

“Yeah, and I did. I told him I had a mission that I needed it for tonight. He seemed to have bought it.”

Lilly sighed. “This is going to be hard to keep everyone at bay without tipping our hands,” she said.

“One thing at a time, love. Let’s make sure that Harry is taken care of first, and then we will find a new home. We had better get inside before Arthur arrives.” The three of them entered the bank moments before Arthur apparated to the front steps.

“We need a private room. My wife and I would like to make changes to our wills,” James said to the Goblin at the front desk.

“Very good, Mr. Potter. If you will follow me,” the goblin said.

“I am expecting Arthur Weasley any moment, and he will be joining us. I expect this transaction to remain confidential,” he warned.

“Yes sir, Mr. Potter. We pride ourselves on our discretion here,” he answered.

“Your name, sir?” James asked the Goblin.

“I am called Grafhook,” he said proudly.

James nodded and they followed the Goblin into a private office. When they were seated he got straight to the point. “I would like to change the guardianship of my son. We would like to leave him to Sirius Black. If for some reason he is unable to care for my son, I would like the guardianship of him to go to Arthur and Molly Weasley. I want it to be made clear that under no circumstances is he to be awarded to Petunia or Vernon Dursley.”

Grafhook nodded. “Do you want both of your wills to reflect this change?” he asked.

Lilly nodded. “Yes, we do. We also need to set up a trust fund so that the Weasley’s will have money to pay for Harry. How much does it cost a year for a student to go to Hogwarts?” she asked.

Grafhook named an amount and James and Lilly nodded. “We would like you to add twenty five percent to that, and that is what we would like the Weasley’s to receive for caring for Harry. We would like it to be distributed to them monthly. We would also like for him to be give a monthly allowance. Please add an additional ten percent to his own vault each month. We don’t want this to cause a financial burden to the Weasley’s.

Just then Arthur walked in and smiled. “I see you have already started,” he said sitting.

“We were just discussing financial matters,” James said. “How soon before you can have the changes made?” he asked.

“Give me a few minutes. Mr. Weasley, do you want a separate account set up for the transfer of money for young Mr. Potter’s care, or would you like it sent to your existing account?” Grafhook asked.

“What? I don’t need any additional money!” Arthur argued.

“Yes you do. We don’t want Harry’s keep to burden your family. We have plenty of money, and it is only fair that you receive a monthly amount for his upkeep.”

“Nonsense. I am not agreeing to this for your money, I am doing it for Harry,” Arthur argued. As far as he was concerned, Harry had more than paid for his upkeep by coming to them and telling him of Fred’s death.

“Arthur, raising a child is not cheap. He will need clothing and books and many other items. That kid can eat you out of house and home!” Lilly said with a smile. “Please, just accept this. We don’t want to burden you with an extra mouth to feed.”

“No,” Arthur said firmly. “You can set aside money for his tuition, but I refuse to accept another galleon for his upkeep.”

“Arthur,” James started.

“No! I refuse to discuss this matter. I will raise Harry with my children as one of my own. We might not be rich, but I can keep him fed and in clothes. He will have love and acceptance, I promise you that!”

James and Lilly were quiet for a moment and then nodded. Neither one of them wanted to step on the man’s pride. “That’s all we can ask for,” Lilly said. “Every little boy needs love,” she whispered softly, knowing that the Weasley’s would give it to him in abundance.

“I have guardianship papers here,” Grafhook said interrupting them. “I will need Mr. And Mrs. Potter to sign them, and then I have one for Mr. Black, and one for Mr. Weasley,” he said handing two sets of papers to the Potters.

James and Lilly each took a set and read them. Lilly handed hers to Arthur. “If you want to sign that and Sirius, if you could sign yours then James and I can sign. We have a few personal things to discuss if you could both wait out in the lobby for us?” she asked sweetly, smiling at Arthur.

He blushed, signed his name and then stood. “I’ll just be right outside,” he said and swiftly left the room.

James and Sirius laughed. “Nice, Lilly,” Sirius said signing his own paper. “I know what you’re up to. I’ll keep him busy while the two of you plot,” he said standing.

“Thanks, Siri,” she grinned.

James and Lilly grinned at each other and then turned to Grafhook. “Set up the money like we requested, depositing it into their current account. We’ll be dead before he knows, and there won’t be anything that he can do about it,” James said seriously.

Grafhook nodded. “A very wise decision, Mr. Potter. While the Weasley’s are a very old family, they are also a very poor family.”

Lilly smiled. She watched as Grafhook magically altered the document that Arthur signed and then she and James signed. “Do you want the same provisions made for Mr. Black?”

James nodded. “Yes. He won’t be happy either, but his finances depend on the good will of his father. Our son must not be a burden to his guardian.”

“We want to make sure that his tuition to Hogwarts is paid for and anything that he may need as he is growing up,” Lilly said.

“But we don’t want him to have free access until he is of age,” James said cautiously.

“We could put a certain percentage of your assets in an account for him and the rest could come to him at his majority,” the Goblin suggested.

James thought for a moment and then said, “What would you suggest?”

“I would guess that twenty-five percent would be more than enough. This takes into account inflation. He should manage fine on that amount,” the Goblin said.

Both of the Potters thought that it sounded reasonable. “Now, one final thing. We are going to purchase a home in a Muggle area. How would we convert Wizarding money to Muggle money?”

“If you know the exact amount I can take care of it for you,” Grafhook said.

“I am not sure of the amount yet,” James said.

“We can issue you a check, which you could then write for the amount of the purchase and then we will take it out of your account.”

“Will the Muggles accept this?”

“It will be to them, the equivalent of a cashiers check. They will take it.”

“Can you tell me the exact balance in our accounts?”

The Goblin looked at his ledger and named a sum and James nodded. “I thought it was about that. I would like to take half of it and put it into a Muggle bank. We will be gone from the Wizarding world for an unknown length of time and need to be able to access funds. In the event of our deaths, I would like the money brought back here to our accounts with Gringotts.”

“Very good, sir. Do you have a bank in mind? Muggles have several of them.”

“Is there one that you would recommend?”

“We have one that we recommend often, but if you are going into hiding,” he said with raised eyebrows, and at both of their nods he continued, “then I would not use that one. They are aware of our world and are not as discreet as we are. I would use this one,” he said writing a name on a paper and handing it to James.

James looked at it and handed it to Lilly. “Please take care of the transfer as soon as possible.”

“I can have it done for you by this afternoon. Do you want your new home purchase to come from that account or this one?”

“Will the funds be immediately available at the new bank?”

“Not always. Sometimes it can take a few days.”

“Then it had better be this one.”

“Very good, sir. I you wait for a moment I will get the check for you.”

“I need you to keep copies of our new wills and guardianship documents, but I also need a copy for us, Sirius, Arthur, and then sealed copies will need to be sent to the Ministry of Magic.”

“I will have it done for you immediately,” he said pointing at the documents. They immediately duplicated and then were sealed in several different envelopes. The copies for the Ministry addressed themselves and disappeared with a pop.

“Here you are, sir,” he said handing the other envelopes to James.

Lilly snatched them out of his hand and stuffed them into her bag. She was getting tired of being ignored. “How long will it take to get the check?” she asked.

“Just a matter of moments. I’ll be right back. I’ll have the papers to sign for your transfer as well,” he said.

Lilly glared at his back and then turned to her husband. “Did you forget I was here?” she demanded.

James groaned inward. “Sorry darling,” he said leaning over to kiss her. You know how I get sometimes,” he said sheepishly.

Somewhat pacified, she kissed him back. “Try a little harder, dear,” she said.

A moment later the Goblin was back and a few minutes after that they were on their way with all of their signed documents and new account information. They also had their cashiers check to purchase their new home.


A/N:
Ok, one more chapter and then we are off to the future...what do you think? please review!!