Saving Their Lives

Harry stood in the astronomy tower staring out into the cold starry night. He had just come back from the past and he wondered what he would find. His thoughts were jumbled and he couldn’t tell what was reality and what was a fantasy his mind made up. The memories kept racing through his mind, melding with what he knew was correct until he wasn’t sure about anything.

He remembered the Dursley’s and the life he lived with them, but then he remembered his mother and father and laughing with the Grangers and Weasley’s at various points in his life. He felt a sharp pain stab through his heart when he remembered the death of Sirius, and of his father. Harry gasped and doubled over in pain when he remembered how they died and how much it had hurt. He had been eleven years old at the time and had barely started at Hogwarts.

The two of them had gone to the cave by the sea to retrieve the locket that was hidden on the island in the middle of the lake of Inferi. Sirius had been the one to drink the foul potion mixture and his father had helped him back into the boat and tried to cross the lake. Sirius had lost his balance and fell in and was immediately swarmed with Inferi. His father had immediately jumped in after him, loosing his life in the process. His mother, who had waited on the shore for the two men, had watched as the love of her life died. She was able to accio the boat back to her and row out to the spot that the men had gone under, but it was to late. The only good that came out of it was that the locket had fallen to the floor of the boat.

Lilly, sobbing, picked up the locket and made her way to the Weasley’s who immediately called the Grangers and all of the children to the Burrow. Harry spent several days trying to be brave as he consoled his mother and when he returned to Hogwarts, he finally let go to his grief and sobbed for hours as Ron and Hermione held him. He could remember it as being one of the worst times of his life.

He tried to clear his thoughts as he wiped away the tears. He could see his mother happy and smiling, as she stood next to him in a formal gown. They were standing in front of Hogwarts on a sunny spring day and she looked radiant. He smiled at the memory and then scowled as the memory unfolded in his mind. His mother had remarried the summer he was before his fifth year. He could feel the joy that he felt when he watched her take her new husbands hand and then the memory unfolded into another scene where she was holding her newborn daughter, Harry’s sister Violet, nine months later. She had her father’s eyes, but thankfully not his nose. His mother had married Severus Snape.

Harry sifted through his memories of Severus and could remember the snarky professor who had treated him with such contempt and animosity, the man who was afraid to show any emotion but gave his life to save others. He could also remember the wonderful man who guided him through the roughest time in his life and made his mother smiles again. He could remember the man that loved and laughed and made Harry feel like the most important thing in his world next to his mother.

Harry crumpled to the floor and pulled his knees up to his chest. He clutched them tightly against him and sobbed. The memories were overwhelming and coming to quickly. He saw the war and the fighting that occurred on the front lawn of the school. He saw his mother and Severus fighting side-by-side defending each other as they cast curse after curse on the death eaters. He saw Molly and Bellatrix fight and then Bellatrix die. He saw the scene unfold where Fred originally died, but Arthur had been in between the two of them, and when the explosion went off Arthur had grabbed onto his two sons and apparated them away. For some reason the apparation wards were down in the castle and Harry wondered if Arthur had had something to do with that.

He watched again as students were maimed and killed. He saw professors willing to give their lives for the greater good. He saw that Severus had lived, having long ago turned his back on Voldemort and his evil death eaters. He saw the Malfoy’s fighting alongside the members of the Order and Draco standing back to back with Neville as he made his way towards Nagini. He watched as Draco sent a killing curse at the senior Goyle and Neville rush forward and sever the head of Voldemort’s familiar.

Living through the trauma of the war once was awful, but seeing it the second time was worse. He could feel his fear for his own life, and that of his friends, but it was worse this time as he worried about his beloved parents and what would happen to Violet if something happened to them. He could feel the cold sweat across his brow as he watched the final showdown again and how he felt when he cast the killing curse. He watched as Voldemort crumpled to the ground and then felt the ground rise up and claim him as he sunk into oblivion.

He could remember waking up in the hospital ward with his parents and Ron and Hermione there. He blanched when he saw Hermione throw her arms around him and declare, “Oh gods, Harry, I thought I lost you! I love you so much, please don’t ever leave me!” and then she passionately kissed him. He could see Ron behind her grinning like a fool. His mum then had her turn engulfing him in hugs and kisses and proclaiming her love as she dripped wet tears all over his face. Severus had tears running down his face as he stoically stood there looking at him with love filled eyes. He heard, “I’m proud of you, son,” and wanted to cry.

Harry tried to stand, but his body wouldn’t let him. He was emotionally drained and he could not make his body listen to what he wanted. It was just to worn out to comply. He sat in the cold as memory after memory assaulted him. He saw Ginny and Draco throw their arms around each other and hug after the final battle and then saw a later memory of the two of them snogging in front of the lake. He saw Ron and Pansy walking through the halls holding hands and what finally made him smile was the house unity. Everyone from every house was smiling and greeting each other as if they were old friends. Slytherin’s and Gryffindor’s were sitting together at tables in the Great Hall and Hufflepuffs were tutoring Slytherin’s voluntarily.

He could remember Albus Dumbledore fighting in the final battle and Voldemort killing him and taking his wand. He could still hear the manical laugh as Voldemort stood on Dumbledore's lifeless chest and pronounced himself the greatest wizard that the world had ever seen. Harry could remember his mother and father having a huge row with Dumbledore and refusing to have any contact with him again until Harry entered Hogwarts, and Lilly taking him to Hogwarts several days before classes started to introduce hiim to Dumbledore and make it clear to the old wizard that she would not tolerate any manipulations whatsoever on his part where her son was concerned. He was to have a happpy, normal, Hogwarts experience until the day came when he had to confront Voldemort.

He could remember the confrontations with Voldemort in his first life, and then in his new memories, different ones. He again, came out ahead in each situation through shear nerve and luck, not because he was a better wizard. Voldemort had always been to cocky and sure of Harry's defeat to believe that the boy could overcome him. In the end, it was his underestimating of Harry that lost him his life.

Minerva McGonagall stood in front of the assembled students and smiled as she told everyone that Severus Snape would now be taking over as Headmaster, that she had planned to retire while she was still young. The potion master position was being taken over by Lilly Snape. Harry could remember how proud he felt when he listened to the words that his father had said that day.

“It is time to put aside any old anger and hostilities that we may harbor. It is time to find new friends where before we only knew enemies. It is time to welcome with open arms those who are different from us in any way, to welcome those who might be Muggle, Werewolf, Vampire, Veela, Giant, or any other species. It is time to look past the purity of ones blood and ancient line and to see who the person in front of us really is. It is time to put this war behind us and live in harmony with our fellow man, regardless of where he came from. As headmaster of this school I vow to you that I will do everything in my power to end this senseless rivalries and hostilities. I plan to encourage and promote a peaceful existence here at Hogwarts and I will have a no tolerance policy for any racist behavior. We have came a long way already, but we have much further to go. You are the children of the future. It will be up to you to ensure that the peace that we all crave continues. Ignore the old prejudices that you may have heard for years in your family, and strive to teach those who would refuse to give up the old ways what it means to live now, in peace and harmony.”

He brushed the tears aside that fell down his face and shivered as the cold night air wrapped around him. He tried to block out the memories as they kept coming, but he could stop them. He thought about his father taking him fishing in the river and his mum laughing when his father tried to throw out his line and ended up hooking the back of his shirt. He thought about how hard his father tried to live as a Muggle in the early years while they were still hiding from Voldemort. He never liked being without his wand, but he gave it over to Arthur to make sure that he wouldn’t be tempted to use it. He thought about how his father hated the Muggle clothing most of all and complained constantly about them. Harry grinned when he thought of the silly ties that his father always purchased. The crazier the pattern the more his father enjoyed them.

He thought about Hermione and felt his heart ache. It felt like eons since he had seen her. He remembered their first kiss when they were five years old. He had leaned over and kissed her and she bit him on the tip of his nose. When he howled and raced home to his mother, Mrs. Granger had came calling with Hermione, trying not to laugh as she explained that Hermione wanted to kiss Harry first and he beat her to it. Hermione always liked to do everything first. He thought of when they were eleven and how they had decided that they were meant to be. They had kissed for real that time and Harry had felt like he was ten feet tall.

His memories were mixed up. He could still see himself with Ginny and Ron with Hermione, but somehow in his heart it didn’t feel right. He knew that he had loved Ginny before, but now the only feelings that he could muster up for her were of brotherly love. They had grown up together, constantly in each other’s home, and she was like the little sister he never had. Hermione had also been a constant in his childhood, but it had been different. She had been the love of his life for as long as he could remember. His heart couldn’t remember loving anyone else.

Harry remembered the day that the two of them had sat on the swing in his parents yard and he nervously rolled the ring around in his pocket wondering if he should ask or if they were to young. They still had several months of school left before they graduated and perhaps he should wait. As he turned the ring one more time in his hand, Hermione looked up at him with such love and tenderness in her eyes that he blurted out, “Marry me, Hermione!” and shoved the ring at her. He hadn’t been very eloquent, but she had cried and threw herself into his lap and said yes.

He thought of how the two of them had raced into the house and told their parents, who had been spying on them through the curtains on the sliding glass door. Severus had shook his hand, laughed and then pulled him close for a bear hug and said, “You made a wise choice, son.” His mum and Mrs. Granger had squealed like a couple of crazy fools and then cried and sobbed in each others arms as he stood there dumbfounded. Hermione joined in with their mothers and sobbed her heart out with happiness.

He heard a noise and looked up. There standing at the top of the landing was his mother. Her eyes were wide and she looked as if she were about to cry. “You’re back,” she softly said.

“Mum,” he whispered, still unable to do more than sit there in pain as the memories kept colliding through his mind.

“I am so proud of you, Harry, and James was as well. You saved us, baby,” she cried as she knelt down and pulled him into her warm embrace.

Harry leaned into the familiar softness and inhaled her unique scent. He could remember not having a mother and missing her so badly, but he could also remember her being there for every little ache and pain he ever had, for boring lectures when he did something stupid and to help him when his heart broke at the loss of his father and god-father. He could remember what it felt to be held in her arms, but he could remember what it felt like when his aunt Petunia told him that his mother was a drunk and died in a car accident. “It hurts,” he groaned.

“I know, sweetheart,” she said soothingly. “Open up,” she said pulling a vial from her robes pocket.

He obediently opened his mouth and she poured the contents into his mouth. He swallowed the bitter brew and closed his eyes. A few minutes later he faded into darkness.

A/N: Ok, I know that this is a very short chapter, but I wanted to put out a lot of information without going to fast or deep into all of the changes...Don't kill me for killing off James, I just think that after everything that Severus went through, he deserved Lilly. Please Please Please review and let me know what you think...