I Wouldn't Change A Thing by The_Real_Hermione
Chapter Notes: This is the final chapter - thanks to everyone who has got this far! I hope you enjoy it.
James found flying on the Thestral to be quite comfortable, once he got used to the idea of it being invisible. The animal shot through the air silkily, and he found it to be a lot less jerky than a broom.
The rest of the group weren’t necessarily faring so well: Rose was coping well enough “ despite her absence from the Quidditch team, James knew her to be a decent flier from family games “ Albus was turning pale as he stared determinedly straight ahead, seeming to pretend that he wasn’t several hundred feet in the air, and Louis was white, looking like he was barely holding back from throwing up. Only Violet seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself.
Moments later James heard a strange noise coming from Louis’ direction “ his poor cousin hadn’t been able to hold it in any longer and was belching. James winced. He hoped some poor Muggle didn’t have a pile of spew landing on their head at that moment...
Thestrals travelled remarkably quickly “ it was still well before sunset when they started their descent. The trip to London had been rather peaceful and had calmed them all down since the events at Hogwarts. It had also inadvertently alleviated a lot of their worry about Lily. As they neared their destination, however, James felt an iron fist clench his heart. Whether it was due to fear or worry for his little sister he didn’t know, but it served as an unpleasant reminder of what they were getting themselves into.
They landed gently. Louis was the first to jump off his Thestral.
“Never again,” he spluttered, white-faced, as he threw up thoroughly on the ground.
“You’ve offended him,” Violet mock-reprimanded, approaching the animal and stroking it. Louis glared at her.
They could think of no way to tie the Thestrals up without insulting the pride of the creatures, so left them by themselves, hoping that there would be some other means for five students to return to Hogwarts. They thought the Thestrals would be clever enough to get themselves back to the castles themselves “ after all, they’d made it to London without any assistance at all.
“Me and Al and Rosie are gonna have to change our appearance a bit “ we’re too recognisable. I’ll just make my hair brown and a bit longer, I’ll do the same for you Al and Rosie can have darker hair,” James explained, as he adeptly performed the spells silently.
“Alright, so we’ll say we’re going to the Auror office because one of our Dads called us here urgently...” James whispered hurriedly as they walked to the red telephone box.
The five of them crammed into it and when the cool voice asked their names and purpose, James gave his answer calmly. Soon each was wearing his own badge “ though Albus nearly received a deep gash courtesy of the sharp point of Rosie’s pin. Fortunately, he was only left with a tiny scratch. It wasn’t entirely surprising, James thought; after all, this entrance was not designed for five people at once.
“Remember, you just have to seem natural in there... pretend we’re meant to be there,” James reminded them. “Oh, and I think someone should go under the Invisibility Cloak... just in case.”
This resulted in an argument which was still going full throttle when they reached the Atrium, as each person explained why they should go under the cloak, but in the end it was decided that Violet should wear it, as she was the best at non-verbal spells of all of them, and could therefore easily sneak up on Lily’s captor and handicap them. Secretly James hoped that she would be safer that way too. It wasn’t that he didn’t want his brother and cousins to be unsafe, but somehow he felt more responsible for Violet than for them.
They strolled across to the lifts at a leisurely pace, and when a Ministry official kindly asked them why they weren’t at school, it was Rose who piped up in a sweet voice and presented their excuse flawlessly.
Without further interruptions, they entered the lift. Fortunately it was empty, but for the flying parchment memos. Each time the lift stopped, the palpable tension increased amongst the group. This was for two reasons “ firstly, they could hardly explain away a visit to the Auror office when they were already several floors below it, and secondly, their heightened anticipation at being so close to saving Lily.
Finally they reached the corridor which led to the Department of Mysteries. Their footsteps echoed loudly as they approached the mysterious door. They slowly drew their wands out, preparing for whatever terror may face them when they opened the door. The breath constricted in James’ chest as he tentatively reached out a hand and grasped the doorknob.
The door was locked.
They had not considered this option “ they had been prepared to face their worst fears, not this emptiness of doing nothing.
They assaulted the door with all sorts of spells, but it remained impervious to their efforts. It mocked them, told them that they were stupid to think a mere bunch of school students could even touch it.
In desperation to find something to do, Rose decided to have a look around the court rooms, just in case there was any sort of hint as to where Lily might be.
Moments after her footsteps disappeared, they heard a scream. The four of them ran immediately towards the giant oaken doors of the courtroom (that is, James, Albus and Louis did so visibly “ presumably Violet followed them).
James crept through the door, the others following him closely. His eyes immediately focussed on a chair which sat in the middle of the room, the soul item in an otherwise barren chamber. A figure was chained to the chair, and with a shock he recognised the dark red hair to be Lily’s. The chains snaked over her body, jutting into her arms deeply and drawing blood. Her hair was in a tangled mess and her school robes, new only months before, were torn and fraying as though she had scrambled through a thorn bush. Her head lolled to one side almost lifelessly.
Rose lay on the ground only a few feet in front of him, obviously Stunned.
It had taken James only a few moments to take in his surroundings, yet in that time two figures dressed entirely in black had suddenly appeared in front of him, as if out of thin air.
James didn’t even think before firing a volley of spells at both the men, however they were faster “ with a thud Louis lay on the ground next to Albus. James didn’t have time to think about it; one of the wands was already pointing in his direction.
“Stupey!”
“Expelliarmus!”
“Petrificus Totalis!
The sound of cried spells rang in the air. James and Albus were now fighting side by side and tiring visibly “ they were only barely able to block the spells coming from the far stronger men, let alone attack.
Where was Violet? Only she would be able to take either man out...
Inevitably, only minutes later the brothers were on the verge of collapsing and their attackers took this opportunity to tie them up with ropes. Neither was in any fit state to protest.
“James Potter,” one of the men said. “And Albus, too.”
Revenge dripped off each word. He spoke with the same voice that the Patronus had “ so this was Rabastan Lestrange.
“I can’t wait to see the look on your father’s face when I kill each of his children one “ by “ one.” There was no joke in his tone, and James felt certain that this man would follow through with his threat, given the opportunity.
“But first, you can watch her being tortured.”
Where was Violet?
As if he had called her by his thought, James felt the warm presence of her invisible body beside him. She was quietly sawing away at his bonds with a small penknife.
Lestrange was aiming his wand at Lily “ little baby Lily. James felt his body tense up. Violet only had one more rope to cut... come on Violet, he thought... and suddenly he was running towards Lily’s unconscious form. Lestrange didn’t have time to change his spell, and just as he fired a red jet of light, James arrived in front of Lily and intercepted the spell in the middle of his chest.
Then there was pain.
And then suddenly it ended. He realised that he was on the ground. As he stood up, every muscle and limb protested, but he had to get to Lily. He didn’t even notice that no-one was firing spells at him anymore or that the two Death Eaters lay Stunned on the ground. It didn’t matter.
She was unconscious, and the chains still held her locked in place. Seeing her wounds so close up made his wand arm waver as he reached out to release her. He forced himself to concentrate; he would need to cast several Severing Charms, and if he missed but just a degree... he didn’t want to think about it.
A warm hand appeared on his back. He turned around in shock, wand raised, but it was only Violet.
“I Stunned Lestrange, Albus got the other one but then he seemed to faint... I’m sorry it was late, I know the plan was that I could take them out because I was invisible, but I hadn’t expected two of them and I, well, I didn’t want them to know where I was, and if they just saw spells coming from nowhere they might have tracked me, and I didn’t “ oh I’m sorry, James, I should have “”
“Relax, Violet, it doesn’t matter “ just help me get Lily out, please.”
Eventually she was freed, and with one motion James scooped his sister into his arms. He looked around the court room properly for the first time. Rows and rows of benches rose up to a high ceiling, which lorded over the floor upon which they had been fighting. The Death Eaters lay in a crumpled heap of black over to one side, Louis and Rose also both lay on the ground, Stunned, though seemingly in fine condition. Albus lay near the Death Eaters and he was so pale that he almost looked deathly.
Even Violet, though still on her feet, looked the worse for wear. She had sustained a few minor scratches, but it was her exhaustion that really showed her condition.
“You alright?” he asked awkwardly.
“Yeah, I’ll be right. You go look after Lily, we’ll manage fine.”
“Okay. Wake Louis and Rosie “ they’ve only been Stunned “ and you might have to carry Albus, he looks like he’s fainted. Then go up to the Auror Office and tell them what happened. Bind Lestrange and the other guy. I’ll take her to St. Mungo’s,” he said. Violet nodded.
James slipped under the Invisibility Cloak with Lily and hurried to the lift to get to the Atrium “ the only place you could Apparate from in the Ministry. He mustered all his determination, deliberation and whatever the other ‘D’ word was and turned on the spot.
He knew something was wrong as soon as he reached the dummy at the entrance to the hospital. Anxiously he checked Lily over, and it was only when he determined that she was fine that he even noticed the pain coming from his left hand. He brought it up to his face from under Lily’s body and saw a bloody stump where his finger should have continued. He stuffed it in his school shirt to decrease the blood flow and took Lily inside.
He had only been to St. Mungo’s a few times, to see his father after some particularly dangerous mission, so he wasn’t completely sure how the system worked. Thus, it was with some trepidation that he joined the long queue in front of the main desk. He was just nearing the front of the queue, wondering how on earth he would explain what had happened to Lily to the Welcome Witch, when a Healer happened to walk past who seemed to recognise him. James realised that his hair had now reverted to its normal length and colour “ obviously his Transfiguration spells had been rushed and not particularly strong “ which did make him very recognisable.
“Mr Potter, my name is Healer Patil. Can I do something for your sister?”
He looked at her quizzically. She looked slightly familiar, and her name rang a bell, as though he had read about her in a book when he was a child.
“I went to school with your father.” Now he remembered.
“Lily’s been attacked by a Death Eater,” he blurted out straightaway. “I don’t know what happened “ she needs help.”
“A Death Eater? Merlin, the war finished more than twenty years ago!” she exclaimed.
“Alright, follow me then.” James almost had to run to keep up with her swift steps as she took them to a ward. James paid little attention to his surroundings, and was relieved when they finally entered a room. He gently laid Lily down on one of the beds, and refused to let Healer Patil tend to his finger until he was certain that she’d done everything possible for Lily. Eventually she passed him a bowl to soak his half finger in and as he settled into the chair at Lily’s bedside, he couldn’t resist the urges of sleep.
~
She woke up, disorientated, with the feeling that she’d had a terrible nightmare, which she couldn’t remember. Her surroundings were completely unfamiliar. For a moment the beds and white sheets made her think of the Hogwarts Hospital Wing, but that wasn’t quite right.
Suddenly she made a connection. She remembered visiting Dad in a place like this after a particularly dangerous mission. St. Mungo’s “ that was it. Everything came back to her instantly, and one thought stood out from all the others.
She had been saved.
Then she looked to her left and saw familiar black hair. Dad had “ but wait, that wasn’t Dad. There were already grey streaks in his hair, and this person’s hair was pure black. And anyway, this person was skinnier than Dad.
“James?” she whispered, surprised. He woke up.
“Lily, you’re awake! Oh I’m sorry I slept, I wanted to stay awake til you woke...”
“Don’t worry James. You saved me.” She tried to smile, but it was difficult. Her body hurt, she could almost feel the chains still pressing into her, and she had a splitting headache.
“What’s wrong, Lily?” he asked, obviously noticing her discomfort.
“It’s nothing.”
“No, it’s not, are you in pain or something? Can I do anything?” James really could be a sweetie.
“I “ no, well, everything just hurts. I “ I don’t want to think about what happened.”
“Oh Merlin, d-did they torture you?”
She couldn’t lie to him, not when he asked her so directly, and with so much care. She nodded.
“Oh Merlin, I’m sorry, we should’ve got there earlier.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll be okay, alright? It “ it wasn’t for that long. I “ well, it, he used that spell, but not for long.”
“I understand what it feels like.”
“How can you? No-one’s every tortured you.” Lily felt rage burst inside her, that he thought he could understand her, it was ridiculous.
“Lestrange was going to torture you in front of me. I “ I couldn’t let it happen. I intercepted the spell.” He said it calmly, as if he hadn’t noticed her rising anger.
“Oh Merlin, James, I’m sorry.”
He smiled and gently hugged her, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Lily! Oh, thank Merlin you’re well!” her father exclaimed. As he walked in, the lines of stress and anxiety fade from his face visibly. Following him were Albus, Rose and Louis, all of whom immediately rushed to Lily’s bedside and almost smothered her in hugs and kisses. James had to remind them playfully that they didn’t want to accidentally kill her by smothering her with attention, when she had just survived a kidnapping. When his Dad came to him, James could see the pride in his eyes, and he embraced his father “ something he hadn’t done for years. Well, at least not in public.
A figure standing in the doorway awkwardly caught his eye. It was Violet.
“Come in, Violet,” he smiled.
“I thought I’d just leave it to be the family... it’s probably best if I leave... yes I’ll just be going, see you later.”
“Hey, don’t say that, you know we don’t mind that you’re not family,” he said as he walked towards her.
She smiled tentatively as he reached out and took her hand. James felt a surge of love for Violet and suddenly pulled her into a hug. This girl had risked her safety “ possibly her life “ for a girl she hardly knew.
“Thank you, Violet,” he whispered into her hair. “For saving Lily with me.”
“I did it for you,” she whispered back. He smiled.
Harry, having noticed James’ absence from Lily’s bedside, turned to the door and smiled as he watched his son and his girlfriend. Violet had worked miracles for James who, like his father (as Ginny would say), wasn’t the best at understanding girls. He’d tried a few times, but nothing had really taken off until he met Violet. Well, everyone makes mistakes, Harry thought, remembering Cho Chang with a smile.
“LILY!” Ginny ran inside, tears pouring down her face, and no-one would have dared to get in her way, not least Harry. He had been on the wrong side an emotional Ginny once or twice, and it hadn’t been much of a pleasant experience.
Teddy appeared at the door behind her, a smile on his face, and Ron charged past him to get to his daughter. Rose looked frightened for a moment that she was about to receive a severe telling-off from her father (a rare event as it was, usually her mother was responsible for discipline). She was certainly relieved, though winded, when he hugged her fiercely.
Once everyone had finished hugging each other tearfully, and Louis had been reassured that his parents knew he was safe and would be here soon, they sat in comfortable silence.
The silence lasted for about all of a minute; this was the Potter family after all, and silences, however comfortable, were rare.
“So what happened to you, Lily? Where did they take you?”
“I’d been at the Shrieking Shack and this figure came and grabbed me and stuck this uncomfortable piece of fabric my mouth so I couldn’t scream and Apparated to just outside the Ministry. I was putting up a struggle, so he Stunned me. I don’t know how we got down to the courtrooms. I woke there, as they were tying me up in that chair. I “ it hurt. I thought they were trying to squeeze me to death. The chains were so tight, I could hardly breathe. Of course, they’d taken my wand. And “”
““ oh, I forgot to say before, I got your wand out of one of those Death Eater’s robes, here it is,” Louis interrupted, as he handed her the wand. She smiled.
“Thanks. And, well, what was I saying... I-I think I’ve said everything I remember.”
She looked at James significantly “ only he knew that more had happened to her. She wasn’t ready to tell everyone, not so many people at once, not so soon after it happened... She knew he’d understand, and she knew she could trust him with it.
“So how did you find me, anyway?” Lily asked, breaking the awkward silence. James took his opportunity to distract the others from Lily’s suspiciously short and unemotional story and to lighten the mood.
“So me and Violet “”
“Violet and I, James, get your grammar right “”
“Alright, Violet and I were walking in Hogsmeade when we heard a scream, so I went running after it and sent Violet to get help “”
“Excuse me, you didn’t send me, I went quite willingly.”
“Okay, well, Violet willingly went to get help and came back with Hagrid...”
After five minutes, they had only got up to the staff meeting at Hogwarts when Harry’s Patronus had arrived, as all the students continuously interrupted each other.
“Now James, I know you want to tell all the details, but is now really the time?”
“Please, Dad, I don’t mind, I want to hear all of it,” Lily begged. Harry sighed as he nodded. At least they had nowhere urgent to be...
“Okay, well all the professors were determined not to go anywhere... they wanted to stay at Hogwarts, which was annoying, I guess that’s why you got caught up, right Dad?”
“No, actually, Neville “ Professor Longbottom “ let me know by Patronus that he expected at least you and Albus would be going to the Department of Mysteries. He cleared your way out of Hogwarts “ after all, he thought you would find a way out either way, and it would be easier for everyone if there were no disruptions. So I came here immediately, but I got caught up in the Atrium. It seems that Lestrange Imperiused an innocent witch named Wilfrida Jenkins and she caused me a bit of strife. I could hardly start a full-blown attack on her in full view of everyone... Especially on someone innocent.”
James smiled at the thought of his father ‘starting a full-blown attack’, as he put it, and continued with his story. After at least another fifteen minutes, he finally finished.
“So, Dad, do you know who the other Death Eater was?”
“Yes, it was Avery. He and Lestrange went to school with my parents, and both fought in the Department of Mysteries last time. I’m not quite sure how, but they managed to slip under Voldemort’s radar, because neither of them were at the Battle of Hogwarts. It seems that they were probably quite scared of their master and preferred to commit a crime much later which they somehow thought they’d get away with...”
“But they didn’t. They’re in Azkaban now, aren’t they Dad?” Lily asked.
“Not yet, but they’ll probably go once they’ve been tried.” Harry sighed. He was just about as fond of Dementors as Dumbledore had been.
After a short silence, they started chatting about far less dark things. After all, the students hadn’t seen their parents since Christmas, and that had been a good two months ago. As Lily listened, now too tired to participate in the conversation, she concluded that family really was something special, and that James was no exception to that. He probably wouldn’t ever be great at showing that he cared, and there would surely be times when she would feel unloved, but after this experience she would always have something to go back to. Family loved unconditionally. That’s just how it was.
Perhaps she would never understand her brothers, after all, they were strange creatures, but she was glad she had them. Without James and Al, goodness knows where she would be now. She wouldn’t be the same Lily Potter, she wouldn’t have played the same games as a child, she wouldn’t have had anyone who could take care of her so well, who could be sweetly overprotective... and she wouldn’t have anyone to help her cope with those memories.
She knew it was clichéd “ but then clichés only existed because they were universal experiences, common to the whole of humanity. Although, to be honest, she didn’t really care whether being clichéd was good or bad or just plain silly.
All she knew is that she wouldn’t want to change a thing.
Chapter Endnotes: Thanks for reading til the end. I'd love to know what you think.