Chapter 1
A scream filled her ears as she clutched her lifeless baby, her husband dead beside her. His inky black hair spilled across her lap.
She was the one screaming. Tears streamed down her face as she gasped for breath and screamed again. She stared down into the lifeless green eyes of her beloved son, who gazed up at her unseeing.
"Lily!"
She continued to scream. A third body lay in front of her—an older man shrouded in dark robes, his pale hand laid listlessly, with bone-white wand inches from his fingers.
"Lily! Wake up!"
Her emerald eyes snapped open, and she greedily inhaled the air. She looked around wildly until her gaze landed on her longtime best friend. A sob wrenched from her throat as she threw herself into his arms, clutching him tightly.
"That dream again?" the hazel-eyed man asked, stroking her dull red hair. He felt her nod. It had been seventeen years. Her nightmare had haunted her for too long, and his heart ached for her. He closed his eyes and buried his face in her neck; she smelled of sweat and smoke with a faint hint of vanilla.
He held her tightly as her thin frame shook with sobs. The nightmare was worse as Halloween approached. They had lost track of time, but her dreams remained vivid.
He cradled her close, rocking her back and forth as he had done for years. Perhaps they could have been together in another lifetime, but not in this one. They were best friends; her heart belonged to his one-time friend, Severus Snape.
Now, all they had was each other—best friends, comrades in arms, and constant rocks in the hellish landscape of the wizarding war.
He cast his hazel eyes toward the sky, where a storm was brewing. They would need to get up and find that mirror soon. It was their only hope, their last chance of survival in a world of darkness.
He couldn't remember when the war started. Some said it began long ago when Grindelwald rose to power at the turn of the century, and he and Dumbledore have clashed ever since. Others claimed it began when Lord Voldemort emerged as Grindelwald's protege at the end of Muggle World War II, igniting the Great Wizarding War between the two most powerful Dark Lords and War Warlock Albus Dumbledore. No one was safe.
But he knew one thing: they had been at war long before he was born. He was born underground in the resistance, raised and taught by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, the hardest and most steel-spined man he had ever known. Dumbledore was both fearful and powerful.
"James?" Lily had long since calmed down, now loosening her hold on him.
He looked down at her and smiled. "Alright now?" he asked. She nodded.
He was grateful to have Lily in his life. She was the light, the center of their group of friends.
Severus Snape met Lily when they were eleven years old. Severus was with his mother in town, getting groceries for the resistance. It was one of those rare times during a long ceasefire allowing resistance members to venture out and restock their supplies. Eileen Prince-Snape was tasked with grocery shopping in Spinner's End, a Muggle neighborhood in London, where her Muggle husband was from. Severus was allowed to play nearby in the park.
While playing, he came across Lily arguing with her older sister. Her sister had accused her of being a freak and then stormed off. Taking a risk, Severus decided to show her a magic trick, and they quickly became friends.
Eileen learned about Lily and convinced her parents to take Lily into their care. They cited the danger of Lily remaining in the Muggle world, as she was a target for those who hunted Muggle-borns. No Muggle-born had ever survived past their first accidental use of magic. Reluctantly, they allowed her to stay with the Prince-Snapes.
At that time, Muggle-born witches and wizards were not safe. One of Grindelwald's directives was that all Muggle children showing magic would be eliminated immediately. The resistance had been smuggling these children away, and most grew up to join Warlock Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix.
During this period, James met Lily, and they became friends. Shortly after, Sirius Black joined their group, having run away from his family on the other side and seeking refuge. Sirius attached himself to them, and soon after, Remus Lupin, an orphaned werewolf who had survived alone in the woods for several years, became part of the group.
The five of them were inseparable. They grew up together among the many children in the resistance, nurtured under the guidance of Madame McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, and Madame Sprout. Sirius and Remus were particularly close throughout their childhood, which eventually led to them becoming lovers. Meanwhile, Lily and Severus had eyes only for each other from the moment they met and married as soon as they were old enough. James was happy for his friends, feeling grateful to have such a wonderful family.
Things began to change when Lily had a son. Harry was an adorable little boy with green eyes and black hair and was among the small next generation of the resistance.
Voldemort learned of a prophecy that foretold a child born at the end of July would bring about his downfall, and he targeted Harry because of this. Dumbledore worked tirelessly to protect the boy, hiding Lily, Severus, and Harry, but all efforts were in vain.
On that fateful Halloween Eve, Voldemort found them. He killed Severus and then turned on Harry. In her sorrow, Lily's magic surged in response to the loss, ultimately resulting in Voldemort's demise.
But Grindelwald soon turned his attention to her. He unleashed vengeance upon the wizarding world after his protégé's death. The resistance weakened as the Death Eaters hunted them down, killing them one by one, day after day. The war seemed endless, the hope for victory fading with each passing moment.
Dumbledore gathered the remaining members of the Order of the Phoenix, a small ragtag group, and conveyed that Harry's death had extinguished the light of the wizarding world. They were the last hope. He revealed that an artifact was hidden deep within Hogwarts, capable of transporting them to another universe where they could start anew. He implored them to seize this chance and escape, as no hope was left in their world.
Following his instructions and the necessary incantations, Lily, James, Remus, and Sirius set out to the dilapidated castle that was once Hogwarts—a sanctuary for all magical children, built on the dreams of the four great founders.
The journey was fraught with challenges. Tragically, Sirius was the first to fall; he was killed by his psychotic cousin, Bellatrix Black, who was a loyal follower and lover of Lord Voldemort.
Remus followed closely behind. During a full moon, he fell victim to Fenrir Greyback, overcome by grief for his mate.
James and Lily kept running until they reached the ruins of Hogwarts, sparing little time to rest as the Death Eaters pursued them.
And they were nigh.
James sighed, glancing toward the horizon where the Forbidden Forest stood. He could see wisps of dark, ghostly figures rising above the treetops. "Dementors," he whispered.
Lily turned her head sharply, her short bob swishing across her face. They stood together, their moment of rest at an end.
"Let's go. Albus said the entrance to the room is near the library," Lily said softly.
James nodded and pulled out a crudely drawn map. "I think this was the Great Hall." He looked around at the broken benches and tables scattered across the grand floor, now overgrown with greenery. The roof had long since caved in, exposing the room to the elements. They had taken refuge among the piled-up tables in the corner.
Lily pointed at the parchment. "That way." She grasped his hand and pulled him forward as they quietly hurried down the overgrown hallway.
They navigated through the castle's labyrinth to the seventh floor, hacking through the dense undergrowth and battling tenacious plants that threatened their lives.
"It should be here," James said as he studied the map again.
Lily nodded, sighing wearily as she glanced around the hallway. It was choked with greenery, and the walls were entwined with vines, devil's snares, and stubborn tentacle plants.
She rubbed her forehead, wincing as her hand came away bloodied. They had encountered devil's snares a few hallways back, and it had clipped her head.
"Harry would've been eighteen now," Lily whispered. "What would his life have been like?"
Ever since she learned about the mirror that revealed parallel worlds, she had hoped to glimpse what her son's life might have looked like had he not been killed. She wondered if Severus would have been a wonderful father and if her son would resemble him but with green eyes. Would he have taken after Severus in potion-making or followed her expertise in charms? Would he have fallen in love with dreamy Luna or been drawn to Hermione, the girl who devoured knowledge?
Sadness washed over her as she recalled the children who would have grown up alongside her son, a future stolen too soon. Neville had been the last to survive, dying in a battle against Nagini, the maledictus snake once loyal to Voldemort. Draco Malfoy, now one of Grindelwald's youngest lieutenants, had killed Hermione. Luna had been captured and tortured before her tragic death.
James looked up from the map, recalling the green-eyed baby who was his godson. He nodded and glanced at Lily, noticing a hint of gray streaking through her once vibrant red hair. Fine lines were around her eyes and lips. He recognized the same signs of aging in himself; his reflection revealed unruly hair with white streaks above his ears, deep wrinkles on his forehead, and days of stubble adorning his face.
They had become weary soldiers of the Great Wizarding War, their eyes heavy with the world's burden.
"It's down this way," James said, gesturing down the hallway.
They pushed away from the wall, and suddenly, flashes of red and green whizzed past them. They turned to see several Death Eaters rushing toward them.
"Avada Kedavra!"
"Crucio!"
The spells missed them by a hair's breadth.
James grabbed Lily's hand and pulled her along; they ran, dodging the spells. He pulled out his wand and shouted, "Sectumsempra!" It was a powerful cutting spell created by Severus many years ago. While it was brutal in battle, it also proved useful for cutting through the greenery that blocked their path. Green leaves exploded around them as they ducked into a small hole. James repeated the spell, aiming at the wall, while Lily held up a shield deflecting the Death Eaters' attacks.
James exposed a door and pushed it open; it creaked and groaned. "Come on!"
They stumbled into a room that looked like a glen in the forest. He quickly closed the door and conjured a powerful ward against it. "It won't last long."
As he turned around, a lone mirror was in the middle of the room, surrounded by vines and dust.
Rushing to the mirror, they removed the vines, revealing an ornately carved frame. James squinted at the inscription on the top and read it: "Efillellarap ruo yuoy wohsI. " He turned to her, saying, "This is it."
"Yes," Lily breathed. She raised her wand and cast the complicated incantation Dumbledore had taught her.
They gasped as an explosion crashed against the door. James turned to face it, wand at the ready. "Keep going!"
Lily nodded shakily, repeating the spell as she continued. It was a long and intricate ancient spell. Dumbledore had explained that the mirror reflected a world, or many parallels to their own, showing what life could be like if choices had been made differently. But the spell took it further; it would transport them to another universe where they did not exist. However, it was a one-way trip.
One of the oldest magical laws is that two people with the same soul cannot exist in the same universe; the mirror would send James and Lily to a realm where they were never born or had died.
Lily breathed the last word of the incantation and watched with wide eyes as the mirror glowed brilliantly. She turned to James. "Come on!" she gasped.
In her focus on casting the spell, the door had been blasted away, leaving a large hole in the wall. Several Death Eaters were on the other side, raining spells down upon James' shield; she could see it cracking. He was sweating and shaking, struggling to maintain it.
"James!"
"Go!"
A man approached the shield, his white hair down to his collar. His two different-colored eyes were hard and cold. He raised his wand and spoke an incantation.
"Grindelwald!" James gasped.
"No! James! Come on, James, the portal is open!"
"Go! You must! This world has no hope left! Go! Live for Harry! Live for Severus!" James shouted.
"James," Lily whispered, tears streaming down her face.
"Go, Lily," he insisted, turning his head.
Grindelwald swished his wand, unleashing powerful magic against James' shield. He grinned, stepped into the room, and aimed his wand at James.
Lily gasped as the green light splashed against James' chest. His eyes locked onto hers as he fell.
She turned and rushed forward into the bright surface of the mirror, falling into the unknown.