If...

The sound of a conversation, which came from the ground floor, woke Lily up. Harry was still asleep, and Lily didn't know how long she had been asleep. She had such a beautiful dream. She had dreamed about James. He smiled at her and said he loved her. Her eyes filled with tears. She would have wanted this dream to be real. But the sounds of the conversation brought her back to reality, as brutal as she could be. She kissed her son on his forehead and went down the stairs. Severus probably had visitors, but a strange silver glow shone in the living room, that of a patronus. Lily entered the living room and discovered that only the phoenix spoke, the patronus of Dumbledore.

"Don't let Lily Potter and her son leave your house, Severus. The Longbottoms were abducted a few hours ago."

Lily froze upon hearing the news. She knew the Longbottoms, Frank and Alice well. They were members of the Order and were brilliant Aurors. Just like her, they had a son, born one day before Harry. The witch suddenly remembered that the prophecy was about a child born at the end of July. Voldemort chose to attack Harry, but the Longbottom son was no less in danger.

"What's going on?" asked Lily, anxious, Severus.

"Don't let Lily Potter and her son leave your house, Severus. The Longbottoms were abducted a few hours ago" repeated Dumbledore's voice. "I will keep you informed, Severus. Stay home."

And the patronus evaporated.

"The Longbottom couple was abducted by Death Eaters" Severus replied.

"What?" said Lily, in a strangled voice. "I... I thought we were the only ones targeted. Did you know?"

His tone became more accusing.

"No" confessed Severus. "Dumbledore knew that the prophecy might target their boy, but the Dark Lord had chosen your son because of his blood..."

"A half-blood" whispered Lily. "Why?"

"I don't know... All I know is that the Dark Lord never included the Longbottom son in his plans. He's pure-blood— I know some Death Eaters had a grudge against the Longbottoms, who were fearsome during the clashes. They also thought their son was more... more worthy because of his blood."

"And their son?" asked Lily. "He too?"

She didn't want another family to know about the tragic events she had experienced. Or even worse, that a family is completely destroyed.

"No, he wasn't with them" replied Severus.

"What will they do with them? Kill them?"

Severus looked down. He didn't tell her everything.

"Answer me" insisted Lily.

"Some of the Dark Lord's followers thought it was better to end the two boys" Severus revealed. "I told Dumbledore, and I guess the Longbottoms planned... Among those Death Eaters was Bellatrix Lestrange. It may also be revenge, for the Dark Lord has disappeared."

"I know this bitch" spit Lily, acerbic.

The witch felt the fury in her veins again. Bellatrix Lestrange was a particularly sadistic and cruel woman. And she happened to be Sirius' first cousin. This Death Eater loved, above all, to make her victims endure a thousand tortures before killing them, or leaving them to atone alone, in atrocious suffering.

"I know what you think" he said. "And you have the right."

She looked at him furiously.

"I would like to know what you were doing before turning your cloak" she replied. "You were torturing and killing?" she said with contempt.

"No, I never did. I can swear to you. The Dark Lord gave me other missions, and he trained me in the Dark Arts."

This confession made her shiver. Lily had no trouble imagining what Severus had learned from his master.

"What missions did he entrust to you?"

"I was a spy most of the time. I listened to conversations in taverns, in places of passage. I knew how to be discreet."

"Except the time you heard part of the prophecy about my child" Lily replied.

Severus nodded his head. The light of day was dimming, but the street outside wasn't lit.

"Do you have any idea of the identity of the traitor who had infiltrated the Order?" she asked.

"Dumbledore once asked me that question" he said, laconically. "I never knew— The Dark Lord never told me, because I had to spy on Dumbledore, who is a great Legilimens. I guess he was concerned that my mind was being searched. He also made sure that we didn't all met."

"Are you sure Voldemort never suspected you would betray him? Even after begging for my life? Last night, you could have been exposed... He could have been accompanied by some of his partisans".

Severus levitated two glasses and poured in Firewhisky.

"Over the years, I've learned to close my mind" he admits, handing Lily her drink. "Maybe you prefer something else?"

"That's fine" she said with a first sip.

"All I know is that I was lucky enough to be put in the confidence because I repeated the prophecy to him. I don't know if the others knew. Your village was noticeably quiet when I arrived. Even the Muggles weren't alerted to the disaster."

"Everything went very fast" Lily recalled. "James died very quickly. We didn't even have our wands with us... What a mistake. We couldn't even disappear because of the protective spells."

He approached her and stroked her arm as a sign of comfort.

"I'll go see Harry" she said colder. "Maybe he woke up."

She put the glass on the table and took refuge in the room that Severus had given her. Her baby was open-eyed and chirping. Lily cradled him in her arms and covered his head with little kisses. Downstairs, she heard Severus moving in the kitchen.

Harry had dinner and Lily put him to bed. She and Severus were both sitting on the couch, their glasses of whiskey - which they hadn't finished in the early evening - in hand. They waited feverishly for news of the Order but weren't certain of receiving it. Twenty-four hours earlier, Lily's life had changed. Twenty-four hours earlier, she watched her husband and son having fun together in their living room. James was blowing clouds of coloured smoke and Harry was trying to catch them. She had taken her son in her arms to put him to bed, and in a few seconds their family happiness had vanished, had been reduced to nothing.

Severus and Lily didn't speak. Their eyes stared at the fireplace. Lily hoped to receive good news about the Longbottoms. She hoped to hear that they had been found safe and that their captors had been arrested. But the fireplace remained dark and cold, and no patronus invited themselves into the living room of Severus's house.

"Do you want to talk?" asked Severus. "You haven't said a word in a while..."

"Discuss what?" replied Lily in a snappy tone. "What happened yesterday? The Longbottoms, who are God, knows where and with God knows who? Of all those who were killed and tortured at the hands of your friends and your master?"

Severus frowned.

"Forgive me" said Lily. "I'm on edge."

She took a sip of the hot beverage and Severus imitated her.

"I was thinking about our childhood. When we were happy" he said, melancholy.

"It was a long time ago" said Lily. "What happened to your parents?"

Lily was surprised when Severus made them appear at Cokeworth.

"They aren't in the cellar" replied Severus. "My father ended up dying of these excesses a few months ago. My mother left him shortly after we finished school."

"I'm sorry" answered Lily, by automatism.

"You don't have to be, I'm not."

"But your mother... Where is she?"

Severus shrugged his shoulders.

"Gone" he said. "You know, he wasn't gentle with her."

Lily shook her head sadly. Severus had always been a child neglected by his parents. His father was a violent man who had gradually sunk into alcohol during Severus' childhood. He and his wife fought constantly, for everything and for nothing.

"She didn't give you any news?"

"No" confessed her friend, always impassive. "She left, without leaving an address. Without saying anything. She may have died."

Severus didn't seem to have sought to know what had become of his mother. Unlike him, Lily had grown up in a loving home, although her relationship with her older sister, Petunia, had become complicated over the years.

"I heard about your parents" Severus continued. "I'm sorry. It seems that people here don't live long."

"Mom got extremely sick in my seventh year... She died sometime after I got married... It was cancer. Dad didn't last. He died in March... I couldn't even get to his funeral. Petunia wrote to me that he had a heart attack."

Had her sister been told that James had died? Surely not. She hoped she was safe with her family.

"What happened to Petunia?"

"She left the area. After high school, she found a job as a secretary in London and met her husband. They got married and live somewhere in Surrey. I believe he runs a business that sells chainsaws or drills. They had a son, and I never saw him. He was born a month before Harry. His name is Dudley."

"Do you have a lot of contact with her?"

Lily stifled a sardonic laugh.

"No, I haven't seen her since my mother's funeral. We exchange a few cards and letters on occasion. Vernon didn't like us much, especially James. At their wedding, he called James an amateur magician in front of all the guests. He's not a very pleasant man, he hates anything out of the ordinary, including magic. They didn't even respond to the invitation we sent them for our wedding. Maybe it was better for them."

Lily thought of Vernon Dursley's face when he heard flowers singing, or when he saw wizards waving wands to make confetti appear, if he and Petunia had deigned to honour them with their presence.

"When I think she wanted to go to Hogwarts like you" Severus remembered.

"Yes" Lily remembered. "She really didn't like us going into her room, Sev. Tuney was very angry with me."

"Tuney" repeated Severus, a smile on his face. "I almost forgot that you called her that. Admit that we had laughed while reading her diary."

Lily glared at him but didn't take long to laugh. At that time, the witch didn't think badly when she and Severus had the idea to break into Petunia's room. Severus had been very curious to know what the room of a thirteen-year-old Muggle girl could look like. He had been disappointed to see that Petunia's room was nothing special.

"She had a crush on a boy in her class" Lily laughed.

"Of course!" exclaimed Severus. "We had even seen him playing the tough guy on the wasteland, behind the railway."

"Harvey Kilkenny!" completed Lily, amused. "I really don't see what she found him."

Talking about their childhood did her good. She and Severus were carefree and conniving before entering Hogwarts. They spent most of their free time together, wandering around their small town, looking for a little piece of nature where they could talk about the magical world, without being surprised by anyone. Once, Petunia – who didn't like the young wizard – had quietly followed them into a grove and watched them as they chatted.

At the same time, the fireplace crackled, and Severus jumped from the sofa to find out who was in contact with them.

"Severus? Are you there?"

Lily recognized the headmaster's voice.

"Yes, I'm here, Headmaster. Have you heard anything?"

"I have received news. Four Death Eaters abducted the Longbottom Aurors."

Lily felt a wave of terror overwhelm her.

"Have they been found?" she inquired after squatting next to Severus.

"I see that Lily is with you, Severus" divined Dumbledore. "Unfortunately, no."

The witch addressed an anxious look to her friend.

"Have the Death Eaters been identified, Professor?" asked Lily.

"Not really, Lily" replied the founder of the Order. "I was told that a woman and three men were seen fleeing the scene as the reinforcements arrived. They say they are the Lestranges, the spouses and the brother. However, we know nothing about the third man. My sources contradict each other."

If the Longbottoms had been kidnapped by the Lestranges, their chances of getting out were extremely low.

"For the time being, the three of you will remain here. If the situation requires it, we will move you elsewhere. Lily, I know you're very reasonable, and you won't be tempted to go out. Lord Voldemort did disappear last night, but many of his partisans are still running. Some wouldn't dare to approach you, because I imagine they feel a form of relief. The news of your survival is gradually spreading across the country, and these most zealous partisans are certainly looking for you."

"Are you sure Harry and I are safe here?" asked Lily, concerned.

She mistakenly believed that her little house at Godric's Hollow was a fortress that Voldemort could never cross, and yet he had succeeded. The dark wizard had evaporated shortly after casting the Killing Curse on Harry, who had bounced on him. She trusted Severus, and in no way doubted his sincerity. But her friend was a Death Eater, who had connections with partisans of Voldemort. The fugitives could very well try to seek him, to ask him for help.

"No one will pick you up here" said Dumbledore. "It would also be wise – for a while – to reduce your exchanges with your friends. The Order was betrayed by one of us and—"

"If you're suggesting that Remus or Sirius, that they could have—"

"I'm not insinuating anything, Lily" said Dumbledore. "But it's better to stay on our guard. Very few people know where you are now, and that must continue. Don't send an owl under any circumstances. Don't receive any of them. For my part, I will continue to communicate with you through the Floo network – Severus' fireplace is secure -, or by patronus. As for you, Severus, Horace will take care of your classes on Monday, and it will be so as long as the situation requires it. For your students, and for your colleagues, you are currently suffering because you contracted Spattergroit during the weekend, an extremely contagious disease, as you know."

Lily saw Severus's face stiffen.

"You're confined to your apartments, to the castle, and receive no visits, only that of a house-elf who takes care of you. I would be lying to you if I said that your sudden disappearance is feeding the gossip. That's not the case. The students and teachers only talk about the fall of Voldemort, and we have been having banquets since this morning."

People were feasting, while Lily had lost her husband and Harry her father, while the Longbottoms were in the hands of monsters.

"Well, well" concluded Dumbledore. "It's time for me to leave you. I will soon come forward again when I have information to share with you."

The fireplace went out and Lily sighed.

"Spattergroit? It's a week, isn't it?" Lily asked Severus.

Seven or ten days of captivity weren't unreasonable before freedom restoring.

"Believe me, he will make the pleasure last, and he will say that I've been diagnosed with a severe form" replied Severus, bitter.

Obviously, Severus expected their cohabitation to be much longer, and Lily didn't know how to interpret pleasure in Severus' mouth.