Fateful Entwining

 Godric's Hollow | Night | Potter House

Within a suburban house, reminiscent of those in its neighborhood, lived a peculiar family surrounded by household items and instruments that seemed to come to life on their own. Every corner of the house was imbued with its own eccentricity, akin to frames containing animated photos.

In one of these rooms, two young toddlers laughed, surrounded by their favorite belongings. One of them was having fun floating on a magical broom, swirling around the room, much to the delight of the creature that seemed old yet agile, trying to catch the child he called "young master Harry."

 The other of the two children had a sly smile, observing the scene. With the background noise of his brother's mischief, he turned his gaze to a picture book laid out on the room's floor.

James Potter, the adult in the room, felt a chill with the sensation of a gaze upon him. Closing his eyes and turning around, he saw his wife, an elegant lady usually gentle with her flamboyant hair, but who at this moment seemed to want one thing: to kill him and bury him here and now.

 "James Henry Potter, why is Harry on a broom when I clearly thought I told you not to give it to him?" Analyzing the damage in the room caused by his son, with poor Nixie trying to stop the disaster, Lily Potter's gaze returned to her husband. 

"What excuse do you have to give me?" she said with an aura of a basilisk, her piercing eyes ready to pounce on any lie.

 "My firefly, you know I can't do that. It's a gift from Sirius, and how can I take away the object that will make my son great? Look, he was born to be a Seeker; it's in his blood."

 "Really... you and Sirius are unbelievable. I would have preferred that Remus had more influence on you than him; at least we would have spent less time arguing at Hogwarts." 

"And all Gryffindors would have had a less memorable life in the castle without noticing our presence at every moment. Besides, if I had to choose, I prefer Wormtail to Lupin. To hell with all those times he looked down on us to finish our homework." 

"Peter, huh..." Lily had that evasive look in her eyes, an discomfort she had trouble explaining. "You're always worrying about that; we've already talked about it. You know Dumbledore's spell protects us. You, my dear firefly, our two dear children Harry and Lilian, and I, are safe," he said, kissing his wife. This, incidentally, made Lilian laugh as he observed his parents' discussion attentively.

"Dumbledore is human like everyone else, which means an error is possible. That's why we came here, and I myself reproduced the spell with Nixie as the guardian of the secret for the Potter family home. I don't understand why none of you thought of Nixie in the first place. Yes, I don't like to think of her as a servant, but she would be the last person to betray us," said Lily, Lilian's body that she held just for a moment as if to make sure no harm would come to him.

"You could have told me before doing such a thing. What's done is done, my firefly. You barely sleep, and you were all the time on that book at the manor. Sirius and I have applied additional defense measures. Let me bring Harry down, and let's go to sleep. You really need that. Tomorrow, you and I will turn this house into a real fortress, one that even you-know-who will fear," he said with an air half-victorious, half-mocking, to which Lily released all her stress with laughter.

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In a chilling silence, two shadows made their way through this otherwise warm neighborhood. With the yellowish moon as their only light, a hunched silhouette guided another with an air of reverence and excitement.

 "It is here, master, that the Potter children live at the moment," he said with a hint of disdain. "What will you do about Severus's request, master ?"

 The silhouette following the hunched one walked with dignity, as if everywhere he went was his own, but he was repulsed by this place. "You did well, Wormtail; that idiot Potter must have been really stupid to believe in you and Dumbledore," Voldemort said with a contemptuous smile on his almost reptilian face. "I promised Severus that I would spare this girl, and I intend to keep that promise. In what condition depends on her."

As the duo approached the now visible house, Voldemort took a moment to stop and observe the protections surrounding the house. "It's a shame that a pure-blood capable of doing this must die tonight," he said, then incanted {Confringo}. "Stay back in case another impromptu visitor pays them a visit."

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In an explosion of material and sound, two individuals felt the magical breach of their barrier.

 One of them was sleeping with his wife and two children in an upstairs bedroom. He awoke with cold sweats, pupils dilated from the rush of adrenaline, their brains working at high speed to grasp the improbable situation with a lingering guilt as an aftertaste. "Lily, you and Nixie, take the children and leave while I hold them back,". Lily, equally awakened by the sounds of explosions, instinctively followed this advice, clutching her crying children in her arms due to a surprising awakening.

While casting a final glance at her husband, Lily Potter Apparated to the Potter Manor with Nixie, only to realize afterwards that only their house elf had disappeared. 

With her heart pounding, she said, "James, it's not working; we're stuck here, trapped in this cursed house."

Seeing his wife writhing in despair while holding their sons tighter, James embraced her and calmly said, "As always, you were right, my firefly. You're always right; that's why I believe you'll find a way to save yourself and the children. After all, only the smartest lion of our year can survive this. I'm sorry, my love, and to you too, children. I've... been profoundly foolish to entrust our lives to him and give him so much faith. I'll buy you time, my firefly, so please survive for me." Trembling in his embrace, James kissed his tearful wife one last time, then, with a determined ardor in his eyes, left the room.

Still somewhat in shock, Lily regained composure and literally delved into her memories, searching through her recollections for the slightest glimmer of hope that would return. Then, a spark of vivacity returned to the depths of her green eyes. "Yes, divine intervention."

Thinking about everything required, moisture filled her eyes again as she looked one last time at the door. She murmured, "I'm sorry, dear."

Springing into action, she took all the candles in the room. Exiting with her wand, she chanted {Liquescere}. The wax began to melt on the floor. Again, she chanted a spell, levitating the liters of wax to form circles filled with inscriptions and mystical runes on the room's floor.

With red eyes full of concentration and stress, she could hear the struggle for power occurring in this house. 

"By magic, make that cursed book be true. I would have hoped for more time to understand it." Resolute in her decision, Lily turned to her two sons sitting on the bed, Harry applauding in his own way at his mother's performance and Lilian watching this magic with fascination.

She first took Harry in her arms, then, with a forced smile, said, "My champion, my treasure, I hope you'll always keep that uniquely yours smile on your face. This mood can warm even the worst days and brighten the night. I wish you the happiest life, my angel." She placed Harry in the center of the glowing circle at that moment.

Still trembling, she put on the same smile and took her second son in her arms. "Lilian, my brilliant flower, even now, I can see that you're not like everyone else, loving picture books more than games, enjoying watching people speak passionately. I know your mind will take you far, to be smarter than others, although I hope you won't end up a reclusive Ravenclaw. I wish you the most exciting life in the world but lead a calm life at the same time. Be kind to your rambunctious brother and take good care of him." Then, like her brother, she placed him in the center of the circle.

"My loves, your mother loves you more than you can imagine. Live, my children, live."

Lily cut her hands with scissors, then imposed them on the magical circle, and, with a final effort, chanted the ritual {In antiquis arcānīs et magicae resonantiārum cordibus, verba sacra surgunt ad entitātem summam invocandam. In hoc ritū vētustō, foedus magīcum conditur, ligans ānimam audācem ad potentiam transcendēntem quae eius invocātiōnī respondet.}

At that moment, the mother of the two children felt something emanate from her, all her life force and magic, undergoing a torment that could be described as extreme for a ritual that did not aim to harm anyone. As the end of her torment approached, the majority of the energy now in the room began to converge into the circle. No one could see this happening, but everyone nearby, including the children, could feel it. In the end, a burdensome presence made itself known. No one could understand the spoken language, but what was being communicated needed to be words, and everyone could understand it: [the contract had been completed].

The mother of the children sighed with fatigue and joy. But before she could even observe the end of the ritual, a shadow barged into the room.

 "Well, well, I see that a Mudblood is using forbidden magic, a ritual," Voldemort sneered as he advanced. 

"Where is James?" Lily said with dread.

 To which Voldemort's only response to this question was a full-toothed smile, a playful grin one might have after an easily won game of cat and mouse.

 Understanding the implication of this response, Lily burst into tears, now devoid of magic, all she could do was pray. 

"Do not worry, this blood traitor will soon have company in hell with the arrival of her children," 

Voldemort said, pointing his wand directly at the mother and children. 

"Now, get out of the way, will you? You and this traitor have wasted enough of my time, so make me keep my promise with Severus, or I will fulfill it by giving him only your body."

 "No, not my children, I beg you, kill me if you want, kill me in his place...".

 "This is my last warning." 

"No, not my children! I beg you... Have mercy... Have mercy... Not my children! Not my children! I beg you... I will do whatever you want..." 

"So be it {Avada Kedavra}.

" As the green beam traversed Lily Potter's body, ending her life, the ritual concluded, and with it, an improbable chance occurred. Lily's remaining life energy reacted to the spells as if to counterbalance the loss of the primary source, and with that, destructive effects targeted the entirety of Voldemort's physical body as well as a significant portion of his soul.

 Except for a fragment that, in a quest for survival, entered Harry's soul just at the location of the ritual mark. All of this happened with an extremely low probability of occurrence; all of this happened by chance, guided by destiny itself. 

"And that's how my brother and I lost everything in our lives: our family, our home, ... our joy."