Author's Note: Hello readers! This story is based loosely off of one of my previous works that I have recently deleted, which based on the same topic but had a different direction. I hadn't updated that in over two years, so I decided to scrap the whole thing and start from scratch, and this story will undoubtedly go in a different direction with my improved writing and different views on certain topics. I feel as though the earlier draft did not amount to much, and it could be infinitely improved if the time was taken to restructure it. If you haven't read the earlier draft, which most of you would not have, this story is based on the idea that Lily Evans was not an Evans at all, rather a Black, and Sirius' twin. It is based on a number of different relationships, the central ones being Lily/James and Lily/Sirius, the latter being a non-incestuous relationship, and being merely sibling love and rivalry. This story is obviously canon-divergent, so the entire situation regarding Petunia and the Dursleys will be obviously non-existent in this story. Now, I feel as though I have rambled quite enough, so please read and review, constructive criticism being allowed. Thanks!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. All rights go to J.K Rowling.

Lily Black twirled her wand between her fingers, eyes trained lazily on the painfully dull grey ceiling. Her brand new Hogwarts trunk was placed neatly at the end of the bed, filled to the brim with all her books, clothes and everything else she had deemed necessary for her first year at Hogwarts school for witchcraft and wizardry. This was the first day of the rest of her life. She was finally going to escape her Voldemort-fanatic parents and the grim and instilling 12 Grimmauld Place.

Her magical watch that she had gotten for Christmas last year vibrated in the form of a muggle alarm. Sighing, Lily pulled a lock of curly red hair that had escaped her hastily-tied ponytail and got to her feet. "Sirius, hurry up! We've 15 minutes until we have to be at King's Cross. Unless you'd like to miss the train and have to walk to school, I would suggest you get up off of your lazy arse!" she called out to her twin brother in the room down the hall. She pulled her trunk off of the floor and grunted as she attempted to lift it.

"Need help, sis?" a quiet yet amused voice asked from the doorway. There stood her younger brother, Regulus, leaning casually against the doorframe.

"I'd love it Reg, but sadly the fact that you're a year younger than me, and don't possess any more muscle than I, I doubt you would be of much use," Lily said, sending her favoured brother an apologetic smile at the blow that she had sent to the 10-year-old's ego. Regulus didn't seem to be that affected by the unintentional insult and shot her a toothy grin.

"What are you talking about? I've got muscles the size of those muggles who punch each other in that ring thing for sport," he gloated without meaning, brandishing his pre-teen muscles. Lily snorted.

"You mean boxing?"

"Yeah, that'd be it," Regulus grinned. The smile slowly faded, being replaced with a forlorn expression instead. "I'll miss you, Lils. Sirius too. It'll be a misery, plain and simple, without the two of you for company."

"Somehow, I think you'll survive. Just don't let mum and dad bully you too much, okay?" Lily asked, grunting again as she finally managed to lift the trunk off of the ground. She managed to drag it all the way to the living room, where her parents and Sirius stood impatiently. The latter faked a yawn.

"Wow, Lily. You really have to work on your timing and organisation skills. You've been holding us up," Sirius mocked without insult. Lily rolled her eyes and ignored the jab.

"So what? Are we going to get there via floo powder, or apparation, or what's happening?"

"Apparation. We aren't going to let you go to Hogwarts looking like you've stepped out of a chimney. We aren't the Weasleys," her mother rolled her eyes, nose wrinkled at the horror of such an action. With a sigh, Mr Black held out a hand to both Regulus and Sirius, whilst his wife did the same for Lily. They took the outstretched gestures and found their lungs squeezed in that uncomfortable feeling of side-along apparation as they travelled to King's cross.

"Filthy muggles, wandering around like it's nobody's business. I'll be glad the day that You-Know-Who finally stamps them out," Mrs Black muttered under her breath as she whisked her children and husband through the wall that led to platform 9 ¾.

"Oh look, there are Druella and Cygnus. Let's go greet your cousins; the sight of all these blood traitors is making me sick." Their mother all but dragged her children over to her brother and his wife and children. Bellatrix and Narcissa stood obediently next to their parents, but Bella had the look in her eye that Lily had come to recognise as not particularly friendly, and sent her elder cousin a warning glare, of which the Hogwarts graduate had shaken off. Andromeda, the middle child, had also since graduated, but apparently, the two had come to see their younger sister Narcissa off to her third year.

"Brother, Druella," Mrs Black nodded. "Ah, Bella. I've seen that you have recently been recruited to join the death eaters. Congratulations. Rumours tell that the Dark Lord has spoken quite highly of you."

Bellatrix smiled her sinister smirk and simply shrugged. "I've been known to charm the right people. Shall I expect you to be at Rodolphus and I's wedding, at the end of the year?"

Mrs Black beamed at her favourite niece, and promptly turned to her least, Andromeda. "Of course. And you, Andromeda? Do you have plans to wed shortly?"

Andromeda squirmed uncomfortably, at which Lily felt a pang of compassion for the girl. Her favourite relative bar that of her brothers had confided in her that she was in love with Ted Tonks, who was sadly a muggle born. Lily knew for a fact that the house of Black would not take too kindly to have a blood traitor in their ranks, and Andy would surely be disowned.

"Not yet. Mother and Father are looking, though," she said quietly, biting her lip. Mrs Black let out a disapproving noise, but her attention was caught by the conductor yelling.

"All students aboard!"

Sirius and Lily exchanged worried looks, and with one last peck to Regulus' cheek and a stiff nod to the rest of the family, the twins scampered onto to gleaming scarlet Hogwarts Express, Narcissa trailing behind them a few metres back. Mr Black had, in irritation of his children's struggle with the trunks, taught them to levitate, so the burden had been removed.

As Sirius and Lily had not boarded until the very last possible moment, there were very few compartments that weren't filled to the brim with bustling students. Narcissa had long since deserted her cousins for her fellow classmates. They eventually found one toward the back of the train that only harboured four students, leaving enough room for two more. Sirius knocked on the glass, and a boy with messy raven hair and hazel eyes behind a pair of glasses hastily opened the door.

"Hey, mate. I'm James. James Potter," the boy grinned widely, offering his hand. Sirius' face lit up at the name he was very aware was not listed on the list of the sacred 28 families of purebloods, and therefore was safe in the knowledge that their mother would be surely pissed if she heard a word of a friendship between the two.

"Sirius Black and this is my sister Lily. Your first year as well?" he asked, bounding in as if he felt perfectly at home. Lily did not share this feeling and awkwardly sat next to a rat-like boy on the corner of the compartment, directly across from the messy haired boy that Sirius was now having an animated conversation with.

"You play Quidditch? Awesome; I'm hoping to make the team next year. It sucks that first years aren't allowed to play in the school competition, doesn't it?" Sirius quipped, to which James laughed and agreed. The conversation stayed like this most of the train ride, with the sandy-haired boy next to Sirius and the rat-like boy occasionally speaking up with their own points of views.

The boy diagonal from Lily, however; the one with greasy hair and a long, hooked nose, didn't contribute, choosing to instead stare out the window solemnly. He looked just as uncomfortable as Lily felt, and she felt slightly better to know that she wasn't the only shy one in the place. Her attention to the ongoing conversation had switched to houses, to which both Lily and the greasy-haired boy both looked up.

"Gryffindor is obviously the best house. I mean, where dwell the brave at heart, and all that," James was exclaiming, holding an imaginary sword. The greasy boy let out an audible snort at this, causing all the attention to be diverted his way. James had raised an eyebrow. "What; do you have something to say?"

"No," the other boy said with an air of superiority that Lily recognised in her parents and Bellatrix. "Just that you're sounding quite oblivious to the fact that Gryffindor hosts only reckless idiots who throw themselves into danger for no logical reason except to show off."

James looked successfully goaded. "So what're you going to be, then, Mr I-Know-Everything? Ravenclaw, I bet."

"Slytherin, obviously. The house of the cunning."

James let out a humourless laugh. "Right. More like the house of Voldemort wannabes. I'd leave if I were placed there. Wouldn't you?" he asked, the question directed to Sirius. Lily answered in her brother's place before he could fib.

"Our entire family has been in Slytherin," she spoke up for the first time. James turned to her in surprise.

"And she speaks! Huh. And here I was, thinking that you guys seemed alright."

Sirius shrugged. "Who knows, maybe we'll break the tradition. I've always fancied being in Gryffindor," at this, Lily's brows shot nearly to her forehead. This was the first time that Sirius had ever mentioned something like this to her.

James, however, seemed content with her brother's answer. "Shows how smart you are," the boy muttered under his breath, to which Sirius squared his shoulders.

"What did you say, Snivellus?"

The boy flushed, but his eyes were still defiant. That was when Lily decided that she had had enough. "Shut up, Sirius. Come on, you. Let's go find another compartment," she said, standing up tall, gesturing for the boy to follow her. He gladly stood up, following her out of James and Sirius' compartment. Lily didn't bother seeing if her brother was at all affected by her leaving, and she didn't care either way.

"What was your name?" Lily asked as the pair stalked the corridor of the train. The boy fidgeted for a moment before replying.

"Severus. Severus Snape."

Lily offered him a smile. "Lily. Lily Black."