Chapter One

Harry stood looking at the tall double oak doors in front of him. He hesitated as he stared at the large silver knocker, a pretty decorative symbol that he didn't recognise. It had taken him a long time to track down the owner of this house, four years after the last fight in the war to be precise. But yet he felt his stomach twisted in knots at the thought of finally meeting her.

Shaking his head he reached out and tapped the doorknocker twice and waiting with a breath caught in his chest. But it was a young boy who eventually answered the door. A boy with floppy dark hair and wide eyes, gazed up at Harry with amazement.

"You're Harry Potter!" He gasped.

The teen smiled awkwardly, "Yeah. That's me. Is-" But he was interrupted by a woman's yell.

"Danny! What did I tell you about opening the door without me?!" She scolded her son.

Then she looked up and noticed who was standing on her doorstep, all colour that had filled her aged face seemed to drain away. She clutched onto her son as she gazed at Harry with critical eyes.

"Danny. Go to your room for now." She said calmly.

"But Mum…"

"Go!" He trailed away sighing loudly as he stormed up the stairs.

The woman eventually pulled her dark eyes away from Harry and opened the door wider, "Please come in." She said in a small voice that didn't seem to match her appearance.

"Thank you. My name is Harry Potter, are you Poppy May?" He asked politely holding out his hand.

She took it in a firm handshake. "Yes. Yes I am." Then she turned and started to walk through the large enterance hall into a drawing room that was decorated with pictures of the boy Harry had just seen. He followed her wondering if she knew why he was here.

"Harry. I am so pleased you are here."

Her voice was filled with emotion, "Please come in, we have so much to discuss." He followed her through the grand hallway into a formal living room. A large glass chandelier hung from the centre of the room making Harry look up in awe.

"I hope I'm not imposing." Harry said nervously as she gestured them to sit on high dark purple chairs.

"Not at all, this meeting is long overdue." Her smile was wistful.

"Who told you about me? Was it one of the Order? I assume that you are here about your parents." Her voice was slightly strained now.

"Um yeah. I just got the rest of the inheritance they left me. That included a house, I didn't mean to spy but I found a letter addressed to someone called Poppy, my mum wrote it. I didn't ask anyone, but I found out you married and had a son. There was a newspaper clipping. I just wanted to know if you were close to my parents." Harry asked quickly not meeting her eyes.

She was surprised. The boy wasn't as bold as his father. From the stories she had heard about him Poppy had assumed he would be just be like James. But he wasn't. If she was completely honest, she was slightly disappointed.

"Yes." She eventually said pulling at her dark chestnut brown hair that had started to gray at the roots. "I was your mothers best friend, and your father was like a brother to me." She said distantly.

Harry frowned; neither Remus nor Sirius had mentioned her before. "Really?"

Poppy nodded a smile pulling at her lip. "You sound surprised, somehow I guessed they would have told you."

"You knew Sirius and Remus too?" Harry was completely confused now.

She laughed dryly and nodded. "You could say that. We were in the same house together; I was in the same dormitory as Lily. One moment, I am sure a have a picture somewhere." With a simple flick of her wand a draw opened and a picture flew into her open hand.

Smiling fondly at it she handed the picture to Harry. It was a magical photo so the eight figures sanding in front of him were grinning and waving up at him. Poppy stood next to a younger and far better looking Sirius, his arm was around her waist as he whispered something in her ear that made her laugh. To the other side of Poppy was Lily, she was smiling bright as James draped an arm around her casually, the smirk he was wearing matched Sirius'.

It took Harry moment to work out whom the other four were. Alice and Frank Longbotttom looked so alive, it created such a contrast to those bodies lying in St Mungo's. He stood holding her hand proudly as they smiled happily at the camera. Next to Alice was Remus; his change in appearance was the most drastic. All signs of age had vanished making him look like a different man, Harry could finally see why he was part of the Marauders. He was kissing a pretty golden haired girls cheek making her blush.

"It was the night of the Graduation Ball. I hear they stopped that before you arrived. Such a shame, it was probably the one night everyone had without arguing." She said with a fond smile. Harry pretended not to notice the tears in her eyes.

"Who is with Remus?" Harry asked curiously. Poppy looked down her eyes darkening slightly, "That was Amber. She and Remus were together for the last couple of years. You know who Alice and Frank are?"

He nodded once. "The four of us shared a room. I would have thought that Remus would have told you about Amber though." She said sadly looking at the brown-eyed girl who giggled.

"They didn't really tell me that much about them. I mean… they talked about them. But never proper stories. I don't even know how my parents got together." Harry sighed.

Poppy's expression darkened as he said this. "Really? Not even the Marauders pranks? Or the times they kidnapped Lily?"

Harry's eyes widened. "Kidnapped my mum? No. The only memory I know was Snape's. It was in fifth year by the lake." He said hoping she would know which one he meant, because he didn't feel like explaining it to her.

She shook her head sighing softly. "Out of the seven years the only thing you know was probably their worst moment. What were those boys thinking?"

"We didn't exactly have much time together." He said evasively.

"You have all summer in Sirius' parents house. That's plenty of time." She replied, Harry felt the need to defend his Godfather but was struck by confusion. "How did you know about that? Were you in the Order?"

Her face didn't seem familiar but there had been so many passing faces that summer it was hard to keep track. "I was, a long time ago. But in your third year Remus started writing to me about you."

"You knew about me? And Professor Lupin never mentioned it?" Harry was becoming annoyed now, just as the issues with trusting Dumbledore had passed he was now discovering there was more behind the story of Sirius and Remus.

Poppy looked at Harry thoughtfully. "Lets go on a walk. The weather is too nice to sit inside."

He had no choice but to follow her as she opened the wide patio doors and started to walk around the large grounds. They walked in silence for a while as Harry struggled with what to ask the strange woman first.

"I tried to get you. When your parents died. But things were difficult before they died and they hadn't written me in as Godmother. I am so sorry you had to grow up with Petunia. You were so loved Harry." Poppy's eyes were filled with guilt but she didn't explain her story any further. "When Remus started working at Hogwarts and got to know you, he wrote to me about things that he thought I would like to know. Like how you had the same Patrous as James and how you battled Dementors."

"Oh." Harry was stuck for what to say again but this made Poppy laugh quietly.

They carried on walking for a moment until they reached a large pond at the end of the large garden. "Do you want to know, about Lily and James? I could tell you their story. I don't think its right that you don't know about them, I know they would have told you if they were here today,"

"Yes." He replied simply. Poppy smiled slightly and nodded. "Your mum left me her diary's when she died so I know a lot about things I wasn't there for. Let me start in seventh year, that's when it all began."

….

The girl paused, her eyes narrowing as she looked out at the sea of black and gray. There were so many people here; it was nice to know the amount of people cared for her parents. But it was a boy sitting at the back that caught her attention; he sat with her friends staring silently at the bunch of flowers that were grouped around the wooden caskets.

He must have felt her gaze as he caught he eye and sent her a sympathetic smile, which she ignored. If anything, Lily found the presence of James Potter insulting. It wasn't like he knew her parents. Lily looked away and turned back to her sister who was sobbing into a tissue. This was the first time she had felt jealous of her sister, for Lily didn't seem able to cry.

It didn't feel like her parents were dead; they were just, not here. The sickening truth hadn't sunk in yet. Lily reached over to put a hand over her sisters but Petunia flinched away shooting her a cold glare. Lily bowed her head as Petunia began to sob louder; she knew that her sister blamed her for their parent's death. And if Lily was honest, she blamed herself too. Had she not been a witch, death eaters would not have targeted her parents.

Time flew past Lily, as she was lost in her own thoughts, consumed by a grief that overpowered her. The ceremony ended leaving Lily swept away by swarms of people giving her their condolences. She didn't want their grief, her own was already too much to handle.

"Sorry, excuse me for moment." Lily whispered to a woman who claimed to be her mothers best friend. She pushed through the crowds back into the now empty church, her heart pounding as she looked at the closed boxes. Steadying her pace, Lily walked up the isle towards them, resting her knees on the steps.

"I'm so sorry. I d-d-idn't want this. Mum, dad, please. I am so sorry." Her voice was choked with emotion but her eyes were dry as she sobbed.

Footsteps filled the large church as Lily crouched on the floor, as the footsteps halted warm arms wrapped themselves around her. She lent back letting her breaths slow until she was no longer gasping. "Are you alright Evans?" It wasn't till she heard his voice she realised who had hugged her.

James was watching her with a small frown, his hazel eyes intense behind the circular glasses. "I'm fine Potter." She snapped, her voice sounding harsher than she had meant it to.

"What happened Evans, it was awful. I hope you know how sorry I am." His voice was sincere so she nodded stiffly standing up.

"I do. Thank you." They stood awkwardly for a moment until James ran a hand through his hair and said, "Do you want to see the girls? They are really worried about you."

Lily nodded biting her lip and started to follow behind him. But he stopped abruptly as she said in a broken tone, "I guess you were right. All those things over the years, I proved you right. What kind of a bitch cant even cry at her parents funeral."

His heart thumped painfully at the reminder of the arguments they had at Hogwarts. "Evans, I think the fact you can't cry makes the whole thing more traumatic. And for what its worth, I don't think you are a bitch. Never have." There was nothing more to say. So he carried on walking and was surprised to see that she was still following him, her eyes locked on the floor in front of her.

"Oh Lily!" Amber was the first one to meet her friend. She rushed past James and flung herself at Lily, wrapping her arms around her in a close embrace. Lily patted her friend on the back surprised to see tears in her chocolate brown eyes. Amber sniffed pulling herself away from Lily in an effort to control herself. "I am so sorry about your parents Lily. Its so dreadful."

Lily forced a smile, nodding in agreement. But it was hard not to envy the blonde Gryffindor. Amber was the other muggle-born girl in their dormitory and it could have easily been the other way round.

Luckily Poppy distracted Lily by squeezing her hand, appearing on by her side. She didn't need to say anything, there was nothing to say, Lily and Poppy both knew that. Poppy was the second friend in their dormitory, slightly taller than her friends she had the frame of a model that most boys at Hogwarts found attractive. Out of the four friends Poppy was the rebellious one, not quite as mischievous as the Marauders but she was known for joining them on a few occasions.

Lastly there was Alice Prewitt. Alice rested her head on Lily's shoulder and said in a soft voice. "Anything, anytime. I am there Lily." Lily nodded not knowing what to say, she felt overwhelmed from the support from her three friends.

"Evans?" Lily turned to see Sirius dressed in a suit that matched James's his expression unnaturally grave. "I just wanted to say, this really sucks. And I wish it didn't happen to you."

The three boys standing behind him groaned loudly, but Lily felt her lips curving into a small smile. It was refreshing for someone to say something other than; I'm sorry. Remus elbowed Sirius shaking his head disapprovingly. "What he means to say is, we are here if you need cheering up Lily and you have our deepest sympathies."

"Thank you Remus." Out of the four Marauder boys, Lily got on most with Remus. They had gotten along well being prefects together and often paired up together for class assignments to get good grades.

The forth boy didn't say anything, but he shot small smile at Lily before breaking eye contact almost immediately. Peter was never very good at holding conversation with any of the Gryffindor girls.

They all stayed till the end, standing in a group a little further away from the rest of the lingering Muggles. Eventually the last well wishers drifted away leaving only the two Evans sisters and the group of friends. "You can stay with us, any of us." Amber said looking around at the group who all nodded in agreement.

"Thanks guys. But I am staying with Tuni." They all said goodbye to Lily, hugging her and promising to write over the rest of the summer holidays.

James was last in line and hugged Lily tightly before she could protest. "Evans, come visit anytime. Poppy and Padfoot are there too so it wouldn't be weird." A ghost of a smile formed as she nodded, "I will bare that in mind. Thanks for coming Potter."

He looked surprised at her last sentence but nodded immediately. "Anytime."

Lily turned away and walked back towards her sister who was watching the whole display with a strange expression. She said nothing to Lily as she reached her and began to walk back to her car leaving Lily to follow behind.

It was a stony silence as they drove back to their home, neither of them finding the words to express themselves. Petunia kept her eyes firmly on the road whilst Lily would glance back at her every few seconds. They hadn't gotten on well for years; their relationship had been stretched ever since Lily had been accepted to Hogwarts. But it seemed the death of their parents was the breaking point.

"Vernon and I have decided something." Petunia stated, smoothing the creases from her skirt, still not looking at Lily. They were parked in the neat driveway facing the red garage door. "You have an hour. Then you must go."

Lily frowned, confusion filling her face. "What do you mean?" Her voice trembled slightly as she stared at her older sister who was now pursing her lips tightly.

"You have an hour to pack your things. Then you must leave the house. Vernon and I will stay there until we can sell it. When it is sold you will get your share. But I am afraid I can no longer live with you." Her voice was emotionless as she pulled at a loose thread.

"Tuni?" Lily's voice wobbled dangerously and Petunia pulled the tread away with a small snap. "I trust you have somewhere to go, with all those freaky friends." There was a slight sneer to her voice now.

True to her words Petunia gave Lily an hour to leave, she sat in the living room watching the clock emotionlessly. Vernon stood beside her with a hand on her shoulder, grimacing like he was in pain from Lily's existence. The witch managed to fit all her belongings in her large trunk; it was a hard decision to know what to leave behind; knowing she would never see it again. Luckily she had already put an enlargement charm on the case before she left Hogwarts. Not that it mattered. Ever since she had turned 17 she could now do magic outside of school, but it still felt wrong.

"Goodbye, Petunia." Lily said softly looking at her sister as she stepped back into the porch where Petunia waited patiently.

Petunia's gaze rested steadily at the door in front of the two, her lips pulled tightly together. "I hope you have a safe journey." Her voice was laced with a forced politeness that strained her sister tone.

It was a good thing that Lily had taken a ride on the knight bus before, if she hadn't she might not have known how to call for it. The bus appeared almost instantly, glowing brightly in the darkening evening sky. A small chime rang in her ears as she stepped on, pulling her trunk behind her. The ginger kitten that had followed her heals sprang past her and leaped onto a bed, curling up on a pillow.

"Where do you want to go Miss?" The conductor asked with a toothy grin.

Lily's heart raced painfully in her chest as the realisation sunk in. She had nowhere to go. Sure, all of her friends had promised her that she was welcome but they were all so busy. Alice was on holiday with Frank and his parents and Amber was travelling with her family. That left Poppy; only she was spending the summer with James since their families were such good friends. And she couldn't go there. No. Sirius and James would laugh at her; even her own sister couldn't stand to be around her. They had always been right about her.

"Diagon Ally please." He nodded and she moved to sit down next to her cat. She would have to find somewhere on her own. A new start.