One of These Days by PhoenixPlume
Summary: "One of these days- you're going to realize that I am perfect for you, Evans!" "Well, I have news for you Potter. You have just proven my point about how self centered you are! 'I am perfect for you, EVANS!' You don't even know me; you can't even call me by my first name! 'One of these days' is equal to never." This is about Lily's and James' time at Hogwarts, and how they finally got together.
Disclaimer: I do not own ANYTHING that seems familiar to you. It'd be cool if I did though…
Prologue
It was a hot summer's day in Surrey, England. Lily sat in her room, crying because life just wasn't fair. No matter how hard she tried, things seemed to happen that she couldn't control. Just then, she was suffering the consequences of blowing apart Petunia's breakfast. She hadn't meant to- really. It was all an accident. Petunia had been saying nasty things about Lily's drawing, which Lily had worked so hard on. Then it just happened. Lily hadn't done anything to cause such a fiasco, but her sister's breakfast just- burst into flames. Petunia went into hysterics, and for once, Lily didn't blame her. It was rather freaky how these events occurred whenever Lily lost her temper. All her life, Lily had been doing odd things like this when she was particularly angry. Her parents punished her, but it never seemed to do any good, other than make Lily feel worse. Today had been no exception. Lily felt absolutely terrible.
'How is it that only I wreak havoc when I'm mad? Petunia never does- which is probably good because imagine horrible THAT would be- because she seems to lose her temper whenever she SPEAKS to me. And Mum and Dad never do either. I'm sick of being different. The worst part is—WHAT IS THAT?'
Just then, Lily's train of thought stopped mid-sentence and her verdant, almond-shaped eyes grew wide with amazement. A barn owl was tapping on her window. As most any eleven year old girl would do, she called her mother. "Mum! Come quick! There's an owl tapping on my window!"
Her mother rushed in, her face imprinted with startlement.
"Well- maybe it's hurt, Dear. Let's open the window. We're going to need something to keep it from messing up the room. Ah- hand me that box right there in case it starts flying around."
Lily handed the box over to her calm mother. Mrs. Evans opened the window, holding the box next to the bird, who pushed the box away and flew towards Lily.
Lily remained still, transfixed by the owl, and what it carried- which happened to be a letter, of all things!
"Sh, sh. It's okay, it's okay," Lily said as the bird settled on her arm. But then it did a most unusual thing. It stuck its leg out, the leg to which a letter was tied.
"See what the letter says- maybe someone needs help," Mrs. Evans said, concerned, but excited.
Lily untied the letter, while the owl remained surprisingly tame. The letter was addressed to her. It read: Miss Lily Evans
Bedroom with the round window
1538 Cherrydale Rd.
Surrey, U.K.
Both Lily and her mother gasped in surprise.
"The person even knows what room I live in!"
"Well, open it!" exclaimed Mrs. Evans, nearly as excited as her daughter.
The letter read:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL
of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Miss Evans,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed list of all necessary books and equipment. Please report to the corner of Yorkshire St. and Charing Cross Rd. in London, where you will see a pub called "The Leaky Cauldron" on August 2nd at 1 o'clock p.m. From there, you will be directed to a place where all your supplies can be purchased.
Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall,
Deputy Headmistress
Lily was shocked beyond words. Mrs. Evans read the letter three more times before she sighed and said, "Lily, as strange as this sounds, I think that considering your, um, interesting experiences, you just might be a witch."
"But- but in fairytales the witches are always evil!"
"Which is why they're fairytales…"
"This is so…well…it's quite amazing, really."
"Let's take a look at the list of things you'll need."
The two read through the list, both growing more and more intrigued.
Lily actually wanted to laugh. This whole event seemed dreamlike to her. The titles of the books would normally have cracked her up- but probably the funniest thing she read was "PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS."
'Ha,' thought Lily, 'Since when is having a broomstick so dangerous?'
Lily's mother smiled at her daughter. She loved when her daughter was happy. Just like her tempers, her smiles burst into fireworks all around her. Lily certainly never did things half-way. But Lily interrupted her reverie.
"July 31 is in a week. Do you suppose we just attach a note to this owl and say that I will attend this school?" asked Lily, her brows furrowed in thought.
"Yes, dear. Let me call your father- and try to explain what has just happened. Then we'll write an appropriate response and send it."
"I hope he lets me go!"
"I'm sure he will. We both want you to be happy- which means nurturing all of your talents and abilities."
With that, Mrs. Evans exited Lily's room, wondering how she would explain to her husband that their youngest daughter was a witch.
Lily hummed happily to herself, and reread the list of supplies, wondering what each would look like, be like. She wondered if being a witch involved casting spells on baby princesses- but she supposed that was just a non-magical folk tale. Did wizards tell their children fairytales? Or perhaps their fairytales were about people like the rest of her family…
What if everyone but Lily already knew all of this? Would she be alone? She tried to put that thought from her mind. Soon, her imagination took over as she saw herself waving a wand saying, "Abracadabra." Did witches and wizards actually use that silly incantation? She really hoped this all was real- not a practical joke. But if it was one, it certainly was the most creative one she had ever encountered. At that moment, the owl nipped her finger, as if to make her fears subside.
Mrs. Evans, with a tired look on her thin face, entered the room. She had a smile on her face, and said, "Your father and I have agreed that we will let you go to this- Hogwarts. Not the most attractive name, is it, dear?"
Just then, Petunia burst in, her eyes glaring furiously. "How come Lily isn't in trouble? And why—"
The owl had had enough of this precocious, finicky little girl. It flew off of Lily's arm and herded Petunia out of the room, as if she realized that the receiver of the letter she had delivered did not want Petunia, which she didn't, of course.
"Oh my gosh! Get that thing AWAY from me! NOW! It's-it's-it's got TALONS!" screamed Petunia shrilly.
"Why did you come in here anyways, Petunia? Now she's all keyed up!" accused Lily.
"Now, Lily. You know Petunia didn't mean to. Here," said Mrs. Evans, handing Lily the response she had written up for the 'Hogwarts people.' "I'll hold the owl, you tie the letter onto its leg."
The owl looked quite offended, and flew towards Lily, and perched perfectly still on the bed post. Lily shrugged, and tied the note onto the owl's leg using the same string that had been used for the owl's previous letter. The owl gave one last remonstrative glance at Petunia, and flew off into the gathering twilight.
Mrs. Evans sighed, "I guess we all need to have a little chat."
Petunia eyed them both suspiciously and sank onto Lily's desk-chair. "Well!"
"Honey, you must have noticed that your sister is a little different than the rest of us."
"Yeah. She's a FREAK."
"Well at least I have people skills. With that kind of attitude, it's pretty certain you won't win and influence people," replied Lily, her green eyes flashing dangerously.
"PETUNIA! LILY! That was completely uncalled for. If you two can't get along, neither of you will be allowed to watch your favorite show tonight."
"Yes ma'am," responded each girl in a would-be-respectful tone to their mother. Neither wished to have her privileges taken away.
"Now, both of you be quiet. Let me finish what I was saying. Ah, yes. As I was saying, Lily is a little different from the rest of us. We have all noticed that odd things seem to happen when she loses her temper. Today is a prime example. It turns out that today, of all days, that that owl you disliked so much, Petunia, was carrying a letter for Lily."
At this, Petunia's horse jaw dropped lower. "That's unnatural!"
"Aren't you observant, Pet?" said Lily sarcastically.
"Girls! Stop! Alright. The letter invited Lily to attend a school for witches and wizards."
"So Lily IS a freak?" said Petunia.
"Lily is a WITCH, Petunia. She has magical abilities. I think it's quite wonderful. And I hope you both can learn to appreciate each other's different gifts."
Lily snorted, the thought of appreciation from Petunia was hilarious.
Petunia just glared at Lily. Lily had everything, she was even magic. Well, Petunia was going to show her up in just how down-to-earth and NORMAL she could be. She would show her.
"Well, girls. I'm going to get dinner started. So you need to come set the table. Your father will be home soon," said Mrs. Evans, leaving Lily's room.
"I'm coming with you, Mother," followed Petunia.
"I'll be there in a minute," replied Lily, a smile flickering on the curves of her mouth. 'I'm a witch. I'm going to a school to teach me how to be one, anyways. This is the best day of my life!' With those thoughts, Lily sprang from her bed and floated down the stairs toward the kitchen.