It's been a long time since I have written any kind of fanfiction, or any kind of fictional story at all for that matter. However, news of the upcoming return to the magical world has driven me back here as I felt inspired for the first time in a long time to write something. So here it is… this will be a story primarily about Lily, the story will focus on her changing relationships between the start of her sixth year and the end of her seventh, as well as her trying to work out her place in a world which rejects her. Pairings will be James/Lily and one-sided Severus/Lily.

This first chapter may be a bit slow since its just Lily in her muggle life before her sixth year, and I'm sorry there's no James/Lily interaction but don't worry, it will come and will be plentiful. Hope you enjoy.

"So… this summer's been fun yeah?" Lily began the inevitable conversation with the muggle boy she had been dating most of the summer.

"Yeah…" Pete replied looking slightly unsure what to say next, "…but you'll be going back to your boarding school soon?"

"Next week," said Lily smiling.

She had spent the majority of the summer in the arms of this cute boy. While the summer originally had promised to be the worst one so far it soon took a positive turn. She had reconnected with an old friend from primary school called Angela within a week of returning from Hogwarts, who had immediately dragged Lily off to a local music festival for a weekend. It turned out this was exactly what Lily needed, a weekend of illegal substances and alcohol combined with rock music, and it got even better when Angie had introduced Lily to her cousin, Pete. He had been lovely, so open and boyish, so...normal. For the first time in a while Lily felt so at ease, her problems in the wizarding world left to the side.

But the return to Hogwarts was looming, the return to the world where she was under constant threat. For the first time Lily almost wished she wasn't going. Almost.

Sweet muggle boys certainly had no place in that world.

"We always knew this was gonna just be this summer," she added.

"I know," he smiled back, "but you're such a foxy lady," his grin widened as Lily laughed, "It's just a shame."

"Hmm you're rather pretty yourself," Lily replied reaching over to kiss him, he snaked his hands around her waist, "But it's just how things are."

He looked slightly put out for a moment but seemed to decide just to make the most of their last day when Lily kissed him again.

The goodbye at his front door was more gutting than Lily had thought it would be, even with his mum watching like a hawk to check they weren't getting too amorous. She probably should have hurried home from work and kept an eye on them while they were upstairs Lily thought with a smirk as she began the walk back through the Cokeworth estate to her house. As she walked she found herself nervously looking around, unsure whether or not she actually wanted to catch a glimpse of greasy black hair. That particular boy had been completely absent from her summer so far, something which Lily had generally been grateful for. Yet there were other times where Lily had indulged herself in a fantasy where Severus Snape had shown up at the front door of her family home and begged her to forgive him.

Then again. You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine. She had laid that down pretty firmly.

"Mum?" She called as she walked in through her front door. She received no answer. It was weird having such a quiet home, previous summers would have at least provided a response from Petunia telling her to be quiet or her grandma would have called for her to come watch something on the BBC. Now Petunia was in London doing some sort of typing course and her grandma was gone.

And your mum may soon follow came a nasty voice in her head.

No, she told herself firmly, mum will be fine. Yet the sick feeling remained in her stomach, and she couldn't help herself going upstairs to check that her mother wasn't lying there… ugh she didn't even want to finish that sentence.

Having satisfied herself that her mum was fine, probably just popped out to the shop, Lily set about making herself a cup of tea and lost herself in her thoughts. It wasn't that she didn't miss Hogwarts, merlin she missed Hogwarts itself, and magic, she longed for the day that she would be able to cast spells at her leisure without receiving a warning letter from the ministry for underage magic. She missed her friends- including the one she could no longer reasonably consider a friend- she missed her classes.

She didn't miss the increasing tension which was building between Gryffindor and Slytherin, she didn't miss Mulciber's sadistic threats against her friends, she didn't miss having mudblood hissed at her every time she was in the corridors, and she didn't miss having to work twice as hard as any pureblood to still be disrespected. She certainly didn't miss watching one of her oldest friends be seduced by a group which wanted to wipe people like her from existence. Or explaining to the other muggleborns among her friends why she defended him so much. Well, I suppose the last two aren't relevant anymore, she considered with a lump in her throat.

The sound of keys in the doorway broke her out of her reverie. She heard the distinct sound of her dad sighing and she felt a pang in her chest for him. He could be left all alone.

"Hey dad," she called with a forced calm, "good day at work?"

"Nothing special," the smiling face of Jack Evans appeared in the kitchen doorway, "where's mine?" he indicated the mug in her hand.

"Make it yourself!" Lily grinned at him, relaxing.

"Hmph, Petunia would have had it ready for me,"

"Yeah well, Petunia ain't here," Lily immaturely stuck her tongue out at her dad.

He chuckled, "that's true, it's been weird just having you around for the past month, I forget how gobby you are when you're away. Usually after listening to Petunia natter about nonsense I almost start to miss you, this time it's the other way round,"

Lily laughed at him, "whatever dad, I-" she was cut off at the sound of her mum now coming through the door. The once very beautiful face of Violet Evans appeared in the kitchen doorway as her husband had. Just last Christmas when Lily visited she had still maintained her vivacious youth, now she sometimes looked like she was lucky to even be standing on two feet.

"Sit down love," her dad immediately pulled out a chair for his wife and grabbed another mug from the cupboard.

"Oh I'm fine, don't fuss me Jack!" Being ill hadn't made Violet weak willed that was for sure. Yet she still sat down.

Lily spent the evening just hanging out with her parents, wondering whether these next few nights would be the last she would get to spend with both of them, the speed at which Violet had deteriorated was another reason Lily was reluctant to go back this year. Eventually her dad dismissed himself saying he was going to read in bed and Violet pulled out a cigarette before turning to Lily.

"So…what happened with that lovely boy of yours?" she asked with a smile, lighting her cig.

"We ended it today like I said we would," Lily began with a sad smile, "Some things…well…it wouldn't have worked long term, and we agreed that it was only gonna be this summer when we started. Plus, imagine his reaction if I send him a letter using an owl…"

Violet chuckled a bit at that, "He would probably be a bit surprised yes, though from what you've told me about his mum it would probably be worth it for her reaction."

Lily laughed with her "Yeah I still think Petunia would have got along well with her,"

Violet gave her a little scowl but didn't pursue it. "And your job?"

"Did my last shift this morning, Mr Patel says that I can come back next summer if I want to by the way, and I got paid so I've got money to change at Diagon Alley on Saturday," a pause.

"Erm, do you think you'll be able to make it?" she added tentatively.

"Of course!" Violet exclaimed with a scoff, "like I'd miss possibly my last chance to enter the wizarding world," This was met by a silence from Lily, "Oh! Lily I didn't mean like that, I just mean that next summer you'll be 17 and able to what was it? Apparate?" Lily looked up into her mums face, her reassuring smile firm, "I promise you I'll still be around!"

For a moment Lily believed that the strength of her mum's conviction would be enough in itself to see her through to next year. Then Lily looked again, she saw the drawn skin, the tired eyes. The cigarette in her mothers' hand.

"Quite frowning at that young lady!" her mum said gesturing for Lily to look her in the eye and taking a drag, "and besides, are you telling me that I wouldn't find your packet if I looked under your pillow right now?"

Lily gasped, "How did you-"

"Don't leave your bed unmade before you go out in future. Or find a better hiding place at least."

Lily was forced to smile guiltily, "I don't do it often,"

"And you'll blame Severus I'm sure," said her mum raising an eyebrow.

Lily shifted, it was true that she had picked up the habit because of Severus, though she had been the one who decided to steal that first one from him. However, the reason she felt uncomfortable was not due to her mum's accusations but more to do with what she knew was coming next.

"and again Lily, where is Severus?"

"He's-" Lily had no real answer, she didn't want to tell her parents about her fall out with Severus because it would mean telling them about the bigger problems in the wizarding world. So far she had kept that a secret, "We just aren't as close as we used to be, that's all."

"Hmm," Lily could tell her mum clearly knew she wasn't being honest but didn't push it.

Soon after her mum excused herself and went to bed Lily decided to quickly have a cigarette- since it was apparently not a secret and she was a big hypocrite- before sleeping herself. She had to admit that the habit had become a lot more frequent this summer, at least Mary would forbid her to do it in the Gryffindor dorm, she'd have to cut back then. She had considered explaining everything about the wizarding world to her mum and dad; all of the problems which were happening. How people like her were starting to 'disappear', how there was a group of people in Hogwarts who felt like she had no place in that world. She had considered it, but she couldn't. She wanted her parents to think she was safe, that she was living a fantasy life which would never be accessible to them.

Stubbing out the remainder of her cig she went back upstairs to her bed, she found her chubby ginger cat stretched out across the whole width of her pillow.

"Selfish," muttered Lily as she picked him up to move him over, two reproachful eyes suddenly snapped open and a paw swatted at her face.

"Yeah, yeah, we go through this every bloody night," she stroked him to calm him down, "you ready to go back to Hogwarts?" she whispered. She was rewarded with his purring as he settled back down next to her, "least one of us is."