A/N: This is my story for the 'Harry Potter in Beatleland'-challenge on the HPFF forums. The song I got was 'Revolution' (by the Beatles, obviously) and the character Lily Evans(/Potter). Neither of these will be totally obvious in this first chapter, I think. The song was still used for inspiration, though, and it will be used more evidently (at least, that's how I see it) in future chapters. Hope you like it!
Disclaimer: I don't own the world of Harry Potter nor that of the Beatles… in fact, I don't own very much :(
It was one of those weeks again. Something was wrong and everybody knew it. Hogwarts was safe, they said, but for how long? How long before an army of Death Eaters would come and try to take over the school? It wouldn't happen, they said, for You-Know-Who was scared of Dumbledore. As long as Dumbledore was here, they said, Hogwarts would be safe. And yet, during weeks like this, everyone would be walking through the school as if Death Eaters could attack any moment, as if they could be just around the next corner. Nervous faces, nervous gestures, nervous voices. I noticed it the moment I entered the Great Hall for breakfast. Instead of the usual deafening chatter of the students there, it was now almost quiet. Everyone was silent or whispering to their closest companions, occasionally glancing around furtively. Even the Professors, powerful wizards and witches themselves, though of course out-classed by Dumbledore, didn't seem at ease.
I didn't want to know what happened – or rather, whom it had happened to; it was never much of a question what had happened. I never wanted to know who the victims were now. But somehow, I always found out one way or another. Not only the walls have ears here at Hogwarts, everything in the castle does. And not only ears, a mouth as well. Wherever you go, you'll always be followed by the latest rumours and during weeks like this, they're always bad rumours. During weeks like this, everyone was scared. Scared that their own family would be affected. For in weeks like this, no one was safe. There was hardly ever only one victim. But I hadn't gotten a letter, so my family wasn't the one that had been attacked. Although that was quite a cold comfort, since no one deserves something like this. No one deserves the horror of no longer having a family to go back to in the holidays, to occasionally get letters from, to laugh about or to be annoyed at. In my eyes, at least. Unfortunately, not everybody shared this opinion. If that were the case, there wouldn't be weeks like this here at school.
I slid down into a seat near the entrance. During weeks like this one, everyone avoided everyone and I was no exception. It's quite easy avoiding everyone when everyone avoids you too. It never was my idea, but since everyone acted like this, I went along with it. Getting too close to anyone is dangerous, in most people's eyes. Though, only in weeks like this. Getting too close to someone would cause you grief as well if something happened to another person's relatives, friends, or acquaintances. None of my close friends had suffered from Death Eaters' raids yet; the closest I had ever been to it, was when the aunt, uncle and cousins of one of my best friends' younger sister's dorm mate had been the victims. And I'll tell you, that was close enough.
After trying to eat just enough to survive until lunch, I hastily made my way out of the Great Hall again and went to the Transfiguration classroom as quickly as I could. Luckily for me, the door was open already, but no one was in the room yet. I walked in and closed the door behind me, sitting down at a desk in the back of the class. I normally wouldn't sit there, but this way, the chattering people wouldn't be all around me. I don't even know why I was that scared – after all, I hadn't gotten a letter, informing me that my family had passed, but I was. I was really scared. Every death made the danger bigger, made the threat stronger, made death come nearer and nearer. Knowing whom it had happened to made it much more real, to me at least, and I didn't want that to happen.
I have no idea how I survived the classes that day. What I do know, however, is that I was exhausted by the end of it. I always listened to Professors, that wasn't the point. But I almost never was as concentrated doing it as I had been that day. Trying to block out whispers and chattering you don't want to hear, while somewhere deep down, you're terribly curious about what they're all saying, isn't an easy task.
After another hasty meal, I hurried out of the Great Hall for the third time that day. I really needed to get some homework done, but I had no idea where to go. As I mentioned before, the entire castle is one big gossip network. Feeling slightly defeated, I looked around the Entrance Hall. Then, suddenly, I caught sight of the front doors. Shivering at the thought (it was the end of February, so the weather wasn't at its best at the moment), I made my way over there. I quietly slipped out of the doors, made my way towards the lake, and dropped down somewhere halfway, beneath a tree. After conjuring up a blanket and a candle, I managed to do most of my homework. Half an hour before curfew, I decided to head back in. I wouldn't get in too much trouble if I'd get caught (being a Prefect, I could just say I had misunderstood our new patrolling schedule), but I looked forward to getting some rest. After all, since it was one of those weeks again, I would be needing it for the next few days.
A/N: Well, what do you think so far? I know that there wasn't any dialogue, but that's just the situation Lily's in :) If you spotted any mistakes, have any comments, critic or thoughts or just feel like it, don't hesitate to leave a review! :)