Owls
The Smyth couple who resided in the village of Humphrey never expected that they would have children. Eileen had married her husband Richard Smyth in the fall of 1958 and had had many unsuccessful attempts at bearing children.
She had become very frustrated with her situation until the doctors informed her of the cancer that was quickly invading her uterus. Since that moment, Mr. Smyth gave up on his dreams of family and lived out his days feeling blessed that she was still in the chair next to him in the morning and wrapped in his arms at night.
That is, until a telephone call reached their residence on the morning of July 31st, 1977. Eileen had been at the sink washing up after lunch when a call came in from her Goddaughter and niece, Petunia Evans. She had not heard from the Evans' since the passing of her sister a few years before-hand and this phone call proved to be just as devastating.
It seems that her brother-in-law, Harry Evans, had suffered a fatal heart attack which left the care of her two nieces up to her and her husband. Ever since that night the two girls had been staying in the guest bedrooms of their little cottage.
The weather had been rainy in the village of Humphrey for the past two days. It came down in a constant mist that fell onto the fields of grass and left puddles in the dirt road that led right by a little cottage that nestled quite nicely into the small forest of trees that grew around three of its sides.
As the rain beat a steady rhythm against the glass of the top right window, a girl with shoulder length auburn hair could be seen lying on the bed, her green eyes staring unfocused as the condensation droplets ran races against themselves to the bottom. The room was small and contained only a twin sized bed (pushed up against the far wall) and a small desk.
There were boxes that ranged from small shoebox sized ones, to ones that required two people to life them. The walls were bare and the only things that made it look like someone inhabited the room were a vase of flowers and a large birdcage which were both sitting on the desk. Every once in a while the set of green eyes would dart to the flowers and then turn away filling with tears once again.
Lily Evans had been sitting in this room for hours and had made no progress in making her self feel at home as her aunt Eileen had instructed. She just lay in bed, in her black dress, hoping to wake up from this nightmare.
Only a few days ago she had been in her childhood home in Cokeworth enjoying tea with her father and sister and talking excitedly about the upcoming start of term at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but now that life seemed so far away from her.
It had only been four days ago that she had woken up and gone down stairs to fix breakfast in an unusually good mood. Petunia and she had had a nice talk the night before and she thought that perhaps her sister was beginning to come to terms with not being a witch and perhaps they would regain their tight sisterly bond that they had shared in childhood.
These had been the thoughts occupying her mind as she reached the bottom most stair and turned into the kitchen only to discover her father lying in the middle of the floor. In that instant, time stopped. But then it started again, and it had seemed to move in double time.
Images and events seemed to blend together; Petunia discovering her cradling her father's body, the police and coroner arriving, her aunt and uncle coming to help them pack up their belongings, moving to Humphrey, and the funeral.
She had seen so many faces of people that she did not know pass by her and offer her condolences at the funeral home and cemetery this morning but none of them could quell the emptiness in her heart that was once again glaringly apparent from the loss of both of her parents within the past five years.
Suddenly a tapping at the window seemed to shake Lily Evans out of her reprieve. She glanced toward the misted pane and saw a tawny owl glaring imploringly at her to let it inside.
Although she had never seen this owl before, Lily had a hunch as to why it had come and, sure enough, the moment it swooped inside, a letter fell from its' beak and landed with a soft thud onto the bed.
Lily crossed the room and offered the owl some water and a treat for making the long journey and then with a flap of its wings, the bird once again glided from the room and into the misting haze that surrounded the cottage. Her green eyes watched the progress of the owl until it was only a speck being swallowed up by the horizon before turning to retrieve the envelope from the bed.
She read the front and found the familiar scrawl in green ink from Hogwarts. Inside it contained the usual welcome back letter listing the supplies she will need for the upcoming semester and the start of term date which was set for September 1st, as usual.
As she went to throw out the envelope, though, something fell out and landed on her lap. She had failed to notice the third bit of parchment within the envelope which contained some unexpected news which almost made her smile.
Ms. Lily Evans,
It is to my immense pleasure that I am able to inform you that you have been named this year's Head Girl at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please note that this includes the responsibility of running the prefects meetings, organizing the patrol duty schedules, and keeping the school's prefects in check along with the help of the Head Boy. Should you choose to accept this offer, we will see you at the start of term on September 1st; but should you wish to decline, please send return owl as soon as possible. Please enjoy the rest of your summer break.
Deputy Head Mistress,
Minerva McGonagall
Placing the piece of parchment on the bed next to her, Lily picked up her new Head Girl badge and held the small piece of medal between her fingers.
Her parents would have been so proud of her; but now there was no one who could understand the small joy that such an accomplishment brought to her seemingly dreary life. For, you see, her aunt and uncle did not know that their god daughter had magical abilities.
For a moment, Lily worried about how she was going to pay for her materials this year, but then she remembered the small stash of money she had saved up from all of her summers working at the muggle appliance shop down the road from her house and figured that she could make it stretch.
All she had to do was make it through this last month without exposing her secret to her family members and she would be able to return to the only home that she had left.
A soft knock on the door interrupted her thoughts as the head of a woman poked itself through the bedroom door.
Eileen Smyth was nearing her forties and had the laugh-lines etched into her face to prove it but no one would say that it didn't suit her. She had a slight build but a definite homely appearance of someone who felt secure in her own body.
Lily shifted her gaze onto the woman and took in the way that her hair had the same gentle curl that her mother's had had. She noticed other small similarities between herself and her aunt: like the way in which her knees slightly bent together as she stood, or how her ears were a little bit pointed; but the thing that always took her by surprise was how they shared the exact same eyes.
Her mother and father had both had stormy blue eyes and Lily had always quite liked the shocking green of hers; to tell the truth she had been slightly jealous of her aunt when she realized that she no longer had quite as unique ones as she had thought.
"Lily dear, dinner is about ready if you feel up for joining us," Eileen took in the unpacked boxes and the black, rumpled dress that her niece was still dressed in. She walked over to her goddaughter and took her hand squeezing it lightly. "Things will get better dear, I know they seem bleak now but I promise things will get better."
Lily could feel the tears once again prickle behind her eye lids as her aunt swiftly moved back toward the hall to go gather Petunia for dinner. She had never been one to openly cry in front of others and was glad that her aunt seemed to recognize this quirk; she would always offer small bits of encouraging phrases and then conveniently find a reason to leave her with some privacy.
Summoning up what little energy her body seemed to still cling to, Lily trudged over to one of the larger boxes which had the label 'Lily- clothes' scrawled in a neat writing across the side. She rummaged through it for a bit and eventually decided on a pair of large black sweat trousers and a royal purple tank top.
Shedding the dress that she had worn to both of her parent's funerals Lily threw on her other clothes and opened the door to the hallway almost colliding with the uncle.
"Hullo Lily, dinner is almost ready. I believe tonight we're having chicken." Her uncle Richard had always had a hairline that receded back halfway along his scalp but Lily was glad to see that, recently, he had taken to shaving himself bald instead.
The look actually seemed to suit him; Richard was very tall, about 6' 3", and had a thick body structure. He was not a fat man but he had a large frame. Despite his almost menacing appearance, her uncle had the kindest eyes of anyone she had ever met; there was always a crooked smile displayed in his features, especially whenever he happened to be caught staring at his wife.
Though he would never mention it, Richard was glad to have the girls staying with them because it seemed to bring warmth out in Eileen that had been lacking without children of their own.
"That sounds delicious. I'm just going to pipe into the loo for a moment and then I'll be down thank you," Lily stepped around her uncle and took the few steps up the hallway and into the bathroom.
As she stared into the mirror, Lily could see the toll that the past couple of days had on her; her skin was a sickly pale, there were large dark circles under her rid-rimmed eyes, and her hair was piled on top of her head in a tangle of hair. The corners of her mouth pulled down into a slight frown and the light had seemed to go out from her eyes. She could not believe how empty she felt.
It was as if the loss of her father had implanted a dementor inside of her chest and she could not escape the misery that was slowly consuming her.
Seeming not to be able to look at herself anymore, Lily forced a smile onto her face and went to go join her family at the dinning table. Her sister Petunia had already made it to the table and was looking about the same as Lily even though their looks could not have been different.
Where Lily had a slight frame, bright auburn hair, and astonishing green eyes; Petunia was tall, very slender with an abnormally long neck, with dark brown hair, and honey brown eyes. She could feel those eyes glaring at her as she took her seat at the table.
Dinner passed without much talking and soon it was time for Lily to disappear back up to the room that she would now call her bedroom. The lights were dim and she found herself imagining the shadows cast against her walls being malicious entities. She quickly turned on the lights and the florescent glare made her cringe but at least it was better than her imagination running rampant.
As she walked over to crawl into bed again Lily noticed something that wasn't there before dinner. A letter had been delivered for her. With a jolt of trepidation she read who it was from and smiled. Alice Cooper had written to her!
Alice was in the same year as her at Hogwarts and they had been best friends since 1st year when they were assigned to the same dorm room. Tearing into the letter Lily's eyes roamed the large untidy scrawl that she knew so well:
Lily- Petal,
I am so sorry to hear about your father; it tears at my heart that I was not able to come and support you today- damn this family holiday! I implore that as soon as we get back (in two weeks) that you come and stay with me until term starts. I will not accept no as an answer. It must be miserable in that house not being able to do magic and having no one to talk to! I've already talked to my parents about it and they insist that you come. In answer to your questions, I have not heard back from Frank yet and it is driving me crazy! I cannot get a handle on if he is actually interested in me or not! Ahh, I miss you leaps and bounds! Please say that you will stay with me; we can even go into Diagon Alley together! I love you so so much! Stay strong and write back quickly; my mother is being so suffocating.
With much love,
~Alice
Lily felt a feeling of love balloon inside her as she finished reading the letter. She had forgotten how Alice had this way of making her forget her sadness, if just for the length of time it took her to read a letter.
The thought of spending the last two weeks of holiday with her best friend lightened the mood that had descended over her since arriving at this cottage. She only had to spend two weeks here instead of the anticipated four; what a thrilling possibility!
As her eyes read through the letter once again, her thoughts drifted onto Frank Longbottom and his way of messing Alice around. Alice and Frank had had a mutual attraction for each other since their third year at Hogwarts but neither one of them had the courage to make the first move yet.
Secretly, Lily just wished that one of them would get it over with and just snog the other; she was getting tired of analyzing each owl post and every action that Frank Longbottom ever made in regards to Alice Cooper.
Lily had no idea in which box hid her parchment and quills so she made sure that her door was closed and withdrew a long, straight stick from within her trousers pocket.
With the flick of her wrist one of the smaller shoe-box sized boxes sprang open and her supplies levitated into the air and onto her desk, seemingly, of their own accord. Rolling the parchment out flat, Lily began to etch out her reply:
Dearest Alice,
I miss you too; so much. This day seems like it has dragged on forever. The funeral seems like a blur and I cannot believe that he is gone. Petunia still refuses to talk to me but my aunt and uncle are being quite accommodating but having to not use magic is starting to try my nerves. I would love to come and stay with you! Let me just talk to Eileen and then we can formalize plans. I'm sure that Frank is just trying to figure out the correct response to your last letter and that he will write back soon. Have some faith. Please get back to me soon, I'm dying of loneliness here.
With much love,
Lily E.
Since her owl, Artemis, was out to stretch its wings, Lily placed the letter by her cage to send out when she returned. Crawling back under the covers, Lily let the events of the past couple of days slip away into a slide-show of jumbled images and events that would eventually let her mind ease into some form of sleep.