Chapter One: Going Back

The windy afternoon drifted to a close. The girl's fiery red hair whipped around her face as she inhaled the warm summer air with the first hint of autumn. Excitement danced in her sparkling green eyes as she thought of the following morning. She hummed to herself as she sat in a swing at a children's playground.

"Hey."

She turned her head to look at the speaker.

"What do you need, Severus," she said, more of a statement than a question.

"Are you sad?" the 17-year old boy asked, walking slowly over to the swing set and sitting sown next to the girl.

"About what?" she asked, tersely, after a pause.

"That its our last year. That we're never going back."

Silence.

"I wish it was different," he continued, "I wish we were still, you know, friends."

The girl stood and turned to look at him sadly, with a bitter expression on her face.

"Me, too. But that doesn't change who you are, what you've done." She turned and began to walk away.

"Stop, Lily!"

When she didn't, he whispered, "Figures. Filthy little Mudblood."

That made her stop. Lily turned slowly around. "See, Sev? That's why we can't be friends. Because you made all the wrong choices. And anyone who doesn't agree with you and your so called death eaters are as good as dirt." She snapped, her eyes flashing, and turned and walked away.

Tossing the last book in his stuffed trunk, James Potter turned and admired his messy room.

The door opened and a tiny creature with huge ears and eyes rushed up to him and squeaked, "Is there anything I can get master Potter before he goes?"

The tall boy ruffled his jet-black hair, smiled, and shook his head. "Nah, I'm good. Thanks, Tilly." He patted her fondly on the head and continued, "I'm gonna miss you!"

The house-elf let out a high-pitched squawk and hugged James's knees. He chucked.

After she left, he took one last look out the window at the Potter Mansion's grounds, his messy room, dragged his trunk out the door, and proceeded down the hallway, when he heard a "PRONGS!!" and found himself tackled to the floor with a 17-year old boy on his back. James groaned; he knew what was coming.

"MY HAIR IS PINK!!" bellowed Sirius Black in his ear. "ITS PINK!!"

As hard as it was, James managed to laugh- hysterically.

"CHANGE-IT-BACK!!!" shouted Sirius, emphasizing every word by elbowing James in the stomach. James gasped and spluttered, and finally gave in.

"Alright, alright!" he coughed. Sirius grunted in satisfaction as he got off James so he could change his hair back to his usual shaggy, ink-black mop. James slowly sat up, moaning and groaning, pretending he was actually hurt.

"I think you broke my pelvis, Padfoot!" He writhed on the ground, clutching his ribs.

"What the heck is a pelvis and how would I break it?! Never mind, just change me BACK!" James chuckled, got out his wand, flicked it, and Sirius's hair returned to its normal black.

"BOYS! Time to GO!" yelled Emma Potter, James's mum and practically Sirius's as well.

"Coming!" they replied simultaneously, and made their way downstairs and to King's Cross Station.

Lily turned to her parents.

"Well."

"Oh, Lily!" cried her mother, throwing her arms around the redhead. Petunia made a gagging sound. "John! Oh, this is the last time we'll ever take our Lily to the station! Oh!" she started crying, finally releasing Lily and putting an arm around her husband, John, Evans's, waist. He put his own arm comfortingly around her shoulders and smiled down proudly at his youngest daughter.

"Oh, don't worry about me, Mum! I'll be fine. Promise!" she smiled, squeezing Rose Evans's hand.

"Our little girl is growing up so fast!" she wept.

Lily glanced at the clock and said, "I have to go, its 25 minutes til eleven, and I have to get ready to brief the prefects."

"We'd better let you go, then, hadn't we." Her father beamed. "We love you," he said, letting go of his wife and enveloping Lily in a hug and whispering in her ear, "Make me proud. And knock 'em dead!" He kissed her on the cheek and as soon as he let go her mother hugged her again, her flowery perfume overwhelming Lily. She kissed her on the cheek and said, "I love you, mum!"

"I love you, too, my dear."

When they parted, Lily approached the now disgusted Petunia.

"Tuney, I- "

"Don't even speak to me," she spat, and walked away.

Lily felt a brief spasm of pain and blinked back the pricking in her eyes as she watched her only sister walking away through the train station. She turned, giving one last cheery wave to her parents, grabbed her trolley, and slipped through the red brick barrier between platforms nine and ten.

Mrs. Evans sighed and said, wiping away tears, "It's a strange world we live in, John."

"Strange, but wonderful," he agreed.

"Strange, but wonderful," she echoed, "Indeed."

As Lily stepped through the barrier and saw the massive train and all the witches and wizards, she felt the feeling of belonging she had been aching for all summer. She sighed happily, the scene with Petunia all but forgotten.

"Lily!" she heard, and turned to see a tall girl with long mousy brown hair, blue eyes, and a light blue sundress making her way through the crowd as quickly as she could.

"Alice!" Lily exclaimed, ecstatic at seeing her best friend for the first time since June. They hugged, and when Lily pulled back to look at her, she said, "I missed you this summer! It was awful."

"How were Petunia and her pet whale, Dursley?" Lily chuckled softly, but her insides froze as she remembered their painful parting. Her friend, sensing the drastic change in her, forgot the question she had asked previously and quickly started describing her "amazing" summer that she spent with her boyfriend, Frank Longbottom, of two years. Lily leapt at the subject change, all too eager to forget about Petunia.

They made their way to the train, chatting animatedly the whole way, excited for the upcoming year.