A/N: In my story, there are going to be more students in each year than we're used to. This is because Voldemort wiped out so many people during his reign (that's why there are so few students in the post-war Hogwarts that Harry and co attend). There still aren't as many as the castle can hold, partially because there are two other wizarding schools but also because lots of the wizards and witches during James and Lily's time would have been recovering from Grindlewald. So, in this story, classes are still mixed between houses, but there are multiple classes per year per house (i.e. in Harry's Hogwarts, there are only two classes per year with two houses in each class; sometimes less in NEWT level classes. In Lily's Hogwarts, there will still be, say, mixed Slytehrn and Gryffindor or Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff classes, or any other combination thereof of houses to encourage interhouse unity, but there would be multiple mixes of each per year). If this doesn't make sense I can always clarify more!

First Year - Lily

"I did NOT say that!" Lily Evans shouted indignantly into the phone.

"You did, you admitted it. You think James Potter is cute," came the voice of her best female friend, Marlene McKinnon from the other end.

"That is not what I said," she groaned, falling back so she was lying on her back on the couch. "James Potter is an arrogant, bullying, slimy-"

"But cute," interjected Marlene.

"Not cute."

"LILY," came the voice of her mother from the kitchen, presumably. "Get off that phone, I need it!"

Lily sighed theatrically. "I gotta go, Mar. I'll see you on the Hogwarts Express tomorrow, okay?"

"See ya Lils!"

There was a click as Marlene hung up the phone. Lily had only been gone from Hogwarts for a week, but was already missing the castle and her friends. She had explained to Marlene how to use a phone (her parents, both being wizards, had never needed one), and Marlene had been using her next door neighbour's phone every day of the break so she and Lily could talk. Lily had made quite a few friends in her first few months at Hogwarts, but other than Severus, Marlene was her best friend.

"You kids and these telephones," said her mom, chuckling as she came into the room. "What's wrong with sending letters?"

"It takes too long, mum," groaned Lily. "Phones are faster than owl post, even."

Her mother rolled her eyes in response which Lily took that as her cue to leave. "I'm gonna go see if Sev is around," she said as her mum began dialing the phone.

"Be back before dinner!"

"I will, Mum," Lily responded. At the door, she pulled on her coat and boots to ward off the cold. Her wand remained in her room, as it always did when she was at home. She couldn't use magic outside of school and besides, it didn't seem fair to rub the fact that she was a witch in Petunia's face. Severus would probably be appaled that she didn't carry it everywhere, but then again, he hadn't grown up as a muggle.

She was nearing the park at Spinner's End when she spotted him sitting alone on one of the swings. Lily smiled secretively. At Hogwarts, she had been sorted into Gryffindor and Sev into Slytherin. They didn't often have classes together, and many of the Gryffindors didn't approve of the Slytherins. Her time with Severus had been reduced to studying in the library after classes, which was a disappointment to Lily. After all, he had been the person to teach her about the Wizarding World and prepare her for Hogwarts. He was her first friend from the wizarding world, not to mention her best friend.

"Sev," she called out when she got close enough. He turned and smiled at her. It was snowing, so his black hair had flecks of white in it and he looked cold. But his black eyes lit up when he saw her, anyways.

"How has your day been?" he asked as she sat down beside him.

"It was okay. Tuney was at a friend's house all day, though. And I'm leaving tomorrow, so I doubt I'll see mcuh of her before I go," responded Lily sadly. Petunia had been scarce all break. Lily understood that she was jealous, but it still hurt to not have her older sister around.

"I'm sorry," he responded, but she noticed the almost minute eye-roll that followed the apology. Severus, of course, did not approve of Petunia's jealousy in the slightest.

"How were things at home today?" she responded with a change in topic.

"Okay." He shrugged non-commitally. "It'll be good to be back at school."

She nodded and they lapsed into silence for a few minutes. Lily looked out at the park. It was rather dismal in the winter – much nicer in the summer. She and Tuney used to play in it all the time. And, it was the place where she first met Sev, and where she first discovered she could do magic.

"I know one thing that won't be good about being back," she said as her thoughts strayed to the conversation she had had with Marlene earlier.

"Potter and Black?" responded Severus levelly.

"Got it in one," said Lily with a groan.

A couple hours later, she returned to her house to find that Petunia was still out. She ate quickly with her parents before heading up to her room, determined to get a head start on some of the material they would be covering in class after the break.

The next time she looked up from A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration it was dark out. She stacked the book neatly back into her trunk where everything was already packed and slipped out the door to her room.

The hallway was dark and quiet. She felt her way along it until her hand hit a familiar doorknob. Turning it slowly, she entered Petunia's dark room. She had done this so many times throughout her life that she knew the layout of Tuney's room like the back of her hand, so creeping through the dark to Petunia's bed wasn't a challenge at all.

She shook Petunia awake and whispered, "sleepover?"

Petunia's response was to grunt in annoyance, but she did roll over and leave space for Lily in the bed. Lily crawled in, wishing, not for the first time, that her sister could come to Hogwarts, too.