AN: Hullo! I would like to invite you into a world everyone knows but with my spin on it. I'm only really doing this to fulfil a need to get JamesxLily together and, my way, is only just one way so its either right or wrong to many people. Trust me I've tried to get all my facts straight but I apologise to any serious Potterheads if I get anything seriously wrong. This is just for fun and I hope you like it :)
Normally I'm overly descriptive but for chapter I've kept to just speech as, I think, for a first chapter, to try and understand characters, speech is better between characters.
Disclaimer: J K Rowling owns everything, including your soul and mine.
Summary: The year is 1977. Lily, and all her friends, are in their final year of Hogwarts. She saw her seventh year as being the best yet but she was wrong. Her world got turned upside down by the power of love and loss in this one part of her life story.
Chapter 1 - "& it's you & me in the summertime…" - The Sundays
(Dear…)
2nd August 1977
Dear Sirius Black,
Thank you for sending the previous letter at a ridiculous time in the morning so could you, please, refrain from sending any further enquiries in the dark of night? My response would have been quicker if your owl hadn't had a concussion for 2 days, after it hit my window, at the ungodly hour previously expressed.
I much appreciate the invite to play quidditch with our fellow friends however I have no interest in the sport. 1) I have never been able to ride a broom - that one lesson in first year did not give muggle-born witches enough time to proper perfect the craft. 2) I'm sure you'd suggest referee but i do not know the proper rules. 3) Potter would be there. 4) I do not know how to travel to your current whereabouts. 5)….. I'm sure I will think of another reason to be a burden to your little game so please enjoy without me.
I would entertain the notion that you actually cared about what you wrote in your letter to me but I will not bore you with such tales of my woeful muggle life.
Always and forever,
Miss Lily Evans.
PS. Get another owl, I'm sure you have other ones
3rd August 1977
To my dearest Lily Evans,
Why are you writing like an old maid? Who writes like they live in the 18th Century anymore? Get your head out of those classic muggle novels you love, Evans, and come and play quidditch!
Before I even start writing the rest I'm going to try write this like you are, to see if its any fun.
I, and the precious owl, are offended that you should want me to part from such a beautiful creature. I do not possess any other owl in my vicinity so the magnificent Atget will have to suffice your high standards of neglect. Perhaps the lustrous James Potter will allow me to bestow upon you a more worthy owl, for he and I are now living together. One would suggest that one should just leave a window open big enough to fit a tawny owl through.
If you don't mind, I would like to address your 5 point strategy of mediocre excuses for not wanting to play quidditch with your amazing confidants. 1) I'm sure Mr James will teach you to ride a broom, among other things, as he is one excellent player of the sport. 2) No one cares about rules amongst a friendly match. 3) I thought you and James were friends? 4) I can gallantly assist you to the Potter residence. 5) No excuse is worse than just not making one up, Evans. And number 6) you don't have to play quidditch, just seeing your beautiful self would be enough for all us to just.
I was very sincere in the first letter on how you were doing without seeing my charming self?
Wishing you weren't writing like a old maid,
Sirius
PS. I don't get how you write like that its so hard not to write bullshit on you in delicate words
PPS. This is killing James that you have wrote back to me. Keep it up
5th August 1977
Sirius,
Ha, I hadn't realised I was writing on that - one does read too many books during the summer - so I will go back to the usual note written format of writing a letter to you.
Ergh, fine I will come to your stupid quidditch day. Meet me in Diagon Alley in 2 days at Florean's, 12pm.
Lily
(I dare you)
So thats how she ended up at Diagon Alley on the 7th August, looking like a complete fool for expecting Black to show up on time. Lily was the type of person to always be on time, which made Sirius' lack of punctuation annoy her. She would plan out her day to be at a place at least fifteen minutes beforehand, because, if not, it felt like the world would implode with her tardiness. Thankfully today was a beautiful day, the sun was out with a slight cool breeze in the air, that made a person feel humble about life and she would be able to forgive a friends lateness. Maybe he too was taking in the pleasant atmosphere of the day.
"Find a lily, pick it up and all day you'll have good luck." spoke the obnoxious man that just plonked himself down on the adjacent seat, killing the pleasant mood.
"I should have known." She muttered under her breath as she looked up from her book. "Potter, was I even writing to Sirius?"
James smiled brightly as he swiped a spoon out of the ice cream bowl, "Sirius got side tracked this morning and asked me to get you. What flavours you got in here?"
"Butterbear and cinnamon roll. But thats…."
"Thats a weird combination, Evans." James interrupted, as he took a scoop of the two flavours. He looked at them with a weird expression of excitement and caution. Lily couldn't help but laugh at his hesitance. James Potter never hesitated, he was always a do-things-first-get-the-consequences-later.
"It's not going to kill you, James." Lily laughed, as she took the other spoon and enjoyed her flavour combination. "I dare you."
The first time she had mutter those three words to him had been in first year, when James had been cocky about his broom riding skills. He proclaimed that he could ride with no hands and blindfolded. It wasn't her fault he broke both arms in the process. All the other dares that followed have always caused some sort of damage. With a determined look in his eyes, as per usual with any dare, James shoved the spoon in his mouth. After a few seconds, he smiled and took another spoonful. "Not bad, Evans."
"Stop taking it all then."
"I thought sharing was caring."
"Git." Lily muttered, putting the bowl in the middle of the table. "Is anyone else coming to your little sports day?"
"The usual." That was all he needed to say for Lily know it was just everyone from Gryffindor in their year. Well, nearly everyone. There were two girls in the Gryffindor 7th year that were more…suited to each other as being friends and the other male, Kinglsey Shacklebolt, can only take the Marauder's in small portions, so he didn't always join them on outings. She couldn't blame him.
James continued, "But everyone's coming here now."
"So I'm dressed in sports gear for no reason then?"
James smiled, "Pretty much. When you said to met Sirius for ice cream, everyone preferred that idea and it would have been too late to send an owl in time for you to know its just an ice cream date."
"This isn't a date, Potter."
"I thought dates were a date when they aren't meant to be one." James grinned wider. "Isn't that some girl rubbish you hook guys into? Swear I've heard that bullshit once or twice."
"I'm not like most girls. I don't try to hook guys in."
"I'll keep that one in mind for later."
"So if the others are coming, aren't they a little late?"
"Seeing at this is a date-"
"This isn't a date."
"-they should be arriving in like fifteen minutes." James winked as he looked up from his watch. "All the more time for us to be better acquainted."
Lily glared at him, "I think we are acquainted enough."
James knew what she meant. "About that-"
"I'm still keeping things secret, Remus is my friend too."
"And about the other-"
"Potter, I swear to Merlin, everything is under lock and key in my head. Stop your worrying." Lily sighed, shaking her head. "I'm me before I am anyone else and I keep secrets, even if some are illegal and an invasion of privacy."
They feel silent for a few seconds, before James piped up, "What's you favourite colour?"
"Seriously?" Lily asked quizzically.
"People who are acquainted enough would know each others favourite colours."
She sat there a little perplexed at the answer. She hated the fact he had used her words against her but she didn't see the need for the question. There wasn't a need for friends to know everything about one another, especially something so insignificant as preference on a colour. "Erm…I don't think I have one."
"Come on, Evans, everyone has a favourite of something."
"If I have to think about it, then it obviously isn't my favourite. My favourite ice cream flavour is butterbear. My favourite number is 7. My favourite class is Charms. These things I don't have to think about because I know so; with a colour I'm unsure."
"You only like 7 because it's a lucky number."
"No, I just feel like, as of today, Year 7 is going to be a good year." She smiled, brushing a piece of hair behind her ear. Maybe it was still the weather effecting her outlook on life but it just felt … delightful. "What's your favourite colour then?"
"Red." He said without any hesitation.
"And you only like red because its your quidditch robes."
"If you say so," James said with a knowing smirk, "Who's your favourite Marauder?"
She didn't even hesitate, "Remus."
"I'm offended, Evans."
"He's not the fool of the group."
"I thought I was the dashingly handsome one of the Mauraders."
"Nope, definitely the fool. I bet you've already done something foolish this summer."
James lent forward with a knowingly look on his face, his hazel eyes sparkling with mischievousness. "You know how Sirius has his new motorbike, that he keeps telling everyone about. Well, we took it for a spin. The muggle police weren't too happy and cornered us into an alleyway… It's a good thing we just flew away because I'd have to be a jail bird, and I'm not being someones bitch."
"You just flew…you…" Lily just sat there gaping at the idiot in front of her. "There had to be a reason for them to corner you."
"It was a bit of a blur so-"
"How fast were you going?"
"I don't know, how fast does a broom travel?"
"Like 100 miles per hour!"
"I thought you didn't like quidditch."
"Just because I'm nonchalant about the sport doesn't mean I haven't brushed up my knowledge on the game." Lily exclaimed, feeling a little blush rise into her face. "Thats beside the point, James. You were caught speeding by the police and then you just magic the motorbike to fly over their heads. You are unbelievable."
"A life without rules, isn't a life…"
"This is great coming from the Head Boy." She interrupted him with a stern look on her face. Lily had only just found out this morning. A couple of days ago the Hogwarts letters were sent out, with the list of supplies for the year ahead and in her's was the 'Head Girl' badge. To Lily, this was an honour she was going to withhold. After she found out it was James as Head Boy, she didn't feel like that would be the case for him. "When were you going to tell me about that, Potter?"
A look of horror and shock appeared on his face as he began to splutter odd sounds. It took him awhile to properly respond to her. "Who told you?"
"Peter."
"That guy cannot keep a secret."
"What were you gonna do? Rock up into the Prefects carriage and drop the wand about you being Head Boy?!"
"I was thinking of using fireworks and smoke. Maybe interpretive dance."
"James you should have told me."
"You never asked."
"Maybe write me a letter then."
"Would you even respond?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because thats what friends do."
"Lily, I-"
James didn't get chance the finish because someone had wrapped their arms around her neck and gave a quick kiss on the cheek. The only person to have the audacity to do such a thing, whispered in her ear with a a hint of laughter, "Nice pegs, Evans. What's the special occasion?"
"Oh, it's all just for you, Black." She cooed falsely, nudging his arms away forcefully. He laughed falling into the seat next to her, still with his arm rest on the back of her chair. The thing with Sirius was he knew what he looked like. He knew he could make a girl swoon by just looking at her with those stormy grey eyes. He made girls think they could change him, when he perfectly knew there was nothing to change. Basically, a git. Somehow, Lily found Sirius' acknowledgement of who he truly was refreshing and tolerable. "I'm a bit disappointed you sent the troll."
Sirius looked at his best friend, "Prongs isn't too bad from a far."
"So far you can't see him anymore is about right," Remus joined in as he sat down next to James with a cheeky smile. "Sorry for the lateness, Lily. It took forever to get-"
"Lily!" She heard one of her friends cry out from behind her. Trying not to roll her eyes, she stood up to face her friend and was tackled at the waist by a fierce hug. Mary MacDonald smiled up at her with those baby blues eyes. With those man catcher eyes, her petite stature and perfectly blonde hair she was a boy's dream. "Oh Lily, I've got so much to tell you. You know I went on holiday, right? You never guess who I saw-"
"Shove off, Mary, no one cares." Marlene McKinnon interrupted, giving Lily an acknowledging nod. She had little tolerance for hugs or any type of affection or nonsense gossip; its a surprise she manages to keep friendly with her polar opposite of Mary. McKinnon sat next to Potter and started to converse in quidditch matters, for she too was on the quidditch team.
"Some people are interested." Mary said deflated, letting her grip relax enough for the fourth Gryffindor girl to pull her away from Lily.
"You can tell all us girls later." Emmeline Vance murmured, dragging Mary away to the nearest available seats next to Peter. Emmeline was the straight laced one, Lily was a close second, but Emmeline followed everything by the books. Some would even say the pureblood had OCD as her brunette hair was cut exactly to the right length; her glasses had to be placed squarely on her dainty nose; her quills couldn't be shorter or longer than 12cm and her clothing had to pressed perfectly.
"Now that everyone is seated, we can talk about this incredible adventure James and I got into." Sirius smiled, pushing Lily into her assigned seat. "You know about the motorbike I bought…."
(But you gotta have friends…)
"Did you hallucinate?"
"Did it look like I was hallucinating?!"
"No, you just had your normal dumb look." Sirius smirked, as he stared at James over the brooms in Quality Quidditch Supplies shop. After his rendition of the motorbike flying tale, the group continued to share their summertime stories. None were as good as Sirius'. Ice cream was shared between them before they all left to get their supplies for their final year together. They got their new books, new robes, new ingredients for potions and new quills but when it got to the quidditch shop, all the girls but McKinnon were interested in going in. To go by the girl code, she stuck with her fellow girls and they are now waiting for them at the Leaky Cauldron. James had pretty much spilled out the conversation he had had with Lily, as soon as the shop door had swung shut. "I didn't know she just admitted you guys were friends. If I had, I would have stayed away."
"She actually said that you two were friends?" Remus asked again for the third time.
"Yes!"
"Huh…I never thought she would have admitted it out loud, especially to you."
"Since when did she no longer hate me?"
"She couldn't have really hated you, Prongs. She runs in the same friendship circle as you." Peter interjected, trying to make an effort in the conversation. "She just strongly disliked you."
"Gee, thanks."
Sirius pulled his best friend away, towards the broom maintenance kits, to have a more private discussion. "There is only one reason why Lily no longer hates you, Prongs. Remus noticed it first because, you know, they are-"
"She did tell me Remus was her favourite Marauder." James interrupted.
"I thought I was her favourite."
"You think your everyones favourite."
He pulled a knowing grin before continuing, "Anyway, anyway…who was the one person that Lily hated us picking on? And who is the one person she is no longer on good speaking terms with?"
"Snape?" James whispered, with a little bit of venom.
"Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner. Evans to fifth year was with Snape and loathed you. Evans from sixth to now has had no Snape so doesn't hate you anymore."
"It can't be that…obvious, can it?"
"Its the only valid reason we've been able to come up with, because lets face it, your still the same git."
"It…I…" James started to blabber with some remark but couldn't find the right words. "But you, Remus and Peter would join in and she's never hated you."
"Ha, Remus never joined in - he'd just be at the back disapproving us," Sirius scoffed. "Mate, I'm not gonna delve into the working mind of a girl, especially Lily Evans'. But don't the muggles say something like there's a fine line between love and hate."
With a very serious face and tone, he found the words he was looking for. "Does that mean I get a better christmas present this year?"
It took a moment for Sirius to grasp James' ridiculous reaction. He couldn't help but laugh at his idiotic friend, which caused a scene in the shop bringing Remus and Peter to come over with curious smiles on their faces. "Prongs - hahaha - that it the most, idiotic thing to ever… Mooney, Mooney, he finds out Lily thinks him as a friend - ha, oh merlin my sides - and his response is whether he'll get a good christmas present. Haha, what a fucking moron."
Remus couldn't help but chuckle. "Why stop there? Think of all the possible birthday presents too."
"Maybe she'll get you the those expensive quidditch gloves you've been wanting." Peter smiled.
"She could give you something else, if you play your cards right?" Sirius smirked, raising a telling eyebrow.
"You've acted relatively calm about this new discovery, Prongs." Mooney commented, ignoring Sirius' perverted mind. "Are you okay?"
James hadn't fully processed what any of this could mean, until Remus made a point. Friends meant that they could move past what had been said before; friends meant that they could be who they were today but friends meant that they could become more than friends, something James had wanted for a very long time. Strange noises erupted out of his mouth as he stopped himself from losing control over the new realisation. James began to rock back and forth on the ball of his heels with a hand to his face. "I'm fine. Are you fine? I…I…I don't think I'm interested in her that way anymore."
Potter didn't wait for a sarcastic remark of one his friends, and just left the shop murmuring something about going to the Leaky Cauldron. The other three just smiled at each other knowing that maybe, just maybe, their ideas were to come true this year as well.
(…different people now)
The Leaky Cauldron was extremely busy considering what the news was advising people to do nowadays. The Daily Prophet was suggesting that everyone should cower away behind closed doors, but it was clear that the magical community were not worried about the Death Eaters, not today at least.
"Lily, are you even listening?"
"Yes, yes of course." She lied as she woke herself up from her dazed daydreamy state. "You were mentioning something about…something."
"I was talking about my holiday." Mary glared, knowing that her friend wasn't paying attention. "You know how I had that little crush on that Ravenclaw-"
"Are we not mentioning his name now?" Marlene interjected, smirking.
"He's an arsehole that led me on-"
"He only led you on in your head."
"That is still a crime to my poor heart."
"Ergh, someone get the fucking violin out for sob story MacDonald."
Emmeline and Lily couldn't help but stifle a giggle as Mary turned her glare towards a grinning Marlene. "Shut your mouth, Price. If you let me finish-"
"Your stories always take too long."
"-OKAY! Okay. Basically I ended up sleeping his best friend instead."
"I didn't think there were any guys left that you hadn't sunk your teeth into." Marlene snickered.
Lily started to go back to her daydream land as Marlene continued to verbally jab at Mary, who kept responding. Emmeline noticed, "Lil, you alright?"
At the present time, her friends were helping her forget her worries of Voldemort. Lily didn't want to be thinking of him, she wanted to live her life as if he doesn't exist, but no matter what he would always be in the back of her mind. Lily tried to keep her normal composure around her friends and family because she didn't want them to know how incredibly scared she was. She wasn't afraid of a man who hides behind a name and what he could do to her life - no, she was scared of what he and his followers would do if they found her family. She wanted to tell her friends, especially the more sympathetic Emmeline, but she didn't want them to worry about her. She didn't want them to see her as weak.
"Lil, you alright?" Vance asked, again.
"Yeh, yeh, I'm good. Sorry just thinking of…" Lily began to trail off.
"I saw Snape."
Now, that woke Lily up. "What?… When? Where?"
"On holiday. It was odd to see him on a beach in swimming trunks and, ew, that image is going to be in my head forever. In my nightmares." Vance shivered with disgust. "He somehow ended up paler. Anyway, he wanted me to pass on a message to you."
"Em, are you serious?! You spoke to him?"
"He kinda just came over to talk to me about you."
"And you told him nothing, right?… Right?"
"Yes, I told him if he had anything to say, he'd have to…" She began but a shadow appeared behind them, a shadow that made the other two Gryffindor girls stop bickering. "Hello, Snape."
Lily turned around to see her old best friend standing behind her. He did look paler. He didn't look well at all. It might be the fact he had let his raven black hair grow longer or his old robes drowned his figure but he did look thinner. Sickeningly thin. "Snape." She said, curtly.
"May I speak with you, Lily?"
"No, Snape. We have nothing left to say to one another."
"Lily, I-"
"No, Snape." She said, again, but with more annoyance. She stood up and dragged him away from the table. "I told you last year we cannot talk to one another, we cannot be friends."
"Can't you just give me a chance to-"
"I gave you a chance already. I've given you dozen's of chances, Severus, and you haven't changed. You're still-"
"Haven't changed? What do you want me to do? I've said I'm sorry"
"Sorry doesn't change anything." Lily huffed, dejected. "You called me a word that is unforgivable."
"I didn't mean to, I said it in anger."
"It doesn't matter that it was in anger, you said it anyway. We've had this discussion before, Snape. I'm not going around in circles again. Goodbye." Lily began to walk away but Snape caught her arm. "No, this is over. I can't forgive you because I can't forget."
"You seem to be able to forgive and forget Potter." He spat as he looked at her table. The Marauders had sauntered over and were looking over at them in shushed whispers. James seemed to start walking over but Remus pulled him back. "Are we not friends because…"
"Us being friends has nothing to do with Potter. We are not friends because you treat me like shit whenever your Slytherin buddies are around; we are not friends because friends do not call their friends mudbloods ever and we are not friends because we are different people now."
"So your going to be a git too?"
"Sev, I would never." Lily sighed, "I would never ignore you but I'm not going out of my way to speak to you either. I'm sorry, I just can't do this anymore. Goodbye."
Snape tried to pull her back but she just waved it off. Throughout sixth year he'd been trying, she couldn't knock him for that, but he had changed, in her head and heart, too much. Someone who has that word in their system is a person not worth knowing.
"What did Snivellus want?" Black asked, pushing her into the seat next to him.
Lily frowned, "Nothing."
The rest of the day proceeded without any trouble and carried on like earlier that afternoon, when they were eating ice cream at Florean's. Sure, Lily joined in with the merriment and laughter yet she couldn't shift her feelings from encounter with Snape. It may have seemed easier for her to just push him away but it wasn't. Every time she talks to him, like they previously used to, she feels guilty because it makes them both, especially Severus, think things can go back to the way they were. Lily, too, wished that could happen and, whenever she realised it couldn't, it crushed her heart. Snape was her first magical friend, he knew everything about her and she never thought he would have said anything malicious to her. He'd have never called her a freak. Well…that was what she thought and she was wrong.
Witches and wizards began to leave the Leaky Cauldron as soon as the sun began to set, which gave the group a cue to start dismantling too.
"Cheer up, Evans." Sirius whispered, nudging her to get up. "Or else Prong's gonna try to … I don't know, he's going to do something stupid to make you feel better and we all know that it will do the opposite."
Lily couldn't help but smile at Sirius' accurate description. "Your friend never learns."
"Be nice," he said as James made his way over.
"The guys and I were talking earlier-" James began, slowly as if checking to make sure his words didn't offend.
"Were we?" Sirius interjected with a smirk as he put his arm over Lily's shoulder.
"-about how we shouldn't let you girls go back on your own-"
"We are very chivalrous like that."
"-and seeing as your a girl-"
"Would you like me to escort you to your house, Miss Evans?" Sirius asked quickly, winking at a dumbstruck James.
Lily laughed, "I can take care of myself, thank you very much. And the only Marauder who I'd want to take me back would be Remus."
"Ergh, what is up with you and Remus?" Sirius scoffed as he turned to face her. "Are you cheating on me with him?"
"No, I don't trust you two to know where I live."
"Why?" They both said in unison.
"Oh, I don't know. You might egg my house or something."
"Egg a house? What does that means?" James asked quizzically.
"It's a prank."
"Egging a house is a prank?" Sirius questioned this time.
"I guess it's just a muggle prank."
James remarked, "Why don't we learn about that in Muggle Studies?!"
"More importantly why hasn't Wormtail told us about muggle pranks?" Sirius murmured, eyeing Peter. "Excuse us Lily, we've got to talk to Pettigrew."
Seeing that as her final cue to leave, she began to edge away from the group towards the door, back into Diagon Alley. "Don't do a McKinnon and just leave without saying goodbye." Mary said, linking her arm with Lily's right one. She didn't pull her back into the pub to say bye to the guys but onwards into the alley.
"Hey, I say goodbye to people I care about." Marlene started, flipping Mary her middle finger.
"So, no one then." Emmeline snickered, linking arms with Lily's left one. "I can't believe the guys were trying to make us into useless witches. We don't need them to help or fight for us."
"They were just being nice." Mary spoke.
It didn't matter if they were being courteous, Emmeline wasn't having any of it. She began to start a speech on feminism. "We've proven ourselves that we can take care of ourselves. Well, not all of us having physically shown it, because some of us don't jinx random people who give us side eyes or whenever we get in a heated argument,-"
"I feel like she's jabbing at us for being too aggressive, Evans." Marlene whispered, just in earshot of Lily.
"-but we are all smart."
"That was a lovely speech, Vance, but before you continue, lets get out of here."
(Quick Reply)
The girls Apparated together to say their farewells. None of them were overly confident in travelling a great distance, especially Lily who was the furthest away from London, so breaking down the distance made splinching less likely for her in particular. Mary left first, followed by Marlene and then Emmeline. Lily didn't mind being left on her own. It gave her time to mellow on the past couple of hours and it made her even more sure that her 7th year was going to be the best yet.
She hoisted her recent purchases onto her shoulder as she rounded the corner to her street. Her street in the large town of Cokeworth, was similar to many Midland towns in which it had been left to ruin. Once a prosperous place, was now left to crumble under the harsh British weather. The constant ominous black cloud no longer engulfed it but it's presence was still noticeable on the darkened terrace houses. True, she was biased to the place and her head is often trying to find the romantic side to anything, but she didn't see her town in distress. To her, she saw a forgotten land thats full of history and pleasant people, who'd give the skin off their back for anyone. To her, she saw a place to be proud of.
"Hello?" She shouted, as she unlocked the front door.
"Lily," Mrs Evans cooed, walking out of the living room to give her youngest daughter a hug. "How was your day?" Lily would have replied to her but she knew her mother. Mrs Evans was a woman who could talk anybody's ear off, so that question about the day was just a starter for her to continue to gabber on. "I saw Mrs Number Six today - you know her son - and she couldn't stop talking about how her…"
"I thought you'd left for good, Freak." Petunia interrupted, as she began to walk down the stairs.
Lily was about to retort back but her mother pushed her into the kitchen and her sister into the living room. Mrs Evans had been, at least, five minutes talking to Tuney before she showed up in the kitchen in a huff. "She apologises, Lily."
"Mom, when are you going to stop that? No she doesn't feel sorry. She knows what she's doing and thats fine. Its been going on for a long time, I'm over it."
"Those who say that are never fine with it." Mrs Evans spoke, rummaging in the fridge for some food. "What do you want to eat?"
"I'm not hungry, I had food out." Lily huffed, sitting down at the breakfast table. "Mom, you need to stop trying to mend fences. She won't budge, especially now that she's going to marry Dursley. I won't fit into their perfectly muggle family."
"Your still part of the Evans family-"
"We don't pick our families, Mom."
"-and families can fix things."
"Not when your sister is a narrow-minded, egotistical, primpy…"
"Okay, that's enough." Mrs Evans snapped, as she flicked the kettle on. After mumbling under her breath about bickering daughters, she calmed down to speak in a normal, if not hushed, voice. "We are going to be losing you and your sister this year so can we -"
"Lose me?"
"Don't pretend that once you graduate your school, you won't be completely taken away from us."
Lily never knew this was how her Mother felt. It surprised her that her quick wit didn't have anything. She looked at her mom and could see her disheartened attitude, which upset both of them more. Mrs Evans was a women who carried the world on her shoulders and never let anyone see that she did, very much like Lily herself. "Mom, I'm gonna have to come back." She said, walking over to her mom to give her another embrace. "I'll have to to get all my stuff."
"Hey," Mrs Evans laughed, squeezing her to a strangulation level. "Your father and I don't know much on your magical world so you'll have to excuse our naivety."
She was about to tell her mother what could happen after she graduates but I bang on the window, startle them. Lily automatically pulled out her wand and, at the same time, pushed her mother behind her. There wasn't a figure in the window but there was a mark of a huge bird. "Oh Merlin," Lily said under her breath, making her way over towards the back door. On the patio flooring, a startled tawny owl was shaking himself awake from the crash. She walked over to him and it gently placed his talons onto her arm so he could be carried into the house.
"Is that the same owl as before?"
"Yes." Lily scowled. "Excuse me, Mom, I'm gonna have to reply to this idiotic letter before another owl hits a window, or worse."
"What's worse?" Mrs Evans asked nervously worried.
Lily didn't wait to reply because, if her reply wasn't straight away, she knew one to four boys could appear in her living room. They didn't know where she lived but she knew they would find a way, they always found a way.
Her room was at the back of the house. A double bed, a wardrobe, a chester draws and a desk were cramped into the space which made the space seem tiny. She had all she needed so size didn't matter to her. The owl, Atget, flew over to the empty owl cage - her Snowy owl, Inch, was currently out - and Lily went over to her desk to read the letter.
To Evans,
You have a good friend in Marlene. James was over there trying to badger her into Apparating him to your house but she didn't budge, and if he knew where the others lived he'd be over their right now. Don't worry, Prongs is back at his house calling you foul, foul things behind your back. It's no wonder he's your least favourite.
We get it, you are an amazing witch. You don't need bodyguards. We just wanted to make sure you got home okay. That you got back safe and in once piece! YOU CAN"T JUST LEAVE WITHOUT SAYING YOU ARE LEAVING!
Shit move, Evans. Shit move.
From your favourite,
Black
PS. You owe Potter a letter with an apology on
Had Sirius sent a similar letter to Mary and Emmeline? If not, why just her? And why did she specifically apologise the Potter? Lily pondered the letter for some time wondering what to write to Potter. Something short and straight to the point would be best she decided and started to scribble onto a small piece of paper. Quickly, she went over to Atget but the owl didn't want to budge. Thankfully her owl had appeared at the window and proudly puffed out his chest to say I'll take that. Cockily he out stretched his leg and flew off in a majestic fashion.
After Inch couldn't be seen in the midnight sky, she lay down in bed contemplating the letter. Lily hoped Potter would find it an acceptable apology, even if it was only a few lines:
7th August 1977
Potter,
I've just received Black's letter.
I'm sorry!
Evans.
PS. My owl doesn't like you very much so he might bite.