Disclaimer:

For all intents and purposes;

No copyright infringement intended.

The Harry Potter books (1-7) and all characters involved within this story are the property of J. K. Rowling.

However, the plot is entirely my own.

-This applies to the rest of the story.


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You Have Been Accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

(The Lillian Evans and Marauders Story)

Chapter 1

The Freakish Little Redhead

Across the dirty river that wound between overgrown, rubbish-strewn banks that lead from Spinner's End and its many rows and rows of dilapidated brick houses that stood out like a sore thumb in the distance, everything was strangely calm in those pristine houses that usually buzzed with coming and going traffic. No one seemed to be outside enjoying the beautiful day, even though it was the start of summer and the sun was at its highest point in the cloudless blue sky. Given to the suffocating warmth of the day, it was only natural that no one seemed to think twice about going outside and tempting to attract sunburn. Not even the children, which had been so eager to play and take advantage of their two months summer vacation prior to leaving school, thought it wise.

A little way down, within one of those many pristine houses a redheaded, eleven–year–old girl –by the name of Lillian Evans– could be found with her fair skin flushed from the heat and fanning herself as she lazily sat by a windowsill, willing a non–existent breeze to mercifully blow her way. Her hopes were in vain, as she soon realized. The breeze would not blow, just as it had not blown the previous day or the day before that.

The little girl sighed wearily, gazing down at her lap and seeing the book that lay there open and now forgotten and on the verge of sliding off, Lily realized that she had stopped reading the book altogether in the dizziness of the heat that had put her into a snoozing trance. With another sigh, this one rather resigned, Lily picked up the book before it could fall from her lap and shifted on her perch, shutting it close with a forceful, muted thud that managed to pick up a small breeze, finally. However, before her skin could register the hopeful breeze, it was gone the next instant.

The redheaded girl scowled and swept away the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand gingerly. It was the beginning of the second week of July and Lily had been sitting by this windowsill more times than she was willing to admit as if waiting for something to happen. In fact, Lily had been expecting and counting on something extraordinary to happen ever since she turned eleven. Nearly six months ago now she'd been waiting and sitting by this same windowsill with a clear view of both ends of the street, and nothing had changed.

Still, the little redheaded girl remained waiting for that something to finally happen (she simply refused to give up now). Something magical… Lily had her whole summer ahead of her to enjoy, but she also had some major summer reading to do before school started up again in September and her hopes were running low…

Lily loved reading, but the books she had been assigned to read over the summer break just seemed so dull! And apparently, her older sister was now too 'mature' to play with her little sister. Now all her older sister seemed to enjoy was talking about fashion, her cool friends, and the freaks that went to their school, which she seemed to detest to no end.

Petunia was twelve years old and Lily's older sister by a year. However, this was not the reason why the older girl considered herself as more 'mature' than her younger sibling nor why she didn't want to be near Lily. No, it had everything to do with the fact that Petunia considered Lily, her own little sister, to be one of those so-called freaks she detested, it was for this reason.

Lily and Petunia, though sisters, were very different from one another, after all. Where Lily excelled, Petunia had to thrive in the shadows of her younger sister, who was as extraordinary and remarkable as her dark red hair and not at all ordinary. Lily was outgoing and beautiful, whereas Petunia was bony, mousey haired, and horse-faced and at best ordinary. Something that Petunia had always been painfully aware of. Because, in Petunia's opinion, there was something wrong with her little sister…

Strange events that lead to funny happenings always succeeded the little redheaded girl wherever she was present. Or basically, when Lily was really, really upset, or in some kind of danger, or even terribly afraid things around her tended to go out of sorts. Inexplicably, when Lily was upset… something unexplainable would suddenly happen and it was all a phenomenon that the younger girl of the two sisters, though she tried, never could explain or seem to control.

Lily had once tried to explain as much to Petunia but the older girl would hear none of it, having been on the receiving end of such unnaturalness, as she'd called it, one too many times. But then… there were those other occasions… when Lily would simply do the impossible. Like landing too lightly on her feet after jumping a little too high and staying up, almost soaring, for longer than it should have been possible…

There was that other time when Lily had been just six years old and had somehow broken every crystal wear in their mother's kitchen, all because Petunia, who had been seven at the time, had tripped her and then made a nasty comment at Lily's expense. One moment, Lily's entire frame had been vibrating with rage, seeing red, and the next, she had been very confused… Petunia screamed… Parents moved purposefully into action… Lily's mum removed her from the dining room as she cried to try and calm her, while her dad tended to Petunia… The result: Petunia ended up having many small, scattered wounds and lacerations across her arms, legs, and face from the many shards of Formica that had, apparently, dived at her. It still bothered the little girl to think of that memory, enough to make her eyes prickle with tears.

After that incident, Petunia started calling Lily a freak and would grab on to the smallest sign of something inexplicable happening to go and tell their parents about it. Of course, her parents tried talking to her and asking her to try and tone it down while she was out in the open because not everyone would understand. But Lily never understood what there was to understand about what she could just do as easily as breathing.

However, try as she might, that had not been the only thing that had happened. Still, it had been the only thing that had happen in a long while, at least while Petunia had been round her little sister to witness it. That is, the redhead recalled, until the summer of last year: The little redhead and Petunia had come to agree to an unspoken, peaceful truce, which lead to the two playing outside…


...


Summer of 1970

After exhausting every other option the nearby playground had to offer, the two sisters, without knowing that they were being watched, took to the swings and began swinging backward and forward trying to get higher and higher and surpass the other. The younger of the two girls kept swinging higher and higher than her older sister…

"Lily, don't do it!" the older of the two sisters shrieked, seeing the intent of her younger sister a moment too late when–

Lily had let go of the swing at the very height of its arc and flown into the air, quite literally flown, launched herself skyward with a great shout of laughter, and instead of crumbling on the playground asphalt, she soared like a trapeze artist through the air, staying up far too long, landing far too lightly.

"Mummy told you not to!" Petunia reminded Lily accusingly, wishing she could do it too.

Petunia stopped her swing by dragging the heels of her sandals on the ground, making a crunching, grinding sound, then leapt up, hands on her hips to continue her rant. When her mummy and daddy weren't around, Petunia's job was to watch and protect Lily because she was the oldest. Even when Lily made it difficult by doing things like this…

"Mummy said you weren't allowed, Lily!"

"But I'm fine," said Lily, still giggling. "Tuney, look at this. Watch what I can do."
Petunia glanced around apprehensively. The playground was deserted apart from themselves and, though the girls did not know it, a small, stringy, sallow boy of about the same age as Lily with mismatched clothes that fit him poorly and greasy, overlong black hair hidden behind a clump of bushes, greedily watching the redhead. Lily had picked up a fallen flower from a nearby bush by the time Petunia had returned her gaze to her little sister. Petunia advanced, evidently torn between curiosity and disapproval. Lily waited until Petunia was near enough to have a clear view, then held out her palm. The flower sat there, opening and closing its petals, like some bizarre, many–lipped oyster.

"Stop it!" shrieked Petunia with alarm and disgust.

"It's not hurting you," said Lily, almost defensively, but she closed her hand on the blossom and threw it back to the ground.

"It's not right," said Petunia, but her eyes had followed the flower's flight to the ground and lingered upon it. "How do you do it?" she added, and there was definite longing in her voice that her redheaded sister failed to note given the sting of her previous words.

"It's obvious, isn't it?" interjected a new voice as the boy who had been hiding and observing the two sisters, unable to contain himself any longer, jumped out from behind the bushes. Petunia shrieked and ran backward toward the swings, but Lily, though clearly startled by this strange boy's sudden appearance, remained where she was. As Lily took in the skinny boy's overall look, the boy seemed to regret his appearance. A dull flush of color mounted the sallow cheeks as he looked at Lily.

"What's obvious?" asked Lily, sparing the strange boy's feelings.

The pallid boy had an air of nervous excitement. With a glance at the distant Petunia, now hovering beside the swings, he lowered his voice and said the last thing Lily expected him to say, he said, "I know what you are."

"What do you mean?"

"You're … you're a witch," whispered the boy.

Initially, the younger girl had felt insulted, and therefore, looked affronted.

"That's not a very nice thing to say to somebody!"

Lily turned, nose in the air, and marched off toward her sister. She couldn't believe that strange boy! How could he, without knowing her, insult her in such a way! But there was something too excited and admiring in the boy's eyes that made Lily think that he had not meant it as an insult... Not to mention that he wasn't laughing at her and actually, he had looked too serious. Still, the sting of his words had clouded her judgment enough not to notice the strange boy's… complement.

"No!" said the boy. Lily turned and stared at the boy again, taking in what he was wearing: too short jeans, a shabby, overlarge coat that was probably his father's, an odd smocklike shirt. For a fleeting moment, Lily wondered why he did not take off the ridiculously overlarge coat, but gave up as she noticed his expression instead. He was highly colored now and was flapping after Lily and Petunia, looking ludicrously like a bat, Lily could not help but assimilate.

Petunia and Lily considered the boy as he flapped over to them, for the first time in a while united in disapproval, both holding on to one of the swing poles as though it was the safe place in tag.

"You are," the boy insisted to Lily. "You are a witch. I've been watching you for a while. But there's nothing wrong with that," he hastily assured Lily as her eyes narrowed. "My mum's one, and I'm a wizard."

"Wizard!" Petunia shrieked, laughing, her courage returned now that she had recovered from the shock of his unexpected appearance. "I know who you are. You're that Snape boy! They live down Spinner's End by the river," she told Lily, and it was evident from her tone that she considered the address a poor recommendation. "Why have you been spying on us?" Petunia demanded of Snape haughtily.

"Haven't been spying," said Snape, hot and uncomfortable and dirty–haired in the bright sunlight. "Wouldn't spy on you, anyway," he added spitefully, "you're a Muggle."

Though Petunia evidently did not understand the word, she could hardly mistake the tone. After all, she took that same tone far too often to not know when she was hearing it being directed at her.

"Lily, come on, we are leaving!" Petunia said shrilly. Lily obeyed her sister at once, glaring at Snape as she left.

That first encounter with Snape did not end up being the last Lily saw of the strange boy, Severus she learned his name was later on that summer. Lily had stolen a few days to play on her own while Petunia went to tea parties with her friends and during one of those boring days Snape had revealed himself to her once again.

Though a little wary of him at first, Lily decided to listen to the boy without Petunia around to scoff and humiliate the boy. And she was glad she had as soon as he started opening her eyes to the possibilities of a whole new world she could join because she was magical… she was a witch. Once she turned eleven she could go away from home to a school full of other kids just like her and Severus, Witches and Wizards, and learn how to control what she could do and do so much more… if Snape was to be believed.


...


Two months later…

Lily and Severus Snape sat talking and facing each other, cross–legged on the ground in a basin of cool green shade made from the shadows cast by the trees. Hidden in a small thicket of trees, Lily could just see the sunlit river glittering through their trunks in the distance as they sat. This time around, Snape looked less peculiar in the half light; he had removed his coat now.

"…and the Ministry can punish you if you do magic outside of school, you get letters."

Severus had been telling Lily all sorts of fascinating tales about what he called the Wizarding World, and she was almost too afraid to hope that it was true. If she was what Severus said she was then… But then, not all of it was fascinating, some of it was frightening! Still, an entire world, hidden from view and operating in secret under everyone's nose…Lily almost didn't dare hope to become part of it…

"But I have done magic outside of school!" Lily argued, feeling slightly apprehensive. Could that, maybe, exclude her from being part of this new world Severus kept telling her about? She hoped not, it sounded too extraordinary for her to go back to pretending it didn't exist when she now knew about it.

"We're all right. We haven't got wands yet. They let you off when you're a kid and you can't help it. But once you're eleven," he nodded importantly, "and they start training you, then you've got to go careful."

The two fell silent for a little. Seeing a fallen twig, Lily picked it up and twirled it in the air as she imagined sparks trailing from it. Dropping the twig, Lily leaned in toward the boy, and said, "It is real, isn't it? It's not a joke? Petunia says you are lying to me. Petunia says there isn't a Hogwarts. It is real, isn't it?"

Lily needed the confirmation because she couldn't imagine Hogwarts not being real now that she was imagine it. It would be such a fatal blow if it wasn't and she just had to hope that putting her faith in Severus wasn't wrong of her, no matter what Petunia said.

"It's real for us," said Severus. "Not for her. But we'll get the letter, you and me."

"Really?" whispered Lily. She could barely wait to be eleven!

"Definitely," said Severus, and even with his poorly cut hair and his odd clothes, he struck an oddly impressive figure sprawled in front of her, brimful of confidence in his destiny. A destiny Lily was only too hopeful and eager to have a part in.

"And will it really come by owl?" Lily whispered.

"Normally," said Severus. "But you're Muggle–born, so someone from the school will have to come and explain to your parents."

"Does it make a difference, being Muggle–born?"

This was something that had been gnawing at Lily ever since Severus had looked at Petunia and told her that she was a Muggle with such a spiteful tone. Now seeing him hesitate to answer when he always answered any of her questions readily and eagerly made her worry. His black eyes, eager in the greenish gloom, moved over her pale face, her dark red hair.

"No," he said. "It doesn't make any difference."

"Good," said Lily, relaxing: Though it had been clear to Severus that she had been worrying, it seems it was for nothing.

"You've got loads of magic," said Severus. "I saw that. All the time I was watching you…"

Severus' voice trailed away; however, Lily was not listening, but had stretched out on the leafy ground and was looking up at the canopy of leaves overhead. Still, Severus watched her as greedily as he had watched her in the playground.

"How are things at your house?" Lily asked after a moment's pause.

A little crease appeared between his eyes.

"Fine."

"They're not arguing anymore?"

Lily and Severus had discussed many things in her discovery of this unknown Magical World and anything else that Severus might be able to tell Lily about the Wizarding community that she so much wanted to join. In the process they had earned each other's trust and became friends. From then on they had taken to talking about everything and anything that popped into their minds and got to know each other.

Once they'd established and solidified their friendship, many a conversation revolved around Severus and his parents as much as it did about Hogwarts and the arrival of that letter that would change Lily's and his world forever.

"Oh yes, they're still arguing," said Severus. He picked up a fistful of leaves and began tearing them apart, apparently unaware of what he was doing. "But it won't be that long and I'll be gone."

"Doesn't your dad like magic?"

Sadly, Severus' father didn't approve if his mum being a witch and when it became apparent that his son was a wizard, his father did not approve of him either. It seemed, his father believed that he had been hoodwinked into loving his mother so things were hard at home for Severus and his mother, however Lily didn't know this. He had only told her that they fought a lot.

"He doesn't like anything, much," said Severus.

"Severus?"

A little smile twisted Severus' mouth when Lily said his name. It truly elated him to hear her say his name for some reason… he couldn't quite explain it, but he liked the way Lily said his name.

"Yeah?"

"Tell me about the dementors again."

This was one of the things she had heard about the Wizarding world from Severus that truly frightened her and made her think twice about wanting to belong in it. But at the same time…

"What d'you want to know about them for?"

"If I use magic outside of school–"

"They wouldn't give you to the dementors for that! Dementors are for people who do really bad stuff. They guard the wizard prison Azkaban, you're too–"

He turned red again and shredded more leaves. He had been about to say that she was too pretty and nice to ever end up in Azkaban… Then a small rustling noise behind them made Lily and Severus turn: Petunia, hiding behind a tree, had lost her footing.

"Tuney!" said Lily, surprise and welcome in her voice, but Severus had jumped to his feet looking furious.

"Who's spying now?" he shouted. "What d'you want?"

Petunia was breathless, alarmed at being caught. Lily could see her struggle for something hurtful to say and beseeched her silently to hold her tongue.

"What is that you are wearing, anyway?" she said, pointing at Severus' chest. Lily's heart sank. "Your mum's blouse?"

There was a sudden crack: A branch over Petunia's head had fallen. Lily screamed: The branch caught Petunia on the shoulder, and she staggered backward and burst into tears.

"Tuney!"

But Petunia was running away. Lily rounded on Severus.

"Did you make that happen?" she demanded, looking furious.

"No." He looked both defiant and scared.

"You did!" Lily was backing away from him. "You did!" she accused again, with more conviction this time. "You hurt her!"

"No – no I didn't!"

But his lie did not convince Lily: After one last burning look, she ran from the little thicket, off after her sister, and leaving Severus looking miserable and confused…


...


"Lily dear, will you come here a moment?" a female voice called, from somewhere within the house, interrupting the girl's musings of the past. "We're in the kitchen."

"Coming Mum!" said Lily.

Sighing, Lily got to her feet and placed her book on the windowsill (she would get to it later), wishing she could meet with Severus soon to see if anything had changed for him. After that last fiasco between Petunia and Severus, it took Severus groveling for a while before Lily came around and forgave him, but eventually she did.

She had to, since she wanted to hear more about Hogwarts… and besides, she had done plenty of things she didn't mean to do when made fun of by her sister. Once Lily had seen everything on a more rational light, she had understood that Severus' hadn't been completely at fault and hadn't intentionally meant to hurt Petunia.

"Petunia darling, you too," the same voice called to Lily's older sister. A groan that echoed Lily's was heard in the distance, from above.

"Yes, Mum?" Lily said, reaching the kitchen door to find her father and mother talking quietly in the kitchen.

"–Oh, there's my beautiful fire flower," her father said, beaming at his daughter, who blushed lightly.

Her mother looked up at her and smiled proudly, her youngest daughter looked so much like herself, except for her eyes; she had her father's eyes. Mrs. Celine Evans was a pleasant woman and wonderful mother who could not be prouder of her little girls. She could go on and on about them to their neighbors or to anyone who would listen for that matter, especially about Lillian.

"Oh, Elliot, stop embarrassing her…" –her mother admonished her husband before turning to their youngest– "Would you like some lemonade or something to munch off, Lily honey? It is awfully hot outside," she added reasonably.

Lily's eyes brightened in appreciation, she loved lemonade in all its sweet sourness.

"Sure, Mum!"

"Good. Now, will you go get your sister for me and see if she wants some as well?" her mother ordered kindly. "That girl is always up in that room, even with this heat, doing God only knows what…"

"All right," Lily conceded without much enthusiasm.

Once out of sight, she scowled. Going up the stairs, stomping loudly all the way to the second landing and to her left, two doors down, she knocked gently on her sister's white door.

"Mum wants to know if you want anything, Tuney," Lily conveyed as she knocked one last time on Petunia's door. "She's made some refreshments." Lily patiently waited as she heard movement from behind it.

"I don't care, Lillian, now, go away!" her sister retorted opening the door and screaming on Lily's face. "Freak!" she added with a shudder.

Lily's eyes stung with tears and her ribcage rattled erratically with the force of her thundering heartbeat, her heart hurt. Ever since Severus had hurt Petunia, she'd refused to barely be civil with Lily and she'd taken to calling Severus that awful boy. Lily lowered her head and looked up, her eyes slits as she glared at her sister from under her long lashes. Petunia flinched and took a step back as Lily's temper seemed to get the better of her.

Satisfaction coursed through Lily at her sister's cowering reaction. With a vindictive smirk, Lily took a step closer to Petunia. Petunia sputtered, eyes growing wide as she tried to find some form of escapade and took yet another backward step.

"Girls, is everything all right up there?" Lily thought she distinctly heard her mother's concerned voice call, but she was not really listening. Wind seemed to be coming from all directions toward Petunia as Lily's hair flickered all around her, like fire in the midst of a strong wind, providing it with a greater flare.

"Stop it! Stop it or I'll tell Mummy!" Petunia demanded, shrieking, but young Lily seemed to be as surprised by this new development as she, her green eyes growing wide with fear. She wanted it to stop, she really did. Lily was angry, but she did not want to hurt her sister, even if Petunia had hurt her, just maybe scare her a little.

Where was all the wind coming from? She did not understand. It had been windless a moment ago. Lily's eyes gleamed, momentarily, a brighter shade of emerald in amusement as she understood what was going on. It was just like that one other time: Magic. She felt exceptionally powerful as she watched her sister cower before her and then Lily's eyes grew fearful again as she felt out of control.

What if it turned out worse than before? As Lily thought this, the wind's intensity increased and her sister was lifted right off her feet, into the air and slammed unceremoniously against the opposite wall by the wind's force.

"Eeek!" Petunia squeaked as her body hit the wall.

Lily thought she heard something crack.

"Tuney!" Lily cried, panicking. She hoped and prayed it had only been her imagination. "Mum! Mummy, Tuney's hurt!"

Lily stood, petrified in place, not knowing what else to do, or how to help her sister, when she had been the one to do the damage. Not to mention, she was terrified of finding out whether she had done any permanent damage. But then, if she acted on impulse and moved her sister, she might harm her more. Feeling helpless, Lily began to cry, without realizing.

"What's going on up there?" Mr. Evans' concerned voice rang above the noise of the wind and Petunia's outraged voice.

"Daddy, it's Lily!" screeched Petunia in terrified horror. "She's somehow done something to the wind!"

"It's her fault, she provoked me!" Lily sneered for everyone to hear and glared at her sister, wiping at her tears furiously as they fell. "Besides, I didn't mean to!"

"Yes you did!"

Unable to do anything against the threatening wind, more tears fell down Lily's cheeks and her throat constricted. How was it that she felt powerless when she had so much power? Lily just couldn't help it, she just felt so wound up by Petunia's constant taunts and she had finally reached exploding point. Besides, she really had not meant to harm her sister...

"Lily? Honey?" her father said, staring wide–eyed in amusement at the scene, it was taking all his self–control not to laugh. But at the same time he was worried, his little one seemed on the verge of more tears. "What happened here?"

His little angel was standing firmly on her feet in front of her older sister's room, red-faced with her little fist clenched tightly to her sides, and every painting and photograph decorating the hallway now perilous hanging from its nail, askew, on the verge of falling, but holding on as if by magic. Considering that this was his youngest daughter he was talking about, that assessment might not be so far off.

Mr. Evans cautiously approached his youngest daughter and peered inside his oldest daughter's room to see her pinned to the wall opposite the door, held several inches off the floor by the force of the fierce wind that the youngest seemed to be invoking. It was a sight to behold.

"Elliot, honey, is everything all right up there?" His wife asked, ascending the last set of stairs.

Mr. Evans, Elliot, dismissed the question with a wave of his hand. Mrs. Evans would see the scene for herself as soon as she turned the corner anyway, so there was not much to explain or be said. Sure enough, as soon as she came to stand by her husband and take in the extraordinary scene, she gasped.

"Angel?" he tried once again, placing a tender hand on his youngest shoulders. She was trembling, instantly the wind seized and his little girl was, sturdily, crying at his shoulder as he held her tightly to himself. "Hush, it's all right… Daddy's here, daddy's got you," he said soothingly as his eldest fell comically on her knees to the floor, face wet with tears, and yet it all had lost its amusement.

"Petunia, darling, are you alright?" Mrs. Evans voice asked, helping her eldest to her feet, looking concerned and angry at the same time, though her voice was kind.

Really, his wife always managed to surprise him with how many emotions she could muster at one time. His wife could still keep him seeing more and more sides of her with each passing year of their marriage. You never fully get to know someone in one lifetime; he had learned that with his Celine.

"I– I think so," Petunia stuttered disbelievingly.

"Good." Mrs. Evans placed her hands imperiously on her hips, assessing the situation. "Now, what exactly happened girls?" she demanded, glancing between Petunia and Lily, still crying, cradled at her husband's shoulder.

"Li–Lily attacked me!" Petunia said outraged, noticing that her mother seemed to be angry with her and not at Lily, like always. The injustice!

Lily stiffened and yet another gust of wind that made Petunia screech procured from Lily as she retorted, tears forgotten and voice shaking, "Because you called me a Freak!"

She looked so hurt, Petunia almost, almost felt guilty. But only on the slightest, to her, Lily was still on the wrong and should be admonished as such.

It was Mr. Evans turn to be angry.

"Is this true?" he demanded, eyes hard as he stared down at Petunia and stood with Lily, still clearly shaken, securely cradled in his loving embrace. Somehow he was of the idea that if he let go of her, all his efforts of trying to dissuade the increase of wind by emanating some calm would come undone. Which, considering that now he was the one getting angry, he was finding the task a bit on the demanding side.

"Is it true?" Mrs. Evans echoed her husband's question when Petunia didn't respond; she was gaping at them stupidly.

"Celine, I have got this," Mr. Evans interjected, glancing at his wife.

"Well?" Celine pressed on sternly, ignoring her husband. No one would call her daughter, Lillian, a freak and get away with it. Even if it was her other daughter, especially if it was her other daughter. "Answer your father, Petunia Evans."

"Yes," she responded in defiance, flinching. "That's what she is you know, look at what she just did!" she added, gesticulating erratically at her messy room, as if to further stress her point.

"Shut up, Tuney!" Lily retorted firing up.

"Petunia, Lily stop!" Mrs. Evans ordered as Petunia opened her mouth to say something hurtful. "Petunia, you don't call your own sister a freak. You do not call anyone a freak, for that matter. Is that clear?" –Petunia nodded grudgingly– "Lillian Evans, control yourself. No daughter of mine makes a fool of herself, screaming like that. That is very unladylike."

"Yes, Mum," both girls murmured as they glared at one another.

"Petunia, you're grounded for a month–" Mr. Evans added with a sigh.

"–and no, you will not be going to Samaria's house today," Mrs. Evans interjected as she lifted a finger to stop Petunia as she opened her mouth from arguing.

"Mum can't you–" tried Petunia in vain, outraged, throwing daggers at Lily.

"No, Petunia, my punishment is nonnegotiable," Mrs. Evans interjected, even before Petunia finish her complaint. "Not until you learn to accept and love your family for who they are. Accept yourself, for that matter."

"Dad!" Petunia looked at Mr. Evans, hoping that he would somehow lessen her punishment or take some pity on her, no such luck.

"You want to be treated like an adult?" continued Mrs. Evans."Then accept the consequences for your actions like one." Petunia blinked; disbelieve creasing her horse–like features, disgruntled. "Now, tidy your room." –Mrs. Evans walked out into the hallway and paused– "I'll be bringing you something for supper shortly."

Petunia glanced at her father, one last attempt at a silent plea.

"Do as your mother say," Mr. Evans instructed.

Dishearten, Petunia nodded, walked to her door, and closed her bedroom door, too sharply for her mother's liking. Still, no comments were made as the rest of the Evans began to make their way down the hallway.

Mrs. Evans silently stretched a hand to Lily; once she had taken it, they headed downstairs to the kitchen without a word.


...


"Mum?" Lily said tentatively as her mother handed her a mug full of warm tea with milk and honey. Apparently, lemonade and sconces weren't appropriate for calming nerves, but tea was. At least, according to Lily's mother.

"Yes Lily?" her mother sighed and Lily saw for the first time in a long while how age was catching up to her mother. However, none of it seemed to diminish Celine Evans' fiery beauty. In fact, Lily thought, age suited her mother well. Wisdom made up part of her beauty now.

"I'm– I'm sorry…" Lily said as a tear fell down her cheek.

"What for?" her mother asked looking up sternly, though her features were kind. "You have nothing to apologize for; your sister should be the one apologizing. Not you. And no matter what your sister tells you, you are not a freak." –Lily nodded as her father and mother both hugged her and comforted her– "You are my daughter and your father's daughter and no matter what, we love you and support you. Do you understand?"

"Mummy, why does Tuney hate me lately?" Lily asked harshly.

"Your sister… she does not know what she has, she has yet to learn how to appreciate the things she already has at hand," her mother simply explained.

Lily did not understand the meaning of this, but decided not to press for more.

"And just so you know, fire flower, your sister doesn't hate you," her father added. "She is simply trying to cope by her own means…"

Lily did not agree, nor did she digress, she simply stayed quiet and nodded. Maybe it is one of those things that I will understand when I am older, Lily mused.

"Now, off you go! Find something to read… Embark in an adventure..." Mr. Evans winked at Lily. Lily chuckled.

"Have some fun," her mother added, dismissing Lily with a chuckle as her father leaned in to kiss his wife swiftly on the lips.


...

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A/N: I have made some not so subtle arrangements to this story… adding some scenes that appeared in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling. Though I made some additions and tweaks here and there to aforementioned scenes so that they might go in accordance to what I have in mind for this story. Hopefully this version is better than the original I had posted.

On another note, I'm going to be reposting each of the following chapters and making some choice arrangements here and there and adding some more scenes and ridding myself of others. But all in good time.

Please, enjoy the read and read and review if you like what you've just read!