A/N: Sorted the timeline problem and made adjustments to 'A Life Worth Living' now. So here is Lily's 17th Birthday... Enjoy R&R please :)
Sunday 30th January 1977
It was the day of Lily's 17th birthday. Lily awoke with a start not quite sure what had pulled her into consciousness. It was almost as if there was a soft twittering going on around her that she couldn't make out. Slowly she opened her eyes and found that it was still dark that was until the hangings around her bed were thrown open.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY LILY!" Hestia, Marlene, Alice and Mary chimed together.
Lily sat up and beamed at her friends.
"Thanks guys" Lily said a huge smile on her face.
"So what's the plan for today then Lils?" Asked Hestia plopping down on the bed.
"I don't know, maybe a bit of studying" Grinned Lily mischievously.
"Studying on your birthday? Are you mad?" Asked Mary uncertainly.
"Mary she was joking" Said Marlene with a shake of her head.
"Come on presents!" Said Alice causing a bit of a small diversion, a relief to Mary.
First present Lily opened was from her parents Lily read the attached card first.
[i]To our darling Lily Rose,
Happy 17th birthday sweetheart. We heard from Hestia that this year marks a milestone in your world that you're now considered an adult. Also that in your world it is traditional to give a young witch a certain special gift, well you'll find inside this box that certain special gift. We just want to tell you how proud we are of you baby girl, you are the most amazing young lady and we're blessed to have you as a daughter and no matter what we love you so dearly. Have a great birthday, we wish we could be there to give you a hug and a kiss.
Lots of love
Mum and Dad xxxx[/i]
Lily looked up at Hestia, her eyes a little bit moist. She smiled innocently at her and Lily proceeded to open the box and found the most gorgeous watch nestled inside. Lily gasped and delicately took the watch out of the box. It had a slim gold bracelet, a medium face, with rhinestones around the outer edge. It had a white face with bold black numbers its tick steady. Lily opened the catch and handed it to Hestia.
"Put it on me please sweetie" Asked Lily holding out her right wrist.
Hestia put it around her wrist and did the clasp up. Lily leaned forward and gave Hestia a huge hug. Next she opened a present from Remus which contained a book on Charms that she wanted, the next was from Alice and Frank that consisted of a lily pedant necklace, from Hestia a huge assortment of chocolate from Honeydukes, from Marlene a book on how to fly (Lily still hadn't got the hang of it) Lily laughed at this. Mary had got Lily some new quills and an ink that changed colour as she wrote. Lily thought she was done until Alice said.
"Lily there's one more here".
She handed the gift to Lily and Lily turned it over in her hands but there was no note or card attached, she slowly opened it and found a gorgeous white lily flower pressed between two pieces of glass with a white wooden frame. Lily sat in awe, and also puzzled by who would give her such a gift without saying whom it was from. Lily gentle put the present on her bedside locker and looked at the wrappings but there was nothing.
"I wonder who gave me that last present" Lily wondered out loud.
She heard a snort come from Marlene.
"What?" Asked Lily a little defensively.
"Sweetie, can you think of no one who'd buy you such a gift and not put a name on it?".
Lily then had an inkling. James sodding Potter.
"Potter!" Lily exclaimed.
"My thoughts exactly" Said Marlene.
Everyone looked at everyone else in agreement.
"What you going to do Lils?" Asked Alice.
"Well I can't exactly hex him can I? I shall be kind and gracious towards him and thank him but that's it" Said Lily.
"Well in any case I'm hungry so how about we let Miss Evans here get up and get dressed and we can do down to breakfast" Said Hestia as her tummy gave a huge rumble.
Lily slipped from the bed to the bathroom, from the bathroom to the closet where she chose a simple apple green long sleeved tunic top and her favourite bellbottom jeans and boots. She tidied her hair up into a quick messy bun and put a light layer of make up on. Finally everyone was ready to leave to go down to breakfast.
As the girls tried to leave the common they were bottlenecked by the Marauders coming back from breakfast.
"Morning ladies" Said Sirius giving them all his trademark 'Black' smile.
"Black" Muttered Hestia and Marlene.
"Happy birthday Lily" Said Remus, giving Lily a smile.
"Thanks Remus, and thank you for the Charms book too" Said Lily smiling back at him.
"Happy birthday Evans" Came the voice of James Potter from Lily's left.
She turned her head and saw him giving her a small smile. It wasn't the kind that usually made his eyes light up and twinkle when he saw her and she wondered for a minute if there was something wrong, but she chose to dismiss it.
"Potter" She said curtly then softened "Thanks so much for the gift it was very nice of you" She gave him a small tight smile.
"No problems Evans, glad you liked it have a good day" Said James and moved away.
Lily was a little surprised to find he hadn't tried asking her out again. With a shrug she and her friends made their way out of the portrait hole and down to breakfast.
After breakfast the girls spent a leisurely hour walking around the castle just talking and laughing in the bitter air, it skinned their faces but it gave them all a healthy glow. Once they returned they stowed their stuff away and returned to the common room to sit near the fire and warm up. Eventually the Marauders sauntered over, well Remus, Sirius and Peter to be exact, James was no where in sight.
Remus eventually sucked Lily into a game of Wizard's Chess which she lost spectacularly. It hadn't helped that some of Sirius' instructions he'd given had been totally wrong either. This caused much mirth to Sirius, which caused Lily to pull her wand on him and transfigure his ears to the size of a House Elf, only problem was she had no idea how to transfigure them back and the one person who could was missing. But this nifty piece of magic had caused most of the common room to explode with gales of laughter.
Finally James put in an appearance and the look of shock on his face as he took in his best mate was priceless. He howled with laughter till Sirius tackled James to the floor and begged him to sort it out. Finally James was calm enough to reverse the spell and Sirius' ears were normal size again.
"Who hexed you Pads?" Asked James.
"Evans, who else?!" Said Sirius darkly.
"What did you do?" Asked James.
But Sirius didn't get the chance to reply.
"Remus and I were playing chess and this git here gave the wrong instructions and caused half of my pieces to be wrestled off the board! This git found it most hysterical" Said Lily crossly.
"Oh Pads, you're supposed to help the lady especially on her birthday, not be a hindrance" Said James in a slightly scolding way.
Lily looked at James curiously and wondered why he was being so nice. She thought maybe that he was building up to asking her out again, maybe he thought if he buttered her up enough she'd cave and say yes this time. NO SUCH LUCK BUDDY!
Before he had a chance to say anything Lily quickly moved away not hearing the sigh that escaped James.
Eventually dinner time rolled around and the girls headed down to the Great Hall. Upon entering Lily's way was blocked by Severus Snape.
"Lily, happy birthday" Said Severus quietly.
"Thank you Snape" Said Lily and tried to move away.
Snape had gently grabbed Lily by the wrist and started to pull her out of the way of traffic.
"Let me go Snape" Lily threatened.
"Please Lily can we just talk? I miss…." He didn't finish his sentence for James was stood behind Lily his face furious.
"You heard the lady Snape, let her go" Said James quietly.
Lily spun round and saw James stood there his wand aloft.
"Bloody hell Potter will you stop playing the sodding hero! I don't need your help! I can do this myself!" Stormed Lily looking furious.
"I'm sorry Evans…" James started.
"Yeah you always are! Just get away from me Potter! As for you Snape you stay away from me too! Argh! Boys!" Lily cried and stomped off to join her friends.
James and Snape just looked at each other, loathing in both sets of eyes before Snape turned his back and sat back down at the Slytherin table and James made his way back to the Gryffindor table and made sure to sit as far away from Lily as possible.
Lily was acting like nothing had ever happened she was talking and laughing brightly with her friends.
Upon returning to the common room again the girls congregated in their dorm room with the Wizarding Wireless Network on singing and dancing along to Celestina Warbeck songs and swigging Firewhiskey from a bottle Marlene had got her hands on. By the time midnight rolled around the girls were very drunk and in a right state. They were all struggling to get their day clothes off and kept giggling as they lost their balance and nearly fell over. Mary had already passed out on her bed fully clothed. As Lily lay down the room began to spin and Lily groaned loudly.
"Someone take me off this roundabout I wanna get oooooffffff" Lily slurred.
Lily saw a vision of black hair whisk past her and the bang of the bathroom door as Hestia had ran past Lily's bed to stick her head over the loo to be sick. They all eventually passed out still half clothed but too drunk to do anything about it. Lily's last drunken thought was 'Best birthday ever' before the alcoholic mist took over and Lily passed right out into a deep sleep.
