Lily Evans woke to the sound of birds chirping…and a loud bang.
Now, for anyone else in the town of Cokeworth, that would've been alarming. For Lily, however, it just meant her father was working. Blinking blearily and spitting out the hair that had managed to get into her mouth, the redhead sat up and immediately regretted it.
"Whoa, headrush." She groaned, rubbing her temples. Lily had stayed up late reading her new favorite book, and was now regretting it. It wasn't her fault though! The characters were just so complex, the plot was compelling and thrilling, and it just had a way of whisking Lily away from the little, boring town she called home.
"Lily? Are you awake?" Her dad called, and Lily stood.
"Yes, papa!" She replied, pulling a dress on and glancing at herself in the mirror. Her hair was tangled and messy, her eyes bloodshot, and she was pretty sure there was dried spit on her cheek. With a wry smirk and a shrug, Lily ran downstairs to greet her father, making sure to grab her book.
"There you are, Lily Flower." Her father said as she made it to the living room. Taking in her appearance, Arthur Evans chuckled, "you'll never find a husband looking like that, Lily!"
"That's the plan!" Lily replied cheekily, laughing as she did so. The men of Cokeworth were just annoying to Lily. All they cared about was getting an obedient wife who would bend over backwards for them, and that was decidedly not Lily Evans.
"Your disturbing lack of romantic fantasies aside," her father started, "I think that I've almost completed the machine!"
"The one to chop firewood?" Lily exclaimed, and when he nodded, Lily jumped in excitement and hugged her father, "I knew you could do it, papa!"
"I know you did, my dear. Now, would you mind going into town to pick up some bread. We seem to of run out again." Lily nodded, taking the money from her father and walking out the door.
It would be a good day. Lily was certain.
Lily walked through the town with her face buried in her book, seemingly oblivious to the whispers around her.
"There's that Evans girl, reading another book…" The innkeeper muttered to his wife.
"Such a pretty girl, it's a shame that she'd waste it." The butcher commented.
"Do you see her hair? It's a bird's nest!" A girl whispered to her two friends.
"I bet she just needs a man in her life. Clean her right up." The boy closest to Lily snickered, and she smirked.
"And you think you'd be able to handle me, John Wright?" Lily called, not looking up from her book. John turned bright red, and everyone in the square gasped. Before John could do something, Lily hurried into the bookstore.
Breathing in the smell of old books, Lily's round face lit up into a giddy smile.
"Hello Mr. Smith!" Lily called, and an old man walked towards her.
"Anything I can do for you today, Miss Evans?" He asked, and Lily gestured to her book, saying, "I'd just like to renew this one, please."
"Haven't you read that one three times?" Mr. Smith asked, laughing heartily.
Lily nodded, and after a moment, added, "I just can't help it, it's so good! The story is just so gripping that I feel like I'm there!"
"If you love it so much, you can keep it." Mr. Smith was smiling warmly, and when Lily protested, said, "no no, I won't take no for an answer! Keep it, Miss Evans. You deserve it."
As Lily exited the store, thanking the bookkeeper profusely, she remembered that she was supposed to be buying bread. Hastily making her way to the bakery, the eighteen year old heard her name being called. As she turned, she saw her best friend, Severus Snape.
"Hello Sev." Lily greeted when she got close enough, and he smiled at her.
That was another thing that the town found odd about Lily Evans; she was friends with Severus Snape, the town's outcast.
"I was just buying some bread. Want to come along?" She asked, and Sev nodded in confirmation.
After Lily bought what she needed, spending almost all of their money in the process, she continued to walk along with Severus. They discussed their latest books and theories, and Lily even managed to coax a laugh or two out of him. Before she knew it, the sun was high in the sky.
"I need to get home to papa. I'll see you tomorrow, Sev!" Lily said, already running towards her house. Severus sighed, but waved goodbye.
When Lily made it to her small house, she saw that the light in her father's workshop was on. Depositing the bread in her home, Lily quickly made it outside to the smaller building.
"Papa?" She called, and saw him tinkering with an enormous machine. Arthur Evans stuck his head out and smiled widely at Lily, his face covered in grease. Lily laughed lightly at the sight.
"Well? Does it work?" She asked, and he shrugged.
"We're about to find out." Her father replied, and flipped a switch. The pair watched in nervous anticipation as the contraption started up, and successfully started to chop firewood.
"You did it!" Lily cried, and Arthur hugged his daughter tightly, lifted her off the ground, and exclaimed, "I did, didn't I!"
After Lily was put down, her father put his hands on her shoulders.
"There's a meeting in London for inventors. If I can bring this, then we'll be able to make a lot of money! But I need to leave tonight if I want to make it. You'll need to stay here to look after the house. Can you do that, Lily Flower?"
"Of course I can, papa." Lily replied, rolling her eyes, "I'm eighteen."
"Alright, alright." Arthur Evans laughed, and left to saddle up the horse.
In half an hour, her father was ready to leave.
"Be careful, papa." Lily whispered, hugging him. As she waved, the redhead had a sinking feeling in her stomach. She was terribly worried something would happen to her father. It was probably nothing, she decided.
Hopefully.
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