A/N: Thank you all for your kind words and funny reviews! I seriously love reading them, and totally laugh to myself like a goon. You are all super protective of Sev, and I fucking love it. I purpose we all give him a nice big jump hug! Or, something like that. I can basically promise that he'll be happy, because I love nothing more than L/S goodness. PREACH. Anyway, here's the next chapter. This story is gonna be like, a baby slow burn. I love slow burn stories, sometimes I try to write them and then I get too excited and I just want to get to the smut and goodness that I skip over it. But, I'm gonna try. Baby steps. Thank you again to all those who read and review, I LOVE YOU, OKAY? Great. Tell me your thoughts, fandom!


Lily laid in her unmade bed, the comforter kicked off, the sheets tangled around her, still in her sleep clothes, reading the letter that had been waiting for her when she had returned last night. She read over the letter from Alice again a second time, not really able to believe the words on the paper. Apparently after Lily had left the girls yesterday, things had gotten saucy. She had left them after lunch, parting ways with them as they exited the cafe, they had all been in good spirits. Talking about last year, their respective summers so far, the upcoming year, boys, parents, teachers, other friends. It had been a nice outing, it had made Lily realize just how isolated she had truly been last year. Not that she could really complain, she'd done it to herself, and enjoyed it for the most part.

But, rereading Alice's letter made her remember just why she had distanced herself from the girls. And why she hadn't regretted doing it.

Emmeline hadn't come yesterday, vacationing in Punta Cana and all, so it had just been the four of them. And after Lily had left for dance lessons, it had just been Alice stuck with Mary and Marlene. Usually, that wasn't a bad thing. Apparently yesterday, it was.

Alice's letter entailed her annoyance and aggravation with their two friends, Alice had been hinting for a while now that Mary and Marlene had become more bitchy in the past year – if that were even possible. Lily surmised that now, Alice had just had enough.

Her letter read that after Lily had left them, things had been fine. They walked around Diagon Alley some more, went into little boutiques off the main strip, tried on dresses and tested their limits with the joke shop. But then, Alice decided, that after that things got heated quickly.

Gradually, it seemed, Mary had begun pressing Alice for information about Frank – her boyfriend. Lily wasn't surprised, it was what Mary did. She was crass and gossip-y, she loved digging for information, and the saucier, the better. But, Alice was shy. They all knew that, and Mary knew better than to push Alice.

From what Lily gathered in Alice's angry, disjointed rambling, was that Mary began pestering Alice about Frank and their relationship. Where they still an actual couple now that he was graduated and in Auror training? Was she sure he wasn't seeing other girls on the side? Was she finally sleeping with him now that he wasn't at Hogwarts?

Lily could just imagine the bright flush on Alice's fair skin, her light brown eyes downcast with embarrassment. She felt anger for Alice, pissed off that Marlene didn't stand up for her.

The letter went on to say that it hadn't stopped there, that those things weren't even what had set Alice off, causing her to yell at Mary and leave the group. Evidently, Mary had outdone even herself with her bitchiness and had actually, literally told Alice that she couldn't trust Frank now that she couldn't keep her eye on him. Because he was older, and – Lily couldn't even contain her laughter as she read it – because he was a Hufflepuff.

A Hufflepuff.

That was why Alice couldn't trust him.

Apparently all Hufflepuffs were actually devious under their false pretenses of nicety. Or, that's what Mary had said to Alice, anyway.

Really?

Really?

Lily couldn't even fathom the response that Alice had given the dark haired girl, she couldn't even think of one herself. Not only did Mary distrust all Slytherins – being openly prejudice against them – and disliked most Ravenclaws for their snooty attitudes and bitchy behavior, but now she was against Hufflepuffs because they were... devious?

Lily shook her head, what a stupid bint.

She had always seen Mary for what she was, just like she had always seen everyone else for what they were, but she now wondered why it had taken this long for it to bother her. It truly bothered her that Mary was ignorant and hateful. That she was stupid. Seemingly she wasn't the only one either, as Alice was now too infuriated to even write neatly in her letter.

Mary was their friend, they loved her – for all her bad, and all her good, they loved her. But, it seemed as though Alice and Lily were now on the same page, seeing certain things they may have overlooked in their hesitancy to keep the friendship peaceful. Alice had written that – that ship has sailed, if Mary wants to act like an ignorant heap, than let her. I'm done. Lily had no doubt that Alice truly meant it, seeing as the smaller girl wasn't one to take these things lightly.

Alice wasn't confrontational or rude, she just wasn't. She was soft spoken and demure, gentle and wise. She could hold her own if need be, Lily had seen this growth in her since dating the dashing and daring Frank Longbottom, she had come into her own more. She was stronger since being with him, but that didn't mean that she had changed fully over night. She was still soft and lovely, so when she said she was done with Mary and all that came with the dark haired girl, Lily knew she took that to heart.

She sighed, thinking about the letter she had written to Alice last night. She had tried to comfort her, appease her anger, and honestly telling her plainly that she agreed. Mary was becoming too much like the other Gryffindors of their year, intense, prejudicial, mean.

She didn't like to think on it often, mostly because it made her feel uncomfortable, but with the hints of a war coming, things had started becoming a little... tense. Not only amongst the houses.

Gryffindors were bright, resilient, and strong – that was what she'd always been told. They were smart like Ravenclaws, fierce like Slytherins, and charming like Hufflepuffs. She had always been under the disillusioned thought that Gryffindors were the best, that they bred the best fighters, gave the best students, and showed the most strength.

She had been awoken from her disenchanted slumber once people started giving her a hard time about being close with Severus. It hadn't been the Ravenclaws or the Hufflepuffs that had given them flack, it had been the Gryffindors, and the Slytherins. People didn't care that she hung around with Severus Snape, the Gryffindors cared. And, the Slytherins cared on their end because she was a mudblood, and that was all.

Somehow, she found that her housemates not liking Severus based on his house, his background, and his appearance, just as bad as his housemates not liking her because of her blood.

It made her stomach hurt to think about. Because she loved her house, she loved Gryffindor, she loved that she got to wear red and gold, that she proudly shone the lion on her robes. She loved McGonagall as the head of house, she liked that she could do or be whoever she wanted – the only real stereotype for Gryffindor was brave. That, she could live with.

But, what she didn't like took up as much of the list as the good had.

She hated that her house thought they were better than everyone else, hated that they were all forced to prove their bravery by one another. She disliked how competitive they were, how prejudice. She didn't like the blatant favoritism, or how people like the Marauders thought they were hot shit. There was a cockiness that ran through their house, a quiet boastfulness that was familiar within the ranks.

She knew that each house had their hits and misses, that no one was perfect. But, it stop it from bothering her. She wished that it could be more of something she was proud of, instead of something she had to make excuses for. Like, Mary. She was tired of making excuses for her rude friend. She'd told Alice as much.

She set the letter down on the nightstand beside her bed, rolling over to lay on her stomach. She hugged a pillow close to her body and shut her eyes, hoping to catch a few more minutes of sleep before she got up. It was still early-ish, and this whole waking up earlier than need be during the summer thing she had going on was seriously cramping her lazy summer groove.

She had just started to fall back asleep – or maybe she had fallen asleep? – when she heard a light, tentative knock on her door. It had roused her, but for all her worth she had been almost positive she had dreamed it and hadn't moved from her spot. A second knock came, a little louder than the first, but no more purposefully than the first. She sat up this time, leaning her weight on her left arm, running a hand through her disheveled hair. "Come in."

The door opened slightly, not enough for the person to actually enter, but enough for Lily to see whoever she was talking to. It was shockingly enough her sister, Petunia standing in the doorway of her room, her eyes looking anywhere but Lily's. Her face wasn't set into that pinched, annoyed look that it could usually be seen in, instead she looked, calm, a little nervous.

"Lily." Petunia started, opening the door a little more to face her younger sister. Her tone was cool, to the point, very Petunia. "I was hoping to have your opinion on something."

Lily just looked at her sister, trying to gauge if she was serious or not, before nodding and sitting up more fully. "Yeah, okay, come on in."

Petunia entered the room, closing the door behind her and came to stand in front of the side of the bed Lily was sitting on. They didn't normally do this, they didn't normally partake in the whole sister-thing. It just wasn't them. Which was why Petunia was looking anywhere but Lily, taking in the sight of her slightly messy room with furrowed brows and Lily eyeing her with uncertainty.

Lily was first to break the awkward silence, "So..." Wincing at how awkward she sounded talking to her sister when they weren't fighting.

Petunia cleared her throat, looking back up to Lily, who was still seated on the bed in her sleep clothes. "Right, so, as I said, I was hoping to get your opinion on something."

Lily could tell Petunia was uncomfortable, she was uncomfortable too. "Alright, hit me with it."

Petunia narrowed her eyes a bit in confusion at her younger sister's teen slang, but moved on nonetheless. "Well, I have a date, no thanks to you trying to thwart my high society life."

She said it in an almost teasing manner, with no harshness in her tone as Lily had become accustom to. Was Petunia... joking with her? Or, attempting to anyway? Lily couldn't help the small smile that pulled at her lips.

"I'm sure."

Petunia tried to stifle the small upturn of her own lips, but Lily could see the odd shining in her blue-green gaze, a lightness that she hadn't seen in a very long time.

"And, since you seem to be a little more... comfortable in that area, I was hoping you could tell me what you think of this outfit."

Petunia was all business as usual, even when talking about dates and outfits and sister-y things. It kind of made Lily want to smile.

"Okay, yeah." Lily sat indian style on her bed, appraising what Petunia was wearing. It was a pastel blue skirt that fell to her knees in thick pleats, with a matching blue blouse with short sleeves and thick buttons, the collar high on her neck. She wore white, patterned stocking with them that she had seen in a magazine once. All in all, she didn't look bad, she looked like Petunia, because Petunia wore put together outfits all the time. Lily nodded her head. "Alright, well, where are you going on this date, first off?"

Petunia sighed a little, her nervous energy exuding from her. "To lunch, possibly the cinema after."

"And, what kind of guy is he?" Lily could see Petunia's confusion written onto her face, so she elaborated. "Is he trendy? Fun? Classy? Boring? Working class bloke?"

Petunia's hands began to twist in front of her slightly, "He's attends college for Business, and works for his Uncle's company during the summers."

"But, what is he like?"

Petunia thought for a moment, "Moira introduced me to him when we were at the club last week, he's friends with her cousin Roger. He's... nice, and has a good work ethic, and seems to be involved at the club."

Lily nodded her head at the information, "Boring, dependable, predictable; sounds just like your type." She sniggered jokingly. Petunia gave her a look and crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh, come on,Tuney, I was only teasing."

"Really? Because it didn't sound like it." Still, her voice wasn't harsh, she sounded almost forlorn as she gazed at her younger sister with narrowed, tired eyes. "Is that really how you think of me? Boring, predictable?"

Lily shook her head quickly, her voice a little defeated, but sincere. "No, Petunia, it isn't. Especially if today is anything to go by, you aren't predictable in the least. And, you're not boring." She gave her sister a small smile and stood to grab her hands – much to Petunia's surprise. "Look, if you like this guy, than great. I hope you have a fantastic date and get married to him and have fat little babies that I get to coddle and play with." The smile on Lily's face and excitement in her voice at that prospect made Petunia smile as well. "And if you don't like him, then whatever, there will be someone else. You're beautiful, Tune, and smart, and goddamn fiery when you want to be. There are loads of blokes out there that would be lucky to have such a dame as you, you neat freak." She then let go of her hands and playfully threw a pillow at Petunia, laughing all the while.

Petunia gasped, shocked at her younger sister's antics and grabbed the pillow from the floor, running over to jokingly smother Lily with it. "Take that, you little cow."

Lily couldn't even be mad at her sister's small insult, because it was said with laughter in her voice as she tried to push Lily down on the bed with the pillow on her face. Lily was shrieking and attempting to push Petunia off of her, but her efforts were self-thwarted by the laughter that bellowed from her stomach.

"Okay, okay! Stop! I have to help you with your outfit still, I can't do that from the grave!"

Petunia let up then, sitting on the bed beside Lily, who was spread out on her back, her breathing still heavy. "Well, alright." She looked down at her outfit then, "So, what's wrong with this?"

"Nothing." Lily sat up and looked at her sister more closely. "It's just, a little boring and predictable." She said with a wink.

Petunia rolled her eyes playfully, "It's just lunch. What do you think I should wear then?"

Lily stood from the bed and walked out of her room, Petunia following behind her quickly as they made their way into Petunia's room. Lily hadn't really been in Petunia's room in a long time, it was the same size as Lily's, almost identical. Petunia's room was colored a light rosy pink, blush – it was called, if Lily was remembering correctly – where Lily's was painted an androgynous royal blue, with gold accents. It was extremely neat, her sister having always been overly tidy, and showed the vast difference between the sisters.

Lily went to Petunia's closet, taking stock of what she had. The boy – the date whose name she didn't know – seemed to be sturdy, boring, maybe a little pretentious. But, Lily was just guessing based on the eight words Petunia had said about him. But, from those short words, Lily could vaguely tell he might be the kind of guy who wanted people to know how stellar he was. So, why not show off her attractive sister?

True to her word though, most of Petunia's clothes were boring and predictable. Matching skirt sets or pant suits, high necked shirt after high necked shirt, all in pastel colors, appropriate lengths, and minimal patterns. She thought for a moment before turning back to look at Petunia.

"Hold on a sec." Lily ran back into her room and rummaged around in her dresser before coming back with an armful of things. "Alright, first thing that goes is the skirt and those tights. We're Evans girls, we've got legs like Twiggy, time for you to show them off." She sorted through the clothes she had thrown down on Petunia's well made bed and waited for her sister to shed the offending clothing. She looked over to see her older sister staring at her, "What?"

Petunia just looked at her, "Uh,"

"Petunia, I've seen you naked before, just take the skirt off."

Her sister just narrowed her gaze and began to take off her skirt and tights as Lily was looking over the clothes on the bed and picking things out from the closet. Once she was finished, Petunia sighed and placed her hands on her hips, "Alright, now what."

Lily tossed her one of the pleated mini skirts she grabbed the bed, in Petunia's favorite shade of pastel blue. Maybe that was why Lily never wore it. But, she didn't really wear a lot of skirts either.

"Here, put that on."

She began looking for a top to pair it with, it was too hot for a large sweater, as she would normally pair with that skirt, but she didn't want to make Petunia too uncomfortable in something a little more bare either. Once the skirt was on Petunia's leggy body, she turned to look in the mirror by her door.

"Don't you think it's a little... short?"

"Nope. It's perfect." Petunia was the same height as her, so the skirt virtually positioned in the same spot as it would be on Lily's thighs. "Now, for a top..."

She dug through her sister's closet again, coming across a thin white button up with short sleeves. She handed that to Petunia to put on as she went to her dresser in search of knee-highs. It was hot out, and Lily usually always forwent all forms of tights and socks under her skirts or dresses, but she knew that Petunia would not, and grabbed a pair of thin white ones from the drawer.

Petunia put on the knee-highs and turned in the mirror as Lily looked at shoes. "Are you sure this isn't too casual?"

She looked up from where she was kneeling in the closet, "No. Not at all. It's lunch, and possibly a movie. You look casual enough for that, and if he decides to bring you by the club or a fancier place, you look fresh and not out of place." She stood with a pair of white slip on loafers with a bit of a heel, and handed them to Petunia. "Here. These will work."

Petunia took the shoes from Lily and turned back to look in the mirror. "Okay. This looks good."

She scooped the clothes up off the bed and made to bring them back into her room, "Wear your hair down and pinned at the side like you used to when we were little. It'll go great."

Lily wasn't entirely sure where all of this fashion advice had come from, she had almost laughed when Petunia said she was more comfortable in this area than she was. Because, she wasn't really. She didn't really date, per se, and she didn't really dress all that trendy or vogue. Most of the time, she wasn't even dressed that feminine, deciding against skirts because she normally had to wear them during the school year. In the majority she wore shorts or pants, stripped shirts that she was pretty sure her mum bought from the little boy's section of the store. A crop top here and some knee-highs there, didn't make her with it in the fashion world.

But, if Petunia was asking her of all people, instead of Moira or Tally or any of her other friends, than she must've really needed help.

Petunia sidled into her room as she was putting away the clothes she had laid out on Petunia's bed, she came and sat down at her desk. "Thank you." Petunia's blue-green gaze met Lily's green. "For helping me."

Lily smiled, "Sure. No problem."

Petunia looked over the things on her desk, partially written letters, notes from last year she had been studying, nothing of grand importance. She could tell Petunia was just looking for an excuse to stay. "So." She started, "What are you doing today?"

Lily sat on the end of the bed, across from where Petunia sat at her desk. "I don't have dance today, and," She started, unsure if she wanted to broach the subject of her meeting with Severus, seeing as they had just come to some sort of quiet truce. "I, ah..."

Petunia's gaze narrowed, though it wasn't an angry sort of narrow, just an inquisitive one. "You're seeing him, aren't you?"

Lily's eyes widened a little in shock, "How could you know that?"

Petunia just shrugged a delicate shoulder, a small smile on her lips. "Despite what you may think, I do know you." She gave pause for a moment, before amending her statement. "Somewhat."

"But how did you know I was talking about him?"

Petunia raised a hand in front of her and gestured to Lily as a whole, "You do this... thing when you talk about him."

"A... thing? What... thing?"

Petunia shrugged, a small, secret smile on her lips. "Just a thing."

Lily's brows furrowed. "Have I always done a thing?"

Petunia thought for a moment before nodding, "Yeah."

"It's not a bad thing, it's just a thing." She looked into Lily's gaze then. "So, you're meeting with him?"

She was being shockingly caviler about this, seeing as she hated Severus, and hated that Lily used to hang around with him even more. She expected more of a fight, more eye rolls and disgusted faces to be thrown her way at the mention of Severus, but Petunia was doing none of that. She was just sitting and looking, her face passive, her gaze cool. She was regarding Lily, not evaluating her. She wasn't sure how to tread.

"I am." She shook her head, "Well, I have. But, not really." Petunia's brows once again furrowed in confusion and Lily realized her statement may not have been the easiest to understand. "I mean, I've ran into him, we've spoken, but we haven't really talked. Not like we need to."

Petunia was quiet, her gaze still boring into Lily's as she nodded. "And that's what you're doing today? Really talking?"

Lily nodded, feeling slightly small under her sister's unyielding gaze. She was used to feeling wrong because of Petunia, it happened all the time, especially when they talked about Severus, but she wasn't used to feeling grilled. Petunia was grilling her, trying to see inside her head. She wasn't sure if this was a good thing or not.

"Yeah. I mean, we didn't leave things great last summer, there was a lot of unanswered questions, a lot of things unsaid. I just feel like I owe our relationship that much, at least."

"Why now?"

Lily was startled by Petunia's question, "What do you mean?"

"Why now? Why do you want to talk about things now?"

Lily was taken aback by Petunia's question. What did she mean, why now? Because it had been a year since she spoke to the person who had once been her closest friend. Because she knew that they couldn't avoid each other forever. Because she missed him. But, how could she say any of those things to Petunia?

"Because... it's time." She nodded, going with a partial truth. "I've waited a year to be by myself and a year to let him figure things out for himself. It's time." She said it confidently, like it was the whole truth. How could she possibly tell Petunia she didn't even know what the whole truth was?

Petunia just looked at Lily from where she sat at the desk, her light eyes clear and unblinking, boring into her own and making her anxious. Her face was passive and gave way to nothing, but Petunia had always been like that.

"I think you're scared." She started. "I think you're scared because you'll be graduating this year and have no idea what you want to do with the rest of your life. I think you feel alone, amongst your friends, your school, your... family." She said the last part a tad quieter from the others, clearly uncomfortable by it, but didn't take her eyes away from Lily's. "I think you're nervous about your future and you're reverting. Running back to him because he holds you high above everyone else, and you hope he can solve your problems for you like he used to when we were young." She paused to gauge Lily's reaction to what she was saying. "Or, maybe it's just time." She shrugged. "What do I know. Either way, you need to figure it out before you talk to him. Because, you can't use him again, and you can't let him use you."

Lily's heart was beating faster than she had ever remembered it, she felt flushed at her sister's words. She shook her head,"He's never used me." She thought before she responded again, "And I've never used him."

"You used him as your rock, and he used you to feel something."

Lily could hear that statement cementing itself into her brain. You used him as your rock, and he used you to feel something. She shook her head, tearing her eyes away from her sister's. "No. I don't think so."

She could hear Petunia sigh, "Really, Lily? You're going to tell me that you never noticed his feelings for you?"

She looked up then, back at Petunia. His feelings? They had been friends, best friends! There were no feelings except mutual understanding and a familial bond that she hadn't felt after Petunia stopped speaking to her. Feelings. She had known that he may have liked her when they hit puberty, but that was because he was thirteen and she was the only girl that spoke to him. The crush had been short lived and he never again after that gave her the inkling that he may have liked her more than a friend. He wasn't like Potter, he hadn't thrown his arm about her shoulders or whispered things into her ear. He had never asked her out or made any attempt that could be construed as feelings-worthy. He was Severus and she was Lily, they were friends, close friends that spent lots of time around each other, she was sure that if he had feelings for her, she would've known.

But, as she looked into Petunia's eyes, with her eyebrows raised and resting bitch-face, she doubted herself. Would she have known?

Petunia saw the terrified look pass over Lily's face and knew she was working it out. "He's always like you, Lily. Ever since we were children. It only got worse as we grew up. You really never knew?"

Lily shook her head, her normally wide eyes double their eyes, causing her to look comical. "No."

"Well, now you know." She watched a different look pass over Lily's face. "So, now, before you make nice and fall into the same co-dependent relationship with him, you need to re-evaluate your friendship. You can't fall back into old patterns because they're comfortable, that's how people get hurt. And, I have a feeling that if you hurt him again, it will be the last time."

Lily snapped her eyes up to her sister's standing, angry. "Why are you defending him? You hate him, you always have. He hurt me too, you know."

Petunia brought her hands up in front of her, gently trying to pacify her suddenly furious sister. "I didn't mean it like that, Lily. I said it, because I don't want to see you get hurt again."

Lily's brows furrowed, "What?"

"If you hurt him again, I don't think he'll come back to you, and that would hurt you." Petunia stood from her seat at the desk and came to stand in front of Lily. "The last time you two fought, it ended your friendship. I've never in my life seen you more miserable than I did last summer. Not even when we attended Aunt Beth's funeral when you were six and they locked us in the basement of the church with all the other crying children." Lily chuckled at that, some of the anger draining from her features. "I read the letters that you sent home last year, you can convince yourself that being alone made you happy, but it didn't. It was good of you to get away from those gashes you call friends, but you weren't happy. You were happy when you were with Snape, regardless of what we all think. So," She said meaningfully. "Don't fuck it up."

Lily couldn't help the smile or the laugh that bubbled out of her throat at her sister's swear. Petunia hardly ever cursed, it wasn't ladylike. It was empowering to see her normally tight laced sister look at her with those sharp eyes and hear a curse fall from her prim lips.

She looked down, away from Petunia's gaze, a smile on her lips. "Thank you, Petunia."

"Well," She nodded, "You're welcome." Lily looked back up at her, small smile still in place. "It doesn't mean I like him any, I still think you could do better than Snape, and nobody irks me quite like he does. But, I'm tired of fighting with you all the time, and we fight more when you're miserable. So, figure it out, and talk to him."

Lily nodded, "I will."

Petunia looked down at her watched, "I have to go, Vernon will be here soon and I still have to pin my hair, like you said." She started to walk away, but stopped and looked over her shoulder at Lily. "Well, aren't you coming? I can't possibly do my hair alone in this short amount of time."

Lily just rolled her eyes playfully, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips and followed after Petunia down the hall to the bathroom. "I guess, seeing as I have to do everything for you."

Petunia rolled her eyes and scoffed, "Oh, please."

Lily couldn't get Petunia's words out of her head, the insight on the situation was shocking coming from the source. Never had she thought that Petunia would be able to give her wise information on the matter, she hadn't thought she needed any. Clearly, she had been wrong. Which lead her to think, what else had she been wrong about.

She listened to Petunia as she talked idly about Vernon – getting only mildly nauseas at the way she dreamily said his name – and learned a little more about the man who would be taking her sister on a date, as she did her hair. It was odd that only a week ago they had been screaming at each other and not speaking, and now, here she was, doing her hair. She took it as a sign of good fortune, that maybe things would work out how they were suppose to, good or bad. She hopped that after she talked to Severus later today, she could say the same about that too.