Chapter Three:
"Lily Luna Potter! I swear if I have to come up there you will be sorry!" Ginny Potter yelled up the stair at her youngest child. It was September first and the last time Ginny would ever have to threaten Lily to wake up for the Hogwarts Express.
In her room, Lily rolled over wanting very much to ignore her mother's shouts from below. All she wanted to do was sleep, especially after that "Goodbye Summer" party the night before at Trent's house. She had been out much too late enjoying her last hours of freedom. Staring at her muggle alarm clock she had on her bedside table, a gift from her Aunt Hermione, Lily could have sworn her mother had finally cracked. It was wasn't even six in the morning, and the sodding train didn't leave until eleven! "Lily get out of bed!" Ginny called once again.
Grumbling, Lily crawled out of bed knowing she was losing this battle. This was going to be an exceedingly long day. Grabbing a towel that hung on the back of her bedroom door, Lily left her bedroom and comfortable, warm and inviting bed and slowly made her way down the hall for the bathroom. As she closed her door behind her, Lily heard her mother climbing the stairs mumbling about stubborn children. Lily paused at the stop of the stairs and waited for her mum to see her. "Oh! You are awake," Ginny exclaimed. "Good now I don't have to do anything mischievous." Lily left her mother on the stairs without a word of acknowledgment, still angry at having to be up at such an ungodly hour on her last day of the summer, and continued on her way to the bathroom.
Lily took a long hot shower, fleetingly hoping that the spray of the hot water would help her wake up and be ready for the torture of the day ahead. This, of course did not happen. After making it back to her sanctuary of green and purple, Lily, still clad in only her wet towel, laid down on her comfy bed wishing that she could just go back to sleep. Unfortunately just as she was in that magical land between awake and asleep, her stomach took that moment to make itself known. Cursing her Weasley appetite, Lily quickly got dressed in her favourite pair of dark wash blue jeans with silver hemming and a dark grey t-shirt with a silver swirl pattern with a low back. She magiced her hair dry and to fall into loose waves down her back with a flourish of her wand. How she ever survived seven years without magic outside of Hogwarts was beyond her.
The Kitchen was a flurry of activity and noise. Ginny moved around the kitchen making enough food to feed the entirety of the Weasley/Potter family. Three people with shocking black messy hair sat around the table waiting for breakfast to be ready. One of the three was of course Lily's father, Harry Potter. The other two guests were a complete surprise. "James? Albus?" she called over the din in the room. The two boys on question looked up and grinned. James, who was as tall as Harry with the same messy hair but Ginny's warm hazel eyes and wore no glasses, stood and walked over to his baby sister. With a mischievous grin he had inherited from their grandfather, James wrapped Lily up into a hug and swept her around in a large circle. When he put her Lily asked, "What are you doing here?"
"We came to see out little sister off on her last year of school, of course," stated Albus, who had stayed seated at the table.
"Yeah," James began, "I mean we couldn't let our ittle-bitty Willy-Flower go off to school all on her lonesome, now could we?"
Lily bit her lip lightly trying not to smirk at her brothers attempt to rile her up. "Well I would have guessed that you only came for Mum's cooking."
"That was just a bonus, I promise." James placed his left hand over his heart and left his right in the air, as a mock swear.
"All right everyone, tuck in," Ginny declared as she placed the last plate of pancakes on the wooden table. Like ravenous wolves, James and Albus dug into the food, shortly followed by Harry. As hungry as Lily was, she decided it was best not to inhale her food like the rest of her family. "Eat up Lil, before your brothers and father eat everything on the table. Honestly you three, it's like you've never eaten before!" Somedays Mum sound scarily like Grandma Molly, Lily thought to herself.
As breakfast continued James and Albus found it in themselves to start actually talking, rather than just eating. Of course they had to ask all of their questions in between bits of their breakfast. "You 'cited 'bout tis yer?" "Bout bein Head Girl?" "Y'know who Head Boy is?" as well as all the other prerequisite back to school questions.
As breakfast finished it was going on to half past eight, which, according to Ginny, meant they were already running behind. It was days like that, that Lily had to agree with her father, she really did love magic. After throwing a few last minute possessions into her trunk, Lily charmed it to go down to the waiting car. The drive to King's Cross Station usually took about an hour and a half from their house - this depended greatly on London traffic. So this meant that they would make it to Platform 9 ¾ with plenty of time to spare.
During the long car ride Lily decided to take a nap, knowing that she would need her energy to deal with at least one Malfoy later that day. Nothing would please her more than not having to see Malfoy every sodding day! As she drifted off into sleep her thoughts drifted to the torture she was going to be enduring having to share a common room with that son-of-a-ferret.
What felt like ten minutes later, they had arrived at King's Cross Station. James was shaking her awake telling her to get her lazy arse in gear or she'll end up missing the train. Trying very hard to control her grumpiness at being woken a second time that day, Lily got out of the car. Albus was attempting to help Harry remove her trunk from the boot, while Ginny commandeered a trolly. The group was in a rush, they had only twenty minutes to get through the station and the barrier to get to the platform. Of course the train station was as crowded as ever, any one could see that even from outside of the building. Once everything was in place the family of five took off, weaving in between muggles, trying not to make a scene, which was rather difficult. Pandora hooted angrily at being jostled every which way as the group wove their way to the platform.
Finally they came to the brick wall between platforms nine and ten. "Well," Ginny said expectantly to Lily. "Off you go." Lily scowled at the wall. She always hated running head first into a seemingly solid wall. There should be an easier way to get to the platform. Closing her eyes, like she did when she was eight and going to the platform for the first time to say goodbye to James, Lily took off towards the wall at a run. She prayed to Merlin that the gateway hadn't been sealed like it did when her dad was in his second year.
When she opened her eyes again she saw the scarlet steam train engine, the Hogwarts Express. All around her parents said goodbye to their children, friends reunited after a summer apart, and first years visibly shook as they thought about the year ahead of them. Behind her the rest of the family appeared. "Are you ready for your last year?" Ginny asked while trying desperately to hold back her tears. Lily only nodded with a grin, she was more than ready for her last year of school.
"Give 'em hell Little Lily," Ablus told her conspiratorially. It was almost as if the studious and rule-enforcing Albus Severus was giving her permission to break the rules and have fun. Weird.
James looked at her seriously, for possibly the first time ever. "You know the rules," he stated quietly. Lily got the message loud and clear. He was talking about the Gryffindor rules and traditions. The ones that started just after the Great War ended, the ones that were started to give everyone a sense of fun and excited, also it was just something to take everyone's minds off of the hard times that just past. Lily gave him a cheeky smirk that told him she'd do him proud. He grinned in reponse and hugged her closely.
Harry looked at his youngest child and only girl sadly. She was all grown up and leaving him. He pulled Lily into a fierce hug, not yet ready to let go. "You've grown up too fast," he whispered. "Listen to me my Lily-Flower, make me proud." Lily whispered that she loved him and left to find the compartment that held her friends as the train whistled to get the attention of the stragglers.
As they watched Lily make her way to the train Ginny moved to stand next to Harry. Harry grasped his wife's hand and sighed sadly. "She'll be fine you know," Ginny stated softly. "She can handle anything life throws at her."
"How do you know? How can you be so sure?" Harry asked in response.
"Because, she is her father's child," she told him softly. Harry smiled woefully. He never wanted his Lily-Flower to grow up and now it was too late. He watched as the scarlet train carried his daughter farther and farther away. As the train raced away and the platform started to empty, Harry pulled Ginny close to him and together they watched as the train disappeared from their sight.
On the train Lily moved through the throngs of students, many were excited and scared first years who were unsure of where to go. She tried to get through the students to find the compartment that housed her friends. Soon it became too difficult to navigate the narrow passageway. Gathering every once of authority she had, she stoud up straight and shouted, "Oi! Does this look like the Great Hall to you? Move along would you, you're blocking the hall." The tiny first and some second years just stared at her in fright. "You heard me move along!"
As if they had just be threatened with the killing curse, the younger students began to move in a hurry. Over the ruckus the younger years were making Lily heard clapping from behind her. "Congrats mate. Your first day as Head Girl and you've managed to scare a third of the school."
"Bugger off Trent." She hadn't meant to scare the annoying little bludgers she just let her temper get away from her. As she turned around a flash went off disorienting her. "What in the name of Merlin's saggy trousers was that?"
"That, dear cousin, is the beginning of the seventh year photo album," Hugo called warmly. When the spots cleared from her vision, Lily saw Hugo and Jordie both with a new camera. Lily groaned audibly. Ever since first year jordie and Hugo had taken it upon themselves to capture every moment, every prank, on film. At the end of the year they turned the photos into a scrap book for each person, with each one personalized for the receiver. A lot of work went into each book, Lily knew, and she was grateful to have such memories of their school years. All that in mind, Lily hated being caught by surprise by her two friends with cameras.
"the perfect way to start off the year," Jordie stated with a smirk that every Slytherin must be required to learn their first year. "Head Girl Lily scares the bejebus out of defenceless first years." The three laughed as Lily pushed passed her friends into the compartment muttering something along the lines of "Jeez love you guys too…"
The boys, still laughing, followed Lily back into the compartment they had previously secured. Lily sat next to the window with Hugo and Jordie across from her and Trent next to her, closest to the door. None of her friends were wearing their robes yet, preferring muggle clothing. Trent wore a pair of trainers, dirty looking jeans with a black muggle band tee and a red hoody sporting the name of a different muggle band. Where Trent was dressed as a regualr muggle teen, Jordie was the air of sophistication. He was dressed well in a pair of dark slacks and a crisp white button down. Next to him Hugo looked a slob with unruly red curls that clashed terribly with his orange Chudly Cannons sweatshirt and old faded jeans. Her hope that Jordie would help Hugo's fashion sense faded more and more each year.
"C'mon Lils, don't you trust us?" Hugo asked with a crooked smile when they were all settled and had stopped laughing, but were of course, still smiling like hyenas.
"Hugo Weasley, since when have I ever trusted you?" As her friends laughed at each others jokes and well meaning jokes at one another, Lily kept an eye on her time. At one she was to go to the Heads Compartment for a "Get To Know You" meeting with the Head Boy Malfoy. Soon enough talk turned to quidditch. When the quidditch talk was exhausted, they couldn't very well discuss very much with a Slytherin (Jordie) and a Raven claw (Hugo) in the room could they, the discussion turned to talk about what they talked about most, pranks and parties.
"Well its our seventh year boys, we need something that says we are back" "She has a point. This can't be just any old prank. It has to be bigger than any other," Trent added.
"Not only that, but it needs to be done on the first day of class." Hugo paused thinking quickly. "Breakfast would be the best time. Have 'em talking about it all day."
Jordie regarded the group in front of him. "It has to include the entire school. Not just Slytherin. This has to be bigger than them." The other three nodded slowly in agreement.
"Not only does it have to be big but it has to make our predecessors proud," Lily stated. What would Grandpa Potter do? Lily thought to herself. At the same time Hugo was thinking, what would Uncle Fred do? Both heads shot up at the same time and both shouted, "I've got it!"
At ten to one Lily stood to leave the compartment. Her friends looked at her, confused about her abrupt attempt to exit. "Sorry guys," She apologized. "Duty calls. I've got myself a meeting with Big Head Boy." She groaned clearly not excited about the meeting. "See you in about two hours I guess. Don't plan too much trouble without me."
As she closed the compartment door behind her she heard Hugo say, "Big Head Boy? I didn't know Uncle Percy was on the train?"
"Don't be stupid Hugh, she means Malfoy." Trent told him with an exasperated sigh.
Despite herself, Lily smiled and was in a better mood, even as she opened the door to the Head's Compartment. The compartment was empty. With a sigh of relief Lily flopped onto one of the empty seats. As she waited for Malfoy in silence she started planning the Gryffindor Welcome Back Party. It was one of those traditions that had begun after the Great War. Every year a group of students were in charge and this year Lily was one of those students. It had been decided that Lily plan the first party because somewhere down the line the task of party planner had been given to her and no one else could out do her parties.
While she was deep in her musings the compartment door slid open to reveal two people. The two sat opposite to Lily who was still lying on the the seat. She sighed and looked at her wrist watch, it was 1:05. "You're late Malfoy," she told him. He didn't respond. She turned her head to the side to look at him. He sat in a casual position that show cased his lean, wiry frame. He wore a deep green button down shirt and black dress pants. His almost golden, honey blonde hair, which he had inherited from his mother Astoria, hung in his eyes. Looking at him was looking at Slytherin personified. Beside him sat Cassie Willows. She wore a pair of dark muggle jeans and trainers with a red and silver t-shirt. "What are you doing here? This is the Heads Compartment."
Willows grinned mischievously, that usually meant she was up to something. "I'm here for the Prefects meeting," she stated with a shrug. "I'm a little early."
Lily sat up with a slight groan. "Well lets get this over with," Lily said quietly.
"Apparently we are suppose to get to know each other," Malfoy stated simply. Lily rolled her eyes clearly thinking DUH. "Okay, what don't you know about me..?" Malfoy asked, not expecting a response.
"Nothing," Lily muttered. "That's the way I'd like to keep it."
Lucas Malfoy either didn't hear or ignored Lily's comment. "Well my.. Favourite… colour is… white. My least -"
"White isn't a colour Malfoy," Lily interrupted.
"What?" Lucas asked, more shocked at being interrupted that annoyed at being corrected.
"Muggle physicists believe that white contains all colours, but isn't a colour itself. Therefore, not a colour."
"What does it matter? I'm only doing this stupid thing because I have to. Who cares what our favourite colour or whatever is. It doesn't matter. This meeting doesn't have -"
"It does matter, and it does have a point Malfoy, you insufferable, arrogant, know-nothing, git. It is so we can get to know each other and figure out how well we can work together." Lily stated with an air of superiority she had seen her Aunt Hermione use before. "Not only that, but it is so we can show inter house unity and be a role model for the rest of the student body."
"That is the second time you have interrupted me, Potter. I don't -"
"I really don't get care that you don't like being interrupted. I needed to state the meaning of this meeting. Which you have obviously missed."
"Potter, if you keep on interrupting me I really don't think this relationship -" Malfoy started staring Lily directly in the eye.
"Relationship?" Lily chocked cutting him off once again. "There is no relationship between you and I."
"Lucas smiled slightly, still holding Lily's gaze. "Oh I beg to differ. We do have a relationship. It may be volatile right now, but those always lead to the best couplings." He glances at Cassie to gage her reaction. Cassie Willows was watching the scene play out and holding back laughter.
"Listen here, you annoying, egotistical prick. There is NO relationship. From now on you stay out of my way, and I'll stay the hell away from you. The only time you will so much as exist to me is at Prefects meetings, and no other time. Got it?"
"Do you think that is wise, Little Flower? We should be working together and setting an example for others, as you so wisely informed me. You wouldn't want to shirk your duties as Head Girl, now would you?"
"Malfoy, of you ever call me Little-Flower again, you will never see the outside of the hospital wing."
Cassie, seeing the danger of an angry Potter, stood up and went next to Lily. "Look Lils, Luc was just trying to get a rise out of you. No need to do anything rash." Lily huffed in aggravation and stomped out of the compartment. "Where's she going? What about the Prefects Meeting?"
"She'll be back," Lucas responded evenly.
"How do you know? Lily Potter is one of the most impulsive people in school."
"Because I know Lily. She may be impulsive but she's responsible. She is never late for anything if she can help it. Most importantly if she is tasked with a job she will see it through too the end as close to perfection as humanly possible."
Cassie said nothing for a while just watched her best friend. "You seem to know a lot about Lily already."
"What are you insinuating Willows?" Lucas asked with a glare, daring her to say what was on her mind.
Cassie smirked, mischief playing in her eyes, but said nothing for a while. "you know Luc, I think this meeting was a waste of time. First off, you didn't use your time properly. Second, you failed to achieve the objective of the meeting." Lucas opened his mouth to respond to her accusations. He wanted to say that he knew all everything he needed to know about Lily Potter, but Cassie wouldn't let him. "All you know about Lily is what she shows the world. She is impulsive, intelligent, quick-to-anger, a trouble maker, she is overly kind and fiercely loyal to her friends and family. But what else do you know? Do you know how she acts with her friends as opposed to her family? What does she do in her free time? What is her greatest fear, or her most prized memory?"
Lucas sat there gaping at his best friend's lecture. It was all true of course, he didn't know any of that stuff and he knew he should. He refused to admit any of it though. After all, even if he didn't like his family, he was a Malfoy and a Malfoy was always right.
"See Malfoy, that was the point of this. To find some sort of common ground or you can show a united front to the school and not kill each other while doing it. Not that you would ever kill the Little Flower. If you had accomplished your goal than maybe she would have seen you aren't such a bad guy and you could have put your plan into action." Cassie paused to glare at her best friend. "But no. You had to let your blasted ego get in the way and be an ass. Good luck getting her to like you now!"
Lucas was stunned to say the least. He didn't think that this meeting would dictate the rest of the year. He certainly didn't think Lily meant that he no longer existed to her. He thought she was just being rash. He was royally screwed now. If he so much as put a hair out of line, he knew Lily would take pleasure in handing him his arse. "What do you think I should do?" Lucas asked sounding thoroughly beaten.
Cassie reclined on the seat and relaxed. "What do you think?" she replied raising one eyebrow in silent challenge.
Outside the compartment, Lily walked up and down the corridor trying to calm herself down. She knew she acted rashly and shouldn't have said the things she said. At the same time she currently didn't care if she never saw a Malfoy again. Lily's stalking and muttering drew strange looks, which she ignored completely. She kept on pacing unaware of those around her as her thoughts raced.
She couldn't understand why, why Lucas Malfoy irrated her more than anyother person. They barely ever spoke and when they did an argument would always ensue, Even if he so much as looked at her, Lily felt down right irate. Why was that? Was it the way he held himself, always acting as if he was better than someone else? Was it his annoying Slytherin smirk he had whenever he knew something no one else did? Was it his over inflated ego or his ability to see so much with just a glance? Even as she thought of each possibility she crossed it off of her list. Lily knew exactly why she disliked Lucas Malfoy so much.
His name.
She knew she was being unfair. Couldn't it be possible that he was trying to be more than his last name? More than another Death Eater's son? Just like she was trying to prove she was more than just a Potter, more than a Weasley? She was trying to be Just Lily, not Lily Daughter of the Boy Who Lived. So if she was Just Lily, why couldn't he be Just Lucas?
Just thinking of Malfoy as anything other than a Malfoy made her blood boil even more. She couldn't help it. Every time she thought of Malfoy she thought of his older brother, Scorpius, making fun of Rosie because she was a Weasley and in Hufflepuff, or cursing James into the Hospital Wing for a week in his seventh year. She thought of Draco calling Aunt Hermione a mud blood or trying to kill Dumbledore. Lily thought of Lucius attacking and killing so many innocent people. She couldn't help it. She was being hypocritical, she knew, and that made it worse.
She told herself that she wasn't being hypocritical at all. The reason she couldn't see Malfoy as Just Lucas was because he never showed her he was different. Again she knew she was lying to herself. How can he show he was different if she never gave himea chance? She didn't like lying to herself, but at the moment it made her feel better. She wasn't a hypocrite, malfoy was an ass because Malfoy's never change.