Chapter 12

Night Before and the first day of Hogwarts

Lilly's Version

(I just want to apoligize for these chapters taking so long. They have been ready for months. But i have had college, exams, a godson being born and now work. So i am going to try and put a few chapters on today and next weekend to catch up. Hopefully i can finish it soon.)

I did not understand why there was a letter for me in the post earlier that summer especially from somewhere I had never heard of a place called

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

My dad thought it was a joke and opened it up to see what the joke was inside and saw an acceptance letter to this school. Not long after I got it Maria came round and saw the letter on the table she was ecstatic and said

"I knew you where one of us I am so happy I can go to school with you.""What are you talking about?" I asked and she showed me her letter it was the same.

Soon her parents where over explaining it to me her father was a wizard so Maria was what you called an half blood which meant she was half muggle and half wizard.

She explained to me that I was a muggle born witch because neither of my parents where what where classed as muggles and no magical then I remembered my friend Severous explaining it to me a while ago when Maria and I saw him we smiled and I hugged him telling him I had got in. He was so happy for me and said he was going to be there as well.

He had told me all about the houses and everything about Hogwarts and I knew he was a half blood as well.

My parents where so happy for me when they fully understood it they knew they could not parade around saying a was a witch but they came up with the story that I was at a school in Scotland for the gifted in arts and music. Which I was and had been since I was a little kid when my ex-friend James had taught me the basics on a piano and I had learnt from there and dad and got me lessons in and out of school, out of school was one of his close work mates.

My mothers friends where always congratulating me over it and asked how I had got in. My mum had said my old piano teacher had been a student once and had put my name down before she passed away and said it cost a lot of money for but she would willingly pay for it. Petunia was not as pleased and did nothing but call me names like a freak and was horrible to me so nothing was truly different from normal. Though i could see that she was jealous of me. I was always different and she had always been jealous of me because of it. It had been upsetting at first but i was used to it now.

The night before I was meant to go to Hogwarts I was sitting in the living room Petunia was out with Vernon her now steady boyfriend my mum was in the kitchen cooking and my dad was in the living room with me reading his paper I looked at him and then back at the small television we owned.

"Is something wrong flower?" He asked

"Yeah." I said I could not hide anything from my dad or lie to him I could not understand why but I could not. He came and sat by me putting his arm around me in a hug.

"What's wrong flower?" I still loved the name flower, he had called me it when I was a little kid because of my name and he always said I was as sweet as a flower.

"Dad I am worried about tomorrow my friends have told me about it and it sounds great but I don't really know if I am meant to go there maybe they made a mistake… you never know maybe they did. Otherwise Petunia would have got in to.""Lilly your mum and I have always known you where gifted for great things so this as shocking as it is does not surprise me as much as you may think. I believe you are meant to be there and so does your mum and I know yours sister can be mean but I think it is only because she can not be there as well. So don't worry. Plus Maria explained to you that it is not always that all muggle children in the same family can go."

"Thanks dad"

"After dinner I think we should all turn in as Maria will be over early to help with last minute things and take you there. I am very proud of you flower." My dad said kissing me on the head standing up walking into the kitchen.

September 1st

The next morning I was so nervous but I was ready to go. Getting on the platform was scaring because I believed I was running at a brick wall and kept my eyes closed until I got on the other side and saw the train.

Severous was no where to be seen but at that point I was not to worried and went and got on the train with Maria.

As we walked onto the train I noticed a messy black haired boy standing talking to his parents, he looked a lot like James, but James never wore glasses that I could remember. I thought back to those days on the beach.

"I'm going to school after the holiday. Are you?" I said to James who looked at me with a worried look

"Yeah I cant remember the name though I only start this year."

"I know. I'm going with my friend Maria." I said as Maria had stayed with me since we where about three.

"What do you like playing?" James asked working on the side of the sandcastle

"Tick." I said "I can run really fast."

"Really?" James said and I nodded. We heard someone shout and looked round to see my sister clearing seaweed of her bathing suit and a big fat kid next to her. James looked at me and I was smiling "Lilly?" I looked at him "Was that you?""Yes but she cant prove it." I said proudly.

"Do you like pulling pranks on people?""Just my sister my mum has never said anything and my dad always smiles.""Wow." James said I don't think he knew girls could pull pranks so it was so much fun together. Then there was the day I visited his house and he took me into his dad's study.

James helped me sit in his dad's chair and then pushed it into the middle of the room and spun it round before jumping on and letting it spin with the both of us on thinking back now I did not remember wheels being on the bottom of the chair. We where both laughing and smiling when they heard someone say.

"What are you two doing in here?" It was James dad and James took a deep breathe. Luke walked over and stopped the chair properly and looked at the two of us. "James didn't I tell you not to mess in here?""Sorry daddy." James said "Daddy can we play on here for a bit please." He nodded. "Yes, spin us please." His dad smiled and spun the two children round on the chair and they where smiling happily.

"Come on now you two out you come lunch his ready. We both nodded and left.

I smiled at the memory but I could not stand James Potter not after what he had done to me all those years ago I could never forgive him for that.

"Come on Lils what's wrong with you, you look frozen.""Sorry Maria just thinking that's all." I said walking with her.

The sorting

When they reached the hall it was time for the sorting.

"Black, Sirius." A elderly teacher shouted from where she was standing a boy with wavy long hair took a deep breathe and walked up and sat on the stool. A black hat was placed on his head.

"GRYFFINDOR." The sorting hat shouted. The boy I guessed was called Sirius smiled and left to sit at the table. Maria was next

"Duff Maria." She walked up she was nervous but she was never one to show it she sat on the stood and then

"GRYFFINDOR." The hat yelled and Maria jumped up happily and ran to the table sitting next to a girl our age called Megan and then there was Maria older brothers Michael and Matthew.

All her family's names begin with M, I don't know why.

"Lewis Megan." Megan walked out with a small smile on her face and sat on the stool and the hat was placed on her head

"GRYFFINDOR." The hate shouted and Megan went and sat by Maria.

"Evan Lilly." It was my turn I could not believe how nervous I really was walked up taking and I took deep breathe she sat down.

"A muggleborn I see potential you want to prove you belong, you are smart but at the same time slightly cunning but brave, a muggleborn wants to prove herself and not to afraid to do so you are different… I know where to put you… GRYFFINDOR." I smiled and walked to the table.

My friend was there smiling at her and hugged her. More names where called going into Ravenclaw, Slyverian and Hufflepuff.

"Lupin Remus." The hat said, .

"GRYFFINDOR." Remus smiled and sat next to Sirius. Finally the boy with messy hair was called I was shocked to hear the name

"Potter James." He was more nervous them most of us had been I could see it on his face and had seen it before when ever he had gotten into trouble when I used to visit it was the same face. The hat took a while to decide where he would go but he did not seemed worried at that he just had a smile on his face.

"GRYFFINDOR." James smile.

He went and sat by Sirius and Remus none of them really paying attention to the rest of the sorting I was waiting for Severous to be called and hoped he would be put with me even though he had so badly wanted to be put in Slyverian maybe he would change his mind but he did not.

"Snape Severous." He walked up and sat down and then the hat yelled

"SLYVERIAN." I guessed he must have really wanted to be in that house rather then with me maybe it was a family tradition, Maria said there was a lot of that here. James looked over to me now he knew who I was and saw me with Megan and Maria and Maria's brothers even thought they where talking to their own friends. He smiled over at me when I looked up but I just rolled my eyes and turned away talking to Alice.

After the feast we where taken up to the common room and James walked over to me when I was talking to Maria

"Hey Lilly can I talk to you?" He asked, I looked at my friend and nodded walking off with him into a corner. "You look great Lilly." James said smiling

"What do you want Potter?" I asked I know I must have sounded horrible but he did not deserve any better then what he was getting.

"I wanted to say hi really I have missed you.""Well you have said hi now leave me alone.""What did I do?""I waited for years for you to write back to me and you never did even when I moved back thinking you had wrote there six long years of waiting for one letter you never bothered that is what you did." I said feeling tears wanting to come but I would not let them fall I did not want the talk I had been waiting for, for nearly six years end in me crying and him telling me everything would be ok just like he had when we where kids.

I was playing with James in the pack near my house with our dogs when I slipped and bashed my knee into a wall. It had hurt so much and I could not help but cry I was only five at the time and James ran over to me and helped me sit down properly and sat by me telling me things would be ok.

"I never got a letter of you saying you had moved Lilly believe me if I knew I would have found you and wrote again.""Spare me the lies Potter.""Ok, I was just going to ask if you wanted to go out some time?""No."

"Oh come on Evans." James said as I walked away from that moment on the James I knew was dead and gone it was just Potter now. I went and sat down next to Maria and Megan again and talked to them noticing James leave the room and his two friends followed him.

After that day I spent most my time with the girls or with Severous, he did not seem to upset about not being with me and was going ok in Slyverian.

I was talking to Maria one morning to see if she knew anything about James and when she asked me why I said

"He asked me out when he wanted to talk to me you know."

"You got asked out by James Potter you're a lucky girl most girls would kill for that.""What do you mean?""The Potters are a very elite family and a very respectable pure blood family, they are also known for dating red heads well it is not true for Lord Potter his wife is a brunette. James is the heir to everything they have. His parents are only young but his dad is very skilful.""How old are his parents and why does his dad look so young?" I asked

"Well my dad always told me that James was born when Luke was eighteen not long after his two brothers died. So just add eleven onto eighteen and you get their age. So they are only twenty nine years old. I really don't know why his dad looks so young he just does it may just be him because my dad said his brothers and sister looked their age or even older but Luke Potter was always short and skinny so he looked younger. They got slated a lot for having James I remember my dad mentioning the papers did a story about him saying he was irresponsible for having a child so young in the war.""How did he react?""Lord Potter actually offered to answer questions on the matter my dad told me about it. It was done for the papers, my older brothers can remember seeing it. He basically answered any questions anyone asked. The main one was how did he think he would cope because his parents where dead and he had just lost his two older brothers so would he be able to look after a child especially if he had no role model, that hit home to him my dad kept the cutting of what he said." Maria said pulling out a piece of paper.

Mr Luke E.J. Potter held a conference today about the reports about his family like when asked how he was meant to cope after the lose of most of his family Lord Potter answered

"It was horrible losing my parents when I was only fifthteen and my brother James and Andrew only recently but that has nothing to do with how I will raise my own son.

They question of a role model has no place here I watched my father raise four kids and there are many other people I look up to so a role model for myself is not my top priority but being one to my own son is. I will never forget the family I have lost but my son is not them and I have no intention of treating him that way.

As for having him during the war it is no different me having a child now then it is anyone in their twenties and thirties but I choose to have my child earlier rather then later. So for now my life is going to be out of the public eye mine, my sisters and my wife and son."

"People had been trying for two years to get a statement off him because of his parents, this was how they got the statement after that the news reported that he had finally spoke out about his parents and when he went out he was always on his own, pictures of James where never taken all anyone who was not close knew James as Lord Potter's son, another Potter, Lord Potter's boy. No one ever knew his name."

"What about now?""Now things are not much better he is in his twenties and works for the ministry and also holds onto his family business which is meant to be a real simple business. However he started his own with his friend Mr Black. He is planning on working on that soon. Now though most the people Lord Potter worked with had known him since he was younger then James is so one is about sixty and has knew him since he was about five and was also the person he worked with before anyone else everyone he knows still classed him as a kid and I think the old guy especially. He was smart but when he started working everyone was shocked by him. Also the only person in Hogwarts to take exams from universities in America because he was that smart there is a plaque on the wall by the entrance with him and James mum Lady Potter and their friend Mr Black since he never got one taken for it. My dad said he still knows a few of the older ones who call him a kid or the baby of the group but he has a wicked sense of humour." I looked at Maria confused "My dad worked with him once so he would come round my house a lot he brought James a few times but we never hit it off but he was really nice."

"So what else do you know about them?""Well Lord Potter was the youngest of four kids and his parents where interested in muggle things which explains his muggle name, James grandparents on his dad's side was called James Andrews Potter so Luke's brothers where called James Carl Potter and Andrew Antony Potter, James aunt was called after her mother Elizabeth so her name was Elizabeth Brooke Potter but everyone knew her as Lizzie but most people called her Brooke, my dad dated her at one point but it did not work out, so he always called her Brooke. James dad's name is Luke Edward James Potter but a lot of people forget the James in it so he is known as Luke Edward Potter. Or formally as Lord Potter. My dad knows loads about them because of the family tapestry they own in their house somewhere. James Andrew Potter was head of the Aurors even though people wanted him to be head of the ministry he was more popular then Dumbledore at a time believe it or not. The Potter family history is a bedtime story to many families with magic because they are like the celebrities of our world kind of like The Beetles and people like that and it is every girls dream to marry into the family."

"What about James mother? What is her story?""She is a pure blood as well, his parents names where Alexander and Caitlyn Harris.""Isn't Kate short for Caitlyn?""Yeah it is, well she is an only child. Before she dated Luke Potter she dated Jonathan Black he is Sirius Black's uncle, the three of them could not be separated after their first year after they where all put in the same house. They got together the year Luke Potter's parents where killed in a death eater attack my dad was in his seventh year with Luke's sister. Luke did not cope well and that was when he started dating Kate Harris, she made him feel happy my dad always said and because of it Gryffindor won the quiddich cup since Luke was the seeker that year since everyone was playing rubbish since Luke took time out so he was back on his game."

"You know a lot about their family." I said

"You can find the basics of any pure blood family from record books in Hogwarts library for a start and I used to ask Lord Potter questions when he came round because there where pictures of Lizzie Potter around my dad's old things and I heard my dad telling him he had some pictures of his sister if he wanted them."

"Ok.""Hey lets go get something to eat." Maria said standing up and leaving the room and I followed her.

"So why am I lucky James asked me out?" I asked still not understanding

"James Potter is the final Potter descendent of his line. Girls everywhere want to marry him and have his kids, girls older then him have said it but if he asks you then that means he honestly likes you, he is a very gentle lad and a great heart. I don't know now but when I met him he was really innocent. At least that was what my own mum said."

"Thank Maria." I had really underestimated James after hearing all that.