Hiya! I apologize for taking so long. I wrote this chapter and hated it, so I scrapped it and started over. Then I had massive trouble posting this chapter. Everything is just a mess. But here it is! As always thanks for the reviews and all the positive feedback; I love it all! Enjoy! :)
"Didja see the Daily Prophet today?" James asked his siblings from his position lying on the couch. The three of them were sat in the parlour of the Potter household one Sunday afternoon after a family brunch. Harry and Ginny were in the kitchen with Teddy and Victoire discussing some home renovation ideas. Albus was stretched across the floor reading through an Auror manual handed down to him by James. He had just finished his first year of training while James was going to be in his final year of it. Lily was sitting sideways on her favorite armchair reading a Muggle book lent to her from James' friend and former Gryffindor beater, Jackson Holmes.
"No. Why? S'it important?" Albus asked without looking up.
"Is it ever?" The three of them shared a laugh. "Just ridiculous who they think will win the World Cup this year," James told them gazing up at the moving words and pictures.
"They're always wrong," Lily said turning the page.
"That's true." James folded the paper and set it on coffee table. He sat up and stretched while letting out a long yawn. He gazed outside at the beautiful summer day and stood up. "Up for a fly?" he asked his siblings.
"Why?" Albus asked.
"Just cause we can," James said shrugging.
"I'm game." Lily stood up and tossed the book onto the chair she had been occupying. "C'mon, Al." Lily nudged her brother with her foot and headed to the cupboard in the hall where they all kept their brooms. She pulled all three out, tossing James' to him and Albus' on top of him.
"Hey!"
"Last one out is a Crumple-Horned Snorkack!" James shouted, racing for the back door. Lily was right on his tail as they sped through the kitchen shouting apologies at their father who they nearly knocked over in the process. They both reached the backyard way before Albus.
"Slow-poke!" Lily goaded as she mounted her broom.
"I'll make you eat your words," Albus challenged as he joined the other two in the sky.
The three of them flew around the yard, occasionally bringing a Quaffle into the mix, until the sun set, making it too dark to play anymore. Harry and Ginny had watched them for a little while.
"Just like old times," Harry told his wife as they went back into the house.
The next day, Albus and James were back at work and Lily was at home getting ready for her last year of Hogwarts which was coming up next week. The time came and she boarded the train, a little nervous at seeing Grayson again. They hadn't spoken since the breakup at the beginning of the summer and Hugo had told Lily it was hard on him but he was doing alright. She entered an empty train compartment with Hugo and sat. Needless to say, waiting was painful. She had no idea how Grayson would react being around her.
"I feel sick," she groaned to her cousin.
"Honestly I think it'll be fine, Red," Hugo reassured his cousin. She was sitting by the window staring at the people on the platform and Hugo was sat next to her with a lanky arm slung around her shoulders. Her ruffled her hair when she didn't respond. "Really, Lily. I spent a lot of the summer with him and I think he's over you."
"I hope so," she muttered.
The compartment door opened and Lily turned with a panicked face towards it. She saw Avery and Elliot come in and sit across from her and Hugo.
"Alright, Lily?" Avery asked when she saw the girl was quite paler than normal.
"M'fine," she muttered unconvincingly. Avery snorted.
"Sure you are."
The compartment door opened again and Alice collapsed in the seat next to Hugo.
"Merlin, I surely thought I'd miss the train this year."
"You say that every year," Hugo chuckled as he stood to reach the overheard compartments. He fiddled around with something for a moment before sitting back down with Lily's small cat in his lap. "Figured she was getting cramped." He told Lily as he stroked the car behind her ears, eliciting a purr from the animal. Ever since first year, Hugo had been rather attached to the cat and Lily would often let Olivia sleep up in the boys' dorm with Hugo. Olivia let Hugo give her some attention before sensing Lily's stress and crawling over to the red-head. The train began to pull away from the station and still no sign of Grayson.
"Would he really just not sit with us?" Alice huffed after a few moments of silence. Right as she said it, the door opened once again and Grayson stepped inside.
"Where've you been, mate?" Hugo asked curiously.
"My mum wasn't feeling well this morning which left getting everything together and to the station up to me and my dad which is never a good idea. Add a disorganized, little sister to the mix and well long story short, we barely made it in time," he explained sitting down next to Elliot.
"Honestly I'm not even surprised," Hugo chuckled.
The tension was palpable for a few minutes as everyone tried to assess the situation and figure out where the friend group would go from here.
"Lily, how was your birthday?" Elliot asked. Lily's birthday fell in the summer which meant she didn't get to spend it with all of her friends most of the time.
"Uhm, it was great," Lily fumbled awkwardly with her words, keeping watch on Grayson out of the corner of her eye. "Me, Avery, Alice, and Rose went over to Paris with Aunt Fleur and Uncle Bill for a few days."
The conversation flowed freely after that and they reached Hogwarts before they knew it. They were all still at ease as they got in a carriage and headed to the castle. As they approached the Great Hall, Avery and Alice headed to their own House tables add left the four Gryffindors. Grayson shuffled a bit and seemed to hang back on purpose. Lily and Hugo both caught this and after a silent conversation with eye contact, Hugo nodded and headed inside, dragging a confused Elliot with him.
"Hey," he said awkwardly.
"Hey," Lily responded with a small smile. She bit her and shoved her hands in her robe's oversized pockets. They stood in silence as they watched students continue to file into the Great Hall. Grayson sensed that trying to talk amidst a sea of people wasn't ideal and pulled Lily to one side of the door.
"So," he started.
"So," she repeated expectantly.
"Yeah," Grayson said chuckling and rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "So I've missed you. Oh, Merlin. That's a horrible place to start. I'm not trying to get back together with you I swear! But I did miss you this summer...as a friend." He focused his gaze anywhere but Lily. "And I was wondering if we were still good to be friends this year. Because I want to. Be friends that is."
"Or course we can," Lily assured him reaching out and squeezing his arm. He met her eyes and breathed a visible sigh of relief.
"I can't tell you how worried I've been about this conversation. I've been practicing," he admitted, turning alight shade of pink. "Don't get me wrong, I still like you a little more than I should. But I think I've made a lot of progress over the summer. I even flirted with a girl the other day. Oh, bullocks I shouldn't be telling you that. It's weird."
"Grayson, it's fine! Really," Lily insisted trying to hold back her giggles. She'd always find him unbelievably adorable no matter what. "I'm gonna need you by my side if we're gonna kick some ass in Quidditch this year."
"We're gonna sweep the Cup for sure," he told her with a broad grin. She laughed and the two of them headed into the feast where they sat across from each other, just like old times.
Lily was actually excited to get back into the swing of things and especially eager to get back to the dungeons to her Alchemy lessons. A few days into term, she made her way down to meet Professor Williams for their first lesson back. She knocked gingerly on the door and was immediately instructed to come in. She opened the door and saw the Potions professor flipping through a book while balancing another few in his arms.
"Miss. Potter!" he said cheerily. "How nice to see you again, dear." He set the books down and ushered her into the room. He handed her a beaten up book.
"Gee thanks, Professor," she said sarcastically, the corners of her mouth upturning slightly.
"It's your Alchemy book for this year," he explained shooting her a look that told her not to give him an attitude this early in the year. "There aren't many copies of these books nowadays because people don't have that much of an interest in alchemy anymore." He watched her carefully flip through the book, trying not to damage any of the delicate pages. "I suppose you'll want to speak to Severus?" Lily looked up eagerly then tried to play it cool.
"If he's around." She shrugged nonchalantly. Professor Williams chuckled and Lily followed him into his office.
"Well, well, well...look who's back," drawled a voice from the darkest corner of the room.
"Nice to see you too, sir." Lily held her new book tightly to her chest and took her normal place leaned up against the desk. Lily stayed down chatting with the professors for a while before heading back to her dorm to sleep before Quidditch practice the next morning. She was determined to win this year after last year's disaster of her getting hit by a rogue Bludger.
Once Lily got back into everything, she realized how rapidly this year was going to pass and how quickly her school journey was going to be over. She pushed those negative thoughts aside and focused on making her last year at Hogwarts the best one she could have.
The Quidditch matches were going in Gryffindor's favour from the start. Lily originally was concerned the dynamic of the team may be thrown off, but she was thankfully wrong. The team, in fact, was playing arguably better than ever. Lily figured it was due to the fact that so many of them were in their last year and wanted to go out with a bang.
Her classes and Alchemy lessons continued decently as well and Lily was confident she would have no trouble getting into Auror training at the Ministry. She spent a bit more time with Snape this year as it would be the last few months she would be able to converse with him.
"Wait...what I meant to do now?" Lily halted her progress and turned to look up at Professor Williams with a panicked look in her eyes. It was nearing Christmas and Lily was bundled up in multiple sweaters as the dungeons got particularly cold this time of year.
"Well what did you do last?" Professor Williams walked over to the floorspace where Lily was sitting crosslegged working. She juggled through the books she was surrounded by and frowned. Both professors heard her utter a strand of profanities under her breath as she tossed one book aside and picked up another. "I have a feeling you're a bit lost." Professor Williams crouched down next to her and took the book from her. Lily sighed and let her head fall. "It's alright," he assured her. "Just try again."
The inevitability of her impending graduation really hit Lily during the Christmas holidays. Her brothers were hardly around as they didn't have breaks as long as she did and she realized soon that would be her too. As long as she finished strong.
One chilly afternoon, Lily sat at home alone, wrapped in a couple of blankets in her favourite chair. She had received another stack of books from Jackson who had been hanging around the Potter household more than usual. She had read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and just finished The Great Gatsby. She had now moved on the Sherlock Holmes, Jackson's favourite. Lily was so engrossed in "A Study in Scarlet," she didn't hear the front door open and people enter the house.
"Mum?" Albus called as he entered the house. Scorpius followed, shutting the door behind him. "She must be at work, but Lily should be around here somewhere." Albus jogged up the stairs while his friend meandered into the parlour to seek the fireplace's warmth. He noticed Lily's bright, red hair splayed across the back of an armchair and it was obvious she hadn't noticed their arrival. He stepped into the room and noticed the stack of book on the table. His grey eyes scanned the titles and he figured out pretty quickly they were Muggle novels. He picked up one called Little Women and thumbed through the pages. He heard Albus thudding down the stairs.
"In here, Al," Scorpius called. Lily's head jerked up from her book upon hearing a voice in the same room as her. She placed her finger in her book to hold its place and turned around in her chair. Albus joined the two in the room.
"Hi," Lily greeted Albus, with a hint of surprise in her voice. She noticed the tall, blonde in the room with them. "Oh, hello." She stood up from her seat and placed the book on the table. Scorpius tilted his head to read its' title as he set Little Women back down. "Why are you here?" she asked.
"Merlin, Lils. Thought you'd be happy to see me and welcome the company since you've been alone so much."
"I didn't mean it like...you are normally...don't you have work?"
"We did, but we have the afternoon off. I wanted to stop by and talk to mum, but it looks like she's at the office today."
"Yeah. Well, I assume she is. Everyone had left the house by the time I got up this morning," she explained, tightening the blanket that was wrapped around her shoulders.
"And you've been...reading?" Albus asked, approaching her stack of books. Lily nodded. "What are these?"
"Muggle books." Lily shrugged as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"From where?"
"Jackson." When Albus showed no visible sign of knowing who she was talking about, she explained further. "James' friend."
"James' friend?" The tone of Albus' voice had changed quite a bit and he lifted an eyebrow.
"Yeah...?"
"Speaking of Jackson, he's been around here a lot lately," Albus folded his arms.
"Very astute. Now I see why you're in the Auror program; you're bloody brilliant." Lily sat back down in her chair and picked her book up.
"Tell me, Scorpius."
"Oh, don't drag me into this," Scorpius begged.
"Why would James' friend be stopping by the house so much? Especially now that James lives in a flat elsewhere."
"Well, you wouldn't know he does. He practically lived here." Lily didn't even look up from her book to respond.
"Seems more likely he's coming over here to spend time with another Potter," Albus continued.
"Bugger off, Al. That's ridiculous."
"Is it? Or have a hit a nerve?" Lily spun around in her seat and shot her brother a dark scowl that made him step back. She inherited her fear-inducing gazes from their mother and they were the only two women with the ability to strike fear in the Potter men.
"I suggest you stop insinuating what you're insinuating and get on with your business, Albus," she growled before turning back in her seat and angrily opening her book.
"Al," Scorpius hissed a warning at his friend who held his hand up in acknowledgement. The two of them left the room to wait in another part of the house for Ginny to return home.
Christmas was different that year. All of the married and dating cousins went of on a holiday together, Percy and Audrey and Bill and Fleur were visiting the ladies' families that year, and last minute, Albus told his parents he would be spending Christmas with the Malfoys. There were only 15 family members for Christmas that year as opposed to the 25 they usually had. Needless to say, now that they all had grown and the numbers were decreased that year, the whole affair was much quieter than usual. Lily never thought she would admit it, but she missed the insanity.
Her and Hugo returned to school for their last few months. They found a somber atmosphere enveloped the seventh years as they began to accept that the end was drawing near. There wasn't much time to be sad, however. Their NEWT revisions took up most of their time and any "free" time the Quidditch teams had was spent practicing.
One Saturday morning, Lily sat crosslegged atop Professor Williams' desk reading another Muggle book. She was crunching on an apple as Olivia napped in her lap. She chuckled at something and turned the page.
"It just occurred to me, Miss Potter..." Lily looked over at the portrait she was visiting. "I never inquired what your plans are after Hogwarts. Seeing as how you are almost done, seems like an apt time to find out."
"As long as everything goes as planned, I want to work in the Auror department."
"Something your father was interested in, if I'm not mistaken."
"He runs the department now," Lily told him proudly. "I know tons of people in the department actually: my Uncle Ron, James, Teddy, my cousin Louis, Albus, and his mate from school."
"Albus is the one sorted into Slytherin?" Lily nodded. "Who is his friend? Anyone I would know?" Lily hesitated and Snape noticed this.
"Scorpius Malfoy." His name seemed so foreign on her tongue. She didn't recall a time before now that she had used his first name. "Draco Malfoy's son," she added even though she figured it was unnecessary. She was trying to cover up her awkward fumbling of his name.
"Malfoy." Snape repeated. It wasn't a question. "Your brother made friends with a member of a well-known pureblood family?"
"Mmhmm."
"How did that go over?" Snape pried.
"Uhm." Lily set her book on her knee and bit her lip. "Well it's f-fine now...mostly."
"Mostly?"
"Mostly." Lily looked away from the former professor, finding the situation very uncomfortable. She hoped he didn't press the issue any further, but knew he would.
"And," Snape paused. He knew this Lily had inherited his Lily's terrifying temper and the last thing he wanted to do was fuel the fire. "How do you feel about it all?" There was a long silence and Snape was beginning to think Lily was not going to answer him.
"I'm afraid I'm about to sound terribly hypocritical, professor," Lily said meekly.
"You're not a fan of him, are you?" She shook her head. "Because of his House status and family history?" Lily nodded.
"But here I am with you."
"Yes, here you are with me." He was silent for a few moments, mulling over what he would say to her. "Miss, Potter," he started. "For so many years, prejudice has driven its way into the hearts of not only the students here, but wizards everywhere. People think that blood status or House status means something. They think these things make them better than everyone else. That's what led the Dark Lord to do what he did. But his prejudices and his arrogance are what ultimately destroyed him. Society has changed quite a lot since his fall, but there is still the petty quibbles amongst those who attend Hogwarts. Understand, I am not lecturing you. Nor am I telling you what is right or wrong. I'm merely asking you to think, Miss. Potter."
Lily found herself unable to face the former Potions professor for a few days after their conversation. She wasn't mad at him, but she felt an overwhelming feeling of guilt. At the same time, her Gryffindor pride was trying to convince her she was right. The next time she was back in the dungeons, Snape was acting as if they had never had the conversation at all.
About a month before the end of term and a week before the Quidditch House Cup, Lily was walking through the corridors to the Gryffindor Common Room reading a letter from Teddy. He was gushing about his most recent job assignment in Austria and how much he thought she would enjoy visiting the country one day. She turned the letter and saw a little, sideways note written in Victoire's curly handwriting. She smiled at her cousins's goofy joke and flipped the letter over to finish reading what Teddy had written. She was so out of touch with her surroundings, she ran into someone as she turned a corner. She started to make a hasty apology, but stopped once she saw who it was.
"Well hi there, stranger!" Lily said brightly. She couldn't help the goofy grin that slipped onto her face.
"I'm sorry. Do I know you?" Mischievous green eyes met her deep brown ones.
"Oh, my mistake! I thought you were the hero of the wizarding world, but now I see you're much older than he is."
"Excuse me!" Lily laughed at her father's incredulous face and wrapped her arms around his neck in a tight hug. "Hullo, dad."
"Hi, bean."
"What're you doing here? Finally decided to finish your education?" Her father set her down and shot her a look. "Kidding," she squeaked sheepishly, forcing away the giggles.
"I'll have you know, I became head of the Auror department without graduating Hogwarts," he boasted.
"Which begs the question, does being an Auror even require an education?"
"Yes, young lady, it does!" Harry insisted as they began to walk in the direction of the Common Room. "We have revamped the program tremendously since I trained. I doubt I would make it through the first year now. It takes the toughest and smartest to make it all three years."
"So...how did Jamie make it this far?" Rather than lecture her on being nice to her brother, Harry shrugged.
"Sometimes the lucky ones make it too." He smiled and Lily noticed that mischievous glint was back. She laughed and took his arm in hers as they strolled casually through the halls.
"You never told me why you were here."
"Just had to see the headmistress about something. You know...top secret Auror stuff." Lily rolled here eyes and let go of his arm as they approached the portrait of the fat lady.
"Whatever," she brushed off. "I'll be privy to that information soon enough."
"As long as you pass your NEWTs."
"Which I will. I'll pass with flying colours!"
"I'm sure you will," Harry said with a chuckle. "Now, give this strange, old man a hug before he heads home."
"You sure you don't need an escort?" Lily asked hugging him.
"Watch it," Harry warned, but his eyes glinted with unreleased laughter. "Love you, bug."
"Love you, too, dad."
The Quidditch House Cup had arrived and Lily sat at the breakfast table with her team. All of them stared at the food in front of them, but no one touched any of it. Elliot had even turned a light shade of green. It was the last match ever for Lily, Hugo, Grayson, and Elliot and the other three team members felt an enormous weight to help them go out with a bang. After a number of injuries on the Slytherin and Ravenclaw teams, and what could only be described as a miracle, Hufflepuff was in the final match against Gryffindor. They were a worthy opponent this year, but everyone knew Gryffindor would blow them out of the water if they played to the best of their abilities. As they walked down to the changing rooms, Lily realized she wasn't as much nervous as she was sad. This was going to be her last Quidditch match possibly ever. She would of course fool around on a broom in the backyard with her family, but she would never have a season like this again. After a rousing, inspirational speech to her team, she sent them off. She grabbed her broom and took a deep breath before turning to head onto the field. Lily turned and saw the other seventh years waiting for her.
"Ready, Captain?" Grayson asked. It was obvious she wasn't the only nostalgic one based on the looks on their faces.
"Let's do this."
Gryffindor won by an incredible 570 point margin: the biggest one in Hogwarts history. Hufflepuff had only managed to score a single goal on Grayson and that was only because he sneezed as they shot the Quaffle his way. Once Lily caught the Snitch, the crowd erupted in cheers. Gryffindor and Ravenclaw because their side had won, and everyone else because the match was finally over. Lily landed and headed straight for her Chasers.
"You lot were brilliant!" she screamed, nearly tackling the smaller girls. They laughed and returned the hug quickly so she could hug her cousin. "We did it," she said simply extending her arms.
"Yes we did, little red." Hugo wrapped his favourite cousin in a tight hug.
After the rush of winning, the seventh years had to turn their attention to finishing revisions in preparation for their exams. One afternoon a few days before the first exam, the six friends sat by the Black Lake surrounded by books and parchment.
"I'm convinced any more studying will not help," Lily insisted, rolling over from her back onto her stomach.
"Well that's fine and dandy for you, Lily, but some of us aren't naturally smart." Hugo had a scowl etched onto his face and was surrounded by broken quills which had been the victims of his frustration.
"Shove off, ya git." Lily's response was muffled by the grass that her face was buried in. Hugo chucked a ball of parchment at his cousin which was intercepted by Grayson who didn't even look up from his book.
"Force of habit." he shrugged. When he looked up at Hugo, he had a smirk on his face. His loyalties would always be with Lily who had become more like family to him in the past year. He had even started asking her advice on other girls which thrilled the Potter girl.
"At this point, I can't even be nostalgic. I just want it all to end so I can know what it's like to sleep again," Avery complained, letting herself fall back to lay next to Lily. She stretched out her limbs and released a long yawn. She readjusted her body to rest her head on Lily's back.
"Things won't be the same, though," Alice muttered. Lily lifted her face to look at her friend, careful not to topple over Avery.
"Things will change, but we wont."
"She's right," Grayson agreed. "And it'll be fun for all of us to go off on the next adventures of our lives. Speaking of which, I should probably tell you all that I've been officially recruited to the Chudley Cannons."
"You what?!" Lily shot up from her spot, no longer caring about keeping herself stable for Avery who went flying. "When? How? Why?" Lily scrambled over to where Grayson was and practically knocked him over in her eagerness to find out all about his future, Quidditch endeavors. She bombarded him with questions for the rest of the afternoon and no one was able to concentrate by that point.
"WE'RE DONE!" Hugo screamed at the top of his lungs as he burst dramatically from the main doors of the castle. He took off at a sprint towards who knows where with Elliot right on his heels. "I'M FREE!" The other four heard Hugo repeat this over and over again before tripping over his own feet and falling flat on his face.
"Hugo, you git!" Lily took off after the two of them fully prepared to be mending a broken nose once she reached him. Avery laughed loudly and unsympathetically as she followed.
"Lily was right." Alice looked up to meet Grayson's icy, blue eyes. She couldn't recall a time before this when they had spoken just the two of them. "We'll all still stay the same." Grayson shoved his hands in his pockets and started to walk over to where Lily was now yelling something to Hugo who had both his hands covering his face and was shaking his head furiously. Alice watched her friends with a small smile. All six of them would be taking different paths now, but their bonds would only grow stronger. She headed towards her friends after a moment lost in her thoughts. Avery was complaining about Hugo's blood being everywhere now while Grayson and Lily were trying to remember the best spell to remove it.
The morning of graduation, Lily sat waiting for her cousin to finish packing before they headed down to see their family before the ceremony. She was dressed in a bright, yellow dress with a flowery pattern stitched into it and her Gryffindor, dress robes over it. On her feet were white, ballet flats that were tied in a perfect bow around her ankles. She looked up when she heard someone coming down the stairs, but sighed when it was only Grayson.
"Nice to see you too, bright eyes." His feigned a hurt tone of voice. He picked up a stack of school books on the table in front of the fireplace and tucked them under his arm.
"I'm just waiting on Hugo so we can go down and make our family rounds before the ceremony and stuff. It's always hard to meet up with your family once the madness begins," she sighed, flopping sideways on the couch.
"Very ladylike." Lily stuck her tongue out at Grayson. "As was that," he chuckled. "Hugo is only about halfway done with packing-" He was interrupted by a loud groan.
"That's it." Lily stood up and straightened herself out. "He'll find his own way down. Tell him I left without him." She didn't wait for his response and marched from the Common Room to the halls. She realized once she was halfway down the corridor her dramatic exit was merely a statement on Hugo being late all the time. She should've just waited because there was still a while before the ceremony would start. Lily sighed and slowed her pace thinking of what she could do to kill time. Her face brightened once she came up with an idea.
"Just a moment!" Lily's knock on Professor Williams' was met with a crash and his harried shout. The doors swung open and the scowl on his face was replaced by a broad smile when he saw his favourite student. "Miss. Potter! I was hoping you'd stop by. Come in, please." He stepped aside and let the soon to be graduate enter his office for the last time. She took a deep breath and let her eyes trail across the room she had come to know so well. "I wasn't the only one who was hoping to see you again." Professor Williams hung back as Lily headed towards the portrait.
"Miss. Potter," drawled an unenthusiastic tone. "Shouldn't you be graduating or something?"
"I just couldn't resist bothering you one last time, sir," she answered with a smirk.
"Insufferable, just like your father." Lily chuckled and crossed her arms awkwardly. How exactly did one say goodbye to a painting?
"I guess I should thank you...for all your help in Potions."
"I couldn't just stand by and watch you fail." Lily rolled her eyes. "It was pretty remarkable watching your progress in Alchemy," he admitted. Lily was sure this is the first time he came anywhere close to complimenting her.
"Uh, t-thanks," she stuttered. She bit her lip and focused her eyes on her shoes, unsure how to proceed with the conversation.
Professor Williams eavesdropped for the first few minutes of their conversation before returning to his own business. He was humming an old song to himself and dusting off some books when his attention was drawn to raised voices. He started towards to commotion, but was nearly knocked over by Lily. The look on her face was frazzled and she was slightly out of breath. "Miss-"
"I have to go. I'll see you at the ceremony," Lily blurted as she ran from his office. Professor Williams barely had time to register what she was doing and was only brought from his reverie when the door slammed behind Lily. He turned on his heel and marched towards the painting.
"What did you say to her?" he demanded of the man. "Why on earth did she go tearing from my office like that?"
"It does not concern you," Snape hissed back, his icy eyes glazed over.
"Like he-" Professor Williams wasn't able to question Snape anymore as he slid from his portrait, leaving the professor alone and confused.
Meanwhile, Lily swallowed the urge to cry as she rushed up the stair away from the dungeons knowing she'd never have to return ever again. She slowed her pace and tried to catch her breath and settle herself. She didn't want to meet up with her family only to be bombarded by questions about what was wrong. 'Why did I even bother talking to him in the first place?' She thought as she hung her head. 'He's such an arrogant, narrow-minded, conceited-'
"Lily!" She looked up and was met by the comforting sight of Teddy. "Heya, kid. We were beginning to wonder where you and Hugo were."
"Hugo is still packing and I just...had an errand to run."
"Figures," Teddy snorted. "Hugo will never be ready for anything on time." He slung a gangly arm around the small Potter and they headed outside to meet up with everyone.
Lily was fawned over by everyone. Every single member of the family had come out to see the last of this generation of the Potter-Weasley family graduate. It was quite a sight for onlookers, seeing as how when you added in those who married into the family and those soon to marry into the family, the numbers grew even more. So many of the family was overcome with emotions. Her grandmother was crying, her mother was crying, her Aunt Hermione was crying, Victoire was crying for some reason. Needless to say, she was relieved when Hugo made his way down so some of the attention now fell on him. Lily felt as if she was being pulled every direction all at once and fought hard to keep a smile on her face. She was still trying to recover from the harsh words that had been spat at her a little while before. Lily only managed to exchange words with about half of her family members before she had to take her seat for the ceremony. She promised to return once it was all over and headed towards her seat.
She scanned her fellow seventh years as the Headmistress made her speech. The moment seemed so surreal. She waited for eleven years to come to this school and it seemed as if it was over in a heartbeat. She smiled as she recalled all of the memories she had here. Her eyes stopped on Alice and she thought about how they holed themselves up in Lily's room and would spend hours talking about all they planned to do once they finally got to Hogwarts. Lily smiled when she noticed the silent tears that slid down Alice's face. She turned slightly to see Elliot who had already zoned out and wad fighting back a yawn. Looking at him brought back memories of their awkward days dating and how he was always there to defend Lily no matter what. She found Avery next who was, as usual, listening attentively. Avery understood her like no one else did. She was one of the most caring people Lily had ever met and one day, Lily hoped Hugo would finally get his stuff together and ask the Ravenclaw out. Grayson was a couple seats away from Lily and was the only one to catch her eyes. He smiled warmly at her before turning back to face forward. Honestly, Lily couldn't have asked for a better boyfriend with him. He was the closest thing to perfect she had ever met and she hoped he would find someone who appreciated him like she never could bring herself to. Finally, her eyes located her cousin. Hugo was her sidekick, her right-hand man, her partner in crime. Being the youngest two of the family formed a bond between the two of them early on. It was like they were built-in best friends for one another since birth. This next year would be the first year they were truly apart. Sure they had taken some different class at school, but they always had meals, Quidditch, and time in the Common Room together. Knowing she probably wouldn't see him every single day anymore hurt a lot. Now she understood why there were so many tears being shed today. Lily refocused her attention on the ceremony, but it came to a close too swiftly for Lily's liking, much like her Hogwarts' days.
Lily spent the next few minutes hugging fellow seventh years before heading back over to where she knew her large family would be waiting and eager to see her. On her way over, she was intercepted.
"I don't suppose you're going to tell me what he said to you."
"You know me too well." Lily gave Professor Williams a half-hearted smile and crossed her arms. "Anyway it doesn't matter. I'm off now, aren't I?"
"Yes you are." They stood in silence for a moment. "It truly has been a pleasure teaching you, Miss. Potter. At first, it was like reliving my years here seeing as how you're so much like your grandmother. But you are so different as well and I consider you more as a friend than a pupil." Lily couldn't help slamming into the older man and hugging him with all her might.
"Thank you," she told him, "for everything, professor." She let him go and gave him a genuine smile.
"Stop by anytime you like. I really would love to see you again."
"I promise." Lily left the professor to speak to other students and slowly made her way over to her family. James was the first to wrap in a a hug and lift her from the ground. "Oi! Put me down, ya git! I'm in a dress," she reminded him. He set her down and ruffled her long hair.
"Congrats, kiddo. You'll get to join me now, won't you?" he asked.
"As long as my exam results come in alright."
"Pfft. As if you'd ever fail anything, flower." James shifted his eyes nervously to the side and cleared him throat awkwardly. "Uhm, yeah so...okay." He turned and walked away, but not before Lily noticed a pained look on his face. She turned to see what had sent him off and was surprised to see it was only Jackson.
"Hey!" she greeted, surprised he had come.
"Hi!" His enthusiasm did not go unnoticed and sent a red flag through Lily's mind, although she wasn't sure why. "So I sent some new books over to you house for when you get home!" he told her excitedly.
"Good. I really enjoy your recommendations." Jackson turned pink at her compliment and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Heh...thanks. I like sending books over for you to try."
'Oh bullocks,' she thought. 'He does have a thing for me. What do I do?' she panicked inwardly. 'I need an out. Someone help.' She looked around to who she could shoot a look to for rescue. Her eyes locked with Hugo who smiled at her. She widened her eyes and tilted her head to the side. He only raised an eyebrow at her. Lily set her mouth into a firm line and squinted her eyes. Hugo's face went completely blank and he held out his hands as if to say 'what do you want?' Thankfully Jackson was too busy muttering something about the books her dropped by her house to notice her and Hugo's exchange. Avery, however, had. She looked between the two and managed to gather what Lily wanted. She sped walked over to the desperate girl.
"Hey, mind if I steal her away?" Avery asked sweetly.
"Oh! Uhm." Before Jackson had a chance to respond, Avery had pulled Lily far away from the smitten boy.
"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou," Lily rambled at her friend. "Jackson was weirding me out. He's getting all...eh."
"All eh? I hate it when people are like that," Avery chuckled.
"He likes me I think," Lily bemoaned. Avery let out a huge laugh, doubling over. When she straightened up, Lily saw tears had begun to form in her eyes from laughing so hard.
"Only your luck." Avery slung an arm over her friends shoulder as they walked off to their families.
Lily's trunk was on the train. Olivia was in her crate on the train as well. All of her belongings were packed up and nothing remained in her dormitory. She sighed deeply and bit her lip, gazing around the bare room. This was the end of an incredible journey, but soon she would be starting the next amazing chapter of her life.