Lily Bud

Year 5 Chapter 51

Severus didn't look at her. They were crossing paths on the way to the greenhouses. The Gryffindors were just done and the Slytherins had it next.

Lily waved at him, but he was talking to his 'friends' again and didn't see her. They made Lily shudder. There was something nasty about them. She looked back at Sulfia and Dorcas and why they had stopped talking. They looked at Lily. Dorcas had a concerned look on her face and Sulfia's cheek was hollow. A sign that she wanted to say something, but forced herself not to, by biting on her own cheek.

"He just didn't see me." Lily said, but there was this nagging voice in her head the she could have sworn their eyes met for a second, before he turned around to his friends.

The girls didn't say anything, but looked skeptical. Merlin, Lily hated it. Why did she always have to justify her friendship with Severus. Lily picked up her pace and stalked away from them. Behind her she could hear how they started to talk again.

She was nearly at the gate when a voice called out to her. "He is embarrassed of you in front of his friends."

Lily turned around with fury. Who the hell dared to-? There stood Mary MacDonald, leaning against a tree with a cigarette between her lips. From there she must have had a great view on what just happened. Lily wasn't sure what to say. Part of her wanted to tell her to piss off; another part still thought that Mary was the coolest girl ever and the unofficial leader of muggleborns here in Hogwarts.

"Let's talk." Mary simply said and pushed herself away from the tree. She let the cigarette fall to the ground and borrowed it in the ground with her feet, before walking towards the school. She didn't look back to see if Lily followed her. For a moment Lily just stood there and watched, before she did follow the older girl. Maybe this was important somehow.

Mary entered one of the unused classrooms. She waited until Lily was inside and the door closed, before talking to her. She sat on the old teacher's desk, while Lily could only take one of the students chairs.

"You are the only muggleborn prefect in school." Mary said abruptly, after being quiet the whole time. She didn't look very happy about it.

Lily thought about her words for a moment. It seemed like Mary was right, all the other prefects were pure- or halfbloods. "Yeah as far as I know…" Lily answered.

"You are. I'm not going to pretend that you would have been my first choice." Mary said. Her words hurt. "But it would be foolish not to include you. You are the only muggleborn right now in Hogwarts with some kind of official power."

"And who would you prefer over me as a prefect?" Lily didn't know why she asked. Logically she knew nothing good could come from any answer.

"Honestly any other muggleborn. But it is like it is." Mary didn't care if she could hurt any feelings. "I talked with all the other upper class muggleborns, if we should invite you. Not everybody liked the idea, but especially the ones in the fifth were convinced that you're just naïve and not a traitor. We had a vote and decided to give you a chance."

Lily wasn't sure what to think. She knew the other muggleborns in her year. There was Roy and Olivia from Hufflepuff and Susan, David and Adam from Ravenclaw. They thought Lily was naïve? To what exactly was she invited here?

Mary didn't seem to care that Lily didn't say anything. "There are a few rules, you will have to follow. First and most important, you will not tell anyone, especially that Slytherin boy Snape about what we talk about or do or anything really. We don't really want you to talk about it with anyone that is not us, but never him. Do you understand that?"

"What exactly are you- we going to do?" Lily asked and a tiny part felt guilt for not immediately saying no to keeping secrets from Severus, but he did have his own little projects he worked on (dark magic, a voice whispered).

"We muggleborns meet up, talk about what's going on, who to look out for. Just keeping each other as save as possible in this time and war." Mary answered.

War. It was the first time Lily heard somebody call what was going on that. War. Everybody else called it terror attacks or unfortunate events or even celebrated those attacks. War. Was that what it was? Was this constant fear in the back of her mind war? Were the aurors in the Diagon Alley a sign of war? Lily couldn't remember them not being there. Were the black owls, with the heavy letters informing students about deaths, war? They arrived in the great hall along with breakfast since Lily first came here. War. The idea felt overwhelming terrifying and strangely liberating at the same time. There was a name for all this. War.

Lily stared at Mary for a long moment before slowly nodding. "I want to be in."

"You can't tell anyone, him. And you can't complain if you hear something you don't like. In there you don't have friends anymore, you have brothers and sisters in arms. Somebody tells the younger years to stay clear of all green snake gits and you won't breathe a word how you are friends with one. Most of us know and we don't like or understand it. You are not there to convince us of your ways. You are there because you have a unique position to help us." Mary looked at her with a challenging look daring Lily to disagree.

"Ok." Lily said and pushed any thought about Severus out of her head. This was no betrayal against her best friend. This was just taking a stand against what was wrong with the world. People often thought that Sev was on the bad side, but Lily knew him better. He wasn't. So Lily wasn't working against him.

Mary stayed quiet for a moment, before pulling out a roll of parchment from her bag. "Sign this" She ordered Lily. With shaking hands Lily took it read it. It was a contract about Lily agreeing not to tell anyone especially Severus Snape or any of his associates and fellow Slytherins anything and that she would do everything in her power to keep her fellow muggleborns save.

There is probably a jinx on the paper Lily thought, but grabbed a quill nevertheless and signed her name under it.

"What would happen if I break it?"

"You would show your true colors." Mary answered and took the contract back. "I will tell you when to meet up. Stay safe." With those words Mary left her in the old unused classroom.


A.N.

Mary is here to stay some more. And while she didn't want Lily around last year the fact the she is the only muggleborn prefect, did change things for her. She still didn't trust Lily, but is willing to give her a chance and what more can you ask for? Mary is open in her reservation towards Lily and Lily really wants to help and prove herself to Mary. Lily is stubborn and the idea that she is untrustworthy to other muggleborns must hurt her self-conscience and how the picture of herself clashes with the way others see her.

What do you think about this? Can you understand their positions?

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