A/N: The second and final chapter of our two protagonists back in Cokeworth before they make their return to Ilvermorny. Plus, the reappearance of an old friend along with an update on their old school.

Chapter 19 Christmastime

Come Christmas day, as per self-imposed custom, Lily woke bright and early and just like last year, she barged into Severus' green-themed room and woke the sleeping boy under the cover of darkness. Unlike last year however, Severus did not mistake her for Mulciber, instead, he reached out for his girlfriend and pulled her down onto the mattress beside him. And so that was how their Christmas of 1974 began, under sheets, kissing each other tenderly and fervently while the other occupants of 17 Walnut Lane slumbered away under a peaceful blanket of stars.

Before either of them could fall into too-deep a sleep, Lily insisted they get dressed and head downstairs to the sitting room and await the remainder of their family. Just like last year, Severus and Lily helped themselves to Eggnog and cookies while they waited on Mark, Violet and Petunia to make their appearance; unlike last year though, they shared a closeness that they could only guess at last time around. After finishing her glass, Lily laid down in Severus' lap, staring into the slow-burning embers of the hearth as Severus stroked her hair and sighed contentedly as he reclined back against the arm of the sofa. The quiet crackle of flames in the hearth, and the low-whistling of the early morning breeze lent them an atmosphere of peace and serenity; it almost seemed as if everything was right in the world, and by their estimation, it was. Comfortable silence came all to easily to them, and while others might struggle to fill the void with inane chatter, both Severus and Lily were supremely comfortable just lounging about each other in perfect silence. It was an art they'd perfected many years ago as children when staring out through the reeds of their willow at the murky Cokeworth river. For minutes, or even hours, the two children would simply lie down on their backs atop dewy grass in perfect, harmonious silence.

Lily would be lying if she said that things like—comfortable silence spent basking in each other's company, weren't some of her favorite aspects of their relationship; domesticity had always been something she'd sought, and with Severus…he knew her so well, and the opposite also rang true, it just made life easy. With him, everything simply seemed right, just the way they liked it; granted, there were still a lot of things they didn't agree upon, like Severus' habit of studying Dark Magic for instance, but they'd at least come to terms with each other's opposing views on the sensitive subject matter and respected each other's views on it. They weren't alike, and their interests most certainly did not all align, but that was just fine by them; the respect they both had for each other's views on the issues each held differing opinions on was more than enough.

When the sun began to peek above the horizon, supplanting the warm source of light that was the flickering fireplace, they were joined by Mark, Violet and not long after, Petunia. Once the elder Evans sister came downstairs, they migrated to the kitchen where the four Evanses and Severus got to work preparing breakfast. Like last year, they worked in perfect harmony with one another in the kitchen as they all went about performing their pre-planned roles. Breakfast was ready half an hour later, with the five of them sharing their meal in the Evanses dining room. They all gathered around the dining table, set their dishes down in the middle, before taking their seats around the elongated misshapen-oval-shaped table.

While eating, the five of them discussed their plans for the day after they opened their gifts. Petunia told her parents that she'd be heading out later to watch a movie with Robert sometime before lunch; Marlene would be coming by just shy of noon, and spending the afternoon with Lily and Severus. Mark said that he'd be heading into town to take care of some last-minute shopping; as it had turned out, they'd completely run out of sour cream and potatoes, both of which were needed for Violet to make her family's signature baked potato recipe this evening. Speaking of whom, Violet said that she'd need a pair of hands to help out on the early prep-work for lunch, and then for Christmas dinner afterwards. For lunch, she intended to make minced pies; some of which would be mixed with pork, others with chicken. Severus volunteered to help, since he'd had experience cooking minced pies before, and so he would be tasked with preparing lunch while Violet herself would handle the roast turkey prep-work for dinner. Lily had also invited Cindy for lunch, but unfortunately she had prior obligations with her family visiting relatives of theirs in Birmingham.

Before any of the fivesome's plans could come to fruition though, it was first time to open presents. So while Lily cleaned up in the kitchen, the four eldest occupants of the house made their way to the living room and gathered around the Christmas tree. Due to Lily's absence—who was still performing cleanup in the kitchen, Severus took up the role of present distributor from his position at the base of the eight-foot tree.

"I see you've gotten started without me," Lily said as she entered the room, striding towards them at a brisk pace, then claiming her seat on the carpet by Severus' side.

"Not quite Lily, Severus was just handing out all our presents is all. Another minute or two perhaps and we'd have started opening them without you," Mark chuckled.

"Well I'm really glad you were considerate enough to wait for me then," Lily said—sarcasm freely flowing from her tone, as she accepted one of her gifts from Severus.

"Since you're the last to join, and because you cleaned up, how about you start us off then Lily," Mark said, inclining his head head at the present that sat in her lap.

Judging by the haphazard wrapping style, as well as the green and silver color of the wrapping paper, Lily knew precisely who the gift was from. The boy responsible was even grinning at her in anticipation—eagerly awaiting her reaction to his well-thought out gift. Severus had spent a lot of time and effort brainstorming of gifts to give Lily, and after the long and arduous process had reached its conclusion, only one potential gift was left standing—and here it was laying in her lap. It was wrapped in green and silver, and the object appeared to be thin, somewhat hard, and had wasn't too large either.

"Go ahead Lily, let's see what it is," Mark said.

Lily didn't need any more prompting and quickly tore into the wrapping. She made short work of the packaging and raised her present up to the light. It was short, thin, and made of Dragon-hide leather, but Lily didn't quite understand what the thing was. She regarded the small, leather object with a slight frown, as she tried to think of just what it was, but all her guesses came up short. With an embarrassed flush on her cheeks, she turned to face Severus with the leather object in her palm—Lily gave a small shrug of her shoulders as if to say; Sorry. I've got no idea what on earth this thing is.

"Thank you for the gift Sev, I really appreciate it…but I'm afraid to admit I haven't the foggiest idea what this might be," Lily said gratefully, yet sheepishly.

"It's a wand holster," Severus said simply. "What you do is, you simply strap it onto your wrist, like so—" he reached across, and grasped the object from her palm. "Straighten your wand arm." Lily did what she was asked and straightened her right arm. Severus looped the strap around her arm, and tightened it, securing the holster to the inside of her wrist. "What this thing does, is it enables you to draw your wand far more quickly than you would from your pocket. It'll help in duels and things like that," Severus explained, holding Lily's gaze.

"Wow…it seems really neat Sev, not to mention useful too," Lily breathed, eyeing the object attached to her wrist and committing its shape and color to memory. She glanced up from the black and red colored holster and met Severus' gaze. "Thank you Sev, I'll be sure to take good care of it. Although I certainly hope I won't have to use it too much!"

"You and me both," Severus snorted. "But…it's better to be prepared for these sort's of things and not get caught with your pants down, proverbially speaking."

"It certainly looks very fashionable," Violet commented, her eyes trained upon the holster. "From my understanding, the wand goes through the loop and is drawn from there?"

"That's right Violet, it only takes half a second or so for someone to draw their wand if need be," Severus explained. "It's rather useful. One of my old friends gave me one back when I was a first year in Slytherin. Merlin knows I needed it more times than I could count."

Lily cast him a sad, but not pitying look, she was more than familiar with Severus' struggles as a dirt-poor, halfblood in a house dominated by haughty, filthy-rich pureblooded children. Those two and a half years that he'd spent in the Snake den had been nothing short of hellish for the halfblood, and he'd made himself a lot of enemies externally and internally—most, not by choice. Mark and Violet too looked quite sad at the admission, but both refrained from commenting on it further.

"Anyways, how about you open one of your presents Severus?" Violet asked, gesturing over to the base of the lit tree. "There's one under there that's from me I believe, that blue and ye—Ah! That's the one!"

Severus brought out a medium sized present wrapped in blue and yellow wrapping paper. From the weight and size of the object, it appeared to be an article of clothing of some sort; of what sort however…he had no clue. Severus carefully unwrapped the packaging, taking care not to tear or rip the paper; when he'd finally finished and set the blue and yellow wrapping paper down by his side, he held a green jumper in his hands. It wasn't just any normal green jumper however, not at all, this one had a white three leaf clover right in the middle of it, and above it, the name Celtics was stenciled in. His jaw dropped open in shock at the gift in his hands, and his eyes had quite nearly bulged out of their sockets. He didn't care that he was gawping like a fish out of water, for he was too shocked to care as a result of the gift in his hands. How did she know…? I hadn't even written home all term…and yet she knew. Unless…hmm, it must've been Lily, she must've written Violet and Mark, telling them about my support of the Celtics…that would explain it.

Still holding the jumper in his arms, he looked up from the deep green of the material in the expectant eyes of Violet Evans, he was smiling broadly—which truly conveyed his happiness at receiving such a gift. "This is wonderful, Violet, I love it. Thank you."

The Evans matriarch gestured for the boy to come nearer—which he did promptly—and then gave him a long hug. "You're most welcome Severus, you're very welcome indeed. Why don't you try it on and see how it fits?"

Severus pulled back from her hug, nodded, and took a few steps away from her so he'd have enough space to pull his existing plain, grey jumped over his head. He reached for the hem of his jumper and pulled it up, revealing the shirt he wore underneath, and then slipped the forest-green jumped on in place of the grey one—which was now discarded on the sofa. Severus straightened out the sleeves, making sure the material wasn't ruffled and was fitting properly, it wasn't too tight, nor was it too loose, it seemed just right to him.

"How does it fit?" Mark asked, his eyes swept up and down the green jumper in an appraising manner.

"It fits well, it's…really nice, and warm too. Thank you, Violet."

Violet's serene smile broadened and her dark eyes seemed to sparkle with happiness. "You're most welcome Severus. I'm glad you like it."

"How about you open one now Petunia," Mark suggested, turning to his eldest daughter, who looked bored out of her mind. "I believe that green and blue present there by Lily's foot is for you, isn't it?"

"Y'mean this one here?" Lily asked, reaching for the green and blue-wrapped gift by her foot and waving it in the air.

Lily eyed the package curiously, it seemed to be a book of some sort, and she couldn't help but wonder what was on the other side of Severus' messily-wrapped packaging. She passed the presumed-book along to Petunia, who snatched it out of her hands quickly. Like Severus, Petunia took her time unwrapping her gift, and setting the paper off to the side; when she finally finished, a book on the History of New England from the first settlers on board the mayflower, all the way through to the present day, sat in her lap. For a moment, it seemed Petunia must've forgotten who the present was from, because she was genuinely smiling, not smirking or grinning, but actually smiling a broad smile that Severus rarely—if ever, saw on her face. It was an uncanny look, and despite his not so positive thoughts of the elder girl, he did think it suited her face much better when she smiled, as opposed to that perpetual pinched look of disdain or indifference that was usually present on her visage.

Petunia glanced up from her book and found Lily's gaze. In a truly sincere voice, the elder Evans sister said; "Thank you Lily, this gift is really considerate of you—"

"Errhm, I never bought that Tuney," Lily said awkwardly, her eyes glancing over at Severus betraying the true person responsible for Petunia's gift. "The book you've got…it's all Severus' doing, I got you something else, but something tells me Sev's gift'll be tough to beat judging by your reaction to it."

"Oh."

Petunia shifted in her seat to face Severus, her face a mask of forced politeness, but politeness nonetheless. "Thank you, Severus, for the gift."

"You're welcome Petunia. I got it at a fairly reasonable price and I thought you might appreciate it," Severus said evenly, nodding his head at the book.

There was no need to mention the minor detail that the book was second hand and was on sale for the ridiculously low price of fourteen sickles and five knuts, all that mattered was that she appreciated his book.

"Perhaps Sev's gift will help you on your journey to become a historian Petunia!" Lily chimed in brightly.

Petunia didn't share Lily's enthusiasm, her apathetic shrug of her shoulders was rather telling of that. "I don't know Lily, I just want to finish high school first, then worry about that later," she said quietly. "But I do appreciate the gift Severus, thank you."

"You're welcome."

For the rest of the early morning gift-opening session, Petunia seemed in much higher spirits than she was before. This was in large part due to the book she had propped open in her lap that she skimmed through in-between opening her presents. Severus gifted Violet the Red Sox pennant of their 1918 World Series win under Babe Ruth's captaincy, the bright white and red flag drawing a surprised, but happy smile from the New England Native. Mark was informed his gift was still furled up in his trunk upstairs, being too large to wrap with a reasonable amount of wrapping paper; he'd be given it later, Severus promised. As for Lily, she too gifted her parents, and Petunia their presents which they all seemed to appreciate, much to the young, redheaded witch's delight. Alas, her gift for her elder sister wasn't as much of a success as Severus' book was, but Petunia still regarded her new sweater fondly and seemed to appreciate it.

When the Evanses had finished opening their presents, they all went their separate ways for the rest of the morning. Petunia got dressed and ready to head out, her boyfriend, Robert, would be coming by just shy of lunch and the two would be eating in town before going out for their movie. Severus and Lily also got dressed and showered as well, Marlene's portkey was scheduled to arrive at eleven o'clock. Unfortunately, Cindy wasn't able to make it to their gathering, she already had prior commitments with her parents and would be driving out to Essex for Christmas brunch with her uncle and aunt. She did promise Lily that she'd try her best to visit sometime before the end of the holiday and before she returned to school in London.

Mark headed upstairs to get dressed to go out, while Violet, who was the only one of the five residents of Seventeen Walnut Lane to get dressed and showered before breakfast, remained downstairs to begin her prep work for dinner. Severus would eventually join Violet in the kitchen, and the former would get to work preparing The Yorkshire Puddings he'd been tasked with making, whilst Violet stuffed the turkey that would be the centerpiece of tonight's Christmas feast.

As eleven o'clock neared, Mark had already left the house to get his shopping done, and Petunia had already left the house with Robert for their lunch date. As the clock struck eleven, Lily was waiting in the sitting room, sat in the chair nearest the sliding glass door that granted her an unrestricted view into the snow-covered backyard; when a loud popping noise sounded out from the middle of the yard. Where there was nothing but empty air, and snowy ground before, there now stood two women, the taller of whom's blonde hair instantly keyed Lily into her identity.

Lily quickly stood from her armchair and slid open the door. A blast of cool air struck the redhead the moment the door was edged open, but she ignored it and pressed on into the backyard eagerly.

"Marley!" Lily yelled—beyond ecstatic to see her best girl friend. Lily raced out into the backyard, running through the half-foot of powder with her arms extended outwards to hug the girl.

"Hiya Lil's, long time no see!" the blonde girl replied, wrapping her old friend in a tight hug. For what seemed like an eon, the two girls hugged it out in the middle of the backyard, seemingly without a care in their minds. Marlene's mum eventually cleared her throat, quite loudly too for such a short woman, prompting the two teenagers to separate.

"Missus McKinnon! It's wonderful to see you too, would you like to come in and—"

"Unfortunately not, Lily, I'm afraid I must be getting back," Marlene's mum interrupted crisply. Her voice was soft, yet commanding. "I'm entertaining my mother's side this year, so…can't be gone too long, you see."

"Yeah," Marlene added, nodding somberly. "I've got these two nephews, five and seven, right rascals they are. Always causing trouble and making a ruckus. Mum's really had her work cut out for her this past week trying to keep those idiots in line," she grumbled. Judging from her darkening tone and expression, Marlene must've been dragged into a disciplinarian role alongside her mother to

"Oh, right. Of course, well don't let me keep you then, ma'am," Lily said quickly. "Um…what time'll you be back to pick up Marlene?"

"This evening at five," the stout woman answered evenly. "Take care Marlene, don't cause too much trouble for Mister and Missus Evans. And please say hello to your parents for me, Lily. I should be going now."

Marlene smiled broadly at her mother and hugged her briefly. "See you at five mum," she said jubilantly.

Marlene's mum cracked a smile and nodded at the pair of them. "See you soon Marley, don't cause any mischief, and don't burn the house down."

"Hey I don't—" *crack*

Marlene could only react with but a handful of indignant words before her mum vanished into thin air with a loud crack. Marlene sighed and stuffed her mitten-covered hands in her pockets. "let's get out of this cold, it's bloody freezing where you live Lily, how do you stand this stuff? I swear…my bloomin' arse feels like it's about to drop in this, it's like the north pole here!" the blonde girl cursed.

Lily released a bubbly laugh into the air, a large cloud of condensation puffing out from between her lips. "Oh you get used to it Marley, trust me. Come on, let's head on in. Mum's made eggnog and hot cocoa for all of us. Oh and Sev's helping out in the kitchen now with lunch, let's go say hello."

The two girls trudged through the half-foot of snow that had blanketed the back yard, up the patio, and in past the sliding glass door into the sitting room.

"So Severus can cook now, huh?" Marlene remarked casually as they stepped into the house. She hung her coat on the rack and slipped off her dragon-hide boots and set them down by the radiator.

"Oh yeah, he's a great cook," Lily smirked. "Better than me at least, he can make just about anything I'll have you know."

"Oh?" Marlene arched a brow in surprise. "So I take it the two of you are still together then?"

"Uh huh, we're still together, and neither he nor I have any intention of changing that," Lily replied, smiling dreamily just at the thought of their long-lasting relationship.

"So how is he then?" Marlene pressed, a gossipy smirk crossing her freckled face, her eyes seemed to glimmer in anticipation of the juicy details she hoped to gleam from her chatty friend on the state of her romantic life.

"Oh it's wonderful Marley! Sev is just the best" Lily exclaimed, a far-away look crossing her face that made her look as if she were as high as a kite. "Sev is…well he's wonderful is what he is! Just about all I can ask for in a boyfriend, he's loving, he's attentive, he always thinks of me first. He still has his temper and he does get angry quite easily, but he can be so soppy at times it's so endearing," Lily said softly, smiling like a love-sick fool. "I think he's much better than Black, or whoever it is you're pining after these days. Sev can't be beat."

Lily nearly gagged when Marlene's look of surprise and intrigue morphed to one of giddiness at the precise moment she mentioned the accursed boy's name. "Oh but Lily…Sirius is…he's just great! I mean his hair is so silky, oh and not to mention his eyes, they're like…they're so dreamy! And his hair is so silky—"

"You've already mentioned that," Lily pointed out dryly, sporting an arched brow and an unamused look that she'd seen Severus adopt many-a-time.

"He's just wonderful Lily, he's simply lovely, and he even asked me to Hogsmeade first week back!" Marlene carried on, entirely oblivious to Lily's dry interjection. "Of course I said yes," she rambled. "I mean…how could I not? He's so wonderful and dreamy, and—"

"If I ever hear you referring to Sirius Black as dreamy or wonderful or anything remotely like that again, I will throw you out of this house myself, McKinnon."

Severus Snape stood in the doorway, wearing an apron dusted with a faint smattering of flour, and with his arms folded across it. He looked entirely unamused, he almost seemed angry even, but then again, any mention of Black and the Marauders in years past usually sent the sullen boy into a fit of anger.

"Severus!" Marlene beamed, extending her arms outwards and running across the room—startling Archimedes and causing the feline tabby cat to hiss loudly—but stopping just short of giving the boy a bone-crushing hug.

"I would hug you Severus, but with the state of your apron—" she gestured down at the flour-caked mess he wore, "—I'd rather not."

"I can't fault you for that. I'd have done the same as well," Severus said with a smirk.

Marlene giggled loudly, with the noise seemingly attracting Violet as well, she now stood in the doorway leading to the kitchen. "Hello Marlene, it's wonderful to see you again dear," she said fondly.

Marlene smiled broadly and embraced the older woman in a hug. "Thanks for having me Missus—"

"Oh no, not the Missus Evans treatment, that's just Violet to you dear," Violet chuckled as she returned Marlene's hug.

Marlene grinned sheepishly as she took a few steps back.

"I'd love to stay and chat Marlene, but unfortunately, I have some business to take care of in the kitchen. Lunch should be ready in another half hour or so," Violet said.

"Do you still need my help Violet? Or—"

"I'll be just fine Severus, you've done an admirable job so far," Violet said appreciatively, yet with insistency that convinced the boy to drop it. "I'll come get you all when lunch is ready," she announced, before turning on her heel and striding from the room back into the kitchen.

Once Violet had left to put the finishing touches on Severus' cooking; Lily, Marlene and Severus all migrated from the edge of the sitting room to the sofa and chairs situated around the coffee table. Marlene claimed the sofa, whilst Lily and Severus sat alongside each other in armchairs.

"So how have my two favorite non-Hogwarts friends been?" Marlene asked, grinning expectantly as she glanced between the pair of them.

"We've been great, we actually just got back from Boston half a week ago," Lily said.

"And?" Marlene prompted, her grin widening.

"And what?" Severus replied. He seemed genuinely confused as to what Marlene was getting it, as did Lily—who currently wore a confused-looking frown on her face.

"Do I really have to spell it out?" Marlene said dryly. She rolled her eyes in exasperation of her two friends' obliviousness. Judging by the pair of identical, dumbstruck looks etched into their faces, they really hadn't had a clue to as to what she was getting at. "How was your term over there? How is America in general? How is it in a school of yanks with not a friendly face in sight?"

"It wasn't too bad in all honesty," Severus replied, shrugging casually as if it was no significance to him. "All I will say, is that both Lily and I are enjoying Ilvermorny a lot more than Hogwarts."

"I can buy you enjoying Ilvermorny a lot more, that's a no-brainer to me after the rough go of it you had at Hogwarts," Marlene said. She glanced over at Lily, "but you Lily, really? You enjoy Ilvermorny more than Hogwarts? Really?"

Lily's green eyes narrowed slightly at her friend, as a Severus-worthy scowl twisted her lip. "And what of it? I'm with Sev on this, Ilvermorny's been much better for our friend—" she caught herself, a faint blush rose on her cheeks as she amended; "—well…not friendship anymore, I guess…but you get my point. At Hogwarts, we got stuck in opposing houses and our friendship was deteriorating by the month, Ilvermorny's been much better for us than Hogwarts. So why is that surprising to you, Marlene?"

At Lily's sharp reply, the usually unflappable girl looked a little more uncomfortable than she had been previously. "Well…beyond that, beyond your friendship with Severus, I mean, Hogwarts wasn't all that bad for you, was it?"

"No. It wasn't," Lily admitted. "But as I said previously, the reason we left was because it did nothing for our friendship, I maintain the fact that the house divide is one of the stupidest things I've ever heard of or experienced, and I refused to play along with it anymore. How the hell would Sev and I continue to be friends while we're being pulled in opposite directions Marlene?" she asked sharply.

Marlene shrugged her shoulders, unable to come up with a reasonable response to Lily's jagged question.

"My point exactly," Lily muttered.

"Well how is Ilvermorny different then?"

"We're in the same house for one, and there really isn't any house rivalry. All three co-exist peacefully for the most part. Ask your aunt about it you want to know more," Severus replied.

Just then, Violet re-entered the room, carrying a tray of macadamia nut cookies and three glasses of eggnog, she set the tray down on the table, and left back to the kitchen to the tune of the three teenagers voicing their thanks. She was gone as quick as she'd come, heading back to the kitchen undoubtedly to finish Severus' lunch.

"Actually…the reason I wanted to ask about…about Ilvermorny, Lily, is uh…well there is a chance that I might be starting there next year."

"Really? Well that'd be great! You'll love it there Marlene! Especially if you get sorted into Horned Serpent like Sev and I!"

Marlene smiled faintly but shrugged her shoulders. "I think I'm more Thunderbird material, but I don't know, I think any house would be fine to be honest."

"Well if you decide to come to Ilvermorny, I'm sure you'll enjoy it Marley," Lily said. Her green eyes were shining with assuredness, and the easiness of her smile and posture just exuded confidence. "Generally speaking, most of the people over there are really nice, and really welcoming too, so I think you'll fit right in. And besides…you wont be alone, 'cus Sev and I will be there with you."

Marlene shrugged again, still not entirely sure of Lily's claim that she'd fit right in—not that anyone could find fault with the blonde girl for that. Marlene lived a fairly cushy life at Hogwarts and was understandably just a bit apprehensive of leaving it behind for newer, but not necessarily greener pastures. Being a pureblooded witch of high standing, meant that the Slytherins never really bothered her, owing to her blood status—other than calling her blood traitor and names such as that, she was popular in Gryffindor owing to her affable and easy-to-get-along-with personality, not to mention that her ease on the eyes meant there was never a shortage of would-be knights waiting on her at her beck and call. Going to Ilvermorny would represent taking a huge leap of faith away from all that, away from all her friends—all the people she'd forged connections with, and the comfortable life she'd built for herself. Granted, she would have her aunt as a head of house at Ilvermorny, but would that be enough? She just didn't know.

"I'll think about it," Marlene said at long last, after a period of silence spent pondering Lily's offer. "I, um…to be honest, Aunt Esme wrote me about all this, she mentioned you two coincidentally—" she gestured at her two friends sat across from her. "And said that…that if mum and I ought to consider me attending school there."

"Well if you do decide to come across, just know that Lily and I will be there for you," Severus said sincerely. "That and Black isn't good news…take it from me, Marlene, you'd do well to stay away from that mutt." Severus was sporting a little, teasing grin, but there was truth to his words that he did hope Marlene would pick up on.

Despite her crush on the boy, Marlene couldn't help the brief giggle that escaped her at Severus' quip. "Yeah well…he's changed quite a bit in these last few months," Marlene said proudly. "I dunno what it is that you told the Headmaster during your last meeting with him, but whatever it was really changed things around at Hogwarts. Things are a lot more different now," the blonde girl added in a far more serious tone than before.

Severus and Lily shared a brief look as they both recalled the final time they stepped into the Headmaster's office, and the blisteringly harsh tirade Lily had given the old man on his handling of Severus' torment by his abusers.

"What do you mean by things are a lot more different now?" Severus asked, leaning forward in his seat slightly.

Marlene's gaze flickered between her two friends for a brief moment, before coming to rest on Lily's eager green irises. "For one thing, everyone's a lot stricter about hexing in the Hallways and things like that, the detentions have gotten worse for…" her voice trailed off as a saddened look passed over the usually-upbeat girl's face. "For what they did to you…Severus, the Marauders got in a heap of trouble when they first came back to term. And since then…it's almost like they're completely different people."

"How are they different?" Lily asked. She reached for her glass of eggnog and took a long gulp to quench her parched throat. Severus shot her a brief look of irritation, she seemed far too invested in this for his liking.

"They don't hex people anymore, well…not unless someone hexes them first. They're kinda boring now in all honesty, you remember how they used to prank people, right Lily? Well now they—"

"I'd hardly call it pranking," Severus muttered angrily, his tone laced with vindictiveness and borne of bitter memories of what that loathsome quartet did to him. "Unless you call locking someone in a broom cupboard for hours on end…or sending them hurtling down a flight of stairs, I'd hardly call it pranking, I for one, fail to see the punchline," he said bitterly.

"Well they're gone Sev, and besides, Marlene's said they've changed, irregardless, we don't have to worry about those sods anymore," Lily soothed, stroking his chalk-white hand.

"I know that," Severus bit out. "But no amount of reconciliation will ever allow me to view them favorably. They changed? So what? That's a big fucking deal to me. Why couldn't they have done that when we were there? I'd have left well enough alone if those prats were willing to do the same."

"True, but it's good they've…seemingly changed for the better, for their sakes, not ours," Lily replied.

Turning her attention back to her old friend, Lily asked; "So what else is different Marlene? Has much else changed in the year Sev and I have been away?"

"Oh loads more," Marlene said quickly. The girl leaned forward and grabbed a cookie off the platter, then leaned back and took a bite. "As I said earlier, there's much less hexing in the corridors nowadays, mostly 'cus everyone fears the detentions and potential punishments that would come with it should they get caught or reported. Also, there's a lot more inter-house activities which is cool, I've made a few new friends in Hufflepuff, one in Slytherin even that you might know Severus."

"Who are you referring to?"

"Gemma Lancaster. She's a year mate of ours, so you knew her yeah?"

Severus nodded once, taking a moment to swallow the bite he'd taken of his cookie before replying. "Indeed. She was my partner in Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures. She was…tolerable, at times," he said softly.

"Just tolerable?" Marlene asked with a curled lip and an upturned brow. "You know she was rather fond of you Severus, granted, she didn't fancy you according to her, but she has spoken highly of you," the aloof girl commented lightly.

"Marlene…" Severus muttered lowly, his tone excessively dry. "Don't mock me. Lancaster never had the slightest inclination towards spending any time with me outside of our shared classes. What she didn't do was despise me, or mock me for my blood, but I think you've mistaken the lack of hatred she held for me with fondness. She certainly didn't like me as you suggest, we tolerated each other and that was all" he drawled.

"Perhaps not openly," Marlene agreed, conceding his point. "But what you didn't know Severus, is that she admired your tenacity from afar. She and her family…the Lancasters, they run in those circles, d'you know what I mean? So she didn't want to be seen associating with…with…well you know what I mean—"

"She didn't want to be associated with a filthy halfblood," Severus finished for her.

Marlene grimaced at hearing the self-loathing in his tone, but she didn't deny his assertion, for he was right after all. "Yeah," she muttered in agreement. "But honestly Severus? You and Lily leaving has really shaken things up quite a bit…and for the better, I might add. Whatever it is that you told the Headmaster—" her gaze snapped to Lily, "—which by the way, most of the school knows about by now."

"They do?" Lily asked quietly, a barely-noticeable blush of embarrassment rising on her cheeks, to this day, she still remembered her rant she gave to the Headmaster about a year ago; recalling it now…it didn't fill her with pride anymore, it simply made her cringe. But then again, if her rant had been half as effective at getting through the old man's thick skull as Marlene said it was…then that was all the better, right?

"They do," Marlene confirmed, nodding enthusiastically, "but that's enough about Hogwarts, instead, I want to know all about you two. How was it over there?"

"It was alright. Lily and I met this older potioneer, Alexander Barton, and he's expressed interest in us…so we've got that going for us. We also met a few new friends, Lily and I, they're rather nice and easy to get along with. Needless to say, both of us are doing well academics-wise—"

"Especially in DADA, Charms and Potions," Lily chimed in.

"Right," Severus agreed, nodding his head. "But so far…our time there has been good. Far better than Hogwarts at least, and it certainly does help matters that there is no dark lord looming large over us there."

"Yeah, I'm sure that helps loads," Marlene chuckled, smiling broadly.

"Which is exactly why you should join us!" Lily interjected, wearing a bright expression of excitement and hope. "Based on what you've told us…Hogwarts seems much better now, what with the lower tolerance of hexing and bullying and all that…but Ilvermorny's still a great place and I'm sure your aunt would be over the moon to have you."

"Yeah, mum's said as much. But I don't know Lil's…I think I'm probably gonna stay put for the time being," Marlene said; she gave Lily a sad, regretful smile.

"After all…my dad's dead," Marlene muttered, she still sounded bitter and angry at the memory—not that either Lily or Severus could blame her, Severus was incredibly bitter when his mum died too. "And my brothers are all grown up and out of the house now…so someone's gotta be there for my mum, or at least be near her, y'know?"

Lily and Severus nodded in understanding.

Before either Severus or Lily could respond however, a shout of; "Lunch is ready!" rang through the house from the dining room. Violet's sonorous voice easily reverberated through the halls of the moderate-sized suburban house and met the three teens' ears.

Lily raised her hands to her mouth, cupping them, then shouting; "We'll be right there Mum!" back.

The three of them got to their feet and made their way to the dining room. The table was set for five, with Marlene claiming Petunia's usual seat given that the latter was out for lunch with her boyfriend. With the substitution of Petunia with Marlene at the dining table, Lunch was a far more lively affair than breakfast had been; with the pureblooded witch eagerly making conversation with all four of her hosts. Mark in particular was eager to learn of the goings on in the Magical world, he'd been kept out of the loop owing to Lily's and Severus' absence from Britain, and thus, their lack of knowledge on developments on the magical side of things. Sadly, Mark's questioning on the state of Magical Britain soured the upbeat girl's mood; Marlene revealed to the man that a Dark Lord, Voldemort, was gaining power and influence by the day. He was rapidly becoming a force to be reckoned with that her mum feared might be too much for the ministry to overcome. Mark listened to their guest's speech with rapt attention, his eyes narrowed in laser-like focus, with the rest of his senses all attuned to what Marlene was saying, he tried to soak up every detail he could.

Coincidentally, Voldemort's rising influence was one of the main reasons her mum and her aunt had considered sending her to Ilvermorny instead of Hogwarts. Marlene was adamant that she wanted to stand up to the threat of the Dark Lord, and had conveyed her wishes to her mum very clearly. Missus McKinnon certainly couldn't begrudge her daughter for wanting to avenge their fallen father, but that didn't mean she was all too enthusiastic either about her only daughter following her brothers into their line of work. Lily too intended to stand up to the Dark Lord to some capacity, much to Severus' reluctance, but he had grown accepting of Lily's wishes and promised to support her all the same. Out of the trio of teenagers, it was of no surprise that Severus' self preservation was highest among them, for his post-education plans included delving deep into the art of potioneering post-Graduation, and he'd been trying to convince Lily to do the same. Lily Evans was more stubborn than most—she'd be among the first to tell you that, and she could be considered hotheaded at times and impulsive, so Severus had his work cut out for him in his efforts to persuade Lily into a line of work that was less…hazardous, and in his opinion, suicidal.

Thankfully, the talk of Christmas Brunch wasn't all doom and gloom from Marlene, since Lily and Severus had tried their best to lighten the atmosphere by recounting their experiences at Ilvermorny this past Semester. Said recounting also included another pitch from Lily trying to convince her friend to join the premier American Magical Institution, but like how it was earlier, Marlene remained vague in her responses, much to Lily's frustration.

After their meal had wrapped up, Mark offered to do the dishes, much to Violet's and the three teenagers' thanks, and so Lily, Severus and Marlene all trooped upstairs to Lily's room.

"I'm telling you Marlene, Ilvermorny really is great and you'll fit right in! Why don't you want to join?" Lily whined as they entered Lily's spacious bedroom.

Marlene rounded on her nauseatingly persistent friend, her face a mask of extreme frustration. "And I've already told you, Lilian, that right now, I'm not interested! Honestly! Do you not take no for an answer? I've already explained why I want to stay at Hogwarts so drop it!"

"She's awfully persistent isn't she?" Severus chuckled, grinning at Marlene—who now sported a grin of her own in turn.

"As if you aren't!" Lily retorted, on the surface, her tone seemed angry, but her lip was curled upwards ever so slightly—a dead give-away to Severus of her amusement. "I may be persistent Severus Snape, but you, you're an entirely different breed of it!"

"She's kinda right though Severus," Marlene chimed in. "Didn't you tell Flitwick that you spent literally six months working on that spell of yours back in third year?" The affable girl flopped down onto Lily's twin bed, and lazily lounged out on the floral coverlet.

"You remember that?" Severus asked, he calmly sat himself down in Lily's armchair, and kept the surprise from himself when Lily followed him down and sat in his lap.

Marlene smirked at her two friends as a low chuckle rang out from her lips. "Yeah. I do actually. Lily was gushing to me about it for weeks afterwards about how she was so impressed with you and the fact that you'd already made your first spell—" in the present, Severus felt Lily tense in his lap as a tomato-red, blush spread across her pale cheeks.

Smiling in a sage-like manner, Marlene said; "It was in that moment, that I knew…you two were destined for each other. And sure enough…look at you now, closer than two peas in a pod."

"Yeah well Sev and I had been friends for years before we got together, so it stands to reason that these sort of feelings might've come about," Lily defended.

"Is that so?" Marlene asked, her brow raised in amusement.

Lily and Severus nodded like a pair of siamese twins.

"By the way, I meant to ask this earlier, but how are the rest of the girls?"

"You mean Dorcas, Mary and Clara?" Marlene asked, as she pushed herself up to sit upright on Lily's bed.

Severus' nose wrinkled in disgust at the mention of Lily's old friends, they'd been extremely persistent in trying to get her to 'drop that slimy snake' as a friend for quite some time, and the mere mention of those girls that tried to rip apart his and Lily's friendship soured his mood.

"Yeah. How are they?"

"To be honest Lil's…Dorcas was pretty upset," Marlene admitted sheepishly, her hand rose to rub the back of her neck. "Dorcas was the most upset, more than Mary and Clara were to be honest…she really didn't like that you'd supposedly 'snubbed' us, meaning the four of us, for Severus."

"No offense Severus, just so you know, I never thought those things, but Dorcas did and well…she was pretty bummed out for quite some time after hearing of your withdrawal Lily."

"Well that's on them then," Lily huffed. The redhead got to her feet and began pacing around her room, her eyes fixed on the floor the entire time. "Perhaps if they hadn't been so…so damn fixated on getting me to give up my friendship with Sev, then maybe I wouldn't have wanted to leave at all!"

"Hey don't get mad at me now, you're the one that asked for an update on how they were doing, not me," Marlene said angrily.

"Sorry. Yeah, you're right," Lily muttered, "please continue."

Marlene's glare lessened slightly. "Right. As I said, we were all bummed out at the fact that you decided to withdraw, and they weren't too happy with me either for keeping that from them." Lily had the good grace to look somewhat ashamed and remorseful at this. She really had left her best Hogwarts-friend in a tight spot, by asking her to remain mum on the fact that she and Severus would be leaving. "Anyways…life went on, and as I said, things changed quite a bit at Hogwarts after you left, so yeah…everyone was sad for a bit, but got over it soon enough," Marlene rambled.

"How did Potter take it?" Severus asked, a smug look of superiority on his face. Superiority stemming from the fact that he'd finally one-upped his rival.

"Oh James you mean?" Marlene chuckled, her brown eyes sparkling with amusement. "He was miserable. I wouldn't have been surprised had he cried himself to sleep for a week or two after you two left."

"Us two?"

"Yeah. He was of course distraught that his 'one true love' had left the school," Marlene answered, chuckling to herself. "Beyond Lily though…James was pretty darn pissed that the target of most pranks was now gone as well. Oh and he wasn't too pleased that Dumbledore was on his case the moment the spring semester started back up again. He was right pissed."

"Well I for one hope the Headmaster straightened him out. He was a foul, toe-rag before all this, so for his sake, I hope he's changed," Lily bit out, a scowl crossing her face.

"I don't give a rat's arse whether he's changed or not. I hope the Headmaster gave him what was coming to him," Severus drawled scathingly.

"Fair enough," Marlene agreed, her hands raised. "But I'm just informing you…that based on what I've seen, it seems they have."

"Well good for them," Severus sneered sarcastically.

Lily heaved a heavy sigh, causing both Marlene and Severus to glance over at her in confusion. "Can we not talk about them? Can we talk about something else? Literally, anything else will do."

Marlene's lips curled upwards into an easy grin, her eager eyes—shining like freshly polished wood were flittering between the two of them as she said; "Have either of you gotten the latest edition of Potions Monthly?"

Severus and Lily both shook their heads. From there, the floodgates had opened and the spirited Marlene McKinnon enthralled her two hosts with all the latest developments in the potions world. As they began their discussion, little did they know that they'd end up chatting potions for the remainder of their afternoon together. They might've spent a year apart, but judging from the ease with which they fell back into a comfortable discussion, it seemed as if they'd never been parted.

A/N2: So I'll be headed back to college soon, sadly, updates will slow so I do apologize for that. I'll strive to update this story as well as the other multichapters I'm writing every two-three weeks, but for the next few months at least I'll have to dial back my upload schedule. Thanks for reading!