A/N: Up next, Severus and Lily are back in Cokeworth. Marlene's first meeting with Scott and Caroline is covered, giving her, her first taste of what students from Ilvermorny are like(not counting Severus and Lily, of course). Also, a little one-on-one convo between Marlene and Severus which I hope you enjoy, there will be more of it in future chapters.
Chapter 31 A Wakeup Call
Their arrival back in Cokeworth was thankfully far less hectic than it had been at the same time last year. There was no blizzard awaiting them on arrival, instead, they were treated to near pitch-black darkness with hardly a star visible through the thick, soupy mixture of clouds overhead. Violet was there to greet them though, hugging both Severus and Lily as tightly as ever before ushering them inside the house. Dinner was a lavish affair as it was usually was upon Severus and Lily's first night back from abroad, with Mark and Violet eagerly asking away after Severus and Lily's semester, even Petunia had a question or two at times. Lily and Severus were just about drained of all their energy by the time Mark and Violet finished asking their questions, so they quietly excused themselves and made a hasty retreat to the sanctuary of their bedrooms. Portkey travel always took a lot out of them and they were both as wanting as ever for a nice, long slumber. After a quick bath and change of clothes, the two travelers flopped down onto their beds and were fast asleep within minutes.
For the first few days of their Winter Break, Lily and Severus were content to simply lounge about at home, refilling their batteries, so to speak, in order to recuperate from the rigors of their last semester. They continued to help out with chores wherever they could, but for the most part they rarely left the house, although the blizzard that hit not a day after their arrival also played into their decision to stay home. A few days into their break, Lily and Severus received a letter from Caroline and Scott, the twins saying that they were currently in France and would arrive in England on the 28th of December and leave on the 4th of January. After receiving the dates the Fosters would be in town, Lily quickly penned a letter to Marlene and sent it off to her friend asking if she'd be available to meet. After some more corresponding with Marlene, Scott and Caroline; they all decided to meet just outside the Leaky Cauldron at noon on the thirtieth of December. Marlene also asked if she could come visit during the afternoon, since her mum would be on shift after lunch at the Auror office. Lily asked her mum and dad, and they readily accepted, especially after hearing that Marlene would be all alone otherwise, with her mum and two brothers all at work.
Like in years past, Lily was the first to wake on Christmas morning, rousing at just a quarter past five in the pitch-black darkness of the early morning. She could hardly see a thing in the gloom of her bedroom, with the sound of snow falling lightly against the roof and her window being just about all that she could hear. She awoke with a tired yawn, stretching languidly underneath her comfortable quilt, then sitting up so she could wipe the gunk from her eyes. She slowly blinked away the bleariness, eyes regaining their lost focus as she proceeded to kick aside her warm quilt and do some more stretches. Having finished her stretches, Lily grabbed a change of clothes, underwear, blouse, jeans and a pullover and headed out of her room towards the bathroom down the hall. Within half an hour she'd finished her morning rituals and was on her way downstairs to the sitting room. She'd only just reached the bottom of the staircase when she heard the telltale sound of a door squeaking open on its rusted hinges, heralding Severus' imminent appearance. She waited patiently in plain-view of the top of the stairs, awaiting the sight of Severus, hopefully, just as eager to wake as she was.
Sure enough, not ten seconds had passed before Severus appeared at the top of the stairwell. He blinked in surprise at the sight of Lily and then proceeded to descend said stairs quickly to reach her. She was surprised to see Severus wearing a simple pair of trousers and a plain, plaid button-down, but then remembered that her mum had made sweaters for everyone this year. All of a sudden she felt a little foolish to be wearing a sweater herself, despite knowing she'd likely be getting one.
"Happy Christmas Lily," Severus murmured in greeting, following it up by kissing her on the cheek.
"Happy Christmas to you too, Sev," Lily said in return. She glanced off in the direction of the sitting room. "Wanna head on in?"
Severus merely gestured for her to lead the way, which she did. They ventured into the sitting room and plopped themselves down on the couch. Lily then had the idea to go grab some cookies and eggnog from the fridge, so they both went to collect their bounty before returning to the sitting room.
"What time's Marlene coming over later?" Severus asked as they sat back down.
"Just past noon. Dad said he can pick her up from the nearest floo-point over in Manchester," Lily answered, before taking her first bite out of a macadamia nut cookie.
"Hmm," Severus hummed. "She still said that she's planning on joining the Aurors, right?"
"Of course. I mean…it's not really a surprise, is it? Her mum, both her brothers, and her dad were all Aurors, she'd be the black sheep of the family if she didn't join."
"Yes, I suppose so," said Severus, before wiping at an eggnog stain on his lip. "I was just curious as to what it was she was planning on doing, that's all."
"She definitely wants to become an auror," Lily stated confidently. "But just between you and me," she added, her voice dropping lower. "She told me she's keen on joining some vigilante group not part of the ministry to fight the Death Eaters head on."
Severus blinked in surprise. "Really? A vigilante group, you say? Well…that's typical of Marlene so don't color me surprised."
Lily's lips curled into a little grin, she nodded emphatically. "You said it. I wasn't all that surprised when she told me about it either. She even tried to recruit me when she was—"
"Don't tell me you even entertained her," Severus muttered, throwing Lily a serious look.
"I did. I wanted to hear her out, but I said I'd pass in the end," said Lily, her grin widening slightly. She ignored Severus' aghast look and leaned back into the cushion. "I told you before Sev, I've got my mind made up. I'm not…changing my career goals on a whim any longer. I know what I want to do, and I've already got a good hunch as to what my main project is gonna be."
"And what will it be?"
"Something like the trace," Lily replied. "'cept I hope that my spell would be able to track death eaters instead. Or if that's not possible…a derivative of the trace that tracks unforgivable curses would be good too."
"Lily," Severus said, his tone low and conciliatory. "There's a reason the trace has…never been replicated, it's because tracking spells of that nature, are awfully difficult to create. There's only ever been one trace, after all."
Lily heaved a sigh. "I know that. Which is why I need to be the best spell-crafter I can be, so I can get into the best program and have the best shot at making this spell in the future. Obviously, I'm far from capable of making such a spell right now, Sev, I'm not daft."
"It'll be hard work," said Severus, not wanting to be a downer for Lily's sake, but also hoping she realized the difficulty of her proposed task.
"Yeah, and water is wet," Lily said sarcastically.
Severus snorted and turned away from her. "I was just making sure you understood the difficulty involved with creating a spell like that."
"I do," Lily said with surprising curtness. "Which is why I know it's a long-shot, but I'll never know if I'm capable or not if I don't try."
Severus had to agree with that, after all, it was for much the same reason that he chose to pursue the path of a potioneer. That uncertainty and risk was what drove him onwards, which seemed to be the case for Lily as well.
A loud sigh rattling past Lily's lips drew Severus' focus back to her. "Even if I'm not successful with it, I still hope that I can create other spells that'll help with…all that's going on. They don't have to be war-related either, as long as I…can help, I guess."
"Only a fool would doubt you," Severus snorted, expressing his disdain with the mere concept of Lily failing in her career aspirations.
Unable to hide her smile, nor her gratitude, she slid closer to him and kissed him gently on the lips. She wasn't all that surprised for his voracious return of her affection, squeaking loudly as he kissed back with hunger. Luckily for them, they were just about able to make out the sound of footsteps despite their kissing, springing apart just in time before Mark entered the room and caught them doing anything compromising.
Later that day, long after they'd finished opening presents together under the tree, the Evanses plus Severus were hard at work in the kitchen preparing lunch for six. The four Evanses, Severus and Marlene. Cindy and her parents, Clara and Wayne Parker would be coming over for dinner, which Petunia wouldn't be in attendance for. As the clock struck noon, the Evanses were just about done putting the finishing touches on their roast turkey meal. Just as Mark was carrying the turkey into the dining room, a knock was heard coming from the back door. Lily's eyes grew wide with expectation, and even Severus felt excited to see Marlene again, albeit not quite as eager as his girlfriend was.
"I'll go get it," Violet said, cleaning her hands on a tea towel while Lily set the bowl of mashed potatoes she'd been carrying on a kitchen top.
"I'll go with you," Lily volunteered.
Violet just smiled at her youngest daughter and gestured for Lily to follow her. As the two Evans women left the kitchen for the back door, Severus couldn't help but notice that Lily was close to Violet's height, and even though she had some more growing to do she still looked a dead-ringer for her mum. Mark then enlisted Severus' and Petunia's help in bringing in the rest of the dishes into the dining room while Violet and Lily welcomed Marlene.
Upon reaching the back door, Lily quickly unlatched it and pried it open, the broadly-grinning face of Marlene being the very first thing she saw on the other side. By her side was her brother, Douglas McKinnon, only an inch or two taller than his younger sister, but much stockier and muscled than her. He looked haggard, his hair lank, eyes tired, yet he was able to muster a smile for Lily and Violet once they appeared. Lily had been told by Marlene over the phone that the Auror office had been awfully busy lately and that they were being run-ragged so far this winter with increased Death Eater activity; Douglas certainly looked it judging by his rugged appearance. Marlene on the other hand didn't look tired at all, she looked positively alive and ecstatic to see one of her best friend's again. It was said that absence makes the heart grow fonder, and that certainly seemed to hold true for Lily and Marlene's feelings for one another as a result of their six-month-long separation.
"Heya Lils!"
"Marley!"
The moment the door was open, the pair of old friend eagerly embraced one another, much to Douglas and Violet's amusement. Douglas and Violet both smiled on in amusement.
"Would you like to come in, Douglas? We've got plenty of food," Violet offered.
Douglas smiled regretfully and shook his head. "No thank you ma'am, I'm on the way to work now, actually."
"At the ministry?" Violet asked curiously.
Again, Douglas nodded. "I'd best be on my way now. Have a Happy Christmas all of you, and Mum'll pick you up at five once she gets off work, Marley."
"Yep, I remember. Be safe Doug," Marlene said with a toothy, but genuine smile.
Marlene and Douglas hugged one another briefly, before he pulled away from her and took a few paces back. With a smile on his face, the elder McKinnon sibling gave his younger sister, and the two Evans women a wave, then spun on the spot to apparate away.
Marlene was then ushered out of the doorframe by Violet, who then promptly slammed the door shut to help preserve the warmth their hearth was working overtime to maintain. Lily then offered to take Marlene's coat and scarf in a surprising display of charity. But then, wearing the-widest-of-smirks, she waved her bare hand and sent both coat and scarf zooming across the back hall towards the coatrack. Marlene's brows inched higher up her forehead as the coat and scarf landed on the rack, Lily then lowered her hand with a cocky smirk. Before Marlene could vocalize her feelings of surprise, Violet was marching the two girls through the back hall towards the dining room where a grand, Christmas feast awaited them. Upon entering, the girls and Violet observed a spread of all manner of dishes arrayed out around the table.
"Hello Mist—err…Mark, Severus, Petunia," Marlene said, a tentative wave accompanying her broad smile. "Thank you for having me for your lovely-looking Christmas lunch. Again."
"It was our pleasure Marlene, you're always welcome here," Mark said
Marlene smiled graciously and allowed herself to be guided into her chair by Violet. Once they'd all sat themselves down, Mark led the family in a brief prayer before they took to their meal with gusto.
For a good ten minutes or so, all that could be heard in the Evans dining room was the scraping of silverware against porcelain, hardly a word being spoken save for words along the lines of; 'pass the water pitcher' or 'hand me the pepper mill, please'. Even Petunia was eating her plate of salad with manners that would've appalled herself under any other circumstances. Violet's salad was a hit as per usual, and no one could seemingly find the time to talk given their voracious appetite for the fare set before them. Just as they were finishing their arugula however, they rediscovered their appetite for conversation.
"So, Marlene, how's your holiday gone so far?" Violet asked, moments after washing down her last forkful of salad down with some water.
Marlene held up her hand, and with her other, dabbed at the corners of her lips with her napkin. "Things have been a hectic if I'm being honest," she admitted. "Mum's been very busy at work, so have Doug and Colin, so it's pretty much just been me on my lonesome around the house this past week." The pureblooded girl shrugged, then took a sip of her water. "It's just how things have been recently, what with how busy all the aurors have been and all that."
"Your mum hasn't been home at all?" Mark asked incredulously.
"She has," Marlene said quickly, hoping to assuage Mark's worry. "She's just been…a bit more absent than usual. There's been a lot going on at the ministry with the step-up in Death Eater attacks so she and the rest of the auror force have been working overtime to cope with it," Marlene answered, sounding solemn and grave.
"I see. And both of your brothers, err…Douglas and Colin, are aurors too, aren't they?"
"They are." She nodded, then raised her glass for a sip. "But they've been a little less busy, Colin at least. Doug and my mum both go out into the field more often than not, but Colin's a trainer so he trains the new recruits."
"I see. So it's been a rather quiet holiday for you so far," Mark said, while wielding a carving knife with expert-skill and cutting into the centerpiece of their feast.
"Pretty much. Just been finishing up all my assignments and occasionally going out to meet some friends of mine whenever they're free." Marlene took a stab of a piece of Turkey and brought it up to her lips, bit, chewed, then swallowed last of all. "Lily told me that you guys have been having a fairly quiet December yourselves as well, haven't you?"
"It depends on what you consider quiet and what you wouldn't," Mark answered with a smile. "I've taken a sabbatical from work, but around here—" he gave a wide-arcing gesture with both arms to his surroundings, "—I've found plenty to do."
"The weather until today hadn't been all that great so yeah, we've mostly hung out at home so far Marley," Lily added, after swallowing her bite of mashed potatoes.
"The weather in Coventry hasn't been all that much better, 'cept we've been getting more rain than snow," Marlene grumbled, to the tune of commiserations from her hosts.
"Well here's to hoping that things will be better next year, not with just the weather either, of course," Mark said, sharing his sentiments that everyone else could easily get behind.
They lapsed back into silence for a few more minutes, the sound of silverware against porcelain returning once more in full-force.
"So, umm—Petunia…Lily told me that you're gonna be moving out sometime soon?" Marlene asked, hoping to bring the elder Evans sister into the conversation.
"That would be correct," Petunia said cordially. "My boyfriend, Robert, he's found a job a few hours away in Birmingham, and invited me to go live with him. I've never really been all that fond of Cokeworth—" her nose wrinkled slightly as she spoke, and Violet rolled her eyes, "—so I accepted, and I'll be moving out come Autumn next year."
"Still a way's away then, I gather," Marlene surmised.
Petunia gave Marlene an odd look, then squinted her blue eyes at their guest slightly. "Of course. I have to finish school first don't I?" Petunia spoke as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, which to be fair, it was. The older Evans sister couldn't help but find Marlene's lack of awareness of how the Muggle school system worked equal parts amusing and irritating.
"Err—right. Of course," Marlene said hurriedly.
"Tuney's always dreamed of leaving good 'ole Cokeworth behind, haven't you?" Lily said teasingly, her mouth curled in a devious grin.
Petunia's gaze flittered to her younger sibling and snorted. "Please don't refer to this hovel we call a home as 'good ole Cokeworth.'"
"Petunia," Mark said warningly. "There are plenty of worse places in the world you could rather be than here. Anyone behind the Iron Curtain would quite literally kill for a chance to live here, you know this."
Petunia opened her lips to retort, but apparently thought better of it for she sealed them shut once she saw the look her father was giving her.
"In any case, I'm happy for you Petunia, that you're moving out and chasing your dream," Marlene said with true sincerity, in hopes of lightening the atmosphere a bit around the table.
"Thank you, that means a lot," Petunia replied without skipping a beat. She hesitated for a few moments before adding; "A-and, good luck to you too, with…with becoming a policeman, that is."
Marlene flashed Petunia a warm smile of gratitude, which Lily was surprised to see being mirrored on her sister's face.
Conversation flowed freely between the group from there, with even Petunia being an active participant from there on out. While they all chatted about mundane and inane topics of little significance in the grand scheme of things, the war that fractured the magical community right down the middle still played heavily on their minds. Mark and Violet had the sense to refrain from asking about it, knowing that it was a sensitive subject with their pureblooded guest whose mum and brothers were all active participants in. They'd learned from Lily a while back that after Marlene's father passed on a few years ago, that it only strengthened Marlene's commitment to the war and her resolve to one day become an auror in line with her family's long-running customs. For the time being, Mark, Violet, Severus, Lily and Marlene were all equally content to play pretend that the war didn't exist and instead spent their time chatting about less depressing things. It was Christmas after all, and no-one wanted to sour the mood by bringing up the sorry state Wizarding Britain had found itself in.
For the most part, conversation mainly centered around Marlene with both Mark and Violet asking plenty of questions about how her year had gone and what she planned to do next for the remaining half-year of her time as a Hogwarts student. Marlene was all too eager to share that the first half of her year had gone surprisingly well. She was nearly made prefect but narrowly lost out to Eve for the prestigious honor, but surprisingly managed to make the Gryffindor Quidditch team as starting Seeker. So far, she'd played two matches and had managed to catch the snitch both times, even managing to beat the Slytherin house team who'd been very strong in recent years. Overall, Marlene was very pleased with how her year had gone, but knew that in the second half her studies would have to take priority if she wanted to pursue the subjects she desired upon transferring across to Ilvermorny for her NEWT years. Provided that the sensitive subject of the war wasn't touched upon, Marlene readily answered whatever questions Mark and Violet had to ask, and was truly flourishing under the microscope Mark and Violet so loved to subject Severus and Lily to whenever they returned home from Ilvermorny.
By the time their lunch was finished, they were all on the verge of a food coma. Lily volunteered her services in the kitchen, so Severus and Marlene decided to head upstairs to the former's bedroom. Marlene had never been inside Severus' bedroom before, and was a little taken aback at the abundance of blue and green throughout the room, a blend of both of Severus' house colors in Slytherins and Horned Serpent. The blonde flopped down on his bed while Severus sat across from her in his chair. Finally, now that they were alone and Lily was far away from them, she had the chance to ask Severus a question she'd been dying to all day.
"So, Severus…I take it you and Lils are still going strong?" Marlene asked, her brow quirked.
"As strong as ever," Severus answered, grinning just a little bit at the hint of surprise Marlene let show on her visage. Severus followed up his answer by flipping the same question back to her. "And are you and Black still together?"
Marlene snorted softly and laid down onto his quilt, sighing loudly as she stared up at the sea-foam-colored ceiling. "You'll be happy to hear that no, we're not. We're through as a matter of fact."
"Oh?" It was Severus' turn to arch his brow now, an expression of intrigue and a hint of smugness working their way across his face.
"Yeah, oh indeed," Marlene said witheringly. "Things weren't working out between us so we decided to call it quits. Bet you're happy to hear that aren't you?"
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't. You know how I feel about him and that lot," Severus replied.
Marlene sighed again, then slowly sat upright.
"So tell me about you and Lily," she said eagerly, her bubbly demeanor returning in force. "She's been awfully tight-lipped about the two of you since you both got back from Boston, so I wanna hear all that you've been up to!"
Severus merely shrugged his shoulders. "There's not a whole lot to talk about," he said sincerely. "We're still together, so there's that, I guess…but honestly this past semester's been kinda difficult for us at times. She's a prefect as you know—" Marlene nodded, having been informed not once, but twice by both Lily in one of her letters, and another letter that came from her aunt Esmerelda, "—and with my potions work I've also hardly had time for her this past semester, y'know?"
"I kinda get where you're coming from," Marlene replied, sending Severus a look of understanding. "Funnily enough, the same thing was happenin' with Sirius and myself this past semester. He's been disappearing with James and the rest a whole lot, and I've been kinda busy myself with getting up to speed as a Seeker, so that was kinda what let to our split, in a way."
Marlene expelled a loud sigh and gave Severus a deep look, one filled with understanding, but to his surprise, a hint of longing as well. "Honestly though Severus, I'm really happy that you and Lily seem to be goin' the distance. What you and her share…I'm not afraid to admit that it makes me feel a little jealous at times, of that bond you two keep on strengthening. There aren't many girls like Lily, huh?"
Severus couldn't help but smile in agreement with Marlene. Marlene was nice and all, and the friends he'd made in America were great too…but nothing, rather, no one, came close to Lily. "You're not wrong Marlene," Severus said softly, the seriousness with which he spoke causing the girl's eyes to snap towards him. "You're not wrong. She's one of a kind isn't she?"
Marlene nodded and her smile blossomed once more, but before she could say anything in response, the door started to open causing her to seal her lips shut.
With Lily's sudden appearance, she eagerly asked her two friends to come with her to her room, claiming that she had a surprise for them. Marlene looked utterly clueless as to what it was Lily was getting at, but Severus had a good hunch on what the surprise was. He had noticed after all, that Lily had picked up not one, but two of the same record that day when she and he were shopping in Quincy before their Portkey trip home. And the two records were of an American band's latest album, One of These Nights, by the Eagles, if memory served him well. Personally, Severus was fond of some Muggle music, namely The Who, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin too—to a lesser extent; but he hadn't really explored much of the soft rock genre which the Eagles had firmly entrenched themselves in. As he and Marlene trailed after Lily into her room and sat down on her bed, he eyed his girlfriend closely as she rifled through her record cabinet in search of her latest purchase. Upon finding it, she turned around to reveal it to him and Marlene with a gleam in her eye and a smile brighter than the sun. Without further delay, she popped the record on her machine and dropped the needle, then fetched her second copy of the album and tossed it to Marlene, who caught it.
Once the album began to play, starting with the titular track, One of These Nights, Lily sank down between her raven-haired and blonde-haired companions and slung her arms over both of their shoulders. They ended up listening to the entire album together in one sitting, and Severus found that he quite liked the Eagles. Maybe not as much as he liked his all-time favorites in Pink Floyd and the Who, but he rated them higher than Queen and the Beetles which even shocked him. All the while, as song after song played, his thoughts drifted far and wide to Marlene's words of wisdom just before Lily made her surprise appearance in his room earlier. There weren't that many girls like Lily out there, he knew that better than anyone, but the fact that someone else shared the sentiment he had was a little bit jarring to him. Severus knew that if he bungled things with Lily, he likely wouldn't ever feel what he currently felt for any other girl out there. Sure, there were plenty of girls in his life that he liked and appreciated around him as friends and companions, Marlene, Sandra, Caroline and Nicole chief examples of that; but when he tried to envision any one of them supplanting that deep-seated connection Lily and he shared he just couldn't see it.
That thought alone was enough for him to reaffirm his resolve to always do right by Lily, and to not throw his most precious source of happiness and light in his life away.
The remainder of Marlene's stay in Cokeworth on Christmas day hadn't been all that eventful with the three friends mainly using their afternoon together to catch up on all that'd gone on in each of their lives. Once the album had finished playing, the three friends continued to discuss and talk about their plans for the coming semester, Lily's ideas for finding more career opportunities post-education wise, Marlene's goals to win the Quidditch cup, and Severus' aim to ascend to heights no other potioneer his age had reached. Their talk was cut short however, by Mark and Violet asking them to come down to watch a movie with the rest of the family, whose ending coincided almost perfectly with Marlene's mum's arrival to pick up her daughter. After Leonora McKinnon picked up her daughter on her way home from work, the Evanses and Severus got started on their dinner preparation, in anticipation of the Parkers arrival, which they finished just in the nick of time. Severus wasn't all that fond of seeing Cindy Parker again, but for Lily's sake he mustered up a smile and treated Cindy with cordiality, which she was more than willing to reciprocate. Clara was as polite as ever, but Wayne still shot him the odd, distrustful look whenever he assumed Severus wasn't looking. Try as he might, he wasn't able to wholly shake the reputation his last name brought.
Severus and Lily's days passed fairly quickly before their outing to Diagon Alley. Since the weather was more co-operative, sunny most days with only sparse rain and snow, Lily and Severus ventured out more for their usual walks around town trying to while away the time until they'd get to see Scott and Caroline again. Just before noon on the thirtieth of December, Severus and Marlene flooed from the Manchester floo-stop to Diagon Alley, tumbling out of the fireplace in the Leaky Cauldron just as the clock struck twelve. They arrived right in the nick of time to see Marlene striding out of another fireplace across from them, and when they turned their gaze to one of the booths, they spotted their American friends Scott and Caroline sat next to one another and gazing out across the tavern furtively, not entirely at home in their unfamiliar surroundings. When the twins' blue-eyed gazes came to rest on Severus and Lily however, smiles bloomed on their faces and they excitedly waved them over. Lily then gestured for Marlene to follow her, she did, heading for the booth just behind Lily and Severus. Scott and Caroline's eyes darted to the blonde girl following their two friends, and correctly assumed that it was Marlene. They stood from their chairs and made to greet them.
"Severus, Lily, it's good to see you guys again," Caroline greeted, wearing a soft smile directed all three newcomers
"It's good to see you too Carrie," Lily replied, hugging her friend.
"Likewise," Severus added, nodding at Scott, then at Caroline.
"And…you're Marlene, right?" Caroline asked, to which Marlene nodded. "It's good to meet you, I'm Caroline and this is—"
"—Scott," Marlene interrupted. "Lily and Severus have told me a bit about you, of course, it's a pleasure to meet you both."
Marlene stepped around Severus and Lily and took Scott's proffered hand, the two purebloods exchanging a greeting. When she made to do the same with Caroline, she ignored Marlene's hand and pulled the taller, blonde girl into a hug which Marlene was quick to reciprocate. After another round of greetings between Severus and the twins, the five teenagers all sat down at their table.
"We, uh, we hope you don't mind that we ordered already," Caroline said sheepishly, once the five of them were sitting.
"Carrie was feeling quite hungry, missed breakfast today since she slept in," Scott offered as explanation of his sister's actions.
Caroline threw him a scowl, but her sheepish expression quickly returned as she glanced back towards Severus, Lily and Marlene.
"Oh, that's alright, we'll just order now since I'm pretty sure we all know what we want," said Lily.
They asked for a house elf and ordered their meal. Marlene choosing a Shepherd's Pie, Severus opting for Chicken Soup, and Lily deciding that a Fish & Chips ought to satiate her hunger best. The three of them rounded out their meal by choosing to share a pitcher of pumpkin juice. Having received their orders, the elf bowed respectively and popped away to the kitchen.
"So, Marlene…you'll be coming to Ilvermorny next year as well, is that correct?" Caroline leaned forward in apparent interest.
Marlene nodded swiftly. "Yeah. I'm sure you two know this, but my aunt is your Head of House. Her and my mum thought it'd be best if I went there for the next couple years. At least it'd help me escape the shit-show here, y'know?"
"Is it really that bad?" Scott asked quietly, his brows furrowed in concern.
Marlene met Scott's gaze and nodded gravely. Given that she was the only one of the lot who actually lived there year-round, and thus had the best pulse of all the goings-on in Wizarding Britain, she felt the most qualified to answer.
"It really is," the blonde girl said, her voice lowering to a whisper. "My mum's an auror in the ministry here, and she's…well I've never seen her this tired or haggard as I have before. Not even when my father passed—"
"—We're sorry for your loss," Scott said sincerely.
Marlene shrugged her shoulders and offered up a rueful smile. "Thanks. But back to what I was saying, Mum and my brothers have been having a really rough go of it recently, it sucks but it is what it is. I can't do a damn thing about it until I graduate, after which I'll come back to England and join the force alongside my family."
"Scott here, also wants to be an auror," Caroline supplied, glancing between her brother and new acquaintance.
"Either an auror, or something to do with Transfiguration or Arithmancy," Scott amended, giving his sister a brief, sharp look.
"Oh, is that so, Scott?" Marlene asked curiously. "That's interesting. I take it you'd apply for MACUSA's auror agency?"
"If I do end up becoming an auror, yes," Scott answered. "That being said, I'm still not all that sure about what I want to do just yet. I want to keep my options open, so to speak."
"Scott's probably one of the most well-rounded of our group of friends in terms of academics," Lily chimed in. "And he's for sure the best when it comes to Arithmancy and maybe Transfiguration too."
Marlene's brow arched in mild surprise. "Sounds like you're pretty talented then," she commented.
"They both are," said Severus. "Carrie's by far the best when it comes to Care of Magical Creatures. No one else comes close."
"Why thank you Severus," Caroline said in an expression of flattery.
Severus was tempted to wink at her, but settled for just a grin instead for fear of retribution from Lily.
"So after we all finish our NEWTs…you'll definitely be coming back here, huh?" Scott asked curiously.
Lily and Marlene shared a look, then nodded. "I'll definitely be doing so, I've gotta join the fight as soon as I can, but that doesn't mean I don't want to enjoy myself these next two years before I throw myself into the fray, y'know?"
Scott and Caroline both nodded.
"B'sides, Lily here is likely gonna be coming back with me, although Severus's told me that he'll still be in America for at least a year after graduating," Marlene added.
"So, I'm sure you know that he'll be sticking around to apprentice under your aunt, then," Scott presumed, though not without a hint of jealousy in his tone that Severus didn't fail to pick up on.
"Jealous, Scott?" he said snarkily.
Scott smiled thinly. "Not one bit."
Just then, the house elf returned bearing their meals. They all popped into thin-air in front of the five teenagers, with the pitcher of pumpkin juice appearing in the middle of the table along with five goblets. The five, hungry teenagers all tucked into their meals, Caroline was especially eager and wolfing through her sandwich at a ravenous pace.
"So, tell us about yourself, Marlene. What do you like to do?" Caroline asked, after a few moments spent consuming most of her sandwich.
Marlene finished chewing her bite, then said; "I love Quidditch, for starters. And I'm pretty good at dueling too so I enjoy that as well. Overall I'm not too big on academics unless it's Potions or DADA, but yeah, that's about it really. Oh, and I really like Muggle music too, Led Zeppelin and The Who are the best."
"That sounds fairly similar to someone else I know," Caroline said, briefly glancing at Severus as she spoke.
Marlene seemed to catch her meaning, Severus too, thought neither chose to comment on it.
"Anyways…so, how have you two been enjoying England so far?" Lily asked, smiling at her friends in apparent interest.
"Aside from the weather, it's been great," Caroline replied with a broad smile. "Scott and I went to Hogsmeade the other day with our parents, so that was pretty neat, and we've been exploring around No-maj London for a little while to and have been enjoying that. All in all, we've been enjoying ourselves quite a bit."
"Have you two checked out Horizon Alley yet?" Severus asked curiously, his black eyes flitting between the siblings.
Brother and sister shared a look, but both shook their heads in the negative. "We haven't yet, is it any good?"
"It most certainly is," said Severus. "Think of it as a more upscale version of Diagon Alley. I assumed your parents would've wanted to pay it a visit, given their…social standing, and blood."
"What Severus means to say is that it's more commonly visited by purebloods," Marlene elaborated. "Not too many Muggleborns know that much about Horizon Alley, nor do they go there."
"Why don't Muggleborns visit there?" Lily asked, a little sharply, too, but there was genuine curiosity in her tone.
Marlene gave Lily an almost-but-not-quite-pitying look. "Some of the shop-owners there…aren't all that open minded when it comes to treating muggleborns as equal to their pureblood clientele." In the blink of an eye, Lily's innocent and wide-eyes curiosity was gone and replaced with fiery rage. "Well, that's some bullshit!" she thundered, slamming her hands down on the table and startling some nearby patrons.
Severus was quick to lay a calming hand on her shoulder, and was just as relieved to hear Lily draw a deep breath.
"That's outrageous. You're telling me, that they refused to serve Muggleborns there?" she hissed, still incensed but just mindful enough to keep her voice down.
"I'm sorry Lils, but it's the truth, I just thought that your two friends here might want to visit since they wouldn't be…discriminated against," Marlene said remorsefully.
"We'll consider it," Scott said gently. Caroline nodded in agreement with her brother.
"There's still plenty of other places to check out in both Wizarding and Muggle England though," Severus offered, hoping that his interjection would pull conversation towards more friendly territory.
"We haven't had much of a chance to explore the alley yet," Caroline said, jerking her head to the back door and the brick wall beyond it. "And our parents are out together until evening so why don't we check out Diagon Alley after we eat?"
"Sounds good," said Lily, nodding in agreement.
Severus, Scott and Marlene also lent voice to their approval.
When they'd finished their meal and paid their tab, the teenaged witches and wizards headed out behind the tavern, with Marlene raising her wand to tap three different bricks—Lily and Severus were a little ashamed to admit they'd forgotten the sequence due to their time abroad. Upon Marlene finishing the sequence, the bricks sprung apart, folding in on each other and widening to form an archway sufficiently wide enough for them to step through. To Lily and Severus' surprise, the alley was fairly quiet, hardly a shopper in sight. Marlene didn't seem fazed at the lack of activity at all, simply passing it off as people wishing to remain home with the recent surge in Death Eater attacks. Lily, Severus, Caroline and Scott all bought Marlene's reasoning as she led the quintet down into the alley to some of the shops that still were open. Caroline and Scott might've been from out of town, but the reputation of Voldemort and his Death Eaters had traveled far and wide beyond Britain's shores; simply by running in American pureblood circles, the twins were more than aware of the danger he posed.
The five of them all continued their window shopping for a while. Lily and Severus secretly lamented the fact that they hadn't brought much of their money from home along, and neither felt like making a trip to Gringotts and dealing with those foul-tempered goblins, so they kept their complains to themselves. Caroline in particular was curious about the differences in wizarding fashion between America and Britain, eagerly asking Marlene—who was most up to date, questions about favored robe styles and other accoutrements wizards and witches like to wear in England. Because of Caroline's obsession with English Wizardwear, they lingered for quite some time by Twilfit and Tattings, and Madam Malkin's. They continued loitering about for the next hour or so, before deciding to call it quits and head back to the Leaky Cauldron to floo home. As they were walking back to the brick archway, they heard the telltale popping noise of apparition coming from a nearby alleyway adjacent to Eeylops Owl Emporium. Lily's curiosity got the better of her as she stepped closer to the source of the noise to get to the bottom of what was going on. She'd soon come to wish she hadn't.
Men and women clad in black burst out of the alleyway, wearing silver masks that glinted harshly in the low-sunlight. They fanned out and raised their wands, some training them on the Emporium right next to them.
"Death Eaters!" someone further down the alley shouted, soon followed by the telltale crack of apparation.
Lily's eyes widened in horror and she quickly backed away. Marlene seemed to react to the dangers quickest, quickly waving for Lily and the rest to follow her onto an adjacent side-street as the first spells shot forth from the Death Eaters' wands.
"This way!" Marlene shouted, waving frantically at her companions who all ran as fast as they could out of the line of fire.
Fiendish flames of dark magic spewed forth from the Death Eaters' wands, setting ablaze numerous displays of the nearby shops. A man exiting the Owl Emporium angrily waved his wand to block a Reductor curse, and even dared to fire back at the Death Eater who shot it with a stunning spell of his own. The woman behind the gleaming silver mask tittered maniacally, and raised her wand in the brave shopper's direction. Needless to say, the man carrying the owl cage didn't stick around for much longer after that and quickly chose to apparate to safety. The four Death Eaters continued shooting wantonly into the shops, until the shortest of the bunch, the woman, raised her wand, and they ceased fire. On cue, they all apparated away, leaving a burning wasteland in their wake. Once the danger was averted, Severus helped Lily upright, while Scott did the same with Caroline, Marlene was already on her feet and surveying the damage with a grim look. About half a dozen shops had been laid waste to, with numerous more sustaining varying amounts of damage, and it'd all happened in the span of no more than thirty seconds.
On shaky legs, Lily, Severus, Marlene, Scott and Caroline all rushed back into the Leaky Cauldron and flopped down into the nearest chairs they could find. They were alive, safe, but thoroughly terrified by what they'd witnessed and the wanton display of destruction those menaces in silver and black so dearly loved. Tom, the bartender, came over and offered the lot of them a drink on the house, but asked that they remained where they were until the Aurors arrived and gave them the all-clear to leave. Five bottles of butterbeer—which Tom figured would help calm the five teenagers' nerves, all appeared in front of them. Despite the calming effect the limited alcohol had on them, taking the edge off their rattled nerves, the sight of Marlene's mum appearing in the fireplace flanked by five other aurors all wearing grim looks was perhaps the most welcome sight of the day. Despite being on duty and a protector of law and order, Leonora McKinnon couldn't help running past her colleagues to hug her daughter tightly the moment she laid eyes on her. The other four breathed massive sighs of relief at the sight of the aurors, but despite their relief, none could entirely shake their feelings of disgust and fear at the terrifying display they'd just witnessed.
A/N2: Once sixth year begins, I wholly intend to develop the Severus/Marlene friendship even more, and to turn it into something beyond their mutual friendship with Lily. Also, expect the focus to shift more in sixth year to Severus' potions efforts, and Lily's goal to find a Charms program back in England. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and thanks for reading!