If you notice this notice,

If you notice this notice,

You will notice,

That this notice,

Is not worth noticing!

Moral of this story: Stop reading the notice and get on with the fanfic!

*~Tsunami~*

Chapter 3- Off to Hogwarts!!

Lily Evans flopped onto her bed and stared up to the ceiling, her day's purchases spread all over the floor of her messy bedroom.

What a day!

Lily made first contact with the magical community in a place called Diagon alley only a couple of hours before. She had collected her equipment that day, along with a couple of friends and enemies; well more enemies actually…

* * * * *

Lily jumped out of bed and was ready and dressed in 10 seconds flat. She rushed downstairs wondering why nobody else was ready to go out. She found out why as soon as she looked at the clock.

It was 5 o'clock.

Lily sighed and sat down on the bottom step. Last night, her and her parents had looked over her list and realised she would never manage to get her school stuff at the local mall. They decided they would have to go to the place recommended in the Hogwarts letter, Diagon Alley. Lily pulled out the now crumpled and worn letter from back pocket and read.

Hogwarts' first years will need:

1 wand

1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)

1 set glass or crystal phials

1 telescope

1 set brass scales.

The list went on and on. She skimmed to the bottom of the letter and read the last line:

We recommend that the above materials are bought at Diagon Alley. To get there, go to the Leaky Cauldron, 48 Blaire St London.

Lily's jumped up and started pacing to release some energy. She was going to Diagon Alley!

* * * * *

Four hours and many loud whines later. Lily and her family were packed in their car and heading off to London. Normally, Lily would be thinking of a way to embarrass her sister in front of the 'cute guys', not that she needed to. Petunia had put in so much eye shadow and lipstick she looked like some sort of Halloween witch gone wrong. Nevertheless, she loved seeing her sister go redder than all the blush she puts on. But this time, Lily was just too excited to even think. As soon as they pulled up at 48 Blaire St, Lily was out of the car in a flash and into the Leaky Cauldron. The Leaky Cauldron was nothing like she expected. It looked more like some run down pub than a meeting place for witches and wizards. Lily walked slowly up to the counter and waited for her parents and Petunia. They arrived a moment later, Petunia griping her mothers' arm tightly, and whimpering slightly. "Um… Er… We're looking for Diagon Alley," Mr. Evans said in what he hoped was a gruff, tough sounding voice. The bartender looked at them closely. "So ya muggles are ya?" he said, giving them a toothless grin. Lily nodded mutely, having no idea what the man meant. He grinned again and led them to the back of the empty pub. He tapped a brick on the wall with a long stick that Lily guessed was a wand. Lily's emerald eyes widened as the wall opened to reveal an alley packed with busy shoppers. The bartender led them through with a grin. "Welcome to Diagon Alley." "WOW!"
Lily rushed through not knowing where to go first. She rushed toward a large white marble building and bumped into someone. "OUCH! Look where your going you stupid idiot!" a pale boy exclaimed while rubbing his head. Lily went as red as her hair. "Sorry! I guess I got a bit excited since this is my first time here and…" "Shut up! I really don't want to know!" Lily stopped abruptly, and got angry. How dare he speak to her like that! "Well, well Lucius! Tackled by a girl! If your as weak as that, you'll never make the Quidditch team!" another boy proclaimed smirking. " You shut your trap Karkaroff! I wouldn't talk since you managed to get slapped by Narcissa so many times, you've got a permanent bruise on you left cheek! And remember when Janine…" " What ever is going on here! Oh dear Lucius, do get off the ground, it does absolutely nothing for your posture!" a loud, drawling voice announced. Lily turned to face a pretty girl who was wearing a lot of makeup and looking down on them like some sort of queen. Lily knew straight away that she wouldn't like this girl. The feeling was mutual however, as the girl looked down on her with a look of distaste. Lily was strongly reminded of Petunia… "Oh dear, Narcissa, you really think so? Wow, my queen your wish is my command," Lucius said, imitating Narcissa's drawl sarcastically. Narcissa did not seem to find it funny however, and replaced her queeny look with one of utter fury. "How dare you! Lucius Malfoy, you are just a…" "My, my! Can't you spend one minute together without starting a fight?" everybody spun around to face another boy who was just a pale a Lucius. I hope he's nicer than his friends Lily thought. Her wish came true a minute later when he offered her a hand and pulled her up from the ground on which she still sat. "Well hello Severus! Nice to know you made it, even though your over an hour late!" the boy called Karkaroff grinned maliciously. "I'm sorry Karkaroff, but Janine wouldn't leave me alone, and…" "Hello! I'm still down here you know!" Lucius called. When he didn't receive an answer, he pouted and said, "It's not my fault a stupid mudblood bumped into me and…" Lily decided she had had enough of the pale boy as soon as he called her a mudblood. She didn't know what it meant, but she could bet her place in Hogwarts that it wasn't a compliment. She angrily stepped toward the boy, who had now gotten up, and punched him as hard as she could, sending him back to the ground with a look of surprise on his face, along with a very large bruise. "LILY!" Lily spun around angrily to find herself face to face with her parents, who she completely forgot about. "I am so sorry young man, I don't know what came over her," her father said, trying hard to suppress his anger, while Petunia sent besotted glances over to the pale boy. "GET MOVING NOW!!" her father said in a deadly whisper. Lily sighed and spun around shooting one more angry look at the pale boy. She caught the looks on his friends faces as she walked off; Narcissa looked disgusted and Karkaroff surprised, but Severus was grinning. "Malfoy really had that coming to him. Good work!" Lily couldn't help but grin as she walked away. The first shop the Evans' walked into (after Mr. Evans had stopped shouting) was a bookshop called Flourish and Blotts. Lily, amazed at the number of wonderful books there were, collected as many as she could carry and brought them to the counter. The saleswoman checked them for a moment then said; "Fifty nine sickles please." Mr. Evans looked up in surprise. "Fifty nine what?" "Sickles sir. Is there a problem?"

Mr. Evans nervously mopped his brow.

"Ummm… Yes. What…what are sickles?"

The saleswoman looked up and looked closely at the Evans (her gaze rested on Petunia for a while, who was cuddled up in a corner, jumping whenever someone spoke to her). Then a look of realisation appeared on her face and she said;

"Oh! Are you muggles?"

Daniel Evans mopped his brow again.

"What? Muggles?"

Lily did all she could to suppress a giggle. She had never seen her father so nervous! She looked around and her gaze rested on a tired looking boy who was watching her closely.

"Hey Martha," he said suddenly.

The saleswoman looked at the boy with surprise.

"Yes Remus?"

"I'll take them to Gringotts. Come on, I won't kill 'em" he said grinning.

The saleswoman nodded and told Mr. Evans to follow Remus to Gringotts.

"Don't worry, he's a sensible boy. The only time he acts like a manic is when he's around Sirius and James. Then they all get drunk on plain air…" the saleswoman said grinning, seeing the unsure look on Mr. Evans face.

Remus took the Evans' outside and explained the wizard currency to a confused Mr. Evans, who just grumbled tiredly. Then Remus walked beside Lily and hesitated before he asked her a question.

"Is it true you punched Lucius Malfoy?"

Remus looked so earnest that Lily had to laugh.

"So that's his name is it? Yeah, I punched him, the spoilt little brat. He called me a mudblood or something,"

"Yeah, that sounds like Malfoy, always rude. A Mudblood is a really rude name for a muggle-born witch or wizard," Remus explained scowling. Seeing the confused look on Lily's face, Remus added,

"A muggle is non-magic person"

"Oh!"

Lily and Remus became good friends straight away. He took her to all the best shops, explained Quidditch to her and told her about the fastest broom in the world ("The Nimbus 240, isn't it beautiful?"). As they approached to last store (Olivanders' Wands), Remus looked at his watch and exclaimed.

"Struth! Seeya Lily, I still have to go and meet Sirius and James!" But before Lily could ask who they were, Remus had disappeared into the crowd.

Lily shrugged and followed her father into Olivanders. The store bell rang loudly as they entered. A old, frail looking man stood up from a wand he was fixing.

"Welcome! Welcome to Olivanders!"

"Er.. Yes. Um, I'm looking for a wand for my daughter Lily,"

"Yes, of course," the man said, not looking at Lily. "What's her full name?"

"Lily, Lily Evans."

The man's eyes widened as her spun around to look at Lily.

"Evans? Spelt E-V-A-N-S?"

"Why yes," Lily said surprised.

But the man said no more after that, other than some indistinguishable muttering.

"Well then come here and try out some wands,"

After what seemed like an eternity of foolish wand waving, Lily finally found a wand, holly and phoenix feather. The Evans' paid for the wand and went home, Lily eager for tomorrow, when she can go to Hogwarts.

But in Olivanders, Mr. Olivander was talking to someone half hidden in shadow.

"Did she take the wand?" the figure asked in a young female voice.

"Yes"

"Are you sure she was the right one?"

"Of course, have I ever let you down?"

The figure smiled mischievously. But her expression darkened as she said the next words.

"Thankyou Olivander. You have helped to save us. There are dark times coming, and her and the Potter boy can be our only hope…"

* * * * *

The next morning, Lily was up at 7 o'clock, tired after waking up in the middle of the night about a million times, afraid of being late. She got ready quickly and spent the rest of the morning nagging her parents to hurry up. At about 9 o'clock, Lily started dragging her 400-pound (literally) trunk downstairs. She gave it to her father who started grumbling about being too old and rushed upstairs to get Ebony, her new owl (Lily had to plead and bribe her father for it). Before she went back downstairs, her mother pulled her into the attic and gave her a beautiful emerald necklace shaped in a lily, that matched her eyes exactly

"Wow mum! Are you sure you want to give that to me?" Lily isn't exactly the most organised person on the planet.

Mrs. Evans just laughed and hugged her daughter, her eyes filling with tears.

"It belonged to your Great-aunt Lily…"

Before Mrs. Evans could finish, Mr. Evans appeared in the doorway.

"Time to go Lily," he said gruffly (it was his way of showing emotion).

Lily hugged her mother one last time, totally ignored Petunia and rushed downstairs. She jumped into the car and her father drove her to Kings Cross Station, where the train to Hogwarts would be waiting.

"Sorry Lil, I have an appointment. Do you mind waiting alone?"

Lily was disappointed, but agreed. She hugged her father again and got out of the car. She took a deep breath and walked into the station. She managed to find her way to Platform 9, but soon realised something.

There was no Platform 9 ¾ .

"Oh great!" Lily moaned, getting a funny stare from the security guard.

"Hey mudblood!" Lily stiffened and turned around to face a grinning Lucius Malfoy.

"Malfoy," Lily replied, nodding coldly.

Malfoy smirked and turned to his friends.

"Looks like the Mudblood has no family. Maybe they abandoned her, not that I blame them."

They all laughed and disappeared into the crowd, all except Severus, the boy who helped her.

"Are you ok? Do you know the way to the Platform?"

Lily shook her head silently, hurt from Malfoy's remark but not willing to show it.

"Just walk through the barriers separating platform nine and ten. Trust me."

Severus grinned and walked through the barriers to demonstrate what he meant. Lily, watching open-mouthed, saw him disappear. Taking a deep breath, Lily followed.

Here goes nothing.

As she stepped through the barriers, Lily felt the station disappear. Suddenly, she was staring at a red steam engine pulled up at a platform crowded with people.

Lily walked around for a moment then chose a empty carriage to sit in. She tried to heave her trunk into the carriage, but swore loudly as it landed on her foot.

"Hey stranger!"

Lily turned around and grinned as she spotted Remus Lupin with two boys who she supposed were James and Sirius.

"Hi Remus, the-boy-who-left-me-in-Diagon-Alley-alone," she teased. She looked at the other boys. "And for a couple of good-for-nothing boys too,"

"Oh well, Sirius and James here would have killed me, literally!"

The boy with messy black hair and glasses introduced himself as James Potter and the other boy with black hair and a mischievous grin introduced himself as Sirius, as they tried to help Remus hoist Lily's trunk into the carriage.

"Geez Lil, what did you pack? Your whole house?" Remus grunted.

Lily smiled.

"No, only half of it. Thanks a lot boys."

Lily jumped into the carriage followed by the three boys.

"Come on guys, I heard Will Weasley knows a way to get to Hogsmeade without going through the front gates of the school. Seeya Lily!" James said beckoning to Remus and Sirius.

"'Bye Lil!,"

" Au revoir, Mademoiselle!" Sirius said bowing low and offering Lily flowers wrapped in bright purple paper. Lily looked at them for a moment them took them, making sure she didn't touch the stem or the flowers. Then she shook them at Sirius' face, so he got covered in pollen.

"ACHOOO!"

Sirius let out a deafening sneeze and his hair turned bright orange. Lily, James and Remus fell about in a fit of hysterical laughter.

"I… I've read about…about hair changing…plants!" Lily said between fits of laughter. Sirius blushed then joined in. After a while they had all managed to calm down.

"I like this girl!" Sirius grinned as the three boys disappeared into another compartment. Lily sat down on a chair near the window. Suddenly, the train let off an ear piercing whistle and slowly began to move. Lily looked out of the window excitedly.

I'm off to Hogwarts.

But perhaps if she had known what was waiting for her there, she might not of been so excited.

Wow! That was long! Ouch! I think I sprained my fingers *rubs them tenderly* Make me feel better and review *attempts to look innocent, but fails horribly* Please?

*~Tsunami~*

P.S I got the little notice thing-a-ma-jiggy at the beginning from Claire Thorpe. Read her story 'Claire and Harry's unbelievable adventure'. It's really good…=) =) =)

P.P.S In case you haven't realised, me and Volcano take turns in writing chapters. But I'm the better writer aren't I? *Looks around fearfully expecting to see an angry Volcano leap out of the shadows* Maybe I shouldn't have said that…=(