Well, here we are at chapter three. Not that thrilling, I know, but there you go.
I need help for a name for this (I am really stuck now), so any suggestions are welcomed.
~This chapter is for Nina, who hasn't read Harry Potter, and has no idea why I write at ff.net.~
Bob the Builder is at number three on the top forty. God, please help us. Thanks.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except the things that are mine. The things that aren't mine belong to J K Rowling, Warner Bros and whoever else is involved.
****Chapter Three: Nightmares, Never-Ending Grudges and Star Trek...No, Star Wars...No, Wait, What?****
'AAARRGGHH!' Lily Evans screamed. She sat straight up in bed, heart pounding. She was perspiring terribly, and was breathing hard. She took some deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. It wasn't working. Her mother, Sara, ran in, followed by Petunia and her father, David.
'What's wrong, honey?' Sara asked worriedly, going up to Lily and putting her hand on her forehead. 'Did you have a nightmare?'
'Another nightmare?' Petunia asked incredulously. 'Lily, what is wrong?'
'Yeah, I just...I don't know.' Lily was confused. She had had a nightmare, she knew that much. But what had it been about? How can I forget a nightmare that made me scream? she wondered to herself. It seemed impossible.
'Did you have a nightmare?' Sara asked again.
'Yeah, I did, but I forgot...um, look, I'm fine, okay?' David and Petunia, standing behind Sara, exchanged glances.
'Are you sure?' Petunia asked, sounding wary. 'I mean, how can you forget a nightmare that made you scream?'
'I don't know,' Lily replied, more to herself than to her sister. 'Look, you don't have to worry about me. I mean, I'm fine now. I've got a big day tomorrow...well, today now, and I can't remember the nightmare anyway, so we may as well all get some more sleep.' Lily was babbling, something she didn't do very often. Sara didn't seem convinced. 'There's nothing more you can do, anyway,' Lily told her. 'I'm sorry for waking everyone up. I didn't mean to.' Petunia grinned wryly.
'Sure you didn't, Lily.' She turned to leave, but Lily told her to stay.
'No, Petunia, stay. Mum, Dad, you can go.' Sara kissed her daughter on the forehead, then left, followed by David. Petunia sat on Lily's bed.
'What's up, kiddo?' Petunia asked. 'You remembered the dream but didn't want to spill in front of the 'rents?'
'No, no. Well, I can sort of remember it, not very well though. No, that's not what I want to talk to you about.' Lily took a deep breath. 'I go to school tomorrow.' Petunia didn't react. 'Aren't you going to miss me at all?'
'Yeah, of course. Come on, Lily, I won't see you until Christmas.' Petunia shivered slightly. 'Not to mention the fact you're going to a...that school.' Lily winced, but decided not to press the subject. Petunia kept changing. Sometimes she was joking around with Lily, and other times acted as if Lily were to be avoided.
'Well, I'd better get some more sleep,' Lily said, and Petunia got up and left.
'Good night, Lily,' was all she said as she left the room. Lily shivered and lay down again. If she closed her eyes, she could almost remember the nightmare. But all she could remember was standing beside a grave, dressed in black. Someone was walking away from her, and a cloaked figure jumped in front of Lily when she turned to follow the other figure. Weird. The cloaked figure had pointing a bony finger at her, and that was when Lily had screamed.
'Ugh,' Lily whispered. 'More sleep. More sleep.' But she couldn't get to sleep. Not now she was wide awake. And she started to feel excited at the thought of the coming day. September first. Lily rolled over, closing her eyes and trying to sleep. Not working. She decided to count sheep. But I don't like sheep, she told herself with a giggle. Okay, I'll count...dragons. But that didn't work either, because in her mind, one of the dragons attacked her. Okay, I'll count...tall-ish very cute guys with dark hair. This made Lily giggle uncontrollably. Summer would have found that funny, she thought suddenly. Then she had it. One peppermint and grass sundae, two peppermint and grass sundaes...
***
'Lily! Honey! Are you awake?' Lily rolled over with a groan. In her dream she was eating peppermint and grass sundaes with a tall-ish very cute guy with dark hair called Summer, dressed in robes covered in dragons and sheep. That showed how confused I was, Lily thought to herself. Everything muddled in togeth...
'Oh, my God!' Lily exclaimed, jumping out of bed. 'It's September first!'
'Yes, genius, it's September first,' Petunia said, walking past. 'You'd better be quick. We leave in half an hour.'
'What?' Lily shrieked. 'I've got to get dressed, do my hair, and most importantly, eat breakfast. I don't have enough time!!' She heard Petunia laugh as she went down the stairs.
'Trust breakfast to be most important to you, Carrot-Top.' Lily got dressed in record time, and took the stairs two at a time, landing with a thump. On her backside. Petunia thought this was hilarious. Lily gave her a haughty look and took her place at the table.
'Excited, sweetheart?' David asked.
'Um, yes, of course. Could you please pass the sauce?' Petunia grimaced and handed her the sauce.
'Sauce with bacon and eggs? Lily, dearest, you are devoid of any tastebuds.'
'Well, you're devoid of any brain.'
'Girls,' David said mildly, not really listening. 'Look here, Sara. That Riddle guy's doing pretty well for himself. Says here he just paid for a multi-million dollar plastic surgery operation. Funny, doesn't show the ending result. If you paid that much money, you'd expect there to be a huge picture of him, looking exactly like whoever our two teenage girls worship.'
'James,' Petunia whispered with a grin.
'Vaughn,' Lily whispered back. Petunia made a face, and Lily giggled.
'I wish I had that much money,' Petunia remarked. 'I mean, I need plastic surgery on my face.'
'What do you mean, honey?' Sara asked in surprise. 'You have a lovely face.'
'As far as Phar Lap is concerned, anyway,' Lily said with a giggle. Petunia glared at her.
'That wasn't very nice, Lily,' Sara told her, frowning. 'Apologize to your sister right away.'
'Sorry Petunia. I didn't mean it,' Lily said contritely.
'That's okay. Anyway, as Lily so kindly pointed out, I have a face like a horse.'
'And you eat like one too,' Lily sang quietly. (A/N: You know, the weird birthday song little kids sing? 'Happy birthday to you, you live in a zoo, you look like a monkey, and you smell like one too' or something like that.) Surprisingly, Petunia laughed at that.
'You are full of wit this morning, Lils,' she said, taking a bite of bacon. Lily smiled guiltily.
'Sorry,' she told her sister. 'I guess...I don't know. You know I don't mean it, don't you?'
'Yeah.'
'Okay, Lily, finish up your breakfast, we're leaving soon.' Lily felt a thrill run through her. She was so excited, and extremely nervous. Lily finished her breakfast quickly, then ran up the stairs to finish getting ready.
***
'Quickly, Lily, we need to pack the car!' her father called ten minutes later. Lily carried all her stuff downstairs, treating Sirius the Owl very carefully. It was a well named owl. The first time she had let it out of its cage it had flown around insanely, finally landing on the bed and swaying like it was drunk. Summer had said Sirius was insane, and so the owl was named. Lily had given it another name, too, just in case Sirius was much opposed to having an owl named after him. Lily had a newfound fascination with peppermint and grass sundaes, so Sirius the Owl was also Peppermint the Owl. It confused even Lily.
'I'm moving as fast as I can!' Lily shouted from the base of the stairs. Sara came in and helped her carry everything out to the car. Petunia helped, too, and finally they were on their way.
'Nervous?'
'Yes.'
'Excited?'
'Yes.'
'Worried?'
'Extremely.' After this brief interrogation by her father, the car was silent apart from the radio. Everyone seemed deep in thought, Lily included.
They arrived at Kings Cross Station at quarter to eleven, and hauled everything out, which included two suitcases and the owl cage. People gave them strange looks, but Lily ignored them, trying to make her way to the barrier.
'Lily, Lily!' Lily looked up and saw Summer jumping and down and waving madly. Lily grinned.
'Summer!' she shouted. They dragged her stuff over to Summer, and Lily hugged her. 'How's it going?'
'Yeah, good.' She giggled, and pointed to the owl, which was bashing its head against the wire of the cage. Lily rolled her eyes.
'It's insane,' she explained. 'I'm assuming owls don't normally do that.'
'Well, Lily, we might just say good bye to you here,' Sara said gently. Lily looked alarmed. She hugged her mother tightly, then her father, then Petunia.
'I guess I'll see you at Christmas, then,' Lily told them, sniffing a bit. 'Why won't you go through?'
'I've heard that it's easier for children if their parents don't stay with them right up until they leave. You'll be much happier on the train if you're not waving to us, seeing us disappear into the distance.' Sara sounded sure of herself, so Lily, quite tearfully, said good bye to her parents, promising to write. Then she copied Summer, leaned against the barrier, and suddenly found herself, her two suitcases and Peppermint, on Platform 9 3/4.
***
'I don't believe you just did that!' Lily exclaimed as she and Summer sank into the seats in one of the carriages on the Hogwarts Express. After looking around for a bit, and meeting Summer's three brothers, the two girls had gotten onto the train, after kicking a mean looking boy their age out of the way.
'It's not like he's going to remember us,' Summer protested, smoothing her dark hair. 'I mean, he was in the way. What was I supposed to do? Say, 'excuse me, you little greasy worm, but you're in the way?''
'I don't know,' Lily admitted.
'See!' Summer crowed.
'I just don't think that you should have kicked him in the privates either,' Lily finished delicately. Summer sighed impatiently.
'Lily, the guy was sitting there asking for it. Come on. Have a heart. Don't be a study all day ninny.'
'I have no intention of turning into a study all day ninny. I also have no intention of failing.' Summer opened her mouth to answer when the door to the carriage crashed open. The boy they, or rather, Summer, had kicked out of the way landed with a thump on the floor. He was followed by James Potter and his friend, Sirius Black. Lily stared in confusion.
'What's going on?' Summer demanded. 'Ooh, look Lily, it's our little friend.'
'What's going on?' Lily repeated. James looked startled when he heard her, and turned to face her.
'Well, not much is going on, actually,' he said, starting to smile. 'But this little twit decided to push us around.'
'So you kicked him?' Summer asked delightedly.
'Summer!' Lily admonished.
'I didn't kick him,' Sirius told them pointedly. 'James did.'
'I didn't kick him, exactly. I just pushed him and he went flying...'
'Was there a fight?' A girl ran into the carriage. 'If there was, start again.'
'Stop talking about me as if I wasn't here,' the boy said, struggling to his feet. 'Okay?'
'No,' James said immediately.
'James,' Sirius told him warningly. 'Don't pick on the loser.'
'What's going on?' the girl that had run in asked impatiently.
'Nothing,' Lily told her.
'If Mr Up Himself Potter would care to explain why he pushed me, then I'll go without any more disturbance. But he won't. So I guess I'll have to hit it out of him.' Just as Lily was starting to get nice and confused, someone else walked into the carriage.
'What's going on, Severus?' a voice asked. The person that came in was tall and had silvery white hair. They sneered. 'First years. Babies. Can't be trusted with anything.' Lily felt annoyed. This person was obviously quite old, but he didn't have to treat them like little children. 'I'm glad I'm in the seventh year. Now I have some charge over you lot.'
'Seventh years. Up themselves idiots,' Lily said loudly. 'Can't be trusted with anyone. Who knows what they'll do with their newfound 'power'.' Summer sucked her breath in quickly. The seventh year turned to Lily immediately.
'And who are you?' he asked coldly.
'Lily. Who are you?' she asked boldly.
'Lucius Malfoy.' Oops, Lily said to herself sardonically. Damn. I insulted a Malfoy. God, strike me dead.
'What do you want?' James asked finally. 'I mean, apart from saving the Wussy Wonder here?'
'I'd watch your face, Potter,' Lucius Malfoy said smoothly. James looked stunned.
'How do you know my name?' he asked. Lucius Malfoy smiled cruelly.
'That was easy. The famous Potters. Famous for not owning hairbrushes.'
'What, like his family doesn't own shampoo?' Lily asked, pointing to Severus, the kid James had pushed. There was a silence.
'What's your last name?' Lucius Malfoy asked Lily, who didn't reply. She was alarmed at her boldness.
'Why do you want to know?' Lily asked finally.
'You better tell me. You'd be surprised how much power we Malfoys have,' Lucius Mighty Malfoy told her smoothly.
'What kind of power?' Lily asked immediately. 'Loser Power? 'Phasers on full power. We want them to know how loser-ish we can be!'' Sirius grinned, while James looked astonished, Summer looked amazed, and the girl that had run in looked plain amused. Severus' expression was unreadable, as was Lucius Malfoy's. He grabbed Severus' arm, and swept out of the carriage, dragging the younger boy with him.
'Star Trek?' the girl that had run in asked. 'Wasn't that from Star Trek...no, Star Wars...no, wait, what?'
'Pretty good,' Summer said. 'But I'd be very careful now, Lily. You've just insulted a Malfoy. Big time. You'd be awfully surprised what they can do.'
'I'm not worried.'
'Lily, these people hold grudges. Once they hate you, they hate you, full stop. They'll hate you forever, their kids will hate your kids, and their kids' kids will hate your kids' kids, and so on.' James laughed.
'That's a slight exaggeration.'
'No, it's not,' the Girl With No Name said. 'Lucius hates you, James. And you know why?'
'Why?' James asked, not sounding particularly interested.
'Because Lucius' father hated your father.'
'And how do you know?' James demanded. 'And while you're at it, who are you?'
'Tracey Camden.' She held out her hand, and James shook it reluctantly. 'Camden by name...'
'And what by nature?' Sirius asked. Tracey grinned ruefully.
'I actually hadn't thought that far ahead.' Lily rolled her eyes.
'Well, Tracey, I'm Lily Evans.'
'I'm Summer Chen, and that's James Potter and Sirius Black...I guess you already know James?'
'Nope.'
'Liar.'
'Yep. Yeah, I already know old Jamesie boy here.' Tracey grinned. 'Anyone got any food? I'm starving, and I haven't seen a crumb of food yet.'
'And here I am thinking that only Sirius has a bottomless pit for a stomach,' James groaned.
'I guess you two are first years,' Tracey said, nodding towards Lily and Summer.
'Yeah. You?' Summer asked.
'Yep. What house do you reckon you'll be in? I hope I'm in Gryffindor. I heard everybody does, so there you go.'
'Well, my older brother's in Gryffindor,' Summer told them.
'So you will be?' Lily asked her, and Summer laughed.
'No way! George is in Ravenclaw. But Manuel's in Gryffindor as well. So I guess I've got an okay chance of getting in.'
'I heard that you have to be pretty clever to get into Ravenclaw. Is George an absolute genius?' Lily asked. Tracey grinned at that.
'If you have to be a genius, I'm surprised Katie got in.'
'Why? Who's Katie?' Lily was confused. 'Isn't she that smart?'
'My dear idiot of an older sister...Katie Camden, fourth year Ravenclaw, is...'
'Is she the one that likes Malfoy?' Summer exclaimed. 'You have got to be kidding me! I've heard all about her!' Tracey shivered.
'It's tragic, isn't it.' She sighed dramatically, then bounced to the doorway. 'I'm going to find that fat witch with the food. Anyone gonna come with me?' Sirius followed immediately, and they both left the carriage. Lily and Summer sat down.
'She was weird,' Summer commented. 'Did you notice her eyes? One eye was green, and the other eye was blue.'
'I only noticed her hair,' Lily confessed. 'I wish I had dark brown hair. But alas, my hair is red. Horrible, horrible red.'
'It'll darken,' Summer consoled her. 'And then it won't be 'plain old red', it'll be auburn, which sounds really nice.'
'If you'll excuse me,' James said, coughing. 'But I was wondering which house both of you wanted to be in.'
'I don't know anything about them,' Lily confessed. 'Summer didn't explain them properly when she attempted to.'
'How was I supposed to know you wanted to know everything about them?' Summer demanded. 'God!' Lily giggled.
'Well, Gryffindor is for smart, brave people. Apparently. Ravenclaw's for clever, nice people.' Summer gagged. James grinned and continued. 'Hufflepuff's for loyal, friendly people, and Slytherin's for sly, cunning people. That's what Dumbledore and the teachers say. We, the students, know better. For each of the houses, Slytherin especially, the reality as opposed to the teachers' ideal is extremely different. Gryffindor is for the so called 'brave' people, who generally play the fool and get good marks while doing that. Ravenclaw's for the study-all-day clever people, the 'popular, intelligent' people. Or so they think. Hufflepuff's for the total duffers that have no idea of anything and not an ounce of common sense, while Slytherin's for people that are filled to the brim with dark magic and have no regard for anyone else except themselves.'
'Well, that about sums up everything,' Summer said with a grin. 'So, whatcha think, Lils?'
'Um, I think I'd like to be in Gryffindor,' she told them, thinking. 'Oh, and thanks for that, er, description, James. Really, um, appreciated.' James grinned and bowed, while Summer rolled her eyes.
'I so could have done better...here's Tracey and Sirius.' The door to the carriage burst open, and Tracey and Sirius came in, arms filled with an assortment of food.
'What did you buy?' James exclaimed. 'Sirius Black. I knew you were a pig, but you have outdone yourself.' Lily was staring open-mouthed at the food.
'And that's to feed two people?' she asked incredulously. 'Oh, you guys are pigs.'
'Stop accenting every two words.' Tracey fussed around, putting the food down in a decorative way on a blanket on the floor. 'We are having a picnic, this food is for all of us, geniuses.' Lily and Summer both grinned.
'We knew that,' Summer told them, sitting down on one edge of the blanket. 'Geez, who do you think we are?'
'Pigs?' Tracey asked sweetly, and Lily made a face at her.
'What did you get?'
'Chocolate frogs, Bertie Botts' Every Flavour Beans, those weird jelly things, Exploding Sherbet, Cauldron Cakes, Sugar Quills...oh, and those pumpkin pastry things every seems to be so keen about.' Sirius said all of this in one breath.
'Huh?' Lily sat down next to Summer and stared at the food. 'What is that?'
'Exploding Sherbet,' Tracey told her helpfully. 'You put it in your mouth, duh, and all the little thingys explode. We got raspberry, chocolate, caramel, blueberry and peppermint.'
'What are Cauldron Cakes made out of?' Lily asked, picking one up gingerly.
'Cauldrons.'
'Don't listen to Sirius, they're made of this chocolate stuff,' James replied, elbowing Sirius. The five first years all sat down and ate, Lily eating very uncertainly, and she hadn't ever seen half the stuff before.
'Sirius, what are you doing?' Tracey asked. 'Apart from being an idiot.'
'I,' Sirius said importantly, 'am making a pumpkin pastry, sherbet and jelly bean sandwhich.'
'You haven't got any bread,' Lily pointed out.
'The secret of my success, is that I do not need bread to make sandwhiches,' Sirius told her mysteriously. 'I am being resourceful, and using the chocolate frogs as bread. Let me show you the method.'
'Uh...'
'First, you take two chocolate frogs. You put three jelly beans, a pinch of sherbet and half a pastry on one chocolate frog, then put the other chocolate frog on top. Here, James, take the cards.' Sirius threw two cards at James, who caught them quickly. 'Then, you eat.' Tracey stared at the 'sandwhich' for a couple of moments.
'Can I try one?' she asked finally.
'Tracey!' Summer cried, shocked. 'What are you doing...oh, no, no way are you eating that.'
'Watch me.' Lily closed her eyes, not wanting to watch anyone eat such a disgusting combination.
'Oh, that is gross...will this train trip ever end?'
***
'We're ten minutes away, if you haven't got your robes on, do that now!' Lily was half asleep, her head resting on Summer's shoulder, but awoke when she heard someone yelling. The door to the carriage opened, and an older girl poked her head in. 'We're about ten minutes away, so you should get your robes on now.' Lily rubbed her eyes, then looked around the carriage. Tracey, James and Sirius were all playing Exploding Snap. Summer was reading.
'Don't tell me I was the only person to fall asleep?' Lily muttered, embarrassed.
'Nah, James slept for a bit as well,' Tracey told her cheerfully. 'And I've won!' She held her cards up triumphantly, and they promptly exploded. Lily giggled, stretching.
'Okay, we'd better get our robes on,' Summer told them, pulling her robes out of her small case. 'Sirius, don't even think about watching.'
'Oh, come on, you're only pulling your robes over your other clothes. It's just like putting a jacket on.' Sirius stood up, yawning. 'Where are my robes?' he asked suddenly, searching around. 'James? James? Where did I put my robes?'
'Oh, I don't know. In your bag?' James suggested sardonically. 'Geez, Sirius, maybe they're on your head.' Lily grinned and got her own robes out of her bag, slipping them over her head.
'I grew?' she exclaimed. Her robes seemed to be a bit shorter.
'I told you that the width of your ears would count!' Summer teased, and Lily threw a quill at her head. 'Ooh, ouch.' Lily was about to retaliate when the lights went off, leaving the carriage in surprising darkness.
'James, Sirius, not funny,' Tracey said. 'I mean, yes, it's funny, but turn the lights on.'
'We didn't turn them off, stupid,' an angry voice replied. 'Just blame us.'
'She did,' Lily replied in a quiet voice. She didn't like the dark very much. The lights suddenly went on, and Lily realized the train had stopped moving.
'Great start,' Summer murmured. 'This is such a bad omen.'
'A bad omen? What do you mean?' Tracey asked, reaching for her bag. Their suitcases had been stored in a cupboard near the carriage, and would be carried to Hogwarts magically. Lily picked up her small bag, then her owl cage, and followed Tracey to the door. 'You believe in omens?'
'Yes,' Summer told her seriously. 'This is a bad omen. Something bad is going to happen.'
'As far as I'm concerned, something bad has already happened,' Lily commented. 'Don't worry, Summer. We're not going to die.'
'Are you sure?'
'Someone's optimistic,' Sirius said dryly. 'I'm sorry for whoever has to share a dorm with you, Summer. They'll get death omens and death threats morning 'til night.' Summer didn't reply, but Lily could tell she was hurt.
'Shut up, Sirius,' Lily snapped. 'There's no need to be so cruel.'
'Hmph.'
'Shut up,' James ordered. They were trying to make their way off the train, and finally got off. Lily tried to stay near Summer, who tried to be near Tracey, who was following James, who was keeping an eye on Sirius. Lily closed her eyes for a second, and when she opened them, a large man was standing in front of her. Lily gasped.
'You a first year?' he asked her.
'Uh, um, yes, yes I am,' she stammered.
'Over there near the lake, then. Any more firs' years?' Lily headed over to the lake, and realized Summer, Tracey, James and Sirius were already there.
'Hi,' Lily muttered, and Summer hugged her.
'I thought we'd lost you, it only took a second!'
'Alrigh', then, on'y four to a boat.' The large man who had spoken to Lily spoke to the 'firs' years'. Summer, Lily, James and Sirius ended up in a boat. Tracey was in a boat with two other girls and another guy. She was singing 'Row row row your boat', but the boat wasn't moving. The large man got a boat to himself. 'Forward!' he instructed, and Lily gasped as all the boats moved forward. James was looking over the edge, when Tracey splashed them, which caused Sirius to retaliate, and in the process, James got pushed overboard.
'James!' Lily shouted, while Sirius laughed so hard he couldn't speak. Summer leant forward and held out a hand for James, who was splashing around, trying to reach for the boat. Tracey was also laughing fit to kill herself, while Lily stared in horror as Summer tried to pull James into the boat.
'Lily, help!' Finally snapping out of it, Lily jumped forward to help pull James out. But somehow, Sirius knocked Summer, who fell in, landing on James, and both of them went under the water. Sirius thought it was hilarious, and Lily had to admit it was pretty funny. Summer suddenly appeared at the surface, laughing and choking.
'Help!' James gurgled as he surfaced, reaching for the boat.
'Aargh, something's got me!' Summer shrieked. 'Me first, me first, let James drown, get me out of here!' The large man stopped all the boats.
'Stop!' he shouted, and waited until Summer and James were back in the boat. 'A'righ' then, forward!' Lily gave Summer her cloak, while Sirius offered his cloak to a very cold James. They could hear Tracey's laughter, and Lily got the giggles. Finally, all four of them were laughing quietly, quietly because they didn't think that the large man would be too impressed with them. It didn't take long to reach the other side of the lake. 'There's yer firs' look at Hogwarts,' the large man called. 'Up there.' Lily looked to where he was pointing, and nearly gave an audible gasp. The huge castle loomed over them, lights twinkling merrily.
'That's pretty impressive,' James commented.
'Understatement,' Summer muttered. The boats stopped gently, and they got out, trying to keep their feet dry.
'Although you really don't need to,' Lily pointed out to Summer, who answered with a 'hmph!' As they walked up to the castle, Lily couldn't help but giggle at the 'squelch squelch' noises Summer and James were making, as their shoes were full of water. Sirius didn't giggle, he laughed all the way to the castle, then complained of a stomach ache.
'What happened to you?' an older girl asked as Summer and James made their way up the stairs to the front doors.
'Oh, we swam across,' Summer told her airily. 'We didn't trust those boats!' Lily giggled, while James smiled graciously.
'Any autographs will be willingly given,' he told her. She made a face.
'Stupid first years,' she muttered and walked away.
'We like you too!' Sirius called after her. 'What a stuck up bitch. I hope Lily and Summer don't get that bad when they're in the whatever year.'
'What about Tracey?' Summer asked slyly.
'Not a chance of her ending up a stuck up bitch,' Sirius answered. 'Can you see her like that?'
'No,' Lily answered truthfully, giving Sirius a grin. 'But it's so sweet of you to think of her at all.' Before Sirius could reply, a strict looking woman went over to them.
'What happened?' she asked, looking alarmed. 'Why are you all wet?'
'Uh, it's raining?' James suggested.
'Then why is no one else wet?' the woman asked, sighing. 'You're not the first people to fall into the lake.'
'Who said anything about falling into the lake?' James asked.
'How else would you get so wet?' the woman asked, exasperated.
'I didn't fall in, I was pushed in,' James told her, shooting a glance at Sirius. 'Because of this low, dirty, cowardly person...'
'What was I supposed to do?' he asked defensively. The woman held up a hand to stop any further talking.
'My name is Professor McGonagall, deputy headmistress. Before going into the Great Hall, I suggest you go up to the hospital wing.' She gave them a rare smile. 'We have a new nurse, Madam Pomfrey. You can be the first to be, uh, cured by her. She uses strange methods, I hear.' Lily and Sirius followed James and Summer up to the hospital wing, Summer looking very uncertain.
***
'I don't believe it!' Summer hissed as they entered the Great Hall. '"Put your dry robes on, eat some chocolate, pay me twenty galleons, and join the feast,"' she mimicked. 'Great nurse!' They were the last people in the Great Hall. Everyone turned to look as they entered. 'At least she was only joking about the twenty galleons...I think.'
'Well, now I'm embarrassed,' Lily muttered out of the corner of her mouth to Sirius. 'If you hadn't pushed James in...' Professor McGonagall came over to them.
'Please sit with the other first years who are about to be Sorted,' she instructed, pointing.
'Sorted?' Lily asked, but she ushered them on, and didn't answer. The four sat down with the other nervous first years, and saw a hat on a stool. 'A hat on a stool. Great.'
'It just sang,' someone told her, and Lily gave them a weak smile in response.
'It just sang?' she asked Summer in a low whisper. 'The hat just sang?'
'Now, when I call your names, you are to come up and put the hat on to be Sorted,' Professor McGonagall instructed. 'Ahem. Alan, Terry!' A boy with light brown hair walked over and put the hat on.
'Ravenclaw!' the hat finally shouted. Lily fought the urge to giggle, and looked at the ceiling instead. With a jolt, Lily realized the ceiling was of the outside sky. It was twinkling with stars, with only a few clouds floating across.
Finally,
'Black, Sirius!'
'Gryffindor!'
'Bostock, Daisy!'
'Ravenclaw!'
'Camden, Tracey!' Tracey got up and walked over casually. She put the hat on, and after a couple of seconds, it announced,
'Gryffindor!' Lily and Summer giggled as Tracey went over to the Gryffindor table.
'Chen, Summer!'
'Go Summer,' Lily whispered. If Summer was in Gryffindor, then Lily wanted to be, too.
'Gryffindor!'
'Yes!' Tracey and Sirius cheered as Summer walked over. Lily watched as four other people got Sorted, her nerves increasing.
'Evans, Lily!' Lily, with shaking legs, got up and went over to the stool. She put the hat on her head, and sat down.
'Hmm...interesting,' a little voice said.
'Please Gryffindor,' she begged silently. 'Please, my friends are there, please Gryffindor...'
'Gryffindor...you would do well, yes...are you sure?'
'Gryffindor, please, please, please! Or...would I be better somewhere else?' She heard a little voice laugh.
'You would do well in Gryffindor!' The last word was shouted to the hall.
'Thank you,' Lily told it silently, and took the hat off. She went over to the Gryffindor table and sat down next to Summer, who was grinning.
'Excellent!' Tracey sat across from Summer, next to Sirius, who was in front of Lily.
'Now only James to go,' Sirius commented mildly, looking around. Lily thought they could hear her heart, it was pounding so hard. 'Hey, who's that?' He nodded towards a boy that had just put the hat on his head. 'He looked weird.'
'Um...Lupin Remus...no, wait, Remus Lupin,' Lily told him. Summer giggled.
'Lily's getting a little confused,' Summer teased.
'I've been a witch for a little over a month,' Lily replied calmly. 'I'm still not used to it.'
'Obviously.' Lily opened her mouth to retort, but 'Lupin Remus' sat down before she could.
'Hello,' Lily said instead. 'I'm Lily.'
'I'm Remus,' he told her quietly, looking around nervously. Once James had been Sorted, ('Gryffindor!'), Lily lost interest in the Sorting. Sirius whispered something in James' ear.
'Oh, so you're name's Lupin Remus?' he asked, grinning slyly at Lily, who went slightly red.
'An easy mistake,' Lily commented primly. 'I told you, I'm confused, this place is so weird.'
'So are you,' Tracey told her
'Thanks,' Lily told her sarcastically. Once everyone had been Sorted, the headmaster, Professor Dumbledore, stood up.
'Welcome to everyone! I only have a couple of things to say to you. A tree, a Whomping Willow, has been planted. If you wish to keep both your eyes, I suggest you stay away from it. And also, the hills are alive with the sound of music!' He clapped his hands and sat down.
'The hills are alive with the sound of music?' Lily repeated, not evening noticing that plates had appeared on the table filled with delicious smelling food. 'Our headmaster just told us, as words of wisdom, that the hills are alive with the sound of music?'
'Sounded a lot like it,' James commented, putting some mashed potato on his plate. 'So, are you going to eat, or sit there like a stuffed toy?'
'Um, I'll eat,' Lily said, suddenly noticing the food. 'When did that get there?'
'What?' Summer asked, taking a sip of pumpkin juice. 'When did what get where?'
'The food.'
'What about it?'
'When did it get on the table?' Lily asked again, looking amazed.
'It appeared,' Sirius told her matter of factly. 'Chicken, Lily?'
'Uh, thanks.'
Lily still looked dazed when the headmaster, with a clap of his hands, caused the food and plates to disappear.
'Now, as we've all had a long day, I suggest you all hop off to your common rooms and dormitories and get some sleep!' Professor Dumbledore smiled at all of them. 'Good night, and sweet dreams to all!'
'Sweet dreams to all. Hmm.'
'What now?' Summer asked Lily. 'Contemplating the facts of life?'
'What?' Summer giggled.
'What has Dumbledore said to annoy you now?'
'Oh, he hasn't annoyed me. He's just a bit...odd, that's all. Come on, I'm exhausted.'
***
Lily, Summer, James, Sirius and Tracey followed the other Gryffindors up to the common room entrance, which was a portrait of a fat lady in a pink dress.
'The password's Peppermint Grass!' the Prefect announced, and Summer and Lily burst into giggles. They were given several odd looks, but just waved them away. Once upstairs and in the dorm, Lily realized that there was another girl there.
'I'm Arabella,' she told them. 'I saw you at the feast, I had to sit with the stupid sixth years, what luck.'
'Uh, yeah, that's bad luck,' Summer commented. 'I'm Summer, this is Lily and Tracey.'
'I know your names, you weren't exactly quiet at dinner,' Arabella told them, not sounding very friendly. 'Well, I hope you don't talk too much. Some people need their beauty sleep.' And with that she closed the curtains around her bed.
'Pity it doesn't work,' Tracey muttered in Arabella's direction.
'I heard that!'
'Oh good, your ears work. Pity about your brain, though,' Tracey snapped. 'And we'll talk however much we like, thank you very much. No smart-ass up herself bitch is going to tell me what to do.' Lily and Summer, after exchanging glances, backed away slowly. When Arabella ripped open her curtain, Lily went over to the nearest bed and shut the curtains quickly. Two seconds later Summer ran in.
'This isn't very safe,' she whispered to Lily. 'Tracey and Arabella are eyeing each other off, and this curtain isn't very strong. Good ol' Arabella has already ripped hers opening it.'
'Well, my suitcases are here,' Lily commented under her breath. 'You must be next door, and Tracey's on the other side.'
'Well, since there are five beds, and Arabella chose the corner one, Tracey won't be next to her. Which is good, 'cause we'll probably wake up one morning to find both of them dead.' Listening to the insults being exchanged, Lily had to agree.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Phew! I just opened this in Microsoft Word, and it came up as 15 and three quarter pages! No wonder my hands are tired from all that typing! Well, not really, but, you know. You probably don't, but there you go.
So, after all my hard work, and since you've read this far, how could you not review? The thought that you couldn't type a little something in that box just down there is incomprehensible to me. I know, I know. Some things just cannot be explained in words. Flame me if you must. I can cope. Really. I can. Honest.
Since I've already done my disclaimer, dedication, chapter name and beg for reviews, there's only one thing left to do.
~Dragonlady~
