A/N: YAY! I'm back, with another extremely crappy chapter! (Ugh, I can't believe I just dissed my own work!) NEhoo, thanks to cheler and cquill13 for being my first reviewers! (that was a VERY fast response…)
Sur avec l'histoire!
A few days (and six French lessons) later, the owl returned with a reply letter. Marielle tore it open, as Lily watched hopefully.
Marie—All of the Hogwarts acceptance letters were posted a week ago.
—Minerva
Lily's eyes began to well up with tears. 'That's it then. I'm doomed to live with these— these slave drivers for the rest of my young life!'
"Do not cry, Mademoiselle. I am sure eet probably got lost in ze mail." Lily sighed and went to the front door, pulling a jacket from the closet. This would need some contemplation.
The sky was gray and stormy, weather that suited Lily's mood just fine. She walked down to the road and reached into the mailbox once again, reaching into the corners to make sure that she hadn't missed the letter.
"D*mn," she mumbled, finding nothing. A sudden gust of wind blew from the north, making the leaves flutter in the wind. Something in the dirt caught her eye. Was that… an envelope? Lily reached down to grab it. Unfortunately, a gust of wind blew again, causing the envelope to flutter just out of her reach. Frowning, Lily darted her hand out again, only to have the piece of paper sail even farther away. Now, true to the stereotype that girls with red hair had fiery tempers, Lily's redhead fury began to surface. "Stop moving, ya g*dd*mn*d envelope!" she cried, pouncing on the object in question. Or, rather, the place where the object had been. Yet again, the envelope had drifted out of reach. "I hope whatever god up there is doing this is having a good time, 'cause I sure ain't!" she growled. Five minutes later, Lily had the envelope in hand and was covered in mud, as it had begun to rain. Amazingly, the envelope was clean and dry, despite the fact that rain was pouring down in sheets.
"LILI-AAAAAAAAAAAAN!"
"Why me?" Lily mumbled when she heard Petunia's shriek.
~*~
After tending to her stepsister's needs, Lily could be found in the library, ripping open the envelope that she had found in the dirt.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL
of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Miss Evans,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.
Yours Sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
Lily grinned. 'So I have been accepted! Goodbye, Petunia! Goodbye Petronella! Lilian Adeline Evans is going to magic school!'
"Mademoiselle! Yoo are covaired in muck! What 'ave yoo been doing?" Lily jumped. She hadn't notice Marielle come in.
"Marie! Don't scare me like that! Besides, the stupid letter kept jumping out of my reach!" the redhead replied, brandishing the piece of paper like a sword. Marielle grabbed the letter.
"Zis iz wondairful, Mademoiselle! Now, pack your belongings, what little yoo 'ave. We are going to Diagon Alley!"
"Uh, Marie? I don't have any money. How are we ever going to pay for my school supplies?" Lily questioned. To her surprise, Marie smiled and winked.
"Yoo zink you're muzzair left yoo nuzzing? All of ze money she left yoo iz at Gringotts. Eet iz a small fortune!" With that, the witch left, leaving Lily to pack the little possessions she had, including her mother's diary.
~*~
"Wow… Marie, this is incredible!" Lily exclaimed, turning around in circles in an attempt to see all that was going on in the bustling market at once. Marielle grinned at her charge.
"Mademoiselle, eet iz impossible to see everyzing at once," she said.
"MARIE!" a voice exclaimed. Marielle turned and smiled.
"Katherine! Eet 'as been ages, no?" Marielle said. The brown-eyed woman hugged Marielle, her eyes sparkling.
"Oh my goodness, Marie, where have you been? Look at you!" Katherine gushed. Behind her, Lily saw two boys, about her age. One had messy black hair and Katherine's warm brown eyes. Though he shouldn't have been, being as his hair was so wild, the boy seemed to be one of the more handsome people Lily knew. The other boy, who was just as handsome as the first, had black hair tied in a ponytail at the nape of his neck. His eyes were icy blue, and had a teasing glint to them.
"I am still in ze laEsrece's service, though Madam Lyliane 'as passed on," Marielle replied, not taking note of the two boys, who looked like they wanted to leave— and soon.
"Lily is dead?!" Katherine exclaimed. "What planet have I been on?" Marielle nodded grimly, and then pushed Lily forward.
"Zis iz her daughter, Lilian Evans," Marielle said proudly. "Mademoiselle, zis iz Katherine Potter. She was one of your muzzair's best friends in 'Ogwarts." Katherine smiled.
"You look exactly like your mother, dear. I hope you continue the laEsrece pranks… Lord knows that school needs some livening up!" Katherine exclaimed. Lily favored her with a grin.
"Mum said in a letter that I should try and break the record of detentions. It sounds like fun, if you ask me." At this remark, the boys' faces broke into smirks.
"Well, I must get going! Tons of shopping to do, you know! Keep in touch Marie, or I'll track you down and hex you!" Katherine threatened cheerfully.
"I will. Au revoir, Katherine!" Marielle replied.
~*~
"This is so amazing!" Lily exclaimed for the fiftieth time that day. The bookstore was larger than the library at home, and it was filled with much more interesting books. As Marielle chatted with the clerk, Lily walked around the shop. Under one arm, she carried her Hogwarts robes. Marielle had let her buy dress robes, as well— emerald green to match her eyes.
Lily paused as she pulled a book from the shelf entitled Curses and Countercurses (Bewitch Your Friends and Befuddle Your Enemies with the Latest Revenges: Hair Loss, Jelly-Legs, Tongue-Tying and Much, Much More!). As Marielle paid for the school books, Lily placed the book she had found on top of the stack.
"For pranks," Lily responded to Marielle's questioning look.
"Yoo get more and more like your muzzair every day!" Marielle replied rolling her eyes in mock exasperation.
~*~
Lily was amazed. In a few weeks, she had been taken away from a home where she was made to be a slave, introduced to a completely new world, been introduced to people she never knew had existed, and found out that she, Lilian Adeline Evans, was a witch. It was hard to believe that at this time several weeks ago, the very same girl that was now living a life of luxury at her mother's old mansion would have been scrubbing the marble halls of her own house with a toothbrush.
She had been situated in the room her mother had lived in as a child. It was quite large, and had an excellent view of the landscape of London. The room was decorated beautifully, with pinkish white walls and a soft, light green carpet. The walls were bordered with a pattern of water lilies, with colors that matched the carpet and the rest of the walls perfectly. The canopy bed was adorned with a floaty pink material that blew in the wind coming from the open window, and many pillows were piled at its head. Connected to this room was a bathroom with a whirlpool tub, and a walk in closet filled with clothes. That was the part that most surprised her: had Marielle planned on bringing Lily here, and had she loaded the closet with these wonderful clothes? Or had these clothes been her mother's? Either way, Lily was relieved that she didn't have to wear the ragged old clothes of Petunia anymore.
The mansion was, like the room, huge. There were five stories, not including the attic and the basement, and the grounds were larger than the ones where she used to live. Marielle said that there was a medium-sized Quidditch field in the garden. Lily had no idea of how to play the game, but Marielle had insisted that she get a rulebook and a broomstick, despite the message on the Hogwarts letter that "FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS." Also, the mansion was on the outskirts of a mostly-wizarding community, and had been made Unplottable.
Lily glanced at the calender. She grinned as she noticed that it was August 31, only one day until the Hogwarts train departed from London.
"This is so awesome!" she whispered to herself.
A/N: Th-th-th-that's all, folks! Sorry it's been a while, but since I was literally failing in Social Studies, I'm not allowed on the compy on schooldays anymore! ;_; Also, I'm writing my own (original) story! So, if you one day see a best-selling (::cough::yeahright::cough::) book on Amazon or in Borders or in Barnes and Nobles or wherever entitled "Daelon", you can say that you know the author!
Thanks to all who reviewed:
cheler (is this soon enough? ^-^V); cquill13 (Awww… po' ickle cquill13 didn't get to review first… J/K! Thanks!); firecat (glad ya think so!); Hermione1909(I am!); Lily Evans (As you can see, so do a lot of ppl! =D); ~*Crystal Lily*~(::bows:: thank you, thank you! BTW, anime DOES rock!); Ginny Potter; ) (You don't have to!); Ivy Leaves (Ur right… ^^* I won't be taking French for 2 years…;_;); Milkyweed (posting!); Rini (::blushes:: thanks. I luv SM!); goddess-of-EVILL (glad you like! [and my name is Yuriko or Yuriko-chan, not person! ^_~]); pore lil tall girl (Hehehe… ^_^* author's privleges… 'sides, other ppl do it!); Shayomac (Thankies! here's more!); QuizzicalSphinx (Psychic wavelength…??? KEWL!); moi (thanks!… I think…); Fox (::blushes:: I'm not that good… I just write stuff when I get ideas… fortunately, most of 'em are good ones!); Artemis-chan (Don't worry, I will! BTW, my other FF.N ID is Sailorartemis_2000— ppl call me Artemis-chan, too!^-^); a person (You can't hurry writing… stuff like this takes time! But, I'll try, anyway!); Padfoot's J. Turkey (So ppl tell me… thanks a bunch!); Bad Gurl (I am continuing, because of happy lil' reviewers like you! [geez, I sound like a PBS commercial…-_-*]); DaniElle (It should! Ella Enchanted is on my ABSOLUTE FAVORITES list! I love it!); lilz (J/L all the way! Your fic is soooo cute!); Lethal (I ABSOLUTELY LOVE YOUR FICS! They are soooo good! Plz continue!); Lee (Hai, so ppl tell me… ^-^ Doomo arigato!)
