Disclaimer: Just borrowing characters.
MARCH 1971
You are invited!
Dear_ Sev _
When: Saturday, March 20, 1971
Where: 10 River Street Cokeworth
Time: 1 pm to 3 pm
Rsvp: 15th March to Mrs Hyacinth Evans 020 7323 8000
With Petunia off to Hogwarts the day after Severus' birthday, it was back to the routine of going to school five days a week and going to the Evans house on the weekends which had the added benefit of avoiding his father's foul temper, now that it was confirmed that Severus was indeed magical like his mother.
Severus thought he knew what to expect when it came to the girls' birthday parties. As usual, he arrived fairly early Saturday morning for Lily's party carrying Lily's present in his hand delicately, and even though he detested the thought of interacting with anyone other than the girls he couldn't bring himself to disappoint them by not showing up to Lily's party.
'I already picked my birthday movie!' Lily's loud exclamation took Severus a second to process as Mrs Evans hustled him to the kitchen table.
'It's called The Cat in the Hat and we are going to see it this morning before the party!' Lily was practically bouncing in her seat as she consumed her pancakes.
'Here you go Severus dear' Mrs Evans placed a plate full of mouth-watering pancakes at his spot at the table. Not having much of a sweet tooth Severus avoided the honey and went straight for the lemon, only adding a tiny amount of sugar to counteract the bitterness, and then dug into the meal with eagerness.
Looking around the table he had to hide a chuckle, somehow Tansy had managed to get a spot of chocolate on her nose. Severus must not have been as successful at hiding the laugh as he thought because Severus noticed Tansy looking over at him with a curious expression on her face.
'You have a little something.' Severus tapped his nose hoping she would get the gist.
'Thanks' Tansy blushed, picking up her napkin and wiping off the chocolate.
Halfway through breakfast, there was suddenly a loud tapping noise against the window
'Oh, that must be E.B.O.' Mrs Evans exclaimed, opening the window E.B.O swooped in and dropped the letter that had been held in his beak onto the kitchen table.
'It's from Tuney!' Lily announced
'Go on read it out Lily bug' Mr Evans encouraged
'Dear Family, and Sev
Happy birthday Lily! It looks like I won't be able to make it home for the Easter Holidays and Lily's Birthday.
The teachers are piling so much homework on us in preparation for the end-of-year exams they are frantic that we all must successfully get into Second-Year. All of us in Ravenclaw have been studying well in advance of the exams and I feel confident that I shall pass them.
I love Transfiguration! Professor McGonagall said I showed a lot of promise. I've won a lot of house points for Raven claw, there are giant hourglasses in the Entrance Hall that keep track of the house points. When points are earned, gems fall from the upper bulb into the lower. When points are deducted, they do the opposite, retreating into the upper bulb.
For example, when ten points were taken from Gryffindor, ten red gems would ascend back into the upper half of the hourglass. The Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin hourglasses contain rubies, yellow diamonds, sapphires, and emeralds, respectively
Did you know that Professor McGonagall is an Animagus? She can turn into an animal at will. She turns into a tabby cat.! She has grey and brown striped fur with a mark resembling an "M" on her forehead, and she has square-shaped markings around her eyes the same colour and shape as her black glasses. Unfortunately, we have to wait till Third-year to learn more about Animagi but just think about all the things we could discover if we were Animagi. We could use our animal forms to observe normal animals in their natural habitat.
I miss you all and can't wait until Sev, Lily, Rose and Tansy join me at Hogwarts.
Love Petunia
'Wouldn't it be groovy, to become an Animagus just like Professor McGonagall? Just think of all the adventures we could have!' Lily joyfully exclaimed after she had finished reading Petunia's letter
'Adventures could be fun but what about all the animal friends we could make if we become Animagi?' Rose gushed
'If we turned into something small we could explore Hogwarts without the teachers catching us for staying up late or being somewhere forbidden.' Tansy's eyes twinkled with mischief as she laid out her plans and Severus made a mental note to keep an extra eye on her lest she hurt herself.
'Tansy Jet Evans!' Mrs Evans scolded lovingly 'there are enough hours in the day to explore Hogwarts without being out after curfew.'
'Sorry mum' Tansy finished off her breakfast
Half an hour later Mr and Mrs Evans led the way to the local cinema where Mr Evans Paid £3.30 for everybody's tickets.
The Cat in the Hat turned out to be a movie based on the Dr Seuss book of the same name. The story opens on a rainy day and is too cold to play outside, so a boy named Conrad and his sister Sally sit bored and look out the window waiting for their mother to return at 3:30 sharp. The mysterious Cat in the Hat then invaded their house and proceeded to cause chaos and destruction. The movie eventually ends with the cat using a motorised vehicle to tidy things up in a jiffy. After cleaning the house, he departs, hinting that he may return someday. The Cat in the Hat leaves through the back door, right as the mother walks in through the front door leaving her none the wiser about the chaos.
It was a very funny and ridiculous movie that Severus didn't think he would have enjoyed even a year ago, being included in the Evans family he realised he was much more relaxed and carefree than he had ever been in his life.
Severus thought of the Evans' generosity. Thanks to all of the steady meals that they provided, Severus was no longer a scrawny, gaunt little boy, with long greasy black hair, he was still skinny and perhaps always would be but it was a healthy weight for a boy of his age, and his previously greasy hair was somewhat controlled as long as he didn't spend the entire day brewing potions.
After having a quick lunch that consisted of club sandwiches it was time for the party with the other children arriving within the hour.
'Come along children it's time to play What Animal Am I? If you can all line up in front of Mr Evans I'll explain the rules while he is sticking an animal onto your back.' Mrs Evans gestured to Mr Evans who was holding up a stack of animals and a sticky tape dispenser.
'Now when each of you all have an animal taped onto your back, you all walk around the room asking the other kids questions about what animal you might be. Some of the questions you can ask are do I have 4 legs? Or Do I have fur? And if you think you know what animal you are, come over to me or Mr Evans and we will tell you whether you are correct or if you need to ask more questions. The child who guesses what animal they are first is the winner.'
Lining up behind the rest of the children surrounding Mr Evans, it wasn't long before Mr Evans was taping some unknown animal to his back.
'Ready, Set, Go!' Mr Evans proclaimed when everyone had their animals
'Do I have fur?' Lily asked after bouncing straight over to him and spinning around so that he could see the animal on her back.
'No' Severus replied 'Do I have wings?' Severus turned his back to Lily and he heard her giggle
'No way!' Lily replied 'you totally don't have wings.'
Walking up to Petunia Severus asked
'Do I have fur?' Severus asked turning so that she could see his animal
'Yes!' Petunia replied enthusiastically. 'Do I have 4 legs?' Petunia twirled on the spot slowly and Severus saw what animal she was
'Yes, you do!' Replied Severus
Severus made his way over to Rose and asked,
'Do I have sharp teeth?' Severus asked turning around so Rose could see his animal
'Yes! You do! Very sharp teeth' Rose gasped
'Am I a large animal?' Rose spun around to show Severus her animal
'No! You are rather small.' Severus told her wanting at least one of the girls to win the game
Severus saw Tansy skipping happily up to him with a beaming smile on her face, bouncing on her toes as she stopped in front of him.
'Am I nocturnal?' Tansy asked jumping in the air and turning around, Severus had to take hold of her arms in order to calm Tansy down enough to see her animal
'Yes you are nocturnal' Severus assured her
'Am I a predator?' he asked hoping to narrow down the list of animals he had to go through
'YES!' Tansy squealed excitedly after she had seen the picture on his back
Knowing that still wasn't enough to guess what it is, Severus decided he just had to suck it up and actually interact with the unwashed miscreants Lily had invited to her party.
Severus gingerly made his way over to one of his and Lily's classmates, Severus wasn't sure but he thought that her name was Sally or something like that.
'Do I have paws?' Severus asked despising the fact that he had to turn his back on a stranger
'Yes, you do have paws! Sally responded in a chipper sort of tone
'Do I have limbs?' Sally asked turning around to show Severus her back
'No you don't' Severus replied
Severus walked over to the rich boy that he remembered had attended Lily's other parties, the butler had called him Montgomery.
'I say old chap isn't this a spiffing party!' Montgomery chortled
Severus once again wondered what a toff was doing slumming it in Cokeworth but he at least knew how to talk to him.
'Indeed. The Evans throw a splendid party. Shall we carry forth with the game?' Severus asked
'I must say this game is jolly good fun. You go ahead and ask your question first old chap, I'll wait.' Montgomery's insufferable cheerful disposition had Severus wondering whether the boys' parents dropped him off at parties just to get a break from him.
'Do I live in Africa? Severus turned himself around so Montgomery could see
'Jolly good guess old chap, yes indeed.' Montgomery chuffed and Severus rolled his eyes before he turned back around meeting Montgomery's jovial face so he could ask his question. 'Do I live in a burrow?'
Montgomery did some sort of jaunty turn so Severus could see what he was.
'Yes indeed, you live in a burrow.' Severus answered and if it was possible the boy became even more exuberant.
'Smashing! I'm getting close to figuring it out!' Montgomery gave Severus a cheerful wave and flounced off to ask someone else a question.
Severus walked over to a small girl with the name Betty hanging from her necklace. The girl squeaked and Severus tried to make himself less intimidating knowing what it was like to feel menaced by someone larger than himself.
'Do I have four legs?' Severus asked
'Yes,' Betty admitted shyly. 'Do I hunt at night?' The girl turned around and Severus could see what was on her back.
'Yes you hunt at night' Severus acknowledged, feeling fairly confident he knew what animal he was, Severus walked up to Mr Evans who had given it to him in the first place.
'Am I a Lion?' Severus asked turning his back
'Yes! We have a winner!' Mr Evans called happily
'Congratulations Severus!' Petunia squealed happily as she and her sisters pounced on Severus in an enthusiastic group hug.
Mr Evans gathered up the animals he had stuck to everyone's back and showed all of them what animals they were with Petunia being a deer, Lily an Elephant, Rose a Mouse, Tansy a Wolf, Severus himself being a Lion of course, much to his chagrin and bias against Gryffindor with Montgomery being a Badger, Billy a Giraffe, Sally a Snake, Betty an Owl and Elizabeth being an Eagle.
'Time for snacks!' Mr Evans called
Not wanting to miss out on the delicious-looking food Severus scampered forward collecting a bowl of crisps, a cup of trifle and a biscuit. Seating himself on the floor with the girls, Severus happily munched on his food.
'Time for the cake' Mrs Evans called across the room after everyone had eaten some snacks.
The cake looked magnificent in the glow of candlelight as it was brought into the sitting room by Mr Evans, it was a single-tier cake sliced into 3 even layers with freshly whipped cream and strawberry jam splayed out onto the 3 layers stacked back together and the outside of the cake was Strawberry ganache with sprinkles Lily closed her eyes and blew out all the candles in one go.
During the round of applause she received, Mr Evans cut the cake into slices and handed them out for everyone to enjoy. Finishing off his cake, Severus watched as Lily bounded over to her presents and grabbed the nearest parcel, ripping off the wrapping with glee, as she thanked every person for their gifts as she lovingly placed them to one side so they didn't get damaged. Her presents consisted of a variety of board games; Battleship, Guess Who, Boggle, Monopoly and Cluedo.
Severus watched in anticipation as Lily opened her present from him but it seemed he was worried for nothing as she beamed in delight at the book he had given her entitled; The Book of Herb Lore (Formerly The Book of Herbs) by Lady Rosalind Northcote
The present from her parents turned out to be an ornate gold wristwatch.
'We also plan to let you get your ears pierced before you go off to school, just like we did for your sister.' Mrs Evans explained as she helped Lily place the watch on her left wrist.
Lily's last present from her sisters was another jewellery box that contained a gold bangle with four golden animals attached to it.
'I got you a Phoenix for your bracelet because they are my favourite animal, so even if we end up in different houses at school you can look at it on your bracelet and be reminded that I'll always be with you.' Petunia explained
'The Unicorn is from me.' Rose added
'I got you the dragon!' Tansy said excitedly. 'And we all got you the Golden Sphinx.'
'It's lovely.' Lily exclaimed as Mrs Evans attached it to her right wrist
'Time for Wink Assassin' Mr Evans announced gathering up the wrapping paper
'To play the game everyone will need to stand in a circle. Mr Evans will pick one person to be the detective who will move to the middle of the circle. I'll then get everyone to close their eyes and Mr Evans will go around the circle and tap the person who becomes the Assassin on their head.
'When the choices have been made I will tell everyone to open their eyes again. The assassin will then wink at one person in the circle at a time, trying to do it without the detective seeing. When you have been winked at, you pretend to die.
The detective only has three chances to guess correctly who the assassin is; if they fail, they must remain the detective for the next round. If they guess correctly, the assassin is the detective in the next round.' Mrs Evans explained
Everyone gathered around in a circle with Severus standing between Petunia and Rose not sure if he wanted to be picked for either role on the first turn. The choice was taken out of his hand by Mr Evans impartially using the rhyme;
'Eeny, meeny, miny, moe,
Catch a tiger by the toe.
If he hollers, let him go,
Eeny, meeny, miny, moe.'
To pick Montgomery as the detective.
'Alright everyone, close your eyes!' Mrs Evans called out after Montgomery moved to the middle of the circle.
Severus felt apprehensive after having shut his eyes, his shoulders hunched and his hands clasped into fists by his side as he listened to Mr Evans as he prowled around the circle. An uneasiness settled upon Severus when Mr Evans stopped close behind him. Waiting for the inevitable Severus was surprised when Mrs Evans called out
'The assassin has been picked, open your eyes, everyone.'
Severus thankfully reopened his eyes as his whole body relaxed in relief at not being picked first. Severus watched as the boy Montgomery jumped around trying to guess the Assassin
The minute Montgomery turned his back Tansy clutched at her heart and very dramatically swooned to the floor in a heap, playing dead. Severus had to admit that the 'faint' had been so masterfully executed so smoothly without Tansy causing injury to herself.
'I guess Severus is the Assassin.' Montgomery chortled from where he was standing in the middle.
'That's incorrect!' Mr Evans called much to the boy's disappointment. 'You have two more guesses'.
'Oh drat, I thought I had it.' Montgomery declared as he continued to seek out the assassin. Doing his own sweep of the circle the people who were left were Betty, Sally, Billy, Elizabeth, Lily, Rose, himself and Petunia.
Facing Petunia, Severus locked eyes with her and it was then, the moment she winked at him that he knew, it had been Petunia all along. As Severus began to lower himself to the floor he announced 'I'm dead,' in a monotone voice before lying down
'I guess Betty is the Assassin.' Montgomery proclaimed
'That's incorrect!' Mr Evans called 'one more guess.'
'Fiddlesticks' Montgomery exclaimed
All of a sudden Lily placed the back of her hand on her forehead
'Oh, I've been hit, I'm dying!' Lily's melodramatic voice rang out, Severus couldn't help turning to watch the drama unfold as Lily collapsed to the floor in a boneless heap.
'I guess Billy is the Assassin.' Montgomery announced
'Sorry that's incorrect. Petunia was the assassin. That means you Montgomery remain as the detective for the next round so if the kids who have "died" can all stand up and everyone closes their eyes again I will choose a new assassin.' Mr Evans encouraged.
Severus hauled himself to his feet not particularly fond of feeling vulnerable with his eyes closed.
After an exhausting birthday party. Severus didn't expect Lily to be so exuberant Monday morning March 22 the day Lily actually turned 11. Waiting outside the classroom, Severus was taken aback at having a letter shoved in his face.
'It came, it came!' Lily squealed, bouncing up and down happily 'I'm magic just like you and Tuney!'
'Shhh. Keep your voice down and put the letter away before somebody sees.' Severus cautioned. 'I said you were magical! Didn't you believe me?' Severus asked, feeling slightly hurt.
'Of course, I did! But getting the letter confirming it makes it 100% real.' Lily joyously explained ramming the letter back into her backpack.
Severus snorted in amusement, now more than ever he could tell that Lily definitely wouldn't be sorted into Slytherin considering she had the subtlety of a bull charging through a shop full of fine china.
