~Author's note~ This is my newest Lily/ James story, although they won't fall in love for a long time. So please review and tell me what you think. I won't work on this story as much as I'll work on my story Jaguar Brazil- Book One, because I like that story better, and it is better. So please read and review that too.
~Disclaimer~ Everything I own belongs to me.
Chapter One—Prologue
The morning was bright and sunny by eight-o clock in the morning, when a girl named Lily Evans woke up in her London house. She sat up slowly, feeling strangely peaceful as she stood up. For once the floor wasn't chilly, as the day was growing hot already. Although she was only a young child, she could tell that the day would be sweltering.
But she felt strange somehow. As if she had been really sad last night. But she couldn't tell why, until she went downstairs and her sister broke the bad news to her.
"So Lily," Petunia Evans said as she sat across the table from Lily. Their parents, Robert and Iris Evans were still asleep. The two girls, who were good friends, were just sitting at the table, not eating anything.
Lily looked up. "Yeah?" She was thinking about how she would go play with her best friend Sierra later that day. Sierra lived next door to her.
"Aren't you going to go say goodbye to Sierra?"
And Lily remembered. Sierra Linden was moving away. Her family had only been planning for just over a week. And her only friend, her best friend was moving away. Because the new family would be moving into the house in three days.
"Oh no!" the ten year old said loudly, looking very upset all of a sudden. She couldn't remember a time when Sierra hadn't been around.
"I don't understand it!" Lily said loudly. "Don't they care about her? Or me?"
Petunia shrugged. "I guess not."
"I tried doing magic last night. I wished on a million stars! And it doesn't work. I told you, Petunia. Magic doesn't exist."
The eleven-year-old girl glared at Lily. "Of course magic exists! And someday, someone will come and sweep me away to live in a beautiful place where I can do as much magic as I want!" She looked smug for a moment. "And I'm sure it will be soon. Besides," she added. "I tried doing some spells, and I'm sure they worked. Don't worry, Lillian; you won't be apart from Sierra for long."
Lily sighed and rolled her eyes. She didn't believe in magic at all. Only things that were logical and made sense. And Petunia really believed in all that stuff with all of her heart. Lily pitied her.
"You poor girl. If you really believe in all that stuff, there must be something seriously wrong with your head," said Lily, standing up to leave.
"Well, guess what Lily? I bet you're just jealous!" Petunia said loudly, before turning and flouncing out of the dining room.
Lily sighed and ran out of her house and into the house next door.
"Ack!" she said, as two big men pushed past her, carrying a dresser.
"Hey!" one of them yelled. "Watch it."
Lily turned around and stomped on his foot. "You watch it," she yelled. "I'm not the one who just ran into a little girl, you git!"
The men ignored her, and she went further into the house. She wasn't used to it being this empty. She didn't remember he Lindens moving in, so she couldn't think of that. Maybe it had been her family that had moved there. She didn't know.
Pushing back her long red hair, she glared around the room with her big light green eyes. Mrs. Linden was standing in the doorway, with her back facing Lily. The girl marched over and yelled.
"You're still moving away?" Lily was enraged. She and Sierra had given her parents the silent treatment and guilt trip during the last week, trying to convince them to let Sierra stay. "I can't believe it."
Louisa Linden turned around and looked down at the girl, whose eyes were filled with sadness and distrust.
"Lily… I know this is hard for you—it is for Sierra too! But we have to move. You understand that, don't you?"
But Lily didn't understand. She didn't know why these people would take away her best friend like this. Why? By this time next week, some new girl would be in the window of Sierra's room, and when Lily went into her yard, some new dad would be watering the grass.
"And you two will keep in touch! You have other friends, and Sierra will make some," Mrs. Linden continued.
"No!" Lily said. "I don't have any other friends! We didn't need any. And I don't want to make new friends. I just want Sierra as my friend. You don't get it. All you think about is what you need. Not anyone else."
"Lils…"
"Don't call me that!" Lily said flatly, glaring at the woman. Mrs. Linden pushed back her black hair, and bent down next to the girl. She had never seen anyone look at her like that. For a moment, she understood why all the other kids thought that she was strange. Then she shook off the feeling.
"Only someone who I trust—someone who would never stab me in the back like this can call me that."
"I'm truly sorry, Lils—Lily. But we have to do this. You understand."
"No. I don't," Lily said. "I'm going to see Sierra."
With that, she turned and stomped up the stairs to her best friend's room.
Sierra Linden was a short girl with short dark brown hair. She was really pretty and nice and likeable. The other kids at school liked her, and put up with Lily, because Sierra was popular. She had big blue eyes, and was really beautiful. Lily knew she was pretty, but she thought she faded into the background compared to Sierra.
When Lily burst into her room, Sierra was sitting in the corner, hugging her legs to her chest, and crying. She looked up when Lily came in and sat next to her.
"I don't want to go!" she cried. "Oh Lily! Don't they care about me? At all?"
Lily only shook her head. She didn't know what to say, so she settled for wrapping her arms around her best friend, and giving her a hug.
After nearly an hour, during which the two girls sat and cried, and talked about what their lives would be like when they were apart, Sierra pulled away, and wiped her face on her shirt.
"Oh Lily! I'll miss you so much. And I wish I weren't going."
"I know Sierra. Why are they making you go?"
"I don't know! But you'll make new friends."
"No I won't. Sierra. You know that everyone hates me. They think I'm so strange."
Sierra sighed. "Well… maybe you'll be friend with whoever moves into this house." She waved her arms around her bedroom. "And when you look out your bedroom window, you'll see them, instead of me."
"No way. I'm not going to be friends with anyone who takes your house. It wouldn't be the same."
"You have to promise to write me everyday, and to call all the time!" Sierra said.
There was a soft knocking at the door, and both of the girls turned towards the doorway. Mr. Linden opened the door and walked in.
Lily knew what he would say, and she knew that she didn't want to here it.
"Come on Sierra," the father said, excited. "Here's your coat." He tried to hand her the jacket, when it caught on fire.
"What the--" he said in alarm, throwing it on the floor and stomping on it.
Lily leapt back, and Sierra stared in disbelief. She had known that they could set things on fire; when they were younger, they had practiced setting ants on fire by concentrating very hard on them.
Lily knew she had done it, but she didn't know how. She hadn't even tried. And yet, she could feel a strange force in her head, and she could feel energy. There was no doubt that she had started the fire.
"Well," Mr. Linden announced after stomping out the fire. "That must be the oddest thing I have ever seen." He scratched his thinning hair. "I don't know where that happened…" He stopped and looked at Sierra, who was looking at Lily curiously. If was almost as if they didn't have to use words to communicate. "Well, you know… We have to be getting on the road, Si."
Sierra hugged Lily one last time, and walked to the doorway.
"All right, Lily?" the father said as a last greeting, before he walked down the stairs.
Sierra looked horrified as she followed him down the stairs.
Lily stood in what had once been her best friend's room, and looked at the now-blackened anorak lying on the floor of the empty room. Outside of the window, she saw Sierra climb into the car, and felt a horrible sadness. Maybe if she had been more persuasive to Sierra's parents, her father wouldn't have taken this new job, and she wouldn't have had to move.
But Lily couldn't stay in the house much longer. The cleaners were coming, and this house no longer belonged to the Lindens. She didn't have the right to just walk through it anymore. And besides, it was creepy being alone in an empty house. Completely empty, except for Lily and a burnt jacket.
She picked up the coat and carried it back to her house, where her mother hugged her.
"I know this seems like a big deal now," she said. "But someday if won't be. Now, I'm not saying that you'll make new friends right away, but when you transfer schools next year, I'm sure you will. And Sierra will too. I went through the same thing when I was your age. Maybe someday I'll tell you. Why don't you go take a nap Lily? I'll bring you up some tea, if you'd like."
Feeling pale and drained, Lily made her way slowly up to her room, while her mother set the coat on a table, not knowing what her daughter meant to do with it.
She had always been such a strange child.
Lily was still sad the next day when she woke up. But maybe there was some sort of hope. Her life didn't have to end because her best friend was gone. And maybe another girl would move in next door and become her new friend. She didn't want to think about it then, though. For awhile, she could pretend everything was normal. Even though she was only eleven years old, she wasn't stupid. Lily knew that no matter how she and Sierra wanted to keep in touch, they couldn't forever.
And even if they did, soon they wouldn't have anything in common and nothing to talk about.
"She'll make new friends and forget all about me!" Lily said to herself. "But I'll be stuck here with all the people who hate me."
The thought almost made her wish it were she who was moving.
Lily was a very outgoing girl. She was brave to the point of almost being fearless. And she was smart and good at sports. But the other kids had hated her for a long time.
She could have been very popular, except for the weird things that always seemed to happen around her. Once, she had turned the teacher's hair bright green, when she had called Lily's parents. Odd things had constantly happened to people who picked on her. And strange things sometimes happened to Sierra also. Once, some kid had been talking about what a loser Lily was, when his face had exploded into a horrible itchy rash. Since Lily hadn't been around, everyone just assumed that Lily's oddness was rubbing off on people. So they avoided her.
Lily smiled as she remembered how Sierra had always stood up for her, even when all the other children rallied against her. That was what made Sierra such a good friend.
"I guess she'll be a good friend to someone else soon," Lily whispered. The thought really didn't make her feel any better.
Downstairs, Petunia was watching TV, while her mother washed the breakfast dishes.
"How are you doing today, honey?" Iris asked, wiping her hands on a rag.
"I'm okay," Lily replied shrugging.
"Well, in that case, you can help me finish the dishes," Iris laughed, tossing Lily a sponge.
"Actually," Lily said, backing away so that the sponge fell onto the floor. "Um… I don't think I feel quite up to it."
"Really?" Iris laughed. "You can do them after dinner tonight."
"But Mum! It's Nia's turn!"
"Fine. Why don't you run along. Go meet the new neighbors!"
"New neighbors? I thought they weren't coming yet! How long have I been sleeping?!"
Iris laughed and pushed back her long blond hair. "Just yesterday and last night. I guess the new neighbors decided they needed to move in early. They just got here a few hours ago. I'm going to make them a house-warming gift soon. You can take it over."
Lily hadn't expected anyone to move into the Linden's house so soon. Now someone was already taking Sierra's room, and putting their posters on the wall, and their dog had already ruined the carpet… Lily tried to sound casual.
"Oh. Well, maybe they have a kid…"
"Petunia says she saw a boy and a girl, but she thought that she was too old to play with them. Perhaps they're your age."
"Hmm…" She didn't really want to see the new kids, but maybe it would be all right, as long as they didn't think she was weird. And maybe she could make friends with them, and start the new year of school with some friends.
And hour later, Lily took the finished Jell-O in a mold and walked over to her neighbors house. Her head was filled with questions, and she wished that Sierra were with her. Lily wasn't shy, but she hated being made fun of. Of course, if Sierra were there, Lily wouldn't be in that situation.
She raised her hand to knock on the door when someone yanked it open from the other side.
~Author's note~ So how was that for a prologue? I thought it was okay. If I get some nice reviews, I'll update it (I will anyway, but I'll do it faster with reviews) Also, if you like one of my stories, review it more, and I'll update it faster. Thanks!
KirjavaLyra, October11, 2002