Diagon Alley, 20 Years Ago-A Bonehead and a Carrot Head
AN: Sorry about the cheesy title (not only of this chapter but of the story) and stupid summary, but. . .I'm not that great at them. Please review anyhow! Glad that my prologue didn't scare you away! Hope this won't scare you too much! : ) Enjoy! *fingers crossed, which is kind of hard when you're trying to type quickly. . .* Oh, yes. I'd like to thank Angelisa Snape and Charisma Holly Scott for reviewing my prologue!!!! I'm really glad SOMEONE did! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! (Do you really think I need a beta-reader?! 'Cause I kind of want to do this all by me lonesome self. And I'll try to hurry! I don't want to be the cause of any deaths!)
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As Harry recovered from his dizzying traveling experience, he heard the sound of someone vomiting. After the little colorful spots (Ooh! I'm familiar with those!) stopped blocking his vision, he looked around the dark room where he stood. Harry was again blinded when a woman rushed in and turned on the light. (AN: I'm sorry if there are things in here that haven't yet been invented. I'm going to mention some things that DEFINITELY didn't exist during this time, but please bear with me.)
"Lily!" the woman cried. "Are you all right?"
"Mum. . ." the girl complained. "I was much better before you half blinded me by turning on those bloody lights. . ."
"I'm sorry dear," the woman said, contritely. "But, I was so worried, and-"
A large brown owl flying in through the open window interrupted the woman. When Lily reached out to the owl, the owl affectionately pecked her, causing the woman to gasp, and the girl to laugh. Lily petted the owl, untying the envelope that it had brought. She read out loud what was written on the envelope in emerald ink, "To Miss L. Evans, The Bed, Hospital Room 132, The Hospital of London."
Lily and her mother were shocked by what was written on an envelope delivered by owl, but Harry was even more shocked by what he had heard. Lily? L. Evans? Could it possibly be? As Lily Evans looked up at him, out of eyes the same shade and shape as his, he knew it was true. That was his mother sitting in that bed and he, Harry Potter, had somehow been transported through time and space. (I've always wanted to say that! Isn't Harry being smart, though?)
Lily opened up the letter, reading it out loud to her mother (and her son, although she hasn't realized that yet). Harry wasn't really listening to the content of the letter; he had received an identical one, decades from this moment. He just listened to the cadence of his mother's voice, something that he had only ever heard in his nightmares. He was finally in a trance; too bad he couldn't manage one in Divination. . .What was going on?
After Lily finished reading the letter, she looked up at her mother, eyes filled with hope and joy. As soon as she saw the expression on her mother's face, she started pleading as only an eleven-year old can plead. "Mum! I'm a witch! Can you believe it? Can I go?! Pretty please?" Seeing her mother's determinedly worried frown, Lily continued, more softly. "There's nothing more that can be done here. They're just making me sick and I know that the doctors have given up. Can you just let me go? Just this once? It's the only thing that you can give me, your permission to do this. . .I want to enjoy however much time I have left to live. . .Please. . ."
As Lily begged her mother to allow her to attend Hogwarts, Harry saw tears fill Mrs. Evans's eyes. He felt like he was intruding on their privacy, and he felt guilty, even though neither of them seemed to notice his presence. Except for that one moment when Lily had met his eyes, Harry had been ignored. Mrs. Evans mumbled something about discussing it with Lily's father and wishing her daughter a good night's sleep after an awkward silence, she practically ran out of the room.
"Can you please turn off the light?" Lily asked.
Harry jumped out of his skin (almost) when he realized that Lily must have been talking to him. "You don't have to explain," Lily said, calmly. "Just, please turn off the light. It's giving me a horrible headache, and I would really appreciate it if you would just turn it off. Thank you, Mr. Potter."
With that, Lily Evans fell asleep, leaving a stunned Harry Potter to his own devices. He tried to turn off the light, he really did, but his hand just went through the switch. As he contemplated the switch and his hand, he saw his grandmother tiptoe in. She silently entered the room, wiping away the few tears still leaking from her eyes. As she approached Lily, Harry could see the look of sorrow and love that she bestowed on her restlessly sleeping daughter. As she kissed Lily on the forehead and gently tucked the blankets more securely around her still frame, Lily settled down and smiled. "I love you, Mum," she whispered, contentedly.
"I love you, too," her mother responded, smiling before turning off the light and exiting the hospital room.
Harry tried to settle down in a chair that was sitting next to the bed. He was unsuccessful, and kept falling through it. Luckily, he wasn't falling through the floor, but he couldn't touch the chair or the light switch! Getting frustrated, but feeling his exhaustion, Harry gave up and fell asleep with his arm through the chair's legs.
"Mr. Potter?" Lily woke Harry up the next morning. "Mr. Potter? Are you okay? Is it just me or are you lying THROUGH that chair?"
Harry woke with a start, seeing that Lily was right. "Am I still dreaming?" he asked.
"I don't think so, Mr. Potter," Lily explained brightly. "How'd you pop up in my room, anyway? You were just there last night, and Mum didn't even notice you! I thought I was hallucinating, but since you're still here, and we're sort of holding a conversation. . ."
"Now I know I've lost my sanity," Harry said, still unsure of what had happened. "How do you know my name? And who exactly are you?"
"I'm Lily Evans," she answered only too eagerly. "I only guessed at your name, because you look exactly like a boy I met once. His name is James Potter. You two look identical! Are you brothers? He's around my age, and he's very nice."
"Well," Harry said, unsure of how much he should reveal. From the experiences he had had with traveling back in time, he knew he had to be careful not to directly change the past and therefore change the present and the future. "I know who he is, and yes, we're related. He doesn't know who I am, though, and I really can't explain how I got here."
"You seem as nice as he was!" Lily exclaimed. "The nurse who woke me up walked right through you! Are you a ghost? Is that why James Potter doesn't know you? And what's your name?"
"I'm Harry, and I don't think I'm a ghost," Harry replied. "I haven't died yet, I hope, and you seem to be the only one who even knows I exist."
"Wow!" Lily said, excited. "So much has been happening. As you overheard last night, I'm a witch! Don't laugh, it's not that unbelievable, considering what YOU are!"
"Don't worry," Harry assured her. "I'm a wizard myself, and I'm attending Hogwarts, too."
"Oh," Lily said. "Can you help me there? I mean, you don't have to help me, but I would really appreciate it!"
Harry then started to explain about the magical world. When Lily's doctors and nurses came to take her to treatments, Harry followed and bombarded Lily with information about Hogwarts, classes there, and especially Quidditch, trying not to mention anything that had not occurred yet. When he saw how Lily's eyes lit up as he described the wizard sport, he did his best to divert her attention away from what the doctors were doing to her. Later, much later, he would be able to admit to himself that he had actually been trying to divert his own attention, since Lily was calmly allowing the doctors to do whatever they wished. For her, everything was procedure; she even seemed to know more about her condition than half her doctors.
After that ordeal, Lily returned to her room and she asked that the nurses leave her alone. As soon as they left, she asked Harry hundreds of questions, most of them about Quidditch. Lily learned all the rules and was happily entranced when a nurse came in with her lunch. Lily offered to share with Harry when his stomach growled loudly at the sight and scent of the food.
He reached for the tray, expecting to see his hand go through it. Harry and Lily's hands connected, however. They both looked up, shocked, and Harry felt his body shift until he was sitting on the chair that he had been standing through a moment ago. As soon as he moved his hand away from Lily's, however, he felt himself fall through again. Lily laughed hysterically, seeing her newest friend sitting flat on his bottom looking very disgruntled with his head in the seat of a chair.
"Oh," Lily gasped. "That's the funniest thing I've seen in a long time! It wasn't really your falling; it's just your expression! You should have seen your face!"
As Lily burst into another gale of laughter, Harry glared menacingly and slowly got up. He reached out his hand, and pinched her slightly bloated flesh (a side effect of chemo). When his hand contacted her cheek, Lily grabbed at his hand, still laughing. She pushed him onto the chair with her other hand, and then released her hold on him. As he started falling through again, he grabbed her (Seeker's instinct) and felt himself solidify once again.
As soon as they both stopped laughing Harry and Lily looked questioningly at their hands. "Why do you think that when we're connected physically (sorry, couldn't phrase it much better without sounding nasty)," Lily started. "You're solid?"
Harry remembered the long strand of dark red hair, and wondered if that could be why. He didn't know whether or not to tell Lily, however, and he was deep in thought when she interrupted him.
"Harry," she said, excited. "Can you reach that drawer in the bedside table without letting go of my hand?"
When he showed her he could reach it and still hold onto her hand, she told him to open the drawer and find a plastic bag. He handed her the bag, and she immediately set to work. She withdrew a long piece of red hair from the bag and tied it swiftly and efficiently around his finger. Talking quickly as she worked, she told Harry that the hair in the bag was from before she had shaved her head bald so that she wouldn't lose hair to chemo. She expertly knotted it and smiled triumphantly at Harry, who had realized what she was doing. They instantly tested her theory by releasing one another's hands. Harry remained solid, proving that they were right.
They were interrupted from their high-five when Mrs. Evans rushed in. "Mum!" Lily said happily, with an apologetic look at Harry. "How's Petunia and Daddy?"
"I called your father last night, and we had a long discussion," Mrs. Evans explained. "We decided to let you go to this school. It's time to get you away from these doctors, and you're right. (People hate admitting this! Have you noticed I make these people too made-up and kind? Or is it just me? I'll try to fix that and throw in some selfishness and other human characteristics.) We've been holding you and keeping you away from the world, ever since you turned five and decided to shave your head. Ever since you stopped letting your hair grow, (Hah! She had so much of a choice. Chemo would have made all the hair fall out!) I haven't let you do anything with your life. Your father and I have been unfair, and we decided to let you go. If anything happens, ANYTHING, you will immediately return home, do you understand?"
Lily jumped up and hugged her crying mother. (An amazing feat considering her health and everything; she's even super-human now!) "Thank you," Lily whispered, kissing her mother. "Thank you so much, not just for letting me go, but for letting me grow up. . ."
Before Mrs. Evans departed, she made plans with Lily to go shopping for her school supplies three days before September 1, when she would depart for Hogwarts. Lily was radiant with her joy and her smiles were contagious. All the nurses and doctors who worked with her smiled as they worked. They were told that she was leaving the country and that she would no longer be treated in London, except maybe in the summers. Everyone was sad to see such an exuberant patient go, but they all wished her well.
Harry overheard Lily's doctors discussing her one night as he went for a run. He and Lily had learned that he would still go through people, but he could touch inanimate objects. No one other than Lily could see him, and he had placed his ring of hair in his pocket so that he could run through everything. Harry overheard two of Lily's doctors speaking of her and decided to ignore the maxim "Eavesdroppers never hear good about themselves" since no one knew of him, anyway. (Did I get that maxim right?!) They were discussing how much of a chance she had at living, and Harry could hear their hope for Lily, but their belief that she would not survive for long.
"The chemo she's been receiving has considerably weakened her heart," one of the doctors was saying. "And the veins which have been used to get her medication into her can't take much more."
"She's a great girl," another doctor said. "It's a shame that she had to be born in this day and age with such a horrible case of leukemia. If she were born a couple of decades later, there would have been a better chance of survival with better technology. It's a real shame that she probably won't live to see her next birthday."
The first doctor replied, "Wherever they're taking her, they better be good. Her heart needs to be monitored at all times, and even with a miracle, I don't see how she can live a normal life. She's too weak and she's too frail, although there has been much improvement since she received the school's offer. Her sudden burst of vitality won't last for long. . ."
As the doctors left, they should have been glad that Harry Potter was incapable of touching them. Sadly for them, as they walked through the doors to leave, they were hit, hard, by all of them. (Harry was now wearing his ring again.) They were puzzled, but too tired to care. Harry made sure that they tripped and had trouble finding their car keys. He vented as much of his anger out as possible before returning to Lily. How could he ruin this for her? She just received a miracle, and he couldn't take it away from her. She was full of hope and he wasn't going to let anyone ruin the rest of her life, however long it may be, by dashing her dreams.
Luckily for Harry, Lily was already asleep when he returned to her room. He took the box from its sitting place on Lily's bedside table. Even though it was in plain sight, no one knew it was there, not even Lily. He guessed it was because he didn't want her to see it, because she would recognize it, maybe not now but definitely later. Either way, he didn't want her to know it was there. Everything that he took out of the box was also unnoticed. He'd tested it on Mrs. Evans and Lily, so he didn't even bother using his invisibility cloak when he took out his Firebolt and flew out the window.
After Harry blew off most of his anger as he flew through the air, he returned to his makeshift bed. He was exhausted and just fell onto the chair and tugged on his invisibility cloak for warmth. Tomorrow, or today, since it was after midnight, he would lead Lily and her mother to Diagon Alley, where they could purchase her school supplies. His sleep was restless and fitful, because of all the concerns that this unplanned vacation to the past was causing.
~~~~~
"Hurry up!!!!" Lily was exuberant and excited.
She was walking too briskly for her mother's comfort. Leaning heavily on Harry, she had insisted on walking. She threw a tantrum (selfish and more human, don't you think?) when her mother tried to force her into her wheelchair. Lily (and Harry) showed her worried mother that she could walk well enough. "I don't want to start off in a whole new society, a whole new WORLD in a wheelchair! What will everyone think? I'll be laughed out of Hogwarts!"
Her mother was so afraid of this outburst and the threat to Lily's equilibrium and heart, she let Lily travel under her own steam. Harry was holding up most of Lily's weight however, and they had walked all the way to Gringotts before he remembered he was a wizard! (Stupidity, another human trait!) He whipped out his wand, finally, and charmed Lily so that she weighed about a sixth of her regular weight, although she barely weighed anything anyway. She was then able to carry her own weight and made Harry promise her to teach her this "Moon Charm thingy". (She called it this because what it basically does is it makes things weigh as much as they would on the moon. And I'm not even bothering with metric measurements. I'm an American, and I might try to convert everything, but I don't think you'll be too happy with my attempts.)
As Mrs. Evans happily argued with a goblin (she's a lawyer in this and likes to argue), she handed Lily a large bag of wizard money that she had just obtained from the harassed goblin. Telling her to spend as much as she needed, Mrs. Evans continued to argue about setting up an account for Lily. Lily (tried) to drag Harry out the door, but she ended up failing miserably. The "Moon Charm thingy" decreased her weight, not increase her strength, by six times, so she had very little leverage and couldn't budge Harry an inch. (She MIGHT have been able to budge him a centimeter, can't decide if he was just being nice or if he was laughing so hard he lost his balance. . .)
Lily went first to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, where Harry had (or will) purchased (or purchase, you get the point) his robes. As she was led into the fitting area/place/thingy, she saw a boy that she had never wanted to see again. She self-consciously held a hand up to her head, which was covered securely by a kerchief to hide her lack of hair. Harry saw her subtle movement and glared ferociously at Lucius Malfoy.
"You're a Muggle-born, aren't you?" Malfoy asked. "Otherwise, I would know of you or your family. My father has made me aware of all the competition, and from your clothes and manner, you're no competition. No Mudblood is."
Harry attacked Malfoy, viciously. Or he tried to, anyway. The only thing he really accomplished was to knock over the stool Malfoy was standing on as he was fitted for new robes. This accomplished quite a bit, however, because Malfoy fell face down, and he was thoroughly tangled in the long black cloth. As Malfoy angrily got to his feet, he threw some money at the assistant that had been helping him and ran out the door, yelling orders to have the robes delivered, SOON.
Lily laughed and looked questioningly at Harry. He knew what she was asking silently, but decided to use the assistant's presence to delay explaining his anger at Malfoy's comment. After a couple of minutes, the assistant finished gaping after Malfoy and finished Lily's robes quickly and efficiently. Lily thanked her with a bright smile and a generous tip (better than Malfoy who threw down just enough money to cover the delivery and his robes). As she laughingly shoved the bags into Harry's arms, she ran out the door.
Running out the door, she turned back to smirk at Harry and didn't see the giant bearing down on her. Harry's warning was too late and the collision was unavoidable. The giant was hardly affected by Lily's weight and managed to catch Lily before she hit the pavement. The only damage done to either person was the wind that had been knocked out of Lily and the conscience of the giant. (Harry corrected Lily later, telling her he was only half giant, but never to mention it.)
"It's me that's gotta apologize," the ½ giant replied. (Sorry about the dialect, but it's the best I can do. If you want me to just use regular speech for him, tell me.) "How can I make it up to yeh?"
"No, it's really my fault!" Lily said as she picked up her books before the gentlemen (HARRY!!! SHAME ON YOU!!!) could bend over.
"You should get her an owl, Hagrid," Harry said, extremely amused.
"I know! I'll get yer animal, if you haven' got one yet. Not a toad, even if they're in fashion, yeh'd still be laughed at-an' I don' like cats, they make me sneeze. I'll get yer an owl. All the kids want owls, they're dead useful, carry yer mail an' everythin'. I'm Hagrid by the way."
Harry stood there, jaw almost to his knees, as he listened to Hagrid, a friend of his. He had received almost the exact same speech when he was offered an animal when he had been eleven (20 years in the future).
Twenty minutes later, Hagrid left Lily stammering her thanks with a beautiful brown owl with golden eyes. She named it after her benefactor and couldn't figure out why Harry wouldn't stop laughing as they walked to buy her other supplies. Lily insisted on carrying Hagrid (the owl of course) and was indignant when the shop owners thought that he would be trouble.
She was equally happy with her supplies and laughed more than Harry had ever heard her laugh. After buying more items than she needed, she came to the last item on her list. Her wand. "I've been really looking forward to this!" Lily exclaimed, rushing ahead of Harry.
"I would too," Harry muttered woefully. "If I could only see past this huge stack of junk you insisted on wasting your money on!"
Lily just laughed and commented on the people who hadn't even wondered how she was carting so much stuff using the seemingly empty air. She loved the magical world and she was really enjoying having a private companion. No one else could communicate with Harry and he was a great friend, (Ask Ron and Hermione), and he really reminded her of her savior, James Potter. He was gentle and treated her like a normal person, which she hadn't felt since she turned five. He was protective to a fault and she felt as if he were her older brother. She kept all this to herself as she approached the store where she would purchase her wand.
When Lily and Harry entered Ollivanders, they both felt shivers run up their spines. Harry was remembering his own visit and was surprised when Mr. Ollivander seemed to look right at him for a moment. As Lily was treated to the same shocks that Harry had (or will) experience(d), Harry looked around, not really shocked that it was almost exactly the same as when he had last seen it. Lily looked embarrassed as she waved around wands that Mr. Ollivander chose. He rummaged around back for a few minutes before finally bringing out a wand that he thought would suit her and told her, "Try this one. 10 ¼ inches long, swish, and made of willow, a nice wand for charm work."
Lily gave this wand a long wave, and a stream of red and gold sparks shot from the end like a firework, creating a spectacular display. Mr. Ollivanders cried, "Oh, bravo! You and this wand seem to suit very well. . . From that display your wand gave us, I believe you and some of your year mates will have. . .interesting relationships."
After Lily paid for her wand and the strange prophecy (which was free), she and Harry left Mr. Ollivanders. Lily was looking slightly paler than she had earlier, but was still thoroughly enjoying herself. She bombarded Harry with MORE questions about the wizarding world, and Harry answered to the best of his ability. He discovered that his mother's interest in Quidditch wasn't just passive interest. It soon developed into an obsession that rivaled Harry's (scary thought.)
As Harry and Lily approached the bank, where they (or she) had agreed to meet her mother, they saw a man and a girl staring perplexed at a goblin. Lily gasped and started running like the wind (she does weigh very little now. . .) and the other girl turned her long neck in their direction. Seeing Lily, she also burst into a run and they met halfway. Harry dropped everything and swooned (NOT literally), seeing their affection. He recognized the girl and he couldn't believe the relationship Lily shared with this other girl. (Guess who!)
AN: You can probably guess who the girl is. It's not that difficult I think, so take a stab at it! Please review!!!!! And I've changed the Prologue a bit. I hope you people don't mind that I'm one of those people who just keep changing things. You don't have to read it, but I'll probably always make subtle adjustments! I might make so many small adjustments; it might change drastically over time. Anyhow. If there are any questions, you can ask. I might not be able to answer, but maybe other readers (if I have any) will do the courteous thing and help out. They may not be accurate, but it's the thought that counts! Review, please! I'm dying for them!!!!! : )
AN: Sorry about the cheesy title (not only of this chapter but of the story) and stupid summary, but. . .I'm not that great at them. Please review anyhow! Glad that my prologue didn't scare you away! Hope this won't scare you too much! : ) Enjoy! *fingers crossed, which is kind of hard when you're trying to type quickly. . .* Oh, yes. I'd like to thank Angelisa Snape and Charisma Holly Scott for reviewing my prologue!!!! I'm really glad SOMEONE did! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! (Do you really think I need a beta-reader?! 'Cause I kind of want to do this all by me lonesome self. And I'll try to hurry! I don't want to be the cause of any deaths!)
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As Harry recovered from his dizzying traveling experience, he heard the sound of someone vomiting. After the little colorful spots (Ooh! I'm familiar with those!) stopped blocking his vision, he looked around the dark room where he stood. Harry was again blinded when a woman rushed in and turned on the light. (AN: I'm sorry if there are things in here that haven't yet been invented. I'm going to mention some things that DEFINITELY didn't exist during this time, but please bear with me.)
"Lily!" the woman cried. "Are you all right?"
"Mum. . ." the girl complained. "I was much better before you half blinded me by turning on those bloody lights. . ."
"I'm sorry dear," the woman said, contritely. "But, I was so worried, and-"
A large brown owl flying in through the open window interrupted the woman. When Lily reached out to the owl, the owl affectionately pecked her, causing the woman to gasp, and the girl to laugh. Lily petted the owl, untying the envelope that it had brought. She read out loud what was written on the envelope in emerald ink, "To Miss L. Evans, The Bed, Hospital Room 132, The Hospital of London."
Lily and her mother were shocked by what was written on an envelope delivered by owl, but Harry was even more shocked by what he had heard. Lily? L. Evans? Could it possibly be? As Lily Evans looked up at him, out of eyes the same shade and shape as his, he knew it was true. That was his mother sitting in that bed and he, Harry Potter, had somehow been transported through time and space. (I've always wanted to say that! Isn't Harry being smart, though?)
Lily opened up the letter, reading it out loud to her mother (and her son, although she hasn't realized that yet). Harry wasn't really listening to the content of the letter; he had received an identical one, decades from this moment. He just listened to the cadence of his mother's voice, something that he had only ever heard in his nightmares. He was finally in a trance; too bad he couldn't manage one in Divination. . .What was going on?
After Lily finished reading the letter, she looked up at her mother, eyes filled with hope and joy. As soon as she saw the expression on her mother's face, she started pleading as only an eleven-year old can plead. "Mum! I'm a witch! Can you believe it? Can I go?! Pretty please?" Seeing her mother's determinedly worried frown, Lily continued, more softly. "There's nothing more that can be done here. They're just making me sick and I know that the doctors have given up. Can you just let me go? Just this once? It's the only thing that you can give me, your permission to do this. . .I want to enjoy however much time I have left to live. . .Please. . ."
As Lily begged her mother to allow her to attend Hogwarts, Harry saw tears fill Mrs. Evans's eyes. He felt like he was intruding on their privacy, and he felt guilty, even though neither of them seemed to notice his presence. Except for that one moment when Lily had met his eyes, Harry had been ignored. Mrs. Evans mumbled something about discussing it with Lily's father and wishing her daughter a good night's sleep after an awkward silence, she practically ran out of the room.
"Can you please turn off the light?" Lily asked.
Harry jumped out of his skin (almost) when he realized that Lily must have been talking to him. "You don't have to explain," Lily said, calmly. "Just, please turn off the light. It's giving me a horrible headache, and I would really appreciate it if you would just turn it off. Thank you, Mr. Potter."
With that, Lily Evans fell asleep, leaving a stunned Harry Potter to his own devices. He tried to turn off the light, he really did, but his hand just went through the switch. As he contemplated the switch and his hand, he saw his grandmother tiptoe in. She silently entered the room, wiping away the few tears still leaking from her eyes. As she approached Lily, Harry could see the look of sorrow and love that she bestowed on her restlessly sleeping daughter. As she kissed Lily on the forehead and gently tucked the blankets more securely around her still frame, Lily settled down and smiled. "I love you, Mum," she whispered, contentedly.
"I love you, too," her mother responded, smiling before turning off the light and exiting the hospital room.
Harry tried to settle down in a chair that was sitting next to the bed. He was unsuccessful, and kept falling through it. Luckily, he wasn't falling through the floor, but he couldn't touch the chair or the light switch! Getting frustrated, but feeling his exhaustion, Harry gave up and fell asleep with his arm through the chair's legs.
"Mr. Potter?" Lily woke Harry up the next morning. "Mr. Potter? Are you okay? Is it just me or are you lying THROUGH that chair?"
Harry woke with a start, seeing that Lily was right. "Am I still dreaming?" he asked.
"I don't think so, Mr. Potter," Lily explained brightly. "How'd you pop up in my room, anyway? You were just there last night, and Mum didn't even notice you! I thought I was hallucinating, but since you're still here, and we're sort of holding a conversation. . ."
"Now I know I've lost my sanity," Harry said, still unsure of what had happened. "How do you know my name? And who exactly are you?"
"I'm Lily Evans," she answered only too eagerly. "I only guessed at your name, because you look exactly like a boy I met once. His name is James Potter. You two look identical! Are you brothers? He's around my age, and he's very nice."
"Well," Harry said, unsure of how much he should reveal. From the experiences he had had with traveling back in time, he knew he had to be careful not to directly change the past and therefore change the present and the future. "I know who he is, and yes, we're related. He doesn't know who I am, though, and I really can't explain how I got here."
"You seem as nice as he was!" Lily exclaimed. "The nurse who woke me up walked right through you! Are you a ghost? Is that why James Potter doesn't know you? And what's your name?"
"I'm Harry, and I don't think I'm a ghost," Harry replied. "I haven't died yet, I hope, and you seem to be the only one who even knows I exist."
"Wow!" Lily said, excited. "So much has been happening. As you overheard last night, I'm a witch! Don't laugh, it's not that unbelievable, considering what YOU are!"
"Don't worry," Harry assured her. "I'm a wizard myself, and I'm attending Hogwarts, too."
"Oh," Lily said. "Can you help me there? I mean, you don't have to help me, but I would really appreciate it!"
Harry then started to explain about the magical world. When Lily's doctors and nurses came to take her to treatments, Harry followed and bombarded Lily with information about Hogwarts, classes there, and especially Quidditch, trying not to mention anything that had not occurred yet. When he saw how Lily's eyes lit up as he described the wizard sport, he did his best to divert her attention away from what the doctors were doing to her. Later, much later, he would be able to admit to himself that he had actually been trying to divert his own attention, since Lily was calmly allowing the doctors to do whatever they wished. For her, everything was procedure; she even seemed to know more about her condition than half her doctors.
After that ordeal, Lily returned to her room and she asked that the nurses leave her alone. As soon as they left, she asked Harry hundreds of questions, most of them about Quidditch. Lily learned all the rules and was happily entranced when a nurse came in with her lunch. Lily offered to share with Harry when his stomach growled loudly at the sight and scent of the food.
He reached for the tray, expecting to see his hand go through it. Harry and Lily's hands connected, however. They both looked up, shocked, and Harry felt his body shift until he was sitting on the chair that he had been standing through a moment ago. As soon as he moved his hand away from Lily's, however, he felt himself fall through again. Lily laughed hysterically, seeing her newest friend sitting flat on his bottom looking very disgruntled with his head in the seat of a chair.
"Oh," Lily gasped. "That's the funniest thing I've seen in a long time! It wasn't really your falling; it's just your expression! You should have seen your face!"
As Lily burst into another gale of laughter, Harry glared menacingly and slowly got up. He reached out his hand, and pinched her slightly bloated flesh (a side effect of chemo). When his hand contacted her cheek, Lily grabbed at his hand, still laughing. She pushed him onto the chair with her other hand, and then released her hold on him. As he started falling through again, he grabbed her (Seeker's instinct) and felt himself solidify once again.
As soon as they both stopped laughing Harry and Lily looked questioningly at their hands. "Why do you think that when we're connected physically (sorry, couldn't phrase it much better without sounding nasty)," Lily started. "You're solid?"
Harry remembered the long strand of dark red hair, and wondered if that could be why. He didn't know whether or not to tell Lily, however, and he was deep in thought when she interrupted him.
"Harry," she said, excited. "Can you reach that drawer in the bedside table without letting go of my hand?"
When he showed her he could reach it and still hold onto her hand, she told him to open the drawer and find a plastic bag. He handed her the bag, and she immediately set to work. She withdrew a long piece of red hair from the bag and tied it swiftly and efficiently around his finger. Talking quickly as she worked, she told Harry that the hair in the bag was from before she had shaved her head bald so that she wouldn't lose hair to chemo. She expertly knotted it and smiled triumphantly at Harry, who had realized what she was doing. They instantly tested her theory by releasing one another's hands. Harry remained solid, proving that they were right.
They were interrupted from their high-five when Mrs. Evans rushed in. "Mum!" Lily said happily, with an apologetic look at Harry. "How's Petunia and Daddy?"
"I called your father last night, and we had a long discussion," Mrs. Evans explained. "We decided to let you go to this school. It's time to get you away from these doctors, and you're right. (People hate admitting this! Have you noticed I make these people too made-up and kind? Or is it just me? I'll try to fix that and throw in some selfishness and other human characteristics.) We've been holding you and keeping you away from the world, ever since you turned five and decided to shave your head. Ever since you stopped letting your hair grow, (Hah! She had so much of a choice. Chemo would have made all the hair fall out!) I haven't let you do anything with your life. Your father and I have been unfair, and we decided to let you go. If anything happens, ANYTHING, you will immediately return home, do you understand?"
Lily jumped up and hugged her crying mother. (An amazing feat considering her health and everything; she's even super-human now!) "Thank you," Lily whispered, kissing her mother. "Thank you so much, not just for letting me go, but for letting me grow up. . ."
Before Mrs. Evans departed, she made plans with Lily to go shopping for her school supplies three days before September 1, when she would depart for Hogwarts. Lily was radiant with her joy and her smiles were contagious. All the nurses and doctors who worked with her smiled as they worked. They were told that she was leaving the country and that she would no longer be treated in London, except maybe in the summers. Everyone was sad to see such an exuberant patient go, but they all wished her well.
Harry overheard Lily's doctors discussing her one night as he went for a run. He and Lily had learned that he would still go through people, but he could touch inanimate objects. No one other than Lily could see him, and he had placed his ring of hair in his pocket so that he could run through everything. Harry overheard two of Lily's doctors speaking of her and decided to ignore the maxim "Eavesdroppers never hear good about themselves" since no one knew of him, anyway. (Did I get that maxim right?!) They were discussing how much of a chance she had at living, and Harry could hear their hope for Lily, but their belief that she would not survive for long.
"The chemo she's been receiving has considerably weakened her heart," one of the doctors was saying. "And the veins which have been used to get her medication into her can't take much more."
"She's a great girl," another doctor said. "It's a shame that she had to be born in this day and age with such a horrible case of leukemia. If she were born a couple of decades later, there would have been a better chance of survival with better technology. It's a real shame that she probably won't live to see her next birthday."
The first doctor replied, "Wherever they're taking her, they better be good. Her heart needs to be monitored at all times, and even with a miracle, I don't see how she can live a normal life. She's too weak and she's too frail, although there has been much improvement since she received the school's offer. Her sudden burst of vitality won't last for long. . ."
As the doctors left, they should have been glad that Harry Potter was incapable of touching them. Sadly for them, as they walked through the doors to leave, they were hit, hard, by all of them. (Harry was now wearing his ring again.) They were puzzled, but too tired to care. Harry made sure that they tripped and had trouble finding their car keys. He vented as much of his anger out as possible before returning to Lily. How could he ruin this for her? She just received a miracle, and he couldn't take it away from her. She was full of hope and he wasn't going to let anyone ruin the rest of her life, however long it may be, by dashing her dreams.
Luckily for Harry, Lily was already asleep when he returned to her room. He took the box from its sitting place on Lily's bedside table. Even though it was in plain sight, no one knew it was there, not even Lily. He guessed it was because he didn't want her to see it, because she would recognize it, maybe not now but definitely later. Either way, he didn't want her to know it was there. Everything that he took out of the box was also unnoticed. He'd tested it on Mrs. Evans and Lily, so he didn't even bother using his invisibility cloak when he took out his Firebolt and flew out the window.
After Harry blew off most of his anger as he flew through the air, he returned to his makeshift bed. He was exhausted and just fell onto the chair and tugged on his invisibility cloak for warmth. Tomorrow, or today, since it was after midnight, he would lead Lily and her mother to Diagon Alley, where they could purchase her school supplies. His sleep was restless and fitful, because of all the concerns that this unplanned vacation to the past was causing.
~~~~~
"Hurry up!!!!" Lily was exuberant and excited.
She was walking too briskly for her mother's comfort. Leaning heavily on Harry, she had insisted on walking. She threw a tantrum (selfish and more human, don't you think?) when her mother tried to force her into her wheelchair. Lily (and Harry) showed her worried mother that she could walk well enough. "I don't want to start off in a whole new society, a whole new WORLD in a wheelchair! What will everyone think? I'll be laughed out of Hogwarts!"
Her mother was so afraid of this outburst and the threat to Lily's equilibrium and heart, she let Lily travel under her own steam. Harry was holding up most of Lily's weight however, and they had walked all the way to Gringotts before he remembered he was a wizard! (Stupidity, another human trait!) He whipped out his wand, finally, and charmed Lily so that she weighed about a sixth of her regular weight, although she barely weighed anything anyway. She was then able to carry her own weight and made Harry promise her to teach her this "Moon Charm thingy". (She called it this because what it basically does is it makes things weigh as much as they would on the moon. And I'm not even bothering with metric measurements. I'm an American, and I might try to convert everything, but I don't think you'll be too happy with my attempts.)
As Mrs. Evans happily argued with a goblin (she's a lawyer in this and likes to argue), she handed Lily a large bag of wizard money that she had just obtained from the harassed goblin. Telling her to spend as much as she needed, Mrs. Evans continued to argue about setting up an account for Lily. Lily (tried) to drag Harry out the door, but she ended up failing miserably. The "Moon Charm thingy" decreased her weight, not increase her strength, by six times, so she had very little leverage and couldn't budge Harry an inch. (She MIGHT have been able to budge him a centimeter, can't decide if he was just being nice or if he was laughing so hard he lost his balance. . .)
Lily went first to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, where Harry had (or will) purchased (or purchase, you get the point) his robes. As she was led into the fitting area/place/thingy, she saw a boy that she had never wanted to see again. She self-consciously held a hand up to her head, which was covered securely by a kerchief to hide her lack of hair. Harry saw her subtle movement and glared ferociously at Lucius Malfoy.
"You're a Muggle-born, aren't you?" Malfoy asked. "Otherwise, I would know of you or your family. My father has made me aware of all the competition, and from your clothes and manner, you're no competition. No Mudblood is."
Harry attacked Malfoy, viciously. Or he tried to, anyway. The only thing he really accomplished was to knock over the stool Malfoy was standing on as he was fitted for new robes. This accomplished quite a bit, however, because Malfoy fell face down, and he was thoroughly tangled in the long black cloth. As Malfoy angrily got to his feet, he threw some money at the assistant that had been helping him and ran out the door, yelling orders to have the robes delivered, SOON.
Lily laughed and looked questioningly at Harry. He knew what she was asking silently, but decided to use the assistant's presence to delay explaining his anger at Malfoy's comment. After a couple of minutes, the assistant finished gaping after Malfoy and finished Lily's robes quickly and efficiently. Lily thanked her with a bright smile and a generous tip (better than Malfoy who threw down just enough money to cover the delivery and his robes). As she laughingly shoved the bags into Harry's arms, she ran out the door.
Running out the door, she turned back to smirk at Harry and didn't see the giant bearing down on her. Harry's warning was too late and the collision was unavoidable. The giant was hardly affected by Lily's weight and managed to catch Lily before she hit the pavement. The only damage done to either person was the wind that had been knocked out of Lily and the conscience of the giant. (Harry corrected Lily later, telling her he was only half giant, but never to mention it.)
"It's me that's gotta apologize," the ½ giant replied. (Sorry about the dialect, but it's the best I can do. If you want me to just use regular speech for him, tell me.) "How can I make it up to yeh?"
"No, it's really my fault!" Lily said as she picked up her books before the gentlemen (HARRY!!! SHAME ON YOU!!!) could bend over.
"You should get her an owl, Hagrid," Harry said, extremely amused.
"I know! I'll get yer animal, if you haven' got one yet. Not a toad, even if they're in fashion, yeh'd still be laughed at-an' I don' like cats, they make me sneeze. I'll get yer an owl. All the kids want owls, they're dead useful, carry yer mail an' everythin'. I'm Hagrid by the way."
Harry stood there, jaw almost to his knees, as he listened to Hagrid, a friend of his. He had received almost the exact same speech when he was offered an animal when he had been eleven (20 years in the future).
Twenty minutes later, Hagrid left Lily stammering her thanks with a beautiful brown owl with golden eyes. She named it after her benefactor and couldn't figure out why Harry wouldn't stop laughing as they walked to buy her other supplies. Lily insisted on carrying Hagrid (the owl of course) and was indignant when the shop owners thought that he would be trouble.
She was equally happy with her supplies and laughed more than Harry had ever heard her laugh. After buying more items than she needed, she came to the last item on her list. Her wand. "I've been really looking forward to this!" Lily exclaimed, rushing ahead of Harry.
"I would too," Harry muttered woefully. "If I could only see past this huge stack of junk you insisted on wasting your money on!"
Lily just laughed and commented on the people who hadn't even wondered how she was carting so much stuff using the seemingly empty air. She loved the magical world and she was really enjoying having a private companion. No one else could communicate with Harry and he was a great friend, (Ask Ron and Hermione), and he really reminded her of her savior, James Potter. He was gentle and treated her like a normal person, which she hadn't felt since she turned five. He was protective to a fault and she felt as if he were her older brother. She kept all this to herself as she approached the store where she would purchase her wand.
When Lily and Harry entered Ollivanders, they both felt shivers run up their spines. Harry was remembering his own visit and was surprised when Mr. Ollivander seemed to look right at him for a moment. As Lily was treated to the same shocks that Harry had (or will) experience(d), Harry looked around, not really shocked that it was almost exactly the same as when he had last seen it. Lily looked embarrassed as she waved around wands that Mr. Ollivander chose. He rummaged around back for a few minutes before finally bringing out a wand that he thought would suit her and told her, "Try this one. 10 ¼ inches long, swish, and made of willow, a nice wand for charm work."
Lily gave this wand a long wave, and a stream of red and gold sparks shot from the end like a firework, creating a spectacular display. Mr. Ollivanders cried, "Oh, bravo! You and this wand seem to suit very well. . . From that display your wand gave us, I believe you and some of your year mates will have. . .interesting relationships."
After Lily paid for her wand and the strange prophecy (which was free), she and Harry left Mr. Ollivanders. Lily was looking slightly paler than she had earlier, but was still thoroughly enjoying herself. She bombarded Harry with MORE questions about the wizarding world, and Harry answered to the best of his ability. He discovered that his mother's interest in Quidditch wasn't just passive interest. It soon developed into an obsession that rivaled Harry's (scary thought.)
As Harry and Lily approached the bank, where they (or she) had agreed to meet her mother, they saw a man and a girl staring perplexed at a goblin. Lily gasped and started running like the wind (she does weigh very little now. . .) and the other girl turned her long neck in their direction. Seeing Lily, she also burst into a run and they met halfway. Harry dropped everything and swooned (NOT literally), seeing their affection. He recognized the girl and he couldn't believe the relationship Lily shared with this other girl. (Guess who!)
AN: You can probably guess who the girl is. It's not that difficult I think, so take a stab at it! Please review!!!!! And I've changed the Prologue a bit. I hope you people don't mind that I'm one of those people who just keep changing things. You don't have to read it, but I'll probably always make subtle adjustments! I might make so many small adjustments; it might change drastically over time. Anyhow. If there are any questions, you can ask. I might not be able to answer, but maybe other readers (if I have any) will do the courteous thing and help out. They may not be accurate, but it's the thought that counts! Review, please! I'm dying for them!!!!! : )
