Author's Note: Ah, it is so great to get complementary reviews. So I here I
give thanks.
Hanna-chan & Aimee thanks so much for reading; I'm glad you liked it.
LilyPrincess- You'll just have to wait and see now won't you, thanks for
the review.
The Lady Sorcha of Sevenwaters- Thank you I am glad you like it and I hope
you like this chapter too!
And, SleepieCareBear- I am glad you like it, thanks for the review!
Ah, and the disclaimer. I sadly do not own Lily or James or Sirius or Remus *though I'd like to. hah* Oops. anyways. Don't sue me, I have no money. All flames will be used to light my smokes so thp! Read and review! I hope you like it!! ~Frankie~
Chapter Three: Kindness in London
Lily made her way to London in less than a week, blending in completely with the other invisible people who slept on the park benches and in the alleys of the streets. One night soon after Lily arrived in London she was sitting on the grass under a tree in a park in a fairly well to do neighborhood when a cat came trundling up to her and started licking her hand with its scratchy tongue which cheered Lily up quite a bit. Lily had always liked cats. "Hello there, aren't you gorgeous," Lily said and the cat purred appreciatively. The cat was completely black with bright green eyes and had amazingly soft fur.
Lily heard a voice calling out nearby, "Vixen, where in the devil are you?"
"Are you looking for a cat?" Lily called out hoping that the voice belonged to the cat's owner.
"Yes," said a voice before coming out from behind a tree. The owner of the cat was wearing pajamas and had bright blue eyes and dark brown hair and she was Lily's age. The woman seeing Lily, looked confused and muttered something that sounded like, "But she doesn't go near muggles," before saying loud enough for Lily to understand, "Thank you so much. Vixen just loves to run away at all hours. Why are you outside at this time of night?" she asked.
"About to get some sleep before going to look for a job," Lily said quietly, still petting Vixen which purred loudly and meowed at its owner.
"Really? You're sleeping outside? Don't you have somewhere to stay?" she asked.
"I ran away from my sister's house. She was making me into a slave and I couldn't stand it," Lily said a slight tremble echoing in her voice.
"Well, I'm Arabella Figg and if you would accept I would like to thank you for finding Vixen by giving you a place to stay until you can get a job," Arabella said kindly and offered her hand to Lily to help her up off the ground.
"Oh gosh, I wouldn't want to intrude or anything like that," Lily said embarrassed. "I've got a shower, food and a warm bed. I'm not asking you, I'm telling you," Arabella said firmly.
"Are you sure? I mean as far as you know I could be some psychopath looking for victims," Lily said in a stunned voice.
"Vixen wouldn't have gone near you if you were. So tell me your name and we'll get going," Arabella said gently still holding out her hand.
"I'm Lily Evans," Lily said picking up her bag and letting Vixen off her lap before standing with Arabella's hand as help.
"Well Lily, it's nice to meet you. So how about something to eat?" Arabella said and led the way through the park to her home that was warm, inviting and filled with at least a dozen more cats who all liked Lily just as much as Vixen had causing Arabella to look at her strangely.
"Is something wrong?" Lily asked quietly wondering if she smelt horrible or looked as horrible as she felt.
"Nothing really, just that my cats don't tend to take to Mu-uh-strangers," Arabella covered and went to show Lily to a room and get her towels for a shower. "I'll make you something light to eat and we can get to know each other a little better, after you clean up," she said laying two large white towels on the toilet seat.
"You have no idea how much I appreciate this Arabella," Lily said smiling, barely hiding the tears of gratitude that were looking to spill from her eyes.
"It really is no problem. Now hurry up, I haven't had company in ages," Arabella said pushing Lily into the bathroom and closing the door behind her. Arabella heard the shower turn on about ten minutes later and began heating up some soup and a kettle for tea. She was wondering why Vixen and her other cats had so taken to Lily when they never, ever liked muggles. She decided to write a quick letter to the fountain of all knowledge from her school days at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Professor Albus Dumbledore.
Dear Professor,
I have just taken in someone that I believe to be a muggle. She's homeless and one of my cats, (who you know very well detest muggles, and thanks again for clearing that up for me), ran out and went right up to her being like she would with any other witch or wizard. Her name is Lily Evans and I'm strangely concerned about her, like she's an old friend who is in trouble. Please send your advice as soon as possible as I know you are a very busy man. I hope that the weather is good up there, it's fair here, and thank you again for everything.
Arabella Figg
Arabella folded up the letter and sent it off with her owl Perseus just as the shower turned off in the bathroom.
Lily stepped out of the bathroom a few minutes later in jeans and a sweater and her vibrant red hair hanging wetly down almost a foot below her shoulders. "You clean up very nice," Arabella said smiling and gesturing to the waiting soup and tea at the cozy dinning room table.
"Thank you," Lily said smiling and driving all the accumulated shadows from her face before she quickly braided her hair and put it up so it hung a little below her shoulders.
"Again, it's no problem, eat," Arabella said sitting across from Lily at the table. "Tell me a little bit about your self Lily," she said quietly.
"Well, I'm 17; I graduated from high school barely a week ago. I was raised by my parents with my sister Petunia who is five years older then I am. My parents died when I was fifteen essentially driving me into the depths of hell to live with my sister and her vile husband Vernon Dursley," Lily said in a calmly bitter voice as she spooned some soup into her mouth rather elegantly. "I couldn't stand being treated as if I was barely a person so I left saying that I wouldn't be going back and I don't plan to. I honestly doubt I will ever speak with her again," she continued after she had swallowed the delicious soup.
"I'm very sorry," Arabella said in a comforting voice as Vixen began winding her way through and around Lily's legs.
"It's okay, I'll be fine. You know something; you're the closest thing I've had to a friend since before I was 15," Lily said quietly as she reached that realization not really certain on what she was feeling other then immense amounts of gratitude towards this person she barely knew and was starting to like quite a bit. "Tell me something of you Arabella," Lily said kindly.
"Well I lived with my parents constantly until I was 11 and I went to boarding school 10 months out of the year in northern Scotland, and then I only spent summers and vacations with them. That's where I met my ex- fiancé, at school. Then I graduated just last year and I've been living with all these cats ever since," Arabella said gently.
"Ex-fiancé?" Lily asked quietly hoping the subject wasn't too touchy for her.
"Well we dated since my 5th year at school and when we got into the real world we discovered some problems. Like Sirius' immaturity and my pushiness. It just wasn't working out so we parted ways and are still friends," Arabella said without even a hint of bitterness but maybe just a touch of loneliness somewhere in there.
"You still love him?" Lily asked quietly again hoping that she wasn't prying too much into this kind woman's life.
"Yes, very much; I just can't handle living like we're still in school expecting him to pull pranks every other say. I expect that when he grows up enough to realize the world isn't just pranks and jokes that he'll come back," Arabella said and sighed wistfully.
"I wish I knew what it was like to be in love, like my parents were, like you and Sirius," Lily said pausing with a spoonful of soup midway into the air.
"Don't' worry Lily, you'll meet someone eventually," Arabella said brightly. "Now, finish your soup, I have to feed the cats before they attack us and gnaw on our bones," and she skipped out of the room to the sound of Lily's delighted laughter.
Lily smiled and finished her soup listening to Arabella's cats scurry around attempting to get the food. By the time Arabella finished Lily was yawning and Arabella led her to here guest room and Vixen rushed in and hid beneath the bed, meowing as if telling Arabella to go away.
"It seems that Vixen has taken to you, and there isn't much I can do to reverse it," Arabella said apologetically.
"Oh, I really don't mind. Don't worry about it," Lily said smiling and reaching over to pet Vixen who had come out from under the bed and jumped on top of it.
"Okay, sleep well Lily," Arabella said closing the door as she left the room.
Lily changed into some pajamas that Arabella had left for her and she looked around at her surroundings. There was a very nice sleigh bed in mahogany in the center of the room covered with red and gold pillows and comforter. The bed looked so inviting that the only thing Lily unpacked was the framed photo of her parents. She set it on the nightstand and crawled into the bed and Vixen lay on the covers next to her. In less than 10 minutes Lily was sleeping peacefully.
Author's Note: I hope you liked this chapter even though it's kind of just a filler chapter. I'll try to get the next chapter out soon as I just have to type it up and stuff. So Please, read and review! ~Frankie~
Ah, and the disclaimer. I sadly do not own Lily or James or Sirius or Remus *though I'd like to. hah* Oops. anyways. Don't sue me, I have no money. All flames will be used to light my smokes so thp! Read and review! I hope you like it!! ~Frankie~
Chapter Three: Kindness in London
Lily made her way to London in less than a week, blending in completely with the other invisible people who slept on the park benches and in the alleys of the streets. One night soon after Lily arrived in London she was sitting on the grass under a tree in a park in a fairly well to do neighborhood when a cat came trundling up to her and started licking her hand with its scratchy tongue which cheered Lily up quite a bit. Lily had always liked cats. "Hello there, aren't you gorgeous," Lily said and the cat purred appreciatively. The cat was completely black with bright green eyes and had amazingly soft fur.
Lily heard a voice calling out nearby, "Vixen, where in the devil are you?"
"Are you looking for a cat?" Lily called out hoping that the voice belonged to the cat's owner.
"Yes," said a voice before coming out from behind a tree. The owner of the cat was wearing pajamas and had bright blue eyes and dark brown hair and she was Lily's age. The woman seeing Lily, looked confused and muttered something that sounded like, "But she doesn't go near muggles," before saying loud enough for Lily to understand, "Thank you so much. Vixen just loves to run away at all hours. Why are you outside at this time of night?" she asked.
"About to get some sleep before going to look for a job," Lily said quietly, still petting Vixen which purred loudly and meowed at its owner.
"Really? You're sleeping outside? Don't you have somewhere to stay?" she asked.
"I ran away from my sister's house. She was making me into a slave and I couldn't stand it," Lily said a slight tremble echoing in her voice.
"Well, I'm Arabella Figg and if you would accept I would like to thank you for finding Vixen by giving you a place to stay until you can get a job," Arabella said kindly and offered her hand to Lily to help her up off the ground.
"Oh gosh, I wouldn't want to intrude or anything like that," Lily said embarrassed. "I've got a shower, food and a warm bed. I'm not asking you, I'm telling you," Arabella said firmly.
"Are you sure? I mean as far as you know I could be some psychopath looking for victims," Lily said in a stunned voice.
"Vixen wouldn't have gone near you if you were. So tell me your name and we'll get going," Arabella said gently still holding out her hand.
"I'm Lily Evans," Lily said picking up her bag and letting Vixen off her lap before standing with Arabella's hand as help.
"Well Lily, it's nice to meet you. So how about something to eat?" Arabella said and led the way through the park to her home that was warm, inviting and filled with at least a dozen more cats who all liked Lily just as much as Vixen had causing Arabella to look at her strangely.
"Is something wrong?" Lily asked quietly wondering if she smelt horrible or looked as horrible as she felt.
"Nothing really, just that my cats don't tend to take to Mu-uh-strangers," Arabella covered and went to show Lily to a room and get her towels for a shower. "I'll make you something light to eat and we can get to know each other a little better, after you clean up," she said laying two large white towels on the toilet seat.
"You have no idea how much I appreciate this Arabella," Lily said smiling, barely hiding the tears of gratitude that were looking to spill from her eyes.
"It really is no problem. Now hurry up, I haven't had company in ages," Arabella said pushing Lily into the bathroom and closing the door behind her. Arabella heard the shower turn on about ten minutes later and began heating up some soup and a kettle for tea. She was wondering why Vixen and her other cats had so taken to Lily when they never, ever liked muggles. She decided to write a quick letter to the fountain of all knowledge from her school days at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Professor Albus Dumbledore.
Dear Professor,
I have just taken in someone that I believe to be a muggle. She's homeless and one of my cats, (who you know very well detest muggles, and thanks again for clearing that up for me), ran out and went right up to her being like she would with any other witch or wizard. Her name is Lily Evans and I'm strangely concerned about her, like she's an old friend who is in trouble. Please send your advice as soon as possible as I know you are a very busy man. I hope that the weather is good up there, it's fair here, and thank you again for everything.
Arabella Figg
Arabella folded up the letter and sent it off with her owl Perseus just as the shower turned off in the bathroom.
Lily stepped out of the bathroom a few minutes later in jeans and a sweater and her vibrant red hair hanging wetly down almost a foot below her shoulders. "You clean up very nice," Arabella said smiling and gesturing to the waiting soup and tea at the cozy dinning room table.
"Thank you," Lily said smiling and driving all the accumulated shadows from her face before she quickly braided her hair and put it up so it hung a little below her shoulders.
"Again, it's no problem, eat," Arabella said sitting across from Lily at the table. "Tell me a little bit about your self Lily," she said quietly.
"Well, I'm 17; I graduated from high school barely a week ago. I was raised by my parents with my sister Petunia who is five years older then I am. My parents died when I was fifteen essentially driving me into the depths of hell to live with my sister and her vile husband Vernon Dursley," Lily said in a calmly bitter voice as she spooned some soup into her mouth rather elegantly. "I couldn't stand being treated as if I was barely a person so I left saying that I wouldn't be going back and I don't plan to. I honestly doubt I will ever speak with her again," she continued after she had swallowed the delicious soup.
"I'm very sorry," Arabella said in a comforting voice as Vixen began winding her way through and around Lily's legs.
"It's okay, I'll be fine. You know something; you're the closest thing I've had to a friend since before I was 15," Lily said quietly as she reached that realization not really certain on what she was feeling other then immense amounts of gratitude towards this person she barely knew and was starting to like quite a bit. "Tell me something of you Arabella," Lily said kindly.
"Well I lived with my parents constantly until I was 11 and I went to boarding school 10 months out of the year in northern Scotland, and then I only spent summers and vacations with them. That's where I met my ex- fiancé, at school. Then I graduated just last year and I've been living with all these cats ever since," Arabella said gently.
"Ex-fiancé?" Lily asked quietly hoping the subject wasn't too touchy for her.
"Well we dated since my 5th year at school and when we got into the real world we discovered some problems. Like Sirius' immaturity and my pushiness. It just wasn't working out so we parted ways and are still friends," Arabella said without even a hint of bitterness but maybe just a touch of loneliness somewhere in there.
"You still love him?" Lily asked quietly again hoping that she wasn't prying too much into this kind woman's life.
"Yes, very much; I just can't handle living like we're still in school expecting him to pull pranks every other say. I expect that when he grows up enough to realize the world isn't just pranks and jokes that he'll come back," Arabella said and sighed wistfully.
"I wish I knew what it was like to be in love, like my parents were, like you and Sirius," Lily said pausing with a spoonful of soup midway into the air.
"Don't' worry Lily, you'll meet someone eventually," Arabella said brightly. "Now, finish your soup, I have to feed the cats before they attack us and gnaw on our bones," and she skipped out of the room to the sound of Lily's delighted laughter.
Lily smiled and finished her soup listening to Arabella's cats scurry around attempting to get the food. By the time Arabella finished Lily was yawning and Arabella led her to here guest room and Vixen rushed in and hid beneath the bed, meowing as if telling Arabella to go away.
"It seems that Vixen has taken to you, and there isn't much I can do to reverse it," Arabella said apologetically.
"Oh, I really don't mind. Don't worry about it," Lily said smiling and reaching over to pet Vixen who had come out from under the bed and jumped on top of it.
"Okay, sleep well Lily," Arabella said closing the door as she left the room.
Lily changed into some pajamas that Arabella had left for her and she looked around at her surroundings. There was a very nice sleigh bed in mahogany in the center of the room covered with red and gold pillows and comforter. The bed looked so inviting that the only thing Lily unpacked was the framed photo of her parents. She set it on the nightstand and crawled into the bed and Vixen lay on the covers next to her. In less than 10 minutes Lily was sleeping peacefully.
Author's Note: I hope you liked this chapter even though it's kind of just a filler chapter. I'll try to get the next chapter out soon as I just have to type it up and stuff. So Please, read and review! ~Frankie~