AN: This chapter is dedicated to my first two reviewers, padfoots-angellover and my first reviewer ever, hum diddly dum diddly (). Thanks you guys. You inspired me to write over a page in one day with your wonderful reviews. That's quite an accomplishment. I'm glad such nice people are willing to comment on my story. CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is greatly appreciated.
I'm so sorry about how late this is, but I've had numerous problems since the last chapter came up. The least of these including the fact that I am STILL recovering from mono and have been getting sick frequently. Wish I could make up for it, but my mind still kind of works in reverse still.
Now that I'm through with my little rant, I guess I should say that I don't own Harry Potter or said characters. Any characters you recognize belong to J.K. Rowling et all. I really only own the plot, ideas, and personalities of the characters. There are also several original characters that make their debut in this chapter, they are mine and are not up for rent.
As One Door Closes, Another One Opens
The rest of the school year was, to say the least, interesting for the two young magic users. Lily and Remus now had one more secret to separate them from the rest of society. They had always been on the sidelines because of Remus' lycanthropy, but they had never minded. Recesses that had once been spent playing hop-scotch and tag, were now spent on quiet conversations about the Wizarding World in private. Neither noticed the looks they were receiving from classmates who noticed the much more confident air around the outcasts. Even if people got close enough to hear the conversation in their curiosity, they wouldn't have been able to understand. Lily and Remus tended to switch from English, to Russian, to Gaelic, to Irish, and back again. This came from Lily's heritage on her father's side since his father had been half Irish, half Scottish and his mother full Russian.
Lily took up drawing, she enjoyed the way she could create pictures of things that never were. She drew many pictures of herself and Remus wearing long robes and carrying wands. She once drew Remus looking far older, in his thirties perhaps. This one she had colored in and you saw a generous lacing of silver in his hair. His eyes and face showed signs of pain and constant exhaustion, his clothes, old and well-worn. On his shoulder, almost invisible, was a tiny glowing fairy, a small butterfly rested comfortably in his hair, and twined around his extended arm was a small, serpent-like dragon. Remus and Lily just considered it a really good drawing. Neither realized that Lily's art had become a conduit for something they could only begin to imagine; something that had only begun to develop.
Remus, well, Remus wasn't doing too well. It wasn't that his transformations had been causing an unusually large amount of damage. It was just the opposite in fact. Because Remus was unlike other werewolves, even though he didn't keep his mind during the transformations, his heart was still pure. His soul was a human's soul, the normal transformation into the typical werewolf had really only been on both the physical and mental planes. There would occasionally be times when Remus would transform, but his soul and heart would fight the darkness that made him seek to kill. At those times, his body would be fairly undamaged, but his heart and soul would be in pain for many months. Thankfully, they often didn't happen more than twice a year, but the first transformation after they had been invited to Hogwarts saw Remus with only a few scrapes and eyes filled with pain.
The only comfort that could be given to Remus at the times of the introspective transformations was the sound of Lily's voice or an instrument she played. No one could figure out what kind of power Lily held over her cousin's transformation, but it was assumed that it was part of what had allowed her to stop the transformation of soul and heart years before. That was one of the more prominent reasons Lily spent the night of the full moon at the Lupin house, and it was the reason she hated the most.
Lily was a very gentle soul for the most part, except when somebody got her angry. She had a huge temper, but it was extremely difficult to provoke her. She had rarely been provoked, although Petunia had caused several outbursts during the years. To see her favorite family member in so much emotional and spiritual pain tore at her heart and she would often cry while Remus slept the day away. To her, it became imperative that Remus be comfortable, not just with his surroundings but also within himself. She made sure to keep his self-esteem up and often took on a great deal of the guilt and blame in order to spare him.
They still played many pranks, having become far more inventive over the years in order to keep surprising people. Once, they tie-dyed the fur of their teacher's dog. Their parents had remarked on how beautiful the dog had looked, each knowing their children had pulled a prank on the teacher that couldn't be proven.
The summer was spent mostly practicing their music and staying away from Petunia, who had turned almost vicious towards Lily and Remus. Neither was adverse to remaining away, they preferred it that way. Lily especially enjoyed the feeling of being free of Petunia, who she felt had smothered her all of her life.
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July 31 dawned bright and early for Lily. She quickly dressed in a red plaid skirt, white button-up top, black knee-highs, black loafers, and gray sweater. Her hair was brushed and braided tightly before being wrapped around her head and pinned in place. Running downstairs, she had a quick breakfast consisting of pancakes and eggs before running back upstairs. Grabbing her list and a few other things, Lily left the house, kissing her father and mother goodbye as they prepared for work. She ran down the street and knocked on the door to Remus' house. He opened the door and let her in.
Both sat down on the couch, being opposite reflections of each other. Remus wore a red shirt, black jacket, gray pants, and white shoes. Though the colors washed him out, Remus still looked decent in a 'poor little boy, needs food' sort of way. When Iris and Philip entered the room and saw the children wearing the same colors in different places, neither even batted an eye. It was not unusual for the two close cousins to do such a thing without any type of discussion. All four of them left the house shortly after that.
They arrived in London by 9:00 and entered the Leaky Cauldron. When David, the bartender saw them, he waved, recognizing Philip and Iris from when they had gone to school together. They headed over to talk with him. Lily and Remus spotted a young man in his late teens who sat in front of the bar with what looked like parchment, quills, an inkwell, and several textbooks in front of him.
"Long time no see, you two. How have you been?" David asked.
"We've been okay. This is our son Remus and our niece Lily. Both are starting Hogwarts this year. Who's this young man?" Iris answered.
"My own son, Tom. He's a Seventh-year this year. Say hello Tom, these are two of my own classmates Iris and Philip Lupin." David said. Tom looked up from his homework and mumbled a quick hi.
"Well, I better get these two started in Diagon Alley. I'll see you later, David." Iris said, leading her two charges out the back door into the alley. After counting and tapping the appropriate brick, she turned to the cousins, ignoring the moving bricks behind her. "Lily, Remus, welcome to Diagon Alley."
Both stared in surprise at the beautiful sight before them. The street was everything they had imagined it to be and more. They walked beside Iris as they headed for Gringotts, looking at the individual stores. When they got to their vaults, side by side in the tunnels, and the vaults were opened, both gasped in surprise. Both of their vaults were filled with piles of money and treasures. Near the front of each vault was a tiny bag which both of them took. Upon opening them, they found enough money to get them the rest of their supplies and for their first year at school. Lily was surprised to spot a few crowns and old dresses in her vault before she left.
After exiting Gringotts, the threesome immediately headed over to a store called Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Iris handed the woman the two coupons the cousins had received for their birthdays. The woman, Madam Malkin herself, motioned them up onto the two unoccupied stools.
The only other stool in the shop was occupied by a girl their age with short chestnut-brown hair and mirth-filled gray eyes. She was already wearing a set of black robes emblazoned with a beautifully colored crest over the left breast. Magically, stitches popped and needles flew, adjusting the size and shape until the robe fit her properly. Remus and Lily were also given robes to try on and watched as their own robes received a similar treatment. All three were finished at the same time. Madam Malkin asked them to stand down as she took back the robes and went to have two more refitted in the same way for all three of them.
"Hi. I'm Arabella Figg. It's nice to meet you. Are you going to Hogwarts?" she asked.
"Yeah. I'm Lily Evans and this is my cousin Remus Lupin. It's nice to meet you." Lily replied, reaching out a hand which Arabella willingly took. Arabella also shook Remus' hand, causing surprise to show on his face. It wasn't long before Madam Malkin came back with their robes. She also handed Lily and Remus another package containing dress robes.
The three children exited Madam Malkin's alongside Iris. Bella turned to her two new friends and smiled. She noticed just how close the two of them stood, with Lily slightly in front of Remus. It interested her because it was obvious that Lily protected Remus from others, not the other way around as was the norm.
"So what else do you guys have left to get?" Bella asked sweetly.
"Just our wands now." Remus responded quietly.
"Then let's go! Sounds like fun!"
Upon reaching Ollivander's and stepping inside, they immediately spotted a pile of wands stacked on the counter. In front of the counter stood a young girl their age with medium-length dark brown hair wearing a set of well-worn, well-made clothes. She was waiting for an old man with silver eyes and gray hair to give her the wand in his hands. When she waved it around, a flurry of bubbles flowed from the end of the wand.
"Excellent, excellent." the man exclaimed, taking the wand back, placing it in a box, and wrapping it up in brown paper. After paying, the girl quickly left the shop, giving the trio a mere glimpse of warm brown eyes set in a sweet face.
"Welcome, welcome! I thought I would be seeing you three soon. Ah Iris Lupin, twelve inches, unicorn hair, yew, sturdy. Come young Figg, your grandfather was a powerful wizard, a pity about your mother of course, but its not her fault the magic did not show through," Ollivander said, motioning Arabella forward. She stepped forward gratefully. As the measuring tape flew around her, Ollivander reached up and took down several wands for Arabella to try.
Finally, after several wands, Arabella settled with a birch wand, 10 and a half inches long, with a dragon heartstring core. When she waved it, a wreath of bluebells fell from the wand tip. "Interesting," Ollivander commented quietly. Remus stepped up next, letting the tape measure flow around him.
"Remus Lupin, younger brother of Romulus Lupin, son of Iris and Philip Lupin. A pity what happened to you. I am glad Albus has made it possible for you to learn in a more friendly environment. Try this, a wand I made especially with you in mind. 11 inches, heartwood, a bit of your brother's form gathered from the compound shortly after the Incident as well as a unicorn hair, great for Defense Against the Dark Arts." Remus took the wand delicately and waved it hesitantly. The tip glowed for a second before revealing a faint silver cloud in the shape of a violin. Iris smiled with relief. "Congratulations Mr. Lupin. Ms. Lily Evans, I do believe that makes it your turn."
Lily stepped up and had the tape measure her. After going through two wands that broke a window and blew up the vase on the counter (respectively), Lily was given a different wand altogether. When she waved this wand (ten and a quarter inches, swishy, made of willow, unicorn hair core), a tiny golden fairy came forth from the wand and flitted about for a bit before disappearing. "Interesting. Very interesting," Ollivander commented again.
"Excuse me, but what's so interesting, Mr. Ollivander?" Lily asked. Ollivander looked surprised that she had heard him.
"This wand was made on a whim out of a branch of a very rare type of willow that re-grows itself and never dies. The core was plucked from the forelock of a silver unicorn, known for being Seers. It is a wand that is good for charm work. But it also a wand made for a Seer. I did not think it would ever be sold. Guard that wand well, young Lily. I have a feeling that something important will happen to you." The look in his unblinking silver eyes worried the cousins and confused Arabella. Iris was positively frightened. All three quickly paid for their wands and left Ollivander's.
"I'd better get going. My grandfather is picking me up in about half an hour. It was a pleasure to meet you. See you on the train!" Arabella said before running towards the end of Diagon Alley and returning to the Leaky Cauldron.
Iris lead the two down a bit into the bookstore and let them both pick out four books they wanted. After that, she took them back to the Leaky Cauldron and out to the car. The drive home wasn't eventful, and was very quiet since Lily and Remus had their heads bent over their new books. Iris glanced back at them from time to time and shook her head. The book they spent the most time on was a newly released 999 Prank Spells for the Beginning Prankster. She saw the smirks and heard the faint giggles as they looked at each prank.
After the car was parked, all three carried everything into the house. The trunks, which were shrunk by Iris at the store, were carried by hand. Most of August was spent practicing their spells and studying their texts. When Lily became worried about practicing her music at Hogwarts, Philip Lupin owled Professor Dumbledore who assured Lily that he would arrange for the Muggle Music teacher to teach the two in any free time. Thus did the final summer of their normal lives pass. Thus did Lily Anastasia Evans and Remus Algernon Lupin begin the adventure that would save the entire Wizarding world.