Wow, I haven't posted in a while. Sorry. I've been concentrating on my upcoming graduation. Thanks Alatariel Linwe Narmolanya for reviewing this.

Disclamier: see chapters one and two

Chapter Three

THE CHOICE

You're mine! Petunia screamed as she chased Lily, with a butcher knife in her hand.

Lily's eyes jerked open a she drew in a quick breath. For the past couple of days, the image of Petunia trying to catch her had haunted Lily's dreams. This is getting ridiculous. She rolled in her bed to look for the clock, but was distracted by something else in the room. The curtains on the window were being blown by a gentle breeze. I didn't leave my window open…did I?

Lily rolled onto her back and hoped to fall asleep. Closing her eyes, the horrible images of Petunia returned and her eyes flew open once more. This would have been a normal had it not been for the big, pair of eyes staring back at her. Slowly, Lily glanced at the animal and concluded it was an owl. It had a yellowish piece of paper in its beak. The owl waited a moment longer and dropped the paper on her chest. It gave a "hoot" sound as it flew out the window, closing it in the process. Lily remained still. With a trembling hand, she reached for the paper. The texture was thicker than usual paper. Confused, Lily pulled herself upright in her bed, trying to read by the faint glow of the sun rising.

Rotating the thick paper, she realized it was a letter because of the wax seal. The seal itself was strange. There was a capital "H" surrounded by four animals. On the front of the letter it read:

Miss Lily Evans

Last Bedroom on the Second Floor

1753 Angeline Lane

London

They know which room is mine! What time is it? I don't care!

"Daddy!" Lily screamed at the top of her lungs. Grabbing the letter, she jumped out of bed and began a full sprint. The sound of her running vibrated the entire house. Reaching the stairs, she grabbed the banister and slid down. Feet on the ground, she took off again. To afraid to stop, Lily ended up running straight into her father. SMACK. Mr. Evans dropped his teacup, spilling hot tea on his frightened daughter.

"Michael!" Mrs. Evans cried as she quickly ran to pick Lily off the floor. She pulled her over to a seat at the table and began to dry up the tea on her. Mr. Evans placed his tea cup in the sink and grabbed a cloth to clean up the floor. After drying Lily off, Mrs. Evans looked at her daughter's face. There was no sign of pain from being burned, instead it was fear.

"What's wrong? Did you have another nightmare?" Mrs. Evans asked.

"Yes, but that's not why I'm terrified." Mr. Evans slightly turned his head to the side as he glanced at his daughter. She didn't say a word. The only movement she made was extending her arm and placing the letter on the table. Mr. Evans picked it up and opened it. Petunia entered the room yawning and scratched her head.

"What's happening? Why is the baby screaming?" she asked sleepily. Mr. Evans shifted the papers in his hands. Mrs. Evans was becoming anxious in the silence. She gave her husband a questioning look. He opened his mouth to speak when the doorbell rang. He left taking the papers with him. A few moments later, Mr. Evans returned with someone. It appeared to be woman. She was wearing a long burgundy dress topped with a black cloak. She was an odd sight in the room of well-dressed adults and two girls in pajamas.

"This is Annalie Jerot" Mr. Evans said. The woman pulled back the hood of her cloak, revealing her long, brown hair, light blue eyes, and a soft face. "Good Morning. I've been chosen to help Lily with her school supplies and any other preparations or concerns she might have." Petunia looked as though she had been slapped across the face. "School supplies?" she questioned.

"For Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry of course, your father is holding her letter of acceptance" Annalie pointed out. Mrs. Evans stood up took the letter from her husband. She read it over with trembling hands. Lily glanced around at everyone in the room her mind buzzing. The only words that seemed to be repeating were "school of witchcraft." Mrs. Evans finished the letter and glanced at Lily. "We have a witch in the family, isn't it wonderful?" was her only response. This outraged Petunia, her face flushed dark red. "FREAK!" she screeched running out of the room.

"Lily, go get dressed while your mother and I have a word with our guest. Do not say a word to your sister, do you understand me?" Mr. Evans asked a little too calm for Lily's liking. She nodded and left the room. Lily returned a few moments later dressed in her usual clothes and the four of them left the house. Mrs. Evans told Lily that Mrs. White would check in on Petunia. They all got into the Evans's car and followed Annalie's directions.

She showed Lily how to get to a place called Diagon Alley. Walking through a dimly lit pub called the Leaky Cauldron was an interesting adventure. Tom, the toothless bartender, was very nice to the Evans family, though some of the occupants were not what Lily had imagined. Annalie described the different sort of creatures in the pub like goblins, warlocks, and hags. In the back of the pub was a small little alleyway. It was a dead end. Annalie walked up to the wall, pulling out what looked like a stick from her inner cloak pocket. She called Lily to her side and taught Lily how to enter Diagon Alley. She tapped the wall in five places, steeping back to allow the bricks to reform into a doorway.

The Evans spent a few hours walking up and down the alley. Lily enjoyed looking through all the shop windows. Many children were standing in front of one store, eyeing a broomstick. Lily looked at them with extreme confusion. She did not have long to ponder any possible ideas for the fascination with the broom because it was time for her to leave.

The sun was setting on the horizon as the Evans arrived in the driveway. Lily looked up at the windows on the second floor and saw her sister. Petunia's face showed scorn and contempt. She quickly closed the curtains when she noticed Lily watching her. Annalie walked up behind Lily and said, "I must be going now. Have a great time at Hogwarts." She pulled a package out of her inner robe pocket. Lily eyed it curiously.

"What's that for?" she asked.

"Just think of it as a good luck present to go with the owl your parents bought for you," Annalie smiled. Lily's impatient fingers quickly ripped through the paper, revealing a green book titled Quidditch Through the Ages. She looked up with a confused expression.

"It will explain the children and the brooms today," Annalie hugged Lily and descended down the driveway. She looked back at the house, and then she disappeared.

Lily and Natalie spent the remainder of the summer together. From dawn till dusk, the girls were inseparable, but all things must come to an end. The day when they said goodbye was difficult. Neither one actually said anything close to goodbye because deep down both girls knew once it was said, it was final. The next day both would begin a new life. Lily quietly packed all her books, cloaks and her owl. Once everything was packed and situated, she glanced at the window. With a heavy heart, Lily waved at Natalie's dark window and whispered, "Goodbye."

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Love Harley