a/n- here's the next chapter. Sorry that it's kind of long...but I tend to write long chapters. This one was added to a lot and I considered condensing it into two chapters but I didn't know where to split it. The chapter skips around quite a bit. I hope you like it!
Chapter Two: Happiness
Lily Potter walked timidly down the path between the two long house tables along with her fellow first years. When they reached the front of the hall they were asked to stand in a line and wait for their names to be called. Lily stood looking at her classmates and confusion washed over her once more. Why had she been taken here? Granted she was not the only child at the orphanage who had been sent to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, in fact three of her closest friends, Devon Halander, Alan Glandfelter, and Christy Whitewater were going as well. But why had they been sent here and not a school in America?
Once all the first years had filed into the hall, the headmistress, Professor McGonagall, stood up and made a few start of term announcements. The deputy headmistress Professor Granger-Weasley began to read off names once the announcements were made clear. As the names were read, a sorting hat was placed on their heads and house names were called out. Lily had been reading about this school for the past year, ever since she had been told this is where she would be schooled. She knew what the houses were for and the kind of people they represented. When Devon's name was recited he walked timorously up to the stool and sat down. The old hat thought for a few moments before saying, "SLYTHERIN!"
Lily looked at her friend surprised that he would be placed in a house she knew had churned out countless numbers of death eaters and evil-doers over the years. Devon hopped down off the stool and ran to join his house at their table. Christy was sorted next into Hufflepuff and then Alan into Ravenclaw. When it came time for Lily to be sorted the entire hall fell silent once her name was read. When she approached the stool, Lily looked up at the professor and noticed the teacher had tears in her eyes. Lily sat down on the stool and held her head high. She knew why everyone was acting strangely toward her. She was used to it, because after all, she was the daughter of Harry Potter and had been treated this way all her life, not that she liked it in the slightest bit.
The hat was put on her head and it fell, covering her eyes. After a few seconds of silence, a voice inside the head began to talk. "Oh, I was wondering when I would have to opportunity to meet you Miss Potter. I can see you are very much like your father when it comes to bravery, but I might go as far to say that you surpass him in the brains department. Not that he wasn't witty himself of course, but your mind is extraordinary. I know exactly what to do with you, GRYFFINDOR!"
The hat was removed from her head and Lily hopped down excitedly and ran to join her table. She took a seat next to a boy in her year who had been sorted only a few minutes earlier. He was a friendly looking kid with brown hair and blue eyes. He held out his hand as she took her seat and said, "Hi!"
Lily extended her hand and shock his firmly, "Hi, I'm Lily Potter."
"I'm Jack Weasley." Lily was instantly glad that he didn't make a big deal over who she was. It was nice to be treated like a normal student for once in her life.
"Are you related to the deputy headmistress?"
"Yeah, she's my mother. She teaches transfiguration. My dad is a professor here too. He teaches potions and he's the head of Gryffindor house."
"Won't that be weird to be taught by your parents?"
"No. My family has lived here for as long as I can remember. Hogwarts is more of my home than our actual house is."
Lily and Jack talked all during the feast. Watching the children from the staff table, Ron and Hermione Weasley smiled at the memories the two of them brought back.
"She looks a lot like Harry. Look at her hair," Hermione said as she leaned toward her husband and took his hand.
"Yeah it's just as black as Harry's was. But her hair is rather curly. Maybe her mother's hair was curly. Did you see her eyes?"
"Yes, they are green just like Harry's. Ron, when do you think the best time would be to talk to her about us?" Hermione tore her eyes away from her son and his new friend for the first time since they sat down at their table and looked Ron in the eye.
"Well, I think we should invite her to spend Christmas with us. We could tell her then. It looks like her and Jack are really going to hit it off, so it shouldn't seem weird that we would ask her to spend the holidays with us," Ron replied.
"I think that's a good idea. I have to talk to her and Jack tomorrow morning before I can give them their schedules. It seems that Lily was taught well at whatever orphanage she was sent to. She was also tested like Jack was and it has been decided that they will both be starting out in third year classes. To tell you the truth, I took a look at their tests score and they really could handle being in fourth year classes, but third year is as high as the ministry's education department would go. It appears they will be having a similar year to my third year," Hermione said, eyeing her husband sheepishly.
"You don't mean…"
"Yes, they will both be given time turning devices. When the ministry found out how good Lily and Jack did on the exams the ministry gave them, it was insisted upon. For some reason they have taken a very large interest in Jack and Lily," Hermione said, returning her gaze to her son and her best friend's daughter who were now laughing at something some kid had said from across the table.
"See I told you we should never have let him read all of those books. Now he's going to be just like you," Ron said, smiling.
"Just what are you implying Mr. Weasley? I couldn't have kept him from reading them. He soaks up information like a sponge."
"Does this mean that they will graduate early?" Ron said, suddenly realizing how horrible that would be. He knew they would be forced to grow up more than normal students by simply being in the advanced year classes, but the idea of early graduation what just wrong.
"No, they will study very advanced magic after they have taken the highest Hogwarts offers."
After a few moments of silence between the couple Ron spoke in a shaky voice, "Harry would be so proud of her."
Hermione turned to look at her husband once more. He was gazing at Lily with tears in his eyes. She gave his hand a squeeze to bring his attention back to her. "Harry will be proud of her once he comes home. He's coming back, Ron, and in the meantime we need to take care of Lily and watch over her, just as Harry asked us too."
The rest of the night passed without incident. Hermione took pictures and she and Ron talked about their hopes for the coming year, happier than they had been in years.
The next morning Lily met Jack in the Gryffindor common room and they went to breakfast together. On the way to the Great Hall, they ran into Lily's friend Allan from the orphanage.
"Hey Lily!" Allan said happily as he noticed her walking down the hallway.
Lily turned around and beamed at her friend. She gestured towards Jack and they both walked back to meet Allan who was behind them. "Allan, this is Jack Weasley. He's in my house."
"Hi, I'm Allan Glandfelter."
"Nice to meet you," Jack said as they shook hands. They all turned to walk to breakfast together.
"Are you trying out for your house Qudditch team, Lil?" Allan asked excitedly.
Lily looked apprehensive when she answered. "Ummm, I don't know. Maybe I'll think it over. I'm only a first year and from what the girls in my dormitory told me last night, it's really hard for a first year to get on the team."
"You're dad was on the team as a first year," Jack said casually.
"He was?" Lily asked in shock. No one had willingly offered information about her father's past like that before.
"Sure he was…You didn't know?" Jack asked, rather surprised.
"No, I didn't."
"What position do you play?" Jack asked changing the subject back to try-outs.
"Seeker," Lily replied.
"I play keeper. If you want, we could go to try-outs together. We might not stand a good chance of making the team, but it's a good way to get out names out there for next year."
"Sure, that sounds good," Lily said, smiling.
"They'd be crazy not to want you," Allan said, laughing. "You haven't seen her play, Jack. She's amazing!"
"Shut up, Glandfelter!" Lily exclaimed, blushing. By now they had made their way to the Great Hall and Allan had to go off and join his table. When Jack and Lily sat down, Jack noticed that his new friend was eyeing him strangely.
"What is it?" he asked.
"How much do you know about my father?" she wondered without hesitation.
"My parents were best friends with him. He was my godfather," Jack said.
"Your godfather…" Lily repeated in disbelief.
"Yeah, and my parents are your godparents. They told me all about you and that you would be coming to Hogwarts this year. I've been hearing about Harry Potter for as long as I can remember."
"I…I never knew I had godparents," Lily said, sounding distant.
"Well, you do. I know they're real excited to meet you. Oh look, here comes the morning post!" Jack pointed up to the ceiling where hundreds of owls hovered, looking for their owners. One of them landed in front of Lily's bowl of cereal and held its leg out to her.
"That one must be for you," said Jack.
"But I never get mail," Lily said while untying the owl's burden.
"That looks like my mother's handwriting," Jack said, pointing to the words LILY POTTER written on the envelope.
Lily opened the letter and Jack returned to his breakfast, trying to give her some space. Inside the first envelope were another envelope and a short letter. Lily picked up the first letter and began to read.
Dear Lily,
Your father asked us to give this letter to you on your first day of school. We hope it will provide some insight into the man who loved you with all his heart. As you may already know, we were very good friends with Harry both during school and after. We are very excited about meeting you and we sincerely hope to spend some quality time together over the coming years. Please do not hesitate in seeking our help for any reason.
With love,
Ron and Hermione Weasley
Lily looked up at the staff table and found her godparents sitting together and smiling down at her, and each carried a somewhat sad expression. She smiled gratefully in return. She opened the second envelope with shaky fingers and found another letter, just as the first had promised.
To my daughter Lily,
I know this is the first time you have had any kind of letter from me directly, and I know it may come as a shock. Today, you start a whole new chapter in your life within the walls of Hogwarts. I had many wonderful times while in school, and I hope that you will find as good of friends as I did. I also have learned a number of really important lessons in my life, and some of them have proven to be more important than others. Perhaps the most important lesson is friendship. No matter how bad things get, always keep your friends close to your heart. They will help you in ways you can only imagine.
By now you must have been informed of Ron and Hermione Weasley. They were my best friends in school and they are your godparents. Should you need anything in the coming years, whether it is advice or simply someone to laugh with, please find them. They will always be willing to help you.
I wrote to them about you several years ago, and it is my wish that you go and live with them during the summer and on holidays now that you are in school. They will understand if you would rather stay at the orphanage, and so will I. But I must ask you to consider this. If it had not been for your protection, I would have sent you to live with them from the beginning. But at the time it was safer for you to be somewhere with more security.
I know they can never be your parents, Lily. I deeply regret that you have had to grow up without your mother and I, like I had to grow up without your grandparents. But your Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron will love you. I know they will. Please give them a chance and let them into your heart.
The road ahead may at times seem long and narrow. Never loose faith in who you are and all that you can become. I want you to have a full life. I love you, and I want you to know that wherever I am, I am watching over you. I'll always be there when you need me. Remember that if nothing else.
Love,
Dad
Once she finished the letter, Lily discretely whipped away the tears attempting to fall down her face and looked back up at the staff table. Hermione was looking down at her again with tears in her own eyes. When Lily mouthed the words, "Thank you," she received a nod and warm smile in return.
"Try-outs are at the end of the week," Jack told her when she looked back at him. He never pried to know what was in the letter. He seemed to silently understand that it was something she would tell him about when she was ready.
"We'll have to borrow brooms from the school," Lily suggested.
"My parents can help us."
"I'm sure they can," Lily replied with a small smile. Perhaps Hogwarts wouldn't be so bad after all.
That Christmas Ron and Hermione took Lily home with them and their family just as they agreed they would. They told her more about their friendship with her father, and offered her a home with them when school was not in session. Ron had been afraid Lily may be angry that they had not found her after her father had died and taken her to live with them then, but she wasn't. She seemed to silently understand that things were meant to be the way they were. She even asked if it would be alright if she called them Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron when they weren't in class. Hermione cried to pieces when Lily asked this and grabbed her and hugged her so tight her face started to turn blue. Lily comfortably settled into their expanding family and became a surrogate member.
The school year got started quietly and the students settled in to their day to day lives. Jack and Lily were inseparable. They did absolutely everything together, both in and out of class. Much to everyone's pleasant surprise, both Lily and Jack made the Gryffindor Qudditch team after attending their first try-outs. Ron couldn't have been happier, and he knew Harry would have been proud as well.
It did not take Ron long to understand why Harry had not sent Lily to live with them right after he left. He noticed the sad expression she got when she saw Ron or Hermione playing with one of their younger children. He saw this the most when Hermione became pregnant unexpectedly when she and Jack were in their third year; they now had five sons: Jack, then Andrew, Kyle, Brandon, and Joe. Ron couldn't help but feel the deepest sorrow for Lily, who had longed for a family to love her all her life.
Years passed at Hogwarts, each year more eventful than the last. Jack and Lily continued to be the best of friends, and they had several other people with whom they were very close. Lily, Allan, and Christy continued to be friends even though they didn't see as much of each other as they would have liked because they were in different houses. Jack and Lily became friends with Brad Garland, Dylan Jacobs, and Mea Drews who were all in Gryffindor as well.
Jack and Lily remained the closest, however. They attended all their classes together and took comfort that the other was there, owing to the fact that they were always the youngest members of their classes. Never did you see one out of the company of the other. Not only were they linked in their friendship, but they were also linked in their magic. Shortly after Lily arrived at Hogwarts they both began to display startling magical characteristics between them that allowed them be able to communicate with each other and know each other's feelings at any given time.
During the summer before their second year, Jack was in the kitchen with his mother and brothers eating lunch. Lily had been out in the large field behind their house flying all morning. Suddenly, Jack dropped his fork and stood up in his chair looking out the window into the vast backyard.
"Jack honey, what is it?" Hermione asked. Ron looked at his son from over his paper.
"It's Lily!" Jack said in a worried voice. "I think something's wrong." He then turned and bolted out the back door in search of his friend. Hermione and Ron followed close behind.
They ran throughout the yard screaming Lily's name, but Jack seemed to know exactly where she was. She was lying on the ground unconscious near some tall oak trees.
"Oh dear, what happened?" Hermione asked as they ran to reach their goddaughter.
"I think she fell off her broom," Jack told them once he reached her.
"How do you know?" Ron asked, bewildered.
"I just know," Jack shrugged.
Much to everyone's surprise, Jack had been right. Lily had fallen off her broom when she got dizzy in midair, but she hadn't fallen that far because she was already flying toward the ground when she felt sick. She had a broken leg, but was otherwise okay. Ron and Hermione knew from then on that Jack and Lily shared a special connection.
In their second year a dueling club was started at the school again but this time with Ron and Hermione as the advisors. When Lily and Jack were selected to duel against each other the strangest thing happened. Soon after the duel began it was discovered that they were unable to fight against each other; no matter what incantation or spell they tried, no magic would work against the other. But if they were dueling on a team working together their magical power seemed to double. They turned out to be an unstoppable magical force, and at first this scared them a little bit. But they were good kids, used to change and growth in their magical ability and adjusted accordingly.
Toward the end of their fourth year in school however, Ron noticed a change in their relationship. It was hard to explain, but he just had a feeling about something. He noticed that Jack had changed the way he acted around Lily. He even had caught Jack staring at Lily during class or during meals. Sometimes he would glance down at them from the staff table and catch Jack staring at her when he thought she wasn't looking. It wasn't just Jack that had changed. He noticed Lily had started to do many of the same things. She seemed to be shy around him all of a sudden.
His suspicions were not confirmed until an early summer's day before Jack's fifth year at Hogwarts. They were all at home for the school holiday. Lily and Jack had been named Qudditch co-captions for the following year and were piloting a new Qudditch camp that would start in about a week. Jack came into the study where Ron had been reading the morning paper.
"Dad, can I talk to you about something for a minute?" Jack asked from the door.
"Sure, son, what's on your mind?" Ron replied brightly as he set his paper aside.
"Well, actually it's about Lily," Jack said, sitting down on the couch and looking at his father with reddened cheeks.
"What about Lily? Is something wrong? Did you two have a fight?" Ron rambled off possible problems between the two for a few more seconds before his son looked him dead in the eye.
He knew then exactly what the problem was. Jack had developed a crush on his best friend. Ron laughed to himself for a second. "Oh, I see what you're getting at."
"Yeah, but what can I do about it?" Jack asked. "I think she just sees me as a really good friend, maybe even a brother."
"Jack, I've seen the way Lily looks at you lately. She doesn't think of you as a brother," Ron said, smiling even more. "You know I have some experience with these types of situations. I was once in your position with your mother. She was my best friend and I had had feelings for her for a while but I was afraid to act on them."
"Yeah, I know. Mum's told me about how you two got together."
"Well, it seems that the men in this family have developed a tendency to fall for their best friends. All I can tell you is to do what you're heart tells you to do. I think you'll find that Lily feels the same way about you."
"But if I tell her how I feel and she doesn't feel the same way than I'm running the risk of losing her as a friend. She's my best friend Dad, and I don't think I can stand the idea of that changing."
"Well, I guess you just have to ask yourself what you're going to do if one day Lily decides to see someone else. Do you think you can handle that? Because if you don't act on your feelings then it's not going to be long before someone notices how great Lily is. And whoever this guy is, he's not going to come up to you and ask for your permission. He's going to take what he wants."
"That's what I'm afraid of."
A week and a half later Lily and Jack were sitting Indian style facing each other by the lake at Hogwarts after a long day of practice. The camp was held at Hogwarts and all the other members of the team were up in the Gryffindor common room or had already gone to bed. Lily and Jack, however, were still up talking about what they were going to be doing with the team tomorrow. It had been a long day, but for some reason neither of them were very tired.
"I think your brother really proved himself in that drill today. Too bad he only made the team this year. He and Williams make a brilliant beater team," Lily said, looking down at her extensive notes.
"You take notes about Qudditch like you do in class. Is there anything you don't write about?" Jack asked, taking the some of the parchment Lily had been holding and examining it closer.
"That was uncalled for, Weasley! And for the record I think both of us have benefited from my excellent note-taking ability," Lily said, snatching her parchment back from Jack and giving him a playfully evil glare.
"Yeah, I guess you're right about that one, Lil! What would I do without you?" Jack asked and gazed into Lily's piercing green eyes. He leaned back on his hands and continued to look at her long after she returned to reading her notes for tomorrow's practice.
"I think we've done enough for one night. Can't we talk about something other than Qudditch for a little while?" Lily asked, standing up and putting her tactic drawings to the side and then walking over to a large oak tree to sit down again. Jack did the same and followed his friend to the tree.
"That's a good idea, Potter. What do you want to talk about?" Jack asked as he sat down next to her.
"Anything," she said, sounding exasperated.
The two friends sat in silence, gaping up at the bright stars in the balmy summer sky. The both let out a long sigh at the same time and laughed at the strange coincidence.
After few awkward moments they both stopped and found themselves staring into the eyes of the other. It was Lily who broke the self-conscious hush and tried to start light conversation.
"Your mom talked to me about starting some club up next year. She said it was something my dad started when he was in school and she thinks I should bring it back."
Jack could never get enough of Lily's American accent. Having grown up in America she spoke different than everyone else, but Jack just thought it made her more special. Forcing himself to stop looking at her, Jack rubbed his hands together trying to distract his mind from thinking about how beautiful she was. "Yeah, they used to talk to me about that when I was little. You should think about it, Lil! You'd be great," Jack said lightly.
Lily turned to face him and she looked deeply into his blue eyes and almost lost herself in them. "Will you help me?"
"You don't need my help for this, Lily. You could do this with your eyes closed," Jack said confidently.
He and Lily may have been placed in the same advanced classes, but Jack had always known she was so much smarter than he was. Things just came naturally to her but this year was sure to be a hard one. They were only entering their fifth year of school, but enrolled in seventh year classes, meaning that they would be taking their NEWT exams at the end of this year. They had taken their OWLs at the end of their second year and had passed them all with flying colors. If they passed their NEWTs well enough they were going to be doing some Auror training during their sixth and seventh years at Hogwarts. Being aurors was the only thing either of them had ever considered doing.
"Of course I need your help!" Lily said to bring Jack's attention back to her situation and away from their exams. She sat there smiling in that way that made Jack's heart beat a little bit faster. She had no idea about the effect she was beginning to have on him.
"Why?" he asked.
"Because you're my best friend and we do everything together," she said folding her arms across her chest and leaning back against the tree.
"Is that all I am? Your best friend…" Jack said this before he really had the chance to think about what he was saying.
Lily looked at him more seriously now. "You've never expressed any desire to be anything more than my best friend, so I just assumed that's all you wanted."
"What if I told you I wanted more from us than just friendship?" Jack knew the conversation they were having right now would change things between them forever. But somehow he didn't care. He needed to know the truth.
Lily smiled wickedly and shrugged. "I guess you'll just have to tell me what you want. I promised I wouldn't read your mind anymore without your permission so…"
Jack took a deep breath and turned so that he was facing her properly. "Lily look…you've been my best friend for nearly five years now. I don't know what my life would be like without you in it. But lately my feelings for you have changed." He knew he was sounding completely stupid, but it was the truth.
Lily looked a little confused. "Jack, you've always been able to give things to me straight. I mean I have always known that a guy and a girl being best friends is rather odd. If…if you want to spend some time with other people you wouldn't be hurting my feelings."
"No, that's not it…it's just the opposite actually." Jack looked away from her.
"Jack, please just come out and say whatever it is," Lily pleaded.
He looked her in the eye and remained silent for a few lingering seconds. She never blinked or broke their eye contact. "What am I thinking?" he finally asked in a mysterious tone of voice.
"What are you talking about?"
"You wanted to read my mind, and now I'm giving you permission to do it. Go ahead. What am I thinking about right now?"
Lily looked at him intensely for a few tense minutes before her cheeks grew pink and she looked down into the dirt. Jack held his breath until he saw a smile creep up her lips. "Jack, why couldn't you just tell me?" She finally responded with laughter in her voice.
"Because I was afraid that you wouldn't feel the same and then we couldn't be friends and then everything would-"
He was unable to continue scolding her when she leaned over and kissed him softly on the lips. She then pulled away just enough so that their lips weren't toughing but they could still feel each other's breath. She looked at him with her fiercely green eyes, trying to read his reaction. His silence obviously made her uneasy because she broke eye contact to look at the ground and began to pull further away. When Jack saw her retraction he put a hand behind her neck and pulled her gently towards him. After a kiss that lasted for what seemed like hours the two pulled away and looked at each other cautiously.
"Was that what you wanted?" Lily asked after a few more minutes of silence.
"Yeah, but I guess you already knew that," Jack said as he stood up, taking hold of her hands to helped her to her feet but he didn't let them go once she was standing beside him.
"Just promise me that no matter what happens, you'll always be my best friend," he asked, studying her face to see what she was thinking.
"As long as you promise me that whatever happens, you'll always be my best friend," Lily replied, "And besides, Weasley, I know you're hopeless without me so I know we'll always have to be friends," she concluded with a devilish smile.
"Is that so, Potter?" Jack said, letting go of her hands and grabbing her around the waist. She knew exactly what he was going to do though and suddenly ran away from him at top speed. They reached a part of the grounds along the backside of the castle that was littered with small trees and brush. Jack lost her in the forestry.
"Okay, I give up! Where are you?" Jack called out into the open, holding his hands up in defeat. Seconds later he felt someone jump on his back and laugh in his ear. He caught Lily's legs behind her knees which kept her from falling off his back.
"Funny, Lil. You're a real prankster," he said in words dripping with sarcasm, "But I guess we'd better get back up before someone sends a search party for us. We've been out here for hours." Jack turned and started walking back to the castle with Lily still on his back.
"I guess you're right. Wouldn't want people to get the wrong idea," she said mockingly.
"Oh, I would!"
Lily jumped down off Jack's back and stood in front of him preventing him from moving any further toward the castle. Her expression and tone were serious this time, "Jack, what are we going to tell everyone? What are we going to tell your parents?"
"You act like what we're doing is wrong or something. Besides, I don't think I'm going to be able to hide this from everyone for long," he replied taking a step towards her.
"I guess you're right about that…But what about your parents Jack? I don't want them to be mad about this. You guys are the only family I have ever known and I don't want to lose that," she said, looking down at her feet.
Jack took her hand in his and ordered, "Look at me." When she kept her eyes firmly fixed on the ground he forced her to look him in the eye by placing his a finger from his free hand beneath her chin, "Nothing like that is ever going to happen to make them stop loving you. Do you understand me?"
A single tear was making its way down her cheek until Jack reached his hand up to wipe it away. She nodded her head in agreement but he could tell she was not all that convinced.
He tried to reassure her some more by adding, "I talked to my dad about this before we left. I told him I had feelings for you, and I didn't know what to about them. He's the one who persuaded me to tell you how I really felt. My parents love you like a daughter and that is never going to change."
"You don't know how lucky you are to have them," she said with longing in her voice as she once again looked down to the ground. Silent tears made their way freely down her cheek and fell to the dirt below. "I never had anyone to care about what happened to me until I came here."
"I'm sure the people at the orphanage cared about you," Jack told her.
"That's not what I mean, Jack. I've never had someone to worry about what happens to me. No one ever read me stories at night when I was little. No one ever held my hand when I was hurt or sick. This is the only family I've ever known."
Once again Jack forced Lily to look him in the eye. "Lily, they love you just as much as you love them. I know they have not always been in your life, but they love you as one of their own."
"But they're not my parents, Jack. You don't know what it was like growing up the way I did. At the orphanage I was reminded everyday just how short life was. Some of the children there where only there for a short time while their parents were on missions for the auror department or other magical law enforcement. Sometimes their parents would return and take them home, sometimes they didn't. The people who ran the orphanage had us dueling against each other when we were six and seven years old. We were taught never to trust anyone."
Jack found himself momentarily unable to speak. Lily rarely spoke about the orphanage, and this must have been why. "You say your parents set it up for you to live in that place?" Jack wondered. Who in their right mind would want their child to grow up in an environment like that?
"My father," she answered looking away. "He thought I'd be safe there."
"And were you?"
He knew he'd struck a cord by the look on her face. "I'm here aren't I?" She half-heartedly answered.
"That's not what I asked. Did you feel safe there?" Jack asked with slightly more force.
Lily thought about her answer for several seconds before she said, "No," in a hushed tone of voice. "I've never known what safety felt like, until I met you and your family. But this isn't my father's fault, and I don't blame him for it. It may not have been the most ideal place to grow up, but like I said, I am alive. I don't know if I would be if he had sent me anywhere else."
"He still shouldn't have put you in a place like that. He should have sent you to live with us."
"To feel like an outsider from the very beginning…I don't think so. My dad was an orphanage himself. He knows what it feels like," Lily said before thinking.
"Lily, we've never treated you like an outsider," Jack said defensively.
Her facial expression softened and she lightly touched his shoulder, taking a step towards him. "I know that. But that doesn't mean that I don't feel like an intruder sometimes. You're parents are not my biological parents. They may love me as if I was their daughter, but at the end of the day that doesn't change how I feel."
"You said they taught you not to trust anyone. But you trusted me," Jack reminded her, trying to lighten the mood. In truth he really wanted to hear more about Lily's life before Hogwarts. He knew something had happened to her just a few months before she came to school, but she refused to talk about it.
"You were different. There was just something about you that made me trust you," Lily said this time willingly looking him in the eye.
"I'm always going to be here Lil," Jack said. "Now how about we get you to bed. Not that you need beauty sleep."
Playfully hitting him on the shoulder and running up the stairs into the castle, Lily replied, "I haven't turned you into a big old softy have I? Because you know that's not going to help us one bit of good on match day!"
"Well, in that case, get your ass to bed Potter before I have to bench you," Jack said now running through the castle towards Gryffindor tower laughing the entire way.
"We'll see you guys on September first!" Jack heard Lily say as they stepped into the fireplace to floo home just moments after his brother Andy had left. Camp was over and everyone was eager to get home and enjoy the rest of their summer, though they had had a blast getting to practice together for the past week.
A living room began to materialize in front of their eyes, and after the room stopped spinning, Jack and Lily stepped out of the fireplace hand in hand. The room was empty but they could hear Hermione and Ron talking with Andy about something in the kitchen.
"We're home," Jack called as his mother and father came into the room. Lily dropped his hand like it was fire and grabbed her duffle bag which was lying on the floor beside her feet. She walked over and said hello to Jack's parents, giving each of them a stiff hug.
"I'm going upstairs to unpack," she announced with a nervous glance back at Jack who hadn't moved from his spot by the fireplace. Obviously their talk the night they had gotten together had not gotten through to her, Jack thought to himself. She bounded up the stairs and out of sight.
"How was camp?" Hermione asked as she grabbed her son into a tight hug.
"Great," Jack answered, looking at his father who was giving him a questioning look.
"You told her, didn't you," Ron said, ignoring the confused looks he was getting from Hermione.
Jack sat down heavily in the closest armchair and nodded his head. "Yeah, I told her. And everything was fine until just now…Well, I guess that's not all together true," Jack added referring to their discussion after their encounter at the tree.
"What are you talking about?" Ron asked as he and Hermione took a seat on the couch in front of him. Hermione was beginning to understand what was going on, but she didn't ask any questions. She and Ron had talked about this situation while the kids were away at camp, so she wasn't completely clueless about what was going on.
"She and I had a little…er…discussion about all of this. We both came to the conclusion that we wanted more from each other and I thought everything was fine. Then she got all worried about what we were going to tell everyone."
"You mean the team," Ron assumed.
"Well, yes and no. She mentioned the team but it was really you guys she was, and apparently still is, worried about," Jack said, sitting back and looking defeated. "We talked about it and I thought I'd convinced her that you guys loved her and that you wouldn't be mad."
"She thinks we'd be mad about this?" Hermione asked, now fully understanding what they were talking about.
"Yeah," Jack replied.
"That's ridiculous," Ron said, shaking his head. He loved Lily like she was his daughter and it hurt him to think that she didn't know it. Hermione was about to chime in but a cry interrupted her from the floor above. She stood up and walked to the door.
"I guess your brother is up from his nap," she called over her shoulder, trying to sound jolly.
"Was she very upset?" Ron wondered once Hermione had gone up the stairs.
Jack nodded his head. "She started crying. I've never seen Lily cry. She told me how lucky I am to have you guys."
Ron sighed and leaned forward with his elbows in his knees. "Do you want me to talk to her?"
"Do you think that would help?"
"It might," Ron said, looking closer at his son who still hadn't met his eye. "You know we love Lily like she was our daughter, right?"
"I know that. I just don't think she does," Jack answered with his eyes still down.
"Lily's not used to trusting people. She inherited that from her father. Why don't you go upstairs and unpack while I go have a talk with that girlfriend of yours."
Jack smiled widely and nodded his head as they both walked toward the stairs and to the floor above in silence.
"Did it feel good to get all that off your chest?" Ron asked quietly.
"Yeah, but I also realized that I've had feelings for her for as long as I've known her. I was just too afraid to act on them until now."
"Well, I'm glad you did," Ron said as Jack entered his room and shut the door. Ron continued down the hallway until he reached Lily's bedroom door. He knocked softly and he heard her say "come in" in a muffled voice. Walking in the room and closing the door behind him he found her still unpacking her things. He took note of how little progress she had made. She had been up here the whole time while Jack was talking to him downstairs, and he came to the conclusion that she hadn't been unpacking at all until she heard the voices of people coming up the stairs.
"So, camp was good," he said, trying to start the conversation off lightly.
"It was a lot of fun. I think the guys enjoyed themselves quite a bit." She took a seat on her bed and Ron took a seat in the armchair by the window and turned it to face her.
"What's it like being captain this year?"
"It's strange, really," she said thoughtfully. "I feel like I don't really deserve it."
"Trust me; I've seen you and Jack play. You both deserve this. It takes a really good Qudditch player to make any house team their first year in school. Your father was the first person to do make Gryffindor's team as a first year in over a century."
"They were quick to inform me of that when they offered me a spot on the team," Lily said, sounding a little down.
"You are so much like him. You know that?" Ron looked at Lily with a heavy heart. It was times like these that were the hardest to keep Harry's secret; when she looked at him with those eyes, wanting so much to know the father, who unbeknown to her, was out there somewhere.
"I guess I really wouldn't know," Lily said, driving another stake into her godfather's heart.
Ron decided to change the subject because this topic was never a very happy one. "Jack told me about what happened at camp this week," Ron confessed.
"I had a hunch he was going to," Lily said, playing with her hands in her lap.
"Lily, I never had the privilege of having a daughter of my own." Ron began seeing her eyes fall to the floor and looking extremely sad. He continued his thought before she could get a word in. "Until you came to Hogwarts. When I first learned that Harry had a daughter I was absolutely thrilled. He wrote me a letter which I didn't get to read until he was gone. He told me all about you and why he sent you to the orphanage instead of sending you here. I was angry at first. I wanted to meet you and watch you grow up. And unfortunately, by the time you came to Hogwarts you were more or less grown up already. I don't know what made you grow up so fast and I hope one day you'll be able to tell us about your childhood and whatever it is that happened before you came to school." He saw her face tense up as he mentioned this last bit and knew she was surprised he had noticed this fact about her. In truth, it would have been hard not to notice her strange behavior when certain subjects were brought up. This was something he had struggled with since he met her. This part of her life she kept under lock and key.
"I'm just not ready to talk about that yet," she said, looking him in the eye.
"I understand that. Your Aunt Hermione and I love you, Lily. That is not going to change no matter what. I know you missed out on a lot when you were younger and you don't know how much I would have wanted to give you the childhood you deserved to have. But I can't go back and re-write the past. You dad did what he did for a reason, and it's not my place to question his judgment."
"I'm sorry I wasn't very warm downstairs. It just scared me to think of what it would be like to not be here with all of you. You're the only people who have ever loved me for who I am and I don't want to loose that."
Ron stood up and walked the short distance to his goddaughter. He took her hands and pulled her to her feet and into a large bear hug. "We're not the only ones who have loved you Lily. Your father loved you very much, that I can be sure of. And although I didn't have the opportunity of knowing your mother I am sure she loved you a great deal. We are always going to be your family, you need to understand that."
"I'm trying," she said against his chest. Ron felt her tears on his shirt and it nearly broke his heart to think of how different their lives would be if Harry was here.
a/n- tell me how you like it! Or if you didn't like it!