Chapter 3

Lily gave Dumbledore a confused stare.

"Student?" Lily stuttered. "Magic?"

Dumbledore smiled kindly, "Yes, you heard me correctly, Miss Evans. You will be a magic student I presume?" Dumbledore's eyes twinkled with mystery.

Lily's mind swam. She looked down at the rose in her hand and touched the soft delicate petals. They bruised on contact and Lily's heart slid a notch downward. This dream, of leaving this house and starting a new life, was as temporary as the petals on the rose in her hand. How long would it last? Would she be accepted in this new world?

"May I come in? I will explain everything" Dumbledore asked gently as he pocketed the wooden rod and raised himself to his towering height once more.

"Of course," Lily replied without hesitation, stepping back to let Dumbledore through the front door.

Lily watched him go by. She looked on in wonderment as the once dim lighted room, lit by a lone lamp was illuminated by a sudden warm glow carried as it were by the man whom had just stepped foot in the door.

He took in his surroundings, glancing at a few photographs. He stopped in the centre of the room and turned to Lily "I was told that your parents' were good people. Unfortunately, I did not have the pleasure to meet them." He said kindly as he looked at the frame with the letter to Lily propped up against it. Dumbledore turned and smiled at Lily with encouragement, "May I ask where they are?" he asked Lily kindly.

Lily looked at Dumbledore for a long moment, all the while gathering the strength she needed to answer him. She touched the petals of the rich red rose in her hand and drew upon the magic within the flower. Finally, she swallowed loudly and took a long, deep breath "They're in the dining room, I will take you there" she said quickly, her newly found strength ebbed away as she started walking towards her parents' bodies. The overpowering truth hit Lily after each step she took 'They are dead,' her mind repeated, 'they are gone.'

After much persuasion she found herself by the door leading to the dining room. She could hear Dumbledore following her a few steps behind, giving her some space to come to terms with her loss.

At the door to the dining room, Lily leaned against the wall. She could not go in there again so soon. She could not be faced yet again with the truth at hand. Instead, breathing deeply to calm herself she gestured to Dumbledore to enter before her. Her breath caught painfully in her chest as Dumbledore passed her and entered the room. She let the wall support her weight as she waited for Dumbledore to reappear.

A few minutes past and Lily's breathing calmed. She glanced around the corner so the darkened room was in view. The sight of the dark mounds of thick shadow which were her parents, the thin shadows of the dining table and chairs blocking out the light, seeping into the room from the kitchen sickened her.

Grief stricken and terrified, Lily watched as the tall, dark shadow of Dumbledore stepped over the remains of her glass of orange juice. He turned and gave Lily a meaningful glance before he pulled out his wooden rod once more and waved it as he muttered something that sounded strange and alienated to Lily. At once the shards of glass flew from their respective places on the floor and mended into the glass it was that very morning.

Lily gasped as Dumbledore passed her the newly mended glass with a smile "We can't have you getting cut now, can we?" He said kindly.

Lily looked down at the glass in her hand. This couldn't be happening. This was all an illusion, the glass in her hand was just another she had took from a cupboard in the kitchen not the one she had shattered that morning. It was then she noticed the deep gashes in her hands where she had pressed her flesh into the glass strewn floor. She took in a deep breath as a wave of pain hit her. But she let it pass and blocked it out. No amount of physical pain is more important than the pain she felt in her heart.

The juice still remained, splashed throughout the room. But as soon as Lily had noticed this the juice was gone with another wave of the wooden rod and a mutter by Dumbledore.

Dumbledore was now kneeling over the bodies of both Gordon and Anne Evans and inspecting their frozen death state. Lily turned her head away, she could not agree with the sight before her. Her parents' were not dead, it was impossible. They were supposed to be here for her when she was upset, congratulate her when she succeeded at something and interrogate her first boyfriend until he ran from the house in fright. She was supposed to have fights with her parents through a closed and locked door, and grumble to them about friendships and school. But they wouldn't be there for any of that and she couldn't bear the thought of it.

Her legs began to feel weak. Her head felt heavy. She slid down the wall and held her heavy head in her hands, curled up into a tiny shivering ball. But no tears emerged from her emerald green eyes. Her tear ducts were blocked, her heart broken. She was an empty shell with no where to go, no one to turn to.

A shadow fell over her at that moment and she pulled herself from her intense grief to look up into the kind blue eyes of Professor Dumbledore. He placed a long, thin hand on Lily's small shoulder "Everything will get better in time. You will grow to be a better and stronger person because of this. You are a strong girl and can get through this if you only just believe in your self and accept what has happened to you. If you do that, you will be a match for any foe in the future."

Lily looked up at Dumbledore, her eyes bright, wide and pleading "How can I do that, Sir? How can I get over this? My parents' were everything to me. My life will never be the same again. I will never hear their voices again, their laughter. Everything they had been is now gone; only their skin and bones are there. But they too will disappear." Lily whispered in disbelief, but a strong energy came from her then as she pulled herself up straighter "I understand death, Sir. But I didn't think it would ever affect me. I thought my parents would always be there. Gosh, I thought I would die before them!"

Dumbledore smiled at the small girl. What a wise witch this one would make, he said to himself as he rubbed her shoulder lightly "No one knows when death will touch them. No one can try to brace them selves for such a thing. But experiencing the impact death of another close to you has will help you through lesser evils in your life." He became suddenly thoughtful looking at his robe. He looked up at Lily, his blue eyes twinkling "Lily, could you do something for me?"

Lily looked up at him, her eyes moist from the tears which will never fall and nodded slowly.

He leaned closer to her. From this distance Lily could see the deep lines in his skin, his eyes weeping silently, and the many bumps in his long thin nose. He withdrew the long wooden wand once more from his robes and held it out to Lily. Lily stared at it in awe uncomprehending what Dumbledore was trying to say through his actions.

"Take it and give it a wave," Dumbledore instructed in a whisper as though others may be listening.

Lily shook her head "Sir, I can't. I have never used one of those before."

"Everyone has to start somewhere" Dumbledore replied knowingly.

"You mean, I'm going to be – uh, what exactly will I be, Sir?" Lily asked in confusion. Sure there was a certain word she could possibly name the things she had witnessed. But that was completely absurd. Such a thing does not exist and never will in Lily's mind.

Dumbledore's eyes sparkled "Magical is probably the word you are looking for."

Lily gaped at him "Magical?" she said slowly, rolling it over her tongue to see if it sounded right. Nope, it didn't sound right at all "No, you have the wrong girl. I will not believe it."

Dumbledore stood up quickly "If you are so sure that magic does not exist, give the wand a wave anyway and prove me wrong. If I am wrong as you suppose I will disappear and never bother you again with my fantasy mumbo jumbo."

"Ok, deal." Lily couldn't think that she would be incorrect, so she didn't ask what would happen if that were the case. The thought that magic really did exist and the glass mended it's self and the rose clutched in her small hands really did materialise from a glowing ball of light, was slightly aching.

Dumbledore smiled and handed Lily his wand. Lily took the wooden rod apprehensively at first. What if it really was true…? – No, it's not. She stepped to the side of the door, to be framed in the door way, pointing the wand into the room. Then she waved the wand, feeling clumsy and stupid all the while.

For a moment, nothing happened. And she was about to turn around and expect Dumbledore to disappear and leave her alone to grieve for her parents and be taken to some unknown relative where she could forget about everything that had occurred and either be happy, or miserable. What a life to look forward to. But instead the wand vibrated slightly within her fingertips and then the room was illuminated in an intense white light. Balls, seemingly made of white light, of various sizes materialised in the room lighting every inch. To Lily's horror her parents forms, faces, features leaped out at her.

"OFF!" Lily screamed at the room, slicing the wand down. The white lights disappeared immediately, smashing into tiny pieces and faded into nothing.

Lily was breathing heavily, everything blurred from her moistened eyes. Lily screamed again, more in frustration then grief. She ran into the room and kicked out at one of the chairs, part of the dining set. It shattered somehow before she even touched the wood. She glanced coldly at the table and that spilt in two a moment later. Splintered wood fluttered in the air while Lily destroyed each piece of the dining set one by one.

She was about to turn on a cabinet when a calm hand landed on her shoulder. She froze and spun around. Dumbledore stood behind her searching her eyes for something, rationalism? "Lily, this is not the answer."

Lily's eyes narrowed "How would you know? I have just been told I am magical! Of all things, magic! A thing I never knew existed and here it is, in my blood! I don't want to see it again; I don't want to feel it in my fingertips ever! It's all that wands fault."

Dumbledore shook his head slowly and pointed to the door way. There lay the wand, discarded in her sudden bout of anger.

Lily deflated "You mean, that was all me?"

Dumbledore nodded "And quite a display at that."

Lily shook her head in denial "NO!" Lily screamed as her knees buckled. She looked up at Dumbledore slowly "My parents knew didn't they?"

Dumbledore looked down at Lily sadly, and then finally nodded in reply.

Lily hung her head "I knew it. I always knew it" She whispered slowly. "I always thought they looked at me strangely, or with too much pride. I was never a special kid, never brilliant at anything. And here I am, I have finally found something and I don't want to believe it. I want to be plain, unnoticeable to everyone around me. I don't want to stick out. But I always have, haven't I?" Lily asked Dumbledore sadly "I have always been different, a witch, magical. And now I know why my sister hated me so. She knew all along, and she never told me. Only through snide comments and hide the secret behind a smug face. She was happy to be ordinary, and now I don't even know where she is. Did they kill her too?" She was hysterical, she knew that. But she couldn't stop speaking to save herself. This was the one chance that all her questions may ever be answered, a majority of them anyway.

Dumbledore shook his head "Your sister Petunia is alive. She is at a friend's house as far as I know."

Lily released a relieved sigh "That's good; at least I will still have something familiar in my life, even though it is Petunia." Lily pulled a face "I guess I can't be picky now can I? She is all I have." Lily's face paled as she rocked back and forth, her arms wrapped tightly about her knees.

Dumbledore frowned, his eyes twinkled as he began "Don't ever think that you are alone, Lily. Because you never are, there is always someone that feels the same as you this very moment, is in the same situation or perhaps someone that may not have experienced the same things but understands what you are going through. Therefore, you are never alone. And you will not ever be alone at Hogwarts. There is always someone to talk to, to make you laugh, to make you forget about everything that ever made you feel cold and alone…"

Lily didn't hear very much after that. In her mind, Dumbledore had trailed off and now a dull silence had grown between them, but his words had not been spoken in vain. Every sentence repeated itself in her mind, echoing softly in her ears.

She barely saw Dumbledore look at her knowingly and turn away slowly, his heeled boots making no noise on the tiled flooring. He reapproached the fallen figures of Gordon and Anne Evans and lowered himself to his knee. He stared at the frozen expressions of the couple for a few moments, muttering incoherently to himself. Distinctly, a few words of his whispered conversation floated across the room to Lily's ears "Avada Kedavra Curse."

"Pardon?" Lily whispered hysterically.

Dumbledore looked up slowly from the ground; he had just closed Gordon Evans's eyes. He turned to Lily "Please know, Miss Evans, the Magical World holds many evils as well as miracles. There are, in a sense, good witches and wizards who fight for their right to feel safe in their homes and on the streets at all hours of the day and night. But on the other hand, there are also witches and wizards who fight for the fear in these 'good' magical people hearts, and take every chance to wreak havoc on the world, to gain power, gold, followers… whatever these people think to gain from causing such misery is a mystery really." Dumbledore concluded somewhat thoughtful.

Lily stared at him with wide eyes "You mean, this is not the end of all this? I will feel like this again and again because of these greedy, power-hungry people!"

Dumbledore smiled sadly "Unfortunately, yes. But hopefully it will not affect you again this directly."

Lily couldn't help but think Dumbledore was saying that for her to be relieved and forget about the obvious flaw in his remark. She had already been affected, purposefully targeted. How could Dumbledore say that it would never affect her again? If these evil witches and wizards took pleasure in causing others distress then this was not the last pair of bodies she will see in her life time. But why did her first pair have to be her parents?

"Lily, I think it is unwise for me to linger here for too long…"

"You're going to leave me as well?" Lily asked stiffly.

Dumbledore smiled sadly "Not in that sense. I cannot stay here for too long, my magical presence is too over whelming, if I do say so myself. If I were to stay I would bring your parents' murder's back, and in any case we do not want that to occur. No, you shall be safe here for the night. I will cast protective charms and the like to guarantee your safety, you will not be harmed I promise you."

Lily dismissed his promises rudely "How haven't I already been harmed!" She yelled, her voice cracking slightly "My parents are dead! Can't you see that? Can you see how this has harmed me! No such things as protective charms will help me against how I am feeling now." She breathed in deeply. She had just yelled at the one person in this entire world that was willing to help her, to take her away from all this pain. At least, she hoped he would.

She glanced over the fallen bodies of her parents and her heart cracked in two, spilling forth a raging torrent of anger. She stormed over to the bodies and stood over them, her large emerald green eyes dulled, her breathing measured "How can this be!" She whispered hoarsely. "How can two perfectly healthy people fall dead just like that?" She snapped her fingers; sadly "I don't understand how a wand could do such horrid and evil things and then produce such beauty." She touched the rose in her hand, feeling the magic absorb into her fingertips "I don't want to be apart of it."

"Lily, no other person would understand more than I how you are feeling at the present. But to give up something like this, to change fate? I understand that you are going through a terrible time. That you are young and the thought of leaving this world you forever believed to be normal is blinding. But the adventure is truly wondrous. You will learn such amazing things, broaden your horizons to the world you have no knowledge of, histories you are yet to learn, mysteries you are yet to discover." Dumbledore looked sadly at Lily, hoping she would accept his invitation to his school, hoping she will let herself see the potential he saw in her.

Lily's lip trembled as she looked upon her mother and father's faces, "Dad, tell me what to do?" she cried desperately to the frozen face. No answer came, and she knew she would have to make up her mind on her own.

"You are the only one that can choose, Lily. You are the one that will sit the exams, read the books, learn the magic" Dumbledore added softly "I will leave you alone for a few moments, to make your decision. I would like to inspect a few of these muggle appliances, they always fascinate me." He smiled encouragingly and turned on his heel and left her in the darkness.

Lily knelt down beside her parents "I love you" she whispered, stroking her mother's porcelain cheek. It was as cold as ice. She took her father's hand which had already started to stiffen into a clenched fist "I love you, Daddy."

It was then she stood, with strength she had no knowledge of and turned her back on her parents. She took a tentative step, feeling her heart splinter, and another and another until she had left the dining room and entered the living room.

Dumbledore was standing there inspecting the many photo frames and portraits. Lily's parents had been fanatics about keeping records of every year of their lives, so there were countless pictures of Lily in various stages of growing up. Lily's favourite was of Lily and her mother, quite close to the lens and both with their eyes wide. Lily stared at this picture of a four year old and young woman with identical bright emerald green eyes. She couldn't tear her eyes away from it.

"Lily, have you made your decision?" Dumbledore asked after several minutes of silence.

"Yes" Lily replied simply. She sighed and closed her eyes to block out the photo now haunting her, "I will go to Hogwarts."

Dumbledore smiled, "Excellent. But I think you should read this before you go anywhere." He then nudged an envelope into her small hands.

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