Authors note: I do not own anything you recognize or anything that resembles JK Rowling's work. I just have my own story line for Lily Evans wherein I use her genius as a guide - I own nothing! Hope you are enjoying so far, I'm trying to make up for being absent for so long by writing a few chapters this week and hopefully more beyond... The amount depends on Uni, really.

I wanted to give at least a glimpse of each year as Lily and Severus' friendship starts to crack, as James gives into hormones and harasses Lily and to narrate some nice friendship moments with the girls in her Dorm :)

Happy reading! :)

SORTING & FIRST YEAR IN FAST FORWARD

Alice and Lily stared around in awe as they followed the stern looking witch, Professor McGonagall, with the other students. Never had Lily seen a place so magnificent, it was just what a castle should be in her opinion - only much better. As they walked up the steps into the Entrance hall, there were stone gargoyles on either side of the enormous staircase in the center of the hall and suits of armor near a door that had a sign, "Dungeons" next to it. Lily wished that she had about four more pairs of eyes as there was so much to see.

Professor McGonagall opened the large oak doors that opened to a magnificent hall that had 4 long tables that stretched the entire length of the room; why this room had to be at least 75 meters long! At the end of the hall, Professor McGonagall gestured for the students to wait in front of her; she stepped up the 3 small stairs to where the high table was and stood next to a stool with a particularly grubby looking hat sitting on it. As it sung its song to the school, Alice and Lily whispered to each other.

"What do you reckon we have to do?" Whispered Alice.

Lily smiled, she remembered Sev telling her about this. "I've heard that we try that hat on and it judges our character and sorts us!"

Alice seemed pleased by this. "One of the girls I sat with on the train said that her brother said that it was something really hard!"

"When I call your name, you will come forth and I will place the Sorting Hat on your head. You will then be sorted into your houses." Professor McGonagall looked at her list. "Abercrombie, Jason!"

The Hat took a few seconds before yelling, "HUFFLEPUFF!" There was a loud cheer from the table with a yellow and black banner above it.

"Black, Sirius!" became the first Gryffindor. He smiled widely as he swaggered over to the Gryffindor table.

Lily stopped listening for a bit as she thought, "What if I don't get sorted? What if this was a mistake?"

"Evans, Lily!"

Lily gulped. She walked forwards with trembling legs and sat on the rickety stool; the last thing she saw was the students in the hall watching her - how she wished this was a private event...

Lily heard a small voice, seemingly in her head. "Hmmm... another difficult one... intelligent like Ravenclaw... Brave like Gryffindor... Fair and just like Hufflepuff... Where shall I put you?"

She tightened her grip on the stool, and waited for the hat to decide. "GRYFFINDOR!" it yelled.

Lily smiled as she handed the hat back to Professor McGonagall and walked quickly to the Gryffindor table; she looked back at Severus who was watching her and gave him a small, sad smile.

She ignored Sirius Black and James Potter when he was sorted into Gryffindor; she turned around to face away from them as "Johnson, Morag" was put in Ravenclaw.

Lily watched as "Lupin, Remus" was sorted into Gryffindor and clapped loudly when her new friend, Alice, was sorted into Gryffindor,

Severus got his wish to be sorted into Slytherin and she watched as he walked over to the table; an older, pale blonde boy patting him on the back as he sat down.

After the sorting had concluded and Professor McGonagall had taken the stool away from in front of the High Table, Professor Dumbledore rose from his seat in the center of the table. He addressed the students, warning them to stay away from the Forbidden Forest and that the caretaker had updated the list of items forbidden to be used in the halls. When he sat down, Lily saw that the plates in front of them had magically filled with the most delicious-looking food she had seen since their last dinner party at home. She piled her plate with roast vegetables (her mother had taught her from a young age to appreciate her vegetables), roast beef and a bread roll; as she tucked in, the warmth of a fresh meal spread throughout her entire body. It was as if Hogwarts was welcoming her with it's delicious, roasted arms; Lily giggled a little at this ridiculous thought.
After dinner had finished, the plates emptied and were re-filled with puddings and desserts as far as her eyes could see. She decided that she wouldn't over-indulge on her first night and decided to just have a bowl of Vanilla Ice-Cream with some tiny little marshmallows; it was an old favorite from home. As Lily ate, she wondered what her mother and father would be doing right now... probably being subjected to Petunia flouncing around in her new outfit that she would have undoubtedly persuaded her mother to buy for her.

Later that night, when Lily was up in her new dormitory with Alice, they introduced themselves to the other two girls sharing their dormitory: Marlene McKinnon and Mary McDonald. They stayed up late talking about where they had come from, their families and, in Lily's case, how she found out she was a witch. They stayed up well past midnight, knowing that classes didn't start until the following Monday; Lily thought that she was very lucky with the girls in her dormitory being so kind - she knew she was different, all the other girls knew they were witches early on in their years and were brought up with mostly magical families (Mary's father was a muggle).

In Lily's first week at Hogwarts, she had written a letter to her parents...

Dear Mum and Dad,

I got sorted into Gryffindor! Sev is in Slytherin, but that's ok - I've made some bangin' new friends. There's Alice Robinson, she's from an all-wizarding family - they call that "Pure-Blood" I think. She's so sweet and gentle, you'd love her! Then there's Mary McDonald, she's a bit dizzy but she's totally cool. Her dad is not magical, but her mum is a witch. Then there's Marlene McKinnon - she is a total laugh! She has us all in stitches in the dormitory every night - I dunno how she does it!

I hope things are okay at home. How is Tuney? Has she calmed down since I left...?

I better go, Alice is telling me to hurry up or we will miss breakfast.

Love always,

Lily xxx

"Ok, ok! I'm coming Alice!" Lily called. "I'm just sending a letter to mum and dad!"

"Well hurry it up would you? All the pancakes will have gone!" Alice groaned from outside their dormitory. "Mary and Marlene will make sure of it!"

"Ok, I'm coming..." Lily giggled as she walked out of the dormitory, shutting the door with a snap. Alice looked like the definition of cool with her high-waisted bell bottom jeans and a Quidditch Jersey tucked in; her short, spikey hair stuck up from behind her colorful hairband tied around her head. Lily could never achieve that air of cool, so she settled for casual and had put on her jeans and converse again with a simple, knitted white and pale green shirt. She smiled at her friend and they walked off to have breakfast.

"Lily..." Alice asked as they walked down the staircases to the Great Hall. "Who was that black haired boy in the boats? You seemed to know him..."

"Oh!" Lily exclaimed. "That's Sev, he's my best friend from Cokeworth - where I live. He lives about a block away in a place called Spinner's End."

Alice nodded. "And the other boy in the boar with us?"

Lily frowned, "I don't know him but I didn't like the vibe he gave off."

Her friend nodded again. "Do you think you will stay friends with Sev, being in polar opposite houses?"

Lily smiled. "Of course, I've known Sev for a while now... He taught me a lot about the wizarding world. Why?"

"Just curious." Alice shrugged. "I bet he didn't tell you about Quidditch!"

"No, I must say I don't know much about Quidditch. Why don't you tell me all about it?"

And that was it, Alice went off talking at a hundred miles per hour talking about the magical sport and the team she followed in the Quidditch League. It continued after breakfast as they wandered out into the courtyards.

"...And then Monaè sent the bludger soaring towards the keeper and - oh, hello Hagrid!"

Hagrid was coming from the forest as he saw Alice and Lily walking near his hut. "Hello you two - what are yeh doing today?"

"Nothing really, just walking around the grounds and learning where to go." Lily said happily. "What have you been doing?"

"Jus' checkin' on a unicorn - it's in foal." Hagrid said proudly. "Say, would yeh both like to come fer a cup o' tea?"

The girls nodded and followed Hagrid to his hut. They learnt quickly not to trust his cooking too much as they nearly broke their teeth on his rock cakes. He showed them his vegetable patch and before long, the two girls were heading back to the castle, promising to visit Hagrid again soon.

Her parents responded to her letter almost a week later, after she had started classes...

Dear Lily,

We are so proud of you! Congratulations on being sorted into Gryffindor - that's one of the houses you were hoping for... right? Sorry, we are trying to keep up.

Your new friends sound lovely, we are so glad you have made friends so quickly.

Tuney has calmed down a little, but I think being a teenager doesn't help the mood-swings. She did enjoy the trip to London after we dropped you off on September 1st - she ended up with a new outfit... That seemed to cheer her up a bit.

Things haven't changed much, although the house does seem a little more empty now with you at Hogwarts. We are so proud of you for getting this opportunity and can't wait to see the wonderful witch you will become.

Can't wait to hear about your classes.

Love always,

Mum & Dad xxx

Lily smiled sadly, she missed her home dearly, but she wanted to take advantage of the opportunity she had been given. She would prove that even though she came from a non-magic family, she would be a great witch!

Winter came, bitterly cold and snowing. Lily had tried to share her time between the girls and Sev as neither party liked the other; she couldn't understand why Sev hated the girls, but she did not blame the girls for disliking Sev. They had tried to be polite and he had been cold and rude to them, so she had made an excuse for him that perhaps he was shy with girls and didn't know how to talk to them. She had lately had to make a few excuses for Sev's behavior and some of his friends behavior towards them; Lily was right with her first impression of Mulciber - he was creepy and EVIL.

It was nearly Christmas and Lily was to go home for Christmas, she had given Alice her address and already had her parents permission to have Alice over for Boxing Day; it would be nice to have someone her own age to talk to at Christmas. Mary and Marlene were staying at Hogwarts for Christmas.

When she got off the train onto platform 9 and 3/4, she noticed it was just her father there to pick her up. She introduced her father to Alice and her father seemed charmed by her best friend. She smiled and said "see you Boxing Day, Lil!"

In the car, her father told her that his wife was preparing the house for Christmas and baking so that it would smell like freshly baked cookies when they arrived home. Petunia, of course, refused to have anything to do with Lily. Mr Evans loaded Lily's trunk into the back of the car and they got in.

"Dad?"

"Mmmm?"

"Would you mind if I got some gifts in London before we go home?"

"Not at all dear, what did you have in mind?"

Lily thought hard. "Maybe a Band T-Shirt for Alice, I think she would love that. Marlene and Mary would love muggle books - they're really into Jane Austen after seeing my copy of Pride and Prejudice... Maybe I could get them one each and they can swap after they're finished. Some perfume for mum and Tuney... I got yours ages ago, dad!"

Her father chuckled. "You didn't need to get me anything, love."

Lily frowned and stuck out her tongue at him, she had always been close to her father. She had found "Quidditch through the Ages" in Flourish and Blotts, all those months ago and had saved it for Christmas; she knew her father would like it. As she continued talking - and it was only when they were stopped in traffic - Mr Evans realized how much she had matured in just a few short months - she was going to be 12 in January and, even though she had always been the more mature daughter, he never realized how much his baby had grown in the time she had been away. He looked at his kindhearted, youngest daughter, her red hair longer than it had been last time she was home. His little girl...

They drove to a nearby music store and Lily bought her friend a "Rollingstones" T-Shirt and a record so that she could show her what they sounded like. Then, the pair went to a nearby department store, Mr Evans escorted his daughter inside and helped choose a perfume for his wife and eldest daughter. She thanked her dad profusely and they headed home.

On the drive home, Mr Evans asked her youngest daughter about her first few months at Hogwarts. Lily told her father excitedly all about her classes, her friends, those stupid boys James Potter and Sirius Black, how Severus and her had stayed friends but they were slowly drifting apart. Lily didn't notice how her father smiled slightly at the mention of her drifting from Severus... He really did not like that boy.

Christmas morning, Lily woke early (as usual) and looked at the clock: 7am. She sighed and rolled over under her quilt, it was freezing outside - how she wised she could use magic to conjure the little blue flames that she and Alice had mastered to warm the house... No magic until she went back to school...

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Lily looked to her window - there were two owls outside. She opened and shut the window quickly so that her room would not freeze; the owls seemed grateful to be inside where it was (mildly) warmer. Jetta hooted softly and Lily opened her cage to let the owls take turns to have a drink and some treats, she left the cage open so Jetta could stretch her wings.

One of the owls had a parcel, the second only had a letter. She opened the letter first to see that it was from Sev.

Dear Lily,

Happy Christmas! Mum wouldn't take me to get you a present, but I hope you have a great Christmas.

See you on the Platform.

Sev.

Lily grabbed a quill, some ink and a piece of parchment to write her reply.

Dear Sev,

Happy Christmas to you too! Hope you have a great Christmas as well.

Hopefully your parents don't fight too much.

Lily.

The owl that had delivered her letter from Sev flew over to her and stuck out its leg, it was already raring to go again.

"Well, alright - but just wait, I have parcels to send as well and only want to open the window once..." Lily told the owl as she tied her reply to Sev onto it's leg. She didn't know if owls understood wizards or not, but the barn owl put its leg back down and waited.

She opened the parcel, it was from both Mary and Marlene - it was a Wizards Chess set!

"Wow!" Lily breathed. It was amazing, she liked chess and she could play with her father later - he always played chess with her.

She grabbed her presents for the two girls and tied one to the owl's leg that had brought her gift and tied the other to Jetta's leg. She opened the window and all three owls promptly flew out the window, into the snow. It had already been a great start to the Christmas morning!

Lily tip-toed downstairs in her flannel pyjamas and quietly made a hot Milo - an alteration for the season on her favorite drink. She sat on the couch, sipping her hot drink and watching the muggle news on low volume; by 8am, the whole family was up. Lily wished everyone a happy Christmas and proceeded to help her mother cook breakfast in the kitchen; a nice hot breakfast for a cold Christmas morning.

After breakfast, they exchanged gifts - Lily's mother loved her perfume and Petunia sniffed a haughty "Thanks". As Lily hoped, her father loved the book she had given him; she wanted him to be a part of her world, but she knew he loved sports. Petunia hadn't gotten Lily a gift, but she wasn't concerned; her parents had given her a beautiful, simple necklace. It was silver with a small, round emerald in the center; she smiled and asked her mother to put it on for her.

Christmas went by quickly and Boxing Day with Alice went by just as fast; as Lily predicted, her parents adored Alice. She had a knack for charming people.

Before long, they were heading back to Hogwarts and settling back into the same routine. Classes, ignoring Potter, visiting Hagrid, ignoring Black, more classes...

It seemed as if no time had passed before they were in their final week of first year. Lily hoped that second year would be even better.

Ok, that took a little longer than I thought. I didn't mean the ending as a rush job - it just seemed to end there. Sorry!

Hope you like, please R&R and let me know what your thoughts are :)