Lily ate a silent breakfast with the two married Weasleys in the morning, and then spent most of the day outside in the cold. There wasn't any snow on the ground, unlike Hogwarts, but it was still enough to numb her senses. Mrs. Weasley called her for lunch around noon, but she pretended not to hear her. She was sitting in the high branches of a tree, Weasley sleeping across her chest. This particular tree had no leaves remaining, but she didn't mind. The sun felt good as it beat down on her, even as it set quickly the longer the day drew on.

She stayed outside, snoozing in that tree, until she saw Mr. Weasley enter the front door of the house as he returned from work, only acquiescing to the bored whining of the cat sitting upon her. He mewled again, pawing at her face as if to wake her.

"I'm up," Lily grumbled.

She glanced back to the ground, wondering how she'd get down while carrying the cat. Weasley answered that for her, as if he could sense the question in Lily's mind. He crawled into the hood of her crimson robe (now that she wasn't required to wear the black school robes, she was taking full advantage of it), and Lily was forced to sit up so the cat wouldn't be crushed. She sighed, but began the arduous process of climbing down, hitting the ground just as Mrs. Weasley called for her from the house once more.

"Lily! Suppertime!"

Lily sighed once more, pulling her robe tightly around her as the wind picked up. She was wearing Katie's scarf. It felt far more comfortable than her own. The thought of the other girl comforted her as she sat; tomorrow, she'd bring a sketchbook. She found them all tucked away inside her wardrobe earlier today, which was a huge relief; she hid them at Gran's house, and was worried nobody would be able to find them. Now she was just worried that somebody might have gone through them. She was too nervous to ask.

Lily dragged her feet as she made her way to the house, Weasley jumping from her hood impatiently and running ahead. He made it through the door first. Mr. Weasley told her this morning that he installed a cat door for the feline, since he was always wanting in or out of the house, even during the coldest days. Lily hadn't seen Trevor yet; it was possible he moved on from the property, but Mrs. Weasley swore she still heard him croaking around the house occasionally.

Both Weasleys (not counting the cat) were already sitting at the table when Lily finally pushed the door open. There were three plates set out, each with 4 plump sausages and a heaping pile of mashed potatoes. Lily noticed the plate set at the empty chair had larger portions than the others. She sat at it, silently poking at one of the pork vessels with her fork. A bit of juice ran from it as the prongs punctured the wrapping. She had no appetite.

"How was your day, Lily?" Mr. Weasley asked kindly.

"Fine," Lily answered quietly. She bit into one of the sausages, hoping the act of chewing would prevent further questioning.

"Saw you up in that tree," he said. "Did you get down all right? Thought I might have to go and fetch you if you didn't come in soon."

Lily grunted in response, taking another bite of the juicy sausage. It was far better than any sausage she'd had at Hogwarts, she had to admit, even if it didn't do much to cheer her up. She'd still much rather be sitting at the Gryffindor table with Ron, Neville, Hermione, and Katie than here. She chewed a bit slower when she realized Neville wouldn't be there in the first place, and that was, in fact, the reason she wasn't currently there.

"How about your day, Arthur?" Molly asked sweetly. "Get into any trouble at work today?"

"No, actually," Arthur answered. "It was quite a nice day. Perkins and I had to get a bit of paperwork done in preparation for tomorrow's raid."

"A raid?" Molly said sharply, her eyes narrowing at her husband. "Who are you raiding, then?"

"Can't say exactly," Arthur said carefully. "We got an anonymous tip, and Perkins made the call to go for it. We'll be safe, dear, don't worry. A few Aurors always come along with us on these things."

Lily's eyes flickered over to the living room, where she spied the family clock. Ron, Percy, Fred, George, and Ginny were all still marked at school, while the two adults were at home. She wondered what her own spoon would say, if she had one. She thought she'd be firmly placed at "lost."

"Surely you don't have to keep it a secret from me, Arthur," Molly said in a huff.

"Sorry, dear, but best to be safe," Arthur said. "If something goes wrong, the Aurors will be looking into it, and I don't want them finding out I leaked something."

Mrs. Weasley seemed to accept that answer, even if she kept her lips pursed. Lily kept eating, taking big bites and chewing slowly. Mrs. Weasley would undoubtedly make her seconds if she was still hungry, but she didn't want to impose.

"How long will you be out?" Mrs. Weasley asked at last.

"Raid's in the morning, so I should be home for supper," Mr. Weasley answered. He perked up as he chewed his last bite of sausage, leaning forward as he swallowed (his wife hated it whenever somebody talked with food in their mouth). "Hey, what say the three of us head out for a bit of shopping on Thursday, hmm? Perhaps grab some lunch?"

"We already did our shopping, dear," Mrs. Weasley said. She was only halfway through her own plate, always on the lookout to offer her remaining food to anybody that finished before her. She never asked her husband, of course, and just plopped a sausage on his plate without drawing attention to it.

"We need a few things, actually," Mr. Weasley said. "Almost out of Floo Powder again, and we need more chicken feed."

"Will you be able to get off?" Molly asked, pushing a bit of her potatoes onto Lily's. Lily looked up at that, but the matriarch was staring only at her husband.

"Should be able to take a half day," Arthur said. "I'll meet you two at Diagon around noon, shall I?"

"What do you think, Lily?" Molly asked, offering a smile.

Lily shrugged. She would have preferred to spend the day sitting in her tree again, but she didn't want to disappoint the two when they seemed so excited about it.

"It's settled, then," Arthur said with a clap of his hands. He stood, quickly sweeping up his plate before his wife could drop another sausage on it. Mrs. Weasley settled for placing it on Lily's, instead, as she was slow on the uptake. Then she stood, taking her own plate to the sink, where she started washing the dishes. Mr. Weasley moved into the living room, taking a seat in his favourite armchair next to the roaring fireplace.

Lily finished up her sausage, then left the plate on the table, trying to make her way to the stairs as quietly as she could so she wouldn't have to talk any more tonight. Weasley trailed behind her for a moment, then decided to hop up on his father's lap instead, laying belly up so the man could rub it. Lily knew that was a trap; he liked to bite at your hands when you went for it.

The stairs creaked as Lily made her way up them, but nobody called for her to stay downstairs. She left her door open a crack so Weasley could make his way inside, then struck a match so she could light a candle at her desk. Her Transfiguration book was sitting open, from where she spent her previous night studying. It was hard to focus, but she needed the review. She didn't want to work on that tonight, so she closed the book and tossed it over into her trunk, where it landed loudly on top of her other books.

She opened her wardrobe, grabbing the notebook on the top of the stack. She flipped through it, smiling fondly at the sketches and writings inside. This one was full of much earlier drawings, ones that her Aunt and Uncle surely would have burned if they found them. There was a flying motorcycle soaring through a starry night sky, a tabby cat sitting on a garden wall that she saw one summer, and a portrait of Mrs. Figg that she did on request. It wasn't very good. She was only seven at the time. Mrs. Figg loved to help her practice, though, and it really helped her learn. The rest of her practice came from drawing herself with a little mirror while she sat in the dark of her cupboard.

The notebook itself was a gift from the old lady. Figg had been forced to babysit her, so that the Dursleys could visit Vernon's sister without the burden. Lily liked her well enough, even if the old house did smell funny. She gave Lily all her notebooks, always having one at the ready for whenever she came by. Once, she even asked Lily if she could keep a drawing. That made Lily cry: she didn't like to part with any of them. Now she just felt bad about it. She still had the drawing, but Mrs. Figg had nothing to remember her by. Maybe she'd write to her, send her the drawing she asked for all those years ago, just to let her know that she was okay.

Lily sat on her bed as she flipped through the pages. Her early stories weren't very good (and she quickly gave those up in favour of drawing), and she could barely even read her old handwriting. Her drawings got much better very quickly, the latter half she was especially proud of. They were nothing compared to what she could do now, but it was sort of fun to see where she came from. Her artwork was the one thing she got praised for in school, although there wasn't much of that, either, since she more frequently got yelled at for doodling in class, and their art classes were cancelled when the teacher was hospitalized during Lily's last year.

Lily got up once she finished the first notebook, placing it gently back in the wardrobe before hauling the rest up in her arms. She placed them gently on the floor next to her bed, then sat back down on the white blankets as she grabbed the top one. She reclined against her pillows, and started flipping through the newer ones.

The order of her notebooks got mixed up at some point, it seemed. While her first one ended up on top, this was her latest one, filled with much happier content. There were a few drawings she made during her last captivity at the Dursleys, but those ended after she left. These had better principles and were clearly more skilled, but they were still worse than the older content. It was very hard to draw with a quill and ink. She'd have to pick up some charcoal if she could find any, but she didn't know what wizards did for erasers. Probably had a spell for it, but she didn't want to get the Weasleys into any more trouble than she already had. She'd already pushed the rule far too much as it was.

Lily placed this one next to her, then reached for the next one. This was from she was 9 or 10, she was pretty sure, back when she was drawing or writing almost every day. Most of the drawings were of Petunia's garden, since that was all she ever saw. There was one of a particularly friendly grass snake that Lily tried to sneak inside. Petunia caught her trying to talk to it one morning, and Lily couldn't remember what happened afterwards. She never saw that snake again. Vernon took it away somewhere. Thinking about it hurt her head.

Lily was halfway through the notebook when she found another portrait, this one of a schoolgirl who used to bully her. It had so much more effort and care put into it than the pieces before and after. She couldn't remember why she'd bother drawing this, but it made her head pound again. Lily tore this one out, crumpled it, and then tossed it into the bin next to her desk. She didn't need to feel more miserable right now, and she shook her head to force the memories back inside.

Lily heard a tapping at her door as she closed this notebook. She tried to ignore it, but when it repeated, she let out a sigh, and got up from her bed. She shuffled over to the door, wrenching it open, only to find the hallway outside empty. She could hear the married couple talking downstairs, although she couldn't make out the contents. They couldn't have possibly gotten down there so quickly. She would have heard them.

She heard the tapping again, and this time realized it came from behind. She turned towards her window, spotting a large, gray owl tapping its beak against the window, holding up a thick parcel on its leg. Lily gasped in surprise, then rushed over eagerly, throwing the window open for the bird. It flew towards her desk, scattering a few stray papers with the beating of its wings. She scrambled to get them off the floor, just so she wouldn't trample over them in the middle of the night, and tossed them onto her bed.

Lily grabbed the biscuit tin she nicked from the cupboard the last night from her bedside, the owl turning its head curiously as it stared at her. It almost nipped her fingers off as she handed one over, and she sucked on her sore forefinger while she untied the parcel with her other. The owl flew off immediately after, having finished its snack. Lily shut the window to block out the cold, wishing she'd been a bit less eager to please the bird; she'd have to use Errol to write back. She really hated having to use him. She was always positive he'd die during his next flight.

Lily took the letter on top of the parcel first, smiling as she read the three lines in Katie's handwriting.

Lily Potter

The Burrow

Ottery St. Catchpole

Lily gave the parcel an idle shake as she tore the letter open with her other hand. She pulled the chair from her desk, not wanting to rearrange the items on her bed, and sat at it. She was used to far thicker letters, coming from Mrs. Weasley, but she had no earthly idea what Katie could have sent. She was just happy to have gotten one so quickly.

Dear Lily

We talked with Ron, just like you said, and he let us in on what you've all been talking about. I haven't gotten a chance to watch any of them today, and I don't think any of us will get one anytime soon. They've got the school on lockdown, we can only travel in groups with a Prefect or Professor.

Speaking of Ron, he told me to send you a packet of paper for him, since I was writing you anyway. I put that in the parcel, along with your Christmas present. I had to beg Hooch for it; she normally likes to wipe their memory and reuse them, but I got her to agree. Make sure you bring it to school with you, it'll be useful in practice. Quidditch Captains have Prefect authority, so Wood will be taking us to practices.

Don't forget to feed Monty a biscuit before he leaves. I don't want him snapping at me later. My fingers are already sore enough, thank you very much.

Merry Christmas!

Katie Bell

"She got something from Hooch?" Lily asked herself.

The only thing she could think of was the Madame's referee whistle, but that didn't make any sense. What did that have to do with memory? Lily couldn't stand the curiosity; she placed the letter aside and tore the brown wrapping from the box. The Marauder's Map was on top, and she was certainly happy to see it safe and sound. When she took that out, she let out a gasp as she saw a glimpse of gold.

Katie sent her a Golden Snitch as a Christmas present. It would prove useful in practice, since Hooch never let any teams borrow one outside of a game. She wondered what Katie did to get this one. It felt cool in her hand, and the wings flittered out as she grabbed it. The Snitch quickly flew into the air, buzzing around Lily's head energetically.

She went to snatch it, and it flew out of her grasp before quickly darting back in towards her head. She got it, that time, and the Snitch tried to pull itself out. She let it go again, and it started buzzing around her once more. It didn't seem to ever fly too far from her, unlike the Snitches she'd gone after during real matches. She wondered why that was. She also wondered how to get it to stop flapping around. She could easily see the constant buzzing getting annoying.

She didn't have to wait long for that answer, thankfully, as the Snitch quietly tucked its wings in after Lily ignored it for a few minutes, laying itself gently near Lily's hand on the desk. She left it there, for now, and crossed back over to her bed so she could finish going over her notebooks. She wanted to sketch it, now that she had the chance, but she didn't have the materials for it yet.

Lily woke up late the next morning, one of her notebooks still sitting in her lap, still wearing her robes from yesterday. There was another plate of food sitting on her desk waiting for her, courtesy of a very polite Mrs. Weasley. Lily ate first, then returned the plate to the kitchen sink after showering.

Lily could hear Mrs. Weasley fussing about in the garden as she snuck her way out of the house (the swearing of the gnomes she was tossing could carry for miles), holding Weasley in one arm and a copy of Ancient Myths and Legends of Magical Britain in the other. She was supposed to return it back to library in November, right after the Quidditch match, but it completely slipped her mind due to obvious reasons. She'd have to apologize to Madame Pince once she was back for real.

Lily cheated to get the book up, breaking her promise to not cast magic that she had made only to herself. She had to levitate the book up after she'd safely perched high above the ground. Lily pulled Katie's scarf tightly around her neck, snuggling into the tree's branches to get more comfortable, then used the light of the sun to read a passage on Merlin, Arthur, and the Enchantress Morgana. She ignored Mrs. Weasley's calls for lunch again, now that Weasley was working his way up the tree to join her.

She was forced to stop reading once the sun was set, even though Mr. Weasley was not yet back from his day of work. She let the tome rest on her outstretched legs, not wanting to disturb the warm cat laying on her chest. Weasley twitched as she scratched him behind the ears. She wondered if Lavender would still want her to bring him back to Hogwarts, now that the attacks were getting more serious.

Lily saw Mr. Weasley walking down the driveway towards the lit house and took that as her cue to begin the climb down. She gave Weasley a firm shake to wake him, and the cat dutifully climbed into her hood so she could carry him down. She didn't fancy trying to levitate the book down in the dark, so she used her scarf to fasten it to her, tying both around her neck and shoulders. She didn't know if her knot would hold for long, so she made the descent faster than she had previously, and almost slipped and tumbled halfway down. Katie's scarf was a bit torn once she touched the ground. That made Lily feel terrible.

"There you are, Lily," Mrs. Weasley said in surprise as Lily made it to the door. "I was just about to call for you, supper's ready. You go wash up first, dear, you've been outside all day."

"All right," Lily agreed quietly. Mr. Weasley was already at the table, clearly exhausted after a long day of work. He didn't even notice Lily's wave, nor did he return it. He was too busy rubbing at his eyes, his glasses placed on the table in front of him.

Lily didn't talk much during supper again; she listened to Mr. Weasley talk about his raid. They went for a Muggle warehouse in London and confiscated 42 cursed washing machines that were being sold on an open market. He lamented that they'd have to track down a few buyers in the ensuing weeks; there were supposed to be 65 there. Lily had a sneaking suspicion that Mr. Weasley brought one home with him, judging from the shifty way he kept glancing around the kitchen every time Mrs. Weasley asked a prodding question.

Lily drawing later that night, just to unwind, but she quickly grew frustrated with the way her quill dripped ink, ruining her lines with large splotches. She settled for laying in bed and trying to get through more of her book, instead. She was starting to doze off when she came upon a passage that snapped her back to attention.

The Chamber of Secrets

According to all known records, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was founded in the year 990 by Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. The tales of the founders can be found further on (see page 572 for more info), but one myth must be acknowledged and discussed here, although not much information is known on the topic.

Salazar Slytherin believed only pure bloods should be allowed to attend Hogwarts, this much is well-known and undisputed. It is one of the core tenants of the House, and former students confirm that the Slytherin's common room traditionally uses passwords that enforce this ideal. This is the issue that would eventually result in the death of Godric Gryffindor and the removal of Salazar Slytherin.

But, supposedly, before Slytherin left Hogwarts in shame, he constructed a secret chamber in the deep dungeons of the school. A Chamber of Secrets, if you will. As the tale goes, only Slytherin's true heir, one with his talent and ideals, will be able to locate the entrance and unleash the horror left within. As to what the Chamber actually contains, well, nobody can say for sure. Hogwarts has been searched thoroughly over the years, and no trace of the Chamber of Secrets was ever found.

Descendants of the great Salazar Slytherin have, undoubtedly, attended the school in the days since his passing, but the Chamber has never been opened once during its storied history. There were rumours of the Chamber having been opened during the reign of Headmaster Dippet due to the death of a student, but the cause was found to be an unrelated accident and the student responsible was expelled for his negligence. The name of both victim and culprit have been expunged from records, due to both being minors at the time.

And that's all that is known about the Chamber of Secrets. Supposedly, it houses a great monster that will find and kill students who are not the purest of blood. Supposedly, Slytherin's heir can find it to enact his will, and remove those with dirty blood from the premises by force. Supposedly, the Chamber even exists!

That, of course, remains highly doubtful.

Lily let out a disappointed sigh, and then closed the book in her lap. It would figure that the one book she found that mentions the Chamber at all would be so thoroughly worthless. She briefly thought about reading the chapter on the founders, but she found she didn't care enough. She blew out the candle at her bedside, snuggled up into her blankets with Weasley, and went to sleep.

Lily actually woke up to Mrs. Weasley entering her room the next morning, although she chose to pretend that she didn't. She heard the mother place another plate on her desk, felt Weasley stir from her bed and follow after her, and then heard the door click shut afterwards. Lily thought about going back to sleep, but her stomach rumbled as soon as she smelled the bacon wafting from nearby.

"You ready to go?" Mrs. Weasley asked from the table as Lily came down to return her plate. She was having a cuppa while reading the paper, a scone sitting half-eaten in front of her.

"Yes," Lily answered as she washed her plate off in the sink.

"We'll have to pick up a few things for Christmas dinner," Mrs. Weasley said. "I think we'll do that down in the village, first, and then meet up with Arthur afterwards."

"Do we have to walk?" Lily asked. She'd much rather use any other form of transportation.

"No, there's a spot in town that all us wizards use to apparate," Mrs. Weasley said. "It's just the two of us, so I think we'll manage."

"How many wizards are around here?" Lily asked as she leaned against the counter so Mrs. Weasley could finish her scone. She beat her hands on the counter to a rhythm. She had no idea what it came from, but she recognized it from somewhere.

"Us, the Fawcetts, Diggorys, and Lovegoods," she answered after sipping from her cup. "All nice people, but they like to keep to themselves. Arthur works with Diggory, though, says he's a nice man. Works in the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. They have a lot of crossover. You wouldn't believe how many Muggles accidentally buy an enchanted object for their pets."

Lily grunted, drumming her fingers on the countertop a bit more chaotically.

"Anything you'd like to look for while we're out, dear?" Molly asked as if she could read Lily's thoughts.

"Err," Lily stammered. "Is- I don't- do you happen to know if they sell any art supplies?"

"No need to be nervous, dear. They might have some in Diagon, but I'm afraid we don't have any Muggle money to check Catchpole."

The apparition point was just a small, abandoned shop on the outskirts of town. There were a few creepy mannequins filling the area, but it was otherwise devoid of life. There was a large window at the front through which they could gave out into the sleepy village roads. Nobody paid any attention to the two women as they stopped out into the daylight streets. When Lily tried to glance back through the window, she found just a building wall, with no glass to speak of. The door they just came out of clicked shut, and when she tried to pull at the handle, it wouldn't budge.

"You have to know the password, dear," Mrs. Weasley said kindly. "Won't let you in, otherwise. Come along, now, we have to see a man about a goose."

They spent an hour milling about the various shops in town. Lily wondered how they'd even pay for any of the food, since Mrs. Weasley said earlier they had no Muggle money, but the grocer winked at Lily as the redheaded woman slid him some wizarding coin.

"You never told me you had another daughter, Molly," he said with a hearty chuckle. "Only ever brought the one to see me. Shouldn't she be in school?"

"She's on Holiday, Harold," Molly said in response, trying to match the other man's energy.

"Before the rest of your kids?" Harold asked suspiciously. "Go to a different school, then? Blimey, she isn't a squib, is she? I thought you and Arthur better than that, hiding a-"

Mrs. Weasley leaned forward. "She's Hazel Potter, Harold, she's staying with us this year. Dumbledore let her come home early to adjust to everything."

"Oh," Harold said, eyes growing wide as they suddenly found Lily's scar. "I thought the papers said she was a boy? Harry?"

"Oh, Harold," Mrs. Weasley said, "They retracted that ages ago. Don't you get the Prophet?"

"Not since the war ended," Harold said. "Sorry about that, really, I should have known."

Lily looked away sheepishly, suddenly finding the passersby outside the butchery very interesting.

"Not a problem, dear," Mrs. Weasley said kindly. "Do you think you can exchange some coins for us? Lily, here, wanted to stop by another shop."

Lily walked forward quickly, before the Weasley woman could use her own money, and set a dozen Galleons on the counter from her own pouch. Harold whistled in awe, but took the coin. Lily received, in return, quite a few more pounds than she'd been expecting, and certainly more than she'd ever gotten in her life.

"Almost emptied the register," Harold muttered. He winked at her again as he dropped the Galleons in a separate slot.

"What's a squib?" Lily asked as they finally left the shop. Having paper money in her pocket felt very strange. She was used to the weight of coins.

"Has Ron not explained that to you, yet?" Mrs. Weasley said sharply. "I would have thought it'd come up, since that caretaker of yours is one. Squib are nonmagical folk born to magical families, Lily, like the opposite of your Muggleborn friends."

"Oh," Lily said quietly. She thought she might have a vague memory of Ron trying to explain that to her before. She wondered what her life would be like right now if she'd been born one. She probably never would have gotten that letter from Hogwarts, which means she'd still be with the Dursleys, assuming she was still alive at all.

"Harold is one," Mrs. Weasley continued as they made their way back down the street. "That's why he took the Sickles. We all have to get our food from him or grow it ourselves, he's the only one that'll take it."

"Why don't you just use Muggle money?" Lily asked.

"Don't know how it works," Mrs. Weasley answered. "Besides, Harold could use the money. He's a good man, but he doesn't get very many Muggle customers. Says they're weirded out by his strange clientele."

"Why did he think my name is Harry?" Lily asked. "Malfoy's dad said the same thing. It bothers me."

Mrs. Weasley thought for a moment before answering.

"I don't quite remember, to be honest. Paper said you were Harry, then retracted it a year later. I'll have to ask Arthur, he might remember more. Anywhere else you'd like to stop, dear?"

They dropped the food off at home, along with a pack of ballpoint pens (purchased as a gift for Mr. Weasley) and some pencils (which would almost certainly work much better than the quills Lily had been using prior, much to her excitement), very briefly paused to say hello to Weasley, then apparated back off to Diagon Alley. They popped in right in front of Florean Fortesque's, which Lily was amazed to find was still open in the winter, and was even still receiving customers. She briefly considered visiting herself, but she decided she wasn't in the mood for ice cream when it was this cold.

"Anywhere in particular you'd like to go first, dear?" Molly asked, hand still clutched onto Lily's. She pulled it free as she thought, staring at the buildings around them.

"Gringotts," she answered, nodding towards the great bank. "I need to make a withdrawal."

"Have your key?"

"Yes," Lily answered.

"Let's be off, then," Mrs. Weasley said, leading the charge forward through the crowd. Lily got a few strange looks as she followed behind, but she tried to pay them no mind.

The Gringotts Goblins were just as pleasant as always, meaning they almost entirely ignored Lily's existence. They led Lily and her companion towards her vault without complaint, after making sure to register her new wand for easier identification. Lily tucked her bag of coins into her robe before climbing back into the minecart, this time. Mrs. Weasley stayed in the cart, and Lily happened to notice that she was pointedly avoiding looking into her vault. She wondered how easy it'd be to slip a few coins into the woman's purse, if only to help them out a little.

After Gringotts, they ran to the bookstore, where Lily purchased herself a nice, illustrated tome on magical creatures as well as a smaller, less interesting guide to Ancient Runes, a tome on magical history for Hermione (who was, to this day, the only student to ever enjoy History of Magic) and a book on magical law enforcement for Percy. Mrs. Weasley didn't ask any questions. Lily couldn't help but feel that the woman was being unusually quiet, but she figured it wasn't a big deal, considering how little talking she'd done the last few days. Still, though, she kept catching the woman smiling sadly at her, and that made her feel bad for reasons she couldn't comprehend.

She managed to sneak off to the Quidditch store when Mrs. Weasley wasn't looking, and managed to hide four suspiciously long, thin packages among the other things she bought, as well as a signed Chudley Cannons robe for Ron. That, thankfully, was actually very cheap, since nobody wanted Chudley Cannons memorabilia. The shopkeeper seemed happy that somebody finally got rid of the thing.

As they walked past a storefront carrying magical plants, Lily briefly remembered that she still needed to get something for Neville. She was almost inside when she remembered, and turned away sadly, now walking far more slowly as she trailed behind Mrs. Weasley's lead.

"Got all the gifts done, dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked at last as they stopped in front of a small pub.

"No," Lily answered. "I still need something for you and-"

"I told you already, dear, you don't need to get us a thing," Mrs. Weasley said sweetly. "Really, we just appreciate the company. Don't mind us one bit."

Lily nodded in defeat.

"Where's the art store?" she asked instead.

"Down there," Molly answered as she pointed further down the road, the same direction they were already heading. "But we have to wait for Arthur, first, he said to meet him at the Leaky Cauldron."

"Where's that?" Lily asked.

"Dear," Mrs. Weasley said nicely, "we're standing in front of it."

"Oh."

She felt her face flush as she looked up at the sign, confirming that they were, in fact, standing in front of the Leaky Cauldron. She briefly remembered Gran insulting the place before, and she now knew the reason for Gran's obstinance. It was a pub, to be sure, and if the windows above were any indication, it also had rooms for rent. It appeared a bit shabby, though.

"We can head inside, if you'd like," Mrs. Weasley offered. "I can order for Arthur, I know what he likes."

"We can wait," Lily said. She leaned against the building's wall, setting her bags down on the ground so she didn't have to hold them. She almost sat down next to them, but heard a voice in her head (suspiciously like Gran's) telling her not to get her robes dirty or there'd be an issue. There was a long, awkward pause as the two ladies stood near each other, neither one speaking a word.

"Have you given any thought as to what classes you'll be taking next year?" Molly asked at last.

"Arithmancy, Care of Magical Creatures, and Ancient Runes," Lily said.

"Bill took Arithmancy and Ancient Runes, himself," Molly said, nodding in encouragement. "I could ask him to send his old notes, if you'd like. He still uses them in his job. He's a curse breaker for Gringotts, working in Egypt."

"That'd be nice," Lily said.

"Why the three, though?" Mrs. Weasley asked. "Not that it's not allowed, you can take them all if you want, but most students only go for the two."

"Seemed fun," Lily answered with a shrug. She thought for a moment longer, and then decided to give a better answer just to be nice. "And Flitwick said I needed Arithmancy and Ancient Runes if I wanted to take Spell Development in sixth year."

"You're interested in advanced classes, then?" Mrs. Weasley said, latching onto the topic eagerly. "The twins have given up on it, I'm afraid, but Bill managed to take a couple himself, and Charlie specialized in Care of Magical Creatures. Percy went into Magical Law, he wants to work in the ministry with his father. Any thought of what you'd like to do?"

"No," Lily answered truthfully. She didn't even know what wizards did for work, other than the Ministry or run a shop. "Maybe Quidditch."

"Charlie could have played for England, himself," Mrs. Weasley said, "but he turned it down to take that position in Romania, instead. You should still try for some OWLs, though; you don't need them for Quidditch, but they'll help once you choose to retire."

Lily nodded, not absorbing any of this information. Quidditch was just the first thing that entered her brain, she didn't know if she actually wanted to play it. She couldn't see herself joining the Chudley Cannons, for sure, no matter how much they offered to pay her.

Perhaps the Holyhead Harpies, though. She could see herself playing in their gold and green.

"Bill and Percy both managed to earn 12 a piece, bless them," Molly continued on. "I don't know where they found the time for all those classes, but we're quite proud of them. You could probably swing it yourself, if you want to give Divination and Muggle Studies a shot, too."

"Maybe," Lily answered. She didn't much like the thought of knowing her future, and she certainly didn't like the idea of taking every single class. She already wanted to drop a couple as it was, and she was about to take three more in the next year.

"Arthur wants one of you to take Muggle Studies quite badly, to be honest," Mrs. Weasley whispered quietly, leaning much closer to Lily. "It wasn't offered when we were at school, you see, and he's dying to know what it's all about. Percy and Bill told him what they could, but I don't think he quite understands it."

"I'll think about it," Lily said knowing full well she wasn't going to be taking it.

"Ah, there's Arthur, now," she said excitedly, pointing towards the balding, thin man striding towards them with an aged briefcase. He looked like he'd had a long day, even though he was just getting off for lunch. Lily felt a bit sorry for him. She hoped that whatever she chose it didn't leave her feeling quite so empty.

"Sorry about the wait," Mr. Weasley said as he pulled up next to them, eyes briefly flickering towards Lily's loaded bags, "Had a lot of work to do before I could slip out early."

"Do you need to head back, dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked, placing a hand on her husband's.

"No, Perkins said he'd cover for me," Mr. Weasley said with a relieved smile. "He asked me to pass on his season's greetings, too. Said he really enjoyed the fudge."

"I don't remember making him any fudge," Mrs. Weasley said.

"I passed him mine," Mr. Weasley said sheepishly. "Couldn't stand the way he kept eyeing the tin. Said you made it for him. He didn't seem to notice half of it was already missing."

Despite meeting in front of the Leaky Cauldron, Mr. Weasley led them to a chippy. And, despite it being such a normal occurrence for normal folk, Lily had to sheepishly admit to them that she'd never been.

Lily thought the fish here was much better than Clutterbucke's and didn't understand at all what Gran was complaining about. It came with a house made tartar, which Lily thought was absolutely fabulous. She even dipped her chips into it.

The two Weasleys walked ahead of Lily, arm in arm, still chatting about mundane things. They seemed to be having fun, at the least. Lily was happy to let them have that. She hoped Mrs. Weasley would remember about the art store, though.

Unfortunately, it seemed to have slipped her mind, as they returned home without visiting it. Lily retreated to her room shortly after, presumably to wrap her gifts, and took the time to draft up a quick letter to Hermione.

Dear Hermione,

I tried to stop at an art store while we were out today, but the Weasleys forgot all about it. Can you pick me up some charcoal and a nice eraser over the Holiday? I could use a sketchbook, too, I've always just used my notebooks. I'll pay you back when I see you, I have a bit more Muggle money than I know what to do with.

Happy Holidays,
Lily Potter

Lily slipped downstairs once she was done, placing all her gifts under the already very crowded tree in the living room. It was as far away from the fireplace as they could get it and looked spectacularly gaudy, just as all proper trees should. She preferred it by far compared to how Petunia used to decorate hers with some simple tinsel and lights, with hardly an ornament to spare. Most of the ones on this tree looked handmade and hand painted, and one even had Ron's name smeared across it. It looked particularly childish, Lily thought, with its bright orange streaks. It looked like tried to imitate his favourite Quidditch team, but just didn't have the proper ability for it. The blurry figures looked like they were struggling to fly around. She was certain one almost fell from his broom as she watched.

"Do we have any paint?" Lily asked from her crouched position. Mr. Weasley looked up from his armchair, where he was reading the paper. He seemed surprised that Lily was even in the room.

"Might have some up in the office," he said. "Did you want to paint an ornament? I know Molly keeps a few extras around, just in case the kids want to."

"I was going to fix Ron's up," Lily said, pointing to the shoddy one. "But I could just make him a new one. I don't think she'd like me painting over his."

Arthur smiled at that. "No, definitely not. I think she'd likely kill the both of us. I'll go fetch them for you, why don't you go have some cocoa in the meantime? Molly's fixing some in the kitchen."

Lily shrugged. Cocoa seemed nice; it was rather chilly in here, even with the fire going.

Mrs. Weasley promptly filled a cup with cocoa for Lily without needing to be asked, and then attempted to have a chat with the girl as they sat together in the kitchen. She asked mostly the same questions Lily already answered and got the same noncommittal questions. Lily got the sense that she had no idea what to talk with her about. Mr. Weasley brought the paints down shortly after, and Mrs. Weasley got genuinely excited about the prospects.

"The kids haven't wanted to paint one in ages!" she said as she hurried to grab the rest of the supplies.

Mr. Weasley didn't paint one with them, even when his wife kept trying to push one on him, but he did sit and chat while the other two worked. Lily appreciated it; it kept the attention from herself, so she could work in relative peace. She ended up making two; one depicting a Chudley Cannon Seeker diving after the Golden Snitch, and another for herself, of the whole Gryffindor Quidditch team playing against Slytherin. The second was far more difficult; she had to use a smaller brush for the finer details, and she worked on it for a very long time. The magical paints and brushes made it easier to work, though; she wasn't sure she could have pulled it off at all with Muggle tools. She did put far more effort into herself and Katie. The others she put into the background after deciding she really didn't feel like spending much longer.

"You're quite good, you know," Mr. Weasley said sleepily as she finally started packing up.

"Thanks," Lily said nervously. She couldn't tell if he was being sincere. The kids at school liked to pretend, and then ruin whatever it was she had been working on.

"You know," Mrs. Weasley added, "maybe you should consider being a professional painter. There's lots of money in it, if you're really good."

"The pure-blood families pay a lot of money for portraits," Mr. Weasley agreed. "And the Ministry is commissioning works all the time."

"How do you make them move?" Lily asked. Her ornaments were stationary, while the ones on the tree were animated.

"I don't know," Mr. Weasley said. "Most people pay to have them animated. We'll get them done up for next year. They'll be a bit backed up this time of year, never get 'em done in time. Best to wait for the off season."

"Do you paint often?" Mrs. Weasley asked, placing a hand over one of Lily's.

Lily looked around at the two adults nervously. They both seemed to be genuinely interested, smiling kindly at her. She could take the chance, surely.

She could trust them.

"I- I used to draw a lot and- and I did a bit of painting, too, when I could," Lily said at last, "but I- I stopped when I started Hogwarts. I didn't have any paints on me, and drawing with a quill and ink was too hard. Kept messing up."

"Oh!" Mrs. Weasley said suddenly. "Oh, dear, I'm so sorry, I completely forgot!"

"Forgot what, Molly?" Arthur asked.

"She wanted to stop at an art store at Diagon, Arthur, but it completely slipped my mind!" Mrs. Weasley said.

"It's okay," Lily decided to say. "I just- I just thought I'd pick it up again, that's all. But Ron and Neville didn't want to join the Art Club with me, so I probably wouldn't anyway. I got some pencils, though, just to- to practice. Just in case."
Both adults looked horrified at that, exchanging a look with one another.

"Now listen here, Lily," Mrs. Weasley said as she took charge. "Don't you let somebody talk you out of doing something you want to do. If you want to draw, draw! If you want to paint, paint!"

"She's right, Lily," Arthur agreed. "All that matters is that you're doing what you're happy with."

"I-" Lily started. She could hear Uncle Vernon in her head, trying to discourage her from these fleeting fantasies. "I'll think about it."

"We'll have stop somewhere on the way home tomorrow, dear," Mrs. Weasley said. "We'll get them for you, Lily, don't worry, it's my fault for forgetting, or you'd already have them."

"You don't have to do that," Lily said quickly. "Really, I was going to-"

"Consider it a Christmas present," Mr. Weasley interrupted gently. "Do you want to come with us to pick them up?"

"No," Lily said after a long pause. She didn't feel like being stuck in a long car ride with the entire Weasley family right now; there's no way she'd be able to avoid or ignore every question the twins or Ron or Ginny would ask her, and she just knew Percy already had some sort of speech prepared for her.

"You can stay and watch the house, then," Mrs. Weasley said. "Just make sure you feed the chickens, dear. They'll get upset if you don't."

"Okay," Lily said. The absolute last thing she wanted to do was anger those monsters. She'd learned that lesson by now.

"We should head to bead, Molly," Mr. Weasley said with a big yawn as he stood. "It's getting late."

"I have to clean up down here first, Arthur," Mrs. Weasley said instead, standing and starting to clear off the table.

"I'll do it, Mrs. Weasley," Lily offered. "I'm not tired yet, really."

Mrs. Weasley glanced over at her, then nodded. "All right. Normally I'd argue, but I can't say any of the other kids have ever volunteered to clean something. It's a nice change of pace."

"Goodnight," Lily called after the two. They returned it as they went up the stairs. Lily stayed at the table until she heard their door click shut a few floors above.

She spent the next 30 minutes cleaning off the table and surrounding area; she got paint on the floor, somehow, and couldn't get it off no matter how hard she scrubbed. Eventually she gave up and used magic, hoping the Weasleys wouldn't come down and see her. She left the ornaments on the counter to dry, sitting on a towel, then went upstairs herself, more than ready for a good night's sleep. After starting on that magical creatures book she purchased earlier in the day, of course. She might be tired, but she was still eager to learn.

As she was reading a passage on Nifflers (and thinking about how badly she'd like one of those cute little buggers), she heard another tapping on her window. She rubbed her eyes to wipe the tired from them, then got up, letting out a little gasp as her feet made contact with the cold floor. She'd left her slippers by her desk, which was really quite stupid of her. Monty was waiting at her window again, and she let the bird in, shutting it afterwards as a frigid breeze pierced through her pyjamas.

Monty held out his leg so Lily could untie the letter from his leg, all while eyeing the biscuit tin sitting nearby.

"You'll get one soon," Lily said sleepily. She had to stifle a yawn as she unfolded the letter.

Dear Lily,

About to get on the train home tomorrow, and I thought I'd write you first. Make sure you send back Monty before you go to sleep, he gets a bit restless at night. And I'm sorry if I woke you! I didn't know how long it'd take for him to get there, so I took the gamble.

I just wanted to let you know we're all worried about you, Wood included. I think he might just be worried about having to find a replacement, to be honest. I asked McGonagall, and she said it's highly unlikely that the Governors will even hold another vote on you. I don't think she was supposed to tell me, though. She made a point of telling me not to let anyone else know, but she did wink at me, too. I think she knew I would write you.

I'm sorry for waking you again, really. I'm bad at this. Mum and dad always complain I never write home enough.

Merry Christmas

Katie Bell

Lily smiled, but it felt more like a confused smile than anything else. Two letters from Katie, now, and neither really said anything. They made her feel good, if a bit strange. She shooed Monty away from her desk, and wrote a quick reply to the girl.

Dear Katie,

You actually didn't wake me, although I was about to get in bed. I was reading a book when I heard Monty tapping on my window. I'm a bit too sleepy to write for long, but I'm going to send your present with Monty. Don't open it until Christmas!

Thanks for the Snitch, I like it a lot! Hope you like yours! I had to shape it a bit strangely, so you couldn't guess what it was.

Merry Christmas!

Lily Potter