Chapter 4: Lily

Lily walked home from the woods having just returned from her first meeting with the strange boy, Severus Snape. She appeared lost in thought as she strolled up the street. After deciding she wouldn't mind a little extra time to process today's events, she turned and took the scenic way home.

Severus was nice enough to walk her to the far end of the playground. She insisted there was no need, but it seemed to Lily that maybe he wasn't too keen on going home just yet, because he muttered something about 'not having anything else to do anyway.' She gratefully accepted his company because it gave them a little more time to chat. Lily liked talking to Severus and was more than happy to let him along.

Now that she was alone however, she was free to go over what took place in the wood. There was one thing in particular that troubled her more than anything else and it was eating away at the forefront of her mind.

"Oh, well- my mum has mostly been teaching me defensive stuff."

What was an eleven year old boy doing being taught defensive magic? She wondered. Why was it the first thing he was being taught? That must mean it was important. More important than anything else. But heavens, why? Were his family great Wizarding dualists or something? Was that even a thing in the magical world?

Lily strolled along, pondering the strangeness of the boy's statement. Even the way he carried himself was a little odd, Lily admitted. From his mismatched clothes to his long tangled hair. Lily knew that he lived on a poor side of town. Spinner's End was hardly the Ritz, but she felt like it was more than that. He was twitchy and nervous, and the fact that he avoided her gaze more often then not hadn't escaped her notice either. Something wasn't right here. She could feel it.

Lily frowned to herself. She wasn't quite ready to face Petunia after the fight they just had. So instead, she settled herself on their front step, continuing to sort through her thoughts with her cheek resting in her palm and her feet scuffing the ground restlessly.

Something else was troubling her. When Severus had instructed her on the use of dark magic...she tapped into something raw and powerful, but it felt...wrong. She supposed that it could have been because she used anger to harness it, but she couldn't be sure.

Lily had decided to use her fight with Petunia earlier that morning. She remembered how she had screamed until her throat was raw and how her face turned an unflattering shade of scarlet. That was when she felt it. A dynamic force that swept through her, erupting from inside her stomach. It was so violent, it left her feeling physically shaken. It made her feel...guilty. Like she had done something horrible. The fact that she used anger to invoke a physical response made it seem as though she were physically lashing out at Petunia. As if she wanted to hurt her. Lily wasn't too eager to experience that again anytime soon.

She thought about the three dark scratches on the tree. How angry would Severus had to have been to make those? They were pretty deeply ingrained in the wood… If it was anger he used to conjure his magic, then what could have happened to provoke that sort of response. He didn't seem like the type to harbor a temper, but then again how much did she know about him really? Sure, they spent a large portion of the afternoon blabbing the day away, and Lily learned a lot about the Wizarding world but -

"Not about Severus," she said softly.

She needed to find out more, she decided, and made a mental note to do some digging. It would have to be subtle because if she came right out with it and just asked him like she wanted, he probably wouldn't answer her anyway. Subtle or secret.

One thing was for certain, she may not know what was going on at the Snape house exclusively, but she knew for damn sure that Severus was being underfed. Anyone could see that just by looking at him and the way his clothes swallowed him up. Put that together with his residence and it didn't take a genius to know he wasn't getting enough to eat because they likely couldn't afford to. Lily made another mental note on her rapidly growing list to revisit later.

Lily stared at her tired dirty feet and sighed. The sun was sinking lower in the sky and she decided it was too hot to stay outside any longer. She supposed she would have to face her sister sooner or later anyhow. So, with her mind still whirling, she stood up and went inside.

She tried to open the door quietly, just in case Petunia was somewhere nearby, but her fingers were slippery from the heat, and they slid down the latch clumsily, giving her away immediately. Lily's breath caught and she froze in the doorway waiting to see if she would be discovered, her bottom lip clenched painfully in her teeth.

"Back from your date?" Petunia asked haughtily.

Lily whipped around. Petunia was sitting on the couch, the top of her head barely poking out above the back of the sofa, visible largely due to the messy pile of blonde hair stacked on top of her head. The television was blaring from the front sitting room, but Lily had a feeling that whatever was on screen Petunia wasn't really paying attention to it. Petunia got up from her spot on the couch to turn around and glare at Lily, her stomach pressing against the back of the sofa cushions. Lily rolled her eyes at her sister.

"It wasn't a date," she said in exasperation. "Boys and girls can be friends Tuney, believe it or not." Lily kicked off her sandals and closed the door behind her with a little too much force, causing the door to slam shut with an audible snap.

Petunia sniffed. "Yeah, you two do make a lovely couple though. Maybe he can take you home and give you the grand tour. Should only take a moment, I'll bet they all live in one room. I'll bet they all have to sleep in a big heap in the middle of the floor, like pigs. That's likely where he gets his smell from. You'll fit right in at least," Petunia scoffed, looking Lily up and down.

Lily's hands balled together into tight fists and she stamped her foot against the ground in annoyance, venting some of her frustration.

"That's a terrible thing to say about somebody, Petunia!" Lily scolded, her eyes narrowing dangerously. "Besides, why do you care who I hang around with? It's not like you have time for me anymore. Ever since you turned 13 it's like you're suddenly a different person. You try to act all grown up, like this is how you should behave because you're a teenager now," Lily sounded as though she wanted to be sick as she emphasized the word 'teenager'. "Like those extra couple of hours made any difference from the person that you were."

Petunia's lips pursed into a tight line and her face burned a violent crimson as the impact of Lily's words washed over her and had a chance to sink in.

"I have not!" She protested angrily. "And this isn't even about me, this about you and that Snape boy," Petunia's nose wrinkled in distaste and she sneered at the mention of her sister's lack of better judgement.

"What have you got against him anyway? Why does he bother you so much? You don't even know him!" Lily shouted.

"Neither do you!" Petunia spat back. She sighed, "I just don't trust him Lily. He's weird, and he's lying to you! There is no such thing as wizards, and witches, and magic, and you're too old to believe in fairytales anyway! You know better." She started to wag her finger in Lily's direction accusingly. "You better stay away from him! Or I'll tell Mummy where you're going!"

"Go ahead," Lily challenged. "I'm sure Mum will be happy to hear that I've made a friend now that I don't have a sister any more!"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Petunia shrieked indignantly.

Lily glared at her sister her eyes colored with resentment and outrage. "It means-" Lily began through clenched teeth "that even Mum's noticed how you've been avoiding me lately…"

An uncomfortable silence fell between them as Lily continued to stare accusingly at her older sister. Before she could stop them, Lily's vision blurred over suddenly, and she was sniffing loudly, her breath becoming shallow and frantic as she fought back the angry tears threatening to dampen her lashes. Petunia looked uncomfortable and she dropped her gaze, suddenly becoming very interested in a loose thread on the knitted throw blanket, pulling at it awkwardly.

The atmosphere was thick with words left unspoken. Lily waited for a few moments, giving Petunia a chance to explain herself or offer her any words of comfort or reassurance. When it became evident that there was nothing forthcoming, she stormed away to the sanctuary of her bedroom, bounding up the staircase, taking them two at a time in her desperation to get away from her sister.

Lily collapsed on her bed dramatically, unable to hold back the hurt and frustration. Tears trickled their way down her cheeks and fell onto her pillow, which she grabbed and clung to herself desperately, her knees creeping further up her chest as she tried to make herself as small as possible. For a few moments Lily thought that Petunia might pursue her, and she would be forced to reign in her emotions at the drop of a hat, but it became evident that Petunia was not planning any such confrontation, as the voices on the television set drifted loudly up the stairs, further confirming Petunia's return to her spot on the sofa and with it crushing any remaining hope Lily had of working things out with her.

The realization that Petunia would not be coming just sent a fresh wave of anger and disappointment coursing through her and she sobbed harder, allowing the sadness to encompass her body and offer it's sodden, doleful comforts.

What she said downstairs was all true, and Petunia knew it, that's why she had suddenly been struck dumb. She was avoiding her, and she wanted to know why. Lily had her suspicions of course, but it would be nice to get it all out in the open so they could move passed this.

It's because I can do magic, she thought miserably to herself. Petunia always yelled at her when she did something that she deemed "unnatural" and Lily hated the way that she looked at her in those moments. Her frightened eyes and shrill voice screaming for her to stop, like she wouldn't do the exact same thing if she knew she could…

Lily turned over on the bed and punched her pillow a few times in frustration before collapsing into it, a high muffled scream floating up from the gap between the fabric and her face. Her shoulders collapsed in defeat and exertion as she sunk further into her place on the mattress, releasing the pent up tension she had been feeling the last few days. She turned her head to the side and stared unblinkingly at her vanity, reminiscing about the time Petunia had done her make-up. Had it really only been yesterday? It felt like a lifetime ago.

Sometimes Lily wished that she wasn't so different so that things could go back to the way they used to be between the two of them. The long afternoons spent playing at the park, playing Dress-up or inventing dances to their favorite songs so they could perform them for their parents.

She remembered when they used to have sleepovers in each others rooms, building blanket forts and telling secrets. Even the secret knock… Petunia's room was right next door to Lily's and they had created a secret knock just in case the other was awake and needed to talk. If the other responded in turn, then they knew the other was also awake and prepared to chat. They found if they both listened through their water glasses they could talk to each other through the walls quietly enough that their parents wouldn't hear them and interfere with their late night conversations. All of that was a distant memory now, and Lily was surprised to find she was actually mourning their relationship.

Actually, while she was wishing for things, she wished that Petunia was more like her. That way she wouldn't be so damn afraid of her and they could discover the extent of their magical abilities together and she wouldn't be so distrustful of her new friend, Severus Snape. In fact, in a perfect world, it would have been the three of them together at the clearing this afternoon, not just the two of them.

Lily rolled over onto her back and stared at the ceiling, her thumbs twiddling absentmindedly as she thought. What did Petunia have against Severus? They seemed to really dislike each other the first time they met, but Lily had to admit that Petunia really had been rude first. Was it really just because he dressed in funny clothes and lived on Spinner's End? Somehow, Lily doubted it, she liked to think that her sister wasn't as cruel as all that.

But now, she couldn't help but notice the sudden change in Petunia and the way she treated Lily, not only when she performed random bursts of magical ability, but also since she had decided to hang out with Severus. It left her feeling uncertain. Things just seemed to be getting worse and worse between them lately.

Lily's thoughts returned to Severus and the day they had lying on their backs under the canopy. She traced the events in her mind carefully, trying to remember everything about Snape's ramblings in greater detail. She smiled to herself in thought.

Lily sat up in bed abruptly as the beginnings of an idea began to form in her mind, starting in like a fine mist and then becoming slowly more vivid as it began spiraling into a heavy fog. A smile settled itself across her lips, as the idea became fuller and more developed in her brain. She flew out of bed, running about the house wildly in search of Mr. Evans.

She found him in his office, crouched over a pile of paperwork, his briefcase lay opened on the floor, it's contents currently strewn about his heavy oak desk as he tapped the papers with his pen in concentration. He looked up from the form he was studying as Lily entered the room. Mr. Evans smiled warmly at his youngest daughter.

"Lily! What can I do you for? Your mother hasn't been making her infamous leftover casserole again has she?" he chuckled to himself lightheartedly. "16 years and I still haven't found the antidote I'm afraid" he grinned at her.

Lily smiled appreciatively at her dad's antic.

"No, Daddy, not that. I was wondering if maybe we could go to the Tool Shop tomorrow?"

Mr. Evans swiveled in his chair to look at his youngest daughter in disbelief.

"A hardware store? What do you need to go to a hardware store for Lil?" he asked curiously.

Lily looked down at her feet and began fidgeting with a strand of her hair nervously.

"Oh, well- it's just- I sort of wanted to...build something."

"Build something?" Mr. Evans repeated his eyebrows knitting together in confusion. His face turned serious, "Would I be correct in assuming that if we make this hypothetical trip to The Tool Shop tomorrow, I will be given full disclosure on what this 'something' actually is?" he said, not really asking.

"Promise," Lily agreed.

Mr. Evans frowned and fixed Lily with a skeptical look, his eyes searching for something he might possibly read on her face.

Lily stared back with wide eyes, trying her best to give him one of those innocent pleading looks that only existed between father and daughter. She felt the fact that she was the youngest also gave her the upper hand in these situations.

Finally, Mr. Evans cracked, heaving a heavy sigh of defeat.

"Very well Lily, we can go to The Tool Shop tomorrow but only if you're awake, fed and dressed first thing. I expect you at the door waiting for me 45 minutes before I leave for work, otherwise there won't be enough time and I cannot be late. Now look at me," Lily locked eyes with her father obediently. "Do we understand each other?"

Lily nodded her head vigorously in agreement. Mr. Evans face relaxed a little, his fatherly grin returning to its rightful place on his mouth. "Good, now run along. If I don't finish these reports for Mr. Mitchell by tonight he's going to have my ass come sunrise and then I can kiss that promotion goodbye." Mr. Evans spun back around in his chair, refocusing his attention on the pile of paperwork still cluttering his desk.

Recognizing her father's dismissal, Lily returned to her bedroom bursting with excitement. If she could pull this off, Sev wouldn't even know what hit him! And it would be another crucial cornerstone in the foundation of their developing friendship. For Lily, tomorrow couldn't get here soon enough.

Lily awoke groggily to the sound of her alarm clock buzzing frantically on her bedside table. It was much earlier than she had grown accustomed to, especially over the summer. Her dad usually left the house by 8:00, which meant she needed to be by the door ready to leave at 7:15. Lily's arm, still heavy with sleep, flew out blindly from its spot under the covers, feeling for the button that would silence the irritating buzz of her alarm.

The dawn had barely begun to break, painting the skyline in its signature shade of orange, blue and pink. Lily got up slowly, reminding herself that if she fell back to sleep now, she couldn't carry through with her plans for the rest of the day. She yawned sleepily and stretched, throwing the blanket off herself and stepping into her favorite slippers. She remained sitting on the edge of her bed like that for a moment, waiting for her body to warm up and begin functioning properly. She blinked at the time on her alarm clock. The bright red glow stabbed a vibrant 6:12 A.M. into the darkness of her bedroom.

Lily eased herself off the edge of her bed and set about finding something to wear. She grabbed the first things she could find, not really caring if they matched or not and fished out a fresh pair of knickers from the middle drawer of her dresser. That accomplished she padded out into the hallway towards the bathroom thinking a shower would be just what she needed to wake herself up. One thing was for certain, she was definitely not a morning person.

As she approached the door to the shared bathroom, she was annoyed to find it occupied, a line of light shone from the crack underneath, further rendering it's currently useless condition. Lily groaned quietly to herself in annoyance, tossing her head back as though praying to the heavens to give her the patience to deal with it so early in the morning.

She spun around and leaned against the 'waiting' wall beside the door, at least that was what she always called it. A little section of wall that always offered her back a sturdy support while she spent countless minutes waiting on Petunia to be done with the bathroom. It's cool exterior felt familiar and comforting, so much so she could swear the curves of her back slid into the exact same position every time. At least this wall was a constant support during some rather uncomfortable times in her life. It was nice to know it was always there, willing to lend a hand (or...nail?) when she thought she couldn't possibly hold on any longer, potentially leading to a very embarrassing situation and a lot of explanation. Yes, she and this particular section of wall had a very deep and uncomplicated relationship she thought, settling herself more readily against it.

A flush drifted out from inside the bathroom, breaking the silence. Lily's eyes snapped open at the sound, ripping her out of her reverie and causing her to become more alert as she readied herself for the take over.

The door swung open and Petunia stepped out sleepily, still wearing her fluffy pink house coat and matching slippers.

"What are you doing up this early?" Lily whispered angrily.

Petunia considered her for a moment before her lips thinned in aggravation. "Someone's alarm woke me up," she whispered back irritably. "You think next time you can handle turning it off within the first five minutes?" She added sarcastically.

Lily rolled her eyes and pushed past her sister, "Yeah, sure. Five minutes, will do." Lily made to close the door shut behind her but Petunia pushed back against the door to prevent it from snapping shut in her face.

"Hey, Lily-" Petunia said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper. She was eyeing Lily sheepishly and her cheekbones wore the soft pink hues of embarrassment.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry…about yesterday," she said, looking away and avoiding eye contact. "I said some unfair things to you and I just wanted you to know that… Well, I didn't mean them. I was just upset." Petunia shrugged and gave Lily one of her award winning you're-my-sister-and-I-love-you type smiles, solely reserved for her apologies.

The corners of Lily's mouth turned up slightly in response before eventually breaking into a full-on satisfied, albeit cocky, smile. "I knew you couldn't stay mad at me Tuney, we're sisters and you love me way too much for that," she beamed.

Catching the look on Lily's face, Petunia wrinkled her nose in mock disgust. "Yeah, I wouldn't go that far exactly," she teased, holding both arms out in front of her defensively in case Lily tried anything.

"Come on, Tuney" Lily pretended to pout. She extended her lower lip and made it tremble dramatically, her eyes growing wider. "Don't you wanna hug it out?"

Petunia stifled a giggle, "No!" She whispered loudly, looking around for her nearest exit.

As usual, it was too late, Lily had pounced, throwing her arms around Petunia and locking her into a bone crushing hug. She made loud wet kissing noises into the air next to Petunia's cheeks as Petunia continued to push her off, her hand pressing hard against any part of Lily she could reach.

"Lily!" Petunia tried to whisper urgently between muffled giggles. "Stop! You'll wake Mummy."

Lily conceded and turned around to head back into the bathroom, happier now that she and Petunia had made-up. She had only just swiveled to close the door shut yet again when Petunia interrupted her-

"Wait, what are you doing up this early?" she asked suddenly. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at Lily suspiciously. "Mummy has a hard enough time getting you up for breakfast most days…"

"I'm going with Daddy to The Tool Shop," Lily told her.

"The Tool Shop?" Petunia's face scrunched until her displeasure was written quite plainly across her features. "What do you need to go there for? That place smells like a barn. Don't they sell tools and stuff?"

Lily nodded. "Yeah, and wood and paint and things too," she shrugged. "So?"

"What do you need from there? What's it for?" Petunia's hands took their usual residence on her hips while she continued with Lily's interrogation.

"I'm planning a sort of… surprise," Lily supplied vaguely. Her hand crept higher up the door as she prepared to close it once again.

"A surprise for who?"

Lily shrugged in response and said nothing, her fingers softly drumming against the door, playing the subtle but all too familiar ballad of dismissal. Petunia took her silence as a confession. Her cold demeanor returning as though the events of the last few moments never even happened.

"It's him isn't it? You're going to see him," she stated flatly.

"So, what if I am?" Lily countered. "You know Tuney, I'm sure if you took the time to get to know him, you'd see he's not all bad. Why not come with me?" she asked hopefully.

Petunia recoiled as though she had been slapped. "I wouldn't go anywhere near that kid with a ten foot pole and neither should you."

"Tunia-"

-"Fine! Go then! But don't come crying to me when you realize he's nothing but a nasty little liar because I won't be there to pick up the pieces when this all goes to shit."

"Petunia!" Lily gasped, covering her mouth with her hand in shock.

"I'm going back to bed." Petunia said curtly, and before Lily could say another word, she whirled around and swept back to her bedroom. The door clicked shut behind her softly even though Petunia swung the door so fast it made a soft whooshing sound as it cut through the air. Lily was left standing in the bathroom door looking dumbstruck and wondering how this charade of fighting and making up could have escalated so quickly.

Lily closed the door in a state of confounded dismay, her brain still trying to catch up with the rapid fluctuation of Petunia's behavior. Deciding that she needed that hot shower now more than ever, she turned on the hot water. Steam issued out from under the door as she stepped into the shower. Her mind was still a whirl a few moments later when she turned off the water and toweled off, throwing on the clothes she located in the dark, which turned out to be a pair of denim shorts and a pale green leaf-printed tank.

Lily padded downstairs to the kitchen feeling slightly more put out thanks to her run in with Petunia. Distractedly she popped two slices of bread into the toaster and poured herself a glass of juice. She opened the refrigerator to put the flagon of juice away and froze as she stared into the frosty contents on the shelves as though she weren't really seeing them. She gazed at the big bowl of fruit on the second shelf, took an orange, reconsidered for a moment, then took another.

She buttered her toast in a hurry, acutely aware that she was running out of time as she stuffed one piece in her mouth and chewed feverishly. She downed the rest of her juice and placed the second piece in her mouth as she headed for the door, strapping her feet into her usual white sandals.

Lily's mind was still troubled with thoughts of her older sister, but as Mr. Evans met her at the door, his briefcase in one hand while the other ushered her out, she took in the realization of where they were going and why. She became so overwhelmed with excitement that all thought of her rocky relationship with Petunia simply drifted away, until she had room left only for Severus.

A/N: I'm not entirely satisfied with this chapter. I may go back and change some things in the future. It was a difficult one to get out and I'm afraid it probably shows. Sorry about that. If you stuck with it this long, I do appreciate it.

*Minor Re-editing*