Chapter 1

It was fifteen years later and Eliza Finch sitting in the living room of her small home watching her daughter frantically run around the house packing to get ready to go back to Hogwarts tomorrow. Lily Finch had gone the previous day to Diagon Alley to get her school supplies with her friends. She had stopped going with her Muggle mother after her first year. Lily noticed how odd her mother was in many different ways. For example, Eliza was so anxious about Diagon Alley and Platform 9 ¾ that first year that she had even dyed her red hair brown. Eliza stopped going into those magical places after that year. But, Eliza always wanted to hear stories about Hogwarts and what Lily was learning and didn't seem to mind if she did magic in the house when she wasn't supposed to. In fact, when Lily had gotten her letter from Hogwarts and the nice man from the ministry had come to explain about magic, Eliza almost seemed to be expecting this and Lily thought that her mother was proud to be going off into a strange new world. No, Lily could not figure her mother out.

"Lily, why don't you just use that summoning spell you told me about to find your broom?" Eliza said in a bored voice as if she was amused by how her daughter was stressing out about school. And, in fact, she was amused. She remembered getting ready for her fifth year at Hogwarts and how much better Lily had it without worrying about Death Eaters while shopping. Eliza thought with a pang in her chest at how it was during her fifth year that she had started dating Harry, back when she was Ginny, of course. Eliza hoped that Lily would have as good a year as she had. Not that she was going to tell her daughter any of this since she was living as the supportive non-magical mother these past years.

"Mum, I've told you this before! I'm underage in the wizarding world and not allowed to do magic outside Hogwarts," Lily stated exasperated at her mother's lack of understanding, flipping her medium-length red hair over her shoulder. "My Defense professor even told me that he was almost expelled from doing magic once! I honestly don't know how I have managed to escape the Ministry's detection with the number of times you have asked me to show you magic."

"Oh, of course. I'm sorry. Well, let me know if you need help with anything." Eliza smiled at her daughter's worries. Little did Lily know that her mother had cast a ward around the house as soon as Lily went off to Hogwarts so magic could not be detected within it. Eliza used her daughter's time away from home to brush up on her own magic and she now felt quite comfortable keeping her old wand with her knowing that she was about as good at her bat-bogey hex as she was when she left her home 15 years previously.

As the day slowly turned into night, the two women sat down for a quiet dinner.

"How did your date go last night Mum?" Lily asked curiously. Eliza had been dating a guy she met at a speed dating event her friend had convinced her to go to a month ago. She smiled at this question and told her daughter that it went very well and filled in all the details about the movie they had seen (a romantic comedy) and how they went out for ice cream afterwards even though it was chilly because they were both craving it. The entire time Eliza told about her evening, she was smiling. Lily ended up smiling too because she was happy to see her mother doing something besides work, even if she was one of the top chefs in the area, and play football for a women's league. Lily knew how strong Eliza was and that she could take care of herself and even play football evenly matched with many men, but she also knew how lonely Eliza was even if she pretended not to be. Lily hated to think of how her mother's life was when she was away at school and was very glad to see her finally date again.

"You know, Dylan teaches at a boarding school. But his is London which is why he lives in these suburbs," Eliza told Lily about her date.

"Am I ever going to meet him? I'd like to see the man who stole my mother's heart."

Eliza blushed at this comment. "He did not steal my heart! But I suppose if I am still seeing him when you come home for Christmas I'll be forced to introduce you then."

"You make it sound like you don't want to introduce me!" Lily said laughing.

"You're right, I don't." Eliza smirked at her daughter, knowing that Lily wouldn't take her seriously.

"Mum," Lily said shyly and much more seriously, "is this the first boyfriend you've had since my dad?"

Eliza stiffened at this comment but then sighed and relaxed saying "Yeah, it is. It has actually been really weird for me. But Dylan seems to understand. I guess his fiancée died a long time ago and he hasn't dated since then either. In fact, his friends forced him into going to the speed dating as well!" Eliza laughed but once again became serious, "But we both know that its hard it is to move on after loving someone so much like that. I guess that's why I can date him. He understands and we are both taking it slow. But, I must say, that I am glad I am seeing him."

Lily noticed the sparkle in Eliza's eye when she said that last bit, but soon it was gone and the eyes went back to the lonely look that they usually had when Lily said anything about her father. Lily decided to ask the question she had always wanted to know. Her mother seemed to be in a better mood tonight than usual. "Mum… how come you and my dad aren't still together? Did he die?"

Eliza was hesitant to get into this conversation. But she knew that she would have to tell her daughter the truth some day, so she might as well start with a partial truth now. "No. He didn't die."

"What happened then? Did you get a divorce?"

"No, we were never married." At Lily's shocked look Eliza quickly added to that. "We were engaged though. We had been together for 3 years steadily and almost 2 years off and on before that."

"Oh. Wait, that means that you started dating him when you were 15! That's how old I am now…"

Eliza chuckled at this, "And I knew him since I was 11. I had the biggest crush on him when I was younger, I couldn't even talk around him! Which was a bit of a problem, considering that he sometimes stayed at my house. I started to date other boys when I was 14 but your father finally came around a noticed me when I was 15, and it was just… perfect."

Lily was shocked by a few things now. Not only was her mum talking openly about this, but she looked so happy reminiscing about this man. How could they not be together if he didn't die!? And why was he staying at her home? That sounded a little risqué to her…

"But that doesn't make any sense, how come you are no longer together if it was perfect? And why in the world was he staying with you?"

"First of all, he was not staying with ME, he was staying with my family. He was actually best friend with one of my brothers." Lily blanched at the fact that her mother had a family but kept her mouth shut wanting to hear the answer to her other question. "And we were… forced… to break up. Its all very complicated. But I could no longer stay at home with my family and with him. I had to leave. It was the hardest thing I had ever done."

Lily almost choked on her words, "You have a family? You have brothers? I always assumed that all your family was dead or half way across the globe or something."

"Yeah, I have brothers. But they were the reason I had to leave. They blamed me for something, and they were justified in doing so. I just… just couldn't stay there any longer." Lily suddenly felt very guilty at seeing her mother's eyes fill up with tears. She had never given it any thought as to WHY Eliza was lonely, just that she was.

Her next question was asked in a whisper almost too quiet to hear, "What is his name?"

"Whose name?"

"My dad's."

"I can't tell you. Not yet."

"Why not?"

"I told you. It was all very complicated. I promise I will tell you someday. But please, just not now." Eliza looked to be on the verge of tears again so Lily let that go.

"Does he know about me?"

"No. I didn't know I was pregnant with you when I left."

"Oh."

There was silence for a long while after this as they finished their dinner and cleaned up the kitchen. It wasn't until Lily went back into her room to finish packing did either of them say anything again. Eliza was standing in her daughters doorway thinking over the situation she had gotten herself into, but more importantly, what she had done to her daughter. Lily has never known her large family and it is the one thing that Eliza hated most about what she did. Lily turned around and saw her mother standing there and tried to give a weak smile. Eliza looked into her daughter's amazing green eyes thinking only of the man she loved and left. If only Harry knew how amazing his daughter was.

"You're named after his mum, you know."

Lily was startled at her mother talking again. "Sorry?"

"Your name. Lily. It was your father's mother's name. She is also the person where you get your beautiful eyes from. Your father's eyes. Lily was what he always wanted to name his first daughter. And his first son would have been after his father."

"Does he have any other children?"

"I don't know," Eliza said quietly. "All I know is that he is alive and still in contact with my family. I know they are still alive. They know I am still alive but they don't know about you or where we are. I'm so sorry Lily." Eliza whispered the last line and started to have silent tears running down her face.

Lily walked over to hug her mother, both women crying. Lily knew how terrible her mother felt, and no matter how much she wanted to know about who her family was, she also wanted to help her mother and whatever had happened in the past must have been a good enough reason to live like this.

Eliza tossed and turned that night in bed silently crying over how much she had lost and what she had done to both Harry and Lily. Someday, she promised to herself, she would bring them together. She had to. Lily would live in the wizarding world and Harry was the very important to that world. Eliza quickly listened to make sure Lily had gone to bed and took out her old wand. Tapping the bottom of a drawer in her bedside table with it, she revealed a hidden compartment taking out an old picture from when she was 15. It was her first kiss with Harry. Someone, probably Colin Creevey, managed to capture that moment on film. She cried some more over Colin's death, the loss of Harry, and everything that had happened in the war. She then took out an old newspaper clipping showing her family in Egypt right before her second year at Hogwarts. She cried the hardest when she thought of Fred. It was her fault he was gone. That was why she left her family. She never wanted to tell Lily about that terrible fact but she knew that one day, she would have to. Eliza, previously Ginny, tucked her memories back in their hiding place sealing it again and put her want away. She then drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

At the same time that night, Lily laid in bed thinking about her unknown family. She probably had cousins out there around her age if her mum had brothers. She wondered if any of them were magical like her. Maybe she had even met them at Hogwarts. But the only people who could maybe look like her were the Weasley's, and they all came from a giant magical background while her own mother was definitely a muggle. So, maybe they weren't at Hogwarts. Lily remembered the time she went to the main library in London a few years ago to try and look up her family there. She had looked up Elizabeth Finch and to her surprise, it seemed as if she had just popped out of nowhere. Maybe her mum moved to Great Britain? No, she definitely had a British accent, even when she was incredibly sleepy and slurring her worlds. Lily thought back to what she had heard at dinner: her mum's family blamed her for something that was justified…. Maybe she was in some sort of witness protection program? Lily thought that sounded silly but either way, she was sure there was something funny about her mum's name.

The next morning, she set out to find out what it was. Eliza noticed how Lily was deep in thought during the entire car ride to King's Cross. It wasn't until she had parked the car did Lily finally break the silence.

"You're real name isn't Elizabeth, is it?" she asked quietly without looking at her mother.

Eliza was shocked and stuttered without knowing what to say at first until she finally just went with the simple answer. "No, it isn't. Neither is Finch. I legally changed it to that when I left."

"What is it then? Just your first name, I know you won't tell me your last name."

"I can't tell you that either. I promise you'll understand someday."

"Ok." Lily was disappointed. She had wanted to at least know that. But it was already 10:30 and she had to get to Platform 9 ¾ soon. "See you at Christmas, Mum. And I'll owl you sometime this week."

"Bye Lily. I love you. You know that right? I am sorry for what I did to my life but you are amazing and I love you. And I know that if your father knew you, he would be so proud of you too."

"Of course I know that. I love you too." Lily hesitated before adding, "And thanks, for saying that my dad would be proud."

Mother and daughter gave weak smiles to each other before Lily closed the door, got her trunk and owl out of the back of the car, and walked off towards the station feeling more confused than ever before.

A/N: Hopefully this is better than the prologue. Let me know what you think... And I got the name Eliza Finch from two of my favorite fictional charachters: Elizabeth Bennett from Pride and Prejudice and Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird... in case anyone was wondering. :)