Lily was only briefly worried that her renewed days at Hogwarts would be a fresh new hell. That thought was shattered early the next morning when she arrived at breakfast to find what everybody was actually talking about. It really only took about two seconds to put it together after sitting. One look at the pale and thunderous expression on Malfoy's face, another at the front page of the Prophet, and Lily's laugh was ringing through the rafters.
MALFOY FAMILY SPLIT APART:
LUCIUS TO REMARRY
The headline was accompanied by a large photo of Lucius Malfoy and his new, blushing bride. Lily vaguely remembered the name "Bertha Jorkins," but she couldn't place from where. She'd definitely never seen the woman's beaming face before, at the very least.
"Oi, Malfoy!" Lily shouted across the hall once she calmed down. "They set the date, yet?"
"Don't, Lily," Hermione said quietly.
"Don't suppose you'll be getting an invitation, will you? Changing your name anytime soon, or is he going to keep letting you sully his?"
"Lily!" Hermione snapped, eyes glancing over nervously towards Malfoy's rapidly darkening face.
"Oh, just wait until Ron hears about this," Lily said, hopping from her seat with a huge smile and without eating a single bite.
"Lily!" Hermione called after her. "We're supposed to meet with Dumbledore!"
"Yeah, later," Lily said, skipping out of the Great Hall.
It took Lily ten minutes of shouting outside the Fat Lady's Portrait for somebody to finally go fetch a bleary-eyed Ron dressed sloppily in his Quidditch robes, but he was focused and just as happy as she was once he saw the news.
"He's left them for Jorkins?" Ron said with an even louder laugh. "Blimey, dad says she's always been a bit daft of mind. Where's Malfoy, he's got to be fuming about all this."
"Downstairs," Lily said, happily turning to lead him straight to the source.
Unfortunately, he wasn't there anymore upon their arrival. Not that Hermione would have let her do anything anyway. As soon as Lily showed her face again, she grabbed her firmly by the arm and started dragging her upstairs for their meeting. Lily hardly even had the time to promise Ron some real Quidditch later, but he lit up at the mere thought of it.
A similar expression was worn on the face of Albus Dumbledore as he lifted one of their hats from their box.
"Fascinating," he said, swapping the one he was wearing for the much smaller one he was holding. "And you made these all yourselves?"
"Yes," Hermione said, nodding firmly. Lily didn't correct her on that. She was pretty sure not a single one of hers made the cut. In fact, she was pretty sure Hermione was hiding them all underneath her bed.
"And these are sweaters, yes?" Dumbledore said, lifting something that most definitely resembled a doily more than an article of clothing.
"Err-" Hermione said, now wringing her hands together with far less confidence. "It's- err-"
"More of a prototype," Lily said for her. "We're still working on it. We want to focus more on the hats, first, just get the elves used to having clothes."
"An interesting idea," Dumbledore said, leaning back in his seat and scratching at his beard. "I'll admit, I have tried many things to help our elvish population, but it never occurred to me to try this."
"It hasn't?" Hermione said. Lily was pretty sure she meant it in an admonishing way, but Dumbledore seemed to take it as a surprising compliment of sorts.
"I thought simply to offer them a safe place to work," Dumbledore said. "All but one of the elves refused any sort of pay, you see, and even he doesn't take much. I thought they'd all take it as a reason to pursue pay of their own, but it seems I was wrong."
"And you think the hats will help?" Lily said, now feeling a bit skeptical about the whole thing.
"I certainly do not think it will hurt," Dumbledore said with a nod. "And if, indeed, it does work, then the two of you will have made tremendous strides towards elvish equality."
"You'll do it, then?" Hermione asked hopefully.
"I will not force anything onto our staff that they will not accept willingly," Dumbledore said. "But, having known them all for most of their lives, I daresay not a one will refuse it, even if they think it a bit odd. Yes, I will accept the hats. I will even accept the sweaters, once you are out of the prototyping phase."
"Right," Lily said. She couldn't help but notice that Dumbledore had floated the little doily-sweater over to a nearby table, where it was now laying underneath a fancy, if eccentric, vase.
"I will bring it to them myself before lunchtime," Dumbledore said. "Would the two of you like to accompany me?"
"Yes!" Hermione piped up at once.
"Can't," Lily said far less excitedly. "I already promised the others I'd play Quidditch with them."
"An excellent idea," Dumbledore said approvingly. "You should join them, Miss Granger. You have not seen your friends in a very long time, and it will do you both some good to spend some time with them."
"But-"
"And, if I might add," Dumbledore continued, "I believe it would do us all some good were you to invite a few of the foreign students. Perhaps some of your new friends?"
"Right," Lily and Hermione said together, both having completely failed to make any substantial relationships during their brief tenure at Beauxbatons.
"If you'll excuse me," Dumbledore said when a soft knock came at the door, "I have another appointment to attend to. Have a wonderful weekend, and it is has been a pleasure to see the two of you at Hogwarts once again."
Lily could take a hint, but she had to pull Hermione out of her seat before she could continue asking the Headmaster any questions. When they opened the door and found Madame Maxime standing there, all three of them froze in surprise.
"What are you doing here?" Maxime asked suspiciously.
"We were meeting with the Headmaster about hats," Lily said stupidly.
"For the House Elves," Hermione added, only earning a more incredulous look.
"Because of S.P.E.W.," Lily added, tapping on the badge she was wearing on her chest.
"You are dismissed, the both of you," Maxime said in a slightly concerning tone.
There wasn't much either of them could do about it, though, so they left for Lily's little pickup game with the Weasleys, only to find that the family invited the rest of the Gryffindor team, which meant Lily had to and grab a few other students to be on hers. At the very least, Sae seemed incredibly excited about the prospect of playing on her side, even if it wasn't for an official match.
"It feels so strange," Hermione said over a bowl of porridge the next morning. "Being back here, I mean."
"It's a shame the 'exotic, culinary delights' didn't extend to breakfast," Lily said with a sigh. Eggs, toast, and beans just seemed so plain, now. That didn't stop her from eating several plates of the stuff, of course.
"I think they just wanted to show a traditional English breakfast."
"And, somehow, there's not a sausage in sight."
"Lily, you can't limit your field of view to just what's in front of you. Aren't you a Seeker?"
"My one job is to focus on what's in front of me!"
"You have to search the whole field!
"I don't think I need a lecture on how to play Quidditch from a wonk, thank you."
"So," Hermione said, ignoring that and picking up her paper, "what do you fancy doing today?"
"Painting," Lily said simply.
"Just painting?"
"Yeah, that's right."
"Really?"
"Really."
"Huh," Hermione said, still staring.
"What?"
"I don't know," Hermione said. "I just- I don't know, it just feels like we should be doing something different, now that we're here." Lily didn't think it helped matters much that their new dorms were just complete replicas of their old ones, minus the delightful balcony overlooking the ocean.
"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I plan to do it in the art room," Lily said, taking another bite of toast. "Hogwarts doesn't reject anybody."
"Merlin, are you still upset about that?"
"I reckon I still will be on my deathbed."
"Didn't you promise everybody you'd go flying?"
"Ron's got practice until noon again, then Sae's got practice after."
"What about you?"
"We practice tomorrow," Lily said with a shrug. "I suggested getting some night flight in, but Ron insists on going to the chess club."
"Ron joined a club?"
"I know, I couldn't believe it either. Neville reckons he's found a girl he fancies."
"Ron?" Hermione said, sounding even further in disbelief. "Really?"
"I don't believe that one, either," Lily said with a shrug.
"Wait, when did Neville even tell you this?"
"While you were in the library. He's in the greenhouse, now, if you want to stop by. He's helping Professor Sprout with something, don't remember what- name was way too long."
"Wait, aren't you supposed to be with Professor Belby?"
"Not for a bit. I do that first. Then I paint."
"Huh," Hermione said, setting her paper down and falling into a sullen silence.
"What?" Lily asked after it went on for way too long.
"Nothing," Hermione said.
"Hermione, come on. What?"
"Nothing!" Hermione said, sounding a bit snappy. "I suppose I'll just go back to the library, then. I've been checking the history tomes for anything I can find on house elves, so I can reference them against what I found at Beauxbatons."
"Right," Lily said, setting down her fork, slinging her bag over her shoulder, and standing from the table. "Well, you do that, then. I'll see you for lunch."
Lily hurried out of the room, keeping her head held low so Clara and Cedric wouldn't see her. She knew it was only a matter of time before the school's focus was back on her, and she was going to do everything she could to stay incognito for as long as possible. It was a little hard to do, considering how much she stood out, but seeing as how nobody approached her, she figured it was working.
Well, it worked for the two people she was trying to avoid, anyway.
"Oi, Lily!" Katie said as she hastened her pace down the stairs and into the Entrance Hall. Lily briefly considered fleeing, especially after considering their last conversation, but she paused after not seeing a look of fury on Katie's face.
Plus, she was still wearing those bells.
"Alright, then?" Lily asked nervously as the girl approached. She had to stop herself from reaching up to toy with her own earrings.
"Alright, you?" Katie asked warily. "Ginny giving you any trouble?"
"Ginny?" Lily asked in a surprised tone. "No? Why would she?"
"Hasn't said a word, then? About- err-"
"Not since I got here, no," Lily said. "I've been trying not to feel bad about it, honestly. I thought things left off well, but I suppose I was wrong."
"Right, well," Katie said, scratching the back of her head, "that might've been my fault, actually."
"Really?" Lily said. "I thought you the two of you got on well enough."
"I mean, I wouldn't have called us friends," Katie said. "Look, this isn't what I wanted to talk about. Just wanted to make sure you're alright, is all. Fancy a fly?"
"Now?" Lily said, her heart jumping up into her throat.
"Well, it doesn't have to be," Katie said. "We can schedule it for later."
"So you- err- don't hate me, then?"
"No," Katie said slowly. "No, I don't suppose I do. Err- it was great flying with you. Yesterday, I mean. I- err- wanted to talk some more, but you left the field so quickly."
Lily definitely didn't want to explain that she left in a rush specifically so that she couldn't be pinned down to the exact girl she was currently speaking to.
"So," Katie continued to break the awkward silence. "Later tonight, then?"
"I'd like that," Lily said, an immense pressure immediately leaving her chest.
"Brilliant," Katie said with that wonderful smile of hers. "Here, I've got a little gift for you. But you have to agree to one condition, first."
"What's that?" Lily asked, glancing at the closed fist Katie was holding out nervously.
"Just take it."
"I really think I'd like to know, first," Lily said. "See, last time I fell for that, Fred dropped a- well, let's just say I didn't know millipedes were so big."
"Do you really think I'd drop a bug in your hand?"
"Why not? I probably would."
"Just take it, you duffer," Katie said. "It's nothing bad, I promise."
"Alright," Lily said, feeling like she was putting an awful lot of trust in somebody she was sure hated her. She was very pleasantly surprised when Katie instead dropped a small photo in her hand instead.
"Found it in the attic," Katie said, blushing heavily and scratching at her nose. "It's- err- well- my parents were a few years above yours, see, and- and our dads were both on the same Quidditch team."
Lily could feel her mouth hanging open, but it was a hard fight to force it close. Her dad must have just gotten on the team, based on how small he was, but he still looked just like he did in all his other photos; happy, cocky, and not at all caring about how his hair looked.
"Thanks," she managed at last.
"Right," Katie said, seeming altogether too pleased with herself. "I'll- err- I'll see you tonight, then?" She took a step backwards, towards the stairs.
"Wait," Lily said, taking her one step forwards and pulling Katie into a hug. "Thanks, Katie, really."
"Err- you're- you're welcome?"
"I'll see you tonight," Lily said, feeling brave enough to leave Katie standing there with a kiss on her cheek. Katie's expression was all she needed to make it worth it, even if there were others around. The only one paying them any sort of attention was Clara Lavigne, and her expression only doubled Lily's enjoyment. As she descended into the dungeons, she was feeling so good about herself that she even skipped down the hallways.
"I'm sorry I'm late, Professor," Lily said upon entering the classroom. "I was just- oh, sorry. Err- was I interrupting something?"
"Not at all, dear girl, not at all!" the jolly fat man said, hurrying up from his seat near Professor Belby's desk. "As a matter of fact, we were just speaking of you!"
"Really?" Lily asked, eyes flickering back and forth between Belby and the newcomer.
"Lily," Belby said pleasantly (and in a very heavily accented English, even if the language was perfect), "this is Professor Slughorn. He asked if he could observe us today, and I have given him permission to do so."
"Oh," Lily said as Slughorn locked her hand into a very firm and friendly shake.
"I've heard very good things, my dear, very good things indeed," he said, his thick moustache hardly moving at all as he spoke. "Is it true you've successfully brewed a Polyjuice potion twice, and at such a young age?"
"Yes?" Lily said nervously, not at all sure if she was supposed to be admitting to it.
"Splendid!" Slughorn said, as if he'd never heard better news in his life.
"I've just assessed the quality of the recent batch," Belby said with a knowing smile. "By my estimations, the transformation should last nearly eleven hours. It was nearly as perfect as it gets."
"Most excellent, indeed!" Slughorn said, his voice somehow getting more elated.
"Professor?" Lily said anxiously. "Can you let go of my hand, now?"
Instead of the usual ingredient prepping and, if she was lucky, the brewing of a potion, Belby instead spent the entire session having her brew (with Slughorn occasionally commenting or offering advice) a Potion of Regeneration, an incredibly complicated potion, with instructions taking up 30 pages in incredibly small font, that would not only help to regrow lost limbs (provided they weren't lost to terrible, dark curses), but could also restore the bodies of Incorporeal beings, such as a witch or wizard that screwed up Apparition so badly that they lost their physical form completely. Lily had no idea how that worked, but she was far too worried about getting it all correct to think about it for more than a second.
"Very good technique," Slughorn said as she diced her rabbit feet quickly and efficiently.
"Interesting choice," he said as she chose to shave her moon turnips rather than juice them (she'd lose a bit of potency, but it would shave 30 minutes off her total brewing time, and she really wanted to be done in time for a late lunch).
"An excellent job!" Slughorn said once she was done, holding the vial full of purple liquid up to the light. "Oh, and look how it shimmers! Why, I doubt our Professor Snape could do half as well!"
"Bloody right," Lily mumbled under her breath.
"It is very well done, Hazel," Belby said approvingly. "I should get it all packaged away, it'll need to sit for a while. I will see you next week?"
"Oh, of course!" Slughorn said, apparently taking it the wrong way (and slipping her vial of potion into his pocket, Lily noticed). "Why, I would love to watch Miss Potter work again. Ever try your hand at brewing some Felix?"
"I don't think she's quite ready for that yet, Horace," Belby said gently.
"Oh, it was just an idea!" Slughorn said with a deep belly laugh. "Takes months, anyway! Why, Hazel, if you're interested, I suppose I could find the time to give you some private lessons of my own over the summer?"
"Really?" Lily asked, her mouth hanging open stupidly.
"I will see you next week, Potter," Belby said, slipping out the door.
"Why, I may even be able to get you into an apothecary under an apprenticeship," Slughorn said, gently pulling at his moustache. "You're familiar with Madam Prinpernelle's, yes?"
"No," Lily lied. She was pretty sure her huge smile would give her away, but Slughorn hardly seemed to notice it at all.
"Oh, you'd love it, I'm sure!" Slughorn said. "Yes, beautifying potions tend to be a bit of a targeted demographic, but nobody knows their business better than Sophia! I've just so happened to keep in touch with her, you see- an old student of mine- and I'm sure I could get you in with a good word."
"Really?' Lily repeated. "I mean- thank you! That- that'd be brilliant!"
"Actually," Slughorn said, pulling at his moustache again, "as it happens, she's coming to a bit of party I'm hosting tomorrow night- first big Slug Club, you see, I've been putting it off- I'm sure Sophia would love to meet you in person, if you'd like to come."
"I'd love that," Lily said, feeling far too excited.
"Splendid!" Slughorn said with a clap of his hands. "I shall see you tomorrow at seven, then! And don't worry about the Triwizard Ceremony, dear girl; we'll be done well in time for us all to attend!"
As Lily made her way upstairs an hour later, she felt like she was soaring on her broom, she was so light on her feet. Sae even commented on how her stupid little smile wouldn't leave her face while they ate lunch together. She was still wearing it when she reached the art room and began setting up her easel, waving and chatting nicely with a few people as they all filed in. The happiest to see her was Penelope Midgen; her old protégé set up right next to her and started showing her all sorts of things she'd been working on over the summer.
"I talked to mum, just like you suggested," Penny said. "She let me take some classes over the summer!"
"Your dad isn't giving you any trouble, then?" Lily asked.
"He still thinks it's a waste of time," Penny admitted, "but he isn't stopping me, so that's nice. How about you? How's the art program at Beauxbatons?"
Lily laughed and scratched at her nose with the charcoal she was sketching with. "Didn't get in, actually."
"No!"
"Yes. I'll try again next year, though."
"Father says their art program is all a front for a laundering scheme," a strange blonde girl said from her other side. "He says goblins have been using it for years to smuggle wizard paintings. They take the life from them and then sell them off to Muggles; they pay higher prices for artwork."
"They what?" Lily asked.
"Don't mind her," Penny said, rolling her eyes. "That's just Loony."
"Loony?" Lily asked with a little laugh, turning fully to look at the Ravenclaw. "That's not really your name, is it?"
"I'm Luna," Luna said haughtily. "Luna Lovegood."
"We've met before, haven't me?" Lily asked. "Back at the Cup? You told me about Heliopaths, right?"
"What's a Heliopath?" Penny asked.
"Big fire horses," Lily said, stretching her arms out as if that would show even a fraction of their greatness. "If you hug one, and they like you, they'll feel cool and it'll cure any disease you happen to have. If they don't like you, you'll just burn up. They use the ashes to reproduce, apparently. Luna reckons they found some signs of a live herd at the Cup."
Penny snorted and turned back to her artwork, muttering what sounded like "what a load of rubbish" under her breath.
"You remembered?" Luna said a few seconds later. Lily turned to look at her and was startled by the look of genuine surprise and warmth she was receiving.
"Of course, I did," she said. "I love creatures. I've done some reading up about them, actually, but most of what's available is just myths. Hard to find anything substantial about them without going through some real thinkers.
"Of course it was, Lily," Penny said, rolling her eyes again. "They're not real. None of Loony's creatures are."
"Actually," Lily said, picking up her paintbrush now that her sketch was done, "they did exist at one point. Brazil even has a skeleton of one in their Ministry. They're just extinct."
"Then how do you know they do anything at all?"
"That's where the myths come in," Lily said, rolling her eyes. "But all myths are founded in some sort of reality. Take Zeus, for instance; Muggles think he was a god that never really existed, whereas we know he was just some randy chap that had a fetish for striking things with lightning and turning into animals so he could-"
"Wait," Penny said, her own paintbrush drooping a bit, "you actually pay attention in History of Magic?"
"Sometimes," Lily said with a shrug. "I listen to the interesting stories. It's everything else that puts me to sleep. Anyway, what I'm getting at is Heliopaths did exist. They just haven't been seen for a few centuries."
"Then how could Loony possibly have seen any at the Cup?"
"She didn't, first of all," Lily corrected. "They saw signs of them. Second of all, just because they haven't been seen for a while doesn't mean there aren't any out there. We thought Billywigs were extinct for almost two hundred years until we found a whole swarm of them in the Amazon Rainforest just twelve years ago. Good thing, too, their venom is bloody useful in potions."
"What's a Billywig?" somebody asked from nearby.
"Oh, a funny little blue bug," Lily said fondly. "They're supposed to be native to Australia, but they found them in- I already said that, never mind. Anyway, Brazil actually sent them hundreds of them so they could repopulate, and they're thriving well, now."
"But what do they do?"
"If they sting you, gravity stops affecting you," Lily said as if that was a perfectly normal occurrence. "They're wicked fast, too. You might not even notice even if you did get stung. That's why the Australians killed them all off in the first place. People kept falling off the planet!"
"That's horrifying," Penny said.
"It's alright," Lily said with a shrug. "Nothing a simple levitation can't fix. Just keep someone in place until the venom wears off, it only lasts a few hours."
"What about the Muggles?"
"Doesn't affect them," Lily said. "It reacts with magical blood, makes it lighter than air. Then, a few minutes later, just when you think you're a bit lightheaded- zoom." Lily shot her hand up into the air. "Space."
"Bloody hell," someone said from near the back. "Potter's loony, too."
Lily snorted. "If you think that's strange, wait until you hear about the Hoo-hoo."
"Oh, I know that one!" Luna said happily.
"That one I learned about from Sae," Lily continued. "It's a little bird from Japan- China's got them, too, but theirs are bigger and technically a different species- they're made of fire, although they can take a physical form if they want. They're like phoenixes, only they can die, and they only show up in times of peace and prosperity. When they disappear, see, that means things are about to get bad. They popped up again after Voldemort disappeared."
"And when's the last time one was seen?" Penny asked curiously.
"Two years ago," Luna said happily.
"But what's so strange about them?" Penny asked.
"Oh, that's the fun part," Lily said with a wink. "I mean, what other creature could possibly crash a nation's entire economy?"
Lily didn't know quite how it happened, but before she knew it, she and Luna both were spending the entire club time talking about various magical creatures and answering questions for their enraptured audience. She stayed well past their normal closing time, painting and happily conversing with any and everyone who would listen. In the end, it was just Luna and her left, just an hour before curfew was scheduled to begin.
"Thank you," Luna said happily as Lily threw her satchel over her head.
"For what?" Lily asked. She didn't look over; she was too busy trying to scratch some dried pant off of her hands.
"I've been coming here since first year," Luna said, picking up her own easel. "And I think that's the most fun I've ever had. Are you coming to any more?"
"Until we leave, yeah," Lily said, feeling odd upon finally looking up and once again spying that genuine feeling of relief and warmth from Luna's smile.
"That'll be nice," Luna said. "I enjoyed talking with you. I hope you win the Triwizard tournament."
"I'm sorry?" Lily asked, freezing right next to the door.
"The tournament," Luna said, tilting her head and looking at her as if she was stupid. "Daddy gave me a sneak peek of the next Quibbler. Rumour has it that Fudge has entered your name."
"Why would he do that?" Lily asked as Luna left the room.
"So it'll kill you," Luna said with a nonchalant shrug. "He's after your blood, so he can drink it to obtain immortality and use the national emergency powers from your death to secure his position as Minister-For-Life.
"He's after my what now?" Lily asked, hurrying after Luna before she could vanish around the corner.
"There you are, Lily!" Hermione said, hopping up from her desk just as soon as Lily entered. "Where have you been? You missed lunch!"
Lily snapped her fingers and walked over to her wardrobe. "Knew I forgot something. Listen: did you know I'm a metamorphmagus?"
"I'm sorry?"
"A metamorphmagus," Lily said, swearing under her breath when she couldn't find a single suitable thing to wear.
"Lily- err- have you lost it?"
"Nope!" Lily said. "It's just what people are saying."
"What?"
"Exactly."
"Lily, you're starting to scare me."
"I just had a very nice chat with a lovely girl," Lily said, closing her wardrobe and giving it up as a bad job. "She seems to be under the impression that I can change my appearance at will and that a genocidal maniac is after my blood in order to resurrect another genocidal maniac."
"What? How did she figure it out, the papers haven't run a thing about it!"
"Well," Lily said, letting a little smile slip, "if it helps, I apparently got my powers from coming into contact with the Philosopher's Stone in our first year."
"What?"
"It transfigured my blood into an eternal fount of youth and life, see? That's how I survived the Basilisk in second year. Can't kill me with venom if I can't die at all!"
"Lily, I- what?"
Lily did not elaborate any further than that and left Hermione feeling completely flabbergasted as she readied herself for bed. It wasn't until she was just about to slip off into a very comforting sleep that she realized she forgot completely about her promise to meet up with Katie Bell.
She tried to apologize first thing in the morning, but, as it turns out, the girl you are attempting to woo, and whose heart you have already thoroughly broken no less than three times, does not appreciate it when you tell her the most recent abandonment was due to you having so much fun in the presence of another girl that you simply forgot.
As a result of the very angry, if very private, words Katie exchanged with her, Lily spent most of the day sulking in her bed, laying face first into her pillow. Hermione at least sat at her side, gently stroking the back of her head, even if she didn't have the slightest clue what was bothering her.
"You have to get ready soon, Lily," Hermione said hours later. "Your party starts soon."
"Don't wanna go," Lily said, pulling the pillow closer to herself. If she suffocated, then at least she wouldn't have to see Katie again.
"But you were so excited before! What happened to all that enthusiasm?"
"It died along with the rest of me."
"Lily, stop being so melodramatic. Didn't you want to meet somebody?"
"Sophia Prinpernelle?" Lily said, giving in and at least moving her face to the side so she could breath. It felt good when Hermione swapped to stroking her cheek instead of her hair.
"Who?" Hermione asked.
"The witch whose potions I was brewing from Teen Witch Weekly," Lily said as if it was obvious. "Slughorn reckons he can put in a good word for me, maybe get me in for an apprenticeship if I'm lucky."
"Lily," Hermione said gently, "I realize this is a wonderful opportunity, but you hated the last job you had."
"Yeah," Lily said, finally pulling herself free of the confines of her wonderful little mattress, "but that was different. Lockhart set that one up, and this is something I actually like doing."
"Have fun, I suppose," Hermione said, sighing softly and leaning further back into Lily's wall.
"You should come with me," Lily said, tying her hair up behind her head.
"What?" Hermione said with a little laugh. "Me? Go to a party?"
"Why not?" Lily said with a shrug. "I already got you to go to one, didn't I?"
"Lily, that was different. This is more of a social event for networking purposes!"
"And?"
"And I wasn't invited!"
"Well," Lily said slowly, pinning her S.P.E.W. badge back to her chest at an angle that Hermione would most definitely see it, "if you don't want to go and help me spread the good word of what we're doing to all those very important people, so be it. I'm sure I can handle it all on my own."
The two girls were walking down towards Slughorn's office together moments later, Hermione nervously trying to tame her hair with one hand while holding on to their tin of badges with her other. Lily was pleasantly surprised when they turned a corner and found Sae standing outside Slughorn's office.
"Wait, you were invited too?" Sae said in horror after Lily started skipping towards her.
"You're going?" Lily asked happily.
"He's been having me go to all of them," Sae said grumpily. "I was thinking about skipping this one, since my sister's in there, but if you're going- well-"
"Wait," Hermione said from Lily's other side, "which sister? The Gryffindor?"
"No, Tae," Sae said. "Plays for the Harpies. Slughorn invited Gwenog Jones, but she's scheduled for something else tonight, so she was sent instead."
"Wait, your sister's coming?" Lily said, her brain finally catching up.
"I just said that, didn't I?"
"Blimey, how do I look?" Lily said, taking the tin from Hermione and using it as a makeshift mirror.
"Should we just go in?" Hermione asked, ignoring her completely.
"What are you looking at me for?" Sae said with a scoff.
"Well, you're the expert, aren't you?"
"It's just been a few suppers before now, this is my first party, too."
"You know, now that I think about it, I don't think I want to be here."
"I don't, either."
"I mean, I really should get some more research done for S.P.E.W., we're trying to finalize up our pamphlets and I've barely found anything!"
"And I really needed to get some homework done."
"Oh, Merlin, me too."
"Should we leave?"
"Yes."
They didn't get the chance to, unfortunately, as Lily chose that precise moment bounce forward, tin tucked under one arm, and knock loudly on the door. A second later, and Slughorn whisked it open and bowed with a flourish.
"Right this way, ladies, right this way," he said, moving to the side. "So happy you could make it, you all look lovely."
"Thanks," Lily said, Hermione and Sae standing awkwardly together behind her.
"And who is this, now?" Slughorn said, noticing Hermione for the first time.
"Hermione Granger," Lily said happily, pulling Hermione forward by the arm. "She's my fellow cofounder of S.P.E.W. and top of our year."
"Ah, Granger!" Slughorn said, clapping his hands together. "Yes, I've heard much about you from the rest of Hogwarts! Many good things, I assure you. McGonagall says she's hardly seen a student adapt to magic so quickly, and a Muggleborn, at that! Funny how that happens sometimes, isn't it?"
"What?" Lily and Hermione asked in sync, both blinking slowly.
"Well, don't be strangers, now!" Slughorn said. "This way, this way, allow me to introduce you to a few people!"
"This was a terrible idea," Sae muttered behind them as Slughorn trotted off.
"Maybe it'll be fun?" Hermione said hopefully.
Slughorn's office was much bigger than Lily ever would have expected, and it was an exceedingly warm room for being in the dungeons, with a huge blaze burning away in the extravagant fireplace. There were Slytherin coloured drapes all over the walls and ceiling, there were several tables setup with drink and food (Lily grabbed a plate as they passed one), and there were students from all three schools mingling and conversing with each other.
Malfoy in particular attempted to shy away from her as they passed, but Lily wasn't going to leave a chance to make a scene.
"Hope your father enjoys his new life," she said with a wink. "With any luck, his new bride will give him the son he always wanted!"
"Lily, really," Hermione said sharply, pulling her away from the boy before a fight could break out.
And, of course, there were the celebrity guests, as well.
"There you are, Sae," Taeko said as soon as Slughorn brought them near. Sae tried to pull away and hide behind Lily, but the Harpy Seeker was too fast for either of them, and within seconds she had her very reluctant sister pulled into a tight hug.
"Get off, Tae," Sae grumbled.
"Not a chance," Taeko said. "Haven't seen you in ages."
"It's been two months!"
"And that's two months too many!"
"We'll leave you two to catch up," Hermione said, slyly trying to pull Lily along with her to follow Slughorn.
"Wait, I had a few questions!" Lily protested.
"We should really leave them to catch up, don't you think?" Hermione said, pulling her more firmly this time.
"Please don't leave me!"
"Sorry!" Lily mouthed, right before turning fully to follow the rotund professor. She popped her last bit of cheese into her mouth and exchanged her empty plate for a full one (this one filled with little sausages) as they passed a table. Hermione rolled her eyes as Lily popped one of those into her mouth, too.
"Don't you ever stop eating?"
"No," Lily said, chewing another one.
"-anyway, that's how I met that godfather of yours," Slughorn said with a chuckle as they finally caught up. "What do you think of that, eh?" He elbowed her after that last part and then stared at her expectantly.
"Oh," Lily said, chewing her sausage slowly. "Were you- was I supposed to- err-"
"It was a brilliant story, Professor," Hermione said, shooting her a glare. "Sirius talks about you quite frequently, actually. You were a favourite of his back when he was at school."
"I would certainly hope so," Slughorn said with a hearty chuckle. "Why, it was I that bailed him out of all that trouble with Severus?"
"What?" Lily said, swallowing quickly. "What trouble?"
"Anyway!" Slughorn said, not skipping a beat and moving forward again, "Hazel- can I call you Hazel? I'd like to introduce you to Celestine Warbeck. She's a-"
"Oh, I know you!" Lily said, setting her plate down and hurriedly wiping her hands on her dress (which earned her a very undignified look from the elegant woman in front of her as they shook hands). "We listen to your music every Christmas!" It was only two Christmases, really, but that was all Lily had experience with at his point.
"Do you really?" the blonde woman said, perking up immediately and putting on a graceful smile. "Why, it's so refreshing to hear that some of the youth are interested in real music."
"Yeah," Lily said, nodding along and picking her plate back up. "Ginny says your stuff's a bit too stuffy for her." Nobody laughed. "Err- but I always liked it!" Lily stuffed some more meat into her mouth to keep her from speaking again.
"Charming," Celestina said, her lips in a tight smile.
"Merlin, Lily," Hermione mumbled beside her.
"Right," Slughorn said, taking her by the arm and leading her away. "They can't all be hits, can they? This way, Lily, follow me, and do try to mind your manners, dear girl."
"Right," Lily said, her mouth full and her cheeks burning. She sat her plate down on another table so she wouldn't be tempted to continue making a complete fool of herself.
"Between you and me," Slughorn said, dropping his voice and pulling her a bit closer so she could hear. "I always thought old Celestina was a bit stuffy, too, to be honest with you. Oh, look here, Hazel! This is Taeko Asari, Taeko, Hazel Potter. When did you get in, dear girl? Must have slipped me right by!"
"We've met, Horace," Taeko said, still fussing about her younger sister's hair and robes. "Already had our pictures in the paper and everything. And you're the one who walked right by me."
"I assure you I meant no offence," Slughorn said with an air of genial outrage. "You see, I thought you might like to meet-"
"Welcome back," Sae grumbled to Lily. "Are you having as lovely a time as you hoped?"
"No," Lily admitted plainly. "As a matter of fact, I think I want to-"
She was cut off by Taeko laughing and gently placing a hand on one of her arms, sending her pulse skyrocketing and filling her brain with all sorts of things that made her feel very guilty when the other party's sister happened to be standing right in front of her.
"I assure you, Horace, we're already on very good terms," Taeko said, sending a wink her way (and, oh boy, did it seem very reminiscent of the one she was so familiar of from Gwenog Jones). "Gwenog's been going around telling everyone who'll listen that Potter's our biggest fan."
"A Harpyhead, eh?" Slughorn said, elbowing her in a friendly manner.
"She's also got her down as a key recruitment target," Taeko added. "Has a position reserved specifically for you, soon as you leave school."
"Really?" Lily said, a hand playing with her hair before she could stop herself.
"Really," Taeko said, adding another laugh. "I'll have to be careful, or you'll have me out of a job!"
"I have heard very wonderful things about your flying, dear girl," Slughorn said. "Why, it's not every day a third year makes Captain, is it?"
"You were Captain?" Taeko said, suddenly sounding horrified. Lily wasn't sure if it was meant to be a joke or not.
"I only mentioned it a dozen times, Tae," Sae mumbled.
"I'm not that good," Lily said, her face burning hot. "Honest, I only got it because there were just two players left and the other one turned it down. We didn't even win the Cup!"
"No, but we bloody well smashed Ravenclaw, didn't we?" Sae said. "Scored ten goals, myself. Not bad, eh, Tae?"
"You scored four, Sae," Taeko said dismissively. "Ten was your season record."
"She only played in two games," Lily said defensively.
"We'll see how she does this year," Taeko said in the same tone. "It's you we've got our eyes on, right now. Gwen's eager to see how you measure up to Krum."
"Oh, that's hardly a fair comparison," Slughorn said amicably. "Britain hasn't produced a Seeker of his level in decades!"
"We'll see," Lily said with a dignified sniff.
Slughorn did eventually pull her away from Taeko and Sae, so they could continue their circuit around the room. She'd hoped to continue having Hermione at her side, but the other girl stayed with Taeko when the girl noticed their little badges. Lily was going to stay with them all, but Hermione whispered to her that the pitch would go better without her mucking things up, and she left while trying not to feel completely offended.
He introduced her to a vampire researcher who was planning an expedition soon (Lily was very disappointed to learn she was too young to volunteer, although the man promised to consider her for another one further in the future), he introduced her to Celestina Warbeck again on accident when he started dipping a bit too much into the drink, and he introduced her to the very Potioneer she came here for. She was an absolutely delightful woman who Lily talked with for a full hour; she even agreed to have Lily visit her lab during the summer for a tour after Lily confessed she'd brewed almost her entire catalogue of potions. Her excitement could hardly be contained at that, but Sophia Prinpernelle took the uninvited hug very gracefully, and even seemed slightly touched by the act. Lily was beaming when she even asked for a S.P.E.W. badge all on her own, and she decided she was never going to stop holding that over Hermione's head.
Unfortunately, the last person she was introduced to put a damper on her spirits.
"Ah, yes, one last appointment, dear girl," Slughorn said, leading her towards a far corner. "I'd like to introduce you to Dolores Umbridge. She's the-"
"Senior Undersecretary and Head of the Department of Magical Education and Regulation," Lily finished for him.
"You're familiar with her?" Slughorn asked in surprise.
"Only by name," Lily said, "and I'd very much like to speak with her."
"Well, this way, this way!" Slughorn said, moving with some pep in his step. Lily followed closely, head held high as she prepared her very choice words for the woman that wronged Hermione so greatly.
She froze in her tracks as the woman came into view. She was short, a bit toadish, and wearing the most gaudy set of bright pink robes Lily had ever seen. She smiled immediately and moved to offer Lily a handshake, but Lily found she couldn't move a single muscle.
She was completely terrified and she could feel some cold sweat dripping down her back.
"Hazel, this is Dolores Umbridge," Slughorn said, not noticing at all. "Dolores, this is Hazel Potter. Dolores, Hazel, here, was very excited to meet you!"
"Is that right?" Umbridge said, her voice squeaky, that fake smile turning towards Lily, instead.
"Dolores, here, is attending the Triwizard Ceremony," Slughorn said, glancing at the watch protruding from his waistcoat. "Ol' Barty's come down with a nasty flu, it seems, and she'll be taking his spot as judge until he gets better."
"I'm afraid I can't get you in, if that's what you're after," Umbridge said, studying Lily as if a predator looking at her favourite prey of choice. "Nor will I show you any favouritism in the other competitions."
"Oh, I'm sure she wanted no such thing, Dolores," Slughorn said, laughing congenially.
"Then what, may I ask, do you want?" Umbridge asked, tilting her head slightly. "I'm afraid we haven't much time at all; I really must be going soon to ready myself for the ceremony."
"Now, now," Slughorn said, laughing again. "No need to hurry, we're only one floor down! Now, Hazel, I think you'll find this very interesting. Dolores, why don't you tell her about the meeting you had with the Minister on- Hazel, where are you going?"
Lily didn't answer that. She was too busy running as fast as she could, a hand pressed over her mouth, as she bolted from the office completely. She took two turns at random, leaned against a wall and fell to her knees, and then vomited the contents of her stomach out onto the dusty stone floor beneath her.
Pink.
Lily squeezed her eyes tight to try and get the nauseating colour out of her mind. She really didn't like the implications, and she very much needed to get ahold of herself before she lost her mind.
"Lily?" Hermione's voice came from a far.
"Here," Lily moaned, wiping at her mouth with her sleeve.
"There you are, Gryffindor," Sae said as they both came around the corner (Lily noticed she, too, was now wearing a S.P.E.W. badge).
"Are you alright, Lily?" Hermione asked, kneeling next to her and vanishing the pool of sick.
Lily considered telling Hermione the full truth, especially since the girl's warm, brown eyes were currently staring into hers in concern, but she just couldn't do it. She knew Hermione would want to immediately confront the woman, and that meant Lily would need to confront other things.
And now that she had her suspicions, that was suddenly something she very much did not want to do.
"Bad sausages," Lily said with a tight smile.
"Lucky no one else had any then, eh?" Sae said.
Hermione continued studying Lily's eyes for an uncomfortable amount of time. Finally, she nodded, and pulled Lily to her feet.
"Let's get you to the Feast, then," she said, helping her along the hall. "Better fill your belly with something better."
The Great hall was decorated for the holiday. Hagrid's famous, giant pumpkins floated through the sky, their twisted and carved faces occasionally cackling and swooping at the heads of the students. The night sky was lit up with the stars and the moon, a slight fog just covering it to feel extra spooky. Every table was laden with the very best the Hogwarts elves could prepare, and Lily was very much looking forward to eating it.
First, though, she needed her stomach to calm down, and that was very hard to do once Umbridge took her seat up at the staff table. Lily squeezed her eyes shut and went through her breathing exercises, trying to purge her thoughts and emotions with her Occlumency. She knew she could handle this. The first appearance was just a surprise, is all. Now that she knew, she could deal with it.
"Did you get your apprenticeship?" Hermione asked in an oddly formal tone.
"Maybe?" Lily said, turning her attention back to the rest of the table. "She said normally she wouldn't consider anybody until they complete their OWLs, but Slughorn bragged enough that she'll take a look at some of my potions and give it a thought."
"You'll get it, Potter," Sae said from her side. "Everyone knows you're bloody brilliant at Potions."
"Thanks?" Lily said, still not quite used to hearing it.
Any attempt at coming to terms with the compliment was, unfortunately, cut off by every light in the room doing exactly the same. Before Lily could even process anything in the darkness, there was a great burst of flame in front of the Staff Table, and every chattering mouth shut up at exactly the same time as they watched Dumbledore stand from the dais.
"It appears," he said, "that the time has come. The Goblet of Fire has made its decision. There will be no backing out from here; if your name is called, please proceed through this door. We will give you further instructions once each champion has been chosen."
Dumbledore gestured towards the far side of the staff table, where a small entrance descended downwards towards a room Lily had never seen before (she wasn't even certain the door had been there before now).
"Hope Angelina's ours," Ron said.
"Yeah," Lily said with a nervous laugh. "It'll probably be Cedric, though." Her eyes darted towards the Hufflepuff boy, but he was too busy looking nervous and pale to notice her. That was for the better, because he probably would have given her a look of scorn, and she was trying to feel good about herself.
"Let the Triwizard Tournament begin!" Dumbledore announced, raising his hands in a grand gesture, just as the Goblet's flames sprang even higher, a jet of blue fire shooting into the enchanted ceiling.
From the flame flew a single, singed scrap of parchment, floating gently down as if caught in the night sky's breeze. Dumbledore snatched it from the air with a graceful maneuver, reading it for hardly a second before turning back to the anxious crowd, an excited smile and a twinkle in his eye.
"The Champion of Beauxbatons," he said, "is Fleur Delacour!"
Lily whistled and joined the deafening applause as Fleur stood, looking happier and prouder than Lily had ever seen her before. She approached Dumbledore with a skip in her step, accepting both a handshake and the parchment before being ushered to the side door, where Madame Maxime was waiting to clasp her on the shoulder before she passed out of view.
Just as she did, the Goblet roared once more, another scrap emerging. This one went the other direction, requiring a quick jerk of the wand from Dumbledore before he could read it.
"The Champion of Durmstrang is Viktor Krum!"
"Big surprise, there," Ron said with a snort as they joined the applause with Durmstrang. "Doubt any of the others even entered."
Krum walked just a bit awkwardly, as if he wasn't used to being on land, that scowl never leaving his face even as he disappeared to join Fleur in the adjoining room. Karkaroff did not give him as affectionate of a greeting. In fact, he just looked as if everything was going exactly as expected.
The room was chatting animatedly as they waited for the final slip to appear, waited for the Goblet to make its final choice. Lily gave Cedric a thumbs up when he finally looked over, hoping to repair at least a bit of the damage before Hogwarts turned on her again. She was surprised to get a tight smile before the boy remembered who she was and looked away again.
Ah, well, she thought. It's progress, at least.
Finally, the Goblet lit up once more, the flame snuffing itself out as the final paper soared into the air. The hall went completely silent as they watched it float down and gently land in Dumbledore's palm. Dumbledore unfolded it carefully, the glimmer in his eyes almost unmistakable as his curiosity was piqued, as if even Albus Dumbledore, victor over Gellert Grindelwald and Lord Voldemort both, could not contain his excitement over who his school's Champion would be.
"The Champion of Hogwarts is-"
He stopped talking and stared at the crisp parchment, the first look of confusion Lily had ever seen lining his face. Then, for just a moment, it seemed to flicker in undeniable fury.
"What's going on?" Sae asked. "Who is it?"
"Well, with a reaction like that," Ron said, "I'd reckon it has to be a complete and utter knob."
"Probably Dai, then," Sae said with a sigh, leaning her head on one hand. "Hell, I'm never going to hear the end of this one."
Moody and McGonagall both approached Dumbledore, and he turned to show them the slip. They conversed in a whisper as Crouch and Bagman hurried to join them. McGonagall's face turned pale and, even though she looked away right after, even though she tried to hide it, to pass it off as a wandering gaze and nothing more, Lily noticed her eyes linger in her direction for just a moment.
"Bloody hell," she said as she realized. "Please don't do this."
"Do what?" Ron asked.
"Oh, no," Hermione said in a hiss, one of her hands flying to cover her mouth. "Lily, please tell me you didn't-"
"Of course I didn't," Lily hissed back. "It can't be."
Dumbledore turned to face the now anxious crowd, the students once again falling into silence as they waited to hear something, anything. Lily hoped to see him smile, to hear him read Cedric's name, anybody's name, really, other than-
"Hazel Potter."
The only sound that reverberated in the Great Hall upon that announcement was an extremely loud curse from the lips of The-Girl-Who-Lived.