When Lily woke the next morning it took her a bit of time to remember where she was.
And then the events of the day before came flooding back to her. She was at Hogwarts. She'd been sorted into Gryffindor. She was in the first year girls' dormitory.
She looked over to where Mary MacDonald was sitting up and reading in bed.
"Hi." She whispered.
"Hi." Mary whispered back.
She looked around the dormitory but the hangings of the other girls' beds were still drawn. She wondered what time it was. The prefect from last night had told them breakfast was from seven.
She quietly got out of bed and tiptoed over to the bathroom. There were thick, fluffy white towels on the heated rail, but the shower was as one might expect in an old building - slow to run and tepid. She wondered vaguely if all the bathrooms in the castle were like this.
When she came out again, the other girls were up too.
"Wow, our robes have changed!" Sylvie exclaimed, holding up her own set which, sure enough, had the Gryffindor crest embroidered on their chest.
Lily felt another small wave of sadness as she looked at her own and imagined Sev doing the same in the Slytherin boys' dormitory.
But they could still sit with each other at breakfast surely.
"How was your first night?" She asked Sev as she approached him at the Slytherin table.
To her surprise, Severus didn't look very happy to see her. He glanced quickly at a boy to his left before turning back to her. "Fine. Yours?"
Lily looked at the boys he was sitting with. One was blond and haughty looking while the other was dark with a slightly squashed looking face.
"You're at the wrong table." The boy with the squashed face told her. "Gryffindors are over there."
Was it her imagination or was there something unpleasant about the way he said the name of her house.
"Really? I had no idea." She said sarcastically. "I'm here to talk to my friend. That's allowed, isn't it?"
The boy raised his eyebrows at her, then he looked at Sev who, for some strange reason, flushed a little. "Suit yourselves." He said and then he and the blond boy shifted up the table, away from them.
"Who's that?" Lily said, wrinkling her nose at the boy.
"Edwin Mulciber." Snape said. "He and Avery are from old pureblood families."
"So?!" Lily said. Sev didn't care about that, did he? Or he wouldn't be friends with her…
Severus didn't reply.
"So, what are the other boys like in your dorm?" Lily asked, smiling at him. "And what's your common room like? Ours is red and round and…"
But she was interrupted in her enthusiastic description by the arrival of Professor McGonagall, who appeared to be handing out timetables.
"Ah." She said, appearing to recognise Lily from the other night. "Miss Evans, you will have plenty of time for inter-house mingling in and between your lessons. At meal times however we do encourage students to sit at their assigned house tables."
Lily looked from Sev to the professor. "I was just…" she'd not even been there five minutes yet! But Professor McGonagall didn't seem like the kind of witch anyone who had any sense would get on the wrong side of. "I'll go right away." She said, waving goodbye to Sev and making her way back over to the Gryffindor table.
"Is that your boyfriend?" Sylvie asked as she sat down. "The boy with the black hair?"
Lily shook her head. "No." She said, a little surprised by the question. Weren't they a bit young for boyfriends? "He's just a friend."
"I'd like Sirius Black to be my boyfriend." Sylvie said, gazing over at the dark haired boy. "He's so handsome isn't he?"
Sirius Black was screwing up his face as he read what was presumably a letter from home.
"He's not my type." Lily said dispassionately, not bothering to wonder what his letter contained that seemed to have upset him.
"James Potter's not bad looking either." Mary said, looking at the idiot with glasses next to him, who was reading his letter from home with a broad grin.
"He's vile." Lily said, pouring herself a glass of pumpkin juice and helping herself to some scrambled eggs.
"I think you do like that Slytherin boy." Sylvie said teasingly.
"I don't." Lily said, taking a timetable from Professor McGonagall with a polite 'thank you'. "Well I do, but not like that."
Lily didn't like anyone like that yet. Although she supposed the men in the posters the other girls had up in the dorm were quite attractive. Objectively speaking.
She met up with Sev again later in potions. "Let's work together." She said and the pair of them took a seat at the front of the classroom.
Professor Slughorn was a large man with a velvet waistcoat and a walrus moustache. He reminded Lily a little of a circus ringleader, with his gold and purple outfit and unctuous smile.
Registration in his lesson took twice as long as he kept stopping on various students' names.
He chatted at length to Black and Potter, as well as a Slytherin girl called Roma Lestrange and a Hufflepuff called Archie Flamel. He passed Severus and Lily's names without looking up from the register.
But once they got started on their potion, he took rather a greater interest.
"My word!" He cried, stopping as he passed the pair of them and peering delightedly into their cauldron. "Never have I seen such a perfect first attempt!"
He looked interestedly at Lily and Severus. "Evans and Snape, is it?" He frowned slightly. "I think there may be an Evans in the Most Extraordinary Society of Potioneers… I don't suppose they're a relative?"
"I don't think so sir." Lily told the professor. "I'm muggleborn."
She heard someone snort from behind her but chose to ignore them. Sev had told her it didn't matter that she was muggleborn, and she'd believe Sev over any idiot who might laugh at her for something she couldn't do anything about.
"Indeed!" Slughorn said. "Well, we must expect great things from you Miss Evans and Mr Snape. Five points to Gryffindor and five points to Slytherin."
Lily beamed delightedly. It was only her first day and she'd already earned Gryffindor some house points!
"Well done, Lily!" Mary said as she caught up with the other girls on their way to transfiguration.
"Yeah nice one, Evans." James Potter, who was walking nearby said. "Just a shame it didn't count for anything as he awarded Slytherin five points too."
Lily rolled her eyes. Did this idiot not realise there were two other houses besides Gryffindor and Slytherin? And besides, who cared?! Five points to Gryffindor was five points to Gryffindor.
She opened her mouth to share some of this logic with him, but he was already engaged in lively conversation with Sirius, Remus and another boy she thought was called Peter Pettigrew.
Lily was awarded another five points in transfiguration for being one of the first in the class to turn her matchstick into a needle.
She thought this might quite possibly be the best day of her life. It was wonderful being at Hogwarts and to realise it didn't make a difference that she was muggleborn washed away the last worry she had about the place.
That night, she visited the owlery to send a letter home to her parents. She wanted to tell them all about her first day, the friends she'd made and the house points she'd earned already.
It was quite busy as presumably many students had the same sort of idea. She spotted Black on the window ledge, for once not accompanied by his stupid friend Potter and for once not looking quite as self-satisfied as he usually did. He had a piece of parchment out in front of him and appeared to be deep in thought. There really was a first time for everything…
Lily found a little spot to settle and scribbled her own note home. She rolled it up, tied it with a piece of ribbon which she took from the small stand with a variety of coloured ribbon rolls and sent it off with a tawny owl who seemed keen for the job.
"It's for Mr and Mrs Evans, of number nineteen…" but she didn't get any further. The bird nodded its head (did that just happen?!) before taking the scroll in its beak (she'd been about to tie it to its leg...) and flying off out of one of the open windows.
"Thanks!" She called after it, and then took out another piece of parchment.
The letter to Petunia took a bit more thought and she was glad she had the time and space alone to think about it.
She chewed the end of her quill as she thought hard what to say.
Dear Tuney…
That was as good a start as any. Now what?
I hope you're well and ready for your new term tomorrow.
The local secondary school students went back on 3rd September.
It's very nice here, but I miss you a lot. Please write back. I'd be so pleased to know we can keep in touch even though I'm so far away.
I know you think I'm strange for going to Hogwarts, but I promise I'm the same Lily I always was. It would mean the world to me to hear from you.
Please can we be proper sisters again?
Love always,
Lily x
She didn't write how she was getting on at Hogwarts. She knew Tuney wouldn't want to hear about that.
She hoped more than anything that she'd hear back from her sister, but the next morning at breakfast, she had just the one letter.
Dear Lily,
Thank you for your letter. Your dad and I were so pleased to hear from you. And how fun, having it delivered by an owl! I love the parchment and the little ribbon too, how fantastic!
Hogwarts sounds absolutely wonderful darling, your dad and I couldn't be happier for you. And what a clever clogs you are, earning yourself ten house points in one day! It sounds like Gryffindor is very lucky to have you!
Everything is fine here. Tuney goes back to school tomorrow and the cat brought a rabbit in to the house the other day which gave us all a bit of a fright. When you learn to conjure them from hats she'll have an absolute field day!
Thank you for writing to us so soon, especially as I know how busy you must be. It's so wonderful to hear from you. We miss you ever so much.
With love
Mum and dad x
Lily smiled as she read the letter, but her happiness at hearing from her parents was marred with sadness too. They hadn't said anything about Tuney besides she was going back to school tomorrow, which Lily already knew of course. Did she still think Lily was a freak for going to Hogwarts? Did she feel any differently towards magic now?
She wondered how Tuney would write to her without an owl. Presumably her parents had sent their letter back with the one Lily sent to them. But then Petunia had managed to write to Hogwarts once before. She would still be able to reach Lily if she had wanted to.
By the end of the week, Lily resigned herself to the fact that her sister didn't want to write to her.
"I hate that we're so far away." She told Sev as the pair of them sat by the lake together on Saturday afternoon.
As they had no lessons, she wore her muggle dress instead and, as it was still warm, took off her socks and cooled her feet in the water.
She looked back at her friend who hadn't spoken. "What do you think I should do? Should I write to her again? Maybe she'll write back this time…"
Severus looked uncomfortable. "I think you should do whatever you want, Lily."
Lily sighed. It wasn't brilliant advice really as the whole reason she'd asked him was because she had no idea what do.
She tried her luck with Sylvie later in the dorm instead.
"Oh sisters." Sylvie said, rolling her eyes in a sympathetic sort of way. "I've got a younger one at home. We argue all the time… When she flew my broomstick without asking me, when she wore my new dress robes, when she nicked my new wand to try and turn our pet kneazle purple…"
"Er…" Lily, who couldn't honestly relate to any of that, said. "Well my sister's not talking to me because I get to go to Hogwarts and she doesn't. She's not spoken to me properly in weeks."
Sylvie put down the necklace chain she was trying to untangle. "What?!" She said, staring at Lily in horror.
"I know, it's awful." Lily moaned. "It's the longest we've ever gone without talking. I miss her so much…"
"No." Sylvie said, shaking her head. "What's awful is that she's petty enough to let her jealousy spoil things between you."
Lily looked at her new friend.
Sylvie, who was bubbly and, if Lily was honest, a little ditzy, tended to spend most of her time fretting about late homework or gossiping about boys and other girls in their year. It seemed to Lily quite unlike her to give such blunt and sage advice. Lily could only conclude it must mean there was some truth to it. Not that it made it any easier to hear…
"Thanks, Sylvie." She smiled. She took hold of the necklace her friend was trying to untangle. "Here, let me. I've got longer fingernails than you."
Sylvie handed her the necklace. "You're a lovely person Lily." She told her. "Anyone would be mad not to want to talk to you."
But whatever Sylvie said, Lily still felt she was the one in the wrong.
It was her fault this had happened between the sisters for being magical. Everything was fine until she got her Hogwarts letter. There were times when Lily wondered if it was all worth it. Was being herself really worth losing her sister for?
"I don't know why you're so worried." Severus said impatiently as she continued to fret. "Why don't you focus on what you can do? I've had a few thoughts about our potions project. Do you want to meet tonight and go through it together?"
Lily nodded. "OK. Meet you in the library?"
Sev's gaze shifted. "No…" he said. "Let's meet in the old defence room."
The 'old defence room' was the room the students had apparently learned defence against the dark arts in until the late 18th century, where the bloodshed and spell damage on the classroom walls became too disturbing to ignore.
Though the room creeped Lily out a little, Severus didn't seem to mind it. And they were usually undisturbed in there. No upper years would be unromantic enough to sneak in there for a clandestine date, as they did with virtually every other quiet place in the castle.
Lily noticed there was something a little different about Sev in the last few weeks. Though he'd expressed continuously how happy he'd be when he was finally at Hogwarts, he didn't seem happy to Lily.
He was definitely more confident, but there was a blunt, slightly indecent drive about him now. It was as though he was determined to be the best, and nothing or no one would stop him.
"I'm already top in our year in DADA." He told Lily proudly, looking around the old defence classroom with an air of 'I wouldn't have let that happen' as he took in the damaged walls.
"You don't know that." Lily said. "We don't have defence classes with other houses."
"Well I'm the best in Slytherin." He said. "And everyone knows the Slytherins are the best at defence."
Lily frowned. "Much as I hate to compliment them, the professor told Black and Potter they'd never seen a better jelly legs jinx on first attempt the other day."
Sev's face darkened. "Yes, I know they're good at that one. They tried it on me when I was coming out of the great hall after dinner last night."
"Oh Sev!" Lily said, coming to her friend's defence at once. "I'm so sorry."
"How can you bear to spend so much time with them?"
Lily shook her head. "I don't bear it. I'm afraid I quite lost my temper with Black the other day. I think he was more shocked than hurt but it was still a very stupid thing to do."
Severus' face broke into a broad grin. "What happened?!" He asked eagerly.
Lily sighed. She hadn't been about to tell Sev what had triggered her argument with the two boys. He didn't need to hear about the highly unflattering picture they'd drawn of him, or that Black had told her he was going to 'dip it in a deep fat fryer' to make it more realistic as she told him it looked nothing like her friend and to tear it up at once.
"He was just being an idiot." She said instead, which was of course also true. "Him and Potter. I wish I didn't have to be in the same house as them, but I don't see them much outside of lessons at least."
The first year boys and girls had very distinctive sections of the Gryffindor common room. And even little Sylvie with her fascination with the boys never dared cross the invisible no-man's land between them.
"How's it going with your classmates?" She asked her friend.
As all the classes she and Sev shared they would sit together in, she didn't know what his friendships were like with his Slytherin cohort. He often sat alone at mealtimes.
"They're fine." He said noncommittally.
"Flora Fortescue seems nice."
Lily had met the girl during their flying lessons. Unlike the other Slytherins Lily had encountered so far she had been kind and helpful, showing Lily the hand position she needed to help her get her broomstick off the ground.
Severus shrugged. "She's alright."
"What about the boys?" Lily probed. "I know there's Avery and Mulciber, but who else is there?"
"Why do you care?"
Lily flushed a little. "Well, I want to know you have friends I suppose." She said.
"I don't need other friends." Sev said. "I've got you."
But while Sev seemed quite happy being alone for now, Lily was very much enjoying the company of the other girls in her dorm.
"Truth or dare." Bessie said, grinning at Lily as the butterbeer bottle they'd been spinning on the dormitory floor landed on her.
It was after lights out, but it was the weekend and so the girls had stayed up late to enjoy a midnight feast and a game of spin the bottle.
The bottle had landed on Lily twice already. She'd already done one dare (eat a suspiciously yellow Bertie Botts Every Flavour Bean) and one truth ('are you secretly in love with Severus' - no!). She considered her options. "Dare." She grinned back.
The girls rubbed their hands together eagerly, put their heads together and began brainstorming ideas.
Eventually, and with a truly wicked grin, Bessie said "we dare you to break into the boys' dormitory and steal their robes."
Lily laughed. "I can't do that!" She said. "What will they wear tomorrow?!"
"Tomorrow's Sunday. They've got until Monday to figure out a way to get them back."
"I'm not taking Lupin's." Lily said. She had to admit the idea of pranking Potter and Black was fun, but she didn't want to inconvenience Remus in the process. In all the interactions she'd had with him he was kind and polite. It wasn't his fault he shared a dorm with idiots.
"You have to." Sylvie insisted. "Otherwise he'll just lend the others his."
There was too much logic in this to ignore. "OK." She agreed, and so the girls pulled on their slippers and tiptoed out of the dormitory, down the stairs into the common room, and up the opposite staircase to the boys' dormitories.
"Eugh. It stinks of boy." Mary said, wrinkling her nose as they reached the corridor at the top of the stairs.
"Here you go, Lils." Bessie whispered, indicating the door which read 'first year boys' along with Black, Potter, Lupin and Pettigrew's names. "Good luck!"
And, giggling, the girls pushed her towards it.
Lily, in her bedroom slippers, made no noise at all as she crept into the dormitory.
All the boys were clearly asleep, with the hangings drawn around their beds. It was dark in the room, but there was enough moonlight coming through the window for Lily to make her way around and fortunately the layout was similar enough to the girls' room for her to know where to go and what obstacles to avoid tripping over.
She knew the wardrobes were opposite the beds and each student had one of their own. Very quietly, she opened them in turn and extracted the robes that were hanging from within.
There were quite a few of them, but fortunately Lupin only had one set and she draped them over her arm before tiptoeing back out into the corridor again without anyone waking up.
The girls jumped and giggled in delight as they saw her with the contraband. "Amazing!" "So good!" "Oh I can't wait for tomorrow now!"
Lily grinned back. It certainly would be fun getting one over on Black and Potter.
She was quite looking forward to seeing their reaction too...