No. A simple word, really. And yet, despite it being only a syllable long, and how it directly states a negative answer, No has been the cause of countless quarrels, debates, conspiracies, and theories – almost as many as the word Yes. Another interesting conclusion is that the word No, unlike Yes, can cross-eliminate itself, and therefore someone wishing to doubly bring their negative point across, may find themselves agreeing with the person opposite them. Contrary to popular belief, this happens quite often, and is, in fact, how this story opens, just as the sun reached the mid-day peak over the Evans household.
“No, I won’t do chores until someone explains to me why I must!” exclaimed Lily Evans, from atop a certain oaken staircase. Petunia stared down at her sister exasperatedly, altogether forgetting any form of manners she had learned while off at boarding school.
“Ms. Lily, if you do not move in the next minute, I will personally ensure that you are required to do double the amount of chores, and that you will continue to do double until you have learned how to act your age,” exclaimed Petunia in a fit of rage. Lily merely continued to glare, not moving an inch. Petunia rolled her eyes and proceeded to push Lily right off her feet so as to pass her and enter the hallway beyond.
Lily, frustrated, could not see what all the fuss was about. She just didn’t want to do her chores, and someone had yet to explain why she had to. Unwillingly, she let Petunia pass and then sat stubbornly at the top of the stairway for the next half an hour, letting her thoughts wander.
Lily had many thoughts to spend the time with. She was quite a creative girl, as any passer-by might guess from her bright red hair and her intelligent gaze. Being only 11, she would be attending Petunia’s boarding school next year along with her sister, a thought that Lily tried not to think about.
Loyers School for Young Girls was well known throughout the community. Ever since Petunia had been old enough to read and write, she had wanted to attend it. But Lily had never wanted to go there. Despite exceptional test scores and raves about the tasty food, the place had never appealed to Lily. And so, she spent most times where she found herself with nothing to do, such as now, thinking of excuses why she would not be able to attend the boarding school in the fall.
Next, Lily chose to stare at the portrait of her dad on the wall opposite. The portrait was directly above the front door, and was very special to Lily. Her father had died when she was eight, and since then her mother had remarried a man whom Lily referred to as Mark. Mark and Lily’s mom were happy together, but in Lily’s mind, no one could replace her dad.
Finally, Lily chose to count sheep, because she was very bored and could think of nothing more exciting to do.
However, this soon became a boring pastime as well, and at the moment Lily was very much in the mood for some bacon. She scooted off the steps and marched into the kitchen, an intentional frown upon her face. “This was determined right from the start to be a bad day,” she thought as she served herself several strips of bacon. Sitting alone at the table, Lily ate her snack in silence, savoring the warm taste and the pleasant beams of sun shining through the bay window across the kitchen. She had intended to meet her best friend Mary Jane today at the park, but an unpleasant illness had prevented Mary from leaving the house.
When Lily had finished eating and had left her plate on the table in a rebellious spirit, she headed out doors to count blue jays. As she soon found out however, there were not many blue jays this time of year, despite the constant bird songs flowing in the air. There was, however, an owl, which would be considered very rare to any bird watcher in the vicinity. However, Lily was no bird watcher, and therefore did not notice anything out of the ordinary. As she hummed to herself and stared into the sky, a new thought occurred to her, one of surprising resentment. The thought was of running away.
Here was an option Lily had never taken a moment to consider. As soon as the thought popped into her head, she regretted it. She loved her family, her friends, her life. And yet, something always seemed to be missing. Still, to even imagine… Lily stood up in disgust and stalked back into the house.
With nothing left to do, Lily pulled out a book from the large shelf in the foyer. The book was entitled A Monotonous Study of Life and was quite suited for Lily’s current mood. Plopping herself on a plaid sofa near the door, she engrossed herself in dreary philosophy. She became so entranced in her book that she hardly noticed when the doorbell rang with a cheery dong an hour later.
Pulling herself to her feet, Lily crossed the threshold and held open the door. It was her neighbor, a boy named James Potter. Lily had never particularly enjoyed James’s company, and was reluctant to invite him into the house. She did so, however, and tried to think of something polite to say.
She didn’t need to though, because James was quick to begin a conversation. “I brought a cricket bat and ball. Want to go down to the park and practice? You can hit first if you want.” Lily did not like the game cricket, and was glad of an excuse to rid herself of James.
“I’m sorry James, but I’m not terribly good at cricket, and I would only make your day less pleasant if I were to accompany you.” James could not be swayed however, and started to throw the cricket ball unusually high into the air in frustration. Lily’s eyes followed the ball as she listened to James describe the many ways to improve her skill at cricket. Up, down, up, down. The motion was almost like a metronome Lily decided.
“Lils, are you listening?” Caught by surprise, she could only nod her head. “Good, then what are you waiting for? The sun won’t stay up forever.” She nodded again and went to search for her shoes. It was possible to hear James throwing the ball behind her as she walked into the kitchen. Just as she pushed her feet into her shoes, Lily heard a distant crash in the foyer. Not good.
Turning slowly as to reduce sudden panic, she walked back into the foyer feeling very tired. Standing on the staircase was Petunia and James, both of them looking horrified at the shattered glass on the ground.
No emotion washed over Lily. She merely stood there and blinked, frozen in place. After a few moments, she reminded herself to breathe. Slowly, ever so slowly, she acknowledged that the last remnant of her father was lying in a billion pieces across the front entrance floor. In the midst of the shattered glass was a baseball. No, she would not accept it. She floated up the stairs to her bedroom without a backward glance. In the distance, she heard Petunia yelling, James arguing back. She forced herself not to listen, convinced herself that it was just the humming of the bees. Without removing her muddy shoes, Lily collapsed on the bed and blanked out.
When Lily woke, it was bright; the sun was directly overhead. Petunia was standing beside her, shaking her gently. Petunia smiled down at her, and pulled her to her feet. “Come on Lily, let’s take a walk.”
It was dark when they got home. There was a message on the answering machine from James. “Lils – I’m sorry, it wasn’t my fault. The ball just jumped out of my hand…” Lily didn’t bother listening to the rest. Instead she flipped on the TV and watched the news. Not that she took in any of it. She was thinking about the walk. That creepy Severus kid had been there. He read way too much science fiction. But then again, what if he had been right? He had seemed so … sincere. Lily fell asleep lost in thought, on the couch in the front of the TV.
The next morning, the kitchen was a hubbub of activity. Lily’s mom, Mark, and Petunia were all going shopping for new school supplies. As Lily passed her mom on the way to the sink, her mom stopped her and held out an envelope. “This came in the mail, it was addressed to you. I didn’t think I should open it,” she admitted, and hurried out to the car where her husband and older daughter waited. Curious, Lily sat down with a plate of eggs and surveyed her letter. It had no stamp, was made of a thick, yellowish parchment, and had a red seal of wax on the back. She pried it open and took in the emerald green handwriting. The first few words took her breath away.
Dear Miss. Evans,
We are pleased to inform you that you have accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on September 1. We await your owl no later than July 31.
Yours Sincerely,
Professor Dumbledore, Headmaster
To Lily these words were like a dream, an impossible, surreal dream. But it didn’t matter to her, nothing mattered except the prospect of escape so close. Could this be the moment she had waited for all her life, had known deep down was looming nearer? Was this really what she wanted, more than anything else? Lily closed her eyes, and nodded to herself. And she said, possibly to the world at large, “Yes.”
Exactly That by YourWildestDreams
Chapter Endnotes: There goes the first chapter. I hope you enjoyed it!