Striding off the Hogwarts Express in her midnight black robes, Lily Evans took in the scene. A strong wind blew her hair in every direction, and tall evergreens wavered back and forth across the sky. In the distance, an outline of the castle could be seen through the clouds. Pulling her cloak close, she hauled her luggage across the platform, hurrying towards where an abnormally large man stood calling the first years.
Around him, several students were huddled together, including James and his new friends whom she had decided to ignore. Severus had stayed behind to gather his luggage, which had fallen out of his suitcase as he picked it up. Shivering, Lily stood off to the side and breathed in the cool air. It was surprisingly refreshing and cleared her mind.
Eventually, it came time to board a fleet of small boats, and still Sev had not appeared. Anxious, Lily climbed into a less crowded one, where two girls sat in silence. Both of them were bent over and rubbing their hands together. Deciding that it was time she made some new friends too, Lily searched for a discussion starter. “Are you…”
As soon as she opened her mouth, however, one of the girls looked up and glared at her, and Lily quieted abruptly. Maybe it was best if she waited until they were in the castle before attempting conversation.
Making herself comfortable at the back of the boat, she watched the water pass underneath her as the fleet magically soared over the dusky lake. If she stared hard enough, she could make out a pale face surrounded by red hair staring back at her from the depths. The girl in the reflection looked frightened, and Lily decided that she would not be like her. She put on a brave mask and looked instead ahead of her, where the illuminated castle waited.
~*~
Where was Severus? Lily could not help but notice that he still hadn’t joined the group of first years. They were gathered around a large staircase, at the top of which stood a young woman with her hair in a tight bun. The two girls from the boat stood behind Lily, and James was with his friends at the front of the group. The woman stared down at the children until a hushed silence fell upon them.
“Now that you have decided to be quiet, I would like to introduce myself as Professor McGonagall. When I tell you, you will enter the hall behind these doors,” she gestured behind herself, “and form a line. I will then call you to sit on a stool. You will place the Sorting Hat upon your head, and then join your table. The Sorting will begin momentarily.”
She then turned away, and began ticking off names on a sheet of parchment. Deciding that this was some form of roll call, Lily looked back at the two girls from the boat. “Where do you think you’ll be Sorted?” she asked them, aware that the other students were talking about this as well. The taller of the girls merely shrugged, but the other one responded enthusiastically.
“I’ve heard that Hufflepuff is the way to go, but I’m not really sure. Gryffindor would be fine too, I guess. So long as it’s not Slytherin.” She laughed and then extended a hand. “I’m Isabella by the way. We rode in the same boat, didn’t we?”
Lily nodded, glad that someone was finally acting friendly. She reached out and shook the hand, though she was a bit unnerved. Hadn’t Severus said he had hoped to get into Slytherin? “I’m Lily. I…err, I don’t really know where I want to go.” She actually wanted to be in Slytherin with Sev, but didn’t want to make a bad impression on the first girl who spoke to her.
At that moment, Professor McGonagall returned her attention to the group, and together they stepped out of the stairway and into the warm hall beyond.
~*~
What in the world were they thinking? Lily was staring down at a silver platter that contained a delicate purple pudding in which there were several meatballs, an assortment of cheeses, and some chives. Somehow, she couldn’t quite grasp the fact that all three girls to the left of her were loading their plates with it, and the boy to her right had already eaten more than half of the mountain that he had dumped on his plate. As she continued to stare, the copper-haired girl opposite her turned her attention to Lily, who was starting to feel rather sick.
“It’s not as bad as it looks you know,” the girl said, noticing Lily’s disgusted expression. Lily looked up, and raised her eyebrows. “It really isn’t. In fact, all of this food is very good, especially these,” the girl continued while gesturing to some miniature cone-shaped pies. Lily noticed that the girl’s plate was full as well. She then ventured a glance at the Slytherin table, where Severus was sitting gloomily by himself. He had hurried into the hall right before the sorting began, scooting into line undetected by all except her. Lily wanted to join him, but she felt that it would be uncharacteristic of a Gryffindor such as herself to sit at another table. After all, the other Gryffindors hadn’t said one good word about another house in the time that she had spent at their table. Later, she would find out the details of his tardiness, but not now. So instead she turned away and searched the table for something remotely like what she was used to eating.
She found some nice chicken surrounded by potatoes and squash, and then at dessert there was good cake with chocolate syrup dripping down its sides. After tasting these, Lily decided that despite the magical atmosphere the food was nothing more than unique, and that she would acquire a taste for it eventually. Letting her fork and napkin drop gingerly on her plate, she turned her attention to the front of the room. There, a man who Lily could only assume was the Headmaster was standing up.
“Welcome, everyone, to an exciting new year at Hogwarts.” The Headmaster smiled serenely and most of the students clapped. “I hope you have all had a wonderful summer, and are excited to being classes. However, before I can dismiss you to your beds there are a few things I need to cover.” He paused here, looking around the room. “I’d like to introduce a new teacher this year. Professor Gretchington will be teaching Astronomy.” Here the professor stood, and the students clapped again politely.
“Also,” the Headmaster continued, “I’m happy to introduce a new activity for the older students. Four times a year, there will be a trip to Hogsmeade. Only third years and up are permitted, and they should have received a permission slip in the mail this summer.” Lily looked around at the older Gryffindors; they were all talking excitedly and smirking. The Headmaster quieted them down and resumed his speech.
“On a more serious note, I’m sure that you will notice a large, new tree on the grounds tomorrow. The tree was a present, and is extremely valuable. It is crucial that you do not go near the tree, as it has a built-in security system and can be extremely harmful. A blow from one of its branches is rather worse that a Bludger to the head. I will go no further in this matter, except to suggest that you take my advice to heart.”
Before Lily could hear what he had to say next, there was a light tap on her shoulder. She looked up, curious to know who wanted a word. To her horror, Professor McGonagall stood there, eyeing her with distaste. Nobody had noticed the professor sneak up; the students were immersed in what the Headmaster had to say. McGonagall motioned for Lily to follow her, so Lily quietly slipped off the Gryffindor bench. Just as they exited the Great Hall, Lily noticed that heads were starting to turn. Their exit had not gone unnoticed.
In the Entrance Hall, Lily shivered without the warmth from the candles in the Great Hall. She was mortified at what was happening and could not help but thinking every few minutes that maybe this was a dream. McGonagall was surely going to tell her that there’d been a mistake, and that Lily wasn’t a witch after all. They’d erase her memory; she’d never even know that Hogwarts existed. Somehow, Lily couldn’t even take it in, which was maybe for the best. Maybe they’d finish the task before she could really feel the loss. McGonagall turned and faced her, and Lily braced herself for the worst.
“Miss Evans, I do not know what you think you’re playing at, but I thought that the Hogwarts rules were perfectly clear. And if they weren’t, I would think that the second letter Dumbledore sent to your family would clarify any misunderstandings. But it seems that it did not. What do you have to say for yourself?” McGonagall looked Lily straight in the eye and waited for an answer.
Lily was confused, what had she done wrong? But whatever it was, it was obviously bad, and now Lily’s heart sunk. Would her family be punished as well? Was she going to go to Azkaban? Exactly how bad a crime had she committed? Lily’s urge to ask these questions was strong, but instead she looked at the floor and shook her head.
No one spoke for a minute, and Lily was afraid to look up. Finally McGonagall broke the silence with a long exhale. “Miss Evans, do you understand what I am talking about?” Again, Lily shook her head. “Well, let me remind you. I don’t know how you managed to pull this off, or how you got it in your head that you could, but I certainly do know that you made one big mistake.” Lily furrowed her brows, puzzled, and McGonagall continued. “I am of course referring to the fact that your sister is here at Hogwarts.” And when Lily Evans finally lifted her eyes, she was looking into Petunia’s.
Exactly That by YourWildestDreams
Chapter Endnotes: Thanks to my amazing beta for this chapter, Deeobee. If you could stop and review, I'll hug you.