A/N: I do not own the Harry Potter series. J.K. Rowling does. Also, in England during the summertime, the sun does not go down until about 10 to 11 pm (otherwise known as 22 hours to 23 hours, respectively). Lily's meeting with Severus is in the summer I think, or at least, it will be in this fanfiction. You will see why I mentioned this later on. Another note: I am also American, so the terminology and spelling of some words and/or objects may be different from what you have read in Harry Potter. I did try to catch them though as I went.

Title: A Lily in Time

Full summary: A nine-year-old Lily finds herself wandering the grounds of Hogwarts in 1991, the same year Harry begins his first year. Dumbledore has the great task of keeping her from harm's reach and her suspicious son. Will he be able to keep the vulnerable girl from Voldemort's Death Eaters? And just how does a certain Slytherin professor feel about this? Good question; he doesn't know.

Chapter 1: A Green Light

The night Lily Evans disappeared was the same night her parents invited Severus to their house. The two adults had heard much about the awkward boy from their daughters and couldn't wait to meet him. Each girl had an entirely different view of the boy.

"He's a smelly poor git, I'd say!" proclaimed a disgusted and envious Petunia Evans one evening. She lifted her nose up in a superior way, glaring at her little sister who sat across the dinner table. Lily's face turned beet red.

"You take that back! He is not! You don't even bother to get to know him!" she yelled. This was the fifth time this week that Petunia felt she had the right to mock Lily's newest friend.

Mr. and Mrs. Evans glanced wearily at each other. 'Not this again.' they thought.

Petunia scoffed at her sister's words. "As if! Who would want to get to know him? Have you never seen that big hook hanging from his face? Ew!" The older sister then proceeded to make a honking motion with her nose. She chuckled at the cruel joke. Lily, however, was not amused.

"Oh, shut your trap Tuney! You're just jealous because me and Sev are the ones who actually possess talent, unlike you."

Petunia's face twisted into an enraged expression at that. Lily smirked. There it was. The true reason for the green-eyed monster. "Why you little -" started Petunia. She began to reach over the table. Lily remained in her seat, getting ready to fight back if necessary.

Mrs. Evans was appalled at the sudden turn of events. It was amazing how fast a solid relationship between two siblings could be destroyed within a month. The sisters had been so close before. Rarely did Petunia ever threaten to actually harm Lily. What had happened?

"Stop it! The both of you! NOW!" she yelled.

The sisters jumped back in their seats upon hearing their mother's demanding tone. They reluctantly did as they were told, but continued to give each other the stink eye. Petunia muttered something under her breath. Lily rolled her eyes.

Mrs. Evans huffed. This was becoming ridiculous.

"Listen, girls. We have already decided that we would like to meet this boy, regardless. Petunia, if you can't behave yourself and act as a reasonable young lady, then you can remain in your bedroom. But don't you dare try to set one foot down those stairs; you will have until 18 o'clock to get something to eat and then you must remain up there until Severus leaves. If you do anything else, you will be grounded for a month. Do I make myself clear?"

Petunia was stunned at this. Grounded for a month? Over a pathetic freak? She gaped at her mother. Lily almost laughed at how silly she looked as her eyes bulged from their sockets. "What?! But that isn't fair! This is my house to-"

"Am I clear?" Mrs. Evans bellowed. She did not like repeating herself and seldom did she tolerate defiance.

Lily watched as her sister gulped uneasily. "Y-yes ma'am." she murmured in defeat.

Mr. Evans grinned approvingly at his wife. She was never one to be messed with. Once she put her foot down, there was no longer any ifs, ands, or buts. Just do as I say.

Said person cleared her throat. "Alright then. Since that's settled, Lily..." Lily's green eyes met with her mother's. "Ask your friend if he would like to come to dinner next Friday. Tell him there will be plenty of food and games to play. If he declines, no harm done. We understand. If he needs a ride, we can make arrangements. Do you know where he lives?"

Lily shook her head. "No, he's never shown me." And she had a sneaking suspicion as to why.

"You so do know where he lives! His house is located in that despicable neighborhood near us; Spinner's End." Petunia insisted.

Their parents were shocked at this revelation. "Spinner's End?" Mr. Evans repeated. He had never heard good things about that place. Petunia nodded, enthusiastically seizing any opportunity that could get her parents on her side.

"Yes. And what an awful place too! I hear there is so much crime that goes on over there and-"

"Like you know everything Tuney!" Lily was not dumb; she knew what Petunia was doing. The other girl would spew out as many horrifying lies as she could as long as she got the attention she felt she deserved. "I know Sev's parents aren't-"

"Don't interrupt me FREAK!"

"STOP CALLING ME THAT!" The china inside the cupboard behind Lily began to rattle. Mrs. Evans was getting ready to intervene again. She didn't want to have to buy another tea set.

"WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS SO..."

"LILY! I think it's time for the both of you to go to bed. No more talking for the rest of the evening. None. At. All." She emphasized that last part.

Lily went to see what her father had to say about this, but he wasn't willing to come to her rescue. He agreed with her mum. "Goodnight. Love you two." he said, gesturing with his head for them to head off to their bedrooms.

'Tuney ruins everything.' Lily thought begrudgingly. She gulped down the remaining soup in her bowl and stood from her chair. Petunia was ignoring her, picking at a green bean with her fork. The young witch huffed before going to her room.

She spread herself across her bed and gazed out her window.

'The stars are shining brightly tonight. They're so beautiful. I can even see the little dipper.'

She remembered Sev telling her earlier that day how astrology could play a big part in casting certain spells...

'Wait.'

Her eyebrows suddenly furrowed. Right. Sev. How was she going to get him to agree to meet her family? He was already uncomfortable around 'muggles' and worse...what if he saw it as them taking pity on him? It was obvious by his poor clothing and skinny body that he was from a poverty-stricken household. But he didn't seem like the kind to take sympathy, even if it wasn't her family's intentions.

She covered her face with her hands. Oh, what was she going to do?

Fortunately for her, it turned out to be not much.

Severus was surprisingly glad at the thought of passing the night with her family. Besides, Tuney, of course. Not that that was shocking.

She recalled blinking at him in surprise. "Really? You're okay with coming?" She had walked beside him as he struggled to maintain balance on a log. He was wearing a pair of shorts that were too little for him and a long dark smock at the time. A coat was used in a futile attempt to cover the stains that labeled the smock. She was amazed to see a red spot lingering on the coat's collar. It resembled blood. She had lifted her eyebrows but nonetheless didn't say anything. She had learned long ago not to ask questions about his appearance.

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I?" His expression became more determined as he neared the end of the log. He was almost there.

Lily shrugged, feigning ignorance, which wasn't true. She did know why. Her mind flitted with memories of Sev becoming introverted and distant as other human children gathered to play on the playground, refusing to get too close to them. Whenever somebody asked to be his playmate, he would automatically shut them down. Unless that person was her.

"My parents also wanted to know if you needed a ride. They asked for your address." This statement seemed to be the straw that broke the camel's back. His concentration left him and he faltered, narrowly keeping himself from tumbling on Lily.

"A ride won't be necessary." he replied, completely avoiding her second sentence.

"So your parents will be dropping you off then?" She watched him as he recollected himself, offering a hand out to help him. He didn't take it.

His face grew dark. "No. Let's just meet here. Would 17 hours be good?"

She knew that he was aware of her knowledge of him living in Spinner's End, but decided not to press him. If he didn't feel comfortable with them going to his house, then she would respect his privacy.

"Sure."

And that led her to this Friday evening. She was waiting on her parents so they could leave.

Petunia decided to stay in her bedroom despite their mother's obvious disapproval. "I don't need to be in the company of another freak anyway. One is enough." she declared as she pushed past Lily up the stairs. Lily bit down on a retort. This was not the time to argue. She didn't want her parents backing out now.

"Don't mind her Lil. I am sure your sister will get over her petty ways soon enough." her mother said, her eyes following the retreating form of her eldest daughter. She could be so selfish at times.

"Let's hope so." came a voice from the front door. A head poked in to see the two females standing in the hallway. It was her father. "Come. The car is ready."

It didn't take long for the car to find itself inside the playground's parking lot. After all, the playground was only a fifteen-minute walk from the Evans' home.

"You go fetch your friend and we'll stay here," instructed Mr. Evans. "Don't be gone for too long now."

"Yes daddy."

Lily departed from the car and went to her and Sev's spot between the trees. Sure enough, there he was. He was sitting on the ground with a large book in his lap. He was so absorbed in its contents that he failed to notice her presence."Sev?" Lily stated.

The boy snapped from his thoughts. He smiled at her as if he hadn't seen her in days. "Lily."

He started to get up. It was at this moment that Lily realized that he attempted to look more pleasant this evening. He was wearing a black shirt that just reached his hips (quite a nice change for once, since most of his shirts were always way too small or drooped past his knees) and a pair of worn-out khakis. She wondered how long it took him to find such a pair. However, her focus zeroed in on the purplish mark that covered his jaw. It looked somewhat faint, almost as if someone had tried to hide it. She knew it hadn't been there yesterday.

He must have noticed her scrutinizing him, because he suddenly shifted awkwardly on the murky grass. "What is it?" he asked. She knew he didn't want her to mention the bruise.

"Nothing. Mum and dad are waiting in the parking lot for us."

They then walked together towards the car.

When Mr. and Mrs. Evans finally laid eyes on the boy that their daughter had been talking to for the past month, they felt themselves suddenly feeling perturbed. He looked worn beyond his years and even though he tried his best to enhance his appearance, they could easily tell by the stains and rips in his clothing how bad off he was. Mr. Evans' eyes narrowed as he noticed a bruise on the boy's face. Just what had happened to the kid?

He stepped from behind the wheel and went to open the back door. "Hello, Severus. Nice to meet you. We've heard a lot about you from our daughter."

The two children seemed to blush at this. Severus didn't know what to say in response.

"Dad, you're embarrassing him." Lily chided.

Mr. Evans chuckled. "Sorry boy. I didn't mean to. I was just stating a fact. You do talk about him a lot Lily."

"Yes, yes, we all know this Lial. So Severus. You say our little Lily is a witch? You should have seen how incredibly mad she was the day you first you told her that. She acted so rudely that we were really beginning to think she was a witch." Mrs. Evans winked at Lily.

Severus glanced at his friend apologetically. "Yes ma'am but I didn't mean it in a bad way. I was so excited to meet someone like me that I didn't take into consideration how she might take it."

"I see. Well, we are certainly glad for all of the input you've been giving her. She's not busting as many things around the house anymore."

"Mum!"

"That's normal Mrs. Evans. Once we are students at Hogwarts, we will learn how to control our natural impulses."

Lial then decided to pipe in with his own inquiry. "Hogwarts? Yes, Lily has mentioned that. A school of witchcraft and wizardry she says?"

Severus nodded. "Yes sir. Merlin himself even attended it. I can't wait for me and Lily to go."

Mr. Evans raised an eyebrow. "We are still uncertain if we want Lily going to Hogwarts."

Severus felt himself slowly fill with dread. Lily couldn't be with him at Hogwarts? No!

"You will have to let her go! Otherwise, if she is caught using magic outside of school and underage, she will be taken by the authorities!"

The Evans were shocked at his sudden outburst. Lily patted him on his hand, trying to calm him down.

Mrs. Evans stared at him through her rearview mirror. She was not oblivious to the greedy way Severus looked at Lily. He must have been seriously deprived of friendship and affection.

"We said we were uncertain Severus. Not that we were totally against it." Lial concluded. The group remained silent for the rest of the drive.

When they arrived at the Evans' house, Lily showed Severus to the living room. "You ever played 'Twister' before?" Lily asked as she went through the family's hallway closet.

"No." Severus said. "I've never played any muggle games."

Her eyes widened. "Not even Monopoly?"

He blinked at her.

She gasped, shaking her head sadly.

"You've been so deprived Sev. You've never seen it at a muggle school?"

He replied back uneasily. "I tried attending muggle school once but it didn't go very well. Mum had to take me out." The kids had bullied him relentlessly. It didn't help whenever he'd lose control and 'accidentally' hit a student with a textbook either.

Lily was sad at this piece of information. "Sorry to hear that. I think it's a rather fun place to be."

She pulled out "Twister" and explained to him the rules of the game.

"So you chose this one, Lily?" Severus was stunned to see Mrs. Evans hovering over the colorful mat. Mr. Evans was following suit. His parents would have never done such a thing.

"Yes. We will have to play Monopoly next. Sev has never played it before."

"Never played it? Now that's truly a shame. Severus, would you like to watch this round in order to see how the game works? Yes? Okay. Lily, give him the spinner."

Lily obeyed her mother and gave it to him before plopping down beside her parents.

"Whenever you're ready Sev." she said.

He flicked the black dial and the competitive night began.

Severus wasn't very flexible, thus explaining why he was always the first one out during Twister, but he was able to redeem himself in the family's next game. He proved to be quite the strategist and had easily beaten Mr. Evans, the best player at the Evans' house, at Battleship. The Evans stood no match against him in Monopoly, either. Lily's parents were astounded at the remarkable intelligence and thirst for learning that Severus displayed.

By the time 19 o'clock rolled around, the family and their guest were all seated at the dining room table, Severus taking Petunia's seat. It was a big course; there was lamb, mash potatoes and gravy, collard greens, macaroni and cheese, and the most enormous buttery rolls Severus had ever seen in his life. Dessert was a splendid thing too. He had never tasted rocky road ice cream before. It was now his favorite.

Twenty hours came by much too soon. The Evans packed up inside their car again and headed off towards the park. "You sure we can't drive you home? It's not a problem for us." Mrs. Evans didn't like the idea of the boy walking all alone this late in the evening.

"I'm fine ma'am. Thank you though."

"Just call me Patty. We loved having you Severus. Don't hesitate to come by at any time!"

Severus could feel a warmth spread throughout his being. The feeling of being longed felt nice. The two muggles were so kind. Just like Lily.

"Yes Patty."

The Evans waved at him as he left their car.

Mrs. Evans sighed. "Too bad Petunia couldn't have joined us tonight. We had so much fun."

Lily agreed.

As soon as she got home, she took a shower and slipped into her pajamas. She was drained from the day.

She cuddled up to her stuffed animals and nestled deep into her covers. She felt so content. Her parents liked Sev and she was now one more step closer to Hogwarts (and if only she had known just how true this thought was).

She wondered if Tuney would ever get over herself and become her best friend again. They had always been close, but ever since Lily's powers began to increase and she met Sev, their relationship drifted apart. It honestly made Lily feel sad and a little guilty. What if...what if she really was just a freak? If she wasn't a freak, then did that mean she would have kept her sister? Was there any way to stop being like she was?

She shook her head at that. No. If Petunia really cared for her, she would accept Lily for who she was. A...witch?

Despite the enthusiasm she showed in front of Severus, she was still a little nervous about what she was. What if she failed at everything the magical professors tried to teach her at the school? With the exception of when he was angry, Severus had a pretty firm grasp on his magic and already was knowledgeable of many spells, even if he couldn't practice them legally yet. Albeit, some of them were kind of scary. He called them the Dark Arts. He tried to refrain from bringing them up around her since he knew the topic made her uneasy. But every once in awhile, he'd get so excited that he just had to show her what he learned.

She grimaced. She hoped the professors wouldn't make her practice dark magic. She wanted to be like Sev, but not in that way.

She was now

slowly

beginning

to fall

.

.

.

asleep?

"NO!"

Lily was startled by the shriek that blasted its way into her eardrums. The person sounded so close and... oddly familiar? She suddenly felt like screaming but found that her mouth could not move. She was instantly alarmed. Her arms and legs seemed to be glued to her bed. What on Earth was happening?!

"Avada Kedavra!"

The next thing she knew, she was no longer in her bedroom and all she could see around her was a pierce, achingly, bright green light. An electric shock overtook her being and if she was mobile, she was sure she would have been flopping up and down like a fish out of water.

Voices and noises that she could not recall began to sound through her head.

A baby's crying.

Her...crying?

"Lily, take Harry and go!" A man? Who was that?

"It's such a shame that she had to die like that. So young. So gifted. So pretty. She will be remembered." A glimpse of a tombstone?

"...filthy mudblood!" She could barely make out the rest of the boy's sentence but one question remained in her head; what was a mudblood?

"You were always a freak. Now why do you have to go and dump your freak son on my doorstep?" Tuney?

All of these questions seemed to spiral around her. More and more voices came.

"You're a witch!"

"...if you date me..."

"I've chosen my path, and you've chosen yours."

"Lily. No. No! Not her! LILY!" The voice sounded so heartbroken and hysterical. Did she die? Wait. No - she was too young to die! She didn't want to die yet! She was only nine, she just met Sev, and she hadn't even gone to Hogwarts yet!

The electricity intensified and a burning sensation coursed down her body. She thought she was melting. The voices were going away only to be replaced by a buzzing noise.

And then! - silence. Everything had stopped.

She wasn't in her room. She was no longer in the face of the green light or the electricity. She was looking up at a dark sky. And she felt chilly.

She suddenly realized she was moving. No. Descending. To the ground below, ever so slowly.

She lightly landed on the grass. Mobility came back to her as soon she reached Earth and she immediately sat up. She was near the bank of a river? A lake?

She got on her legs and looked around. Her jaw dropped when she turned to examine the environment behind her. A huge castle stood before her, not appearing surprised at all that she was there. It was very ancient-looking.

Her head snapped to the left when she heard children laughing and talking. She needed to find out what was happening. Maybe they could help her?

She went towards the group. She tilted her head in bewilderment at their clothing. They all were wearing long, black robes and pointy hats. How odd.

As she got closer to them, she saw that some of the children were actually much older than she originally thought. Several were teens. She became nervous.

A boy with brown hair noticed her first. He quirked up an eyebrow.

"What is a muggle doing here?" he asked his companions. It made them freeze. One of the male teens rolled his eyes. "Nonsense. No muggle would be able to get here without Dumbledore's knowing. Hey kid." He was now speaking to Lily.

"Why are you not in your robes? Where is your wand and your books? You let Professor McGonagall catch you like that and you will be in detention for weeks."

Professor who?

"Excuse me, would you mind telling me where I am?"

The students blinked at her before bursting out in laughter.

"What do you mean 'where are you'? You're at Hogwarts of course!" the same teen replied. Lily's eyes turned into huge saucers.

'W-what? Hogwarts!'

"Why do you look so surprised?" came a girl. She was holding hands with the male teen. They must have been boyfriend and girlfriend.

"N-nothing." Lily stammered. She had to tread her way carefully from here on out. She felt like she wasn't supposed to be here...

"So I'll ask you again. Where is your wand and your books? Your robes?"

Lily did something she hardly ever liked to do. She lied. "Someone stole them from me. I was walking towards...Hogwarts and I suddenly found myself asleep. When I came to, I was away from the other students and near this bank. All of my belongings were gone and I was wearing...these." She gestured at her pajamas, embarrassed that they were her Minnie Mouse ones.

The teen's eyes narrowed. "They must have hit you with a sleeping spell. I bet you anything that it was one of those slimy Slytherins! They're just as despicable as their head of house! The name is Pete." He stretched out his hand. "Gryffindor here." They briefly shook hands.

"You look a bit young to be attending here. Are you a first-year?"

Not knowing what to say, she simply said yes.

"I wish you a good school term. You're rather lucky by the way. The famous Harry Potter will be in your class. You'll get to see him for the next seven years!"

'Harry Potter? Who's he? And...don't I recognize that name?'

"Oh, yes. I am quite lucky."

"Even luckier if you get in Gryffindor." It was the girl again. "Hey, I still have my old robe in my trunk. Do you want to borrow it? It might be a little big, but it's better than nothing. It has a hood on the back of it, so you can wear that instead of your hat."

Lily accepted the offer gratefully.

Soon a long mass of black clothing was hiding her petite form and red hair.

"I would report your incident. Professor McGonagall might be able to recover your stuff. Sorry to cut this short, but we need to be heading off towards the Great Hall. The Sorting will be commencing soon."

"O-okay!"

She followed the witches and wizards into the big castle.

She gazed in amazement at the pictures on the walls. They- they were moving about and talking to each other!

'Wait until Sev sees this!...I wish we could be sharing this experience together.' She became momentarily saddened at this but quickly overcame it when the older girl took her to a huge room with floating candles.

The room contained four long wooden tables and amazing architecture like none she had ever seen before. Hundreds of students sat at these tables and at the center of the room, a small bunch of students were gathering behind an old woman.

The brown-haired kid from outside nudged her in the crowd's direction. "That's where me and you need to be going. We're already late!"

She swiftly went after the boy and found herself as the last student in line. However, she soon learned that it didn't matter, because the students were being called up by name for the sorting. The sorting was done through a hat called the Sorting Hat. He sang a song at the very beginning, a song that went something like this:

Oh you may not think I'm pretty,

But don't judge on what you see,

I'll eat myself if you can find

A smarter hat than me.

You can keep your bowlers black,

Your top hats sleek and tall,

For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat

And I can cap them all.

There's nothing hidden in your head

The Sorting Hat can't see,

So try me on and I will tell you

Where you ought to be.

You might belong in Gryffindor,

Where dwell the brave at heart,

Their daring, nerve, and chivalry

Set Gryffindors apart;

You might belong in Hufflepuff,

Where they are just and loyal,

Those patient Hufflepuffs are true

And unafraid of toil;

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,

if you've a ready mind,

Where those of wit and learning,

Will always find their kind;

Or perhaps in Slytherin

You'll make your real friends,

Those cunning folks use any means

To achieve their ends.

So put me on! Don't be afraid!

And don't get in a flap!

You're in safe hands (though I have none)

For I'm a Thinking Cap!

Lily thought the song was rather cute, but it made her nerves become even more awry. Would she be in Gryffindor? It seemed attractive enough. She always saw herself as brave. But then again, should she even be in this line?

She listened as children were called to the front.

Her heart suddenly gave way. Wait. No. This wasn't right. They skipped over her name. Evans. They were already at F! Not knowing what to do, Lily stood there dumbly. Perspiration formed along her forehead as more and more names were called. Hermione Granger. Neville Longbottom. Luna Lovegood. Harry Potter (peculiarly, his sorting took much longer than the rest of the students). Ron Weasley. The boy who she had met outside. Now only three more students remained standing, excluding her.

Realizing that this was a terrible idea and knowing that she had to do something, she started to slink away from the other students. Fortunately, the girl in front of her was very tall and Lily was confident the girl's abnormal height would easily conceal her fleeting form.

However, students sitting at the tables were not oblivious to Lily's actions. "Hey, what are you doing?" whispered a boy near her. He looked like he was thirteen. She didn't answer him.

Professor Dumbledore and a few of the professors at the High Table were not ignorant of her either, despite her greater efforts. Professor Snape had noticed her creeping form when she got in the way of him staring at Harry Potter.

Harry Potter.

The boy who lived.

The one who carried Lily's lovely green eyes, and his father's arrogant face. The son of a man he wished he could hex a thousand times over. The son of a woman he loved all his life.

One could only begin to comprehend Snape's annoyance when he saw the child attempt to sneak away from her peers. It didn't help when she tripped, falling flat on her face, and revealing Minnie Mouse decorated pajama bottoms. He heard his table snickering. Of course, since Severus couldn't see the child's face, he did not realize who it was nor that the person was a girl.

'What the hell is that fool doing?' he thought as the student tried getting back up, only to trip again. He hoped they weren't in his house. He had enough imbeciles to deal with. Even if they were Slytherin.

Minerva spoke up. She had seen the child too. "Excuse me? Just where do you think you're going?"

Fear consumed Lily. 'Oh, what to do, what to do, WHAT TO DO?!' Her brain came up with no sensible conclusion. So she ran.

Snape grunted. "They must be one of yours Minerva. They actually had the audacity to leave." The hall had become silent.

Professor McGonagall grimaced. She went to go fetch for the student, but Dumbledore stopped her. "Allow me to handle the child. This may have been a bit much for them." He went after her.

Lily took down the hood of the robe. She was hunched over her knees, gasping for breath. That probably wasn't the best thing to do. Now how was she going to get back home? She hoped they would still permit her to enter the school when she finally turned eleven.

She started toward the bank again. Didn't she see some boats earlier-

"Hello."

Lily fell backward. A tall man loomed over her. He was very old with a white long beard. He stared at her through his round spectacles with an expression she could not place. His eyebrows narrowed and the atmosphere around them suddenly grew tense.

"Who are you? Where are you from?" he demanded.

She was frightened by his tone, but the authoritative way it sounded held no room for discussion. Besides, maybe he could help her?

"M-my name is Lily Evans. I am from Cokeworth, England."

"How did you get here?"

The answers only seemed to tumble out.

"I don't know. I was in my bedroom, about to fall asleep, when a strange light flooded my vision and I heard all sorts of weird voices in my head. Then I was here."

He stroked his beard, appearing thoughtful at her words. "How old are you? Do you know where you are at?" He was speaking more softly this time.

"I turned nine in January. I am at Hogwarts, the school of witchcraft and wizardry."

"And how do you know of this place?" he continued.

"I have a friend named Sev - Severus. He told me about it. Said I was a wi-"

"Severus?" he abruptly cut her off. "Severus who?"

She racked her brain for his last name. Did he ever tell her?

"I...I'm not sure."

"Hm..."

The old man pondered for a moment. She waited anxiously for him to soak up all that she had said. She knew she must have sounded crazy. Maybe he would send her to the loony bin.

To her disbelief and relief, he simply smiled at her warmly. He suddenly looked like a gentle grandfather rather than an interrogative headmaster.

"We are glad to have you here Lily. My name is Albus Dumbledore. I am the headmaster of Hogwarts. I assume you are wanting to go home?"

Lily nodded her head earnestly.

"Good. So do I. I believe an ancient magic sent you here, one that I am unfortunately, not quite familiar with."

Her brightened face dampened at that.

Seeing this, he quickly added, "But don't worry. We will return you to your time as soon as possible."

"Oh."

She tried to think of something else to keep her mind off what she had just been told.

"Does this mean I will be getting Sorted now?" she finally asked.

Dumbledore frowned inwardly at this. 'No. She can't be near Harry. I will have to find a place suitable for her that won't risk the timelines but also won't put her in danger.'

"Not yet. You will be coming with me to my office. We have much to discuss."

"Yes sir."

And they started traveling through the castle to their destination. At one point, Lily swore that she had passed by a calendar that read September 1991. That was quite silly. If it was 1991, then she would be 31 years old!

End of chapter 1: A Green Light

A/N: Thanks for reading! Reviews are much appreciated. This is my first Harry Potter fanfiction. I am sorry if there are any canon errors. I have not read all of the books and it has been a while since I've seen all of the movies. However, some of it IS changed to fit this storyline. If you are concerned with a canon error, please notify me in the comments and I will try to fix it.