Visiting Diagon

Chapter 1: Lily Evans

One of my very favorite parts of the Harry Potter series is Harry's first trip to Diagon Alley before he starts Hogwarts. This is how I would imagine Lily's visit. I also plan on writing about James, Sirius, Peter and Remus, and their thoughts and fears on starting Hogwarts while they shop for school supplies. I hope you like it!

-GG xo

**This story was previously entitled Growing Up, Growing Strong**

Lily was nervous. Dreadfully nervous. She had been dreaming of this moment from the second her quiet neighbor Sev had told her the truth, from the moment she got her letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but she had always know that she was different. She hadn't been sure whether the thing that set her apart was good or bad, but now she finally understood. Lily Evans was a witch. Of course, at first she was delighted, but had her thoughts contradicted at once by her older sister Petunia.

"You're actually considering going to go to this school, Lilly?" Petunia scoffed, nose upturned. Lily, who idolized her sister felt apprehensive at once.

"Why not Tuny?" She had asked. "The people there are different, like me! They can do magic. They're going to teach me!"

"No," came Petunia's hard reply. "Those people, like that greasy friend of yours, are freaks. You're my sister and you belong here with me. You won't like it at that horrid school."

"You don't think I'm going to turn into a freak, do you Tuny?" Lily asked, her eyes filling with tears.

"Perhaps. If you go to the freaky Warthog school."

"Hogwarts," Lily corrected feeling hurt. She had been so excited moments ago.

Petunia rolled her eyes and walked away.

If Lily was nervous, then her parents were terrified. How would Lily survive in this world they had known nothing of before a month ago. When the letter arrived from Hogwarts, they had been overjoyed for their daughter, but their joyous state soon turned rigid with fear; fear of Lily not being fully accepted into magical society because of them, because her parents were not of magical descent. They had always know Lily was special, but a witch? How could she still be their baby if she would be off to a far away school with magical strangers? Deep down, they feared their daughter would turn away from them, preferring to confide in other of her 'kind'. Mr and Mrs. Evans were in fact, not terrified, but petrified.

As the three of them stood, holding on to the cold metal bars in the underground on their way to Diagon Alley, no one dared utter a word. The silence between them was deafening, but no one wanted to break it. It had been ongoing since Lily and Petunia's conversation weeks previously. During the time following the incident, Lily had adopted the mentality; some things are better left unsaid, and indeed, unsaid they were left.

As Lily emerged from the underground, the light left her momentarily blinded. When she recovered, Lily consulted the instructions on how to get into Diagon Alley that were sent to her by the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Minerva McGonagall. Severus would have taken her with his family, whom she oddly enough had never met, was it not for the unfortunate death that had occurred in his family, forcing them to make an impromptu visit to France. She was supposed to turn left and walk straight until she saw an old inn named The Leakey Cauldron, where the professor had arranged for Lily to be let into Diagon Alley by a man whom she describe as very large by the name of Rubeus Hagrid. Lily frowned at the words 'very large'. There were many men in England who could be described as such. How would she ever find him? Sighing, Lily began to walk in the direction of the inn, waving her parents who seemed to be stalling by reading the caption of a city monument along.

When Lily reached The Leakey Cauldron, she immediately saw that her fears of not being able to find the mysterious Rubeus Hagrid had been foolish for seated at the bar was a man of immense size, the like of which she had never seem. Interestingly enough, he seemed friendly and was chatting up the bar tender and the other wizards surrounding him (Lily assumed they were wizards as well).

Nervously, Lily told her parents who were staring quite rudely, actually at the large man, "I think that's the man we are supposed to meet. He fits the description I was given by the deputy headmistress. "

Lily's parents tried unsuccessfully to conceal their identical look of fear from their daughter. Nevertheless, Lily, not one to be shy, marched straight up to the man and tapped him on the shoulder. At once the man turned around and his face broke into a smile.

"What can I do for you my dear?" He asked as Lily's premonition of his kindness confirmed.

"I'm Lily Evans and these are my parents I think that you're the man I'm supposed to be meeting." She replied eagerly.

"Rubeus Hagrid, Hogwarts gamekeeper at yer service." Affirmed Hagrid. "Yer a firs' year then?"

Lily and her parents nodded.

"I'll be leadin' yeh into Diagon Alley then." Hagrid continued, "Yeh got yer list?"

Lilly and her parents nodded again.

"Well then, once yer in I'll jus' point yeh in the right direction."

Lily smiled and they set off.

Hagrid lead the family back into an alley behind the inn. They stopped as the reached a brick wall, and Hagrid began mumbling something to himself. Then, much to the confusion of the Evans' he held up the umbrella he had been holding and counted from the bottom corner of the wall three bricks up, and then two bricks across. He then tapped this brick three times.

Quickly, the illusion of the bricks fell away, and Lily Evans caught her first glimpse of Diagon Alley. Upon sight Lily though the place was perfect. The hustle and bustle, odd stores and interesting looking people made for the kind of place that Lily knew she felt at home in.

Smiling brightly she turned to Hagrid. "Where do I go first?"

"Well, firs' yeh should go teh Gringotts, the wizarding bank to exchange yer muggle money. An' then yeh should probably go teh Ollivanders an' get yer wand." Lily's eyes brightened at the mention of getting a magical want. She had been dreaming of using it for weeks. "Then yer goin' teh want teh go teh get your books at Flourish & Blotts, robes at Madam Malkims and of course yer cauldron at The Cauldron Shop. And after, if yeh want, yeh can 'ead over to the Eeylops Owl Emporium or Magical Menagerie fer a pet." Hagrid pointed at each store as he said its name.

"Thanks Mr Hagrid." Lily said, eyes shining.

"Call me Hagrid Ms Evans. Everyone else does." The large man amended warmly.

"Then call me Lily." She replied, smiling.

"A'right Lily," Hagrid said, smiling as well. "I'd be honoured teh 'av yeh over fer tea some time. You can stop by my house any time."

Saying she would definitely consider the offer, Lily and her parents set off towards the marble building that was the bank and contained some of the best kept secrets anywhere in the world.

The journey to the bank had been a brusque visit. Mr Evans decided not to open up an account for Lily, but to instead trade the money they had brought for an equal amount in knuts, sickles and galleons. At first, Mr and Mrs. Evans were taken aback by the goblins. Upon first coming into contact with one of the creatures, Mrs. Evens omitted a high-pitched shriek that earned a dirty look from the goblin that had been helping them.

"Stupid muggles. Over react to everything." The goblin muttered under his breath. It was clear that this was not the first time he or one of his colleagues had encountered this reaction.

Upon emerging from the bank, Lily led her parents to the shop entitled Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 BC.

As they walked into the store a tinkling bell rang and they were met by a wrinkled man with a white head of hair and long beard.

"Hello. I remember every wand I have ever sold, but I do not recognize wither of your faces." Mr Ollivander addressed Lily's parents. "Therefore, I assume that you are muggles, and this here is your lovely daughter and my first time buyer in your family."

Mr and Mrs. Evans looked at each other shakily before Mr Evans responded. "Yes, that is correct. This is our daughter."

Lilly reached out to shake his hand. "Pleased to meet you she said politely. "I'm Lily Evans."

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance Miss Evans," the elderly man responded kindly. "Now, let us see what wand it right for you!"

"Er, right for her? Wouldn't any wand do?" Mrs. Evans said confusedly.

"Oh no my dear. No. It is the wand who choose the witch, not the witch who chooses the wand."

"But how does it make a difference?" Lily wondered aloud.

"Oh, you'll see my dear." The mysterious wand maker replied with a smile, "you'll see,"

With that Mr Ollivander walked toward one of the nearest shelve grabbed a box and shoved it into Lily's hands.

"Try this one," he said. "Beechwood and dragon heartstring. Nine inches. Nice and flexible." Upon seeing Lily's confused expression, Ollivander elaborated, "Just wave it about. Give it a swish."

Feeling slightly foolish, Lily waved the wand from her shoulder down to her hip. A loud bang echoed from across the room. The plant that had been sitting upon Ollivanders desk was not on the ground, it's pot broken.

Quickly, Ollivander repaired it and placed it back on the desk without so much as lifting a finger, to the amazement to Mr and Mrs. Evans.

Shaking his head he turned to Lily. "No, this is not the one. This won't do." Taking the wand from her, he selected another box, and handed it to Lily. 'How about this? Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charm work."

Upon contact with the wood, Lily felt its warmth in her hand. Bringing the wand up above her head she swerved it to the side swishing it through the dusty air. Multi-coloured sparks erupted from its end. Her parent clapped, proud of their daughter, and she beamed looking to Ollivander.

As her green eyes met his misty blue ones, Ollivander announced, "it seems we have found the one."

Lily practically danced out of the store. She had a wand! A real magic wand! And she had made sparks appear out of its end! She now fully believed the fact that she was a witch and she was so excited she felt as if she would burst.

"Where too now Lily?" Her father asked.

"Well," Lily replied, "Hagrid suggested we go to Madam Malkims to get robes."

"Lead the way" Chimed Mrs. Evans. She was glad to see her daughter so happy.

They began to make their way through the crowd when Lily accidentally bumped into a man's arm. The tall, dark man turned around, a scowl on his face.

"Watch where you're going Mudblood," the man sneered with disgust.

Lily backed away frightened as the man proceeded to wipe his arm where she had come into contact with him with a rag. He then made the rag burst into flames, leaving the ashes scattered across the ground as he walked away.

Just then Lily noticed the young boy who had been standing at the man's side. He was quite good looking; tall for his age with dark hair.

"I'm sorry about that," the boy said. "Father shouldn't have called you a Mudblood."

"Mudblood?" She asked warily afraid.

"Er, you're a muggle born aren't you?" He faltered and she nodded. "It's very rude. It's a term used to describe the blood of muggle born witches and wizards. You see, some wizards, like my father for instance, believe that their blood is more pure that that of muggle borns, and therefore that they're superior. I personally think its kind of stupid, but don't let anyone know I said that." He smiled.

Lily smiled at the boy's joke, but was taken aback by his words. Sev, her only magical contact up to that day had never spoken of anything of this sort. There were prejudices against muggle borns? Would she be at risk? Her high quickly deflated, and she became nervous again.

"I'm Sirius, by the way. Sirius Black. I'm going into my first year at Hogwarts." Said Sirius proudly.

"Lily Evans," She replied shaking his hand. Sirius seemed to have to problem with coming into contact with her, unlike his father. "I'm also beginning Hogwarts this year."

"Well Lily Evans," Sirius said, smiling at the red head. "Maybe I'll see you around."

And just like that, Sirius Black had disappeared back into he crowd.

Recovering quickly, Lily closed the distance between herself and the robe store with her parents following close behind.

They were greeted my Madam Malkim herself when they walked into the store. "You off to Hogwarts my dear?" She asked Lily.

"Yes," Lily replied. "I'm here for my uniform?"

"Yes, yes, of course sweetheart." Madam Malkim assured her as a tape measure began to, of its own accord, take her measurements.

Madam Malkim had gone to the back of her store to look for more pins and her parents had left to get cauldron when a young wizard entered the room. He was tall for his age, with unruly back hair, and hazel bespeckled eyes. He was carrying an ice cream cone with five, towering multi-coloured scoops that seemed to be defying gravity by simply staying upright.

The boy sat down in one of the large old-looking chairs behind her, rudely placing his legs on the coffee table, and running a hand through his hair as hoe continued to lick his ice cream.

"Hi there," the boy said to Lily. "Is Madam Malkim here? I need to get my robes fitted. Starting Hogwarts this year."

"Yes, she's in her room at the back." Lily replied, unsure of herself in front of the obviously confident boy.

"Good. I'll just go see her then." Getting out of his chair the boy proceeded to the back of the store.

The next think Lily knew, an angry Madam Malkim was leading the boy out of the store. "You should know better than to venture into my private room, stupid boy! Out! Get out of my sight." She cried.

Promptly, he turned around, spinning into Lily whose robes collided with the enormous pile ice cream he had been holding. Lily was shocked. Her new robes were ruined and she was freezing. The idiot had not only ruined her new clothes, but also stained her old ones underneath. She would have to continue shopping with a multi- coloured stain on the front of her shirt. Lily burst into tears.

"James Potter, you will be punished for this!" Madam Malkim roared.

And that was how Lily Evans met her husband to be.

Later, when Lily had calmed down and Madam Malkim had removed the stains from her shirt and robes, Lily continued on her way, still furious at James bloody Potter. She met her parents at Flourish & Blotts to pick up her books. They both, being university science professors were fascinated with the potions books, and had left her to finish her shopping alone as they spoke to an old wizard on the similarities between potions and chemistry.

While searching for a book on transfiguration, Lily collided with a young boy of about her age, falling to the ground.

Worried, the boy asked her, "Are you alright?" Offering her his hand. The boy looked almost as nervous as she knew she did.

"Yes, fine thank you." Lily replied, taking it.

"I'm sorry," the boy apologized. "I'm Remus Lupin, and well, as you can see I'm horribly clumsy."

"I'm sure you're Just having a bad day" Lily chuckled. "I'm Lily. Lily Evans."

"You starting Hogwarts this year?" Remus asked, nodding to the book in her hand (

"Yes, I'm so excited." She replied. "I only just figured out that I was a witch." Lily said apprehensively, but for some reason, she felt sure he that he would not mind her being a muggle born. "What about you?"

"I was surprised to get my letter as well." He answered mysteriously. "It's my first year."

Lily smiled brightly at the boy. Lily and Remus bonded quickly, sharing a fondness for muggle literature. They discussed their favorite authors as they picked out their books.

After what seemed to be no more than a few minutes to Lily and Remus, both sets of their parents returned to make the purchases. Glad to have made a friend (she didn't count the dark haired boy whose father had been rude to her), Lily bid the boy farewell and followed her parents back to The Leaky Cauldron and on the underground. Laden as she was with oddly shaped packages, lily remained completely unaware of the stares she was receiving.

After meeting Remus and Hagrid, and seeing how witches and wizards lived their lives in such an exciting manor, she had been fully convinced. Tuny had been wrong. Witches and wizards were not freaks. With the possible exception of James Potter, they were wonderful. Lily was sure Petunia would be as excited as she, now knowing that her sister was not a freak at all, in fact, she was painfully normal compared to the colourful people she had met that day.

There you go! Some insight into the mind of Lily Evans, mother of the defeater of Lord Voldemort, before she had even learned how to cast a single spell.

Did you like it? Hate it? Please let me know! PLEASE REVIEW! If you do, I will send you virtual hugs from your favorite marauder! And cookies!

REVIEW. REVIEW. REVIEW. REVIEW. REVIEW. REVIEW. REVIEW.

-GG xo