First Time at Diagon Alley

"Lily, someone at the door!"

Lily Evans sprinted down the stairs, her dark red hair flying behind her and her brilliant green eyes sparkling with a kind of nervous elation. The excitement bubbling in her caused several pictures of Lily and her family to vibrate, but she paid them no attention.

Today was the day. She and Severus had been talking about this day for years. Her letter would come. She would officially be a part of the Wizarding World when a Ministry official and a school teacher asked her to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. When Tuney had first told her mother and father about what Severus had said to her, they just thought it was all a game; her mother was disappointed that Lily wouldn't invite her sister to play with them, but Lily's explanations had been lost.

Now her parents would have proof that magic and Hogwarts existed.

Lily had just jumped the last step when she heard a voice say with the barest trace of a foreign accent, "Good morning, my name is Francis Manumali, and this is Professor Minerva McGonagall. I am a representative of the Muggle Liaison Office in the Ministry of Magic, and Professor McGonagall teaches at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry."

McGonagall, the name rung a bell. She remembered Severus talking about some of the present teachers at Hogwarts. She couldn't remember which subject a McGonagall taught, but she did know that McGonagall was one of the Heads. She had never heard of Francis Manumali, though Lily knew about the Ministry of Magic and the Muggle Whatever-he-said Office.

Mr. Manumali was well into his forties, with grey hair on his temples and the rest a dark brown. His expression was blank with colorless eyes surveying Lily's home intently while Professor McGonagall, wearing an old-fashioned business suit, studied Lily's parents for their reactions. Her bun was pulled up tightly without a single hair out of place, and Lily was left wondering if she had ever let her hair down for once in her life.

Mr. Evans looked at complete loss for words, and Mrs. Evans was equally dumbstruck. She stared at the two people as though she had never seen anything quite like them, but Lily was feeling the exact opposite. She sprinted down to meet them, but her father recovered from his shock first. He placed an arm in front of Lily to prevent her from getting any closer as if he was afraid that one of them would snap and suddenly attack.

"There is a mental institution in London," he said in a strong voice.

Mr. Manumali was unfazed by Mr. Evans reaction. He was apparently quite used to being called insane.

Professor McGonagall stepped forward and said, "Mr. and Mrs. Evans, young Lily Evans is indeed a witch and has been offered a place in Britain's most prestigious wizarding school. If I may…"

She withdrew a long stick of wood, and Lily felt her heart leap out of her chest at the sight of it. Two years, but this was the first time she had seen magic in action; Severus' mother never used magic because of his father. She leaned forward in anticipation. Lily glanced back to the woman who was peering at Lily over square spectacles. Lily's first impression was one of those strict school teachers from the early part of the century. The expression on her face was stern, but when she saw Lily, her eyes softened slightly.

Professor McGonagall glanced at Mr. Manumali, and he nodded probably to tell her the coast was clear. She flicked her wand and conjured a small lion that sprang from the tip of her wand straight into Lily's waiting arms. She giggled as the lion purred and licked her chin.

Mr. Manumali looked back to Lily's parents. "May we come inside?" he asked.

Mr. Evans moved backwards in staggering, robotic steps, dragging Lily's mother along with him.

"Thank you for your hospitality," said Professor McGonagall, sweeping past the Evans family and into the tiny entrance area like they were old friends coming for tea.

Mr. Manumali followed and said, "Eccellente," to nobody in particular.

"Richard Evans, and this is my wife, Rose Evans," said Lily's father, finally regaining his voice.

"You are Lily Evans, correct?"

Lily jumped at being addressed directly by McGonagall. The moment she starting questioning her, Lily suddenly felt like she had been caught in the crossfire, like she had been caught red-handed doing something that broke many rules at once.

Mr. Evans shifted on his feet slightly. "I'm sorry, but are we going to get on with it?"

Minerva McGonagall returned her gaze to Lily's parents. "As we said before, we've come to offer Lily a place at Hogwarts."

Mrs. Evans was confused. "But our Lily has never applied for a different school. Are you sure she's the right girl?"

Lily had difficulty not rolling her eyes. I've only been telling you about Hogwarts for the past several years, she thought. Thoughts raced around her head, both past memories and future dreams: the first time she had met Severus, the flower she could control at a whim, floating candles which Severus had said covered a ceiling that was enchanted to look like the night sky, the library that was supposed to hold almost half as much books in the Library of Congress in the US. Suddenly September 1st seemed like a very long ways away.

McGonagall smiled slightly as if her mother was not the first to ask that question. "Very. Lily has the qualities we look for in future students. I think it would be best if we all sit down, and then I can explain."

Mr. Evans stepped aside to let the teacher in. He turned to Lily and said, "Why don't you show our guest to the sitting room." Nodding and almost bouncing with excitement, Lily led the way to the large sitting room. McGonagall followed and seated herself on the squashy armchair near the fire while Lily and her parents sat across from her on the sofa.

Mr. Manumali wordlessly leaned against the wall with surprising grace for the older man. The was a glint in his eyes that sent shivers up Lily's spine as he stared at her with her parents and McGonagall engaged in a conversation. She snuggled closer to her mother who realized that Lily was uncomfortable and put an arm around her daughter's shoulders, giving her a reassuring squeeze though Mrs. Evans couldn't have the slightest clue as to why Lily was acting like she was.

"Ah, this must be your sister Petunia." Lily looked up to see her sister enter. Her blond hair was up in a ponytail, exposing even more of her long neck, and she was annoyed.

Lily's mental walls went up just like they always did when Petunia was involved. Two years of teasing and insults had made it impossible for her to ever be able to express herself freely around her sister. It was almost the point when Lily could ignore Petunia's snide comments-almost.

"That's Tuney." Lily turned back to McGonagall, having a hard time keeping enthusiasm out of her voice, all thoughts of Petunia erased by vivid images of a giant castle with cauldrons and spell books sitting in every corner.

The teacher nodded. "Let's get right to business. As I said before, I am a teacher at Hogwarts, and I have come to offer Lily a place at our school. We have invited her because Hogwarts is a school for magic, and Lily has shown in many instances her ability to perform magic." McGonagall paused to assess Lily's parents, no doubt wondering if Mr. Evans would insist on sending the pair to a psychologist. The mere thought of the strict woman sitting in front of her spilling all of her 'insane' ideas made Lily want to giggle, but she suppressed the urge.

Both of Lily's parents were staring at McGonagall, not understanding half of what she said.

"Magic," Mr. Evans whispered as if it was a confirmation to the weird things Lily had done in the past. Lily glanced up just in time to see Petunia leave the room, although nobody else noticed; Lily relaxed a little, guilty though that it was because she couldn't see her sister. "It's magic, what out Lilykins can do?" Lily watched her father's face light up like Christmas, and her mother was close behind. They had apparently gotten over their earlier astonishment.

McGonagall, however, was watching Lily with a slight frown. "You don't appear as surprised, Ms. Evans, now or when we first explained it."

She hesitated slightly. "My friend Severus lives down the street." Lily thought it best not to lie. "He told me several years ago after he saw me do some accidental magic. We've been talking about it ever since. I told my parents later."

McGonagall nodded. "So this makes it easier that you are already familiar with our world."

"Oh, Lily! We are so proud of you!" her mother squealed, hugging her youngest daughter tightly.

McGonagall withdrew a letter from her traveling cloak and handed it to Lily. Lily held it with trembling hands. Green ink was scrawled on the heavy parchment.

Ms. Lily A. Evans

The Third Bedroom

Number 9, Durant Street

Cokeworth

"As you already know, Hogwarts is a school for witches and wizards to study magic. There we will teach you not only how to use it but to control it as well. Inside you will find a list of all your supplies needed and your train ticket. You can purchase your things at Diagon Alley." McGonagall handed Lily a small bowl full of powder.

"This is Floo Powder. All Muggle-born homes are connected during the month of August. Take this, throw it into the fire, and say very clearly the Leaky Cauldron. Once you are there, ask for Tom the barman, and he will show you how to get in to Diagon Alley. Bring along some money to exchange at Gringotts, the wizard bank.

"To get onto Platform 9¾, walk through the bricks between Platforms 9 and 10. The train leaves at 11:00 am on September 1st. At Hogwarts you will call me and the rest of the teachers professor. Good day to you." McGonagall stood up, leaving Lily's parents still sitting.

"Just a warning, Gringotts is run by goblins." Without another word, Professor McGonagall and Mr. Manumali left.

"Sev!" Lily yelled as she sprinted towards the playground. "Sev, I got my letter!"

Severus jumped out of the swing he had been sitting in, his expression flipping from wallowing to uncontained joy. "Really? Who brought it to you?" he asked.

"Professor McGonagall and an old guy from the Muggle License Office, Mr. Man-something," Lily answered, still grinning widely. "I tried to remember which class she taught, but I couldn't. After all this time talking about Hogwarts, I forgot which teachers taught which classes." By the time she was done talking, her tone had gone from ecstatic to worried, and Severus rolled his eyes at Lily.

"You have nothing to worry about, Lils. You'll probably be one of the best witches in Hogwarts. Besides, memory loss only proves your human," snickered Severus.

"Hey," said Lily, pretending to be hurt.

"Joking. So what did your parents say?" asked Severus.

"They plan on taking me to Diagon Alley later today. I'm supposed to be back home in fifteen minutes for Mum and me to use Floo. They're so happy for me, Sev. It didn't take that long to get past their shock, and they are entirely supportive now they know it's not fake."

Severus' eyes tightened at the mention of parents, and Lily recognized her mistake at once.

"Oh, Sev, I'm so sorry. I completely-"

"It's fine. It would be impossible to stay mad at you anyway," said Severus.

Lily glanced at the empty playground as the awkwardness hung in the air between the two of them.

"Swings are free," she said from out of the blue. "Let's see who can jump higher!"

"Lily, I don't think we-" Severus started, but Lily paid no attention and pulled him over to the empty playground where the swings creaked quietly in the wind.

"Richard, how much money do you think we should bring?" Mr. and Mrs. Evans were standing by the fireplace, considering how much money to exchange. Lily and her sister were arguing quietly in the kitchen where neither parent could hear, and Lily was putting every ounce of effort to not let Petunia see how badly it hurt to fight with her. Her walls were up with full power, refusing to let her think about the time before Lily found out she was a witch.

"I'm sorry, Lily. I don't want to spend the rest of my life here hanging around such an abnormality," Petunia sniffed. Her arms were crossed, and she had a look of superiority on her face that annoyed Lily to no end. "It's good that you're going away for the rest of the year. People like you should not be around society. It's for our own safety. Who knows what barbaric things your kind might do to us?"

Lily was furious. "Barbaric? I'm still your sister!"

Petunia drew herself up to her full height. "You're still a little witch. A real sister would be nice and stay with her family."

Lily felt like she had been slapped in the face. She felt her temper rise, and she lowered her voice so her parents wouldn't hear if she unconsciously let it rise. "And my sister would say that because she's jealous she can't do magic herself," she hissed. It was a low blow, Lily knew, but Petunia could not look past her jealousy and was destroying their bond.

Petunia smirked. "Well, it's a good thing I'm not your sister."

"No, you're just a jealous bitch who takes it out on people who have what she doesn't."

Petunia seethed with fury. Lily knew it wasn't good to feel the satisfaction for Petunia's fury, but she couldn't help herself. She grinned at the sight of her sister going from pale to red, from red to purple, and from purple to an ugly color Lily couldn't even name.

"Lily, time to go!" her mother called from the living room.

Lily stepped away with one last look at her sister, and left the room.

Both her parents were excited as they handed her the Floo Powder. Lily could only take her mother with her because a Muggle couldn't travel by Floo Powder alone, and all three couldn't fit in the fire place. Lily grabbed a handful, and the flames turned bright green. Stepping in with her mother clutching her hand, she yelled, "The Leaky Cauldron!"

The green flames spun around Lily and her mother faster and faster. Lily couldn't close her eyes, and caught several glimpses of living rooms and a kitchen. Something hot stung her elbow, and she tucked it closer.

As if an invisible force was tugging at her, she stumbled out of the fire, still gripping her mother's hand tightly.

Lily stepped farther away, dragging her mother with her. A whoosh blew her hair, and an elderly wizard climbed out of the green fire behind her, shaking his head. "...got to remind people not to… dirty, little...third dead Puffskein this month..." he walked away, grumbling.

Lily looked around and couldn't say she was impressed with the entrance to Diagon Alley. The small, dingy pub was crowed with people, most of the wearing floor-length cloaks and robes. She suppressed a shiver as someone who didn't look entirely human ordered something that looked like raw meat. A small girl her age jumped off her chair at the sight and ran between her parents.

Lily and her mother were one of the few wearing Muggle clothes, earning a few weird looks from a couple of patrons ordering an amber liquid that fizzled and popped. Lily counted three people who wore Muggle clothes- a worn out couple sitting in the back as if they had just finished a marathon, but Lily thought they were trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, and the little blond girl who had squeaked in fright.

"Professor McGonagall said Tom the barman, right," her mother whispered. Lily clasped her mother's hand as her mother led her up to the barman. He was cleaning glasses and reminded Lily of a wizened, bald man near her house. He smiled a toothless smile as Lily and her mother approached.

"Excuse me, Professor McGonagall said you could help us get into Diagon Alley." Lily could barely hear her mother's reassuring voice over the babble.

"First time at Hogwarts? Need to get your supplies?" he asked kindly.

Lily nodded.

"The Prewetts are also going to Diagon Alley. I'm sure they can show you. Their daughter is also starting." He waved over a small family close to them. Lily saw the girl who had avoided the raw meat-eating woman earlier. Her round, friendly face was framed by curly blond hair, and her bright blue eyes were shining.

"Hi, I'm Alice Renée Prewett," the girl said pretentiously, holding out her hand. Lily took it, remembering Prewett as one of the names of an old pure-blood family Severus had told her about.

"Lily Evans."

Lily supposed the girl was friendly if a little overexcited; the way she pronounced her full name reminded Lily of what Petunia did when she was younger while Richard and Rose Evans' friends came by for tea. 'Good morning, you may call me Petunia Laurel Evans, and this is my sister, Lily. We are very pleased to meet you.'

Never mind the fact that Petunia had turned into the raging bitch that Lily could barely stand to be in the same room with.

"I don't recognize that surname," Alice Renée Prewett said while Lily swallowed hard; she had been in a Wizarding pub for one minute, and already people recognized her for a Muggle-born.

"Alice! Be more polite!" a woman who could only be her mother scolded. Her mother, who had just introduced herself to Lily's own mother, frowned at Alice.

"Sorry," Alice mumbled. Then she perked up. "Ever been to Diagon Alley?"

Lily almost laughed at her sudden mood change. Her mother answered for Lily. "This is her first time. Tom said you could show us."

"Of course," Alice's mother said. "I must say, I have never been properly introduced to a Muggle. Follow us. It's right around this door."

Lily followed Alice and her family to a tiny brick room towards the end of the pub. Her mother was talking animatedly to Mrs. Prewett. Lily heard questions that were close to making her crack up. Mr. and Mrs. Prewett were asking about simple appliances with amazement evident in their voices. Her own mother was trying not to smile. Alice and Lily were having their own conversations about the Muggle and Wizarding World.

"So the pictures never move? Weird!"

"But we have movies and videos for that," Lily explained.

"What's a movie?" If Lily didn't know that Alice was one of those witches that had no clue how things like cars worked, she would have thought Alice was being stupid on purpose.

Lily watched Mr. Prewett take out his wand and tap the bricks. Lily watched, amazed, as the bricks wiggled around as one single-minded body. Slowly, the hole expanded into a beautiful stone archway, filling the small room with bright sunlight.

"Wow," Lily said softly. Even though she and Severus had talked about Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade, and Hogwarts, she was still unprepared. Little shops had set up on either side of the street. People went from shop to shop, talking with friends, or bargaining in little stalls. Lily heard snippets of conversations, ranging from the price of potion ingredients to the favorites to win the Quidditch World Cup. Alice bounced beside her explaining some of the shops.

"Flourish and Blotts is probably the best place to buy books. They have almost everything that was ever written." Lily glanced up at the window display. Lily didn't doubt it. Every single spare inch was covered with stacks upon stacks of books. "Florean Fortescue owns an ice cream parlor up there. We should stop there." Alice pointed up the street to a small, crowded shop. Lily's stomach grumbled at the mention of ice cream.

"Alice, we need to stop at Gringotts," Mrs. Prewett said.

Alice grumbled something about the magnificent building and how her time would be better spent at the ice cream parlor.

"Are there really goblins?" Lily asked Alice, trying and failing to keep the nervousness out of her voice.

Alice looked surprised. "I forgot you were Muggle-born. Yeah, nasty little things. Thank Merlin, I don't usually have to go down to our vault. Each extra second with a goblin is a second that I don't want."

The huge bank gleamed in the morning sun. They walked through the golden doors. Lily hastily changed her yelp to a cough as she caught sight of a goblin. He was no doubt the weirdest and ugliest creature she had ever met. His body was the same size as her's and Alice's, but his great, domed head was twice as big. The long fingers and feet had enough dirt to make her neat freak of a sister faint. His pointed teeth came into view as he smiled unpleasantly at her. She grabbed her mother's hand and saw the truth in Alice's words immediately.

"You exchange Muggle money here." Mrs. Prewett led the girls and Lily's mother to a short goblin sitting behind a desk. Mr. Prewett withdrew a key and set off in a different direction. Lily shivered as the goblin leered at them, Mrs. Prewett took charge and cleared her throat. "We need to exchange Muggle money."

The goblin leaned over the desk. "How much?"

Lily's mother stepped forward. "150 pounds," she said in a strong voice. Lily admired the way her mother didn't flinch as the goblin glared at her a muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "Muggles".

Alice stood quietly beside Lily as the goblin took the money and handed them bag that rattled with coins. Lily was desperate to get away from the goblin. She certainly didn't like any of them.

At long last, the adults led them out of the cool bank and back into sunlight. She sighed in relief.

"Only fifteen minutes at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor. We're on a schedule," Mrs. Prewett said, leading them away towards the bright shop with a little wizard smiling cheerfully at them.

Lily wasn't sure if Alice heard her mother or not because she all but sprinted for the ice cream shop. Lily followed and was thankful that there were few people in the line although after thirty seconds, at least a dozen people lined up after them. Talk about luck.

"How nice to see you again, Ms. Prewett. It's been, what, six weeks since you were last here? I've been missing my favorite customer. I'm presuming the usual?" asked a man that Lily guessed was Florean Fortescue. Lily noticed that he addressed Alice first, which she seemed proud of, though Fortescue greeted Lily just as warmly as he did Alice.

"The same for both of us," said Alice, pointing at Lily and herself. The adults hung out in the back and ordered ice cream cones that Alice's and Lily's waffle cones dwarfed by a lot. It only took a wave of Florean Fortescue's wand to Summon the ice cream. Alice took both eagerly while Fortescue turned to a young couple about twenty. She handed Lily her cone one they were away from the counter.

"So, when did you learn about wizards?" Alice asked while they both slurped their chocolate-and-mint ice cream happily. Their parents were sitting at the next table, talking about Merlin knew what.

"My friend told me several years ago."

"Who's your friend? In the name of Merlin's pointed hat..." said Alice as a large chunk of her ice cream fell to the ground and quickly melted in the August heat. Lily had always assumed that witches and wizards had many of the same sayings as Muggles, but she shouldn't have been surprised that it was different like so many other things. Lily made a note to not use Muggle sayings in Hogwarts; it might just end up confusing pure-bloods like Alice.

"Severus Snape," Lily answered. She looked at Alice, hoping to see a sign of recognition. To her disappointment there was none. "So, is all your family magic?"

Alice nodded. "All of them. It sucks when you have to choose which team to support during a Quidditch game. What about you?"

Lily shook her head. "My family's Muggle all the way. I hope I'm not too far behind when I get to school."

"You won't be. Lots of people come from wizard families, and they still don't know anything, including me. Do you have any idea what House you'll be in?"

Shaking her head, she said, "I don't know exactly what their differences are. Severus says I should be in Slytherin. That's the House he wants to be in." Lily knew at once she had said something wrong because Alice nearly choked on her ice cream.

She stared disbelievingly at Lily. "How much does your friend know about Hogwarts?"

Lily was slightly offended. Alice didn't even know Severus. "What's wrong with wanting to be in a House before you get there?"

Alice looked like she was trying to find the right thing to say. "Well, it's just that most Slytherins…don't like Muggle-borns..." Alice trailed off, watching Lily carefully.

"But we're all witches and wizards. Why should they like me less?"

Alice looked down uncomfortably. "Did Snape ever tell you about the prejudices a lot of pure-bloods and a few half-bloods have about Muggle-borns and Muggles?"

"You're pure-blood. I don't see any differences between you and me," Lily pointed out, wondering what Alice was talking about.

Alice suddenly shot her head up with a defiant expression of her face. "I'm one of the few pure-bloods who think that way. Most of the others call people like me and my family blood -traitors because we treat Muggles and Muggle-borns the same way. Most of the Slytherins are prejudice against people like you. That's why you don't want to be in Slytherin. That's why I was wondering how much your friend knows about the Wizarding World."

Lily was taken aback. She not expecting sweet Alice to suddenly start ranting about her friend's favorite house. She said the first subject changer she could think of. "What about the other houses? What do they do?" She was wary of how much of the truth Alice was telling her. Severus was her friend and wanted to be in Slytherin. They couldn't be that bad.

Alice's voice softened, and she said, "Godric Gryffindor was known as the champion of Muggle-borns in his time, so it is extremely rare to find Muggle-born haters in that house. Gryffindor House is known for bravery and chivalry. It's good for when a girl needs help carrying a lot of stuff."- Alice laughed- "People say Hufflepuff is just a bunch of duffers, but that's because Hufflepuff isn't as picky. They favor loyalty and friendship. Ravenclaw is the smart house."

"Are you girl's going to sit there talking, or are you going to get your things?" Their parents had stood up.

"You girls can go look at the robes." Lily's mother handed her some gold coins which she put in her coat pocket. "Meet at Flourish and Blotts in thirty minutes." It seemed that Lily's mother had found two new best friends if she was willing to split their group.

Lily and Alice nodded and then jogged quickly to Madame Malkin's Robes for All Occasions.

The tiny store had a beautiful display of royal blue robes with gold stars in the window. The bell tinkered as Lily and Alice entered the store.

"Mum, please!"

Lily saw a rather thick blond boy with a scrunched face beg his mother. Lily's first impression was a blond gorilla. He was, without a doubt, unattractive. It appeared that his mother had given her son the unattractive genes.

Alice stiffened beside her. "Don't say anything. The Mulcibers are one of those families," she whispered in Lily's ear. Lily knew immediately what Alice meant. They were prejudice pure-bloods.

Looking at the two, Lily felt an uneasy feeling crawl along her back, sending shivers through her body, not unlike Manumali. There wasn't much she knew about defensive magic, and as much as Alice was familiar with the magical world, she doubted they could take on a qualified witch and a boy who looked like he could wrestle a bear; the only other people in the store were a father with his son standing farther away.

Mrs. Mulciber turned and sneered at them. "Alice Prewett. What is a little blood-traitor like you doing here. Disgracing the name of wizard just like your parents?"

Lily knew immediately she didn't like them. She opened her mouth to answer, but Alice elbowed her and answered, "I don't need to do much. You do that by yourself."

The boy next to her walked up and glared at them. "Don't you dare talk to my mother like that, Prewett."

The mother's hand twitched toward her wand. Lily saw this and couldn't stop herself. "Yes, that shows such bravery, hexing two unarmed eleven-year-olds."

Damn. Why couldn't she keep her mouth shut?

The boy glowered at Lily, but she didn't back down. Regardless of her mistake, Lily knew that the two couldn't do much with at least one hundred wizards and witches outside the shop.

"Nobody asked you. What's your surname anyway?"

Alice grabbed Lily's arm. "Her name's Lily." She glared fiercely at Mulciber.

"You might want to leave," a calm voice said. The man she had seen earlier was coming over. He was staring directly at Mrs. Mulciber. His face was calm, but his eyes blazed. The scrawny boy behind him was Lily's own age. Lily wondered vaguely if he had ever used a comb as his jet-black hair stuck up in every direction. The boy glanced at Lily and Alice, grinning. His eyes sparkled mischievously, leaving Lily to wonder if she had all of her possessions on her still.

"You're right. Too many blood-traitors here for my taste." The woman put a hand on her son's shoulder and turned to leave.

The man laughed a booming laugh. "I'll take that as a compliment," he said as the door swung shut with a final tinkle of a bell.

A kind woman hurried forward to Alice and Lily after Mulicer and his mother left. "Hogwarts, dears?" They nodded. "I just finished with James. It's his first year as well."

"Have a good year, Prewett?" the boy names James asked. Lily noticed that, like Mulciber, he addressed Alice by her surname, but unlike Mulciber, there was no trace of contempt.

"I would have, but you stuck a Dungbomb in the bathroom during the Ministry party at my house," Alice said, glaring at James.

"Ah, you know me too well, Prewett. I like to have fun."

Alice couldn't reply as Madame Malkin had just called Lily and Alice over.

"Mrs. Potter is a good friend of my mum, and Mr. Potter is a high ranking Auror. They usually go to my family's Ministry parties. Don't give James Stink Pellets unless you want your clothes full of them," Alice quickly explained as the door shut behind James and his father.

They left Madame Malkin's in high spirits with their brand new robes under their arm. Lily and Alice spent the rest of the day together. Mrs. Prewett had convinced Lily and her mother that owls were much more useful than cats or toads. So now Lily held a cage with a beautiful snowy owl, asleep with his head under his wing. Lily didn't like the smells of the apothecary. She definitely didn't want to see her ice cream reappear. Every once in a while, Alice would point out something or someone interesting, like a new invention. The display in Quality Quidditch Supplies was barely visible because of number of kids pressing their noses against the glass. Among the crowd was James, but he didn't notice them.

"They're just staring at the newest model of a broomstick," Alice explained. Lily noticed a hint of longing in her voice. Alice glanced at her and went slightly pink. "Yes, boys are not the only people to obsess with Quidditch."

Lily laughed. "Don't worry, I love football. Muggle sport," she added at Alice's confusion.

"We still have to get your wand." Lily's mother was ticking items off the list.

Lily felt her excitement mount swiftly. A magic wand, that was what she wanted more than anything.

"We'll meet up at the Leaky Cauldron later," Alice told her. "I already got my wand." She pulled out a long, shiny strip of wood. "Alder. Eight inches with dragon heartstring. Bendy." She caressed the wand in her hands, and looked up at Lily. "You'll have to show me yours."

"You'll want to go to Ollivander's. They're definitely the best." Mr. Prewett pointed to a shabby shop with a single wand lying on a faded red cloth.

Lily and her mother entered. All the walls were covered with row upon row of thin boxes.

"Good afternoon."

Lily jumped. An old man with silver hair appeared between two shelves. "Hello," Lily said nervously, "Er, I need a wand."

Lily glanced at her mother who was sitting in a rickety old chair, looking just as out of place as Lily felt, though Lily's mother handled it with much more dignity than Lily.

"Of course. You'll find that the wand chooses the wizard, or, in your case, witch. Getting your first wand is much more complicated than shopping for your schoolbooks."

Lily glanced at her mother, wondering if perhaps she had to perform some hocus-pocus before Ollivander deemed her fit to carry a wand. Lily's mind immediately went to the old books that she and Severus had spent hours pouring over in their shaded grove. She had never practiced any of them, and Severus had assured her that it was much more difficult to do spells without a wand. Was this perhaps a test? If you could perform wandless spells, then you could show enough magic to get a wand? Test difficult things before people make it easier? Like when Muggle math teachers forbid you to use a calculator, but in high school it was expected of you to carry a calculator.

"No two Ollivander wands are the same. Each element in the wand points to something about somebody's character. For example, oak symbolizes physical power and protection while mahogany is courage and nobility-"

"Alder?" asked Lily, curious as to what Alice's wand wood meant.

Mr. Ollivander smiled slightly. "I remember every wand I ever sold, Ms. Evans. I'm assuming that you are inquiring about young Ms. Prewett's wand; she was in here not too long ago. Alder is passion and determination. But for now, I need your measurements first," he said, pulling out a tape measure. "Which is your wand hand?"

"I'm right-handed?" she said as Mr. Ollivander left the measurer to itself. She said it like a question.

Mr. Ollivander withdrew a faded yellow box. "Holly and dragon heartstring. Ten inches. Unyielding." Lily had barely taken the wand before it was snatched from her hand. He chose another wand a little farther back. "Mahogany and phoenix feather. Seven and a half inches. Brittle." Again, Mr. Ollivander had let Lily hold it for less than a second. On and on the process went. The pile grew, but that didn't seem to deter Mr. Ollivander. He just got more excited the more wands Lily tried and failed to use.

"Ah, I think this would be a good match." He pulled out a light blue box and showed it to Lily. "Ten and a quarter inches with a single unicorn hair. Swishy, made of willow. Excellent for charm work."

Inside was a lightly colored wand with beautiful lilies and leaves etched into a vine-like pattern that curled and twisted to the tip of the wand. The thicker portion of the wand served as a handle.

He handed Lily the wand, and a sudden warmth spread to her fingers when she took it. Red and gold sparks flew from the end. Lily smiled in her thrilling triumph while her mother beamed with pride.

"Bravo, bravo!"Mr. Ollivander clapped. "We have a winner!"

Lily and her mother had a supper at the Leaky Cauldron with Alice and her parents. Both of their mothers barely paid any attention to their food. Mrs. Prewett was telling Lily's mother about several recipes that many witches and wizards used. Lily's mother was particularly interested in Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans and the number of flavors. Mr. Prewett was also involved in the conversation but not as much as the mothers.

Alice and Lily were talking about Hogwarts.

"About half of my family have been in Ravenclaw. Both my mother and grandfather were in Gryffindor. I'm aiming to be in Gryffindor, but I bet my father would be prouder if I was in Ravenclaw. My Gran was in Hufflepuff, so I could be in any of the Houses."

Lily had been smart enough not to mention Severus and Slytherin again, so she settled on the possibilities of all Houses. "Does it usually run in families?"

Alice shook her head. "Usually, but not always. Andromeda Black is probably the most mild tempered Slytherin. All her family has been in Slytherin, but she's dating a Muggle-born in Hufflepuff. She would be better in a different House. But don't tell her family about her boyfriend. The Blacks are one of the most prejudice families out there."

Lily twirled her fork in her mashed potatoes. "I wish I knew which House I'll be in."

"Nobody knows until they get there. I'm betting Gryffindor for you. Anyone who is brave enough to stand up to the wife of a Death Eater at the age of eleven and not back down has certainly proved your bravery."

"Or stupid enough to." Lily added, and Alice laughed.

Alice was a lot different than Severus. He would still always be her first friend, but Alice could answer her questions with a lot more ease. Severus had never talked about the real feelings of some prejudice wizards. Lily was torn between wanting to be with Alice's House or with Severus in Slytherin.

"Time to leave, Lily." Her mother had just finished saying good-bye to Mrs. Prewett.

Alice hugged Lily good-bye. "See you at Hogwarts!"

Smiling, Lily grabbed her mother's arm and stepped into the green fire.