59Lily Potter thanked the sweets lady and took her Chocolate Frog card. She stretched out across her seat in the compartment and opened it. Harry Potter.
"Ah I've got about 200 of Dad," she said tossing it to Hugo and popping the frog in her mouth.
"I got Taline the Terrifying," Hugo said, grinning. He had Taline already, but he knew Lily was missing her in her collection.
"What do you want?" Lily said sighing.
"Your Liquorice Wands look pretty good," he said.
She reluctantly chucked them over to him and he handed her the Taline card.
"I'm bored already," Hugo said, brushing his curls out of his face. He really was due for a haircut. "Should we go find Al and Rose?" he asked.
"Ok, why not."
They ventured out into the hallway and peeked into each compartment, looking for their older siblings, coming across James, Roxie and Dom, who were sitting with Jake Thomas as usual.
James welcomed them by flicking a new Weasley candy at Lily, which ended up sticking to her face and being very difficult to remove.
"Sorry, Lils, I'll tell Uncle George if he intended it to be impossibly sticky than it's perfect but otherwise, there are a few kinks to be worked out," James said.
Lily grumbled. Dom smiled at her and patted her on the shoulder. "Are you excited about first year?"
Everyone was always asking that. "Are you excited? Are you excited? What House you hoping for? What are your life plans?" I'm eleven, for Merlin's sake, duh I'm excited but if you keep pestering me about it I won't be anymore, just let me be.
"So excited, Dom!" Lily said with a sweet smile.
"Good, you'll have a great time, I know it," she said with a big grin.
Lily nodded. Dom was great, and one of her favorite cousins but she was just not in the mood for giddy small talk.
Hugo took that fall for her. "How's your family, Jake?" Hugo smiled amiably. He was always so darn polite, it usually made Lily look bad.
"They're good. Adam and Emily start school next year; they're dying to get to Hogwarts." Jake had twin siblings with whom Lily was pretty good friends.
Roxie lay asleep against Jake's shoulder, and Jake looked conflicted between uncomfortable and pleased about it. Lily had begun to sense something between the two of them, especially since she had seen them playing Quidditch over the summer. Roxie had got knocked off her broom and Jake had caught her all romantically and there was this simply electric moment, but everyone was always telling her she made things out of nothing. So what if I like a good happy ending and want my friends and family to be happy? I wanted Teddy and Victorie together forever, and look where they are now: engaged and happy as Nifflers in Gringotts.
A girl poked her head into the compartment and James immediately shooed Lily and Hugo away, ruffling his hair and making room for her.
"Nicole!" he said, his face lighting up and assuming the puppy-in-love face Lily recognized on Teddy and other besotted male family members.
"Relax, Potter. I'm just here because Miranda was too scared to approach Thomas herself." She turned towards him. "She thinks you've really grown up over the summer and wants to know if you want to go to the first Hogmeade with her." Nicole rolled her eyes.
Jake looked confused. "Miranda Earnest? …What makes her think I've grown up I haven't even-"
"She thinks you got hot, stupid!" Dom whispered quickly.
Jake perked up a little, grinning with swagger she recognized again from male family members. Lily wouldn't have been surprised if he had started flexing his now well-developed muscles and posing. But that would be difficult because Roxie was still dozing on him.
"Uh, tell her sure, I guess." Lily thought she caught him flash a guilty look down at Roxie, but perhaps it was her over zealous romantic imagination.
"And what are you doing first Hogsmeade, Nicole?" James asked, bursting with enthusiasm.
"None of your business, Potter."
"Does that mean you have a date?" James tensed and his face grew dark. He had pulled a prank on Nicole, a Ravenclaw in his year, within the first week of their first year and she had hated him ever since. It was only last year he decided he had fallen passionately in love with her and she was the only one for him. Nicole remained entirely uncharmed by him though, and he had moped about it to Lily over the summer. Until he realized he was confiding in his eleven year-old sister, and the heart to hearts abruptly ceased.
Nicole pursed her lips and tossed her light brown, enviable curls, sighing. "I've about had my fill of you today already, Potter," she said, rolling her eyes again.
"Oh I'll fill yo-"
"James! Your sister's still here!" Dom interrupted.
Lily and Hugo scurried away before James could get angry or embarrassed.
They continued on their quest. They said hello to various family members they met along the way: Lucy with her shiny prefect badge and Ravenclaw boyfriend and Molly celebrating her final year at Hogwarts with all the seventh years. They saw Peter Longbottom, who gave them both cheery hellos and directed them to where they might find Al and Rose.
They were in a compartment with their friend Andie, Frank Longbottom and his sister Elizabeth. Hugo smiled shyly at Elizabeth, whom he had carried a torch for forever. She was a Hufflepuff and a year above Lily and Hugo.
None of the Longbottom kids resembled one another. Peter had neat, blonde hair, blue eyes and was relatively tall. Frank's hair was long, brown and somewhat curly and there was a sprinkle of freckles on his face. Elizabeth had green eyes, curly, brown hair and Lily agreed with Hugo that she was the prettiest girl their age. Their youngest sister, Alice, had dirty blonde, curly hair and hazel eyes that were always twinkling with mischief.
Rose was sitting in the corner, twirling a bit of her hair. She beckoned Lily over to her.
"Have you seen Malfoy?" she spoke quietly.
"No, why? What's he done now?" Lily had only seen Scorpius Malfoy three times and it was always from afar at the platform. Rose pointed him out, acknowledging him as the "blonde bane of her existence". Beautiful also begins with a B… but I shouldn't mention to Rosie I think Malfoy's good looking. Besides, he's a pretty awful person, sounds like, so what does it matter?
"It's unbelievable! I was talking to Andie on the platform, heading towards the train and she was telling me about her brother's idea of a birthday gift. He had only gotten her a box of Bertie Bott's even though she pitched in on his new broom for his birthday. She said something like, 'Honestly, I know I deserve better! That's simply not good enough.' Then all of a sudden, Malfoy is there, and he wraps his arm around my waist and says, 'That's what I have to tell Weasley every time she begs me to go out with her." And he winks and whisks away! Can you imagine?"
Lily didn't really see the excitement in all of this, it just sounded like Malfoy being snotty as usual.
"He never talks to me ever unless it's to say something really cold and definitely never touches me, ever. And now he's cracking jokes and being all merry? …Lily, this is big! I want to know what got into him over the summer! And he looks so different, too! You know how his hair used to be combed back all slick like his father's? Well it's all shaved now! I never thought he would have it in him, maybe it's subtle defiance… And he's even taller, and get this: tanner than I am! He's the Malfoy, he's supposed to be pale!"
"Rose, why are you so upset?"
"Upset?" she said immediately cooling off and feigning nonchalance. "I'm not upset, I'm simply intrigued by his sudden behavior change. He's like a different person, it's strange…"
She seemed to be deep in thought, and Lily took it as an opportunity to turn to her brother, but he was in a heated Quidditch argument with Frank. She and Al didn't look much alike- she had inherited their mother's looks and he their father's (which Lily was grateful for- the messy, casual look may work for her brother's, but she liked to be put together thank you very much and her father's unruly locks simply wouldn't suit her). She had long, perfectly straight hair with tones of deep red and mahogany. Her eyes were the same brown of her mother's and she had the same button nose. She was built like her mother too- lean and short, not curvy and tall like Rose. But Rose cared very little of her appearance, currently she had her mass of auburn hair thrown back carelessly into a bun and was wearing no makeup or accessories despite the fact everyone in her year was beginning to do so.
Lily sighed and gazed out the window, dreaming of Hogwarts.
Neville paused before reading the next name. He smiled and read, "Potter, Lily!"
Lily took a big breath, bit her lip and smiled nervously. Neville gave her a quick pat on the back and before placing the Hat on her head.
"Ah, brave, idealistic, romantic, gutsy… you have all the makings of a Gryffindor. There is another side to you: ambitious, clever, perhaps a little sneaky?"
Uh, that's debatable. I mean, I don't know… I don't think it's a dominant part of me.
"You don't even want to entertain the idea of Slytherin?"
Well, I mean I don't want to go against where I'm meant to be… but no, I absolutely don't want to entertain the idea. She thought this firmly.
"A Potter/Weasley in Gryffindor. How creative." The Hat chuckled and announced Gryffindor.
Lily smiled brightly, feeling a bit of affection for the Hat. She wanted to thank him, but wasn't sure how to go about it, so she just hugged Neville instead.
She bolted to the table where her family awaited. Rose gave her a big hug, rambling on- something about being so proud and growing up so fast. Despite being one of the youngest in the family, Rose was very maternal and cared for everyone in a motherly way. Then Albus gave her a quick hug, James kissed her cheek, each of the Longbottoms gave her a pat on the back, Dom squeezed her hand from across the table, Roxie reached over for a high five from even farther down the table, Jake grinned and gave her a wave from down the other side of the table, Louis shouted a word of congrats from a bit farther down and across the table, Fred stood up gave her a big wave and thumbs up from way at the end of the table and Molly stood up on her chair at the very back of the table and recited a rather impressive (yet brief, due to the looks she was receiving from the teachers and Neville, who was still trying to conduct the Sorting) sonnet to Lily.
She giggled and blushed a little, secretly loving all the attention. But she composed herself and focused her attention on Hugo's sorting.