Chapter Text
Lily and Severus lay on the grassy park floor looking up at the clouds. Their hair, though Lily’s was significantly longer, spread around the crowns of their head, creating the effect of some kind of halo.
“You’re special Lily, like me.” Severus said “you’ll love Hogwarts”
Lily hummed agreement having heard about Hogwarts from Severus many times before. The dandelion she has picked hovered just above her outstretched hands. They could have laid there forever, the sun warming them just right and the faintest of breezes kept them from overheating. the very quiet drone of a car passing happened every so often, and the sound of children and adults on the playground a far walk away kept them from feeling totally isolated. It, to both children, was pure bliss. The soft thuds on the ground came closer.
“Lily!” high pitched screech yelled. Lily, at once, felt her hands, both open on her lap, being slapped with as much force as the girl, who now appeared above her, could muster. Taken by the wrists, was pulled up from her spot and pushed to the side.
“Stay away from us you freak,” Lilys older sister snarled and turned and pulled Lily along before Severus had any time to protest. The grip on Lily’s wrist was like iron, and she pulled her along with such determination Lily had no choice but to follow.
“I told you to stay away from that freak” hissed her sister, “he’s no good Lily, he’s not from the right sorts.”
“Theres nothing wrong with Sev. He’s my friend.” Lily protested.
“Severus is not your friend, he’s some sort of greasy gypsy who wants nothing more than to follow you around. It will do you good to stay away from freaks like him.” Her shrill voice seemed to grow higher.
Lily frowned “He is my friend, and he’s not a gypsy- “
“Why can’t you be normal?” her older sister cut off “Do you want to end up like the Snapes, all alone with no friends or family in their little shack? No, so be normal, what about your friends from school? Or ballet, they make perfectly acceptable company”
“But Sev is- “
“A weird little dirty homeschooled boy, who brings out the weirdness in you, Lily, no one will want to be you’re friend the way you’re going, you’ll be a freak too, and I won’t be surprised if you already are.”
Lily stared at the ground, tearing stinging in her eyes, and let out a sniff. Her sister, without even looking back, sighed.
“Don’t cry outside, Lily.” She said slightly more softly. “It’s not ladylike at all.”
~
“Why can’t you be normal? Do you want to end up like the Snapes, all alone with no friends or family in their little shack? No, so be normal, what about your friends from school? Or ballet, they make perfectly acceptable company” her voice snapped. Why Lily chose to hang around the Snape boy when the girls at school flocked to her like moths to a flame, their pretty hairstyles and braids bouncing as they took off to Lily.
“But Sev is- “
“A weird little dirty homeschooled boy, who brings out all the weirdness in you, Lily, no one will want to be you’re friend the way you’re going, you’ll be a freak too, and I won’t be surprised if you already are.” She didn’t really mean that, but it still rang true. There was a beat of silence before she heard the faintest of sniffs, and she felt a pang of guilt.
“Don’t cry outside, Lily.” She considered telling her that she really doing her a favour by getting rid of that Snape boy, but that’s perhaps not what Lily wanted to hear right now, however true it may be. So instead, she settled on, “It’s not ladylike at all.”
Lily left her in the front hallway and made her way up to her room.
The older sister, in all truth, knew Lily would never be normal. She was incapable. Because to all those who knew Lily Evans, the seemingly universal truth rang in everyone’s hearts.
The truth that Lily Evans certainly was perfect.
And, her older sister, the girl who was freakishly tall and unnaturally thin, face with a look of slight disgust, freakishly good hearing, her hair and features plain, if not slightly rodent like, it was true that, the other Evans girl, Petunia, was not, in the slightest way, at all, perfect.
Petunia Evans wasn’t even considered normal.