Lily sighed as she began to pack her trunk for her return to Hogwarts. She had new things to bring. A new sweater from Grandma Weasley, the book from Lola, which she had yet to look at, a handheld Talking Mirror from Teddy, a holder for all of her potions from Slughorn, a Falmouth Falcon shirt from Jace, and many other presents. Scorpius had sent her a pretty silver chain, which was now around her neck. The charm was a word in silver also. Princess.
The Scamanders had come over later Christmas day, and Lily had practically ran outside to help her grandpa with the bike. Anything to avoid Lysander. But she'd gotten a gift from both the twins. Lorcan had gotten her a pair of goggles for when she had to play Quidditch in harsh weather, and Lysander had gotten her a box of Chocolate Frogs. She'd been flattered, and thanked both of them. But then she'd rushed back out to the shed.
A knock sounded at her door as she began to close her trunk. "Who is it?" Lily asked.
The door opened behind her. "It's me," Harry announced as he stepped in. She heard the door close.
Lily turned her head back and gave him a half smile. "Hey, Daddy. How's your day off going?" she asked.
"It would be better if I saw more of my little girl," Harry said as he sat down at the edge of her bed.
Lily sighed as she pulled her trunk onto the floor. "Well, we go back to school in two days, so I thought I'd just pack up."
"It feels like I haven't seen you much at all the whole break. You're always up here," Harry commented.
"Well, I am quite fond of my room," she quipped.
"And not me?" her father joked.
Lily sighed again. She should probably get it over with. "Well, you wanted me to stop fighting with the boys. This is the best way," she muttered.
She heard him sigh. "Lily, you know I didn't want you to lock yourself in your room."
"I know. But this just happens to be my method of avoiding a fight," she replied.
"This fighting thing is getting very tiresome, Lily."
"Then talk to your sons, they're the ones that hated me before I could take off the Sorting Hat," Lily said with a scowl. She moved over to her desk and opened a drawer, trying to seem busy.
"They don't hate you," Harry said with a sigh.
"James threatened to attack me. Albus threatened me. James said he didn't have a sister, and said he'd rather Lysander go out with a Squib than me, and -,"
"Wait!" Harry interrupted. Lily slapped a hand over her mouth. "Why would James tell Lysander he'd rather he date a Squib than you?"
Lily began to feel her nerves vibrate, and she began to fidget. "Because he hates me!" she covered.
"Lily," Harry warned.
Lily turned and leaned against her desk, finally looking at him. "Because, I went as Lysander's date to Slughorn's party."
Harry scowled. "My thirteen-year-old daughter is going on dates?"
Lily closed her eyes and groaned. She didn't know what subject she wanted to avoid more. Her dating, or her and her brothers. "Dad, focus, please?" Dating seemed more dangerous.
Harry sighed. "All right, all right. But Albus told me you broke his nose, and that a friend of yours threw James into the lake."
"After Albus threatened me. And James and Albus took a group of friends to attack a friend of mine and were about to throw him into the lake. They beat the heck out of him!" Lily argued. "I'm not starting these fights, Dad! I'm just defending myself! And telling them to stay away from me isn't working!"
Harry sighed, and rubbed his temples. "Look, Lily, -,"
"No, Dad!" Lily interrupted. "I don't want to sit down and talk it out with them! I just want them to leave me alone! I never want to see them! I don't want to be friends with an arrogant jackass and his bellboy! I just want to be away from them!" Lily stopped ranting and pulled in a couple of deep breaths. It felt so good to finally let all of that out.
Harry was staring his daughter, looking as if he didn't know what to say. "Lily, . . ."
"Dad," Lily said, her voice much softer now, "I just want to be left alone. Please."
Harry stared at his daughter for a moment, before standing up. "We'll call you when dinner is ready," he murmured. Then he left the room.
Lily quickly moved to the door, and locked it. She pressed her back against the door and slid down to the floor. She pulled her knees closed to her chest and rested her head on them. Her heart and blood were pumping beneath her skin, and her nerves were tingling, sending shocks through her. She'd never yelled at her dad, but at the same time, she'd never been that mad at him. It was like he wasn't even putting any blame on the boys! A bit angrily, she stood up from the floor and moved over to her bed. Kneeling down, Lily reached under her bed and pulled out a small box. She placed if on the floor in front of her and opened it. It was a bunch of makeup that her Aunt Fleur had bought her over the past few Christmases. She never wore any of it, never seeing a reason to. Something she knew her dad liked. Lily closed the box and placed it on her bed. Then she opened her trunk and placed the box under everything else, keeping it nicely hidden. Then she moved over to her desk and pulled out a piece of paper, a quill and some ink.
"Lana,
Meet me in the Leaky Cauldron tomorrow at about noon. I've got an idea for a bit of fun against my dad, and I need your help.
Lily"
Lily didn't feel the need to put anything more. She knew Lana would come with just that written. Lily folded the paper and wrote Lana's name on the outside. Then she held it out to Regal, who was sitting in his cage.
"Take this to Lana, Regal," Lily murmured nicely. She moved to her window and pulled it open. Regal took off, flying out of her window.
******************
Lily smiled as she got dressed the next day. She put on a pair of jeans and a black shirt, and kept her hair down. She wore the chain Scorpius had gotten her, plus an old bracelet she'd gotten from her uncle George years ago. It was a simple white band with a Snitch charm attached to it. She grabbed her bag of money and put into her jacket pocket, which she slipped on afterwards. Then she left her room and scampered down the stairs. She could hear someone moving around in the kitchen, so she poked her head in to see her mother rummaging around in a cupboard.
"Mum," Lily ventured, "I'm going to go to the Leaky Cauldron and hang out with Lana. Ok?"
Ginny glanced back at her daughter. "Have you packed your things?"
Lily nodded. "Yeah. So, is it ok?"
She smiled. "Sure, sure. Go on and have fun."
"Thanks, Mum," Lily said quickly before running to the fireplace. It was a little past noon already, and she didn't want to make Lana wait. She quickly Flooed to the Leaky Cauldron, and scanned the room for Lana, finding her at the counter. Lily hurried to join her. "Hey, I'm glad you came!"
Lana smiled and pulled Lily into a half hug from her seat. "Of course I came. After your letter, how could I not?"
Lily laughed and sat on the stool next to her. "I thought you'd say that."
Lana grinned. "So, you want to rebel against your dad? What's the plan?"
Lily grinned as well. "Well, my dad has always been happy that I've stayed away from, quote, 'girl things', so I thought that maybe now would be the time I start to . . . indulge in those things."
"Well, what kind of girl things?" Lana questioned.
"Makeup, skirts and form fitting shirts, boys, anything stereotypical," Lily told her.
"So, you need my help with . . . ?" Lana inquired.
"Well, I'm not very good with makeup, and you probably have a better sense of style than I do," Lily replied.
"Actually, you have a great sense of style when it comes to yourself," Lana corrected. "But there are some colors that look good on you that you don't always wear. Do you mind short skirts?"
Lily sighed. "Normally, I would. Now? No, whatever it takes." She pulled the bag out of her pocket. "And thanks to this Christmas and my last birthday, I have the money for clothes."
Lana stood from the stool. "What are we waiting for?"
Lily smiled and stood up. "Where are we going?"
"Well, we're going to change your money to muggle money, and then we're going to go to a few muggle shops in London. They have some great clothes for this kind of plan," Lana explained.
************************
"So, I think that we need to do a change of style," Lana said as she pulled Lily down the streets to muggle London.
"I thought you said my style was good for me," Lily teased.
"You do. But since we're rebelling, I think that we need to do a change of style as well. I think that we need to go from sporty daddy's girl to . . . something different," Lana replied.
"Well, what are our options?" Lily asked. Then a thought struck her. "Well, if we're going to rebel, why not take in a rebel look?"
Lana grinned as she looked at Lily. "You mean like Mitch?"
"Exactly. The whole punk rock look," Lily said with a grin of her own. "What do you think?"
"I think that it is perfect! And I think you could really pull of a punk look," Lana assured. She stopped, and then pulled Lily into a store. "Come on."
An hour later, Lily had three bags full of new clothes, a new pair of shoes, and accessories. But there was still more to be done.
"Come on, Lil," Lana told her as she pulled her into a different kind of store.
Lily looked around. Different designs for tattoos were posted all around the walls, and there were counters holding different kind of jewelry, earrings, lip rings, everything. "So, what are we getting?"
"Lil, you don't even have your ears pierced. Look at how many Mitch has," Lana pointed out.
"Don't places like this usually require a parent though?" Lily thought.
Lana grinned. "Not if you know the right person's price." She pulled Lily to the front counter, where a middle-aged man stood. "Hey, remember me?" Lana asked him.
The man looked at the two girls, mainly at Lana. His brows were knit in concentration. "Aren't you a friend of Mitch's?" he asked. His voice was gruff, like he had to cough.
Lana nodded. "Yeah. You did my ears, remember?"
The man nodded. "Yeah, I do. What do you want done now?" he asked.
"Actually, my friend is the one you're working on," Lana corrected. She looked at Lily. "So, both ears, obviously, but do you want to do your lip, or anything else?"
Lily gulped, her insides shaking a little. "Let's just stick with ears for now."
Lana pushed back Lily's hair. "Ok, so a stud for both ears, and two thin hoops for the tops of her ears," she told the guy.
The guy sighed. "All right, go sit in that chair while I get the stuff."
Lana pulled Lily to the chair and had her sit down. Lily felt her nerves fluttering again. "Lana, are you sure this is a good idea?"
Lana shrugged. "Well, we could do it ourselves, but that could be more painful, and we could screw it up. This guy knows what he's doing."
The man walked over, and sat on a smaller chair next to Lily. "All right, you know the cost, right?"
Lana nodded. "Here, Lil, hand me your bag. I'll get it out."
Lily pulled out the bag and handed it to Lana, who then disappeared from sight. The man looked at Lily. "All right, now this will sting, but I want you to trust me when I say that it won't last long," he assured.
Lily nodded. "Just do it."
A sting shot through her ear, and Lily held tightly onto the arms of the chair. "Ok, worst is over for that one. Let's just get the stud in," he muttered. Lily could feel an odd sensation as he placed the stud into the new hole in her ear. "Now, the next two." Two more quick stings and odd sensations, and it was over. "Ok, other ear, now."
Lily bit the inside of her cheek as he did her other ear, but found that you got used to the feeling, and the pain was nothing compared to what she'd had before. Soon she was looking at her ears in a mirror. There was a sparkling stud in both of her ears, each silver, and two thin hoops that seemed to circle around the tops of her ears. One green, the other a shiny silver.
"That look good?" the man asked.
"Looks perfect to me," Lana said as she handed Lily her bag back.
Lily put it back into her pocket. "I like it!" she said with a bit of a laugh. Her father would probably hate it, but despite that, Lily liked the look. It was . . . cool!
"Well, if there's ever anything else, you know where to find me," the guy mumbled before walking back to the counter.
Lily hopped off the chair. "Now what?" she asked. After seeing how her ears look, and after thinking of how much her dad would hate it, she was giddy.
Lana smiled. "We're going to go back to my house, and I'll help you with your lack of knowledge concerning makeup. Come on!"
Lily glanced at all the different tattoo designs, finding them very interesting now. "You know, some of these are pretty cool," she mentioned.
Lana looked at them as well. "You want one?"
Lily thought for a moment, but then shook her head. "Nah. Let's do this one step at a time."
Lana laughed. "All right. Then let's go."
********************
It was a little after dark when Lily finally Flooed back home, bags in hand. Lana had taken a lot of time into teaching Lily how to do her own makeup, and then they tried different colors and looks, trying to find the best one. Then they wiped it all off, and made sure that her hair covered her ears. Lily didn't want her parents to know just yet what she'd done. She wanted to wait until she was more comfortable with the new look. She'd show it off to them once the school year ended.
Lily could hear voices in the kitchen, her mother and father's, but her brothers' voices were absent. But when she focused, she could hear footsteps upstairs. So she hurried past the kitchen door in the hall, and almost ran up the stairs. She quickly went into her room and locked the door. Then she opened her trunk, and began to take out the clothes in the bags. She had a few denim skirts and some more frilly ones, some black leggings and tights, fishnet stockings, a studded belt, a few black cutout shoulder tops, deep green tees that were very form-fitting, a studded bracelet of her own, and a leather jacket that seemed to fit her like a glove. It was her favorite of all her new clothes. She put them all in her trunk, and closed it. Then she dropped to her bed.
She couldn't wait until the end of the year now!
*********************
"Be good, Lily!" Ginny called out as Lily got onto the train. She gave one more wave before going to find a compartment. The rest of the previous night had been a quiet one. Teddy came to dinner, and Victoire went to hang out with her brother and sister. Lily was able to hide her ears, and both Albus and James were oddly quiet.
"Hey, Princess!" Lily turned her head to see Scorpius and Mitch sitting in the compartment she was standing next to.
Lily pulled her things in, and Scorpius and Mitch put it in the overhead compartment. Lily sat down and smiled at them. "How was Christmas for you two?"
"Ok," Mitch replied.
"Boring," Scorpius said with a sigh. But then he smirked. "But, I talked to Lana last night, and she told me about your rebellion. Can I see?" He motioned toward her ears.
Lily laughed and pushed her hair back. "Wow," Mitch murmured. "Did you go see Rick?"
Lily nodded. "Yeah, he was the guy that did yours."
"Excellent work," Mitch told her.
"I feel a bit left out," Scorpius joked.
"You should get a piercing," Mitch told him. "Can you imagine Lucius's face learning that you got a piercing by a muggle?"
Scorpius laughed. "That sounds perfect. Perhaps I should."
"I'd go with a lip piercing. What do you think, Lil?" Mitch asked.
"That or your tongue," Lily joked.
Scorpius shrugged as he sat down next to her. "Maybe I'll get both." He flung his arm around Lily's shoulders. "Anyways, I'm glad to see that you're wearing my gift."
Lily glanced down at the chain around her neck. "Oh, yeah. I love it," she told him with a smile.
"I'm glad. I love the bracelet by the way. I can't wait to test it out," he said with a laugh.
Mitch stood from his seat. "I'll see you two later. I've got to find Dom," he said with a grin.
"Later."
"Bye."
They watched as Mitch left the compartment, and then Scorpius stretched out his legs, resting his feet on the seat opposite him. Had he always been that tall? She glanced at the hand that was resting on her shoulder. His fingers trailed down her arm. Had his hand always made her shoulder look so small?
"Hey, Princess, you wanna do me a favor?" Scorpius asked.
Lily looked at him, her brow raised. "Depends. What is it?"
"Well, my parents plan on taking me on a family trip to one of the Malfoy houses near some beach, so I was wondering if you'd want to come," Scorpius asked.
"Isn't a family trip supposed to be just family?" Lily teased.
He chuckled. "Yeah, but my parents said that I could bring a friend to keep me from getting bored, so I thought that you would be the perfect person to bring along."
"I'm glad you think of me as a way to fend off your boredom," Lily mocked.
Scorpius just laughed again. "So, do you want to come?"
Lily sighed and shrugged her shoulders, amazed at the weight of his arm on her shoulder. Was he really that strong? "Sure. I'll send my mum a letter and ask her."
"And I will send a letter to my mum," Scorpius replied. "I know that she'll keep the news from Lucius. I'd rather it be a surprise for him."
Lily giggled. "Trying to send him into an early heart attack?"
Scorpius held a finger to his lips. "Shhh! That's a secret." Then he laughed. Lily felt her body flush lightly as she could feel the vibration of his chest against her arm.
"What a cruel guy," Lily mocked with a smile.
Scorpius smirked. "Hm. Perhaps I do take after Lucius then."
***************
"Are we almost there?" Jace groaned loudly, for the hundredth time. It was just Lily, Lola, and Jace in the compartment. Mitch never came back from seeing Dominique, Lars was sitting with some of the guys from the team, and Scorpius and Lana had to go out and patrol the train.
"It won't be long now," Lola assured. She still hadn't dyed her hair yet. She'd chosen blonde at the store, so that was what Lily had bought her. Apparently, she was waiting until the summer.
"It's been like . . . forever!" Jace complained.
"Eat this and shut up," Lily told him, throwing a Chocolate Frog onto his lap.
He opened it, but kept talking. Thankfully, he switched subjects. "So, can I ask you girls something?"
"Shoot," Lily sighed.
"If you must," Lola muttered.
"You think Izzy likes me?" he asked.
The girls looked at each other, then back at him. "Why? You like Izzy?" Lola questioned.
Jace shrugged. "Well, she's cool, and she's kinda pretty."
Lola rolled her eyes. "That'll win her heart," she scoffed.
Jace just sneered at her shortly, but then his face calmed. "I kind of like her, ok? I thought maybe I'd go for it."
Lily shrugged. "Well, she's never said anything about liking anybody. You might have a shot, though."
"I agree," Lola replied. "What have you got to lose?"
Being honest to herself, Lily liked that Jace was admitting to liking Izzy. It meant that he was moving his thoughts away from her. She didn't want anything to ruin their friendship.
The compartment door opened, and the three looked to see Bobby, Lola's younger brother, stepping in. "Hey," he greeted. Lily had never heard him talk before, so she was surprised that he had such a soft voice.
"Hey, little man," Jace greeted offhandedly.
"What's up, Bobby?" Lola asked, her face a little worried.
"Nothing. I was just wondering if I could sit with you guys?" he asked delicately.
"I thought you were sitting with your friends," Lola mentioned.
Bobby looked at the floor as she shrugged. "I just thought maybe I'd sit with you, if it was ok."
Lola glanced at the other two, but they only shrugged. "Yeah, sure. You can sit with us."
Bobby finally looked up, and he was smiling. "Thanks!"
Lola smiled. "By the way, Bobby, this is Lily," she introduced.
Lily smiled at him. She'd never really met him properly. "Hey, Bobby."
He blushed. "H-h-hi, Lily," he stuttered. Lily heard Jace snicker as he opened a box of Bertie Bott's. Bobby moved to sit next to him, across from Lily.
"So, how are you liking your first year, Bobby?" Lily asked politely.
He was still blushing. "It's a lot of fun. I really like Flying lessons."
"I liked my first one," Lily told him. "But once I'd made the Quidditch team, I didn't have to take them any more."
"So you really did make the team your first year?" he asked.
Lily nodded. "Yeah. It was a bit surprising."
"But we haven't lost a game since she joined," Jace told him.
Lily shrugged. "What can I say? I'm just awesome like that."
"I can't argue with that," Jace muttered.
*******************
"So, what's our strategy going to be against Ravenclaw?" Dante asked before sipping his butterbeer.
January had passed in a bit of a blur for Lily. She went through her classes, lessons with Slughorn, and Quidditch practices. Shw written her parents on going on a trip with the Malfoys, and she'd gotten a letter saying that they'd think about it. And she'd stopped getting notes from Lysander. She was a bit sad, but part of her was relieved that he gave up. Save himself the pain. James had gone back to normal, punishing and harassing any Slytherin he could. Now, near the end of January, Lily was sitting in the Three Broomsticks with the team, enjoying their visit to Hogsmeade.
Lana, who was sitting next to Dante, groaned. "I agreed to come along because you said you guys wouldn't talk Quidditch," she reminded.
"This won't be long," Dante assured. He looked toward Scorpius.
Scorpius sighed as he leaned back in his seat. "Well, I've been thinking a lot about that lately. I was thinking that we ought to take care of the captain. Scamander's pretty strong, and he's a great Beater. He almost took out Princess, so I'm sure that he could get close to taking out any of us."
"So you want me or Tanner to take him out?" Lars assumed.
"Pretty much. And try to take out the Keeper. And unless I say otherwise, let's keep this game clean. Make sure that those little Gryffindors keep their yaps shut," Scorpius muttered, taking a swig of his drink.
"You got a strategy planned out for me?" Lily asked.
"Ravenclaw's good. But not as good as they used to be. Hufflepuff creamed them during their game. And Mark Kimball has gotten a bit sloppy as a Seeker. And since his broom broke in the game against Hufflepuff, he's had to use a school one, so he's no where near as fast. I have no doubt that you'll beat him to it. So, once we've gotten a good enough lead, then go for it," Scorpius explained.
"Ok," Lily replied. She brought her own bottle to her lips for a drink. She set the now empty bottle down on the table. She stood from her seat. "Well, I told the others I would meet them at Honeydukes."
"All right, I'll take care of this," Scorpius told her, motioning toward her butterbeer.
Lily wanted to argue, that she could pay for her own drink, but she left it alone. She knew he'd keep insisting. "See you guys later. Good luck, Lana," she teased. She pulled her leather jacket on, and then stepped outside. She barely felt the cold, the chilly air touching only her face. Merlin, she loved this jacket! She'd chosen to wear a pair of tight, dark jeans, her studded belt, and a form fitting shirt that was a dark grey. She kept her makeup light, and pulled her hair up so that her ears were visible. The guys had all complimented her, and congratulated her rebellion.
"Hey, Lu! Looking good!"
Lily stopped walking, looking back to see Rex Derrick running to catch up to her. He stopped, and snow was clinging to his ash blonde hair. His cheeks were pink from the cold, and he was smiling.
Lily grinned. "Thanks, Rex. I'm glad you approve."
He chuckled. "How could I not? You look bangin'!"
Lily raised a brow. "What?"
He shrugged. "Another word for hot. But really, you look awesome. The whole punk look suits you," he complimented.
Lily blushed. What was it with boys calling her things like 'cute' 'pretty' and 'hot'? She was the same as she'd always been, just a new wardrobe. "Um . . . thanks," she mumbled. She started to walk again, but he followed.
"So, where are you heading to?" Rex asked.
"Honeydukes," Lily said with a sigh.
"Mind if I tag along for the walk? I'm up for something sweet," he replied.
She shrugged. "Sure. I'm meeting up with Jace and Lola."
"That's cool," he said casually.
The two walked in silence then, and Lily felt comfortable with it. She looked around her as they walked. Snow was falling lightly from the sky, giving the ground and surrounding buildings another good dusting of white. Kids were walking and running everywhere, enjoying themselves. It made Lily smile.
Soon, Honeydukes came into sight, and they stopped outside the store. Lily looked into the windows. She could see some of the sweets, and it made her mouth water.
"Hey, Lily, look sharp!"
Lily turned her head quickly to look at Rex, but when she did, she felt a pair of lips on hers. Her eyes snapped open wider as Rex kissed her. She felt hands on her waist, pulling her a little closer. She just froze, unsure of what to do. When Rex pulled away, Lily felt the warmth of his lips leave with him. She stared at him. He was just grinning at her, like he was waiting for her to say something.
"Do I have some sign that says 'Kiss Me' or something on my back?" Lily snapped in confusion.
Rex laughed loudly. "No. I just knew that I'd never get another chance to do that. And I try to kiss any pretty girl that I can. And you completely exceed the definition of pretty. As I said, you're bangin'," he told her.
Lily didn't know how to feel about his explanation. Should she be mad, or just ignore it. She chose the second option, and just walked inside the shop. She found Jace and Lola by one of the shelves, looking at different types of chocolate.
"Hey, guys. How's it going?" Lily asked as she stopped to stand next to them.
"Trying to figure out how many Chocolate Frogs to get," Jace told her.
Lily just smiled and shook her head. She looked at Lola, whose face looked a little sour. "Having the same problem, Lola?" Lily asked, her tone a little teasing.
Lola looked at her, her face still a bit angry. Then she turned on her heel and stomped away. Lily watched her go in surprise. She looked back at Jace. "What's up with her?"
Jace shrugged. "I have no idea. Earlier she was going on about not knowing if she wanted bubble gum or licorice wands."