Upon reflection it would make a lot of sense for Lily to have thought about what it would mean for her to blast a speeding bullet with her fire. But then she was always someone who thought with her heart first. Especially when it came to people she cared about. So when the bullet exploded, Lily's first thought was to absorb all the energy, it was after all, just another form of her power.
But whether it was because she was too tired, or because her leg was reaching it's limit, or the shock of seeing George and the look of pure raw desire he stared at her with, the energy overwhelmed her.
Futile attempts to concentrate were interrupted by the explosion throwing her across the field.
***
Emilia smiles as she approaches her daughter. She was always proud of the woman she was growing up to be, but in this moment, a motherly instinct took over. Kneeling down, she strokes her hair, smiling.
Lily's eyes flutter open at the touch. Staring at her surrounding, she sits up suddenly.
"Easy does it," Emilia says as she helps steady her. Lily's eyes widen for a second, as she turns to face her mother. Backing away from her touch, she frowns. This isn't right. This can't be right.
"Wh- where am I?" Lily stutters as she stares at her clothes. She was at the beach, with Thomas and George? Thomas fired a gun at her...
"I'm dead?" Lily asks realisation dawning on her in horror. "No, no, no, no, no - I can't be dead. I can't be dead." She wails standing up and surveying the surroundings. There must be a way out. There has to be. Oddly it looked familiar, but at the same time, completely alien.
"Yes and no," Emilia says with a small smile. Lily turns to stare at her, flabbergasted. "I believe your friends are attempting to revive you."
The information sinks into Lily slowly. George is attempting to save her. Her hand shoots to her mouth as her lips tingle. Once or twice in a Muggle movie there were miracles performed where they were able to restart a heart. Would it work with witches too?
"Is it working?" Lily asks shortly. Surely if it wasn't working, it would suddenly appear much lighter? Or is that just a Muggle saying?
"That, my dear, is up to you." Emilia says gently, taking a seat on a sofa.
Lily regards the woman in front of her. Dark hair falls in curls that frame her face. Brown eyes and a small nose, it was like looking in a reflection. Small differences like high cheekbones and a mischievous glint in her eyes, but for the most part, Lily took comfort in seeing her.
"You're my mother. Emilia Fowler," Lily states as Emilia smiles silently. She was, after all, simply confirming a fact. "But then, how are you here?"
"I had to come see you. Your father will be coming soon, he just got caught up with Thom- someone else." Emilia states with a nervous glance at her daughter. If there was one thing she definitely inherited from her, it was the unpredictable nature of her reactions.
"Father? You mean Ben?" Lily asks, folding her arms. A part of her was elated at the thought of seeing him again, but another part can't help but be angry. So many half truths, stolen memories, a lot of it surrounding her early childhood with Ben. How would she be able to face him again?
"Tsk," Emilia shakes her head disapprovingly. "Biologically connected or not, that man is as much of a father to you as I am your mother, if not more."
Stunned at her response, Lily turns around expecting him to appear, but the area seems deserted.
"Thomas is dead." She states again coming to the only logical conclusion of why her father would delay coming to see her, especially given that she did not have much time here. Emilia nods her head with a grin.
"Yeah, it was quite a shock for him to see Ben again," Emilia says with an increasing amount of appreciation for her daughter's acuteness to situations. "Come, sit."
Lily hesitates for a second, but then sits next to her mother. It was here that it dawned on her that she was actually speaking to her mother. A figure she had created with her imagination with stories and rumours, a persona she looked to whenever she needed to feel strong.
"You're so young; you look like you're my age." Lily marvels as Emilia cocks up an eyebrow with a smirk.
"You flatter me, honestly you should give your dad some tips." Emilia says with a flick of her hair.
"Which one?" Lily asks coyly causing Emilia to grin more broadly. They sit in silence for a few moments. For all the burning questions Lily had for her mother, she felt perfectly content to just be in her company. But she also knew that her time here was only temporary. It had to be.
"Tell me the truth, please?" Lily asks again in a small voice feeling like a young child. Emilia looks uncomfortable for the first time as she shifts in her seat.
"I was in love with a man who was obsessed with the wrong girl. It led me to make a lot of mistakes, but you were not one of them." Emilia says fiercely and to Lily's surprise, she blinks away tears as she pushes some of her hair away from her face. The strong Emilia Fowler was capable of breaking down and because of her guardian? The thought does not sit well with Lily as she balls her hands into small fists.
"Ben helped me the only way he could. We got married so that Voldemort would never suspect me as the woman in the prophecy. But to keep you safe, we vowed never to let anyone know the truth."
"But why? What was so important that you had to keep it a secret?"
"The Ditio Diamond, the one you've been searching fo-"
"You watch over me?" Lily interrupts, raising an eyebrow in surprise.
"Of course we do. Every time you've laughed, every tear, every boy you've fallen for," Emilia says with a pointed look. "We're always here Lily, we always will be." The amount of love in her mother's eyes was almost too much for the young daughter to bear. Her whole life she was left in the dark about her true origins, always feeling as if there was a whole piece of her missing. Yet when presented with it, it does not provide her any comfort. The opposite is true.
"Tell me about the diamond," Lily says hastily, rubbing her palms on her trousers. It was too weird to think about her dead parents watching over her in the real world. Parents who she lost too long ago, who don't even have the luxury of an 100% reliable memory.
"Why do you do that?" Emilia asks suddenly, narrowing her eyes at her daughter's reaction. "Why do you push away people who care about you?"
Lily sits in silence as she blinks away tears.
"At first I thought it was just a rebellious phase of going against Sev, which I whole-heartedly encourage. But then you did it to Ginny Weasley, Fred Weasley, Draco Malfoy, that old lady and her grandson... George Weasley." Emilia continues as she places her hands over Lily's, stopping them in their place.
"Why?" She asks again as she kneels, searching Lily's eyes for an answer that has haunted her whilst watching her grow up.
"I can't," Lily whispers in a shaky voice.
"Hey," Emilia says sharply, lifting up her chin gently. "Of course you can. Dead mothers are great secret keepers." She whispers, wiping away a stray tear. Lily smiles despite it all causing Emilia to smile too, but the concern does not leave her eyes.
"They end up leaving me one way or another. Be- my father did. It was my fault too," Lily says in an inaudible voice.
"That was not your fault, you listen to me okay?" Emilia says fiercely as she forces her daughter to meet her eyes once more. "Hey, listen to me. That was not your fault. Your father is a brilliant man. He made a choice. No one forced him to make that choice but he made it. He made it out of love so don't you dare disrespect his choice by pushing your memories of him away." Emilia says sternly, her voice wobbling slightly. Lily's eyes snap up to meet that of her mother's and she realises that though outwardly, she may look young, Emilia Fowler has experienced more than others do in their whole lifetime.
"What about the others?"
"I had to erase my memories; I wanted to protect them."
"Protect them? Or protect yourself?" Emilia asks softly with a sad smile. "What about George?"
Lily sniffs at his name as she looks up and exhales loudly. Thinking about George brings about mixed emotions. He went looking for her when she went missing. Merlin knows what trouble he went through to do that. But all the same he came, just like a part of her knew he would.
"He's quite the charmer, isn't he?" Emilia raises an eyebrow, changing her tactics, causing her daughter to scoff. If there was one talent George Weasley had perfected, it was his ability to make her smile. Even when they weren't together, even when she broke his heart and especially after he broke hers.
"He doesn't trust me and to be honest I don't blame him," Lily mumbles but a part of her can't help but feel warm at her mother's approval.
"So earn his trust. You've done it before."
"This time is differen-"
"Yeah, yeah that's what they all say."
It's takes everything for Lily to keep a straight face with the look she got from Emilia. A wink from her is all it takes for her to chuckle.
"Tell me about the diamond," Lily whispers causing the grin on Emilia's face to falter slightly.
"The diamond was never something physical. It's a special type of power that can be found right here," Emilia explains placing her hand on Lily's chest causing her eyes to widen in surprise.
"I had a pretty lonely life, I mean I had Ben and obviously there was your other dad, but I never really knew what it meant to be loved." Emilia continues as she hugs her knees to her chest. "Your nan and grandpa passed away when I was young, pretty gruesome too, I'll spare you the details. I grew up alone in foster care. No one really wanted to know me and then I met Ben. Through him I met your dad, but I don't know. Even with them, I still felt a little..."
"Out of place?" Lily offers finding it eery how similar their childhood sound. Except, in her case, she could always rely on Snape. A luxury her mother did not have. Suddenly Lily felt extremely uncomfortable with the idea of leaving her guardian behind without talking things through with him. However angry she might be with him for keeping such a huge secret from her and manipulating her, he was after all the only person that was always there.
"So when you were born, a rare magic occurred. I knew I was dying, I could feel myself drifting, but I wanted to make sure you were okay. I wanted to make sure you never had to feel alone like I did."
"You have the power of the diamond, but Ben Vowed that you'd never feel the need to use it."
"But what about my fire powers? They destroy the diamond? So do they destro- how does it wor.." Lily asks unsure if she really wants the answers to her questions. The motives behind her guardian's questionable actions becoming clearer, making the pit in her stomach grow.
"That was the reason your dad did not want you to know the truth. Everything has to be in balance, so if you have the power to bend the will of a person, you must also be able to destroy it. Eradicate it. Burn it."
"So I am cursed." Lily shifts uncomfortably as she stares at her palms. If her nightmare potion was also a way to control her powers then it would make sense for Snape to ensure she couldn't access them again. Especially when she's been so obsessed with finding the diamond. A task that has also conveniently meant she was out of the Dark Lord's grasps, hiding right under his non-existent nose.
Emilia scoffs as she shakes her head. "You are not cursed. You are honest and kind and beautiful. But you are not cursed. Okay?"
Lily regards her mother for a second. The lonely woman who sought love in the wrong places. Yet here she was, smiling, despite her cruel fate. Meanwhile it seems Lily can't help herself when it comes to pushing away the many people who care about her. Blinking away tears at her insensitivity with such a luxury, she silently vows to never take the people in her life for granted again.
"Oh look whose finally arrived," Emilia gets up, holding out a hand for Lily. But Lily's eyes are focused on the man who descends down the staircase. His hair is as wild as she remembered, his chin decorated with an attempt at a stubble, looking younger, happier than any of her memories would suggest.
Their eyes lock.
Lily's legs move before her mind has time to register what was happening. Ben laughs as he holds out his arms for her. She wraps her own arms around her father, smiling through her tears, laughing into his shoulder. Pulling him closer, she shuts her eyes for a moment.
"Lily Fowler, my baby girl, all grown up." Ben says in a low voice, his own eyes brimming with tears.
Pulling away slightly, Lily smiles and hugs him again. Her mother was right, biologically connected or not, this man was her father.
"Thank you," she whispers into his ear.
Emilia smiles at her husband's reaction to whatever her daughter whispered into his ear. His eyes sparkle with tears. The sight of the two of them reconciling was enough for any mother to feel complete, even if it wasn't meant to last. Ben strokes Lily's hair, shutting his eyes briefly as he tries to hold onto this memory. Merlin knows when the next time will be, but he sure hoped it would be after a long long fulfilled life.
"Took your time," Emilia says nudging her husband, snapping him out of his thoughts. Letting go of Lily, but still holding onto her hand, Ben glances up the staircase sheepishly.
"He didn't want to come- too ashamed," Ben says in a low voice, with an apologetic look.
"Ben!" Another voice calls from the top of the stairs, causing Lily's heart to stop.
"Th-Thomas?" She gasps as the man who descends down the stairs looks nothing like the man she spent the last couple of hours with. His blonde hair was combed to the side, blue eyes twinkling at Lily as he takes Ben's free hand.
"The enchantment broke once I died. I think the explosion did it," Thomas says with a nervous glance at Lily. But Lily breaks into another smile and wraps her arms around her father's soulmate.
"I'm so glad," she whispers in his ear. "I'm so happy you're all together," she pulls away and grins at them all. Seeing them all happy reminds her of how she felt being with George. A sense of belonging.
"You could stay with us. It's not all like this," Emilia offers as she takes Lily's hand. For a second she considers it. A sharp pain in her chest makes her stop in her tracks. But then it vanishes.
"Where are we?" Ben asks looking around, unaware of the pain his daughter just felt. They turn to face Lily and in that moment the answer comes to her.
"Gryffindor Common Room," she says in a slow voice, and sure enough the features of the common room become more prominent. Why they would be here is a mystery, but a nagging voice in the back of Lily's head reminds her that this is where she met George for the first time. Not on the Hogwarts Express, but here in the common room in her first year. Smiling to herself, she coughs violently.
"Really? Is that what it looks like?" Emilia asks surprised, as she takes in the room. "So much more warmer than our one."
The pain returns causing Lily to sit down in one of the sofas. All three of them turn to face the fire as it turns green.
"Well I suppose our time is up," Ben says as he places a light kiss on Lily's cheek.
"Wh-what do y-you mean? Wh-where are y-you g-going?" Lily stutters as Emilia steps into the fire with Thomas.
"We'll see you again, and remember," she says pointing to her own chest with a smile. "We're always with you."
"I thought I h-had a ch-choice," Lily splutters as another pound on her chest knocks the wind out of her.
"Oh you do honey," Ben whispers as he gives her hand a squeeze. "I think you just made it."
Turning away from his daughter, he takes Thomas' outreaching hand and steps into the fire. "Bury me next to Ben okay? He's buried in the garden, back at my house. Just bury me with him please." Thomas calls out to Lily who can just about make out his request.
"Plea-please I don't un-understand," Lily stammers as she clutches her chest.
"DON'T YOU DARE DO THIS TO ME, NOT AFTER EVERYTHING!"
"You keep that one safe okay? He's got his heart in the right place," Ben calls from the fire but his voice already seems like it's muffled. Another shove against her chest causes her to black out.
"LILY ARGENT FOWLER- YOU WAKE UP RIGHT THIS MOMENT!"
***
Fred shoves his brother aside; he frantically feels Lily's wrist for a pulse. They've already lost Thomas, to lose Lily as well would be... unthinkable.
"Shut up I can't hear anything," Fred growls, as George turns away running his fingers through his hair. Could that be a-? Unable to contain his excitement, Fred draws out his wand and points it at Lily's head.
"Renervate."
For a second nothing happens, but then Lily coughs violently as she turns to the side. Fred exhales shakily, leaning back against the tree, but as her eyes open and meet his, he lightly shoves her on her shoulder.
"Don't you dare do that again," Fred scowls at her. Lily blinks in the sunlight, a sharp pain in her ribs demanding her attention. Wincing, her eyes travel to her opposite side and meet the familiar brown eyes of George Weasley. He watches her almost holding his breath in anticipation.
"Hi?" She croaks causing George to shake his head at her, the expression on his face unreadable. His gaze becomes more intense as he closes the gap between them and presses his forehead against hers.
"You scared me half to death," he whispers shakily, closing his eyes briefly. Lily reaches up, snaking her arms around his neck, smiling to herself.
"You came." She whispers back, blinking away tears.
"Sorry for being late, had to pop in to see your fa- guardian." George says, his eyes widening at his near-slip. Lily shakes her head at him as she leans away, smiling at Fred. He mimics her stance and soon they're all laughing about the absolutely insane evening that they just experienced.
A heap in the distant sobers Lily as she narrows her eyes. George follows her eyes and the grin fades immediately as he exchanges a nervous glance with his brother.
"Thomas." Lily says, pushing herself off the ground, wincing at the pain in her ribs. To her surprise the wound on her leg seems partially healed, with a weird smelling paste covering it.
"Sorry, I didn't have all of Mum's supplies," Fred explains hastily but Lily grabs his arm and squeezes it. His ears redden at her silent portrayal of gratitude.
"We have to bury him. Next to my father's grave," Lily says as her eyes focus on the cottage in the distance.
"Lily I'm sorry it was my fault. I was trying to get to you and the blast hit him," George rambles but stops as Lily walks past him, almost in a daze. She approaches the man who was tortured in a mental prison for the better part of a decade. Despite it, the one thing that he managed to hold onto was his love for her father, a notion that makes Lily smile sadly.
Closing his vacant eyes, she gently presses a kiss on his forehead.
"I'm sorry I took so long," she whispers knowing that the dead man cannot hear her. But somewhere she was betting on both her father and Thomas to be watching this moment. "Be free Tom; be happy."
If either George or Fred found the moment to be strange, they kept their opinions to themselves. Although Fred was seriously considering the fact that Lily had somehow developed the ability to resurrect dead people. After watching her access her powers when they were robbed from her, nothing would really surprise him when it came to that girl.
"Can you help me take him to the cottage? My father is buried there," Lily says without moving her gaze from the man.
"Of course." Fred says as he levitates the man, not needing to know how she knew this information or why she wanted to bury him there.
George holds out a hand for Lily who takes it gratefully, wincing at the pain in her chest. There were definitely some broken bones that needed mending, a skill she prayed Fred picked up on his mother's crash course in dealing with wounds and injuries. George glances at Lily, almost asking a silent question. Remembering her mother's words, Lily smiles to herself and nods. He gently picks her up as she puts an arm around his neck.
As she plays with his hair stands that have grown way too long, a strange sense of peace passes over her, even though the real fight was far from over. There was still her dad to confront, an impending war and a quick switcheroo of sides before the Dark Lord notices. But for this moment, for right now, Lily felt at peace. The knowledge that her parents were watching over her, that her mother especially, never wavered from her side no matter what stupid decision she made, was enough. For this moment it was more than enough.
Arriving at the cottage, Lily smiles grimly as memories of visiting as a child come flashing back. Slowly standing on her own feet, but still using the support of George's arm, she walks towards the picturesque fence. In another life, this would have been her home. She'd have spent her childhood playing in the sand and sea to come home to a dysfunctioning, but normal, family.
Going in through the front door, the feeling grows as she regards the little reception area. But she shakes her head and pushes through to the garden in the back. It doesn't take her long to find her father's grave, well maintained over the years.
"Here, Thomas should be buried here," she whispers, not trusting her voice. George squeezes her shoulder as he sets to work in preparing the grave. Fred lays Thomas' body down on the side as he regards Lily.
"Pretty strange place for a grave," Fred comments in a light tone.
"They wanted to be together," Lily replies in a matter-of-factly manner, her eyes trained on George. He uses magic so it's not long before a perfect little space is dug out next to Ben's grave.
"You don't have to do this right this moment," Fred says after it was clear Lily was not going to offer anymore information on how she knew her dead father's request.
"I know."
***
At the end of a long, seemingly never-ending day, Lily felt like she was truly drained. Curled up on the sofa with a blanket, she can't help but think of the way her life has panned out. Looking back now, it makes sense why she was always quick to assume the worst case scenario. Whether it be that she was supposedly cursed, or that she lost people, there was a common theme in each scenario. Her subconscious was trying to protect her from feeling hopelessly alone. She was always attempting to fight the power of the diamond without realising it.
"Hey, you okay?" George asks softly, handing her a mug of steaming hot chocolate.
"Yeah," Lily says, her voice cracking. "I mean, yes, of course I am." She says clearing her throat. George regards her for a second, before tapping her leg to give him some room. With a smile, she lifts her leg allowing him to take a seat next to her. He gently rests her legs on his laps, careful of her partially healed wound. Wrapping his arm around her, he pulls her closer, resting his cheek against the top of her head.
"I met them." Lily says after a pause. "I met my mum, Tom... my father."
Though she couldn't see his reaction, the grip on her arm tightens.
"Turns out this whole time, we were looking for me," Lily mutters, blinking away the tears.
"From my experience, it can be a pretty difficult task," George says slowly, causing Lily to scoff.
"Shut up."
George smiles as he kisses the top of Lily's head gently.
"You scared me half to death," he mutters in a small voice. "It was one thing to watch Thomas scream at you, but then you jus- you too-" George falters, inhaling deeply. Lily leans away so that she could look into his eyes, but they're trained on the ground.
"You took the blast. I saw you. I watched you make that decision. You just took it and you didn't even think about m- wha-" George's voice thickens as he fails to finish his sentence for the second time. But he did not need to clarify his meaning, Lily understood perfectly.
"Do you remember when we first met?" Lily asks in a soft voice. George burrows his eyebrows at her question and random change in subject. "It was my first night at Hogwarts. I had been sorted into Gryffindor and that guy was picking on me- saying I had no right to be in that house."
"You told him that I was just as much a Gryffindor as you were," Lily continues as realisation dawns on George.
"Then you told me you didn't need anyone to fight your battles. Well more like yelled at me. I was scared to even say Good Morning to you after that," George says remembering with a smile.
"That's cause I didn't," Lily smirks.
"No, you didn't," George agrees, meeting her eyes. "What made you think of that?"
Lily smiles, shaking her head at him with a coy tap of his nose. To think after that day neither of them of spoke to each other, but she always knew him as the boy who decided he would step in for her. It irked her beyond anything, perhaps her reaction caused the same feeling in him.
Staring into his ex-girlfriend's eyes, it becomes very clear to George as to why she would bring up that particular memory- their first actual meeting. One that thankfully no one had tampered with and hopefully never will. His other hand snakes around her waist, eyes darting to her lips.
Things may be more complicated now than ever before, but in that moment, George did not care. A war was coming and the last thing he wanted was to go through what he did today. Mainly because it would be devastating for him to live a life without her. More importantly, he did not want to live in a world where he could not argue with her, spend days annoyed at her, or yell at her for being reckless yet again. All those moments were luxuries that he could not afford to lose.
"Lils," he breathes as a small smile plays on her lips.
"Guys stop love making, I'm coming in," Fred calls loudly from the other room. Walking in with his eyes covered, George scowls at his brother as Lily moves her legs so Fred would have some room to sit.
"Stop being so dramatic," Lily laughs, grabbing his arm and pulling him down to sit on her other side.
"Listen the last time I walked in on you gu-"
"Shut up." George growls through gritted teeth, his hands balling into tight fists.
"I'm just saying," Fred grins, throwing Lily a cheeky wink. "Anyways we need to plan out what we're doing. I have a feeling we're short on time," Fred says as he passes the paper to his brother.
"We have to go to Hogwarts. I need to see Sn- I need to see him," Lily says firmly. Fred nods at her gesturing to the paper.
"THEY BROKE INTO GRINGOTT'S?" George yells, scanning the paper for more details. "WITH A DRAGON??"
"Wait for it," Fred mutters as Lily's eyes widen. Why would Potter be breaking into a bank? Surely they made sure to have enough money and provisions before they left?
"Armed and dangerous pft, wait wait wai-" George rambles, his face paling. "Last potential sighting in Hogsmeade, the criminals are likely to be heading towards Hogwarts."
Lily takes the paper from George standing up, feeling extremely nauseous. Time was not on their side. She needed to speak to him. But if Potter was heading for the castle, then that must mean he was looking for a fight. No one in their right mind would advise him to go there in any other circumstance. Pacing the room, she stops and stares out of the window. There was no other choice.
"We have to go. Tonight."
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A/N: Last chapter is a work in progress- I can't promise when it will be finished but it's going to be a long one :) ALMOST AT THE END!