As soon as they got to the Dursley house, Dudley was sent up to his room. He didn't go without creating a huge fuss, but eventually he was out of the way. Then, Aunt Petunia sent Uncle Vernon to the living room and Harry to his bedroom. It was pretty obvious she wanted to talk to Lily alone.
"So, L-Lily... I um, wanted to tell you I didn't know... that Marge was treating you so poorly, and I-I'm sorry..." Aunt Petunia said awkwardly.
Lily looked down at her feet. There was a painful, long, drawn out silence.
"Harry said you kept him in a cupboard for ten years." Lily quietly said eventually.
"We were just-"
"You neglected him, used him, and hurt him emotionally." Lily added.
Aunt Petunia was silent.
"There is no excuse for what you did and I-... I know you are only treating me kindly because I look like my mum."
This time the silence was even longer.
"I know what we've done to Harry is wrong." Aunt Petunia said, "And I don't expect him or you to forgive us... to forgive me... I- I just can't do this!"
She stood up and began pacing, tears falling down her face.
"I couldn't stand Harry because he looked like him! That Potter took my sister away from me! Him and magic and Logan and Maya and Enna and- and- Harry, he looks just like him. And then you... you look like her... I never treated my sister right after I found out she was a witch. And I never got to apologize before she... died..."
Aunt Petunia sat back down with a sigh, putting her head in her hands, and refusing to look at Lily. Lily stares at her aunt.
"I miss her. I miss my sister. I miss Lily. I have said horrible things to her, said horrible things to her son... and I don't know what to do. I never meant for it to get so out of hand... I just... I can't even look him in the eyes. He has her eyes. If I ignore his eyes, he is just like James Potter, and I... I can't..."
"You were wrong." Lily mumbled.
Aunt Petunia glanced up, eyes full of tears.
"You- you were wrong to hurt my mum, and my brother, and to send me to Aunt Marge- even if you didn't know how she would treat me... you were wrong..."
The tears fell down her aunts face faster.
"And you know that." Lily continued, "You know you were wrong, and acknowledging your mistakes is the first step to fixing them. I don't... I don't expect you to be the aunt I've always dreamed of saving me. I just don't want you to hurt Harry again."
"I- I won't! I'll try harder, I'll do anything!"
Lily nodded and then left the room. She searched the house for her brother and found him in the smallest bedroom upstairs. Harry stood up when she entered the room.
"Did she give you a hard time?" He asked defensively.
"No, it's fine, Harry." Lily dismissed.
He didn't look quite convinced, but nodded his head.
"So, you can stay in here with me." Harry offered, "There's not much room, but we could probably fit a sleeping bag for me on the floor and you could take the bed."
Lily smiled.
"I love you Harry, and you're so thoughtful, but don't be silly." She said, "I've spent twelve years sleeping on a paper thin mattress, I'm used to it by now."
"But you shouldn't have to be!" Harry protested.
"Harry." Lily said, "Why don't we take turns then?"
"...okay." He reluctantly agreed.
Lily smiled and took a seat on the bed, Harry sitting next to her.
"Ron said his Dad might get tickets to the Quidditch World Cup." He began, "And he said if he does, we can go too."
"Really?" Lily asked, surprised, "And me?!"
"Yes, Lil." Harry laughed, "You too."
Lily beamed and began day dreaming about how the tournament would be. She wasn't the biggest fan of Quidditch, but Harry adores it and she was thrilled at being included.
"Only, I don't think Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia will let us go..." Harry frowned.
Lily's eyes lit up.
"They will." She promised.
Harry looked doubtful.
"When Aunt Petunia talked to me, she said she would "change" her ways. She's upset because I look like mum, and mum would be furious if she knew how Aunt Petunia was treating you. So, I bet if I ask her if we could go, she won't say no. Uncle Vernon might, but she won't." Lily explained.
Harry grinned and hugged her.
"That's brilliant, Lil!" He exclaimed.
And she smiled at the nickname.
The Dursley's mainly avoided the two Potter siblings, except for a few times when Dudley tried to bully Lily in the beginning. After Lily had a panic attack once he tried to push her out of his way, Harry made sure to threaten Dudley and Aunt Petunia overheard. That was the first time she ever disciplined her son, and she wasn't too strict with his punishment, merely sending him to his room until dinner (which was twenty minutes away).
When the Potter siblings asked to spend the end of their summer break at the Burrow with the Weasley's, Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon reluctantly agreed, though each for different reasons.
Lily was sleeping in Ginny's room with her and Hermione when Molly Weasley came in to gently wake them up. Then, the girls were sent to wake up the boys who had already fallen back to sleep.
When Lily entered Ron's room, Harry appeared to be having a nightmare. Lily carefully walked over to him and softly called his name. He woke with a start.
"Lily?" He mumbled.
"Yeah, we're laving now." Lily said, "You okay?"
"Just a bad dream." Harry dismissed, but she could tell he looked shaken.
She gave him a quick hug before leaving to join Hermione and Ginny who were helping Molly with breakfast. Once the Weasley's has eaten, Arthur took the children on a walk through the woods to the port key. There were two people waiting by the port key and Lily recognized the younger one as Cedric Diggory, a student from Hogwarts.
"Arthur!" The man exclaimed.
"Amos." Arthur greeted with a smile.
"This all your lot?" Amos asked, gesturing to the kids.
"Only the red heads." Arthur chuckled, "This is Hermione, Lily and-"
"Merlin's beard! Harry Potter?!" Amos asked.
"...um, hi..." Harry said awkwardly.
"Wow, this is who you beat, Cedric?" Amos asked.
Suddenly Fred and George were glaring at Cedric and Harry looked a bit peeved.
"Well, it was an unfair game, Dad." Cedric tried to excuse, modestly.
"Doesn't seem unfair to me!" Amos continued, "One fell off his broom, the other didn't, it's obvious who the better seeker is!"
"Dad." Cedric groaned, "There were dementors!"
"Still, it's not that hard to see that-"
"Okay!" Arthur interrupted, "Is that everyone?"
"Yes, the Lovegood couldn't make it." Amos said.
"Right then, everybody, gather around the port key." Arthur instructed.
They all knelt down next to the port key disguised as an old boot and held on. Fred and George may have shoved Cedric aside a bit, but in the end, everyone had a grip onto the port key. Then, the world started spinning.
Lily, Harry, and Hermione all fell onto the ground once the port key dropped them at their destination. The three of them had never used a port key before, so their landing was a lot less graceful than the others.
After parting ways with the Diggory's, the rest of the group made their way over to their tent. It looked rather small from the outside and Lily wondered how they would all fit inside. Then, she walked over to the enter and saw that an extension charm had been placed on the tent, making it way larger than it appeared. She glanced over at her brother to see the same delight on his face.
"I love magic." Harry said.