Lily Evans
Notes:
Helloooo, so guess I’m back ahah.
Sorry for the extremely late update, but I’ve been super busy and on top of that I’ve been constantly sick lately, like I’ve literally had 3 different infection over the last three months, first I had bladder infection which I didn’t find out until 4 weeks in, so i was SO SICK for 5 weeks, then I got ear infection and now I have throat infection, like literally got it yesterday and I still have school and work despite being constantly sick, so yay.
Oh and on top of all that I also found out I might have an eye illness that makes you go blind.. So… yay. Ahah.
Anyways I know this chapter isn’t the best but it’s better than nothing.
_____________________________
Pandora is waiting in Evan’s dorm on the day of her brother’s return, she’s super excited to see him again, she’s missed him so much.
As she’s waiting, she’s sitting on Regulus' bed, he’s reading while she’s drawing. They've done this a lot through the break after becoming friends.
She’s never felt this at ease before, she loves all her friends and all the people around her, but she’s never truly had anyone she can just sit with like this without saying a word.
She already knows her brother will hang this over her head forever, she was so sure she’d always hate the boy, but just as Evan said, it didn’t take long before she started caring for him. Rowena, she really can’t hate anyone, can she? But honestly that’s not such a bad thing, she doesn’t really like hating people, if it was up to her everyone would love each other all the time.
She’s pulled from her thoughts when the door slams open and it doesn’t take her brother long to find her, “Panda! You’ll never guess the news I have!” He exclaimed, before seeming to realise where she’s actually sitting, his brow furrows for a second before a smirk spreads on his face, “what are you doing in Regulus’s bed dear sister?” he asks teasingly.
She rolls her eyes, yet still a wide smile attached to her face, before looking at Regulus who’s still very much consumed by whatever he’s reading, her eyes then go back to her brother before she replies with a sigh, “well… you were right.”
“I knew it!” he exclaims with a wide grin, which just makes her laugh.
She remembers what he said right when he came in, “wait, news? What news? Is mother and father okay?” She asks worriedly.
The smile returns to his face, and she lets out a relieved breath, it can’t be bad if he’s smiling. “They’re both fine, but…” he waits a few beats, clearly trying to draw out the suspension before blurting out, “we’re getting a brother!”
“A brother?” she asks confused before it truly sinks in what he says, “oh salazar! That’s amazing! A little baby brother! He’s going to be adorable!”
“Right?! When we go home for summer break we’ll meet him!”
“I can’t wait!”
“Me neither!”
She jumps up from the bed and hugs her brother tightly.
“Wait,” she hears a voice behind her say, she hadn’t noticed Barty there, but she turns around to greet him when she sees the look of confusion on his face.
“What’s wrong?” She asks him.
“Your mother didn’t tell you herself that you’re getting a whole new sibling?”
“I mean… no… but to be fair, I didn’t even come home so she didn’t have the chance to.”
“But she was the one who allowed you to stay, wouldn’t she just have said no if she had big news like this?”
She starts to think about it when she hears her brother’s voice, “she’s still getting told, does it matter how?” He's clearly getting defensive.
Barty holds up his hands in mock surrender, “chill, I was just asking”
“Don’t a-” Evan begins, but Pandora knows she needs to intervene so she interrupts him, “alright, let’s just calm down.”
Luckily that makes Evan stop, but not calm down as he huffs and crosses his arms across his chest, looking away from Barty.
“Come on Ev, let’s go find Cas, okay?”
“Fine”
She nods, taking his hand and leading him out of the room. Evan gets very defensive when it comes to their family, she knows their parents aren’t the best, but they aren’t bad either.
Most of the time when he gets annoyed at someone, the best thing to do is distract him and going to see their best friend is the best distraction at the moment, but to be completely honest Pandora also wants to see her because she’s missed her best friend so much.
“Oh don’t tell me he’s joking, this is too funny” Dorcas gets out through her laughs. She’s on her bed, leaning forward and clutching her stomach, laughing so much she’s barely been able to get the words out.
Evan is sitting on the floor, leaning against the door, Pandora already warned him that if someone were to come in he’d be in the way, but he just shrugged it off.
“I’m really not, she was sitting on his bed painting like she hasn't hated him for the last half a year, when I came in” he answers for her with a wide grin.
Pandora rolls her eyes, but still with a smile on her face, she knows it’s only been a couple of weeks, but she’s still missed this so much.
“So what? He’s nice. I had misjudged him, which I feel really really badly about already.”
“Sorry, it’s just- so funny” Dorcas says, “it’s like if I one day just started liking McKinnon and became friends with her out of the blue.”
Marlene McKinnon is a girl in Dorcas’ year who’s a gryffindor and Pandora isn’t completely sure why, but Dorcas has hated her since their first year. They’re rivals, as Dorcas puts it. She doesn’t really understand her friend’s hate for the girl, Pandora admits that she hasn’t ever really talked to Marlene, but she’s seen her around the school and she doesn’t seem too bad, but again, she’s never had an actual conversation with her, so she doesn’t really know.
“That’s not the same, it’s not unusual for you to hate people, Cas. It is for Panda which makes it so much funnier” Evan wheezes like the traitor he is, “see I said you’d end up liking him” he tells Pandora.
“I know, I know. But he’s a friend now, okay? And I feel like it's kind of mean that you’re laughing at me becoming friends with him. I don’t want you to laugh at him”
“We’re not laughing at him, we’re just laughing at the situation, you know that, right Panda?” Dorcas asks, more calm without laughing this time.
“Yes, exactly. It’s so funny how after all- after all that you became his friend. Also it’s funny how the Regulus ‘I’ll kill you with a look’ Black became friends with our Pandora ‘sweetheart’ Rosier.” Her brother laughs.
And listen, she really loves her brother, but it’s beginning to be too much. Yes, of course it’s funny, but it’s really not this funny and it’s starting to annoy Pandora how much he’s milking it.
They came to Dorcas’ room around 20 minutes ago and he hasn’t talked about anything else since.
“I’m leaving,” she says, getting up and walking towards the door.
“Panda, wait!” She hears her brother say before closing the door behind her and leaving.
As she walks down the corridors of Hogwarts she feels bad, now that she’s cooled down she sees that she may have overreacted, she has to apologise, but should she wait or should she just head straight back?
She should probably go back, she doesn’t want him to hate her for longer than necessary, she turns around and is about to head back when she hears sniffles come from an empty classroom.
Her brother must have to wait because Pandora refuses to leave someone alone who’s clearly not okay.
She gently knocks as to not scare the person in there.
“Go away Potter!” The girl on the other side of the door snaps, “stop following me around and just leave me alone!”
“It’s um- It’s not James, it’s Pandora”
She hears some more sniffles, waiting for the girl to respond which after a long stretch of silence she does, “who?”
“Pandora Rosier. I’m a first year ravenclaw. I just heard you and wanted to make sure you’re alright”
“I’m fine, you can just leave” normally that would sound mean and snappy, but from this girl it comes out kindly, like she really doesn’t want someone to worry about her, whether it’s just because Pandora is a stranger or if she’s like this with everyone Pandora has no idea.
She slowly opens the door, “if you want me to leave I will, but I’d much rather help you if you want it.”
The girl who’s been hiding her face since Pandora opened the door, finally looks up at her.
Her eyes red from crying, almost to a point where it matches her flaming red waves that’s falling down her back. Pandora can make out freckles, but not as clearly as she suspects they usually are since her face is currently red and tear stained.
“Can I stay?” Pandora asks carefully, the girl doesn’t answer, she simply looks away and shrugs, which Pandora takes as a yes.
She makes her way over to the girl and sits down beside her on the floor.
“Want to talk about it?”
The girl shrugs again, thinking it over before finally answering, “it’s nothing really, it’s stupid.”
“Does it have something to do with James Potter?”
“Not really. I mean in a way, but it’s not the main reason, he just- I don’t know… KInd of tipped over the glass if you know what I mean.”
Pandora nods, “yeah, I get it.”
“It’s just- everything. I feel like I’m breaking and I can’t talk to anyone about it. I don’t really even know why I can tell you this when I can’t tell my friends”
“Maybe it’s because I’m not one of your friends, sometimes it’s easier to talk to a stranger, doesn’t make it feel as real or as hard”
The girl giggles through her tears, “you’re really smart for a first year.”
Pandora smiles at that, “thanks, I’m more people smart than school smart though.
She nods, “I’m more school smart I think, but sometimes I hate it. I’m a muggleborn you know, so my first year I tried so hard to fit in, I tried so hard to show they hadn’t made a mistake in me, that I really belong in this world… But now I’ve set the standards so high that it’s been impossible to stay on that level without breaking, but I don’t want my friends to be disappointed in me… and on top of all that, my sister hates me for being a witch, severus says it’s because she’s just jealous, but I don’t know, she’s always hated my magic” she sniffles, “sorry, I didn’t mean to just rant”
Pandora smiles comfortingly, “it’s fine, don’t worry. I like helping people and I don’t like when people are sad so you can rant to me as much as you want.”
“Thank you. I just… Do you have muggle parents?”
Pandora shakes her head, “no, pureblood I’m afraid, but I can still listen.”
“I… I never really felt like I fit into the world, then when I was told about-” she waves her hands around, “all this, it started to make sense, but I feel like I’m fighting everyday to fit in here too. It’s like I’m not quite muggle, but I’m not quite magic either.”
“I think you’re both?”
“What?”
“Well you are a muggle born witch, so you may not be “quite muggle or quite a witch” as you put it, but that’s because you’re both. You grew up in the muggle world, your family is muggle… I assume, unless you have a sibling who-” she sees the girl shake her head at that “alright, but what I was trying to say before i got sidetracked is that, you grew up in the muggle world, you have muggle culture, but you’re also a witch, always been one even before you knew it. You see it as not fitting into either, but I think it’s because you fit into both. You have two completely different worlds that are both yours”
The girl seems to be thinking all this through, it takes a while where she’s just silent and Pandora lets her, she just sits there patiently and waits till the girl has gotten her thoughts in order, till she’s ready to continue.
While she waits she looks at the girl, she’s really quite beautiful, the dark flaming red hair falling down her porcelain white skin adorned with freckles. She looks even more beautiful now that she’s stopped crying and you can see her freckles more clearly, don’t get Pandora wrong, the girl was beautiful even when crying, she’s sure she’ll be beautiful no matter the situation… But Pandora has always adored freckles, in her mind it’s always been the best feature on anyone, she’s never understood the hate for them.
Freckles are like little stars across her face, as if she’s space herself, little constellations and universes sprinkled over the bridge of her nose, down her cheekbones as well as neck disappearing into the neckline of her shirt.
“I think you’re right” the girl says, bringing Pandora back to reality, she had completely forgotten she was waiting for her to speak, she blinks before smiling at the girl softly.
“See. Being a muggleborn is something to be proud of, you shouldn't try to fit into one of the worlds, instead embrace both.”
She nods, clearly taking in everything Pandora is saying. A smile finally graces the girl’s lips, “I’m sorry, I forgot what your name was.”
“That’s alright,” Pandora answers, “I’m Pandora.”
“I like your name. I’m Lily.”
“It’s nice to meet you Lily, I’m sure we’ll make great friends.”
She nods, “I think so too.
When Pandora knocks on the door she’s holding her breath, she really hope her brother isn’t too mad at her.
It’s Barty who opens the door, “Panda! Good thing you came, Evan’s brooding is getting boring.”
“So he’s here?” She asks nervously.
“Yup, come on in” he answers with a wide grin, stepping aside so she can walk past him.
She walks into the room and quickly spots her brother who’s sitting on Barty’s bed, he’s clearly upset.
“Pandora?” he asks carefully.
“Hi…” She says fidgeting with her hands, she really hopes he isn’t too mad at her, her brother is her best friend, always have been, so she doesn’t know what she’d do if he stopped speaking to her.
He quickly jumps up from the bed, running to her and wrapping his arms around her tightly.
“I’m so so sorry” he mumbles into her shoulder.
She feels her shirt get damp on the shoulder which is what makes her wrap her arms around him just as tightly leaning into the hug even more, “no, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have gotten so mad at you, you were just joking.”
“You are allowed to be upset, I’m just sorry I kept going”
“Can you just agree you were both at fault here and accept each other's sorry’s?” Regulus interrupts and when she looks at him she sees him rolling his eyes yet somehow still reading. Does he ever actually look up from the book? She thinks to herself.
Pandora laughs and looks back at her brother, “yeah, Reg is right, let’s just agree we both hurt each other and be friends again”
“Yeah, I like the sound of that… Also, it’s so weird that you and Reg are friends now.”
“Do not call me that!” He says, finally looking up to glare at Evan.
He looks at Regulus confused, basically spluttering, “But, she just called you- Why didn’t you tell that to her? I’m your roomie.”
Regulus looks from Evan, to Pandora before looking back at Evan with a shrug, “that’s different” with that he returns his eyes to his book.
“What? How?”
“It just is, drop it if you want to keep your balls attached to your body”
And clearly Barty is a child, but again so is Pandora because the moment Regulus says ‘balls’ he bursts out laughing which makes Pandora learn forward and clutch her stomach as laughs begin bubbling out of her throat as well.
______________________
Endnotes:
So there you go, that was the chapter, hope you liked it.
Okay so first off let’s talk about Pandalily, THEY FINALLY MET PHOPHYFTUFIG and omfg Pandora is so bloody gay ahaha.
“We’ll be great friends” Honey you just spend 5-10 minutes thinking about her freckles haha.
Also Regulus “she’s diffrent, she can call me whatever she wants” Black. Istg I love Regulus and Pandora’s friendship sm!
Also I know they’re being very dramatic about this, like okay you got a little annoyed but it’s not the end of the world, but let’s remember they’re pre teens and therefore see small things as the end of the world.
Okay I have class soon so gtg, but comment your thoughts.