rare as the glimmer of a comet in the sky
The Gryffindor-Hufflepuff match had ended with the former team victorious, though it was pretty close. To celebrate their win, an after party broke out in the Gryffindor common room. Lily could hear the music blasting from up in her deserted dorm (a Queen song, most likely Sirius' request).
Lily glanced down at the unfinished Charms essay in front of, rubbing a hand over her face, the other carding through her tangled hair. Her empty cup of coffee sat in front of her, with the remaining grounds staring menacingly. Squinting, Lily tried to make out what the placement of the leftovers meant for her future.
A cat? No, definitely a house. What does that mean again? Wait, maybe it is a cat?
With a sigh, Lily rested her forehead against her desk, the cool wood serving as an oasis from the pounding in her head.
Suddenly, Lily got up, and slipped out of the room. At times like this, when there an itch under her skin, when thoughts of the future became too overwhelming, she always went outside. To the greenhouses (or garden, if she was at home) preferably. But anywhere outdoors was fine. Something about breathing in the fresh air, feeling the grass beneath her feet, seeing the endless sky, being one with nature, for even a minute, was incredibly calming to Lily.
As she decended the stairs to the common room, Lily recognized the song as Bohemian Rhapsody (definitely Sirius' choice). While walking through the sea of bodies, Lily saw Marlene and Sirius having some sort of drinking contest. Further towards the door, Peter and Mary were lounging on the couch, next to a couple making out and taking up quite some space. Their legs were intertwined and their heads were inclined towards eachother, seemingly in a deep conversation. Probably about this semester's musical. Even Remus was in the crowd, lazily smoking and watching the party with an amused smile.
A wave of emotion hit Lily like a tidal wave as she observed her friends. Anger so hot it was cold flooded through her veins. Here they all were, partying without a care in the world, when NEWTs were next year. Their entire future depended on passing. How could they not be studying? How could they get amazing grades without any effort?
Slamming open the door, Lily immediately registered the cold air against her skin. She hadn't planned on going anywhere except her bed that night, so she only had a tank top and shorts on. But Lily continued on, hoping the cold air would provide an escape.
It was around 10pm, and the sky was a dark grey, signaling an upcoming storm.
Probably sometime tomorrow morning
Lily could still smell the rain from that morning's downpour. Petrichor. She had always loved the Earth after a rain shower. Most people did. The water droplets would land on a surface, where little bubbles floated to the surface, releasing aerosols - the cause of the pleasant smell.
The wind was whistling, the trees blowing, and the Gryffindor could hardly see with her hair blowing in her face. Quickening her gait, Lily walked onwards until she reached Greenhouse 3. In her haste to open the door and find shelter from the harsh Scottish weather, Lily didn't notice that she was not alone. That was, until she looked up, and saw curious eyes scanning her face.
Pandora.
The curiosity soon morphed into glee, and the blonde skipped over to the older girl, exclaiming, "Lily! Oh, how lovely it is to see you here!"
Panodra's elatedness was infectious, and Lily felt herself relax, stress washing away immediately.
Adjusting to the new environment, the Gryffindor saw that the younger girl had her sketchbook in hand. It was open, but Lily's view of the page was obscured by Pandora's arm. She was wearing an oversized tee, with some band the older girl didn't know, and long patchwork pants. A white sweater with small blue polka dots and a red panda completed the outfit.
"I've come here every night to draw the dittany, but I can never seem to get the aura right" Pandora aighed as she lifted the sketchbook up for Lily to see, showing her a faint drawing of a plant.
This brought Lily back to the elephant in the room. She had not forgotten about Pandora's breaking and entering. Quite the contrary. Lily had contemplated if she should report the other girl or not, every day. She even almost told Remus about it, but decided against it - telling anyone felt like it would shatter something sacred. Lily eventually came to the conclusion that she should hold off on doing anything rash, or jump to conclusions.
"Did Professor Mullein give you permission to be here?" The redhead questioned.
"Oh, no. I've just been coming all year," Pandora hummed, "Do you come here often? The plants recognize you"
"What? Yes? But you do know that coming here without permission is breaking school policy, right? I'm going to have to report you"
The threat did not seem to faze the blonde, as her eyes stayed trained on the page. Pandora absent-mindedly thumbs through the sketchbook, before stopping and looking up at Lily.
"Would you care to see some of my drawings?" The younger girl asked, handing the book to the older girl.
Okay, I guess we'll just ignore it. That's fine.
Glancing down at the page, Lily gave up on pushing the topic, and examined the drawing. It was a sunflower. A basic flower, carefully drawn. She looked around the greenhouse to spot the flower (it was rare the greenhouses contained non-magical plants), but didn't see it.
Seemingly reading her mind, Pandora added softly, "It was from the garden back home. Magically enchanted. I drew it over holiday,"
Glancing up, Lily saw the blonde's eyes on the empty space behind her. Turning around, she saw what the other girl was looking at. It was raining.
This was a common occurrence in the Scottish Highlands, but today the rain seemed to make the world around Lily take on a fantastical quality. The soft beat of the droplets against the greenhouse roof lulled her into a dazed state.
"Are you going to be alright going back inside like that? It's a bit of a walk back to castle. Should we wait it out?"
It was a long way way back. About 3 minutes if you run. Which was long in this weather. The rain, paired with Lily's outfit was not an ideal situation. Normally, she would've just cast an Impervius Charm, but her wand was back in the dorms. And Pandora didn't seem to her's, either.
"It's getting quite late. I'll just make a run for it. I'll stop at the infirmary tomorrow if I feel under the weather"
Panora's face morphed into one of concern, her lips pursed tightly.
"At least take my sweater!" Pandora exclaimed, taking off said garment.
Sighing, Lily looked down at the younger girl's outfit again. It did provide much more coverage than her own, so it would make sense for her to have the extra layer.
Lily almost asked if this was just a ploy for her to owe Pandora a favor, which would most definitely be for her to turn a blind eye and not report the younger girl. But she didn't. Lily didn't have it in her to believe that Pandora had ulterior motives. Call her crazy, but the blonde didn't seem like the type of person to do that.
Taking the outstretched sweater, Lily smiled, "Thank you. Really"
"Don't mention it!" Pandora said gleefully, clutching her pencil and sketchbook in her arms as she glided out the door. Lily quickly threw on the sweater and hurried to keep up with the younger girl.
When the got outside, they broke into a run, their hands managing to end up intertwined, both of them giggling like children. Even with the sweater on, the chill of the night seemed to sink into Lily's bones, the rain (more accurately described as hail) falling steadily. Looking over at Pandora, the older girl couldn't help but feel like this was all a dream. Being with Pandora seemed to do that.
Their arrival came much faster than she expected (and would have liked, but she wouldn't admit that yet) and the girls broke apart, gasping. Pandora's grin was wide, and Lily knew she wore a similar expression on her own face.
"Well, I'll be off bed now" Pandora said, "Have a wonderful night, Lily"
Once again, the blonde was gone before Lily could say anything.
With slow steps Lily walked back to her dorm, trying to ignore the uncomfortable squelch she heard every step. When she got back the party was still raging, but, even as she looked upon her peers, Lily felt no anger or frustration. Just tranquility.
Stripping off the drenched clothes, her gaze rested on the Prefect badge laying on her nightstand.
Maybe she wouldn't report Pandora. It's not like it was doing any harm. And if she went to the greenhouses at night she could keep an eye on it. Really, it was the best solution.