Afterglow

Stop the clocks, it’s amazing

🎕🎕🎕

The day Lily Evans first saw magic was a bright, cold day in September.

Of course, she had seen magic before, in rare snatches and glimpses. A glittering shower of stars here, a flying flower there. Severus had always loved to show her the little magic he could do. When Lily finally realized that she, too, was capable of such things, she nearly cried with happiness.

This, she had thought, is what I was born to do.

From a young age, Lily knew she was different. The other boys and girls at school all were content with the normal, the dull day-to-day life drudgery. But Lily was eleven, and she was different. Lily was special, because she could do magic. Her parents couldn't do it, no, and Petunia (her sister) couldn't do it, either. This was hers, hers, all hers, this magic. It was all hers. It was her own little secret, this world of wonder. Her own little adventure.

Today, she waited patiently in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express. She tapped her feet anxiously, nervously tucking and untucking the same piece of hair behind her ear. Where was Sev? Why hadn't het met her on the platform like she had planned with him? A horrible thought struck her then. What if he was injured? Or worse, what if he had decided he no longer wanted to be her friend? The thought made her stomach plunge with dread.

She stood up suddenly, very afraid that this was all a huge mistake. Maybe her parents and sister would still be waiting for her on Platform nine-and-three quarters? Her grip tightened on her huge brown suitcase, knuckles turning white with pressure. Who was she to think she would fit among wizards and witches? Her, a normal girl with no ties to magic! Lily almost laughed out loud. How could she have thought Hogwarts could be her new home?

Then, the door to the train compartment flung open.

Standing there was another eleven-year-old. A boy. A tallish, bespectacled boy with a shock of untidy black hair and an electric smile. He was quite handsome, in a gangly way. Lily couldn't help but notice that he looked nothing like Severus. This boy had dark tan skin and brown eyes, and was wearing a rumpled striped shirt that clashed terribly with his pants.

"Don't you know you're s'posed to sit on trains?" The boy asked, flashing an electric grin.

Lily stood her ground. "Sorry. I'm a bit new to all this."

"What, are you a muggle-born?"

"Is that supposed to be a joke?" Lily narrowed her eyes.

"I don't mean any offense," said the boy hurriedly.

"I can't take offense to it if I don't know what it means." Lily crossed her arms, feeling like he was making fun of her in some way. She wanted the conversation to be over. There was nothing Lily hated more than feeling dumb.

"So you aren't pureblood, then."

"I'm not a horse."

"I-I know," the boy said. "It means you have muggle parents."

Lily couldn't think of a response to this, so she just asked, "Have you seen a boy named Severus Snape?" Unfortunately, she couldn't hide the worry laced in her voice. Seriously, where was Sev? Maybe he was still waiting for her on the platform, and was going to miss the train! Lily couldn't go to Hogwarts without him; she was sure she wouldn't last a second with these nonsense-speaking wizards.

"Oooh, is that your boyfriend?" The black-haired boy drew out the words in a goofy, sing-song voice.

"No," replied Lily with a haughty glare. "He's my friend. My best one."

"Lucky. Mine's a real lump of dung," said the boy. Then he turned around and called out somewhere behind him, "In here, Peter!"

A pudgy blond boy--Peter--squeezed into the doorway beside the boy with glasses.

Peter, once he saw Lily, gave the black-haired boy a look. Then, he tossed up a wave to Lily and said, "Hi. I'm Peter."

"Lily," said Lily to Peter, but she looked at the other boy as she said it, for whatever reason. "Lily Evans."

The black-haired boy stared at her for a long moment before saying, "I'm James Potter."

Then the boy, James, lifted a long wooden stick from his pocket and said something entirely incomprehensible. Lily giggled; he looked a little crazy, waving a tiny branch around like that.

But, no sooner than the boy had finished muttering nonsense words, pinks sparks shot out of the end of the stick.

And hanging over Lily's head was three sparkling, glittering words.

WELCOME, LILY EVANS.

The warm words lit the compartment in a soft pink glow. Peter was staring up at the words in awe, while James was looking at Lily with a weird expression. Lily was too busy to notice it, for she, too, was staring up at the ceiling in astonishment.

Magic, Lily thought in wonder. That's real magic.