Chapter Text
Lily supposes it’s not a surprise that she’s so freaky. She’s always been a little different.
Her family was always the perfect nuclear one. William Evans was a family man. He worked long hours and traveled for work at least once a month, but he always made it a point to call every night he was gone and never miss his daughter’s birthday. Aimie Evans nee Macdonald was the perfect housewife, diligent and loving. Petunia Evans was the perfect daughter with perfect grades and with more bonds on her arms than anyone else in her grade.
They were the perfect family.
Except for Lily.
With her blood red hair and her piercing green eyes, Lily was destined to stand out. She was destined to be different. She didn't look anything like the rest of the family, not really. Not in the ways that mattered.
But she didn't really care. Sure, she didn't really have that many friends or just one really, but she still had her family. Even when Petunia would sometimes turn her nose up at her younger sister’s antics, her mother would stare at her in exasperation for simply talking, and her father would hang up from his nightly calls before Lily could get on the phone, she knew they still loved her. They bonded with her after all. She was still part of the family.
It wasn’t until she was nine years old that she started to see things differently.
She was standing on the kitchen counter, probably giving her mother an aneurysm with her exuberance, but she didn't even consider stopping. She doesn’t get to misbehave like this when her father is around, he’ll just put her in time out. And she really hates the cupboard under the stairs. There are too many spiders.
Lily was practically hopping up and down, desperate to do something, but Petunia was hanging out with that boy she never tells them about because she swears it’s nothing, but Petunia is thirteen now and she heard that’s when girls start to find boys attractive. She thinks it’s a little silly though. Girls and boys don’t get along, not really. Except for her and Severus, but he’s weird so that doesn’t count.
“Mom!” Lily whines. “When is dinner gonna be ready?”
“I already told you, Lily, we are not eating without your sister.”
Lily huffs and jumps off of the table, rushing to the front door to check to see if she can see her sister walking back.
“How much longer is she gonna be?” Lily whispers to herself as she sits on the front porch. She waves to one of the neighbors, who ignores Lily. Lily doesn’t really mind. Her neighbors are kind of mean. They don’t think Lily should be running around with Severus just because his father is a drunk, but that’s not Severus’ fault. People are just weird.
Lily slams herself down into one of the wicker chairs on the front porch as she tries to patiently wait, but less than two minutes later, she’s squirming out of impatience.
She’s about to give in and walk back inside when she sees something. It looks like Petunia and there’s a boy with her. He’s kind of ugly, but Lily supposes that she hasn’t really seen a pretty boy yet.
However, the problem isn’t with the ugly boy, but with both Petunia and him. They both look … off. Almost translucent, as if they aren’t really there. Lily shouts her sister’s name, trying to get her attention, but her sister doesn’t even react. Her neighbor glares at Lily but glares right back. Mrs. Peterson can go shove her face in her toilet for all Lily cares, she’s trying to talk to her sister and get her to hurry up.
But no matter how much Lily yells, Petunia doesn’t react. She just keeps walking to the front door with her boy.
“I’m sorry I got you back so late,” The boy says, as they pull up to the front door. “I know you wanted to be back by six, but-”
Lily frowns as Petunia laughs. It wasn’t even six when she came out here and she definitely hasn’t been out here that long. Is the ugly boy’s watch broken?
“Don’t worry about it. My brat of a sister is the only reason I wanted to be on time for dinner anyway and she can deal with it. I’m tired of her always getting her way just because my parents don’t want to deal with her.”
“Hey, that’s mean!” Lily shouts. The redhead stomps her feet against the porch in a fit of anger, glaring up at the older girl. “You’re not allowed to talk like that.”
“Maybe one day she’ll figure out they just don’t care enough to punish her.”
Lily shrieks at Petunia in a feeble way to get the translucent teen’s attention, but Petunia just laughs at a cruel joke her ugly boy makes. Lily moves inside, slamming the door shut behind her just as Petunia and her ugly boy kiss on the front porch.
The little girl runs up the stairs to her bedroom, locking the door behind her despite her mother’s complaints to settle down. She doesn’t want to settle down. Not when Petunia …
A few minutes later, Lily hazards a glance at the clock in the corner of her room and she blinks through the tears in her eyes at the sight.
5:43.
Still well before six. Does that mean-
Lily props herself by the window of her room, where she can see the road that she saw Petunia and her ugly boy walk along earlier.
Approximately twenty-six minutes later, Lily sees the same pair walk down the street, just like they did before. But this time, their forms are clearer. More solid.
Lily tiptoes downstairs, not even letting her mother hear her as she presses her ear against the front door.
“-y brat of a sister is the only reason I wanted to be on time for dinner anyway and she can deal with it. I’m tired of her always getting her way just because my parents don’t want to deal with her.”
Lily bites back a gasp at her sister’s words, but not for the reason she did so earlier. Because her sister just said the same thing. The exact same thing! Almost like she …
Lily waits, as the ugly boy and Petunia’s conversation continues much the same. She waits and she waits and then, just as the ugly boy is leaning in for a kiss, Lily yanks the front door open. Petunia, who was leaning against the wooden door, falls backwards and lands harshly on the floor.
“Lily!” Aimie Evans scolds. “Why on earth would you do that?”
Lily smiles sweetly at her mother. “I was just helping Tuney inside. She seemed to be struggling and her boy was trying to help her with his mouth. I just figured I’d help before he had to do anymore.”
The ugly boy turns a bright shade of red, stammering out something vaguely resembling an apology, before he goes zipping through the front yard. He trips over the azalea bush in the front yard and Lily has to bite back a little giggle at the sight.
When Lily turns back around, Petunia is crying in their mother’s arms, calling Lily a “vile thing” who “ruins her date”.
Lily just shrugs. They both know that dad doesn’t want either of them kissing any boys till at least high school. Besides, she wouldn’t have even done anything if Petunia hadn’t said such awful things about her.
She debates telling her mother about the things Petunia said, but it wouldn’t really help. If anything, it would just make what she did look more premeditated, which her mother would hate. She always hates when they don’t get along, and she always believes Tuney’s word over her own. Maybe it’s because she’s eight or maybe it’s because she’s been known to lie once or twice, but it’s annoying either way.
So instead of dredging up more unpleasantness, she tries to soothe over her sister’s dramatic tears. “Sorry, Tuney. But now that you’re here, what’s for dinner?”
________________________________________
That night, long after Petunia and her mother have gone to bed, Lily resolves to try to see something again. To see the future.
For over an hour, she lays in her bed with clenched fists, furrowed brows, and tense limbs as she desperately tries to view her own future. Eventually, she’s forced to stop before she hurts herself.
Next, she tries to predict something for Severus. He always talks about how he could be a lot better if he could just know what days are good days for his father and what days are bad one. But after a few minutes, she gives up as well.
She’s about to fall asleep when she decides to try with her mother. And as soon as she even thinks about it, she sees. It’s not like with Petunia, where things unfolded in front of her. Instead, it’s like a vision.
She sees an entire day for her mother and by the time she stops, she’s left with a splitting headache. She passes out in her bed and barely even wakes up in time for school.
________________________________________
The next afternoon, Lily is sitting and coloring at the kitchen counter when her mother starts to cough.
“Is something wrong?” Petunia asks.
Aimie Evans just shakes her head. “Oh, I’m sure it’s nothing, I’ve just had this cough since last night. I’m sure it’ll go away soon.”
“That’s weird. I felt the same thing when I was on my date with Patrick, but I didn't feel anything after that. Did I pass it on to you? I didn't think there was a bug that was going around.”
“It’s alright, Petunia,” Aimie Evans says, as she moves to stroke her daughter’s hair. “I’m sure it’s nothing.”
Lily is so busy staring at the sweet mother-daughter moment between her sister and mother that she misses out on half of their rambles about their day.
“And when I went to the bank today to get more checks, it was the strangest thing. They told me they wouldn’t be able to get me more for at least a week. Isn’t that awful?”
Lily blanches a bit. She didn't really think about it last night since she passed out before she had time to really decipher her visions, but Aimie Evans is describing the day Lily foresaw her having, down to the last detail.
“I have to go,” Lily interjects, but her mother and Petunia pay her little mind.
________________________________________
Lily came to a few conclusions over the next couple of days about this new ability of hers.
One, it seemed to max out at two people, as no matter how much she tried, she cannot use her ability on her grandparents, not while she’s already using it on Tuney and her mother.
Two, there are different kinds of “visions”. She’s settled on calling them “definite” and “hazy”. The definite ones seem to play in front of her, almost like a projection. She can literally see the events unfolding minutes or even hours before they happen. Hazy is a little trickier. They are generally more like watching a movie rather than seeing the actions unfold in front of her and they aren’t always completely accurate, but they do tend to get the main points across. Like when her mother tripped and twisted her ankle two days ago, but Lily saw her twist her right ankle rather than her left.
Three, whenever she uses her ability, it affects her mother and sister. Not that badly, they just cough a little and maybe have a little trouble breathing if she pushes it. Her mother thinks they might have developed some sort of acute asthma, so Lily will have to pull back for now, but that could be a convenient excuse in the future.
Four, it only works on people she’s related to by blood. No exceptions. Not even for seeing her own future.
And five, it’s fucking awesome.
Lily bounds down the stairs when she hears her father enter the house. By the time she makes it down, William Evans is already holding Petunia and Aimie close, like he does every time he gets back from a longer trip. When he finally pulls away from his wife and eldest daughter, Lily smiles at her dad and tries to hug him too.
“Not now, Lily,” William says. “I’ve got to get ready for dinner.”
The man does pat her on the head as he walks up the stairs though. And Lily shrugs. She guesses he’s in a mood. He never hugs her when he’s in a mood. Lily annoys him whenever that happens, even when she’s not trying too.
Usually, Lily just deals with these moods as they arise, but if she knew about them beforehand, then maybe …
“I’ll be back!” Lily shouts, as she releases the hold her ability has on her mother and sister and rushes up the stairs to her room. Behind her, she can hear both Petunia and Aimie let out a sigh of relief.
Lily is practically shaking with excitement when she finally gets up to her room. This could work! This could really work! Maybe she can even use this to figure out what she does that will annoy her father when he’s in one of his moods. Then she can avoid doing that all together!
Lily is smiling as she pushes her newfound ability towards her father, only to blink when nothing happens.
She tries again. And again. And again.
Hours later, long after her family has eaten and gone to bed, Lily is still sitting in her room. The girl is blinking back tears as she futilely tries to force the ability onto her father.
At first, she thought that maybe it doesn’t work on men, but that’s not true, because she used it on her mother’s father and it worked fine. So does that mean …
Does that mean that her father isn’t really her father?
________________________________________
Lily spent the better part of two days in her bed, feigning illness to get out of school.
It felt like a struggle to even go to the bathroom, let alone anywhere else. God, she hates this! She hates thinking that her dad might not be her dad. She hates even more that it might be true.
She doesn’t really look like her father. Petunia has the man’s nose and hair and eyes, but Lily has none of that. She has her mother’s nose and face, but nothing from her father. She …
Is this why her father doesn’t like her as much as Tuney?
________________________________________
It takes Lily another week to get the courage to actually seek out some answers.
She doesn’t even consider asking her mother. Not only has she been potentially lying to Lily for her entire life, but Lily knows that Aimie Evans won’t tell her the truth. She’ll just deflect or outright lie again. She might even punish Lily just for asking.
She’s definitely not asking her fath-William. She can barely even look at the man anymore, always avoiding him. Not that the man really notices. If anything, his mood has improved.
So, Lily seeks out the next best thing. For Tuney’s tenth birthday, the pre-teen was gifted a diary. Apparently, it was a tradition that Lily’s grandmother started, with writing everything down in a diary dedicated for each year. Aimie Evans picked up the habit from her mother and now Tuney is doing the same. Lily personally thinks that Petunia’s diary is boring now, mostly just talking about Padick or whatever his name is.
But if she can find her mother’s old diaries, then maybe she can get some real answers.
________________________________________
“You don’t really think it’s true, do you? William has to be your father.”
Lily rolls her eyes at her friend. “Why?”
“Because … he’s married to your mom.”
“People cheat, Severus. It’s not exactly the most shocking thing in the world.”
“But he’s your dad. He’s raised you.”
Did he though? Lily has had a few days to think on it, and she’s not entirely sure that William Evans put much investment into actually raising her. That was mostly her mother’s job, or even Petunia’s. And sure, her father is busy, and he travels a lot, but he always makes time for Petunia.
For his real daughter.
“Just … come on,” Lily says, as she pulls down the ladder that leads to the attic. “Mom stores her old stuff up here. It’s the best place to look.”
Severus looks a bit nervous about following her up. Truthfully, Lily’s parents don’t even like him being in the house, but her mother is running errands for at least another few hours and Petunia is supposed to be babysitting her, but she’s off with the ugly boy instead.
Lily holds her hand out to Severus as she starts to climb the ladder and Severus reluctantly takes it, following her up.
It doesn’t take her long to find it. Her mother is a notorious organizer, so most of the boxes are labeled by what they contain or at least the person they pertain too.
She tries to ignore the fact that Petunia has boxes of old mementos, and Lily can’t find anything with her name on it.
There’s no box labeled “Aimie’s diaries”, but there is a box with just her mother’s name on it that weighs a ton. Lily pulls out the box opener she stole from the garage, slashing the box open, revealing several ornate and well-organized diaries.
“Perfect,” Lily says. From there, it’s a simple matter of Lily and Severus digging through them to find the one with the right year and …
“Here,” Lily says. “I found it. I-”
It’s one of the first entries. Convenient.
Lysander Selwyn. That’s her father’s name.
Severus leaves when she’s halfway through the diary. It’s almost sickening to read about the affair her mother had with this man, but she does.
She learns that it wasn’t just a one night stand. She learns that her mother probably would have left William for her, if not for Lysander’s drinking problem and Petunia.
She learns that she didn't tell Lysander when she found out she was pregnant. The man was already long gone by then.
Lily has a father, and he doesn’t even know she exists.
________________________________________
That night, she lays in bed and tries something she’s never really done before.
Over the last few months, she’s gotten better with her ability. Now she can see almost a month into the future when she gets hazy visions from her mother and Petunia, and almost two weeks in the future with her mother’s parents. She’s gotten better.
However, she’s never tried to do the same with her father.
When she used her future-telling ability on her family, she always interacted with them first. It just sort of happened that way. But she’s not sure if that’s really required.
There’s only one way to tell. Only one blood relative that she hasn’t interacted with yet.
“Okay,” Lily whispers, dropping the connection that allows her to see Petunia’s future before she latches onto her father. “Let’s do this.”
________________________________________
She sees a man. He has shaggy blonde hair that may have once been well kept, but now looks disheveled and poorly maintained. He’s growing a patchy beard and is sporting bloodshot eyes, not unlike her not father when he works overnight.
“Another,” Lysander calls out.
“We’re closing up soon, Heir Selwyn.”
“I thought you fuckers at Knockturn stayed open later on Saturdays.”
“It’s Sunday now. Almost 8 a.m.”
“Well, then, why not start me on another round?”
“Heir Selwyn, we’re closed.”
“Oh yeah? And are you gonna kick me out?”
“Heir Selwyn-”
“Heir Apparent! I’m the Heir Apparent.”
The barkeep chuckles. “Are you sure about that? Because I was certain that your Lord made your brother-”
The spell rips into the barkeep’s throat, silencing him forever. Lily watches in horror as her father goes on a drunken rampage.
It takes three men to take him down. And he doesn’t go quietly.
A stray blast of light hits him and Lily sees blood and here’s screaming and then …
Nothing.
________________________________________
Lily sobs into her pillow, not wanting to wake her parents or Petunia.
That’s never happened before. When she tried to push further, there wasn’t anything for her to see. It was just … blank.
Does that mean … is her father going to die?
It’s Wednesday now, which means her father only has a couple of days to live before …
God, she has to stop him. She has to save him.
She has too!
He’s the only father she has left.
________________________________________
“My father is a wizard,” Lily says to Severus, as the pair walk to school together.
Severus frowns in confusion. “He is?”
Lily nods. “You mentioned something about abilities. That’s mine. I can see the future, sometimes. For my blood relatives. I saw my father. He was in a bar in some place called Knockturn and …”
Lily bites on her bottom lip, easily tearing through the delicate flesh as she tries not to sob.
“He dies, Sev. On Sunday morning, he’ll die. I can’t just …”
Severus pulls her into his arms and lets her cry on his shoulder. Lily sinks into the embrace, sobbing against him as she pleads with her friend.
“He can’t die!” Lily cries. “He … we need to save him, Severus. We need to! I can’t lose my father!”
“Fathers aren’t worth it. They never are!”
“Well, maybe mine is! I need to save him, Severus!”
Severus looks a bit hurt by her words, but Lily doesn’t dare take them back. Her father won’t be like his. He can’t be!
“I know where Knockturn is,” Severus says. “It’s a magical place. I can take us there on Saturday!”
Lily sniffles, but nods in thanks.
“It’s okay,” Severus says, leaning over to hug her again. “We’ll save him, alright? We just have to be careful. My mom warned me about Knockturn. It’s not a safe place.”
“I don’t care. I just want to save him.”
“Alright. Let’s save him.”
________________________________________
Time seems to inch forward as they draw closer and closer to Saturday. Lily can’t even sleep anymore, not well at least. Every time she closes her eyes, all she sees is blood and …
On Saturday morning, Lily sneaks out before dawn, leaving a pillow in her place. Hopefully, her family won’t bother her and will just assume she’s sleeping in.
It’s unlikely, since she has chores to do, but she has to try. She has to.
Lily comes to stand next to Severus at the bus stop, the driver not even glancing as two children climb aboard. Mostly because Lily positioned them both next to an older couple, but still.
Soon, they arrive at the stop and Severus is pulling her off.
Getting into Diagon Alley is weird. Severus says there’s supposed to be a way to do it on command, but neither of them can practice magic without a wand, so they just have to wait for someone else to appear. As soon as they do, Lily and Severus rush behind them, jumping through the hole in the brick wall and into the restaurant.
“My mom used to take me here.” Lily looks up and she notices her friend has a wistful expression on his face, as if he wishes he could go back to those times.
“Is the food any good?”
Severus snorts. “No. The ice cream shop is phenomenal though. I wish we had money for it.”
“Come on,” Lily complains, dragging Severus out of the restaurant and into Diagon Alley. “We have to find my dad!”
Severus nods tersely, seemingly snapping himself out of his memories as he starts to lead them down the alley. Lily has to stop herself from getting distracted by the colorful shops and all the magic that surrounds her. This must be what it’s like every day for witches and wizards.
It takes a turn when they start down Knockturn Alley. It’s as if sunlight itself is hesitant to enter the area since magical streetlights are needed to illuminate the alley even during the middle of the day.
Lily peers in through the various shops, ignoring the leering glances from the people around her. Severus wraps a protective arm around her, which Lily would normally shove off but doesn’t dare now.
She didn't notice it back in Diagon Alley, but they look so out of place from the other witches and wizards. They all wear these ornate robes, and Lily is wearing jeans. It makes her stick out like a sore thumb.
“Do you see the bar yet?”
Lily shakes her head. She knows her father will be there. When she reviewed her vision, he’d been there practically since they opened.
She needs to find him. She needs to.
A large man comes to stand in front of Lily and Severus, glaring down at the two.
“You both look lost,” the man sneers.
“P-prince,” Severus stammers out. “I’m of House Prince!”
That forces the man to pause, long enough for Lily to shoot past him. Lily looks back, just in time to see Severus sprinting in the other direction. The man seems to choose Lily as a better target, chasing after the girl.
Shit. Shit. This is bad. This is …
Before Lily can silently curse anymore, she catches a glimpse of a familiar building.
The bar is almost empty at this time of day. She presses inside, surprised when the man seems to glare at the door before walking the other way.
Why wouldn’t he enter after her, if he was willing to chase her?
Lily looks around the empty bar, ignoring the glare from the barkeep that will die tomorrow morning unless Lily stops it. After a few moments, she finally sees him.
Lysander Selwyn. Her father. She hesitates at first, but eventually inches forward, coming to stand next to the man.
“Wh-hat do you want, little girl?” Her father says, his words swirling almost as much as the drink in his hand.
“Do you know an Aimie Evans?”
“Aimie? Yeah, I -” Lysander starts to say, before he hiccups, almost spilling his drink in the process. “-knew her, once. Big tits. Nice arse. Very sexy, for a mom.”
“I’m her daughter.”
“Realllly,” the man drunkenly drawls. “You look like her. Hairs the same.”
“Yeah. You slept with her almost eleven years ago. I’m ten years old.”
“Huh … Maths wasn’t my strong subject, little girl. What are you trying to say?”
“I’m your daughter too.”
Lysander Selwyn snorts. “As if I'd knock up a muggle! Good one.”
“It’s the truth!”
Seconds later, Lily is left clutching her cheek as she sits on the cold ground of the dank bar.
“Listen here, mudblood!” Lysander shouts, his buzz suddenly gone as he glares down at his daughter. “I don’t know you. I don’t claim you. Get out, before you get yourself killed. If you know what’s good for you.”
Lily considers opening her mouth to say something. To protest or shout that she’s trying to save his life.
But then she thinks about it.
He just hit her. Hit her for being born.
Why should she save him? Why should she even try, especially if he’s just going to hurt her again? Why should she-
Lily glares up at Lysander Selwyn. “Gladly.”
________________________________________
Lily doesn’t let herself cry until she’s out of the depressingly bleak alley. The man who chased her was gone when she came back out, and Lily didn't consider tempting fate again by walking slowly, sprinting instead.
She trips along the stone path as she makes her way back to the restaurant, where she is hoping Severus is waiting for her.
So, then she’s sitting there, in the middle of Diagon Alley, crying and sobbing over a skinned knee.
“Oh, poor thing,” a woman says. “Here, let me help you up.”
Lily sniffles as the woman leads her to the side of the alley, setting her down. “Oh, this is nothing, right, Peter? We can fix this up in just a minute, can’t we?”
“Really?” Lily cries.
God, she wishes that was true. She wishes this kind woman could fix all of her issues with just a minute and a wave of her wand.
“Of course. Peter, why don’t you help calm down, Miss …”
“Lily.”
“Miss Lily.”
Lily watches in fascination as the woman pulls out a wand and waves it over Lily’s knee. She gasps a little as the pain starts to fade away.
“See, all better. Right, Miss Lily?”
“I- thank you.”
“Of course! Happy to help, aren’t we Peter?”
Lily turns to finally look at the other boy. She assumes that Peter must be the kind woman’s son, since they both look the same, with their dirty blonde hair and slightly pudgy appearance. He’s around her age, she thinks, but he might be a little younger too.
Lily smiles awkwardly at Peter, as the other boy gapes at her.
“Oh, I’m sorry dear. He must have a little crush on you. It’s not often that a pretty girl falls right in front of him.”
“Mom!”
The kind woman laughs. “Are your parents around, Miss Lily?”
“I … uh, yeah. My father’s around.”
Not technically a lie.
“Good. Do you need me to walk you to him?”
“No, I can handle it. I- thank you again, Madam …”
“Oh Pettigrew. Lady Pettigrew. And this is my son, Peter Pettigrew. You two look to be about the same age. Maybe you’ll be at Hogwarts together. Wouldn’t that be fun?”
Lily smiles shyly, trying to ignore the way Peter continues to gape at her. “Yeah, maybe. Uh, I need to go, if that’s alright, Lady Pettigrew.”
“Oh, of course dear. Safe travels.”
“Thanks again,” Lily calls out, as she tries to ignore the tears that still sting her eyes. She can’t get caught crying now. Lady Pettigrew won’t ever let her go.
And quite frankly, Lily wants to get as far away from all this magic as she can.
________________________________________
Severus apologizes for leaving her once they meet back up, but Lily mostly just ignores her friend.
She’s not really ready for the conversation she’ll have to have with him yet.
Severus, despite her faults, always seems to understand. So, he just lets the bus ride back home pass by in silence.
By the time they get back home, it’s almost dark out. Severus rushes off without a word, a pale expression on his face.
Lily almost winces in sympathy. They shouldn’t have been out that late, but it took a while for Lily to track her friend back down after everything and the bus ride was so long.
Hopefully his father hasn’t been drinking as much as hers.
Lily pushes into the house, walking into the living room. She blinks when she comes face to face with her family glaring at her.
Usually, Lily would spin a tall tale to try to get herself out of trouble or would at least start to apologize, but that all just seems like too much effort. So instead, she just crosses her arms and glares back.
It never takes much to set off William Evans, at least not as far as she’s concerned.
It’s a loud shouting match, with her father yelling about how worried her mother has been (unlikely) and how scared Petunia has been (very unlikely). He even expresses that he was concerned for her, which is almost laughable.
“Why do you even care? It’s not like you’re my real dad!”
The room goes silent. Lily can even hear the sound of her father’s ragged and angered breaths as he glares down at her.
“You … go to your room!”
“No.”
“Lily!”
“Shut up! Shut the hell up! I’m not your daughter and you're not my father! You can’t tell me what to d-”
Lily gasps as she’s struck for a second time today, her father’s wedding ring digging into her already sore cheek and drawing blood.
As she lays on the ground, clutching her bleeding cheek as her father glowers down at her and her mother and sister stay seated, something in Lily snaps. Something about the stress of the day, with abandoning her actual father to his own fate and getting struck by two men who were supposed to care about her in the same day breaks something in Lily’s chest. In her core.
Lily screams and the house shakes. Pictures come flying off the walls and dishes spill from the cabinets and shatter against the floor.
Lily screams and screams, even as her father yells at her to stop. Even as he kicks at her and tells her to stop or else.
Lily couldn’t stop this even if she wanted to. This isn’t magic she can control. This is something else.
By the time she’s run out of magic, she’s left gasping and panting on the floor, bruised from her father’s kicks.
The man doesn’t care. William Evans picks up his stepdaughter by her hair, dragging her down the hall. Lily can hear her sister sob and when she looks over, she catches a glance of Aimie Evans holding the crying Petunia close.
Lily winces as William drags her into the cupboard under the stairs, her scalp bruised from his grip.
“You’re going to stay in here,” William snaps. “And if you ever do that again, I’ll fucking kill you. Do you understand?”
Lily doesn’t answer at first, as she curls into a ball in the middle of the tiny cupboard.
“Do you understand?!”
“Yes sir.”
And with that, the door to the cupboard slams closed and Lily is left alone with only the darkness and her bruises.
________________________________________
Lily is forced out of her closet at dawn the next morning. She watches as her father clears out the tiny cupboard, before dragging her mattress down from her room.
Her old room.
“Be grateful,” William scolds. “I could have let you sleep on the floor.”
Lily considers glaring at the man or making a retort of some kind, but she decides against it. She used to be able to get away with that.
Not anymore. Not in this house at least.
Severus always waxes on about Hogwarts. About how he can’t wait to get away from his father. Lily never felt that same deep-seated desire that he did. After all, she loves her family.
Loved.
Now it’s the only thing she can think about. Four years. Four years and she can be away from this family.
She starts on breakfast shortly after that, with another slap on the back of the head when she’s a little slow getting into the kitchen.
She’s never cooked more than eggs before, but she has a feeling that’s going to change. She has a feeling that a lot of things are going to change in the Evans family.
She glances at the clock as she attempts to cook the bacon.
It’s almost 8 a.m. Lysander Selwyn doesn’t have long left now. He might already be dead
She can’t help the small smile that crosses her lips as she turns back to focus on the breakfast.
She could have stopped him if he would’ve just listened.
Maybe he didn't deserve to die, but maybe he did. Afterall, he got himself killed and not before murdering that barkeep.
Maybe Lysander dying was just karma. Either for him or for her.