The Third Sister (A Marauders Era Fanfiction)

Chapter Two

A few days after I received my letter I was in the kitchen chopping carrots for stew. My mother was cutting up chicken when I asked her, "Mum, when are we going to shop for the things I need for school?"

"Tomorrow," she responded, "your father said he would take you, Petunia, and Lily." Petunia, who had been chopping celery beside me turned around quickly to face our mother.

"I don't want to go shopping for freak things!" she exclaimed.

"Petunia, what have I said about using that word?" my mother scolded. Petunia ignored her and continued with her argument.

"Do I really have to go?" She asked.

"No, you can just run errands with me if you don't want to go with them," my mother told her. Petunia did not rebuttal against that and accepted it with fierce chopping. The kitchen was silent for a few minutes before Lily, who had been sitting on the counter, peeling potatoes over the sink, piped up.

"Mum, may I go outside? My friend is waiting outside the gate for me," she asked. Immediately Petunia and I left our chopping and crowded around Lily at the window over the sink. A boy with shoulder length black hair stood by the gate. He was looking around at the flowers in the yard, specifically at the lilies.

"Yes, go ahead dear, but be back for dinner," Mum answered. Lily leapt off the counter and to the entryway, Petunia and I right on her tail. As she was putting on her shoes we started shooting questions at her.

"What's his name?" Petunia inquired.

"Where'd you meet him?" I added.

"Where are you two going?" Petunia asked.

"What are you going to do?" I questioned. As Lily opened the door she answered exasperatedly,

"His name is Severus. We met at the park. We're going to the river bank. And we're going to talk about how invasive my sisters are." Petunia and I laughed as she said this. Lily ran out the door and greeted him at the gate. He smiled as he saw her and soon they went off down the road out of sight of the open door. That was the one thing that always got Petunia and me on the same side: teasing Lily about boys. It was the one sisterly activity we enjoyed.

***

The next morning we piled into the family station wagon. It was an old car that my parents had received new when they had gotten married. It could still manage to drive us to London though. We parked in a department store parking lot so that Mum and Petunia could run errands. Dad took Lily and I down the street. He had told us that he had gone to this place with his parents a few times. He told me to look for anything "magical" as we walked up and down sidewalks. I finally saw a sign hanging and Lily saw it too. It was a sign with a witch stirring something in a cauldron. "Dad, I think we found it," I said, pointing up at the sign. A smile came to his face and he led us towards the door. I had never seen anything like it when we got inside. There were people with wands and witch hats on. A man sat at a table stirring the spoon in his tea without even touching it. Lily and I marvelled at the place. Dad led us over to the bar where a young man stood, cleaning mugs.

"Excuse me sir," Dad started, "would you mind helping us out?"

"Of course, and please, call me Ed. What is it that you three need help with?" he asked, putting the mug and rag down.

"This is my daughter, Rose. She's starting Hogwarts this fall and -"

"And you're not magical?" Ed questioned, cutting Dad off.

"Yes," Dad responded.

"So, you need to get into Diagon Alley?" Ed asked.

"Yes," Dad answered once again.