The pain of losing a parent was not something you could imagine even if you tried and was only really felt if the tragedy took place. Lily Evans had been through it once and was now, unfortunately, going through it once again.

It had been exactly three months since she lost her mum, but it still gave her heartache because of the lack of distractions around her. James and Sirius tried their best, yet Lily had perfected her ability to hide behind a smile.

She shivered out of James's grip as he had left a window open and a harsh gust of wind had entered the room, pushing a number of photographs off of his desk the group had been looking at earlier.

She saw one of James and Sirius as cheeky third-years after a disastrously failed prank on Lily and Marlene, who were both on the edge of the photo pictured yelling at the two of them. Remus had snapped the photo for his own amusement.

All the photos were taken had been of good memories, some including Alice's wedding. Lily could not help her need to go back to the time where she had been genuinely happy in the photos.

She closed the window discreetly and hoped the absence of the breeze would not wake James as he was a very light sleeper, so she had learned in the past year.

With those thoughts on her mind, she slipped back into bed with James for the second time that night, hoping the pain would wash away, but fully knowing that it had not worked that way last time and would not work out that way this time either.

Her mother was gone and there was nothing she could do to change that.

...

Clo-sure
a feeling that an emotional or traumatic experience has been resolved

Since she was ushered to the Order Safe House right after her mother died, closure was something that Lily lacked. So, it would be perfectly logical that she wanted to seek it.

"You want to visit your mum's grave?" James repeated even though Lily spoke very clearly, she nodded in response. "Alright, I'll get Mum to make us sandwiches."

"Sandwiches?" She asked confusedly.

"I was thinking we could have lunch with your mum," James answered with a soft smile on his face.

"You are the best thing that's ever happened to me, Potter," she smiled through the tears that were starting to form in her eyes.

"The same goes for you, Evans," he said walking over to her to envelop her into a hug.

Euphemia Potter provided more than enough sandwiches for the day trip. Along with sending them away with hugs that still couldn't fill Lily's need for motherly affection.

Petunia had written a harsh letter with the address of the grave, but their mum had been buried next to their dad, so Petunia hadn't needed to. Lily just accepted her words for what they were and continued living her life, free of the burden of meeting Petunia's expectations.

Lily apparated with James to the hilltop and clutched his hand like it was her lifeline. She needed James more than anything right now, which he understood—even before his mother had made it clear to him that he needed to be there for her. (He was quite offended when Mia had implied that he didn't already know this.)

Seeing the two headstones, one with fresh dirt and one with grass finally starting to sprout up out of the ground, made the tears that had welled up in her eyes pour out. She hadn't gone to see her father in a long, long time, which made her feel inexplicably guilty.

"I can't believe they're both here," Lily knelt in front of the graves so that she could read them both.

Rose Paige Evans
March 1, 1929 - April 20, 1978
Loving Mother & Wife

Lily had never asked if she had taken Henry's last name, but she supposed it was just something she had just assumed her mother did. It was a small triumphant moment for Lily seeing Evans as the surname on the headstone, something she would cherish for the rest of time.

James had been expecting Lily to break down and sob in front of him—that's what he would've done—but instead she just sat there staring at the two graves with silent tears trickling down her face. He took out two sandwiches from the picnic basket, handing one to her gently.

"If I get killed in the war, I need you to promise me that you won't write something stupid on my grave like 'loving mother and wife' that implies the only thing I'm here for is to reproduce."

Lily's blunt words took James by surprise as he wasn't expecting her to speak so casually about her own death.

"First of all, you're not going to die."

"You can't promise that!"

"Well, you're not gonna!"

"James! We're out of Hogwarts! We aren't under Dumbledore's control everyday now, so you can't tell me I'm not going to die because you don't know that!" Lily spoke, albeit a little harshly.

"I don't want you to die."

"Neither do I."

They held eye contact for a short moment both confirming what they already knew to be true. If one of them died, they would consequently take the other with them. Literally or figuratively, as part of them would die with the other simply because of how much in love they actually were.

"I'm ready to go now, if you're ready," Lily said after finishing her sandwich.

"I actually wanted to talk to your parents for a moment if that's alright."

Lily crinkled her eyebrows, but got up out of recognition that he wanted some space and walked around ten feet away to find the shade of a nearby tree. She sat down to watch closely for what James would do next.

"I know I've never properly met the two of you, but from what I've heard, you're both amazing people. To raise such a wonderful person, you would have to be," James started.

Lily thought of her dad's abrupt end stopping him from meeting James. The last that Harry Evans had heard was that James was an arrogant prick. Rose Evans had gotten the chance to meet James, but she wasn't herself so it didn't really count. If it wasn't for Henry...

"Since I can't formally ask for her hand in marriage, I want you two to know that I am going to take care of Lily. Even thought I know she's perfectly capable of it herself, I'll be here for her."

Lily's heart skipped a beat at the word marriage, but if she hadn't known before that she wanted to marry James, this was the clarification. She was going to spend the rest of her life with him.

...

Closing his bedroom door for what was the last time, he held a single trunk in his hand and exhaled a heavy sigh. He had slipped his mother a sleeping potion in her wine that night, although completely harmless, the potion would allow him to leave without raising any alarm. Regulus Black was going to finally leave the Grimmauld Place.

It was an odd feeling that accompanied him as he crept slowly down the stairs. He had many memories attached to the house—many he wished to leave behind—but he hoped he would be able to replace them with new ones soon.

Here he was, trying to make his exit the quietest thing possible, while his brother did quite the opposite many years ago. It was one of Regulus' worst memories, as at the time he felt like he had lost his brother forever by refusing to go with him. He had realised overtime that he should've just left with Sirius, but maybe it was better he do it on his own terms. This way it was clear he knew exactly what he wanted.

"Where is Master Regulus going?" Kreacher's raspy voice echoed by the empty coat rack.

I should've slipped you a potion too.

"Home," Regulus replied shortly, before leaving once and for all.

...

After visiting her parents' graves, Lily's mood dramatically changed. She was able to function like normal—bar a few minor breakdowns—and hold actual conversations with people.

James had been trying to get Lily to do one activity per day, in order for her to keep her mind from straying too far down the rabbit hole. He didn't want her not to grieve because it is a healthy and natural process that she had to go through. Yet, he didn't want to let her become depressed either. There was a fine line between the too as well.

The clouds shapeshifted before their eyes as James handed Lily a spare broom that the Potters happened to own. She had requested for him to truly teach her how to ride a broom that sunny afternoon.

"You know how to mount it, right?" James asked, genuinely not sure how much Lily knew about riding brooms.

They had discussed quidditch in depth quite a few times, but actually participating versus speaking about the game were completely different things. Lily was consciously taking the first step in trying to figure out how to immerse herself in one of her friends' greatest interests. In no way was she expecting to be as good as James, but that didn't mean she couldn't just attempt at flying.

Instead of answering James, she mounted her broom quickly like she had seen many times, before and looked back up at him with a sly grin.

"Well, that answers my question... The next step is to kick off the ground, but make sure you have a tight-"

"She knows how to grip a bloody broom, Prongs. Do you not remember the legendary prank battle?" Sirius interjected as he mounted his own broom.

"Sod off, of course I remember the prank battle! I was just making sure that she was being safe."

Lily raised her eyebrows as the two boys argued over quite literally nothing, again. They had been doing this since they were eleven—as far as she was concerned—so, she took the notion that she wasn't going to get into the air for some time. Their arguments usually dissolved into petty insult wars and she didn't want to be around for another one of those.

Walking back into Potter Manor, she spotted Mia in the kitchen. Euphemia was usually in the kitchen surrounded by house elves, or in her shared studies sat at a desk next to Fleamont, while trying to organise something for the Ministry.

"Morning, Mia!" Lily spoke cheerfully, taking a freshly baked biscuit as she slid into a chair.

"It's actually afternoon, my dear, you three have been outside for quite some time," she replied with her usual wrinkly smile.

Euphemia bustled about the kitchen, not bothered by Lily's presence as the girl watched and chuckled at the boys outside. James had just been called a "hairy pillock"—otherwise known as a stupid or foolish person.

"How are you fairing?" Mia asked Lily, with a comforting look upon her face.

"I think I'm doing quite well, it still hurts from time to time, but I am learning how to deal with it."

"That is perfectly understandable and it is what I expected, but I want you to know something, Lily."

Euphemia paused for a moment, fully gaining the younger girl's attention. This wasn't a hard thing to do—Lily gave all or none of her attention when speaking with someone.

"I met Fleamont when he was young and the age gap wasn't the only thing holding me back. If you haven't noticed, I still have a slight Scottish accent as that is where I grew up, I only came to London later on."

Lily really wasn't sure where the story was going, but she couldn't help but think it was a sad one. James had told her that his mum had gone through a rough life before she had gotten married to Fleamont, yet he didn't even know all the details.

Euphemia didn't speak about her past very often either. Her philosophy was to live in the present, but never forget what happened in the past as it could affect your future.

"The reason I left Scotland and came here was because I became widowed and I could not bare with all the memories surrounding me. London is a loud city—you know that—so I was hoping it would keep me from thinking about him."

Euphemia blew out a deep breath and continued with the long story, one she was trying not to draw out.

"I wasn't planning on meeting Fleamont though. But, we met at a bar that we both happened to be at because I couldn't keep my mouth shut about house elf rights."

"How did house elf rights get brought up at a bar?" Lily asked, trying to get Mia to elaborate on how she met Fleamont.

"Well, one of his friends was a complete arse and was talking about how badly his family treated their elves. I didn't like to hear that and I spoke up about it. Flea's friend was a big guy, so he was very taken with the fact that someone would stand up to him."

"So, that's how you caught his eye?"

"After that, I promptly threw a beer in Fleamont's face for trying to flirt with me and threatened to have the Minister fire him for drinking on the job, as aurors aren't really supposed to drink while off-call."

"You threw a beer in Fleamont's face?" Lily laughed softly.

"Yes, and then the week after, he showed up in my hospital because of an auror mission gone wrong. Flea wasn't too badly hurt, but he did need multiple stitches. He got one of the nurses to give him my address—which pissed me off to no end—and he owled me. The rest is history," Mis spoke reminiscently.

"That's not the point though, the point is that when I went on my first date with him, I told him exactly why I had transferred my job to St. Mungo's instead of the hospital I was at in Scotland. He then gave me some great advice, the same advice I am about to give you."

Lily quickly realized that the advice was the whole reason Mia had told her that story. So, she made sure to pay extra attention to the words spoken next.

"Life is filled with heartache, nothing will ever take away from that, but it does not do to dwell on that. You are perfectly entitled to miss your mother, yet she wouldn't want you to dwell on times that are now gone. Do not forget to live in the present."

The advice absolutely floored Lily. Mia—and Flea—were right. She can't live in the past, where her memories lie, because she will miss the events happening right before her eyes.

"Oh, and I am not sure how you and James feel about the idea, but you all should move out soon. These two knuckleheads will do good with some life experience outside of my house," Euphemia rolled her eyes at James and Sirius, who had continued to insult each other to no end.

"Mediocre numbnut sandwich!"

...

Apparating was an easy job, one that passed the younger Black son by quickly. He had then walked into the apartment building, up the stairs, and down the hallway.

Knocking politely on the door that read 380, he awaited none other than Craig Geyer. His anxieties had washed away with a sudden wave of confidence that had struck him when the red door opened.

"Look who decided to show up! My aunt left a week ago and I was wondering if you were going to come or not!" Craig flashed a grin.

"I think you missed in the library." Regulus stepped forward into the apartment and set his trunk on the floor.

"I missed what?"

It was as new to them as a freshly pressed shirt, but it felt as right as when you slip it on. Soft rebellion fueled the kiss as defiance was the two boys' middle name. Society says that a boy can't kiss another boy. Well, they said, fuck society.

...

Marlene, Mary, and Julia had promised they meet at exactly noon to search for a flat. Yet, Julia had practically thrown a tantrum that morning trying to find her favourite pair of trainers. This made them late, much to Marlene's dismay, because the two sisters fought over why Julia couldn't just wear a different pair of shoes. In the end, Julia found her shoes and Mary was livid over the fact that they were in her Hogwarts trunk—the first place she should've looked.

Lily, Sirius, Remus, Peter, and James laughed at the sight of the other three, as Marlene was walking in between the two displeased sisters, who looked about ready to chop the other's head off.

The only reason Julia was coming with them in the first place was that she had to live in the flat while she wasn't at Hogwarts.

"Alright, we have four options to choose from, so here are your keys, and we'll meet up in the lobby when we are done choosing," Remus explained as he handed the two keys to Lily.

"Sounds good!" Lily chirped back and made her way towards the elevator.

The Marauders planned on sharing a flat while the girls were also sharing. This made it much like their Hogwarts experience as the group decided there was enough time in the future for the couples to move in together eventually. Alice had already moved in separately with Frank, which made sense considering they were now married.

Julia pushed open the door—only after Lily had handed her the two keys, against Mary's warning look. There weren't many red flags that stuck out in the entry way. The small kitchenette only had an annoying water faucet that appeared as if not would not shut off—Mary had tried to screw it on tighter, but gave up before moving on to the two bedrooms.

Marlene and Lily had planned on sharing one of the bedrooms, as it made sense for the two sisters to share.

Their first experience of adulthood may of felt like moving into the flats, but little did they know what was going to happen in the matter of a few years.

...

Author's Note:

This is officially the first chapter! I'm super excited to keep writing this book!

I've had this chapter in my drafts for such a long time and tbh, I am actually kind of nervous to publish. I hope it was up to your standards!

All the stuff with Euphemia was based upon some headcanons I personally have and as far as I know none of it is canon. Although, if you look it up on google, the age gap between Fleamont and Euphemia is true.

I understand that it takes longer than one day to find a house that is clean and in your price range, but for the sake of the plot I'm going to pretend they could just have found it in one day!

Also, I have a confession to make! Originally, I was going to kill Regulus like canon did and make Craig all sad, but then I decided against it. You're welcome.

Lmao anyways thanks for reading
-teddy💅