Lily's Letter

My Dear Petunia,

I have written by Mu the regular post as I knew you would wish. Mum has already told me that there's no point, but I know that I have to try anyway. It has been four years since we last saw each other, when we were visiting Dad in You-Know-Where. I have since heard that you were married and that you're expecting. Petunia, nobody knows yet aside from James and myself, but I'm pregnant too. I'm afraid that if we tell Mum, she'll be furious. That's why James wants to hurry up with the wedding, so that when our baby is born, the timing won't be too suspicious. James wants to name him Harry, and he hasn't even considered that we may have a little girl. I just hope that if we do, he won't still insist on calling her Harry! I'm secretly hoping for a little Gwennan, (after a very powerful prominent member of our society) but I'll be happy with a smaller version of the man I love.

The main reason I'm writing is because I still want you to be my Maid of Honor. Mum already told me that you declined when she asked you, and I know you refused to come to the bridal shower, but I'm still keeping my hopes up. I can't think of anyone else I'd rather have than my sister. I know that everyone has told me that there is absolutely no way you'll change your mind, but I have to try. I want you at my wedding. I want everyone to know that I still love you, and that I do not wish to lose you as a sister simply because of our differences. I want you to meet your brother-in-law, Petunia. And I want to meet mine! I just don't understand why something so insignificant has to keep us apart.

Hope to hear from you soon,

Lily

My Dear Petunia,

The wedding was beautiful. So many people came to give us their blessings; it was truly like a reunion from school. The only thing that could have made it better was, of course, if you had only come. Mum gave us a gift that was supposedly from you, but I have the sinking feeling that she bought it herself to make me feel better about the fact that you weren't there.

James and I are trying to figure out the right time to reveal that I'm pregnant. I'm not really showing yet, but in a few weeks, it should be fairly obvious. I could possibly pretend that I just ate too much wedding cake! That's quite possible; the cake was amazing! You'd be surprised what...our kind... can whip up! How are things going with Vernon? Does he know about me? Or do you just pretend that you have no sister, much like you did around your friends. I suppose though, since he IS your husband, that you would be completely honest with him.

Petunia, I want to make things right between us. Please. Mum is having a party for James and me on the 17^th. It will only be for family and friends that aren't live around where you and Mum do, if you understand my meaning. She should be contacting you about it soon, but I just wanted to write you anyway. Please come. You have no idea how much it would mean to me. And bring Vernon! I want to meet my brother-in-law!

All my love,

Lily

My Dear Petunia,

Missed you on the 17^th. Mum assured me that you would probably burn any letter I send you, but as you can see, I'm still writing. The party went well, except that Aunt Gertrude somehow managed to figure out that I was expecting. You know Aunt Gertrude, so you'll know that she immediately declared her suspicions, and, well...we owned up! Mum was a bit unhappy about the whole thing; she felt as though it reflected poorly upon her that I was pregnant on my wedding day.

The rest of our relatives didn't seem too upset though. Several of our aunts gave James the third degree about how he was planning on providing for this new family. Of course, the...company that James works at isn't exactly...well-known to those in our family, so it took a bit of explaining. Eventually though, we realized that we could have just said how much money he makes a year and that would have been sufficient.

Mum is making me go to a doctor next Thursday. She wants me to see one that she approves of, instead of the one from around where James and I live, if you understand what I mean. She says that she doesn't trust our kind of doctors, you see. I agreed just to try and keep peace. After all, she hadn't really forgiven me for waiting so long to tell her.

So, we'll be in London on Thursday. Mum said she hoped we could make a day out of it. She wants to take me shopping for baby supplies. I was just thinking that since you lived so near London, you could possibly meet us somewhere. You probably need to go shopping for things for the baby too! How far along are you? Mum wasn't sure. Apparently she hasn't had much contact with you either.

Please write back. I'm desperate to hear from you.

Love,

Lily

Dear Petunia,

I know it's been a while since I wrote you, but I was a bit discouraged by the note you gave me through Mum. I figured you were just a bit rushed, and that the part about never trying to contact you again was just a poorly worded way of saying that you were terribly sorry to miss our little shopping trip.

Still, I was happy to hear that you finally told Vernon a bit about me. Despite the fact that it probably wasn't anything good, that's at least a step in the right direction! Pretty soon you'll be having me over to tea! Okay, maybe that's a bit of wishful thinking. Though I have to tell you that I've thought about dropping by quite a few times. I just don't want to alienate you any more than I already have. You'll come around. I know you will.

Anyway, the thing that spurred me to write was that Mum mailed me a newspaper clipping with Dudley's birth announcement. I assumed you were close, since I knew you were at least a month farther along than me. I'm due the second week in August, so as you can probably assume, I'm getting pretty excited. Is Dudley healthy? Does he look more like you or Vernon? Did he get the Evans nose?

Hope to hear more soon,

Lily

Dear Petunia,

Our son Harry was born yesterday. You may not care about me at all anymore, as you so kindly told me in your last note through Mum, but I just thought you should know. Enclosed is a clipping from the paper, announcing his birth.

Always yours,

Lily

Petunia,

I never thought you could sink so low. I never thought you would dare...to not invite me to my own mother's funeral. How dare you deny my existence? How dare you name yourself the sole survivor? It's not the money, Petunia; don't even think for a moment that it's the money! You can have the entire estate. I don't care one bit. Keep your filthy money, and I hope it comforts you in your loneliness. I hope you can afford to buy others' affection with it, because you certainly have no meriting qualities to make friends otherwise.

You have been denying that you have a sister for years. Fine. So be it. I have no sister either.

Lily

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Dursley,

I regret to inform you that Lily and James Potter were murdered this morning. As his last living relative, you are hereby the guardians of Harry James Potter. Harry, as you must assume by how powerful his parents were, will one day be one of the best wizards of his age. It is now your duty to look after your nephew as you would your own son. There is no one else who can care for him, for your sister gave her life to protect him. Thus, her blood gave Harry a protection that will last as long as he is around a blood relative. Petunia, his life is in your hands, and you owe it to your sister to ensure that her life was not given in vain.

It is up to you how much regarding the death of his parents you reveal to him, but above all, you must tell him as soon as you deem him old enough of his powers and of the world that his parents lived in. It is important that he is raised as any ordinary child, but still, he must know who his parents were and why they died, if not how, for that is a gruesome matter, best left to reveal when he is much older.

You, however, have a right to know all the unhappy details....

Petunia dropped the letter back into the small box as she heard footsteps on the stairs. She snapped the box closed and shoved it under the bed once more as Vernon entered the bedroom and lay down, falling asleep without a word to her.

And she lowered her head into her hands and wept, well into the night.