Without Warning

CHAPTER ONE: Sisterly Love

The freezing cold that had been winter was drawing to a close, and Lily Evans was welcoming the sultry days of Spring with open arms. Winter was not her season. She longed for the emerald green grass swishing in the cool spring breeze and the ruby red sunsets she would purposely stay up to attend. Her mother said it was because she was a Spring baby and, try as she might, Lily could not deny this fact. Spring was reflected in her face. Her bright green eyes mirrored the glossy grass and her deep auburn hair shone from the shimmering rays of the sun.

For some reason, however, she was looking forward to the new term much more than she normally did, which was indeed saying something. Winter had felt like an eternity of misery and iciness.

Of course, the temporary seasonal changes couldn't be held totally responsible for Lily's bad mood. A certain boy by the name of James Potter had a lot to be held accountable for it in her opinion as well.

'Lily! We have to leave soon if we're to get you to the train station on time!' Her mothers voice floated up to her room, interrupting her train of thought.p>

She gave out a noticeably desperate sigh. Lily was heading back to Hogwarts after her brief stint home for Easter.

'Okay mum, I'll be there in a sec,'she replied.

It wasn't that she didn't want to go back to Hogwarts - on the contrary, it was one of her most favourite places in the world. It was just some the people inside the castle were of her least favourite, namely Potter and his sidekick Black.

Lily let out a snort of laughter at the thought of what Sirius would have said in reply to being named James' sidekick.

But no time to linger over her problems! She had some packing to attend to very quickly.

'Damn, those underage wizarding laws,' she muttered to herself as she packed her trunk manually.

She quickly glanced in the mirror to check her appearance. She wore a pair of faded denim jeans that were cut off at the knee and were now starting to fray. Her hair was sprawling across her shoulders and dark blue t-shirt, which completely contrasted the colour of her hair, making it appear even redder.

After throwing all her spare robes, books and cauldron in, she slammed the lid down on her trunk to reveal the shining Gryffindor lion emblazoned on the lid. She gave the lion an affectionate wink and went about dragging the trunk out her bedroom door, where she met...

'Petunia.'

Lily was greeted with a swift sniff of disapproval from her only sister.

'Hello to you too,' Lily smiled half-heartedly. 'I see you've been snooping outside my room again, but alas! I've learnt from the last time, Tuna, and I'm taking my diary with me.'

'For your information, I wasn't snooping. Mum says I have to come for the ride to the station to see you off. Good riddance, I say,' Petunia retorted.

'A small price to pay for a blissful Spring without you,' Lily sighed in amusement at the contorted rage that was now Petunia's face.

'I'd rather spend my Spring with normal people, not freaks like you,' Petunia spat and stalked off.

Lily rolled her eyes at her sister's ignorance, and began dragging her trunk down the stairs towards the front door.

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'Bye, darling! Have fun,' Lily's mother cooed as she kissed the top of her head.

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'Yes, mum,' Lily was far too used to this ceremonial activity now. And it was far from over.

'Oh, but do study hard, won't you?' Lily mouthed along with her mother as she spoke.

'Yes, mum,' she said automatically.

'And honey, do try to stay out of any more trouble,' her mother said threateningly as she pulled her into a tight embrace. Lily scowled slightly; it hadn't been all her fault.

For someone who had done this a number of times already, Lily didn't think that it got any easier for her mother, who loved both her children dearly. At this thought, Lily remembered her sister's presence and poked her tongue out at her over her mother's shoulder.

'Yes, mum.' Lily picked up one of the handles on her trunk, ready to board the Hogwarts Express.

As she turned, her mother spoke again.

'And Lil?'

'Yes, mum?'

'I love you.'

'I love you too, mum. Don't worry, I'll write as often as possible. Bye!' Lily sighed, shaking her head slightly and scrambled on to the train, where she automatically headed for the same booth she'd been going to since her first trip on the Hogwarts Express.

She slid the door open to find nobody inside and quickly stored her trunk in an overhead compartment. Plonking herself down next to the window, she briefly glanced out to see her mother waving briskly with Petunia at her side scowling. Lily smiled and waved back. At that moment, the booth door slid open again.

'Lily!' a familiar voice squealed.

'Indigo! How are you? How was your Easter?' Lily grinned at the sight of her best friend.

Indigo had deep hazel eyes, which matched her dark olive skin and long chocolaty-brown hair. Lily noticed that she had acquired a couple more freckles that were scattered across her nose.

'Oh y'know, mayhem at the ministry as usual. Didn't see much of Mum at all really. Spent loads of time with Dad practising Quidditch though.' Indigo grinned.

Her mother held an important position in the Ministry of Magic and was constantly absent from her home. Consequently, Indigo had developed a strong bond with her father, who knew a fair few things about the sport Quidditch. As a result, she happened to be a rather talented Chaser for the Gryffindor team. Indigo was what many Muggles would call a 'tomboy', as she didn't bother messing around with the typical 'girly' stuff, such as makeup and shoes. She was rather partial to stand her ground against anyone who got on her nerves. To Lily, Indigo was just Indigo.

'How was yours?' she asked Lily.

Lily sighed, 'Nothing new on the Evans front. Petunia was being a right old toad, but hey, that's not out of the ordinary.'

'How is Tuna breath?' Indigo snorted.

'Still snooping around, still trying to nark on me for non-existent reasons apart from the fact that I'm obviously a freak,' Lily laughed slightly then trailed off.

'Is she still going out with the Dursley git?' Indigo asked.

'Indeed.' Lily looked over at Indigo and caught sight of the expression on her face. They both burst out laughing.

'Ah, they're well suited,' Indigo smiled.

'Yes, though I'm not quite sure what she sees in his vast array of spandex wrestling outfits.' Lily and Indigo burst into fits of hysterical laughter once more, until somebody else opened the booth door.

'Oh, it's you.' Lily stopped laughing abruptly.

'Evans, how lovely to see you,' James sneered.