Dumbledore quietly closed the wooden cottage door behind him. He still had other matters to attend to.
Before leaving, he told Snape and Lily that he would return at noon the next day to fetch them.
Snape brought Lily a brand-new feather pillow and a set of dark blue nightclothes.
"Would you rather sleep in the guest room tonight?" he asked softly.
Lily nodded.
Just as Snape turned to leave, he felt a faint tug at his robe. Lily was gently holding onto the corner of his clothing, the pull was so light it was almost imperceptible.
He looked down into her dim emerald eyes.
"Get some proper rest tonight," Snape said gently. "I'll stay out here with you."
He left the guest room to fetch an armchair from the living room.
When he returned, Lily had already changed into her nightclothes and was curled up beneath the thin blanket, her red hair spilling loosely over the pillow.
Snape placed the chair beside the bed and adjusted it to a position where he could keep an eye on her without making her uncomfortable.
He sat down. After a moment's hesitation, he reached out and held her cold hand, which rested outside the blanket.
Lily suddenly gripped his hand tightly, so tightly it startled him.
"Later on... I did notice the change in you," she whispered, her voice so low that Snape had to lean in to hear her. "But... I'm sorry..."
"It's all right. Everything's in the past now." Snape rubbed her hand softly with his thumb. "It's me who should have told you I was sorry, back then."
Lily turned slightly toward him, facing him. Moonlight filtered through the crack in the curtains, falling across her pale face. She looked at him for a long time, her eyes filled with a complex emotion Snape couldn't quite read.
When the first light of dawn crept in, the faint sound of footsteps startled the two of them awake.
Snape realized, with a start, that at some point he too had fallen asleep. His neck ached from the awkward position he'd slept in.
Eileen was standing at the door, surprised at what she saw: Lily lying in bed, and Snape sitting beside her, their hands still clasped together.
"Ah, Mrs. Snape," Lily released his hand at once as if shocked by electricity. She sat up quickly, blushing in embarrassment. "Good morning, I..."
"It's all right, it's all right," Eileen said, stepping back a couple of paces, looking a little flustered at interrupting them but speaking with a tone of knowing gentleness. "I'll go make breakfast."
Snape rose from his chair, rubbing the stiffness from his neck.
"I'll step out for a bit," he told Lily, then walked out of the guest room and closed the door behind him.
Lily quickly changed and came to the kitchen. She tried to help, but Eileen stopped her.
"No need, just sit," Eileen said, giving her wand a flick. A steaming mug of milk floated down onto the table before Lily.
The breakfast spread was more plentiful than usual.
Snape watched as Eileen kept adding food to Lily's plate. He cleared his throat lightly. "Mum, Lily will be staying here for a while. Is that all right?"
"Of course," Eileen said as she cut several slices of white bread, spreading butter over them. "Lily, it's been such a long time since I last saw you. You were still a little girl back then..."
"Thank you, Mrs. Snape," Lily said softly. "But I can't eat so much..."
"Eat more," Eileen said firmly, adding two sausages and three fried eggs to Lily's plate. "I'll prepare a room for you upstairs later. The guest room downstairs is too bare."
"Oh no, please, don't trouble yourself!" Lily nearly spilled her cup. "The guest room is perfectly fine—"
"Don't be so polite, Lily," Eileen insisted.
When breakfast was over, Eileen suddenly turned to Snape. "Why don't you move into another room? The one with the best view out the window."
Snape stared at her, caught off guard.
"That's not necessary," Lily said quickly. "Really, thank you, Mrs. Snape, but the guest room is fine."
"That won't do." Eileen flicked her wand toward the table, and the dishes floated into the sink, washing themselves with a clatter of porcelain.
While Eileen went upstairs to prepare the room, Snape accompanied Lily to the small garden in front of the cottage.
They stood quietly side by side.
Morning dew hung like tiny jewels on the spiderwebs, bees buzzed among the flowers, and the distant murmur of a stream blended with the birds' early calls.
It was as though the storm from the night before had never happened, everything before them looked exactly as it always had.
"Lily!" A window upstairs creaked open. Eileen leaned out, calling, "It's all ready! Would you like to come see?"
Snape waved toward her, then turned back with Lily toward the house and the staircase.
Upstairs in the hallway, Eileen was standing at the doorway of Snape's own room, beckoning Lily with a pleased smile.
"So... that's how it is," Snape thought. Clearly, his mother had switched the rooms despite his earlier words.
"Come, have a look," Eileen said warmly. "Tell me if there's anything you don't like."
"No, it's wonderful," Lily said softly, shaking her head.
She walked inside and looked around at the freshly changed sheets and bedding, the spotless desk, and the gleaming wooden floor. A faint sadness flickered in her eyes.
"Could I... stay here by myself for a bit?" Lily asked quietly.
"All right," Snape said, cutting off his mother's reply with a glance. "If you need anything, just call."
He closed the door gently behind them, deciding that Lily deserved a moment of privacy.
Down in the living room, he spoke to Eileen in a low voice.
"Mum," he began after a pause, glancing up toward the stairs, "something happened yesterday... Mr. and Mrs. Evans... they're gone. That's why Lily's here."
Eileen covered her mouth in shock.
Looking toward the stairs as well, she whispered, "What happened?"
"An accident," Snape said after a brief hesitation, deciding not to tell her the truth. "Just... don't bring it up in front of her. Pretend you don't know.
"Also, Professor Dumbledore will be here at noon to take Lily, and I'll be going with them to handle what happened yesterday."
Eileen nodded faintly, pity softening her features.
...
The midday sunlight broke through the clouds and scattered in dappled patterns across the lawn outside the cottage.
Dumbledore knocked on the door right on time.
"Eileen, it's been a long time," he said, his expression once again calm and composed.
"Good afternoon, Professor," Eileen said, opening the door. She wiped her apron nervously. "You've come, would you like to stay for lunch?"
"Thank you, Eileen," Dumbledore replied with a smile. "I'm afraid we're in a bit of a hurry today, so I must decline. But next time, I'll be sure to try your cooking."
By the time he arrived, Snape and Lily already had their cloaks on.
After saying their goodbyes to Eileen, they followed Dumbledore out of the cottage.
The three of them walked down the hillside, Dumbledore's long robes billowing in the wind.
After a short walk down the slope, they stepped past the boundary of the Anti-Disapparition Charm.
"Where are we going?" Snape asked.
Dumbledore didn't answer. Instead, he extended an arm toward each of them.
"Hold on tight," he said softly. "This might feel a bit unpleasant."
They each took hold of his arm.
When their feet touched solid ground again, they were standing on an unfamiliar street.
It was narrow, lined with old brick and stone buildings. Time had left its mark on their walls, patches of plaster had fallen away, exposing rough stone beneath.
Shops lined the street, the most prominent among them being Winstanley's Books & Stationery. Its storefront was small; the display window was filled with books, pens, and newspapers. The faded sign above the door made the name barely legible.
Inside, soft piano music played, a stark contrast to the shabby surroundings outside.
There were a few other small shops, a grocer, a tailor, a cobbler. None looked prosperous; only a few elderly customers in worn clothing moved about.
"Where are we?" Lily asked, releasing Dumbledore's arm.
Dumbledore pulled a piece of parchment from his robes and spread it out before them. "Read it carefully. Remember it well."
In handwriting Snape didn't recognize, the parchment read:
"Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix is located at 421 Vauxhall Road, London."
Once they had finished reading, Dumbledore touched the parchment with his wand. It curled and burned away, leaving only drifting ash.
Lily frowned, glancing around. They were standing in front of Winstanley's Books & Stationery, number 422.
To the left stood an old apartment building marked 420; to the right, a tailor's shop labeled 423.
"Where is it?" Lily asked in confusion.
So this was the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix during the First Wizarding War. Snape's black eyes glinted with understanding.
"The Fidelius Charm," he murmured to Lily, then turned to Dumbledore. "Vauxhall Road 421... Professor, you're not the Secret-Keeper, are you?"
"No," Dumbledore said, shaking his head. "This house belongs to the Prewett family. Gideon Prewett is the Secret-Keeper."
As soon as he spoke, a dark oak door appeared out of thin air between numbers 420 and 422, with the brass plaque clearly engraved: 421.
Then, tightly curtained windows emerged above it, as if a hidden building had suddenly expanded and forced its way between the others.
Inside the bookshop, the piano still played, and the Muggles reading by the window seemed utterly unaware of what had just appeared outside.
"Let's go," Dumbledore said, stepping toward the door of 421 Vauxhall Road.
He drew his wand and knocked three times.
Snape heard a series of metallic clinks and the clicking sound of gears turning.
The door creaked open.
They stepped over the threshold into a brightly lit entrance hall.
"Albus, you're here." Moody's distinctive voice came from the far door as he stomped toward them. "Ah... you brought them too. You're of age now... Come in, the meeting's waiting on you."
They followed him down the corridor.
Portraits lined the walls, wizards and witches with dark golden hair. Some were dozing; others opened drowsy eyes and smiled warmly at the newcomers.
The door at the end opened to reveal a room full of wizards and witches.
On the wall opposite the door hung a large, pale red tapestry. The golden threads gleamed and faded in the light, weaving a sprawling family tree that stretched back to the Norman Conquest.
At the top, words were embroidered in bold golden letters:
"The Brave Prewett Family, Ever Forward."
Snape's eyes traveled to the bottom of the tapestry. Beside the names Fabian Prewett and Gideon Prewett, a double golden thread linked Molly Prewett to Arthur Weasley, with three thinner lines descending from their names to William (Bill), Charlie, and Percy.
Farther up, Ignatius Prewett was connected by a double thread to Lucretia Black.
A short-haired man with dark golden hair, Fabian Prewett, winked at Snape. They had met once before, at one of Professor Slughorn's gatherings. Beside him sat another man with the same hair and similar features, Gideon Prewett, no doubt.
Dumbledore strode to the side of the tapestry and sat down at the center of the long table.
"Sit down." he said.
The murmuring in the room stopped immediately.
Chairs were moved aside to make space for Snape and Lily.
"I'd like to introduce two new comrades," Dumbledore said in a deep voice. "Severus Snape and Lily Evans. They are still students at Hogwarts."
"They're of age," Moody explained to the curious members. "They'll be entering their seventh year soon."
"But," said a round-faced wizard with sandy-blond hair from the far end of the table, lowering his voice to Dumbledore, "they're still students."
Beside him, a kind-faced witch with soft features gently squeezed his arm.
"Frank," Dumbledore said, lifting his hand, his tone gentle yet firm, "they have their reasons for joining the Order, just as you and I do."
Frank Longbottom said no more. He gave Snape and Lily a friendly nod.