•stay-jily fanfic•

Chapter 58- Graduation Day

Lily POV

I carefully straighten my graduation cap, making sure it's straight. Taking one last look in the mirror at my reflection, I walk downstairs, taking James's arm. Gryffindor wears red, Ravenclaw wears blue, Hufflepuff wears yellow, and Slytherin wears green. We walk down the halls for the last time in silence. "Last day." James says, squeezing my hand. I squeeze back, straightening his robes. "You ready?" He asks, kissing me lightly so he doesn't get my lipstick all over his face. "Ready as I'll ever be." We look down the the corridor and pull the doors open together for the last time as students. 

I sit down in my designated spot in the students section. My eyes start to well up already. "Thank you all for joining us here today for the Graduation of the Hogwarts Class of 1978!" Dumbledore says good naturedly.  There's a polite splatter of applause. "It has been a complete joy to watch each and every one of these children grow and reach their full potential. Each and every one of you, I know in my heart, will go on and do great things." He pauses for a minute. 

"I do feel the need to address the dark cloud hanging over us. I will not deny your children the need to know the truth about what's happening. Voldemort will not win today, and he certainly will not win tomorrow. I can personally tell each and every one of you I will be worrying about you every minute that you are not under Hogwarts care." I see the mothers in the crowd wipe tears away. "I can only hope we have properly prepared your children for the world out there. Hogwarts will always be here to welcome you home." He smiles. "Now, it's my pleasure to introduce the Head Girl of 1978, Miss Lily Evans." I walk up to the podium, smiling out in the crowd. I see my parents clapping loudly, right next to James's. Bella and James are cheering wildly. 

"Thank you all for coming to my graduation." I hold my index cards for a minute, before flipping them over and pushing them away. I look out into the crowd. "I know many of the Hogwarts Alumni look back on these 7 years fondly. I know I definitely will." I pause for a minute. "I've had things tough, and I've had things easy. For instance, I never had to look far for a date with a guy who was wholeheartedly interested in me, even though it took me a while to come around." My family laughs and James blushes. 

"But one thing I do know, is that Hogwarts is my home. Being at Hogwarts, and being a witch, truly feel like a never ending dream. Professor McGonagall, you were like my fairy godmother." I confess, looking out at her wiping tears from her eyes. "You reminded me of a fairy tale that I never knew was real. I really want to thank you for being my mom away fro my mom." She laughed shakily, looking at me fondly. "I remember in first year, I wanted to slap the people who complained about homework. You're at Hogwarts! You're literally at magic school! Stop complaining!" The crowd laughed. "All I knew, was that I would much rather be writing an essay about the art of transfiguration then about the metaphors of an English poem from 1776." I pause for a minute.

"I truly care about each and every person in this crowd. As I look across and see individual faces, I can remember nice and kind things each and every one of you has done for me. That's the kind of people this school produces. And I know, together, we can beat this war together. So, thank you Hogwarts, for giving me the best 7 years of my life. Nothing truly would be the same." 

The crowd burst out into applause, and I smile through my tears. I get a standing ovation for my speech and someone hands me a tissue. "It would be my greatest honor to introduce my fellow head and one of the greatest guys I've ever known, Head Boy James Potter." I say, blowing him a kiss into the crowd. He blushes, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he walks up to the podium. He squeezes my hand as I walk by, and I sink into my seat next to Bella. She bumps shoulders with me. "That was amazing!" She says. I look at her. "You think so?" She nods. "Absolutely." We turn back to James, who's nervously starting his speech.