Lily pressed the doorbell without much thought of the years that had past since she had last seen the couple who lived here. Her eyes were distant and swollen from crying. Tears stained her cheeks and Lily wiped them, frantically as she watched the door, hoping vainly that it would open. The car was parked in the drive, surely they were home?
A fresh wave of grief wracked the redhead's form and she knocked a quick and curt beat on the wood of the door. "Tuney. Tuney, are you there? Please?"
The door opened in that moment and Lily nearly stumbled, blinded by her upset before she blinked it back and looked at the woman who had answered the door. She was thin and bony with platinum blonde hair and dark eyes and she was exactly who Lily wanted to see. The two women stared at one another for what seemed to Lily like ages; Petunia had set her jaw and was watching her younger sister as if she were something foul.
"You're supposed to be dead."
"Tuney. You don't know how good it is to see you."
Petunia softened only the tiniest bit. "What happened?"
"He doesn't love me. Harry ran away and...Oh, God. Petunia. I'm
so tired."
"Petunia, who is it?" Vernon Dursely had wandered towards the door and when he caught sight of Lily his whole face twisted with annoyance. He opened his mouth to spit something rude but his wife cut him off.
She turned to her husband. "Vernon, make sure the guest room is ready. Lily is staying with us for a while."
Lily sobbed, gratefully and flung herself into Petunia's arms. The other woman resisted a moment before instincts as an older sister, instincts to protect and comfort took over. "Hush, hush. Lils. I won't let those nasty wizards hurt you anymore. It's okay, you're safe."
And the redhead didn't have it in her to object.
"Come now, I have tea..."