Lily J. Potter (née Evans) (b. 30 January 1960 - 31 October 1981, aged 21) is one of the overarching protagonists of the Harry Potter series.
She is the younger sister of Petunia Dursley, the wife of James Potter I, the mother of Harry Potter, the sister-in-law of Vernon Dursley, the maternal aunt of Dudley Dursley, the mother-in-law of Ginny Weasley, and the paternal grandmother of James II, Albus and Lily II. She is also the childhood best friend and love interest of Severus Snape.
Background[]
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Lily was born on January 30, 1960 in the English town of Cokeworth to Muggles Mr. and Mrs. Evans, she was the younger sister of Petunia.
As a child, she discovered that she had magic powers, which caused her sister to see her as a freak whilst her parents expressed joy.
Lily didn't have any friends and became lonely, until she met a child named Severus, who was the son of her neighbors.
He told her that the reason she had magical powers was because that she was a witch and that he was a wizard. The two quickly bonded and were able to come to understand each other and their special powers. Severus even fell in love with Lily.
Hogwarts[]
In 1971, an eleven-year-old Lily received a telegram from the Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry saying that she had been accepted into the school, much to her parents' happiness and her sister's jealousy.
At Hogwarts, Lily was sorted into the Gryffindor House while Severus was put into the Slytherin House. During the school years, Lily defended Severus against fellow Gryffindor named James Potter and his bully friends Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew who picked on and hexed Severus and other students. James started to develop romantic feelings for Lily and wanted to be with her, but Lily refused. Severus then joined the Death Eaters much to Lily's horror and ended her friendship with him after he accidentally called her a Mudblood (a offensive term for Muggle-Born witches and wizards). As the years went by, James started to better himself and stopped hexing the students which caused Lily to accept him and the two began a relationship.
After graduation in 1978, Lily and James were married and on July 31, 1980, she gave birth to their first and only son, Harry James Potter.
Death[]
One year later on Halloween night, Lord Voldemort (who believed by a prophecy that Harry would destroy him) came to the Potter home which Peter, (who was serving as the family's secret keeper to keep their location secret to Voldemort) betrayed the Potters to Voldemort (whom Peter was secretly in league with). With her husband dead, Lily did what she could to protect her infant son and sacrificed herself by getting hit with the Killing Curse which killed her instantly. Before her death, she told her son that she and his father loved him very much. Because of Lily's sacrifice, Voldemort was unable to kill Harry as Lily's love protected him.
Legacy[]
Lily was described as a very powerful witch. She was so brave that she gave up her entire life to protect her son and was not afraid to die for his sake. The love for her son was so powerful that after she died and Voldemort attempted to kill Harry, the Killing Curse backfired and destroyed Voldemort's body and caused Harry to receive a scar in a shape of a lightning bolt and survived. Because of the scar, Harry gained a strong bond with Voldemort and even gained some of his dark powers (giving him the ability to talk to snakes and see into Voldemort's mind) until Harry lost those powers when Voldemort unknowingly destroyed the piece of his soul that was inside of Harry. Lily was known to have the most beautiful green eyes, and since Harry had inherited his mother's eyes, Lily's past teachers, friends, and even Severus mentioned that Harry's eyes show that a part of Lily is still alive in Harry.
Personality[]
Lily was known for being a vivacious, talented, and popular student. She was a responsible student and leader to be Head Girl in her final year at Hogwarts. Horace Slughorn noted that Lily was witty and charming. Remus Lupin once described her as an uncommonly kind person with a habit of seeing the best in others, even when they could not see it themselves.
Lily was a woman of sound moral principles and would stand by them no matter what it cost her, though her actions sometimes were ineffective. On at least one occasion, she called out James Potter and Sirius Black for their bullying of her best friend, Severus Snape. When she realised Snape's devotion to Voldemort's genocidal cause (of which she was a target at the time) and increasingly deep fascination with the Dark Arts, caused her to end her friendship with him permanently.
Though she had a sharp tongue and had no problems in standing up to others when she was in a temper, Lily was still the type of person who would give others a second chance when they had proven themselves worthy of it. The most notable instance of this quality would be how she finally agreed to date James after he had matured out of his bullying ways, despite the fact that she didn't have a good opinion of him during their early school years.
Lily's and her husband's most celebrated virtues were their courage and capacity for self-sacrifice: defying Voldemort three times as members of the Order of the Phoenix and even dying to protect their son Harry. It was noted by Dumbledore that Lily was very much like her son, especially in strength. Her strength is further commented on by her grandson Albus in that she would understand her fate and the fact that she would never see her son grow up.
Physical Appearance[]
Lily was a beautiful woman with thick, dark red hair that fell to her shoulders, and almond-shaped, bright green eyes. Apparently, her eyes were extremely distinctive, because every person who knew Lily would always see them in her son, Harry. When the aged Harry travelled back to the past, he commented that even in the face of death, she was still beautiful.
Powers and Abilities[]
Since even Lord Voldemort was willing to overlook Lily's Muggle-born status and ask her to join him, this is proof that she was a truly powerful and accomplished witch. She was noted for her particular talent in Potion-making and was able to conjure a corporeal doe Patronus, a mark of superior magical ability.
- Love: Lily displayed a tremendous amount of love throughout her life. When she was only 21 years old, she lovingly sacrificed her own life for her only son despite being given the choice to leave him behind and live. It was this very sacrifice that enabled Harry to survive the Killing Curse, which rebounded off him and destroyed Voldemort's body. It protected her son from her murderer for 16 years after her death, especially due to their blood connection.
- Control of Underage Magic: Before attending Hogwarts, Lily already had a level of control over her magic — once she literally flew into the air after jumping off a swing. She then subsequently slowed her descent and lightly land on the ground. She also went on to manipulate a flower to open and close its petals like "some bizarre, many-lipped oyster".
- Potions: According to Slughorn, Lily was an excellent potioneer who impressed him. She had an "instinctual understanding" of the subject.
- Charms: Lily excelled in charm-work — her wand was described as being "nice for Charms work". She was able to animate teapots to make "[them] sing" and effectively conjure a corporeal doe Patronus, which is an incredibly advanced piece of protective magic.
- Transfiguration: Lily was revealed to have been proficient in transfiguration. When she came home from Hogwarts for the holidays, she "turned teacups into rats". She also transfigured a lily petal into a fish, which Slughorn described as "beautiful magic, wondrous to behold".
- Duelling: Along with her husband James, Lily was able to defy and escape Lord Voldemort three times, which showcased her remarkable talent in martial magic.
Possessions[]
- Wand: Lily's wand was 10¼" long, made of willow, and had an unknown core. The wand was described as "swishy" and "nice for Charms work" by Garrick Ollivander.
- Potters' Cottage: Lily owned this cottage in Godric's Hollow along with her husband James during the final weeks of the First Wizarding War. This is where she and her husband were murdered and her son Harry was marked as the "Boy Who Lived". The cottage still stands as a reminder of what happened that Hallowe'en night in 1981.
- Cat: This was a pet of the Potter family. What happened to it after the attack is unknown.
Relationships[]
Quotes[]
- “Harry, you are so loved, so loved. Harry, Mama loves you. Dada loves you. Harry, be safe. Be strong.”
- ―Lily to her infant son before her death.
- “Not Harry! Please... have mercy... have mercy... Not Harry! Not Harry! Please — I'll do anything...”
- ―Lily to Lord Voldermort, refusing to allow him to kill her son.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In the books, Lily along with James, was 21 years old when she was killed by Lord Voldemort. However in the movies, she appears to be older.
- Just as Harry being the foil to Voldemort, Lily is the opposite to the mother of her son's nemesis, Merope Gaunt: Whereas Lily's love with James being a mutual one and more than willing to do anything for her son's sake, Merope's love for Tom Riddle Snr., the father of Lord Voldemort, proved one-sided and she chose to die rather than staying alive for young Voldemort's sake when she lost control of Riddle Snr. (as Dumbledore pointed out however, Merope had a terrible upbringing and also too consumed by despair from her husband's departure).