11/21/2012
Remus was speaking to Harry, Ron and Hermione in the kitchen. Harry, of course, wanted to get information about the Order, and a weary Remus tried to divert his attention elsewhere. He was just starting his recovery from the previous full moon, and he was in no shape to argue with three stubborn teens. He heard a shuffle in the living room and shook it off, thinking Sirius finally decided to roll out of bed. He turned his attention back to the trio.
"Harry, I realize that you want to fight, but you don't have all the proper training!"
"You, Sirius, and my father joined at our age. Why can't we?"
"Because times have changed. Voldemort is a bigger threat than he was back in my day—" A small crash came from the living room. It sounded as if a chair had been knocked over.
"Oh, you good for nothing, waste of space!" The four heard a woman's yells, and didn't recognize the voice. They got up quickly, but cautiously opened the door into the living room.
"Kreacher is the waste of space? Shall Kreacher bring you to a mirror?"
"You little cretin!" Walking into the living room, there was quite an interesting sight. Kreacher was hovering in the air so he could see eye to eye with a strange woman. Her hair was wet from the current storm, keeping her previously wild her glued to her back. Her eyes were blazing and her hands were clenched to her sides.
"Little? You call Kreacher little? Kreacher is… is large and in charge! The honored Mistress Black tells Kre—"
"Oh, don't you dare bring up that loathsome woman! And calling her a 'woman' is being far too kind. She was a horrid, vile being who couldn't stand the thought of not being here to boss everyone around. Really, who makes sure they're painted before they die? At least the painter had it right, capturing her in her dreariest moments, so she'll be remembered like that forever!"
The painting in question began to shake and shriek in rage. "Oh, shut up, you miserable hag!" The woman huffed in annoyance and turned back to Kreacher. A small, tired smile stretched across her face, lighting up her features, showing a sense of beauty known to everyone but the woman herself.
"Thank you, Kreacher. It really has been a long time since we've had one of these sessions, hasn't it?"
"Anything Kreacher can do for his favored Willows. Anything." Before Kreacher could float back down, the woman grabbed Kreacher into a bone crushing hug.
"Oh, I hope I haven't crossed any line. It's just been years!" She let go of Kreacher and he went to the ground. "Sorry, I know that's uncomfortable for you…"
"No, no miss. Don't apologize to Kreacher." The three teens stared in awe and utter confusion at the scene that just unfolded.
"Bloody hell." Ron mumbled. Hermione didn't even think of reprimanding him— she agreed completely. Remus took a step forward, looking as if he had seen a ghost.
"Andy?" he whispered. Harry looked to Remus.
"You know her?" Remus didn't seem to hear him though. The woman turned to Remus and a heart wrenching smile took over her face. She gained this warm glow in just a matter of seconds, and the unprepared teens were enraptured by her warmth and happiness. Small smiles replaced their confused glances. The warmth she brought was contagious, and they couldn't help but bask in it.
"Remmy? Merlin, it is you!" She ran to Remus and embraced him. Tears silently slid down both of their cheeks. She pulled back and placed her hands upon his face. "How are you? It was a gloriously disturbing moon last night."
Remus took a quick glance at the teens as if just remembering their presence. He started hesitantly. Should he sugar-coat it for their sake? Andy would catch his lie, even after all these years. He sighed in resignation and closed his eyes, hoping to block out the memories. "Awful. These past months have been the worst." He opened his eyes and noticed the concern in hers. "But let's not fret about such frivolous things as the moon. How are you?" Andy began to look detached.
"Excuse me, but who exactly are you?" Andy looked at the trio as if just realizing they're there. Although is was Hermione that spoke, it was Harry she locked eyes with.
"Harry Potter," she whispered in disbelief. She looked to Remus, as if to confirm it.
"Yes, I'm Harry. And this is Ron and Hermione. Now that we know who we are, who are you?" Andy turned to Ron with an affectionate smile.
"Weasley. How wonderful! How are your parents?"
"They're fine, thanks." Andy turned back to Remus.
"It's really him!" Remus smiled to his dear friend.
"Yes, it is. Now talk to him, not me!" She blushed and turned to him.
"I'm Andrea Willows, but please, call me Andy. I may hex you if you call me Andrea," she laughed nervously as she wrung her hands together. Remus laughed whole-heartedly, as if remembering such a time. She recomposed herself and started again. "Harry, I'm your father's cousin. And godmother," she paused as it sunk in. "This is not how I wanted this to go! Okay, it's been said," she mumbled to herself. Turning back to the trio, she smiled lightly, trying to hide her nerves.
"Andy Willows? This Andy?" Hermione walked to a photo and plucked it from the mantle. She brought it to Andy, gingerly passing it on. Andy gently held it and smiled fondly at the photo. It was from their sixth year. James snuck up behind Andy, who was dancing around foolishly, and he swung her over his shoulder. After the initial shock, Andy started laughing and pounded on his back. James smiled and laughed as he began to spin her around. Tears started to well up in her eyes as she smiled, softly touching where James stood.
"This was the first real day of Spring. The birds were chirping, angrily if I remember correctly. I think Siri turned into the ball of fur and chased them," she laughed. "Lily came storming up to him after the picture was taken and started banging on his chest, demanding to put me down. Her actions were valiant, but he ended up dropping me on my butt so he could harass her properly."
Remus smiled as he walked over to look at the picture. Harry stayed rooted to the floor. He knew well which picture they spoke of. He looked at it frequently trying to figure out who the girl was. Remus put a hand on her shoulder, and she let out a soft sigh at the contact.
"I still hear his laughter when I'm not focused anymore. When I hear it, I always turn to see what shenanigans my dear Marauders are up to." The laughter from her eyes faded as she came back down to the real world. She blinked back any remaining tears and looked up at Hermione.
"Yes, I'm that Andy." She smiled warmly and Hermione smiled softly back. "Harry, oh Harry. I'm sure you have thousands of questions. Come. Let's go to the kitchen and I'll tell you everything you want to know. Oh Merlin, I haven't been in front of a stove in ages…" Remus's eyes lit up.
"Oh, how I've missed your cooking, Vulps." Hermione looked at Andy.
"You're an animagus as well?" Andy grinned mischievously and morphed into a small black fox. She kind of paraded around the room, relishing the feeling of being on four legs. After her little show, she ran to the kitchen.
Remus smiled fondly, whispering, "She's back." He walked to the kitchen, assuming the trio would follow suit. Soon enough, they heard the clutter of pots and walked curiously to the kitchen. Andy turned to them when she heard the chairs scrape across the floor.
"Now, Ron. I certainly can't cook like dear Molly, but I like to think I add my own flair to it," she winked to the group and turned back to the stove. The teens exchanged curious glances to one another as the strange woman flitted flawlessly around the cluttered kitchen.
"Leave it to Kreacher to leave everything exactly the same," Andy laughed to herself.
"You know, you're the only one who can get Kreacher to be relatively loveable. And I use that term loosely." Andy smiled to Remus as she walked to the table. Sitting next to Remus and across from the trio, her eyes settled on Harry.
"Ready when you are, dear," she smiled softly, almost knowingly, and Hermione felt a sense of affection towards this energetic woman. Her guard fell once she saw how close she and Remus were.
Harry tried to get his bearings straight, stumbling over his words numerous times. Andy smiled patiently. Hermione started to see why Remus watched her so protectively and admiringly. She was a one of a kind sweet-heart.
"You said you were my father's cousin?" Andy smiled a toothy grin, reminding everyone of James's grin in the photo.
"Yes, we were cousins. Our mothers were identical twins. They were close until my father came into the picture. He tore them apart." Her eyes darkened, but she quickly caught herself. "Even though they were separated, they still managed to do everything together. They got married and pregnant around the same time. My parents tried to keep my away from the Potters, but they're all a stubborn bunch. Against my father's desperate wishes, I attended Hogwarts. But I'm straying off topic. Yes, James and I are cousins. But that bond grew. He became the brother I never had" She kind of faltered off, once again lost in thought.
Remus smiled affectionately. "You'll get used to that quickly. It happens more often than you'd think." Andy heard the last part and teasingly shoved Remus.
"Anywho… What else have you got for me?" It was clear that although Harry wanted to be guarded and resent this new person who claimed a spot in his life, his heart softened as he realized she lost more than he'd ever know. Yet here she sits, ready to disclose everything she knows, answer questions he thought he'd never get the chance to ask. He leaned onto the table, eyes starting to light up, and Andy returned the gesture.
"What was he like?" Andy smiled in excitement as she rambled on about James and all of his random adventures with the Marauders, his fascination with Lily and his pursuit to winning her heart. In the middle of explaining how James tried to trick Lily into a date, due to Andy's expense of course, the ceiling started to creak.
"You really need to get this house checked out if that's how it's responding to little Kreacher." Remus looked to the ceiling nervously and Ron looked more confused than ever.
"Doesn't she know—" Now Andy looked confused.
"Doesn't 'she' know what?" She turned to Remus. "Remmy, what's going on?" Remus looked torn. Before he got the chance to speak, a voice came from the living room, freezing Andy to her seat.
"Molly, is that you in the kitchen? I wasn't expecting you today! But trust me, I'm not complaining. I'd much rather deal with your cooking over—" A man stepped into the kitchen and his eyes went directly to Andy. "Kreacher's…" The door swung behind him, hitting his back and breaking him out of his trance. Andy seemed to have come out of it at the same time, and she stood looking on as if he were the only one in the room.
"Siri…" Sirius looked at her in confusion.
"It can't—No. Moony?" Everyone except Andy turned to Remus. It seems he's the go-to guy when in disbelief.
"Don't ask me," he said knowingly. Sirius looked back at Andy. Shock, surprise, hurt, and confusion all crossed his face. He stiffened and crossed his arms across his chest.
"Never thought I'd see you again," he said coldly. Remus, along with the out-of-the-loop teens gasped at his demeanor.
"Sirius—"
"Stay out of this, Moony!"
"Well, hello to you, too Sirius. Truly has been a while, hasn't it."
"No thanks to you…" Andy finally snapped out of it and Harry recognized the fire in her eyes from when she was with Kreacher. She walked around the table and headed towards Sirius. His posture faltered and something flashed in his eyes, but he quickly went back to being cold, something Harry had never seen before. Remus let out a low chuckle, earning the young one's attention.
"Don't look at me. Believe me, you don't want to miss this." All eyes went back to Andy, and Sirius gulped.
"No thanks to me? That's really what you have to say? I'm not the one who wound up in bloody Azkaban!"
"I was defending the Potter's honor. Something you clearly forgot about." Andy slapped him across the face and kept a pointed finger at his face.
"How dare you. While you were gallivanting around town, I stayed home keeping watch over Harry! You dare say I dishonored my brother? I was fulfilling his wishes, taking care of his pride and joy! And where were you?" Sirius stumbled when she asked this. "Where were you?" Andy yelled. Sirius shrunk back.
"I was being a selfish idiot."
"Damn right you were being an idiot!" They both paused and eyed each other wearily, waiting for the other to speak. Andy finally caved, rolling her eyes. "I understand why you were acting like that. You lost your family too…" She walked closer to Sirius, and he gladly welcomed her into a hug.
"Andy, I'm so sorry. It's just, just so frustrating! I expected you to be here with open arms when I got out. And when I found out you had been gone for years, I felt… Betrayed."
"I'm sorry, Siri." Sirius pulled away.
"Where were you, anyway?" Andy grinned shyly.
"Off being a hypocrite. I was going mad not being able to do anything! I couldn't leave Harry, but I couldn't sit still either. So, I got a hold of Albus, asking to find Lily's family. We left Harry in their care, and I went in search of Peter, anyone who could prove your innocence. I came and saw Harry every other week, but as time went on, Petunia started to limit my time with him, acted as if I were some sort of plague," she spat in disgust. "Finally, she stopped me from seeing him all together, saying I was an abomination, messing with his mind. I am so ashamed, but those… people, if you can call them that, managed to convince me that I was confusing Harry, and that he should live a normal, magic-free life. It made sense at the time, with Followers looking for Order members and Harry trying to get revenge for their loss. So I left. For good. But I made sure to leave something for you, Harry. Some sort of reminder that you're not alone, you have no reason to be afraid! I left a photo album under the floorboards of where your crib was, hoping you'd find it." Andy turned toward Harry with a look of hope.
"No, sorry. I've never looked under the floorboards. I wasn't even allowed in that room anymore." Andy scowled.
"Those vile bas—" Sirius covered her mouth.
"Not in front of the children." They smiled, already taken by the small energetic woman. When Sirius believed she calmed down, he released her mouth, but placed his hand on her waist, pulling her towards him. Andy still looked worried.
"Please forgive me, Harry. I fought like hell to stay a part of your life, to watch you grow… I've failed you." Harry jumped at her words.
"No, you did not fail me. How can you think that? You fought for me when no one else would. You thought you were doing right by me." Andy smiled and sighed in relief, finally relaxing into Sirius's side. He moved his arm so he could rub her shoulder, helping her relax a little more. Although Andy enjoyed the much needed side-hug from Sirius, she left his side and flung herself at Harry. He laughed after he recovered from the surprise and hugged her back. She too laughed along, holding him tight, never wanting to let go again.
"Andy, I don't mean to ruin the moment, but something is burning." Andy darted to the oven to assess the damage.
"We're okay, no worries!" She laughed as she busied herself with the food. Sirius walked to Remus and put his hands on his good friend's shoulders.
"She's really here, isn't she?" Remus nodded in response, glad to see light in this time of darkness. Sirius sauntered over to Andy and put his arms around her waist. She looked over her shoulder and smiled as Sirius kissed the top of her head. They whispered and giggled, while every so often, stealing a quick kiss or two. Remus sighed in contentment, silently saying 'finally.' Ron once again looked confused.
"Wait. They're—?"
"In love." Hermione finished.
"You know, they were engaged to be married," Remus smiled. Hermione gave an uncharacteristic squeal, Harry grinned, and Ron still looked confused, but finally a little less.