A/N: I wanted to do a fic explaining why Orion and Walburga hadn't changed Sirius' room, but it mutated into this. A vignette of only two characters, Andromeda Tonks and her uncle Orion, about Orion's death and the family they've both lost.
The Broken House of Black
Andromeda Tonks sat restlessly in her seat. She thought of Ted, who had offered to come with her but she insisted stay at home with Nymphadora, and she thought of her wicked aunt Walburga, who had blasted her off the family tree. The family tree! It made her broil at the thought, though she had expected it. But Aunt Walburga wasn't here today, so Andromeda tried not to think about her. Doubtless she was at home, preening and holding parties as if nothing were wrong. She shook her head, she wouldn't thinking about Aunt Walburga.
"He can see you now," the Healer said politely, directing her to the room where her uncle was being treated. She rose slowly, with the dignified attitude she had learned in the house of Black. The days were long and dark now, so that dignity and Ted's laughter and Nymphadora were all she had left. But her uncle had wanted to see her, blood traitor though she be, and though he was still a pureblood bigot, he was family. You don't abandon your family, she thought angrily. Her uncle had done one better than her father in that respect. He had actually wanted to see her when he was dying.
Andromeda focused herself, there was no room for bitterness in this meeting. Though, for the life of her, she had no idea why her Uncle wanted to see her. Shouldn't he have contacted Sirius? Regulus had gone missing which was bitter news for a father, she couldn't imagine if Nymphadora... Couldn't he just make peace with his son? She sighed. No room for bitterness. Now she was at the door, at her last chance to turn back and leave her bigoted, hateful family behind.
"Knock knock," she said gently, pushing the door open. Her uncle was lying on a bed, his age showing plainly on his face and the illness made him look nearly a hundred, but the small smile that grew on his lips would have fitted well on Regulus' face. Not so much Sirius', it was far too serious. She cracked a grin at that thought.
"Dromeda," he said softly and Andromeda's memories flashed back to the time he had taught her to fly, "I was afraid you wouldn't come."
"Of course I came," she said and feeling a little angry added, "You stick by your family."
"How is Theodore?" her Uncle asked.
"Fine," was her curt reply, "He stayed home with Nymphadora."
"Nymphadora?" he asked, confused before his face brightened a great deal, "I have a great niece!"
Andromeda was taken aback. Hadn't he heard from Cissy? "Haven't you heard from Narcissa?"
"No… Walburga doesn't let anyone talk about you when she's around and you know Narcissa's always towed the family line."
"She's not like Sirius or I that way."
"Or Bella," Uncle Orion reminded her and Andromeda winced, that bridge had been burned when Bellatrix had threatened to kill Ted if she ever saw him again. Bella, her Bella, was gone, lost in madness and sadism.
"Aunt Walburga is an idiot. If it weren't for her…" Andromeda didn't finish but she might as well have said, 'I'd still have my family,'
"I'm sorry," he said, looking at his bed sheets with a guilty expression.
He was sorry? Uncle Orion? Proud former member of the Wizengamot and pureblood hardliner, was sorry? "Regret is meaningless," echoed her father's words in her mind. She wanted to say something sharp to remind him of the family pride, to make him angry, but here, looking at her dying Uncle, Andromeda Tonks couldn't quite bring herself to hate the Blacks. "Why?" she asked at last, not sure whether she was asking why he was sorry or why he had let it come to this.
"I didn't want this, I didn't want to lose you, I didn't want to lose Sirius, I didn't want to lose Regulus and Bellatrix to that fool's crusade, I didn't want to struggle not to hate my own wife as I lay dying, I didn't want any of it. I didn't want these divisions!" Andromeda was shocked. Her Uncle barely ever raised his voice and here he was, shouting. There was an awkward quiet, the kind that comes when someone says something they shouldn't. Orion was breathing heavily but slowly he seemed to calm down even as the silence dragged on, "Do you have a picture of your daughter?" he asked, at last breaking the tense, growing silence.
"Yes Uncle," she replied immediately, and opened her purse, procuring one of the photographs they had gotten made of Nymphadora, showing it to her Uncle. She was smiling and trying to sit still, but she would constantly fidget and change her hair periodically. It wasn't their best photograph of Nymphadora by portraiture standards, but it was Andromeda's favorite because it was very Nymphadora.
Orion took it into his hand gently and smiled a sad smile, "She's beautiful," after a brief pause, "And a metamorphamagus apparently," he finished with a surprised tone, which made Andromeda laugh. "It's good to hear you laugh again, Dromeda," Orion said softly. A new, far more comfortable silence spread across the room. Andromeda couldn't have told anyone how long she and her Uncle sat there. It wasn't important. This was a family moment and Andromeda hadn't had nearly enough of those in recent years.
Finally, quiet and timid as if afraid to break the peace that had come over the room, "I only wanted to raise my sons to be strong, Dromeda. I wanted my sons to be strong, clever, wise, and brave. I wanted them to be able to live good lives," he paused, "Sometimes I didn't do the best at fostering that. Sirius was always so rebellious, you know," Andromeda knew quite well, "But he and Regulus… They were such bright, promising boys. They had futures,"
"Sirius still has one, Uncle,"
"I hope you're right," Orion replied. "You know his room still looks just like he left it?"
"I would have thought Walburga would've set fire to it or something," Andromeda replied after a pause.
"At first, we left it because we expected him to come home," Orion said as his composure clearly deteriorating, "I-i… You know how he was. I thought he was just making a show, that he wanted to make Walburga regret the things she said. Then the days turned into weeks and I knew I would probably never see my son again. I wanted to go talk to him so badly, but Walburga wouldn't let me. I should have stood up to her, I knew I should have gone to get him, spoken to him. But I was a coward, so I left his room the same, in case-in case he ever wanted to come home. I knew better, he was never coming home."
Andromeda placed her hand gently on his, "It isn't too late," she said gripping her Uncle's hand, "You can still talk to him,"
Tears grew in Orion's eyes, "I can't, Dromeda," and the tears fell, "I tried… I sent him a letter, I sent Kreacher, but Sirius wouldn't come. I'm going to die and I'm never going to see my son again, my other son is probably dead, and I can hardly stop myself from cursing Walburga for it all."
"Oh Uncle, I'm so sorry," Andromeda said softly
"It's too late to win forgiveness for me, Andromeda, at least from him. But I still want to say I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't stand up to Walburga. I'm sorry I let you get blasted off the family tree. I'm sorry I didn't stand up for you or Sirius when things were hard. I'm sorry, I'm a coward, I'm proud you and he stand up for what you believe in. You'll tell him I said that won't you?" he said, crying again, "I don't need him to forgive me, Andromeda, I just want him to know I love him. Please, promise me you'll tell him. I'm proud of my son, he's brave and strong and clever and I want the best for him."
"I'll tell him, Uncle, I promise," and for a moment Andromeda felt like Dromeda the Black as Ted used to call her and she felt close to her Uncle who had lost his family as much as she had hers so she added, "I'll try to get him to come."
"Dromeda, you know that won't happen," Andromeda wished it wasn't true but remembering what her uncle had said earlier, she thought he might be right, "But you'll tell him." Andromeda nodded and after another comfortable silence they turned to talk of Nymphadora and Ted, Narcissa's pregnancy and other easier topics. Eventually, she had to leave St. Mungo's that night.
Andromeda sent owls to Sirius, pleading with him to go see his father. She sent him an owl with a pensive memory of her conversation with his father. When that didn't work, she swore she was going to give him a piece of her mind in person. But far too soon, she got the news from Narcissa that her uncle had died. She was glad Ted had been there, because it was all she could do not to go hold Nymphadora and never let her go