Old Gemini
Eileen and the rest of the adults in the family were all gathered in the lounge, spread across the room's sofa, settee, and a couple of chairs transfigured for the occasion. They had been speaking to one another without end since they finished eating Edie's birthday cake. Some time ago, Severus, with the help of her twins, had shepherded Calliope's daughter and her younger son off to play in one of the bedrooms.
They had not heard laughter or yelling for a better part of an hour now. When Calliope's husband, George, had gone to check on his and Calliope's baby in the dining room, he'd also looked in on the children. He'd been happy to announce upon his return they were passed out in various places across her and Darla's old room. It had elicited chuckles from everyone and fond reminiscences of past parties.
The true lateness of the night only dawned on their family when the clock struck eleven. Edie, who had grown quiet next to Esther on the settee some time ago, yawned. "I'm goin' ter bed," she said.
"Okay," replied Esther. She leaned over and pressed a kiss on their mother's scarred cheek. "Love you."
"Happy birthday!" added in Calliope, offering their mother a tired smile of her own. Eileen was a little surprised Calliope was still awake. She had mentioned this afternoon her son had been up most of the night before from teething. It made her wonder if Calliope hadn't taken a Pepper-Up at some point when she wasn't watching.
"Sleep well," added Eileen, leaning away from her husband's side to grab Edie's hand briefly as she passed her on her way onto her bedroom. Her mother paused and smiled at her.
Darla, smirking, crossed her legs to situate herself better in her transfigured chair. "I'll make sure this place isn't a mess when they all leave," she said.
Edie nodded. "Thank yeh," she told them. "All o' yeh."
She then slipped her hand from Eileen's hold and went to her room. With one last wave at them, she disappeared inside, closing the door behind her. After a moment, Eileen turned to her husband.
"Marcus, gather the children, won't you?" she asked, not quite ready to get up from the sofa just yet.
Her husband agreed. "Of course."
Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw George get up from his chair and go to kiss the side of Calliope's head where she sat next to Esther. "I'll go get our tykes too, Calliope," he murmured.
Eileen's little sister smiled at her husband with warm eyes. "Thank you, George."
Shortly after the men left, Esther stretched her arms above her head and remarked, "Ah, next year we'll need to do something grand." She smiled at them all. "It's going to be mum's fiftieth."
Calliope propped her arm on the settee arm and placed her head in her hand. Her expression speculative, she said, "What about a party? A big one, with the staff, our families and friends?"
Eileen felt exhausted at the idea. It would be no small feat to put something like that together. Especially when their family and friends had only grown in number since their childhood. Before she could offer any input, Darla, voice enthused, proclaimed "Oh, that's brilliant, Calliope."
She sent her aunt a glare that was probably not scathing enough as Darla rolled her eyes when she said, "You think that because you know the majority of the planning will fall on us."
"Always so shrewd, aren't you, Eileen?" she half-teased, half-jabbed.
Esther, who really had lost all patience for squabbling among their family over the years, broke in, "Even if she can't help with the planning too much, she'll help with the set-up, won't you?"
Darla gave the younger witch a thin smile that Eileen found a tad too fake for her liking. "Of course, Esther."
Esther, however, did not notice. Instead she returned it with a true grin of her own. She shifted her gaze to Eileen and said, "There you are, Eileen."
She scoffed but said nothing.
Esther ignored her in favor of patting her knees and asking them, "Now, since it will be her fiftieth, what sort of gifts should we get her?" Eileen scoffed again while Darla laughed.
The younger witch flushed as Calliope hid a giggle behind her hand. "What?" demanded Esther, frowning at all of them. "It's never too early to start thinking!"
Eileen did not agree. Her hand drifted to the locket hidden beneath the buttons of her blouse. She could almost feel the Forget-Me-Nots engraved on the front of the locket through the cotton material of her shirt. In spite of her own opinion on the matter, Eileen did have an idea for a gift. A terrible, beautiful idea.
"I will paint a portrait of Lottie to give her," she said.
Esther stared back at her, cheeks abruptly draining of the color that had rosied them. Darla too had changed. Gone was her relaxed, jovial smirk. She was now tense in her chair and expressionless.
Her youngest sister, however, made a delighted gasping sound. "How lovely!" she exclaimed, eyes bright. "Edie will adore it," she gushed.
Eileen smiled at her baby sister. She was relieved one of them thought it would be a good gift for their mother. It would make painting a little less painful.
"…Do you think you can handle that?" questioned Esther, voice quiet and still far too white.
She had some doubts herself, but Eileen was determined to see it through. She had been pondering the idea for far longer than either of her sisters or Darla would ever be able to fathom. Edie's fiftieth birthday was simply the push she needed to finally commit to doing it.
"A year is plenty of time to complete a portrait," she said.
Esther began to twist one of the black Tahitian pearl earrings she was wearing. "It's just," she stammered, "Marcus, Carrie." Voice barely above a murmur, her sister said, "They turn ten this year."
Eileen didn't entirely understand why, but the words angered her. So what if her twins were to be ten this year? So what if that was the age Lottie died at? Why should it stop her from painting her mother a portrait of the sister they had lost?
"A year is plenty of time to paint a portrait," she ground out in a tone that was edged with a snarl.
Esther shrank back in her seat. "Okay."
Darla cleared her throat. "Eileen, when you give it to her, do it after the party, hm?" suggested her aunt. She was smiling at her, but it lacked any of her previous humor. In fact, it seemed quite sickly to Eileen. "Everything else will pale," she joked.
Much like her smile, the joke was weak. Eileen played into it, however, and smirked at Darla. "I wouldn't dare to upstage the rest of you," she quipped.
Darla chuckled and it sounded only a little forced. "Aces," she said before her eyes dramatically shifted over to the mouth of the corridor that led to the bedrooms. She sprung to her feet and waved widely at the men and children coming into the lounge. "Ah, look it here! George and Marcus are leading a parade of sleepy children."
Darla was correct. George led them, baby Phil fast asleep and drooling on his shoulder. Little Thalia was cuddled up against George's leg, scrubbing at her eyes.
"Mummy," said the toddler when through her strawberry blonde lashes she spotted her mother.
Calliope opened her arms to the girl and she let go of her father's leg to go and throw herself into her mother's waiting arms. Eileen watched her scoop up the three-year-old and place her on her lap. Calliope pet Thalia's fine baby hair and cooed, "Thalia, sweet." As the girl leaned in and against her chest, Calliope asked, "Did you have fun with Anthony?"
"Mh-hm," replied the toddler, eyelashes closing over her mahogany eyes.
Eileen was made to look away when her husband appeared in front of her. In his arms was their Anthony. Around Marcus's neck hung their daughter, some of her wavy brown locks cascading over the wizard's shoulders. When she searched for her older son, she saw Severus had him. Much like Marcus was doing with Carrie, Severus was touting his cousin on his back.
The teenager smiled when her eyes found his black gaze. Of the children, only Severus and Phil had Sev's beetle-black eyes. "He's out like a light," muttered the teenager as she got up to take her son from him.
"Thank you," she said to her cousin as she carefully shifted Marcus to her back.
She grunted as she straightened herself out. Her twins were really much too big for her to be carrying them around like this. Yet she loathed to stop. It would, in a way, force her to admit they were no longer her little babies.
"Are we going home, Mum?" whined Carrie from her husband's back.
She chortled and went to the coat tree by the fireplace. She gathered up her, and the rest of her family's cloaks. "Yes, yes," she replied as she drew Carrie's turquoise cloak from the pile in her arms. "Come here, put your cloak on," she urged the girl who was staring at her with bleary blue eyes.
She frowned, but let go of Marcus and came to put on her cloak as Eileen advised her. As she did, Marcus joined them. Once her daughter was dressed, Eileen turned to her sisters and Darla and bid them a goodnight. They returned her farewells. Darla and Calliope hugged her.
As they did, Esther put on her apothecary owner's face and said to her husband, "Marcus, don't feel pressured to come to the shop early tomorrow." She cracked a smile, looking more like the little sister Eileen knew best and not the businesswoman she was during the day. "It's been a late night," she commented.
Marcus smiled, happy at the news. "Thank you, Esther."
Esther leaned in and kissed first his cheek, and then Eileen's own. "Goodnight," she said.
She returned the kiss. "Farewell," she replied before taking a fistful of floo powder from the jar on the mantle and throwing it in the flames of the fireplace. Bustling her family into the green fire, she called out for home.
This story is set about fifteen years after the war and falls during one of the between years of Always Gold. This is a story with a focus on a year in the life of Eileen, her family, and her painting Edie's 50th birthday gift. All of the OC Snapes you've met over the other stories will make appearances, as will other old characters, and some new ones too. I hope you all enjoy this addition to the Family Branches saga :)
Thank you very much for reading and please review!
For more info on Old Gemini and the Family Branches series, check out my Tumblr, itslucyluna.