Padfoot,
Sorry, this is just a quick note before my parents hijack Tally again. Are we still on for coming over? Prongs said something about you possibly going to visit your dad? Let me know soon okay?
See you soon I hope.
Moony
Sirius reread the letter, a sinking feeling in his stomach. On the bed lay another roll of parchment, this one from Prongs, asking pretty much the same thing.
On the windowsill were two owls; a large American Barred owl and James' tawny, Athena, both blinking slowly down on Cosmic who slunk low to the floor, edging stealthily forward, preparing to spring.
Glumly, Sirius went to his trunk at the foot of the bed for a quill and some parchment.
Cosmic pounced. Tally, Remus' owl, flared her huge wings menacingly and hissed, her feathers suddenly puffed up, making her appear twice her normal size in an instant. Cosmic abruptly darted backwards, eyes wide with fright, and ended up clinging to the edge of the bed covers, almost falling off the bed. Tally resumed her passive stance, ruffling her feathers, shrinking smoothly back to her normal size.
Seating himself at his desk, Sirius grabbed a bottle of ink and wrote quickly;
Moony,
Bad news. All plans are off in the wake of my Mum's new man. Richard is a pompous git of a Muggle that Mum wants to keep in the dark about our family's 'unusual' attributes. I don't like it but anything and everything magical is now strictly taboo - including friends, regardless of previous arrangements. Put bluntly, I'm mad at Mum for not saying anything before I caught an eyeful of her and the Git smooching in the hall as soon as I got home and for ruining our plans. I'm only going to carry on moaning if I keep writing, so I'll spare your sanity and quit now.
Hope your summer got off to a better start than mine did.
Padfoot
He scribbled out a similar letter to James with a request to relay the bad news to Peter.
The most awkward part of being home for the long summer break was how far apart the Marauders were from one another. Sirius and James both lived outside of London. James' father could easily made a side trip to Buckinghamshire from Oxford to give Sirius and Ursa a lift to and from Kings Cross, but it certainly wasn't easy to meet up over the holidays.
Peter was further north, up in Norfolk, and since he didn't own an owl they had had to work out a system of relaying messages with the two owls they had between them.
Remus, on the other hand, was currently residing down in Cornwall. In the five years that Sirius had known him, Remus had moved house eight or nine times; mainly because of the locals objecting to the presence of a young werewolf. The Lupins were careful to move on if they felt it was getting too risky; several times they had been driven out by angry mobs. The very thought made Sirius furious, especially when Remus seemed to accept it as normal. It wasn't his fault he had been bitten, so why did those stupid, narrow-minded people feel the sadistic need to punish him for it?
The two owls flew out the window and back into the morning light with their letters; Cosmic jumping up on the sill the moment they had taken flight, staring after them. Next moment, Cosmic emitted a frightened yowl and dove back off the sill as a huge eagle owl came soaring through the window to land on the bed.
Sirius didn't recognise the owl, but the parchment envelope in the bird's beak bore his name in rich purple ink, as well as a Ministry of Magic seal. There was only one person at the Ministry who was likely to send him such an informal letter.
Dear Sirius and Ursa,
Welcome back! Hope your end-of-year exams weren't too stressful - Sirius, I can't wait to see those OWL results. (Don't worry if you didn't get Potions; your mother will forgive you … eventually.)
Good news. I've booked some time off work and, yes, it did take forever to sort out the damn paperwork – a necessary evil I'm afraid, but that means you can both come and stay for a few days next week. I hope your mother hasn't planned something already - I've got tickets for the Bats versus Tornadoes match on Saturday.
Write back as soon as you can. I'll pay for the Knight Bus fare, don't worry about that. So, I'll hopefully see you two next week.
Bye for now!
Dad
Sirius perked up. Brilliant! A chance to see his father and go to a Quidditch match! Maybe this summer wasn't going to be such a letdown after all.
Reaching for a quill, he hesitated. What if his mum did have something organised already? She had been rather stingy with mentioning the fact that Richard had made an unwelcome entrance into their lives. He wouldn't put it past her not to say if she'd arranged something without letting them know.
Putting the quill back down on the desk, Sirius figured he'd better check first. He glanced up at the clock. It was only nine thirty. Andromeda would be in the lab by now. He'd have to wait. His mother went absolutely spoony if some idiot dared to disturb her in the middle of an experiment - the fool would be at risk of getting their head snapped off.
Literally.
In the meantime, there was homework waiting for his attention. Sirius eyed the huge mound on his desk with loathing. Every time he looked at it, the pile seemed to have grown.
Closing his eyes, he stretched out his hand and picked one at random.
Charms essay; Explain how Dream Enhancement Charms counteract the effects of the Phantasmagoria Hex in conjunction with notambulation.
Ooh, thrilling. Interesting on one level, and too long-winded and brain taxing on another this early in the morning.
He reached for another.
Potions essay -
Sirius tossed it back without even looking at the whole assignment.
'Charms it is.' He sighed and set to work.
*
The fire beneath the cauldron crackled softly, sending a warm, flickering light across the stone floor. A ginger-coloured potion bubbled and frothed, emitting spicy-scented fumes; a hazy mist clouded the air.
Slowly, ever so carefully, Andromeda held out a tiny crystal vial over the centre, one eye on the list of ingredients in her other hand.
'Okay, let's hope it doesn't just evaporate again,' she muttered to herself. The last batch had had a tad too much nightshade and not enough possum saliva. With any luck, she had balanced it this time.
Taking a deep breath, holding the vial steady, she gave it a gentle tap with her finger.
A single droplet of silvery-blue liquid fell.
She watched it fall like time had slowed, holding her breath … hoping … praying …
Plop!
WHOOSH!
The bitter stench of churning acid filled the lab. With a frustrated cry, Andromeda slammed the recipe down on the workbench. She felt mad enough to kick the cauldron but she knew she'd only hurt her foot. Her beautiful creation now resembled her attempts at custard; a disgusting, stodgy mess. Great - yet another cauldron ruined, and the umpteenth failed formula.
Andromeda ran a hand over her sweaty face and pulled her hair back. It was greasy again. The fumes were clinging to her robes and she didn't looked more than half-awake.
Thoroughly disappointed, she practically fell into the only comfortable chair in the lab. She'd brought the armchair down after the hard stool started getting on her nerves. Laying back, the soft cushions moulded gently to take her exhausted body. She closed her eyes. What she really wanted right now was -
'Cup of tea?'
Jerking upright, Andromeda twisted round to see Sirius taking a few cautious steps down the staircase, balancing a cup of tea in one hand.
'Sirius! Watch out for the -'
Flit! Flit! Flit! Flit!
'… pressure-pad on that step,' she finished lamely.
Sirius slowly opened his eyes. He stared at the number of small darts embedded in the wall just in front of him.
'That's a new one,' he said, admirably. 'Ditched the swinging mace?'
'I had hoped to avoid putting such large dents in the wall.' She rose from the armchair, her face suddenly clouding with suspicion, looking up the staircase behind him. 'Sirius, did you just disarm the rest of my deterrents?' she asked, incredulously.
'Yes. I'm not about to try getting through your crazy minefield, risking life and limb, just to bring you a cup of tea.'
She eagerly took the steaming mug he held out. 'Thank you, Star. Just what I needed.' She took a sip.
Sirius looked past her at the large pile of crumpled parchment strewn around the empty waste bin, wrinkling his nose at the foul smell coming from the stagnant potion in the cauldron that stood in the very centre of the room.
'Still haven't cracked it?' he asked.
'Still haven't cracked it,' she said sadly, taking another sip. 'Think I'll try it without the possum saliva next. I told Amelia it wasn't compatible with Roc feathers, but would she listen? Of course not.'
'Never mind. You'll figure it out.'
'Wish I could figure it out without offending my sense of smell so drastically. And so often.'
Shaking her head, Andromeda flicked her wand sharply. A transparent, bubble-like dome slid over the surface of the potion, attached to the rim of the cauldron. A further wave dispelled the floating smoke cloud. The faint scent of sweet orange began to eradicate the lingering acid smell.
Sirius drew out his father's letter from his pocket.
'Mum?'
'What is it?' she asked, sitting back down in her armchair.
'Dad wrote. He says Ursa and I can go and stay next week … if that's all right with you?'
Andromeda's lips pursed slightly. She took the letter and read it through.
'About time,' she murmured. 'Well, if you want to go, then you can go. Your father could at least of sent word a little sooner,' she added, scowling slightly to herself.
'Why? Were you planning on going out or something?' Sirius really didn't want to have to ask that question but he felt he had to ask regardless.
Andromeda put her cup down, frowning.
'I was hoping that the four of us could go out together sometime,' she said.
'Four of us?' Sirius' defences immediately went up.
'Yes. You, me, Ursa and Richard. And don't scowl like that Sirius.'
When his expression only improved to a gloomy slump, Andromeda sighed.
'Look, I know you don't think much of Richard -'
Oh, I think plenty about Richard. Just nothing repeatable.
'- but I did think you'd at least make the effort to be friendly last night.'
'How can you be friendly with someone who's so patronising?'
'Richard happens to have some very strong views,' she said firmly. 'What does it really matter if he's a little germaphobic? He isn't very fond of animals. Apart from that, Richard hasn't had a lot of experience with teenagers; he gets uptight when he's nervous. And it's not unlike you losing your temper over minor issues - remember when Mr. Clagun from next door came over to complain about Cosmic soiling in his garden? Given half a chance, you would have given him an earful, wouldn't you?'
'Well, if he hadn't set that yappy little terrier on Cosmic -'
'You still would have got worked up about it.'
'Probably.'
'So, do you see my point? It's easy to get the wrong impression of people. When your temper's under control you're a very pleasant person to be around. Richard is just the same.'
Sirius groaned inwardly. He'd lost the argument and he knew it.
'I've already spoken to Richard and he suggested we all go to the fair this weekend. It'll give you another chance to get to know each other.' She gave her son an imploring look. 'Will you please make more of an effort this time? It would mean so much to me if you two could get along. Ursa told me she liked him.'
Sirius looked into his mothers' hopeful face. A guilt trip was not what he needed right now.
'Okay. I'll give it another go. Can't promise we'll be best buds or anything, but …'
'I'm not expecting it, don't worry. If you can both be civil to one another, that would be marvellous.'
Sirius smiled. Then another question occurred to him.
'Are you ever going to tell him what we are?'
Andromeda's face fell. Her gaze wandered around the lab, not looking at her son.
'Look, Sirius, when you get yourself a girlfriend and experience a serious relationship you may come to understand that these things should not be rushed. Since your father and I separated, I haven't had much luck with men. Richard is the only one that has honestly shown an interest in me as a person instead of some object to show off to friends.'
Sirius gave his mother a good look over. Okay, she was pushing forty but she was still very youthful looking. Wash the grease out of her hair, a little make-up and some potion-spot free clothes and she'd be a knock out. Her large brown eyes were like doe's; soft and alluring. Sirius was very surprised that few men had been interested, but then again, when did she ever leave the lab? When did she ever get the chance to meet some single men? The opportunities had to be few and far between.
'Richard is such a caring and honest man, and I don't want to ruin a relationship that I sincerely hope has the potential to progress. Now, I have no idea how Richard would react to us revealing our magical heritage. It's going so well, I just can't take that chance. Not yet.'
'But you will tell him, right?'
Andromeda handed him the empty cup.
'Thanks for the tea, sweetie. Now get back upstairs before you trip another boobytrap. Go on now, I've got work to do.' She shooed him off towards the stairs.
Reluctantly, Sirius took the cup and went back upstairs.
'Fine,' he muttered. 'I'll leave you to it.'
*
To Be Continued
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Please review. All comments and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated
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Authors Notes
Due to the problems with Fanfiction and their server, I missed my post-date last week. Sorry, but couldn't be helped.
Anaxandra – Thank you! Yep, there's definitely something up with Richard, but I'm forbidden to say any more than that! *zips lips shut*
Lil Lupin – Oh, I know, I know. That chapter just seemed to go forever. No wonder I thought I was never going to finish it. ^_^ We're almost there!
Christy – Hi, welcome back!! *big hug* Don't worry about not reviewing the first chapter, it's enough that some people keep coming back. ^_^ Ah, Sirius' father isn't going to show up for a few chapters, but you will see his reaction to the news fairly soon.
Calimora – This fic is mainly focused on Sirius, but the rest of the Marauders do play a part, mostly in the later chapters. I can tell you they will show up again in chapter 7, so not for a little while yet.
Prongs - Hhm, yes, slipping a cursed neck tie into the post *envisions Richard being strangled* or maybe a cursed hat! *recalls the shrivelling ears hex on Bill Weasley's hat* The possibilities are endless.
NightSpear – Hee hee, I have the joy of siblings too, brothers and a sister, so I hear this sort of banter on a daily basis. I dutifully took notes for the purpose of Sirius and Ursa. Lots of fun to write! ^_^
Starlette – I'm pleased to see that Richard made a good impression in the first chapter! Well, by good I mean 'bad' because he is supposed to be a nasty twit. You think you don't like him now; you wait until the later chapters! Glad you like Ursa. Sibling squabbles; daily occurrence in my house, I'll tell you now! As I mentioned to Christy, you will meet Sirius' farther soon. And I totally agree! *waves her Sirius-Support banner* We need more Sirius fics! I figured rabid – I mean, enthusiastic Sirius fans would appreciate one, so it was just as well I was finishing off the final chapter when book 5 came out. Not bad for timing, eh?