Tom released me from the hold he had around me, slowly pulling Adley away from me, while guiding me towards the handsome townhouse that appeared before us.
As we approached, I began feeling as my anxiety somewhat to dissipate as we walked into the house.
"Well, this is... a lot more different than I imagined it would be." Tom supposed as Adley cooed at him.
"But it leaves us under the safety. If we don't want to be found..." I replied as we stepped into farther into the house.
"...and youare?" An deep feminine voice asked us as we stepped further into the house.
Causing us to jump a foot in the air, and wake up Arlo in the process.
"Mother, that's no way to greet our guests." Sirius chastised as he stepped into the room, with an elder looking house-elf trotting into the room behind him muttering things under his breath.
"Ugh. Well, I wouldn't be so unpleasant if these were your brother's friends. If I wasn't already dead, I'd die of thehorror of having thesepeople in my home..." She replied, scowling at us.
"I can assure you that we are all friends here. Regulus is actually a very close friend of ours." Tom replied coolly while bouncing a cooing Adley in his arms.
"Oh, so, you know my Reggie? What house were you in?" She asked interested.
"Alright, that's enough out of you, mother," Sirius said, rolling his eyes at the painting, before he pulled his wand out and waved it, causing some dark dingy drapes to close before the muttering painting.
"Who else knows of this place?" Tom asked as Sirius lead us out of the room and through the narrow passage, before pushing an old door open.
"Just a few of us." He replied as we walked into what looked to be a dining room.
The room itself was wide and had three windows completed with large windows covered with dark blinds, a large hearth, with yet another portrait propped on top of the same ancient woman who was propped in the sitting room near the foyer.
There were more than enough seats within the wide room, but that's not what caught my eyes.
What caught my eye was the sudden movement near the left corner of the room.
Standing there in the corner was Evangeline, holding a small bundle in her arms.
Next to her stood Arthur and Molly Weasley with two little boys and a little girl running around chasing each other, and her holding a bundle.
"Molly?" I asked, surprised as I watched two little boys and a little girl, all with fiery red hair, ran around the room happily chasing one another.
"Annie, how are you feeling?" She asked, a broad grin on her face.
"Tired. Overwhelmed to put it lightly. But enough about me, how—oh Merlin—Excuse me for being so broad, but how in bloody Merlin did you have five -no- four children? Was I only gone two years or more?" I asked, looking wide-eyed at Tom.
He nodded, the corners of his mouth twitching in amusement.
"I'm am sure it was for two years. Otherwise, I would've gone mental." He said, looking down at Adley, who gave him a toothless grin.
"Oh, let me explain. These three little ones are the triplets, I had towards the end of my sixth year..." She explained.
"I knew it," I muttered, as I watched them run around the room.
"Wait. But that would mean that you were pregnant throughout our sixth year, Molly, Arthur and you didn't start dating until—" I began to say before one of them slammed into the back of my legs, causing my knees to buckle slightly before Tom grabbed my elbow and steadied me.
"Charles Weasley! You come here this instant!" Molly called, causing the little read head to flinch in response and cower behind me.
"It was an accident, Molly, calm down. I'm alright." I said, taking the little boy's hand and leading him to sit in a bay window, along with his other brother and sister.
"What's your name, cutie?" I asked as Tom and I sat next to them.
"Melenie." She chirped, giving me a toothy smile.
"Ahh... how old are you, sweetie?" I asked.
"We're going to be three in December." She replied, curiously.
"Three?" I gasped, locking eyes with an appalled Molly and Arthur.
I nodded, smiling at her before I told her to continue playing with Charlie.
Before I turned to Molly and Arthur, who wore shocked and apprehensive expressions.
"Something isn't adding up. If they're turning three, then how is it possible that they're here if you two didn't start dating until after your fifth year? Molly, what's going on?" I asked, locking eyes with her.
"They're my younger half-siblings, their mother along with my parents were killed. We adopted them and have been raising them as our own. We married before it happened. I, however, didn't know I was pregnant until it was too late..." She explained.
"Sounds like you've got yourself a handful, but don't worry, that's what friends are for. To help when needed." I soothed, smiling down at a sleeping Arlo.
She smiled in response before looking at the rest of the people in the room.
"Well, now that that's settled, we can get to down to business," Sirius said, earning a glare from Evangeline, who was standing next to us, smiling sincerely at Molly.
"Don't be a knob-head Sirius, we're all just a big family here." She said, rolling her eyes.
"When are the other's supposed to arrive?" Tom asked, looking towards the suddenly emerald flames.
He quickly handed me Adley and pulled out his wand, standing before me and the twins protectively. Sirius and Arthur doing the same with their significant others and children. The room tensed as we watched smoke come out of the hearth.
"Put your wands down, it's just James and Lily. Probably, Remus and Torin, with their son. Put them down." I said, as Tom lowered his wand, and looked at me.
A tense moment passed before four figures emerged from the hearth, smoke gathering around them causing them all to go into a coughing fit.
Tom, managed to recover first and has his wand already pointing at the unidentified figures, his protective stance before me unwavering.
"Speak. Who are you and what do you want?" He demands as he looks at the cloaked figures.
"Relax," James said, coughing again, as the smoke cleared. "It's just us." He answered gruffly.
"Took you long enough, mate. Why aren't the rest of the others with you?" Sirius asked, as he leads Evangeline to a seat and plopped down next to her.
"They're on their way, they're using a port key instead." He replied as he led a tired-looking Lily to the nearest seat, which happened to be a loveseat.
"Lily, are you alright? You're looking rather pale." I commented, watching as everyone turned to look at her.
"I'm just tired. I never realized living obscurely would be so tiring. I liked it better when we were living in South Wales, we could at the very least step outside there." She complained as she tilted her head back onto the cushion.
"How far along are you?" Molly asked, looking at her worried.
"I'm just a little over six and a half months." She said, rubbing her small bump.
"Hmm..." She said, looking over at Evangeline before locking eyes with me. "Maybe you should get some rest? Traveling is rather tiring, especially in your condition." She said, looking concerned.
"Oh, excellent idea, Molly. Kreacher, Molly, Sirius, and I made sure all of the rooms were hospitable before you all arrived. Sirius, you take them to the room, down the hall, that'll be easier for Lily. Go on now." Evangeline said, with a nod.
Kreacher suddenly appeared, a scowl on his leathery face as he led James and Lily along with Sirius out of the room all the while muttering, "...if poor mistress only knew the scum that was living in her house, she'd die of shame. Poor Mistress, she'll murder Kreacher when she finds out..." He mumbled as he walked.
"Keep muttering like that and you'll have more to worry about than my mother's portrait." Sirius threatened, causing James to chuckle.
"I like that house-elf," Tom commented, amused as we watched them all disappear out of the room.
"I can understand why you would," Sirius muttered as he walked back into the room, annoyance clear on his face.
"Alright ... you were saying earlier?" I said, looking at them, as I flicked my wrist and conjured a white large bassinet and set the twins down in it, right next to me.
"This place is beginning to look like a nursery." Muttered one of them.
I looked around to see the triplets cuddling asleep on the couch.
Evangeline and Molly had already done the same with their little ones.
I then conjured a pair of thick fleece blankets, placing one of them on the triplets before turning to place the other on the twins.
"Now, that Sophia is done playing mommy, let's figure this thing out. What do you know?" Sirius asked as tired-looking James walked into the room.
"I'm not entirely sure, just yet. I just know that I have to find a good friend of mine, I'm sure you all remember him, Newt Scamander?" I said as I walked over to the fireplace.
"Ugh. You again. Child, do you not understand the meaning of the word dislike?" The painting asked.
I felt myself stiffen, Sirius who was standing a few feet away from me, talking with Remus and Torin looked upon the portrait, scowling.
"If the bloody thing didn't have a Permanent Sticking Charm, I know would've already taken it down and burned the bloody thing to ash." He muttered, glaring at the portrait, who seemed to be glaring back.
"Oh, I can help with that," I said, smiling angelically at him before I flicked my wrist and watched as it began fading.
"What—what are you doing? You insolent girl! Where are you taking me?" It shouted as it began to fade.
"Where did that vanish to?" Sirius asked, amusement clear in his voice.
"I hope you have a basement because otherwise she'll be stuck outside in the back shed I saw earlier," I replied as I flicked my hand again.