take a breath | remus lupin |

019

Regulus' letter to Andromeda went unanswered for a few days. He panicked- thinking she forwarded it to his mother or worse- Bellatrix. Would Andy do that? Especially to him, her favorite cousin?

His worry subsided about four days later, when a plain grey owl delivered a letter. It was the longest Andromeda had ever sent. Was that good? Bad?

He waited until night fall to read it. He closed the curtains around his bed and pulled the quilt over his head. He cast a dim lumos and finally opened the letter sealed with a wax stamp with a cat on it.

As soon as the paper unraveled, several pictures and a drawing fell out. Regulus ignored them for the moment and immediately read the near cursive handwriting.

Regulus,

Thank you for writing me. I always enjoy your little updates, no matter how dark or pessimistic they may be. They make me feel connected to the outside world when I'm stuck at home all day with the baby.

Anyhow, I'm guessing you want me to address the whole point of your last letter. So I will.

It's very simple. You deserve happiness. You deserve the right to love who you want to love. Anyone who tries to deny you that isn't worth your time.

The world isn't very accepting of people like you and Eddie. It's going to be hard, for a while, at least. In my opinion, they just aren't ready for people as great as you.

Our family is very judging, except for a few. Uncle Alphard had a bit of a reputation for swinging both ways in his youth. I write him often, but his letters are few and far between as he ages. Still, I will do my best to find an address.

Also, I think your siblings will be supportive. You know Annie will be. She's always been rather accepting. I know that things are a bit strained with Sirius at the moment, but considering the company that he both keeps and defends, I'm sure it'll be alright.

I just want you to be safe. You'll have to keep it a secret until you can leave grimmauld place. You can always write me if you need anything, and I'll do my best to help.

I've included photos, just as you asked. Dora is getting bigger every day. I showed her a photo of you and she morphed into it. She looked just as you did when you were a toddler. Ted managed to get a picture right before she morphed back.

There's also a drawing, though it is rather crude. My girl has many talents, but art is not one of them. I can't tell what it's of- guess it's up to you to figure out.

I send my best to you and Annie. Stick together and find happiness in anything you can. Also, Ted sends his regards!

With love,
Andromeda Tonks

A teardrop hit the parchment. The ink bled in all sorts of directions.

Regulus was smiling. grinning, even. He wasn't alone. he wiped at his eyes, holding back a chuckle.

He folded the letter back up and picked up the photos that had fallen into his lap. There was three of them, and they were all about the size of his palm.

The first was a wizard photo of Dora sitting in a high chair, eating something. It had managed to end up in her hair and clothes. The baby smiled and giggled as a hand, presumably Ted's, fed her another spoonful.

The second and third were both muggle photos. One was the one Andy had mentioned in the letter: where Dora morphed into an infant Regulus. She was right- she looked like his twin- if he had a male one.

The other was just a family shot of Andy, Ted, and the baby. It looked like it had been taken by a timer of some sort, because Ted was slightly blurry. Andy looked the same as Regulus remembered, but her smile was much more genuine- not like the one that she plastered on to please her mother.

She looked like Bellatrix if she hadn't gone mad. Her dark brown curls were tamed and the front pieces clipped back so one could see her light brown eyes. They were warm and friendly, just as they always had been.

The drawing was simply just a mess of different colored crayons scribbled onto a scrap piece of parchment.

Regulus laughed under his breath and put the photos and the drawing back into the envelope and put the letter in the drawer next to his bed. He had placed a privacy charm on it in second year, just in case one of the other boys decided to go snooping.

He slept much better that night, comforted by the thought that at the very least, Andromeda supported him.

___________________________________________

Anastasia stood next to Alberta Yaxley, bored out of her mind. Yaxley had dragged the girl to Hogsmeade with her in preparation for her date with ana's potions partner, of all people.

"Should I go with the blue? Jackson is a Ravenclaw, after all." Alberta held up a simple deep blue dress that complemented her dark complexion very well.

"I like that one better than the red." She checked the tag. "It's cheaper too."

Alberta waved her off. "Oh, as if that matters."

Yaxley was quite lucky in the fact that she was the youngest of seven. Her brothers were heirs, many whom already had children of their own, and her sister ran a successful custom robes business. Ana guessed that her open flirtation with Jackson Clarke, a halfblood, wouldn't be too scandalous considering the already high standing of her family.

Alberta paid for her dress, and Ana decided to buy a set of fancy hair pins on a whim. they were in a display case at the counter and she couldn't help herself.

The girls decided to stop for a butterbeer before heading back to hogwarts. The place was rather empty, as most of the students had already gone back to campus.

"So, Ana," Albert started, tucking a coil of hair behind her ear, "Any boys for you? You would think they would all be kneeling at your feet."

The brunette laughed. "Only Goyle, sadly. I wish there was someone more respectable, but I guess I'm stuck with him."

"Goyle? That's the last person I would want to court. Ooh- what about Eddie? At least you two get along! That's better than most pureblood marriages!"

Anastasia instantly chocked on her butterbeer. "Eddie?! Gross! We may get along, but marrying him would be like marrying a brother. I could never."

They had both laughed, but Ana thought deeper about it that night. If it was really a choice between Goyle and eddie, she would choose Eddie without a doubt. At least he wasn't a creep.

Mother and Father would have no legitimate reason to oppose it, either. Eddie came from a respectable pureblood family and was well-liked by the Black family.

She would have to talk to Eddie about it, of course. But maybe she had a solution. Just maybe.