Ever the loyal daughter, Anastasia Black is focused on pleasing her parents and holding the together the crumbling relationship between her brothers. At first, she does not think the scarred and quiet Remus Lupin will put a rut into these plans. Tha...
A/N: Any Welsh in this chapter is via google translate, please correct if it is wrong!
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The moment he stepped out of the floo, all Remus noticed was the defeating silence that filled the house. He would've expected Winifred to be crying or playing or anything, really. He knew how loud babies could be- his aunt had five children.
"Dad?" He called, placing his trunks on the carpeted floor. He had spent the first few days of winter break with the boys at James', but was due home for Christmas Eve. He brushed the soot off of his sweater- the fireplace had not been cleaned in some time.
"Is that you, son?"
Lyall poked his head from the kitchen, smiling and pulling Remus in for a hug. He tensed, remembering all the times his father had yelled at him and Hope for hours on end- all the hard hands against the woman who he was supposed to love- but slowly relaxed into it. He's lonely, Remus. His wife just died.
"Where's Win?"
"Your aunt's. She's over there a lot, with my work at the Ministry and all." The older man took one trunk as Remus took the other, both walking towards his room.
"Can we go see her?" Remus had assumed that this would be the case. He didn't remember his father being around for most of his early childhood- his lifestyle just didn't work with young, high-maintenance children.
Still, something in his heart ached to hear the house so quiet, to not see a plethora of toys in the hallway, or even see a highchair in the dining nook. It was obvious that Lyall was understating just how often his sister was at his aunt's rather than her actual home.
"Yes- we'll be joining her whole family for dinner." There was a catch in Lyall's voice. He set down the suitcase with a slight huff.
"I can't stand her kids." Remus sat on his bed, pouting despite his age. He was the oldest cousin, and it irked him to no end. It constantly felt like he was in between babysitting and hanging out with the adults. "Please don't make me watch Wayne again."
"They're rowdy, I know. But Aunt Liz says Win fits right in. She misses the newborn stage, apparently."
Lyall ruffled Remus' hair before turning on his heel. "Be ready by 5, yeah? We have to take the car."
The dinner itself had been delicious. Aunt Liz was the best (muggle) cook he knew, even competing with the food served in the Great Hall. Remus did have to make a few creative answers to his muggle relatives' questions about his school.
"Is it a bit eccentric, but the grounds are beautiful."
"No, we do not learn a foreign language. I have been practicing my Welsh, though."
"No, they don't allow visitors. I know, I'm sorry. I would love to have you visit."
He felt like a teacher at a parent-teacher conference or something. He didn't quite have the exact comparison he was looking for. What he meant is that every bloody question he got was worse than the previous, and he swore it was taking the life out of him.
