evanroseier:
“Oh, don’t sell Aunt Dru short, she’d at least be passive aggressive about it for double that, might even go to her grave giving you grief about it” He joked, though they both knew the truth that laid within it. Aunt Druella was just like many of the older mothers of pureblood society, and he’d take a guess any rich society, knew how to use proper manners and how to hold a proper grudge. “ It’s weird to think Cousin Bella was getting married and I was just starting Hogwarts.” Evan laughed with a shake of his head. “ Weird to think It was ten years ago I started Hogwarts, Time flies doesn’t it?” Part of him
“ Thank you, a good fashion must run in the family because you’re easily one of the best-dressed ladies I’ve encountered tonight.” He grinned at her compliment and easily threw one back. He’d liked cousin Alice despite the distance in beliefs from her and the other Rosier’s, and the age gap between the two it was always enjoyable to see her. She’d reminded him of his sisters, the side of them that he’d always been allowed to see. Alice was kind and cared for him, something that couldn’t be said of all Rosiers. “ You’re in luck! I came with a friend, but I’m under direct orders to mingle with family, and keeping you company fits the description. Let’s find us a table” Evan said offering his arm to Alice, waiting to walk until she’d taken it.
...
Alice laughed, thinking that Evan was exactly right. No one had perfected the art of passive aggression quite like their Aunt Druella or her cohort of perfect pureblood society mothers. Though she might take the cake, and Alice felt a rush of gratitude (not for the first time this evening) that her parents were so very different. Her upbringing had been the polar opposite of her cousins’, and though she felt a twinge of guilt that she had gotten off so easily, mostly she just felt pretty bloody lucky. “Wow, ten years, that is mental,” she said in a hushed voice, shaking her head. “Ah, yes, ickle Evan starting Hogwarts. I’m glad I was able to be there to see you in all your adorable awkward eleven year old glory.”
“Well, I’m quite grateful to your friend, because I would love some company.” Taking his arm, Alice let him steer her to one of the empty tables, and they sat down next to one another, Alice sighing in relief to be off her feet. Resting her hands on her round belly, Alice leaned back in her chair. “Merlin, I feel like a whale,” she said with a chuckle, patting the bump. She turned her attention back on her younger cousin, a smile breaking out on her face at the opportunity to catch up with him. “So, tell me about your date. Tell me about your life. It’s been ages since we properly caught up.”
FATE: THE WINX SAGA | 1.03, “Heavy Mortal Hopes”
fxprewettx:
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Fabian thought himself quite lucky to have an abundance of nephews and a niece - having to be apart from them was one of the worst parts of participating in the war. Sending Molly and Arthur into hiding had been no easy decision, an an even harder one to stick by after the loss of Gideon, but Fabian stood by the fact that it was the right thing for all of them. He’d felt a mixture of warm delight and cold terror when Alice had first told him that she and Frank were expecting a child. It was such a terrifying world to bring a baby into, but the idea of his friends with a child - the thought of the person they would raise - it overshadowed any of his doubt and concern.
He’d been later than he liked coming over, but maybe it was a good thing. They could have their space as a trio for the time being until he couldn’t stand it anymore and he was knocking a little impatiently, unable to help but match the wide grin on Frank’s face when he answered. Fabian felt a bit more hesitant the closer to the room he got, but any apprehension was dismissed as Alice welcomed him in, and he sat down with her and took the baby with ease.
He was perfect, of course, Fabian felt his mouth open a bit in awe. Long, dark lashes, and a shock of dark hair peeking out from the bundle he was wrapped up in. “Wow,” He said breathlessly, tearing his eyes away from the baby to look at Alice, unable to stop from welling up. He had a godson. Not the first. He had the twins. But that didn’t make this one any less dear to him and he carefully sat back against the headboard beside Alice. “He’s perfect, we can always dye his hair later,” He tossed her a grin before his eyes went back to his godson, “Have you picked a name?”
...
Alice beamed as she watched Fabian take Neville so tenderly, grateful that her son would have such a model in his life. Over the years of working together in the Order, Fabian and Gideon had become like brothers to her. She was the youngest in her family, so they had become the younger brothers she had always wanted to have, the ones to tease her and prank her and inspire her to be the best woman she could be. The loss of Gideon had cut through like a knife, especially in knowing that he would never be around to meet the child who had been growing within her, but it had only brought Fabian closer.
With all of that, it was only natural that Fabian be the godfather, and Alice was glad that Frank had felt the same way. She knew that if anything were to happen to her and Frank (a possibility that was more likely under the circumstances than she’d want to admit), one of their family would probably raise Neville, but Fabian would always be there to teach him all the things they wouldn’t be able to. To know that her son would have someone like that in her life was a great treasure.
Alice followed his gaze to the little bundle, her heart full at the sight of her son. He really was perfect, so much so that she’d kick Fabian’s ass if he ever convinced Neville to dye his hair red. Looking up to meet Frank’s gaze before turning back to Fabian, she gave him a soft smile. “Yes, we’ve known for a little while what we wanted to name him, and we think it suits him perfectly. Neville Gideon Longbottom.”
“Boys… Thanks for choosing me to be your mom.”
vancexemme:
alamoody:
Alastor listened intently, making note of every detail. Maybe it wouldn’t have been flint who was the man, but it would be a lead to follow on just in case, and leads even if they didn’t lead to the answer they want it always could have the potential to reveal other things. He could tell Emmeline was taking it seriously, giving extreme detail while telling it in a way that felt more clinical than emotional. It was always to go through these with that attitude, especially when it was so fresh the emotions still needing to be processed and if exposed risked reliving it a bit too closely. It was all very standard for now, he knew about what Dorcas had done and he couldn’t put any blame on her for wanting to break Emmeline out. If he had the opportunity to have saved her from what she would have to go through, he knew his emotion would hold some sway and he’d wish to do it too. Yet, Emmeline kept a cool head and probably did what was the best thing for everyone, but her. He was proud of the action even if he felt deeply guilty about where it leads her.
He had just been about caught up, adding small notes that he could make connections to later when Emmeline’s voice had stopped and her stare lingered on him. Alastor lifted the quill removing it from the paper, allowing her a break from the sound. In addition, he made a note to write slower and with less pressure, though he knew his control on that might decrease as they got to the more gruesome details. Alice had taken it upon herself to ask questions, she’d grown so nicely into her role. She was an excellent Auror and she asked questions that he stood behind, though he didn’t know if she was asking for all the same reasons he would. Alastor never shared his thoughts on Dorcas’ involvement with that death, figuring the suspicion then confirmation was better kept quiet. It was safer for Dorcas the fewer people that knew. It was probably obvious that the order would be thought of in his death, even if he had enemies made on his own, the enemy would be the first one to come to mind.
Although Emmeline’s eyes had been trained on him just moments ago, as she spoke now it seemed she wouldn’t be able to meet his gaze. It was probably better that she didn’t, his eyes and facial expression could never express the comfort she would need for this. As much as he tried to take a break to ease her, he had to get back to writing it was too important now to miss any details here, and honestly, he didn’t want to spend the evening trying to remember the cruelties done. It’d be something too hard, he would already have to go through this enough, and adding to it just felt so disheartening. Emmeline was practically a daughter and she’d gone through something horrific, she was a brave girl, but it wasn’t anything she deserved. His grip tightened as she went into what Bellatrix had done, having to remind himself to loosen it to prevent the noises for Emmeline. At Alice’s question, he nodded in agreement. “ Yes, do you think they have any reason to believe he’d been the one to let you out?” He added, finally speaking up since the beginning. He knew it was technically skipping a big chunk, but it was relevant and would do good to know in case the young boy would need extra protection.
@vancexemme
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The questions provided a much needed pause, letting Emmeline take a step back from her memories in order to answer them. Her voice was still clear and precise and Whiskers hid the shaking of her hands easily with his long fur and insistent requests to be pet. She had only gone through the first day of ten so she knew it was no great feat to have not broken down yet, but she had set her jaw and looked up steadily at Alice’s questions.
“I don’t think she’s sure,” She answered, “It felt like she was throwing it out hoping to get some reaction to see if she was looking in the right direction.” The mind of Bellatrix wasn’t one she’d be confident in picking apart, but she could at least provide this much, to describe the reckless toss of questions instead of out Dorcas for what she had done.
At the mention of them suspecting Regulus, she shook her head. Emmeline at least felt confident in Regulus. He was smart and quiet, and she had a feeling if his relatives had caught any whiff of the visits they would have put an end to it immediately or come down with him. “No, he was very careful about it, and then he was gone for a few days. I don’t think they even knew he was over at the house the day we left.” It might be smart to ask Regulus more, she couldn’t vouch for his behavior prior to seeing him again and if he was as honest faced as he’d been with her downstairs it might be smart to keep their protection of him a secret. “You should speak with him, if you can do so without frightening him. He’s going through a lot at the moment.”
Content that they had the answers they needed, she slipped into describing the second day. “The second day was…different. She asked me the same questions, really, and again I didn’t say anything. She would threaten things, tell me she would peel my skin off or make me eat one of my eyes. She didn’t use any spells on the second day, just some knives she seemed pretty partial to. She stabbed my shoulder, my left arm, and my left thigh. Then she would just cut me in smaller places, still asking me the same questions over and over, and if I was quiet, she’d cut me more.”
@alicelxngbottom
...
Alice tried to keep her face neutral as Emmeline continued to tell them of her time in the Lestrange basement, desperate to keep the emotions raging within from overpowering her. Alice had been an Auror for nearly ten years now, she should be used to this sort of thing. And in reality, she was. She had sat in on debriefs far worse than this and been able to turn off the emotional part of her to do the work that needed to be done. In fact, she had done it many times. But there was something about this that made it difficult to do that. She felt none of the usual cool, calm, clinical control that she usually felt in these situations. She couldn’t seem to separate her feelings from the work in front of her.
Maybe it was the pregnancy, which would be the easiest thing to blame. After all, she was a mess of raging hormones and maternal instinct. Very few women in her position would be able to hear of these atrocities while feeling their child move beneath them. It was just a horrible sick reminder that she was bringing an innocent, defenseless child into the world in the middle of a war. But Alice knew that it was more than just the emotions of a pregnant woman. She loved each of her Aurors, but there was something about the Order members that moved her heart in a deeper way. Not only were they family to Alice, but she was keenly aware of how young most of them were. At least her Aurors weren’t sent into the field until they had proved themselves capable through three years of training. These Order members didn’t have that; they were still children.
And looking at Emmeline now, Alice was struck with how young and vulnerable she looked. Of course Emmeline was incredibly strong and brave after everything she had been through; most would have broken in that situation and given their torturers the information they were looking for. But strong and brave or not, no one that young should have to go through what Emmeline had suffered. Alice didn’t often feel hopeless like this, but she couldn’t help wondering whether this was all worth it. How many more people that she cared about would be hurt or murdered before this was all over? And how could she bear to let any of them leave on mission knowing that this sort of thing was a possibility?
@alamoody
Alice knew that she really should give herself more time to recover and be at home with Neville, but after everything went down at the Ministry’s Halloween Ball, Alice was antsy to get back to work. She loved being a mum, and being with Neville lit up a part of her that she hadn’t even realized there was, but she couldn’t get her mind off the thought of what was going on outside the walls of their cozy house. Maybe in another world she would be content staying home with her babe, but she couldn’t close her eyes and blind herself to the reality that they were living in a war, and she was too much of an asset to the Aurors to walk away when they needed her. She had wrestled with the decision for weeks, but Alice knew that she needed to return to work. Even if it meant that there was a chance Neville might lose her, it was a choice she had to make. Whatever it cost, Alice needed to make a safer, better world for her son.
So after a difficult conversation with Frank, Alice sought out the person she was most nervous to talk to this about -- she knew that Moody would probably be delighted to have her back, but she also knew that he would likely try to talk her out of it. He knew the stakes better than anyone else, and she had gotten the sense that there were a few people within the Auror department and the Order who thought she should step back now that she had a child.
Still, nervous as she was, Alice was no coward, so she held her head high and her shoulders back as she marched through the Auror office, nodding to the people she passed who looked up from their work or called out her name. Reaching Moody’s office, she knocked firmly on the door, waiting a moment and then turning the handle to push open the door when she heard his voice from within. “Hey, boss,” she said, her tone confident, as she stepped into the office and shut the door behind her.
@alamoody