weirdoe | (no subject)

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"Giants. He recruited giants."

This called for another cup of tea. Of all the things the last meeting of the Order had revealed, this was the one she'd least expected. Werewolves made sense, somewhat, even though the one she knew in person was no-one she'd suspect to ever even thinking about joining the Death Eaters. Small blessings.

A kitten mewled and jumped onto her lap, and she petted it, almost automatically.

"All these innocent people..."

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"You have to think positively, Lily. They make for a bigger target."

Sirius felt as if it called for something a lot stronger than tea, he'd have to leave sooner or later and it wasn't really the right climate to go anywhere while drunk.

"He's trying with the centaurs, but I doubt that will work for him. Not that they're really on our side, either."

"They are victims, Sirius. Merlin knows what he promised them in return for this."

She sat the kitten down on the ground again before standing up to prepare tea. "As long as they don't hinder us, we should be fine," she replied with a sigh. "Would you like some tea as well?"

And then, with a smile: "We'd also have firewhiskey. After today's news, it's just as appropriate."

"They agreed to it. If you want me to take the stance that everyone he promised something in return for joining him is a victim, I'll be back to not knowing what to say at family gatherings."

Sirius gave a nod at the offer of tea, then grinned at the promise of firewhiskey.

"Let's drink spiked tea. I won't tell if you don't."

"Think of Remus and the way people treat his kind. Think of the way giants are spoken of. All he had to do was to promise them even a bit of equality, I bet."

While she sounded stern when speaking of the giants, she did laugh at the no-tell-deal when it came to the firewhiskey. She prepared two cups of modified tea and placed the one with the significantly larger shot in front of Sirius before returning to her own chair.

"If you speak like that at our family gatherings, I'll hex you." James' parents had essentially adopted him, after all.

"I think of Remus, but that still doesn't make me like Greyback anymore or think of him as a victim. I'm not saying it's fair how they are treated, but there are ways to protest without joining him."

Sirius reached for the cup and breathed in the fragrance, then took a long sip before smiling darkly.

"Not to worry. The only family gatherings where hexes are needed are my own."

"Greyback is a monster. He enjoys what he does. I'd believe a lot of others used to think like Remus, but weren't as lucky as he was. He had you, James and Peter. Not to mention Dumbledore. Others had no-one."

The kitten was back on Lily's lap as she took a sip of her own tea. "I think I could use one or two at the gatherings hosted by my side of the family, if only to keep peace and quiet."

"It's a choice. I made it, they can, too."

Sirius shrugged and sipped from the tea again before looking up with a smirk.

"You know you've got my blessing for any and all hexes cast at certain members of your family."

She raised an eyebrow at that. "Last time I checked, the only people rejecting you are the pureblooded high society."

Lily started to believe that she should have been the one getting the bigger shot of whiskey.

"She can be lovely, too, you know?" Even she didn't sound entirely convinced upon saying that.

"They reject me because of that choice. I could be a Deatheater."

Sirius shook his head, realizing he had gone the wrong way about explaining his reasoning. He just wasn't about to feel sorry for anyone willingly joining in murdering and torturing innocent people. He ran a hand through his hair and waved it off.

"I know what you mean. About the giants. Not about your sister, she sounds like a right beast."

She knew that this wouldn't be the last time they'd have that discussion, but she also saw his point. It was all a matter of perspective, and hers was a bit different.

"Petunia is... difficult. At least now, she has an excuse." However, Lily wasn't entirely sure whether that was good or less good. "And Vernon and her do complete each other, you got to leave them that."

"They do. But only because he looks as if he stole all her food."

So Sirius still had much of the same sense of humour as he had had in school, but nowadays Lily was a lot less successful in pretending she didn't find some of it a little bit funny herself.

She could do this. She could do this. She could -- giggle right into her tea. "Opposites attract? Besides, she is working on matching him, at least for a little while."

"She's pregnant."

"Oh?"

Sirius paused for a moment then said, with the greatest sincerity, "My condolence."

There was only the slightest twitch about his mouth.

She almost laughed. "She is trying very hard to live the perfectly normal life, while I am off with the magician."

This was easy to talk about. This was a normal conversation, despite the war and the dying and the fighting. This was a conversation any mugglewoman could have with her husband's best friend-almost-brother. It felt good, to be able to act normally for a change.

The thought of her enjoying normalcy reminded her even more of Petunia, and now she couldn't hold back a laugh.

"Merlin knows why you'd pick that over some solid bloke working as a filer. Or what that word was. Very solid. Overly solid, I'm almost tempted to say."

Sirius smiled at her laugh. It was nice to see her happy. Such moments were becoming rarer for all of them and they were savoured more every day, knowing that any moment might be the last.

"You know, a common muggle fear once upon a time were famines. Maybe he is... preparing himself? Just in case?"

She rarely mocked people, but Vernon was special. Very special. And this was one of the few occasion when life allowed this kind of conversation, so why not enjoy it? She took another sip of her tea, petted her kitten and was, once again, completely sure that sooner rather than later, the war would be over and moments like this would be an every-day-experience again.

"That seems only sensible. No idea what Prongs is up to, making fun of him the way he does. He's probably jealous, seeing as how he's just some magician."

It was actually probably rather lucky that James wasn't around or Sirius and him would probably already have been off on one of their joking tangents.

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