Black Summer Home Ⅱ

With the two women gone, the party in the parlor had been reduced to three women. The last member of the party, who had been quietly dozing in her chair lets out a loud pained oof as she comes too. The red-haired wife of their cousin, Arthur Weasley, Molly Weasley let out a tired sigh.

Molly carefully rubbed her swollen belly with one hand causing her fiery red hair to move and glint in the light. Despite her discomfort, her warm brown eyes are full of smiles. "This one is always quiet except for precisely lashing out at the exact same time each day like clockwork."

"Yes, come August, is it?" Walburga promptly inquired about the pending birth before taking a sip of her iced tea with an elegant mint leaf and slice of lemon placed against the rim. A wonderful treat she did not discover until late in her life! She stared over the rim of her teacup at the rather pregnant wife of her cousin, Arthur.

"Not soon enough in my opinion," Molly sighed as she reached over to eat another pastry from the silver tray. "I had so hoped for a girl this time," she gloomily said, before taking a large bite of the sweet pastry. "Sadly, it's another boy," she mumbled. "And though I love him to bits already, this is the third boy I will have had in a row."

"Well, maybe, the fourth time is the charm," Narcissa hopefully replied. "Mother had three daughters and as you can see, the fourth will finally be a son."

"I can only hope," Molly answered with a hopeful gleam in her eyes.

"Have you and Arthur selected a name yet, Molly?" Walburga briskly inquired as she set down her cup of iced tea.

"Yes," Molly swallowed the last bit of pasty and licked her lips clean of crumbs, "Percy Ignatius Weasley."

"Percy Ignatius Weasley," Walburga solemnly repeated out loud. "A good strong name."

"We certainly hope so," Molly replied with a watery smile. "Auror Percius Clements was always kind and helpful to Arthur at the Ministry of Magic. More importantly, he even saved my brothers, Fabian and Gideon countless times in the line of duty." Her voice broke for a moment. "And of course for dear, Uncle Ignaitus-," her voice trailed as she grabbed the linen serviette to dab at the corner of her eye.

"I am sorry," Molly apologized with a loud sniff. "It's jus' that I become a blubbering mess of emotions whenever I am pregnant."

"It happens even to the best of us," Walburga painfully recalled her own emotional instability during pregnancy and even after giving birth to her eldest, Sirius. A most distressing pregnancy and a very emotional child that one! 

Narcissa moves forward to console Molly, while Walburga tactfully remains quiet. Walburga wasn't very good at consoling others. Walburga turns to glance out of the window only to spot a pretty, petite witch with strawberry blond bobbed hair, Tiffany Topsy, her eldest son's fiancé.

A proud smile appears on Walburga face upon spotting her prospective future daughter-in-law. A diamond in the rough. The child was hard working, had proper decorum, and most importantly had been here every single day to visit Sirius since the attack on Hogsmeade. She could not have picked a better daughter-in-law!

Turning away from the window Walburga returned to the conversation, while Tiffany who had been strolling through the gardens stopped in place having sensed a gaze. She glanced around but did not spot anyone. She finally glanced up at the windows of the manor but could only see the sunlight being reflected off the glass.

Returning to her walk, Tiffany strolled through the gardens without a set path in mind. At one point, she had slipped off her shoes and silk stockings feeling the cool green grass beneath her bare feet. She knew the garden like the back of her hand having visited the manor every single day since Sirius had been released from St. Mungo's.

Tiffany cared for Sirius, but she was worried. After Sirius was discharged from St. Mungo's, Sirius was short-tempered and curt, but over the last two weeks, he had become quiet and withdrawn. It was the latest change that worried her the most. It was so unlike him that she could not help but be distraught at the idea that Sirius might hurt himself or worse end his own life.

What came to mind was a distant cousin of her mother, Villem Selwyn, a sadistic, vile wizard, who beat his wives to death. Tiffany had been much too young to pay attention to the battered wives of her distant cousin, but despite being so young still remembered the eerie stillness in their eyes. Their eyes had been utterly lifeless without a single speck of light.

Most whispered Villem Selwyn had beaten his wives to death. This was very likely true. However, there were also rumors that some of the wives had taken poison to end it all.

Tiffany believed both of the rumors were true. Tiffany had been rather fearful when Villem had pursued Bethanie's hand, but thankfully the greed of Bethanie's father prevented their union. It was probably the nicest thing Bethanie's father had ever done for her.

The breeze caused Tiffany's hair to sway as her eyes became clouded recalling the youth she had met in the barn. A youth who had gone mad from betrayal taking the life of Emalia and her then fiancé, Vasco Vespucci. A foolish, misunderstood youth, who in the end took his own life in front of her. 

 There were nights when Tiffany would still awaken from her dreams gasping loudly. She could still see the broken expression on his face. She always tried to desperately save him in her dreams, but she never could. He was always a hair faster to slit his throat open. Even now, she could still smell and taste the metallic, coopery scent of blood in the air.

Letting out a sigh, Tiffany paused to clear her head. She leaned over one of the flower beds and knelt down to enjoy the scent of the flowers. There were carefully trimmed small bushes of petunias in shades of purple, pink, white, and blue. She reaches over to gently touch a flower.

Ever since Tiffany was a child, her mother had taught her the language of flowers. It was one of the things that Tiffany had a talent for and as a result, she had been permitted to take charge of her family's gardens since then. A smile slowly unfurled as she recalled the pot of petunias currently being tended at home by her nephew, whom she fondly called Chrissy-bear (Christopher Topsy).

 Chrissy-bear was most unhappy by Tiffany's daily visits to the Black family summer home. The little boy would always be pouting when Tiffany returned in the evenings and had to be coaxed by Tiffany every evening into smiling again. Hence the pot of petunias to coax Chrissy-bear and give him something to do while she is gone. Her plan worked a little too well as her nephew was overzealous in caring for the pot of petunias to the point of staring at the pot of flowers for hours on end…

Glancing up at the sky, Tiffany straightens up. It was nearly time for Rowan and Severus to arrive. She put on her shoes and stockings to try to sneakily greet them from the edge of the hall. When the Black elders formally greeted them, she would only hide and watch from a corner of the hallway the arrival of her friends.

Tiffany would have to wait until later to greet them. Still, she could only hope Rowan could talk some sense into Sirius. Sirius didn't seem to believe her when she said that she didn't mind the loss of his leg. But she wouldn't be put off so easily, she would keep telling him until he believed her.

However, sometimes some sense must be knocked into a thick skull. And well, Rowan certainly knew how to do that. At least that is what Tiffany hoped. And with that in mind, she hurried inside the manor to greet Rowan and Severus.