When with Rome {Sirius Black}

52. Future

As quickly as their lives moved with the changing times, so did those who surrounded them. Fleamont and Euphemia Potter had fought until the end of their lives to see both of their children grow and marry the people they loved. However, they could only witness one of their children marry as they both succumbed to Dragon Pox within days of each other. The bond between them was so strong, so unbreakable that one could not live without the other.

And as much as Barbara hated sitting there in all black, she knew it was their time.

The funeral procession only involved close family members, Valerie, Angel, and some members of the Order of the Phoenix. It lasted a few minutes, only involving a proper burial for the couple as they knew that their children should be focused on the future of their children's rather than the death of their parents'. It was their final wish: a peaceful world for their grandchildren, and one the Potter twins intended to uphold.

So rather instead of feeling sorry for themselves, the siblings spent the day with each other to catch up. Although they made it a point to see each other every day, they didn't necessarily dive deep into their fears as the war grew bigger and bigger.

They knew Dippy and Trixie's positions needed to be discussed as well, afraid of what would happen to them because they were already caught in the middle of things.

"Honestly, Barb," James commented, "they would permanently glue themselves to our family members before being fired. I don't have the heart to go through with firing them."

Barbara sighed heavily, the bags under her eyes more pronounced as the days ticked by. "I agree. It would be so cruel just to let them go after all of this time, Jamesie. They've been around as long as we have and I'd hate to separate them as well. They've been together for a long, long time."

"So what do you think we should do? I can't imagine they want to hear from us today about their futures with our family. They're mourning as much as we are, Barb," James rubbed his hands through his hair, clearly upset about the dilemma, "I mean, we've known this day was coming but I didn't realize how quick, you know?"

She scooted closer to James and put her arm around him, bringing him into a close hug as she rested her head on top of his. "We really don't have to make a decision today, James. None of us need that right now. We all need to take a break and just relax-"

"-- Except that's impossible!" James cried out. Barbara looked into her brother's eyes, noting the tears leaking out of the corners of his hazel eyes. She gently wiped them away and brought him into another hug.

"I know it is, James; but you know what they wanted for us. They wanted a bright future so our children don't have to be raised in fear of punishments. Our parents know that we'll fight to the death, just to give our kids the safety and happiness we were never able to have for ourselves."

She heard James sniff a couple of times as his grip tightened around his sister. Their bond strengthened over the years, and their bond continued to in that moment. They were surrounded by chaos, death, and now left as orphans who needed to arrange their parents' affairs; but they felt they were at peace.

And no one could take away the love they had for each other, not even the Dark Lord.

When the twins finally emerged from upstairs after what seemed like hours, they brought down a list of arrangements that immediately required their attention. They walked down the stairs together and entered the tension-filled living room, eyeing the crying House Elves and the tearstained cheeks of their friends and spouses.

"Alright," Barbara coughed to gain everybody's attention, "so we made a small list of the situations we immediately need to handle. First, Dippy, Trixie, we don't want you two to leave us."

As soon as that phrase escaped Barbara's lips, the House Elves cried out in delight and pulled each other closer. 

Barbara smiled, "We want you to continue working for the Potters, however troublesome they may be. But if anybody in the family tries to take advantage of you two, James and I give you permission to hurt them enough to keep respecting your authorities. As the war progresses, right now we want you to work for the Order to ensure that we continue the flow of communication between members and whatever work Wizards cannot accomplish."

"Dippy and Trixie thank you and promise to protect the Potters!" The duo cried out in delight. Forgetting their old masters for a brief moment, they ran to the Potter siblings and hugged each of them tightly.

James held Trixie tightly, "Just remember Potter kids must break at least two school rules throughout their time at Hogwarts. That's a must as a Potter!"

"Moving on," Barbara elbowed James in his ribcage, "I just wanted to address this publicly, since everyone here is invited: Sirius and I are still marrying next week. We all need something happy to look forward to and I expect everybody to be there! My parents would hurt all of us if Sirius and I postponed the wedding and you guys allowed us to. We're just going to add on a couple things to remember my parents."

She smiled in Sirius's direction, wanting to make sure the nerves he was feeling would go away before they partied for days after their celebration.

"Also," James added, "as soon as the wedding is over, the next two weeks will be dedicated to ridding this house of anything involving us. Barbara and I want to sell it quickly to put the money in Gringotts since they're the safest place on Earth and the market is surprisingly good-- despite being in the midst of a war."

"England definitely has its perks," Sirius sued aloud, "anything else you want us to do?"

"Our parents last wish was to ensure a safe place for future grandchildren. We need to make sure this war ends faster. At this rate, we'll be fighting until the next Headmaster of Hogwarts takes over."