(A/N) Hey everyone, welcome back! This chapter is a little bit longer than my usual chapters but I think you are really going to like it <3
TW: Slight mention of abuse, this may be uncomfortable for some readers, although it is very minimal and only implied.
I hope you enjoy this and don't forget to comment and vote if you enjoy and follow my account if you want to be notified when I post announcements <3
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"Wake up" A hushed voice whispered lowly as I began to stir, shaking my shoulders and disrupting my slumber.
I could only groan in response, screwing my eyes shut immediately after they began to flutter open, not wanting to expose myself to the harsh morning sun that would soon be attacking my senses, before I turned to burrow my head into my pillows to evade the streams of crisp winter light.
"Merry Christmas" The husky voice spoke again, it's croaky morning tone laced with childlike excitement that they seemed to be doing a poor job of concealing.
I let my eyes open slowly in an attempt to avoid the abruptness of the harsh winter sun, as it spilled in through the icy glazed windows, beginning to peak above the horizon, the December sunrise casting hues of warming scarlett and violent amber across the room.
"Dad?" I asked groggily, violently rubbing the sleep from my eyes, my vision still not quite settled and my brain continuing to adjust to my surroundings.
"Merry Christmas Poppet" Remus repeated, launching himself onto my bed and tackling me into a bone crushing embrace, effortlessly cocooning the duvet around me securely and scoping me into his arms, wrapped in the heavy bedding, just like he used to do when I was a little girl, and held me into his chest.
"Merry Christmas Dad" I whispered into his warm body, immediately familiarised with the scent of freshly brewed breakfast tea, as he stood up off the bed and started to carry me out the door and down the stairs.
I screwed my eyes together tightly, not wanting to focus on anything other than the feel of Remus holding me as though I was no more than nine years old again, and life was seemingly simpler, and just for a moment, I left myself pretend nothing had changed, and in fact that girl of a mere nine years old was still me, unbeknown to what the future held, and perfectly content with that.
My back made sudden contact with the largest sofa in the den, causing me to release a small yelp as Remus carefully dropped me and I came crashing down into reality, and despite its imperfections, it was a reality I would make the most of, because I knew this wouldn't last forever.
"Merry Christmas Lupin" George shouted, tackling me onto the sofa just as I began to stand, playfully attacking my head with purposefully slobbery kisses, halting slightly as I began to protest but ultimately ignoring my objections and continuing until we were both doubled over laughing and tears began streaming down both our checks.
I got up on the sofa and made my way around the room, wishing everyone a merry Christmas and exchanging warming hugs, careful not to kiss Fred good morning as Remus watched us intently.
Although just before I slipped into the kitchen to greet Molly and Bill, who were both absent from the den, I noticed a figure lingering around the back of the room, keeping to himself and unengaged with the rest of the group.
"Sirius?" I whispered, looking over at him with an innocent smile, catching his reserved expression.
"Merry Christmas puppy" He croaked back shyly, in the most unlike Sirius Black manner I was sure anyone had ever seen, offering a gentle shrug as he failed to mask the embarrassment that radiated off his very being.
I didn't say another word, just simply crossed the room and enveloped my arms around his, pulling him into a silent embrace before resting my head softly onto his shoulder and nuzzling my face into his hair.
"Merry Christmas" I muttered quietly, the sound muffled slightly as I didn't pick my head off his shoulder, standing there for a brief moment, just simply being, doing something I considered a rarity; hugging my dad.
"Breakfast, everyone to the table" Molly called from the kitchen as Bill began to carry though plates filled with endless amounts of bacon, pancakes, sausage, eggs and waffles.
I pulled away from Sirius and made my way over to the table, inwardly blushing as Fred pulled out my chair wordlessly, not even noting his owm chivalrous act before seating himself down next to me.
"Morning my dear" Molly beamed as she came to sit down at the table, throwing her apron over her chair before taking a seat next to her husband.
"Merry Christmas Molly" I smiled, remembering our conversation from just yesterday and basking in that familiar warmth that filled my chest at the memory of her words.
"Everyone eat, and then we'll do presents" Molly explained, motioning towards the fully decorated tree, that was certainly not there yesterday, beneath which were endless stacks of presents, each decorated with different shiny, metallic papers and glossy ribbons that caught and reflected the golden sunlight.
We all lost ourselves in a multitude of conversations, Bill and Tonks unknowingly flirting between themselves, whilst Hermione pestered a patient Remus with endless strings of questions about her winter assignments, the twins spoke with Ginny about something quidditch related, and I found myself in slow conversation with Sirius and Harry.
"So" Harry began awkwardly, having placed his cutlery down in order to play with his fingers, "You knew my dad?"
Sirius paled slightly, noticeably fighting the urge to spiral before regaining his composure and leaning eagerly into the table, glancing at Harry and I. "I did. And it was an utmost privilege"
Harry smiled down at his hands, his eyes wide with innocence and glazed over slightly as tears pricked their corners, tears that he quickly caught before he allowed them to fall.
"Maybe you could come and visit Grimmauld Place next time you're off school, easter maybe, I have boxes upon boxes of pictures of him and your mother, I'd be happy to give you some" Sirius explained nervously, noting Harry's shy demeanor and awkwardly shifting in his seat as he attempted to fix it.
"I'd like that," Harry whispered, smiling up at Sirius who offered him a warm grin in return before they both stuck back into their breakfast, both of which now being forced into their second serving by Molly.
"Oh that reminds me, Ari, Remus and I would like to talk to you after you've eaten" Sirius asked, silently refusing to lift his gaze from his plate, "If that's ok?" He added quickly, as though he needed my permission, a strange feeling I enjoyed, savouring it as I knew it would not last long.
I washed down the last of my breakfast with some juice, keeping to myself whilst silently observing the conversations around me, save for having to stamp on Fred's foot to silently convey the message of 'get your hand off my thigh right now Fredrick Gideon Weasley because my dads are about 100cm away' And I think he got the memo as he quickly retracted his hand.
Everyone started clearing away whilst Sirius, Remus and I quickly slipped out the back door, the winter chill creeping steadily along my spine, leaving a trail of goosebumps in its wake. And Sirius immediately shrugged off his jumper, wordlessly shoving it in my face with a generous smile as I thankfully accepted and pulled it over my head.
"Have I done something?" I questioned, anxious when no one had broken the silence since we stepped into the garden.
"No, no, no, god no. You haven't done anything poppet" Remus assured, fiddling anxiously with the frayed hem of his navy cardigan, the one with the tortoise shell buttons, nervously glancing over at Sirius before looking back over to me.
"So what is this about?" I asked, relaxing my demeanor slightly.
"Remus and I are together" Sirius blurted out without warning, immediately slapping his hand across his mouth, partially concealing the violent blush spreading its way across his pale cheeks.
"I um, I don't, I...uh" I mumbled, trailing off aimlessly as I studied Remus's expression for an explanation.
"I know it's a lot Ardelle, if you need a minute to-" Remus began but was silenced as I jumped into his arms, pulling both him and Sirius into a suffocating hug, uncontrollably smiling into Remus's chest.
"You're not mad?" Sirius questioned hesitantly, glancing down at me but refusing to loosen the intensity of the embrace.
"Mad?" I scoffed with amusement, wiggling myself out from between them and staring up at each of their puzzled expressions, "I'm the furthest thing from mad" I whispered, suddenly overwhelmed with emotions I was struggling to mask.
Remus chuckled deeply whilst Sirius released a laboured breath of relief he had unknowingly been holding, each of them smiling down at me with the most genuine of smiles.
"Are you guys happy together?" I asked honestly, catching them both slightly off guard before a sheep grin sweeped Sirius's face and Remus tried to combat the rosey blush that infused his porcelain cheeks.
"Very" Remus admitted bashfully, as he took Sirius's hands in his.
"Then that's all that matters, no?" I grinned, the warmth spilling through the cavities in my chest, fighting the biting cold.
They both gave grateful nods before Remus went to speak again, this time slightly more reserved, "I know we are springing a lot on you, and by no means do you have to say yes but we wondered how you felt about living together, as a family?"
"Yes" I stated without missing a beat, not my expression nor tone having faltered as I kept my gaze fixed on them both.
"Since it is considerably larger than our place," Remus continued, "We thought about, since Sirius is there anyway...moving into Grimmauld. It has the huge library and you would have a larger room and-"
"Can I think about it?" I asked, disrupting Remus's persistent rambling, releasing an involuntary shudder at the thought of Grimmauld place, the image of my mum prominent in my mind for a fleeting moment.
"Of course" Sirius assured, reaching for my hand and stroking the pad of his thumb along my palm, just as the back door swung open and Fred stood in the doorway, looking nervous.
"Sorry to interrupt" Fred politely interjected, "Could I have a word with you two please?" He continued, glancing between, a very confused, Remus and Sirius, avoiding eye contact with me as I stood between the two of them.
"I'll go inside" I confirmed with a nervous chuckle, glancing up at Fred worriedly, but he simply smiled awkwardly, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his dark joggers and bouncing on the balls of his feet, before ushering me inside.
I attempted to shake off the lingering sense of unease as it washed over me and began to drown my composure, the knot in the ball of my stomach tightening as I glanced back at the, now closed, door, but was soon distracted by a lonesome Harry sitting on the couch.
"Where are the others?" I questioned Harry, slumping down beside him and immediately dropping my head onto his shoulder, Harry soon responding to my affection as he wrapped his arm around my torso and held me into his side.
"Anyone who wasn't a Weasley was banished from helping clean up, so Hermione and Tonks went upstairs to grab their presents for the others" Harry explained, shuffling slightly so he could look down at me. "It was nice of Sirius to offer to give me those pictures from Grimmauld, no?"
"Grimmauld, yeah" I muttered sarcastically, unintentionally disregarding Harry's statement.
"Sorry?" He asked, pulling away enough that my head was forced to drop from his shoulder as I glanced up at him.
"Sorry I just have a lot on my mind, but yeah that was nice, you deserve to have some more pictures" I rambled out apologetically, trying not to sound overly sympathetic, noting Harry's hatred for being pitied.
"You can't have more of something you don't have" Harry scoffed, folding his arms across his chest as he released a wavering and shaky breath.
"Sorry? You don't have any photographs of your parents?" I asked in astonishment, studying Harry's seemingly unfazed expression.
"Nope. My aunt and uncle weren't exactly the biggest fans of my mum and dad" Harry explained nonchalauntly, as though it was the most ordinary thing in the world.
"What, so they didn't give you one picture to hang in your room?" I questioned, a sickening nausea rising in my stomach as I surveyed Harry's unbothered expression, shocked when his lip curled into a sly smirk.
"Room?" He asked as if he had never heard the word before, "They didn't give me pictures of my own parents, what makes you think they gave me a room?" He scoffed, the hostility rising in his tone.
"So where do you sleep?" I croaked, unsure as to whether I wanted the answer to my question, that unnerving nausea now wracking my entire being as Harry took a deep inhale and his eyes began to trail the floor.
"Under the stairs" He whispered, not removing his eyes from the ground beneath our feet.
"Under the what!" I shouted, and Harry's head immediately shot up, his eyes widening as he instantaneously clapped his hand over my mouth in an attempt to silence my loud protests.
"It's nothing Ardelle, really" Harry tried to reassure me but failed miserably as I aggressively yanked his hand from my mouth and stared at him with wide eyes, my chest heaving with a sickening concoction of anger and dejection.
"It's not nothing, Harry" I tried to reason with him, explaining the seriousness of his confession but the regret etching his way across his features was evident as he silently wished he had not said anything at all. "Have they ever..have they ever hurt you?"
Harry didn't respond, just slowly began to nod his head, fighting the urge to give into the tears evidently welling in the depths of his eyes, the warm emerald tones now much cooler and seemingly more cold.
"But honestly Ardelle it's fine, I only see them when were aren't at school, and once I turn eighteen I'll be able to move out and Petunia's not even that bad-" Harry tried to reason but was soon silence as I stood up, my body seething with anger as a sudden realisation came crashing over me like a violent wave.
I stormed towards the door, desperate for air, and in dire need to talk to Remus and Sirius. And if the timing could not have been more impeccable, as I reached for the handle, the back door swung open to reveal a smitten Fred with a goofy grin plastered from ear to ear, one that even in my adrenaline fueled rage could soften the burning anger slightly.
I slipped past him wordlessly, slamming the door behind me as I glared over at the two men standing in the snow, their cheeks now flushed deep scarlet as the stinging and bitter winter air whipped across their skin each time the wind changed.
"Where does Harry live?" I asked harshly, in a tone that reflected to each of us that I was already in possession of an answer.
"With his aunt and uncle" Remus replied cautiously, unnerved at my sudden appearance.
"An Aunt Petunia perhaps?" I stated, raising my voice slightly and crossing my arms over my chest, impatiently tapping my foot, "The same Petunia you told me relentlessly bullied Lily?"
"Uh I...maybe" Remus whispered, now slowly catching onto the root of my outburst, his eyes leaking worry as he watched mine flash red.
"YOU KNEW!" I shouted, the heat of my anger counteracting the piercing wind, stepping closer to Remus and watching as he stepped back in response. "You know he sleeps in a cupboard? And they hurt him!"
Both Sirius and Remus paled at my words, their expressions laced with concern as they subconsciously glanced at the backdoor as though to check on Harry.
"How is that fair?" I continued, my blood visibly boiling, "I got you, I had someone, someone good when everything went to shit and what did he get? Nothing!" I attempted to shout but rather sobbed as heated tears streamed down my flushed and numb cheeks.
"Dumbledore assured me he was better off with his blood family" Remus explained shyly, pulling at the hems of his sleeves.
"Bullshit. You just didn't want to consider the truth, you didn't want to admit that you should have taken him" I continued to sob, my breathing laboured and throat raw, shrugging Sirius off me as he attempted to hold my shaking body.
We remained in heavy silence for the best part of five minutes, the only sounds were those of nature mixed with my croaky cries as they settled into shy whimpers, before Remus spoke up.
"You're right" He admitted with a defeated sigh, "I didn't want to admit that I had let James down, and that Harry was just as much my responsibility as you were. I'm sorry poppet"
The disappointment laced in his loaded words immediately shattered my exterior, the mention of James had visibly torn through both him and Sirius, and for a brief moment I watched this unravel, before noting the flaw in the direction of my anger.
"You didn't let James down" I admitted, causing both boys to snap their head in my direction, "This wasn't your fault and I shouldn't act as though it was" I continued in a hushed gravely whisper, quietly sniffling as I dried the last of my tears with the sleeve of Sirius jumper, "We may not have started this, but we sure as hell are ending it"
Remus walked over and pulled me into a tight embrace, beginning to mutter endless strings of apologies into my disheveled locks and he lovingly stroked the top of my head.
"Harry should live with us" I muttered horsley, pressing my head against Remus's chest further to savour the scent of tea mixed with the tobacco lingering on Sirius jumper.
After a few minutes of prolonged silence and presumably exchanged glances between Sirius and Remus, Sirius walked over and joined the embrace, the scent of muted cigarettes and rich chocolate mingling together and lacing itself within the cotton of their clothing.
"You're right" Sirius whispered, lacing his fingers with Remus's on my head, smiling down at me, a look of admiration adorning his features.
"We can find a way to make it work, obviously space is an issue-" Remus considered before he was silenced by my abrupt interjection.
"No. I mean he should live with the three of us, at number 12" I explained, forcing down the suffocating lump lodging itself in my throat.
"Are you sure?" Remus asked in concern.
"No" I answered honestly, "But I know this is the right thing in the long run, even if it makes me uncomfortable for now, and who knows, perhaps I'll fall in love with that place"
And I could not have been more correct.
The three of us made our way back inside, our icy breath visible as we entered the warmth of the burrow, the entirety of the group scattered throughout the living room patiently awaiting our return.
I glanced at Harry who seemed to have resorted back to his usual self, a syrupy grin plastered from ear to ear as he listened to Bill tell him and Tonks a joke, and then I briefly turned to Fred who motioned for me to sit next to him, outstretching arms playfully and pulling me into the sofa.
"Who's ready to do presents?" Molly asked enthusiastically, watching as everyone's eyes lit up quite literally like giddy children on Christmas morning.
The once metallic and patterned papers and glossy ribbons were soon disregarded throughout the room, Arthur starting to collect up the rubbish into a bin bag, watching joyfully as his children opened their gifts.
"Here dear" Molly beamed, passing me a soft looking packet with brown paper tied together with an emerald green ribbon. "I hope you like it"
I pulled out a crismon knitted jumper with a golden 'A' stitched into the front, very similar to the ones the other Weasleys wore around the common room back at Hogwarts.
"I love it Mrs Weasley, thank you" I grinned, pulling her into a warm embrace, continuing to thank her profusely as she stroked my hair and whispered back about how it was no trouble at all.
We all continued to open different gifts, quidditch supplies, books, toys, clothes and endless piles of sweets, most of which belonging to Ron, until only two presents lay dormant below the tree.
Molly pulled them out and studied the wrapping, both of which were wrapped beautifully, one with golden metallic paper and a black ribbon, whilst the other was wrapped in brown paper with royal blue securing its middle.
"These are both for Ardelle," Molly spoke cheerfully, passing over the two parcels until they both eventually sat in my lap.
"The gold ones from me" Sirius whispered shyly, distractly lacing his fingers with Remus's, who sat beside him, so he had something to look at.
"And the brown one is from me" Fred added with a large grin, a nervous distaste laced in his expression as he anxiously awaited the opening of his gift.
"Before I open these" I announced, glancing at Remus and Sirius before turning my gaze over to Harry, "Sirius, Remus and I would like to ask Harry something"
Harry's features washed with a puzzled expression as he put down the book he was flicking through and glanced up at me from his seat on the floor.
"You don't have to ever tell me, or anyone, what the people you live with did to you, but no one deserves to live with people like that. Remus and I are moving in with Sirius into Grimmauld Place during the Easter holidays, we want you to come with" I explained, watching as the puzzled look on Harry's face intensified.
"You want me to...are you sure?" Harry asked groggily, his hands shaking slightly as he ran them through his messy locks and pushed his glasses up his sweaty nose.
"Positive" Remus confirmed, motioning for Harry to take a seat on the sofa beside him.
"You're family, son" Sirius added, reaching over and ruffling Harry's hair playfully.
"Thank you" Harry whispered before failing to fight the sob he let slip as endless streams of tears began cascading down his rosey cheeks.
I pulled Harry into a gentle embrace, letting him sob into my shoulder before whispering, "I've always wanted a brother" Which caused Harry to chuckle before pulling out of my arms and wiping away the remiance of his tears.
"Open your presents" He stated, suddenly feeling undeserving of all the attention directed on him and desperately trying to avoid pity at any expense.
I smiled at him before I began to tear open Sirius's gift, slightly confused when my three favourite books, all of which I already owned, were staring up at me, and I glanced over to Sirius for an explanation.
"I know you have them already, that is not why I got them. I didn't know why you liked them so much and I wanted to learn about the things you love, since I missed so much. So I got them and well... opened them" Sirius explained nervously, noticeably tightening his grip on Remus's fingers.
I flicked through the books resting on my lap, my jaw slack and my eyes welling with painfully comforting tears as I understood what he had done.
"I annotated them as I read through, that way you know how I felt the first time I read them and you can laugh at my idiotic interprataion of your intelectual hobbies" Sirius chuckled, glancing up at me, his smile immediately faltering as he noted my teary expression, "Do you not like them?"
"I love them" I whispered, chuckling as I stumbled across some profanities scribbled in the margins of one of the books, "Thank you...dad"
And Sirius choked slightly, spluttering as he desperately concealed the overwhelming emotions, but chose not to comment on my choice of words but rather silently savour them as I turned my attention over to Fred's gift.
I looked over at Fred before gently pulling apart the paper, staring down at a small, velvet, black box with a golden seal where the box closed. The hinge creaked almost silently as I opened it, and I was met with a silver chain upon which hung a small, heart shaped, locket.
I opened the clasp and silently read the words engraved inside, my hearted swelling and my eyes once again welling with tears.
'I will always sing, as long as you promise to always dance -Paul McCartney'
I stared between the locket and Fred, struggling to contain the tears pooling in the depths of my eyes, my expression dazed as I stared at him with adoration, unable to put the feelings into coherent words.
"Fred this is-"
"There's more" He stated, placing the box on the floor beside me, taking my hands in his and standing me up to face him.
"Now I know you hate sappy shit, so i'll keep the cringe to a minimum, but the day I met you, I never would have predicted that I had met the girl who would change everything. Truthfully, I don't have my life sorted out, and I don't have a clue where I'm going, but I do know, that wherever that is, I want you there. Ardelle Sumer Lupin-Black I love you, and I would love nothing more than to have the privilege of calling you my girlfriend"
"Fred" I breathed, my gaze lost in his honey eyes, the pools of warm golden syrup melting the last of my composure. "I love you too"
He collided his lips into mine, a kiss I reciprocated for all of two seconds before acknowledging my dads sitting on the sofa just a metre away.
"So is that a yes?" He asked with a soppy grin.
"Are you guys okay with this?" I asked, glancing over to Remus and Sirius who both looked on the verge of tears.
"Fred already ensured we were okay before he asked you," Remus explained with pride, and suddenly Fred's earlier private conversation with the two men made a lot more sense.
"So?" Fred asked again, bouncing anxiously on the balls of his feet.
"Yes"