"I don't understand you lived there with Sirius for nearly a year," Tonks argued in confusion. The group of adults, minus Nuntis who appeared to be doodling with Caelen on the sofa, had been arguing since Tonks had tumbled out of the floo and announced Dumbledore was calling a meeting at Grimauld.

Remus scowled angrily, "Yes and every time she was left alone in that house she got hurt. I'd rather miss a meeting and get the information second hand than bring Caelen along, leave her alone in some room because she isn't old enough to sit in on a meeting, and her get hurt again."

"But headquarters is safe as anything," Tonks tried again.

Sirius snorted, "that place is the antithesis of safe. I'm with Remus on this, one of us will have to stay here during meetings. We can trade off if you like Moons."

Tonks stared between the two men in exasperation. She wondered briefly if she could get their friend Nuntis to help her force the men to see reason.

"Sorry Dora, I've made up my mind Caelen won't be going back to Grimauld. Seeing as I can't leave her on her own I won't be either." Remus stated firmly.

Tonks dropped her head onto the worn wooden table with an exasperated groan. "Fine, what about with someone trustworthy?"

Sirius scoffed, "who exactly would be trustworthy enough to leave her with that isn't already an order member?"

"My mother," Tonks responded, smiling at Remus. "Mum would love Caelen, she'd be safe there, and no one would miss any information." If Caelen got along with her mother well that couldn't hurt her own standing with Remus, the woman figured.

The men exchanged a look, "she's your cousin Sirius, what do you think?" Remus finally questioned.

Sirius shrugged, "haven't seen Dromeda since before I went to...well went away. I'd trust her though, fellow reject and all." He smiled ruefully.

Tonks grinned triumphantly, "That's settled then we'll go to mum's first, get Caelen settled comfortably, and then go to the meeting."

Remus sighed and stood from the table, "fine." He wandered from the room in search of his daughter and Nuntis, finding the pair curled up next to a bookcase in the living room.

"She's safe with this Dromeda person?" Nuntis signed as he entered, thus erasing all impressions he may have had of the conversation having been private.

"Sirius says so yeah," he responded before kneeling in front of his daughter. "Hey Cub, you heard?"

Caelen placed the sketchbook aside and met his gaze nervously. "You'll be back right after?" She whispered.

"The second it's over," he promised solemnly.

"Sirius and I as well Tesoro," Nuntis wrote in the corner of their drawing.

The girl nodded bravely, "Ok, think I'd like to meet Tonks's mum."

___

Sirius had helped Caelen pack a bag while Nuts interrogated Tonks about her mother and the group had set off through the floo. Andromeda had gushed over Caelen, reassuring the adults she'd be in good hands and shooing them off to their meeting so quickly no one was quite certain they ever actually quit spinning. It seemed more like they'd spun out of the floo and their momentum must have carried them in sort of a slingshot motion around the matron of the house and back into the floo.

Caelen stared up at the woman she'd been entrusted to. Andromeda Tonks carried herself with an authority Caelen's mother had often played at but never quite accomplished. The woman seemed to fill the room with quiet strength, despite the fact she was thin and couldn't have been taller that five foot seven. Her dark hair was up in a tidy, but stylish, updo of sorts, with the lightest smarting of silver gracing the hair at her temples and her rosy lips curled into a smile not unlike her daughter's. "Hello little one," she greeted gently, "Nymphadora has told me so much about you. You're just as lovely as she claimed." Her hand reached out slowly to gently run across Caelen's blue lock of hair, "lovely choice this, adds a bit of spark," Andromeda winked at the girl.

Caelen smiled, the tiniest quirk of her lips, "Tonks put it in," she mumbled.

The woman nodded as she swept from the room, clearly expecting Caelen to follow in her wake. "Yes, my daughter told me her initial present was met with polite thanks but obvious disinterest." She smiled back at the girl as she opened a pair of heavy wooden doors, "can't say I blame you, I think this might be more your speed."

Caelen gasped quietly at the sight. Her father, bibliophile that he was, had an astonishing library in his own right but cramming friends and family into his small cottage had necessitated rather, creative, storage of his books. It had become common to discover the very book you wanted had somehow found its way up to rest precariously on a bit of molding, a curtain rod, or once funnily enough Caelen's copy of beauty and the beast, a gift from Tonks on one of her visits, seemed to become fond of Sirius's favorite cloak and took up residence in the pocket of it, ignoring all attempts at eviction. They weren't quite sentient mind you, it was merely that in Remus's search to find places to keep them he'd inadvertently created a charm that encouraged them to find places to keep themselves. Truth be told Caelen loved the little searches they'd all have to go on to find a particular book, but this was something else entirely. It wasn't a massive room, despite her upbringing Andromeda had given up the wealth she'd been born to for love, but it was stunning nonetheless. Tall, nearly black, bookcases stood along the walls like silent sentries on either side of the rectangular room. Their was a window seat positively drowning in pillows on the far end, a desk the color of birch trees situated before it and off to the right side of the room. Besides the shelves brimming with books and the desk, covered neatly in piles of paper, there was a small sitting area to the left of the door, flanking a small fireplace that Caelen was convinced must've been added in by magic.

Andromeda smiled softly at the girl's expression of awe, "these," she pointed indicating three full shelves toward the bottom of a bookcase near the window seat, "were some of Nymphadora's favorites when she was young.

Caelen happily selected a book covered in forest creatures and vines and curled into the pile of pillows to read.

_____

Sirius smirked as he aimed his wand at the leg of Remus's trousers under the table casting a charm to turn them yellow with green stripes. It was a garish color combination and he very nearly gave himself away when he choked to hold back his laughter. Dumbledore turned knowingly towards him his eyes twinkling in quiet amusement. "Care for some tea my boy? I find it does wonders when I find I have a frog in my throat."

Remus was already casting the counter charm, years of practice learned during their school days when Sirius would amuse himself in professor Bins class with this same trick making the action more reflexive than conscious effort.

"No thank you Albus," Sirius responded with a grin.

As the meeting wore on Sirius quickly tired of changing Remus's clothing colors and began to eye Severus's all black ensemble. Surely a bit of Gryffindor red would only serve to improve the drab combination. He'd barely begun to honestly consider doing it when he felt a hand squeeze his wrist where his wand was hidden under the table. "Sirius, don't." Remus whispered warningly.

Black pouted but tried to tune back into the meeting. "That matter of business taken care of us like to welcome Remus's friends Malcom and Jake have agreed to take up his position as envoy to the werewolves for us."

Severus sneered derisively, "do you think it prudent to bring others of questionable intent into this headmaster?"

Nuntis's head snapped his direction, a look of furious betrayal crossing her face as dark eyes met. "You'd be lucky to have more of us!" A disembodied voice echoed snappishly around the room. It was a charm the boys had found for her in the restricted section during their Hogwarts days. While it technically gave her thoughts a voice it was a haunting, almost always angry, voice that seemed to rush through the room, bodies and furniture shivering with the force of it. Nuts rarely put it to use finding it too unsettling for normal conversations.

"I did not mean it like that, mia sorella." Severus muttered.

Nuntis glared for a moment before nodding and focusing once more on the headmaster.

"As I was saying," Dumbledore continued as if nothing had happened, "these fine young men have requested to join our ranks and as you may have inferred from their presence here today, I've elected to trust their good intentions."

Malcom grinned his usual cocky smile at the others around him, Jacob stared blankly ahead.

"I think this is a bad idea," Sirius started.

Snape glanced towards Sirius in grudging agreement. "We do not know these boys," he stated more to Nuntis than anyone else. "Now is not the time to be trusting.

"I can vouch for the boys," Remus offered quietly.

Severus sneered, "indeed."

"Despite those very valid concerns, Sirius, Severus," Dumbledore interrupted before the table could erupt again, "we need all the help we can get if we're to succeed in our mission. Malcom and Jacob have already proven themselves. They were invaluable during the battle at the ministry. As Remus is otherwise indisposed, young Caelen is doing well I trust?"

"Very well headmaster," Remus replied with a small smile.

Dumbledore smiled gently, "very good. As Remus is otherwise indisposed and the loyalty of such peoples labeled 'halfbreeds' has yet to be decided our newest envoys shall prove indispensable."

_____

"Daddy says uncle Sirius puts in too much sugar," Caelen rambled animatedly as she stood on a stool Andromeda had conjured for her to use while they made cookies. The first batch was cooling on a rack while they scooped more up.

"Knowing Sirius your daddy is most likely correct in that Caelen," Andromeda smiled as she placed two of the soft warm treats on a plate. "You, on the other hand, followed my instructions perfectly. These cookies will be delicious."

Caelen beamed, she could never get enough approval, a fact Remus had recently begun to worry about. Nuntis insisted it was to be expected and as long as she knew she was loved regardless she should grow out of it.  "I'm good at directions," the child responded proudly, "when daddy and I lived in the castle professor Snape would let me come make potions with him sometimes. He said I was better than most of his students!"

"If Nymphadora's stories were half true I don't doubt it," the older woman laughed. "I think that's the last of them dear, can you put the bowl into the sink for me?"

Caelen nodded and turned to do so inadvertently slamming the large ceramic bowl into a nearby bottle of wine that had been sitting on the counter.

"Caelen don't move!" Andromeda called out quickly, worried the girl would get cut on the glass shards. She quickly cast a charm removing the mess to the bin, all that remained was the heavy scent of the dry red wine and a clearly distraught Caelen.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!!" The girl screamed and covered her face when andromeda moved to go to her.

"Caelen it's ok it's was an accident, it's alright sweetie," the woman tried to reassure without success.

Caelen curled in the corner, her knees drawn up tight against her chest, her breaths coming in short and choppy. "Sorry, sorry," she continued to gasp. Her words worryingly breathy.

Andromeda was just attempting to approach her again when a flurry of long black robes rushed past. Nuntis dropped to her knees in front of the panicked girl. "Breathe tesero breathe," she mouthed the words leaning her forehead against Caelen's and rocking the pair of them gently. "It's ok, just breathe."

Caelen took in a gasping breath before crawling forward and burying herself in Nuntis's arms.

Remus, who'd been a bit behind the others sharing what he knew of the werewolf packs with Malcom and Jacob, moved towards the two huddled girls. He smiled gratefully at Nuntis and began rubbing his child's back gently, whispering soft words of comfort.

"What happened Dromeda?" Sirius questioned quietly once Caelen's breathing began to level out.

Andromeda looked crushed, "we had a lovely time till a moment ago, was such a little thing. She accidentally knocked over a bottle of wine, I don't even drink that kind it was a gift. It wasn't a big deal but she just panicked."

"Another Gena thing," Remus growled as he stood, lifting his child into his arms and offering a hand to Nuts. "Mistakes like that were obviously not tolerated, plus she apparently favored that particular wine."

Andromeda sighed and reached out cautiously towards Caelen, "it wasn't your fault Caelen, I shouldn't have left it on the edge there. I was never angry."

Caelen nodded but kept her face pressed against her father's neck. "Can we make cookies again sometime miss Dromeda?" She murmured quietly.

Andromeda smiled and ran a hand gently through the girl's long brown hair, "of course sweetheart, any time you like. You're always welcome."

_______________________________

Hey guys! I know that took ages I'm super sorry 😔 truth is I've been feeling really down and just negative and just not up to doing anything. And when you become convinced you suck at life in general lol well things you love doing get added to the list of things you probably actually suck at. I'm trying 🙂 it's just hard.

Anywhoooooooo...so here's an update yay!!! I will try to get you another one as soon as I can but I'm also moving. (Apparently idek that's confusing and stressful and I hate it!) but yeah anywho this story will eventually wrap up in glorious bloody battle! Wait what? Lol ok bye peeps