Chapter Twenty-Seven - The Truth
My father's presence was enough to turn the Ministry of Magic into a chaotic place. After making sure my uncle was cleared of all the silly charges, he granted him full custody of myself, with expressed instructions that no one could question Uncle Ron's guardianship.
It seemed weird, though. He was my father, after all... Didn't he want to raise me?
On the way out, we crossed paths with Mrs Weasley and the rest of the family. No one was as shocked as her, though. She she tried hugging my father, but his glare froze her in place. He was obviously angry at her.
"What you've done to my son and Ron has no excuse!" he shouted as we walked past her. He coughed loudly as we reached the fireplaces I had seen before.
We went to Lupin's hut by Floo. When I fell on my face, as we arrived to the small house, my father chuckled. "People say you get used to it, but it's not true," he said quietly.
We sat in the small living room and Auror Tonks arrived shortly after. I looked at her quizzically, and she smiled. "Remus and I live together," she explained. I felt my mouth opening slightly in surprise. It explained how she knew that we had been there before.
My father was looking at me intently, as if studying me. "So, you're how old? Eight, right?" he asked. I nodded. "When were you born?"
"October thirty-one," I replied, looking at my hands.
"That date," he said with a sigh. "That date seems to be cursed. Many bad things happen."
I frowned. "You, Mum, and Uncle Ron became friends that day," I said, remembering my mother's tales. My uncle chuckled.
"True," my father said. "I'm glad about that. And about you."
The room became quiet for a while, as everyone seemed to be trying to find something to say. Lupin sat on a small couch, Tonks had gone to the kitchen to get us some tea, I supposed. I sat between my uncle and Luna, and my father was sitting across from us.
"Where have you been?" I asked, since no one seemed to be able to talk.
"In a small house, an old Potter property, far away from people," he said.
"Why did you leave?" my uncle asked, his tone hurt and somewhat angry.
My father sighed, and rubbed his hands. "It's complicated... Let me see, how to say this? Well, there's no way to make this sound less dramatic," he chuckled darkly, to himself. "I'm dieing," he said simply.
Tonks gasped and stopped dead on her tracks, a tray with a kettle and several cups on her hands. Luna looked surprised, and my uncle tensed. I felt as if my world was crumbling again...
"I've been dieing since I defeated Voldemort. I thought I wouldn't last long. But - I don't know why, I'm still alive," he said, looking at me.
"How do you know you'll die?" I asked, not fully understanding his explanation.
My father frowned slightly. "Well, it's a decease: cancer. It started out in my brain, now doctors say it's in most of my organs. They're amazed I lasted this long, in all honesty," he chuckled bitterly.
Indeed, it was rather amazing. Brain tumors were famous for killing quickly, if it couldn't be removed. But it explained his shabby appearance, he looked nearly as old as Lupin. "You could've told us," Uncle Ron said, hurt and sad. "You could have gone to a Healer."
My father snorted. "I've been to countless of Healers, doctors, from all over the world, Muggles and wizards alike. There's nothing anyone can do about it. And I didn't want to ruin everyone's happiness by staying around until I died."
"You're our friend!" my uncle exclaimed angrily. "Of course we would have been sad, but you don't deserve to die alone, without anyone knowing! What you did was much worse than dieing on us..." he finished in a lower tone.
My father shut his eyes, as if not wanting to hear that. But it was true, as much as I didn't want to admit it. Still, I didn't want to recriminate him.
"What's done is done," Luna said softly, placing a hand on my uncle's arm - from behind me, since I was in the middle.
With a sigh, Uncle Ron calmed down. "True," he said quietly. "What's done is done." He looked at my father, and smiled slightly. "Welcome back, brother."
Notes: Nearly there. Next chapter will be... I'm sure it'll give everyone a good excuse to flame my arse... :P