Chapter 23

"Baby please," Adria groaned, bouncing up and down in the living room with Jude clinging onto her for dear life. He would not stop crying, and she was on the verge of tears too with the amount of pain she was in, with her morning sickness making a wonderful appearance and the aching of her back with the forming bump, the last thing she really needed was Jude getting restless. She stumbled ever so slightly, and Jude's screams got louder as he tightened his grip.

He really needed to nap but he just didn't want to, he was stubborn like all of the Hopkins' were, and Adria was truly cursing her parents in that very moment for having such loud children, "why do you have to be so loud!"

"Takes after you," Sirius said in passing to the kitchen, a wink sent in her direction along with a cheeky smirk that made her curse his name through the house, sending her flipped off finger in his direction and growling out a string of curse words at the sound of his loud laughter.

The last thing she was in the mood for was Sirius' teasing as she tried to calm the boy. Her morning had started off quite terrible, with May giving her some time off of work to deal with her wedding and the many meetings and work and business she had to go through with her parent's house, she was glad for a break in that part of her life.

But the most frustrating thing happened when trying to take Jude to nursery, to figure out on arrival that it was closed due to the snowy weather conditions. She couldn't help her panic when returning home to a tired looking Sirius who had been sent home from work from the exact same conditions, and she voiced her concern that she was sure Jude was ready to learn the many curse words she had spoke on her drive home, trying her best to be careful on the slippery roads.

"Come on baby," she kissed his temple as his screams got louder, running a hand through his soft hair whilst he whined and flailed his arms, "don't you wanna nap? Come on, don't you wanna sleep?"

"No!" he screamed, shaking his head furiously. She held him closer, bouncing softly and frowning at the body pressed against her suddenly, only recognised by the curls falling over her shoulder and the very evident feeling of knowing it was Sirius.

"He hates me, doesn't he?" she whispered, voice breaking - she was on the verge of a breakdown with the screaming and the pounding in her head and Sirius slipped his arm around her, pulling her into him and brushing his lips over her forehead, "he hates me!"

"He doesn't hate you," Sirius whispered softly in his best attempt to soothe her. He nibbled at her earlobe for just a second, soon pressing his lips to the top of her neck and showing Jude's cup filled with milk, "warm milk doesn't just work for nights."

He moved in front of the two, pressing a kiss to Jude's head and soon taking him from Adria's grip who looked truly exhausted. She had been baking cakes just previous to Jude's tantrum ready for Remus, Blair and Isaac to arrive so that she and Sirius could tell them about the news they had for them.

She closed her eyes for a moment, pinching the bridge of her nose as Sirius bounced Jude and the crying continued. She was sure there was nothing that could stop him and all she really wanted was to curl up and cry, and sleep and have her parents there to look after her but she was supposed to be the one taking on that role, and she could hardly do that.

She froze when the crying stopped, and the silence floated through her ears. The headache that had formed still pounded but drastically eased at the lack of noise, and as she turned - she was sure the tears in her eyes were from pure, utter, relief that the crying was gone.

She couldn't do anything but lean against the wall and watch Sirius as he helped Jude with his bottle. The boy was recently three, and smaller than most three-year-olds - but he still loved to be fed from his bottle regardless of how much he declared that he was a big boy.

"See," Sirius smiled at the girl who could hardly muster a smile back at him, "all he needed was his bottle."

"I'm going to throw that bottle at you in a second," she whispered, running a hand through her tangled hair whilst a smirk formed on Sirius' lips.

"You know what," Sirius finally spoke after just staring at her with a smirk turned to smile, "you being this exhausted is just proving my point that you need to rest."

"Sirius, I can't rest as much as you want me to. I have far too much to do," she grumbled, "why can't you accept that?"

"Because you're doing the stupidest things!" he exclaimed, "why in the name of Godric did you think you needed to bake for Remus, Blair and Isaac? You don't need to, and yet you do!

You're going to the house tomorrow, and that'll be stressful, but I'll be there, and so will the others. You're stressing over nothing, Adria, I don't know why but you don't need too!" he turned away from her and she was sure that he was mad at her.

He had a look on his face of utter worry because he didn't understand why she needed to keep herself so stressed.

"Baby, why do you do this to yourself?" she watched him lie Jude down in his bed just after the two trailed up to his room, kissing his forehead with a soft sigh and turning to her. She had moved so he could close the boy's door and she shook her head, "...baby girl."

"I haven't...properly grieved my dad," she whispered quietly, finally lifting her eyes to the boy in front of her, "and I'm...afraid that if I give myself more time to think of it - of dad, and what happened, then I'll not be able to cope with life."

He pulled on her waist, lips finding her forehead and she leaned into him, "it's hard, I know It's hard. It's painful love, and we've been forced into this without any thought, but we have each other, alright? and you grieving isn't going to break you, Merlin, Adria, it might help you."

She could only nod, "everything is just so exhausting. This week has been so exhausting."

"I know," Sirius nodded, "but think of it this way...when Blair, Remus and Isaac come over, we're giving them great news. They're gonna have a burden lifted, and we're helping them, it's a good thing - it's something to be happy about."

He tilted her chin to look at him, brushing his thumb softly over her lip and she hummed when he leaned down to kiss her, "us finally getting married is something to be happy about."

-

"Do you want another drink?" Adria's voice was strained as she asked Remus the question. He was thinner...paler, more scars littered his face and he looked even more exhausted than she did, and it killed her, she couldn't bear it.

"I'm fine, Addy," Remus laughed, squeezing her hand. She realised what he meant, he didn't just mean that he didn't need another drink - he was trying to reassure her that he was fine, in life, but she knew that he wasn't.

He wasn't coping...this wasn't coping.

She only nodded, sitting down the mug of tea that she had made for him anyway on the table beside the couch and she was sure he could fall asleep right then and there.

"How is the fight?" Adria soon asked Blair quietly, "if you want some tips-"

"It's alright, Ads," Blair forced a smile, "they just...don't want to give me her because of our current living situation."

"I thought that would be an issue," Adria frowned, throwing her arms around her tightly.

"I thought you'd be too busy for visitors if I'm honest," Isaac said, a laugh falling short from his lips. The three of them had been drained from life - they were used to nothing, but this was even less than that, and it broke Adria to see them so transparent.

So bare, so gone from the life at Hogwarts...a life of proper meals and meat on their bones and being healthy because this was the opposite of healthy.

"I just...I need to tell you all something," she whispered, taking a step back and standing in the middle of the living room with Sirius holding her, "we love you so much, all three of you. I don't think I could ever really cope if I didn't have you all, y'know?!"

Blair couldn't help her quiet laugh, and Remus followed suit, sharing a look with his girlfriend leaning into him, "we know that, Addy."

"Right, yes, exactly," she nodded, "so...I'm just - look okay, you're not fine. None of you are fine, and we can see that. You're all trying your best to cope but how can you cope with little to cope with? I just...I can't bear this, I can't bear to watch you fall apart and crumble with exhaustion because it's killing you!

Remus, your job is killing you - and...and Blair, this fight for your sister is a one-way street with your lack of housing, and I'm not saying this to discourage you, but I just - I can't see this going on any longer.

No one in this world deserves to worry about money, or lack thereof, especially you three who are the worlds kindest. Recently...very recently - we got the money back from my parent's home and their sum of wealth that they left in my name, and my siblings name.

From that sum, and the sum from the house - I want to share it with all of you," she took a deep breath, and Sirius handed her the checks that she had gotten early that morning previous to taking Jude to the closed nursery.

She pushed herself forward, handing the check of less money - but still a lot - to Isaac, and the other to a wide-eyed Remus and a frozen Blair. Remus reached out to take the check, but his head instantly shook when he saw the size of it, stuttering over words to say but before he could even think to reply, Adria took a step back and waved him off.

"It's yours. Whatever you do with it is up to you but you Remus...Blair, you can afford your own space - Moony you can stop working so much and actually have the break you deserve, to finally get back on your feet.

I know...you haven't fully told us that your mum is sick, but this can make you better - it can help you as you help her, in a space of your own. Isaac, you can get your own flat with that," Adria smiled, "you can have your own space and be able to breathe and relax...and maybe we can finally meet Aaron, you can finally be with him.

I couldn't sit back and watch you struggle - the both of us couldn't even think of doing something like that. We love the three of you with all of our hearts, and it's nothing. It's hardly our money, and my parents would've wanted us to use it to help.

To help ourselves and the ones we love and Merlin, we love you," Adria took a deep breath and Sirius grinned at the three who were ridden utterly speechless.

"I don't know...what to-" Blair had to cut herself off, completely choked up with words she couldn't even think to speak."

"You don't," Remus shook his head, wiping the tears spilt from Blair's eyes, "you don't have to do this."

"Yes, we do," Adria nodded, "we were practically swimming in money with everything going in our favour, and this is in your favour. We couldn't sit back and watch you struggle. Sirius comes home exhausted every night and he works half the shift you work, Remus, so we know how it is - how it feels, how completely drained you are.

You can't keep doing this to yourself. The money is yours, all I ask for you to do with it is to use it for your own benefit."

Blair, without words to form, stood up, and almost knocked Adria off of her feet as she threw her arms around her to which Adria hugged her tightly, soon joined by Isaac and soon Remus who kissed the girl's forehead, whispering about how incredible it was to have her and Sirius who had moved to hug them too.

"We'll pay you back," Blair finally squeaked out, the sob erupting soon after and Adria furiously shook her head.

"You will do no such thing," Adria laughed softly, squeezing her friends tightly, "we don't want it back, we would never want it back. We just want you to find happiness - and have an easy life."

"Well," Sirius spoke up, "easy enough life with this war."

Adria glared at him, shaking her head and leaning into him, "was that really necessary?"