o_mayari | The Comfortable Wound 3/3

Epilogue:

Romilly Cottage, Bury St. Edmunds

16 May 1998

Hello there 2-year-old, finally you have worried me into writing,

I guess you’re furious at me? Snuffles as a tortured homosexual is dreadfully funny, though, how could I resist? & of course I knew you wanted to needle Potter yourself a bit, I mean: “She was a GOOD person. Honestly, because people LIKED her!” & his immediate decision that of course I was talking about his father, as though James Potter were a passionate & singular fellow to inspire unthinking adoration. Admit that this is hilarious, even you must see the humor in it.

If you can unbend long enough to forgive me then for Merlin’s sake don’t do whatever Nar’s asking you to. I guess you think I’m mean, but I haven’t turned her or Lucius or the boy in for anything yet, you must say good-natured of me. Though with the Ministry the way it is nothing gets done anyway except convictions so it is only a matter of time, the Wizengamot is very jolly about it & Albus Dumbledore himself could stroll back to life just as you did & be told to report directly to community service at the werewolf orphanage for activities outside the law. People are so stupid, it does give one a headache.

The Order – well, it was Harry Potter & maybe one or two other children who did it all, & now we’ve both met him & can see how sad that is. DISorder, rather. A loud thundercloud that dropped the occasional annoying shower on the DEs, Snuffles & Nymphadora did love it. You’re right that I didn’t join officially but how could I really, & anyway they tried but how could they accomplish anything when composed of such personalities as theirs. You’re wrong about the Slytherin thing, by the way, your old friend Snape did join up. Don’t hex the post owl, but he did it for a Frilly Evans. You may find the Muggle-born situation horribly low, but darling they do have their charms.

In reply to all your queries about where I was & what I was doing all this time & whether I have recommendations for your new carpets (really, 2?): usually right here, mostly waiting around, & no. I spent a lot of time in St. Mungo’s waiting rooms pondering if so&so were actually dead. I think if everyone could just decide to die properly it wouldn’t be a problem but some insist on waking up & the rest of us are forever checking to make sure they’ve expired properly, you see you prove my point. How to die properly, honestly someone should write a book about it, it seems wizards can’t get the hang of it these days.

Old Bonnie Boot would come by to say we could still hold out hope that the Death Eaters would murder us outright for being blood traitors, such a comfort, but I told her we ought not to trust in their powers, most of your side being such terribly stupid people. Honestly even your old lord couldn’t pull off an AK properly. We worried that they might bungle or decide on the Kiss or to keep one alive for white slave pure-blood breeding purposes (Bonnie’s real concern). She would immolate herself to prevent it. That is frightful but then she is just the ghastliest old dear. I was going to pass myself off as Nar’s Squib parlourmaid & drink my own aconite-based cleaning solution when the DEs weren’t looking. Mainly it leaves no streaks behind, but also I think it can do the trick as good as, or I suppose better than your old lord’s poison.

I am glad you hate the ADORED. If you had said he were lovely I would have been surprised because it might mean Nar had altered considerably as a person & were capable of crotch-dropping something other than a nuisance. Do be a lamb & don’t help her. You would be helping a woman who calls her husband MON PAON, you must say disgusting & further proof that she really is the human equivalent of a dram of venom in your most cloying, syrupy elf-made wine. Don’t don’t don’t don’t don’t help her. Really that is the point of this letter, as I cannot just launch into all these diatribes in front of Harry Potter, I hate the family but am good enough to agree that our mad inner workings aren’t any of his business.

DON’T help her.