✧✧✧✧✧✧✧The smell of mint is everywhere. It's odd, because it's only in the one cup, but perhaps the livelihood in the kitchen makes it seem stronger. After was has felt like months of silence and awkwardness, her uncle's have decided to make an appearance. Before the tournament the two of them had a habit of popping in at least once a day, but she hasn't seen them since her last evening in the hospital. She's trying not to be angry with them for it, she knows it most likely wasn't their idea, but that anger is still there. Albeit how small it may seem.
But they're here now, and she can't bring herself to complain over it. Not with Uncle Moony shoving tea recommendations down her throat and placing a stack of newly purchased books in her hand, or when Uncle Pads decides to share stories from their early marauder days ( when he's not arguing with her mother, that is. ) but the bustling room makes everything in her head seem so quiet. Like it's forcing the shadows to stay shadows, and the heaviness of her eyes seems to dim to dull blinks. It seems like enough to keep the last of her sanity trapped in her palm.
"So, mint tea is full of relaxing effects." Remus explains, places the mug in front of her. "It helps soothe the body and calms the mind. I find it works best when drunk before bed."
Behind the island, her mother and Sirius were in a heated argument. They've all heard it before. It's like a broken record and guaranteed to ensue at least once whenever he shows up. As if they almost have nothing better to do than argue over who's the better musical group: Queen or Abba.
"Really, Lil's? You can't tell me that Abba is the better group." Sirius gasps, wildly gesturing his arms about. "You've truly lost your mind, woman! No doubt to it."
Lily scoffs and places her hands on her hip. "Come off it, Sirius. We have this argument every time you come over! Abba is the better group. End of discussion."
In another part of the kitchen, Harry and her farther discuss the lack of the Daily Prophet that they haven't been receiving, and the lack of Owl post in general. James holds a dismissive manner with him, quickly countering everything Harry says.
"Owl post must be going haywire, son. Those pesky things. It's nothing to worry about. I wouldn't concern yourself with it." James says, clapping a hand on Harry's shoulder.
Harry frowns. "Well, personally, I'd like to know what Voldemort's been up too. You can't convince me he's just gone silent all of a sudden?"
"Don't say his name!" Mabel suddenly snaps, whipping around in her chair with a scowl. "If you aren't going to call him You-Know-Who, call him the Dark Lord, or No Nosed One for all I care, but if you say his name again, I swear I'll hex you."
"What's got your knickers in a twist?" Harry huffs, folds his arms over his chest. "You're mad if you think I'm calling him the Dark Lord."
"Don't call her mad." James quickly defends. He looks at her and see's a battered girl, blinks, and she's covered in blood. His throat clogs.
Mable pinches the bridge of her nose with a sigh. "Listen, there's a reason folks don't say his name. If you're that desperate, at least refer to him as something else."
"Dumbledore says fear of the name increases fear of the thing itself." Harry scowls.
"If Dumbledore told you the sun came straight from your ass, you'd believe that too." Mabel scoffs. "He's a meddling old coot. Frankly, I couldn't care less about what he supposedly says."
"Take that back." Harry says with venom. "Those Slytherins are no good, they've tainted your mind."
"Those Slytherins? In case you forgot, I'm in Slytherin." Mabel says, narrowing her eyes. "You're a fucking fool."
"Mabel Mia!" Lily chides, sporting a displeased look. "Watch your language young lady. Don't make me tell you twice."
"Whatever." Mabel rolls her eyes, turns back to Remus and slumps forward in her chair. "The mint tea will really help, Uncle Moons?"
Remus smiles and places a comforting hand on her shoulder. "If you drink it enough, then yes, it will. But you need to give it enough time to get into your system."
"Why is everything based on time? This is ridiculous." Mabel says with a small frown.
Sirius suddenly claps his hands on her shoulders, leaning forward until she looks up at him, a wide grin on his face. "Time is a societal construct designed by the Ministry to keep us in line. Personally, I say we scrap the whole idea. Fuck societal constructs!"
Mabel snorts, shaking her head as her mother scolds him for his language. Uncle Pads was on a new kick every other week, and she was unsure how Uncle Moony ever managed to keep up with him. Last month, he raved about Ministry propaganda fed to the wizarding world to create a false sense of security and ensure the Minister continued to keep the trust of his entire community. The month before that he had spewed that the Earth was flat, a feat that was not perceived very well by the family. And before that was his theory that there were communities of people living underwater. Which, to be fair, was her mothers fault. The wizarding community had mermaids and other creatures, but he was convinced that Muggles had a community of their own in the ocean. He even went as far as mapping out where he thought they were, claiming he'd be the one to discover them. After enough teasing he finally dropped it, but where he came up with these ideas made her laugh each time the list grew.
"Every other week." Harry mumbles, pulling out a chair beside Mabel and ducking when Sirius attempts to swat at him. "Seriously, though, where has our Daily Prophet subscription gone?"
"Actually, I've been wondering the same." Mabel pipes up, raising a skeptical brow towards her mother when she fumbles with her plate.
Lily clears her throat, waving her hand in a dismissive manner. "Well, like you father said, Owl post must be going haywire. You can hardly rely on the things sometimes."
"I haven't even heard from Ron and Hermione, though? Anytime I have it's short letters." Harry angrily scoffs.
"Would you like some mint tea to calm your bitterness?" Mabel smirks, pushes her mug towards him. "I can't see why you count on the Weasel for anything, honestly. More of an untrained pet then a friend, no? I suppose Grangers alright, though."