A Broken-Family Reunion.

What was it about the Bishop sisters that was so magnetic? Not necessarily in a way that would ever work out for those involved, depending on who the man in question was. But still. Robin, then Keiran to some extent. The headmaster had absolutely no desire to find out who would come next. And if it turned out to be Teddy, Keiran would probably just... Well, he wanted to say he'd kill him, but considering Keiran's past, that wasn't exactly a comfortable word to throw around in jest. No, he'd just fire the man and find a way to banish him, Minister Lupin or otherwise.

Anyway, Keiran was definitely not prepared to see Claire again, and even more surprising was the way Teddy seemed so at ease with his mother. He obviously couldn't blame the man, but still. With the way Avery was beaming at him and the way she held onto him like that, Keiran was starting to wonder if Teddy wouldn't soon become another surrogate sibling in this whole messy affair. Poor man. He truly had no idea what the hell he'd gotten himself into.

When the knock sounded, Avery was still in the kitchen. Teddy, who somehow always managed to charm her without necessarily meaning to, had of course said just the right thing. Darcie was waving her arms about in a blatant request for attention, so as Bridget stepped away, the blonde turned her chin, pressing a sort of absentminded kiss to his arm before pressing her cheek over the spot as if she could trap it there. But then she heard the arrival and leaned away to peek into the front hall. Claire.

Merlin help her, but it was kicking off already. And the one thing she feared most was scaring off the sister she had only sort of pulled back into her life. So she wasted no more time, giving Teddy's arm a squeeze before hurrying over to open the door.

"Hi," she greeted, stepping out of the way so Claire could move inside. From the couch, Keiran lifted his hand in an awkward wave, his mouth a thin line of thinly veiled discomfort. Avery, of course, completely missed it. Instead, she very naively introduced Keiran and called Sophie over to greet her aunt.

And so the littlest blonde (including Kelly and Liam) jumped off of the couch and came over, evidently pleased to think herself the center of attention. And that was when everything seemed to start happening at once. The twins traipsed down the stairs, their feet thudding as they did so. Else popped up down the front walkway, and Bridget ushered Teddy out into the main room.

So maybe Avery went a bit pale at all that. But, she reminded herself, family was what she'd always feared and wanted at the same time. Perhaps it was time to solve both of those problems.

Sisters. That was what they were. Such a sentimental word for such a new condition. That was what being a Bishop sister was - a condition. A state of being that neither could avoid, a state both had tried to outrun and forget, and a state they were only now beginning to accept and come to terms with. And here was the communion of family and friends meant to... solidify it or something? Claire knew this had a lot more to do with Avery than anything. It was her mother and daughter, her surrogate family, her new... friend. And then Claire. The spare that could have totally claimed to have too much work to attend.

But life was convoluted. And stupid. Very stupid. She missed her home and had excuse after excuse to escape, but here she was... staying with the vague hope that-

No. There was no vague hope. She was staying because she was patient and because nothing of true consequence had happened. If she could get things sorted with her family, that wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

She had prepared to see Keiran, a man with whom she shared an inconvenient intimacy, reminding herself that if nothing happened, then nothing was to be expected or uncomfortable. Fortunately, her analytical, results-based mind could work with that. (Even with the nagging reminder that if Avery were to find out, she may have to face a fourth or fifth or ninth or whatever next world war the Bishops were on now.) She matched his wave with a cool nod and a casual, "Headmaster." Business. All business. That was Claire alright.

But the little girl that had begun to frequent her apartment when babysitters were in short supply skittered in front of her, and a version of the younger Bishop that few saw materialized, as she lifted the little girl. She regarded her with eyes that were faux serious, nose crinkling. "I thought I told you no more growing." She released the little girl, setting her down after a quick hug, and then stepped forward to greet her mother, trying not to tense so visibly beneath her touch.

She turned towards Teddy and glanced towards Avery. There was a moment's pause. Claire should have had a handle on this. She was a diplomat, a businesswoman, a spy for goodness sakes. She could make this easier on everyone.

"So, I mean, everyone knows Teddy, but I imagine you'd like to introduce him yourself."

It was almost unreal to see Claire pick up Sophie. Not because she had never done it before, but rather because she had never done it here. And Bridget's house was so not the same. Not when there was Keiran and Bridget and Liam, Kelly and Darcie and now Teddy and Claire and Else. Too many. Merlin, she was an idiot. This wasn't a good idea. She wasn't about to go saying so to Bridget but, like, also she hated it all of a sudden.

Avery completely missed whatever Keiran's uncomfortable nod implied, and Bridget was too busy with Darcie to really pay him any attention, either. Particularly when Avery's real mum walked through the front door just as Claire dropped a sentence like that one. It really only led to Avery's lips parting in surprise at the expectation and how bluntly it was announced. Her eyes darted between Claire, Else and Teddy. They didn't all know him, to be fair. But she had specifically refused to bring this part up with him. It wasn't something she was prepared for - not yet. Not when she didn't have any real excuse for him being there. It hit her too late that, even about four years later, it could be taken as a betrayal. That she had every right to move on, but that she had also been keeping him kind of a secret? That was kind of weird.

It took Sophie darting away to play with the twins for Avery to realize that she needed to make a decision. One that would impact... everything, really. So she stepped forward, holding a hand out towards him to silently ask him to join her. She had every intention of moving her hand to the back of his arm or his shoulder or something else once he did so, but to say she forgot in her panic would be a fair statement.

"Um, okay. Claire," she only hesitated a moment, "Mum, this is Teddy. He works with Keiran. He helped Sophia when she was sick a while back and we've been... Well, we're all quite close now."

She rolled her lips together, and if Keiran hadn't frowned or hadn't rolled his eyes, perhaps it would've been that simple. Close, as in friends, right? Evidently not. But Avery hadn't a clue, and mercifully, Else didn't ask the obvious question about labels. It was the word 'all' that threw the eldest Bishop woman off, to be fair, and Avery felt quite relieved that she had thought to include it. Otherwise, she assumed foolishly, they would've been onto just how determined she was to keep him around.

Teddy had worked at Mungo's. Even when he had tucked away in his cushy office, he had still been exposed to some fairly horrifying sights. Missing limbs, extra limbs, limbs of different species - lot of weird stuff with limbs for some reason. There had been crisis counseling, and he had often helped prepare such training.

All of this meant he could keep a somewhat calm looking expression fixed on his face even as he felt the very fabric of his safe little reality crumbling away.

He didn't know Claire Bishop. Perhaps if he had, he would have known that her blunt statement had nothing to do with disapproval and everything to do with her complete inability to perform small talk. He knew the Bishop sisters were not close, so despite all he had heard of the Ice Queen, he couldn't rule out that maybe she was using him to settle some score with the elder blonde. And that wasn't supposed to be how this went. He was supposed to show up, eat food, wear a cardigan (which would be a hit, naturally), and would leave with an invitation for the next holiday and a spring in his step.

Not this unearthly fear that was settling in the pit of his stomach,

Pull it together man.

Teddy couldn't read Claire's expres​sion(there were maybe two people fluent enough to read that book) but Avery pressed forward bravely. A quick scan of the room seemed to confirm that everyone was going to be kind and leave it at that. Still, Teddy felt like he had to engage as well - he was more than eye candy he hoped - so he stepped towards Claire. "It's good to finally meet you." She quirked her lips and shook his hand, before looking towards the other woman she didn't know while Teddy turned towards Else, using context clues more than anything else, and approached her as well. "As well as you. I've heard a lot about you." He glanced at Claire. "About you all, really."

Avery released him the moment he stepped forward, realizing what she'd done. But that wasn't what brought the blush to her cheeks. Finally. That's what did it. If her mother or sister had failed to realize the obvious, that word would make it clear. Still, it was one that suddenly meant a lot to her, in the way that only Avery could ever overthink things. It was one of those words that was only ever used when whatever came before felt like ages. If this wasn't the worst possible way for him to meet her family, she might have believed that he'd been hoping to do so for a very long time. And, to be fair, he was also terribly charming, so that didn't help to quell the flush in her cheeks.

Else passed her eldest daughter a funny look when Teddy turned his chin, as if to say that Avery had better not've said bad things about them. Avery was pretty sure her explanation would be considered more acceptable than her mother expected, considering she'd cast herself as the villain. But there was no benefit in explaining such things. Instead, she attempted a smile as Bridget spoke to Claire. And the only thing Avery caught was, "I'm Keiran's mum."

... That shouldn't have hurt the way it did. Avery wasn't stupid. She knew it didn't work the way she wanted it to. She knew it was to keep any hurt away from her blood relatives. But she felt an odd, tingly sensation in her stomach that wasn't at all pleasant.

"Why don't you two get comfortable?" Bridget suggested, stepping around Claire to shake Else's hand even as she ushered them inside and shut the door. For once she wasn't hugging, but mainly because Darcie was there, settled on one hip. A shriek sounded from the kitchen, and although Avery had never heard that sound before, she knew beyond a doubt that it was her baby. Liam and Sophie burst into the living room as Avery turned, the hair on her arms standing up, but then Kelly charged in, chasing them and pulling what she now understood was a playful cry from her daughter. Sophie hid herself behind her nan's legs, only to move over to Teddy's, clinging to his trouser leg as she watched the twins from her totally inconspicuous hiding spot.

Bridget shook her head at them - especially at Kelly - and Keiran's lips thinned before he bent down to lift Liam into his arms, regardless of his son's pouts and protests. Food was promised, though, so that settled things: fun time later, food time now. So Bridget started listing off what they had, making small talk with Else while Avery looked over at her sister. She could do it. She could come up with something easy like Bridget had. Surely, she could. The fingers of her right hand found her left pinky finger, toying with it as she tried to be okay with the chaos around them, and what was sure to come later on.

"Are- are things good at work, Claire?" She settled on finally, ignoring the way Sophie tugged on Teddy's pant leg. That is, until she reached up, silently asking for the same treatment Liam and Darcie were getting. Then Avery regretted saying anything, because she immediately wished that nobody else in the world was in the same room as her and those two.

Teddy knew the guilt would hit later. Here he was, meeting Avery's mother and sister, integrating with the Hayes brood as though this were his place... and he had no idea where any of his siblings were. Considering the state of their family, he should have been involved. Hell, he didn't even have much of a relationship with the Lupin side of his family (as if the Potters made up the other side, gosh) let alone the people that had been present for most moments of his childhood. He had helped raise the younger three Potters and now he let them flounder alone in their adulthood.

But maybe they didn't need him. He wasn't sure if that was reassuring or horrible.

For now, his entire being was focused on Avery, and her family, of course. Claire was smiling an automatic sort of smile as she met Bridget, eyes lingering uncertainly on the eldest Bishop. Teddy didn't have the context, ambition, or courage to attempt to figure out what was going on with the Head of Law Enforcement, so he turned to look instead at Avery, who had a strained sort of look on her face. She was facing Bridget and Claire and a vague sense of knowing was all it took for him to reach out and encased a few of her fingers within his own, smiling.

And that was when the fire nation attacked a shrill noise spun them all around towards the kitchen. Fortunately, it all turned out to be in the name of sport and he felt himself straighten as Sophie found her way to him, a grin stretching across his face as his hand fell to hover above her head, ready to scoop her out of trouble should she need saving.

She didn't need saving. But she did want him. His eyes met Avery's, and he worried that they might have been shining in a way a bit too significant for a family dinner. He smiled and reached down to hoist the little girl up, settling her at his side as he turned to look at her. "They almost got you - you're too fast. Fastest duck around." His eyes travelled over towards Avery.

Claire's shrewd eyes wandered upward, having been absolutely forgotten in their little... moment. She swung around as casually as she could, pretending she had not heard her sister and turning to the person closest to her aaaaaaand of course.

She cleared her throat as she settled next to Keiran. "Thank you for inviting all of us. Very kind."

Keiran snorted, setting Liam back down as he had mercifully decided to be calm. "It wasn't my idea. It was hers." He jerked his chin towards Avery, almost disgusted by the sight of those three. He wasn't bothered by the fact that it was Teddy or that Avery had moved on. He was actually pretty glad about both of those. But did he have to see it in a place he still considered to be one of his homes? Surely they could get all sappy elsewhere. "I'm gonna need a drink if I'm going to make it through this," he told Claire. "You want one?"

And as for Avery? Goodness' sake.

Backing up to when he took her hand: she'd felt her shoulders relax instinctively, as though his performed calmness was flowing into her. But he turned, attention on Sophie, and Avery didn't even notice that Claire had abandoned her to let her try and deal with her emotions despite standing right there in front of everybody. As Keiran had so astutely noticed. Not that she had any strong feelings. Nope. They suuuuper weren't a thing. Just... really close. Right.

Except then he looked at her the way she had always thought he would when it came to her daughter. Like he, too, couldn't have loved her more if he tried. And even though Avery wasn't brave enough to face the feeling of it alone, she maybe loved him a little bit for that moment. And for all the others, of course. But that was the thing that did her in, even after nearly a year of brilliant moments with him. When he let go and picked Sophie up, then turned back to face the youngest of the mothers once more, Avery could tell she had started to tear up a little and that it would only get worse if someone didn't stop her.

Bridget was leading everyone into the kitchen, and with Keiran in search of drinks for him and Claire, that left Teddy and the girls alone. Thank Merlin. Avery stepped closer, reaching for his neck as she leaned forward to kiss him. She pointedly ignored Sophie's sound of impatience, though it was a miracle, really, that she hadn't sounded grossed out. But her poor mum couldn't help herself, so the fact that Sophie wasn't protesting -- that made Avery all the more certain about her actions. She wanted to just come clean and tell him what she had realized regarding her feelings but no part of her could allow it. She couldn't say it first this time. That hadn't gone well before, and he still hadn't asked her to take on any labels, even after so long. She hadn't minded, of course, considering Sophie. Although, she would've liked to have introduced him differently.

Instead of doing that, then, when she pulled back she murmured a gentle, "Thank you."

Her fingers traced over the scruff along his jaw and she smiled adoringly at the pair of them, each in turn. Sophie was always wonderful and Teddy had done precisely what Avery had expected him to: keep her sane in the midst of the chaos. It just wasn't fair that she had to hide how absurdly smitten she was in front of the others. Bridget and Keiran understood the situation but this was different. Avery looked over at him again.

"Was that... okay? I mean, I didn't know what to say. I'm sorry the introduction was rubbish. I probably should've been more specific about your job," she realized too late, curling her fingers around his arm like she always did. "But I suppose they'll ask eventually."

Claire nodded. Of course it was Avery’s idea. She wasn’t the sort to think a plan all the way through. Of course, the times she did, she overthought herself into a tizzy. It had always been that way and time had not changed her much. Claire wanted to make a joke to that effect, but a glance at her sister gave her a sense of guilt at the thought. Avery was happy. And what kind of person would she be if she immediately tried to tear her sister down to her best friend the second she found happiness?

“Two,” she said smoothly in response to Keiran’s question, following him.

Teddy hadn’t exactly noticed everyone leave, but sensed it, suddenly feeling as though it was just Avery, Sophie, and him. His smile widened as though he couldn’t believe it, wanting to share with her his excitement and surprise at Sophie’s show of approval. Avery understood, bringing him close and he kissed her back, feeling content in a way he had long thought a feeling of the past. Happiness like this was reserved for youth, before the crushing weight of reality robbed people of their joy. But here it was, comfortably curling in his chest.

He laughed at her worries, completely empathetic to her anxiety. “My job?” He repeated. “That’s the last of my worries. Don’t you think they’ll be more concerned that they’re only just now finding out about your boyfriend? My job making fourteen-year-olds master ‘episkey’ is hardly interesting.”

As Keiran chuckled a little to himself and started pouring up drinks despite it only being lunch time on a Sunday, Bridget began setting the table and chattering on with Else about the children. And despite himself, Keiran felt a bit bad for being so negative. In fact, his thoughts went somewhere along the same line as Claire's, though he did voice them as he handed the younger blonde her drink of choice. "Perhaps you should plan future family get-togethers. I don't think she realizes how much a scene everything becomes when she does things like this."

And really, it was a fair theory. If anybody could be horrifically oblivious, it was Avery. As evidenced, of course, by her less-than-subtle reaction to his teasing.

"What? I think your job's great, and I'm sure that--. I..." she blinked up at him, baffled. Wait. Seriously? A little part of her was actually annoyed, though she of course never really knew how to manifest that as anything other than confusion and shock. "My boyfriend? Teddy, h-how long have you called yourself that? If I'd known, I would've done all of this so differently. I--"

She shook her head, eyebrows pulling together as she stared at the pattern on his cardigan, trying to figure out if she had just missed him asking or if she had said something herself to kick that off... and then just forgot to tell herself she'd done so. As if any of that made sense. Still, her hold on him loosened in her distraction, though her eyes did flick back up to his, searching.

Claire eyed Keiran's pour sizes - just a few drops more than modest. Exactly what she had hoped for. She certainly didn't need to be off her game - not around her family, the very people best at throwing her off her game. She reached for the glass and said, "If family get togethers were my responsibility, they wouldn't happen." She took a drink, rolling her lips and then tilting her head towards him in appreciation for the drink. "Not sure what's better. A mess of a scene or nothing at all."

She quirked her lips - one certainly sounded better to her.

Teddy smiled as she began her explanation, probably set in her attempts to ease his transition into familiarity with her family, when suddenly her expression shifted. His eyebrows rose in concern-

And then it hit him.

"Have I not said it?" Teddy blurted, concern deepening in his face. "I thought- I just- I mean, we've been so... It's felt... right." He cleared his throat. "I thought I asked. But I guess... I didn't. So. Um. Are you... okay with that?"

One for the books, folks.