The Gift

Dorian carefully lifted the tea pot and poured a cup for his half brother, then one for himself. He listened to Julian speak of the family dog, though not much was given in the way of details, as Dorian poured milk and sugar into his cup and gave it a gentle stir with his teaspoon. He could see River and Julian as children riding on the back of a large fluffy dog as if it were a horse, but perhaps they didn’t care for the dog as much as they did these squirrels, which received much more attention in Julian’s description than the canine had. “Squirrels?” he said with a bit of shock in his tone. “That is an unusual pet. I wouldn’t fancy having rodents running about the flat.” He gave a small chuckle to be polite as he slipped the teaspoon from his teacup and set it carefully onto the saucer, avoiding making unwanted noise.

Bringing his cup to his mouth, Dorian took a small sip of the tea as he continued to casually evaluate Julian. “You said something about having a place nearby. Are you staying in London or-” The sudden wails of little Ariel stopped Dorian mid-sentence and he looked to her in her buggy for clues as to what was wrong, setting his tea cup down rather hastily. She had her toy on the tray in front of her still, but her face was red and little tears were forming at her eyes. She was probably hungry, this unexpected visit from Uncle Julian had thrown off their regular routine and Ariel was bound to be a chubby little girl with the way she liked to eat. “Come here,” Dorian cooed gently, reassuringly, as he unfastened her from the buggy.

There was no sign of injury and no hint of soiled nappy lingering in the air, so he assumed Julian’s guess to be correct. “Yes, I think she may be.” Bouncing the babe in his arms, Dorian turned her buggy gently so that he could more easily pull her diaper bag from the basket underneath her seat. Her bag was stocked with everything they would need for their trip to the tea shop and then some. He pulled a bottle from one of the pockets on the side of the bag and popped the lid off, setting the lid upside down on the table. Dorian knew what was coming and his jaw tensed as the words formed in his half brother’s mouth. Of course Dorian would never desire to keep their niece away from Julian but he simply did not know what to expect from this unstable individual. What if Julian disapparated with Ariel the moment she was no longer in Dorian’s arms? Julian did not have his wand drawn, and as one is required for the vast majority of wizards in order to apparate, that gave Dorian a small bit of assurance in the matter.

Still fussing about with the bottle and the diaper bag, his head down to conceal his worry, Dorian resigned himself to open the door to a bit of uncertainty. As an Auror, Dorian didn't like not having all aspects planned for. He was meticulous in his work for the Ministry and the MLE, and he tried his best to apply those same principles to his niece’s safety. Things rarely went as planned, there was always a wrench in the cogs somewhere but that was all the more reason for contingency plans and thorough forethought. Dorian was granted none of that in this encounter with his long-lost, werewolf, half brother, and with every adjective added to that label there was just that much more to fret about, but Dorian knew it was not right to keep Ariel from her family and nothing good could come of making an enemy of his brother. “I’m sure she will like a bit of time with her Uncle Julian,” he replied to his brother’s offer. Dorian could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest as he looked down at his niece and then carefully handed her over. Jaw clenched and eyes fixed, Dorian watched Ariel for any signs that she was uncomfortable, and Julian for any subtle hints that he was going to confirm all of Dorian’s fears.

Dorian watched as his own arms moved, taking Ariel further and further away from the safety he provided and instead moved her closer to the unknown. As he carefully passed his niece over to her other uncle, time seemed to slow and as Dorian watched Julian with the babe it seemed the world stopped completely. There was a pressure in his chest, a tightening as adrenaline coursed through his body and his heart pounded anxiously against his chest. His well-trained eyes were fixed on his brother in a seemingly casual observation as opposed to the scrutinizing stare that it was. This small instance required every bit of undercover training Dorian had ever received. He had to stay cool, calm, and collected; take in every available detail, and maintain a casual appearance not to give anything away. The tension inside of him was killing him. The loss of River and Bert was still fresh and heartbreaking, and Dorian could not risk little Ariel ending up as her parents had.

The pressure inside of him began to slowly subside as Julian caringly comforted their niece, rocking her gently and softly humming a lullaby Dorian did not recognize. Ariel seemed to quiet under the circumstances and that equally eased some of Dorian’s concerns and simultaneously raised more questions. Julian seemed well practiced at comforting a crying infant which was surprising as Ariel was the first child in the family, as far as Dorian was aware. Surely River would have mentioned if Julian’s infrequent and sporadic visits were to due to his raising a family of his own. Dorian might have had a better opinion of the man if he had been described as anything other than a delinquent vagabond – even if River hadn’t used those exact words and had a much more loving tone when speaking of her brother.

The conversation returned as Ariel began suckling on her bottle and the topic was something Dorian was quite interested in himself. “No. No children of my own, I’m afraid.” He could not truthfully say that the lack of children in his life was due to never having found the right woman, because he had. Dorian just hadn’t had the opportunity to see through all the foolish and wonderful plans he could have imagined with Paris in his life. Thinking of her had a way of making Dorian pensive, and he needed to keep his head clear at the moment, so all thoughts of Paris were pushed aside as he remained focused on the present situation. “Ariel has been a good teacher of what I need to know, and I have other help as well.” Emily and Andre had thus far been the greatest resource of knowledge and support Dorian could have asked for in this bizarre twist of fate that left him as a surrogate father to a four month old little girl. “You seem rather comfortable with her,” Dorian noted, though really the word that best described the scene he was witnessing was ‘competent’. “Have you much experience with children?”

Dorian envied the mindset that Julian portrayed, stating that babies were simple creatures needing little more than love and food. Ariel was a good baby, fussier than most for a few months but she had recently reached a calm state in her development and she no longer cried so hard and so frequently that she made herself sick. She found happiness in simple things like her stuffed octopus and her own reflection. She was beginning to sleep longer through the night, only waking Dorian once for a bottle and quickly soothing herself to sleep again for a few more hours until Dorian had to get up anyway to get himself readied for work. He found he enjoyed being a father, ‘Daddy Dorian’ as Dorcas liked to refer to him when she was speaking with his infant niece, but it was tiring work. He got up early for his work at the Ministry where he spent most of the day, sending his patronus to check in on Ariel and Emily periodically when he had a moment. When he came home there was very little rest. Dorian wanted to ensure Ariel felt all the love her parents weren’t able to give her themselves, so it was trips to the park or the pet shop to watch the animals, tummy time on the floor with mirrors and rattles and wrinkles in his suit. She made a mess for such a tiny creature and when she had finally laid down for the night, Dorian spent his time tidying up the small flat and reviewing case files until the night finally called him as well. He wondered how much of Julian’s perception of childrearing was influenced on his own lack of a career or stability in his life.

“A mother, too,” Dorian added, finally broaching the subject that had weighed on them like a giant erumpent in the room. This wasn’t the time nor place to get into the gritty details of how River and Bert had lost their lives. They would need to plan for such a meeting, find someplace private to speak while Ariel played happily with Emily or Andre, or hades, even with Dorcas so long as Ariel wasn’t within earshot of what would be discussed. Dorian knew the babe couldn’t understand them yet, but she could sense angry tones. She was an empathetic little girl and the conversation the estranged brothers needed to have was not one to be had in front of a child. “Since you are planning on staying in town for a while, I think it best for us to have a proper discussion of what happened, at a later time. I am sure you have questions and while I do not think I have all of the answers, I have no intention on keeping any information from you.” He would take whatever blame Julian threw at him as well, for Dorian knew there was no way for the man to think anyone was at fault other than Dorian. It was, after all, what Dorian believed to be the truth, as well. “I should be able to find a sitter for our little Ariel tomorrow, if you are available.”

He would need to confirm first that someone could watch Ariel, and without a definitive duration at that, but Emily and Andre had yet to let him down when he had needed them. Ariel had a little cot in their home and she had stayed several nights at a time, in the past, when Dorian had been called out of town on work. He was certain that the Meadoweses would be understanding of the situation, it was more whether they had already made plans for themselves, since Dorian rarely gave up time with his niece on the weekends. “Allow me confirm with the sitter,” he said gently, watching as the man held his infant niece and lovingly stroked her cheek as if he hadn’t abandoned her for four full months. “I’ll have a precise time for you by tonight.” Dorian sipped his tea and focused his gaze on the passersby on the street on the opposite side of the window.

There was a moment of silence between the brothers again; Dorian watching Julian from the corner of his eye, and Ariel sleeping in her estranged uncle’s arms. He wouldn’t be estranged for long, Dorian could sense that much. There was an unspoken connection between Julian and Ariel that Dorian couldn’t possibly understand nor replicate. It came with being legitimate family, he assumed, and while they may have shared blood Dorian could never replace the connection to her parents that Julian would offer her. Finishing his tea, Dorian left a bit of muggle money on the table for the waitress which would cover their bill and a nice little tip for the speedy service. Although she was a witch, she was familiar enough with exchanging currency as it wouldn’t look right to be accepting ‘strange’ coins in payment at a mostly muggle shop. She was a nice enough woman, Dorian knew from the few exchanges they had had over the years.

Having packed Ariel’s things back into her nappy bag and reclined her pram so that she could sleep a bit more comfortably on the short walk back home, Dorian waited patiently for his brother to decide that he was done. There was no need to rush him, aside from Ariel’s schedule but that could be flexible for a bit of time with her family.

It had only been four months but in that short period of time Dorian had come to truly love his little niece. He had found it difficult to leave her after his two week sabbatical from work had ended but if he was to be in charge of another human being he would need to have money to feed her and clothe her. Dorian had a good amount of money in a Gringotts vault that he had saved away but he and Ariel couldn’t live on that forever and he certainly wouldn’t want to. His job was hard. It was stressful. On the best of days it was boring and on the worst it was deadly but he loved being an Auror and Dorian knew he wouldn’t be happy giving it all up to be a stay at home uncle to a little girl who would one day want more than what his life savings could afford them. It had been a difficult decision to go back to work but Emily and Andre eased his worries and soothed his overactive mind. They loved Ariel almost as much as Dorian did, and he was certain that if he explained that Ariel’s uncle had finally come around and needed to talk about River and Bert, they would drop just about anything to help them out. That was the sort of people the Meadoweses were.

There was a pang of guilt that struck Dorian as he watched Julian so lovingly and carefully place Ariel in her pram, smelling her hair and kissing her forehead. For a moment, as he watched the man who had been absent for the whole of Ariel’s life up until today, Dorian felt guilty for having thought there could ever be anything malicious or untoward about his half-brother. This was Ariel’s uncle and he so clearly loved her in this short span of time that he had known her. Anyone who could love couldn’t be as bad as Dorian had feared. “You as well,” he replied as his brother made to leave. Dorian’s arm moved forward slightly to shake the man’s hand – an awkward salutation for a family member but perhaps the most fitting considering the circumstances – but Julian simply downed his tea and turned tail towards the door.

Fastening the straps of her pram around the sleeping infant, Dorian looked over the little baby. She was making a sucking motion with her mouth, though there was nothing but her tongue to suck on. It was precious and gut wrenching all at the same time. He brushed her tiny blonde curls away from her eyes and then righted himself. He weaved back through the scattered tables and chairs with her pram, going out the door backwards so he could push it open with his back and pull the buggy along behind him without the door smacking roughly into the frame and waking the sleeping tot.

They were several paces behind Julian when they had finally made it to the pavement. He was headed in the same direction as Dorian and Ariel, and for a while that was normal but as they continued on, Dorian couldn’t help but to stare at his brother, just out of range for a conversation. Dorian’s apartment building was approaching and instead of continuing on, Julian turned and headed toward the door. Perhaps he was trying to be polite after failing to shake Dorian’s hand at the coffee shop and having decided to make amends by holding the door for Dorian and the buggy. Not quite. Julian opened the door and stepped inside, causing Dorian’s brow to furrow. What was this man playing at? If he was wanting to walk Ariel home, why had he not waited a few moments to walk along with them? The situation was perplexing to say the least but as Dorian continued, the questions only increased in frequency. Julian was still ahead of them as Dorian reached his floor and headed down the hallway towards his flat. He stopped in front of his door and stuffed his hand in his pocket for his keys, eyes still locked onto his mischievous brother who was now standing in front of Mrs. Weatherby’s flat. What in Merlin’s good name was he playing at?!