Mrlenexmc​:

alamoody​:

The return of Emmeline had brought back a relative calm to the Order, most of the members busy with reunions. The Death Eaters probably were in the scramble that they’d had been in just days ago, but he took pleasure in that. Serves them right for what they’d do to innocents and the torture they deemed appropriate to use on Emmeline. Alastor didn’t exactly know those details yet, but he’d seen the state of her when they’d “rescued” her, and he had it on good authority she’d been given a few healing potions. If she looked like that even after help, he can only imagine the extent they went to with her.  He and Alice would know shortly the exact details, and he knew he’d end up feeling some sort of way about it all. Emmeline was practically his daughter, debriefing was always hard, but with the added personal connection he knew it’d be harder. He was grateful Alice was willing to join him on it.

“You’re fully aware of how these go, but I must tell you I think it might be one of the worst cases we’ve dealt with. It may take a lot of time, and I can probably safely say we might have to break with it.” He stated to Alice before they’d go in, it was better to get some things out before starting. They’d probably tell Emmeline the same, but they would need to be on the same page before we enter. He knew they both had a special close connection to Emmeline, it wouldn’t be like at work or with members not directly working with them that’d been caught up in it all. “ Now, do you have anything you want to say before we let Mary know we’ve come for it?”

@alicelxngbottom​

...

Alice was far enough along in her pregnancy that she didn’t join Moody for many of these debriefings anymore. In the time they were living in, pretty much any debriefing was exhausting and heartbreaking, no matter what the situation. But this one would be even worse. It wasn’t just one of their Aurors (though Merlin knew they both cared about all of their Aurors), this was someone who was like family, especially to Moody. Alice had known him for a long time now, and he knew that he didn’t easily let people in as closely as he had with Emmeline. So when he asked Alice to join him for the debriefing, Alice knew that she had to say yes, no matter how close she was to popping. This wasn’t something he could do on his own, nor would she want him to have to.

As Moody spoke, Alice nodded. Of course she already knew everything he was telling her, but she knew that he needed to say it. Alastor Moody was the kind of man who was used to being in control, and this situation had been so far out of his control that it had to have shaken him up quite a bit. As he finished, Alice gave him a soft smile and reached out to put her hand on his arm. “I know this will be hard for all of us, but we can take it as slowly as Emmeline needs. What matters is that she’s safe now, and we’ll do everything we can to keep it that way.” Giving him a serious look, she nodded, motioning for him to lead the way.

@alamoody / @vancexemme​

frxnkislong​:

“Alice,” he wanted to laugh.  Not because he didn’t take her concerns seriously, but because it was such a ludicrous thought.  She was going to be the greatest mom of all time.  Anything less had never even crossed his mind.  But he didn’t laugh.  He sat there with her for a long time, simply searching for the thoughts that would make this okay.  “you already have a gaggle of twenty-somethings that look at you like a sort of parental figure, and you do brilliantly with them.  This kid is going to be the absolute luckiest because he has you as a mom.”

He didn’t think that there was anything he was going to truly be able to say to sooth her fears until she got the chance to meet him.  “I’m sorry I had to go for so long, I’m sure that didn’t help.  But I’m here now, okay?  And we’ll figure it all out together.  We’ve always been a team, we’re just bringing in a new member – probably he’ll take my spot as the cutest, but that’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make.”  He leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her head.  “You’ll be brilliant, I swear it.“

...

Alice shrugged, knowing that she was being ridiculous but unable to turn off her worries. “Yeah, but a bunch of twenty somethings who are fighting in a war is a way different game than a baby.” It was ridiculous, because Alice had been lucky enough to have incredible parents, unlike all of her cousins and so many of her friends, so really she shouldn’t have this fear. “It’s just that I’ve been an Auror for so long that I don’t know anything else. What if I hate being a mum? Or what if I love it so much that I don’t want to be an Auror anymore?” 

She wanted to squirm away as he kissed her head, but forced herself to stay still, knowing that it might hurt his feelings. Alice loved that Frank was so quick to show his affection, but in moments like this, she just wanted to hide, not be loved the way that Frank never failed to love her. When she spoke again, her voice was just a whisper. “And what if something happens to us? Or to him? We’re in the middle of a war, Frank.”

@alamoody

(*¯︶¯*)

𝙴𝚊𝚟𝚊𝚗 𝙱𝚘𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍, 𝙴𝚞𝚛𝚢𝚍𝚒𝚌𝚎 𝚂𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚔𝚜

dorcxsmdws​:

…

“I know,” she said softly.  And she did know.  She did know that she was doing this well, and she knew that what she was doing was important, crucial even.  But that didn’t make it any easier.  It didn’t make it easier to give up her whole life, to throw herself into danger every day.  But she’d rather it be her than anyone else.  She knew that she could handle it.  “Hopefully we can end this sooner rather than later so that we can all have a little bit of peace.”  She smiled at her.  “Eavesdropping is how I find nearly everything I give you guys, so don’t underestimate it.  Men are sexist and will talk in front of you like you’re not even there.  Use it against them.”

She shook her head.  “But I haven’t really tried.  When a few more people get here I’ll head upstairs and see what I can find.  You’re just as pregnant as Lily is, are you sure that you’ll be okay all night?  Especially without Frank?”

...

Alice sighed, nodding in agreement with Dorcas but keeping her face neutral to keep up the illusion that they were merely making small talk. It was safer for Dorcas to interact with her than most members of the Order, but they still needed to be careful. Alice would be shocked if her cousins within the Dark Lord’s ranks didn’t have their suspicions about her own loyalty. “Yes, please Merlin just let this be over soon,” she breathed, her hands subconsciously moving to cradle her bump. Giving Dorcas an understanding smile, Alice chuckled. “Remind me to take you out for a beer when all of this is over. In fact, I think all of us will owe you free beers for life.” It wasn’t even the beginning of what they would all owe Dorcas for the danger she was putting herself in, but it was something. 

Alice waved her hand. “Oh, I’ll be fine. My parents are around here somewhere, and good manners dictate that my cousins have to be polite to me.” There was a benefit to being a Rosier, even if most of the time she would much rather have nothing to do with her extended family. She kept up the relationships anyway, knowing that those connections were invaluable in this war. Alice reached out to touch Dorcas’ arm. “Be careful,” she said seriously. “Even if they trust you, they won’t be too keen on finding you snooping through the house.”

mxrymacs​:

…

She constantly felt just a breath from completely falling apart.  From crumbling to the ground without a clear understanding of how to rebuild herself.  But if she did that she would take on someone’s attention – whether it was Greta’s or Marlene’s or Lily’s or any other assortment of friend who passed through her home.  They would look at her and feel badly for her, and all that would do was distract from the fact that Emmeline was still gone.  Three days had passed and she was still gone, and Mary had no idea if she was even still alive.  But she was.  She had to still be alive – she’d know, right?  If Emmeline was gone – if she was gone in a way that was far more permanent than this… she would know.  She had to believe that she would feel it if she lost her like that.  So she held on, not because she was anywhere near okay, not because she didn’t care, but because she refused to take on any more attention than was absolutely necessary.  As broken as she felt – it wasn’t about her.  As long as Emmeline came home she would be okay in the end.

She nodded, heading into the kitchen to put on the kettle before leaning against the bar to look out at the assortment of things that she brought.  “Thank you,” she said softly, trying for another smile.  “I’ll grab some plates.”  She reached for two of the plastic sort.  The glass ones were dirty, but on her mission to deep clean the house she hadn’t yet reached the kitchen.  She also grabbed some napkins and forks.  Taking them out into the living room and handing them to Alice, she returned to the kitchen to for the tea, splashing in the sugar and milk to the way she knew Alice took it.  “Thank you,” she said again, settling onto the couch next to her.  “You didn’t have to do all of this.”

...

Alice waited as Mary made her way back and forth from the kitchen to the living room, getting everything settled. She knew that this was exactly what Mary needed, to keep her hands busy, to serve others, so Alice tamped down on her instinct to want to do it all herself. When Mary was finally seated next to her, Alice gave her a soft smile; not one that was pitying, but rather sympathetic. Mary wouldn’t want her pity, or even her focus; she just needed company and for someone else to tell her that Emmeline would be okay. And though Alice knew she couldn’t completely promise it, she also knew that neither she nor Moody would rest until they figured out a way to get Emmeline out of that hell. “I know I don’t,” she replied softly, taking a sip of her tea. “But I wanted to. I know what if feels like to sit around the house waiting for the love of your life to come home.” 

Alice reached over and touched Mary’s arm gently before reaching forward to grab one of the pastries and put it on a plate. In her and Frank’s time as an Auror, there had been multiple occasions where he had been on a dangerous mission and Alice had been filled with the anxiety that came with not knowing if he would make it back safely. In those times, she hadn’t wanted to be alone even more than she hadn’t wanted to talk about it. Alice knew that Mary was a lot like her, and figured she would be feeling similarly. “It’s a pretty shit question to ask how you’re doing, but how are you?”

TED LASSO (TV Series 2020– ) ➼ Episode #2.6: The Signal 🖕