"Teddy!" Harry sang from his corner of the Chinese Laundromat. "Guess what I found!" Eager toddler footsteps made themselves known to everyone in the establishment. Not that anyone cared anymore when the duo came. They were used to the odd garments and toys they washed and the ritual like searching of spare change so they can walk down the street and share a bit of ice cream together. In fact, many of the matronly women would coo how adorable it was and wonder if the young man was married. If not, a lot of the older ones would sigh and wish to be 20 years younger.
The younger ones would watch Harry Potter and Teddy Lupin with hearts in their eyes, imagining themselves as the perfect family, white picket fence and everything.
Harry and Lupin searched high and low for bits of change. Some of the more frequent Laundromat washers inconspicuously left change lying around and would watch in part joy part fondness as a 'Haaawwwwy! Guess what I found' and 'Teddy! Guess what I found!' followed by the appropriate giggling, praising and exclamations sounded out.
At the moment, Teddy was trotting past a pair of old women and into Harry's waiting arms and swung onto a bony hip. No matter how uncomfortable the spot was, Teddy found delight in winding his arms around Harry's neck and burrowing into his side, no matter how bony.
"Look Teddy!" Harry exclaimed pushing his round glasses up while somehow simultaneously showing Teddy the shiny piece of change.
"Do you know how much we have Teddy?" Harry asked the toddler on his hip.
Teddy widened his identical green eyes and cocked his head to the side in serious thought, the hat that covered his color changing hair nearly slipping.
"Enough for a big ice cweam?" Teddy asked hopefully.
"Yup! Enough for a big ice cream." Harry poked the toddler's nose with his own. "So why don't you get off so we can walk down the street and buy one, hmm?" Teddy slid off and took Harry's hand in his, announcing his pleasure by squealing out 'I scream for ice cream' which sounded more like 'ice cweam for ice cweam'.
Harry chuckled and waved to an old couple. An old man hidden behind a newspaper winked at him and slid a coin into one of the sides of the machines.
Harry winked back at him.