"Oh, un petit ange." Madame Maxime cooed over Valerian as the baby gargled happily in her arms. "What a little blessing you have brought me, Veronica! I haven't seen a baby so beautiful in years."

"He's certainly a little charmer." Veronica leaned back in her seat and sipped her tea happily. "He's going to heart hearts."

Madame Maxime's home was surprisingly small compared to her larger than life personality. All the furnishings were specially sized to her needs and plated in silver to complement the cool hues of icy blue and lavender that decorated her house. The home itself was something to behold, as it was a smaller version of the Palace of Versailles which the headmistress had constructed with attention to detail. Only instead of dozens of people, the home was made to deal with only it's mistress and however many guests can fit in two guest rooms.

Despite these lavish settings, the Madame lacked any servants and served the tea herself from an ornate silver tea set that made Veronica's own china set at home, decorate with faded sunflowers, look practically peasanty. The dined on the Headmistress's patio, shaded under a silvery canopy from the summer sun in round, cushioned chairs.

"I was surprised to receive your letter asking to visit." Olympe sat him in his reclined seat and turned her attention to the woman in front of her. "But I was glad to accept. And I am glad that you finally gout of that house, you sounded so distressed my dear."

"I'm afraid the past few months have not been easy." Veronica sighed. "I trust you know about the situation in England."

"I have seen in the papers." Olympe nodded, "Such terrible things, I hope it is not true that the Lord Voldemort has returned."

Veronica bit her lip. "I'm afraid it is so, I saw him myself. But I have been forbidden by the ministry to stay quiet."

"Do they have such authority?"

"I they think I will raise a Panic they do." Veronica scoffed. "That Fudge, He's too afraid to pull his head from the sand and look at the truth. I fear there will be more trouble soon."

"And your husband." Olympe pressed, "How is he?"

"He is…" Veronica looked down awkwardly, "he has been under some strain. I'm afraid the First War was not kind to him, and he has not been himself since the tournament." She looked to Valerian sadly. "He's been putting on a show for me as if he is alright, especially since the baby was born. I hope going back to teaching will put him back into his routine and bit and he will return to the man I fell in love with."

"For millennium, men have felt they must be the strong ones to protect us women." Olympe nodded understandingly. "But so often, we forget that they too need to be protected. If not from the outside world, then from themselves."

She reached forward and touched Veronica's hand. "It will get better my dear, but not on its own. You must help him find his was back."

Veronica nodded wisely. "Thank you."

"Besides" Olympe shrugged, "You are always welcome to stay with me for a prolong visit."

"I could never impose." Veronica shook her head. "just being here now and out of the cabin is enough by itself."

"Are you still writing?"

Veronica nodded, "I've started picking up small jobs to make the bills, speech writing, things like that. It helps that my family owns the cabin I live in, and I can due without electric."

Olympe nodded and watched the younger witch carefully. It was clear there was more in her mind than she dared to say. Her very being radiated restless anxiety.

"You know what you need?"

"What?"

"Something constant." Olympe informed her, "Something that gives you a reason to wake up."

"Well, I already have one of those." Veronica smiled down at her son but Olympe shook her head.

"No, no, that is not for you. That is for him. And childrearing is anything but stable. You need something to keep your mind occupied in the chaos. Something besides writing."

"What do you suggest?" Veronica shrugged and Olympe smiled coyly.

"Come, I will show you something,"

Veronica rose, holding Valerian over her shoulder, and was led into the house and through a hall with a simple door at the end. The half giantess withdrew a delicate key from her pocket and unlocked the door, pushing it open for Veronica to enter first.

Veronica looked around in awe. Unlike the rest of the house, the room was plainly painted with a simple wood floor that was mostly covered in overlapping drop clothes. From wall to wall the room was lines with dozens of canvases of assorted sizes, all painted with different imagines.

"This is how I occupy my mind." Olympe explained. "Not with magic, not with books, but with art. Landscapes, portraits, fruit bowls, anything I see."

Veronica smiled and turned to examine a large Greek bathhouse scene filled with nude women and brightly colored tiles all done in oils.

"These are all so wonderful" Veronica beamed eagerly. "there are so many!"

"Yes, and I love them all dearly." Olympe looked around fondly, letting her fingers graze over the canvas of a frames painting that had been finished over a decade ago. "But this one is my favorite."

Veronica looked up at the beautiful portrait of a sitting woman in brilliantly red robes. Her long hair was braided simply and tossed over her should and her tanned skin reminded Veronica of the women who walked the edge of the Ganges River at dawn.

"This was my lover, Fatima." Olympe sighed. "She was a true lady, no matter the situation." She turned with a smile. "I have tried to get monsieur Hagrid to come so that I may paint him, but I'm afraid I have not succeeded."

"So, what you're saying is I need a hobby?"

"Not just a hobby" She corrected. "You need something that will make you feel productive but will not add to your stress. Do you understand?"

"I think so." Veronica nodded, "But how will I find out what that is?"

"How much land does your Cabin sit on?"

"A fair bit, why?"

Olympe held up a finger and whisked herself out of the room for a moment before returning to a thick book with a brilliantly green cover. "Take this, I think you will find some use from it."

Veronica took the book and skimmed of the title.

Easy Gardening for Witches

Veronica left the woman's home with the book in hand and a hearty thank you for the tea.

When she returned to the cabin as the sun began to set, Valerian was already asleep, and Severus was pacing the living room.

"You're home." He looked up like a loyal dog when she walked through the door. "I wasn't expecting you out so late, I was almost worried."

"Don't be, I had a lovely time." Veronica said absentmindedly. "Severus Darling, can you put Val to bed tonight, I'm exhausted."

"Of course, dear" Severus took his son from his sling and watched as his partner kicked off her shoes and instantly sat down with the book she had carried in. "What's that?"

"A Book on gardening Madame Maxime gifted me." Veronica explained. "She said it might give me something to do with my time outside of writing."

"Really? Well, that's good. Right?"

"I could be." Veronica nodded, "I suppose this late in the year it would be wise to erect a greenhouse along with a garden bed. What do you think?"

Severus looked at her, smiling a little at the scene of her so deep in thought, completely engrossed in the book. "I think, if you have the money to spare, it would be a splendid idea."

Veronica grinned broadly and looked back down at the book.

Severus thought for a moment before sighing. "So, I've been doing some thinking."

"Yeah?"

"About you being here by yourself while I'm at the school." Severus went on, nearly having to force the words out as he went. He had most of his day at Grimmuld Place dealing with the Order when an idea came to him.

He hated it.

But it was inspired none the less.

"I was thinking about maybe you having someone from the Order here to keep watch. Just in case."

Veronica glanced up at him in surprise. "Won't it look suspicious if we suddenly have someone else living here with me? It sounds risky."

Severus shifted from foot to foot with a heavy sigh. "Not if that person didn't look human."