Soon after, Harry and Teddy took a break from playing with the blocks to go make lunch, leaving Laura and Andromeda in the lounge. For a while, Laura contented herself listening to the boys preparing the sandwiches.
'If you don't mind me asking, do you like children?' Andromeda said.
Pulling her gaze away from the doorway, Laura hummed as she thought. 'Not really? I hope I don't sound rude, but it's just I wouldn't want to work in a school, or as a nanny, or anything like that.'
'No, I understand.'
Smiling, Laura said, 'Teddy is very sweet, though.'
'That's kind of you to say.'
From there, Laura asked a few questions about what Dora had been like as a child. Andromeda replied rather harshly, however her upbeat tone and expression belied the trouble Dora caused. In a way, it reminded Laura of how her own mother teased her, a kind of exaggeration only parents could get away with. With that in mind, Laura followed up by sharing some of the stories from her own troublesome childhood. A lipstick left out, perfume bottles in her reach, flour stored in a cupboard under the counter: her mother had no shortage of such guilt-trips to use.
As one of those finished, Harry stuck his head through to announce lunch—by this point, Andromeda really laughed, no trace of the stern impression Laura once had. A blanket in the garden served as the table for the meal. Plates of sandwiches and fruits were spread across it, as well as a tray with cups and a pitcher of water. Everyone sitting, Teddy made sure they all knew which sandwiches he'd made and gave one to Andromeda—she accepted it politely and ate it.
Overhead, the sun shone warm, but a breeze blew. Laura found that often the case at the top of the hill his cottage occupied. Some days had been stagnant and overly hot, but only a few were so bad that she couldn't find even the shade comfortable. The wild meadows surrounding them brought a pleasant smell to the air. Growing up in London hadn't bothered her, but, after spending so much time at Hogwarts, she found an appreciation for cleaner air.
Having company with her meal was a little like that too, she thought. How often she'd sat with Harry in the garden and enjoyed the moment, but it had a different feel with Teddy and Andromeda alongside them, chatting too. It was hard to put to words. If she had to describe it, she would say that just being with Harry was enough for her to be happy, where as now she found herself smiling or laughing at all the little exchanges—the innocent questions of a child, the motherly replies, and such. She'd felt like that often enough when visiting Hermione and Ron, or Fleur and Bill, but it hadn't been somewhere that she'd spent so much time with Harry before.
While she was herself content to simply watch and think such thoughts, Harry pulled her into the conversation from time to time. He would ask her something simple, or mention her when talking about something they did together, not putting her on the spot, but including her.
'We tried making raspberry jam last week, right Laura?'
She smiled. 'Yes. "Tried" being the important word there.'
Then, he continued on, telling the rest of the story.
The drifting sun brought shade as it went over the cottage. With lunch done, Laura helped Harry to tidy up. By the time they came back, Teddy was enjoying the shallow pit Harry had dug, hiding below the edge and jumping up with a shout as Andromeda played along. The playing became more energetic with Harry back, though, racing around the vegetable patch and going down the hill to the well, trying to jump out the pit and to reach the branches of the young fruit trees, barely stopping for breath.
By the time Teddy and Andromeda left, he looked utterly exhausted. Really, Laura couldn't imagine just how tired, considering how tired she felt from just watching. Breathing a bit deeper than normal, Harry didn't show much of his own exertion. But, after they waved goodbye and closed the door, she noticed he headed straight for the couch.
With a gentle smile, she sat down and lay against him.
'I'm all sweaty, you know.'
His heart beat a distant thud, skin hot to the touch and, as he'd said, slick. 'Should we wash you down?'
'I'm not a car.'
Breathing in through her nose, she didn't hate the smell, and said as much to him.
'So no need for me to shower then?'
She hadn't said that, and said as much.
Cuddling her, he kissed her head, and she sighed. 'Had fun today?' he asked.
'Yes. I think I got on well with Andromeda.'
'Good, good. I thought you would. She's a bit like Jo, don't you think?'
She mumbled in agreement. 'Much nicer, though.'
He laughed at that, letting it fade into silence.
A thought coming to her, she asked, 'So, why did you want me to meet her today? You said you had a reason.'
'Ah, right. It's that Andromeda got in touch with her sister, but they can only meet in the afternoons, so she's asked me to babysit Teddy when they do. It would be at Teddy's house. I, er, can't just invite you in, not without asking Andromeda first, and I thought she should at least meet you before deciding.'
She hummed to herself. 'Is that why, then? You're asking me to come along?'
'Well, yes. I don't mind if you say no, but, I want to show you the house, just once. Does that make sense?'
She giggled. 'I'll make things easy and come babysit with you.'
'That's great. I'm glad to hear that, really,' he said.
'Let me know when, yes? Oh, and where, or pick me up on the way.'
