Lion Heart³ | James Potter

nine

10th of March, Saturday, 1979

(Lay By Me//Ruben)

"When I said you could pop by any time, I didn't actually mean pop. Arthur could've been home and you would've given him a heart attack," Mary scolded, pouring a cup of tea for Dorcas and coffee for Andrea.

Dorcas grinned up at Mary as she joined them at the kitchen table. "We said we were sorry. We completely forgot he has no idea about our world," Dorcas apologised sheepishly.

Mary rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but chuckle at the innocent looks her two friends were trying to display. Andrea's hand suddenly dropped off the table, her struggling heavily to pull her arm up again.

"What's wrong with you?" Dorcas laughed, thinking she had lost her mind.

Andrea pulled her hand up with her other one, dropping it onto the wooden surface heavily. "Sorry, this thing weighs a ton," she huffed heavily, wriggling her finger wearing her engagement ring.

The other two girls scoffed and rolled their eyes, but quickly turned back to admire the beautiful ring. 

"James did good," Mary sighed, running her finger gently over the oval-shaped rock resting in the middle of the slim gold band.

Andrea smiled down at it too. "He didn't, though. My Mom and Dad did. Apparently, my parents left this for him in their Will. It was passed down in my dad's family for years and it was my mom's. And now it's mine."

Mary smiled brightly at her. "And then it can be your little girl's when she gets married," she glowed. Dorcas dropped her head onto Andrea's shoulder with a dreamy look. "Or your boy can give it to his bride," she smiled.

Andrea pulled in a sharp breath. "Let's stop talking about kids, please. Sirius hasn't stopped pushing for me to get knocked up since we got engaged," Andrea grumbled.

Mary held her hands up in surrender with a small smile. "OK, I'll stop. As long as you tell me as soon as you start trying so I can get pregnant too. Because our kids will go in the same year at Hogwarts if it's the last thing I do."

Andrea grinned at her. "Deal."

It felt good to talk so easily about simple things, like playfully planning their future. Visiting Mary had been a good idea on Dorcas' part. 

They needed the normality of just hanging with their friends again. And not in a setting where they were planning missions on how to defeat dark forces trying to take over the world.

Mary's expression quickly sobered as she studied her friends and easily saw the weight on them through their smiles. She focused on Andrea as she asked hesitantly, finally bringing up the subject the other two had been trying to ignore ever since they walked in the door.

"Even though I'm living in a mostly Muggle World now, I still check the Daily Prophet every day. Are you guys doing OK? Sounds like everything's going to shit down in England..."

Andrea shrugged, holding her warm mug comfortingly. "It kind of is if I'm being honest. Even Sirius commented on us being more cautious, and that is chilling."

Dorcas snorted at that. "Marlene's the same right now. If I try to leave the house alone she throws a fit. But it's not like their worries are unjustified. I'm starting to look over my shoulder every few seconds when I walk down the street."

Mary pulled a sour face. "I don't get it. Why on earth would You-Know-Who and his Death Eaters want the wizards and witches fighting the hardest against him to join his ranks?"