[cotswolds] hearts adrift [darla]

“What?” said Alex.

Lula gurgled again and squirmed in her blanket.

“What?” he repeated in a gentle voice, not looking for an answer so much as responding just because he felt he ought to. He liked to pretend he was having a conversation, and he wanted Lula to feel that way too, he supposed—like she wasn’t just gurgling and squirming into the void. He tickled her forehead lightly with a fingertip and closed his eyes.

He was lying on Quinn and Oliver’s couch, his niece tucked into the crook of one arm. She’d gotten over her afternoon fussiness and now seemed mostly content, enough for Alex to take his leg off and rest with her. Tomorrow he was needed at work early and he’d found that looking after Lula drained him considerably. This was nothing he’d said to Quinn, of course: he wasn’t dumb enough to dare speak the word “tired” in her presence these days. But when he was alone, he liked to rest when he could. He didn’t know when he’d get home to bed tonight. Oliver was due back that evening and Quinn after midnight. Alex knew that Lula’s father could handle things perfectly well… But he still thought he’d stick around with him the extra couple of hours anyway.

They got in some hour of peace before there was a knock at the door, and Alex had to stop resting his eyes. Pushing himself up, he lay the baby carefully on the cushions. “Someone’s here, Lulu,” he said as he picked up his leg to reattach it. “Bet it’s your healer. Ready?” Lula gave him no indication of readiness or otherwise, so he stretched out his wand arm and unlocked the door from the couch when he felt like it.

“Come on in,” he called as he gathered up Lula again. “They told you it’d be me, right? I’m not kidnapping ‘er—“ The houseguest entered the room and Alex paused after looking up at her. “Oh! Hi,”  he said, grinning warmly. He hadn’t expected a familiar face. “Those robes look—oh, come on, shh.” The baby in his arms had begun to cry. “It’s just Healer Boyd,” he said, rocking her gently. “Hey, Lulu, shh, baby girl…”

@Darla Boyd

It was her first official home visit as a proper, elite healer with a VIP patient and Darla couldn’t be any more nervous than she already was. Talulla Regan Wood was scheduled for an appointment at St. Mungo’s in a few days, and before the check-up, Darla desired for her patient to be given some herbal potions, to ensure that everything would go smoothly. However, being quite the famous quidditch players, and having a full schedule considering the quidditch season was still on-going, both Oliver and Quinn were busy that day, so Darla had offered to drop by and leave the potions, along with the instructions, at their place.

So, there she was, in her lime green robes, the worst possible colour ever, in the middle of no-where, Cotswolds. She particularly disliked the region not because of its isolation, nor because it was in a rural area, but because it was Cotswolds. Out of all places, Cotswolds, the one area which was famous for building its homes with the distinctive yellow limestone. The mere thought that she was there, wearing lime green, surrounded by yellow limestones, was appalling. While she loved being a healer, Darla would’ve been the very first person to sign a petition for changing the colour of the robes. The entire situation was ridiculous, and she’s never felt more embarrassed than today; thank goodness both quidditch players were away, as the last thing Darla wanted was for someone actually famous to see her in such a situation.

She soon reached the cottage, having Apparated a bit further than she would’ve liked, especially since she was carrying potions case. Darla could’ve easily levitated it, but she was already standing out too much due to her robes’ colour, she needn’t more attention; what if a muggle were to see her? That wasn’t a situation she wanted to deal with. Straightening her back, Darla knocked twice on the cottage’s front door, waiting patiently for someone to greet her.

The door opened, but there was nobody to be seen. Darla arched an eyebrow suspiciously; shouldn’t a celebrity couple’s house be well-guarded? Disappointing.

She soon heard a voice encouraging her to come in. The healer carefully took off her shoes, placing them perfectly in line with the others, before making her way to the living room. “Alexander Regan.” Darla said almost automatically, a soft smile appearing on her face as her gaze fell on her former Hogwarts year mate. “Yes, the godfather.” She nodded in approval to his question; truthfully, she’d have expected a nanny to be present, and not Alex himself. Darla was nothing but delighted to see him, until, of course, he mentioned the robes. Lula seemed to share her sentiments exactly, almost instantly starting to cry upon her hearing the mention of the robes. That’s my girl.

“Here, let me.” Darla placed her case on a nearby table, and then walked in Alex’s direction. After flipping her hair over her shoulder – she was visiting a celebrity’s house, so of course her hair was perfectly arranged, loose but straightened, with the softest of waves at the tips – the healer picked up Talulla from Alex’s arms. “Hello, my darling.” She said on the sweetest and calmest of voices, Lula instantly stopping her crying as soon as Darla picked her up. The former Gryffindor carefully held her, and as soon as Lula made herself comfortable in her embrace, Darla booped her lightly on the nose with her index finger. “Look at us, we’ve grown so much. A lovely lady already.” She let out a giggle, later on straightening her back as she raised her gaze towards Alex once more.

“You look great!” She commented, the tone of her voice switching back to her regular one. “Although, I have to say – “ Darla slowly tilted her head to the side, eyes widening just the tiniest bit. “ – you’re totally giving off Professor Snape vibes. Hair especially.” She teased. “I love it.” Darla added, her gaze falling back on Lula, who let out a soft coo.

“I was going to say you looked very professional,” said Alex over the baby’s wailing. It was the kindest thing he could say for the robes—they at least were professional-looking in the sense that they indicated she had a profession, a respectable one. There were other comments he could have made, of course. But Alex had no reason not to say the kindest thing. Aside from being reasonably friendly with her, he didn’t imagine he should be alienating Lula’s healer for Quinn’s sake.

Lula seemed to like her too. After a few moments in the healer’s arms, she had quieted down. “Wow,” said Alex. “That’s a magic touch you’ve got.” It was hard not to feel a little insulted, even though he’d seen a number of babies prefer a number of people for no good reason at all. He could cover that up well enough. However, it was hard not to feel doubly insulted by her next comment. Alex automatically reached up to touch a lock of hair. “Only you would think that’s a compliment,” he replied, wrinkling his nose. It wasn’t the first time someone had made the comparison. Nobody joked much about the man, though, anymore. “Not to speak ill, you know,” said Alex, “but I wash.”

He leaned back against the couch and grinned up at her. “So, Deòiridh.” he said, a little teasingly, but a little sincerely too. “Looks like you’ve been doing well. Special cases and all.”

“That must be, honest to Merlin, the nicest thing anyone has ever said about these robes. Ever.” Darla let out a sigh, her gaze falling back to Lula, as she gently touched the little one’s hand. Lula gripped her index finger, and Darla sketched another smile. Lula was absolutely adorable. “I mean, I’m pretty sure Talulla started crying because of these robes.” Darla gently shrugged her shoulders, just enough to prove her point, and to make sure that she wouldn’t disturb Lula. “You can let it all out, it’s probably nothing I haven’t thought of myself before.” Those robes would genuinely have been prettier if designed even by a troll. Most Mungo’s healers hated them, and Darla was yet unsure why the Hospital, or the Ministry hadn’t changed the awful colour already.

Her smile widened at the admiring comment. “I can teach you.” She remarked, a bit amused. “The magic touch.” She’d felt the slight indignation in his voice, and, of course, it wasn’t anything new. Most parents or guardians were, more often than rarely, offended on a very personal level that their children would stop crying the moment a healer would pick them up, but most of them forgot or ignored the fact that the majority of medical staff spent years learning how to touch people so it wouldn’t hurt them when injured, and even ease their pain. Babies were obviously no exception, especially for paediatricians.

She’d taken noticed how, upon hearing her words, Alex instinctively reached up to touch a lock of his hair. She would his comment especially funny, however, the witch did her best not to laugh, or giggle. “I mean it as the best of compliments. And don’t worry, you’re much more handsome too.” Darla reassured, figuring that perhaps her praise hadn’t been fully perceived. However, she had been honest; in the end, Professor Snape had always been her very favourite, and Alex had been aware of it, ever since they were students.

Alexander’s following remark, teasing in nature, had caused her to blush, mostly because it wasn’t every day someone outside of her family complimented her. Somehow, it was a new feeling for Darla. The fact that she had gotten a special case in the first place had been somewhat overwhelming, but now she felt that it was all worth it. The former Gryffindor smiled once more, and let out a shy “If you don’t mind – “ as she took a seat on the sofa as well.

“Thank you.” She commented, the blush in her cheeks starting to fade away. “It’s at the cost of my personal life, the professional success. So it’s good to be rewarded with special cases.” Darla lowered her gaze towards the baby in her arms, gently retrieving her index finger from Lula’s grip, as the little one was seemingly starting to get a little sleepy. Perhaps the quick (yet intense) crying session had tired her. “What about you? How is it, being an auror?” Well, she obviously knew from Lula’s records that Alexander was an auror now, working at the Ministry of Magic. However, she was unsure if mentioning the source of her knowledge was unprofessional or not. In the end, she had to know Lula’s file by heart, but, on the other hand, openly mentioning it to someone who wasn’t Lula’s parent felt a bit odd. While the godfather, he still wasn’t the parent. Rules were rules, even if irrational.