The Boys of Summer | Maddox

[Julia Al-Azma]

Saturday, August 18, 1973
Noon

Summer was winding down quickly, and change was on the horizon. Her brother James was getting married next weekend. Kids all around her were inches taller than they had been a few months ago. Summer romances were coming to an end with empty promises of letters that would never be written. And in two weeks, Julia was leaving her career behind to start a new adventure. 

It all seemed to be happening so quickly compared to two months ago when Autumn seemed a lifetime away. She had given her 'two-weeks' at the museum and was attempting to wrap up the last of her projects to make it easier for her successor to pick up where she had left off. At home, she was busy sorting through her books and clothes, deciding what she would pack up and what she would leave for those weekends when she could make it back. There was so much to process, it almost made her head spin.

Maddox's owl arrived a few days ago, while she was handing off her newest research on the Picts. It had been a bit of a surprise. They hadn't corresponded since their meeting in the fields outside of Hogsmeade back in June, and she figured he had all but forgotten about her. It hadn't bothered her; they were effectively strangers and would be at least until they became colleagues in September. But it was nice to hear from him, and he still wanted to grab a coffee.

She sat at a small table just inside the Pot & Pantry, a cute little cafe-market combo of sorts in the middle of Hogsmeade, alongside a window. She'd never been here before but made a mental note to bring Amelia here sometime. This was just her sort of place. Earthy, a little whimsical, bohemian. Lots of plants and healthy-eating options. All the things her soon-to-be sister-in-law was.

No sooner had she been able to take in the surroundings, Maddox was sauntering up to their table, this time sans French-speaking children. "There you are," she smiled, standing to give him a little friendly hug. "Color me surprised about your owl. I thought you'd all but forgotten about our hair-braiding session."

[Maddox Barlowe]

Where had the summer gone? Once careless days had been replaced by preparations that needed to be made for himself and Morgan. There were family matters that required attention, personal issues with Lyn, integration to be done...days his sister wasn't doing so well and everyone had to pitch in when they could. It was fair to say that Maddox Barlowe had become an unfortunately busy man and a tired one at that. By the time he remembered his pleasant encounter on that warm summer day in a meadow out in the countryside...two months had passed.

It was a spot of good luck that brought him back into possession of the piece of parchment on which he'd scribbled her details. An afternoon filled with idle chatter and a cup of coffee would be just the thing to calm his chronically fraying nerves.

The man was exhausted, more so than he had any business being yet life showed no signs of slowing down. With September 1 looming on the horizon...the meet-up with Julia may well be all the 'rest' he ended up getting.

Kill him now...

Maddox entered the quaint little establishment with his hands hanging loosely inside his pockets and his gait unhurried. It was a good place, he decided. Not too loud, not too bright and while he could've done without the scents that rushed to greet him at the door, he supposed they weren't more than he could reasonably ignore.

Blue eyes searched the room, landing on his company already by the window. Maddox sank into the seat across from her at the table, immediately taking on a more comfortable and relaxed position with one hand slung over the back of his chair.

"Color me surprised about your owl. I thought you'd all but forgotten about our hair-braiding session."

A sluggish grin appeared. "Forget my new best friend?" he teased. The circles under his eyes were dark, affirming the rough summer he'd had thus far. "Life's been kicking my ass but you look good. Run into me a third time and I'll finally have an answer to that little question of yours about your alma mater." The first could've been a fluke, the second a coincidence. The next time he ran into Julia Laurence--well by then he'd know whether she was the problematic sort. After that, he could decide what he thought of her face.

[Julia Al-Azma]

Well, he certainly looked a little more worse for wear than when she'd last left him. She leaned forward and rested her elbows on the table, and her chin on top of her hands. She looked him over briefly, noticing how dark the circles under his eyes were. "Best friends?" she asked with a grin, her dimples peeking slightly through her cheeks. "We really are going to have to make those friendship bracelets. Add a little heart charm. You get half, and I'll take the other."

The waitress came and set two mugs of black coffee down in front of them, along with cream and sugar. Julia pulled her mug closer and poured a splash of cream. Sugar wasn't necessary. She liked her coffee bitter.

"Life's been kicking my ass but you look good. Run into me a third time and I'll finally have an answer to that little question of yours about your alma mater."

She lifted her honey-brown eyes to his blue as she picked up a spoon and stirred. She raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps it's karma?" she asked teasingly and gave a little shrug, "If you always go around making women question their looks, perhaps you deserve an ass-kicking." She grinned at him. She didn't question hers. Julia was plenty confident without men's affirmations, but she found Maddox humorous in any case.

She brought her coffee to her lips and sipped, before asking, "So what's going on with you? Been brushing up on your French?"

[Maddox Barlowe]

And what lovely dimples they were. His own grin spread wider, mirroring hers in their shared amusement over the absurdity of such bracelets. "I suspected you were a heartbreaker. Didn't think you'd be so cavalier about it."

At her next words, he laughed. It was short and crisp but perhaps the realest laugh he'd managed since the slow descent into chaos that his summer had embarked on.

"Is it my turn to be the villain?" Maddox asked, taking his own cup and offering an appreciative nod to the departing waitress. "Perhaps it is just what I deserved in which case life's gotten soft by the time it's finally swung around to me." Despite the levity in his voice, there were the faintest threads of reflection that marred his otherwise carefree expression. In some ways, he knew he'd gotten off too lightly.

Maddox waved his wand to cast a simple cooling charm on his cup of coffee. The people who could sip a fresh brew were made of different stuff than he was. The leather of their tongues balked at the inferno placed against it. He was made of more delicate stuff when it came to what he ingested.

"I'd only bore you with the scandals of my life." He tipped an almost unhealthy dose of cream into his cup before charming it to stir itself. "There hasn't even been enough time to properly procrastinate my French. Shame, really. There's plenty else I could do if given the chance. No," he shook his had, "much too dull. I've invited you to coffee and won't have you spend the time listening to me go on and on." He didn't think he had the energy to go on and on anyway.

Maddox took a tentative sip of his coffee when it stopped stirring followed closely by a more deliberate one once he concluded that it was to his taste. "I'd love to hear all about your dazzling summer and what you've managed to do with it."

[Julia Al-Azma]

She laughed, imagining such a bracelet around the man's wrist. A part of her thought he might actually wear it, if anything just for the fun of it. "And whatever gave you that impression?" Her mock offense played across her features, but her eyes still laughed. "I only break hearts when it's essential." In a way, it was the truth. She didn't make it a habit of getting too close to men. They were playthings for her. Little games, and chess pieces that she manipulated at her father's or brothers' will.

Friendships she could do, easily and gladly.

"Perhaps it is just what I deserved in which case life's gotten soft by the time it's finally swung around to me."

She perked her eyebrows at him as she took another sip of her coffee. "Is that so? Sounds intriguing. I find when life has its way with me, it's always somewhat of a surprise. There I am, minding my own business, and wham. Figure out this game." She tutted at him as she put down her teacup. If he thought he was going to get her all the way out here for a cup of coffee and not talk about himself, he'd picked the wrong girl.

"I hate to break it to you Maddox, but you're gonna have to spill all your secrets today," she gave a resigned shrug. "It's part of the girl's day. It's expected." She leaned forward and whispered, looking around them with her eyes. "What would people think?" She watched as he poured more cream than he had coffee and she pursed her lips in surprise. She hadn't taken him for a weak coffee drinker, but everyone had their flaws.

"A dazzling summer it has been," she sighed and sat back in her chair with her mug, crossing her left leg over her right. "A state dinner at the ministry, a wedding next week and all my little work projects in-between." She shrugged, "Of course, the highlight being our fortuitous meeting. Did you get the job at Hogwarts?" She hadn't decided yet if she'd tell him that she'd be there as well. He'd know soon enough in two weeks, but if the conversation led that way, she didn't see any harm in it.

[Maddox Barlowe]

The cup he held to his lips did very little to conceal his languid smirk. She was something else, wasn't she? Maddox wouldn't be needing that third meeting; Julia Laurence was already telling him a lot of what he needed to know. He arched a brow at her, giving her a brief glance over. "That your way of warning me you're trouble? I'm not that easy to shake." A bald-faced lie, one he told absent fear of true consequences. Maddox didn't like complications. Outside of creatures and his family, he wasn't particularly fond of hard work either.

Julia wasn't hard work...that he could tell. His intentions kept things simple; the light teasing kept it interesting. "At least buy me another cup of coffee before you go devastating me." A courtesy he doubted she typically extended. It was just as well, such a service wasn't one he saw himself needing.

"I hate to break it to you Maddox, but you're gonna have to spill all your secrets today."

There she went, the gift that kept giving. Maddox was sure she'd missed the irony in her statements. He replaced his cup on the table, leaning in when she did. "You're not sounding much like someone who minds their business when life comes knocking." He spared his own glance around the room. With the exception of the crinkly old woman sitting opposite them, the sparse few patrons kept their gazes to themselves.

"What would people think?"

He tipped his head in the direction of the gawking older woman who'd somehow convinced herself of their impropriety in the seconds it had taken them to lean in. "You could ask her if you're that worried. Although I don't reckon you'd be the kind to put too much weight into what goes on in other's heads."

He eased back into his earlier slouch to listen while she regaled him with tales of her summer. "Busy busy..." He was exhausted just listening. It was a wonder she didn't have her own dark bags under her eyes. He would be dead on his feet--was all but dead on his feet. "I'll consider myself lucky you made some time for little ole' me." 

The talk of Hogwarts levelled his amusement, churning it out until all that remained was fatigue. It felt like another complication, one he'd yet to make peace with. "I did." His voice grew pensive. "My daughter will be starting there, too. Should be...fun." He took a silent sip of his coffee, appearing lost in thought for the briefest moment before his eyes focused on her again. Putting aside the matter for the moment, he pivoted to a matter he remembered her bringing up the last time they'd met.  "Did you convince them to work with the museum like you'd wanted?"

[Julia Al-Azma]

He smirked at her over his coffee cup and she returned it in kind. She rolled her eyes playfully, and she set her cup down. "I wouldn't say I'm trouble. Just accepting of the way things are." There was no need to expand further upon it, unless he asked, which she doubted he would. He said he wasn't easy to shake. That would remain to be seen, she supposed. "Another cup of coffee or cream?" she teased him.

She let out a laugh. No, she was not someone who minded their business. She had been raised and groomed to play and uncover other's secrets. She kept to herself when it mattered and when it was important. But otherwise, everyone was fair game. She shrugged, "I care in some ways." She did. In her world appearances were everything, but not when it was just a fun coffee date. Here, no one knew her or expected anything of her. "Don't you?" She didn't know him well, but Maddox's nonchalant attitude that she had now witnessed in both of their interactions made her think he didn't.

"I did."

Her eyes brightened up, "Congratulations. Another round on me." But her smile died watching his face change, and he mentioned a daughter. She racked her brain for a moment but didn't remember him mentioning he had a kid. He had his sisters' French-speaking kids. "Oh, I didn't realize you had a daughter. That'll be nice! You can be there together, right?" She picked up her cup again, lamenting that she had waited too long to drink it and now it was only slightly hot.

She shrugged a little. "Not quite. But I'll be taking on a job there instead." She gave him a little smile, "So we'll be seeing more of each other. Lucky you." He was the first person, besides her family that she had told about Hogwarts. "You can help me reorganize the library."

[Maddox Barlowe]

In my experience, 'trouble' and 'accepting of the way things are' haven't really gone together." Trouble usually came with not accepting things for what they were and learning to cope with them. Not for the first time, Maddox got the feeling she was alluding to things that ran more closely along a personal line but he wasn't one to pry beyond the light jabs she could easily deflect should she choose to. Someday, if their paths continued to cross, he may learn the inner workings of Julia Laurence but a simple coffee date in Hogsmeade village was no place for that.

He chuckled at her accurate taunt, reaching for the cream to add more as if she needed further convincing. "Cream--but only because you've cut right to the heart of it and offered."

The man would enjoy a cup of cream more than he cared to admit so he would leave it at that.

"Don't you?"

In lieu of an immediate answer, Maddox lifted a hand to his mouth. He tugged the left side of his cheek, pulling it away to reveal a top and bottom pair of canines that were noticeably sharper and longer than they should've been. She wouldn't have been wrong in any assessments of them appearing more in line with those of an animal. His hand fell to the table again, some of his earlier amusement returning to his eyes. "These make it a little hard for me to fixate on what others think. There'd be no time left to get things done. I haven't been worried about what anyone's thought in a long time." It was the sort of freedom he didn't know he'd needed until he was forced into it.  "Botch yourself bad enough and you lose the right to take yourself too seriously."

The energy, too, but that might have just been him.

"Oh, I didn't realize you had a daughter.

She'd noticed the drop in his expression. Sharp as she was proving to be, it didn't come as too much surprise. "Neither did I," he quipped, shooting for his standard, dry humour complete with the faintest quirk at the corners of his lips nearly resembling a smile. "I haven't decided whether us being there together will be a good thing yet." He still felt entirely out of his depth and didn't yet understand how he would bridge the gap. Throw in the rigours of learning a new job and the fact children didn't typically enjoy having their parents lurking in the shadows while they tried finding themselves at Hogwarts and you had a man who felt utterly lost on what his next move needed to be. Was quitting before he started an option?

"Did you?" he asked, his smile widening into a more genuine display. "Seems double congratulations are in order. Do let me know when you'll be needing that help with the library; I'll have to ensure I'm busy." It sounded like a joke. The glint of mischief in his eyes said it was a joke.

It was not.

[Julia Al-Azma]

In my experience, 'trouble' and 'accepting of the way things are' haven't really gone together."

A little scoff rose up in Julia as she looked down at her coffee. "Then you must have never been around a noble house," Julia quipped absently before she knew she had said it. She paused for a moment, but decided to just leave it at that. She looked back at him and she gave a small chuckle as he added even more cream, raising her eyebrows. "Next time I'll just take you for ice cream." She'd never seen any grown man drink his coffee that way, but it took all sorts to make the world go around.

And then, without warning, the man reached up to his mouth, in the middle of the cafe, and started pulling his cheeks back to reveal his teeth. Julia's eyes widened, and she looked sideways quickly to ensure others weren't looking. It was like her Uncle Robert all over again, taking out his dentures at the dinner table to snap his gums at her. "Wha..." she started to say. "Maddox, people are looking."

To prove his point that he cared not one iota what people thought, he showed her his teeth. Large canines...like a cat's.

"Botch yourself bad enough and you lose the right to take yourself too seriously."

She laughed, almost incredulously at his nerve, but there was admiration in her eyes. To be so completely unbothered must have felt rather freeing. She didn't know what that was like, and doubted she ever would. She didn't have the luxury of not caring. She had moments, like these where she could be less on-guard.

"Botched? So you're an animagus? What's your form then?" She was genuinely interested in how one botched themselves in this way, and since he didn't seem to mind sharing, she didn't mind asking.

"Neither did I,"

She brought her coffee up to her lips and almost choked on the liquid. Again, her eyes widened and she stared at the man for a moment. A small sort of smirk played on his lips and she set her cup down and cocked her head at him for a moment. "That...must have been quite the news." It was easy to imagine how a man might not know he had a child out there somewhere, if he had rather easy relations and didn't care to continue communication after. But Maddox didn't strike her as that type of man.

"Do you want to talk about it, or would you rather move on to my trauma so we can forget yours quickly?" Her voice had a casual air about it, but she was being kind. She didn't want him to feel as though he had to discuss anything that he didn't want to. She, on the other hand, would have no problem divulging her complaints about her sister-in-law if he cared to hear any of them.

"Seems double congratulations are in order. Do let me know when you'll be needing that help with the library; I'll have to ensure I'm busy."

"Got it. I won't tell you a thing then. A simple message of, come get some cream and coffee, and next thing you know you'll be sorting index cards." She grinned at him and gave a little shrug, "Or I'll just set some cream out for you. See where the day takes us."

[Maddox Barlowe]

"Now we're getting somewhere." He took another sip of his coffee, doing very little to hide the curiosity or the hint of amusement at what may as well have been a confession. "Can't say I have," he admitted easily. "Not all purebloods are made equally or something like that but you, my dear, sound like you've seen your fair share of the stuffier side of the tracks. Is this where I start exploiting our friendship for all it's worth? What is it worth?"

Maddox's brows rose at her latter statement, openly approving of her plans. "I know the perfect little spot. Otherwise, the kitchens of Hogwarts are never short on their desserts." They would have no issues finding ice cream.

Her confusion turned to laughter as he knew it would, as it often did when his...condition became apparent. It was fair to say that he was used to it by now. There were only so many ways people tended to respond.

"Guilty," of the animagus assumption. "I'd show you but I'm as likely to be stuck that way for the remainder of our little date as I am to revert." Inconvenient as it could sometimes be. No, it was no time for show and tell. "A black cat," he said simply. "Not exactly what I'd been going for but one doesn't get to choose these things." And he would be lying if he said he didn't now think it fit him...or perhaps he had changed to fit it.

Hard to say.

Again he managed to earn her amusement. It would seem he was on a roll. Good. While it was still something he was trying to wrap his mind around, Maddox wasn't trying to turn the light afternoon together into a heavy mess of insecurities or his failure to be the man his father had attempted to raise. Those weren't the sorts of conversations you had with polite company and the pureblood royalty sitting across from him was decidedly polite company.

"I'll always prioritise others' discomfort over my own. Do tell, I'm literally all ears." Whether he wanted to be or not. Even now, he could hear the faint scraping of silverware against the bottom of a porcelain teacup across the room. The sound was grating but he'd become better at ignoring the things that had nothing to do with him. "But, yes, quite the surprise. I may still be in shock as we speak. Go ahead, distract me with the scandals of your life."

"Got it. I won't tell you a thing then. A simple message of, come get some cream and coffee, and next thing you know you'll be sorting index cards. Or I'll just set some cream out for you. See where the day takes us."

His lips split into a lazy smirk. "Why does it sound like I'll have to start avoiding you?"

[Julia Al-Azma]

"Are we?" Julia asked casually. Getting somewhere? Where exactly was he trying to go? She smiled and gave a little shrug, "Stuffy is a polite word for it." The politest word she could think of. She enjoyed her life, most of it anyway. The perks far outweighed any downsides. But yes. Stuffy. "If you're smart, this is definitely where you start exploiting your friendship with the daughter of a duke." She rolled her eyes playfully and shook her head. "I'm afraid outside of being invited to glittery snoozefests, the perks aren't plentiful unless you marry me." She gave a little shrug, as though he was just waiting to propose and she had to let him down easy. "Sorry to break your heart Maddox, but I'm not the marrying kind."

"Not exactly what I'd been going for but one doesn't get to choose these things."

She looked at him with interest. "So you don't have any control over when you turn back? If not a cat what were you going for?" It seemed strange. Julia had met an animagus before, but it wasn't anything she knew much about. How did one become an animagus? What did it feel like? How was their animal form chosen? What was it like to cough up hairballs?

"I'll always prioritise others' discomfort over my own. Do tell, I'm literally all ears. But, yes, quite the surprise. I may still be in shock as we speak. Go ahead, distract me with the scandals of your life."

Where to start? Edith? The way she played men like a drum with a single bat of her eyes? The fact that the men in her family put her up to it? That there was a certain Hogwarts professor she had every intention of playfully torturing the moment she got to Hogwarts?

How she literally killed her mother by being born?

Maybe not the latter. A little intense for coffee. "Well I don't have any long-lost love children," she started and gave him a little wink, "but my father is extremely ill." Her voice went a little lower. And she shifted uncomfortably in her chair. "Lung cancer. The doctors say he hasn't got much longer, unfortunately. My brother he's..." she stopped for a moment and gave a smile with a little shake of her head. What was she doing? She didn't confide her family issues with anyone. "Well he's not ready. To take over." A very diplomatic way of seeing it. "So our family is a little chaotic at the moment. It's partly why I decided to come to Hogwarts. Can't really watch it anymore, you know?"

She waved her hand politely, and smiled at the waitress as she came by with the coffee pot and refilled Julia's cup and then looked to Maddox's seeing mostly cream. The woman raised her eyebrow at him, a quiet ask if she should bother.

"Why does it sound like I'll have to start avoiding you?"

Julia's grin matched his and she tossed her head a little. "What was it you said before? Hard to shake?" It seemed Maddox was easier to scare off than he let on. No matter. She'd make it mandatory. For him. "Come on Maddox. You'll get free reign in the Restricted Section. You won't even have to fill out the log."

[Maddox Barlowe]

"The daughter of a duke..." he replied with mock contemplation. The man rubbed his fingers thoughtfully against his chin as if he were truly mulling the matter over to come to a decision. "Complete with glittery snoozefests," among the worst type of time wasting. Maddox let out what could have passed for a rueful sigh on anyone else. "Didn't think you'd break my heart so soon. I was already hearing wedding bells. Seems like I'll be needing that ice cream sooner than either of us thought."

Seeing the indecision in their waitress' eyes, Maddox gave a light wave of his hand for her to refill his half finished cup of what had started to amount to little more than cream. She didn't question him, not with her lips, but her eyes laid judgements the woman may have been too polite to levy.

The man waited politely for her to depart before dumping more cream into his cup.

"I wouldn't say I've got no control over switching states. Just...less than what someone who's done the job right would have," he answered honestly. Julia was interested and if he hadn't wanted it ever becoming a topic of discussion, he wouldn't have brought it up. "I imagined I could be something more...what's the word? Something...well at least more intimidating than a cat. A hawk maybe or wolf--a bigger cat, at the very least." But no, the cat was the form his magic resonated with, the one it felt it most belonged to.

With another indulgent wave of his wand, he set the spoon stirring to get the cream mixed in while he listened to Julia share the parts of her that might distract him from his own matters. 

Of the myriad of things he expected to hear--drama among the noble class, mild secrets that might excite anyone younger than 14...her personal and heartbreaking truth of her father wasn't one of them. His expression softened at once. It was difficult, at times, to remember that life wasn't only happening to him. Others harboured often more than their fair share of hurt and were going through their own losses. "I'm sorry to hear that." His sincerity carried on his tone, his earlier levity subdued by the seriousness of the matter. "Truly." She didn't know it yet, but might with time now that it seemed their paths would indeed keep crossing; Maddox wasn't one for such heartfelt responses. He wasn't by any means a callous man, simply one that saw the usefulness in deflective humour and pervasive nonchalance.

This matter hit a little too close to home for him to smile it off and insert an off-coloured joke. "My sister's ill," he shared. "My twin. The healer's aren't sure what it is but they don't think there's much more they can do."

The stirring spoon slowed to a stop, rising from the cup of cream to settle on the little saucer once more. He distracted himself with a sip aided along when she brought them back to a lighter topic.

While he couldn't quite manage a full smile, there returned a hint of amusement to his blue eyes. "I've always wanted to be eaten by books I've got no business reading. You're a natural at persuasion." He leaned back in his chair, appraising her for a silent moment. "The Hogwarts kids aren't like the ones from Beauxbatons. They've likely already been helping themselves to unlimited access there and you might run into the ones who don't know the purpose of library. It might be a little too loud for the likes of me."

[Julia Al-Azma]

"Mmm, it's by far the most fascinating thing about me." Julia's sarcastic reply came and she watched with amusement as Maddox dumped more cream in his fresh cup. She couldn't hold in her laugh this time, and she buried her face in her own mug. She caught a glance over to the waitress, now retreated back behind the counter, who was watching Maddox in stunned confusion. At this rate, England would run out of cream before their little interlude was over. She shrugged at his little wedding bells quip. "Sorry to have to do it, handsome. We'll work out all your big feelings over a waffle cone."

"I wouldn't say I've got no control over switching states. Just...less than what someone who's done the job right would have."

"How does one botch it though?" she asked curiously, taking a longer sip this time, before setting her mug back down. "I'm not quite up to speed on the process of becoming an animagus as it is. I guess I always thought it was just something you were." For a woman who loved to study and learn, this was one area she had never put any focus on. Now that it was presented to her, in the form of a friend, she was of course intrigued. She gave him a little wink, "You would have made a great little piglet. They love their cream too."

His expression softened as she talked about her father, and she gave a tight smile and a little wave. "Please, no need for sympathies. But thank you. He's in good spirits, or as good as they can be." His voice changed with his condolences and her eyes filled with warmth at the gesture. She hadn't taken him as callous, in fact he had seemed rather warm from the beginning, if not a bit disenchanted with the busier parts of life.

He offered a bit of solace. His twin was ill as well, terminally it sounded. "Your sister?" her eyebrows came together in concern. "Not your niece and nephew's mother?" They were so small and young. Full of energy and sweetness, wanting to pick flowers for their mummy. "I'm sorry as well," she offered kindly. "Is she seeing the healers at St. Mungo's? That's where Papa's been going, or rather they've been coming to him more and more as he's become bedridden." She shrugged and gave a little smirk that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Alright! Enough sad stuff. We can cry on each other's shoulders plenty when we get to Hogwarts."

But yes, lighter subjects were much needed. He smiled again and there was a flicker of playfulness in his eyes. She returned it in kind, glad for the little return to their game. "I do my best honestly. Usually, my persuasive efforts are rarely held to yield. But I see I've met my match in you." He sat back and watched her for a moment and she raised her eyebrows, wondering what it was he had on his mind.

"The Hogwarts kids aren't like the ones from Beauxbatons. They've likely already been helping themselves to unlimited access there and you might run into the ones who don't know the purpose of library. It might be a little too loud for the likes of me."

"If that's the case, I think the Beauxbatons kids would shock you," she said a little dryly. In contrast to popular belief, they weren't all studious and well-mannered upper echelons. Julia was, but even she got a little rowdy in her younger years. "I'm not afraid to hand out a little discipline. I have my ways. I promise you the best cat-nap Hogwarts has ever seen, once I get my foot in the door."

[Maddox Barlowe]

"It'll take more than one waffle cone to assuage all my 'big' feelings, as you call them. Land and title, at the very least. A castle of my own so far up a hill I might start to forget the devastation." That it was only a joke did very little to stop the fantasising he momentarily took part in. A house--for it didn't really need to be a castle--somewhere far away from exhausting neighbours and noises that were typical of more populated areas. Naps out on a porch overlooking the sea below...

Who did he actually have to talk to to get the ball rolling on this? His heart was very open to heartbreak and he was willing to help them along if they didn't know how. Retiring in peace with trips to the dragon sanctuary were all he'd need. Except...the current trajectory of his life didn't afford him such luxuries.

Shame.

Maddox forced his attention from his poorly conceived daydream and back to his present company when she asked about the botching. "Well, as you can imagine, it's complicated and precise magic. Put it in the hands of a cocky 16-year-old who thinks he already knows everything and your imagination won't have to work much harder."

It had been going well...until around the end when his hubris and complacency settled in.

Julia said there was no need for sympathies but he was still happy to hear that her father was in good spirits. That sort of thing was never easy to deal with, not when it struck so close to home. He nodded simply at her next question. "It's just like her to take on the biggest responsibilities then leave them to us." His reflective smile dipped into a near grimace despite his attempt at keeping his tone light. It wasn't condemnation that dripped from his lips, despite the words spoken. There was an undercurrent of familiarity and melancholy. It felt to him that he'd spent his whole life cleaning up after his sister--both sisters, actually. Each time he'd done it, there was always an unspoken promise that he would have to do it again. Not this time. Short of a miracle, it would be the last 'mess' he ever cleaned.

"Mungo's is just one of several places we've been. She...she hasn't given up; thinks there's got to be somewhere--small facility out in the remote world maybe--that might know what to do." Ever the optimist as she was.

He was grateful for the return of lighter topics, something he could lose himself in while he enjoyed his cup of cream coffee. "It's not your fault. I happen to be hard to please," he quipped.

Maddox leaned forward, intrigued by her salacious words. "You're kidding? It wasn't all tea parties and curtsies? I won't have a heart left if you keep taking these massive swipes at it." Julia was determined to bury his image of the delicate French girls with their air of superiority and forced charm. He would have to reconsider this friendship if things continued this way. Next, she would tell him there was no such thing as Father Christmas. Truly, devastating. "But good for you. Stand your ground with those little demons. Then I may take you up on that offer."

If she could give him a place to have the best naps of his natural life, there may be reason yet to visit the library.

[Julia Al-Azma]

"So many demands," Julia quipped, "A castle, some acreage and a title. Is that all? Perhaps a moat to go with all of it? An army? I'll have to see what I can drum up for you." In reality, a castle was hardly the flagship of peace, quiet or serenity. Maddox would likely find himself consistently irritated with all the comings and goings that came with running and maintaining a large estate. It was a constant flow of politicians, lobbyists, and members of other powerful families, all vying for a meeting with her father or brothers.

She doubted it'd be the reprieve he so desperately sought. It definitely wasn't hers these days.

She listened attentively, finding herself more interested in this than she thought she was. She knew now that her curiosity had been peaked, she'd be doing some in-depth reading on the animagus process. "If you could, would you reverse it altogether?" It was an interesting thought. Had he become so accustomed to his current state that it would feel strange for him otherwise, or would he want to be like everyone else again?

"It's just like her to take on the biggest responsibilities then leave them to us."

She could see the pain in his grimace, and could only imagine how overwhelming all of it must feel. To have your sister effectively on the downward spiral, two small children to worry about, taking on a new job, and then finding out he had a daughter. The poor man was going through it. She wanted to offer him words of comfort, but she felt herself at a loss for them. What words could comfort a person actively drowning, with no hope of saving? Not that she assumed Maddox was drowning or that he wouldn't be alright. It just felt hollow to offer anything at all.

"Mungo's is just one of several places we've been. She...she hasn't given up; thinks there's got to be somewhere--small facility out in the remote world maybe--that might know what to do."

She nodded, "My father was the same in the beginning. He wouldn't accept anything other than hope. That's that stubborn, determined blood in him. I guess part of me wishes he'd had kept that up, but it seems he's more resigned these days." She didn't mention that when her father finally seemed to accept the healers' verdict of him being terminal, she had begged him, over and over not to give up. To try something else, to keep fighting. She knew it was all selfish, but to imagine her world without him, left to her brothers' mercies...

"You're kidding? It wasn't all tea parties and curtsies? I won't have a heart left if you keep taking these massive swipes at it."

She looked at him with exasperation, and shook her head. "I wonder if you think Durmstrang is full of brutish meatheads, clubbing each other and grunting all day?" He probably did. Most people did, when they thought of Durmstrang. It was a haven for Pureblood families with darker proclivities. "Don't worry about me. I'm just interested to see how you wrangle a bunch of first years around the more angry beasts."

She had finished her second cup by this time, and she glanced at him. "Well, when we get to Hogwarts, we'll have to continue our coffee and cream dates. Maybe throw some tea in there now and then. Are you attending the Opening Feast or are you thinking of hiding out in your little den?"

[Maddox Barlowe]

"That's all. You'll find I'm an exceedingly easy man to please, Julia." The words came as easily as their conversation did. His time out in the world had taught him the simple pleasures of rain beating against him on a hot afternoon and the striking hues of purple and orange melding together at sunset. While he'd been away, his life had been moved ahead at breakneck speeds and had slowed so monumentally that at times he felt he'd been trapped in a neverending moment.

The highs and lows, both had been important. Returning to England, he simply wanted peace. Joking about castles provided light entertainment in his afternoon.

"If you could, would you reverse it altogether?"

"It used to be all I thought about," he confessed, reflection returning to his otherwise steady gaze. "But...I don't think I still would. It's the sum of my work and while it's not perfect, it's what I wanted. It gets to being a pain in the ass sometimes but," his shoulders barely rose in a characteristically lazy shrug, "still has its perks." His lips spread into a cheeky grin. "I'll be the token friend no matter what circle I land in. How many botched animagi do you know?"

Maddox had learned to accept it as a part of him, flaws and all. To go back on that, to dwell on what could have been, or revert to someone he no longer recognised was hard to imagine.

"I suppose it's better that way, wouldn't you agree?" In the lingering flickers of light that remained on the more sombre part of their conversation, Maddox considered the similarities of the situation between her father and his sister. "Better to see them hopeful no matter how impractical." His sister remained in high spirits, even on her bad days. Maddox didn't want to think about a day when she no longer smiled.

Her exasperation made his eyes shine with newly found humour. It had been, admittedly, an ignorant statement but the man found it well worth the reaction it elicited. He laughed, amused by her attempts to correct his poor education. Even after he composed himself, blue eyes still danced. "Are you trying to tell me Durmstrang block-heads...aren't as block-headed as I'd been led to believe? Is there nothing left that's sacred?"

"Don't worry about me. I'm just interested to see how you wrangle a bunch of first years around the more angry beasts."

The smile turned into a smirk. "No need. Angry beasts are quite capable of taking care of first years on their own. Experience happens to be the best teacher." And he would leave it at that.

Her invitation to continue their coffee--and soon tea--dates was easy to accept but it wasn't long before he was groaning at the mention of the start of term feast. A loud room with too many smells, the clattering of too many plates, an unnecessary amount of conversations happening around him, they were all things he could do without. "I'll try, if I can get away with it. Otherwise, I reckon I'll be there suffering in silence. Do rescue me if you get a moment. You're already so good at it."

[Julia Al-Azma]

Julia smiled and shook her head at Maddox with a bit of amusement. Yes, very easy to please, it seemed. Castles aside, he appeared to be the type to find happiness in the smaller and easier things. It was interesting to meet a man who seemed to have no greater ambitions than taking a good nap and being left to his own devices. Julia hadn't met very many men like him. She secretly wondered how he'd maintain his devil-may-care approach to life now that he had a daughter to worry about.

He seemed, however, to have a rather upbeat attitude about his animagus predicament, if it could be called that. Rather accepting of what had happened, even keeping it lighthearted. She wondered for a moment if it was just a mask for how he really felt, but then again Maddox didn't seem the type to think that deeply about it. At least not from her initial impressions of him. "You're the first, I'll give you that."

"Better to see them hopeful no matter how impractical."

"Completely agree," Julia nodded earnestly. "His positive outlook and hope gave me hope. But now that he's more resigned, it's harder to hold out for him, you know? He spends more time in his bed now and sleeps more often than not. I don't know what's worse. A sudden death, or watching someone die slowly over the course of time." It was a heavy conversation, but Julia hadn't really talked about this with anyone. She'd held it in since his diagnosis, choosing to not even really discuss it with her brothers. Perhaps it was knowing that Maddox was experiencing something similar that led her to let down her guard a little more on this.

She gave a little shrug of her shoulder. "Oh, I think they're definitely meatheads," she said with a little faux grimace, "it's just they also read sometimes. So you know. Generalizing and all that." She knew quite a few people, even some in her extended family that had attended the school. They were as Maddox would probably expect.

"No need. Angry beasts are quite capable of taking care of first years on their own. Experience happens to be the best teacher."

"Alright, well when you get called into Ivansko's office because a first-year lost a middle finger to a Chizpurfle, make sure to come get me on your way. I'll need to see this in action." She doubted Maddox to be the type to set foot in Ivansko's office for any sort of disciplinary action. It must be useful to be able to turn into a non-descript cat at whim.

"You've got it," she agreed with a nod, reaching into her purse to leave a few sickles on the table for her coffee. When Maddox stood, she did the same, rounding the table towards him. She placed her hand on his shoulder and a friendly kiss on his cheek. "Thanks for the coffee date, mon soleil. I'll see you at the Opening Feast. Save me a seat, will you?" She gave him a little wink, and patting his shoulder, she headed out of the shop, needing to grab one more little thing from the market before she headed back to Sussex.