It had taken a while, but Daff had cleaned herself up, put on a clean dress and trudged back to her mother’s house and announced she was moving back into her flat. Everybody was understandably shocked, but Daff had made a somewhat convincing argument for the convenience of work and hopefully it was enough to keep them out of her hair. It hadn’t even been a full month since the break in had happened, but she knew she had to try. Daff had promised to keep taking the sleeping potion and to have dinner at home at least once a week, to check in regularly, more than she had been. She wasn’t going to slip on the sleep front, not after seeing what it had caused last time. She'd made a big enough mess as it was.

Facing her fear of staying at her own flat again would have to be the next thing fixed. Daffy would be no one’s burden anymore and so she was determined to move back into her own space. Right about now she would do anything to find some semblance of normal, even if she really didn’t know what normal was anymore. So she had packed everything up that evening and headed back to London, resolved to start right then.

Winston was happy to be home, enjoying his free range of the greenhouse once more and at least Daff could find a small comfort in that. She had left Beatrix here, seeing that she was here every day anyway and the cat was far more independent than her puppy. Fortunately she had plenty to keep her busy. Her living space needed a deep clean and that was the first thing she did after waking up and making some tea. At least her bedding had been washed for her so she didn’t have to sleep in musty sheets. Something she would miss about living at home.

After piling her hair up and out of the way, loosely and messily, Daffy put on an old, comfortable dress that would be good for cleaning. Her blood stained clothes were still in the sink and so she set about cleaning them, scrubbing away the stains with some concoction her mother swore by. Surprisingly it worked. The handkerchief was less of a success, but thankfully it had all come out of her bodice at the very least. Her apron was a dark green to begin with, so less noticeable, but it didn’t look any worse for the wear, already smeared with paint and dirt stains, the splotch near the bottom indistinguishable from anything else.

With those hanging in the washroom, she set about dusting the place, putting things back to rights after, when she reached the mantle where Elias’ arrangements sat. She dusted them gingerly, a fond smile creeping onto her lips, even as she caught herself. It wasn’t broken, just bent. It could be fixed, she hoped. Maybe they just both needed some space. Daff was still trying to come to terms with the whole thing, even if thinking about yesterday still left her feeling absolutely mortified. She still felt guilty for having interrupted, but now she also felt guilty for overreacting. It had all been such a mess and she had made it even worse. Merlin they both must think she was a raving lunatic. Sighing she summoned a large vase from downstairs, setting it on the mantle too. Then she used her wand to put a carnation into the vase and looked at it thoughtfully; one for each time she thought about him.

Daff rearranged the furniture, trying something different, hoping it would make it feel like the space was hers again. She moved her broom to the mantle with the rest of the things Elias had given her, running a fingertip over the twigs in the tail. Another carnation appeared in the vase behind her. Moving to finish the dusting, she hummed as she went along. This was going to be fine.