Of all the possible outcomes she'd imagined in the days leading up to the meeting, this had to be close to the best she could have envisioned. Ben Crouch was good with children, Elliott was not afraid of him, and they were - bonding? She mentally kicked herself for assuming the worst. Dionisia had never been a perfect mother, but she tried. She knew what kind of things Elliott liked, she kept tabs on his development, and she took him with her instead of leaving him at home with the nurse on her days off. She could be emotionally-detached sometimes, especially on days when her male colleagues made jokes about her leaving them again to expand her family; and sometimes she got in a mood where she blamed him for her problems, which made her feel guilty, but she never expressed it. If only bonding with child could be as effortless for her as it seemed to be for Ben Crouch, who had only met her son once before and yet had no difficulty just existing with him.
The smile Ben flashed her was so ecstatic, so genuine, that she shoved aside her insecurities and smiled back at him with a genuine sweetness. She glanced back down at her son, who was now fixated on the image of the broom. "A boom! Boom! Boom go whoooosh!" Elliott exclaimed, clearly repeating part of the story that had been read out loud to him on numerous occasions. He smiled up at Ben at an angle where Dio could see, and now it was more evident than ever: they shared a smile, and a strikingly similar side profile on top of that.
"He's not been to a quidditch match yet," she offered, feeling almost like she was invading the intimate moment between her son and his father. "But I was hoping to take him to see a Howler's game once the league's new safety measures were proven reliable. He likes to look at the brooms in the display window in Quality Quidditch Supplies." Elliott seemed to perk up at the mention of the familiar shop and moved to a standing position, looking back and forth between Dio and Ben expectantly.
The smile Ben flashed her was so ecstatic, so genuine, that she shoved aside her insecurities and smiled back at him with a genuine sweetness. She glanced back down at her son, who was now fixated on the image of the broom. "A boom! Boom! Boom go whoooosh!" Elliott exclaimed, clearly repeating part of the story that had been read out loud to him on numerous occasions. He smiled up at Ben at an angle where Dio could see, and now it was more evident than ever: they shared a smile, and a strikingly similar side profile on top of that.
"He's not been to a quidditch match yet," she offered, feeling almost like she was invading the intimate moment between her son and his father. "But I was hoping to take him to see a Howler's game once the league's new safety measures were proven reliable. He likes to look at the brooms in the display window in Quality Quidditch Supplies." Elliott seemed to perk up at the mention of the familiar shop and moved to a standing position, looking back and forth between Dio and Ben expectantly.
