Quincy marched towards Reducto Records with the kind of gusto that came only from a woman with a purpose. One of her own purposes was evidently  being dragged along beside her latched onto her hand, and the other resting on her hip, his blonde hair bouncing up and down as he tried to grab hold of his mother's nose, giggling to himself. "Charlie!" She said, batting his hand hand away and itching her nose with it.

The girl at her side whined that she was tired and needed to sit. "Natasha..." Quincy warned, shooting her young daughter a look that said 'you know what will happen if you don't do as I say'. "Charlie! Leave mummy's nose alone." He just giggled and tried to grab it again as she reached for the door handle of the shop in question. She burst through the door, whisps of hair hanging over her face and a determined expression. "Tilly!" She called throughout the shop, pointing towards a chair next to the window for Natasha to sit on, and setting Charlie down on the floor. The little boy sat and looked up at his mother, his bright eyes shining back at her as he grinned tthat devilish grin. Natasha picked up a music magazine that was on the chair next to her and attempted to look as though she was reading it. Her dark curls covered her face as she studied the words with such fervour that Quincy wouldn't have been surprised if she had actually been able to read it - had she not been six years olf.

The refrain of one of her favorites poured through the speakers, causing Matilda's eyes to flutter closed for a moment as she swayed her head and absently lipped the words. She was dancing with a pair of empty 12-inch sleeves in one hand, and a few gummy worms laced around the rest of her fingers. She'd just gotten to the crescendo, celebrated by tearing off half of a sweet with her pearly whites, and reached over a bin for a homeless record to match with its kitschy cover. Mid-task, Tilly paused at the sound of her name, which had come from a distinct voice ringing over the catchy beat which still filled the shop, even while its favorite fan took a brief break from the invisible dance floor.

"Quincy," she murmured, smiling to herself. She set gingerly set down the record atop the pair of sleeves, swallowed the candy, and shook her mane over her shoulders as she turned and headed for the front of the shop. "Quincy!" She called louder, her eyes taking in the young mother, who looked as if she could use a cup of coffee or six, to keep up with the army of gorgeous children usually in her wake. But Tilly could hardly blame them for being so energetically cute.

"Look at him! He won't fit through the door next time." She grinned at the baby, crouching down to ruffle his fair hair. He was still a tiny thing, very young, but he'd grown considerably since she'd last seen him. Her eyes moved from Charlie, to Natasha, and she straightened just a little to offer a proper greeting. "And hello, love. What are we reading, now?" She looked over the magazine and held out one of the gummy candies she'd been carrying, hoping Quincy wouldn't mind. What was a little sugar between friends? "The June issue of String Sorcery. Good choice." She winked, and finally stood up fully to appraise their mother.

"You look busy," she said, a touch of humor reaching her voice. She wanted to hug the seemingly frazzled woman. "You should have told me you were popping around, I'd have found something for them. Do you want tea?"

Tilly made herself visible in no time, and the music that had been playing loudly in the back room before could no longer be heard. Quincy couldn't help but smile when she saw the girl with her long hair over her shoulders and sweets in her hand. Some things just never changed. She brushed the hair out of her face and felt safe enough to sigh, relaxing her shoulders slighty. Tilly commented on Charlie's growth as she ruffled his hair. The little boy chuckled, a bit of dribble being released from his mouth as he did so and making a wet patch on his tee-shirt. "Honestly Charlie!" His mother shook her head at him and smiled. This boy certainly took after his father.

Quincy just watched as Tilly spoke to Natasha and held out some sweets to her, which the girl grabbed with both hands and stuffed into her mouth as though there was no tomorrow. "What do we say, Natasha?" Quincy raised an eyebrow at her daughter who looked at Tilly. "Hank-you Hilly." She said with a mouthful of chewy treats.

Tilly stood up and looked at Quincy in that way she had - the way that made the older woman want to break down in tears and spill all of her problems. Quincy had known the girl for years and almost saw her as a younger sister. The amount of times she had saved Quincy's bum by babysitting at the last minute, or doing the odd favour for her, she didn't dare count. The offer of tea made Quincy grin. "Got anything stronger?" She asked with a laugh. "Tea would be great. Thanks Tilly. Noah's off seeing a quidditch game with his dad, so I just have bubble and squeak today." She nodded at the two kids. Charlie started banging his fist on the floor. "Wee-dish! Wee-dish! Wee-dish!" Quincy rolled her eyes. Definitely his father's son. "Yes, that's right sweetheart. Noah's gone to see quidditch. Quid-ditch." She emphasised the word to try and encourage him to say it properly. He looked at his mother as though she had suggested something totally ridiculous, then carried on banging his fist on the floor and singing 'wee-dish' at the adults.

Grinning and trying to hold back a laugh at Charlie’s general adorableness, which was undoubtedly exasperating to the person who had to clean up after the little bundle of energy, Tilly wondered how big he would be the next time she saw him. It was brilliant to see them grow, but hopefully, the next visit would be sooner, rather than later, and he would still be compact and able to fit in his mother’s arms. Both Quincy and Tilly had been too busy lately, and that was just no good. The Quinn woman would have to get around to visiting more often, catching up with whatever was going on in the Pratt family. Merlin knew it was easier for her to slip away from the shop than it was for Quincy to slip away from three children and a new, ambitious medical education. It was nice to see her friend’s smile, underneath the stress.

“You’re very welcome, love.” Tilly would remember to stock up on sweets for their next encounter. She had a good number of sugary things stuffed in the drawers of the storage room, but it would be a better bet to pick up a balance of things— something healthy to go with the candy. Currently, Reducto was running low on apples, juice, and nutritious child-friendly snacks. Her staff favored pizza, ice-cream, and curry.

“I’m afraid not,” she sighed, which quickly turned into a laugh. “There’re too many teenagers around here right now. Jasper said something about his friends and liquor…” Tilly shook her head, shrugging. She really didn’t mind kids having their bit of whiskey on the off hours. She’d probably even buy it for them if they were all out together. But keeping it at the shop during the summer wasn’t the smartest of plans, probably. "I have to be good." There was maybe something milder, though, in the fridge in the back. But Quincy looked in desperate need of plain, good tea, in Tilly’s private opinion. “It’ll be the best cup you’ve had all year,” she promised. If only because of the caffeine.

“Ooh, who are they seeing? I haven’t turned on the wireless in two day. Last night was crazy. I think I heard the same cut of ‘Trolls in the Dungeon’ seventeen times.” It was quite the popular song lately. Tilly paused to smile at the way Quincy reinforced the word Quidditch. Children were resilient in their own youthful language. It was sort of like music.

Bending down to scoop up Charlie, as she was fairly certain Quincy wouldn’t mind, she gestured toward the back room. Even if it was for staff, the door was always open, and the Pratts were practically family. “Let’s go to the back. I want to hear about St. Mungo’s! And— other things,” she added more softly, lowering her voice and throwing Quincy a searching look. It was a sensitive subject, but she was sure her friend needed to talk about whatever was going on with her marriage lately.

Tilly's inquiry of which team her son was going to see play was an easy question to answer. "Chudley Cannons." she replied with a grin. "His favourite team. Eddie brought him up to support them. Said he would disown any child of his who didn't support his team." She frowned at her ex-husband's lack of tact when it came to things like this. Threatening to disown one's child was awful, even if it was meant in jest.

When Tilly bent down to pick Charlie up, Quincy smiled with relief. Finally, someone else to take over carrying him. Much as though he was able to walk he was still young and got tired easily. This usually ended in him holding his arms out to his mother, and she would pick him up. For once, it was nice to have someone else take over the mother role. This was why she loved having Tilly as her babysitter. She fit so snugly into the mothering role with such ease that Quincy felt safe leaving her children with her.

“Let’s go to the back. I want to hear about St. Mungo’s! And— other things,”

Tilly motioned for them to come through to the back room and began to go through the door. Quincy held out her hand to her daughter who wriggled off her seat and latched onto her mother's hand to be led into the back room. Tilly's use of the phrase 'and other things' was not lost on Quincy. She knew exactly what her friend meant. Biting her lip slightly she pulled a child's book out of her bag about a pretty princess who was also a witch -  a very unoriginal children's book. She held it out to Natasha who latched her chubby little hands onto it with wide eyes and a big grin, and took it next to the window, sitting herself on the floor to read it.

Neither of her children would understand what their mother was talking about. Their little brain's would simply switch off apart from hearing their father's name. Quincy pulled out a chair at the table and sat down, putting her bag on the floor. "Thank you." She said quietly, offering Tilly a small smile. "For everything." She added. Tilly had been a real asset while all of the marriage problems had been going on.

"Disown, huh? No pressure, or anything!" Tilly laughed, shaking her head. Sometimes men got a little crazy about quidditch, but she couldn't very well forget her own green days of... what had she said to Tavin? Being a brainwashed leprechaun for the Kestrals. She still had a massive soft spot for them, and supported them whenever she could. Even if they weren't quite as glamorous as the Harpies. "I'm ashamed I forgot that, actually. I'm sure he's having a great time... Apparently the Cannons are doing well this season, too. They wiped out that Seeker from Wales. I heard had to regrow half his bones." She frowned a bit in sympathy.

Smiling as the girl retreated with the book, Tilly took a moment to remember what it was like to get lost in a good story so easily. It still happened, from time to time, only the stories were usually pouring out of invisible speakers. She had a lot of reading she wanted to catch up on, at any rate, though arguably nothing quite like a good princess fairytale. Who didn't want to be eight again once in a while? The woman was content, though, growing up and discovering new things. In a couple of years, the Pratts' daughter would have her own adventures at Hogwarts.

Setting Charlie down atop a mass of freshly laundered pillows and sheets that had been folded and set in the middle of a spare mattress Tilly kept in the store room to make it cozier, she then went about readying tea for Quincy and herself. "Don't thank me," she insisted, shaking her head, and looking over her shoulder for a moment to smile at Quincy-- and to study her. "I should be thanking you! I haven't seen you all in weeks-- terrible of me, really. The last time I watched them, Charlie could fit in one palm," she exaggerated. And Tilly had tried to introduce him to The Healers. (In the auditory sense, as opposed to, say, his mother, who was a healer in training). Music was good for the brain, and not just the soul. Although it did the soul a lot of good, too. "Anyway, you deserve a massive holiday."

Luckily, the stove was hot, because Tilly usually had to heat it the muggle way, unless one of her 'kids' (the late-teen and early-twenty-something parttimers) got to it with their wand first. She didn't mind, though. It was very soothing. She let it come to a soft boil before pouring it into two deep mugs and setting out a little bowl of sugar. A cat-shaped pitcher of milk had been charmed to keep its contents fresh and at whatever desired temperature. "Do you have training this week?" She asked, sitting down across from Quincy and tilting her head. She spooned two sugars into her own tea and stirred gingerly.

"I'm ashamed I forgot that, actually. I'm sure he's having a great time... Apparently the Cannons are doing well this season, too. They wiped out that Seeker from Wales. I heard had to regrow half his bones."

"I know. I heard about that. And all he got was a penalty point...not that he could really take it in his condition." Quincy shook her head. It had been so long since she'd managed to get to a game. She would have loved to take Noah to a couple, but in his eyes it was his dad's job to take him to the games - not his mother's.

"Don't thank me,"

"I have every reason to thank you." Quincy said pointedly. "If it hadn't been for you Tilly, I might not have kept my sanity. You've been with me through everything, and I couldn't have asked for a better friend." Quincy reached her hand out and put it on top of Tilly's, a small smile not quite reaching her eyes. "I owe you a lot."

"Anyway, you deserve a massive holiday."

Quincy sighed. She couldn't argue with that. "I think what I actually need is a good night out." She paused as she watched Tilly go about her tea-making. "Speaking of which," She started slowly, one eye narrowed suspiciously. "What are you up to two days from now?"

Quidditch talk wasn’t just for men! Tilly remembered times, when they were each less busy, when they’d gone all out in the stands of various games. Just like she had at the Hogwarts cup, the young woman liked to dress in ‘her’ team’s colors and join the chorus of (pleasant) shouting. Down a few pints and hold her own, too, perhaps. “Better luck to him next time,” she offered, torn over the issue; she’d never wish such a terrible injury on someone, but in terms of the sport, it was great that Noah’s favorite team was winning. Tilly preferred happy children to sad ones-- and undoubtedly it made an easier time for Quincy, too.

Her lashes dancing down toward her cheeks, upon which her grin spread, Tilly simply smiled away the words of praise and thanks and moved her own fingers to squeeze her friend’s warming grasp. She still maintained that it was what friends did, help each other. Quincy had done plenty for her in the past several years. Hell, she’d might have been out of a place to crash on rainy evenings without an Apparition license if it weren’t for late nights babysitting.

“Mmm... not sure,” she said with a shrug. “I’ve been seeing this guy, Tavin. I told you about him a bit, didn’t I?” Her eyes brightened. “We’re having dinner at his place tonight. He has a daughter a bit younger than Tasha-- she’s lovely. They’re both lovely,” she laughed, thinking perhaps lovely wasn’t the most appropriate word she had in mind for the attractive and intriguing man. “But in two days, who knows?” Tilly had the habit of living in the moment, despite any number of scheduled work appointments. Each night was its own little life, lived and not forgotten. “Do you need me to take the kids?”

Tilly was far too modest, and couldn't accept that if it wasn't for her, Quincy would have probably ended up in St.Mungo's long before now. The girl kept her sane in a world full of insanity, and it was a godsend to have someone who was more than willing to look after the kids when Quincy needed a break. Quincy would never call her a 'babysitter', as she found it too degrading. Matilda was simply a friend who was happy to help. No doubt Quincy would do exactly the same if the roles were reversed.

When Tilly began talking about Tavin, her eyes lit up and Quincy couldn't help but smile for her. It was great that she had found someone she connected with so well. It was even better that she got on well with his daughter. A girl that young could either be fantastic or a big bundle of problems. She would be at the age where she could either welcome a female input in her life, or be so possessive of her father that she'd see the new addition as a threat. Quincy was glad that it seemed to be the former.

"No," she started as Tilly asked if she wanted the kids looking after. "It's my birthday, and I wanted to know if you would like to go out for the night? You know - grab a bite to eat, maybe a bit of dancing?" She grinned. "I know you're technically not single anymore, but I am and I've heard Signature is the place to go nowadays." She chuckled slightly and took a sip of her tea.

Tilly’s bright gaze found the calendar on the wall-- it was covered in colorful inky circles, bright Muggle ‘post-it’ notes, and the dates of shows, meetings, and album releases. Her palm moved comically to her forehead, and her eyes squeezed shut as her mouth twitched into a guilty smile. Of course she’d remembered Quincy’s birthday! She’d only just forgotten it for the moment...

“Absolutely! But I’m taking you there. You’re not paying for anything. Drinks and food are on me.” They both could use a good drink, she thought. And what better cause for celebration than a best friend’s birthday?

Leaning across the table now, rather conscious of the children in the room, Tilly grinned. “You haven’t been to Signature yet, Quincy? You are getting old, aren’t you?” She joked in a loud whisper. Obviously the woman across from her was still young, lively, and beautiful, and could easily pass for Tilly’s age. “But like I told Tavin, he’s like a fine wine...” At the ripe age of twenty-eight.

“So what kind of cake so you want?”