Life in Godric's Hollow, at the Potter household, was as different as was humanely possible from life at the Black Manor in Islington. The Blacks had always had a very specific order to everything and expectations had weighed Mia down constantly, with bad memories being weaved into every crevice of the enormous house, in some way or another.

The atmosphere had been incredibly cold and unloving - there hadn't been an ounce of laughter or joy during the days when it was just Arcturus, Cassiopeia and Euphemia in the manor, the expansive halls and various rooms making it hard for the family to communicate. There had even been some days where Mia would stay in her bedroom, making no noise and pretending she didn't exist, and she wouldn't even see her parents on those occasions....that was what her life had been like.

Not only that, but whenever they had communicated it had usually led to some sort of argument about blood purity or Euphemia's betrayal, which more often than not ended up with Mia being tortured into tears in the torture room. Her life at Black Manor had been completely different to what her life was now, in the Potter cottage, and she couldn't have been happier.

The Potters' household burst with love, joy and general happiness - the home was relatively small and cosy but that made Euphemia just feel closer to the rest of the Potters, instead of making her feel like she had no privacy. Charlus had been worried that she wouldn't have enough space, compared to what she was used to with her numerous rooms and large hallways, but Mia enjoyed actually interacting with people other than just her house elf.

Every morning, there were loud noises around seven o'clock which was when Olivia got up in the morning and, soon after, the sounds of Henry's booming singing in the hallways would drift into Euphemia's eardrums, along with the cluttering of pots and pans as Everleigh made the breakfast for the entire family. Rochelle was constantly chattering about her books and Mia always felt involved in everyday life.

Breakfast was a time for family, not a silent affair where coldness seeped into the atmosphere as had been the case in Euphemia's house, and incredibly animated conversations were a-flow every single morning, even if various members of the family were tired or not in the mood. Henry would bustle off to work shortly after breakfast so the family always cherished that time with their father and husband.

Despite all of the major differences in everyday life between the Blacks and the Potters, the one thing that Mia really found strange was that everyone seemed to like her. There were no cold silences, no glares from over the top of newspapers and all of her questions were answered - she was always included in the conversations and she was made to feel so welcome in the Potter household that she felt like she had been there all of her life.

Olivia hung onto her every word, evidently respecting the girl who Charlus was dating, but she still supplied Euphemia with a daily flow of sarcastic comments and sassy actions that never failed to make Mia laugh heartily. Rochelle constantly came to her for book suggestions and the two girls bonded over shared interests, holding long talks about their favourite characters in certain novels and theories that surrounded the plots.

Everleigh made Euphemia feel like she was her third daughter - she treated her in a kind and affectionate motherly fashion that Mia was still not very accustomed to but she would also reprimand the girl, not treating her much differently from Olivia and Rochelle. She was constantly checking up on Euphemia and making sure that she was alright...Mia had an inkling that she had much more of a personal connection with the whole wedding debacle than she was letting on, to be honest.

As for Henry, even though he was at work during the majority of the weekdays, he was always cracking jokes and creating a light and easy atmosphere that set Euphemia at ease all the time, which was much different to the fear that her own father, Arcturus, had practically thrived off everyday. Henry was literally the complete opposite - he was so positive and cheerful and he constantly made the entire household laugh, which was a nice feeling for Mia.

And, even though the Potters were all amazing in their own ways and made Euphemia feel extremely welcomed, it was Charlus that really made her smile from ear to ear every day, through his acts of love and affection that he showed to her and the comments he would make to amuse her. Now that they didn't have the dark shadow of the wedding looming over them or the Blacks constantly watching their every move, Mia and Charlus were much more relaxed in their relationship and Euphemia was sure that she had never felt this happy. Ever.

Henry and Everleigh allowed Mia to stay in Charlus' bedroom, seeing as they were short on space and they didn't really mind about the whole young couple issue. It was an action that never would've even been mentioned in the Black household, as an unmarried couple sleeping in the same bedroom would've been classed as a 'shame' and a 'scandal' but the Potters trusted Charlus and Euphemia, which was a freeing thing for the latter as she had never been trusted before.

Despite their trust in their son and his girlfriend, Charlus' parents had installed the warning in place to the young couple about them sharing the bedroom but in a funnier and more relaxed way than Arcturus and Cassiopeia ever would've done. "She can stay in your bedroom, s'long as there's no funny business, okay? I need my sleep and I don't fancy having to buy some earplugs because you don't know how to be quiet," Henry had teased Charlus with a suggestive grin and wink, which had caused his son to turn bright red and whack his dad on the arm.

However, when Everleigh had scolded her husband for being 'inappropriate,' Henry had simply chuckled and shrugged, stating, "I wasn't being inappropriate, darlin'. That's just you jumping to conclusions," he had smiled innocently at his wife, who had then rolled her eyes before turning to Charlus and Mia, "Ignore him, he's being a prat."

"Yes, but I'm your prat, aren't I?" Henry had beamed and Everleigh had sighed in exasperation and patted his cheek with a loving expression, "Yes, indeed you are," she had said which had caused Euphemia to smile widely at the moment of endearment between her boyfriend's parents - that was something that had never been displayed before in the Black household between Cassiopeia and Arcturus.

The unconditional love and affection that was shown between all of the Potters was extremely refreshing for Mia to see as she wasn't really used to family members actually enjoying one another's company and not arguing amongst themselves. Yes, Charlus had disagreements with his sisters but they would always make up shortly after, not able to stay mad at each other for too long.

One sunny afternoon on the last day of July, Euphemia was sat in the garden of the Potter household on a sun-lounger that Henry had fetched out of the shed for her so that she didn't have to get grass stains on her pretty white t-shirt. She had a drink in one hand and was just enjoying the warm weather as, even in the heights of summer, England didn't often grace its residents with sun or high temperatures.

"You want another drink?" Charlus called from the doorway of the kitchen and Mia squinted in the direction of her boyfriend, shielding her eyes so that she could see him due to the bright sunlight practically blinding her. "No, I'm good, thanks," she replied and Charlus walked out into the garden after that, a pair of sunglasses in his hand which he soon threw to Euphemia, who caught them in confusion and surprise.

"Where did you get these from?" she asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously at her boyfriend and Charlus placed a hand on his chest, acting offended as he gasped in a very dramatic fashion that was reminiscent of Florean. "I didn't nick them, if that's what you're thinking! I conjured them...you know, seeing as I'm magical," he waggled his fingers and Mia bit back a laugh.

"You shouldn't be doing magic out of school, Flea," Euphemia scolded him and Charlus rolled his eyes, flopping down on the grass beside her so that he was slightly underneath her, lying next to her sun-lounger. "Oh well...it's not like they keep a track of who does magic out of school yet - there's technically no law against it, they just advise us against it."

"Stop being such a smart-arse," Mia scowled as she propped herself up in the sun-lounger, adjusting the back so that it was easier for her to sit up before she dabbled her fingers in her drink and splashed some of it at Charlus, who squealed in a rather girly fashion as the cold juice hit him. "That's just rude," he retorted as he grabbed his own drink and went to pour it on her.

Euphemia immediately clambered up and ran off to the other side of the garden, her bare feet padding against the soft grass as Charlus pursued her with his drink, his own t-shirt decorated by droplets from his girlfriend's splashing. "Fleamont Potter, you better not be chasing Mia around the garden! That's not very gentlemanly of you, is it?" Everleigh shouted playfully from the open kitchen window, which overlooked the back garden.

"Mum, stop spoiling my fun!" Charlus yelled back before sloshing some of his drink towards Euphemia, who dodged out of the way with a squeal before splashing him even more, managing to drench his shirt but now she was completely defenceless, due to using all of her drink to soak him. Charlus cracked a rather evil grin and advanced towards her as she retreated into the bush, giggling madly.

Suddenly, Charlus pounced like a tiger and grabbed her by the waist, throwing her over his shoulder like she weighed nothing, pouring his drink all over Mia's head as she laughed loudly and thumped her fists on his back in protest. He eventually threw Euphemia down to the ground gently but not without grabbing the nearby hosepipe and soon he was completely drenching her with the massive gusts of water.

"FLEA! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" Mia screeched as she leapt to her feet, all of her clothes completely drenched now as she ran towards him, wrestling the hosepipe away from him before returning the favour until they were both fighting with one another, trying to be the one holding the hosepipe as water sprayed in all directions, soaking both parties involved.

The water was rushing down Euphemia's face and she brushed her wet hair out of her eyes as she dodged the shoots of water spiralling towards her, as they criss-crossed over one another in the air, creating laser-like lines. Charlus was completely drenched, his t-shirt sticking to his body as he currently held the power with the hosepipe, attacking Mia with it as she desperately tried to run away.

Out of the corner of her eye, Euphemia saw a bucket lying on the grass from when Olivia had been building a sandcastle (there was a little gravel pit near the pond at the bottom of the Potters' garden) and she grabbed the red plastic item, sprinting over the pond and scooping up as much water as she could manage before she charged at Charlus and tipped the contents over his head.

"That was uncalled for!" Charlus shouted and he grabbed her again, throwing her to the ground once more, and the hosepipe lay there in a neglected manner, still spraying water across the garden in an uncontrolled fashion as the couple wrestled on the grass, rolling over one another and laughing crazily. Both Mia and Charlus were soaked to the skin but they didn't care - too busy wrapped up in one another to notice, really.

Eventually, they stopped rolling and the position that they ended up in consisted of Charlus hovering over Euphemia as their eyes met, hazel meeting grey-blue and he leaned in and kissed her, feeling that same thrill radiate through his body as she reciprocated the affectionate move, bringing her cold and wet hands up to cradle his face and pull him closer to her.

Tongues flitted over lower lips and both Mia and Charlus seemed to forget how drenched and freezing they were as the connection between them was warm enough to make them forget about their soaked states. Tingles trembled through Euphemia's body as Charlus continued kissing her, still hovering over her with his arms propping himself up, on either side of her head so that she was trapped beneath him whilst their kiss grew more fiery and passionate as the minutes went on.

"Ew, that's disgusting," a voice suddenly broke them apart and Charlus rolled off Mia sheepishly as both of them glanced up to see Olivia observing them with a disgruntled expression, "Cute, but disgusting," she added and then her eyes roved over Charlus and Euphemia's drenched forms on the grass, raising her eyebrows, "Have you two been swimming or something?"

Laughter rippled through the air and Charlus covered his face with his hands, lay on his back, as he was slightly mortified at the fact that his seven year old sister had seen him snogging Mia rather....enthusiastically. "No, we were having a water fight," Charlus told her, sitting up and shaking his head slightly to dry his head, making the water droplets spray everywhere.

Euphemia sent him an exasperated look, muttering, "Jheez, you're like a dog," underneath her breath at the same time that Olivia gasped loudly, sounding rather outraged, "You were having a water fight?? WITHOUT ME?!" she exclaimed dramatically, placing her hand on her chest and Charlus sniggered.

"Yeah, we were.....deal with it," he sassed back and Olivia glared at her brother before storming off to the other side of the garden, pulling a sunhat down on top of her blonde head so that she looked quite adorable. Mia smiled at the seven year old as she pranced over to her bucket and snatched it up, thinking she was so hilariously cute.

"So annoying," Charlus muttered underneath his breath, seemingly irritated that his kiss with Euphemia had been interrupted but Mia herself simply smiled in that sunny fashion that made Charlus' heart lift out of his chest, "You're lucky, you know.....I'd give anything to spend time with Marius now," she told him wistfully and Charlus immediately felt terrible for complaining about his sister - he had forgotten that Euphemia's brother had been disowned and she hadn't seen him for years.

"You could now, couldn't you? Didn't you say he was living with your cousin, Alphard? There's nothing stopping you from visiting him now," Charlus pointed out and Mia's eyes brightened a little, "Yeah, that's a good point. I just.....I don't know-" she cut herself off but Charlus leaned forward, grabbing her hand in his comfortingly, urging her to carry on, "I'm scared," Euphemia finally whispered.

"Why are you scared, love? He's your brother," Charlus asked gently, squeezing her hand and Mia glanced down at her lap, biting her lip nervously, "It's just....I haven't seen him in so long. I didn't even try to help him...what if he hates me?" she worried out loud, her brow furrowing in thought and upset.

"You were only twelve - what could you have done? Marius won't hate you, don't be ridiculous," Charlus reassured her, "You were placed in an impossible situation, Mia. He can't have expected you to do anything....you were both so young," he tightened his grip on Euphemia's hand and pulled his girlfriend into his arms, hugging her and she placed her head on his shoulder with a contented sigh.

"Thank you, Flea," Mia whispered and Charlus hugged her even harder, practically pulling her off balance and she giggled, tugging herself away and glancing over at Olivia playing in the sand, her heart melting at the adorable sight. As sassy and intelligent as Olivia was, she was still a seven year old and Euphemia thought she was extremely cute and lucky - she hadn't been so carefree and bubbly at that age, she had been the complete opposite....unloved, miserable and scared.

"I never want my kids to feel unloved," Mia said suddenly, out of the blue, and Charlus was taken aback - he had been picking up the now empty drinks from before and he very nearly dropped them onto the grass in shock at the sound of Euphemia openly discussing children.....that had been something they had never mentioned in the past.

"Y-your kids...?" Charlus asked, as if checking that he had heard his girlfriend properly and Mia made a noise of confirmation, "I grew up feeling like I wasn't loved, like I was only there for one purpose - to continue the blood line," she said quietly and Charlus slowly started to sit down again, moving closer to Euphemia as it was obvious that she was about to open up about her childhood to him....something she had never really done.

Charlus nodded but didn't interrupt, showing clearly that he was listening to her and Mia smiled shakily at him before continuing, "As you know, I was abused both emotionally and physically and....it messed me up," she laughed humourlessly, "I'd never even dream of hurting my children like my parents did with me - looking at how much your parents love you and your sisters makes it worse, it makes me realise just how sick it was for my parents to treat me like that."

Euphemia took a deep breath, determinedly trying to hold back her tears and Charlus' arm crept around her slowly, squeezing her waist and pulling her towards him comfortingly, "I never, never want my children to feel like they're not loved, like they're worthless because....because it's horrible and I just wish-" she cleared her throat, "I just wish that my parents were more like yours, Flea.....being with your mum and dad this past week has been the first time that I've felt wanted in a family home."

"That's because you're part of our family, you always will be," Charlus whispered, tearing up slightly himself at the sight of seeing Mia so upset and hearing about how she had felt, "I'm sorry....I'm so goddamn sorry that your parents made you feel like you're worthless because you're not. I love you, my parents love you - you're a lovable, amazing person, Mia. I'm so lucky to have you in my life, I'm so happy that you're here....this is your home now."

Euphemia let out a watery smile and wiped her tears away as she leaned into her boyfriend's hold, feeling a warm and comforting feeling engulf her as Charlus' arms wrapped around her - he was right....she was home, this was her home and the Potters had made her feel like she belonged here. She did belong here.

This was the first time that she had felt like she belonged somewhere and Mia knew that she would do the same thing for anyone else, anyone who was ever feeling lost - she would provide them with a home because that had been what the Potters had given her. "Promise me something, Flea," Euphemia whispered, looking up and meeting Charlus' hazel eyes.

"Anything," he smiled down at her, stroking her hair gently. "If there is ever a situation where a child feels lost or upset needs a home, whether it is for a single night or for five years, we give it to them. No matter the cost, no matter the danger - every child deserves to be loved and in a loving home and I don't want anyone to ever feel as alone as I have in my childhood. I feel at home now because of your family's kindness and I want others to feel the same. Promise me that?" Mia asked of him.

And as Charlus Potter nodded without a second thought, Euphemia Black remembered exactly why she loved him.