Playing Mom and Dad. Send Help.

[EDWIN TREDWELLER]

There was a rare sight at Edwin's flat today. A child. If he ended up the unwilling babysitter of his boss heather's little girl, he would normally head to her place. But this time, it just so happened that Heather asked it of him when he wanted to work. Not at the hospital, although the woman was able to force babysitting duty on him to prevent the man from coming during his days off, but on his personal researches. There were a lot of things Edwin loved to work on, mostly werewolves. He had Thomas as a perfect test subject. Except that Heather didn't want that, probably because he had a job too now and didn't want her employee to disturb her lover. Or to get her revenge on the fact Edwin did prepare a lot of wolfsbane potion for Thomas when he was in hiding without telling her. All this to say he was now trying to work on his research while dealing with an infant. Not an easy task.

"Do not put this in your mouth, Annie. This could potentially kill you," he lectured the girl, taking away anything that was from within reach of her small hands. She didn't want to play with her toys and whined to be at the table and observe him so Edwin let her, but she proved to be a bother. She was constantly trying to touch things and now even to put it in her mouth. How do babies manage to grow up, with such a mentality? "You must drive your mother crazy," he let out to a girl who could barely understand a word he was saying. But it made sense to him. With Heather being so touchy about germs, she must be flipping out at the sight of her daughter doing stuff like that.

Edwin heard the kettle. he had magically put it on the stove while writing things down. He put Annie down on the ground, away from his research material taking half of his kitchen table and gently pushed her towards where her things were, in hope it would inspire the girl to play with her toys while he could fetch himself a cup of tea. That would send her towards the living room part of his flat filled with books but luckily nothing too lethal for the child.

She was crying out for him, just as he was about to enjoy a sip of tea. He pulled the cup away from his lips and sighed. "Annie, it is time you learn to become independent." Of course, she understood that even less than the things he told her before. She was calling him out some more, showing a book she had in her hands. "FIne, I guess," he said with another heavy sigh. He set the teacup on a small table and grabbed Annie to place her on his lap as he sat down on the armchair. "Which one is this? Oh, we're definitely not readin that," he said as he looked at all the drawings and colors splattered on the book. Children books were so... childish.

Edwin heard noise. A key in a hole, a knob being turned. He frowned, wondering who it was. Was Heather delivering him of his punishment already?

TAG: ISBEL CROFT

[ISBEL CROFT]

Isbel was glad to finally have a break from her duties at Hogwarts. She didn’t come to Edwin’s flat as often as she would have before but she needed a break from the Professors and students for a day and she was allowed the time out. It made her wonder about those teachers who had a relationship with a partner who was outside Hogwarts; how were they allowed to spend time with one and another while they had to be inside the school during the time of the year? She would of course make sure to come back for her duties but she also could use some time off and be willing to do that. Playing distance chess with Edwin wasn’t enough and she wanted to know what he had been up to as of lately. The only thing she did not know about was that he was babysitting Annie.

It wasn’t new to her though; that he was doing that. She was used to seeing the little girl at their home and was even starting to appreciate the kid. She was a cute one and not annoying like the others who were seeing her at school. She wasn’t at the age of someone who could potentially be interested in pranks she would have to clean the mess of later. She made it in front of the right address and pushed the door open to see that Edwin was sitting with the little girl who had also become a regular in his flat. It was an interesting sight considering one would never suspect Edwin to be good with kids.

“That is quite a sight here, Hello Annie.” She said to the little girl before nodding at Edwin. “I was allowed some time off the madness at school for a bit and decided to see what you two have been up to.” She said to him casually. Seemed to be a busy day.

[EDWIN TREDWELLER]

Ewin was not expecting Isbel to come over. Her job was not like that of a teacher, who might have an argument about leaving when they had no class. She had to keep the castle in order and watch over the students. And she had no cat, unlike the previous caretaker, according to what he heard from people. Edwin may be able to turn into one, but he was not interested in that job.

He was surprised then when she entered the flat. He showed it as little as possible, but figured her surprise to see Annie there must be as big as his to see her here. Then again, she saw the little girl before. Somehow, Edwin was the girl's favourite babysitter. Or her mother's? Either way, he proved being good enough with kids to have Heather turn him into a nurse from time to time. He might ahve studied to be one, but it was not that kind.

Isbel barely soundeed surprised as she explained what she was doing here. "You make it sound like it's natural to see kids around here," Edwin pointed out, sounding almost a little bitter about it. No doubt was it a comment he heard before, from Heather or his family. And having Isbel around... It was a good thing his parents or grandparent weren't there. They would suggest they start thinking of having a family of their own, since they looked like one that way already. "I don't know if it will be all that quiet. It's apparently storytime now. If we can find something better to read..." Edwin explained as he turned his head towards the piles of books he owned. Annie was so young that he could probably read her anything and she wouldn't mind, but the child's book she handed him earlier had pictures and she was probably expecting some. What did he have with pictures that weren't some medical book or treaty on plants and potions? He never bothered buying children's books.

[ISBEL CROFT]

Isbel was definitely not used to see Edwin with kids but she had seen him babysitting Annie and as surprising as it might sound, he was indeed a good one. Funny to think that one of the people you’d least expect to be a father proved to be good with children. She couldn’t say that she had motherly vibes herself since she liked being able to run out of the castle when she could so she would have a break from the kids. The difference was probably that the said kids weren’t children anymore but growing teenagers who were against any form of authority. That was probably what irritated her the most. There were some good students around, but the ones that were loud were enough to ruin her perspective over teenagers.

“Correction; it is natural to see you with Annie.” She said to him, using the same voice tone that he did as she sat down near him. They weren’t the cuddly type and it had been awkward last time they showed what resembled affection. Annie proved to be the best distraction now. She shrugged, not minding that it wouldn’t be as quiet as she might want it to be. “Still better than spending time at school on a day off.” She said watching Edwin and Annie as they were looking for something to read.

“You have kids-friendly books laying around?” She asked, raising an eyebrow up as she spoke to him as she glanced at his pile.

[EDWIN TREDWELLER]

"Ah yes, Annie. The added detail in the equation that makes it all non-sensical." Edwin didn't think he was particularly good with children. They were whiny, which could be annoying, but he was also able to understand how that was one of the very few ways they had to communicate. In the end, they couldn't lie, having not grasped that concept yet. They were very clear in what they wanted, liked or disliked. He could go along with that.

Isbel was, just like him, not very into physical touch and display of affection. She had no problem sitting with a bit of distance between them without thinking there was anything to it. "Sure one child against a few hundreds, the choice is easy," he admitted as Ibsel claimed Annie would be better than staying at school. If she wanted peace, he would have thought her room could do. He knew where it was, but he also knew it was concealed so that kids couldn't just barge in. Then again, having the liberty to move was nice also. "She'll soon sleep and you'll have your peace," he added.

That was a legitimate question to which Edwin could only answer with a shrug. "Define kid-friendly? At her age, I'm pretty sure I could read anything and it would be fine. As long as there are no scary images in it. I don't see her repeating it to her mother. Right, Annie?" he turned the girl sitting on his lap so they could look at each other. If she understood what he was talking about, she didn't show it. She just wanted her story or at least some attention from someone.

[ISBEL CROFT]

Isbel almost had to restrain herself from smiling at Edwin’s words. It was weird and almost funny to see him being around a kid like this; who would have thought that someone who would rather work instead of being stuck at home, let alone with a baby be good with kids? It was a wonder. She wasn’t sure how he would handle teenagers but he seemed to do fine with children. Now that wasn’t something she was looking to have though. “It’s still a wonder to see how comfortable you can be around children.” She said with a light shrug.

She smirked when he agreed with her point of view. “Besides, she isn’t as needy or messy as all of them reunited under the same roof.” It was giving her the break she wanted even if it meant having a child around. She might not want one for herself but that didn’t mean she’d want them kicked out of her house if any of them were presented to her. She still had manners. She nodded at him as she watched the little girl, seemingly looking about to sleep but also wanting the story that Edwin promised her.

“Well then, what are you going to read her? I’m not sure children register that much information since they don’t understand any of it.” She doubted that her mother would want to know that Edwin was reading to her child what a human body looked like or how certain experiments were done.

[EDWIN TREDWELLER]

Edwin wouldn't say he liked kids. He might just like them a little more than adults. Adults weren't any better at lying but did so for all the wrong reasons. Kids were simpler, making them less stupid in Edwin's mind. Oh, they were not smart from an academical point of view, far from it, and it would be torture to him to have to teach even just one, but he appreciated their common sense more. Besides, Annie was not in age of saying full sentences or talking back or demanding that her opinion and feelings were taken into account, so she was, in a way, at the perfect age. He made no promise to still be able to endure her presence once she would be older.

Isbel too sounded surprised by how easy it seemed for him to be with Annie. "Please do not phrase it like that whenever someone from our family is present, they will get the wrong idea," he pointed out. His parents must have lost hope on getting any grandchildren from their eldest son but the arrival of Isbel in his life made them rethink this. If they knew he was babysitting, he would never hear the end of it. It would be all discussions about family and babies from now on. "Kids are easy to handle at this age. They don't know how to lie yet."

He could do nothing but concede to her point. She was not an army of teenagers that he had to handle. "Does a lack of empathy and patience towards kids is a prerequisite for the job, or it happens the longer you work there?" he retorted. Isbel already sounded jaded. Then again, she had a personality that was closer to his, so it could explain why she was this way.

Isbel also asked him what he intended to read then. He didn't have a lot of fictional books but perhaps he could find something. "How about some good old English classics? Unless you want Bulgarian ones? I'm sure I've got one somewhere. It is time to broaden your horizon Annie," he said. He got up to look through the piles of books he had. Since he would need to go through them, he handed Annie to Isbel. The books weren't only in the shelf in the room but also in piles getting pretty close to the ceiling. He would use his wand to raise a pile so he could pick the right volume without everything falling over.

[ISBEL CROFT]

Isbel didn’t know why Edwin was better dealing with children than he was dealing with adults. She supposed that it was because they didn’t tend to argue with you or talk back but they never bothered discussing on the matter before. It was true though, that at this age, Annie wasn’t seemingly like someone who would bother her. Teenagers however, were a whole different story in her opinion. She was certain that Edwin would agree with her. They were argumentative and liked to ruin her work. Luckily, she had house elves to help her on duty but they didn’t help her with the mood when they decided to act in an annoying way.

She laughed a bit at his words. That was true, they would definitely get the wrong idea. “I’m not an idiot.” She reminded him. “I do not have wishes for death and even less from nagging from both of our sides.” She said with a shrug. People needed so desperately to label their relationship, she had come to good terms with what she had with Edwin for now. Whatever it was. “That’s true, and they don’t pull pranks either.” She added with a nod.

She couldn’t help but rub her neck a little as he questioned her, as if it was giving her a pain in it just thinking it through. “I’d say it’s the longer you spend time with them, there is a point where you’ve seen it all and get exasperated by it because they think they’re the first ones who behaved that way and they aren’t.”

“Bulgarian classics could be good, I’m sure her parents would read to her the English ones no?” She asked figuring that it might be best too, only for broadening her horizons.

[EDWIN TREDWELLER]

Edwin never even bothered to consider how he would have fared at Hogwarts, it simply did not interest him. There was no way those teenagers could bring any value to him. And he would provide them with the toughest of tough love in his care, particularly if they decided to act smug with him. He preferred his jobs. People were idiots and anoying, but it was easier to deal with them and they provided a greater challenge.

Annie was yet a bother to him. Sure, he had no fun changing diapers or dealing with her when she cried and didn't want to sleep, but she was growing out of that phase. And she was easier to deal with than her mother. Sure, Heather was better now that Thomas was back, Edwin didn't have to endure her stress as much anymore.Annie was still less demanding.

His parents wouldn't understand how he might be good at dealing with Annie but not interested in having a child of his own. In small doses, it was fine. But he doubted he'd be good at hiding his frustration every time his child would prove to be a child and therefore not as smart as he was. The worst would be to ahve someone dumb and not interested in studies. He'd have as hard a time at handling such a child of his as his parents had dealing with his strange curiosity as he grew up. "You'd think with three more children, they would leave me alone and put their hopes all on them instead," he grumbled. He even had two brothers, so it wasn't like the family name would die with him. Just his specific bloodline, most probably.

He scoffed at the mention of pranks. "Most of them lack the intellect to pull a proper one, they are vulgar in their simplicity." Which, in his eyes, would make them all the more annoying. She further explained her point. She was reaching her limit. Edwin didn't go to Hogwarts and so didn't know of the previous caretaker there. But he thought the students would be well served in terms of someone with little patience for their shenanigans. "Can you at least punish them, if only for the arrogance of it?" Hogwarts didn't seem to run the way Durmstrang did.

Bulgarian classics.He doubted he had anything that was exactly children appropriate but she was also a bit too young to grasp it. And a classic was a classic. "Welsh too, from Thomas," he added as he looked at the piles of books to find the right one. He left Annie in Isbel's care in the meantime. He didn't think it would be a problem at all, not when he could quickly come back with a book in hand.

[ISBEL CROFT]

Isbel didn’t think people were a challenge, but she got that Edwin might need that kind of thing to keep going on in life. On that part, they were different. They might dislike people but they did for different reasons. Oh, it was in times like these where she would miss Severus. He brought a small light in the darkness of her world but the instant had been too brief. She tried not to mourn too much, Edwin would scold her otherwise. She was trying to build her life back up but it proved to be harder than she thought. She didn’t think she would have had strong feelings for someone, even less someone like the man who passed.

She couldn’t think she’d be a good motherly figure either. Just as Edwin might not want to have kids. She had been dealing with them on a daily basis at school, why would she want more at home? They seemed to both agree with that. She couldn’t help but laugh a bit. “I’d think that, imagine mine, I’m their only child. They don’t seem to get the fact that I have enough with the kids I work with at school.” She said with a scowl. She got the whole thing that your parents wanted the best for you but couldn’t they respect the idea when you didn’t want children?

She nodded, agreeing with him when they talked of pranks. It was right, the only ones who seemed to have more elaborate ones were the twins when they said goodbye to the pink ladies. Good times, she didn’t even bother cleaning it up, just to annoy that woman. It was fun to watch. “Oh I can but I often have to refer them to their head of the house.” She said to him.

While Edwin looked for a proper book to read for Annie, she took care of the little girl as much as she could. She was so small, she was afraid to hurt her in a way. The kids were annoying! She shouldn’t have that feeling.

[EDWIN TREDWELLER]

Sometimes, Edwin wondered if heather asked him to watch over her daughter because she genuinely believe it would humanize him. Perhaps she thought that a little, but she had to also believe, if only partially, that he helped her out while she was pregnant because she was a wreck and, as his boss, made his life harder for it. There might have been a little of guilt too, although Edwin wouldn't say he felt any. But he had been in contact with Thomas for longer than Heather after he left, to make sure he had a good enough supply of wolfsbane potion. It was just more believable should a death eater come with questions to have him answer Thomas likely left the country than have his lover say it. He never told Heather, neither did he tell Thomas of her state. Yet, they still asked for him to be the occasional baby sitter. Edwin didn't think he'd even do that for his future nephews and nieces!

She reminded him on the fact she was an only child. "If they decided one was enough despite it being below the repopulation rate, could they really be in place to complain when you say not wanting any?" The answer was easy; yes. That was what parents did best. "I wonder how many of the professors even have children. Or is that the reason why they are all old?" Edwin never went to Hogwarts, it wasn't like he was aware of their professors, but he knew there were a bunch of female staff members. He went to Durmstrang. It was an all-boy school. Men didn't have to worry as much about that kind of thing, if their wives stayed at home with the kids.

"And I suppose they can veto it? Well, not that they should if they were good at their jobs... I'd probably make the punishment harsher." Luckily for those students, Edwin was no professor of theirs. He'd have them clean up dirty pots without the use of magic or reorder the whole store of potion ingredients. And that would be in his good days. They might just end up being his assistant during busy day at the infirmary otherwise, with an extended hour for every time they'd back away. But working at the school did not sound interesting enough for him. He needed a challenge bigger than sounding interesting enough to a bunch of teenagers who just didn't care to learn passed how to properly hold their wands.

Edwin didn't think how Isbel may feel uncomfortable holding Annie while he looked for a book. He levitated a part of the pile so he could grab one book and replaced the books with a simple gesture of his wand. "There, that should work. And I'm sure you'll end up sleeping in no time." Well, she better be, because he wanted to go back to his research and he didn't think Isbel would take it well to watch over her for him. It might not fit exactly what a child should read, but he doubted Annie understood everything he said. If he used a light tone, she wouldn't get it. She might even find the bulgarian names funny. And it was not like she could tell her mother that he was telling her straditional stories as opposed to the cleaned-up versions they now offered kids. With the book, he could free Isbel from the infant, setting Annie on his lap so he could read to her. He let Isbel do whatever she wanted, whether it was staying here or leaving for the kitchen for a cup of tea or some food. Or even her bedroom. Although Edwin had planned to let Annie sleep there. He supposed he could set her in his then...

[ISBEL CROFT]

Isbel nodded agreeing with Edwin. He was right, she didn’t need to justify the reasons for not wanting children when they decided to have one. “I know that, but unfortunately, they still wish for the best. Apparently, the best is having a family. I didn’t know that.” She said a bit sarcastically. Sometimes they could be a weight on her shoulders. She didn’t want to explain to them every time to them about the fact she did not want children! Weren’t they in times when they could decide on their own? She believed so. She had a laugh when he questioned her about the teachers. “The younger ones have kids, well, a very few of them. I think most of the staff at Hogwarts are having enough with the kids we get at school.” She could say that too. You had dozens of children every year. You might not want some of your own to know that!

She nodded agreeing with him. “You should see how they could get at times. Teenagers will remain teenagers.” She wished she had less of those and started appreciating Annie’s company better. At least, she wasn’t in a state of arguing, and was much more enjoyable to deal with. She was a bit uneasy holding the kid. She wasn’t used to that. There was a time when she might consider having some, but the idea passed. She was content with how she was.

“What book did you get?” She asked curiously when he freed her from Annie. She was interested in a cup of tea but she was wondering what kind of story or book or whatever he was reading to Annie. She didn’t know why his boss was letting him babysit a child, especially knowing that they were the least people you’d want your children with.

[EDWIN TREDWELLER]

Edwin went to Durmstrang. He was the only one in his family to ahve done all of his studies there. It was an all-boy school, including teachers. Being a parent then was not a problem. Then again, it wasn't like Edwin ever heard his professors share anything of the like with their students. Certain things were easy to deduce, but he never cared about that. And having three siblings, he would have thought he needed not to even as an adult. But parents had a tendency of not being very rational when it came to their children. And seeing their seemingly asocial eldest child being close to a woman implied they would have grandchildren from him soon. He couldn't see it happening. He didn't care how good people said he was with little kids like Annie. It was easy to be when you only dealt with the kids for a few hours in a day. Plus she was still so young. He was not having conversations with her.

"Why should I have children when I can just raise yours kind of mentality? Then again, those children aren't very young..." How much were they raising them then? Those were still formative years but they had enough with the academic stuff. Edwin thought they were at the worst age to deal with them. He simply wouldn't have the patience. He'd end up the one at the headmaster's office to explain his punishment on his students for sheer stupidity. "I do not understand the interest in them," he let out. On that they were similar, although for different reasons. In a way, he didn't get how she managed to work around them all year round. He couldn't do that. But Edwin had always been very independent, even as a kid. He only wanted to be left alone to learn whatever he wanted and do his work in peace.

She asked what book he got. "It is a book taking a look at old Southeastern European muggle folktales and their connections to the wizarding world. Fascinating read no doubt, especially when you want to put someone to sleep." Nothing that would be of interest to Annie but Edwin was still under the impression that she understood voice tones way more than words and she only needed to be lull into sleep by a monotone voice. "Feel free to make yourself tea in the meantime." He could not recall the images but figured some might be a little scary. Again, he didn't think she would be affected by those and Heather wasn't there to yell at him to pick up a better book for her. So he started to read, keeping an arm around the little girl and waiting to feel her weight indicate she fell asleep on him.

[ISBEL CROFT]

[bockquote]Edwin and Isbel were both unlucky when it came to family pressure in regards of having children. She, on the other hand didn't have sibligns and was her father's little princess for quite some time. Despite that, she did not necessairly desire having children of her own and didn't know exactly how to blow her parents' hopes. She honestly didn't stop herself to think about the matter seriously. Perhaps with Severus she would have been more inclined to do so, who knows. The main problem was that he was gone and there weren't anything much she could do about it. She would often have thoughts for him and dwell about it but lukily for her, Edwin made things lighter for her and more barable too. She believed she also had enough to deal with the kids at Hogwarts thinking they were inventing new things and pranks while in reality, it happened already a dozen of times. She wasn't impressed at all by their antics and most of the time hormones were also kicking in which made things even more annoying to her.

"They aren't very young but still are a louzy bunch to deal with." She said to Edwin with a shrug. Luckily, she wasn't a professor so that took that away from her and she was more than glad for it! "Fortunately, I get to work when they are in class and I can have break when they aren't most of the time I can find time away from them so it helps." She said to Edwin. She definitely needed breaks from them too whenever they felt the urge to annoy her.

Isbel smiled when they talked about the books. "Annie and I are very interested then." she said finding a place to sit when she flicked her wand so her tea could get done. She wanted to hear what he had in store in term of story telling. It might be interesting to see how Annie would grow up learning so much from Edwin.

[EDWIN TREDWELLER]

Edwin was lucky in the sense that he had siblings who could fulfill his parents' dream of having granchildren, but he was also the eldest, the one who, technically, the most responsibilities should fall onto. They might think that him watching over Annie the way he did meant that, little by little, he could shift his beliefs and start desiring a family of his own. Having a relationship of sort with Isbel too. But Edwin didn't think he had the kind of attachment for Annie one should expect of a father. He didn't feel the need to know how she was doing when she wasn't around, he didn't care about her education or what future awaited her. Likewise, he didn't think his relationship with Isbel was anything that should make people hope for anything in that regard. He knew she felt the same. She seemed to have had quite strong feelings for Snape, perhaps stronger than what she previously thought, but he knew she did not share those for him. And nor did he share them for her. Being together the way they were was profitable to the both of them, and their lifestyle.

No, kids weren't for either of them. "They've lived just long enough to wish to be taken seriously and do what they want, but not enough to understand everything else that comes with it. They want to be pampered, independent manchildren." To be fair, he could say the same to a lot of adults as well. But it explained why he had no desire to deal with teenagers more than he had to right now - which was still loads less than her. He'd be fired in seconds had he worked at Hogwarts. Or be reminded it was not how we handled unruly students, let alone a lack of intelligence. "Plus I doubt they know how to get to your room to pester you. How manny even know where your office is?" Perhaps some of the more troublesome ones, but even them might know only if they were brought there while waiting for a professor to punish them.

Isbel claimed to be interested in the book as well. "Well then, you can get yourself a cup of tea if you want to sit with us," he offered her as he began to read. He caught a glimpse of Isbel getting her tea but ignored her for the most part. Annie seemed to find weird the sounds coming out of his mouth, none of them being in english. She eventually lost interest in that weird language and even the book. She was not restless though, instead she started to get more and more tired. Once he could feel she was asleep, he stopped reading. He used magic to replace the book at the top of the pile. He wouldn't care to use magic to lift Annie all the way to bed, following her of course. Heather was not there to be outraged. But Annie was clinging onto his shirt a bit and he decided to carry her. "I used your bedroom," he said as he returned to the living room. "I figured you wouldn't need it for now. Unless it made you want to sleep too."