Summer Edition [at the park] (Open)

Guest

Outfit

Penny slid into a bench and breathed in the fresh, summer air. The summer edition of the magazine was just dropped off for publishing, so now she had a whole week off before she had to start on the fall one. There'd be several small editions between now and then, of course, but Penny usually focused on the seasonal editions and left the rest to the other editors.

She watched as children ran about the park, smiling fondly. At 34, she's mostly given up on having children of her own, though she is still considering adoption. Growing up in a big family leaves one feeling lonely once they're on their own. She's never liked dogs all that much, to be honest, and cats are more of a nuisance than they're worth. But a baby? Aside from the obvious responsibility it presents, the idea of raising a child is actually fairly pleasant.

All the same, it would be best to get things settled with the magazine before truly considering adoption, though. Still, it couldn't hurt to dream.

Guest

With the summer soon coming to an end, Daniel was finding himself with less and less to do. Apart from looking after Theo, Daniel didn't have much filling his day. The school was taken care of, and now all he had to do was wait for the term to start. He was looking forward to it, of that much he was quite sure.

Today was a day where he didn't have anything at all today. Naomi was home with Theo, and he'd excused himself from the house for a while. Spending time with Naomi and Theo was, of course, fun, but he knew they needed their own time too.

After buying himself some lunch - take out pasty from some Muggle store - Daniel had slipped in to the park and moved towards a bench close to the exit. There was already someone there, but there was enough space for two people, possibly even three or four.

Sitting on the opposite side of the bench, Daniel took out his food, and tucked in, careful as always despite the lack of cutlery and crockery. He didn't acknowledge the woman beside him, she likely didn't want to be pestered by a man like him anyway. No, he was much more interested in his food, truth be told.

But as a kid zoomed past the bench, laughing to themselves, Daniel looked up, smiling to himself as the child continued on their way before noting the woman beside him had a smile quite similar to his own. "Are they your children?" Daniel asked the woman, hoping not to sound weird in that moment. Probably not the best opening line he'd ever had. "Sorry... I just meant..." He sighed and shook his head. "Don't worry about it."

Guest

Penelope briefly glanced sideways when a man sat on the other side of her bench. Well, it wasn't actually her bench, that would mean she'd paid for it, wouldn't it? All the same, she'd sat there first and that more or less made it hers for the time being. He looked about her own age, and she watched as he pulled a pastry out and began eating.

She turned back to observing the children and chuckled lightly when one ran past. Then he spoke.

"Are they your children?"

She was about to reply in the negative, when he stumbled over what sounded vaguely like an apology. With a sigh, she shook her head. "Unfortunately not," she murmured. Childless at 34, she mused, how odd she must look. Isn't that was women did? Of course, it's not for a lack of desire for children so much as a much stronger desire for a successful career. But now that career was beginning to settle, and she was left with time to think about what else she wished for. A child or two, of course, possibly a wife (or a husband), if she met the right woman (or man). "I'm Penny, by the way," she greeted with a smile.

Guest

When the woman said that she was not the carer of the children, Daniel gave the witch a small, apologetic smile. Perhaps not the best thing to ask a women, but at least she didn't look upset with his question. That, was always a bonus, he decided. "I'm sorry." Daniel replied after a moment, and he meant it, because he didn't wish to upset anyone.

As she introduced herself, Daniel smiled in response. "Nice to meet you, Penny. I'm Daniel." He replied, continuing with his lunch for a few more mouthfuls. "I'm waiting for my own too." Daniel added, because he knew the look on the woman's face. It probably matched his own on numerous occasions.

His face probably looked the same when he was looking after Theo, but he knew that these things needed more than just himself. It was something he was looking to, but he hadn't yet found it.

Guest

Penny waved off his apology. There wasn't anything to be sorry for, really. It wasn't anyone's fault but her own that she didn't have children, and she didn't regret any of her choices. She was perfectly happy with her life as it was, but that didn't mean she wouldn't mind a change.

She smiled warmly when he introduced himself. "I'm waiting for my own too."

A sigh escaped. That was all well and good for him, but as a woman, she only had so many years before she couldn't have kids anymore. Oh, there was always adoption, which has been something Penny has kept her eye for nearly ten years, but every woman wanted to at least try for one of their own. Penny was no different, in that regard. What made her different, was that she wasn't sure she wanted to be married when it happened. She wouldn't mind it, of course, but as things stood, she rather liked the idea of adopting and raising the child on her own. "I'm running out of time to wait," she remarked cynically. "But that's mostly my own fault." Because it was. Mostly.

Guest

The response to his words made Daniel feel a little uncertain. Had he upset the woman beside him? He hoped he hadn't, but there was never a complete way of knowing if he had with women. But the woman didn't sound overly happy, so Daniel took a moment, thinking of what to say next.

"I'm sure that you'll find someone." Daniel commented a moment later, because he wasn't sure what else to say. Personally, he didn't believe in the science stuff that made it possible without a man, but he didn't wish to share that opinion. He knew that his view was controversial, but he wasn't outwardly controversial.

"And, there is always adoption, you're never too old for that, I've heard." Daniel added, giving the woman a small smile. "Though, I'm not saying you're old, of course, just that it is a possibility when you get to that point." He amended, a little sheepishly because he was straying very close to offending the woman beside him and he really wasn't aiming to do that.

Guest

The man was silent for a moment, and Penny continued to observe the children while he came up with a reply. She didn't expect him to understand, and he wasn't likely to even realize just how different she was. His next statement proved that. Must she be married to have children? Yes, she knew children benefited from having role-models of both genders (or even just more than one role-model), but that didn't mean a person had to be married to raise them.

His comment was well meant, though, so she smiled and shrugged, "I'm sure I will," she stated on a sigh. "But I'm in no rush, really."

Her smile grew when he mentioned adoption. "I know all about that, I've been considering it for the past ten years, to be honest. But I was so young back then, and now my job isn't conducive to spending a lot of time with a family." She waved off his comment about her age with a dismissive hand. "I know I'm not old, don't be daft," she scoffed haughtily. "But I think we both know I'm not exactly young either." No, she hadn't felt young in years, but she knew she was still in her prime and planned to enjoy it while it lasted. Besides, the man was being sweet, if a little old fashioned in hie views. He couldn't be expected to know things about her that she hadn't deliberately told him, so it wasn't his fault for assuming she wanted a husband and children. No, that viewpoint was the fault of society as a whole.

Guest

Daniel smiled at the witch's reply - there was no rush to these things, of that much he could agree with the witch. Of course, he had longer, but that was neither here nor there. It was the people who did these kind of things too young without a clue in the world of how to deal with it that annoyed Daniel.

The fact she had considered adoption made Daniel nod. For him, that wasn't an option, not with his family. He needed someone of the Jameson blood to continue his line or his mother would likely keel over from a heart attack. And his father... Daniel had avoided his father for many years, and he planned on keeping it that way for as long as he could.

Finishing up his lunch, Daniel wiped his mouth with the napkin he'd been given, leaning just to his right to put the rubbish in the bin next to the bench. "I wish you the best of luck, with everything. But, I need to get on, this world waits for no man." He joked softly, getting to his feet. "Goodbye." He added, giving the woman a small nod of his head before he headed off towards the exit of the park.

His head filling with the possibilities of children, adoption and everything in between.

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