rush hour

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

things were getting a little busy for briar at work. or maybe her general lack of sleep meant that she was less efficient at getting it done, come to think of it the latter was more likely the case. today she was meant to be picking up the wolfsbane so that she could send it to her clients for the full moon but she just hadn't had time. before willow she would take an extended lunch break and use it to walk to the st mungos but now she spend her lunch breaks in the ministry creche feeding willow and then grabbing something small herself to eat on the job. as she returned to the office this afternoon she looked at her schedule and saw that her afternoon was full too, she had a meeting at one oclock which would likely last the whole afternoon, the parents of a young werewolf. she had been assigned to that one lie she had been most child cases as she was somehow approachable to children and parents and the best at assuring them that things weren't as bad as it seemed. she had also gone through school with the condition so she was able to reassure them that things could be looked after when the student went to hogwarts.
it didn't surprise her that she only managed to get away from work at ten to six. racing to the lifts she ad to get to the creche before six or they started charging a galleon a minute. "come one" she mumbled as the lift seemed to stop at every floor. once it reached the ground floor she was the first out careering her way towards the daycare centre entering the room at 5:59. she had a quick chat with the supervisor who said that willow was starting to get a little tired and cranky. briar nodded she knew why tat was. it was just over a week until the full moon and although her daughter was not a werewolf se seemed to have the swings in energy she and dederick had when it came to the moon cycle. "thank you for staying ate today" she said as she left willow was the last child and she could see by the state of the room she was the last one for a while.
with willow securely in her sling briar set off. a little walk would do her good and she did need the potion. she turned out of the front of the building and headed for st mungos. a route that her feet knew almost without her guiding them, she had walked it so often. she navigated the people who also were walking along the street. saw people shutting their shops for the day and soon she was a t the large front door of the hospital. she entered and went through without talking to the lady on reception instead just gave a wave. she had been here often enough for her to be well recognised. reaching the potion room she only then remembered that jeremy was on the wards now. she used to enjoy having a quick conversation with him instead it was a new witch who handed her the potion. thanking her she left and headed back out onto the street. unfortunately the sudden noise woke willow who had managed to sleep as she was walking. the baby started to cry picking her up and holding hr properly she tried to calm her. no still crying. it sounded like a hungry cry. she vanished the potion back to her desk at the ministry it was one less thing to work about shhh she said rummaging one handily in the bag that contained the things from the creche. eventually she sound a bottle still half full of milk. although she did breast feed she sent willow in with bottles of milk for when she got hungry and she felt like here in the middle of rush hour obsidian wasn't the best place to. finding an empty bench she sat and with the bottle teat in her mouth willow quietened and started to drink much to the relief of her mum.

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Another day long shift was over for Jeremy Thorne and as he signed out and grabbed his bags, few thoughts were running through the man's head. They were lazy thoughts too, moving through his brain at a snail's pace. Knowing he was much too tired to attempt to apparate safely, Jeremy made his way to the lift. One of the things he had learned on the emergency ward was that sleepiness and apparating did not mix. He couldn't even count the number of people he had worked on who had splinched themselves because they'd apparated while they were sleepy. Running a hand across the stubble on his chin, Jeremy was glad that the other lift occupants were silent, whether out of concern over their own worries or because he didn't look in the mood for conversation Jeremy didn't care.

Moving towards the door, Jeremy waved to the receptionist on duty. It was the new guy. His name was Ethan and Jeremy had spoken to him a few times. As the cool outside air hit him, Jeremy stopped and closed his eyes for a moment. The breeze just felt that good. When his blue eyes popped open again and he resumed walking again, Jeremy felt slightly refreshed. Something about being locked away, the injuries of another on your shoulders, made the air of the hospital stifling at times.

Following the shuffle of the crowd, Jeremy made his way towards Obsidian Harbor and his apartment. Jeremy kept his head down, a Thunderers cap on his head. It wasn't until he heard the baby's cry that he looked up again. It wasn't because he thought the baby was injured or anything. In fact, he was certain that particular baby was just hungry. It was just curiosity. Jeremy was fascinated by babies- how they looked, how they developed, how they learned about the world- so much so that he was considering applying for the neonatal ward if a position ever opened up. As his blue eyes scanned the area, they easily fell on a mass of red hair and he knew who the baby was. Cutting through the crowd, to the dismay of some, Jeremy made his way to the bench that Briar had settled on with Willow. As he sidled over, a smile crossed his face. "You look like a natural, Briar. Hey, how are you?" he asked in his usual calm demeanor before sitting down on the bench beside her and the baby. It felt good to get off his feet for a few moments.

 

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

Briar saw a lot of people passing some stopping to look at willow. and her mum with the red hair, scars she could just imagain what was going through the ladies mind. she wondered if it would be beter or worse if she knew the truth about her. she watched as people passed such a range of people from ministry wrkers like herself, to shop keepers to healers and beggers all passing down the same street. it wasnt long before willoe had finished the milk and just lying there looking up at her happily. she could have made a move home but it was nice sitting here where she could just see the people passng, and the harbor with willow comfy on her lap. looking at the boats made her think of the first holiday she had spent with dee. how easy things had been then. he was in a great mood not like his low of the last few months which he was slowly getting out of, she couldn't wait for him to get out of it. when he was on a deep low he was hard work to be around and she had often felt like she was looking after two children. it had been so unfortunate when it had happened too just a week after willow was born there was no way she could convince herself that the two events were unrelated. at least this time he hadn't left her, or broken up with her as she knew that would have been harder to cope with.
she was distracted from this thought by the sound of her name ad someone talking to her "thank you, I guess looks are deceiving then" she said before looking up. as she did so she saw her friend Friend Jeremy walking towards her. "Jeremy" she said smiling. "How have you been? I heard rumours that you are on the emergency ward. how are you finding it?" she continued. as he sat next to her on the bench she realised that for the first time since leaving school she actually looked more tired than him. that was one thing that you couldn't be prepaired for. living off such a messed up nights sleep having to get up a few times each night to feed willow that each evening you were reardy to go to bed just after her

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy put his hands in the pocket of his hoodie as he looked upon the mother and child, his blue eyes looking first at the mother who appeared like most first time mothers. Her eyes looked as if they craved some time closed and she looked as if she had just finished a particularly difficult and long shift at the hospital. Jeremy could barely take care of himself after he’d finished a 24 hour shift, so he was always in awe of new mothers and their ability to care for such delicate and needy creatures as newborn babies. As Briar spoke, Jeremy found himself nodding even as he wondered who the big mouth was that had revealed his new position. More likely than not, Briar had probably asked after him and been informed. “Yea. I just started there last week.” Jeremy stretched his legs out before replying. “It’s insane and tiring…and I absolutely love it” he added with a smile. Now that he was interning in the emergency ward, Jeremy finally felt like a Healer. He knew that the other tasks he’d performed had also been important parts of the Healing practice, but there was nothing like the rush that came from handling emergencies. “How’s everything with Willow going?” he asked, unable to stop himself from questioning to find out if she was developing appropriately and if Briar had any concerns. He knew that he wasn’t her Healer, but it was just habit. “And Dederick?” he added, his face growing a little more serious. The Healer wasn’t the guy’s biggest fan.

 

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

looking out over the street briar could see that the main street was starting to empty a little. Briar could tell that jeramy was a little surprised that she knew he was in the emergency ward. "I asked george in the potions department just which department you had transferred to" she said as an explanation. "It must be chaotic there at times." she said. it got chaotic in her office after a full moon. she could only imagine the chaos the hospital could get. "I am glad you enjoy it" she said genuinely glad for him he deserved to enjoy his job. as Briar knew that although he could be a bit quiet he was a genuinely great guy.
when he asked how willow was she smiled "Willow is coming on great. getting bigger by the day and more active too. and even better only waking up once to twice in the night now" she said feeling her excitement as she spoke however when topic turned to dederick she felt her whole demeanour drop. "Dederick is okay. been in a bit of a slump recently but hopefully soon..." she said. letting the sentence drop off. soon what exactly? soon he will get better? no that wasn't it. soon he will cheer up? maybe. soon he would get over the fact she had kept their baby? perhaps. Soon the low would pass. yes. she had grown to know him well enough to know that there were the highs and the lows and soon each would pass. she decided it would be better to change the topic quickly than start wallowing in her own sleep deprived problems. "how have you been?" she asked besides she wanted to know what jeremy had been up to as it had been ages since they had last met.

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy should have known that George had been the one to tell Briar. The guy had loose lips, though he was friendly enough. He was a couple of years older than Jeremy and happy in his potion as a potion brewer. He had helped Jeremy perfect the Wolfsbane potion and several others that he'd learned to brew during his time in that department. Continuing to listen, Jeremy smiled as Briar spoke about her daughter. It was such a difference from how she'd been when she'd discovered she was pregnant. Now, she seemed happy and even excited to speak about Willow. It was nice to see. "That must be great for you, especially around this time of the month" he stated as he realized the full moon would be upon them soon. It was funny that something Jeremy only payed minimal attention to was such an important part of the woman's life.

Looking back to the crowd that was getting smaller now, Jeremy listened without comment to what Briar was saying about Dederick. He didn't feel that it was his place to comment about the guy, and it wasn't as if Briar was asking for advice. "I've been good, just really busy with the new position. My sleep schedule is all screwed up now because I used to work at night and now I work more in the daytime." That was easily the worst part. "And that's it. I'm pretty boring" he chuckled, his blue eyes glancing back at his old schoolmate. Time seemed to be flying by for the both of them.

 

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

Briar smiled as Jeremy said it was good that she was sleeping better. "god you're so right there. and her grandparents and aunt say she still doesn't sleep well during the full moon" she said she always fault a little guilty when she picked willow up from madlyn Iris or Emily in the morning and seeing that they hadn't slept whilst she had had a rather good sleep. it was odd really thinking the one night a month she used to not be able to sleep and it was her one night of torture was now the one night she could practically sleep through and was her most peaceful night.
It didn't take a genius to figure out that the man didn't like dederick. actually it didn't take a genius to figure out that many of her friends didn't like him. even his mum emily wondered why she saw in him, but was glad that she did and she had a stead job and everything. "I am sure that you will get used to it soon. bod clocks are pretty good at reseting themselves." she said
she smiled when he said that other than that he was quite boring. "I am sure you are not that boing" she said. before having an idea "if you ever feel like you are being boring you are always welcome to call in to our property." she said. for someone with her upbringing she really was rather a social person which was useful for her job.