@calliope

Sophia loved this time of year not only was the weather warming up and it meant that more time could be spent outdoor but it was also a wonderful time to be a photographer. She still did that as a hobby even if it was her profession too. Sometimes she liked to joke that her professional career snapping pictures paid for her hobby of doing the same. It was the case until she had fallen pregnant. Now she willingly spent most of her money on Audrey. Things were different now with Tiwaz gone. She was the sole provider for Audrey and she was going to try her hardest to make sure her daughter didn’t want for anything.

Sophia also made sure to take as much time as she could to spend with Audrey. With her mum and stepdad being on the run and her not knowing where they were, things were a little precarious but she knew to take one day at a time, that was exactly what her mother would tell her and she made sure to follow that advice. Those words had been uttered so many times during her pregnancy and she just followed suit, living her life now just like that. She made sure to tell Audrey each day that she loved her and that her daddy loved her too. Sophia knew that the little girl would be too young to understand but that didn’t stop her.

Today was another chance for her to spend some time with Audrey, she had decided a picnic would be ideal given that it was nice, warm summer day. Sophia had asked Cali to come along with Jeremy since she knew that Samuel taught classes on Mondays. She knew that Audrey and Jeremy got on like a house on fire. It would be interesting to see what they got up to as they got older and even when they went to Hogwarts since they would be in the same year given when their birthdays were.

The blonde witch had laid out the blanket a few feet away from a tree that was providing some decent shade and she set out to get out some sandwiches for Audrey in case she got hungry early but it appeared she was too enthralled in looking in her books right now. ”You’re more like me than you think, baby girl” she laughed as she brushed her daughter’s blonde girls behind her ear.

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Calli had been a little delayed when it came to meeting Sophia in the park. She had been ready to go but Jeremy had decided to throw a tantrum and throw his chocolate pudding all over his clean clothes and the most intense tantrum had ensued as Calliope tried to change him, it had taken both her and Kit working together to wrestle Jem into clean clothes, shortly after helping her though, Kit had made a quick escape, not that she could blame him really. Calli was dreading Jeremy’s second birthday already and he’d only recently turned one but she couldn’t deny, he’d picked up the temper and stubbornness of his parents already and in some ways he was much worse. She couldn’t blame Kit for spending as much time as he could at Imogen’s or the Seppanen’s, sometimes she wished she could do the same and run away when Jeremy got into a mood but as much as she tried to deny it, it was part of being a mother and it did sometimes amuse her.

When she arrived at the park, Calli took a few minutes to enjoy the feel of the sun on her skin as she adjusted Jeremy’s little sunhat as he quietly played with his tiger teddy, ”Lets go see Auntie Soph and Audrey.” She said to her son as she fastened him into his stroller and started into the park, a picnic basket full of sandwiches and snacks for her and her son was neatly placed into the bottom of his stroller and the brunette smiled as she watched Jeremy wriggle about in his seat to look around the park, she brought him here often enough that he frequently got excited knowing this place meant that he could have a run around to his hearts content.

It didn’t take Calli long to spot Sophia and she smiled warmly at her friend as she made her way over, chuckling when she noticed Audrey playing with a book. Jeremy let out an excited squeal and kicked his legs as he tried to unfasten his belt until Calli pulled up beside Audrey and took him out for her. Jeremy giggled and toddled over to Audrey before he settled down beside her on the blanket and began to paw at his friend, looking for her to play with him. ”I’m sorry I’m late Soph, how are you doing?” She asked as she took out her own little picnic and set it up on the blanket before sitting across from the witch.

Sophia had felt guilty for not seeing Cali sooner but as she grieved her friend had grieved to. Well, Cali’s grief had been short lived since it had seemed that her adopted son had gone into hiding when his father had attacked him. If only Sophia was so lucky. Even if she and Tiwaz had had their troubles she still loved the man and she still felt upset for her daughter. That kind of pain would never go away no matter how much she tried. This was not what she wanted for Audrey but it was the life her uncle had handed her. The witch had to come up with a way to explain to her daughter where her daddy was. Audrey was already in day care and no doubt she would be seeing her friends with their fathers. She just didn’t know what to say. Could her daughter cope with hearing her daddy was now an angel? Would that explanation suffice? She doubted but she would try it, even if it was so cliche.

Coming out to the park allowed Audrey some one on one time with her mother. Sophia was often so busy with work but she tried her hardest to balance out her time between being at the paper and with her mum.It was just a constant struggle. She was blessed though that Audrey was well behaved. She didn’t know now how long that would be last but she could be hopeful it would continue until she started at Hogwarts. That was a milestone she was dreading, even if it was ten years off. Tiwaz had been so connected with the school. There was no doubt in Sophia's mind that her daughter would see his name in more than a few places or perhaps, even worse, people would recognise she was his daughter by her surname. She could only hope that Audrey would do well in school. She already taken so easily to books which both humoured and assured Sophia. At least she would have Jeremy in her year.

The two youngsters were already so close and it made Sophia happy. At least her daughter would have a friend with her if things ever go tough and she couldn’t be around. She watched in amusement as Cali arrived with Jeremy and was evidently so excited to see Audrey. ”Jem….no!” the toddler complained. Sophia could have have tried to correct Audrey but she was no older than the boy and so it would hardly make any difference. She turned her head and smiled at Cali. ”No problem at all, i’m good, well getting there. How are you? You know I just remembered I need to ask you about your bachelorette party” she grinned. After all, at least one of them was getting a night out before her wedding.

Being a mother was not something Calliope had foreseen, but now that she had Jeremy in her life, she couldn’t imagine her life any other way. It upset her that her father would never see his first grandchild grow up, but that was just the hand the Montgomery family had been dealt. After losing her father though it had made her more eager to marry Samuel; of course the primary reason she wanted to marry him was because she loved him, but she was also looking forward to being able to change her surname and shut that chapter of her life. If she became a Copeland, she would no longer have people assume she was like her father; admittedly she had been once upon a time but as she grew up and became her own person, she found herself starting to reject her beliefs that she was better and she felt that Samuel was the cause for that, not that it was a bad thing though.

After Jeremy had been born Calli had tried to go back to work but she found that she loathed being away from her son, people said that you’d get used to it eventually but after three months she still hadn’t been used to it and so instead she quit her job and became a full time mum. Maybe she’d go back to work when Jeremy started school but until then she wasn’t leaving her son with some babysitter. It was just lucky that Samuel earned so much that they could afford this luxury and she made sure not to take it for granted. Both his jobs combined meant that the couple lived a comfortable life with plenty of enjoyment and no worries about money and where there next meal would come from. She sometimes felt sorry for Sophia, knowing her friend had no choice but to work to provide for Audrey, not that it was her fault; it wasn’t even Ti’s fault it had been his brother – Chase or something that had made Sophia and Audrey’s life that bit more difficult but Calli also knew that Soph was a bit of a workaholic so would probably hate not working.

Calli watched Jem pout and make a grab for the book again, giggling as he tried to get Audrey to play with him and she watched the pair, they were such a double act, there was never a dull moment with them when they were together and it provided hours of entertainment for the adults around to witness it all. ”I’m doing better.” Calli replied with a small smile before rolling her eyes and chuckling. ”I was thinking me, you, Alayla and Gen having a night out with lots of alcohol involved.” She replied with a smile.

Losing Tiwaz was so painful, Sophia wasn’t even sure she would be able to articulate how she felt. There was no words she could have used to describe it. This was on top of the whole plethora of emotions she had felt and a those mentions constantly changed too. She had gone from numbness to resentment to anger. All of these while she had to look after Audrey and celebrate her first birthday. Every child’s first birthday should be filled with happy memories as it was celebrated with family and friends but not her daughter’s. Sophia had just opted for a small celebration. After all the fanfare had happened she had put Audrey to bed and gone into her bathroom, closed the door and cried. There was nothing else she could do. She had held her emotion in all day that she couldn’t contain it anymore. As time passed, she had stopped getting so emotional but there were still moments when she would get mad and throw something or scream in the shower only to end up crying five minutes later.

She had not told anyone this, she actually had no one there to tell. Her sister was to young, her parents were on the run, Cali had her own set of problems to face and she too was still grieving after losing her father. There was Colemet, who knew a little of what Sophia was experiencing but still Sophia refrained from telling her everything. Being a werewolf was not easy and Sophia didn’t want to heap everything on her best friend. At least she had Audrey who had been bringing joy to her life since she had been born and Sophia was going to do her best to give her daughter everything she could in life. It wasn’t going to be hard and it would be Sophia’s toughest struggle to date but it was something she had to do. She owed it to her daughter. And she knew it was what Tiwaz would want.

Today she was going to try and put aside all her worries and just focus on spending time with Cali and Jeremy. It was no secret to her, Cali or Samuel that the little boy adored her daughter and the pair were very entertaining to watch. Sophia looked at her daughter and smiled as she took another book and handed it to Jeremy and looked it over. ”Well drinking would be on the car for three of us...don’t think Alayla could join in” she laughed and opened up her packet of crackers and handed one to Audrey and soon after, Jeremy as he reached for one too. ”I’m up for it. Do you think Samuel would watch Audrey? I don’t want to burden him…” she said clearing her throat.

Calliope tried not to ever dwell on her past, it was a task but sometimes she needed that cruel reminder of things that had got her to where she was today. She was strong and she was proud of herself; life had thrown a lot of shit at her since day one and when she was eighteen it had peaked and she’d broken. Now though, now she finally had control over her life again and on top of that she had her sons life in her hands. She wanted to do everything right, the way her father had done with her. Sure, he may have made a few mistakes but all parents did but Calli had the benefit of Samuel was still alive to support him and steer her the right way should she steer. When she thought Kit was dead, she’d pushed people away again but as always Samuel had been her knight in shining armour and he’d eventually pushed back and when there was a mutual understanding that they should both talk about things, instead of shutting their feelings away, they were well on their way to being stronger than ever.

Calliope tried to limit gushing about her relationship with Sophia, not because she didn’t want to tell her close friend everything; but because she didn’t want to upset her. Losing Tiwaz had taken it out of Sophia and Calli knew that, she wasn’t going to rub salt in the wound and brag about how amazing her relationship with Samuel was or how her adoptive son was blossoming now that he was home again alive, Calli was a lot of things but unnecessarily cruel was not one of them. Maybe should her friend ever settle down again, she would be more forthcoming, but not right now. Not when Sophia was still grieving Tiwaz. She knew that Samuel still missed his friend often, and they were just friends; brothers almost but Soph and Ti, there was more to their relationship so it was naturally going to be much harder for her than it was for Samuel.

The brunette watched as Jeremy took the book from Soph and beamed up at him before promptly opening it (upside down) and starting to babble his own little story. ”We’ll just have to drink for Alayla then.” Calli chuckled. She knew her new sister-in-law would probably be a little irritated she couldn’t join in drinking, but Calli was determined to make it just as enioyable for Alayla as it was for everyone else, sober or not. ”She’s getting impatient for Adrianna to arrive now.” Calli informed her friend, Soph hadn’t met Alayla that much but Calli did keep her in the loop because as the duo had been through pregnancy before, it seemed to comfort Alayla knowing a couple of people who felt the same as her at some points throughout their pregnancies. Calli pulled out a sandwich she made for Jeremy and unwrapped it, handing him one of the neatly cut, hand sized pieces so he wouldn’t continue to steal Audrey’s lunch and smiling as he began chewing happily on it. ”I’m sure Samuel would be more than happy to.” Calli smiled, he did after all dote on his goddaughter a fair amount.

Sophia had been through a lot and she couldn’t even imagine what Audrey was thinking but she hoped she was too young still to comprehend just what lay ahead of her. Maybe when she was four or five, Sophia would sit her down and go through what had happened to her father but Sophia didn’t want Audrey to feel at a disadvantage because her dad was no longer here, but the blonde knew there was nothing she could do. Even if down the track she did get into a relationship with other man, it would not be the same because he would still be Audrey’s step dad. For the short time that Audrey had been lucky to know and to spend time with her father. Sophia now held those memories close and she recalled them often, mostly with tears in her eyes but she loved seeing father and daughter together. She was lucky in being a photographer that she had a camera always at the ready and was able to take as many photographs as she could. Audrey would have them for whenever she wanted to look at them and to remember her father.. Sophia would be sure to always speak about him, even if it hurt. Her daughter deserved to know that her dad loved her so much.

The blonde witch loved to spend time with Calli and Jeremy and by extension Samuel. She wanted Audrey to have friends her age as well and she and Jeremy got along so well. Sure, they fought as toddlers do but overall, they got along well too. She was happy to have Calli out at the park today. The weather was ideal for some time outside today. She knew that Audrey loved to spend time outside playing on the swings but she seemed content with reading for the time being and Sophia was not going to push her to play. If she wanted to go play on the swings or go look at the birds by the pond, Audrey would tell her mum. The little girl was slowly developing her language but she knew the basic words and Sophia loved to hear her speak. She knew that Tiwaz would have cherished every word she said.

Sophia had alrso seen Jeremy develop his vocabulary. It was interesting to see the two of them together. They did fight often and Sophia had to continually explain to Audrey that Jeremy didn’t understand and that she was the big girl her mum knew she could be. It would be interesting to see how her daughter interpreted that since she wasn’t that much older than the boy. ”I’m sure we could manage that” Sophia smirked as Cali mentioned they would be drinking for Alayla. It had been far to long since she had been drinking. It was because she didn’t allow herself to go out and have fun because she wanted to be around her daughter constantly. But Sophia knew it was also important for to not suffocate Audrey as well. She didn’t want to be resented as her daughter grew up. ”We both know how that feels. Soon she’ll be wishing she could sleep in again” Sophia joked. Motherhood was hard but Sophia found it so rewarding. She looked over as Audrey looked over to the book that Jem was reading and started to point out things on the pages. Smiling she looked back at Calli. ”Then I will leave Audrey with him for the night. Are you getting nervous?” she asked the other woman referring to the wedding day itself.

Calliope didn’t know how to approach things with her friend, she wanted to talk about the wedding, her relationship and their children but she was hesitant to. Sophia had been so much with losing Tiwaz and she hated the idea of talking so much about her relationship that she could anger or upset her friend but at the same time, Sophia asked her questions and she wanted to answer but she tried to avoid answering in a way that may seem like bragging. When it came to Jeremy and Audrey she didn’t hold back though, she loved to gush about her son, he was her pride and joy and with Audrey being her god-daughter, she loved learning everything about the toddlers progress and seeing the duo grow together never failed to brighten her day.

The witch glanced at Sophia as the witch spoke to her again and she laughed, it had been a while since Calliope had had a good night out, drinking had really interested her all the much after she’d had Jeremy, she still had the occasional glass of wine with meals or when she just needed to unwind but not as much as she’d used to before even Samuel. She sometimes wondered if her father would be proud of how far she’d come, or just how she finally had control of her life but she knew that she’d never know. It was bittersweet though, the witch was both glad that her son had been so young when his grandfather had died, but she still missed him daily and she couldn’t imagine how it must be for Sophia and Audrey when she was older, they’d lost their lover and father; her situation paled in comparison. ”No harm in having a little fun and I’m sure Alayla could photograph everything embarrassing we do and not have any regrets about not being able to drink.” Calli joked, laughing at the thought and she had no doubt that she’d probably have an embarrassing moment or two, she always did become a little too relaxed when drunk.

”I still wish I could have lie-ins.” Calli smirked, looking at her son and brushing his brunette curls away from his eyes and kissing the top of his head. ”Part of me feels that I’ll spend my hen party asleep in the hotel room.” She continued, sitting upright and glancing up at Sophia. ”I might even prefer that idea than going drinking.” Calli said, she was definitely going to take advantage of not having to get up with Jeremy in the morning, but she was also going to let her hair down, she had no idea when the next party like that would be. Probably if her friend or son got married, which seemed a little way off. Calli sent a sweeping look over the two toddlers who had their heads together looking at the book and she smiled tenderly before turning her attention back to Sophia and nodding, ”I’ll be sure to let him know.” She paused at the witches question and tilted her head, ”A little bit, but I’m more excited than nervous. I think I’ll be really nervous on the day.” Calli said honestly.

Sophia loved to be out in summer even when she was younger and now that it was that time of year, she was excited to take Audrey out whenever she got the chance so her little girl could explore. She was at that age where kids would explore everything around them and question almost everything they saw. Seeing how much her daughter was like made Sophia think that Audrey would be sorted into Ravenclaw when the time came. While it was rather far off, she still knew it would make her proud if her daughter ended up in her old house. There was no doubt in Sopha’s mind that even Tiwaz would be looking down on Audrey and beaming. For all she knew, he was already doing that. It just saddened her to know he would never be here to go through all the big moments with her as well as cherish all the special moments they would have had together. But everything she did was to make sure that her daughter had the best life possible. It was going to be a challenge but the witch just tackled everything head on.

She had wanted to treat Calliope to a night out ever since she had heard of Samuel’s proposal. She knew the couple had waited until Jeremy was old enough before they actually tied the knot. She and Tiwaz had made similar plans where their daughter was concerned. Audrey would have looked so gorgeous in her flower girl dress and while she was going to be flower for her godparents, it still wasn’t going to be same. But Sophia reminded herself she was not to dampen the mood of Calli and Samuel’s wedding. She wanted to go out and have fun but she was a little hesitant about leaving her daughter with everything that was going on with her mum being away and there just being so much uncertainty overall. She did trust Samuel and she knew he would be the likely one to look after Audrey when they went out for Calli’s hens do but she felt guilty. She already felt like she realised so much on the couple. ”Well, if you’re sure she won’t pout to much about being assigned the designated photographer for the night” the blonde witch laughed. Sophia wanted all to have a good night but she also knew that was hard when you were heavily pregnant.

Sophia found herself laughing a little as her friends spoke about having lie-ins. Now being a single parent meant that her daughter came to her for everything. So, she wasn’t able to have them either. ”I miss those days but she’s the best thing to ever happen to me” she smiled sadly before clearing her throat and giving a more happier smile. ”Well let me know, and I’ll just book you a room for the night, stuff going out” Sophia joke, though if her friend was that desperate to sleep instead of going out drinking she would get a room nd it would likely be a muggle hotel because there would be less interruptions there Look, jemmy, this is blue and that is ed (red) She smiled at her Audrey to pointing to all the colours on the page. Her daughter was very quick to pick up on different colours and it hardly mattered that she was unable to pronounce some of them yet. ”I’m sure you’ll look back on it with many happy memories” Sophia told Calli as she opened a bottle of water and poured some into cups, some for both Jeremy and Audrey before doing the same for herself and Calli and handing one cup over to her best friend.

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