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[Fitzy Patricks]

I stare at the Small One again from across the table as if we’re playing some sort of mental chess game. Except of course that she isn’t even looking at me, but staring at the ceiling. She’s been staring at the ceiling for a couple of minutes now, and I’ve been staring at her for even longer. Half an hour, really, if you don’t count the time I spent pacing in a circle around the room for a couple of minutes before sitting back down, all because she smiled at me.

You’re a semi-sane adult, Fitz, and you’re scared of a baby’s smile? I asked myself sardonically… exasperatedly… before sitting back down.
Small one, I then corrected myself automatically. I prefer to think of her as ‘the small one’ rather than as a baby, infant, child… any of those words. Or, god forbid, her actual name. I’m getting semi-used to the presence of the small one, but not quite that cozy with the whole idea that she is in fact a… baby… small person sort of thing. A little girl named Melody who, through no fault of her own, wound up with me as a father.

There, that’s progress. I still can’t get out words like ‘daughter’ even in my own head without a sort of mental hiccup, mental cringe. But I can say ‘father,’ which is similar. That’s good, right?

I smile very vaguely in Melody’s direction, accidentally catching her eye as she looks back down from the ceiling and immediately clenching my fist. A very small part of me is finding this amusing, like a really bad sitcom or something. But, in truth… it’s pathetic. Sad. Especially for her, the poor small-person-sort-of-thing. This is ridiculous, and she’d be better off with someone else.

But Arden won’t take her. Lacey I can’t even find, as per her plan. Lilith has her own kids, plus I have no right to ask her for any favors. And my surrogate parents have been disappointed in me enough that I can’t quite bring myself to tell them I’m abandoning my daughter so will they please take her off my hands?

And, sadly, those are the only people I know these days. I lost most contact with the few quasi-friends I used to have several years ago, and I rarely leave my house.

I go back to staring at the small one as she takes a sudden interest and delight in her own fingers as if she’s never seen them before. So, after a couple of seconds, I follow her example and start staring at the tabletop instead, until an unexpected doorbell chime sends me sitting bolt upright and reaching for my wand. You wouldn’t think danger would really ring the doorbell, but then again nobody comes here except family – and they all either knock or just walk right in. So it’s with some trepidation that I open the door a crack, keeping my right hand in my pocket with my wand.

[Isabella Parker]

[/i] Isabella looked at the house from the road. Arden wrote down the address and gave it to her last time they had talked which seemed like such a long time ago though it was only about a month ago. She stared at the piece of paper in her hands that had been refolded to the point where it was almost falling apart. Maybe it was stupid to come here. Fitzy had problems of his own and probably didn't want to see anyone from the past.

Bella kicked a rock that was laying around and sent it flying a little ways down the sidewalk before looking back at the house. This is your chance to walk away and go back to Tristan's. She ignored the voice in her head and started towards the door. Quietly she congratulated herself for making it this far. Lately she had wanted nothing to do with anyone. She just stared at her stomach all day. It always brought her back to her last days with Rayden. Since her and Jack divorced she debated on whether or not to keep the baby. As horrible as it would have been if she were actually still sane, she was actually having doubts about being able to handle a baby on her own.

The last thing she was going to do was give the baby to Jack. He just couldn't take the baby from her. Bella knocked on the door a few times and slipped her hands back into her jacket. The jacket covered her stomach and anyone could barely make out the small roundness her it had come to. She waited patiently for him to answer the door. Hoping that he just wasn't home. Part of her actually wanted to see Fitz though. It had been too long and she actually missed him. She had been too caught up in her own life to even talk to anyone from the past and why bring back bad memories she didn't want to revisit? Oh come on Fitz. She smiled slightly when he cracked the door. "This is how you greet your old friends Mr. Patricks?" Maybe the formal language was a bit much, but she didn't care right now. She was just happy to see someone other than her family as sad as that seemed.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

Well. Not a deatheater, relative, salesman, strange psychotic murderer, or anyone else I might've expected.

I raise my eyebrows in astonishment, actually blanking on her name for a moment before it clicks back into place. It's not as though I have a whole plethora of acquaintances to get confused over, and it’s not like she’s changed much. Hardly at all, really. But it has been a very long time since I’ve seen anyone outside my circle.
“Um… Isabella. Hi. Ah, no, not normally. But, then again, they don’t normally stop by, so maybe there isn’t a ‘normally’….” I stop and take a deep breath to end my babbling, thinking that I’ve really spent too much time with Arden.

“Ah… do you want to come in?” I ask, finally opening the door a bit more reasonably, but still keeping my hand near my pocket for reassurance. “How in the hell did you find me, anyway?” Unless you just happened to be in the neighborhood and decided to visit a stranger, having no idea I lived here? It would almost make more sense.

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] She muttered. Though she was sort of glad that no one really came by. It just started trouble and that was the last thing she needed right now.

Bella nodded when he opened the door a bit more and stepped inside. She looked around a bit. His question made her eyes widen, but she really should have expected it. The way he talked he didn't really see anyone but his family so maybe her visit was a bigger surprise than she thought. "Arden wrote down the address for me. I just wanted to see how you were, if thats okay of course." She looked back at him and rose a brow.

"How's Melody?" Bella asked with a small smile. The last she saw her was with Arden back a few months ago at Diagon Alley. It was quite a shock to hear it was his baby, but she really should be used to all the surprises by now.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

"... Arden...." I mutter under my breath, sighing in exasperation and shaking my head. She would be just as free with other people's information as with her own, now wouldn't she? To be fair, she knows that Isabella used to be one of my closest friends... but it is still unnerving.

"I take it she's also the reason that you know... about the existence of the small one?" I add, after temporarily freezing. "She's in there." I nod off to the right, where Melody is still strapped into her highchair, probably counting specks on the ceiling again, or whatever it is that she does.

I haven't technically answered how she is, really, or whether I'm okay with having random people pop up on my doorstep. She's alive, which counts for something, and I'm still figuring out the answer to the second one.

[Isabella Parker]

[/i] asked her for it anyway."[/b] For some reason the topic of Fitz between Bella and Arden was sort of uncomfortable so she was positive Arden just wrote it down to move to a different topic at the time. They used to be friends so he shouldn't mind... much. But with Fitz you could never tell.

Isabella gave a small nod. "Arden was... babysitting last I saw her and told me she was yours." It was still sort of weird to her to see him with a baby. He just didn't seem like he wanted to be a father, but who knows? Maybe he didn't plan it. The way he said 'small one' made it sound like he hadn't completely accepted it himself. She walked to where he had nodded to and smiled when she saw the little girl she had seen a few months ago looking at the ceiling in a daze.

Bella tilted her head slightly and part of her smile turned into a frown. "Am I interrupting lunch time?" She turned halfway around so she could partly see the baby and her friend.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

I shrug off her first comment and suppress a slight twitch at her second - Melody's not mine, she's just... being reluctantly borrowed until somebody else decides to take her. But that's not the sort of the thing that tends to go over well in conversation.

"No, you're not interrupting anything," I shrug, shaking my head. "Just... our extremely pathetic way of entertaining ourselves. You can... I don't know, go pick her up if you want." I shrug again. Most people seem to like holding babies, and apparently they like it too. Yet another reason that it's not good for her to be here, and also not good for me to get used to it. I've just referred to Melody and myself as a 'we' - not a good sign. I also find myself reluctantly smiling - if very, very faintly - when she looks in our direction and laughs softly. She's probably thrilled to see somebody other than me.

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] She muttered and turned her head back to Melody. Her smile returned and she took up his offer to hold the little girl. She unstrapped her and carefully picked her up. "Hey Melody." She cooed and grinned. "How've you been?" She asked Fitzy while still looking at the girl.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

"Well, not most," I mutter, shrugging. I can hardly argue that my life is fairly pathetic, however, just like it always has been, so I leave it at that.
Melody definitely likes being held... I find it too weird and am still half-convinced I'm going to drop her - "That's because you're holding her as if she's radioactive," Arden sighs, rolling her eyes and taking the baby away to hold her much closer than I was. - or I'd do it more often.
"Been all right," I shrug yet again. "Other than... this," I add against my better judgment, nodding briefly at Melody. "What about you?"

[Isabella Parker]

[/i] Bella rolled her eyes. Leave it to him. She moved the baby to her hip as it was more easier because of her stomach. "You can't tell me that you regret having this little cutie." She loved babies, who didn't? "Could be better." No kidding. "How old is she?" Her head turned back to look at the small child and she smiled slightly.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

"'Regret' makes it sound like a bit more of a decision," I mutter, shrugging yet again. I frown, about to ask about the 'could be better,' but as usual she has to introduce yet another topic, so there's no real way to do so. I'll get back to it later.
"I don't actually know," I shrug, glancing at Melody. "La- her mother might've mentioned, but I don't remember. Plus, I'm not even sure what month it is. But she can't walk or talk yet if that's any help."

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] Bella wasn't too happy finding out she was pregnant at seventeen either, but they were older now, more responsible. "September, I believe. Who's her mother? If your willing to tell me of course." Now she was curious. She bounced the baby lightly and her smile slightly widened.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

September already? I shrug slightly. I haven't had a good grasp of time for a while now, so that still isn't very helpful... though February is sounding naggingly familiar in my head, so possibly that's when Melody was born.
"I wouldn't really count on it... but for her sake, maybe I should hope." I shrug slightly, then hesitate as I try to figure out how to phrase this without sounding like an idiot. There really doesn't seem to be a way, however, so screw it - it isn't going to kill the girl. "... Lacey, to be honest, doesn't really want anything to do with the kid now that she's handed her over to me, so... actually she would prefer I didn't even tell you her name. So I guess that's all I can say."
I shrug again, wondering if maybe we are done talking about me now so I can ask her what exactly prompted this visit. Is it normal for people to suddenly drop in on old school friends they haven't seen in years? No. In my experience, people only do that when they're feeling desperate for some reason... though I could be wrong.

[Isabella Parker]

[/b]

"Lacey? Never heard of her." She gave a small shrug. "She must be very pretty though." It was quiet for a moment and she could tell he was still going to change the subject to why she was here. He was quick to get her questions out the way, the ones she counted on to distract her from her own problems, not that she didn't care about his. But of course family was pretty much all they ever talked about; how messed up life was is. She would wait though, until he brought it up.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

I shrug, not about to comment any further as far as Melody's mother is concerned, then grimacing slightly, as I did when I first heard the words 'mini-Fitzy.' God forbid.
"I hand her off to Arden, honestly, so that she'll turn out anything but like me. Not that there's much hope, overall, considering the gene pool, but I guess there have been exceptions." I shrug slightly. "Not that I can do that anymore, anyway, what with Arden disappearing."

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] He didn't have to though she was sure he did. "She might grow up to be... I don't know, first woman headmaster of Hogwarts." She shrugged again.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

I laugh slightly, deciding to ignore the whole 'you have to love her' thing. Or what, the world ends? Must've done that a few million times by now. "That might be kind of difficult, as I think there was one in the 1660's or so. But... you're right. Maybe she does have half a chance of turning out decent." If I keep her around Lilith as much as possible now that Arden's in Uzbekistan.

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] Isabella looked at Melody and nodded. "I see pontential. She's going to be alright. You worry too much, Fitz." She sighed. "Mind if I sit down?" Melody was pressed against her hip and she was positive that the small girl was getting uncomfortable. It was hard shifting her around when her stomach was poking out.[/ul][/size]

[Fitzy Patricks]

No, I worry enough... unlike most of the world.
I shrug, not replying, then glance around and shrug again. "Yeah, sure... go ahead." Pausing, I go to sit back against the table in the open, indefinable space between kitchen and living room, crossing my arms. "So what brings you here anyway? Just in the neighborhood or what?"

[Isabella Parker]

[/i] visit, just sort of random. In fact, she wondered herself what had brought on the sudden urge to see someone else. "Well, I was getting rather tired of the same circle of people so I decided to see someone else, just sort of wondering how everyone else is doing I suppose." She hoped it made sense as she couldn't really explain why she was here. But just worrying about him was a good enough excuse. She was actually hoping he would have been better after ten years.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

"Everyone else as in... what, the whole rest of our graduating class?" I ask, raising my eyebrows and nearly smiling. "Never mind. What have you been doing all this time, anyway?"

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] His question caught her off guard. She thought of a way to summarize her life in as little detail as possible. "Well, I've been trying to raise a family. In fact I'm pregnant now." A slight small appeared as she glanced back down to Meldoy then back to Fitz. "I married Jack Clark but we're- in the process of getting a divorce." She nodded as if to reassure herself that what she told him was enough and she had phrased her last statement correctly. If he wanted to fine, he could ask. No names would be mentioned.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

I raise my eyebrows again, in kind of a 'hmm, interesting' way, then shrug. "Nosy of me to ask why? I mean... I don't know, you seem pretty matter-of-fact about that."

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] Bella asked quietly. Her forehead wrinkled in thought. "Oh. He told me he and-" She paused for a second and hoped that including Shelby's name wouldn't come back to bite her later, "him and Shelby... got together and she might be pregnant." She tensed at the memory and sighed after a moment. Bella bounced Melody on her knee.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

I raise my eyebrows at that, biting back a comment on the grounds that it really isn't right to call a friend a whore. Not that I mean it entirely seriously, but it still wouldn't be right.
"Reason enough to get divorced then," I say instead, shrugging.

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] Bella said with a humorless laugh. "As long as he's happy, I think I'm okay." As sad as it seemed she still cared about Jack, a lot.[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

"Right," I mutter, shaking my head. "Just as long as he's happy...."

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] She sighed and stopped bouncing Melody on her knee. "What else am I suppose to do?"[/size][/ul]

[Fitzy Patricks]

"Fair point," I shrug, sighing slightly. "I guess it wouldn't do any good to hate the guy, right?"

[Isabella Parker]

[/b] Isabella touched her stomach. "It always ends up this way when I see you doesn't?"[/size][/ul]