Overcast (Colton)

Ella had little Emma in her pink pram. It was an overcast winter day and the young infant was dressed in a long sleeved onesie embroidered with am 'E'. The baby was asleep as Ella walked to the park to get some fresh air. She enjoyed her daily walks with the baby. She didn't need them, as she had no problem shaking the weight she gained, but she did them anyways.

Sitting down on a bench, she parked the pram beside her and picked up the baby, snuggling her against her body. She adored the child more than anyone, especially now that her marriage was falling apart. As the baby stirred and opened her blue eyes, almost identical to Ella's, Ella smiled.

Colton sighed slightly with frustration as he walked through the streets of London, pulling his jacket more tightly around himself in response to the icy weather - he had mixed feelings about this part of the world. It was much larger than New Zealand, which was new and exciting for Colton, but it was also absolutely freezing in comparison. Even in the wintertime, Middlemarch - his hometown - didn't drop below moderate temperatures. He wasn't accustomed to the cold here, and he didn't like it one bit.

And at the moment, the size of the city he was in wasn't doing him much good either. Colton was supposed to visit the British Ministry of Magic in order to sort out a few particulars in concern to his New Zealand citizenship. And he was supposed to use the visitor's entrance. Trouble was, London was huge and Colton had no idea how to find his way around. He glanced down at the paper in his hands, which simply told him to go to the abandoned telephone booth adjacent to Hyde Park. What was Hyde Park? He had a vague feeling he was in the right area, but he wasn't sure.

Finally becoming desperate enough, Colton approached a young woman with a baby sitting on a bench to the side of the path. This would be tricky, because he needed to ask for directions without causing the woman any suspicion. But how was one supposed to ask directions to a particular telephone booth without causing suspicion. In the end, he went ahead and asked - he could always wipe her memory if it turned out badly. "Excuse me," he said, walking cautiously up to her. "This is going to sound really strange, but is there an old telephone booth around here?" Yep, he'd probably have to wipe her memory when all was said and done.

Cuddling Emma, Ella watched a confused looking man as he walked. He kept looking down and a paper then looking back up.

Debating whether to help him or not, she looked down to the baby, who seemed a little chilly. Laying her down in her pram, she bundled her up in several blankets. As she looked back up, she noticed the man walking towards her.

He asked her about a telephone booth. There was plenty of them ere but she was sure he meant the one for the ministry. Noticing the accent in his voice, she realised he wasn't from around here. "So, you're looking for the ministry entrance are you?" she smiled, pulling back her jacket to show her auror badge. "Just so you know, there's plenty old telephone booths round here, but only one that stands out to a wizard." she smiled, clearly enjoying herself.

Standing up, she introduced herself as Ella, then followed it up with, "Want me to take you there?"

Colton watched as the woman lay the baby down before responding to him. As he neared her, and she glanced up at him, he was surprised to find that she was much younger than he'd thought. The baby was misleading - she couldn't be any older than he was. He raised an eyebrow in surprise when she responded easily, asking if he was looking for the ministry entrance.

"Er - I'm not sure what - " he started, completely thrown off by this turn of events. But then, she revealed her badge designating her as an auror, and it made a bit more sense. "Yes, that's where I'm trying to get to," he told her, finally returning her smile. "And somehow, I guess I managed to ask the right person."

Then she stood up, introducing herself. "Ella," he repeated. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Colton," he told her, purposely leaving off his last name. She didn't seem to recognize him so far, which meant she probably wasn't much of a quidditch fan. That was good. "Yeah, that would be a huge help," Colton admitted when she offered to show him the way.

She smiled at his confusion. She assumed that he was trying to be discrete and didn't realise most people here are wizards. Walking down the path beside him, she thought back to playing quidditch for Hogwarts and how she missed it.

"Glad to see you're able to fly a broom better than you follow map instructions." she laughed slightly. "If it helps, our visitor entrance is very hidden and discrete. Usually takes a while to remember where it is." She thought back to trying to remember where that entrance was during her 7th year, when she constantly was at the ministry working on paperwork and being hired. Now she just apparates, well, not with the baby.

Oh. So she did recognize him. But she didn't seem to be crazy, so that was good. She had a baby. People with babies were probably more mature and less likely to obsess over him. "Yeah, I suppose I'd be out of a job otherwise," he replied lightly, assuming that her words were a compliment but not particularly sure.

"Guess it has to be," he replied, as she told him that the visitor's entrance was really discrete. "Guess it has to be, in a place as busy as this. Though, Dublin could give it a run for it's money," he added, thinking of the busy streets of the city in Ireland. He had only just moved there, due to the offer he'd received from Ireland's team. "I only know that it's a... phonebooth across from hyde park," he said, reading the last bit off of his paper. "Not very helpful, is it?"

Glancing down at the pram that the girl was pushing, he ventured to ask, "What's her name?" He didn't really care particularly, but it would feel awkward to walk in silence. And wasn't it customary to ask questions about a baby when it was present? If nothing else, it was an easy topic - mothers could usually gush on forever about their children. Though, he momentarily wondered if this was actually the child's mother. She seemed pretty young.

"Not really, but the Ministry likes getting humour out of things like that." she thought to the time they left even more vague instructions. Ella walked on a little as he spoke. Soon, he started asking about the baby.

Glancing down at the baby, she looked back up at him, "Emma Riddle" she said smiling. Ella thought back to her first days with Emma, the day she found out she was pregnant, the day she found out Emma was a girl, those days were the best. She remembered not wanting the baby, but wanting her all at the same time.